Who We Are
Friends Meeting of Washington (FMW) is a large, urban community of Quakers and non-Quakers. Our Meeting House, where we worship together, is located on Florida Avenue near Dupont Circle in Washington, DC. All spiritual seekers are welcomed to join us as we gather for worship, fellowship and community service.
Members of the FMW community seek to live their lives based on the values of the Religious Society of Friends – the promotion of peace, a commitment to all humanity, an understanding that love is a manifestation of God, and a belief that ”there is that of God in everyone”. We are an inclusive, spiritual community that sincerely welcomes anyone seeking a spiritual home. Our community includes individuals of many races, faith traditions, genders, sexual orientations, ages and socio/economic backgrounds.
We worship in the traditional Quaker way, convening in silence, interrupted only if a worshiper feels divinely inspired to deliver a message intended for all. Meetings for Worship are held several times each week, with the largest meeting on Sundays at 10:30 – 11:30 a.m. In addition, because Quakers believe service also is worship, FMW is engaged in an array of community support, peace, and human dignity related activities, which also welcome anyone’s participation.
Because it is located in the nation’s capital, FMW is an especially dynamic Meeting. Our community includes visitors from all over the world, activists trying to make the world a better place, and others seeking to discern their spiritual path within the all-embracing approach of the Society of Friends.
To experience the Religious Society of Friends (also known as Quakers) come worship with us any Sunday or for more information, you may contact our Meeting. Our Welcome Brochure lists the many worship, study, and service opportunities available.
Our History
Friends Meeting of Washington was incorporated in 1930, but it arose from over a century of other Quaker activity in the Washington DC area. Read A Brief History of the Meetinghouse to learn more about our history. You can also find a brief history of the Meeting in our Handbook.
Several publications are available in the FMW office or library for people interested in our history:
Seeking the Sense of the Meeting: A History of Friends Meeting of Washington 1972 - 1992
Every two decades, FMW gives an account of its life, conveying a sense of its spiritual growth and challenges. This Meeting history from 1972 to 1992 provides context for understanding key peace and social justice issues which emerged during this period.
Anniversary Essays: Celebrating 75 Years at Friends Meeting of Washington
In 2005 we celebrated out 75th anniversary with a series of talks by notable Friends that looked backward.
History of the Friends Meeting of Washington: The Four Chronological Histories, and Collected Other Studies
This volume collects the four consecutive twenty-year histories written by FMW historians, from the establishment of the Meeting in 1930 up to 2013, as well as facsimiles of over thirty other narratives FMW files dating from 1930 to 2021. Several pages of historical photographs and drawings follow; and the volume concludes with a poem written in 1958 to celebrate the burning of our mortgage.
