Tag Archives: Pendle Hill

Applying Lessons from the Life of Bayard Rustin to Quaker Work at the UN

Our friends nearby at the Pendle Hill Quaker center are announcing their annual Stephen G. Cary Memorial lecture, and this year’s speaker is Sarah Clarke, Director of the Quaker UN Office in New York. She will talk about “Applying Lessons from the Life of Bayard Rustin to Quaker Work at the UN.” A number of Swarthmore students and alums have served as interns at the Quaker UN Office, so this could be a unique opportunity for you to learn more about the organization and experience the beautiful Pendle Hill campus!

“As we approach the 75th anniversary of Quaker work at the UN, we have an opportunity to reflect on those in our community who have taught us valuable lessons about the Quaker traditions of non-violence and direct engagement with those who hold power. The wisdom and life of Quaker civil rights activist Bayard Rustin offers insights and lessons that continue to guide us today and as we look into the future.”

Prof. Smithey plans to provide transportation to the lecture, which will take place on Monday, September 12 at 7:30pm-9:00pm Eastern Time.

In-person spaces are limited. If you would like to travel the short one mile to Pendle Hill in a college van, please RSVP using this form by 11:59 pm on Wednesday, September 7. If seats are still available then, we will request them.

People who choose not to travel to Pendle Hill can register to watch the event via Zoom.

Also see this recent piece in Waging Nonviolence by our own Prof. George Lakey.

Vanessa Julye to deliver Cary Lecture at Pendle Hill: “Radical Transformation: Long Overdue for the Religious Society of Friends”

We are happy to share an important invitation from our friends and neighbors at the nearby Pendle Hill Quaker Retreat Center (in walking distance, just on the other side of Crum Wood).

This year’s Stephen G. Cary Memorial Lecture will be delivered on September 13, 2021 by Vanessa Julye. Her talk is titled “Radical Transformation: Long Overdue for the Religious Society of Friends”

“How have Friends collaborated with and sustained the global system of White Supremacy? George Fox, the founder of the Religious Society of Friends envisioned a revolutionary religion which professes the belief that every person has a direct relationship with God. Early Friends proclaimed our capacity for spiritual wholeness comes from the seed of God planted in our hearts. What structures are preventing Friends from living into these beliefs and growing God’s seed?“

This year’s lecture is online and free to the public, and we think it will be of interest to some in our peace and conflict studies program. Many thanks to Pendle Hill for their programming and hospitality

Please register for the event and read more about Vanessa Julye and the lecture on the Pendle Hill website…

Holding Tension – Making a Place at the Table for Continuing Revelation

This year’s Stephen G. Cary Memorial Lecture at Pendle Hill will be delivered by Swarthmore’s own Prof. Sarah Willie-LeBreton!

Stephen G. Cary Memorial Lecture 2018
“Holding Tension – Making a Place at the Table for Continuing Revelation”

by Sarah Willie-LeBreton

April 2, 2018

7:30pm-9:00pm in the Barn at Pendle Hill.

In this talk, I assume that genuine social relationship is necessary for justice, and I argue that its absence leads to what most people might characterize as evil. As much as we hunger for mutuality and connection, for many of us, the daily temptation of our lives is to distinguish ourselves as worthy, aware, and insightful. When we are disconnected from genuine community, very quickly those whom we dislike or with whom we disagree become unworthy, unaware, and even evil in our hearts and minds. The temptation is powerful and understanding its role in our lives can help us to seek out our biggest fears, lead us away from gossip and resentment, and offer us continual experiences where mutuality, humor, kindness, humility and the joy of serendipity are revealed.
—Sarah Willie-LeBreton

Sarah Willie-LeBreton teaches at Swarthmore College, where she chairs the Department of Sociology & Anthropology and regularly coordinates the Black Studies Program. A graduate of Haverford College, she serves on its Corporation and Board of Managers and has served on the Pendle Hill Board. Sarah edited and contributed to the volume, Transforming the Academy (2016), and authored Acting Black (2003). Her scholarly interests are in social inequality and complementarity. A convinced Friend, she is a member of Providence Monthly Meeting, Chester Quarter, Philadelphia Yearly Meeting.

Call to Register

Free and open to the public (registration requested).

Call Pendle Hill for More Information! 610-566-4507, ext. 137

Live streaming will be available to registrants.

The Stephen G. Cary Memorial Lecture was endowed by Norval and Ann Reece and established in 2004 in concert with Pendle Hill’s publication of Steve Cary’s memoir, The Intrepid Quaker: One Man’s Quest for Peace.

