It will be no surprise to report that Friends involved in our work have found the context for promoting and taking action for peace very challenging this year. We hope it is also no surprise to note that Friends and others find it really important to meet with one another, to share concerns, ideas and information, and to support one another. That is a core part of what our work is about.
Our activities this year have brought Friends together from across the NFPB area, both into the same physical space and online. Our four members’ meetings saw Friends gathering in Nottingham, Edinburgh, York and Liverpool – and online. As well as hearing from one another and engaging in worship and discussion on current challenges and openings, we were joined by speakers including Russell Whiting (GCOMS), Rachel Julian, and Diana Jeater, addressing issues from military spending to peace building and promoting cultures of peace in different settings.
We have delivered workshops and supported events and resources in partnership with a variety of networks, including Rethinking Security, Christian Aid and the Network of Christian Peace Organisations. Friends have engaged in acts of witness from Faslane nuclear weapons base in Scotland to Yorkshire and down to Derbyshire and, with Quaker Roots, at the DSEI arms fair in London. Our publication Responses to war came out in May, drawing together a range of Quaker voices and perspectives, and we have merged previous newsletters into a now-combined NFPB Bulletin that is published and distributed every two months. Our website and social media are regularly updated and we respond to a range of queries and requests for resources.
Looking ahead, a working group is developing plans for a gathering on 13th June in York for a larger number of Friends to explore different aspects of our peace testimony. That event will replace our normal summer members’ meeting, the others being planned to take place in Darlington, Glasgow and Manchester, in February, September and November respectively. We have been able to get some additional funding for the work described above and will continue to seek support from a variety of sources to compliment the core support which we receive from Area Meetings and Friends across the North. Thank you Friends for all your support.
A fuller report of our year’s work and plans for this year will be published in the spring/early summer.