Baltimore Yearly Meeting is the regional organizing unit for the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in the area of central Pennsylvania, Maryland, parts of West Virginia, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. It is through membership in a Yearly Meeting that individual Quakers become connected with the larger Quaker movement worldwide. "In fellowship, in deep listening, in waiting worship, in commitment to each other, it richly rewards those who embrace the challenge of being a Yearly Meeting Friend." (2011 draft Faith and Practice)
Registration for BYM Camps is now open!
Spiritual State of the Meeting Reports Being Gathered
The Ministry and Pastoral Care Committee has promulgated their request for Local Meetings to report on the spiritual state of their Meeting. Queries that Friends might wish to consider in preparing their report were sent to each Meeting in November 2017.
As reports are received from Meetings over the next months, they will be made available from the Ministry and Pastoral Care Committee section of the website. You may click here to go directly to the list of reports that have been received.
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Information about services from the Yearly Meeting available for our local Meetings and worshiping communities is listed here.
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On the afternoon of the Apportionment Days, the ad hoc Growing Diverse Leadership Committee will offer a workshop in three parts. First, we will spend time thoughtfully exploring the ways that Friends of color and Young Adult Friends have experienced bias in the world and in our Meetings. We will then broaden the discussion to include things we say about ourselves as local Meetings and a Yearly Meeting that unintentionally create barriers for others to overcome if they feel led to join us, or that keep people away. Finally, those who attend will receive materials they can take back to their Meetings and use in the work of Change Groups or in the other ways that local Meetings will be working to make our Meetings more equitable and whole. Those who attend will leave better prepared to bring this ministry of equity, diversity, and wholeness to their Meetings.
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Based on last year’s survey & other suggestions from Monthly Meetings, Networking Day will offer an opportunity for folks from various BYM Meetings to meet and exchange ideas and resources about each others’ successful Peace & Social Concerns programs. We also will offer four, practical 90-minute workshops for your most popular topics--two in the a.m. (A) and two in the p.m. (B), each led by Friends with experience in these areas:
How Friends can speak to polarization & racism in our communities
Strategies for addressing homelessness, reentry & poverty – shelters, “open tables” & more
Immigrants, refugees & sanctuary in our midst (update - new resources)
Issues and outreach: Peace festivals, death-with-dignity, LGBT, animal rights, healthcare under TrumpWorkshop sessions will begin at 11 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. During breakfast/arrival time, Friends will be encouraged to mingle and share info. about specific programs/activities of our own Meetings. Coffee, bagels & pastries will be provided at 9:30; lunch (wraps, salad, chips, drinks) will be provided at noon. Vegetarian/vegan treats may be included both times. Donations are welcome, but not required, to assist with our Networking Day costs (est. $14 per person). REGISTRATION INFORMATION: Please let us know by reply email-a) participant name(s), b) email(s), c) Meeting for each participant, and d) which two workshops you prefer to attend. (NOTE: If you are interested in more than two workshops, but cannot attend them all, we will have extra copies of resource materials that you may take with you back to your Meeting.) Also, please tell us if you need child care or have any other special needs. Our final date for responses will be Mon., 3/19/18.
Celebrating 40 Years of Celebration of Discipline: Empowering Spiritual Transformation in the Local Church
It’s hard to believe, but Richard Foster’s now-classic book on the spiritual disciplines is entering its fifth decade! It truly is one of the most influential books in creating spiritual renewal among followers of Jesus worldwide. This is the final year that Richard will be doing public speaking, and he has requested that a conference be held in Newberg, where he taught and served in pastoral ministry, when his book was written and published in 1978. This conference is especially designed for pastors and church leaders, but all interested in going deeper into their relationship with Christ are welcome. Special features of the conference include plenary sessions by outstanding leaders, workshops on the disciplines, inspiring music, times of prayer and spiritual deepening, and personal reflection on the illuminative artwork of five volumes of The Saint John’s Bible. Plenary speakers include: Richard and Nathan Foster, Robin Baker, Juanita and Rudy Ramsus, Chris Hall, and Mimi Dixon. More information is available online: https://renovare.org/40/fox. A time-sensitive notice: the $40 early registration break expires March 1, and fifty $100 scholarships have been offered to pastors and church staff members registering before May 1; alternatively fifty $100 scholarships for George Fox University students, faculty and staff are available for those registering before May 1. Please consider coming to the conference, and do let others know as well. For more information, contact Paul Anderson, Professor of Biblical and Quaker Studies at George Fox University (panderso@georgefox.edu).
