March 9, 2025

MEETING SCHEDULE AND PROGRAM

TODAY

9:00 – 9:40 meeting for worship (unprogrammed): care of meeting, Mary Bosserman; Zoom host – Bill H.

9:45 – 11:15 monthly meeting for business: Stephen Snyder, clerk; Tom Ward, recording clerk; Zoom host – Sandy O.

11:15 – 12:15 meeting for worship (semi-programmed): Susan Hoch – speaker; care of meeting, Mary Bosserman; Zoom host – Sandy O.

Email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to receive the link to worship and monthly meeting for business this Sunday.

HOLD IN THE LIGHT

Those who are suffering from fear, injustice, conflict, discrimination, colonialism, displacement, loss, and the climate crisis, including fire and flood, and all those who are aiding victims and the dispossessed.

Those in positions of power.

TODAY: Among other business, monthly meeting will be asked to approve:
~ a 2025-26 committee slate
~ a 2025-26 budget
~ the job description for the new Office Manager
~ endorsing the January 21, 2025 letter sent by Attorney General Ellison with co-signers Choi, Moriarity, Anderson, and Olson, to Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Natalie Hudson; and to communicate that endorsement via a transmittal letter.

Links to the above documents were sent out with the weekly bulletin. If you attend worship at Minneapolis Meeting and would like to receive the weekly bulletin, via email, email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org. Please take a look at these documents and proposals before Sunday morning so you may have a prepared understanding of what is to come before us.

NEWS FOR MINNEAPOLIS MEETING FRIENDS

In preparation for writing the State of Society report, Ministry and Counsel Committee invites all members and attenders to a worship sharing on Wed, March 19th, 7PM via Zoom, to consider: How have you experienced God [Spirit] at work in our Meeting community this past year? How does our community bear witness to Friends’ testimonies in the wider world? What concerns or hopes do you have for the future of our Meeting community? https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84938257185 (copy and paste in your browser); ID: 849 3825 7185. Please come!

Mid-Morning Program next Sunday at 10:15: Quaker Voluntary Service. Hear from Mary Ellen S. and Cynthia B, Local Support Committee co-clerks, about what’s happening with the program locally and nationally.

Northern Yearly Meeting Middle School Friends will retreat at Milwaukee Friends Meeting March 14-16! Come explore Milwaukee and delve into Quaker testimonies together. How does our faith translate to action? How do we live our principles? These are the questions we will ponder while also having an absolutely great time exploring the meetinghouse and surrounding areas, playing games, and seeking deeper relationships with one another! Sign-up through google at this link or email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to be connected to the coordinator for more information!

Northern Yearly Meeting’s Interim Session will be NEXT WEEKEND, March 14-15, hosted by Madison Meeting. Friends participating in-person and online are asked to register: https://forms.gle/UBUYHyM9nt9VoV1P8. Agendas and reports: https://sessions.northernyearlymeeting.org/; email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org for the password. About thirty monthly meetings and worship groups from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, and North Dakota, including Minneapolis Monthly Meeting, are members of NYM. Minneapolis Meeting is usually under-represented. Please consider registering and attending.

Quaker Voluntary Service invites you to a SQUARE DANCE – Sat, March 22, 7-9PM at New City Center, 3104 – 16th Ave So. Invite your family and friends! Kids are welcome! Live music and caller. Doors open at 6:45, music starts at 7PM, ends at 9 PM. Admission is free – donations accepted to support the musicians and the local QVS program.

Monthly Meeting in February approved co-sponsoring a MN visit by Sarah Augustine, leader of the international movement for Indigenous justice, and Director and co-founder of the Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery Coalition. Sarah Augustine will be offering “Embodying Solidarity with Indigenous People By Becoming Kin – A Conversation with Sarah Augustine” at United Theological Seminary, Friday night, April 4th. Doors open at 6:15, the program runs from 7-8PM. MFM joins with the MN Repair Communities (white allies to Makoce Ikikcupi,) the local Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery, and a variety of local churches in sponsoring this visit. Save the date – Minneapolis Meeting Friends are encouraged to attend.

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 Lolly L. 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.

Being a Zoom Host is a great way to support the Meeting’s worship. Interested in being trained or just finding out more? Contact Marilyn J.

Follow-up to last Sunday’s mid-morning program – Friends Committee on National Legislation:
~ FCNL continues to appeal to members of Congress on three issues: restoring funding for UNRWA to aid Palestinians; restoring funding to USAID international relief; and maintaining measures in the Inflation Reduction Act that support clean fuels. FCNL’s Twin Cities Advocacy team lobbies Congressional Representatives and Senators. To join, go to https://www.fcnl.org/act/join-advocacy-team. Or talk to Jim H. or Doug H.
~ Some Friends called and wrote to MN Senators to advocate for the UNRWA Funding Emergency Restoration Act, asking the US to renew donations providing humanitarian aid to Palestinian refugees throughout the Middle East. Both Senators Smith and Klobuchar agreed to cosponsor the bill. Your voice was one of many that may have made a difference. Consider contacting them with thanks.
~ FCNL has Witness Wednesdays, a time for silent reflection, Weds, in March, 4-5PM. For more and to register, see https://www.fcnl.org/events
~ FCNL is offering an Intro to Advocacy webinar on March 19, 7-8PM(CT). More at https://www.fcnl.org/events/march-intro-advocacy-fcnl-0

CONGRATULATIONS and break a leg to Peter B, Jeremiah (his son,) and Amaya, and Camila (Peter’s grandchildren) who are all performing in Lake Harriet United Methodist’s Mary Poppins. More and showtimes at https://lakeharrietumc.org/lake-harriet-players/

The Care and Counsel Committee facilitates pastoral care for Minneapolis Meeting members and attenders, understanding the Quaker tradition that Friends minister to each other. If you are dealing with illness, grief, a major transition, or a stressful personal problem, we would like to be there for you. Contact committee co-clerks, John S, or Ellen S.
If a confidential discussion would support you as you make a decision, we will set up a clearness committee with you. Email John S. to explore that opportunity.
Other committee members are Mary G, and Jimbo L.

