Peace Testimony

We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fighting with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretense whatsoever. And this is our testimony to the whole world. The Spirit of Christ, by which we are guided, is not changeable, so as once to command us from a thing as evil and again to move unto it; and we do certainly know, and so testify to the world, that the Spirit of Christ, which leads us into all Truth, will never move us to fight and war against any man with outward weapons neither for the kingdom of Christ, nor for the kingdoms of this world.
Declaration from the Harmless and Innocent People of God, called Quakers (1661)

Our peace testimony is grounded in our faith and understanding of God's way. Early Quakers believed they were led by the Christ within and by the Christ of the New Testament to love those people who considered them enemies and to refrain from all wars and fighting. Though individual Quakers have participated in wars since then, Friends still affirm that the best way to relate to people is to appeal to that of God within them. Trusting in the leadings of the Spirit and respecting the Inward Light in all others can avert violent conflict.

In attending to this divine leading, we try to live in ways that promote justice and avoid the causes of war; we deny its legitimacy and seek creative alternatives; and we undertake, with impartiality, to aid those who suffer from violence and war's devastation.

Materialism, oppression, and narrow nationalism lead to war. Friends oppose materialism by living simply and working to re-order priorities toward global justice and well-being. We work to remove oppression at home and abroad by trying to reach the common humanity in both oppressor and oppressed, challenging the assertion of dominance upon which oppression is based. We reject narrow nationalism and support programs to increase our understanding of other cultures and to work for more effective world government.

Denying the legitimacy of war, Friends support those led by the Spirit into conscientious objection to military service, resistance to conscription or a military draft, war tax resistance, or other acts of civil disobedience that witness against war making. Friends do not recognize "just" wars, since war represents a refusal to pursue other ways of resolving conflict. We work to gain wider support for
nonviolent solutions.

Friends aid victims of war and other violence out of the belief that each person is uniquely valuable. Support for refugees, programs for worldwide economic justice, and similar efforts serve not only to remove the causes of war and to aid the victims of violence and oppression, but also to encourage non-violent means of solving world problems.

We recognize that violence can manifest itself in words as well as deeds. As Friends, we endeavor to bring all aspects of our lives into harmony with our testimony. The peace we seek starts in the individual heart and its relation to God. It is expressed in our relations to parents, spouses, children, friends, and indeed in all our actions. In our daily lives, our employment, our recreation, our investments, and our relations to institutions and governments -- we commit ourselves to follow God's command to be peacemakers above the demands and enticements of the secular society. In doing so, our aim is to live God's truth.

The challenge of the peace testimony is to find ways for all people to live nonviolently in a world where violence remains and ever-present threat. Friends as individuals and as a Society continue to struggle with this challenge.