91-530: Horsham Friends Meeting House is a Religious Society of Friends (Quaker) place of worship in the town of Horsham , part of the district of the same name in West Sussex , England. It was built in 1786 to replace a meeting house nearly 100 years older on the same site, built for a Quaker community which had been active in the town for several years. "A fine Georgian building with original furnishings", it has Grade II listed status . The first Quaker presence in
182-582: A Recorded Minister in Manchester . His 1835 book A Beacon to the Society of Friends insisted that the inner light was at odds with a religious belief in salvation by the atonement of Christ. This Christian controversy led to Crewdson's resignation from the Religious Society of Friends, along with 48 fellow members of Manchester Meeting and about 250 other British Quakers in 1836–1837. Some of these joined
273-645: A Certified Place of Meeting for Religious Worship (Form 77), to the Superintendent General. Government advice states that this is a legal requirement, but research indicates that in practice not all disused places of worship are de-registered. Details of de-registered places of worship are recorded in The London Gazette . The Toleration Act 1688 granted most Protestant Nonconformist denominations freedom to worship in public buildings or rooms that were registered for this purpose. Registration
364-437: A building to be used for marriages it had to be registered for worship first (or at the same time). The Act stipulated that a list of all registered places of worship be published in 1856, "and also at such subsequent Periods as One of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State shall from Time to Time in that Behalf order or direct" . In practice, neither full details of all registered places of worship nor extracts from
455-503: A charge of religious blasphemy . According to Fox's autobiography, Bennet "was the first that called us Quakers, because I bade them tremble at the word of the Lord". It is thought that Fox was referring to Isaiah 66:2 or Ezra 9:4 . Thus the name Quaker began as a way of ridiculing Fox's admonition, but became widely accepted and used by some Quakers. Quakers also described themselves using terms such as true Christianity, Saints, Children of
546-504: A great people to be gathered". Following this he travelled around England, the Netherlands, and Barbados preaching and teaching with the aim of converting new adherents to his faith. The central theme of his Gospel message was that Christ has come to teach his people himself. Fox considered himself to be restoring a true, "pure" Christian church. In 1650, Fox was brought before the magistrates Gervase Bennet and Nathaniel Barton, on
637-726: A group of Quakers preached in the market place and one was jailed for "causing a disturbance in church" (St Mary's, the Church of England parish church ). Quakers were seen as "striking directly at the foundations of order and authority" in ecclesiastical and public life, and they faced violence from the public and were regularly jailed. The cause grew quickly, though: by 1668, Horsham was one of 13 locations in Sussex recorded as having permanent Quaker meetings. At that time none of these places had permanent meeting houses, members instead using "safe private houses and farm buildings", but this soon changed: one
728-423: A list of all registered places of worship was published on the government's gov.uk website on 17 March 2015 and has subsequently been updated regularly. It includes a list of around 30,000 records, including addresses and whether they are also registered for the solemnisation of marriages (opposite- and same-sex). The fee for the registration of a place of worship has been revised upwards on many occasions. When
819-487: A meeting house in 1672 that was visited by George Fox in the same year. They were able to establish thriving communities in the Delaware Valley , although they continued to experience persecution in some areas, such as New England . The three colonies that tolerated Quakers at this time were West Jersey , Rhode Island , and Pennsylvania , where Quakers established themselves politically. In Rhode Island, 36 governors in
910-568: A more structured organisation, which led to separate women's meetings. Through the women's meetings, women oversaw domestic and community life, including marriage. From the beginning, Quaker women, notably Margaret Fell , played an important role in defining Quakerism. They were involved in missionary work in various ways and places. Early Quaker women missionaries included Sarah Cheevers and Katharine Evans. Others active in proselytising included Mary Penington , Mary Mollineux and Barbara Blaugdone . Quaker women published at least 220 texts during
1001-558: A national Famine Relief Committee in May 1942, encouraging a network of local famine relief committees, among the most energetic of which was the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief, Oxfam . Irving and Dorothy Stowe co-founded Greenpeace with many other environmental activists in 1971, shortly after becoming Quakers. Some Quakers in America and Britain became known for their involvement in
