The American Bahá’í/Volume 6/Issue 7/Text
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Senior Institutions for North America meet at behest of Universal House of Justice[edit]
To Wilmette, Illinois, from every corner of North America, came Bahá’ís with a special mission on the weekend of July 4.
Members of the senior institutions of the Faith, they were participating in a conference initiated for The Universal House of Justice by the Hand of the Cause William Sears, a conference unprecedented in its scope and in the ramifications of its deliberations.
Three Hands of the Cause, Zikrullah Khadem, John Robarts, and William Sears; Counsellor ‘Azíz Yazdí, from the International Teaching Center in Haifa; all the members of the Continental Board of Counsellors for North America, the National Spiritual Assemblies of Alaska, Canada, and the United States; and the members of the Auxiliary Boards, met at the House of Worship Saturday and Sunday, July 5-6.
Although primarily concerned with the question of protecting the Faith from opposition, the conference also provided an opportunity for members of the three different National Spiritual Assemblies and the Auxiliary Boards to share teaching ideas and to learn of goals achieved in other areas.
Many earlier Bahá’í conferences of a national or international nature have been held, but this was the first continental conference for North America and the effect was easily visible on the faces of the participants. Serious deliberation on matters connected with the protection of the Faith could not quench the enthusiasm and excitement generated by the scope of this gathering.
“As the Cause expands and its institutions become more consolidated,” commented one of the participants, “we may expect the opposition to grow also. It is inevitable.” He went on to explain that the conference was called to assist Bahá’ís to understand the nature of this kind of opposition, in view of the fact that the Faith is growing in prestige. Communities throughout the continent will, in the coming months, receive guidance from their generals, the National Spiritual Assemblies, concerning appropriate response should attacks on the Faith develop.
A warm welcome from all the conference participants was extended to their distinguished visitor from the World Center, Counsellor Yazdí, in Wilmette to discuss matters of common interest and to attend the consultation.
At the end of the conference, Mr. Yazdí explained that he had the blessing of the International Teaching Center to meet with the Counsellors and Board members to get to know them further, and to be present at the conference sessions. He warmly expressed praise for the entire program, arranged in detail by the Hands of the Cause.
A number of different events of great significance took place during the weekend. Three National Spiritual Assemblies consulted on Friday; the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States met with the Counsellors, including the representative from the World Center; separate meetings took place in the Temple area of the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada and Alaska. Tracy Hamilton, Chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the Hawaiian Islands, was also present for the inter-Assembly consultations.
Speaking of the Auxiliary Board members, one member of a National Spiritual Assembly expressed his appreciation in this way: “This is the first opportunity I have had to meet all the Auxiliary Board members at one time, and it is like meeting an assemblage of stars. They are radiant and informed, enthusiastic and deeply cooperative.”
Another member of this institution added: “The blessing of our conference taking place in the holiest House of Worship, the Mother Temple of the West, has added greatly to the effect of it. We are learning firsthand the approach to the Five Year Plan goals of fellow Bahá’ís in the other institutions, and it is like looking through an open window on great beauty, in this special building with its own unutterable beauty. The effect of this conference will be felt for a long time.”
1. The three Hands of the Cause of God who attended the conference were, from left to right, William Sears, John Robarts, and Zikrullah Khadem. At the right is Counsellor ‘Azíz Yazdí, a member of the International Teaching Center in Haifa. 2. The Hands, Continental Counsellors for North America, and Auxiliary Boards, met separately on occasion during the weekend. 3. Members of the Canadian and U.S. National Assemblies inspecting a copy of The American Bahá’í. 4. Members of the several institutions meeting in Wilmette. 5. Counsellor Lloyd Gardner and Auxiliary Board member Javidukht Khadem share a happy notion. 6. Members of National Assemblies during discussions at the Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds. 7. Members of the Auxiliary Boards during consultation with the Hands and Counsellors.
Counsellor urges Americans to continue victories[edit]
Counsellor ‘Azíz Yazdí
Encouragement to the American Bahá’í Community to continue its record of victories in the Faith was expressed by Counsellor ‘Azíz Yazdí, of the International Teaching Center, during his visit to the Temple area the weekend of July 4. Speaking at the regular monthly meeting of the national center staff in Foundation Hall, he said: “We at the World Center look to you in this part of the world for good news, for news of great achievements and of further victories in the Faith.”
He praised those Bahá’ís whose sacrificial efforts in inconspicuous but vital areas of the work of the Faith had helped to prepare the way for the army of Bahá’u’lláh to win still greater victories, saying that working without expectation of reward or even acknowledgment is in itself the greatest reward.
Counsellor Yazdí is en route to Peru, where he will attend an Indian teaching conference that is expected to draw Indian believers from all parts of South America.
Senior institutions for North America meet, continued[edit]
Clustered in little groups at mealtime, or at the door of Foundation Hall prior to and following sessions, or gathered all together in the morning devotions in the auditorium of the Temple, the unity of this gathering could be felt as could the love shared by the various institutions for each other. Over it all, blessing the gathering, was the presence of the three Hands of the Cause, fulfilling the obligation given to them by the beloved Guardian “to edify the souls of men, to promote learning, to improve the character of all men and to be, at all times under all conditions, sanctified and detached from earthly things.”
Douglas Martin, Secretary of the Canadian National Spiritual Assembly, who remained in Wilmette for further consultation after the conference, commented at a regular monthly meeting of the national center staff on the spirit of generosity he had encountered in Bahá’ís during his visit. “I was deeply touched,” he said, “by the openness and generosity evident this weekend, and pre-eminently expressed by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. You are probably not aware of it, but it is certainly apparent to visitors and is deeply appreciated.”
Also speaking at the staff meeting held following the conference, Charlotte Linfoot, Assistant Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly, described it as a meeting of historical importance, “a new step in the evolution of the Faith, taking place quietly and unobtrusively, almost unconscious of the presence of so many other people at the National Center.”
While the conference meetings were held quietly in Foundation Hall, more than 7,000 visitors came to the House of Worship over the three-day holiday weekend.
Consultation among National Assemblies strengthens cooperation[edit]
Members of the Alaskan, Canadian, and U.S. National Assemblies in Wilmette.
A unique opportunity for consultation among three National Spiritual Assemblies was one of the highlights of the July 4 weekend conference held at the House of Worship.
Many members participating from the National Spiritual Assemblies of Alaska, the United States, and Canada later expressed their happiness at this rare opportunity to learn firsthand what is happening in neighboring countries.
One National Assembly member commented: “It was especially useful and strengthened our long-held view that we should collaborate more specifically on a variety of things with nearby National Spiritual Assemblies, particularly in the realm of publication. We all benefited from consulting with people of other experiences and abilities, to fill out our perspective on important issues facing our communities.”
He said the opportunity to learn from the Auxiliary Board members areas of possible internal and external threats to our own unity, “only some of which would be labeled Covenant-breaking,” was extremely valuable.
Friday morning the National Spiritual Assemblies of Canada and the United States met for consultation. The National Spiritual Assembly of Alaska joined them at an afternoon session.
Throughout the weekend, the Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds, with Bahia Mitchell as hostess, provided a gracious setting for meals and informal visiting for the conference participants.
Impressions gleaned from members of National Spiritual Assemblies attending the conference reveal some of the following accomplishments in achieving goals of the Five Year Plan.
Alaska[edit]
One of the exciting developments here is the opening of nine Eskimo communities by carefully scheduled visits from teaching teams, transported to isolated areas by a volunteer pilot, Jim Jamison, flying a four-seat Cessna 180. Flying mostly in the Norton Sound area (which is directly across the Bering Strait from Siberia), the teams have received widely varying responses from village chiefs, ranging from warm welcome to open hostility.
They have not tried to teach if the chief has opposed the Faith, but have succeeded in leaving Bahá’ís in nine of their 13 goals. Although mosquitoes in the summer and bitter cold in the winter make teaching more difficult than it would otherwise be, many Bahá’ís have volunteered for assignments in this project. Careful training, under the guidance of the National Spiritual Assembly, has been given to those Bahá’ís chosen to undertake opening Eskimo villages to the Faith.
