Nonviolence, for Quakers, is by no means a passive or negative concept, a simple thou-shall-not-kill prohibition. It is, rather, a springboard for action, an ideal that must be transformed into the active pursuit of peace and justice. In the broadest sense, the challenge to Friends is to become the worldís peacemakers. This positive, proactive view of nonviolence, I believe, has been one of Quakerismís greatest contributions to society.

The wish for universal peace has never, of course, been restricted to Quakers. In fact, it is reflected in the liturgy of every world religion. The most revered twentieth-century martyrs to nonviolence were a Hindu and a Baptist: Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. The fact that both were loved, honored, and listened to by so many people of all faiths is, in itself, a testimony to the yearning of people of this century for an end to violence of all sorts. But even more important than speaking out eloquently for peace, these men became visionary leaders by showing that nonviolence can succeed as a strategy for overcoming the injustice imposed by a more powerful adversary.

Gandhi made Satyasgraha ó civil disobedience based on truth and nonviolence ó the basis of his movement to oppose Britainís colonial rule over India. His words and deeds inspired a mass peaceful political protest that spread across the continent, leading to Indian independence in 1948. Following Gandhiís lead, Reverend King used bus boycotts and lunch counter sit-ins to overthrow a century of Jim Crow segregation in America. Both Gandhi and King were deeply spiritual men who understood that nonviolence is not simply an intellectual ideal. It is a commitment of the soul that must be lived every day. Gandhi wrote, ìNonviolence is not a garment to be put on and off at will. Its seat is in the heart, and it must be an inseparable part of our very being.î

A Quaker Book of Wisdom, Robert Lawrence Smith, pp. 84, 87, & 88

Facing Bench for May
May 5 ó Deedy Roberts and Marietta Donovan
May 12 ó Deedy Roberts and Marietta Donovan
May 19 ó Alistair Blossfeld-Dodgson and Gary Smith
May 26 ó Bob and Johanna DeRose

Coffee and covered dish for May
Peace and Social Concerns Committee

Upcoming Events

Friday May 3 ñ Sunday May 5
Building Peace in the 21st Century:
New Responses to New Kinds of War

The Pendle Hill Religion and Social Issues Forum is hosting this conference at Arch Street Meeting House
4th & Arch Streets, Philadelphia. For more information, call Pendle Hill at 800-742-3150, or visit their website, www.pendlehill.org.

May 5 ó History of Moorestown Meeting.
Lunch and discussion after 11 am Meeting for Worship. Moorestown Meetinghouse. For more
information, call 856-235-1561.

May 18 ó The Peace Testimony and the ìWar on Terrorismî: Exploring Our Differences and Commonalities. Co-led by PYMís Adult Religious Education Coordinator, Gene Hillman, and PYMís Conflict Response Specialist, Caroline Packard.
Hosted by Harrisburg, (PA) Meeting. 9 am registration, coffee and bagels; 9:30 worship; 10-12 morning program; 12-1 lunch (provided for those who call ahead) and 1-3 afternoon program. All are welcome. For more information, or to sign up for lunch, e-mail geneh@pym.org.

May 25-27 ó Womenís Worship and Peace Vigil

The Quaker Womenís Gathering Group of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting is sponsoring an extended period of worship, praying for peace in the world and seeking
the Spiritís guidance about how to give witness to the Peace Testimony. Burlington Meetinghouse and Retreat Center, 340 High Street, Burlington, NJ. Worship will begin Saturday morning, May 25 at 9 am and end Monday, May 27 at 4 pm. Friends are encouraged to join us for as much of the time as they discern to be appropriate. For more information, e-mail Hamsa OíDoherty at aslfriendpa@aol.com or Elke Muller, 215-241-7223, e-mail elkem@pym.org. See the article on page 6 of this newsletter.

