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Nor 8.e. 151/ June 5, 1994
Vo.tume 25, Numeer 8
a Fira pla
|
‘Mission 19’
goals fall fast
as teaching
pace picks up
THe Data Lama
Dalai Lama visits Baha'i World Center
On March 24, the Dalai Lama, exiled leader of Tibet's religious community, visited the Baha'i World Center in Haifa, marking the first visit by the head of a religion to the Shrine of the Bab on Mount Carmel.
The Dalai Lama was greeted by Hushmand Fatheazam, a member of the Universal House of Justice, and Counselor Donald Rogers, a member of the International Teaching Center, who gave him a tour of the gardens and informed him of the history of the Faith.
The Dalai Lama entered the Shrine of the Bab reverently, assumed a lotus position, and remained seated for five minutes while meditating with his eyes closed.
Afterward, he asked permission to place a scarf on the Threshold, and covered its length with a long, white silk scarf. “The presentation of such a scarf,” said a report from the World Center, “is the highest act of respect which the Dalai Lama can confer. To his followers, a scarf from him is the greatest honor and blessing they can receive.”
From the Shrine, the Dalai Lama and his entourage proceeded to the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, where he offered his deep gratitude and appreciation for having been received so cordially. Two books by Baha'u'llah were presented to him.
The spirit of confidence that pervaded the 85th Baha’{ National Convention was born of more than optimism. There is ample “real world” evidence to back it up.
By mid-May, with six months to go in the National Teaching, Committee’s “Mission 19” challenge to meet the numerical goals of the Three Year Plan in 19 Gregorian months:
- Two goals had fallen. One goal,
that of putting 3,000 traveling teachers into the field, was won by Ridvan and announced at the National Convention. Then, in early May, the number of homefront pioneer posts taken up topped the goal of 500.
- A third victory was within easy
reach. The number of international pioneers and traveling teachers
stood at 1,830 on April 30, within striking distance of the Three Year Plan goal of 2,000.
- Contributions to the Baha’i
Funds continue to come in at a rate that suggests the kind of sustained activity called for in the National Spiritual Assembly's Vision in Action message.
See MISSION page 10
d.S. House votes unanimously to condemn Iranian persecution
On April 19, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 414-0 to condemn Iran's denial of religious freedom and basic human rights to the Iranian Baha'i community—the sixth congressional appeal adopted since 1982 in support of the Baha'is in that country.
The resolution cites the Iranian government's official “blueprint for the destruction of the Baha'i community” which discloses that “these repressive actions are the result of a deliberate policy designed and approved by the highest officials” of the Iranian government.
It censures that government's “religious persecution of the Baha'i community, including the execution of more than 200 Baha’'fs, the imprisonment of additional thousands, and other repressive and discriminatory actions against Baha'is based solely upon their religious beliefs.”
In spite of previous resolutions and warnings from Congress, the United Nations and other international bodies, it points out, the government of Iran “continues to deny the Baha'i community the right to organize, to elect its leaders, to hold community property for worship or assembly, to operate religious schools and to conduct other normal religious community activities.”
The resolution “condemns the repressive anti-Baha'{ policy” of Iran's goverment “as set forth in a confidential official document which explicitly states that Baha'is shall be denied access to education and employment. ...”
The resolution was co-sponsored by 96 members of the House and 52 Senators including the chairmen and ranking members of the Foreign Relations and Foreign Affairs Committees, and members of the leadership of both political parties. The Senate had approved the resolution last November.
Firuz Kazemzadeh, the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly's secretary for External Affairs, welcomed the Congressional action, saying that “this appeal, together with the strong resolution adopted [on March 9] by the UN Human Rights Commission...puts the Iranian regime on notice that the world condemns its continuing persecution of a law-abiding religious community.”
The text of Senate Concurrent Resolution 31 and remarks by Reps. Sam Gejdenson of Connecticut, Benjamin Gilman of New York and John Porter of Illinois were published April 18 in the Congressional Record.
Rep. Gejdenson, who introduced the resolution for a
Tete err in
these resolutions it seems that there has been a new twist added to the outrages Iranian authorities have perpetrated against their own citizens.”
— REP. BENJAMIN GILMAN ESPERANTO SE ERED
vote by the House of Representatives, said, “Mr. Speaker, the horrendous treatment of the Baha'i community by the government of Iran has been addressed by this House before. We need to condemn this outrageous treatment at every opportunity.”
Rep. Gilman, the ranking minority member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said, “Each time we consider these resolutions it seems that there has been a new twist added to the outrages Iranian authorities have perpetrated against their own citizens.
“During the past year, we received disturbing reports from Iran on the continued repression of the Baha'i community. We learned that the Tehran authorities have destroyed gravesites located in the principal Baha'i cemetery in Tehran. ...
“The desecration of the Baha'f cemetery in Tehran is not only a despicable attempt by the Iranian government to add to the misery of the living by denying to their loved ones interred at this site the respect that all civilized peoples accord to the dead, but an attempt to obliterate the heritage of the Baha’f and all traces of their culture which originated in Iran.”
Rep. Porter, who spearheaded the efforts to support the Baha'is, said, “In September two Iranians were found guilty of murdering a Baha'i, but did not face retribution because their victim was a member of the Baha'i community. ...
“As recently as last December, three Baha'is were condemned to death because of apostasy or of being unprivileged infidels at war with the Moslem nation.
“A year ago an official government document obtained in Iran confirmed for the first time that the ongoing
See RESOLUTION page I!
Special pull-out section
Universal House of Justice responds to concerns raised by the National Spiritual Assembly in its March meeting with the Supreme Body. The pull-out section follows page 10.
[Page 2]
Vision in Action
Explanation and correction
Owing to a series of inadvertent events, an article recounting the Universal House of Justice’s meeting with the National Spiritual Assembly was published in The American Bahd’i (April 9, p. 1).
The article was taken largely from remarks made to staff members during a general staff meeting at the Baha’i National Center in an effort to convey the loving spirit of the meetings at the Baha’i World Center.
These remarks were neither intended nor approved for publication.
The National Spiritual Assembly regrets that this happened and offers its apologies to the readers.
‘Fun-filled firesides’ live up to name
By Tom Mennillo
“Frouzan and Friends Fun-Filled Friday Night Family Fireside” in Bedford, Texas, lives up to its catchy name in every respect.
There’s Frouzan Afsahi and his wife, Dinah. Plus lots of friends. Whole families, in fact. Gathering, every Friday night for a fireside that draws Baha'is and seekers from a 25-mile radius.
Frouzan and Dinah first opened their home April 16, 1993. In the year since, they have seen “lots of humor, laughter, love and unity.” And 12 enrollments, including an entire family.
The fireside averages about 10 seekers, although as many as 20 have sometimes shown up. With Bahda‘fs, the attendance swells to about 40 or 50.
They spill across three rooms: a game room, kitchen and family room. Children and youth usually go off and have their own fireside.
Mr. Afsahi opens the formal program. His aim is
Letter from the National Teaching Committee
Baha'i youth plan to follow ‘American Routes’
To the American Bahd’i community Dearly loved friends,
This is the fourth in a series of open letters from the National Teaching Committee designed to explore various aspects of the strategy for largescale growth and consolidation in the US. In this letter we would like to address another of the elements that form a part of the “unity in diversity of actions” necessary to contribute to a “growth-producing milieu” to initiate and sustain entry by troops— the critical role of youth in the vanguard of the teaching work.
One of the highlights of teaching in the opening year of the Three Year Plan was the Fruit of the Holy Year campaign that involved about 350 young people, largely Youth Workshop participants, in traveling teaching trips that converged on Atlanta.
The campaign resulted in a greater commitment to the Cause for all participants, about 65 declarations, and a broader vision of the possibilities for youth in teaching in this country. Responding to a number of letters from youth in various parts of the country, the National Teaching Committee, at the direction of the National Spiritual Assembly, appointed a task force that developed a proposal for a youth teaching campaign to begin this summer.
All Baha'i youth in the U.S., as well as all Assemblies and Groups, have been given information about the “Army of Light: American Routes '94” teaching campaign. Its purpose is to mobilize
The American Baha’ is published 19 times a year by the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States, 1233 Central St., Evanston, IL 60201. Second class postage paid at Evanston, IL, and additional mailing offices. ISSN Number: 1062-1113. Executive editor: Jack Bowers. Associate Editor: Tom Mennillo. The American Bahé’t welcomes news, letters and other items of interest from individuals and the various institutions of the Ba~
ha’ Faith. Articles should be clear and concise; color or black-and-white glossy photographs should be included whenever possible. Please address all materials and correspondence to The Editor, The American Baha’, Wilmette, IL 60091. Postmaster: Send address changes to Man-agement Information Systems, Baha'i National Center, 1233 Central St,, Evanston, IL 60201. Copyright © 1994 by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States. World rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.
young, people as traveling teachers and in teaching initiatives in their home communities.
It seeks to empower youth to teach the Cause, channeling their enthusiasm and energy into such activities as will reach waiting souls and bring in
The Universal House of Justice has characterized Baha'i youth as ‘potent instruments’ for the execution of teaching campaigns, adding that through their distinctive qualities, ‘they can become the spearhead of any enterprise, and the driving force of any undertaking, whether local or national.’
large numbers of new believers. We anticipate that more than a thousand youth will arise to serve in some capacity this summer.
Baha'i Youth Workshops and youth teaching teams are the nucleus of the campaign. Young people will travel to teaching projects and plan activities in their own areas, under the auspices of local communities (see the map on page 3 for current projects).
To help youth and local communities work together, regional coordinators have been appointed to register individuals and match local needs with available resources. These coordinators will offer training to help communities and teachers make plans that will maximize their effectiveness.
Because the number of projects is steadily increasing, we ask that those who are interested in taking part or in starting a teaching project themselves contact the regional coordinator for their
both to get everyone relaxed and to provide a basic introduction to the Faith.
‘Typically, there is live music provided by singers or musicians. At a recent fireside, a four-year-old taught everyone how to sing Red Grammer’s “Teaching Peace.”
Then comes a speaker. A wide range of Baha’is from scholars to new believers has been drafted to talk for 20 to 25 minutes on a topic such as “Bahd‘u'llah and Christ,” “Race Unity,” “Men and Women” or “The Baha‘i Funds.”
The friends have their opportunity afterward to chat with the seekers one-on-one or in small groups while enjoying refreshments. Others, friends and seekers, can watch Baha’{ videos in another room during that time.
No one is ever asked to leave by a certain time. People sometimes stay for hours talking, even playing board games.
area, or the National Teaching Office, for guidance.
The Universal House of Justice has characterized Baha'f youth as “potent instruments” for the execution of teaching campaigns, adding that through their distinctive qualities, “they can become the spearhead of any enterprise, and the driving force of any undertaking, whether local or national.” We hope that the friends will do everything they possibly can to employ these young spiritual warriors in every aspect of their teaching endeavors.
The activities of the youth this summer will be another step in a process of learning how to better exploit the capacities of youth for initiating and sustaining entry by troops. Inevitably, as with any aspect of learning how to built Bahd'u'll4h's new World Order, problems will be encountered; but these should be seen as opportunities to gain a better understanding of the continued involvement of youth in their communities, schools and local projects in the months to follow the summer efforts, and for launching an even more effective campaign in the summer of 1995.
Perseverance in action is the key to making the “Army of Light: American Routes '94” not simply another teaching campaign, but an important step in an ever-evolving, ever more effective pattern of large-scale expansion and consolidation. We eagerly await news of victories from every corner of the country.
National Teaching Committee June 1994
Nashville conference to focus on teaching via mass media
Teaching the Faith through the media is the focus of the Baha'i Media/Teaching Conference to be held July 1-4 in Nashville, Tennessee.
The conference is co-sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of Nashville and Pavon International, a Baha'i-owned media production and distribution company.
Its main purposes are to support teaching through the mass media and to establish regularly scheduled local, national and worldwide television and radio programming to proclaim the Faith and teach its history and principles to the waiting, masses of humankind.
Keynote speakers and guests from several
countries will share their media expertise, while experts in satellite distribution will present possibilities for using this powerful tool on an international level.
Each session will include music, drama and video by a variety of performers, and the conference will end with a major public concert.
For information about registering, please contct the Spiritual Assembly of Nashville, Hermitage, TN 37206.
For information about the conference and/or hotel reservations, please phone the conference coordinator, Marcia Day, at 310-652-3983.
MISSION 19
Nur B.€. 151 / June 5, 1994 ee cas Rain st
(5 MONTHS
TO Go!)
2QVieh AN J 1993-1996
U.S. Baha’i Community Current Goals and Status - Nar 151 - June 5, 1994
TEACHING
HoMEFRONT TRAVEL GOALS
Homerront PIONEER GOALS
Int’L PIONEER, TRAVEL GOALS
mw
FEB 0a! for the 3 Year Plan
[2] Completed as of this report
THE FUND
(Preliminary, April 30, 1994)
Four Major Funps
HB Coat for 150 BE.
Contributions to Date
Narionat FunD $13,363,515
INTERNATIONAL FUND
COonrTINENTAL FUND [is120,000 (Bi s188,023,
BBB 308,023
HS From Nav’ Bah’ Fund
Earmarked Dollars
HD Total Contributions
ARMY OF LIGHT: THE SUMMER YOUTH PROJECT
El Dorado Cty, CA May Brown Summer
8/18 ‘et Emancipation Proclamation Mh
3 Woodburn Project. Leroy loas Project Youth Project Phelps County, MO
DebbraClark | Jan House 1123-24 Renee 613-714 M8
916/621-2123 \ 593/678-5162 Connie Crabb S Jim Hinegardner Bruce and Sandy Palmberg
702/972-6527 Phil Wood 913/233-7442 314/364-0845
Red Bluff, CA 316/662-1993 5
"Mass Teaching in NH” 6/14 - 8/31
Phil or Joan Tussing. 603/924-4224
Hearts Afire Project Rachel Greco 503/623-8035
Jan Mariano916/529-5856
Minneapolis, MN TNS - 8/14
David Ingham 612/823-9074
‘Time for Transformation 6/26 - 8/5,
Kevin and Janina Barnes 303/282-8166
Seminole Cty, OK Shawn Khavari 405/273-3914
Tiburon, CA
6/25 - 8/31
Dawn, Forest Patt 415/435-0110
Heart of the Heartland
Marlene Ebert
317/462-7629
William Sears “Boston, MA
Hearts Afire Projet ) David Dean Chris Tara-Brown 609/924-3459 415/431-9990 |
anklin Twp, NJ ssley 609/924-3459
Utah Teaching
Projects ee Dale Marxen 2 . | |
801/485-6601
one kas Clarksville, TN —_———— __ Alison McGee
- i 615/395-7452
x Se Youth Fireside Teaching Chris and Jenni Mileham
f 704/254-7432
Clarkdale, AZ.
Joan-Marie Johnson 602/726-1
Proyecto Ensenanza
Terisit
Avid Navidi 602/934-5485
Akka Project Norris Cunningham 602/934-5485
Conway and SC
Kingstree, Greg Kintz, 803/248-5903
Chandler, AZ. Jolyon Clarke 602/732-9597
Albuquerque, NM
1
Birmingham, AL 6/12 Jasper, Alabama
Light of the Valley 6/30 - 7/26
1es 505/256-7934 th 505/294-7922
Genito ienialens: 87) Laura Clayton 6/9 Karen English Barbara Clements 505/521-0166 Lois McDowell 602/961-4241 602/897-7987 Bee Lois McDowel Lighting the Eternal Flame Gallup, NM a tae presching Exuject Se oe 16 - 8/6 TN - 8/31 ae ee _ Magdalene Camey Baha'f Institute
- 5 Tamra Baton 505/722-0112 arbara McCor
David Gilpatrick omc M 602/497-5706 Rosanne Groger 505/722-3315 3/526-23
THE ARMY OF LIGHT NEEDS YOUth. From the mobilizing energy of youth to the guidance of adult coordinators, from the participation of traveling teachers to the love of local believers, the Army of Light needs to fill its ranks. With all of the projects above and the with the help of the coordinators below, there is something for everyone. Please take the time to call and see what you can do!
NATIONAL Army of Light Regional Coordinators OK, TX COORDINATOR Andrenea King Dorita Krapf ME, NH, VT, CT, MA, DC, VA, WV, MD 409/886-4853 815/478-3132 RI, NJ, PA, NY, DE Laura Cessna David Dean 804/229-1410 TN WI, IL, MI-UP 609/924-3459 Navid Haghighi Alison McGee Sandra Fair John Homan Jr 703/406-2151 615/395-7452 414/871-9919 215/997-6075 AZ, NM, CA, NV AL NC, SC, GA, FL CO, WY, MT, ID, UT May; Movatagh Lisa McDowell Vance Remick Doug Hartman 602/963-4798 205/838-3028 919/968-0900 303/635-9424 ae ae OR, WA KS, NE, ND, SD ML, IN, OH, KY Mary McDowell Rachel Greco Marcell LaVine Tatce yon 319/556-1982 503/623-8035 ee eomeeee 216/691-9540 ) f i
TOTAL ENROLLMENTS +329
April .
aa
In the last two issues of The American Bahai we have mentioned the many countries which have identified international service opportunities for youth. Below is a brief description of the need for Baha’i Youth Service Corps volunteers in each of those countries, taken froma document sent by the World Center to all National Spiritual Assemblies last June or summarized from recently received letters. The widely spoken languages are listed after the name of each country.
