Tidings from Friends
The Weekly Newsletter of Guilford College Friends Center
Welcome to Tidings from Friends, the weekly newsletter published by Guilford College’s Friends Center. In this time where we are more disconnected than usual and trying to find ways to connect and support the campus, we offer this as a means of lifting up our campus community with a brief thought and other reflective pieces for you.
Each week this newsletter will contain a list of upcoming events, a selection of local and/or student artwork or poetry, some resources for navigating religious life on campus, and a “mindful moment.” This mindful moment might be a passage of scripture, a written meditation, a link to a video, or something else. If you are interested in submitting artwork, poetry, or a mindful moment, please contact perkinsja1@guilford.edu.
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Artwork
Mindful Moment
Change and Repentance
An excerpt from “Make Repentance Great Again”
By David Dark
“‘What’s best,’ often involves standing down. Declining to platform, support, fund or partner with citizens and elected officials who have incited or participated in a white supremacist terror putsch isn’t divisive, hateful, or an instance of cancel culture. It’s baseline moral seriousness. Every fact is a function of relationship. In a nation of equals, assuming responsibility for your own words and actions, especially when they prove to have been demonstrably abusive, is one actionable way of loving your country.
Of course, this love has to begin with particular people, a neighbor, for instance, before it can be said to apply to a city, a state, or a nation. Whether you’re a citizen, pundit, or an elected official, you’re faced with the question of scope in regard to the content you’ve created or promoted for whatever reason. We become what we promote, mediate and abide.
“I didn’t mean that,” is of limited usefulness when it comes to assuming responsibility. Are we responsible for the lies we’ve allowed other people to voice in our presence unchallenged? I kind of think we are.
Repentance is changing your mind and letting your words and actions follow. It isn’t a defeat. It’s a moral breakthrough that benefits self and others. It might mean less power to control your fellow creatures, a slight dip in income, or even a prison sentence, but true repentance is never bad news.”
You can read the full essay here.
This Mindful Moment provided by: Wess Daniels.
Upcoming Events
| Day | Date | Time | Event | Organization |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday | 1.27.2021 | 8:30 AM | Meeting for Centering Silence (staff/faculty focus) | Friends Center |
| Wednesday | 1.27.2021 | 1:00 – 2:00 PM | Connecting Conversations | Friends Center |
| Wednesday | 1.27.2021 | 6:00 PM | Celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. | Guilford College, UNCG, A&T, & International Civil Rights Museum |
| Wednesday | 1.27.2021 | 7:24 PM | GCM Weekly Fellowship | Guilford Christian Ministry |
| Friday | 1.29.2021 | 1:00 PM | Meeting for Centering Silence (open to all) | Friends Center |
| Monday | 2.1.2021 | 1:00 PM | Meeting for Centering Silence (student focus) | Friends Center |
| Wednesday | 2.3.2021 | 8:30 AM | Meeting for Centering Silence (staff/faculty focus) | Friends Center |
| Wednesday | 2.3.2021 | 7:24 PM | GCM Weekly Fellowship | Guilford Christian Ministry |
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Opportunity that may interest some students:
New Garden Friends Meeting is searching for a Young Friends leader for the 2020-2021 academic year. This position is for a leader who will work with both Middle School and High School students. The leader will collaborate with another Young Friends leader as well as the New Garden Friends Meeting Religious Education Coordinator. At present, all programming is virtual due to the pandemic but will transition to in-person activities when conditions allow. Applicants should have a background in Quakerism and experience working with pre-teens and teenagers.
To apply, please send a letter of interest and a resume to Sharon Burton at (office@ngfm.org).
Resources
To find information about the Interfaith Leadership Council, faith leaders who work with students on campus, or to see a full calendar of all campus faith-related events, visit our Multifaith page.
The Friends Center Prayer Room is available to students of all faiths and spiritual journeys. Ideal for prayer, meditation, or reflection, we encourage folks to make use of this space. See our flyer for more information.
To contact Friends Center Director, email danielscw@guilford.edu.
For a variety of self-care resources, visit our Self-Care page.
To provide feedback or suggestions, submissions for artwork or Mindful Moments, or questions about this newsletter, contact perkinsja1@guilford.edu.
About Friends Center:
Friends Center is a collaborative project between the Religious Society of Friends and Guilford College. Friends Center is responsible for nurturing Quaker life and renewal on campus, building and sustaining interfaith cooperation on campus, and building relationships with the global Quaker community. To read more about Friends Center, visit the homepage of our website.
