Ethical Mysticism in the Society of Friends

The following pages deal primarily with essential Quaker beliefs. By this I do not mean the fruit of the Quaker tree, such as its social doctrines, but its roots. To say that the Quakers have no fixed creed, accepted as final and as a basis for membership, is not to assert that they have no primary beliefs. It would be just as absurd for a scientist to say that he had no beliefs because no scientific statement is accepted as fixed and final. Similarly the Quakers may have many beliefs, but the Spirit of Truth in the heart may reveal further truth. This Spirit of Truth works through historical research into the origins of our religion as well as through inward experience. As Jesus said to his disciples: “When the Spirit of Truth comes he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13).