Following good feedback, this is a
podcast (my second!)of another talk I gave at Cambridge University, addressing the perennial question that Baha'is encounter: "I like the Baha'i teachings very much, I even love Baha'u'llah, but I don't want to label myself, I want to be free to be myself, and not divide myself from others by joining anything." I think people who state this view, have a point.
This is quite a talk by Ismael. Early on (14 minutes ) he refers to this quote below by Baha’u’llah and makes links to its relations today.
ReplyDelete"Soon," Bahá'u'lláh's own words proclaim it, "will the present day Order be rolled up, and a new one spread out in its stead. Verily, thy Lord speaketh the truth and is the Knower of things unseen." "By Myself," He solemnly asserts, "the day is approaching when We will have rolled up the world and all that is therein, and spread out a new Order in its stead. He, verily, is powerful over all things." "The world's equilibrium," He explains, "hath been upset through the vibrating influence of this Most Great, this new World Order. Mankind's ordered life hath been revolutionized through the agency of this unique, this wondrous System, the like of which mortal eyes have never witnessed." "The signs of impending convulsions and chaos," He warns the peoples of the world, "can now be discerned, inasmuch as the prevailing Order appeareth to be lamentably defective."
(Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha'u'llah, p. 161)
Next, (17 min) I was intrigued by his comment, “In that edge between chaos and order, complexity arises. Dynamic systems emerge..turbulence. “ My interpretation was he was connecting the present day Order (insert chaos) with the new one spread out in its stead (insert order). The edge being the friction between them; much like the friction that causes lighting. The clashing evident around us every day…worldwide!
Much later (55 min) Ismael speaks of the grass roots movement by the Bahai’s in 1985 delivering the document, “Promise of World Peace”.
Other points of interest I found where his comments related to harmony between spirituality and social action. This along with a letter from the Universal House of Justice on the “spectrum of spiritual response” from the “community of interest” is really helping me to understand the scope of what it is we are doing. No doubt, the toolbox is more than sufficiently equipped. How to use the tools in a wider, more encompassing circle is quite another. The consequences of not using them?? My mind wanders to show cars in people’s garages that never hit the streets to fulfill their purpose; and still some that aren’t even seen by anybody but their owner.
The summary of the talk (60 min) gives a description of who this community of interest is; Baha’is + Everybody that wants to support these instruments for masses of humanity to transform and come together. He speaks of Baha’is as not another denomination, but rather, a tool to join a community in order that we may fulfill our own potential of service, with our vision and mindset being “what can we do” vs. “what can I get”.
In the links section of this Blog there are two links related to this “community.” One is written (International Collaborative Study) and the other is visual (Ruhi-Images from Five Continents). This is our united humble endeavor we have embarked on with the ever-guiding hand of the Universal House of Justice. I suppose many can and have questioned whether we should do it this way or that, this system, or another and truthfully, I do not think it matters. As long as we are united and doing it together, surely, we will have a better attitude and be more open to guidance. I am reminded of conditioning at the end of a 2-hour basketball practice; my calves stabbing with pain, blisters down to raw meat, and lungs without a breath of air. Even in the worst of times, there was a tiny bit of peace watching your teammates grimace with pain and agony as well, so much so you could almost laugh and much of the times…I did. Lol This I feel is where we are at. Conditioning. If my experience from sports correlates at all to things spiritual, someday soon…this will be a sweet Victory!