The Five Year Plan 2001-2006 (Summary)/Advancing the Process of Entry by Troops

[Page 5]

ADVANCING THE PROCESS

OF ENTRY BY TROOPS

EAR THE CONCLUSION of the

Five Year Plan, the Universal

House of Justice asserted in its message dated 27 December 2005 to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors that “the wholehearted response of the individual believer, the community and the institutions to the guidance they received five years ago has raised their Capacity to new levels”.1 Reviewing the steps that led to this achievement, the House of Justice noted:

As a first step, Bahá’í communities were urged to systematize their efforts to develop the human resources of the Cause through a network of training institutes. While every national community took measures to create institutional capacity to perform this essential function, it was not until the outset of the Five Year Plan that the significance of a well—conceived programme of training became widely appreciated.2

The Development of Human Resources

The institute process was put into place during the previous five years, but at the beginning of the Plan, few communities were able to offer more than the initial books of the sequence of courses. The demand for trained tutors outstripped supply. So the first Challenges that had to be met were to strengthen the institute process by adding the higher level

courses and training a larger cadre of

tutors. At Riḍván 2001, there were 616 people in the world who had completed Ruhi Institute Book 7, Walking Taget/aer (m a Park of Service, the course for tutor training, and many of them had not completed all of the books leading up to it. In fact, Book 7 was not available in most countries until well into the Plan and once it was released, it had to be translated into local languages. Its introduction and utilization, however, rapidly improved the quality of all institute courses and provided a fuller vision of what could be achieved through the institute process. So successful was the endeavour to train tutors that by the conclusion of the Plan over 36,000 people had completed Book 7. Training new tutors in the beginning often required sacrifice from both the trainers and those being trained. For example, determined believers in the cities of Knoxville, Tennessee, in

Friends in a study circle in \Vas/Jing‘mn, DC, United States.

[Page 6]7773 Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jz'ez/ements and Learning

the United States and Manchester, the United Kingdom needed someone to take them through the sequence of courses, but their communities did not have even one qualified tutor for Book 7. The Knoxville community solicited the services of a tutor who lived in another part of the state. Over the course of three years, that dedicated believer drove 180 miles weekly to raise up new tutors who could then train others. Only ten partic ipants had completed the second book in Manchester when its Auxiliary Board member became inspired with the idea that the cluster could advance to the “A” category with focused effort. His enthusiasm ignited the community. As in the case of Knoxville, a tutor had to travel to Manchester to assist with the movement of believers through the sequence of courses, but rather than work with them once a week, each course was held

An Institute Campaign:

Systematic Action Moves Friends through the Sequence of Courses in the City of the Covenant

EW YORKERS ARE KNOWN for being busy

people. Finding time to participate in the

sequence of courses was a challenge for many of the believers in that city, especially the young professionals. When the friends were inspired at a reflection meeting in February 2004 to move enough people through the sequence of courses to raise the Cluster to the “A” category, the institutions and cluster coordinator set about assisting them to meet this goal through an intensive institute campaign that was to begin in June. Systematic planning was the key to addressing the challenge of scheduling since time is always in short supply for New Yorkers.

The first step was to take a careful look at the community members who were in the institute process. Who had already completed which book? What books did each individual need to finish in order to be ready to tutor? This analysis was followed by systematic encouragement. The Local Spiritual Assembly of New York sent individual letters to every person who had completed the first three books urging them to complete the sequence. The Auxiliary Board members contacted those friends who lacked only one or two courses to encourage them to complete the sequence and become tutors. The institute area coordinator focused on those who needed to complete only Book 7. Looking back on the experience, it

became clear that this personal attention to individuals in the community was a key to the success of the intensive institute campaign.

The area coordinator surveyed the community to determine the times the friends were most available, and then scheduled the courses in much the same fashion as a college catalogue. Study circles were set at three different times: daytime for those who worked at night, such as actors and musicians; early evening for office workers; and weekends for those only free at that time. Some courses were held intensively over a long weekend while others were designed to be completed in four consecutive Sundays. Many of the young professionals opted to participate in the early evening sessions because they could more easily go to the Bahá’í Centre in downtown Manhattan immediately after work than travel to another location in that widespread city. Starting the study circles immediately after office hours, rather than after dinner, also saved time. The three—hour evening sessions were held two or three nights a week and enabled the friends to move at an accelerated pace.

By November 2004, 43 people had finished the sequence of courses, which represented an increase of 35 additional tutors in a period of less than six months.

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The Institute Process Provides a New Focus for Summer and Winter Schools

HE EXTENDED PERIOD OF study and fellow ship offered by summer and winter schools

during holiday breaks has long been a unifying and important element of Bahá’í communities. In recent years, the institute process has influenced the character ofsummer and winter schools in many national communities.

Training from Ruhi Institute Book 3 on how to work with children has led to more planned programmes for children and junior youth as part of these schools. Youth, often the first ones completing the institute courses, increasingly put their newfound skills to use through assisting with the planning and execution of the schools. The use of the arts in the core activities that was fostered through the institute process has added more creativity and liveliness to the schools, as music, drama, and other artistic endeavours became integral to the programmes.

Many summer or winter schools included institute courses as part of their offerings, providing an opportunity for individuals to accelerate their progress through the sequence of courses. One example was that of the Swiss winter school in Boldern, Switzerland, in 2005. Institute courses were offered to help the friends prepare themselves through intensive study to advance the processes of the Five Year Plan. In other schools, special activities reinforced or complemented the institute courses. A school held in the Darjeeling region of India featured drama with

Dawn prayer: at the winter xc/aoo/ in Dzztjeeling, India.

audience participation about how the core activities can change a person’s attitudes, behaviour, and Character. At a winter school in Brazil, a class was held about how to carry out effective devotional gatherings. Many summer schools in 2003 included study sessions on the document “Building Momentum: A Coherent Approach to Growth”.

The sessions at one winter school in India were used to prepare for a teaching campaign. At the conclusion of the school, participants were sent to selected nearby localities to carry out home visits and devotional gatherings.

Reaching out to the wider community, a hallmark of the Five Year Plan, was also evident in the growing number ofseekets attending summer and winter schools. In Poland, for example, the Bahá’í’s noted a marked increase in the number of guests attending their school. And the presence of participants from other countries gave heart to many somewhat isolated communities, such as Lebanon, Cyprus, the Mariana Islands, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

For one full week, beginning with an intensive weekend and then continuing with weekday evening sessions. The Following week was a break, affording an opportunity to practise what had been learned.

Other means were found to accelerate the training of tutors, including intensive institute campaigns, often held as

residential courses. During the first year

of the Plan, a major impetus was given to the institute process in sub—Saharan Africa with a series of intensive training campaigns organized by the Continental Counsellors. In English—speaking Africa, selected individuals who had completed the initial books in the sequence participated in six—week training sessions, one in Uganda and the other in Zambia. As a result, 176 friends From 22 countries

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were trained to serve as tutors of Books 4 to 7. Subsequently in French—speaking Africa, similar intensive training programs were held in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Niger. In many rural clusters in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, the institutes have continued to hold intensive courses for the higher level books at central locations in order to improve the quality of the training.

In France, intensive campaigns have been scheduled twice a year during holidays in the academic year and have become a fixture of Bahá’í’ life for francophone students from several countries in

Europe. A similar intensive programme was held in Germany for its youth. Other examples of intensive institute campaigns included the following:

' To raise the number and quality of tutors, Brazil took more than 350 believers rapidly through the sequence of courses, mostly between January and April of the first year of the Plan.

' A six—week intensive campaign was carried out in the United States for Native American believers to increase the number of tutors among that population.

University Classrooms—A New Setting for Institute Courses

5 HOME TO THE WORLD headquarters of the A Roman Catholic Church, Italy traditionally

has been a challenging country in which to teach the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh. But by boldly taking advantage of an opportunity, one Italian believer, in collaboration with the training institute in Italy and the European Bahá’í’ Business Forum, was able to make the teachings of the Faith part of the curriculum of the second largest Italian university, the University of Bari.

As a successful business leader and author, an Italian Bahá’í' had for some years been presenting guest lectures on business ethics to classes of the business school at Bari. He always spoke candidly of Bahá’u’lláh and His life and sufferings, in explaining the source of his ideas. These lectures led to the University’s instituting a 10—week

course offered by this Bahá’í’ entitled “Ethics and Economy: Towards a New World Order”. The course is based exclusively upon the Bahá’í Writings and has been run annually since 2002.

The Department of Science Education and Theoretical Philosophy, impressed by the presentations in the business school classes in 2003, invited the Bahá’í’ lecturer to offer classes to the students in its department. Working closely with the training institute, he decided to present Ruhi Institute Book 1 as a unique educational model worthy of emulation.

Students at Bari University in a clam on t/ae teachings OfBaba’ 'u’lld/y.

[Page 9]' Intensive campaigns in Ukraine targeted youth. The courses had a great impact on the participants) a number ofwhom began to conduct children’s classes after completing Book 3 in the sequence.

A graduate of a six—week regional institute campaign for Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu returned to his highland village of Kaming, Papua New Guinea, and there established a four-month campaign for the local believers. Ir concluded with a graduation ceremony for the 30 participants attended by 350 individuals, including 17. village

I: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS

leaders. Seventeen seekers asked to join the courses and all of them

embraced the Faith.

Intensive institute campaigns held in Pakistan among Afghan refugees bore fruit when the refugees returned to Afghanistan. These believers have, in turn, established core activities in several areas of their homeland.

In Kiribati, shortly after Book 7 became available in the local language, a two—stage process was completed to raise enough tutors to run campaigns at the local level in the priority clusters. In December 2003, only 5 people

The first step was the preparation and distribution of a questionnaire to 220 undergraduate and master’s degree students, based upon materials in Book 1 and including many quotations from Bahá’u’lláh. When the questionnaires were returned, the Bahá’í presenters gained a better understanding of the views of the students prior to the course. The next several weeks were spent presenting lectures to the students about of the life of Bahá’u’lláh, His teachings, and the underlying philosophy and methodology of the training institute. The students were then able to observe a study circle in action. Fifteen students were Chosen and brought to the front of the class. They carried out a normal study circle session using materials from Book 1, while more than 100 of their classmates observed.

The reaction was one of unbridled enthusiasm. No one wanted to leave the hall. Afterwards, a large number ofstudents crowded around the Bahá’í presenters asking questions and sharing their feelings. For example, one student said that she felt a warmth she had never experienced before. Among the many other positive comments were these:

' “I felt free and at the same time filled with a new consciousness.”

' “I felt very good, without any kind of competition, without any judgements.”

' “I now have a totally new Vision of what education means.”

At the end of this series of lectures, the Bari University professor overseeing the course requested that the remaining class time be devoted to the Bahá’í’s’ explaining the meaning of various passages from the Hidden Words. Using the participatory approach of the institute process, the class spent one and a half hours discussing 12 verses from the Bahá’í Writings.

The remarkable impact of the Bahá’í courses on the students was illustrated by their response after the examination in the World Order course in the Department of Economics. The Bahá’í lecturer asked if they would honour the memory of Bahá’u’lláh with 10 seconds of silence. One by one the students stood up until the entire class was “standing in absolute silence”. The Bahá’í’s moving account continues: “I had to lower my sight, as I was deeply touched. My eyes were tearful. After some 15 seconds of absolute silence I switched back on the microphone saying ‘thank you’. The 120 students, standing, applauded for around four to five minutes.”

[Page 10]7775 Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/az'ez/ements and Learning

had completed Book 7. By the end of January 2004, the number had risen to 40.

' In the first years Ofthe Plan, 16 believers took part in a five—week training campaign in Ontario, Canada, in preparation for service as homefront pioneers who could offer the institute courses at their new posts.

Furthermore, communities such as Australia, Bulgaria, and Honduras also began offering brief refresher courses, often in order to consolidate previous learning and reintroduce the acts of service immediately prior to launching teaching projects or institute campaigns.

A refies/aer coursefor imtitute particzpanty in Sri Lanka.

By the last months of the Five Year Plan, in most areas, particularly in urban communities and other priority clusters, there was a cadre of tutors, so believers could then proceed through the sequence of courses at their own pace. Throughout the world, the study circle became the primary means of delivering the sequence of courses, replacing “mobile institutes”, a method utilized early on in some countries by which full—time tutors moved from village to

village to present the courses. Given that a scheme for the widespread multiplication of study circles was one of the prerequisites for an intensive programme of growth, the efforts of institutes were directed toward decentralizing the delivery of courses. The number of study Circles worldwide mushroomed as shown by the table below.

This diligent effort to extend the reach of the institute and assist “an everincreasing number of friends to move through the main sequence of courses”3 resulted in perhaps the most remarkable achievement of the Five Year Plan—the acceleration of human resource development. At the beginning of the Plan, 94,000 individuals had completed one course in the basic sequence offered by the institutes. That figure rose to over 244,000 at Riḍván 2006. Because of the emphasis on raising up tutors and a significant number of believers “who understand the prerequisites for sustainable growth”,4 the greatest percentage of gains recorded were for the number of believers completing the higher—level courses. The statistics for Book 6, Dashing t/Je Came, provide a vivid picture of the expansion of human resources. In 2001, only 1,700 persons had completed Book 6; this number had increased to 44,000 by the close of the Plan.

But the achievements were not just numerical. Commenting upon the spiritual enterprise derived from participating in the institute courses, the House of Justice remarked in its 27 December 2005 message:

Developments . . . have served only to demonstrate further the efficacy of a

Total Number of Study Circle: Worldwide 2001—2006

Apri120'01 1 ,215 689 April 2006 2,123 4,099 2,735

107 3,124 665 1,665 11,287

IO

[Page 11]sequence of courses that seeks to build capacity for service by concentrating on the application of the spiritual insights gained through profound study of the Writings. . . . That the spirit of faith born out of intimate contact with the Word of God has such an effect on souls is by no means a new phenomenon. What is heartening is that the institute process is helping such large numbers experience the transforming potency of the Faith.S

Clusters and Systematic Mobilization of Human Resources

One of the most important innovations introduced in the Five Year Plan was the concept of the cluster, which the House of Justice described in these words:

The introduction of the concept of the cluster made it possible for the friends to think about the accelerated growth of the community on a manageable scale and to conceive of it in terms of two complementary, reinforcing movements: the steady flow ofindividuals through the sequence of institute courses and the movement of Clusters from one stage of development to the next. This image helped the believers to analyse the lessons being learned in the field and to employ a common vocabulary to articulate their findings. Never before have the means for establishing a pattern of activity that places equal emphasis on the twin processes of expansion and consolidation been better understood.(’

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS

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Institutions began to look at the numbers of believers who had completed the sequence of courses in meaningful ways as they learned to mobilize them for the tasks of expansion and consolidation. Effective deployment of these human resources became the Challenge. The institutions were charged by the House ofjustice to create within each community “an encouraging environment, one in which the friends feel empowered to step forward, whatever their capacities may be, and take up the work of the Faith”.7 Furthermore, the Universal House of Justice said that the institutions “must ensure that, as the ranks of avowed supporters of the Faith swell through the institute process, they are deployed in the field of service, reinforcing the work of large-scale expansion and consolidation”.8

What follows is a closer look at the results of the systematic efforts of the three participants in the Plan: the individual, t/ae community, and the institutions.

Friend: in Eritrea discuss t/ae division Oft/Jeir country into clusters.

II

[Page 12]A believer in Mumm, Mongolia, carries out the practice component asz's Rubi Institute Boole 3 course.

THE INDIVIDUAL

HE FIRST ESSENTIAL MOVEMENT

of the Five Year Plan was “the

steady flow of individuals through the sequence of institute courses”.9 This movement brought about profound results in the lives of many. For example, a new believer in the United Kingdom remarked that the institute process had “taken over her life and given her a new focus”. Having finished Book 3, she said she hoped to be a better grandmother than she had been a mother so she began a Children’s class with seven students. A tutor from Australia commented that her study circle, composed ofAboriginal believers, had come to feel newly empowered after working through the courses. “This came from simply giving them the Chance to read and understand the Word of God with their own minds.” A 16—year—old girl from Senegal found the courses to be “enormously enriching” and learned a lot from them. They helped her to become more self-confident and strengthened her Bahá’í identity. In Ethiopia, When a graduation ceremony

was held for a large group of high school

students who had completed institute courses during one school holiday, the graduates, inspired by their study of the Bahá’í Writings, “were able to fascinate us with their deep and insightfully composed poems, amazing dramas and moving songs. The delight they created is such that we cannot possibly portray it in words.” Clearly, these few examples are the fruits of “discussions that revolve around the Creative Word, in the serious and uplifting atmosphere of a study Circle,” which then “raise the level of consciousness about one’s duties to the Cause and create an awareness of the joy one derives from teaching the Faith and serving its interests.“0

When the first participants progressed through the sequence of courses, the practice components of the books were often neglected. Through experience, it became clear that these practice elements were vital to building capacity for the expansion and consolidation work. Without these practices, many believers lacked the confidence to carry out the required tasks: hosting a devotional meet

12,

[Page 13]ing, carrying out a home Visit, holding a class for Children or junior youth, or participating in a campaign as members ofa teaching team. The House of Justice addressed the true meaning of carrying out these services in its 27 December message:

Confidence is patiently built as the friends engage in progressively more complex and demanding acts ofservice. Yet, above all, it is reliance on God that sustains them in their endeavours. How abundant the accounts of believers who enter the teaching field with trepidation only to find them selves bolstered by confirmations on all sides.ll

Examples abound of this newfound confidence gained through reliance upon prayer and Divine assistance. When a community in the United States carried out a home visit campaign for the first time “the greatest learning . . . was the Bahá’í’s’ own discovery that approaching their neighbours is something they can do and enjoy.” A believer in the United Kingdom testified after putting her training into practice that “it’s becoming normal to share prayers with friendsit is very powerful and uplifting, and I no longer feel self—conscious 0r apologetic about offering to share a prayer.” A believer in Russia completed the sequence of courses but never imagined that she could teach classes for children. Despite her lack of confidence, she was encouraged to try. She asked her own child to assist her, and on the day other first class she was amazed at how well it succeeded. She said that she “felt a lot of light and joy” in her heart. In Slovakia, a believer set aside her fear of teaching to not only carry out a home Visit, but also to get up the courage to invite the seeker to become a Bahá’í.

What seemed absurd to me a few days ago was now very naturaI—to invite a

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS—THI; INDIVIDUAL

person into the Faith that I have met only for the second time in my life. I had not planned it at all, but my inner voice gave me a simple and Clear command, “Do it!” I felt closeness between our souls from the beginning. And do you know what she said after a little while? “Then I would like to join you.”

Having gained confidence in how to introduce the Faith and offer the Message of Bahá’u’lláh to others, the believers are “seeing the possibilities and opportunities before them with new eyes,” and “they witness first hand the power of Divine assistance, as they strive to put into practice what they are learning and achieve results far exceeding their expectations,“ A young couple in the United Kingdom, who were expecting a baby, invited the other couples in their antenatal class to a prayer meeting in their home dedicated to the children about to be born and received enthusiastic responses. The husband commented, “The atmosphere around us seems to be different than before. Many things are happening that usually don’t happen; people crossing our way two or three times a day, in different parts of London (as if Bahá’u’lláh is pushing them towards us!); people sitting next to us on the bus and asking if we are religious.”

