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SPECIAL EDITION

BREAKING NEWS...
Lucretia urges all Friends to scroll to the end...
Registration is Open!

PQM Presents: Recording Clerk Workshop with Jim Herr
Saturday, April 17, 2021
Zoom  - 10 AM - 12 PM


Pre- Registration is required. 
CLICK here!


Open to f/Friends across the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and all levels of experience. Visit the event page for fabulous resources and full details.
Are you intimidated by what seems to be a daunting task? Do you want a re-fresher?

Jim Herr brings his joy of recording and years of spiritual and practical experience to this session on an essential practice of our faith. Jim serves as recording clerk for PYM, is a member of Lancaster Monthly Meeting, clerk of Caln Quarterly Meeting and recently retired administrator of the School of the Spirit Ministry
  
The Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting (PQM) is sponsoring this “PQM Presents” workshop with the goal of supporting the work of Quaker meetings by sharing best practices, lifting up ministries and nurturing connections across the quarter. 
 
REGISTER NOW!  April 25th, 2021
Change is in the Air!
PQM Spring 2021 Session

Sunday, April 25, 2021 10:30 AM - 4 PM 

Registration is required. CLICK here.

This spring session we’ll delight in green shoots and new roots, thanks to our autumn & winter work together.  We've a DYNAMIC agenda - so visit the PQM April 25, 2021 Event Page for full program description, agenda & advance documents.
Our host West Philadelphia Friends Meeting invites us all to join them for:
10:30  Morning worship & fellowship

Reconvene for PQM Spring session
1 - 2 PM   Host Program 
2 - 4 PM   Spirit filled Meeting for Business, exciting agenda with Quarter Clerk, Kathleen Karhnak-Glasby.
Come learn about West Philadelphia Friends Meeting - a preparative meeting under the care of Green Street Monthly Meeting since 2015. This small but vital community of Friends from across the globe are passionate about worship, nature and nurturing each other and range of individual ministries.
News of the Quarter
The Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting encourages meetings in the quarter to do the annual spiritual assessment, and try to submit their report to PQM by April 25th. PQM clerks will review and send all reports to the PYM Quaker Life Council by May 1st, 2021.
Lifting Up Great Ideas
The Addressing Racism Committee at Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting identified an opportunity: Recognizing that some of their members and attenders could afford to save their $1,400 COVID stimulus checks rather than use for immediate needs, they came up with a plan to redirect these resources towards justice work.

All extra stimulus funds from CHFM folks will be directed to Ujima Friends Peace Center “which personifies Quaker faith and witness in North Philadelphia” to further their work with their community “to reduce violence and provide a safe haven with educational, cultural and recreational opportunities for adults and young people.

Now that's an elegant solution worth emulating!
Click on the image aboveWhat is Ujima? watch this recent November 8, 2020 video to hear Ujima members share what the Ujima Friends Peace Center means to them.
News Beyond The Quarter
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting 
PYM SPRING CONTINUING SESSIONS
Saturday Business Meeting, March 27, 9 AM - 4 PM 

Reporting from the field....Yep, today was business at Philadelphia Yearly Meeting continuing sessions. 
Over a hundred Friends (~121) attended to the three concerns on the agenda Membership, Climate Change and Anti-Racism.
The morning took up the membership and belonging concern raised by Young Adult Friends see links below. The clerk of the sprint acknowledged how personal membership experiences are and urged kind words in the discussion on 'welcoming versus belonging' in meetings. A presenter felt that older Friends in monthly meetings (the majority) don't see re-evaluating membership practices as a priority. Old Quakers aren't eager to dig up settled roots.* I am looking forward to more discussions - realizing it's taken years for other regions to process this concern.

We all recognize that Quakerism needs young people to have a future. What do seekers need to stay and become part of our Society? The session broke into small groups to listen to each others' truths on what they felt was important about welcoming and belonging in a monthly, quarterly and yearly meetings. Conversations continued over lunch into the afternoon session until PYM co-clerks, Jean-Marie Prestwidge Barch and Frank Barch gently redirected our attention to the next item.

FYI: Membership links - PYM’s July 2020 panel discussion video and July 19, 2020 plenary session on membership and belonging, January 26, 2020 Threshing Session on Membership Report, and the 2019 Young Adult Friends Epistle on Membership. * One such root in Faith & Practice: "the monthly meeting is the final authority in all matters concerning membership, and all membership occurs in the monthly meeting." 

Next up: Climate Change. The lunch stupor (or perhaps collective overwhelm at the enormity of the problem) started to evaporate after reports that PYM has received minutes urging corporate action since ~1977. Even without Greta Thunberg reminding us that we are facing an existential threat, Friends agreed that after 50 years it was time to take concrete action. That dreaded devil in the details tried to derail progress, but ultimately Friends approved the co-clerks to establish a sprint (under the Quaker Life Council) to prepare an actionable plan for consideration at 2021 annual sessions. Throughout the discussion, the expertise and leadership of Eco-Justice Collaborative of PYM was lifted up as instrumental in the process thus far and going forward.
FYI: Climate Change- Eco-Justice Collaborative of PYM has a mind-blowing amount of resources. Sign up for the Eco-Justice Collaborative News via  rdarlington49@gmail.com. Visit NASA for evidence that climate change is real.
The third concern, Anti-Racism came up at the end of continuing sessions. Unfortunately, Friends appeared tired and time was running out. Hopefully this item will be scheduled earlier next time.

