Yearly Meeting 2015

information from Yearly Meeting 1-4 May 2015 LINK

some specific links you might like to go to:


The link to the Minutes can be found here [PDF].

 

Epistle for Yearly Meeting 2015 [PDF]

Letter from Yearly Meeting to Evangelical Friends Mission in Nepal [Word document 60kb] link may be broken due to Quaker uk website remake

Minute 36: Living out our faith in the world – are we ready to meet the challenge? 2015

Yearly Meeting asked: “Can we transform the way the world is going and recognise that everyone and everything on the planet matters and can be thought of as a divine commonwealth, or kin-dom? Quakerism is all about putting our faith in a power which transforms us.”

 

Minute 36: Living out our faith in the world – are we ready to meet the challenge?

How are we led to live out our faith in a world where we see systemic injustice and increasing inequality?

We have been reminded that God’s work is where our deep gladness meets the deep suffering in the world, as in Psalm 85:
‘Mercy and truth are met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed each other,
truth shall spring out of the earth;
And righteousness shall look down from heaven.’

We are all activists and we are all worshippers. Our worship and action spring from the same spiritual source. The light not only illumines us but pushes us to seek change.

We recognise the problems in the world and the urgency of acting on them. Our current political and (especially) economic systems only recognise and encourage part of the human condition, the selfish, competitive, greedy part. So much of what is good and beautiful and true in the world is being trashed. The model of power as domination needs to be challenged and replaced with a model of power as service to the community; in doing this, we need to live our testimony and hold firm to its source in faith.

The damage of the present systems, like the benefits, are not shared equally. We need to recognise how many of us benefit through the possessions we hold and the houses we live in, and to consider when we are part of the problem. In living out our faith in the world, we may be called to give up our privileges, but if we do so our voice and our lives will be all the more authentic and powerful. We can be at our most powerful when we are vulnerable.

The damaged and damaging structures of the world are not the only influence on our lives: there is also the power of faith and the leadings of the Spirit, which if followed will lead us, will push us, towards a better world. That, then, may be the first action we need to take: to be more faithful.

What are the changes which are needed to the systemic injustice and inequality that we see in society? We need to go deeper to find the roots of our social ills, and how we might uproot the powers that maintain them. We should rethink what needs to grow in this world and what does not. Can we transform the way the world is going and recognise that everyone and everything on the planet matters and can be thought of as a divine commonwealth, or kin-dom? Quakerism is all about putting our faith in a power which transforms us.

Many of us have spoken of the anger we feel about the current injustices of the world, and sometimes our hearts are heavy with all the things we cannot do. Anger can be a spur to action, but we need Light and guidance to use it wisely and sparingly. We already have a way of finding this wisdom in our corporate discipline

and our testing in worship of leadings. Through these our righteous anger and passion can be transformed in order to tackle the root causes of injustice and inequality. Our action begins in worship, in seeking and reflecting before we act. Our practices of listening within and being open to what comes to us from without are rarer than we think, and are a precious gift that we should both use and share.

We are called to consider what we each can do and also make and build on connections in our communities and across the globe.
We are also called to be a community of Friends as a yearly meeting, pushed towards the important things we can only do together. We have a body of experience we can draw on and maintain. We are in this for the long haul. As a yearly meeting we are restless to take corporate action to change the unequal, unjust world in which we live.

We ask Friends and meetings to engage with the evil of social and economic injustice which creates a world in which the wrong things are valued. To do this requires owning and upholding the work that is already being done by Friends and in our name; helping to fund that work as generously as possible; and becoming involved in however small a way. For ourselves we need to find some action however simple to do now.

We ask Meeting for Sufferings to take the work on social and economic injustice forward, co-ordinating the work of local and area meetings who might wish to become more deeply involved, and encouraging the deep spiritual and intellectual searching that could underpin a ‘true social order’ for our age.

We ask Yearly Meeting Agenda Committee to align their work with that of Meeting for Sufferings and to keep this issue before the Yearly Meeting for further consideration over the next two years. Between Yearly Meetings we should all try to share our experience. We ask our Recording Clerk and staff to make our concern about social and economic inequality known as widely as possible and in particular to challenge the incoming UK government to adopt policies which decrease inequality and value equally the contribution which all can make to developing a more just and sustainable society.

