OZ Whitehead Firesides

"The Tablets of Baha'u'llah to the Kings and Rulers of the World" by Stephen Vickers

Baha’u’llah, the Prophet-Founder of the Baha’i Faith, wrote from His cell in the Ottoman Prison-city to the principal rulers of the world. This talk looks at His letter to the most powerful monarchs in Europe. This message is also positive, respectful, and includes invaluable insights to all of us.

Stephen Vickers was for fifteen years in charge of the University of Oxford’s suite of GCE and GCSE school examinations in History, Political Science, and Religious Studies.

Please feel free to share this invitation with your friends and family. To view the video please visit our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/sy5_M71dmVY

Mark Tobey’s distinctive approach to abstract painting brought him great acclaim and considerable success in the middle decades of the twentieth century. A member of the Bahá’í Faith from the age of twenty-eight, Tobey was an inveterate experimenter and a foresighted world citizen. His major contribution to modern art was his so-called “white writing” style that emerged after decades of experimentation and deep reflection. In tracing the influences on Tobey’s development, Rob Weinberg will demonstrate that Tobey’s breakthrough was the result of a deep knowledge of the art of the past and diverse cultures, and his desire to convey Bahá’í spirituality through his work. His influence on his contemporaries—ranging from Jackson Pollock to the St Ives school in Cornwall—has not yet been fully acknowledged.

Rob Weinberg is a writer and radio producer with more than 30 years experience with BBC radio and Classic FM. He served as the director of the Office of Public Information at the Bahá’í World Centre from 2009 to 2013 and is a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the UK. He is also the author of 10 books, mainly on opera, film music and Bahá’í history. Most recently he has been reviewing art exhibitions for the Daily Telegraph and Apollo magazine, and producing podcasts for the historian Dan Snow. Rob did an MA in Art History for which his dissertation looked at the development of the art of Mark Tobey. To see the full video on YouTube visit https://youtu.be/n1QCfK6K3_U

The OZ Whitehead Zoom Firesides is happy to present one of our earlier talks by Philomena Clifford

This talk explores the interconnected paths between an English WW1 Officer Wellesley Tudor Pole and Abdu’l-Baha. Their paths crossed several times from 1910 to Abdu'l-Baha’s passing in 1921. You will see the fascinating details of the meetings between them unfurl like an adventure story. So, sit back, relax, make yourself a cup of tea and listen to this extraordinary - almost unbelievable story.

Philomena Clifford is a Baha’i living in Cornwall. She became interested in starting some Baha’i historical research, to coincide with dropping her hours at work which afforded the time. She particularly wanted to centre such research around Abdu’l-Baha, as, like all Baha’is, she has a love for this perfect exemplar of the Baha’i faith. To view the video of this talk please visit our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/g2Cbu9WyVYA

Iraj Abedian argues that there is a mismatch between humanity’s secular evolutionary progress and the spiritual nature of mankind. This mismatch leads to a growing dysfunctionality of the global socio-economic and political order. The systemic fault lines compound over time, generating successive crises and ultimately disorder. To restore order there is need for a revolutionary impulse as proclaimed by Baha’u’llah. Humanity’s current experience is testimony to this titanic clash of the secular evolutionary dynamics and Baha’u’llah’s revolutionary agency.

Iraj Abedian is the founder and Executive Chairman of Pan-African Capital Holdings (Pty) Ltd. He was professor of economics at the University of Cape Town, before entering the business sector in 2000 as the chief economist of Standard Bank Group of SA. He obtained his BA (Honours) and MA in Economics from University of Cape Town (UCT), before earning a PhD in Economics from Simon Fraser University in Canada in 1993.

Iraj has been a member of the Baha’i’ Faith since 1971, pioneered to South Africa in 1980, and has been involved in Baha’i’ community activities at local, national and international levels.

Currently, apart from the companies in the Pan-African Capital’s portfolio, he serves the following organizations and companies:

- Chairman of Board of Fortress REIT Ltd (December 2015 to date)

- Member of the Advisory Board of the Auditor General of the SA Government (2006 to date). To view the video visit the YouTube channel https://youtu.be/Vo298eVAWyo

Utilizing faith-based principles in social science research, together with the platforms of the Association for Baha'i Studies, has created a community of scholars to share ideas and research. These scholars and their mutual support within the Baha'i community, are part of an ongoing process to contribute towards academic discourses and innovate in science, based on social teachings that envision global social transformation. This presentation looks at a case study of one such contribution.

Ashiyan Rahmani's Ph.D. dissertation at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (2013-2018), involved qualitative research in Fiji, looking at how women leaders utilize mobile devices to interact with community radio. This interaction enhances women's participation in governance and strengthens communal resilience to extreme weather conditions. Gender equality and rural development, two important principles underlying both this electronic co-operation and the research, were inspired by the Baha'i Writings. Findings of the study were presented at the Association for Bahai Studies’ North American Annual Conference, and between conferences working group discussion provided a space for consultation.

The strength of the mutual bonds across the Baha'i world developed deep friendships within, the Fiji Baha'i community, and secured a focus group, a supportive translator, and a cultural liaison officer. These bonds both assisted in data collection and gave a strong connection to the Fijian Baha'i community of friends, which further decolonized the paradigm and hence the research. To view the video please visit our YouTube channel https://youtu.be/0tfj90kQYXY

Most children in school fail - ie they fail to develop more than a fraction of their potential. This may be as relevant in some of the richest countries in the world as it is in the poorest. What then can be our response? We will explore what lessons we can learn from 23 years of experience at School of Nations - not in terms of a naive triumphalist perspective, rather an exploration of how we have tried to draw inspiration from the Baha'i Writings to address these crucial challenges.

