Alastair Heron (1915–2009)

Heron begins by suggesting that "very many, perhaps most, Friends who are members of yearly meetings in the unprogrammed tradition are uncertian and confused about their personal faith. The reasons for this are many and complex, and it is all too easy to oversimplify in the interests of brevity. It can however be recognized that we have a well-founded fear of what can seem like too-great certainty in matters of faith, and that many Friends today are 'refugees' from other parts of the Church, show more in search of freedom from dogma, liturgy and ritual. Despite our long-standing practice of 'visiting' applicants for membership, to ensure that they and we are reasonably clear what it is they are wishing to join, the criteria we have offered them have become progressively less clear during the 40 years since my own application for membership. One result has been that there are many Quaker meetings in which the members value the silence, but perceive its purpose very differently; enjoy one another's company, but do not form a community of faith; practise consensus democracy rather than seeking God's will and guidance together; and display a heartwarming readiness to be tolerant, both of this diversity and of the meeting's inability to meet their deepest spiritual needs." Heron is describing a situation that exists today as surely as it did in 1989 when he wrote. This is a very useful discussion of the ongoing concern over what part of the Quaker heritage is to be lived and what part is to be cherished as an outgrown memory. show less

The author examines the transformation of British Quakers, starting from the 1895 Manchester Conference, which introduced historical Bible study and liberal doctrines. Key historical events include the impact of the World Wars, the establishment of Woodbrooke College, and the evolution of Quaker identity post-1946. He highlights the shift towards diversity in belief, particularly regarding Christ and the Bible, culminating in a search for a new identity among Friends. Quaker membership show more trends show stagnation, with a static number of attendees and a desire for comfort over engagement in challenging discussions. show less

Worried by the difficulties caused in many Quaker Meetings by the growing number of Attenders, and that few of them apply for membership, Alastair Heron began investigating the extent of the problem as it then existed in the early 90’s. He limits his enquiries to Attenders belonging to the Yorkshire General Meeting area, and includes the accounts of 70 personal inteviews.

Heron takes a searching look at the meaning of Membership and explores the reasons why comparatively few attenders take show more the transitionary step into Membership. The findings of his analysis and the conclusions that flow from it are laid out in this beautifully presented account.

See also Heron's 'On Being a Quaker' shelved at 18A show less

In the summary of his book, Heron writes of his belief that in the last remaining years of the 20th century, the Religious Society of Friends in Britain in the late ’90s is facing considerable difficulties. These difficulties are not structural or organizational, but spiritual. They the direct consequence of changes that began some 30 years ago in the late ’60s and early ’70s. Heron is of the view that if nothing effective is initiated soon, then thirty years hence Membership will need show more qualifiers such as ethical, humanist, secular. By that time, only a small minority will affirm a personal experience of the living power of the Spirit of God in their daily lives.

Those intimate with our Quaker history will identify this situation as a legitimate Concern. But Heron admits this is an essay he did not want to write. show less