Worship and Bible Half-Hour

Worship

Opportunities for worship permeate the Gathering: indoors and outdoors, in large groups and small. During opening registration, Friends are invited to sit in worship for a centering moment in the hectic period of arrival.

Opening and Closing All-Gathering Worship allows us to hold each other and our Gathering in the Light .

During the week, workshops contain daily periods of worship or worship-sharing. Various groups also offer diverse worship opportunities, like the daily outdoor worship under the care of Quaker Earthcare Witness, and the simple Shabbat service offered by Jewish Friends late Friday evening. Friends receive a detailed list of worship-related activities upon arrival at the Gathering.

The Silent Place is a room where quiet and materials help support personal reflection away from the busy energy of the Gathering.

There are many peaceful spots to be found on the Bowling Green campus. Singing, dancing, chanting, stretching, and interacting with nature and with Friends of all ages—these can each be experienced as gifts of the Spirit.

May these many opportunities for worship at the Gathering enrich and refresh your spirit and nurture you when you return to daily life.

Bible Half-Hour

What gifts of the Spirit did Scripture writers experience? What enabled them to accept and live in their power? Maggie Edmondson, a New England pastor, will lead our Bible Half-hour explorations each morning at 8:00 am.

Many of us struggle with what the Bible is and what it isn't. How do we accept the gifts it offers and make it a part of our spiritual tool belt rather than either reject or idolize it? What are the gifts of the Spirit which the scripture writers experienced? What enabled them to live in their power? What can the Bible teach us as individuals and as a religious society about allowing the gifts of the Spirit to be manifested through us?

Maggie Edmondson has been a pastor among Friends for 14 years and continues to wrestle with Biblical texts and to find, at times, glimpses of the deeper truth to which they point. Before becoming pastor of Winthrop Center Friends Church in Maine, Maggie was a member of an unprogrammed Friends meeting. Maggie serves on the Faith and Practice Revision committee of NEYM and has been active with FWCC for about 8 years. Her talk on pastoral ministry in New England "A Road Less Traveled" was published by Beacon Hill Press in 2008.