Dear fellow wanderers on the path,
Have you ever wondered why, if every heart has been prepared to recognize truth and accept the Blessed Beauty, that there isn’t more of a rush to enter this garden of delight available to all humankind? Even though I have some idea of the wonder of God’s timing in all things, I have become discouraged off and on. Until now. Here’s my story.
“Living the Dream – A Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.” was the focus of the presentation by Dr. Gwen Etter-Lewis at the fifth Racial Justice and Unity Forum on January 11, 2021.
What an amazing experience to be part of this Forum gathering – with 200 registered participants, of which 45 were seekers. More than 35 Bahá’ís volunteered to be facilitators of the breakout groups – 17 each having about 12 participants, in addition to two facilitators.
Ohio Bahá’ís sent entreaties to the Concourse on High for special assistance during a personal prayer and teaching campaign January 2-17, 2021.
During this state-wide special expansion event, believers concentrated prayers on specific individuals of their choosing and attempted to find new acquaintances who may become attracted to the Faith, who could be engaged in elevated conversations, and invited to devotionals, firesides and study circles. We all called on the ready resources of the next world.
For a year and a half, we have been offering meditation/devotions bi-weekly. When it started, the primary participants were Bahá’ís and it was conducted in our home. Along the way, Kathleen Benson (my wife) decided to get a Certification in Meditation and Mindfulness from the “School of Positive Transformation.”
Dr. Gwen Etter-Lewis, Miami University (Oxford, Ohio) professor of English, Linguistics, Black World Studies and Women’s Studies, will be the featured speaker at the January 11, 2021 session of the Racial Justice and Unity Forum, sponsored by the Regional Bahá’í Council of the Midwestern States.
Devotional meetings are increasing around the world, spiritualizing our planet and helping individuals and communities strengthen in God’s love, protection and grace.
Beverly of Bloomington Indiana described their family devotions as “a pivot toward the light at a time when we needed it to protect us from being engulfed in darkness.”
For the cause of Race Amity, neighbors held two marches and a campfire in Meridian Township, near Lansing Michigan.
“We decided to invite our neighbors to a ‘neighborhood walk for race amity.’ We developed a flier, printed it, and distributed it to 60 houses in our neighborhood …”
The National Spiritual Assembly is pleased to invite interested undergraduate students throughout the United States to participate in the first of a series of online gatherings offered by the Institute for Studies in Global Prosperity (ISGP) and taking place in association with the Bosch and Green Acre Bahá’í Schools in Santa Cruz, California, and Eliot, Maine, respectively.
About 85 people met on October 12 to talk about how to work on racial healing while maintaining the momentum of the institute process, at the Racial Justice and Unity Forum.
The monthly consultation was frank, far-ranging, and productive.
My husband and I host a devotional gathering every Wednesday evening — titled “Stone Soup Devotional.” When we started in early March, our guests came to our home for soup and prayer. After only two weeks because of COVID-19, our devotional was put on hold.
We started again with Zoom in mid-May. While soup was no longer nourishing our bodies, our souls continued to be filled by “the holy ecstasy of prayer.”