Friendly School

   
Registration for Friendly School has now opened! 

Register here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdUOEL2qYTKKcWTTttSBb7Q1q7RlOCQUTh1kVP9WwIQUXdD9w/viewform   

To find out more about the workshops, scroll down this page.

Friendly School theme
The theme for this year is “Integrity, Voice and Right Relationship”. Workshops will focus on the current concerns of integrity, listening to Indigenous voices and coming into right relationship personally, in community and with our planet. 

Friendly School topics
All workshops will be held on Sunday July 2nd and begin at 11:30 am AEST, at 11 am in SA & NT, and at 9:30 am in WA.

1.  Integrity: what canst thou say?  --  Sue Ennis and Wies Schuiringa
2.  Indigenous Voices: CORE and WIPCE  --  David Purnell and David Evans 
3.  Travelling with First Nations Peoples  --  Marion Hooper and Katherine Purnell
4.  The Life and Poetry of Judith Wright  --  Michael Griffith
5.  The Impact of Australian Quakers on Refugee Lives: where to from here?  
     --  Rowe Morrow, Dale Hess, Alan Clayton and Dorothy Scott
6.  Growing the Life of the Meeting  --  Sheila Keane
7.  True sustainability: how should we then live?  --  David King 
8.  Cultivating a Creative Contemplative Community  --  Justin Simpson
9.  Writing workshop on Gender  --  Jess D

Friendly School descriptions

1.   Integrity: what canst thou say?  --  Sue Ennis and Wies Schuiringa

Sharing and communicating about integrity: Quaker specific, personal or general definitions, reflections, experiences and explorations. Friends will participate by sharing their ideas and experiences resulting in shorter and/or longer writing, in poetry or visual arts or in video recordings on their phone. Participants will explore many facets of integrity and work on communicating their explorations in writing, videos recorded on mobile phones or in other expressions. A collection of writings etc from the workshop may be collated for distribution as e.g. "Contemporary thoughts about integrity among Australian Quakers". The videos recorded on phones can be made into a Utube video for the AYM Utube channel.
 

2.  Indigenous Voices: CORE and WIPCE  --  David Purnell and David Evans

We will hear the voices of Indigenous people across the world, and trends in Australia, especially The Voice Referendum. There will be reports on the Boyer Lectures by Noel Pearson, the work of the Committee on Racial Equality (CORE), and the approach of the AYM First Nations Concerns Committee.

We will share our commitments and activities at local level to enable Indigenous voices to be amplified. We will note the work of Quakers both here and in other countries, as well as at the United Nations.  

SANTRM sponsored registrants to the recent 12th World Indigenous Peoples Conference on Education (WIPCE) held in Adelaide 22-26 September 2022 will report on this little known amazing triennial event. We will hear about WIPCE 2025 which will be held at Te Ara Poutama, Faculty of Māori Development, Aotearoa.
 

3.  Travelling with First Nations Peoples  --  Marion Hooper (NT) and Katherine Purnell (TRM)

In 2023, Australians have opportunities for changing the flow of history with  VOICE, TREATY AND TRUTH in the spotlight. Many of us have travelled, lived, worked on Country, others have wished for such opportunities. This workshop gives a chance to share cultural experiences, learnings and faux pas! 

Marion and Katherine both attend the Friends Online Recognised Meeting (FORM).
 

4.  The Life and Poetry of Judith Wright  --  Michael Griffith 

The focus will be on a number of key poems from across Judith Wright’s life which focus on her search for a voice for Indigenous people (especially through her relationships with poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal),  her quest for integrity in her relationship to The Australian Environment and its People and her search for a spirituality that would bring reconciliation to our country. 

Judith Wright is arguably Australia’s greatest poet who lived in the last two decades of her life in and near Braidwood which has clear links with the landscape and history around Silver Wattle. She also has strong links with Quakerism and was a pioneer in saving The Australian Environment and in supporting true equality for our Indigenous neighbours.

The sessions will be run by reading and working through a number of Judith Wright’s core poems.
 

5.  The Impact of Australian Quakers on Refugee Lives: where to from here?  
      --  Rowe Morrow, Dale Hess, Alan Clayton and Dorothy Scott

Our purpose in offering this Friendly School is to explore three inspiring international responses to refugees in which Australian Friends are currently engaged, and which have all received funding from Quaker bodies, in order to discern future action for and with refugees.

