Bahá’í News/Issue 693/Text

←Previous

Bahá’í News Issue 693

Next→

Proofread onceReturn to PDF view

[Page -1]

Bahá’í News

December 1988

Bahá’í Year 145

A visit to the World Centre

[Page 0]

---

On the cover: Members of the Inter-Religious Advisory Committee to the Mayor of New York City stroll with their Bahá’í hosts through the lovely gardens on Mount Carmel during a recent visit to the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa, Israel. In the background is the golden-domed Shrine of the Báb. The 10-member group was in Israel for consultations with officials of the Anti-Defamation League and for visits to various of Israel’s religious communities. Besides touring the gardens, the group was able to have lunch at the Pilgrim House and to visit the Seat of the Universal House of Justice. Among those conducting the tour was Douglas Martin (at left in photo), director-general of the Office of Public Information at the World Centre.

---

Bahá’í News

U.S. becomes 97th nation to implement UN Convention on Genocide	1
An anthropologist sets forth views on pioneering, cultural awareness	2
The Association for Bahá’í Studies holds its 13th annual Conference	5
UN prepares to grapple with thorny problem of earth’s environment	6
From a psychologist, thoughts on teaching the Faith to loved ones	8
Around the world: News from Bahá’í communities all over the globe	12

Bahá’í News is published monthly by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States as a news organ reporting current activities of the Bahá’í world community. Manuscripts submitted should be typewritten and double-spaced throughout; any footnotes should appear at the end. The contributor should keep a carbon copy. Send materials to the Periodicals Office, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091, U.S.A. Changes of address should be reported to the Office of Membership and Records, Bahá’í National Center. Please attach mailing label. Subscription rates within the U.S.: one year, $12; two years, $20. Outside the U.S.: one year, $14; two years, 24$. Foreign air mail: one year, $20; two years, $40. Payment must accompany the order and must be in U.S. dollars. Second class postage paid at Wilmette, IL 60091. Copyright © 1988, National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. World rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.

[Page 1]

President ratifies Genocide Convention

Years of steady work by the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly and a number of human rights groups reached an historic conclusion November 4 when President Ronald Reagan signed legislation implementing the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

The Bahá’í community of the United States was represented at the signing ceremony, which took place at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, by Katharine Bigelow, deputy director of the National Spiritual Assembly’s Office of External Affairs in Washington, D.C.

She was invited to witness the signing as an acknowledgment of the role played by the National Assembly in helping to secure passage of the legislation.

During the past three years the National Spiritual Assembly had worked with many non-governmental organizations including the American Bar Association, Amnesty International, the American Jewish Committee, the American Jewish Congress, B’nai B’rith International and the United Nations Association to encourage members of the Senate and House of Representatives to vote in favor of the legislation.

At the request of the National Assembly, several Bahá’í communities and individual Bahá’ís contacted their government officials by phone or by letter, first to urge that the Senate “advise and consent” to the treaty, and, later, to encourage congressional approval of the implementing legislation.

The U.S. first signed the Convention in 1948. Since then, many individuals and organizations have devoted years to the ratification effort.

Retiring Sen. William Proxmire of Wisconsin, one of the leading proponents of ratification, gave more than 3,000 speeches in the Senate over a 19-year period urging his colleagues almost daily to ratify the UN document.

President Ronald Reagan signs the historic legislation implementing the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Among those present for the signing November 4 at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport were U.S. Rep. John Porter of Illinois (fifth from left), co-chairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, and Katharine Bigelow (second from right), deputy director of the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly’s Office of External Affairs in Washington, D.C.

In “The Promise of World Peace,” the Universal House of Justice says that measures such as the Genocide Convention, “if courageously enforced and expanded, will advance the day when the specter of war will have lost its power to dominate international relations.”

The Bahá’í community rejoices that America, the nation on which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá bestowed inestimable praise, has joined with the 96 other nations of the world that have already ratified the Genocide Convention.

In examining those forces that led ultimately to U.S. ratification, recognition must be given and tribute made to the Bahá’ís of Iran whose “heroic steadfastness, fortitude and patience” under the genocidal policies of the Islamic regime led to the Faith’s emergence from obscurity and enabled the American Bahá’í community to take part as an equal partner with other national organizations in activities promoting ratification of the UN Genocide Convention.

[Page 2]

Reaching out to the Family of Man

Anthropology tries to identify cultural diversities in the world and to discover those social elements that are common to all of us: those uniquely human qualities that interconnect the peoples of the earth into one family.

Usually, religion has pretty well made up its mind about this and is too busy with things “spiritual” to look deeper at man as a social being. It is significant that, in a time of increasing international racial and ideological strife, one religion seeks the same understanding of mankind as this science. The Bahá’í Faith teaches us about the need for the “independent investigation of truth” and points out two important responsibilities we have to the Family of Man.

The first of these is that we must turn our attention toward understanding and appreciating human diversity, the things that distinguish us as different; the second, that we must fix our minds on finding the ways and means of becoming more socially and spiritually united as a single human race. Bahá’u’lláh has declared that world unity is the most important issue of this age. The attitudes that perpetuate di-

---

This discovery, for himself, of the essential unity of mankind, through observing and participating, in an unpatronizing way, in the daily life of a society distinct from his own, is one of the most introspective and humbling experiences a Bahá’í can have.

---

vision and disunity on this planet must be changed and ultimately replaced with the realization that, as Bahá’u’lláh has told us, “the earth is but one country and mankind its citizens.” The only way to achieve this is through the concept of “unity in diversity.” This responsibility falls squarely on the shoulders of us, His followers.

World unity is a high aspiration and a complex and difficult thing to achieve; it must be built soundly and sequentially. Considerable groundwork must first be laid for its edification. Unity requires cooperation, and cooperation requires a shared sense of purpose and direction. The teachings of Bahá’u’lláh provide that purpose and that direction.

As Bahá’ís, we are taught that the purpose of human life is to “carry forward an ever-advancing civilization” and to “safeguard the interests and promote the unity of the human race and foster the spirit of love and fellowship.” The direction in which mankind should be heading is away from “all forms of provincialism, all insularities and prejudices” and those “social assumptions and religious formulae” which have “ceased to promote the welfare of the generality of mankind,” and toward “a wider loyalty,” a primary allegiance to the world as a whole, which does not “attempt to suppress the diversity of ethnic origins, of climate, of history, of language and tradition, of thought and habit, that differentiate the peoples and nations of the world.” The dissemination of these teachings into every land is the first step toward building the foundation on which peace and unity can be raised. This is where we come in.

This article on Bahá’í pioneering and cultural awareness was written by Joseph Roy Sheppherd, an American who now lives with his wife and family in Buckinghamshire, England. Mr. Sheppherd, who has a degree in anthropology from the University of California and another in archaeology from Cambridge University, has traveled extensively in more than 40 countries and served as a Bahá’í pioneer to Guatemala, Colombia, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea, where he served for two years as anthropological adviser to the government and curator of the National Ethnological and Archaeological Museum in Malabo.

As a developing and self-aware Bahá’í community, we should realize that the elimination of provincialism, insularity and prejudice must begin on the inside and flow outward. We must understand that these debilitating limitations must be overcome within our community before there is hope of encouraging others to do so, and that progress toward unity cannot be accomplished in isolation or even facilitated by well-wishing from afar. Direct contact, interaction and cooperation must be established. These are the keys we can offer for the social salvation of mankind.

