Consultation is a new skill we’re all learning; unique for the first time in religious history, so it’s obvious that we all have far to go! I hope this checklist will give you some idea of how well you are doing; and identify some areas you need to work on. I recommend you print this off, and as you go through this list, put a checkmark in the right margin for everything you’re doing well in the left margin for every area you need to work on Then add them up at the end to see how well you’re doing. Aggression: Do you dominate the conversations? Do you quarrel with anybody about anything? Do you dispute with any one about the things of this world? Do you argue back and forth and maintain that your point of view is the right one? Is your tone of voice harsh? Does anyone find your tone or approach threatening? Is anyone afraid of your threats or violent outbursts? Attitudes towards Consultation: Do you agree to participate in consultation when asked? Do you carry out consultation in all your affairs? Do you take every important step in life with consultation? Do you look at […]
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Checklist for Effective Consultation
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What is a Home Visit and What Do We Do When We’re There?
I’ve noticed that when the topic of home visits comes up in our Baha’i community, people are like deer in the headlights! They don’t know what to do! I think this is an indication of how far individualism has gone, at least in the West, where we don’t know our neighbours anymore and we’ve lost the art of visiting people in their homes. Initially the concept of home visits was suggested by the Universal House of Justice as a means of establishing the institute process in those clusters in which large-scale growth had occurred in earlier years. In these areas there were lists of believers who, over the passage of time, had ceased to be involved in Bahá’í activity. Home visits became a way to reestablish contact with potentially responsive friends, “engage in meaningful conversation,” and gradually introduce the idea of institute courses. Even in cases where the old believers could not be contacted, opportunities were created to teach the Faith to their family members, friends, or neighbors. (International Teaching Centre, Reflections on Growth: Advancing the Process of Entry by Troops through Home Visits, May 2004) Conducting home visits in order to promote expansion and consolidation soon became associated with Book […]
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Study Guide for the 29 December 2015 Letter To the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors
Recently the Universal House of Justice shared with the world, their letter to the Continental Board of Counsellors with the world. This important letter summarizes what has been accomplished during the existing plan, and what will be called on us to achieve for the coming plan. It is, essentially, our “marching orders” for the next 5 years. It’s important, therefore, for Bahá’ís everywhere to study it carefully and often, so that we can be prepared to take our place in the Army of Light in the years to come. It’s such a weighty document that it’s possible to miss important guidance if we just grab onto pieces of it. I find it helpful to stop and digest every single sentence, so in this study guide, I have asked a question, which the letter answers. The letter is exactly as written, with only my questions interjected to facilitate study. I imagine groups of people studying it together, possibly stopping after every paragraph and asking these questions to help ensure the learning is solidified. I hope you find it helpful! If you find the questions too distracting and want to read the letter without the questions, you can find it online. […]
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What is Accompaniment and How Do We Do It?
The first letter of the House of Justice which I can find, which addresses the need for accompaniment, goes back to a 1998 letter on Training Institutes, where they encouraged us to accompany large numbers of believers through a well-defined sequence of courses, helping them to acquire the needed capabilities of service: If you continue unabated in your efforts, you will steadily increase the capacity within your national community to accompany large numbers of believers through a well-defined sequence of courses, helping them to acquire the needed capabilities of service. (Universal House of Justice, 1998 Apr, Training Institutes) In early 2006 Bahá’ís everywhere were studying the House of Justice’s letter to the Continental Board of Counsellors, in particular this paragraph, which talked about the need for tutors to accompany participants in their initial attempts to perform acts of service until they, too, were ready to start their own study circles and help others do the same: Most noteworthy in this regard is the spirit of initiative shown by believers who extend the range of their endeavors to assist others also striving to tread a path of service. Having acquired the capacity to serve as tutors of institute courses, they take […]
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How Can We Stop Losing Our Youth?
