The American Bahá’í/Volume 9/Issue 4/Text
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Message From the Guardian (Reprinted from Bahá’í News, October 1938.) •
Dear co-workers: I wish to reaffirm in person my sense of joy and gratitude, as expressed in my last cable to your Assembly, at the new spirit of alertness and determination which you have so clearly demonstrated while yet on the threshold of your year of stewardship in the service of the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh. I am filled with fresh hopes, and yearn to witness, ere the present year draws to a close, not only the fulfillment of an unexampled record of service but the revelation of such depths of consecration as will astonish, nay thrill, both the members of your own community and the rest of the Bahá’í world. Pregnant indeed are the years looming ahead of us all. The twin processes of internal disintegration and external chaos are being accelerated and every day are inexorably moving towards a climax. The rumblings that must precede the eruption of those forces that must cause “the limbs of humanity to quake” can already be heard. “The time of the end,” “the latter years,” as foretold in the Scriptures, are at long last upon us. The Pen of Bahá’u’lláh, the voice of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, have time and again, insistently and in terms unmistakable, warned an unheeding humanity of impending disaster. The Community of the Most Great Name, the leaven that must leaven the lump, the chosen remnant that must survive the rolling up of the old, discredited, tottering order, and assist in the unfoldment of a new one in its stead, is standing ready, alert, clear-visioned, and resolute. The American believers, standard-bearers of this world-wide community and torch-bearers of an as yet unborn civilization, have girt up their loins, unfurled their banners and stepped into the arena of service. Their Plan has been formulated. Their forces are mobilized. They are steadfastly marching towards their goal. The hosts of the Abhá Kingdom are rushing forth, as promised, to direct their steps and reinforce their power. Through their initial victories they have provided the impulse that must now surge and, with relentless force, sweep over their sister-communities and eventually overpower the entire human race. The generality of mankind, blind and enslaved, is wholly unaware of the healing power with which this community has been endowed, nor can it as yet suspect the role which this same community is destined to play in its redemption. Fierce and manifold will be the assaults by which governments, races, classes and religions, jealous of its rising prestige and fearful of its consolidating strength, will seek to silence its voice and sap its foundations. See GUARDIAN, Page 2
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‘DIZZY’ GILLESPIE HONORED Story, Photo on Page 2 |
By Universal House of Justice
U.S. Bahá’ís Urged to Evaluate Personal Teaching Commitment[edit]
The following cable from the Universal House of Justice was received at the Bahá’í National Center on March 20 as The American Bahá’í was going to press. Appended was a request from the Supreme Body that the message be shared with all believers in the United States. The National Spiritual Assembly responded immediately by writing a letter that included the message to every Local Spiritual Assembly in the U.S., and by requesting that The American Bahá’í make room for it on its front page so that the friends might consult on it at the next Nineteen Day Feast. Here is the text of the message:
EVE FINAL YEAR FIVE YEAR PLAN CALL ON ALL MEMBERS VALIANT AMERICAN BAHÁ’Í COMMUNITY TO EVALUATE THEIR RESPONSE TO APPEAL FOR UNIVERSAL PARTICIPATION IN VICTORY CAMPAIGN HOME FRONT INAUGURATED LAST SEPTEMBER. DURING CRUCIAL MONTHS IMMEDIATELY AHEAD IMPERATIVE FOR LOYAL FOLLOWERS BLESSED BEAUTY TO FULLY DISCHARGE RESPONSIBILITY PERSONAL TEACHING AND LEND UNCEASING EFFORT EVERY PHASE THEIR LOCAL TEACHING PLANS THEREBY STRENGTHENING BASE VITAL INSTITUTIONS FAITH ENABLING BAHÁ’Í COMMUNITY MEET CHALLENGE RAPIDLY DETERIORATING STANDARDS MAJORITY PEOPLE SURROUNDING THEM. ARDENTLY PRAYING SACRED THRESHOLD SUCCESS ENDEAVOURS.
March 20, 1978
Two Year Youth Program[edit]
| Items | Goals | April 1977 | Feb. 1978 | Yet to be filled |
| Total youth | 5,846 | |||
| Homefront Pioneers To Unopened Countries To unopened Localities |
150 (20) (90) |
0 (0) (0) |
8 6 6 |
142 14 84 |
| Domestic Teaching Trips For Two Months or More To Indian Reservations |
1,000 (15) (50) |
0 (0) (0) |
319 1 23 |
681 14 27 |
| International Pioneers Filling Specific Five Year Plan Goals |
30 (10) |
0 (0) |
11 7 |
19 3 |
| International Teaching Trips For One Month or More Each in a Single Country |
95 (20) |
0 (0) |
57 32 |
38 0 |
| Local Youth Clubs | 200 | 109 | 131 | 69 |
| College Clubs At Colleges with Highest Number American Indian Students |
400 (5) |
354 (0) |
372 2 |
28 3 |
International Goals[edit]
| AFRICA | OPEN | |
| (F) | Central African Empire | 2 |
| (E) | Ghana | 4 |
| (E) | Lesotho | 1 |
| (F) | Madagascar | 2 |
| (E) | Malawi | 1 |
| (E) | Nigeria | 1 |
| (E) | Sierra Leone | 2 |
| (E) | South Africa (Transkei) | 4 |
| (E) | St. Helena | 1 |
| (E) | Upper Volta | 2 |
| (P) | Upper West Africa (Cape Verde Islands) | 2 |
| (F) | Zaire | 1 |
| AMERICAS | ||
| (S) | Argentina | 3 |
| (E) | Barbados/Windward Islands | 2 |
| (S) | Bolivia | 1 |
| (P) | Brazil | 2 |
| (S) | Chile | 1 |
| (F) | French Antilles | 2 |
| (E) | Guyana | 1 |
| (F) | Haiti | 4 |
| (E) | Jamaica (Cayman Is.) | 2 |
| (E) | Leeward/Virgin Islands | 1 |
| (S) | Mexico | 3 |
| (S) | Paraguay | 2 |
| (S) | Uruguay | 2 |
| ASIA | ||
| (B) | (E) Bangladesh | 2 |
| (J) | Japan | 12 |
| (K) | Korea | 5 |
| (E) | Sri Lanka (Ceylon) | 1 |
| (E) | Thailand | 1 |
| EUROPE | ||
| (F) | Belgium | 3 |
| (D) | Denmark | 2 |
| (I) | Iceland | 2 |
| (Sw) | Sweden | 2 |
| (F) | (G)(It) Switzerland | 2 |
| LANGUAGE KEY | ||
| B—Bengali | ||
| D—Danish | ||
| E—English | ||
| F—French | ||
| G—German | ||
| I—Icelandic | ||
| It—Italian | ||
| J—Japanese | ||
| K—Korean | ||
| P—Portuguese | ||
| S—Spanish | ||
| Sw—Swedish | ||
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Inside
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‘Dizzy’ Gillespie Given Honorary Music Degree[edit]
Jazz trumpeter John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie, a Bahá’í since 1968, received an honorary doctorate degree in music February 17 from the Chicago Conservatory College. It marked the first time that the Conservatory, founded 120 years ago, has so honored non-European music.
During the presentation ceremony a representative from the office of Chicago Mayor Michael A. Bilandic said: “I think the oldest conservatory of music in the country couldn’t have done itself greater honor than to bestow this degree in music...” at which point Mr. Gillespie broke in to say: “...on the oldest musician in the world!”
At age 61, Dizzy Gillespie remains active and vital. In January he was in Lesotho in Southern Africa at a jazz festival sponsored by the Holiday Inns hotel chain; he arrived in Chicago from an engagement in Bermuda on the day of the presentation, and the following day flew to Minneapolis to entertain at the University of Minnesota.
A FREQUENT poll winner, Mr. Gillespie last year won the prestigious Downbeat magazine readers’ poll as the top jazz trumpeter in the country.
For an hour before receiving the doctorate, he was guest lecturer in a class on Latin American and African music at the Conservatory.
He mentioned the Faith several times to the 70 students and guests, saying at one point, “I’m a Bahá’í. Bahá’ís don’t talk about the differences in religions. We talk about the similarities. It all comes from one Source, right?”
Mr. Gillespie compared the development of African music to its development in Brazil, Cuba and the West Indies.
“You can’t thoroughly understand any music until you can dance to it,” he said, and proceeded to rhumba and two-step to show the difference in Cuban and American dance beats.
“YOU CAN miss notes all day for me,” he said, “but if you have rhythm, it’s all right. Rhythm sets the mood.”
He urged the students to become familiar with the rhythms derived from African music in the U.S., Cuba, Brazil and other Latin American areas. “When you’re on good speaking terms with these rhythms,” he said, “you can do almost anything.”
Mr. Gillespie laughed when remembering his introduction some 50 years ago to the trumpet and trombone: “My arms were too short to reach fifth position on the trombone. I played the trumpet in the key of B-flat for the longest time, and was surprised when someone told me one day I could play in other keys too.”
Along the way, his musical style was greatly influenced by the late genius of the alto saxophone, Charlie Parker, who he calls “a musical architect.”
His style became distinctive enough in the 1940s to earn its own nickname: “bebop.” Said Mr. Gillespie: “I don’t go in for labeling things. I never named it ‘bebop.’
Jazz trumpeter John ‘Dizzy’ Gillespie lectures at the Chicago Conservatory College before receiving an honorary doctorate degree in music. Mr. Gillespie has been a Bahá’í since 1968.
“AS FOR the music itself, I play the same notes Louis Armstrong played. I just phrase them a little differently. Musicians gain individuality by playing differently than their predecessors.”
When a student asked who he regards as great jazz musicians, he replied, “I don’t set myself up as an authority on who is or who isn’t a great jazz musician. If you’re real, if you have something to contribute, it will last.”
Someone asked whether the bass player or drummer has the greater responsibility in a band. Mr. Gillespie said each musician must establish his space and work within it, the same way that colors on a canvas work together in their places to form a masterpiece.
Another student asked if Mr. Gillespie plans to teach someday. “I have to learn a little more myself before I can think about teaching,” he replied.
Among the other musicians who have received honorary degrees from the Chicago Conservatory College in the last 20 years are Pablo Casals, Rudolf Serkin and Peter Mennin.
The Bahá’ís of Limestone Township, near Peoria, Illinois, responded to a request in a local paper for financial support for a Limestone resident who wanted to plant a flower bed around the flag pole at a nursing home by contributing all of the $75 requested. As a result, the Bahá’ís were able to place a sign among the flowers for everyone to see as an indirect way of teaching and showing the people of Limestone that Bahá’ís are people “who care.”
To Win Five Year Plan Goals
Illinois, Wisconsin Sharpen Strategy[edit]
All Local Spiritual Assemblies in Wisconsin and all believers in northern Illinois (outside Cook County) were invited by the Illinois Regional Teaching Committee to a meeting February 11 in New Berlin, Wisconsin.
They met to discuss the Five Year Plan goals of Illinois, following the wishes of the Universal House of Justice that the key states of California, Illinois and New York be assisted by believers in bordering states.
Of the 150 believers present, 20 agreed to teach in communities in northern Illinois to be raised to Assembly status: Freeport, Loves Park, Harlem Township, Belvidere, Crystal Lake, Mundelein, Wauconda, Round Lake Beach and Wadsworth; and to help save the jeopardized Assembly in North Chicago.
THE STRATEGY of the Illinois Regional Teaching Committee is, in the words of its secretary, Patricia Jackson, “to win the Assembly goals; everything else will follow.”
The friends were addressed at the meeting by National Spiritual Assembly member Soo Fouts, Auxiliary Board member Stephen Birkland, and members of the Regional Teaching Committee and the Southern Wisconsin District Teaching Committee.
The conference was combined with a proclamation, in accordance with a new directive from the National Spiritual Assembly that a part of the meeting time of RTCs and DTCs be spent in teaching.
