National Bahá’í Review/Issue 89/Text

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Hands of Cause to represent House of Justice at International Conferences

To all National Spiritual Assemblies

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

We joyfully announce that the following Hands of the Cause of God have been named as our representatives to the International Conferences:

Amatu’l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khanum — Paris, France — August 3-6, 1976 Ugo Giachery — Helsinki, Finland — July 6-8, 1976 ‘Alí Akbar Furútan — Hong Kong — November 5-8, 1976 Paul Haney — Mérida, Mexico — February 4-6, 1977 Enoch Olinga — Bahia, Brazil — January 28-30, 1977 William Sears — Nairobi, Kenya — October 15-17, 1976 Collis Featherstone — Anchorage, Alaska — July 23-25, 1976 Abu’l-Qásim Faizí — Auckland, New Zealand — January 19-22, 1977

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE May 27, 1975

Treasurer’s Report/National Bahá’í Convention/1975

To: All delegates at the 1975 National Bahá’í Convention

Dear Bahá’í Friends:

We hope you will read this report carefully and share its contents in your state or district. We pray that God will sustain your efforts as we face the challenges ahead.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF THE BAHÁ’ÍS OF THE UNITED STATES

The Fund

This year’s Treasurer’s Report to the National Convention is most encouraging. Contributions increased by 23% over last year. Participation by Local Spiritual Assemblies reached an all-time high of 682, exceeding last year’s record by 100. The monthly National Contributions Goal has been won an unprecedented four times. We have a lot to be thankful for, but much more remains to be done.

The continued regular support of the friends has allowed the National Spiritual Assembly to make plans with the assurance that money will be available to carry them out. The first year of the Five Year Plan has brought an increase in activity both at the National Bahá’í Center and in communities across the country. The stage is now set for a rapid succession of victories in the remaining four years.

In the Five Year Plan, The Universal House of Justice, referring to the American Bahá’í Community, explains, "The members of this Community, in company with their brethren in the Cradle of the Faith, are called upon to provide the greater part of the financial and human resources necessary to implement the challenging tasks which lie ahead."

One of the most significant advances of the American

Dorothy W. Nelson, Treasurer [Page 2]Bahá’í Community during the past year has been the growth of contributions and regularity of meeting national Fund goals. This is not to say that all of the goals have been met or that all of the National Spiritual Assembly’s teaching initiatives could be implemented. Many important projects still await funding. The fact remains, however, that the National Spiritual Assembly has been able to step up its activities significantly in the first year of the Five Year Plan and still maintain a balanced budget.

Expenditures

The Office of the Treasurer spent money last year in two major areas:

$87,000, or % of its budget, was spent to record contributions, keep records, pay bills and make reports to the National Spiritual Assembly.

$38,000, or % of its budget, was spent on education. This is the area of greatest priority due to the importance of explaining the principles of the Fund to believers and encouraging the winning of Fund goals.

Highlights of the Year

In all, it was a busy year for the Office of the Treasurer. The St. Louis Conference brought a flurry of activity from this office. This included a slide presentation on the Fund shown in Kiel Auditorium, a comprehensive pamphlet on the Fund from the National Treasurer and a Fund booth at the Trade Fair in the Jefferson Hotel.

A major step forward was taken in the implementation of a two-part receipt system. This has reduced the number of staff handling contributions from three persons to one, allowing us the opportunity to strengthen the accounting and communications activities without increasing staff. Last year alone the office processed over 50,000 contributions.

In addition, the office has been preparing monthly financial statements in accordance with the latest generally accepted accounting principles and procedures of fund accounting. The budget has been made to conform with these statements on a line item basis. This provides the National Spiritual Assembly with the necessary management tools to make cost evaluation of the activities being conducted by various offices and committees.

In February, the Office of the Treasurer published a letter and fact sheet on the Fund and sent it to all Bahá’ís in the United States. The purpose of this letter was to inform the friends about the Fund and to remind them of their obligation to support it. This initiative was warmly received. The effect has been a marked increase in the number of contributions from individual believers.

In March of this year, the Office of the Treasurer published a cassette recording, "The Fund-Stories and Talks on the Spirit of Sacrifice." Accompanying this cassette was a booklet which provided an outline of each part of the tape along with suggested questions to stimulate discussions on the Fund. This program was also well received.

Looking to the Future

The Office of the Treasurer is ready to take another step forward by monitoring the number of times a Local Spiritual Assembly or Bahá’í Groups wins its local Fund goal. In the near future, the computer will print on the return portion of the receipt "Monthly Goal Won-Yes () No ()". The number of goals won will be tallied and reported in the Treasurer’s Letter. The purpose, of course, is to focus attention on the ability of a local community to set realistic monetary goals and meet them regularly. This should help develop fiscal responsibility in the local community.