May 31 ñ June 2 ó In The Palm of Godís Hand: Rise Up Singing

Led by Annie and Peter Blood-Patterson. Kirkridge Retreat Center, Bangor, PA. Annie and Peter will create a singing community where retreat participants can bring songs that have struck a deep chord in their
spiritual journey. There will be plenty of opportunity to share prayer, silence, or reflections evoked by the songs we sing together. No musical experience is
necessary. Cost: $225. For more information, call
the Kirkridge Retreat Center at 610-588-1793,
e-mail kirkridge@fast.net, or check out their website, www.kirkridge.org.

June 2 ó Meeting Family Special Event

Come one, come all adults, children, parents or
NOT! We need you for our Community Dance ó adult folk dances simplified for children (and the dance impaired). Please come and get acquainted with the Meeting children and their parents. Refreshments and dancing immediately following Meeting for Worship. Sponsored by the Childrenís Inclusion Committee.

June 9 ó Haddonfield Day at the Riversharks

The Camden Riversharks are hosting Haddonfield Day on June 9th. Contact Louise Senopoulos for more information.

April 2002 Monthly Meeting for Business

Monthly Meeting for Business took place on April 12 and began with a period of silent worship during which the Clerk read ìA Note from Elders of Balbyî on p. 85 of Faith and Practice.

Dear Friends, keep all your meetings in the authority, wisdom and power of Truth and the unity of the blessed Spirit. Let your conduct and conversation be such as become the Gospel of Christ. Exercise yourselves to have a conscience void of offense toward God and toward all people. Be steadfast and faithful in your allegiance and service to your Lord, and the God of peace be with you.

During announcements, we approved a request from Philadelphia Yearly Meeting to send a copy of a PYM minute on lifting all non-military sanctions against Iraq to our NJ Congressmen. A PYM minute on the preservation of civil liberties for non-citizens and citizens was passed on to Peace & Social Concerns.

Flora McKinney spoke on the Friends Meeting and School in Ramallah on the West Bank. Yearly Meeting has created a fund for the restoration of the Meetinghouse and is asking for support from monthly meetings for the school and its planned creation of a peace center. The Meeting chose to pass this discussion on to Peace & Social Concerns for its recommendation on how we may offer ongoing support to the Meeting, School and peace center in Ramallah.

Louise Heritage presented the Nominating Committee list for approval at next monthís business meeting. She also reported on the Education Fund (see article on page 3).

At the March Meeting for Business we held over a decision of combining covered dish and Monthly Meeting for Business. We will not combine these two items. We will have Monthly Meeting for Business as usual and move Monthly Meeting to the 2nd Sunday of June, August and September at 10:45 am, immediately following a shortened Meeting for Worship.

At the recommendation of Overseers we approved the transfer of Deborah, John, Ian and Moira Mosely-Duffy to Newton Meeting.

We approved entering into a loan agreement with Woodstown National Bank for the purchase of 65 Haddon Ave., and authorized Steve Senopoulos and Pat Williams as signers on the loan documents.

Bill Schmidt reported for School Committee. He announced that Paul Shallers would be stepping down as Headmaster of HFS at the end of this school year. School committee has accepted his resignation with gratitude for his 27 years of service. An ad hoc committee will be formed to search for an interim and
permanent headmaster. Bill also announced that the School Committee would begin with a 7th grade with the 2002-2003 school year providing they can have a class of at least 5 students.

The Education Fund Committee
submitted by Louise Heritage

The Education Fund Committee was named to
help fund the present tuition aid program of the Meeting. This aid is for Meeting membersí children in Haddonfield Friends School, grades K through 6th. For a number of years, yard sales, spaghetti dinners and auctions were organized. Members also could designate part of their giving to the Education Fund. Grandparents of students were also known to contribute generously.

In the spring of 2000 the Committeeís annual report indicated that these activities were not financially feasible for the amount of work and the number of person involved. The report suggested several ways to continue to help fund the tuition program.

However, because the fund had a balance, the last two school years have been covered with no activity by the committee. At April 2002 Monthly Meeting the committee was laid down. The Fund still exists, however, and contributions are welcome.

