Quaker History

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What does patriotism mean to you?

ILYM Friend David Finke was profiled last week as part of the Columbia Missourian’s coverage: “Boone County residents describe what patriotism means to them” (July 2, 2011).

David is elequently quoted throughout; here is an excerpt from his profile:

Finke is a member of the Religious Society of Friends, a group otherwise known as the Quakers. He has made a “religious commitment” against war and violence, but he also noted that “to be for peace is more than being against war.”

“To uphold human dignity … is a moral obligation that for me stems both from patriotism and from my religious understanding,” he said.

[sic]

Finke referenced a phrase in the first sentence of the U.S. Constitution: “in order to form a more perfect union.” America, he said, is “not yet perfected.”

I am pleased with much of, but not all, that America stands for. And I will continue to work to make it better: to live up to the dream and the promise.

Finke said he will display his American flag on the Fourth of July because “this should be a symbol that drives the U.S. to be our very best.”

It is always a special moment when the philosophy of Friends is shared with a wider audience, through a contribution such as this.  Check out the rest of David’s profile here.

What does July 4th mean for you, dear Friend? What reflection have you taken on today? What does patriotism mean to you?  Please share your thoughts here.

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350 Years Ago: A Public Declaration Against Warfare

Yesterday was the 350th anniversary of the original public Quaker declaration against warfare in 1661.

‎350 years ago (January 21, 1661): ‘Concerned that they were suddenly being persecuted as supposed revolutionaries, George Fox and other Quaker leaders delivered a memorial to King Charles II affirming their pacifism. It was the first time Friends had formally declared themselves pacifists *as a body*, and it was to have world-shaking …consequences.’

It’s good to remember that Quakers, like Dr. King, were calling for a “radical revolution of values” — a nonviolent struggle against injustice, creating a society based on equality, loving one’s enemy, living in the power that takes away the occasion of war.