Meeting for Sufferings: ‘Overseer’ in Quaker faith & practice
'How should Friends deal with the number of times it appears in the Book of Discipline?
Friends then turned to the use of the word ‘overseer’ in Quaker faith & practice (Qfp). In 2022 MfS asked Area Meetings to cease using the term due to its associations with the transatlantic slave trade. But how should Friends deal with the number of times it appears in the Book of Discipline? The Church Government Advisory Group recommended that, as Qfp is already under complete revision, the best temporary solution would be to add an explanatory note above section 12.05. Representatives concurred.