Meetings for Worship

Join us for worship! Please arrive a few minutes early, to get settled.
Sunday mornings at 9:30-10:45 AM are usually hybrid (which means on site and Zoom).
Wednesday evenings are on Zoom only, 8-8:30 PM, followed by informal sharing until 9PM.
See more information about Zoom, and check for events marked as hybrid on our calendar.
Every Sunday ‒ Vocal Ministry ‒ Gathered Meeting ‒
Extending Access ‒ Further Reading
 
Gwynedd Friends Meeting worships in the traditional unprogrammed manner of Friends (Quakers) in our plain unadorned room—without a predetermined reading, verse, or theme. We gather in silence, quiet our minds, calm our hearts, and seek the source of love and truth in our lives. Each of us is invited to personally feel a growing connection to our inner divinity and our relationships.
 
Every Sunday morning, before the appointed time, we enter the room quietly and take an open seat—settling into communal silence and stillness. Centering our thoughts, we are expectantly waiting for direct personal communion with Spirit (under any name) and opening up to experience the power of our gathered group. Every session is different from the next. Everyone “centers” in their own way. Over time, we develop an-awareness for holding selfless intentions and the spiritual discipline to know when to give vocal ministry, if at all.
 
With no dogmas limiting our experience, we believe that truth and clarity are revealed to us as we continue our spiritual journeys, both individually and together. Messages have been described as having a ripple effect, in the way tossing a pebble into a pond will cause ripples that are received by others in the meeting.
 
Vocal ministries are sparingly shared in a manner that adds to the silence and avoids disrupting others in the own contemplation. Speaking into the silence can be compelled by messages from the Spirit, to be presented by an individual standing (or stepping forward) and speaking to everyone briefly and clearly, before returning to the silence. Each message is received without judgment or comment. No one else speaks as the message ripples through the meeting and the centered silence resumes.
Walk through your first worship at Gwynedd Meeting.
 
During an unprogrammed worship, diversity of expression is part of the gifts we each bring — though, never is this worship time intended for sermonizing, prepared observations, or updates on our personal lives. Worship is always about waiting for the Spirit to speak through us. Before speaking, individuals ask themselves clarifying questions, such as those recommended (in Expectant Silence).
 
Creating space for a “gathered meeting” is treasured during worship. A gathered meeting can attain more-than-the-usual sense of divine presence. Some describe the feeling as the Spirit moving among us—offering a sense of togetherness that unites worshippers in holy fellowship. (And then we prepare to take it out into the world.)

 
“Friends come to meeting … with an openness to the Spirit that inspires careful speaking and listening, trust, humility, compassion, and courage. Worship also enhances respect for others, as participants seek the Light revealed through others. An openness
of spirit enables Friends to hear and incorporate differing, even contradictory, views.” (Faith and Practice, page 21)
 
Beyond the gathered worship experience, several other programs and activities encourage this presence of Spirit, including adult education programs and resources such as reading recommendations, online topical programs, and social functions.
 
In addition, Friends find guidance from the Faith and Practice by the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM) of the Religious Society of Friends (2018 edition). 
 
Extending access to remotely located members, travelers, and newcomers, technology is increasingly part of the current era of worship. Gwynedd worship is accessible through computers and phones via Zoom and adheres to the same practices of silence and stillness. As with any technology, the audio system is never perfect, but volunteers keep us connected to those unable to attend in person.
 
Further reading from the Pendle Hill pamphlet series, including

• #306, Four Doors to Meeting for Worship (William Taber)
• #444, The Gathered Meeting (Steven Davison)
• #460, On Vocal Ministry: Nurturing the Community through Listening and Faithfulness (Barry Crossno and J. Brent Bill)