Monthly Meeting Minutes

Quaker Business Basics

“Quaker Business Basics” is a short introduction to meeting for worship with attention to business from Friends General Conference (FGC).

Quaker Business Meetings

This document was originally written and produced by some Friends and Attenders from Glasgow Meeting, Scotland, who came together in an informal group in 1995 to explore their experience of business methods in the Society of Friends. It has been tailored to Concord (NH) Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) with Amercanized spellings and terms.

Last update: 9^th month 2021. Comments and corrections should be sent to Clerk [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org

A Practical Mysticism

A Practical Mysticism: How Quaker Process Opens Us to the Promptings of the Divine by Elizabeth Meyer, Pendle Hill Pamphlet #453 (October 2018) Price: $7.50

Quaker business process is a group practical mysticism that opens the worshiping body to the promptings of the Divine.  At its best, all in the worshiping community—not only the clerk—understand and trust the process.  This essay identifies twelve Friendly practices, aspects of Quaker process that, when faithfully adhered to, deepen our worship with attention to business and invite the work of the Divine Presence in our midst.  Discussion questions included.

Click here to read a review of this pamphlet by Marty Grundy in Friends Journal.

Atheist’s Guide to Quaker Process

The Atheist’s Guide to Quaker Process: Spirit-Led Decisions for the Secular by Selden W. Smith, Pendle Hill Pamphlet #472 (December 2021) Price: $7.50

Can the nontheist participate fully in the religiously rooted Quaker “sense of the meeting” process? This essay offers a practical guide for those engaged with Quaker-led institutions who are not Quaker themselves, and who may not hold any religious beliefs at all. Whether you are an atheist, agnostic, skeptic, or simply never gave it much thought, this essay describes how, by relying on a handful of noble yet entirely human qualities, the benefits of this time-tested decision-making model can be available to nonbelievers without hypocrisy or pretense. A brief list of recommended readings is included.

You can read a Friends Journal review of this pamphlet here.

There is a brief summary with excerpts here.

A clerk’s guide

“A clerk’s guide to minute-preparation, other paperwork, and procedures” is a collection of advice gathered by ‘weighty Friends’ from Fifteenth Street Monthly Meeting.

“Before Business Begins : Notes for Friends Meeting Recording Clerks and Recorders” by William Braasch Watson

“Before Business Begins : Notes for Friends Meeting Recording Clerks and Recorders” (now out-of-print and a bit dated [1996]) is a practical guide to serving as a recording clerk and/or recorder in a Friends meeting.  This indexed, 52-page version is in Microsoft Word .docx format and bookfold-formatted for double-sided printing on 13 sheets of 8½" x 11" (215.9 x 279.4 mm) paper.  Damon Hickey (see below) makes frequent reference to the original typewritten edition.

(There is also a scanned PDF version of this pamphlet on New England Yearly Meeting’s website at

• https://neym.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/Before%20Business%20Begins%201.pdf
• https://neym.org/sites/default/files/2019-09/Before%20Business%20Begins%202.pdf)

“Unforeseen Joy : Serving a Friends Meeting As Recording Clerk” by Damon D Hickey

“Unforeseen Joy : Serving A Friends Meeting As Recording Clerk” (now out-of-print and a bit out-of-date [1987]) is a very practical guide to serving as a recording clerk in a Friends meeting.  This indexed, 36-page version is in Microsoft Word .docx format and bookfold-formatted for double-sided printing on 9 sheets of 8½" x 11" (215.9 x 279.4 mm) paper.  From reviews on LibraryThing:

My Friends Meeting had just appointed me as Recording Clerk, when I found this booklet.  The author answered a lot of my "How?" question and gave useful examples of how to style minutes.  One of the most important suggestions he made is to take your time and don't hurry when drafting a minute.

"When a matter is resolved, minute the resolution, not the discussion." page [12]

Useful guidelines not only for recording clerks, but for everyone who participates in meeting for business and benefits from the faithful service of the recording clerk.

Guidelines for minutes

“Guidelines for minutes of monthly meeting for business” is a collection of advice gathered by Friends Meeting of Washington, DC.

Directions for clerks & recorders

“Guidelines for Clerks and Recorders of Constituent Meetings” is a collection of advice about archiving records from monthly meetings gathered by Record Services Group of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (Quakers) at Bryn Mawr College, Special Collections.

The role of the clerk

“The role of the clerk (Quaker business meeting practice)” - advice from Arthur Larrabee.

Notes from clerking workshop

“Raw Notes from the Quaker Clerking Workshop” - from Sue Gardner’s blog.

Reading list for clerks

“Reading Resource List for Clerks of Committees and Meetings” - compiled by Martin D Reber, London Grove Monthly Meeting.