°
AFRICA: Botswana—Tswana and English. “Like so many communities in Africa, the Baha’f community of Botswana wishes to see its youth arise and serve the Faith on an unprecedented scale during the Three Year Plan. To achieve this, the community would like to receive youth-yearof-service volunteers to work alongside the young people of Botswana and help stimulate a youth movement in the country.” Equatorial Guinea—Spanish. “There are many opportunities for growth through the enrollment of new believers and the coming of age of Baha’i children. The National Spiritual Assembly has requested youth-year-of-service volunteers. These human resources [including long-term pioneers and traveling teachers] are needed to carry out projects for large-scale enrollment, consolidation, and for children’s educational programs.” Malawi— Chichewa and English. “Malawi would be pleased to receive youth-year-ofservice volunteers, short-term pioneers and traveling teachers to assist with proclamation and deepening activities, to train teachers of children’s classes and to work on literacy and primary health care projects.” Senegal—Wolof and French. “The Baha'i community is in need of youth-year-of-service volunteers who have international driver’s licenses to run its recently-acquired mobile institute, which is proving to be of invaluable help in the teaching work.” Swaziland—Swazi and En— glish. “The Faith is well-recognized [in Swaziland], and the Baha’f com— munity has successful social and economic projects in environment and education, particularly at the pre-school level. Short-term pioneers, including youth-year-of-service volunteers, are required to accelerate the teaching work and the institute program.” Togo—Ewe, Kabiye and French. “Long- and short-term pioneers who can remain in the country at least 12 months are needed to fill the goal of creating a permanent institute. This would include living on-site and planning and coordinating classes. Youth-year-of-service volunteers are needed to assist with establishing children’s classes.” Southern Africa via training in Zambia [from a sep— arate letter received from the Na friends in the Bah.
tional Assembly of Zambia]: Beginning with a service orientation course at the William Masehla Baha’i Institute in September 1994, a variety of service opportunities are available for youth age 20 and over in 12 southern African countries, several of which are English-speaking. AMERICAS: Belize—English and Spanish. “A recent census conducted in Belize showed that a substantial number of residents consider themselves to be Baha’is. ... Youth-year-ofservice volunteers could help stimulate the increasing participation of Belizean youth in Baha’f activities.” Bolivia—Spanish, Aymara and Quech— ua. “The National Spiritual Assembly would like to receive pioneer families and youth-year-of-service volun— teers, preferably Spanish-speaking, to undertake two types of service: (1) to settle in certain areas and assist in teaching the Cause and developing local communities, and (2) to help with social and economic development projects. Youth-year-of-service volunteers could assist in village teaching among the Quechua people, deepening and training activities for local youth, adult literacy classes and children’s classes.” Colombia— Spanish. “Among the accomplishments of the Colombian Baha’i community are the sustainment of largescale expansion and consolidation over the years, the establishment of a systematic program for the development of human resources, and the settlement of a number of youth ‘nuclei’ as homefront pioneers throughout the country. ...There is a need for youth, especially those with artistic talents, to be incorporated into the nuclei of homefront pioneers to pro— mote the use of theater and music in local communities.” Costa Rica— Spanish. “The National Spiritual As
THe AMERICAN BAHA'I 4
Mr. Sadat and Mrs. Ghodsieh Ostovar are pictured above with a group of their newest center of Daniperpetrofsk, Ukraine, during their second traveling teaching trip there recently. Of these new-found spiritual brothers and sisters they say: ‘They were behind closed walls, without access to the outside world, and now they are free and looking for good news. If we do not reach them God alone knows when we may find them again.’ The woman second from right declared her belief in Baha‘u‘llah the evening of this gathering. Ukraine urgently needs more traveling teachers and shortand long-term pioneers.
sembly is asking for short- and longterm pioneers of particular backgrounds...[including] Spanish-speaking North American youth. North American youth who do not speak Spanish could also consider serving in Costa Rica, as the National Assembly offers Spanish classes, orientation to Latin American culture, and train— ing courses.” Ecuador—Spanish. Up to two volunteers, either male or fe— male, needed for the 1994-95 academic year at the Ratil Pavon Baha’i School. Prospective volunteers should plan to attend the Youth-Yearof-Service course at the Ruhi Institute in Colombia during August and September beforehand. Guadeloupe— French and Guadeloupe French Creole. “A few youth-year-of-service volunteers could be used to serve at the National Center, assist the National Secretary, work with the Youth Committee, and conduct children’s classes.” Haiti—French and Haitian Creole. “The National Spiritual As— sembly would like francophone youth or adults to work at the Anis Zunuzi school and help with literacy and other development projects.” Martinique—French and Martinique French Creole. “The Spiritual Assembly of Martinique is looking for ma— ture persons, well-adapted to the French-Caribbean milieu, who can serve as short- or long-term pioneers. Their help is needed in teaching, consolidating local communities, and helping the community focus on new growth. Youth who could enroll in the university would also be most welcome.” Panama—Spanish. “The House of Worship needs youth-yearof-service volunteers and a pioneer couple in charge of public relations.” Paraguay—Spanish. “The people of Paraguay are receptive to the Faith and the Baha'i community is persis tent in its endeavors. ...The area bordering Brazil where the towns of Canendeju, Pedro Juan Caballero and Ciudad del Oeste are situated...could benefit from the service of a pioneer family or youth-year-of-service volunteers able to collaborate on well-defined plans with the Brazilian border communities.” West Leeward Islands—Dutch, English, French, Spanish and Patois. The National Spiritual Assembly of the West Leeward Islands recently praised the efforts of a pair of youth serving in their islands last year, mentioning that “we miss them very much...please send more youth!” Two youth offering to serve together is ideal for this area.
ASIA: Hong Kong—Cantonese, Mandarin and English. “Eager and capable youth to work alongside local youth.” Phone the Office of Pioneering for more details. Korea—Korean and English. “English-speaking young adults or youth who can devote full-time or part-time service are needed. Students may register in universities or work part-time teaching English. These pioneers can be of great service in teaching students in urban and rural areas, and in attracting Korean Baha‘is to teaching and other services.” Macau—Cantonese, Mandarin, English and Portuguese. “Youth-year-of-service volunteers are sought to work on specific projects. The Spiritual Assembly is looking for someone to help establish its newly formed Institute. Both Chinese and English-speaking youth are needed to assist teachers at the School of the Nations.” Note: Call the Office of Pioneering about other vitally important service needs in Asia.
AUSTRALASIA: Cook Islands— Carolinian, English and Japanese. “Continuing efforts need to be made to inspire and train the local friends so they can assume responsibility for the ever-growing affairs of the Faith, and contribute to its advancement in every field. Long- and short-term pioneers, traveling teachers and youth-year-of-service volunteers are needed to help with this work.” Marshall Islands—Marshallese and English. “The Baha'i community of the Marshall Islands has the high regard and support of the government. Most of the atolls and islands are now open to the Faith, and its influence on the daily lives of the Marshallese people has expanded. Long- and short-term pioneers, traveling teachers and youth-year-ofservice volunteers are needed to as— sist with deepening, consolidation and administration.” New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands—Kanak dialects and French. “Retired people, short-term pioneers and self-funding youth volunteers would be of great benefit to the community.” Papua New Guinea—Pidgin and English. “There is a steady stream of new
See YOUTH page 19
Nour 6.€. 151 /June 5, 1994
Remembering the Spirit of the Dawn-Breakers
The Universal House of Justice, in last year’s Ridvan message, addressed a special appeal to the individual believer for “immediate, redoubled and sustained action” on “all aspects” of the Three Year Plan, reminding us that, whatever tests may lie ahead, “our blessing are equal to our challenges, as repeatedly shown by our glorious history.”
With these words in mind it is appropriate to recall a time, a century and a half ago, when the light of the Cause first dawned in the city of Shiraz. There, in the course of an evening destined to be remembered and celebrated for ages to come, the Bab disclosed His Mission to Mulla Husayn, declaring: “Verily I say, Iam the Bab, the Gate of God, and thou art the Babu'l-Bab, the gate of that Gate.” With this summons Mulla Husayn’s long search for the Promised One came to an end, and his immortal services as champion of the Cause of God began.
Mulla Husayn’s description of the effect the meeting had on him is recorded in Nabil’s Narrative:
“This Revelation, so suddenly and impetuously thrust upon me, came as a thunderbolt which, for a time, seemed to have benumbed my faculties. I was blinded by its dazzling splendor and overwhelmed by its crushing force. Excitement, joy, awe and wonder stirred the depths of my soul. Predominant among these emotions was a sense of gladness and strength which seemed to have transfigured me. How feeble and impotent, how dejected and timid I had felt previously! Then I could neither write nor walk, so tremulous were my hands and feet.
“Now, however, the knowledge of His Revelation had galvanized my being. I felt possessed of such courage and power that were the world, all its peoples and its potentates, to rise against me, I would, alone and undaunted, withstand their on— slaught. The universe seemed but a handful of dust in my grasp. I seemed to be the Voice of Gabriel personified, calling unto all mankind: ‘Awake, for, lo! the morning Light has broken. Arise, for His Cause is made manifest. The portal of His grace is open wide; enter therein, O peoples of the world! For He Who is your Promised One is
House of Justice congratulates Grand Canyon Conference for its support of the Baha'i Funds
come!’”
Thus fired by passionate belief in the new Faith, he soon set out on the first of many heroic missions, under daunting conditions that would ultimately lead to his martyrdom. So magnificent were the victories he won that Bahd’u’llah, describing him in the Kitdb-i-[qn as one “who became the recipient of the effulgent glory of the Sun of divine Revelation,” stated that “But for him, God would not have been established upon the seat of His mercy, nor ascended the throne of eternal glory.”
The story of Mulla Husayn’s life, as recorded in
uddenly and impetuo'
thrust upon me, came as a thunderbolt which, for a time, seemed to have benumbed my faculties. I was blinded by its dazzling splendor and overwhelmed by its crushing force.”
Nabil’s Narrative, is dramatic and wondrous, and holds lessons of deep value for those who follow the Cause of God today. Primarily it is an illustration of how faith, once found, should be acted upon. As Baha’u’llah wrote:
“The first duty prescribed by God for His servants is the recognition of Him Who is the Day Spring of His Revelation and the Fountain of His laws, Who representeth the Godhead in both the Kingdom of His Cause and the world of creation. ...It behoveth everyone who reacheth this most sublime station, this summmit of transcendent glory, to observe every ordinance of Him Who is the Desire of the world. These twin duties are inseparable. Neither is acceptable without the other. Thus hath it been decreed by Him Who is the Source of Divine inspiration.”
The primary duty for the believers of the present
‘day is to teach the Cause of God. It is interesting to
remember that the Bab, on the same evening in which He declared His Mission to Mulla Husayn, revealed the first chapters of the Qayyumu’l-Asma, characterized by Baha’u’llah as “the first, the great— est and mightiest of all books” in the Babi Dispensation. In it He issued a special appeal to the “peoples of the West,” directing them to “issue forth from your cities and aid the Cause of God.” Years later Shoghi Effendi, in a letter to the believers in America, described that passage as the originating impulse of
the Baha’i crusade for the spiritual conquest of the planet:
“The impulse from which this historic worldembracing crusade, which, alike in the character of its Founder and the nature of the tasks committed to its participants, is unprecedented in religious history, derives its creative power may be said to have in a sense originated with the mandate is— sued by the Bab in His “Qayyumu’l-Asmé,” one of His earliest and greatest works, as far back as the opening years of the first Baha’i century, and directed specifically to the “peoples of the West,” to “issue forth” from their “cities” and aid His Cause.”
This crusade, given further impetus in the Writings of Baha’u’ll4h, and outlined by ‘Abdu’l-Baha in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, has been systematically prosecuted since the ministry of the Guardian in a series of unfolding plans, which will continue “as far as the fringes” of the “Golden Age.”
We have now completed the first year of the latest of these plans. In many ways our challenge is the same as that which faced Mulla Husayn at the very dawn of the Faith. We have embraced the Cause; now it is our duty to rise up and achieve the goals set for us by the Universal House of Justice and the National Spiritual Assembly.
In the concluding passages of the Ridvan mes— sage for 150 B.E. the House of Justice stresses the importance of the individual believer to the success of the Three Year Plan, for it is the individual “who possesses within himself or herself the measures of initiative that ensure the success of any global Baha‘i enterprise, and ‘on whom, in the last resort,’ as our beloved Guardian plainly stated, ‘depends the fate of the entire community.”
The believers on the American continent, whom the Guardian called “the spiritual descendants of the dawn-breakers,” are the heirs of a summons dating back virtually to the beginning of the Baha’i Era. It is true that we have tremendous challenges ahead, but our community numbers in the tens of thousands. Let us remember when there was only one believer among all of mankind, who, with firm faith and unshakeable courage, set out to conquer the world.
Gainesville ‘heats’ up as ‘wave’
The success of last December’s Grand Canyon Baha'i Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, was capped recently by a message from the Universal House of Justice.
The message, addressed by the Department of the Secretariat at the World Center to the National Spiritual Assembly, reads, “Kindly assure the friends who attended the 1993
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Grand Canyon Baha'i Conference of the profound gratitude of the Universal House of Justice for the sacrificial efforts made by them in support of the Baha’i Funds, and assure them of its ardent prayers in the Holy Shrines.”
The conference featured an array of speakers including James F. Nelson, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly, and Jeffrey Mondschein, chief financial officer at the Baha’f World Center.
Judge Nelson said conference workshops were attended enthusiastically, and called the conference “a turning point in the fortunes of teaching efforts in the Southwest.”
The conference was Mr. Mondschein’s first stop on his tour of North American cities to report on the work of the Baha’f World Center and on progress toward completion of the Arc Projects.
of teaching marks Ridvan
Baha ’fs in Gainesville, Florida, ex— perienced a joyous 12 days of Ridvan and a significant HEAT Wave.
There were 27 documented HEAT Wave firesides in the Gainesville community and one declaration so far.
The Nur Baha’f School adult deepening class spontaneously arose to “re-create” Baha’u’llah’s tent for Ridvan.
One area of Gainesville’s new Baha’i Center was established as Baha’— u'lldh’s tent, complete with a draped ceiling, pillows, a samovar and dis~ played Writings.
The friends donated roses and other flowering bushes to plant in the planned Ridvan garden outside the Center.
The first day of Ridvan set the scene. The tent area was opened for the first time in a solemn and spiritual program.
Friends were invited to visit the tent daily at dawn and from 10 a.m. to noon for prayers and meditation. Those who spent time there felt profoundly blessed, both with teaching opportunities and with new solutions to old problems.
The Ninth Day celebration included a barbeque dinner and ceremony hon-oring Gainesville’s new graduates: two who received doctorates, one who earned a nursing degree, and one high school senior who was graduated with honors.
On the 12th day of Ridvan, there was storytelling for children in the tent (amidst many flowers), history lessons about Baha’'u'llah's Declaration, art activities related to roses and nightingales, and pony rides that re— minded the children of Baha’u‘Ilah’s departure from Baghdad on a red roan stallion.
[Page 6]
Distribution
Robe of Light
The Persian Years of the Supreme Prophet Baha’u'llah 1817-1853
by David S. Ruhe
HC $24.95 / cove—ROL
In this study of the life of Bahé’u’llah, Dr. David Ruhe focuses on the early years of Baha’u'llah’s life from His birth in 1817 to His banishment to Iraq in 1853. The book discusses that most mysterious time when, in the underground prison, Baha’u’lléh became aware of His station as the Manifestation of God for this age and embarked on His world-embracing, world-healing mission.
9-1/2" x 6-1/4", 230pp., contents, list of illustrations, preface and acknowledgments, introduction, appendices, glossary, bibliography, references, index
George Ronald, Publisher
THe AmericAN BaHA'l 6
Melodies From the City of the
Covenant
CD $16.95 / cove—MFCCCD CS $10.95 / cope—MFCCC This unique album includes a special introduction in Persian by Amatu’l-Bahaé Rihfyyih Khanum, with chants by Hands of the Cause of God Dr. Varga and Mr. Furditan. This collection of Persian music and
TH SHOULDERS
by Craig Loehle
such as racism.
On the Shoulders of Giants
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Isaac Newton is famous for his statement that if he saw farther than others it was because he had stood on the shoulders of giants. The theme of this book is the same: what we can see when our perspective is elevated. If we combine science and religion into a genuine partnership, we will be able to solve problems that have bedeviled humanity for thousands of years. Mr. Loehle’s essays explore how the partnership of science and religion can be used to address real problems and issues
7" x 4-1/2", 201pp., contents, acknowledgments, introduction, bibliography, references George Ronald, Publisher
chanting was recorded at the World Congress in New York, featuring Dr. Manoochehr Sadeghi on santour, accompanied by Behruz Sana’i on the zarb. A selection of prayers and poems is chanted and sung by Shokouh Rezai and Narges Nouhnejad.