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#17330845582681092-606: A new roof, in 1961. Lidbetter was a Quaker from Dublin who had started an architectural practice in London in the 1920s and who designed Friends House , the central offices and conference centre for Quakers in Britain. He became "the most influential architect of meeting houses [in the interwar] period" and afterwards (he died in 1966). In 2015, further alterations took place, this time to the design of HMDW architects (job architect Simon Dyson), consisting of internal redecoration and repairs to
1183-610: A new world rather than fighting to destroy the old", as did the American Friends Service Committee . Birmingham in England had a strong Quaker community during the war. Many British Quakers were conscripted into the Non-Combatant Corps during both world wars. After the two world wars had brought the different Quaker strands closer together, Friends from different yearly meetings – many having served together in
1274-653: A peak of 60,000 in England and Wales by 1680 (1.15% of the population of England and Wales). But the dominant discourse of Protestantism viewed the Quakers as a blasphemous challenge to social and political order, leading to official persecution in England and Wales under the Quaker Act 1662 and the Conventicle Act 1664 . This persecution of Dissenters was relaxed after the Declaration of Indulgence (1687–1688) and stopped under
1365-637: A statement of faith known as the Richmond Declaration . Supported by many of the older, longstanding members in the London Yearly Meeting, Braithwaite saw the Richmond Declaration of Faith as being a bulwark against "unsound and dangerous doctrine" in times when Friends were "in a state of discipline and warfare". This statement of faith was agreed to by 95 of the representatives at a meeting of Five Years Meeting Friends, but unexpectedly
1456-837: A variety of industries. Two notable examples were Abraham Darby I and Edward Pease . Darby and his family played an important role in the British Industrial Revolution with their innovations in ironmaking. Pease, a Darlington manufacturer, was the main promoter of the Stockton and Darlington Railway , which was the world's first public railway to use steam locomotives. Other industries with prominent Quaker businesses included banking ( Lloyds Banking Group and Barclays PLC ), pharmaceuticals ( Allen & Hanburys ), chocolate ( Cadbury and Fry's ), confectionery (Rowntree ), shoe manufacturing ( Clarks ), and biscuit manufacturing ( Huntley & Palmers ). Voltaire 's Letters on
1547-524: Is able to represent the congregation" of the place of worship—for example, a pastor , minister or trustee—may fill in a form published by the Home Office , Certifying a Place of Meeting for Religious Worship (Form 76), and send it to the Superintendent General of the General Register Office or a local Superintendent Registrar. A fee of £ 28.00 is payable. Details required on the form include
1638-628: Is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which governs the registration and legal recognition of places of worship . It applies only in England and Wales, and does not cover the Church of England (that country's established church ) which is exempt from the act's requirements. Nor does it affect the Church in Wales , which remains part of the Anglican Communion although it is no longer
1729-472: Is not levied on their premises. This exemption has applied since 1955. Since the passing of the Local Government Finance Act 1988 , places of worship have not had to pay business rates ; registration under the terms of the 1855 Act, while apparently not essential to gain exemption, "is an additional piece of evidence that the property is actively used as a place of worship". "Any person who
1820-559: Is now the Mid-India Yearly Meeting. Later it spread to Madagascar from 1867, China from 1896, Sri Lanka from 1896, and Pemba Island from 1897. After the 1860 civil conflict in Mount Lebanon and Damascus between Christians and Druze, many missionaries flocked to Ottoman Syria . These missionaries included Friends from several nations. The Friends Syrian Mission was established in 1874, which among other institutions ran
1911-500: The Buildings of England series by Ian Nairn and Nikolaus Pevsner state that it dates from 1834, as does the subsequent (2004) Sussex Extensive Urban Survey, but other sources agree that the meeting house does date from 1786. It represents an example of two trends in Quaker meeting house design in the 18th century, in which "the long-wall meeting house with asymmetrically placed entrance
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#17330845582682002-656: The Act of Toleration 1689 . One modern view of Quakerism at this time was that the direct relationship with Christ was encouraged through spiritualisation of human relations, and "the redefinition of the Quakers as a holy tribe, 'the family and household of God ' ". Together with Margaret Fell , the wife of Thomas Fell , who was the vice-chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and an eminent judge, Fox developed new conceptions of family and community that emphasised "holy conversation": speech and behaviour that reflected piety, faith, and love. With
