February 22, 2015

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

9:00 AM meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting, Sandy Olson

10:15 AM review the draft “Equality”* chapter for the Northern Yearly Meeting Faith and Practice. Sandy Olson, presiding; Elizabeth Showalter, recording

11:15 AM meeting for worship (semi-programmed): Ann Luce, speaker; Nancy Lichtenstein, musician; care of meeting, Dave Bostrom

*Equality is a historic testimony of Friends, and this draft chapter is a contemporary upper midwestern Quaker attempt at articulating that testimony. We will read through the draft together and compile our comments to send on to the Faith and Practice Committee. The draft chapter is online at www.northernyearlymeeting.org, and paper copies are also available.

There is nursery care available downstairs at 11:00. Earlier care is available as needed.

First day school runs concurrently with semi-programmed worship. Children begin in worship and then leave with their teachers after the first hymn. Teachers this week are Allen and John. Last week Annette led the group with Godly Play on one of the Genesis creation stories.

Photos and listings in the new directory: A draft of directory names and contact information is on the bulletin table. Please check your listing, write corrections, and put a check by your name if the info is correct / complete. If you’ve made changes / additions in earlier drafts, please check your listing again to make sure we have it right! If you are not listed and would like to be, please fill in a contact information sheet. If you are listed and do not wish to be, or wish to have some of your info withheld, please so mark your listing. If you are attending worship regularly – say ten times a year or more – we hope to include you and your contact information. Let us know if you have a photo you would like to submit: office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org; 612-926-6159.

UPCOMING MEETING EVENTS

At 10:15 next Sunday, March 1st, John Cutler will talk about theater and acting and its relation to his faith. John grew up as a Quaker in Wichita, KS, and is a professional actor.

Next week, all are welcome to the monthly Sunday potluck lunch at 12:30. Please bring plenty of food so there will be ample to accommodate visitors and those at the end of the line. (And please label your pot-luck item/s with ingredients, particularly peanuts, walnuts, salt, meat, poultry, milk, soy, onions, garlic, eggs, fish, shellfish, corn, corn products and wheat.)

Liaison and Review Committee oversees the work of the Director of Ministry, as well as has an eye to general personnel process in the Meeting. Periodically they ask for feedback on the perceived duties and performance of the Director of Ministry. There is currently a survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MFM_Directory_of_Ministry_Survey that Friends are asked to fill out. The results of the survey may help in developing goals for the Director of Ministry in the coming year and will aid in anticipating the some of the future needs of MFM. Thanks, Friends. Please note Feb. 28 is the deadline.

Fall Camp will be October 10-11 at Villa Maria, scheduled to avoid conflicting with MEA. An alternate time for October’s meeting for business will be arranged if it is crucial that we have one. Mark your calendars now to save the date!

The Meeting needs a custodian to clean the meetinghouse, a paid position, approximately 4 hours of work per week. Interested? Contact Joseph or Ed.

Offering boxes are located on small tables near the meetingroom doors.

OTHER HAPPENINGS AMONG QUAKERS

Friends for a Non-Violent World’s annual meeting – reviewing the past year’s accomplishments, providing a look forward and electing new members to the board of directors – will be TODAY at 1:30, at Twin Cities Friends Meeting in St. Paul. This is a great opportunity for FNVW constituents, including Minneapolis Friends, to learn more about what FNVW is doing and to participate in FNVW’s future. There will also be discussion about how to respond to President Obama’s policy and military initiative against ISIS. As background, consider reading: “Obama’s request for congressional authorization to fight the Islamice State” (The Washington Post); “Obama’s party threatens alliance against ‘carte blanche’ power to wage Isis war” (The Guardian); “Here’s Why Obama’s Request For War Limits Does Nothing To Limit War” (The Huffington Post).

American Friends Service Committee Freedom School debrief, this Tues, Feb. 24, 6-8 pm, at the AFSC office, 1671 Summit Ave, St. Paul. Youth leaders and youth who participated in the December Freedom School will talk about their experience.

Lunch Bunch will meet this coming Wednesday, Feb. 25th, 11:45, at 9901 Penn Ave. S., where Louise lives. Please call Louise as soon as possible and no later than noon Tuesday so that she can reserve a spot for you.

Lectio Divina, or, as Quakers call it, worship sharing, on a text from Scripture or Quaker Faith and Practice. Come join a group at Kenwood Isles for this, then a simple lunch, at noon, Thursdays Feb 26th and March 5th.

Opportunity to discuss Doug Gwyn’s, A Sustainable Life, Feb 26th and March 5th, 7PM, at Twin Cities Friends Mtg, 1725 Grand Ave, St. Paul. Copies available ($16 ea) on the 26th. More at FourRiversFriends.org/events-activities-announcements.

Friends General Conference (FGC) Gathering will be held July 5-July 11, 2015, at Western Carolina University in the Smoky Mountains. The Gathering is a lively and rich week of many, many options in worship, workshops, kids program, speakers, films, art, bookstore, etc. Friends come from all over the U.S. and Canada. Info at FGCGathering.org. Registration begins April 1 and financial aid is available, especially to Friends who apply early. If you are considering helping plan the Gathering in 2016 – take this opportunity to experience the event!

Friends General Conference Gathering is coming to Minnesota in 2016! A Gathering Committee is being formed to help plan and coordinate the week-long, spiritually-grounded, lovingly inclusive, joyous, challenging, nurturing event. If you are interested in helping, fill out the Expression of Interest Form online at FGCquaker.or/gathering-committee. More information is posted on the long bulletin board. The first meeting is in St. Paul on May 1st and 2nd.

The recent American Friends Service Committee Midwest Digest is available online: afsc.org/story/midwest-digest-1-22-15.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Registration for the upcoming White Privilege Conference has begun. This year, WPC will be held in Louisville, KY in March. Friends from the Northern Yearly Meeting region have always made up the largest contingent of any yearly meeting. To learn how to be part of a sizable Quaker contingent, and receive a large discount, see: tinyurl.com/mrxcw72