About

Our History

The Bloomington Monthly Meeting began in the late 1940s and was officially established in February 1950 with six adult founding members. Rooted in Quaker beliefs of pacifism and non-violence, the group initially attracted many Indiana University students. By 1970, the community had grown to 89 members.

The Moores Pike Meeting House

After years of gathering at various campus locations, the Meeting purchased a house on Moores Pike in 1966. Members transformed the property through extensive volunteer work, and an architecturally distinct worship room was added in 1968. In keeping with the value of simplicity, the room was furnished with reclaimed 19th-century wooden benches.

Social Activism and Community Service

The Meeting has a storied history of service within Monroe County and beyond:

Anti-War Efforts: During the Vietnam War, members provided draft counseling and traveled to Vietnam for peacemaking.

Local Ministries: The group has long supported Monroe County United Ministries (MCUM), including Opportunity House and the Food Pantry.

Direct Service: Members have consistently volunteered at the Community Kitchen and conducted weekly visits to the Monroe County jail to provide support and art lessons.

Education: Meeting members were instrumental in founding Harmony School, which promotes Quaker values like equality and inclusion.

Environmental Stewardship and Modern Renovation

The Meeting established an Earthcare Witness committee to address sustainability and climate change. On-site efforts included restoring the local ecosystem with native plants and installing 30 solar panels by 2019.

To address serious health hazards like lead paint and mold, a major $400,000 renovation was undertaken starting around 2011. While the original worship room was renovated to meet modern codes, the older fellowship part of the house was demolished and replaced with a new structure featuring fellowship rooms, a library, and an office. The community joyfully returned to the re-occupied meetinghouse in July 2019.

We live and worship in Bloomington, Indiana.

We wish to acknowledge and honor the Indigenous communities native to this region, the ancestral homelands of the Miami, Delaware, Potawatomi, and Shawnee people, past, present, and future caretakers of this land.

Today, BFM has close to 100 members and attendees from Bloomington and the surrounding area.

Our Meeting

Meeting for worship is held on Sundays at 10:30 am. A Meeting lasts an hour, followed by fellowship, and then an optional second hour program.

On most Sundays, some Friends gather at 9:45 am for hymn singing.

A children's program is provided from 10:30 to 11:45 every First Day - no request is needed. Children spend about 15 minutes in the meeting room at the beginning of meeting for worship, then move to one of the children's rooms for the remainder of worship time.

Bloomington Friends Meeting practices unprogrammed worship, something Quakers have done since our beginning. It is a time where we sit quietly expecting that God will speak directly to us as we put away the "stuff" of everyday life. Often God will speak to an attender (or more than one) who will then share that message with the rest of us.

Our COVID policy as of June 25th, 2023 is we no longer require everyone to wear a mask; we make available high-quality N95 or KN94 masks for anyone who wishes to wear one; we encourage Friends to be mindful of the health needs and concerns of one another, including participating by Zoom when one is symptomatic, and to continue to exercise tenderness and tolerance toward one another.

Our Structure

Our meeting does not have a pastor or minister who leads us. Instead, we believe that members and attenders are collectively responsible for what happens during worship and for the practical work of sustaining the meeting.

However, Friends do take turns serving in various positions of responsibility within the meeting, in accordance with their gifts and leadings. These include:

Clerk

Treasurer

Ministry & Counsel

Digital Communication Committee

Advancement

Social & Fellowship

Welcoming

Peace, Earthcare, & Social Concerns

Property & Finance

Library

Maintenance & Grounds

LGBTQ+ Inclusion

Bloomington Friends Meeting seeks to be an open, affirming, and inclusive community that welcomes the full participation of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer persons in all roles within our faith community. We have a long history of belief in and support for same-sex marriage, both spiritually and legally. Following the Book of Faith and Practice of Ohio Valley Yearly Meeting, the regional Quaker body with which we are affiliated, we call “for full equality for people of all gender identities and sexual orientations, and for the elimination of legal barriers to marriage and full equality.”