By Leslie Farrell Across the country, Baha’is are holding prayer gatherings on a variety of themes and in diverse languages, sizes and styles. But one thing most of them have in common during this time of worldwide pandemic is that they are being held online. And their hosts have been creatively devising the best ways […]
Community building is central to the work Baha’is are doing around the world. When the arts are included in the community-building process, they can help us elevate our discourse, connect us to creative solutions to problems, inspire and move us. This principle was not only demonstrated in formal presentations at the online 2020 conference of […]
Families also benefit from periodically meeting in a retreat setting, where units of families from various immigrant populations spend a weekend together. The conversations at family retreats are often on the application of the Bahá’í teachings to the challenges of their lives. Families develop friendships across language and culture as they prepare food, observe their […]
The challenge of how to remedy the ills of society came often to the surface during U.S. celebrations of the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Bab, herald of the Baha’i Faith. Quotations from the teachings of the Bab and Baha’u’llah and the darkness-into-light theme of the film Dawn of the Light gave rise […]
A powerful evolution is happening in how Baha’is view the mission of the Baha’i House of Worship in Wilmette, Illinois. “As a spiritual center for community, the House of Worship is at the intersection of worship and service,” says Rebecca Rice, program coordinator. In recent years, Temple staff have explored how local Baha’i communities can […]
Dell Campbell is eager to talk about the Unity Garden behind the Baha’i center in Charlotte, North Carolina. But first there’s bamboo to cut for a higher fence that just might keep deer out. The Baha’i center is located in an African-American neighborhood Campbell calls “somewhat of a food desert” because very few residents have […]
Under the shade of an enormous tree, Baha’is in the Cleveland, Ohio, area met on Aug. 4 for what one participant called their “best cluster reflection meeting ever.” Reflection meetings are held every three months to review Baha’i-initiated community-building efforts in a cluster of communities and make plans for the next three months. Attendance at […]
Films on race unity and human rights — shown at the urging of Baha’is — are helping to enrich interfaith discourse in the Heartland States communities of Crystal Lake, Illinois, and Willmar, Minnesota. Laura McLuckie-Khandan, a Baha’i in Huntley, Illinois, had no sooner returned from eight years in Asia in 2015 when she was urged […]
Baha’is worldwide will, in October 2019, celebrate the second of two major 200-year anniversaries: the bicentenary of the birth of the Bab, the Herald of the Baha’i Faith. This follows a special period of activity that included the 2017 bicentenary of the birth of Baha’u’llah, Founder of the Faith. Here are some plans starting to […]
A focus on establishing new devotional gatherings has carried Charlotte, North Carolina, Baha’is past a milestone of having 100 ongoing core activities of community building. More important, emphasis on these prayer meetings — open to all — has led to a “culture shift,” says Sam Kelleher, who serves as secretary of the committee appointed to […]
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