My life has changed since I found the Baha’i Faith…

Teaching the Baha’i Faith has much to do with listening to people, understanding their thoughts and needs, and knowing when and how to share.

Here is the story of a man who learned about the Baha’i Faith from a guest at the Caribbean island resort where he works. After years of struggle with substance abuse, he began a spiritual search that led eventually to several Baha’is. The story involves caring and generosity, and also ways to clearly and effectively present the Baha’i Teachings.

The Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, Shoghi Effendi, referred to direct teaching as “an open and bold assertion of the fundamental verities of the Cause,” with the goal of helping “in the eventual recognition by all mankind of the indispensability, the uniqueness and the supreme station of the Baha’i Revelation.”

To this guidance, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States adds in its February 20, 2008 letter: “The choice of method lies with the teacher, who must act with wisdom in all circumstances, according to his or her perception of the seeker’s receptivity.”

The seeker describes his past substance abuse and spiritual yearning, before learning about the Baha’i Faith:

For many years I had been searching for something to make me feel whole. I had always believed in God, but only called upon Him when I was deeply afraid or in bad trouble. (One day) I asked God for help. I told Him that I couldn't go on the way I was. That night I found myself in a hospital in the detox ward. (During therapy sessions) we often spoke of a Higher Power. I chose to call mine God. I attempted on a daily basis to get closer to God using prayer and meditation, but after six years I still felt something was missing. I needed something more.

In the course of his work on the island, he met a guest who is a Baha’i. Their friendship developed over time until she shared the Faith with him. Sensing his receptivity, the lady invited the seeker to her Latin American country for a visit. The seeker writes:

I'd never heard of it before. But every detail she revealed to me piqued my curiosity even further. I began to realize that this was what I'd been looking for all of this time. There was no aspect of the Baha’i Faith that I couldn't agree with. Some of their ideas I already believed in, others simply made perfect sense to me. She invited me to visit with her and some friends at her home. They are very spiritual people who made me feel so welcome. We had prayers every evening and I could feel my faith growing. My friend gave me some literature to study, one prayer book, and a meditation book.

After returning to his island, he was eager to meet more Baha’is. He searched an old phone book, and found a listing for the Baha’is on an island over 50 miles away. A Baha’i woman living there answered his telephone call.

I called and she was quite happy to hear from me. She was very interested in how I got her number. Apparently it wasn't in the newer phone books. She said it was more than a coincidence that I was able to get a hold of her. We talked for a bit, then she said a prayer over the phone. She also told me that there were two Bahai's on the island where I live. Since there are only about 150 people living here, I already knew them. We have started Ruhi together and I've been to their house for a Holy Day celebration.

The two Baha’is on the seeker’s home island also shared “Anna’s presentation” from Ruhi Book 6. In its February 20, 2008 letter, the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly writes:

Teachers in clusters around the world are finding “Anna’s presentation” from Book 6 of the Ruhi curriculum to be a helpful model for direct teaching. As teachers gain in experience, they learn to adapt the presentation according to individual circumstances. Yet the general content—comprehensive, clear, and forthright presentation, with a loving invitation to receptive souls to embrace the Faith—remains essentially the same.

This seeker gives a sincere account of the changes in his life after meeting Baha’is and investigating the Faith:

My life has changed so much for the better since I've found the Baha'i Faith. I no longer smoke cigarettes, or have anxiety problems that require medication. I have learned how damaging backbiting is and how important it is to avoid it at all costs. I understand the importance of daily prayer. I am no longer afraid of the future; I have some new-found life goals. My interest in helping my fellow man and especially those less fortunate than me has become a priority. I still have so much to learn, but I believe that is what life is about: always striving to learn more and become a better person.

Enduring Results: “Everything made sense”

In its 28 December 2010 letter, the Universal House of Justice exhorts the Baha’is worldwide to:

…hold fast to the conviction that a direct presentation of the Faith, when carried out at a sufficient level of depth and reinforced by a sound approach to consolidation, can bring enduring results.

A married couple living the western United States recently entered the Baha’i community along with their children. Both hail from different countries in Europe, and both benefited from a direct presentation of the Faith, along with official follow-up, which had wonderful and enduring results.