Another area of accomplishment in Alaska is the Native Council approach to teaching Indians. Two of these Councils now exist, and operate directly under the National Spiritual Assembly, holding meetings at which attendance is limited to Indians. They have succeeded in attracting many believers, and contributions to the Fund from these meetings have covered the cost of the Councils. At the recommendation of the Hand of the Cause Rúḥíyyih Khánum, a special translation committee has been working to have the long burial prayer translated into as many native Eskimo and Indian dialects as possible, since there is a natural affinity for prayers such as this one among native believers.
In the area of child education, a one-week program has been taken to Local Spiritual Assemblies, offering lesson plans for children up to the age of 12. Topics covered include happiness in the Faith, love for Bahá’u’lláh, and orientation to the goals. At the present time, a three-person team is carrying out this program, with one of the team members a youth who uses puppets to explain aspects of the teaching to children.
Representatives of the Alaskan National Assembly began visiting Local Spiritual Assemblies in the first months of the Five Year Plan, with the result that the Community is now up-to-date in its goals, commensurate with the time which has elapsed from the beginning of the Plan. Its Fund obligations are being met and it is believed that “at the grassroots level” there is good awareness of the goals of the Five Year Plan.
Canada[edit]
At the suggestion of The Universal House of Justice, the Canadian community has concentrated on meeting its property goals within the first two years of the Plan. It has already purchased seven Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds and Temple properties in several different countries; five properties are still to be purchased.
One-quarter of their total commitment of pioneers has already settled at posts; many believers are now in the process of leaving. The Community expects to have all its overseas assignments filled by the end of the second year of the Plan.
Another unique goal given to Canada is to make formal presentations of the Faith at universities across the country. To do this, the Canadian Association for Studies in the Bahá’í Faith has been set up. It sponsors lectures by Bahá’í academic teachers, prepares papers, and is working towards the creation of a Center for Bahá’í Studies by the end of the Five Year Plan.
Creation of this Association was accomplished in the first year of the Plan, and development of a four year program has been completed to direct activities towards these goals during the remainder of the Plan.
Another area where Canada has made great strides towards its goals is that of publicity in the French-speaking community. Television and radio stations have offered a great deal of public service time. Nine half-hour programs have already been broadcast.
Report on meeting of the Continental Board of Counsellors[edit]
“We all have the qualities to rise to achieve great victories,” said the Hand of the Cause of God William Sears, “if we but knew who we were and the Day in which we live!”
He was speaking on behalf of all Bahá’ís at a meeting of the North American Board of Counsellors with their twenty-five Auxiliary Board members, in Evanston, Illinois, on July 4 and 7, 1975. This preceded and followed the historic conference on Protection of the Faith held in Wilmette, July 5-6, attended by the Hands of the Cause, William Sears, John Robarts, and Zikrullah Khadem; and all Counsellors, National Spiritual Assemblies, and Auxiliary Board members of North America.
Counsellor Lloyd Gardner of Canada opened the meeting on Friday with loving words of welcome to Mr. Sears and the other two attending Hands of the Cause, Mr. Robarts and Mr. Khadem. The presence of the Hands and their words of greeting gave an immediate elevation of spirit to the gathering. Counsellors Edna True, Velma Sherrill, and Sarah Pereira also greeted the gathering and were shortly joined by Counsellor ‘Azíz Yazdí from the International Teaching Center in the Holy Land, who had come as a representative of The Universal House of Justice to the conference in Wilmette.
Increasing the Collaborative Efforts[edit]
In addition to the universally felt concern to augment the teaching efforts to achieve the goals of the Five Year Plan, some topics of special consideration were: the appointment of assistants to Auxiliary Board members and the best utilization of their services; ways to increase awareness within the Bahá’í community of the spiritual and practical value inherent in the collaboration of Assemblies and Board members; more adequate use of the services of Board members at Summer Schools and Institutes; assessing the value of Board members’ attendance at national conventions, and the especially vital matter of protection of the Faith. Mr. Yazdí elucidated many aspects concerning assistants to Auxiliary Board members, the new development given to this institution by The Universal House of Justice in 1973, and pointed out the versatility that applies to it. For example, he said, an assistant might be named for a specific function as well as for a specific territory. Board members themselves, he stated, should not expect rigid rules and regulations in their work, but find the method that brings the best results. He assured the friends that this was God’s own institution and He would endow it with the spiritual power to bring the love of Bahá’u’lláh to each Assembly, each community, and believer.
Commenting on the need for a greater awareness within the Bahá’í community of the nature and purpose of the work of Auxiliary Board members, Mr. Yazdí explained that this also existed many years ago when the Guardian first appointed Hands of the Cause. “It will take time and patience,” he said, “but in the long run it will be victorious.”
Mr. Khadem said: “We must work in all ways toward loving relationships with the elected bodies of the administrative order.”
Teaching on the Home Front[edit]
An area of chief concern to everyone was the less than dynamic response to meeting the challenges of the Five Year Plan, especially home front teaching.
“If we do not get on fire and teach, we will suffer greatly,” said Mr. Sears.
“The only way to overcome this difficulty is intense, persistent prayer,” said Mr. Robarts, recounting the story of an African believer who finally learned the power of fervent, persistent prayer through the experience of innocently being confined in jail for a period of time.
Board members met informally in the evening (without the Counsellors, who were engaged in meeting with a National Assembly) with Mr. Sears and Mr. Robarts joining them. Mr. Sears spoke of his visit to Samoa and his meeting with the Malietoa and other believers there. Mr. Robarts spoke of the Tablets of the Divine Plan. “If I could have only one book for teaching, it would be this,” he said, emphasizing the need to study it again and again. “It is so precious, it should be bound in gold!”
Jane Faily shared exciting glimpses of her recent participation in the International Women’s Year events in Mexico City, June 19–July 3. In addition to the United Nations Conference attended by governmental and some non-governmental delegates (including two Bahá’í women), another group known as the Tribune held sessions for delegates from educational, social, and humanitarian organizations of the world. Dr. Faily was one of seven Bahá’í women from around the world selected to participate in the deliberations of the Tribune.
Peter Khan spoke of his six-month sojourn in Australia, as well as visits to New Zealand, New Guinea, and Burma. He found the youth of Australia and New Zealand eager for intensive deepening. He was invited to speak at the university in New Guinea to a very large crowd of listeners. He participated in a five-day deepening conference in Burma. “This conference was exceptional,” he said, “both for the deep content of the courses given and for the degree of concentration of the participants.” Ten hours of almost continuous sessions was the usual daily practice.
Conference Reconvenes on Monday[edit]
On Sunday evening, prior to reconvening the conference, the Auxiliary Board members met alone, discussing methods in which they carry on their work, sharing ideas, consulting upon ways to release the power for that “vast and widespread expansion of the Bahá’í community,” the prime goal of the new Plan. It was generally expressed that the development of distinctive Bahá’í characteristics and the strengthening of the Local Spiritual Assemblies were in themselves conditional upon the Bahá’ís arising to inaugurate a new wave of teaching activities.
Counsellor Velma Sherrill opened Monday’s deliberations by reading excerpts from an International Teaching Center letter, commending the work of the Board members in America. Throughout the entire weekend, the Board members not only felt the loving support of their Counsellors but were brought to a closer linkage with the International Teaching Center through Mr. Yazdí’s presence.
Mr. Robarts said he felt a great new love among the members of all of the institutions present at the Wilmette conference. “As a result,” he said, “I believe you will all be empowered to take a greater measure of love and encouragement to the believers.”
“Something new has happened in North America,” another observed. “There has been a turning point.” Many felt that a new milestone in Bahá’í history had been reached as a result of the North American Conference. Counsellor Edna True stated that as time went on, we would more and more realize the influence of that gathering. It was agreed that a new awareness of a “continental oneness” had been reached by the attendants.
