Sunday, February 8, 2026

TODAY’S WORSHIP AND PROGRAM

For the Zoom link to Sunday programming, please email office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org.

9:00 AM – 9:40 AM Unprogrammed Meeting for Worship
Zoom host: Lavender J

9:45 AM – 11:15 AM Monthly Meeting for Business
Clerk: Stephen Snyder; Recording Clerk: Jeannette Raymond
Zoom host: Sandy O

11:15 AM – noon Semi-programmed Meeting for Worship
Speaker: Allen Gibbs, Care of meeting: Lolly Lijewski
Zoom host: Sandy O

Please silence cell phones before entering the sanctuary.
 
Reminder on discernment of messages shared from the silence: Friends in the Meetinghouse and on Zoom are asked to enter worship quietly and settle into the silence. Meeting begins when one or two Friends have assembled. As you enter and join in worship, take time to “center down” and enter fully into the spirit of worship. If you feel the leading to speak, take time to test your leading. Ask yourself, “Is this message from the spirit or is it from somewhere else? If it is from God or spirit, is it meant only for me or for the entire Meeting? Even if meant for the entire Meeting, is now the right time?”

MORE WORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES AT MFM

Sharing the Spirit, held every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning, is a brief centering time that is open to everyone. We gather at approximately 8:57 AM for ten-minute worship (online, cameras off) beginning at 9:02 AM. Click here for zoom link; use ID 859 3925 1575, passcode 251345; or paste the following into your browser: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85939251575?pwd=1aHrNcUclfw3o99kyDnc9nAwzwkYGU.1

HOLD IN THE LIGHT

Happy birthday to Heidi F (February 2), Nettie S (February 4), and Sigurd H (February 24)! If you would like to have your birthday acknowledged by meeting Friends, please send the month and date of your birth (no year necessary) to Judith J.

Hold in the light people who are grieving or suffering from injustice, racism, colonialism, and displacement. Hold in the light people in positions of power. Is there a person or community that you would you like to ask the meeting to hold in the light? Email their name to office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org to include in the bulletin.

MFM ANNOUNCEMENTS

TODAY! Welcoming and Outreach plans to revamp the outdated photo directory board, starting with new attenders, or anyone who has never had photo taken. Please meet Sue K in the east hall after meeting for worship this Sunday, and she’ll take your photo.

TODAY! Contribution letters for 2025 are available. Save the meeting postage and pick yours up from Carolyn V.

Thank you, Friends, for your generous financial support of the meeting. Contributions totaled just under $118,000 in the first three quarters of this fiscal year. We need an additional $20,000 in contributions to meet our budgeted obligations: about $6,700 a month. In January, contributions (sans electronic funds transfers and the website) totaled $203. If you would like to financially support Minneapolis Meeting, you may mail a check to the meetinghouse or place it in an offering box, or make a donation via the website (click here). If you would like to make automatic contributions, contact the clerk of the Stewardship and Finance Committee, Carolyn V.

Preliminary Committee Roster from Nominating Committee: After several weeks of hard work, many phone calls, and thoughtful conversations, the Nominating Committee presents a Preliminary Roster for the Meeting to consider and review. There are still a few areas that need attention, particularly Trustees, Children & Families, and Welcoming & Outreach. A limited number of hard copies will be available at the meetinghouse. Please access a digital copy if possible. Many thanks to Clifford G, Judith J, John K, Elizabeth S, Betsy S, Bill H, and with the participation of Stephen S.

Care and Counsel Committee facilitates pastoral care for Minneapolis Meeting members and attendees, 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 to explore that opportunity. Other committee members are Mary G, Jeff N, Mary B, and Jimbo L.

Curious about the membership process? Any attender is invited to talk about membership with a member of the Ministry and Counsel Committee or anyone who’s been around a while! It can be an informal one-on-one conversation or a more formal request for a clearness committee. Some indications that it might be time to explore membership in the Society of Friends at Minneapolis Meeting:
You have worshiped among Friends and have sufficient understanding of Quaker values and practice to know if they are compatible with your experience.
You feel led to the Meeting and inwardly encouraged to embrace and grow in Quaker faith and practice here.
You feel an increasing commitment to the spiritual vitality and depth of the Meeting and to nurturing the members and attenders here.
You increasingly feel the importance of weekly worship and connection with the life of the Meeting to your spiritual well-being.
You feel an increasing commitment to participate in the life of the Meeting through monthly meeting and committee participation, and to contribute to the Meeting’s financial well-being, as you are able.
You feel that the outward expression of membership would match your internal experience of commitment and belonging.

