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ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING of the Religious Society of Friends
NNEEWWSSLLEETTTTEERR
APRIL 2019 FOURTH MONTH
520 Meetinghouse Road • Jenkintown • Pennsylvania • 19046
Continued on page 2
Abington Monthly Meeting
www.abingtonmeeting.org Abington Quarterly Meeting
www.abingtonquarter.org Philadelphia Yearly Meeting
www.pym.org
Clerk of Meeting : George Schaefer, [email protected]
Meeting Administrator: Loretta Fox, [email protected]
Meeting Secretary: Cathy Callan, [email protected]
Deadline for May NEWSLETTER is April 15th
. Please give information to Loretta Fox.
Contributions may be sent to: Abington Monthly Meeting, c/o Assistant Treasurer Amelia Diamond, 520
Meetinghouse Road, Jenkintown, PA 19046
APRIL MEETING ACTIVITIES
WEDNESDAY 3RD
7:00 p.m. WOMEN’S MEETING FOR WORSHIP, meetinghouse
SUNDAY 7TH
9:00 a.m. Friendly Bible Study, Short Stable 10:00 a.m. MEETING FOR WORSHIP 10:15 a.m. Children age 5-10 leave Worship for Gathering in Short Stable (see page 3) 11:00 a.m. Coffee Break & Silent Auction, hosted by Peace & Social Concerns Committee 11:00 a.m. Equal Exchange Coffee, Tea & Goods for Sale, John Barnes Room 11:15 a.m. Children’s First Day School, classrooms
11:15 a.m. Adult Class, Rich Nourie of AFS, John Barnes Room 12:15 p.m. Funeral Committee, Classroom 8 12:15 p.m. Worship & Ministry Committee, Short Stable 12:15 p.m. Care of Members Committee, Library 7:00 p.m. Friendly Bible Study, Short Stable SUNDAY 14
TH
9:00 a.m. Friendly Bible Study, Short Stable 10:00 a.m. MEETING FOR WORSHIP 10:15 a.m. Children age 5-10 leave Worship for Gathering in Short Stable (see page 3) 11:00 a.m. Coffee Break & Welcome to Membership – hosted by our Hospitality Committee 11:15 a.m. Children’s First Day School, classrooms 11:30 a.m. MONTHLY MEETING FOR WORSHIP TO ATTEND TO BUSINESS—Reports: Library, Finance,
Nominating, John Barnes Trustees 7:00 p.m. Friendly Bible Study, Short Stable
SUNDAY 21ST
Happy Easter!
10:00 a.m. MEETING FOR WORSHIP
APRIL 2019 ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING PAGE 2
10:15 a.m. Children age 5-10 leave Worship for Gathering in Short Stable (see page 3) 11:15 a.m. Multigenerational Easter Program, followed by annual Easter Egg Hunt—Please gather in the John Barnes Room; Children, bring baskets for the egg hunt! SUNDAY 28
TH
9:00 a.m. Friendly Bible Study, Short Stable 10:00 a.m. MEETING FOR WORSHIP 10:15 a.m. Children age 5-10 leave Worship for Gathering in Short Stable (see page 3) 11:00 a.m. Coffee Break, hosted by our Finance Committee 11:00 a.m. Sandwich Making, Short Stable 11:15 a.m. Children’s First Day School, classrooms
11:15 a.m. Adult Class, Topic: Care of Members, John Barnes Room 7:00 p.m. Friendly Bible Study, Short Stable
We thank these Friends for serving as Conveners for our Worship: April 7th Kathy Singer April 14th Mara Wai April 21st Joanne Maule-Schmidt April 28th Dan Turner
We thank these Friends for providing flowers for our Worship: April 7th Barb Smith
April 14th Barb Smith April 21st Chuck Lockyer April 28th Chuck Lockyer
Meeting for Worship in our meetinghouse with Abington Friends School, when in session: Lower School Wednesdays, 9:00 a.m. until 9:30 a.m. Middle School Wednesdays, 10:25a.m. until 11:00 a.m.
Upper School Wednesdays, 11:10 a.m. until 12 noon
Greeters before Worship are needed for every Sunday in April!
Please sign up on the bulletin board.
Your Contact Information Needed!
