The American Bahá’í/Volume 8/Issue 3/Text
| ←Previous | The American Bahá’í March, 1977 |
Next→ |
 Proofread onceReturn to PDF view
|
Final International Teaching Conferences draw 4,500 Bahá’ís[edit]
Clockwise, beginning above: Hand of the Cause Enoch Olinga represented The Universal House of Justice at the Bahia Conference; Mr. Olinga addressed Roberto Santos, governor of Bahia; Continental Counsellor Leonora Armstrong was the first pioneer to Brazil; Hand of the Cause Paul Haney anointed Indian believers with attar of rose; thirteen hundred Bahá’ís attended the conference January 28–30. In the front row are Mr. Olinga, Mr. Haney, and sixth from left, Hand of the Cause Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir.
Nearly 4,500 people attended the last three International Teaching Conferences that were held in New Zealand, Brazil and Mexico. There was a total attendance of more than 16,000 in the series of eight teaching conferences.
More than 2,000 people attended the last conference in Mérida, Mexico, held on February 4–6. There were 300 children among these.
Forty-four countries and 32 minorities and Indian tribes were represented there. More than 200 believers volunteered to pioneer for the Faith. The funds contributed or pledged exceeded $132,500.
The point of emphasis was that the Indians should be taught in all countries where the Faith is represented. The native believers, when deepened, will precipitate the entry by troops, it was said. An insistent call for those who would make teaching trips to Central and South America was raised.
A report on the worldwide progress of the Five Year Plan was given. Some of the achievements were: 64 percent of the assigned pioneer goals have been filled; 54 percent of the anticipated Local Spiritual Assemblies have been formed; and 73 percent of the anticipated localities have been opened.
The Southeast Asian nation of Malaysia completed all of its assigned goals, then finished a supplemental set of goals given by The Universal House of Justice. Now, it is reported that this National Spiritual Assembly has asked for an additional assignment of goals.
The island of Singapore also finished its initial plan given by The Universal House of Justice. This Assembly now wishes to teach 500,000 Chinese people before the end of the Plan.
Hand of the Cause Paul Haney represented the Supreme Institution at the conference in Mérida. Other Hands of the Cause present were Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir and Enoch Olinga.
The conference in Bahia, Brazil, the seventh in the series, was held January 28–30, a week before the conference in Mexico. Approximately 1,300 Bahá’ís attended.
Pre-conference teaching and proclamation efforts resulted in some 5,600 declarations in Brazil, it was reported.
Indian teaching in South America was reviewed extensively during the program. Hundreds of new Indian believers are being enrolled in Ecuador. The Mapuche tribe of Argentina has been reached for the first time. Regular broadcasts in Quechua, an Indian dialect, are heard throughout Ecuador, where the descendants of the Inca still reside.
The remarkable sum of $290,000 was contributed to the Bahá’í Fund by the modest number of believers present. Some 111 Bahá’ís volunteered to pioneer for the Cause.
The Hand of the Cause Enoch Olinga represented The Universal House of Justice in Bahia. The Hands of the Cause Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir and Paul Haney were also present.
On the other side of the world, in Auckland, New Zealand, an international teaching conference was held January 19–22. Twelve hundred Bahá’ís representing 27 countries attended.
Bahá’ís of Melanesian, Polynesian, and Micronesian ancestry were present.
When the call was made for twenty-eight pioneers to fill the goals of the Five Year Plan, more than fifty individuals volunteered. An additional fifty-four volunteered for travelling teaching.
Hands of the Cause A.Q. Faizí, representative of The Universal House of Justice, and H. Collis Featherstone were present.
Singers and dancers from Samoa, New Hebrides, Tonga, Malaysia, and Iran performed at the conference.
New appointments to Auxiliary Boards[edit]
The Counsellors in North America have announced the appointment of eighteen Auxiliary Board members to augment the number of Board members serving on the continent. This action by the Counsellors, representing a dynamic, new phase in the evolution of their institution, was generated by the following message which they recently received from the International Teaching Center in the Holy Land:
- Delighted inform you Supreme Body decided increase Auxiliary Board members your zone by eighteen making total of forty-five eighteen for protection and twenty-seven for propagation. Moment propitious couple historic expansion Auxiliary Boards with unprecedented increase number Assistants commensurate critical needs plan. Anticipate tremendous acceleration accomplishment goals result these steps deepest love.
The newly appointed Auxiliary Board members to serve in the United States are: Donald Barrett, Hormoz Bastani, Joyce Dahl, Dennis Jenkyns, Benjamin Levy, Samuel McClellan, Odessa Myers, Stephen Powers, Nathan Rutstein, and Ronna Santoscoy.
A further announcement will soon be made of the full complement of Auxiliary Board members serving in North America together with the territories to be covered by each in providing both protection and propagation assistance.
The Institution of the Continental Boards of Counsellors came into being in June 1968 by action of The Universal House of Justice. The Supreme Institution stated at that time that their duties would include “directing the Auxiliary Boards in their respective areas, consulting and collaborating with National Spiritual Assemblies, and keeping the Hands of the Cause and The Universal House of Justice informed concerning the conditions of the Cause in their areas.”
|
Contrato firmado para Sede Casa Universal de Justicia Con alegría anunciamos firma acuerdo contratista general para erección sede Casa Universal de Justicia a un costo poco mas de dos millones de dólares. Primer envío mármol terminado entregado sitio. Cariñosos saludos.