Friends from two thread gatherings, the Anti-Racism Collaborative and the Diversity Equity and Inclusion Sprint reported on actions, lessons and challenges. They described interviews to find out how monthly meetings are taking up the issue. One spoke of the complex set of skills (such as deep listening) needed for an actively anti-racist Society of Friends. Another shared about receiving feedback, critiques, and stopping the process to consider how to best move forward.

Initially I heard that pause as a setback. Another delay. 

But after rest and reflection on the day, asking questions and reading the DEI sprint report my understanding has changed. I am less cynical and more hopeful.

I now see 'taking a pause' as part of an authentic process, showing willingness to listen and learn. I sense that  -  just as many of us are experiencing in our monthly meetings and local communities - there is a sincere desire and commitment in the many Friends who are acting together in the yearly meeting circles to keep showing up, despite the pauses and resets. And that it is slow going at times and there is deep distrust.

The persistence of racism, inequity, deep trauma and white privilege cannot be underestimated. So too must we accept that persistence is required from us.
That is our job.
During the last break out group we were given this query to discuss:
"What is the impact on my life of having an active anti-racism, pro-equity and inclusion witness in the Yearly Meeting?

Wow. Wasn't sure how to take that at first. Mmmh. Well, as an aspiration- it brings me great joy.  But in reality, I have not experienced that in YM. I've struggled a lot with disappointment over the divisiveness in yearly meeting. I mourn the loss of shared space to connect with many Friends of many backgrounds.

My group nodded and one person said she also felt hope that the yearly meeting could change - would change, because we were all changed this past year. And I agree, it is more possible now. We all shared the summer of 2020 during a pandemic when people across race, age, background, all over the world, stood up together for racial justice. And one could also say, the issues of white supremacy, anti-racism, black lives matter continued in all that followed -  the national elections, the turnout in Georgia and the January 6th insurrection. And while none of this alters the reality of racial violence, injustice or the system, it has shifted social expectations of what is right. And of what is seen and acknowledged by white folks. And our conversations. And yes, in our actions.

We rejoined to share our insights and closed after a summary by PYM General Secretary, Christie Duncan-Tessmer. 
It was not an easy note to end on, but it was real.  Friends seemed to appreciate the work we'd done together.
The Sessions went slightly over time and Minutes of March 27, 2021  are posted on the PYM website.
- L. Lanza 
Disclaimer: My statements do not reflect the position of PQM and all errors are my own. 
P.S. Speaking of the Minutes, the Recording Clerk was Jim Herr and he did a masterful job. Maybe some of that will rub off at the April 17, 2021 Recording Clerk Workshop with Jim Herr? Register Now! 
The Philadelphia Quarter Matters
'Quarterly Meetings are vital to Quaker life. They strengthen meetings by joining Friends together in quarterly meetings “to support one another through worship and fellowship, and to consider matters of regional or common concern”. 
Source: Faith and Practice, III Faith Reflected in Our Organization, B. Quarterly Meetings.

PQM includes all F/friends within these Eight (8) Quaker meetings within Philadelphia:

Central Phila. MM
Chestnut Hill Friends MM
Frankford MM
Germantown MM
Green Street MM
MM of Friends of Phila. (Arch Street)
Unity MM
West Philadelphia Friends Meeting (a preparative meeting)

Affiliates:
Riverfront Friends
Historic Fair Hill

All are Welcome and Encouraged to
Attend a Quarterly Meeting!
 We’ll share worship and a program designed by the host and a Spirit-led Meeting for Business. Come for all or part of the day.

Spring / April 25, 2021
Hosted by West Philadelphia Friends Meeting

Summer / July 18, 2021
Hosted by Green Street Friends Meeting

Autumn / October 24, 2021
Hosted by Germantown Monthly Meeting

Winter / January 23, 2022
Hosted by Monthly Meeting of Friends of Philadelphia  - aka Arch Street Friends

For Session Details, Minutes, and more - Visit PhiladelphiaQuarter.org.
Let Your Light Shine !
PQM welcomes all Quaker meetings & affiliates to send news and announcements of interest / open to Friends in the Philadelphia Quarter.

L. Lanza
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Philadelphia Quarterly Meeting Administrative Coordinator

Mailing address: 1515 Cherry St. Philadelphia PA, 19102
Philadelphia PA, 19102 


Office hours Mon - Wed 9-12, offsite since pandemic.
Offsite Phone: 215.990-3196
Email: pqmcoordinator@gmail.com
Website: PhiladelphiaQuarter.org
Facebook: PhiladelphiaQuarterlyMeeting
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