2093-527: The Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution from Rhode Island Quakers, trial by jury, equal rights for men and women, and public education. The Liberty Bell was cast by Quakers in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania. Early Quakerism tolerated boisterous behaviour that challenged conventional etiquette, but by 1700, its adherents no longer supported disruptive and unruly behaviour. During the 18th century, Quakers entered
2184-569: The Great Separation of 1827, which resulted in a parallel system of Yearly Meetings in America, joined by Friends from Philadelphia, New York, Ohio, Indiana, and Baltimore. They were referred to by opponents as Hicksites and by others and sometimes themselves as Orthodox. Quakers in Britain recognised only the Orthodox Quakers and refused to correspond with the Hicksites. Isaac Crewdson was
2275-693: The Inward light . They were imprisoned in harsh conditions for five weeks and banished by the Massachusetts Bay Colony . Their books were burned, and most of their property confiscated. In 1660, English Quaker Mary Dyer was hanged near Boston Common for repeatedly defying a Puritan law banning Quakers from the colony. She was one of the four executed Quakers known as the Boston martyrs . In 1661, King Charles II forbade Massachusetts from executing anyone for professing Quakerism. In 1684, England revoked
2366-561: The London Yearly Meeting for the same reason in 1865. They formed a separate body of Friends called Fritchley General Meeting , which remained distinct and separate from London Yearly Meeting until 1968. Similar splits took place in Canada. The Yearly Meetings that supported John Wilbur's religious beliefs became known as Conservative Friends . In 1887, a Gurneyite Quaker of British descent, Joseph Bevan Braithwaite , proposed to Friends
2457-727: The Nobel Peace Prize . Religious strife in the Kingdom of England had existed for centuries, with proto-Protestant groups (mainly the Lollards ) popping up before the English Reformation brought radical ideas to the mainstream. During and after the English Civil War (1642–1651) many dissenting Christian groups emerged, including the Seekers and others. A young man, George Fox ,
2548-743: The Penn's Creek Massacre of 1755. Early colonial Quakers also established communities and meeting houses in North Carolina and Maryland, after fleeing persecution by the Anglican Church in Virginia. In a 2007 interview, author David Yount ( How the Quakers Invented America ) said that Quakers first introduced many ideas that later became mainstream, such as democracy in the Pennsylvania legislature,
2639-583: The Plymouth Brethren . Orthodox Friends became more evangelical during the 19th century and were influenced by the Second Great Awakening . This movement was led by British Quaker Joseph John Gurney . Christian Friends held Revival meetings in America and became involved in the Holiness movement of churches. Quakers such as Hannah Whitall Smith and Robert Pearsall Smith became speakers in
2730-533: The Quaker denomination. Furthermore, some faith groups do not have a name, or specifically reject the concept of denominational names. They are allowed to use the descriptions "Christians not otherwise designated" or "[a congregation or assembly of persons] who object to be designated by any distinctive religious appellation" respectively. As of 2010 there were more than 1,500 places of worship registered to "Christians not otherwise designated", representing more than 5% of
2821-469: The Quietist period in the history of their church, becoming more inward-looking spiritually and less active in converting others. Marrying outside the Society was cause for having one's membership revoked. Numbers dwindled, dropping to 19,800 in England and Wales by 1800 (0.21% of the population), and 13,859 by 1860 (0.07% of population). The formal name "Religious Society of Friends" dates from this period and
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2912-670: The Ramallah Friends School in the West Bank, which still exist today and is affiliated with the Friends United Meeting . The Swiss missionary Theophilus Waldmeier founded Brummana High School in Lebanon in 1873. Evangelical Friends Churches from Ohio Yearly Meeting sent missionaries to India in 1896, forming what is now Bundelkhand Yearly Meeting . Cleveland Friends went to Mombasa , Kenya , and started what became
3003-560: The Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade , or The Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade, were Quakers: John Barton (1755–1789); William Dillwyn (1743–1824); George Harrison (1747–1827); Samuel Hoare Jr (1751–1825); Joseph Hooper (1732–1789); John Lloyd; Joseph Woods Sr (1738–1812); James Phillips (1745–1799); and Richard Phillips. Five of the Quakers had been amongst
3094-571: The established Church of England . The Quakers, especially the Valiant Sixty , sought to convert others by travelling through Britain and overseas preaching the Gospel. Some early Quaker ministers were women. They based their message on a belief that "Christ has come to teach his people himself", stressing direct relations with God through Jesus Christ and belief in the universal priesthood of all believers. This personal religious experience of Christ
