Society builders pave the way, to a better world,
to a better day, a united approach to building new society.

Join the conversation, for social
transformation. Society Builders.

Society Builders with
your host, Duane Varan.

Welcome to Society Builders and
thanks for joining the conversation

for social transformation.

Today we explore part three of our
trilogy of episodes exploring the

December 30th, 2021 message of the
Universal House of Justice to the

Continental Board of Counselors, giving
us our mandate for society building.

Now again, today, like in our previous
two episodes, we'll simply refer

to the message here as 'the message'.

In part one, we explored what I
called the bookends of the message,

the introduction and the conclusion.

Together, these seven paragraphs
really give you a sense of

destiny.

It helps position us in our journeys
over the course of the next 25 years

with this singular focus on society
building, and it helps situate us

in the larger history of our Faith,

highlighting the pivotal role it plays.

I mean, truly inspiring stuff.

Then in part two we dived into the
middle of the message and focused

on the fourth part, exploring the
theme of social transformation.

We needed the whole episode and probably
future episodes to cover just the five

paragraphs that make up that section.

So this leaves us with the near
impossible task of covering the

remainder of the message today.

That's the remaining 27 paragraphs!

Obviously, that's a lot of ground to
cover, so we're gonna try something

a little different here today.

Okay, today I'm gonna
interview my good friend,.

Dr. Kynan Feeney.

Now, Kynan previously served
as an Auxiliary Board Member in

my region, and I've always been
impressed with his command of

the new administrative landscape.

So I'm gonna get Kynan's help
here in working our way through

the rest of the message.

So today with the help of my good
friend Kynan, we'll explore the

parts of the message discussing
clusters, training institutes, and the

implications for Baha'i administration.

So roll up your sleeves
and let's get started.

Kynan, welcome to Society Builders.

Kynan: Thank you, Duane,

I really appreciate being here.

Thank you.

Duane: Well, we've got a lot of ground to
cover today, so let's get started.

Kynan, let's start with the cluster
construct, since this is the focus

of section two of the message.

Of course,

the community will need to grow
further for us to be able to contribute

more widely to society building
and the path to such growth will be

facilitated at the grassroots level.

And this is the level that
we refer to as the 'cluster'.

So Kynan, what's a cluster and how does it
move through what the Universal House of

Justice calls a 'continuum of development'.

Kynan: A cluster really is an area that
considers a population of people.

It usually has some sort of common
sense of geography, society, perhaps

like a city or a group of villages.

And what it does is it enables the Baha'is of
that area to think about how to stimulate

in a manageable and sustainable way

the growth processes.

It also enables the resources of that
community to pull together so that the sum

is much greater than the individual parts.

What they really are is about a system
of organizing the activities to achieve

the expansion and consolidation of
the Baha'i community within a cluster.

So they generally are marked
by certain milestones.

Early on in the clusters development,
it might be the friends are moving

through the Institute Process,
the educational program that

we're involved with for the expansion
and consolidation of the Baha'i community.

And then from that, there'll be a
number of activities which emerge,

things like children's classes,
devotional meetings, and study circles.

And then as the cluster grows,
certain other milestones are, are met.

Things such as an increasing number
of friends moving into these courses.

And as the programs have growth developed,
there often is a increasing number of

lines of action, which are integrated and
often more advanced levels of service.

For example, there might be an
increasing number of social and economic

development programs, perhaps public
discourses and other such things.

We know that one of the chief
objectives of the Nine Year Plan from

the House of Justice message is to
have at least one advanced cluster.

In each region of every country.

So the institutions of the faith
are identifying around every country

of the world how to ensure that
there's at least one of these.

But of course, in many
areas there might be many.

So that from these clusters, we can then
learn. And also hopefully as they grow,

enable some of the friends there who have
rich experiences and the ability to do so,

to even move to other clusters of
the world where they're perhaps at an

earlier stage of development and bring
that learning to bring forward the

growth processes in those areas that
will rely upon what we call pioneers.

So people that may move from
one area to another to help the

Baha'i communities in those areas.

And that might be in the home front, for
example, moving from one class to another.

And in fact it'll also be international.

So we know that there are international
goals around the world at the moment

where every single Baha'i community is
being asked to look at how the friends

there who are in some of the advanced
clusters of the world can perhaps move

to an overseas area where they can
serve and potentially help the growth

processes know there is be accelerated.

So the clusters are all at
different stages of development

at the moment in the Baha'i World,
and these are along a continuum.

So whilst we'll have these milestones that
mark certain significant steps forward,

all of these clusters are moving along
a continuum of increasing complexity

and increasing numbers and increasing
movement towards Baha'i community life

that is embracing a larger circle

of the society around them.

And it's the movement along this
continuity of development that's critical

for the current Nine Year Plan that all
the clusters of the world see themselves

as moving forward from whatever stage
they are to a new level of development as

best they can along this Nine Year Plan.

And that's what we refer to
as a continuum of development.

