Fine

Back to my conversation with Marielle, the woman for whom I have the bounty of being her husband, about the Kitab-i-Aqdas. As I mentioned a few days ago, we sat down over tea, while our son was in a Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment group, and we looked through the Aqdas together. A few things stood out, only one of which I've mentioned so far.

Here's another:

We have decreed that a third part of all fines shall go to the Seat of Justice, and We admonish its men to observe pure justice, that they may expend what is thus accumulated for such purposes as have been enjoined upon them by Him Who is the All-Knowing, the All-Wise.

Wow. Wait, what? A third of all fines? So if I am late in returning a library book, and have to pay $1.50 for being overdue, $.50 goes to the House of Justice? If I get a speeding ticket, and have to pay a fine of $999, then $333 goes to the House of Justice? (You like how I kept the math simple?)

Interesting.

Now, or at least when this law comes into effect, if we break a rule, then it is no longer just a local matter, with a fine payable to some local institution. Of course, we can, at that point in time, presume that the laws are just and the fines appropriate. And we can see that in the example of an overdue library book I may have caused a minor inconvenience to the person awaiting it (like the DVD I'm waiting for someone to return to my local library), but a dollar more than covers it. With speeding, the danger is greater, and the fine is greater.

But just imagine the rippling effect with this "inconvenience". When we break a rule, this law seems to be saying, it has an effect on the whole planet. And when you violate a rule, you need make restitution to the whole world.

Interesting.

And when I think of all the local libraries around the planet, all the people speeding, or parking illegally, or doing anything else for which there is a fine imposed, and then contemplate all that money flowing into the hands of the Universal House of Justice, I can see so much good coming out of it.

I feel like I am just beginning to get a glimpse of the implications of this subtle law.

Typoes

I love this letter. Oh, you don't actually need to read it, if you don't want to. I just put it here so that you could, if you wished to see what I was writing about.

I mean, I love the sentiment, the encouragement, the love. I especially love the way that he uses the Master's reference to the country, the soil, the position and the spiritual receptivity. It's interesting, isn't it? How he goes from the country, which is merely a political designation, to the soil, which is the basis for the growth of food and the feeding of the peoples, to the position, which he doesn't define but it seems to be more important than the soil itself, and then on to the spiritual receptivity, which is the most important of all, for that is what will assure the future of that location.

He gives his consolation, and shows he is aware of what is happening. He let's them know that they're not alone. He gives guidance and encouragement, and let's them have a glimpse of where we are all heading.

It really is a beautiful letter of love.

But you know what touches me the most? The typos. And yes, I know that it is spelled incorrectly in the title. That was deliberate. And yes, I'm sure you just glanced up to check.

But why would I love the typos the most? Because even those send a deep message.

Obviously he corrects some of them, as evidenced by the xxxs and scratches here and there. But he doesn't correct all of them. Why not? Because I believe he can't be bothered. They're not important.

Who cares if he misspelled "unslacking"? It doesn't matter. We know exactly which word he meant. We can correct it ourselves.

What's important is the love.

It's as if he is telling us not to be concerned with perfection.

December 1923? He was busy. We know he was working hard, day and night, burning the candle at both ends, as they say. But he still found the time to write them, even though "as yet no letter" had reached him from them. He reminds them of his unfailing love.

But is the letter perfect, free from typos? Nope. And that's alright. The message is perfectly conveyed.

Does that mean we shouldn't strive for excellence? Of course not. We should, but we should not be concerned about perfection. There comes a point where something is "good enough". We have far more important things to worry about than catching every little detail.

This is such a good reminder in this rapid age of the internet. It's an important reminder in this age where so many are swift to find fault. Our progress is slow. Our task is far beyond our severely limited strength. We will suffer setbacks, neglect, indifference.

And yet we carry on, helping unfold the Plan that we see so much more clearly today than we did back in 1923.

Yeah, it's a beautiful letter, perfect, with typos and all.

