Dalai Lama Visit

Dalai Lama to visit Sun Valley
September stay here will kick off U.S. tour
By DANA DUGAN

The Dalai Lama is scheduled to visit the Wood River Valley in September, announced Kiril Sokoloff, a Ketchum resident and prominent investment researcher.

A personal friend of the Dalai Lama, Sokoloff said Monday that His Holiness would bring his message of compassion to Sun Valley during the anniversary of 9/11. Sokoloff said the formal invitation was offered by Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne and was accepted by His Holiness.
In the letter Kempthorne expressed a desire for Idaho children to be able to meet with His Holiness, and he agreed to hold a special session with children during his visit, Sokoloff said. The dates of the Dalai Lama's visit here will be Sept. 10 through Sept. 15. The visit will mark the beginning of a tour in the United States.

Sokoloff said he intends to invite corporate CEOs to an audience with His Holiness in an effort to "restore trust in large corporations." The Dalai Lama also will address a general audience, conduct private audiences and hold a press conference.

During his stay, the Dalai Lama will bless a prayer wheel that will stay in Sun Valley, Sokoloff said. Tibetan prayer wheels, or Mani wheels, are devices for spreading spiritual blessings and well-being.
Sokoloff is the president of 13D Research, an investment research group, based in Boca Raton, Fla., and Ketchum.
In 2001, Sokoloff hosted the Dalai Lama's sister Jetsun Pema, the director of the Tibetan Childrens' Villages in India, during a visit to the valley.

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, is the spiritual and temporal leader of the 6 million Tibetan people. Born Lhamo Dhondup on July 6, 1935, to a peasant family, His Holiness was recognized at the age of two as the reincarnation of his predecessor the 13th Dalai Lama. His Holiness is an incarnation of Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion.

Because of the Chinese invasion of Tibet in 1949, there are more than 120,000 Tibetan refugees in India, Nepal, Bhutan, and in the West. Since 1960, His Holiness has resided inDharmasala, India, which serves as the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile.

A personal thought from....me.

I do not accept any absolute formulas for living. No preconceived code can see ahead to everything that can happen in a man's life. As we live, we grow and our beliefs change. They must change. So I think we should live with this constant discovery. We should be open to this adventure in heightened awareness of living. We should stake our whole existence on our willingness to explore. ''Non foras ire, in interiore homine habitat veritas. (Go not without, for within man dwells the truth.)''

A thought on Truth

God has made many doors opening into truth, which he opens to all who knock upon them with hands of faith.

A thought on Silence

There is a divine force that flows in silence like the sap in the flesh of a tree. It is a force we can come to know through others, a force that springs within ourselves erasing our sense of difference from the divine.

A thought on the Inner Light

God has placed in each soul a true guide to the great light, but humanity struggles to find life outside him or herself, unawares that the life we are seeking is within ourselves.

