Story from the Isle of Man
National Spiritual Assembly
26 February 2016
1 Ayyám-i-Há 172 B.E.
To all believers in the United Kingdom
Dearly loved Friends,
Following our message of 16 February 2016 we are delighted to share with you the second in a series of three stories from around the United Kingdom confirming the “creativity, tenacity, and burgeoning abilities of the community of the Greatest Name and, above all, its reliance on the confirmations of the Almighty” that the Universal House of Justice speaks of in its message to the Bahá’ís of the world of 2 January 2016. It is a wonderful account of how a pioneer to the Isle of Man has taken notable steps to establish a programme of growth. It is written by the pioneer with the assistant of a regular travel teacher to the island:
Establishing a Children’s Class on the Isle of Man
Moving to the Isle of Man as a pioneer was not easy for me and I have faced many challenges while I’ve been here. One of the reasons for this is my blindness, but the story I want to tell shows that even an obstacle such as this can open unexpected opportunities.
As I got to know the capital, Douglas, I started to explore it and now I often go for walks to familiar places on my own. Every day I would walk to the seafront and pray to Bahá’u’lláh to send receptive souls to me. On one such trip I was looking for the traffic lights with my cane but had to ask for directions from a woman I could hear speaking to her children. She said I was only a few steps away but that she couldn’t help me cross the road because her children were in the car. I thanked her and continued looking for the crossing, but before I got far I could hear her telling me that she couldn’t bear to just leave me like that and she helped me find my way. Fifteen minutes later I was enjoying a nearby park when suddenly I heard her voice again, but this time she was free for a longer conversation. We sat down and I soon introduced myself and the reason I was on the island, telling her a little about the Bahá’í Faith.
After that first encounter she would regularly take me grocery shopping and we got to know each other more. Several months passed and a great trial appeared in my path. Having shared an internet connection with a neighbour in my building he unexpectedly and inexplicably decided he no longer wanted to allow me access. As a blind person I rely heavily on my computer and the links it gives me to the wider world. While to some it may seem like a “first world problem”, for me to lose my internet is to lose a life line. It was a very painful experience and I looked for other means to connect with my friends and family. I started seeing my friend from the park even more often, as she would regularly take me to her own home to use the internet. Gradually our bond grew stronger and our friendship became deeper. We would pray together and talk about all sorts of subjects.
Still I was very sad about the lack of internet in my flat. I prayed and meditated about my situation and I began to see that Bahá’u’lláh was giving me an opportunity of huge value: by taking away my internet I had been given the chance to develop my relationship with my friend! Soon I offered to give children’s classes for her son and daughter and she enthusiastically accepted. The classes now take place every Wednesday and we also meet together every Monday to pray and share our thoughts.
After a couple of months of having no internet I decided to say the Tablet of Ahmad nine times daily for nine days, beseeching Bahá’u’lláh and asking Him for assistance with my service on the island and all the challenges I faced. Two days later my upstairs neighbour knocked on my door and asked if I wanted to share her broadband connection. Bahá’u’lláh had given me the chance to deepen my friendship and trust with my friend and was now giving me back my internet on a silver platter!
The story above reminds of us this extract from the Universal House of Justice’s letter of 28 December 2010:
Invariably, opportunities afforded by the personal circumstances of the believers initially involved—or perhaps a single homefront pioneer—to enter into meaningful and distinctive conversation with local residents dictate how the process of growth begins in a cluster. A study circle made up of a few friends or colleagues, a class offered for several neighbourhood children, a group formed for junior youth during after-school hours, a devotional gathering hosted for family and friends—any one of these can serve as a stimulus to growth.
Be assured of our heartfelt prayers that Bahá’u’lláh may confirm every effort that you exert in His path.
With loving Bahá’í greetings,
Patrick O’Mara,
Secretary