78 minutes Live Unity Productions
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There are only 300 copies of the deluxe leather edition of Che Kitdb-i-Agdas in print. Lo order, please call 1-800-999-9019
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Promoting Entry by Troops
A Statement and Compilation
Prepared by the Research Department
of the Universal House of Justice
SC $3.50 / cope—PEBT
The Universal House of Justice released this statement to help the friends “understand, welcome, initiate and sustain” the process of entry by troops, which “will soon become an established pattern for the growth of the Faith in country after country.” They also urge the friends to “study this compilation, to understand the coherence of its statements, and to use its counsels to lend a renewed impetus to the spread of the Faith and the establishment of the institutions of the Cause of God.”
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SONGBOOK
REFER ‘Abdu’l-Baha
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This MS-DOS software gives you easy access to nearly all the published writings and talks of ‘Abdu’l-Bahd. Authenticated works include Memorials of the Faithful, Some Answered Questions, The Secret of Divine Civilization, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahd, Tablets of the Divine Plan, A Traveler’s Narrative, Will and Testament of ‘Abdu'l-Bahd, prayers found only in the U.S. or U.K. editions of Bahd’f Prayers, and excerpts from Foundations of World Unity as well as compilations prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice. Among the texts containing unauthenticated talks are ‘Abdu’l-Bahé in London, Paris Talks, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, Japan Will Tum Ablaze, and Bahd’f World Faith.
The user’s manual provides information on using REFER in. Windows; installation and starting the program; a series of easyto-follow exercises; changing the screen colors and hotkey combination; and several appendices, one of which lists the editions of publications used to compile the program.
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[Page 7]
7
Nor 6.c. 151 / June 5, 1994
Distribution
The Arc of Ascent
The Purpose of Physical Reality Il
by John S. Hatcher
SC $21.95 / cope—AAS
John Hatcher's long-awaited sequel to The Purpose of Physical Reality: The Kingdom of Names. The book is “a masterly exposition on the evolution of the human spirit, employing literature, philosophy, theology, psychology and history to demonstrate the ultimate purpose of an all-loving Creator,” says Dr. Duane Troxel, Associate Professor, University of Colorado at Denver, and “an enlightening book for a seeker of truth whether it be from the standpoint of theology, art, history or just a hunger to ‘see the light at the end of the tunnel,” says Jack B. McCants, Ph.D.
8-1/4" x 5-1/2", 385pp., acknowledgments, table of contents,
preface, bibliography, references George Ronald, Publisher
New Edition
Tablets of Baha’u’llah
by Baha'u'llah
HC $11.00# / covr—TB
The Baha’f Publishing Trust has just released anew edition of Tablets of Bahd’u’llah to match the series of maroon hardcover editions of the writings of Baha’u’llah. Tablets of Bahd’u'll4h contains 16 of Bahé’u’llah’s most significant and well-loved Tablets. ‘Abdu’l
Becoming Your True Self
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Becoming Your True Self offers a concise and challenging analysis of human nature and reveals how each of us can achieve both fulfillment and happiness in our lives. It explores the search for truth and meaning in a secular world and presents the worldwide
Bahé has urged us to read a number of them with close attention so that we will have a model of how to be and how to live and may become the center of attraction wherever
Baha’{ community as a successful model of personal and social transformation. Daniel Jordan explains how the followers of Bahd’u’llah are inspired to realize their true potential and to contribute to the healing and development of the wider‘community in which they live.
5-3/4" x 8-1/4", Gipp., contents, introduction, references Baha'i Publishing Trust - United Kingdom
people come together. Also included is the Book of the Covenant, which Shoghi Effendi says will enable Baha’{s to withstand every test and the attacks of enemies outside the Faith.
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This edition of the Baha’f Newsreel highlights the Fruit of the Holy Year Project; the March on Washington, D.C. Environ: ment: From Rio to the Capitols; the Office of External Affairs’ defense of the Iranian Baha’is; Olya’s Story; the travels of Hand of the Cause of God Amatu’l-Baha Rthfyyih Khénum’s in the Former Soviet Union; the Baha’f Chorale in Russia, Ukraine, and Moldova; reports from Albania, India, and Australia; the Wilmette Temple Restoration project; the Parliament of the World’s Religions; an update on the Mount Carmel Projects; an update on the Three Year Plan in the United States; Vision in Action; the Prejudice Free Forum; the Hispanic Conference; Pioneer Emphasis Days; the Social and Economic Development Conference and the Atlanta Conference on Large Scale Growth.
57 minutes Baha'i Media Services
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[Page 8]
THe AmerICAN BAHA't 8
‘Traveling teaching’ — Convention-style
As delegates to the 85th Baha'i National Convention flew in to Chicago's O'Hare International Airport from all over the
country, they piled into shuttle buses bound for their hotels.
On one such bus were 10 people who, as
Baha'is are wont to do, greeted one another warmly and launched into excited conversation.
The seatmate of delegate Stanley Harris chatted warmly about his travels and the languages he and his wife speak.
A typical Baha'i, one might conclude,
But then the man turned to Mr. Harris and asked, “Are you folks going to some kind of convention?”
That brought everything except the bus to a screeching halt.
After realizing the man was not simply pulling his leg, Mr. Harris replied, “We're delegates to the Baha'i National Convention, and we're on our way to the North Shore Hilton hotel in Skokie.”
Uh-oh.
It turns out that the man, a non-Bahd’i, had flown in from Los Angeles for an
important meeting at the O'Hare Hilton. Had he been familiar with the area, the man would have known that he could walk to the O'Hare Hilton from the airport, but as he emerged from the terminal he saw a
bus marked “Hilton” and climbed aboard.
Now he was hurtling toward Skokie and
was, needless to say, on the verge of being quite late for his meeting.
He could have stopped the bus at that point, hailed a cab and returned to O'Hare. Instead, the man turned to delegate
Shirley Pleasant, who, like him, is black, and asked, “Are you one of these Bahd’is?”
Nodding “yes,” she proceeded to tell the
man about Baha'u'lléh, the Lord of the Age. ‘And, she added, “You were meant to be on this bus.”
Evidently, the man agreed. He stayed on
the bus and talked with the delegates about the Faith the entire trip.
At one point, he even used his cellular telephone to call his wife in LA. and ask what she knew about the Baha'i Faith.
When the bus reached Skokie, the man
looked belatedly for a cab.
But before doing so, he handed Mr. Harris his card bearing the title “deputy commissioner of consumer affairs” and remarked that his boss is running for governor of California in the next election,
LA. Baha’is will be getting to know this
person of capacity.
National Convention
Members of the National Spiritual Assembly and
“Amazing Grace.”
Continental Board of Counselors (above) enjoy the stirring choral music, such as Van Gilmer’s solo (below) on
f |
Visitors to the National Convention come in all ages and sizes, as this infant (right) someday will be able to attest.
Special talks
by special
friends make
Convention
special. Elsie
Austin
(above)
recalls her
years on the
National
Assembly,
while trustee
Daryush
Haghighi
(left) reports
progress on
Huququ'llah.
Nor 6.€. 151 / June 5, 1994 9
(Above) Reunions are a big part of
National Convention. Here, delegate
Thelma Khelghati greets an old friend.
(Right) Delegates share a laugh with Treasurer’s Office personnel during lunch at the Baha’i National Center
Retired Universal House of Justice member David S. Ruhe and Margaret K. Ruhe didn’t lack for conversation during Convention. (Above left) Mrs. Ruhe talks with Auxiliary Board member Mary Kay Radpour and (above right) Dr. Ruhe chats with Pat Steele of the National Teaching Committee.
offices.
Continental Counselor Jacqueline Delahunt, flanked by fellow Counselors Arturo Serrano and Wilma Ellis, addresses the assemblage.
A love letter to Convention delegates and the American Baha’i community
Dearly loved friends,
Have you ever been to a Baha'i gathering you just didn’t want to leave? Our 85th National Convention was no exception.
The spirit of love so permeated our consultation that we were all amazed. Such joy, such depth, such maturity were expressed by each delegate that we left that blessed Spot transformed, |, for one, couldn't leave without sending each of you precious delegates one more hug and saying, “I love you!”
In my reflections on this Convention (my first, and what a bounty!), 1 am growing so deeply grateful to the spouses, families and loved ones who sent us. You had to stay taking care of business at home so that we could go.! want you to know that your love was with us, animating our consultation. From my heart, thank you!
In fact, each one of you precious American believers were there expressing your love, your hopes, your fears and even your pain through your own dear delegate. And our beloved National
Spiritual Assembly received each expression with such love and such gratitude that we all just lay awestruck like babes in the warm, secure arms of that precious, precious institution.
Our dear Universal House of Justice helps us understand just how important each one of us is as it concludes this year’s Ridvan message: “In every aspect of this work, it is the individual Baha'i who holds the key to victory.”
We are individuals, but we do not work alone. At this Convention we amazed ourselves! We
shared as individuals. Yet our consultation merged our ideas into unified illumination. It really works! Each one of us has the same potential as this.
Please, don’t be shy with your talents, your feelings, your knowledge, your love. Offer what your Lord has given you at the threshold of Baha'u'llah and you will be astonished at the power your service gives to the progress of our beloved Faith. Please, if we ever needed your gifts, we need them now!
Doug Reimold, Hartsville, South Carolina
THe American BaHA'l
Vision in Action
RACISM
JUST UNDO IT’
« People are individuals, not representatives of their race. s When you encounter racism, don’t ignore it. Make your position known. ® Show all people respect regardless of race or culture. # Give up blame in favor of responsibility. = When you fight hate with hate, no one wins. ® Believe in unity. We've come a long way, let’s keep moving forward.
Racism will end. But not without you.
Racism. Just Undo It is a Tosk Force dedicated to raising the first generation of prejudice-free New Yorkers. For more information, call (212) 465-3150
This advertising panel was placed on hundreds of New York City transit buses as part of the ‘Racism Just Undo’ It campaign.
RJUI task force goes non-profit to expand reach
The local Spiritual Assembly of New York City _ the board of directors of United Endeavors. keeping busy.
ability to reach the masses
has formed United Endeavors Inc. to be an umbrella organization for the Racism Just Undo It task force and other race unity initiatives. The Assembly believes the private, not-forprofit corporation will great expand RJUI’s
RJUI will continue its work in social and economic development, and will answer directly to
Monies from non-Bahé’i e1 sought through the non-profit corporation and will be kept separate from the Baha’i Fund.
In the near future, United Endeavors will look to sponsor additional task forces and to support other groups—Bahd’f or non-Baha’i—that are working toward the cause of race unity.
Meanwhile, the RJUI task force has been
ities can now be
Dulce gets its LSA—with a little help
When Dulce, New Mexico, on the Jicarilla Apache Indian Reservation, formed a local Spiritual Assembly this Ridvan, no one could be prouder than those who helped make it happen over the past four years:
¢ traveling teachers Jean Villasefior and her sister, Helen Caldwell, who travel 75 miles each way—100 when the Reservation roads are impassable—nearly every Thursday ftom Sandoval County North;
¢ Lance and Debra Hurt, Baha’is from Pagosa Springs, Colorado, who counsel the Reservation Apaches professionally;
¢ Cynthia Christiansen, a pioneer who worked with Southeast Asians in Modesto, California, before moving to Dulce for the duration of the Three Year Plan; and
- many other traveling teachers
from Durango, Colorado, and the Southern Ute Reservation.
There’s ‘snow’ thing like winning a goal
When a family of Baha’fs in western Pennsylvania recently offered to contribute one “unit” ($9,000) to the Arc Fund if the other Baha'is in that area (about 100 of them), working together, could raise another $9,000, the friends quickly arose to the challenge.
Not only did the Baha'is meet the $9,000 goal, they exceeded it. Then
another family offered to contribute $9,000 to the Arc, and the Bahd'fs of western Pennsylvania were able to send a check totaling just over $27,000 to the Arc Fund.
As they point out, after shoveling 126 inches of snow this past winter, anything else is not only possible but relatively eas:
When the teaching effort began, there were eight Bahd’fs on a Reservation beset with chronic alcoholism. Since then, 20 believers have been enrolled and two of the friends have died.
Three of the declarations came only weeks before Ridvan, and four more seekers declared the day of the election itself!
Now comes the task of continuing to deepen the Dulce believers.
“As we have told them, we are anticipating the day when they will illuminate all of us,” Ms. Villasefior wrote to the National Teaching Committee a few days after the election.
And, of course, the teaching will continue unabated.
“The first victory has now been won, but we know that this is only the beginning,” wrote Ms. Villasenor, “and that the Legions of Light from on high are powerless to assist unless we do our part.”
‘Mission 19’ challenge being met with time to spare
Continued from page |
Preliminary figures show that $1,718,014 was contributed to the National Baha’{ Fund in April, compared to $1,166,316 in the same month a year ago. Likewise, year-todate contributions to the National Fund totaled $13,363,515, well above
last year’s $10,830,716 total.
- Most important, accelerated
teaching activity has brought about a jump in enrollments and the promise that many more hearts will be opened to Bahd’u’Iléh.
The increased pace of teaching activity reaped in B.E. 150 the largest number of declarations—2,349—in
seven years, and the number of declarations in April alone exceeded 300.
News of teaching campaigns continues to pour in to the National Teaching Committee. The number of Army of Light youth projects alone being launched this summer has risen above 50. (Thirty-seven of those projects are listed on page 3.)
The second annual RJUI Show of Solutions is under way, with more than 150 entries submitted thus far from children in grades K-12.
RJUI’s bus ads, street fair booths and word-ofmouth referrals have resulted in hundreds of phone calls from New Yorkers interested in getting involved in the campaign.
The RJUI Hotline number is 212-465-3150.
Teaching center opens
The Bah in Wellington, Kansas, are moving solidly toward a level of Baha’i community life that is sure to attract people to the Faith.
This month, they are opening the Central States Teaching Center, under the direction of Joe Kramer.
The Center will feature weekly Baha’{ speakers; dances every Saturday night; adult and children’s classes; social activities for all ages; weekend retreats; teaching projects; and, eventually, the development of a day school for grades K-12.
Saturday activities will begin at 2 p.m. with a speaker. The dance/social will kick off at 7 p.m. Sunday activities will run from 7 a.m. to noon. Concessions are available.
For overnight events, attendees are asked to bring cots, sleeping bags, blankets, etc.
Wellington is in southern Kansas halfway between Wichita and the Oklahoma line. The Central States Teaching Center is at 105 S. Washington; phone 316-326-2826 (after 6:30 p-m. Central time).
11
Nor b.€. 151 / June 5, 1994
Resolution
Continued from page |
persecution of the Baha'f community has been a calculated policy, written and approved by Iran's highest officials. ...
“The resolution that we are considering today condemns the document's plan to confront and destroy Baha'i cultural roots outside of Iran, something that is tantamount to a program of cultural genocide.
“The response of the United States and civilized world to this document must be clear: So long as it continues its calculated persecution of the Baha'is and rejects basic human rights, Iran will continue to be ostracized from the community of nations. These revelations mean that any discussion of Iran renewing ties with the West is completely out of the question.”
The resolution approved in March by the UN Commission on Human Rights expresses its concern over continuing human rights violations in Iran and the “discriminatory treatment of certain groups of citizens for reason of their religious beliefs, notably the Baha'is whose existence as a viable religious community in the Islamic Republic of Iran is threatened.”
The language of the most recent UN resolution echoes the report to the Human Rights Commission last February by its Special Representative for Iran, which cites the imprisonment of several members of the Baha’{ community and death sentences imposed on two of them.
The Commission's resolution was adopted by a vote of 22-11 with 19 members abstaining and one other absent.
Ina related development, Reuters news agency reported in January that, according to a statement issued by the German Foreign Ministry, Minister Klaus Kinkel, meeting with the deputy chairman of the Iranian parliament's foreign relations committee, “asked Iran to stop discriminating against followers of the Baha'{ religious group.”