With this in mind, many Bahá’í pioneers, motivated by a personal commitment to spread abroad this ideal of world unity, have emigrated to new continents. It is little wonder that in the language of Bahá’u’lláh, the Persian word for pioneer, “mohajer,” is the same word for “emigrant.” Each Bahá’í “mohajer” who travels to a foreign land, settles there, and successfully shares the Cause of God with his fellow-men, is fortunate because he witnesses, at first hand, many more facets of human diversity than those who do not. He encounters the wonderment of new ideas, beliefs and values, and the knowledge of a culture beyond his own. In time, these will naturally have an effect on him. Those elements of cultural wisdom that he finds compatible or complementary to his own, or reasonable in light of the surrounding environment, will be slowly assimilated and embraced. Others

[Page 3] that, at first encounter, lead to “culture shock” and appear to be completely at odds with some of the basic and trusted patterns of his own culture, will only be appreciated as he becomes attuned to his adopted culture and learns to communicate with images and concepts that are familiar to the people around him.

Every bewildering example of cultural belief and behavior has an explanation, and the mere acquisition of the language of a different tribe, race, society or country enables the Bahá’í pioneer to stand in the footprints of another human being, for a while, and to see the world from a new perspective. When a Bahá’í pioneer does this, he loses some of his ethnocentric outlook and is thereby able to learn. This kind of learning is a fundamental prerequisite to teaching others about the Bahá’í Faith.

Exposure to another culture is a wonderful stimulus. It initiates a process of learning and change in the heart of the pioneer, a product of which is an inner awakening as to what “unity in diversity” truly means. This discovery, for himself, of the essential unity of mankind, through observing and participating, in an unpatronizing way, in the daily life of a society distinct from his own, is one of the most introspective and humbling experiences a Bahá’í can have. It is an eye-opening affirmation of the greatness of the unity spoken of by Bahá’u’lláh. It is an experience which can galvanize an intellectual acceptance of the unity of mankind into an unshakable certainty; it can raise one’s agreement with this principle from an indifferent “yes” to an insightful “yea.”

We must come to the realization that the establishment of unity among the peoples of the world is the basic social responsibility of every Bahá’í. If we neglect this, we blatantly ignore the central purpose of the Message of Bahá’u’lláh. The achievement of this unity depends upon the degree to which the meaning of “social diversity” is understood. In the simplest terms: culture is diversity. The things that make us profoundly different from one another—our ideas, beliefs, values and accumulated knowledge—are all cultural. The more superficial distinctions such as color and race are far too ambiguous and much less important than the culturally-based concepts and actions of the mind and behavior of man. Race is not merely physiological but inseparably interwoven within the matrix of culture.

For the pioneer, language is the key. It is the best means of perceiving culture, and thus truly appreciating the depth of human diversity. So important is language in understanding culture that some anthropologists have suggested that “language is culture.”

The spoken and written word are certainly the ways in which all the elements of culture are transferred from one generation to the next. As far as teaching the Bahá’í Faith is concerned, language is the best means of communication with the heart and intellect of our fellow-men; it is the way in which new morals and mores, concepts and wisdom are passed from one mind to another. This is why it is imperative for the Bahá’í pioneer to learn to speak the local language of the society in which he lives. He must become linguistically fluent to the point of being able to articulate, conceptualize and even dream in his new language. The central duty of the pioneer is to transfer his understanding of the Faith, in images that are understandable in the culture, and to enkindle an interest in and commitment to the Faith among his hearers that will be self-sustaining and enduring without the pioneer’s continued and indefinite encouragement. Without language, this is all but impossible. Language is the magic social ingredient which guarantees success in disseminating the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh.

As Bahá’ís, we are admonished by the Guardian, Shoghi Effendi, to be cognizant of the need to be culturally flexible: “Nor should any of the pioneers, at this early stage in the upbuilding of Bahá’í national communities, overlook the fundamental prerequisite for any successful teaching enterprise, which is to adapt the presentation of the fundamental principles of their Faith to the cultural and religious backgrounds, the ideologies, and temperament of the diverse races and nations whom they are called upon to enlighten and attract. The suscepti-

[Page 4] bilities of these races and nations ... differing widely in their customs and standards of living, should at all times be carefully considered, and under no circumstances neglected.”

Each Bahá’í pioneer should strive to eliminate cultural naivete within himself. Naivete is no longer acceptable. It is simply ignorance, and the discovery of diversity must replace ignorance. We must be interested in the diversity of ethnic origins, history and tradition for a greater reason than mere idle curiosity. We know that one of the long-term needs of mankind is the adoption of a wider-based social allegiance, a loyalty to something higher: the development of a sense of world community. This is difficult to envision because a vital element remains missing: a pancultural self-image.

Photographs from space of the blue-green ball we call the planet earth are a beginning; they give us a good physical self-image. But the world has not yet evolved a clear, world-encompassing social self-image. It is impossible for us to identify with the world as “one unit” because we lack enough empirical experience, enough direct exposure to diversity. We cannot possibly relate to “world citizenship” in isolation from our fellow-men. We can help the world visualize itself better by setting a good example. It is time that we reached out and made what in the past would have been called “inconvenient social acquaintances” and establish long-lasting friendships among cultures and races.

Without this wider exposure and experience, our sense of allegiance to the world will be more or less equal to the stereotype of our particular cultural and national heritage.

We must discover those things that are common to us all, those universal spiritual and social verities that are pan-cultural, because it is in them that the elements of a global self-image will be found. It is for us to discover these. It is a requirement of the age in which we live. Ultimately, it is this that will allow us to truly see that “the face of God is present in every face.”

We have, however, a long way to go. Nothing perpetuates ignorance better than segregation. Hopefully, our efforts as Bahá’ís, mass communication, and the movement of peoples from one area of the world to others will accelerate this process. The standard of planetary unity is God’s tailor-made message to mankind in this age, and the dissemination of this message by the Bahá’ís will help ease humanity’s adolescent pains as the world becomes smaller.

New efforts and insights are required. Christ’s teaching of “love thy neighbor” is no longer sufficient, because it seems, unfortunately, to have been amended to read “love thy neighbor from afar” like some Orwellian law on the wall at Animal Farm. The ethnic isolation and sense of religious superiority which have resulted have led to such appallingly rationalized social systems as apartheid and slavery. Bahá’u’lláh requires that we become united and interdependent. To be this, we must become more acutely informed about other kinds of social organizations in the world. If we remain unaware of other peoples, then we are ethnocentric; there is nothing else we can be. The age of relying on no more than “love and good intentions” is past. Practical discernment, good deeds and steady progress are the only things that work.

The teachings of Bahá’u’lláh not only assert the fundamental oneness of mankind, but also present a system that allows ideas to be interconnected and joined. It provides a large enough spiritual universe so that human diversity can mingle in a series of infinite social permutations. This social flexibility provides a forum for the free exchange of opinions, perceptions and cosmologies. In a shrinking world, we seem to have been losing social options for a long time, until we are now faced with a furcated Hobson’s choice of either seeking world unity or world extinction. The nature of the teachings of the Bahá’í Faith help us and everyone else to overcome some of the narrow-mindedness which is one of the major stumbling blocks on the road to an enduring, world-embracing peace.

[Page 5]

Association holds its 13th Conference

The 13th annual Conference of the Association for Bahá’í Studies was held October 7-10 at the Skyline Ottawa Hotel in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

This year’s theme, “Toward a Global Civilization,” was addressed by a number of speakers, Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í, whose focus was on the role of culture in (1) creating civilization; (2) providing and protecting identity through art, myth and language; and (3) facilitating social change and transformation.

This year’s Hasan Balyúzí Memorial Lecture, “Learning from History,” was presented by Moojan Momen, a well-known Bahá’í scholar and author from Bedingsford, England.

