A close-up of the figures Friends added ministry to during all-age worship. Photo: Mike Pinches for BYM.
Yearly Meeting 2026
‘Do we still have the power to turn the world upside down?’
The Opening Session of Yearly Meeting (YM)began with Siobhán Haire, deputy recording clerk, expressing optimism: ‘This year we’re going to have at least one, and possibly two, sessions in which nobody’s mobile phone goes off. Can you assist me in realising that dream?’
The Meeting settled into a period of worship, with a reading from Quaker faith & practice 12.01: ‘Every conversation with another friend, every business meeting… can increase our loving and caring and our knowledge of each other.’ No spoken ministry was offered.
Adwoa Burnley, the outgoing clerk, was up next: ‘The first thing for me to do – the only thing for me to do – is to appoint your [new] clerks.’ These were Fred Langridge, Mary Aiston (first assistant) and Jane Harries (second assistant).
Fred went through the YM process, where ‘Our job as clerks is to guide the process of the discernment, not to guide the result of the discernment’.
Then, after Mary (also clerk of Yearly Meeting Agenda Committee)went through the weekend’s agenda, Lee Taylor, co-convener of the YM elders, described their role as offering a ministry of ‘prayer, presence, and counsel’. Hilary Tucker, co-convener of the pastoral support team, wanted ‘everyone to think about creating a culture of care’.
Nominations was next. Jane acknowledged that while these ‘can feel like very dry business’, going through them was ‘an essential part of what we are about… It’s awesome how many people it takes to make our Society work’. True enough, but most Friends were glad about the new practice of not reading through every name.
Mary then presented the Quaker Housing Trust report, noting that it comes to YM as part of the trust’s governance (and, as one Friend later clarified, because ‘we adopted housing as a Quaker concern some years ago. This is our collective project’).
After letters of greeting from other Meetings, Catherine Tylke was asked to give her reflections on October 2025’s Quaker Earthcare Gathering. She spoke of her initial insecurities and a feeling of bringing nothing to the table, but her ‘raw and very personal’ ministry created an ‘unexpectedly, deeply feeling place’ for attendees.
Catherine highlighted the gathering’s focus on bearing witness in the unfolding climate and ecological crises, and the need to listen, support and uphold each other. She realised her unique contribution was to hold the space for other people, emphasising the power of giving others the space to be fully seen and fully heard. ‘We are more than the sum of our parts’, she reminded Friends.
In the following worship, one Friend offered a prayer: ‘Thank you, dear God, for this precious gift we’ve been given: this opportunity to Meet together, to hear of your work, to feel your work in each other’s lives. Help us to help each other.’
Another Friend shared an experience of visiting Finchley Reform Synagogue after the attempted arson attack. Through centuries of persecution, oppression and exile, she said, Jews had held on to their faith. How could Friends support faith groups near to us who are living in fear and anxiety, but still celebrate their faith? ‘And how do we hold on to our faith right now?’
One Friend asked the Meeting to hold a Friend from north Scotland in the Light. He was on the Gaza aid flotilla, which had been intercepted by the military.
The Tabular Statement hadn’t gotten much of a mention, thought one Friend. He wanted to celebrate the fact that it showed a rise in membership and attendance, the best for thirty-four years.
Another Friend referred to the difficult situation for Friends in Cuba, having visited four times. They were unable to hold their Yearly Meeting ‘because the price of one gallon of fuel is more than double what a Cuban earns in a month’. She urged Friends to hold them in their hearts. ‘They are warm people. They are our brothers and sisters.’
In the last piece of vocal ministry, the speaker wanted to uphold Catherine. They noted that the epistle from the Earthcare Gathering was clear that ‘we must go further’. ‘What can we do but do what we can?’
The opening worship of Session 2 started with strong ministry. ‘Sometimes I feel battered by other people’s certainties… doubt and uncertainty are vital to my spiritual growth and… even if I am in agreement with them… I feel hurt, because it’s not a listening exercise anymore… if we have so much certainty, our minds close… And we are not the diverse, open, equal society that I hope… we can still be led to be.’
Fred then set out the morning agenda, saying there were 230 connections online (each usually had ‘one and a quarter people’, he said, to laughs), and there were around 500 in the room at Friends House.
Reminding Friends about the guide-posts of ministry (‘Is this coming from the Spirit… or is it me? Is it the right time… or has the point already been made?’), Fred introduced interfaith visitors who briefly shared their names: Vincent Nichols, until recently the Catholic archbishop of Westminster; Paul Robinson, a minister from the Salvation Army; and Paulina Hławiczka-Trotman, head of the Lutheran Church in UK and representative of the section of Churches Together in England that Quakers are part of. Fred also welcomed Quakers visiting from Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) Asia West Pacific Section.