S. Con. Res. 31
Whereas in 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990 and 1992, the Congress by concurrent resolution, declared that it holds the Government of Iran responsible for upholding the rights of all its nationals, including members of the Baha'i Faith, Iran's largest religious minority;
Whereas in such resolutions and in numerous other appeals, the Congress condemned the Government of Iran's religious persecution of the Baha'i community, including the execution of more than 200 Baha’'fs, the imprisonment of additional thousands, and other repressive and discriminatory actions against Baha'is based solely upon their religious beliefs;
Whereas the Government of Iran summarily executed a leading member of the Baha'i community, arrested and imprisoned several other Baha'is, condemned two Baha’f prisoners to death on account of their religion, and confiscated individual Baha'is’ homes and personal properties in several cities;
Whereas the Government of Iran continues to deny the Baha'i community the right to organize, to elect its leaders, to hold community property for worship or assembly, to operate religious schools and to conduct other normal religious community activities; and
Whereas on February 22, 1993, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights published a formerly confidential Iranian government document constituting a blueprint for the destruction of the Bahd'f community, which document reveals that these repressive actions are the result of a deliberate policy designed and approved by the highest officials of the Government of Iran: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That the Congress—
(1) continues to hold the Government of Iran responsible for upholding the rights of all its nationals, including members of the Baha'f community, in a manner consistent with Iran's obligations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international agreements guaranteeing the civil and political rights of its citizens;
(2) condemns the repressive anti-Baha'f policy adopted by the Government of Iran, as set forth ina confidential official document which explicitly states that the Bahd'fs shall be denied access to education and employment, and that the government's policy is to deal with Baha'is “in such a way that their progress and development are blocked”;
(3) expresses concern that individual Baha'is continue to suffer from severely repressive and discriminatory government actions, solely on account of their religion; and that the Baha'i community continues to be denied legal recognition and the basic rights to organize, elect its leaders, educate its youth, and conduct the normal activities of a law-abiding religious community;
(4) urges the Government of Iran to extend to the Baha'f community the rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international covenants on human rights, including the freedom of thought, conscience, and religion, and equal protection of the law; and
(5) calls upon the President to continue—
(A) to emphasize that the United States regards the human rights practices of the Government of Iran, particularly its treatment of the Baha’f community and other religious minorities, as a significant factor in the development of the United States Government's relations with the Government of Iran;
(B) to urge the Government of Iran to emancipate the Baha'i community by granting those rights guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the international covenants in human rights; and
‘O to encourage other governments to continue to appeal to the Government of Iran, and to cooperate with other governments and international organizations, including the United Nations and its agencies, in efforts to protect the religious rights of the Baha'is and other minorities through joint appeals to the Government of Iran and through other appropriate actions.
Src. 2. The Secretary of the Senate shall transmit a copy of this concurrent resolution to the President.
Teamwork is order of the day at Baha’ Distribution Service
By Tom Mennillo Look no further than the Bahai Distribution Service for a shining
The most obvious change has been increased space for book storage. Mr. Falso said the Distribution Service
gate the Faith on their own before they contact the local Baha’i community. For Baha’fs and non-Bahd’‘fs alike,
the shelves forever. “It’s simply not possible,” said Mr. Falso. “In addition to cash-flow
example of Baha’i consultation in action.
Orders are taken and filled at the Chattanooga, Tennessee, facility managed by Ford Bowers. Marketing, and promotion manager Patrick Falso works in Wilmette, Illinois. Reorganization manager Larry Bucknell calls Phoenix, Arizona, home.
The BDS also operates within a larger Baha’i Publications framework coordinated by interim manager Terry Kneisler. Components include the Baha‘ Publishing Trust, Subscriber Services, Production Services, The American Baha’, and World Order magazine.
Linking all these functions is a network of telephones, fax machines and computer modems.
And a lot of teamwork, which must be paying off: BDS’s sales are up sharply and turnaround time is dramatically shorter.
The Distribution Service's fulfillment operation moved from Wilmette to Chattanooga in April 1993.
has added 400 to 500 titles in the past three years.
Equally important to BDS’s success have been its qualified, dedicated staff and its up-to-date equipment.
The bottom line is that the BDS now can ship most orders within two days.
That capability has been critical, given a 50 percent pickup in sales since the move.
First came the second Baha’i World Congress, at which the BDS had a large presence. Then came the Master Key program, the aim of which is to put the Sacred Texts into Baha‘is’ hands at an affordable price. Now the long-awaited English version of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, released a year ago, is pushing sales even higher.
The Distribution Service’s success has publishers ranging from the prolific Oneworld in England to one-book independents clamoring for inclusion in the BDS catalog.
Unfortunately, the BDS cannot carry every item a publisher or artist offers, and cannot keep an item on
considerations and over-all inventory valuation, we do not have enough advertising space to equitably promote each publisher’s new titles. Although we are working on co-op advertising ventures, ad space will be tight for quite some time.”
New items are advertised three times in the BDS’s two-page spread in The American Baha'i. The Service also publishes a quarterly catalog and is working on a full catalog with descriptions of every title.
In addition, some Baha’{ communities are set up for a standing order. New items are automatically sent to them—several weeks before they would see the items advertised—for sale to the friends.
Local Spiritual Assemblies account for 32 percent of BDS sales, said Mr. Falso. Purchases by individuals are another 26 percent and rising.
Some of those individual orders come from non-Baha’fs, according to BDS customer service representative Lee Robinson. They want to investi the BDS order takers will suggest appropriate books upon request.
“We do everything from answering questions like ‘Do you still have the brown book?’ to helping people choose books for conferences and booths,” said Harriette Robinson, Lee’s wife and another customer service representative. “If they have a teaching project, we can do fast research here while they’re on the phone.”
Of course, that’s if the phones aren’t lit up like a Christmas tree. Which they often are.
Lee Robinson said the friends can prevent a backup in calls by preparing their orders before dialing the phone. He noted that while calls to the BDS’s 800 number are free to the customer, the National Fund pays for the line.
Similarly, he said, callers can help ensure that materials needed by a certain date—such as for a conference or special event—arrive there on time by ordering far enough in advance.
EXCELLENCE IN
THING
Fayaro Nickotas, a Baha’ from Woodland Hills, California, who is one-half of the famed dancing team, the Nicholas Brothers, was honored in February with his younger brother, Haroto, by the Professional Dancers Society for their lifelong contributions to the arts. The Nicholas Brothers, who began dancing in vaudeville and nightclubs, appeared in nearly 100 films in the 1940s and '50s including “Orchestra Wives,” “Down Argentine Way,” “Stormy Weather” and “The Pirate” with Gene Kelly and Judy Garland.
Revolutions of the Heart (Houghton Mifflin, 1993), the second novel for young adults by Marsua Quatey, a Baha'i from Cloquet, Minnesota, was recently chosen by the American Library Association as a “Best Book for Young Adults” and as an ALA “Best Book for Reluctant Readers.” It was also cited by the School Library Journal as a “Best Book of the Year.” Mrs. Qualey's first novel, Everybody's Daughter, was published in 1991; a third, Come in from the Cold, will be released in October.
Eowaro D. Peace, a Baha'i from Buffalo, New York, was recently named city corporation counsel by mayor-elect Anthony M. Masiello. Mr. Peace, who left a prestigious law firm to accept the position, was quoted in an extensive article about his appointment in the Buffalo News as saying, “I won't join a political party, I won't campaign for a political candidate, and I won't contribute to a campaign. Because I am a Baha'f I refuse—and that is an absolute refusal—to become involved in partisan
litics.”
BGA April 9, Vivian BERGENTHAL, a Baha'i from Yonkers, New York, received the Vincent Schiliro Memorial Award, a first-place prize in mixed media, for her painting, “Hidden Paradise,” at the Westbeth Gallery's National Open Juried Exhibition in New York City. Ms. Bergenthal is a New York City high school art teacher and founder of the “One World Club” (see The American Bahd't, March 21).
Meur Mansur, a Baha'i from Los Angeles who is a professional ac— tress, played a leading role as a persecuted Pakistani in “Red Devils,” a play that enjoyed an extended run and was recently nominated for a Los Angeles Times drama award. The play also won the L.A. Weekly's Dramalogue Award for 1993.
Joy Jamin, a Baha'i who is an eighth grade student at North Augusta (South Carolina) Middle School, has won the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Excellence in Expository Writing for Aiken County. She received her award from the state's lieutenant governor during a ceremony in January at Columbia College.
Jackie Graste, a Baha'f from Indianapolis, is one of five students at Indiana University / Purdue University-Indianapolis to receive this. year's William Garrett Award, given to honor service to the university and demonstrated leadership. Ms. Grable was recognized for single-handedly organizing the most successful blood drive on campus.
Sanpra Ann K. Sooman, a Baha'i from Oceanside, California, was graduated in May from the University of Illinois College of Medicine. Dr. Sooman will pursue her residency in pediatrics at the University of California San Francisco Valley Medical Center and Valley Children's Hospital in Freson.
Maya Rosman, a 14-year-old Baha'i from Moorpark, California, won first prize in a recent statewide Red Ribbon Week essay contest, was flown to Sacramento to take part in the Red Ribbon Rally at the state capitol, received a $100 award, and read her prize-winning essay, “My Dream for a Drug-Free California,” at a luncheon to honor the prizewinners. Three local newspapers published feature articles with photographs of Maya.
Ctayton J. Ramsey, a 15-year-old Baha'{ from Anderson County, South Carolina, has been appointed to the South Carolina Governor's School for Science and Mathematics, a two-year residential high school. Clayton is a member of the National Honor Society, a South Carolina Junior Scholar and member of the Westside High School marching and concert band.
Josua Maui, a Baha'i who is a fifth-grade student at Overbrook Elementary School in Charleston, West Virginia, recently won a competition to represent his school in a statewide Academic Bowl contest for students in grades 3-6 in math, science, language arts and social studies.
Justin SHoGH! Houk, a young Baha'{ from Midland County, Texas, was recently named a National Merit Scholarship finalist. He also made a perfect score on the January 1994 Math II Achievement Test of the SAT College Board exams.
SANDRA ANN SOOMAN
Laurence Lao Chue Cha, a Hmong Baha'i from Porterville, California, who was invited by the U.S. Baha'i Refugee Office to take part in the 85th Baha'i National Convention in April, accepts gifts of a book and commemorative plate from Robert C. Henderson, secretary-general of the National Spiritual Assembly, and the National Assembly's assistant secretary, Juana Conrad.
Baha'i from California who is Hmong clan leader
Laurence Lao Chue Cha, a Baha'i of Hmong descent who lives in Porterville, California, was a special guest at this year's 85th Baha'i National Convention. Mr. Cha was invited to Wilmette by the U.S. Baha'i Refugee Office.
Mr. Cha serves as chairman of the Spiritual Assembly of Porterville, and is a clan leader of the Hmong people. He has been a Baha'i for 30 years, having been enrolled when his father accepted the Faith.
Since his father was also a clan leader in the family's village in Laos, not only did his family become Baha'is when the father declared his belief in Baha'u'll4h, but also the entire village where the family
is special guest at 85th Baha'i National Convention
resided.
Dr. Robert Henderson, secretarygeneral of the National Spiritual Assembly, and the National Assembly's assistant secretary, Juana Conrad, greeted Mr. Cha, presenting him with a copy of The Dawning Place and a decorative plate depicting the Baha'i House of Worship in Wilmette.
Mr. Cha said he enjoyed the Convention very much, in particular having the opportunity to meet so many new friends including David Ruhe, retired member of the Universal House of Justice, and Dr. Ruhe's wife, Margaret, as well as Counselors Jacqueline Delahunt, Wilma Ellis and Arturo Serrano.
Denver-area Baha'is use arts to proclaim Cause, aid service-oriented Baker Project
The arts have been featured extensively in three events held in the past year by Denver-area Bahda‘is.
Two of the events benefited the Dorothy Baker Project, which provides a “bank” of food, clothing and household goods for the metropolitan area. The all-volunteer project was begun and is run primarily by Baha’is.
Last February, “A Feast of Music” drew 150 people, including three media representatives.
An adult concert featuring Baha'i singer-songwriter Susan Lewis Wright ran simultaneously with a children’s concert with internationally known entertainer Bonnie Phipps. Then everyone danced to the music of Two Cats.
On May 7, “Colors of the Heart,” a festival of story, song and dance, was held at the Metro Denver Baha’i Center.
The Spiritual Assembly of Douglas County sponsored the fest, which had corporate sponsors as well.
The entertainers, more than half of whom were not Bahd’is, performed free of charge or for a nominal fee.
Among those featured were storytellers Pat Mendoza and Grey Owl, Parents’ Choice Award winners the Van Manens; blues musician Johnny Long; hoop dancer Dallas Chief Eagle; the African dance troupe Sankofa; flamenco guitarist Miguel Espinoza; East Indian dancer Kalpana Rao; traditional Japanese music on the stringed Koto; and emigré Russian violinist Alex Bogossian.
The third event was the annual Alteria M. Bryant Awards, named for the first Baha’i in the Rocky Mountain region. Women Uniting the World, a committee of the metro Denver Baha’i community, was sponsor.
The banquet, held last October at the Denver Athletic Club, honored two women for contributions to furthering the arts. Each winner was presented a sculpture created specially for the event by Denver Baha’{ artist Rik Sargent.
A diverse array of talent by Baha'is and non-Baha’‘fs was featured. Jessica Bordeaux-Vigil, appearing in the dress of her Lakota culture, offered a Baha'i prayer.
The execution of the majestic enterprise on God's Holy Mountain. continues uninterrupted.
On January 20, 1994, excavation for the Arc Tunnel began. The tunnel, which will accommodate both pedestrians and service needs, passes under the main stairs leading to the Concourse of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice.
Vineyard of the Lord ja:2
Nor 8.€. 151 / June 5, 1994
Sufficient space is provided in the upper section of the mechanical rooms on the Lower Terraces for a “tools and supplies” area to be used by the gardeners. On the Upper Terraces, the rooms are single-storied and will serve the same functions, with the exception of the “tools and supplies” area.
On Terraces 15 to 18, drain
In a matter of days, the path
near the Seat has disappeared,
and in its stead is a narrow
chasm created for the construction of the Arc Tunnel. To
expedite its construction, the
excavation was carried out
from two ends: the site of the
International Teaching Center
and the site of the Center for
the Study of the Texts/
Archives Extension.
When the excavation reached the marble steps leading from the Arc path to the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, 26 steps were removed. This was a delicate operation, as great care had to be taken not to deface the marble, since the steps have to be re-used.
The lamps and hedges bordering the Monumental
age work on the east side has begun, and grading is under way. The steep grade of the mountain beyond the Terrace of the Shrine of the Bab called for the incorporation of curved stairs alternating with a straight line of stairs for the design of the Upper Terraces.
Terraces 13, 15 and 17 have stairs on both sides which converge on a balcony. The platform of the balcony on each of these Terraces has been formed. The balconies will serve as vantage points for a beautiful view of the Terraces below and as resting places for visitors as they make their way to the uppermost Terrace.
While the primary work is progressing on the Terraces,
Gardens also had to be removed and a temporary pedestrian bridge constructed.
Center for Study of the Texts With work on the foundation having begun, the site of the Center for the Study of the Texts is a beehive of activity. Site offices have been established and storage sheds set up for tons of steel that have been delivered.
stone-cutters are at work in the factory of Margraf Spa, a division of Marmi Vicentini, at Chiampo, a town at the foot of the Italian Alps not far from Venice, shaping roughhewn Sajur stone into lovely balustrades.
Sajur and Jatt stones
Sajur, one of the finest stones found in Israel, is quarried in
Of particular interest is the use of a sophisticated surveying system at the site of the Center for the Study of the Texts. The system works in this way: the exact coordinates of the architectural design from the Computer-Aided Design System are taken and downloaded directly into the surveying instrument which is attached to a data collector. As a result, definite points are established on-site.
Conversely, from the survey instrument, information is directed back to the data collector to verify the point set on-site in relation to the design, resulting in accuracy and dispensing with the need for manual calculations.
Bulk excavations at the site of the International Teaching Center have reached new depths. At an average depth of 22 meters (73 feet), more than 70,000 cubic meters of rock have been removed, much of it serving as fill material for the Upper Terraces.
It would be worthwhile to note here that earth is a valuable commodity in Israel. And the recycling of this commodity from one area to another
The gardens on the eastward extension of the Main Terrace of the Shrine of the Bab are now open.
has led to a considerable saving.
Adjacent to the site of the International Teaching Center, excavation is being carried out for the location of a booster pump room that will serve to boost, as its name suggests, mechanical and plumbing services of the International Teaching Center, the Center for the Study of the Texts, and the International Archives Building and its extension.
The main service facility is situated in the basement of the parking area of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice. During the excavation for the booster pump room, electrical and telephone cables serving the International Archives Building and various offices of the World Center were exposed. These have been temporarily relocated on specially raised poles so that work in these offices may continue unhampered.
When the Terraces are completed, what will meet the eye are vistas of lovely gardens on the graded slopes of Mount Carmel with exquisite
fountain pools, carved balustrades mounted on walls faced with high quality local stone, water flowing down either side of the central stairway, all bathed in circles of light appearing to emanate from the Shrine of the Bab in the evenings, focusing attention on the majesty of the Shrine. But what will not meet the eye are the many services and facilities located underground.
A sophisticated irrigation system, plumbing and drainage are being put
er at an estimated cost of $10 million. One of the most important utilities to be constructed underground are the mechanical rooms on the west side of each Terrace going down toa depth of seven meters (23 feet).
On the Lower Terraces, these rooms are two-storied reinforced structures that will serve as locations for pumps and controls, and under-water and terrace lighting. In the mechanical room at Terrace 6 is a large transformer that was put in place by one of the biggest cranes in Israel.
The long arm of a concrete mixer reaches out along the periphery of the Center for the Study of the Texts.
Galilee. The light beige stone is dense in composition, enabling it to resist the elements, which makes it long-lasting. The quarried stone is sent to Noufi's factory near Nazareth where it is cut into workable blocks; these are then shipped to Italy.
