2023-10-15 Newsletter of
“Peace is not something you wish for, it is something you make,
something you are, something you do and something you give away. ”
Robert Fulghum
(American Writer, author of "All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten")
Newsletter of Concord Friends Meeting
A Monthly Meeting in Concord, NH of the Dover Quarter of
New England Yearly Meeting, Religious Society of Friends
website
Masks are optional in the Meetinghouse. Please refer to the following link for more information. COVID GUIDANCE for In-Person Worship.
Calendar - October 15th, 2023
Saturday, October 14th 12:00 PM NH CROP Hunger Walk
Registration Begins
1:00-4:00 PM "Fun"draiser
Concord Friends Meetinghouse
Sunday, October 15th 10:00 AM Meeting for Worship & Fellowship
First Day School Teacher: Rich
With Children: Dave & TBD
Closing: Sara & Jennifer S.
Mid-Week Worship TBD If interested please contact Rich
at klnschmdt [at] gmail [dot] com
October 12, 2023
Dear Friends,
Now that the Geothermal installation at our Meetinghouse is complete, we are asking you to join us in the challenge of raising the money to pay for it. Our Capital Campaign goal is $30,000 and we now formally invite you to help us reach our goal. We hope a substantial amount will come to us from grants that we have applied for but that still leaves us a likely goal of $20,000 that we will need to raise from individuals.
We are hopeful that some members will make large donations (over $1,000) for this purpose, but many small gifts are also needed to reach our goal. We have received one major gift and three others so far. Will you join these donors now? Discern what you can give; any amount will be appreciated. If you would be able to give more if you spread your gift over time, consider a future donation (which could be a lump sum or extended over a one, two or three-year period).
We are asking for donations, (or commitments to future donations) to be submitted before October 31st.
Thank you for your prayerful consideration of what you can give towards our goal.
Faithfully,
CFM Fundraising Committee: Juliet Curran, Ruth Heath, Dave Woolpert
39th Annual Concord, NH CROP Hunger Walk
Saturday, October 14th
CROP Walk is an annual fundraiser held nationally to alleviate the challenges of disease, disaster, and displacement that leave people hungry locally and internationally. Over the years, CFM has been a strong contributor to this effort. In fact, your generosity in the past has made us the #1 or #2 congregation for a couple years!
This year’s CFM team, so far, includes Elanor, Rowan, Ruth, and Sheryl. Please support them with a donation - not much has come in so far!
To donate, click here: https://events.crophungerwalk.org/2023/team/concord-friends-meeting
Note that donations online can be made anonymously if you wish. Alternatively, you can donate by writing a check payable to CWS/CROP Walk and mail to: Sheryl Ingraham, 4 Fogg Street, Concord, NH. 03301
Please contact Sheryl Ingraham if you have any questions at: sheryl [dot] ingraham [at] gmail [dot] com
Learn about and celebrate the work of AFSC-NH!
Join us on Saturday, October 14, 1 PM to 4 PM, at the Concord Friends Meeting for an afternoon of good food, fellowship, and some wonderful performances from area musicians. Register today and bring a friend.
We are still looking for a few folks willing to to help out: a door greeter, someone to help with the computer slideshow, and a few hands to stay after for cleanup. Talk with Sharon Kulik or Sara Smith to volunteer or learn more.
You can also mark your calendars for the two other AFSC-NH events around the state:
Saturday, October 28, 1pm-4pm - Join us for games and crafts at Dover Friends Meeting, 141 Central Ave, Dover, NH
Saturday, November 4, 1pm-4pm - Join us to hear from AFSC's General Secretary Joyce Ajlouny and Economic Justice Director Rick Wilson at Hanover Friends Meeting, 43 Lebanon St #1, Hanover, NH
The suggested donation is $20 to $50 to support the work of AFSC-NH. Please pay as led; we do not want money to be an obstacle to your joining the celebrations. You can donate online using the additional contribution option or by sending a check payable to AFSC-NH, 4 Park Street #304, Concord NH 03301.
You do not need to make separate donations for each event, but please indicate which event(s) you plan to attend so that we're ready with plenty of good food!
From NEYM
- Israel-Palestine:
- NEYM’s Israel-Palestine Resource Group exist to support local meetings. Their resource page for meetings looking to engage in the topic ishttps://neym.org/israel-palestine-resources-engagement. Click or tap to follow the link."> here and they can be contacted at israel-palestine [at] neym [dot] org
- The group is hosting a Zoom-based conversation with Steve Chase, who has recently traveled to Israel-Palestine, on November 12th at 7:00 p.m. Sign up to get the link https://lu.ma/wl2whc5y. Click or tap to follow the link.">here.
AFSC response to violence in Palestine and Israel:
AFSC Director of Quaker Engagement writes "I am reaching out to you at a time of great suffering and unimaginable chaos. The escalation of violence in Palestine and Israel this week has impacted the AFSC community in many ways, all of them tragic and heartbreaking. As Quaker peace builders, we know that escalating war will not bring peace. It only brings more destruction. We need to stop escalating militarism now and instead escalate compassion and solidarity.
