by WebPost | Sep 28, 2022 | Announcement
Friends, this is a quick reminder and update from the Care and Counsel committee that a Memorial Meeting for Worship for Jules Arginteanu will be held at 4500 Kensington Avenue at 3 p.m. on Saturday, October 1, 2022.
For those attending the Memorial Meeting via Zoom, here is the link.
Please feel welcomed to bring a potluck dish to share.
An outdoor reception will follow the Memorial Meeting at Ellen Arginteanu's home, 5303 Horne Street, Richmond, VA 23226. All are welcomed.
by WebPost | Sep 21, 2022 | Announcement
reminder that Friendly Eights sign ups continue through October 2. Allen Lee is posting a sign up sheet for this new group announced today.
The Historical Jesus Study Group
The study group will meet via Zoom to discuss books about the historical Jesus authored by the biblical scholar Bart Ehrman. Each meeting will cover one book. Sample book titles are ‘Misquoting Jesus,’ ‘Jesus Before the Gospels,’ and ‘How Jesus Became God.’ The study group will decide together how often to meet and discussions may explore the difference that concepts of the historical Jesus make to one’s own spirituality.
Convenor:
Allen Lee, allenslee@alum.mit.edu, 804-991-0722
by WebPost | Sep 21, 2022 | Announcement
Saturday, October 1 Fall Gathering at the Garrett Family’s backyard 9:30-11:30. Families with children, as well as the adults that have been working with the children in RE, are invited to come play in the yard, and get to know each other better. Newcomers welcome! Please bring your own snacks and water. Contact Shannon Garrett if you have any questions.
Sunday, October 2 Katy Will will lead yoga for Prek/K and Early Elementary classes. The oldest class will meet in their classroom with Joe and Julia this Sunday.
Sunday, October 16 Faith and Play session for children of all ages during Meeting. Sunday, October 30 Sinuda Kapalcznski will lead a cultural learning session with the children sharing from her Haudenosaunee (Mohawk) heritage.
Sundays October 9 and 23 will be traditional age-level small group lessons.
Looking ahead! We plan to have the children’s meeting at The Clearing the First Sunday of November (Nov. 6).
by WebPost | Sep 21, 2022 | Announcement
The Fall Retreat led by the Ministry and Worship committee was well attended and amply supported by the Committee on Adult Spiritual Education who provided a wonderful lunch. The workshop, “Seeking Right Relationship with Indigenous People,” led by Barb Adams, directed us in a process of self-examination, learning, and listening. While this retreat was a ‘success,’ creating energy and connecting us, we acknowledge it as only one step, and only one piece of a larger process of becoming more whole.
Specifically, in addition to questions about appropriate next steps in our work on right relationship with indigenous peoples, questions arose as to how we can deepen our Meeting’s collective understanding of other marginalized experiences in the United States, including that of Black Americans, Latinx Americans, and Asian Americans. Do we seek to listen first or always jump to solution? Do we give issues concerning all people of color equitable and careful consideration?
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by WebPost | Sep 21, 2022 | Announcement
These quotes, by Steven Charleston, a member of the Choctaw Nation, are timely for the month that contains Indigenous People's Day, October 10. Note: Indigenous People's Day 2022 is a state observance in 30 states, including Maryland, and a state holiday in 3 states and 1 federal district.
From Ladder to the Light - An Indigenous Elder’s Meditations on Hope and Courage, by Steven Charleston, 2021, Broadleaf Books, p. 79
"One of the greatest challenges we face in our ascent to freedom is the fear of diversity. Throughout the centuries, oppressive cultures have invented scores of ways to pretend human beings are fundamentally different. They have invented the concept of race. They have developed elaborate caste systems. They have engineered class distinctions. They have economically separated people by gender. They have practiced religious exclusivity and intolerance. The list goes on, but the results have been the same. Humanity has remained fractured along imaginary fault lines created by fear and perpetuated for social control and domination.”
Charleston, a member of the Choctaw Nation, goes on to tell us how to climb the ladder: "In the kiva, we begin overcoming this fear. We begin to see the deeper truth of our own humanity. The higher we climb on the ladder, the more we realize the reality of our own existence. We are not different; we are the same. The light exposes these false divisions and helps us recognize one another for what we are: brothers and sisters in the great tribe of human beings."
This column is prepared by the BYM Working Group on Racism (WGR) and sent to the designated liaison at each local Meeting. The BYM WGR meets most months on the first Saturday, 10:00 am to 1:00 pm, currently via Zoom. If you would like to attend,contact the clerk at david.etheridge@verizon.net
by WebPost | Sep 21, 2022 | Announcement, Nominating
Serving on a committee or holding a position is a wonderful way to become more integrated into the RFM community.
Since Richmond Friends Meeting has no paid pastor or staff, the work of keeping the Meeting going is done entirely by its community of members and attenders. There are some 16 standing committees and more than 25 positions to be filled each year. Committees operate in the Quaker way, requiring a sense of the committee to move forward. Thus all who serve are equally important to a committee’s functioning.
A list of all committees, with descriptions, is on the Meeting website: www.richmondfriendsmeeting.org. Click on About Us on the top menu and scroll to Meeting Organization. (Or contact Janet Thoroman for the complete list.)
The Nominating Committee, appointed by the Clerk of Meeting, seeks each fall to find people in the RFM community who can best serve on each committee and fill each position for the coming calendar year. It presents a draft roster to Meeting for Business in November and then the final roster in December. Upon approval, the new committees begin their work in January.
If you feel led to serve, or have any questions, please contact a member of the Nominating Committee:
Joe Ball
Denna Joy Michael Pierce Janet Thoroman Christy Woody