Essay awards were given in four categories: high school (to Amelia Danesh), general (Robert White), multi-author (Harry Massoth, Marilu Jeno), and university (Deborah R. Thorpe).

The Conference drew a number of distinguished non-Bahá’í speakers including:

• Dr. Noel Brown, director and special assistant to the executive director, United Nations Environment Programme, New York.
• David Burleson, UNESCO senior adviser and liaison officer to UNICEF, New York.
• Dr. Riane Eisler, co-founder of the Center for Partnership Studies, Pacific Grove, California.
• Dr. Alvino Fantini, director of the Language and Culture Center at the School of International Training, Brattleboro, Vermont.
• Dr. Edward T. Hall, noted author, lecturer and anthropologist.
• Dr. Susan Stoddart, USAID information officer, Oakton, Virginia.
• Robert Vachon, director, Centre Interculturel Monchanin, Montreal, Quebec.

Members of the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute’s Unity Choir from South Carolina perform during an inter-cultural program as a part of the 13th annual Conference of the Association for Bahá’í Studies held October 7-10 at the Skyline Ottawa Hotel in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

• Bernard Wood, director, North-South Institute, Ottawa.

Among the Bahá’í speakers were:

• Dr. Kurt Hein of the International Bahá’í Audio-Visual Centre IBAVC).
• Mildred Mottahedeh of New York City.
• Louise Propheit-LeBlanc of Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada.
• Shapoor Rassekh, a social scientist and member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Switzerland.
• Daniel Wegener, a representative of the Bahá’í International Community at the United Nations in New York.

The ABS Conference was preceded by a children’s conference and professional interest seminars in agriculture, business and economics, consultation and conflict resolution, education, environmental design, intercultural issues, marriage and the family, science and technology, and women’s studies.

A special feature this year was cultural presentations by North American Indians, blacks, and French-Canadians.

By sharing their art, their ceremonies and their history, they demonstrated the meaning of culture in their societies and furnished material for discussion.

The 14th annual ABS Conference will be held September 14-17, 1989, in Irvine, California.

[Page 6]

Environment: facing the next frontier

Twenty-one years ago, Malta’s chief delegate to the UN proclaimed the resources of the seabed to be the “common heritage of mankind,” setting in motion the events that led to the Law of the Sea treaty. Now, at the initiative of Malta once again, the General Assembly is being asked to proclaim the earth’s climate too as part of that “common heritage.” In making the proposal at the most recent General Assembly session, Maltese Ambassador Alexander Borg Olivier called for a major UN study of threats to climatic stability, which would lead to a global strategy for dealing with climatic change. The result could very well be a Law of the Air.

A coordinated inquiry into climatic change appeals strongly to Assembly delegates. And although the idea of applying the “common heritage” concept to the winds, the rain, the sunshine, and the seasons has raised questions among Western delegates, they voted with the rest of the General Assembly to take up Malta’s proposal.

Borg Olivier’s timing was obviously right. During the Assembly’s general debate, minister after minister expressed deep concern about the increase in greenhouse gases, global warming, rising seas, and damage to the ozone layer. Proposals for urgent UN action have come from all over the world. Secretary-General Pérez de Cuéllar has called for an international agreement to coordinate government policies that have an impact on the climate. Canada

---

The British Antarctic Survey identified damage to the ozone layer; the U.S. Department of Energy has done vital research on carbon dioxide; the Russians, Canadians and Americans have programs on the dynamics of Arctic ice.

---

offered to host an international conference that would address laws for the protection of the atmosphere. Cyprus proposed a special session of the General Assembly on the environment. Britain declared that the UN must not leave a problem of this magnitude to technical bodies but must conduct a serious debate on it. The Soviets called for three UN emergency meetings on different levels and for the establishment of a UN Environment Council “capable of taking effective decisions to ensure ecological security.” Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze also suggested that Soviet-American cooperation was especially important in this field, recalling the moral of the fable about the two elephants: Whether they make war or love, it is the grass that suffers.

This explosion of demands for UN action on the climate is new, but the issue has been on the General Assembly’s agenda for many years. The first UN Conference on the Environment took place in 1972, giving birth to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP). Since then, while UNEP has drawn criticism for not doing enough, governments have been stingy in their contributions to it. Despite this, UNEP has several achievements to its credit.

The most significant of these is the Montreal Protocol, scheduled to come into force on January 1, 1989, which requires a 50 percent cut in the production of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) within the next decade. CFCs, commonly used in refrigerants, plastic foam, and many aerosol sprays, destroy the ozone that protects the earth from lethal radiation. However, the ink had hardly dried on the agreement before there was new scientific information to indicate that the protocol, dramatic as it is, does not go far enough. To prevent further ozone depletion, CFCs must be cut by 75-80 percent.

UNEP, together with the World Meteorological Organization and the International Council of Scientific Unions, has also been studying the phenomenon of global warming with a view to providing governments with an authoritative assessment of the seriousness of the threat and the kind of action it requires.

This article on the United Nations and the environment was written by Jane Rosen, UN correspondent for the Manchester Guardian, and is reprinted from the fall 1988 issue (Vol. 14, No. 4) of the inter dependent, a publication of the United Nations Association of the U.S.

Many other groups, national as well as international, have been studying the causes and consequences of climatic changes. The Brundtland Commission, headed by the Prime Minister of Norway, drafted a vast report on “sustainable” economic growth, meaning growth that does not degrade the environment or injure the climate. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is monitoring food supplies affected by climatic instability. The British Antarctic Survey identified damage to the ozone layer; the U.S. Department of Energy has done vital research on carbon dioxide; the Russians, Canadians and Americans have programs on the dynamics of Arctic ice. Universities, scientific institutes and other organizations all over the world are investigating different aspects of climatic change.

Under Malta’s proposal to the General Assembly, the first step would be to coordinate all the findings of all

[Page 7] these groups. “The Secretary-General should establish an inter-agency mechanism,” Borg Olivier says, “to give us a report on what has already been done, what information is available, what are the areas in which action is possible, and what kind of strategies should be adopted in order to save the world’s climate.”

Borg Olivier expects that once the information is available, political leaders would begin to frame “a global response, a global ethic. Obviously,” he says, “no one country has the right to alter the climate in ways that could be detrimental to others.” While Western delegates agree, they anticipate a battle over Borg Olivier’s insistence that climate is “the common heritage of mankind.”

Britain’s Ambassador, Sir Crispin Tickell, is an expert on climate and the author of the highly praised book, Climatic Change and World Affairs. “We certainly don’t regard climate as a common heritage,” he says. “It’s not a resource like seabed minerals. Moreover, the use of that phrase raises hackles all over the place because of the way in which it was used during the Law of the Sea negotiations.” Many of the industrialized countries feel that the non-aligned majority used “common heritage” as a weapon to restrict legitimate national activities having to do with the seabed and to extract concessions. “ ‘Common heritage’ is a non-aligned war-cry,” said an American diplomat.

But Borg Olivier doesn’t see it that way. Malta has “a very strong sentimental attachment to the concept of common heritage and a sincere interest in expanding it,” he notes. “As far as climate is concerned, ‘common heritage’ means it must be managed for the benefit of all mankind.”

To that end, some delegates are already talking about an international treaty to prevent global warming along the lines of the Montreal Protocol on ozone depletion. Such a treaty might provide for a 10 percent reduction in consumption of fossil fuels by the year 2000 or 2010. Since the developing countries could not afford either to reduce their energy consumption or to switch to cleaner technologies, the industrialized countries would be expected to provide the necessary aid.

