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WINTER
2000 Phil Anthony
(856) 769-0066 (voice)
(856) 769-1416 (fax)
salemqtr@verizon.netThe Israeli-Palestinian violence this fall has led me to spend more time thinking about Friends’ witness in the world. I was sitting in worship at our own Friends School the day after conflict erupted in Ramallah, and my thoughts turned to the Friends School there. Were students or graduates of that school involved? Were any of them injured or killed?
How much do our testimonies affect the world we live in—the students we teach, the people we come in contact with through Friends’ social concerns work, the folks who come into our meetinghouses? The answer, it seems to me, is that we can only have faith that we make some difference; hope that the people who are affected will affect others in their turn; and love for all of them, whether we appear to be accomplishing anything with them.
In a few days, Mickleton will be witnessing to our peace testimony with the second year of its toy gun exchange. Maybe some of the children who take part, or their parents, will come to understand that guns—even toys—can serve only to destroy. Greenwich had its annual lasagna dinner for the benefit of St. Theresa’s Soup Kitchen in Bridgeton. Perhaps that once-a-year effort will make the crucial difference for a hungry person who doesn’t believe anybody cares.
Last year Karen Huber of Woodstown was moved to establish the Salem County chapter of Amnesty International. This year she’s seeking to bring it into Friends School. Members of Mullica Hill continue their ministry in Southern State Prison, and the meeting provided the site for the Friends School Ten Thousand Villages holiday craft sale.
The meetings for worship for healing at Woodbury continued this fall, now with a concern for four members and attenders there—and for the wife of PYM’s General Secretary, who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Seaville reaches out to its community with collections for a food cupboard and a women’s shelter. And Salem, which originated our Quarter use of care committees for members whose needs exceed what a monthly meeting can provide, has seen its ministry reach out to Friends elsewhere; as I write, preparations are being made for a second care committee in Haddonfield Quarter if it should become necessary.
Salem is also the host of our Quarterly Meeting on Sunday, 10 December. Under the leadership of Overseers from around the Quarter, we’ll break into small groups to explore the work of Overseers’ committees and how our monthly meetings handle it. Perhaps out of the program we can identify individuals and meetings with particular expertise that can help other meetings.
We’ll gather at Salem at 9:00 AM, with refreshments provided by the meeting. The program will start at 9:30, there’ll be music from Friends School at 10:30, and worship at 11:00. Bring your lunch for fellowship afterward—Salem will provide beverages and desserts as well—and stay for our business meeting at 1:00. I’ll look forward to seeing you.
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Last modified:
Saturday, February 28, 2009 at 09:22 AM
