April 19, 2020

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

9:00 – 10:00 meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting, Carol Bechtel

10:15 – 11:00 The Religious Case for Medical Aid in Dying When a person is facing a terminal disease, is it morally acceptable to ask for a physician’s aid ending that life? Consider your own response; learn about the legislation being considered in MN that mimics Oregon’s Death with Dignity law; and hear why the presenter, Harlan Limpert, a Unitarian Universalist minister, believes it is not only moral but required of us to honor a person’s dignity and show compassion for their suffering. Harlan Limpert and Jordan Duncan presenting.

11:15 – 12:15 meeting for worship (semi-programmed): John Kraft – speaker; care of meeting, Heidi Flores

“Brothers, there are four truths: the existence of suffering, the cause of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path which leads to the cessation of suffering. I call these the Four Noble Truths. The first is the existence of suffering. Birth, old age, sickness, and death are suffering. Sadness, anger, jealousy, worry, anxiety, fear, and despair are suffering. Separation from loved ones is suffering. Association with those you hate is suffering. Desire, attachment, and clinging to the five aggregates are suffering.”
~ the Buddha’s “First Sermon at Deer Park” as translated in World Religions: A Voyage of Discovery

UPCOMING MEETING EVENTS

Opportunities to gather with MFM Friends:
Mid-week worship this Wed, 7-8PM with joys and concerns following from 8-9PM. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon Wed for the link.
Sunday 9AM and 11:15AM worship and mid-morning program through May. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon Friday for the link.

Mid-Morning Program next Sunday at 10:15: Images and symbols of the divine feminine through history. Jacque Weirsma will describe and illustrate some of the representations of the feminine side of the divine in various cultures, from pre-history to modern times. We will also discuss how these images acquired almost-universal meaning and power.

A Minneapolis Meeting Zoom account has been set up. If your committee or meeting-related group wishes to make use of it, please contact office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org, Wednesday – Friday.

A COVID-19 response fund was approved by monthly meeting to help provide temporary relief to Friends experiencing any financial emergency connected to the virus and resulting quarantines. Members and attenders can apply for emergency funding, up to $1500, by completing an application. Send completed applications to Nettie, Clerk of Care and Counsel. If you need help accessing the form, or have any other issues, email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org. There is currently no way to contribute to this fund.

The Northern Yearly Meeting middle school group is meeting online every-other Thurs at 4PM. Want more information? Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to be put in touch with the coordinator, Seres.

A MFM Writing Group is writing on weekly prompts, sharing what has been written and reactions to what has been written in the week that follows. Want to join in? Prompts are sent out via the googlegroup. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org for more.

Terry Hokenson will be hosting a radio broadcast on the Indigenous Perspective on Regenerative Agriculture on Sunday April 26. The live broadcast is from 10 – 11AM, but you can catch the recorded show later at the KFAI Radio web site: KFAI.org. The participants are Jessika Greendeer of Dream of Wild Health, Francis Bettelyoun, the caretaker of the UMN’s Native American Medicine Garden, and Reginaldo Haslett-Marroquin, an agronomist native to Guatemala who has developed a regenerative chicken ranching method which can help low-income migrant farmers enter the agriculture market.

OTHER HAPPENINGS AMONG QUAKERS

Woodbrooke Study Centre in England is offering a free, online course, Radical Spirituality: the early history of Quakers April 27 – May 15. Learn about the beginnings of Quakerism as it emerged in 17th century England, exploring the exciting and dramatic months of 1652 through films, discussions, and quizzes. Follow the course at your own pace, in your own time. More at Radical Spirituality.

Friends for a NonViolent World
~ FNVW is seeking a new Executive Director. Application deadline has been extended to April 20. More at fnvw.org
~People Camp, 2020, an experience of peacemaking and community living, in will be August 9-15 in (hopefully) Northern Pines near Park Rapids. For more and to register, click here.
~ In lieu of the annual meeting, Friends are encouraged to learn about the successes of FNVW in 2019 and plans moving forward by clicking here.
~ You are invited to enjoy a coffee break with the FNVW staff, M-F, 10-10:30AM here.

Friends School of MN has a number of job openings. Find out more at https://fsmn.org/about/employment/

Northern Yearly Meeting Annual Session will not be held in person, May 22-25. An online gathering for that weekend is being planned. See northernyearlymeeting.org for updates.

The Friends General Conference Gathering in Virginia, scheduled for July will not be held in person. More at fgcquaker.org/connect/gathering/coronavirus-and-2020-gathering

Iowa Yearly Meeting (Conservative) mid-year meeting, Engaging Community, Conflict and Connection, will be held online April 25-26. The schedule is posted on the website: iymc.org/midyear-meeting/midyear-meeting-schedule For questions and other information, email MidYearAdHoc(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)iymc.org . Friends can register online at bit.ly/MidyearMeeting2020registration.

Scattergood, a diverse, college preparatory community of motivated and open-minded learners, who value simplicity, equality, and non-violence, offers new Quaker Scholarships. Details at scattergood.org/scholarships; application deadline is June 1.

Wondering if you should register a camper and spread the word about Camp Woodbrooke, a Quaker-flavored overnight camp for 7-15 year olds, amidst the pandemic uncertainty? You can have a place-holder registration (first-come, first-served, pending approval) without payment. See campwoodbrooke.org for more.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

The shelter-in-place order and voluntary closings mean that many of the resources that usually provide furnishings for families are temporarily unavailable. MCC Refugee Services is in need of pack n’ plays (new or nearly new), strollers (near or nearly new), and self-inflatable mattresses (new). If you are able to order or donate one of these items, please contact us at rsvolunteers(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)mnchurches.org and we will find a way to help get these items safely to families who need them.

OFFICE HOURS (phone or email only – 612-926-6159 /office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org) Wed – Fri afternoons.