The Journal of George Fox

Summary

The Journal of George Fox is the autobiography of the founder of the Quakers, dictated and written over many years and published in 1694, three years after his death, in an edition prepared by Thomas Ellwood with a long preface by William Penn. It tells the story of Fox's spiritual search, his preaching across England and abroad, and the persecution he and his followers suffered, and it remains the central text of Quaker history. Fox describes his troubled youth in the 1640s, when he went from one minister to another without finding comfort, until he heard an inner voice telling him that Christ Jesus alone could speak to his condition. From this he drew his central conviction: that the light of Christ shines within every person and can teach them directly. He began to preach, refusing to doff his hat to social superiors, to swear oaths, or to use the polite plural 'you' to individuals, all of which he saw as false honour. In 1652, after a vision on Pendle Hill in Lancashire, he gathered large groups of Seekers in the north, and the movement spread rapidly. The journal records disputes in churches, which Fox called 'steeple-houses', beatings by crowds, and repeated imprisonments, including a harsh confinement in the dungeon at Launceston in Cornwall. According to the journal, the name 'Quakers' was first given by Justice Gervase Bennet at Derby in 1650, because Fox told him to tremble at the word of the Lord. Fox also met Oliver Cromwell, set up the meetings for church business that gave the society structure, and travelled to Barbados, Jamaica, Maryland, Rhode Island and other colonies in 1671–1673, where he urged Friends to treat enslaved people well and to teach them. The second volume follows his later imprisonments, his marriage to Margaret Fell and his journeys to Holland. The journal is repetitive in places but vivid and direct. Its themes of conscience, equality before God, plain speech and refusal of violence shaped Quaker practice, influenced later movements for religious liberty and abolition, and made Fox a key figure in the history of dissent.

Plot or Argument

• Search and opening (1624–1647)

  Youthful seeking, disillusion with ministers, and the voice that speaks to his condition.

• Early preaching and prisons (1648–1651)

  Preaching in market places and churches, imprisonment at Derby and the name 'Quakers'.

• Gathering in the north (1652–1654)

  Pendle Hill, Firbank Fell and the rapid spread of the movement.

• Persecution and organization (1655–1670)

  Launceston, meetings with Cromwell, the Restoration and the founding of business meetings.

• Travels and later years (1671–1691)

  America and the Caribbean, further imprisonments, Holland and his death.

Lessons

• Conscience against custom

  Fox refused oaths, hat honour and polite forms that he believed were false.

  • Why did small customs like removing a hat matter so much to Fox and to his opponents?
  • What modern customs might someone refuse on grounds of conscience?

• The inner light and equality

  Belief that the light of Christ is in everyone underlay Quaker equality of women and men in ministry.

  • How does the idea of an inward light challenge religious and social hierarchy?
  • What risks did Fox see in relying on inner guidance, and how did Quakers address them?

• Peace and nonviolence

  Fox and the early Quakers came to refuse the use of weapons.

  • How does Fox respond to violence against him?
  • What connection does Fox see between inner light and outward peace?

• For the Christian reader

  Fox founded the Society of Friends (Quakers), and his Journal records imprisonments he endured for preaching, refusing oaths and refusing to remove his hat to magistrates. Students from other traditions will find points to question, including the Quaker treatment of the sacraments and of the Inner Light, and points to admire, such as his courage, plain speech and refusal to repay violence with violence.

  • Where does Fox's teaching agree with historic Christian teaching, and where does it differ?
  • What can Christians learn from Fox's conduct under persecution?

Context

The English Civil War and Commonwealth (1642–1660) produced many radical religious groups, including Seekers, Ranters and Baptists. Quakers were among the largest and most controversial.

Composition

Fox dictated much of the journal to his stepson-in-law Thomas Lower around 1675–1676 and added other material. Ellwood's 1694 edition smoothed the language; this text is the 1901 bicentenary edition based on it.

Reception

After the Restoration, laws against Dissenters led to the imprisonment of thousands of Quakers until the Toleration Act of 1689. William Penn's colony of Pennsylvania, founded in 1681, put Quaker principles of religious liberty into practice.

Comparisons

• The Journal of John Woolman

  Woolman's later Quaker journal carries Fox's principles into the campaign against slavery.

• No Cross, No Crown

  Penn, Fox's younger associate, defends Quaker plain living in No Cross, No Crown.

• Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners

  Bunyan, another persecuted Dissenter, also tells of spiritual torment and release in prison.

• Areopagitica

  Milton argues for liberty of printing in the same revolutionary period.

• Foxe's Book of Martyrs

  The compilation includes a chapter on Quaker sufferings.

• Confessions

  Augustine's conversion narrative is the model for Christian spiritual autobiography.

• Sermons on Several Occasions and Primitive Physick

  Wesley's later revival also stressed personal experience of God.

Quotes

For Students

A reading companion for classical Christian high school students. See the student guide.

Reading Guide

Watch for

• The voice that 'speaks to thy condition'.
• The refusal of hat honour and oaths.
• The naming of the Quakers at Derby.
• The 1656 epistle on 'that of God in every one'.

Key terms and names

Inner light

The light of Christ believed to be present in every person.

Steeple-house

Fox's term for a church building, since he held the church to be the people.

Hat honour

Removing one's hat to social superiors, which Quakers refused.

Seekers

Groups waiting for a new revelation; many became Quakers.

Seminar Questions

1. Comprehension What were Fox's objections to paid clergy?
2. Comprehension Where and why was Fox imprisoned in 1656?
3. Comprehension Who gave the Quakers their name, according to the Journal?
4. Interpretation What does Fox mean by 'that of God in every one'?
5. Interpretation How does Fox present suffering and imprisonment?
6. Big Question Should individual conscience be followed even when it clashes with law and custom?

Faith Connections

• John 1:9 (Scripture)

  'The true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world', central to Fox.

• Matthew 5:34-37 (Scripture)

  'Swear not at all', the basis for refusing oaths.

• The Toleration Act (1689) (Great Conversation)

  The law that eased persecution of Quakers and other Dissenters.

Logic and Rhetoric

Central argument: Christ teaches people directly by his light within them; following that light means plain speech, honesty, peace and courage under persecution.

Rhetorical device: spiritual journal. Fox narrates events as 'openings' and leadings of the Lord, blending inner experience with outward adventure.

Debate: Resolved: that Fox's refusal of social customs was a legitimate act of conscience rather than needless provocation.

Memory Work

There is one, even Christ Jesus, that can speak to thy condition

then you will come to walk cheerfully over the world, answering that of God in every one

Writing Prompts

Essay: How does George Fox's belief in the inward light shape his actions and conflicts in the Journal?

Comparison with The Journal of John Woolman: Compare Fox's journal with Woolman's in tone, purpose and social concern.

Creative Prompts

• Fiction

  Write a diary entry by a magistrate who has just met Fox, describing why he found Fox's behaviour offensive or admirable.

• Classroom

  Map Fox's travels in England and America with dates from the journal.

• Fiction

  Write a scene in which a magistrate questions Fox about why he will not remove his hat.

Further Reading

• No Cross, No Crown, William Penn

• The Journal of John Woolman, John Woolman