A los Seguidores de Bahá’u’lláh reunidos en la Conferencia Internacional de Enseñanza en Mérida (Yucatán), México Muy amados amigos: Con corazones alegres y ansiosa expectación les enviamos saludos calurosos a ustedes los participantes en la última de las ocho grandiosas Conferencias Internacionales de Enseñanza que marcan el punto medio del Plan de Cinco Años. La convocación de esta Conferencia en la República de México, en la ciudad capital de un estado que fue una vez parte importante de un gran imperio indígena, provee una oportunidad única de iniciar lo que bien podría ser el despertar general de una gente cuyos antecesores hace más de 1,200 años desarrollaron una de las mas brillantes civilizaciones precolombinas de las que el hombre actual tenga conocimiento. Estos descendientes de hoy día, muchos de los cuales ya han abrazado la Fe de Bahá’u’lláh, y quienes consideran como su tierra natal a la Península de Yucatán, las tierras bajas costeras y el espinazo áspero de montañas que une Norte y Sud América, están entre la gente mencionada por ‘Abdu’l-Bahá en Sus Tablas del Plan Divino como poseedores de un gran destino una vez que ellos acepten la Causa de Su Padre. Aquí también y a travéz de toda Centroamérica, están aquellos cuyos antecesores vinieron de la Península Ibérica, Africa y el Lejano Oriente enlazando el Viejo y Nuevo Mundo. Conscientes de la vehemente suplica de ‘Abdu’l-Bahá de promulgar la unidad de la raza humana, a una humanidad espiritualmente empobrecida, un puñado de maestros Bahá’ís errantes salieron hace cuatro décadas, atravesaron el puente que conecta a los dos continentes del Hemisferio Occidental y llevaron el Mensaje curativo de Bahá’u’lláh a las Repúblicas Hispanoamericanas. Sus dedicados esfuerzos fueron recompensados cuando, en 1938, la primera Asamblea Espiritual Local en Latino America fue formada en la Ciudad de México. Este primer triunfo al inicio del primero de los planes de enseñanza formulados por Shoghi Effendi origino otras victorias, comenzando con la formación de dos, luego de cuatro, Asambleas Espirituales Regionales y finalmente al establecimiento de Asambleas Espirituales Nacionales en cada una de las Repúblicas de Latino América y en las Islas del Caribe. Loables en verdad fueron estos logros, pero las comunidades Bahá’ís de América Central y las Antillas no deben contentarse y dormirse en estos laureles. El Amado Guardián, durante los últimos meses de su preciosa vida, continuamente urgía a los amigos de Latino América a seguir con lo que él describió como “la suprema labor”, el trabajo de enseñanza. Cuanto más aplica hoy este mandato! En menos de treinta meses, aproximadamente 900 centros aislados y grupos, y más de 400 Asambleas Espirituales Locales deben ser agregados a aquellos que ya existen en las naciones de las islas y el continente de Centroamérica! Para lograr esta desafiante labor, deben hacerse intensos esfuerzos para atraer nuevos creyentes, sean ellos negros, morenos, rojos o blancos, de todos los niveles de la sociedad. Mano a mano con este esfuerzo, particularmente en comunidades locales, va el desarrollo del carácter distintivo de la vida Bahá’í. Tambien debe darse atención inmediata a la adquisición de Haziratu’l-Quds Locales y Dotaciones, y la traducción y publicación de literatura Bahá’í, especialmente en lenguas indígenas, deben ser aceleradas. Queridos amigos, si al final del Plan de Cinco Años queremos ver en lo alto las enseñas de la victoria, debe obtenerse desde ahora el apoyo sincero de los seguidores de Bahá’u’lláh, y sus energías deben ser canalizadas sistemáticamente a las áreas más necesitadas. Abrigamos la esperanza que en esta, la última Conferencia, los amigos se levantarán con entusiasmo y determinación, no solo para ganar las metas restantes del Plan, sino tabién para llevar a cobo el mandato de Shoghi Effendi de ganar la lealtad a la Causa de miembros de las varias tribus de Indígenas Americanos, y así apresurar el período profetizado por el Maestro, cuando los pueblos indígenas de América llegarían a ser una fuente de iluminación espiritual para el mundo. Nuestros corazones, nuestras esperánzas y nuestras oraciones estarán con ustedes durante todos los días de sus deliberaciones. Que Bahá’u’lláh inspire a todos y cada uno de ustedes.
|
Se levantan para enseñar[edit]
Casi 4,500 personas asistieron a las últimas tres Conferencias Internacionales de Enseñanza que se llevaron a cabo en Nueva Zelandia, Brasil y México. Había una asistencia total de más de 16,000 en esta serie de ocho conferencias de enseñanza.
Más de 2,000 personas asistieron a la última conferencia en Mérida, México, febrero 4–6. Se figuraron 300 ninos entre ellos.
Cuarenta y cuatro países y 32 grupos de la minoría y tribus indígenas fueron representados allí. Más de 200 creyentes se ofrecieron como pioneros para la Fe. Los Fondos dados o prometidos sobrepasaron $132,500.
El tema principal fué que la gente indígena se debe enseñar en todos los países donde la Fe está representada. Los creyentes nativos, cuando profundizados, promoverán la entrada por las tropas, fué dicho. Se dió una llamada persistente a los Bahá’ís para que hagan viajes de enseñanza en América Central y América del Sur.
Un reportaje del progreso mundial del Plan de Cinco Años contó algunos de los logros: 64 porcentaje de las asignaciones de pioneros han sido completadas; 54 porcentaje de la meta de Asambleas Espirituales Locales han sido formadas; 73 porcentaje de las localidades anticipadas han sido abiertas.
La nación de Malasia en la Asia Sureste completó todas sus metas asignadas, y luego completó otras metas adicionales asignadas por La Casa Universal de Justicia. Continúa el informe que ahora esa Asamblea Espiritual Nacional ha pedido aún más áreas.
La isla de Singapur también completó el plan inicial dado por La Casa Universal de Justicia. Ahora esta Asamblea desea enseñar 500,000 Chinos antes el fin del Plan.
La Mano del la Causa Paul Haney representó la Institución Suprema en la conferencia en Mérida. Otras Manos de la Causa presentes fueron Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir y Enoch Olinga.
