CALN QUARTER
Caln Quarter Quaker Meetings
The Monthly Meetings listed below are members of Caln Quarter.
Click the photos to learn more about each Meeting — a community of Friends is waiting to welcome you!
Bart
Downingtown
Bradford
Chambersburg
Exeter
Harrisburg
Lancaster
Maiden Creek
Reading
Sadsbury
Old Caln
Schuylkill
Bart Historical Society
Worship is at 11 AM on Father's Day
Bart Meeting was a small Quaker Meeting in Eastern Lancaster County, a few miles west of Christiana Pennsylvania, where local Quakers worshiped from 1820 until about 1925. Bart Friends were abolitionist leaders in the wider Bart area and beyond. They were especially active in the Underground Railroad, assisting escaped enslaved people on their way to freedom. The four white men arrested during the 1851 Christiana Resistance were of Bart Meeting.
Bart Meeting House is active every Father’s Day for Bart Reunion when descendants of those who worshipped there, and other interested persons, gather for Quaker silent worship, a brief historical talk, picnic on the grounds, and an afternoon business meeting. The Bart Meeting location is an especially picturesque south sloping hill side location. The modest size rubble stone single story meetinghouse, and adjacent burial ground, overlook an attractive grove of trees. The site attracts an occasional wedding or historic tour.
Bradford Friends Meeting
Worship is at 11 AM every Sunday, Labor Day through Memorial Day Weekend
Worship is at 10 AM every Sunday, Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend
Quakers believe the essence of God exists in every person. As such we also believe that individuals have a direct spiritual access to the Divine without the complications of clergy structuring the process. Quakers believe we need only to listen within ourselves in a simple atmosphere of silence to understand God’s plan on a personal basis. To that end we constantly search for answers; such as what kind of person we are called to be and how best to live our lives in today’s society. The process is typically one of continuing revelations. To this goal we gather as a community of faith on Sunday mornings at Bradford Friends Meeting. Our Meeting House, constructed of local stone in 1765, is located three miles west from West Chester, PA in the village of Marshallton.
The Meeting House itself is a jewel of antiquity. The stone exterior is coupled with hand wrought shutter stops and door latches. The building interior is of smooth pine and poplar paneling over the original oak flooring. The paneling has no finish other than the patina which comes with age. The building continues to be cherished by member Friends and the local community.
The front door at Bradford Meeting is an open portal through which all may enter regardless of religious background or lack thereof. At Bradford we worship in silence without sermons, music, or ceremonies. We find that worshiping together in this manner as a spiritual community creates a truly special place. Bradford has been that type of place since its founding in 1726. We welcome all — both visitors and the curious. We invite you to join us particularly if you have a spiritual itch that needs scratching.
CONTACT INFO
610 - 517 - 1884
1366 West Strasburg Rd.
West Chester, PA 19382
Chambersburg Friends Meeting
Worship is at 10:30 AM every Sunday
Chambersburg Friends Meeting has been a presence in Franklin County for over 50 years. It began as a worship group during the academic year of Wilson College from 1958. Preparative status was requested in 1968 fostered by a number of growing Quaker families. There were ties to Philadelphia Yearly Meeting hence application for preparative status was made through Harrisburg Monthly Meeting. Over the next decade, worship took place in various community meeting rooms. In 1977 application was made to Caln Quarter of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and on May 14, 1978, the Meeting officially became Chambersburg Friends Meeting.
The Meeting grew steadily with growing families and others relocating to our area. We needed a meeting place of our own. Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall became available. It was purchased, internally renovated with a kitchen, meeting room and larger room for general gathering. Our first meeting, just after the blizzard of 1994, is pictured below showing our numbers. This growth, brought diversity, and the richness of stories of eclectic spiritual paths. There was witness to the circle of life including birth, marriage, illness, death, transitions all weaving into the fabric of love, sorrow, concerns and joy.
Over the next several decades to the present there has been a gradual decline in attenders. Children grew up and moved away. Members die. Secularism gained a footing. Chambersburg Friends continues to be vital and involved in the community. There are connections with The Mennonite Relief Center, Racial Reconciliation, Community Unity, Valentines for Veterans, voter registration, vigils, and protests.
The sign outside the Meeting House states, “All are Welcome.” We are prepared to welcome children. Spending an hour in silence and waiting for the Spirit within to speak is a life changing experience.