About 2,400 balustrades are needed to decorate the contour walls of the Terraces, and of these, four consignments totaling 700 balustrades have been received. Each balustrade costs approximately $600. The same Sajur stone is being used to create the beautiful fountains on the Terraces.
Another variety of stone, known as Jatt, is being cut and prepared in Noufi's factory for the stairs on the Terraces and to be used as paving stone. Jatt stone derives its name from the village where it is quarried.
Chosen because of its resistance to wear and tear, and its muted reflection of light, this stone, darker in shade than Sajur, is being given a fine brush-hammered finish called “mutabeh finish” to make it slipresistant. f
13
Classified notices in The American Baha't are published free of charge as a service to the Baha'i community. Because of this, notices are limited to items relating to the Faith; no personal or commercial ads can be accepted for publication. The opportunities referred to have not been approved by the National Spiritual Assembly; the friends should exercise their own judgment and care in responding to them.
SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
THE LOUHELEN Baha’ School is seeking applicants to fill an anticipated vacancy for coordinator of property improvement. This is a regular, full-time permanent staff position, with salary and benefits appropriate to the core supervisory role it offers. The coordinator of property improvement oversees Louhelen’s maintenance and grounds department and is responsible for coordinating and assuring the maintenance, upkeep and over-all physical improvement of the school's equipment, facilities and grounds. It is anticipated that the position will be available beginning December 1, 1994. Interest persons may ask for more information and application materials from Dr. Rick Johnson, administrator, Louhelen Baha'f School, 3208 S. State Road, Davison, MI 48423, or phone 810-653-5033 (fax 810-6537181).
WANTED: customer service representative/salesperson at the Baha'i Publishing Trust in Oakham, Rutland, United Kingdom. Looking for someone with relevant experience and qualifications to be responsible for all aspects of order processing and reception duties in this small but busy office in the heart of the English countryside. Training will be
iven, but all applicants should have
sic keyboard and numeric skills, good written communication, and a pleasant telephone manner. Training or experience in customer services would be an advantage, and practical knowledge of Baha'i administration is desirable. An interest in Baha'{ literature and knowledge of at least one European language other than English would be an asset. The Baha'i Publishing Trust, a department of the National Spiritual Assembly, is an equal opportunity employer. Group pension and staff benefits available; salary is negotiable according, to qualifications and experience. Please reply in writing (including names of at least two references) by May 21 to: Manager, Baha'i Publishing Trust, 6 Mt. Pleasant, Oakham, Leics. LE156HU, United Rane aon For more information, phone 0572 722780.
SEARCHING for Youth Service Corps applicants: dedicated youth with a deep inner longing to serve the Cause and a desire to add skills through on-site train— ing. Must be ready to learn new tasks and be flexible in areas of service. We will offer training in positions in several areas including maintenance, registration, cooking, library /bookshop. For a more information or an application, please write to the Bosch Baha'f School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, or phone 408-423-3387. Periods of service range from three months to one year.
VOLUNTEERS are needed to staff two summer school sessions for Lakota children at the Treehaven Institute in South Dakota. The sessions are designed to help the children improve basic academic skills including reading and
mathematics. Volunteers are sought to teach, provide transportation for children, and help with various suppor ac— tivities. Training will be provided as reuired. It is best if volunteers can stay for a two-week session, but no offer of help will be turned down. For more in— formation, please contact Pat de Boucher, 605-455-2621.
VOLUNTEERS are needed starting in September to teach English at Ecuador's Ratil Pavén Bilingual Baha'i School and to help with other events around the community. Please write immediately to Mrs. Janet Dexter, Otavalo, Ecuador.
THE NATIONAL Teaching Committee of Zambia needs someone immediately with computer and secretarial skills who can work full-time in the National Office. For more information, contact the National Teaching Committee of Zambia, Private Bag 227X, Lusaka, Zambia.
PIONEERING (OVERSEAS)
EMPLOYMENT opportunities over— seas. AFRICA: Congo—urgent need for elementary school teachers. Sierra Leone—financial management specialists. Tanzania—English/ESL teacher, arts/music teacher. Zambia—urgent need for math, physics, chemistry, French and geography teachers. AMERICAS: Brazil—urgent need for teachers. Colombia—ESL teacher. Ecuador—bus— iness administrator to teach business administration at graduate and undergraduate levels. Honduras—elementary and junior high School teachers. Tortola—corporate marketing manager. Turks & Caicos—elementary school teachers. ASIA: Cambodia—health educator, maternal/infant health specialist. Macau—elementary school teachers. Tajikistan—administrator/finance of— ficer, water supply program manager. AUSTRALASIA: Tuvalu—science/math teacher. EUROPE: Croatia—accountant, logistics officers. NIS—international business and privatization specialists. MULTI-REGIONAL— international project officer for five-year international child health care USAID project. Albania—need for volunteers to help develop and run professional exhibitions for Ba— ha’f Cultural Center being established. For more information about any of these positions, please contact the Office of Pioneering, Baha’{ National Center, Wilmette I] 60091 (telephone 708-733-3512; fax 708-733-3509).
WANTED: pioneers to beautiful Hawaii. The National Teaching Committee of the Baha’fs of the Hawaiian Islands is seeking pioneers to settle in Lahaina on Maui, Waialua on Oahu, North Hilo and Hamakua on the Big Island of Hawaii, Hanalei on Kauai, and the island of Lanai. For more information, please contact the Teaching Committee, 3264 Allan Place, Honolulu, HI 98617, or phone 808-595-3314.
PIONEERING (HOMEFRONT)
BOZEMAN, Montana, the last best place, a cultural center in a rural state, wishes to develop its diversity and asks youto consider what you can do to help.
‘or college students and teachers there is Montana State University, the leading university in the state, with such diverse programs as engineering, liberal arts, music, nursing and more. For business men and women there are the growing human resources of the Gallatin valley, the interstate highway system, the state's second busiest airport, and an active financial community. For families there are an exceptional school system, safe neighborhoods, many parks and recreational programs. For fun-lovers Bozeman offers world-class ski facilities, hiking, wilderness and easy travel to Yellowstone National Park. For those in the arts there are five theatre groups, the
THe American BaHA'l
14
HELP WANTED
National Projects Administrator
Baha'f administration.
skills.
3427).
in the NATIONAL TEACHING OFFICE
The office of the National Teaching Committee has undergone a recent restructuring in light of the present needs of the Faith. As a result, applications are being accepted for the following full-time positions:
Responsible for executing projects sponsored by the National Teaching Committee. Some duties include:
- Manages national support of teaching throughout the U.S.
- Monitors nationally appointed task forces and national initiatives.
- Coordinates special activities and events.
Experience: Proven project management skills; excellent verbal ability; strong analytical and management capacity; superior interpersonal skills; experience in teaching and familiarity with the principles of
Communications and Development Administrator
Responsible for the communications and development agenda of the National Teaching Committee. Some duties include:
- Develops news and messages to the American Baha'{ community for
use in print and audio/visual media.
- Facilitates the production of teaching and deepening materials.
- Gathers and analyzes information related to the teaching work.
Experience: Professional background in writing and production for the media; superior writing skills; comprehensive knowledge of the Baha'i Writings; proven ability in research and data analysis; ability to. coordinate the work of volunteer task forces; excellent interpersonal
For more information or to apply, please write to the Office of Human Resources, Baha'i National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091 (phone 708-733
Intermountain Opera Company, a sym—
phony orchestra and choir, a multi-purpose arts center, pointer, sculptors and
more. If you can bring ethnic diversity to
the community, you can ele us present
the many faces of the Faith. Please phone
406-587-1739 and ask for Mr. or Mrs.
Drong, or write to Bozeman, MT 59715.
MORE THAN 50,000 souls are waiting, in New Rochelle, New York, for you to guide them to Baha'u'llah. New Rochelle, a goal city of the Three Year Plan, is situated only 15 minutes from the City of the Covenant, home of the newly renovated New York City Baha'f Center and blessed by the second World Congress. Ample employment opportunities for any por fession within an easy commute. All three Bahd'fs in the ethnically and ra— cially diverse city of New Rochelle invite you to join them in arising to win an ex— citing victory for the Faith in the Three Year Plan. For loving support for your move, phone 914-576-0574, or write to the Baha'i Group of New Rochelle,
New Rochelle, NY 10801.
WANTED
VIDEO TAPE footage of Baha'i classes for children and youth or related activities is wanted by the Baha'{ Education Resource Center of Australia. Don't be concerned if the video is not of the highest quality, as much editing is anticipated. Footage should be about 1530 minutes on a two-hour tape. Please send to P.O. Box 923, Leeton, NSW 2705, Australia. Phone (069) 556322.
WE ARE collecting articles for an experimental “seekers” newsletter. Articles can be of any length and should explore the deeper implications of Baha'{ principles. Prevouly published articles are most welcome. If you have tried such an experiment already, please share your experiences with us. For more information, phone Chad Jones, 907-874-2013, or send submissions to: Impact Fireside Project, Wrangell, AK 99929 (fax 907-874-2250).
THE BAHA'l YOUTH of Grass Valley, California, are seeking traveling teachers
who would like to give public presentations (plays, dance, music, etc.) that would appeal to our community's young, people. Grass Valley is a medium-sized town in the Sierra foothills about 50 _ miles from Sacramento. For more information, please write to Tyisha Smith, P.O. Box 1182, Grass Valley, CA 95945, phone her at 916-292-9448 or Joelle Goodwin, 916-477-7982.
ARCHIVES
THE NATIONAL Baha‘ Archives is seeking, at the request of the Universal House of Justice, original letters written on behalf of the Guardian to the following individuals: Margaret Sprague (died New York City, 1941), Mary Sprague, Philip Sprague (died Wilton, CT, 1951), Sydney Sprague (died Los Angeles, 1943), Levina Spran, Evangeline Spurlock, Elizabeth Stamp and Gwen Wake— ling Standig]. Anyone knowing family members or relatives who might have these letters from the Guardian is asked to contact the National Baha'{ Archives, Baha'i National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091 (phone 708-869-9039).
THE NATIONAL Baha‘ Archives is seeking copies of the following publications by the Canadian Association for Baha’ Studies: Baha'i Studies, Vol. 1 (1976). Anyone having copies they could donate is asked to send them to the National Baha'i Archives, Baha'f National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091.
PUBLICATIONS
THE LOS ANGELES Baha'i Journal welcomes exchanges with other Baha'i periodicals around the country. Although the Journal's budget doesn't allow for complimentary subscriptions outside Los Angeles, the staff will be happy to send a sample issue to any community or area willing to send a sample of its publication in return. Please send samples, with return addresses, to the editor, Los Angeles Baha't Journal, Baha'i Center of Los Angeles, 5755 Rodeo Road, Los Angeles, CA 90016. be
Nor 8.€. 151 / June 5, 1994
15
Bolivia's Faizi campaign sees 400 enroll
The A.Q. Faizi Teaching Campaign, begun last August by the Spiritual Assembly of Santa Cruz, Bolivia, has been going strong ever since with nearly 400 new believers enrolled during the first seven month in the Villa lo de Mayo, the barrio in which the campaign is centered, and a steady flow of declarants numbering about 40 a month in the Villa, as well as a number of declarations in communities visited by members of the teaching team on weekends. The spiritual energy generated by the effort has led also to a small but steady increase in new believers each month from other areas of the city. More than 30 Baha'is from the Villa regularly attend activities at the Baha'i Center, and 10 classes for children have been established. As a service project, members of the Baha'i community of Santa Cruz— mainly students from Nur University—are giving weekly or bi-weekly classes on “moral leadership” to students in grades 9-12 in the Villa. Encouraged by the success of the permanent teaching team in Santa Cruz, the National Teaching Committee of Bolivia has taken steps to begin another permanent teaching campaign in the area around Radio Baha'f in Caracollo, with initial support from the teachers in Santa Cruz.
°
After a recent half-hour television program about the Faith was broadcast in Alma-Ata, Kazakhstan, 300 people were enrolled in the Cause, and subsequently, many of them traveled to the Baha'i Center for more information about their newfound religion. And at a recent Baha'i winter school, it was reported that more than 10 guests who attended merely to observe the gathering “with eager enthusiasm begged to be counted as members of this constructive and divine movement.”
.
On January 9, the Olyai Memorial
Mass Teaching Campaign, dedicated
Baha'is on Cape Cod mark World Religion Day with panel discussion
To commemorate World Religion Day in January, Baha'is from Cape Cod and the Islands of Massachusetts hosted a panel discussion with representatives of the nine major world religions.
The moderator, a Baha'i, introduced the panelists, each of whom spoke for 10 to 15 minutes about their faith including American Indian, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Baha’. In addition, a Baha'i spoke on Zoroastrianism and Babism.
The audience filled every chair in the hall, and many asked for more in-depth sessions on each of the religions. As a result, a series of programs has been planned, the first of which, on Buddhism, was held in March.
to the memory of the late Sohrab Olyai, was launched in South Tripura, India, by 15 people, among whom was Auxiliary Board member Debdas Singha. During the nine-day campaign, participants walked from village to village and house to house “proclaiming the Greatest Name.” Almost all schools in the area were visited, and each was given a presentation on the Faith. Twelve teachers declared their belief in Baha'u'llah, and were among the 567 new believers enrolled during the campaign. Four new local Spiritual Assemblies were formed, two communities were opened to the Faith, and 16 people of capacity declared their faith in Baha'u'llah. The campaign ended with a victory conference, attended by more than 40 of the friends.
.
On March 17, Margrethe Nielsen, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Greenland, presented a talk on the Faith to a gathering of more than 50 high school students from all over the country. The purpose of the meeting, organized by Folk High School in Sisimiut, was to introduce the students and 10 faculty members to various religious communities. Each was given half an hour to present their views; the Baha'i presentation was so popular, however, that the time limit was extended to an hour.
°
The Baha'i community of Tonga recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Faith in that country, organizing a number of activities to befittingly commemorate the historic event. On January 25, the friends made a traditional presentation to the King of Tonga, Taufa'ahau Topou IV, presenting a large pig, a kava plant, food crops,
In Samoa, a copy of Bah.
and traditionally strung flowers during a reception at the Royal Palace. In the presence of the Queen, a spokesman thanked the Baha'is on behalf of their majesties, and informed them that the King and Queen welcomed them and acknowledged the presentation with deep reverence and gratitude. “They also wished us to know that even though there are different churches in Tonga, as Baha'u'llah teaches, there is one God and all churches worship that one God,” the National Spiritual Assembly of Tonga reported.
.
The Baha'i community of Canada recently presented its second annual Race Unity Award in Ottawa to Fred and Bonnie Cappuchino for their tireless efforts in adopting children from developing countries and initiating projects designed to bring people together. In accepting the award, Mr. Cappuchino mentioned the three Baha'is who had been killed
‘Doors have been opened, and are still opening’
lah's Most Holy Book, the Kitab: -Aqdas, w. was aS presented) recently to His Highness King Malietoa Tanumafili II. The presentation was made by Baha'is Sohrab and Soheyla Bolouri. After receiving the book, the King placed it on his head as a gesture of respect.
in South Africa and lauded their i efforts in the cause of racial harmony. Journalists from radio stations and newspapers attended the event, and the Cappuchinos were profiled on the front page of a local newspaper.
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On January 28-30, representatives of 10 Latin American Baha'i communities gathered at the ancillary building of the Baha'i House of Worship in Panama to take part in the fourth Latin American Seminar on Public Relations. The seminar, held under the auspices of the National Spiritual Assemblies of Brazil and Panama, focused on such themes as planning and carrying out events and obtaining resources and sponsorships, and suggested approaches for contacting members of Parliaments and executive bodies. Brad Pokorny, a representative of the Baha'i International Community, spoke on how to establish contacts among the mass media.
Vision in Action message spurs two Arizona Baha'is to present Statement on Baha'u'llah to Hopi elders
The National Spiritual Assem— bly’s Vision in Action message has inspired many individual Bahd’is to audaciously emblazon the name of Baha‘u‘llah.
Two are Gary and Penny Boivin.
The Arizonans had wanted to present the Statement on Baha'u'llah to Hopi elders since its publication. They held back for a while, but their reluctance melted with the Vision in Action message.
“The message from National on the tape said other Baha'is should not keep us back and that now is the time to be bold,” she wrote.
So Gary Boivin ventured into the
Hopi Nation bearing copies of the Statement on Bahé'u'llah and The Vision of Race Unity.
He went first to the spiritual leaders of First Mesa villages. Then he presented the statements to the governor of Bacavi, a spiritual leader in Hotevilla, and four spiritual leaders in the villages at Second Mesa.
In Oraibi, he was asking for the village’s spiritual leaders when he met a young man who said, “Ah, those are the books. I will have to translate them to the elders.”
It turns out that the man’s mother had once worked with Penny Boivin,
and Penny once had had a dream about her.
The Boivins plan to keep in touch with the mother and son and to inform the Hopi elders through them of upcoming visits by the Los Angeles Baha’i Youth Workshop and Lakota performer Kevin Locke.
The couple also plan to continue teaching Hopis and Navajos at the school where they work. One is an assistant principal.
In conclusion, Penny Boivin wrote, “The troops have not entered yet. But as a result of my husband's efforts more doors have been opened and are still opening.”
