Module #9

Education of Children

 “Man is the supreme Talisman. Lack of a proper education hath, however, deprived him of that which he doth inherently possess. Through a word proceeding out of the mouth of God he was called into being; by one word more he was guided to recognize the Source of his education; by yet another word his station and destiny were safeguarded. The Great Being saith: Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom. If any man were to meditate on that which the Scriptures, sent down from the heaven of God's holy Will, have revealed, he would readily recognize that their purpose is that all men shall be regarded as one soul, so that the seal bearing the words `The Kingdom shall be God's may be stamped on every heart, and the light of Divine bounty, of grace, and mercy may envelop. all mankind.” 
{Bahá’u’lláh, Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 162}

OBJECTIVES :

	1)	What are the three types of education? {material, human and spiritual}

	2) What is the purpose of education? {guide mankind to the straight path of truth}

	3)	What are the responsibilities of the individual, parent, community & institutions?

	4)	What are the methods of teaching? What is the core curriculum?

	5)	What should be taught? 

	6)	What is Bahá’í Scholarship?

	7)	Describe the national, regional and local Bahá’í schools.

DEFINITIONS: (Basic Bahá’í Dictionary, Editor Wendi Momen, George Ronald Press 1989)

Core Curriculum: 
The cultivation of the human spirit is a subject that has been of tremendous interest to religious scholars, educators, and parents for countless ages. In fact, one of the primary purposes of the appearance of the Manifestation of God is to foster the spiritual development of humanity.

The National Bahá’í Education Task Force under the guidance of the National Spiritual Assembly of the USA developed a program that is sensitive to the importance of meeting the multiplicity of needs for spiritual education within the Bahá’í community. 

The instruction methods include: establishing a loving environment; direct use of the Bahá’í Sacred Writings; education is directed toward the recognition of God; education must involve service to humanity; education must engage the mind and heart; and education must also include private independent study. 

The learning tools include: establishing bonds of unity and friendship; use of consultation; use of question and peer teaching; independent investigation; use of the power of reason; memorization and recitation; use of meditation and reflection; use of stories and parables; use of music; use of drama; employ creativity and the arts; engage students in science and the investigation of the world; the importance of play; use of travel; and recreation.

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Education, nature of: 
That process which enables a person to understand God, the Manifestation, and his own self, as well as to acquire particular skills and knowledge useful to himself and the world.

Bahá’u’lláh writes : “The Prophets and Messengers of God hae been sent down for the sole purpose of guiding mankind to the straight Path of Truth. The purpose underlying their revelation hath been to educate all men, that they may, at the hour of death, ascend, in the utmost purity and sanctity and with absolute detachment, to the Throne of the Most High.” {Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, LXXI}  “We have decreed, O people, that the highest and last end of all learning be the recognition of Him Who is the Object of all knowledge...” {Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, XCVIII} “Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom.” {Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, CXXII} “It is not desirable that a man be left without knowledge or skills, for he is then but a barren tree.” {Bahá’u’lláh, Education Compilation, p. 3} “The learned of the day must direct the people to acquire those branches of knowledge which are of use, that both the learned themselves and the generality of mankind may derive benefits therefrom.” {Bahá’u’lláh, Education Compilation, p. 5}

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Education, universal : 
One of the principles or tenets of Baha'i social teaching. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explained: “Bahá’u’lláh has announced that inasmuch as ignorance and lack of education are barriers of separation among mankind, all must receive training and instruction. Through this provision the lack of mutual understanding will be remedied and the unity of mankind furthered and advanced. Universal education is a universal law. It is, therefore, incumbent upon every father to teach and instruct his children according to his possibilities. If he is unable to educate them, the body politic, the representative of the people, must provide the means for their education.” {‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 300} And: “education is essential, and all standards of training and teaching throughout the world of mankind should be brought into conformity and agreement; a universal curriculum should be established, and the basis of ethics be the same.” {‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 182} “Daughters and sons must follow the same curriculum of study, thereby promoting unity of the sexes.”  {‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 175}

“Furthermore, the education of woman is more necessary and important than that of man, for woman is the trainer of the child from its infancy . . . If the educator be incompetent, the educated will be correspondingly lacking . . . The mothers are the first educators of mankind; if they be imperfect, alas for the condition and future of the race.” 
{‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 133-4}

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Family : 
“Compare the nations of the world to the members of a family. A family is a nation in miniature. Simply enlarge the circle of the household, and you have the nation. Enlarge the circle of nations and you have all humanity. The conditions surrounding the family surround the nation. The happenings in the family are the happenings in the life of the nation. Would it add to the progress and advancement of a family if dissensions should arise among its members…? Nay, this would be the cause of the effacement of progress and advancement. So it is in the great family of nations, for nations are but an aggregate of families.”
{'Abdu'l-Bahá,  Promulgation of World Peace, p. 157}

QUOTES:

“Therefore, man is the most noble of beings. 

