Metamorphosis – October 2014

Bellingham Friends worship at 10 a.m., Sundays at Explorations Academy
1701 Ellis Street (Creekside Building) Bellingham, WA 98225
P.O. Box 30144, Bellingham 98228
(bellinghamfriends.org)

Advices and Queries

Our need for love and care, and our response to this need in others, make up a rich part of our lives. In an exchange truly grounded in love, each of us is both giver and receiver, ready to help and accept help. Neither fear nor pride keeps us from the unconditional love and care of God manifested through others. … We listen to one another with openness of heart and in good faith, aware that greater wisdom than our own is required to meet our human needs. … Are we charitable with each other? Do we practice the art of listening to one another, even beyond words? How well are we able to love each other unconditionally? Are we sensitive to each other’s personal needs and difficulties and do we assist in useful ways? (from UFM)

Calendar:  October 05 – Friendly Lunches in lieu of Potluck Sunday (Please bring nonperishable donations for the Food Bank)

October 12 – Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business

October 15 – Mid-week worshiped at the home of Mary Ann Percy.

October 19 Fifteen minutes of singing prior to Meeting for Worship, with Don Reinke accompanying; National Public Radio interview on Quakerism: “A Living Silence”  (second hour)

October 22 – Mid-week worship at the home of Mary Ann Percy, 7 pm.

October 26 – Advance Care Planning for End of Life Helps One Be a Better Friend. (Mary Ann Percy)

November 2– Quakerism: Experience It! First session with Mary Ann Percy

Other Events

The second Alternatives to Violence Basic Training has been scheduled for November 21-23 and is now accepting registrations. The Alternatives to Violence Project, and Partner Organizations, are joining to offer this Workshop in Creative Conflict Resolution for Whatcom County.

It will be held at the Explorations Academy from 6:30 – 9:30 pm on Friday night, 9 am – 6 pm on Saturday, and 12 noon to 6 pm on Sunday. Bellingham Friends Meeting may be a sponsor of the event, again, (subject to Business Meeting approval), and Friends are encouraged to register soon since we expect it to fill up to the limit of 20 participants quickly. The cost is $40-100 based on ability to pay; scholarships will be available.

Here is more information about the program: Conflict is a part of daily life, but violence (whether verbal, emotional, spiritual orphysical, doesn’t need to be.  That last conflict you had…was the result less than satisfying? Do you want to learn better ways to be a positive influence in our community, work, and home? Would you like to transform conflict into a tool for positive change?
We believe that conflict can be used as a tool for change and transformation.

Our workshops use the shared experiences of participants, interactive exercises, games and role-plays to see beyond differences, to explore common ground and discover the power within ourselves to transform our lives. Alternatives to Violence Basic Training’s intensive, 18-hour experiential workshops develop participants’ conflict resolution and community leadership skills. The workshops are not lectures; they’re safe environments where we learn to develop key abilities to:

  • Build Cooperative relationships & Finding Common Ground
  • Strengthen Communication skills & Listening
  • Improve Self-esteem
  • Learn assertiveness
  • Manage Anger
  • Let go of Grudges
  • Transform Conflict
  • Clarify Values
  • Practice thinking out of the box

Please commit to the entire schedule as each session builds on the previous one. A meal schedule is included on the registration form.  Alternatives to Violence programs are volunteer-based, grassroots programs operating in 28 states in the US and 40 countries worldwide.

Avpusa.org, Avpinternational.org

http://www.whatcompjc.org/alternatives-to-violence-workshop.html
Highlights from the Fall 2014 session of Pacific Northwest Quarterly Meeting (Don Goldstein)  

This Quarterly Meeting session was hosted by University Friends Meeting with the theme being “Faith in Practice.”  Attending from Bellingham were Mary Ann Percy, Wendy Beach, and myself.

The plenary session, on Saturday morning, featured short talks by Tom Ewell and Chris Hall,  They’re members of Whidbey Island Friends Meeting and focused our attention on the spectrum of engagement by Friends with the Spirit and the world, with contemplation at one end and social/political activism at the other.  Both made clear from their own life stories that fullness in our lives as Friends requires a balance between these styles of engagement.  We then split into groups of three to exchange personal stories and reflections on our various ways of realizing our faith in interaction with Spirit, our families, our meeting communities, and the larger world.  Friends later gathered in small worship-sharing, worship-discussion, and similar groups to further explore and share on the weekend’s theme, using quotations and queries gathered by the Planning Committee . My own group (worship-discussion) experienced a particularly rich exchange of ideas and experiences, and I heard much positive feedback about other groups, also.  As usual, the same small worship groups met for a second time on Sunday morning.

During Saturday afternoon, about ten interest groups met for up to 90 minutes. One which seemed especially lively and well-attended was presented by Junior Friends who had participated in this past summer’s service trip to Guatemala and included a slide show.  A number of Junior Friends from Willamette Quarterly Meeting were present, along with the service trip’s main adult organizer, Joe Snyder, also from Oregon.  I facilitated another interest group in which seven Friends discussed the current division of decision-making responsibility between the PNQM Continuing Committee and Quarterly Meeting for Business and ways in which it could be made more transparent and accessible to Friends.

