On the Year of Faith Project: Following the Practices of the Baha'i Faith

Below is the background that the blog Year of Faith uses currently on its masthead. It is a picture of the gardens surrounding the Baha'i World Center in Haifa, Israel. The three persons participating in the activities of the project and contributing to this blog are devoting the month of March to following the practices of the Baha'i Faith. -gw

Welcome to the Year of Faith. This is a project in which three very different people are going to follow the practices and beliefs of twelve religions, one each month, for one year.

Michael, "About," Year of Faith

For the month of March we will be observing the following practices:
We will recite one of three obligatory prayers each day, after washing the hands and face, while standing and facing east towards the Shrine of Baha’u'llah. The prayer should also be said in private, between the hours of noon and sunset.
We will be observing the prohibition on gossip.
We will be observing a nineteen-day sunrise-to-sunset fast for the holy month of Ala from March 2 through March 20. This is going to be the hard one.
We will be celebrating Naw-rúz, the Baha’i New Year on March 21st.
We will not drink alcohol or take drugs, unless by prescription.
We will be observing a ban on gambling, although I think really I’m the only gambler.
The nineteen-day fast is already causing interesting changes in our daily behaviour. Over the course of the month I hope to post short articles on items from my research into the religion as well as my reactions to how things are going.

Andrew, "An Introduction to the Baha'i Faith," Year of Faith

{Re-posted with permission}