"Young Friends" include anyone from 18 to about 30. We gather on Thursday evenings at Friends Meeting House in a Meeting for Worship. You're welcome to arrive from 7:30, and the Meeting starts at eight o'clock. This is usually followed by discussion until nine o'clock, when we consider going to the pub. We meet most weeks, and the next regular events are:
- 5, 12, 26 August
- 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 September
- 7, 14, 21, 28 October
What happens on the other Thursdays? Special events! The next one is:
- Thursday 19 August: Vegetarian dinner in the Garden Room. Meet at 6:30 for Meeting for Worship from 7:00-7:30, then a bring-and-share meal.
Whether you can make Thursdays or not, you're welcome to events on other days of the week:
- Friday 6 August: Goodbye dinner for Barney and Oliver, at Matt Godwin's house. Full details are available via email, and you're asked to RSVP to Matt on 07896 680364.
- Sunday 15 August: We've kindly been invited to visit Headington Meeting. We'll meet at 8:30 a.m. at Oxford's Meeting House, departing at 8:45 to walk to Headington in time for their 10-11 a.m. Meeting for Worship. Afterwards they're having us to lunch. There's a partly forested walk between the two Meetings. RSVP indicating which of the activities you'd like to join (walk, worship, lunch).
- Wednesday 15 September: We'll gather in the Meeting House from 6:30 p.m., departing at 6:50 p.m. and arriving at the New Theatre in time for the 7:30 start to House of Ghosts. RSVP by 5 July or come to the breakfast Meeting for Worship on 6 July, and Matt will kindly buy a ticket for you immediately afterwards; after that date you can still purchase your own ticket but no guarantees about sitting together, unfortunately.
- Sunday 19 September: We'll attend the Adderbury Meeting for Worship at 2:30 p.m. (Less than 20 miles north of Oxford.) We'll join local Friends for meeting in their historic, simple meeting house in tranquil surroundings in North Oxfordshire, which has no electricity, gas or running water. Meeting for worship is held there once a month in the afternoon. Matthew Gee has suggested that we go by bus, taking the Stagecoach service 59 leaving Oxford (Magdalen St) at 12:15, having a picnic lunch together in Adderbury, before joining local Friends for Meeting for Worship at 2:30. If we have time we could go to The Bell Inn for a drink afterwards before returning by bus to Oxford, arriving back in Oxford at 5:40. For more details contact Matthew (matthewdavidgee@googlemail.com).
- Friday 22 October to Sunday 24 October 2010: Some of us may attend the national gathering of Young Friends in Liverpool. Email us if you'd like to carpool etc.
- Friday 18 February to Sunday 20 February 2011: Oxford Meeting will host the national gathering of Young Friends! Keep this weekend available. The other two meetings in 2011 are hoped to be:
* 27-30 May 2011, Redland Meeting (Bristol)
* 21-23 October 2011, Lancaster Meeting
If you have questions or ideas, please contact Barney Palfrey, Naomi Morris, and/or Mark Ebden. (Mark is on 07500 521675 or 01865 283391.)
Summaries of the Meetings
| Before 2008: Young Friends have been meeting on and off for many years. For example, circa 1970-1971, every Sunday after the morning Meeting for Worship guest speakers from various faiths would talk to an audience eating jacket potatoes. More recently, for a while up to 2007, on Monday evenings we'd have Meeting for Worship in the Garden Room followed by a shared dinner in the kitchen. Young Friends then paused until the summer of 2008, starting small and with larger gatherings beginning in the autumn: |  |
20 October 2008, Garden Room: We had a Meeting for Worship followed by dinner, cooked by Barney. All fifteen people showed up on time, and thank you to Ellen Bassani for being our special guest from Oxford Meeting.
3 November 2008, Garden Room: Twelve of us had Meeting for Worship and ate Jan's famous lasagne.
24 November 2008, Garden Room: After the Meeting for Worship, Barney prepared another wonderful meal: risotto and other dishes, for seven people, plus another homemade apple crumble from Kate Joyce. Thank you to special guest Robert Card.
