Message from the National Spiritual Assembly
11 November 2020
9 Qudrat 177 B.E.
Contents:
– Message from the National Spiritual Assembly
– National Memorial Meeting
– Extract from the compilation on Social Action
– El Salvador: Working hard to serve all students
GC-35263
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All believers in the United Kingdom
Dearly loved co-workers,
Teaching the Cause of God is a joy and duty that rests on the individual believer. “Centre your energies in the propagation of the Faith of God”, Bahá’u’lláh instructs His servants, adding, “Whoso is worthy of so high a calling, let him arise to promote it. Whoso is unable it is his duty to appoint him who will, in his stead, proclaim this Revelation”. To facilitate believers wishing to fulfil this directive, one may contribute to the Deputisation Fund which supports an increasing number of pioneers and teachers of the Cause.
We have learnt that dedicated time is needed to advance the teaching work, particularly in goal areas and neighbourhoods where efforts are more concentrated. It is a source of joy to the National Assembly that a growing numbers of friends are arising to pioneer, and some are able to devote their entire attention on the teaching work for a period of time. To facilitate this, it is essential that financial support is provided to those needing such assistance to enable them to give focussed time.
For the past 25 years, the Bahá’í world community has been building an educational programme – the training institute – which has the Word of God at its heart and is dedicated to the development of human resources who can contribute to the spiritual and social transformation of their communities. It is central to advancing the aims of the Faith. In the United Kingdom, thousands of individuals have benefited from its courses, and as it grows in complexity, there is a need for some to devote a significant number of years of full-time service to support its development. The Universal House of Justice wrote, on 23 January 2018, that:
… for those institutes that manage large numbers, a system must be put in place to retain the services of those few but very capable friends who, through their involvement in this field of activity over several years, have gained precious experience that could contribute markedly to raising the operations of the training institute to new levels.
Such a system is now emerging in the UK with growing numbers of friends serving full-time or part-time within the scheme of education. These friends should be seen as teachers of the Faith; in its Riḍván 1996 message, the House of Justice specifically referred to the possibility of deputising “a teacher serving an institute, who is, of course, a teacher of teachers.”
If one is considering deputising someone to promote the Cause in one’s stead, it might be helpful to know that currently the financial support offered averages £65 per day. Depending on one’s possibilities, one can thus deputise someone for a day, a month, a three-month cycle, or even a year or more. All are highly meritorious, if given with love and sacrifice.
It is the dearest wish of the National Assembly to witness the participation of every believer in the mighty enterprise in which the Bahá’í community is engaged. The possibility of contributing to the Deputisation Fund is ones means of enabling this.
With loving Bahá’í greetings,
Patrick O’Mara,
Secretary
National Memorial Meeting
The national memorial meeting for Farzam Arbab and Douglas Martin, former members of the Universal House of Justice, and Violette Haake, former member of the International Teacing Centre, will be held online on Zoom, on Sunday 22 November at 1930hrs.
Join Zoom Meeting using this link >
Meeting ID: 811 3946 8218
Passcode: Light
Extract from the compilation on Social Action
El Salvador: Working hard to serve all students
Bahá’í-inspired school maintains high standard of education during pandemic.