On Another Look at the Baha'i Holy Places: I can never get enough
A new Flickr contact, Paul, and his photo set on Israel. I can never get enough of the Baha'i Holy Places. -gw
Friday, January 27, 2012
On the Baha'i Attitude Toward Sex Is Refreshing: The faith God always intended for me
Old posts still draw visitors. Below is a comment made just yesterday to a post that originally appeared in October of 2009.
Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "On Premarital Sex: What is a relationship?":
I find it refreshing....
I was sexually molested for many years, did lose my virginity willingly at 19, married and had a child then divorced. Shortly after in a sexual monogamous relationship which ended within two years. Chose celebacy for two years and again in a sexual monogamous relationship for 5 years, married and it ended within 2 days. I chose chastity over sex being through much and having a teenager who deserved to not be confused the men I chose to bring into our lives.
I worked for a couple of years with someone. We had so many of the same beliefs morally, ethically and spiritually. He would become my dearest and truest friend....It would be several years after it was obvious how deeply connected we were before he told me he was a Baha'i. I did not know what a Baha'i was, but when he explained it everything fell into place. The subtle kiss on the cheek or forehead or peck on the lips. There was no pressure. We spent those years prior to that revelation enjoying tremendously long talks, cooking meals, watching movies, spending days and nights on the beach, and discovering each other. We like each other and when I look at him and how wonderful he is spiritually, mentally and physically, I want to be that for him. He is the reflection in the mirror. That is true intimacy, and it is undeniable.
I have studied the Baha'i Faith the past couple of years. I had always been intrigued with religions. I have discovered that in my heart I have always been a baha'i and this coming Naw Ruz I will officially declare it so! I have finally found the one God had always intended for me and the faith I had only known in my dreams!!
Best wishes to you ladies and enjoy the journey!
Posted by Anonymous to Baha'i Views at 4:13 PM
On a famous painting ... Klee's "The Kiss" was featured as the visual in my original post. It was shortly after the post appeared that I was in the home of a seeker where I took the picture below. The seeker and his partner are now Baha'is and their whole family participates in the core activities of the institute process. And, yes, that is little Gilmar, at age one. Now he is three. -gw
Thursday, January 26, 2012
On They Lived in Salishan: Darachan and Kiri
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the Martin Luther King Day potluck at Tim and Deb's was visiting with Baha'i friends we hadn't seen in a long time. I was especially thrilled to see Darachan and her son Kiri. I met Darachan and her husband at the train station when they first arrived in Tacoma many years ago. Cambodian refugees who once lived in Camp 6 on the Thai border, they were on to careers of great service in our community. Another thing I distinctly remember was that they, too, once lived in Salishan, that neighborhood that has been so much a focus of the Baha'i institure process in our cluster.
It happened in Salishan yesterday -- Baha'i children's class -- mobile phone photo below by Lisa. -gw
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
On God the Sovereign: The power, names and attributes of God are eternal, ancient
Our Feast of Sultan was cancelled last Wednesday because of ice, but is being held this Wednesday instead. A second chance to honor God's sovereignty.Thanks, Jamie, for the set. -gw
God is eternal and ancient; not a new God. His sovereignty is of old, not recent; not merely existent these five or six thousand years. This infinite universe is from everlasting. The sovereignty, power, names and attributes of God are eternal, ancient. His names presuppose creation and predicate His existence and will. We say God is creator. This name creator appears when we connote creation. We say God is the provider. This name presupposes and proves the existence of the provided. God is love. This name proves the existence of the beloved. In the same way God is mercy, God is justice, God is life, etc., etc. Therefore as God is creator, eternal and ancient, there were always creatures and subjects existing and provided for. There is no doubt that divine sovereignty is eternal. Sovereignty necessitates subjects, ministers, trustees and others subordinate to sovereignty. Could there be a king without country, subjects and armies? If we conceive of a time when there were no creatures, no servants, no subjects of divine lordship we dethrone God and predicate a time when God was not. It would be as if He had been recently appointed and man had given these names to Him. The divine sovereignty is ancient, eternal. God from everlasting was love, justice, power, creator, provider, the omniscient, the bountiful.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
On a Life Through Age 18: Recognizing the oneness of mankind
My son asked me to share more about my personal history. So I wrote him this as a "first chapter." -gw
My earliest memory was sitting by my mother on a footstool as she read me a story. I was around 5. I always felt secure as a child. My mother gave me strength and a feeling of security. My father was one to tip-toe around a little. He was prone to profanity of all kinds and temperamental. But I felt loved by him. I was a completely planned child, the one he was going to "spoil," because he hadn't had the chance to be around my brother and sister because of World War II.
