Marlborough Friends Meeting

04/13/2026

We want to thank all of our neighbors who contributed to our drive and made it a success. The response was overwhelming. Contributions large and small piled up on our stoop each day and in the end, we had an astonishing collection of household items for the Community Warehouse project. When they stopped by it took some time to load it all in their truck.

We are grateful be part of a community which is so quick to lend a hand. Our drive is over, but our friends at the Community Warehouse continue to serve many in need. Remember them when you have a piece of furniture or household item that is in good condition and are ready to pass on.

https://communitywarehouseproject.com/

04/05/2026

Meetinghouse at sunset.

04/04/2026

These times can be discouraging. We are at war. Americans seem to be constantly bickering with each other. Social media is filled with insults.

But let me describe a different American experience.

Each evening, I pop over to our Meetinghouse to see what our neighbors have contributed to our charity drive (see link below). I am frequently astonished by the generosity demonstrated. More often than not, our bins are full. The experience is truly gratifying. It reminds me that the U.S. consistently ranks among the top countries in donating money, volunteering time, and helping strangers. There are times we grumble at each other and disagree on politics, but we are a generous people, and this should be celebrated.

We are collecting much, but we still have room. There is about a week to go in the drive and welcome more contributions.

https://www.marlboroughmeeting.org/marlborough/V2/CommunityServicesDrive.html

03/29/2026

From today until April 10th, we will be collecting household goods for the Community Warehouse Project. Stop by our Meetinghouse anytime to drop items of in the bin on our stoop. 361 Marlborough Road, Kennett Square.

https://www.marlboroughmeeting.org/marlborough/V2/CommunityServicesDrive.html

03/09/2026

In Meeting for Worship yesterday, as best as can be remembered, the following message was given...

This is our life more or less. What we see is what we get. But we are called to something higher. “You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its saltiness, there is no way to make it salty again. It has become worthless, so it is thrown out and people trample on it. You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead, it is put on the lampstand, where it gives light for everyone in the house. In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” Our whole lives we are trained to look for praise. In school we work for good grades to get the praise of teachers and parents. In our work we work for praise from our bosses and to receive the praise of our peers for a successful career. What sort of things must we do for God to get the praise? To know and do these things we must sink down to the seed that God sows in the heart. We must let that seed be in us, grow in us, and act in us. It is only when that seed acts in us that God will get the praise for the things we do. Then, and only then, will we be able to walk cheerfully over the world, answering God in everyone.

Near the end of Meeting, the following advice was read...

Live in love, as Christian brethren, ready to be helpful one to another. Rejoice together in the blessings of life; sympathize with each other in its trials. Know one another as fellow-workers in the things that endure. Watch over one another for good, praying that each may be a living member of the Church of Christ, and may grow in the knowledge of the love of God.

03/02/2026

As best as can be remembered, the following was shared in Meeting for Worship yesterday...

God is open.
God is open to us.
God is approachable.
In the Jerusalem Temple, there was a curtain that separated the rest of the temple from the inner sanctuary, where God was said to have dwelt. When Christ died, that curtain was torn in two, not to provide access to God, but to remind us that he is accessible. Let us enter the inner sanctuary. As we do, we will experience the wonder and glory that is God and we will fall to our knees in awe and supplication. But God will lift us up. For, he does not call us servants. He calls us friends. As Christ is open to us, so God is open to us. Let us approach Him, and in so doing, enter the Kingdom of God.

Near the end of worship, the following selection from Deuteronomy was read...

For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it.

02/15/2026

As best as can be remembered, the following message that was delivered in Meeting for Worship today…

Christ is not given to us. Yet, he is with us, he walks among us and he will become part of us, if only we will let him. Christ is a fact, but he is not a given. As a subatomic particle appears both decayed and not decayed until it is observed, so Christ will not fully appear to us until we accept Him. And so, Dear Friends, let us accept Him and love Him and learn to appreciate His sacrifice. For, behold! He stands at the door and knocks. Let us open the door and let Him in, so that He can sup with us and we with Him.

Near the end of our worship the following quote from George Fox was read.

“Keep within. And when they shall say, ‘lo here’ or ‘lo there is Christ’, go not forth, for Christ is within you. For the measure is within, and the light of God is with, and the pearl is within you, which is hid; and the word of God is within you, and ye are the temples of God.”

02/03/2026

The most recent episode of Thee Quaker Podcast featured both Marlborough Meeting and Ohio Yearly Meeting. It is worth a listen.

The link below is a general one for many podcasts. Use this link for the one on Marlborough.

https://quakerpodcast.com/inside-a-conservative-quaker-meeting/

Join us each week as we explore stories of spiritual courage. We’ll delve into the lives of Quakers past and present, and explore the big questions about modern life and spirituality. A podcast for spiritual seekers, lifelong Quakers, and everything in between.

01/07/2026

We have been meeting on the first Sunday of each month to discuss Matt Rosen’s pamphlet Awakening the Witness. There is a light pot-luck lunch and fellowship at the rise of Meeting before we turn to Matt’s work. We would be delighted to have you join us.

See our events.

This event is not available on Zoom.

12/26/2025

Marlborough has decided to reprint a Tract called "Friends' Way of Worship".

It was originally composed and printed by the Christian Friends Conference. That organization no longer exists, but we obtained permission from some Friends who were involved when it was still active.

We sit in silence. There is no order of worship, no hired minister, no human director, no choir. You ask, "Then what is there?"

12/23/2025

The evening Christmas Carol was well attended this year. The introductory silent worship was deep, and the singing echoed the spirit among us. As we sang Jingle Bells, children shook sleigh bells and toddlers danced in the aisle. The gathering was delightful.

During morning worship, a Friend speaking out of the silence, recalled the Advent practice in the church he grew up in. It was a way to make a home for Jesus in their hearts during Advent. It heightened an expectation of Jesus’s birth during the approach to Christmas. The speaker then reminded us that Friends strive to welcome Jesus into our hearts throughout the year, specifically during our silent Meetings for Worship.

At the end of our morning worship, the following quote from Thomas Kelly was read: “To you … who are seekers, to you, young and old who have toiled all night and found nothing, but who want to launch out into the deeps and let down your nets for a draught, I want to speak, as simply and as tenderly, as clearly as I can. For God can be found … There is a Divne Center into which all your life can slip. A new and absolute orientation to God, a Center where you can live with Him, and out of which you see all of life, through new and radiant vision tinged with new sorrows and pangs, new joys unspeakable and full of glory.”