‘It is important to accept that not everyone can find a sense of belonging in every group or community, but it is crucial for everyone to have spaces where they do belong… And communities can be created with intention,’ said Rose Eccles, reading a minute from Junior YM on the need to listen, talk and be fully present in a divided world. After a video of prepared ministry, the session’s central question was put to the room: ‘How can we develop our Spirit-led connection at the heart and at the edges of our communities?’
One Friend started by sharing their joy at being there. ‘When I presented male, I had one rule: don’t be vulnerable… there is no rule that you can follow to avoid cruelty… be kind.’
One terminally-ill Friend used to minister that people don’t want tolerance, but need acceptance, shared another Quaker, and this requires listening. ‘If we are to truly know ourselves and develop as a community, we need to be safe enough to be vulnerable, and that relies on truly listening and accepting.’
Referring to being Spirit-led, ‘it is worth considering what the fruits of the Spirit are,’ said another, offering: ‘Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.’
In response to the opening ministry, one Friend said they had ‘an experience of being battered by theological diversity’, and described their ‘famished’ need for a ‘shared language, shared expression’. Speaking of an Anglican communion service, they said: ‘There is something incredibly powerful about doing something together where you are using the same language and the same symbols… I guess I am making an appeal to the pain that comes with theological diversity and asking… can we work on our shared vocabulary to deepen our sense of connection?’
There was more discernment on what constitutes ‘Spirit-led’. In online preparatory Meetings, one question was: ‘How can we ensure that?’ ‘We cannot ensure anything,’ said the Friend. ‘The Spirit knows what the Spirit will. As soon as we talk about ensuring, we are not being vulnerable, or trusting.’ All we can do is ‘be kind’ and ‘have the best intentions’.
Another Friend spoke about the universal experience of embodied feelings. ‘When someone is excluded or marginalised, when someone is treated kindly, we feel it in our bodies.’ Remembering that other people share our ‘visceral’ experiences of happiness or pain ‘might help us’.
‘If we have so much certainty, our minds close.’
On hearing the word ‘God’ repeated on the video, ‘I felt a knot untie in my chest’, shared another, on the subject of shared language. The easiest way to describe Quakerism is through the phrase ‘there is that of God in everyone’ which people usually understand. They also loved the video ministry which described finding God in the spaces between the trees or the light flooding down. Could Meetings evoke these kinds of images?
One Friend loved the phrase in the video saying that ‘what comes from us is finite, and what comes through is infinite’ and would love to hear Quakers talk more about how they know their ministry is ‘coming through them and not from them’.
The answer to this is perhaps our embodied and experiential knowledge of God, said one Friend, and ‘that is why we are called Quakers’. ‘We know [it is Spirit-led] because we feel joy – that is our guarantee.’
Listening to the wonderful ministry had reminded one Friend of the parable of the Good Samaritan: ‘We are told to love thy neighbour but quite often we should be asking ourselves: who is our neighbour? And can we find similarities between ourselves, rather than getting stuck in our differences?’ This was a personal challenge, they said, seeing not just the persecuted as neighbours, but ‘those who are full of hatred – we need to seek common ground there too’.
There was more talk about the word ‘Spirit’, with one Friend observing that it is an ‘inclusive word… a really elastic placemarker, which can be filled with many other names’. How do we find a shared language amid such diversity? It was important to think about our ‘prejudices and assumptions’, said another, so we don’t project those onto what we feel is Spirit-led. ‘When I think of Spirit, I think of wind and movement.’ While there is time for a gentle breeze of calm, ‘there is also a time for a wild wind that whips up a firestorm and burns down injustice, releasing seeds for new growth’.
Another Friend said ‘we should acknowledge the limitations of kindness… who is bestowing kindness? And does that inherently involve power imbalances?’ While vulnerability is something that we can choose, it’s also involuntary and ‘some people are structurally more vulnerable than others and that has real impact’.
Music is universal and transcends boundaries, suggested another Friend. Would more singing unite us because it ‘connects us in a deeper place than words’.
After a few minutes, clerks offered a long draft minute which noted: ‘When we are kind and choose freely to be vulnerable, we can make space to connect to God, other people and our true selves.’
After Friends ministered with minor changes, one stood to say ‘there is so much wrong with this minute’. They believed that it was a pat series of phrases to cover a session in which no final discernment had been accomplished. The words upset some Friends in the room, with one crying out in what seemed like despair. ‘It’s horrible,’ he cried. Elders and pastoral support were quick to attend (one Friend online also needed pastoral support). ‘You’ve been heard,’ said the assistant clerk, before the final minute was passed.