Individual Initiative

and Teaching

The Universal House of Justice wrote, “A discernible outcome of the emphasis on capacity building has been a steady increase in the exercise ofindividual initiative—initiative that is disciplined by an understanding of the requirements of systematic action in advancing the process of entry by troops.”13

Increasing numbers of believers throughout the Plan began to reach out and teach with greater resolve, utilizing skills that made their efforts more

‘24 discernié/e outcome

Oftke emphasis on capacity building has 5667? a steady increase in tlae exercise ofindiz/idutll initiative—initiative that is disciplined éy an understanding Of the requirements of systematic action in advancing t/ae process

afentry by tmaps. ”

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[Page 14]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary OfAt/Jievemmts and Learning

effective than in the past. Universally, they found receptivity. What was especially noteworthy was that they began to see the people crossing their path during their daily lives as those to whom they should deliver the Message. Teaching became something one did at home, in one’s neighbourhood, at one’s office; not somewhere else among strangers. In the new culture fostered by the institute process, “teaching is the dominating passion of the lives of the believers. Fear of failure finds no place. Mutual support, commitment to learning, and appreciation

of diversity of action are the prevailing norms.”14

Core activities provided the framework for action with each one leading naturally to the others. An excellent example comes from Mauritius where a believer who had been inactive for many years was encouraged to go through the sequence of courses. He completed the courses through Book 6, all the while too hesitant to carry out any of the practices. At that point a new believer prodded him to begin a devotional meeting in his home. In order to please his friend,

The Vision for a Tutor: a Wide Scope for Individual Initiative

HE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE lauded

I “the spirit of initiative shown by believers who

extend the range of their endeavours to assist others also striving to tread a path of service”. These past five years have produced a number of striking examples of what can be accomplished by those who have been trained through the institute process. They initiate acts of service, reach out to their neighbours, and gradually lead them through the institute courses until they become active servants of the Cause themselves and promoters of the growth process. The following are but three of the most illustrative examples.

A mother in Taiwan, who lived in an area without other active believers, began a Bahá’í—inspired moral education class for her Child’s schoolmates at a public elementary school. Another parent, impressed by what her Child was learning, became interested in knowing more about the Faith and so the Bahá’í suggested that she study Ruhi Institute Book 1. Not only did this seeker wish to do this, she invited five other mothers from the school to join in the study circle as well. These enthusiastic friends became confirmed believers through engaging in the sequence of courses

and began to assist in carrying out core activities. They held devotional meetings, assisted the children’s classes, and invited their friends to join them in the growing number of Bahá’í activities which revolved around the mother who started it all.

Within less than two years, this band of new believers was carrying out seven Book 1 study circles with 24 seekers, as well as four higher level study circles. They had five ongoing classes for children, serving mostly children from non—Bahá’í’ families. Building on the success of their work with younger children, they added a junior youth group to their activities. And their daily devotional gathering was attracting an average Of 30 individuals. By June 2005, the number of new declarants had increased to II.

This success resulted from the strengths gained when a group of people who already have a pre—existing social network begin to study and serve together. It was only natural that their friends and family would be drawn to the process through them.

A similar pattern emerged in a suburban community in the United Kingdom, which again had only one active adult. This time it began when the married couple regularly attending the weekly fireside expressed a willingness to pursue Book 1, but only if it was on the same night as the fireside. So the fireside was transformed into a study circle. As these participants and a few others proceeded through the courses and embraced the Faith, devotional meetings and other firesides were established and more

I4

[Page 15]he agreed, but only for one meeting a month. He invited two friends to come but was surprised when nine people atrived—his seekers had invited others. He decided to hold devotional meetings at shorter intervals—first every two weeks, then weekly. Out of these grew a study circle meeting twice a week with eight non—Bahá’í’s. The adults in the study circle brought along their children, so a class was started for them. This class began to grow, which in turn generated an interest in the Faith among their parents who also joined the study Circle.

1: ADVANCING 'l'Hli PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOI’S—THE INDIVIDUAL

The seekers even participated in teaching teams. All of this was the result of one person gathering the courage to put into practice what he had learned early on in his Book 1 course.

In Colombia, a youth who had completed the sequence of courses, decided to offer a year of service in her home town, a small village. She began by offering classes for children, through which she was able to create interest among the parents to learn about the Bahá’í Faith. Needing assistance to respond to their interest in the Teachings, she asked

people joined study circles. Within less than two years, 13 individuals from the area had declared their faith in Bahá’u’lláh. The number of tutors grew and so other activities were added, such as a junior youth group and a Children’s class. This nascent community was able to attract an average of 30 persons to its Holy Day programmes. It all began small and simply. Most of the participants lived within walking distance of one another and, as with the group in Taiwan, had a pre—existing social network. And these people entered the Faith with their families.

The believer who began this process still holds firesides occasionally, but she uses them as an introduction to the core activities. She finds that devotional meetings are the best approach for attracting people in her area. She has learned that even though “we used to think that to teach we had to go far away”, the best opportunities are often presented to us nearby and in our daily lives.

Similarly, a family with young children opened a community in India to the Faith. The father, a trained tutor, made overtures to the new neighbours but initially his efforts did not meet with success. So the family began to hold simple activities with the children of the neighbours. The parents were so impressed with the influence of these Classes on their children that they asked the Bahá’í family to work with their youth as well. Study Circles were also established. The prayers of this family and their commitment to systematically carrying out what had

been learned through the institute courses quickly bore fruit.

We would first start the children’s class and would explain about the virtues and teach them songs and dance. All would come to see this and would be happy and praise us. We would explain to them in detail about the coming of Bahá’u’lláh and we would also derive a lot ofjoy in associating with them. They would look at us following the Bahá’í way of life and wonder at the absence of conflict, contention, and strife amongst us and how we would listen to each other. We would recite the Tablet ofAhmad everyday and its power gave us a lot of transformation.

The efforts of the tutor and his family brought about 70 declarations within less than a year. As these new adherents went through the sequence of courses, they were able to participate in a series of teaching campaigns resulting in more than 140 additional new believers. Within 18 months of the family’s move to the previously unopened community, there were 54 devotional meetings, 24 children’s classes, 21 study Circles, and 2 junior youth groups.

By one tutor systematically helping others to find Bahá’u’lláh and to walk the path of service, a community was born and enabled to flourish.

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7796 institute process creates a self—perpetudting system, constantly renewed as new people enter it.

several other believers to come and help her conduct a teaching campaign in the village. Nine people declared and were invited, along with other parents, to study Book 1 and to participate in devotional gatherings. The village now has two regular devotional gatherings with about twenty people attending. Holy Days are also celebrated.

A mother in the United Kingdom had never taught the Faith before, but strengthened by what she had learned through the institute courses, made home visits to her yoga teacher and an immigrant family who had Bahá’í telatives. She also shared prayers with other mothers and invited them as well to a devotional gathering. She even made flyers to invite parents from her children’s school to participate in a Book 1 study Circle. While she was very anxious about taking these steps in the beginning, her efforts were confirmed when three mothers attended the first session of the study circle and others indicated a desire to join.

There are countless other inspiring accounts of individual initiative:

" In Turkey, a Bahá’í family invited a neighbour who had expressed an interest in the Faith to a fireside. She said, “I have devoted my life to helping people, to the benefit of all, and God, as a return, He led me to meet you. It is a prize for me.” She and her two sons accepted the Faith.

' A pioneer in Hong Kong, sensing receptivity to the study of English among her neighbours, began English classes for their children that included Bahá’í content. The class became so large that a second had to be started with the help of another believer. These stimulated interest in the Faith among the parents, leading six to participate in a Book 1 study circle.

' In Zimbabwe, a newly declared Bahá’í couple who had completed the study

of Books 1 through 3 decided to return to their home VilIage, where they started a Children’s Class. Soon the parents became interested in joining Bahá’í activities. With the help of the National Teaching Committee, a travelling teacher was found to facilitate study circles. In less than a year, 30 individuals had completed Book 1, 28 had completed Book 2, 57 persons had accepted the Faith, a Local Assembly was formed, Nineteen Day Feasts were being held, and children’s classes and study Circles were ongoing.

' A Bahá’í medical doctor in Bucharest, Romania, initiated study Circles and devotional meetings at his Clinic for more than 40 of the 60 health care workers, leading to 20 enrolments in the Faith.

What these and many other accounts from around the world illustrate are “endeavours . . . pursued in a humble posture of learning within the framework defined by the Plan.”13 Those touched by the institute process have learned to walk the path of service using their own talents and abilities and to begin to affect those around them. As a believer from the United Kingdom noted, she now understood that teaching was something she could do at home and with those with whom she came into contact during her daily life, not something she did only in her free time “somewhere else”. The seekers attending the core activities she had initiated lived within walking distance of each other and 14 of them embraced the Faith.

The institute process creates a selfperpetuaring system, constantly renewed as new people enter it. This is leading believers to become less event—oriented once they understand that teaching and consolidation are interdependent processes. Less focus has been placed on proclamation activities as the friends have learned the efficacy of more intimate

16

[Page 17]approaches to teaching. There is now a better understanding of the importance of patiently nurturing seekers. A new believer or seeker should not be left alone. Study circles, devotional meetings, and home visits are all avenues For nurturing these souls. This patient, pet'sistent approach is equally fruitful when programmes are established for young people. In Cambodia, for example, it was learned through experience that careful training and nurturing ofjunior youth produces in a relatively short time enthusiastic young adults capable and eager to carry Forward the work of the Faith. The training these junior youth received enables them when they grow older to hold their own classes for children and junior youth. The additional skills learned in high school as they proceed through the institute’s main sequence of courses, make them effective teachers and leaders of the Faith as young adults. As the stories illustrate, small but systematic steps lead to sustainable growth. The “commit‘6 as the friends begin to understand the dynam ment to long—term action grows”

ics of the process. During this Plan, reports showed that believers are finding a welcome

]: ADVANCING 11-1 1:. PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS—THE INDIVIDUAL

response to their teaching efforts when

the approaches studied in the institute courses are put into practice. There are many accounts of individuals learning “Anna’s” presentation in Book 6 by heart so that they will have a framework for introducing the Faith when they become more confident in their teaching work. Even in countries where there has historically been reticence to talk openly about religion with others, the friends are exhibiting greater audacity. Canada, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, the Nordic countries, Russia, and Switzerland, among others, report that the believers are speaking up about the Faith with their friends, relatives, coworkers, and neighbours and inviting them to firesides, study circles, and devotional meetings.

“Equipped with skills and methods” that were “effective and accessible to all,” and encouraged by the response they received, the believers have been uentering into closer association with people ofmany walks of life, engaging them in earnest conversation on themes ofspiritual import.”“

Memorizing passages from the Sacred Texts, a common aspect of the institute

Friends pm‘tz'tzpzztz'ng in an institute campaign in the Maizgm—Leufit cluster, Chile,

find an outdoor setting for their

study circle.

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[Page 18]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jz’ez/emmt: and Learning

Twofiiezzds in Perth, Australia, study together t/ae pangesfiom t/7L’ Writing: in Rubi Institute 300/8 1.

courses, has changed the manner in which many of the friends deliver the message. Rather than using only their own words, they use the Creative Word to explain the Faith to others, which has a profound effect. For example, the Bahá’í community of Houston, Texas, United States, hosted a city—wide interfaith meeting and dinner at their centre, which was attended by a large number of representatives of other faiths. A believer who had been a Bahá’í for over 30 years commented on how she and others were grateful that they had completed a Ruhi Institute course and could use quotations they had recently memorized in this teaching opportunity.

The skills of Books 1, 2, and 6 were flying all over the place and the quotes were just pouring out of our mouths; were we the army of light or what!? As the evening progressed, it seemed (at least at our table) the other people were just waiting for us to open our lips and speak. The power of the Word of God was truly the magnet that was attracting their hearts—the key that unlocks the hearts of men. They were

all connecting their beliefs with the

Bahá’í beliefs.

Everybody was joyfully fullphysically and spiritually. One of the participants ofa study circle said afterwards, “This is why we are asked by the Universal House of Justice to engage in the ptocess—the skills and insights gained have given me courage and such joy.” Another participant said, “Thanks for making us memorize; the quotes were just coming out of my rnouth.’y

Reports from advanced clusters such as Metro Cluster, El Salvador, speak of growing numbers of seasoned teachers Who have become capable of sensing receptivity and offering the Message “in a manner both forthcoming and inviting”.18

At the conclusion of the Plan, the teaching activities were beginning to result in growing numbers of new believers. In most countries, the numbers, even if modest, still far exceeded those of previous years. Many countries reported that the majority of declarations resulted From the participation ofseekets in core activities. In those countries where it has traditionally been easy to attract new believers through brief encounters with people in public places, the majority of

18

[Page 19]those being taught in this manner are quickly taking part in core activities, often after receiving home visits, and eventually becoming active servants of

Bahá’u’lláh.

Assisting Others to Tread a Path of Service

The House of Justice praised those believers “who extend the range of their endeavours to assist others also striving to tread a path of service”.“’ Most notable are tutors ofstudy circles. They have learned through experience and reflection not simply to deliver a sequence of courses but also to accompany participants in their efforts to carry out the acts of service and ultimately initiate core activities on their own. A tutor in Bihar state, India, took a group through Book 1 and systematically, step by step, helped the participants to learn how to carry out a devotional meeting. Not only did he encourage them, he also attended their devotional gatherings, even after the group had finished Book 1, until he felt they were capable of sustaining the meetings without assistance. OF the eight devotional meetings emerging from that study circle, six continued without further help from the tutor. In Cambodia, teachers of ongoing children’s classes were paired with newly trained graduates of Book 3, who assisted the veteran teachers, until they themselves were confident enough to conduct their own class. In the United Kingdom, those who have

I: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOI’S—THE INDIVIDUAL

completed the sequence of courses are teamed with those who have not in order to help the less experienced believers carry out home visits. Throughout the Bahá’í’ world there are patient, dedicated tutors who are leading others through the entire sequence and then assisting them to tutor Stili others in turn.

In the state of Raiasthan, India, a believer who taught at a technical training school, decided to teach the Faith to his pupils by introducing them to prayers and later inviting them to a study circle. Five of his students began Book I after school hours. The number of students grew and six of them completed the sequence. Two of these became tutors and began study circles for other students at the school. This example reflects the potential ofa single tutor to advance the process of systematic growth. The process was described by the House of Justice in these words:

Having acquired the capacity to serve as tutors of institute courses, they take up the challenge of accompanying participants in their initial attempts to perform acts of service until they, too, are ready to start their own study circles and help others do the same, widening in this way the scope of the institute’s influence and bringing eager souls into contact with the

Word of God.20

Souls such as these were the true heroes and heroines of the Five Year Plan.

19

[Page 20]New believers share in tlae spirit ofpz devational meeting in Vanwuver, Canada.

THE COMMUNITY

HE UNIVERSAL HOUSE ()Iijustice

concluded that “the enhanced

vitality that distinguishes the life of the individual believer is equally evident in Bahá’í community life.”“ Individual initiative is a prerequisite for the creation of healthy, vibrant communities, but the results attainable through individual initiatives alone are limited. When these initiatives are wedded to consultation and systematic, collective action, much more is achieved. There is a forward thrust in the progress of the Faith and as it grows, the Bahá’í community becomes capable ofcarrying out activities of increasing complexity and scope. This progression of communities from one stage of development to the next, is the second essential movement in advancing the process of entry by troops.

Core Activities as

Portals for Growth

In its 17 January 2003 message to the Bahá’í’s of the world, the House of Justice said that, “the coherence thus achieved through the establishment of study circles, devotional meetings and children’s

lui'

mm

classes provides the initial impulse for growth in a cluster, an impulse that gathers strength as these core activities multiply in number.”22 The experience in the cluster of Bintawa Lama7 Sarawak, illustrates how the initiative of one family can infuse a community with spiritual vitality, which, in turn, through systematic action, can manage sustained growth.

At the outset of the Plan, the Bintawa Lama community was having difficulty organizing study Circles. The one that was ongoing had only one family attending. There were, however, weekly devotional meetings attended by this family and a few other children, as well as a small children’s class. As the two activities continued and improved over the next few years, more people began to participate and several seekers offered their homes for the gatherings. The children’s classes were regular and the devotional meetings increased in frequency from once to several times a week. By 2004, efforts to establish study Circles finally became successful and the community was also able to hold a celebration ofNaw—Rt'lz that was attended by several seekers. A class for junior youth was added. The believers began to find it easier to reach out and teach those whom they knew. Attendance at the Nineteen Day Feast grew, and the Local Spiritual Assembly began to function. The parents of the children in the Bahá’í classes became increasingly interested in the Faith. In September 2004, 11 souls from Bintawa Lama declared their faith in Bahá’u’lláh—three youth, five young adults, and three middle—aged persons. Four of the 11 new believers joined study Circles. In October 2004, in a neighbouring village, Kanowit, there were also 11 enrolments, largely due to the efforts of the believers in Bintawa Lama. The community had advanced to a level at which

20

[Page 21]I: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS—THE COMMUNITY

Educating Hundreds of Junior Youth and Children in Philippine Schools

N AUDACIOUS IDEA, once acted upon can

bring about great rewards. Observing a

makeshift Bahá’í children’s class held on a side street between two rows of houses, an institute coordinator was inspired to seek assistance from the government for a safer location. Bahá’í’s approached the Bagahabag Town Council in the SolanoBayombong cluster, requesting its support for the establishment of core activities in the area and seeking a proper location to hold them. They were encouraged to proceed but were told that the government could not be of assistance. After surveying the community to become better acquainted with it, the friends approached the government again some months later. This time they asked only for assistance in finding a place for the children’s classes. The Council agreed and ordered that neighbourhood leaders throughout the area should “organize” the children to attend.

As the human resources were lacking to establish classes everywhere in the township, a pilot Class was initiated. A neighbourhood leader helped with the organization and flyers were distributed to parents. Twenty children registered in the first week. The leader furnished chairs and a blackboard. Bahá’í’s contributed funds and materials, and a number volunteered to teach the classes.

The neighbourhood mothers stayed throughout the first class to observe, and obviously liked what

Training ofam'mzztorsforfi'imds reaching out tojunioryoutb in public schoolr in the Nort/y Luzon region offhe Philippines.

they saw because more mothers came to the second class to enrol their children. Several enquired as to where the teachers were trained because they seemed so skilled. They were informed that the teachers had not received formal teacher training at a college but had completed courses offered by the Bahá’í training institute. Many mothers expressed a desire to receive that same training.

Before long, there were also study circles for mothers and classes for junior youth. A Bahá’í family also began to host devotional meetings in the neighbourhood.

The friends in the cluster continued to build upon this successful initiative. By the end of the Five Year Plan, the training institute in the SolanoBayombong cluster had begun to conduct classes under the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Programme in a number of public elementary schools in the Bayombong District. The junior youth are in Grades V and VI. There are 14 sections of these two grades, with almost 500 junior youth being taught by four animators.

The influence of this effort extended into the neighbouring cluster of Diffun—Cabarroguis, where six weekly junior youth groups were formed by two animators with help from those in the SolanoBayombong cluster. At the conclusion of the Plan,

this programme was serving over 300 junior youth and children.

it was systematically managing increasingly complex activities.

As the Bintawa Lama community illustrates, “The steady multiplication of core activities, propelled by the training institute, creates a sustainable pattern

of expansion and consolidation that is at once structured and organic.”23 This pattern was replicated in numerous communities throughout the world during the Five Year Plan. The joining of forces among the Bahá’ís within a community

21

[Page 22]7773 Five Yéar Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jievements and Learning

Two young 351/7475 co—teac/a a cbildreni class in

Gadamc/mur, Nepal.

gave even greater impetus to the process. For example, seven or eight families in an urban cluster of India decided to work together to invite their friends, relatives, neighbours, and co-workers to the Bahá’í activities. They made a list of 250 potential seekers and then made concerted efforts to invite them to core activities. During a four—month period they not only invited the 250 on their initial list, but were able to reach out to more than 400 people. More than 100 of these joined study circles, of which 48 completed the sequence, thereby greatly increasing the momentum of the institute process in the cluster. The number of children’s classes increased from 5 to 13, with double the number of children attending. The participation in devotional meetings also doubled. This increased activity became possible only by systematically leading new believers into the institute process, thereby ensuring that “the pool ofhuman resources required to carry out the work of the Faith swells”.24 The families which worked together to begin the process of community building in their area could not have achieved such results without the services and energy of the new believers.

