Evangelical Friends International - Distinctions Between EFCI and Other Friends

Distinctions Between EFCI and Other Friends

Friends, especially in the United States, are divided today as a result of divisions that took place mostly in the 19th Century. The Evangelical branch is the one that is most similar to other Christian denominations and differs some from other branches of Quakerism. Evangelical Friends may refer to a local congregation as a church, while some other Friends call it a monthly meeting. EFCI holds programmed (i.e. planned) services, while many other Friends hold silent services in which people speak as they feel led by God. Programmed services will usually incorporate silent worship, but it is only one element in the larger service.

A key doctrinal issue that sets Evangelical Friends apart from other Quakers is their view of salvation. Evangelical Friends believe that all people are in need of salvation, and that salvation comes to a person by putting his faith in Jesus Christ. Other Friends have a wide range of views on salvation, up to and including beliefs such as Universalism. Evangelical Friends support their views on the necessity of salvation as being more in line with the meaning of the Bible. Because of evangelical Friends' origins within the Gurneyite faction during the 19th century series of schisms that divided the Society, some Evangelical Friends rely relatively less on the authority of the Inner Light and more on their belief in the authority of a literal reading of the Scripture.