Despite Oberlin’s reputation for diversity, Obies can often seem like a pretty homogenous group. It is easy to forget that unique subgroups exist within our community.

One group that has immersed itself in this close community is the Religious Society of Friends, more commonly known as the Quakers. Christian in origin, Quakers hold meetings for worship in which any member of the meeting may speak when he or she feels compelled. Quakers vary in type, from those who gather in conservative meetings and hold services similar to other Christian sects, to those who enjoy unprogrammed “universalist” meetings that have no agenda other than the possibility that members may speak.

Still, all Quakers hold in common the following testimonies: equality, peace, simplicity, integrity and community, which are more like guidelines for living than specific rules to follow.

Each individual takes his or her own spin on these concepts. Ross Hollister, an Oberlin Young Friend, chooses the testimony of simplicity to define tangible habits that reflect Quakerism in his life.

“I sleep with a tiny pillow, only have one towel and avoid giving material possessions,” Ross said.

When closely inspected, Quakers fit the Oberlin mold well in most of their external qualities.

“While I suppose Quakers are an eccentric group in the wider religious spectrum, I think that most of the ‘lifestyle’ things Quakers do here at Oberlin, many others do as well,” said senior Marshall Duer-Balkind, a member of the Oberlin Young Friends group.

In an environment such as Oberlin, it is possible that Quaker behaviors could be mistaken for just general eccentricities of Obies as a whole. So how does one separate the quirky Quaker from the rest of the crowd?

As a member of the Quaker community, I can share first-hand experience. The Quaker lifestyle starts from a young age. Every Sunday morning I would wake up to a house full of slightly strange people congregating in my living room. Given that there are 200 Quakers at an annual meeting — spanning not only regions of Ohio but parts of Michigan, Pennsylvania and West Virginia too — it was surprising for the little village of Granville, Ohio to have even a small meeting.

But it did. We children would sit in utter silence for 15 minutes (ten, if the spirit so moved us as to whisper or hum audibly), and then leave the adults for a more entertaining occupation. Perhaps we would read Quaker children’s books, which were full of lessons and that funny plain language (“thee” and “thy”) or write haikus about nature and pet guinea pigs.

The core practices of simplicity and honesty were promoted in those innocent art projects. These are concepts fundamental to the Quaker religion and an integral part of the upbringing.

“I was raised with a very strong calling to go out and try to make the world a better place, a belief that one’s beliefs could only be proved by acting on them,” said Duer-Balkind.

These concepts may seem idealistic, and they are. Quakers are boundlessly optimistic. They do not believe that the world is perfect now, but they are determined that it has the potential to change.

Older now, this instinct to make the world in which we live somehow better has stayed with me. Last weekend I attended the annual meeting of the Friends Committee on National Legislation, a “Quaker lobby in the public interest.”

“We seek a world free of war and the threat of war,” said their banner that hung in the group’s conference center.

It seems that to be Quaker is more to have a certain way of thinking rather than a specific code of action. It is this excitement regarding the world’s potential that makes Quakers who they are.

Another Quaker principle suggests that all people, no matter how they conduct themselves, can have a close relationship with God.

“Growing up Quaker has helped me to see the good in everyone,” said Celeste Eustis, an Oberlin Friend.

One particularly unique aspect of Quakerism is the lack of rigid rules that a member must follow. In allowing a personal interpretation of the religion, Quakerism seems to become one of the most progressive spiritual groups.

As a result of the fact that they are so liberal in thought, Quakers are in turn attracted to Oberlin. This college allows them to live out their beliefs as they always have, speaking out in order to allow others to feel the freedoms they do and often living in Co-ops, where they can do their own work and grow as a community.

The Co-op system is a good example of Quaker principles in action. Meetings are run by consensus, the process by which all members come to an agreement on the decision to be made, with ideally a unanimous conclusion (although as all Quakers will tell you, it is not real consensus because it ultimately ends in a quasi-vote). The idea that all people do their own share of work is also very Quaker. Co-op life can be a very peaceful environment, an open atmosphere of love and protection that coincides with Quaker beliefs.

In the case that one does feel threatened in a Co-op atmosphere, there is the Committee on Privilege and Oppression, another optimistic and yet realistic organization that realizes Quaker ideals in its genuine attempt to solve problems that often go ignored.

“We hold discussion tables and workshops in order to open lines of communication on marginalized issues,” said Allyson Hauss, a Harkness Co-op representative to the committee.

These are just some of the many ways that Quaker values are present in some unexpected places in the community.