Issue 11-10-2019
Featured story
‘Stories of wounded healers go back as far as we know. Mythology and history go hand in hand here.’
I was once in a Meeting for Worship when a Friend stood to ask for our mindfulness in her struggles at work. She was coping with some difficult mental patients. In response, another Friend mentioned the ‘wounded healer’ concept.
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‘Like all great deceptions it is beguilingly simple.’
In July 1971, during a secret visit to China, Henry Kissinger asked the then-premier Zhou Enlai what he thought about the influence of the French revolution. Zhou is reputed to have said that it was ‘too early to tell’. Whether Zhou was misquoted or not (and there is debate about this)...
‘Envisioning a world that is open to all: let us see what love can do.’
To all Friends, from a gathering of more than sixty people, including Quakers and non-Quakers, people who have experienced the weight of the immigration system, artists, poets, musicians and singers.
‘We’ve judged our year to be successful and learned a lot. Several events have sold out.’
Friends returned to the Blue Idol, our seventeenth-century Meeting house, in the summer of 2015, following two years of major restoration work. The Blue Idol was established by William Penn in West Sussex. The work was expensive and we had much discussion about whether the money should be put to better...
‘We’ve made a commitment to keeping Local Meetings connected to decisions made at a national level.’
This week is the twelfth annual Good Money Week, when we’re all encouraged to consider how our money can do more good. The week is certainly good for the Friend because in the last couple of issues we’ve had some quality advertisements from organisations that offer individual and...
Friends share stories for Quaker Week
Friends came together to mark 2019’s Quaker Week with outreach and sharing stories. Swarthmoor was just one of numerous Meetings which celebrated the week from 28 September to 6 October and held a stall in Ulverston marketplace highlighting Quaker testimonies, particularly peace, and giving away white poppies. Martin Riley, from Swarthmoor Meeting,...
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Meeting for Sufferings: Peace and witness, then and now
The meeting room was full for October’s Meeting for Sufferings at Woodbrooke. But not quite as packed as it was for Mohandas Gandhi’s visit in 1931, said Woodbrooke director Sandra Berry as she welcomed Friends to the study centre. The previous week had seen the 150th anniversary of Gandhiâ€...
Meeting for Sufferings: Sustainability matters
Meeting for Sufferings (MfS) is entrusted with oversight of Friends’ commitment to becoming a sustainable community. On Saturday morning representatives heard a report presented by Oliver Robertson, head of witness and worship for Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM), on how recommendations from MfS are being implemented.
Meeting for Sufferings: Meeting-centered support
Friends heard from Caroline Nursey, clerk of Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) trustees, on simplifying structures and procedures. She said she knew that some Friends were worried about power being concentrated in too few hands, but there were 500 people overseeing the national centrally-managed work. Getting the number right was crucial, she...
Talks over Manchester Meeting booking stall
Central Manchester Meeting and Young Friends in Manchester have spoken out about the frustration they feel at the slow pace of talks regarding a concern about a booking at Mount Street Meeting House.
Penzance Friends behind Citizen’s Panel
A Cornwall Quaker is setting up a citizens’ panel in Penzance to debate the problem of housing and ‘put ordinary people in the driving seat’.
Friends House launches meat-free restaurant
The new meat-free restaurant of Friends House opened to staff this week following its pledge to reduce its impact on the environment.
Anti-apartheid activist to give Salter Lecture
South African activist Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge will give the Salter Lecture 2020 at Yearly Meeting Gathering in Bath. The announcement was made on World Quaker Day by the Quaker Socialist Society (QSS), which arranges the lecture.
Maldon Meeting in Heritage Open Day
Maldon Friends celebrated Heritage Open Days with an exhibition featuring Quakers’ relief efforts at the Peterloo massacre.
Eye - 11 October 2019
Welcoming smiles Quakers in Exeter shared cake, smiles and friendly messages with new students at the University of Exeter’s Freshers’ Fair last month (see above). Laura Conyngham, Eva Penhallurick and Kate Cramer told Eye that freshers asked ‘is this the Baking Society?!’ and were astonished to receive free homemade...
Letters - 11 October 2019
The amazing young I would like to give Barbara Forbes (20 September) reassurance that Friends remember the importance of Quaker Concern for the Abolition of Torture. We each have our own personal concern to which we feel we can contribute. We have different abilities and available time (that reduces as we...