Gifts of the Earth

Colin Hall and Emily Janes write about an All-age Meeting for Learning at Milton Keynes

The charismatic teacher stands on the hillside near the sea. An immense crowd at his feet hears him say that heaven is not in the sky or the afterlife – but here on earth. Afterwards, practical matters. People are hungry – for food as well as spiritual nourishment.

But what was there to eat? A boy, Joshua, tries with much difficulty to make his way to the front to offer all that he brought to keep himself going: some bread and fish. Suddenly, he comes to the notice of the Teacher: the gift is shared between all. That is the miracle, the discipline of heaven on earth: of sharing whatever we have, in common, in community.

Told simply

The story had been told simply, the narrator utterly concentrated; he had moved small simple wooden figures to enact events in their essence. His questions now probe the meaning and our understandings. What moment in the story had moved us most? To respond, you might revisualise and relive it, even with a lump in the throat. What element could be removed, maybe to make the story even more concentrated? ‘Take away the sea’, one young Friend on the floor at the front suggests. ‘But where would the fish have come from?’ replies another.

Luton and Leighton Area Meeting had set itself the challenge of having a ‘meeting for learning’ for all ages, to involve and listen to young Friends. Thus it was that some seventy of us, from age five to eighty-five, attended the first main session, the Godly Play story led by Chris Nickolay, briefly recounted above. The gathering was held in Milton Keynes Meeting House on 9 October. Whatever we did had to be accessible to all, stripped back to basics. It had to be simple yet profound. It had to be highly imaginative and engaging, too. It had to be rich in questions. It had to be true learning. And a crèche was needed, for the youngest or as an escape pod for others.

Gifts of the Earth: How should we produce and use food? What should we eat for the good of people and animals, plants and the whole world?

This was our full title. Friends, initially, were each given an item of cheap supermarket food with questions to get our minds in gear. They were simple questions but amazingly difficult to answer. Where was the food grown, caught or prepared? How was it grown? Who produced it? How much were they paid? The labels might give many details but they failed to help on fundamental issues, a Friend commented afterwards.

Back to fundamentals

A session by Chris Walker from Quaker Peace & Social Witness, carefully designed for ages seven upwards, took us back to fundamentals: ‘What is food for?’ ‘What does it do for us?’ Chris offered inspiration from Organiclea, a workers’ cooperative where London ends and Epping Forest begins. It grows food ethically, nurturing people too.

With his lead, we started to model our own heaven on earth with pieces of near-instant artwork arranged on a giant sheet of paper on the floor. What should it include? ‘Rain as well as sunshine,’ a Friend suggested. ‘No humans,’ were other words from a young Friend – a very challenging, even heart-stopping thought.

Vegans

A workshop explored ‘Why be a Vegan – or not?’ The number of vegans in the UK has tripled in the last ten years, and many young Friends are part of the movement. A vegan diet cuts our carbon footprint. A Quaker vegan activist argued her case with a passionate sense of witness, dwelling on the horrific cruelty inflicted on animals and the exploitation of them, together with the benefits to human health of following a non-meat-and-dairy diet. A young Friend spoke of the beauty and inspiration of the natural world and talked about the human overpopulation and relentless consumption that are destroying it. He viewed his move from vegetarianism to veganism as, even still, an inadequate compromise.

In another workshop, Chris Walker started with the concept of food sovereignty. He talked, movingly, about how communities around the world are taking action to protect fair food, sustainable growing, good jobs and their lands, seeds and water. In a third workshop, ‘Good cook – Fair cook’, the participants were of all ages from three upwards. We learned about Fairtrade and did some practical cooking activities, covering ourselves with chocolate and making fruit kebabs.

Did it all go as planned? Was it well-conceived? The final harvest feast under Chris Nickolay’s guidance reminded us of the miracle of the Feeding of the Five Thousand (or Great Picnic in its Quaker form by Alistair Fuller) – and that eating food together can and should be a sacred and perhaps sacramental act. Our tables brimmed with ethical food donated by Friends and produced by the cooking workshop. This was supplemented by generous offerings from Milton Keynes catering committee. Young Friends advanced on the feast as one body. Should we have been braver, leaner in our design? Should we have been more deliberately ritualistic in giving and sharing?

We had come together in community, to care and to share, in a spiritual as well as social way. Questions and issues were still being intensely explored by Friends. How and where should we shop ethically for food? The need for labelling with real integrity was raised. One Friend wrote back: ‘We discussed it all the way back to our homes. I am considering… to become more serious about vegetarianism and [my friend] too… I feel there is a deep truth in what they say about exploitation of animals, and I believe everyone should do more about it.’ 

We encouraged every participant to take away a follow-up card to fill in, starting with the words ‘Gifts of the Earth: I pledge to…’ Questions, yes, but actions, also.

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