The American Bahá’í/Volume 26/Issue 1/Text

←Previous

The American Bahá’í Volume 26, Issue 1

Next→

Return to PDF view Proofread once

[Page 1]THE American Bahá’í

Volume 26, Number 1 | Mulk B.E. 151 / February 7, 1995

Five new National Assemblies to be formed at Riḍván

To all National Spiritual Assemblies Dear Bahá’í Friends,

With joyful hearts we announce the formation next Riḍván of five new National Spiritual Assemblies. One will be in Africa: Eritrea with its seat in Asmara; two in Asia: Armenia with its seat in Yerevan and Georgia with its seat in Tbilisi; and two in Europe: Belarus with its seat in Minsk and Sicily with its seat in Palermo.

The Regional Spiritual Assembly of Russia, Georgia and Armenia will then become the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the Russian Federation, and the Regional Spiritual Assembly of the Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova will become the Regional Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the Ukraine and Moldova.

Moreover, a simultaneous occurrence will be the merging of the Bahá’í communities of Bophuthatswana, Ciskei, South Africa and Transkei under the one National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of South Africa, to reflect the recent political reunion of that region.

These thrilling prospects denote the quickening pace of the consolidation process in different parts of the world, making possible a further thrust in the evolution of the wondrous System originated by the Lord of the Age for ordering the affairs and ultimately guaranteeing the peace of the entire planet. In their contemplation of such impending victories, may the friends everywhere derive fresh encouragement to increase and accelerate their manifold efforts in spreading the Message of Bahá’u’lláh in all regions.

With loving Bahá’í greetings, The Universal House of Justice December 7, 1994

Spirit shines brightly at conferences

2,000 young Bahá’í warriors prepare spiritual ‘battle plan’

By TOM MENNILLO

Christmas weekend found about 2,000 young Bahá’ís unwrapping the greatest gift of all—Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation—and resolving once home to present that gift to everyone they encounter.

The setting was a surprisingly rainy Phoenix, Arizona, and the occasion the National Bahá’í Youth Conference.

It was “boot camp,” if you will, with the youth being prepared for service in the hundreds of Army of Light teaching projects dotting the national map and for service throughout their lives in helping to build the kingdom of God on earth.

Joining the young spiritual warriors were Counselor Stephen Birkland, eight members of the National Spiritual Assembly, such dearly loved souls as ‘Azíz Yazdí and Auxiliary Board member Javidukht Khadem, and a host of outstanding musicians and other performers.

In talks, workshops and dramatic presentations, the youth accepted with clear-eyed enthusiasm their responsibilities in meeting the challenges that lie ahead in the few remaining years of this century.

Through stories of the Central Figures and their heroic followers, they drew strength and inspiration from those who have gone before them.

And by calling on the Writings and on the messages of the Universal House of Justice, they were blessed with bountiful confirmations that if they are true to the Covenant they will shine ever brighter even as the world around them grows ever darker.

Complete coverage of this historic “passing of the baton” to a new generation of leadership begins on page 11.

‘Pupils of the eye’ brought into focus

By HERMIONE C. PICKENS

“Bahá’u’lláh once compared the colored people to the black pupil of the eye surrounded by white. In this black pupil is seen the reflection of that which is before it, and through it the light of the spirit shineth forth.”—‘Abdu’l-Bahá

And so arose the Vanguard of the Dawning—a Bahá’í conference whose focus and orientation was centered directly on the African American community.

From all over the U.S. and as far away as South Africa and Bermuda the

See VANGUARD page 9

Bahá’í family held out as model and fortress

By TOM MENNILLO

It would have been difficult to miss the message of this year’s North American Bahá’í Conference on Social and Economic Development in Orlando, Florida:

• Society is in for a rough time these remaining years of the century.
• Thank God the Bahá’í family—nuclear and extended—provides us a “fortress for well-being.”
• If its virtues become our habits, we will be protected and the Bahá’í model will be recognized more and more as a beacon lighting the way out of darkness.

The second annual conference of the Rabbani Charitable Trust had as its 1994 theme “The Bahá’í Family for the Time of the Lesser Peace.”

Many talks brought the topic into sharp focus. Workshops gave participants ample opportunity to relate Bahá’í principle to everyday actions.

A salute to Florence V. Mayberry held up for us a sterling example of service to humanity and to God.

A rich program of artistic performances featuring the largest Bahá’í choir and orchestra since the second Bahá’í World Congress sent spirits soaring again and again.

And a parallel conference for children and youth brought home our sacred trust to develop the next generation’s capabilities in all realms of life.

Complete conference coverage begins on page 14.

Publication frequency cut as a cost-saving measure

The American Bahá’í has a new look—and a new schedule.

The National Spiritual Assembly has taken two important decisions to help contain expenses and increase revenues.

Starting with this issue, The American Bahá’í will be published every other Bahá’í month (with the exception of a special issue dated March 2) instead of every Bahá’í month, as has been the case for the past three years. The estimated savings from this measure are about $200,000 a year.

See PUBLICATION page 9

INSIDE THIS ISSUE
* A round-up of teaching stories from across the country ... 2-3	* House of Justice issues new call for pioneers ... 5	* Youth Workshop planning session held in Modesto, CA ... 10	* News from permanent Bahá’í schools and institutes ... 16-17

Arc Projects contributions reach $26 million

To the followers of Bahá’u’lláh in every land

Contributions received for Mount Carmel Projects since launching Three Year Plan now total some $26 million. $48 million remain to be raised to meet goal of $74 million by Riḍván 1996.

Immense enterprise gathering momentum; construction International Teaching Center commenced; Center for Study of Texts progressing with full force, rising in certain areas beyond fourth level; Terrace immediately below Shrine already gives preview beauty final completion; work other lower Terraces advancing rapidly amidst expanse of green; upper Terraces taking shape on steep slopes above Shrine. Entire project stands in urgent need increased support through mighty self-sacrificing effort during remaining months Three Year Plan.

Ardently praying Sacred Threshold worldwide response this challenging juncture raising Administrative Center God’s holy Faith.

The Universal House of Justice December 30, 1994 [Page 2]

Olya's story touches thousands; 110 declare

As of November 9, at least 110 people had embraced the Faith as the result of a 43-day U.S. speaking tour by Olya Roohizadegan, author of Olya's Story.

They include 70 new Bahá’ís in California, 20 in Arizona, 10 in Reno, Nevada, and 10 in Chicago. Most were seekers the friends had been nurturing and for whom Mrs. Roohizadegan's visit was the final impetus they needed to declare their belief.

The impact of her visit, however, has been far greater than numbers. In the words of Derek Cockshut, a staff member at the Bosch Bahá’í School:

"Olya really has been a light to show us the way to teach the Cause of God by love. Her story, the triumph of love over bigotry, hatred and intolerance, is a miracle of the spirit of the Blessed Beauty, Bahá’u’lláh."

In all, about 4,000 people heard Mrs. Roohizadegan's account of the persecution of Bahá’ís in Iran. She spoke tirelessly at firesides, lectured to classes, gave media interviews, and held book signings.

Everywhere she went, local efforts paved the way and made it a genuine grassroots teaching event.

Bosch, via an earmarked donation, paid for one-third of her air fare to and from London, with the remaining two-thirds paid by two of the larger local Spiritual Assemblies. The cost of her internal flights also was underwritten by the communities.

Publicity and events, likewise, were locally conceived, planned and financed. San Diego spent more than $3,000 on television commercials; Santa Cruz County spent more than $500 on radio promotion.

Bosch planned one full weekend and one partial weekend around Mrs. Roohizadegan. She spoke to more than 400 people at the school.

In San Diego, a look of amazement and wonder came over the friends when Mrs. Roohizadegan asked them to greet their new Bahá’í sister, whom she had taught on the airplane flight from San Jose. On Mrs. Roohizadegan's return flight to London, the woman sitting next to her declared her belief as well.

An amusing incident took place in San Diego. A young woman decided to enroll after Mrs. Roohizadegan spoke to her university sociology class, but a friend cautioned her against this. Eventually, the young woman turned to her friend and said, "You're my friend, but this is my religion, so I'm signing the card."

One woman who had not met Mrs. Roohizadegan said to a staff member at Bosch that she understood Olya was a dynamic speaker. She looked surprised when she was gently informed that Olya was a spiritual speaker.

When the afternoon meeting with Counselors, Auxiliary Board members, Bahá’í youth and other friends was over, that same woman, tears streaming down her face, sought out the staff member and said, "I understand what you meant."

Bahá’ís in Reno organized the ultimate day of activity, planning six events including the filming of a one-hour documentary at a local television station in front of an invited audience of area dignitaries.

A movingly beautiful meeting in San Ramon, California, was attended by 230 people and led to six declarations. At one point Mrs. Roohizadegan summoned from the audience the brother of Táhirih Arjumandí Síyávushí, one of the 10 Bahá’í women executed in Shíráz on June 18, 1983. No one in the area had known of his loss.

The list of newspaper articles generated by Mrs. Roohizadegan's U.S. visit reads like a "who's who" of West Coast print media, including the Los Angeles Times and such other highly regarded newspapers as the San Jose Mercury News, the Phoenix Gazette and the Arizona Republic.

A typical impact was on Conejo Valley, California. The News Chronicle, the largest newspaper in the area, carried a large front-page article with a color photograph of Mrs. Roohizadegan and Mahyad, the daughter of martyr Túbá Zá’irpúr. Four other newspapers in the area reprinted the article.

The community's report of the interview related that "Olya and Mahyad met each other for the first time in front of the reporter and photographer. Olya, Mahyad, the reporter and photographer were crying during most of the interview, which lasted longer than even we anticipated."

The report ends with: "The flame of love, dedication, sacrifice and service to the Faith that was carried by Olya rekindled the fire of the love for Bahá’u’lláh in the hearts of the friends in an area that is known to be a center of materialism."

Two youths put diversity to use in coordinating big conference

Two young people are making Utah Bahá’í history.

Shaida Talebreza, the first Bahá’í youth from Utah to complete a year of service at Hospital Bayán in Honduras, has returned home, and Suzanne O'Toole, the first Bahá’í Youth Service Corps volunteer to come to Utah, has arrived from Limerick, Ireland.

They now will have even more in common as they coordinate planning for a large-scale conference in Salt Lake City this summer.

Ms. O'Toole arrived December 10 to a thrilled Bahá’í community. Out-of-the-way Utah sees few traveling teachers and has never had a year of service volunteer, so the local Bahá’ís were curious as to why she chose the state.

In a letter to the Spiritual Assembly of Salt Lake City, she responded: "Well, that's just it. Of all the places in the world, where does one go? This is a question that hung over me ever since I decided I wanted to serve the Faith abroad.

"I looked through atlases, I looked through lists about where to go and I prayed, but no one place stuck out. Then early one morning two Mormon missionaries knocked on my door. God works in mysterious ways!"

Ms. Talebreza returned from Honduras the day after Suzanne arrived. After a quite different but equally rewarding lifestyle in the villages of Central America, she was happy to hear that such grand-scale teaching activities were being planned for Utah and that she would have something exciting to work on.

While in Honduras, she worked as an aide at Hospital Bayán. She assisted in surgery, helped to deliver babies, and pitched in wherever else she was needed. She even learned how to carry a bag of rice on her head over long distances.

Whole villages in Honduras are Bahá’í, and the youth would go there to hold deepenings for adults and classes for the children. Ms. Talebreza is now fluent in Spanish and already has given a fireside in that language since returning to Utah.

Now the two youth are jumping in to coordinate the work of a regional committee planning the Color Me Human Conference.

The Bahá’ís are co-sponsoring the conference with other organizations in the community "to promote the nobility of all people while teaching appreciation of our differences." The event is "dedicated to raising the first generation of prejudice-free children."

A week of teaching activities starting June 24 will precede the conference. Bahá’í Youth Workshops from around the country have been invited to help spread the message of Bahá’u’lláh and to invite people to the conference.

Bahá’í Youth Workshops that are interested in taking part can call 801-582-3135 or 801-582-2026, or write to Color Me Human Conference, P.O. Box 58305, Salt Lake City, UT 84158-0305.

Consistency brings success in Chamblee

The little town of Chamblee, Georgia, is turning to the Faith in a big way, thanks to the consistent efforts of many Atlanta-area Bahá’ís.

Consistency is the key that has led to a large number of recent declarations in this primarily Cambodian and Vietnamese enclave northeast of the city.

Bahá’í teachers had been going into Chamblee off and on for at least five years, with some success. But it was when the Bahá’ís began weekly visits to new believers, usually on Sundays, that large-scale growth took place.

Many times there would be guests in the home, and the visit would turn into a fireside. This led to new declarations and new visits.

In this way the community grew rapidly. Its diversity also has been enhanced by a Hispanic family and an interracial—African-American and Cambodian—couple.

Now the Bahá’ís are working to consolidate these gains. A task force from a neighboring Spiritual Assembly has set five goals:

• regular meetings of the Spiritual Assembly of Chamblee, which is made up of new believers, by Ridván;
• regular Feasts by Ridván;
• regular children's classes;
• a special focus on women; and
• prayer books for everyone in the community.

Teaching will continue as well, of course, with new believers carrying on much of the work. In fact, a Vietnamese youth from Chamblee is making teaching trips to the Vietnamese in Griffin, Georgia, about an hour and a half away. [Page 3]

TEACHING

TOTAL ENROLLMENTS
December ............................. 171
Year to date ........................ 1486

THE FUND

(As of November 30, 1994)

	YTD Goal	YTD Actual
National Bahá’í Fund	$7,466,667	$5,444,056
International Bahá’í Fund		$281,794
Arc Projects Fund		$2,783,788
Continental Bahá’í Fund		$121,487
Other Earmarked		$211,361
Subtotal/Int’l Funds	$7,116,667	$3,398,430
Total/All Funds	$14,583,334	$8,842,486

	1993-94	1994-95
National Bahá’í Fund	$5,287,676	$5,444,056
International Bahá’í Fund	$464,698	$281,794
Arc Projects Fund	$1,358,196	$2,783,788
Continental Bahá’í Fund	$178,168	$121,487
Other Earmarked	$266,874	$211,361
Subtotal/Int’l Funds	$2,267,936	$3,398,430
Total/All Funds	$7,555,612	$8,842,486

National Bahá’í Fund

• Where we are: $5,444,056
• Where we need to be: $7,466,667

All International Funds

• Where we are: $3,398,430
• Where we need to be: $7,116,667

Arc Projects Fund

• Where we are: $2,783,788
• Where we were last year: $1,358,196

International Bahá’í Fund

• Where we are: $281,794
• Where we were last year: $464,698

Continental Bahá’í Fund

• Where we are: $121,487
• Where we were last year: $178,168

South Dekalb center will serve SED project, Bahá’í community

The Bahá’ís of South Dekalb County, Georgia, have a dual bounty.

The Spiritual Assembly has purchased a building to function both as a Bahá’í Center for the communities outside Atlanta and as home for a social and economic development project known as the Family Unity Institute.

Half of the four-acre corner lot holds an auditorium that seats 300, a classroom/office wing, a separate fellowship building, and an outdoor recreation area including a basketball court. The remaining two acres will be developed as prayer and meditation gardens.

Since the purchase was finalized December 27, the Bahá’í community of 65 has been galvanized into action. Volunteers have been working to transform the buildings for Bahá’í use and to plant greenery donated by a local nursery.

Plans are to dedicate the Bahá’í Center at Naw-Rúz and the Family Unity Institute the Sunday after that.

The Institute is an outgrowth of consultation between the Bahá’í community and Mottahedeh Development Services Inc., the social and economic development agency of the National Spiritual Assembly.

A nine-person board made up of three representatives from MDS, three from the Spiritual Assembly of South DeKalb County, and three from other area Assemblies will direct the work of the Institute.

Non-profit 501(c)(3) status enables the Institute to seek and accept outside funding so the venture can be sustainable over a long period.

Projects of the Institute likely will center on the prevention of youth violence, with components including moral development, mentoring and recreation. The Institute will be kept distinct from the Bahá’í Center so participants do not feel pressured to learn about the Faith.

One goal of the project is to serve as a model. MDS will document the Institute’s progress to aid other communities in learning how to finance and operate similar facilities.

Vacation spent teaching

One of the 28 children’s classes held during the weeklong Edna Ford Teaching Project in the Huasteca area of Mexico.

Several Bahá’ís from New Mexico and Texas spent December vacation teaching among the Huasteca and Nahuatl indigenous peoples of Mexico.

Their trip was dedicated to Edna Ford, a longtime pioneer to Mexico and exemplary Bahá’í teacher who passed away last year at the age of 94.

Recent visits by Mike Pietrzak and other teachers had been blessed with 100 enrollments, and follow-up visits were needed.

The teachers gathered in Edinburg, Texas, for two days of orientation and preparation before taking a nine-hour bus trip to the state of San Luis Potosí.

They learned Bahá’í songs in Spanish from a Bahá’í couple in Edinburg. They also deepened on the Tablets of the Divine Plan, Advent of Divine Justice and Citadel of Faith concerning Mexico and the importance of teaching the indigenous. Then the team members memorized passages from the Writings suggested by Shoghi Effendi for those journeying through Latin America.

Once in the ‎moutainous mountainous‎ region where the indigenous peoples grow oranges and coffee, the teachers divided into four teams, each concentrating on a village where many Bahá’ís already lived. Host families provided hospitality and cooked the simple food that the team brought for its stay.

They set out each morning to hold deepenings and children’s classes in Bahá’í homes. Daily teaching also was included; as a result 36 adults, youth and children were enrolled in the Faith.

Two meetings especially for Bahá’í women were conducted on the important role of women in the family and society.

A fifth team made a two-day visit to the nearby town of Axtla de la Terrazas to open that locality in honor of Edna Ford. The team met and taught numerous families in homes, the marketplace and the plaza, and the response was warm and positive.

One man, from the Nahuatl village of Ayotoxco, declared his belief in Bahá’u’lláh after the team presented the Message to him and his wife using a photo-teaching book.

Before leaving the area, the teachers spent a day with Bahá’ís in Ciudad Valles, a city of 300,000 one hour north, where six more people enrolled in the Faith.

Edinburg plan in new phase

The Spiritual Assembly of Edinburg, Texas, recently began a new three-month phase of teaching activity.

In the latest phase, the community seeks to:

• bring at least 19 people representing 19 families into the Faith;
• continue weekly direct teaching activities in receptive neighborhoods;
• begin and maintain a weekly children’s class in the nearby colonia of Hoehn, using Ruhi training for teachers of children’s classes as a preparation;
• hold a public meeting that commemorates the 100th anniversary of the Faith in America;
• continue community firesides every Saturday evening; and
• encourage youth and campus activities.

Each teaching phase opens with an evaluation of the previous phase and consultation with the local Bahá’í community to maintain or modify goals and activities for the next three months.

Thus far, the weekly children’s class in Hoehn attracts between nine and 15 children. The teaching teams have identified several families in the colonia who show a warm interest in the message of Bahá’u’lláh.

Keeping the teaching process as the priority of the community’s activities has given the Bahá’í community of Edinburg a broader vision of the Faith and a focus for community members to channel their energies. The plan also encourages individual initiative.

Edinburg is home to the University of Texas Pan American. One goal of the local Spiritual Assembly is to find a Bahá’í homefront pioneer to enroll at UTPA and concentrate on teaching the Faith on this receptive campus while taking classes. UTPA draws thousands of students from throughout the south valley and from neighboring Mexico.

For more information about Edinburg’s phased-teaching plan, or about attending UTPA, write to the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Edinburg, Steve Ramirez, secretary, P.O. Box 3030, Edinburg, TX 78040. Phone 210-381-8945. [Page 4]

What Do You See?

by Nancy Coker

The world can seem very ugly. People make a lot of mistakes. If we spend all our time looking at this ugliness, we would be very sad. Bahá’u’lláh tells us, instead, to look upon His beauty.

One way we do this is by ignoring each other’s mistakes. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says, “Do not look at the shortcomings of anybody; see with the sight of forgiveness. The imperfect eye beholds imperfections. The eye that covers faults looks toward the Creator of souls.”*

It’s easy to see the faults of others. Most of us have had a lot of practice. Now let’s practice seeing only good.

