Meeting for sufferings
Meeting for Sufferings is a regular meeting in Quakerism that documents and publishes the sufferings of the persecuted Quakers and organizes support for those affected.
Suffering is a central concept in Quakerism and is closely related to the doctrine of salvation. Suffering is English and means to suffer or to endure in the sense of martyrdom .
history
Especially in the early days of Quakerism, with the severe persecution of its members, the suffering was interpreted as necessary for salvation. Numerous writings in the early days of Quakerism revolve around this question. So also the book "No Cross, No Crown" (1682), which its author William Penn wrote during his imprisonment in the Tower of London (1668–1669):
- “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, for those caught in carnal lusts and desires cannot endure the cross; and those who do not bear the cross will never have a crown. If we want to rule, we must first suffer too! "
The Quakers understood the suffering for their conviction and forgoing violent resistance as a sign and evidence of a true successor to Jesus . It is true that the Mennonites were later known to willingly accept suffering for their convictions (for which they were highly regarded by the Quakers; see Mennonite-Quaker ecumenism ). Quakers, on the other hand, deliberately displayed this suffering in a publicly effective manner. It was not a quiet enduring in a private room in the sense of a cryptoquakerism, but a publicly celebrated suffering. England and parts of Europe were literally inundated with leaflets accusing Quakers of the atrocities that were done to them. Between 1655 and 1720 over 300 typefaces were printed in the Netherlands alone. In addition, contacts in influential circles were used to promote their own cause and to influence decisions.
How central this motive of just suffering was in the consciousness of young Quakerism is shown by the fact that this concept became part of the constitution or administration - called: Meeting for Sufferings . Meeting first refers to Quaker gatherings in general and then to the committees resulting from certain regular, purpose-built gatherings. The Meeting for Sufferings was devoted to the suffering of the Quakers. It was the first institution to establish itself in Quakerism, even before the monthly and annual meetings were established (for an explanation of the terminology, see Quakerism glossary ). The person who coordinated the work was initially Margaret Fell at Swarthmore Hall near Kendal, who later married George Fox and became the author of the famous Peace Certificate. This is where all reports of atrocities against Quakers came together and advice was given on how to deal with them. There are still hundreds of letters from this time from Margaret Fell alone. This is remarkable insofar as literacy was nowhere near as it is today. Later, when the London (later British) Annual Assembly was formed, the task was transferred to the Morning Meeting in 1673 .
The Meeting for Sufferings was important to the survival of the religious community. It had two important functions: on the one hand it coordinated the defense externally and on the other it had a disciplinary function internally.
In defense against persecution, it provided funds for pamphlets. Injustices were recorded as precedents in a so-called Book of Cases . Persecuted members whose property was confiscated were offered financial aid, were visited in prisons and received legal aid.
As a successful means of internal discipline, the panel also decided which preachers received financial support on their missionary trips and which ended up empty. It was directly or indirectly controlled which theological orientations were promoted and which were suppressed. Unpleasant views from members could be sanctioned by the fact that their writings did not go to press or that their missionary trips were not supported financially or logistically. If preachers were sent to jail with undesirable views, then there was no energetic effort to get them released.
The Meeting for Sufferings was successful in England, Holland and the colonies . Financial hardships could be intercepted, releases obtained and tolerances negotiated. The Meeting for Sufferings was also important for mission success as it also promised converts economic security. But there were also areas in which the Meeting for Sufferings could not develop its effect, for example in Spain and Italy.
In the early days of Quakerism, a pattern of how the Quaker missionaries proceeded can be seen. Initially, the established clergy were provoked in order to attract attention. The provoked reactions were then exploited for propaganda purposes. The approach was very planned and coordinated. Frequent provocations included disrupting church services by making accusatory speeches, refusing church tithe, eccentric demeanor, refusing the oath and disregarding public holidays.
The concept of suffering in the so-called "dark countries" , to which all Catholic countries belonged (including Bavaria), did not prove to be very successful . The persecution was ruthless here. John Luffe , who programmatically also called himself "Love", paid for a visit and missionary attempt with Pope Alexander VII in Rome with his life. His companion Franciscus Mercurius van Helmont was only able to save himself from his captivity with difficulty and thanks to political connections.
As the persecution subsided and the aggressive attempts at proselytizing were abandoned, the tasks of the Meeting for Sufferings also shifted in the 18th century. Now people no longer fought for their own well-being and rights, but also for those of others. The Quaker lobbying efforts to abolish slavery and the slave trade were at their best. The Meeting for Suffering did pioneering work here. As part of the campaign against the slave trade, the Quakers organized the first historically documented consumer boycott as a new form of peaceful resistance.
Today the Meeting for Sufferings in British Quakerism is a committee that administers the affairs of the organization between annual general meetings.
glossary
For the technical terms used in the article, see also the article " Glossary Quakerism ".
Individual evidence
- ↑ Chapter 3, §6 wikisource.org
- ↑ Sünne Juterczenka has collected numerous documents in her book "About God and the World - End-Time Visions, Reform Debates, and the European Quaker Mission in the Early Modern Age", Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2008, ISBN 978-3-525-35458-2 .
- ↑ Sünne Juterczenka, "About God and the World - End-Time Visions, Reform Debates, and the European Quaker Mission in the Early Modern Era", Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2008, ISBN 978-3-525-35458-2 , page 131
- ↑ Sünne Juterczenka, "About God and the World - Entzeitvisionen, Reformdebatten, and the European Quaker mission in the early modern times", Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2008, ISBN 978-3-525-35458-2 , page 47
- ↑ Sünne Juterczenka, "About God and the World - End-Time Visions, Reform Debates, and the European Quaker Mission in the Early Modern Age", Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2008, ISBN 978-3-525-35458-2 , pages 70-71
- ↑ Sünne Juterczenka, "About God and the World - End-Time Visions, Reform Debates, and the European Quaker Mission in the Early Modern Age", Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2008, ISBN 978-3-525-35458-2 , page 47
- ^ Adam Hochschild, "Sprengt die Ketten", Verlag Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart 2007