The Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC) has opened a global search for its next General Secretary.
They ask: Are you ready to provide both spiritual and administrative leadership to FWCC’s small and thriving international Quaker organization?
Applications due by Jan 4, 2021.
To find out more, and how to apply, to go here.
Joe Mills has requested a Special Called Meeting of Green Pastures Quarterly Meeting on behalf of Friends School Detroit Trustees to discuss the following issues:
This special called meeting is scheduled for 4pm, December 20. For Zoom link, contact gpqmcommunications@gmail.com.
English colonists first touched land on New England soil some 400 years ago.
The 400 Years Project, Beacon Hill Friends House, and Justice & Witness Ministries of the S. New England UCC are offering a unique opportunity to hear and reflect on Indigenous voices around Thanksgiving next week. The program will be led by two Wampanoag leaders joined by two allied faith leaders active in decolonization work in the New England region.
(Note: Gail Melix is a member of Sandwich Meeting and co-clerk of NEYM Earthcare Ministries Committee and Leslie Manning is a member of Durham Meeting, clerk of NEYM Permanent Board, and one of the authors of NEYM’s draft “Letter of Apology to Native Americans”.)
Event Details
Thursday, Nov. 19th 7:00 pm Eastern Time
“Looking Deeply at Thanksgiving” – an interactive zoom program and benefit for Native Land Conservancy
details and registration at: https://www.bhfh.org/looking-deeply-at-thanksgiving
Background materials: https://interfaithopportunities.org/400-years-thanksgiving
All are welcome!
The LEYM Bulletin for fall 2020 is now available. On the website, go to the tab for “News” and choose “Bulletins,” and check out the newly designed website while you’re there! This issue includes a clerk’s message on “Living in the Next Normal,” highlights of the 2020 Annual Meeting, news from monthly meetings, and more.
Please note that fewer paper copies than usual are being distributed, since monthly meetings are not gathering in person. Each monthly meeting or worship group will receive three paper copies unless they have previously requested fewer. We anticipate they will be mailed early next week.
Jeff Cooper & Peggy Daub, co-editors, LEYM Bulletin
Ministry and Nurture of LEYM will be hosting sessions of a Clerks’ Chat via Zoom. We invite Monthly Meeting Clerks, Assistant Clerks, and Worship Group Conveners to join us for any or all of the 1 ½ hour sessions. These will be a time of fellowship and informal conversations on topics of interest and concern to those attending at each session.
If you have questions or would like to participate, you may contact Shelley Kotz via sh.s3ktz@gmail.com
LEYM Annual Queries
Each year LEYM’s Ministry & Nurture Committee prepares a set of queries for the consideration of meetings. The M&N Committee invites each meeting to consider the queries and to develop a written response that describes the insights arrived at during its consideration. Meetings are requested to send this to Flo Friender flo@dougandflo.com by March 1, 2025. These queries, along with supplemental readings, have been sent to LEYM clerks of monthly meetings and conveners of worship groups.
We hope that all of you will remember that the Ministry and Nurture Committee is available all year long. If there is a way that we can be of help to you, please reach out to us.
October 4th we will be celebrating another World Quaker Day hosted by the Friends World Committee for Consultation (FWCC). Join Friends from around the world exploring the theme “What does it mean to be a Quaker today? Living a Faithful Life in a Changing World.” Get more information here: worldquakerday.org
The FWCC Section of the Americas is inviting Friends to an online meeting for worship:
Interest Group Discussions on Issues related to Peace & Justice and Earthcare
Note: If you are an event organizer from one of our affiliated groups and want to get your event onto our calendar and/or you are seeking Zoom hosting for an event, please visit the LEYM Events Planning page to get started.
TBD. Check back later.
Our online practices leave trails of data that companies rely on to make a profit. After reviewing some of the many kinds of data being collected, we’ll turn to an exploration of some of the ways data is being used to the detriment of marginalized groups. For instance, mass incarceration and criminalization have gone high-tech with facial recognition, license plate readers, and electronic monitoring systems all becoming more common. Local and federal police as well as immigration control increasingly have access to vast commercial databases to track and trace people, often while circumventing individual civil rights. Based on these concerns, citizen groups in many cities are now pushing for laws governing the surveillance technology used by their local police departments. Join Friends at this workshop to learn more. Presenter: LEYM Digital Communications Facilitator Bill Warters
Here are the Slides for this Session (PDF).
At their essence Dark Patterns are features of interface design crafted to trick users into doing things they didn’t mean to, ultimately benefiting the business or website owner in question by pushing their priorities over the users’ intent. This workshop seeks to raise awareness of some common design tricks and help Friends stay on course as they navigate the modern web.
