On Saturday, December 7, almost 30 Friends from 15 local meetings gathered at West Chester Meeting for a Thread Gathering to explore in community the connection between religious education and how a meeting welcomes and includes newcomers. Some came in pairs and groups from their meetings, bringing questions, examples of resources, and stories of experiences in meetings to the conversation together. The afternoon program included a presentation on welcome and belonging, small group conversations with queries, and threshing of the issues raised in the larger group. As we parted into the evening, overheard was the word, “hope.” [Read more…] about Hand in Hand: Religious Education & Outreach Thread Gathering
Communications & Outreach
How We Gather: Hybrid, Virtual, or In-Person?
We are again in a time of shift.
This time, we are asking how, when, and why our gatherings are hybrid, virtual, or in-person. We have much to learn about the needs in our community and we hope Friends will unite in seeing this as a time of experimentation and learning. At this year’s Spring Continuing Sessions, the morning Meeting for Business will be hybrid (more details below) and our regional afternoon program will be in-person only.
[Read more…] about How We Gather: Hybrid, Virtual, or In-Person?
Spiritual Life of the Meeting, We Invite You to Submit a Report
Warm greetings from the Ministry and Care Committee of Quaker Life Council. We trust this communication finds you well, grounded in Spirit and in your community of faith. This a reminder that if you haven’t already sent yours, we would like to receive the Spiritual Life of the Meeting report from your meeting by April 15, 2023. This will give the Ministry and Care Committee ample time to receive and read what you share, and to craft a document describing the Spiritual State of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and send it to the Quaker Life Council in advance of PYM’s Summer Sessions, July 26-30. [Read more…] about Spiritual Life of the Meeting, We Invite You to Submit a Report
Bolivian Friend Visits Philadelphia Area
Emma Condori Mamani is a Bolivian Friend who travels in the ministry frequently. She is a founder and current Executive Director of El Centro Bilingüe Internacional Amigos (Friends International Bilingual Center or FBIC for short) and has hosted PYM Friends in La Paz as well as visiting and speaking at our Annual Sessions in 2019. [Read more…] about Bolivian Friend Visits Philadelphia Area
Religious Education Resources & Events for Winter 2023
Onward into the new year and new opportunities to learn and grow together in our Yearly Meeting in 2023! Two of those opportunities focus on intergenerational worship and Bible study. We have so much to learn from one another in our approaches to these topics, and the PYM “Worship & Care Package” is one way we will explore new possibilities together. Friends who support religious education in our meetings are a community of practice; let’s consider about how we might accompany one another in the next year, sharing the ways that children, young people, and their families are part of our meeting communities. [Read more…] about Religious Education Resources & Events for Winter 2023
Invitation to Submit Spiritual State of the Meeting Reports
All monthly meetings, quarterly meetings, and other local Quaker communities within the PYM area are invited and encouraged to submit Spiritual State of the Meeting Reports. Known leaders of monthly and quarterly meetings have been sent this request and guidance on how to conduct the spiritual self-assessment of your community that would lead to composing a report. See the “Guidelines for a Spiritual Self-assessment of the Meeting” section of our Faith & Practice for more information, and read answers to “Frequently Asked Questions” about the Spiritual State of the Meeting reports. The reports are due April 15, 2023. [Read more…] about Invitation to Submit Spiritual State of the Meeting Reports
A Week of Gratitude Alongside Trauma
This week is one that wants to be filled with gratitude – especially for family and neighbors. In our beloved Philadelphia Yearly Meeting family there are stories on stories of our connections with neighbors. [Read more…] about A Week of Gratitude Alongside Trauma
Discussion Held on the Quaker Peace Testimony at Cropwell
Cropwell Meeting held an introductory program on the Quaker peace testimony on Sunday afternoon. Geared toward newcomers, presenter Martin Kelley gave a 25 minute overview of the history of Quaker peacemaking, from the foundational 1660 Statement to more recent expressions of Quaker peacemaking, such as the climate-change advocacy of the Earth Quaker Action Team and the “Statement on the Peace Testimony and Ukraine” release in late October.
[Read more…] about Discussion Held on the Quaker Peace Testimony at Cropwell
The Community Outreach of Greenwich Friends Meeting
On Saturday September 24th, 2022, the Quaker Bakers of Greenwich Friends Meeting participated in the 50th Greenwich Artisans Faire at the historic Gibbons House on Ye Greate Street in Greenwich, Cumberland County. Through the sale of baked goods, tea and coffee as well as the Meeting’s signature cookbook (which combines Quaker family recipes and local lore), funds are raised annually for Greenwich Friends Community Outreach activities. The Faire draws hundreds of people to Greenwich and is a delightful opportunity to meet and greet friends and neighbors. [Read more…] about The Community Outreach of Greenwich Friends Meeting
Cropwell Meeting Reaches out to Neighborhood Families with “Trunk or Treat”
Cropwell Meeting held its first annual Trunk or Treat on Sunday, inviting neighborhood families over for games, treats, a pumpkin hunt, and tours of the meetinghouse.
The area around Cropwell Meeting has changed quite a bit since Friends first settled there in the 1780s. A patchwork of Quaker family farms has given way to twenty-first century suburbs, and today the meetinghouse property is an oasis of open space in a built-up area of housing developments. Few of the neighbors have ever visited the meetinghouse. [Read more…] about Cropwell Meeting Reaches out to Neighborhood Families with “Trunk or Treat”