Meeting members are asked to look in their US mailboxes -- not their email boxes -- for a letter and an important form from Philadelphia Yearly Meeting asking you to update your information. PYM has a new and more capable database, but each member's help is needed in making sure information is correct and up to date. All you need to do is to enter your correct address, email and phone information, and you will help PYM build an awesome sense of community through your Quaker spirit and your participation in the Friends network. You can fill out the form and return it, or update your information online: https://www.pym.org/yourinfo. Contact Patricia Conroy with any questions.
APRIL 2019 ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING PAGE 3
Meetinghouse Road Project
AQUA has notified us that a major project is taking place on Meetinghouse Road between Jenkintown Road and Fair Acres Road, and it began on March 18 and will continue through July. This will cause delays in the area of our meetinghouse, so please allow extra time when coming to Abington Friends Meeting.
Silent Auction
Our Peace & Social Concerns Committee will be holding a silent auction during coffee hour on April 7th. The items to be auctioned all have a Quaker theme, some of which are historical and others that are novelty or humorous. The proceeds of the auction will benefit Annunciation House in El Paso Texas which is heavily involved in assisting the immigrants coming across the Mexican border. Items will be displayed prior to the auction to give folks some time to look them over. Please participate to support this important work!
Children's Gathering during Worship
This gathering is for children between the ages of 5 and 12, who are too old for the nursery upstairs, but who are not yet ready to sit through the whole MFW. At about 15 minutes into MFW, the adults who are supervising that day will rise and escort the children over to the short stable. Parents can come pick them up there immediately at the rise of MFW. To sign up for the Children's Gathering, please visit www.abingtonmeeting.org/childrens-program-2018-19/
If you are someone who likes kids and would be willing to spend 30-45 minutes with this group once every couple of months, we need you! This will not be a structured time, although you can plan a fun activity if you like. We will provide drawing and craft material and some games for the children to use. If the weather is nice, you can take them over to the playground or even on a walk around the grounds. There will always be at least two adults present, and you will need to complete a child abuse clearance beforehand. If you are ready to volunteer, please send your email and phone number to Carol Wolf, either via email or text.
Donations Gratefully Accepted!
Your financial support of our Meeting is greatly needed and deeply appreciated. Donations of any amount are gratefully accepted. Our donation box is on the wall in the foyer, or you may leave donations in the black mailbox at the curb near the Meeting office. Please make checks payable to Abington Monthly Meeting. We also gratefully accept donations via credit card or automatic deduction, and a Donate Now link is included in our weekly announcements. Information about specific ways to donate can be found on our website http://www.abingtonmeeting.org/how-to-donate/
APRIL 2019 ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING PAGE 4
Clerk’s Corner April 2019 Where there is no vision, the people perish. -- Proverbs, 29:18
This phrase from scripture is probably familiar to most of us. It is often quoted when a group begins strategic planning or long-term visioning. It is found in Proverbs, one of the wisdom books of the bible. And, groups or communities that chose to ignore its truth (or its vision) do so at their peril.
Dreams and visions have always been part of the Quaker way of discerning the direction of the Spirit, of figuring out what to do next and when to do it. Before he joined the Seekers in 1652, George Fox had a vision on top of Pendle Hill (England) of a great people to be gathered. And, it was this vision that gave him the confidence to journey further north to galvanize those Seekers into the religious renewal movement that would become known as Quakerism.
At Abington Friends, we too have had a vision.
In April of 2017, as a community we articulated a vision of an accessible and safe meetinghouse. We also encouraged everyone to share the vision widely among us in good faith and openness to every point of view; knowing that this perspective is the only way to foster unity and strengthen our vision to transform our meeting and its grounds into a place that is truly accessible.
It is our vision to be truly welcoming to all persons seeking to worship and engage in fellowship with us, both disabled persons and those of us who are now temporarily abled.
Now, two years later, we are ready to start looking at the material realization of our vision in the form of a final blueprint design for the renovation of the meetinghouse, the John Barnes Room and other structures and areas of our property. This design was created by Friends working with Quaker architect Constance “Connie” Lezenby. It included input from the joint meeting Accessibility & Safety and Property Committees as well as feedback from members and attenders who gathered at special forums in the fall of 2018. Input was also gleaned from renovation surveys sent to every meeting household this past fall.
This Spring, at our April Meeting for Business, we will begin to consider approving a final renovation blueprint to fulfill our vision. This will be a very exciting time in the life of the meeting. Every member is encouraged to attend these meetings so that all voices may be heard. Because, as Friends we have abolished the laity, the ministry of every member needs to be raised up in considering this design project approval. I hope you will plan to attend the Meeting for Business this Spring.