La conferencia en Bahía, Brasil, la séptima en la serie, fué llevado a cabo enero 28–30, una semana antes de la conferencia en México. Aproximadamente 1,300 Bahá’ís asistieron.
La enseñanza antes de la conferencia y los esfuerzos de proclamación resultaron en más de 5,600 declaraciones en Brasil, se informó.
La enseñanza entre los indígenas en Sud América fué sometida a un escrutinio extenso durante el programa. Centenares de indígenas, nuevos creyentes, ahora están enrolándose en el Ecuador. Por la primera vez se ha hecho contacto con el tribu Mapuche en la Argentina. Transmisiones regulares en Quechua, un dialecto indígena, se oyen por todas partes del Ecuador, donde aún residen los descendientes de los Inca.
La suma extraordinaria de $290,000 fué contribuida al Fondo Bahá’í por el número insignificante de creyentes presente. 111 Bahá’ís se ofrecieron para hacerse pioneros.
La Mano de la Causa Enoch Olinga fué el representante de La Casa Universal de Justicia en Bahía. Las Manos de la Causa Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir y Paul Haney también estaban presentes.
Al otro lado del mundo, en Auckland, Nueva Zelanda, una conferencia internacional de enseñanza se llevó a cabo enero 19–22. 1,200 Bahá’ís representando 27 países asistieron.
Bahá’ís de Melanesia, Polinesia y Micronesia estaban presentes.
Cuando se hizo la llamada para 28 pioneros para completar las metas del Plan de Cinco Años, más de 50 individuos se ofrecieron. Además, 54 personas se ofrecieron como maestros viajantes.
Las Manos de la Causa A.Q. Faizí, representante de La Casa Universal de Justicia, y H. Collis Featherstone estaban presentes.
Cantantes y bailarines de Samoa, Nuevas Hébridas, Tonga, Malasia, e Irán actuaron en la conferencia.
|
Homefront Pioneer to save an Assembly |
Skilled musicians invited to perform[edit]
The Bahá’í National Youth Committee asks that musicians who have played at community proclamations, firesides, weddings or other Bahá’í events, and who would be interested in playing at the Fourth Bahá’í National Youth Conference as part of an orchestra, group or as a soloist, send a cassette recording of their music to the Youth Committee.
- INSTRUMENTS
- Strings
- Violins
- Violas
- Cellos
- Double Basses
- Winds
- Flutes
- Piccolos
- Brass
- French Horns
- Trumpets
- Cornets
- Trombones
- Tubas
- Baritones
- Piano
- Reeds
- Oboes
- Bassoons
- Contra Bassoons
- English Horns
- Alto Saxophones
- Tenor Saxophones
- Alto Clarinet
- Bass Clarinet
- Percussionists
- Bass Drum
- Triangle
- Snare Drum
- Cymbals
- Kettle Drums
- Chimes
- VARIOUS MUSICAL GROUPS
- Gospel
- Jazz
- Mariachi Band
- Persian
- Folk/Folk Rock
- Others
Twenty-five Assemblies formed since Riḍván 1976[edit]
Twenty-five Local Spiritual Assemblies have been formed and recognized since Riḍván, 1976, and another five Local Assemblies await recognition. This brings the total of Local Assemblies in the United States to 926, which is 474 shy of the goal of 1,400 communities being at Assembly status by the end of the Five Year Plan.
Before Riḍván, 1977, the National Teaching Committee anticipates the formation of an additional 75 Local Assemblies, bringing the total for 1976–77 to over one hundred, only a little more than half of the goal of 200 for this year.
At the same time, one hundred Local Assemblies are in jeopardy, many requiring only one person for maintaining Assembly status. The National Teaching Committee reminds the friends that while April 21 is just over a month away, it is not too late to move to these communities and save the Local Assemblies.
Pleasanton, California
Teaching plans: establish children’s classes and youth activities; improve community and family unity; hold monthly public meetings; establish deepening classes; display Bahá’í materials at the library; each year, donate trees and plants in the name of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to the city of Pleasanton to commemorate His visit there.
Lakeland, Florida
Front row, left to right: Teresa Brinegar, Ruth Holder Wing, Jesse Riemer, Marie Bruhl, Mary Alice McClendon. Back row, left to right: Robert Bruhl, John Wing, Ann Valk. Not pictured: Jan Buchanan.
Mount Prospect, Illinois
Teaching plans: continue regular firesides; hold a direct mail campaign in spring or early summer; enter a Bahá’í float in the Memorial Day parade.
Niles, Illinois
Front row, left to right: Richard Kearns, Patricia Bastani, Hamid Bastani, Mary Taylor, Robert Taylor. Back row, left to right: Gerald Kogen, Eleanor Gilardon, Javier Martinez, Michael Carr.
Teaching plans: develop a comprehensive Plan for Niles to begin at Riḍván, 1977; donate Bahá’í books to the public library; meet each morning during the Fast to pray for teaching efforts in Niles; complete the Local Assembly training program.
Dartmouth, Massachusetts
Front row, left to right: Leona Herzig, Audrey Olivierre, Farrideh Mottahed, Iraj Mottahed. Back row, left to right: Peter D. Martelly, Claudette Martelly, Sue Bailey, Bob Bailey, Caren Perlmutter.
Marlboro, Massachusetts
Front row, left to right: Elsie Smith, Dorothy Welton, Corinne Landin, Joan K. Haskell. Back row, left to right: Carl Paulson, John Rio, Jr., Dorothy Rio, Milton Landin. Not pictured: Kathleen Paulson.
Teaching plans: hold an arts and crafts show on April 30; hold weekly firesides and deepenings; host an open-house for Naw-Rúz; set an example by living the Bahá’í life.
Rock Hill, Missouri
Teaching plans: achieve membership of 12 adults, including two families by Riḍván, 1977, and 15 adult members by 1978; work towards 100 percent community participation in Sunday morning children’s classes and deepenings; establish youth firesides to be held every 19 days; implement regular social activities to become visible to general community; sponsor institute on the Covenant in the spring.
