Press release:
From December 17th of December there will be a
regular once monthly Quaker Meetings in Haverfordwest after a gap of almost 200
years. This has eveolved from the Quaker Quest series of evenings in Haveerfordwest:
local Quakers from Milford Haven, St. David’s, Narberth and Cardigan talked on
different aspects of being a Quaker.
Quakerism first emerged in Pembrokeshire after George Fox
visited in 1656 in the company of John ap John who ended up in prison for
refusing to doff his hat when going into “the steeple house” [a Quaker nickname
for churches]. Soon there were meetings in Haverfordwest, Jameston, redstone,
St Dvid,s Newport and Puncheston. Non conformist were not allowed to worship
freely for many decades; Records show that after Cromwell’s death in 1658 there
wasn’t a day when there was not a Quaker in prison in Haverfordwest for 30
years!
Fortunately if you had been found at the first Quaker
meeting for Worship in Haverfordwest on October 31st there would
have been no issues of legality. The Meeting House in Haverfordwest was closed
in 1824, the Shire hall was built on the site. There is still evidence of
Quakers through to the 1800s at the Quaker Burial ground at Sutton to the west of Haverfordwest.
Contemporary Quakers share a way of life, not a set of
beliefs. We seek to experience the divine directly, within ourselves, and
through our relationships with others and the world around us. We are welcoming
and inclusive, and value our commitments to equality, peace, integrity and
simplicity.
The first Meeting for Worship will be held on Wednesday 17th
December at 7pm at Albany Church Hall, Hill Street, Haverfordwest SA61 1QE All are welcome. Then on the third Wednesday of the month at Albany Church
Vestry