We must remember that what makes the real difference is not adding further to the words in the world but being and living out the new social order, testing our leadings together and trusting to our Quaker processes, ‘opening ourselves to the Light to guide us in each small step.'

information from Quaker Peace and Social Witness

Take action on TTIP

Many Friends are concerned about the ongoing negotiations regarding the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a free trade deal between the EU and the US.
On 10 June the European Parliament will be considering a set of recommendations to the European Commission regarding TTIP, including on the controversial investor-state dispute settlement mechanism (ISDS). Both QPSW and QCEA are concerned about the implications of ISDS, which could give large corporations access to an exclusive form of justice, through which they could sue governments for billions of Euros for loss of profit due to implementation of legislation.

Despite a vigorous civil society campaign, and five European Parliament committees calling for ISDS to be excluded from TTIP, the resolution that the European Parliament will be voting on calls for a revised version of ISDS rather than its exclusion altogether. This is unlikely to solve the problems.
The Quaker Council for European Affairs (QCEA) are encouraging Friends to write to their Members of European Parliament (MEPs), to raise concerns about ISDS. They have provided background information for Friends wishing to write to MEPs. Find this here www.qcea.org/2015/05/noisds/ or email office@qcea.org. The Trade Justice Movement are also running a campaign focussing on ISDS and you can find out more and sign-up here.

You can also read more about TTIP and ISDS in this article by Scarborough Friend David Malone, which was published in a recent edition of our Earth and Economy newsletter.

Climate lobby

17 June, Central London
For those of you that wish to come to the Climate Lobby in London on 17 June 17, this is a reminder that there is still time to sign up! The Lobby is an opportunity to meet with your newly elected MPs to call on them to take action on climate change and to challenge vested interests. Let us know you plan to come, and to receive more detailed information by signing up online.

If you have signed up already then please let your MP know that you plan to be there, and ask that they meet with you on the day. To write to your MP you can use the ‘for the love of’ online tool. You may also want to add the following sentence into their template letter:

Quakers are calling for climate justice. We want justice for those who have been unequally impacted by climate change and a global climate commitment that stops this injustice continuing. We are working to build an energy and economic system which has equality, justice and sustainability at heart. 

For those planning to attend, QPSW has put together a pack containing a mini-briefing to give to your MP, plus some tips on lobbying, www.quaker.org.uk/day-climate-action.

We're hoping for a strong Quaker presence at the lobby, so please encourage others in your meeting to get involved. Remember there's lots you can do even if you can't come to the lobby.

A ground-breaking new film exposes the tide of militarisation

An increasing military presence is entering schools across Britain. Even as the government slashed education maintenance allowance (EMA), disabled students allowance (DSA) and mental health services for young people, £45 million of new military programmes have been introduced since 2011. Help us start a public conversation about militarism in our society.

Before the film goes live help us to record examples of militarisation in the world around us. Use hashtag #unseenmarch to record examples of militarisation. Any questions email ellisb@quaker.org.uk

Watch the film online at www.unseenmarch.org.uk Going live the week of 22 June
Share the film with friends, parents, teachers, school governors and young people.
Find out about actions you can take to challenge militarism at: www.unseenmarch.org.uk

If you are not able to watch the film online, we will have a limited number of DVD copies, available for meetings. Please email the Quaker Centre at quakercentre@quaker.org.uk or call 020 7663 1030 to request these.

Programme newsletters

Advocacy actions such as these, and other news, are included in our programme newsletters. Please do encourage Friends in your meeting to sign up if they are interested.
Earth and Economy (Economics, Sustainability and Peace Programme) www.quaker.org.uk/earth-economy-signup
Educate and Disarm (Peace and Disarmament Programme) – contact Sam Walton: samw@quaker.org.uk
EAPPI monthly E-update EAPPI update - sign up
Making Waves (Turning The Tide programme) – contact Steve Whiting: stevew@quaker.org.uk

 

Global Campaign on Military Spending - action by end April 19th!

For the Global Day of Action on Military Spending, QPSW has created an online ‘People’s Ballot’ LINK inviting people to choose how they would spend £38 billion which the UK currently spends on the military annually. Before Monday 20 April, Friends can add their vote online at http://demilitarize.org.uk/gdams-survey-2015/ (takes 1 minute). The final results will be published here.

