Worship meetings of the Religious Society of Friends (or "Quakers") are spent in silence unless people are moved by the Holy Spirit to act. This seems clear enough, however, I do not understand how a worship service comprised singularly of this practice would start or finish. How do congregants know that the worship has finished? How do they know that it is about to/has started?

The family of the great painter [Benjamin West](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_West) belonged to a Society of Friends when West was a child, and according to his biography, in that environment his prodigious artistic talents were not viewed positively. The boy's future occupation was the subject of a public meeting of the Society, since it held > that things merely ornamental were not necessary to the well-being of man, and that all superfluous things should be excluded from the usages and manners of their society. "The study of the fine arts" was therefore prohibited, and only after significant debate was Benjamin West permitted to develop his talent. Now to my question: do any current branches of the Society of Friends (Quakers) still generally disapprove of the fine arts? I'm aware of the existence of the [Conservative Friends](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservative_Friends) , but it's not clear to me if they would discourage or prohibit the creation of merely "ornamental" images. Do all Friends now view the fine arts as a legitimate occupation, or do some groups still see it as something to be avoided? --- Galt, John, [*The Life, Studies, and Works of Benjamin West*, Part 1, Chapter 3](https://www.gutenberg.org/files/8857/8857-h/8857-h.htm#1-3)

It seems that I once heard that [Quakers](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quakers) are pacifists, but I'm not sure if that's just a rumor or not. What is the Quaker doctrine regarding war and killing people as a soldier in the military? If they think it is wrong, what is the biblical basis for this belief? Also, do their beliefs extend to being a soldier in the military under any capacity (such as a chaplain, for example)?

I read that the Friends Service Council (The Quakers) and the American Friends Service Committee (The Quakers) won the Noble Peace prize in 1947. Does anyone know what for exactly. I would think it was for something to do with the second world war, but I'm not sure.