What is online worship?
Online worship is still real worship. Friends join a Zoom call, settle into silence together, and hold the meeting in a spirit of attentiveness and care — just as we do in the meeting house. There is no requirement to speak, appear on camera, or do anything other than be present.
Some people find online worship:
- more accessible
- easier to join regularly
- a helpful way to stay connected when travel or health makes in-person worship difficult
Others prefer to worship in person. Both are valued.
When we meet online
At the same time as Meeting for Worship
- Sundays from 11:00–12:00
- Wednesdays from 6.15–7:00pm.
On the second and fourth Sundays of each month, worship is blended (online and in-person together).
On other Sundays, online worship takes place in parallel with worship in the meeting house.
How we meet online
At the same time as Meeting for Worship
- Online, via Zoom. Using this link each week.
- Camera on is encouraged, but it is your choice.
- No expectation to speak.
- Blended meetings will stay on for notices with the in-person meeting, parallel meetings get notices from Elders online.
What is the difference between Blended and Parallel?
Blended Worship
In a blended meeting, Friends worshipping online and Friends in the meeting house are part of one shared meeting.
- Ministry may come from either online or in-person Friends
- The Zoom call is part of the same worshipping space
- Care is taken to ensure both online and in-person voices are included
Parallel Worship
In a parallel meeting, online worship and in-person worship happen at the same time, but as separate meetings.
- Online Friends worship together on Zoom
- Friends in the meeting house worship together in person
- Both meetings follow the same Quaker practice, but are held separately
How to partake in Online Worship
If you are new to online worship, please don’t worry — there is nothing complicated you need to do.
To join:
- Join using this Zoom link. It is the same Zoom link every time.
- It is helpful if you join with your full name and your pronouns (e.g. he/him, or she/her); though first name only is fine if you prefer.
- We ask that friends put their camera on if they can, but you may keep it off if you strongly prefer.
- Please keep your microphone muted unless you are speaking.
- There is no expectation to speak or participate verbally.
If you feel moved to give spoken Ministry:
- You may unmute yourself and speak, if the meeting is otherwise silent; or
- Use Zoom’s “raise hand” function is you prefer, and someone will invite you to speak.
- It is our practise to lower our hand if someone else speaks before you do, to reflect on the Ministry and ask yourself if you are still moved to speak following the prior contribution.
- Take your time. Silence before and after ministry is an important part of worship.
- There is a guide to spoken ministry on our website, here.
You can see more about how to use Zoom for Meeting for Worship in this video produced by Woodbrooke (although please note that the joining link and where to find it will be different as it is a different Meeting for Worship)