I really like the idea of adding regular singing at 10:45 – 11:00 AM. Singing was one of the favorite parts of my Methodist/Lutheran church-going early years and it’s been something I really miss while attending TCFM. So, I look forward to this piece of the new Worshipping Together plan…. I think Sylvia will too. I could even imagine accompanying a couple of the hymnal’s songs on the piano sometime. There are lots of musical folks in Mtg — this will be a nice addition, I bet.

I see the current plan is for children to join their families at “Family” seats if they choose — I think this makes very good sense. Children interested to sit separately (as individuals or as a class) will certainly be able to. And those who aren’t ready for that on any given day – will still have spots available near the grownups they know best….

This whole issue of seating could even be something teachers choose to explore with students (I’m thinking of younger students especially) let the students spend a little time in class deciding their plans of where to sit… perhaps we’ll see younger students develop this particular form of independence over the FDS year and want to sit together as buddies? or as a whole class? Who knows?

1. Many families find that they are not able to come to Meeting for Worship spiritually prepared because it is such a struggle to get everyone in the family ready and out the door. And then to enter into worship with grumpy kids after this struggle is not conducive to good worship. It would be better to have the kids start off their day at the meeting house somewhere besides adult worship.

2. Having the kids come into meeting at the end of the FDS time allows the adult worship experience to be more integrated into their FDS experience. It becomes a part of every FDS classes’ “curriculum” for the teacher to take some time to prepare the kids for entering worship.

3. It is probably quite important for the kids to enter the meeting and to sit with their classmates, instead of going over to their parents. This is less disruptive. But more importantly, it communicates to the children they they are unique, valued individuals with identities of their own (and not just as appendages of their parents). Hopefully the seating arrangement can communicate to kids that they, not just their parents, have a place in the meeting community. This could communicate to them a kind of respect that the larger meeting has for them, which could feel empowering and encouraging of their developing spirituality.

4. This does mean that all FDS teachers are now, in a way, required to weave preparation for worship into their lesson plans each Sunday. Teachers may be concerned that this limits the amount of time they have to do anything ELSE meaningful during their class time — especially since there will be stragglers coming in at 11. Unless we start FDS at 10:45? Which might actually be a good idea…

And of course, Quakers don’t like much structure! But this kind of structure I am hoping is not constraining but rather enabling of what we hope for our children… We will see how this plays out.

The parent with who I spoke was interested and very receptive in particular to the idea that kids would sit with their class instead of going to be with their parents, because it might give the kids the empowering sense of having their OWN place at meeting, and not just being at meeting because their parents were there.

I feel rather awestruck by the breadth and depth of consideration regarding Worshiping Together. The WT-1,2,3… writings cause me to reflect on the ways a community comes to know itself over time and in relationship: its evolving, diverse, loving self.

In the face of such effort, my mind wanders to the question, “what wasn’t working with children participating from 11 to 11:15 am?” but I don’t stay there long, because I am intrigued by what it may mean for Meeting children to participate in what I generally experience to be the deepest part of worship.

The process of this journey intrigues me, and I am grateful for your serving as shepherd.

that commitment is helpful – sometimes a life-line in a time of despair – not only to those in our area and throughout the world suffering through natural and social calamities but also to those of us within our tcfm community.

peace, homelessness, poverty, health care, ‘sustainability’ – these and some other, perhaps more abstract causes, are among the urgent issues i would like to take up with like-minded friends.

i’ll join a ‘peace and service visioning group.’

phill lindsay

My thought is that we all get arrested – as a group – protesting US military, global interventionism in general and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

This action will get into the papers and let people know that Quakers are against all wars. The billions of dollars being used for the military could solve most of our other national problems.

It seems that one of the elements of Quakerism that TCFM is reaching for is the **corporate sense of leading**–an opportunity for service that calls us together to walk a growing edge, into our measure of Light. It may be that not all of us can physically participate but it would mean that there’d be a sense of the meeting for us to move forward with some new undertaking. The marriage equality work is an example of that sort of corporate engagement.

It’s true that any number of us as individuals in the meeting have our own personal favorite service project we hope others will support–but that doesn’t knit us together in the Spirit. What I have seen as being successful is when we as a faith community hold the question “Where are we called?”; then pay attention to what opportunities come our way, and what actions have been “seeded” that seem to be bearing good fruit?

We may be called to address a specific concern–housing the homeless; feeding the hungry–or we may be called to explore the *causes* of homelessness, hunger, poverty.

The last question I have been considering for a number of months now is this: many of us–but not all–have a certain amount of privilege in our life. How willing are we to give up certain privileges in order to inconvenience ourselves for the sake of a Spirit-led act of corporate or personal witness?

I hope we will find the right balance between asking questions and setting into action.

Blessings,
Liz

EWL is an acronym Richard is using for Experiments with Light, more detail in the first article in the series here.

Richard, fyi, with a computer with a CD burner it is not hard to turn MP3 files into a standard audio CD playable on any player. Let me know if you would like to know more about this.

james

Just wondering….

I appreciate the enormous amount of personal prayer, thought and discussion your members participated in to reach this decision.

i also appreciate the decision to enter the public spot light and make this endorsement.

I am encouraged that people of true faith and spiritual belief exist, and that they are willing to take a peaceful but significant stand for the rights of those oppressed by dogmatic and bigoted belief system leaders.

I am encouraging other people I know to come here and thank you personally for your efforts and resolve.

again my heart felt thanks and utmost respect for each and every member of the TCFM.

Thank You

Mike

1. Leadership
2. Authority
3. Power-over
4. Power-with.

Sadly, I have little time right now to think through the distinctions of these related concepts. But I do wonder if we have a hard time being humble–

What does THAT mean, to be humble or to keep low? If we cannot do these things, then I worry we will misuse our own sense of power, authority, and leadership.

Sigh.

So much to say. So little time to write about it…

Blessings,
Liz Opp(enheimer)

And I experience differences between God’s leadership (giving us leadings) and the authority of our meetings to make decisions based on corporate discernment and testing of those leadings.

Perhaps at a future date, I will be able to write more about these distinctions…

Blessings,
Liz Opp(enheimer)