Further down the road many scientists foresee an international law to prohibit or restrict all actions that change global, regional or local climate. Besides the use of fossil fuels and other industrial pollutants, the ban would apply to the permanent diversion of major rivers, construction of far-reaching irrigation systems, deforestation of large areas, destruction of top soil, oil-drilling in certain areas, and perhaps even the construction of large cities. The activities of virtually every country in the world would be affected.

[Page 8]

On teaching the Faith to our loved ones

Teaching the Faith in this day is a sacred duty. Most of us take this responsibility seriously and devote many hours to the teaching work. We approach our teaching with enthusiasm, and often with unbridled courage. Yet most of our teaching is directed toward those in our extended social network—friends and co-workers. Many seekers turn out to be strangers. Few of us identify on our list of seekers those in our immediate family—our spouse, children, brothers and sisters, parents. Why should this be so?

There is no simple answer. Often the question itself elicits a variety of responses that range from defensiveness to outright feelings of guilt. The topic is a sensitive one. To properly address the question, there are several things to consider from the standpoint of the teacher, the loved one, and the family. What follows are some reflections on teaching the Faith to loved ones, first set forth in a workshop on that topic held about three years ago.

Some assumptions

I have made some assumptions that guided my own thinking about this topic. You may decide that these assumptions need to be modified to fit your particular circumstances. If so, then feel free to modify them. I do not hold these ideas to be patent truths or universal techniques.

The first assumption is that teaching loved ones is really no different than teaching a friend or a stranger. The basic obligation to share the Message of God for this day is restricted only by our limitations and self-imposed re-

---

Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings about unity need to begin at home. If there is disharmony about the Faith in the home, we must determine why this is so and correct whatever in our power we can to achieve a loving home life.

---

strictions on who we identify to teach. Second, we assume no responsibility for the decision of our loved ones, as we cannot assume responsibility for anyone’s spiritual development. The choice is theirs, not ours. Third, to be an effective teacher we are obligated to become intimately acquainted with the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh within our own capacity to do so. Fourth, teaching is an active process. It is a reciprocal dialogue between seeker and teacher, not a one-way communication of facts about the Faith to others. We should remember that the range and depth of the Writings are infinite. Recognizing that there is so much in the Writings should be a comfort to us; unfortunately, many of us are too compulsive and tend to become overwhelmed by the task of being sure that our loved ones “know all.” We need only remember how we became a Bahá’í to realize that “knowing all” is a false notion.

The fifth assumption, which should be obvious, is that everyone is unique. What the Faith stirs in each one of us is unique and qualitatively different. Should we assume that our loved ones will react to the Faith in the same way that we did? I think not. Sixth, we must not assume that we know what our loved ones need to know, read or experience in their investigation of the Faith. And finally, the power of prayer should not be underestimated. We should remember that Bahá’u’lláh will ultimately guide our steps in our teaching work. We must have faith in Him.

Irrational beliefs and contradictory notions about the family

Why is it so apparently difficult to teach loved ones? I contend that we often harbor irrational beliefs and contradictory notions about teaching loved ones that only serve to limit us. We enjoy a special intimacy in our families, which is generally perceived as a source of support and strength. The special power and unique quality of the family sometimes fosters a perception that it is somehow delicate and fragile. The fragile quality we feel about the relationship is the fear that somehow it cannot withstand the test of sharing and experiencing something we hold sacred and precious—our faith.

This article, “Teaching the Faith to Loved Ones,” was written by Dr. James M. Schear, a Bahá’í who lives in Augusta, Georgia, with his wife and three children and is employed as a psychologist.

While the basis for concern about family harmony is founded on solid ground in the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, it can be taken to the extreme by even the most stalwart Bahá’í. If one denies one’s own family members knowledge of Bahá’u’lláh and His life-giving message, then haven’t we missed the point? Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings about unity need to begin at home. If there is disharmony about the Faith in the home, we must determine why this is so and correct whatever in our power we can to achieve a loving home life. The beloved Guardian counseled many Bahá’ís about the importance of family unity over direct service in the Faith.

Some of us take for granted our relationship with our loved ones. We sometimes hold preconceived notions about the receptivity of those who are close to us based on past experiences and/or our own anxiety about how we imagine they might react to our teaching. Our fantasies about their reaction can be a form of prejudice. I am sure that many

[Page 9] of us have decided that a person we thought was a seeker seemed unreceptive and we were comforted by Bahá’u’lláh’s counsel to leave them to themselves. To leave them to themselves, however, does not mean to abandon them. We can still love them and pray for them. Worse than this, we could harbor preconceived notions about our loved ones’ receptivity to the Faith. Many times, our ideas are off the mark or out of date. If we avoid the opportunity to gain more information about where our loved ones are in their development, we may miss an important opportunity to teach.

The nature of the relationship may result in a wide range of variations. For example, teaching one’s parents is different than teaching a spouse. The teaching, whenever and however it is done, takes place within the larger context of an already established relationship. The growth and development of that relationship is the foundation on which teaching is done. Some of us think of that foundation as either an asset or a liability. If it is a liability, then it becomes necessary to find out why and what can be done about it. We tend to spend a lot of time showing our love to those we teach in other contexts. Why shouldn’t we devote the same effort to this “special relationship” we have with our loved ones? One difference, it seems, is that we don’t usually work to establish a loving relationship since it already exists. Yet all loving relationships require careful, deliberate and diligent nurturing. We should not allow our family bond of love to be taken for granted. Teaching cannot be accomplished where love and trust are weak.

In some families there are some topics that are considered taboo; religion often is one of them. Unfortunately, as we Bahá’ís well know, communication is crucial if we are going to teach others. If communication is restricted, we are indeed at risk of limiting an opportunity to increase our understanding of one another and to experience growth in our relationship. In those instances in which communication is limited, it is my contention that there is much room for misunderstanding. It is important to remember that we are always changing in unexpected ways. Life is growth and development. We are moving in time and space; nothing in life is static. Why should we believe that our loved ones’ beliefs and attitudes may not have changed or been modified across time?

It is critical to know if such changes have taken place by word or deed. One way to deal with our lack of knowledge about where our loved one may be in his/her spiritual journey is to strengthen communication. Direct discussion about the Faith is best, although it may not always be possible. We need to remember that we learn things by what we are told, and also by what we observe. Observing others who are “living the life” can provide the observer with substantial information. We should also train ourselves to be good listeners and observers so that we can be prepared to teach at those moments when our loved one is seeking answers.

Approaches to teaching

What can we do? First, we should be conscious of how important our teaching work is in this day. All of us should have our own teaching plan.

We all know the steps in effective teaching. Teaching involves identifying who to teach and developing a plan for that individual or group. We need to develop a list of prospective seekers. Included on that list should be our loved ones. For everyone on our list, we should have an approach; we should specify how to teach the Faith to that loved one. Teaching can be done passively or directly. Whatever the approach, we should evaluate it periodically and modify it as needed.

Teaching can be done by sharing our experiences with others, framing what we do in terms of our Bahá’í way of life, as well as modeling the Bahá’í way of life in our daily behavior. Teaching can best be accomplished by remembering how ‘Abdu’l-Bahá taught. Sometimes we become very narrow in our view of how to teach. Teaching is multi-dimensional; it involves being imaginative and creative. It is a process whereby we offer all aspects of the Faith to the seeker, not simply what we think he is interested in or may be attracted to in the Faith.

The context of teaching loved ones

Our anxieties about teaching the Faith to loved ones are usually diffuse and unspecified. We tend to exhibit this diffuse fear whenever either direct or indirect references about the Faith are made to our loved ones. At the same time, we often become overly critical about what should be communicated and how it should be said. In fact, teaching is a human activity full of human limitations. We should be prepared to accept our limitations.