The proclamation was a chili supper and square dance, with music furnished by the Unity Bluegrass Band. An estimated 200 people attended.
BESIDES believers in Wisconsin, Bahá’ís in other border states are helping Illinois with its goals.
The Local Spiritual Assembly in Terre Haute, Indiana, is working with the Spiritual Assembly of Danville, Illinois, to open goal counties in eastern Illinois.
The Local Assembly in Alton, Illinois, was restored by believers from Missouri. Wood River and Belleville also have been adopted by Missouri Bahá’ís.
The Bahá’ís of Evansville, Indiana, are working in unopened counties in southeastern Illinois.
Personnel Are Needed At Green Acre School[edit]
Green Acre Bahá’í School in Eliot, Maine, has openings for permanent maintenance staff personnel, a variety of summer jobs, and in its work-study program. Please apply to the Green Acre Bahá’í School, Eliot, ME 03903.
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Guardian Continued From Page 1 Unmoved by the relative obscurity that surrounds it at the present time, and undaunted by the forces that will be arrayed against it in the future, this community, I cannot but feel confident, will, no matter how afflictive the agonies of a travailing age, pursue its destiny, undeflected in its course, undimmed in its serenity, unyielding in its resolve, unshaken in its convictions. Your true brother, SHOGHI
July 5, 1938 |
The Bahá’í community of Columbus, Ohio, won the grand prize award for this float entered in the annual Fourth of July parade in Westerville, Ohio, a nearby goal community. Theme of the parade was “American Patriots.” The Bahá’í float, 22 feet long, had a revolving sign that read: “American patriots of all races and religions united to establish...” on one side, and “One Great Nation” on the other. “Unity Through Diversity” was printed on large banners on each side of the float. Gold symbols of the major religions were mounted on an arched white scroll at the front and rear, while four different-colored hands representing the world’s races rotated at the apex of the arched scrolls.
Lack of Funds Delays Wider Deepening Plan[edit]
Eileen Norman, secretary of the National Education Committee, which is in charge of the distribution of the Comprehensive Deepening Program, said in February that the program would not be available nationwide at Riḍván as previously expected owing to a lack of funds.
“We don’t have the budget to duplicate enough materials or train enough facilitators,” she said.
The program is still being offered in the key states of California, Illinois and New York. However, even in these areas, numerous communities are waiting for facilitators.
In California, close to 40 of the 10-week programs have been conducted, with 105 communities on a waiting list for deepening.
In Illinois, 18 communities are on the waiting list, as are 15 in New York.
One person who has completed the program said, “It initiated changes that I feel will be with me the rest of my life.”
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Editorial Fund: Investment in Future “To every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Sir Isaac Newton proposed this concept as one of his famed laws relating to action in the material world. It is a simple explanation of a complex physical relationship. The Bahá’í Writings teach us that there is also a relationship between the material world and the spiritual world, and that our material actions have spiritual consequences. This relationship, however, is not a simple “cause equals effect” statement. One could never say that one dollar contributed to the Fund produces one dollar’s worth of spiritual growth. Many other factors come into play, such as the degree of sacrifice involved and the level of detachment of the individual. Might we not assume that the spiritual consequences of our actions are of a greater magnitude and importance than the material consequences of our deeds? For example, when Napoleon III arrogantly rejected the Call of Bahá’u’lláh, the apparent material consequences of his action were a fall from power, a toppled empire. What of the spiritual consequences of such a denial? By failing to exercise leadership in spiritual affairs, he delayed the spread of the Message to the inhabitants of a large portion of the earth—thus postponing the establishment of the Kingdom of God. The magnitude of this failure can be measured by no earthly scale. Every individual believer also has the potential to help or harm the Cause of God—thus affecting the course of history on this planet. Bahá’u’lláh said if our spirits would become transported by His Word, we would “...throw into commotion the Greater World—how much more this small and petty one!” Therefore, a great responsibility rests upon each one of us to become enkindled by the Word of God, thereby igniting others and influencing the destiny of mankind. God’s will for the immediate future of mankind is described in the Five Year Plan. It contains the “marching orders,” so to speak, for God’s army in the United States given by our Divinely-inspired Commander—the Universal House of Justice. Accomplishing these tasks without a strong National Fund would be difficult, if not impossible. In simple terms, the National Fund goal represents the minimum amount of money the National Assembly needs to do its work. The immediate material consequences of falling short of the goal are clear. If the money is not there it cannot be spent, so cutbacks have to be made. Important programs must be delayed or indefinitely postponed. Services from the National Center will be reduced, jobs eliminated. These alone are serious steps, but what about the spiritual consequences? Who could begin to gauge the spiritual effect of such actions upon the future of mankind? The individual believer might be tempted to underestimate the value of his contribution to the National Fund. “It won’t go very far toward that enormous goal,” one could think, “and it means I will have that much less to spend on the things I really need.” However, what we really need is for the Kingdom of God to be established speedily upon this earth. Without that, we can never be entirely happy, no matter how comfortable we make our material surroundings. Our teaching work and our contributions to the Fund are investments in the future—for our children, for our spiritual growth, for all mankind. When done in the proper spirit, these spiritual actions will create a powerful reaction throughout all the worlds of God. |
Friends Must Pay Debts Before Giving to Cause[edit]
In a letter published on page 20 of Principles of Bahá’í Administration, Shoghi Effendi instructed that “our debts...should be considered as sacred and take precedence over any other thing (i.e., payment of debts comes before contributions to the Cause) for upon this principle does the foundation of our economic life rest.” Frequently, believers ask how this guidance should be applied to their lives.
In this society, unless you pay for everything on a strictly cash basis, it is virtually impossible to be entirely out of debt. We pay for our large purchases in installments, usually over a period of several years.
If every believer were to wait until his car, home, refrigerator, etc., were entirely paid for before contributing to the Fund, the Faith would rarely receive a contribution.
On the other hand, we know exactly how much we must pay on our debts each month. These are contractual obligations that we have promised to meet, and the Teachings indicate that we must always keep our promises. If we find that the size of our contribution to the Fund will place us in a position where we are unable to meet our regular monthly commitments to others, that contribution will have to be reduced.
As unfortunate as this sounds, it is necessary so that the Bahá’ís will always be known as the most trustworthy citizens in their community—people who would never go back on their word. This seems to be the spirit of the Guardian’s statement.
But no matter how heavily laden with debt, every believer can usually contribute something to the Fund—if only a penny—as a token of his love for Bahá’u’lláh.
Barbara McHugh of the Lexington, Kentucky, Bahá’í blood donor group watches as Kitty Preston of the Central Kentucky Blood Center prepares to draw a pint of blood from her arm. The Bahá’ís gave blood on January 2, making them the first donors of 1978, and a photo of the event appeared in the city’s afternoon newspaper, the Lexington Leader.
Our ‘Sacred Obligation’[edit]
‘Abdu’l-Bahá said, “Consider what marvelous changes would be effected if the beloved of the Merciful conducted themselves, both in their individual and collective capacities, in accordance with the counsels and exhortations which have streamed from the Pen of Glory.” Contributing to the Fund is one activity that affects us both individually and collectively.
For the individual, giving to the various Funds is a spiritual action—it is the cause of spiritual growth. Shoghi Effendi calls giving to the Fund “a sacred obligation,” as important as prayer and fasting.
Our contributions show our love for Bahá’u’lláh. When we are motivated to give as a token of our love for God, that action becomes a means of our spiritual progress.
THE GUARDIAN said, “It is the spirit that moves us that counts, not the act through which the spirit expresses itself...” This is made even more clear by the principle that it is the spirit behind the gift, not the amount given, that is important.
A contribution motivated by love of God is even more meritorious when it includes an element of sacrifice, for it demonstrates our greater attachment to God and detachment from the world. With this motivation and spirit, the service is complete; we no longer are attached to the gift that once belonged to us.
Individual contributions have another great importance. Shoghi Effendi has written that without the support of individuals, all our plans would be doomed to failure.
Individual contributions comprise the bedrock of the Bahá’í Institutions—Bahá’u’lláh’s gift to the world. We might say that the funds now belong to God and are held “in trust” by the institutions to do the work of God on earth. The money that once belonged to us has become a cell in a new body.
THE WORK it now performs is no longer conditioned by our own particular tastes or wants; it is used to fulfill God’s Great Plan, the unfoldment of the New World Order.
Local and National Assemblies have an obligation to support the various Funds, too. Their contributions represent a “collective” gift from the entire community, not merely a number of individual contributions transferred through the institution.
The Guardian makes this clear when he speaks of the significance of donations that come from both “individual believers and local Assemblies.”
We know that the act of giving promotes the spiritual growth of the individual, but our collective contributions have a strong spiritual impact as well. The Universal House of Justice illumined the spiritual significance of our collective efforts when it said, “...the unity of the friends in sacrifice draws upon them the confirmations of the Blessed Beauty.”
The spiritual progress of the individual largely depends upon the extent to which he supports materially the Divine Institutions of the Faith. In addition, these Divine Institutions will “best function and most powerfully exert their influences only if reared and maintained” by the individual believer.
Given this perspective, we can easily see that our individual and collective support of the Funds is, indeed, a sacred obligation.
The first Bahá’í children’s classes are being held in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, a community that has grown in the past 18 months from two to seven adults, a 250 per cent increase. The children’s classes, which started in September, are directed by Sue Christianson and Mary Rowe. Regular attendance has grown to approximately nine children, including children of two non-Bahá’ís. The Stevens Point Group would like to hear from other Bahá’í communities holding children’s classes to share ideas.
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“As the activities of the American Bahá’í community expand, and its world-wide prestige correspondingly increases, the institution of the National Fund, the bedrock on which all other institutions must necessarily rest and be established, acquires added importance, and should be increasingly supported by the entire body of the believers, both in their individual capacities, and through their collective efforts, whether organized as groups or as local Assemblies. The supply of funds, in support of the National Treasury, constitutes, at the present time, the life-blood of those nascent institutions which you are laboring to erect. Its importance cannot, surely, be over-estimated.” (Post-script in the Guardian’s handwriting from letter written on his behalf, dated July 29, 1935, to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada) |
Washington Launches Radio Ad Campaign[edit]
Bahá’ís in western Washington State, responding to the Universal House of Justice’s call for more extensive use of the mass media during the Five Year Plan, have responded with an ambitious radio advertising campaign designed to bring the Message of Bahá’u’lláh to hundreds of thousands of residents in that area.
The campaign, which was begun in mid-January with a month-long series of one-minute spot announcements on Seattle’s KVI-FM and KEUT-FM, is being coordinated by the Bahá’í Media Team, a team of the Western Washington District Teaching Committee.
The campaign is financed by contributions from individuals and Local Spiritual Assemblies. Roughly $1,800 was contributed before the program actually was launched.
THE MEDIA Team plans to continue airing the spot announcements in coming months at various stations throughout the area as long as funds are available to do so.
The groundwork for the campaign was laid last November when a letter of explanation was mailed by the Media Team to every Bahá’í individual, Group and Local Assembly in western Washington, along with a “pledge card” for monthly contributions.
The 60-second announcements, which focus on the persecutions suffered by Bahá’u’lláh and explain that He is the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, an independent world religion dedicated to the unity of mankind, include an invitation to write to the station for a free copy of Gloria Faizi’s book, The Bahá’í Faith: An Introduction.
An Interest Card is enclosed with the book and includes the name and address of the Local Spiritual Assembly that is nearest the recipient.
The Bahá’í announcements first were broadcast on radio stations that offered a number of 10-second public service announcements free.
Wilmette Gives Rosey Pool Award For Service to Five Non-Bahá’ís[edit]
Five non-Bahá’ís in the Chicago area each received the Rosey E. Pool Award for Service to Humanity from the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Wilmette at a ceremony Saturday, February 18, at the Bahá’í House of Worship. The presentation followed a dinner for the recipients at the national Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds.
