The ship of the world is out-of-balance, but with my daughter’s help, we will right the ship. -gw

Be thou a breath of life, a banner of salvation and a manifest sign in this great world, so that thou mayest become a lamp of reconciliation and peace, a banner of love and attraction, a star of guidance among mankind, (and be thou) humble, meek and a servant to the maid-servants of the Merciful One. Unfurl the sail of spirit on the ship of guidance and hoist the banner of piety in those regions, so that the everlasting light may shine forth upon all parts.

This post on visiting the Baha’i House of Worship in India is intense and personal, the writing style so lovely. -gw

I round the space and get to the exit but I can’t say goodbye to the Lotus Temple just yet. I stand on the stairs and regard the place, and as I do I feel such a strong lack of any tension or worry in every atom of my body that my fingers start to tingle. I can feel the same vibration spreading up my arms. What is this? Why is it that this place does this to me? How can I carry this with me into my life? I sit back down and close my eyes again to study the feeling. A few moments pass and a line of about seven Indian people with large red folders forms at the front of the temple behind the spray of flowers and clear plexi-glass lectern. It must be three o’clock. It must be time for the Baha’i service. I’ve missed it every time I’ve come, but this time, only because the tingling sensation literally stopped me in my tracks, I’ve stayed long enough to see it.

It begins with a hymn sung in a language I don’t understand. The first man finishes his song, then closes his folder and steps away. Then the next man steps up to the lectern. He also sings in clear tones, the words echoing back and forth inside the dome. He also closes his folder and steps away. Next, a woman steps up and announces, “A Buddhist Prayer.” I get a sense of what is happening only now. This service is seven different prayers from seven different world religions. The Buddhist prayer is in English. The woman says that to give up desire is to conquer all sorrows. So if I give up wanting to posses the people I love, I will no longer be sad when I’m not in their presence. If I give up the desire for perfect health, it won’t be so traumatic when something goes wrong. It will just be a fact, something that happened.

http://my-new-direction.blogspot.com/2008/10/smile-face.html

Photo: Uploaded on December 22, 2007 by MACSURAK on flickr, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

These photos show up among Baha’i Special Gifts, an app on Facebook made by Jheniefeer Sayyáh using Gift Creator. -gw

What is the Baha’i perspective on this statement? -gw

From the 1863 edition of Adam Smith’s magnum opus An Enquiry into the Causes and Wealth of Nations.

“It is not from the benevolence of the butcher, baker or brewer that we expect our dinner, but from their regard to their own interest.”

“There are practically no technical teachings on economics in the Cause, such as banking, the price system, and others. The Cause is not an economic system, nor its Founders be considered as having been technical economists. The contribution of the Faith to this subject is essentially indirect, as it consists of the application of spiritual principles to our present-day economic system. Bahá’u’lláh has given us a few basic principles which should guide future Bahá’í economists in establishing such institutions which will adjust the economic relationships of the world…

“Social inequality is the inevitable outcome of the natural inequality of man. Human beings are different in ability and should, therefore, be different in their social and economic standing. Extremes of wealth and poverty should, however, be abolished…

Photo and accompanying text: Uploaded on June 16, 2006 by Grim Reaper With A Lawnmower on flickr, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic

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•   bahaiviews: Mink said we hadn’t invited him to become a Baha’i. So we did. He is our newest member. “You don’t have to cut your beard,” Raul told him.
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•   bahaiviews: Our deepening on the Baha’i Writings turned into teaching. Mink was taught by 3 friends using the presentation formerly known as Anna’s.
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This is what my wife wrote on her blog Flitzy Phoebie last October about Mink. -gw

I’ll finish this weeks posts with this portrait of Mink which I took last weekend. He attended the Olsen’s Devotional, and shared some of his life experiences. He’s a jack of all trades, a maker of drums, a kayaker, and a lover of trees. He spent part of his life living in a cave down in Arizona, and doing his craft on the side. He said it was a 17 mile walk into town.

http://flitzyphoebie.blogspot.com/2008/10/final-harvest-from-community-garden.html

Who’s Raul? Well, here is a picture and what my wife wrote about him back when Jacqueline Left-Hand Bull was visiting our community to support our door-to-door intensive teaching campaign. -gw

Children like Raul, only 10, whose sweet smile makes any moment special. I think Raul is on a baseball team, because he often wears a fancy uniform and a baseball cap. Here he is ready to share his stories about Direct Teaching with his mom over the weekend.

http://flitzyphoebie.blogspot.com/2008/01/just-counting-my-blessings-here-friends.html

We were privileged to have June and her husband Richard here in Tacoma for a special event sponsored by the Baha’is of Tacoma some years back. Their son, a physician, works in one of our local hospitals. -gw

Voices of Faith: June Thomas

by Bruce Shields | The Ann Arbor News

Sunday December 28, 2008, 6:30 AM

Racial discrimination has shaped June Thomas’ life. She was one of the first black students to integrate her high school in South Carolina. The Baha’i faith’s message of racial unity won her over.

http://www.mlive.com/living/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2008/12/vof_thomas.html

This dear soul is Baha’i-inspired. -gw

Academics: I have graduated from Townshend International School (the best school ever!) in June 2008. It’ s in the heart of Europe in Czech Republic in a small village called Hluboka nad Vltavou. Besides the regular academics the school also teaches moral values and virtues and co-relates them to daily activities, such as service to the community. More: http://townshend.aoehost.de/index.php?id=40

Now: I m doing civil service at a Baha’i inspired International Montessori Kindergarten “Little Pearl” in Brno Czech Republic, as it is part of the Baha’i believe to dedicate one or more years of service for the betterment of mankind. More: http://www.anglicka-skolka.com/?page=95&call=Home&lang=en

http://noravk.wordpress.com/2009/01/04/about-me/

…the congregation began filtering in. Many different races, ages, and backgrounds. There were probably about 50 people present. Then waltzed in Rev. Dr. Jane Galloway, the Spiritual Director. This white woman with bleached, buzzed hair of about 55 was wearing traditional African garb (an embellished rope with a scarf- tapestry hanging around her neck.) She greeted the congregation with upbeat energy. She rang a gong type of instrument and the services began. .

“He is God, oh God, my God, bestow on me a pure heart, like unto a pearl.”

There were selected readings from the bible, references to the Muslim faith, Native American spirituals, and almost-conventional prayers. They often referred to God as “It” or “Father-Mother-God” or “He/She”

A little different than I’m used to.

http://beccabacon.blogspot.com/2009/01/new-age-religion.html

Unusual for a church, but typical for a Baha’i community, minus the pastor. -gw