Since 1997 a small Ad Hoc Tuition Committee has handled the applications and dispursements of the Education Fund. For the school year 2002-2003 the tuition is $7595. It is divided into three parts. The Meeting will pay $2532, as budgeted under Education Fund. The School will pay $2532. Eleven hundred dollars of this comes from Philadelphia Yearly Meeting bequests. Parents pay one third or $2532. which includes re-enrollment.

The Ad Hoc Committee recently approved keeping the program as it is until seventh and eighth grades are active. It is the committeeís work to notify parents of their portion and due dates and to help them follow through. The Meeting believes that no student shall be turned away because of finances.

FIRST DAY SCHOOL

ìIt Takes a Meeting to Raise a Friend.î
ìYe have no time but this present time.î G. Fox

Submitted by Flora McKinney and Jayne Stokes

Spring Term Theme

Ecology and the Environment

Hymns from Worship in Song:

For the Beauty of the Earth, pg. 10

For the beauty of the earth,
For the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies,
Lord of all, to thee we raise
This our song of grateful praise.

This Is My Fatherís World

This is my Fatherís world,
And to my listening ears
All nature sings and round me rings
The music of the spheres.
This is my Fatherís world,
I rest me in the thought
Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas
His hand the wonders wrought.

Walking Gently on the Earth

We recognize the well-being of the earth is a fundamental spiritual concern. From the beginning, it was through the wonders of nature that people saw God. How we treat the earth and its creatures is a basic part of our relationship with God.

As Friends became aware of the interconnectedness of all life on this planet and the devastation caused by neglect of any part of it, we have become more willing to extend out sense of community to encompass all
living things.

Friends are indeed called to walk gently on the earth. Wasteful and extravagant consumption is a major cause of the destruction of the environment. The world can not tolerate indefinitely the present rate of consumption by the technologically developed nations.

Friends are called to become models and patterns of simple living and concern for the earth.

Voluntary simplicity in living and restraint in procreation hold the promise of ecological redemption and spiritual renewal. (Faith & Practiceó pg. 81)

Personal Query ó Faith and Practice, pg. 213.

How am I helping to develop a social, economic and political system which will nurture an environment which sustains and enriches life for all?

Am I aware of the place of water, air, and soil in my life? Do I consider with care the necessity of purchasing substances hazardous to the environment? Do I act as a faithful steward of the environment in the use and disposal of such hazardous substances?

Do I choose with care the use of technology and devices that truly simplify and add quality to my life without adding undue burden to essential resources?

Adult FDS Schedule for May

May 5: Part 2 of a two-part discussion on conscientious objection to war. Consider the following discussion questions:

1. Is there ever a just war?

2. Are there times when non-violence doesnít work?

3. Does violence ever bring peace?

4. Are there limits to the effectiveness of non-violence in resolving conflict?

5. Under what circumstances would the use of violence be justified?

The results of our discussion will be recorded and brought to business meeting to encourage the passing of a minute regarding the meetingís position on this issue.

May 12: Spiritual Journeys.

May 19: Closing exercises for Childrenís First Day School. At rise of Meeting, children and teachers will be honored for their participation in First Day School activities this year. Teachers will be given flowers. All member children and those children who have attended First Day School this year and who are graduating from sixth or eighth grades will receive Bibles (6th grade) and Faith & Practice (8th grade). If your child meets these criteria, and you have not been contacted by a member of the Religious Education Committee, please call Jayne Stokes.

Curriculum Wanted

Could any teachers who have First Day School curriculum materials at their home return it by the end of May? We are going to catalog our materials over the summer. Thanks.

Important Notice to Members
and Attenders

The fiscal year is ending June 30, 2002 and the Meeting has a major budgetary shortfall. If you can contribute, please send a check payable to Haddonfield Monthly Meeting, c/o Karin Saanwald, 32 Woodside Drive, Mt. Holly, NJ 08060. Thank you.

