By Elise Riley & Miki Gilmore
Watch the Video.
"Quakerism is opposed to the statement of strong emotion.
Quakerism is also opposed to strong emotion." - Community stakeholder
Moved By the Spirit.
On Sunday, November 8, 2015, 10:30 AM, we attended the Germantown Monthly Meeting. The community gathers every Sunday for Meeting for Worship, a religious service that is conducted in silence and is open to anyone. During Meeting for Worship, community members stand and speak when they feel moved by the spirit of God.
Passionately Confronting Racial Disparities.
Midway through the scheduled gathering, a woman stood up to speak about the racial disparities in Philadelphia's K-12 schools. She specifically made mention of the prestigious Germantown Friends School and another local school, Kelly Elementary School. Compared to the Friends school, Kelly Elementary is in a very poor state.
The woman at the Quaker Meeting was noticeably upset while talking, and continued her speech for over ten minutes. In the midst of this woman speaking, another person stood up silently. Then, sensing her time was coming to a close, the very same woman addressed the room thus: “Does anyone hear me?” Another person replied, “We hear you, we hear you”. This person and the one who stood up while the woman was talking were performing an act called eldering, which is when a longstanding member of the community expresses their disapproval of somebody’s behavior.
The woman at the Quaker Meeting was noticeably upset while talking, and continued her speech for over ten minutes. In the midst of this woman speaking, another person stood up silently. Then, sensing her time was coming to a close, the very same woman addressed the room thus: “Does anyone hear me?” Another person replied, “We hear you, we hear you”. This person and the one who stood up while the woman was talking were performing an act called eldering, which is when a longstanding member of the community expresses their disapproval of somebody’s behavior.
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