January 30, 2022

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

9:00 – 10:00 meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting, Doug Herron; Zoom host – Stephen

10:15 – 11:00 Yemen. Friends Committee on National Legislation is focusing on the humanitarian crisis in Yemen and the culpability of the United States due to its support of Saudi Arabia in the war there. Doug Herron and Jim Haefemeyer, MFM’s FCNL Representatives and Local Advocacy Team members, will facilitate. Zoom host – Marilyn

11:15 – 12:15 meeting for worship (semi-programmed): queries from Ministry and Counsel Committee will be offered as planned vocal ministry; care of meeting, Judith James; Zoom host – Marilyn

Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon Friday for the link to worship and mid-morning program January.
FYI – the link for Sunday programming will change for the month of February. The link for Feb is available by emailing office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org

TODAY: Come to Andy’s retirement party, 12:30-1:15 (after second worship). Bring a story or an appreciation for Andy. Andy became a member in 1985 (an associate member in 1975) and has contributed so much to the life of Minneapolis Meeting! Congrats Andy! If you don’t know Andy yet, come and meet him!

NEWS FOR MINNEAPOLIS MEETING FRIENDS

Birthdays, as well as many other celebrations, don’t have to be solo affairs! Happy birthday to Nettie (Feb 4th), and Sigurd (Feb 24th)! Let Friends acknowledge and celebrate you! Send the month and date of your birth, (no year necessary,) to Judith.

Mid-Morning Program next Sunday at 10:15: The Deep Inner Work of Racial Justice. Participants in this MFM group will briefly describe the work they are doing and will share stories that have come out of this work. There might also be some exercises and questions for those who attend. Presenters: Jimbo Lovestar, Nettie Smith, Peter Wragg, John Stuart, and Mary Jean Port.

There is mid-week worship every Wed night, 7PM. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon Wed for the link.

One of the joys and responsibilities of being part of the Minneapolis Meeting community is to help accomplish the work and ministry of the meeting, as we are able. Please consider the different ways you could contribute to the meeting. From being a Zoom host to serving as clerk of the meeting, we grow together as we work together, grounded in the spirit: minneapolisfriends.org/committees/ Contact a Nominating Committee member with questions or interest: Doug, Jim, Connie, Bill, Annamary, or Carolyn, or email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org .

Ministry and Counsel Committee (M&C) asks individuals who feel led to share a prepared message or a reading during semi-programmed worship, to contact Bill H. or other members of M&C. M&C is also looking for closers for both worships. Serving as a closer is a ministry of service to the meeting.

Northern Yearly Meeting High School GAME NIGHT TONIGHT, 7 – 9PM – NYM High Schoolers will gather together for a few hours of connection and fun. Share about your pet(s), (tricks are encouraged!) or any other aspect about your life that you want to share. Then we’ll play some online Steam games. Contact Cynthia, HS Coordinator: hscoordinator(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)northernyearlymeeting.org, with questions or for the link.

Loaves and Fishes needs volunteers and fruit donations for Mon, Jan 31st. Join area Friends along with the Ismaili Community and Mayim Rabim to provide a nutritious meal at Holy Rosary Church, 2424 18th Ave, S. Volunteers are needed: 2PM (prep of burritos, fruit, and salad); 4PM (making burritos and serving); and 5:15PM (clean –up in the kitchen and serving area). Instead of serving meals in the dining room, meals will be to-go, increasing the work of serving but reducing cleanup time. Contact Sue K. to sign-up for a shift, ask questions, or to discuss fruit donations! If you’re interested in helping at other times please contact loavesandfishesmn.org. Masks, gloves, and hats required. This remains a COVID risk. Sign up to come if you can!

Don’t miss your chance to attend a Friendly Meal (via Zoom)! The Welcoming and Outreach Committee invites you to dinner Saturday Feb 19, 6PM. We will break into groups of 5 or 6 people for fellowship as we eat our own meal, together online. When signing up, let us know if your significant other will join you on one screen or two. (If you join on separate computers, you must be in different rooms to avoid audial interference.) On the night of the Meal, prepare your food and drink, load up your plate(s) and log into Zoom at 6PM, sharp. As soon as all registered participants have logged in, Deborah Jones, the host, will put us into breakout rooms. Promptness is important so that food doesn’t get cold. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by noon the preceding Wed (Feb 16). The Zoom link will be sent to all participants by the Friday before the Meal. Come enjoy the friendly fellowship!