Mr. Yazdí reemphasized the need to strengthen the ties between the two institutions which, although they have certain specific functions of their own, should “become as one.” He cited the great Bahá’í teachers of the past such as Martha Root, May Maxwell, and Haydar-‘Alí. In many ways they were weak and helpless, not “the mighty ones.” Yet God, in His wisdom, endowed them with a capacity to be such great teachers of the Cause. The Institution of the Counsellors and the Auxiliary Board is an example of this, he said. Outwardly it does not have authority, might, or power. Yet God has chosen it to protect and propagate His Faith.
Counsellors Velma Sherrill, Lloyd Gardner, Sarah Pereira, and Edna True
“Love, humility, and trust in His guidance through complete obedience to The Universal House of Justice will bring success,” he said.
Mr. Yazdí’s way of illustrating a point with a story was especially effective. He told of his father who closed his shop and left immediately for Hijaz upon instructions of the Master and at the request of Bahá’u’lláh. He left so quickly he did not really know what his true mission was. Suddenly he found the revered Bahá’í teacher, Haydar-‘Alí, on the street and realized what his task was. Haydar-‘Alí had been exiled many years to Sudan and had just been released and sent to Jidda, but he was unable to return to the Holy Land for lack of material means.
No Specific Plan[edit]
In respect to no specific plan for North America having been generated by the Wilmette Conference, Counsellor Lloyd Gardner cited the international convocations held in Haifa where no motions are made or plans formulated. Yet the overall effect is an abundance of ideas and resources to draw upon in the future.
One Board member said it was the task of each one to assess the needs of his own territory, to continually study the Five Year Plan, and focus upon whatever was most needed at the time to advance the work of the Faith.
Counsellor True advised pursuing the work of education of the community on protection in a natural, continuous way in all of the teaching efforts of the Board members. Teaching was considered to-be the key to protection also—propagation and protection truly becoming one element, each augmenting and nourishing the other.
To assist believers to greater spiritual maturity, Mr. Yazdí mentioned the need to encourage each Bahá’í to read something of the Creative Word each morning and evening, even though it be only a very little. Mr. Yazdí’s previous statement from the Writings to the effect that no one knows “what his own end shall be,” evoked thoughtful contemplation on the need for each Board member to deepen through prayer and study of the holy texts, not only as preparation for work performed, but as an inward, spiritual process.
Visit from National Assembly of Canada[edit]
An enchanting surprise came when the Canadian National Assembly, meeting in the same hotel, asked to meet for a short time before lunch with this institution. They came to express a heightened awareness of the meaning of collaboration. “We want you to help us a little more deliberately,” said the chairmen, “so that this collaboration truly becomes so much a part of our consciousness it will be as natural as breathing.” They expressed gratitude for the support given to the programs by the Board
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(Continued from page 3)
members. “We have a longing for more face to face contact with the Counsellors and with the Board members,” another said.
Mr. Robarts, with beaming face, said to the Assembly: “All of Canada knows how much I love you, individually and as an institution, and the admiration, pride, and affection I feel for you.”
The Counsellors and Board members were deeply moved and their hearts greatly cheered by this demonstration of loving concern. Said the national secretary of Canada: “We want to assist you to do the difficult job you have to do... we want to see the glory of your work spread like sunlight throughout our community.”
Mrs. Sherrill said that “the answer” would be an evolutionary one. “It will be realized, in our devotion to Bahá’u’lláh and as we study the guidance from The Universal House of Justice, pray about it, and strive to put it into action.”
Mr. Yazdí again stressed the need for implicit obedience to The Universal House of Justice. He told of a Hand of the Cause sent to consult with a National Assembly at the request of The Universal House of Justice. When he arrived, they were too busy to see him because they were “consulting upon an important decision” they had to make. Finally, when they called him in, they learned that the very matter they had been struggling to resolve was the one which the Hand of the Cause had come to discuss with them. He also cited the instant response of the Hand of the Cause Músá Banání in going to Africa at the Guardian’s request, even though he had just built a beautiful home to live in for the rest of his life.
The Continental Fund[edit]
Counsellor Sarah Pereira chaired the concluding afternoon session of the conference. The fact that many are not yet deeply aware of the Guardian’s and The Universal House of Justice’s admonition for both individuals and Assemblies to contribute independently to the Continental Fund was discussed.
Miss True, Trustee of the Fund, said: “This realization is growing, however. More Assemblies are now including the Continental Fund as a regular part of their participation in giving.”
The practice of Miss True in sending special notes of gratitude to all who express their appreciation of this institution when making their contributions was likened to the early days of the Faith in America, when her mother, Corinne True, as financial secretary of the Bahá’í Temple Fund, encouraged every contributor in this way.
It was made known that Alaska was in the process of publishing the letters of Shoghi Effendi to Alaska soon, and a Counsellor cited the work that had been done in the preparation of this material by Alaskan Board member Ray Hudson.
Dr. Pereira asked the Board members who had already appointed assistants to give some background on their selections. Earlier she had mentioned a letter from the International Teaching Center relative to the reservoir of capable believers on the Continent that could be drawn upon in appointing assistants. At present, there are fourteen assistants in North America, serving Auxiliary Board members Ray Hudson and Howard Brown in Alaska; Adrienne Reeves and Peggy Ross in Canada; Paul Pettit, Nancy Phillips, Eunice Braun, Albert James, and Jane Faily in the United States. It was stated that additional assistants would shortly be confirmed and these would be announced by the Counsellors.
Special prayers were said for Board member Peggy Ross, who had left earlier to undergo critical surgery the following day.
A poignant farewell was given to Mr. Yazdí. His counsel, his warm, understanding love, and his interest in each individual Board member and their work was a rich blessing deeply felt by everyone. Especially touching were his words: “When I return to the Holy Land, I shall pray for you. I shall go to the Holy Thresholds, and I will see your faces before me and will pray for each one of you.”
National series of youth conferences completed[edit]
Approximately 2,500 Bahá’ís attended a series of 51 youth conferences held throughout the United States from May 30 to June 29.
More than half of those attending were between the ages of 15 and 25, according to a report of the National Youth Committee, which sponsored the conferences.
The conferences were held to complete a goal of the Two Year Youth Program calling for such meetings to stimulate the youth to exert themselves in teaching the Faith. The theme for the series was “Planning a Life of Service.”
The three objectives of the conferences were:
- to discuss the content of the Two Year Youth Program;
- to encourage youth to arise immediately to fill the goals of the youth plan; and
- to start youth thinking about planning for the future.
One of the three workshops held during the weekend conferences was devoted to personal goal setting. Each youth left the conference with a list of personal goals covering the next 15-month period.
One lecture at each conference was entitled, “Opportunities for Service Now.”
“It was a veritable menu of things Bahá’í youth could do this summer to serve the Faith,” said Philip Christensen, secretary of the National Youth Committee. “It covered things like personal growth, opportunities for local community work, teaching and service projects, firesides, and supporting the Fund.”
At each conference, the youth were encouraged to volunteer for Bahá’í service this summer. The Committee feels this aspect of the conference was a success because the National Youth Office has received packets of volunteer forms from many of the conferences. “Each form represents a youth who wants to volunteer for a summer project or for homefront pioneering,” Dr. Christensen said.
The conferences were designed to be small, businesslike, and task-oriented. Attendance ranged from about a dozen to 150. The majority of the youth conferences had less than 75 attending.
Most of the conferences were planned by Local Assemblies, using guidelines and materials provided by the National Youth Committee. The general quality of these arrangements was one of the highlights of the series, according to the Committee secretary.
The goal of holding at least one of the conferences on an Indian reservation was filled by the meeting on the weekend of June 27–29 in Ft. Yates, North Dakota, on the Standing Rock reservation. Approximately 40 Bahá’ís attended.
The largest of the conferences was held in northern California, at the only Spanish-speaking college in the United States and Canada, a college of the University of the Pacific. Approximately 165 people attended.
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1. Javidukht Khadem was one of the Auxiliary Board members who participated in several conferences.
2. Philip Christensen, secretary of the National Bahá’í Youth Committee, discusses the Two Year Youth Program at the Northern California/Northern Nevada Conference.