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30 April 2009, Long Room: We adopted a new format for 2009. Meeting on a Thursday instead of a Monday, we started an hour later at eight o'clock. Advices and Queries #2 was read aloud before the Meeting for Worship, and we discussed it afterwards. The seven of us then walked to the Gardeners Arms pub instead of eating at the Meeting House. |
14 May 2009, Long Room: We continued with the new format, this time reading and discussing Advices and Queries #27. The three of us then drove to the Gardeners Arms.
28 May 2009, Short Room: The five of us discussed Advices and Queries #9. No pub today, as we were all too busy!
11 June 2009, Library: Six of us met and discussed Advices and Queries #5 and #16, John 4:23-24, and poetry by R.S. Thomas and Khalil Gibran. We walked to the Gardeners Arms.
| 2 July 2009, Garden: At our first outdoor meeting, the six of us listened as Advices and Queries #7 was read aloud, including "There is inspiration ... in the natural world". This time we held all of the discussion in the pub. |  |
16 July 2009, Long Room: Three of us enjoyed a gathered Meeting. We read Matthew 6:33-34 from The Message, and Advices and Queries #8, and discussed them in the pub.
30 July 2009, Long Room: The beginning and end of Advices and Queries #12 was read and some of the five of us went to the pub afterwards.
13 August 2009, Library: The middle part of Advices and Queries #12 was read to the five of us.
27 August 2009: A different format today, with Naomi providing dinner and dessert at her house in east Oxford. The four of us all helped read three excerpts: Quaker Faith and Practice 22.01, and 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 in the New King James version and in The Message. The usual trip to the pub was replaced by jigsaw-puzzling the Sistine Chapel.
10 September 2009, Library: Four of us met.
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17 September 2009, Library: Four of us met and read Advices and Queries #32. 24 September 2009, Library: Three of us met and read Advices and Queries #31. 8 October 2009, Library: Five of us met and read Advices and Queries #8. 22 October 2009, Short Room: Five of us met and read Advices and Queries #28. |
29 October 2009, Short Room: Seven of us met and read Advices and Queries #9 and Quaker Faith and Practice 2.17.
5 November 2009, Library: Five of us met and read Advices and Queries #1.
12 November 2009, Short Room: We read the first paragraph of Quaker Faith and Practice 24.04, and
Advices and Queries #30, which is related to the next Friday with Friends. All five of us went to the Eagle & Child pub, for mulled cider and an impromptu game of "Advices-and-Queries Pictionary".
| 2 December 2009 social event without MfW: At Nadia's house, seven of us enjoyed a potluck vegetarian dinner and conversation, beginning earlier than the usual time. |
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10 December 2009, Short Room: Five of us met and read Advices and Queries #39.
17 December 2009, Short Room: Four of us met and there was no reading. After Meeting for Worship, we had mince pies before heading over the road to the Lamb and Flag for drinks (as a change
from the Eagle & Child).
7 January 2010, Short Room: Five of us met and read Advices and Queries #7.
21 January 2010 social event without MfW: Fourteen of us met for drinks across the street from Friends Meeting House, at the Lamb & Flag from 6 p.m. Some went on to Quakers in Focus afterwards.
28 January 2010 social event without MfW: About eight of us met in the Lamb & Flag from 6 p.m., some going on to Quakers in Focus afterwards.
4 February 2010, Library: Nine of us met and we read Advices and Queries #3.
11 February 2010, Library: Eight of us met and had no reading before the Meeting for Worship.
18 February 2010 social event without MfW: Six of us shared recent Quaker literature and walked to the ASK Restaurant for dinner.
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19-21 February: Four of us attended the Young Friends General Meeting in London, a gathering of around sixty Young Quakers from across Britain, who meet for fun, fellowship and worship. |
25 February 2010, Library: Nine of us met. We read Advices and Queries #21 and went to the Eagle & Child.
4 March 2010, Short room: Eight of us met and we read part of the Swarthmore Lecture, 1998. The Eagle & Child has almost become the default option!
