Exploring Quaker Experiences: Ministry
A Quaker Meeting for Worship involves coming together to sit in peaceful stillness… but it isn’t totally silent! At any time, somebody may feel moved to ‘give ministry’ – to say something to the room which contributes to the communal experience. The practice is rooted in our long-held emphasis on our equality. We do not subscribe to a spiritual hierarchy, where only individuals in authority give a sermon or lead a prayer. Instead, in a Quaker Meeting, everybody is an equal contributor and anybody can give ministry.
This article weaves together reflections from a few Friends on this rather unique aspect of Quaker practice.
Deciding whether to give ministry
It is usually a very rare and special moment for somebody to feel so deeply moved as to speak into a room that is otherwise silent. Some Friends may feel instantly prompted to give ministry, while others feel that the inspiration to minister builds slowly throughout the meeting. Nick reflects on what he experiences in the build up to giving ministry:
“Sometimes you don't know when you should minister. That's the big thing. Sometimes you're very clear that you're taken by the spirit to minister, and I sometimes doubt whether I should. There’s a song called ‘Knock Three Times On The Ceiling’ which sums it up well:
I'm thinking, shall I minister now? And I don't.
And I leave it. It's already there in my mind, what to minister. And I leave it to see if I feel, that I've left it in my mind long enough.
And that goes on for some time. I usually leave it a good time before I actually minister.
Some people find themselves, at the beginning of ministry, they feel different when they actually minister. I find that after ministry, I feel exhausted, to be honest! I feel I sit down with a bump, if you like.”
Where does Ministry come from?
There is often a feeling among Friends that authentic ministry must be rooted in our present experience, rather than in theory. It usually comes up organically and spontaneously from a moment of deep stillness and reflection, rather than being a pre-written speech based on the week’s philosophical musings.
Toni shares how, for her, ministry is not about thinking at all, but comes from a place of emptiness:
“I'm afraid my heart sinks when I hear someone getting up and beginning their ministry with ‘I've been thinking’. To me, it's important to get beyond the thinking in Meeting for Worship. For me, it's a matter of getting beyond my usual thoughts, my usual preoccupations, the chatter in my head, the things I think about – to get beyond all that, in order to be in a state of waiting rather than anything else.
I feel something might qualify as ministry if it's come out of emptiness. A word can bubble up and I have no idea why it came. And I suddenly recognise how useful and helpful that is. I can see how that can bubble up in someone, but it's not necessarily come from them. It's come through them. That's when I value it.”
On the same wavelength
Ministry is also one of the things that sets Quaker Meetings apart from other kinds of group meditation. People who are new to Quaker Meetings often report a strong sense of connection in the room that goes beyond just sitting together silently. In fact, a quite strange phenomenon is often observed in a Quaker Meeting. Many people notice that as they sit in quiet reflection, somebody else may speak exactly to what has been on their mind:
“One of the things about ministry I've noticed is that often in our Meeting, Friends will minister on a similar theme. And it always seems to be as though people are actually thinking about this theme, whatever it might be - the whole Meeting is already thinking about that particular thing even before somebody speaks!” - Derek
“Sometimes it happens that I've got something inside me which may be ministry. I haven't spoken. And somebody else gets up and speaks about the same thing! And I know that happens to other people.” - Alice
“I've had multiple times in meeting, including my first ever Quaker meeting where I've had something on my mind and I've not said anything about it and someone happens to have ministered on that exact thing. Goodness knows how that happens! That's what convinced me that there's something going on in Quaker meetings that is beyond just people talking.” - Tas
As these reflections reveal, there is a very sensitive and fine balance surrounding how we understand ministry and how it is inspired. Our conversations highlighted the diverse ways different people relate to and experience ministry – whether it’s coming from themselves or from others in the Meeting.