The National Spiritual Assembly has consulted with Regional Baha’i Councils and offered a draft agenda of elements for the conferences. More specific guidelines will be given by the Council after January 31, 2022.
*to be adjusted by Regional Councils as they see fit
Regional Bahá’í Councils will wish to ensure that the programs of the conferences in their regions are organized around, and expressive of, the following themes described in the September 15, 2021 letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice:
“The conferences will aim at carrying to the friends in every land the spiritual energy released by the gatherings in the Holy Land, as the community prepares for a dynamic thrust forward with the launch of the Nine Year Plan. These conferences, then, will give the participants an opportunity to gain greater insight into the nature of the spiritual enterprise in which they are engaged, a sense of the distance traversed thus far, and a deeper understanding of the exigencies of the current stage in the unfoldment of the Divine Plan. They will strive to enhance appreciation of the privilege of being part of a community that has set its gaze upon the spiritual and material transformation of society, and of the bounty of being connected by bonds of love and camaraderie with brothers and sisters in a global effort, each one labouring within the same framework for action, all united under the sheltering shadow of the Covenant.”
The following are elements of a draft program to be adjusted by Regional Councils as they see fit. These notes are not meant to suggest the length of the conferences or the order of topics; they simply describe major elements that should be included:
- Welcome and introductory remarks. Sharing, in an open, outward-looking and inviting language, the context and purpose of the conferences taking place around the world.
- Devotions at appropriate intervals.
- Breakout sessions to study and discuss certain relevant materials (especially the Nine Year Plan guidance), and to consult and reach consensus on the current reality of the community-building efforts, with an appreciation of strengths and opportunities for growth.
- Artistic and creative components related to the conference themes that deepen understanding.
- Sharing of developments, stories, and encouraging examples from within the region, by those participating in these activities.
The following resources will be available:
- Nine Year Plan message
- Two films commissioned by the House of Justice (Exemplar, and the second on the expiration of the first century of the Formative Age and the new horizons to which the Bahá’í community can now gaze)
- Compilation of quotations relevant to the conference that can be used for devotional readings or as part of program material (currently in development)