Northern Yearly Meeting’s Spring Interim Session will be Feb 17-20. Minneapolis Meeting is a member of NYM along with 31 monthly meetings and worship groups in the upper Midwest. NYM is a vehicle for area Meetings to support and nurture each other. Recently, NYM’s Anti-Racism Working Group and monthly first day school offerings have provided resources and opportunities for collaboration for individual meetings. Get to know and be inspired by the life and witness of Friends and Meetings in our area! Find details and registration information here when it is ready. Zoom hosts are sought. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org with interest.

SMALL GROUPS OPPORTUNITIES AT MINNEAPOLIS MEETING

Join Lectio Divina at 11:25AM most Wednesdays – Hold a short reading from the Bible, Quaker, or other spiritual text to see if and how it might speak to us today. Email Stephen for the link.

Coming Up:
The Writing Group meets the first Monday night of the month, February 7th, 7-9PM. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by the preceding Friday for the link. Open to anyone with interest!
The Deep Inner Work of Creating Racial Justice Group meets the second Tues of the month, Feb 8th. Open to all, whether you have come before or not. Contact Nettie or Jim L. for more.
The Right Relationship with Indigenous People group meets on the second Monday night, Feb 14th, at 7PM. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org by the preceding Friday for the link. Open to all interested.
The Police Reform Group will meet Feb 22. Open to all interested, contact John S. for more.

IN THE WORLD OF FRIENDS

Learn more about the impact of Quaker Voluntary Service, the program that offers young adults a year of service learning, Quaker spirituality, and community living, on Wed, Feb 2nd, 7 PM, via Zoom. Tune in to hear what drew QVS alumni to QVS, key takeaways they had from their year of service, and how QVS has impacted their orientation to the world today. There will also be updates from national staff and locally-involved Friends, a little entertainment, and a chance to talk in smaller breakout groups. We plan to share how you can support the program financially, but the main purpose is to offer a chance to get a better feel for what this experience means for young adult participants. Register here. Plan to come!

American Friends Service Committee announced the FIRST Black Quaker Lives Matter Film Festival, Feb 12 – April 9. For far too long, Quakers of Color have remained within the margins of the Society of Friends and the wider world. Every-other Saturday at noon (CT), from Feb 12th until April 9th, a film centered on a Quaker of Color with an introduction from a guest expert and a follow up discussion, facilitated by Black Quaker Project Director Dr. Harold D. Weaver, will be screened. Register here.
ALSO, AFSC’s Twin Cities’ Healing Justice program has published a recent report summarizing activities in 2021 and plans for 2022. Click here for more

Friends Journal announces the annual Student Voices Project. The youth-led movement to demand action on climate change has exploded in recent years. More and more, young people are witnessing the consequences of the climate crisis and choosing to get involved in sustainable solutions. For this year’s Student Voices Project, we’re asking young people: What has been your personal experience with climate activism and sustainability? We welcome essays (300 to 900 words) from students between sixth and twelfth grades. Deadline for submissions is Feb 14. Click here for more.

MFM Friends are welcomed to Twin Cities Meeting’s online workshop, Roots of Injustice, Seeds of Change, a Paula Parker workshop, on Sat, Feb 26, 2-4PM (CT). Learn the real history of this country through the voices of Native Americans, Euro-American colonists and historians; experience the history anew; understand why this history matters; and interact with Native and non-native people to build relationships based on truth, respect, and justice. Register here. Space limited

Northern Yearly Meeting has annual sessions over Memorial Day weekend – a time for Friends in the upper mid-west to gather together for worship, play, learn, and conduct business. Two volunteers are needed for the upcoming, in-person (we hope) Annual Sessions gathering this May to act as registrar and housing coordinator. The majority of the work comes between March and May when the registration forms are coming in. Please email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to be put in touch with Barb who can share more details for your discernment.

IN THE WIDER COMMUNITY

The MN Council of Churches adopted an initiative in 2020 to move member congregations forward in the area of racial justice – a program including truth-telling and reparations for the African American and Native American communities in MN. If you were unable to join a recent session describing the program, you can hear it here.

Catch the last of the Joint Religious Legislative Coalition housing webinar series, Feb 3, 6:30 – 8PM: Legislative Solutions and Advocacy. Are you concerned about those impacted by homelessness, the high cost of rent and the scarcity of affordable or supportive housing and want to understand housing issues from a variety of perspectives? Come take a look at solutions to statewide housing issues. Register here. For more or to RSVP by email contact Joan at jmiltenberger(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)jrlc.org, 612-230-3232, or through the JRLC website .

OFFICE HOURS: W-F afternoons. Phone messages checked daily; email checked W-F. Bulletin deadline, noon Thur