Guarded Domesticity and Engagement with “THE World”

Abstract

The Quietist era of Quakerism in the eighteenth century is characterized, in the work of many scholars, as a separation of the Quakers from worldly engagements and, at the same time, an attempt within the Religious Society of Friends to preserve purity through the "disownment" of unfitting behavior. 1 Some Quakers of this period, however, were involved in social reform outside their immediate communities, and many relied on trade with "the world" for their business success. Carole Spencer has recently challenged this strict dualism -between Quakerism and worldly involvements -in her treatment of the antislavery campaigner Anthony Benezet, whose spirituality she describes as a contemplative mysticism operating within the world. 2 It might be more accurate, though, to say that a pair of dualisms functioned in tandem during this period. The dualism between worldly and nonworldly functioned alongside one between natural and super-Common Knowledge 16:1

Quaker accountability regimes: the case of the Richardson family networks, 1840–1914

“…The authors undertook a comprehensive literature review of Quaker history (e.g. Allen, 2015;Dandelion, 2007;Healey, 2015) through until 1914, a significant turning point in world affairs. They identified the key role of accountability in Quakerism (e.g.…”

“…Much of the accounting and business history literature related to Quakerism (e.g. Funnell and Williams, 2014;Parker, 2014) assumes it as a steady, static set of beliefs and practices but, in fact, throughout its history Quakerism has been subject to change and crisis (Dandelion, 2007). The authors have adopted Langley's (1999, p. 691) 'philosophy .…”

“…The Meetings structure was fundamental to Quaker organization. Meetings were assemblies of Friends gathered face-to-face and they may be represented as a pyramid structure (Allen, 2015;Dandelion, 2007). At the base of the pyramid were local Preparative Meetings made up of representatives from local congregations.…”

“…In pursuit of such concerns, Meetings stressed “the importance of keeping clear and accurate accounts [and] were diligent in the oversight of [this] rule” (Prior and Kirby, 1993, p. 71). Dandelion (2010, p. 101) notes that it “is not possible to divorce Quaker business life or worldly activity from Meeting life”. Moreover, “Quaker faith itself, expressed through the Book of Extracts… affirmed business as a godly behaviour” (Angell and Dandelion, 2017, p. 2) and recent research by Fincham (2017) indicates that Quakers were actively attracted to the world of business and made a positive choice to operate in it.…”