Scarsdale, New York
Front row, left to right: Mona Carloni, Evelyn Ramsey, Beth MacQueen, Kathleen Javid. Back row, left to right: Shannon Javid, Barbara MacQueen, Farhang Javid, Doug Quinn, Richard Quinn.
Teaching plans: hold weekly firesides and frequent social affairs.
Boone, North Carolina
Front row, left to right: Dixie Farthing, Fran Eury, Janie Winebarger, Lisa DeWitt. Back row, left to right: Brian Williams, Katherine Williams, Michael Powell, Wayne Eury, Philip Abernathy.
Upper Arlington, Ohio
Front row, left to right: Betsy Richard, Anne Grove, Paul Reynolds. Back row, left to right: Robert Richard, Soraya Ma’ani, Houshang Ma’ani, Jennifer Warden, Leva Khadivian, Saeid Khadivian.
Teaching plans: send mailers to 14,000 residents in Upper Arlington; co-sponsor a conference with the District Teaching Committee in April; continue to hold weekly firesides.
Bowling Green, Ohio
Front row, left to right: Dennis Rule, Barbara Crispen, Mildred Stahl. Back row, left to right: Joseph Stahl, Vera Arnold, William Quigney, Linda Ropiak, Evangeline Corbitt, James Corbitt.
Okmulgee, Oklahoma
Not pictured: Jay McGirt; Vinson Jamir.
Few believers may reach many through direct mailer[edit]
Communities across the country are rapidly adding a new mass medium to their proclamation arsenal: the United States Postal Service.
Approximately 500 communities have ordered direct mail kits now available through the Bahá’í Publishing Trust, and dozens have already completed direct mail projects.
The kits contain two brochures, with instructions on using them, which can be reproduced and mailed to individual households.
Reported mailings have ranged from 20,000 pieces in Evanston, Illinois, to 200 in Maybeury, West Virginia. The average mailing, it is estimated, will be of 6,000 pieces. As a result, once communities that have purchased the direct mail kits complete their local campaigns, more than 3,000,000 households will have received literature on the Faith.
Mailings reported are being conducted by Bahá’ís in diverse settings. They are being done by large and small communities, in urban and rural settings, and rich and poor neighborhoods. Mailings are being used to supplement regular teaching activities, to announce special public meetings, to offer services such as study courses, and to proclaim in distant goal localities.
It is too soon still to know what the true impact of this new form of proclamation will be.
Direct mail is a relatively expensive medium. The Publishing Trust estimates that the cost of mailing 7,500 pieces in an average American community is roughly $675. And the immediate, direct response to the mailings recorded in communities that have used them to date has been moderate to low.
However, there are parallel indications that the information provided is being absorbed in the target areas and in some communities, a perceptible change in the public’s outlook toward the Faith has been noted.
In Sierra Madre, California, for example, the Bahá’ís reported that after a mailing to the community’s 4,200 households, they “constantly meet people who now say, ‘Bahá’í? I’ve heard of that.’ ” Approximately 20 people actually attended public meetings in Sierra Madre in response to their mailing. The conclusion of the Bahá’ís there: “We feel that all of our efforts have been successful in that we have planted many, many seeds.”
The Spiritual Assembly of Evanston, Illinois mailed a three-color brochure to all city households in an effort to augment the prestige of the Bahá’í Faith among community organizations with which it was participating in a series of projects.
The attitude of community leaders toward the Bahá’ís warmed perceptibly after the mailing, the Assembly reported. At different meetings at different times, people commented that Bahá’ís were suddenly visible and active. Although they are not directly attributable to the mailing, the community has gained a number of new believers in the months that followed.
“The mailing had something to do with generating the spirit that led to an increase in teaching activities,” the Evanston Assembly reported.
Following are brief reports of a number of direct mail efforts:
Cranston, Rhode Island: The Bahá’ís of Cranston used the mail kit distributed by the Publishing Trust to prepare a mailing to coincide with World Religion Day, January 16.
Eight hundred pieces were mailed to selected areas of Cranston. Two replies were received. One person requested literature only. The second is still investigating the Faith actively.
The Cranston Bahá’ís plan to use the mailer again. When they do they will list two phone numbers instead of one, sponsor only one public meeting in conjunction with the mailing rather than the three held in January, and announce that Bahá’í books are available in the local library.
Livermore, California: The Livermore Bahá’ís said their mailer generated surprise among townspeople that Bahá’ís did not accept donations. “They had difficulty believing any religion was not out to collect all it could,” they said.
A mailer was sent to 18,000 households in Livermore October 29. By Christmas, 21 replies were received. Seven people requested information on firesides, and three asked that a Bahá’í visit them at home.
Clovis, California: Clovis, in Northern California, has had a Bahá’í community for only two years. When the Local Assembly decided to do a mailing to 2,500 of the town’s 29,000 households, they found they didn’t have enough money. To raise the $100 they needed they held a “sacrifice auction,” to which Bahá’ís contributed an item of sentimental value to be sold. When it was over they had raised $400, more than enough to complete their mailing.
A new way to bring people together: the Bahá’í Faith
Suggestions offered for direct mailer users[edit]
Some of the communities interviewed about direct mail campaigns had suggestions for communities which may wish to hold a campaign of their own.
Clovis, California: “We did not realize how much time it would take to address the mailers. Allow plenty of time for that part of the project.”
Wheaton, Illinois: “We felt it was important to use advertising in newspapers and on radio to reinforce the impact of the mailer. We ran 80 inches of advertising in the newspaper the day before the mailers were sent out. We run ads regularly, and try to keep the same artwork or wording so repetition will cause ‘Bahá’í’ to remain on peoples’ minds.”
