A Look at the Ridvan 2024 Message

Before reading this post, I would suggest that you read the 2024 Ridvan Message from the Universal House of Justice, found here. I mean, I'm sure you have by now, otherwise why would you be here, looking at this post?

Also, this is not one of those "study guides", with emphasis on the quotation marks, that just asks questions ensuring you know how to read. After all, you wouldn't be here, on-line, searching study guides for this message if you weren't fairly literate. So, no, I don't have any of those "answer with a line from the text" type of questions. Sorry, if that's what you were hoping for.

No, this is a more of a "how does this message directly apply to your life, not the life of your cousin-in-law's brother's boss's niece's life, but yours" type of look. Of course, mostly what you'll really get is my own thoughts, which are nothing official, but it never hurts to remind people of that.

Might as well dive straight into it, then, now that the disclaimers have been disclaimed, and you've already read the message itself a few times, probably with friends and family.

Oh, and before we begin, let's number the paragraphs for ease of reference. There are..... 8 of them. That was the math section of this study. Congratulations. You passed.

 

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So, paragraph 1:

"Two years... have sped by." - I love this reminder of how quickly time passes, and just how urgent the need is for the work we are doing. But there's also that adjective, "formidable", which I didn't quote, since you have the message in front of you, and if I quote every single piece of it, it'll just take too long and take up too much space, so I may as well trust that you can follow along.

Where was I? Oh yes, "formidable". Time is rushing. We cannot deny, nor ignore, the urgency of the work we are doing, but it ain't easy. (My English teachers are probably rolling over in their collective graves, but I'm a believer in the living mutability of language, and besides, you know what I mean, so communication has occurred, which means the language has served its purpose.) What we are doing is extremely impressive, and demonstrative of great strength, but there is also the fear aspect of the word. We'll get to that in a bit, though. Let's move on.

We have "taken" the "objectives" of this plan "firmly to heart". That's a good thing, isn't it? But what are the objectives of this plan? Can we state them, simply and succinctly? (Pause and answer for yourself, please.)

(Got it? Ok. Let's check our answers.)

First, note that the objectives are plural, not singular.

If you're like me, you may have answered from the 30 December 2021 message which states that, for the next 25 years, we will be "focused on a single aim: the release of the society-building power of the Faith in ever-greater measures." That's our aim. Singular.

But you're probably a sharper tack than I am, and are far more familiar with the objectives than I am. The aim provides the long-term, overall direction, while the objectives are our short-term, more easily obtainable goals. They're like the steps on the path. Oh, and they're measurable. That's important. We can measure them. They will also differ from community to community, from cluster to cluster. So you really can answer the question far better than I can. I'm brand new to my community, only here a few months, and I don't speak the language yet.

All this to say that I am sure you know the objectives in your community, those goals that we are striving for over the next few cycles of activity, because, after all, we have an "increased depth of understanding". We have been doing this long enough that we can see the importance of the core activities, we know them by heart, and we have a better understanding of how they actually work in our own neighbourhood.

Finally, there is the other end of the spectrum, those last two sentences in that first paragraph. And this is where I believe in the importance of making this personal. How are these divisions and tensions in the world affecting your community? How is the desperate plight of the planet impacting the children and youth, not to mention adults, in your neighbourhood?

If you're like me, the war in Ukraine is not in your backyard. The abuses and violence between Israel and Palastine are not in your community. The rising sea levels are not hitting the foundations of your home. Of course, you and your neighbours may be experiencing trauma from the housing crisis, or the effects of global warming through more dramatic weather events. I don't know.

But it is a question we need to ask ourselves, and talk about in our communities.

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Paragraph 2 -

The answer to that last question "demands from every conscientious soul a response." After all, these trials affect us all.

But this is where it gets interesting to me: It doesn't say what kind of response.

You see, dear Reader, we are all responding to the events of the world. Many are responding with anger, or confusion, or despair, or any number of other valid responses. The question, though, is which responses will help alleviate the sufferings, and which will make them worse? Choosing a side in an ideological battle when both sides are clearly wrong does not help us at all. It merely increases the divisions.