Session 3 began with ministry from one Friend reflecting on the privilege of being at Yearly Meeting in London, in contrast to Friends in Cuba, whose Yearly Meeting (Friends had heard on Friday) was cancelled because ‘a gallon of petrol was roughly equivalent to a month’s salary.’ He also noted the cancellation of the Middle East Yearly Meeting in Brummana due to war, and the inequality faced by students there still required to sit exams, unlike those in the Gulf states. He urged Friends to ‘hold the whole region in the Light’.
Another Friend spoke of feeling ‘the Spirit of the living God, the Spirit of Christ… drawing us with cords of tender care’. But there were ‘other spirits’, he said, ‘Spirits of envy and greed… of judgment… How much we need each other to hear the voice of love amid those other spirits. Isn’t that why God draws us to each other?’
After worship Friends heard a minute from the ‘New Shoots’ group (aged nought to two). They had been ‘learning to share and have enjoyed eating together’.
Eleanor Coss, from Arrangements Committee, then read part of the epistle from Monteverde Monthly Meeting, in Costa Rica. It used the metaphor of a crashing pine tree leaving a gap in the forest: ‘Disturbance by its very nature invites change. The gap in the forest community allows new trees, needing light and space, to begin to grow. Our human community is no different.’
The session then moved on to the final report from Meeting for Sufferings. Robert Card, its clerk, expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve, acknowledging ‘moments of difficulty but, on the whole… it has been fun’. Friends were then amused to hear that Robert intended to offer a Testimony to the grace of God in the life of Meeting for Sufferings. He took Friends through its 350-year history, from responding to persecution in 1675 to its contemporary advocacy for climate inclusion and nonviolent protest. He highlighted its role in connecting local and national communities, upholding spiritual principles, and nurturing discernment. He concluded with his belief that, while the structure of Meeting for Sufferings would be laid down, ‘the networks, principles and practices it fosters will continue’.
Questions for Robert followed. One Friend raised concerns about the [temporary] suspension of the courts and prison register. She hoped Friends would continue to uphold Friends being processed by the justice system, not just those already convicted. She was reassured that YM would be picking up this work, possibly to include people who hadn’t actually been convicted. YM would ensure periodic, appropriate commemoration of those suffering for their faith.
Ingrid Greenhow, clerk of the new Agenda Planning Committee (APC), then presented its first report. She introduced the committee, explaining its role in discerning agendas for the new multi-session Yearly Meeting format, which would simply be named ‘Yearly Meeting,’ with its month and date (so the next one is YM July 2026). She announced that the committee was going to try an experiment: allowing ‘all Quaker groups who have a clerk with whom we can correspond’ to submit minutes. She did caution that ‘quality is better than quantity’ and that not all minutes would make it onto the agenda. She went on to disclose upcoming agenda items, including time for discernment on ‘new ways of belonging’, reparations for Quaker involvement in the slave trade, and an introduction to the new book of discipline.
Ingrid emphasised that the APC was ‘still a work in progress’, aiming for flexibility and responsiveness, and that preparatory materials would be ‘shorter and easier to read’.
Friends had some questions: why would Area Meetings be sending representatives to YM sessions (as they had for Sufferings), when they were open to everyone? To ensure ‘continuity’ and to create a ‘much closer bond’ with Local and Area Meetings, said Ingrid. One Friend raised concerns about the confusing use of the word ‘yearly’ for four meetings a year, and the dual meaning of ‘Meeting’ (as a group and an event), suggesting a renaming opportunity.
It was ‘a bit beyond our scope’ to rename Yearly Meeting, said Ingrid, but reminded Friends that it was ‘one Yearly Meeting over four sessions’.
After a break, Fred noted the presence of around 400-450 Friends in the room – it did indeed feel full – and 180 online.
The agenda turned to the revision of constitutional documents, necessary given the transition from Meeting for Sufferings. This included the governing document (submitted to the Charity Commission).
Sarah Donaldson, from BYM, presented the proposed changes. She assured Friends that the document was ‘fully Quaker’, legally vetted, and ‘future proof[ing] a couple of things in the way we use language’ to include all constituent bodies, like Quakers in Scotland.
One Friend worried that ‘transformative’ concerns (such as his own to repudiate capitalism and adopt cooperative socialism), would be impossible under charity law, which he understood to only permit ‘ameliorative’ actions. Nothing had really changed here, said Sarah. Campaigning for change remained consistent under the new structure. The minute (plus one accepting revised terms of reference for BYM trustees) was approved.
