The Concurrence and Unanimity of The People Called Quakers As Evidenced By Some of Their Sermons is a collection of transcriptions of the preaching done by fourteen weighty Friends between 1688 and 1694. Originally published in London in 1694, under the name Andrew Sowle by his daughter Tace, it is being re-printed in its entirety for the first time in this 2010 edition from Foundation Publications, though some individual sermons have been re-printed separately. It includes such ancient worthies as Robert Barclay, Francis Stamper, William Penn, William Dewsbury and Francis Camfield, among a field of fourteen speakers offering fifteen sermons (William Penn gets to go twice).

If the book were only a flat re-printing of the original fifteen sermons, its value would be enormous, but the editors have included a helpful and informative introduction to the entire work, as well as introductions to each of the sermons. These introductions are informative and edifying, including not only biographical information about the Friend giving the sermon, but also extended discussion of the place of the sermon in the development of the Religious Society of Friends. I appreciated the editors' insights greatly and found their highlighting of key components of the sermons helpful. However, those who prefer to make up their own minds first can easily go directly to the sermons, or the prayers after the sermons which are also given.

From the editors' Introduction:
"Our first goal in publishing the present volume is, thus, to provide an important work for those who are seeking to know and live that original Quaker faith. These pages hold much wisdom, exhortation, and admonition concerning coming into Christ's presence and power, and living according to His will and direction. Our hope is that many readers will be nurtured and strengthened by the Truth they find here. Our second object in publishing this volume is to provide an important insight into sea changes taking place in the Religious Society of Friends in the 1690s, changes that would, over time, lead away from a clear understanding and experience of the original Quaker revelation."

The editors' first goal is well met by these sermons. For Friends like me who fall, more or less, into the Isolated Friend category, where one must lean more on the faith and less the practice of Friends, books like this are manna from Heaven. Similarly, other Friends who, for whatever reason, are not experiencing enough of the spiritual side of Quaker practice will find these sermons a tonic to the soul, arising as they so clearly do from the Truth that is shown when we worship under Christ and wait for his guidance. For me, hearing Friends from long ago so eloquently describing the very same spiritual experiences I have had is both validating and comforting... that despite the many cultural and technological differences, the Spirit continues working in us today as it did in them centuries ago.