Presenter: LEYM Digital Communications Facilitator Bill Warters
Here are the Slides for this Session (PDF).
What happens when we increasingly rely on social media and the web for nearly all our information? What information do we see, and what do we miss? How do we know if a picture or a tweet is genuine or truthful? This session explores what misinformation and disinformation is, why it’s shared and how it spreads. Find out how we Friends take part through our many clicks, likes and shares.
Presenter: LEYM Digital Communications Facilitator Bill Warters
Get the Slides from this Session (PDF)
What can we say together?
Friends were invited to join us on Saturday, June 11th from 2-3:30pm in consideration of anti-racist work and minutes from across the Yearly Meeting – we read what has been recorded, seeking to pull out common threads, and identify patterns. We’ll bring a summary of this work to the annual meeting, where we will further it with prayerful discernment – seeing what we might be led to collectively both in faith and practice.
Michigan’s First People’s Social and Environmental Justice Campaigns
A spokesperson from the Anishinaabek Caucus discussed their environmental campaigns, including opposition to the Enbridge Line 5 across the Mackinac Strait, other legislative campaigns for clean water, and the campaign to protect native species of plants (manoomin or wild rice).
Stacey Ettawageshik of Uniting Three Fires Against Violence presented the campaign to stop sexual assault against women in Indian Country, including by workmen in natural gas pipeline camps.
Small group discussions followed with time for a brief review of Quaker resources for supporting our Indigenous neighbors’ justice campaigns.
Food Security, Food Justice
The speakers provided an informational overview of the larger issues around food sovereignty, food security, food justice, etc., before discussing concrete strategies for advocacy and action, including community-based as well as broad-based movements seeking to ameliorate food insecurity and/or effect systemic change. Here are the slides used in the presentation.
PRESENTERS
Timothy White, Advocacy Manager, Mid-Ohio Food Collective
Ilana Warner, North Columbus Friends Meeting; Intern, Cleveland Food Bank
Hallie Carrine, Grassroots Gov’t Relations Specialist, Mid-Ohio Food Collective
Useful Links Shared During Session
Michigan Bill Search
http://www.legislature.mi.gov/
Pennsylvania General Assembly
https://www.legis.state.pa.us/
Food Bank Council of Michigan
https://www.fbcmich.org/
Feeding Pennsylvania Network
https://www.feedingpa.org/
Food and Nutrition Service USDA
https://www.fns.usda.gov/ – recipes and other suggestions for fresh food can be found here too
Pittsburgh Food Bank Recipes
https://pittsburghfoodbank.org/recipes/ – Pittsburgh food bank was also very much on the fore-front of recipe development with items typically found in food distribution!
Root Cause Coalition – Focus on Health Equity
https://www.rootcausecoalition.org/
Second Harvest Food Bank Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/secondharvestfoodbank/
Michigan’s Anishinaabe People’s Environmental and Social Justice Campaigns
For February, the Interest Group session was offered as part of the Green Pastures Quarterly Meeting Winter Program. Due to circumstances beyond our control, the program as originally planned was adapted and shortened, but a rich sharing still occurred. Andrea Pierce of the Anishinaabek Caucus joined Friends for worship-sharing on our connections to First Nations peoples and concerns, and we reviewed resources for learning about and supporting our Indigenous neighbors’ justice campaigns.
Learnings and Hopes for Anti-Racism Work
Our January LEYM Interest Group turned our attention to a Peace and Social Justice topic. LEYM peace and justice advocates exchanged information about our learnings and hopes for anti-racism work in 2022. We shared examples of activities done by various Monthly Meetings and did some exercises to explore microaggressions together and how people are working to notice and combat them.
Learning Resources Shared
Teenagers Discuss Microaggressions and Racism (video link)
Your Black Friend (animation – video link)
Interrupting Microaggressions Guide
MTV Decoded Video Series (Short, sometimes humorous, videos exploring topics related to bias and racism. Eight seasons now available online.)
Coffee and Climate Chat – 2021 Earthcare Actions Among LEYM Friends
Wondering what other Quakers in Lake Erie Yearly Meeting have done to care for the environment in 2021? Hearing about the efforts of others can give you new ideas and encourage you and your meeting to keep doing this important work in 2022. The pandemic did not mean that the urgency of working to mitigate climate change and promote environmental justice was lessened, and we know we have work to do.
Friends brought a cup of coffee and joined an informal and informative chat. We shared stories of what Friends in our meeting or worship groups have been doing to care for the Earth in 2021.