A Commotion

Know ye from what heights your Lord, the All-Glorious, is calling? Think ye that ye have recognized the Pen wherewith your Lord, the Lord of all names, commandeth you? Nay, by My life! Did ye but know it, ye would renounce the world, and would hasten with your whole hearts to the presence of the Well-Beloved. Your spirits would be so transported by His Word as to throw into commotion the Greater World—how much more this small and petty one! Thus have the showers of My bounty been poured down from the heaven of My loving-kindness, as a token of My grace, that ye may be of the thankful. (Baha'u'llah, Kitab-i-Aqdas, paragraph 55)

My wife and I were reading this the other day, talking about our understanding of this paragraph. Or, in my case, lack thereof.

We thought the beginning of the quote was fairly obvious to understand. "You think you know Me? Heh." There's even more to Him than we can possibly imagine. If we had but an inkling of His true Station, wow, then just imagine what we would do to share it with others. And if we really had the slightest awareness of that, we would give up everything in this world and "hasten" with our "whole hearts" to His presence.

But wait a second.

How can we hasten to His presence? He has passed on to His eternal home. Does that mean we would kill ourselves? Nah. I don't think so.

I think it means that those who read it while He was alive would quickly go to be with Him, while the rest of us, and those who read these words for the next thousand years, have to strive to live our lives so well that we feel His presence in our daily lives. Or it could mean going to work in the Holy Land, but again, I don't think so. To me, it means striving every day through prayer and service to live my life ever closer to how the Master lived His.

But this is not what caught our attention.

No, what really got us talking was the next sentence: "Your spirits would be so transported by His Word as to throw into commotion the Greater World—how much more this small and petty one!"

To start, what is meant by "the Greater World"? We presume He is referring to the spiritual realms, the next world, that place to which our spirits go when we bite the big one. So how in the world would we "cause a commotion" there? What could that possibly look like?

Aside - I'm reminded of the story of the misery of the devil in the 1960s. Someone went down to hell and Satan was just miserable. When the person looked around there were all these wonderful activities happening. Children were all playing together. People were praying. When asked what was going on, Satan said, "It's the Baha'is. They're all Pioneering down here."

All right. This is really beyond me. I honestly have no clue. A commotion in the Greater World? I think I'll just leave that one alone for now.

So what about "this small and petty one"? That I can relate to. Small and petty is so much easier for me to grasp.

Well, to be honest, I'm reminded of my Facebook feed. (Hmmm. Feed? I really don't like that term. Feed is the nutritional stuff that you give farm animals. I think I'll refer to it as my wall instead.)

(Okay. Take two.)

Well, to be honest, I'm reminded of my Facebook wall. (That's better.)

I've been noticing a series of very disturbing trends on the internet over the past little while. People are becoming more and more divided, less tolerant, more judgmental. People are becoming far more openly racist, misogynistic, and hateful of the other. Or they are becoming more judgmental of the abuser, refusing to listen to them, insistent on swift punishment, demanding harsher and harsher penalties immediately. But really, I see these both as the same thing. I think this comes from an insistence that others be more like oneself.

Now I'm not saying that we should tolerate the racist, or the abuser. No. I believe we should educate them. They are human, worthy of honour and respect, the same as any other person. They should be subject to the same laws, and the same rights as anyone else.

Personally, I have no problem if someone is uncomfortable with me, solely due to my skin colour. My problem arises when this affects their hiring of me for a job, or their basing legalistic decisions on that same discomfort. This is when the discomfort of the unknown turns into the disease of racism. That's where I draw the line. But honestly, I can't fault anyone else for being uncomfortable around the different.

Then there's the issue of gun control in the US, to name a singular example. Despite what many of my friends believe, I'm not against gun ownership. I truly believe that they have a place in the world, in society. But I do question the gross proliferation of gun ownership there, and the laxity in the application of the laws regarding that. I do question the use of gun ownership as a means of identity. I highly question the lack of moral education that is being given to those who most heatedly contend the need for guns. There are many things that I question, but gun ownership itself? No. I see the call for safety on both sides of the issue and do not see it as the dichotomic issue that many would try to force on me.

Quick aside: I'm so very grateful to my friends on Facebook who respond so eloquently on both sides of this issue, clearly stating their points, and respecting those on the other side of this divisive issue. They set such a great example. And the fact that not a single friend has "unfriended" me on it speaks volumes for their integrity and willingness to work with the "other" side.

Anyways, where was I? Oh yes, commotion.