Duane: Now we've discussed in our previous
episodes how society building is something

we'll be doing in partnership with wider
society, and the message explores this

theme even further here, highlighting
how critical it is that we welcome people

to join with us in this work, even if
they don't identify themselves as Baha'is.

And this is something we've gotten a
lot better at over the past 25 years.

I mean, it was one of the main
achievements of these past years that

we celebrated in episode four. And it's
important for us to remember that in

these journeys of service, some people
will choose to embrace the Faith and some

won't, and that's entirely their choice.

But of course, There's a lot that we
can do to be better accommodating for

such souls, helping remove some of the
obstacles that might stand in their way.

So Kynan, how do we build on our
achievements of the past here?

Kynan: You know, I think, I think that's
incredibly true even in the short, say,

25, 30 year journey for me as a Baha'i.
In that short period of time, I've seen

huge changes in the way the community is
opening up itself to the, to wider society

and embracing itself with others in a
way, which perhaps it didn't in the past.

You know, we, we, we don't
have as much of this

'us versus them', or there's
like people that are Baha'is or not.

Because we are joining together and the
beautiful analogy that the House Justice

uses is, is 'walking a path of service'.

You know, it says that we're all
walking together, all together,

helping this community, helping
the society to, to move forward.

You know, as we are
accompanying people on this,

on this path of service as we're
walking together short, there'll be

different paces, different strides,
as the House of Justice reminds us.

And we should always accept everyone in
where they want to walk on that path.

But we also shouldn't be afraid, or
we maybe shouldn't be reticent to also

welcome those that really do want to,
step, step over and say, 'look

I want to be a part of that process
as a believer of Baha'u'llah and what does

that mean, and what does that involve?'

And I think that really is
something that we're, we're all

learning more about all the time.

And the House of Justice thing is
encouraging us to learn more about that.

And occasionally there can be
obstacles and it's, it's knowing

how to recognize those obstacles.

Knowing how to understand what are the
things that may be stopping someone from

embracing Baha'u'llah as a Manifestation.

You know, for me it was understanding
relationship with Baha'u'llah and Christ,

you know, and understanding how really
becoming a Baha'i doesn't mean, in any way,

diminishing my love for Christ or other
Manifestations, which was really great.

When you become a Baha'i, you really
have a more expansive view of religion

and its historical context. But for
others it may be something else. And,

and I think the House of Justice is
really encouraging us how to think

about this, how to learn about this,
how to overcome anyone's obstacles

and the barrier of, of recognizing
what is ultimately their soul's

purpose, which is the recognition of

the Manifestation. And to
ultimately continue their spiritual

journey along those lines.

Duane: It's a great point Kynan, and we want to
make sure that people are comfortable in

joining with us in this path of service.

And clearly that service is
not conditional upon them

actually embracing the Faith.

But by the same token, we also wanna
improve our capacity to help remove any

obstacles that might stand in their way.

So that's something for us to
work on in the years ahead.

And that relates to our need to learn
more broadly from our initiatives.

Naturally, the challenge at the community
level here is to learn from our various

initiatives to see which approaches are
most effective in our own communities.

How does this happen Kynan, and how
do we learn from our initiatives?

Kynan: There's a whole range of spiritual
requisites which come in and yeah, I think

in some of your earlier episodes about
message, Duane, you've talked about them.

You know, the, the need to, to
be humble, to learn, to listen,

to recognize the commonality and
what you're doing with others.

But if I can just maybe use one
particular example, which may be,

a way to illustrate this concept
is that the junior youth program.

Okay.

So the junior youth program is where
you have a group of junior youth.

They come together with an animator
and they work through a series

of books and often do a number of
junior service projects and perhaps

some other social activities.

Looking at that, you think, well,
there's a group's, junior youth, there's

an animator, and that's all you need.

But really the learning that's emerging
in our cluster, and I would say around

the world, is for that program to work,
it really requires a whole of community

approach, a whole of family approach.

It really just isn't the
junior youth, it's the parents,

it's the community members supporting
them, and it's the community

members supporting the animator.

It's him, him or herself, you know?

So it's understanding

well, look, there are certain ingredients
there that, that may look like they're,

they're essential to make this thing work.

But then over time you realize, 'no,
there are, there are many other elements.'

And as you go into the field, as
you go and serve in the field, you

learn from them, and also you learn
from the others that are doing them.

And that that's really one of the keys
of, of the cluster where you can come

together and you can learn from those
that perhaps have more experience and more

success, and you can see from them, well,
this is something that they've approached.

And so from moving from a personal
perspective, I can can really testify to

how important that sharing of learning is.

Something also that was really important
in the message that you touched on,

but I thought really important in this
particular, uh, concept is 'setbacks

leave them unfazed.'

You know, the, the House of Justice, when
they say 'setbacks leave them unfazed',

they're really trying to create a culture
in the Baha'i community where we don't get

down about ourselves because something
doesn't work out or things don't go

as planned because that's gonna happen.

You know, things will sometimes
not go the way we think.

These things are not often linear, you
know, they don't just happen from A to B.

