Quaker Megachurches? (Part II)

I spoke too soon. Indeed, there are already Quaker megachurches. Richard Nixon's parents were founding members of "Friends Church" in Orange County. Friends Church has many of the same attributes of the Rock discussed in my previous post, entitled "Quaker Megachurches?"

Oddly, even though Friends Church in Orange County is a part of the Evangelical Friends Church Southwest, they don't have the Faith & Practice on their individual church website. Or for that matter, anything that seems to resemble Quaker vocabulary, beliefs, or practice. Instead, they have a set of "Foundational Beliefs" that look like, well, the Nicene Creed or something. One instantly wonders, how is this Friends group different than any other Protestant group? Are they even Quakers?

As soon as you wonder this, fear not: they were wondering the same thing about you. When you look at the Evangelical Friends Church Southwest site (the only place where you can find something resembling familiar Quaker vocabulary) you come across their mysteriously hidden "Faith & Practice." A Faith & Practice, which somewhat uncharacteristically, harshly criticizes other Friends' groups:

"In 1827, a split took place over theological issues. One branch, the Hicksites followed the teachings of Elias Hicks, a New York farmer/preacher who espoused false doctrines, discounting important Christian beliefs such as the authority of Scripture, the virgin birth and the atoning blood of Christ."

I'm so confused. I didn't realize that being Quaker meant being in every possible way indistinguishable from any other Protestant group. But this is what EFCS tells me.

As a side note: The Evangelical Friends Church Southwest is the largest of all Quaker groups, which only tends to prove that Quaker "outreach" success relies on adopting the megachurch, mega-marketing model.

But this is certainly not for me...