This book, the second in the main sequence of courses offered by the Ruhi Institute, is concerned with capabilities that enable us to contribute to meaningful and uplifting conversation. The specific act of service on which the book focuses is described in the third unit. In a world in which powerful forces are tearing communal bonds asunder, the practice of visiting friends and neighbors in their homes to explore themes central to the life of society can, if it becomes a prominent feature of culture, remedy some of the ills engendered by increasing isolation. The ties of fellowship thus created, the unit suggests, serve to fortify the process of building vibrant and harmonious communities.
A sustained program of visits to homes in a neighborhood or village calls for a degree of organization, involving a nucleus of dedicated friends supported by the requisite administrative institutions and agencies. In guiding a group through the book, the tutor should bear in mind that participants are being prepared to join such an ongoing effort. Visits arranged for them as a component of their study should lead to a commitment to take part in this effort year after year, an important aspect of a life of service.
The practice of visiting homes for the explicit purpose of exploring themes of spiritual and social significance clearly enriches the culture of a community. Equally crucial in this respect are the many informal discussions that occur at home and in the workplace, at school and in the market. To introduce spiritual principles into everyday conversation from time to time, then, is an ability that deserves attention. Its development is the focus of the second unit, laying, in this way, a foundation for the study undertaken in the third.
If our conversations with friends and neighbors are to be uplifting, we must be able to bring joy to our interactions with them. This is the subject addressed in the first unit, “The Joy of Teaching”. All the acts of service recommended by the Ruhi Institute involve, in essence, sharing with others the pearls of divine wisdom that we discover in the ocean of Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation. The study of the first unit is intended to heighten awareness of the joy inherent in this pursuit. Participants are asked over several sections to think about the Word of God and what a blessing it is to share it with others. From this act, the unit proposes, arises the joy that quickens our steps as we walk the path of service. Yet, even when fully convinced of this profound spiritual truth, we can lose the joy of teaching if we fail to give thought to the qualities and attitudes that must distinguish service. These are the object of discussion in many subsequent books in the series, and only a few are examined here, beginning with detachment in Section 7. A selection of quotations from the Bahá’í Writings forms the basis for reflection on this quality, a quality indispensable if external factors are not to diminish the joy of service. What is important is that participants not come away from their study with the mistaken notion that detachment implies aloofness or lack of care. We must constantly strive to intensify our exertions and to increase the efficacy of our service as we endeavor to achieve better and better results. This requires an adequate understanding of the character of effort, a topic that is considered in Section 8. Optimism and gratefulness, two attitudes fundamental to the path of service, are briefly discussed in the next and final section.
v
The second unit of the book, “Uplifting Conversations”, focuses on the ability to elevate the level of informal conversation by referring to spiritual principles when occasion permits. It consists of a number of short statements on various subjects, which, though not exact quotations, are based on ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s utterances and include many of the words and phrases He used. Of universal appeal, they speak to the aspirations and concerns of people of all backgrounds. It is hoped that, by studying the statements, participants will draw inspiration from the manner in which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explained spiritual principles and will acquire the habit of looking to Him as they strive to discover the pearls that lie in the ocean of Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation, understand the meaning and implications of His Father’s teachings, and share them generously with others.
To achieve the aim of the unit, participants should be given the opportunity to go over each statement several times, identify the sequence of thought, and practice saying it until they have so internalized the ideas that they can express them naturally. Some will, at first, basically memorize the statements and repeat them more or less the way they appear in the unit. This is to be expected. As their knowledge of the Faith deepens and their experience grows, they will have access to a much wider range of content and a much richer vocabulary, which will be reflected in their interactions with others. The tutor should recognize that, at this stage, what is being sought is twofold: a measure of ease in explaining the teachings and alignment with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s thought.
After the members of the group learn to present the content of each statement, they move on to another activity in which they are encouraged to correlate the ideas they have studied with issues of concern to their families, friends, and coworkers. To this end, they are asked to think about some of the topics and questions raised in conversation and decide which ones would offer them the possibility of introducing the ideas into a discussion. For a few statements, an example or two are mentioned to illustrate how the spiritual principles enunciated by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá shed light on matters that are of concern to people everywhere. This exercise will yield better fruit if, while study of the book is still in progress, the tutor is able to assist each member in choosing one of the statements and a couple of individuals with whom to converse on the ideas it contains. In this way, time can be set aside for participants, when meeting together, to describe to one another the dynamics of the conversations in which they have engaged.
For every statement in the unit, a few passages from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh are included for memorization. The emphasis the Ruhi Institute places on memorization, already apparent in the first book in the series, becomes more pronounced in Book 2. It is assumed that, by now, participants are conscious of the spiritual nourishment they receive from bringing to mind passages from the Writings time and again. In this book, then, they will reflect further on the effects of the Word of God on the human heart, and in the third unit, as in the second, they will learn to present principles and ideas found in the Writings in their speech and, when appropriate, quote passages directly. To explain the teachings accurately, giving them to others in their pure form, is among the capabilities we all seek to develop as we walk the path of service. That an excellent place to begin is by studying ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s explanations and trying to express them in the manner He did is the premise underlying the structure of the second unit.