The awards, given in conjunction with the observance of Black History Week in Wilmette, were presented to Dr. Elizabeth Hill, a trail-blazer in the field of medicine for women and blacks in the U.S.; John H. Johnson, president of Johnson Publishing Company and editor of numerous publications including Ebony magazine; Rayna Miller, executive director of the North Shore Interfaith Housing Council, which fights for open housing for blacks and other minorities; Renault Robinson, executive director of the Afro-American Patrolmen’s League, and Addie Wyatt, the first woman to be elected to the International Executive Board of the Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen of North America.
THE AWARD is named in honor of Rosey E. Pool, a Bahá’í who is perhaps best remembered as the teacher of Anne Frank, a young Jewish girl who died in a Nazi concentration camp in World War II and whose diary stands as an example of great love and courage in the face of death.
Dr. Pool was born in Holland in 1905, and after reading the words of a Negro spiritual as a young woman, began a life-long study of the songs and poetry written by oppressed peoples.
During World War II she was principal at a school attended by Jewish refugee children when the Gestapo came and told her she must wear the Star of David, by which the Nazis identified Jews. Soon she was taken to a concentration camp along with her family who later were put to death. There she taught the other women the Negro spirituals she loved so well.
The camp underground helped her to escape in a basket of laundry, and she spent the remaining 19 months of the war hidden in a barn. Of her wartime experience, she later said, “I learned that in any moment of our lives it is possible to have dignity.”
Dr. Pool published two anthologies of black poetry: “I Saw How Black I Was,” in 1958, and “Beyond the Blues,” in 1962.
SHE DIED in 1971 while preparing for publication a manuscript on the life of Anne Frank.
Close to 60 people, including three recipients of the award and their friends and relatives, enjoyed an informal dinner at the national Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds prior to the award ceremony at the House of Worship, where they were joined by an estimated 250 people.
A comment made at dinner by one of the recipients sums up the attitude of them all: “But I never sought to be a leader; I only sought to serve.”
The Bahá’í community in Augusta, Georgia, had a float in the annual Augusta–North Augusta Jaycee Christmas Parade on Sunday, December 11. Some 80,000 persons saw the parade whose grand marshal was U.S. Sen. Strom Thurmond of South Carolina. More than 90 floats and 30 marching bands participated.
Author-lecturer Gerard E. Sherry (left) receives the first “Ella Goodall Cooper Award for Service to Humanity” from Richard Groger, chairman of the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of San Francisco, at a ceremony November 12 marking the first anniversary of the dedication of the San Francisco Bahá’í Center.
Author-Activist Sherry Given Ella G. Cooper Award in S.F.[edit]
The San Francisco Bahá’í community marked the first anniversary of the dedication of its new Bahá’í Center the evening of November 12 by presenting the first “Ella Goodall Cooper Award for Service to Humanity” to author-lecturer-activist Gerard E. Sherry.
The award honors the memory of Mrs. Cooper, a stalwart member of the San Francisco Bahá’í community for many years, and her many contributions to the advancement and proclamation of the Faith.
Mr. Sherry, who is editor-manager of The Monitor, an author, lecturer, consultant and member of the Board of Trustees of the National Conference of Christians and Jews, was presented the award by Dr. Dorothy W. Nelson, treasurer of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the U.S. and dean of the University of Southern California Law Center.
Dr. Nelson also delivered the keynote address, speaking on “Human Rights Are God-Given Rights.”
In a moving acceptance speech, Mr. Sherry drew from his many years of experience in fostering better understanding and human relations among people everywhere.
Following the award ceremony, the nearly 300 Bahá’ís and their guests enjoyed a warm reception in the Ella Goodall Cooper Hall on the third floor of the Center.
‘Tablets’ Wall Map Is Now Available[edit]
The wall map that is sold with each clothbound edition of Tablets of the Divine Plan is now available separately for only $1.
The large (24-inch by 36-inch) map pinpoints the nearly 170 places mentioned by the Master in Tablets of the Divine Plan and features an index for their easy location.
It traces the routes of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s travels, and Martha Root’s journey to South America in 1921.
The map can be mounted on a wall in one’s home and is useful for teaching Bahá’í classes of all ages.
It may be ordered through your community librarian or from the Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Radio Tape Features Song Star Archie Bell[edit]
The Bahá’í National Information Office now has available for rental a 28-minute, 57-second taped radio interview with Archie Bell, a Bahá’í recording artist who heads the popular rhythm and blues group, Archie Bell and the Drells.
The tape combines comments by Archie Bell with music made popular by the group, and is specially oriented toward stations that have a predominantly black listening audience.
The rental fee of $5 for the tape includes shipping charges, insurance and three weeks’ unlimited usage. Checks should be made payable to the Bahá’í Services Fund.
Please send requests for the special Archie Bell tape along with your check to the Bahá’í National Information Office, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
California Opens Media Campaign[edit]
The Bahá’í Weeks held in California last autumn following the month of firesides (September 20–October 20) “created a teaching impetus and a response pattern we must sustain,” says Carol Allen, secretary of the California Regional Teaching Committee.
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The American Bahá’í Seeks Staff Writer Wanted: a versatile, enthusiastic and creative person with some newspaper or other writing experience to replace our valued coworker, Sharon Lewis, who is resigning at the end of July as a staff writer for The American Bahá’í to return to college. This is an ideal position for someone who wishes to refine and develop his or her reportorial and writing skills while learning other aspects of the newspaper and magazine business. Camera experience would be extremely helpful. Please send resumé and writing samples to the editor, The American Bahá’í, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091. |
With this in mind, the Bahá’ís of California launched a mass media campaign in mid-March, using the theme, “One Planet, One People...Please.”
Phase 1, to last until mid-April, involves the placement of radio and television spots about the Faith, and the placement of ads in statewide magazines. These ads are supported by firesides.
Phase 2—advertising on major radio networks—will begin when sufficient funds are available.
One hundred-twenty California communities—more than 60 percent of the Local Spiritual Assemblies, plus some groups—held Bahá’í Week observances.
From the firesides held during Bahá’í Weeks, at which 1,397 non-Bahá’ís were present, came 24 declarations and 125 others who signed declaration of interest cards.
Youth News
Youth Rallies Generate New Spirit of Excitement[edit]
Bahá’í youth across the nation met in rallies the weekend of February 11–12 to discuss issues such as teaching and how to be happy Bahá’ís.
The six major rallies were held at the University of California in Berkeley; the University of Chicago, Illinois; in Clemson, South Carolina; at Cornell University, in Ithaca, New York; at the Bahá’í Center in New York City; and at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Many Bahá’í Campus Clubs decided to sponsor rallies also: the University of Wisconsin at Stout; Michigan State University in Ann Arbor; the University of Toledo in Ohio; Colorado State University in Fort Collins; Northern Arizona State University; and the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana.
Both the University of Southern California in Los Angeles and the University of Chicago in Illinois have rallies planned for April.
Dr. David Clayborne, secretary of the National Youth Committee, attended the rally in Washington, D.C. He said the feeling among the youth was positive. “If we continue in this manner, the kind of excitement that was evident in the late 1960’s could develop,” he continued.
Dr. Clayborne felt that Local Spiritual Assemblies should strive to include youth in community projects. “Youth need the support from the adults in the community,” he said. “Often, they must rely on the adults for transportation and funding for projects.”
To help youth become aware of homefront pioneering opportunities, lists of colleges located in unopened communities or communities close to Assembly status were distributed.
First Campus Club Sets Homecoming[edit]
A homecoming for members and former members of the Bahá’í Campus Club at the University of Illinois will be held April 22–23 in conjunction with the 40th anniversary of the founding of the club, the first in the U.S.
Current club members hope that alumni will combine a trip to Champaign-Urbana for the homecoming with teaching in Illinois, one of the goal states.
For more information, write the Bahá’í Campus Club, P.O. Box 2791, Station A, Champaign, IL 61820, or telephone Roger Brode or Joe Keehner at 217-344-5774.
List of Campus Speakers Available[edit]
The National Bahá’í Youth Committee is happy to announce the availability of a list of college campus speakers. If your campus or community is interested in a specific speaker (i.e., located near your campus, lecturing on a specific topic such as “The Most Challenging Issue,” in his/her early to late 20’s, etc.) we may have a speaker already on our list who could visit you. Please make your request as specific as possible so that we can assist you. The address is National Bahá’í Youth Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
The National Bahá’í Youth Committee has compiled a list in three parts of colleges available to you as entering freshmen or as transfer students: 1. colleges in Group areas close to Assembly formation; 2. colleges in unopened counties and localities; and 3. colleges in goal Group areas with five or more Bahá’ís.
What a spiritual bounty to help form an Assembly while attending college, or opening a county or locality to the Faith while attending a college of your choice.
If you are interested in attending a college in one of the three groups we have listed, contact the Youth Committee, and we’ll be happy to send you the information requested. Please keep in mind that goals may change overnight, and that before making definite plans for college, you should contact the District Teaching Committee for the goal area you are interested in to ensure that you will be either helping to form an Assembly or opening a county or locality.
For information, contact the National Bahá’í Youth Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
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Dear National Bahá’í Youth Committee GUESS WHAT I DID TODAY?!!! |
Let Us Hear From You![edit]
The National Youth Committee would like to hear what every college club, every youth club, every individual Bahá’í youth is doing and planning. Only in this way can we have a realistic view of the activities of the youth in the United States. As an example, Gregory Olin of Trinidad, California, dropped us a postcard to say the following:
(1) Thursday, Jan. 19—Distributed posters, invitations, pamphlets and participated in street teaching in goal area (Garberville J.D., Northern District No. 2, Calif.)
(2) Saturday, Jan. 21—Held fireside in Garberville J.D., five Bahá’ís traveled in from other communities—3 seekers present.
(3) Leaving today (Tues., Jan. 25) to distribute posters, invitations, pamphlets; engaged in street teaching and said prayers in goal locality—(Rio Dell, Northern Calif. No. 2)
Everything you do for the promotion of the Cause is important.
Remember, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá promises us, “By the Lord of the Kingdom! If one arises to promote the Word of God with a pure heart, overflowing with the love of God and severed from the world, the Lord of Hosts will assist him with such a power as will penetrate the core of the existent beings.” Please share your efforts and successes with your fellow youth and the National Youth Committee.
Work/Study Program Planned[edit]
Plan now for an unforgettable experience—a work/study project at the National Center. Write to the National Bahá’í Youth Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois 60091 for details of the July 9–July 21 work/study project and/or the July 24–August 18 summer grounds and gardens work project.
You should plan to spend $7 a day for food. Housing and transportation will be provided during the work/study project only. You will also be expected to pay for travel to and from your local community and the National Center.
Those youth who wish to attend the work/study or gardens work projects, but who need financial assistance, should contact both their Local Spiritual Assembly and the National Bahá’í Youth Committee.
Wisconsin Clubs Host Own Rallies[edit]
A rally for Bahá’í youth in the Wisconsin area sponsored by the Bahá’í College Clubs at Eau Claire and Stout Universities was held February 18 at the University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie.
The Bahá’í Clubs were inspired to hold the rally after hearing of similar events taking place around the country that were sponsored by the National Youth Committee. Twenty Bahá’ís of all ages came from as far away as Minnesota and Ohio to take part in workshops covering such subjects as “how to be happy during tests and difficulties” and “the power of prayer and confidence.”
Auxiliary Board member Stephen Birkland also was present at the rally.
The rally generated excellent publicity for the Faith. On February 17, the Bahá’ís of Menomonie were given a half-hour interview on the local radio station. And owing to an oversight by the campus newspaper, which did not include an ad paid for by the Bahá’í Club at Wisconsin-Stout in the correct edition, the Bahá’ís were given free of charge a half-page ad for the disco dance they held following the rally.
Eight non-Bahá’ís attended the disco party that featured Red Grammer, a folk singer-guitarist from Wisconsin.
New Orleans Bahá’í Youth Club Halloween party.