The Guardian, Shoghi Effendi, says people should be “governed by love, unity, forgiveness and a sin-covering eye.”**

“O MAN OF TWO VISIONS! Close one eye and open the other. Close one to the world and all that is therein, and open the other to the hallowed beauty of the Beloved.”

—Bahá’u’lláh, The Hidden Words, Persian, #12

“Concentrate all the thoughts of your heart on love and unity. When a thought of war comes, oppose it by a stronger thought of peace. A thought of hatred must be destroyed by a more powerful thought of love.”

—‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 29

Make a Sin-Covering Eye Patch

1. Copy the eye patch pattern onto a piece of paper. 2. Make your patch any color you like. Draw on flowers, hearts or whatever will remind you of the beauty of Bahá’u’lláh. 3. Cut out your patch. 4. Poke a hole on either side of the patch in the places marked. 5. Thread one 12” piece of string or yarn into each hole and tie it on.

Cover one eye with your sin-covering eye patch. Use your imagination. Suddenly all the ugliness is gone! You can’t see a fault in anyone! Everywhere you look, you see God’s beauty.

Walk around and practice using your eye patch. If you see a bad behavior or action, find a good quality to replace it.

If your sister is being mean, but all you see is a beautiful soul, you will be nice to her. You can be nice even though she’s yelling. This will surprise her so much, that she may act nicely, too.

If you see a fault in another person, put on your eye patch. Remind yourself to look for a stronger good quality.

Illustrated by Carla Marlene

*The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 93 **Directives of the Guardian, p. 41

Reprinted from Brilliant Star, In the Darkest Hour, November-December 1994

Order Now!

Give the gift that teaches all year long!

Ayyám-i-Há Gift Subscription!

Purchase a Subscription from Bahá’í Subscriber Service:

Please enter my subscription for (check box)

• $15 United States, one year (six issues)
• $28 United States, two years
• $15 All other countries, surface mail, one year
• $28 All other countries, surface mail, two years
• $26 Airmail, one year
• $50 Airmail, two years

Bahá’í ID # _________________________________

Name ________________________________________

Street ______________________________________

City & State ________________________________

Zip/Postal code _____________________________

Payment must be enclosed. Canadian/International orders enclose international money order or bank cheque drawn on a U. S. bank in U. S. dollars. To charge your VISA/MC account, give number, expiration date, and name on account. Telephone orders accepted.

VISA/MC # ___________________________________

Exp. Date ______ Name _______________________

Make check out and mail to: Bahá’í Subscriber Service Bahá’í National Center Wilmette, IL 60091 1-708-733-3453

Purchase Single Issues, Back Issues, Special Editions and Bulk Orders from Bahá’í Distribution Service:

Five or more copies of any one issue cost $2.00 ea. One to four copies cost $3.00 ea. Back issues available in limited quantities.

Call: 1-800-999-9019

You may add your single or bulk issue order to the BDS order form on another page in this newspaper.

Give a Resource Library to Your Child’s Bahá’í Class Teacher!

Issues Available: In the Darkest Hour ND 94 Putting the Vision into Action! SO 94 Starship: Life of the Báb JA 94 Courage MA 94 Families JF 94 My Part of the Plan ‎ND 9 ND 93‎ Being Leaders SO 93 Life’s Journey: Purpose of Life MJ 93 From Racism to Unity MA 93 The Life of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá ND 92 The 1992 World Congress SO 92 Bahá’u’lláh Special Edition 1991 The Covenant Special edition 1992 The Kitáb-i-Aqdas Special Edition 1993 From Gnats to Eagles Special Edition 1994 [Page 5]

House of Justice issues new pioneer call

On November 10, the Universal House of Justice addressed all National Spiritual Assemblies with an update on the needs of the Faith worldwide, now that “the new pattern adopted for the movement of pioneers and traveling teachers has become well established in the Bahá’í community.”

The categories that follow “give an indication of the particular types of needs that exist in the Bahá’í world today. Believers responding to the call of the Universal House of Justice can review the information…and bearing in mind their own particular experience, inclinations and possibilities, make their choice through prayer and consultation.”

Information on the specific needs of many of these countries is available from the Office of Pioneering at the Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette IL 60091 (phone 708-733-3508; fax 708-733-3509).

CATEGORY 1

The following are countries and territories where there are now especially fertile opportunities for the rapid spread of the Faith that must be urgently met.

Africa Benin, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Guinea Bissau

Americas Nicaragua

Asia Armenia, Asiatic Russia including Sakhalin, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, ‎Kirgystan Kyrgyzstan‎, Mongolia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan

Europe Albania, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Ukraine

CATEGORY 2

The following are countries and territories where the Faith is established, but pioneers are needed to stimulate the process of growth and to assist in the opening of new centers.

Africa Bophuthatswana*, Botswana, Burkina, Burundi, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Ciskei*, Gabon, The Gambia, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Namibia, Niger, Réunion, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, St. Helena, Tanzania, Transkei*, Uganda, Venda

Americas Argentina, Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao, Bahamas, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Dominica, East Leeward Islands, Easter Island, Falkland Islands, French Guiana, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Jamaica, ‎Juan Fernandes Islands Juan Fernández Islands‎, Martinique, Mexico, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, West Leeward Islands

Asia Andaman and Nicobar Islands, South Korea, Ogasawara Islands, Sri Lanka, Thailand

Australasia Christmas Island, Cook Islands, Eastern Caroline Islands, Fiji Islands, Kiribati, Mariana Islands, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Western Caroline Islands

Europe Andorra, Azores, Belgium, Channel Islands, Corsica, Cyprus, Denmark, Elba, Faroe Islands, Finland, Gibraltar, Greece, Liechtenstein, Madeira, Malta, Monaco, Portugal, San Marino, Sardinia, Sicily, Spitzbergen

CATEGORY 3

The following are countries and territories where the process of expansion and consolidation has a significant momentum, but there is a need for pioneers who can undertake specific tasks such as arousing the interest of prominent people, strengthening the communities in certain areas, or helping with social and economic development projects.

Africa Cameroon, Chad, Congo Republic, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Americas Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela

Asia Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Macau, Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Ryukyu Islands, Taiwan

Australasia Papua New Guinea, Samoa

Europe Canary Islands, Iceland

CATEGORY 4

The following are countries and territories where pioneers are greatly needed, but entry is difficult because of restrictions on Bahá’í activity, lack of security, or other circumstances. These conditions present a need for believers who will resourcefully seek out opportunities for pioneering. Any believer interested in pioneering or traveling teaching to particularly sensitive areas should contact the Bahá’í World Center as indicated below.

Africa Angola, Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Liberia, Mauritania, Mozambique, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan, Togo, Zaire

Americas Cuba, Haiti, St. Pierre and Miquelon

Asia Afghanistan, Bhutan, Brunei, Indonesia, North Korea, Laos, Maldives, Myanmar, Nepal, Tajikistan, Vietnam

Australasia French Polynesia, Wallis and ‎Fortuna Futuna‎ and the Loyalty Islands

Europe Macedonia, Yugoslavia

• The recent political changes in South Africa have effected a complete reabsorption of the so-called homelands into the one Republic. Similarly, as of Ridván 1995, there will be one National Spiritual Assembly for the entire area. However, until then, responses to the pioneer and traveling teaching needs of Bophuthatswana, Ciskei and Transkei should be addressed to the Spiritual Assemblies of these areas.

House of Justice announces unique opportunity for service in Vietnam

On November 1, 1994 the Universal House of Justice announced a unique opportunity in Vietnam. “...the Government of Vietnam and the representative of the Bahá’í International Community have signed a Memorandum of Understanding which provides for the Bahá’ís to supply Vietnam with 50 teachers of English for five years. Although our contract with the Government of Vietnam is for five years, volunteers need serve only one, to be replaced with new volunteers as necessary. ...These teachers will be under the direction of the Government and will be sent to various localities throughout the country. The Government of Vietnam will provide accommodations and some small assistance, such as a bicycle for each.”

This opportunity has been given the highest priority at this time. We encourage adults and youth to participate. “The House of Justice anticipates that many youth could be available for a year to undertake this service. Volunteers need not be highly qualified as teachers of English; an educated person with an aptitude for teaching and whose mother tongue is English may be quite acceptable, assisted ideally by a short course on teaching English as a second language.” We urge you to act without hesitation or delay. Let us know whether you are able to rise to this exciting challenge. Contact the Office of Pioneering, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091. Tel: (708) 733-3508 Fax: (708) 733-3509

Overseas

Upcoming events, activities

Australia: Now through February 26: Collis Featherstone Teaching Project, designed to initiate the process of entry by troops.

Albania/Bulgaria/Romania: A European Regional Bahá’í Conference with the theme “Fostering a United Clarity of Vision: challenges of the rapid expansion and consolidation of the Faith in the Balkans” and with focus on the “possibilities and needs of Albania, Bulgaria and Romania” will be hosted by the Bahá’í community of Albania from June 29-July 2.

Cyprus: In furthering their goal of reaching people of capacity during the Three Year Plan, The National Spiritual Assembly of Cyprus has invited Bahá’ís who are experts in specific fields of knowledge (such as education, medicine, history, etc.) for short visits. The intent is to organize special events to which such Cypriots of capacity may be invited. Bahá’ís planning their pilgrimage may wish to consider stopping in Cyprus in conjunction with their trip.

Harrisburg Bahá’ís in Interfaith Thanksgiving Service

The Interreligious Forum of Greater Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, of which the Spiritual Assembly of Harrisburg is a member, sponsored this year’s sixth annual Interfaith Thanksgiving Service.

More than 350 people took part in the event whose program included readings from the scriptures of various religions with a quotation from Bahá’u’lláh, songs of thanksgiving by two choirs and a soloist, liturgical dancers, and a talk by the state director of the Human Rights Commission.

The program ended with the Bahá’í prayer “Blessed Is the Spot” read in English, Spanish and Hungarian and chanted in Persian.

Bahá’ís play leading role in ‘Unity ’94’ seminar on racism at Springfield, Massachusetts, college

Bahá’ís played a prominent role October 27 in a seminar entitled “Unity ’94: A Dialogue on Racism” at the Springfield (Massachusetts) Technical Community College.

The morning session included keynote addresses by two Bahá’ís, Dr. Paul Herron of the University of Tennessee Medical School and Dr. John Woodall, a psychiatrist at Harvard University, and a panel on which they were joined by two other Bahá’ís, Sharon Davis and Nathan Rutstein.

They were among a number of Bahá’ís who served as facilitators at afternoon workshops including Damon Tempey of Detroit; Rita Starr and Charles Young of Chicago; Tod and Greta Rutstein of Baltimore; and Tod Ewing and Nancy Songer of Columbia, South Carolina.

The more than 600 guests were welcomed by Andrew Scibelli, president of the college, and Mayor Robert Markel of Springfield. Ty Joubert, president of Community United Way of the Pioneer Valley, served as master of ceremonies. [Page 6]

Shoghi Effendi:99

Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith The Sign of God On Earth VT $33.00#

This video recounts the life of the beloved Guardian, Shoghi Effendi Rabbání, from his birth March 1, 1987, through his passing to the Abhá Kingdom on November 5, 1957. Amatu’l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum shares with us her experience and vivid memories of the lifetime of the beloved Guardian. This remarkable moving history is presented in the following segments: Birth of the Guardian; The Guardian in Switzerland; Carmel, the Mountain of God; The Writings of Shoghi Effendi; Shoghi Effendi and the Greatest Holy Leaf; The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh; The Guardian's Attraction to Art and Music; Happiness From Servants of the Faith; The Pilgrim Table; and The Passing of the Guardian. Also featured are rare photos and a film of the beloved Guardian.

43 minutes Badlyan Productions, Inc.

WORLD CITIZENSHIP

World Citizenship Shoghi Effendi GUARDIAN I OF THE BAHÁ’Í FAITH THE SIGN OF GOD ON EARTH A Global Ethic for Sustainable Development PA $1.00

This concept paper was prepared for the recent session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development. It proposes that fostering the concept of world citizenship is an extremely practical way to promote sustainable development. It recommends the incorporation of this principle into education programs and public awareness campaigns aimed at promoting sustainable development and suggests how this might be accomplished. Ideal for use with World Federalists, UN associations, educational agencies, non-governmental organizations, and groups planning activities to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the United Nations.

10pp., 8-1/2" x 11" Bahá’í International Commmunity

Dimensions in Spirituality

Reflections on the Meaning of Spiritual Life and Transformation In Light of the Bahá’í Faith by J.A. McLean SC $21.95

Dimensions in Spirituality offers the reader personal reflections and analysis of the writings of the Bahá’í Faith, combined with insights gleaned from spiritual psychology, philosophical theology, and the world's religions in order to map out dimensions in spirituality. The author offers to the contemporary seeker insights into the search for truth, the meaning of prophetic faith and belief, prayer and meditation, finding meaning in adversity, the meaning of spirituality and transformation, the place of divine and human love in spiritual life, and the dynamics of spiritual growth.

6" x 9-1/4", 336 pages, contents, acknowledgements, foreword, Introduction, conclusion, appendix, bibliograpghy, notes & references, index George Ronald, Publisher

DIMENSIONS SPIRITUALITY JA MCLEAN

LOVE

Love LOVE FROM THE WORDS ABDULRAHA

Jewels From the Words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá SC $5.95

An inexpensive gift book created to empower the friends to share the Faith in a beautiful and dignified way. Love is a collection of the inspiring words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Love is printed on fine paper and features large print and specially commissioned photographs. A wonderful gift for any occasion. The short but profound extracts are easy to read and memorize, and will be welcomed by those who seek spiritual guidance, comfort, and inspiration.

5-7/8" x 5-7/8", 48pp., photographs Bahá’í Publishing Trust United Kingdom

Freefalling

by Red Grammer CD $15.00 CS $10.00

This recording for adults exquisitely captures Red Grammer's exhilarating, soulful voice on eleven very special songs, nine of which are self-penned or collaborative efforts with Kathy Grammer. Braving his busy touring schedule, Red and his co-producer, John Guth, have crafted a work that carries a unique power to lift the heart, delight the spirit, and challenge the soul. The combination of Red's stunning vocal ability and the Grammers' magnificent songs make this recording a listening experience no one should miss.

45 minutes Red Note Records

FREE ALLINO

FRIENDSHIP

Friendship Jewels From the Words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá SC $5.95

Friendship is a collection of the inspiring words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá on the theme of friendship. Friendship is printed on fine paper and features large print and specially commissioned photographs. A wonderful gift for any occasion. The Master's words demonstrate the meaning of true friendship: that we should express our good will in deeds not words, should overlook the faults of others, and should be ready to sacrifice all for our friends.

5-7/8" x 5-7/8", 48pp., photographs Bahá’í Publishing Trust - United Kingdom

Red Grammer Hold Me Tonight These Are The Times Have Seen Sorrow Cotta Be Love Tonight's A Night For Love Free Falling Leader Of The Band Here's To You Rounders You Think I'm Crazy Lonely For You One Family

The Story of Riaz Redfin

by Jennifer Lemon SC $4.95

The Story of Riaz Redfin is the story of a shy young fish who finds self-confidence. Riaz is miserable, lonely, and shy on his first day of school but learns that there are advantages to being small and he can do things bigger fish can not. The Story of Riaz Redfin is part of a series of books that uses stories about animals to impart simple values and models for ethical behavior while entertaining children. Ideally suited for children ages 2-7.

10" x 8-1/4", 12pp. Bahá’í Publications Australla

The Riaz Story Redfin

1995 Calendars Are Available

Multifaith Calendar-$9.50 Bahá’í History Calendar-$7.50 Bahá’í Wall Calendar-$2.95 Bahá’í Datebook-$2.95 Bahá’í Pocket Calendar 10/pk.-$2.25 [Page 7]

COMING IN MARCH

GOD PASSES BY

RESERVE YOUR COPIES TODAY “MASTER KEY” HARDCOVER $13.00#

Songs of the Ancient Beauty Vol. II

conducted by Tom Price CD $17.00# CS $11.95#

Since its release in 1992, Songs of the Ancient Beauty has become one of the most popular recordings in Bahá’í history. Volume II contains an entirely new collection of ‎a capella a cappella‎ (unaccompanied) choral music set to the writings of the faith. The recording contains an outstanding collection of music in English, Persian, French, Arabic, and Hindi by such composers as Ravi Shankar, Graham Major, Tom Price, Niki Manavi and others. The professional quality of this recording makes it suitable for radio broadcasts and other proclamation purposes as well as for feasts, holy days, and other Bahá’í gatherings. One of the finest Bahá’í recordings available today. 50 min. Global Music Inc.

Vineyard of the Lord

A Perspective on Four Years of Developments of the Projects of the Arc and Terraces on Mount Carmel VT NTSC (U.S. VERSION) $23.00 VT PAL $25.00 VT SECAM $25.00

Vineyard of the Lord brings alive the exciting developments taking place in the very heart of God’s Holy Mountain, from the commencement of the projects of the Arc and Terraces in 1990 until the present time. It contains valuable, detailed, and current information on the designs and the construction of the projects. It includes interviews with Mr. Husayn Amanat, architect of the Arc buildings, and Mr. Fariburz Sahba, designer of the Terraces of the Shrine of the Báb. Vineyard of the Lord is beautifully packaged with a full-color jacket and hard case. Please specify desired format when ordering. 45 minutes The Universal House of Justice

A Key to Loving

by Betty Frost SC $9.95

Why is it so difficult to maintain a loving, creative relationship with the person we have chosen as a life partner? Or harmonious relationships with our own family or colleagues at work? If love is the “first principle of the divine teaching,” why is it such a feat to be able to love? How can we deal with anger and hurt feelings? Find out in A Key to Loving. 5" x 7-3/4", 72pp, contents, references George Ronald, Publisher

The Bahá’í World

Volume 19 (XVIII) 1983-86 prepared under supervision of the Universal House of Justice HC $45.00

Contains articles on the completion of the Seven Year Plan; the Hands of the Cause of God; the dedication of the House of Worship in Samoa; the construction of the House of Worship in India; Bahá’í and military service; the Bahá’í Calendar; In Memoriam; Bahá’í bibliography; Bahá’í directory; music; verse; and essays. 6-1/2" x 9-5/8", 813pp., contents, Introduction, photographs, Illustrations World Centre Publications

A Bahá’í Marriage Programme

by the Marriage and Family Development Committee SC $4.95

A booklet examining practical issues of marriage such as how decisions are made and what strengthens or weakens a couple’s spiritual bond. Ideal for group discussion. Appropriate for non-Bahá’ís. 5-3/4" x 8-1/4", 39 pp., contents, Introduction, references Bahá’í Publications Australia

The Environment

Our Common Heritage edited by Jimmy Seow and Richard Bell SC $12.95

The Environment: Our Common Heritage presents the reader with multi-disciplinary perspectives of the global environmental crisis facing us all now and in the years to come. 5-1/2" x 8-1/2", 144pp., contents, biographical information on authors Bahá’í Publications Australia

SHIP TO __________________________________________________________________ AUJ_

ITEM	QUANTITY	COST
FOR ORDERS SHIPPED OUTSIDE THE U.S., PLEASE ADD 15% (MIN. $3.00)	TOTAL
TENNESSEE RESIDENTS PLEASE ADD 7.75% SALES TAX

DAYTIME TELEPHONE ( ) __________________________________________________

PAYMENT METHOD —CASH —CHECK —CHARGE ($10.00 MINIMUM—VISA, MASTER, AMEX) __________________________________________________________________ EXPIRATION DATE __________

Bahá’í Distribution Service · 5397 Wilbanks Dr., Hixson, TN 37343 · 1-800-999-9019 · Fax: 1-615-843-0836 · Internet: [Page 8]

CLASSIFIEDS

Classified notices in The American Bahá’í are published free of charge as a service to the Bahá’í 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 GREEN ACRE Bahá’í School is seeking applicants for its 1995 summer staff. Opportunities for service are available in a number of areas. Those with little or no experience as well as skilled professionals are encouraged to apply. Positions include assistant cooks, dining room help, dishwashers, housekeepers, groundskeepers, general help, children’s teachers, recreation leader, librarian, office assistant, and gardeners. Applicants should be available from June 19 through August 27; however, shorter terms of service can be considered in some cases. While full-time volunteer service in exchange for room and board is most desirable, provisions for additional compensation can be made. For information and/or an application, please phone the Green Acre Bahá’í School, 207-439-7200, or fax 207-439-7202, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Eastern time, or send a letter to Administrator, Green Acre Bahá’í School, 188 Main St., Eliot, ME 03903.

