Images of the Nativity and the Meanings of Christmas

Waiting worship at West Richmond Friends Meeting, 29th of Twelfth Month, 2019

Images of the nativity and the holy family from multiple cultural and contemporary perspectives.

This morning we are practicing “waiting” worship in the traditional manner of Friends, sometimes also called “unprogrammed” worship. But today we are not just removing our usual structure, with no goal other than silence. Rather, we are gathering in quiet expectation, confident that the Holy Spirit is truly present and ready to guide us. This manner of worship reflects the Quaker belief that God is accessible to every person, and that stilling our bodies and minds helps us be receptive to the inward presence of Christ.

Meeting begins when the first worshiper takes his or her place, and so we ask everyone to enter the worship space quietly, as soon as they are prepared to do so. As you settle in, this advice from George Fox, the founder of Quakerism, may be useful:

Be still and cool in thy own mind and