{"id":374,"date":"2014-03-08T14:21:33","date_gmt":"2014-03-08T22:21:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.berkeleyfriendschurch.info\/dev\/?page_id=374"},"modified":"2015-09-10T14:19:15","modified_gmt":"2015-09-10T21:19:15","slug":"ministry","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.berkeleyfriendschurch.info\/dev\/ministry\/","title":{"rendered":"Ministry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Friends have always believed that each follower of Christ is called to ministry. From our very beginnings, Friends have experienced God working through a variety of people to establish God’s purposes, and often the people merited of no account by the world: women, the uneducated, children and youth. As a result, Friends devised a manner of worship<\/a> that allowed for God to speak through any person, and until the late 19th century, we did not call pastors to a paid preaching ministry. In the present day at BFC, our pastor shares the responsibility for preaching with other members of the meeting, and in our times of open worship,<\/a> we expect that God’s Spirit may give words to anyone who has prepared their heart in prayer and discernment.<\/p>\n

But ministry is much more than what we do together on Sunday morning. Ministry takes place in a variety of ways and contexts: in our workplaces, homes, and personal relationships. God calls each of us to minister in particular ways that use our particular gifts and talents.<\/p>\n

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For many of us, ministry includes being strong advocates for justice and peace. As a result, we support the international and national work of the American Friends Service Committee<\/a> and the Friends Committee on National Legislation<\/a>. In California, we are involved with the Alternatives to Violence Project<\/a> and the Friends Committee on Legislation<\/a>. BFC members have also participated in international peacemaking delegations with Christian Peacemaker Teams<\/a> in Palestine and elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Closer to home, we engage in a variety of partnerships,<\/a> most significantly with the Berkeley Food Pantry<\/a>, a ministry which has been providing emergency food assistance to residents of Berkeley and Albany since 1969.<\/p>\n

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Read more:<\/p>\n