Friendly Circle - Cincinnati

Embracing Complexity - borrowed

2011-12-11T17:38:00.000-08:00

This is a post borrowed from another blog, from 2007. The post is four years old, but the queries at the end certainly are still relevant:

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2007

Quakers and Christmas

There was an article in today's paper on Christians who do not celebrate Christmas. Briefly, the reasons some Christians do not celebrate Christmas include: it's now a secular holiday; it has become too commercial; there is not really a Biblical basis for believing we have the right calendar date or that Jesus wanted us to celebrate his earthly birth.

The article listed some Protestant denominations that have had times, at least in the past, of not officially celebrating Christmas, and the Quakers were listed.

While recognizing that the questions of whether Quakers are Christians or are Protestants are themselves contested questions (but let's not get sidetracked with these questions for the moment...): The reason that Quakers didn't/don't officially celebrate Christmas may not be so much for reasons like those summarized above, but probably has to do more with the fact that (most) Quaker Meetings don't "officially" recognize any holidays.

Yet I know that many (most?) Quaker families do celebrate Christmas at home. And some Meetings do mark the occasion in a number of ways (singing Christmas hymns, having a special potluck, maybe having a special Meeting for Worship on Christmas day, though I have seldom seen the latter during my many years among Friends).

So I am curious about Friends' thoughts on this. If you feel so moved, please consider responding to some or all of the following:

Does your Meeting do anything special for Christmas? (Any other holidays?) Why or why not?
Do you celebrate Christmas at home?
If so, do you regard it as a secular/cultural holiday or a religious one? That is, does your way of celebrating it come more from family traditions than from your Quakerism, or vice versa? (I know that Quakers want to say that there is no distinction between their Quaker life and the rest of their life, but those who do not come from Quaker families may engage in Christmas traditions inherited from their non-Quaker families even if they now infuse them with Quakerly meanings).
Do any of you hold strictly to a Quaker-inspired practice of not honoring any holidays in any special way, including Christmas? If so, how do you communicate this to family and friends who may expect some participation?
If you do celebrate Christmas, what about the way that you celebrate it is most meaningful to you? Or, if you could celebrate Christmas any way you wanted, how would you?

how do you practice hope?

2011-04-08T07:25:00.000-07:00

“Hope” is not something

I can hold in my hand,

or something I can purchase,

or own.

“Hope” is a verb,

it is something I practice,

and it is something I do.

--Pam Ferguson capturing the sense of a message from FCNL's Joe Volk

Practicing Hope

03/16/11 13:53 , Categories: Uncategorized

Winter is slowly morphing into spring and it isn’t coming soon enough. I am a person that in the depth of winter forgets I ever lived through a spring before. It feels like the cold, frozen tundra will never ever yield again to plant life and I will never see another warm summer to plant and grow.

This past winter has been more difficult than most in Indiana. In addition to record breaking cold and snow and ice, I’ve been weighed under with difficult situations: food pantry struggles, family struggles, Yearly Meeting controversies, and friends I’m trying to support through difficult days. It has been one very long winter and I want to give up, give in, and wallow in hopelessness and despair. It seems easier than digging into my soul to nurture hope and life.

The tragedy in Japan captures so much of my attention these days as disaster after disaster happens to husbands and wives, children, mothers and fathers, and aunts and uncles, and I am overwhelmed with a humanity I am not able to touch and help. I watch the videos of the tsunami as it powered its way across farmland and through hospitals and homes and I struggle to comprehend the incredible power and destruction of something so simple and so life-giving as water...

I have been surprised by life. I never expected life to be so full of experiences and blessings. I’ve seen the pygmies dance, awoken to the Muslim call to prayer, and been to the source of the Nile.…I’ve smelled incense from sandalwood, frankincense, and myrrh, and I’ve smelled open sewers, burning trash, rotting flesh, drying fish, and camel dung.…My husband, Ron, and I co-pastor a Quaker meeting in eastern Indiana. Read full bio...

Read Pam's entire devotional essay here:

http://www.barclaypress.com/pamferguson.php/2011/03/16/new-life

Hope

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune--without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.

--Emily Dickinson

Relive your student days with Prothero of BU

2011-04-01T16:45:00.000-07:00

Stephen's Next Religion - Stephen Prothero
www.colbertnation.com

Stephen Prothero helps Stephen Colbert decide which faith to try next by describing Quakers, reincarnation, and Shakers. (3:20)

"I'm kinda partial to the Quakers... they are not really winning but it's a kind of interesting religion."

Let's hear it for Quakers!