Finally, the Office of the Treasurer is preparing a six-part course on the Fund to be given at Bahá’í Schools. Several of the topics to be covered include: a review of the history of the Fund, a look at the important role the Fund must play in the establishment of World Order, an overview of procedures in giving to the Fund, and a discussion of the spiritual significance of sacrifice. This will be the first time that a course on the Fund has been developed and formally presented.

Office of the Secretary

The Office of the Secretary is responsible for communicating the actions of the National Spiritual Assembly for all of the Committee and offices at the National Bahá’í Center. In addition, this office is responsible for "strengthening and development of Local Spiritual Assemblies," a vital objective of the Five Year Plan. To assist in this work, the office has on its staff a number of [Page 3]skilled assistants to help with the workload.

Expenditures

The Office of the Secretary spent money in two major areas last year:

$204,000 went to support office operations.

$110,000 was spent on personnel and business services that support the entire National Bahá’í Center.

Looking to the Future

The Office of the Secretary, under the National Spiritual Assembly, will place a much greater emphasis on strengthening and development of Local Spiritual Assemblies. A total of $200,000 has been budgeted next year for that purpose. The reason, according to the Plan, is that "the divinely ordained institution of the Local Spiritual Assembly operates at the first levels of human society and is the basic administrative unit of Bahá’u’lláh’s World Order."

International Goals Committee

Under the Five Year Plan, the International Goals Committee has been assigned the responsibility to "extend pioneer assistance to countries throughout the world." The American Bahá’í Community has been asked to fill 305 such goals. In addition, The Universal House of Justice has urged filling these goals as soon as possible as it has become increasingly difficult to find jobs in, or even to obtain visas to, certain countries. To date, one-third of the goals have already been won.

Expenditures

The International Goals Committee spent money last year in three major areas:

$45,000 went to support National Committee and office operations.

$123,000 was spent for deputization, including support of Nine Year Plan pioneers.

$12,000 was spent on consolidation and collaboration efforts. These take the form of providing support to assist the teaching efforts in the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Falkland Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands—goals of the Plan.

Looking to the Future

The International Goals Committee is making a special effort to find qualified believers to fill all of the pioneering needs as soon as possible. It tries to meet the friends face-to-face at conferences and institutes to exchange information.

In training a prospective pioneer, a major effort is made to instill from the very beginning the proper attitude and a willingness to accept the tests which are sure to come. Romantic notions about living in a foreign country are being replaced with a more realistic view of what pioneering is all about. Jobs are available in a number of countries for individuals with a skill or a profession.

National Education Committee

Two of the three major objectives of the Five Year Plan have significant bearing on the work of the National Education Committee: the "preservation and consolidation of victories won," and the "development of the distinctive character of Bahá’í life, particularly in the local communities." During this past year, the National Schools Committee, with its nineteen temporary and three permanent schools, was integrated into the National Education Committee. In bringing about this change, the National Spiritual Assembly has recognized the need for a coordinated approach to all aspects of Bahá’í education.

Expenditures

Funds were spent last year in two major areas:

$30,000 went to support National Committee and office operations including a program on the quality of Bahá’í life.

$67,000 was spent to support Bahá’í Schools including the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Teacher Training Institute.

Looking to the Future

A program of Family Life Conferences has been initiated in five major cities. Two conferences have been held so far, one in San Francisco and the other in Chicago. Reports are most favorable. A conference highlight is a videotape by the Hand of the Cause of God A.Q. Faizí on the education of children. The National Education Committee is also planning to develop a large number of teachers to expand Bahá’í education throughout the country. [Page 4]

Fiscal Year 1974-1975

try by the end of the Five Year Plan.

National Teaching Committee

Review

Revenues Individuals 34% Estates Other 10% $2,646,000 Groups 10% Assemblies 46%

Expenditures $2,670,000 Properties 22% Administration 25% International 28% Teaching 25%

The National Teaching Committee bears the major share of responsibility to assist the National Spiritual Assembly in winning homefront objectives of the Five Year Plan. They are to:

Raise the number of the localities where Bahá’ís reside in the continental United States to at least 7,000.

Raise the number of Local Spiritual Assemblies in the continental United States to a minimum of 1,400 including at least 25 in Indian Reservations....

Expand the teaching work among those of Armenian, Basque, Chinese, Greek, Japanese and Spanish-speaking background; develop special expansion and consolidation projects among Indian tribes.

