Open Quakers

Dedicated to Openness and Inclusivity in Quaker Meetings

About the Open Quakers Website

This website was originally the creation of one man — me! However, as time has gone on I have been fortunate in being able to add contributions from other people. These are featured on the Articles page of the site.

Naturally enough, I bring my own views, my own opinions and my own baggage. But – and it is a big 'but' – the site also has its origins in the many conversations I have had with many Quaker members and attenders who care about Quakerism and the role that it plays in their lives. There is almost no opinion in this website that I have not heard at one time or another from the lips of others.

That said, the site came about as a direct result of my own experience of the Quakers over several years, and most especially as a consequence of my attempt to re–join as a member eleven years ago after a period of absence. What happened to me was, to say the least, extreme, but I think it exposed very real problems that lie below the apparently calm surface of a deeply troubled society.

Sometimes it is necessary to speak, even when one has absolutely no idea whether or not one is being heard. If anything in this website speaks to you, my contact details can be found at the bottom of each page of this site. I would genuinely love to know what you think.

Robert Powell
18th February 2013
Revised most recently on 28th October 2019