PUBLIC SAFETY Officers sought at the Bahá’í National Center in Wilmette, Illinois. Requires at least a two-year commitment for training and service. Ensuring the safety and security of National Center staff, volunteers and visitors, plus facilities at the House of Worship, National Center offices, Bahá’í Publishing Trust, the Bahá’í Home and other properties is our responsibility. Our standards are high for professional conduct, demeanor and appearance. If you are skilled in interpersonal relations, oral and written English, report writing, and have verifiable good experience working alone or as part of a team, you may be qualified. Often, new officers are assigned to the night shift (11 p.m. to 7 a.m.), which can be a rewarding experience for daytime students at nearby colleges or universities. If you are interested, either now or in a future appointment, please contact the Department of Human Resources, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091, or phone 708-733-3429.

THE LOUHELEN Bookstore Café and Twin Oaks Dining Room are new additions to the operation of the Louhelen Bahá’í School. Both offer improved service to those attending sessions at the school as well as to members of the general public. More volunteer staff are needed for these two operations. In particular, mature youth or adults are sought who are pursuing training or have career experience in the restaurant or hotel industries or other food service/hospitality-related professions. The possibility of internships exists for students who would wish to explore such options. While no cash stipends are available, full room and board are offered for those accepted to serve. Length of service is flexible, with service opportunities ranging from a few weeks to a year or more. For an application, contact Mrs. Penny Schmicker, volunteer services manager, Louhelen Bahá’í School, 3208 S. State Road, Davison, MI 48423. Phone 810-653-5033; fax 810-653-8850; INTERNET

THE LOUIS GREGORY Bahá’í Institute has vacancies for Youth Service Corps volunteers. Applications are sought from youth who desire to grow in the fields of service and obedience. Service areas include teaching—entry by troops; Radio Bahá’í—broadcasting, maintenance; teaching/deepening children; education center—tutoring, G.E.D. programs. For information, phone 803-558-5093, or fax 803-558-2921.

WANTED

WANTED: A copy of the book The Feathered Serpent (two copies, if available) by Tony Shearer and Vinson Brown, published by Naturegraph but now out of print. Please contact Donn Sayer, P.O. Box 6753, Towson, MD 21285.

WANTED: singers and musicians for a major conference to be held July 1-2 in Salt Lake City, Utah. The conference theme is “Color Me Human: Raising the First Generation of Prejudice-Free Children.” It will be open to Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís of all ages. Music will play a major role; a choir and orchestra are being assembled to provide music at all sessions and at a special evening concert. Please send a brief résumé of your musical experience with a tape showing your skills and range. Please indicate the instrument(s) you play and your vocal type (soprano, alto, tenor, bass). Send them to Nelson Leduc, Estates Drive, Bountiful, UT 84010. Inquiries may be made to 801-292-2387; e-mail

WANTED by Bahá’í pioneers and schools: books and other reading materials (Bahá’í, general fiction and non-fiction, dictionaries, etc. for all ages). No college textbooks are needed. For the names of pioneers and schools that need donations, please write to Vonnie Lincoln, Lyons, OR 97358, or phone 503-859-2390 (evenings). Please DO NOT send books to me.

PIONEERING (OVERSEAS)

EMPLOYMENT opportunities overseas. AFRICA: Ghana—superintendent of primary school. ‎Mauritánia Mauritania‎—nurse practitioner or physician’s assistant to work as medical officer for Peace Corps. Tanzania—urgent need for English teachers, computer teacher. AMERICAS: Chile—third-grade teacher. Guatemala—teachers. ASIA: Macau—teachers. Mongolia—urgent need for manager and assistant manager for an adventure travel and trekking company. Sakhalin—urgent need for teachers. Vietnam—English teachers. Korea—ESL/linguistics teacher. AUSTRALASIA: Marianas—teachers. EUROPE: Russia—English teacher. Eastern European EFL Fellow Program is providing funding for qualified individuals who wish to teach English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in eastern Europe. For more information, please contact the Office of Pioneering, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette IL 60091 (phone 708-733-3512; fax 708-733-3509).

PIONEERING (HOMEFRONT)

HELP RAISE a Spiritual Assembly in Campo, California, where there is one other Bahá’í family. Campo has clean water, fresh air, mountain living. For information, please contact David Varner, Campo, CA 91906-2015.

LOVELY little Los Lunas, New Mexico, needs homefront pioneers to help form its first local Spiritual Assembly. Los Lunas (pop. 4,000-plus), in the high desert (5,000 feet), is rich in Hispanic history. The Rio Grande River runs through the center of town, and the view of the mountains is beautiful. Los Lunas is 20 minutes from Albuquerque, Kirtland Air Force Base and the Sandia National Laboratory. Ideal for military retirees, teachers, nurses, doctors and those interested in teaching the Faith at nearby Indian pueblos and Reservations. Low-cost housing and cost of living is a plus. Write to the Bahá’í Group of Los Lunas, P.O. Box 463, Los Lunas, NM 87031, or phone 505-865-4379.

SHELBY COUNTY (near Memphis, Tennessee) needs homefront pioneers. Jobs are available; we know of a position open for a structural engineer. For more information, please phone James A. Homraie, 901-854-1332 or 901-797-8384.

HELP SAVE our Assembly! Kenosha, Wisconsin, a city blessed by the presence of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, needs homefront pioneers. Kenosha offers many opportunities—the University of Wisconsin/Parkside; Carthage College; Gateway Technical Institute, plus many job openings, low-cost housing, and equal access to Chicago and Milwaukee, both within 50 miles. For more information, write to the Bahá’ís of Kenosha, P.O. Box 4072, Kenosha, WI 53143, or phone Denise Behm-Rattigan, 414-657-7413, or Paul Voelz, 414-654-7814.

ARCHIVES

THE NATIONAL Bahá’í Archives is seeking, at the request of the Universal House of Justice, original letters written on behalf of the Guardian to the following individuals: Charles C. Weathers, D. Florence Weaver, Edythe Weidler, Elise Weil (died Yonkers, NY, 1945), Alexander Weintrob, Ida F. Weisse, Mrs. K.A. Welch, Beatrice Weller, Charles F. Weller, Bruce Wendell, Naomi Wendelmoot and Lydia G. Wentworth (died Brookline, MA, 1947). Anyone knowing family members or relatives who might have these letters from the Guardian is asked to contact the National Bahá’í Archives, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091 (phone 708-869-9039).

THE NATIONAL Bahá’í Archives has available several free information sheets on local archives and records. Any local Spiritual Assembly wishing a set is asked to send a request with a mailing address to the National Bahá’í Archives, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091 (phone 708-869-9039).

SCHOOLS AND CONFERENCES

ABSTRACTS are being invited from those who wish to present talks or papers at the second annual Conference on Bahá’í History sponsored by the Institute for Bahá’í Studies. The conference will be held June 16-18 at the Bahá’í National Center in Wilmette, Illinois. Its theme will be local community history. Those interested in making a presentation should submit a 500-word abstract (two double-spaced pages) describing the 20-minute talk or presentation. The deadline for submissions is Naw-Rúz (March 21), 1995. Registration is $50 and includes most meals. Information about accommodations will be available in a month or two. For more information, to submit extracts, or to register for the conference, contact Dr. Robert H. Stockman at the Institute for Bahá’í Studies, 1233 Central St., Evanston, IL 60201-1611 (phone 708-733-3425; fax 708-733-3563; e-mail ).

HUQUQU’LLÁH

Payments for Huqúqu’lláh should be made to “The Bahá’í Huqúqu’lláh Trust” and sent to one of the Trustees:

• Dr. Elsie Austin, 9039 Sligo Creek Parkway, Unit 612, Silver Spring, MD 20901 (phone 301-589-8481).
• Dr. Amin Banani, Santa Monica, CA 90402 (phone 310-394-5449).
• Dr. Daryush Haghighi, Rocky River, OH 44116 (phone 216-333-1506).

Inquiries regarding Huqúqu’lláh should be referred to one of the Trustees or to the Office of the Secretariat, Bahá’í Huqúqu’lláh Trust, Rocky River, OH 44116.

YOUTH ACTIVITIES

AUDITION call: attention youth (ages 18-25), the Diversity Dance Workshop, a multi-cultural performing troupe, is auditioning talented young people to perform with the DDW in front of school groups and communities throughout the Pacific Northwest—and beyond. DDW blends the energy and enthusiasm of youth with the dynamics of dance and music to teach the principles of racial harmony, equality and human dignity. To audition, phone Anna Powers, program director, 206-391-3303.

MISCELLANEOUS

SEEKERNET, a nationwide toll-free telephone communications system established by the Spiritual Assembly of New York City, is a success. Calls are pouring in as Seekernet rapidly builds its network of teachers who are dedicated to assuring that no souls “slip through the cracks” during entry by troops. With Seekernet, you can teach the Faith to anyone outside your community with the confidence that they will be nurtured toward declaration. Simply get their name, address and phone number and let them know that someone will be in touch with them. Then call 1-800-SEEKERNET and let us go to work. We’ll connect your seekers to the volunteer teacher nearest them, and provide you with periodic updates on their progress. More teachers are always needed—so call today!

BAHÁ’Í WOMEN who are textile artists are invited to take part in a world-wide campaign to exhibit the works of Bahá’í women at the fourth World Conference on Women to be held in Beijing, China, in 1995. The project is being coordinated by Vicki Hu Poirier on behalf of the Bahá’í International Community Office for the Advancement of Women. Works can include weaving, embroidery (small pieces), batik, surface painting, shisha work, appliqué, lace work or any other art form that uses fabric. Individual works from Bahá’í women around the world will be put together into a tapestry by Mrs. Poirier. Artists are asked to send their contributions to Mrs. Poirier at 1816 South Chapparo, Las Cruces, NM 88001. (Note: works must be received by the end of February 1995.)

ATTENTION all former Nashville (Tennessee) Bahá’ís—the Spiritual Assembly of Nashville celebrates its 60th anniversary in 1995. We are one of the many communities in the South that were brought into being through the efforts of the Hand of the Cause of God Louis G. Gregory. Plans are under way for a summer “homecoming” celebration, and we are looking for anyone and everyone who has ever been a part of the Bahá’í community of Nashville. Let us know where you are! We want to record your Nashville experiences and to invite you to attend this special celebration. For more information, contact Joyce Jackson, Mt. Juliet, TN 37122 (phone 615-758-3336). [Page 9]

Vanguard

Continued from page 1

friends came, hearts buoyed by the expectancy of this long-awaited spiritual convocation which, if nothing else, would allow a wide-ranging exchange of dialogue and artistry among a people who, in various stages of spiritual growth, are seeking to galvanize themselves into a single indivisible unit, stepping up to its own sacred task as framed in the Holy Text and in the writings of Shoghi Effendi.

Exactly two years from the date of the second Bahá’í World Congress, held in New York City in November 1992, about 600 Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í men, women, youth and children gathered in Chicago over the Thanksgiving weekend for this memorable event.

From its humble beginnings (one individual’s initiative) to the loud “trumpet blast” of its conclusion, the Vanguard of the Dawning Conference unfolded and spread its wings, eagle-like, across an expanse of centuries, embracing everyone present.

As each person’s unique and God-given contribution was laid before us, there came in rippling waves love, acceptance, self-esteem, respect, comfort, beauty, wonderment and, yes, astonishment.

We were greeted at the outset by these words of encouragement from the Universal House of Justice:

“The Universal House of Justice has received a fax dated November 3, 1994, from the Vanguard of the Dawning Conference task force and has asked us to say that it is very pleased to learn of your efforts and to assure you of its prayers in the Holy Shrines for the success of your conference, and that its participants may be divinely assisted to win fresh victories for the Cause of God.”

Each day of the conference was devoted to one of the three distinguished servants who were among the early members of the “spiritual vanguard” in the western hemisphere: Louis G. Gregory and Enoch Olinga, both of whom were Hands of the Cause of God, and Amoz Gibson, who served on the Universal House of Justice.

The highlights are almost too many to mention in so brief a report. Here is a broad overview of conference activities:

Day One

• An uplifting song, “Pupil of the Eye,” performed by Bahá’ís Kingsley and Suzanne Swan from Bermuda, opens the session, proudly telling African Americans their destiny.

• The Swans are followed by Dr. Robert C. Henderson, secretary-general of the National Spiritual Assembly, and Auxiliary Board member Robert Malouf, of Lebanese background, both of whom call for an end to prejudices of all kinds and exhort people of all backgrounds and colors to come together in unity so that a lasting peace can become a reality.

• More beautiful music is heard, this time from the Vanguard Gospel Choir directed by Eric Dozier, a former Baptist minister who embraced the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh almost as soon as he heard His Name.

• As a local television crew tapes comments from many participants, a wide range of workshops is held in the afternoon focusing on the many challenges presented by racism in America.

• The Vanguard Gospel Choir reappears to lift everyone’s spirits to the rafters with marvelous solo support from Mrs. Swan, pianist Sterling Glenn Sangoma from Detroit, and vocalist Sonia Hill, a new Bahá’í from LaGrange, Illinois, before Ernestine Berkey brings the session to a close with a powerful and electrifying talk on the Lesser Covenant.

Day Two

• More powerful and inspiring words, this time from Alberta Deas, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, and Bonnie Fitzpatrick Moore, who pioneered in 1979 to Bophuthatswana, South Africa.

• Colorful poetry by non-Bahá’í Dan McNeil, accompanied by Bahá’í pianist Joah Greengus, and a spectacular audio-visual presentation consisting of drawings of African Americans by Tom Feelings, a non-Bahá’í artist and professor at the University of South Carolina who is a two-time winner of the prestigious ‎Caldicott Caldecott‎ Medal for children’s book illustrations.

• An unforgettable evening program is centered around Counselor Wilma Ellis’ talk about the “higher ground” of racial unity and featuring outstanding performances by the Chicago Bahá’í Youth Workshop; the “Hands of Light” Choir; jazz pianist Roland Ashby; storyteller Priscilla Jeanne; and, again, the Vanguard Gospel Choir.

Day Three

• The session begins with a deep-down, soul-massaging chant by Wanda Abu of Chicago; a second chant, this one in Persian, by Payam Khalighi; and the song “Unite the Hearts of Thy Servants,” sung by Sandy Simmons with daughter Ayana nestled in her arms.

• After another inspiring talk, this one by Counselor Billy Roberts, Dalen Corazon offers a Native American blessing, sanctifying everything present: the Master’s photograph, the photographs and people onstage, the members of the audience, chanting the sacred words while a drum beat slowly and softly behind her.

• Afterward there is more poetry—by David Cooper, saluting the American Indian with “Native Man,” and Barbara Tally; compelling words by Joy DeGruy Leary in her address, “Comfort Ye My People,” before Counselor Ellis welcomes to the stage Greg Hunter, one of three new declarants at the conference.

• And, as a final jewel to crown the weekend’s events, George and Sharon Davis portray Louis and Louisa Gregory in Karen Sadar Watt’s dramatic sketch, “Loving Partners in Life.” Encouraged by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, this interracial couple married on September 27, 1912, and remained together for the rest of their lives.

Throughout the conference, youth played an indispensable role, from passing out fliers for the Saturday evening concert to offering guidance and help in many ways.

One youth, Errol Doris Jr. from LaGrange, designed the conference logo.

Special praise was given to Patricia Moss, the daughter of Dev Jeet Kaur Moss of Birmingham, Alabama, who spent all of the evening sessions with the children.

The Vanguard Task Force asks that accounts of teaching activities and victories be shared by writing to the Task Force at 6921 S. Halsted St., Chicago, IL 60621.

Publication

Continued from page 1

Second, the National Assembly has decided to invite the community to help defray the cost of producing this vital publication through voluntary earmarked contributions. The suggested yearly contribution is $20 per household, although any amount above or below that figure would be welcome.

The National Assembly wishes to emphasize that any donation to help underwrite the cost of producing The American Bahá’í is entirely voluntary, but expresses the hope that every believer will choose to support such a key element in our national communications network to the extent that he or she is able.

The newspaper will continue to be sent to all Bahá’í households, regardless of whether a donation has been received. The American Bahá’í has been provided free of charge since its inception in 1970, and that will not change; but in the present economic atmosphere it represents an expense that can no longer be fully covered by the National Fund’s general revenues. [Page 10]

EXCELLENCE IN ALL THINGS . . .

On October 3, Officer ROBERT LEE BERRY, a Bahá’í from St. Louis Park, Minnesota, was one of four members of the Minneapolis Police Department to receive the department’s Award of Valor for their heroism while responding to a fire in December 1993. “Despite intense smoke and flames,” the citation says, “the officers went into the building and kicked in the locked door to [the resident’s] apartment and pulled him to safety. Other residents and a family pet were also saved. Because these officers put themselves at great risk to save the lives of others, they are being awarded the Medal of Valor.”

MORTIMER BALDWIN, a 75-year-old Bahá’í from Grover Beach, California, who was born with cerebral palsy, was inducted in October into the Governor’s Hall of Fame for People With Disabilities. Mr. Baldwin, inspired by his parents, overcame his disability and the prejudices of those who considered him mentally handicapped to become a radio announcer, taught special adult education for more than 20 years at the California Men’s Colony and bi-lingual education to migrant workers in San Luis Obispo County and Mexico. He served for 10 years as a member of the Mid-Coast Health Systems Agency Long-Term Health Care Committee, including one year as vice-president, and is a former president and regional director of the California Association of the Physically Handicapped.

MARGARET CAVANAUGH, a member of the Spiritual Assembly of Monterey, California, has been named the city’s poet laureate for 1994-95, a title she had previously held in 1992-93. Thirty of her poems were published in 1993 in the book, Quintet in Concert.

THELMA STEWARD, a Bahá’í from El Dorado, California, won first prize at the 1994 International Doll Makers Association Convention in Atlanta, Georgia, for her doll entitled “World Embracing Vision,” inspired by the Bahá’í concept of the oneness of humankind. In 1990 she won the Rolf Ericson Award for outstanding doll sculpture. She is featured with cover photo and accompanying article in the Winter 1994-95 issue of Broadcaster, the magazine of the International Doll Makers Association.

The Spinner’s Gift, the most recent children’s book by GAIL RADLEY, a Bahá’í who lives in Florida, has been released by North-South Books. The book, which has a recycling theme, was published simultaneously in Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand and the U.S.

At an awards ceremony October 1, NANCY MCFADDEN, a Bahá’í from Nashville, Tennessee, was named 1994 “Environmental Health Advocate” by the Tennessee Environmental Council. She has worked for many years on environmental issues as a member of BURNT (Bring Urban Recycling to Nashville Today), and is often quoted on television and in newspapers as its spokesperson.

The Dunbar High School marching band from Ft. Worth, Texas, directed by TERRY HUTCHINSON, a Bahá’í from Dallas, scored an Outstanding rating in the 15th annual Battle of the Bands sponsored by the Grambling University alumni, and received another Outstanding rating (the band’s first since 1974) in the Ft. Worth City Marching Band Contest. Mr. Hutchinson’s Dunbar Jazz Connection also won an Outstanding rating, a first for the school, at the Sandy Lake Jazz Festival.

Vaughan Hoefler

VAUGHAN HOEFLER, a 15-year-old Bahá’í from Rosebud, South Dakota, has been elected vice-president of the sophomore class at Todd County High School on the Rosebud Indian Reservation where he has been an honor roll student for the past five quarters and sings in the school choir. Vaughan, afflicted with autism since birth, spent nine years in special classes for the handicapped before entering high school. He is appreciated for his openness, honesty and friendliness, and never fails to mention the Faith to anyone he meets.