Reports worldwide have confirmed

that core activities have become the primary portals through which seekers investigate and become confirmed as Bahá’ís. But what has been remarkable is the degree to which seekers are eager to serve, even before declaring their faith. An example is a report from a community under the shadow of the House of Worship in the United States.

We know that bringing our seekers to attend the core activities has a positive effect, but we’ve noticed, especially recently, that asking seekers to help us with activities and events often leads to a special result. They are usually astounded that we would allow, never mind be supportive of, their assuming such a role.

Examples of “service first, declaration later” from that same community

included:

' A staunchly Christian lady who was asked by her upstairs neighbour to help host firesides.

I A man who took part in a community social and economic development project.

2.2

[Page 23]' A young lady who took part in and helped register attendees at sector planning and cluster reflection meetings.

' A suburban mother who helped usher at the House of Worship celebration Of the Declaration of the Bab and was so moved she asked to enrol before leaving.

' Several seekers who decided to host study circles in their own homes; all they asked was that a tutor be provided.

As seekers move through the sequence of courses, like the other participants, they too carry out the practice components. For example, a non—Bahá’í in the Solomon Islands conducted a home visit and hosted a devotional meeting. He later recounted that, although initially nervous, he felt “empowered” and a “great joy” in sharing this “great message”. Likewise, seekers took part in teaching teams when these were first formed in Puerto Rico.

Propelled by the institute process, the increase in core activities and their gradual integration, along with growing outreach to the wider community, create a coherence of activity in communities that has resulted in a sustainable pattern of expansion and consolidation. The House of Justice has identified a number of outcomes from this coherence. First and foremost is that “the study and application of the teachings become a pervasive habit”.23 Perhaps the most gratifying illustration of this development has been the effect of the study and memorization of the Sacred Writings by the youngest members of the community. As a result of the training received by their teachers and facilitators, children and youth in many parts of the world have started memorizing the Writings. The Changes in their behaviour, which mirror forth the inner transformation taking place, have been attested to by

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOI’S—THE COMMUNITY

their parents and teachers. Immersion in the Writings during childhood is creating an attraction to the study of the Texts that will permeate their Bahá’í lives.

Study of the Creative Word has had a transformative effect even in communities with high rates ofilliteracy. In rural Malawi, Where a number of illiterate women entered the sequence Ofcourses, the transformation was such that one person commented that even the faces of the women appeared to be different. They became more hygiene conscious, more punctual, and began to place more emphasis on their children attending school. Even though they were unable to tutor after the completion of the courses because of their inability to read, they nonetheless were able to put into practice the other skills learned. In addition, Malawians love to compose songs and are now using the Bahá’í Writings as lyrics. In Liberia, where there are also large numbers of illiterate believers, many memorized the Writings and recite them at devotional meetings and other gatherings. The friends in Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, and Vanuatu, including those who cannot read, memorize quotations from the Writings through song.

Having learned many passages from the Bahá’í Scriptures as part of their institute courses, the friends are discovering the potency ofdelivering the Message in its purest form, by quoting the Writings directly. The effect that this has on others can be life—changing. This account comes from a tutor in Australia.

A friend of mine started Book 1 after being quite interested in the Faith and in what Bahá’ís are like. We would study a section, say, truthfulness, and then some later time we might be having a conversation and he’d ask me, “What do you think of this . . 3” And then he’d say, “Just remember—truthfulness is the foundation of all human virtues!” Or another time in the middle ofa discussion

7-3

[Page 24]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/aiez/ements and Learning

A devotional meeting in the village anotzpur in the Monmg cluster, Nepal.

he would stop and say, “Actually, I’d

better not go there because I might start backbiting!”

This immersion in the Sacred Texts naturally leads to the “spirit of communal worship generated by devotional meetings”,26 which in turn permeates the other activities of the community. Noting the effect of devotional meetings, the National Spiritual Assembly of Georgia said, “It is also joyful that the devotional meetings have become part of the life of each individual believer. The believers are learning how to use incalculable potentialities to share the Word of God with friends, neighbours, colleagues, and others.” A survey of some so advanced clusters worldwide indicated that the focus on devotional meetings was exerting a positive influence on the Character of the devotional portion of Nineteen Day Feasts.

Believers all over the world have discovered how easily they can share prayers with their friends, relatives, and co-workers. During the period under review, thousands of people, Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í alike, opened their homes for devotional gatherings. Many communities evolved in their understanding

of how to make these meetings more spiritually uplifting. Besides informal gatherings based upon spontaneous offering of prayers, many were organized with careful, advance selection of Sacred Texts, often based on a particular theme such as healing or world peace. Reports indicate that these gatherings, devoted to communal worship, are filling a great spiritual void in the hearts of those multitudes longing to draw closer to their Creator. Devotional meetings thus provided one of the best means of reaching out to the wider community. Whilst most of those who attended devotional meetings were invited by the host, some communities developed innovative ways of offering devotional meetings to the general public. For example, the Botswana community regularly held devotional meetings at clinics and homes run by the government for people with special needs.

Commenting on the mutually reinforcing nature of the core activities, the National Spiritual Assembly of India wrote:

The quality of all the core activities has been rapidly improving and becoming increasingly effective. Devotional meetings have brought

24

[Page 25]

about a perceptive improvement in the devotions at all gatherings such as Feasts and Holy Days. Parents of the children are joining study circles and devotions as believers are establishing closer relationships with them. Seekers who are coming for the devotionals are gradually being invited to join study circles and their children invited to attend children’s Classes.

In its 2006 annual report the National Spiritual Assembly of Alaska alluded to the impact these activities were having: “Doubling the average annual contributions and tripling the average number of contributors to the National Fund during this Plan illustrates the spiritual transformation taking place within the Alaskan Bahá’í community.”

The Arts

The Universal House of Justice observed that in communities “a graceful integration of the arts into diverse activities enhances the surge of energy that mobilizes the believers.”27 This phenomenon was given an impulse through the study

of Ruhi Institute Book 7, which provided practical training for tutors on how to integrate the arts into the institute process. Tutors trained in these concepts more readily incorporated the arts into their study circles. A report from Australia, for instance, noted, “Using the arts in the study circles in Sydney, has really taken on a life of its own. . . . the one thing that people mention when doing the evaluation of the study circle, is the incorporation of the arts! That has been their favourite and often most powerful experience”.

As the friends consciously integrated artistic elements into their activities, music, in particular, was added and many communities formed choirs and composed music. Among the resources produced for the institutes were music cassettes and compact disks of musical versions of the quotations that were being memorized in the courses. In the Marshall Islands, 3 study circle composed mainly ofyoung, new believers, sang the quotations that they were memorizing from the course materials using music composed by their tutor. This led to the formation of a choir, which performed

junioryout/a animators

[mm alwut origami at an arts workshop in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS—THE COMMUNITY

7-5

[Page 26]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary afAc/yz'euemmtx and Learning

The Use of the Arts at the Cluster Level

NE LEGACY OF THE FOUR YEAR PLAN was

the enrichment of Bahá’í activities through the

arts. The introduction of Ruhi Institute Book 7 early in the Five Year Plan, with its unit “Promoting the Arts at the Grassroots”, explained how an appreciation of beauty is one of the spiritual forces that lift souls to higher realms of existence, and it encouraged tutors to integrate the arts into study circles. By being a promoter of the arts at the grass roots, a tutor opens up “creative channels through which can flow inspiration and the force of attraction to beauty”.

The cluster agencies for the Perth, Australia region put particular emphasis on the use of the arts in core activities. A special refresher course for tutors was held to not only increase their abilities to integrate the arts into their study circles, but also to create an awareness that they could engender in their participants about the importance of the arts in all aspects of Bahá’í community life. This training led to more fulfilling institute courses. For instance, one tutor would have the group study a quotation from the Bahá’í Writings silently and then create paintings about that quotation with some “amazing results”.

A similar training session was held in France for regional and cluster coordinators, training institute board members7 Auxiliary Board members, and tutors from France and the United Kingdom. Among the things this group learned was how to facilitate memorization of quotations from the Writings by the use of the arts. By training key people in the institute process, the arts became more a part of the core activities in those two countries. For example, in the United Kingdom, study circle participants made attractive cards using a variety of materials in which they placed a quotation from the Writings or a prayer in preparation for sharing it with a friend.

As the friends apply what they have learned, the arts are finding expression in other activities such as devotional meetings. Devotional gatherings held during an intensive institute training course in Canada included the use of the decorative arts as participants took turns to adorn the room with flowers, leaves, fabrics, candles, and other items to make it a joy to behold. Participants shared songs they had composed, which had been inspired by either a passage from the Writings or a story from Bahá’í history. One participant commented:

Spontaneous expressions of song, art, or drama are now an everyday occurrence. People who have never sung in front of others have composed songs

at the National Convention, and to the marked spiritual transformation of its members. A monthly devotional gathering in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States always included the arts, usually showcasing the talents of individuals who were not Bahá’ís. There have been live performances of jazz, Classical music, reggae, folk music, and even a Buddhist choir. Local painters and sculptors have also exhibited their work, adding a visual element to the gathering. The host explained:

Our idea was to create an environment where people could experience

the sacred. We get all inspired by the live music and the art. The seekers are moved by the spirit of unity and the relevance of the Bahá’í Writings and they want to know more.

Drama, especially informal skits and role playing, became widely used as a method of training the Friends to talk to people about the Faith and to conduct home visits. At reflection meetings in London, United Kingdom, dramatic sketches have been employed to share some of the experiences the Friends are having as they teach the Faith. Even stand—up comedy was used

26

[Page 27]1: ADVANClNU 'I'Hli PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOI’S—THE COMMUNITY

and performed them for us. I have never seen this happen before and am watching, listening, and participating with great joy as more and more wonders unfold.

The performing arts, such as drama, music, and dance, have often been used in the past as a means of proclaiming the Faith t0 the general public. During the Plan, communities learned to use them more effectively by linking them to core activities. For example, when youth dance workshops from the United States and Canada travelled to Thailand, the Thai community arranged for them to perform only at schools attended by Bahá’í students rather than before the general public. When the dance presentations generated interest among the pupils, their Bahá’í classmates were ready to follow up by inviting these new seekers to core activities. Through repeat performances at the same schools, a positive relationship between the Faith and the faculties was nurtured, resulting in some teachers also becoming interested in participating in the core activities.

Storytelling has gained added importance, as those in Book 4 practise recounting tales from Bahá’í history during home visits. In order to hone this skill, a number of communities offered workshops in storytelling.

Classes for children and youth over the years have

utilized singing, drawing, and drama. But now those working with the younger members of the community are often learning in their institute courses how to use the arts more effectively to enrich these classes through dance, puppetry, and other crafts.

The enhancement of Bahá’í community life by the arts was particularly evident in cluster reflection meetings where planning and consultation were generally combined with cultural presentations and joyous music. This greater integration of the arts extended to the programmes of National Conventions, Nineteen Day Feasts, Holy Day celebrations, and summer schools. Musical and dramatic performances as well as films and artistic displays were among the creative endeavours that livened and enriched the experience of the Bahá’í’s and their guests.

In Guajuviras, Brazil, a group of enterprising Bahá’í women used their skills with crafts not only to promote the core activities but also to begin an economic development project by forming a weekly arts and crafts group at the Bahá’í Centre. It was very informally organized, with each believer in the group taking a turn teaching the others a craft. The intention was to have another means of attracting their friends and neighbours to the Centre and eventually to core activities. After two months, the women formed a devotional gathering and :1 crafts class on one day and a study circle on the next.

to help participants reflect on aspects of learning about growth. The performance oFa play by the friends in Mali, portraying the need for unity in a religiously diverse society, acted as a catalyst for the establishment ofa neighbourhood devotional meeting in the Bamako cluster. This regular devotional meeting, which is sometimes hosted by non—Bahá’ís, has become a centerpiece of neighbourhood activity with residents coming

T/JE’ believer: in a rmzfermce in Bahia, Brazil, learn bow to incorporate drumming and traditional art: into

the institute process.

Z7

[Page 28]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary OfAc/Jievement5 and Learning

Tutors in Pert/a, Australia, prepare a puppet 5/9010 abourpmyer.

Tlae children in 4 84/912 ’1’ class in Pune, Maharashtra, India, begin their class with #16

chanting ofpmyers.

together to pray for specific needs of the

community, such as the protection of children and harmony between husbands and wives. The devotional meeting has also proven a rich source of new study circle participants.

One means of encouraging the use of the arts is to provide training. In Barbados, workshops in puppetry were offered, and the children who received the training created a puppet show about aspects of living a Bahá’í life, which was then presented around the island. The Singapore community offered workshops on storytelling and drama. Newsletters for training institute tutors in Australia included pages with specific suggestions about artistic activities that could be used to enhance study circles. And in New Zealand, a special meeting of Bahá’í’s with artistic expertise was held to share and explore how they could contribute to the enrichment of Bahá’í community life.

Children’s Classes

Another outcome of the coherent pattern of activity in communities which the House of Justice noted is that “classes for the spiritual education of children and junior youth serve to strengthen the roots of the Faith in the local population.”28 This was one of the most successful endeavours of the Five Year Plan—the establishment of neighbourhood—based activities for children and junior youth.

Numerous reports spoke of believers, including junior youth and youth, beginning modest classes in their homes to teach children of relatives and neighbours. The story of one family in Ghana illustrates how, by working together with other believers, it was possible for one family to serve the children of a neighbourhood—primarily the children of local artisans, many ofwhom could not afford to send their children to school. It began with a Bahá’í family observing a game of football and realizing that the friends of their grandchildren playing near their home were potential seekers. The family consulted and decided to offer Bahá’í children’s classes in their home for the neighbourhood children and also provide a safe place to play sports. They improved the playing area, provided sports equipment, and began to invite the local children to both learn and play. They were supported in this by another believer who baked cakes for the sessions and by several youth who assisted With the classes. Other believers helped by donating desks and benches. The number of children grew from IO to 60, so it became possible to divide the class into smaller age groups. This effort, begun in 2002, has continued, and as a result those Children who are now junior youth and youth continue to participate in Bahá’í activities.

The children’s classes have made it easier to introduce regular devotional

28

[Page 29]1: ADVANCING 'I'Hli PROCESS 0|: ENTRY BY ’I‘Iwops—"FHE COMMUNI’I‘Y

Transformation of Roma Children and Iunior Youth

ORK WITH THE PIVOTAL age group junior

youth, as with younger children, proved

to be effective at strengthening “the roots of the Faith in the local population”. One inspiring story comes from Tajikistan where a junior youth group was begun among the Roma (Gypsy) community, the only illiterate minority population in that country, which has had a long history of being ostracized and persecuted. When the animator first started her class, none ofher pupils could read or write. They began by listening and memorizing the lessons. She began to add supplementary materials to assist their learning and showered so much love upon them that they refused to accept any other teacher when she wanted to rely on others for help. Through these classes, the Roma youth became inspired and transformed. They became motivated to receive an education and to change their community. They brought their younger siblings to children’s classes

Tbejum'oryoutb animator with [767' class of Roma

jzmz'oryout/y.

and began to look for reasons to spend more time with their teacher. Before taking part in the junior youth programme, it was impossible to involve the Roma youth in service activities, as they considered this an act of humiliation. But after participating in the junior youth programme, they began to approach service with joy and willingly began to improve their neighbourhood by sweeping and cleaning the streets and whitewashing trees.

meetings fol' [hC parents . . . in the

the help of the Children, meeting with

neighbourhood. During these meetings the work of~ the children is exhibited and the parents commend the teachers for the good work they are doing with their children. . . . The children now know a lot about the Faith and some have expressed the wish to become Bahá’í’s one day. Because of. . . the stories they are told about ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, they have devel oped a great love For Him.

In Colombia, a mother inspired by what she learned in Book 3 decided to organize classes For children in her highrise apartment building. She offered them to a group of Children playing in the common area outside the building and held the first Class in the main lobby. Then she went door-to-door, with

parents, and inviting them to send their children to the class. This neighbourhood—based approach has proved to be an effective means of multiplying children’s classes in Bahá’í communities. As more and more communities began to offer classes for children, they discovered a great longing for them. For example, a report From Lesotho said that not only were children’s classes the most widely conducted of the core activities, but that in some villages they were the only children’s activity taking place, which underlined “the conclusion reached by some of the friends that our success in spreading the Teachings of our Faith will come from the children.” But this success had another benefit—the closer integration of the children into the Bahá’í community.

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[Page 30]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary OfAr/Jievemmts and Learning

ByAprz'12006, t/aere were well over 10, 000 classes serving more than 93,000 children, Ofw/7ic/7 56per cent camefiom t/ae wider

communily.

The report from Lesotho added that the sense of “ownership of the Faith” has now extended to children and they contribute to the Bahá’í Funds regularly, even if the amount is small. The children are also inviting their friends to devotional meetings and Bahá’í Classes and participating in teaching trips.

The institute process and its emphasis on the education of children can lead to other forms of positive transformation that further deepen the connection between the Faith and the wider community. The Sardar minority community, considered a lower caste in Nepal, had never believed in or supported the formal education of children. When several Sardar adults attended a course using Book 1 and their children began attending Bahá’í children’s classes, they became motivated to send their children to school. For the first time, Sardar Children started enrolling in the local public school. There are now 25 to 30 attending the school and many also attend the Bahá’í children’s classes with great enthusiasm. The teacher of the local school was so grateful for this breakthrough that he came to the Bahá’ís to thank them for bringing about this “minor revolution”.

The largest, most systematic approach to providing Bahá’í education for children was undoubtedly the Bahá’í Education in State Schools (BESS) programme in Australia which, while initiated before 2001, expanded and improved significantly during the Five Year Plan. A number of school principals, as a means of attracting enrolments to their school, promoted the fact that they offered Bahá’í Classes. 50 great was the demand for this programme From school administrators and non—Bahá’í’ parents that the community could not raise up a sufficient number of teachers. At the conclusion of the Plan, the BESS programme was serving more than 6,000 children throughout Australia, and more than 90 per cent of them were from non—Bahá’í families.

The increase in the number of children’s classes worldwide during the Five Year Plan Was dramatic. At the beginning of the Plan, there were some 3,800 children’s classes worldwide serving 42,000 children, the vast majority of whom (87 per cent) came from Bahá’í families. By April 2006, there were well over 10,000 Classes serving more than 93,000 children, of which 56 per cent came from the wider community.

Some of this increase occurred within a very short span of time. Examples abound:

' In May 2001, there were 4 children’s Classes in Cambodia with a total of about 130 students. By October 2002, the number of classes had grown to 45 with nearly 1,000 students. At the end of the Plan, there were 169 Classes in the country with 2,289 children.

' The number of Children’s classes in Mongolia increased from 11 to 32 between April 2001 and October 2002. By the end of the Plan, there were 186 classes serving 796 children of which 548 came from non—Bahá’í families.

' Between the beginning of the Plan and October 2002, Nepal raised the number of children attending its Bahá’í classes from 168 to 700. In October 2002, 525 of the children were from non—Bahá’í families.

' During the first 18 months of the Plan, Taiwan raised the number of children’s Classes from 6 with 43 students to 20 classes with 127 participants.

Undoubtedly, much credit for the upsurge in the education of children must be given to the large number of friends who studied Book 3, which is devoted to the spiritual education of children. Even those who completed the book but did not teach a Children’s class gained a heightened awareness of Children and their needs, and acquired basic

3o

[Page 31]skills to work with young children. By the conclusion of the Plan, nearly 75,000 persons had completed Book 3.

