Quakerism at Pickering College

QUAKERISM AT PICKERING COLLEGE

THE ROLE OF QUAKERISM AT PICKERING COLLEGE

Pickering College was founded by the Religious Society of Friends, known as Quakers, in 1842. While we are not formally a Quaker school today, we remain the only Quakerfounded school in Canada and the influence of their guiding values is immense.

In an increasingly secular world, our school prides itself on being multi-cultural and ecumenical. Today we boast students from more than 30 countries with a multiplicity of religious and cultural backgrounds. This has been, and is, one of the great strengths and benefits of a Pickering College education. And yet our approach to education, and more fundamentally our approach to how we reach out to our students and our belief in what students can and ought to do in this world, is profoundly influenced by the spiritual nature of our Quaker founders’ beliefs. The role of Quakerism has permeated everything we do and everything we are as a school so much that we take it for granted. It guides our gathering in Morning Meeting, our use of silence, our approach to decision making, the strength of our community, the depth of our values, and the inspiration for our action.

Yet in other ways, and for many parents, students, alumni and staff, the understanding of Quakerism and the role it plays in our school is a great unknown.

QUAKER HISTORY

The Religious Society of Friends emerged in mid 17th century England during a period of political and social upheaval. Thousands of “seekers” were looking for something to believe in to give meaning to their lives.

One such seeker, George Fox (1624-1691), after years of spiritual questioning, experienced a revelation on Pendle Hill, in the heart of England’s Lake District. This revelation—that there is “that of God” in each person, and that one can gain access to God through stillness and the practice of silent worship—led to the birth of the Religious Society of Friends. This revelation has remained at the heart of Friends’ lives and witness ever since. The belief that there is that of God in every person led to the Quaker practices of careful listening, compassion, nonviolence, full equality for women and all people, and action in pursuit of social justice.

Quakers first established schools in England to provide their children with a “guarded” education to protect the children from the influences of the larger society. When Friends arrived in America over 300 years ago, they immediately founded schools to educate all children. Believing that spiritual, social, and intellectual growth are closely linked, Friends have always stressed the importance of an education that supports the overall development of the child.

THE FOUNDING OF PICKERING COLLEGE

The founding of Pickering College dates back as early as 1838, when Canadian Friends were considering a boarding school in Upper Canada, since most schools were operated by churches at the time. In 1839, Joseph John Gurney, a prominent English Quaker reformer, counselled those gathered at the Canada Half-year Meeting to establish a school without delay. Gurney traveled with a delegation to the Quaker settlements in Prince Edward County and helped to select a site for a proposed Quaker boarding school, on land which Gurney himself purchased to help the project.

Pickering College began as the West Lake School in 1841 without any government money. Female students enrolled in the fall of 1841 and boys arrived on campus in early 1842. The West Lake School tried to offer the Quaker ‘guarded’ education, believing, “A child is not naturally good nor is he naturally evil; he is simply innocent. . . The object of moral and religious education is therefore to give every opportunity for the good principle in the soul to be heard and followed and as little opportunity for the evil principle to be heard and followed.”

Although internal and external challenges contributed to the school closing on several occasions and moving from West Lake to Pickering to Newmarket, the school always retained the distinctive qualities founded on Quaker values. The Quaker idea of “That of God Within” required witness to the equality of people leading to an open entrance policy that had no admissions qualifications based on race, religion, culture or ethnicity, a unique and defining quality of the school. The school also recognized the equality of potential, with an open entrance policy that recognized students whose earlier education might have been neglected and who might find what they needed for success in a supportive Quaker ethos.

By the turn of the 19th century, students from around the world were enrolled. Readiness to seek and support the potential within every human being was a cornerstone of a coming educational revolution in North America and the origins of this can be traced to the Quaker foundations of Pickering College.

QUAKERISM AT PICKERING COLLEGE

The role of Quakerism at Pickering College continues to serve as a unique and defining aspect of our school. Retaining a close relationship with our Quaker heritage provides a solid philosophical, moral and operational framework for our planning and decision-making.

