Rufus M. Jones

Rufus Matthew Jones (January 25, 1863 – June 16, 1948) was an American Quaker theologian, philosopher, historian, editor, and educator. He taught philosophy and psychology at Haverford College for 41 years and wrote more than 50 books and monographs, chiefly about Quaker history, mysticism, and the religious life. His interpretation of Quakerism as a mystical religion strongly influenced twentieth-century liberal Quaker thought, although later scholars have disputed parts of his historical argument.

Jones was a founder and the first chairman of the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC), organized in 1917 to create non-military service opportunities for conscientious objectors during World War I. He also worked for cooperation among divided branches of American Quakerism and promoted an activist form of spirituality that he called affirmative or positive mysticism.