In addition, during this period many National Spiritual Assemblies finished the work begun during the Twelve Month Plan ofestablishing an infrastructure for Children’s activities. These efforts continue to evolve, but by the end of the Five Year Plan, all countries had in place an administrative framework for carrying out classes for children and basic teacher training, and most had adopted or developed curriculum materials. Classes were generally held on a regular weekly basis rather than sporadically, as was done in the past. Most classes remained small and covered a wide age span, but increasingly many communities were able to divide the children into classes according to age as the number ofchildten and teachers increased.

In well—established communities Where classes for children had long been held at a central location serving a wide geographic area, the friends began to learn the value of smaller neighbourhood classes, which made it easier For the children of non—Bahá’í’ families to attend and more firmly planted the children's class into the culture of‘ the neighbourhood. This decentralization led to an upsurge in the overall number of children attending. Children became more integrated into the life of the community through a variety of means, including the establishment of newsletters for Children and special programmes for them at Nineteen Day Feasts, summer schools, and other gatherings. A number ofcommunities also held children’s festivals 0r camps for children during school holidays.

Communities in many countries reported holding programmes for parents, from simple deepening sessions on family life or spiritual parenting to more systematic programmes such as the “My Home” series developed and used in Europe. The friends increas I: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOl’S—THE COMMUNITY

ingly found that parents, eager to have their children receive moral and spiritual training, were also receptive to the Faith and could easily be invited to attend core activities. Home visits to the families of children attending Bahá’í classes became an effective tool for not only reinforcing the learning of the school within the family but also for introducing the family to the Faith. For example, in Colombia during 2005, two kinds of visits were carried out with the parents of the children. In the first visit, the children’s class programme was presented, and the parents and teachers deepened on the importance of the spiritual education of children. The second Visit was aimed at directly teaching the Faith. Approximately 430 parents were Visited, ofwhich an astonishing 60 per cent accepted the Faith and registered their children as Bahá’í's. Class presentations for parents using drama and music: further served as a natural way of cementing the relationship between the Faith and the families involved.

Junior Youth

Programmes for young people between the ages of 12 and 15 are pivotal to raising up large numbers of human resources within a community. A year before the

beginning of the Five Year Plan, the

In London njum'oryout/J gToup take: out timefor a social activity.

31

[Page 32]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jievements and Learning

Junior Youth Serving as Teachers of Children

5 THE SMALL GROUP ofchildren repeat the Awotds of Bahá’u’lláh, “A kindly tongue is the lodestone of the hearts of men. . . .”, a little eight—year—old exclaims, “And of women, too!” Her 16—year—old teacher smiles and lovingly explains that these words of Bahá’u’lláh certainly apply to women as well. The class then resumes its lessons for the day. This happy Bahá’í children’s class has been going on for more than four years where it is held at the teacher’s family home on the outskirts of the town ofjinotepe, Nicaragua. Its young teacher started the Class when she was only a junior youth. She recounts how it got under way and prospered.

I began the children’s class when I was only 12 years old, with a year—of-service youth, but he only came three times. I had not studied Book 3, so I began before I was trained. By the time I was trained, I already had a lot of experience.

The H neighbourhood children who attend regularly enjoy the class so much that, according to the teacher, “During vacations they take advantage of the opportunity and come to class daily, instead of weekly.” The children have learned all 15 lessons from Ruhi Institute Book 3 very well and have also learned other lessons using the same methodology.

To reinforce her work with the children, the youth teacher visits the parents of her pupils, usually accompanied by another Bahá’í. During these Visits she asks the parents for their opinions about the classes. They usually respond that the classes are good because they provide a positive supervised activity when their children would otherwise be alone while the parents are at work.

A youth takes the responsibilityfir tmc/yinga regular children} ([455 in the Carazo cluster, Nicaragua.

One of the themes the young Bahá’í teacher shares with parents during these Visits is that there are different kinds of education. Through consultation, parents begin to see that their children need not only material and intellectual education, but also spiritual education—the teaching of spiritual qualities and virtues. They come to appreciate that the Bahá’í classes teach the children to understand and practise spiritual qualities in their daily lives. Parents then affirm that this is beneficial and necessary for their children.

“I hope that everyone will be encouraged to give children’s classes," the teacher says. “It is a beautiful sewice . . . you learn so much about being spiritual.”

32

[Page 33]I: ADVANCING 'I'I IF.

House of Justice highlighted this “speCial group with special needs” and stated that “creative attention must be devoted to involving them in programmes of activity that will engage their interests [and] mould their capacities for teaching and service”.39 This requires viewing the age group as not just older children for whom programmes must be available, but as young people in a critical period oflife during which spiritual allegiances are set and when capacities for service begin to bloom.

Near the midpoint of the Five Year Plan, courses for junior youth became available after years of gradual development in pilot projects. Scores ofjunior youth animators were trained, especially during the last year of the Plan, and communities set out to expand their work with this age group. Gradually what had begun as a social and economic development endeavour, known as the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Programme, became closely integrated with the work of the training institutes. Commenting upon the importance of these programmes, the House of Justice wrote:

What has become especially appar ent during the current Five Year Plan is the efficacy of educational programmes aimed at the spiritual empowerment of junior youth. When accompanied for three years through a programme that enhances their spiritual perception, and encouraged to enter the main sequence ofinstitute courses at the age offifteen, they represent a vast reservoir of energy and talent that can be devoted to the advancement of spiritual and material civilizationx’U

In country after country, this age group has proved to be especially receptive. In Canada, during the course of one evening, teams visited 55 homes in one neighbourhood to invite the families to send their children and junior youth to a series of activities and found 38 families ready to participate. They also invited 22 other junior youth they met in public parks and along streets in the same neighbourhood. In all, 39 junior youth and children participated in the week—Iong programme ofsocial, artistic, and sporting activities. At the conclusion

PROCESS or ENTRY BY TROOPS—THE COMMUNITY

Ajzmiaryout/a group in Godamc/azmr, Nepal, studie: "Breezes ofConfirmatz'on”.

33

[Page 34]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jieuemmts and Learning

. . . by Ridm’n 2006 more than 3,000 junioryout/a groups had been formed, involving over 25,000 particzpam‘s, ofw/Jom nearly balfwereflom fizmi/z'es that were not 84/152 ’13.

of the programme, I7 junior youth formally registered to begin a junior youth group with the complete support of their parents. The junior youth programme in Mauritius began in 2004 with six junior youth groups and this number had nearly doubled by the end of the Plan. About 80 per cent of the pattieipants come from non—Bahá’í families and some of their parents have become involved in core activities. The Mongolia community has found junior youth to be so receptive that by 2004, the majority of believers in the Sainshand cluster were junior youth. That year they held their first Junior Youth Festival with 80 junior youth attending. The following year, these junior youth were carrying out most of the core activities and were active participants in the reflection meetings.

The directors ofa large educational centre in France were so impressed with the work that Bahá’ís were doing with younger Children that they gave their support to the establishment ofa junior youth group with 12 participants using the new material Breeze: OfConfirmzztion. A school in the Arctic region (North Calotte) was very pleased with the after-school programme offered to its 12—year—olds using Breeze: OfC071firmzztz'072, especially the drama the students created based on a story in the book. Similarly, in Yap in the Caroline Islands, a Bahá’í teacher was able to receive permission to operate an after—school programme for over 100 students using the Bahá’í junior youth material, again Breezes of Canfirmation, which was well received by both the students and their parents.

The junior youth programme in Kenya got under way in March 2004. Fifteen months later there were 111 animators and 53 groups with 949 participants, one—third onhom were not Bahá’ís. In the Lugari and Malava clusters, the parent—teacher association, as well as the education officer and area Chief, have

requested the programme because it has brought about “a noticeable change in the academic performance of the participating youth.” Sustained junior youth groups at the Ndiosmone village school in the Tattaguine cluster in Senegal resulted in such obvious improvement in both behaviour and academic performance amongst the 44 students who participated that both the school principal and Classroom teacher indicated that they will call on the Bahá’ís to conduct the programme at any future schools they are assigned to.

The junior youth themselves proved to be invaluable supporters of the Cause, who became staunch believers as they grew older. After the friends in Thailand began to concentrate on junior youth in one cluster, they found that after a few years of classes, these junior youth would bring their friends and classmates to the Bahá’í activities and were able to teach Children’s classes on their own. A new contingent ofjunior youth then became their assistants. Several of the youth who had started classes as junior youth and then completed the sequence of courses volunteered to live near the Bahá’í centre so that they could more easily assist as tutors. Junior youth in an after—school programme in Brazil committed themselves to teaching Classes for younger children and were very successFul. These young teachers spoke with pride and happiness at the progress their pupils were making. In Indonesia, a 13year—old pledged at a cluster gathering to bring 20 friends to devotional gatherings. In the end, he brought 21, the highest number for the cluster, with most adults bringing only 5 or 6.

While the development ofthis important activity only began to blossom in the final years of the Plan, by Riḍván 2006 more than 3,000 junior youth groups had been formed, involving over 25,000 participants, of whom nearly half were from families that were not Bahá’í's.

34

[Page 35]Home Visits

Community life has been enhanced over the past five years by the introduction of home visits to believers and seekers. Although visiting the friends was a practice long encouraged by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi, during the Five Year Plan visiting took on added dimensions and became more systematic. Associated with the practice component of Book 2, home visits were initially made to share deepening themes with new believers. In addition to developing the capacity of Bahá’í’s to present the fundamentals of the Faith, these visits proved to be an essential building block of developing a Bahá’í’ culture. What the Friends came to understand was that equally important to the act ofvisiting a fellow believer or seeker were the spiritual qualities they brought to this act ofsetvice. Carrying out the practice of home visits not only became empowering For individuals but also contributed to greater love and 501idarity in communities.

In addition to sharing deepening themes with new members of the Faith, home visits were undertaken to share prayers with others, to recount the stories from Bahá’í’ history learned in Book 4, and to directly share the Message of Bahá’u’lláh as part of 21 teaching campaign. Home Visits were also suggested by the House of Justice as a means of reestablishing contact with believers who had not been involved in Bahá’í’ activities for some time. The informal atmosphere provided an opportunity to uengage in meaningful conversation” and gradually introduce the idea of the institute courses.

A welcome outcome of home visits is that through these warm, informal interactions the believers are getting to know one another better, and friendships with family members and neighbours are being established and nurtured. Little wonder then, that in Battambang,

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS ox: ENTRY BY TROOI’S—THE COMMUNITY

Cambodia, more than 60 teams in the field are constantly carrying out home visits to maintain the ties of the believers to the community and with each other. A believer from Mongolia recounted the impact of home visits.

This was an eye-opening experience for everyone, as we saw how it was not difficult to multiply the core activities by visiting homes of believers, both active and less active, ifwe are able to be welcomed into the house. Whereas before we were trying to get people coming to our homes or the Bahá’í’ centres, now we saw that it is much more effective to initiate activities in

the homes of the people.

A believer in Slovakia noted how lonely many people seemed to be and, after carrying out her first successful home visit, exclaimed, “Thank God, also to this personal loneliness the Faith has a medicine—home visits, or spiritual Visits, as my friends and I called them after the last experience. It was incredible, natural, and simple."

The power of home visits to transform a community was exemplified in the Marshall Islands where the progress of the core activities in the early years of the Plan was rather slow and the pattern of study circles somewhat erratic. \Vith the introduction of home Visits, this dynamic changed. At first the friends focused on visiting less active Bahá’ís, whose response to the home visits was one of open enthusiasm. In some cases, non—Bahzi‘l' members of the extended family joined in the discussions and became involved in activities, and so the number of interested seekers expanded. Some of the communities followed up on their initial success by starting study circles, others began Children’s classes, and still others carried out both of these as well as devotional meetings. It became commonplace to find five 01‘ six study circles being held on a single evening.

What the fitends came to understand was that equally important to the act ofvisiting a fellow

believer or seeher were

the spiritual qualities they hrought to this ttct ofservt'ce.

35

[Page 36]7736’ Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Sztmmm‘y ofAc/Jicvcmmtx and Learning

Connecting Hearts to Bahá'u’lláh through Home Visits

TUTOR OF A RUHI INSTITUTE BOOK 2

study circle in Hungary realized that the

participants in his study circle had not really deepened anyone on all of the themes in that book. He discovered to his delight during a study circle consultation that one participant had already scheduled a visit to a receptive friend and another had planned to visit a new believer whose husband was a seeker. It was decided to carry out these home visits in pairs so that the study circle participants could encourage each other, with each one preparing part of the presentation. The tutor was teamed with a new believer and they were to pay a visit to the other new Baths” and her husband. Another believer decided to come along, bringing with him his Catholic mother who was interested in the Faith. To assist with the arrangements, the tutor’s wife offered to watch the young children of both families.

50 the day of the Visit arrived with the two new believers, two seekers, and two veteran believers all present. The tutor had prepared a presentation on the “Eternal Covenant of God” and his partner was ready to talk about the “Life of Bahá’u’lláh”.

The hosts expressed great joy that the others had come to visit and offered tea and biscuits as refreshments. Prayers were said and a few songs shared, which greatly elevated the atmosphere. The tutor then began his presentation. Remembering that moment, he said, “I didn’t want to just read the text but rather speak from the heart. But I did want to stick closely to the ideas and thoughts expressed beautifully in the deepening theme.” Then they all sang the prayer “Blessed is the spot”.

The prayers and the beauty and simplicity of the ideas visibly moved the Catholic mother who shared much From her own life with the group—including some of the trials she had experienced. This led to the group reflecting upon the significance of the sufferings of the Manifestations of God at the hands

of humanity. The tutor reported that Bahá’u’lláh’s Words “the Ancient Beauty hath consented to be bound with chains that mankind may be released from its bondage” seemed to have greater potency in that atmosphere as they were read to the group.

Next the group heard the second presentation on the “Life of Bahá’u’lláh”. The Bahá’í friend expressed anxiety beforehand because it was her first time giving a talk, although she was well prepared. However, when she began to speak, her fear vanished and she gave a clear, coherent, and heartfelt account of the events of the life of the Blessed Beauty. The tutor wrote that it was “like watching a film”. Awed, the tutor described that presentation:

Here was somebody who has been so moved by the majesty of Bahá’u’lláh’s life that she lifted the words from the pages, internalized them, made them her own, and then shared with us this most significant of themes in a sincere, engaging, and natural way. As far as I know, she is one of the first friends in Hungary who had herself received home visits after becoming a Bahá’í, including some deepening themes from Book 2, and now has gone on to do Book 2 herself and to hold presentations in other people’s homes using the very same materials.

After the talks, there were many questions, and follow—up visits were planned.

The tutor wrote enthusiastically about this first visit, “Having already had this experience, now our energy levels are really high. . . . Our efforts are far from perfect and we need to do these things again and again but as we (do), and not just talk about doing, confirmations come from on high, our eyes are opened to new realities and we grow in confidence, understanding, and effectiveness”.

36

[Page 37]The success of home visits in the Marshall Islands produced two significant outcomes. First, it brought into the institute process and core activities a relatively large number of adults, youth, and children, almost doubling the number of active believers in the community. The number of persons attending meetings expanded so much that a Local Spiritual Assembly considered doubling the size of its Bahá’í Centre. The second outcome was that relations were established with the ethnic Kiribati minority in the community. The report concludes, “There is a renewed spirit moving . . . and an increased commitment to the process of institute training among the friends”.

The Bahá’ís in the Solomon Islands also found home visits to be an effective way of reaching out to those believers who had not attended meetings for some time. When such visits were first undertaken, two believers who had stopped coming to community activities because ofa disunity problem reported feeling spiritually renewed because of the visits they received and pledged to put aside the past and resume their participation in the community. In Australia, some believers asked the Bahá’ís if they could visit again so as to share a prayer with their non—Bahá’í husbands, leading to the possibility of holding devotional meetings with those families.

Home Visits met with success even in areas of the world where visiting unannounced has not been part of the culture. This was especially true in northern and western Europe where many believers reported trepidation at first but after gaining the courage to carry out a home visit, found that people were not only receptive but longing for such visits.

The friends realized that it is perfectly acceptable in England to visit the home of another person, but it is usual to wait for an invitation from that person first. So, overcoming their

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOI’S—THE COMMUNITY

fears of breaking the cultural mould, they visited a new believer and shared one of the deepening themes. The new believer had recently been elected to a Local Assembly, and asked if they could come back the following week and help her deepen on that topic.

Looking back on the teaching campaign that gave them their first taste of home Visiting, one member ofa London teaching team commented:

Overall the single best preparation was praying. That allowed us to speak with our heart, and make a connection with their souls and Bahá’u’lláh. Over the two-week period we became more confident and less afraid to share a prayer. We didn’t feel like we had to make an excuse to share the Word of God, more like it was a Message we were dying to share.

Home visits also proved to be a useful tool to foster closer ties between the institutions of the Faith and those they serve. For example, several Local Spiritual Assemblies in the United States undertook Visiting all the members of their community to strengthen their ties to that institution and to better know

Friend: in tlae Greater Monrovia cluster aflz'beria

review their tedcbingplam.

37

[Page 38]7720 Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary OfAc/az'evemmtx and Learning

The believers in Whitehorse, Victoria, Australia, prepare chartsfor t/vez'r cluster reflection meeting.

their community. One evening the Local Assembly of Cambridge, Massachusetts, decided to carry out home visits instead of their regular Assembly meeting but approached the idea of unannounced visits with some apprehension. Reflecting upon the “exciting” results of their endeavour, the members said, “The first discovery was the power of the visits to help revitalize community life.”

What in the past might have been merely social calls took on new meaning as these visits were elevated to occasions focused on spiritual themes using the Creative Word of God. The character of the home visit experience is eloquently described by a tutor in the United Kingdom:

When we Visit our contacts or new believers and engage in conversation about spiritual matters, we form a closer bond offriendship. We are able to share the Word of God in an environment where our hosts are, quite literally, at home. They can ask the questions they might feel unable to ask in other Circumstances. Their family is able to join in and often does. . . . We are learning about teaching the Faith and about fostering community life through these simple practices.

a' ".

Reflection Meetings

As communities establish a strong institute process and begin to generate a greater number of human resources, another tool has been added to advance the process of entry by troops—reflection gatherings. These periodic meetings of consultation, “free from the demands

of formal decision—making”,31

“support an intense process of action, consultation and learning”. At such gatherings the friends can reflect on their experience, explore approaches, modify plans, and “maintain enthusiasm and unity of thought”.

Reflection meetings at the cluster level have helped believers and institutions acquire a clearer understanding of how they can contribute to achieving the central aim of the Plan. Consultations lead to a consensus on short—term goals, both for individuals and groups. The gatherings have also helped communities in clusters that comprise a number oflocalities develop a larger identity and learn to act collectively. The Broward County cluster in Florida, United States, consists of16 Local Assemblies. The participants in their reflection meetings reported that the gatherings were well planned and that they left with a unified sense of what they had achieved and what they were going to do next. Local Assemblies understood their segment of the cluster plan and were ready to assist the believers to act on it. The consultations were grounded in guidance about the Plan, and music and poetry kept “the atmosphere uplifting and spiritual” but were “not overused”.

Most reflection meetings, a time for “serious consultation” as well as “joyous celebration”,32 combine devotions, inspirational presentations, study of guidance from the Bahá’í World Centre, brief reports of community achievements since the last reflection meeting, consultation on the learning gained, the setting of goals, and fellowship. The arts enliven

38

[Page 39]and uplift these gatherings. Children and youth are active participants, with youth often assuming leadership roles. Participants leave reflection meetings spiritually refreshed and focused, with a Clear plan of action for the next few months.

Perhaps the largest such meeting held during the Plan was one in Daga, Papua New Guinea, Where more than a thousand people attended. Most gatherings, however, were much smaller, with many communities reporting increases in attendance as they gained more experience in organizing these gatherings and as the meetings became more joyful. Following are comments about reflection meetings in a variety of Clusters:

' The friends in Kiribati, with a long tradition of meetings in the village meeting house, naturally took to reflection meetings, which gave them a united Vision of the institute process and strengthened their support for it.

