Good news for the world

[Jim]

I would like to discuss with some other Baha'is some good news for the world that I see as part of the message of Bahá’u’lláh. The good news that I want to discuss is not in words. It is in what is happening now in Baha’i communities.

Part of the good news is for anyone who cares about the future of the world. It’s all the assurance that anyone could wish for, that it’s possible for all the people of the world, in all their diversity including diversity of beliefs, to live together in peace, and work together in harmony, for a better world for all people everywhere.

Another part of the good news is for anyone anywhere in the world who wants to help stop and reverse the growth and spread of violence; help reduce and counteract the damage from natural and human-driven disasters and help communities recover from them; help right the wrongs and repair the damage; and help with progress towards a world of peace, justice and prosperity for all people everywhere. What Baha’i communities are doing provides possibilities for anyone who wants to, to help with all that, no matter if they are members or not, no matter even if they have any potential interest or not in becoming members.

 

[Jim]

I’ll try to explain more what I’m thinking. There are members of the Baha’i Faith who believe in God and some who don’t. There are some who think that Bahá’u’lláh is God in human form, and others who think that He was nothing more than a man who incorporated enlightenment values into a religious and social reform movement. There are members with extreme right-wing beliefs, attitudes and behavior, and others with extreme left-wing beliefs, attitudes and behavior. There are some who think that it’s wrong not to sanctify gay marriages and others who think that homosexuality is an illness that needs to be cured. The views of Baha’is about every religious, political and social issue are as far apart from each other as they are in all the rest of society all around the world. In the differences between their beliefs, values and interests, Baha’is have as much reason as any people anywhere in the world to divide up into opposing camps, denouncing each other, working against each other, and even trying to kill each other. Instead of that, in a growing number of communities all around the world, in spite of their opposing beliefs and interests, they are rallying around a common plan, learning and working side by side with their neighbors, to build healthier, happier, more loving communities.

There might be many people who would get comfort and courage from that, in the work that they’re doing for a better world

 

[Jim]

I'll try to explain better what that might mean to some people, no matter if they accept Baha'u'llah's claims or not. People might feel intimidated and discouraged sometimes, in the work they're doing for a better world, by the voices all around saying that it's an impossible dream, or otherwise disparaging or even denouncing it as a goal to work for. The Baha'i community is a proof of concept showing that there aren't any differences between beliefs, and there aren't any defects in a community or its members, that can keep them from being friends and working together with each other and with others for a better world. The more that people see the diversity in our beliefs, and the defects in us and in our community, the clearer that message will be. That includes the online feuding, which illustrates how wide our divergences are in our beliefs, values and interests, and how passionate we are about them sometimes. None of that stops most of us from being friends, and learning and working together with each other and with others, to help build healthier, happier and more loving communities.

I still don't feel like I'm communicating this well. Maybe someone can help me.

 

[Jim]

I might not be posting in these forums much longer. I might be starting to burn out.

I think that the more people see of our opposing beliefs, values and interests, and the more they see of the defects in us and in our community, the better it will be for our message. In spite of all the opposition between us in our ideas and interests, and in spite of all the defects in us and in our community, in spite of having everything in our community that people think makes world peace impossible, all the Baha'is all over the world are working together under one single administration, without dividing into opposing camps and factions, doing a lot of good in the world around us individually and collectively, without any hostilities against anyone else. A lot of people who are working for a better world might get a lot of comfort and encouragement from seeing that, no matter what they think about our religion or about Baha'u'llah.

I see the work that we're doing in neighborhoods and villages around the world, side by side with our neighbors, learning and working together for a healthier, happier more loving community life for every person, as the best thing for most people to be doing to help reduce and counteract the damage from natural and human-driven disasters; to help relieve every kind of distress everywhere; and to help accelerate our progress towards the world of the future envisioned in our scriptures. I think it's something that the world desperately needs to see, and not something to hide under a bushel.

 

[Jim]

@Tony Bristow-Stagg I’m sorry I’ve treated you and your views scornfully sometimes.

 

[TransmutingSoul]

I see the work that we're doing in neighborhoods and villages around the world, side by side with our neighbors, learning and working together for a healthier, happier more loving community life for every person, as the best thing for most people to be doing to help reduce and counteract the damage from natural and human-driven disasters; to help relieve every kind of distress everywhere; and to help accelerate our progress towards the world of the future envisioned in our scriptures. I think it's something that the world desperately needs to see, and not something to hide under a bushel.

That is it in a nutshell Jim.

As to an individuals initiative, wherever it may arise, for each it is a work in progress spurred on by this great advice;

"O MY SERVANT! The best of men are they that earn a livelihood by their calling and spend upon themselves and upon their kindred for the love of God, the Lord of all worlds.

The mystic and wondrous Bride, hidden ere this beneath the veiling of utterance, hath now, by the grace of God and His divine favor, been made manifest even as the resplendent light shed by the beauty of the Beloved. I bear witness, O friends! that the favor is complete, the argument fulfilled, the proof manifest and the evidence established. Let it now be seen what your endeavors in the path of detachment will reveal. In this wise hath the divine favor been fully vouchsafed unto you and unto them that are in heaven and on earth. All praise to God, the Lord of all Worlds."

On that path we are all put to test, tests we know will aid us grow away from self and then to build a unity in a diversity yet to come to full fruition.

Good to share that journey with you Jim.

Regards Tony

 

[Jim]

Yesterday I started thinking that some Baha'is in Internet discussions who would like to participate in the community building that the House of Justice is promoting, might not see any way for them to do so. I see a possibility that some day we might be called to practice that same kind of community building in online neighborhoods and villages. Sometimes when the House of Justice calls for us to do something together, it's only after years of individual and small group initiatives, exploring those possibilities.

There might be many people who are consciously and conscientiously working for a much better world for all people everywhere, but who are sometimes confused, distracted and demoralized by people saying that it's impossible, or even that what they're trying to do is wrong. Seeing all the defects in the worldwide Baha'i community and its members, and our widely diverging views even about our own religion, that people think make a better future impossible or even wrong to wish for; and at the same time seeing us in all our diversity learning and working with each other and with our neighbors in service to others and to our communities, might help rescue many people from being confused, distracted and demoralized by those opposing views, even if they don't believe what we're saying about Baha'u'llah. I see ways for any Baha'i in any Internet discussion to do some pioneering work in practicing the same kind of community building in online neighborhoods and villages, that we're doing offline.