3. The Youth Committee sent a representative to each gathering. Here William Allison, a member of the International Goals Committee, speaks to Alabama youth.
4. Oklahoma Bahá’ís learn about “Opportunities for Service Now.”
5. Much of the program was devoted to workshops, such as this one in Eastern Pennsylvania.
6. An outdoor workshop at the Eastern Colorado/Wyoming conference, held in scenic Estes Park, Colorado.
7. Two of the workshops focused on “Education and Careers” and “Dating, Marriage, and Family Life.” The discussion occurred at the Northern Florida meeting.
8. A young Bahá’í arrives at a conference.
9. Registration was usually quick and easy.
10. Members of the National Teaching Committee joined the friends from Utah and Southern Idaho who gathered in Salt Lake City.
11. A party was planned Saturday evening at each conference. Here some believers from Southern Florida practice their dancing.
12. A violent storm uprooted the tree in the photograph but failed to dampen the spirit of the many Bahá’ís who came to the Northern Illinois meeting.
13. Included in this group of Northern Florida youth is a brand new Bahá’í (upper right-hand corner).
14. Participants gathered outside of the Jacksonville, Florida Bahá’í Center.
15. & 16. There were many opportunities for fellowship and informal discussions during the program.
Reports from the field[edit]
Local Spiritual Assemblies, National Youth Committee representatives, and other individuals participating in the series of youth conferences sent reports to the National Youth Committee. Excerpts from a representative sampling of reports received so far are printed below.
Northern California/Northern Nevada: The conference was held at Covell College, University of the Pacific, which is the only Spanish-speaking college in the United States. The hall was decorated with flags from all of the Central and South American countries. It was a very fitting place for a Bahá’í conference. Some of the staff and students expressed great interest in the Faith because of the example set by the youth. Over $150 was contributed for the building of the seat of The Universal House of Justice.
Eastern Colorado/Wyoming: In addition to the regular conference schedule, a number of teaching efforts were carried out. Several Christian groups were also attending conferences at the YMCA. On Friday evening during registration, a Bahá’í film was shown to 25 non-Bahá’ís. Immediately following the movie, a talent show presented by the YMCA staff and guests included two Bahá’í musicians who sang before 500 people. On Saturday evening, a Bahá’í lecture (given as a part of the YMCA program for its guests) was attended by 20 non-Bahá’ís while participants in the youth conference attended another session. Countless informal firesides were held throughout the entire conference.
Connecticut: Many of the youth did not realize the wide variety of ways in which one could work to fulfill the goals of the Two Year Youth Program. One young woman was already filling a vital goal and did not know it until the program was explained further in a talk.
Southern Florida: Our Assembly was quite pleased with the results of the youth conference. There were two youth declarations, one of whom is a Nigerian student at the University of Miami.... One of the participants was a 15-year-old French girl on her way to pioneer to Guadalupe. She said that until the recent pioneer institute in Wilmette, the Bahá’í Faith seemed to belong to her parents; now it is hers too.
Southern Idaho and Utah: These two days have been an experience of living in a true Bahá’í community. They have given me a wonderful view of what Bahá’í life is and a glimpse of what the Golden Age of the Faith can be. Thanks to the National Bahá’í Youth Committee for organizing it.
New Jersey: All of us who had the bounty to participate in this conference came away with the conviction that these youth will truly carry the spirit of the Faith with boldness in the ever-evolving civilization. I know that I am a better Bahá’í for having the opportunity to observe, work with, and fall in love with these blessed young people.
Ohio: The youth talked with unconscious eloquence of how the deeds of Bahá’í youth must open the door of hope to the “leaderless and hapless millions of the spiritually bankrupt, moribund present order,” especially those “thoughtful souls” who are feeling the death pangs of a crumbling civilization.
Oklahoma: Almost 100 participants ... send deepest appreciation for excellent soul-stirring conference material lovingly and carefully prepared, presence of Auxiliary Board member Borland inspiring representative.
Spanish section[edit]
Construcción sede Casa Universal Justicia mas destacado del Plan[edit]
A los Seguidores de Bahá’u’lláh en todo el Mundo
Queridos Amigos Bahá’ís,
A medida que el Plan de Cinco Años adquiere impetu en todas partes del mundo, con los creyentes de la Bendita Perfección firmemente encauzados en el curso que les conducirá a la victoria, la hora ha llegado en que nos corresponde contemplar, en preparación para su iniciación inminente, el proyecto que se destacará como la mayor empresa de ese Plan, la construcción de una sede digna para la Casa Universal de Justicia en el corazón de la Sagrada Montaña de Dios.
Hace casi treinta y seis años, después de vencer una multitud de dificultades, el amado Guardián logró trasladar los sagrados restos de la Purísima Rama y Navváb al Monte Carmelo y les sepultó en la vecindad inmediata del lugar de descanso de la Hoja Más Sagrada. Aludió, en las siguientes palabras, al “significado institucional capital” que estos acontecimientos constituyen en el desenvolvimiento del Centro Mundial de la Fe:
- Pues debe ser claramente comprendido—y esto no puede ser recalcado suficientemente—que la unión del lugar de descanso de la Hoja Más Sagrada con aquellos de su hermano y madre refuerza incalculablemente las potencias espirituales de este Sitio sagrado que, bajo las alas del Sepulcro predominante del Báb, y en la vecindad del futuro Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, el cual será erigido a su costado, está destinado a desarrollarse en el centro focal de aquellas instituciones administrativas que sacuden, abarcan y dirigen al mundo, ordenadas por Bahá’u’lláh y previstas por ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, y que han de funcionar en conformidad con los principios que rigen las instituciones como las de la Guardianía y la Casa Universal de Justicia. Entonces, y soló entonces, esta trascendental profecía que ilumina los pasajes concluyentes de la Tabla de Carmelo será cumplida: “Pronto Dios hará navegar Su Arca sobre tí (Carmelo), y manifestará la gente de Bahá que ha sido mencionada en el Libro de los Nombres.”
Fue mucho más allá de mi propia capacidad y poder el tratar de visualizar, aún en sus más leves contornos, la gloria que ha de envolver estas instituciones, el procurar hacer aún una descripción tentativa y parcial de su carácter o de la manera en que funcionarán, o el trazar, por inadecuadamente que sea, el curso de eventos que conducirá a su surgimiento y, al final, a su establecimiento. Basta decir que en esta etapa perturbada en la historia del mundo, la asociación de estas tres incomparablemente preciosas almas quienes, después de las tres Figuras Centrales de nuestra Fe, se destacan en rango sobre la vasta multitud de los héroes, Letras, mártires, manos, maestros y administradores de la Causa de Bahá’u’lláh, en este potencialmente poderoso Centro espiritual y administrativo, es en sí un acontecimiento que liberará fuerzas que de hecho apresurarán el surgimiento, en una tierra que geográfica, espiritual y administrativamente, constituye el corazón del planeta entero, de algunas de las más brillantes gemas de este Orden Mundial que ahora está tomando forma en la matriz de esta edad atormentada.
El primero de las estructuras majestuosas que constituyen este poderoso Centro, fue el edificio para los Archivos Internacionales de la Fe que se terminó en el verano de 1957 como uno de los últimos logros más importantes de la Guardianía de Shoghi Effendi y el cual estableció el estilo para las restantes estructuras que, según fueron descritas por él, habrán de erigirse en el transcurso del tiempo en la forma de un extenso arco en las faldas del Monte Carmelo. Durante los dieciocho años desde este logro, la comunidad del Más Grande Nombre ha crecido rápidamente en número e influencia: desde veintiseis Asambleas Espirituales Nacionales hasta ciento diecinueve; desde unas mil hasta diecisiete mil Asambleas Espirituales Locales, y desde cuatro mil quinientas localidades hasta más de setenta mil; todo esto acompañado de un aumento correspondiente en el volumen del trabajo que se desempeña en el Centro Mundial de la Fe y en la complejidad de sus instituciones. Es ahora necesario y posible iniciar la construcción de un edificio que no solo servirá las necesidades prácticas del centro administrativo que está consolidándose constantemente sino que constituirá, durante siglos venideros, una expresión visible de la majestad de las instituciones divinamente ordenadas del Orden Administrativo de Bahá’u’lláh.