3185-404: The 1650s, individual Quaker women prophesied and preached publicly, developing charismatic personae and spreading the sect. This practice was bolstered by the movement's firm concept of spiritual equality for men and women. Moreover, Quakerism initially was propelled by the nonconformist behaviours of its followers, especially women who broke from social norms. By the 1660s, the movement had gained
3276-479: The 17th century. However, some Quakers resented the power of women in the community. In the early years of Quakerism, George Fox faced resistance in developing and establishing women's meetings. As controversy increased, Fox did not fully adhere to his agenda. For example, he established the London Six Weeks Meeting in 1671 as a regulatory body, led by 35 women and 49 men. Even so, conflict culminated in
3367-478: The Act was passed, registration cost 2 s .6 d . (equivalent to £14.75 in 2023). The most recent piece of legislation setting the fee at £28.00 was The Registration of Births, Deaths and Marriages (Fees) Order 2002, which came into effect from 1 April 2003. What counts as a place of worship has been the subject of litigation. An application by the Church of Scientology to have a chapel registered at Saint Hill Manor
3458-760: The Bible as secondary to the individual cultivation of God's light within. With Gurneyite Quakers' shift toward Protestant principles and away from the spiritualisation of human relations, women's role as promoters of "holy conversation" started to decrease. Conversely, within the Hicksite movement the rejection of the market economy and the continuing focus on community and family bonds tended to encourage women to retain their role as powerful arbiters. Elias Hicks 's religious views were claimed to be universalist and to contradict Quakers' historical orthodox Christian beliefs and practices. Hicks' Gospel preaching and teaching precipitated
3549-544: The English (1733) included the spirit of commerce and religious diversity in Great Britain, with the first four letters based on the Quakers. Quakers have a long history of establishing educational institutions. Initially, Quakers had no ordained clergy , and therefore needed no seminaries for theological training. In England, Quaker schools sprang up soon after the movement emerged, with Friends School Saffron Walden being
3640-510: The Established Church in Wales. Registration is not compulsory, but it gives certain financial advantages and is also required before a place of worship can be registered as a venue for marriages. Under the terms of the Act, buildings, rooms or other premises can be registered as meeting places for religious worship upon payment of a fee; a record of their registration is then kept by the General Register Office for England and Wales , and
3731-666: The Five Years Meeting due to a concern of what they saw as the allowance of modernism in the FYM. Some Orthodox Quakers in America disliked the move towards evangelical Christianity and saw it as a dilution of Friends' traditional orthodox Christian belief in being inwardly led by the Holy Spirit . These Friends were headed by John Wilbur , who was expelled from his yearly meeting in 1842. He and his supporters formed their own Conservative Friends Yearly Meeting. Some UK Friends broke away from
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3822-754: The Friends Ambulance Unit or the American Friends Service Committee, or in other relief work – later held several Quaker World Conferences. This brought about a standing body of Friends: the Friends World Committee for Consultation . A growing desire for a more fundamentalist approach among some Friends after the First World War began a split among Five Years Meetings . In 1924, the Central Yearly Meeting of Friends
3913-772: The Friends avoid creeds and hierarchical structures . In 2017, there were an estimated 377,557 adult Quakers, 49% of them in Africa followed by 22% in North America . Some 89% of Quakers worldwide belong to evangelical and programmed branches that hold services with singing and a prepared Bible message coordinated by a pastor (with the largest Quaker group being the Evangelical Friends Church International ). Some 11% practice waiting worship or unprogrammed worship (commonly Meeting for Worship ), where
4004-656: The Light, and Friends of the Truth, reflecting terms used in the New Testament by members of the early Christian church. Quakerism gained a considerable following in England and Wales, not least among women. An address "To the Reader" by Mary Forster accompanied a Petition to the Parliament of England presented on 20 May 1659, expressing the opposition of over 7000 women to "the oppression of Tithes". The overall number of Quakers increased to
4095-449: The Manchester Conference in England in 1895, one thousand British Friends met to consider the future of British Quakerism, and as a result, Liberal Quaker thought gradually increased within the London Yearly Meeting. During World War I and World War II , Friends' opposition to war was put to the test. Many Friends became conscientious objectors and some formed the Friends Ambulance Unit , aiming at "co-operating with others to build up
