'Communications and Outreach, will offer support for all aspects of bilingual communication.' Photo: by Sophie Adam from Pixabay
Full flow: Angela Ormrod reports from Meeting of Friends in Wales/Crynwyr Cymru
‘We need to learn from one another, especially from young people, but we also need to keep sight of our spiritual base.’
When fifty Friends from all four Area Meetings met, it was just as well that it was by Zoom: many areas were still recovering from the previous week’s storms.
As we began we remembered Friend Lynn Moseley, who died recently. We were also holding in the light those in Ukraine.
We were faced with a daunting agenda, but multiple reports, among them Meeting for Sufferings, Quaker Life, QCCIR, the Truth and Integrity in Public Affairs special interest group and others were accepted.
A group has been working on our new website, which is now almost ready. The preview looks attractive and simple to navigate. When this is complete a new group, Communications and Outreach, will offer support for all aspects of bilingual communication, including possibly a simpler name for Quakers in Wales: Crynwyr Cymru.
The Symud Ymlaen (Moving Forward) Group will soon be circulating a draft constitution for one charity to replace the current four Area Meeting charities, and will be offering a opportunities for questions. Much work has gone into this but there are still uncertainties: two of our Area Meetings span the border between Wales and England and include Local Meetings in England. The question as to whether Crynwyr Cymru should include Meetings in England has been much discussed; opinions differ. It is hoped that a solution can be found.
Our Children and Young People advocate reminded us that many Meetings in rural areas have few, if any, young people. There are more in the bigger conurbations. Young people are hungry for spirituality but put off by our structures. Geographical divisions are seen as random and irrelevant. Perhaps we need to look at doing things around ideas, activities and interests rather than geography. We agreed to consider a peer support network.
Oliver Robertson from Friends House spoke about connections with Wales, and how communications might be improved. How can we support new ways of being Quaker without losing structure? How can we support Friends in their leadings? How can Friends be connected nationally if they are not interested in governance? We need models of engagement where involvement can be time limited, and where specific expertise is put to use. Perhaps Faith in Action coordinators? It will be important to maintain a balance between local and UK-wide action. Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) needs to be informed about what Quakers are doing. In all this we need to learn from one another, especially from young people, but we also need to keep sight of our spiritual base. There was much to think about here.
The final agenda item – a paper by Bryn Jones on the legacy of the colonisation of Wales – had to be held over until June. I’m sure I was not alone in feeling that we had tried to cram in too much. There is a danger of drowning in business and activity with no space for discernment. Do Friends in other parts of BYM feel the same?