The human element in our teaching work is frequently the most attractive aspect of our Faith. Bahá’í teachers are not professional clergy. Most teachers are not public speakers but ordinary people sharing God’s message for this day. We teachers must reflect upon our work.

In our families we sometimes react to loved ones according to past roles. For example, grown children sometimes interact with parents in ways more appropriate to an earlier stage of development. Both children and parents frequently foster this kind of strained relationship, especially when dealing with something as emotionally loaded as religion. For parents, it can be difficult to comprehend why their children would “reject” the religious teachings they had so dutifully fostered. They often feel rejected and guilty when their children convert to another faith. It becomes our obligation to communicate with them and show them how becoming a Bahá’í is neither a rejection nor a denial of their religious teaching and that their guilt is unfounded. Bahá’u’lláh has given us special prayers for parents (see Bahá’í Prayers, 1985 edition, p. 65). We should pray for them. I would suggest that you consider sharing this prayer with them and letting them know that you are using it.

Another situation involves parents who have become Bahá’ís. In this case, the adult children may find it difficult to comprehend why their parents have changed their religion. The same kind of difficulties reminiscent of the adolescent period may recur. In this situation, communication may be strained. It is important for the Bahá’í parents to recognize when this is happening and to deal with it in a spirit of loving consultation. The Bahá’í Faith offers us many ways to deal with such tests and difficulties if only we take the time to study the problem and seek ways in which to solve it.

A similar situation exists with siblings. Brothers and sisters often act toward one another in ways that are

[Page 10] more appropriate for an earlier period in their lives. We should let nothing stand in the way of achieving and maintaining a wholesome and loving bond among our brothers and sisters. We are obliged to show them how our new religion represents a source of unity and not rejection. This can be done by word and by deed.

How we teach depends on us and our loved ones. What may work for one person may not work for another. As in any teaching effort, we can’t expect to deliver the wonderful gift of the Message of God for this day if we have not armed ourselves with a clear notion about our duties and obligations to our teaching work and to our family. We must work to achieve answers in our own particular circumstance and develop our own deepening on these topics.

At the same time, Bahá’u’lláh reminds us that in this Dispensation each person must choose for him/herself. As teachers, we teach by sharing the Creative Word and offering the seeker knowledge about the Manifestation of God for this day. We take no responsibility for the choice made by the seeker. When a Bahá’í teaches his loved ones and no action is taken by them, he must accept that inaction and resist the temptation to feel guilty about it. As

---

TEACHING THE BAHÁ’Í FAITH TO LOVED ONES
SELECTIONS FROM THE WRITINGS

Family

O ye two believers in God! The Lord, peerless is He, hath made woman and man to abide with each other in the closest companionship, and to be even as a single soul. They are two helpmates, two intimate friends, who should be concerned about the welfare of each other.

If they live thus, they will pass through this world with perfect contentment, bliss, and peace of heart, and become the object of divine grace and favor in the Kingdom of heaven. But if they do other than this, they will live out their lives in great bitterness, longing at every moment for death, and will be shamefaced in the heavenly realm.

Strive, then, to abide, heart and soul, with each other as two doves in the nest, for this is to be blessed in both worlds. (Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 122)

According to the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh the family, being a human unit, must be educated according to the rules of sanctity. All the virtues must be taught the family. The integrity of the family bond must be constantly considered, and the rights of the individual members must not be transgressed. The rights of the son, the father, the mother—none of them must be transgressed, none of them must be arbitrary. Just as the son has certain obligations to his father, the father, likewise, has certain obligations to his son. The mother, the sister, and other members of the household have their certain prerogatives. All these rights and prerogatives must be conserved, yet the unity of the family must be sustained. The injury of one shall be considered the injury of all; the comfort of each, the comfort of all; the honor of one, the honor of all. ((Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 168)

Bahá’ís should be many-sided, normal and well-balanced, mentally and spiritually. We must not give the impression of being fanatics but at the same time we must live up to our principles. (On behalf of Shoghi Effendi, quoted in Bahá’í Marriage and Family Life, p. 74)

Surely Shoghi Effendi would like to see you and the other friends give their whole time and energy to the Cause, for we are in great need for competent workers, but the home is an institution that Bahá’u’lláh has come to strengthen and not to weaken. Many unfortunate things have happened in Bahá’í homes just for neglecting this point. Serve the Cause but also remember your duties towards your home. It is for you to find the balance and see that neither makes you neglect the other. We would have many more husbands in the Cause were the wives more thoughtful and moderate in their Bahá’í activities. (Letter on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, quoted in Bahá’í Marriage and Family Life, p. 74)

In considering the problems that you and your wife are experiencing, the House of Justice points out that the unity of the family should take priority over any other consideration. Bahá’u’lláh came to bring unity to the world, and a fundamental unity is that of the family. Therefore, we must believe that the Faith is intended to strengthen the family, not weaken it. For example, service to the Cause should not produce neglect of the family. It is important for you to arrange your time so that your family life is harmonious and your household receives the attention it requires. (The Universal House of Justice, in Bahá’í Marriage and Family Life, p. 76)

If love and agreement are manifest in a single family, that family will advance, become illumined and spiritual; but if enmity and hatred exist within it, destruction and dispersion are inevitable. (‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, pp. 144-45)

It is one of the essential teachings of the Faith that unity should be maintained in the home. Of course this does not mean that any member of the family has a right to influence the faith of any other member; and if this is realized by all the members, then it seems certain that unity would be feasible. (Letter on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, in Unrestrained as the Wind, p. 140)

She should certainly not grieve if she finds that her family are not receptive to the teachings—for not every soul is spiritually enlightened. Indeed, many members of the families of the Prophets themselves have remained unconverted even in the face of the example and persuasion of the Manifestation of God; therefore, the friends should not be distressed by such things but rather leave the future of those they love in the hand of God, and by their services and devotion to the Faith, win the right to plead for their ultimate spiritual re-birth. (Letter on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, in Unrestrained as the Wind, pp. 140-41)

The Great Being saith: The heaven of divine wisdom is illumined with the two luminaries of consultation and compassion. Take ye counsel together in all matters, inasmuch as consultation is the lamp of guidance which leadeth the way, and is the bestower of understanding. (Bahá’u’lláh, quoted in Unrestrained as the Wind, p. 141)

---

[Page 11] Shoghi Effendi reminds us, “many members of the families of the Prophets themselves have remained unconverted even in the face of the example and persuasion of the Manifestation of God....” (Quoted in Unrestrained as the Wind, p. 141)

There are many occasions every day in which we employ some aspect of the Faith to deal with life events. It sometimes helps to call attention to what we are doing. In another way, we can be embarrassed by our weaknesses and our failure to live up to our Bahá’í standards. Our families often see this first-hand. Often we desire to be “perfect” Bahá’ís, but perfection, we should remember, is not within our capacity. The efforts we put forth—living the life, obeying Bahá’í laws, praying each day, attending Feast, etc.—are behaviors we can point to as representing a source of power and strength. All of these practices need to be there; if they are weak and need improvement, we must consider how to make the necessary changes. At the same time, we know that by “living the life” we draw the strength that we need and become firm in the Covenant.

Developing an individual teaching plan

We often are more content with no activity than we are to develop a teaching plan. What can the individual do?