There's a lot of other things that happen.
But this concept of setbacks that I live

in my Faith, I think is really important
for the learning process to not give up

at the first sign of potential feelings
of failure or feelings of things aren't

working out as best as they could,
which I think is natural for all of us.

Another learning from the House of
Justice message in regards to that was

they really asked us to look at the
local realities, so how our realities

may be different from others, and to
sort of see what sort of approaches, what

sort of receptivity may be appropriate
for wherever you are living and the

the opportunities are related to you.

That might be both your neighborhood,
but also perhaps your work or your family

and social environment and whatever
those realities are, you need to then

sort of think about them and think well.

What is it that I can
do that will work here?

And then learning from those things.

Another part of the message, which I
think relates to this is where the House

of Justice talks about the 'alternating
rhythm of action and reflection.'

I mean, that's really the
essence of it, isn't it?

This concept that we, we act, we
reflect, and often in that we will

review the Writings again, perhaps seek
guidance from institutions, but we act again.

And that alternating rhythm is
now one of the characteristics

of the Baha'i culture, which is
emerging, which is fantastic to see.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I think that's one of the great
fruits of the last 25 years for the

Baha'i community is that, that, you
know, rather than thinking that we

just need to sit passively and wait
for people to tell us what to do.

You know, the institutions are
saying, you, well, here's the,

here's the general framework.

Off you go.

Give it a go.

See what happens.

And, and that's great, you know?

And that's about the individuals and the
communities, with the institutions working

together and actually trying to work out.

So how is this gonna work for us?

You know, what is it gonna look like?

Well, we have to do it by acting first.

You know, we have to go
out there into the field.

Duane: So you covered a lot of ground there.

Cultivating the right
attitude towards learning.

Sharing from our initiatives, being
unfazed in the face of setbacks, reading

our realities, and this pulsating rhythm
of action and reflection so that we

learn to give it a go and reflect and
learn to improve in our next initiative.

Now that's learning.

Now the next section of
the message focuses on life

in more advanced clusters.

Let's talk about the pattern for community
life that follows. Clearly universal

participation is the goal here, but the
message focuses on another concept here,

and this is the idea of families and
individual believers working together

as part of an expanding nucleus.

Kynan, let's explore this here.

Kynan: Yeah, so this was, this was really
interesting for me, this part of

the message, because we've heard
about clusters for quite some

time, but this message for me
opened a lot of lot of new vistas.

What the House of Justice say here
is that if you have passed the third

milestone, it says that there is some
intense activity happening within

specific neighborhoods and villages,
but also concerted effort being made

by the generality of the believers.

So there isn't this false dichotomy.

So it's not like, oh, those advanced
clusters where there's really intensive

neighborhoods and the House of Justice
are saying the whole cluster, the

whole cluster is moving forward.

This universal participation exists
where everyone in that cluster really is

moving according to their circumstances.

Again, they talk about reading the
reality of their own circumstances,

so wherever in the cluster they live.

So families and individuals are
working together and then they

talk about this expanding nucleus.

So what does this mean?

They say it's a group of friends set about
widening the circle of participation.

So whatever that looks like,
it may be groups of families

around a junior youth program.

It may be groups of families that have
had some similar work relationships.

Maybe a school, maybe some other
community hub, but this nucleus then

is something that expands where more
and more people are being invited

into the community's endeavors.

And the House of Justice reassures us
these efforts have tremendous merit.

So we know that this is gonna be
probably a focus for us, at least for

this Nine Year Plan, if not further.

And what's really interesting as well
is that House of Justice recognizes

and explains to us that even where
there are some intense activities in

neighborhoods, still, these activities
of these expanding nucleuses of

of families and friends may in fact
be where the majority of activity

within their cluster is occurring.

As I say here, the rest of the cluster
may still represent a large proportion

of all the activity that is occurring.

And at the end of this paragraph,
they talk about specific populations.

So this for me was also very interesting.

When I was serving as a Board
member, I remember that one of the

House of Justice members said to me back
then, he was saying, 'look, there are

these clusters and frameworks, but

think about specific populations.
Learn about where there is receptivity,

where you can actually accelerate
the growth further, where there are

people that are perhaps ready to get
involved in whatever it is you're doing.'

It could be, for example, a
certain migrant group, maybe

a certain occupational group.

It may be even a an age group
like youth or junior youth.

But if you can find these populations,
which are very receptive, Then you

can really accelerate the processes,
the growth within that cluster.

And again, when, when you're in a
cluster, the families and groups

can come together within the cluster
meeting and there's other areas

within the cluster they can learn.

And in those spaces, they can
actually learn from each other.

And again, that's a huge
thing within a cluster.

So you're not isolated.

It's just a group of families on
your own trying to work it out.

You know, of course we always have
the institutions to guide us, but

having other similar groupings and how
they're working, what are they doing?

What are some of the ideas and
we're learning from sort of

ideas of what other people do.

Oh, well they, you know, they have
regular gatherings or they have some

dinners, or they have some side programs.

They have a book club.

You know, there's all sorts of things.

You think, wow, that, that
would really work with my group.

My families would love a book club.

At least they can get
together occasionally.