The day will begin with a brief overview by Alan Clayton on the long legacy of Quaker involvement with refugees and the common elements of some exemplars. This will be followed by three presentations: Rowe Morrow on Permaculture for Refugees; Dale Hess on securing a safe place in Portugal for young peace workers from Afghanistan; and Dorothy Scott on a grassroots response to refugees subject to Australia’s offshore processing policies. The final session will be a panel discussion about future directions of Australian Quaker involvement in refugee support and activism.
 

6.  Growing the Life of the Meeting -- Sheila Keane

This Friendly School will help you explore what is alive in your Meetings and what might make it more alive. We will look at the quality of worship, ways to connect, spiritual nurture (of individuals and of the meeting), the interrelationship of individual and corporate life in the meeting, growing our gifts, discernment in a communal context, and holding ministry so that it comes from the whole meeting – not just individuals in it. You will come away from the workshop with a new enthusiasm and appreciation of the life of your meeting, new ideas about what is possible, and your own suggested action plan to take back home. 
 

7.  True sustainability: how should we then live?  --  David King

A Quaker ideal is to live as consistently and closely to our testimonies as possible. But is our current individualistic, suburban, career focused lifestyle consistent with true sustainability and the best way to prepare for the coming climate breakdown and chaos? The response to climate change will require both mitigation and adaptation. How can we, as Quakers, transition to actions and lifestyles consistent with a post-growth, circular economy.? This is likely to require more than reducing and recycling waste, and driving an EV.

This workshop will take a problem-solving approach to the issue of sustainable living. We will start with an examination of our society’s values and norms that we accept as ‘normal’, and the damage or limitations that this brings. Second, we will envisage a future that would be more sustainable and preferable to live in. Finally, how do we get there? We will probably need systems and skills to support the journey to living with less, while strengthening relationships and community. The format will be interactive, and the sharing from the ‘heart’ as well as from the ‘head’.
 

8.  Cultivating a Creative Contemplative Community  --  Justin Simpson

One of the things I love about Quakers is the beautiful array of people's creative talents.  Painting, music, stagecraft, woodworking, photography, creative writing, haberdashery, singing, embroidery, gardening, storytelling, poetry...

Justin is part of Friends Online Recognised Meeting (FORM), part of NSWRM.  Weaved with his own contemplative journey with Quakers has been the deepening expression of his poetry writing.  In collaboration with Friends, he's recently published a book of contemplative poetry, titled 'Journey Companions'.  As a host in FORM, Justin seeks to open spaces where Friends can share their creativity.  

In this Friendly School session, we'll reflect on how creativity can enrich and deepen our spiritual journey, our Meeting for Worship and community life.  We'll explore ways we can help Friends discover and bring their creative talents into our contemplation and community.  This session will be interactive, fun and hopefully a little bit creative!  So bring your own creative talents and maybe your coloured pencils, paints, musical instrument or camera too!

9.  Writing workshop on Gender  --  Jess D

Everyone Welcome!  Under 18s please bring a parent. 

Earlier in the year Rainbow Friends collated an article "Exploring Gender" for the Australian Friend with people writing about their experiences of their own gender. We hope to expand the project and create a booklet in the style of This We Can Say. 

Come along and find out a little about the project, discuss the concept of gender in broader terms, and have a go at writing about your experiences of your own gender. People of every gender are welcome. 

If you have never written anything before, don’t worry, there will be warm up writing exercises to help you get started. Sharing any of your writing or experiences within the group is optional. For those who want to continue the writing journey after the workshop ends there is a possibility of organising writing pairs or a writing group.

Information for facilitators
The Friendly School workshops will all begin at 11:30 am (AEST) / 9:30 am in WA and facilitators can choose to go up to 4:30 pm AEST / 2:30 pm in WA.  Workshops that go for this whole time will have three sessions with two breaks for meals.

Friends who are willing to facilitate a Friendly School group on Sunday July 2nd on Zoom are invited to send an email to David Evans (ddeevans1@gmail.com) and to YM23FriendlySchool@gmail.com and include a short description of your proposed topic. 

For information about how to run a Friendly School, feel free to contact David Evans (ddeevans1@gmail.com). 

We encourage you to explore Quaker ways of gathering together online. You may like to work with one or two other people to develop your plans and facilitate your session. 

Good wishes,
David Evans, Vidya and Annie Brady
Friendly School Team