As you’ll see, the wife became attracted through online research, and the husband's interactions with his wife and the Baha’i responding to their inquiry helped him embrace the Faith.

Despite living in the U.S. since the 90s, the wife regularly watches television from her native country in Europe. Last year she saw on report on woman and an Iranian Baha’i who married. She was particularly impressed by what the groom said about the Baha’i principle of gender equality.

So impressed, in fact, that she started researching the Baha’i Faith online. The Baha’is who followed up on her inquiries reported her as saying that “what she found out was exactly what she's always believed.”

The response coordinator shared that she:

…spent the entire day researching the Faith and knew all about the covenant, administrative order, and Baha'i laws, (e.g. prayer. and abstaining from alcohol). She really found out a lot and everything made sense to her. She mentioned the Twin Manifestations and that the Faith started in 1844. She was looking into the history of the Faith as well as the Teachings.

By the end of the same month, the wife declared her faith online and registered her children as well. In addition to her husband's interest and later enrollment, the wife's mother also registered online her interest in learning more about the Baha’i Faith.

In the same letter of December 28^th, the House of Justice asks the Baha’is to “strain every nerve” to ensure that the system we are working so hard to build “does not close in on itself but progressively expands to embrace more and more people.” In light of this married couple's sincere and open attraction to the Baha’i Teachings, the next sentence that the House of Justice pens is quite poignant:

Let them not lose sight of the remarkable receptivity they found—nay, the sense of eager expectation that awaited them—as they gained confidence in their ability to interact with people of all walks of life and converse with them about the Person of Bahá’u’lláh and His Revelation.

The response coordinator did have the opportunity to speak with the husband about “the Person of Bahá’u’lláh and His Revelation,” in the form of Anna’s Presentation, from Ruhi Book 6. The coordinator noted that he agreed with everything, affirmed the Baha’i laws that they discussed, and spoke about obligatory prayer.

The husband shared that as he grew up he became more uncomfortable with his upbringing in church, and had always believed in the unity of religion and of humankind. After his wife's enrollment, he began to read several Baha’i books and speak with her about joining the Faith. After contact with the regional coordinator, they decided to confirm his enrollment!

The oneness of humankind was also key in the wife's acceptance of the Faith, as the coordinator learned. Her prior marriage was with an African American man, with whom she had several children. The elimination of prejudice, the coordinator related, is something that she has always believed in.

After his enrollment in the community, the husband shared:

My wife and kids just became members and I have decided to join the Baha'i Faith as well. Thank you very much for all the work!

And, indeed, our work entails creating a community large enough to answer the needs of society and accepting more new members like this family. The Universal House of Justice writes:

…let them not forget the lessons of the past which left no doubt that a relatively small band of active supporters of the Cause, no matter how resourceful, no matter how consecrated, cannot attend to the needs of communities comprising hundreds, much less thousands, of men, women and children.

The Spirit of a Pioneer

Faith in the capacity of every individual who shows a desire to serve will prove essential to the efforts of those who are to elicit from the believers wholehearted participation in the Plan. Unqualified love free of paternalism will be indispensable if they are to help turn hesitation into courage born of trust in God and transform a yearning for excitement into a commitment to long-term action. — Universal House of Justice, 28 December 2010

This is the story of a Bahá’í youth and how he became active in the Bahá’í community through embarking on a year of service:

I grew up in a Bahá’í family in Los Angeles, with both my parents dedicated to the Cause. After graduating high school and seeking direction in my life, I decided to serve a year in my father’s home country of El Salvador. Before I knew it, I was in a different country, living with an aunt whom I had never met before.

All I knew was that I wanted to serve the Five Year Plan, of which I had only a vague understanding. My only experience with core activities had been to briefly assist with children’s classes and being a prayer partner. But with the loving support and example of the Bahá'í community of El Salvador, I was nurtured into completing the main sequence of the Ruhi Institute. During the same period my capacity slowly started to grow in a spiritual sense, since I was not accustomed to really serving wholeheartedly and enduring so many trials in order to accomplish activities that didn’t always appeal to me at first.