New Orleans News: The Metropolitan New Orleans Bahá’í Youth Club has been busy with both social and educational activities, including a Halloween party and a deepening on “What it means to be a Bahá’í youth.”
University of California State-Fullerton holds Bahá’í Week: Firesides and speakers in college classes were the focus of the “Bahá’í Week” held November 7–11 at the Fullerton, California, campus. At least 500 non-Bahá’ís attended the classes during or after the week, and banners, flyers and newspapers proclaimed the Faith. The Bahá’í Forum plans to hold a Human Rights Night to honor those organizations on campus that uphold human rights.
Minnesota Campus Club proclaims Faith: “The United Nations and the Bahá’í Movement” was the theme of a public meeting held on the University of Minnesota campus in October. Invitations to faculty, posters and a public information advertisement announced the event.
[Page 6]
Community Profile
In Wichita Falls, Texas, Bahá’ís Pack Big Wallop[edit]
Can 26 people who are neither politicians nor entertainers have an impact on a city of 100,000? The Bahá’ís of Wichita Falls, Texas—17 adults, one youth and eight children—have proven the answer to be “yes.”
The northern Texas city is largely dependent on the oil and gas industry for its livelihood. Most residents are either Afro-American, Anglo-American or Mexican-American. A small percentage of residents are foreigners, sent by their governments for training at Sheppard Air Force Base.
Against this backdrop the Bahá’ís of Wichita Falls elected a Spiritual Assembly in 1975, the first in several years.
THE INFANT Assembly spent its first year building a foundation for the growth of the Faith in Wichita Falls. Assembly and community members organized weekly firesides and advertised them in local newspapers; listed two telephone numbers under “Bahá’í” in the directory; had three half-hour radio interviews and a five-minute television interview; were the subject of 19 newspaper articles about community activities, and placed five ads in the newspapers.
They donated Bahá’í books to two libraries, two hospitals and a nursing center. Because 1975 was International Women’s Year (IWY), and the Spring 1975 issue of World Order magazine was devoted to IWY, the Assembly sent copies to 10 local organizations.
These are only a few of the many activities undertaken by the brand-new Assembly.
The second year, from Riḍván 1976-77, was no less active. Bahá’í teachers from Wichita Falls helped open the nearby communities of Burnburkett and Vernon.
SIX BELIEVERS were enrolled: two through firesides, two through individual teaching and two through street teaching. Five of the six do not live in Wichita Falls, but the remaining person was elected to the Assembly at Riḍván 1977.
The Assembly placed “A Brief History of the Bahá’í Faith in Wichita Falls” in a time capsule to be opened in 2076. Members gave 150 copies of the Bicentennial issue of World Order magazine to public leaders and others.
They began a continuing project of going door-to-door to invite residents to public meetings, and have visited more than 7,000 homes to date.
From Riḍván 1977 to January 1978 the Bahá’ís of Wichita Falls had 72 column inches—including photographs—of free newspaper publicity, and 16 inches of paid advertising.
Four believers were enrolled in the same nine-month period. One is the husband of a Bahá’í; two declared through individual teaching and another through firesides.
IN OCTOBER 1977 a visiting Bahá’í couple was interviewed on two half-hour radio programs. One of the interviewers, who conducts a seminar on African studies at Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, asked the couple to be guest speakers there. The Bahá’ís spent 90 minutes at the seminar, mostly answering questions about the Faith.
Every Sunday the Bahá’ís of Wichita Falls, Texas, hold an adult deepening session and children’s classes. Bahá’ís from neighboring communities are welcome to attend, as are people of other faiths.
At the same university, there was a Bahá’í exhibit for the entire month of October.
Also during October there was a Bahá’í display at the five-day Wichita County Fair.
For four days in September and again in October there were Bahá’í booths at a local shopping mall, for World Peace Day and Universal Children’s Day respectively.
FIRESIDES were listed in the Wichita Falls Calendar of Events for October through December. The calendar was available through the Texas Tourist Bureau, the Chamber of Commerce and other places in the city.
During the special month of firesides (September 20–October 20) the Wichita Falls Bahá’ís held 65 firesides. One of the seekers at these firesides declared on the anniversary of the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh, November 12.
A Bahá’í recently was invited to speak about the Faith at a local church. Weekly teaching trips are being made to nearby Holliday.
Currently, several members of the community are building display stands for Bahá’í literature to be placed in as many places as permitted.
Convention Site Is Shifted; Reservations Due by May 1[edit]
Since the International Convention in Haifa to elect the Universal House of Justice will end on May 2, the Bahá’í National Convention, the last to be held during the Five Year Plan, is scheduled later than usual this year, May 25–28.
If you were not among the 171 delegates elected last October at District Conventions but would like to attend the National Convention, your request for a reservation must be received by May 1 by the National Convention Arrangements Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
The National Spiritual Assembly has especially invited as its guests Local Spiritual Assembly members from Indian Reservations and the goal states of California, New York and Illinois.
To accommodate the many other friends wishing to attend, the National Spiritual Assembly has moved the Convention site from Foundation Hall at the House of Worship to Weinstein Auditorium at the National College of Education in Evanston, a few blocks away, which has twice the seating capacity. When this has been filled, the friends will overflow into Foundation Hall where videotapes of the proceedings will be shown.
Visitors’ seats at the National Convention are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. You must have a confirmed reservation to attend.
As a part of their Bahá’í Week observance November 6–12, the Bahá’ís of Walnut Creek, California, presented the book, The Proclamation of Bahá’u’lláh, to James L. Hazard, the mayor of Walnut Creek. Shown making the presentation is Mrs. Fereshteh Noorami Miller, a member of the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Walnut Creek.
Allen Murray (left), administrator of the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute in Hemingway, South Carolina, and John McCoy of the Columbia Bahá’í community take time to man the Bahá’í booth at the South Carolina State Fair in Columbia.
S. C. Believers Active at Fair[edit]
The Bahá’ís of South Carolina culminated the Month of Firesides by participating October 14–22 in the annual South Carolina State Fair at Columbia.
The Fair drew together Bahá’ís from throughout the state in planning, designing, constructing and staffing the Bahá’í booth. The friends donated a total of more than 220 manhours in operating the booth.
Whereas other religious exhibits were assigned to one of the specialty buildings, designed to attract only certain segments of the Fair patrons, the Fair authorities placed the Bahá’í booth in the commercial building, which was of general interest to everyone, so that most of the 300,000-plus people who attended had an opportunity to view the exhibit.
More than 1,300 pamphlets were distributed, and 116 people requested postcards to return for further information.
Bahá’ís excelled elsewhere at the Fair. Sara Hatch of Columbia was awarded first prize in Professional Mixed Media (Fine Arts), one of four major awards at the Fair, and won a third place award for other art work.
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Flight Album Ready The new Bahá’í album, Flight, has arrived at the Bahá’í Publishing Trust warehouse and orders are being processed. |
Sandy Sigmon of Pelion, South Carolina, was given a first place award for her rabbit, Silverheels, and her rooster took a second place prize.
The project was seen as such a success that already the Spiritual Assembly of Columbia is making plans to participate in next year’s Fair.
Archives Training Institute Planned[edit]
The National Bahá’í Archives Committee is planning to hold its third Archives Training Institute August 19–23.
Those who are interested in attending the program should submit to the Archives Committee by June 1 a brief statement of their background and why they would like to attend the Institute.
The institute is designed to introduce believers interested in the archival field to the nature and functions of a Bahá’í Archives. Attendance will be limited to 10 persons.
Write to the National Bahá’í Archives Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Spring Institute Slated In Searcy, Arkansas[edit]
The Bahá’í Group of Searcy, Arkansas, is planning to host a Spring Institute May 19–21 at the Camp Wyldewood Retreat. The topic will be “Unity.”
For further information, please write to Wesley Chatman, 503 West Woodruff, Searcy, AK 72143, or phone 501-268-2888.
Classified Ads[edit]
IN THE SOUTH, homefront pioneers are crucially needed in these areas: Mobile County, Alabama; Albany and Fort Valley, Georgia; Natchitoches, Louisiana, and Wilson County, Haywood County and Jackson, in western Tennessee. For more information, contact the National Teaching Committee, 312-256-4400, ext. 232.
YOU MAY HAVE READ in the February issue of The American Bahá’í, Page 11, about the hard work done for the Faith in Los Banos, California. The community needs homefront pioneers to consolidate its gains. Contact Carol Allen, secretary of the California Regional Teaching Committee, 805-497-2759, for more information.
DETERMINED homefront pioneers are needed on the Papago Indian Reservation in southern Arizona, where both employment and housing are difficult to find. You may be able to help the seven believers there reach Assembly status. Contact Doris Kirkham, secretary of the Southern Arizona District Teaching Committee, 6320 North Mango Way, Tucson, AZ 85704, or phone 602-297-1014.
BAHÁ’ÍS NEEDED to replace those who will be leaving the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation area in Montana. It is possible to find work near the Reservation in Harlem, Montana. Contact Betty Bennett, secretary of the Montana District Teaching Committee, 2127 Garrison Avenue, Butte, MT 59701.
HOMEFRONT PIONEERS are urgently needed in eastern Oklahoma to work with the 11 Groups that have nine or more adult believers but have not yet formed Local Spiritual Assemblies. Contact Margaret Jamir, secretary of the Eastern Oklahoma District Teaching Committee, 1126 East 6th St., Okmulgee, OK 74447.
HOMEFRONT PIONEERS are needed in eastern Texas to assure the formation of Local Spiritual Assemblies among 21 Groups of nine or more believers. Contact Cynthia Summers, secretary of the Eastern Texas No. 1 District Teaching Committee, 652F Highway 303, Grand Prairie, TX 75050.
BAHÁ’Í WANTED! Woodford County, Illinois. Virgin country on the Illinois River. An agricultural area near industry. Good opportunity! Contact the Peoria, Illinois, Bahá’í community, 309-691-2855.
BAHÁ’Í DESPERATELY NEEDED! Henderson County, Illinois, on the beautiful Mississippi River. Recreational and agricultural area. Will assist in relocating. For information contact the Peoria, Illinois, Bahá’í community, 309-691-2855.
PIONEERS ARE NEEDED in the beautiful Pacific Northwest to save four jeopardized Assemblies and help establish nine more. Several of these Groups qualify for the Homefront Pioneer Deputization Fund. Also, the Oregon District Teaching Committee has earmarked funds to assist homefront pioneers who relocate to these communities. Interested persons should contact the Oregon District Teaching Committee Secretary, Judith Armatta, 274 North Elliott, Coquille, OR 97423, or phone 503-396-4365.
THE BAHÁ’Í MUSIC GROUP “Shíráz,” based in Virginia, is looking for a keyboard player/vocalist as a full-time member. A female player is preferred for vocal reasons. As of June, Shíráz will have six members, three male and three female. The group plays a variety of music and is moving toward rock (melodic, as opposed to acid) and country. The keyboard player/vocalist does not have to have any equipment; however, he or she should be interested in working with synthesizers, Moogs and string machines. Interested persons should contact Iris F. Harrell at 804-481-4011, or 804-428-4900.
HOMEFRONT PIONEERS needed at Morehead State University, Morehead, Kentucky, to keep alive a recently-formed Bahá’í club and build on the work already done. MSU has about 7,500 students, offers varied educational opportunities, has a low tuition for both in-state and out-of-state students, reasonable housing, and is in a lovely area that offers camping, hiking, etc. For more information, contact the Bahá’ís of Morehead, P.O. Box 532, Morehead, KY 40351.
ENJOY CLEAN AIR with friendly, family-oriented people, surrounded by golden wheat fields, rolling plains and buttes. The small rural town of New England, North Dakota, offers homefront pioneering opportunities for a dentist, chiropractor, or physician’s assistant. The town is presently looking for a physician’s assistant or medical adviser working under United Clinics of Hettinger, North Dakota. Additional training if needed at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. Job duties: minor suturing, casting, X-raying. Work in town’s clinic. Contact Group chairman Elizabeth Broussard, P.O. Box 237, New England, ND 58647, or phone 701-579-4741.
