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Section of the Americas
| January 20, 2012
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Greetings!
This month I was interviewed by Friends Journal magazine. The entire article, "Eight Questions on Convergent Friends," is now available online. I wanted to share two parts with you. First, people often ask me what does Convergent Friends mean? My best definition is this: "Friends who are seeking a deeper understanding of our Quaker heritage and a more authentic life in the kingdom of God on Earth, radically inclusive of all who seek to live this life." Second, what does this have to do with FWCC?
"Through participation in FWCC events as a representative of Pacific Yearly Meeting, the scope of my experience was enlarged from an individual, informal level of meeting Evangelical Friends and Conservative Friends. These events also helped me to realize that this conversation has been happening for a long time among Friends who realize that we need to be talking with one another across institutional divisions. For 75 years now, FWCC has offered a place for Friends to have these conversations. Sometimes it has done this in a formal way. However, it's also important to provide opportunities for us to be real and human and our own selves, rather than representatives for a group of people."
I invite you to join us in this conversation, in an online study group, at the World Conference, or a local gathering in the coming year.
In friendship,
Robin Mohr
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| Travel in the Ministry in Central America starts this week
How can FWCC best serve the needs of Friends in Latin America?
What activities can the Committee of Latin American Friends (COAL) offer in support of Latin American Quakerism?
These are a few of the questions that will be asked by Paul Mitchell (North Carolina YM-FUM) and Jesús Huarachi (National Evangelical Friends Church of Peru) as they travel together among Friends in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras over the next two weeks. This is part of a year-long evaluation of the COAL program FWCC created in 1977.
Yearly meetings, independent meetings and mission fields can be found in at least twelve countries in Latin America. As part of its mission, FWCC, through its Committee of Latin American Friends, promotes intervisitation between Latin American Friends and English-speaking Friends in the Americas, resulting in a deep sense of spiritual enrichment for the participants. Also through COAL, the Section holds workshops that help to cultivate and prepare leaders in Latin American churches and meetings, to promote a deeper understanding of the Quaker faith.
A review committee will meet in Nakuru, Kenya at the Sixth World Conference to discuss evaluation reports with Latin American Friends attending and will make recommendations for goals, priorities and programs for COAL to undertake.
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 New Mexico and Texas Friends welcome Salt & Light speakers"I often feel that we live in a forgotten corner of Quakerdom. I was excited from the time the Salt and Light event was planned," writes Vickie Aldrich of Intermountain YM. Vickie tells us that she walked a labyrinth at the site of the gathering as the weekend event began. "Soon others arrived with food and we began a three day feast."
Mary Lord and Rachel Stacy, both Baltimore YM Friends, led "Being Salt and Light: Friends living the kingdom of God in a broken world" for Friends here and later, on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, at Friends Meeting of Austin, TX.
"Rachel led us on Saturday morning in looking at the past, present and future of Quakerism and what stood out for us...Mary led us through activities in the afternoon that focused on leading and discernment." She continues: "On Saturday evening we held a worship sharing session about people who had supported us and times when we had supported or walked with another. The sessions had a depth of spirit and trust that allowed many to share on areas of personal need and importance to them. On Sunday I walked the labyrinth again and was aware of the differences in myself, I saw and followed the path more clearly..."
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Salt & Light at Friends Meeting of Austin
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FWCC's intent with "Salt and Light" gatherings over the past year and a half has been to "bring FWCC to where Friends are" by conducting discussions, presentations and gatherings on the theme of April's Sixth World Conference of Friends.  Later this year a new series of local events will begin on a new theme inspired by outcomes of the World Conference in Kenya. If you would like to be among the first groups to host an FWCC program in your area please contact us. |
| Online Study Groups
Have you read the World Conference study booklet? Are you excited, inspired and challenged by what you read there? Are you eager to share your thoughts and feelings with other Friends? Are you prepared to listen with an open mind and open heart to the thoughts and feelings of other Friends? Are you open to new light that might come as a result? Are you prepared to grow? If you answer 'yes' to all of the above, then the online study circle is for you!
You will work with the study booklet texts and queries:
- in groups of up to 12 Friends with diverse backgrounds and from diverse Quaker traditions
- in Spanish, French, English or Russian
- in an easy-to-use online forum called Moodle
- for 7 weeks, taking about 2 hours of interaction a week
- working when it suits your own schedule
- with a facilitator equipped for Quaker online methods of learning and sharing
The courses will launch in early 2012. In the mean time, you may register your interest in participating.
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 Sixth World Conference of Friends The World Conference is coming up April 17-25, 2012 in Nakuru, Kenya. This will be the most representative World Conference of Friends ever. There are delegates registered from over 100 yearly meetings and groups of Friends in 42 countries, including 50 Friends from Latin America. The Section of the Americas exceeded our goal to support the Travel Fund. Thank you to everyone who contributed to our success! The World Conference is not an FWCC business meeting like a Triennial. (Although there will be a little business, like appointing a new General Secretary for the FWCC World Office.) It is an opportunity for delegates to bring their concerns and leadings to the global Quaker table and to consider new possibilities from Friends near and far. All of the time, energy, and money that Friends are putting into the World Conference is an investment in our spiritual lives and our religious community. The message that delegates bring home from the 6th World Conference of Friends has to energize the next generation of Friends and be relevant to the wider world. The Holy Spirit will be with us as we gather and with those who stay home. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, the variety of gifts of the Holy Spirit is wonderful: wise counsel, clear understanding, simple trust, healing the sick, miraculous acts, proclamation, distinguishing between spirits, tongues, and interpretation of tongues. Probably we'll need all of these as we gather. Please pray for our work together. Remember the gifts of the Holy Spirit are given not just for the individual but for their monthly meeting or church, their local community, your Quarterly or Area Meetings, your Yearly Meeting and the Religious Society of Friends. How will you hold the delegates from your area accountable for sharing the gifts of the Holy Spirit that they will receive from this conference with you? |
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