Friends General Conference offers this recap of A Window and A Door: A Prayer, the 2026 FGC Gathering of Friends. Enjoy the collected photos, videos, poetry, and prose that encapsulates the experience of Gathering at the University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont. Reflections from the Gathering are written by Lauren Dixon, who served as the Gathering Historian this year.

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Monday, July 6, 2026

Monday marked the start of the Pre-Gathering Retreat for Friends of Color and Their Families. Friends gathered for discussion, worship, and to deepen and strengthen support for each other.

Tuesday, July 7, 2026

“The community is not perfect but the welcome is amazing.”

A Gathering Attender

Many more Friends arrived on Tuesday to start their week at the Gathering. Friends checked in at the Davis Center, and All-Gathering Worship began at 7:00 p.m.

All-Gathering Worship

The first message of the Gathering shared an experience of racial wounding that occurred at a previous FGC. It became apparent that many Friends of Color had similar experiences and completed the racial wounding form, yet the process that followed did not feel rooted in accountability. The Friend then asked, “Stand up if you think you may have had a racial wounding form completed about you?” When no Friend stood, the message continued: “I am telling you this because nobody else has. This gathering has racially wounded me and if you love this gathering and you would like to be against racism, you should receive this message.” 

Another Friend reflected, “Sometimes silence can be seen as death, such as in the AIDS or anti-rape movements. Thank you for this opportunity to grow in truth.” 

Together, Friends sang, “You are important to me, I need you to survive… I love you, I need you to survive.” 

A theme of vulnerability and accountability emerged. When we observe through a window, it is easy to draw the blinds without engaging. It takes courage, and a willingness to hold accountability, to open the door instead. When we move through the threshold with prayer, the words or actions that are needed in the moment will come. 

 Later, a Friend shared “… Sometime in the past few years, I have racially wounded someone, either due to ignorance or not paying attention. If you have, please stand.” A crowd stood. “There are plenty who want to do more, and we will keep trying.” 

When reflecting upon the author of our poem, a Friend offered, “In my culture, we sing ‘sit down servant’ at funerals to acknowledge the work that has been done in their life. It’s also a reminder to the living that it is okay to lay the burdens down and rest a while.” 

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Wednesday, July 8, 2026

“The Bible Half Hour was the bee’s knees.”

-2026 Gathering attender

After breakfast, the Bible Half Hour drew together Friends who built a community together. Led by Jen Newman, the Bible Half Hour discussed Ecclesiastes:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
A time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

— (King James Version 3:1–8)

Friends reflected on the relevance of Ecclesiastes to the present day, wondering what this time is calling each to do. It may differ for each person.

Wednesday was the first day of Junior Gathering and the High School Program, which provide vibrant activities for youth and children.

In the evening, at All-Gathering worship, Friends settled into a deep silence that lasted nearly an hour. The silence ended with a reading of poetry, including Mary Oliver’s Uses of Sorrows.

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Thursday, July 9, 2026

“It all came together holistically for me—just a wonderful, spiritually enriching time.”

-2026 Gathering attender

A highlight for many Friends was Bryan Stevenson‘s plenary in the evening. Stevenson explained that justice cannot be understood from a distance; you have to get close to it. He noted that people of faith are being asked at this moment to express their faith, to represent their sacred community. 

Stevenson added that there is power in identity. When we create our identity rooted in compassion, when it truly lives within our lives, we can say things that will change the world. Our faith calls us to step into the gaps that have shown themselves, and we must find new ways to get proximate to those who are suffering – to take time to understand all of the aspects. 

He also shared about a hymn: “Lord plant my feet on higher ground,” When we go to these lowest places, we hear songs and understand our common humanity more so. We do not pity, we celebrate. And in being there with them, we must confront messages of hate and anger.

Stevenson noted that many people have inherited a terrible narrative. It’s a narrative which attempts to separate people from each other, to make us see children as not children, to see the poor as lazy. He taught: It is upon us to get proximate to those suffering, not to pity them, but to celebrate our common humanity. We must seek and speak truth to combat these narratives. We need to model the hard things.

Friday, July 10, 2026

“I was able to make many unexpected connections.”

– 2026 Gathering Attender

Workshops

Small-group workshops continued on Friday, with each workshop including periods of worship. Some workshops focused on Black freedom, end-stage capitalism, on living with enough, or on embodied practices.

The Gathering historian offers this reflection on her workshop, which was on death and dying.

Mico Sorrel and Dinah Bachrach led “What Matters in the End? Accompaniment to Death.” While some Friends in the workshop grappled with loss, others explored what they wished to give in this world. Still others reflected upon what they’re willing to receive and reciprocate in care, for both themselves and for others. 

Mico and Dinah Sorrel held a beautiful space for Friends to explore matters of death, caregiving, dementia, and more. Oftentimes, navigating these conversations in a medical setting elicits feelings of disconnection, isolation, and shame. What would this end-of-life planning process be like if we approached it as a worshipful community? 