HOMEFRONT PIONEERS are needed in Miles City, Montana, a thriving small business and agricultural community of 10,000 in the southeastern part of the state. With six adults, we must maintain our Local Spiritual Assembly to continue children’s classes, traveling teaching and consolidation activities on the Northern Cheyenne and Crow Indian Reservations and elsewhere in southeastern Montana. Retire here or come to school at the community college (two-year programs in business, secretarial, nursing; free if over 65). Jobs: sales, nursing, lab aide, carpenters. Financial assistance available. Write to Stephen Hamann, secretary, Spiritual Assembly of Miles City, 9 South 6th St., Apt. 304, Miles City, MT 59301, or phone 406-232-0440.
CHILD’S WAY magazine is in need of talented illustration artists wishing to contribute to its exciting pages for children. The Child’s Way art director asks that you please send several Xerox copies of your work such that she might assign appropriate material to each artist. Please send responses to Rita Leydon, Box 127, Lahaska, PA 18931.
IS HOMEFRONT PIONEERING your personal goal for the Five Year Plan? Serve Bahá’u’lláh in picturesque eastern Oregon! A Bahá’í Group in Madras, Oregon, needs a seasoned Bahá’í or Bahá’í family to help raise it to Assembly status. Madras is an agricultural community of around 4,000 whose industries include forest products, boat manufacturing, produce processing and packing, and tourism. If interested, write to the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Eugene, Oregon, 2447 Kincaid, Eugene, OR 97405.
HOMEFRONT PIONEERS are needed in Central North Carolina in Guilford County to maintain the Local Spiritual Assembly; in Orange County, Chatham County; Durham County and High Point to assist the Bahá’í Groups there; and in the Lumberton area, where mass teaching occurred in the early 1970s. In Lumberton, Dr. Carolyn McCormick requests particularly a family practitioner who may wish to serve as a fellow doctor with her. Contact the Central North Carolina District Teaching Committee, 305 Blue Street, St. Pauls, NC 28384, or phone 919-523-8187.
PLYMOUTH, NORTH CAROLINA, needs a homefront pioneer to help bring the community to Assembly status. The major source of employment in Plymouth is the Weyerhaeuser Paper Company. For more information, contact the District Teaching Committee of Eastern North Carolina, c/o Mrs. Terri Hamrick, P.O. Box 142, Kinston, NC 28501.
THE OKMULGEE, Oklahoma, Spiritual Assembly invites a Bahá’í or Bahá’í couple of adult age to settle there and save an Assembly formed in the Five Year Plan that is in numerical jeopardy. Okmulgee, a city of 17,000, is the capital of the Creek Indian Nation and site of the Oklahoma State School of Technology, the largest residential vocational and business school in the country. For more details, write to Mrs. Jean Smith, secretary of the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Okmulgee, 620 South Morton, Okmulgee, OK 74447, or phone 918-756-8998.
THE NEZ PERCE tribe of Idaho is seeking qualified applicants for the Big Eddy Marina, Dworshak Reservoir, Ahsahka, Idaho. The successful candidate should have experience in marina management and restaurant organization. Other experience in small business management will be considered. Undergraduate degrees in business administration preferred. Salary negotiable depending on experience. On-site apartment provided. Apply by résumé to Enterprise Manager, Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho, P.O. Box 305, Lapwai, ID 83540, or call 208-843-2293.
HOMEFRONT PIONEERS needed to save a jeopardized Assembly in Cheektowaga, New York, a suburb of Buffalo. Take advantage of this opportunity to live in one of the goal states during the final exciting year of the Five Year Plan. There are several universities and community colleges in the area and a variety of employment opportunities. If you would like to join this active, dynamic community, please contact Mrs. Susan Rosman, 22A Woodrow Place, Cheektowaga, NY 14225.
BELCHERTOWN, Massachusetts’ second largest (in area), third fastest growing, and most exciting Bahá’í community, is looking for Bahá’ís to move in. Owing to illness and other reasons, its Assembly is in jeopardy. Belchertown is 10 miles from the University of Massachusetts campus, with free bus service to the university. Employment opportunities include Belchertown State School, various factories. Contact Rosanne Buzzell, P.O. Box 855, Belchertown, MA 01007, or phone 413-323-4326.
HOMEFRONT PIONEER family needed in Watertown, Massachusetts. Nice residential area with excellent transportation for the whole Boston area. The town has a large Armenian population. The Group must reach Assembly status by Riḍván! Traveling teachers also would be helpful. Contact the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Cambridge, P.O. Box 376, Cambridge, MA 02138.
WANTED: The Bahá’í musical teaching team, “Talisman,” needs a competent lead/rhythm guitarist with own equipment. Need not be a vocalist, but must desire to be a professional musician and be prepared to work hard. Phone 916-265-4773, or write Talisman, 161 N. Bloomfield Rd., Nevada City, CA 95959.
THE BLACKSBURG, VIRGINIA, Spiritual Assembly, formed in December, has lost one of its members and must replace him to maintain its Assembly status at Riḍván. Blacksburg is primarily a school community, the home of Virginia Polytechnic Institute (VPI). The university has excellent science and engineering departments, plus nationally recognized graduate programs in such fields as statistics. If you are interested in homefront pioneering in this lovely Virginia community, please contact the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Blacksburg, P.O. Box 708, Blacksburg, VA 24060.
TWELVE BAHÁ’Í YOUTH will serve as cabin counselors for active, inquisitive junior youth June 17–23 at Bosch Bahá’í School in Santa Cruz, California. This is an opportunity to guide and inspire young people and to share talents in music, crafts, arts, drama and sports. Counselors will undergo deepening and counselor training in the beautiful setting of the Bosch School. Half-scholarships are available on request. To apply, send name, address, phone number and recommendation from your Local Spiritual Assembly to Molly S. King, program director, Bosch Bahá’í School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, or phone 408-423-3387.
INTERNATIONAL TRAVELING TEACHERS: The National Spiritual Assembly of the Ivory Coast has arranged a teaching project from July 3–September 18. It would be helpful if believers who participate could speak some French. Contact the International Goals Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
YOUNG traveling teachers are needed to help the Bahá’ís of Rochester, Vermont, save their jeopardized Spiritual Assembly. Contact the secretary of the Local Spiritual Assembly, Carolyn Cruikshank, Box 24, Rochester, VT 05767.
TIME TO MAKE a change in your life? Consider moving to Cortez, Colorado, to diffuse the Message of Bahá’u’lláh to needy souls in the Four Corners area. Refresh your soul with the summer and winter recreational activities (skiing, fishing, hunting, mountain climbing). Excellent employment opportunities in the building trades and mineral exploration. Help to establish a Local Assembly on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation. Couple with teen-age children preferred to add diversity to the Bahá’í community. For more information, phone 303-565-7910.
Friends from seven New England Bahá’í College Clubs who gathered January 28–29 for a weekend of fun and study at the Green Acre Bahá’í School in Eliot, Maine.
Green Acre Host To College Clubs[edit]
To foster unity and fellowship among New England Bahá’í College Clubs, the Bahá’í Associations at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Massachusetts sponsored a weekend meeting at the Green Acre Bahá’í School in Eliot, Maine, January 28–29.
Other College Clubs represented included Harvard University, Leslie College, Northern Essex Community College, New York University and Northeastern University.
The 25 participants enjoyed the films, The Green Light Expedition and the western hemisphere premiere of The New Era School, and participated with Auxiliary Board member Mrs. Katherine McLaughlin in a discussion of “How to Be Happy.”
The weekend also included deepening, dawn prayers at Mt. Salvat, frequent visits to the room occupied by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during His visit to Green Acre in 1912, and many “exchanges” of snowballs.
One participant later commented: “Many times we lose sight of the fact that we Bahá’ís are also here to have fun with one another, in addition to our many administrative, teaching and academic demands. This we must show the world too.”
Bosch School Seeks Summer Program Help[edit]
The Bosch Bahá’í School at Santa Cruz, California, is accepting applications for employment in its summer program, June 17–September 1.
Positions available include assistant cook, lifeguard, recreation director, children’s teacher for ages two through six, dishwasher and maintenance helper.
Room and board are provided with a small stipend. Transportation costs to and from the school will be the responsibility of the employee.
Applicants should send a resumé and a letter of recommendation from their Local Spiritual Assembly to James Kelly, Bosch Bahá’í School, 500 Comstock Lane, Santa Cruz, CA 95060.
Healing Prayer Copy Available From Trust[edit]
One of the many ways to show a sick friend you care is to send him or her a “get well” card. And now you can enclose with that card a beautifully reproduced copy of the Healing Prayer.
It is printed in green on a buff-colored card, slightly larger than 3 inches by 5 inches, and illustrated with a tree and its reflection in a stream.
The cards may be purchased singly for 15 cents or in packets of 10 for $1. They are available through your community librarian or from the Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
[Page 8]
Teaching Briefs
Kinston, N.C., Thinks Positive, Forms Assembly[edit]
When the Group of five active believers in Kinston, North Carolina, was told to go ahead with its Local Spiritual Assembly formation procedures, the members contacted the inactive believers in their community and found four who were willing to serve on the Assembly. The Assembly was elected December 30, one of the 996 to form by the end of 1977. All nine members were present for the election of officers; other inactive believers in the community are being contacted...
North Carolina formed five Local Spiritual Assemblies in November and December, a figure surpassed only by California in the two-month period...
Mrs. Ethel Stephens, a member of the Bahá’í community of Cleveland, Ohio, has been named that city’s Senior of the Year for 1977. The award is given annually to those whose outstanding service, dedication and promotion of the city’s good image throughout the state is worthy of recognition.
Mrs. Stephens was cited for rendering a wide range of services to her peers despite her own physical ailments...
The Bahá’í children’s class in Springfield, Illinois, has been making Super 8 home movies on various Bahá’í themes. The first of these was on the Nineteen Day Feast; the second was a special presentation for United Nations Day about a baby who tries to join the UN.
Since the movies are silent, cassette tapes are made for the “soundtrack.” The children presently are taking a brief holiday from movie-making to work on books they are making about Bahá’í heroes. The children range in age from 2 to 8 years...
The Bahá’ís of Rock Hill, Missouri, observed United Nations Human Rights Day with a public meeting December 10 at which a Human Rights Award was presented to a prominent non-Bahá’í. Forty-three people attended, 22 of whom were not Bahá’ís.
The speakers were Mrs. L. Naomi McCord, a Bahá’í, and Larry Carp, vice chairman of the Human Rights Commission of Missouri. Nine hundred invitations were mailed to area residents...
The Bahá’í community of Bozeman, Montana, observed World Religion Day in January with its second annual Religious Film Festival at Montana State University. Films included “Martin the Cobbler,” a story by Leo Tolstoi; “The Green Light Expedition”; “Bush Negroes of Surinam,” and “Islam—the Prophet and the People.” Thirty people attended including 12 non-Bahá’ís.
For United Nations Day in October, the Bahá’í Club at Montana State University presented a musical film program. Included were Ferde Grofe’s “Grand Canyon Suite”; “Segovia,” about the world-renowned Spanish and classical guitarist; “The Ballad of Crowfoot,” the music and history of that Canadian Indian tribe; “Discovering American Folk Music”; “Les Ballets Africains,” and “Game of Peace,” showing the peace-keeping machinery at the United Nations and how it can work better...
Two Bahá’ís in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, were interviewed in January on a television program, “Expressions.” Three other Bahá’ís recently spoke to a comparative religion class at a local high school, and the community has received a request for a Bahá’í speaker at a children’s class in a Jewish synagogue in Oklahoma City...
