Universal House of Justice
17 January
2003
To the Baha'ís of the World
Dearly loved
Friends,
- We have
followed, with immense gratitude to Bahá'u'lláh, the unfoldment of the Five
Year Plan in the two years since our message of 9 January 2001
to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors. It is heartening,
indeed, to see the culture of learning that is taking root everywhere, as the
Bahá'í world community focuses on advancing the process of entry by troops. At
this juncture, when the collective experience of the community has taken so
significant a step forward, we think it timely to review with you the insights
thus far gained and to clarify issues that have arisen.
- During the initial months of the Plan, National Spiritual Assemblies
proceeded with relative ease to divide the territories under their
jurisdiction into areas consisting of adjacent localities, called clusters,
using criteria that were purely geographic and social and did not relate to
the strength of local Bahá'í communities. Reports received at the World Centre
indicate that there are now close to 17,000 clusters worldwide, excluding
those countries where, for one reason or another, the operation of the Faith
is restricted. The number of clusters per country varies widely‹from India
with its 1,580 to Singapore, which necessarily sees itself as one cluster.
Some of the groupings are sparsely populated areas with only a few thousand
inhabitants, while the boundaries of others encompass several million people.
For the most part, large urban centres under the jurisdiction of one Local
Spiritual Assembly have been designated single clusters, these in turn being
divided into sectors, so as to facilitate planning and
implementation.
- With
the various countries and territories divided into manageable areas, national
communities moved quickly ahead to categorize clusters according to the stages
of the development of the Faith mentioned in our 9 January
message. The exercise afforded a realistic means for viewing the prospects of
the community, but the task of refining the criteria needed for valid
assessments is proving to be an ongoing challenge to institutions. To assign a
cluster to one or another category is not to make a statement about status.
Rather, it is a way of evaluating its capacity for growth, in order that an
approach compatible with its evolving development can be adopted. Rigid
criteria are obviously counterproductive, but a well-defined scheme to carry
out evaluation is essential. Two criteria seem especially important: the
strength of the human resources raised up by the training institutes for the
expansion and consolidation of the Faith in the cluster, and the ability of
the institutions to mobilize these resources in the field of
service.
- Focus
in almost every country has now turned to stimulating the movement of its
priority clusters from their current stage of growth to the next. What has
become strikingly clear is that progress in this respect depends largely on
the efficacy of the parallel process aimed at helping an ever-increasing
number of friends to move through the main sequence of courses offered by the
institute serving the area. The rise in activity around the world testifies to
the success of these courses in evoking the spirit of enterprise required to
carry out the divers actions that growth in a cluster, at whatever stage,
demands.
-
Particularly heartwarming to observe is a growing sense of initiative and
resourcefulness throughout the Bahá'í world, along with courage and audacity.
Consecration, zeal, confidence and tenacity‹these are among the qualities that
are distinguishing the believers in every continent. They are exemplified by,
but are certainly not limited to, those who are arising to pioneer on the home
front. As we had hoped, goals for the opening of virgin clusters are being
readily met by enthusiastic participants of institute programmes who, equipped
with the knowledge and skills acquired through training courses, set out to
establish the Faith in a new area and bring a fledgling community into
being.
- In most
clusters, movement from one stage of growth to the next is being defined in
terms of the multiplication of study circles, devotional meetings and
children's classes, and the expansion they engender. Devotional meetings begin
to flourish as consciousness of the spiritual dimension of human existence is
raised among the believers in an area through institute courses.
Children's classes, too, are a natural outgrowth of the training received
early in the study of the main sequence. As both activities are made open to
the wider community through a variety of well-conceived and imaginative means,
they attract a growing number of seekers, who, more often than not, are eager
to attend firesides and join study circles. Many go on subsequently to
declare their faith in Bahá'u'lláh and, from the outset, view their role in
the community as that of active participants in a dynamic process of
growth. Individual and collective exertions in the teaching field
intensify correspondingly, further fueling the process. Established
communities are revitalized, and newly formed ones soon gain the privilege of
electing their Local Spiritual Assemblies.
- The
coherence thus achieved through the establishment of study circles, devotional
meetings and children's classes provides the initial impulse for growth in a
cluster, an impulse that gathers strength as these core activities multiply In
number. Campaigns that help a sizeable group of believers advance far
enough in the main sequence of courses to perform the necessary acts of
service lend impetus to this multiplication of activity.
- It is
evident, then, that a systematic approach to training has created a way for
Baháís to reach out to the surrounding society, share Bahá'u'lláh's message
with friends, family, neighbours and co-workers, and expose them to the
richness of His teachings. This outward-looking orientation is one
of the finest fruits of the grassroots learning taking place. The pattern of
activity that is being established in clusters around the globe constitutes a
proven means of accelerating expansion and consolidation. Yet this is only a
beginning.
- In many
parts of the world, bringing large numbers into the ranks of Bahá'u'lláh's
followers has traditionally not been a formidable task. It is therefore
encouraging to see that, in some of the more developed clusters, carefully
designed projects are being added to the existing pattern of growth to reach
receptive populations and lift the rate of expansion to a higher level. Such
projects accelerate the tempo of teaching, already on the rise through the
efforts of individuals. And, where large-scale enrolment is beginning to
result, provision is being made to ensure that a certain percentage of the new
believers immediately enter the institute programme, for, as we have
emphasized in several messages, these friends will be called upon to serve the
needs of an ever-growing Bahá'í population. They help deepen the generality of
the Bahá'is by visiting them regularly; they teach children, arrange
devotional meetings and form study circles, making it possible to sustain
expansion.
- All of
this opens thrilling opportunities for Local Spiritual Assemblies.
Theirs is the challenge, in collaboration with the Auxiliary Board members who
counsel and assist them, to utilize the energies and talents of the swelling
human resources available in their respective areas of jurisdiction both to
create a vibrant community life and to begin influencing the society around
them. In localities where Spiritual Assemblies do not exist or are not yet
functioning at the necessary level, a step-by-step approach to the development
of communities and Local Spiritual Assemblies is showing excellent
promise.
- It is
especially gratifying to note the high degree of participation of believers in
the various aspects of the growth process. In cluster after cluster, the
number of those shouldering the responsibilities of expansion and
consolidation is steadily increasing. Meetings of consultation held at the
cluster level serve to raise awareness of possibilities and generate
enthusiasm. Here, free from the demands of formal decision-making,
participants reflect on experience gained, share insights, explore approaches
and acquire a better understanding of how each can contribute to achieving the
aim of the Plan. In many cases, such interaction leads to consensus on a set
of short-term goals, both individual and collective. Learning in action is
becoming the outstanding feature of the emerging mode of operation.
- Let
there be no doubt that what we are witnessing is the gathering momentum of
that process of the entry of humanity into the Cause by troops, foreshadowed
in Bahá'u'lláh's Tablet to the King of Persia, eagerly anticipated by the
Master, described by the Guardian as the necessary prelude to mass
conversion. In the vanguard of the process are those clusters which,
although still relatively few in number, are now ready to launch intensive
programmes of growth. The scale of expansion that is to mark the next stage of
growth in these clusters calls for an intensity of effort yet to be achieved.
May the prodigious output of energy devoted to this mighty undertaking be
reinforced by the power of Divine assistance.
- Be
assured of our heartfelt prayers in the Holy Shrines that Bahá'u'lláh may
bless and confirm your endeavours to realize, to the fullest, the
extraordinary opportunities of these precious days.
The Universal House of Justice