Revestido, igual al Edificio de los Archivos, de piedra procedente de Italia, y rodeado de una columnata majestuosa de sesenta columnas corintias, la sede para la Casa Universal de Justicia contendrá, además de la cámara de consejo de la Casa de Justicia, una biblioteca, un salón de recepción para peregrinos y dignatarios, depósitos con aire purificado para la preservación de las Tablillas originales y otros documentos preciosos, oficinas del secretariado y los múltiples servicios subsidiarios que se requerirán. Concebido en un estilo de belleza y majestad perdurable, y acabado con piedra que resistirá a los siglos, el edificio, en su arreglo interior, será muy sencillo y capaz de adaptación en épocas futuras a cualesquier adelantos tecnológicos que resultaran del rápido desarrollo del conocimiento humano.
La erección de este edificio, el cual comprenderá cinco pisos y medio y sobrepasará en tamaño y complejidad a cualquier edificio que existe actualmente en el Centro Mundial, presenta un desafío mayor a la comunidad Bahá’í cuyos recursos son ya demasiado escasos en relación a las grandes tareas que tiene por delante. Pero el espíritu de sacrificio ha sido el distintivo de los seguidores de Bahá’u’lláh de toda raza y clima y a medida que se unan para erigir esta segunda estructura de los grandes edificios del Centro Administrativo de su Fe, se regocijarán por tener el inestimable privilegio de participar en un “proceso vasto e irresistible” que Shoghi Effendi señaló como “sin paralelo en la historia espiritual de la humanidad”, un proceso “que sincronizará con dos acontecimientos no menos significativos—el establecimiento de la Paz Menor y la evolución de instituciones Bahá’ís nacionales y locales—uno afuera y el otro adentro del mundo Bahá’í—alcanzará su consumación final, en la Edad de Oro de la Fe, mediante el alzamiento del estandarte de la Más Grande Paz, y el surgimiento, en la plenitud de su poder y gloria, del Centro focal de las agencias que constituyen el Orden Mundial de Bahá’u’lláh.”
5 de junio 1975
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Comienza excavación sitio edificio Casa Universal Justicia Regocijados anunciamos comienzo excavación sitio edificio Casa Universal Justicia arco Monte Carmelo. Contrato comprende remoción cuarenta mil metros cubicos roca y tierra al precio aproximado de doscientos mil dolares. Invitamos a todos creyentes contribuyan liberalmente fondo edificio asegurar progreso sin interrupción empresa histórica. Casa Universal de Justicia
17 de junio 1975 |
Primera conferencia hispana toma lugar en Massachusetts[edit]
El carácter distinto de la vida bahá’í fué el tema de la primera conferencia de habla hispana que tomo lugar en el estado de Massachusetts.
La conferencia que ocurrió el domingo, 18 de mayo, fue patrocinada por la Asamblea Espiritual de Worcester, y dirijida por Luís Lizano, coordinador de la Asamblea Espiritual. Algunos 35 bahá’ís asistieron. Katherine McLaughlin, miembro del Cuerpo Auxiliar, inició la conferencia con unas palabras y moderó la discusión del Plan de Cinco Años. Lionel Gonzales de Bergenfield, Nueva Jersey, habló sobre la vida colectiva de los bahá’ís, dándole mayor importancia al papel del Orden Administrativo y al del individuo bahá’í. Hooshmand Taraz de Nueva York, se dirijió a la clase tocante a la comunidad bahá’í y Braulia Caban de Amherst, Massachusetts, dió un discurso sobre la vida familiar bahá’í.
Comité regional conduce instituto para profundización[edit]
Tres días de profundización en la fe se llevó a cabo en Chicago el 4, 5 y 6 de julio bajo el auspicio del Comité Regional de Enseñanza de Illinois. Fue el primero en una serie de institutos de profundización que están proyectados para la comunidad latina que esta en un estado de crecimiento, dijo Nancy Allison, la secretaria del Comité Regional. Durante los tres dias el instituto se enfocó en la historia, las leyes, y la administración bahá’í. Un énfasis especial se le dio al principio bahá’í de la igualdad de mujeres y hombres.
El programa fué sugerido al Comité Regional por los bahá’ís latinos mismos con el proposito de profundizarse para tener más exito con las actividades y enseñanza en la comunidad hispana. El instituto se hizo en la casa de los Señores Héctor y Marta Pacheco, una familia bahá’í de Chicago. Como 40 personas participaron en la serie de clases que presentaron Juan Caban, miembro del Comité Nacional de Información Bahá’í, y Lionel Gonzales, un administrador en las Naciones Unidas. Cerca de 15 niños participaron en las clases de arte y recreación durante los tres días.
Entre los participantes se encontraban personas de por lo menos ocho países—Colombia, Honduras, Cuba, Persia, México, Puerto Rico, los Estados Unidos y Venezuela. El resultado inmediato del instituto fué que un grupo de latinos ofrecieron ayudar con el proyecto de verano de la juventud, patrocinado por el Comité Nacional de la Juventud y la Asamblea Espiritual de Chicago. El proyecto incluye llevar el Mensaje de Bahá’u’lláh al pueblo latino y mantener un centro de información en la parte central de Chicago.
La Señora Allison nos informa que en el período de un año se ha visto crecer la lista de alistamiento entre los hispanos. “El año pasado navegabamos una pequeña corriente y ahora se empieza a ver un verdadero río que seguirá acelerando su paso.” La enseñanza entre el pueblo latino se está llevando a
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cabo por medio del Equipo Latino de Enseñanza de Illinois que esta bajo el mando del comité regional. El equipo va a iniciar actividades de enseñanza en nuevos locales en Illinois y continuará con la profundización y consolidación de la comunidad hispana.
El comité regional había notado un indicio (nacional) del crecimiento entre los bahá’ís hispanos y considera el estado de Illinois estar al frente de tales esfuerzos. El comité espera ver el desarrollo de un plan nacional coordenado para proclamar a todas las areas de habla hispana. El desafío más grande para la comunidad bahá’í es crear un ambiente que anime a los nuevos creyentes latinos a participar en todo aspecto de la vida bahá’í, dijo Sra. Allison. La comunidad es una entidad importante en la cultura latinoamericana y, por consequencia, requiere que los otros bahá’ís reciban a los nuevos bahá’ís latinos con amistad y les hagan realizar que en verdad somos una sola familia.
1,2,3. Instituto de profundización que se llevó se cabo en Massachusetts en el mes de mayo. 4-11. Instituto de profundización que se dio en Chicago durante el fin de semana del 4 de Julio. Lionel Gonzalez (1) y Juan Caban (5) participaron en ambos institutos.
1, 2, 3. Deepening institute held for Spanish-speaking believers in Massachusetts in May. 4-11. Deepening institute for Spanish believers held in Chicago over the July 4 weekend. Lionel Gonzalez (1) and Juan Caban (5) participated in both sessions.
Spanish-speaking believers attend deepening institutes[edit]
Worcester, Massachusetts[edit]
The distinctive character of Bahá’í life was the theme of the first Spanish-speaking deepening conference held in Massachusetts. The conference, held Sunday, May 18, was sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of Worcester, and was coordinated by Luis Lizano, chairman of the Worcester Assembly. Approximately 35 believers attended.
Auxiliary Board member Katherine McLaughlin offered the opening remarks and moderated a panel discussion on the Five Year Plan. Lionel Gonzales of Bergenfield, New Jersey, spoke on the collective life of Bahá’ís, stressing the roles of the Administrative Order and the individual believer. Hooshmand Taraz of New York City addressed the gathering on the Bahá’í Community, and Braulia Caban of Amherst, Massachusetts, discussed Bahá’í family life.
Each speaker was warmly and eagerly received. The panel discussion on the Five Year Plan brought many inquiries into how goals can be fulfilled by individuals and by the community as a whole.
