Robert Purvis 

 Robert Purvis

Robert Purvis came to Philadelphia in 1819 as a child. Philadelphia was intended to be a temporary home; his parents, a wealthy couple, were planning on moving the family to England.  His mother was biracial, and his maternal grandmother had been captured in Morocco and sold into slavery in the US. 

His parents abhorred slavery and the family was deeply involved in the abolition movement.  Robert and his two brothers attended the Pennsylvania Abolitionist Society's Clarkson School for grammar school.  The family were frequent guests at the home of abolitionist, James Forten.

When Robert was sixteen, his father died leaving the family a great deal of wealth. Robert spent time at Amherst Academy, but returned to Philadelphia in the mid-1820s.  Using some of the wealth left by his father, as well as other resources, Robert began buying and selling real estate, parlaying the inheritance into even greater wealth.   

He married Harriet Forten, shortly after his return in 1832.
 

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Planning your Visit

 

New to Meeting for Worship? 


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If you've never attended a Meeting for Worship, we hope you will come worship with us -- give it a try.   

Many have found help in viewing the "introductory" videos (below) to answer questions that might arise in expectation of a Quaker Meeting for Worship.   



Most Quaker meetings, at least in this part of country, are so-called "unprogrammed" meetings.
This means that our meetings for worship are not led by a minister, but are largely conducted in silence.  Typically, a Clerk or other Member of the Meeting will close worship with a simple "Good morning friends" but otherwise the meeting may be completely silent. 

Members and attenders are always invited to speak out of the silence with a message about their spiritual journey, although messages are not responded to directly .

ripples

A message has been described as a pebble tossed into a pond.  The resulting ripples are received by others in the meeting and may contribute to their own spiritual journeys. 



Videos for Newcomers


 

Glossary of Common Terms
https://youtu.be/QnmvTa8HPpg quaker-glossary-terms-FB3
9 Core Quaker Beliefs    https://youtu.be/3H08cyXVYDw 9-core-quaker-beliefs-TITLE
The Difference Between Quaker Meeting and other Services     https://youtu.be/sfK3z481jvE difference-between-quaker-meet
What Attracts Newcomers to Quakerism     https://youtu.be/eQeWrvhRIVI what-attracts-newcomers-quaker
What Do Quakers Believe     https://youtu.be/YyTP512bEQk what-do-quakers-believe-FB3
Leaving Quakerism Better Than We Found It    https://youtu.be/5azFBqyEthQ leaving-quakerism-better-FB3





 

Hubb Manager, 10/15/2019