Maxine Payton, a Bahá’í from Mt. Shasta, California, won a first-place ribbon at the recent Siskiyou County Artist Association’s annual art show for her charcoal portrait of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. This brought the name of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá before many residents of Siskiyou County, as every newspaper in the area carried the names of the winners and the titles of their works...
Bahá’ís in New York State are serving on two subcommittees of the Religious Affairs Committee for the XIII Winter Olympic Games to be held in 1980 at Lake Placid, New York. Bahá’ís were invited to send a representative to the meeting in September of the Religious Affairs Committee, and Len Gillman, secretary of the New York State Regional Teaching Committee, attended...
In Grand Prairie, Texas, a Bahá’í used her own savings to bid for a full-page newspaper ad that was being auctioned on a telethon.
The Bahá’í won the ad, which normally would cost around $560, for $120, then called BISMD (Bahá’í Information Services for Metropolitan Dallas) and offered to sell them the ad at cost.
BISMD accepted the offer, the Spiritual Assembly of Grand Prairie agreed to split the cost for the ad in its paper, and it was used to promote a public meeting for World Religion Day.
The event was quite successful, with around 75 Bahá’ís and their non-Bahá’í friends enjoying music by the Summers Brothers band and a talk by Nancy Dobbins of Fort Worth...
A youthful guest tries his hand at breaking a piñata during an International Potluck dinner on Saturday, October 22, in Mt. Airy, North Carolina. The event, sponsored annually by the Bahá’ís of Mt. Airy and Surry County, attracts many non-Bahá’ís and has received good newspaper and television publicity. The Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Mt. Airy was formed in December.
The Bahá’í children’s class (ages 7–12) in the Town of Hamburg, New York, observed the anniversary of the Birth of the Báb October 20 by serving the residents at a Catholic home for the aged in Hamburg.
About 30 residents of the home saw a puppet show with the UNICEF theme “Clean Water for the World’s Children.” The five flower puppets also sang Bahá’í songs. The children themselves made and served two birthday cakes, handed out cards with a Prayer of the Báb on them, and later celebrated the rest of their day off from school with a picnic and a hike at a local park...
The Bahá’ís of Pasco County, Florida, recently ran an ad in the local newspaper that simply said, “Bahá’í Faith,” and listed a phone number. Within two weeks, four people had called and three others were attending firesides. Out of six serious seekers, three have become Bahá’ís...
The Bahá’ís of Alexandria, Virginia, recently completed a series of three efforts in support of the United Nations.
On October 9, Universal Children’s Day was observed with a party attended by more than 60 children representing many backgrounds including Korean, Vietnamese, and American Indian.
For United Nations Day later in October, the Alexandria Bahá’í community held a 24-hour prayer day on behalf of world peace. Each member of the community volunteered to be responsible for one or more hours of personal prayer.
For UN Human Rights Day, December 10, an attractive exhibit was displayed in a glass-enclosed case at the Queen Street Library. Colorful posters and black-and-white pictures conveyed the message of the need for human rights as it applies to people around the world...
In Haywood County, Tennessee, Civil District No. 5, a new declarant, when asked how much he knew about the Bahá’í Faith, replied that he had been reading The American Bahá’í faithfully for the past seven years...
After months of poor attendance at weekly community firesides, the Bahá’ís of Ogden, Utah, began a new program entitled “An Evening With the Friends” in which a member of the community speaks for three to five minutes on some aspect of the Faith, then chairs an open discussion for about an hour. Visitors are welcome to participate or simply observe. Following the discussion, there is a social time with refreshments; books and pamphlets are on display, and a small lending library is available.
Preliminary results have been quite good, with excellent participation from the community. Seekers were present on five of the first nine evenings...
After two years of perseverance and prayers, the Bahá’ís of North Chicago, Illinois, have been allowed to participate in the National Prayer Breakfast at the Great Lakes Naval Air Station.
On February 7, the breakfast was opened with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s “Prayer for America.” Rear Admiral T.W. McNamara, USN, later said to the Bahá’ís, “Your opening prayer was most appropriate for the occasion and contributed significantly to the program’s success.”...
The Bahá’í community of Edmond, Oklahoma, recently mailed 11,326 brochures to residents of that city. Within the next five days, four phone calls and one written request for literature about the Faith were received...
The Bahá’ís of St. Charles, Illinois, responding to a request from the city’s chief of police to present the Bahá’í viewpoint on drug usage, were represented at a public meeting on drug abuse that was held on January 18. The aims and purposes of the Faith were presented along with relevant passages from the Writings concerning the harmful effects of drugs and the need to abstain from using them...
Thirty-six guests including 10 non-Bahá’ís attended a public observance December 10 of United Nations Human Rights Day at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
The guest speaker for the observance, sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Grand Rapids, was Will C. van den Hoonard,
The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Blacksburg, Virginia, was formed December 11, 1977. Members are (standing, left to right) Tracy Miller, treasurer; Melinda Cecil, corresponding secretary; Mehran Lotfi, vice chairman; Pamela Vuiya; Behrouz Tavangar, librarian. (Seated, left to right) Saeed Hedayati, chairman; Saeed Nekueey; Behjat Mansour, recording secretary; Bill Cecil.
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Bahá’ís perform at a coffeehouse sponsored by the Bahá’ís of Vernon, Connecticut, in January. The coffeehouse was so successful, with more than 80
people attending, about half of whom were not Bahá’ís, that the Vernon community has decided to make it a regular bi-monthly event.
alternate representative of the Bahá’í International Community to the United Nations.
Newspaper, radio and television coverage of the event was excellent, with several articles about UN Human Rights Day and its relationship to the Faith appearing in the Grand Rapids paper both before and after the meeting...
The Bahá’ís of San Angelo, Texas, observed World Religion Day with a public meeting January 15 attended by six Bahá’ís and five seekers. The meeting was publicized through an article in the paper, announcements on six radio stations (one of them Spanish-speaking) and one television station, posters and phone calls...
The 1978 session of the Vermont legislature, both Senate and House, was opened with a Bahá’í prayer read by a member of the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Rutland. The “Prayer for America” by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was read in the House, and the Master’s “Prayer for the Northeastern States” in the Senate...
A Bahá’í in Wilmette, Illinois, decided to introduce the Faith to friends of her 13-year-old daughter by inviting them to a dinner and fireside at her home.
Parents were called and advised that they were being asked for permission to allow their daughter to attend a dinner and to hear about the Bahá’í Faith, with the purpose being to let the girl’s friends know of the obligations and responsibilities the Faith placed on her so they would be supportive of her when she was placed in a position of having to say “no” because of her beliefs.
Each of the parents responded favorably, some enthusiastically. Of the seven girls who were invited, four were able to attend. After supper some members of the community introduced the girls to the Faith, and they then shared their beliefs. The discussion flowed smoothly, and when it came time to leave, none of the girls wished to go...
Four Bahá’ís from Birmingham, Alabama, were interviewed Sunday, February 26, at 5:30 p.m. on WBRC-TV in Birmingham, a station whose frequency is such that it covers the whole of northern Alabama...
The Bahá’í community of Galveston, Texas, observed World Religion Day in January with a proclamation for which more than 100 invitations were sent to local churches and organizations. The mayor of Galveston, who proclaimed it World Religion Day, was presented a copy of Tokens of Bahá’u’lláh. Two articles appeared in the local newspaper...
Mayor Scott Miller and county Judge Matt Blackard of Versailles, Kentucky, were guests at a breakfast February 18 sponsored by the Lexington, Kentucky, Bahá’í community.
Bill Davis, a Bahá’í from Frankfort who is an attorney working for the Kentucky Supreme Court, gave a brief history and description of the Faith which was followed by an informal discussion.
The Bahá’ís presented a book to each of their guests and were welcomed by each of them to hold public meetings to teach the Faith in Lexington’s goal city of Versailles. Several Bahá’í books have been submitted to the Woodford County library for approval and placement...
Teaching Briefs
Some people like to think things over, the Hillsboro County, Florida, Spiritual Assembly has found. In January, a year after the Local Assembly sponsored the Hawaiian teleseries on the Bahá’í Faith, two people phoned for more information as a direct result of the programs...
The five-member Bahá’í Group in Nantucket, Massachusetts, an island 30 miles off the New England coast, has placed excerpts from the Writings with the local television station to appear regularly on the screen. The Group reports that it is holding a weekly two-hour deepening session and is observing all the Holy Days...
As a part of their observance of World Religion Day, January 15, the Bahá’ís of Lake Township, Ohio, presented copies of Bahá’í World Faith and God Loves Laughter to the public library, and copies of The Proclamation of Bahá’u’lláh to each of the Township’s three trustees...
Bahá’ís in Berea, Kentucky, have challenged other Bahá’í communities in the state in a contest to see who holds the most firesides each month. The winning community is determined by who has the highest percentage of firesides per number of believers...
In Eugene, Oregon, Bahá’ís observed Universal Children’s Day in October with an international children’s costume party. Participants included 40 children and adults including three non-Bahá’ís. The party featured music, games, a parade of homemade costumes from many lands, UNICEF films, and cookies from around the world...
World Religion Day was observed January 15 in Thousand Oaks, California, with a Fair that had as its focal point a Children’s Art Show on the theme of “God’s Gifts to All People.”
Bahá’ís from six neighboring communities participated in the show. One hundred twenty-five people attended the Fair, 30 of whom were non-Bahá’ís. Thirty pieces of art were displayed.
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What are you planning to do this summer to serve the Faith? Watch this box for opportunities in the next issue of The American Bahá’í! |
Entertainment was provided by the New World Singers and the Dick Primont Ensemble. Distribution of applications resulted in four inquiries by phone, and a class of 24 students at a private grade school devoted a class period to discussion of the art show theme.
Youth Needed at 3 Schools With High Indian Enrollment[edit]
The National Bahá’í Youth Committee is looking for students who are interested in attending one of the three colleges with the highest Native American enrollment in the U.S. We wish to form college clubs on these three campuses as a part of achieving the goals of the Two Year Youth Program.
Of the five colleges with the highest Native American enrollment, there presently are Bahá’í college clubs at only two: Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, and Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff. The remaining three schools are Navajo Community College, Tsaile, Arizona; Northeastern Oklahoma State University, Tahlequah, and Haskell Indian Junior College, Lawrence, Kansas.
We call upon the entire Bahá’í youth community, especially college students, to arise and pioneer to open the three other institutions to the Faith. The National Youth Committee and National Teaching Committee stand ready to assist you.
Listed below are pertinent details about the three remaining schools with the highest Native American enrollment. The information was taken from Lovejoy’s College Guide, 1976 edition:
Navajo Community College—co-ed; controlled by Navajo Tribe; terminal programs offered in auto mechanics, commercial art, secretarial studies, welding; 13th and 14th grade liberal arts curricula; professional nursing program (registered); intramural athletic program; new students must be at least 17 years of age or must have been out of high school at least one semester, or have a high school diploma or GED certificate; some programs (precollege, for example) do not require a high school diploma or GED certificate; English language facility not required — fluent Navajo language may be substituted; 300 students, men and women evenly divided; tuition $20/credit hour to $200 maximum; $30 activity fee, room fee $120, meals $200 for seven-day ticket, all figures per semester; extensive financial aid available for Indian students and others; liberal arts Associate of Arts degree conferred.
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Warning
Bahá’ís are advised not to lend money or offer hospitality to , formerly of Casper, Wyoming, whose administrative rights of membership in the Bahá’í community have been removed for failure to behave responsibly as a member of the Bahá’í community and for disobedience to Bahá’í institutions. ’s whereabouts are unknown. |
Northeastern Oklahoma State University—small town rural environment, northeast of Muskogee; co-ed, state-controlled institution; founded 1846 by Cherokee Indian Nation as Nation Female Seminary; state purchased college in 1909 for teacher training and name changed to Northeastern State Normal; name changed in 1920 to Northeastern State Teachers College; present name adopted 1975; 5,331 enrollment, 2,691 men, 2,640 women; library, 184,356 volumes; regional accreditation; North Central Association. Tuition for state residents $10.50 per semester hour, for non-residents $27 per semester hour; with additional fees for applied music; room and board cost is $1,040 per year for two semesters. Principal objective is to provide diversified degree programs in education, liberal arts, business, science and technology; degrees offered are B.A., B.S., Master of Business Administration, Master of Education; Education Administrators Certification Programs and undergraduate certificate programs.
