We experience the Spirit within and among us. Our lives, our witness,
our connection to spirit is what makes up the yearly
meeting. Here are the latest stories of this community in action.
Post a story of your own or visit the archive.
At a recent meeting, the Quaker Life Council considered and celebrated the expression of Quaker Faith & Practice that is our Ujima Friends Peace Center. In the year that it has existed, the center has forged profound connections with the community in which it is located in North Philadelphia. Friends …
Hooray! The 2018 Edition of Faith & Practice is now available for order (and to be shipped) on the Quaker Books Website. Order them now!
On Thursday September 20, we spoke to the co-clerk, Shirin Scotten, of Croatan Friends Meeting in New Bern, NC. Shirin said that mail is not being delivered to the region yet, but UPS is delivering. Water is being handed out by local supermarkets daily. As stores reopen residents are being …
Green Street Meeting’s EMIR Ministry Support Group says a heartfelt “Thank you!” to everyone at Green Street, the meetings in Philadelphia Quarter, and beyond who supported our school supplies drive in summer 2018. The drive benefited 103 children whose families had lost a loved one to homicide, and who received …
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting collaborated with QuakerSpeak to look at what makes newcomers tick and how we can be more sustainably welcoming. Four videos are on the horizon, and the first was just released: See more QuakerSpeak videos
Now the Work of Christmas Begins by Howard Thurman When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flocks, the work of Christmas begins: to find the lost, to …
To All Friends Everywhere, We, the Children of PYM, came together for Annual Sessions at The College of New Jersey, July 25-29, 2018. We gathered to discuss Earthcare, one way we can let our lives speak. Resident artist Anna DeCaria hosted a sustainable weaving workshop. We used recycled fabric to …
Dear Friends Everywhere, The Young Friends program of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM) gathered at The College of New Jersey in Ewing, New Jersey, for the days of July 25, 2018 through July 29, 2018. Our community welcomed Friends, both old and new as well as the new incoming Young Friends …
As September begins, we are sharing the thoughts of Friends who spent Annual Sessions with us last July. They were glad to be present for interesting workshops, important meetings for business, and plenary presentations by talented speakers like Dr. Amanda Kemp, Ayisha Imani, and Walter Sullivan. Annual Sessions gathers Friends from …
As Friends, we understand that scripture uses stories about the natural world to describe the spiritual life. But, do we ever consider the facts of our biological existence as containing stories that can also illuminate our spiritual journey? For O., a member of Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting, carrying this query for pastoral ministry …
On June 10, 2018, the Providence Research Group, comprised of six members of the meeting community, shared the results of research done about the Underground Railroad and Providence Meeting in the summer of 2017. As the community renovated our childcare room which was originally a schoolhouse built in 1809 we …
29 July 2018 College of New Jersey, New Jersey, USA To Friends Everywhere: This is America: an environment riddled with fear for our entire lives as Young Adults, although we strive for and center justice and peace in this spiritual space. The search for justice and peace will always be …
June 9, 2018 Background Baltimore Yearly Meeting has long celebrated diversity in our community. See, for example, the chapter on Diversity in the proposed 2013 Faith and Practice (pages 71-75). This includes diversity in respect to gender identity. Since the November 2016 elections, we have witnessed a growing backlash against …
Interviews by Grace Sharples Cooke, Associate Secretary for Advancement and Relationship One of the joys of Annual Sessions is you never know who you will sit next to, but it’s often someone new and interesting. At dinner on our first evening, two Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO) program assistants from …
Dear Friends Everywhere, We are the 2018 Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Annual Sessions Middle School Friends (MSF) community. This week, MSF had fun, built a community, and attended various workshops. We engaged in many enjoyable games and activities. On Friday we took a trip to the pool. Some of us relaxed in …
Under the topic of ‘Letting our Lives Speak,’ Ujima Friends Peace Center shared a PowerPoint presentation about the spiritual and community work done during its first year of operation. The Center was founded by the Friends of African Descent, and incorporated as a 501(c)3. The word Ujima means my brothers’ …
By Ken Park, Providence Meeting Friday’s evening plenary session offered Friends the opportunity to share their passions and community interests through the use of Open Space Technology. Facilitated by Wade Wright, Clerk of the Sessions Coordinating Committee, Friends shared ‘how their lives speak’ and invited other Friends to explore their …
Our Thursday night speaker, Dr. Kemp, is a big believer in the spiritual practice of listening. She links this to the discipline of mindfulness. It always works, and she says; “you are doing mindfulness right whenever you do it.” Dr. Kemp grew up in foster care with a yearning to …
Annual Sessions gathers Friends of all ages. It draws new and long-time Quakers who are curious, active, peaceful, earnest, activist, reflective, compassionate, and faith-seeking. Some among us have come every year for a dozen years, others are new to Sessions. Wednesday After checking into housing—and settling in for a warm …
This is the story of how one monthly meeting developed a great way to write a state of the meeting report that can also serve as a community-building tool. History: Lancaster Friends Meeting has been doing state of the meeting reports for a long time. At least by the mid-1990’s, …