Third Haven Friends Meeting Worship and Ministry Committee 2025 Annual Report:
The Worship and Ministry Committee of the Third Haven Meeting of Friends has faithfully worked to fulfill its purpose as outlined in the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM) Faith and Practice of 2018. We devoted our efforts to deepening the faith of both members and attenders, and we have actively sought to ensure that meetings for worship, meetings for worship with attention to business, and each member’s and attender’s mind, body, and soul align in the manner of Friends. We began the year by discussing the objectives that new and former members of the committee should understand and embrace. Among the activities that were initially outlined and those that evolved during the year are the following:
- Onboarding of new members of the Worship and Ministry Committee.
- Being role models for others, as we encouraged all to “Let their lives speak.”
- Encouraging innovation and forward-looking approaches in identifying activities and pathways forward.
- Serving as “greeters” and “readers” on First Days.
- Reading from the “advices” found in Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (PYM) Faith and Practice, 2018, during meeting for worship at least once each quarter. Advices are a collection of spiritual guidance and wisdom passed down through our faith tradition, and we believe they offer valuable insights for our spiritual growth.
- Recognizing and supporting good practices in meetings for worship using gentle reminders and friendly exchanges.
- Inviting all members and attenders to meetings of the Worship and Ministry Committee and treating them as valuable resources for the committee.
- Providing opportunities to share “spiritual journeys,” thereby fostering a culture of continuous spiritual growth and learning from, about, and with one another.
- Sponsoring an activity titled 'Creating Community with Hearts, Hands and Voices,' which provided an opportunity for spiritual renewal through art and music. Through this activity, we sought to foster a sense of community and spiritual growth through shared creative expression.
- Developing a very successful adult religious education series titled “Faith and Practice at Third Haven Friends Meeting,” with the following topics:
- Quaker History
- That of God
- Silent Worship
- Testimonies and Witness
- Community
- Ensuring that literature about the Religious Society of Friends and the Third Haven Meeting of Friends was visible and accessible to visitors, attenders, and Friends.
- Providing representatives to the Talbot Association of Clergy and Laity.
- Discussing the feasibility of being helpful to Meetings of the Southern Quarter that are facing challenges, such as declining membership.
- Sponsoring two worship-sharing sessions and providing general feedback to the Meeting afterwards.
- The following queries were used for the first worship-sharing session:
- What spiritual lessons have I learned from the current sociopolitical environment?
- To what extent have I treated lessons learned as opportunities for growth on a personal level and as a member of a worship community?
- The second worship-sharing session involved the following queries:
- How is my spiritual well-being in the current sociopolitical environment?
- What can I do to enhance my spiritual well-being?
- What can the Meeting do to support my spiritual well-being during the current sociopolitical environment?
- The following queries were used for the first worship-sharing session:
Being fortunate enough to have various members of the committee participate in activities of the Southern Quarterly Meeting, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, and the Friends General Conference. Participation in these activities has enabled members of the committee to have a broader view of the Religious Society of Friends, deepen the integration of their spiritual beliefs into their everyday actions, and be more powerful witnesses in the world as they seek to walk in love toward others.