Travel directions to Pendle Hill. Click to view the flyer.

Events Near Swarthmore This Weekend, 12/1/2017-12/3-2017

This weekend, December 1-2, Pendle Hill, the Quaker retreat center on the other side of Crum Wood is holding a one-day (and one evening) workshop:

Right to Refuse: When Community Rights and Corporate Rights Conflict and What to Do Next
Featuring: Chad Nicholson, Malinda Harnish Clatterbuck, Dianne Herrin, and Paula Kline
https://pendlehill.org/events/right-refuse-community-rights-corporate-rights-conflict-next/

Whether it is a pipeline, a fracked gas well, or an incinerator, there are countless examples of corporations moving projects forward despite community resistance and environmental impact. Why? How has law evolved to protect corporate interests and what are a community’s options? What is a Home Rule campaign and why is it necessary? Explore these questions and more with a weekend with front-line organizers from across Pennsylvania. This is a workshop for those engaged in protecting their community from environmental threats for education and strategic planning.

On Sunday, December 3 at 11:45 AM in Whittier Room, George Alexander will speak on The Mariner East 2 pipeline: how it came to be, why it is so bad, and what we can do about it.

Perhaps you have heard about the Mariner East 2 pipeline, which is under construction in Delaware and Chester Counties. In full operation, this would be by far the most dangerous pipeline in the state of Pennsylvania. A rupture and explosion would destroy structures thousands of feet away and, depending on where it happened, could kill hundreds of people. How was this permitted to happen, and what can we do about it now? George Alexander will present background on the pipeline and outline what can be done. Rich and Claudia Aldred will speak about their experience as homeowners in the “blast zone” of the pipeline.

Quaker Indian Boarding Schools and Moral Economies at Pendle Hill

It’s an exciting fall semester of programming across Crum Woods at Pendle Hill Quaker Retreat Center. Check out these events coming up in November and December!

The Quaker Indian Boarding Schools: Facing our History and Ourselves

Monday, November 7, 2016
Free
7:00pm-9:00pm in the barn, livestreaming available

In the 1800s, Quakers and other Christian denominations collaborated with the U.S. government’s policy of forced assimilation of Native peoples. Paula Palmer has been led to research these schools and take the first steps towards truth and reconciliation on behalf of the Religious Society of Friends with support from Pendle Hill (the 2016 Cadbury Scholarship), Swarthmore College (the 2015 Moore Fellowship), and the Native American Rights Fund. This is a part of Pendle Hill’s free and open to the public First Monday lecture series.

Visioning and Creating a Moral Economy Conference

December 1^st (4:00pm) to 4^th (noon)
Sliding scale $300-$600 (financial aid also available)

Co-sponsored by Quaker Institute for the Future, New Economy Coalition, and the Philadelphia Area Cooperative Alliance.

What does a moral economy look like? What are the challenges that confront us in establishing it? What opportunities do the precarious state of global capitalism and accelerating climate change provide to galvanize action? What are the incremental and intermediate steps already being taken to bring forth our common vision? How do we build on those efforts to establish them on a larger scale? The conference will include plenary sessions with speakers and panels, open forum small group discussions, workshops, and whole group visioning and action sessions. Speakers include Political Economist Gar Alperovitz, Social Movement theorist George Lakey, Esteban Kelley, Executive Director of the US Federation of Workers Cooperatives and Rahwa Ghirmatzion, Deputy Director of PUSH Buffalo.

George Lakey First Monday

Monday, December 5, 2016
Free
7:00pm-9:00pm in the barn, livestreaming available

In our First Monday forum, George will share insights from his research and writing on the Scandinavian Economies and respond to our questions about how we can use the Scandinavian models to create the kind of moral political economy that puts people’s welfare first and benefits the whole society in terms of health, security, and happiness.

How to Start a Revolution

There are two local opportunities this week to screen and discuss the documentary “How to Start a Revolution” about Gene Sharp’s long career and groundbreaking work in developing the theory of nonviolent strategic action.

Pendle Hill will show the film on July 1, 7:30-9:00 p.m. as part of its First Mondays series. Professor Lee Smithey will lead a discussion about the film. Download a flyer.

Envision Peace Museum will show the film on July 3, 6:30-9:00 p.m. with a panel discussion afterwards including Professor Lee Smithey, Arzu Geybulla in Turkey, and Stephanie Ambar in Brazil. Download a flyer. Download a flyer.

Swarthmore College is privileged to be the home of the papers of the Albert Einstein Institution.