Friends were guided through a group activity, exploring the query: “If you knew your end was near, who would you want to be with? What would comfort you? Where would you like to be? What agency would you like to hold?” One Friend meditated on these queries for ten minutes and whispered their thoughts and wishes. A second Friend sat close by to listen and record these wishes while a third Friend held the small group in worshipful silence. 

Completing an advance directive is quite a medical and isolating action. And yet, within this activity, each Friend created their own with spirit and in the loving embrace of community.

While adults and some high school students attended workshops, younger Friends attended Junior Gathering, which is programming for children from birth to 8th grade. 

Evening Plenary

And in the evening, Kazu Haga led Friends to examine what it means to start, and to lead, something with prayer. Haga asked: “What is the purpose of a spiritual practice if it is not to have an embodiment of our interconnected liberation? Practice your faith outside, in response to injustice.” 

He shared: We must have a right view – an understanding of the historical context, trauma, and moments which led us here. When the violence escalates, we too are called to escalate no violently. But we need to remain cautious of the emergent binary – this is not a fight between us versus them – we must escape the illusion of separation.

A negative peace sweeps issues under the rug, killing the potential for justice under a tyranny of civility. In many of our communities, we’ve spiritually bypassed the issues at hand. Today calls for us to open our doors, to step out to directly engage in the injustice, not just to view it through our window, holding it as an awareness. 

Quakers are needed right now, to remind our culture of activism that there is wisdom in silence, slowing down to know where to move forward. We mustn’t respond to urgency with our own urgency. Slowing down is the function of deepening our awareness to notice who is in the room. 

The organization Braver Angels coaches individuals to speak with one another across differences, to practice remaining in a place of curiosity. Haga mentioned that he often relies on asking “How did you come to believe this?” as a way to slow down and take time to truly understand another’s journey. To remember how big this story is.

Haga recalled a beloved mentor in nonviolent direct action, who taught that nonviolence is a set of principles and not merely a strategy. Nashville’s leadership in the civil rights movement was exceptional because they moved slowly, through organization, strategy, and commitment to systematic, long-standing training on the principles of nonviolence. “An unusual but genuine act has the potential to connect with another humanity.”

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Saturday, July 11, 2026

“The social singing workshop was amazing and the dining hall was incredible.”

-2026 Gathering Attender

Saturday was the last full day of the Gathering, with people moving in the rhythm of workshops, afternoon activities, worship, and spontaneous conversation. One participant said that they loved seeing “Long time friends and the real sense of community.”

To see additional photos, click the arrow to the right of photos.

Block Party

A samba band rocked the Block Party with fantastic drumming. A mild evening of music and dancing for all!

Drum beats filled our lungs,

Danced in our chest,

Vibrated from earth, 

And soared through campus. 

Sprouts, AYFs and OAFs alike,

Adorned face paint,

Built artful blocks,

Flowed along the rhythm. 

Together we held these resonances,

Made physical in blocks,

Just as in our chests.

And for a time,

We felt as one. 

The 2026 Gathering continued a sponsorship program that allowed organizations with a connection to Quaker values the opportunity to engage with the wider community of Friends. Several sponsors described the importance of supporting Quaker events, Quaker outreach, and the spiritual vitality of Friends.

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Sunday, July 12, 2026

Friends headed home on Sunday after a full season of deep engagement with each other. One Friend said: “It all came together holistically for me—just a wonderful, spiritually enriching time.” You can see FGC’s website for a list of past Gatherings.

Gathering Theme

“Think about the caterpillar and what it does. Not to be the butterfly yet, but to consume the discomfort, to witness the present, and to do this work to transform.” 

When we are with just the windows open, we observe and are aware of ongoing harms without engaging them. Winds can blow, but they deposit feelings of helplessness, pity, and sympathy for people we perceive as separate from ourselves.  To open our doors, we cast aside an illusion of separateness to act with vulnerability and accountability. A prayer is that spirit may act through us as we commit to accompanying and celebrating others through hardships. 

Friends connected to this theme through many ways; some shy singers spent their workshop soulfully singing, opening their doors to become a choral community. Others connected to their own and loved one’s mortality, holding space for each other to explore meaningful ways to give and receive end of life care. 

In places seen and unseen, Friends were witnessing the present as caterpillars, consuming the discomfort, holding presence, and preparing us for the work that is next. Open doors and prayers abound. 

Friends at the Healing Center opened their doors to tend our pains, grief, and energies, with a prayer of healing. Friends of Color and LGBTQ held sacred community spaces, with a prayer for resilience. Organizing and Anti-racist Friends prayed for emergence. Adult Young friends and Older Adult Friends embraced their beloved community in reunion; AYFs prayed for a substantive role that would openly invite and engage them in designing the gathering while OAFs prayed for a brighter future. All the while, staff who worked for the University and FGC worked tirelessly to organize an event that met each of our needs, with a prayer that this would allow us to tend to our own process of composting death to make space for emergence. 

It is now up to each of us to walk through the door, to express our faith outside, and to cast these seeds of possibility forward.

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