Man is in the highest degree of materiality, and at the beginning of spirituality--that is to say, he is the end of imperfection and the beginning of perfection. He is at the last degree of darkness, and at the beginning of light; that is why it has been said that the condition of man is the end of the night and the beginning of day, meaning that he is the sum of all the degrees of imperfection, and that he possesses the degrees of perfection. He has the animal side as well as the angelic side, and the aim of an educator is to so train human souls that their angelic aspect may overcome their animal side. Then if the divine power in man, which is his essential perfection, overcomes the satanic power, which is absolute imperfection, he becomes the most excellent among the creatures; but if the satanic power overcomes the divine power, he becomes the lowest of the creatures.”
{‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 236}

“The Great Being saith: Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom. If any man were to meditate on that which the Scriptures, sent down from the heaven of God's holy Will, have revealed, he would readily recognize that their purpose is that all men shall be regarded as one soul, so that the seal bearing the words "The Kingdom shall be God's" may be stamped on every heart, and the light of Divine bounty, of grace, and mercy may envelop. all mankind. The one true God, exalted be His glory, hath wished nothing for Himself.” 
{Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 260}

“Strain every nerve to acquire both inner and outer perfections, for the fruit of the human tree hath ever been and will ever be perfections both within and without. It is not desirable that a man be left without knowledge or skills, for he is then but a barren tree. Then, so much as capacity and capability allow, ye needs must deck the tree of being with fruits such as knowledge, wisdom, spiritual perception and eloquent speech.” 
{Bahá’u’lláh}

“The Prophets and Messengers of God have been sent down for the sole purpose of guiding mankind to the straight Path of Truth. The purpose underlying their revelation hath been to educate all men, that they may, at the hour of death, ascend, in the utmost purity and sanctity and with absolute detachment, to the throne of the Most High.”
{Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, pp. 156-157}

“O My servants! My holy, My divinely ordained Revelation may be likened unto an ocean in whose depths are concealed innumerable pearls of great price, of surpassing luster. It is the duty of every seeker to bestir himself and strive to attain the shores of this ocean, so that he may, in proportion to the eagerness of his search and the efforts he hath exerted, partake of such benefits as have been pre-ordained in God's irrevocable and hidden Tablets.”
{Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 326}

RECOMMENDED READINGS :

Bahá'í Education, Compiled by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice,
	 	1987
 	Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, #17, #29, #37
	Bahá'í Scholarship. - a compilation of the Universal House of Justice
	Developing Distinct Bahá’í Communities - by the USA National Spiritual Assembly
	Brilliant Star Magazine
	Foundations for Spiritual Education

Why Age 15?

 {reprinted from an article in the American Bahá’í 1993}

Age 15 marks significant turning point in spiritual maturity of a young Bahá’i

Fifteen is a significant--and exciting--birthday in the life of a Bahá’i.

As stated in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, it signals the attainment of maturity. The young person can now assume responsibility for obeying Bahá’i laws.

But does a registered Bahá’i child have to declare a belief in Bahá’u’lláh when he or she turns 15?

In spite of what many of the friends understand, the answer is "no." If the youth was registered as a child, he or she already is considered a member of the Bahá’i community.

A letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly on July 5, 1950, states: "A baby can be considered a Bahá’i; 15 is merely the age of maturity for fasting, marriage, etc., and in the case of America, a declaration at that age is invited from the youth in order to protect them, at a future date, from being forced to do active military service."

The practice of declaring one's belief in Bahá’u’lláh at age 15 is not rooted, then, in any fundamental principle of the Faith.

In light of that guidance, when the Universal House of Justice expressed concern that there were fewer youth and children in the American Bahá’i community than one would expect to find in relation to that age group. in the general population, the National Spiritual Assembly decided to encourage Bahá’i parents to register their children.