' The coordinator of the Austin, Texas cluster, United States, said that their reflection meetings have become like “family reunions”, because the friends from that large cluster with many localities are delighted to be together.

' Youth in Nepal in the Sunsari cluster not only assisted with the organization of the reflection meetings, they also Visited the believers ahead of time to encourage and educate them about the importance of those meetings.

' In the Scudai cluster in Malaysia, stories about great teachers of the Faith were used to inspire the friends at a reflection meeting. The meeting concluded with a special prayer session to pray for their upcoming teaching

campaign.

I Attendance at the meetings in the Greater Metropolitan Area cluster

1; ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY T ROOPS—THE COMMUNITY

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in Costa Rica was increased by organizing transportation at the time of the Nineteen Day Feasts, including not only the friends offering their own vehicles but also the chartering of minibuses. There is also a family spirit during the lunch period where the friends share picnic food with one another.

I Attendance at reflection meetings in Kenya has increased because it was systematically promoted: the Cluster growth facilitator encouraged the Local Assemblies to support the meetings; institute coordinators asked tutors to remind the Bahá’í’s to attend; and Auxiliary Board members enlisted their assistants to promote the

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A believer at a reflection meeting in the jalapa duster,

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39

[Page 40]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary offlcbz'ewmmts 4nd Learning

All over the world 34/14 ’1’ communities opened their doors more widely to #16 puélz'c during the Five YEW Plan . . .

meetings. According to the national coordinator, they have learned that the meetings must have “balance" and be “clear and short”, and that without the sharing of teaching experiences, there is no learning.

The Cluster coordinator in a rural area of India described the Changes brought about by the reflection meetings.

These gatherings have been responsible for great transformations. Activities have become more systematic and better organized. . . . We have noticed something very interesting—reguiar and effective reflection gatherings initially resulted in a constant increase in the level ofindividual initiative. But later, we discovered that even though these instances of individual initiative continued and in fact increased, participation in reflection gatherings gave the believers a greater “community orientation”, motivating them to work more effectively in groups. These developments have greatly contributed to the quality of teaching activities which are now attracting the enthusiastic and confident involvement ofan increasing number of believers. Such community spirit is also contributing to the strengthening of Local Spiritual Assemblies.

The impact ofsuch gatherings was confirmed by the House of Justice in its 27 December 2005 message: “Reflection meetings at the Cluster level are becoming a forum for the discussion of needs and plans, creating a collective identity

))

and strengthening the collective will

An Outward—Lookjng

Orientation

All over the world Bahá’í communities opened their doors more widely to the public during the Five Year Plan, and sought to include those attracted

to the Faith in the diverse activities of community life. Individuals who were investigating the Faith often became an integral part ofcore activities, representing a growing number of souls who shared the values of the Bahá’í’s and gradually began to identify with them. Increasingly the believers reached out to their friends, relatives, neighbours, and co—Workers, and the participation of these groups and their Families in the community expanded the Circles of friendship Further. The House of Justice referred to this outward—looking orientation as “one of the finest fruits”3 of learning during the Plan. In welcoming larger numbers into the life of the community, the Bahá’í’s learned “to see more readily the latent potentiality in people”, “to avoid setting artificial barriers for them”,“ and ultimately to diminish the distinction between the Bahá’í’s and the wider community. Increasingly the often repeated description of the Faith that it represents a “wide embrace” became a reality.

The pattern of community activity Characterized by study Circles, devotional meetings, children’s classes, and junior youth groups met the needs and nourished the souls of families. This experience was keenly felt in the advanced Clusters where the multiplication of core activities had taken place and the reach of the Faith could extend into neighbourhoods. Referring to the results of this outward—looking orientation, the National Spiritual Assembly of India wrote at the end of the Plan: “The process of the Bahá’í communities opening their activities has been slow but successful. About 70 to 80 per cent of the participants in Bahá’í’ Classes for children are from non-Bahá’í’ families and 50 to 60 per cent of seekers participate in the devotional meetings. A large percentage ofseekers who join study eircies go on to accept the Faith.”

The friends are learning through experience that anyone can be attracted to Bahá’u’lláh. In the United States,

4o

[Page 41]Christians who joined study Circles with the intent of leading Bahá’ís to Christ, found a warm welcome and acceptance of their Faith, which broke down barriers for the Christian participants. One finally exclaimed, “I can’t believe I had missed my Lord For so long!” Similarly, a staunch Catholic began to attend a Book I study Circle in Colombia but stated emphatically that she was attached to her own Faith. The woman eventually became a Bahá’í'. After her declaration she was asked why she had become a believer despite her attachment to Catholicism. She replied that the Bahá’ís in her study circle made her Feel accepted.

In Kiribati, a teaching team found itself in the company of a man who was known in the village as a hopeless alcoholic who had been rejected by his family and had been homeless for more than 30 years. Undeterred by his appearance or degraded situation, they encouraged him to join a Book 1 study circle. The man became a believer and finished the sequence of courses. This man completely transformed himselfin manner and appearance. He then began to attract many individuals to the Faith and established a number of study Circles for seekers.

A Bahá’í in Mauritius who had embraced the Faith in 2004 realized, after attending a Cluster reflection meeting, that he should make efforts to involve others in the core activities. He systematically contacted approximately 500 persons, and 96 of these attended devotional meetings he hosted. This led to four new study circles for his contacts, and the number of children attending Bahá’í children’s classes increased from 9 to 35 Ofparticular significance has been the outreach to special and often receptive groups such as immigrant populations. In Austria, for many years there has been an ongoing effort to work with believers and seekers who are Turkish and this intensified during the Plan. Other areas

1: ADVANCINC. THE PROCESS 0|: ENTRY BY TROOPS—TI—IE COMMUNITY

ofWestern Europe have also begun interactions with Turkish immigrants with assistance from the Turkish community. The friends in Malaysia took migrant workers from Nepal through many or all of the institute courses and over 100 became Bahá’í’s in a single cluster. In the Vancouver, Canada cluster, there has been success in bringing the Faith to students of Chinese background. In the United States, the friends in Broward County, Florida, have been working with immigrants from Haiti and Latin America, and believers in the New York City cluster have established a devotional meeting at the Bahá’í Centre for Spanish-speaking immigrants. Australia has developed classes for children and junior youth of immigrant families from Afghanistan and Africa. This is but a small sample of the outreach to particular populations.

Because of the long—standing conflicts in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Rwanda, many people have been displaced and some have ended up in the refugee camps in western Tanzania. The friends in the nearby clusters recognized and seized the opportunity to teach in two of these camps, Lugufu and Nyarugusu, together with a few Bahá’ís who were among these refugees. Soon the number of Bahá’í’s increased and the friends slowly introduced the institute process. As a result, these two camps now have over 800 and 600 Bahá’ís, with 61 and 42 individuals having completed the sequence of courses, respectively. Intensive programmes of growth have been launched in both areas.

Many communities have focused attention on groups within the population that seemed especially receptive. For example, in a cluster in Ethiopia a number of high school students were taken through the sequence of courses, resulting in over 400 enrolments. Parents, schoolteachers, university students, to name a few, have all shown marked interest in the Teachings of the Faith. As a

cluster coordinator for Austin, Texas,

Ofpartz'cular significance lads been the outreach to special and ofim receptive groups such as immigrant populations.

41

[Page 42]7716 Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jz'evement: mzd Learning

Witk so much activity, a primary aim] ongaing challenge was to maintain

focus. . . .

“This ability, slowly acquired through successive Plans, represents 07% of

its most valuable assets, bard won through disczp/ine, commitment and

foresight . . . ”

United States, remarked, “We haven’t Found any group that is not receptive.”

And, of course, the believers continued to work to tear down barriers in their societies through the Faith’s “uncompromising appreciation for a diversity of backgrounds and for the strength it confers on the whole”. Nepal, for example, has long been plagued by a caste system, yet within Nepalese study Circles, lower and upper caste people sat together and studied the books of the institute courses. One study circle in the United Kingdom had participants who were Austrian, English, German, Indian, Irish, Kenyan, Russian, and who hailed from the following backgrounds: Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christian; Hindu; Bahá’í’; and atheist.

Maintaining Focus

With so much activity, a primary and ongoing challenge was to maintain focus. The House of Justice identified focus as an important orientation learned in the Plan.

This ability, slowly acquired through successive Plans, represents one of its most valuable assets, hard won through discipline, commitment and foresight as the friends and their institutions have learned to pursue the single aim of advancing the process of entry by troops.55

The institutions and agencies learned through many means a number of valuable lessons about how to keep the friends focused upon the tasks at hand. An important element in learning to maintain focus Was the role of encouragement. In this, they were inspired by the 9 January 2001 words of the Universal House Justice: “In every avenue ofservice, the friends need sustained encouragement. . . . When training and encouragement are effective, a culture ofgrowth is nourished”.36

Auxiliary Board members and Local Spiritual Assemblies, as well as institute coordinators and members of Area Teaching Committees, made direct personal contact with individuals to help them understand and to encourage them to become involved in the processes of the Plan. Encouragement to continue through to the end of the sequence of courses, to carry out the practical components of the courses, and to think in new ways about how to bring the Message of Bahá’u’llzih to others was key to the successes in advanced clusters.

Tutors learned that participants in their study circles were more likely to walk the path of service if they were accompanied from the beginning to establish core activities. Nineteen Day Feasts, reflection meetings, refresher gatherings OftL1tors and children’s class teachers, and summer and winter schools were utilized to further reinforce this encouragement and focus. An excellent example of the use ofigatherings for this purpose occurred in the United States where the Regional Bahá’í Council of the Southern States held a training conference For representatives of “B” clusters to help them Focus on what needed to be done to advance to the “A" stage of development, and to encourage them to achieve it. Looking back at the end of the Five Year Plan, the National Spiritual Assembly of Seychelles described its

community’s achievements in this way:

The friends are beginning to understand why they should intensify activity, why the need to maintain focus, at the same time to be both manageable and systematic in their planning. The role of the various agencies working at the cluster level is becoming clearer as minor mistakes are ignored and an attitude of learning is adopted. Marked improvements have been noticed in the way reflection meetings are held and the efficacy with which important information is

42

[Page 43]shared with the participants. On the whole both national agencies and the friends in general are gradually coming to grips with their responsibilities.

Setting Priorities

Setting priorities proved essential. For example, many fledgling communities were urged to focus on doing only one of the core activities before initiating others. Communities learned that large teaching campaigns drained resources and had few results if sufficient human resources were not yet in place to consolidate the gains. In the early years of the Five Year Plan, National Assemblies identified “priority” clusters, that is, those with the greatest potential to firmly establish the institute process and grow rapidly. These were given special attention in the allocation of resources, with the knowledge that through the creation of strong, growing communities, new believers would be generated and trained, who could then assist in the development of the institute process and the expansion and consolidation work in other clusters. Prioritization sometimes meant that worthy activities which could distract from the essential thrust Ofthe Plan had to be put aside or deferred, on the understanding that “not all activities have the same importance at a given stage ofgrowth and that some must necessarily take precedence over others”.37 During the course of the Plan, as human resources increased, so too did the number of priority clusters. Understanding the necessity of setting priorities trickled down to the level of the cluster and the individual believers. In Ukraine, members of teaching teams grappled with their busy schedules. As

one member recounted,

When we met for the first time we realized that we hardly had any free

I: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF EN'I‘RY BY TROOPS—THE COMMUNITY

time. If we were going to spend our time on the meetings of our teaching team, there would be no time to

teach. What do you think we did? We

met at 9:00 p.m.l

These friends realized that if they were focused during their meetings, even these would not take long. An inspirational talk by an Auxiliary Board member at a reflection gathering in Colombia focused on service and “placing Bahá’u’lláh at the centre of our lives”. It had the effect of helping those present “establish priorities in their lives and better understand the intimate relationship between being

and doing.”

The “enhanced vitality”38 demonstrated by Bahá’í communities in the past few years reflects the integration of a number of elements associated with the framework of this Five Year Plan. It began with the changes taking place in the lives of individual believers, particularly because of the influence of the institute process. The core activities acted not only as portals for many more souls to come in contact With the community of the Greatest Name; they also enhanced the spiritual Character of Bahá’í communities. The focus that the Plan required helped the believers to sustain a common vision and strengthened their unity through action. All of these developments contributed to the changes taking place that were described in the following words of the House of Justice:

As the spiritual foundations of the community are fortified . . ., the level of collective discourse is raised, social relations among the friends take on new meaning, and a sense of common purpose inspires their interactions.”

C53

“not all activities lmzxe tlae same importance at a given stage of growth and . . . some must necessarily take precedence over others”

43

[Page 44]In the NW cluster, Democratic Republic Oftbe Conga, an entirefizmzly .rtudie: t/ae guidance of the Universal House of justice for the Five Year Plan.

THE INSTITUTIONS

N ITS 27 DECEMBER 2005 message,

the Universal House of Justice stated

that “none of the accomplishments of the individual or the community could be sustained without the guidance, encouragement and support of the third participant in the Plan—the institutions of the Faith.”40 The House of Justice further noted, “It is heartening to see to what extent the institutions are promoting individual initiative, channelling energies into the teaching field, underscoring the value of systematic action, fostering the spiritual life of the community and nurturing a welcoming environment.”“ These institutional capacities For contributing to the process of systematic growth were demonstrated at all levels—national, regional, and cluster—as the institutions and agencies acquired new experiences and gained fresh insights.

In promoting individual initiative, one of the most effective means proved to be “sustained encouragement”. Many members ofinstitutions quickly learned that a critical dimension of encouragement was [0 stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the rest of the believers whose ener gies they wished to channel. In many instances the dynamic force of personal example of the members of institutions was demonstrated through their commitment to proceed through the sequence of courses and, working with their fellow Bahá’í's, to carry out core activities. The institutions also promoted the process of growth by mobilizing the resources at their disposal, basing their decisions on frequent study of the guidance from the Bahá’í World Centre related to the Five Year Plan. Many Local Spiritual Assemblies began to use opportunities presented at the Nineteen Day Feasts to promote participation in the institute courses and attendance at the cluster reflection meetings. The Local Spiritual Assembly of New York City in the United States sent individual letters to those who had completed the first few courses of the sequence, praising them for this accomplishment and urging them to complete the sequence. The Local Spiritual Assembly of Dallas, Texas, in the United States held two special meetings with those who had completed Ruhi Institute Books 1, 2, 3,

and 6 to encourage them to carry out the

[Page 45]acts of service for which they had been trained. National Spiritual Assemblies and Regional Bahá’í Councils have also begun to use various means available to them such as circular letters to the believers, newsletters, and presentations at National Conventions and other large gatherings, to inspire and motivate the friends to become involved in the work of the Plan. Through these various approaches the institutions gained experience and increased confidence in how to channel the energies and talents of the believers into the all important teaching work.

Drawing on what had been learned during the two previous Plans about the value of systematic action, the institutions of the Faith helped their communities to maintain focus on “priorities wisely set”."'3 Re—examining administrative approaches led many national communities to undertake a process of reflection in the light of the realities and requirements of promoting a culture of growth. In several cases the number of national committees were radically reduced to ensure that the processes ofgrowth received the appropriate priority and that as many believers as possible were released to focus on the teaching work. The National Spiritual Assemblies of Kenya and Germany were notable examples of Assemblies that took this action. This approach was also replicated at the local level. The Local Spiritual Assembly of Baltimore, Maryland in the United States decided to reconfigure committee assignments to Free as many members ofits community as possible to become involved in the institute process and core activities. Budgets were also reassessed as community after community looked at their priorities with new eyes. An example of an institution whose priorities were defined by the Five Year Plan was the Local Spiritual Assembly of Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. The

first item on its agenda at every meet ing was “How can the Assembly assist in achieving the cluster goals?”

In many instances the needs of the Plan also demanded greater decentralization. For instance, in 2002 the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom, took a close look at its priorities and, through streamlining and consolidation ofposts. reduced the staffing of its national office so that funds could be freed up for the regional agencies. This, then, enabled the Assembly to support, for the first time, the post ofa Full—time regional training institute coordinator. The creation of this position, in turn, allowed for greater focus to be applied to the clusters, as the regional coordinator was now able to pay Closer and more systematic attention to the development of cluster coordinators, ensuring that the institute process was vigorously promoted at that level. In another instance the National Spiritual Assembly of Australia devolved the responsibilities of its National Child Education Committee to the Regional Bahá’í Councils because it was apparent that sufficient capacity existed at that level to move forward the vital task of child education.

The institutions have witnessed the enhanced spiritual vitality of their communities as a result of the impulse imparted by the institute process. What proved to be one of the most effective means of promoting the sense of vitality, commitment, and unity of purpose among the believers was the cluster reflection gathering. These meetings, when well organized in advance by the cluster institutions and agencies, brought joy to the hearts of the friends and inspired them to carry out greater acts ofservice. Local Spiritual Assemblies encouraged the believers to attend these gatherings, and through the participation of their own members, were able to harness the heightened enthusiasm and commitment of the friends. Another means of creating a nurturing environment has been

The institutions have witnessed the enhanced spiritual vitality Oft/76ir communities as a result Oftke impulse imparted by Ike

institute process.

I: ADVANCING THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOI’S—Tl IE INSTITUTIONS

45

[Page 46]7796 Five Yéar Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/aievements and Learning

Clutter agencies in Murun, Mongolia, plan for the first cycle Oft/aez'r imemive

programme ofgrowth.

home visits. Reports indicate that Local Spiritual Assemblies in particular found this approach to be immensely helpful in establishing warm connections among the members of the community. In fact, some Assemblies, such as Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States, sent out their members to conduct home Visits with all of their community members.

The spiritual vitality of the community was also fostered by the institutions through their increased utilization of the services of the youth who naturally added a special spirit to every endeavour. Even those too young to vote in Bahá’í elections were nonetheless encouraged by the institutions to serve in responsible ways. For example, youth were supported by Local Spiritual Assemblies in countries such as Costa Rica, Nepal, and Nicaragua when they arose to carry out children’s classes. The youth served as teachers, while the Assemblies made necessary resources available to them. And of course, the Assemblies and other agencies benefited from the increased activity of their communities.

One of the welcome results of the new vibrancy is an expanding number of participants in core activities who have a growing recognition of the Cause. This development challenges the Bahá’í community to re—conceptualize its boundaries and create a nurturing environment

for the ever—swelling body ofindividuals walking together the path towards Bahá’u’lláh. Administering to this new element of the community requires that they be regarded as integral to the Bahá’í community. The institutions began to think in fresh terms about the needs of these newfound friends by making them feel at home within a Bahá’í environment. Local Assemblies, in particular, began to learn how to work alongside the cluster agencies in identifying, welcoming, and nurturing seekers and, in doing so, acquired a heightened consciousness about the “growth—producing milieu”43 they must create. In some cases those who were not yet declared Bahá’ís even attended the cluster reflection gatherings, and added their pledges to those of the believers in the promotion of the Cause. Assemblies began to learn to warmly accept and utilize these offers of service. The institutions also found that as they emphasized the practice elements of the courses—the natural expression of the learning and insight that accrue from the study of institute materialsthere were those who, though not yet outwardly Bahá’ís, nonetheless Wished to serve as tutors, teachers of children and junior youth, and as hosts of devotional gatherings, often in partnership with the Bahá’ís.

Cluster Agencies

During the Four Year Plan, National Spiritual Assemblies established training institutes with governing boards in order to create a systematic framework for raising up human resources. In the Five Year Plan, it became necessary to augment the effectiveness of the training institutes With additional administrative systems at the Cluster level. Training institutes began to appoint cluster institute coordinators, Who were under the supervision of a national or regional coordinator, to operate at the grass roots. The services of these individuals proved vital to the

46

[Page 47]l: ADVANCINU THE PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOPS—TH 1?, INSTI'i‘U'I‘IONs

Reflection Meetings Bring Joy to Rural India

HE Bihar Sharif CLUSTER in northeast India

is typical of the rural areas of that vast sub continent. Roads are primitive and the terrain requires many circuitous routes to travel short distances. But the kilometres of walking required to attend a cluster reflection meeting do not deter the Bahá’í’s; in fact, they are eager to go and bring along seekers.