Contributions update: Thank you, Friends, for your generous financial support! As of Jan. 31, contributions of $7,892 were needed in February and in March to meet the curtailed budget ($132,335). Contributions of $16,885 were needed in Feb and in March to meet the aspirational budget ($150,320). Checks/cash received in Feb total $8982.89. If you would like to set up automatic contributions to the Meeting, contact Mike F. or Carolyn V, co-clerks, Stewardship and Finance Committee.

SMALL GROUP OPPORTUNITIES AT MINNEAPOLIS MEETING

Come to thirty minutes of Lectio Divina, Divine Reading, followed by worship sharing on ZOOM, Tuesdays at noon. Hold a very brief reading from the Bible, Quaker, or other spiritual text to see how it might speak to us today: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82172920370?pwd=4v3zY9LtA79jzf5tGg24BDXb28Clkd.1 (copy and paste into your browser); ID: 821 7292 0370; passcode: 661188

The Deep Inner Work of Racial Justice group meets every second Tues night, 7-8:30 and is exploring and practicing the inner and outer work of direct action using Resmaa Menakem’s book The Quaking of America: An Embodied Guide to Navigating our Nation’s Upheaval and Racial Reckoning. There is a core group; visitors / newcomers are warmly welcome. Contact Nettie S. for more and for the link.

Small group line-up: Lectio Divina – every Tuesday noon; Writing Group – first Monday night; Deep Inner Work of Racial Justice Group – second Tuesday night; LGBTQIA+ Support Group – third Wednesday night; Reading Group – fourth Tuesday night; Conflict Soiree – last Tuesday afternoon.

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WIDER WORLD OF FRIENDS

Friends Peace Teams will offer The Indian Boarding Schools and Multigenerational Trauma Mar 12, 7-8:30PM (CT) via Zoom. Jerilyn DeCoteau’s (Turtle Mountain Chippewa) slide presentation on the federal government’s policy of family separation and forced assimilation of Native children has ongoing impacts experienced by Native American families today. Jerilyn is co-director of Toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples, a program of Friends Peace Teams. She is past president of the board of directors of the Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition and currently serves on the supreme courts of the Kiowa Nation of OK and the San Ildefonso Pueblo. More and register at https://friendspeaceteams.org/ibsmt-spring-2025/

Quaker Call to worship and action: March 30, 6-7:30PM. Grounded spiritual discernment brings strength to our actions. Come learn from and support one another. To receive the link, register at https://email.cloud.secureclick.net/c/15604?id=54966.355.1.a9dc6e3ee51d635514a6844e011473cc.

The American Friends Service Committee has a local Healing Justice Program which nurtures youth skill-building, awareness, and leadership. Last year, the program had a very positive impact at North High School. Read of the recent Winter Intensive, Dream Chasers 2.0, that was offered: https://afsc.org/newsroom/winter-intensive-creates-space-youth-pursue-their-dreams

OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WIDER COMMUNITY

Taking Heart Iftar Meals build bridges of relationship across divides of faith. Observe an evening prayer, learn about the Muslim faith, and break fast with your Muslim neighbors over a delicious meal. Many different locations; opportunities have been added: https://mnchurches.org/what-we-do/taking-heart

Sign up for the Rise and Repair Rally Day March 12th! Rise and Repair, a diverse alliance of people and organizations advancing Indigneous rights and climate justice in MN, will train you on how to encourage legislators to protect wild rice and clean water, respect Indigenous sovereignty, and pass the Rise and Repair’s platform (https://riseandrepair.org/platform) including three bills which will protect watersheds that flow north, south, and east from northern MN against disreputable mining interests. Can’t make it to the Capitol? More info and links to write to legislators can be found on the platform page (https://riseandrepair.org/platform)

Healing MN Stories Tour dates have been announced: May 3 (10-2), Jun 1 (1-5), Oct 18 (10-2). These tours are an effort to create understanding between Native and non-Native people. Native people have suffered deep trauma – losing their land, language, and culture; trauma perpetrated with the full participation of Christian churches. Learn the less-told history of MN and come to better understand the need for healing. More and register at https://mnchurches.org/what-we-do/healing-minnesota-stories. Jim Bear Jacobs, who helped create the tour, has written about his recent experience with Landback. Read it at: https://www.mnchurches.org/blog/2025/03/5/landback-survival-healing-justice

OFFICE HOURS

The Meeting Coordinator will be in the office Tues, Thurs, and Fri afternoons. 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).

The Children and Families Coordinator can be reached: Mon and Wed, 2:30-5PM; Thurs, 3:30-5PM; Sun, 9AM-2PM at the meetinghouse.