The Universal House of Justice indicated that the paramount consideration in developing such a program should be as follows:

"In whatever procedure it adopts a National Spiritual Assembly must wisely steer a course between seeming to doubt the faith of a child who has been brought up. as a devout Bahá’i on the one hand, and seeming to compel a child to be a member of the Bahá’i community against his will, on the other."

Now, when a registered child approaches age 15, the National Spiritual Assembly will send him or her a membership. card, along with a letter of welcome that outlines the basic rights and responsibilities of a Bahá’i.

If the child is uncertain, he or she temporarily may continue to attend Bahá’i functions such as the Feast. A decision must be made within a reasonable time after one's 15th birthday, though, as determined by the local Spiritual Assembly.

On the other hand, if a child or youth, at 15 or any other age, indicates a lack of belief in Baha'u'llah, his or her name will be removed from the membership. rolls.

But if the card is accepted, the new Bahá’i youth will have received the most marvelous birthday gift possible, and it calls for an expression of great joy in the Bahá’i community. Local Assemblies can time meetings and/or celebrations with the youth to coincide with the arrival of this letter.

“Although the children of Bahá'í parents are considered to be Bahá'ís, there is no objection at the present time, for purposes of keeping a correct census, and also ascertaining whether the young people are, sincerely, believers, and willing to do their share in service to the Faith, to asking them to make a declaration of their intention, at the age of fifteen or so. Originally the Guardian understands this was adopted in America to enable young Bahá'í men to make certain arrangements in connection with their application for non-combatant status, upon their attaining the age of military service. There is really nothing about it in the Teachings or in the Administration. Your Assembly is free to do as it pleases in this matter.”
{Shoghi Effendi, June 17, 1954, to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the U.K.}

Responsibility of Parents

{Extracts of a letter from the Universal House of Justice, July 19, 1982, 
to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United Kingdom}

“Unlike the children of some other religions, Bahá'í children do not automatically inherit the Faith of their parents. However, the parents are responsible for the upbringing and spiritual welfare of their children, and Spiritual Assemblies have the duty to assist parents, if necessary, in fulfilling these obligations, so that the children will be reared in the light of the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh and from their earliest years will learn to love God and His Manifestations and to walk in the way of God's Law. It is natural, therefore, to regard the children of Bahá'ís as Bahá'ís unless there is a reason to conclude the contrary.  It is quite wrong to think of Bahá'í children as existing in some sort of spiritual limbo until the age of fifteen at which point they can 'become' Bahá'ís. One can conclude the following:

Children born to a Bahá'í couple are regarded as Bahá'ís from the beginning of their lives, and their births should be registered by the Spiritual Assembly.

The birth of a child to a couple, one of whom is a Bahá'í, should also be registered unless the non-Bahá'í parent objects.

…In the cases of children whose parents become Bahá'ís, much depends upon the ages and reactions of the children concerned. They will require great love and understanding, and each case must be judged on its own merits. This applies to an added degree, of course, if only one of the parents has accepted the Faith, in which case the attitude of the other parent is an important factor; the aim of the Bahá'ís should be to foster family unity. The important thing is that the children, whether registered as Bahá'ís or not, should be made to feel welcome at Bahá'í children's classes and other community gatherings.

Fifteen is the age at which a child attains spiritual maturity, and thus it is at the age of fifteen that a Bahá'í child assumes the responsibility for obeying such laws as those of fasting and prayer, and for affirming of his own volition his faith in Bahá'u'lláh.

Declarations of faith from non-Bahá'í youth between the ages of fifteen and twenty-one, whose parents are not Bahá'ís, may be accepted without the consent of their parents unless this is contrary to the civil law. However, the importance of respect for one's parents must not be forgotten, and such youth may need to be counselled to give heed to their parents' wishes as far as the degree of their activity on behalf of the Faith is concerned, and even, if the parents are very antagonistic, to be completely inactive for a time.

It may happen that a Bahá'í child, on reaching the age of fifteen is not entirely sure in his own mind. This can well happen if one of the parents is not a Bahá'í or if the parents have accepted the Faith not long before. In such a case the Assembly should not assume automatically that he is not a Bahá'í. If the youth wishes to attend Feasts and is content to continue to be regarded as a Bahá'í as he was when a child, this should be permitted, but in the process of deepening his understanding of the Faith his parents and the Assembly should explain to him that it is his responsibility to soon make his position clear.