I've been posting some very contentious posts in recent months. Just recently I posted some things about those high profile people in the news who have been fired from their jobs, digitally edited out of movies, or otherwise punished based solely on accusations of sexual abuse. Now to be clear, I'm not promoting sexual abuse. I never have, and I never will. What I'm pointing out, though, is the lack of justice these people are facing without due process of law. They are being presumed guilty, and suffering harsh consequences based on nothing more than an accusation. Now some of these people have admitted guilt, and that's fine and wonderful. I'm glad for them. But some are denying it, and they deserve the chance to face these charges.

However, I'm not really looking at the Hollywood bigwig side of the issue. As I wrote in response to one comment on my.... wall, "I'm not talking about the ultra-privileged, but the local school teacher who is fired because a student decides to toss out an unfounded accusation because the teacher gave them a harsh grade on a test, or the individual who loses their desperately needed job at a local store due to another accusation merely because they wouldn't give someone a refund."

You see, it's really easy to say "This person did such and such, and since they are in the position of power, they must be harshly punished." And yes, we can look back at the history of abusers in the court system and easily recognize how rarely they get found guilty. And of course we can also look at the untold horrors that the victims often face, usually in those same courts that are designed to punish the guilty. None of this is in question here. My point, though, is that every accused must have the opportunity to defend themselves, should they wish. Without that, then there is no purpose to the legal system, and public lynching is, quite simply, the next step.

Of course we need to revamp the legal system. After all, it's only concerned about legality, not justice. This has been demonstrated time and again.

And as you can see, by really pushing for justice, both for the accuser and the accused, I am creating something of a commotion. Because I am not willing to see this as a dichotomy. I do not believe that you are either for the abuser or for the victim, with no in-between.

I stand for justice.

Baha'u'llah has placed justice on so high a pedestal that I am willing to go through hell and high water to defend it. "No light", are His poignant words, "can compare with the light of justice. The establishment of order in the world and the tranquility of the nations depend upon it." We only need to look at the pain and suffering going on around us to begin to get a sense of the truth of these words.

So when I read this quote from the Kitab-i-Aqdas, this is what I am reminded of. I feel like my spirit is so transported by His vision of Justice, as just a singular example, that I may be causing a bit of commotion in my small part of this world.

And you know what? I am thankful. Maybe, just maybe, I can help a few of my friends see beyond the divisiveness and find solace in the greater truths that Baha'u'llah has shared.

Authoritative

My son, age 12, and I, age older, have had some fascinating conversations over the past few days. The essence of them was what, in Baha'i literature, is considered authoritative. Some of this came because of some concerns we had seen on-line where questions were being raised in regards to letters written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi.

It was quite obvious that only the letters and writings from the central authorities of the Faith, Baha'u'llah, 'Abdu'l-Baha, Shoghi Effendi and the Universal House of Justice, would be considered authoritative or official. This blog, for example, is not. What I write here is only my own opinion, and should be taken as such. There's a reason I write this statement often. It's to avoid confusion. For example, there are some on the internet who write about the Faith as if they are some kind of authority, and get upset when others question this, such as when they try to insist that letters written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi shouldn't be quoted as authoritative. They fall back on the "But I'm a scholar" line, not recognizing that this was the very same excuse that many of the Covenant-breakers of the past used. Now, I'm not saying that these people are violating the Covenant, for I'm in no position to do that, but just that I recognize it as a very dangerous line. And this is why my son and I were talking about it.

So, back to the question at hand: What is considered authoritative?

Well, to begin, anything written by Baha'u'llah, obviously, would be considered authoritative. In addition to this, though, or perhaps a subset of this, are those letters that He wrote as if they were written by His amanuensis. They are also authoritative. And from what I understand, they all have His seal, so it really isn't a question.

The next are the letters from 'Abdu'l-Baha. Anything written by Him, obviously, is considered authoritative. No question there. The things that were dictated by Him are also authoritative, as long as we have the original copy with His seal. There are whole whack of things that were published under His name in Star of the West, for example, which are quite wonderful, but if we don't have the original, then it is just "attributed" to Him. We can take it or leave it.