Found: another way to reduce bullying

2011-03-31T18:06:00.000-07:00

Part of complete coverage on
Stop Bullying: Speak Up

Babies go to school to teach
See show times »
From Kiran Chetry and Dana Garrett, CNN's American Morning
December 10, 2010 9:50 a.m. EST

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Babies help students learn about emotion and reading others' feelings
The Roots of Empathy program has reached more than 325,000 children worldwide
Program founder: Empathy helps kids navigate through all social relationships in their lives

Toronto (CNN) -- Four-month-old Indigo might not know how to walk or talk yet. But she's already a formidable weapon in the fight against bullying.
On this day, as she makes her way into Denyse Stewart's third-grade classroom in Toronto, the students beam with excitement.
"Hello baby Indigo, how are you? How are you? How are you?"
For the next 30 minutes, Indigo is the teacher, helping these students learn about emotion and how to read another person's feelings -- namely, her own.
The baby's visit is the heart of a program called Roots of Empathy -- a course that is proving to be an effective tool in reducing aggression in schoolchildren.
"The real importance of understanding how you feel and others feel really helps children navigate every social relationship in their lives," said Mary Gordon, founder of Roots of Empathy.
Indigo and her parents will make nine visits over the course of the year. A facilitator will visit a total of 27 times to reinforce the lessons, in which understanding and spotting feelings are key.
"Now what is she telling us right now?" the facilitator asked as Indigo starts to cry.
"She doesn't like being on her back," the students replied.
Gordon said she knew bringing a baby and parent into the classroom would strike a chord with kids.
"There's something so engaging between watching the love between a parent and a baby, and since that relationship of attachment and attunement is how we develop our empathy, I thought, well, why not bring the teachers in, the tiny teachers?" Gordon said. "And I just knew in my gut -- it was a by-golly approach -- but now we have a scientific evidence of impact."
Independent studies have found decreased aggression and increased emotional understanding among kids who have been through the program.
Stewart, the third-graders' teacher, said she's witnessed a difference in how her student relate to one another.
"It's a place for them to practice being open," Stewart said, "so when they move outside of the classroom, they know what it feels like to be open, what it feels like to empathize. And it becomes that much easier for them to practice outside of the classroom with other people."
According to its website, the Roots of Empathy program has reached more than 325,000 children worldwide.
Ironically, Gordon did not intend a create an anti-bullying program.
"I was just looking at how do we build (a) more peaceful and civil society through our children," she said. "The fact that the program dramatically reduces bullying, I have to say, just was a wonderful outcome that I hadn't planned on."
And the students in Stewart's class appeared to have grown attached to their infant teacher.
"Goodbye baby Indigo," they said. "See you soon, see you very soon."
Watch American Morning weekdays 6am to 9am ET. For the latest from American Morning click here.

Kenyan Quaker peacemaker travels in US

2011-03-30T14:03:00.000-07:00

Preventing Deadly Conflict in Kenya: A Visit from Getry Agizah

By Cassidy Regan on 03/28/2011 @ 10:00 AM

Tags: Peaceful Prevention

Getry Agizah, Quaker colleague and Kenyan peace coordinator, outside of the FCNL office.

From March 23rd to March 25th, FCNL was lucky enough to host Getry Agizah, a Quaker colleague and Kenyan peace coordinator who traveled to the United States to speak about her work. By the time Getry arrived at FCNL, she had already visited Friends in Indiana, Ohio, and New York, and we were thrilled to continue the conversation.

Getry’s tour focused on her experience as Coordinator of the Friends Church Peace Teams, an organization formed in response to Kenya’s post-election crisis of 2007/2008. After violence based largely on disputed electoral results and rising ethnic tension, Kenya suffered the loss of at least 1,000 people and the displacement of over 350,000. Quakers, who have a higher concentration in Kenya than any other country, established FCPT in order to address the devastation.

Read full posting at:

http://fcnl.org/blog/of_peace_and_politics/Preventing_Conflict_Kenya/

On silence as a meeting place with God

2010-06-21T05:17:00.001-07:00

Check out the new website from Earlham College's Newlin Center for Quaker Thought and Practice, geared toward Young Friends:

http://www.discoverthyself.org /

= = = = = = = = =

About Quakers

Quakers--also known as Friends--are a dynamic, diverse religious body, with a rich history and vibrant communities around the globe.

There are about 360,000 Quakers in the world:

Total members 358,923 (U.S.87,022), by continent:

Africa = 43%

North America = 30%

Caribbean and Latin America =17%

Europe and Middle East =6%

Asia-West Pacific = 4%

(From FWCC - Friends World Committee for Consultation)

Quakers are a protestant denomination originating in England during the mid-1600s, officially known as the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers).

