How can you learn more about Quakers?

Each Sunday the Pastoral Care “Friendly Ear” is introduced for visitors or members to ask questions about Quakerism.  The Friendly Ear also responds to any spiritual or personal concerns. Pastoral Care has a list of resources (Friends Helping Friends)  within the Meeting that can be supportive. If you attend BFM regularly, you will be assigned a Personal Friendly Ear with whom you can converse or ask questions. 

Online Resources

• An online class in Quakerism that provides an introduction for newcomers and a refresher for members through a diversity of perspectives.
  
• An short introduction to Quakerism via seven brief emails in your inbox. 
• Short QuakerSpeak Videos.
• Quakers Today podcast.
• Friends Journal magazine, plus you can subscribe to their newsletter.
• Baltimore Yearly Meeting's book “Faith & Practice.” 
• • Faith and Practice is a book setting out what it means to be a Quaker in BYM. It includes advice on procedures within the faith, membership, current practice for conducting business meetings, and Friends' quotations on belief, worship, concerns, leadings, and testimonies.

Join the BFM Google Group mailing list

The Bethesda Friends community has a Google Group mailing list (similar to a group list serve). It is an informal way to communicate with other members of the community. People share joys and sorrows; upcoming events; books, articles, and films that were meaningful to them; etc. It is usually a few emails a week.  You can sign up through this webpage. 

At the Meetinghouse on the hall table you can take a copy of

• A Newcomer’s Packet;
• A weekly bulletin and monthly newsletter that describe activities of our Meeting and tell of upcoming events;
• Pamphlets that describe Quaker practice and belief.

Other materials are

• Our most recent BFM Directory, listing names and addresses as well as committees, important dates, and Quaker organizations. (Please ask for a copy.) 
• Our Library: Books and other literature are available for you to borrow from the Bethesda Friends Meeting Library.
• • Click here for a list of books in our Library that might interest newcomers. 
• Periodically, we have new books for sale on the Literature/Book Table.

• BFM has a monthly Book Group whose members read and discuss books on Quakerism and Quaker values. All of the books are in our Library, and there's a printout of the monthly discussions. Check the calendar for program dates.
• Want to be on our mailing list or join our List Serve? Fill out the card in the Newcomer’s Packet or use our Contact Us form.  Please also see our FAQs.
• More resources about Quakerism are available on these linked web sites that describe our Affiliations as well as our Beliefs & Values.

Quaker vocabulary

If our "Quaker vocabulary" can seem like a foreign language, please read our Glossary of common Quaker terms. 

Updated Faith & Practice Now Available Online; Print Copies Coming Soon

The Baltimore Yearly Meeting (BYM) Faith & Practice Committee has finished updating the book Faith & Practice to reflect the changes we united with as a Yearly Meeting at our Annual Sessions in 2023.

• The Committee also checked and updated all quotations in Faith & Practice with accurate citations.
• PDF copies are now available on the BYM website, and paper copies will be available in a few weeks - stay tuned!