Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

of the Religious Society of Friends

Philadelphia Yearly Meeting

South Jersey Gathering: Welcoming Families, Spiritual Writings, Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Judicial Court

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Tri-Quarter 2021 Virtual Gathering Information

The news below has been adapted from web content and email information shared by Carleton Crispin on behalf of the South Jersey Quakers. At their September tri-quarter meeting, Friends in South Jersey shared presentations by Greenwich Meeting, Gary Smith, Rev. J. R. Norwood, Ph.D., and PYM’s Youth Religious Life Coordinator, Melinda Wenner Bradley. Friends who missed these interesting presentations can access links to the recordings. Brief content summaries are also included. [Read more…] about South Jersey Gathering: Welcoming Families, Spiritual Writings, Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Judicial Court

Greenwich Meeting – A Place of Activity at the End of a Winding Road

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At the end of the winding road, known as Ye Greate Street, in Greenwich, Cumberland County, NJ, stands a historic Quaker meetinghouse. Built-in the mid-eighteenth century and known at that time as “The Place of Prophets,” the building – situated at present far from the bustle of contemporary life on the banks of the Cohansey River – remains an active, albeit seasonal, Friends meetinghouse today. Yet for all of its contemplative and rural qualities, Greenwich Friends Lower Meetinghouse also serves, at times, as a touchstone of community activism, storytelling, education, and outreach.

[Read more…] about Greenwich Meeting – A Place of Activity at the End of a Winding Road

New Leadership at 11 Quaker Schools + Interview with Andrea Carty at Recently Opened Lancaster Friends School

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The Friends Council on Education recently announced 11 new Heads/Interim Heads of Schools, one of whom is also serving at a brand new Kindergarten to Grade 8 school — Lancaster Friends School. We are sharing the biographies of each new school head in the second part of this story, while the first focuses on the first newly founded Friends School in Lancaster. [Read more…] about New Leadership at 11 Quaker Schools + Interview with Andrea Carty at Recently Opened Lancaster Friends School

Invitation from PYM’s Presiding Clerks to join a Multigenerational Fall Continuing Sessions 2021

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Philadelphia Yearly Meeting’s upcoming Fall Continuing Sessions begins with a Friday evening, November 5th program with music therapist Molly Hicks, and proceeds with meeting for worship and business the next day. On Saturday Deborah Cooper, a licensed professional counselor, will lead a mindfulness meditation program before lunch followed by an afternoon program of Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business. Sessions closes with an intergenerational program Sunday with the author and artist Anastasia Higginbotham, creator of the Ordinary Terrible Things series.

[Read more…] about Invitation from PYM’s Presiding Clerks to join a Multigenerational Fall Continuing Sessions 2021

Lawnside, Saddler’s Woods, and the Underground Railroad + Bookcases and Books at 4th and Arch Street

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Friends sometimes share pieces they write about their lives and their meetings. These two came from Dr. Susanna J. Dodgson, of the Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia. One section features an upcoming October 24th Medford and Haddonfield Quarterly meeting program on Quakers and the South Jersey underground railroad.  The event features Linda Shockley, an expert from the Lawnside Historical Society. It will document the significance of Peter Mott and Lawnside itself—which grew into a large and thriving African American community. The other is about Susanna’s love of books and the gifts of the artisans who recently created bookshelves at her meeting.

[Read more…] about Lawnside, Saddler’s Woods, and the Underground Railroad + Bookcases and Books at 4th and Arch Street

Youth Religious Life & Program News

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In this story:

  • Giant Children’s Meeting is Back this Fall!
  • Young Friends Staffing Announcement
  • October issue of The Tote Bag focuses on collegial sharing and connection

Come to meet with young Friends from near and far!

If your meeting continues to use online spaces for religious education programs or is reluctant to gather with children in person, Giant Children’s Meeting on the 3rd Sunday of the month at 9:00 AM is for you!

Our monthly, online religious education programs connect with the Youth Programs theme for this year: “Building the Quaker Community We Want to Be.” In September, we celebrated seeing one another again and “welcoming all” — old and new friends. We read the book Nana Akua Goes to School and were led in singing by Abby Brace-Higgins (Mickleton Meeting), who wove together our personal attributes, as shared by participants, into a rousing version of the “Little Boxes” song — not houses, but our Zoom boxes! We look forward to seeing more friends in October!

Upcoming program themes:

  • October 17: Creating Peace Together
  • November 21: Extending the Table
  • December 19: Celebrating in the Light

Join Friends and Families from across the Yearly Meeting for this monthly religious education program! It’s “giant” because everyone is invited! It’s “children’s meeting” because we’re making a space to nurture the spiritual lives and Quaker identity of young people.

Young Friends Program Announcement

With love for her and excitement for new adventures, and also sadness for our community, we are sharing that Olivia Chalkley, Young Friends Program Facilitator, is moving to North Carolina and will step down from her staff role at the end of December. Aeryn Luminkith, current program Assistant, has moved to a co-facilitator role, and a search process has begun to hire zir new colleague. The search will include the participation of Young Friends on a hiring committee, and we hope to have a new Co-Facilitator working with Aeryn by the start of 2022!

