A new exhibition has opened at St Nics Church called “What Does Love Require of Us? – Quakers in a Time of War” from Monday 15th – Thursday 18th September – 10am – 4pm.

The Society of Friends, or Quakers, meet at the Health and Well Being Centre, off Audlett Drive, each Sunday at 10:15 am. Their form of worship is to sit in silence unless inspired to say something. On occasions 2 or 3 people may share something fairly short during the hour. On other occasions the hour passes in silence.

Since the Peace Declaration of 1661 an important part of Quaker Faith has been the ‘denial of all outward wars and strife’.

The exhibition has a display showing one Abingdon Friend who was a Conscientious Objector in WW1, and tells of the Friends Ambulance Service and the Friends Relief Service, set up to give Concientous Objectors an alternative to Military Service. Quakers were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1947 recognising their long standing commitment to reconciliation, and their relief work during and after the second world war.