[Page 16]
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Continued from page 4
believers in Papua New Guinea and all districts have been opened to the Faith, including seven nearby islands. Short-term pioneers are needed...to help establish a permanent teaching institute for the development of human resources and to support intensive teaching activities. ...In several areas of the country, youth-year-of-service volunteers would be of great assistance.” Vanuatu—Bislama, French and English. “As a result of the cultural exchange of Baha’i traditional chiefs...and the publicity generated by this event, unprecedented opportunities for the expansion of the Faith now exist. Short-term pioneers on three- to four-month visas are required in [several places including] Tanna, to help with mass teaching, foster youth activities and children’s classes, and help with social and economic development projects.”
EUROPE: Belgium—French. “Young people are sought to work alongside Belgian youth in teaching campaigns that employ direct teaching methods.” Bulgaria— Bulgarian and Turkish. Youth-year-ofservice opportunities beginning in July in conjunction with the European Baha’i Youth Council’s “Shaping Europe” teaching project and
Vivian March, pictured at the Baha'i House of Worship in Kampala, Uganda, conducted 15 children’s classes in nine villages and towns during her recent month-long visit to Uganda. She notes that ‘the bounties, benefits and blessings | received as the traveler far exceed anything | had to offer the friends and communities | visited!’
youth conferences. Canary Islands— Spanish. “Having made significant advances in recent years, the Baha’i community of the Canary Islands stands poised for accelerated growth. Short-term youth pioneers to help local Baha'i youth in the teaching work are needed, as are Spanish speaking short-term pioneers or traveling teachers to conduct courses to help consolidate local communities.” Note: New opportunities beginning in July in conjunction with the European Baha'i Youth Council’s “Shaping Europe” teaching project and youth conferences. Finland— Finnish and Swedish. “Finland is a highly developed country with a relatively small population. The young people and minorities are receptive to the Faith, as are people migrating from the former Soviet Union. The Lapps, or Sami, living in the north of Finland, and the Gypsies in the south have been the focus of Baha'i teaching activities for many years.” Greece—Greek. “The climate for teaching the Faith in Greece is changing. Recent teaching projects attracted unprecedented numbers who demonstrated an openness to the Baha’i message. ...A significant number of long- and short-term pioneers, as well as traveling teachers and youth-year-of-service volunteers, are urgently needed. Pioneers who are students, those able to open a business or those from countries of the European Community will find it easier to settle.” Poland—Polish and German. “The Polish people are very receptive to the Message of Bahd’u’llah, and the challenge is to raise up a sufficient number of teachers who have the capacity to bring large numbers of people into the Faith. Youth-year-of-service volunteers could assist in developing,
and expanding the small community of youth in Poland.” Note: New opportunities beginning in July in conjunction with the European Baha’i Youth Council’s “Shaping Europe” teaching project and youth conferences. Portugal—Portuguese. “As the Portuguese youth have proven to be receptive during recent teaching activities, the community would benefit from receiving youthyear-of-service volunteers. These youth could help the local Baha’i youth spread the Faith among their peers.” Note: New opportunities beginning in July in conjunction with the European Baha’i Youth Council’s “Shaping Europe” teaching project and youth conferences. Russia, Georgia and Armenia, Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova. Youth-yearof-service opportunities beginning in July in conjunction with the European Baha’f Youth Council’s “Shaping Europe” teaching project and youth conferences.
Be among those to arise to answer the call to pioneer before the midpoint of the Three Year Plan. If you or your family have concerns about furthering your education or career, please see “Guidance on Pioneering, and Education” in the Ald (March 2, 1994) issue of The American Bahd’i. Contact your local Spiritual Assembly as your starting point for consultation, guidance and information on the Baha‘i Youth Service Corps.
Baha'i Chair helps university students gain global perspective
Although less than two years old, the Baha’i Chair for World Peace at the University of Maryland has al— ready made great strides in helping students develop a global perspective.
The Baha'{ Chair’s annual report reveals a breadth of initiatives aimed at fostering a spirit that “will lead to an understanding of the factors which promote ethnic and religious tensions within and among nations, and will help in the search for peaceful solutions to resolve them.”
That activity has taken the form of research, courses, seminars and con— ferences within the Center for International Development and Conflict Management (CIDCM), a research and training institute in the univer— sity’s College of Behavioral and Social Sciences.
And it is in line with the Baha'i Chair’s mission to “promote alternatives to violent resolution of conflict through conflict management, global education international develop ment, spiritual awareness and world trade; to share the experience of the Baha’i world community in building a global society; and to offer that community as a model for study.”
The Baha’i Chair was established by the University of Maryland and the Universal House of Justice in the wake of the Supreme Body’s publication of The Promise of World Peace. Professor Suheil Bushrui was installed in January 1993 as its first incumbent.
Since then, the Baha’i Chair has been engaged in a number of collaborative programs and course offerings:
© A Book of Sacred Words is being produced by the Temenos Academy for Integral Studies in collaboration with the Baha’f Chair. The book will explore the 10 words most sacred to each of the world’s great religious traditions in a way that invites the reader to a universal outlook.
¢ The Temple of Understanding has appointed the Baha’i Chair
Baha'i represented in new book on minorities
Patricia Locke, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, is among members of minority groups offering poignant testimony about their mis— treatment at the hands of dominant groups and their vision of a new world community arising from the bloodshed and ashes in Endangered Peoples: Cries of Hope from Lands of Torture,
edited by Art Wolfe and John Isaac (Sierra Club, $30).
Mrs. Locke, a Lakota, recounts the struggle of American Indians to protect their sacred lands and ceremonial traditions in the U.S. She is quoted with others in a review of the book that appeared April 6 in the North Dakota newspaper, Indian Country Today.
professor to its board. This global interfaith association has asked Professor Bushrui to provide speakers for a lecture series on interreligious cooperation. The Baha’i Chair also is sponsoring formation of a student chapter of the Temple at the university to promote interfaith dialogue.
¢ The On Earth Peace Assembly and the Baha’i Chair co-sponsored an interfaith conference titled “Religious Perspectives on Peacemaking.” The Bahd’i peace program and a summary of The Promise of World Peace were presented.
- Acourse on humanity’s spiritual
history was created by the Baha’{ Chair and is now a major feature of the university's Honors Program. By mapping out the shared terrain between the world’s major religious
traditions, the course gives students the foundation to develop a global code of ethics. A text titled The Spir— itual Heritage of the Human Race will soon be published in conjunction with the course.
- Anew course on religious ap—
proaches toward peace will trace the progressive development of humanity’s spiritual awareness, drawing on several religious perspectives and showing how each was shaped. Religion’s capacity to be a remedy for, rather than a source of, violent conflict will be examined.
¢ “Inspiring and Being Inspired by Students: Teaching for Passion and Wisdom,” a seminar organized by the Center for Teaching Excellence, was offered by the Baha’f Chair in April for faculty, staff, students and interested public.
Nourollah Abbassi Jesse W. Davis
Sterling, VA Carson City, NV February 18, 1994 April 6, 1
Virginia Bruce Malcolm DeLoria San Diego, CA Milwaukee, WI April 24, 1994 April 1994
Earl L.Chachere George F. Dodge Graham, WA Los Angeles, CA October 1993 April 16, 1994 Walter E.Cobb Thomas Hollinger Gardena, CA Marina Del Rey, CA April 19, 1994 May 1, 1994
Ernestine Liggins Donna Quist Milledgeville, GA Olympia, WA
April 1994 April 7, 1994 Emma Martensen Sohrab Vargha Sunnyvale, CA Brea, CA
March 24, 1994 April 11, 1994 Alden Miller Anthony Wilson Astoria, OR Charlotte, NC
November 28, 1993 March 10, 1994
Clinton Pinto Dulce, NM April 5, 1994
Williemae Yarbrough Eatonton, GA April 1994
THe AMERICAN BAHA’l
10-12: LSA Team Building Weekend—Sacramento/ Northern California, Bosch Baha’ School. For information, fare 408-423-3387; fax 408-423-7564.
10-12: Mississippi Baha'{ School, Gulfport. Registrar: Simin Rohani,
Vicksburg, MS 39180; phone 601-636-9439.
10-18: Youth Institute, Louhelen Baha'i School. For information, phone 810653-5033.
11-15: Idaho (Southern) summer school, near Ketchum. Registrar: Dawn Bowman, Pocatello, ID 83201; phone 208-233-9849.
12: International Bah'f Picnic, noon-5 p.m., Queenston Heights Park, Queenston, Ontario, Canada.
16-19: Intensive study classes on the Kitdb-i-Aqdas, conducted by Habib Ria— zati, Notre Dame Center, Omaha, Nebraska. Registration fee: $30 (does not include lodging; includes lunches and Thursday evening dinner). Pre-registration required. For information, phone Suzanne Labanowske, 402-573-6517.
oth 18: Fourth annual Los Angeles Baha'{ Conference. Theme: “The ‘90s: A Baha'i at the recent International Cultural Fair in Lawton. As a part of the fair, each group Rerpeeue: S ake er pope cotestainment. For information, phone Yoss hada stage performance. Parvin Vahdat, a Bahai from Wichita Falls, Texas, pas General Session, “The Spiritual Conquest of Hearts” and “All the accompanied by Mahrokh Hedayati of Lawton, performed traditional Persian World's a Stage,” Bosch Baha'i School. Also, Core Curriculum training (with dances in traditional dress on two occasions. Because booths for religions were Linda Bedford and Susan Miller). For information, phone 408-423-3387; fax 408not a part of the fair, the friends prepared a special pamphlet outlining three of 423-7564. a s the major faiths found in Persian culture: Zoroastrian, Islamic and Baha'i. Many 19-25: Camp Louhelen, Louhelen Baha'i School. For information, phone 810
- ; 653-5033.
visitors to the booth asked questions and accepted copies of the pamphlet. 23-26: Nebraska Bahé't School, near Cozad. Registrar: Colin Taylor,
i eesti “emcees | | anon turner Bee > pac by Bonga
- “ete Racca PenteemelnPULLNASISAND || 4, 2200; General Session, “The Destiny of America,” “Entry by Troops,” “Cap| eT mn ‘duress and your mailing label to MANAGE. LD. NUMBERS fo all individoas ages 15 years turing the Spirit,” “Summertime in the Redwoods,” Bosch Baha'i School. For
| NEWTADOREGS! MENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS, Babs or older, who will be affected by this change. | information, phone 408-423-3387; fax 408-423-7564. I National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091, as soon as | 30-July 3: Colorado East Summer School, Trinity Ranch. Contact Sandra Bolz, you know what your new address will be. 34London Avenue, Lafayette, CO 80026 (phone 303-666-9275). Fcnamecs 1 30-July 4: Florida summer school, Melbourne. Registrar: Yan Gan Yang, I ‘ | Plantation, FL 33324; phone 305-424-1547. I . iD Tile | JULY “hw Tite 1-4: Persian-American Conference, Louhelen Ai ool. For information, | |-4: Persian-American Conf Louhelen Baha't Sch fe 1 || Phone 810-653-5033, ; 1D.# Title 1-4: Media/Communications Conference, “Everything You Want to Know ee | | About Media,” Loews Hotel/Vanderbilt Plaza, Nashville, Tennessee. Sponsored | 1D Title | by the Spiritual Assembly of Nashville and Pavon Media International. For in[nim aesoane — — - — formation, phone 310-652-3983. Bt RESIDENCE ADDRESS: © NEW MAILING GDDRES: I 1-5: North Carolina Summer School. Registrar: Maria Hillis, | | Wilson, NC 27893; phone 910-291-1187. | : | 2: Memorial “Potlatch” in the Tlingit-Tagish tradition for Mark Shoghi An| sem enero P.O, Box or Other mailing address | derson, Sylvan Lake Baha’j Center, Alberta, Canada. For information, contact Ted Anderson, 403-347-4230. | Apartment fd applicable) ‘Apartment i (If applicable) | 2-7: General Session, “Historical Perspective on the Tablets of the Divine Plan,” | “Blessings & Bounties,” Bosch Baha'i School. Also, Core Curriculum training \ City City (with Sharon Jensen and Robin Evans). For information, phone 408-423-3387; fax 408-423-7564. | sue Zip code ‘Sate Zip code | 2-8: Washington (East) /Idaho (North) School. Repear: Shannon McConnell, ichland, WA 99352; phone 509-943-1236. Tp. New COMMUNITY: E. HOME TELEPHONE NUMBER: 1 3: 25th anniversary Roundup/Reunion celebrating the formation of the | | Spiritual Assembly of Idaho Falls, Idaho. For information, write to the As— = ; : sembly at Idaho Falls, ID 83404, or phone 208-522-0333. [_Sepeptner ett comereiy Mores 0 Ascot fuses seein en | 8-13: Teacher Training Institute, Louhelen Baha'{ School. For information, | F. WORK TELEPHONE NUMBER(S): | phone 810-653-5033. | I 9-14: General Session, “The Destiny of America: A Different View,” Bosch Baha'i School. For information, phone 408-423-3387; fax 408-423-7564. | “Ares code “Phone number Name ‘ea code Phone number Name | 9-August 7: Dr. Muhdjir Teaching Project, sponsored by the National Spir[G. WE RECEIVE EXTRA CoPlES BECAUSE: TIWOULDLIKEA COPY: | | itual Assembly of Grenada, covering small towns and vi ages around the cai pagele ony island. For information, phone the Office of Pioneering, Baha'i National Center, | CR omcrcreas OO Simceraterses | Cl garaeusnmveie | | 708.36-9099. ‘cancel the copy for the person(s) and LID. listed above the fullnames ofallfamily mem- | receivemy owncopy. thavelistedmy name, | 15-20: Bahd'f Youth Service Corps/Pioneering Institute, Louhelen Baha'{ | ‘mumbox(s) listed shove, bers as vad se ees ne ation LD. umber and address above. | School, Davison, Michigan. For information, phone 708-733-3511 (youth) or 708| ar ae ae 5; 733-3512. Ne Eee es eg cece ee alten ego ve 16-21: General Session with David and Margaret Kunze Ruhe, Bosch Baha'i School. Also, third summer of Bosch Research Institute. For information, phone 408-423-3387; fax 408-423-7564.
17-24: “The Spiritual Transformation of the Huasteca,” an ongoing travelin, teaching campaign in Ciudad Valles, San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Sponsored pe ie National Teaching Committee of Mexico. For information, phone or fax Mil Pietrzak, (01152) (892) 2-6902.
18-22: Wisconsin Summer School, Byron Center. Contact Lisa Reimer,
West Bend, WI 53095 (phone 414-338-3023). lal 20-24: Illinois (Heartland) Baha'f School, Knox College, Galesburg. Registrar: Neslsbibsbuallallosssllsssallallishalallalle Cacumeecs, Nemee ie Ieee nome 708-961-9806.
20-24: “Two Years After UNCED: Exploring Partnerships for Sustainable Development,” Davenport, Iowa. Sponsored by the Citizens Network for Sustainable Development, the Stanley Foundation, and the lowa Division of UNA-USA. Baha'fs who plan to attend should contact the National Spiritual Assembly, Office of External Affairs, 1320 19th St. N.W., Suite 701, Washington, DC 20036 (phone 202-833-8990).
22-27: Family Session I, Louhelen Baha'f School. For information, phone 810653-5033. >
23-28: General Session, “Midsummer Music,” “America's Destiny,” “Docu-__ Nor B.E. 151 /June 5, 1994 ments of the Covenant,” Bosch Baha’ School. Information: phone 408-423-3387.
60091
BAHA'f NATIONAL CENTER
112 Linden Avenue
Wilmette, IL
REY
5, 1994
1A
Guidance from the Chiversal House of Justice
To the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States Dear Baha'i Friends,
We recall with much joy and deep gratitude to Baha’u’ll4h your presence in the Holy Land only a short while ago during the month of the Fast. Your urgent request to which we acceded by meeting with all nine of your members in intensive consultations over a period of three days—a new fact of history in itself—initiated another phase in the evolution of your Assembly and reinforced the bonds that bind the American Baha‘i community to the World Center of the Faith. Our hearts were touched by the candor, courage, and sincerity with which your members presented your concerns, as well as by the spirit of optimism you displayed despite the overwhelming challenges and burdens which prompted your request for a meeting with us.
Having considered the various points and
jueries you raised, we are now able to respond to those which fall under the broad categories of ~ teaching, relations between your National Spiritual Assembly and the Continental Counselors, and the functioning of your Assembly. eH
Regarding your “Vision in Action” initiative, you reported evidences of a tremendous response, some movement, and some expansion; furthermore, the stimulus of the recent Atlanta conference spearheaded by the Continental Counselors caused a marked acceleration of activities. In sum, the friends have seldom been more visibly active, but growth is slow; you feel the community has for some time been on the threshold of a breakthrough which remains elusive. The degeneration of society, as manifested Dy the breakdown of moral standards and the alarming increase of violence, you feel, is exerting a debilitating effect on the individual believer. You yearn for a way to free the teaching potential which to a large extent is locked up in the individual in the face of these dreadful circumstances.