Read books of interest and, and
you know, with that process they,

they form bonds and then from
that further things can happen.

Duane: I love it.

It gives you a lot of latitude here
to find the people you work best with.

Yeah.

Other families, other friends.

It provides such an open space
for initiative at a level that

sits somewhere between individual
initiative and community initiatives.

Because you know, there's just something more
motivating about working in this way.

All right.

Let's move on.

The message highlights the
critical role of the arts here.

How do the arts help?

Kynan: When I think about arts,
I think about culture.

I think what does it mean for the arts
and for example, say other religions?

Well, it may mean, for example,
Christmas carols and it may

bring you back to your childhood.

So when, when Christmas happens, you
listen to Christmas carols and it brings

you back to when you are opening presents
with your family or your visiting family.

And it, it sort of builds your
identity around a religious group.

But the House of Justice,
again, expands our vision.

When it comes to arts here, you
know, it's about expression, it's

about disseminating knowledge, it's
about understanding as well as joy

and strengthening bonds of unity.

So it's such a huge part of
what the emerging Baha'i culture

requires and needs to develop.

The arts is also a very natural way
that wider society can both learn about

and be involved with the Baha'i Faith.

You know, within our own
cluster, when we've had

huge examples of the way the arts have
been involved in doing these things.

From dramatic performances of the
Seven Valleys to choirs, through

to dance performances, through
to concerts. But even just

outside of these larger gatherings,
you know, just the local friends

that involve with putting Baha'u'llah's words
to music, doing small performances

with children at the local level.

My experience is that is the best way
to initially introduce concepts of

the Baha'i Faith to those that are
around us, because everyone wants

to go to see their child perform.

Everyone loves to see their kids sing
a song, and if they're singing a song

about unity, And they're understanding
that and they're looking at these

people, so, Well, what better way for
them to learn about the Baha'i Faith?

What better way for them to introduce them
to a community that celebrates unity,

that celebrates the arts in that way?

Duane: Good points.

You know, there are so many
opportunities with the arts.

One of the things I was
thinking about here was

the message has a number of times
where they challenge us to bring

groups that are antagonistic towards
each other together, and to help

them find a path that unites them.

I mean, this is such a challenge.

I mean, it's something I've
really been thinking a lot about.

How do we do that?

But in the arts, you have a
real opportunity for this.

Yeah.

It's the kind of opportunity that you
just don't have in any other arena.

Because with the arts, people
can enter into a space where they

temporarily let their guard down to
explore ideas that these antagonistic

groups that might otherwise be hard
for them to open up to exploring.

I mean, it's just one example of the
unique role that the arts can play here

in helping provide a unifying bridge.

Kynan: Yeah, and there are so many
other examples like this.

So as we move to these more advanced
stages in our continuum of development

as clusters, our focus on society
building grows in providing for the

spiritual education of children and
junior youth and our relations with

authorities and multiplying initiatives.

And it's within that context that
within the cluster, we increasingly

steer our own development.

And our relationship to the surrounding
society undergoes profound change.

Duane: Kynan, what does
that start to look like?

Kynan: So this is something I don't have
much personal experience with because

I'm not within a cluster where that's
happened, but I have listened to some

of the Board members and Counselors
that have talked about this, and it's

really interesting because when they talk
about it, suddenly their face changes.

Their eyes light up.

It's almost like with a sense of
wonder that they start to talk about

some of these clusters where up to
50% perhaps of the local population

are actually either Baha'is or involved
in the Baha'i activities of that cluster.

And it's so interesting because
the whole dynamic of their

community starts to change.

You know, the words that they use are
the words that the Baha'is use. Consultation,

unity, truthfulness, trustworthiness.
And then in those communities, the

Baha'i institutions, the whole nature
of the way that they start to function

differs.

Now, we all know in the future the Local
Houses of Justice will administer justice

and guidance to the whole locality.

But for most of us to experience really
is the Local Assembly, ministering,

mainly the Baha'i activities. And then
perhaps some degree of public relations

relationships with government and so on.

But in these communities, the
Local Spiritual Assemblies often

are taking upon them to educate
all the children of the cluster.

Not just with the high children classes,
but literacy and other things, perhaps

taking on projects of social development,
sanitation, environmental repair.

So the whole of that
community suddenly transforms.

And when you, when you hear, when
you hear the reports of some of these

advanced clusters from the Counselors
and the Board members around the world,

It's, it's really like a totally new
way of thinking about what we're doing.

And then you actually see the
society building powers of the

Faith truly coming to light.

So one of the visions, the House
of Justice is sharing us here in,

in a small glimpse, in a small
glimmer, is this is what we're doing.

So you might be, for example, a few of
you in a small locality or maybe a, a

number of your families and you're working
towards this, but the House of Justice

is, look, look up, look over there.

Do you see what they're doing?

This will be you soon.

This is what we are building.

Don't think it's just some little small
step just to do a few small activities.

What you are creating is this whole World
Order that Baha'u'llah has envisioned for us.

And of course in those advanced clusters,
that's just the beginning as well.

