ASSOCIATION OF BAHÁ’Í WOMEN
(NORTHERN IRELAND)

What is it?

This a series of workshops that are geared towards women, concentrating on the strengths that woman have. Helping them develop and discover their intuition, tenderness, compassion and moral courage. It is intended " to encourage " to empower " and to develop skills and capacities It was developed and piloted by a group of Bahá'í women from Lurgan and Coleraine in Northern Ireland under the auspices of the Bahá'í Council for NI.

Core

It has at its core the belief that education in spiritual values is necessary not only to empower women but, indeed, to foster respect for all people, so that human honour and dignity may be preserved and a global ethos may evolve in which all human rights are upheld.

Benefits

Empowering women and girls brings dividends that contribute to the whole community. In areas of conflict it is women who invariably are in the forefront of cross community activities and supporters of the peace processes. How much more could men and women do, working together to build a peaceful world? Sometimes to see ahead we have to lift our heads from the mire in which we find ourselves and catch a glimpse of where we should be. In choosing to reject violence and the degradation it brings in its wake perhaps we should be looking to the nobility of high endeavours, equality of rights, empowerment and unity in diversity that must be our chosen future.

Be Inspired

Consisting of three elements reflection, legacy and equality this course hopes to contribute positively to the wider community.

Inspiration

"Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity. Be worthy of the trust of thy neighbor, and look upon him with a bright and friendly face. Be a treasure to the poor, an admonisher to the rich, an answerer to the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge. Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech. " Bahá'í writings

1. Reflection

To improve our lives we need to plan our daily activity according to golden rules, and virtues which are the common elements of spirituality found in all sacred traditions, some times this can prove to be difficult but we need to consciously work at it and by making affirmations, at the time of reflection we can improve the quality of our life for our self and others. This workshop helps identify the spiritual qualities within us and uses reflection tools to look in. As well as a mixture of devotionals, poetry, discussion it helps to develop practical tools to maintain reflection as a part of everyday life.

2. Legacy

This will concentrate on the statement that all humanity is created from the same dust and no one should exalt himself over another. It also looks to the future as to what we want to leave behind us in the form of a legacy for the future.

This workshop focuses on the purpose of life and makes participants focus on exactly what legacy they will leave to children, family, friends, community and indeed humanity. Some elements focused on are: " Using art to trigger creativity " The power of encouragement " Working together in unity - a joint task

3. Equality

The world of humanity has two wings -- one is women and the other men. Not until both wings are equally developed can the bird fly. Should one wing remain weak, flight is impossible. Not until the world of women becomes equal to the world of men in the acquisition of virtues and perfections, can success and prosperity be attained as they ought to be.

At a time when conquest and aggression have lost their credibility as a means of solving difficult problems, qualities in which women are strong, such as the capacity to link intuition to the other rational processes, and facility with networking and cooperation, are gaining importance.

Thus as increasing numbers of women are admitted into centres of decision-making, consultation is being enlightened by fresh perspectives; a new moral and psychological climate is spreading, enabling new dynamics of problem solving to emerge. The inclusion of women thus directly affects the pace and success of the peace-building process.

Exercises to trigger development of attributes form a part of this workshop and concentrate on

• Intuition
• Tenderness
• Moral courage

Enduring change comes through cooperative activity of men and women rather than through confrontation. Hence, we call upon all members of society to encourage and support women to develop their full potential and to strive for their equality and human rights and we recognise that much more can be accomplished in the long run if men and women work together.

Love gives life to the lifeless.

Love lights a flame in the heart that is cold.

Love brings hope to the hopeless and gladdens the hearts of the sorrowful.

Bahá'í writings

Be Inspired
For information on events in NI
email bcni@bahai.org.uk

www.bahai.org

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BE INSPIRED