Like a few friends of mine, you may wonder why the House of Justice says we are "not confused by" these travails. After all, maybe you do feel confused. I don't know. But I know that there is a lot of confusion out there. The difference, though, is that Shoghi Effendi, not to mention 'Abdu'l-Baha and even Baha'u'llah Himself, clearly outlined what was going to happen, and why. Just review books like The World Order of Baha'u'llah and you will see. We may not have known exactly which crises would hit us, nor how, but we knew they were coming. And we can easily see why all these catastrophes are hitting us. It's not mystery. And even though we can see the causes and effects of, say, gun violence in the US, it doesn't paralyze us: It saddens us. And it this sadness that prompts us to action. We strive to offer "hope in place of despair, unity in place of conflict."

And all of this leads us to some more very real questions:

Where can we find hope in the despair around us? What points of unity can we highlight in the conflicts that surround us?

Our responses to that last question in the first section directly impact our answers here.

Honestly, if you can't answer these questions yourself, or in your community, post them in the comments. You are probably not alone in this. And we can all work together to share our experiences and insights. Find those on-line communities that are talking about these issues in constructive ways and ask your questions there, too. These questions are just starting points for action, and find clarity in the next paragraph.

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Paragraph 3 -

First, note the references to Shoghi Effendi's vision of integration and disintegration. We must be very familiar with it, and fluent in talking about it, if we want to truly impart hope to others. I rarely speak this categorically, but feel it's important to do so here. His vision of these twin processes really is that important.

Also note how they use the phrase "true practitioners of peace". I've been to many so-called peace rallies which were actually rallies fighting against war, or some other injustice. These rallies do not help spread peace in the world, for that is not their stance, nor at their heart. The organizers are usually angry about something and want to get others angry, too. They feel that this is the best way to make a difference. And while they may be helping increase those necessary forces of disintegration, we are more concerned with the process of integration. That is, and will be, more long-lasting.

Then they give us a list of ways in which this integrative process happens. It is not exhaustive, but it is comprehensive. It begins with a single "heart being enkindled with the love of God", and moves to an entire "family opening up its home". It grows from there to a group of collaborators addressing a social problem, which blossoms to "a community strengthening a culture of mutual support". This further grows and expands into the neighbourhood, or even the whole village learning to nurture their "own spiritual and material progress", and culminates in the "emergence of a new Spiritual Assembly".

But, of course, we know that this isn't the end. It is just the beginning. For every community with an Assembly is working towards the further development of this exact process.

It all begins, though, with hope and unity. After looking at the nuances in this paragraph, the source of hope is much more easily and clearly discernible.

And again, remember that first sentence? The fact that this endeavour is formidable implies that we are actually doing it. Through the increased fear and despair that is surrounding us, we are making tangible, real strides.

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Paragraph 4 -

It is truly worth noting that this Plan allows "every soul to contribute a share of what humanity needs in this day." Unlike the Funds, or service on Baha'i institutions, it does not require us to be Baha'i. Everyone can contribute. Even that grumpy neighbour down the street. Even the gay couple a few doors down. Even the atheist and the fundamentalist. Every soul means every soul.

But although the Plan allows for everyone to contribute, that doesn't mean everyone will want to. That's ok. Remember, this Plan will last another 7 years, and is part of a series of Plans that will last another 23, all of which is part of a greater endeavour that will take generations. Not everyone will want to wait that long. Many want to see an immediate solution to an immediate problem, a "temporary salve" for a temporary problem. This, too, is needed. But it's far easier to get people to work on these things than it is to convince them to work on the greater issues. So we are working on the more important, longer lasting things.

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Paragraph 5 - 

Here we have a series of questions that are worth answering. Although they may be written as rhetorical questions, we can look at them in a deeper way. For example, the first one can be answered by asking "How can Baha'u'llah's principle of the oneness of humankind help unite these specific diverse elements?" Or we may ask "What is this new way of life that leads to enduring peace? And how can we help people discover it?" The answer lies in that last sentence. Extend the hand of friendship to everyone. Yes, everyone. Even that grumpy neighbour down the street, and that gay couple a few doors down, and the atheist and the fundamentalist, and everyone else. Find a common endeavour on which you can work, one that has real significance in your community. Work with them, serve together, learn together, and advance together.

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Paragraph 6 - 

And then there are the youth.

Nothing of significance can occur without the youth, for they are the ones that are picking up the torch and carrying it forward.

