The Quaker Meeting House is in South Terrace – opposite Priory Meadow shopping centre.

Celebrating 350 years of Hastings Quakers

Hastings saw its first Quaker Meeting back in 1673. Hastings Quakers will be celebrating this anniversary during national Quaker Week which runs from 24 September and finishes on 1 October – International Quaker Day. HOT’s Erica Smith praises these gentle yet strong-minded folk.

The Quakers are a religious group who have left some of the traditions of the Christian churches: – they have no liturgy, no clergy and no sacraments. However, while Quakers have chosen to step away from some religious ideas, they do share certain basic and enduring values.

Quaker Ian Bunch says ‘These are not just things we say we believe in; it is the way we want to live. Quakerism is above all a practical religion which affects how we actually strive to live and act day by day, not just on Sundays! We meet each Sunday in the Quaker Meeting House in central Hastings where there is shared silence and active reflection, mostly in silence, for an hour.

An example of how Quakers put their beliefs into practice is their strong tradition of passive resistance to war. Over the years, Hastings Online Times has covered some of the campaigns that Quakers have been involved in both locally and nationally.

Quakers meet in person and on Zoom

During Quaker Week, Hastings Quakers are increasing their outreach activity. On 1 October there is a planned International Zoom Meeting for Worship at the Meeting House with Quaker communities overseas. There is also a planned ‘Open House’ on Wednesday 27 September to explain Quaker beliefs – and share tea and cake!

A spokesman said: ‘It’s sad to say, but since Covid, many more people are alone and searching for some meaning to life. Recent world events and government policies have created a sense of frustration within the community. Everyone wants things to improve, but the opportunities for change seem to be becoming more and more remote from the man (or woman) in the street’.

If you are interested in finding out more about Quaker beliefs, you can visit their website – or visit The Quaker Meeting House any Sunday at 10.30am.
The Quaker Meeting House is at 5 South Terrace, Hastings TN34 1SA – just 80 yards from the junction with Queens Road.

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