I was by the time I was in 6th grade, an "only child," as my brother and sister had both left for college. I developed solitary interests, had my own room and desk, wrote my first "letter to the editor" at age 12 which was published in the Chicago Tribune, did well in school, liked to do school reports some of which I still have, went to school dances, and the youth center, took square dance lessons, had girlfriends starting as early as 3rd grade.
I had a secure homelife in Downers Grove. My parents loved me. My dad had a good job. We took a summer vacation every summer camping for 2 weeks until I was 15, and decided I didn't want to go anymore.
I was confident, had no self-esteem issues. I had friends in high school who were valedictorians and salutatorians, at the top of the class, although I graduated 93rd out of a class of more than 900. My girlfriend in high school was from Argentina. Her parents had doctorates in physics and chemistry. Her brother played classical piano. I played in two folk music bands, played guitar and sang. One was in Chicago, to which I would travel by train by myself for practices. I kept journals in high school which I still have today.
I did demonstrate some rebellion against my father in the last two years of high school. I felt he couldn't relate to me. I "ran away" to New York City just before my high school graduation, because of school pressures and, somehow, my relationship with my father. I was there a day, then immediately hitchhiked for home, being gone for 4 or 5 days total.
After that my father really tried to get to know me better, although he wasn't very good with people skills. That summer he would come in my bedroom and sit down on my bed and ask me questions and encourage me to take subjects like philosophy and anthropology, "impractical" subjects for getting a job, and the opposite of what he had done in college. He wanted me to study subjects that he couldn't allow himself to study when he was young. I gave him a hard time by telling him I wouldn't go to college, but I ended up going to the University of Illinois where both Dick and Phyl attended.
When I arrived on campus I was immediately happy. It was just the kind of experience I was ready for. Within two months I attended my first Baha'i meeting. That began a study of the Faith that continued for two years, before I fnally became a Baha'i. I was a James Scholar with my grades for at least three semesters of college. I took a number of honors courses. I did well in college, except for college physics, the only D I ever got. Again, I had girlfriends, although I wasn't focused on having them. I attended the University Baha'i group every Friday night. I was a fixture there. I organized campus activities against the war in Vietnam. I organized a talk on campus to which my psychology professor came to present. I marched on the Pentagon in an anti-war rally in 1968 to which 200,000 other people came. I declared my Faith in Baha'u'llah shortly thereafter after a presentation on The Seven Valleys, still one of my favorite books. I participated on the Baha'i Area Youth Committee for Southern Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee. I traveled to meetings that were as far away as Nashville TN.
During the summer of my senior year I was invited to attend a Youth for One World Seminar at the Baha'i National Seminar, a week-long gathering. That is where I really solidified my faith. There I met Vernyce, whom I decided to marry. We moved to Portland, Oregon, where she was going to start school that fall. I was still a couple of courses short of having enough credits to graduate.
So let me stop here, to note, that growing up I was privileged and had almost demands put upon me except to go to school. I experienced no hardship, no poverty. And I had no siblings close in age with whom I had to work things out and learn from. I was never around young children. My parents set the example of participation in organizations, religious freethought organizations by my father, because he didn't like religion, and anti-war organizations by my mother who saw herself "working for peace." I saw myself as wanting to do my part in changing the world. I just didn't know how. My favorite magazine was the National Geographic (still is my favorite). It taught me about the oneness of mankind.
Tacomans celebrated the oneness of mankind at the Martin Luther King Day celebration at the Tacoma Dome. -gw
Saturday, January 21, 2012
On Overpopulation is Not the Ultimate Issue Facing Humanity: Disunity is
Is overpopulation the ultimate issue facing humanity? No. Disunity is. When mankind sees its spiritual unity, we will see a global civilization develop so stupendous, that we cannot even imagine it now. When I was young, overpopulation was a far more critical problem than it is now. In so many countries of the world today, a negative birth rate is actually a problem -- the solution for which is making immigration from more populous countries of the world more possible, through elimination of legal barriers.
