Quakers today use the term ‘testimonies’ for their core values. These are often given as a list, usually including peace, equality, truth, and simplicity, as on the Quakers in Britain website. Sometimes others are added, such as community and sustainability, or different words are used. A brief overview of Quaker testimonies can be found in simon gray’s blog post on the Quaker testimonies, and a theological engagement with testimonies in Rachel Muers’ book, Testimony: Quakerism and Theological Ethics.

In the context of the Foundations, the attempt sometimes made to start or restart a Quaker social testimony is significant. This is sometimes a general idea or set of ideas, perhaps those set out in the Foundations, but can also refer to a specific text from 1945.