Another odd point, though, are the talks He gave. This would include books such as "Promulgation of Universal Peace", "Paris Talks, "Some Answered Questions" and the like. In relation to these, there is a letter from the Research Department that says:

The original of "Some Answered Questions" in Persian is preserved in the Holy Land; its text was read in full and corrected by Abdu'l-Bahá Himself. Unfortunately, Abdu'l-Bahá did not read and authenticate all transcripts of His other talks, some of which have been translated into various languages and published. For many of His addresses included in "The Promulgation of Universal Peace" and "Paris Talks", for example, no original authenticated text has yet been found. However, the Guardian allowed such compilations to continue to be used by the friends. In the future each talk will have to be identified and those which are unauthenticated will have to be clearly distinguished from those which form a part of Bahá'í Scripture. This does not mean that the unauthenticated talks will have to cease to be used -- merely that the degree of authenticity of every document will have to be known and understood. (23 March 1987)

So for now, "Some Answered Questions" is considered authentic, since it was reviewed by Him, while the others are just amazingly awesome.

But now we get to Shoghi Effendi. Prior to 1941, when Ruhiyyih Khanum began helping him, "he had had", in the words of Philip Hainsworth, "few helpers and his secretaries caused him much suffering." The Guardian, however, wrote "I wish to add and say that whatever letters are sent in my behalf from Haifa are all read and approved by me before mailing. There is no exception whatever to this rule." So while this makes the guidance authoritative, we read in a letter written on his behalf, "Although the secretaries of the Guardian convey his thoughts and instructions and these messages are authoritative, their words are in no sense the same as his, their style certainly not the same, and their authority less, for they use their own terms and not his exact words in conveying his messages." In short, yes, these letters written on his behalf are authoritative. They may not be written in his style, or convey his exact wording, but "these messages are authoritative". "The Guardian's statement that he reviewed every letter written on his behalf without exception", writes the Research Department, "makes it clear that the authority of the letters was independent of whatever personal 'sufferings' might have been caused by certain secretaries, and that there was no 'delegation' whatsoever of his interpretative authority, but merely a use of secretarial assistance for his huge burden of correspondence."

So, any questions about the authority of the letters from the Guardian are answered. Whether they written by him, or on his behalf, they are authoritative.

Finally, there is the Universal House of Justice. Letters written by the Universal House of Justice are, of course, authoritative. The question that has come up, though, is whether letters written by the Secretariat are authoritative. Fortunately the Universal House of Justice has answered this for us:

As to whether there is a distinction between correspondence from the World Centre that has been signed "The Universal House of Justice" and that signed on behalf of the Secretariat: In brief, the manner in which each of these letters is prepared depends upon the contents of the letter. Drafts of letters which contain newly formulated policies are consulted upon and approved during a meeting of the House of Justice; correspondence dealing with previously enunciated policies, or with matters of a routine nature, are prepared, as delegated by the House of Justice, by its Secretariat and initialed by at least the majority of the members of the House of Justice before being dispatched. All letters written over the signature of the Department of the Secretariat are authorized by the Universal House of Justice.

Boom. Done. Now we know. All the letters sent from the Secretariat are considered authoritative.

There are a number of letters that detail all of this, many of which are found on-line, but my favorite is probably http://bahai-library.com/uhj_letters_behalf_guardian.

And as for all those friends on-line who are trying to stir up trouble by saying anything different, that the letters written "on behalf of" any of the authority figures are not authoritative, well, I leave them to themselves. It is not worth trying to fight their ego. That fight is for themselves alone. Instead, I just try to offer what little I have been able to find by looking at the guidance.

The Sun of God

It's a cloudy morning here on the coast. A fairly cool and dismal looking sort of day. The type of day that is just perfect for either bundling up and walking on a storm-swept beach, if you're into that sort of thing, or cuddling up in a thick blanket with a nice hot mug of cocoa and a good book, if you're not.

Or, if you're like me, sitting on the computer tossing a few thoughts down on the virtual paper.

This morning, while looking through Gleanings, I ran across the following passage:

Consider the sun. Were it to say now, "I am the sun of yesterday," it would speak the truth. And should it, bearing the sequence of time in mind, claim to be other than that sun, it still would speak the truth. In like manner, if it be said that all the days are but one and the same, it is correct and true. And if it be said, with respect to their particular names and designations, that they differ, that again is true. For though they are the same, yet one doth recognize in each a separate designation, a specific attribute, a particular character.

I just love this piece, on so many levels.