We feel that an over-anxiousness on your part about a breakthrough and an undue worry over the state of society can be counter-productive. While there are opportunities for greater growth than is occurring, neither your Assembly nor the friends must burden themselves with feelings of failure at every disappointment, for such feelings are self-fulfilling and can easily cause stagnation in the expansion of the Cause. The tendency toward frustration, sometimes induced by a desire for instant gratification, must be resisted by an effort to fan deeper appreciation of the divine
rocess. In exhorting the individual concerning, the spiritual obligation resting upon him “to make of the mandate of teaching, so vitally binding upon all, the all-pervading concern of his life,” Shoghi Effendi said that “every bearer of the Message of Baha’u'll4h should consider it not only an obligation but a privilege to scatter far and wide the seeds of His Faith, and to rest content in the abiding knowledge that whatever be the immediate response to that Message, and however inadequate the vehicle that conveyed it, the power of its Author will, as He sees fit, enable those seeds to
erminate, and in circumstances which no one can foresee enrich the harvest which the labor of His followers will gather.” You may rest assured that your particularly blessed community will not be denied a triumphant expansion if its members remain constant and confident in their teaching activities.
Paradoxical as it may seem, the prospects toward the breakthrough you anticipate in the teaching field are conspicuous in the current, distressing state of society. You must realize that the worse conditions become, the more plentiful are the Sppgrrunities to teach the Cause, the greater the degree of receptivity to the Divine
Message. Baha’u’llah certainly gave ample foreknowledge about the radical, worldwide disturbance which His Revelation is creating as a part of the transition toward the unity and peace that are the ultimate goal of His Faith. Your awareness of this inevitable transition should enable your members to detach themselves from the debilitating emotions aroused by the turmoil which char— acterizes this process and to equip your Assembly as the highest governing body of the Bahai com— munity in the United States to demonstrate to the friends a confident outlook, which the persistence and vigor of their teaching activities will fully justify.
uch detachment as exemplified by your Assembly and practiced by the friends throughout the community will, moreover, signify a spiritual _ achievement which was anticipated by Shoghi Effendi in his warning to your community, when he said: “The glowing tributes, so repeatedly and deservedly paid to the capacity, the spirit, the con— duct, and the high rank, of the American believers, both individually and as an organic community, must, under no circumstances, be confounded with the characteristics and nature of the people from which God has raised them up.” In other words, by the attainment of a “sharp distinction between that community and that people,” you and the friends who rely upon your guidance will recognize that American society cannot be exempted from the rigors and consequences of the transition affecting all the world.
Painful as may be the decadent scene, deep as is your sympathy for those who suffer from the terrible decline of society, you must see the possibilities which are thus provided for augmenting the healing forces of an emerging World Order. Shoghi Effendi advised the North American community plainly in this regard. “The opportunities which the turmoil of the present age presents, with all the sorrows which it evokes, the fears which it ex— cites, the disillusionment which it produces, the perplexities which it creates, the indignation which it arouses, the revolt which it provokes, the grievances it engenders, the spirit of restless search which it awakens, must,” he asserted, “be exploited for the purpose of spreading far and wide the knowledge of the redemptive power of the Faith of Baha’u’llah, and for enlisting fresh recruits in the ever-swelling army of His followers.”
Commenting further on the global spectacle of upheavals, cataclysms and tribulations which the worsening affairs of humanity evoke at the im— pending approach of the Kingdom of God on earth, Shoghi Effendi addressed these words of insight an encouragement to the North American friends: “Far from yislding in their resolve, far from growing oblivious of their task, they should, at no time, however much buffeted by circumstances, forget that the synchronization of such world-shaking crises with the progressive unfoldment and fruition of their divinely appointed task is itself the work of Providence, the design of an inscrutable Wisdom, and the purpose of an allcompelling Will, a Will that directs and controls, in its own mysterious way, both the fortunes of the Faith and the destinies of men. Such simultaneous processes of rise and of fall, of integration and of disintegration, of order and chaos, with their continuous and reciprocal reactions on each other, are but aspects of a greater Plan, one and indivisible, whose Source is God, whose author is Baha’u’llah, the theatre of whose operations is the entire planet, and whose ultimate objectives are the unity of the human race and the peace of all mankind.”
Moreover, the beloved Guardian felt that: “Reflections such as these should steel the resolve of the entire Baha’{ community, should dissipate their forebodings, and arouse them to rededicate themselves to every single provision of that Divine Charter whose outline has been delineated for them by the pen of ‘Abdu’l-Baha.” By being at—
tuned to this divine perspective, your Assembly will be able to assist the friends to see that they will not merely be able to cope with the alarming incidents of social decline they are daily witnessing, but even better than that, they will be inspired to arise with renewed vision to recruit to Baha’i membership an increasing number of men and women whose minds and hearts are ready to respond to the Divine Message and who will join them in dispelling: the bewilderment and despair gripping their fellow citizens and undermining the structure of their country.
It is also vital for your Assembly to keep in mind that the mental anguish which the prevailing situation induces can and must be overcome through Pees and a conscious attention to teaching the
‘ause and living the Baha’f life with a worldembracing vision. Certainly, the members of such a well established community as yours, one en— joying the pedal favors providentially conferred upon it by the Tablets of the Divine Plan, do realize the urgency and seriousness of their task. Surely they see with what patient endurance the dear friends in the Cradle of the Faith are meeting their God-given challenges even to the extent of sacrificing their life’s blood so that the world may become a better place. Undoubtedly, the highly esteemed American believers, who bear the designation “spiritual descendants of the Dawn-breakers,” know quite well that they must now seize their chance at this critical time to prove their own ca acity to endure that living sacrifice which, as Ls i Effendi said, in contrast to dying, is re~
uired of them in the scriptures of our Faith. May they be granted the celestial strength to pass, over and over again, the mental tests which ‘Abdu’lBaha promised He would send to them to purify them, thus enabling them to achieve their divinely conferred potential as a force for change in the world.
In the arena of teaching, your indispensable terms of reference and the unerring resource to which you have ready access are the Master’s Tablets of the Divine Plan. They invest your community with eereorcniaty powers shared by your sister community in Canada. It is in reacquainting the American friends with the special mission, both at home and abroad, assigned to them in these seminal and timeless documents, and in relating their contents to current conditions, that you will find the key to the revitalization of the teaching work and the winning of outstanding victories on the home front. In this effort you will be powerfully aided by the explanations provided in the letters of our dear Guardian, such as “The Advent of Divine Justice,” “The Challenging Requirements of the Present Hour,” “American Bahd’is in the Time of World Peril.” We have every confidence that, together with the Continental Counselors and the Auxiliary Board members, you can discover the way further to release the enormous energies of the friends and to intensify the zeal which they have so splendidly displayed in the teaching field on so many occasions in the past.
ae
We were very pleased by the sense you conveyed of an ever-closer relationship between your Assembly and the Continental Counselors, and we were even more deeply impressed by your eagerness to know how you might strengthen this re— lationship. A beginning toward achieving your desire would be for you to obtain an integrated understanding of the Counselors’ responsibilities and sphere of action in relation to your own.
As you know, a distinguishing feature of the Administrative Order is the existence of elected institutions, on the one hand, which function corporately with vested legislative, executive and judicial powers, and of appointed, eminent and devoted believers, on the other hand, who function primarily as individuals for the specific,
urposes of protecting and propagating the Faith alee the Tes athe eet of the ‘aith. The two sets of institutions collaborate in their functions so as to ensure the progress of the Cause. You are undoubtedly aware of the Pere exposition of this subject; however, we offer the following comments to assist your further understanding of the matter.
The Continental Boards of Counselors and the National Spiritual Assemblies share in the func— tions of propagation and protection, but the Counselors specialize in these functions from a different level and in a different manner. From a continental vantage Po the Counselors bring a Hepat to their functions which, when of ‘ered to a National Assembly in the form of coun— sel, advice, recommendations, suggestions or commentary, enriches the latter’s understanding, acquaints it with a broader experience than its own, and encourages it to maintain a worldembracing vision.
An aspect of the difference in the manner of functioning of the Counselors derives from the instructions given in the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Baha to the Hands of the Cause of God, the extension into the future of whose functions of protection and propagation are the responsibility of the Counselors. As appointees of the Universal House of Justice, the Counselors assist the Head of the Faith to broaden the base, foster the strength and ensure the security of the National Spiritual Assemblies and the institutions and communities under their jurisdiction. Through their Auxiliary Boards, the Continental Counselors spread the benefits of their functions to the local Spiritual Assemblies and the grassroots of the community. These functions are shaped by their obligations, in the words of the Will and Testament, “to diffuse the Divine Fragrances, to edify the souls of men, to promote learning, to improve the character of all men and to be, at all times and under all conditions, sanctified and detached from earthly things.” It can be seen, then, that through their work in propagating and protecting the Faith, the Counselors play a major role in knitting and bolstering the entire fabric of the Baha’i community.
The flexibility and speed with which the Counselors and their Auxiliary Board members can respond to a perceived need in the community— such as a need for encouragement, explanation of plans, deepening in the Teachings, protection of the Covenant—are elements of their functionin, which distinguish them from Spiritual Assemblies; this flexibility enables them to operate as occasions demand, whether it is in giving counsel at a meeting, or advising an individual in private, or helping the friends to understand and obey a ruling of the Spiritual Assembly, or dealing with issues of the Covenant. In such different modes these officers of the Faith are able to draw attention to relevant Texts, to impart information, ex— plore situations, and acquaint themselves with conditions in ways not possible to a Spiritual Assembly but important to the success of its plans. They are able then to share with Spiritual Assemblies, as deemed necessary, ideas, analyses, perceptions and advice which inevitably enhance the ability of these Assemblies to serve their communities. They thus assist Assemblies to mature. Where local Assemblies are new or weak, Auxiliary Board members help them to understand their functions, SOC OUTEEE them to organize their work, and rally the local believers in support of their As— semblies’ initiatives.
Through the various modes of their activities, the Counselors aided by their Auxiliary Boards spark and buttress the growth and development of Spiritual Assemblies and local and national communities. With this perspective, Shoghi Effendi’s regarding of the Auxiliary Board members as “a prop and mainstay to the often overworked and overburdened National Spiritual Assemblies” becomes clear. The indispensability of the involvement of Continental Counselors and Auxiliary Board members in the planning stages of the teaching work and the benefits of acquainting them with the hopes and concerns of National Spiritual Assemblies and of seeking their advice
are also obvious.
With the opening of the fourth epoch of the Formative Age, a procedure was activated by which the goals of national plans are formulated in joint consultations of National Spiritual Assemblies and Continental Counselors. It initiated a new phase in the maturation of the Administrative Order. This development ensures two significant benefits in particular: It enables each institution to draw on the experiences and eine particular to the other, thereby making available to the planning process two distinct channels of information from two levels of Baha’{ administration; and it also assures to the Counselors a necessary familiarity with the background, rationale, and content of national plans, which as a matter of principle they are expected to support. Both institutions obtain strength from such collaboration, and we are
articularly pleased that the designing of the
hree Year Plan in the United States followed a pattern which involved the two arms of the administration in the manner you described to us.
While the Counselors and their Auxilia Boards, in addition to the discharge of their specific responsibilities, will ap) rt the initiatives adopted by a National Spiritual Assembly, the Assembly should recognize that the Counselors must be free to determine, according to their own best judgment, in what manner that support will be given. There is a great difference between the functions of national committees and Auxiliary Board members in this respect. Whereas the committees may be required by the Assembly to follow particular procedures, Auxiliary Board members are not similarly bound; yet they should not act in a manner that undermines the operations of the National Assembly or its agencies. This does not mean that Auxiliary Board members may not decide, upon request or not, to participate in the execution of a particular program or educational project devised by a national committee, or even to contribute toward the conceptualization and fruition of the project. It does mean, however, that their Pie ee ve to proceed within a wider latitude than that accessible to the national committee should be respected.
By working at the grassroots of the community, an aa Board member is often able to satisfy a need not being met py any national or local profan but which if dealt with by the Auxiliary
ard member will better equip the local friends
- to achieve the established goals of the community.
Such a flexibility on the part of the Auxiliary Board member in dealing with immediate situations, such a freedom for independent action, should be taken for granted by all concerned. However, a pattern of activity on the part of the Auxiliary Board member, or even of a Counselor, which appears to the National Assembly to be seriously diverting attention from the adopted plans of the community should unhesitatingly be made a matter for remedial consultation with the Counselors.
The Counselors are members of a continental, as distinct from a national, institution, and they occupy a rank higher than that of the National Spiritual Assembly. Apart from any other consideration, their rank is, in a practical sense, a functional necessity if these officers of the Faith are to be accorded freedom of the community at all levels and their advice and other functions are to be taken seriously. We have said in an earlier letter that “the existence of institutions of such exalted rank, comprising individuals who play such a vital role, who yet have no legislative, administrative or judicial authority, and are entirely devoid of priestly functions or the right to make authoritative interpretations, is a fea— ture of Baha’i administration unparalleled in the religions of the past.” It is a difficult concept to
rasp. But with the passage of time since the
irst contingent of Continental Counselors was appointed, much understanding has surely been acquired.
Shoghi Effendi stated categorically to your Assembly: “There can be no conflict of authority, no duality under any form or circumstances in any sphere of Baha’{ jurisdiction whether local, na tional or international.” The authority of a National Assembly is therefore not diminished but, rather, enhanced by the existence of the Continental Counselors, who are duty bound by the very character of their poe ies as protectors of
the Faith to uphold the rank and to support the authority of Spiritual Assemblies. Similarly, the National Assembly must, on the basis of principle and in its own best interest, ensure that Counselors and Auxiliary Board members are not hampered in carrying out their sacred responsibilities and that their right and freedom to function are upheld.
The attitude of these two institutions toward each other should be motivated not merely by a legalistic application of the rules of their famed tional relationship. Far more is required, for they must, in the first place, approach their joint responsibilities within the framework of the spiritual isites for all successful Baha’f relationships. Where love, respect and courtesy are
enuinely and mutually expressed, estrangement
inds no accommodation and problems become soluble challenges. Baha’u’lléh’s admonition is highly instructive in this regard; He says: “Abase not the station of the learned in Baha and belittle not the rank of such rulers as administer justice amidst you.”
Achieving a closer and more effective relationship between you and the Continental Counselors Pallideperdl on the cultivation of an incrementally harmonious attitude and on an openness in your dealings with them which this attitude will cer— tainly facilitate. The relationship between you should be one of fellowship informed with a sense of respect but devoid of the rigid formalities as— sociated with so many social organizations. When you have doubts and concerns about your own plans, confide in the Counselors; when something they do aed worry, talk to them in the proper spirit of Baha’f consultation. Remember that they, like yourselves, are burdened with the work of the Cause and are beset with many con— cerns in its service, and they need your sympathetic understanding of the challenges they face. Open your hearts and your minds to them; regard them as your confidants, your loving friends. And be ever ready to extend to them your hand in support. |
The existence of a loving, trusting and informal atmosphere in your dealings with the Counselors ahoula not, however, be allowed to relax adherence to the rules governing the working relationship between the Continental Board of Counselors and their Auxiliary Boards, on the one hand, and the National Spiritual Assembly and its committees, on the other. These matters are explained in detail in our letter of October 1, 1969, which you have published. :
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We now wish to address the manner of your functioning as a National Spiritual Assembly. Your analysis of the situation identified the issues of immediate concern about the national administration of the Faith, such issues as: over-centralization, particularly with regard to the administration of the teaching work; your fear that you may be exercising a level of administrative control that may be stifling individual initiative throughout the country; and the relation of your Assembly to the community.
You live in a society caught in the tightenin; grip of moral decadence on a vast scale. But this should come as no surprise to you. It is the unavoidable consequence of a pervasive godlessness; its symptoms and repercussions were described in paint detail by Shoghi Effendi in several of his
letters to the Western friends. Inevitably, the American Baha’f community is affected by this condition to some extent. The corrosive influence of an overbearing and rampant secularization is infecting the style of administration of the Faith in your community and threatening to undermine its efficacy.
The aggressiveness and competitiveness which animate a dominantly capitalist culture; the par— tisanship inherent in a fervidly democratic system;
the suspicion of public-policy institutions and the
skepticism toward established authority ingrained
in the political attitude of the people and which
trace their origins to the genesis of American so—
ciety; the cynical disregard of the moderating
principles and rules of civilized human relationships resulting from an excessive liberalism and its immoral consequences—such unsavory characteristics inform entrenched habits of American life, which imperceptibly at first but more obviously in the long run have come to exert too great a sway over the manner of management of the Baha’f community and over the behavior of portions of its rank and file in relation to the Cause. This unwholesome influence must be arrested by immediate, deliberate effort—an effort which must surely begin with your Assembly itself. Further accommodation of it will severely impede the progress of your community, despite the abundant possibilities of an imminent breakthrough. It was due to this concern in particular that we anxiously welcomed your request for a meeting with us.
