Study Groups
Quaker Conversation Group ~ The Peace Testimony
Facilitator/Teacher: Donne Hayden
Times: Thursday evenings, 7:00-9:00 p.m. beginning March 31, 2011.
This group will meet regularly to discuss Quaker topics. Focus for the first six weeks was Levi Coffin's Reminiscences (published in 1876) and other shorter pieces related to the pre-Civil War period and Quakers in southwestern Ohio. The current topic is the Quaker Peace Testimony. The group will address the query: Should we (i.e. Friends in Cincinnati) be doing more/something else to oppose U.S. involvement in wars in Afghanistan and Iraq? We will use various resources including the book Practicing Peace by Catherine Whitmire. Each person in the group will select an aspect of the peace testimony (e.g. historical background, spiritual basis for embracing peace, current Quaker peace activism, war-tax resistance, etc.) in which s/he is particularly interested and lead discussion on that aspect.Quakerism 101
Facilitator/Teacher: Donne Hayden
Times: Thursday evenings, 7:00-9:00 p.m. for six weeks (Dates for spring 2011 group to be determined)
Following the Quakerism 101 curriculum designed by Philadelphia Friend, Shirley Dodson, we will explore together what it means to be a Quaker. This course involves a good deal of reading: Friends for 350 Years by Howard Brinton is the main text, and there are readings from various other sources (on handouts). Topics include: Seekers and Finders: The Experience of Early Friends, The Light Within, Quaker Universalism, Worship and Ministry, Living in the Light: Quaker Witness, Getting Down to Business (i.e., Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business). Read the course outline.Readings for the Quakerism 101 Course now available online!
SPRING 2011 ~ A Rhetorician Rereads the Bible: A historical, social, rhetorical and meditative exploration of the Bible
Facilitator: Jim Crocker-Lakness
Times: Weeklybeginning in March 2011 ~ Mondays ~ 7:00-9:00 p.m.
This session we will read the Gospel of John, often called the Quaker gospel. John is radically different than the other gospels and is unique in its stated purpose to persuade. A rhetorical approach asks questions such as who [really] wrote the text, to whom, and for what purpose. In John we will see a very different and sometimes conflicting picture of Jesus than is presented in the Synoptic Gospels. Evening of the week (Monday? Tuesday?) to be determined.Jim is a Professor of Communication at UC whose research specialty is religious rhetoric. He has studied the Bible as a scholar and for spiritual guidance for over 40 years. He has presented his Bible Seminars at various churches and summer camps. He has been a Quaker since 1970 and is c currently a member of Community Friends in Cincinnati.
Spiritual Nurture Groups
New groups for Fall 2011 will be forming in August.
If you have a passion for something and would like to share it by facilitating a group,
please contact Donne Hayden.
NOTE: If you would like to sign up for a 2011 Spiritual Nurture Group, call the office at 513-791-9788. Unless otherwise noted, Spiritual Nurture Groups meet at Cincinnati Friends Meetinghouse in the Library.
PREVIOUS SPIRITUAL NURTURE GROUPS
2010 Centering Prayer
Facilitator: Sharon Kowatch
Times: 2nd and 4th Wednesdays, 7:00-8:30 pm
The group will be using Cynthia Bourgeault's book, Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening as a guide. There will be a 20-minute centering prayer practice followed by an opportunity for support of this prayer practice and sharing of the spiritual journey.
Circle of Trust 2010-2011
Co-Facilitators: Michele Bertaux and Jeff Arnold
Times: 2nd & 4th Tuesdays, 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Last year this group studied Parker Palmer’s book A Hidden Wholeness, in which he describes finding your own soul- your “hidden wholeness”- through the medium of a support group, based on Quaker practices, which he calls a Circle of Trust. This year we will move into the formation of a new Circle of Trust, using the principles- the Touchstones- and the structure- welcoming silence, the use of a Third Thing, time for reflection and sharing, closing silence- that we developed in last years’ study, but without the use of Palmer’s book.
The Touchstones define clear boundaries for the circle, the kinds of boundaries that help create safe space for the soul to emerge.
What is offered in the circle is by invitation, not demand.
Speak your truth in ways that respect other people’s truth
No fixing, no saving, no advising, or setting each other straight
Respond to others with open, honest questions instead of counsel or correction
Attend to your own inner teacher
Trust and learn from the silence
Observe deep confidentiality
The Third Thing can be a poem, a short story or essay, a work of art, a song, or an idea brought in by the facilitators or suggested by another member of the group. It’s called a third thing because it represents neither the voice of the facilitators nor the voice of a participant. “Mediated by a third thing, truth can emerge from, and return to, our awareness at whatever pace and depth we are able to handle, giving the shy soul the protective cover it needs.” (P. Palmer)
The focus of the group is on being present for ourselves and for each other, in the moment. Sessions do not carry over to a subsequent session as far as ‘topics’, though the experience of built trust does. Therefore, we ask for a commitment from those who join – the first session can be a ‘visit’. After that, please plan to attend all sessions in a ‘course’, which will be six sessions.
The first course will begin on Tuesday, Sept 28 and go through Tues, Dec. 8. The second course of six sessions will begin in January and will be open to new members.
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Cincinnati Friends Meeting | 8075 Keller Rd | Cincinnati, OH 45243 | (513) 791-0788