To do this more effectively, the House of Justice reminds us of the importance of "kindliness, courage, and complete reliance on God". Oh, and they don't have to do it alone. They need to reach out to their peers and get their help, too.

In fact, when I read this to a few people this morning, when we talked briefly about service in the previous paragraph, my wife said that she wanted to go to a friend's farm to help her family out this summer. That was when I suggested that we talk to some of the youth groups here and see if we can make it a weekend event, camping out and all. This led to a great discussion about the feasibility of it, and actual plans to contact the youth, the institutions of the Faith in the area, and the family. Since the daughter-in-law was here in this discussion, she chose the latter task, while I volunteered to do the former. Study leading to discussion leading to action. And then the very next paragraph: the youth.

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Paragraphs 7 and 8 - 

While I could go into a lot of thought about paragraph 7, I will just encourage you to read it again. Immerse yourself in the hope it conveys, the joy it offers, and the beauty it imparts. Look at how the vision it offers builds from sentence to sentence, and the phrases they use to describe each step.

And paragraph 8? Well, let me conclude this little article by saying that it reminded me strongly of a talk from 'Abdu'l-Baha, one He gave in New York on 16 November 1912. In it, He begins by mentioning the ordeals and calamities, bringing to mind the opening of this very letter. And then He finishes with a vision of hope, and grand endeavour. I'll leave you with it here, and see you next time.

 

The Blessed Perfection suffered innumerable ordeals and calamities, but during His lifetime He trained in all regions many souls who were peerless. The purpose of the appearance of the Manifestations of God is the training of the people. That is the only result of Their mission, the real outcome. The outcome of the whole life of Jesus was the training of eleven disciples and two women. Why did He suffer troubles, ordeals and calamities? For the training of these few followers. That was the result of His life. The product of the life of Christ was not the churches but the illumined souls of those who believed in Him. Afterward, they spread His teachings.

 It is my hope that you all may become the product of the life of Bahá’u’lláh and the outcomes of His heavenly training. When the people ask you, “What has Bahá’u’lláh accomplished?” say to them, “He has created these; He has trained us.”

It's All One

A friend and I were talking the other day, and this is the sort of friend that teaches me a lot. Almost every time we speak we talk about the Writings, and he is so knowledgeable about them, has such a different perspective than I do. It's wonderful.

That day, though, I was reminded of a very important truth: What seems obvious to you is a wonder to someone else.

"I like the simple way the Iqan explains progressive revelation", he said to me, "but I really prefer the Seven Valleys."

There was something about the conversation that really made me want to go deeper, but I realized that we first needed to establish that the Writings are actually, and fundamentally, one body of work. And with the Kitab-i-Iqan, I am always surprised at how people think of it as being about "progressive revelation". To me, it is so much more. It is essentially how we can recognize a Messenger of God.

But back to my response.

First, I agreed. I agreed with him that it was, in a sense, a simple argument. But simple just means "few steps", and the arguments Baha'u'llah uses in the Kitab-i-Iqan are not all that numerous. So, yeah, it's simple, but profound.

Then I mentioned how I loved the statement from the Guardian about the Iqan, where he said that if we wanted to become effective teachers of the Cause, and please note that I am not quoting here but referring to my own memory of the quote, we needed to understand the methods and arguments Baha'u'llah uses in the Iqan. "So the arguments we essentially understand," I pointed out, "but what about His methods? What methods does He use to help the uncle of the Bab draw closer to becoming a sincere believer? That, to me, is the genius of this great Text."

He seemed intrigued by this, so I continued.

"I also find it interesting that the Seven Valleys does the same thing as the Iqan. It's essentially the same message, but for a different audience. The Iqan, to me, addresses the head more, while the Seven Valleys is speaking more to the heart. Of course, Gems of Divine Mysteries does the same thing, too, but sort of in the middle."

From his reaction, I guess he hadn't thought to include Gems in there.

"Yeah, and then there's the Four Valleys", he began.

"Oh, the Four Valleys, I love that one."

"I don't really get it, so I just stick to the Seven Valleys."

"The Four Valleys is a different beast altogether. It essentially tells us that there are four ways to approach truth, and how to recognize which approach is best for a particular individual."

He was definitely intrigued by this.