Countries like Japan have an aging population. To keep the machines of industry running, will the leaders of government in these countries with a negative birth rate further open their borders to immigrants (who will then become a permanent part of the population and, not incidently, also change the national culture)? The answer is -- yes.
There is no reason to wring our hands with the thought that humanity's annihilation is inevitable. Peace is inevitable. The unification of mankind is happening before our eyes. It's not always pretty -- there are those who stand in the way, but they are, sooner or later, mowed down by God-born forces that proceed mysteriously in the world. Change is inevitable, and there is a direction to it. Our future is bright. -gw
On They Had Snow, So Did We: They have JYSEP, we do, too
Last night I attended a junior youth gathering at the home of a good friend of mine. The Baha'i junior youth program is open to youth between the age of 12 and 15, and is intended to give this special age group the space and opportunity to develop their power of expression and articulation in a supportive environment. There is an emphasis on social justice and community service, and the participants often take part in activities that are of service to the community. The group that I joined last night begin every Friday session by cooking supper and then enjoying a meal together. Last night we made a big pot of apple and vegetable soup and sandwiches. The group is composed of two islanders, a young woman from Yemen, three from Taiwan, one from The Philippines, one from South Korea, one from Kuwait and one from Vietnam. All together in the kitchen, some of us chopping, some of us washing vegetables, some of us stirring at the stove, some of us setting the table, we are a rainbow of cultures and backgrounds--a miracle really that we are all working together with joy and laughter and few disagreements or misunderstandings. Sitting around the table enjoying our steaming bowls of soup, the room filled with jokes and laughter. With so much in the news about disunity and prejudice, watching how seamlessly the youth melted into a single group impressed me.
A lovely blog, full of the Baha'i life, by a soul who has just arrived on Prince Edward Island, Canada. We had snow this week in Tacoma, an unusual occurance. They had snow up there -- probably not unusal. They have the Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program up there on PEI. We have JYSEP groups down here. It's one Baha'i world. -gw
Friday, January 20, 2012
On Be Like Two Singing Birds: Sweet bird notes from high in the tree of life
What is it about birds that draws our eyes and ears and affects our hearts? -gw
Be like two sweet-singing birds perched upon the highest branches of the tree of life, filling the air with songs of love and rapture.
Baha'i marraige tablet
On Mandolin Jazz: Nightingales of divine mysteries are filled with joy and ecstasy
Tom Brooks sounded mighty fine at the Mandolin Cafe. He showed off his new bass, a very sleek and slim version. The collection of musicians included two great guitariest, a percussion/jazz harmonica player, a sax player who has found the secret to eternal youth, a vibes player just in from New Zealand, an Aussie torch singer, the owner of Mandolin taking his turn singing at the mic, and irrepressible dancing. Glad Bonita and I went, a midweek date before a big snow and ice storm hit. -gw
O servant of Baha! Music is regarded as a praiseworthy science at the Threshold of the Almighty … By virtue of this, consider how much the art of music is admired and praised. Try, if thou canst, to use spiritual melodies, songs and tunes, and to bring the earthly music into harmony with the celestial melody. Then thou wilt notice what a great influence music hath and what heavenly joy and life it conferreth. Strike up such a melody and tune as to cause the nightingales of divine mysteries to be filled with joy and ecstasy."