Years earlier the Bihar Sharif area had experienced rapid growth through mass teaching, but then the work of the Faith fell behind until the last year of the Four Year Plan when the institute process brought the community out of its dormancy and renewed its activity and vigour. Much of the success in the cluster can be attributed to the reflection meetings, which rallied the believers to become engaged in the institute process and core activities. The first reflection meeting was held in 2001 with only a few friends from three or four communities present, but by 2004 the average attendance was about one hundred, representing 16 communities.

The day—long reflection meetings rotate throughout the Cluster with each area honoured to take its turn as host. The host community creates a festive atmosphere and prepares a feast for the attendees. The presence of so many visitors in the town or village generates a stir among the other inhabitants. Curious to see what is going on, they observe and even participate in the activities, which include the study of the guidance in the Five Year Plan, accounts of experiences, special reports, artistic performances, and presentations by children. There are spirited consultations during which challenges are discussed and suggestions are made for how to meet these challenges. Observing all this well—planned but lively activity has sparked interest in the guests, who have often become drawn to the core activities and ultimately embraced the Faith.

One notable feature of the gatherings, in an area where women and children are not normally forthcoming in public, is their active participation in all aspects of the meeting, including speaking up and making presentations. One of those present remembers the time when some junior youth addressed a crowd of 300.

One of the things I can never forget about that gathering was when three junior youth were asked to come up to the microphone and share their feelings on participating in the junior youth programme, which had been introduced in the cluster just a month before. Everybody was amazed when these young boys spoke confidently before this vast gathering and recounted their experiences, whereas traditionally such young people are generally very shy and incapable of speaking before large gatherings.

These cluster meetings have helped the community to move forward and expand more systematically, and this experience has in turn improved the functioning of the institutions in the cluster. One veteran believer gave his assessment of the effectiveness of reflection meetings:

Reflection gatherings have filled the entire community with excitement, providing us with the realization of what needs to be done and how we are to do it. Regular interaction in these gatherings ensures that our efforts are based on existing human resources and this approach has paved the way for success. What has been most exciting is that when we are faced with challenges, these are effectively addressed in the next reflection gathering and we invariably discover ways to meet them, whereas earlier, we used to depend on others to overcome these challenges for us.

One tangible result of these meetings is that the number ofvillages in the cluster which have all of the core activities actively going on increased from 3 to 20 by Riḍván 2006.

47

[Page 48]T/ye Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jievemmts and Learning

k i :33

T/aefi'z'ends review their goals zzt a cluster meeting in Kinshasa, Democratic

Republit of t/ae Congo.

creation of the necessary momentum in the institute process. The cluster coordinators saw to it that human resources were systematically raised in the cluster and ensured that there was an ongoing process of learning to improve the quality of the training experience and the way in which training was expressed in action. As the numbers of believers grew, many training institutes found it necessary to appoint a number of coordinators for a cluster, usually assigning each a particular line of action related to human resource development. For example, at the end of the Plan the urban cluster Austin, Texas, in the United States had four cluster coordinators, one each for children’s classes, and junior youth activities and two for study circles, because with more than 750 believers it was impossible for one person to carry out the necessary work. In the cluster having

one of the largest Bahá’í’ populations, Battambang, Cambodia, with over 5,600 believers, there were institute coordinators for study circles, junior youth groups, and children’s classes during the last year of the Five Year Plan. There were also assistant coordinators assigned to different segments of the cluster. Increasingly, where the range and complexity of the work required it, institute coordinators offered their services on a full—time basis. By the end of the Plan, it was clear that these stalwart workers were an invaluable component of the institute process upon whom much of the success of the Plan depended.

Once a cluster had established a flourishing training institute process, concerted teaching efforts naturally began to advance and so there also arose a need to systematically foster and coordinate the teaching work. National Assemblies

48

[Page 49]or Regional Bahá’í Councils began to appoint a new agency in advanced Clusters which had been introduced in the 9 january 2001 message of the House ofjustice—the Area Teaching Committee. This new agency assumed responsibility for devising and promoting teaching plans for the cluster, organizing the cluster reflection meetings, ensuring the multiplication of devotional meetings, encouraging home visits, and maintaining vital statistics, among other duties. Given the wide scope of its functions, in more advanced Clusters, secretaries of Area Teaching Committees—often designated cluster development facilitatorsbegan to carry out their work on a parttime and sometimes full—time basis. Just as training institutes brought on additional coordinators within a cluster as the need increased, so also Area Teaching Committees in some rapidly growing communities found it necessary to appoint individuals to represent and assist them within the localities of the cluster, often to extend the work of the Committee to the neighbourhood level. A number ofArea Teaching Committees tried a variety of approaches to spreading out the work ofadministering teaching over large areas with many believers. For example, in Costa Rica a representative was appointed for each of the 20 localities in one cluster. These were trained and oriented to understand the vision of the Plan and then returned to their locality to promote this vision through the Nineteen Day Feasts. They were also asked to identify people who could serve on teaching teams and to promote attendance at cluster reflection meetings. Similar schemes were implemented in clusters in Kenya and India. In Mongolia, “family groups” were identified by the Area Teaching Committees, which helped them to promote their teaching activities. This approach made it easier to work within clusters with large numbers of believers by breaking the community into smaller groups,

since Mongolia is a country where communication and transportation are difficult.

The significant range of duties of an Area Teaching Committee could not, of course, be carried out effectively without close collaboration with the cluster institute coordinators and the Auxiliary Board members. Much has been learned about the way in which these agencies collaborate together and by the Plan’s end, in all the 296 Clusters with intensive programmes of growth, these entities were directly focused on tasks of planning and implementation. Working together, these agencies were ensuring that results were immediately consolidated, learning was systematically captured, and appropriate adjustments quickly made and reflected in plans for subsequent cycles.

An example of the fruits of the collaboration of these entities is provided in this summary by the National Spiritual Assembly of Cameroon at Rielvz’in 2006.

Considering the number ofresources that have been trained to promote these activities (that is, 903 people having completed Book 1, there are 7.00 tutors and 406 teachers of children’s classes) the greatest challenge of coordinators as well as other institutions in the clusters remains the mobilization and encouragement of these resources to arise and take initiative. It has been noted that in Clusters where institutions collaborate in organizing and running Cluster reflection meetings, a greater number of resources arise to take initiative.

A remarkable spirit of collaboration was witnessed in the Garoua—Bahá’í/ Ndokayo and Batouri/Kette clusters. The Cluster Coordination Committees in collaboration with the institute coordinators (study circles and Children’s classes) held several one—week institute campaigns in a number ofvil lages . . . where tutors needed to start

1: ADVANCING TH E PROCESS OF ENTRY 1n” TROOI’S—THE lNSTITUTlONS

7716 significant range

ofdutz'es ofan Area Teaching Cammz'ttee

could not, Ofcourse, fie

carried out ejfectz've/y

without close collaboration with the cluster institute coordinators and t/ae Auxiliary Board

mem bers.

49

[Page 50]7779 Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAr/yz'evemmtx and Learning

Maxillary Board meméery work 071 bot/Jfiams to ensure that the two movements which have come to characterize t/ae process of growth proceed unkamperm’. ”

study circles. The campaigns were supported financially for food and lodging by the participants and the host Local Assemblies, which demonstrates that more and more the Friends are getting a better understanding of the running of the activities of the

Faith.

Commenting on the burgeoning collaboration of the Auxiliary Board members, institute coordinators, and Area Teaching Committees at the grassroots level, the House of Justice stated:

While these various components are being established in cluster alter cluster, there is still much to be learned about the Functions each is to perform and about the relationships among them. What is important is that the current degree of flexibility, which allows For the creation of new instruments as needed, not be compromised so that the scheme of coordination represents a response to the demands of growth itself."‘/'

Auxiliary Board Members and Their Assistants

An essential factor in the impressive advance of the training institute process was the active collaboration of the Auxiliary Board members with the Institute Boards at the national and regional levels and with the cluster institute coordinators at the local level. Where an Area Teaching Committee was named, the Auxiliary Board members worked hand—in—hand with that agency, too. The Auxiliary Board members not only met with the cluster coordinators and Area Teaching Committees, providing essential guidance based often upon years of experience working in the cluster, they also supported them in carrying out their work by calling on the services of their army of assistants. In fact, Auxiliary Board members world wide have stimulated their assistants to be among the vanguard of believers completing the sequence of courses and then serving as tutors.

In the course of the Five Year Plan, the Board members inspired the friends to move through the sequence of courses both by making general appeals and by specifically working with individual believers who had exhibited potential, encouraging them to proceed through the courses of the institute—the Plan's first essential movement. The Auxiliary Board members were not only intimately involved in sessions at which cluster plans were developed, but they also rallied the friends to achieve them, thereby promoting the second movement—the cluster’s progress from one stage ofdevelopment to the next. Thus it is, that “Auxiliary Board members work on both fronts to ensure that the two movements which have come to characterize the process of growth proceed unhampered.”4S Working in close collaboration with the Counsellors, the Auxiliary Board members were also able to provide to the friends the wider vision necessary to sustain focused attention on the tasks immediately at hand, while attempting to infuse into all activities the spirit of the Faith.

Local Spiritual Assemblies

The House of Justice referred in its 27 December 2005 message to two broad categories of Local Spiritual Assemblies and indicated that each had made progress during the Five Year Plan. The weaker Assemblies gradually began to assume their responsibilities as they learned “to guide specific activities of the Plan”. The long—standing Assemblies, on the other hand, began to exhibit “signs of added strength as they have come to embrace a vision of systematic growth”f“‘ In many clusters of the world both types OFLocal

Assemblies existed side by side.

SO

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Bahá’í Houses of Worship

HERE \VERE A NUMBER OF SIGNIFICANT developments associated with the Bahá’í’

Houses of Worship during the Five Year Plan.

Following are some notable accomplishments:

Australia—Drawing on sacrificial contributions from members of the Australian Bahá’í community, the National Spiritual Assembly succeeded in acquiring two large pieces of prime land totalling over 10 acres adjacent to the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár. These purchases, together with the recently completed new access road to the House of Worship, have opened the way to further development of this area in the years ahead.

Chile—An architectural design was accepted for the first Baths“ House of Worship in South America, the last of the continental Houses of Worship. The Temple, designed by Canadian architect Siamak Hariri, will be constructed in Santiago, Chile. The striking design of glass and alabaster has already been called “The Temple of Light” and has been featured in a number of prominent architectural magazines. Its unique design has also garnered enthusiastic support from the government of Chile for the Temple project.

Germany—Major renovation work was carried out at the House of Worship in Langenhain to treat groundwater damage and to repair and improve the foundations and layout of the ambulatory and stairs which surround the building.

T/ae arclaitect} conception of the Home of Worship it) be built in Santiago, Chile.

" India—A new information and visitors’ centre was

inaugurated in 2003 at the House of Worship in New Delhi. In addition to a gallery with exhibits about the Faith, the facility has an auditorium with seating for over 400 people and two smaller auditoriums.

' Samoa—Renovations and improvements were

made to the House of Worship in Samoa and its grounds in preparation for the 2004 commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Faith in that country.

' United States—The Mother Temple of the West

in Wilmette, Illinois, underwent major renovations. One of the additions created during this period was a reflecting pool at the main entrance, which, although part of the original design of the Temple’s architect, Louis Bourgeois, had never been realized. Architectural plans for 21 visitors’ centre on the grounds of the House of Worship were unveiled in 2006.

Those Assemblies, that had a limited or low level of functioning benefited from the learning their members received through the institute process. As the number of trained, active believers in the locality increased, so did the number of capable people who could serve effectively on these local institutions. And as the members of the Assembly became more committed to the Faith and more knowledgeable about its teach ings through their participation in the sequence of courses, the quality of the consultation naturally improved and a wider vision of how the Assembly could contribute to the process of growth was gained. The believers were able to take increasing responsibility for the election of their Assembly and, once formed, the Assembly was able to assume greater ownership of the affairs of the Cause than ever before.

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[Page 52]The Five Yé’ar Plan 2001—2006: Szmzmm‘y ofAc/Jiez/emmts zma’ Learning

A survey of some so advanced clusters conducted midway in the Plan by the International Teaching Centre demonstrated that in Bahá’í communities where traditionally the administrative capacity of the local institutions had been weak, a significant percentage of Local Assemblies had begun to function relatively well. For example, 6 out of 10 Local Assemblies in the Efate cluster in Vanuatu, and 7 out of 8 Assemblies in the Bangui area in the Central African Republic were reported as showing improved functioning. This was evidenced by the quality of consultation and the ability of the Assemblies to align their affairs with the requirements of the Five Year Plan.

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands noted:

When Local Spiritual Assemblies and their members become wholeheartedly involved in the institute process, thrilling changes begin to occur. Their Feasts become more animated and participatory; members of the community begin to dedicate more time to the Faith, and there is a noticeable move away From congregationalstyle activities that tend to be Bahá’í Centre—based to a broader sense of community—based activities in various neighbourhoods ofa district.

Reaching Out to the General Public through Bahá’í’ Books

the latter years of Bahá’u’lláh’s ministry when His Writings were published in India. Since then, most of the distribution of Bahá’í literature has been within the Bahá’í community itself. Availability to the general public through bookstores happened

B AHA‘I BOOKS FIRST BECAME available during

only rarely because of the difficulty of establishing Bahá’í titles within the commercial book industry.

The United States community is now making a determined effort to place Bahá’í titles into mass market bookstores through the release of books specifically aimed at non-Bahá’í readers and by working patiently but systematically with the industry. To do this, it had to embark on a different approach to the publication and marketing of Bahá’í books. First, a new imprint, “Bahá’í Publishing”, was established. Editions of the Sacred Texts and other standard Bahá’í literature, such as Ba/azi’u’llzz’la and

the New Em, were then reissued in updated formats that were aimed at a general audience. These included aids for the readers such as glossaries, notes, suggested reading lists, and new introductions. Moreover, a number of new titles covering a variety of topics were added that were specifically written for the general public. These efforts are beginning to bear fruit.

Aut/aor Gwendolyn Etter—Lewz's chat: with an interested individual as 5/76 sign: a copy afber book, “Lights Oft/ae Spirit”.

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[Page 53]Echoing these same sentiments, the cluster institute coordinator for the Bihar Sharif cluster in India commented on the effect of the institute process in general, and reflection meetings in particular, on Local Spiritual Assemblies.

These gatherings have been responsible for great transformations. Activities have become more systematic and better organized. . . . We have noticed something very interesting—regular and effective reflection gatherings initially resulted in a constant increase in the level of individual initiative. But later, we discovered that even though these instances of individual initia tive continued and in fact increased, participation in reflection gatherings gave the believers a greater “community orientation”, motivating them to work more effectively in groups. These developments have greatly contributed to the quality of teaching activities which are now attracting the enthusiastic and confident involvement of an increasing number of believers. Such community spirit is also contributing to the strengthening ofLocal Spiritual Assemblies.

So consistent was the profound and positive impact of participation in insti tute courses on the functioning of Local

1: ADVANCING THE PROCESS 01: ENTRY BY TROOPS—THE INSTITUTIONS

The books written for non—Bahá’í’ readers have been well received by outside reviewers. The following are a few sample excerpts.

' “Lights Oft/95 Spirit is an important first key to the ongoing development of ethical religious consciousness and the fundamental need for racial equality . . . an excellent read earning high praise and recommendation to students ofreligion, soci ology, and all who live and teach racial equality.” {Midwest Boole Review on Light: Oft/73 Spirit)

' “Cedetquist describes Bahá’u’lláh’s life straightforwardly but with drama and a talent for evoking the ambience of the 19th—century Persian and

Ottoman milieus.” (Libraryjourmzl on The Story ofBa/m’ ’u ’[ld/a)

' “. . . Bowers’s comprehensive approach is balanced by an easy readability that makes the book both accessible and informative, a welcome introduction to the faith ofsorne six million people worldwide.”

(Publisher: Weekly on Gad Speaks Again)

Marketing the Bahá’í’ titles has included book signings and talks by authors at bookstores across the country. One nationally known independent book I);

seller wrote to say, “We have always found the Baha 1

authors to be captivating and informative, their readiness to share their knowledge with our attendees has always ensured a successful event both for the bookstore and for the community.”

Sales have risen dramatically. During the 18-month period from January 2004 through June 2005, approximately 13,000 books were sold through the general book trades However, in the period from July 2005 through July 2006, nearly 32,000 copies were solda 77 per cent increase in about a third less time.

There are a growing number of anecdotes pointing to the success of these efforts. For example, a customer at a bookstore who listened to a Bahá’í’ author speak began to attend a study circle and accepted the Faith. In California, a woman read a number of Bahá’í books she purchased at a local bookstore and then contacted the Bahá’í community so she could be in touch with her “fellow Bahá’í’s”.

The attention being given by the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States to the wider distribution of Bahá’í’ books and to the publication of new titles for the general public reinforces the outward—looking orientation that the Bahá’í community has striven to demonstrate during the Five Year Plan. It is an endeavour that brings more and more people in the greater society closer to the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh.

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[Page 54]7795 Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAr/Jievements and Learning

7776 House offustz'ce 1745 called upon Local Spiritual Assemélz'es to maintain “a vision offbe potential

size offuz‘ure communities”.

Spiritual Assemblies that in many areas special efforts were made by cluster agencies to encourage and assist members of Assemblies and assistants to Auxiliary Board members to be in the forefront of those completing the sequence of courses. Places where such efforts were made included countries as diverse as Brazil, Malawi, and Vanuatu. Reports worldwide indicate that many Assemblies became more unified and their meetings more uplifting and productive than before. The impact of systematic immersion in the Word of God and the skills and spiritual insights engendered were felt in numerous, practical ways in the work of Spiritual Assemblies.

The success of the institute process in raising up new Local Spiritual Assemblies was also noted in many places, and is well illustrated by the Tiriki West cluster in Kenya. By the end of the Plan, that rural cluster, with many illiterate believers and several spoken languages among its community members, had 42 Local Assemblies; no localities were lacking an Assembly. Furthermore, as formerly weak Assemblies proved that they could carry out their responsibilities, Area Teaching Committees were able to devolve to them certain tasks of the cluster. For example, when Area Teaching Committees in Malawi and in Malaysia found the myriad activities of their clusters beyond their capacity to oversee, they requested the Assemblies to assume responsibility for the multiplication and support of devotional gatherings. This focus gave fledgling Assemblies the opportunity to practice administrative skills with guaranteed success.

Those Local Spiritual Assemblies that had a history of administering the affairs of their communities, acquired “a new state of mindw‘7 about their functioning as a result of the processes and changes set in motion by the Five Year Plan. A critically important first step that many undertook was the intensive

study of the guidance from the House of Justice, sometimes by meeting over a weekend to allow ample time to gain a deep appreciation of new concepts. Many Assemblies required “a period of

”43 to identify how they were

adjustment to work with the agency of the training institute and later with the Area Teaching Committee. In those clusters with only one Local Assembly, such as New York City, United States, it was only natural that the Area Teaching Committee and cluster institute coordinator would work Closely with the Assembly. Another example of good collaboration between the Local Assembly and Cluster agencies was in the urban cluster ofjohannesburg, South Africa. IVIost clusters, however, consist ofa number Oflocalities with several Assemblies, a situation which poses a special challenge of communication and coordination. In many cases the agencies operating at the cluster level are learning to collaborate with the Local Assemblies, thus enhancing the Assemblies, ability to lend their support to the activities of the Plan, and encouraging them to take steps to reinforce the cluster plan in their localities.