Dr Brian O'Toole is an Educational Psychologist from the UK living for 42 years in Guyana. Worked on short term assignments for a range of UN and NGO agencies in 38 countries in the areas of disability, literacy, primary health care, basic education and youth leadership.

Authored three books and 42 articles in international journals. Started School of Nations in Guyana 23 years ago, now with partnerships with the Universities of Cambridge, London, Bedfordshire & Hertfordshire there are 4,200 students.

Served as the Chairperson of the National Advisory Committee on Educational Reform to the Government of Guyana.

Last year, awarded the MBE by the Queen and the Golden Arrowhead by the Guyana Government 'for services to education.’ To view the video visit the YouTube channel https://youtu.be/C6bzsnPJ4aw

Effie Baker was an extraordinary woman who spent over 6 months travelling through Persia in 1930, during a period when women in that country had very few rights.

This presentation explores some of the incredible achievements of this little-known person and will, hopefully, highlight this very humble woman’s many unsung sacrifices.

I came across the story of Effie Baker a few years ago when I became a member of The Bahá’í Faith.

I discovered that she had travelled through Persia in 1930 as an amateur photographer and had to conceal herself from the authorities to secretly take over 1000 photos and then to get the prints out of Persia; I have managed to gain access to a number of these and will share them in this presentation. To view the video visit the YouTube channel https://youtu.be/ppHLbyuKrFE

Born in 1874, in the United States, Louis George Gregory acquired an elite education and became a prominent lawyer in Washington DC at the beginning of the 20th Century. Disillusioned by the continual unfair treatment of people of African descent in the United States, Mr Gregory had lost all faith in religion until in 1907 he encountered the Baha’i Faith, the teachings of which transformed his life. In 1911, while on pilgrimage to Palestine, he met Abdu’l- Baha, the son of the prophet Founder of the Faith. This meeting transformed his life, as well as the fortunes of the Baha’i Community of the US and Canada. Louis Gregory became the foremost teacher of the Baha’i Cause in the US. In 1951, he was posthumously elevated to the ranks of the ‘Hands of the Cause of God’, a selected group of international advisors to the leadership of the Faith. He was first of only 2 members of the African race to be elevated to this rank.

Terrence Simmons is a native of Guyana, an English-speaking country in Northeastern South America. He attended classes for children and junior youth and embraced the Baha’i community in the mid 1970’s. Over the years, he served in many administrative positions including Local Assemblies and national committees, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Guyana and as an Auxiliary Board Member for Protection of the Faith.

Terrence is a Historian by training. He holds a BA and MA in Guianese and West Indian History from the University of Guyana, where he also taught on the faculty for a short while. He also has backgrounds in health sciences research, project management and international development.

He also holds an MSc in Health Policy (clinical medicine) from Imperial College London and is a registered PRINCE2 Project and Programme Management (MSP) Practitioner in the UK. Terrence has worked in international & grassroots-based development for more than 30 years, in the areas of health research, education and youth development.

He was Programme Director for the United States Peace Corps in Guyana for 9 years.

Worked in London on the development of social infrastructure for Black and other Ethnic Minority Communities including serving on the Advisory Board of London’s Minority Ethnic Network (MiNet).

He was a programme manager in the School of Public Health at Imperial College London for 8 years.

Currently, he is the Senior Project Manager in the Project Coordination Office of the Human Brain Project, an EU flagship enterprise focused on brain research in Geneva, Switzerland.

He and his family has been living in South London since 2007. To view the video please visit the YouTube channel https://youtu.be/jpE5jlXvmmY

The talk aims at a clear presentation of some basic Baha'i teachings as set forth by Shoghi Effendi in his various writings. The central issue is the relativity of religious truth and the progressive character of Divine Revelation. I will then explain something about the position and station of the Manifestations of God throughout the ages and in this Day.

Mr Hooper Dunbar has been a Baha'i since 1956 in his youth. Served in a number of capacities on Baha'i institutions. Well known as a Baha'i speaker. To view the video visit the YouTube channel https://youtu.be/WTliR_wOwus

As the world goes through an unprecedented new phase of economic upheaval, a deeper analysis of materialism as the root cause of the extremes of wealth and poverty has taken on new urgency. Such an analysis involves two fundamental questions. What is the difference between "materialism," which is hazardous, and "material prosperity," which is a worthy individual and social goal? What is the most effective mode of leadership for moving society beyond materialism and facilitating the achievement of true material prosperity? It may be argued that the best mode of leadership in pursuit of shared material prosperity would be one that reflects compassion, caring, nurturing, communal behaviour, and effective communication, all of which have traditionally been associated with the feminine aspects of human society. Participants are invited to reimagine new leadership models in the context of a nascent awareness of the need to balance the feminine and the masculine in all areas of human endeavour, including the creation of a more equitable economic system.

Roya Akhavan is a member of the Baha’i Faith. She currently serves as Professor and Director of Graduate Studies at the Department of Mass Communications, St. Cloud State University. Dr. Akhavan is a frequent speaker on global issues at national and international forums and on radio and television programmes. She has lived and worked in four different cultures: Persian, American, Japanese, and Chinese. Her most recent publication is a book entitled, Peace for Our Planet: A New Approach. To view the video visit the YouTube channel https://youtu.be/xkWYeNmjkfs