Friends gathered in a sing song Photo: Fran Lane
Snapshots from YMG - Part 2
From stewardship to the Quaker species
Indefinite detention The injustice of indefinite detention was highlighted in a workshop at Yearly Meeting Gathering hosted by the Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network.
The disorientation and anxiety experienced by an asylum seeker held in indefinite detention were brought to life by the story of a man who had fled a ‘low level civil war in Guinea-Bissau’ and, having risked his life travelling in a small boat to Europe, arrived in Britain only to be immediately arrested. He then spent three years in detention centres during which there were six attempts to deport him.
It was the story of a frightened man who had got ‘lost in the system’. Isolated, alone, vulnerable, friendless and unable to speak any English, he represented a case study of the around two and a half thousand people who, at any one time, are in indefinite detention in Britain.
The plight of asylum seekers in indefinite detention were discussed and the assistance given by groups, such as Kent Refugee Help, explained.
Bamford Community
Community living is a popular possiblity among British Quakers, if the reaction to a session on the Bamford Community is anything to go by. Around eighty Friends squeezed into a room to hear how the Community is being relaunched with a renewed focus on Quaker worship and spirituality.
The former Quaker community at Bamford, near Sheffield, was laid down two years ago, after members were unable to agree on a common vision. Meetings in the autumn generated renewed interest and the new community expects to have six members within weeks. They are offering a programme of retreats for the coming year, with the focus ranging from silence and gardening work to sustainability and politics.
A flood of questions greeted the initial explanation. Is the community open to couples and familes? (Yes) Is it accessible to wheelchair users? (Mostly) Are all residents expected to be committed to Quaker worship? (Very much so). The community is a housing co-operative with an egalitarian structure. Decisions are made by the Quaker Business Method.
Property, sustainability and stewardship
We considered how we can sustain our property – Meeting houses, burial grounds and residential property. Stewardship Committee asked us what issues face us and what central help they might provide.
We heard from Six Weeks Meeting (John Dash), Woodbrooke Quaker Study Centre (Kathleen Russell), Advisory Committee on Property (Alan Wright), Stewardship Committee (Peter Ullathorne) and Quaker Housing Trust (Paula Harvey) of the work they are doing and how they might be of use to local committees.
We heard of exciting new Meeting house developments, how some Meetings are dealing with over-capacity and derelict but valued properties, of very difficult heritage problems and the difficulties of ‘species’ property. As the contributions unfolded we became aware of the widely different properties and situations which challenge each Area Meeting. Many topics and issues were raised in ministry. Two stood out in my mind.
As I listened to the ministry I sensed a theme visited over and over again from different points of view and in different circumstances. Communication and cooperation are essential to the effective running and maintenance of property and to the success of new initiatives. As always, personal working relationships are critical and sabotage a project if they go wrong. We were also enjoined to patience and dedication: property takes time. It worked well when the Meeting, local planners, users of the property, accountants, and other professionals were consulted and involved in the running, maintenance of property and in new initiatives.
The issue of commercial lettings and the management of property was raised. We still have a long way to go before all Friends appreciate that without income we are unable to be charitable. And that our property, particularly our Meeting houses, are in fact businesses as well as charities. We did not have time in the session to explore this in detail but it seemed to me that this issue is core to our stewardship of resources and needs wide consideration in the Society as a whole.
General advice and guidance are available online. While this is helpful, I sensed a need for a more hands-on sharing of experience and expertise. I suggested that a network of people willing to share their experience in short-term assignments and meetings might be very helpful in bridging the gap in the resources of a particular Meeting at a particular time. Perhaps the network being pioneered by Quaker Life might serve as a guide and model.
Lists of contacts and sources of help were circulated.
Roland Carn
Quaker harmonies
An elderly Friend, reflecting on the gathering in 2009 at York, mentioned that she missed the communal singing. She may have ‘touched a chord’.
One evening four Friends gathered, spontaneously, on the ground outside a tent and began singing. Ten minutes later, they had been joined by twenty more Friends and a healthy, happy, ‘sing song’ was in full voice.
The Quaker priesthood
A Friend was approached by a delegate attending another event at the University of Kent. She was fascinated by the Quakers wandering around the campus and intrigued by their dress.
‘Can I ask you a question?’ she said to our Friend.
‘Of course’, he replied.
‘The ones with the blue scarves around their necks’, she said, referring to the method that had been chosen to differentiate staff who were on official duty at the gathering.
‘Yes,’ he replied.
‘Are they the Quaker priests?’
The Quaker species observed in Canterbury
This is the best time of year to observe the species known as Quakers or Friends. They flock together annually, some time between May and early August, often in London but also in other pre-determined locations.
This year around 1,500 assembled in Canterbury, to be joined by a number of non-native species, mainly from Europe but some from as far afield as South Africa and New Zealand.
As usual, the Quakers clustered in groups of varying sizes, continually combining and recombining. Once or twice a day they all gathered together, remaining largely quiet as is their habit, but something was going on…
Regrettably both the greater- and lesser-bearded Quaker are still in decline, in fact we fear this trend may be irreversible. Lacking this distinctive marker, how might the males of the species be recognised? Look to the feet for that tell-tale combination of well-worn sandals and socks. The females seem at first to be harder to spot, but one indicator is the timeless skirt or baggy trousers, often in an ethnic style (though the term ‘ethnic’ might be overstating it). The ubiquitous rucksack, with its smaller version – the bumbag, is still very much in evidence, borne by Quakers of all ages, not just the young.
It is always very encouraging to see the Quaker young, as they flock together according to age, engaged in their own energetic activities. The continuation of this unique species seems to be assured, and Quakers may even be preparing to move beyond their usual boundaries and habitats.
Melanie Jameson
Canterbury 2011 Photo Montage
Trish Carn has been busy gathering together photos from Yearly Meeting Gathering. To see the photo montage in all its glory, please download the pdf of this weeks issue.