Inspired by the Lebanese poet Kahlil Gibran

Mailing from the Quaker Economist

The History of Economic Development
While a Visiting Scholar at Harvard in 1980, I began writing a bookthat was ultimately named Centuries of Economic Endeavor. For fourteenyears I labored on it until it was published (University of MichiganPress, 1994). It received rave reviews in ten scholarly journals (onereviewer even said I was "the new Max Weber," a well-knownsociologist). In the first two years thousands of copies were sold. SoI waited for the New York Times to call me for my opinion on somerelated news issue, as they often do to economists. After two years,sales dropped precipitously, and the Times hadn't called (they stillhaven't).I compared my book with many others on economic development and boldlydecided mine was the best. Why, after a roaring start, had it beensuch a flop in the market? Several possibilities popped into my mind,among them that it was radically different from current theories.Economists have generally thought that development happens in a decadeor two, and they can make it happen. My book said it happened slowly,over centuries, and no one can make it happen.Despite its "popular" prose, economists were my target. But the bookwent out of print, and the copyright has just reverted from press toauthor. I still think I have some new ideas that ought to beheard. So, in a short time I will put them on the web, under a newtitle: "The History of Economic Development." In the meantime, Ipropose to you an abridged (and edited) version of the first six pagesof Chapter 1. Here it is:Why do Japan, northwestern Europe, North America, and Australia andNew Zealand lead the world in economic development, and why are theirprosperity, infrastructure, and standards of living far, far greaterthan those of the less developed zones?The ultimate explanation of economic development--I will argue--thuslies not in economic factors, such as land, labor, and capital, oreven in social forces, such as education, religion, andentrepreneurship. Rather, all these will be added when most peoplelearn, as the Japanese and northwestern Europeans did, that it is goodbusiness to be just and considerate toward one's neighbors; to solvequarrels peacefully; to be held accountable for the efficient use ofresources; and to abide by modes of behavior--hereafter calledinstitutions--that have been negotiated and agreed by interestedparties.More than in other regions, as far back as the twelfth and thirteenthcenturies many corporate economic interest groups were being formed innorthwestern Europe and Japan. At first these included guilds,churches, fief holders, village assemblies, and armies. Over thecenturies political parties, labor unions, farmers' unions, consumercooperatives, lobbies for industries, and more were added. Eachinterest group possessed a structure by which it might negotiate as abody with other interest groups. A society of many corporate interestgroups will be called a pluralist society in this book. Other types ofpluralism--such as many educational systems, religions, and ethnicgroups--followed. Corporate interest groups did exist in other partsof the world, but they did not form the critical mass necessary forpower and economic development.In this book, power means the ability to influence or direct thebehavior of others. Power is an economic good, either a capital goodlike machinery (capable of yielding other products for its possessor)or a consumer good (enjoyed for its own sake). It has costs andbenefits. The costs may be monetary, but they may also lie in othersacrifices, such as the number of fellow citizens killed in war. Poweris tradable for money or for other goods, and one may hold more orless of it. Thus power shares the major attributes of other economicgoods and services.In both Japan and northwestern Europe, the methods, rules, andinstruments of policy and exchange were fashioned primarily bypowerful corporate groups that possessed interests in common. Moneyand banking, commercial law, rules of the market, corporateenterprise, government bureaucracies, and ultimately parliamentarydemocracy were created in this way. Furthermore, in Japan andnorthwestern Europe, plus cultural descendants of the latter, theinstitutions of economic development are held in place by a balance ofpower among interest groups, which have created an interlockingsociety. The institutions so fit into each other, like pieces in ajigsaw puzzle, that none can be displaced without the whole societyunraveling. Groups with a preponderance of power have vested interestsin many of the institutions, so they prevent the unraveling.As nobility, kings, or church competed with one another innorthwestern Europe and Japan, peasant groups might ally themselveswith either side, demanding greater power or freedom if their sidewon. If their side lost, they would bide their time until the nextoccasion. These arrangements, across social clusters, will be calledvertical alliances. Reference will also be made to verticalcommunication, vertical contracts, vertical negotiation, verticalbargaining, and the like. The application of vertical alliances toenhance power is referred to as leverage. The power-diffusion processconsists in repeated instances of vertical alliances with leverage,hundreds and thousands of times over centuries, with power becomingincrementally more balanced each time. "More" balanced means thatlower-level groups gained in their ability to thwart (or promote) thegoals of upper-level groups. In no society has this process led to acomplete balance of power, nor would one even know what "complete"would be.Up to medieval times, power was centralized in a few eliteseverywhere in the world, in ways similar to those found in lessdeveloped zones today. But in northwestern Europe and Japan, overtime it became diffused among more and more persons and organizedgroups. The pertinent question becomes not why power is stillcentralized in less developed zones today but why it became lesscentralized in today's more developed zones.Power diffusion in Japan and northwestern Europe was initiated insimilar ways, and it continued in matching ways for at least sevencenturies. In the next five chapters I will show examples of how bothsocieties developed a growing balance of power among economic interestgroups and how this balance led toward institutions that were bothequitable and growth-promoting. Power diffusion also fostered liberaleconomic attitudes, along with parliamentary democracy, widespreadownership of assets, and decentralized decision making. These are whatled to durable economic development.Why Europe and Japan? Why not Africa and Asia? We can only guess. Myguess is in the book, so you'll have to read it to see. I've run outof space here.I hope this abridgment will lead Friends to want to read the book.Sorry, however, it is no longer in print. But just wait a bit, andyou'll find it free, on the web, with links from the TQE home page(http://tqe.quaker.org/) and from my academic home page(http://spot.colorado.edu/~powelsoj.Sincerely your friend,Jack Powelson