4186-452: The Massachusetts charter , sent over a royal governor to enforce English laws in 1686 and, in 1689, passed a broad Toleration Act. Some Friends migrated to what is now the north-eastern region of the United States in the 1660s in search of economic opportunities and a more tolerant environment in which to build communities of "holy conversation". In 1665 Quakers established a meeting in Shrewsbury, New Jersey (now Monmouth County), and built
4277-558: The Midwest. Acceptance of the theory of evolution became more widespread in Yearly Meetings who moved toward liberal Christianity in the 19th and 20th centuries. However, creationism predominates within evangelical Friends Churches, particularly in East Africa and parts of the United States. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, the so-called Quaker Renaissance movement began within London Yearly Meeting. Young Friends in London Yearly Meeting at this time moved away from evangelicalism and towards liberal Christianity. This movement
4368-469: The Richmond Declaration was not adopted by London Yearly Meeting because a vocal minority, including Edward Grubb , opposed it. Following the Christian revivals in the mid-19th century, Friends in Great Britain sought also to start missionary activity overseas. The first missionaries were sent to Benares ( Varanasi ), in India, in 1866. The Friends Foreign Mission Association was formed in 1868 and sent missionaries to Madhya Pradesh , India, forming what
4459-416: The Saunders family who also died in the late 19th century. Quakers Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends , a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations . Members refer to each other as Friends after John 15:14 in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers because the founder of the movement, George Fox , told a judge to quake "before
4550-401: The Wilkinson–Story split, in which a portion of the Quaker community left to worship independently in protest at women's meetings. After several years, this schism became largely resolved, testifying to the resistance of some within the Quaker community and to the spiritual role of women that Fox and Margaret Fell had encouraged. Particularly within the relatively prosperous Quaker communities of
4641-435: The abolitionist and resettlement movement in the early part of that century. Quaker Laura Smith Haviland , with her husband, established the first station on the Underground Railroad in Michigan. Later, Haviland befriended Sojourner Truth , who called her the Superintendent of the Underground Railroad. Places of Worship Registration Act 1855 The Places of Worship Registration Act 1855 ( 18 & 19 Vict. c. 81)
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#17330845582684732-415: The abolitionist movement. In the early history of Colonial America , it was fairly common for Friends to own slaves, e.g. in Pennsylvania . During the early to mid-1700s, disquiet about this practice arose among Friends, best exemplified by the testimonies of Benjamin Lay , Anthony Benezet and John Woolman , and this resulted in an abolition movement among Friends. Nine of the twelve founding members of
4823-491: The ancient market town of Horsham was in 1655. In that year the founder of the Society of Friends George Fox first visited Sussex, and it is sometimes claimed that he stopped off in Horsham—although there is no evidence to suggest he founded the congregation in the town or even visited at that time. His diary records that "I passed into Sussex and lodged near Horsham where there was a great meeting, and many convinced" (i.e. converted). Whether from Fox's influence or not, in 1655
4914-463: The authority of God". The Friends are generally united by a belief in each human's ability to be guided by the inward light to "make the witness of God" known to everyone. Quakers have traditionally professed a priesthood of all believers inspired by the First Epistle of Peter . They include those with evangelical , holiness , liberal, and traditional Quaker understandings of Christianity, as well as Nontheist Quakers . To differing extents,
5005-402: The eastern United States, the focus on the child and "holy conversation" gave women unusual community power, although they were largely excluded from the market economy. With the Hicksite–Orthodox split of 1827–1828, Orthodox women found their spiritual role decreased, while Hicksite women retained greater influence. Described as "natural capitalists" by the BBC , many Quakers were successful in
5096-411: The first 100 years were Quakers. West Jersey and Pennsylvania were established by affluent Quaker William Penn in 1676 and 1682 respectively, with Pennsylvania as an American commonwealth run under Quaker principles. William Penn signed a peace treaty with Tammany , leader of the Delaware tribe, and other treaties followed between Quakers and Native Americans. This peace endured almost a century, until