Expenditures

The National Teaching Committee spent money last year in three major areas:

$100,000 went to support National Committee and office operations.

$105,000 was spent on 95 Regional and District Teaching Committees.

$10,000 was spent for the American Indian Teaching Committee effort. Emphasis was placed on Indian teaching because there are special problems that must be overcome.

Looking to the Future

The National Teaching Committee has had to take time to assess its tasks and re-direct the teaching effort, not just for the first year, but for the entire Five Year Plan.

New materials will be channeled into conferences and workshops. The Committee will meet the friends face-to-face in various locations in support of the teaching effort. The work with Indians will continue to expand.

National Information Committee

The National Information Committee has two primary responsibilities: (1) informing the public of Bahá’í activities and (2) keeping the American Bahá’í Community informed of what is happening in the Bahá’í world. The first area includes publicizing the Bahá’í Faith on a nationwide scale through all forms of mass communication media. The second area includes being responsible for the publication of four monthly organs: Bahá’í News, National Bahá’í Review, The American Bahá’í and Bahá’í Digest. The work of the National Information Committee is communciation and, as such, serves all of the committees and offices at the National Bahá’í Center as well as the entire,American Bahá’í Community.

Expenditures

The National Information Committee spent money last year in three major areas:

$44,000 went to support National Committee and office operations.

$139,000 was spent on publications.

$85,000 was spent in support of mass communication media activities.

Looking to the Future

Through the efforts of its recently appointed information officer, the Committee has been able to place a [Page 5]special advertisement in Life magazine's Bicentennial issue to be published in the fall. The CBS series, "Lamp Unto My Feet," has agreed to do a follow-up of the program "And His Name Shall Be One." With a few well placed national articles, ads, and programs on the Faith, the Committee feels that the friends will have a better chance of attracting local publicity.

National Youth Committee

Under the Five Year Plan the National Youth Committee is charged with the responsibility to "encourage and offer guidance to Bahá’í youth to plan their lives to be of greatest service to the Faith and provide means whereby their offers of specific periods of teaching and other services beyond their normal teaching activities can be organized and used to the best advantage." Just as youth played a strong role in winning the goals of the Nine Year Plan, the successful completion of the Two Year Youth Plan will help to spark all Bahá’ís in their efforts toward winning the goals of the Five Year Plan.

Expenditures

The National Youth Committee spent money in one major area last year:

$34,000 was spent to support the National Committee and office operations. Much of their work was done in preparation for 51 youth conferences to be held this summer.

Looking to the Future

Plans are already under way for the establishment of 100 local youth clubs which are open to non-Bahá’ís. A goal of the National Youth Committee is to develop youth counseling. Much of this work, however, will have to be done by Local Assemblies under the guidance of the National Committee. Another goal of the National Youth Committee is to involve Bahá’í youth in international travel teaching. This is an excellent source of future permanent pioneers.

Office of Membership & Records/Data Processing

The Data Processing Committee, along with the Office of Membership & Records, provides the means by which the Bahá’í membership list is maintained, mailing labels are made, bookkeeping data is recorded and contribution receipts are produced. This function is oriented toward serving the National Spiritual Assembly and other users both at the National Bahá’í Center and around the country.

Expenditures

The Office of Membership & Records and Data Processing spent money last year in three major areas:

$56,000 went to support the Office of Membership & Records.

$56,000 was spent on the Data Processing Committee and office operations.

$68,000 was spent for computer and terminal equipment rental.

Looking to the Future

The needs for automation will only increase as the Faith expands. The National Spiritual Assembly will have to rely on the Data Processing Committee to keep abreast of techniques for the efficient processing of information. Often the basis for a timely decision depends on the ability

Fiscal Year 1975-1976

Revenues

• Individuals 33%
• Estates 12%
• Groups 10%
• Assemblies 45%
• Total: $3,300,000

Expenditures

• Other
• Properties 23%
• Administration 28%
• International 28%
• Teaching 21%
• Total: $3,590,000

[Page 6]to organize a large amount of routine data. For instance, the computer can be used to keep track of thousands of local goals or background information on hundreds of pioneers in the field.

National Bahá’í Properties Committee

The ational Bahá’í Properties Committee is charged with the task of purchasing or assisting in the pruchase of ten foreign property goals of the Five Year Plan. To date, four are in various stages of completion. These include a national Hazíratu’l-Quds and national endowment in Nassau, Bahamas; a Temple site in Lomé, Togo; and a national Hazíratu’l-Quds in Freetown, Sierra Leone. The Committee is also responsible for maintenance of 13 properties around the country including the Bahá’í House of Worship and four permanent Bahá’í Schools.

