Yearly Meeting 2024: Preparation - part six
The Friend reports from the first days of Yearly Meeting preparation sessions and special interest meetings
What might a Quaker testimony to kindness look like? This was the question considered during Exploring a Quaker testimony to kindness, which was led by Alistair Fuller and Ruth Audus, of Quaker Life.
Around forty Friends gathered to explore what kindness means, and what it looks like personally and in the life of Quaker communities.
Alistair shared: ‘One of the things that I’m always really conscious of when we use the word “testimony” is that we use it… often too easily to describe the principle or an idea or value, rather than something that is lived.’
In small groups Friends shared their personal stories of ‘when we have experienced kindness rather than when we’ve been conscious of its absence’.
A second activity for small groups urged Friends to consider: ‘What might I do in my life, in my Quaker community, and in the world, to make kindness more present?’
Towards the end of the meeting, Quaker faith & practice 21.43 was read in full, including the words: ‘…the vocation of ordinary men and women called to continual, unspectacular acts of loving kindness in the ordinary setting of every day… how simple it sounds; how difficult it often is; how possible it may become by the grace of God.’
‘We often use the word “testimony” too easily, to describe the principle or an idea or value, rather than something that is lived.’
The Northern Friends Peace Board (NFPB) hosted a special interest meeting entitled Peace in 2024: Challenges and leadings. The NFPB is made up of Quakers from the north of Britain working together ‘to advise and encourage Friends in the north… and through them their fellow citizens, in the active promotion of peace in all its height and breadth’.
Nearly twenty Friends joined Philip Austin, NFPB coordinator, and Till Geiger, a member of the working group, to learn more about the work the group has been doing.
Philip discussed the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza, and described how the NFPB has sought to support Friends.
Till introduced Friends to an upcoming publication, due out this summer, about ‘Quaker responses to war’. Articles will cover Ukraine, Gaza, responses to other wars and conflicts, ‘speaking to our condition’ as Friends, and what can be done moving forward.
Five anonymised but powerful quotations from the booklet were shared, then Friends split into small groups to discuss their responses.
The election result prompted Friends to speak about how to engage with newly-elected MPs on peace issues when the group came together again at the end of the meeting.
Philip highlighted resources that the Rethinking Security organisation will be launching in October. He added that we shouldn’t be trying to do everything, describing it as ‘a recipe for burnout’.
In Quaker housing justice, Grace Burgess, the new secretary and grants manager of the Quaker Housing Trust (QHT), joined with John Dash, who works for Quaker Life on property matters, to lead a special interest meeting of ten Friends looking at ‘helping Quakers make the best use of their properties’.
QHT ‘provides advice, support, loans and grants’ to charities providing safe, affordable homes for vulnerable people; supporting ten charities between 2022 and 2024.
Grace talked Friends through the types of grants and awards available.
A fairly new one is the Quaker Asset Grant of up to £6,000, for use in scoping potential projects – for example, by engaging an architect, or consulting specialists in retrofitting. Grants are available to Area Meetings or other Quaker charities that own property. North Somerset Area Meeting has recently been offered the first of these grants.
Bill Bewley, a member of QHT and the chair of a small housing association in Keswick, described his experiences of converting or repurposing properties or land into affordable housing.
John spoke about the approaches he has from Meetings with unused space or assets, and described a ‘clearly changing landscape of Quaker property’.
He also shared other examples of Quaker housing projects, including Tunbridge Wells’ decade-long project to convert the back half of the Meeting house into flats.
There were opportunities throughout for questions, and issues such as properties being tied by trust deed and the challenges of converting commercial properties to residential spaces were raised.
The committee members of Quaker Concern for Animals (QCA) shared their individual concerns, and what membership of the group means to them, in a series of videos presented at Quaker witness about animals on Saturday.
Sixteen Friends came together in an hour introduced by Angela Atkins, clerk to QCA.
Julie Hinman, in relation to the maturing of the vegan movement, said: ‘You can shout as loud as you can, but you will not get lasting results unless you maintain integrity.’
Michelle St John described ‘a profound spiritual awakening, to the immutable truth that all life is connected to a divine source’ and her belief that the ‘Quaker commitment to peace and nonviolence can only be complete if we extend our circle of compassion to include animals’.
Amy Ellis highlighted how her wish for ‘every animal to be able to live the life that its nature intended it to live’ influences her decisions around food.
Sasha Lawson-Frost talked about ‘feeling like the odd one out’ in Quaker spaces, where questions about how non-human animals are treated feel sidelined, but QCA ‘challenged me in productive and beautiful ways’.
Sylvia Izzard reflected on a lifetime of attachment to animals and nature, finding roots in her experience as a three-year-old evacuee in the second world war.
Ali Vallejo shared that she lost her faith in her teens, but came to Quakerism in her thirties, and felt that ‘my new purpose in life [was] to try and help those animals who are suffering’.
The second half of the meeting gave Friends the opportunity to reflect on what they’d heard, and ask questions – about QCA, how to get involved, and a range of concerns, from the population level to the individual, such as when someone is prevented from becoming vegan due to health issues.
Angela replied: ‘We do what we can, don’t we? We try to live the best lives that we can, within our circumstances.’
A select seven Friends gathered on Sunday for a special interest group led by Jude Acton, of Quaker Life, about Exploring all-age inclusive community.
The hour began with Friends sharing the last time they had last spoken with someone from their Meeting either thirty years older or younger than themselves.
Jude then introduced a range of resources that can help Meetings.
All are welcome: Growing our all-age community (https://bit.ly/4cTA0z1) offers nine new advices and queries, which grew out of work done by an Eva Koch scholar.
Spring into all-age worship (https://bit.ly/3RZHitj) provides a framework and plans for semi-programmed Meetings, creative activities, centring processes, and opportunities for ministry. Jude reflected that these activities ‘can be helpful even when there aren’t children in the Meeting’.
For Friends who work with children and young people, Jude highlighted the monthly Journeys in the Spirit resource (https://bit.ly/3RX8Xer).
And for those Meetings that don’t have children among those who attend, Engaging with schools: Outreach with children and young people (https://bit.ly/3RZX0V7) was recommended, so Friends can connect with the wider community.
Those interested in learning more can contact their local development worker, or email cypadmin@quaker.org.uk.
Friends who attended also shared examples from their own experience, such as: regular young adult groups, hosting a toddler group that’s open to the wider community, involving children in projects, and supporting them in their activities outside of Meeting.
Challenges were also raised, for example, ensuring activities are accessible to everyone, and teaming up with other Local Meetings to rotate Children’s Meetings between them.
Writing by: Rebecca Hardy, journalist at the Friend; Imi Hills, a freelancer from West Weald Meeting; Joseph Jones, editor of the Friend; and Elinor Smallman, production manager at the Friend.
Next week: 8-10 July preparation sessions and special interest group sessions.
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