It's not like that's the end, but
that's, that's what we're all aiming

towards past in this generation
in the next 25 to 30 years.

Duane: Wow, you're right, Kynan. And
just imagining that kind of future is so inspiring.

It makes you really crave that kind
of future for your own cluster.

I think everyone should take a beat and
just try to imagine what their world

would look like and this kind of scenario.

I mean, it's truly inspiring stuff.

Okay, so the next section of
the message is about social

transformation, which we've already
explored in our last episode.

That's where we spent the entire
episode and where we'll devote future

episodes to understanding just those
five powerful paragraphs in the message.

So it's something we'll continue
reflecting on a great deal, I'm sure.

And the section on social transformation
then leads into the section

focusing on training institutes.

So Kynan, so that we're all on the
same page here, what is a training

institute and why do you think the
Universal House of Justice celebrates

this as the 'choicest fruit of the
previous series of global Plans?'

So the Training Institute really is, is
an educational program for the Baha'is to

raise capacity for service so that we can
together move along a path of working out

how do we raise up these
Baha'i communities?

How do we raise up these
communities activities?

The fundamental parts of this process
is to connect us to the Word of God,

and for us to develop skills, attitudes,
and capabilities to facilitate all

those processes of community life
that we're now understand as a very

critical part of Baha'i community life.

Things like children's classes, devotional
meanings in junior youth groups.

So a community has needs, and in the
past, perhaps what happened was there

might be, for example, some very gifted
or very knowledgeable Baha'is that would

help to deepen, for example, Baha'i
knowledge, help to run behind classes and

attend to the community requirements.

But it was a little bit haphazard
and relied upon these individuals.

That had, to a large degree, individual
initiative to propel those things forward.

But what the training institutes
did was they actually systematically

enabled populations to raise up friends
that would actually attend to all

the various needs of community life.

It did it in a systematic way.

And in a sustainable way.

So even within the process, for
example, if you need tutors to run

these educational programs, the
process itself has that built in so

that those friends that are learning
how to do these activities eventually

become teachers of it, and then
they become teachers of new people.

So it helps to sustain the
activities of community life.

It's not saying that we still don't
need people with special skills or

knowledge, but we can't rely upon that for
community life to grow and be sustained.

So what I think when the House of
Justice uses words like the choicest

fruit, it obviously is referring to
something very special, very remarkable.

What we now see is a network of permanent
institutes throughout the Baha'i World

that have raised an immense capacity
within the Baha'i community to serve

itself and others in a way which is
self-initiating and self-propelling.

It's building the capacity for
service from this youngest of ages.

So that the whole community
is geared from an early age.

It's serving those around
it and also wider society.

It's doing it at ever increasing
numbers, so it's not constrained

by just a few individuals.

So, It's building the capacity of whole
communities, not just individuals.

And hundreds of thousands have now entered
into this process and come through as

children's classes, as teachers, junior
youth animators, but also people that

help to foster community life through
facilitating all these processes of

growth that are happening at the moment
around all the clusters of the world.

Duane: And you raise a great point here,
Kynan, this process now sees

hundreds of thousands having gone
through it all over the world.

That's such an incredibly
strong foundation to build with.

As we continue moving through this
process of raising resources on a

self generative basis to meet our
new needs, as we work to release the

society building power of the Faith.

So on that note, the Universal House
of Justice calls for a more expansive

view of the training institutes.

What do you think they're
referring to here?

Kynan: So Duane, I think this could be one
of those paragraphs again that we'll

look back on in 10 or 20 years and
really understand what the House

of Justice is referring to here.

You talk about that in one
of your previous episodes.

When you read a message of the House
of Justice, you look at it and you

think you understand it, but really
only with the passage of time

does it become apparent about what
the House of Justice is really

trying to explain to us here?

But I think this message in particular
is probably one of these where we'll

think we may know what this means, but
only in the passage of perhaps the next

decade or two, we look back and actually
realize what this, what this means,

what this actually means in in reality.

So the House Justice talks about
preparing us for an ever deeper engagement

in the life of the wider society.

So we have to progress society as
well as progress the Baha'i community

through the Institute courses.

It says it's actually the most potent
means for the society building

power of the Faith to find release.

So at the moment they're saying
the existing materials aim to

build capacity for a broad range of
initiatives, but there will be more.

And this was the thing that
really was something new.

That it's not just gonna be the expansion
and consolidation of our community or

community life, all social action and
discourses, but there's more to come.

So this vehicle is gonna be
something which we perhaps even

can't fully understand yet.

And only where the passage of time,
when the House of Juustice unfolds

it where we actually understand it.

So for me, this was, this was incredible
and I, I, I really, to be honest with

you, think that only with passage of time,
will we really understand what this means.

The House of Justice also says that
we'll soon set out the approach that will

guide this work over the coming years.

So they obviously have in their mind
what that approach will look like.

So we'll have to, you know,
stay tuned for for more.

Duane: Well, our listeners are
definitely staying tuned.

We're on the edges of our seats, Kynan.

We can't wait to hear the additional
guidance that comes out that will

help shed light on the new directions
to come in this new learning arena.