One of my readers wrote: I have been requested to facilitate a session with parents by a Local Spiritual Assembly which is concerned with apathy and disinterest shown by Baha’i youths and young adults towards Feast and other Baha’i activities. The parents are mostly long-time Baha’is who are in themselves wonderful souls with a deep love for the Faith. But of late there has been a noticeable lack of involvement by the second generation in this community. I humbly seek your ideas as to what can shared with parents to address these issues. I replied: Wow, that’s the $64,000 question! It is such a heart-break for parents when their children turn away . . . my own son is certainly also in this same category. He’s 30 now, and never became a Bahá’í, although I made every effort to send him to children’s classes; youth groups; summer schools and even sent him to a Bahá’í –inspired high school for 3 years. I’m sure this has had some effect on his character, but I wish he’d recognized Baha’u’llah; and become active in the Faith. I don’t know what the answer is, truly I don’t! One of the things I’ve noticed […]
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Letters to ‘Abdu’l-Baha – From Institutions
Inspired by the 100th anniversary of the release of the Tablets of the Divine Plan and the Dec. 29, 2015 letter from the House of Justice, many clusters and Baha’i Institutions are gathering together to write letters to ‘Abdu’l-Baha, setting forth their goals for the next 5 years, and fervently asking for His assistance. This idea captured my imagination, and I thought I would share 2 such letters, originating from 2 different areas of Canada, hoping that they will inspire you, wherever you are, to write your own letters. Letter One: Our dearly beloved ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Encouraged by the love you have bestowed upon us, we pledge our hearts to increase resources by strengthening the nucleus of the participants, by reflecting on the 100 villages in our county. As we learn how to transform some of these villages, we wish to move our cluster from milestone 2 to milestone 3. We pledge to draw continually from the precious tablets of Divine Plan, to increase our desire to tap into the spiritual forces available to us during this time. We promise to learn to work through obstacles as we strive to establish and fulfill our commitment. We will recognize the central principal […]
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Letter to ‘Abdu’l-Baha – From an Individual
Inspired by the 100th anniversary of the release of the Tablets of the Divine Plan and the Dec. 29, 2015 letter from the House of Justice, many clusters and Baha’i Institutions are gathering together to write letters to ‘Abdu’l-Baha, setting forth their goals for the next 5 years, and fervently asking for His assistance. This idea captured my imagination, and I thought I would write my own letter. I had such a great time writing it, that I thought I’d share it, hoping that it will inspire you, wherever you are, to write your own letter. Dearly loved ‘Abdu’l-Baha, This is a broken winged bird, in so many ways, desiring to soar in Thy limitless space, fervently desiring to find an area of service which best suits my talents, skills, training and material resources. You know how badly I wanted our cluster to be one of the ones which established a programme of growth, during this plan, and it breaks my heart that our cluster has not had the collective effort required to sustain the 2 initiatives we tried. Please let me accept that without a shared spirit of collaboration among the Plan’s three protagonists–the individual, the community, and […]
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How Wondrous the Vision – Tablets of the Divine Plan, 1916-2016
Compiled February, 2016 by Marlene Macke O that I could travel, even though on foot and in the utmost poverty, to these regions, and, raising the call of “Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá” in cities, villages, mountains, deserts and oceans, promote the divine teachings! This, alas, I cannot do. How intensely I deplore it! Please God, ye may achieve it.1 [In 2016] the Bahá’í world will mark one hundred years since the first of the Tablets of the Divine Plan flowed from the pen of the Master. In these fourteen Tablets, revealed during one of humanity’s darkest hours, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá laid out a charter2 for the teaching work that defined its theatre of action as the entire planet. Held in abeyance until 1937, when the first in a succession of Plans launched at the instigation of the Guardian was assigned to the Bahá’ís of North American, the Divine Plan has continued to unfold over the decades since as the collective capacity of Bahá’u’lláh’s followers has grown, enabling them to take on ever-greater challenges. How wondrous the vision of the Plan’s Author! Placing before the friends the prospect of a day when the light of His Father’s Revelation would illuminate every corner of the world, […]
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Study Guide for the Ridvan 2016 Message
Study Guide for the Ridvan 2016 Message With Assistance from Barbara Ann __________________________________________________________ The Universal House of Justice Riḍván 2016 To the Bahá’ís of the World Dearly loved Friends, Paragraph One With the advent of the King of Festivals, the period of preparation for the next global Plan is over: we now summon the friends of God to a new five-year commitment of courage, resolve, and resources. What is now over? the period of preparation for the next global Plan is over To what is the House of Justice summoning us? to a new five-year commitment of courage, resolve, and resources What will this five year commitment require of us? courage, resolve, and resources Paragraph Two The company of Bahá’u’lláh’s faithful stands poised. Institutional gatherings convened across the world in recent months have sent out successive signals of eagerness to begin this mighty enterprise. The imperatives contained in the message addressed to the Counsellors’ Conference are already being translated into decisive plans of action. Decades of heroic endeavour have shaped the community and earned it a measure of proven ability in fostering growth, steeling it for this moment. The last two decades, in particular, have markedly accelerated this longed-for rise in […]
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A Bahá’í Glossary