As a result of making an honest effort in striving to understand that the Writings and service go hand in hand, God confirmed me with an understanding of the process in which we are engaged as a community, an understanding that continues to guide my life today. When I think about my year of service, it was one of the happiest periods of my life. Being given so many opportunities to serve, in capacities I would never have imagined, deeply affected my thinking about service. It wasn't something I was giving, but rather something that was necessary for the community to grow. The community was always by my side and always served alongside me. Serving also provided me with opportunities to learn from situations I was unfamiliar with. Through constant effort—especially teaching, the four core activities, and prayer—I was able to understand my place in the Five Year Plan and return home with a desire to continue serving my own community with the same spirit of a pioneer. 

The Vitality of the Training Institute

In April the Universal House of Justice wrote that “primary responsibility for the development of human resources in a region or country rests with the training institute.”

Having participated in a training session hosted by the Magdalene Carney Bahá’í Institute, the Children’s Classes Coordinator of the Baton Rouge, LA cluster (A-stage) returned home inspired to pursue new goals:

A family gathering was organized to ask for parental involvement and input into the classes. The parents suggested that we have more diversity of children in the classes.

It was requested that children’s class schedules be available for all the teachers, parents, and the community three months in advance, and that a list of substitute teachers be developed.

Visits were made to LSAs in the cluster to share the learning gained from teaching children’s classes, as well as the plans for an upcoming Bahá’í summer camp, and the types of support needed.  LSA funding support was received.

To assist with children’s classes, new resources were actively sought.  One parent was found from the Community of Interest (who is currently studying Book 3, and also helps out with the Bahá’í summer camp).  She has been able to invite other children to this summer camp, as she lives in the neighborhood and the neighbors trust her.  This parent and her Book 3 tutor have being doing home visits to attract more children to the classes.

Concrete, practical, and useful developments -- thanks to inspirational training.

“To ensure that the proper measure of vitality is pulsating through this system should continue to be the object of intense learning in every country over the course of the next twelve months.” (Universal House of Justice, Ridvan 2010)

When Study and Service Are Carried Out Concurrently

That the Bahá’í world has succeeded in developing a culture which promotes a way of thinking, studying, and acting, in which all consider themselves as treading a common path of service -- supporting one another and advancing together, respectful of the knowledge that each one possesses at any given moment and avoiding the tendency to divide the believers into categories such as deepened and uninformed -- is an accomplishment of enormous proportions.  And therein lie the dynamics of an irrepressible movement. (Universal House of Justice, Ridvan 2010)

The Area Teaching Committee of California’s Monterey County cluster (A-stage) reports this story about a recent on-line declarant.

“J.” is in the US Navy and is currently stationed at _____. Following news of his on-line declaration and confirmation, the institute process was initiated with some twists due to local conditions. Since the [military base] is closed to civilians, home visits were not possible, so “J.” had home visits at the home of some nearby Bahá’ís. Bonds of friendship quickly developed through these home visits. “J.” showed great interest in advancing his knowledge of the Bahá’í Faith, so within a couple of weeks, he was enrolled in a Ruhi Book 1 course. Layers of accompaniment occurred throughout the course of study. The woman serving as tutor had recently completed Book 7, and this was her first experience as a tutor. She was accompanied by [another student] who had completed the sequence of courses and initially served as co-tutor. So not only was “J.” developing his capacities, but the capacity of a new tutor was also strengthened. Prior to completing his study of Book 1, we started talking with “J.” about hosting a devotional gathering for [his colleagues on the military base]. By the end of Book 1, “J.” hosted his first devotional gathering, and invited twenty of his colleagues! The devotional was hosted at the home of the nearby Bahá’ís, and all of a sudden the [military base], which formerly seemed to be closed, was now perceived as part of the neighborhood.  Since then, “J.” has participated in home visits in the target neighborhood for the cluster's Intensive Program of Growth, and he is planning his second devotional gathering.

“J.” will be leaving in December for his new assignment. While we will miss him dearly, he will be prepared to serve no matter where he goes. Thanks to him, we have seen what can happen "when study and service are joined and carried out concurrently."