On October 9, PATTY KUBALA, a member of the Spiritual Assembly of Cedarburg, Wisconsin, received a community service award from the Ozaukee County branch of the NAACP at its annual Freedom Fund event. Mrs. Kubala serves as co-chairman of the local NAACP’s Education and Newsletter Committees. The featured speaker at the Freedom Fund dinner was Auxiliary Board member Curtis Russell.

PETER GIANNOGLOU, secretary of the Spiritual Assembly of Montclair, New Jersey, has been appointed to a two-year term on the Montclair Civil Rights Commission. Mr. Giannoglou, a mechanical engineer, is employed at AT&T Bell Laboratories in Whippany.

SUSAN LEWIS WRIGHT, a Bahá’í from ‎Denver Colorado Denver, Colorado‎, has won honorable mention in the pop/adult music category at the 16th annual Songwriters Showcase/Georgia Music Festival sponsored by the Atlanta Songwriters Association for her composition, “Calling All Colors,” inspired by the Bahá’í race unity conference of that name. Mrs. Wright was also profiled in October’s 11th anniversary issue of Recording, the magazine for the recording musician, in which the writer, reviewing her song “Sailing,” says, “Judy Collins has nothing on Susan—neither does Joan Baez for that matter.”

Oscar DeGruy (standing), coordinator of Bahá’í Youth Workshops, speaks to young Bahá’ís in Modesto, California, about the origins, concept and purposes of the Youth Workshops.

More than 100 Bahá’ís meet in Modesto for Youth Workshop planning session

On the weekend of December 1-4, Oscar DeGruy, coordinator of Bahá’í Youth Workshops, visited Modesto, California, to instruct and advise the coordination of a Youth Workshop in that city.

More than 100 young people came from as far away as Stockton and the Fresno area to hear the interesting and informative talk by Mr. DeGruy who shared the origins, concept and purpose of Bahá’í Youth Workshops.

The youth were of many ethnic backgrounds—African-Americans, Anglo-Americans, Cambodians, Laotians, Persians and Spanish-Americans.

All of the young people and many of their parents became actively involved in the discussions and program. A number of interesting exercises captivated the youth including a demonstration of a dance step by 15-year-old Tom Tate who had accompanied Mr. DeGruy to Modesto.

Some exercises necessitated concentration, rhythm and synchronization, which effectively used the elements of discipline and control. Others involved the visual and verbal communications skills of pantomime, monologue and dance movements. All required unity.

The decision by the Spiritual Assembly of Modesto to hold this workshop planning session has far-reaching implications for the community, for not only will our youth move the world, they are also our Army of Light.

‘Cross’ stitching helps put small South Carolina town on the map as friends sew to fulfill pledge to the Arc

By TOM MENNILLO

Yes, Cross stitches.

And those stitches are helping to put the tiny South Carolina community of Cross on the map as the friends there strive to contribute a unit of $9,000 for the Arc Projects on Mt. Carmel.

Debra Weaver Beckham had been cross-stitching for years. Among her favorites were prayer book covers, which she often gave as Ayyám-i-Há gifts.

A year ago she taught the skill to Charlotte Starr, another Bahá’í in Cross.

Together they started selling their work so they could donate proceeds to the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute in Hemingway and the Louis G. Gregory Museum in Charleston.

Then came the suggestion from the Universal House of Justice that Bahá’ís visualize the $74 million needed during the Three Year Plan for the work on God’s Holy Mountain as about 8,000 units of $9,000 each.

Could Cross pledge a unit—and fulfill it?

Mrs. Beckham and Mrs. Starr asked the local Spiritual Assembly and got a resounding “yes.”

They also got the rest of the Bahá’í community involved.

Douglas Lee offered to sell paintings of Bahá’í scenes on wood. Others volunteered to find wood for him, cut it and finish it. Still others said they could donate cloth or 14-count vinyl weave and find inexpensive frames for cross-stitched items.

Suddenly, the Bahá’í community believed it could reach the goal.

“We kind of surprised ourselves,” says Mrs. Beckham. “Every Feast we have another $100 to $150 to give to the treasurer earmarked for the Arc, the Louis Gregory Institute and the museum.”

Orders for cross-stitch products have come from Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís alike.

Bahá’ís love the prayer book covers. They also ask for framed—usually 5x7 or 8x10—renderings of their favorite quotations.

Mrs. Beckham and Mrs. Starr staffed a table at the recent Peace Fest and hope to sell at other Bahá’í celebrations and conferences in the region.

Non-Bahá’ís often order items after they see the duo cross-stitching. A non-Bahá’í Sunday school teacher asked for bookmarks she can give to her class members for Christmas.

“It’s definitely a teaching tool,” says Mrs. Beckham. “We cross-stitch everywhere we go, like at the doctor’s office.”

It’s also “soul-enhancing,” she says, despite the considerable sacrifice the Bahá’ís of Cross have made in terms of time, effort and money.

“This has helped to unify the community. Who knows where it will lead? New avenues keep opening up for us.” [Page 11]

Youth galvanized to win Plan victory

Preparation for youth to take up their role as “spiritual descendants of the Dawn-breakers” took many forms at the National Bahá’í Youth Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

Who among the youth there will ever forget the experience of having eight members of the National Spiritual Assembly “run alongside” them in preparation for “passing the baton” of leadership?

Robert C. Henderson, secretary-general of the National Spiritual Assembly, told the youth up-front that the National Assembly wanted to hold this conference “to tell youth [we] love you and know how important you are.”

He said God is “doing something special in the world and is doing it through you.”

And in describing the National Assembly’s historic visit last March to the Bahá’í World Center, he told the youth, “When you come to the end of your rope, you know you can get the same love” the National Assembly got from the Universal House of Justice during those meetings.

That love was evident throughout the conference as the members of the National Spiritual Assembly joyously interacted with the youth in workshops, plenary sessions—wherever the opportunity existed.

Who, again, could forget:

• Assistant Secretary Juana C. Conrad introducing the youth to her mother, who had recently declared her belief in Bahá’u’lláh.

• Alberta Deas recalling the direct teaching campaigns of 25 years ago in which many of the teachers were youth.

• Firuz Kazemzadeh, secretary for External Affairs, enlightening the youth on the importance of Bahá’í scholarship.

• Patricia Locke reciting—with hand signs—an American Indian prayer she had learned as a child.

• Jack E. McCants, on Christmas morning, counting the blessings he has received since his search for truth led him from the pulpit to the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.

• Dorothy W. Nelson, vice chairman, drawing—to the delight of the youth—on her courtship experience in a talk on preparing for a life of service.

• James F. Nelson, chairman, holding imaginary (we think) telephone conversations with the Concourse on high and issuing a daily “report card” on the youths’ conduct at the conference.

Other highlights of the conference surely included:

• Counselor Stephen Birkland popping a balloon to help demonstrate how the Bahá’í community is held together by the Covenant.

• ‘Azíz Yazdí recalling the time he, as a child, darted into the Shrines behind ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and heard him chant the Tablet of Visitation.

• Javidukht Khadem, Auxiliary Board member, describing Hand of the Cause of God Zikrullah Khadem’s requirements for their marriage—that God be the center of their lives and that she love the Guardian as he did.

• The choir, with such soloists as Carla Baker, Dan Seals, Paul Seaforth, Tierney Sutton, Castadarrow Thompkins, Narges Nouhnejad Fani, Faezeh Bowers, Susan Engle and Eric Dozier.

• Dan Seals’ duet with his daughter, Holly, and Emily Price’s solo as her beaming dad, Tom, conducted the choir.

• Bahá’í Youth Workshop performances, including the powerful Prisoners’ Dance and an emotional tribute to female victims of domestic violence.

• Such sparkling role models as youth emcees Allie Rose, Naysan Geula, Leon Diaz and Nevin Jenkins.

• The sight of eight young people signing their declaration cards onstage to a standing ovation.

• A stirring talk on obedience to the Covenant by Olympic high jump hopeful Lisa Rayner.

• Calls to action by Camille Henderson and Eric Dozier, with the echo of their adage “playtime is over; let’s get busy” ringing through the hall.

• And, of course, Dr. Henderson’s send-off, in which he addressed first the girls, then the boys, about their inherent nobility and a capacity to love that will move the world.

“Go back home, be a warrior, be a servant, be a lover,” he concluded. “Don’t ever be the same.”

Drama, entertainment, and education combined to make the Youth Conference memorable. Above, Bahá’í Youth Workshop members perform the Prisoners’ Dance (photo by Tom Mennillo). Left, National Spiritual Assembly members Jack McCants and James and Dorothy Nelson move to the beat of the choir (photo by Parham Eshraghian). Below, youth pioneers and traveling teachers describe their experiences abroad (photo by Parham Eshraghian). [Page 12]

National Bahá’í Youth Conference

Phoenix, Arizona

Dearly loved Friends,

We are thrilled that you have gathered in Phoenix to reinforce your efforts during a rising tide of youth activities across your country. The news of the numerous Army of Light projects and Bahá’í Youth Workshops fills us with delight and high expectations. May this conference generate a further mobilization of your energies, such as to break the past records of your individual and collective endeavors to spread the Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh and to conform your lives to His divine purpose. So desired an outcome is necessary if the youth are to contribute decisively to the victory of the Three Year Plan not only in your country but throughout the world in the precious, short time remaining to it.

Relevant also to this necessity is the fact that the period of youth is a fleeting moment; in this brief span, much of what is decided and done by each generation profoundly influences the future of society. Hence, there is no time like now, when the idealism, zeal and enthusiasm which are particular characteristics of youth can be employed to far-reaching benefit. Do not tarry, then, in the steps you must take to shape your future; the current state of humanity imposes too many challenges and opportunities for you to hesitate. The urgency to act is further increased by a looming reality: the youth of today will inherit the responsibilities of the rapidly approaching twenty-first century with all the hopeful prospects foreshadowed in our Writings for the near future.

The foundation of your preparation to meet the many unforeseeable changes that will come about rests with your determination and ability to internalize and act upon the divine principles expounded in the literature of our Faith—principles which direct one's inner development and private character, and which guide one's active life of teaching and service. These make for a righteous life—the wellspring of progress for the individual and society as a whole, the harbinger of the very triumph of the Cause of God.

By righteous life is not meant an excessive puritanism, but rather a sensible habit of living which, as guided by the Teachings and by the example of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, offers a sure path to attaining the noble purpose for which human beings were created by the Almighty. At this time of trouble and confusion, who can offer a greater demonstration than the Bahá’í youth of the power of righteous living to restore hope to the hopeless and confidence to the fearful among their disillusioned peers?

"Cleave unto righteousness, O people of Bahá!" is Bahá’u’lláh’s resounding exhortation. "This," He affirms, "is the commandment which this wronged One hath given unto you, and the first choice of his unrestrained Will for every one of you." The Blessed Beauty's promises in this regard are clear and compelling: "Valiant acts will ensure the triumph of this Cause, and a saintly character will reinforce its power."

Have no fear or doubts. Your opportunities are great, the confirmations of God abundant. Sally forth, therefore, to seize your moment, to make your mark on the destiny of humankind.

Our hopes and prayers surround you.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

The Universal House of Justice December 22, 1994

To our Beloved Universal House of Justice

December 26, 1994

There are no words that can express the gratitude we felt when we received your message, calling for "a further mobilization of [our] energies, such as to break past records of [our] individual and collective endeavors to spread the Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh and to conform [our] lives to His divine purpose." Your expressions of confidence and encouragement greatly enhanced the spirit of this momentous occasion.

We were honored by the presence of Counselor Stephen Birkland, the National Spiritual Assembly, and Auxiliary Board member Javidukht Khadem. The love and attention they showered on us created the atmosphere of a true spiritual family. The youth here basked in their love, and were filled with confidence in our capacity to carry out our divine mandate.

We were also honored and overjoyed by the presence of the National Spiritual Assembly's special guest, Mr. Aziz Yazdi. Mr. Yazdi's reminiscences of the beloved Master, the Guardian, and the early years of the Faith's development in Africa gave us an inspiring vision of the joys and rewards of service to the Cause of God.

Each day's theme focused on one of the Central Figures of the Faith. Speakers, music, dramatic presentations and workshops emphasized our role as "the spiritual descendants of the Dawn-breakers" and strengthened our connection to the Central Figures and our sense of devotion to the institutions of the Administrative Order, especially our dear National Spiritual Assembly.

Throughout the conference we have remembered the lives and achievements of the heroes and heroines of the Faith. We have dedicated the Army of Light campaign to the Hands of the Cause of God, and arranged for prayers to be said on December 25 at the graves of the five Hands who are buried in the United States.

We now pledge to dedicate ourselves to "act upon the principles which direct our inner development and private character, and which guide our active life of teaching and service." As a symbol of our pledge, we have signed an Army of Light scroll which will be forwarded to you.

We are confident that we are on the path to entry by troops. We humbly request your prayers for Bahá’u’lláh’s blessings and confirmations. Today, we leave this conference with the words of Mullá Husayn ringing in our ears: "Mount your steeds, O heroes of God!" as we arise as powerful warriors in the Army of Light.

With warmest love and devotion,

The Youth Gathered at the National Bahá’í Conference in Phoenix, Arizona

Audio recordings of National Bahá’í Youth Conference presentations are available through Images International in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Call 615-870-4525 to place an order.

Two youths intently add their pledges for service to the Cause on a scroll that was later sent to the Universal House of Justice (photo by Tom Mennillo).

Army of Light matches up youth with teaching efforts

Just what is the Army of Light campaign?

In simplest terms, it is a way to match up Bahá’í youth with local teaching projects around the country.

Especially in the summer, young people have a wealth of time to devote to teaching.

They also possess, as the Universal House of Justice noted in its message to the National Bahá’í Youth Conference, "idealism, zeal and enthusiasm" that can be "employed to far-reaching benefit."

According to Army of Light national coordinator Dorita Krapf, there are several things youth can do now to become involved:

• Take part in the 1995 Army of Light Training Program for ages 10 and up. Contact your area's regional or state Army of Light coordinator (see below) for upcoming locations and dates.
• Register as a volunteer for teaching projects for summer 1995. Applications, available through coordinators, should be completed and sent to Army of Light, c/o Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091.
• Set aside part of your summer for service in the Army of Light.
• Begin saving or raising money for your traveling teaching venture.
• Contact your nearest local Spiritual Assembly with your ideas for local projects. Inform it of your availability to help there or afield.

For details, Mrs. Krapf can be reached at the above address or by calling 815-478-5560.

As of January 1995, the Army of Light regional coordinators are:

Alabama, Mississippi—Lisa McDowell, 205-426-5358 Arizona—Arizona State Teaching Committee: Gwendolyn Calhoun, 602-458-5280 California, northern—Northern California State Teaching Committee: Shastri Purushotma, 408-252-2333 California, southern—Southern California State Teaching Committee: Kathy Peterson, 909-792-3982 Florida—Florida State Teaching Committee: Harriet Stafford, 904-377-6428 Georgia—Georgia State Teaching Committee: Jacqueline Konan, 706-568-0108 Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan (upper)—Sandra Fair, 414-871-9919 Iowa, Minnesota—Mary McDowell, 319-556-1982 Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri—Marcelle LaVine, 913-831-3239 Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Washington, D.C.—Navid Haghighi, 703-533-4723; Laura Cessna-Elliot, 703-660-1629 Nevada, New Mexico—May Movafagh, 602-963-4798 North Carolina—North Carolina State Teaching Committee: Robert Tansik, 919-544-3895; Vance Remick, 919-968-0900 Oklahoma—Andrenae King, 409-886-4853 Oregon—Oregon State Teaching Committee: Rachel Greco, 503-623-8035 South Carolina—South Carolina State Teaching Committee: Debbie Jackson, 803-558-9289; Vance Remick, 919-968-0900 Tennessee, Kentucky—Andrea Seals, 615-822-3390; Allison McGee, 615-395-7452 Texas—Texas State Teaching Committee: Jeanette Hedayati, 817-549-6769; Andrenae King, 409-886-4853 Washington—Washington State Teaching Committee, Celia Johnson, 206-377-1977 [Page 13]We are an army of light, with weapons such as a heart with which we fight. Against the pain that does surround, we have love that can shake the ground.

We are an army of light. Our armor is prayers, and unity, we share much love for you, for me. Around the world our love will fly, and still we have much more inside.

We are an army of light. We march for one, we march for all. Some will answer our beckoning call. And for those who don’t, we’ll love them the same. And for those who do, what love they’ll gain.

We are an army of light.

We are an army of light.

Toni Robison-May reads her poem of tribute to the National Bahá’í Youth Conference.

Stories illumine path of obedience to the Covenant

The absolute necessity for obedience to the Covenant was a thread woven throughout the National Bahá’í Youth Conference in story and drama.

The youthful participants were connected in this way with the devotion and strength of character of such exemplars of living the life as:

• Táhirih, who welcomed death and even kissed the scarf with which she was to be strangled.

In a pre-conference talk on individual rights and freedoms, Counselor Stephen Birkland encouraged the youth to cut through the mist of society’s prevalent attitudes and develop a broad vision—like Táhirih’s—that would allow them to think, talk, and solve problems in new ways.

He called the Covenant a “package deal”: We can’t pick and choose which laws we will obey. Only within the nurturing environment of the Bahá’í community, he said, can we bring our lives fully in line with the Teachings.

• Michael Hampton Jr., a young Bahá’í from Michigan whose life was tragically ended in an auto accident at age 15.

Robert C. Henderson, secretary-general of the National Spiritual Assembly, described Michael as “full of the love and spirit of the Bahá’í Faith.”

After Michael’s death, he said, some 400 fellow students came by the house to relate, one by one, how Michael had touched their lives by sharing with them a prayer or story from the Faith when they were troubled.

Dr. Henderson said the May 19, 1994, letter from the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly calls on each of us to become that kind of model—of rectitude of conduct, of holiness and chastity, of interracial love.

When that happens, he said, we will be attacked for it. But if we remain strong, people will inevitably be drawn by the power of our love into the shelter of Bahá’í Faith.

• Mírzá Muhammad-’Alí, or Anis, whom the Báb chose to be martyred with Him.

In a two-person presentation titled Love’s Companion, the story of this young man’s loyalty to the Herald of the Faith was poignantly played out.

Even when his young son was brought before him to plead that he back down Anis stayed true, and the Báb rewarded him with the ultimate sacrifice.

The play was performed by Susan Hagarty, in multiple roles, and Ven Rotondi, as Anis. It was written by Tom Lysaght and produced by Ryan Haidarian.

• The Hand of the Cause of God Músá Banání, who had just built a comfortable home for his retirement years when the call came from the Guardian for pioneers to Africa.

Needless to say, Mr. Banání instantly responded—as did many others.

‘Azíz Yazdí told how a planeload of 60 young Bahá’ís landed in Africa and spread out to teach the Cause and, despite great privation, succeeded in fulfilling the Plan.

• Ali-Kuli Khan, the high-born cynic who went to a fireside only to ridicule the speaker and ended up becoming ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s secretary at the age of 19.

Counselor Birkland told the youth how when the Master asked Mr. Khan to translate some papers from Arabic to English, and he responded that he didn’t know Arabic, the Master instructed him to eat some rock candy and then begin translating. With divine assistance, he did just that.

• Edna Ford, a retiree who answered the call to pioneer in Mexico, taught herself Spanish, and eventually brought tens of thousands of people in the Yucatán region into the Faith.

• Ed Strueven, who was down and out until ‘Abdu’l-Bahá literally nourished him with the limitless love of God.

National Spiritual Assembly member Jack McCants humorously recounted how the Master sat Mr. Strueven down and, with a twinkle in His eye, personally served him plate after plate of food until he had had his fill.

Eight young people who had just signed their declaration cards are introduced to a standing ovation (photo by Tom Mennillo).

‘Special forces’ idea mobilizes older youth

College-age Bahá’ís are at an awkward point in their lives.

They’re too old for Bahá’í Youth Workshops and too young to settle into Bahá’í communities as adults.

On campus they’re under considerable stress—academically and socially.

As a result, many are struggling to find purpose within the Faith.

