Quakers and the Mystery of Worship

In this episode of Quakers Today, co-hosts Sweet Miche (they/them) and Peterson Toscano (he/him) invite you to learn more about the sometimes baffling practice of silent worship. Whether you're a long-time Friend or someone who has never stepped into a mostly silent meeting, we are pulling back the curtain to explore what happens in our hearts, minds, and bodies when we sit together in worship.

The Purpose of Ministry

We speak with author Rhiannon Grant about her book, Speaking in Quaker Meeting for Worship: What, When, How, and Why. Rhiannon helps us understand the purpose of spoken ministry in the silent meeting, explaining how speech that deepens silence is a vital part of our shared spiritual practice.

Quote: "The purpose of ministry then might be understood as deepening the silence of meeting for worship."

• Read a review of Speaking in Quaker Meeting for Worship by Paul Buckley at FriendsJournal.org.
• Learn more about Rhiannon Grant’s book and other Quaker Quicks at QuakerBooks.org/Collections/Quaker-Quicks.

Our First Meetings for Worship

Peterson and Sweet Miche share their first experiences in Quaker worship: Peterson's search for community after 9/11 and Sweet Miche's feeling of guidance at Pendle Hill. We also hear from Paula Christophersen, a Quaker in Germany, who shared her first experience of ministry.

• You can watch the full video of Paula Christophersen on YouTube or at QuakerSpeak.com.

Meeting for Worship with Attention to Worship

Peterson introduces a new format for meeting for worship he’s been experimenting with: Meeting for Worship with Attention to Worship. This model of worship uses the meeting's existing structure to guide newcomers by making the internal work of worship visible and conversational.

Quaker Fiction

We explore how writers use fiction and poetry to make the internal, mystical experience of worship visible.

• Anne E.G. Nydam's story, “The Conduits”, reveals the flow of connection in meeting through glowing lines of light.
• Peterson shares two of his short stories! “Penn’s Spring”, uses a mysterious, unexplained wet patch on a meetinghouse wall to represent a spiritual movement in a "stagnant and dry" meeting. “What Is Actually There” features a high-schooler named Jordan reflecting on the enduring effort of the Quaker path.
• “A Fine Showing for the Court of Owls” by Jonathan Doering is a story about the radical Quaker abolitionist Benjamin Lay.

Read Quaker-themed fiction and poetry in the November 2025 issue of Friends Journal.

Listener Responses

Who is someone you’ve encountered in fiction that embodies Quakerness? The character could be from a book or movie. They could be a hero or even a minor character, and they do not need to be Quaker.

• This month’s fictional “Quakers” include: Pooh Bear, Maisie Dobbs, Gumby, Ted Lasso, Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, WALL-E, Stevens from The Remains of the Day, and Dorothea from George Eliot's Middlemarch.

Next Month's Question

We want to hear from you! What do you believe now that you didn't believe before becoming a friend or before encountering Quakerism?

Leave us a voice memo with your name and town at 317-QUAKERS (317-782-5377). (+1 if outside the U.S.) You can also reply by email at podcast@FriendsJournal.org or on our social media channels.

Sponsors

Quakers Today is the companion podcast to Friends Journal and other Friends Publishing Corporation content. It is written, hosted, and produced by Peterson Toscano and Sweet Miche.

Season Five of Quakers Today is sponsored by the American Friends Service Committee and Friends Fiduciary.

• For over a decade, the American Friends Service Committee has provided technical and strategic support for divestment campaigns around the world. Today, AFSC’s Action Center for Corporate Accountability aims to expose and reduce corporate complicity in mass incarceration, immigrant detention, border militarization, and the Israeli military occupation. Visit investigate.afsc.org and find resources to help you divest from corporate-sponsored state violence.
• Friends Fiduciary is a Quaker non-profit offering cost-effective, professional investment services to Friends meetings, churches, schools, and organizations. We offer five value-aligned portfolios, managed by 12 SEC-registered firms. We screen every holding for Quaker values, engage in shareholder advocacy, and in 2024, distributed $16 million to our constituents. Learn more about us at FriendsFiduciary.org.

Music in this episode comes from Epidemic Sound.

For the extended video version of this episode, visit the Friends Journal YouTube channel (insert hyperlink). For a full transcript, visit QuakersToday.org.