From the Independent

Ireland's Quakers may keep a low profile, but their contribution to the shape of modern Ireland shouldn't be underestimated. And this group, like so many others, is using the Gathering to celebrate their remarkable history.


The Society of Friends or Quakers made a crucial contribution to business and economic development in this country. In the early part of the 19th century over 8,000 people were employed in Quaker-owned industries in the town of Mountmellick, Co Laois in brewing, milling, textiles, tanning and engineering. Indeed, the town became known as the 'Manchester of Ireland'. This link with the Irish business sector remains strong and many Quaker names are still prominent in trading circles, including such stalwarts of the scene as Jacobs, Odlum, Pim, Goodbody and Bewley. 

Even more important is the peace and reconciliation work done by the Quakers in the North from the beginning of the Troubles, and before that the heroic relief work undertaken during the Great Famine. 

At the height of the Famine in 1846, Quakers were instrumental in setting up soup kitchens, providing seeds for planting and promoting the fishing industry. Irish Friends set up a Central Relief Committee in Dublin, with members from Belfast, Waterford, and Limerick distributing clothing and over 36,000lbs of seeds to sow 10,000 acres along with tools for farming and fishing. 

By 1852 the Quakers had helped 40,000 people and handled £100,000 in aid, the equivalent of €10million in today's money. Some of the money was used to help emigration to Canada and America. In the North the Quakers were among the earliest activists in pursuit of peace and reconciliation. After the introduction of internment the Ulster Quaker Service Committee set up the Visitors' Centre in the Maze prison. 

The service included a minibus to help families of prisoners with transport difficulties. In 1980 'Quaker Cottage' was opened on a site in Black Mountain, west of Belfast and developed into a cross-community support group working with mothers and children up to 11 years of age from mixed communities. 

In 1982 Quaker House was opened in Belfast as a joint project of British and Irish Friends to provide an informal, relaxed atmosphere where men and women with differing viewpoints could listen to one another. According to Christopher Moriarty, the work of the Quakers in the North was their most important work in Ireland in the 20th Century, "We will never know how many lives we saved," he said. 

More About Quakers

Quakers in Cork

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WHEN DID QUAKERS COME TO CORK? Quakerism was first brought to Cork by Elizabeth Smith and Elizabeth Fletcher in 1655. Some of the first Quakers were Cromwellian soldiers, who saw that violence and fighting were not consistent with the peaceable message of Jesus Christ. Obediance to the radical message of Jesus implied social change and service, and ruled out violence. MEETING HOUSE AT GRATTAN STREET Old Meeting House on Grattan St Picture: Ben Russell The Quaker Meeting House at Grattan Street was originally built in 1678, and was subsequently rebuilt and renovated a number of times. The building as it now stands was completed in 1834, when there were about 280 Quakers in Cork. The design was by the Quaker architect George Beale and cost £3,338.The building is now owned by the Southern Health Board.  SOME MEMORABLE CORK QUAKERS William Penn William Penn (1644–1718), the founder of Pennsylvania, started his life as a Quaker in Cork. He inherited estates a
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Friends Meeting House Cork

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The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) meeting house is located on Summerhill South and is set back from the road on a grassy slope and is surrounded by a high wall. The building was designed by WH Hill and was purpose built in 1938 following a move from the old meeting house in Grattan Street which dates back to 1677. It is a simple unadorned meeting room and a place of worship. There is also a library of Quaker and other related works. The burial ground lies to the rear of the building where neat plain grave stones mark the final resting place of members of the congregation. This burial ground is an interesting reminder of the religious diversity which was associated with Cork city during the nineteenth century. The simple, though well-executed headstones are representative of the form and design of Quaker grave markers and were clearly executed by skilled craftsmen.  The burial ground also offers an unexpected, refreshing green space near Cork city centre
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From the Huffington Post

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4 Things We Can All Learn From One Of America’s Oldest Religious Communities By Alena Hall Sunlight pours into the plain, open room through its many windows. Men and women of all ages gather in rows of simple wooden benches all aligned to face the center of the room, facing one another. Together they sit in stillness and silence, actively waiting for inspiration to arrive. For at least an hour each week, Quakers — or more formally known as the Religious Society of Friends — come together in this room for what is called a meeting for worship. While the structure varies from meetinghouse to meetinghouse and from perspective to perspective, this tradition (comparable to a church service) offers valuable insights into how one can live a mindful and fulfilling life — with or without the religious context. Quakerism and this accompanying practice emerged in mid-17th century England during a time of religious turmoil. George Fox founded this protestant society out of dissatisfacti
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About Quakers

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The “Religious Society of Friends” was founded in the 1650’s in Northern England by George Fox and assorted like-minded “seekers”. This religious movement arose from the foment of civil war and religious dissent in mid-17th-century England, and was fueled in part by disillusionment with the established churches of the time. Members first began to be called ‘Quakers’ soon after the foundation of the Society; this is really a nickname, but is now more commonly used than the official title. The words ‘Friend’ and ‘Quaker’ are interchangeable. The central basis of Quakerism is the belief that each person can make direct contact with the Divine, which led Quakers to reject the need for clergy to act as intermediaries between us and God. This is closely related to our belief in the intrinsic equality of all people, and that there is “that of God in everyone”. As a consequence of these basic beliefs, Sunday masses or services became unprogrammed “Meetings” held mostly in silence, with
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