To sign up as a second hour worship greeter, see Mary S at the rise of meeting. This is a great way to get acquainted with others.

Being a Zoom Host or a substitute A/V Tech is a great way to support the Meeting’s worship. Interested in being trained for either of these positions, or just finding out more? Contact Marilyn J.

MFM EVENTS

In addition to the special events listed below, there are ongoing groups in the meeting. Pick up a flyer about these ongoing groups from the information table in the meetinghouse hallway, or email the office to request a copy.

February 8 (hybrid). Meeting for worship with attention to business is held every second Sunday. Participate at the meetinghouse or online next Sunday, February 8 from 9:45 AM – 11:15 AM.

February 15 (in person). Breakfast at the meetinghouse at 8:00 AM before early worship on Sunday, February 15! A simple breakfast — vegetarian and vegan — will be offered. This is an experiment to offer more fellowship for nine o’clockers! We can decide if we would like to continue and move to a more planned potluck format. For February 15, just come at 8:00! It would be helpful to let Carolyn know if you plan to come to make sure we have enough food.

February 15 (hybrid). Quaker Direct Action Update. Friends are busy building the new organization Quaker Direct Action, which works to foster peace and justice by using the principles and practices of nonviolent action to address societal problems and the root causes of injustice. Come hear all about it at the mid-morning program on Sunday, February 15 at 10:15 AM.

February 18 (in person). Our next LGBTQ+ Group gathering is Wednesday, February 18 at 7:00 PM at the Meetinghouse. We’re planning a Game Night Extravaganza (okay, maybe not extravagant… but definitely fun). There will be snacks, drinks, laughter, and excellent peopleship. Bring a favorite game if you’d like — or just bring yourself.

February 22 (hybrid). Friends are invited to a mid-morning program offered by Ministry and Counsel on Sunday, February 22 at 10:15 AM, focusing on the peace testimony. Members of Minneapolis Friends Meeting will share their familial and personal experiences with what the peace testimony means to them and how it has informed their lives.

WIDER COMMUNITY

In addition to the following events, there are many Quaker events held on a regular schedule in the wider community, and national organizations that offer online resources. You can pick up a copy of a flyer about some of these opportunities from the information table in the meetinghouse hallway, or email the office to request a copy. Upcoming dates for regularly scheduled groups include:
Deep Inner Work of Racial Justice (online), 2nd Tuesdays, 7:00 – 8:30 PM. Next: February 10
LGBTQIA+ Group (in person), 3rd Wednesdays, 7:00 – 9:00 PM. Next: February 18
Joyful Aging coffee hour (in person), 3rd Fridays, 10:00 AM – noon. Next: February 20
Peace & Social Concerns Committee (online), 4th Mondays, 7:00 – 8:30 PM. Next: February 23
Watson Reading Group (hybrid), 4th Tuesdays, 7:00 – 8:30 PM. Next: February 24
Writing Group (online), 1st Mondays, 7:00 – 9:00 PM. Next: March 2

February 7 and 21 (online). Toward Right Relationship with Native Peoples has been hosting a series of webinars with Nia To Go There on Saturday afternoons in January and February. She will guide participants through different cultural perspectives on a path toward decolonizing consciousness and our relationships. Upcoming dates/topics are Colonization, February 7, and Decolonization, February 21. Registration for each webinar is separate. You can join either or both. Click here to register on Friends Peace Team’s website.

February 8 (in person). Opposing Antisemitism in 2026. Dr. Ray Himmelman and Daniel Lentz of Jewish Voice for Peace will present a training on Sunday, February 8, 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM. Friends sometimes express confusion over the difference between anti-Zionism and antisemitism. This talk will explain competing definitions of antisemitism; how antisemitism manifests in the context of Zionism; and recognizing and opposing true antisemitic threats. The event will take place at Hamline United Methodist Church, 1514 Englewood Ave, St. Paul. Childcare and lunch provided. Click here to RSVP.

February 10 (in person). Meet for lunch at Mama Safia’s Kitchen. Please join friends from Twin Cities Friends Meeting and MFM to support our immigrant business community along Lake Street in Minneapolis. We’ll do this by meeting for lunch on Tuesday, February 3 at 1:00 PM at Mama Safia’s Kitchen (720 E Lake Street). It’s one-half block west of Chicago Avenue. The restaurant is owned by a Somali immigrant woman who does much of the cooking. Parking is somewhat limited in the area. Side street parking is the best option. Time and location for future weeks through February will be announced later. Questions? Contact Rob S of TCFM.