Expentitures

The National Bahá’í Properties Committee spent money in four major areas last year:

$150,000 went to purchase foreign property goals. In total, $500,000 will be required to win these goals.

$51,000 was spent for National Committee and office expenses.

$366,000 was spent for maintenance and capital improvements of National Bahá’í Center properties.

$179,000 went to maintain Bahá’í School properties.

Looking to the Future

For many years a minimum amount of money was spent on the repair and maintenance of Bahá’í properties. All available funds were directed toward the teaching effort. Now a larger share of total revenues must be spent for restoration and expansion of our physical properties. The Schools' program of the National Education Committee will require many new and improved facilities to carry out their educational programs. This is a natural outgrowth of an expanding National Community.

Budget Summary-Exhibit A

($000's)

Resources	1974-75 Actual	Final Budget	Over (Under) Budget	1975-76 Proposed Budget
Unexpended Balance from Preceding Year	24	—	24	—
Revenues (Exhibit B)	2,646	2,872	(226)	3,300
Proceeds from Loans¹	—	—	—	300
Total Resources	2,670	2,872	(202)	3,600
Expenditures allocations (Exhibit C)	2,670	2,872	(202)	3,600
Total Expenditures Allocations	2,670	2,872	(202)	3,600

Revenues Exhibit B

($000's)

Revenue	1974-75 Actual	Final Budget	Over (Under) Budget	1975-76 Proposed Budget
Contributions	2,376	2,600	(224)	2,900
Estate bequests	130	120	10	140
Other income	140	152	(12)	260
Total revenues	2,646	2,872	(226)	3,300

Expenditures Allocations-Exhibit C

($000's)

International	1974-75 Actual	Final Budget	Over (Under) Budget	1975-76 Proposed Budget
Bahá’í International Fund	375	375	—	375
International Deputization Fund	30	30	—	30
Continental Bahá’í Fund	25	25	—	30
Five Year Plan Properties¹	150	100	50	400
International Goals Committee	160	180	(20)	184
Subtotal International	740	710	30	1,019
National Teaching & Services
National Education Committee²	90	97	(7)	129
National Teaching Committee	200	215	(15)	225
National Information Committee	268	268	—	276
House of Worship Activities Committee	62	62	—	70
National Youth Committee	28	34	(6)	44
National Archives Committee	14	17	(3)	17
U.S.-UN Observer	5	5	—	5
Subtotal National Teaching	667	698	(31)	766
Administration
National Assembly & Secretariat	204	204	—	236
L.S.A. Administrative Training Office	110	110	—	153
General Business Services	180	180	—	216
Offices of M&R and Data Processing	122	125	(3)	131
Office of the Treasurer	51	58	(7)	59
Fixed Charges³	200	—	200	200
Subtotal Administration	667	677	(10)	995
Properties
National Properties Committee	51	52	(1)	70
National Center Properties	326	334	(8)	345
Trusteeships' Funds⁴	179	143	36	269
Captial Projects Funds⁵	40	67	(27)	126
Subtotal Properties	596	596	—	810
Total Allocated	2,670	2,872	(202)	3,600
Expenditures	2,670	2,681	(11)	3,590
Unallocated	—	191	(191)	10
Total Expenditures	2,670	2,872	(202)	3,600

1. The $400,000 included in the proposed budget will cover the remaining international property goals assigned to the United States. 2. Includes support to all Bahá’í School Councils. 3. Represents cost of insurance, interest and pension expense. 4. Represents support to Bahá’í School Maintenance Committees. 5. Represents allocations for captital projects at the National Bahá’í Center and Bahá’í Schools.

1. The National Bahá’í Fund presently has borrowed $265,000 from various Bahá’ís at interest rates condiderably below the prime rate. The total amount of borrowing is expected to rise to a minimum of $300,000 net of repayments in fiscal year 1975-1976. The National Spiritual Assembly plans to use the proceeds from these loans, currently invented in short-term corporate notes and United States Treasury Bills, to finance the acquisition of international property goals assigned to the United States during the Five Year Plan. [Page 7]June 1975

In Memoriam

Mr. Charlie Bellamy North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Date Unknown.

