February 26, 2023

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

9:00 – 10:00 meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting, Lin Butler; Zoom host – Bill H.

10:15 – 11:00 Meeting Life. Come share in small groups around these topics:
1. What gifts / strengths do you see in each other or do you see in yourself?
2. Can participation in a committee / working group feed your spiritual life or encourage your gifts to flourish? Have you experienced that, here or elsewhere?
Back in a large group, we will consider: What committees or work of the Meeting seems essential to you? Where should the Meeting focus its energy and attention? Offered by the Nominating Committee; Zoom host – Sandy O.

11:15 – 12:15 meeting for worship (semi-programmed): Gib Pellet – speaker; Renae Bonde – musician; care of meeting, Heidi Flores; Zoom host – Sandy O.

Need the link to worship and mid-morning program on Sunday? Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org

NEWS FOR MINNEAPOLIS MEETING FRIENDS

Mid-Morning Program next Sunday at 10:15: How I Found Minneapolis Meeting and Why I Have Stayed: Long-time members and attenders, Dave Bostrom, Betsy Souther, and Barbara Ziegenhagen , will speak about their experience with Quakerism and the meeting and why they have stayed. Moderated by Linda Coffin.

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.

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 John C. 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.

Quaker Voluntary Service has two program Fridays each month. Could you provide a vegetarian lunch for three on March 3, 17, or 31? Sign up with Miranda, QVS Local Coordinator: miranda(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)quakervoluntaryservice.org. Also check with Miranda if you are interested in joining her and the two Fellows for the lunch you provide! THANK YOU, Friends, for this gesture of care and support.

Minneapolis Monthly Meeting is seeking a Children and Families Coordinator to manage religious educational activities, outreach, and training for ministry to youth and families for Minneapolis Meeting. This is a part-time annual position, estimated at 10-15 hours per week (negotiable), with an hourly wage of $25/hour to start. Interested candidates should have some experience organizing activities/planning events with children, teenagers and adults, a commitment to nonviolent practices, a valid driver’s license, and schedule flexibility, with a commitment to working on Sundays. Additional qualifications including enthusiasm for the participation of diverse youth and families in the life of the Meeting and a demonstrated spiritual life. Information about the position can be found at: https://minneapolisfriends.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Children-and-Families-Coordinator-job-description.pdf. Please submit a resume, cover letter, and contact information from three professional references to: Children/Family Coordinator Hiring Committee, Minneapolis Friends Meeting, office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Attenders and members of MFM are encouraged to share this announcement broadly!

An index of the monthly meeting decisions over the past forty years is now available for interested F(f)riends. Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to have it emailed to you.

Need to schedule a Zoom meeting for a committee meeting or Minneapolis Meeting activity? Please send a request, including date, time, and purpose to office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to have it set up.

SMALL GROUP OPPORTUNITIES AT MINNEAPOLIS MEETING

Have some Fun with Friends TODAY, Feb. 26th! Gather in front of the elevators at the north end of the main floor of the historic Landmark Center (St. Paul) at 1:30PM. We’ll decide which music, dance, exhibitions, galleries, and museums to explore on arrival. Masks are required for some offerings. Questions, contact Jane D.

Come for thirty minutes of Lectio Divina and worship sharing at noon on Tuesdays. Hold a short reading from the Bible, Quaker, or other spiritual texts to see if and how it might speak to us today, followed by a time of worship-sharing. Contact Stephen S for the link.

The Watson Reading Group will resume meeting on Feb 28th and every fourth Tues of the month, 7-8:30PM via Zoom. We will take turns reading aloud from Karen Armstrong’s Sacred Nature. We will save the last half hour for discussion and a brief meditation. Participants will each need to obtain a copy of the book. If you have interest in joining and have not expressed it already, please let John D. know so he can send you the link.

A group of MFM F(f)riends plan to visit the Hocokata Ti public exhibit in Shakopee on March 1 at 1PM. The exhibit “Mdewakanton: Dwellers of the Spirit Lake” provides visitors with a cultural experience that enhances their knowledge of the Mdewakanton Dakota people and history. This is about a people telling their own story. Contact Nettie S. if you’d like to be a part of the outing!