Paul Parker, recording clerk, was joined by Martin Burnell, of the Church Government Advisory Group, to address amendments to Quaker faith & practice. One ‘substantive’ change was to Chapter Six, which defines Yearly Meeting itself. He noted that the revised chapter would have less detail than its predecessor, focusing on essential principles with procedural details moved to supplementary material.
Fred then introduced what he called a ‘momentous occasion’: the formal laying down of Meeting for Sufferings. The minute gave thanks for its work over its long history.
A period of silent worship followed, with a former clerk expressing sadness at the loss of tradition, but concluding that the decision was the right one, urging Friends to go forward ‘in faith and determination’.
The last item on the agenda for the day was Central Nominations Committee. Gill Greenfield and Eleanor Brooks, co-clerks, presented its report. They emphasised reaching out to the ‘widest circle of Friends’ to find their diverse gifts: ‘We need to know who is out there so that, with loving discernment, we can find the best match of gifts to roles.’ A short film showcased Friends’ experiences of nominations service. It was ‘a duty and a pleasure’, said one, ‘a really enriching experience’. The co-clerks hoped the film left Friends with a ‘feel-good factor to help move us on’ from the ‘bereavement’ felt by the laying down of Meeting for Sufferings.
At this point, Friends online lost the audio signal in the room (a faulty fan on a Friends House computer). While waiting for them, Friends in the room figured out how to pass the time. They ended up singing some verses from ‘Dear Lord and Father of Mankind’, a Quaker hymn with a perhaps unQuakerly first line. More singing would come this weekend, but Friends would remember this one.
By the time the Meeting recommenced, the CNC clerks were a little embarrassed: ‘We’ve only got one line left!’
On Sunday morning, Friends gathered for All Age Worship.
It began with semi-programmed worship, led by the central executive committee of the Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) and the children and young people’s programme, before drawing to a close with unprogrammed worship.
Tim Gee, general secretary of FWCC, introduced four well-known songs, with lyrics ‘written in part by the children and young people’s programme’.
Friends sang ‘Hill of Vision’, ‘Down by the Riverside’ (with lyrics that included ‘I ain’t gonna study war no more’ and ‘I’m gonna share my toys with everyone’) and ‘This Little Light of Mine’ (including the lines ‘Even when the sky is grey, I’m gonna let it shine!’ and ‘When I’m playing with my Friends, I’m gonna let it shine!’).
Tim then led Friends in singing ‘Building bridges’, with lyrics from Greenham Common: ‘Building Bridges between our divisions, / I reach out to you, will you reach out to me? / With all of our voices and all of our visions, / Friends, we could make such sweet harmony.’ It was a beautiful round.
‘Building bridges’ was the theme of the children and young people’s programme, which had been exploring connecting with and seeking to understand others. Friends were invited to take a blank figure and write or draw how they could be a bridge to others. These were collected together at the end and attached to a bridge ‘as ministry for all to see’ (see cover and page nine).
Vocal ministry followed during unprogrammed worship.
One Friend shared different images of what the Light can look like: ‘Sometimes it feels like a small candle, a pin-prick of light in the dark. Sometimes it feels like a camp fire, bringing warmth… And sometimes it feels like a firework bursting in the sky.’
Another shook with emotion as they ministered about the ‘depth of offence’ they felt at war in Iran being framed as being ‘in the name of Christ’. He had learned from a friend in the USA that their family was celebrating the rapture because of it. ‘In terms of building bridges, we, I, am being called to reach to those Christians who would do this atrocity in the name of Christ.’
One Friend offered thanks to the children for being in the room, ‘I just feel that as we here are gathered the Light is with us. We have our future to go forward with. I want to thank everybody.’
One Friend ministered that the word ‘gospel… sometimes makes me uncomfortable, at other times it feels like the only word that can capture what I experience in Worship together – being met by a God that is present amongst us’.
She continued: ‘How joyful, what a blessing it is, that we are not on our own, that we are each met. That we encounter a Living Spirit. Let us step into that light together, each of us, and share the beauty that we find in that.’
Session 4 heard from Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) trustees, the Book of Discipline Revision Committee, and received an update about an upcoming gathering.
The session began with a reading of part of the 2025 epistle from Lake Erie Yearly Meeting: ‘We gathered around the theme of mending our nets… We know you are addressing many of same challenges that grip us, as your nets rend and fray, we pray that you will share openly your grief and you will be called to mend and that you rejoice in your propensity to be woven into wholeness.’
