Part of the history of Quakers is the development of Queries and Advices for exploring ideas together. These were recently shared by the Outreach Committee. What benefits, joys and supports do you receive from meeting? What personal efforts do you make to invite and welcome others to join in the Quaker experience? What subtle and non verbal signs do the meeting, members and attenders offer in this regard? Are the frequency of meetings and location of meetings adequate for our role in promoting Quakerism and its values? Have we followed up on supporting a rural meeting? Are we thinking ahead to our evaluation of the mid week experiment? Should a decision to move location be to prepare for growth or respond to growth? It is wise to separate the tasks of invitation and welcome. Inviting others is a sign of gratitude and welcoming is a way of ensuring the invitation is received as genuine and meaningful. When tasks are assigned to ensure an inviting and welcoming spirit is alive and well, it is imperative that these tasks be completed. Consider the message that is sent to visitors when they enter a room that is very crowded when they enter as it may suggest the meeting is content with its current membership?
Month: March 2016
Quakers: Process over Outcome
Click for a short video Why Quakers Value Process Over Outcome
Quaker Response to TRC Call to Action #48
Here is a Response from the Canadian Yearly Meeting to Call to Action #48. Click the link below to open the document to have full access to the resources that this letter links to. 2016 Friends Statement in response to Call to Action 48 Quaker Response on Call to Action #48 Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, Implementing the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples March 2016 48. We call upon the church parties to the Settlement Agreement, and all other faith groups and interfaith social justice groups in Canada who have not already done so, to formally adopt and comply with the principles, norms, and standards of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a framework for reconciliation. This would include, but not be limited to, the following commitments: i. Ensuring that their institutions, policies, programs and practices comply with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. ii. Respecting Indigenous peoples’ right to self-determination in spiritual matters, including the right to practise, develop, and teach their own spiritual and religious traditions, customs, and ceremonies, consistent with Article 12:1 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of […]
Building Bridges: The Declaration and the Church
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission has called all Canadian churches to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. But what does that mean? And how might it gift and challenge our relationships? Join us for 1 or 2 days of conversation as guest teachers Stan McKay and Jennifer Preston share what the Declaration is and why it is “good news.” March 18th 7 pm-9:30 pm March 19th 8:30 am-3:15 pm Circle of Life Thunderbird House 715 Main St, Winnipeg EVERYONE IS WELCOME! To register and reserve your spot go to tinyurl.com/bbridges2016