Please read Olivia’s message to Young Friends below. 

Dear Young Friends Community,

It’s been a wild couple of years! When I accepted the Young Friends Program Facilitator position in the fall of 2019, we had no idea what was to come. I only had a couple in-person gatherings under my belt when the world shut down in March 2020, and we moved the majority of our programming online, which this community adapted to with grace and care. 

I’ve spent much of the past year living in limbo between Philly, Baltimore, and Western North Carolina, dwelling in the uncertainty brought on by COVID. After much discernment, my partner and I recently made the difficult decision to move to NC full-time. Because of this, I will be stepping down as Facilitator at the end of December.

This community has weathered a lot of change together, including the persistent disruption of a global pandemic. When we realized that so many in our Young Friends community would be graduating in 2021, Aeryn and I were a bit worried; we hadn’t been able to welcome as many new folks as usual with the limits of mostly online programming, which just isn’t the same as our longer gatherings together in person. 

But then, something great happened! We were able to do an overnight in late August at West Chester Friends Meeting.  A wonderful group of current and new Young Friends came together to reimagine what this community might look like as we enter a new era. We asked difficult questions about what this particular community needed, and Young Friends answered them bravely. They frankly addressed the gaps in institutional knowledge left by our graduating seniors, but also the opportunity we are presented with: by being forced to do things differently than they had been done before, we might find growth and positive change. This experience spoke to any worries I had about the future of Young Friends: this community knows what it needs and, with deep care and creativity, it will move into this next stage gracefully.

It’s been an honor to serve as your Facilitator for the past two years, and while I’m deeply saddened to be leaving, I know you’ll be in good hands: Aeryn Luminkith will be stepping into the role of co-facilitator, along with someone new! I’m excited to work with Aeryn and zir future co-facilitator over the next few months to set Young Friends up for success. I hope to see you at the Christmas Gathering, December 18-19! 

Love,  Olivia

October Issue of The Tote Bag Now Available!

Hot off the presses! This issue of the Tote Bag includes sharing from meetings about what they are up to this fall, sign-ups for Quaker Parent Mutual Support Groups, a spotlight on Historic Fair Hill burial ground as a wonderful place for a Sunday morning field trip, and much more. If you don’t already receive a copy of the (pretty much monthly) newsletter, you can subscribe here by choosing “Religious Education.”

Send resources and ideas to share to Melinda at mwennerbradley@pym.org — connecting Friends with one another and the good things you do is a joy!

Image Source: Unsplash

Famous Quaker: Benjamin Banneker, an Astronomer and Mathematician

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Benjamin Banneker (1731-1806) was a self-educated African American mathematician, astronomer, surveyor, compiler of almanacs, and writer. He was also a regular attender at Quaker meetings and an abolitionist who gained fame and recognition for his contributions to science and his prescient correspondence on multiple subjects, including race, with key intellectuals of the time.

[Read more…] about Famous Quaker: Benjamin Banneker, an Astronomer and Mathematician

Ujima Friends Peace Center Introduces Friendly Spaces for Children

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The Ujima Friends Peace Center (UFPC) is a worshipping Quaker community in North Philadelphia. It is a ministry of the Fellowship of Friends of African Descent. Their mission is to support the spiritual nurture of Quakers of African descent and provide opportunities for the sharing of their concerns. They recently launched its Freedom Summer programming for 2021.

Ayesha Imani, the Clerk and President of the Board of UFPC shared with us the experience at the first Ujima Friends Summer 2021. We previously shared a story about the work of the Friendly Spaces project through Ujima Peace Center. 

[Read more…] about Ujima Friends Peace Center Introduces Friendly Spaces for Children

Friends Prepare for World Quaker Day

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The picture above shows Friends at Newtown Meeting as they assembled in 2018 to honor World Quaker Day. While the meeting has been gathering virtually during the pandemic, they are still planning to celebrate this ‘special day’ of Friends’ activities around the world.

World Quaker Day is an annual event sponsored by Friends World Committee on Consultation (FWCC). This year they have designed an interactive way for Friends Meetings in the Americas and elsewhere to engage in shared celebration. [Read more…] about Friends Prepare for World Quaker Day

Friends Council on Education’s 90th Anniversary

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The Friends Council on Education (FCE) is celebrating its 90th Anniversary with events over a twelve-month period, from April 2021 to April 2022. The two founders Hadassah and Morris Leeds are pictured above.

Friends Council launched the celebration in April during their spring annual meeting. Their QuakerEd Talk series is a continuation of the commemoration. Throughout the year FCE is lifting up the voices of national leaders and individuals who have been influenced by Quaker education.  This exploration of the important issues of our time and the future of Quaker education has broad appeal and is open to all Friends, Friends educators, and members of the broader community.

[Read more…] about Friends Council on Education’s 90th Anniversary