While the basic tenet of Quakerism is that there is “that of God in every person,” many people at Pickering share different understandings and beliefs in God. For that reason we alter the wording slightly to reflect the educational context to say that there is “that of good in every person.”

Staying true to this Quaker approach means:

Restated, this means a belief that there is a divine spirit in every human being and therefore the belief that all human beings have equal worth and dignity. Sometimes at Pickering we refer to this as “finding the light” within each child—that inner potential that is waiting to shine upon the world.

Quakers believe that education is an ‘opening up’, rather than a ‘filling up’ and we therefore work with each student to find and express their unique qualities and passions.

• recognizing that there is good in every person, regardless of age, gender, and ethnic background;

• providing a high degree of caring, compassion and support;

• developing a strong social consciousness;

• using consensus in decision making;

• emphasizing traditional Quaker values, such as non-violence and simplicity as well as the school values of community, compassion, integrity, respect and responsibility; and

• building our community through Morning Meeting.

Staying true to the beliefs and ideals deeply held by our Quaker founders means continuing to be a school that combines academic excellence with moral depth. All of these qualities are imbedded in the Pickering College approach to education.

West Lake Boarding School in West Lake, Ontario.

MORNING MEETING

Morning Meeting plays a fundamental role in the life of the school. It is a time that we join together—whether separately as Senior School, or Junior and Middle School, or as a whole school—and work to accomplish a special and important purpose.

Morning Meeting is a time to gather collectively as a school and as a community—in a sense of friendship and shared purpose. It is a time to share our accomplishments. It is a time to hear about up-coming events. It is also a time to open and tackle important issues—whether they are global issues, or issues of importance to students and staff here at the school. And, in doing so, it will always be a time to reflect on who we are as a school and what it means to live our values

Morning Meeting is a time to hear the voices of our community—whether it is the voices of staff, the voices of guests, the voices of student leaders, or of any student. It is a time to be able to listen to all voices; their thoughts, opinions, perspectives, insights. All are welcome, all voices are important.

All in all—it is a time each day to build our community, as with our Quaker founders—in an atmosphere of respect, of listening, of trust, of integrity and of compassion.

SILENCE

As do the Quakers, we at Pickering College believe that truth or enlightenment is available to us through the practice of silence. No matter one’s language or faith or age, there is power in silence. Since Quakers believe that there is a divine spirit residing in every person, silent meeting is a chance for one to convene with whomever or whatever greater power it is that is residing inside you.

Dorothy Flanagan, a Quaker who wrote “The Mystery of Meeting for Worship” wrote, “We usually affirm children for their words, but do we ever affirm them for their silence? Silence can be the capacity to not have the easy answer. We need to affirm the time for dreaming, for imagining, for vision-making—the time for the interior images to meet the images of the world. . Silent time can become a centrepiece to the school’s rhythms, a way to deal with problems, to celebrate, to respond to tragedies, either in the school or in the world.”

At Pickering College, the silence in Morning Meeting is the point when time slows down; when one’s thoughts hang with increased gravity; when one can stop and actually listen to one’s own breathing; when one can even listen to the sound of their own heart beat. The silence in Morning Meeting is when one can clear their mind of the clutter of daily existence and open it up to the possibility of revelation—of that moment of truth; when one can seek and find serenity—when one can be at peace.

At Pickering College, the few moments we share in silence is a chance to slow down, take a deep breath, gather our thoughts and listen, really listen. Some may meditate, some may relax, some may pray; some may just sit and wait and wonder. But, if we are really lucky, all we will hear is silence. . . and if we are patient enough . . . the silence will let us listen to the wisest source of all—our own thoughts and our own hearts—our inner light.

Our hope is that one can revel in the silence, take comfort, strength and joy from being in the presence of friends and find that sense of power and enlightenment that a silent time together can provide our community.

TESTIMONIES

Quakers believe in living life in the spirit of truth and compassion and peace, reaching for the best in oneself and answering “that of God” or “that of goodness” in every person.