Given the painful circumstances of this moment, it felt important to share with Friends how AFSC is responding and ways for you to join us. Additionally, I wanted to offer some space for Friends to gather and worshipfully hold the many impacted communities of this situation in the light.
This Friday, October 13th at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time, please join AFSC on zoom for a special Meeting for Worship with attention to our pain and hopes for a more peaceful world." The letter goes on to explain a bit about AFSC work in Gaza since 1949, and give links to AFSC's public statement and info on actions you can take to help avert a humanitarian crisis (this can all be found on the AFSC webpage: https://afsc.org/topics/gaza-israel. Click or tap to follow the link.">https://afsc.org/topics/gaza-israel )
It ends with "I also hope you will join us for worship on Friday. Meeting for Worship is a practice often used by Friends in times of crisis and uncertainty to help a community draw closer to one another. We may use this time together to share messages of grief, support, and concern and/or we may use this time to engage the power of silence to reflect, gain spiritual grounding, and to focus on our sacred responsibility as Friends to bring forth peace into the world." The Zoom link is:
https://afsc-org.zoom.us/j/85831333364?pwd=VEtPTUZuYk5hTHV2OGs1VzRkY0ZKUT09
Meeting ID: 858 3133 3364
Passcode: 759311
CFM WALKERS
The Tuesday October 17th walk will start at 10:30 am in Hooksett. The 2.9 mile out-and-back trail is to Heads Pond. (It’s a walk we have done before in the summer.) It is an easy flat rail trail, following water and a pond at the end, framed with Autumn leaves. Beautiful view!
DIRECTIONS: The trailhead is on Rt 3/28 in the Hooksett area. It is south of where Rt 28 breaks away from Rt 3 (Pinewood Road) and it is north of College Park Drive and the Hooksett Public Library. The trailhead is on the east side of Rt3/28, almost across from Green’s Marine.
It would be nice to know if you are coming!
Questions?
Faith Sillars faithsillars [at] yahoo [dot] com603-435-8103
Kathy Urie kju138 [at] gmail [dot] com603-296-5659
Dear Friends,
The draft minutes for the October 2023 meeting for worship with attention to business are available at https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/2023-10-08_CMM_Minutes. Click or tap to follow the link.">https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/2023-10-08_CMM_Minutes or via https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/Minutes_of_ConcordMonthlyMeeting. Click or tap to follow the link.">https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/Minutes_of_ConcordMonthlyMeeting
For corrections, missing documents, and/or clarifications of the minutes, please reply to web clerk, Concord Friends Meeting webclerk [at] concordfriendsmeeting [dot] org (<webclerk [at] concordfriendsmeeting [dot] org>).
With love, and peace, and tenderness,
Mark
Yearly Meeting Epistle is Available
The New England Yearly Meeting Epistle has been sent out. (Click above) Even if you did not attend, reading this epistle will give you a sense of what occurred and how the Spirit moved among Friends during Sessions.
Margery Post Abbott
(Multnomah Monthly Meeting, Portland, Oregon)
Rather than slipping into violence in words and deeds, and a constriction of possibilities for most of the world, my hope is that humanity can embrace the new yet very ancient vision that acknowledges that we are only as safe as the most vulnerable among us. I hope that we will be able to ensure that nourishment and water are available not only for all people, but also for all living creatures. Can humanity replace the contemporary emphasis on entitlement with the ethic of responsibility?
Remember to collect plastic bags and put them in the box in the mechanical room of the Meetinghouse. If you have any questions, contact Sheryl Ingraham at 410-972-1222.
Thanks in advance for your support!
Questions, comments, suggestions? Email us at:
concordfriendsnewsletter [at] gmail [dot] com
From Past Issues:
Daily Online Meeting for Worship from any place in the World
Draft Introduction to the 2023 Interim NEYM Faith and Practice
The Ben Lomond Quaker Center
Offers a daily online meeting for worship from 7:30-8:00 AM Pacific Time. You can join them from anyplace in the world. online meeting for worship
Draft Introduction to Sessions
This August the F&P Revision Committee brought a draft Introduction to Sessions for the Yearly Meeting to consider. Attached is the Draft Introduction and a Cover Letter asking meetings to consider the text and to send responses to the Revision Committee by March 1, 2024.
https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/NEYM-2023FaithAndPracticeIntro. Click or tap to follow the link.">https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/NEYM-2023FaithAndPracticeIntro
Submissions
Dear Friends,
If you have information or personal news to share via this Newsletter please email your submission to us19-925d701d15-5b1afb2d20 [at] inbound [dot] mailchimp [dot] com by
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- Finally, it's best to keep your Zoom links in a handy place in case the announcements are not sent in a given week. Juliet Curran Newsletter Editor
Are you wanting information from past announcements?
Visit this page on our web site: Past Announcements