For Religious Seekers

For Religious Seekers
A Quaker Perspective
Are you looking for an understanding of God that is viable in today's world? We invite you to join with us in our continuing search for Divine leadership in our lives. We believe that God is very much present and eager to be alive to everyone, anywhere, any time and in any way. All that is needed is for us to be open to listening and talking with the Divine.
Are you looking for others who believe that we need not limit ourselves through secularism and materialism? We encourage you to identify with us in our belief that purposeful living is fundamentally spiritual, permeating every aspect of our lives.
Do you desire support in seeking out the precious nature of every individual? We welcome you as a fellow seeker in a religious society which believes that something of the Divine is implanted within each of us at birth. While we treasure individuality, we find it best tempered through the wisdom of the group, which seeks Divine Guidance.
Are you seeking haven in a world which may not be in pace with your needs? We invite you to our fellowship as we strive to simplify our lives and gain a sense of inner peace for living in times like these.
Do you wish to join with us to help in finding ways to implement the historic peace testimony of Friends "to oppose all wars and preparation for wars? "We would welcome your active support as we counter the military might of our own and other nations.
Do you wish to discover how you, as an individual, can help to create a better world? We would like to point to the many projects in which Quakers are involved - locally, nationally and internationally -in our aspirations to bring freedom, justice and more creative living to people in many places. We encourage you to work with us in some of these important undertakings.
Do you seek a religious home, without creeds or required statements of belief? Then join with us. Friends offer you a creedless place of worship and religious community. While there is much that binds us together, Quakers stress the primacy of the individual 's genuine experience of the Divine and recognize that this experience can be described in many ways. (Perhaps our unique insight is to trust one another to find our won relationship rather than establishing an absolute. )
Do you desire to wait upon God in an expectant silence without the presence of intermediaries? We invite you to join with us in meeting for worship where we do not have the complications and diversions of ritual and programs. We believe that in such periods of quiet waiting we can be open to spiritual resources which will enable us to live more calmly, more compassionately and more creatively in this chaotic age.
Do you wish to reclaim the best in the Judea-Christian tradition? Help us rediscover Jesus of Nazareth as the great revealer of the grandeur of God and to explore the truths in other religions.
Are you looking for meaningful spiritual community? We invite you to join with us. Friends point out that our meetings are intended as homes away from home -caring communities, spiritual fellowships, societies of friends.
As you come to know us better, you will realize that this is an idealistic statement of Friends. It is what we aim to accomplish, not what we are always able to achieve.
You will discover our shortcomings, our faults and our failures. We are not saints. Becoming a Quaker brings with it no halo, no plaque for perfection, no passport for heaven. It is more like a learner 's permit for the lifelong journey toward truth and fulfillment -a journey made more meaningful and easier by the companionship of other seekers

When you're the only Friend in town, from the FGC Library

When You're the Only Friend in Town:
Starting a New Friends Meeting
Approved by the Friends General Conference Advancement and Outreach Committee, March 10, 2001.
Community is a central part of the Religious Society of Friends. Quakers gather together to worship because something happens in a gathered meeting that does not happen when we meditate or pray alone. We discern God's will for us not just as individuals, but as a corporate body. We share our light with each other, support each other, and help each other test our leadings and insights. It is possible to believe in Quaker teachings in complete isolation, but it is only possible to practice Quakerism as part of a group.
This poses a problem for Friends and potential Friends who find themselves living in an area where there is no Quaker meeting. These may be long time members who have relocated to a new area, or seekers who are attracted to Quaker principles but may have never met another Quaker. In order to practice Quakerism, they need a meeting nearby. What can one do?
Connect to the Quaker Network
The first step is to find the nearest Friends meetings or churches, however far away, as well as the yearly meetings (regional networks of local meetings) which serve your area. The web can be enormously helpful here. Try www.quaker.org, or contact the Quaker Information Center for names and addresses.
A word of warning to newcomers: Quakers come in many varieties. Some practice unprogrammed or "silent" worship; others have church services much like mainstream Protestant denominations. Some expect their members to subscribe to basic Christian creeds, while others are open to a wide variety of language and experience of the Divine. You may need to do some exploration in order to find the kind of Quaker community you want. The information in this pamphlet is intended primarily for those interested in the unprogrammed and non-creedal branch of the Religious Society of Friends.
