The Large Meeting House, as viewed from the clerk's table Photo: Photo: Trish Carn
Trust, discipline and discernment
Ian Kirk-Smith reports on Britain Yearly Meeting 2013
Innovation and nostalgia were features of Yearly Meeting 2013, which was held at Friends House, London, from 24 to 27 May. The innovation was evident in the use of commissioned films and the increasing evidence of ‘tablets’ and ‘mobile phones’. There was also an unprogrammed Meeting for Worship for all ages for the first time. It was also a time of nostalgia for some Friends. It was the last time that the Large Meeting House, which had been specifically designed by a Quaker architect for worship and the holding of Yearly Meeting, was to do so in its present form. The wood panels, balconies and distinctive ‘doorkeeper’ seats will soon be part of history. They have served the Religious Society of Friends well. British Quakers are moving with the times and adapting to financial realities. The major refurbishment of the Large Meeting House, by a firm of international architects, will transform the space for the future. It has not been specifically designed for worship but to be multifunctional. It will, consequently, be very adaptable and of greater benefit, financially, to the Society.