Yet, these young adults have a wealth of experience and skills to lend in the teaching field. Many have taken part in projects here and abroad or were Bahá’í Youth Service Corps volunteers.

So how can that talent and energy base be tapped to further the Cause?

To find out, Oscar DeGruy, the national coordinator for Bahá’í Youth Workshops, met with about 100 college-age Bahá’ís at the National Bahá’í Youth Conference in Phoenix.

He ‎put put put‎ before them an intriguing proposition: Let’s organize regional teams of young adults with specific skills who could devote some of their weekends, college breaks and summers to service.

Just as in war, where specially trained soldiers are sent in first to establish a beachhead, these Bahá’í “special forces” would lay the groundwork for local teaching projects.

They would train teachers, write press releases, talk to local media, document progress, conduct children’s classes, perform—whatever a project’s sponsoring Assemblies needed done.

Mr. DeGruy emphasized that these “special forces” would not replace Bahá’í campus clubs. Rather, they would mobilize young adults for service year-round in the wider community.

The next step is to locate college-age Bahá’ís who have the time and willingness to take part. Then their skills can be matched with others’ to form teams.

For more information, contact Mr. DeGruy at 213-937-3976 or 213-933-1820 (fax), or write to him at the Los Angeles Bahá’í Center, 5755 Rodeo Road, West Los Angeles, CA 90016. [Page 14]

Family unity key as tests multiply

Jack McCants, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, set a tone of urgency for the second North American Bahá’í Conference on Social and Economic Development, and his fellow speakers took up the cry.

For Bahá’ís, he said, the question is not whether the cup is half full or half empty. Because we have the promise of world peace, the cup is always full.

But there are many surprises in store before the year 2000, he said, “so, what we’re talking about this weekend is serious business. ...We must look at the hard facts of life.”

The key to everything, he said, will be the family. That’s where every day we practice incorporating the attributes of God into our lives.

Rebuilding the family

Elizabeth Bowen noted that unity of the family is essential.

Once we can relate in a unified way with our family and achieve inner peace, she said, we can transfer that unity to the school, workplace and community.

We all have wounds—some more visible than others, said Dr. Bowen, who practices and teaches family medicine.

The balm for our spiritual wounds lies in the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, she said. In the Writings can be found the means to transform traditional relationships into those marked by interdependence, reciprocity and service.

Family and transformation

The family was related to development by Lawrence Miller, a director of Mottahedeh Development Services and a corporate consultant.

Every organization in the world is undergoing a transformation, he noted. They are finding that the ability to function in groups is the key to economic and other successes.

Where is that ability learned? In the family, said Mr. Miller.

And while the family is the building block of society, the child is the building block of the family. Children, he said, are a trust for which we are held accountable by God.

The ‘hyphen’ generation

Robert Harris echoed Mr. McCants in emphasizing the critical need to construct the Arc on God’s Holy Mountain.

This is a day of great rejoicing, he said. It is the beginning of the end of suffering in a society “that has died and just doesn’t know it.”

We have a chance to associate our names forever with building the kingdom of God on earth, he said, calling our generation the “hyphen of history”—the last to know war and the first to know peace.

Protection in laws

Humankind’s greatest power, said Florence Mayberry, is attained when a soul turns to God, reaches out for the Revelation for that day, and accepts it.

What if all people linked spiritually and committed themselves to following God’s laws? It would transform the world and make us a new kind of people welded to the Holy Spirit, she said.

The greatest fortress of protection—a power we can draw upon forever—is to follow the divine laws. Our job, she said, is to share that message, and if we do that with extreme devotion people will be attracted to it.

A great destiny

David Ruhe, retired member of the Universal House of Justice, spoke of the accelerating pace of change.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá promised, he said, that by the end of this century the unity of nations would start to become a reality.

We’re far from that now, said Dr. Ruhe, but it will soon become evident that:

• Bahá’u’lláh is the Darwin of religious evolution;
• There is impending new chaos, confusion, strife;
• The Bahá’í Message is the bonding force for a world society; and
• Bahá’ís and their allies are the saviors of the world, the creators of an imminent Lesser Peace.

Florence Mayberry (third from right) accepts the Rabbani Trust’s Award of Excellence from trustees Douglas Paik, Soo Fouts, Fahimeh Rouhani and Kenneth Gould and retired member of the Universal House of Justice David S. Ruhe.

Award is latest chapter in story of ‘lucky’ Florence Mayberry’s life

The way Florence Mayberry looks at life, those who reach out to God find powers they never thought they were capable of possessing.

This great-great-granddaughter of a frontier circuit rider must have long arms, indeed. She has circled the globe three times teaching the Faith and has served on Bahá’í institutions at the local, national, continental and international levels.

It’s no wonder, then, that the Eshraghieh and Mahmoud Rabbani Charitable Trust bestowed upon Mrs. Mayberry its second Award of Excellence. David S. Ruhe, a retired member of the Universal House of Justice, was last year’s honoree.

Ever the storyteller, Mrs. Mayberry told participants at the North American Bahá’í Conference how she was a “God-attracted child” but one who felt she constantly had to prove herself to the Creator.

Like the time she climbed out on a window ledge to show she wasn’t afraid of heights. Frozen in place, she finally was found and pulled inside by her mother.

At 9, she “shopped around” for a church, finally giving up in disgust. They all taught the same message, so why did each one claim to be the only possessor of the truth?

Later, in 1941, while living in Reno, Nevada, Mrs. Mayberry embraced the Bahá’í Faith together with her husband, David, and her mother, brother and sister-in-law.

Thus began a journey that she said has made her “one of the luckiest people in existence.”

Her husband, she said, was “no saint” but always encouraged her travels for the Faith. “When we talked about the Faith we were like one soul.”

Mrs. Mayberry was appointed a member of the Auxiliary Board at its inception in 1954. She served on the National Spiritual Assemblies of the United States (1959-1961) and Mexico (1961-63) and was appointed a Counselor for North America in 1968.

In 1973, she moved to the Bahá’í World Center as one of the first Counselor members of the International Teaching Center. She served until 1983, when she resigned because of her husband’s poor health.

David Mayberry died February 15, 1994. While she was grieving over the loss of her partner of 58 years, Mrs. Mayberry was informed by outgoing Rabbani trustee Soo Fouts that she had been chosen to receive the Award of Excellence.

“I felt like a child who had found she was in a fairyland,” she remembers feeling. “One of the mysteries is all the wonderful opportunities I’ve had in life.”

Getting to know Mrs. Mayberry was a wonderful opportunity conference participants will never forget.

Florence Mayberry poses with Michael W. Horton (third from left) and his family of Nassau, Bahamas, and Lynn M. Wieties (right) of Rolla, Missouri.

Audio recordings of North American Bahá’í Conference presentations are available through Images International in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Call 615-870-4525 to place an order. [Page 15]

Workshops guide search for ideal of family

A varied menu of six workshops let participants in the North American Bahá’í Conference explore real-world ways to achieve the ideal of the Bahá’í family.

Guiding that search were principles laid out first by the six workshop coordinators.

Marriage and family life

Margaret Ruhe told conference attendees that a marriage contract is more than a piece of paper to sign. Rather, it is the advent to establishment of a Bahá’í household filled with love, warmth and hospitality.

Achieving the goal of family unity, she said, requires a lifetime of adjustment and communication built on the twin pillars of loyalty and love.

Mrs. Ruhe, whose 25 years of service in the Holy Land included advising youth workers at the Bahá’í World Center, urged that instruction in parenting be taught through Bahá’í regional and permanent schools, deepenings and youth classes.

Then, parents can bring forth the gems embedded in their children, she said, reminding her audience that the Bahá’í Faith holds high standards for the mind, heart and spirit.

Spiritualizing the household

Workshop facilitator Thelma Khelghati said she prepared for the conference by asking several people what factors can help spiritualize a Bahá’í family.

Foremost, they told her, is the role of the Word of God in the life of the family. Reciting the Writings together and separately helps us gather the spiritual strength we need to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization.

Also important, she said, are consultation and communication; laughter and joy; the power of example; and freedom from backbiting—about people and institutions alike.

Our spiritual life is under attack, Mrs. Khelghati told the audience. Now more than ever, she said, we need a “fortress for well-being” as protection.

Parenting

Jack McCants, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, said that breathing new life into society starts with husband and wife.

They must be best friends, he said, and that ability to listen to each other will help them surmount challenges such as coming from different cultural backgrounds.

Mr. McCants stressed the importance of prayer and of teaching as a family. He also noted the power of music, art and storytelling in both the learning environment and in teaching the Cause.

Education

Mother and father have complementary roles in child rearing, said Ray Johnson, director of Canada’s Maxwell Bahá’í School. The mother is primarily responsible for molding character and conduct and the father for academic training.

The two roles are linked, though, said Dr. Johnson. Both parents must counsel children and help bring out their capacities for wisdom, knowledge, eloquent speech and spiritual perception.

Every child, he said, is born with physical, moral or intellectual deficiencies that must be eliminated through training.

Unfortunately, society has built barriers around children, he said. Such “false faces” include mistrust of adults, the way they view the opposite sex, and how they adorn themselves.

Young people today also feel uncared for and uninvolved, especially in school.

The family, he said, must encourage children’s search for the truth.

Prejudice-free

Judge James Nelson, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly, likened the prevention of prejudicial attitudes to building a spiritual fence around the family.

That fence, he said, must be:

• porous, allowing noble ideas to enter and exit but deflecting that which is base;
• portable, able to be taken into every situation the child encounters;
• made of principles that must be modeled and constantly practiced;
• personal, bestowing ownership on children and making them responsible for its upkeep; and
• a paradigm, an ideal to which we hold up every aspect of our lives.

Culture

Bahá’í culture, said Judge Dorothy Nelson, vice-chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly, is about our habits.

We know what habits we’re supposed to practice, she said. Now we must create that culture in our lives to help bring about a world culture.

Judge Nelson tied the task of making Bahá’í culture habit-forming to firmness in the Covenant.

She reminded the audience of God’s promise to always give humankind guidance, in return for our promise to obey the laws, principles and institutions for the day.

And she listed several areas in which these habits can be incorporated into our lives: prayer; consultation; Bahá’í community life; hospitality; learning; raising prejudice-free children; and teaching.

’93 workshop launched health initiatives

One of last year’s workshops at the North American Bahá’í Conference has helped set in motion a number of health-care initiatives.

In that workshop, led by Elizabeth Bowen, participants consulted on their vision of the dependencies to be developed around each Bahá’í House of Worship.

An outgrowth of the consultation was a conference this fall at the Louhelen Bahá’í School co-sponsored by Mottahedeh Development Services (MDS) and Health for Humanity.

The conference, which focused on raising the health standards of Bahá’ís here and abroad, will be followed by a conference in the Netherlands on the spiritualization of health-care professionals and a conference in Albania that the prime minister and other government officials are scheduled to attend.

At the same time, MDS and Health for Humanity are working to form Bahá’í health groups on the local level.

Dr. Bowen urged conference attendees to transform all professional disciplines to bring them under the shelter of Bahá’u’lláh’s vision.

Arts and children enrich Bahá’í conferences

A trend that began to accelerate at last year’s North American Bahá’í Conference in Orlando has come full circle.

The arts and children’s programs are increasingly bringing to Bahá’í conferences the same spiritual dimension they do to regional schools and other events.

In other words, performances aren’t merely program fillers anymore, and the classes for children and youth have gone well beyond babysitting.

The recent Bahá’í History Conference in Wilmette, for example, featured a play about Lua Getsinger.

Through the play, Travels With Lua by Carolyn Nur Wistrand, conference participants got a sense of this intrepid teacher’s complex life that perhaps no academic paper could impart.

Those taking part in the Association for Bahá’í Studies’ annual conference in Cambridge, Massachusetts, had a similar experience.

A choir assembled by Cathy Tahirih was enthusiastically received. Dramatic presentations, particularly George Davis’s monologue written by Ross Woodman, evoked a deep emotional response.

Also at the ABS conference, a program for children and youth coordinated by the Boston Bahá’í Youth Workshop gave Workshop members a priceless opportunity to work with youngsters and provided the children with a means by which to express their spiritual development in unique ways.

Now it was back to Orlando, where last year a quality children’s program was conducted and the Florida Bahá’í Gospel Choir performed to everyone’s delight.

For this year’s event, Tom Price pulled together the largest Bahá’í choir and orchestra since the second Bahá’í World Congress in 1992. The meeting hall swelled one night with the majestic Oratorio to His Holiness Bahá’u’lláh, first performed at the World Congress. The next night featured a nostalgic medley of songs dear to Bahá’ís young and old.

As the result of a suggestion after last year’s conference, the entire staff of Brilliant Star magazine led by editor Pepper Oldziey was on hand to coordinate activities for children and youth on the theme of the Bahá’í family.

And a performance piece, Together As One, brought home the concerns and issues facing children and youth today. Henry J. “Hank” Woessner wrote and directed the piece, while his wife, Jamie M. Pisano, choreographed the children’s movements.

Hank Woessner rehearses the youth on their part in Together As One.

Rachael Price has her sash adjusted by mom Elizabeth as the choir prepares to sing under the direction of dad Tom Price. [Page 16]

Update on the Institutes

National Education and Schools Office Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091 (708) 733-3492 / FAX (708) 733-3502 Internet e-mail:

Both the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute and the Native American Bahá’í Institute have been mandated by the National Assembly to work directly with the populations surrounding their campuses to deepen the friends and enhance the work of teaching. Each institute contributes to the development of community life and to the teaching work in ways that are appropriate to the people they serve.

Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute

The Computer Competency Program is a comprehensive program preparing students (adults and youth) to get a G.E.D. The program is an individualized, self-paced, basic skills instructional system that approaches learning in a sequential manner, from the simple to the more complex. The program will expand in the future to provide literacy training, as well as a high school diploma.

The deepening program for new believers is designed to make workers in the Cause. Believers entering the Faith will have a variety of methods of learning, a deepening program of various durations (four hours on one weekend day) and deepening in the home as an option. Programs have been designed and are being tested.

Radio Bahá’í provides a daily variety of music to appeal to all audiences; programs of special interest . . . quotations from the Writings for meditation, prayers for devotions, Feast and Holy Day Programs.

Youth from South Carolina and many parts of the world have spent time serving as volunteers at LGBI as part of the Bahá’í Youth Service Corps. The variety of areas of service include Radio Bahá’í On-Air broadcasting and programming, teaching in the computer competency program, working in the education center, conducting children’s classes, serving as a clerical assistant or in housekeeping and maintenance.

The Louis G. Gregory/Magdalene Carney teaching initiative is dedicated to the goal of “Entry by Troops.” The Institute serves as a hub for the initiative by providing training and support from the education center and Radio Bahá’í. Over 100 people have become Bahá’ís through this initiative since November.

Radio Bahá’í provides a daily variety of music to appeal to all audiences; programs of special interest (women, youth, current issues in the community); quotations from the Writings for meditation, prayers for devotions, Feast and Holy Day Programs. For over ten years the Name of Bahá’u’lláh and His Word have been penetrating the hearts of the inhabitants of this region through this service.

Youth Leadership Weekend conferences are held four times each year. This program focuses on developing leadership skills which will be applicable in all areas of life, and will assist participants to become better Bahá’í teachers, administrators, and servants.

Youth academies are held in the summer for nine weeks. Children, pre-youth, and youth undergo intense immersion in the Holy Writings, perform service projects, and participate in teaching projects with the goal of becoming Spiritual Warriors. Attendees leave the academies empowered and motivated. The highest level for attendees is to participate in the National Academy. In the summer of 1995, the National Academy will go to the Native American Bahá’í Institute for a project.

Native American Bahá’í Institute

The centerpiece of the Institute is the traditional hogan used for prayer and special meetings. This beloved hogan was recently discovered to have severe damage to the logs near the ground, and drastic measures needed to happen in order to preserve this sacred structure. Late last summer, the friends gathered at the Four Corners Regional Bahá’í Summer School raised over $6,000 for the repair. This initiative was made possible by the generosity of Mitchell Silas, a Navajo sandpainter who is a Bahá’í, who donated one of his beautiful paintings to a silent auction to raise funds. Repairs are now underway, though work has stopped for the winter and stands at about half done.

Fourteen Navajo children participated in the three-day Winter Children’s Institute which took place December 29 to 31, 1994. Diné winter stories and cultural teachings were offered by Lorraine Kahn and Joanne Bitsilly. The classes covered creation stories, the teachings of the Twin Warriors/Teachers and fun Coyote Tales. One day, the group travelled to watch a Navajo Shoe Game, which the students continued on their next day. This was a wonderful experience in which the children were able to relearn part of their traditions.

A video geared to the Navajo population is being produced. Lorraine Kahn will be narrating the video and offering an introduction to the Faith. The video will also include coverage of the nobility classes and children saying the Bahá’í children’s prayer in Diné. The video, filmed by the youth, is now being edited.

Scheduled at the Institute are the regularly occurring nobility classes, Core Curriculum teacher trainings, fireside weekends for seekers, the National Youth Academy in association with the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute, and children’s institutes.

A student enjoys her classes in the California winter sun at Bosch.

The Louhelen bookstore/cafe opened last summer to rave reviews.

Bosch	500 Comstock Lane Santa Cruz, CA 95060-9677 (408) 423-3387 fax: (408) 423-7564 internet:
Green Acre	188 Main St. Eliot, ME 03903 (207) 439-7200 fax: (207) 439-7202 internet:
Louhelen	3208 South State Rd. Davison, MI 48423 (810) 653-5033 fax: (810) 653-7181 internet:
Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute	Rt. 2, Box 71 Hemingway, SC 29554 (803) 558-5093 fax: (803) 558-2921 internet:
Native American Bahá’í Institute	P.O. Box 3167 Houck, AZ 86506 (602) 521-1064 fax: (602) 521-1063 internet:
National Education and Schools Office	Bahá’í National Center Wilmette, IL 60091 phone (708) 733-3492 fax (708) 733-3502 internet:

[Page 17]

What’s Going on at the Schools?

Bosch Winter sessions in the California sunshine were spectacular! Two notable teachers, Dr. Suheil Bushrui and Dr. Riaz Ghadimi, played to nearly full campuses and each held their classes spellbound at Winter Schools. Another new wrinkle at the school was a four-day follow up to the Core Curriculum training for teachers interested in complementing their earlier training. This weekend, held in late December, was a great success. Teacher trainers Sharon Jensen and Linda Bedford (who also serves as the program coordinator for Bosch) led the discussions and activities.

In January, four youth from the Bahá’í Youth Service Corps began their terms of service. Their orientation started with the Pioneer/Bahá’í Youth Service Corps training held January 12-16 in conjunction with the Office of Pioneering of the Bahá’í National Center. These youth will work in a variety of service occupations, including maintenance, kitchen work, housekeeping, hospitality, and at the bookstore/café.

Work on the new classrooms at Bosch is continuing. New shelves are up and ready, but the 30 inches of rain that deluged the campus between November and January caused a delay in installing a new roof.

Green Acre The Green Acre Children’s Chorus, now in its second year, is already gaining recognition from several civic and professional organizations throughout the Maine and New Hampshire seacoast region. This chorus, composed of children ages 8-15 and including both Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís, sang at the 100th Anniversary Celebration of Green Acre last summer, at the annual “Eliot Days” town celebration in September, and at a December open house held at the Sarah Farmer Inn at Green Acre. The group has been invited to share their message of universal peace and the oneness of humanity during several public performances this spring.

Following the successful restoration of the Sarah Farmer Inn, the centerpiece of Green Acre, is the refurbishment of other historic and important sites at Green Acre. Extensive restoration of the Ole Bull Cottage, known to many as the “Library,” is underway, with the date of completion being dependent on the availability of funds.

Louhelen Fall and Winter at Louhelen have been rich with the loving fellowship of the friends who attended to deepen on such varied topics as “Women and Men: Building Real Partnership,” “Developing Local Spiritual Assemblies,” “The Life of Bahá’u’lláh,” and “The Bahá’í Family.”