"And interestingly enough, the Iqan hits one type, the Seven Valleys another, and Gems the third." Yeah, I know there's a fourth, but it doesn't really apply here.

As soon as I said that I could see that he saw exactly what I meant. And I could just watch as some of the pieces of this beautiful puzzle started to fall into place.

"Ok," he acceded, "but how is the Iqan like the Seven Valleys?"

"Great question. And one of my favorite questions to ask the friends is why they think the Iqan is in two parts."

I could just see the mental whiplash hit.

"Because it was written over two days?"

"Maybe. I mean I don't really know, but it seems to me that Part One helps firm up the uncle's belief in Muhammad, so that he would have recognized Him in His own lifetime. From there, He quickly turns this proof to the Bab, and at the end of Part One the uncle is essentially a Babi. Now, if I were to attempt to write such a book, which I could never do, I would have stopped there, but Baha'u'llah adds one last paragraph. He basically says 'Now you're a Babi. So what? What are you going to do about it?' And that leads us to Part Two, which is what to do about it."

"Ok." He still wasn't convinced that it was the same message in a different format.

"So Part One begins with Search, leads us into Love, and then gives us concrete Knowledge. By the end of Part One we have learned to apply Unity to all the Messengers of God. Part Two continues with the other valleys from there."

It's kind of fun watching a little mental bomb go off in someone's mind. It seemed to clear away some of the dust and allowed him to get a far broader view of these texts and, more importantly, their interconnectedness. All of a sudden, I could see from his changing expression, he saw how these books offered the same beautiful message in different ways.

But if there is anything I learned from Baha'u'llah's methodology in the Iqan, it's to take that one extra little step beyond. But just the one. Allow time for these ideas to develop. Allow the time for processing. So there was one more little bit to add.

"What really gets me, though, is the Kitab-i-Aqdas."

"How does that fit in here?"

"The first paragraph. Recognition and Obedience. Parts One and Two of the Iqan. Part One is recognition. Part Two is obedience."

That was when I saw his breath leave him in a gasp.

There was nothing all that new that I offered here. It was just timely. He had never considered the Writings in that particular way before. He knew so much on so many levels about the Writings, but somehow had gotten complacent with the Iqan. All I did was help him fit it back into his overall study of the Faith. I truly cannot wait to talk with him again and see what treasures he has found, for I know him, and he really is quite knowledgeable about the Faith. This one little piece will surely help him uncover far more treasures in the ocean of the Writings. And I am certain that he will point out things to me that I never would have considered before.

It really is important to remember that what may seem obvious to us is a wonder to someone else.

The Blessing of God

When I was a child, I listened to the stories of the Tanakh, the Old Testament. As I listened, I had an image that always came to mind: I saw the blessing of God like a glowing ball.

That's it.

It was like a glowing ball in my mind, passed from one generation to the next.

As I listened to the story of Abraham, this ball had been given to Him, and He cared for it. Sometimes, though, it was difficult to keep this precious object. One mis-step and you could accidentally lose it, as the Jewish people did time and time again throughout he stories.

But back to Abraham. He had this great gift, and was told to sacrifice His son. As the story goes, He was stopped by the angel and told to sacrifice a ram, instead. Ok. No problem. I'm not going to get into the details of that particular story, nor my own reaction to it.

But then this precious gift, this blessing of God, was passed to His son, Isaac. At least, in the Tanakh it was, so that's what we'll go with here, since that's the version I heard as a child.

Anyways, Abraham got older, Isaac married Rebekah, and then Abraham left everything to Isaac. Presumably, the blessing of God was included in this. At least, it was in my mind.

Why? Because in the very next part of the story, Isaac passed on this blessing to Jacob. Of course, he intended to give it to Esau, but Rebekah knew that it should really go to Jacob.

Long story short, Jacob got the blessing of God, and although difficult, things went very well for him.

Finally, he passed the blessing on to his favourite son, Joseph.

This is where it got interesting to me. In every story up to this point, once the blessing was passed on we heard nothing more of the previous generation. Except here, in this story.

After the blessing was given by Jacob to Joseph, this favourite son was lost, presumed killed. Jacob's health began to fail. Famine hit the land. Everything seemed to do downhill.

