Henry continues his examination of the document “A Brief Synopsis of the Principles and Testimonies of the Religious Society of Friends”. This document was created in 1912 and was adopted by the seven then-existing Conservative Yearly Meetings of Friends: Ohio, North Carolina, Iowa, New England, Canada, Kansas, Western. It was printed in 1913, and was created in order to communicate in the rapidly-changing world of the early 1900s and to demonstrate that the beliefs of Conservative Friends were very close to those of the original, Friends of the 17th century.
Henry begins with the concept of baptism. Friends had a much different concept of baptism than that which was prevalent among most religious groups in the mid-1600s: Friends believed an individual must be baptized into, and changed from the inside out by the basic nature of God. What was vital for a true baptism was not the commonly used water, but, rather, that God be allowed to begin His work of complete and total transformation of the heart, consciousness, mind and spirit in the individual.
Next, he discusses the concept of types and shadows. These were understood to be a prototype or a draft. As a result, early Friends often looked at the experiences recorded in the Old Testament as things which should be looked at internally . . . within oneself. For example, they understood the battles of Revelation to be spiritual battles within the believer, rather than predictions of future events.
The Eucharist was understood differently by Friends. This is highlighted by Jesus in John 4:23-24 when he says that the true worshippers will worship in spirit and in truth. Thus, they looked for a direct connection with God and did not rely on an outward ceremony (with physical bread and wine). They observed that outward ceremonies had little impact on creating an inward, eternal, spiritual change.
The peace testimony was a result of Friends’ mindset of being radically changed from within. Thus, the Friends commitment of loving our enemies and those who would spitefully use us was a return to the pacifism of the first several centuries of Christianity.
Friends did not take oaths. To take an oath implies that one does not always tell the truth. However, to affirm that one was telling the truth meant that in the past and now I will continue to tell the truth. Many Friends suffered greatly for not taking a required oath, to the point of many losing all their earthly possessions.
The Bible was understood by Friends as the “Scriptures of Truth”. Thus, Friends did not call the Holy Scriptures, “the word”, since “word” in the New Testament is used to describe Jesus, and not the written words of the Holy Scriptures. The Holy Spirit must help us interpret the meaning of the Holy Scriptures. However, the Bible is more important than any other book to help us understand Who God is and how He works among people.
A minister cannot be created by attending a school or seminary. Friends have always believed that God is the one who creates ministers and God can also remove that gift at any time. Christ is the Minister of ministers.
Regarding plainness, some Conservative Friends maintain traditional plain dress, and traditional plain speech, wh
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