Wilmette Institute

The three panelists recently completed the “Human Prosperity and Sustainable Development” course offered in the Wilmette Institute’s Social Transformation Certificate program. By interviewing each other and engaging in dialogue, the three will reflect on their learning from this course and how they connect their learning to the Bahá’í Framework for Action. WI Chief Academic Officer Justin Scoggin will host this panel discussion.

Ron Lapitan and Nasim Mansuri explore the learnings gained over five years from facilitating a Bahá’í-inspired writing workshop for teens, The Young Writers’ Endeavor. Through this experience of how literature can be used to build Bahá’í identity while accompanying other writers and observing how our creative lives and service can bleed into one another, they will explore these glimpses of the “new era” of literature that Shoghi Effendi spoke of—and the crucial contribution every writer can make to furthering the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh. Ron and Nasim also share what they learned from other writing spaces in discourse and service and explore the role writing can play in a new pattern of community life.

Ariana Ali (Moderator)

Ron Lapitan (Speaker)

Nasim Mansuri (Speaker)

Join us for an enlightening webinar featuring esteemed academics as they delve into the realms of Social Transformation through the art of writing. Discover how your voice can contribute to the discourses of society and become a powerful catalyst for change. This webinar will enable you to understand how the language we use in our writing is critical to the process of positive social change—whether through crafting your own book or penning insightful journal articles.

Immerse yourself in the insights of three distinguished experts from the academic field, each sharing their unique experiences of the profound impact of writing in influencing societal narratives. Gain valuable perspectives on how the written word can be a dynamic force, expressing your beliefs and resonating with the outside world.

Don’t miss this chance to elevate your understanding of the role writing plays in societal evolution. Be part of a community of like-minded individuals passionate about making a difference through

the power of thoughtful and impactful expression.

Mark your calendars and embark on a journey of intellectual exploration with our webinar on Social Transformation through Writing – where your words have the potential to ignite change!

This webinar is a collaboration between the Association for Bahá’í Studies (ABS), Wilmette Institute, and the Bahá’í Publishing Trust.

In its message of 28 November 2023 to the Bahá’ís of the world, the Universal House of Justice painted an enriching view of the first century of the Formative Age and provides a blueprint for advancing the unification of all of the peoples of the earth. From the striking statement, “That time has now come,” confidence and clarity can emerge about how to make a unique Bahá’í contribution to the eradication of racial prejudice and other social divisions that impede the progress of all of the people in the United States and around the world.

Drawing from recent guidance and examples of steps being taken in communities in the U.S., the session ultimately addresses a fundamental question: If a path to unity and justice is not yet visible in our community, does that mean this cannot exist, or might there be steps we can take to bring this vibrant pattern of unity in diversity to life in any setting?

Speaker:

Nwandi Lawson

Ms. Lawson earned an MBA from the Emory University Goizueta School of Business, and she is a magna cum laude graduate of Howard University where she studied journalism and French. Ms. Lawson’s broad professional experience includes teaching middle school in an economically challenged California community, becoming an Emmy Award winning television producer for CNN and other broadcasters, and founding both a media production company and business consulting firm. As a current member of the Bahá'i Continental Board of Counsellors for the Americas, Ms. Lawson has the opportunity to work on educational initiatives in North, Central and South America as well as the Caribbean.

One of the core elements of social transformation involves a closer examination of the family, which the Universal House of Justice describes as “that vital institution which is the basic unit of society.” This webinar seeks to explore the complex relationships between parents and children. The family is the first communal unit/space where we have to coexist as one. Some themes explored in this webinar include:

• The nature of our relationships with our family, and how it extends to our relationships with friends, schools, our community, work, etc. in the wider world 
• Power dynamics between child and parent from a societal and Bahá’í lens 
• Cultural differences in parenting styles and methods 
• Exploring “honor” as mentioned in the Bible, Bahá’í texts and also from a cultural and material lens 

YouTube video: https://youtu.be/nHZVtcDjwNg

Watch from 2:50-4:00

The Ras͟hḥ-i-ʻAmá is likely the first emanation from the Supreme Pen after the Maid of Heaven vested Baha’u’llah with his revelation in the Siyah-Chal. It has taken 165 years for this text to be translated into English and published in an official English translation. In his masterwork, The Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, Adib Taherzadeh suggests the 20-couplet poem might well prove untranslatable. Join Karen Webb in exploring the official translation of this absorbing short work and its complex imagery. This webinar was designed to be accessible to those with no working grasp of either Persian or Arabic, and we will examine an approach to analyzing the poem that involves no skills beyond the participants’ imagination and a fairly basic knowledge of the Bábí and Bahá’í faiths.