Marisa Johnson, clerk to BYM trustees, and Kit King, assistant clerk gave an oral report (the full report and annual accounts will be presented at a later session).
Marisa described how trustees had reviewed strategic priorities and have set up ‘a programme and prioritisation committee’ made up of trustees, central committee members and other Friends ‘to evaluate existing programmes and make recommendations for prioritising future work’.
She talked about continuing to implement the commitments Yearly Meeting has made to antiracism, climate justice, and trans inclusion. ‘This has not always been easy or uncontested but we have kept our focus on the spirit as well as the letter of minutes you agreed.’
Kit King described how ‘trustees are responsible for the delivery of the programmes under the care of Central Committees’. They spoke of, among other work: how ecumenical accompaniers had to be evacuated and are now doing virtual accompaniment; of the Turning The Tide programme in East Africa helping communities to address the root causes of conflict; and of the peacebuilding work in Britain, which included establishing nearly fifty new peer mediation schemes in primary schools in 2025.
Kit shared that Quaker Peace & Social Witnes (QPSW) Central Committee has set up a peace reference group to assess new threats and how Quakers might best respond. ‘The work involves consultation with the wider Quaker community… the process should result in a confident Quaker voice for peace.’
They concluded: ‘This is a brief presentation of what we, the trustees, and staff have been doing and, of course, we could do more if finances allowed.’
Kit then handed over to BYM treasurer Paul Whitehouse, who spoke about a ‘significant change’ in the Yearly Meeting’s investment policy and management. An investment committee has been reinstated, the services of an experienced investment consultant have been retained, and BYM has rejoined the Church Investors Group.
Describing some of the drawbacks of the previous arrangement, Paul went on to inform Friends that funds are now invested with the Royal London Sustainable Equity Fund and the Royal London Ethical Bond, whose managers ‘prioritise environment, social and governance issues’.
He went on to describe other sources of income, including the rent from Drayton House, the profit from Quiet Company, and donations. ‘The breadth of BYM’s work is huge. All discerned by Friends… Our broad suggestion is that Friends give £20 a month or £240 a year… but this will clearly vary dependent on income.’
He commented: ‘Without the centre, we are just a collection of scattered Local Meetings. BYM helps to sustain our faith now and into the future. The work that you ask us to do has to be paid for.’
The trustees have spent the last few YMs ensuring that Friends are aware that trustees are accountable to them, so it was no surprise that they had lots of questions: the new policy for digitising materials held in the library; what has been done to move forward with the 2025 minute on Gaza; how possible it was going to be to influence companies as a shareholder; how the trustees’ risk assessment might need to change in light of the emergency briefing; when Friends would be hearing about the work of central committees; and the use of Friends House for Friends in London.
A minute of record was offered, which prompted dismayed ministry from one Friend: ‘This session looking at the work of the Society of Friends is the only session that we have for scrutiny of our work, to develop an understanding of it, and it was perfunctory really… I just don’t think that it is appropriate to have allocated such a short time for it.’
This ministry was heard. Mary suggested there might be an opportunity to return to this item during the ‘As Led’ part of the agenda (there was not).
The Meeting then moved on to hearing from the Book of Discipline Revision Committee co-clerks, Rosie Carnall and Catherine Brewer.
They shared the process the committee has been through over the past seven years, and the point they have now reached – including the new working title (Our Quaker Way: The spiritual discipline of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in Britain): ‘We felt we needed to offer a working title at this point to be clear that, as requested, this is a completely new book.’
At the end of March the first draft was handed to the BYM publications team. ‘Our work continues but yours is soon to begin.’ The pair guided Friends through the three stages it is hoped the Yearly Meeting community will engage with: Read, reflect, and respond.
The first draft is intended to be presented to Yearly Meeting in session on 21 November 2026, then Yearly Meeting in July 2027 will be devoted to considering the draft book, and it is hoped the guidance received ‘will enable us to do the necessary work to produce a final draft text in 2029 for you to read again’, with a view to the book being approved in 2030.
Rosie and Catherine urged Friends to remember: ‘it is a draft, and we expect you will suggest changes and developments’.
A reading plan and other resources are being prepared, but the committee thinks the whole book could be read in six sessions as part of a book group.
As the report drew to a close the pair reflected: ‘We were asked to be prayerful, joyful, creative, and bold in our approaching our work. We hope that you will also practice this discipline. As a committee, we have a sense of the draft being our ministry. We hope that you will receive it in this way.’
The final image was one of a shared meal. Rosie commented: ‘When you join a shared meal you expect a variety of dishes to cater for everyone present. And you don’t need to be able to eat everything on the table in order to have a satisfying meal. We hope that you will be satisfied by the draft of Our Quaker Way, and that you will find in it the sustenance you need.’