• We can elevate teaching to its proper station in our life. In this day and age, teaching is the ultimate act of service to the Faith. We must have faith in Bahá’u’lláh to guide us in our work.
• We can rely upon prayer as a source of support, comfort and strength. We can pray for our loved ones and other seekers and with them. Our prayers in the morning and at night can be for teaching.
• We can show our loved ones the love that we derive from our Faith.
• We can deepen our knowledge of the Faith. This knowledge of the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh will arm us with steadfastness, peace of mind and certitude.
• We can invite our loved ones to share in our Bahá’í life by inviting them to attend firesides with us, to attend Holy Day observances, deepenings, summer/winter schools, etc.
• We can look inward for ways to improve ourselves and to share our progress with our loved ones. We may wish to ask them for their assessment and help.
• We can develop a teaching plan for teaching our loved ones, and periodically evaluate and modify that plan.
• We can identify those things that may stand as impediments to their declaration.
• We can accept their non-acceptance.
• We can periodically invite them to become Bahá’ís.
• We can maintain a positive attitude about our teaching efforts with them. Never say “never,” especially about whether or not a loved one will declare. Too many of us have been proven wrong.
• We can be happy in our teaching work and let our loved ones share and enjoy our happiness.

The community teaching plan

What can the Bahá’í community do? It can pray for family members and consult about ways to teach loved ones. It can deepen on the three areas of teacher, loved one and family. It can provide the individual believers and their families with love and fellowship. We need to remember that the Faith is not merely a series of meetings. It is a religion that encompasses all aspects of our lives including recreational activities.

The Bahá’í community can foster a loving environment in which non-Bahá’í family members can be free to learn more about the Faith at their own pace. It can invite those loved ones who are receptive to take part in firesides and deepenings. Eventually, they can be asked to take on responsibilities for firesides or deepenings, and we may even be so bold as to ask them to do more than reflect on their own ideas and challenge them to investigate what Bahá’u’lláh has said about topics they deem important.

As there are no universal techniques for teaching, so there are no universal techniques for teaching loved ones. However, Bahá’u’lláh has given each of us all we need to teach. We each have unique talents, and should use them in our teaching work. Our love for our families is, I believe, where we should begin. In this brief essay I have presented a few ideas for your reflection. Love your loved ones by teaching them about the Faith. And above all, be happy in your efforts!

---

Australia

Over the past four years Kylie Stark, a 22-year-old Bahá’í nurse from New South Wales, has received a number of prestigious awards, among them the Jaycees’ Outstanding Young Australian of the Year award.

This year she was a finalist for the Young Australian Woman of the Year award given by the Australia Bicentenary Commission.

Offered the award, she withdrew in order to complete her year of service at the Bahá’í World Centre and to carry out personal commitments in England and the United States.

Ms. Stark is co-founder of CANTEEN (Teen-agers with Cancer), an Australia-wide organization of 600-800 members with a branch in New Zealand which sets up peer support groups and trains youth who are in recovery with counseling skills they can use to help other cancer-inflicted youth.

•

“Celebration of a Dream,” the second annual Bahá’í Peace Festival of Western Australia, commemorating the 25th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I have a dream” speech in Washington, D.C., was held August 28.

Forty-five hundred people attended the festival which featured 56 stalls and displays on peace and a number of excellent guest speakers including Cal Bruton, one of Australia’s best-known basketball players; Jack Davis, an internationally acclaimed Aboriginal playwright; Dr. Keith Suter, a peace activist from the Uniting Church; and June Williams, Western Australia’s Equal Opportunity Commissioner.

Each of the entertainers, exhibitors and speakers was given a copy of the peace statement with a letter of appreciation for taking part.

Radio, television and newspaper publicity was extensive, and 27,000 leaflets advertising the event were distributed.

[Page 12]

The world

U.K. presents humanitarian awards

To commemorate the 75th anniversary of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s visit to Great Britain, the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom presented a series of awards for service to humanity.

The award recipients were Bertha Bradley for her services to the women’s movement; Dr. Edward Carpenter, former dean of Westminster Abbey, for his work in promoting religious unity; Archbishop Trevor Huddleston for his efforts to improve racial harmony; and LIVE AID for its work in famine relief.

Posthumous awards were given to two renowned Bahá’ís: potter Bernard Leach for his contribution to art, and Richard St. Barbe Baker for his pioneering work in the field of ecology.

The awards ceremony was held last June 30 at St. John’s Smith Square, Westminster, a spot visited by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in 1912.

In accepting his award, Archbishop Huddleston referred to the Bahá’í Faith as being “... profoundly significant for our world, precisely because it stresses and deeply understands the reality of human oneness, of the movement toward one world, which, whether people and nations like it or not, is the most significant movement of the day....The Bahá’í Faith is a wonderful example to the rest of the world and to other faiths of the primacy of this truth....”

•

For the first time in the history of the British Parliament, permission has been given to speakers of faiths other than the Anglican Church to meet in the House of Commons and to present their views to both Houses.

Hugh Adamson, secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom, represented the Faith at such a meeting last July 13. He was invited by the International Consultancy on Religion, Education and Culture (ICOREC).

Mr. Adamson and representatives from six other religious groups each gave a brief presentation of their faith’s views to “an all-party conservation group” of both Houses of Parliament and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Each was asked to submit a statement of not more than 400 words outlining activities or plans in regard to conservation, and the reasons for their faith’s involvement in the movement.

The text of those statements is to be reproduced in the Hansard and other U.K. parliamentary journals which are circulated to the Parliaments of Canada, New Zealand, Australia, India and other “daughter Parliaments” of the United Kingdom.

Guyana

Ellen Widmer, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of Guyana, welcomes the prime minister of Guyana, Hamilton Green (right), to a reception to launch a Bahá’í medical project in that country. More than 200 guests at the reception heard the prime minister praise the Bahá’í community for its efforts. A 12-day visit by two Bahá’í physicians from England was prearranged with the Ministry of Health and the National Spiritual Assembly.

Hawaii

Fifteen-year-old Meriah Hudson, a Bahá’í from the Hawaiian Islands, has been chosen to receive a Rotary International Exchange Scholarship to Machida-Naka, Japan, where she will live for one year as a “Youth Ambassador for Peace.”

[Page 13]

United States

Some of those who took part last June 26-July 1 in the fifth annual East-West Peace Seminar, held at the Bosch Bahá’í School near Santa Cruz, California, enjoy an opportunity to meet new friends and consult about peace-related issues. Seventy-five people from Finland, Sweden, the United States and USSR, 10 of whom are Bahá’ís, heard reports from national representatives and talked about strategies for building peace at national and local levels. After the intensive week-long seminar, three resolutions were drawn up and signed by the participants to be shared with government leaders.

Macau

The School of Nations, a private venture initiated by Bahá’ís in Macau in consultation with institutions of the Faith and believers who are experts in educational development, recently began operations, meeting the educational needs of the community.

The organizers underwent a long period of careful research and planning before developing a curriculum suited to the needs of the local community. They then acquired a facility and obtained a permanent license to operate a school.

The school presently offers a day school for kindergarten and primary grade levels. The Centre for Continuing Education, a night school, offers courses in foreign languages (Cantonese, English, Mandarin and Portuguese), recreation (cooking, calligraphy, painting, and various games) as well as vocational courses including accounting and business administration.

In addition, special classes are held for individuals and groups who request them including classes in English for a group from the Macau Daily News, Macau’s largest newspaper, and classes in Mandarin for a group from the International Women’s Club of Macau.

Plans for development include those for a computer training center; an in-house training program for factories, companies and other organizations; a School of Nations English Association with library facilities; an overseas college admissions assistance program; and tutorial classes.

Puerto Rico

A series of public talks based on “Marriage: A Fortress for Well-Being” began recently at the Bahá’í Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The talks, presented by Dr. Nilda Keene, a psychiatrist, under the auspices of the Auxiliary Board, have drawn wide media support. Five radio stations have broadcast weekly announcements about the project while one popular radio station invited Dr. Keene to take part in a two-hour “call-in” program over the course of several months.

