“We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fighting with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretence whatsoever.”

– Declaration made to Charles II in 1660

What unites us as Quakers?

Spiritual insights, often called “testimonies”, tend to unite Quakers worldwide. They spring from deep experience and have been reaffirmed by successive generations of Quakers. These testimonies are to integrity, equality, simplicity, community, stewardship of the Earth, and peace. They arise from an inner conviction and challenge our normal ways of living. They exist in spiritually-led actions rather than in rigid written forms. They are not imposed in any way and they require us to search for ways in which we can live them out for ourselves. Our commitment to non-violence in thought, word and deed is based on the idea that all human beings have something of the divine with us. This idea can be described, in the words of founder George Fox (1624-1691), as “answering that of God in every one” and “seeking the inner light” in each person. (quno.org)

It might seem self-evident that if one believes this fundamental statement, one must be led to objecting to war and armed service on the grounds of conscience, as many Quakers, over the centuries have done. Indeed, the right to this objection is now enshrined in the national law of many countries, including all Member States of the Council of Europe – it is one of the principles to which a country must adhere in order to become a member. This was one of the achievements of a long struggle of the international peace movement after WWI, in which Quakers played an important role (e.g. at the ‘Bilthoven Meetings’ in 1919-21) and we must be alert to trends that threaten to undermine this hard-fought right.

Importantly we must always remember that there is a difference between upholding the right to conscientious objection and being a conscientious objector and indeed, although Quakers resisted the introduction of conscription in 1916 and many chose to register as conscientious objectors, a small but substantial number of young Quaker men did choose to join the armed forces, feeling this was the quickest way to end the war.

The Gent group of the Belgium & Luxembourg Yearly Meeting, along with several other interested Friends, are active in the Belgian peace movement and specifically, alongside EBCO, in support of Conscientious Objectors and the right to Conscientious Objection. EBCO, the European Bureau for Conscientious Objection, was founded in 1979, with the support of the Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) that is still one of the four Belgian member associations. It would, therefore, seem appropriate for BLYM to uphold this work.

Much more information on this can be found through the links below.

The call to BLYM

Minute 23/06-19 (Conscientious Objection to War) of Belgium and Luxembourg Yearly Meeting stated:

We have heard from the Ghent group about their work to raise awareness in Belgium about the right to hold a conscientious objection to war, in the context of our shared testimony to Peace. We thank the Ghent group for bearing witness in this way; they have done us all a service.

We ask the Ghent group, with the Elders, and the Clerk to work together to bring forward to our next Meeting for Business a statement of the Yearly Meeting’s position on Conscientious Objection, as a basis for future action.

Meeting for Business of 24 September 2023 agreed the following statement:

“We utterly deny all outward wars and strife and fighting with outward weapons, for any end or under any pretence whatsoever.”

– Declaration made by Quakers to the English King Charles II in 1660

Freedom from the scourge of war will only be brought about through the faithfulness of individuals to their inmost convictions. As Quakers we accordingly uphold the right of every individual to object to war and armed service on the grounds of conscience. We think that deserters should also be considered as conscientious objectors, especially in armed conflicts between countries that don’t recognise the right of conscientious objection.  We condemn the occasions when individuals are persecuted for their refusal to carry arms.

Our Gent Worship group has taken up this concern: as BLYM we declare our support for their endeavours to ensure respect for the right to Conscientious Objection. We ask them to associate with this work: we commit to supporting this work by encouraging individual Friends to support it financially or to work with them for the right to conscientious objection. We ask our Elders and Clerk(s), to consider sympathetically our endorsement as BLYM of statements and petitions in support of conscientious objection brought forward by our Gent Worship Group.

Links

https://www.quaker.org.uk/our-work/peace/conscientious-objection#heading-1

https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/42b141794.pdf

https://quno.org/areas-of-work/conscientious-objection-military-service

https://www.quaker.org.uk/documents/wwi-newspaper-1916-final

https://www.ebco-beoc.org/aboutebco

More on Conscientious Objection

Since declaring its commitment to peace in 1660, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) has opposed all wars. World War I was no different and many Quakers resisted the call to arms.

Some volunteered for the Friends Ambulance Unit or the Friends War Victims Relief Committee, providing relief from suffering at the front. Others assisted those at home and campaigned for peaceful resolutions.

Quakers believe that all life is precious. We have always tried “to live in the virtue of that life and power which takes away the occasion of all wars”.

We don’t assume that we can escape from the realities of a world in which violence appears so deeply rooted. We are, however, constantly challenged by the existence of weapons of mass destruction, the number and intensity of violent conflicts, the cycles of poverty, alienation and violence that destroy peace in many deprived communities, and apparently random acts of terrorism.

However hard it is, it is important that we remain true to our principles. We try to show that there is another way of conducting human affairs and resolving conflicts in a non-violent way. In many cases this will involve difficult choices. Our conscience may be troubled trying to work out what is right in areas like peace-keeping.

Throughout history, much has been achieved. The peace testimony involves thinking and speaking the unthinkable, believing this may lead to a real shift in attitudes. What is idealistic in one generation, becomes a cherished right in the next.

The peace testimony also means working for forgiveness and reconciliation and living in a sense of our shared humanity.