A PDF copy of the handout mentioned in video can be found on the website link for this webinar.

The Lonely Goatherd:

https://youtu.be/UmmOJx_Hxto?si=hhDjv9hj4iUEfyIo

The recent popularity of chatGPT and its seemingly amazing conversational capabilities has rapidly moved the subject of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the forefront of public discourse in many societies. While many famous thinkers have warned of the dangers of AI, numerous universities and companies are racing to develop software applications and hardware platforms to advance the frontiers of automation, and robotics in fields as diverse as agriculture, manufacturing, education or health care and everything else in between. The emerging methodologies can produce highly damaging results or conversely superbly useful outcomes. The ethical questions that arise call for a thorough examination of fundamental assumptions about human nature, value systems and our visions of a just and prosperous world society. Bahá’í teachings have a lot to say about all this at the level of principle. More particularly, the conceptual framework for study and action developed by the Bahá’í world community during the past two decades can be directly applied to the methods and approaches for the generation and dissemination of knowledge about this subject. Currently, various governing bodies find themselves poorly equipped to legislate on the uses or abuses of AI. We will review both the history of the recent developments in AI and the Bahá’í conceptual framework and we will show how our societies can advance towards achieving coherence between the material and spiritual aspects of social and economic development.

Our guest speaker is Farzin Aghdasi, who was a long time Bahá’í pioneer in Africa and intimately involved in training institute development in southern Africa and North America. During his 19 years in southern Africa he was a university professor in engineering. In the US he served as a Continental Counselor for the Americas, and. is now the secretary of the Regional Bahá’í Council. He holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering with specialization in computer vision and artificial intelligence. Currently he works in a large AI company in Silicon Valley, California.

Throughout His ministry, The Báb wrote many epistles addressed to theologians and seminary students. Among the writings of The Báb, there are two works known as the “Kitábu’l-‘Ulamá” or the “Epistle to the ‘Ulamá”, one which was revealed shortly after His return from the Arabian Peninsula to Iran and is the subject of this presentation.

This work, like many other epistles from the early period of The Báb’s ministry, is in the mode of divine verses and is in Arabic. We will attempt to provide brief historical background on developments in the world of Shí’ism prior to the inception of The Báb’s ministry and discuss the features of this epistle. Among the major themes of this work are the the subtlety of The Báb’s claims to a station greater than representing the hidden twelfth Imam, and the question of intertextuality between His writings and the Qur’án.

Our guest speaker is Nima Rafiei, who was born and raised in Minnesota and currently resides in Chicago, Illinois. He received his B.A. in history and political science from the University of Minnesota in 2013 and obtained an M.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Chicago in 2021, where he studied both classical and modern Arabic and Persian literature. His interests in Bábí and Bahá'í studies include early mystical writings of Bahá'u'lláh from the Baghdad period and The Báb's commentaries on súrahs of the Qur'án and Islamic oral traditions. He also contributes English translations of Bahá'í texts from the original Arabic and Persian.

Join us for a series of dynamic presentations by authors whose work takes us through the history of the Qiblih, encounters with Bahá’u’lláh and the Holy Family, and the life of a Hand of the Cause. Participants are invited to learn about these fascinating histories, and to reflect deeply on their significance and applicability to our present-day lives and the goals of the Nine Year Plan.

Gisu Mohadjer has collected stories of encounters with the members of the Holy Family. Along with her daughter, Amelia Cook, Gisu shares these stories which are tinged with tenderness, kindness, love, and laughter. They offer us a small window into the extraordinary life of the holy household as seen through the eyes of children. It is hoped that families and readers of all ages will treasure this collection and revisit it often for inspiration and solace and to deepen their love for the Holy Family. (Moderator: Chris Martin)

Join us for a series of dynamic presentations by authors whose work takes us through the history of the Qiblih, encounters with Bahá’u’lláh and the Holy Family, and the life of a Hand of the Cause. Participants are invited to learn about these fascinating histories, and to reflect deeply on their significance and applicability to our present-day lives and the goals of the Nine Year Plan.

Historian Michael V. Day takes us through the last years of Bahá’u’lláh’s life—in ‘Akká, Mazra‘ih, and Bahjí— highlighting pivotal moments and texts associated with the establishment of His shrine. Drawing upon a wide range of sources, including eyewitness accounts, Michael paints vivid pictures of the daily life of the Manifestation and of those in His orbit, of His final days and illness, of His ascension and funeral, and of the period of mourning that followed. (Moderator: Bahhaj Taherzadeh)