5187-402: The first half of the 20th century before the country's independence in 1963. International volunteering organisations such as Service Civil International and International Voluntary Service were founded by leading Quakers. Eric Baker , a prominent Quaker, was one of the founders of Amnesty International and of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament . The Quaker Edith Pye established
5278-414: The footwear firm of C. & J. Clark and the big three British confectionery makers Cadbury , Rowntree and Fry ; and philanthropic efforts, including abolition of slavery, prison reform , and social justice . In 1947, in recognition of their dedication to peace and the common good, Quakers represented by the British Friends Service Council and the American Friends Service Committee were awarded
5369-409: The informal group of six Quakers who had pioneered the movement in 1783, when the first petition against the slave trade was presented to Parliament. As Quakers could not serve as Members of Parliament, they relied on the help of Anglican men who could, such as William Wilberforce and his brother-in-law James Stephen . By the beginning of the American Revolutionary War , few Friends owned slaves. At
5460-489: The late 18th century, so they were cleared in 1785–86 and a replacement meeting house was built further forward, closer to the road, in 1786. A cottage was built onto the northeast side at this time. The work cost £536 14 s. 5½ d . Numbers declined in the 19th century. In 1801 48 Quakers were recorded in Horsham parish, but 50 years later the typical Sunday attendance at the meeting house was around ten people, and although Sunday services continued throughout this period there
5551-442: The list have routinely been published by the General Register Office, but the full list was published online in 2010 in response to a Freedom of Information Request . It lists all places of worship registered under the terms of the Act (excluding those subsequently deregistered), and gives their local government district , Worship Number (their unique reference number), name, address and the denomination to which they belong. Also,
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#17330845582685642-442: The meeting house is attached to the north wall. On the "simple" front (east) elevation, a central entrance porch with an arched doorway and a shallow gabled top is flanked by tall arched sash windows , one on each side. An identical window is in the south wall. Inside, the main meeting room is tall and nearly square ( 30 + 1 ⁄ 2 by 27 + 1 ⁄ 2 feet (9.3 m × 8.4 m)). There are some fixed benches on
5733-455: The more urban, wealthier, Orthodox Quakers. With increasing financial success, Orthodox Quakers wanted to "make the Society a more respectable body – to transform their sect into a church – by adopting mainstream Protestant orthodoxy". Hicksites, though they held a variety of views, generally saw the market economy as corrupting, and believed Orthodox Quakers had sacrificed their orthodox Christian spirituality for material success. Hicksites viewed
5824-409: The most prominent. Quaker schools in the UK and Ireland are supported by The Friends' Schools' Council. In Australia, Friends' School, Hobart , founded in 1887, has grown into the largest Quaker school in the world. In Britain and the United States, friends have established a variety of institutions at a variety of educational levels . In Kenya, Quakers founded several primary and secondary schools in
5915-574: The most successful Friends' mission. Their Quakerism spread within Kenya and to Uganda , Tanzania , Burundi , and Rwanda . The theory of evolution as described in Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859) was opposed by many Quakers in the 19th century, particularly by older evangelical Quakers who dominated the Religious Society of Friends in Great Britain. These older Quakers were suspicious of Darwin's theory and believed that natural selection could not explain life on its own. The influential Quaker scientist Edward Newman said that
6006-469: The name, address and physical layout of the building or rooms, the Christian denomination or other faith group to which it belongs, an overview of the services that will take place, and details of the applicant. There is great flexibility in relation to the naming of the faith group for which the building is being registered: for example, the register contains entries for "Quaker", "Quakers", "Friends" and "Religious Society of Friends", all of which refer to
6097-442: The national total. If a registered place of worship is demolished and rebuilt on a different site, it must be re-registered under its new identity and assigned a new Worship Number, but more minor structural alterations do not affect the registration. Changes of name must also be notified to the Superintendent General. A place of worship which falls out of use should be de-registered by submitting another form, Notice of Disuse of
6188-406: The place of worship is assigned a "Worship Number". Registration is not mandatory, but an unregistered place of worship cannot be used for the solemnisation of marriages. There are also financial advantages: under the terms of the Charitable Trusts Act 1853 (as amended), registered places of worship are 'excepted charities', and do not have to subject their funds to inspection. Also, Council Tax