As a spiritual practice, Quakerism is in the prophetic stream of religious revelation. Prophets see how things should be and then work to make the changes they believe are essential to creating a fairer community and more just world. Friends are often described as everyday prophets because of their willingness to express their concerns publicly about such injustices and unfairness in the society in which they live.
Please bring your prophetic voice to the process to help realize our vision of making Abington Meeting a more accessible and safer, fairer and more just spiritual community for all persons to worship in Spirit and in Truth.
Peace is with you, George Schaefer
APRIL 2019 ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING PAGE 5
Easter Program – Performers Needed!
Looking ahead, Easter will be here before we know it! If you are interested in participating in our Easter Program on April 21st, please contact Norman Cotterell. The program will include: Singing, Instrumental performances, Stories, Poems, Skits, or anything else that's in keeping with our Easter celebration of spring and rebirth.
Attention Parents of 13-17 year olds:
The Peace & Social Concerns Committee has instituted a new policy with regard to the Selective Service Letters that we send out each year. At the suggestion of some parents we discussed and evaluated the usefulness of informing the parents of 13 year olds of their rights and responsibilities with regard to selective service and the documentation needed to establish conscientious objector status. We thought it best to provide parents with as much information as possible. So, starting this year, any parent with a child turning 13 will receive this new letter. Of course, because this is the first year, 14-17 year olds are included.
In addition, another first this year, young ladies will be included for both the new letter and the traditional letter sent to 18 year olds. This is being done for 2 reasons – out of a sense for gender equality and, though the likelihood of women being drafted is small, it is not beyond the realm of possibility. Any questions may be directed to Rochelle Tormollen or Bruce Charlick.
Schedule Your Meetings & Activities Now for Our 2019-2020 AMM Calendar
It’s time for clerks and group leaders to start planning dates and meeting times for the next academic year! When you have your dates finalized, please don’t delay in contacting Cathy Callan in the office at [email protected] or 215-884-2865 to reserve space. We are an active Meeting community, and our spaces fill up quickly, so please reserve your dates as soon as possible. Please note that dates from previous years do NOT carry over automatically; we do not assume that groups are continuing on after summer unless we are notified of new dates. Space is reserved on a first come, first served basis.
Quaker Visit Day at Abington Friends School
The members of AFS' Quaker Action Committee (QuAC) invite Abington Monthly Meeting members and active attenders to join them for Quaker Visit Day at Abington Friends School on Wednesday, April 10. This day of learning and sharing is an opportunity for AMM to witness how Quakerism lives in each of the divisions at AFS. Quaker Visit Day begins with coffee with QuAC then joins Lower School students as they prepare and attend MFW. The morning continues with a look into the Middle School Quakerism curriculum and a conversation with Upper and Middle School students. It concludes with a gathered worship sharing with members of the Student Quaker Action Committee and others. Please plan to join us on Wednesday, April 10 and accompany our students on this newly envisioned day, starting at 8:15 am in the Faulkner Reading Room and concluding at noon in the John Barnes Room. Please RSVP to Polly Sanford at [email protected].
APRIL 2019 ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING PAGE 6
Change to Floor Announcements after Worship
In an effort to streamline our time, we will begin having the convener read floor announcements. A green basket will be placed by the flowers in the meetinghouse with forms to fill out if you have an announcement to share with the meeting that is not in the announcements on the clipboard. The form asks what the announcement is as briefly as possible, when and where it is occurring, and who to contact for more information. Come to meeting early, grab a form from the clipboard, fill it out, and place it back in the basket and the convener will read your announcement for you. You can start doing this immediately, and by April 7 all floor announcements will be done this way. This was approved at Meeting for Business on March 10, 2019.
Have You Read This? Worship and Ministry Committee Members Share Their Inspirational Reads
This Month: Joanne Maule-Schmidt
The Life of God (as Told by Himself), by Franco Ferrucci, University of Chicago Press, 1996
In the late 1990’s, I came upon this book written as if the first cause had penned a memoir. In a clever, fanciful way, a philosophy professor muses about a long travel adventure taken by a divinity that is oblivious to its own creation. It is a story that welcomes the reader’s thoughts on just what such a deity might find, upon visiting creatures that have resulted from evolutionary processes and many permutations. One can read it, not only with a sense of amusement; but also, as a revelation to what might be observed in a creation thus happened upon. Regarding this putative autobiography by God, I suggest that one’s faith can withstand the challenge of this journey springing from human imagination, and, perhaps, find new ways to create meaning.