Haskell Indian Junior College—co-ed; 1,316 students.
Declaration Card Use Should Be Discontinued[edit]
The National Spiritual Assembly wishes to remind the friends that use of the declaration cards should be discontinued, as they have been replaced by the new enrollment cards.
The enrollment cards are for use by Local Spiritual Assemblies and District Teaching Committees and authorized representatives of these two bodies. The National Spiritual Assembly also wishes to reemphasize that Bahá’í Membership Data Reports no longer are needed when the enrollment card is used.
Mayor Arthur Welling of Wilton Manors, Florida, signs a proclamation designating January 15 World Religion Day in the city as Schubert Jonas of the Wilton Manors Bahá’í community looks on. It marks the seventh consecutive year that the mayor of Wilton Manors has signed a World Religion Day proclamation. The photo appeared on the front page of the Broward East Tribune.
[Page 10]
Careers for Youth
Community Has Many Job-Finding Resources[edit]
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the fourth in a series of articles on careers for Bahá’í youth by Dorothy M. Há’í of Tempe, Arizona.)
Career planning, to be effective, should be a long continuous process. The articles in this series are designed to give you tools to help in your planning. But the most important ingredient is you and your motivation for learning about your skills and about the diverse and various types of jobs and careers.
The following article discusses the resources available in your community, so that you may continue your search on your own. For although these articles may contain useful information, you need far more than we can give in these few paragraphs.
To select the proper career and obtain a satisfying job, decisions must be made on what you want to do, and where and for whom it is to be done.
Information such as this can be gathered by carefully researching careers and the job market. Numerous materials are available to help you in the search:
1. Occupational Outlook Handbook, U.S. Department of Labor. Available at your public library. The handbook lists more than 800 occupations, describing (a) the nature of the work; (b) places of employment; (c) training, other qualifications and advancement; (d) employment outlook; (e) earnings and working conditions. It is a gold mine of information on careers, and even helps match one’s personality characteristics with characteristics of particular jobs.
2. Occupational Outlook Quarterly, U.S. Department of Labor. Issued four times a year, and available at public libraries. Contains up-to-date information on jobs and employment trends.
3. Federal Career Directory. A Guide for College Students, U.S. Civil Service. Supplies information about federal careers and agencies that employ college graduates.
4. State Service Job Opportunities. Many states offer employment information through their vocational or employment services. They may offer pamphlets or booklets on various jobs, information on job openings, and perhaps even vocational testing.
5. A number of excellent books on career planning are available:
- What Color Is Your Parachute? A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career Changers, Richard N. Bolles, Ten Speed Press, 1972. An in-depth approach to assessing your skills and job interests and finding or creating the ideal job.
- Who’s Hiring Who, Richard Lathrop, Ten Speed Press, 1977. Describes techniques in career planning and job-hunting.
- The Paraprofessionals. Lists the many paraprofessional careers—what they are and how to get into them.
6. Professional journals and magazines. These often list job openings and can give one an idea of what is presently needed. For instance, the American Journal of Public Health has 20–40 jobs listed each month for physicians, nurses, dietitians, health administrators, health educators, etc. Each profession has its own journal of this type.
7. Newspapers. The Wall Street Journal, New York Times and local newspapers are a good source of information on what is available now, which can help you to plan for the future.
This is only a sample of the resources available to you. Visit your library, talk to guidance counselors—get advice and information from many people. If you want a really rewarding career, you must be willing to put some effort into planning for it. And this means planning for one very important avenue of service to the Cause of God.
American Youth Are Present At 2 Canadian Conferences[edit]
American youth attended two of four regional youth conferences in December sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada.
Eight Americans were present at the conference in Ontario, and four at the Pacific conference on Vancouver Island where 70 youth were in attendance.
Jeff Machon, one of the U.S. youth at the Pacific conference, reports that the speakers there were Dr. Glen Eyford, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada, and Auxiliary Board members Don Rogers and Reggie Dunkirk.
Another of the U.S. youth, Meredith Gadd, told the conference of her recent teaching experiences in India and shared architectural renderings of the House of Worship soon to be built there.
In response, the youth encouraged their universal participation in contributing to the construction of the Mother Temple of India.
Chouleur Essay Spices ‘World Order’ Fare[edit]
Jacques Chouleur’s searching essay, “The Bahá’í Faith: World Religion of the Future?” is among the many interesting articles and features in the Fall 1977 issue of World Order magazine.
Also in the Fall issue are articles by E. Christian Filstrup (“The Alphabet of Things in Walter Hatke’s Art”) and the late Horace Holley (“The Social Principle”), a review by Howard B. Garey of Marzieh Gail’s Dawn Over Mt. Hira and Other Essays, and poems by Wanda J. Reid.
The U.S. subscription price for World Order is $6 for one year, $11 for two years. Subscriptions should be sent to World Order magazine, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Shown here are Bahá’ís and their friends who gathered January 10 at the home of Mrs. Hattie Chamberlain (left) in Three Rivers, Massachusetts, for the first in a series of twice-monthly firesides sponsored by the Bahá’ís of Brimfield, Palmer and Monson, with help from the Bahá’í community of Belchertown. The first fireside, at which William Gibson of Belchertown spoke on “The Oneness of Mankind,” attracted 10 seekers from five nearby towns. The second fireside, on January 24, was attended by six seekers and seven Bahá’ís who heard Auxiliary Board member Nathan Rutstein of Amherst speak on “The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh.”
Three Long-Time Workers At National Center Ascend[edit]
In the past several months, three long-time Bahá’ís who served faithfully for a number of years at the Bahá’í National Center passed away.
Gladyce Linfoot, a Bahá’í since the 1920’s, died October 1 in Wilmette at the age of 73. She first learned of the Faith when she attended a meeting in California at which Leroy Ioas was the speaker.
She arrived in Wilmette in the early 1960’s, from California, and worked in the National Center’s records room. She kept house for her sister, Charlotte, allowing Charlotte to devote more time to her duties as assistant secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly.
L. Wyatt Cooper, familiar with the Faith since 1908 when he attended children’s classes at the home of the Hand of the Cause Corinne True, died in November in Wilmette after 18 years of service as the chief gardener at the House of Worship.
MR. COOPER was asked by the National Spiritual Assembly in March 1953 to help prepare the grounds of the House of Worship for its dedication on May 1 of that year. He stayed until his retirement in December 1971.
Mr. Cooper was recognized in Wilmette as a “master gardener,” and stories of the beauty of the gardens were carried around the world by international visitors to the House of Worship.
On January 3, Myrtle Wendler, who had served at the National Center since 1948 and retired only recently, died in Evanston, Illinois.
She became a Bahá’í in 1936, at the age of 30, and served as secretary of the Spiritual Assembly of Chicago for the next 30 years.
She was on the first Council for the Bahá’í Home and served on that body for many years.
After her husband’s death in 1948, she joined the National Center staff and served the National Spiritual Assembly for the rest of her life.
In Memoriam[edit]
- Jacob C. Bonaparte
- Bamberg, South Carolina
- Unknown
- Miss Littie Briscoe
- Mansfield, Texas
- 1976
- Monroe Brooks
- Hephzibah, Georgia
- June 1977
- Winston Campbell
- Patrick, South Carolina
- Unknown
- Harold A. Chamberlin
- Three Rivers, Massachusetts
- December 16, 1977
- Adrian DeBruin
- Kenosha, Wisconsin
- January 6, 1978
- Daniel Delorme
- Glasgow, Montana
- September 1977
- Mrs. Helen A. Drymon
- Lompoc, California
- April 11, 1976
- John M. Dutton
- Daytona Beach, Florida
- January 13, 1978
- Miss Stella Fletcher
- Michigan City, Indiana
- January 4, 1977
- Mrs. Laura Gross
- Billings, Montana
- October 16, 1977
- Miss Gusta Jennis
- Unknown
- Unknown
- David C. Jevons
- Sandy, Oregon
- February 17, 1977
- Miss Orpha Johnson
- Chicago, Illinois
- December 19, 1977
- Mrs. Annie L. Jones
- Eatonton, Georgia
- November 1977
- Mrs. Haddie Jones
- Mansfield, Texas
- 1977
- Mrs. Jennie Jones
- Bamberg, South Carolina
- January 5, 1978
- Miss Rissa Korsun
- New York, New York
- December 23, 1977
- Harry E. Landers
- Davenport, Iowa
- December 8, 1977
- F.S. McQueen
- Patrick, South Carolina
- Unknown
- Dr. Odessa Myers
- Memphis, Tennessee
- January 8, 1978
- Mrs. Zoe Meyer
- Morton, Illinois
- May 2, 1977
- Mrs. Alfair Mines
- Denmark, South Carolina
- January 5, 1978
- Mrs. Deborah Nelson
- Lincoln, Nebraska
- October 8, 1977
- Mrs. Vivienne Nixon
- Port Perry, Ontario, Canada
- November 4, 1977
- Mrs. Amanda Pickens
- Prattville, Alabama
- Unknown
- Mrs. Elvary Redes
- Bay City, Texas
- Unknown
- George Robinson
- Bamberg, South Carolina
- Unknown
- Phillip Sanchez
- Jamul, California
- October 1977
- Sam Smith
- Muskogee, Oklahoma
- Unknown
- Sayfullah Sobhani
- Van Nuys, California
- December 1, 1977
- Roscoe C. Springston
- Stamford, Connecticut
- Unknown
- Mrs. Joann Sudhop
- South Bend, Indiana
- Unknown
- Clarence Waring
- Adams Run, South Carolina
- Unknown
- Thomas West
- Sparks, Nevada
- March 30, 1977
- Mrs. Grace Whiteman
- Lame Deer, Montana
- 1977
- Mrs. Fannie Wright
- Blythe, Georgia
- Unknown
- Miss Judith A. Wright
- Hephzibah, Georgia
- Unknown
- Monroe Wright
- Blythe, Georgia
- Unknown
In Evansville, Indiana, Patience Reaps Reward[edit]
O Son of Man! For everything there is a sign. The sign of love is fortitude under My decree and patience under My trials.—Bahá’u’lláh
In any recipe for teaching the Bahá’í Faith to an apathetic and uncomprehending world, patience is a necessary ingredient.
While patience is most often its own reward, it’s always pleasant to be able to report some more tangible results.
In Evansville, Indiana, Mrs. Margaret McConaughy patiently taught the Faith for more than 27 years, praying all the while that someday a Local Spiritual Assembly would be formed there.
On June 8, 1977, her patience was amply rewarded: the first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Evansville was formed, and the then 93-year-old Mrs. McConaughy, still an active teacher who spreads the Message at every opportunity, was one of its members.
THIS WAS the joyous occasion for which Mrs. McConaughy had worked and prayed for so many years. Born in Evansville on January 31, 1884, she had moved with her family to Seattle, Washington, in 1911.
Always seeking spiritual truth, she had attended several churches and read widely. In 1923, she attended a lecture on numerology by Orcella Rexford. Afterward, Miss Rexford gave the Message of Bahá’u’lláh.
Mrs. McConaughy immediately sensed that her search was over, and it wasn’t long before she had become a Bahá’í.
In 1950, after several years as a member of the Spiritual Assembly of Seattle, Mrs. McConaughy returned to Evansville, expecting to find many eager listeners. Instead, she learned the meaning of patience.
For more than a quarter of a century she tirelessly taught the Faith, contacting doctors, lawyers, clergymen, community leaders and others. Bahá’ís moved in and out of the area during that time, but there were never enough to form an Assembly.
