Banbury Quakers

Summer Meetings

2008-05-17T16:40:00.003+01:00

BANBURY FRIENDS
MEETING HOUSE
(QUAKERS)
Meetings for Worship
(open to all)
Sundays 10.30am
Children's Meeting on 2nd Sunday of the month.
*************
From May to September
On Third and Fifth Sundays,
Meeting is not here but at
Adderbury Friends Meeting House, Hornhill rd, Adderbury, at 11.00 am click here for map

Sunday 13th January

2008-01-13T14:33:00.001Z

Todays' meeting was well attended and had the welcome addition of the childrens meeting as it was second Sunday in the month. The main meeting was a peaceful affair, with no ministry until the children joined the room for the last few minutes.

The children looked at the true story of how a meeting of quaker settlers in America managed to show their friendship to a tribe of Native Americans, who after much hostility from the wider settler community had come to harm the group (click here for the story). The story ends where the chief of the tribe offers a white feather to the friends to show trust and freindship.

The children went on to make themselves a headdress of feathers to reflect both the dress of the Native Americans and the symbolic gift of the feather. A lot of effort went in to the design, cutting out and colouring of the feather bands, which certainly went down well with the main meeting when they joined them.

One of the parents spoke about how the idea for the headdress started as just a loose plan based on the story, but how the children pulled together with the parents in a short space of time to make something quite special.

After the meeting different people spoke about friends that had moved far away, others who are prevented from coming due to poor health and others who had returned home after some time away and the overiding thought seemed to be that home really is where your friends and family are around you.

Looking Ahead To 2008

2008-01-13T13:36:00.000Z

After the hustle and bustle of Christmas and New Year and looking back on 2007, it is time to look forward to 2008 and what we know to be scheduled already. Of course there are weekly meetings at the Friends meeting house, where we look forward to seeing new and old faces.

There are throughout the year a number of dates for your diary;

Area Meetings

Sunday 13th January 2.00pm. Banbury Friends Meeting House, preceded by lunch.
Saturday 9th February 2.30pm Stratford Friends Meeting House.
Sunday 9th March 3.00pm Broad Campden Meeting House.

Saturday 12th April 2.30pm Ettington Friends Meeting House.
Saturday 10th May 2.30pm Sibford Friends Meeting House.
Wednesday 11th June 6.30pm Evesham Friends Meeting House, tea at 5.45pm.

Wednesday 9th July 6.30pm Banbury Friends Meeting House, tea at 5.45pm.
Sunday 14th September 2.30pm Stratford Friends Meeting House.
Saturday 11th October 11.00am Sibford Friends Meeting House, speaker, picnic lunch and childrens' programme.

Sunday 9th November 3.00pm Broad Campden Friends Meeting House.

Other Events

26th April General Meeting (Regional meeting for Oxon and Berks), Banbury
Friends Meeting House.

23rd - 26th May Britain Yearly Meeting, Friends House, Euston, London.

8th June Adderbury Gathering, Adderbury Friends Meeting House, Adderbury.

20th September General Meeting, Venue TBC.

This Sunday, 7th October 2007

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We wait and see what the impact of Quaker Outreach week will mean for us at Banbury. If you are thinking of attending, but need just a little extra push to come into Banbury....

It is Banbury Canal open day and if the weather holds out, this should be a grand event as it has been in previous years. There is, as they say, something for all the family! Previous years have always been busy and it is nice to see the canal buzzing with activity, especially as the waterways quieten down towards winter. There is a good mixture of activities and crafts for sale as well as a fine array of boats.

East House, Adderbury, where several of our members live, is holding its open day also and everyone would be welcome.

Just a quick reminder that it is PM after the main meeting for those who want to stay on.

Banbury Open Weekend

2007-10-01T09:27:00.000+01:00

Banbury Meeting House enjoyed a steady stream of visitors over the weekend and one of the comments heard more than once was that it was 'lovely to see the meeting house buzzing with people'. It was generally felt that the weekend was a success and was worth the frantic putting together of the displays, exhibitions and organising the event.

Janice gave a talk about the history of the Quakers in Banbury, which was well received and certainly surprised a few people as to how richly Quakers and their legacies are woven into the town. The talk was complemented by a walk around the town with local historian Brian Littlejohn on Sunday afternoon, for which the weather held out for us.

Inside the Meeting House, were provided drinks and cakes which went down well and stalls displaying a selection of Quaker publications, a number of items celebrating the Quaker tapestry, books, fairtrade items and plants.