Call for Advocates
Led to take action on our Testimonies? The Abington Advocacy Team wants you! Advocacy Teams are Quakers and friends from across the country that uses their power as constituents to make change in Washington by lobbying our members of Congress. Lobbying focus changes yearly. Abington Advocacy Team is supported by Abington Meeting and FCNL (Friends Committee on Nation Legislation). We invite you to join us on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:30 pm in The Short Stable for a national call in and strategy session. For more information see Walter Singer or Bruce Charlick.
Please Keep Us Informed…
If you have a concern about one of our members or attenders, please let anyone on the Care of Members Committee know, or contact Bette Conover, clerk.
Abington Friends School
For information on AFS events, please go to the AFS website:
www.abingtonfriends.net
For information on ways to donate to AFS: http://www.abingtonfriends.net/support/
APRIL 2019 ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING PAGE 7
PHILADELPHIA YEARLY MEETING
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM) is a Quaker faith
community, an association of over 100 Quaker
meetings, and an organization - all working together
to nurture Quaker faith and practice in today’s
world. Members come together in annual or special
sessions for assessment of the life of the Society, the
conduct of business, spiritual refreshment and
commitment, and the renewal of the bonds of
friendship. Visit PYM.org for more information!
Help Our Community Stay Connected We have a new and more capable database, but
we need your help in making sure your
information is correct and up to date. All you
need to do is to enter your correct address, email
and phone information and you will help us build
an awesome sense of community through your
Quaker spirit and your participation in the
Friends network. Update your information
at pym.org/yourinfo
Quaker Family Meetup! You are Invited April 6, 2019, Princeton Meeting
Saturday, April 6 from 3-5:30 pm, Hosted at
Princeton Friends Meeting
Quaker Family Meetups are an opportunity for
PYM Families of infants to teens to join together
for an afternoon of fellowship, play, worship
sharing, and spiritual refreshment. Child care and
program for young people will be provided;
attend with or without the kids! (Grandparents
and other family caregivers are welcome, too.)
Questions? Want to let us know you're coming?
Contact the Youth Engagement Coordinator,
Melinda - [email protected]. (RSVP
not required, but helps with snack procurement!)
Details: www.pym.org/event/quaker-family-
meetup
Refugee and Migrant Justice: Conference
Call 6:30-7:30 pm, April 16
Friends from all meetings and communities in
Philadelphia Yearly Meeting are invited to join a
conference call, which will have two goals:
1) Share updates on work that we have been
doing in the various refugee resettlement efforts.
2) Hear from a representative from the Church
World Service. Philadelphia Yearly Meeting is a
member of the Church World Service. They have
various programs related to refugee and migrant
justice in which meetingsc an be involved.
RSVP for the call: www.pym.org/event/refugee-
and-migrant-justice-conference-callor Zachary
Dutton, [email protected]
16th Annual Phila Interfaith Walk for
Peace & Reconciliation
Sunday, April 28
A walking dialogue among Muslims, Buddhists,
Christians, Jews, Hindus, Sikhs, Wiccans and
others on Sunday April 28th from 2:00 to
5:00pm.
There is a pre-walk gathering at the Al Aqsa
Islamic Center. There will be three stops during
the walk at houses or worship in center city:
Society Hill Synagogue, Arch Street
meetinghouse and Central Philadelphia
meetinghouse.
Info: www.InterfaithPeaceWalk.org or Interfaith
ABINGTON MONTHLY MEETING
of the Religious Society of Friends
520 Meetinghouse Road
Jenkintown, PA 19046-2934
The FOURTH QUERY on NURTURING OUR COMMUNITY: CARE FOR THE MEETING will be read and
considered at Monthly Meeting for Business on APRIL 14TH
, 11:30 A.M.
Nurturing Our Community: Care for the Meeting
a. Do we help each other to live with integrity and contribute that integrity to the life of our
meeting? b. How does our meeting learn of members’ needs and offer its assistance? c. How
does our meeting nurture members in all stages of life? d. How does our meeting welcome
those new to Friends and integrate them into our community? e. When a member’s conduct or
manner of living gives cause for concern, how does the meeting respond?
f. Am I ready both to offer and to accept meeting assistance when needed? g. Do I treat adults
and children alike with respect and without condescension? h. What opportunities have I
taken to know, work and worship with Friends in the larger spiritual communities we share?
