Metamorphosis – March 2013

Metamorphosis: Newsletter for Bellingham Friends Meeting
March, 2013

 

Listen with the ears of tolerance!
See through the eyes of compassion!
Speak with the language of love. – Rumi

Advice and Query:

Friends believe in the Holy Scriptures, but they have never placed them above the Spirit that inspired them. The principle upon which the first Friends placed most emphasis was the Holy Spirit in the hearts of humankind.

Iowa Yearly Meeting of Friends (conservative) 1953 in Catherine Whitmire’s Plain Living.

Second Hours and Special Events

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
3/10
Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business
3/15
4 pm Peace Vigil @ Cornwall & Magnolia
3/17
Second hour with Howard Harris: Religious Education
3/22
4 pm Peace Vigil @ Cornwall & Magnolia
3/24
Second hour with John Helding and Don Goldstein: FGC Affiliation; Quaker Voluntary Service with John Helding
3/28
Spirit Group meets 7 pm
3/29
4 pm Peace Vigil @ Cornwall & Magnolia
3/31
Easter Sunday celebration
4/5
4 pm Peace Vigil @ Cornwall & Magnolia

 

More Events:
We invite you to attend the 14th annual White Privilege Conference to be held this year in Seattle, April 10-13, at the Doubletree Inn near the airport.  This year’s conference theme is “The Color of Money: Reclaiming Our Humanity.”  We are keeping with Friends’ clear guidance to seek the brightest light in each person and, also, our centuries-old work of challenging racism and inequity.  Please join us in this invigorating, timely, and engaging opportunity to connect with others who share that same path. Through the leadership of Vanessa July, Friends General Conference (FGC) is coordinating Friends’ presence at WPC14.  This includes sponsoring a hospitality room where opportunities for gathering, discussion and worship will be offered.

And:
Pendle Hill Dream Workshop – November 10th – 14th , 2013
Contact person is John Meyer, Jmeyer@pendlehill.org, (610) 566-4507 ext. 124
Local contact:  Bonnita Lynne (bonnita_lynne@yahoo.com)

About the Friends World Committee for Consultation

History:  In 1937, after years of concerned work to reconnect a fragmented Quaker world, the Second World Conference of Friends created the FWCC “to act in a consultative capacity to promote better understanding among Friends the world over.”  Today, Friends from yearly meetings and groups in 75 nations continue this work.  Around the world there are four cooperating, autonomous FWCC Sections serving Africa, the Americas, Asia & the West Pacific, and Europe & the Middle East.  FWCC’s World Office is in London.

Since 1948, FWCC has had “consultative” status with the United Nations and is responsible for the

two Quaker UN Offices in Geneva and New York.  The world office is based at Friends House in

London, England.

Our association with the Quaker United Nations Offices offers a means to monitor and present

Quaker contributions to world affairs.  Our consultation extends to those of other faiths through

work with the World Council of Churches.

Our Mission:  Answering God’s call to universal love, FWCC brings Friends of varying traditions and cultural experiences together in worship, communications, and consultation to express our common heritage and our Quaker message to the world.

Section Meeting 2013:  The meeting of the Section of the Americas, including representatives of all affiliated Latin American yearly meetings, will be held in March 2013 in the United States, in the area of Western and Indiana Yearly Meetings.  The first part will be devoted to meetings of the twelve committees that do the real work of the Section.

Continuing with the testimony of Community:  Living in Fellowship

At American Friends Service Committee we nurture relationships and partner with communities, believing that, in gathering together, people increase their strength, vision, wisdom, and creativity.  We accompany and support communities in their efforts to seek justice and improve their own lives and circumstances.  Where people are divided, we strive to build bridges, encourage trust, and create spaces for dialogue and cooperation.

As we engage with the world, we also work to bring our organizational life into harmony with the vision we urge others to achieve.  We are committed to building an inclusive AFSC community of staff, Board members, volunteers, and constituents, whose collective experience and wisdom help to guide the organization.

Perhaps community is a constellation.  Each one of us is a light in the emerging collective brightness.  A constellation of light has the greater power of illumination than any single light would have on its own.  Together we increase brightness.                                                         JOHN O’DONOHUE, POET AND AUTHOR

How do I help ensure a safe space for diverse voices and opinions in the communities where I participate and serve?

How can I contribute to AFSC meetings, whether participating in person or by phone, so these gatherings are more constructive and reflective of a truly inclusive community?

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Bellingham Friends Meeting gathers at 1701 Ellis Street (Creekside Building) in Bellingham.  Meeting for Worship begins at 10 am, and childcare is available.  The first Sunday of each month is potluck following worship.  Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business is the second Sunday of each month, following worship.  All are invited.

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