How incredibly exciting.

Okay.

And another exciting arena,
without a doubt is the youth and

the guidance here for our youth.

Over the past 25 years, the youth
have played an amazing role in the

success of the training institutes.

We discuss this as one of the hallmarks
of the past Plans and episode

four of our series, one of the
greatest achievements over this

period. And this message has a
special call to action for youth.

They call this their 'sacred charge'.

What do you think they're
referring to here

Kynan?

Kynan: This is really an amazing, and I think
reasonably unique part of Baha'i community

life, is that instead of saying, what
are you gonna do when you grow up?

What are you gonna be when you
become a, a proper person like an

adult with proper responsibilities?

The head of our Faith, you know, the
Supreme Body - source of all good, free

from all error - is saying it's the youth.

The youth actually

will set the standard.

The youth will be in the vanguard.

This is a sacred charge, which
they're giving to the youth.

It's completely different to how
we think of youthful activity.

Youthful activity is a time of frolicking
and being free and perhaps free of

responsibility, where the complete
opposite is what's happening in this Plan.

The complete opposite is what's
being charged to the Baha'i youth.

Actually, in this paragraph about
youth, they say something, which I found

quite amazing, and I actually didn't
really pick up on this until I had

to study it for for this conversation.

They said, "appreciating the
effectiveness of the Institute process,

every follower of a Baha'u'llah
will feel the desire to contribute

to its advancement in some way.'

So here they're saying that every
follower of Baha'u'llah will have to contribute

to the Institute process in some way.

So there is a call to action from the
House of Justice. But then they of course

finish that by saying 'not least the
Baha'i youth', not least the Baha'i youth.

So really they're asking the Baha'is
to be in the vanguard of this process.

Not only do they have the
youthful energy and freedom to

move and to act at this age,

but they have opportunities in schools,
universities, and other spaces and

work and family and social interaction
to promote the Institute process,

the training institutes. They even
raised the possibility of some youth

dedicating a period of service, maybe
even successive years to provision of

education through the Institute process.

And they also talk about this concept,
which I haven't seen previously,

I may have missed it, but they say,
Really, the Baha'i community has

a responsibility to advance their
commitment to continuing education, not

just the Institute process, whether it
be in universities or apprenticeships.

Because this is the way that they'll
integrate all of these aspects together.

They're specifically mentioned,
for example, the Institute for

Studies in Global Prosperity, but
there'll be more to come, of course,

and we'll see all of these things
coming together for the youth.

Education institute, process service.

When I think about what I did and probably
what you did as a youth, Duane, which

was, you know, still we had a lot of fun.

There was a lot of great service and
activities and a lot of interesting

deepenings we probably went to.

If you think about the opportunities
that now lie before the Baha'i youth

today, you know, the Institute
process, the university programs

like the Institute for Studies and
Global Prosperity, the community life.

And now the opportunities for
advancing clusters with home front

and international pioneering.

I mean, this plan is for Baha'i Youth.

This plan is for Baha youth for
the next 25 years of their life.

And really, it's, it's an amazing vista.

So rather than youth being relegated
to a subsidiary role or a a 'waiting

room' role, we're waiting for you to do
something and then become something else.

The youth here, we're at the center.

They're, they're our most precious,
precious part of what we're all doing.

It's, it's really amazing
when you think about it.

Duane: So true.

What an exciting time to be a youth
and really all kudos to our communities

who truly look up to our youth.

I mean, where else would you
find a community electing its

youngest members to its key roles?

Kynan: Yeah, that's truly just a reflection of
the stature of the youth in our midst.

Duane: Such a unique Baha'i thing.

You know, as the Universal House of
Justice once said, 'youth can move the

world; and they are. Okay, let's move on.

Increasingly, as the world becomes
better acquainted with us and our

principles, while society around us
will make demands of us demands for

potential solutions to their problems.

This is something we talked
about in our last episode.

They'll want to see how we
put our principles in action.

Now, I want to share a real power
quote from the message here.

So fasten your seat belts.

The Universal House of Justice says,
quote: "The more the intellectual life

of community blossoms and thrives, the
greater its capacity to answer this call.

It will be up to the followers of Baha'u'llah
to provide, in the world of ideas, the

intellectual rigor and clarity of thought
to match their commitment to spiritual

and material progress
in the world of deeds."

I'm gonna read that again
because it's so powerful.

"The more the intellectual life of a
community blossoms and thrives, the

greater its capacity to answer this call.

It will be up to the followers
of Baha'u'llah to provide,

in the world of ideas, the intellectual
rigor and clarity of thought to match

their commitment to spiritual and
material progress in the world of deeds."

Wow, Kynan!

And I love this quote.

It's one of my favorite
parts of the message.

And I'd like us to explore
it a little bit further.

I mean, this really speaks to me.

It's a big part of what we
aspire to in this podcast.

It adds another dimension to
the society building equation.

We've talked before about the spiritual
and material progress of a society,

but this adds a third dimension.

This.

Intellectual life of a community.

Wow!

What a construct.