In the original, Baha'u'llah is talking about the essential unity of the various Manifestations, and how They are all the same, in the spiritual realms. And this is a wonderful explanation that I have paraphrased so many times over the years. I just love it.

But what really gets me, at least this morning, is the new perspective of the sun itself. I mean, really, how many times do we consider the perspective of the actual sun?

Just think about it. We experience time by the rising of the sun, the changing of the seasons. Our entire concept of time, at least until we developed atomic clocks, was based around the sun. And if we think that it might have been lunar based, just remember that our measuring of lunar time is due to the moon's reflection of the sunlight. Even that is such a powerful metaphor.

But all of this is only due to our very limitation of experience by being trapped on the surface of this planet. The earth itself rotates under our feet. We cannot help it. We cannot stop it. The earth is hurtling around in such a manner that every 24 hours, or so, it rotates on its axis and we experience the rising and setting of the sun. Due to its orbital movement, we experience the changing of the seasons.

This is all beyond our control, and we just take it for granted.

So much of what we experience is solely due to our circumstances.

But then, consider the sun.

The sun doesn't experience time as we do.

It just burns. It processes its hydrogen and helium, and radiates its light. It casts its glow in all directions, unconcerned about the various bodies zipping around it. The sun just is.

The very concept of a day is ridiculous in the perspective of the sun. After all, how is it any different 24 hours from now? Or 48 hours hence? Or in a week? A month? A year? What possible difference could it see between the years 117 and 2017? It still shines on.

And in the end, isn't this a most beautiful aspect of the metaphor of the sun as God?

It makes the cloudy day almost irrelevant to me. After all, if I just go up a little ways, above the clouds, then the sun is still shining.

Mind you, though, it is still a little chilly today.

Maybe I will just curl up in that blanket now and read.

A Broad Outline for Ruhi 7

Book 7, Walking Together on a Path of Service. The last book in the first series of books in the Ruhi curriculum. This is the one that ends the look at the individual and their path of service. I mean, that's not quite true. The later books do, also, but this is the one that really finishes this grouping. The next one deal more with the community as a body and society as a whole.

Here we get a better idea of how to assist others in their path of service through tutoring the previous books in the sequence.

And 7:1 really helps us maintain this humble posture of learning.

It helps us look at the various qualities we need to be a more effective tutor, and understand that our true value in tutoring comes not from ourselves, but from our ability to help reflect the light of God. It also comes from our ability to help others reflect this light. We look at the capacity of those in our study circles, and really take our joy in watching them grow and develop in their service. We look at the the attributes they are showing, such as love, the appropriate fear of God (true fear, that mild discomfort, not terror), hope, that longing to act continually and constantly, their awareness of true sacrifice, and most of all, joy. We watch as their joy grows greater and greater.

From there, we move into 7:2 and actually begin the act of tutoring others. We explore our motivations to do this, as well as the motivation of those whom we will be accompanying. We look at the concept of understanding and its relationship to motivation. We examine the various aspects of a study circle that are conducive to making the most joyous learning space possible, such as the beauty of the place and the loving atmosphere created. We even discuss things like how we understand our role as a tutor, and the pacing of the group. We see a greater connection between the working with adults in this setting and the teaching of children in a children's class. Now we have a far better understanding of how Books 3 and 5 were preparatory for tutoring.

It is only after exploring all these aspects of the study circle in brief, and really becoming more aware of our role as a tutor who accompanies others on their path, that we go into the books. Each section from 7:2:12 - 7:2:17 look at just a bit of the book, just a small component that helps us gain a greater appreciation of this series. They help us focus on the greater themes of the book by consciously being aware of them, and allowing us that greater ability to keep the group focused on them, too.

Then, after this brief glance, we look at the nature of the study circle itself. What is its purpose? How does it operate? What is the role of the tutor? How do the tutors grow and develop in their capacities? What is this tutor gathering they are talking about? (I don't know about you, but I still rarely see tutor gatherings. They seem to get confused for reflection meetings in many communities, even though they are very different. But hey, we're still learning as a community. That's ok.) What is the impact of the institute on the individual, the institutions and the community?

All of this discussion, which tends to be both highly enthusiastic and encouraging, helps us gain a greater appreciation of the dynamics of the study circle and how it contributes to the moral and spiritual empowerment of the participants.