By Neil McMillan Note: This glossary is very much a work-in-progress based on the more than 440 messages of the Universal House of Justice that are accessible on the World Wide Web. The glossary is an initial attempt to systematize a steadily evolving terminology that it is truly worth studying in order to frame and understand what is happening both within and outside the Bahá’í community in order to communicate not only with Bahá’ís but also with any other human beings on this planet. Since all the quotations are dated, it becomes surprising to realize that some concepts that we believe are quite recent have actually been articulated for quite a long time – 10 or 20 years or more. Interestingly, the most recent item on Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS) titled “Five decades of guidance foster a growing youth movement” implies this idea of an evolving body of guidance. Accompaniment “Most noteworthy in this regard is the spirit of initiative shown by believers who extend the range of their endeavors to assist others also striving to tread a path of service. Having acquired the capacity to serve as tutors of institute courses, they take up the challenge of accompanying […]
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Introduction to Keeping the Victim Safe
In any situation of trust the potential for abuse exists: Whereas the purpose of the programs and activities offered revolve around the development of capabilities for service and rectitude of conduct, it is recognized that in any situation of trust the potential for abuse exists. (National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Canada, Screening Policy Statement) Everyone needs to be protected from abuse so all staff or volunteers need to be: screened for the service they are offering trained to create environments that are: safe empowering free from oppression avoid abuse or the appearance of abuse to others It is further recognized that every human being, particularly children, youth and other vulnerable people, are to be protected from abuse and that those whom the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Canada either directly or through any of its Institutions and/or agencies accepts as staff or as volunteers need to be screened for the service they are offering and trained to create environments that are safe, empowering, and free from oppression and which avoid abuse or the appearance of abuse to others. (National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Canada, Screening Policy Statement) It is necessary to protect people from […]
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Capacity Building through the Institute Courses – an Index to the Ruhi Books
We know from the Universal House of Justice that that purpose of the institute courses is to build insights, knowledge and skills: The purpose of such training is to endow ever-growing contingents of believers with the spiritual insights, the knowledge, and the skills needed to carry out the many tasks of accelerated expansion and consolidation, including the teaching and deepening of a large number of people — adults, youth and children. (Universal House of Justice, Letter dated December 26, 1995 to the Conference of Counsellors) Such systematic study of the Creative Word builds our capacity for service: Let them not fail to appreciate the value of the culture now taken root in the community that promotes the systematic study of the Creative Word in small groups in order to build capacity for service. (Universal House of Justice, 20 October 2008, to the Bahá’ís of the World) The vision of the Ruhi Institute in creating these courses is as follows: …the Institute’s main sequence of courses is not arranged according to a series of subject matters, with the specific aim of increasing individual knowledge. The content and order are based, rather, on a series of acts of service, the practice of […]
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Opening of the Temple in Chile
If you weren’t able to go to Chile for the dedication of the Baha’i Temple; and you weren’t able to “attend” via live-streaming, you’ll enjoy watching these videos from the privacy of your home, at a time convenient to you! The opening was a public inauguration ceremony with a lot of speeches as you’d expect! The highlight of the second session for me, was a play about the history of the early pioneers to Chile – May Maxwell, Martha Root and Leonora Armstrong. An especially moving theme of this session was the historical response of the indigenous peoples who captivated the audience with their accounts including music and artistic performances . The highlight of the fourth session for me was the stories from the architect, Siamak Hariri, who provided a fascinating glimpse into the design process that resulted in this unique structure. The highlight of the closing was the upbeat music which had the audience dancing!
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Taking Steps to Protect Children and Junior Youth
As Baha’i communities become more complex, the protection of children and junior youth becomes increasingly more important, especially in a world where sexual and physical abuse still prevails. The following guidelines have been developed by the Canadian NSA – they may not be applicable in your country. The protection of the youngest members of our communities depends upon the sustained capacity in individuals, communities, and institutions to cultivate safe environments where young people can grow and flourish: As the negative forces affecting children, junior youth and youth accelerate, and while new, previously-unimagined threats target the most vulnerable members of society, the protection of youth and children depends upon the sustained capacity in individuals, communities, and institutions to cultivate safe environments within which young people can grow and flourish. (NSA of the Bahá’ís of Canada, Framework and Guidelines for the Implementation of Child Protection Policies, July, 2012) Risk Management Different conditions and concerns are taken into account: The programs for children, junior youth and youth offered by the Bahá’í community in Canada range as to their degree of formality, size and scope, their relationships with other organizations and institutions, etc. Each degree along this spectrum gives rise to different conditions and concerns […]
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The Ridvan 2016 Message and Your Marriage: How to Contribute to the Plan without Causing Disunity
In this video, Janna focuses on 3 things: When you read the message, notice your reactions (particularly anxiety, guilt or shame) Individual and collective action means you don’t have to serve together Working on the marriage is working on the Plan Have a listen and post your comments below. Janna Denton-Howes is a Marriage Coach whose passion is to help couples get unstuck and move powerfully towards the vision of true Baha’i marriage. If you liked this video, you can visit her site; read her blog and watch her other videos.
