Weekly Announcements as of 12.10.2023

Weekly Announcements

Reminder:

If you know of an event or a joy that you would like to see in the Weekly Announcements, please send the information to: communications@annapolisfriends.org

Coming Up:

The list of events below can also be viewed on the AFM website’s homepage or on the AFM Calendar.

Note: Titles link to the information down below for  greater detail and the word “Zoom” in the Coming Up section contains the link to the online meeting. 

Additional Topics:

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What’s News, Joys and Life Happenings

Friends are invited to share their News, Joys and Life Happenings with each other during Meeting for Worship, through the Weekly Announcements email, and on the AFM-Discuss. If you have joys to share, please contact Ellen M. at communications@annapolisfriends.org and the sharings will be added to our news, joys and life happenings section. It should be noted that inaccuracies may exist in the information given due to sound quality or receiving is not always precise. The recent joys and happenings we’ve learned of are:

  • Cairn K. expressed several joys regarding the kindness of strangers experienced in the last week.
  • AFM Friends supported the Holiday Sharing and the three families under the poverty line were very grateful.
  • Diane S. and Cairn K. shared how the celebration of this season by many different religious/spiritual traditions has the potential to enrich our lives. A performance of the Hanukkah song called “Ocho Kandelikas” that they saw on PBS News Hour was especially upbeat and catchy with its Latin rhythm. Listen Here 

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Welcome Light Wednesday

Starting at 7 pm every Wednesday, the Welcome Light Wednesday group will meet via Zoom with 20 minutes of silence to start followed by spiritual readings and then listening to our spiritual journeys. Time will be given to hold friends in healing Light. In the past, this group was called the Wednesday Meditation Group.

Contact Patty R. at info@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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5th Night Light – Every Thursday evening

From 7:00 pm until 8:00 pm every Thursday, the AFM community engages in a spiritual practice that acknowledges the Light of God within each person and that to be in community is to actively care for one another. During that time, Friends hold people and situations who need additional spiritual support in the Light. Friends will pause wherever they may be, read the list of names, and hold each person or situation in our hearts and in the Light. On Wednesday, the list of names or situations are sent out to the AFM-Announce list.

Friends are invited to share their request for a person or situations to be held in the Light by contacting the Pastoral Care Committee.

Contact Pastoral Care at pastoral-care@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Library Committee Meeting

On December 12 (Tuesday) at 9 am, the Library Committee will be meeting in person. 

For more information, contact Martha L. at library@annapolisfriends.org.

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Quaker Market Committee

On December 12 (Thursday) at 7:30 pm, the Quaker Market Committee will be debriefing about Quaker Holiday Market 2023.

Contact Cairn K. at maket@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Spiritual Friends Group

On December 14 (Thursday) at 4 pm, the Spiritual Friends Group, under the umbrella of Pastoral Care, will meet via Zoom. The group meets online on the 2nd Thurs. of each month to nurture our spiritual lives and, if requested, to ask the group to hold us accountable to our individual intentions. Everyone is welcome. Quakers and non-Quakers!

Contact Barb T. at info@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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The Friendlies (a.k.a., Friendly 8s Group)

On December 15 (Friday) at 6 pm, The Friendlies will be meeting on Zoom. Quakers get together for a variety of reasons and getting to know each other a little better is the purpose of Friendly 8s Groups. Typically, there are 8 people who share a meal, stories and have a relaxed, informal opportunity to socialize. It is great fun and there have been stimulating conversations. The Friendlies are a larger group of more than 10 and we meet on Zoom. If you are interested, we are an open group and invite you to join us.

Contact Ellen M. at info@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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The Adult Religious Education Committee

On December 15 (Friday) at 7:30 pm, the Adult Religious Education (ARE) Committee will be meeting via Zoom. The ARE is a sub-committee of Ministry and Worship and they focus on planning Meetings for Learning (MfL) and other spiritual enrichment events for AFM.

Contact Ann R. at ministry@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Committee Meetings

On December 17 (Sunday) at 9:15 am, most AFM committees meet. Some meet via Zoom and others at the meetinghouse with still others holding blended (online and in-person) meetings. Check with the clerk of the committee to find out the options for participation. 

Committee meetings are important places where most of our Meeting work is done.  Committees form at the beginning of the calendar year. There are Committee Clerks and volunteer committee members and some committees have co-Clerks and Assistant Clerks.  Committees typically meet each month. 

To learn more, contact info@annapolisfriends.org.

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Meeting for Learning – Preparation for Christmas

On December 17 (Sunday) at 10:15 am, the Adult Religious Education Committee (ARE) will be providing a Meeting for Learning related to Christmas. More information will be coming. 

Contact Ann R. at ministry@annapolisfriends.org for more information. 

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Friends Writing Together

On October 17 (Sunday) at 12:30 pm, the Friends Writing Together group will meet via Zoom. Friends write from prompts for 8-minutes and then share (or not). Comments include encouragement and impressions. Only if a writer asks for critique is that offered. This is fresh new writing and is treated as gently as a delicate flower. Everyone is a writer and has a deep well of experiences to dip into. Come join us for the fun and exhilaration of expression and enjoyable conversations. All are invited. 