A highlight of the season was Dr. David and Mrs. Margaret Ruhe’s loving guidance at Winter School, which saw 180 participants, including 80 children, spending five days praying, studying, serving and laughing together. Even the onset of an unpleasant flu virus did little to dampen the enthusiasm and spirit of the friends.

Louhelen offers many exciting programs through the winter and spring for youth, married couples, families, assembly members and others. A special 50% discount is offered to persons attending for the first time since 1990 on four sessions, in addition to other efforts to make the school as affordable as possible, so please call to reserve your space at an upcoming school.

At an LSA Team Development weekend, all ages work together to build castles of cards and higher levels of cooperation.

COMING ATTRACTIONS

Bosch—The Black History Celebration Weekend, February 10-12, will explore the contributions of people of color to the achievement of the destiny of America. . . . The first-ever children’s academy at Bosch (“Spring Training Camp”) will be April 8-11. . . . Explore the unique roles of women in the creation of society during the Women’s Conference scheduled for April 13-16. . . . The Choral Camp with Tom Price, composer and director for the music of the World Congress, is set for June 24 through July 1.

Green Acre—Bahá’ís and their friends will gather for spiritual enrichment, reflection, and hospitality February 4 and 5. . . . A special new believers weekend will be held February 11 and 12 as part of a pilot program for new believers being prepared by the National Bahá’í Education Task Force. . . . The annual spiritual retreat for adults held during the Fast will be March 10-12.

Louhelen—The “Marriage Weekend” with Jack and Farzaneh Guillebeaux is set for February 17-19. . . . March 10-12 will be study of “The Life of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá” with Dr. Ahang Rabbani. . . . “Gatherings at Louhelen” will soon begin in the recently expanded Twin Oaks dining room, as evenings of fun and fellowship for Bahá’ís and their friends, including a delicious dinner, dancing, and other special treats. Dates scheduled are February 25, March 11 and April 15. . . . The spring calendar includes the “Youth Eagle Institute” set for April 14-16, a “Parent and Child Conference” on May 12-14, and a Core Curriculum Teacher Training set for May 26-29.

Regional Bahá’í Schools Sponsored by the National Assembly

Wisconsin—February 3-5. An intensive study for adults only will discuss the Tablets of the Divine Plan, unity, and Arising to Teach. Contact: Lisa Riemer, West Bend, WI 53095; (414) 338-3023.

North Dakota—February 17-19, Mayville. Dr. Ahang Rabbani will lead a study of achieving our destiny in the Bahá’í world. Contact: Rosalin Chrest, Minot, ND 58703; (701) 839-1015.

Oklahoma—March 3-April 2, Stillwater. The destiny of the American Bahá’í community will be explored by adults, youth, and children. Contact: David Gainey, Sulphur, OK 73086; (405) 622-2655.

Coming this summer in a region near you:

North Carolina—June 30 - July 3. Registrar: Sandra Miles, Winston-Salem, NC 27105; (910) 767-6888.

Colorado (East)—July 1 - 4, 1995. Contact: John Bolz, Lafayette, CO 80026; (303) 666-9275.

Four Corners (Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah)—July 19 - 23. Contact: Carole Hitti, Cortez, CO 81321; (303) 565-7910.

Iowa—August 11 - 15. Contact: Diane Findlay, Dallas Center, IA 50063; (515) 992-3381.

WANTED Willing workers for Summer Service! Contact the schools and institutes directly for information. It’s the OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME!!!

[Page 18]

One World Cafe adds spice to CO Convention

Ever since Juli Redson-Smith and Kathy Staller were trained in the Core Curriculum, they looked for ways to apply those ideas and methodologies in northeastern Colorado outside of regular Sunday classes.

Then, with District Convention on the horizon, an opportunity was seen to provide more than babysitting for the children and pre-youth. Ms. Redson-Smith teamed up with Jennifer Burnham, a Core Curriculum-trained teacher, and the sponsoring Spiritual Assembly.

What resulted was the One World Cafe, a service project that Ms. Redson-Smith, of Westminster, says “reverently and powerfully united” the Convention attendees and raised nearly $800 for the Arc Projects and the Metro Denver Bahá’í Center.

The children began the day by running their own registration table, elaborately decorating name tags for each other and signing in.

Next came devotions and a discussion on service and cleanliness. The Writings were used as well as dramatic presentations to demonstrate the hazards of sneezing in food and not washing hands properly.

The Funds also were discussed. The children decided that 10 percent of the monies raised would be donated to reimburse Convention expenses, 45 percent would go to the Arc, and 45 percent to the Metro Denver Bahá’í Center.

In this spirit of service, the children were divided into groups to prepare themselves to transform the Bahá’í Center into the One World Cafe.

One group set up tables and chairs and decorated the restaurant, another made centerpieces with quotations on service and the Funds and decorated placemats, another made menus and practiced with experienced servers, and the last group worked diligently preparing relish and dessert trays and setting up the kitchen. Each person had his or her own personalized disposable apron to wear for the occasion.

Cafe ready by noon

Convention attendees had been asked ahead of time to bring cookies and soup or chili. As the morning unfolded, the initial fears of “will we have enough” gave way to “I can’t believe how much soup we have!”

By noon the One World Cafe was ready.

A group of children became hosts, and the customers got a real kick out of being shown to their tables and handed menus by 4- and 5-year-olds.

Each server handled a table of eight customers, who had a choice of soup or chili (vegetarian or meat). They were serious about their work and kept accurate track of each order. Drink servers brought coffee, tea, cider or water.

The kitchen staff served up bowl after bowl of soup—many people had two or three ‎bowls-ful bowlfuls‎.

At the end of their lunch, customers were presented with empty envelopes instead of a bill and asked to contribute what they felt the experience was worth. The staff did not accept tips, although many were offered them. Instead, they encouraged customers to donate more to the Funds.

The afternoon was spent cleaning up the restaurant and doing special craft activities—wood working, candle making, crochet, face painting, fabric painting, and multi-cultural doll making—in recognition of the service performed.

The children also learned about the HEAT Wave and made a large banner that they carried through the main Convention hall with a song. As they entered, the children were given a standing ovation for their contributions to the day’s events.

Because of the One World Cafe, Convention attendees had been able to stay at the Center and socialize instead of lunching at area restaurants.

Spirit of happiness, unity

The spirit of happiness and unity that pervaded the Cafe was one Ms. Redson-Smith says she had not seen at Convention in a long time, and it was mainly a result of the efforts of the children to make the Cafe a warm and loving place.

The project benefited the children, too.

They learned firsthand how difficult it is to run a restaurant and how hard the work is. For an hour and a half they never got to sit down!

But they felt valued and very much a needed part of the community. They also made new friends and learned about service and cleanliness and the Funds in a way they will never forget.

Ms. Redson-Smith has detailed lesson plans and activities that she is willing to share with anyone. She can be reached at __________ Westminster, CO 80021 (phone 303-469-2195).

Convention Seating Registration

86th Bahá’í National Convention April 27-30, 1995 Chicago, Illinois
Bahá’í I.D. # ________	Last Name __________________	First Name _________________	Middle Initial ___
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
* Please note: No children’s classes or child care will be provided (see note below).
Mailing Address ______________________________________________________________________
Street ______________________________________________________________________________
City ________________________		State ________	Zip ________________
Telephone ___________________________________________________________________________
Will you be staying at the Bismarck Hotel? Yes ______ No ______
NOTE: This form registers you for Convention seating only. You must make hotel reservations directly with the Bismarck. Please phone 1-800-643-1500 or 312-236-0123.
Do you have any special needs? _______________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________
MAIL FORM TO: National Convention Seating Registration, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091. For more information, phone the Office of the Secretary, 708-733-3529.

HOTEL RESERVATIONS must be made directly with the Bismarck, 1-800-643-1500. To receive a reduced rate, please identify yourself as part of the Bahá’í National Convention. Reservations must be made by April 15, 1995.

ROOM RATES are $69 per room (1, 2, 3 or 4 people in a room). This is an exceptional rate for downtown Chicago, and we strongly encourage you to make your reservations at the Bismarck. Doing so will help the National Assembly keep down Convention costs by filling hotel room requirements. Cribs and rollaway beds are available on request for an additional fee.

SHARING ROOMS: The hotel will not find you a roommate. You must make your own arrangements.

TRANSPORTATION TO/FROM CHICAGO. The National Assembly has arranged for reduced rates on airline travel with various airlines. For information, phone 1-800-726-2875. Or you may make arrangements with your travel agent.

Public transportation (the “el”) is easily accessible from either airport to the Bismarck. Take the train to the Clark & Lake (or “Lake transfer”) stop. Walk south on Clark to Randolph, then about 1 block west on Randolph to the Bismarck. Remember, you’ll be carrying your luggage! The “el” is also accessible from the Bismarck to the House of Worship in Wilmette. The fare is $1.50. We recommend that you travel in groups and avoid riding the train late at night. For more information, phone the RTA, 312-836-7000.

CHILDREN: We strongly encourage you not to bring children to the Convention unless they are old enough to listen attentively in the visitor sessions with their parents, as there will be no children’s classes or child care. We ask this for several reasons. First, the sessions are long—three full 13-hour days and two half-days—and it is difficult to provide meaningful programs for children for that length of time, and we have ‎neither the financial or neither the financial nor‎ human resources necessary to provide a quality program. Also, the Convention will take place in the center of a large city, and although some security will be available, we cannot ensure the safety of children in that environment. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation. [Page 19]

220 embrace the Cause in Zambia

About 220 people were recently enrolled in the Faith in Zambia as a result of the Isobel Sabri teaching campaign. Bahá’ís from neighboring Zaire took part in the campaign, thus fulfilling “a long-standing goal of the National Assembly [of Zambia] for having cross-border teaching activities.” As a part of the teaching endeavor, 60 children’s class teachers were trained and deepening institutes held for the new believers. Among those conducting the institutes was Peter Vuyiya, a former Counselor member of the International Teaching Center.

Representatives from 25 countries gathered October 27-30 in De Poort, the Netherlands, for the second European Bahá’í Health Conference. Among those taking part were Dr. David Ruhe, a retired member of the Universal House of Justice, and his wife, Mrs. Margaret Ruhe. A combination of talks, workshops, discussions and demonstrations addressed the concept of the spiritualization of health care professionals. The event also provided invaluable opportunities for interaction, both socially and intellectually, between Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í health professionals from throughout Europe. At its conclusion, a decision was taken to lay the foundations for a European association of Bahá’í health professionals that would stimulate, organize and build liaisons among the many present and future projects aimed at ensuring the exposure of health practitioners to the healing Message of Bahá’u’lláh.

The ASEAN Bahá’í Youth Conference, held October 21-24 in Kirikhan, Thailand, consisted of an exciting program that revolved around the theme “Unique Challenges and Opportunities.” The 245 young people from Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam were joined by two members of the Continental Board of Counselors for Asia, Lee Lee Ludher and Payman Mohajer; representatives of the National Spiritual Assemblies of Thailand and Malaysia; and a number of Auxiliary Board members. The participants focused on recent messages from the Universal House of Justice. “Drawing inspiration and guidance from the letters,” reads a report from the conference, “we sensed an urgency to fulfill the responsibilities entrusted [to] us to meet the challenges and opportunities of the present generation.”

The annual Bahá’í summer school in Tenerife, Canary Islands, was characterized as “a huge success” with about 235 people of various nationalities taking part in a program held in the village of Las Galetillas on the south of the island. “Many of the Bahá’ís worked hard to organize efficiently these most memorable days,” the report says. “Also, three souls were inspired to declare their faith in Bahá’u’lláh at this event.”

Government officials and senior public servants in Papua New Guinea attended a reception October 29 hosted by the Bahá’í community to mark United Nations Day, the International Year of the Family, and the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Faith in that country. One of its aims was to proclaim the Faith to government representatives. The National Spiritual Assembly, following consultation with Counselor Sírús Naráqí, acknowledged a need for recognition by the government of the establishment of the Faith after the introduction of a bill in Parliament last June to prevent the influx of “new” religions into the country. Had the bill been passed, the Faith would have been one of the religions to be restricted. The Hon. John Momis—a member of Parliament, Minister for Information and Communications Services and one of the founding fathers of the nation’s constitution—spoke to the gathering about the need for human development, closing his talk with “the recognition that the Bahá’í Faith already has this perspective inherent in its belief system. He not only welcomed the Faith in Papua New Guinea, but spoke highly of its contribution to unity in this country.”

On October 24-26, the Bahá’í community of Salvador, Brazil, and the University of the State of Bahia co-sponsored the first seminar on “Moral and Ethical Leadership: A New Framework.” Fifty people took part including university professors, directors and teachers of elementary and high schools, and leaders of women’s associations. The seminar was the first activity carried out within the “Technical, Scientific and Cultural Agreement” signed last year between the Bahá’í community and the University of the State of Bahia.

In a landmark decision involving tensions between two major communities, the Supreme Court of India quoted three paragraphs from a Bahá’í booklet, “Communal Harmony—India’s Greatest Challenge,” stating that “a neutral perception of the requirement for communal harmony is to be found in the Bahá’í Faith.” In 1993, violence erupted between the Hindu and Muslim communities over a 16th-century mosque, which is said to stand on the ruins of an ancient Hindu temple. The government referred the matter to the Supreme Court, whose 200-page decision comments directly and favorably on the teachings of the Faith.

In Turkmenistan, Bahá’ís were invited recently to a reception hosted by the country’s President. About 500 representatives of various religious groups attended the event, which marked the first public recognition of the Faith in that country.

Nearly 50 young Bahá’ís take part in ‘Eagle Institute’ at Louhelen Bahá’í School

On November 4-6, nearly 50 young Bahá’ís took part in the Youth Eagle Institute at the Louhelen Bahá’í School.

The three-day event, facilitated by Nasif Habebullah and Anita Strickland, was focused on the institutions of the Faith. Since it took place on the anniversary of Shoghi Effendi’s passing, the youth decided to dedicate the weekend to the Guardian.

When it was learned that Michael Hampton, a dearly loved Bahá’í youth, had recently died, a memorial service was also held to honor his memory.

The youth were deepened on the Universal House of Justice’s letter of May 19, studied the Covenant and compilations on teaching, watched a video on the Guardian, drafted a “teaching pledge,” and sent a donation to the Arc in honor of the Guardian and Michael Hampton with a letter to the Universal House of Justice.

In Little Rock, Arkansas

Bahá’í’s efforts to combat racism keep growing

Shirley Pleasant, a Bahá’í in Little Rock, Arkansas, knew only too well that little or no framework existed in the state capital for various cultures to interact.

So, when city leaders called in 1991 for citizens to come forward and help work for change, she was quick to respond.

Three years later, her efforts have snowballed into a number of race unity initiatives and afforded her many opportunities to present the Faith.

One component of the 1991 initiative was a race unity task force. While attending sessions of that body, Ms. Pleasant met Catherine Cockrill, who invited her to a women’s club.

Ms. Pleasant introduced the club to the book To Be One by Nat Rutstein, founder of the Institutes for the Healing of Racism. The group responded enthusiastically. Members also expressed an interest in receiving a satellite broadcast of Mr. Rutstein speaking at a forum sponsored by Old Dominion University in Virginia.

With help from the state Department of Education, the satellite broadcast was viewed by about 50 people in Little Rock. That brought requests for more information and an idea to invite Mr. Rutstein to the city.

Again, the Department of Education was instrumental. And there was another player: the recently-formed Race and Cultural Diversity Commission the 1991 task force had worked so hard to establish.

About 200 people attended the eight-hour seminar, held October 15 in the city’s Convention Center.

While in town, Mr. Rutstein also visited two schools and consulted with leaders of the police department. One of the school visits and the seminar were covered by local media.

Out of the seminar has emerged an Institute for the Healing of Racism that will be meeting regularly at least through March 13.

Next on Ms. Pleasant’s agenda is to introduce the “Calling All Colors” concept to area youth.

The snowball just keeps rolling and growing.

Detroit Bahá’ís get top posts

Two Detroit-area Bahá’ís were recently named to positions on influential civic organizations: Edith Jackson-Thomas to the board of management of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) of Highland Park, and Hormoz Alizadeh to the board of directors of the International Institute of Metro Detroit.

In addition, Dr. Violet Wuerfel Clark continues to serve on both the Highland Park City Planning Commission and the board of trustees of Highland Park’s MacGregor Library. [Page 20]

کنفرانس توسعه و عمران در اورلندو

NORTH AMERICAN BAHÁ’Í CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

تاکید پیام کنفرانس بهائی توسعه و عمران اجتماعی و اقتصادی که در اورلندو Orlando در ایالت فلوریدا تشکیل شد، بر اهمیت حیات خانواده در زمان صلح اصغر بود.

در سخنرانی هائی که ایراد شد، موضوع مذکور به دقت بررسی گردید. کسانی که در کارگاه های workshop این کنفرانس شرکت داشتند فرصت یافتند که دربارة چگونگی کاربرد تعالیم بهائی در زندگی روزانه آگاهی یابند. همچنین برنامه های هنری گوناگونی در کنفرانس مذکور به اجرا درآمد. کنفرانس دیگری نیز همزمان با این کنفرانس و به موازات آن برای خردسالان و نوجوانان در جریان بود.

جناب جک مک‌کنتس Jack McCants عضو محفل روحانی ملی در سخنان خود گفت سخن از خوشبینی و بدبینی نیست چون احباء وعدة صلح جهانی را دارند، خوشبینند اما تا سال ۲۰۰۰ رویدادها و امور غیرمنتظره ای در پیش است. بنابراین آنچه درباره اش در اینجا صحبت می کنیم اهمیت زیادی دارد؛ باید بر واقعیت های سخت زندگی نظر بیافکنیم. راه حل اصلی هر مشکلی حیات خانواده خواهد بود. در خانواده است که هر روز می کوشیم صفات روحانی را در زندگیمان وارد کنیم.

دکتر الیزابت بون Bowen که هم پزشک خانواده است و هم رشته پزشکی خانواده را تدریس می کند دربارة اهمیت وحدت خانوادگی تاکید کرد. خانم بون گفت هنگامی که با خانواده خود توانستیم وحدت برقرار کنیم، آنوقت خواهیم توانست آن را به مدرسه و محل کار و جامعه نیز تسری دهیم. همه ما درد داریم برخی محسوس تر از دیگران. درمان دردهای روحانی ما در آثار حضرت بهاء‌الله نهفته است. دستورالعمل برای زمان حاضر خدمت به عالم بشری است.

آقای لارنس میلر Lawrence Miller، مدیر سازمان عمرانی متحده اظهار داشت که در جهان همة سازمان ها در جریان تبدیل و تقلیدند و دریافته اند که راه موفقیت در امور اقتصادی و دیگر امور به توانائی افراد به کار کردن در درون یک گروه بستگی دارد. این توانائی را از کجا می توان کسب کرد؟ از کانون خانواده. همانگونه که خانواده جزء تشکیل دهندة اجتماع است، فرزندان نیز اجزاء تشکیل دهندة خانواده اند. فرزندان امانت خدا در نزد ما هستند و ما در برابر خدا مسؤول آنها هستیم.

جناب رابرت هریس دربارة اهمیت ساختن بناهای قوس تاکید کرد و زمان حاضر را هنگام شادمانی خواند.

خانم فلورنس می پری Florence Mayberry در سخنان خود گفت که بزرگ ترین نیروی بشریت هنگامی حاصل می شود که بشریت رو به سوی خدا آورد و به دنبال ظهور الهی در این عصر رود و آن را بپذیرد. اگر همة مردم از لحاظ روحانی بهم بپیوندند و قوانین الهی را اجراء کنند، جهان جهان دیگر خواهد شد. بزرگ ترین جزر ما فرمانبرداری از احکام الهی است.

دکتر دیوید روح راجع به سرعت دم افزون تغییر سخن گفت. به گفته ایشان حضرت عبدالبهاء وعده داده اند که در پایان قرن حاضر وحدت ملت ها واقعیت خواهد پذیرفت و همة مردم خود را شهروندان یک جهان خواهند دانست.

