Students & Young Adult Friends

If you are a student or a young adult in Oxford under the age of 35 or so, we warmly invite you to join us. The group is convened by a committee of eight Young Adult Friends, who take responsibility for our weekly meetings, as well as any longer-term matters for our community.

When we meet

We hold Meetings for Worship as a group on Monday evenings from 7 to 7:45pm at 43 St Giles, followed by a chat and a shared meal. We provide baked potatoes, cheese and beans, and everyone is welcome to bring and share other food. We usually end around 9pm.

The Meeting for Worship is not normally blended, but participation by Zoom can be arranged if desired. If you wish to join us online, please get in touch in advance using the contact form below and we will send you the link.

The all-age morning meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7.30 to 8am, with breakfast provided, are also popular among students.

If you are new to Oxford Meeting or to Quakers in general, you may find the information at First Time at Meeting in 43 St Giles’? helpful.

Learning more about Quakers

Readings

If you would like to find out more about Quakers in general, you might like to start with these short and very readable books:

• What do Quakers Believe? by Geoffrey Durham (2019)
• Living our beliefs: An exploration of the faith and practice of Quakers, developed and edited by Young Quakers with Graham Ralph (2nd ed. 2018)
• Quakers do What! Why? by Rhiannon Grant (2020); available as a paperback or in e-book format from John Hunt Publishing

Quaker Faith and Practice (QfP for short) is the ‘core’ Quaker text. It’s a weightier read than the other three titles and is best dipped into according to your particular interest or need. QfP describes what it means to be a Quaker in Britain through extracts from writings of many Quakers from the 17th century down to the present day. It offers thoughts, reflections and advice on the different stages of life and the challenges one may encounter; relationships; aspects of faith; service to the community; upholding peace and equality; and sharing the Earth’s resources. QfP also addresses ‘church government’: e.g. the conduct of Meetings for Worship and procedures for marriages and funerals.

QfP is available online; there are also printed copies in the Meeting House.

All the above books – and many more – can be purchased through the Quaker online bookstore or borrowed from our library.

Courses on Quakerism

Woodbrooke, the Quaker study centre, offers a wide variety of courses, mainly online. Topics include Quaker tradition and history, personal spiritual growth, interfaith issues, biblical studies, and working for peace and social justice.

Young adults aged 18-35 can receive a 50% discount on course fees, and you can apply to Oxford Meeting to cover some or all of the remaining cost if you wish.

Beyond Oxford…

If you would like to get in touch with other young adult Quakers around the UK, you may be interested in Young Friends General Meeting (YFGM). YFGM holds weekend-long meetings with worship and various workshops and activities in February, May and October each year. It also has a private Facebook group.

Keeping in touch

You can email the organising committee using the contact form below.

In between our Meetings you can keep up to date with us through our private Facebook group and/or our WhatsApp group. To join the WhatsApp group, please send your name and mobile phone number using the form below.

Contact form