The guarantee of well-being and success in all your endeavors to serve the Cause of God can be stated in one word: unity. It is the alpha and omega of all Baha'i objectives. Among the first ad— monitions addressed to National Spiritual Assemblies by Shoghi Effendi was the following assertion: “It is, I firmly believe, of the utmost urgent importance that, with unity of purpose and action firmly established in our midst, and with every trace of animosity and mistrust of the past banished from our hearts, we should form one united front, and combat, wisely and tactfully, every force that might darken the spirit of the Movement, cause division in its ranks, and narrow it by dog matic and sectarian belief.” He then stated that “it is primarily upon the elected members of the Na— tional Spinal Assemblies throughout the Baha’f world that this highly important duty devolves,” warning that “should such a representative and responsible body fail to realize this fundamental requisite for all successful achievement, the whole structure is sure to crumble.”
Unity within the Assembly itself is, of course, of immediate importance to the wider unity your actions are intended to foster and sustain. At no time can any member of your Assembly afford to be unmindful of this basic requirement nor neglect to work toward upholding it. Of particular relevance is the attitude that the members adopt toward their membership on that exalted body. There needs to be a recognition on their part of the Assembly's spiritual character and a feeling in their hearts of respect for the institution based upon a perception of it as something beyond or apart from themselves, as a sacred entity whose powers they have the privilege to engage and canalize by coming together in harmony and acting in accordance with divinely revealed principles. With such a perspective the members will be able better to acquire an appropriate posture in relation to the Assembly itself, to appreciate their role as Trustees of the Merciful and to counteract any impression that they have assumed ownership and control of the institution in the manner of major stockholders of a business enterprise.
Also relevant to effecting unity is the attitude of the friends, whether serving on any Assembly or not, toward the exercise of authority in the Bah4’i community. People generally tend to be suspicious of those in authority. The reason is not difficult to understand, since human history is replete with examples of the disastrous mis— use of authority and power. A reversal of this tendency is not easily achievable, but the Baha’{ friends must be freed of suspicion toward their institutions if the wheels of progress are to turn with uninterrupted speed. A rigorous discipline of thought and action on the part of both the friends and the National Assembly will succeed in meeting this challenge; both must live up to their responsibilities in this regard by recognizing some fundamental realities.
The oneness of humanity, which is the primary principle and ultimate goal of the Cause of Baha’— u'llah, implies, as Shoghi Effendi said, an “organic change in the structure of present-day society.” So
fundamental a change in the structural conception of society must also imply a new pattern for the administration of community affairs in a Baha’{ context. The insights offered by the beloved Guardian, as conveyed by his secretary in a letter dated October 14, 1941, shed light on this critical subject:
“The friends must never mistake the Baha’i administration for an end in itself. It is merely the instrument of the spirit of the Faith. This Cause is a Cause which God has revealed to humanity as a whole. It is designed to benefit the entire human race, and the only way it can do this is to reform the community life of mankind, as well as seeking to regenerate the individual. The Baha’{ administration is only the first shaping of what in future will come to be the social life and laws of community living.”
Shoghi Effendi’s advice to an individual in an— other instance provides a further perspective: “He urges you to do all you can to Promote unity and love amongst the members of the Community there, as this seems to be their greatest need. So often young communities, in their desire to administer the Cause, lose sight of the fact that these spiritual relationships are far more important and fundamental than the rules and regulations which must govern the conduct of community affairs.”
It can therefore be deduced that the importance of the Baha’f administration is its value in serving as a facilitator of the emergence and maintenance of community life in a wholly new mode, and in catering to the requirements of the spiritual rela— tionships which flow from love and unity among the friends. This touches upon a distinguishing characteristic of Baha'i life which such spiritual relationships foster, namely, the spirit of servitude to God, expressed in service to the Cause, to the friends and to humanity as a whole. The attitude of the individual as a servant, an attitude preeminently exemplified in the life and person of ‘Abdu’l-Bahé, is a dynamic that permeates the activities of the Faith; it acquires collective, trans— formative force in the normal functioning of a community. In this regard, the institutions of the Faith stand as channels for the promotion of this salient characteristic. It is in this framework that the concepts of rulership and leadership, authority and power are properly understood and actualized.
The appearance of a united, firmly based and self-sustaining community must be a major goal of a spuiuia! Assembly. Composed of a membershi reflecting a diversity of personalities, talents, abilities and interests, such a community requires a level of internal interaction between the Assembly and the body of the believers based on a commonly recognized commitment to service, and in which a sense of partnership based on appreciation of each other’s distinctive sphere of action is fully recognized and unfailingly upheld, and no semblance of a dichotomy between the two appears. In such a community leadership is that expression of service by which the Spiritual As— sembly invites and encourages the use of the manifold talents and abilities with which the community is endowed, and stimulates and guides the diverse elements of the community toward goals and strategies by which the effects of a coherent force for progress can be realized.
The maintenance of a climate of love and unit depends largely upon the feeling among the individuals composing the community that the As— sembly is a part of themselves, that their cooperative interactions with that divinely ordained allow them a fair latitude for initiative and that the quality of their relationships with both the institution and their fellow believers encourages a spirit of enterprise invigorated by an awareness of the revolutionizing purpose of Baha’u’ll4h’s Revelation, by a consciousness of the high privilege of their being associated with efforts to realize that purpose, and by a consequent, ever-present sense of joy. In such a climate, the community is transformed from being the mere sum of its parts to assuming a wholly ney personally as an entity in which its members blend without losing their in 3A
dividual uniqueness. The possibilities for manifesting such a transformation exist most immediately at the local level, but it is a major responsibility of the National Assembly to nurture the conditions in which they may flourish.
The authority to direct the affairs of the Faith, locally, nationally and internationally, is divinely conferred on elected institutions. However, the power to accomplish the tasks of the communi! resides primarily in the mass of the believers. The authority of the institutions is an irrevocable necessity for the progress of humanity; its exercise is an art to be mastered. The power of action in the believers is unlocked at the level of individual in— itiative and surges at the level of collective volition. In its potential, this mass power, this mix of individual potentialities, exists in a malleable form susceptible to the multiple reactions of individuals to the sundry influences at work in the world. To realize its highest purpose, this power needs to express itself through orderly avenues of activity. Even though individuals may strive to be guided in their actions by their personal understanding of the Divine Texts, and much can be accomplished thereby, such actions, untempered by the over-all direction provided by authorized institutions, are incapable of attaining the thrust necessary for the unencumbered advancement of civilization.
Individual initiative is a pre-eminent aspect of this power; it is therefore a major responsibility of the institutions to safeguard and stimulate it. Similarly, it is important for individuals to recognize and accept that the institutions must act as a guiding and moderating influence on the march of _ civilization. In this sense, the divine requirement” that individuals obey the decisions of their Assemblies can clearly be seen as being indispensable to the progress of society. Indeed, individuals must not be abandoned entirely to their own devices with respect to the welfare of society as a whole, neither should they be stifled by the assumption of a dictatorial posture by members of the institutions.
The successful exercise of authority in the Baha’f community implies the recognition of separate but mutually reinforcing rights and responsibilities between the institutions and the friends in general, a recognition that in turn welcomes the need for cooperation between these two interactive forces of society. As was stated in advice given by Shoghi Effendi: “The individuals and assemblies must learn to cooperate, and to cooperate intelligently, if they desire to adequately discharge their duties and obligations towards the Faith. And no such sooreration is possible without mutual confidence and trust.” m
Direction comes from Assembly decisions, but its effectiveness depends not only on the clarity with which it is given but also on a number of spiritual and moral factors which must be blended in the general attitude of the individual believers, on the one hand, and the manner and style of the functioning of the Assembly, on the other. The following advice of Shoghi Effendi, addressed in an early letter to the Western friends, deals with these two aspects:
“Let us also bear in mind that the keynote to the Cause of God is not dictatorial authority, but humble fellowship, not arbitrary power, but the spirit of frank and loving consultation. Nothing short of the spirit of a true Baha’{ can hope to reconcile the principles of mercy and justice, of freedom and submission, of the sanctity of the right of the individual and of self-surrender, of vigilance, discretion and prudence on the one hand and fellowship, candor and courage on the other.
“The duties of those whom the friends have freely and conscientiously elected as their representatives are no less vital and binding than the obligations of those who have chosen them. Their function is not to dictate, but to consult, and consult not only among themselves, but as much as possible with the friends whom they represent. They must regard themselves in no other light but that of chosen instruments for a more efficient and dignified presentation of the Cause of God. They
should never be led to Suppose that they are the
central ornaments of the body of the Cause, intrinsically superior to others in capacity or merit, and sole promoters of its teachings and principles. They should approach their task with extreme humility, and endeavor by their open-mindedness, their high sense of justice and duty, their candor, their modesty, their entire devotion to the welfare and interests of the friends, the Cause, and humanity, to win not only the confidence and the genuine support and respect of those whom they should serve, but also their esteem and real af— fection.”
These instructions of the beloved Guardian get to the very heart of what must be more deeply infeculized BY the members of your Asser y at this time. We repeat for emphasis the terms “ex— treme humility,” “open-mindedness,” “candor,” “modesty”; and we underscore the openness which is implicit in candor, because the cooperation which must be fostered between your Assembly and the friends will depend significantly on the degree to which, with wise discretion, you share your concerns with the community. Your greatest opportunity for this is the annual National Convention, when the representatives of the entire community come together to consult with you. It is not sufficient that you give only good news and encouraging statistics to the delegates. Do as Shoghi Effendi advised you: “Banishin, every vestige of secrecy, of undue reticence, o! dictatorial aloofness, from their midst, they should radiantly and abundantly unfold to the eyes of the delegates, by whom they are elected, their plans, their hopes, and their cares. They should familiarize the delegates with the various matters that will have to be considered in the current year, and calmly and conscientiously study and weigh the opinions and judgements of the delegates.”
Even if the delegates find themselves unable to offer useful recommendations toward the resolution of particular issues, by your bringing them into your confidence they will develop an ape ciation, as would be impossible otherwise, of the serious matters confronting the Cause. With this understanding, they will be equipped to assist the community to respond effectively to your decisions, no matter how challenging these may turn out to be. Moreover, it will relieve you of any overwhelming sense of burden to know that such ‘a responsible body of believers shares your innermost concerns; and even more than that, the effect of your openness will be to strengthen the delegates’ support of your authority, which it is their sacred duty to give. Besides, as it is neither possible nor practicable for your Assembly to meet with all the believers, nor for the members to be constantly traveling throughout the community, the friends’ feeling that you are remote can be ameliorated, though not entirely removed, by the effectiveness of your interactions with the delegates.
In your openness and candor you will, no doubt, avoid ineptitudes that pass as norms in the freedom of speech practiced in your nation. In a society where “telling it like it is” employs a style of expression which robs language of its decorum, and in a time when stridency is commonly presumed to be a quality of leadership, candor is crass, and authority speaks in a loud and vulgar voice. People are frequently obliged to receive direction from their leaders in such disrespectful modes; this is a reason for resentment and suspicion toward those in authority. By contrast, Baha’i institutions have the task of accustoming the friends to recognizing the expression of authority in language at a moderate pitch.
It would be impossible to overestimate the obligation resting upon you to refine your dealings with the community in the ways already described. You cannot at any time afford to forget that the manner of the use of authority is critical to the success of your work. With this in mind, you must also attend seriously to the behavior of those, more particularly your officers, who must of necessity act on your behalf in carrying out your decisions and conveying your instructions to others. Further, it is sometimes the case that staff members
at your National Center, in their eagerness to be exactly and completely obedient, carry out the in— struction of your Assembly with a sharpness of manner and tone that hurts people and provokes resentment against the vei ly the staff are striving to serve with loyalty and devotion. The staff should be sensitized to the situation and made to realize, through your loving and persistent guidance, that the spiritual requisites for good and respectful relations with others must be con— scientiously applied in their interactions with the friends because to do so is not only virtuous in itself but will also minimize the incidence of bad feeling toward your Assembly.
The temperament of authority in the administration of justice varies according to the degree of the gravity of each case. Some cases require that the Assembly take action that is firm or drastic. Even so, Assembly members have always to be mindful that the authority they wield must in general be expressed with love, humility and a genuine respect for others. Thus exercised, au-thority strikes a natural note and accords with that which is ac— ceptable to spiritually attuned and fair-minded souls. The following guidance of Shoghi Effendi, as conveyed by his secretary, is Sree relevant: “The administrators of the Faith of God must be like unto shepherds. Their aim should be to dispel all the doubts, misunderstandings and harmful differences which may arise in the community of the believers. And this they can adequately achieve provided they are motivated by a true sense of love for their fellow-brethren coupled with firm determination to act with justice in all cases which are submitted to them for their consideration.”
Do clearly bear in mind that our emphasis of the spiritual requisites of your functioning is not a mere expression of pious idealism. Far, far from it. Their exclusion from public discourse and from the considerations of the world leaders largely accounts for the current state of society. Indeed, they are as practical in effect as they are spiritual in essence. Employ them consciously, constantly, confidently; and see how your actions will attract the confirmations of the Holy Spirit in the response of the community.
As to your worry about over-controlling the friends: by appreciating the nature of the power of action which they possess, you will be able to pause how best to guide and direct them. A wide
jatitude for action must be allowed them, which
means that a large margin for mistakes must also be allowed. Your National Assembly and the local Assemblies must not react automatically to every mistake, but distinguish between those that are self-correcting with the passage of time and do no particular harm to the community and those which require Assembly intervention. Related to this is the tendency of the friends to criticize each other at the slightest provocation, whereas the Teachings call upon them to encourage each other. Such tendencies are of course motivated by a deep love for the Faith, a desire to see it free of any flow. But human beings are not perfect. The local As— semblies and the friends must be helped through your example and through loving counsel to refrain from such a pattern of criticism, which stunts the growth and development of the community. You should also be fearful of laying down too many rules and regulations. The Cause is not so fragile that a degree of mistakes cannot be tolerated. When you feel that certain actions may become trends with harmful consequences, you may, instead of making a new rule, discuss the matter with the Counselors, enlisting their support in educating the friends in a manner that will improve their understanding and their conduct.
Anew burst of energy would accrue to the operation of the Three Year Plan if the friends, both individually and collectively, could feel a greater sense of freedom to engage in a wide range of ac— tivities originating with themselves. Even if you are doing nothing deliberately to discourage such freedom, their accumulated expression of institutional disapproval, however derived, and their fear of criticism are, to a considerable extent, in— hibiting their exercise of initiative. At this exact
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time in history when the peoples of the world are weighed down with soul-crushing difficulties and the shadow of despair threatens to eclipse the light of hope, there must be revived among the individual believers a sense of mission, a feeling of empowerment to minister to the urgent need of humanity for guidance and thus to win victories for the Faith in their own sphere of life. The com— munity as a whole should be involved in efforts to resolve such issues. A single answer would, of course, be inadequate, there being so many di— verse elements and interests in the community. These matters require not only your own independent consultation but consultation with the Coun— selors as well. Although Spiritual Assemblies are good at specifying goals, they have not yet mastered the art of making use of the talents of individuals and rousing the mass of the friends to action in fulfillment of such goals. Removing this deficiency would be a mark of the maturation of these institutions. May your Assembly lead the way.
A further decentralization of the national administration would increase the possibility of loosening control at the top and encouraging the involvement of individuals in the work of the community at the grassroots. We therefore welcome your intention to take such action. However, you may wish to do this in incremental steps rather than in one sweeping motion. The matter is left entirely to your judgment. It may encourage you to know that in a few countries where the challenge of administering the teaching work and
roviding other administrative services assumed formidable proportions, various approaches have been used to achieve a measure ake erates tion. A detailed description of some of these approaches will be sent to you separately.
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Having said all the foregoing, we pause to as— sure you of our full awareness of the great bur— dens you carry and of the ceaseless calls upon you to render services in the absence of adequate resources. Do not despair. Your capacity to respond will match any challenge that may confront you in these troubled times; you have only to act on principle. Your community’s past has been glorious; its future is great beyond calculation. divine promises to your community are certain; the blessings of Bahd’u’llah are assured as you strive to fulfill His purpose. The wings of the beloved Master remain spread over you that you may succeed in discharging the tasks He has es— pecially entrusted to your care. And our love ever surrounds you and your cherished community, growing stronger at every moment. Step forward then to meet the requirements of the hour with undiminished hope and confidence.
The power released by Baha’u’llah works at a quickening pace, speeding the processes of change which must usher in the new order He,pren claimed. The declining state of society demonstrates it, the global yearning for new solutions to human problems confirms it. Much is at stake; the fortunes of humankind hang precariously in the balance. The Baha’i community bears grave re— sponsibilities toward the near and far future as movement toward the Lesser Peace accelerates. Now is the time for the friends to seize new op— portunities to extend this range and influence of the Faith, to reach a new level of action in expanding the community and fortifying its foundations. It is indeed time for audacious action undeterred by a fear of mistakes, fired by the urgency of ministering to the pressing needs of humanity. Will the American Baha’i community not see its chance to meet the challenge? Will its members not once again blaze a trail that can set in motion a myriad victories?
Our ardent petition at the Holy Threshold is that the response of the champion-builders of the New World Order will be immediate, wholehearted and abundantly confirmed.
With loving Baha’ greetings,
The Universal House of Justice May 19, 1994
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