If you are in doubt about the type of Quakerism prevalent in your part of the country, contact the nearby yearly meetings and ask for a copy of their Book of Discipline, often called "Faith and Practice." Contact the meetings or churches nearest you and ask for information about their worship services. If at all possible, visit the nearest meeting, or the meeting which seems most like what you are looking for.
Normally, new worship groups are started "under the care" of an established meeting. This gives the new group a place to turn for advice and support, and lays the groundwork for becoming part of the Quaker network. If you can't find a nearby meeting interested in sponsoring your group, consider establishing a relationship with a distant one-perhaps the meeting you moved from, or some other meeting you have connections with. Or you can start out on your own, knowing that eventually you will have to find a sponsoring meeting or group.
Find Other People Who Share Your Interest
Even if you find a Friends meeting willing to support you, it may be hours away. To get your worship group started, you will need at least a few other people in your immediate area with whom to worship each week. Family members, co-workers and neighbors are all possibilities. The Friends World Committee for Consultation may be able to give you the names of scattered Friends in your area. You can also ask any nearby college whether they have students who registered their religious preference as "Quaker" or "Friend." By all means contact the Traveling Ministries Program of Friends General Conference. They would love to hear about your worship group, and have many resources that might be useful to you.
You might also advertise in a local paper that you are trying to start a Quaker meeting. Announce a time and place for an initial planning meeting, and see who might turn up.
Select an Easily Accessible Meeting Place and Time
Many groups meet in homes at the beginning, and later move to a more public location. Possible meeting places include churches, private schools, community centers, or business locations, where meetings can be scheduled around other functions. Homes provide an intimate setting, but newcomers will be more likely to attend if the meeting is in a public place.
You may want to meet monthly, or ever other week at the beginning. As soon as possible you should establish a consistent meeting time and place, so that newcomers and irregular attenders can easily find the meeting.
Publicity
Before the first meeting, contact any Friends or Friends meetings within an hour or two away, as well as your sponsoring meeting (if any). Post notices in the local newspaper's church or public announcement section, in free papers, and on community, college, library, store or local TV bulletin boards. Offer an article to local papers, and include names of local people who may be contacted about the new meeting. Friends Journal, Quaker Life, the yearly meeting newsletter, or one of the Quaker web sites may publish an announcement about the new group.
Welcoming, Worshiping, and Planning for Children
From the beginning the new group needs a contact person/correspondent to provide and receive information for the group, and to respond to inquiries by seekers. The new group also needs to identify who will set up and "host" meeting for worship. This may be an individual or a rotating responsibility. The host or "acting clerk" may also take responsibility for helping the meeting to settle at the beginning and for shaking hands with a neighbor to close the meeting.
Many groups will also need someone prepared to provide childcare or a children's program. Often small meetings have few if any children, or children attend irregularly. However, parents feel more comfortable knowing their children are welcome and will be attended to. Some new meetings arrange for age-appropriate reading materials to be used in worship; some provide for quiet play in a nearby room where a babysitter or adult volunteer can provide supervision. When the meeting is ready for a more formal children's program, a plan may be tailored to suit the needs of the children. The Religious Education Committee of the yearly meeting or Friends General Conference can assist in providing material and creative ideas for structuring a First Day School (Sunday School) program.
Vocal Ministry
Some basic guidelines are helpful. Friends need not be afraid of living silence. Friends are responsible for sharing even the simplest message that comes. Friends usually allow a period of silence between speakers and rarely, if ever, are moved to speak twice in a meeting for worship. A good guideline is to ask oneself: "will what I have to say add to the depth of the meeting?" Some meetings follow worship with a time for "afterthoughts," when Friends may share thoughts which came to them in worship, but did not seem to carry the weight of "messages."
Unprogrammed meeting for worship is unique to Quakerism, and may be puzzling to new members. Get together to talk about what happens in meeting for worship, when it is appropriate to speak, and what speaking out of the silence feels like. There are wonderful resources available through QuakerBooks of FGC and Pendle Hill to enrich these discussions. The FGC Traveling Ministries Program or your sponsoring meeting may be able to help you find "seasoned" Friends who could meet with you and nurture this discussion.
Time for Fellowship
Allowing time before or after worship to share backgrounds, concerns, hopes and leadings is essential to defining the group, determining its purpose, and helping each other explore the life of the spirit. Many meetings share a simple meal after meeting for worship. This provides a wonderful opportunity for fellowship, and will be especially welcome where attenders have to travel long distances to the meeting.
Supporting an Ongoing Group

