A Monthly Meeting in Dover Quarter of
New England Yearly Meeting, Religious Society of Friends
To request log-in information for Zoom Worship: Zoom [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org (subject: %E2%80%9CWorship%E2%80%9D%20Zoom%20Link%20Request) .
“Be still and cool in thy own mind and spirit from thy own thoughts, and then thou wilt feel the principle of God to turn thy mind to the Lord God, whereby thou wilt receive his strength and power from whence life comes, to allay all tempests, against blusterings and storms. That is it which moulds up into patience, into innocency, into soberness, into stillness, into stayedness, into quietness, up to God, with his power.”
~ George Fox, 1658
| Day | Date | Time | Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday | May 4th | 9:00 a.m. 10:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. |
“Deepening Our Quaker Experience” Meeting for Worship For Zoom link, email Zoom [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org (subject: %E2%80%9CWorship%E2%80%9D%20Zoom%20Link%20Request) . Fellowship and Meetinghouse Cleanup With Children: TBD; Closing: Rich K & Dave W. |
| Monday | May 5th | 4:00 p.m. | In-Person Worship at Lucy's House. Contact RichK [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org (subject: CFM%20Monday%20Afternoon%20Worship) (Rich) to confirm. |
| Thursday | May 8th | Noon | Peace Vigil, State House Plaza. |
| Sunday | May 11th | 10:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. |
Meeting for Worship For Zoom link, email Zoom [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org (subject: %E2%80%9CWorship%E2%80%9D%20Zoom%20Link%20Request) . Fellowship With Children: TBD; Closing: Heidi & Sue. |
| Sunday | May 18th | 10:00 a.m. 11:30 a.m. 12:30 p.m. |
Meeting for Worship For Zoom link, email Zoom [at] ConcordFriendsMeeting [dot] org (subject: %E2%80%9CWorship%E2%80%9D%20Zoom%20Link%20Request) . Fellowship & Potluck Meeting for Worship with Attention to Business With Children: TBD; Closing: TBD. |
Every other month we spend about half an hour after Fellowship cleaning up the Meetinghouse. Usually this is done on Third Sundays, but with Mothers' Day in May we are switching to First Sunday. Now that spring warmth is on the way there will be both indoor and outdoor opportunities.
We keep the work period short so that it feels easier to squeeze into our busy days. We hope you will be able to stay a bit longer on May 4th, but certainly understand that your plans may not fit in with our schedule. We always "get by with a little help from our Friends."
[2]We're coming up on our fifth session and hope that you have been finding some benefit in our meetings. In May we'll look at the topic of Our Meeting Community (taking this out of order from the original "Quaker Basics" plan). I'm sending this early because the readings are so interesting. Hope you find time to take a peek at these and find one or two passages that really speak to you.
Readings [2]
In June we'll consider the Quaker Testimonies and do a little forward planning. Do we want to take a break over the summer? Dive deeper into the testimonies? How are we led to go forward?
May Day! International Workers Day Celebration [3] - 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. NH State House. 107 N. Main Street, Concord. Hosted by Welcoming NH, AFSC NH, NH Council of Churches, NH Sierra Club.
Join us at the Arches at the NH State House at 5 p.m. on May 1, International Workers Day to commemorate the immigrant workers in this country and across the world who make this state, country, and world work.
As we honor immigrant workers this May Day, it's imperative to recognize their unwavering commitment and the challenges they often face. Let's advocate for fair labor practices, equitable policies, and inclusive communities that uphold the dignity and rights of all workers, regardless of their origin.
Today, we celebrate the strength and resilience of immigrant workers. Tomorrow, we continue our collective journey toward justice and equality for all.
The importance of immigrants was highlighted during the COVID epidemic when "essential" workers were forced to risk their lives to keep our communities going, Immigrants were overly represented in this group and they deserve the continuing respect that was lauded at that time but has too quickly been forgotten.
International Workers' Day, also known as Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of laborers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labor movement and occurs every year on May 1 or the first Monday in May.
On 21 April 1856, Australian stonemasons in Victoria undertook a mass stoppage as part of the eight-hour workday movement. It became a yearly commemoration, inspiring American workers to have their first stoppage.
May 1 was chosen to be International Workers' Day to commemorate the 1886 Haymarket affair in Chicago. In that year beginning on 1 May, there was a general strike for the eight-hour workday. On 4 May, the police acted to disperse a public assembly in support of the strike when an unidentified person threw a bomb. The police responded by firing on the workers. The event led to the deaths of seven police officers and at least four civilians; sixty police officers were injured, as were one hundred and fifteen civilians. Hundreds of labor leaders and sympathizers were later rounded-up and four were executed by hanging, after a trial that was seen as a miscarriage of justice. The following day on May 5 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the state militia fired on a crowd of strikers killing seven, including a schoolboy and a man feeding chickens in his yard.
Dear Friends,
The Concord Chorale will be presenting our Spring Concert "We Exist", consisting of works for chorus and orchestra that explore the question of how to live together. One major work, "Kindness", is a modern baroque style piece that begins with the question "How then do we live?", and answers over the course of the work that kindness is the key, along with courage, compassion, understanding; and asking "Who is our neighbor?" (Hint: "the least of these").
The title piece "We Exist" was written in response to the 2017 violence in Charlottesville, NC. and calls us to action. Both of these major pieces are accompanied by orchestra.