Cranston, Rhode Island: “We conducted our mail campaign during the rough winter weather here. We would suggest that Bahá’ís use mailers in warmer weather for a better turnout at public meetings.”
Princeton, West Virginia: “In choosing the town to send mailers, make sure there are sidewalks for outdoor teaching and a place to hold public meetings. Our goal town did not have public meeting facilities, and that presented a problem: people seemed reluctant to go to someone’s home for a public meeting.”
A new means of proclaiming Faith[edit]
Bahá’ís have a very special message to impart to humanity. To get that message across, they must communicate. Radio, television and newspapers are among the most commonly used communication media, and Bahá’ís have become increasingly sophisticated in the use of them as evidenced by the professionally prepared radio programs, television spots and newspaper ads now available from the Bahá’í National Center. But there are other means of mass communication besides the ones just mentioned—direct mail, for one.
Getting a Response: For Bahá’í communities, the total response to a direct mailer is not measured solely by the number of reply cards sent back. Many of the readers may develop interest in the message of the Faith and not ask for more information immediately. The seeds are planted in the hearts and minds of these readers, but they may need the experience of having the Faith taught to them directly and to see it at work in the lives of Bahá’ís before they will investigate further.
However, the reply cards do provide the Bahá’í communities with a means for identifying people who are strongly motivated to investigate immediately and with a responsibility for direct follow-up activity.
The basic theory of direct mail is this: the easier you make it for the reader to respond, the better your results will be. The seeker listening to a Bahá’í radio program or television spot or seeing a newspaper ad cannot respond easily if he wants further information. If the ad, for example, says go to a certain place at a certain time, he must mark his calendar, make a note of the address, arrange for transportation and perhaps get a babysitter. If the seeker is to write to a certain address, he must get pen, paper, envelope and stamp. Or, if he is told to call a certain number, he may feel uneasy about calling someone he doesn’t know. But a direct mailer with a reply card eliminates these problems and makes it easy for the seeker to obtain further information in a manner that is non-threatening.
Advantage: Besides the ease of reply, the direct mail approach has another advantage—it is efficient. A bare handful of believers, with the assistance of the U.S. Postal Service and perhaps a mailing agency, can saturate an entire town with the Message of Bahá’u’lláh in a single day.
Local Spiritual Assemblies formed since Riḍván[edit]
(from page 3)
Cranston, Rhode Island
Teaching plans: double the number of Bahá’ís in the community by Riḍván, 1977; continue to hold regular firesides and children’s classes.
Mountlake Terrace, Washington
Front row, left to right: Rhonda LaRoy, Glorietta Blossey, Judith Proffett, Cheryl McNerney. Back row, left to right: Nicholas Alavecos, Jay Blossey, Norman LaRoy, Eleanor LaRoy, Larry McNerney.
Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Front row, left to right: Coral Varo, Adele B. Varo, Lofton H. Clark, D.C. Back row, left to right: Dorothy Osthelder, James P. Horn, Carl J. Caruso, Jr., Patrick Osthelder, Yaser Haleem. Not pictured: Nafeseh Haleem.
Teaching plans: maintain a pamphlet rack at a local laundromat; observe all Bahá’í special days with public meetings and publicity; save funds for a city-wide mail proclamation such as the National Teaching Committee advocates.
Editorial[edit]
|
We must provide hope for the people In the nineteen sixties there was much excitement in the country over causes. There was determination to right wrongs, to crusade for justice. There was great hope, among the young particularly, that change was possible, that brotherhood was attainable, that those who were cynical over the mutability of human nature would be proven wrong. Our own communities reflected the excitement that moved abroad in the land. We became active to an unprecedented degree. The Bahá’í Faith in the last five years of the Nine Year Plan grew dramatically in the United States. Our zeal carried us to the threshold of stirring victories in the South and elsewhere. For the nation and for us it was a decade of possibility. World events in the seventies conspired to rob us of optimism. The movement for human rights dissolved in bitterness. The war in Indochina disoriented and disillusioned the nation. Hopefulness was dashed by a score of other ugly realities that crowded onto the stage of our attention, as if to say things were tougher than we knew or expected. The decline of optimism in the Bahá’í community seemed to parallel that of society. Our mood has been depressed at least since the beginning of the Five Year Plan. We have not yet arisen to the challenge with enthusiasm. Our efforts to expand in size have just limped along. We rarely meet Bahá’ís who are on fire with zeal for teaching; willing to sacrifice personal comfort for the Cause. What contributed to the excitement of the sixties? The themes sounded were lofty, for one thing. They called on man to achieve the best of which he was capable. Also, enough individuals were interested that a difference could be made, it seemed. But when individuals began to lose heart, there was a chain reaction. After all, it was only individuals. There was no community foundation to the efforts. A recent study reported in The New York Times said a significant proportion of the generation turning 30 in 1976 suffered from mental illness and depression because it perceived the failure of its efforts at reform and because it was demoralized at the prospect of facing a future without hope for change. We must provide that hope for people. But we can do it only if we strengthen our communities in the little time we have left to us in the Plan. People can’t stand against world-encompassing trials as individual entities. It requires collective effort. We are not in the Bahá’í Faith for our personal health above all else, but for the collectivity of our fellow believers. We must now act upon that knowledge. We say that we love one another. If we do we must help one another. We cannot afford the luxury of preserving “individuality” against the group at all odds. We are at the stage where we must move ahead together, the weak and the strong. The strong must abandon contempt for the weak. The weak must abandon resentment for the strong. Neither the weak nor the strong can make the Bahá’í Faith alone. We must make goals that will strengthen our community and we must abide by them as if our lives depended on it, as in fact they do. The people must see in our communities the true possibility for relief from the agony of disunity and isolation. Otherwise they will ignore our effort. We are probably not going to have the kind of excitement we had in the sixties again. The society is not likely to help generate that excitement. Conditions seem destined to become gloomier. This time we must do it ourselves. And we must do it by sheer determination and will power. We must face our condition squarely and decide to do our duty. And we have to make plans, ambitious plans, urgent plans, comprehensive plans, courageous plans for achieving unity in our communities and bringing that fact to the attention of the world at large. |
The mail[edit]
Dear Friends,
At times someone will express the idea that perhaps we Bahá’ís are too concerned about the numbers of new believers we enroll in the Faith.