The public talks now include other topics and will continue to be offered for an indefinite time.

•

About 100 people attended a Bahá’í Winter School last December 26-31 at the Amoz Gibson Training Centre for Bahá’í Media in Arecibo, Puerto Rico.

The Centre provided funding for the school out of proceeds from its workshop in public speaking and media interviews which was held earlier that same month.

Burkina

On June 24, for the first time in Burkina, the United Nations Information Office organized a round-table discussion devoted to disarmament, with the current session of the UN being devoted to that issue.

The Bahá’ís were invited to attend the discussion with government representatives including the ambassadors from the U.S., USSR, France, China and Algeria.

Also attending were members of other organizations working for peace, a former president of Burkina, representatives of the ministries of defense, foreign affairs, national education and interior, and members of the news media.

The Bahá’ís were able to share their approach to peace-making and problem-solving and to present copies of the peace statement to those who asked for them.

The event was covered on national radio and television.

•

Bahá’ís in the mining city of Poura, 250 km (155 miles) southwest of Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina, have been given permission to broadcast Bahá’í programs on local radio.

The station, part of a national network, allocates 45 minutes each week to the Christian and Muslim communities as well as to the Bahá’ís.

[Page 14]

Honduras

“Project Bayan,” an ambitious medical project initiated by two families of Bahá’í pioneers, is flourishing in Palacios, a village in the Honduran Mosquitia, one of the country’s most remote areas.

The Sabripour and Smith families were inspired by the call of the Universal House of Justice for Bahá’ís to become more involved in social and economic development.

Houshang Sabripour, a physician who had been pioneering in Honduras with his family since 1976, and Barry Smith, a pioneer with his family since 1980 who was employed by the United States Agency for International Development, got together early in 1985 to plan the Bayan Project.

Palacios, 50 miles from the nearest road, has no government services such as electricity, water, communications or mail. It is inhabited by Miskito and Garifuna Indians. At the time of the Smiths’ first visit, the community of about 7,000 had no direct access to health care, no doctors, and hospital facilities that were accessible only by plane and only two days per week.

Mass enrollment in the Faith had taken place, but the remoteness of the area prevented any regular consolidation efforts.

In late 1985 the Sabripour family bought seven acres of land on which to build a home. Construction of a four-bed hospital was begun in 1986.

After moving to Palacios, Dr. Sabripour’s growing reputation as a doctor who could be trusted laid a firm foundation for the further development of the project.

The Spiritual Assembly of Palacios began to function, and the family began to make regular visits to neighboring communities.

In late 1987 Mr. Smith joined the other members of his family, who had moved to Palacios the year before; the hospital was then opened, and Project Bayan moved into high gear.

Sponsorships and donations greatly aided the project during its early stages, but it is now self-supporting.

The friends are now considering opening a clinic two days per week in Cocobila, a Miskito Indian village about two and one-half hours away, since many of their patients are from that area.

Since 1987, two youth have completed periods of service at the hospital.

Bahá’í International Community

Dr. Ethel Martens, a representative of the Bahá’í International Community, looks over the BIC exhibit on primary health care at the 41st World Health Assembly held last May in Geneva, Switzerland. The Bahá’ís were invited to provide the display which shows the worldwide involvement of Bahá’ís in primary health care.

Relations between the Bahá’í International Community and the World Health Organization (WHO) moved significantly forward last May with the participation of two Bahá’í delegates at the 41st World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland.

Since 1985, UN non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been invited to attend the World Health Assembly, but only those having official status with WHO are invited to contribute to the deliberations.

This year, for the first time, the BIC was invited to take part in the discussions.

The Bahá’í delegates, Dr. Ethel Martens and Giovanni Ballerio, were also asked to present a visual display of the involvement of Bahá’ís in primary health care around the world. The display was exhibited for an entire week.

“Health for All by the Year 2000” is WHO’s long-range goal. The focus is on the use of preventive rather than curative medicine, and on health care that will enable people to live socially and economically productive lives.

One aspect of this approach involves the training of village and community health workers and educators.

As a result of her participation in the conference, Dr. Martens was invited to take part in a meeting in August that was to decide the future role of NGOs in the World Health Organization.

Colombia

About 100 people attended a public forum last June 4 on “Women: Equality, Development and Peace” which was organized by the Bahá’ís of Bucaramanga, Colombia.

The event, held at the Chicamocha Hotel, included a panel of well-known speakers including Maria Eugenia Mantilla de Martinez, who last year received Colombia’s “Woman of the Year” award.

[Page 15]

Canada

A nationwide peace-promoting road show, “Let It Be This Generation,” performed by a troupe of Bahá’í youth in Canada, ended last June 23 after winning the hearts of young people in high schools, colleges, universities and community centers across the country.

The group gave 150 performances including 63 in high schools, seven in junior highs and six in elementary schools. They estimate that about 12,000 people have seen the show, not including those who saw them on television.

The show, based on the inevitability of peace and the steps needed to attain it, communicates those ideas through dance, slide shows, music and drama.

While on tour, the youth troupe gave away between 6,000 and 8,000 copies of the peace statement.

The show was praised by school counselors, teachers and principals, and the youth were described as “energetic, intelligent and committed to the cause of peace.”

•

Rainbow Reforestation, a company begun in 1984 in Dryden, Ontario, by two Bahá’í students, Laurie Fernandez and Anne Marie Kulhberg, was given the Minister’s Award for Outstanding Achievement at a ceremony held last March in Toronto.

In the summer of 1987, 1.57 million trees were planted by their company in four months.

Sri Lanka

A series of dental camps held last May 28-June 5 in the Kandy, Kegalle and Nuwara Eliya districts of Sri Lanka was not only successful in serving the needy in those areas but also in regenerating activity and confidence within the local Bahá’í communities.

The project was a joint venture of the Office of Social and Economic Development of the Bahá’ís of Sri Lanka and a Bahá’í medical and dental team which consisted of a dental surgeon, a nurse and volunteer aide.

Local officials were cooperative, superintendents offered their dispensaries for use by the team, local Bahá’ís arose to offer their help, and more than 1,000 adults, youth and children were treated.

Botswana

Pictured during a recent meeting are Counsellor Lucrecia Mancho Warren of Botswana (center) and Auxiliary Board members Thozi Nomvete (left) and Giti Roohani.

Youth working on the “Star ’88” project in Botswana are bringing the Faith to many areas of southern Africa as a result of a comprehensive orientation program which acquainted them with aspects of traditional African culture and gave them an opportunity to listen to the advice of experienced Bahá’í teachers.

During the last phase of their orientation the youth were sent out to field test their new skills. In Dimaje, in northeastern Botswana, nearly the entire village turned out to see a slide presentation given by the youth. On the following day, 45 adults and many children embraced the Faith.

Following the orientation, the young people traveled to neighboring countries such as Lesotho and Zambia to begin the project.

In September, the project, now in full swing, was reinforced by the Star ’88 Conference, conducted by the youth and attended by 130 young people from 18 countries.

They welcomed the participation of Counsellors Lucretia Mancho Warren and Roddy Lutchmaya, members of the Auxiliary Board, and a visitor from the Bahá’í World Centre.

•

A scroll ‎expresssing expressing‎ appreciation to the government of Botswana for its support of human rights was presented last July 22 in a ceremony at the Bahá’í National Center.

Among the many dignitaries attending were the ambassadors from China and Nigeria and members of the diplomatic corps from Germany and the United States.

After the ceremony, several people asked for copies of the scroll, and the UN representative invited the Bahá’ís to co-sponsor this year’s national UN Day observance.

The ceremony was covered the following day on Radio Botswana.