How does this speak to you Kynan?

Kynan: This could be another one of those
paragraphs that we'll look back at in,

in a, in a Plan or two to see how the
Universal House of Justice is really

propelling us forward in this area.

I think what the House of Justice is
calling us to do here is to really delve a

lot deeper into what we've been previously
doing, and perhaps also broader.

Baha'i scholarship requires us to have a
very deep command of the Baha'i writings.

We need to know what the
Revelation is saying.

We need to understand the breadth and
the depth of Baha'u'llah's Revelation, and of

course, Abdul-Baha, Shoghi Effendi, the
House of Justice, but we also have to really

understand what's happening in society.

We can't have a superficial understanding
of what's happening and put it down to a

few sound bites or a few quippy remarks.

We really need to go in deeply
and understand those things.

And we also under need to understand
the current learning that's evolving,

having humility to understand that
perhaps there are things out there that

we can learn from that will aid us in
both understanding the revelation and

how it will apply to society's issues.

And of course, how to do that in a way

that's communicated clearly, in
a way that people can understand

is also a big challenge.

So there's, there's a lot to do here.
And perhaps this is also an area that

we'll look back in 10 or 20 years and
realize there's a lot more to it than

even what we're thinking about right now.

Duane: Yes, absolutely.

Baha'i Scholarship

is about our ability to apply
our teachings to the problems of

individuals at society, and as you
say, communicating that effectively.

Here I'm reminded of another quote
from the Universal Loss of Justice,

where they explain this challenge.

They call on us to quote: "Deepen your
understanding of the Teachings of the

Cause so that you will be able to

apply them to the problems of
individuals and society and explain

them to your peers in ways that
they will understand and welcome."

Wow!

Okay, Kynan, our next and final
section for today explores raising

capacity for administration at all
levels, and they devote a fair amount

of coverage in this context to providing
guidance to Local Spiritual Assemblies.

I mean, it's six paragraphs here.

It's packed with counsel.

What are some of the highlights
here that stood out for you?

Yeah, this was, this was really amazing.

I mean, the focus on Local Spiritual
Assemblies for this Plan is huge.

I mean, some of the highlights for
me were things like the importance of

sustaining vibrant communities, the
role the spiritual assemblies have here.

They have to gain proficiency, discharging
a wide range of other responsibilities,

such as social action, interacting with
local government and civil society.

We're gonna probably see
more local assemblies now,

with this Current plan, which
is gonna be really exciting.

And of course there's also a
new process which apparently was

started - I didn't know about this.

I don't know if you knew about this -

a few years ago the House of Justice had
introduced this, the two stage election

process for communities which had larger
numbers of friends, where the local

friends elected a delegate and those
delegates then elected the local assembly.

And that's something that will
evolve as communities get larger

and they become more sophisticated.

And that's another exciting
development for local assemblies.

What we also see from this message,
the House of Justice is saying that as

activities grow and as they strengthen,
the Local Assembly's role will start

to commensurately increase. There'll
be a wider range of activities that

they'll need to help to foster,
and that will require much more

sophisticated and more advanced level
of functioning both administratively,

and also in the way that it
works with the communities.

Another thing which stood out for me was
the station and leadership of the Local

Assembly is increasingly recognized by
how deeply the believers appreciated

the sacredness of electorial process.

And for me that was really, really
important because we see around us

no sacredness when it comes
to electoral processes.

I mean, outside the Baha community, I
don't think there's a lot of sacredness

when it comes to electoral processes.
But here the House of Justice is calling

us to the completely opposite vista.

How sacred is it that we all get
to participate in the election

of our own local body and our
duty to participate in it?

So there's a correlation here
between the electoral process

and then the station leadership
of the Local Assembly.

So the direct link, the House of
Justice is saying, it also means

that those who are serving on
it also understand in a new way.

So the House of Justice says
they have this new conception

of what it means to be called
to serve on an institution.

So this is really important.

This service on institution
as community is also advanced

on the continuum of growth.

The House of Justice explains that
the Local Assembly will play an

increasingly more prominent role.

In fact, where large numbers are
being welcomed into the embrace of the

Baha'i activities, the complexity of an
assembly's work is increasing, and it

sometimes needs its secretary to have
a staffed office and perhaps also a

befitting permanent Baha'i administrative
center, what's called a Haziratu'l-Quds.

And that will be a really exciting
thing for those Baha'i communities

enabled to sustain and develop one of
these local centers, which is a twin

partner to the local houses of
worship, which every locality will have.

And we can see those local
houses of worship are now been

developed around the world.

And hopefully now these local centers
of administrative functioning will also

be alongside them working side by side.

It's a, it's an amazing vista.

It's very exciting.

Duane: Yes.

So much to look forward to now, Kynan. In
paragraph 35 is also incredibly powerful.

It starts with this image of the spiritual
forces that pursuit of the Plan releases.

I mean, that's a whole topic
for another episode, but picture

these forces being released.

But then these surges are also met
with resistance from countervailing

forces holding humanity back.

Wow!

It's such powerful imagery.

