Providence Meeting Middle School Friends’ concern for immigrants began when we saw pictures of immigrants on the news and how they were being treated at the US Mexico border. That led to our first fundraiser and learning more about the immigrant situation. We heard that families were being separated, and knew we needed to learn more about migrant life at the border and how we could help. [Read more…] about Youth Call for Action in Support of Immigrants
Communications & Outreach
Navigating Zoom Safely
PYM staff have witnessed the overnight growth of Zoom within our community. To keep everyone safe we’ve researched and assembled some Zoom best practices.
The COVID-19 Pandemic has catalyzed a collective transition into virtual spaces for social, spiritual and work-related activities. Some in our world are using this moment as an opportunity to spread hateful rhetoric. Zoom Trolling (or Zoom Bombing) is a term to describe any disturbing interruption to the proceedings of a video conference. [Read more…] about Navigating Zoom Safely
Ministry and Care: April 9 Zoom Call with Clerks and Community Leaders
Photo by Miyo Moriuchi
Monthly and quarterly meeting leadership gathered for a third time on Thursday, April 9. We began our meeting at 6:30 PM with online worship. A discussion about pastoral care in our meetings followed.
Jean-Marie Prestwidge Barch, as Clerk of PYM’s Ministry & Care Committee, spoke about the desire to frame the spiritual self-assessment practice and the resulting state of the meeting reports as reflecting upon the story of our meetings. She noted that we profit from each other’s stories. Through storytelling, we deepen a sense of our condition and open ourselves to greater spiritual growth. We celebrate with each other, mourn with each other, and also ask for help.
[Read more…] about Ministry and Care: April 9 Zoom Call with Clerks and Community Leaders
Annual Sessions 2020 Goes Virtual
Dear Friends,
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and after careful discernment, the Sessions Coordinating Committee and the yearly meeting clerking team have thoughtfully and carefully decided that this year’s Annual Sessions (July 29 – August 2, 2020) will move to a virtual space in order to preserve the care and well-being of our community.
Although sadly we will not be together in a physical sense, there are many exciting opportunities before us for a spirit-led, fellowship-filled, and fun Annual Sessions. With blessings and support from the Sessions Coordinating Committee, members of the Community Engagement Team have begun looking at our options and capabilities to offer workshops as interactive video ‘gatherings’ online or at future events.
We will have more to share in the coming weeks. Be well and be safe, Friends.
Questions?
- Olivia Brangan, Community Engagement Coordinator, obrangan@pym.org
- T.J. Jourian, Events and Resources Coordinator, tjjourian@pym.org
Ministry & Care Letter to Our Meetings
Dear Friends,
This is a check-in to see how you and your meeting are doing in these unique times. The physical distancing required by the Covid-19 pandemic has created unexpected opportunities for discerning how to feel connected when physical contact is not possible. Some meetings are also struggling with how to complete their Spiritual State of the Meeting Report given the challenges of Covid-19. We offer some guidance here. [Read more…] about Ministry & Care Letter to Our Meetings
Threshing Session on Membership Minutes of Appreciation
The Quaker Life Council approved the following minutes of appreciation as a sincere expression of gratitude to the Friends who facilitated the recent January 26 Threshing Session on Membership and to the monthly meeting that hosted. In addition to continuing a process of discernment about membership that has had many years of seasoning in our wider yearly meeting, this was an opportunity for intervisitation during which Friends from across our yearly meeting community could join a meeting for its worship on Sunday and take part in its community life. Intervisitation is an important part of Quaker tradition because it serves to reinforce the bonds we need in spiritual growth.
[Read more…] about Threshing Session on Membership Minutes of Appreciation
Quaker Self Portrait: Providence Friends Meeting
Providence Meeting is a diverse, active, spiritual, involved faith community. We have been working on issues of race for a few years and are currently discussing the book “White Fragility”. Our First Day school brought a minute of concern to the meeting for Business at our Twelfth Month Meeting. We have a monthly pot luck breakfast. Members are actively working on climate change and prison reform.
Threshing on Membership Report
View a downloadable/PDF version of the report here.
Introduction
The bulk of this report is made of minutes of exercise taken by PYM Recording Clerk, Jim Herr. The minutes review the proceedings of the day. Following the minutes of exercise, the report contains a transcription of collections of “advice to the yearly meeting” in response to several queries that participants wrote down in small groups. Find in Appendix A the advance documents that were provided ahead of the threshing session.
Quaker Self Portrait: Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting
These two pictures were taken at our Meeting Weekend in the Fall of 2019. They reflect two sides to our meeting, one serious and one funny.
Quaker Self Portrait: Harrisburg Monthly Meeting
In addition to the people in the group photo taken on January 26, 2020 by Doug Morrison, the right window shows part of a mural across Herr St. that depicts some famous guests who stayed in Jackson House, an African-American hotel there, when other hotels in the state capital were segregated.