Growing out of these tenets, Quakers agree to a core set of values, known as ‘testimonies’. The testimonies are about the way Quakers try to lead their lives. This is an attempt to put their beliefs into practice, even if it involves great difficulty. These testimonies arise from an understanding that certain values and principles are central to the Quaker faith.

Quaker testimonies express the commitment to put their beliefs into practice. Thus, Quakerism is experiential. It must be lived and acted upon for real effect; to be alive. It is not just about beliefs—it must be experienced, observed and reflected upon.

Quaker testimonies, then, are statements of committed actions. These testimonies bear witness to the truth, as Quakers perceive it. They do not exist in any rigid, written form; nor are they imposed in any way. Each Quaker searches for how the testimonies can best be expressed in his or her own life.

The most important Quaker testimonies are the following:

Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community, Equality, Stewardship.

QUERIES

Quakers use queries for personal reflection, self-examination, or spirited discussion. At Pickering College, queries can help us to frame a concern we wish to explore in a faculty, student, or parent discussion. At times these queries might be posted in classrooms, or posed to centre reflection at Morning Meeting. They can always be used as a guide to discourse in our discernment of a difficult issue or quandary.

We have included queries with the description of each testimony on the following pages.

SIMPLICITY

Quakers believe in simple living. Historically this meant simple dress, plain speech, and unadorned Meeting Houses for worship. Through the simplicity testimony, Quakers encourage one another to look beyond the outward and to the inward.

In contemporary terms, Quakers try to live lives in which activities and possessions do not get in the way of open and unencumbered communication with others and with one’s own spirituality. Symbolically, by clearing away the clutter, Quakers are able to more readily hear the “still small voice” within.

At Pickering College, the testimony of simplicity can guide students and staff to focus on fewer ideas or materials, to explore key concepts more deeply and fully, to set priorities, and to prefer clarity over clutter. In this work, simplicity requires focusing our efforts on truth and what is most important rather than diffusing our energies too broadly. Simplicity is a balm to contemporary anxiety; “less is more” helps children (and adults) feel joy in the present moment.

Simplicity at Pickering College is also an aesthetic principle. Creating open, clear, and light-filled spaces was the core aesthetic for the design of our school’s student lounge and dining hall. We are committed to employing Quaker design principles to any new building that we do.

QUERIES FOR SIMPLICITY

 How do I show that I value people more than things?

 In what ways do I strive to not be greedy?

 How do I prevent trivial things from diluting my energy or scattering my thoughts?

 What is truly important to me? How can I “clear the way” to focus on what I value?

PEACE

Quakers oppose and refuse to engage in war and violence in any form. The Quaker belief in peace is not just a rejection of war, but an endeavour to see “that of God” in each person, regardless of nationality, race, or social status. In addition to renouncing war and violence, Quakers are led to eliminate the occasion for war and violence—causes such as ignorance, racism, and poverty. Striving for peace is enacted daily, in interactions with family, neighbours, fellow community members, and those from around the world.

At Pickering College a safe, peaceful space is daily and deliberately sought and cultivated. Problem solving and conflict negotiation skills occupy a central place in our curriculum. Students learn that in order to promote peace in the larger world they must first create peace within. In the older grades especially, the tough questions about war and unrest in our society and around the world are faced full on, woven into the study of world history, religions, and current events. Peace is developed in the community, by the community, as a community.

QUERIES FOR PEACE

 How do I try to not hurt others and help be a model to others to do the same?

 How do I forgive those who have said and done things that hurt me?

 Where does peace begin? How do I grow peace in me, grow it in our school, and spread it throughout the world?

 How do I try to solve problems with others using caring words and actions?

The PC community is privileged to learn from Indigenous elders and is committed to addressing Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action.

A raspberry garden that is now behind Egan House is one reminder of the importance of developing a positive relationship with the land, and those around us.

INTEGRITY

The need to deal honestly with all others and with oneself has long been a foundational outlook among Quakers, summarized by the old injunction: “Let your yea be yea and your nay be nay.” For Quakers, having integrity means being authentic and keeping consistency between one’s values and one’s actions. Lack of integrity separates us from our own soul, from the light within, and from our community. The root of the word integrity is the concept of wholeness. At Pickering College, we value the social, emotional, intellectual, physical, and spiritual dimensions of each person . To be whole is to feel one’s entire sense of self is intact. To be whole also means to be true, to speak the truth and do the right thing, even when no one else is looking.

