11. Membership

• 11.13 11.14 11.15 11.16 11.17 11.18 11.19

Nothing in this section precludes young people under the age of sixteen from applying under the procedure described in 11.04-11.12

Application on behalf of a child

There are three main ways of looking at children's membership, each with solid historical roots in Quaker tradition.

a. You are not a Friend until you make a profession of faith, which you can do only at a mature age and after careful consideration; you must consciously and deliberately decide, declare and commit yourself: something you are unable to do as a child.

b. A child who is brought up within the community of a Friends' meeting is a full member in every sense; children were used by Jesus as patterns of the Kingdom and a child as well as an adult may have deep insights; your religious pilgrimage begins at, or before, birth and at any moment you are at a particular point on the journey.

c. A child may be a full member, but growing up demands confirmation; every one, at a given point of their physical and spiritual growth, should take up their membership for themselves and express it in some of the many forms of service.

Next: 11.14