As indicated above, the third unit, entitled “Deepening Themes”, turns to the act of service addressed in this book—that is, to pay visits to friends and neighbors for the explicit purpose of engaging in discussions vital to the life of the community. Three types of conversation are envisioned in the unit and, for each, specific content is suggested. The
vi
first type revolves around a series of themes to be explored with the residents of a village or neighborhood in a program of systematic visits. Although the content outlined could well be shared with interested audiences in a variety of ways, the original intention of the themes—to provide the members of a household with the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of the Faith—remains most relevant. The greater share of the unit, then, is given over to this type of conversation.
Yet, the practice of visiting homes has taken on new dimensions in recent years, especially as smaller and smaller geographic units, all the way down to the level of the village and the urban neighborhood, have seen a rise in the number of individuals who can act as tutors, animators of junior youth groups, and children’s class teachers. Notably, the practice has shown itself to be essential not only for the purpose of propagating knowledge of the Faith; it is also imperative to the successful unfoldment of the programs for the spiritual empowerment of junior youth and for the spiritual education of children. In this, what has become clear is that regular visits need to be undertaken by animators and teachers to the parents of youngsters in the two programs to discuss the concepts and approaches which give them shape. Such discussions constitute a second type of conversation, which is examined in Sections 14 and 15. The content covered in these sections is far from extensive, for participants will become much more familiar with the two educational programs in future courses. But for them to be aware of the significance of this type of conversation and to accompany teachers of children and animators of junior youth groups on their visits to parents can prove highly fruitful at this early stage.
A third type of conversation envisioned in the unit serves a very special purpose. So many young men and women are looking for avenues through which their ardent desire to contribute to the betterment of the world can find expression. They represent an enormous reservoir of capacity to change society that is waiting, nay, longing to be tapped. A conversation among peers in which they reflect on the opportunities and responsibilities unique to the period of youth, with all its energy and extraordinary potential, can, more often than not, lead to a discussion around service and kindle interest in the work underway in villages and neighborhoods across the globe. Numerous will, in turn, welcome an invitation to join the institute courses as a means of acquiring the capacity to provide spiritual education to rising generations as children’s class teachers and animators of junior youth groups. Sections 9 and 10 set out some ideas that can be explored in this type of conversation.
To strengthen the capabilities that enable individuals to initiate and sustain meaningful conversations, the unit must, of course, go beyond suggesting broad themes and the corresponding content. Apart from the ability to articulate ideas with clarity, participants need to develop the requisite attitudes and spiritual qualities. These underlie much of the account that unfolds in the unit, but their importance to the capabilities in question is made explicit in Section 4, where participants think about what kind of sentiments and thoughts should fill our hearts and minds in preparing for a visit, and in Section 5, where they reflect on the quality of humility. The tutor will want to ensure that these sections receive sufficient attention by participants, for, no matter how much knowledge we acquire, no matter how well we can articulate ideas, the effectiveness of our conversations will depend on the qualities and attitudes we bring to them.
It should be noted that the acts of service described in this series of books, though central to the growth and development of a community, are above all elements of a process that seeks to raise individual capacity through study and action. What every tutor should realize is that these acts build on one another, increasing in terms of complexity from book
vii
to book. Learning to carry out each act of service effectively proves crucial to the capacity required to perform those that follow. To maintain an ongoing conversation over the course of several visits to a home, as proposed in this book, is clearly more demanding than the activity encouraged in Book 1, that of hosting a regular devotional gathering, whether on one’s own or in collaboration with a few others. And it is not difficult to see how, to undertake the more complex acts of service ahead, it will be essential for participants to advance in the capabilities addressed here.
As mentioned in the introductory remarks in Book 1, participants in the institute courses worldwide come from a diversity of backgrounds and, initially, have varying degrees of familiarity with the Bahá’í teachings. By the time they begin this second book, they will have indeed, each and all, embarked on the path of service opened up by the courses. But some differences remain. In the case of youth, for example, unless they have gone through the educational programs for children and junior youth, many of the statements and themes presented in the book will be new to them, and its study will serve as a means for them to deepen their own knowledge of the Faith. The tutor should stand ready in this respect to exhibit the flexibility and creativity necessary to nurture understanding in every member of the group, while making sure that the main objective of the course, to enable participants to engage in meaningful and uplifting conversation, is achieved. What is more, in the thousands of localities where the book is being employed, the community-building process to which the three units seek to contribute is not at the same point of development. Putting into action what is being learned, then, can assume a somewhat different shape from one locality to the next, and this, too, provides an indication of the care and thoroughness with which a tutor must respond to the needs of every member in taking a group through these pages.