Minnesota Trip Report
David & Virginia Wood
It was a pleasure to travel among Friends in Minnesota. We were treated with marvelous hospitality at each meeting, and were impressed with how many of the members of the small meetings managed to meet with us either by hosting us in their homes, by meeting us as individuals, or by attending in groups. Toward the end of the trip we were asked by one of the groups what we had found common about Friends in Minnesota. To that question we responded that we had been struck by the number of young adults within the meetings, by the amount of involvement in social action issues, that the majority of meetings had changed their location within the last couple of years, and that the number of Quakers in Minnesota appears to be increasing. Common concerns had to do with programming for First Day School for children, the lack of programming for adults, the need for greater visibility within the community, the need for visitation between monthly meetings, and various questions about vocal ministry and the desire to deepen spirituality within the meeting.
We were able to visit all 10 meetings and worship groups in Minnesota, plus Red River in North Dakota. With each group we shared information about the Traveling Ministries Program, and the discernment process we went through. Concerns varied from diversity of belief, to maintaining a small meeting, to meeting the requirements of those with special needs. We also visited the Minnesota Friends School and the Center for Non-Violent Action in Minneapolis, two ministries of Northern Yearly Meeting, and were uplifted by the social involvement and commitment of Minnesota Friends. For those Friends unfamiliar with Northern Yearly Meeting and Minnesota Friends, we recommend not only the scenery of the lake and river country but the fellowship of a vital part of the Religious Society of Friends.
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