It's truly wonderful. And I've only given the briefest of overviews here.

But wait a second! What about 7:3? After all of this, what on earth can be left for 7:3?

The arts.

Do you recall from your own studies that every study circle is to have an arts or craft component? There is a great wisdom in this, even though so many of the study circles have skipped it due to lack of time.

When we think about community, what is it that helps bind a community together? Well, one thing is its sense of being part of a culture. And what defines that culture? One thing, a major component, is the arts. Many of the study circles I've been in, when looking at this section focus on the "how" of the arts, but I think it's real importance is in the "why" of them.

In this unit we begin our exploration into the breadth and purpose of the arts, the importance of harmony, and our natural attraction to beauty. This latter finds its highest expression, of course, in our attraction to the Blessed Beauty.

We also explore some of the types of arts found in cultures all over the world, whether its music or story telling, drama or crafts. We learn a little bit about the importance of promoting the arts as a way and means of promoting community and culture.

We also, through this, begin to get a reminder that there is far more to the arts out there than we would see through the mass media. (You don't need to be highly polished and perfect in your craft to get enjoyment out of it.) And we are also reminded that each and every culture out there contributes its share to the global arts scene.

What a way to end this sequence. Wow.

Oh, but wait a second. We've noticed that every final section in each and every book has led us on to the next book in the sequence. Is this book somehow an exception?

Of course not.

This leads us right into Book 8 and the universal nature of Baha'u'llah's Covenant. But more on that later.

A Broad Outline for Ruhi 6

Teaching the Cause. Ruhi Book 6.

It seems to me that a number of years ago a lot of the friends went from Book 1 to Book 6, sometimes visiting Book 2 along the way. And at that time, many of us missed doing the practices, and then wondered why we weren't seeing these wonderful changes in our culture that we were expecting.

Well, as you know, dear Reader, without a change in our behaviour, the rest is immaterial.

Going from Book 1 to Book 6 was, as regards to the practices, just too big a leap for most of us. We honestly had little to no clue what designing and implementing our own personal teaching plan meant. And besides, most of our communities didn't have a teaching campaign in place that we could join.

No. We really needed to start with the basic practices of studying a prayer with a friend, and then presenting some simple concepts to them through the talks in Book 2. We needed to begin to understand what it meant to tell a story in an effective manner, through our practice of Book 4. And getting a working understanding of what it meant to work with children and junior youth really gave us the grounding for working with adults, who often act in childish manners.

Once we had these basics down, and had the wonderful experience of having our tutors walking with us on our own personal path of service, accompanying us through our difficulties, and rejoicing in our victories, then we had a far better understanding of the greater dynamics of truly teaching the Cause, instead of merely mentioning the name of the Faith to someone as we quickly passed by them on the trail.

So, Book 6. The first unit, 6:1, talks about the significance of teaching, and the importance of both "being" and "doing". They remind us that there are certain things that we have to do in our life, and that we don't need to shy away from something that is a "duty". It's like food, to me. I could, if I wanted, lament the fact that I have to eat, and do all that I can to avoid this onerous duty. Or, if I prefer, I could take joy in the cooking process, preparing foods that I love, researching the ones that are healthy, and savoring each and every meal, sharing it with friends and family.

They go on to really drive home the spiritual pieces that we need to develop in ourselves in order to be more effective teachers of the Cause. After all, I may be wrong, but I don't think anyone is going to want to listen to what I have to say about the love of God when I'm moping and miserable. No. They talk about how our own spiritual state directly affects our effectiveness. (I can't believe I got those two words in their correct position in that previous sentence.) But they also remind us that all success in this arena comes from God.

And what is meant by success? Declarations? Not necessarily. Success is found in the sharing of these ideas, hopefully to someone who is open to hearing about them. Success is found in watching as these ideas latent within the Word of God take root, both within others and within ourselves, and begin to grow in the hearts. Success is found in witnessing this transformative process continually taking place in our lives.

That is part of the spiritual nature of this process of teaching.

6:2 goes further into this. They focus specifically on the qualities and attitudes of the teacher, so much so that they've even called the unit that. It is a time to not only look at these various qualities, but to also identify the implications of each of them. It gives us the opportunity to really look at how each and every one of the qualities and attitudes, whether it is purity, selflessness, courage, wisdom, or any of the other myriad attributes they look at, affect our teaching work.