Most Friends churches or Quaker meetings (local congregations) are designated as Pastoral or Non-Pastoral; they may also be called Programmed or Unprogrammed:

Pastoral Meetings have a paid pastoral minister, and worship is conducted with some advance planning (programmed). Worshippers may sing hymns, have a children's lesson, hear a scriptural or other inspirational reading, listen to a prepared message from the pastoral minister or a guest speaker, make an offering to support the work of the meeting (gift or contribution), and/or engage in a period of silent worship (see below).

Non-Pastoral Meetings have no paid pastoral ministers, and worship is conducted with no advance planning (unprogrammed). Worshippers sit in silent worship or "waiting upon the Lord" (prayerful meditation), and anyone present may be led to speak out of the silence (vocal ministry). Friends in these meetings may sing hymns, share joys and concerns, or make an offering (gift or contribution) before or after worship.

Both types of Quaker meetings
are focused on fostering community and
respect for the dignity of each individual.

Founder George Fox said,

"Walk cheerfully over all the earth,

answering to that of God in everyone."

Friends value cooperation,

encourage careful listening, and

celebrate the contribution of each person,

regardless of one's background or social status

(e.g., age, gender, race, nationality, ethnicity, education, etc.).

Friends are open to the leading of the Inward Light or the Holy Spirit (continuing revelation).

Quaker meetings offer many opportunities for members and attenders to participate in creative, recreational and social activities--including but not limited to religious education, spiritual development, service and ministry--with room for all to grow in leadership.

There are four main branches of Friends (Quakers) in North America (see links on left sidebar).

Quaker meetings in the Cincinnati area are affiliated with two of these branches:

FGC - Friends General Conference

FUM - Friends United Meeting

Two other branches are found elsewhere:

Conservative Friends

EFI - Evangelical Friends International

To learn more about Quakerism, contact one of the three Friends (Quaker) meetings above--any of the contacts listed would be happy to answer your questions and describe their congregation's style of worship!

Quakers are perhaps best known for their Testimonies, or ways of living their faith in the world.

These historial commitments include:

peace,

simplicity,

community,

equality,

tolerance, and

integrity.

> Click here for FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions about Friends (Quakers)

Check out the websites of all three local Friends meetings.

Explore the links on the left sidebar to find more about Quakers in the Greater Cincinnati metropolitan area and the wider world!

See below for Quaker quotes and more notices of upcoming events.

> If you do not live in the Greater Cincinnati metro area and would like to find a Quaker meeting near you, click here to use the QuakerFinder.

Quakers and Weddings

Quakers have distinctive ways of celebrating weddings, and Friends marriage ceremonies usually include:

an open time of sharing (either before or after vows): for anyone to rise and speak out of a period of silence, sharing a reflection about why the couple is special to them, giving a brief message of encouragement or advice, reading a poem or singing a song.
Quaker wedding certificate: everyone present signs it, from the oldest to the very youngest, and it's a lovely memento to keep framed in the home.

Most importantly, due to the testimony of equality, Quakers believe that the couple "marries" one another; nobody "marries" them. The couple are the active protagonists in the story of their own wedding. Among unprogrammed Friends, the couple may simply rise during the open worship and exchange vows without any introduction or prelude, and without a facilitator such as a pastor or minister. Some Friends do have pastoral ministers, but even if the worship is programmed, there is usually a period of open worship grounded in silence.

Members of Friends Meetings who wish to marry will undergo a "Clearness Process," meeting several times with a committee of trusted Friends to share about their plans to wed, and seeking "clearness" (with one another and before God) for the marriage. The clearness committee facilitates their listening to one another and may help guide the questions they are exploring with one another. The Friends Meeting may play a large or small role in hosting the party that follows the wedding, and in keeping with the Quaker testimony of simplicity, many Friends request that no gifts be given, or they have a very simple reception, such as a potluck meal.

Here are links for some brief online material describing Quaker resources and traditions relating to marriage and weddings:

1) From the unprogrammed (non-pastoral) perspective:
http://www.fgcquaker.org/library/welcome/fa-weddings.html

2) From the programmed (pastoral) perspective:
http://www.fum.org/QL/issues/0006/marriage.htm

Many faiths and Christian denominations offer retreats for couples (e.g., Marriage Encounter or Engaged Encounter). Quakers have a form of Marriage Enrichment: http://www.fgcquaker.org/traveling/couples/index.html A Friends Meeting may offer various resources for engaged or married couples, depending upon the interests, experiences and resources of its members. Contact the Friends meeting nearest you for more information and guidance.