A Short History of The Society of Friends
in Ramallah

By Howard McKinney

Quakers Around the World, published in 1994 by Friends World Committee, indicates that work began in Palestine in 1869. The Friends Girls School in Ramallah began about 1880. Friends of New England Yearly Meeting played a larger role in the early years.

It is well to remember that the last half of the nineteenth century saw a wave of Missionary work by all of the American Protestant denominations. Other Friends groups began work in Alaska, Mexico, Central and South America, Jamaica and Cuba. The work in Kenya was begun in 1902-03. While much of this was by the more evangelical Yearly Meeting that soon became Pastoral Meetings, Philadelphia Friends were involved in the establishment of a girls school in Japan.

The Boys School in Ramallah began about 1902, very much at the request of the Palestinian People ìIf our girls are educated where are they going to find educated husbands?î The two schools have been merged into one for quite a number of years.

While nominally under the care of Friends United Meeting (headquarters Richmond, IN), they have largely been run by Palestinians for a good many years. Sometimes FUM has sent a Headmaster ó Collin & Cathy South (English Friends) have been there a couple of years and Jim Fine was there not very long ago. It is not unusual for one or two Americans to be there teaching for a two- or three-year assignment ó often these are young persons. I believe that two of the daughters of Martin & Winnie Beer spent some time there. Joyce Ketterer was there on a summer work camp from Guilford College a few years ago.

There was an early effort to start a Meeting with only irregular success, but it was revived and the Meeting has existed since 1903. The Meeting House was built in 1909 and dedicated in 1910. The Near East Yearly Meeting was established in 1929 and made up of the Meeting in Ramallah and the Brummans Meeting in Lebanon. Because of restrictions on travel, the Yearly Meeting has not been able to meet for several years. There have been Worship Groups at times in other Middle East cities but none have continued long enough to be a recognized Meeting.

The Ramallah Meeting has gone down in numbers during the ìoccupationî as many have felt the need
to emigrate to survive. The 1994 directory lists 20 members. They have lacked the funds to maintain the Meeting House ó the roof leaks and they have not used the building in about five years.

The pledge of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting at its recent sessions was $50,000 to make the immediate repairs and to take a lead in raising perhaps a million dollars to rehabilitate the building and help develop Ramallah Friendsí vision of a Peace Center.

Other Friends activities in the Middle East

Clarence Picket, Executive Secretary of the American Friends Service Committee, was in Jerusalem at the time of the UN-sponsored partition (1948). At one point he was offered the position of mayor of Jerusalem. He did not take that position but was largely responsible for AFSC accepting the responsibility for the distribution of food to the refugees on the Gaza Strip. That program lasted 16 months, Jan 1949ñApr. 1950. (My involvement with that program was from July 1949ñApril 1950. I was among the last to leave before it was turned over to the UN.)

AFSC has had a number of programs in Gaza in the past 50 years, but not necessarily continuous ó kindergartens, womenís economic development projects and legal aid. Since the Gulf War, they have been particularly concerned with the sanctions that have resulted in the death of many children in Iraq. There is staff in Jordan working on a variety of issues in the area.

A number of Friends have found ways to live and work in the area and bring to us an understanding and concern for the problems of the Middle East.

(Editorís note: If Friends are interested in more
information on peace and the Mideast, contact Gene Hillman at geneh@pym.org or Laurence Sigmund at
laurence@philapeace.org.)

Services for the Aging

The Aging Concerns Group of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting has published a Guide to Quaker Services for the Aging. This publication provides an overview of services provided by Friends organizations in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. To receive a copy of this guide, or for information and counseling about any aspects of aging, contact Betsy Balderston at 215-241-7226, or e-mail betsyb@pym.org.

