How have we sustained our commitment to be a covenant* spiritual community during this past year?
Fallsington Monthly Meeting (FMM) has continued to hold regular meetings for worship using Zoom technology since the beginning of the pandemic. Messages have been deep, very spiritual, and meaningful for members, attenders and friends joining the weekly meetings.
FMM has continued to hold First Day class for both children and adults through the last year. Adult classes have used Zoom for discussion related to the new Philadelphia Yearly Meeting’s Faith and Practice. Children’s programs have been able to meet both in person and through Zoom.
FMM held regular Meetings for Healing that provide ongoing support to the physical and spiritual well-being of the Meeting. The Meeting is fortunate to have Lisa Collins, an active meeting member following her leading as a recorded Minister of Healing and is facilitating the Meetings for Healing.
The Worship and Ministry Committee in conjunction with Melanie Douty Snipes and John DiMino continue to work with the Bucks County Peace Center to facilitate the series of on-going workshops/discussions on Anti-Racism and Racial Justice.
FMM and the Property Committee/Ad Hoc Committee to Consider Hybrid Worship is looking at technology in the meetinghouse to continue to encourage people join from a distance. This was an unexpected positive factor to come out of the pandemic. The meeting welcomed friends from a distance at both Meeting for Worship and First Day Class deepening the spiritual experience and expanding the inclusion of friends and Friends.
FMM committed to send substantial financial support over the next three years to Men for H.O.P.E. (Helping Other People Elevate) and the Father Center of NJ. Both organizations are based in Trenton, NJ and offer support to African American communities/men.
The Care and Concern Committee kept Meeting members and friends spiritually grounded and provided ongoing support and nurturing through the pandemic. The committee reached out to those without access to wi-fi through regular phone calls and cards to maintain personal connections.
What have been the joys and the learnings of this past year and where have we encountered challenges?
FMM members, Lisa and Jim Collins, and their associate, Sally Dunn Huebner, successfully co-founded River Rock Healing Arts, an organization that focuses on spiritual development and aligning one’s life and soul’s purpose to become whole and healed. Soul Patrol, a weekly Facebook program, provides an on-line interview program introducing different tools and people resources that may support individuals’ spiritual journeys. This outreach touches followers from within and outside of the FMM community.
FMM member Jonathan Sprout created Force For Good and gathered a team that is committed to joining his mission to inspire others to action and to “uplift the uplifters” through music and film —to highlight those who are making a positive difference.
The Worship and Ministry Committee has followed up on the commitment to increase music as part of worship. Songs frequently end the Meeting for Worship. Music Sundays are scheduled periodically for Adult First Day Class and members and attenders are encouraged to volunteer to lead one or more songs on Zoom.
Weather permitting, the Meeting hosted a mid-week Meeting for Worship that is socially distance outside the meetinghouse. Many members have expressed the challenge of not being able to worship together inside the meetinghouse. This practice will resume as the weather improves.
Although Zoom has permitted continuing Meeting for Worship and Meeting for Business, participants do identify difficulties in focusing on a screen. Zoom is a “place holder” that lends continuity and perseverance, but it is not the same as worshipping in person.
The ability to use Zoom technology continues to expand the circle of people to participate in both Meeting for Worship and Meeting for Business. The Property Committee continues to study the optimum setup for the inobtrusive use of Zoom in the sanctuary area even as the meetinghouse reopens to allow for Friends to continue to join in Meeting for Worship and Meeting for Business as they feel more comfortable or due to distance.
The Religious Education Committee responded to the pandemic by planning creative and meaningful programs that included welcoming distant participants from Alaska and Turks and Caicos; conducting a household scavenger hunt/show and tells, discussions of religious and cultural holidays, the meaning of the Beatitudes, out loud reading and discussion of stories from Candles in the Dark. In person gatherings included worship sharing check-ins and various activities around Snipes’ farm, such as spreading cover crop seeds, picking raspberries and late fall greens, visiting the animals and identifying plants. Classes also included talking about caring for the wide green earth and striving to provide a bit of normalcy to an otherwise very unusual and scary time in our world history. First Day School has been able to meet outside and in person when weather is cooperative, approximately 20% of the time. Through the efforts of our First Day School teachers, families stayed connected through a weekly text that advised families of the plans for First Day School each week encouraging participation and underscoring the importance of supporting one another through these difficult times.
