"How can we transform thought into action?" ask young Quakers
Young Quakers who gathered from across Britain and beyond last weekend agreed that time should not be wasted and that Quakers must act upon issues like climate change and educational equity, instead of merely talking about them.
More than 50 young people, aged 15-18, attended Junior Yearly Meeting (JYM) in Northamptonshire to discuss making space for action. It was the first time they had met in person for three years.
Together they produced a minute addressing the question, “As Quakers, how can we transform thought into action?" and suggested streamlining the Quaker business process and strengthening faith community.
Guests over the weekend included Recording Clerk Paul Parker and this year's Swarthmore lecturer, Helen Minnis, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Glasgow, who helped young Friends think about stereotyping; slavery, colonialism and climate change; and equity in educational opportunities.
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“We should use the power we have to get other people's voices heard."
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The young Quakers agreed: “We should use the power we have to get other people's voices heard." And they questioned: “Are we the right people to be proposing solutions?"
Helen will deliver the annual lecture, organised by Quaker study centre Woodbrooke, in May on white privilege in Quakerism and science.
When schools closed in 2020, online Quaker youth groups and summer online programmes provided space for young people to explore their feelings and spend time with their peers but they missed the in-person connection.
In their epistle the young Quakers said: “This year's JYM felt incredibly special, as after two years of Covid-19 preventing an in-person event, many of us felt spiritually and socially untethered."
This year's event allowed them to spend time together as a community mountain biking, kayaking, quizzing and chatting around the campfire, as well as taking part in more formal Quaker business.