Healthcare, Healing and Anti-Racist Standards – LEYM Peace and Justice Session
In this interactive presentation (see video recording below) we had the opportunity to understand how racism impacts the healthcare setting; how anti-racist standards prevent racism in the healthcare setting and beyond; and how we can employ anti-racist standards in our everyday lives to promote advocacy, activism, and healing.
Our Knowledgeable Presenters were;
Valencia P. Walker, MD, MPH (She/Hers/Ella)
Associate Chief Diversity & Health Equity Officer
Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Associate Division Chief for Health Equity & Inclusion | Division of Neonatology
Vice Chair, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Department of Pediatrics | The Ohio State University College of Medicine
Rev. Carrie Finegan, M.Div., BCC, ACPE Certified Educator
Director Of Pastoral Care
Nationwide Children’s Hospital
The 3rd Battle for Lake Erie – LEYM Environment Session
This online LEYM Interest Group session (see video recording below) was presented on October 9th, 2021 by Mike Ferner, coordinator of Lake Erie Advocates. The Zoom presentation provided a close up look at the causes of pollution in western Lake Erie and some of the efforts underway to address it. Slides from the session are available here. Mike has been a Toledo activist for decades. He is a member of Veteran’s For Peace and has served on city council and run for mayor. Mike’s home is along the shore of Lake Erie and he sees the pollution every day. Learn more at the Lake Erie Advocates website – http://www.lakeerieadvocates.org
| Session Topics | Discussion Leaders | Meeting |
|---|---|---|
| 1) How to Make Your (Meeting) House Carbon Neutral The presentation will provide an overview on the definition of carbon neutrality and how Friends Meeting houses can work towards and ultimately achieve carbon neutrality as part of our planetary stewardship. The IPCC (United Nations) and many cities, businesses and NGOs have called for reaching carbon neutrality but in fact we ultimately need to start reducing CO2 in atmosphere (drawdown). Meeting Houses produce greenhouse gases (GHG) by combustion of fossil fuel (Scope 1), by use of electricity largely made off site by burning fossil fuels (Scope 2) and by purchase of food, consumer goods and transportation for members to get to Meeting (Scope 3). If we can replace Scope 1 and 2 emissions by use of renewable energy we will bring down our emission of CO2 by well over 50%. John Williams (Ann Arbor Meeting) will describe how they have been working towards this goal over the last 5 years. He will describe their efforts to conserve energy, purchase clean electricity, educate members, and establish an Environmental Improvement Fund to financially support the projects. Dave Goeddeke (Detroit Meeting) will describe how they are planning to build a new Meeting House and to make it as low energy as possible and generate some energy from solar panels. Others attending will be given the opportunity to present what they are considering or doing as a meeting or as individuals. Much of what is discussed will also be relevant to individual houses. | John Williams | Ann Arbor |
| 2) Gerrymandering – Reforms passed in 2015 & 2018 by the people of Ohio The program will look at gerrymandering, reforms passed in 2015 and 2018 by the people of Ohio, new rules for drawing districts in 2021 and grass root efforts for accountability and transparency of the Ohio Redistricting Commission/General Assembly. | Paul Helbling | Broadmead |
| 3) Sexism is so Yesterday – or is it? Becoming anti-sexist What is the impact for you of internalized masculine images of God and male religious authority? How does this affect both male and female spirituality? What is the effect of patriarchal culture on Quaker practice? What does it mean to be anti-sexist? Was the God you grew up with male? How might your faith and life be different if you grew up with a feminine face of God? Is exploring this valuable for you today? What does it mean to you to be anti-sexist? Are men and women equally represented in all areas of our Meeting (e.g. committees, vocal ministry, care for children, etc.)? Please tell us your story. | Ann Sprague, Ruth Ann Wilhelm, and Joel Ottenbreit | Detroit |
| Session Topics | Discussion Leader(s) | Meeting |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Quaker Values in Business How Quaker business owners integrate their faith into their work growing and maintaining business. | Susan Loucks | Pittsburgh MM |
| 2) Bridging Divisions The division in our country runs deep. How can we bridge the divide, and help move our country (and the world) towards peace? | Karen Tibbals | Rahway-Plainfield MM |
| 3) Decolonizing & Angelic Troublemakers Quakers seeking to learn and act upon the truth of Quaker history with Indigenous Peoples. Handouts: Session Slides and Social Impact Assessment Principles guide | Beverly Ward | Tampa MM & Deland WG |