5-7 March 2010: Two of us enjoyed the YFGM Free event in Osmotherley, North Yorkshire.
11 March 2010, Library: Six of us met with no reading before the Meeting for Worship, and went to the Eagle & Child afterwards.
18 March 2010 social event without MfW: We walked from Friends Meeting House to the Nosebag restaurant, where eleven of us had dinner at 7 p.m. We walked to G&D's for dessert.
25 March 2010, Library: Four of us met with no reading before worship, and went to the Eagle & Child afterwards.
1 April 2010, Library: Three of us met and read Advices and Queries #36, and briefly discussed the Quaker Universalist Group. We walked to G&D's afterwards.
8 April 2010, Library: Seven of us met and read Advices and Queries #4. Some of us walked to the Lamb & Flag afterwards.
| 15 April 2010 social event without MfW: Ten of us gathered at Matthew Gee's flat in Banbury. He'd cooked many vegetarian curries, and we played two parlour games including Consequences. |  |
22 April 2010, Library: Eight of us met and read Advices and Queries #7. Some of us walked to the Eagle & Child afterwards.
29 April 2010, Library, Spiritual Review: Six of us met and, responding to a request from Oxford Meeting's Elders, discussed the following: What are our aspirations for our Meeting? What does our Meeting do well in enabling Friends to 'get to know one another in the things which are eternal'?
What further action do you feel the Meeting should take in order to deepen the spiritual life of the Meeting and its expression in caring? We finished with twenty minutes of MfW and some went to the Eagle & Child.
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5 May 2010, Warden's office: Chocolate tasting and (informal) business meeting. Six of us met to discuss new ideas of what to do and agree a programme for the next five months. |
6 May 2010, Library: Six of us met for worship with no reading beforehand; we went to the pub and some went to an election party afterwards.
13 May 2010 social event without MfW: We walked from Friends Meeting House to the Nosebag restaurant, where the eight of us plus Brigid ate dinner at seven o'clock.
20 May 2010, Library: About eight of us met and read Quaker Faith & Practice 26.39. We walked to the Eagle & Child afterwards.
27 May 2010, Library: Eight of us met and read Advices and Queries #6 before the Meeting for Worship.
| 3 June 2010, Library: Over a dozen of us, including outside guests, met for a shared supper and a film showing (The Iron Wall, one hour) as part of the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel. The documentary looked at the settlements in the West Bank and explored the effect that they have had on the peace process. Thanks to Amy Merone and Hannah Brock. |
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10 June 2010, Library: We gathered an hour early to discuss the paragraphs we especially liked from Advices & Queries, and why we liked them. We also considered additions, among other things. Finally we read Advices and Queries #13 before the ten of us held Meeting for Worship and went to the Eagle & Child.
17 June, 2010: Five of us went to Port Meadow for Meeting for Worship and an evening picnic, followed by a trip to the Gardeners Arms pub.
24 June 2010, Library: Five of us met and read QF&P 20.01 and went to the Eagle & Child afterwards.
Friday 25 June to Sunday 27 June: YFGM weekend in Norwich. Five of us attended this fun gathering of Young Quakers from across Britain.
1 July 2010, Library: Four of us met and read QF&P 10.01. Afterwards we went to the Eagle & Child.
8 July 2010, Library: Twelve of us, including four visitors from Abilene Christian University in Texas, met for Meeting for Worship in the Warden's Office, followed by discussion in the garden. We did not feel led to have a reading. Some of us went on to the Eagle & Child for drinks afterwards.
15 July 2010 social event without MfW: We walked from Friends Meeting House to the Nosebag restaurant, where five of us had dinner at 7 p.m. Some of us walked to Puccino's for tea afterwards.
22 & 29 July 2010, Library: Some of us met!
5 August 2010, Library: Suggestions welcome for readings or other activities. It is a regular meeting.
Meetings currently tend to be in the Library. You don't need to remember this because it's indicated each time in the building's foyer.