Quakers try to live according to the deepest truth they know, which they believe comes from the divine. This means speaking the truth to all, including people in positions of power. At Pickering College we are committed to making our words, actions, and beliefs consistent. We believe in “speaking truth to power”—and to each other—even when it is difficult and our message may be unpopular. We deal honestly and fairly with colleagues and partners. We take responsibility for our actions and their results. We fulfill our commitments, and we give credit to others for their contributions.

While acting on our deepest beliefs and values, we are also open to new ideas, new solutions, and new paths. We know that our understanding at any moment is incomplete, at best an approximation of the truth that may be expanded with new insights.

QUERIES FOR INTEGRITY

 How do I hold to my belief while keeping my mind open to expanding truth?

 How do I strive to say and do what I believe in my heart is right?

 How do I hold to the right thing even when no one is looking?

COMMUNITY

A central tenet of Quakerism lies in the power of the gathered community. While Quakers believe that every person is an individual with goodness within, an equally central tenet lies in the power of the “gathered community.” When Quakers gather in silence to worship, they are collectively seeking strength, insight, wisdom, rather than meditating individually. Community signifies unity and trust. Community provides a place for individual members to seek support. Quaker writer Parker Palmer says, “Community is a place where the connections felt in the heart make themselves known in bonds between people, and where the tugging and pulling of those bonds keep opening up our hearts.”

Pickering College strives to build a sense of community in and amongst its various constituents—students, teachers, staff, alumni and parents. Events are designed with community building at their core. Our school seeks to help students grow into their world in expanding concentric circles, beginning with the community of the classroom, then into the broader community of the school, neighbourhood, town, and beyond. Pickering College is committed to building a global community of alumni with lasting connections to each other and our school. Community building centres on simple gestures of kindness, warmth, and inclusion; it is gathering interconnected individuals whose collective actions create a sense of belonging and encourage participation, so we accept and take care of one another.

Our community is a great strength; one of our most prominent assets. It does not happen without continued effort on everyone’s part. We must work toward and safeguard our sense of community and the safety of every student in our midst.

QUERIES FOR COMMUNITY

 How do I look for and love the best that is in each person?

 How do I help others at school to create community by my words and deeds?

 How do I treat all members of our community with equal dignity, respect, and kindness?

 How do I participate fully in making the PC community a welcoming, respectful, and caring place?

 In what ways do I honour the diverse gifts, talents, and resources of the individuals and communities with whom I attend school?

EQUALITY

Quakers believe that all people are equal and have equal access to the “inner light.” This profound sense of equality leads Quakers to treat each person with respect, looking for “that of God” or that of goodness in everyone.

This testimony was reflected in the practice of early Quakers, who granted equal authority to women, who refused to use forms of address that recognized social distinctions and who supported religious freedom. The Quaker testimony of equality also led them to disavow slave owning beginning in 1688, over one hundred years before slavery became outlawed, and they rejected the death penalty.

Thus, Quakers support the development of societies and structures that recognize the dignity of every person. They seek to work with all people in pursuit of justice—the economically impoverished and the materially comfortable, the disenfranchised and the powerful— inviting the spirit to move among all these groups, making great change possible.

At Pickering College, we teach children to recognize that equality is essential, yet different from ‘sameness’. Equality asks that we give and receive the same respect, kindness, and care for one another. It requires that we work to ensure that every person—from the elderly to the youngest among us—gets what is needed. We seek to build each child’s “eye for invisibles” and build from their innate sense of what is fair, a lifelong hunger for justice that is supported by equality.

For us as a school, therefore, we must reject all forms of discrimination, whether based on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, immigrant status, class, gender, age, ability, or sexual orientation. We must be a model to work for change in the beliefs, practices and institutions that perpetuate prejudice, and we must support affected communities in seeking their own liberation and equality. We must continually examine our own biases and privileges and strive to achieve greater equality within our school, in our communities and in our society.