School News
Submitted by Teacher Marcy, Music Director

This summer HFS is going to run three music classes. Percussion Ensemble will be one. It is for those
children already taking percussion lessons. The other classes will be Recorder Ensembles. One will be for children who are going into fourth grade or above, and who are beginners on the recorder. The other ensemble is for children who have already had some experience playing the recorder. We will use the soprano, alto, tenor and bass recorders. It will also utilize the Autoharp and various other small instruments.
All classes will meet twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays, for an hour. The classes will start June 25th and finish July 18th. The children will give a concert at the end of the four weeks. Cost for each class will
be $140. Teacher Jaime, one of our current percussion teachers, will be teaching the percussion ensemble. Teacher Marcy will be teaching the recorder ensemble classes. In addition, some of our current instrumental teachers will be available to give one-on-one instrumental lessons. Sign your child up for these lessons just to ìkeep them goingî a little longer into the summer.

Some of you will remember that we were thinking about running a summer music program here at HFS. We have had to hold off on the ìlarger visionî of a summer music camp, but only for this year! Plans are already in the works for next summer with a ìfull scaleî music program! If you have any questions, just drop me a note or leave a message on the music line here at school ó 856-429-6786 ext.9.

Steering Committee

A Steering Committee for the HFS Master Plan has been formed. Pat Williams, Flo and Lyle Tatum, Steve Senopoulos and Bill Schmidt are among its members. Minutes of the Committee meetings will be posted on the bulletin board in order to keep the Meeting community informed.

Spring Service Project

Please contribute to the Childrenís Home in
Mt. Holly and Bridge of Peace Church in Camden. The Childrenís Home provides education and support services for children with very serious problems in their lives. Bridge of Peace works to build positive relationships between two communities that border the church ó one a primarily white community and the other a community of people of color.

Until May 15th, we are collecting donations of:

ï new socks (tube or ìone-size-fits-allî for boys & womenís standard size 9-11 for girls)

ï new white or solid color T-shirts (medium, large, or x-large)

ï new towels and wash cloths

ï new or ìgently usedî duffel bags or backpacks (medium-sized bags)

ï arts and crafts supplies (construction paper, paint, crayons, markers, scissors, glue, stickers, rulers, etc.)

Please leave all donations in your Meeting House or call Priscilla Adams for pick-up.

Peace Vigil

The Quaker Womenís Gathering Group of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting passed this minute at their recent gathering and extends this invitation to Friends, to Young Friends, and to friends of peace who are comfortable joining us:

The Minute

At the April 2002 Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Womenís gathering, ìWomen, Wisdom, and Witness,î we felt called to seek the leading of the Spirit as we respond to increasing war and violence. Quaker women of all ages, of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and other Yearly Meetings, as well as other women familiar with Quaker process, are invited to join us on Memorial Day weekend 2002 for extended worship together to discern how we are led as a community for peace. We will wait in the Light to know how to help make this world a place where all people can live with dignity.

We sense something is in the process of coming to birth. Drawing on the inspiration and energy generated by womenís prophetic ministry past and present, we feel called to gather as women. We ask women to come for extended worship over the course of the three day weekend as possible.

We also encourage the formation of local small groups to worship, pray, discern, journal and discuss together through the coming period of time as we seek the leading of the Spirit. We invite Friends to commit to the gathering by spiritually preparing themselves.

This extended meeting for worship for discernment will be under the care of Philadelphia Yearly Meetingís Womenís Gathering Group. We encourage Friends to share this minute broadly and we invite all Friends of peace to go forward in peace and to hold this gathering in the Light.

On behalf of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting Womenís Gathering Group, Kathryn Gordon, Clerk.

Does anyone have a key to the Meetingís safety deposit box? Contact Pat Williams.
if you know of its whereabouts.

The Journal of George Fox
Continued from April

Next morning Major Blackmore sent soldiers to
apprehend me; but I was gone before they came. As I was riding up the street I saw the officers going down; so the Lord crossed them in their design, and Friends passed away peaceably and quietly. The soldiers examined some Friends after I was gone, asking them what they did there; but when they told them that they were in their inn, and had business in the city, they went away without meddling any further with them.