Reaching Out
The meeting will draw more visitors if it has a consistent meeting time and place. Meet every week if possible, even if only one or two people can be there. Advertise when and where meetings will be held, or advertise the phone number of a contact person who can provide that information. Have a sign identifying the meeting, giving the time of worship, and welcoming visitors. You can use a portable sandwich board, which can be set on a walkway or front lawn. Put a welcoming sign on the door visitors will pass through, so they know where to enter. Take turns being at the door to greet new attenders. Offer literature on Friend's worship to first time attenders-a wide variety is available from Friends General Conference. Put out a monthly meeting newsletter. Invite visitors to join you for refreshments or lunch after worship. Make sure you have their phone number and address. Follow up with phone calls or notes, copies of the meeting newsletter and invitations to special events or fellowship opportunities.
Records
Keep a guest book. Ask visitors to sign up to be added to the meeting's mailing list. Keep the mailing list up to date. Keep a complete record of meeting events, correspondence, newsletters or general mailings and minutes from business meeting. A bulletin board, photo album or meeting scrapbook enhances communication and helps preserve the history of the meeting.
Telephone
As soon as possible, procure a separate phone number for the meeting. This can be a voice mail box only, or a separate phone in a member's home. The separate number allows the group to be listed in the phone books. To help strangers find the meeting, arrange for a yellow pages listing under Churches-Friends with a cross-reference listing under Churches-Quaker, as well as white pages listings under Friends Meeting (with a cross reference to Quakers), followed by the name of your worship group.
An answering machine on the group's phone or voice mail message should include the time and place of meeting for worship, directions and an invitation to the caller to leave a message asking for more information. Check regularly for messages, especially as the weekend nears, and respond promptly to requests for information.
Until you have a separate meeting phone, designate a faithful attender to be the meeting contact. Make sure your sponsoring meeting and yearly meeting have the name of the contact person.
Formalizing the Young Meeting
When the worship group is firmly established, it may be ready to move toward formal affiliation with the Religious Society of Friends. Monthly meetings are the legal units within the Religious Society of Friends. They have the authority to oversee marriages, accept a convinced attender into membership and offer support for positions of conscience. They also serve as the testing ground for individual leadings, and the corporate body which can forward concerns to the yearly meetings for consideration.
Ordinarily the first step toward becoming a recognized monthly meeting is to ask your sponsoring meeting to give you formal recognition as an indulged or preparative meeting. The Book of Discipline in your yearly meeting will explain the requirements and procedures. This formal relationship allows you to take advantage of the legal standing of the parent group. Your attenders can become members of the Religious Society of Friends through the parent meeting. The parent meeting can approve weddings under the care of your meeting. Formal affiliation also permits donations to be tax-deductible, and may give you a sales tax exemption certificate for meeting purchases.
Some meetings may remain in the "preparative" stage for decades. Others quickly find themselves ready to take on the responsibilities of a monthly meeting. When there is clearness, the new group may apply to the yearly meeting for recognition as a monthly meeting, capable standing on its own.
As you become a preparative meeting, and then a monthly meeting, you will need to establish close ties to your yearly meeting. Make sure your group is on the yearly meeting mailing list. This will automatically connect you to national and international Quaker organizations with which the yearly meetings affiliate, like Friends General Conference, the Friends World Committee for Consultation, Friends Committee on National Legislation and others. Take advantage of the opportunity to meet with other Friends at yearly meeting sessions, or larger Quaker gatherings.
Meetings for Business
It is generally good practice to meet for business monthly. The small new meeting generally functions as a "committee of the whole" until there are enough active members to form separate committees. Decision making among Friends is based on a "sense of the meeting" or agreement by those participating. Positions of responsibility usually include clerk, treasurer, recording clerk and committee clerks or contact persons.
Keep minutes of all business meetings. Items dealing with meeting policy, membership and other important issues are recorded or "minuted" and may be needed for legal and other reasons in future years. Keep copies of all correspondence. Telephone communications of important meeting business should be confirmed in writing. Maintain two copies of minutes and important documents in separate locations on acid free paper. The yearly meeting or parent monthly meeting can help with storage and preservation of records.
A simple calendar or monthly listing of annual business and financial responsibilities can help avoid confusion. A phone tree and/or e-mail list can be invaluable. It is helpful to circulate a "meeting directory," or up to date listing of attenders at least once a year. A newsletter or calendar of upcoming events will help keep everyone informed and raise levels of interest and participation.
Committees
When you are ready to create committees, do not feel that you have to set up all possible committees right away. Too many committees can overburden a young meeting. Start with a small group to oversee the meeting for worship and handle pastoral care issues. This is often called "Ministry and Nurture" or "Worship and Ministry." One or two people may be needed to work with the Treasurer on budget and finance issues. A contact person or small group can receive and share information and peace and social justice issues. You might need a few people to plan childcare or religious education, and a few more to oversee refreshments after meeting for worship. Be guided by the interests of your members. When a committee is no longer functioning, it should be laid down.
Summary
Planting the seed, and nurture a new Friends meeting may require patience and persistence. The first step is to gather and wait in the Light. It is vital to keep the new worship group spiritually centered and grounded as a loving supportive community. Avoid overextending the meeting; expect to experience ebbs and flows in attendance and participation. Friends tend to move slowly. It may take a few years, or many, to become a monthly meeting. Some groups prefer to remain a worship group indefinitely. What matters is that the members of the group support each other as they seek to live in harmony with the Divine Spirit.
"All things are best fulfilled in their own time and time there is for all things."-Milton, Paradise Regained

