Holidays Resources

Experiments in Celebration and Simplicity in Quaker Meetings, Summary

Experiments in Celebration and Simplicity in Quaker Meetings, Summary

Jan 2, 2025

During the Christmas season and other holidays, Friends Meetings may celebrate as a way to experience wonder and light, rejoice in intergenerational community, and engage in cultural traditions. At the same time, we are called by the testimony of simplicity that is essential to Quaker faith and practice. We celebrate, in part, for the sake of children in our meeting and recognize that when the adult Friends who curate these celebrations are centered, the spiritual meaning comes through for children.

Sharing Circle: Experiments in Celebration and Simplicity in Quaker Meetings

Sharing Circle: Experiments in Celebration and Simplicity in Quaker Meetings

Nov 10, 2024

During the Christmas season and other holidays, Friends Meetings may celebrate as a way to experience wonder and light, rejoice in intergenerational community, and engage in cultural traditions. At the same time, we are called by the testimony of simplicity that is essential to Quaker faith and practice. We celebrate, in part, for the sake of children in our meeting and recognize that when the adult Friends who curate these celebrations are centered, the spiritual meaning comes through for children.

Seeking Wonder and Light in the Christmas Season

Seeking Wonder and Light in the Christmas Season

Nov 29, 2023

In the season of Christmas and festivals of light, we consider how to celebrate in the manner of Friends: How do we approach this season as Friends? What can we share with Quaker religious education colleagues from our experience? What can we share with families in...

First Day School at Home Lesson Plans from Providence Meeting, Fall 2021

First Day School at Home Lesson Plans from Providence Meeting, Fall 2021

Jan 20, 2022

These First Day School lessons teach Quaker faith and practice at home. Begun as a response to the covid-19 pandemic, lesson plans are offered by Providence Friends Meeting. Themes from fall, 2021 include: Native American faith compared to Quaker testimonies, Sibling...

Refuge: The Timeless Story of Christmas

Refuge: The Timeless Story of Christmas

Apr 22, 2021

The Christmas story and what follows: the fleeing of Jesus, Mary and Joseph from Herod's soldiers to Egypt. An immigration story, this book has timeless crossover appeal and a message that couldn't be more relevant today as so many leave their homeland for fear of...

Books and Music to Celebrate Earth Day

Books and Music to Celebrate Earth Day

Apr 20, 2020

Below is a list of some of our favorite books that are associated with Earth Day. Some books tell about people and the work that they’ve done to help the Earth. Other books share stories to appreciate our beautiful Earth. Each entry has been chosen because it has a...

Conversation Circle (March 2020) — Sustainability

Conversation Circle (March 2020) — Sustainability

Mar 19, 2020

Topic: Walk Gently Over the Earth: Religious Education for Sustainable Living Friends, young and old, find joy and inspiration in the natural world, yet we are challenged by a mounting environmental crisis. Friends from Quaker Earthcare Witness (QEW) to explore...

Conversation Circle (February 2020) — Quakers, Death and New Life: Lent, Easter and Passover

Conversation Circle (February 2020) — Quakers, Death and New Life: Lent, Easter and Passover

Feb 20, 2020

Topic: Quakers, Death and New Life: Lent, Easter and Passover Drawing on the ancient themes of death, rebirth and resurrection, how can we, as religious educators open the way to a Quaker understanding of Lent, Easter and Passover? Join this conversation to discuss...

The Light: A Story for December

The Light: A Story for December

Nov 30, 2019

Cultures all over the world celebrate festivals of Light, often in December. This story, told in the Faith & Play style. uses symbols of Light in a simple, profound way to introduce these festivals in Quaker religious education.

Uncle Vova’s Tree

Uncle Vova’s Tree

Nov 21, 2019

Grandparents, aunts and uncles, and children gather at a farm house to celebrate Christmas in the Russian tradition. Based on Polacco's childhood memories, this is the story of her Great-uncle Vladimir, known as Vova, and his colorful and inventive celebrations of the...

