Free Republic

King Charles II and the British passed the Conventicle Act of 1664, making it illegal to hold church meetings of over five people. It prohibited "... more than five persons in addition to members of the family, for any religious purpose not according to the rules of the Church of England." The word "conventicle" is derived from the word "convenant" and referred to gatherings of church members according to Jesus' promise in Matthew 18:20, "Where two or three are met together in my name." The English Book of Canon Law, Article 11, stated: "All conventicles and secret meetings ... have...

As you probably heard, Quaker Oats decided that white liberals just couldn't take all of that white privilege and systematic racism anymore on their pancakes. Wonder if Quaker Oats actually asked any African Americans about their decision? Well, it turns out that Aunt Jemima's family is not pleased with the move. This is from news reports: Living in Forney, Vera Harris is the family historian for the Richard family of Hawkins, and could hardly believe a big part of their family legacy, the “Aunt Jemima” brand, was about to be erased from supermarket shelves. “A lot of people want it...

In a letter dated July 2, 1756, Benjamin Franklin presented a proposal to George Whitefield, the most famous preacher of the Great Awakening, that they partner together to establish a Christian colony "in the Ohio," which was frontier at the time. In the letter, Franklin expressed confidence that God would give them success in such a project, "If we undertook it with a sincere regard to his honor." For the next 30 years, they carried on a lively and open correspondence. Whitefield often spoke about faith in Christ and admonished Franklin to make sure he was prepared for the next...

“This is not prison; this is a genocide,” stated an audience member following August 29 movie screenings concerning the Gaza Strip at the Washington, DC office of the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL). Typifying the Israel-hating audience of about 25 that filled FCNL’s small Capitol Hill presentation room, this woman’s comments demonstrated how Quakers at FCNL and beyond have joined the global demonization of Israel. The woman, a self-professed member of the radical anti-Israel organization Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), “was totally sickened” by the evening’s viewings of Gaza in Context and Gaza: A Gaping Wound. These two...

Jewish students at Swarthmore College have become the first in the nation to break with the global student association Hillel and agree to open their doors to groups and speakers who do not support Israel. The Swarthmore student board unanimously voted to renounce Hillel International's restrictions, which bar chapters from sponsoring events, hosting speakers, or partnering with groups that oppose Israel's right to exist or support a movement for universities to end investments in Israel because of its policies toward the Palestinians. Students at the liberal Quaker college say they wanted to start a dialogue on Israel-Palestinian issues by holding...

Anti-Israel college students will trek to a scenic campsite in upstate New York this summer to learn how to launch campus boycotts against the Jewish state at a program subsidized and run by one of America’s largest Quaker faith groups. The American Friends Service Committee “We Divest Campaign Student Leadership Team Summer Training Institute” describes itself as a “five (5) day intensive program for campus [Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions] organizers—those with campaigns already running and those hoping to get one launched in the 2013-2014 school year.”

Megan Kelly presented this scientific explanation for the unsuspected Earth Quake that has affected DC

Live Action Founder Lila Rose DURANGO, Colorado, July 29, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Lila Rose, the founder of Live Action Films, will lead a protest of a Catholic hospital in Colorado that has kept an abortionist on its OB/GYN staff. Rose will lead a protest organized by LifeGuard on Thursday, August 4th, to expose the relationship of abortionist Richard Grossman and Catholic Hospital Mercy Regional Medical Center in Durango. Grossman is the longest-serving physician at the hospital, and commits abortions on Fridays at Planned Parenthood of Durango. Pro-lifers say that Grossman, a Quaker who has worked at the Catholic hospital for...

Hartford, Conn. (AP) -- Officials say a junior officer at a Connecticut submarine base has received an honorable discharge after suing the Navy, saying his Quaker beliefs prevent him from participating in war. . . . As part of his honorable discharge, he will reimburse the Navy for his education.

Your "Post" time clock is in error

NOORVIK, Alaska (AP) -- Bobby Wells has lived all his life in this remote Alaska village, where the Eskimo dancing of his ancestors was banned by Quaker missionaries a century ago as primitive idolatry. Now Wells, 53, and other residents of Noorvik have wholeheartedly embraced the ancient practice outlawed in the Inupiat Eskimo settlement, which was established in 1914. Wells, the mayor, said dancing is not just for the ancient religious practice of shamanism as the missionaries had believed. It's also a form of worship dating back to the Bible, a view now held by many in the community of...

One of the UK's oldest Christian denominations - the Quakers - looks set to extend marriage services to same-sex couples at their yearly meeting later. The society has already held religious blessings for same-sex couples who have had a civil partnership ceremony. But agreeing to perform gay marriages, which are currently not allowed under civil law, could bring the Quakers into conflict with the government.

California State University East Bay has fired a math teacher after six weeks on the job because she inserted the word "nonviolently" in her state-required Oath of Allegiance form. Marianne Kearney-Brown, a Quaker and graduate student who began teaching remedial math to undergrads Jan. 7, lost her $700-a-month part-time job after refusing to sign an 87-word Oath of Allegiance to the Constitution that the state requires of elected officials and public employees. "I don't think it was fair at all," . . .

Laurie Baker, for whom home was extension of land, dies at 90 RAJEEV PI So impressed was Gandhi with this Royal Navy hand’s shoes stitched from scraps, he asked him if he would build homes for the poor THIRUVANANTAPURAM, APRIL 1: The Briton who turned the canons of conventional homemaking on their head and became one of India’s greatest living architectural legends, is no more. Laurie Baker, 90, passed away at his Thiruvanantapuram home this morning after prolonged illness. He will be buried tomorrow. The boy from a middle class home in Birmingham who studied architecture in London, Baker came...

American Apparently Tortured Before Death By BUSHRA JUHI ASSOCIATED PRESS BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - 0311dv-fox-killed-reax An American aid worker taken hostage with three other peace activists was apparently tortured before he was shot in the head and chest and his body dumped near a railroad line in Baghdad, Iraqi police said Saturday. Tom Fox, a 54-year-old member of Christian Peacemaker Teams from Clear Brook, Va., was the fifth American hostage killed in Iraq. There was no immediate word on his fellow captives, a Briton and two Canadians. The U.S. command in Baghdad confirmed that Fox's body was picked up by...

Dave Matthews Band American Baby Album: Stand Up-Released May 10,2005 RCA If these walls came crumbling down And fell so hard to make us lose our faith From what’s left you’d figure it out Still make lemonade taste like a sunny day Stay beautiful baby I hope you stay American baby American baby Nobody’s laughing now God’s grace lost and the devil is proud But I’ve been walking for a thousand miles One last time I could see you smile I, I hold, hold on to you You bring me hope I’ll see you soon And if I don’t see...

(CNSNews.com) - Sen. John Kerry's presidential campaign has hired a new director of religion outreach, who is being described by a Catholic group as "a curious choice." Mara Vanderslice, who formerly worked as religion outreach director for Democrat Howard Dean, was raised without any faith and didn't become an evangelical Christian until she attended Earlham College, a Quaker school known for its adherence to pacifism, the Catholic League said on Monday. According to Catholic League President William Donohue, when Vanderslice was in college she was active in the Earlham Socialist Alliance, a group that supports convicted cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal and...

The Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (December 3, 7:44 a.m. AST) - Five University of Pennsylvania students were charged with beating, kicking and pouring motor oil on a Princeton student visiting for a debate tournament. The five surrendered Monday and were charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and making terroristic threats, police said. They were released pending a hearing Wednesday.