FUM Personnel Policy Discernment

Resources for meetings in discernment about what its relationship should be with Friends United Meeting, and what the yearly meeting's relationship should be, given FUM's personnel policy, which some Friends perceive as discriminating toward LGBTQ Friends.

Quicklinks

The "Brooklyn Minute"

Background Information

Introduction

Is your meeting in discernment about what your relationship should be, and what the yearly meeting's relationship should be, to Friends United Meeting, given FUM's personnel policy, which some Friends perceive as being de facto discriminatory toward LGBTQ Friends? This page provides context and background information that is necessary for pursuing this concern with faithfulness and integrity.

The Brooklyn minute

Many meetings began such a process of discernment after receiving communication from NYYM's Nurture Coordinating Committee (NCC) regarding a minute approved by Brooklyn Meeting. At NYYM Fall Sessions 2014, Brooklyn Meeting presented to NCC a minute declaring among other things its intention to withhold some of its covenant donation from the yearly meeting "in protest of FUM’s discriminatory personnel policies" until FUM lays aside its current personnel policy. Nurture Coordinating Committee responded in part by sending the minute and background materials to the local meetings for their consideration.

Two sections for this page.

Brooklyn Meeting's minute to NCC and NCC's response served to energize Friends around the concern in a new way. For this reason, we have organized the resources on this page into two sections, one that provides background information on FUM's personnel policy and NYYM engagement with it and with sexual orientation concerns in general up until the publication of the Brooklyn minute, and a second section for engagement subsequent to the minute.

For more information, please contatct the yearly meeting's General Secretary. .

The "Brooklyn Minute" and subsequent NYYM engagement with FUM personnel policy

Text of the Brooklyn Meeting minute to Nurture Coordinating Committee regarding FUM's personnel policy and Nurture Coordinating Committee's action, Summer Sessions 2015

Minutes approved by meetings, local and regional, and by other Quaker bodies in response to the FUM personnel policy or concerning sexual orientation.

A brief report from Christopher Sammond, who was NYYM General Secretary and NYYM representative to the FUM General Board at the time, on changes in Friends United Meeting regarding FUM's personnel policy and sexual orientation concerns in the past several years. Dated March 30, 2016.

Background Information

The following are documents providing history and context for New York Yearly Meeting's concern for FUM's personnel policy.

A Timeline of Crisis Points for Friends United Meeting, Its Personnel Policy, and Its Theological Diversity: 1988–2008, by Carol Holmes (download as a pdf).

Report on Friends United Meeting From the NYYM Representatives to FUM, April 2007 (pdf file)

FUM's personnel policy (or download as a pdf file).

Minutes from NYYM Sessions regarding the FUM personnel policy:

Minutes approved by NYYM meetings and groups on sexual orientation and same-sex marriage prior to distribution of the Brooklyn minute ot Nurture Coordinating Committee concerning FUM personnel policy.

Report in 2008 of the Task Group on FUM (Personnel Policy), minutes of the Summer Sessiosn 2008.

Sexual Orientation and Gender Concerns—A page describing some some of the activity and discernemnt taking place in New York Yearly Meeting regarding these concerns (circa 2007–2009).

Covenant Relations section of New York Yearly Meeting's Faith and Practice.

Panel on the NYYM-FUM relationship, Summer Sessions 2009 (session minute 2009-07-18).