AFSC Newsletter

Toward Peace and Justice> The American Friends Service Committee's monthly e-newsletter>> In this issue:> - Help stop nuclear proliferation> - Support jailed Israeli conscientious objector> - Health and safety rollback in maquiladoras> - Learn how to be a better Africa advocate> - AFSC documents abuses on the Arizona-Mexico border> - Communities commemorate Iraq war anniversary>> ---------------------------------------------------------------->> Help Stop Nuclear Proliferation>> On May 2, the 188 nations that have ratified the Nuclear> Nonproliferation Treaty will gather for its five-year review> conference. At these conferences, signatory countries renew> their "irrevocable commitment" to address the dangers of nuclear> proliferation. Ominously, the Bush administration has refused> to agree to an agenda, signaling a hard line approach.>> Between now and the opening of the conference on May 2, it is> essential that we speak out strongly to tell our government that> a return to nuclear proliferation is not acceptable.>> Tell your senators to put U.S. weapons policy back on course:> http://ga3.org/campaign/nuclear_afsc/wibn6wk2f5jexjm>> ---------------------------------------------------------------->> Support Jailed Israeli Conscientious Objector>> As you may have read in last month's issue, AFSC sponsored the> "Faces of Hope" speaking tour, featuring Israeli conscientious> objector Eyal Brami. We hope that many of you had a chance to> attend an event.>> When Eyal returned to Israel, he refused induction to the> Israeli Defense Force on his March 22 recruitment date. He is> currently being held in an Israeli military prison for his> refusal. He anticipates meeting with the military's Conscience> Board in the upcoming weeks to defend his conscientious objector> status. He could face up to two years in prison for his decision> to refuse service.>> Read updates Eyal's case and learn more about Israeli COs:> http://ga3.org/ct/NdS22cp1mms4/>> Sign a letter of support for Eyal to the Israeli Ministry of> Defense:> http://ga3.org/ct/N7S22cp1mmsr/> (This page is also a portal to additional information about> nonviolent resistance and refusal activities in Israel and> Palestine.)>> ---------------------------------------------------------------->> Health and Safety Rollback in the Maquiladora Industry>> For more than a decade, gains in health and safety have> numbered among the most important achievements of maquiladora> activism. (The maquiladoras are the foreign- [mostly US-] owned> assembly plants that line Mexico's border with the United> States.) Now, however, increasing global competition has caused> an intensified assault on labor rights and working conditions in> the maquiladoras.>> A new report from the Comite Fronterizo de Obreras (CFO -> Border Workers Committee), AFSC's grassroots partner at the> border, highlights the growing health-and-safety problems faced> by maquiladora workers and how they are responding to this new> challenge. Read the report at> http://ga3.org/ct/2dS22cp1mms5/>>> Upcoming: Julia Quinonez, the CFO coordinator, and Ricardo> Hernandez, director of AFSC's Mexico-U.S. Border Program, will> be speaking about maquiladora issues at a conference in Oregon> and in several locations in the San Francisco Bay Area. For> tour details, see> http://ga3.org/ct/M7S22cp1mmsc/>>> Subscribe to the Border Program's new Updater, available in> English and Spanish, and stay in touch with maquiladora> activism.> English version:> http://ga3.org/ct/ApS22cp1mms3/> Spanish version:> http://ga3.org/ct/M1S22cp1mmse/>> ---------------------------------------------------------------->> You might also be interested in these programs and events:>> Learn how to be a better Africa advocate at AFSC's Bill> Sutherland Training Institute, June 23-25, 2005. This year's> theme is "Gender and the Politics of Inequality."> http://ga3.org/ct/MdS22cp1mmsd/>> To document and challenge potential abuses resulting from the> "Minuteman Project," which invites armed civilians to patrol the> U.S.-Mexico border, we've been recruiting and training volunteer> observers in Cochise County, Arizona. For more information, see> our press release at:> http://ga3.org/ct/NpS22cp1mmsf/>> On the second anniversary of the Iraq war, about 250> communities participated in AFSC's Stand for Peace events.> Thank you all for your participation! To read comments from the> events, please visit> http://ga3.org/ct/21S22cp1mmsv//>> ---------------------------------------------------------------->> Your Contribution Will Help Make AFSC's Work Possible> AFSC is able to work for peace, provide humanitarian relief,> and transform lives around the world only because of the support> we receive from people like you. To make a contribution call 1-> 888-588-2372 and learn about ways you can support AFSC.> There also are several ways to contribute online.> http://ga3.org/ct/MpS22cp1mmsB//

Our Initial Mailing

Hello Friends,

Attached you will find some of the information and materials that have been sent to me for distribution. As I mentioned in our last meeting I wanted to forward on to everyone the latest materials. I'm sorry to send so much at once but now that we are all caught up it we can expect smaller mailings of an occasional nature. I have most almost everybody's email at this time and would ask that each of us take the time to "Reply to All" providing us with all the names of the folks in your household and your contact information. This information will be reserved for our use only and will only be sent to the Yearly Meeting for their records.

(1) The latest issues of Universalist Friends to have been transcribed into electronic format.
(2) A report issued by the Christian Friends Conference latest gathering
(3) An email update from the QUG
(4) An E-book from the Friends at Pendle Hill (http://www.pendlehill.org/) in 3 parts
(5) In order to subscribe to FGC's free newsletter e-mail FGC Connections at connections@fgcquaker.org with your name and address.
(6) A sample copy of the newsletter What Can Thou Say?
(7) An informational pamphlet from the AFSC (http://www.afsc.org/) for military enlistees
(8) An informational pamphlet from the AFSC (http://www.afsc.org/) on the USA Patriot Act
(9) The last 4 copies of the FCNL (http://www.fcnl.org/index.htm) Newsletter
(10) A link to the latest online issue of BeFriending Creation the newsletter of Quaker Earthcare Witness (http://www.fcun.org/)can be found here.. http://www.fcun.org/pubs/newsletter26.html

Well....as you may or may not know there are a number of more things I could send along, If there is anything Friends are good at it is forming committees and publishing. I have tried to select the most timely materials from the sources that are available to me without making this initial mailing overly unwieldy. If there is some particular item you are looking for and have not found it in the material I have sent I will be happy to troll through my files and see if I have what you are looking for. But, at the moment we are all caught up as far as the mailings are concerned.

