Issue 08-11-2019
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‘But there was another aspect to Pendle Hill, beyond its personal challenge.’
Let’s be honest, Pendle Hill is one of the most boring hills to climb. For me, reared on the topography of the Lake District, this stony diagonal slope was tough. There’s not a knoll (a small rocky outcrop to you non-Cumbrians) to relieve the uphill struggle, nor is...
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‘We learned the role of humour as a weapon of the Spirit in achieving mental health.’
Of the ninety Quakers who converged on Woodbrooke last month for the second 2019 Quaker Life Representative Council, I doubt I was alone in thinking that my Area Meeting should have found someone – anyone – better suited to the subject matter. The very title, ‘Building Inclusive Quaker Communities – Mental Health’, seemed such...
‘One of the clear messages was that there are no panaceas.’
The day was organised by Friends from the Mid, North and West Somerset Area Meetings. Alison Mitchell, the mental health development officer, gave us welcome support with the organisation and on the day itself. She is employed by The Retreat York Benevolent Fund, with a link to Meeting for Sufferings.
‘Going home takes many forms, but it comes down to finding yourself.’
It’s always the quiet ones isn’t it? Like that old bloke at the back of the Meeting house. The one with a wry smile and a twinkle in his eye. You wouldn’t think he could knock the skin off a rice pudding, but when he was young...
‘Bridgebuilding’, by Alastair McKay
This book was launched at St Ethelburga’s in the City of London. The church was rebuilt from the ruined shell that was left after the Bishopsgate IRA bomb of 1993. As a centre for reconciliation it claims four striking values: crisis as an opportunity for change; spiritual values into action;...
Silent school
Three high windows deliver the movement of summer trees and light on a central table, water jug, vase, flowers, books.
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Protest demands money for climate not military
Friends took part in a protest outside the Ministry of Defence last month where campaigners physically counted the £5.2 billion that the UK is forecast to spend on nuclear weapons from 2018-2019. The activists counted 10,400 £500,000 notes in protest at what it described as ‘this terrible use of taxpayers’ money’ and demanded...
Milford Haven Friends open wellbeing centre
Milford Haven Quakers have opened a meditation and wellbeing centre at their Meeting house after a long period of discernment. David Doorbar, clerk of the Meeting, said the decision to start the centre, which opened on 26 October, came after a long-term letting from a nursery ended and the Meeting felt â€...
Quakers will hold leaders to account
Britain Yearly Meeting (BYM) has pledged that it will be asking politicians searching questions in the run-up to the general election, as well as cautioning about ‘the nature of the debate’.
Essex Friend at Mexican conference
A Friend from Colchester Meeting spoke at an international congress in Mexico as part of her testimony as a Quaker in addressing ‘the needs of the most traumatised and vulnerable children and young people in our society’.
Peace banners on display
The Peace Museum in Bradford loaned twenty-eight peace banners to an exhibition at the Brierfield Mill in Pendle showcasing signs from the protest movement. According to Charlotte Hall, curator at The Peace Museum, the items were chosen for the exhibition Banner Culture to represent key points in peace history, such...
Friends celebrate fracking moratorium
Quakers are celebrating the moratorium on fracking in the UK that the government announced last week, but pressed for an outright ban.
Play to help fight against poverty
Friends Lynn and David Morris were invited to perform their play about Quaker Ada Salter to mark the UN International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The couple, who make up Journeymen Theatre, were invited by the local group of ATD (All Together in Dignity) Fourth World to put on...
Letters - 8 November 2019
Climate action I read with interest the item on ‘Sustainability matters’ in the Meeting for Sufferings report (11 October). One way not mentioned where Friends can take action for climate justice is by encouraging organisations to divest – withdraw their investments from fossil fuel companies. This is a worldwide movement that could...