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Ruhi Book 10 Themes for a Youth Gathering
In Ruhi Book 10.1, (Accompanying One Another on the Path of Service) page 86-87, we read the following: In the above episode, we begin to see how a rise in capacity to engage in meaningful conversation with youth in different settings is crucial to the continued expansion of the educational process the training institute sets in motion in a cluster. Here is an opportunity for you and the other members of your group to think together about the nature of this capacity and about the spiritual themes that, as the House of Justice notes, tap “the deepest springs of motivation”. As a first step, it should not be difficult for your group, bearing Enidia’s list in mind, and using sources readily available to you, to put together some passages on the themes she has identified. Once you have done so, you could undertake a thorough exploration of each theme. It may well take some time for your group to carry out these explorations, especially if you decide to go a step further and engage in a corresponding process of action and reflection. In that case, every member could actually hold a conversation with some youth on the proposed themes, and […]
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Reflections on a Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program
Personal Reflections on Service, Education, Economy and Sacrifice By Rachel Perry Last week I hosted a gathering in my home for five youth between the ages of 11 – 15. My daughter helped prepare the space by cleaning and beautifying the area the night before. She worked so diligently to tidy, sort, clean and create such a warm and welcoming environment and I was so proud of her. We prepared snacks, made phone calls, and prepared activities for an evening themed on friendship. When the participants started to arrive it filled my heart with Joy to see them come together with a sense of playfulness and adventure. They filled our home with laughter and I can’t remember the last time I felt so happy. This JY Group calls themselves “Spirit Wings” and they have been gathering together weekly for nearly a year now. Their time together includes studying thought-provoking stories relevant for their age and discussing important themes with a global message. The exercises and discussion is designed to help develop critical-thinking skills as well as improving capacity for self-expression. In addition, building skills by doing service in the neighbourhood is an important component of the group. Ideas for the service […]
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Study Guide To The Letter On Economic Life
THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE 1 March 2017 To the Bahá’ís of the World Dearly loved Friends, Paragraph One In an increasingly interconnected world, more light is being cast on the social conditions of every people, giving greater visibility to their circumstances. While there are developments that give hope, there is much that should weigh heavy on the conscience of the human race. Inequity, discrimination, and exploitation blight the life of humanity, seemingly immune to the treatments applied by political schemes of every hue. The economic impact of these afflictions has resulted in the prolonged suffering of so many, as well as in deep-seated, structural defects in society. No one whose heart has been attracted to the teachings of the Blessed Beauty can remain unmoved by these consequences. “The world is in great turmoil,” Bahá’u’lláh observes in the Lawḥ-i-Dunyá, “and the minds of its people are in a state of utter confusion. We entreat the Almighty that He may graciously illuminate them with the glory of His Justice, and enable them to discover that which will be profitable unto them at all times and under all conditions.” As the Bahá’í community strives to contribute at the level of thought and action […]
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Ideas for the Bicentenaries
Program Ideas: Click on the titles of the articles you want to read! Bicentenaries: Preparing for the Bicentenaries Twin Birthdays for Twin Manifestations Twin Holy Birthdays Days of Remembrance: A New Volume of Baha’i Writings Bicentennial Birthday Celebrations of the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh Bicentennial Birthday Celebration Of Baha’u’llah And The Bab Birth of the Bab: The Birth of the Bab – Holy Day Program A Dramatic Reading in Commemoration of the Birth of the Bab Stories from the Early Life of the Bab Selected Stories from the Life of the Bab prior to His Declaration The Bab: What was He Like? The Mystery of the Birth of the Bab What The Bab Taught Me (Unlocking The Gate) Did You Ever Wonder…A Story of the Báb As A Child Birth of Bahá’u’lláh: Birth of Baha’u’llah – Holy Day Program The Life of Bahá’u’lláh Silk and Satin – the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh Stories from the Early Life of Bahá’u’lláh The Birth of Bahá’u’lláh A Birthday Like No Other: The Birth of Baha’u’llah Bicentenary of Birth of Baha’u’llah 2017 Sharing Baha’u’llah’s Birthday With Our Children There’s an excellent presentation on the life of Baha’u’llah that’s available to anyone who wants to use it, […]
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Responding Helpfully to Those Who’ve Experienced Trauma
It can be difficult to know how to help a loved one who’s suffered a traumatic or distressing experience, but your support can be a crucial factor in their recovery. Everyone can become a “willing channel” for the health-giving power of the Holy Spirit: The work of healing the sick, however, is a matter that concerns not the patient and the practitioner only, but everyone. All must help, by sympathy and service, by right living and right thinking, and especially by prayer, for of all remedies prayer is the most potent. “Supplication and prayer on behalf of others,” says ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “will surely be effective.” The friends of the patient have a special responsibility, for their influence, either for good or ill, is most direct and powerful. In how many cases of sickness the issue depends mainly on the ministrations of parents, friends or neighbors of the helpless sufferer! Even the members of the community at large have an influence in every case of sickness. In individual cases that influence may not appear great, yet in the mass the effect is potent. Everyone is affected by the social “atmosphere” in which he lives, by the general prevalence of faith or […]
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