Reports

Britain Yearly Meeting Gathering

A letter from Mike Johnson

Dear Friends,

I am sorry I am unable to be with you this lunchtime and share personally my experience of this year's Yearly Meeting Gathering, but I am away with my family camping. Felicity kindly offered to read this letter to you on my behalf, for which I am grateful. I shall be with you in spirit as you share together.

I consider myself privileged to have attended this year's ‘Yearly Meeting Gathering' held at Canterbury, Kent, in company with five Friends from Aylsham. Their fellowship throughout the week was precious. I had a marvellous week. I made many new friendships and renewed some old ones. The event was well organized and ran like clockwork. No doubt the organizers had their problems behind the scene but they did not show. They and the helpers must all be given full credit for their efforts in making this event so successful. Besides BYM, which continued throughout the week, numerous other events were arranged and offered a wealth of choices. This allowed gatherers to construct their own unique experience.

For myself, I concentrated mainly on BYM and learning how the Quaker business process worked. Here, I witnessed some excellent clerking as well as good ministry. The theme of this year's gathering was ‘Growing in the spirit: changing the way we live to sustain the world we live in'. Throughout the week Friends led by the Spirit discerned this theme. During the last tense, but spirit filled, morning a final minute was produced that truly reflected the Meeting.

I saw the Quaker way of business in action on a large scale. Learnt how all the various representative bodies interacted with each other. I now have a much better understanding about Trustees and Meeting for Sufferings. I leant what the ‘Sense of Meeting' actually means and its importance. How the process works and the results it achieves. I see how vital the process is in seeking the sense of the meeting for all our business meetings.

From listening to other Friends during BYM, I am now reflecting on the way I live my life. What the effects it may have on people elsewhere in the world. How can I change my way of life so as to live in harmony with the world and all living beings. I agree with Ghandi in that I need to be the change I wish to see in the world. It is here the Quaker way is helping me. By looking to the light within, holding my thoughts there and following its guidance, then I know can implement that change.

Apart from BYM experiences I would like to mention one small insignificant incident that keeps coming to my mind. Wednesday was designated ‘Do something Different' day. I decided to do an eight mile walk, which in fact turned out to be ten. For various reasons I did not enjoy my day out and arrived back to my room a grumpy old man. Later, while leaving my accommodation block a young girl, aged about 16 yrs, overtook me. We looked at each other and I asked her if she was enjoying herself. ‘Yes', she replied confidently. For the next three minutes or so we walked towards the Gathering tent together and chatted about JYM. She was vibrant and full of vitality. At the tent we parted. Instantly, I became aware that her mood had rubbed off on me. My mood changed to one of peace and contentment. This mood remained with me as I dealt with other Friends, while working on the pastoral care desk. I passed it onto others. Afterwards I reflected that if we could all just give peace and contentment to two other people every day and they passed it on to two other people and so forth, how much happier this world would be. Being the change I wish to see in the world.

Many other incidents keep coming to mind, like the wonderful clerking I witnessed, the treasurer during his report who raised his eyes to heaven to give thanks to those who had left legacies, spoken prayer and singing as ministry, the Swarthmore and George Gorman lectures, and much more.

Never, shall I forget my first Yearly Meeting Gathering. I enjoyed it immensely. Found it stimulating and inspiring. I leant a lot. So much happened that I am still absorbing the experience and shall for some time.

I am thankful to you, my local Friends, who encouraged and helped me to attend my first YMG. It is an experience I believe all Quakers could have and would urge them to attend at least once in their life time. I know I shall always cherish my first time. Throughout the whole experience, from making my application, the journey, the participating and returning home, I have been shown nothing but love and support by Friends. I trust that what I bring back from Canterbury will not only be worthy of that love and support, but add to the rich spiritual life we share here in Aylsham.

Michael Johnson

and a report from Felicity Cox

My Yearly Meeting Gathering – Canterbury July 30 to 6 August 2011

The big top was a huge blue tent, held up by two main poles. There was a gantry suspended along the length of the roof, held up by a scaffold -like pillar next to each tent pole. As well as the loudspeakers, an array of very hot lights was attached to this gantry . The lights were aimed to the front as well as the back. I believe those seated at the table found it hard to see beyond the brightness of the lights into the seating of the 1500 Friends gathered there. Despite the lighting it was almost dark in the big top; the dark blue of the plastic covering kept out the light. It was hot inside, with the lights and the sun beating down on the roof. Except when it rained. Air conditioning had not been installed in the interests of sustainability.

Friends standing to speak were practically invisible in the gloom giving the Clerk and the microphone carriers difficulty in locating them. I couldn't get a feeling of being a gathered meeting in this tent, until the Friday morning, at the end of the week, when we were meeting for the session which finalised the Epistle. Then, at last I felt we were gathered.

For me in that session. what had threatened to persist as a disparate group of people, all with their own strongly held beliefs as to how to sustain our planet, somehow melded into a single flowing unity with ministry connecting and strengthening.

During the week, the Quaker process of bringing our various expertise, knowledge and lack of knowledge together threatened to overwhelm us, as the task of trying to find a way to bring us with our planet back from the brink of self destruction, took on more and more significance over the days.

After the first sessions it was clear that our Clerk was truly gifted. Her handling of this large meeting and her minutes were examples of clarity, thoughtfulness and deep and careful preparation. Her reminders to a meeting too often forgetful of quakerly behaviour were kind but firm.

I had a very supportive, innovative and friendly Anchor Group which I joined every day. I was booked into an early sitting for supper at 5 o'clock. At first I did wonder about that, but as it turned out, the timing was a gift, leaving me plenty of time for my Anchor Group and then whatever the evening was to hold.