Portugal

The first Iberian Bahá’í Youth Conference was held last August 3-4 in Lisbon, Portugal. Attending were more than 120 youth, children and adults from nine European countries.

David Hofman, a former member of the Universal House of Justice, took part in the conference, as did Counsellor Leo Niederreiter, Mrs. Niederreiter, and Sean Hinton, a youth from the United Kingdom. Members of the National Spiritual Assemblies of Spain and Portugal also attended.

The closing performance by “El Viento Canta,” a touring musical group, celebrated the great success of the conference.

[Page 16]

Iran

This painting, rendered by a Bahá’í who is a prisoner in Yazd, Iran, depicts nine trees which have been felled, each representing a martyr of Yazd, seven during 1980 and two in 1984. The artist explains, ‘The earth is covered with snow. Thousands of tiny trees are growing out of the larger roots. In some areas the snow is melting to water the new trees. The snow is a sign of hardship and calamities. “Verily God hath made adversity as a morning dew upon His green pasture.” ’

Malawi

Seven Bahá’ís in Malawi recently organized, on their own initiative, a “big walk” for teaching.

They laid out a 90-km (60-mile) route from Lilongwe to Mchinji, to be covered in three days of walking, and set a conference in Mchinji at the end.

The endeavor was named the “Mullá Husayn Walk,” as much of the material shared by the walkers was taken from a book of stories about Mullá Husayn.

The walkers counted the trip a success, saying that within three days, information about Bahá’u’lláh had been presented to more than 40 villages.

Virgin Islands

The Bahá’í community of St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, recently held a memorial service to honor the Bahá’ís martyred in Iran since 1978.

A large ad listing the names of the martyrs was placed in the St. Thomas Daily News, informing the public of the event and inviting their participation.

The Gambia

The Mobile Institute Team, made up of three traveling teachers from Ghana and The Gambia, recently spent several months trekking through The Gambia under the guidance of that country’s National Spiritual Assembly.

Every month the National Assembly presented the team a plan of action, detailing the villages to be visited and the goals to be accomplished.

The team followed the schedule, keeping a detailed account of activities and identifying “key believers” in each locality.

Activities included deepenings, firesides, slide presentations, mini-institutes, classes for women and children, and help in the election at Riḍván of local Spiritual Assemblies.

Sikkim

Thirty people have recently embraced the Faith in Machong, East Sikkim, fulfilling a goal of 25 new Bahá’ís promised by the local Spiritual Assembly during that country’s most recent National Convention.

India

Well-planned teaching campaigns in India’s southern states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu last July and August brought hundreds of people into the Faith.

In Karnataka, an ongoing campaign named in honor of the late Hand of the Cause of God Rahmatu’lláh Muháhir, is also consolidating the district capital’s local Spiritual Assembly in Tumkur as the Assembly assumes a greater role in teaching and deepening.

The campaign has won the support of the District Assistant Commissioner and the chairman of the town municipality, generated wide media coverage, and enabled more than 300 people from colleges, hostels and offices to embrace the Faith.

One newspaper has agreed to publish “Bahá’í Views” as a regular feature every Saturday.

In addition, a dental project in Tumkur has drawn considerable attention to the Faith from media and public and is being extended to nearby villages on request.

In the Nilgiris plateau region of Tamil Nadu, an ongoing campaign begun last July 25 has so far enrolled more than 1,000 people from all strata of society, and more than 400 Assembly-based projects are now in operation.

In Andhra Pradesh, Nizamabad was opened to the Faith when 40 people declared, and the community’s first local Spiritual Assembly was formed.

•

Despite the intense summer heat, 213,782 visitors came last June to the Bahá’í House of Worship in New Delhi, India.

One of the groups was a Standard VII class from a public school in Delhi. The students were given a set of eight questions about the House of Worship to answer.

They pursued their task diligently, asking the staff many difficult questions while parents who accompanied them bought Bahá’í literature to gather more information.

[Page 17]

Kenya

Auxiliary Board member Dr. Chowghi Rouhani and his wife, Amal, recently visited Bahá’ís in Malava, West Kenya, as part of nationwide project to encourage the friends to learn about and contribute to the fund for building the Arc on Mount Carmel. The campaign, launched by Dr. and Mrs. Rouhani under the guidance of the National Spiritual Assembly of Kenya, involves extensive traveling to local communities in West Kenya where slide shows are presented and deepenings given to the friends.

Bahá’í children in Kenya take part in a project to learn about and contribute to the fund for raising the Arc on Mount Carmel.

Sixty-seven people took part last February in a National Women’s Conference at the Bahá’í Center in Nakuru, Kenya.

The program, which was opened by Counsellor Peter Vuyiya, included talks on family development and a number of practical topics related to local needs.

Participants also enjoyed craft workshops, traditional dances, and songs about Bahá’u’lláh, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi.

The success of the conference led to the planning of a series of regional women’s conferences in Kenya.

Australia

About 2,000 people attended a multi-cultural festival presented last June 6 by the Bahá’ís of Stirling, Western Australia, which brought together many of the ethnic communities in the area for the country’s bicentennial.

The day-long event included stalls and displays by various groups, an art exhibit, a selection of food from a number of countries, children’s activities and entertainment including a concert.

At the concert, the audience was welcomed by the mayor of Stirling who presented prizes for the school art competition held during the festival.

Ghana

A recent teaching campaign in Nzema Land, Ghana, has led to the formation of five local Spiritual Assemblies and the opening of 18 communities to the Faith. There are now 11 Assemblies in that region.

Although access to villages is extremely difficult, especially during the rainy season, this did not prevent a group of 30 dedicated Bahá’ís from taking part in the campaign.

A visit by members of the National Spiritual Assembly and National Teaching Committee greatly encouraged the teachers.

Mariana Islands

A teaching campaign launched last July in Saipan, Mariana Islands, in response to the Riḍván message from the Universal House of Justice has led to the enrollment of almost 50 new Bahá’ís,

Its success to date is attributed in part to the enthusiasm shown by these new believers and to their determination to teach.

Two of the new Bahá’ís gave a fireside later in July, conducting the meeting as though they had been doing it for years. Five more people accepted the Faith that evening.

Two days later, the new believers gave a party to meet the rest of Saipan’s Bahá’í community. Seventy-five people including 40 non-Bahá’ís attended the party, which was so successful that it was repeated the following evening, when 12 more new believers were enrolled.

[Page 18]

146 B.E. Bahá’í Calendars to Schedule Teaching Events, Feasts, Holy Days, Deepenings
Bahá’í Wall Calendar   $2.50 A breathtaking aerial photograph of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, surrounded by its gardens on the unbroken ground where the Arc will rise. 11 x 17 inches, featuring 15 months, beginning with January 1989.	Bahá’í Pocket Calendar   $3.50/pkg. of 10 This credit-card-size calendar allows you to have a Bahá’í calendar wherever you need one: in your wallet, on your desk, in your car, in special folders, or on your refrigerator. It shows 12 Gregorian months and includes all of the Bahá’í Holy Days and special dates.
Bahá’í DateBook   $3.50 Designed on a Gregorian monthly format with all Bahá’í Holy Days and Nineteen Day Feasts clearly indicated, this is a handy scheduling calendar for personal use or at work.	Do-It-Yourself Sticker Kit   $2.95 Turn any calendar into a Bahá’í calendar by using this colorful sticker kit! There are stickers for Holy Days, Feasts, Assembly meetings, classes, the Fund, the Fast, and more. Removable and reusable, these stickers are timeless and inexpensive.
Bahá’í Distribution Service	415 Linden Av. Wilmette, Il. 60091   Tel. 1-800-999-9019