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WIDER WORLD OF FRIENDS

WORSHIP

~ Quakers Of Kyiv, Ukraine / Квейкери Києва, given power and internet, invite Friends worldwide to join them for worship Sundays at noon (CT) (8PM their time) and Wednesday evenings Link here; ID: 829 8497 8940; Passcode: 586154. Check for updated information at fb.com/QuakersKyivUkraine .
~ Friends House in Moscow daily worship with a concern for Ukraine, 11AM (CT) Click here to go to online worship ; ID: 416 500 5614; Passcode: 182805
~ Friends General Conference hosts a weekly worship, Sat nights, 8PM: https://forms.gle/GgqEva4KUf4eHFo1A For other opportunities, see: https://www.fgcquaker.org/resources/online-worship-opportunities
~ Pendle Hill Study and Retreat Center has daily worship, M-F, 7:30-8:10 AM (CT): https://pendlehill.zoom.us/j/432071090?pwd=aU5OOWk4ZGJkcWNUbzI5TXdjdVpSdz09
~ Quaker Voluntary Service has daily worship Tues and Thurs morning, 10:30-11AM (CST): https://zoom.us/j/5702463400; password, “worship”
~ Ben Lomand Quaker Center (California) meeting for worship daily 9:30 – 10AM. Instructions and to join visit http://www.chatzy.com/frame/QuakerCenter
~ Quaker Center in California has a Wed worship sharing at noon (CT) with Friends from around the world responding queries based on short readings. JOIN HERE; password, email: BobFisher(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)QuakerCenter.org
~ Global meeting for worship is offered every Wed, 1 PM (CT). Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to put in touch with the facilitator.
~ Quaker Earthcare Witness – worship share in small groups, respond to queries, explore our experiences, and share more deeply than we would in normal conversation–Feb 28th, 6-7:15PM(CT). Register here. Come for spiritual support and connection with those engaged in environmental work and witness.

VOLUNTEER

Friends for a NonViolent World will be at the MN State Capitol with over sixty other organizations to support second chances for individuals impacted by the criminal legal system. Get inspired, take action and help make a change by joining in – press conference at 9:30AM; rally at 10:30AM; visit with legislators at noon. Read about Second Chance Coalition legislative priorities here. Contact Samantha(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)fnvw.org for more. Register here.

Friends School of MN Plant Sale Volunteer Sign Up has started! The Friends School Plant Sale (the largest in the country!) is an incredibly important part of school life and a very important fundraiser. It takes over a thousand volunteers to make the plant sale happen. Volunteers come from all over the Twin Cities to perform jobs at all skill levels. For more and to sign up to help, click here. And remember – volunteers get to shop first! Not ready to commit to getting over to St. Paul? Thousands of newspaper plastic sleeves are needed for the bulbs sale. Bring yours to the collection box at the meetinghouse.

WORKSHOPS, FILMS, RETREATS, PROGRAMS, PRESENTATIONS

Friends for a NonViolent World will offer an Alternatives to Violence Program (AVP) Virtual Workshop: In the context of a supportive community, you’ll discover your power to build safer communities and transform conflict and frustration in your life! Mar 3, 4, 9, and 11. Register at this link. More at https://www.fnvw.org/.

Friends Peace Teams will offer Roots of Injustice, Seeds of Change – toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples, an interactive online workshop on March 14th, for high school students and adults. Learn the real history of this country through the voices of Indigenous people, Euro-American colonists, and historians and understand why this history matters to all of us today. Learn to build relationships based on truth, respect and justice. Also from Friends Peace Teams, there will be a slide presentation, Indian Boarding Schools and Multigenerational Trauma, on Tues, March 14th, 7–8:15PM (CT). Register for either or both at https://friendspeaceteams.org/upcoming-events/

School of the Spirit will offer a Contemplative Retreat, Reconnecting With the Divine in One Another, at the Siena Center in Racine, WI, April 27-30. Come experience the distinctly Quaker manner of knowing contemplation in community. There will be individual silent time for prayer, reflection, rest, and walks. Sinking down into the silence, we are likely to want to give voice to what we’re encountering there, so we’ll have times for worship sharing in small groups as well as an invitation to meet one-on-one with a retreat leader for anyone who wishes to do so. More information, including the flexible fee structure and the registration info, are available on the retreat website. Early registration recommended.

The Black Quaker Project is sponsoring the Black Quaker Lives Matter Film Festival and Forum, through April 8. Films will be shown online, followed by commentary and discussion, every other Sat afternoon at noon (CT). Registration required, in advance, for each film to receive the Zoom link. Next up: Sisters in Freedom – Sarah Mapps Douglass and Women in the Abolition Struggle Against Slavery on Sat, March 4th. Register at this link .

The Friends Publishing Corporation’s new podcast, Quakers Today, has a new episode exploring: How has your view of Jesus, God, or religion changed since you were young? Listen here. And for an upcoming episode, what are your thoughts and feelings about virtual online communities or worship? Share your response by calling 317-QUAKERS (317-782-5377), and you might find yourself included in next month’s podcast!

Plan to attend the 2023 Friends General Conference Gathering, Listen So That We May LIVE, will be July 2-8 at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, OR. Plenaries will be hybrid – available in person and online.

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WIDER COMMUNITY

Peace Catalyst International will offer Kingian Nonviolence Core Training: Foundations of Kingian Nonviolence Conflict Reconciliation on Saturdays in March, 10am – 2pm; online. Learn the basics of nonviolent organizing and conflict reconciliation through Kingian Nonviolence! This training explores types of conflicts and how they escalate, MLK Jr.’s Six Principles and Six Steps of nonviolence, fundamental strategies for nonviolent organizing, and more. Learn more and register.

OFFICE HOURS

The Meeting Coordinator, will be in the office Wed – Fri afternoons. Phone messages checked daily; email checked W-F. Bulletin deadline, noon Thur. Bulletin items can be phoned in to the office (612-926-6159) or emailed (office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org).