It was interesting to see cautious faces coming into the Meeting House, perhaps unsure of what they would find, soon relaxing as they enjoyed tea and cake and curiosity leading to conversation about the building and the Quakers in Banbury. More than once it was heard, 'I wonder what this building used to be?' and then surprise when they learnt that our Meeting House is the oldest place of worship in the town and how far back it dates; others commented 'I have walked past so many times and have often wondered what was inside'.

The exhibition at the Meeting House and the local museum appeared to attract interest and we are thrilled that the library wants to take the exhibition to display in its reference section. It is also a good opportunity to thank St Mary's church and the Banbury Operatic society for their assistance in providing exhibition stands at very short notice.

We hope that we really have 'reached out' and will wait to see if we see new faces in the coming weeks at Meeting.

Sunday 30th October

2007-10-01T09:26:00.000+01:00

Meeting was well attended and several people spoke ministry, touching on a number of subjects including what God meant to them and touching on the theme of 'living adventurously' and about how important it is to seize opportunity however small it might seem.

Taking an opportunity and living adventurously was beautifully demonstrated by a visitor from Wales,Nigel Worth. Nigel is undertaking a mammoth journey rowing a boat he made himself from Denbeighshire in Wales to Tower Bridge, London with his dog 'Taz' for company. Moved by the suffering of orphans of AIDS in Swaziland, he hopes to raise money to improve their chances in life through education and access to health, projects he has close links with. Nigel shared his experience with us and stayed for lunch after Meeting and certainly gave us all plenty to think about. We are grateful that he found time to share with us.

You can learn more about his journey by clicking HERE and HERE.

Our thoughts and best wishes go with Nigel and Taz as they continue their adventure, especially as the nights get colder.

Where are we?

2007-09-23T19:52:00.000+01:00

Banbury Quakers meet in the oldest building for worship in Banbury. The Friends Meeting House, built in 1751 can be found in Horse Fair, off North Bar in Banbury. It is on the opposite side of the road to St Mary's Church and is entered through a wrought iron gate in the wall, just before the path leading to Peoples Park.

Follow THIS LINK for a map of where to find us.

Banbury Quakers in Brief

2007-09-23T19:08:00.004+01:00

Meeting Update - Summer 2008

3rd and 5th Sundays May-September Meeting will be at the Adderbury Meeting House on Hornhill Rd, Adderbury at the slightly later time of 11am

Banbury Quakers come together for worship at The Friends Meeting House, Horsefair, Banbury, Oxfordshire every Sunday at 10.30 for about an hour with tea and coffee after. From time to time we have a shared lunch after meeting where we can get to know each other in a more social way.

Children are welcome to any meeting, however there is a separate children's meeting the second Sunday of every month, where children learn together often using art and craft to bring together the ideas they have.

"The bedrock of the Quaker way is the silent meeting for worship. We seek a communal gathered stillness, where we can be open to inspiration from the Spirit of God and find peace of mind, a renewed sense of purpose for living, and joy to wonder at God's creation.

During our meetings for worship some may feel moved to speak: something anyone can do, as all are considered equal. Quakers do not have priests, or a hierarchy, as we believe all people can have a direct relationship with God.

You do not have to be a Quaker to attend Quaker meetings, which are open to all. Meetings can be held anywhere, at any time, although they are often on Sundays in our Quaker meeting houses. If you would like to join us and share in our stillness you would be most welcome."

Thanks to http://www.quaker.org/ for above words

Quaker Outreach Week

2007-09-23T17:06:00.000+01:00

This week (24th - 30th September) is Quaker Outreach Week and there is a national campaign to raise the profile of Friends in the UK. The National Website has an area dedicated to thise who want to find out a bit more about the Quaker way of worship - click here.

Banbury Meeting is joining in the spirit with an exhibition about the Quaker legacy to the town of Banbury, which will be available at the Banbury Museum all week. Banbury Meeting will also be opening its Meeting House not just for Meeting for Worship, but all weekend (29th & 30th September). There will be talks on the Saturday at 10.30 and 14.00 and a walk around Banbury with a local historian on Sunday at 13.00. Throughout both days there will be Friends on hand to provide information and guide people around the Meeting house. Light refreshments will also be available.

In meeting today it was discussed whether we felt launching a website for Banbury Meeting would be something we would like to explore and this post is the first of many as we develop this way of reaching out to old, current and hopefully new Friends.