Positive steps towards full inclusivity

Quaker Disability Equality Group asks local and area meetings to consider “how can we make the meeting a community in which each person is accepted and nurtured” (Advices & queries 18). Quaker Life is pleased to acknowledge the important work that the Quaker Disability Equality Group is doing to encourage that Quaker meetings and activities are fully accessible.

A LINK TO  THE DOCUMENT

Quaker Disability Equality Group (QDEG) is a listed informal group of British Yearly Meeting - A LINK TO WEBSITE

relating to political engagement

Climate Lobby
A QPSW day of action on climate change, including lobby of MPs
Wednesday 17 June 2015 12.00 - 17.30 Palace of Westminster

‘As members of this beautiful human family, we seek meaningful commitments from our leaders and ourselves, to address climate change for our shared future, the Earth and all species, and the generations to come.’

From Facing the Challenge of Climate Change, a shared statement by Quaker groups, January 2015, signed by Quakers in Britain.

A LINK TO MORE INFORMATION

Hustings
Friends may be interested to know that we are holding national hustings at Friends House in London on Tuesday 31 March (international affairs), Thursday 9 DOWNLOADS: Principles for a just housing policy 2015 booklet (PDF, 177KB), Housing our spiritual concern 2015 booklet April (community and sustainability), and Tuesday 21 April (economy and social justice). If you happen to be in London then, we’d love to see you there. Doors open at 6.30pm for a 7pm start.

It is hoped there will be similar national hustings in Scotland and Wales and many Friends are holding constituency hustings.

A LINK TO QUAKER VOTE: GENERAL ELECTION 2015

Housing booklets reissued
Might be of particular interest after the talk by Shelter Cymru  in Caridigan.

Inequality in housing in Britain is widening and housing options are narrowing. There is a strong sense of the need for radical change in the housing situation in Britain today. Principles for a just housing policy offers a way of describing what that change might look like. Housing: our spiritual concern offers a way of exploring how we might contribute to that change. To help Friends prepare for both the general election and Yearly Meeting 2015, these two booklets have been reissued by Quaker Housing Trust, Yearly Meeting’s own housing charity. A6 printed copies of both booklets are freely available from: Paula Harvey, paulah@quaker.org.uk
To download the leaflets: Principles for a just housing policy 2015 booklet (PDF, 177KB), Housing our spiritual concern 2015 booklet (1.56MB)

Also A LINK TO QUAKER HOUSING TRUST

Yearly Meeting 1 - 4 May 2015

Even if you can’t be there in person, a shared spiritual preparation creates the foundations upon which Yearly Meeting in session can build.

Yearly Meeting 2015 is the first of a new three-year arc on the theme ‘living out our faith in the world’. One of the focuses this year is housing as a particular example of a tested concern in the areas of inequality and injustice. Challenged by the structural injustice we see all around us, can we draw inspiration from the work of Friends a century ago, recorded in Quaker faith & practice 23.16? How might we express now our spiritual insights that give rise to our testimony, impelling us to action in the world?

Questions for consideration in your meeting on the theme of living our faith in the world:

How can we open ourselves fully to the pain of the world without despairing or turning away? Might allowing ourselves to be vulnerable to each other transform pain into compassion and kindle a passion to heal?

How can meetings be places where individuals are both supported and challenged as they wrestle with the complex issues that face us?

How are we committed to our Quaker values? How can we witness for a better social order? How can the testimonies of individuals bring more peace and economic justice?

What can we do to help bring about justice and equality in the society in which we live?

Suggested reading

All suggested reading is available at www.quaker.org.uk/ym.

Quaker faith & practice 20.17, 20.18, 23.04, 23.06, 23.12, 23.16, 23.17, 23.18, 23.21.

Swarthmore Lecture 2014: Open for transformation: Being Quaker by Ben Pink Dandelion.

Jan Arriens’ prepared ministry, Yearly Meeting Gathering 2014.

Britain Yearly Meeting Statement on economic inequality in Britain, May 2014.

 

A LINK TO THE FULL TEXT [you can save as a PDF or print easily]

 

SEE:  www.quaker.org.uk/ym for wide range of information and further links