Cambridge (MA) MM moved its October 16 Sunday morning meeting for worship to the sidewalk in front of Textron Defense Industries in Wilmington, MA. Textron makes cluster bombs. For two years, a few Cambridge Friends have worshipped every third Sunday in front of the Textron facility as a witness for peace, and were this Sunday joined by some 80 other Friends.
Cambridge MM also hosted a welcome-back event for their Mormon neighbors whose church has been rebuilt after a Sunday-morning fire in 2009. Three representatives of the Mormon church gave a before-meeting talk about Mormonism and four Friends visited with the Mormon group to talk about Quakerism. Then, on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, they put up tables on the lawn between the two communities, shared food and gave each other tours of the church and the meetinghouse.
Vassalboro (ME) QM's fall gathering focused on creating a new Quarterly Meeting structure. They explored forming "groups of concern," rather than the usual committee and officer structure. The program included looking inward at the local meetings' strengths and outward, connecting with the needs and gifts of others. After some discernment, five "groups of concerns" formed: Ramallah Friends School (scholarship and support for the school), Friends Committee on Maine Public Policy, Environmental Responsibility & Climate Change, Outreach (with a special concern for young adults and families with children), and Spiritual Nurture Among Us.
Northwest QM Friends concerned for vocal ministry met together, called by Brian Drayton, a recorded minister and member of Weare (NH) MM. Brian notes that "a strong and diverse vocal ministry has always been one essential ingredient for a vital Society of Friends. While most meetings don't 'record' such gifts, they are given to members of the meeting nonetheless." Brian invited "Friends for whom vocal ministry is a calling or concern, or who speak often in meeting" to attend.
Dartmouth at Smith Neck (MA) MM has hired Eric Wasileski as their new pastor. Eric is a member of Mount Toby (MA) MM and recently completed his Masters from Andover-Newton Theological School. A veteran of the 1991 Gulf War, Eric joined Friends in a search for way to live free "from the occasion of all wars." He formed the Veteran's Peace Ministries, where veterans with direct experience with how violence affects one physically, emotionally and spiritually work with youth, doing conscientious objection and pre-enlistment counseling.
Allen's Neck (MA) MM's new pastor is Charlie Morse, a long-time member of neighboring Smith Neck meeting. Along with his call to ministry, Charlie has had several careers, including bartending and running a construction and renovation company, and since 1994, serving as pastor to the "un-churched," those who have no formal church affiliation, but who are in need of clergy. He finishes his Masters of Divinity at Andover-Newton this fall.
Storrs (CT) MM hosted a program by the Young Adult Friends Working Group on Climate Change. One attender took away the message "don't despair, act now." Three levels of involvement were identified: personal change, alternatives in our communities, and challenging the power structure. As an example, West Falmouth (MA) Friends 1) started a book club to educate themselves, 2) planted a community garden, and 3) coordinated an area-wide "climate action week," sponsored by Falmouth faith communities.
Northampton (MA) MM newsletter reported on 15 women arrested and released on June 30, 2011, after demanding that the shutdown of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant and advocating installation of solar power on the site. Six were Quaker women: Frances Crowe, Sandra Boston, and Nancy First of Northampton (MA) MM, Spencer Smith of Plainfield (VT) MM, Robin Lloyd of Burlington (VT) MM, and Nelia Sargent of Quaker City–Unity (NH) MM.
Winthrop Center (ME) Friends Church has been approached by St. Andrews Episcopal Church about the possibility of sharing Winthrop Center's building. The St. Andrews congregation lost use of their building in nearby Readfield, ME last spring. As the two communities are exploring the possibilities, Winthrop Center Friends were reminded that in their visioning process they had talked about sharing their building. And, lo and behold… The vicar of St. Andrews commented after one of his visits, "we felt doubly welcomed, both by the members of your meeting, and by the space of the building itself." The Meeting has agreed to share their building with the Episcopal Church beginning November 27, 2011. The Sunday morning schedule will be 8am unprogrammed worship, 9am programmed worship, 10:30am St. Andrews Church service.
Plainfield (VT) MM has introduced a new format for their meetings for worship for business. The agenda will have three items: 1) Meeting business, 2) Ministry and Counsel concerns with the Meeting serving as a committee of the whole, and 3) witness in the world, again with the Meeting serving as a committee of the whole.
Additonal Meeting News (Not in Print Edition)
Wellesley (MA) MM is considering installing a leased photovoltaic, solar electrical system on the roof of their meetinghouse. Estimated savings on electrical expenses per year would be about $2600. At a called meeting for business in late August, the meeting minuted its approval to move forward, exploring the next steps in this process.