Contact Mary B. at info@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Communications Committee

The Communications Committee will hold their monthly meeting on December 21 (Tuesday) at 6 pm via Zoom. The Communications Committee manages the Annapolis Friends Meeting website. Our goal is to use online communication to build and maintain a strong community. Meeting recognizes it takes a whole community to listen and speak to one another in an inclusive spirit. 

The website is one of the tools for accomplishing our goal. The community includes members, attenders, committees, officers, seekers, newcomers and other people who are interested in the work of the Meeting. The Communications Committee coordinates the Meeting’s efforts by compiling relevant, accurate information. On an ongoing basis, the committee seeks to evaluate and improve our means for effectively sharing our information.

Contact Ellen M. at communications@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Christmas Eve Candlelight Worship

On December 24 (Sunday) at 7:00 pm, Friends are invited to gather for Meeting for Worship. There will be two family friendly gatherings, one in person at the meetinghouse and one online via Zoom. 

For the in-person version, Friends will gather to enjoy 30-minutes of worship followed by singing and holiday snacks. Coloring pages will be available for little ones.

Friends who are at a distance or unable to attend in person will have the opportunity to gather for worship online in community on this special night. 

Contact Martha B. at ministry@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Christmas Holiday Sharing

We are pleased to be able to re-connect with the 3 local families** with whom we shared Thanksgiving meals to provide groceries for Christmas dinner and gifts for the children in each family. We invite you to be part of this sharing!!

If you would like to contribute food or gifts (or both), you can access the sign-up for:

  • CHRISTMAS DINNER contributions, by clicking HERE
  • GIFTS FOR CHILDREN, by clicking HERE   [Note: desired gift item is listed below the child’s sex and age]

Gifts and non-perishable contributions should be dropped at the Meetinghouse by Sunday, December 17, if possible. Perishable contributions (or late items) are needed no later than Thursday, December 21.  We will have boxes near the end of the hallway by the nursery and shelves marked in the refrigerator for perishable items.

See Martha B.’s email dated December 5 to AFM-Announce for more information and details.

Contact Kathy T. at info@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Christmas Day Potluck

On December 25 (Sunday) at 5 pm, the Pastoral Care Committee will be sponsoring a Christmas Day Potluck at a Friend’s house. 

Contact Jo Anna S. at pastoral-care@annapolisfriends.org for more information or to sign-up. 

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Uphold Ukraine Daily Meeting for Worship

  • Daily Meeting for Worship: EVERY DAY, Friends House Moscow supporters in the U.S.A. host a daily international online Meeting for Worship while joining other Friends who are holding in the Light all the people affected by the current crisis in Ukraine. For Eastern Standard Time, the meeting starts at 12:00 pm. Click on this Zoom link, which is the Friends House Moscow Cloud Meeting. Or use Meeting ID: 416 500 5614; Passcode: 182805
  • Sunday MfW: The Quakers in Kyiv meet on Sundays at 1:00 pm EDT in silence. For Zoom information, go to their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/QuakersKyivUkraine/.  On Zoom: Meeting ID: 852 8396 7313; Passcode: 2022.

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AFM Meetings for Worship

There are two options for Sunday worship with Annapolis Friends Meeting:

8:00 am weekly: This Meeting for Worship is in person (no technology) and, in good weather, is held outdoors, but will be indoors when the weather is not as kind. Masks and social distancing are optional inside the meetinghouse. Also at 8:00 am, Friends can worship in communion with the friends at the Meetinghouse from wherever they are and without technology. This option to gather in spirit only while being physically apart was created to link Friends in worship in the early days of the pandemic, and often Friends are at their own homes.

11:00 am weekly: This Meeting for Worship can be attended in person at the meetinghouse, or remotely on Zoom (Phone: 301-715-8592, Meeting ID: 650 269 455, Passcode: 241727). Nursery care is available; please email us at children@annapolisfriends.org if you would like to bring your child/children to our nursery. First Day School (a.k.a., Sunday School) is available for school age children in person during the school year (September through May). In the summer (June through August), AFM offers supervision and reading/drawing supplies for school age children.

There is an opportunity to worship on the First Tuesday each month at 7 pm in person on a Friend’s porch in northern Anne Arundel County (Glen Burnie). Please see North County worship on the calendar. 

Contact info@annapolisfriends.org for more information.

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Care of Meeting 

The AFM meetinghouse is a precious place and the AFM Community cares for the building and property in many ways, including weekly care of the meeting that includes accomplishing certain tasks. There is a Committee Schedule for Care of Meeting indicating when the committee takes a turn to be responsible for cleaning up the meetinghouse and they may ask for help from others, as needed. The Care of Meeting Checklist helps to ensure that everyone knows what needs to be done. For the month of December, the Outreach Committee has responsibility for the care of the meetinghouse. All are welcome to help out at any time!

  • Outreach Committee members greet all attenders and encourage newcomers to feel welcome. Outreach also provides information about Quakers to the larger community. Everyone is invited to  help the committee to care for the meetinghouse.

For additional information about Annapolis Friends Meeting go to the homepage or for events click here for the calendar. 

Annapolis Parade of Boats
Photo credit: Ellen M.