FINALLY, in 1975, things began to happen. Some Bahá’ís had come to Evansville to stay, two people declared, and more moved in. By May 1977 there were 10 believers in Evansville. The following month, its first Assembly finally was formed.
The Bahá’ís in Evansville realize the significant part Mrs. McConaughy has played in the growth of the Faith there and appreciate her many years of devoted service to the Cause. As for Mrs. McConaughy herself, she continues doing what she has always done: teaching the Faith with vigor and enthusiasm.
In the Tablets of the Divine Plan, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá accurately sums up the Evansville experience in these words:
“One pearl is better than a thousand wildernesses of sand, especially this pearl of great price, which is endowed with divine blessing. Ere long thousands of other pearls will be born from it. When that pearl associates and becomes the intimate of the pebbles, they also change into pearls.”
The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Evansville, Indiana, was formed June 8, 1977, with then 93-year-old Mrs. Margaret McConaughy (second from left, front row) as one of its members. For 27 years Mrs. McConaughy had taught the Faith in Evansville, praying all the while that someday an Assembly would be formed there. Its other members are (front row, left to right) Kristina Brown, Pat Lawton, Terry Bunton. (Back row, left to right) Jay Brown, Ken Bunton, Becky Anderson, Linda Shaw, Siggle Shaw.
‘Pattern for Future Society’ Redesigned[edit]
The Bahá’í Publishing Trust has announced that the pamphlet, A Pattern for Future Society, has been redesigned.
The pamphlet’s introduction, which explains that the cornerstone of the Faith is world unity, is followed by a statement by Shoghi Effendi taken from The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh.
The Guardian describes characteristics of the future world society, such as the formation of a commonwealth of nations; the establishment of uniform standards of weights, measures and currency; and the abolition of national rivalries, religious strife and economic barriers.
The pamphlet fits easily into a legal-size envelope. It may be ordered through your community librarian or the Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091, in quantities of 10 for $1, 25 for $2, or 100 for $7.
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It’s Here!
The Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh: Adrianople 1863–1868 by Adib Taherzadeh Just published in the United States—the second book in a monumental four-volume survey of the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh. Volume I, published in 1974, covered Bahá’u’lláh’s years of exile in Baghdad, 1853–1863. Volume 2 covers the years of Bahá’u’lláh’s exile in Constantinople and Adrianople, 1863–1868. In the new book, the author describes the contents of a great number of Tablets revealed by Bahá’u’lláh in that fate-laden five-year period. Among the Tablets he describes are many which Bahá’ís in the West know little about—for example, the Suríh of Companions and the Tablet of Bahá—as well as more familiar ones such as the Tablet of Aḥmad and the Tablets to the Kings. Throughout the book Mr. Taherzadeh provides fascinating background material by telling of events in the life of Bahá’u’lláh and in the lives of some of His companions whom He addressed or who were influenced by His words. These accounts are enhanced by extracts from memoirs of the time and by photographs of many of the persons described. Published by George Ronald. 421 pp., appendices, bibliography, references, index. Note: The book’s Foreword suggests that, “to help provide continuity and further depth,” Volume 1 be read prior to Volume 2.
To order: Community Librarians if possible! Personal orders: enclose full payment plus $.75 handling charge for orders under $5.00. Bahá’í Publishing Trust 415 LINDEN • WILMETTE, ILLINOIS • 312/251-1654 |
Mrs. Rouhieh McComb (left), who was photographed with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during the Master’s visit to Chicago in 1912, and Knight of Bahá’u’lláh Mrs. Emma Rice are shown with some of the children who attended the 1977 Winter School at the Green Acre Bahá’í School in Eliot, Maine.
Green Acre Winter Sessions Draw More Than 80 Friends[edit]
More than 80 people, some of whom came from as far away as Virginia and Canada, attended the 1977 Winter School sessions in December and January at the Green Acre Bahá’í School in Eliot, Maine.
The school was divided into three phases. In the first, creativity was tested in a workshop, “God Loveth Those Who Work in Groups”, conducted by Dr. Ann Schoonmaker.
Participants learned how to meld a group of strangers into a unified Bahá’í mini-community, how to communicate with one another, and how to create something.
THE FINAL “exam” was to make a Bahá’í exhibit from whatever materials were on hand, an exhibit that would appeal to children, youth and adults. It was learned that when creativity is used in the service of the Cause, astonishing things can be accomplished.
From December 26–30, Mrs. Marian Lippitt presented a course on “Spiritual Psychology” in which she and her students explored what the Bahá’í Writings teach us about reality, our spiritual nature, our purpose, and our relation to God through His Manifestations.
A Family Life Institute was held December 31–January 1 covering a variety of topics relating to the Bahá’í family: establishing children’s classes; traveling teaching as a family; the Most Challenging Issue, and “Will our children be Bahá’ís?”
Many friends from nearby communities came for the evening programs that included a talk on the World Center by Auxiliary Board member Katherine McLaughlin and her husband, who recently returned from Haifa; Greg Dahl’s slides of Bahá’ís around the world; a talk by Robert Henderson of the National Teaching Committee on teaching, a concert, slides of Iran, and a Unity Feast.
Another highlight of the school was a slide presentation and talk by Mrs. Rouhieh McComb.
Mrs. McComb shared slides of herself with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, taken by her sister during the Master’s visit to America in 1912. She related many stories about her memories of His visit and her conversations with Him.
NOTICE
Because this year’s National Convention coincides with the Memorial Day weekend, it is imperative that anyone planning to attend make transportation and housing arrangements immediately. A list of housing, if you have not received one, is available from the National Convention Arrangements Committee, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.
Teaching Committee Focuses On Jeopardized Assemblies[edit]
“It is known and clear that today the unseen Divine assistance en-compasseth those who deliver the Message.” — ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá’í World Faith, p. 385
The Divine assistance alluded to by the Master was uppermost in the minds and hearts of National Spiritual Assembly members when they decided early in February to set aside a part of each of their meetings during these last critical months of the Five Year Plan to engage actively in teaching the Cause, and instructed every national committee under their jurisdiction to do likewise.
The teaching was begun in Georgia the weekend of February 17–19 when each member of the National Assembly was present at one of nine firesides held in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Within a week 18 declarations were reported as a result of the effort.
The National Teaching Committee set the National Assembly’s directive in motion at its February meeting in Massachusetts, with members teaching at several firesides. Earlier in the month the committee had addressed a letter to every District and Regional Teaching Committee, requesting that they hold future meetings in various parts of their district or region and set aside some time to assist the teaching work among goal Groups and localities.
BY EARLY March reports had begun to reach the National Teaching Committee office of the success of some of these teaching efforts.
The District Teaching Committee of southern Idaho, for example, decided at its meeting February 24 to travel some 300 miles to visit the goal areas of Nampa and Ada County in the western part of the state.
Committee members drove until late that night to reach Nampa; after a brief rest, they met the following day with the friends in Nampa and Ada County, were present at a fireside, then began the arduous 300-mile trip back to Idaho Falls, in the southeastern part of the state, arriving after midnight Saturday.
On Sunday, the committee members attended an Ayyám-i-Há party in nearby Firth, and it was there that the Divine assistance was manifested. The party produced three declarations, two of which opened the goal town of Shelley. The third declarant is the husband of a Bahá’í in Idaho Falls and has been attending Bahá’í gatherings for some time.
The District Teaching Committee secretary phoned the National Teaching Committee office to say that they couldn’t have asked for a clearer confirmation of their teaching effort, and to offer assurances that it will continue at future meetings.
With Riḍván approaching, the National Teaching Committee is praying that similar sacrificial efforts will help save many of the Local Spiritual Assemblies that are in jeopardy. As of February 9, the number of numerically jeopardized Assemblies stood at 109.
The committee has sent a list of these jeopardized Assemblies to every Local Spiritual Assembly in the continental United States along with a request for their assistance in strengthening Assemblies whose membership has fallen below nine so that they might be able to re-form at Riḍván.
A letter also has been sent to every numerically jeopardized Assembly reminding them of the National Spiritual Assembly’s advice “to suspend all major projects which are not directly related to teaching.”
After assuring the jeopardized Assemblies that the friends in their area have been called upon “to give you every possible support,” the National Teaching Committee adds:
“Continuous contact with your District and National Teaching Committees apprising us of your progress is crucial at this time, as it will enable us to pursue, together, a prudent course of action suited to your specific needs.”
The National Teaching Committee has addressed a letter to every community with nine to 14 believers, urging them to take preventive measures the moment it is known that their Assembly might be in jeopardy, and to communities with 15 or more believers, calling on them to utilize their resources to help safeguard the re-formation at Riḍván of jeopardized Assemblies in their area.
In addition, every Local Spiritual Assembly in the U.S. has been sent a checklist of 14 suggestions for bringing Assemblies to full strength.
The suggestions range from prayer, firesides, and personal teaching to involvement in Cluster teaching, use of the new deepening packet, and placement of ads in The American Bahá’í for homefront pioneers.
A LETTER has been sent to all coordinators of jeopardized Assemblies in which the National Teaching Committee urges them “to redouble your efforts and to focus again on your principal goal which is to so activate teaching that the Assembly soon will be out of jeopardy.”
A list of suggestions for coordinators is included, and the National Teaching Committee ends the February 20 letter with these words:
“With only two months remaining until Riḍván, we are confident you realize that time is of the essence and that the losses brought about by Assemblies not re-forming must be sharply reduced this year as never before if we wish to win the victory of firmly establishing 1,400 Local Spiritual Assemblies by the end of the Five Year Plan.
“We will be praying for the success of your efforts, and be assured of every assistance.”
July Teaching-Proclamation Campaign Slated in Myrtle Beach, S.C., Area[edit]
The South Carolina Eastern No. 3 District Teaching Committee, in cooperation with the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute, is sponsoring a teaching-proclamation campaign July 16–22 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Needed are at least 20 dedicated souls to proclaim the Faith in the Myrtle Beach area. The goal is to make as many people in the area as possible aware of the Message of Bahá’u’lláh, and to hold firesides and deepenings. It is expected that this will lead to the formation of three Local Spiritual Assemblies.
Pre-registration should be completed by June 1. Room and board is $5.50 a day per person for seven days. A deposit of $10 is desired. Those who are interested in participating should write to Mrs. Jeanette Murray, secretary, Eastern No. 3 District Teaching Committee, Route 2, Box 71, Hemingway, SC 29554.
For World Religion Day, January 15, the Bahá’ís of Miami, Florida, hosted a public meeting at the Miami Bahá’í Center and also placed this display at the Model City Branch Library in Miami.
The Bosch Bahá’í School Council is planning an excellent program for the summer. The Council’s members are (back row, left to right) Jim Kelly, Ruth Somerhalder, Kenton Allen and Robert Malouf, and (front row, left to right) Cynthia Barnes and Roxanne Casellini. Watch for Bahá’í summer school listings next month in The American Bahá’í.
Carolinas Winter School a Success[edit]
Nearly 120 Bahá’ís who attended the Carolinas Bahá’í Winter School December 29–January 1 at the Louis G. Gregory Bahá’í Institute in Hemingway, South Carolina, learned about the history of Islam from Dr. Mirza Agah Mohanian, and teaching in the South from Dorothy Bruner.
Group discussions led to a greater understanding of the privilege and necessity of teaching the Cause to the world.
| Arise! |
The curriculum was rounded out by well-planned classes for children and youth, new believers and seekers; a mini-course on researching the Writings; an afternoon trip to the beach; other social events and games.
Do You Receive More Than 1 American Bahá’í?[edit]
Does your family receive more than one copy of The American Bahá’í? If you require only one copy, please fill out the coupon below or attach your mailing labels indicating which family member(s) should no longer receive a personal copy.
Please note that if you also receive a copy of The American Bahá’í for your Bahá’í Group, that copy should be retained in the Group’s files.