As teaching efforts and core activities multiplied, the capacity of institutions was also fortified by the increasing numbers of human resources at their disposal. The believers, old and new, have become more willing and capable for service to the Cause as their faith and confidence became stronger through the institute process. In attempting to harness this burgeoning energy, as well as urging the believers to initiate activities, Local Spiritual Assemblies often provided practical support. In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for example, as the number of home devotional meetings grew, the Local Assembly provided cassettes Of Bahá’í music plus booklets with thematic selections from the Writings to use at the gatherings. The Katong, Singapore Local Assembly located a home where community devotional gatherings could

S4

[Page 55]be held on a regular basis. In addition, in areas which did not yet have Area Teaching Committees, Local Assemblies sometimes took the lead in organizing teaching campaigns based on the institute process. For example, in Brazil, the Local Spiritual Assembly of Canoas organized a systematic teaching campaign along the lines outlined in Book 6 which successfully mobilized the friends in their area and resulted in 38 declarations and 600 new people attending core activities.

The House OFJustice has called upon Local Spiritual Assemblies to maintain “a Vision of the potential size of future communities”.“9 In an increasing number of single—Assembly clusters with large numbers of believers, cities have been divided into sectors for the purpose of planning the teaching work. This sectoring “proved crucial to planning for sustained growth”.50 Often such communities began to conduct several Nineteen Day Feasts, one in each of these smaller areas. In many instances such a decentralized approach to the Nineteen Day Feast has stimulated attendance, enhanced the quality of participation, and at times fostered a greater consciousness of the neighbourhoods. In Cali, Colombia, the believers in

every sector set goals during the expansion phase of their cycle of activity and their sectoral Feasts became a forum for discussing the progress of these plans. The House oflustice has indicated that sectors provide the same facility to a Local Assembly that the cluster construct affords to a National Assembly: “There is nothing to prevent a Spiritual Assembly from encouraging:r a systematic approach to growth in these sectors, along lines similar to those used elsewhere with clusters.”51

‘X1 0K) ‘ZQJ

In referring to the institutions of the Cause, the Universal House of Justice indicated that “entry by troops will act upon them as much as they will act upon it”.52 The steady development of the institutions and their increasing maturation and evolution during the Five Year Plan has already borne out that statement. Yet, as the processes of growth gather ever greater momentum, there is every expectation that learning will intensify and greater insights and experience will come to be generated, shedding light on how the institutions will come to “administer the affairs of communities whose membership will swell into

» s}

the thousands .

I: ADVANCING TH 11 PROCESS OF ENTRY BY TROOl’S—THE INSTITUTIONS

SS

[Page 56]A believer explains t/ae goal: for t/ae next @613 ofactz'vizy

in the Puna, Peru clutter.

INTENSIVE PROGRAMMES OF GROWTH

l,L OF THE ACTIVITY described

in the previous sections, which

represents gradual but systematic efforts to advance the “two complementary, reinforcing movements"‘4 of the Five Year Plan, leads to the stage at which growth in a cluster can take place at an accelerated, sustainable rate. The Universal House of Justice described this process in its letter of 27 December 2005.

Sustained endeavour on the part of the individual, the community and the institutions to accelerate the institute process in a cluster, while contributing to its movement From one stage of development to another through well—proven means, culminates in the launching of an intensive programme of growth?5

Midway through the Plan, the first intensive programmes of growth were initiated. Over the next two years a succession of advanced clusters throughout the world would launch such programmes, bringing the number to 296

wn-h’” . ‘ (u u...- . U" ,._'I.J(N "“’

.Wh pm A nh’)

.1

by Riḍván 2006—one of the greatest achievements of the Five Year Plan. The House of Justice wrote that these vanguard clusters have served as models to learn from and emulate. The communities discussed below represent some of those that were in the forefront of this process and thus give the best picture of what can be attained through “concentrated and sustained attention”56 to the two essential movements of the Plan.

In introducing the concept of intensive programmes of growth in its 9 January 2001 message to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors, the House of Justice stated that the purpose was “to ensure that the Revelation of Bahá’uyllzih reaches the masses of humanity and enables them to achieve spiritual and material progress through the application of the Teachings”.57 The House ofjustice has described intensive programmes of growth as “straightforward, simple and effective".58 They consist of “cycles of activity, in general of three months’ duration each, which proceed according to distinct phases of expansion, consolidation, reflection and planning”.” The cycles follow one after the other with each presenting improvements upon previous cycles as well as new challenges.

The launching of an intensive programme of growth is an occasion for celebration in a cluster because it marks the completion of years of dedicated effort to put into place the resources necessary to carry out such an endeavour. Its initiation depends upon the following conditions:

A high level of enthusiasm among a sizeable group of devoted and capable believers who understand the prerequisites for sustainable growth and can take ownership of the programme; some basic experience on the part of

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a few communities in the cluster in holding classes for the spiritual education of children, devotional meetings, and the Nineteen Day Feast; the existence of a reasonable degree of administrative capacity in at least a few Local Spiritual Assemblies; the active involvement of several assistants to Auxiliary Board members in promoting community life; a pronounced spirit of collaboration among the various institutions working in the area; and above all, the strong presence of the training institute with a scheme of coordination that supports the systematic multiplication of study circles.GO

When these conditions are finally present, the activities associated with an intensive programme of growth require “a level of exertion that tests the resolve Of the friends”.61

The dynamics in clusters Change as the believers strive towards the stage of

implementing an intensive programme of growth. For example, the community of London, United Kingdom, could only deploy a handful of friends at any given time in teaching campaigns just a few short years before it launched its intensive programme ofgrowth in 2005. But in its first cycle, 15; friends took part in the intensive teaching campaign, a testimony to the groundwork that preceded the launch. London began its programme of growth a very different community from what it had been just a few years before. Whereas previously its capacity for growth was limited, by 2005 the London community had an outward orientation and morale was high. Likewise, Auxiliary Board members in the Auckland Cluster, New Zealand, reported that a sense ofvibtancy, new life, and growth were evident during the period leading up to the launching of its intensive programme of growth, as a result of the involvement of the friends in

T/aefi'imdx in New York City

celebrate the advancement of

their cluster to flat ‘21” stage of development.

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[Page 58]The Five Yéar Plan 2001—2006: Summary OfA:/7ievemem5 and Learning

T/aefiiends in the Greater London clutter dixcmx plzszor r/ae next cycle oft/aez'r intensive

programme afgrowr/a.

the institute process. Through intensive institute campaigns, the goal of 50 persons completing the sequence ofcourses was met and surpassed by the time of the celebration of the Declaration of the Báb in 2004. Also, during the month immediately prior to the launch of their intensive programme of growth, a well—planned, systematic home visit campaign was conducted in some sectors of that cluster which created enthusiasm for intensive teaching during the expansion phase.

In order to illustrate intensive programmes of growth in more detail, the following representative sampling of clusters from each continent will be considered:

' Auckland, New Zealand: an urban cluster with 7 Local Spiritual Assemblies and about 1,200 believers at Riḍván 2006. In the first year of its intensive programme of growth, 17 new believers were enrolled. During its second cycle, the number of guest participants in core activities grew from about 100 to 190. And in less than two years, the number of those who had completed Ruhi Institute Book 7 increased from 51 to 86.

' Austin, Texas, United States: a predominantly urban cluster with 9 functioning Local Spiritual Assemblies. At Riḍván 2006, there were about 750

believers, 80 ofwhom had completed Book 7 and nearly 300 had completed Book 1. During the first year of the intensive programme of growth, 50 individuals enrolled in the Faith, a significant increase from previous years. The number of friends involved in the teaching campaigns almost doubled during that year, rising from 65 at the beginning of the second cycle to 123

at the start of the fifth cycle.

Battambang, Cambodia: 3 predominantly rural cluster with 6 Local Spiritual Assemblies. When the Five Year Plan began, the cluster had about 1,700 believers; at Riḍván 2006 there were nearly 5,700 believers (2.3 per cent of the general population). In 2003, there were 41 who had completed Book 7. At the end of the Plan, that number had risen to 385. By the last six months of the Plan, the average number of participants in a cycIe of the growth programme was 362 (on average, 61 tutors, 66 teachers of children’s Classes, 50 junior youth animators, and 42 members of consolidation teams).

London, United Kingdom: 21 major metropolitan area with 29 Local Spiritual Assemblies and 945 adults and youths, ofwhom nearly 50 per cent are involved in the institute process. During the first cycle of its intensive programme of growth, 101 home visits were carried out and 47 non—Bahá’í’s began to attend study Circles. In the last 18 months of the Plan, the number of neighbourhood children’s classes rose from 1 to 21; and the number ofjunior youth groups went from nil to 3; the number Ofstudy circles increased from 7 to 34; and 34 individuals accepted the Faith. Nearly 90 persons had completed the sequence of courses by the end of the Plan.

Mulanje, Malawi: a rural area with 21 Local Spiritual Assemblies and 1,265

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youth and adult believers. At the end of the Plan, more than 1,000 of these friends had completed Book 1 and 213 had finished Book 7. A rapid expansion of core activities occurred over a period of less than two years; for example, the number of children’s classes rose from 20 to 59 between November 2004 and January 2006.

Murun, Mongolia: a semi-rural cluster centred on the town of Murun, with 4 localities having Local Assemblies. The Bahá’í population grew from 476 at the launching of the intensive programme of growth in July 2004 to nearly 2,000 believers by Riḍván 2006 (4 per cent of the general population), more than 900 of whom had completed Book 1 and 190 had completed Book 7. During the last seven months of the Five Year Plan, the number of seekers participating in core activities grew from 177 to over 400.

Norte de Bolivar, Colombia: an area of small towns and rural areas with 21 Local Spiritual Assemblies at various levels offunctioning. At the beginning of its intensive programme ofgrowth in February 2005, there were about 3,600 Bahá’ís in the cluster; this figure rose to 4,150 (1.5 per cent of the general population) by Ridvz’m 2006. At that point there were approximately 800 children, youth, and adults from the Wider community participating in at least one core activity.

Thiruvannamalai (T. V. Malai), India: an area of rural villages with 24 Local Spiritual Assemblies. At Riḍván 2006, the Bahá’í population was 6,300, which represented an increase of 1,300 since the launch ofits intensive programme of growth. On average, 360 individuals embraced the Faith during each cycle of its growth programme. By the end of the Plan, nearly 3,000 persons were involved in the institute process. More than

1,700 friends were attending approx imately 300 devotional meetings in the cluster.

' Tiriki West, Kenya: 3 rural area with 42 Local Spiritual Assemblies, of which 38 are well functioning. As the Plan came to a Close, there were about 2,500 believers, ofwhom more than 860 had finished Book 1 and 100 had completed Book 7. About 1,100 persons were attending devotional gatherings in the cluster and 734 children were participating in Children’s classes. More than 1,225 non—Bahá’í’s, including Children and junior youth, were attending at least one core activity. There were 288 new enrolments between the first cycle of the growth programme begun in January 2005 and Riḍván 2006.

The Expansion Phase

A cycle ofan intensive programme of growth begins with an expansion phase, usually lasting one to three weeks, during which there is an intense period of teaching activity. Specifically, its object is “to widen the circle of those interested in the Faith, to find receptive souls and to teach them”.“2 The pattern ofexpansion in clusters, however, unfolds in different ways. The House of Justice explains that most Clusters fall into two distinct patterns and that these generally “define the

nature of the consolidation phase”.63

Where the population has traditionally shown a high degree of receptivity

Teaching team meméers in Austin, Téxm, witla three new believers.

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[Page 60]7776’ Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary OfAc/az'evemmtt and Learning

Project Badi: Raising up Servants of the Cause among High School and College Students

HE MAGDALENE CARNEY Bahá’í, Institute,

I serving several states in the southern region of the United States, recognized the need to

assist youth to become lifelong teachers of the Faith and servants of humanity through the institute process. Missing were opportunities to practise the skills

they were learning, so Project Badi was established in Florida in 2003.

The project brings together youth between the

A junior youth participant in Project Baa’z' tutors nez’g/Jéour/Jood children in a reading circle.

ages of 15 and 23 who have completed the first three books of the sequence of courses. Over a period of three weeks in July, during the summer holidays, the youth who have not completed the sequence are given an opportunity to participate in the higherlevel courses, and those who have already completed the full sequence are trained in moral leadership. All participants receive additional deepening and the opportunity to hone their teaching skills as part of the project.

The heart of the project is service. After the first week, participants are sent to priority clusters around the region where they assist with the activities of the institute. They also offer to tutor young Children in reading skills. The reading circles of Project Badi focus on children in neighbourhoods that have been identified as having receptive populations—ptimarily African—Americans and immigrants. The youth sit

with their pupils in the shade of a tree at a student’s home and conduct daily lessons utilizing both Bahá’í instructional materials and materials from the school district. Bonds of friendship naturally form between the youth and the families they are assisting, creating opportunities to invite the families to weekly Project Badi performances, which include puppetry, skits, singing, and dancing to introduce themes drawn from the teachings of the Faith. The reading circles have become an effective avenue through which to invite non—Bahá’í’ families to participate in other Bahá’í activities, especially classes for children and junior youth.

During the first three years of the project, the number of participants doubled to 40, 8 ofwhom participated all three years. The number of children and junior youth tutored in reading grew to 140. In the course of the 2005 session, the youth also began to reach out to the children of families contacted during the cycles of the intensive programmes ofgrowth, providing Bahá’í children’s classes in their homes and reinforcing the outreach eHorts in the clusters. It was estimated that more than 400 children, youth, and adults were touched by the project in 2005 alone. The activities of the youth have resulted in a number of enrolments.

Especially noteworthy is the transformation that takes place in the youth who participate, most of whom initiate meaningful acts of service upon their return home. Those youth residing in the project areas continue to systematically work with the families served by the project throughout the year in coordination with Area Teaching Committees. Most of the youth go on to host firesides and devotional meetings for their friends, form junior youth groups, teach children, and tutor study circles. The bonds of friendship established during the project extend well beyond one summer, as the youth share their experiences and encourage one another. One participant wrote, “Words cannot describe the joy, confirmation, and fire of love enkindled in my heart because of this project. It is the most amazing blessing to be given this opportunity to serve Bahá’u’lláh and humanity.”

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to the Faith, a rapid influx of new believers is to be expected . . . In other Clusters, enrolments during the expansion phase may not be high, especially in the first few Cycles, and the goal is to augment the number of those willing to participate in core activities.“4

In both types ofclusters, before initiating the expansion phase, consultation and planning take place among the Auxiliary Board members, cluster coordinators, and Area Teaching Committee and a broad outline of a plan is then presented at a Cluster reflection meeting where participants formulate specific actions and determine the goals to be achieved. Likewise, the cycle ends With a reflection meeting to analyse the achievements and learning of the previous three months and to consider what steps need to be taken to improve the expansion and consolidation phases in the next cycle.

Whether the Clusters reflect the first or second pattern of growth, What sets apart the expansion phase of an intensive programme of growth from other times in the year is the intensity of the teaching effort, a time when individual Bahá’í’s and teams of teachers focus their daily attention on attracting souls to the Faith. The spiritual resources of the community are directed in a concentrated manner towards reaching out to receptive individuals. During the designated time of the teaching campaign, even those not participating in a team pray for success and provide other forms of support.

In some communities, such as Norte de Bolivar, Colombia, friends often take time off from work or school and put aside their daily activities during the expansion phase in order to spend their time teaching. For those unable to give that measure of time, there is still a consciousness of the need to teach that pervades all of their activities. Teaching, indeed, becomes the <(dominating passion” of their lives.“ Friends

in London, United Kingdom, found that their desire to be part of the inten sive period of teaching spurred them on to be bolder and to not miss opportunities to share the Message. In the process they received innumerable confirmations that gave them the courage to continue teaching.

Another key feature of the expansion phase, no matter which pattern of enrolment prevails in the cluster, is that the teaching activities derive from the practices Of the institute courses.

Although this phase might include some element of proclamation, it should not be seen as a time to hold a few events for this purpose or to undertake a set of activities that merely convey information. Experience suggests that the more Closely teaching approaches and methods are aligned with the capacity acquired from the study Of the institute course the more rewarding the results.“

For example, when the teaching teams in T. V. Malai, India, conduct neighbourhood gatherings, they are not mere introductory meetings. Rather, they employ methods learned from the institute courses about how to attract people to the meetings, such as first introducing the Faith into conversation or sharing the Teachings during a home visit to friends, relatives, neighbours, and c0Workers. The believers apply What they

A teaching team in action in Puerto Rico.

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[Page 62]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jievementr and Learning

7776 believers in the Metro Manila clutter, Pbiléopiner, identzfil the human resources

in their cluster.

have learned regarding which themes to present and how to introduce them at these neighbourhood teaching meetings. In numerous cases, the friends report that the quality of their teaching and of sharing the Bahá’í Message has improved remarkably over previous years.

In clusters where the goal was to augment the number of participants in core activities, the believers came to appreciate that their friends and neighbours often required patient teaching and nurturing in order to guide them to accept the Faith. In Auckland, New Zealand, for example, even though the fifth cycle of its growth programme recorded a dramatic increase in the number of participants

in the teaching activity (170), its success was best measured by the attraction of 42 seekers to the core activities.

An important element of the expansion phase in most intensive programmes of growth has been the mobilization of teaching teams. Although individual teaching continues to be the backbone of the expansion work, teaching teams have demonstrated the gains that can be made through collective action. Often the teams work in pairs or small groups and throughout the expansion phase they meet regularly to consult on the progress of their personal and collective teaching efforts. Team members pray together, exchange teaching experiences, assess their learning, practise the skills acquired in the institute courses, and ultimately attract confirmations to their endeavours.

Perhaps some of the most organized teams were to be found in the Tiriki West cluster of Kenya. After learning through experience that not all teams or team members were equally active, they began to form teams that would reflect a “balance”. Each team of five or six members had a designated team leader who reported to the cluster agencies and institutions. Also, each team had at least one member who had completed Book 7 and so was qualified to tutor, a member trained to teach children, and others who were eager to teach after completing some or all of the courses. It helped if one member was especially skilled at presenting the Faith to seekers. These teams were then able to comprehensively meet the needs of those that they taught as they attracted new people to the Faith.

In London, a cluster very different in character from Tiriki West, the friends learned that it was beneficial to ensure that team members lived near one another and that each team had a member who had completed the sequence of courses. In both London and Tiriki West, teaching teams in the

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Teaching Teams Draw upon the Power that Comes from Working in Groups

5 MORE AND MORE ACCOUNTS of the

activities of teaching teams in intensive

programmes of growth are collected, it has become apparent how much more effective trained teachers become when they work side by side With others. The following story from a teaching team in Burkina Faso illustrates how teaching can be more audacious when undertaken in a group.

Being part of a group gives one courage to do what one has never done before. During the second teaching cycle in our cluster, when we met for the first time, we realized that we had exhausted our social circle and so we decided to create a new one. A couple in our team approached a group ofyouth that met each night for tea close to their home. As it turned out, the six youth were very touched and happy to participate in the next fireside and in a devotional gathering that is held at the couple’s home. By and by, the idea ofstarting a study circle took shape and now two of the youth are regularly taking part in this study Circle.

As they learn to work together, teams discover that they can increase the range of their activities when they draw upon the strengths each member brings to the group. This account of the increased capacity of one team comes from Australia.

Our team developed its initial experiences in teaching by nurturing the interest of people who

would telephone the main directory number for the Brisbane community enquiring about our Faith. This gave us confidence in teaching and helped us start a Book 1 group which formed the nucleus of our current community of interest. Since then, we have used each cycle of growth to add to the range and depth of work that we do, drawing not only on skills we gained through the courses of the institute but our different temperaments and interests. In the first cycle, we began having devotional gatherings in addition to our Book I group (one person accepted the Faith). In the second cycle, we started another Book 1 (two participants enrolled in the Faith). In cycle three, we will be beginning a third Book 1 group, junior youth groups, and will take our existing seekers, who have completed Book 1 and not enrolled, through to Book 4.