QUERIES FOR EQUALITY

 How do I show that I am open to all people and different ideas?

 How do I speak up when I see someone being treated unfairly?

 How do I look for the good in each person?

 How can I help make things more fair so that everyone is included?

STEWARDSHIP/SERVICE

Quakers strive to use the gifts we have been given wisely, with ‘gifts’ being defined in the broadest of terms. These gifts include not only material wealth, but our talents, our good health, our wisdom and, of course, our natural environment. Quakers believe that material gifts and the space they inhabit on earth are not theirs alone.

To Quakers, good stewardship means taking care of what has been given, not just for their own use but for people around them and for future generations. Here, the integrity and simplicity testimonies come into consideration as well, as Quakers strive to spend their time and resources in accordance with their other beliefs so that the inner self may be aligned with the whole. Stewardship involves a caretaking approach that requires going beyond the environment with “taking care” as a way of being that is integrally connected to the other Quaker testimonies. Quakers strive to use their gifts in accordance with their beliefs. They strive to use their resources with care to achieve the greatest effect. They spend conservatively, seeking creative and costeffective pathways while avoiding extravagant expenses.

At Pickering College, we seek to teach children, and remind ourselves, that we should be active stewards of things (our classroom, our building, our garden, the earth), of ourselves, of each other, and even of ideas and ideals. Stewardship can take many forms. When a Junior School student makes a new classmate feel welcome, that is stewardship. When a Senior School student helps at a local homeless shelter, that too is stewardship.

Through practice and reflection, students grow into an awareness of their responsibility in shaping the worlds they inhabit, from the culture of their classroom to the nature of their neighbourhood to the environment around them. This is embedded in our mission, to instil in each individual the ability and responsibility to make the world greater, better and more beautiful than they discovered it.

Activities at the Blue & Silver farm remind us of the importance of nature in our lives, and our responsibilities as environmental stewards.

QUERIES FOR STEWARDSHIP/SERVICE

 What are my gifts?

 How do I use and perfect my gifts for the benefit of others?

 How can I be a model to help others recognize, use and share their gifts?

 How can I take care of my classroom and my school?

 How can I better use resources wisely, recognizing that these resources were given freely by others to be used in service of peace and justice?

 How can we maintain in ourselves, and encourage in others, a responsibility for the natural world based on reverence for life and a sense of the splendor of our surroundings?

 How am I taking good care of my school? How do I show my regard for those who will use it after me?

Am I being a good ancestor?

PICKERING COLLEGE GUIDING VALUES: WHAT IS IMPORTANT TO US

Community

Compassion

Integrity

Respect

Responsibility

Community is gathering interconnected individuals whose collective actions create a sense of belonging and encourage participation, who accept and take care of one another.

Compassion is being sensitive to others’ thoughts and feelings and understanding and considering conflicting issues and ideas. It is to show concern and caring for all others in the community, no matter their differences, in a way that creates harmony and peace.

Integrity is the courage to act honestly and truthfully in all actions.

Respect is valuing yourself and others and the environment in which we exist, based on the principles of simplicity and equality, so that you treat others as you wish to be treated.

Responsibility is being accountable for one’s own actions and behaviours by demonstrating good judgement and fulfilling obligations.

PICKERING COLLEGE GUIDING TRAITS: WHAT WE DEMONSTRATE

Acceptance – We recognize, accept and celebrate the wide range of human qualities and attributes within our community such as ancestry, culture, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, gender expression, language, physical and intellectual ability, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation and socio-economic status. This acceptance of diversity means embracing the tension that diversity may initially bring and valuing the challenge of the encounter and the difference of the other person, culture, or perspective.

Accountability – We believe in living consistent with our values. This means speaking the truth to all, including people in positions of power, and to each other, even when it is difficult and our message may be unpopular. We deal honestly and fairly with peers and colleagues. We take responsibility for our actions and their results. We fulfill our commitments, and we give credit to others for their contributions.