| 4) Abolition as a Quaker practice In this breakout session we will talk about prison abolition, how it connects to the Quaker Peace Testimony, and how to work towards abolition in our Meetings and lives. | Megan Mueller Johnson & Megan Wilson | Ann Arbor MM |
| December 5th Session Topics | Discussion Leader | Meeting |
|---|---|---|
| 1) Anti-racism Red Cedar Friends Meeting is finding the act of minuting our collective intention to become an anti-racist faith community to be deeply helpful in stimulating our exploration of next steps, and nudging us into new discernment about what exactly that means to us all. Lee and Carolyn will discuss what steps were helpful in getting to this point, and what questions are being raised. Other meetings are invited to share their process and learnings as well. | Carolyn Lejuste and Lee Sayles | Red Cedar |
| 2) Prison Abolition, Defunding the Police and Related Issues Note: Topic POSTPONED TO A LATER SESSION | ||
| 3) Letter Writing as a Witness In September, Red Cedar undertook a “letter writing witness” patterned after Amnesty International’s letter-writing campaigns. In fulfillment of our minuted intention to “notice, mark, mourn and protest” acts of racial injustice when we see them, we are now supporting individual Friends to write letters in response to news reports of unarmed Black people being murdered by police across the country. Come hear what we’ve learned and consider whether/how others in LEYM might want to join us. | Joann Neuroth | Red Cedar |
| 4) Climate Change and Social Inequality (DEC 5 SESSION IS FULL) We will examine how low-income communities, people of color, indigenous people, people with disabilities, older or young people, and women can be more susceptible to risks posed by climate impacts. A discussion will also focus on the fact that victims of climate change have disproportionately low responsibility for causing the emissions responsible for climate change. | Joel Ottenbreit | Detroit |
| 5) Open Youth Discussion Youth will provide their individual perspectives on politics, the environment, and other issues of concern | Jonah & Ellerie Brownfain | Birmingham |
| 6) Foundations for Many Generations Inspired by Isaiah 58:6-12 as we endeavor to be/come “repairers of the breach”, this circle invites listening to Spirit’s leadings, naming how our concerns are linked to one another, and bridging generations. | Mey Hasbrook | Kalamazoo |
Questions can be directed to Joel Ottenbreit at joelottenbreit at gmail.com
The School of the Spirit is seeking a new administrator, and we want to reach out to as many Quakers as we can to search for interested candidates.
The position is part time, with $27,000 annual recompense.
We have no geographical requirement for this person. Our last administrator lived in Durham, NC, and our current one lives in Lancaster, PA. So, we’re hoping that through your contacts in your yearly meeting we might find our next one.
As indicated in the advertisement, much more information on the position is available on our website www.schoolofthespirit.org/administrator.
Kind regards,
Jim Herr
Administrator for School of the Spirit Ministry
360 Blossom Hill Drive, Lancaster, PA 17601
(717)203-1642
Each year LEYM hosts a Spiritual Formation Retreat. This year, the theme is Spiritual Companions within an Ecology of Quaker Practice, with leadership from Cassie Cammann, Nadine Hoover and Mark Hoover. Given the continued restrictions of the pandemic, the Fall 2020 retreat will be virtual, with recognition of the limitations of online connection and sensitivity for everyone’s physical and mental health. The dates for the event are as follows:
The format will blend writing, drawing, talking, moving, viewing short videos, and more. We will work individually, in small groups, and as a whole.
In our time together, we will develop key practices for spiritual companion groups and consider their role in living our faith. We will engage in activities to help us open ourselves, work together, and experiment with Spirit in our lives. We will reflect on how the recording of spiritual insights bridges the still small voice within to the faith and practice of community. Drawing on both historical and present-day writings, we will explore how an ecology of Quaker practice is the essence of collective spiritual life.
More information and a registration form is available here.
FROM FWCC
To Young Friends around the world:
We invite you to join Young Friends around the world, and across the Quaker branches, for a series of 5 online workshops over 10 weeks. Join us for one or all five.
These sessions will be run by young Quakers for young Quakers through Friends World Committee for Consultation’s World Office on 5 Saturdays between August 29 and October 24, 2020 for Friends aged 16-35.
Share this information with other young Quakers, join our conversation, and be part of our community!
We look forward to listening and thinking about Young Friends’ experiences from around the world. Tag Friends, share this invitation.
Find out more about the workshops, and how to register on our website: http://ow.ly/o9Xs50AKeDi
—
Heather Gosse
Operations Manager, FWCC
215-241-7250
heatherg@fwccamericas.org
Young Friend Invitation (pdf)
