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Section of the Americas
| October 5, 2012
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Greetings!
75 years ago, the Friends World Committee was founded at the Second World Conference. Friends who had already been through one World War and were facing another saw that they needed a standing committee to keep up communications in between the opportunities for face-to-face meetings. FWCC was created "to act in a consultative capacity to promote better understanding among Friends the world over."
For the next two years, the Section of the Americas will continue our focus on the Quaker Youth Pilgrimage in Latin America, the Voices of Friends website, and our Visitation/Travel in the Ministry work. As we do this, we will be working to better integrate our committees to include more Latin American Friends, younger Friends, Evangelical Friends and Friends of color from all regions. We will present the work plan for the next two years at the Section meeting in March 2013. I look forward to these coming months of helping all Friends to live up to the Light they have been given. How do you see your role in this important work?
Sincerely,  Robin Mohr Executive Secretary |
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 Let the Living Water flow!
Coming to Madison, WI in November
Join us at Madison (WI) Friends Meeting on Saturday, November 10th to experience the flow of the Living Water of God's spirit and ask: what practices or actions can help the Living Water of spiritual vitality to flow more freely in us, in our communities and in the wider world? Brian Young, who grew up in the unprogrammed tradition and has spent his adult life among pastoral Friends, will lead this program. He is a 2008 graduate of the Earlham School of Religion and is entering his fifth year of service as pastor at Berkeley (CA) Friends Church, part of Western Association of Friends. His recent article, "Finding the Words" appears in the September/October 2012 issue of Quaker Life magazine. Brian is married to Stephanie Strait and they live in Berkeley with Mordecai the pug dog and Violet the tabby cat. Brian helped coordinate worship led by the Section of the Americas at the Sixth World Conference of Friends in Kenya.  Register online now to let us know you are coming. Childcare and some home hospitality available for Friends who wish to stay for Sunday worship. Read Brian's article in Quaker Life magazine. Read more and download the flyer. |
 Relive the World Conference: Documentary now online
With many thanks to four Friends from Pacific Yearly Meeting, the documentary "Salt and Light", a vivid video story of the Sixth World Conference of Friends, is now available for viewing online.
Produced by Shayne Lightner, Lane Clark, Hulda Muaka and Sarah Rose House-Lightner, the video project was supported by a grant from the Alice Herman Fund of Santa Monica Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Pacific Yearly Meeting) and other contributions. The video is 42 minutes long. We are still in the process of finding out whether DVDs will be available. Watch the full documentary and other short videos. |
 40 Days of Prayer for the worldwide family of FriendsFriends United Meeting (FUM) announces a program designed to gather all its members around the world in prayer, conversation and discernment beginning Tuesday, October 10th and running through November 18th. This program is open to anyone who wishes to participate. 40 Days of Prayer is a devotional program to be read and experienced together in both small groups and as a world wide community. It includes daily meditations, queries upon which to reflect, action steps to consider, and a suggested focus for prayer. FUM General Secretary Colin Saxon writes: "Can you imagine thousands of Quakers all around the world joined in prayer, reflection, discussion and action for 40 consecutive days! What could God possibly do in and through us in that time? What expression of renewal could be realized? Let's find out together!" Around the world, members of the Religious Society of Friends are feeling the stirrings of renewal at work in us, seeking to be expressed through us. The inner voice of the Holy Spirit is calling us to a deeper place and a more complete and transforming immersion into the life and power of God. Download study guide here |
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Kenya Casanova with Friends at Langley Hill MM in Virginia
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Living Water programs draw in many; more planned for 2013
To date close to 300 participants have attended a Friends World Committee program in nine locations in the upper Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions of the USA on the theme 'Let the Living Water flow! Friends serving God's purposes." We are delighted with the welcome given to speakers Noah Baker Merrill and Kenya Casanova Sales. Next up is Madison Friends Meeting, with Brian Young speaking.
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Noah Baker Merrill with Margaret Fraser after the Traverse City, MI "Living Water" program
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The Living Water program is coming to many new locations in 2013. Programs are now confirmed for
the Pacific Northwest; New England; Iowa, Colorado and California. Many more locations are being considered.
Please contact us to learn more about this program and how your meeting or church might become a host.
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Central American Friends met recently to plan FWCC activities in the region
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We need the skills and experience of all Friends in the Americas.
As part of my work as Executive Secretary, I want to be sure we are always working towards equity between North, Central, South and Caribbean Americans. We are already moving to integrate our committees. We are expanding our online directory of meetings and churches to include Latin America. I am committed to having Latin American Friends as part of the central power structure of the Section of the Americas.
-Executive Secretary Robin Mohr.
Read Robin's full letter here.
We need your steady support over the next two years to make all this work possible. Will you consider making a gift to FWCC to help build this vision of a whole and thriving Section of the Americas?
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