Curious about Quakers? Want to learn more? Many of the resources below can be borrowed at the Annapolis Friends Library in our Meetinghouse
Acronyms & Initials
Quakers have many initials and acronyms that abreviate the long titles of the names for committees, organizations and activities. A resource is Quaker Acronyms, Initials & Terms, which is a list of the most frequently used acronyms at Annapolis Friends Meeting (AFM).
Magazines
Friends Journal is a monthly magazine about “Quaker thought and life today,” which consists of brief articles, readers’ contributions, essays and poems, considering their daily lives and spiritual concerns.
- Non-violence: How Some Friends Quakers Approach Crisis (2023) – Podcast and Transcript
Quaker Life, published four times annually, is a mosaic of Friendly living which provides inviting and compelling content by Friends. The reflections, story-telling, and images within the pages offer insight into what it looks like and feels like to live as a Friend in today’s world. Quaker Life is a ministry of Friends United Meeting, a global communion of Friends Churches and Meetings in North America, Africa, the Caribbean, and Palestine.
Videos
QuakerSpeak is a weekly Quaker video project from Friends Journal. The short videos interview Quakers from all different backgrounds are a great way to learn more about Quaker faith and practices.
Podcasts
Quakers Today is a project of The Friends Publishing Corporation that features writers, musicians, and thinkers seeking wisdom and understanding in a rapidly changing world.
Fiction
The Peaceable Kingdom, by Jan DeHartog (1971) This lengthy novel was a best seller. Based on real historic individuals, the book dramatizes the beginning of the Quaker movement in the mid-1600’s in England. It is the first of a trilogy.
I Take Thee, Serenity, by Daisy Newman (1994) This novel involves a traditional Quaker family during the 1970’s. There also is a sequel. Both books are available in the AFM library.
The Friendly Persuasion, by Jessamyn West (1945) This novel tells the story of a Quaker family in southern Indiana in the mid-19th Century and their struggle to decide how to react to the Civil War. You can also rent the 1956 movie starring Gary Cooper, Dorothy McGuire and Tony Perkins.
Historic and Social References
Friends for 300 Years, by Howard Brinton (1964) is a history of the Quaker movement. Thoughtful and scholarly, this is one of the most complete and readable references a new attender might choose.
Pamphlets
Pendle Hill Pamphlets and Bookstore provide a scholarly Quaker viewpoint on a wide variety of theological, social and lifestyle topics. The pamphlets are published six times a year.
Friends General Conference publishes a full range of Quaker and non-quaker literature.