American Friends Service Committee

Updated 12/16/2019

Mission: The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is an international Quaker organization headquartered in Philadelphia that promotes lasting peace with justice, as a practical expression of faith in action. Drawing on continuing spiritual insights and working with people of many backgrounds, we nurture the seeds of change and respect for human life that transform social relations and systems.

Vision: AFSC envisions a world in which lasting peace with justice is achieved through active nonviolence and the transforming power of love. We work toward a world in which:

  • All persons affirm the common good and recognize our mutual interdependence
  • Societies steward resources equitably
  • Caring, respectful economic development, including work with dignity, promotes wellbeing for all
  • Communities and societies fractured by exclusion and marginalization are healed and transformed, embracing inclusion and equality
  • Conflicts are resolved through restorative means and without force or coercion
  • Governments and societal institutions are fair and accountable

Values: AFSC values are grounded in Quaker experience and universal truths that are upheld by many faiths and that honor the light of the divine in each person.

  • We cherish the belief that there is that of God in each person, leading us to respect the worth, dignity, and equality of all.
  • We regard no person as our enemy. While we often oppose specific actions and abuses of power, we seek to call forth the goodness and truth in each individual.
  • We strive for integrity, simplicity, and practicality in our expressions and actions.
  • We assert the transforming power of love and active nonviolence, as a challenge to injustice and violence and as a force for reconciliation.
  • We work in partnership with people in communities around the world, respecting their wisdom about how to change their circumstances and offering our own insights with humility.
  • We trust the power of the Spirit to guide the individual and collective search for truth and practical action.
  • We accept our understandings of truth as incomplete and have faith that new perceptions of truth will continue to be revealed.

 

Internship, volunteer, and fellowship opportunities are available.

Learn more about their national internships: https://www.afsc.org/internships

Fellowships will be posted here: https://www.afsc.org/job-centerĀ 

Learn more about the Philadelphia office: https://www.afsc.org/category/location/philadelphia

 

AFSC was a Career & Civic Engagement Center Summer Funding location for summer 2019.

 

Website: https://www.afsc.org/

Phone: (215) 241-7000