'Abdu'l-Bahá, from a recently translated Tablet to an individual believer; Bahá'í Writings on Music, a compilation of the Universal House of Justice(Compilations, Lights of Guidance, p. 411 )
On Studying the Letters: Guidance for collective teaching
The Tacoma Spiritual Assembly has been devoting the first 30 minutes of its meeting to study of the Five Year Plan Messages of the Universal House of Justice. Baha'is have a new letter to study dated December 12, 2011. It was the focus for consultation among the friends gathered last Saturday and Sunday to support our current collective teaching campaign. One paragraph -- two hours of stimulating discussion, that seems to be the rule.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
On Hanging Out at the Invaders Practice: An Invaders' families family tradition
It's a little early in the year to hang out at the Invaders football practice and be comfortable. Saturday Matt's family did, nonetheless. Christy and Jessica did word puzzles in the car, and Isaiah came out to toss a football up in the air to himself, while Matt coached. I have such fond memories of being at practice last year and visiting with the families. -gw
Tacoma Invaders 2011 practices - 20 sets - http://www.flickr.com/photos/85934826@N00/collections/72157626485842311/
On the Invaders It Doesn't Matter What Colors You Wear: But be guarded in your speech
In a neighborhood I hang out in it matters to a few what colors you wear. On the Tacoma Invaders football team it doesn't matter. And if the team owner Coach Will hears the n-word, there is instant chastisement. It's simply not allowed. -gw
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 of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge. Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech. Be unjust to no man, and show all meekness to all men. Be as a lamp unto them that walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder and defender of the victim of oppression. Let integrity and uprightness distinguish all thine acts. Be a home for the stranger, a balm to the suffering, a tower of strength for the fugitive. Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light unto the feet of the erring. Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the temple of righteousness, a breath of life to the body of mankind, an ensign of the hosts of justice, a luminary above the horizon of virtue, a dew to the soil of the human heart, an ark on the ocean of knowledge, a sun in the heaven of bounty, a gem on the diadem of wisdom, a shining light in the firmament of thy generation, a fruit upon the tree of humility.
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
On Baha'is and the Internet: Availing themselves of its potential
I came across this quote again which says it all, constituting great guidance for Baha'is. -gw
It is useful to bear in mind that the Internet is a reflection of the world around us, and we find in its infinitude of pages the same competing forces of integration and disintegration that characterize the tumult in which humanity is caught up. In their use of the Internet, Bahá’ís should stand aloof from the negative forces operating within it, availing themselves of its potential to spread the Word of God and to inspire and uplift others, while ignoring any negative reactions their efforts may from time to time elicit.
From a letter dated 9 April 2008 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual.
On Interconnected heads and hearts: Religion, parent & child, and the internet
What's this about?
It appears on my Facebook for interests for which there is no icon, in my case the internet, religion and Parent Child Interaction Therapy.
I think the generic icon is very appropriate. It represents interaction and interconnectedness. That's the Internet, certainly. That's also religion, religions being revealed progressively, reaffirming the same spiritual verities from age to age, one coming in fulfillment of the next. That's also true of Parent Child Interaction Therapy that I practice, that sees behavior in a family as reciprocal.
The icon at top is just a simplification of the icon below, which is used to stand for the internet, but which could also be used to represent the interconnected synapses of our brain. In this day and age, even our brains are interconnected, like never before.
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
On Matt Completes the Tablet of Ahmad: Invested with potency and signficance
Last week when we completed answering the questions of "Prayer - Section 8" in Ruhi Book 1, we paused to say a few of the prayers mentioned. Lisa volunteered to say the Tablet of Ahmad by heart, as she has been working to memorize it for the past ten years. "But I need someone to spot me," she said. Matt volunteered. With his able assistance, she got most of the way through it, then he brought the prayer to conclusion.
These obligatory prayers, together with a few other specific ones, such as the Healing Prayer, the Tablet of Ahmad, have been invested with Baha’u’llah with a special potency and significance, and should therefore be accepted as such and be recited by the believers with unquestioned faith and confidence, that through them they may enter to a much closer communion with God, and identify themselves more fully with His laws and precepts.
Shoghi Effendi, Principles of Baha’i Administration (London: Baha’i Publishing Trust, 1973), p.7 - quoted in Ruhi Book 1, Reflections on the Life of the Spirit.
On the Hiatus of Winter: What if you didn't know that spring is sure to follow?
