Members of the Religious Society of Friends—also known as Quakers—believe that each person can have direct experience of God. That experience can guide our lives.

Throughout our history, Quakers have been guided to a commitment to work for peace and nonviolence, to live simply and with integrity, and to treat each person with respect. Friends Center, located two blocks from City Hall, lives out these beliefs and values in the heart of Philadelphia.

Quaker Worship at Friends Center
Quaker worship at Friends Center is in the unprogrammed tradition.  Worshipers gather in silence, listening to the voice of God within, and occasionally rising to give a brief message. Learn more.

Worldwide Network of Quaker meetings
Quakerism, formally the Religious Society of Friends, is a small denomination with about 300,000 members worldwide.  Individual congregations are called “Quaker meetings.”  These congregations join together in regional associations called “Yearly Meetings.”  Yearly meetings are connected through a number of organizations for mutual support and action in the world. Learn more.

Quaker Faith in Action
From the very beginnings of Quakerism in the 1650s to today, Quakers have felt called by God to work for peace and justice.  Quakers have engaged in work to end war and mitigate the effects of war, prison reform, racial and economic justice, and care for the earth and all its inhabitants. Learn more.

Quaker Education
Quakers have established schools from preschool to university all over the world. Learn more.

 

Quakers in Old City Philadelphia
We recommend you also visit the historic Arch Street Meeting House, our sibling site at 4th and Arch Streets, just a block away from Independence Mall. Learn more.

What to expect in a Quaker meeting for worship
A brief video from the QuakerSpeak, project of Friends Journal magazine.

QuakerSpeak Videos Filmed Here at Friends Center

uakerSpeak is the informative YouTube video series from the publishers of Friends Journal magazine. Several of the videos were filmed in whole or in part right here at Friends Center. Check out this page for links to many of them.