| | by admin | | posted on 9th June 2025 in Quakers in 100 Objects | | views 110 | |
A digital object, the Zoom Worship Screen has become an online gathering place for Quakers worldwide, upholding the practice of silent worship and spiritual connection during times of isolation and beyond.
In early 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic swept across the world, Quakers faced a new kind of stillness: closed meeting houses, cancelled gatherings, and the sudden impossibility of gathering in person. Into this silence stepped the Zoom worship screen — a new and unexpected object of spiritual community. Simple in appearance, it showed a grid of faces, names, or blank squares. And yet, through it, Friends found one another again.
What might have seemed antithetical to the unprogrammed Quaker tradition — a digital interface, complete with mute buttons and participant lists — instead became a vessel for faithfulness. Across time zones and geographies, Friends began to worship together in waiting silence, often with the same depth and tenderness as in a physical meeting room.
The essence of Quaker worship — to sit in expectant silence, attentive to the inward Light — was not lost in translation. Friends greeted one another, settled into worship, and spoke as moved by the Spirit. A raised hand became a visual ministry. Ministry was offered not only in spoken words but through presence, patience, and quiet listening. Some Meetings developed the gentle practice of bowing or raising a hand on camera to acknowledge spoken ministry.
Clerks adapted too, guiding Meetings through chat messages, screen-shared queries, and breakout rooms for afterword or fellowship. Business meetings continued, with discernment unfolding square by square. Isolated Friends, those with disabilities or caregiving roles, and those without a local Meeting found themselves more connected than ever before.
Zoom worship did more than fill a temporary need. It opened a new horizon for what it means to be a gathered people. International Meetings flourished. Elderly Friends could attend regularly once again. Some Meetings even grew in numbers. A Zoom screen might show a solitary Friend in a rural cottage, a young attender joining quietly between studies, and a visitor from another continent — all held in the same silence.
Hybrid worship has now become a familiar form: a camera and laptop placed gently at the centre of a meeting house, drawing in those unable to attend in person. Other Meetings remain entirely online. The technology remains imperfect, yet the Spirit is not constrained by signal strength. Many Friends speak of feeling just as gathered, just as held, as they would be in a wooden room with facing benches and creaking floorboards.
The Zoom worship screen is, in its way, a kind of meeting house. It holds silence, presence, and ministry. It reflects the Quaker understanding that the Divine may be encountered without ritual, priest, or place — that where two or three are gathered, even in pixelated presence, the Spirit may move.
As Friends reflect on these digital years, the Zoom screen becomes more than a tool — it becomes an artefact of continuity, creativity, and courage. It reminds us that faith adapts, and that community, like worship, is not bound by walls. Even in this most modern of forms, the ancient Quaker practice of waiting in the Light finds room to live and breathe.
As email and bulletin boards began to emerge, some Friends—particularly in the United States—experimented with digital discussion groups and early message boards. These included participation in platforms such as Usenet and early Quaker listservs.
One of the first major online resources, Quaker.org, was launched by Russ Nelson. It quickly became a key portal for seekers, containing links to meetings, beliefs, and texts. Friends General Conference and Britain Yearly Meeting soon followed with official websites.
The early 2000s saw a rise in Quaker blogs (“QuakerQuaker†being a notable hub), online discussion forums, and the digitisation of Quaker archives. This was the decade in which many local Meetings created websites, offering welcome and basic information to newcomers.
Facebook, Twitter, and later Instagram became tools for outreach and witness. Organisations such as Quaker Peace and Social Witness (QPSW), the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), and Young Friends General Meeting (YFGM) began using social media to share reflections, campaigns, and spiritual content.
The Friends Journal in the United States launched QuakerSpeak, a video series of interviews with Friends about faith, life, and witness. It became a powerful resource for outreach and religious education, widely shared across the Quaker world.
When COVID-19 closed meeting houses, most Quaker Meetings rapidly transitioned to online worship using Zoom and similar platforms. For some, this began as a stopgap measure; for others, it became a transformative moment of inclusion and accessibility. Yearly Meetings, committees, and worship-sharing sessions also moved online.
As restrictions eased, many Meetings adopted hybrid formats, allowing both in-person and online participation. This development posed practical and spiritual challenges but was embraced by many as a way to build community across distance, age, and ability.
Britain Yearly Meeting and other bodies formally recognised online-only worship groups as legitimate Meetings. Some Monthly Meetings now consist entirely of Friends who have never met in person. Online Quakerism ceased to be a temporary solution and became a fully embodied expression of worship and community.
Friends began exploring the use of AI tools, transcription services, and captioning to make worship and business more inclusive. The spiritual dimension of digital tools was increasingly discussed, including their impact on discernment, presence, and corporate witness.
Online worship continues to evolve, not as a substitute but as a form in its own right. Digital retreats, epistles, newsletters, and global worship-sharing groups continue to connect Friends across languages and landscapes. The challenge now is to remain grounded in Spirit while navigating ever-changing technology.