If you like weather -- and dormancy -- you'll love the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge in the wintertime. With the assurance that one season follows another, winter, too, can be a joyful time. But what if you didn't know that spring comes inevitably? How distressing that would be! -gw
Eventually, as an ever-evolving civilization exhausts its spiritual sources, a process of disintegration sets in, as it does throughout the phenomenal world. Turning again to analogies offered by nature, Bahá’u’lláh compares this hiatus in the development of civilization to the onset of winter. Moral vitality diminishes, as does social cohesion. Challenges which would have been overcome at an earlier age, or been turned into opportunities for exploration and achievement, become insuperable barriers. Religion loses its relevance, and experimentation becomes increasingly fragmented, further deepening social divisions. Increasingly, uncertainty about the meaning and value of life generates anxiety and confusion. Speaking about this condition in our own age Bahá’u’lláh says:
We can well perceive how the whole human race is encompassed with great, with incalculable afflictions. We see it languishing on its bed of sickness, sore-tried and disillusioned. They that are intoxicated by self-conceit have interposed themselves between it and the Divine and infallible Physician. Witness how they have entangled all men, themselves included, in the mesh of their devices. They can neither discover the cause of the disease, nor have they any knowledge of the remedy. They have conceived the straight to be crooked, and have imagined their friend an enemy.
Monday, January 16, 2012
On Sport in America: Courage, integrity & fair play, but also a down side
An interesting subject was addressed in a recent Sports Illustrated -- Sport in America. Some aspects of our love for sport is good, but others not so. There is a down side, as the article points out, and also mentioned in the Baha'i Writings.
One could also argue that this camaraderie and entertainment promote personal as well as community well-being. This may be true, but where do our boundaries lie?
One of the signs of a decadent society, a sign which is very evident in the world today, is an almost frenetic devotion to pleasure and diversion, an insatiable thirst for amusement, a fanatical devotion to games and sport, a reluctance to treat any matter seriously, and a scornful, derisory attitude towards virtue and solid worth… Frivolity palls and eventually leads to boredom and emptiness, but true happiness and joy and humour that are parts of a balanced life that includes serious thought, compassion and humble servitude to God, are characteristics that enrich life and add to its radiance.
(From a letter dated 8 May 1979 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)
On At Sunrise, Noon & Dusk: Good times to pray
It's snowy, blow-y and overcast today, but last week I saw the sun -- at surise, noon, and dusk. Good times to pray, by the way. -gw
While getting brakes done on the car bright and early at the car dealer's...
Hiking with a colleague and her dog during the noon hour in the forest across from my work...
Just before my last therapy appointment of the day with a client and family who live in the country...
The daily obligatory prayers are three in number. … The believer is entirely free to choose any one of these three prayers, but is under the obligation of reciting one of them, and in accordance with any specific directions with which they may be accompanied.”-- from a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi"By `morning,' `noon' and `evening,' mentioned in connection with the Obligatory Prayers, is meant respectively the intervals between sunrise and noon, between noon and sunset, and from sunset till two hours after sunset."-- Synopsis and Codification of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 36
On Preparing a Prayer List: With help from an iPhone
After Shawn led us in the study of a prayer at Friday's devotional, Gwen asked that each of us share the things we would want prayers for. We developed a list. -gw
On the Sixth Candle, the Unity of Races: Making of all that dwell on earth kindreds of one race
Will today's Martin Luther King Day celebration at the Tacoma Dome Exhibition Hall be as good as last years? Well, I doubt the photos taken by Jamie Frank at the event a year ago could possibly be any better than any taken today.
After the two-hour extravaganza we will be gathering at Tim and Deb's for their annual potluck attended by Baha'is throught the region. Here are pics and video from 2011. -gw
“Behold,” He further explains, “how its light is now dawning upon the world’s darkened horizon. The first candle is unity in the political realm, the early glimmerings of which can now be discerned. The second candle is unity of thought in world undertakings, the consummation of which will erelong be witnessed. The third candle is unity in freedom which will surely come to pass. The fourth candle is unity in religion which is the cornerstone of the foundation itself, and which, by the power of God, will be revealed in all its splendor. The fifth candle is the unity of nations—a unity which, in this century, will be securely established, causing all the peoples of the world to regard themselves as citizens of one common fatherland. The sixth candle is unity of races, making of all that dwell on earth peoples and kindreds of one race. The seventh candle is unity of language, i.e., the choice of a universal tongue in which all peoples will be instructed and converse. Each and every one of these will inevitably come to pass, inasmuch as the power of the Kingdom of God will aid and assist in their realization.”