Saturday evening’s Community Night featured songs, skits, and stories offered by Friends of quite varied ages and backgrounds, and it wa,s in my opinion one, of the liveliest such evenings in many years.  A total attendance of 172 Friends, nearly-perfect weather, and beautiful grounds also helped to make the Fall 2014 session of PNQM a very special and rewarding one for those who participated.

 

Bellingham Friends Fall Retreat:  The Bellingham Friends Meeting fall retreat will take place on Saturday, November 1st, at the Center for Spiritual Living Saturday, November 1st at the Center for Spiritual Living.  The hours will be from 9 am until 2: 30 pm, and here is the sequence of activities:

  • Greeting and settling in, with opening worship, to be facilitated by Don Goldstein.
  • Sharing Joys, to be facilitated by Mary Ann Percy.
  • A short guided meditation will be led by Stephanie Manzo.
  • A trust walk/nature-connect activity will be facilitated by Stephanie with support from Wendy Beach and Don.
  • Taking place at the same time as the trust/nature walk (for those unable or uninterested in joining the trust walk), will be a second guided meditation led by Stephanie.
  • A brainstorming-style discussion of the differences between “spiritual” and “religious”will be led by Don.
  • A potluck lunch, with a simultaneous affirmation exercise introduced by Stephanie, will be supported by Carole Teshima.
  • Small-group discussions, on how our Meeting interacts with the wider community and with new attenders, will led by Don, using material from Friends General Conference.
  • In conclusion, there will be a closing worship, clean-up and farewells.

We realize that the plan envisions a quite full schedule and are prepared to be flexible as needed should things take more time than we currently expect.

We are now asking Friends to let us know that they expect to attend, by signup sheet or by email to Carole (knitpearl68@gmail.com). A message has been sent to the Lopez Island Preparative Meeting inviting those Friends to participate as they may be able to do so.

Activities for children will be planned and facilitated by volunteers, now being recruited by Carole. There will be three children’s program facilitators working early-morning, late-morning, and afternoon shifts, with Carole being one of them. Older children are certainly welcome to join the adult program, if interested.
Friendly Facebook:  WELCOME to Bellingham Friends Facebook Group.  Please join us!  We are a caring community of friends sharing often diverse spiritual views, while holding shared core values of peace, equality, truth, community, and simplicity.  Our spiritual seeking leads us to care for and support one another in the joys and sorrows of everyday life.  We endeavor also to care for our larger society and the precious planet on which we live.  PLEASE join this group to receive updates of our activities and events through Facebook.  You may ask a question or start a discussion related to spirituality.  After you log into your Facebook account, search for Bellingham Quakers or try the link:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/BellinghamQuakers/

Bellingham Friends are also encouraged to join the yahoo groups list-serve for the Bellingham Quakers. Group Description:  A communications resource for Members and Attenders and others with a connection to the Meeting who are interested in the Bellingham (WA) Friends Meeting community.

Join by clicking on the following link: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/BellinghamQuakers/info

Please contact Allen Stockbridge by email at cleanairguy@gmail.com if you have any trouble connecting to either the Facebook account or the Yahoo group.
Quaker Outing:  On Saturday, October 4, 2014, Steve Glenn led a nature walk up at Artist Point.  A Friend mentioned that Steve was a wonderful and patient guide who showed THE GROUP fascinating things about alpine ecology on our gentle hike. We had 11 people all together including Alber Munn, a visitor from Live Oak Friends Meeting in Houston, Texas.

 

National Book Prize:   

Dear Friends, I am very excited to announce that Quaker author, Chuck Kleymeyer, a member of Langley Hill Friends Meeting (Virginia), recently received two national fiction prizes from the Associated Church Press for his spiritual book, Yeshu: A Novel for the Open-Hearted. The 2013-2014 awards are for best “Fiction – Printed Book” and best “Fiction – eBook.” The Associated Church Press is a broad network of publishers, including publications such as the Christian Science Monitor, Sojourners Magazine, and Friends Journal.

Yeshu is a Quaker retelling of the New Testament story, written for readers of all ages and spiritual backgrounds. The author offers a very accessible and human perspective on the life of Jesus, and illustrates, with inspiring prose and delightful stories, the deep connections between nature and spirit.

This book is a treasure to share. People of all faiths and walks of life – and especially Quakers – will surely find joy and discovery in its pages. These stories with their seeds of wisdom can help cultivate peace and understanding in our hearts and communities. Please help us spread the word about the recognition the book has received.

With this email I’ve included a printable notice to facilitate posting, mailing, tweeting, singing, sending by newsletter — or however you wish to share details on the book with your community. Also, if you find it appropriate, you might include this notice or a summary in your newsletter or on your website. (The same information is pasted further below for your convenience.) If your members or First Day School teachers are interested in previewing parts of the book, there are excerpts to enjoy or teach with on the website: www.yeshunovel.com.  Many thanks for your time and consideration.

In Friendship,

Ana Maria Kleymeyer (Member, Friends Meeting of Washington)

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