Chicago, Illinois[edit]
A three-day deepening institute for Spanish-speaking believers was held in Chicago July 4-6 by the Regional Teaching Committee for Illinois.
The institute was the first of a continuing series of deepening programs projected for the growing Hispanic Bahá’í community of Illinois, said Nancy Allison, the regional committee secretary.
During the three days, the institute focused on the history, laws, and administration of the Bahá’í Faith. Special attention was given to the teaching of the equality between men and women.
The program was suggested to the Regional Teaching Committee by the Latin believers themselves, who wished to deepen to increase their teaching activities in the Spanish-speaking community. It was held in the home of Hector and Marta Pacheco, a Bahá’í family in Chicago.
Approximately 40 people attended the series of presentations made by Juan Caban, a member of the National Bahá’í Information Committee, and Lionel Gonzales, an administrator at the United Nations. The approximately 15 children present participated in recreational and art projects over the long weekend.
Among the participants were citizens of at least eight countries: Colombia, Cuba, Honduras, Iran, Mexico, Puerto Rico, the United States, and Venezuela.
An immediate result of the institute was that a group of Latin believers volunteered to assist with a summer youth project being conducted by the National Bahá’í Youth Committee and the Spiritual Assembly of Chicago. The project will include taking the Message to the Spanish community and staffing an information center in a downtown storefront.
Mrs. Allison said there has been “a constant stream of enrollments” in the Chicago Spanish community over the past year.
“A year ago we seemed to be navigating a stream,” she said, “Now we can see that it’s a river, and that it is going to grow and swell.”
The work among the Latin communities is conducted by the Illinois Spanish Teaching Team, which is under the direction of the regional committee. The team will begin to open new areas of the state to the Faith, and to deepen and consolidate the new Spanish-speaking communities.
The regional committee has discerned a national trend of increasing enrollment of Spanish-speaking peoples, and considers Illinois to be at the forefront of these efforts. The committee hopes to see a coordinated national approach developed for proclamation to Spanish-speaking areas.
“The challenge for the community now is to create an atmosphere that will encourage the new believers to participate in every phase of Bahá’í life,” Mrs. Allison said. “Community life is an important aspect of Latin American culture, so it will be important to absorb these new believers and make them confident that we are truly members of the same human family.”
Since Hispanic believers often speak little English, and few Anglo Americans can converse in Spanish, communities will have to make creative efforts to overcome this barrier of language, as the number of Spanish enrollments grow, she said.
One community in Illinois that is already making that effort is Maine Township, a northwest suburb of Chicago. Three Spanish-speaking members of the community serve on the newly formed Spiritual Assembly. As a result, the meetings are bilingual, with alternating translations.
Musicians meet, discuss careers and proclamation[edit]
A conference of Bahá’í musicians, sponsored by the District Teaching Committee of Utah, was held at the University of Utah June 8-15. More than 40 musicians attended from 17 states.
The conference gave Bahá’ís an opportunity to discuss music both as a profession and as a method for proclamation of the Faith. The lectures covered such subjects as writing and publishing music, recording for radio and television, and the use of music in teaching. A representative of the Internal Revenue Service gave information on tax deductions allowed to professional musicians.
A public concert was held June 14, featuring England Dan and John Ford Coley, a prominent national rock group. Two conference participants—Pam Brooks of Denver, and Red Grammer of Beloit, Wisconsin—were chosen by the entire gathering as supporting singers.
Other groups of Bahá’í musicians performed nightly at proclamations in Ogden, Bountiful, Logan, Tooele, and Salt Lake City.
As publicity, Bahá’ís distributed more than 600 posters announcing the public concert and proclamation performances. Karen Gibbs, a Bahá’í singer from Salt Lake County, appeared on television to tell about conference-related events. The entire public concert was broadcast live on KUER radio, in Salt Lake City.
The conference was fortunate to have the services of a professional sound technician, a designer, a professional printmaker, some professional musicians, and the loan of expensive equipment. Through the Bahá’í club on campus, a variety of practice rooms, dormitories, and auditoriums were made available to the conference at a nominal cost.
Scenes from various performances given at the musicians conference in Salt Lake City.
Guided tours at House of Worship increasing[edit]
Guided tours of the House of Worship are becoming an important feature of the expanding program planned for the tens of thousands of yearly visitors, the House of Worship Activities Committee reported.
In May alone, 3,717 people took part in supervised tours of the Temple and grounds—one-fourth as many as had participated in tours in all of 1974.
Almost 200,000 people visited the House of Worship in 1974.
In a report on its tour activities, the Activities Committee said tours were the most effective means of presenting the Bahá’í teachings to the public and would be increased in the months ahead.
“Guests who visit the Temple as members of organized tours not only see a slide program and displays but are accompanied by a tour leader who can explain the Bahá’í teachings and answer any questions that may arise,” the report said.
To increase its capacity to handle even greater numbers of tours, the Activities Committee has recently begun to train Bahá’ís to serve as tour leaders at regular intervals. The training consists of 10 hours of classroom instruction and extensive reading and homework assignments. The focus of the training is on the history of the Temple, its architecture and construction, and on the distinctive role it plays in Bahá’í community life. The purpose of God for man, and how to convey this to the visitors, is also a subject of instruction.
Senior citizen groups and high school classes account for the largest number of tours. Some school and religious groups have come from as far away as New York, Texas, and Canada.
One institution that routinely organizes tours to the House of Worship is the Chicago chapter of the National Conference of Christians and Jews, which sends on the average ten high school class tours a month as part of its “Religions in Chicago” program. Recently the House of Worship was made the last stop on the circuit, so students could stay longer and have a more detailed presentation on the Faith.
The House of Worship Activities Office receives many favorable letters from groups that have taken tours. A Methodist minister from Wisconsin recently wrote:
“Please accept our thanks for the tour of the House of Worship ... Many in our group were moved by the calmness and serenity of the House of Worship, commenting on the worshipfulness of the silence.”
Another letter from Southern Illinois was signed by each of the 19 students who visited. “We enjoyed the slide show and found it fascinating that the Bahá’í Faith is a unification of various religions,” they said.
At one time—in the 30s and 40s—every person who visited was given a tour of the building, the Committee noted. But at that time 1,000 visitors a month was considered outstanding. Now, twice that many will visit in a single day.
Bruce Whitmore of the Activities Office conducts a class for tour leaders.
Pathways to service[edit]
Suggestions for vocational self-assessment[edit]
By the National Bahá’í Youth Committee
Last month “Pathways to Service” began a series of articles on career planning. This month we look at vocational self-assessment: getting to know yourself better. Future articles will examine job trends, training possibilities, and the needs of the Faith.
Every Bahá’í has the obligation to engage in some sort of profession. In the June 1937 issue of Bahá’í News, on page 1, the Guardian was quoted as follows:
- ... idle people who lack the desire to work can have no place in the new World Order.... Every individual, no matter how handicapped and limited he may be, is under the obligation of engaging in some work or profession, for work, especially when performed in the spirit of service, is according to Bahá’u’lláh a form of worship. It has not only a utilitarian purpose, but has a value in itself, because it draws us nearer to God, and enables us to better grasp His purpose for us in this world.
It may not always be possible for a Bahá’í to do that work which he or she most desires. But it is possible to plan one’s life so that one has the best chance of fulfilling his or her professional potential, whatever tests may be encountered along the way.
Your career choice will be most successful if it allows you to serve the needs of the Faith, and humanity in general, to the best of your ability. The ideal job will meet two criteria: you will be satisfied with your work and your employer will be satisfied with you as a worker.
Two factors are important in predicting these things: your interests and your special aptitudes (abilities). What types of jobs intrigue you? What are your Bahá’í goals—foreign pioneering, homefront pioneering, administrative service, increased Fund contributions, etc.? What kind of work do you like—physical activity, problem-solving, creative or artistic jobs, working with people, business, or detail work? These are your interests. What can you do well? What skills do you have? What are your strengths—verbal, mathematical, artistic, mechanical, human relations, etc.? How much energy and motivation do you have? These are your aptitudes.