They remind us of the importance of that posture of learning, taking simple steps of action, and then reflecting on the actual experience we have jut had. We are reminded that there is no singular method, but that we must continually look at our situation and decide upon the appropriate method for any given moment. And we are encouraged to consult with others. After all, it is a community based on the sacred Word that we are trying to build. If we are to teach by example, then being part of an integrated community is part of that example.

And all this leads us right into 6:3.

Now, this is a good time to remember a bit about what we have already learned in Book 2. Remember those simple presentations in Book 2? We learned a little bit about presenting a simple topic, usually no more than a dozen lines. Here we go into a bit more depth, with Anna's presentation.

Aside: Anna's presentation caused a lot of problems for a lot of people a few years back. I remember so many of us going door to door, meeting people for the first time, and trying to get through all of this presentation, which our friends had so thoughtfully printed in a little booklet for us.

Why?

We looked at the talks, but forgot to look at what was around them.

Anna and Emilia (remember Emilia?) are friends. They have had many conversations, as evidenced in 6:3:7, where the presentation begins "From our previous conversations..." In later sections we will see that they have other conversations in the midst of all of this presentation. Anna regularly checks with Emilia to make sure it's ok to continue.

But most of all, to me, Emilia likes the logical way in which Anna presents all this stuff.

Why is this important to me?

Simple. I know what I'm talking about, so I have no trouble following it. Others don't. That is why they go into detail about understanding the concepts we are sharing, in 6:3:4. This becomes our outline, ensuring that we keep the presentation on topic, and simple, adding in information and details as necessary. It keeps us from making those frenzied hour-long talks in which we try to get in as much information as we can, force feeding it to our audience, out of fear that we may never be able to talk to them again about the Faith, and thereby ensuring that will likely run away if we ever try to approach them about the Faith again.

By looking at the concepts, we can see the outline of Anna's presentation, and see just how logical it is. She begins with recognizing that Faith is continual, and that God is essentially unknowable. From there, she points out that we do, however, know that God loves us, since He sent us Messengers, leading into the Eternal Covenant. From there, she goes into Baha'u'llah, as the latest step in this eternal and progressive Revelation from God to humanity.

And that's the first part. That's it. A wonderful place to pause.

Next she talks about unity and diversity, which just makes sense as unity is the pivot around which all of Baha'u'llah's teachings revolve.

The third talk is more about Baha'u'llah, and the fourth is about the Bab. The next little talk introduces the wonderful figure of 'Abdu'l-Baha. You see the progression?

After this she talks a bit about the laws of the Faith, and then the concept of community, inviting her to join it, if she wishes.

When you outline it, this talk just makes sense. And you will notice that it's a very different order of presentations to those that were given in Book 2. one of my favorite exercises is to take all three outlines, 2:2, 2:3 and 6:3, and look at different types of people. Which of these outlines would you use for an atheist? How about a born-again Christian? What about a new mother? Since we now have three outlines to look at, we can be more discerning in which one we would use at any given moment.

This is, in a sense, the beginning of a coherent teaching plan. We identify our contacts, and make a note of their perspective and interests. From there, we can choose the most effective approach.

Once we understand our own basic personal teaching plan, we can then integrate our plans together into a more comprehensive community teaching plan.

As we learn to reflect on our own teaching work, we can begin to get a better idea of receptive populations. For example, if I have a dozen people that I am teaching, and other community members do, too, we may discover that I have one contact from a particular community, and so does everyone else. I won't think of them as a receptive population, but someone who is looking at all the teaching plans, who is in contact with all the teachers, may recognize this trend. And they may be in a position to help us see this, thereby focusing our attention on this receptive group.

And finally, once we've identified a group that is receptive, we need to work systematically to effectively teach this population. The last few sections deal with this. What does a teaching campaign look like? What are the nitty grity details of the day to day aspects of the campaign? Well, this is where we draw on the experience of other communities, and learn from them. They conclude with just a little bit about how the training institute plays a part in this teaching campaign, and that, dear Reader, leads us into Book 7, where we help to fulfill the need for more tutors to offer Book 1 to all those who express interest through this campaign in which we have just engaged.