Welcome Friend!

Welcome to the official site of Quakers in Switzerland.  Please look around, learn about us, contact clerks of Switzerland YM or local groups with any questions.  We look forward to meeting you.

As Quakers, or more simply Friends, we are attenders and Members of the Society of Friends in Switzerland.

Who are Quakers?  We believe that there is the divine nature in ourselves and in each one we meet.  Our faith in this Truth challenges us to live lives based in Quaker testimonies of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, equality, and sustainability.  

How do we worship?  We meet in silence, usually for about an hour to listen to what the Spirit has to say to us. From the silence, we may speak when we feel strongly led to share what we hear in our hearts.  We gather in a circle because we believe that the Spirit may reveal itself to anyone.  We meet regularly to build community and to discover together where the Spirit leads us. Many people appreciate the time to rest, reflect, pray, meditate, find peace, connection, be with God, ask questions or seek answers. 

Swiss Friends do not have ministers nor staff, and responsibilities are shared amongst members.
Beliefs History

20. Woche der Religionen - Zurich

Stille Andacht - 08 November 2026 10.30 - 12.00 - Kulturhaus Helferei, Kirchgasse 13, 8001 Zürich

In ihrer stillen Andacht hören die Quäker*Innen auf das Göttliche und versuchen, die dabei erfahrenen Werte wie Wahrhaftigkeit, Gleichwertigkeit, Einfachheit und Gemeinschaft im Alltag zu leben. Die Gäste sind eingeladen, diese Stille nach einer kurzen Einführung zu teilen. Anschliessend bleibt Zeit für Fragen. Herzlich willkommen!

Lettre ouverte des quakers en Suisse au Conseil fédéral 2026

Dans les circonstances actuelles, un leadership moral est essentiel. Nous invitons instamment le Conseil fédéral à agir avec courage et compassion, à promouvoir le dialogue et la réconciliation face à la division et aux représailles.

lettre

2026-05 Brief an den Schweizer Bundesrat

"In Zeiten wie diesen ist moralische Führungsstärke unerlässlich. Wir bitten den Bundesrat dringend, mit Mut und Mitgefühl zu handeln und Dialog statt Spaltung sowie Versöhnung statt Vergeltung zu fördern."

Brief

SYM 2026 Retreat

We were reminded that “the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not vanquished it” (John 1:5). No matter how much darkness exists in a space, be it grief, ignorance or malice, it takes only a tiny spark of Light to displace this darkness and to transform the space radically.

Recollections

SYM Epistle 2026

" How do you hold the fear working towards an open horizon? ... Things will manifest; we are still in tension, in conflict, so what? Do what you can do and influence what you can change. I have faith in what I am doing ... playing the long game. Add pragmatism, knowing the right way will open – we only have to play a part."

Epistle

Local worship groups

Local groups gather regularly in silent meeting for worship.   Ffriendly Family gatherings occur every quarter.

There are two residential meetings - a retreat in February and annual gathering in late Spring of each year.  

Swiss Friends also participate in gatherings beyond our borders.  Consult the calendar of FWCC-EMES.  

links to Quaker resources beyond Swiss borders.


About Swiss Quakers

Local worship groups

There are five local groups (Geneva, Lausanne-Riviera-Valais, Zürich, Bern, and Basel) with their schedules for Meetings for Worship and additional gatherings. more


Local worship groups form Switzerland Yearly Meeting (SYM).  Together the Yearly Meetings of Europe and the Middle East form  Friends World Committee for Consultation- Europe and Middle East Section.

Governance
Practices and traditions of each Quaker group are different. Swiss Quakers use the Us et coutumes/ Bräuche.

Switzerland YM is a religious association by Swiss civil law with these statutes.

Young Friends

Ffriendly Families meets quarterly to gather and play while exploring Quaker values and community.  Gatherings are planned for the summer, contact Friendly Families to stay informed.

Young adults meet as Europe and Middle East Young Friends or EMEYF





We support

Swiss Quakers support both Quaker organisations and non-Quaker organisations. more

Upcoming Events


SYM hosts four events per year.   Contact SYM clerks for details.
The retreat will be in Montmirail on 19-21 February 2027 and the annual gathering will take place at the Herzberg on Pentecost weekend, 14-17 May 2027 on the theme of "cycles of Life".

Local groups host events: talks and gatherings, friendly family events, spiritual deepening and spiritual reading groups. Contact local groups

Social Action working groups

Friendly Economics  works to promote the creation of economic and financial systems - at local, national and global levels - that ensure the well-being of all people within planetary boundaries. Our goals are: to determine what Quaker testimonies and traditions might offer toward the emergence of "friendly economics," identify interested Friends beyond Switzerland, and reach beyond Quaker circles to other faith groups and communities to form coalitions around reshaping economic systems.
Friendly Economics page is here.  Contact Friendly Economics here.

Peace Not War
The Peace not War Social Action Group was established by Switzerland Yearly Meeting to discern, stimulate and coordinate Swiss Friends’ efforts toward ending war and violence (both personal and structural). Building on the Quaker Peace Testimony, we are seeking unique Quaker contributions to ending war and violence. Current efforts have focused on supporting conscientious objectors in the war in Ukraine and contributing to organisations that work across the Muslim and Jewish communities in the Middle East to achieve a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.  Contact Peace not War here.

Spiritual Reading

Monthly conversations are virtual.  Contact for details on our current reading and upcoming meetings.

26 April at 16.30 we will meet to listen to and discuss the second of the 2025 Reith lectures, "How to start a moral revolution"

Readings

Quaker Library

The Geneva meeting library is specialized with a focus on the Society of Friends:  history, biographies, practices, and Quakerism in Switzerland.  

contact the library

Swiss Quaker Life, Belief and Thought

This anthology in French, German, and English provides insight into the lives of Swiss Quakers.  
Order here - CHF12 + CHF2 shipping

Be patterns, be examples

"Be patterns, be examples in all countries, places, islands, nations wherever you come:  that your carriage and life may preach among all sorts of people, and to them; then you will come to walk cheerfully over the world, answering that of God in everyone; whereby in them you may be a blessing, and make the witness of God in them to bless you." - George Fox, Statement of 1656
The Quaker Meeting Painting by Egbert van Heemskerk
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