Spiritual State of the Meeting 2023
\nLancaster (PA) Monthly Meeting<\/p>\n
We considered the spiritual state of Lancaster Monthly Meeting in 2023 through a threshing
\nsession on February 4, 2024. About 30 persons participated in discussing the following queries:<\/p>\n
1. How have you experienced the Spirit at work in our Meeting community during this past
\nyear?
\n2. How has participation in LMM helped you grow spiritually, particularly during this last year?
\nHow has your life (actions, decisions, presence in the world) reflected this?
\n3. What challenges has the community experienced in 2023? How have Quaker beliefs and
\nprinciples helped us through the challenges?
\n4. How has our Meeting witnessed to Quaker testimonies and beliefs outside our own
\ncommunity through this past year? How has such witnessing impacted our Meeting
\ncommunity?<\/p>\n
As we addressed these questions, we became more aware of the vitality of our Meeting, the
\nstrong commitment we have to each other as individuals and to our community as a whole, and
\nto the richness of our spiritual life.<\/p>\n
1. We have experienced the Spirit at work in our Meeting in a variety of ways. Our worship
\ntogether has been deep and frequently gathered. We are grateful for strong attendance and
\nparticipation as we open to the Spirit together. Our worship at 8am and 10am each Sunday lies at
\nthe heart of our united life as a spirit-led community. We experience the Spirit\u2019s presence within
\nsmaller groups of the Meeting and their activities. In our committees, we strive to attend to the
\nneeds of individual members and the needs of the whole community. Our members have given
\ncare to those with daily life issues and those with serious health challenges. Several have
\nprovided transportation to worship for those who no longer can drive. Others gave loving
\nguidance for a wedding and memorial services. We found the Spirit at work within small groups
\nwho worked on specific projects for our community, such as a landscaping group focused on
\nshaping the property surrounding the meetinghouse to be more environmentally healthy.<\/p>\n
2. As we considered how participation in our Quaker meeting has helped our individual spiritual
\ngrowth during this past year, we particularly noted the importance and prevalence of small
\ngroups in the Meeting. Many people participate in Faithfulness Groups that support each
\nparticipant in their spiritual journey. Some small groups focus on activities (writing groups, book
\ngroups), while others focus on deepening our understanding about specific areas of concern, such
\nas indigenous peoples. Through these groups, we learn to know and care for each other more
\ndeeply. We also have returned to “Quaker Talk\u201d post pandemic, the 9 a.m. hour on Sunday
\nmorning for learning and sharing about the Quaker path. We recognize that participation in our
\ncommunity continues to strengthen us to bear witness with clarity in situations beyond the
\nMeeting. Some of us are involved in Lancaster Friends School; others are involved in the
\nSwahili Quaker worship group, both of whom use our meetinghouse and grounds. We are
\nencouraging more persons to open to spiritual growth through experiencing these groups.<\/p>\n
3. We care deeply about our Lancaster Quaker Meeting community. We also bring a variety of
\ndifferent gifts and visions for our Meeting, and sometimes we are challenged to find our way
\nforward together. We continue to use an OWL to invite those not physically present to worship
\nwith us on Zoom. We recognize their participation as a gift but also question how much
\ntechnology to use. We have been evaluating the serviceability, appearance, and hospitality of our
\nmeetinghouse spaces, and have sometimes disagreed on changes. We are also challenged in that
\nwe are an aging Meeting. Although we have devoted First Day School committee and teachers,
\nattendance has continued small. We continue to face the challenges of growing into a more
\ndiverse and inclusive community. We want to respond wisely to national\/international conflicts
\nand to local issues as well, but sometimes we struggle as to how to do this.
\nWe know there are opportunities for spiritual growth through the challenges we face. We have
\nhad practice in listening deeply and being patiently respectful and loving to each other. As we
\npracticed discernment we have found our way to clarity on some matters, although in other areas
\nprogress is ongoing.<\/p>\n
4. Lancaster Meeting has a strong tradition of witnessing and working in support of Quaker
\ntestimonies outside our own community. In 2023, we continued this tradition. We have been
\ninvolved with people in other faith communities through Interfaith POWER. We enthusiastically
\nparticipated in the local Pride Festival. Some members have been active in ADVOZ, a local
\npeace and mediation center. A working group that focused on interactions between persons with
\nmental illness and law enforcement supported government and social service agencies in
\nimplementation of numerous reforms. They also are advocating for adequate mental health
\ntreatment facilities within the soon-to-be built Lancaster County Prison and for follow-up care
\nafter inmate release. Our concern about peace in the Middle East, strengthened by long-term
\ninvolvement in the Alternative to Violence Project by several members, has deepened since war
\nbegan in Gaza. Our involvement in the city of Lancaster included investment in the School
\nDistrict of Lancaster and in supporting low-income housing.
\nThese involvements, and many not named, have spiritually strengthened our Meeting. When we
\nsee an opportunity to be active in addressing injustice and creating a more peaceful world, we
\ndesire to do so. As we discern our way forward, we deepen spiritually as individuals and as a
\nQuaker community.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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