Welcome!
St. Petersburg Friends Meeting is an “unprogrammed” Monthly Meeting associated with the Southeastern Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends and Friends General Conference.
We are a diverse and inclusive community of people who support each other in our spiritual journeys and work for positive change in the world.
Quaker Values
We find that listening to and following the leadings of Spirit teaches us to value:
Simplicity - focusing on what is truly important and letting other things fall away.
Peace - seeking justice and healing for all people; taking away the causes for war in the way we live.
Integrity – acting on what we believe, speaking truthfully and having our actions match our words.
Community - supporting one another in our faith journeys and in times of joy and sorrow; sharing with and caring for each other..
Equality - treating everyone, everywhere as equally precious , recognizing that everyone has gifts to share.
Sustainability - care for the earth: valuing and respecting all of creation. Using only our fair share of earth’s resources; working to protect the planet.
Quakers often refer to these values by the acronym of SPICES.
Quaker Meeting for Worship
Quaker Meeting for Worship is a vibrant silence of waiting in expectancy.
Our practice is to wait in silence, listening attentively for the "still, small voice" of Spirit. The silence is not an emptiness crying out to be filled, but a disciplined and contemplative openness to Spirit.
We believe that if we gather together in love with full attention we will receive Divine Guidance that will lead us to live our lives in congruence with our highest values, with compassion for ourselves and others and to work towards a better world.
“The first step of peace is to stand still in the Light. ”
What to Expect
Meeting begins as we quietly take our seats and ‘center down’ in silence, letting go of the busy thoughts that usually fill our attention. In the stillness, we seek deeper awareness of the life of spirit within. Some thoughts that arise will be distractions that can be set aside. Other thoughts, questions, or feelings come from a deeper source and can lead us in listening for clarity, guidance and peace.
Sometimes someone may feel led to stand and share a message with the group. These short, spoken phrases or stories are not an intellectual exercise, but are meant to arise from leadings of the Spirit. We listen with open minds, then return to the silence without responding.
During the silence, anyone--adult or child--may feel inspired to speak. A person should speak only once (but sharing messages is completely voluntary; many people never share messages). There may be several messages or the whole period of worship may be a living silence.
Whether the meeting has spoken messages or is completely silent, in the stillness and depth we experience connection with the group and with the Spirit, Light, Source, God…Though each of us may use different language or names for the experience of the sacred, we are united in finding spiritual renewal, guidance, and support in our worship together as a community.
The meeting ends when the clerk greets his/her neighbor and shakes hands.
No One Dogma
Our Meeting accepts that not everyone has the same journey of faith, and that each of us may express our spiritual beliefs in different ways. You will find no written dogma, nor will you be asked to recite a prayer or sing a hymn that expresses someone else's belief. We strive to listen to the "still, small voice within" for guidance in all our meetings.
After the Meeting for Worship
Introductions and announcements follow the service. When everyone who wants to has had a chance to speak, we rise and share a buffet of coffee and snacks.
Once a month there is a potluck luncheon and other days we have programs and committee meetings. See our Upcoming Events page for more information.
Learn More
Please visit the Lean More About Quakers page for links to articles and videos.