Courage – To demonstrate courage is to be afraid of doing something, but doing it anyway. Courage is a daily occurrence whereby we express what we believe in and act in a way that demonstrates our values. It means speaking the truth to our hopes, and fears,

Acceptance

Accountability

Courage

Creativity

Curiosity

Excellence

Stewardship

Trust

and aspirations and ambitions. To be courageous means exposing our vulnerabilities, our worries and our fears; demonstrating caring and compassion and respect by being ourselves—authentic, unprotected, and genuine.

Creativity – We inspire those with whom we work to develop or do something original, to turn their ideas into reality and to bring greater value and meaning to themselves and to others. Creativity may be the most precious resource we have in our future, for it is unlimited, renewable and omnipresent. It is a learned skill and mindset that takes hard work, selfdiscipline, and regular and routine focus.

Curiosity – We instil a sense of wonder by constantly asking questions. Questions make us more thoughtful, intelligent and caring; questions build relationships with people; questions get the other person to think, and focus attention on them; and questions remind ourselves of the ideals we seek to attain. Thus, our approach is experiential: it must be lived and acted upon for real effect ... it is not just about beliefs—it must be experienced, observed and reflected upon.

Excellence – We know that humans are born with an infinite capacity for good, which can be nurtured and developed through education. Thus, we believe in always searching for the very best in ourselves and inspiring it in others. The whole community works together with each person recognizing the special position held by others and the contribution required from each for the perfection of our common lives.

Stewardship – We strive to use the gifts we have been given wisely, including not only material wealth, but more importantly, our talents, our good health, our wisdom and insights and, of course, our natural environment.

Trust – It is a foundational belief that we must always deal honestly with all others as well as with ourselves, summarized by the old Quaker injunction, “Let your yes be yes and your no be no.”

COLLEGE GUIDING PRINCIPLES: HOW WE WORK

Collaboration

Consensus Innovation Equality

Non-violent Resolution

Peace Silence Simplicity

Collaboration – We believe that each person is to be valued and respected for their capacity to contribute to a more complex understanding of something being studied than any one could create individually. This leads to being open to a full range of voices; being comfortable with disagreement, accepting complexity; and an openness to new learning.

Consensus – Consensus decision-making is grounded in the belief that when several people come together they can find an answer that exceeds the reach of any one individual. In consensus decision-making, the group does not simply vote to determine the majority view, but rather they seek unity about the wisest course of action.

Innovation – We are committed to teaching and learning about developing new strategies and sustainable concepts to meet social needs through enabling solutions based on mutual sharing and capability. Thus, social innovation is a new solution to a social problem that is more effective, efficient, just or sustainable than existing solutions and for which the value created primarily supports society as a whole rather than private individuals.

Equality – We believe that all people are equal, all people have equal access to pursue the truth and all people possess the same divine spark within them.

Non-violent Resolution – Seeking peace is anything but passive. In our engagement with the world, we not only speak out to condemn injustice, but we teach that, when necessary, it might be required to engage in non-violent action or even civil disobedience to bring about justice and sustainable peace in the world.

Peace – We oppose violence in all forms and refuse to engage in the violent resolution of conflict. In pursuit of a lasting and sustainable peace, we seek to eliminate causes of violent conflict, such as poverty, exploitation and intolerance by forthrightly and non-violently confronting evil and oppression.

Silence – Gathering in silence is based on the belief that when a group settles into silence, it feels like more than a simple quieting down; the sense of collective thought deepens. It is the belief that if one opens one’s heart and listens, one can hear what is right, and can live out these inner teachings. Silence is often used to settle into a meeting, to invite reflection, or to make way for deep thinking.

Simplicity – We strive to “clear away the clutter” to be more ready to hear the important and to live out the idea that “less is more.”

Pickering College is a school that combines academic development with spiritual depth. True to our Quaker roots, our students are taught, and exemplify, the belief that they are to be seekers of those universal principles in our Guiding Values, Traits and Principles during their time at our school. More importantly, they will live them when they leave our protective shelter and go forth in the world as leaders, ready to serve and change the world.