Fundamental Beliefs of Conservative Friends #20 Truth and Simplicity Artwork

Ohio Yearly Meeting's Podcast

This is a podcast of Ohio Yearly Meeting. We are a collection of Conservative Quaker Meetings based primarily in Ohio. By conservative, we do not mean politically conservative. Conservative Friends are known for their commitment to conserve the Original message of the first generation of Quakers. These Quakers, in turn, saw their movement as a revival of primitive Christianity. We hope the installments of our podcasts will present the understandings of Conservative Quakerism.

So, if thee is interested in learning the differences between Conservative Quakers and other Quakers, or would like to understand differences between Quakers and other Christians, thee may well be at the right place. On the other hand, the Conservative Quaker perspective is so strikingly unique in contemporary society, that it will be a balm to many seeking spiritual fulfillment. To assist these seekers is the true intent of publishing our podcast.

A good many of the podcast installments will be presented by Henry Jason. Henry is knowledgeable in the Greek of the New Testament and has a fascinating way of tying the meaning of the original words with the writings of early Friends. Listening to him provides a refreshing view of scripture and is an excellent way to learn about original Quaker theology. Henry's podcasts are usually bible classes and so they are often interspersed with discussions, questions and insightful comments by his students.

The music in our podcasts is from Paulette Meier's CDs: Timeless Quaker Wisdom in Plainsong and Wellsprings of Life available at paulettemeier.com.

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Ohio Yearly Meeting's Podcast

Fundamental Beliefs of Conservative Friends #20 Truth and Simplicity

August 17, 2022 • Henry Jason

Fundamentals #20

Friends’ attitudes concerning Truth, Deceit, pride, plainness in language, dress, and related topics are addressed.

Early Friends concern for “Truth" was central. We would capitalize the word “Truth” when they used it, i.e., the Truth that was the divine entity and living Spirit of God, the Spirit of Truth.

John 14:6-7 was very important for Friends: It pointed to Christ Jesus, the living embodiment of that Spirit of Truth. In Greek, the word for "truth" also meant “reality”. In early Quakerism, “Truth” was frequently a synonym for the living embodiment of Christ. They called themselves children of, members of, or followers of Truth.

Regarding Genesis 3:1-7, in the Middle East, the serpent symbolized earthly wisdom. In Genesis 3:1-7 the serpent presents the first instance of deceit with mankind, Adam and Eve. As we have that same proclivity to sin, at some point as we grow up, we each are deceived by Satan and the world he rules.

The phrase “long, dark night of the apostasy” was used by early Friends to describe the many false teachings, misunderstandings and doctrines that crept into Christianity over the centuries. “Orthodox” in Greek means having correct opinions and beliefs.

The sin of pride in Adam and Eve was in wanting to become like gods, by choosing the earthly wisdom of Satan.

One aspect of "plain speech" grew out of early Friends’ concern for truth: The names of the days of the week and months in English are largely drawn from the names of pagan gods and goddesses: In strict adherence to truthfulness, Friends rejected the implied worship of gods and goddesses, and numbered rather than named the days and months.

A second issue of “plainness" was the use of certain pronouns: In older English, the singular pronouns “thou”, “thee” and “thy” were used when speaking to one person (modern: you your). The originally plural pronouns “ye” and “you” were used only for addressing two or more people. But by the mid-1600s, in many parts of England, the plural pronouns “ye”, “you” and “your” were expected when speaking to one person having a higher social rank than oneself (royalty, nobility, a government official, etc.). Friends saw this as status-recognizing, socially egotistical and prideful. Using the singular forms “thou”, “thee” and “thy” with those of higher social status caused much difficulty for early Friends.

Early Friends chose not to be slaves to clothing fashions. Thus, Friends' dress did not change with the fashion of the times. Their dress was a non-frilly, simple, utilitarian version of the clothing of their day. Today, some Conservative Friends do wear traditional plain dress. Among other Conservative Friends, one will not often see frills or loud colors.

Friends

A complete list of our podcasts, organized into topics, is available on our website.

To learn more about Ohio Yearly Meeting (Conservative) of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), please visit ohioyearlymeeting.org.

Those interested in exploring the distinctives of Conservative Friends waiting worship should consider checking out our many Zoom Online Worship opportunities during the week here. All are welcome!

We also have several Zoom study groups. Check out the Online Study and Discussion Groups on our website.

Advices read in these podcasts can be found on page 29 in our Book Of Discipline.

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