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+Meeting for Sufferings
+
+1 October 2016
+
+Henry S. Thompson, SE Scotland AM representative
+
+This meeting was almost entirely taken up with information being
+shared with/via Meeting for Sufferings, what follows are a few
+summaries of things Friends may find interesting and which some may
+wish to pursue further.
+
+All the papers for the meeting are available online at
+
+  http://www.quaker.org.uk/documents/mfs-october-agenda-papers-package-2016-v1
+
+where much more detailed information about these and other matters are
+available.
+
+The new Clerk of Britain Yearly Meeting (Deborah Rowlands) and the
+Recording Clerk (Paul Parker) reported on a recent visit to
+Philadelphia and Baltimore Yearly Meetings, which was clearly a very
+valuable trip for all concerned.  A few highlights:
+
+  * In response to a financial crunch and a wide-ranging review (sound
+    familiar), Philadelphia YM concluded "we can't go on the same way"
+    and laid down _all_ central committees, replacing with a framework
+    for time-limited efforts, called 'Collaboratives' and 'Sprints',
+    largely carried out by Friends from constituent Area Meetings
+
+  * Responses to racism (in the nation at large) and a lack of
+    diversity (in the YM itself) were high on the agenda at
+    Philadelphia, under the title _Undoing Racism_
+
+  * The situation of "Young Adult Friends" (YAF) (18--35ish) was a
+    concern at both YMs, with the Epistle of YAF at Philadelphia
+    describing anger and frustration at their marginalisation, leading
+    to the creation of structures outside the 'official' ones:
+    http://www.pym.org/pym-young-adult-friends-epistle-2016/
+
+We received our annual report from Quaker Peace and Social Witness
+Central Committee, presented by its Clerk Charlotte Seymour-Smith and
+by the relevant 'civil servant' Helen Drewery, now styled Head of
+Worship and Witness (see my July report for details on the
+restructuring of the staff at Friends House).
+
+  * Mention was made of two new booklets on 'The New Economy', which
+    are available via
+
+    http://www.quaker.org.uk/our-work/economic-justice/new-economy
+
+    and may be of interest to those looking for insight into what many
+    Friends see as the failure of our current economic structures
+
+  * Some sobering remarks were offered about the Ecumenical
+    Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel (EAPPI): "EAPPI is
+    an international World Council of Churches programme. EAPPI
+    UK/Ireland is a joint project of church partners, implemented by
+    QPSW." The situation in Israel/Palestine for Ecumenical
+    Accompaniers is dire, under constant review, with careful risk
+    management processes.  "The problems [EAPPI] are having is a sign
+    that it's successful."
+
+QPSW, using legacy funding, is about to appoint someone to a one-year
+post from December tasked with identifying appropriate national-level
+work that is best _for us_ in the areas of Forced Migration in
+general, and help for refugees in particular.  They will liaise
+closely with Quaker Asylum and Refugee Network (QARN).  Some actual
+actions, maybe, but mostly planning/reporting.  For those Meetings and
+individuals wanting to do something _now_, the advice was to work
+through QARN.
+
+I have previously reported on the Vibrancy project -- this is now
+underway, but only in south of the border. Four pilot 'local
+development workers' have been appointed for a year in Devon, Cornwall
+and West Somerset; The North West; Wales and Southern Marches and Sussex,
+Surrey and Kent.  Rachel Matthews is the Vibrancy in Meetings
+Programme Coordinator at Friends House.  She described the goal of the
+exercise as supporting local meetings to thrive, defining vibrancy as
+"being full of life".  See
+http://www.woodbrooke.org.uk/pages/vibrancy_in_meetings.html
+for details.
+
+Our attention was called to the Ammerdown Invitation, an _ad-hoc_
+group including Friends who have some very interesting things to say
+about the nature of (national/worldwide) security and how to go about
+getting it.  For an introduction as well as a detailed exposition see
+http://rethinkingsecurity.org.uk/
+
+A minute from GM Scotland was received which raises important issues
+in connection with this AM's concern regarding militarism in schools:
+The granting by the previous Chancellor of the Exchequer of monies
+from fines levied against the banks to the Ministry of Defence for the
+introduction of cadet forces in 500 state schools throughout Britain
+bypasses Scottish oversight of education in Scotland, as well as
+parliamentary oversight by both Westminster and Holyrood.
+
+This is particularly concerning (and may come as news to AM as it did
+to me), because it means that there's no straightforward way to ask
+the Scottish government/parliament for equal time, as it were, for
+peace education.
+