It's like Star Wars with
the Force and the Dark Side.

So cool.

And the key here is to stay focused
on the Plans at the local level.

And it's with this imagery that
the Universal House of Justice

then shares their counsel

for members of the Auxiliary
Aoard and it's massive!

I mean, it's pretty daunting stuff.

So Kynan, can you help provide
a bit of an overview here?

Wow.

Kynan: Yeah.

It is not like there wasn't
enough already right now.

So I think what's interesting here
is the House of Justice introduces

this concept that, look, it's
not all gonna be smooth sailing.

You know, we, we are gonna
have countervailing forces.

We shouldn't be alarmed by them.

We shouldn't be fearful of them.

But we should be aware that as we
go about this very clear Plan, the

House of Justice, given us this
very clear framework, there will be

things that will perhaps cause us
doubt or cause us disappointment,

or perhaps distract us.

And here the House of Justice
is directly talking to the

institution of the Auxiliary Boards.

Here they're saying these forces Auxiliary
Board members have to ensure, do not allow

to be a part of the Baha'i community life
because the Board members and assistants

are there at the grassroots level, at
the individual and community level.

So they have that responsibility
of watching over and in a sense,

ensuring that our focus is maintained.

What are some of the things they say?

There's a huge number.

Let's have a look.

They have to be alert to anything that
may affect the spirit of community

across different cultures and social
environments, they must assist the friends

to face different kinds of challenges.

What about this one?

To help previously antagonistic groups
find unity through a pursuit of a common

goal to learn, to put aside inherited
customs and attitudes that belong to

humanities period of adolescence.

To overcome prejudices of all kinds.
To guard against any tendency to

view matters with cynicism or an eye
for faults. To sustain an eager and

constructive outlook. To put the equality
of women and men in practice. To cast

off inertia and apathy through the
exercise of individual initiative.

This is, this is really interesting
to put one's supportive for plans

for collective action before
feelings of personal preference.

To harness the power of modern
technologies without succumbing to

their potentially enervating effects.
To prize the sweetness of teaching the

Faith and the joy of serving humankind
above world interests. To turn away

from materialistic ideologies and the
worldviews they aggressively promote to

fix one's gaze upon the Bright Beacon
that is the laws and principles of God.

These and many more aside constitute
a formidable set of responsibilities

for the company of the faithful
to fulfill as they navigate what

is sure to be tumultuous years.

And the life of humanity.

So that's the wonderful thing.

The House of Justice gifted us, the
Auxiliary Board members to, to get us

through these, these next nine years.

What's interesting as well is
they actually make a call to the

Auxiliary Board members through
the power of their good example and

the clarity of their good counsel.

May they help the friends to grow in faith,
assurance and commitment to a life of

service and accompany them as they build
communities that are havens of peace.

Places where a harried and conflicts
guard humanity may find shelter.

Not a small task.

Duane: Not a small task, indeed. And it's
even more daunting when you think about

how challenging the times ahead are.

Okay.

Now for the final paragraph
in this section, paragraph 36.

Again, I love this paragraph
because I think it speaks to the

real challenge for the community.

There's no doubt that one of our
greatest achievements of the past 25

years has been our ability to focus.

We explored this theme in episode four.

But while commending this newfound
capacity, the message also highlights

the need to balance this intense
focus with an expanded vision that

accommodates many lines of action.
Kynan help fill in the picture here.

Kynan: Duane, it's probably impossible

for us to fully understand what the Baha'i
community will look like in 25 years.

I mean, communities have probably
changed quite significantly

in that period of time.

The demands that would be placed
upon us are the sort of things we

may never have experienced before.

It'll mean a diversity of
activities again, the likes of

which we've never seen before.

The House of Justice says that it
calls for an expanded vision, a nuanced

understanding of coexisting imperatives.

Added flexibility and heightened
institutional collaboration.

So they want us to really accommodate many
different lines of action, many different

activities which advance together not in
competition, but also to be maintaining

its focus on how to release society,
building powers of Baha'u'llah's Revelation.

Duane: So true. And it'll be a challenge
for communities maintaining intense

focus while also balancing this with
this broader view that accommodates

many lines of action empowering
rather than restraining people.

Wow.

Wow, Kynan.

What a journey.

We managed to work our way through the
remaining 27 paragraphs of the message.

Thanks so much for helping
us explore this all today.

Kynan: Thanks, Duane.

It's been a great pleasure
to do this with you.

And I really actually, I want to really
say I've enjoyed all the podcasts as well.

So it's been fantastic that you've
been able to do this for us.

I really appreciate that.

Thank you.

Duane: Well, it's good to know I have a
dedicated audience of at least one listener.

Kynan: Yeah.

No dedicated subscriber.

Yes.

Duane: Thanks.

And of course, I want to thank you, our
audience for joining in today's journey.

Remember to tell your friends about
us, and if you haven't subscribed

or clicked on that follow button,
I encourage you to do so now so you

don't miss any of our exciting episode.

Well, that's it for today.

Thanks again for joining.

I look forward to joining you again
next time on Society Builders.

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