I believe we must be concerned. The goal of the Bahá’í Faith is to establish the World Order of Bahá’u’lláh. When a seeker declares his belief in Bahá’u’lláh and becomes a Bahá’í it provides another worker to help win the goal of universal peace; another who will strive to practice the oneness of mankind; and who will do all in his power to eliminate all forms of prejudice.
These are the people who will recreate the planet and establish strong communities to which the whole of mankind can turn when they are seeking a refuge from the decay and destruction around them.
Yes, we certainly are concerned about the numbers of those who enroll in this Faith.
“Each one teach one” has been the basic formula for us to follow for a long time. If we really understood this, perhaps we would have witnessed even greater numbers of seekers declaring their acceptance of Bahá’u’lláh!
- George B. Galinkin
- Bozeman, Montana
Dear Friends,
I have been thinking of the Fast and the fact that Bahá’ís will not be eating lunch for nineteen days. What if we each put aside the grocery or restaurant money we would spend for this meal and give it to the Fund?
Suppose we assume that lunch costs an individual twenty-five cents. At the end of nineteen days, $4.75 would have been saved. If 10,000 Bahá’ís sent this amount to the National Center at the end of the month of ‘Alá, the Fund would receive $47,500 and our collective spiritual wealth would be inestimably enriched.
Karen Tarlo
Dear Friends,
This is just a note to let you know that I have been reading The American Bahá’í since its inception and I enjoy it thoroughly. I work in the business office of the University of Massachusetts’ Daily Collegian (circ. 22,000) and every day I read the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and a number of lesser publications which are delivered to my office. However, my very favorite periodical remains The American Bahá’í and I eagerly await its arrival every month.
I generally like your layout with “The Mail” department and “Editorial” department, etc. and your ability to cover so much news in such a little space. I am really sorry that the size of the paper had to be cut down twice and I am hoping that the Fund will soon be able to support it back at its original number of pages.
Kathleen Casey
Dear Friends,
My January issue of The American Bahá’í has just arrived with your editorial comment, “Gentlemen, the Verdict Please.”
My congratulations! A beautiful and moving editorial. More like this can dispel our lethargy, I do believe.
Sam McClellan
Dear Friends,
The fluorine atom possesses 19 nucleons in its heart, the nucleus, and is enveloped by 9 electrons. It is fluorescent, or absorbs invisible light and emits visible light. Thus it becomes self-luminous and shines fluorescently when exposed to light.
The faithful believer, though as small as an atom, when his heart is filled with the virtues of the 19, symbolizing the Primal Point and the Letters of the Living, and enveloped with the love of the 9, Bahá, can also become spiritually self-luminous, radiating the love of God to mankind.
F. Sefidvash
Falkland Islander visits National Center[edit]
A Bahá’í resident of the Falkland Islands was invited by the National Spiritual Assembly to visit Wilmette on his way home from the International Teaching Conference at Bahia, Brazil to refresh his spirits at the Temple.
The Falkland Islands, more than 6,000 miles distant from Wilmette, is under the sphere of administration of this National Spiritual Assembly. The object of the proposed visit was to help that island’s community understand the operation of Bahá’í Administration in the United States and to develop a sense of relatedness with it.
The believer invited was Dr. Robert Watson, a dentist who joined the Faith in the Falkland Islands a little less than three years ago.
In Wilmette he met with staff of the National Center, viewed video portions of the Local Spiritual Assembly Development Program, was informed of bookkeeping methods used by treasurers of Local Assemblies around the country, and toured the facilities of the Bahá’í Publishing Trust.
“I felt put in touch with how everything is done,” Dr. Watson said of his visit.
As a dentist, Dr. Watson travels to farm settlements in the Falkland Islands for six months of the year. During his first year as a Bahá’í, he took the Bahá’í film “It’s Just the Beginning” on his rounds to show at local theaters before the main feature. When he returned to the settlements a year later without a film, he was surprised by the number of people who asked about the Faith.
Dr. Watson is one of only a handful of Bahá’ís in the Falkland Islands. All but one of the Bahá’ís live in the town of Port Stanley. One of the goals of the Local Assembly there is to establish five groups in the farming communities by the end of the Five Year Plan.
“The best plan of action for expanding the Faith is to show the world a unified Bahá’í community,” he said. “People have heard of the idea of unity but have not often seen it in action. The creation of strong communities will be the attractive examples for disillusioned people around the world,” he noted.
He said that Bahá’ís who want to pioneer to the Falkland Islands should try to live in the farm settlements. Obtaining work permits for farm labor is easier than obtaining them for work in the towns.
Use of New York Bahá’í Center catalyst for teaching Chinese[edit]
Efforts to reach the Chinese in New York City are being moderately successful.
A number of believers there are actively engaged in teaching the Faith in Chinese neighborhoods, and regular weekly firesides are underway. Three Chinese youth have declared since April.
Particularly active in the teaching efforts has been Ahmad Sobhani, a Persian youth studying in the United States.
“I knew the goals of the Five Year Plan were given to us for our spiritual progress,” he said, “so I decided to meet the Chinese.”
In the fall of 1975 he went to a park in a Chinese neighborhood of the city and struck up a conversation with a Chinese youth. In time he invited him to his home for a Persian meal. The young man came with three friends, which began a regular Tuesday fireside in the Sobhani home.
Recently, when the Local Spiritual Assembly learned that a certain Chinese couple planned to marry, they offered the Bahá’í Center as a location for the engagement party. Seventy-five Chinese attended and Bahá’í prayers were read.
