Archive for May, 2006

Not Matt

First entry, new blog called So Now I’ve Got a Blog:

Monday, May 29, 2006: jumping feet first

ok, so my life is up in the air right now. like Isaac Newton trying to prove gravity with an apple dropped from a ladder. but it’s good… i can’t even explain it but i’m totally cool with the fact that i don’t have a clue where my life is headed. i just declared as a Baha’i and i’m going back to the school (for architecture unless i change my mind). i’m quitting a good job (for someone without a degree that is). and i feel the best that i’ve ever felt these last five or six years. go figure…

Matt, “Jumping Feet First,” So Now I’ve Got a Blog

Tiled niche at the Naranjestan, Shiraz

Unity 19 on Yahoo 360 has posted an update on the Shiraz prisoners.

Received May 24, 2006 8:34 P.M. PST from an Aunt of 3 of the Bahai Youth Prisoners in Shiraz:

Dearly loved friends and family, Thank you so much for your prayers and for your expressions of consolation and solidarity with the young Bahá’ís recently imprisoned in Iran. We have news to share:

Many of the prisoners have been released. Most of the rest are scheduled to be released tomorrow. A few though shall remain in prison. Azadeh’s three young nieces were released today with a group of, I believe, about 40 total. 14 more are scheduled to be released tomorrow, and 3 individuals have been singled out by the authorities to remain in prison. All those released had to have bond posted by their family (e.g., deeds for home or business).

Outside the prison today, when they were released, there was a huge traffic jam. So many family members and friends had come out with flowers and other expressions of love, that people on the street were asking what this was all about.

We had a chance to speak with Martha, Maaman and Rahil on the phone at about 2:00 this afternoon. They were exhausted, but they shared a few experiences. The first thing Martha said was in English. She said it was “fun” and that she already misses being in prison.

She said all the youth (men and women separated, of course) were together singing and praying the whole time and there was an atmosphere of great spiritual joy in the place. Maaman, barely able to speak from exhaustion, said all the prayers were felt because while they were being interrogated, she felt it wasn’t her that was speaking. She felt as if Bahá’u’lláh Himself was answering all the interrogators’ questions. Rahil was exuberant.

Although she was unable to hear us well from the press of so many friends and family around her, she said that three of the five nights they were there, she dreamed we were with her in gatherings with music and dancing. The three separately asked us to thank everyone for their prayers.

Jesus said, “Blessed are they who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake.” How else can we account for such a transcendent experience? But now that so many are released, we must not forget those that remain. We should stay vigilant, keeping them in our prayers, because they’ve been selected by the clergy for special attention. I’m guessing that the tests are graver for those who must face such persecution alone, once the crowd is gone.

Thank you again to all of you for everything. I know no better way to express the meaning of all of this than simply to point how it has brought so many hearts together. Warmest love and gratitude,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Unity 19 on Yahoo 360, “May 24, 2006, 40 Bahai Prisoners Released, 14 More To Be Released Tomorrow, 3 Still Remain Imprisoned “

Annie with a handsome guy

Annie asked what is the Baha’i belief about the resurrection of Christ. In an article available on net, a Baha’i sociologist of religion, Mark Foster, presents the following quotes as part of his discussion of the subject:

The second usage of the term “resurrection” in the Baha’i teachings pertains to the resurrection of the Cause of God. `Abdu’l-Baha wrote:

…we say that the meaning of Christ’s resurrection is as follows: the disciples were troubled and agitated after the martyrdom of Christ. The Reality of Christ, which signifies His teachings, his bounties, his perfections, and his spiritual power, was hidden and concealed for two or three days after his martyrdom, and was not resplendent and manifest. No, rather it was lost; for the believers were few in number and were troubled and agitated. The CAUSE [emphasis added] of Christ was like a lifeless body; and, when after three days the disciples became assured and steadfast, and began to serve the CAUSE [emphasis added] of Christ of Christ, and resolved to spread the divine teachings, putting his counsels into practice, and ARISING [emphasis added] to serve him,… his religion found life, his teachings and admonitions became evident and visible. In other words, the CAUSE [emphasis added] of Christ was like a lifeless body, until the life and bounty of the Holy Spirit surrounded it. -From a chapter of Some Answered Questions, old edition, pp.119-121

Finally, Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha’i Faith, wrote through his secretary:

The body of believers, in each Prophetic Dispensation, are the temple, the body of the Manifestation, who, collectively, become the earthly representation of the Manifestation of God

Mark A. Foster, “Resurrection: A Baha’i Perspective”

What if the United States were to publish a book on comparative religion? What would the response of Americans be? How might the rest of the world view such an action?