If you have not yet subscribed to the Friends Bulletin (http://westernquaker.net/friends_bulletin_subscription.htm) the official publication of the three western US Unprogramed or the Friends Journal (http://www.friendsjournal.org/subscribe/sample-c.html), an independent publication for unprogramed meetings please think about doing so. They offer free trial subscriptions and special pricing for new subscribers.

Please mark your calendars to remind yourself that we are having a get to know each other potluck on the afternoon of May 8th, details forthcoming.


Yours in Peace and Friendship,William (Bill) Haineshttp://twinfalls.quaker.org/

Quakerbooks Mailing

Dear Friends,
Each time I finish a catalog, I immediately hear about 5-10 items that really should have been included. I've learned not to get too distressed about this - I just begin my list of new titles for the next catalog right away. This year was no exception. Within three weeks my list of "Books that should have gone in the 2005 catalog" was 27 items long. Rather than waiting for the next catalog, I thought I'd let you all know about the best of this list in this issue of 'Book Musings.' There are some new books that are real gems and some reprints that I've been wanting for a long time.
After the catalog went to the printer I found the proofs for a book that is timely, inspiring, and deeply grounded in the Spirit on my desk. FWCC has just published Friends' Peace Witness in a Time of Crisis , a collection of essays/talks which grew out of the 2003 conference of that same name. FWCC brought 250 Friends "to gather in the spirit of prayer and openness to Divine Guidance, as a family of God spanning all traditions of Friends' meetings and churchs, to assist Friends to carry forth the peace witness in its many forms in the face of increasing danger of wars and terrorism." The voices and messages in this book are powerful and varied. The central theme is the importance of keeping focused on the question 'what does God require of us?' The book is divided into five sections: 'Spirit Led Peacemaking: A Sharing of Experience and Conviction,' 'Friends' Biblical and HIstorical Experience with the Peace Testimony,' 'Wrestling with the Peace Testimony,' 'Going to the Well/Taking up the Cross,' and 'Visioning and Empowering Peace Witness among Friends.' The long list of well-respected contributors includes Max Carter, Emma Lapsansky, Mary Lord, Jane Orion Smith, Ruby Braye, Larry Ingle, John Calvi, Deborah Fisch, Ben Richmond and Jan Wood. This book is not only an incredibly valuable contribution to the current ongoing dialogue about the Peace Testimony, but also a wonderful description of grappling with living one's faith in a challenging world.
The next resource also spans all branches of Friends. Coleman Barks and Betsy Blake decided to explore the question of the similarities and differences among Friends in their DVD Can We All Be Friends: A Boundary-Crossing Conversation . They interviewed Friends across the spectrum in Greensboro, North Carolina, home of one of the largest Quaker populations in North America. The questions asked included differences of worship, differences of theology, approaches to the testimonies, and how daily life reflects the conviction of faith. The result is a fascinating and thoughtful cross-congregation dialogue, which "gives voice to the current state of [our] rich religious tradition." This would be an excellent resource for First Day School or for any Friend trying to understand the divisions and common ground in the Religious Society of Friends. Sale of this DVD helps support the 2005 World Gathering of Young Friends.
I consider reading Anne Lamott a guilty pleasure. Maybe it's because she's so irreverent or because she's so funny or maybe because she is so unabashedly human in her writing. Her most recent book, a collection of essays which originally appeared on Salon.com called Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith, is just as scatterbrained and heartwarming as her earler Traveling Mercies . In this book, though, a constant theme is waking up each day with Bush in the White House and how she deals with that, how she maintains faith in this dark politcal time. She tells stories of her daily waking time - going to protest rallies, celebrating Thanksgiving with her son and his recently re-united dad, winning a ham at a supermarket on her birthday, dealing with the death of her mother, all the while struggling to hear God in midst of the craziness. "I try to listen for God's voice inside me, but my sense of discernment tends to be ever so slightly muddled. When God wants my attention, She clears her throat a number of times, trying to get me to look up, or inward - and then if I don't pay attention, She rolls Her eyes, makes a low growling sound, and starts kicking me under the table with Her foot."
A few weeks after I wrote the 'Book Musings' about literature that supports children's spiritual formation, I received a bibliography of children's and young adult books about Quakers from Kit Newman of Sacramento Friends Meeting. It's a good list, she's clearly read all the books and taken time to gather them together. If we could, we would carry each and every item listed, but they aren't all in print. To make sure that I hadn't missed anything, I went looking on the web for several of the books she included and, lo and behold, a few have recently been reprinted.
I've been hoping for years that more of Brinton Turkle's Obadiah picture books would come back into print and I found that two have recently been re-printed by a small homeschooling publisher. Both Rachel and Obadiah and Obadiah the Bold are available again. All of the Obadiah books depict a Quaker family in colonial Nantucket. In Rachel and Obadiah two siblings race one another to see who is able to carry an important message. The surprise ending contains gentle lessons on humility and generosity. In Obadiah the Bold Obadiah has a leading about what work he'd like to do while in meeting for worship that his siblings help him to discern may not be the right thing. He has a very gentle, reassuring talk with his father that helps him know there may be other alternatives.
The third book I found from Kit's list was Downright Dencey, another book set in Nantucket, this time in the 19th century for 9 year olds and up. She starred this book on her list and I'll just quote her description, "An excellent novel with depth and much dramatic tension. Dencey befriends the town's outcast boy against her mother's orders, using her understanding of divine love. [The] resolution is long and difficult. [The book presents] a vivid view of Quaker life and thought in early 19th century Nantucket." Thanks Kit!
The Librarian of Basra: a True Story from Iraq written and illustrated by Jeannette Winter is a moving story about a courageous Iraqi woman who tries to save the books in her library. She succeeded by hiding them in a restaurant and her house before the library burns in the war. Once the books are safe and "the beast of war moves on, ... Alia waits. She waits for the war to end. She waits, and dreams of peace. She waits... and dreams of a new library." Marianne Saccardi of School Library Journal said, "Although the invading country is never mentioned, this is an important story that puts a human face on the victims of war and demonstrates that a love of books and learning is a value that unites people everywhere." I would recommend this book for children ages 8 and up.
Because I want these book to be widely read and enjoyed, we will offer them at a 10% discount from now until Tuesday, May 3rd. No need to mention this message - anyone who orders these books during that time will receive the discount. It won't show when you order via the web, but we'll apply it before we process your order.
While riding my bike to the station this morning, a cardinal crossed my path. That and the fresh breeze lifted my Spirit. I hope that each of you is surrounded by the warmth and sweet re-creation of Spring.
In Friendship,
Lucy