‘Prayerful, joyful, creative, and bold.’
The final item on the agenda saw Magdalena Gadomska, of Central European Yearly Meeting, speak about the upcoming Europe & Middle East Young Friends / Europe & Middle East Section (EMEYF/EMES) all-age gathering in August 2026. She shared that the theme will be ‘The river of life’.
‘Each day we will consider a different stage of life, from childhood to the end of life… Our daily Meeting for Worship will be hybrid to allow Friends who aren’t able to travel to the gathering to join… afternoons will be open with space for participants to offer workshops, games, art activities, walks in the local forest and much more. There will be also plenty of cake!’
Sunday afternoon’s Session 5 began with welcomes, first to interfaith visitors: Mike Stygal, from the Pagan Federation in England and Wales; Andy Wistreich, from Extinction Rebellion Buddhists; and Ibrahim Mogra, co-chair of the Christian Muslim Forum. Sadly two guests from the Movement for Progressive Judaism were prevented due to them being needed in their own religious community in the wake of recent attacks.
International Friends from the FWCC Sections covering Africa, Europe and the Middle East, and the Americas were then greeted and part of the Testimony to the Grace of God in the life of Ghee Bowman was read.
Minutes from the children’s programmes were shared. The New Shoots commented ‘our light is like a rainbow, we see it when we play’. The Fox Cubs contributed minutes in the form of artwork. The Light Explorers said: ‘Building bridges is important to help us to cross rivers both literal and metaphorical. It helps us to make friends, be happy and play together.’ And the Spiritual Adventurers shared that they ‘met with visiting Friends from America, Switzerland and Philippines and shared stories to bridge our differences. In our epilogue we shared what we had learnt on the petals of a flower’.
The next item on the agenda was to consider: ‘How do we let the Spirit guide us to peaceful resolution of the conflicts within our Quaker Meetings and our communities?’
Pip Harris, of the QPSW International Conciliation Group offered prepared ministry. ‘Love for each other is foundational,’ she said.
Pip described the danger of ‘our longing to help others, in more distant conflict’ causing Friends to ‘move to faith in action too quickly, without having practised holding differences closer to home, in a loving, constructive way’.
She described the tendency to hope that ‘problems will resolve themselves without attention’ and the need for us ‘to feel confident with conflict’. She continued: ‘Safe enough to name disagreement, to be willing to lay aside our own opinions in order to listen attentively. Only then can our Quaker methods focus and work in the way that the Spirit requires of us… The discrepancy between who we want to be and how we are treating each other undermines us and challenges our authenticity.’
Pip concluded: ‘Can we allow the Spirit to lead us to re-dedicate ourselves to peacebuilding in our own communities?’
Rich and varied ministry followed, with the theme of listening recurring prominently. One Friend shared the image of ‘the ears being directly connected to the muscles of the heart’ and acknowledging the ‘often painful and difficult work that we practice… that active meeting of the other, in their pain and listening without labelling’.
One Friend said: ‘Most of my personal experience of conflict has been within Quaker groups… conflict is one of the Light’s best ways of showing us our darkness and bringing us to new life.’
Another Friend reflected on experiences they’d had of having a newcomer wanting a Meeting to change, ‘what makes us a strong community is that we found a way to live together… it is quite difficult to find or to deal with what we are being asked to change and lose that security… and yet, of course, that newcomer may be bringing something very valuable to us’.
The clerking table at Yearly Meeting 2026. Photo: Mike Pinches for BYM.
A Friend who has run courses in nonviolent communication for Quakers reflected: ‘Sometimes I think that we need to prioritise the earthquake, wind and fire and get comfortable with hearing the intensity of other people’s expression and allow the intensity of other people’s expression to simply flow through us.’
Having had experience working in a prison for over a decade, another Friend ministered that ‘society often considers these people very bad people, but I did not meet a single one that was a bad person from their own perspective… their stories made sense to themselves’.
One Friend admitted ‘I have been the problem’ and shared their experience of losing their temper during a meeting on a topic that ‘affects me very deeply and very personally’. ‘A number of people left the room during what I was saying, because it was said in such a way that it was probably quite unbearable to listen to… I have regretted that deeply.’
This resonated with another Friend, who spoke of the stigma felt by those who are seen to be ‘problems’. They suggested that sometimes following a process can be ‘one of the reasons for a conflict not being resolved… we can tick off that we have done what we are supposed to do – we don’t actually have to follow through to a resolution’.