Approximately 90 Chinese attended a farewell party at the Bahá’í Center in March for a departing teacher from a local Chinese school. On that occasion the visitors presented a banner to the Bahá’ís, which read: “Presented to the Bahá’í Center in recognition of their loving service to the community and to our school.”
The Sobhanis, Persian Bahá’ís in New York, hold regular firesides for Chinese seekers. On the right is Tze Shek Hui, the first Chinese Bahá’í in Chinatown, New York.
A weekly fireside in the Chinese neighborhood itself was initiated after the celebration of the Chinese New Year February 19.
“The Chinese are unique in personality and character,” said Ahmad Sobhani. “They have a close family life, and are a disciplined and very loving people.”
National budget preparation nears completion[edit]
Work on the new budget to be presented at the National Convention is nearing completion at the Bahá’í National Center.
During its meeting in Wilmette, February 10-13, the National Spiritual Assembly heard a four-hour presentation from the Office of the Treasurer on committee budget proposals for the next fiscal year.
Further study and revision are still necessary before a budget estimate is completed for the presentation to the delegates at the National Convention at the end of April.
However, the Office of the Treasurer indicates that the process of formulating a budget has never gone so well. The procedures for accurately estimating resources and determining allocations have become increasingly refined.
One fact that has emerged from the current budget deliberations is that an increased emphasis will be given to the teaching work in the coming year. This will be possible because costly property acquisition goals have in large measure been met in the first years of the Five Year Plan.
A basic assumption in current planning is that the deficit currently affecting the Fund will be eradicated by year’s end. Increased levels of community and individual giving are expected in March and April to help win the national Contributions Goal. In addition, national committees have been instructed to spend only 93 percent of their current budgets in an effort to assist in balancing this year’s budget.
The status of the Fund is reviewed by members of the Treasurer’s Office in preparation for the coming year’s budget.
Treasurer’s manual aid to Local Assemblies[edit]
Local Bahá’í communities throughout the country are also engaged during this period in the process of formulating budgets for the coming year.
In their work they are using a recently published training manual, Accounting Procedures for Bahá’í Treasurers.
The manual has been sent to 1,700 Assembly and Group treasurers and represents a first step in standardizing Bahá’í bookkeeping procedures throughout the country.
“The Assembly or group, as a result of the information provided, will know at all times where it stands financially. The believers themselves will be encouraged by the accounting procedures their institutions use to manage their precious resources.”
National budgeting procedure outlined[edit]
The steps listed below are those followed by the Office of the Treasurer in making budget recommendations to the National Spiritual Assembly:
- During the course of the year, the Treasurer’s Office becomes familiar with major projects of each committee and with ways in which they handle finances.
- As a new cycle of budget preparation is started, the Treasurer’s Office conducts an analysis of the year’s expenditures to identify results achieved by each committee, and makes a projection of potential revenue for the coming year.
- Patterns of contributions are studied and ways considered for increasing support of the National Fund in the coming year.
- Increased operating costs (utilities, rent, printing, services, etc.) are estimated and tentative steps taken to fix a realistic budget goal.
- National committees and other agencies are required to submit program budgets to the National Spiritual Assembly, noting in detail all proposed expenditures.
- Proposed committee budgets and projections of anticipated revenues are presented to the National Assembly. (This step was completed in February.) The National Assembly then begins to develop the actual budget making necessary revisions in committee programs and intentions.
- When completed, the budget is presented to the delegates at National Convention for consultation.
- In one of its first acts, the newly-elected National Assembly considers the delegate recommendations and adopts an annual budget.
- Monthly reports are given to the National Assembly on progress in the Funds and budget expenditures.
Library exhibit and book donations part of Bahá’í Week[edit]
Members of the Bahá’í community of Norwich, Connecticut participated in Connecticut’s “Bahá’í Week” through proclamation at the local Otis Library. The group exhibited books and titled the display “Selections from the Writings of the World’s Major Religions.” Over fifteen Bahá’í books and pamphlets were featured, along with readings from other Faiths.
During “Bahá’í Week,” the Bahá’ís donated three books to the library: two copies of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era and one copy of Bahá’í World Faith. The local newspaper publicized the exhibit and donations to the library.
Teaching Briefs[edit]
Since September there have been seven declarations in Rhode Island, an unprecedented number for the state.
An entire family has embraced the Faith in Tijuana, Mexico, through Border Project teaching activities. Weekly meetings are held for neighbors, some of whom are new Bahá’ís.
A family of four adults and eight children has been enrolled in Wetumpka, Alabama. Enrolling families is stressed in “Design for Victory.”
Ten people have declared in Morristown and Johnson City, Tennessee, which are part of the Appalachia Project.
The Bahá’ís of Wilmington, North Carolina, held a teaching campaign which resulted in an attendance of 75 at the evening meeting, half of whom were not Bahá’ís.
|
Travel teachers invited to Nigeria[edit]
The National Spiritual Assembly of Nigeria invites American Bahá’ís to attend an International Teaching Conference July 15-17 at Enugu, Nigeria.
The conference will be followed by six weeks of teaching in towns and villages in Nigeria. The teaching efforts are anticipated to facilitate the achievement of the Five Year Plan goals in Nigeria.
If you are interested in attending the conference, contact the International Goals Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Bahá’í Center acquired[edit]
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Leeward and Virgin Islands, with the assistance of the National Assembly of the United States, recently acquired a building to serve as the Bahá’í Center for Martinique in accordance with the Five Year Plan.
The building, located at 18 Rue Pierre and Marie Curie in the center of town, is a three-story cement structure. The Bahá’ís hope to renovate the top floor to serve as an apartment for a caretaker couple, the middle floor to serve as offices and private meeting spaces and the ground floor to serve as an area for receiving the public.
