CommuNIqué - Newsletter of the Bahá'í Community in Northern Ireland
Issue 148 - 4 Ayyám-i-Há 166 BE - 1 March 2010 CE

 

A BOOK TO STUDY

 

“Turning Point -
Selected Messages of the Universal House of Justice and Supplementary Material 1996–2006”

"Turning Point" - cover

Beginning with the Four Year Plan in 1996, the Universal House of Justice set a new course in the teaching work for individuals, communities, and institutions. “The next four years,” the Supreme Body wrote, “will represent an extraordinary period in the history of our Faith, a turning point of epochal magnitude.”

The book is divided into three parts.

  • Part I includes forty messages from the Universal House of Justice, from December 26, 1995 to Ridván 2006.
  • Part II involves an exploration of particular themes, such as “Learning in Action,” “Learning to Maintain Focus,” and “Learning to Administer Growth,” that includes copious extracts from messages written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to individuals and National Assemblies.
  • Part III contains a number of supporting documents from this period which were approved by the House of Justice or prepared by the International Teaching Centre, such as “Training Institutes” and “Building Momentum.” This volume serves as a significant resource, tracing the evolution of thought over this important period and outlining the essential concepts that guide current activities for expansion and consolidation in clusters worldwide. Through continued study and reflection on these and other materials, Bahá’ís will gain a clearer vision of the “methodological pattern of functioning” and the culture of learning that has come to characterize the efforts of Bahá’í individuals, institutions, and communities."

If learning is to be the primary mode of operation in a community, then visions, strategies, goals and methods have to be re-examined time and again. As tasks are accomplished, obstacles removed, resources multiplied and lessons learned, modifications have to be made in goals and approaches, but in a way that continuity of action is maintained.

The instrument that has allowed the process of action, reflection, and consultation to accelerate and the learning to occur at a fairly rapid rate at the grassroots is the reflection meeting. In its 17 January 2003 message to the Bahá’ís of the world, the House of Justice wrote, “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.”

 

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