6279-493: The register is 4666. It is very close to Horsham Unitarian Church , another Grade II-listed place of worship built in 1721. The meeting house is one of eight in the West Weald area, covering northwestern West Sussex and southern Surrey . There are services each Sunday morning and Wednesday lunchtime. The Victoria County History of Sussex dates the meeting house to 1786 but states that in its present form it "seems later in style" than that date. The original Sussex edition of
6370-424: The religious beliefs of Joseph John Gurney were known as Gurneyite yearly meetings. Many eventually collectively became the Five Years Meeting (FYM) and then the Friends United Meeting , although London Yearly Meeting , which had been strongly Gurneyite in the 19th century, did not join either of these. In 1924, the Central Yearly Meeting of Friends , a Gurneyite yearly meeting, was started by some Friends who left
6461-470: The religious movement and introduced Quaker phrases and practices to it. British Friends became involved with the Higher Life movement , with Robert Wilson from the Cockermouth meeting founding the Keswick Convention . From the 1870s it became common in Britain to have "home mission meetings" on Sunday evening with Christian hymns and a Bible-based sermon, alongside the silent meetings for worship on Sunday morning. The Quaker Yearly Meetings supporting
6552-740: The restructuring of the family and household came new roles for women; Fox and Fell viewed the Quaker mother as essential to developing "holy conversation" in her children and husband. Quaker women were also responsible for the spirituality of the larger community, coming together in "meetings" that regulated marriage and domestic behaviour. The persecution of Quakers in North America began in July 1656 when English Quaker missionaries Mary Fisher and Ann Austin began preaching in Boston. They were considered heretics because of their insistence on individual obedience to
6643-587: The roof. This firm had recently completed a substantial renovation of the Grade I-listed Ifield Friends Meeting House. Horsham Friends Meeting House is one of three surviving 18th-century Friends meeting houses in Sussex, along with Herstmonceux (1734) and Lewes (1784). It was designated a Grade II listed building on 26 July 1974, and is registered for worship in accordance with the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855 ; its number on
6734-549: The theory was "not compatible with our notions of creation as delivered from the hands of a Creator". However, some young Friends such as John Wilhelm Rowntree and Edward Grubb supported Darwin's theories, using the doctrine of progressive revelation. In the United States, Joseph Moore taught the theory of evolution at the Quaker Earlham College as early as 1861. This made him one of the first teachers to do so in
6825-484: The town; and in 1693 a permanent meeting house was built on land acquired on Worthing Road. A cottage stood on this land, and the meeting house was built behind it. Further land at the front of the plot was used as a burial ground from 1697. The religious census of 1676 found about 100 Nonconformists in Horsham parish, out of a population of about 3,000; many of these would have been Quakers. The buildings were dilapidated by
6916-462: The tragic and fateful voyage of the slave ship Sally . Brown broke away from his three brothers, became an abolitionist, and converted to Christian Quakerism. During the 19th century, Quakers such as Levi Coffin and Isaac Hopper played a major role in helping enslaved people escape through the Underground Railroad . Black Quaker Paul Cuffe , a sea captain and businessman, was active in
7007-463: The unplanned order of service is mainly silent and may include unprepared vocal ministry from those present. Some meetings of both types have Recorded Ministers present, Friends recognised for their gift of vocal ministry. The proto- evangelical Christian movement dubbed Quakerism arose in mid-17th-century England from the Legatine-Arians and other dissenting Protestant groups breaking with
7098-458: The walls; other benches have open backs and date from the late 18th century, i.e. contemporary with the meeting house. The burial ground, at the front (east side) of the meeting house, is no longer in use and has been turned into a garden. The only surviving headstones, both of which have been laid down to form paving slabs, are of the local palaeontologist George Bax Holmes (d. 1887) and his wife, who predeceased him, and another for members of
7189-565: The war's end in 1783, Yarnall family members along with fellow Meeting House Friends made a failed petition to the Continental Congress to abolish slavery in the United States . In 1790, the Society of Friends petitioned the United States Congress to abolish slavery. One example of a reversal in sentiment about slavery took place in the life of Moses Brown , one of four Rhode Island brothers who, in 1764, organized and funded
