The concept of the Inner Light is central to many versions of Quaker (or Religious Society of Friends) theology. It refers to God's presence within a person and to a direct and personal experience of God. Quakers believe that God speaks to everyone, but that in order to hear his voice, one must learn to be still and actively listen for it; what Paul Lacout called a "silence which is active." They believe not only that individuals can be guided by this Inner Light, but that Friends should meet together and receive collective guidance from God by sharing the concerns and leadings that he gives to individuals. In a Friends meeting it is usually called "ministry" when a person shares aloud what the Inner Light is saying to him or her.