We passed through the countries, having meetings, and gathering people in the name of Christ, their heavenly teacher, till we came to Brecknock, where we put up our horses at an inn.

There went with me Thomas Holmes and John ap-John, who was moved of the Lord to speak in the streets. I walked out but a little into the fields; and when I returned the town was in an uproar.

When I came into the chamber in the inn, it was full of people, and they were speaking in Welsh. I desired them to speak in English, which they did; and much discourse we had. After a while they went away.

Towards night the magistrates gathered in the streets with a multitude of people, and they bade them shout, and gathered up the town; so that, for about two hours together, there was a noise the like of which we had not heard; and the magistrates set them on to shout again when they had given over. We thought it looked like the uproar amongst Dianaís craftsmen. This tumult continued till night, and if the Lordís power had not limited them, they would likely have pulled down the house, and torn us to pieces.

At night the woman of the house would have had us go to supper in another room; but we, discerning her plot, refused. Then she would have had half a dozen men come into the room to us, under the pretence of discoursing with us. We told her, ìNo person shall come into our room this night, neither will we go to them.î

Then she said we should sup in another room; but we told her we would have no supper if we had it not in our own room. At length, when she saw she could not get us out, she brought up our supper.

So she and they were crossed in their design; for they had an intent to do us mischief, but the Lord prevented them. Next morning I wrote a paper to the town concerning their unchristian carriage, showing the fruits of their priests and magistrates; and as I passed out of town I spoke to the people, and told them they were a shame to Christianity and religion.

After this we returned to England, and came to Shrewsbury, where we had a great meeting, and visited Friends all over the countries in their meetings, till we came to William Gandyís, in Cheshire, where we had a meeting of between two and three thousand people, as it was thought; and the everlasting Word of life was held forth, and received that day. A blessed meeting it was, for Friends were settled by the power of God upon Christ Jesus, the Rock and Foundation.

At this time there was a great drought; and after this general meeting was ended, there fell so great a rain that Friends said they thought we could not travel, the waters would be so risen. But I believed the rain had not extended as far as they had come that day to the meeting. Next day, in the afternoon, when we turned back into some parts of Wales again, the roads were dusty, and no rain had fallen there.

When Oliver Cromwell sent forth a proclamation for a fast throughout the nation, for rain, when there was a very great drought, it was observed that as far as Truth had spread in the north, there were pleasant showers and rain enough, while in the south, in many places, the fields were almost spoiled for want of rain. At that time I was moved to write an answer to the Protectorís proclamation, wherein I told him that if he had come to own Godís Truth, he should have had rain; and that the drought was a sign unto them of their barrenness, and their want of the water of life.

Are Meeting Records Stuck in Your Closet?

During the past ten years have you clerked or been a recording clerk? Are the records and minutes you generated still in your house? Relieve your conscience by depositing any Meeting, group or committee records with the PYM Records Services Group. For further information, contact Johanna DeRose.

Haddonfield Meeting Online

Did you know this newsletter is available online?
Go to the PYM website (www.pym.org) and click on ìlocal meetingsî under the main head. Scroll down
to Haddonfield Quarterly Meeting and click on Haddonfield Monthly Meeting. The newsletters
and calendars are listed and you can view them.
(All personal information has been deleted in the online versions.) If you scroll further down the page, youíll see a link to a ìspecial areaî for members and attenders. You will be asked for a user name and password. (The answer to both is ìmeeting.î) This area has committee lists, a forum for exchanging ideas, and other items of interest. Bill Patterson maintains the website for the Meeting. Thanks Bill!

Alaska Workcamp

Project Alaska is a work camp, jointly sponsored by PYM and Alaska Yearly Meeting, for youth grades 9 (entering by September 2002) through grade 12. The work camp runs from July 20ñAugust 3, 2002. Cost is $950., with some scholarships available. Applications are due May 31, and must be preceded by a clearness process. Call or e-mail Cookie Caldwell at 215-241-7222 or cookiec@pym.org for more information.