Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting

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Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting A Quaker community in NW Philadelphia whose meetinghouse includes a James Turrell Skyspace.

We welcome everyone to join us every Sunday at 10:30 am for meeting for worship. We offer free childcare for youngsters and we have Sunday school for older kids. Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting (CHFM) is a Quaker community in northwest Philadelphia, which has embarked upon an extraordinary outreach project: a new meetinghouse for Friends, the local community, the Philadelphia region, and beyond. Incorporating a contemporary art installation -- a Skyspace by James Turrell, this “green” building is home to the growing Friends meeting, facilitating enhanced social justice activities and attracting those who value quiet contemplation, the environment, the arts and a vibrant community. This 21st Century meetinghouse continues a 350-year-old Philadelphia tradition begun by William Penn by offering a safe and welcoming place for people of all faiths to gather for quiet reflection, worship and fellowship. In addition, it is an educational resource for green living, demonstrating up-to-date ways of conserving energy and living in harmony with the natural world. The new meetinghouse is located at 20 East Mermaid Lane in Chestnut Hill. Gifts from meeting members, friends, neighbors, and funders helped make this building a reality. Of course, all are welcome to join us for silent worship during Quaker meetings on Sunday mornings at 10.30 a.m., or to visit when we host among other things: Mount Airy Learning Tree continued education classes; election day polling; or, mindfulness meditation seminars.

Cooking class: Join Prayers for Peace Alliance for a hands-on Palestinian Cooking Class celebrating Palestinian food, cu...
10/01/2026

Cooking class: Join Prayers for Peace Alliance for a hands-on Palestinian Cooking Class celebrating Palestinian food, culture, and hospitality.

This isn’t just a cooking class—it’s a chance to come together through Palestinian food and culture. Under Jehan Kuttab’s expert guidance, you’ll learn to prepare cherished Palestinian recipes, the traditions behind them, and how to recreate them in your own kitchen.

Two Sessions Available:
Saturday, October 17 at 11:00 AM or 2:00 PM
Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting
20 E. Mermaid Lane, Philadelphia, PA 19118

$50 suggested donation — Proceeds support Prayers for Peace Alliance’s ongoing work.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfEcr6h2EWGTfa2AOWnUkdSDR3nnEDclViNps9f6G12FMg8sA/viewform?usp=send_form

Thanks to our Worship & Ministry committees for sharing these cards on our benches to help us settle into Quaker meeting...
09/27/2026

Thanks to our Worship & Ministry committees for sharing these cards on our benches to help us settle into Quaker meeting.

A few photos from our Quaker meeting this rainy morning - umbrellas, dahlias from Cyane, anemones from Jean, and one of ...
09/21/2026

A few photos from our Quaker meeting this rainy morning - umbrellas, dahlias from Cyane, anemones from Jean, and one of the cards that Worship & Ministry helpfully places on the benches in meeting for worship.

Our hearts go out to the friends and family and to the whole Germantown Friends Meeting as they grieve the loss of Peter...
09/16/2026

Our hearts go out to the friends and family and to the whole Germantown Friends Meeting as they grieve the loss of Peter Yeomans.

“Peter D. Yeomans, 58, of Philadelphia, innovative clinical psychologist at the Corporal Michael J. Crescenz Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, founder of Cold Mountain Counseling l.l.c., worldwide mountaineer and backcountry adventurer, teacher, author, mentor, Quaker, and volunteer, died Friday, Aug. 28, of cardiac arrhythmia at the VA Medical Center in University City.

Dr. Yeomans was an expert in trauma, substance use disorder, moral injury, and spiritually integrated healthcare. He joined the Philadelphia VA Medical Center as a staff psychologist in 2009 and became director of its innovative PTSD outpatient team program in 2019.”

Sometimes cats like to visit Quaker meeting, too.
08/30/2026

Sometimes cats like to visit Quaker meeting, too.

Most of our volunteer Lead Hosts were able to gather for an informal celebration of Signe Wilkinson (Signe Wilkinson) fo...
08/26/2026

Most of our volunteer Lead Hosts were able to gather for an informal celebration of Signe Wilkinson (Signe Wilkinson) for her critical role in bringing James Turrell’s Greet the LIght Skyspace to Philadelphia.

It was Signe who had the inspiration, reached out to Turrell, and lined up generous donations from art patrons to incorporate the installation into the new Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting House.

Now, after 13 years of tirelessly leading the Skyspace Crew, Signe is taking a well earned step back. In that time, over 23,000 visitors have been able to experience the wonder of Turrell’s creation.

We thank Signe, and all our volunteer crew, for keeping the Skyspace program going. To join our mission, contact [email protected].

Most of our volunteer Lead Hosts were able to gather for an informal celebration of Signe Wilkinson for her critical rol...
08/26/2026

Most of our volunteer Lead Hosts were able to gather for an informal celebration of Signe Wilkinson for her critical role in bringing James Turrell's Greet the LIght Skyspace to Philadelphia.

It was Signe who had the inspiration, reached out to Turrell, and lined up generous donations from art patrons to incorporate the installation into the new Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting House.

Now, after 13 years of tirelessly leading the Skyspace Crew, Signe is taking a well earned step back. In that time, over 23,000 visitors have been able to experience the wonder of Turrell's creation.

We thank Signe, and all our volunteer crew, for keeping the Skyspace program going. To join our mission, contact [email protected].

08/20/2026

BRAVER ANGELS TRAINING SEPT. 19
Sponsored by our Peace & Social Concerns Committee, Braver Angels is leading a training class called “Skills for Disagreeing Better” on Saturday Sept. 19, from 2 p.m. to 3:30. Braver Angels is a national organization founded to strengthen the ability of political opponents to listen to each other deeply, find common ground, and forge alliances to address shared problems. This interactive workshop will foster deeper understanding, appreciative listening, and sharing viewpoints effectively with others with whom we might disagree.

We can learn to disagree better in polarized times, which means accurately seeing where we differ and where we share common ground.

Goals
-More understanding of the values and concerns of people who differ from you politically
-Better skills for listening in a way so that the other person feels heard
-Better skills for sharing viewpoints in a way the other person might hear — even if they disagree

*Tickets are Free, Donations Help Use promo code BRAVER during registration to get a free ticket. Donations beyond the free ticket support Braver Angels, 501(c)3.

08/04/2026

From Thee Quaker’s Daily Quaker Message (an email list you can sign up for!):

“Most persons are awakened and set on their new track of life through the quickening and kindling power of some person who becomes for them the instrument of inspiration and of the creation of faith and the vision of a nobler way of life. Persons are set on fire by someone who is already aflame. It is a trumpet call to high adventure that starts the forward movements away from old forms.

That is one of the greatest stories in the long history of religion. It was through a long and wonderful circuit of souls, in a succession of forerunners, that the kindling idea of ‘Something of God in the soul of man’ came to George Fox.”

— Rufus Jones, 1944
Quaker historian, theologian, and philosopher

Address

20 E Mermaid Lane
Philadelphia, PA
19118

Opening Hours

10:30am - 11:30am

Telephone

+12152473553

Website

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