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Friends United Meeting |
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November 2001
News from Friends United Meeting
FUM Statement on Terrorism
Ten days after the cruel attack on civilian airlines resulting in devastation in New York City and the Pentagon, we have met as the Executive Committee of Friends United Meeting to express our grief for the victims and to counsel one another as we look toward healing in the aftermath of this fearful reality.
Friends United Meeting, headquartered in the United States, has an international constituency. A large percentage of our membership is in Kenya, where many suffered in the bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi in 1998. We also have a school in the Palestinian city of Ramallah and the local Friends operate a play center for children in a nearby refugee camp. For many years, they have suffered the effects of war and terrorism directed against civilians on both sides of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
We are, therefore, familiar with the emotions of anger, violation, fear, grief and the desire for justice and even revenge that have swept the United States in the last week. We are also grateful, through these experiences, to have seen people of faith, rooted in confidence in the grace of God, respond with compassion, mutual care and loving service that crosses lines of supposed enmity.
In the words of the seventeenth century Quaker, George Fox: "I saw also that there was an ocean of darkness and death, but an infinite ocean of light and love, which flowed over the ocean of darkness. And in that also I saw the infinite love of God..." (Journal, Ni:19)
We desire ourselves, and urge all peoples, to live in awareness of the infinite love of God. Friends have long sought to find ways of dealing with evil that recognizes that the enemy is not this person or that nation, ethnicity or faith. Rather, the enemy is sin, dwelling in the hearts of people in rebellion against God. We have found the reality of redemption in Jesus Christ, who commanded those who would follow him to love their enemies. (Matthew 5:44) We recall the words of Paul, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world." (2 Corinthians 10:4)
We, therefore, pray the nations will pursue the cause of justice and peace in ways that do not foster future violence. We are asking our own members to remember our historic counsel that "the Spirit of Christ, by which we are guided... will never move us to fight and war against any man with outward weapons. " (Journal, Ni:400) Instead, we encourage one another to find ways to reach out in love across walls of enmity that separate us and "overcome evil with good." (Romans 12:21)
Dear Friends,
We greet you all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We take this opportunity to thank you most heartily for all the support that you have given to the entire college through our Principal Mr. Richard Davis and his wife Sandra. We sometimes cannot imagine where the church specifically in Kenya would be had these two not committed themselves to come to F.T.C. It is only through your support that they have had to make an impact. Just to show how much they have made an impact, a number of couples in each yearly meeting have named their new born babies after Rich and Sandy. This is from 1997 to date.
Your support has made an impact that will only be revealed fully in heaven. We do not know how we shall thank you and if we shall ever meet most of those involved. Ours is only to pray and hope that you will continue enabling Rich and Sandy to continue delivering their selfless services to F.T.C and the church in East Africa. The students and staff are happier and they are extending that joy by being more effective in their practical ministry on Sundays, their home churches during the holidays and their places of postage. Those who have gone for further studies are also flying the F.T.C and Quaker flag high.
It's not possible to name all that we have seen but the whole community finds no words enough to thank God for the John Sarrin's fund, the dining hall, the work study, the library, the administration, the faculty, the bookshop and many others which cannot be exhausted. We know that we shall never meet most of those who have helped us, and many have little opportunity to do the same for you, but we promise to pay for our debt by standing ready to open our hearts out to some other person. This is the only way we could do it. We know that the Christ who led you to give will enable you to support many more that the Gospel will be spread. May the Lord bless you according to his riches in Glory.
We long to see our mama and papa, Mr. and Mrs. Davis. Thank you.
Sincerely, The Student body of F.T.C
Signed by: Reuben Wamalwa, Chairman Caleb Khaembah, Secretary
June 28, 2001
News of Sadie Vernon
Sadie is very happy at Leo and Ethyl Castillo's house; Leo is her first cousin. She feels very much at home, although she is unsteady on her feet and does not feel comfortable to go out walking by herself. Leo's brother Ray is not well; his prostate cancer progresses and Ethyl also takes care of him.
Condolences from Around the World
From Kenya... Receive our heartfelt condolences for the terrorist attacks and the many innocent souls that have perished. We are praying for the entire American Community and families; we are also praying for the American Quakers all over the USA. We pray that God may restore your strength and comfort the widows, widowers, orphans and parents who lost their sons and daughters, plus the Christian community. This is a bad experience to go through, but those who believe in Jesus Christ will be strengthened, and their hope will be restored.
From Britain Yearly Meeting... With this letter comes our love and concern for those killed, injured or bereaved as the result of this horrific act of inhumanity. We pray for them as those who survive come to terms with the impact of this tragedy and we pray for national leaders, especially those of the United States of America, that they may respond with wisdom and in ways that will heal the hurts of the world.
From Latin America... At this time of pain and sorrow, we offer our prayers asking God will grant you all peace, strength and wisdom to join with others, wherever you are, seeking light and forgiveness amidst yesterday's tragic events.
Ramallah Friends Boys School Celebrates 100 Years
By James Ford
Despite the intense turmoil of the intifada, Friends Boys School commemorated its centennial with triumph and celebration. On April 27- 28, the West Bank's only Quaker upper school held a festival featuring sports displays, a play written especially for the occasion, a piano recital by the area's premier pianist, an educational forum and an open house.
On Opening Day, a sports festival showcased a squad of 10th to 12th grade boys launching from a trampoline and slam-dunking basketballs, students of all grades exhibiting their tumbling and flipping abilities, girls doing gymnastics floor exercises and a variety of other demonstrations from soccer ball tricks to sword-dancing.
