Resources for Your Journey
Quakers value spiritual journeys for both individuals and communities. Tacoma Friends Meeting particularly welcomes people who are seeking, people who are journeying spiritually even when – perhaps especially when – the destination is uncertain. We offer a range of scheduled spiritual enrichment opportunities (see our webpage, “Spiritual Enrichment”), and many Tacoma Friends are eager to engage in casual conversation on spiritual matters. In addition, many in-person and online meetings of Quakers over the course of a year offer plenty of possibilities for spiritual enrichment in community.
Self-directed investigation can be thrilling, often leading to unexpected discovery. Here are some recommended starting points for individual inquiry:
Quick Takes On the Quaker Way
Quaker Silent Worship (7 min. video)
Quaker Values (7 min.)
The Quaker Way from Friends General Conference
Quaker.org from Friends Publishing
Resources for Learning More
QuakerSpeak – a long-running series of short videos on things Quaker; collection is searchable by topic
Quakerism 101 – a self-guided course on the history, theology, and practice of Quakerism; this version from Friends Meeting of Washington
Some Common Quaker Jargon – handy lexicon to clairfy unfamiliar words and phrases that have special meaning in the context of Quakerism
Meeting for Worship for Newcomers and Seekers – a monthly virtual opportunity for Quaker worship with opportunity to ask questions and reflect on the experience
Thee Quaker: Quaker Media for the 21st Century – an engaging podcast & more launched by the founder of QuakerSpeak videos
Western Friend: Quaker Plain Speech and Spirit in the West – a monthly news magazine, events clearinghouse, and information repository for all things Quaker in the West
Some Recommended Books
Geoffrey Durham, What Do Quakers Believe? (CAB, 2019
Phillip Gulley, Living the Quaker Way (Convergent, 2013)
Howard Brinton and Margaret Hope Bacon, Friends for 350 Years:
The History and Beliefs of Friends (Pendle Hill, 1965, 2002)
Geoffrey Hubbard, Quaker by Convincement (Penguin, 1974)
Quaker Meeting Websites
Tacoma Friends Meeting (local)
Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting (area)
North Pacific Yearly Meeting (regional)
Friends General Conference (national)
Quakers in Action
Friends Committee on National Legislation
Quaker Voice on Washington Public Policy (Washington State)
American Friends Service Committee
Friends Peace Teams
Beyond These Resources
Tacoma Friends Meeting offers two extended study series for those who wish to dive more deeply into the history, values, and spirituality of Quakers. One, a seven-meeting series we call Exploring Quaker Spirituality (EQS), engages Geoffrey Durham’s What Do Quakers Believe (2019) as a shared reading source for wide-ranging discussions. It is supplemented by several Quaker Speak videos and other documents to deepen understanding and fuel discussion. The other series, Quakerism 101, is richer in the number and range of resources used, somewhat deeper in texts and history, and so entails more reading and viewing time prior to meetings. For 2026-27, EQS will be offered in the Fall and Spring, and Quakerism 101 will be offered in the Winter.
Friend in Public Ministry, Chaplain Verna Lilly
Verna Lilly, a community chaplain under the endorsement of Tacoma Friends Meeting, brings over 30 years of experience with Quaker traditions to her work as a chaplain with particular concern for marginalized people and the agencies that serve them. Her public-facing ministry intentionally serves people of all faiths, or none, with the single goal of supporting the unique expression of spirituality in each life. She can be reached at chaplainverna@gmail.com