We have also understood one another’s strengths and interests. We have realized that one of us was very good at making contacts and assessing their readiness to join our community of interest. Another member enjoyed consolidation and relationship building. A third member enjoyed moving our team into new areas of our community’s core activities. Our team now distributes its workload to cope with the strengths of each individual.

One team member in Ireland expressed in a touchmg manner the importance of working in a group.

The thing I learned is about the power of the team. That team process really systematized the teaching process for me. At occasions when my energy was really flagging and I was very discouraged, through the process ofreading the Writings with the team my energy was renewed.

beginning consisted ofa large number of friends but later it was found that smaller teams were more likely to have all members fully engaged in the teaching work. By the end of the Plan, the formation of most teams from these nine sample clusters was generally based upon where the members lived. They came together

themselves and carried out their activities in their own neighbourhoods or nearby.

The length of service of teams also varied. In Malawi and Colombia, the teams only stayed together for the brief period of the intensive expansion phase. But in other clusters it was determined that continuity was important.

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[Page 64]7776’ Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAcbz'ez/ementx and Learning

A devatz'amz/ meeting in

Kawangare, Democratic

Republic offloe Congo.

New believers and seekers were more responsive if those who first made contact with them in the expansion phase continued to interact with them during the consolidation phase. Moreover, by working together over a long period, the teams themselves became more systematic and more motivated. They developed a rhythm of teaching that built upon the strengths of each team member and gradually reaped greater results.

Methods of teaching during the expansion phase varied, often reflecting the nature of the cluster and the experience of past years. In Kenya, teaching is done at marketplaces and along the roads because the population is quite accustomed to people talking to them about religion in those settings. In Western countries, firesides continued to be an effective method to assist seekers with their spiritual search, and often led naturally to invitations to join a study circle. During the first cycle of their intensive programme of growth, the friends in Auckland, for example, held 33 firesides.

Home visits, an approach that became widespread as a result of the practice component of Book 2, proved to be an important teaching approach in the expansion phase of virtually all types of clusters. In Colombia and Mongolia, teaching teams paid visits to the non Bahá’í’ parents of the children in the Bahá’í classes. In Kenya, during the intensive phase, teaching teams went door—to—door, visiting families in their own villages. The Austin, Texas community found home visits to be an easy and welcome means of reaching out because visiting is an established part of the culture of that region.

In all of the nine clusters in this sampling, the believers initially focused their teaching efforts on those individuals with whom they already had some connection. In India, it was primarily family members of believers who were taught. In New Zealand, the United States, and the United Kingdom, friends, neighbours, and co-workers were most commonly approached. What was especially heartening were the initiatives taken by believers from the Pacific Islands living in the Auckland community who arose to teach among their fellow Pacific Islanders settled in Auckland. Most of these advanced clusters relied less and less on events to attract people to the Faith, and instead reached out in more personal ways.

Devotional meetings became a Vital portal for new believers and were conducted in great numbers during the expansion phase in these model clusters. In T. V. Malai in India, at the conclusion of the Plan, during the sixth cycle of its intensive programme of growth, there were some 300 devotional meetings attracting close to 800 seekers or 65 per cent of the total participants. The friends in that area love to decorate their homes with flowers and lights to make these gatherings special. Some of the cluster agencies are providing tangible support to encourage these meetings. In T. V. Malai, the cluster agencies have devised an all—purpose printed invitation for devotional gatherings which hosts may use to invite their guests. The cluster agencies of Tiriki West also provide printed invitations to assist believers with hosting these gatherings.

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The results of the expansion phase in countries that have “traditionally shown a high degree of receptivityw’7 were substantial. The people of Cambodia were thirsty for spiritual sustenance and readily became believers. Throughout the Plan, Battambang averaged 1,000 new believers a year. Rural India too was fertile ground. An Auxiliary Board member for T. V. Malai reported that the cluster had very few seekers in core activities because most people declared their acceptance of the Faith almost as soon as they encountered it. In such areas where interest in the Faith sometimes can outstrip the human resources necessary to adequately respond, careful calculations had to be made before launching a cycle of an intensive programme of growth as to how many new individuals could be served, and the teaching campaign was ended once that number was met. Teaching teams in Battambang needed only to carry out two days of intensive teaching at the beginning of each cycle to generate enough new seekers and declarants to keep the Bahá’í’s engaged with the consolidation work throughout the remainder of the cycle.

In clusters where the expansion phase focused on increasing the number of interested persons in the core activities, enrolments did occur during the teaching campaigns and these results usually outnumbered the growth formerly achieved in an entire year. The growth in clusters like Auckland, Austin, and London was augmented and reinforced during the consolidation phase, since the teaching continued unabated by “nurturing the interest of seekers and accompanying them in their spiritual

search until they . . . [were] confirmed

in their fairy."8

Universally, the believers in all of these advanced clusters have learned to rely on the power of prayer and divine assistance, especially during the expansion phase of the cycle. In Austin, the Bahá’í's were encouraged to make a list

of 10 persons for whom they would specifically pray throughout the cycle. The friends reported that they witnessed the power of prayer during these cycles, as seemingly amazing opportunities for sharing the Message presented themselves almost daily.

Consolidation Phase

In areas that experienced a “a rapid influx of new believers”,(’° the primary objective of the consolidation phase was “to bring a percentage of the new believers into the institute process so that an adequate pool of human resources . . . [would] be available in future cycles to sustain growth”.70 In Norte de Bolivar, it was noted that when the new participants in Book 1 study Circles were first given the Vision that they were about to begin a series ofcourses, not simply one book, and if it was also explained that they would receive training for service as an element of the course, the participants were more likely to continue through the entire sequence.

Essential to the consolidation efforts were the tutors. Not only was it critical that the number of tutors be commensurate with the number of seekers and new believers desiring to go through the sequence of courses, but it was also vital that the tutors be committed to

T/yeflimds in Mum”, Mongolia, evaluate the results oftbeir teaching campaign.

6s

[Page 66]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAc/Jz'evements and Learning

A friendly smile welmmes t/ae

Baba’ ’2': making a home visit to

afiz'end in Vancouver, Canada.

nurturing these souls until they were confirmed in their faith and walking the path of service themselves. Some of the most effective tutors were those who accompanied their participants from the beginning of Book 1 to the end of Book 7, working with them shoulder—to—shoulder along the way to carry out the practice elements. Through this process, not only was the consolidation more successful, but the human resources of the cluster also increased, enabling the friends to teach and consolidate still more believers. In Murun, For example, the new believers were immediately invited to join a study circle and often had completed Book 1 by the time the consolidation phase ended. The clus‘ ter institute coordinators in Tiriki West worked closely with the tutors of the study circle to ensure their continuity. They accomplished this by making regular visits to the study circles and by asking the tutors to set beginning and projected end dates For each course. Reports From all nine sample clusters indicated that when the seekers or new believers were

friends or relatives of Bahá’í’s, there was a natural means of supporting these souls along their spiritual journey.

Home Visits proved to be an important element of the consolidation of new believers and seekers. In cases where individuals were unable to join study circles or central courses, home visits were undertaken to share deepening themes and prepare the new believers for eventual entry into the institute process. In 2006 in Battambang, 42 home visit teams with 184 participants were organized for the consolidation phase. In Norte de Bolivar, consolidation teams followed immediately behind the teaching teams. In Mulanje, home visit teams continued to interact with those who had been taught the Faith during the previous cycle and tutors contacted them to encourage them to join core activities. In consultation with the Area Growth Committee, institute coordinators assigned tutors and children’s class teachers to the new contacts and believers. For this reason, team leaders of the teaching teams have been given responsibility for keeping careful information about those taught. In several of the other clusters, it is expected that those who initially made contact with a new believer or seeker will continue to nurture that individual. Through systematic follow—up, 57 per cent of the newly enrolled adults and youth in Murun entered the institute programme and a similar proportion of the children and junior youth of these families joined Bahá’í classes.

Besides being an important element of the expansion and consolidation phases in a wide range ofclusters, home visits are influencing other longstanding approaches to community consolidation. For example, in London, rather than inviting a new believer to a meeting of the Local Spiritual Assembly to be welcomed into the community, it has been learned that these friends respond better to a visit to their home by representatives of the Assembly. Worldwide,

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reports have indicated that seekers and new believers often ask the visitors to come again. In numerous intensive programmes of growth, Bahá’í’s who had completed Book 2 happily joined teams to visit new believers.

In the consolidation phase, the attention of the institutions and agencies in a cluster shifts from intensive teaching to ensuring that the spiritual needs of the new believers, seekers, and their families are being met. This requires organization and record—keeping so that no one is forgotten. Teaching teams, supported by the Area Teaching Committees, proved to be particularly effective in following up with the contacts that were made, recording the nature ofinteractions, and personalizing the approach to teaching individuals showing interest in the Faith. In clusters that garnered a limited number of enrolments during the expansion phase, the consolidation phase was characterized by a focus on systematic teaching of individuals attending core activities and firesides. In reality, personal teaching continues throughout a cycle of an intensive programme of growth in

all types of clusters, but the focus in the consolidation phase is different. One of

the things learned in Tiriki West was that even though a seeker or new believer may have begun to attend Bahá’í activities, it did not mean that he or she did not require further teaching using themes from the institute courses.

In clusters such as London and Austin, the real gauge of the success of expansion during the programme of growth came at the end of the consolidation phase, since more new believers often enrolled during that phase, after careful and systematic teaching, than in the two—week expansion campaigns. But the intensive expansion activities provided a pool of seekers far greater than had been seen in previous years. Ultimately the growth in the London cluster during the first year ofits intensive programme of growth—3o new believets—was more than triple the level of growth during the previous year. While the number might appear modest compared to those clusters with highly receptive populations, it nonetheless represented a real Victory for that community and boosted the confidence of the believers in the efficacy of their efforts. The Austin community, too, experienced a dramatic increase in enrolments once it began its intensive

Youth in Battamlmng, Cambodia, review deepening theme: in preparing to make

loome vititt to new believers in

their cluster.

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cunFnru finrm unumr: aannamman

Q5“ 04.;

.1“

§F2 4:

Tutors gatherflzr a “tutor

programme of growth, from 10 to over encounter” in Murun, 40 in one year. Mongolia. Another characteristic of these advanced clusters is that many of the activities of the Five Year Plan were carried out predominantly by youth and young adults. The institutions have found the institute process to be a natural and satisfying avenue through which to channel the energy and idealism of youth. A shining example of youth reaching out to their peers and to those younger than themselves could be found in Austin, home of the University ofTexas. The Bahá’í’ students at that university developed an outward—looking orientation and a systematic approach to the work of the Plan that included devotional meetings, study circles, and firesides held on campus. In addition, the students established a BaháH’ children’s Class in an underprivileged neighbourhood and have sustained it from year to year. By the end of the Plan, these same university youth were receiving animator training so that they could also offer classes for junior youth.

As the House of Justice advised in its 27 December message, “Whatever the nature of the Cluster, it is imperative to pay close attention to children and junior youth

everywhere.”7‘ Most of the advanced clusters have welI-organized classes for children that are supervised by the cluster coordinators. The Classes in T. V. Malai are so numerous—Ils serving 952 Children—that there is a specially designated children’s class coordinator who has to be assisted by children’s class monitors at the Village or neighbourhood level. There are Cluster—wide meetings and refresher gatherings For the teachers, but there are also teacher gatherings within the smaller geographic units of the cluster. In Tiriki West the coordinator for children’s classes travels to visit the more than 100 classes, often unannounced, and in addition, conducts quarterly meetings for the teachers. The Local Spiritual Assemblies in that cluster are beginning to assume a larger role in finding teachers and ensuring the continuity of the classes. Another success of that cluster has been the mobilization of those who have completed training for teaching children. At the end of the Plan more than a third of those trained were actually teaching a children’s class.

The Battambang community began its systematic patterns of development prior to the Five Year Plan by working with small numbers ofjunior youth who, through careful nurturing, were raised up as human resources able to advance the intensive programme of growth. By 2006, the fourth wave ofjunior youth had been engaged in the programme. Battambang provides a Vivid illustration of the ground—up approach to community building reflected in the words of the House of Justice:

What has become especially apparent during the current Five Year Plan is the efficacy of educational programmes aimed at the spiritual empowerment ofjunior youth. When accompanied for three years through a programme that enhances their spiritual perception, and encouraged to enter the main sequence of institute courses at the age offifteen, they

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represent a vast reservoir of energy and talent that can be devoted to the advancement ofspiritual and material civilization.72

Reflection and Planning Phase for the Next Cycle

The House ofJustiee stated: “Key to the progress of an intensive programme of growth is the phase dedicated to reflection, in which the lessons learned in action are articulated and incorporated into plans for the next cycle of activity.”73 Towards the end of each cycle ofa programme of growth, there is an analysis of its strengths and weaknesses as cluster coordinators, Auxiliary Board members and their assistants, and the Area

Teaching Committee assess the progress in the field. The Norte de Bolivar Area Teaching Committee met every two weeks to assess and direct the work. In all of the clusters under discussion, as the consolidation phase drew to a close, the cluster agencies finished collecting data and came together to analyse and plan, based upon study of the cluster statistics and a realistic evaluation of the capabilities of the friends to advance the cluster during the upcoming cycle.

The cluster agencies also exerted much effort in planning all aspects of the reflection gatherings in advance and in systematically promoting them. In Austin, an electronic telephone calling

service conveyed a recorded message about the meeting to every Bahzi’l’ household. In the Mulanje cluster, members

A rq‘i’ectimz meeting in the Mulzmje cluster, Malawi, is held 1'71 2/73 cool shade of

the treat.

[Page 70]The Five Year Plan 2001—2006: Summary ofAr/aievemmtx and Learning

A believer makes a report at t/ae reflection meeting in the Greater Monrovia cluster, Likeria.

junioryout/Jfiom t/ae Aslz' population peifirm in

a meeting at the Babzz’ ’2’ Centre in Cameron

Highlands Malaysia.

of the cluster agencies visited the believers to personally urge them to attend. T. V. Malai had one or two believers in each village designated to publicize the gatherings.

Sharing the learning and formulating simple plans are then the focus of the cluster reflection meeting. One of the characteristics that perhaps set apart the advanced clusters from those at earlier stages of development was the quality of these gatherings. The friends in Tiriki West learned that these gatherings were more effective when there was a balance between serious consultation and joyous celebration of the achievements of the previous cycle. The believers in T. V. Malai also learned to make the gatherings shorter, simpler, with fewer presentations and with more time for discussion and the sharing of experiences. In many of these clusters, the large gatherings would be divided into smaller groups according to where the friends lived, an approach which, in addition to making consultation easier, oriented the believers towards carrying out the teaching and consolidation activities in the areas near their homes. Mulanje, for example, was subdivided into three zones

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and the friends would consult with those from their same zone.

Children and junior youth added spirit and enthusiasm to these gatherings by presenting what they had learned in their classes, often by performing or reciting passages from the Writings. Presentations by study circles enlivened the T. V. Malai reflection meetings and in Mulanje, as in other parts of Africa, Cluster meetings always included traditional dancing and singing. London even had short films produced for its gatherings, containing testimonials by the teaching teams and seekers, as a more efficient means of exchanging experiences and fostering learning.

The Norte de Bolivar cluster institute coordinator perhaps captured the key to the success of these gatherings in advanced clusters by noting that they are celebrations of achievements and strengths, not gatherings to dwell on what was not accomplished or problems. Thus the friends do not leave the reflection meeting discouraged but, on the contrary, exhilarated and eager to serve.

Pioneering and

Travelling Teaching

Pioneers, both homefront and international, played a role in the establishment of intensive programmes of growth. In its 9 January 2001 message, the Universal House of Justice reiterated the need for pioneers and travelling teachers during the Five Year Plan, but called upon them to go forth to the field of service armed in a new way: “goals can be met with relative ease if pioneers are experienced in institute programmes and are able to use their methods and materials in raising up a group of dedicated believers who can carry the work of the Faith forward in the area.”—’*

The identification of priority clusters influenced the nature 0Fpioneering. Pioneers and travelling teachers were dis patched less to unopened areas than to those that were striving to strengthen the institute process and establish intensive programmes of growth. Communities that were able to launch intensive programmes of growth were often able to do so because of short— or long—term pioneers that settled in areas just prior to the Five Year Plan when the primary goal was simply to establish the institute process. Murun, Mongolia, for example, began to blossom only after a Few individuals trained in the institute process moved there as homefront pioneers. Several of the communities with intensive programmes of growth in Bangladesh and the Central African Republic owe this achievement to the systematic deployment of pioneers to these clusters during the closing years of the Four Year Plan and the beginning of the Five Year Plan.

In the last year of the Five Year Plan, three young travelling teachers from Azerbaijan sent forth to communities in the Siberian region of Russia were able to establish study circles and to teach the local believers how to carry out home visits. Likewise, 13 youth from Vanuatu Visited Fiji, the Solomon Islands, and New Caledonia between December 2005 and January 2006 to assist with the institute process. The four youth from this group who went to Fiji, for example, were able to conduct three intensive training programmes in different localities for junior youth animators, thereby raising up 13 new teachers ofjunior youth. A travelling teacher from Alaska, experienced in the institute process, made a number of trips to the Leeward Islands over a two—year period. She was able to initiate junior youth activities in the schools and this success proved a stimulus to other activities in the somewhat dormant community, leading to regular devotional meetings and children’s classes.

All in all, the efforts to send forth

international pioneers and travelling

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teachers met with great success. The worldwide goal of 3,322 international pioneers was not only reached but surpassed, with 3,755 believers settling in other countries. The goal for international travelling teachers was almost met with 9,184 believers answering the call to carry out this service, just short of the goal of 9,508. (Specific detail: about the number ofintermztz'omzlpz'oneem zmd travelling teachers can éefimnd in 1/76 appendices.)

In the final year of the Plan, in preparation for the launching of intensive programmes of growth in other clusters, Mongolia established a programme of identifying potential homefi‘ont pioneers, training them, and then assisting them to settle in their assigned posts. The institutions in some strong clusters, like Murun and Ulaanbaatar, found that they could dispatch homefront pioneers to less developed areas, echoing the words of the House of Justice:

It is not unreasonable to assume that a concerted effort to build on strength will result in the eventual outflow of pioneers from such clusters to areas destined to become the theatre of future conquests.7S

The Tiriki West cluster in Kenya was also able to settle homefront pioneers in “C” clusters, which have been identified as future priority clusters. As the institute coordinator for that country remarked, sending forth IO or 15 pioneers from Tiril<i West would not affect

the strength of that cluster now that it has large numbers of human resources. Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu in the Pacific were also able to dispatch homeftont pioneers from strong clusters to other goal areas.

Worldwide, 2,309 believers arose to serve as homefront pioneers during the Five Year Plan.

(RQMXJQKJ

The overarching aim of the Five Year Plan was “to accomplish a significant advance in the process of entry by troops”.76 Intensive programmes of growth proved that it was possible to create a systematic approach to growth that was continuously expanding and self—perpetuating. As vanguard clusters gained experience in the crucible of service, and as other clusters learned From them, the believers and institutions became more proficient at raising up human resources and bringing about growth. Never before have “the twin processes of expansion and consolidation been better understood”.77 The Bahá’í world has “discovered methods and instruments for establishing a sustainable pattern ofgrowth”.78 The House ofjustice summarized the achievements in these words:

The elements required for a concerted effort to infuse the diverse regions of the world with the spirit of Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation have crystallized into a framework for action that now needs only to be exploited.”