Latest news
Full details of the 2010 program of courses will be up here soon - keep watching!
Meeting for Worship at Silver Wattle (11am, Sundays) has been attended by up to 6 people, including a newcomer.
More work on our Library is about to start. If you would like to search our catalogue on line, please try the link in the menu opposite.
We have let the cottage to a family with 4 children, for the next few months.
The creek was rushing noisily last night after the gift of Cyclone Olga’s rain.
A lot of slashing and weed control has been done.
The white kangaroo was seen again yesterday after an absence. A photo is on Silver Wattle's wildlife
There are corn, tomatoes, herbs, potatoes, lettuce and eggplant being harvested from our small veggie garden.
The AQC has joined several other Quaker libraries in Australia in offering its library catalog online via LibraryThing, an easy tool for creating, maintaining and sharing library catalogs. Its primary utility lies in enabling easy browsing of specific collections, or in searching for a title across one or multiple libraries. LibraryThing is also a social space: you can read reviews, join book discussions, swap reading suggestions, and so on. LibraryThing also makes book recommendations based on the collective intelligence of thousands of libraries. You can explore the AQC's holdings or visit Quaker libraries in Australia.
The Australian Quaker Centre in 2010
Courses and retreats
There will be two seasons of courses and retreats this year: in Autumn from 1 April to 22 May and in Spring from 15 September to 15 November. The program includes directed silent retreats, the essential Quaker practices of eldering and clerking, studying the lives of 18th and 19th Century Quaker men and women and some fresh explorations of the Gospels and contemplative traditions.
People interested in being a Friend-in-Residence during these course periods can apply to the Director (aqcdirector@quakers.org.au). Being an FIR includes full board and the opportunity to attend a course in return for some housekeeping, technical support and/or gardening. Applications for Administrative Officer and Cook are also sought. These full-time staff positions include full board, assistance with travel and a weekly stipend. If you are interested, please contact the Director as soon as you can, to discuss your availability.
Outside the course seasons, there are many opportunities to be part of this Quaker spiritual and practical community, worshipping together, reading, working, growing food and sharing the discoveries. Friends can stay with full board and do contributory work at the AQC for the low daily rate of $22 plus 2-3 hours work. When other events are not happening, Friends can also come for a relaxed break with bed and breakfast or full board.
Songs of Peace, Stories of Hope - Easter Family Camp, 2-5 April
Adults (16yrs+): $198, Children 6-15yrs: $99, Children 0-5: free
This 3-night family gathering offers a program of singing and writing for children and adults. The songs and stories produced will be shared by the whole gathering, in the context of Easter, weaving a theme of loss and new life, and drawing on the example of Jesus’ death and resurrection, Easter Eggs and the approaching season of longer nights and cooler days.
Led by Deb Munro, adults and children between 8-12yrs will form a choir and sing songs of peace. Led by Mark MacLeod, adults and teenagers will explore writing for children from the authentic self. Both courses will be supported by Tracy Bourne, giving personal tuition in voice and performance (by request) for children and adults. The whole program will be grounded in daily worship in forms that children and young people feel comfortable with.
On Sunday, 4 April, there will be an optional visit to the National Folk Festival in Canberra (a half-hour drive there and back).
All children must be in the guardianship of a parent or carer. Under-8s will play together with the supervision of a FIR and rostered help of parents.
The camp will be fully catered and children will be invited to prepare simple dishes, with the guidance of the cook.
Advance notice
ANZAC Day and Weekend, 24-26 April: Putting an End to War
A 3-day workshop on personal resistance to war and military action. We will consider the Beatitudes as a call to radical action, reflect on celebrations of ANZAC Day, and hear about individual witness such as being a human shield, intervening in armed conflict, entering prohibited military areas and refusing to pay war taxes. Recent actions in Pine Gap, Talisman Sabre, Iraq and Palestine will be some of our examples.
Full board with shared room: $150 pp or single room: $175 pp.
I look forward to hearing your ideas and suggestions for 2010.
Helen BayesDirector, Australian Quaker Centre
helenbayes@me.com or aqcdirector@quakers.org.au
Phone 02 6238 0588 or 0422 138 991