This month we are featuring a 2008 statement from the Bahá’í International Community.
“The search for solutions to climate change has revealed the limits of traditional technological and policy approaches and has raised difficult questions about justice, equity, responsibility and obligation. What is required is an approach based on the unity which connects us as the inhabitants of one biosphere, the citizens of one world and the members of one human civilization.” ~ Bahai.Org
Please come and check out our newly reorganized bookstore at the Baha’i Center of Washtenaw County!
The bookstore at the Bahá’í Center of Washtenaw County features a variety of books of interest to the members of the Bahá’í community. Prayer books and selections from the writings make up the largest section, and you will also find books on Bahá’í history and current topics. In addition, there are books and materials in languages other than English, interfaith materials and Ruhi books for purchase, as well as a small collection of used books.
The children’s section has been moved to another area of the bookstore, with more space so that books can be easily reviewed. They are also now more accessible to children, and hopefully will generate interaction and questions from children in the community. With that in mind, our featured book this month is a children’s book:
This book is a typical alphabet book for young readers, but in place of the more typical objects, the author has substituted Baha’i concepts, important figures, and virtues, with an explanation for each. She has also placed a pertinent quotation from the writings on each page facing the individual letter pages. This is an illustrated book that appears simple at first, but the ideas and history presented is complex enough that a child would most probably read it over and over. The quotations add another layer that will make the book rewarding for adults as well. This book would be a welcome addition to any Baha’i child’s library.
This month we are featuring a series of articles from The Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS) – the official news source of the worldwide Bahá’í community.
Representatives of a number of national Baha’i communities recently gathered at the Baha’i World Centre to reflect on the past several years of experience learning about participation in the discourses of society. The Baha’i World News Service took the opportunity to interview groups of representatives about the experiences and insights they have gained in this area of endeavor.
2 December 2018
BAHA’I WORLD CENTRE — In recent years, national Baha’i institutions and regional agencies have been systematically participating in the discourses of society, such as migration and integration, social cohesion, race unity, the role of religion in society, and climate change, to name a few.
The phrase “participation in the discourses of society” is being used more and more to describe the involvement of the Baha’i community in the broad conversations focused on social betterment.
Discourses take place at different levels. Individuals can contribute to discourses in their professions or fields of study. Many individuals and communities are drawn into discourses on issues vital to their neighborhoods and villages. Non-governmental organizations inspired by the Baha’i teachings—for example, in the area of social and economic development—contribute to discourses related to their efforts. The Baha’i community’s formal involvement in discourses related to the well-being and progress of society is facilitated at the national and international levels by offices of external affairs and the Baha’i International Community, respectively.
The following article is from bahai.org.
“To give and to be generous are attributes of Mine,” wrote Bahá’u’lláh, “well is it with him that adorneth himself with My virtues.”1
Just as a candle’s purpose is to provide light, the human soul was created to give generously. We fulfil our highest purpose in a life of service, in which we offer our time, energy, knowledge, and financial resources. “[Y]e must give forth goodly and wondrous fruits, that ye yourselves and others may profit therefrom.”2
‘Abdu’l-Bahá has written, “…the honor and distinction of the individual consist in this, that he among all the world’s multitudes should become a source of social good.”3 Of course, striving to serve humanity is full of challenges, and pursuing such a life of service implies that one must at times be willing to accept some hardship. Yet to sacrifice in this way is not a cause of sorrow; rather it is a bearer of joy—it involves accepting a degree of discomfort for the wellbeing and happiness of others, renouncing that which is lower for that which is higher. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has stated, “dying to the self” enables “the radiance of the living God” to “shine forth”.
This month we are featuring the article below from The Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS) – the official news source of the worldwide Bahá’í community.
BAHA’I WORLD CENTRE — For the Baha’i world, 2018 was marked by a wide range of developments. Through its podcast and written articles, the Baha’i World News Service sought to capture some of these developments and to explore new insights emerging from Baha’i endeavor.