What if the government of Iran were to publish a book on the significance of religion that included the Baha’i Faith? How would such an action change the understanding people in different parts of the world have of the country?

From Baha’i blogger extraordinaire Marco: Here are some great news from Portugal!

A book on history, holy writings and traditions of the Wold Great Religions (Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam and Baha’i Faith) was published yesterday in Portugal.

This single volume (with almost 900 pages) is a collective work of several religious communities in Portugal; it is also a proof of religious harmony and cooperation in our country.

The book will be a valuable resource for any student or researcher of the religious phenomena and aims to foster even greater respect and mutual understanding amongst religious communities in Portugal.

The Portuguese Government sponsored the book and the Minister of Presidency described it as “the seed of a new stage in inter-faith dialogue in Portugal”. Portugal has no State religion, but the Government cooperates with religious communities.

NOTE: Yes, I was involved in this project!

Congratulations, Marco!

Chance meetings can have remarkable results….

Last night was absolutely one of my favorite nights lately! I went to dinner with my friends Kimberly and Dennis, Red Robin baby! After dinner we ventured to Starbucks to talk for a while, and we saw some of my other friends there as well. Well, as Kimberly, Dennis and I were departing and going our separate ways, I drove by the friends I saw earlier to just say goodbye and noticed a girl was having trouble with her car in the middle of the lot.

So, I backed up to her and asked if she needed help. Justin came over and we pushed her car to the side so she wasn’t blocking traffic (no worries, I only used one arm, my other arm was perfectly safe and not strained at all!). Anyway, when she tried to call her roadside assistance, she found she wasn’t covered - though she said specifically asked to be covered. So, Justin called AAA to get a tow back to her house. While he was speaking with AAA, Amy and I were trying to get to know her a little (al biet I wanted to make sure she knew I wanted to stay and help her). She is currently studying for her Chemical Engineering degree and will be transferring to UC San Diego this fall. When Justin finished his call, he went with Amy and Kamy back to Starbucks and I stayed with the girl. We decided to walk and talk while we waited for the tow truck.

Her name is Sahar, she came here from Iran 6 years ago because she wasn’t allowed to continue her education past high school due to her faith. She and her family are not Muslim, and they were persecuted immensely for that fact. They had to practice their faith “underground” because of the turmoil the Iran government placed on them. She also, is not Christian. In fact, most people haven’t ever heard of her faith. I have heard of it though because I like to study that stuff. She is from the Baha’i faith. I don’t know a whole lot about Baha’i, but I wanted to hear so I probed. She was actually extremely open about answering my questions (I wonder if she thought she had a potential convert on her hands - that’d be funny). Baha’i is a new faith, only 800 years old compared to the other major religions of the world. She said that basically, they believe that ALL religions are true and ALL prophets are true. When asked how she can believe that the Qur’an AND the Bible both portray the same Truth when they are both so distinctly different, she told me this analogy:

As times change, so does the human mind. Therefore, different prophets must proclaim the Truth as it is needed for that time period. Though Jesus and Muhammad said different things, it’s because the minds of the people needed to hear that Truth at that time. She then explained their religion’s practices regarding prayer, fasting, feasts, etc. When the tow guy came, I decided that I wanted to spend more time with her, so I gave her a ride home (she didn’t really want to ride in the tow truck) and I was able to pay for the tow for her because he couldn’t accept a check - paying her bill for her was an added bonus, I loved being able to serve her in these ways!

When he was finished and about to take off, she invited me into her home. So, I took my shoes off before entering and was able to spend about an hour with her, talking about my faith and her faith. On the walls of her living room, were no pictures of family but instead a huge picture of the Baha’i Temple in Haifa, Israel and on the opposite wall were portraits of the family of the Baha’i Prophet (Bahá’u’lláh) or “the Messenger of God for this day and age”. She wanted to see my Bible - I have a compact one I always keep with me - and she showed me her prayer adn meditation books for Baha’i. She told me about her ordeal in Iran, and the process of coming to America (amazing story! But too long to share now), and her family. We drank Persian Tea and ate carmel and just had a great time talking.