خانم مارگارت روح راجع به اهمیت زندگی زناشوئی سخنانی ایراد کرد. ایشان گفت ازدواج بسی بیشتر از مهر و امضاء، یک ورقه است. هدف ایجاد خانواده ای است که فضایش سرشار از محبت و عواطف لطیف و مهمان نوازی باشد. رسیدن به هدف اتحاد خانوادگی مستلزم یک عمر کوشش در مطابقت با شرایط زندگی و ایجاد ارتباط متبادلانه بر اساس دو اصل محبت و وفاداری است.

دیگر سخنرانان در کنفرانس عبارت بودند از خانم تلما خلقتی که دربارة نفوذ کلام الهی در محیط خانواده سخن راندند. جناب ری جانسون Ray Johnson، مدیر مدرسة بهائی مکسول در کانادا و خانم دوروتی نلسون نایب رئیس محفل روحانی ملی نیز در سخنرانی شرکت داشتند.

اخبار بهائی

BAHÁ’Í NEWS

زامبیا در اثر یک برنامة تبلیغی ۲۲۰ نفر در زامبیا به جرگة اهل بهاء پیوستند. احبای زئیر در اجرای این برنامه سهیم بودند. بعنوان اجرای بخشی از این برنامة تبلیغی ۶۰ معلم برای کلاس های درس اخلاق کودکان تعلیم دیدند و نیز جلسات تزیید معلومات و مؤسسات تبلیغی برای بزرگسالان تشکیل شد.

پاپوا نیوگینی جامعة بهائی پاپوا نیوگینی Papua New Guinea روز ۲۹ اکتبر سال ۱۹۹۴ ضیافتی برای بزرگداشت روز سازمان ملل متحد و سال بین المللی خانواده و چهلمین سال استقرار امر بهائی در آن کشور تشکیل داد. به دعوت جامعة بهائی سران امور و کارمندان عالی رتبة دولتی در این ضیافت شرکت کردند. یکی از اهداف تشکیل این جلسه اعلان عمومی امر مبارک به نمایندگان دولت بود. در ماه جون سال گذشته لایحه ای به پارلمان پیشنهاد شده بود که بر مبنای آن از ورود ادیان جدید به کشور جلوگیری می شد. اگر لایحة مذکور به تصویب رسیده بود، برای امر مبارک نیز محدودیت هائی به وجود می آمد. وزیر اطلاعات و خدمات ارتباطات کشور در این جلسه سخنانی دربارة رشد انسانی ایراد کرد و در پایان آن اظهار داشت که امر بهائی این موضوع را در نظام عقیدتی خود در بر دارد. وزیر مذکور وجود جامعة بهائی را در پاپوا نیوگینی مغتنم شمرد و از سهمی که امر مبارک در ایجاد وحدت در آن کشور داشته است به خوبی یاد کرد.

هندوستان در سال ۱۹۹۳ زد و خوردهای خشونت باری بین دو گروه هندو و مسلمان در خصوص مسجدی که حدود ۴۰۰ سال پیش در خرابه های یک معبد هندو بنا شده در گرفت. دولت دعوای دو گروه را به دیوان عالی کشور ارجاع کرد. دیوان عالی در حکمی که صادر کرد، سه پاراگراف از یکی از کتاب های بهائی که دربارة هماهنگی جوامع است نقل کرد و اظهار داشت که «نظر بی طرفانه ای از شرایط هماهنگی و ائتلاف اجتماعی را می توان در امر بهائی دید».

کارگاه جوانان بهائی

BAHÁ’Í YOUTH WORKSHOP

اولین کارگاه جوانان بهائی در تابستان سال ۱۹۷۴ تشکیل شد. بسیاری از اعضای اولیه کارگاه از احباء نبودند بلکه جوانانی بودند که در جلساتی که در منازل دوستان بهائی آنها تشکیل می شد شرکت می کردند. در حال حاضر در بسیاری از شهرهای ایالات متحده کارگاه های جوانان بهائی به وجود آمده است.

اخیراً جزوه ای با عنوان «ورک شاپ جوانان بهائی چیست؟» به زبان فارسی منتشر شده است. تهیه کنندة این جزوه اسکار دی گرو Oscar Degruy همان کسی است که اولین کارگاه جوانان بهائی در منزلش تشکیل شد. شرح زیر خلاصه ای از چند و چون کارگاه های جوانان بهائی است.

در جزوة مذکور آمده است که کارگاه جوانان بهائی یک کلوپ تفریحی و اجتماعی نیست؛ شرکت در آن مانند شرکت در یک جلسة امری نیست؛ هدف آن مراقبت از فرزندان احباء و حفظ آنان از خطراتی که با آن روبرو می شوند، نیست؛ برنامه های آن جهت تفریح و سرگرمی تماشاگران نیز نیست؛ بلکه تنها هدف از ایجاد این کارگاه همانا تبلیغ و انتشار امر بهائی است.

اساس کارهای نمایشی و هنری کارگاه های جوانان بر نمایاندن تعالیم بهائی به دیگران است. در این برنامه ها کوشش می شود که از رقص و آواز و نمایش و شعرخوانی استفاده شود. اعضای گروه معمولاً متشکل از رنگ ها و نژادهای گوناگونند تا صورت بیرونی آنان حاکی از معنای درونی پیامشان باشد.

در پایان برنامه ها از تماشاگران دعوت می شود در صورتی که مایل باشند، از افراد گروه درباره اجرای برنامه ها پرسش کنند و راجع به امر بهائی نیز اطلاعاتی به دست آورند.

تشکیل کارگاه های مذکور باید تحت سرپرستی محفل روحانی محل باشد و اگر گروه قصد دارد در نقطة خاصی به اجرای برنامه بپردازد، باید محفل محل را از حضور و برنامة خود آگاه سازد.

ناگفته نماند که حمایت از کارگاه های جوانان بهائی و تشویق آنها اثر مثبتی در کارشان خواهد گذاشت و این به نوبة خود به انتشار امر مبارک کمک شایانی خواهد کرد.

علت تشکیل کارگاه جوانان بهائی فقط و فقط این بوده است که پیام حضرت بهاء‌الله به همة مردم ابلاغ شود؛ بدین ترتیب تبلیغ تنها هدف این تشکیل است. اعضاء گروه گرد هم می آیند که دعا و مناجات کنند و از این راه جلب تأیید از درگاه الهی نمایند و سپس به معلومات امری خود بیفزایند و آنگاه با اجرای نمایش های هنری مردم را با پیام های روح بخش امر بهائی آشنا سازند، پیام هائی مانند صلح و دوستی، وحدت در کثرت، انذارات روحانی در قبال روگردانی از اصول الهی و دیگر تعالیم امری. [Page 21]

خدمات خانم علیا روحی‌زادگان

OLYA ROOHIZADEGAN’S SPEAKING TOUR

چنانکه خوانندگان صفحات فارسی آگاهی دارند، خانم علیا روحی‌زادگان یکی از زنان شجاع شیراز بود که به زندان افتاد و پس از رهائی به انگلستان رفت و در آنجا کتابی با عنوان داستان علیا Olya’s Story نگاشت و به چاپ رساند.

خانم روحی‌زادگان چندی پیش به آمریکا آمد و در طی چند ماه سفرهائی به چند شهر کرد و در هر سفر ماجرای دستگیری خود و دیگران و نیز داستان دلیری احبای ایران و سنگدلی مخالفان امر بهائی را در جلسات بهائی و مصاحبه‌های مطبوعاتی باز گفت.

در اثر این سفرها عدهٔ بسیاری امر حضرت بهاءالله را لبیک گفته‌ اند. ۷۰ نفر در کالیفرنیا، ۲۰ نفر در آریزونا، ۱۰ نفر در رینو (در ایالت نوادا)، و ۱۰ نفر در شیکاگو امر مبارک را تصدیق کرده‌ اند. بیشتر این افراد از متحریان حقیقت و محبانی بودند که از قبل با امر بهائی آشنائی داشته‌ اند و شرکتشان در جلساتی که خانم روحی‌زادگان در آن صحبت می‌کرده، سبب شد که تصدیق کنند.

تأثیر کتاب خانم روحی‌زادگان در غیربهائیان نیز دیده می‌شود. دکتر گیو خاوری که یکی از خوانندگان دقیق و دانشمند صفحات فارسی "آمریکن بهائی" است، در طی نامه‌ای مطالبی برای درج در این صفحات ارسال داشته‌ اند. با سپاسگزاری از دکتر خاوری بخش‌هائی از نامهٔ مذکور در زیر درج می‌شود:

موفقیت دیگری برای کتاب سرکار خانم علیا روحی‌زادگان

کتاب Olya’s ‎Sotry Story‎ که در شرح مشقات احبای زندانی در شیراز به قلم سرکار خانم علیا روحی‌زادگان انتشار یافت، حسن اثر وسیعی حتی در جامعهٔ مطبوعاتی غیربهائی ایرانیان داشته به طوری که ماهنامه تحقیقی "علم و جامعه" که در آمریکا (ویرجینیا در شهر الکساندریا) انتشار می‌یابد، در شماره ۱۲۳، مورخ ۱۶ آبان سال ۱۳۷۳ از کتاب مزبور اینگونه یاد می‌کند:

۳- شکنجه و اعدام بهائیان

خانم علیا روحی‌زادگان در سال‌های بعد از انقلاب در جامعهٔ بهائیان شیراز فعال بوده و دستگیری او در روز ۱۶ ژانویه ۱۹۸۳ نمونه‌ای از تهاجم وسیع و قهرآمیز پاسداران جمهوری اسلامی به بهائیان سرشناس شهر بوده است. روحی‌زادگان در کتاب خود... اسارت و رنج و مقاومت خود را شرح می‌دهد.... در این ایام بهائیان فعال در سراسر کشور دستگیر و اعدام می‌شدند و بدون تردید آزار بهائیان در شیراز نمونه‌ای از اقدامات دولت در سراسر کشور بود....

"بازجوئی از همه بهائیان دستگیر شده دو هدف مشخص داشت: مجبور کردن آنان به معرفی همفکران خود و اعتراف به این که بهائی نیستند و به اسلام ایمان دارند... بخش عمدهٔ "سرگذشت علیا" (Olya’s Story) شرح حال بهائیانی است که زندان و حتی اعدام را بر توبه و تسلیم ترجیح دادند. بین سال‌های ۱۹۸۷ و ۱۹۹۲، ۲۰۱ بهائی در ایران اعدام و یا به دست اوباش چپاولگر کشته شدند. ده‌ها هزار بهائی از ایران گریختند و بسیاری از آنان اموال و دارائی خود را از دست دادند. بیش از ده هزار بهائی که کارمند دولت بودند از کار اخراج شدند و مزایای بازنشستگی خود را از دست دادند....

"خانم روحی‌زادگان هنگام اقامت در انگلستان بعنوان شاهد و ناظری مطلع از ظلمی که به بهائیان ایران می‌شود سخنگوئی مؤثر بوده و در آگاه کردن رسانه‌های گروهی و سازمان‌های بین‌المللی از وضع رقت‌بار حقوق بشر در ایران نقشی مصمم و فعال داشته است."

اطلاعیه مؤسسه معارف بهائی

NEW PUBLICATIONS

اخیراً دو اطلاعیه در معرفی انتشارات جدید مؤسسه معارف بهائی دریافت داشتیم که متن آن در زیر درج می‌شود:

۱- ارکان نظم بدیع

نظم جهانی بهائی که اساسش به ارادهٔ غالبهٔ مظهر ظهور الهی حضرت بهاءالله تشریع و اصولش به اثر قلم مرکز میثاق امر بهاء، حضرت عبدالبهاء، تبیین و ارکانش به دست توانائی مرکز ولایت عظمی، حضرت ولی امرالله تأسیس شده، اکنون به هدایت و قیادت بیت‌العدل اعظم الهی به نشو و نمای خود ادامه می‌دهد.

کتاب "ارکان نظم بدیع" تالیف جناب غلامعلی دهقان که چاپ دوم آن همراه با تجدید نظر کلی و حواشی و ضمائم بسیار و جدید توسط مؤسسه معارف بهائی چاپ و در دسترس یاران عزیز الهی قرار گرفته است، اثر نفیس و ارزنده‌ای است که کسب اطلاعات کافی در این موضوع را برای دوستان فارسی زبان ساده و آسان می‌کند.

مطالعه این مجموعه در این ایام که مؤسسات نظم اداری با سرعت در جهت نیل به بلوغ و کمالی که ید مشیت الهیه در آن به ودیعه گذاشته، پیش می‌رود، برای دوستان مغتنم، مفید و لازم به نظر می‌رسد.

امید است یاران عزیز مهد امرالله که حال در اطراف عالم پراکنده و به خدمت در تشکیلات امریه قائمند با مطالعه این کتاب بیش از پیش بر حقایق اساسی و اصول متقنه نظم اداری بهائی مطلع گردیده و با به کار بستن آنها در خدمات روزمرهٔ تشکیلاتی نقش مهم خود را در تشیید ارکان محافل روحانی که در حال حاضر از اهداف مهمّه امریه محسوب است ایفاء نمایند.

این کتاب در ۳۹۰ صفحه با جلد شمیزی ۲۵ دلار و با جلد مقوائی ۳۳ دلار می‌باشد.

۲- مجموعه مقالات

در ضمن آثار واصله به مؤسسه معارف بهائی رسائل و جزواتی مفید، به ظاهر مختصر و به باطن پرمحتوی، واصل گردید. مؤسسه بر آن شد که رسائل و مقالات مزبور را در مجموعه‌ای گرد آورده و برای یاران عزیز فارسی زبان چاپ و منتشر نماید.

اولین مجموعهٔ چنین آثار که جزء سری جزوات "مطالعه معارف بهائی" منتشر گردیده در ۱۹۰ صفحه متضمن ۸ اثر از نویسندگان بهائی: دکتر بهروز ثابت، دکتر پرویز روحانی، دکتر سیروس علائی، دکتر عبدالمیثاق قدیریان، خانم الهام افنان، دکتر هوشنگ رأفت و دکتر وحید رأفتی می‌باشد که در مواضیع "روش و شرایط روحانی در تحقیقات بهائی" و "بزرگداشت یکصدمین سال صعود جمال اقدس ابهی" و "مطالعه کتاب اقدس و الواح وصایای حضرت عبدالبهاء در ارتباط با نظم اداری" و "شدائد و بلایا و جنبه‌های روانی و روحانی آن" و "آیندهٔ جهان" و "مبانی مشترک ادیان" و "چند ضرب‌المثل در آثار مبارکه" می‌باشد.

البته مقالات و آثاری که در این مجموعه عرضه می‌شود چه از نظر موضوع و چه از نظر سبک نگارش یکدست نیست ولی هر یک در حد خود جالب و قابل استفاده می‌باشد و جمع آنها در یک مجموعه تنوعی دلپذیر به آن می‌بخشد که یقین است مورد توجه خوانندگان قرار خواهد گرفت. قیمت این مجموع ۱۲ دلار است.

۳- هدیه کتاب

مسئولان مؤسسه یاد آوری می‌فرمایند که برای تقدیم هدیه به خویشان و دوستان به مناسبت ایام هاء، نوروز، عید اعظم رضوان، سالروز تولد، منزل مبارکی، ازدواج و موقعیت‌های مشابه آن کتابهای امری بسیار مناسب است. این نشریات به همه قیمتی موجود است: برای مثال کتاب "سنگهای گویا" مجموعهٔ طرحهای اماکن متبرّکه در ارض اقدس، نقاشی جناب مهندس هوشنگ سیحون را می‌شود به مبلغ یکهزار دلار تهیه کرد یا کتاب "هدیهٔ ازدواج" را به قیمت ۱.۵ دلار خرید. اشتراک یکی از مجلات امری نیز نمونهٔ دیگری است. با پرداخت به وسیلهٔ کارت اعتباری Visa یا Mastercard و دادن نشانی با تلفن به مؤسسه معارف امری هدیهٔ مورد نظر مستقیماً به نشانی گیرنده فرستاده می‌شود.

دوستان عزیز می‌توانند انتشارات مؤسسه معارف بهائی را از کتابخانه‌های بهائی خریداری فرموده و یا مستقیماً از مؤسسه معارف بهائی در تورانتو کانادا بطلبند. تلفن: (۹۰۵) ۶۲۸-۳۰۴۰

آموزش زبان فارسی

LEARNING PERSIAN

در اهمیت آموختن فارسی و عربی برای مطالعه نصوص مبارکه به زبان نزولی جای تردید نیست. در این زمان که یاران ایرانی در محیطی بسر می‌برند که زبان فارسی همه روزه به کار گرفته نمی‌شود، یاد دادن خواندن و نوشتن فارسی به کودکان بهائی از جهات دیگر هم لازم است. آشنائی کودکان و نوجوانان ایرانی تبار با فرهنگ ایران و زبان مادری شخصیت آنان را غنی‌تر می‌سازد -- استفاده از دو میراث فرهنگی آنان را برای پیشرفت و موفقیت در جامعه‌ای که ویژگی بارز آن تنوع مردمان و فرهنگ‌های آن است مجهز می‌کند.

دفتر امور احبای ایرانی/آمریکائی طرحهائی برای آموزش زبان فارسی در دست تهیه دارد و امیدوار است در این راه از همیاری و همفکری دوستانی که در این زمینه مهارت و تخصص دارند برخوردار شود. از علاقه‌مندان به این همکاری متمنی است مختصری از سوابق و تجربه خود و پیشنهادهائی برای همکاری در پیشبرد این هدف را به نشانی این دفتر در دارالانشاء محفل روحانی ملی ارسال فرمایند. [Page 22]ترجمه

پیام بیت‌العدل اعظم

MESSAGE FROM THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE خطاب به عموم محافل روحانی ملی مورخ ۷ دسامبر ۱۹۹۴

یاران عزیز الهی،

با قلوبی طافح از سرور تشکیل پنج محفل روحانی ملی جدید را در رضوان آینده اعلام می‌داریم: یک محفل در افریقا، در اریتره که مقرّ آن در آسمارا خواهد بود؛ دو محفل در آسیا، یکی در ارمنستان، مقرّ آن در ایروان، و دیگری در گرجستان که مقرّ آن در تفلیس خواهد بود؛ دو محفل در اروپا، یکی در بلو روس، مقرّ آن در مینسک و دیگری در سیسیل که مقرّ آن در پالرمو خواهد بود.

از آن پس محفل منطقه‌ای روسیه و گرجستان و ارمنستان به محفل روحانی ملی بهائیان مناطق متحده روسیه و محفل روحانی منطقه‌ای اوکراین و بلوروس و مُلداوی به محفل روحانی منطقه‌ای بهائیان اوکراین و مُلداوی تبدیل خواهد شد.

به منظور انطباق با وحدت سیاسی اخیر در افریقای جنوبی جوامع بهائی بُپوتاتسوانا و سیسکای و افریقای جنوبی و ترانسکای نیز از رضوان آینده در ظلّ یک محفل روحانی ملی، یعنی محفل روحانی ملی بهائیان افریقای جنوبی، قرار خواهند گرفت.

این دورنمای هیجان‌انگیز نشانة آن است که جریان تقویت و تحکیم جامعة بهائی در مناطق مختلف جهان سرعتی روزافزون دارد و سیر تکاملی نظام شگفت‌انگیزی را که مالک برّیه برای انتظام امور و بالمال تضمین صلح در تمامی کرة ارض ایجاد فرموده، شدتی بیشتر می‌بخشد. امید است یاران الهی در جمیع نقاط در اثر تأمّل در چنین فتوحاتی که در شُرُف حصول است، برای ازدیاد و تسریع مساعی متنوّعة خود در انتشار پیام حضرت بهاء‌الله در سراسر عالم شور و شوقی تازه یابند.

با تحیات ابدع ابهی بیت‌العدل اعظم

کنفرانس دوستداران فرهنگ ایرانی

FRIENDS OF PERSIAN CULTURE CONFERENCE

پنجمین کنفرانس دوستداران فرهنگ ایرانی از جمعه ۲۶ تا دوشنبه ۲۹ ماه می سال جاری در هالیدی این Holiday Inn در شهر ‎اوستون اونستون‎ Evanston در جوار مشرق‌الاذکار امریکا تشکیل خواهد شد.

