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
Families
Long Term Care & Hope
Planning for retirement includes many considerations. Quaker Aging Resources offers information and links to articles on a variety of topics, listed below. The website was designed 10 years ago to assist meetings, individuals, and families in responding to the needs of aging Friends including age related changes, chronic illness, or disability. The pamphlets and resources are intended to uphold a culture of care for the body, mind, spirit and community of the individual which is consistent with Quaker faith, and address the following needs: [Read more…] about Long Term Care & Hope
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
New Youth Engagement Coordinator
A Care Package for Bible Study
The “Worship & Care Package” for PYM, a recently announced endeavor to support worship and pastoral care in our yearly meeting, includes two worship paths for Friends to walk together as we seek to deepen our experiences in faith community. One path is support for intergenerational worship, and the other is Bible study in the manner of Friends. Both practices are present in the roots of Quakerism and would have been familiar to early Friends. Today, we have an opportunity to explore intersections between Bible study and continuing revelation, generational experiences of the stories, and listening for how ancient texts can speak to our condition and witness in the world. Always, we can wonder together. [Read more…] about A Care Package for Bible Study
Tuition Aid for Quaker Children in PYM Friends Schools
The Yearly Meeting’s Quaker Education Granting Group reminds meetings and families that local meeting members’ children who are applying to or attending Friends schools are eligible to apply for educational support for the 2023-24 school year. Funding for all grants comes from the National Friends Education Fund and Philadelphia Yearly Meeting endowment income from the Jonathan Rhoads Fund and other PYM education endowments. [Read more…] about Tuition Aid for Quaker Children in PYM Friends Schools
Make Your Gift to PYM Count for our Worship & Care Package
A family who loves our faith community has given PYM a $30,000 challenge gift. This gift will support a package of worship and pastoral care offerings for PYM and our meetings. It’s a care package of worship and pastoral care – a Worship & Care Package! [Read more…] about Make Your Gift to PYM Count for our Worship & Care Package
A Care Package for Intergenerational Worship
One gift we may receive in Quaker worship is the way that one person’s experience of the Divine expands another’s. A gathering of Friends in worship brings many glimpses of the peace of God which surpasses all understanding. Like the many colors in a quilt, each person’s experience alongside the others creates the whole, and the pattern changes each time we worship together. Worship that is engaging for Friends of multiple generations is a kaleidoscope of the experience of Spirit. [Read more…] about A Care Package for Intergenerational Worship
Rethinking “First Day School”
On Thursday, September 29, Friends gathered online for a presentation and discussion exploring the roots of Quaker religious education and our condition in meetings today. PYM Participants were joined by Friends from meetings across the US (all the way to Hawaii) and Costa Rica, to “rethink” the way we approach children’s religious education in meetings. Is it time to release a scholastic, lesson-based model focused only on Sunday morning?
Queries anchored both small group and whole group discussion and themes that emerged included: sharing about intergenerational programs, including youth in activism and witness, and understanding religious education as the responsibility of the whole meeting. It was an inspiring conversation! [Read more…] about Rethinking “First Day School”
Young Friends Support the Peace Fair
A small but enthusiastic contingent of Young Friends helped make the Bucks Quarter Peace Fair, on September 17, a great success. The Peace Fair brings dozens of nonprofits doing work aligned with Quaker values to a wider audience, along with craft vendors, live music, a book sale, kids’ games and a range of food offerings. Starting the day bright and early, before the opening of the Fair, the Young Friends helped set up vendor booths, unloading the vendors’ materials and putting up tents to keep things moving swiftly. [Read more…] about Young Friends Support the Peace Fair