CONTACT INFO
717 - 263 - 6576
630 Lindia Dr.
Chambersburg, PA 17201
Downingtown Friends Meeting
Worship is at 10:30 AM every Sunday
As one of the largest Meetings in Caln Quarter, Downingtown Friends Meeting is a vibrant contributor to both the local Chester County community and regional faith organizations. We are members of the Interfaith Action Community and POWER, we support the Lord’s Pantry in Downingtown, and we volunteer quarterly with Good Works, Inc. to assist with the construction and maintenance of homes in nearby Coatesville.
Our Sunday School Program is available to children from preschool through high school, and high schoolers are eligible to participate in a service initiative to help communities in need of aid with whom we have a working relationship: the Lakota Sioux Reservation in South Dakota, the Appalachian community in rural West Virginia, and a small community in Costa Rica.
Downingtown Friends Meeting is home to the Friends Fall Festival, a community tradition filled with quality thrifting, homemade chili, a variety of baked goods, and a historical Quaker wedding reenactment.
CONTACT INFO
info@downingtownfriendsmeeting.org
610 - 269 - 4223
800 E. Lancaster Ave.
Downingtown, PA
Exeter Quaker Meeting
Worship is at 10:30 AM every Sunday
In addition to seasonal workdays, annual picnics, and carol singing, a monthly Book Club and other short-term projects, Exeter Meeting gathers frequently to knit the fabric of our separate families together. We gather for a post-worship potluck meal and fellowship on the first Sunday of each month and several times each year, we gather in each other's homes to share a meal and fellowship.
Exeter Friends volunteer to prepare and serve a hot meal to the residents of Opportunity House on the second Tuesday of each month.
Young families with children will typically sit in silent worship for 10-15 minutes before children are given the opportunity to participate in a Sunday (first-day) school program.
Most first-days (Sundays) we gather about an hour before worship and raise a topic for discussion. It could be spiritually challenging, historically edifying, or an opportunity to listen more deeply to another's life story.
In 1718, Friends (Quakers) began settling in the Oley Valley, Meeting for Worship in each other's homes. In 1725 our Meeting became a "preparatory Meeting" and in 1737, we became a Monthly Meeting, fully responsible for our land and community. After outgrowing two cabin structures, the current stone building was built in 1759 to accommodate a growing community.
Many recognizable families were members here including the Lincolns, Boones, Lees, and Ellises.
Exeter Friends are a small rural Meeting with about 2 dozen members and attenders. While historically significant to the region and the nation, we carry forward a living faith that respects that of God and the Spirit within us all.
.jpg)
CONTACT INFO
Exeterfriendsmeeting@gmail.com
717 - 753 - 9415
191 Meetinghouse Rd.
Douglassville, PA 19518
Harrisburg Quakers
Worship is at 11 AM every Sunday
Harrisburg Monthly Meeting is connected with the greater Harrisburg community in several ways. We have a Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) advocacy team that is focused on national and state legislation that will change sentencing laws and promotes justice reform. We meet with legislators on various issues. We also are working to change Dauphin County Prison policies and approaches to inmate treatment. We have a fund that supports keeping people in housing and supports temporary, affordable housing approaches. We are active in the Interfaith community.
We have an active adult Sunday School program on Sunday morning that starts at 9:45 am. Our Sunday School Program is available to children from preschool through high school.
Most Sundays, we have hospitality or potluck which provides an opportunity to catch up with each other after Meeting for Worship.
All are welcome in person and virtually.
Lancaster Friends Meeting
Worship is at 8 AM and 10 AM every Sunday, 6:45 PM every Wednesday
Lancaster Meeting was founded in 1947, with the present Meetinghouse erected in 1954. In 2001, as our membership grew, a kitchen and multi-purpose room were added. We presently support a Congolese refugee family and their Swahili Quaker worship group, which gathers at the Meetinghouse.
Devoted Friends visit and support AVP (Alternative to Violence Projects) in Palestine and Guatemala and have been doing so for over a decade. We recently completed an 18-month program called a “Journey for Racial Justice," raising our awareness of our own racism as well as structural and institutional racism around us. In response, Friends have reached out in various ways to work for racial equity and inclusion.
Friends who meet for hybrid worship on Sundays usually number around 60 in person and a dozen or so on Zoom. The number recently rose when masking became optional. Since Covid, our First Day school has dwindled, but continues to attract young people from ages 5 to 15.