In order to make good decisions about a career, you need to know as much as possible about your interests and aptitudes. This can be difficult. Fortunately, you have a number of places to which you can turn for assistance: the Bahá’í Writings, the Local Spiritual Assembly, standardized tests, professional counselors, other people, the library, and your own experience.
The place to start, of course, is the Word of God. Study the Writings to learn about the importance and purpose of education, the obligation to acquire a trade or profession, and the true significance of work. Pray for guidance and knowledge. Meditate on the teachings and on your own strengths and weaknesses.
Next, you may wish to take one of the standardized tests available through schools and employment offices. They fall into five basic categories: intelligence, personality, interest, aptitude, and achievement. Intelligence tests, personality inventories, and interest inventories are usually used by an individual to learn about his or her abilities and interests. They do not, however, predict performance. That is the job of aptitude and achievement tests, which are often used by employers. An aptitude test is designed to measure your learning potential in particular areas. A common example is the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT), used by colleges to examine verbal and mathematical abilities. An achievement test, on the other hand, is designed to measure what you have already learned in a specific field.
Standardized tests can be valuable career planning tools. But they must be used with caution. Some of them are biased against minority groups and/or women. Many measure only limited skills and abilities, ignoring artistic and creative potential in favor of verbal and mathematical aptitudes. None of them are based on the Bahá’í Revelation, which means that they do not reward Bahá’í values. And there are significant questions about their accuracy.
The same cautions hold true for the other primary source of information on careers: professional counselors. You can find these individuals at your school and at employment offices. They are trained to investigate your interests and aptitudes using tests and interviews, to give you information about specific careers and fields of study, and to help match your individual strengths to particular jobs. But they may be affected by the prejudices of our society, in which case the advice for minorities and women might be biased. And they rarely share Bahá’í values. They will tend to evaluate careers in terms of wealth, power, and prestige, without emphasizing concepts such as internationalism, service, ethics, and worship. Many youth can testify to the frustrations of trying to talk to a guidance counselor about preparing for pioneering.
Resources such as tests and counselors, therefore, must be balanced by a Bahá’í perspective. The most important source of this perspective, next to one’s own prayer and study, is the Local Spiritual Assembly. Not only can the Assembly help evaluate career choices from a Bahá’í standpoint, but it is also usually in a position to help evaluate you. The Assembly can help you weigh the advice you receive from other sources on Bahá’í scales, and it can help counteract prejudices and materialistic viewpoints.
There are other valuable sources of information available to you. The public library is a treasury of books on career planning. It also has standard reference texts, such as the Occupational Outlook Handbook, a comprehensive list of jobs that includes descriptions of the type of work, the training required, average salaries, and future demand for workers.
Many people who know you can help evaluate your strengths and job potential: parents, friends, past employers, teachers. You can talk to them and seek their opinions.
Your own experience is another guide to matching your interests, your abilities, and your career. Your schoolwork will indicate whether you prefer academic or non-academic professions, and which subjects are most exciting to you. Any jobs you might have held can suggest trades and professions that appeal to you.
Once you know yourself better, it is easier to examine different careers. The Job Profile Analysis Chart, produced by the United States Department of Labor, shows how personal characteristics can be related to 34 representative occupations. The matching is quite approximate, but this kind of chart can give you some idea of the way in which interests and aptitudes relate to jobs.
The Master is reported to have told an early believer to make a beginning, and all would come right. This is the best advice for a Bahá’í youth who is making career decisions. The important thing is to start.
Find out as much as possible about yourself, about different jobs, and about the needs of the Faith. Use all of the tools available: prayer, meditation, deepening, research, consultation, and experience. Go to as many sources of advice as possible. And filter everything you learn, all of your decisions, through your study of the Writings.
This process never ends. Career planning, like education, should be a lifelong process. There are no easy answers, no quick decisions. No advisers can tell you exactly what to do. The only way to succeed is to make a beginning, do your best, and trust in God. Only you can take the first step on this pathway to service.
JOB PROFILE ANALYSIS CHART
Source: U.S. Dept. of Labor
Community consults on announcement from World Center[edit]
In immediate response to the June 5 letter of The Universal House of Justice announcing the forthcoming commencement of the construction of the seat of The Universal House of Justice on the arc of Mount Carmel, the Spiritual Assembly of Wilmette arranged a special meeting for the friends to celebrate this momentous occasion.
More than 75 Bahá’ís, approximately 80 percent of the Wilmette community, attended, bringing several friends from neighboring communities to the gathering at the home of Rex and Sylvia Parmelee.
Symphonic music prepared the gathering for the incomparable words of the Tablet of Carmel. The filmstrip, “Carmel, Mountain of God,” set the mood for the reading of the letter from The Universal House of Justice. This history-making announcement, followed quickly by the cablegram with the news that the excavation had already begun, was the highlight of the evening.
The beauty of the program inspired the friends to offer their contributions to the Building Fund and served as a reverent reminder of the God-given responsibility and privilege bestowed upon us who have the good fortune to be living at this period in the history of our beloved Faith.
Consultation among National Assemblies, continued[edit]
Local talent is used, and the response has been very favorable. This has been accomplished under the Comite d’Enseignment Bahá’í, the French-speaking public information committee.
An idea borrowed from Alaska, which has proven effective in Canada, is that of Native Indian Councils. Members of the National Spiritual Assembly and the Auxiliary Board recently took part in an all-Indian council in the Yukon.
A major proclamation program is being planned for Montreal in September, coinciding with the time of the visit of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to that city in 1912.
Hawaii[edit]
Successful use of the communications media has marked the opening months of the Five Year Plan in Hawaii. A series of 13 half-hour television programs has appeared on a network station and has been broadcast throughout all the islands. The series will be repeated. Except for the cost of producing the program, no other expense has been involved. The television station offered prime time on Sunday free.
These programs, prepared under the direction of the Hand of the Cause William Sears and television producer Robert Quigley, are now being made available to other national communities.
Chicago youth project launched[edit]
Projecteers at the storefront center in a Spanish-speaking section of Chicago discuss the Faith with a seeker (at the left).
A summer youth teaching project is underway in Chicago under the sponsorship of the Spiritual Assembly of Chicago and the National Youth Committee.
The five youth on the project, with the help of many local believers, have opened a storefront teaching center in the Spanish area of the city and are offering daily classes for children, firesides, and a weekly deepening program on Sundays.
Participants in the project are also serving as teachers in Chicago’s regular children’s classes, visiting isolated believers in all the neighborhoods, and initiating a proclamation in the city’s Greek community, one of the largest in the world.
Participants in the project have come from both coasts—New Jersey, Virginia, Ohio, and California—as well as from the Chicago area.
Bahá’í prayers read at start of legislative session[edit]
On April 9, 1975, JoAnn Brown, then chairperson of the Spiritual Assembly of Des Moines, Iowa, read Bahá’í prayers at the beginning of the day’s business in both the Iowa State Senate and the Iowa State House of Representatives. As it is customary for various churches to give opening prayers at the beginning of each day, Bahá’ís from Des Moines contacted their local State Senator for his approval and introduction. Mrs. Brown gave a very brief explanation regarding Bahá’u’lláh as the Author of the prayers before the reading and answered several questions concerning the Faith later in the day.
India to host teaching team[edit]
International teaching projects, over the past several years, have proven extremely valuable, both to the participants and to the teaching efforts of the host countries. Many of the participants have since become pioneers after being “bitten” by the “bug” of international service.
If you’ve wanted to participate in one of these projects but felt you couldn’t go because you speak no foreign language, here is your chance. Beginning in mid-December 1975, there will be an English-speaking project in India. Participants must be at least 18 years of age; although there is no maximum age limit, projecteers should be prepared and able to travel long distances and to live under strenuous conditions.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of India wrote: “... traveling teachers whose assistance in our efforts to ‘expand and consolidate the widely scattered Bahá’í communities’ will be much appreciated.”