The indoor component of Opening Day featured a science fair, art exhibition and a mini-museum of the school's history. The science fair was an impressive showing of experiments by students of all levels of expertise, from a display attempting to prove hip-hop music stunts plant growth, to computer software testing general knowledge and current events. Fair-goers could get their blood pressure checked while they watched advanced physics and chemistry demonstrations.
Opening Day concluded with Life in the Time of Pumpkins, a play written by drama club sponsor Tina Rafidi and her students. Not only did the production deal with how the intifada affected the school year, the intifada actually affected the play itself. For nearly half the school year, shootings, shelling and other violence were so common extra-curricular activities were suspended. The playbill describes Life in the Time of Pumpkins as "a rejection of oppression, vanquishing and shelling. It is a yearning for a bright future despite the tyranny." It was a masterful production despite significant setbacks in its production process.
Day two of the centennial celebration featured an educational forum focused on how Friends Schools have affected life in Palestine. Six panelists shared how Ramallah Friends Schools have lived up to their purpose statement of promoting excellence, equality, development of the whole person and responsibility.
The excellence of Friends Schools, said one of the panelists, is simple: The Friends schools set the standard by which all schools in Palestine judge themselves. Today, FBS is one of the few schools in Palestine to offer the International Baccalaureate Curriculum, a program of study recognized at universities worldwide for its challenging coursework. During the first half of the twentieth century, when few Palestinians even finished high school, the Friends schools' students received diplomas in record numbers and went on to college. Friends schools' teachers have always held graduate degrees when most other West Bank teachers did not. And FBS has the largest library in Ramallah. In short, said another panelist, the schools and the Quaker presence in Ramallah have helped to make it the capital of Palestine.
Equality at Ramallah Friends Schools comes in a variety of ways, according to the panel, including the schools' long-standing commitment to educating both sexes equally—a radical concept in the Arab world for most of the schools' history. One alumnus pointed out that even before coeducation, FBS and FGS mixed boys and girls in science labs and in the choir. The schools also stressed the importance of the Young Friends social club, which brought boys and girls together.
A panelist who had done a survey of alumni concluded the discussion, "Quakers in Palestine have not effected change by converting the community's mostly Muslim or Roman Catholic population. Instead, Friends' biggest contribution to Palestine has been setting moral, educational and ethical examples so strong others feel compelled to follow."
A piano recital by Salim Aboud Ashqar, the West Bank's foremost young pianist, topped off the centennial weekend. Having studied at some of the world's finest conservatories, he adeptly performed five classical pieces, including a Mozart sonata for piano and violin that featured his cousin Nabil on the latter instrument.
The concert, "Let the Music Break the Siege," concluded with thunderous applause and an encore by Ashqar. An attitude similar to the title—an attitude of celebration overcoming violence—fused the entire centennial weekend, making the commemoration more than just an event, but also an example.
James Ford currently works for the FOX-TV affiliate in New York City. He attends Morningside Friends in Manhattan.
Ramallah Work Camp
By Jane and Maia Carter
Although neither of us is new to the Ramallah workcamp experience, each of us having participated in three previous workcamps, never has there been a workcamp quite like this one. We have always felt there was work for us to do and that Palestinians benefited from and enjoyed our peaceful witness, but this time, due to the political situation, we felt our physical presence was more of a service than the physical labor we did.
Friends United Meeting (FUM) and Friends Center (Guilford College) sponsored the 9-member work team that arrived in Ramallah on July 13, 2001. Consisting of three retired persons, three college students and three Carters, our three-week program consisted of a mixture of manual labor, speakers from the Palestinian community, visits with groups committed to human rights, social justice and peace and fellowship with the local Quaker community.
When we were not busy enough transforming an old school building into a boys' locker room, spreading dirt, digging holes for trees to be planted, painting window frames, picking up trash and hacking weeds, we were the recipients of abundant Palestinian hospitality practically each night. We were entertained with love and warmth and fed a tremendous quantity and quality of home-cooked Palestinian cuisine only available in local kitchens. And, as anyone who has ever been invited into a Palestinian home knows, there is structure, an order and a process to the dinner invitation, beginning with visiting, then drinks, followed by food, more visiting, fruit and sweets, and finally, your cue to leave, Arabic coffee.
What distinguishes this workcamp from others is that the interaction with families, students, and speakers was really the "work" for which we were needed in the Palestinian community. While the students will benefit from the new changing rooms and the trees will be a nice addition to the school, our witness, our willingness to step out of our comfortable lives and simply be with the Palestinians emerged as the most pressing need. Since most Palestinians are not allowed out of their cities due to Israeli regulations, it is easy to understand why they feel trapped, isolated, alone and forgotten by the world.
The Ramallah Friends Meeting was a source of reflection and calm for the nine members of our group. In turn our presence offered spiritual support and hope to the F(f)riends there. On our traveling minute, Jean Zaru, clerk, wrote in part, "We were very glad to have them with us at a time of brokenness, woundedness and suffering. Thank you all and thanks to the Carters for accompanying our people and the Quaker Meeting in these difficult times." The Christians in Ramallah number few now, as many have western contacts and have left the West Bank to live in other countries where they can earn a living, provide a future for their children and pursue their daily lives in peace.
Copyright (c) 2001 Friends United Meeting
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