Loaves and Fishes

Loaves and Fishes

Nov 16, 2019

This picture-book version of the Biblical parable of the loaves and fishes tells the story from the perspective of the young boy who offers up his simple lunch of rye bread loaves and fish he'd caught at his quiet fishing spot to Jesus, who uses them to feed the...

Friendly Holiday Gift Fairs!

Friendly Holiday Gift Fairs!

Oct 7, 2019

Join us in an exciting pop-up partnership between Friends Peace Teams and the Quaker Religious Education Collaborative! We are starting a pilot project organizing Friendly Holiday Gift Fairs as a way to learn about, celebrate, and support peacemaking through "gifts...

Holiday Traditions at Birmingham (PA) Friends Meeting

Holiday Traditions at Birmingham (PA) Friends Meeting

Nov 30, 2018

Three Christmas holiday traditions at Birmingham Friends Meeting (West Chester, Pennsylvania, USA) are described in the attached document: 1. The Giving Tree, a service project of the Birmingham Meeting Youth Committee in collaboration with a local homeless shelter....

Plays for the Christmas Holidays

Plays for the Christmas Holidays

Nov 30, 2018

We are grateful to Nancy Pickering of Middletown Friends Meeting (Philadelphia Yearly Meeting) for three plays celebrating the Christmas season This is the Stable, A simple telling of the Nativity with readings from the book by Cynthia Cotten, illustrated by Delana...

Reverse Advent for Friends

Reverse Advent for Friends

Nov 5, 2018

Reverse Advent: For Families and RE Programs, An Activity to Teach the Spiritual Discipline of Reaching Out In December, young people and their families have an opportunity to connect a story of the season with service to a local food cupboard or shelter. While...

Wellesley Friends Seder

Wellesley Friends Seder

Mar 1, 2018

A resource for Friends, includes the Passover prayers and celebration of Passover. The purpose is stated in the final prayer of acceptance, "You are not obligated to complete the task of creating a better world in your lifetime, but neither must you refuse to do your...

Exploring Godly Play Stories for Lent and Easter with Friends

Exploring Godly Play Stories for Lent and Easter with Friends

Mar 1, 2018

Quakers using Godly Play® in their religious education program have stories from that curriculum and other resources to choose from during this time in the First Day School year. What follows is by no means an exhaustive list, but some thoughts on what has worked in...

An Easter Story for Friends

An Easter Story for Friends

Mar 1, 2018

A story about the power of God's love Each spring, as Easter approaches, we see new life all around us. This story of the symbolic transformation from winter to spring, is adapted for Friends from the Godly Play® story The Mystery of Easter* and work by the Faith...

Easter Light: Seeking in the Spring of the Year

Easter Light: Seeking in the Spring of the Year

Mar 1, 2018

From Wellesley (Massachusetts, USA) Friends Meeting (New England Yearly Meeting), a thoughtful set of queries for this season of renewal and rebirth. Download the article Easter Light: Seeking in the Spring of the Year

That Baby in the Manger

That Baby in the Manger

Feb 25, 2018

A contemporary and unique children's Christmas book about Jesus' love for all children, That Baby in the Manger offers a needed message about inclusion and acceptance of cultural differences. As the children of a small church struggle with the portrayal of the Holy...

What Color was Baby Jesus’ Hair? Representing the Christ Multiculturally

What Color was Baby Jesus’ Hair? Representing the Christ Multiculturally

Feb 25, 2018

Across cultures, Jesus and his family have inspired countless works of art. Christians around the world have represented the Holy Family. When we use art in our teaching we ignite visual learners and inspire children's own art-making. Using books or online tools,...

Holy Week in a Box

Holy Week in a Box

Feb 20, 2018

An Episcopalian resource, "Holy Week in a Box" uses simple objects tucked into a small box, along with Bible passages to tell the stories observed during the week leading up to Easter. Each item in the box is a symbol, representing a piece of the gospel narrative:...

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