February 14 (in person). Game Night: Valentines Edition. Please bring board games, card games, dice games, games of love, games of skill, and/or games of chance. Any and all games and gamers are welcome! Expect light refreshments and friendly competition. In person only, at the Meeting House, on Saturday evening, February 14, 7:00 – 9:00 PM. Hosted by Mayim Rabim — Minneapolis Friends are cordially invited to join in the fun.

February 18 (online). This Black History Month, the Pendle Hill Reading Group is discussing Zenaida Peterson and Lauren Brownlee’s pamphlet “Patterns of Racial Wounding and Racial Justice in Quaker Communities.” Join for online worship sharing on Wednesday, February 18, 6:00 – 7:30 PM (CT). Registration required; click here to register on Pendle Hill’s website.

UPDATE re: March 27 – 28 (hybrid). Northern Yearly Meeting (NYM) Spring Interim Session will be fully virtual on Zoom. It was planned to take place at the Minneapolis Friends Meeting, but there will no longer be an in-person element. Questions? Contact NYM clerk Robin Greenler (clerk(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)northernyearlymeeting.org). Robin wrote, “When the in-person plans were initially made, there was no ICE action in Minneapolis. Responding to that assault, providing aid to those in need and supporting one another in their leadings has demanded a lot of Minneapolis Meeting’s time and resources. In addition, the national Indivisible group has called for a nationwide “No Kings” protest day for Saturday March 28, with their flagship event in Minneapolis. All of this makes it difficult for Minneapolis Meeting to host NYM that weekend. I also believe that many Friends in the Yearly Meeting may be led to be involved in their local No Kings events that day conflicting with attendance at Interim Session. We will send out more details about when exactly the Annual Session will meet online that weekend, but we will try to minimize conflict with the No Kings events, as possible.”

Strengthen your voice to our national legislators by focusing on the best use of our resources. The Friends Committee on National Legislation (FNCL) uses Quaker process to determine its goals for the next Congress. FCNL has asked its MFM representatives, Doug H and Jim H, to gather input from our Meeting. Jim and Doug will send out an online survey, and then hold a listening session, with the goal of reporting to the March business meeting. FCNL will use this information to define its priorities later this year.  

The local QVS program needs support. Can you provide a meal for the Fellows in February or beyond for their QVS days? Please sign up using the Mealtrain website (click here). Please text/call our local coordinator Ray H the day before or day of to coordinate the best time for drop-off. If you want to join the Fellows for the meal, ask Ray first. (Unless explicitly agreed upon, the Fellows are not expected to have company for the meals.) The next meal needed is Mondays, February 9, followed by Monday, March 9.

Minnesota Council of Churches and the Muslim American Society of Minnesota extend an invitation to come together as neighbors. You are welcome to join a Taking Heart Ramadan Iftar, an evening rooted in hospitality, shared food, and relationship-building across difference. When you attend an Iftar, you will observe evening prayer, learn about the Muslim faith, and break fast with Muslim neighbors over a shared meal. Iftars will take place across Minnesota from February 18 – March 19, with new locations added regularly. Space is limited. Click here for dates, locations, and registration on MCC’s website.

QVS’ Twin Cities Coordinator, Ray H, compiled a list of calls to action and ways you can support anti-ice efforts in the Twin Cities from near and far. Click here for the document.

QVS is hiring a Development and Outreach Manager. Click here for the job description on QVS’ website. Priority is given to applications received before February 23rd.

Carolina Friends School holds travel learning experiences for adults. Their upcoming programs include “The Coastal Journey: civil rights history and contemporary racial justice in Charleston in Savannah” (March 10 – 15) and “The Quaker Journey: the early history of Quakerism, retracing the steps of George Fox and Margaret Fell in northern England” (August 2 – 9). Click here for more information on CFS’ website.

OFFICE HOURS

The Office Manager, Ariel E, will be in the office on Sunday, February 8, 8:30 AM – noon; Wednesday, February 11, noon – 6:00 PM; and Friday, February 13, noon – 5:00 PM. Is there something you’d like included in upcoming bulletins? Weekly deadline for bulletin items is noon Thursdays. Please call the office (612-926-6159) or send your announcement by email (office(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)minneapolisfriends.org).

The Children and Families Coordinator, Cathy N, has a new schedule:
Wednesdays 2:00 – 5:00 PM available by phone, text or email, working from home.
Thursdays 2:00 – 5:00 PM available by phone, text, or email, working from home. 
Fridays 12:00 – 3:00 PM available by phone or in person at Minneapolis Friends Meetinghouse.
Sundays 9:30 AM – 1:00 PM available in person or by phone at Minneapolis Friends Meetinghouse.