I love also love the several cappella pieces we are singing, especially the three Shaker songs about the beauty and centrality of singing (and dancing) together in order to live in harmony, as well as the importance of faith, and the power of gentleness. We will be processing (Songweavers style) through the audience in the first two pieces that call us out of loneliness into community and love.
Great messages for all times, but especially these! I hope you'll join me at one of our concerts at St Paul's Church to celebrate our shared humanity.
You can get tickets from me ($25) directly or purchase online at www.ConcordChorale.org/tickets [4].
Love,
Ruth
[5]A walk has been scheduled for CFM people and their friends on Wednesday, May 7th at 1:00 p.m. The trail we will be walking is in the Marjory Swope Park, Map 25 [5] for those of you who have a copy of the CONCORD TRAIL SYSTEM GUIDEBOOK AND MAPS [6].
Head east along Pleasant Street (Rte 202) and turn right on Long Pond Road. A sign and parking lot will appear on your left. There are 2 or 3 trails to choose from so let’s gather in the parking lot and choose a trail.
If you would like to have someone else to drive, please park in the Storrs Road parking lot near what is left of Joann Fabrics. Be there at 12:45 p.m. and Kathy Urie will drive for you.
(This will familiarize anyone interested in volunteering. No commitment is required. To date there have been no requests for sanctuary at this time).
The Sanctuary Asylum Committee of the Manchester UU Church continues to seek volunteers for day and overnight on-premise shifts to ensure 24-hour coverage when the church has a sanctuary guest in residence. Currently there are 8 volunteers for overnight shifts and 18 for daytime shifts. If you want to volunteer or have already volunteered and want to attend the next orientation session, please contact Liz Alcauskas (lizalcauskas [at] gmail [dot] com) or Curt Smith (blueskies3 [at] comcast [dot] net).
The next Sanctuary Asylum Volunteer Orientation is Saturday, May 17th, 9:30 am to Noon, at the Unitarian Universalist Church, 669 Union Street, Manchester, NH. No commitment is required. To date there have been no requests for sanctuary.
Monteverde Friends School will receive matching funds (up to $15K) for donations made by May 11 (tax deductible). MFS is committed to making bilingual Quaker education an option for all members of their community, regardless of economic resources. They strive to equip their students for their work as stewards of the world that we all share. The need is there and there are options for easy giving: https://www.mfschool.org/donate [7]
Thursdays at Noon
The vigil for a ceasefire in Gaza continues every Thursday from Noon-1 p.m. The vigil meets at (the northwest corner of) North Main Street and Park Street in Concord) [8] on the plaza in front of the State House. Make your own sign, use one provided, or just stand in silent witness beside others. This is coordinated by NH Peace Action. We suggest that people make signs that convey something about justice for Israel and Palestine.
PSECC Committee
Friends might enjoy learning about how Israelis and Palestinians have worked together for peace and understanding over the years. The group Combatants for Peace was twice nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Not in My Name NH invites you to a film and discussion at Red River Theatre in Concord, NH, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, at 6:30 p.m.
We are grateful to our sponsor organizations:
NH Peace Action, The Palestine Education Network, NH Veterans for Peace, the UCC Peace with Justice Advocates, Jewish Voice for Peace VT/NH, and American Friends Service Committee.
Tickets are $12 available at the door, online at: www.RedRiverTheatres.org [9]
Please remember to keep a pair of slippers or indoor shoes on the shoe rack to limit damage to our floors.
Plastic Bags can be put inside the box by the entrance of the Meetinghouse.
Questions, comments, suggestions? Email us at: ConcordFriendsNewsletter [at] gmail [dot] com
There are other online Meetings for Worship that are generally available to Quakers, unlimited by geography, if that would be of interest. Some of those are listed here.
Dear Friends,
If you have information or personal news to share via this Newsletter please email your submission to ConcordFriendsMeeting [at] GMail [dot] com (subject: Newsletter) by 9:00 p.m. on Wednesdays.
Juliet C, Newsletter Editor
Are you wanting information from past announcements?
Visit this page on our web site: Past Announcements [15]
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Canterbury, New Hampshire 03224-2043 USA
Links:
[1] https://qtdg.org/
[2] https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/sites/all/files/documents/ReadingsForQuakerBasics,Week6.pdf
[3] https://www.facebook.com/events/553753043826091?emci=b5daa70d-0723-f011-8b3d-6045bded8cca&emdi=57130021-0a23-f011-8b3d-6045bded8cca&ceid=756079
[4] https://concordfriendsmeeting.us19.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9a8043445371972ccf703d972&id=e6e8f37410&e=24f704faa5
[5] https://www.concordnh.gov/DocumentCenter/View/9159/Map-25-Swope-Park-Trails
[6] https://www.concordnh.gov/1033/Trails-Maps-and-Trails-Information
[7] https://mfschool.org/give-through-monteverde-friends-us-mfus/
[8] https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/sites/CMM/Newsletters/2024/10/CeasefireWitness-MapLocation.jpg
[9] http://www.redrivertheatres.org
[10] https://www.threeriversmeeting.org/about
[11] https://neym.org/events-calendar/weekly-taize-service-online
[12] https://pendlehill.org/explore/worship/online-daily-worship/
[13] https://fwcc.world/find/online-worship/
[14] http://www.quakercenter.org/programs/meeting-for-worship/
[15] https://www.concordfriendsmeeting.org/PastAnnouncements
