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.”