On the Sixth Candle, the Unity of Races: Making of all that dwell on earth kindreds of one race
Will today's Martin Luther King Day celebration at the Tacoma Dome Exhibition Hall be as good as last years? Well, I doubt the photos taken by Jamie Frank at the event a year ago could possibly be any better than any taken today.
After the two-hour extravaganza we will be gathering at Tim and Deb's for their annual potluck attended by Baha'is throught the region. Here are pics and video from 2011. -gw
“Behold,” He further explains, “how its light is now dawning upon the world’s darkened horizon. The first candle is unity in the political realm, the early glimmerings of which can now be discerned. The second candle is unity of thought in world undertakings, the consummation of which will erelong be witnessed. The third candle is unity in freedom which will surely come to pass. The fourth candle is unity in religion which is the cornerstone of the foundation itself, and which, by the power of God, will be revealed in all its splendor. The fifth candle is the unity of nations—a unity which, in this century, will be securely established, causing all the peoples of the world to regard themselves as citizens of one common fatherland. The sixth candle is unity of races, making of all that dwell on earth peoples and kindreds of one race. The seventh candle is unity of language, i.e., the choice of a universal tongue in which all peoples will be instructed and converse. Each and every one of these will inevitably come to pass, inasmuch as the power of the Kingdom of God will aid and assist in their realization.”
Saturday, January 14, 2012
On Assist Me With the Breath of the Holy Spirit: The Tigers/Invaders Friday devotional has taken off
I've put up hundreds of video clips on Flickr that chronicle the progress of the Baha'i institute process in Pierce County, Washington. I have favorites, those that bring up a certain emotion in me. This clip, just taken at the Tigers/Invaders devotional Friday night, will be one of my all time favorites -- I just know it.
Coach Charles is on the right, Tigers player Isaiah reads the prayer, Trejon holds his cousin Gilmar, and "Coach" Shadi, who recently completed service to Baha'is in the region as a member of the Auxiliary Board (which is kinda like a coach) -- she surrenders her iPhone for Gilmar to investigate. Charles surveys the scene, the iPhone later ending up in his hands, as there was a prayer on it for him to read.
The Tigers/Invaders Friday devotional has taken off. -gw
O my God! O my God! Thou seest me in my lowliness and weakness, occupied with the greatest undertaking, determined to raise Thy word among the masses and to spread Thy teachings among Thy peoples. How can I succeed unless Thou assist me with the breath of the Holy Spirit, help me to triumph by the hosts of Thy glorious kingdom, and shower upon me Thy confirmations, which alone can change a gnat into an eagle, a drop of water into rivers and seas, and an atom into lights and suns? O my Lord! Assist me with Thy triumphant and effective might, so that my tongue may utter Thy praises and attributes among all people and my soul overflow with the wine of Thy love and knowledge.Thou art the Omnipotent and the Doer of whatsoever Thou willest.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá
On Social Spaces: Making plain the opportunities
The phrase "social space" is on our lips as we begin our latest intensive teaching campaign. I am grateful to the American Baha'i, which arrived in our homes just before our Cluster Reflection Meeting, for making plain both the call of the Universal House of Justice and outlining the opportunities.
On Restoring Lustre in a Space for Both Social Gatherings and Solitary Meditation: What Bonita has done to the living room
As I've noted previously, Bonita has quietly, but with great focus, been working to complete an "upgrade" of our living space. I labored as her dutiful assistant. Now we both enjoy the fruits of those labors. -gw
Tuesday, January 10, 2012
On the Day of the Expanding Man: Sharing the things we know and love with those of my kind
This is the day of the expanding man
That shape is my shade
There where I used to stand
It seems like only yesterday
I gazed through the glass
At ramblers, wild gamblers
... That's all in the past
My back to the wallA victim of laughing chanceThis is for meThe essence of true romanceSharing the things we know and loveWith those of my kindLibationsSensationsThat stagger the mind
Another SPBLOHFB (song posted by Lisa on her Facebook). -gw
There are certain pillars which have been established as the unshakeable supports of the Faith of God. The mightiest of these is learning and the use of the mind, the expansion of consciousness, and insight into the realities of the universe and the hidden mysteries of Almighty God.
