770 



QUAKERS. 



observance of the ceremonies of religion, the true 

 peace, and that victory over sin which they longed 

 tor, they were induced to seek, by prayer arid me- 

 ditation, a nearer and more intimate communion with 

 the God of their lives. They diligently searched 

 the Holy Scriptures, and found in those sacred re- 

 cords a clear testimony borne to the important 

 truth, that, " the grace of God, which bringeth sal- 

 vation, hath appeared unto all men." Continuing 

 in an humble, seeking state of mind, they gradually 

 became acquainted with its secret influences on 

 their hearts, inclining them to virtue and holiness, 

 and warning them against the commission of evil. 

 As they submitted to its heart-changing operation, 

 they experienced the bondage of sin and the power 

 of the tempter to be broken, and received ability to 

 live in the fear and favour of God. As George Fox 

 was led to bear a clear and convincing testimony in 

 his ministry to the inshining of this divine light, 

 and to direct the people to its teachings, his doc- 

 trine met with a cm-dial assent in minds thus hap- 

 pily prepared to receive it ; and to this cause we 

 may attribute the rapid increase of the society of 

 Friends. Being thus instructed in the things per- 

 taining to salvation, and their understandings en- 

 lightened to see the beauty and excellency of the 

 Christian religion as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, 

 and knowing by experience the blessedness of being 

 " born again of the Spirit," they felt the love of 

 God constraining them to declare unto others those 

 things which the Lord had done for their souls. 

 Feelings of this character, as well as the belief that 

 they were called of God to the ministry of the gos- 

 pel, induced many of them to engage in this solemn 

 undertaking, and, without any prospect or hope of 

 pecuniary reward, to travel extensively in England 

 and foreign cou n tries, to promulgate the glad tidings 

 of life and salvation. Among the eminent ministers 

 of the society, we may notice George Fox, William 

 Penn, Robert Barclay, George Whitehead, Stephen 

 Crisp, Isaac Pennington, John Crook, Thomas 

 Story, &c. The infant society was soon subjected 

 to the rigours of a severe persecution, sometimes 

 without the pretext of law, and at other times, un- 

 der cover of legal enactments, made either in Ro- 

 man Catholic times, or since the reformation against 

 non-conformists. The principle subjects which led 

 to the persecution of the early Quakers were, their 

 testimonies against oaths, a hireling ministry, tithes, 

 and other ecclesiastical demands ; the use of the 

 singular pronouns when addressing only one person; 

 their refusal to take off the hat as a compliment to 

 men ; and tne faithful maintenance of their religi- 

 ous meetings. George Fox was one of the first 

 who was imprisoned. In 1649, he was confined in 

 Nottingham gaol, for opposing a minister on a point 

 of doctrine ; and, in the following year, being ar- 

 raigned before two justices in Derbyshire, he ex- 

 horted those about him to tremble at the word of 

 God. One of the justices, scoffing at the pious advice 

 of the minister, deridingly gave him and his friends 

 the appellation of Quakers, which has since been 

 generally applied to them by the world, though they 

 themselves, as well as their successors, have adopted 

 the name of Friends. The violence of persecution 

 only tended to confirm the faith and strengthen the 

 bond of union among the members of the rising so- 

 ciety. Its ministers, fearless of suffering, and ar- 

 dently devoted to the cause of Christ, boldly 

 preached their doctrines both publicly and privately 

 and were not deterred from their gospel labours by 

 the severest punishments. The members, with one 

 accord, united in strengthening each other's faith, 

 encouraging all to continue steadfast to the religion 

 they had espoused, and to endure with patience and 



even cheerfulness, the loss of (heir estates, imprison- 

 ment, fines, whipping, banishment from home and 

 country, and even death itself, rather than renounce 

 their principles or violate their testimonies. The 

 spirit of intolerance which caused the society so 

 much suffering in England spread its baneful influ- 

 ence to America, and produced its natural results 

 there also ; but in neither country could it shake the 

 constancy of the sufferers nor induce them to relin- 

 quish their conformity to apprehended duty. Their 

 patient submission to the wrongs inflicted on them, 

 the integrity and blamelessuess of their lives, their 

 probity, and the peaceable principles which they 

 held, not only wrought conviction on the minds of 

 many, and thus added to their numbers, but also had 

 a favourable influence on those in authority, who saw 

 that severity served rather to increase and estab- 

 lish the society than to arrest its progress. From 

 these causes, as well as the diffusion of more liberal 

 and enlightened views on the subject of religious 

 liberty, acts were successively passed by the British 

 parliament, relieving Friends from the oppression 

 under which they suffered, and tolerating their 

 mode of worship, marriage, &c., as well as some of 

 their testimonies. The same liberal policy has been 

 continued by the American government, so that at 

 present they suffer no other molestation in that 

 country, than the occasional distraint of their pro- 

 perty to satisfy demands made in lieu of military 

 services, which they cannot conscientiously pay. 

 In this country they are subject to distraints for 

 tithes and other ecclesiastical demands, which, 

 with a few for military services, amount to about 

 13,500 annually. The first Friends that went 

 to America were two female ministers, who landed 

 at Boston about the year 1 656. Others occasionally 

 visited that country at subsequent periods ; and, a 

 number of persons having embraced the principles 

 of the society, George Fox went over in 1672, and 

 settled meetings of discipline, for the care of the 

 poor and the preservation of good order in the 

 church. At this period, there were meetings of 

 Friends in most of the colonies along the seacoast 

 from Massachusetts as far south as the Carolina?. 

 In 1682, William Penn arrived in the river Dela- 

 ware with a large number of his brethren, who 

 founded the city of Philadelphia, and settled them- 

 selves there or in the adjacent counties ; and in 

 each successive year their numbers were increased 

 by new emigrants from the mother country, until 

 they formed a large and respectable colony. Most 

 of the ancient families in Philadelphia and its vicin- 

 ity trace their origin to these settlers, and many of 

 the noblest institutions of that city owe their rise to the 

 liberality and benevolence of the society of Friends. 

 In attempting to give a view of their testimonies 

 and doctrines, the limits, necessarily prescribed in 

 an Encyclopaedia, forbid any thing more than a 

 brief sketch. The society believes that, under the 

 gospel dispensation, all wars and fightings are 

 strictly forbidden ; the positive injunction of our 

 blessed Saviour Jesus Christ, " Love your enemies, 

 bless them that curse you, do good to them that 

 hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use 

 you and persecute you," entirely precluding the indul- 

 gence of those malignant passions, from which only 

 such contests can arise. They also apprehend that 

 the express command of our Lord and his apostle 

 James, " Swear not at all," prohibits the Christian 

 from the use of judicial as well as other oaths, and 

 that iu all things his word should be yea and nay, 

 " for whatsoever is more than this cometh of evil." 

 As Jesus Christ declared to his disciples, that with- 

 out him they could do nothing, and as he alone is 

 the Head and Governor of his church, the society 