Mrs. Jane Bellamy North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Date Unknown

Mr. Willia Buckner Columbia, South Carolina Date Unknown

Mrs. Frances Coburn Chicago, Illinois March 11, 1975

Mr. Leroy Edge North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Date unknown

Mr. Mark Edwards Lake Harbor, Florida Date Unknown

Mrs. Dulcy Furbush Salinas, California March 19, 1975

Mrs. Gomalia Gore North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. February 1975

Mr. O. Neal Gore North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Date Unknown

Mrs. Blanche Kerkelis Aztec, New Mexico March 14, 1975

Mr. Charlie Miller Charleston Heights, South Carolina 1973

Mrs. Rocie Miller England, Arkansas 1974

Mr. Burl Savage Franklin, Minnesota 1973

Mr. James Smith Atlantic Beach, South Carolina Date Unknown

Mr. Roland Wenzel Milwaukee, Wisconsin Date Unknown

Mr. Fawzi Zein Glendale, California February 23, 1975

Bahá’í Identification

All believers are advised to have current Bahá’í identification cards at all times. Those who travel to diffierent localities should have current Bahá’í credentials to present to the Bahá’í authorities in these localities, so that they can be admitted to Bahá’í events.

Concerning international travel, each believer should be sure to secure proper credentials from the National Spiritual Assembly before going to another country.

A traveling member of the American Bahá’í community should also inform our National Spiritual Assembly if he or she intends to contact believers in another country, so that an official notification may be forwarded to the National Spiritual Assembly of that country.

Warning

No Bahá’í may travel to the Bahá’í World Centre for any purpose, without prior permission and without proper credentials.

In view of the fact that some of the friends have forgotten, or do not know about this instruction given to the National Spiritual Assembly by Shoghi Effendi, the National Assembly finds it necessary to call attention to the fact that contacts with persons of national and international prominence, whether directly or in writing, should not be made by individual Bahá’ís.

Regina, Saskatchewan, is hospitality or material assistance. traveling in the United States presenting himself as a Bahá’í and asking for assistance of various kinds. application for enrollment as a Bahá’í was not accepted by the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada which reported that he left Regina before he could be informed that hsi application for enrollment was not acceptable because of his abuse of the confidence and hospitality of the Bahá’ís and his disregard of the requirements of other Bahá’í Laws. is not to be accepted as a Bahá’í and should not be provided with

The National Spiritual Assembly has found it necessary to remove the Bahá’í administrative rights of and his wife formerly of Chicago Heights, Illinois, for flagrant misconduct. It is believed that Mr. and Mrs. may be residing now in Pennsylvania or Washington, D.C. The friends should be warned against becoming involved with them or loaning them money. [Page 8]

The story of Nettie Tobin's sacrifice

To: All Local Spiritual Assemblies and Bahá’í Groups

Dear Bahá’í Friends:

The story of Nettie Tobin is one which will inspire the friends for years to come. It was she who, in her longing to serve the Cause, laboriously carried to the Temple site a stone which had been discarded by builders in her neighborhood. This stone, later blessed by the hands of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, now lies forever enshrined as the cornerstone of the Temple.

Widowed and supporting two sons, Mrs. Tobin was barely able to earn enough money to maintain her family by sewing for a living. Nevertheless, each time she was paid, she gave something—sometimes a nickel, sometimes a dime—to the Temple Fund. Here was a woman who, poor as she was, unfailingly supported the Cause throughout her Bahá’í life.

At the time of her death, some friends found it difficult to open the center drawer of her sewing machine cabinet. After a brief struggle, they finally succeeded in discovering its treasured secret. It contained hundreds of receipts made out to Nettie Tobin, for her contributions to the Temple Fund. Each gift, though small, represented a great sacrifice. Each one spoke of a burning desire to see a dream become reality.

This endearing story calls each of us to discover within ourselves that same spirit of sacrifice which will enable the goals of the Five Year Plan to be won.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF THE BAHÁ’ÍS OF THE UNITED STATES

Dorothy W. Nelson, Treasurer

May 27, 1975

CONTRIBUTIONS

1975-1976 MONTHLY GOAL

• $ 200,000
• $ 150,000
• $ 100,000
• $ 50,000
• 0

AZAMAT MOR ASMA IZZAT MASHITTAT M

ANNUAL GOAL: $2,900,000

CONTRIBUTIONS BUDGET

Budget Goal	Núr (Light)	Year to Date
Budget Goal	$153,000	$459,000
Contributions	107,459	400,782
Overage (Shortage)	$(45,541)	$(58,218)

PARTICIPATION

Groups & Assemblies Contributing

• Goal by Ilm 1975—Assemblies: 750
• Current: 700
• Goal by tim 1975—Groups: 650
• Current: 325 (322)

Contributions may be addressed to: National Bahá’í Fund, 112 Linden Ave., Wilmette, Illinois 60091; Bahá’í International Fund, P.O. Box 155, Haifa, Israel; and Continental Bahá’í Fund, 418 Forest Ave., Wilmette, Illinois 60091.