As I was leaving, she asked me to pray for her brother Sahid, who is currently stuck in Turkey in his process for coming to America. She told me a little about him and his life and said she would be honored if I would pray for him. I joyously agreed! She also said she wanted to see me again before I move - I told I would love to and hopefully we can find a time in our schedules to do so! It was such a wonderful night of service and discussion with her! I then immediately called Justin, Amy AND Kamy to see if they wanted to come with me… of course, they were still at Starbucks so I joined them so I could tell them personally.

It was such a fun night! And to think, I wanted to just go home adn get thigns ready for my move, do some laundry and go to bed early - God totally had other plans for me and I’m so glad I was available and willing to do it! He blesses us so much when we walk in obedience to His Word and truly place ourselves available to those who don’t know Him! It was awesome!

Holly, “All Inclusive (this is long but worth it!) ” Standing at the Microphone

Holly Hanson

In a comment to a recent post on Baha’i Views, Tan Ya refers readers to a talk on “Sexuality, Self, and the Shape of Society” by Holly Hansen which was delivered to the “Building the Kingdom Conference” in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, June 29, 2001. It is a fascinating analysis. Here is an excerpt from it.

Our current way of thinking, that divides people into heterosexuals and homosexuals, came into being about one hundred years ago. It is real: we both shape and are shaped by the societies that we live in. Since these categories are so firmly established, it makes sense that we experience our own reality as defined by desire. Sexual identities are very comforting to people - both people who identify themselves as homosexuals and people who identify themselves as heterosexuals.

However, if we look at how we have arrived at the conception that people are defined by desire and find happiness in possessions and a romantic partner, we may ask ourselves whether we really want these ideas shaping us, whether this is the best we can do for ourselves. We have come to this pattern of thought through a long process that involved an increasing focus on the human body and the loss of a consensus about humanity’s spiritual reality. It followed a drastic reduction of the richness of people’s social relationships. It accompanied a profound anxiety about the direction of social change, which led to intensely rigid gender roles, a narrowing of the realms of activity considered acceptable for women and for men. After several hundred years of this process, we experience ourselves as bundles of needs which can be satisfied through consumption. We are so accommodated to the degradation of human beings as objects of the desire of others that it seems normal. We objectify ourselves, and whole industries exist to help us do it. We have commodified every conceivable social relationship: we pay people to talk to us and to take care of our aging relatives, we have learned to express our emotions in purchases. As a result, we live with material excess whose results will be inscribed on the planet for generations. The set of beliefs and practices we have about sexuality are less than useless. The theories are pernicious, the standards are false, the claims are hollow, the habits are perverse, and the excesses are sacrilegious. This was my first point.

Mentioned in the Hanson talk is the Bahá’í Network on AIDS, Sexuality, Addictions and Abuse, a committee appointed by and under the guidance of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Canada. Their website is a valuable source of information around the subject of sexuality, including homosexuality, from a Baha’i perspective, and has information regarding addictions and abuse as well.

Image: Being “a brilliant star”, one interpretation

Excerpts from Katherine have graced these pages before. Here is some of her recent personal reflections.

I wasn’t raised as a Baha’i. As a newly-declared 15 year old, I deepened myself in my spiritual mother’s basement by reading years of back-issues of Brilliant Star, because none of the youth classes were covering the basics. In my rush to catch up, I was constantly in a hurry to read more, to learn more stuff, because then people would accept me as a real Baha’i. As I got older, I felt that the standard of acceptance was to be more involved, to do more stuff, and so I taught children’s classes, served on committees, planned conferences and retreats and helped with unit conventions. Then there was this Institute process to think about, and I got trained in Core Curriculum and became a Ruhi facilitator and pushed myself to get through the sequence of courses.

It’s been good. I’m glad I did it all. I’ll keep doing most of that, too.

But allow me a moment to reflect on the needs of my own soul.

“One hour of reflection is preferable to seventy years of pious worship.” -Tablets of Baha’u'llah

I need Baha’u'llah back, not as the focus of my thoughts, which He has been, not as the driving force behind my actions, which I try to make Him,

but as the Love of my life.

Katherine, “I Prayed for Changes,” A Thousand Paper Craniums