Stories in the past year, which began in the afterglow of the bicentenary of Baha’u’llah’s birth, covered a diversity of topics.
This month we are featuring the article below from BahaiBlog.net about one of their special ongoing projects.
“Personal Reflections on the Baha’i Faith from Around the World” is a Baha’i Blog initiative in honor of the Bicentenary anniversary of the Birth of Baha’u’llah, Prophet-founder of the Baha’i Faith.
In this initiative, we share portraits of Baha’is and their friends from different countries and territories all over the world, and accompanying their photographs are a few of their words about what the Baha’i Faith means to them or how it has touched their lives.
We will be publishing one “personal reflection” per day, so be sure to stay updated by following the “Personal Reflections” social media pages Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. You can also visit the website dedicated to this project: personalreflections.bahaiblog.net
As this year celebrates 200 years since the Birth of Baha’u’llah, we’ve decided to capture at least 200 of these portraits and reflections. Our hope is that by sharing these pictures and excerpts, we will answer the call from the Universal House of Justice to communicate “a sense of what it means for humanity that these two Luminaries [the Bab and Baha’u’llah] rose successively above the horizon of the world.” (from a letter dated 18 May 2016 to all National Spiritual Assemblies)
Here is the tenth collection of images, and we hope you find this project as inspirational as we do!
The following article is from BahaiBlog.net.
For centuries, the peoples of the world have awaited the Promised Day of God, a Day when peace and harmony would be established on earth. The dawn of this new Day witnessed the appearance of not one but two Manifestations of God, the Bab and Baha’u’llah, Whose Revelations released the spiritual forces destined to transform society.
A “Manifestation of God” is a Baha’i concept used to define an intermediary between God and humanity, or what is commonly referred to as a Messenger or Prophet. The term “Twin Manifestations” refers to the unprecedented Revelation of the Bab and Baha’u’llah in rapid succession of one another.
The following article is from bahai.org. Photo of Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh from Collins Gate entrance, copyright © Bahá’í International Community
“These holy Manifestations have been as the coming of springtime in the world… For each spring is the time of a new creation…”— ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
The Bahá’í Faith began with the mission entrusted by God to two Divine Messengers—the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh. Today, the distinctive unity of the Faith They founded stems from explicit instructions given by Bahá’u’lláh that have assured the continuity of guidance following His passing. This line of succession, referred to as the Covenant, went from Bahá’u’lláh to His Son ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and then from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to His grandson, Shoghi Effendi, and the Universal House of Justice, ordained by Bahá’u’lláh. A Bahá’í accepts the divine authority of the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh and of these appointed successors.
The following article is from BahaiBlog.net.
Yassin Saar, the creator and director of Starfish International, the girl’s education program in the Gambia, explains what African girls and women need most: choices.
Using her mother as a case study, African educator Yassin Saar persuasively and forcefully explains why the Baha’i teachings call for prioritizing the education of girls. Yassin’s mother, the first girl to go to school from her poor rural village in Africa, raised four children, giving all of them a way to have a significant impact on the world. With that model in mind, Yassin discusses the Baha’i model of compulsory education for all children—and the primacy of girl’s education within that framework. “What African women need are choices,” she says—and she challenges every person in the audience to provide for the education of one African girl to give her those choices.
This talk was organized by BahaiTeachings.org, and you can ‘Subscribe’ to their YouTube channel to receive notifications about their latest videos.
For more Baha’i-inspired talks, visit Baha’i Blog’s Soundcloud page. You can also listen to talks on Baha’i Blog’s YouTube channel.
The following article is from bahai.org. Photo copyright © Bahá’í International Community
Just as our bodies require nourishment to develop properly, we need regular prayer for our spiritual sustenance and health. Prayer is food for the soul; it deepens the love of God in our hearts and draws us closer to Him.“There is nothing sweeter in the world of existence than prayer…The most blessed condition is the condition of prayer and supplication.”1 To live in a state of prayer entails not only uttering sacred verses in moments of devotion; it suggests, too, that throughout the day we should turn our hearts towards God.
