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weekly bfm bulletin and events |
Sunday, October 1, 2023
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Head of Meeting: Gale T.
Pastoral Care: If you have concerns about personal issues or questions about membership, Bethesda Friends Meeting, or Quaker faith and practice, please be in touch with our Friendly Ear, a member of the Pastoral Care Committee. This week the Friendly Ear is JIng H. (See your BFM Directory or use our Contact Us form). The Social Concern for October is the Interfaith Works housing program, which provides affordable housing and social services to homeless families in Montgomery County as they transition from homelessness to independence. Although Montgomery County is considered affluent, more than 72,000 residents live on incomes below the federal poverty line. Approximately 900 people are homeless, including 85 families with children. For more information, please use our Contact Us form. To donate to this Social Concern, please go to www.bethesdafriends.org/Donate-Online-Now. Clearly designate that your contribution is for this month's Social Concern. If you prefer, you may send your check, made payable to Bethesda Friends Meeting, to David M., Assistant Treasurer (see address in the BFM Directory, or use our Contact Us form). You are also welcome to donate to Bethesda Friends Meeting directly to support all Meeting activities via the same methods (online or by check). Meeting for Worship: Bethesda Friends worship together each Sunday at 11:00 a.m. Friends can participate in person at the Meeting House or remotely via Zoom. Participating in worship at the Meeting House. Friends are invited to gather in person at 11:00 a.m. for Meeting for Worship at the Meeting House. We are currently in COVID Risk Level 1. The policies for Risk Level 1 are included at the end of this bulletin. Participating in worship via Zoom. To join using Zoom, you can obtain the link in your weekly Bulletin or use our Contact Us form. Child and Youth care Child Care (children under 5) during Meeting for Worship. Child care will be available on non-holiday Sundays during 11:00 worship with two trained and paid child care providers. Families should go to the downstairs childcare room to sign in each child. First Day School (FDS, for children 5 and older) classes during 11:00 worship will be held on the first and third Sunday of each month during the school year. On the 2nd, 4th, and 5th Sundays, when there is no FDS, there will be Youth Care (multi-age playground supervision) during 11:00 worship. |
Young Friends (YF) September Conference. A YF conference will be held Friday September 29 at 7:00 p.m. through Sunday, October 1 at 12:00 p.m. YF conferences or “cons” are weekend retreats creating a special time for fellowship, discernment, and the fostering of youth leadership. Participation in YF cons is $75 per teen or pay as led. No one is turned away from a con because they don't have the funds. For details, including event location, and to register please visit this link and contact Sunshine Klein at youthprograms@bym-rsf.org. World Quaker Day on October 1 is an annual event to celebrate the diversity of global Quakerism and build connections to make our community stronger. World Quaker Day is an opportunity for Meetings and individuals to learn (by viewing the video on the theme for this year and reflecting on the queries offered), reflect (using the special prayer developed), and act (by sending greetings to other Meetings). The theme this year is Living the Spirit of Ubuntu: Responding with Hope to God’s Call to Cherish Creation and One Another. For details, visit https://fwcc.world/worldquakerday/ Meeting for Worship with a Concern for Business On Sunday, October 1 at 9:00 a.m., Bethesda F(f)riends will consider various business items via Zoom. How the Spirit will lead us in discernment of issues both large and small is part of the mystery that is the Religious Society of Friends. All who come to Meeting for Worship are welcome and encouraged to participate. This month we will hear reports from our Treasurer, the Change Group, and First Day School. Please use our Contact Us form for the Zoom link. Hal Weaver and The BlackQuaker Project, with special guest Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge, the director of the Quaker United Nations Office in Geneva, will present a showcase on recent developments in the BQP’s mission to give voice to Quakers of color around the globe, who comprise an overwhelming majority of the world's Friends but historically have not been given their due in leadership and concerns. This event will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 1 via Zoom. Please register to attend using this link. The presentation is co-sponsored by the Quaker Action for Racial Equality and the Quaker and Wider World Connections Clusters of Wellesley Friends Meeting. Comparative Religions: Introduction to Judaism. On October 3, the Comparative Religions class will begin a new session on Introduction to Judaism, which includes 24 lectures by Professor Shai Cherry of Vanderbilt University through The Great Courses. We meet weekly on Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. for a half-hour lecture followed by a half-hour discussion. All are welcome. Please contact Alex B. for details or use our Contact Us form for the Zoom link. October 3-31: Introduction to Quakerism. Friends Meeting of Washington (FMW) is offering an introductory class on Quaker faith and practice to be held Tuesdays from October 3 through October 31 from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. via Zoom only. The class consists of five sessions that provide a strong foundation of understanding as you begin your spiritual journey into the rich tradition of the Religious Society of Friends. Details of class are at this link. Register at this link. Bethesda Friends Meeting’s stay-at-home Mid-Week Worship by e-mail is on Wednesdays, from 8:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. While some of our regulars prefer to simply join in Spirit at the appointed time, others enjoy the brief connection provided by an email at the start and end of worship. At rise of meeting, those on that session's email list who are moved to do so may share experiences by reply-all. Friends wishing to join, please use our Contact Us form. Dayspring Silent Retreat for Friends. All are welcome to join a Silent Retreat for Friends from October 6 - 9 at Dayspring Retreat Center located at 11301 Neelsville Church Road, Germantown, MD 20876. Accommodations include an individual room in the Inn with Bible, bed, desk, sink, bed linens, blankets, towels and washcloth; 9 vegetarian meals in the Lodge and outdoors; gatherings for community worship in the Yoke Room and on the patio; shared solitude by the fireplace; and 200 acres for roaming. The cost is $335 per person. For questions or to register, please contact Jean Christianson at 410-908-1912 or jschristianson@gmail.com. Field trip to the Josiah Henson Museum and Park. On Sunday, October 8, at 2:00 p.m., the Peace & Social Justice Committee (P&SJ) is sponsoring a field trip to the recently opened Josiah Henson Museum and Park located at 11410 Old Georgetown Road, North Bethesda. The Josiah Henson Museum & Park tell the story about the life and challenges of Reverend Josiah Henson, enslavement in Maryland, and the ongoing struggles of racial equality and justice. Join us to experience interactive audio and visual presentations, explore the park, and engage in personal or group reflection. There is an entrance fee of $5 per adult and $4 for children and seniors. Children 5 and under are free. P&SJ will cover the entrance fee. Experiment with Light is a meditative and centering practice based upon Rex Ambler’s book Light to Live By, which describes early Quaker meditative habits and translates them into a highly accessible process of clearness and understanding. There will be a session on Sunday October 8 from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. Starting at 7:30 p.m., you can follow the prompts at home and write or draw responses you have experienced during those prompts: https://experiment-with-light.org.uk/meditations/. We usually use the meditation on the individual in modern language, full length, 37-minute version. Then, around 8:30 p.m., you can worship-share from your meditation experience in a Zoom gathering. Please use our Contact Us form for the Zoom link. Potluck Clarification. There will be no potluck at Rise of Meeting on October 8. A potluck tentatively scheduled for October 15 has been cancelled. Sidwell's Homecoming Weekend is on that date; it occupies all the school's kitchen workers and that means BFM Hospitality has no access to the Groome Building's kitchen. We will, however, have coffee hour in the Meetinghouse following Rise of Meeting on both days.
COVID-19 Rules for In-Person Meeting for Worship - Risk Level 1:
Click here for current rules and BFM's full Covid-19 information and policy. |
