They derided the holiness of churches.
No clergy were admitted into their sect. When they met for divine
worship, each rose to deliver extemporaneous inspirations of the
Holy Ghost. Women were admitted to teach the brethren and were
considered proper vehicles to convey the dictates of the spirit.
Quakers believed that every man, in his own life, could be fully
victorious over sin. The denied any clerical authority and all
texts. They believed in the separation of church and state. They
refused to swear to any oath, e.g. in court, or to participate in
war. They refused to take off their hats to anyone but God. It was
their practice to turn the other cheek when one cheek had been
struck. If asked for his cloak, a Quaker would give it. He never
asked more for his wares than the precise sum which he was
determined to accept. The Quakers developed a value of making
provision for children from a first spouse when remarrying. They
carefully selected masters and mistresses who wanted to take on
child apprentices for their suitability for such responsibility.
The education of Quaker women did not decline, as it did for other
women. From the fervor of their zeal, the Quakers broke into
churches, disturbed public worship, and harassed the clergyman and
audience with railing and reproaches. When brought before a
magistrate, they show no reverence but treated him as an equal.
Sometimes they were thrown into mad house or prisons and sometimes
whipped or pilloried.
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