Archive for December, 2010

• December 28, 2010 — From Somalia to Denver, the long way
• December 30, 2010 — The challenges faced by Africans living in Malta
• December 29, 2010 — From Libya to detention in Malta
• December 30, 2010 — Zimbabweans forced out of South Africa

They started washing my filthy car and I was standing there watching them and thinking to myself. I noticed they were getting water from a pipe in an unused house lot and the electricity from the street wires. They were working as fast as they could and doing their best. I started thinking about the things people do to make money. At least, these guys are doing something not criminal or endangering other people's lives.

 

I felt happy they had something to do and get money to eat. I felt happy I didn't and don't have to do this kind of jobs because I am a professional. Not that I could not do this job, it's just that I am making more money and my family feels safe. All of a sudden I thought I may have to do these in Canada. Could people do this in Canada? I mean, can you just go, connect your super pump in someone else's water pipe, hang some wires and get the electricity, and just start washing cars in the street and make a living out of it?

 

Will I end up doing this to provide for my family? How would my kids feel? One thing for sure is I won't let my loved ones just starve, I will do whatever necessary to feed them, anything provided it is legal, of course. I don't want to drift away from God.

O CHILDREN OF DUST!

Tell the rich of the midnight sighing of the poor, lest heedlessness lead them into the path of destruction, and deprive them of the Tree of Wealth.

Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest.

– Bahá'u'lláh

http://agencyandchange.com/about-the-blog/

December 28th, 9:30 pm. I have just finished my first read of this Message, gasped at the number 5000, and been lifted up to such wonderful heights by the vision of the Universal House of Justice. There is so much I want to write, but I know that I need to go over this message again. And again. And again.

I have no doubt that what I want to say will shift and change as I really sit down and study it.

But my first thought, dear Reader, was of you. I wanted to encourage you to read this message as soon as you can, and study it with as many of the friends as you can. Read it section by section, and all the while look how to apply it. I'm sure you will, but I wanted to make sure to throw in a word of encouragement, just in case it takes that little extra nudge.

After my own first quick read of this letter, one thing in particular really stands out to me. It is found on page 14, or paragraph 37.

We are currently in Israel on a 9-day pilgrimage to the Baha’i Holy Places visiting the final resting place of Baha’u'llah and the places associated with His exile, imprisonment and life here in the late 1800s at the end of the Ottoman Empire. Our visit has been an intensely spiritual and sacred experience as well as a little taste of paradise. The Baha’i gardens and holy places are exquisite in their beauty and refinement.  We have had lots of time for refreshing personal reflection and prayer. A wonderful way to prepare for the New Year and the rest of our lives!

Expiration date … for religions?!

Posted in cultural issues, medicines – 19 December 2010 – No comment

We are warned about the dangers of taking medicines that are outdated and no longer effective. Some are downright dangerous for conditions they were originally designed for to treat. If the religions of the world are medicines to the ills of humanity, could it be that beyond a certain point they too cause the opposite effect of what they were originally meant to heal?

http://faridsabetmd.com/blog/?p=652

 

“Once in every week, gather ye the steadfast friends together in a meeting place, and there let them engage in praising and glorifying the Lord.”

 

–’Abdu’l-Baha, “The Importance of Obligatory Prayer and Fasting”

 

I knew about the importance of choosing to recite one of the three obligatory prayers revealed by Baha’u'llah each day. These prayers are meant to be said privately. They are for the individual believer for his or her personal communion with God. And there are enumerable other revealed prayers we can draw on to have conversation with Him.

 

Today I learned — I mean REALLY learned — about the place that collective worship has in the Baha’i Faith.

 

We are called on by Baha’u'llah to gather together for devotional gatherings. The multiplication of devotional meetings is an essential element in the expansion of the Cause. The first act of service to our community that we can provide is to offer a devotional in our home. An outcome of participation in Ruhi Book 1, “Reflections on the LIfe of the Spirit,” is the establishment by the graduate of his or her own devotional.

 

Gather ye together with the utmost joy and fellowship and recite the verses revealed by the mericful Lord.

– Baha’u'llah, quoted in “The importance of Deepening our Knowledge and Understanding of the Faith”

 

…all should gather together, and, harmoniously attuned one to another, engage in prayer…

–’Abdu’l-Baha, “Star of the West, May 1919″

 

…the holding of regular meetings for worship open to all and the involvement of Baha’i communities in projects of humanitarian service are expressions of … a further step in the implementation of the Law of God.

– The Universal House of Justice, “Further Application of Devotional Laws,” 28 December 1999

 

We’re going to Tim and Deb’s devotional tomorrow. What fond memories we have of collective worship there over the years! -gw