Every year we're asked, "How do Baha'is handle the winter holidays?" "When is the Baha'i gift-giving season?" "How do Baha'is view Christ?"

This year we spoke with Veda Mosavi, a Baha'i from Calif. who was raised by a Persian Baha'i father and a mother from a Baptist background, who became a Baha'i when Veda was young.

"I was raised with Christmas in my home for a few years and also with my mom's side of the family. As I got older, Mom weeded out Christmas in our home and concentrated on Ayyam-i-Ha and Naw Ruz more."

But two years ago, when Jasmine's third-grade class together crooned songs like Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer and Silent Night, Jasmine felt a little left out.
 
Christmas songs were fun, and so were Hanukkah tunes like I Have a Little Dreidel, but Jasmine, now 10, wanted to be able to sing songs about her own faith too. Why couldn’t her class sing Baha’i songs, such as Blessed is the Spot and O God, Educate These Children?
 
“I was the only one in my class who didn’t celebrate Christmas, my teacher treated me different and thought I’d be sensitive to it,” Jasmine said. "We made wreaths in class and she painted everyone's wreath gold except mine she painted blue. She thought it would be too "Christmas" looking."
 
The Mosavi family join in on the holiday fun each year, but feel a multicultural and multi-religious music program in schools is vital during this Judeo-Christian holiday season.
 
“We absolutely enjoy all the lights on the street, all our neighbors decorate. And if we’re invited to a Christmas party we go,” Veda said. “But we really make a big deal about how important it is to know the spirit of Christmas and the teachings of Jesus, not the material representation of it. There’s a huge separation.”
 
Santa and a tree, she added, aren’t what Christmas is supposed to be about. But the Christmas season is unavoidable, and Veda liked her daughter’s idea about an ecumenical winter program. She was pleasantly surprised when the music director, and the principal, received the suggestion with open arms.
 
The importance of music, after all, is addressed in Baha'i writings, “Music is an important means to the education and development of humanity.”
 
Veda spent the next year gathering sheet music, making a CD of some Baha’i songs and getting permission for artists to use their music.
 
“Every door has opened,” she said, “it’s meant to be.”
 

Jasmine holds packet of Baha'i-inspired music she
and her Mom put together for local schools All 55 schools in her district now have the book, and the Mosavi family has been sending it to any school district that requests it, including schools outside of California.
 
Jasmine, who is now in the fifth grade, said the year-long project taught her an important lesson.
 
“I learned that I should not feel left out,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if you celebrate Christmas or not, we’re all the same inside. We shouldn't feel separated by the way we worship. I wanted my teachers to know that I am a Baha'i and to let them know that we believe in the unity of all religions."
 
She said when her friends talk about Christmas, she joins in on the conversation and doesn’t feel ignored anymore. She said that although the music handbook is still fresh and she hasn’t gotten to hear much feedback yet, she has a peace of mind knowing Baha’i music is available to students.
 
Jasmine, now in band, is currently working with her mom on creating a piano accompaniment for Baha’i music. Jasmine's sister, Mona, has given the booklet to her middle school music instructors and they had a very positive response.
 
Those interested in the booklet can e-mail Jasmine and her mom at: musicfortheschools "at" gmail.com. (The booklet includes sheet music and a CD compilation for "Blessed is the Spot"; "O God, Educate these children"; "Listen"; and "The Equality Song")

Related items:

• CNN.com: "For many, December's a dilemma"
• Chicago Tribune Religion Blog, The Seeker - "Rob Stockman: December can mean many holidays or none for Baha'is" 
• Read Baha'i blogger, Phillipe Copeland's, discussion on the December Dilemma, which has generated numerous comments
• Baltimore Examiner - "Christmas and the Baha'is - happy holidays?"
• First Amendment Center - FAQ's about religious liberty in public schools