Since the National Assembly of the French Antilles will be formed this Riḍván, and incorporated at some later date, the building was purchased in the name of the National Assembly of France, which will hold the property until it is possible to deed it to the new National Assembly.
National Archives seeks professionals for consultation[edit]
The National Bahá’í Archives Committee would like to have the names of Bahá’ís with experience in archives, museums, libraries or conservation of historic artistic works. The Archives Committee has need at times to consult with Bahá’í professionals in these fields. Please send a resume of education and experience to the Bahá’í National Archives Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Has your community doubled since Riḍván?[edit]
Has each person in your community taught one person since Riḍván, 1976? If your community has doubled in size since Riḍván, 1976, as a result of individual teaching efforts, share your joy with other Bahá’ís through The Mail section. Write to The American Bahá’í, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Teaching positions open[edit]
The Sandy Spring Friends School in Sandy Spring, Maryland, is in need of teachers with high moral standards. It is a co-educational high school with one hundred resident students and one hundred day students. Classes range from five to twelve students each. Excellent opportunity to teach the Faith. For information, write: C. Thornton Brown, Headmaster, Sandy Spring Friends School, Sandy Spring, MD 20860.
Staff position open at Conifer Hill[edit]
The Conifer Hill Schools Committee needs a work foreman for the Work/Study program planned from June 13-26. This position requires experience in plumbing, mechanics, carpentry, and a knowledge of the use, maintenance, and repair of chain saws. The foreman must be able to relate to the campers as a supervisor, instructor, and friend. The salary is $75 a week plus free room and board.
For further information concerning the staff position or the camp, please write to Conifer Hill Bahá’í Schools Committee, Marilyn Fisher, Secretary, 437 Pine, Boulder, CO 80302, phone: (303) 443-6422.
[edit]
The Navajo Culture Club of Los Angeles, which conducts public performances of traditional Indian dances, found itself in the audience for a change at a recent party given by Bahá’ís.
A group of Persian believers demonstrated Iranian and Middle Eastern folk dances for the Navajo club, and taught the steps to the children, who then joined in the dancing.
The event was organized by the Indian Relations Committee of Los Angeles and the Regional Teaching Committee. The Navajo Culture Club has performed at Bahá’í events.
Homefront pioneers needed in Colorado[edit]
Wanted: couple, preferably retired or self-supporting to pioneer in Custer County, Colorado. Outdoor types ideal. Winters mild, within one hour of Pueblo, Colorado.
This area is a National goal of the Five Year Plan as well as a goal of the Spiritual Assembly of Canon City. Write Lynn Berry, 816 Ussie Street, Canon City, CO 81212.
Booth in park on World Religion Day[edit]
On a sunny January 16, World Religion Day, Bahá’ís from Southern California District No. 1 could be seen in Marina del Rey wearing “Ask me, I’m a Bahá’í” buttons and circulating among the estimated 200 visitors who stopped at a Bahá’í exhibit in Burton Chace Park.
The exhibit consisted of six bright green booths, each made of three 4’ x 8’ hinged plywood panels. Each booth had a different Bahá’í theme, supported by quotations from the Writings, posters and color photographs, and free literature.
A nine-sided booth served as the central kiosk, and displayed framed color photographs of the Houses of Worship, the Shrine of the Bab on Mount Carmel and Bahá’ís in a variety of activities. The kiosk also had refreshment and book sales counters.
A group of six Bahá’ís called the Day Stars sang and played musical instruments. Small flyers were passed out in the park, posters were placed in the windows of nearby business establishments and paid ads were inserted in three local newspapers.
Plan progress discussed[edit]
A conference to discuss progress with the Five Year Plan in South Carolina was held at the Louis Gregory Bahá’í Institute January 15.
Sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly, the meeting was attended by the South Carolina Regional Teaching Committee, members of the eight District Teaching Committees, representatives of a number of Assemblies, and a quorum of the National Teaching and National Education Committees. Approximately 65 people were present.
The National Assembly was represented by its Secretary, Glenford E. Mitchell. The Auxiliary Board was represented by Elizabeth Martin, who serves in South Carolina.
A number of basic subjects were discussed in the one-day meeting, such as the use of radio and television in proclamation, organization of children’s classes, construction of local centers, and association with non-Bahá’í organizations.
The South Carolina friends were invited to share their own perceptions on the status of teaching and to offer recommendations for upgrading current efforts.
The believers were encouraged by the National Spiritual Assembly to demonstrate greater local initiative in meeting teaching and consolidation needs, and to rely less on services and guidance from an overburdened national administrative system.
It was noted that potential for further expansion in South Carolina is great and should be exploited. It is one of the few states with a Regional Teaching Committee, and the only state with its own Auxiliary Board member and teaching institute. There are, in addition, eight District Teaching Committees to serve the area.
Bahá’í books[edit]
Bahá’í Education: A Compilation
New this month, Bahá’í Education is the most complete compilation yet published of the Bahá’í teachings on education. A number of previously untranslated Tablets are included in the book, which was compiled by the Research Department of The Universal House of Justice.
Bahá’í Education consists of extracts from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi and letters written on his behalf. The book is a valuable resource for all Bahá’í parents and communities as they strive to make the education of children “a firmly-established Bahá’í activity” during the course of the Five Year Plan. 5½ x 8½ inches. 77 pp.
7-15-59 paper.............$1.85
To order: Order through Community Librarians if possible! Personal orders: enclose full payment, plus $0.75 handling charge for all orders under $5.00.
[Page 8]
Merida site of final International Teaching Conference
Story page 1.
Clockwise: Hand of the Cause Paul Haney, representing The Universal House of Justice, addresses the Merida Conference; Hands of the Cause Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir and Enoch Olinga greet believers at the Merida Conference; Mr. Olinga shares laughter with the friends; the governor of the Yucatan, a Mayan, welcomed the Bahá’ís to Merida.