Monday, January 09, 2012
On the Station of Dying From Self: Tarazat Films first poetic narrative
You have to become a nobody. The moment you are nobody, a silence descends on you, followed by a contentment. - Osho
Taraz's latest opus. It will take your breath away. It's focus reminds me of Baha'u'llah's Seven Valleys. -gw
This station is the dying from self and the living in God, the being poor in self and rich in the Desired One. Poverty as here referred to signifieth being poor in the things of the created world, rich in the things of God’s world. For when the true lover and devoted friend reacheth to the presence of the Beloved, the sparkling beauty of the Loved One and the fire of the lover’s heart will kindle a blaze and burn away all veils and wrappings. Yea, all he hath, from heart to skin, will be set aflame, so that nothing will remain save the Friend.
On Cluster 19's Youth Movement: Reflections in polished mirrors
I can't believe how many children, pre-youth, youth and young adults we had our Cluster Reflection Meeting Saturday! The New World Order has arrived and young people are carrying the banner. -gw
Friday, January 06, 2012
On Facebook Chatter: I know not, O my God, what the Fire is
Found on Facebook. Know any good campfire songs? -gw
K: Who crashed???Li: nah -- it was a parked car-- someone lit it upK: Wwat tht is crazyLi: go outside-- i bet you can smell it --J: for real?La: That'll teach 'em to park in someone else's spot.Li: i though it was a drive by-- i had my baseball bat -- ready for -- who knows-- maybe i can hit a homerun at a racing bullet-- lolJ: you'd be responsible if you hit it into someone else...assault with a deadly weapon...lolK: Haha lolLi: i get in the fight or flight frenzy-- it's kind of embarrassing when i run outside to a fire with a baseball bat -- so commandoLa: LMAO...you need a baha'i batLi: HAHAHAH now that would be AWESOME -- instead of seeing stars you see love and unityK: Haha tht funnyLa: You could've just said you were throwing a log on the fire...unless it's a metal bat??Li: hey WHERE ARE MY MARSHMALLOWS-- someone bring the graham crackers and chocolate-- it'll be awesome -- we can sing campfire songs-
Thursday, January 05, 2012
On Screaming Daisies: The flowers, not the rock group
Screaming daisies indeed! And leek flowers. And other assorted blessings and signs. -gw
Wednesday, January 04, 2012
On Getting an Angle on the Ball: A family fun tutorial
Here is a tutorial on how to get the angle on the ball when playing pool, this taken during Family Fun Night Saturday. Dad is showing his wife and son. -gw
On We Kind of Know How To Do This: We just have to do it more
The Baha'i community knows a little about expansion and growth. We just have to do more of what we are already doing -- Counselor Bourna... -gw
On the Salishan Story: A story of accompaniment
When we put together the definitive story of the expansion of the Baha'i community in the Salishan neighborhood in the years to come, we'll be drawing on such first-hand descriptions as this one. -gw
On Rainn Wilson on KUOW: You and I are not going to become famous
In case you missed the interview of Rainn Wilson on KUOW, when he was in town for the Mona Foundation benefit, that includes such story lines as.... -gw
On Path As Metaphor: It beackons to new horizons
Garden path
The main sequence of courses is organized so as to set the individual, whether Baha'i or not, on a path being defined by the accumulating experience of the community in its endeavour to open before humanity the vision of Baha'u'llah's World Order. The very notion of a path is, itself, indicative of the nature and purpose of the courses, for a path invites participation, it beckons to new horizons, it demands effort and movement, it accommodates different paces and strides, it is structured and defined. A path can be experienced and known, not only by one or two but by scores upon scores; it belongs to the community. To walk a path is a concept equally expressive. It requires of the individual volition and choice; it calls for a set of skills and abilities but also elicits certain qualities and attitudes; it necessitates a logical progression but admits, when needed, related lines of exploration; it may seem easy at the outset but becomes more challenging further along. And crucially, one walks the path in the company of others.
12 December 2011 - The Universal House of Justice, Further guidance on the implementation of institute courses
What a marvelously useful metaphor "path" is. -gw
Walking the straight path
Billy walking a path of service
Junior youth groups walking
The path to the garage
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