Intersectionality was raised by a Friend who spoke of the need to ‘prevent conflict within our community spaces’. They cited the events in Friends House as an example, as the event for Friends of colour overlapped with the event for the queer community – ‘it left certain Friends feeling like they needed to choose between… which community they wanted to uphold the most’.
Another Friend referred to the new piece of artwork in Whitehall by Banksy, depicting a man striding forward, holding a large flag which has blown across his face. ‘We can think of it as nationalism, but we can bring it right back to ourselves… what we hold on our flag and stride so forcibly forward with, and then when the wind of the Spirit blows, we are aware and we are stepping out into nowhere.’
The use of language and the complexity of the Spirit moving two Friends to opposite views appeared in another Friend’s ministry. They described a situation in their own Meeting, where a Meeting for Clearness was held – ‘what was remarkable was everybody spoke with incredible sincerity, incredible honesty, and were very, very careful about their language’.
Another Friend expressed puzzlement at the Meeting talking about inward-facing conflicts when ‘the world outside is literally falling apart’, but added ‘I also think that it is really important’.They reflected: ‘One unspoken issue that I feel in my own Meeting is that there are people who are not comfortable with being fully themselves – don’t feel safe enough to be vulnerable… I feel that a Meeting that is able to be fully and deeply who they are as individuals and also with the external realities, is a Meeting where the winds of the Spirit blow strongly.’
A prayer was offered in other ministry, beginning: ‘God I offer myself to thee, to build with me and to do with me as thou wilt. Relieve me from the bondage of myself.’ Deeply personal ministry followed, including hearing of a profound friendship: ‘We were involved in struggles trying to kill each other… now we embrace each other in hope.’
They concluded: ‘I get confused when I look at another person, and that confusion is good because if my starting point is confusion, because I don’t agree with them, I want to see how I can understand them and continue to love them.’
Another Friend’s ministry reflected: ‘I love coming to Quakers because for me it is the most respectful environment I have ever experienced for myself… I think that while we spend so much time listening to the silence, we can sometimes rely too heavily on someone else reaching out the hand to us. We see but do not perceive.’
They shared: ‘I as a queer person did not ask for a religious community that would support me, I found one – so I would encourage us to listen to what is not there. And decide or try to discern: is it not there because we want to be in conflict with it… or are we in conflict with it and need to reach out our hands to form an alliance?’
The final piece of spoken ministry came from a Friend who described themself as having come from a context of lots of conflicts – ‘almost forced migrations’, working with refugees, and then being a QPSW peace worker. ‘I’m really glad this conversation is happening, because I think there is a lot of conflict within Quakers and within British culture.’
Commenting on the broader context of BYM’s internal conflicts, they suggested: ‘We may find the answers that other cultures and other heritages have… we have some of the wrong answers embedded in our culture here.’
They also reflected on the importance of recognising that conflict is not just about interpersonal skills but about larger structural issues: ‘We need to address and get better at dealing with our interpersonal conflicts, but we also need to look outside… [start] to face some of those bigger problems with curiosity without feeling we actually know the answers… I think that that also could be very unifying and help with some of the inward looking conflicts that we have.’
Fred offered Friends a minute of record, with the Meeting to return to continue discern on Monday.
At the start of Session 6 one Friend reflected on a ‘momentous week’. He had visited a Friend in Brixton Prison, serving a twenty-six-month sentence for a Just Stop Oil protest. The Friend hoped Friends would ‘have the power to turn the world upside down’. Another Friend recalled her work in the West Bank forty-five years ago and the ‘profound sense of sanity’ she found in the Ramallah Meeting. She urged Friends to ensure that all Meetings become ‘that place of sanity and good sense and good people’.
Part of the 2025 epistle from the FWCC Asia West Pacific Section was then read. It noted that ‘peace is not merely the absence of fighting’, and required tools like ‘listening before reacting, having humility and humbleness’.
Fred outlined the morning’s ‘as-led’ agenda, which would return to handling conflict well, and hearing from the recording clerk on Quakers’ work on protest.
After some nominations, Fred offered a minute aiming to capture the sense of yesterday’s discernment, ‘not to record every ministry or provide a blueprint for conflict resolution, but to encourage Friends to continue reflecting’. The minute recognised that ‘too often we sweep tensions and conflicts under the carpet,’ leading to issues emerging in different ways. ‘Awareness that we are, or are seen as, the problem in a conflict, can be acutely painful…Conflict is one of the Light’s best ways of showing us our darkness and bringing us to new Light.’ Most contentiously, it referenced some earlier ministry: ‘God speaks through the earthquake, wind and fire, as well as through the still small voice of calm.’
