Church and social problems -- Society of Friends

Overview

The Committee on Economic Problems was appointed in 1937 to cooperate with the Social Order Committee of the Arch Street Yearly Meeting. Clair Wilcox, a Quaker professor of Economics at Swarthmore College was the first Chair. The Committee was interested in a variety of related issues, including industrial relations, unemployment, and economic and social research.

Overview A Social Order Committee was established by Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (Orthodox) in 1917 to "consider the part which the Religious Society of Friends should take in the present day application of efforts to promote the Kingdom of God on Earth, particularly as it relates to social, political, and industrial conditions." In 1927 it began to more formally cooperate with a similar committee of the Hicksite Yearly Meeting in much of its work; the two shared a Secretary, David S. Richie, after...

Overview

David S. Richie (1908-2005) spent his life devoted to public service, particularly in the areas of work camps and cooperatives. A birthright Quaker, he served as Secretary of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Social Order Committee from 1939–1973 and was president of the Board of Friends Housing, Inc. He also was involved with the American Friends Service Committee and other organizations. These papers are divided into correspondence, writings, and topical files as assembled by Richie.