1. At Interim Meeting in March of 2004, the Committee on Ministry and Pastoral Care was asked to develop recommendations regarding Baltimore Yearly Meeting’s financial contribution to Friends United Meeting, in consultation with Stewardship and Finance and the Ad Hoc Committee on Gender and Sexual Diversity Concerns (minute I2004-2). This group became known among us as the “Committee of Four Committees” after Advancement and Outreach was added, at their request, in July 2004.
    
2. Regular meetings were held during the ensuing year, and unity was reached around a proposal to send the funds withheld from FUM in 2004 and 2005 as a Restricted Contribution, to be used to promote intervisitation and communication among Friends. This proposal was approved at Interim Meeting in June 2005 (Minute I2005-55). The Friends United Meeting office, however, returned the contribution, citing a policy of not accepting restricted funds for projects that did not have the prior approval of the General Board.
    
3. Feeling somewhat discouraged, the Committee's attention languished during 2005 and 2006, as Friends' appointments to the constituent committees changed, and Intervisitation progressed. In the fall of 2006, Katherine Smith (Maury River) agreed to serve as Clerk of the Committee of Four Committees. Details of membership were approved at Interim Meeting (12007-5), and the Committee was charged “to recommend to Annual Sessions regarding BYM’s financial contributions to FUM.” The Committee’s membership was reported to Annual Sessions (Y2007-22).
    
4. The reconstituted Committee held its first meeting, with all members present, in November 2007. At this meeting, we shared out of worship, listening deeply to each other. We were reminded that witnessing to the truth that has been opened to us is vitally important. We were challenged to keep faith with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Friends among us, and not to take any action that would seem to disavow them and thus wound our own community. We were reminded that transformation is achieved through humility, love, patience and faithfulness, not through argument and contention. We considered the question: “How can we claim to be peacemakers in the world, if we cannot make peace among ourselves?” We were reminded of the suicide rate among youth as a result of gender identity and sexual orientation concerns, and how we may serve as a lifeline to people who are desperate for reassurance that God loves them as they are.
    
5. We are aware that many Friends within our yearly meeting have been uneasy, as a matter of conscience, about giving money to an organization that engages in employment discrimination. We acknowledge the pain and anger our yearly meeting experienced in 2002 as a result of the FUM personnel policy of discrimination. We also acknowledge that we share responsibility for the governance of FUM and thus for the challenges it faces today. We know that many among us find a spiritual home in FUM and feel blessed by an opportunity to participate in its ministries.
    
6. In the course of our deliberations we have come to see that money is not really the issue. We believe that an undue focus on money is getting in the way of the work we are called to, work which includes being present with lesbian and gay Friends in FUM-only yearly meetings, and engaging actively with the rest of FUM in working and witnessing for peace and equality. Money is a clumsy form of communication—a carnal weapon—that cannot convey the transformational power of our spiritual concern. We have come to trust that the Holy Spirit is working among us, for purposes that we do not yet fully understand. We know that it is not money but the Inward Teacher who transforms hearts.
    
7. We remind the yearly meeting of our 2007 Carey Memorial Lecture. Joe Volk, Executive Secretary of Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL) spoke of the importance of hope, understood as a verb that entails faith in action and risk-taking. He told us that everything changed for FCNL once they redefined their collapsing building as an opportunity rather than a problem. As a result of their leap of faith, the FCNL offices now stand on Capitol Hill as a witness—a much-needed green and accessible witness.
    
8. In the spirit of seeing our relationship with FUM, not as a problem, but as an opportunity to witness actively for peace, equality, and compassion, the Committee of Four Committees offers the following minute:

We Friends in Baltimore Yearly Meeting, gathered for Interim Meeting at (place, date) agreed to direct our General Secretary to release to FUM the monies withheld since 2004, and furthermore, we ask that Stewardship & Finance Committee together with Trustees formulate a plan for paying what is owed, in installments if necessary.