Conservative Friend

An Outreach of Stillwater Monthly Meeting of Ohio Yearly Meeting of Friends

Quaker Publishers and Booksellers

The Religious Society of Friends has always been a society with a concern for the written word, originally due in part to the tract and broadside wars of the 17th century between Quakers and their detractors, but also due to the continuing concern that Quakers have always had for education.  More recently, we have tended to be fairly introspective in our publishing, concerned more about talking to ourselves and each other than to the wider world.

The following publishers have provided material of interest both to Friends and to seekers interested in the fundamental message of Quakerism, that Christ has come to teach His people Himself.
  • Inner Light Books.  "In publishing books by and about Quakers and books that examine Quaker values it is the hope of the publisher to expand the knowledge of and appreciation for the faith and practice of the Religious Society of Friends...  It is the intention of the publisher to offer selected texts on-line as well as in book form. The texts published will be from original unpublished manuscripts as well as out-of-print books. The publishing program will concentrate on 17th, 18th and 19th century texts. In addition, 20th century and contemporary texts will be published when the subject matter merits it."

    Inner Light Books is a creation of a member of San Fancisco Monthly Meeting, Pacific Yearly Meeting, USA.  Some titles are available now in downloadable PDF format.
  • New Foundation Fellowship.  "Through the study of the writings of George Fox in recent years there has been a rediscovery of the universal message that he preached, and some have been called to go forth and preach it. What is that message? The message that was the starting point for the early Quaker movement was a gospel message. It is from this same starting point that new life can be generated in the Society of Friends today."

    The New Foundation Fellowship was founded by Lewis Benson, an individual of great prophetic voice in the reconnection of the Society of Friends with its foundation in Jesus Christ.  The Foundation publishes tracts, booklets, and a newsletter.
  • Quaker Heritage Press.  "Quaker Heritage Press is a project of the members of Glenside Friends Meeting, a small independent Quaker meeting located in Glenside, Pennsylvania. The task of QHP is to make available some of the many historic Quaker writings which have been allowed to go out of print."  These titles include the only unabridged, non-condensed republishing of Robert Barclay's Apology for the True Christian Divinity in 100 years, as well as the works of James Naylor and Isaac Penington.
  • Friends Tract Association.  "...A number of Friends— having convened in Philadelphia on the 15th of the first month, 1816, to consider the propriety of forming an Association, for the printing and distributing of moral and religious books and pamphlets such as explain and enforce the doctrines of the Christian religion; after deliberate consideration, united in the belief, that such an association, might be productive of much good."—The Constitution of the Tract Association of Friends.  For nearly two hundred years following that initial meeting we have published pamphlets, essays and books on beliefs, concerns, history and practice; and, when the times required, we printed refutations of unsound doctrines."

    The Tract Association supplies a variety of inexpensive short material focused on helping new Quakers better understand the principles and testimonies of the Society.
  • Quaker Books of Friends General Conference.  "The core of QuakerBooks of FGC is to provide resources that help Friends communicate where we’ve come from, who we are and the living questions that exist among us."  The Friends General Conference provides an extensive list of titles available through the FGC Bookstore as well as mail order, encompassing a very wide range of belief, faith, and practice.
  • Pendle Hill.  Pendle Hill is a combination school, retreat center, and source for contemplative training in the Quaker way.  A founding director of the Center was once amusingly introduced to a Japanese audience as "the abbot of a Quaker monastery," which is actually not a bad description.

    The Pendle Hill Bookstore publishes a variety of materials on Quaker thought, faith, and practice, as well as their well-known and long-standing series of pamphlets, written by those associated with the organization.
  • QuakerInfo.com.  This link takes you to the Books, Videos, and Art Print page of the much more extensive QuakerInfo.com website.  Once there, there are thumbnail links for various Quaker trade books and such available through other booksellers.  An eclectic list, and one that crosses over the cultural divides that normally separate the various branches of Friends from each other.  Take a look.