FCNL Mailing

The violent death of humanitarian aid workers Marla Ruzicka and Faiz Ali Salim in a suicide bombing in Iraq this past weekend struck many of us with grief because she has been a regular visitor to the FCNL office in Washington. The organization she founded, the Campaign for Innocent Victims of Conflict (CIVIC), plays an important role in working to obtain U.S. government recognition of and financial support for the survivors of civilians killed or injured in armed conflict. We saw first-hand her commitment to the Iraqi people because FCNL played a small role in supporting Marla’s work as she began her project by serving as the fiscal agent for some of those donating to her projects.
Her death, and the death of her Iraqi colleague, Faiz Ali Salim (the father of a 2-month-old child), remind all of us of the violence that is continuing unabated in Iraq. Press reports suggest that at least 17 other Iraqis and 3 U.S. troops were killed on the same day as Marla and Faiz. Some reports suggest that most Iraqi deaths are simply uncounted. The U.S. military has refused since the start of the war to count Iraqi casualties.
Marla wouldn't stand for it. She fearlessly stood with the Iraqi's who had not voice, no power, no prospect of justice. She told me, "Joe, when I looked into their eyes, I just couldn't walk away and do nothing." Marla did something. She went straight to the U.S. authorities in Iraq and grabbed them by their epaulets and said, "You have a responsibility, and I'm not going to let go until you do something." She just wouldn't let the survivors of violent conflict go unnoticed, and she wouldn't allow the authorities to claim they didn't know what happened to individual people. She informed them face to face. And her Iraqi colleague Faiz exercised extraordinary courage in taking her where she needed to go, despite the terrible risks.
The headlines in the United States focus on the political dynamics and the negotiations to form the new government. Deaths are usually mentioned only if they are the deaths of U.S. nationals. But the reality for many Iraqis is that the situation on the ground is getting worse, not better, day by day (the FCNL Washington Newsletter that should be arriving in your mailboxes this week includes a personal account of what conditions on-the-ground in Iraq are like today).
The story of on-the-ground conditions in Iraq, however, is still not getting through to your elected leaders in Washington. This week, probably either late Tuesday or Wednesday, the U.S. Senate will almost certainly vote to approve tens of billions of dollars in additional funding for the war and occupation of Iraq. More and more senators are telling us that they believe the FCNL proposal that the Congress declare that the U.S. has no imperial intentions in Iraq is an important way to advance the debate on U.S. policy for Iraq. But we are still a long way from winning passage of an amendment affirming that it is the U.S. intention to withdraw all military troops and bases from Iraq.
I’m including at the bottom of this email links to the web site for Marla’s group, CIVIC, and to a very good statement released by Senator Patrick Leahy, who was a strong supporter of Marla’s work. Here at FCNL we will continue to honor the work of Marla and the tens of thousands of others who have died in the Iraq war and occupation by continuing to press Congress to declare that the U.S. has no imperial ambitions in Iraq. As I go into congressional offices, I’ll stop outside the door to silently remind myself – Marla, presente – before I go inside to engage congressional staff and members of Congress.
Joe VolkExecutive SecretaryFCNL