Friends had much to say. One was uncomfortable with using ‘best’ in terms of conflict being ‘one of the Light’s best ways of showing us our darkness’. It suggested the wrong thing about conflict. Another thought the minute should reference a ‘power greater than ourselves’.
These were easy amendments, but when one Friend found the ‘earthquake, wind and fire’ quote problematic, it set off a domino of ministries, revealing, perhaps, one of the tensions Stuart Masters had discussed in his Swarthmore Lecture, between quietist Friends and more radical ones. The Friend’s issue was that the ‘earthquake’ quote misrepresented its source in the Bible, where God was not in the earthquake, but was in the still small voice.
Other Friends seemed convinced that the ‘huge passion’ of wind and fire, as expressed by Friends like Benjamin Lay, was an important thing to recognise. The issue went back and forth between clerks and the Meeting, until a break was necessary. Returning, unity began to form. One Friend looked at the ‘whirlpool’ of creation in Genesis: ‘Creativity comes out of intense, uncontrollable events.’ Another pointed to the earthquake that happened at Jesus’ crucifixion, and the one that released Paul and Silas from prison. He referenced Pentecost, when ‘there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind’.
Eventually, clerks went with ‘God can speak through the earthquake, wind and fire as well as through the still small voice of calm’ and the minute was accepted.
Siobhán Haire then announced plans for the Yearly Meeting July 2026 in Manchester (and online), for which booking was now open. Alison Mitchell followed with plans for the July 2027 gathering at Hull University. But Agenda Planning Committee was a ‘small group’ and needed the Quaker community to ‘own’ Yearly Meeting and help organise activities.
Paul Parker then delivered an extensive report on Quakers’ work on protest and relevant legislation. He began with a March 2025 minute from Meeting for Sufferings, which noted ‘creeping repression on the part of the state’ and mandated Friends to ‘resist this trend’.
Paul provided more historical context, from Greenham Common and the Terrorism Act to the Stansted 15 and the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, and the Public Order Act 2023. He highlighted the ‘shocked’ reaction to the police raid at Westminster Meeting House. He detailed Quaker advocacy efforts, including coalitions, media engagement, meetings with officials, and interventions in judicial reviews. Paul emphasised that Quaker protest is ‘rooted in love, truth and peace,’ and is ‘not… so much as a choice, but… a calling.’ He urged Friends to uphold those who ‘take bold action for a peaceful, just and sustainable world’.
Friends at Yearly Meeting 2026. Photo by Mike Pinches for BYM.
The Closing Session opened with ministry on a Friend’s journey as a non-Christian Quaker, and the joy of finding a welcoming community. The weekend had been ‘challenging’ for her, given its spiritual language, but, she affirmed, ‘If there are any other non-Christian Quakers still in the room… you are welcome here.’
Friends then turned to what Fred called ‘a packed afternoon’. It began with the draft epistle, which Friends had read over lunch. Amendments to this were to be ‘excision only’, though Friends couldn’t resist a tweak or four (see full epistle, page five).
The session then received minutes from the children’s and young people’s programmes. First up were the New Shoots (nought to two), who brought some of their art as ministry. They had been ‘getting to know each other, learning names, exploring sharing, helping each other and eating together. It takes time to build bridges, but now we know each other better’.
Next: ‘We are the Fox Cubs, aged two-and-a-half to four…We explored our similarities and our differences, practiced sharing…looking after each other and our dollies, and doing silly things. Sometimes it was difficult, but we practised solving our problems.’
The Light Explorers (aged six to eight) had ‘practised our communication and cooperation skills’. Startlingly, they had also been ‘thinking about nominations’. God help them. They had worked out that, ‘If we work together it becomes win-win.’
The Spiritual Adventurers (nine to eleven) had read about building a story bridge between communities, while Young People at Yearly Meeting (eleven to fifteen) had been away for the weekend, trying out ‘different styles of worship’ and using the metaphor of a tree to figure out what they wanted to drop, like autumn leaves, and where they wanted to grow. They got Friends singing ‘Building Bridges’ again.
Junior Yearly Meeting contributed by video. They had been wresting with some weighty subjects: ‘We were challenged to think about whether ministry could ever feel angry or unsettling. If words come through us as vessels, is it still ministry when it carries anger? Or does it become something else?’ One thing to note was that ‘deep ministry of young Friends can sometimes be overlooked by adults’.
The Meeting ended, as usual, with the reading of the epistle. Its ending echoed Stuart Masters’ Swarthmore Lecture: ‘Do we still have the power to turn the world upside down? Let it be so.’