Worship and Ministry and the Children’s First Day School teachers/Religious Education Committees coordinated closely to plan and conduct very meaningful Christmas and Easter programs on Zoom that were very well attended. The 2021 Easter gathering occurred one week after Easter when the Children’s First Day School held an afternoon and post-rain egg hunt in the Graveyard, wrapped individual pansy flowers and bible messages that were later delivered to nearby Meeting members and sang together.
How has our faith supported our social witness?
In light of the racial unrest and upheaval, the Worship and Ministry Committee looked to continue increasing awareness and understanding as to how the Meeting can support Black Lives Matter and local efforts. The Committee looked at resources provided through PYM and the Bucks County Peace Center. Melanie Douty Snipes and John DiMino maintained ongoing communications and coordinated with the Peace Center to facilitate a series of programs that have met during Adult First Day Class and Wednesday evenings to allow for a broader participation by meeting members and friends.
The Religious Education Committee facilitates a Christmas toy drive for children of Mercer Street Friends, in Trenton, NJ. This is an annual program that has continued for many years, including during the 2020 pandemic year.
Through the ongoing attention of the Property Committee, FMM continues to maintain a long term landlord/tenant relationship with the William Penn Center, Fallsington, PA, a United Way organization that provides daycare and early education classes for area children. The Committee arranged for significant work to be completed over the past year to provide necessary building maintenance and improvements for classrooms. The Property Committee also ensures that the grounds are maintained and that Meetinghouse is also kept in good repair. Their persistence often continues behind the scenes and should not be overlooked.
Friends witnessed so much strife and struggle in our nation’s life during the pandemic and struggled to find our witness through the Testimonies. Members looked to committee work and Meeting for Business to gain the sense of our commitments and a vision of how to get through this time through sharing.
FMM approved the use of the basement by Bucks County Mutual Aid to store donated items prior to distribution.
How have our community members supported one another?
A special mention of the Care and Concern Committee who have been working tirelessly and committed to reaching out to members is in order. Special recognition of the continuing work that member Susan Jasiewicz has done on behalf of the Committee while undergoing ongoing treatment and care for her cancer.
Members of FMM have provided ongoing spiritual support for members who have been undergoing care and therapy or have family members who been ill.
FMM along with the Funeral and Care and Concern Committees were able to work with the family of Nancy Adams to host an outdoor Meeting for Worship for Celebration of Life and luncheon in the meeting’s social room. Another celebration of Nancy’s life is being planned as pandemic restrictions are lifted.
The Care and Concern Committee and individual meeting members have reached out to several families who have lost loved ones to hold them in the Light and attend services as individuals felt safe.
Worship and Ministry Committee continues to provide oversight and support to Lisa Collins as a recorded minister of healing under the care of FMM.
A member of FMM shared a personal note of appreciation for the daily personal and spiritual support provided by Friends throughout his hospital stay with COVID and ongoing follow-up after his return home.
The Clerks’ Committee has kept the Meeting and all Committees stitched together and focused over the past year.
What is the name of the person submitting this report? *
Laura G. Thomforde
In what role does the person submitting this report serve in their community? *
Member, Worship and Ministry Committee
What is the email address of the person submitting this report? *
Laurchar@aol.com
Make sure you list an email address at which the Quaker Life Council Ministry & Care Committee can find someone to whom to address any questions.
Other individuals include:
Jonathan Snipes, Clerk, Worship and Ministry Committee – jonathansnipes@hotmail.com
J. David Brimmer, Outgoing Clerk, Fallsington Monthly Meeting – jdavidbrimmer@aol.com
*One way to think of covenant is as a promise to stay in relationship with Spirit/God. Faithfulness is just a part of that promise; it is the commitment to stay in relationship that is the enduring part of the tradition we carry as Friends. Those who are interested in more information about covenant relationships may find Tom Gates offering “Seeing Beyond Our Differences: Meeting as Covenant Community.”