7280-532: The war, forming groups such as the Free Quakers and the Universal Friends . Later, in the 19th century, there was a diversification of theological beliefs in the Religious Society of Friends, and this led to several larger splits within the movement. The Hicksite–Orthodox split arose out of both ideological and socioeconomic tensions. Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Hicksites tended to be agrarian and poorer than
7371-417: Was a period in the 1870s and 1880s when there was no regular congregation. The meeting was never formally laid down, though, and by 1895 numbers had revived and there were two services on a Sunday. The first change to the building took place in 1939, when architect Hubert Lidbetter built an extension to the rear, providing kitchens and a classroom at a cost of £400. He then carried out more repairs, including
7462-477: Was acquired by direct experience and by reading and studying the Bible . Friends focused their private lives on behaviour and speech reflecting emotional purity and the light of God, with a goal of Christian perfection . A prominent theological text of the Religious Society of Friends is A Catechism and Confession of Faith (1673), published by Quaker divine Robert Barclay . The Richmond Declaration of Faith (1887)
7553-434: Was adopted by many Orthodox Friends and continues to serve as a doctrinal statement of many yearly meetings. Quakers were known to use thee as an ordinary pronoun, refuse to participate in war , wear plain dress , refuse to swear oaths , oppose slavery , and practice teetotalism . Some Quakers founded banks and financial institutions, including Barclays , Lloyds , and Friends Provident ; manufacturers including
7644-511: Was built at Ifield , a short distance from Horsham, in 1676 (still in use, and one of the oldest continuously operating purpose-built Friends meeting houses) and another had opened in Lewes the previous year (superseded in 1784 by the present Lewes Friends Meeting House ). In Horsham, regular meetings were taking place in private houses from 1668; these became weekly in 1687, by which time both George Fox and influential Quaker William Penn had visited
7735-503: Was dissatisfied with the teachings of the Church of England and nonconformists . He claimed to have received a revelation that "there is one, even Christ Jesus, who can speak to thy condition", and became convinced that it was possible to have a direct experience of Christ without the aid of ordained clergy. In 1652 he had a vision on Pendle Hill in Lancashire, England, in which he believed that "the Lord let me see in what places he had
7826-574: Was done at a local level by a Clerk of the Peace or the local bishop. The Roman Catholic Relief Act 1791 extended this freedom, and the obligation to register, to the Catholic Church . The Places of Religious Worship Certifying Act 1852 superseded these Acts and gave the General Register Office the responsibility for maintaining the record of registered places of worship, but registration remained compulsory. The Act of 1855 made it optional, but for
7917-450: Was particularly influenced by Rowntree, Grubb, and Rufus Jones . Such Liberal Friends promoted the theory of evolution, modern biblical criticism , and the social meaning of Christ's teaching – encouraging Friends to follow the New Testament example of Christ by performing good works. These men downplayed the evangelical Quaker belief in the atonement of Christ on the Cross at Calvary . After
8008-525: Was probably derived from the appellations "Friends of the Light" and "Friends of the Truth". Conservative Friends (US 2K) Friends United Meeting (US 25K, world 170K) Evangelical Friends Church International (US 34K, world 200K) Beaconite Friends General Conference (US 22K, world 32K) Around the time of the American Revolutionary War , some American Quakers split from the main Society of Friends over issues such as support for
8099-589: Was rejected by the Registrar General in 1967. This rejection was upheld by the Court of Appeal in the case of R v Registrar General, ex p Segerdal . In 2013, the UK Supreme Court overturned Segerdal in the case of R (on the application of Hodkin and another) v Registrar General of Births, Deaths and Marriages , which concerned whether a marriage could be conducted at a Scientology property in London. Following
8190-459: Was slowly replaced as a model [by] more symmetrical designs", and there was a tendency to rebuild modest older meeting houses on a larger scale. The meeting house is built of red brick, laid in the Flemish bond pattern at the front and in English bond on the side walls. Some brickwork on the side walls is glazed. The roof is hipped and laid with tiles. A two-storey cottage built at the same time as
8281-630: Was started by some Friends who left the Five Years Meeting. In 1926, Oregon Yearly Meeting seceded from the Five Years Meeting , bringing together several other yearly meetings and scattered monthly meetings. In 1947, the Association of Evangelical Friends was formed, with triennial meetings until 1970. In 1965, this was replaced by the Evangelical Friends Alliance, which in 1989 became Evangelical Friends Church International . In
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