موضوع مباحث و سخنرانی‌ها و برنامه‌ها و کارگاه‌های این کنفرانس چنانکه سنت این کنفرانس‌ها در قبل بوده، مسائل مربوط به جنبه‌های گوناگون فرهنگ ایران اعم از گذشته و حاضر خواهد بود.

از استادان و پژوهشگران و هنرمندان و به ویژه جوانان بهائی دعوت می‌شود که با ارائه مطالب و ایراد سخنرانی و اجرای برنامه‌های هنری در کنفرانس شرکت نمایند. دوستان عزیز باید حاصل پژوهش‌های خود و یا متن برنامه‌هائی را که در نظر دارند اجرا نمایند، تا آخر ماه فبروری سال جاری به دفتر انجمن دوستداران فرهنگ ایرانی ارسال دارند.

از آنجا که موضوع کنفرانس‌های انجمن به طور کلی فرهنگ ایران است، محدودیت ویژه‌ای برای انتخاب موضوع تا آنجا که ارتباط مستقیمی با فرهنگ ایران داشته باشد وجود ندارد. بررسی‌ها و پژوهش‌های یاران می‌تواند درباره موضوع‌هائی از این دست باشد: مطالعات تاریخی و اجتماعی درباره ایران؛ زبان و ادبیات فارسی؛ هنرهای گوناگون ایرانی در دوره‌های گوناگون؛ آداب و رسوم مردم نقاط مختلف ایران؛ معرفی بزرگان فرهنگ و ادب و دانش ایران؛ نحوة برخورد بهائیان با مسائل مربوط به ایران؛ کیفیت نفوذ امر بهائی در نقاط گوناگون ایران.

علاقه‌مندان به شرکت در کنفرانس باید برای تهیة جا مستقیماً با هالیدی این Holiday Inn تماس حاصل نمایند و ذکر کنند که رزرو جا برای شرکت در Persian Arts Festival خواهد بود. قیمت اتاق شبی ۶۵ دلار است و هر اتاق برای یک تا چهار نفر جا دارد. تلفن: ۴۳۲۹-۴۶۵ (۸۰۰)

همچنین علاقه‌مندان می‌توانند برای دریافت اطلاعات بیشتر با دفتر امور احبای ایرانی/امریکائی تماس حاصل نمایند. تلفن: ۳۵۳۱-۷۳۳ (۷۰۸)

رفع تعصبات نژادی

RACE UNITY

رفع تعصبات از هر نوع که باشد، از تعالیم بنیادی امر بهائی است. ایجاد وحدت عالم انسانی بدون رفع تعصبات محال می‌نماید. یکی از تعصبات دامنگیر جوامع انسانی همانا تعصب نژادی است. محفل روحانی ملی ایالات متحده در نقشه سه‌ساله جامعه بهائی امریکا بر اهمیت مشکل نژادی تأکید کرده و کوشش در رفع آن را بعنوان یکی از اهداف نقشه معین فرموده است.

دفتر امور احبای ایرانی/امریکائی جهت کمک به اجرای هدف مذکور جزوة راهنمائی با عنوان "رفع تعصب نژادی از دیدگاه بهائی" تهیه کرده است. در مقدمه این جزوه چنین آمده است:

"مسأله تعصب نژادی و تضادهائی که در جامعه امریکا به وجود آورده از گذشته دور تا این زمان دامنگیر مردم این سرزمین بوده است. متفکران و مصلحان اجتماعی در رفع این مشکل بسیار نوشته‌اند، و قوانین گوناگونی برای از میان بردن تبعیض و بی‌عدالتی که از این تعصب ناشی می‌شود، وضع شده است. ولکن آثار و علائم تعصب نژادی هنوز دیده می‌شود. از بعضی جهات وضع بدتر هم شده است، زیرا تغییر طرز فکر و رفتار فردی مورد توجه قرار نگرفته و به تعدیل مقررات قانونی و اداری اکتفا شده است.

دیانت بهائی رفع این مشکل را شرط لازم برای تأسیس صلح و سلام در جامعه امریکا بلکه در عالم می‌داند و راه چاره را در تقلیب قلوب و تربیت نفوس می‌شناسد.

در دهه گذشته عده بهائیانی که از ایران به این کشور نقل مکان نموده‌اند افزایش بسیار یافته و برخورد آنان با مظاهر تعصب نژادی به صورت‌های متفاوت موجب سوء تفاهم و شکایت گردیده است. و مجموعه حاضر به عنوان وسیله و ابزاری برای کمک به ازدیاد اطلاعات یاران ایرانی درباره سوابق این مشکل و همچنین برای توجیه و تشریح عوامل و جنبه‌های مختلف موضوع تهیه شده است....

این راهنما به صورت اوراق مجزا چاپ شده تا در آینده تغییر آن آسان باشد و هم محافل و افراد احباء بتوانند یادداشت‌های اضافی خود و مدارک و اطلاعات دیگری را که در ضمن مطالعات خود در این زمینه گرد می‌آورند، در محل خود به این اوراق اضافه کنند."

این جزوة راهنما شامل یک مقدمه و ۴ بخش و مسک الختامی حاوی سرمشق‌هائی از حیات حضرت عبدالبهاء است. در آخر این جزوه سؤال‌هائی برای شور و گفتگو و نیز مراجع مطالعه درج شده است.

موضوع‌هائی که در هر بخش درباره آن بحث شده عبارت است از:

• بخش اول: یگانگی نوع انسان: مبنای یک چهارچوب کلی برای تجدید تمدن؛ وحدت در کثرت؛ تعصب: انعکاسی از عقب‌افتادگی فرهنگی در شخصیت فرد؛ مطالعة تعصب نژادی در چهارچوب قوانین حاکم بر تحول و تکامل تمدن؛ خدمات بهائیان ایرانی.
• بخش دوم: جامعه بهائی کارگاهی برای التیام تضادهای نژادی؛ شناخت روحانی و آگاهی به تعصبات؛ رفع تعصبات در دیانت بهائی.
• بخش سوم: رابطه احبای ایرانی با بهائیان افریقائی‌تبار؛ ریشه‌ها و تاریخچة تبعیض نژادی نسبت به سیاهان ‎امریک امریکا‎؛ موقعیت کنونی و نشانه‌های یک بحران تازه.
• بخش چهارم: لزوم مطالعة منظم دربارة رفع تعصب نژادی.

بسیاری از دوستان دانشمند در تهیة این راهنما با دفتر امور احبای ایرانی/امریکائی همکاری کرده‌اند. متن اولیه را دکتر بهروز ثابت تدوین نموده است و سپس دکتر ویلما الیس، دکتر رابرت هندرسن، مهندس بهروز توانگر، جناب موریس تيلر، خانم فرزانة گیبلو، جناب ایوندر گیلمر، خانم فیروزة استوردیوانت، جناب احمد محبوبی و دکتر حسین عهدیه با ارائه پیشنهادهای پرارزش خود در تهیة آن شرکت داشته‌اند.

قیمت جزوة مذکور ۲/۵ دلار است و دوستان می‌توانند آن را از طریق مؤسسة توزیع مطبوعات امری خریداری نمایند. تلفن: ۹۰۱۹-۹۹۹ (۸۰۰) [Page 23]

Monroe, Louisiana, goal city of Three Year Plan, earns Assembly status with six new enrollments

Monroe, Louisiana, a goal city of the Three Year Plan, has won Assembly status.

A Spiritual Assembly was formed in late September on the strength of six enrollments in the past six months.

Two more declarations of belief in Bahá’u’lláh were made at a soul-stirring meeting in Monroe the night before the Unit Convention was held there.

Monroe was one of the cities in which the Atlanta Bahá’í Youth Workshop performed this summer during a nine-day teaching trip centered around the Martin Luther King National Youth Assembly in Little Rock, Arkansas.

The Workshop performed first at Pecanland Mall, and afterward was mobbed by people wanting to know more about the Faith. The next morning, Workshop members went into the community to invite people to their next performance, also at the mall.

While in the Monroe area, the Workshop presented a fireside at Northeastern Louisiana University and took part in a special Choctaw Sweat Lodge ceremony.

Cape Cod Bahá’ís march for race unity

The Bahá’ís of Cape Cod and the Islands observed Race Unity Day by staging a mile-long walk down the main street of Falmouth, Massachusetts.

Sixty social and religious groups in the area were invited to take part. Church leaders, local people and friends of the Bahá’ís joined Bahá’í children, youth and adults.

The walkers drew friendly responses from passersby who cheered on the diverse slice of humanity strolling behind a large banner that read “Mankind Is One.”

The walk ended at the Falmouth band shell, where the gathering was addressed by Betty Burkes of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom on the topic of “Rethinking Race and Unity: A New Perspective on Community.”

People strolling along the waterfront stopped and listened as Ms. Burkes used an inclusive approach by inviting participants to express their reasons for being in a walk for race unity.

Community, she stressed in her talk, provides a vital base within which individuals can gain knowledge of each other and build bridges of understanding.

The gathering ended with Ms. Burkes leading the group in children’s songs.

A fireside was held that evening.

Ms. Burkes has since been given a presentation copy of the book, Bahá’u’lláh.

Two major newspapers in the area carried articles and photographs of the event.

Bahá’ís and friends on Cape Cod, Massachusetts, march along the main street of Falmouth as part of a Race Unity Day celebration.

Community stats shed interesting light on move toward equality

An important aspect of the Three Year Plan for the American Bahá’í community is further study and implementation of the Bahá’í principle of the equality of men and women. For this reason, the following statistics should be of great interest to the American Bahá’í community.

It is striking that the American Bahá’í community is almost equally balanced between women and men; the community is 49.98 percent female, 50.02 percent male. A more perfect balance is hard to imagine.

This balance is also found at younger age groups. The U.S. Bahá’í community includes 2,477 female youth and 2,459 male youth, and, among the children, 4,209 girls and 4,111 boys.

The American Bahá’í community, as indicated in the chart, is more likely to elect women to its local Spiritual Assemblies than men. The typical local Spiritual Assembly in this country is composed of five women and four men.

Local Spiritual Assemblies, however, appear to have a propensity to follow the dictates of society as a whole when choosing officers.

Women outnumber men 4-1 in the position of secretary; men outnumber women nearly 2-1 in the position of chairman, and nearly 6-4 in the position of treasurer. As a result, men are more likely to be officers of local Assemblies than women.

Fortunately, the position of secretary is one of the most important in terms of responsibilities.

Nevertheless, one might ask whether a larger percentage of men have the organizational skills necessary to be secretary than have customarily been recognized by the Bahá’ís, and whether more women have the skills of facilitating consultation and managing money than the numbers would suggest.

These few statistics indicate that the American Bahá’í community still faces many challenges in unlocking the potential of both sexes, and in acquiring a more well-rounded view of the talents of its members.

	% Adult	% LSA members	% LSA secretaries	% LSA chairmen	% LSA treasurers	% LSA vice-chairmen
Females	47.5	53.8	75.5	34.7	38.8	37.7
Males	47.2	41.4	21.1	61.0	56.4	57.5
Sex Unknown	6.3	4.8	3.4	4.3	‎4..8 4.8‎	4.8
TOTAL	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0

‘Spiritual Revolution II’ broadcast tapes available

“The Spiritual Revolution II,” a series of conversations about the Bahá’í Faith on video tape, is available in professional broadcast format from the Spiritual Assembly of San Francisco, California.

The series of 12 programs, each one designed to introduce the general public to the aims and tenets of the Faith, has been produced in 3/4-inch U-Matic and Beta-SP formats. Each tape contains one program, 28:45 in length, and sells for $99.95.

For more information or to order tapes, write to the Spiritual Assembly of San Francisco, 170 Valencia St., San Francisco, CA 94103, or phone 415-431-9990.

Banu Hemmati, who set up first Bahá’í kindergarten in Kirman, Iran, dies in California

Banu Hemmati, a Bahá’í who established the first and only Bahá’í kindergarten in Kirman, Iran, died October 4 in California.

Mrs. Hemmati, who persevered in educating children in her native Iran despite the opposition of her Zoroastrian neighbors, dedicated her school to character development and moral training.

In addition, “Maman-Jun,” as she was called by her students, was involved in many organizations and charities; taught adult literacy classes in Kirman; served on the Women’s Committee; and was one of the first people in Iran to study Esperanto.

IN MEMORIAM

Enayatullah Amiri Montecito, CA November 27, 1994	Erma Hayden Ann Arbor, MI December 22, 1994	Janice Mollohan Barberton, OH November 24, 1994	Marguerite Williams Pompano Beach, FL July 7, 1994
Ann M. Burklin Ormond Beach, FL December 10, 1994	Ali Hosseini Oklahoma City, OK November 25, 1994	Thomas E. Moore Raleigh, NC November 30, 1994	Vi Winans Victor, NY December 22, 1994
Robert Cameron Duluth, MN November 16, 1994	Robert L. Kerr Arco, ID November 29, 1994	Robert Navarro Marion, IN October 24, 1994	Larry P. Woods San Francisco, CA September 1994
Manuel Codeso Sunny Isles, FL September 5, 1994	Mary B. Marietta Vista, CA November 21, 1994	Winona Reid Carrollton, GA September 10, 1994	Evelyn Wooster Buffalo, NY November 6, 1994
Vivian Compeau E. Grand Forks, MN December 1, 1994	Doris Markillie Rock Island, IL November 23, 1994	Emanuel Reimer Eliot, ME October 30, 1994	Jimmie Wynne Kent, WA November 30, 1994
Ivy Farmer Santa Fe, NM December 3, 1994	Celeste McGraw Appalachia, VA November 29, 1994	Saltanat Samadi Mountain View, CA November 20, 1994

[Page 24]

CALENDAR

Bahá’ís in Florence, Alabama, took part in December in the city’s annual Christmas parade, inviting members of the foreign students’ club at the University of Alabama-Florence to join them. In all, 20 Bahá’ís, adults and children, took part in the event, after which they hosted the foreign students at a pizza party and thanked them for their help.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

FEBRUARY

10-12: Black History Celebration, Bosch Bahá’í School, with Robin Evans, Dr. Gloria Haithman-Ali, Dr. George Hill, others. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

10-12: Conference for Women, “Reaching for Equality,” De Leon Springs, Florida. Speakers to include Counselor Jacqueline Delahunt, Dr. Phyllis Gudger-Porter, Dr. Jane Faily. For information, phone Ana Marcial, 904-985-1905, or Effie Weir, 407-645-3379.

11: Arc fund-raiser with guest speaker Dr. Robert Henderson, secretary-general of the National Spiritual Assembly, Broward County, Florida. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

17-19: Marriage Enrichment Conference, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

17-20: Adult Three-Day Weekend, Bosch Bahá’í School. Study Nat Rutstein’s book and video, To Be One. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

18: 11th annual David Kellum Awards, Foundation Hall, Bahá’í House of Worship, Wilmette, IL. For information about this teaching event, phone the Activities Office, 708-853-2300.

18-19: Regional Public Information Meeting, Bahá’í Center, 595 Albany St., Boston, Massachusetts. Contact Bruce Cestano-Grover, 617-262-4672.

MARCH

3-5: “Rendezvous of the Soul” Weekend and Youth Deepening, Bosch Bahá’í School. Registration deadline: February 24. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

10-12: The Soul’s Quest: The Life of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

10-12: “He Means Me,” new digital tapes of the Hand of the Cause William Sears, facilitated by Mrs. Marguerite Sears and Anthony Lease, Bosch Bahá’í School. Registration deadline: March 3. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

24-26: Prospects of Global Governance (with the Bahá’í International Community), Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

24-26: Seekers and New Believers Weekend, Bosch Bahá’í School. Registration deadline: March 17. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

24-26: Fifth Haj Mehdi Arjmand Scripture Conference, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, Illinois, with focus on the Kitáb-i-Aqdas. For information, phone Robert H. Stockman, 708-733-3425.

25: Naw-Rúz celebration, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

31-April 2: Advanced Core Curriculum Seminar, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033; fax 810-653-7181.

APRIL

8: First Symposium on the Sacred Texts: The Kitáb-i-Aqdas and Its Relation to Other Holy Writings, Texas A&M University, College Station. Sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of College Station. Those who would like to present papers should submit abstracts by February 15. Send submissions to the Spiritual Assembly of College Station, P.O. Box 9028, College Station, TX 77842. For information, phone 409-693-6789 or e-mail

8-11: Children’s Camp (grades 4-6), newly designed program by Linda Bedford, Bosch Bahá’í School. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

13-16: Spring Break Session, Gender Issues, Bosch Bahá’í School. For information, phone 408-423-3387.

13-16: Women’s Awakening, a special program for women, Bosch Bahá’í School. Husbands will take part in children’s classes or be invited to perform other services. For information, write to the Bosch School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, phone 408-423-3387, or fax 408-423-7564.

14-16: Youth Institute and Eagle Youth Institute, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

15-17: Alabama/Northwest Florida Bahá’í Summer School, Camp Sumatanga, Gallant, Alabama (about 20 miles from Gadsden). For information, contact the registrar, Peggy Scott, P.O. Box 36205, Birmingham, AL 35236-6205, or phone 205-979-1199.

21-27: Elderhostel with three challenging seminars for seniors, Bosch Bahá’í School. For information, phone 408-423-3387 or fax 408-423-7564.

27-30: 86th Bahá’í National Convention, Bismarck Hotel, Chicago, Illinois.

29: Ridván celebration, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

MAY

5-7: Assembly Team Development Weekend (for Assemblies only), Bosch Bahá’í School. For information, write to the Bosch School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, phone 408-423-3387, or fax 408-423-7564.

12-14: Parent and Child Conference, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

12-14: Rendezvous of the Soul weekend/Computer Networking, Bosch Bahá’í School. For information, write to the Bosch School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, phone 408-423-3387, or fax 408-423-7564.

19-21: San Jose Retreat weekend, Bosch Bahá’í School.

19-21: National Convention delegates’ report, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

26-28: Local Spiritual Assembly Development Weekend, Louhelen Bahá’í School. For information, phone 810-653-5033.

26-29: Ninth annual Marriage Enrichment Retreat, Bosch Bahá’í School. For information, write to the Bosch School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, phone 408-423-3387, or fax 408-423-7564.

MOVING? TELL US YOUR NEW ADDRESS.

To avoid unnecessary delays in receiving The American Bahá’í, send all family members’ names, new address and mailing label to: Management Information Services, Bahá’í National Center, 1233 Central St., Evanston, IL 60201-1611. If acquiring a Post Office box, your residence address (c) must be filled in. Please allow 3 weeks for processing. (This also updates National’s data base.)

A. NAME(S): 1. ________________ I.D. # ________________ Title ________________ 2. ________________ I.D. # ________________ Title ________________ 3. ________________ I.D. # ________________ Title ________________ 4. ________________ I.D. # ________________ Title ________________

B. NEW RESIDENCE ADDRESS:	C. NEW MAILING ADDRESS:
________________ Street Address	________________ P.O. Box or Other mailing address
________________ Apartment # (If applicable)	________________ Apartment # (If applicable)
________________ City	________________ City
________________ ________________ State Zip code	________________ ________________ State Zip code

D. NEW COMMUNITY:	E. HOME TELEPHONE NUMBER:
________________ ________________ Name of new Bahá’í Community Moving date	________________ ________________ ________________ Area code Phone number Name

F. WORK TELEPHONE NUMBER(S): ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ Area code Phone number Name Area code Phone number Name

G. WE RECEIVE EXTRA COPIES BECAUSE:

H. I WOULD LIKE A COPY:

[ ] we do not have the same last name. [ ] we do not want extra copies, so please cancel the copy for the person(s) and I.D. number(s) listed above. [ ] the last names and addresses on our address labels do not match. We have listed above the full names of all family members as they should appear on the national records, their I.D. numbers, and the corrections so that we will receive only one copy.

[ ] Our household receives only one copy of The American Bahá’í. I wish to receive my own copy. I have listed my name, I.D. number and address above.

BAHÁ’Í NATIONAL CENTER 112 Linden Avenue Wilmette, IL 60091

MULK B.E. 151 / FEBRUARY 7, 1995