We have continued our Adult Meetings for Learning, bi-weekly singing, numerous Forums on a wide range of topics, fellowship time after worship in our community room, and a monthly pot-luck meal on the third Sunday. The Meetinghouse also serves as the home of the Lancaster Friends School, serving pre-K through 8th.
CONTACT INFO
717 - 392 - 2762
110 Tulane Ter.
Lancaster, PA 17603
Maiden Creek Meeting
Worship is at 10 AM every Sunday from Father's Day to Labor Day Weekend
Maiden Creek Meetinghouse is the meeting location for Reading Meeting on Father's Day.
CONTACT INFO
610 - 372 - 5345
849 West Shore Dr.
Shoemakersville, PA 19555
Old Caln Meeting
Worship is at 10:30 AM every Sunday except the last Sunday of the month
Old Caln Meeting is a historic Orthodox Meetinghouse that is an extension of Downingtown Friends Meeting, who also stewards and cares for the Old Caln Meetinghouse and property. It holds much of the same character as its 1726 origins, though electricity was added in the 19th century.
A wood stove heats a small room where Friends gather every Sunday (except for the last Sunday of the month) at 10:30 AM for Meeting for Worship. Typically, a small group of two to ten people meet in this space, and Friends and visitors are always invited to join them for a quiet and cozy Worship.
Old Caln is also the location of one of our quarterly meetings.
CONTACT INFO
info@downingtownfriendsmeeting.org
610 - 269 - 4223
901 Caln Meetinghouse Rd.
Coatesville, PA
Reading Friends Meeting
Worship is at 10 AM every Sunday
Children’s Meeting, (formally known as Sunday School) meets face-to-face during Meeting for Worship. Often there is “Opening Exercises” when readings and/or music are shared for about 15 minutes; then we settle into worship, which ends after about 1 hour with greetings and announcements.
Current Covid policies: Practice social distancing, Masks are optional, sign-in for possible contact tracing.
Meeting for Worship with attention to business (formally known as Monthly Meeting for Business): Every 2nd Sunday about 11:30 am, Hybrid with Zoom, except July/August, usually on the 1st Friday of August.
Monthly Pot-Luck Meals: Every 1st Sunday after Worship: October – June
Exploring our Beliefs: 6:30 pm every 3rd Tuesday: zoom
Primary Meetinghouse & grounds: 6th Street Meetinghouse: 108 North 6th Street, Reading, located downtown Reading between Washington & Walnut Streets, access parking lot from 6th street.
Summer Meetinghouse & Cemetery & grounds: Maiden Creek Meetinghouse:
849 West Shore Drive, Shoemakersville, near Leesport and Lake Ontelaunee: at the intersection of Shoemakersville Road & Kindt’s Corner Road & West shore Drive.
Sadsbury Friends Meeting
Worship is at 10:15 AM every Sunday
Sadsbury Friends is a small spiritual community in a rural area of eastern Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Our meeting has existed since 1724; we worship in an “English style” meeting house built in 1747. Our 10:15 a.m. Sunday worship is followed by singing and adult forum where we explore various topics of interest such as the spiritual life, Quaker history, the concept of the Inner Christ to name just a few.
At 4 p.m. on December 24 we hold a 1 hour Contemplative Christmas Eve that is open to the public. Once or twice during the year we have a Day of Silence on a Saturday when the meeting house and grounds are available to all for reflection and prayer.
In 2024 Sadsbury Friends plan a series of events to celebrate our 300th anniversary as a spiritual community.
CONTACT INFO
info@sadsburyfriendsmeeting.org
484 - 985 - 0454
1089 Simmontown Rd.
Gap, PA 19310
Schuylkill Friends Meeting
Worship is at 10 AM every Sunday
Schuylkill Quaker Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends is a modest size Meeting that comes together every Sunday for worship at 10am. We are an unprogrammed Meeting that gathers in silence, open to receiving spoken messages that may be given by the Divine to anyone present. In this way we may all serve as ministers, open to messages from Spirit and sharing them with others present; we have no designated or ordained ministers. Believing that there is “that of God” in each person, we seek and encourage participation from all who are drawn to our values of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality and stewardship, and to this manner of worshipping together. Sunday school, led by two members of the meeting community, is available for children.
In recognition of the ongoing risks of contagion when we are in-person, all are expected to wear masks in the meeting house. If you cannot (or choose not to) join us in person, we offer the opportunity to join via Zoom. For the link, or to learn more, please call our number listed below.
CONTACT INFO
484-975-2661
37 N Whitehorse Rd.
Phoenixville, PA 19460