- Length of project: 21-45 days
- Total travel cost (including stop at training site in U.S.):
- New York-New Delhi-New York—approx. $857
- Los Angeles-New Delhi-New York-Los Angeles—approx. $1136
- Chicago-New Delhi-New York-Chicago—approx. $954
- Living expenses (housing, food, travel within India) will be an additional $150-200. Total cost will therefore be approximately $1050 to $1350, depending on the point of departure.
Projecteers will participate in a training program the weekend of December 19-21, 1975, before going on to India.
If you are interested, please contact the International Goals Committee immediately, as acquiring visas and processing the necessary forms can take many weeks. Begin now to obtain a passport, inoculations against smallpox, cholera, tetanus, diphtheria, and polio (be sure to have these certified by the local Health Department or their designated agency), and the necessary funds. Please fill out the form below and mail to: International Goals Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Positions at National Center[edit]
Immediate openings have developed at the National Bahá’í Center for those trained as executive secretaries. Required skills include fast, accurate typing; good shorthand; knowledge of filing systems; ability to compose letters; and administrative experience within the Faith. Applicants should have a minimum of three years’ experience. If you qualify, please send your resume and letter of recommendation from your Local Spiritual Assembly to: Personnel Affairs Assistant, National Bahá’í Center, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois 60091.
Dates to remember[edit]
August 10-23 Hamburg, New York teaching project. Sponsored by the National Youth Committee and the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Hamburg.
August 16-17 Proclamation, Rittman, Ohio. Sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Akron.
August 20 Feast of Asmá’ (Names).
August 21-24 Pioneer Training Institute. (By invitation only.)
August 22-24 National Spiritual Assembly meeting.
September 1 Deadline for receipt of materials for October issue of The American Bahá’í.
September 8 Feast of ‘Izzat (Might).
September 12 Proclamation, West Hollywood, California. Sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of West Hollywood.
September 19-21 Bahá’í Life Institute, Camp Arrowhead, Delaware. Sponsored by the District Teaching Committee of Del/Mar/Va.
September 26-28 National Spiritual Assembly meeting.
September 27 Feast of Mashíyyat (Will).
October 3-5 Green Lake Conference, Green Lake, Wisconsin. Sponsored by the Green Lake Conference Committee.
BAHÁ’Í BOOKS AND MATERIALS[edit]
SPECIAL MATERIALS[edit]
Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration
of the National Spiritual Assembly
of the Bahá’ís of the United States
If you are interested in the development of Bahá’í institutions in the United States—the cradle of the Administrative Order—you won’t want to miss this important new cassette recording. The tape features highlights of presentations made in Foundation Hall on April 24 and 26, 1975, on the historic occasion of the Fiftieth Anniversary celebration of the National Spiritual Assembly. Included are inspiring addresses by the Hand of the Cause of God William Sears and a tribute to the Bahá’ís by the President of the Village of Wilmette. 60 minutes.
6-30-62 cassette..........$3.75
1975 National Bahá’í Convention Highlights
Would you like to hear what was said at the recent National Bahá’í Convention? This tape features highlights of talks, comments, and messages presented at the convention, including talks by Hand of the Cause Mr. William Sears and Continental Counselors Miss Edna True and Dr. Sarah Pereira. 90 minutes.
6-30-53 cassette..........$3.75
1975 National Bahá’í Convention/
Fiftieth Anniversary Celebration
When purchased together, these recordings are available at a reduced price.
6-30-63 two cassettes..........$6.00
The Education of Henry Halifax
written by Mildred N. McClellan
This delightful musical comedy focuses on the spiritual struggles and triumphs of a Bahá’í youth—Henry Halifax. In the play, Henry becomes a Bahá’í and then, guided by his tactful friend Harriet, learns how to live according to the Laws of Bahá’u’lláh. The story and music are a stunning success, as evidenced by the laughter and enthusiastic applause at this performance. Recorded at the Third National Bahá’í Youth Conference in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, in June 1973. 90 minutes.
6-30-83 cassette..........$3.75
BAHÁ’Í LITERATURE[edit]
Analysis of the Five Year
International Teaching Plan, 1974-1979
By The Universal House of Justice
A four-part analysis of the Five Year Plan. Parts I, II, and III list the major objectives of the Five Year Plan, the World Center goals, and general aims and guidelines for the Bahá’í World Community. Part IV, the largest section, summarizes specific goals assigned to National Spiritual Assemblies. 103 pp.
7-68-25 paper..........$2.00
Shrine of the Báb photo
A beautiful color photograph of the Shrine of the Báb—“the Spot round which the Concourse on high circle in adoration”—is now available. (See picture at right.) Two sizes, suitable for framing. A handsome decoration for home, children’s rooms, Bahá’í Center, or office.
6-76-70 8 x 10 inches..........$2.50
6-76-71 11 x 14 inches.........$4.50
Mansion of Mazra‘ih photo
A beautiful color photograph of the Mansion of Mazra‘ih is also available. (See picture at right.) Mazra‘ih is the place where Bahá’u’lláh first lived after nine years of imprisonment in ‘Akká. Two sizes, suitable for framing.
6-76-72 8 x 10 inches..........$2.50
6-76-73 11 x 14 inches.........$4.50
International Women’s Year—Time Is Running Out[edit]
With International Women’s Year now more than half over, many Bahá’ís have yet to take full advantage of this ideal opportunity to draw attention to the Bahá’í Teachings on the equality of men and women. Don’t delay any longer! Why not make plans now to present Bahá’í literature on this important teaching to interested persons or organizations in your area? Use the following descriptions to help determine which of the materials best meets your needs. Your local Bahá’í Librarian may already have these titles in stock, but if not, he or she will be happy to order for you.
World Order Magazine
Spring 1975
The Spring 1975 issue of World Order makes an impressive addition to any International Women’s Year teaching effort. The sixty-page, illustrated magazine features an editorial on the equality of men and women, a number of documents prepared by the Bahá’í International Community, and a thought-provoking review essay of a number of antifeminist books. The issue can be presented to local dignitaries, the clergy, women’s groups, libraries, schools, and editors as well as to friends and relatives. Attractive bright blue and green cover. Prices as low as $.75 per copy in lots of 100.
0-50-93.........1/$1.60; 10/$13.00; 25/$27.50; 50/$45.00; 100/$75.00 (all prices NET)
Women: Striking the Balance
One of six illustrated World Order editorial posters, Women: Striking the Balance examines the role women will eventually play in bringing about world order. Includes quotations from the Writings. Can be used as a poster or folded and distributed as a pamphlet. Yellow. 8½ x 11 inches.
7-40-89..........20/$2.00
Equality of Men and Women: A New Reality
This new pamphlet, prepared by the Bahá’í International Community, discusses the Bahá’í position on the equality of men and women, explaining that equality is necessary for the “unification of the planet and the unfoldment of world order.” It uses many quotations from the Bahá’í Writings which emphasize the need for unity and equality in the family and for equality in education and training. It also stresses the major role women will play in the abolition of war and explains how Bahá’í community life works to bring about the equality of men and women. Equality of Men and Women: A New Reality is ideal for use during International Women’s Year. Fits easily in No. 10 envelope. Printed in blue ink on light blue stock. 8⅓ x 3½ inches.
7-40-74..........10/$1.00; 100/$9.00
Women: Attaining Their Birthright
By Constance Conrader
Unlike the other International Women’s Year materials listed, Women: Attaining Their Birthright recounts the history of the struggle for women’s rights, with particular emphasis on the momentous happenings of the nineteenth century. In addition, the booklet provides an excellent summary of Bahá’í teachings on the station of women and of the equality of the sexes and features many quotations from the Writings, a number from sources no longer in print. Recommended for deepening as well as teaching. Attractive purple and rose cover design by Scott Bivans. Reprinted from World Order, 6, no. 4 (Summer 1972). Slimline format. 33 pp.
7-40-73.........$.35; 10/$3.25
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A few of the more than 100 Bahá’ís who attended the youth conference for Ohio, held in Columbus, June 13-15. The conference was sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of Columbus. See Conference story page 4. |