Workshops I went to: A spiritual basis to sustainable living – with Alex Wildwood

Following an introductory talk by Alex, we worked in pairs exploring the theme in relation to ourselves, our friendships and our world. I have the questions which can be used individually, or for a group together.

Then we went outside into a nearby glade where we lay down amongst the grass and thorns and trees, looking at the sky between the branches and listening as Alex spoke of our earth and our connections with it. We ended with holding hands with another human being with our eyes shut to deepen our connection.

Appreciative Enquiry. Quaker Life has taken this process and turned it into a theme called Explorations. I need to study it more, but in a nutshell it is a way of exploring by asking positive as opposed to negative questions, thus not getting bogged down in what's going wrong, but rather exploring what is going well, opening out into what else could we do? So, the question, what are we doing right? is a good starter. Then, What else could we do? How could we do it? What's the first thing to do? What's next?

Again, useful for personal contemplation or for a group or whole meeting to explore a theme together.

I joined an ad hoc get-together with Rex Ambler and a number of Friends who have Light Groups in their meetings. It was a time of asking for clarity and refreshment with various difficulties these groups can encounter. Some meetings are large and have two large groups meeting at different times. Some are very small with sometimes just two Friends meeting together.

I was able to ask questions in respect of our own Light Group. Rex Ambler's thoughtful responses are proving most helpful to us and we are looking forward to bringing the outcomes of practicing them back to our Meeting in the next Light Group report in the autumn.

I also joined a lovely Qi Qong group in the early mornings. We met on the brow of the hill with Canterbury spread out below us, hiding as it does from the campus amongst the trees, and at that time of day just beginning to emerge through the morning mist.

I enjoyed hearing Tony Benn give his lecture and was astonished at some highly unQuakerly applauding and shouting for microphones to ask questions. We turned into an unruly rabble that evening.

Pam Lunn gave us her Swarthmore Lecture. For me it wasn't so much what she was saying, important and deeply thought provoking though it was, it was her delivery. She was calm and measured and a role model for us as we begin to pick up on living the theme, Sustainability and spirituality in challenging times – Costing not less than everything.

The atmosphere that evening was very different – the lecture was received into a quakerly silence and we were able to let her words and demeanour sink in.

The next day small groups of around 50 to 60 Friends were formed and distributed themselves throughout the campus. They were each given a question in response to the Swarthmore Lecture. In my group it became apparent how difficult and yet not impossible is the task we have before us. Difficult, because there are as many ways to sustainability as there are Friends. However, after we went through this first exercise it began to emerge that it would be possible to bring all these strands together, through listening and discernment and trusting the Quaker way.

Eventually all was indeed brought together in our Epistle, ... in the final Minute, and indeed, in the press release. They are all to be found on the BYM website via our own website . We have a way forward. We have a path to walk which, in the usual tradition, we cannot know where it will lead. We will have help from every meeting collated and sent on through Friends House, and we will not be alone. We will learn to work alongside the many other groups which exist , and which will exist, both from within and beyond Friends, to fulfil our imperative to revive and renew our Quaker community and our world.

During the week, our group from Aylsham, Sue Sharpe, Sue Lake, Mike Johnson, David Alston and myself were always very aware of the other member of our meeting there who could not join us in the big top. Jenny Routledge was working extremely hard at the Pastoral Care desk. Jenny was always to be found there whenever any of the rest of us went to the Gathering Tent.

The Gathering Tent was where you went for information, lists, updates, daily bulletins, refreshments, meeting up with friends, the pigeon holes for messages, tables and chairs to sit around, AND the Pastoral Care desk. Jenny did join us for the Swarthmore Lecture, but otherwise she was hard at work looking after the myriad of needs generated by 1500 souls, some very young, and, indeed, some definitely not so young. The saga of the hit and run disabled buggy will go down in the annals !

We had a ‘place' in the big top which we would aim for and it was always a pleasure to see our Aylsham Friends sitting there and to join them, or to see one of us making their way up the tiers of seats to join us. Lucy Parker from Norwich Meeting often joined us there and sometimes we found ourselves near Ann Ray and Sylvia Stevens too. Danene Rogers and Anne Roff spent the time creating a beautiful quilt with many other Gatherers, young and old, which goes with love from BYM to Kenya for the Friends World Conference in 2012.

We had a ‘place' too in the enormous dining room which we gravitated towards where one or other of us would most likely already be seated. So we joined together for meals whenever possible. Conversations with Friends from all over the country were most likely to happen over meals . We enjoyed re-meeting Denise Gabuzdo and her husband, as well as lots of others.

The market stalls evening was almost overwhelming. So many Quaker groups doing so much good work all over the world, and at home. Again, though, the big top was dark and it was quite difficult moving around and seeing everything. I brought home a collection of information and some DVD's of work being done by Friends.

On the Do Something Different Day I joined Sue Lake and we drove to Broadstairs. We had a lovely walk along the cliff – top path through a seemingly everlasting wild flower meadow growing on the chalk down , full of beautiful plants and butterflies. We had a splendid lunch and then down on the front we found a karaoke singer belting out 50's classics which we joined with gusto. We drove back to Canterbury much refreshed !

My week was full of impressions, thought provoking information, and friendship. With the company of our Friends from Aylsham it has been a marvellous experience. Without them it just wouldn't have been the same. For me, our friendship and fellowship together was what made the week such a memorable and lovely time, as well as giving us a base of understanding together of the process BYM has gone through this year.