Last spring Wellesley’s Religious Education Committee circulated a Parent survey to help the meeting set a course in its young people’s programming. The major concern was that class sizes were too small, particularly making it hard for children to make friends across the whole group. Most parents want a focused curriculum based on Quakerism and Bible stories. Service projects, while good, should be connected with the ongoing class program. Parents appreciate family activities, movie nights, family worship, and would like more of this kind of programming.
Portland (ME) MM clerk Muriel Allen wrote in the meeting newsletter about a conversation with Jay O’Hara, a member of the Young Adult Friends Working Group on Climate Change. Jay was at Portland meeting leading a daylong session on “Awakening the Dreamer,” a program designed to heighten awareness of and prompt action around our global environmental crisis. At lunch, Jay and Muriel were talking with a group at the table about what they each were doing to help the environment. Jay, who has been traveling around NEYM facilitating dialogue on climate change, responded to the lunch table talk, observing, “I find that most Quakers today are middle-class Americans first and Quakers second.” Muriel goes on to talk about how that comment moved her into a place of Blessed Unrest, which is the title of a book by Paul Hawken. The unrest is about the fragile state of the world and the blessedness is about being prompted to do something about our disquiet to move into more concrete action, beyond just driving a Prius and recycling soda cans.
The meeting has also recognized Dorothy and Andy Grannel as Released Friends as they are called to attend the 2012 World Conference of Friends to be held April 17-25 at Nakuru, Kenya. 1000 Friends will come together to consider the theme of the conference “Being Salt and Light: Living the Kingdom in a Broken World.” In preparation for, attendance at, and follow up to the conference, Dorothy and Andy have the full support of the meeting by “1) recognizing their leading to carry out this ministry, 2) committing to providing ongoing support, financially and spiritually, and 3) expressing the meeting’s own willingness to engage in exploring the connections of Friends worldwide, examining individual and community responsibilities to heal the broken world, taking care of any meeting responsibilities that the Grannell’s may have had.” In addition, the Dorothy and Andy have received a generous grant from the Lyman Fund, a New England based fund that supports individual spiritual leadings.
Hartford (CT) MM’s new lift is about completed. As part of the fundraising effort, the meeting is doing a “Lift in the Light Fundraiser” scrap metal collection. Friends are invited to bring metal items from useless keys to bicycles to small appliances to meeting. Larger items, hot water heaters, stoves, etc. will be picked up by the truck hired to collect all the metal.
Also, this past summer, the meeting began a children’s garden as a hands-on learning project for the meeting’s children. The Hartford group was encouraged to go ahead with the new garden after consulting with Tom Libby, master gardener of Wellesley (MA) MM’s children’s garden.
Storrs (CT) MM’s Nancy McDowell led four Wednesday evening sessions on Healing through Quakerism, under the topics of surrender, peace, simplicity and integrity. The sessions were well attended and took the format of queries that Nancy had developed followed by speaking out the silence through personal experience.
South Berkshire (MA) MM’s youth program for children 13 years and older, the “Spicy Quakers,” is finishing its first year focusing on a study of the Quaker testimonies, simplicity, peace. integrity, community, and equality (SPICE). Beth Collea, the NEYM Religious Education Coordinator consults regularly with the program leaders Guy Nordoff and Chase Crosley. In addition the kids have pursued opportunities outside of the Sunday class such as working with Habitat for Humanity, pizza and movie nights, with movies “carefully picked to offer real life issues like prejudice and racism which allow for thoughtful reflection and sharing.”
South Berkshire Adult Friends have also engaged in religious education, with a Bible Study led by June Keener Wink based on methods from her husband, Walter Wink’s book, Transforming Bible Study. The method emphasizes that if we are only understanding the Bible with our intellect we are missing at least half of our human response.
Midcoast (ME) MM solicited contributions from meeting members and the wider community to help rebuild the meetinghouse in Mito, Japan, destroyed by the earthquake. Cost to rebuild are estimated to be $1 million. Checks can be made out to Midcoast MM, noting “Mito Meetinghouse reconstruction.”
Acton (MA) MM, which has met for many years in West Concord, MA has once again begin the conversation about changing the name of their meeting. People have expressed various opinions on the topic and they are looking at practical questions like updating bank accounts and whether or not a name change has an affect on outreach to new attenders.
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updated December 7, 2011