For Joseph, on the other hand, everything went well. Ok, maybe not at first, but we can see the Hand of God at play here if we look. The story focuses on Joseph, but we still hear about his family. We hear about the famine. We know that things were difficult for them, so difficult that they had to seek out Joseph's favour, even though they didn't know it at the time. We, the audience, get a rare glimpse of what happens after the blessing of God passes on. We see it from both sides, the benefits that accrue to Joseph, and the trials faced by his family.

But I want to go back to Jacob for a moment.

I have to wonder what it must have been like for him. As I said, we get a rare glimpse of life after God has left us. He must have been used to having God very present in his life. And now, after this blessing passed to Joseph, things go horribly wrong. He has to search elsewhere for salvation. Whereas previously salvation was with him, easily within his reach, it was now beyond him. He had to go somewhere new, somewhere different, to a "foreign land": Egypt.

Only by recognizing that the blessing had left, and turning his attention elsewhere, could he find it again.

When I was growing up and going to all sorts of different communities, hopping churches as others hopped bars, I saw the beauty of the teachings of Jesus, but could see so clearly that the blessing of God did not reside within the churches I was visiting. They may have spoken of love and compassion, but I did not see it in their hearts. I saw condemnation for anyone that believed differently than they did. "We're right", they seemed to say, "and everyone else is going to hell."

I knew that this attitude was not of Jesus, could not be of God.

The concept that someone could lead a virtuous life, be compassionate to those around them, and help all who crossed their path, and yet still be condemned just because they happened to be born in place where Christianity was not the religion du jour, was just alien to me. It was an idea that did not speak of a loving and compassionate God. It did not speak of a God that was for the entire planet.

And so I long wondered where I would find a community that showed this love, this compassion; a community that demonstrated by their actions and effects that they were not only living the Law of God, but also blessed by Him.

There is a recent story of a group of people somewhere in the Middle East who read in the Quran that the people of Muhammad would always be blessed. When they looked around, all they saw were problems. When they compared what they read in the sacred Book with what they were witnessing in their own community, they began to recognize that somewhere along the way the blessing of God had left them. They knew that they needed to search somewhere else. It was then that they found the Kitab-i-Aqdas, and recognized that the supreme blessing now resided with Baha'u'llah and the Baha'i community. It had moved on and landed somewhere they were not expecting, a "foreign land": Persia.

Today, it seems so clear to me that this great blessing, this glowing orb of my childhood vision, not only resided with Baha'u'llah, but was also passed on to 'Abdu'l-Baha. When I see those around Him who tried to cause a schism, and both the effects they had as well as the fate they suffered, it is perfectly clear to me that this blessing was gifted to 'Abdu'l-Baha.

From Him, it obviously passed on to Shoghi Effendi, and then to the Universal House of Justice. This is so clear to me upon reading the history, and comparing it to the stories of the Tanakh that I read growing up. Baha'ullah says, in the Book of Certitude, "Consider the past..." By looking at the past, comparing the present to what I already know to be true from my own religious background, there is no question for me.

And this is also what I challenge so many of my friends to do. Read the stories of the Bible, the New Testament, if you will, and see if the church to which they belong lives up to that example. Are they being taught love or judgement? Compassion or just plain old passion?

From there, quite a few have given up on religion, deciding that if the church in which they grew was not living up to that high standard, then all religions must be a lie. But that doesn't seem reasonable to me. That's the old "throwing away the baby with the bathwater" problem.

To be fair, some decided that, yes, their church was living up to that standard, and for that I praise them.

And some, just some few, decided to look into a "foreign land". Some became Buddhist, finding peace and tranquility for themselves within those divine teachings. Others began to follow their more traditional spiritual teachings, returning to the ancient teachings of their own people, trying to discover a path to the future in the past.

But some expanded their horizons, and looked for something that would not only benefit them, but bring the world to their heart. They looked to expand their sense of community to all around them, not just those that looked like them or hailed from the same small area that their ancestors did, but to all who walk this earth. They decided that they wanted to be of service to all the world.

“Let your vision be world-embracing," were words that resonated within their very souls, "rather than confined to your own self.” They know, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that "the object of every Revelation (is) to effect a transformation in the whole character of mankind, a transformation that shall manifest itself, both outwardly and inwardly, that shall affect both its inner life and external conditions". And that is why these people became members of the Baha'i community.