Youth Service on Institutions and Teaching

{reprinted from Shoghi Effendi, “Directives of the Guardian”, p. 85}

“Regarding the age of fifteen fixed by Baha'u'llah: This relates only to purely spiritual functions and obligations and is not related to the degree of administrative capacity and fitness which is a totally different thing, and is, for the present, fixed at twenty-one.

Bahá’i youth under twenty-one may serve on Committees. 

The question of young Bahá’is being permitted to serve on committees other than the Youth Committee has been raised in a number of letters recently, and in considering the matter he felt that Bahá’i young people under twenty-one should not be denied the privilege of committee work. Though they cannot be voting members of Bahá’i communities (or exercise the electoral vote at all until they reach that age), and though they cannot, likewise, be elected to Assemblies, there is no reason why they should not serve the Cause on various committees as all committees, national or local, are subordinate to Assemblies and their members not elected but appointed, and appointed by Assemblies. We have many devoted and talented young believers who can be of great assistance to the Cause even though not yet legally of age.

This Cause, although it embraces with equal esteem people of all ages, has a special message and mission for the youth of your generation. It is their charter for their future, their hope, their guarantee of better days to come. Therefore the Guardian is especially happy that the young Bahá’is are active in the pioneer work.

The importance of young Bahá’is to become thoroughly steeped in every branch of the teachings can not be over-emphasized, as they have great teaching tasks ahead of them to accomplish.”

Letter to the Youth 1992

From: 		Universal House of Justice
To: 		All attending the Bahá’í International Youth Conference in Kampala, Uganda
Date: 		25-27 December 1992

We great you with open arms as you are assembled at the Bahá’í International Youth Conference.

Many of you come from Bahá’í homes and have been brought up. with the love of Bahá’u’lláh instilled in your hearts. Others have entered the Faith through your personal strivings and were thus illumined with the light of faith in His Revelation. Whatever your background, as brothers and sisters you rejoice at being gathered together to share your feeling, your ideas and your hopes about your future service to the Cause.

When you look around you, you see the youth of your generation tragically enmeshed in the snares of a degrading and infectious materialism, godless, reckless and depraved. If the Bahá’í youth, when comparing their behavior with that of their non-Bahá’í peers, find themselves on a slightly higher level of morality, of lack of prejudice and of uprightness, let them not become complacent and satisfied that they have reached the goal of their desires. What our vigilant and ever watchful Lord expects from us is not such a relative distinction. For when we compare our behavior with the exalted standards set in the Faith, we find ourselves, alas, falling short of the noble ideals, and ineffable excellence we are to reach in our personal lives, as incessantly and unequivocally counseled in our Writings.

It is on such a shining goal of moral eminence and rectitude of conduct that each youth should now focus his attention. It is not enough merely to acknowledge that the Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh provide a program for individual reformation and social reconstruction and thus join the ranks of the faithful. Having espoused this truth we now, as individual believers, especially as youthful members of God’s Army of Light, should become true lovers of His Beauty, enamored, dedicated, and consecrated supporters and promoters of His Faith, so that not only our words, but also our deeds will proclaim the dynamic reality, the pervasive effect and the transforming influence of His infinitely glorious Cause, His inestimable gift to mankind in this day.

The field of service is vast, but the devoted workers are few. May this Conference inspire many to join the ranks of the helpers of this Cause who are willing to respond to this call of the beloved Master:

O that I could travel, even though on foot and in the utmost poverty, to these regions and, raising the call of Ya-Bahá’u’l-Abhá in cities, villages, mountains, deserts and oceans promote the divine teachings! This alas, I cannot do. How intensely I deplore it ! Please God, ye may achieve it … 

It is our prayer in the Holy Shrine that Bahá’u’lláh may bestow His benediction upon you all and inspire your deliberations.
With loving Bahá’í greetings,

Letter to the Youth 1985

From: 		Universal House of Justice
To: 		Bahá’i Youth of the World
Date: 		May 8, 1985

We extend our loving greetings and best wishes to all who will meet in youth conferences yet to be held during International Youth Year. So eager and resourceful have been the responses of the Bahá’i youth in many countries to the challenges of this special year that we are moved to expressions of delight and high hope.

We applaud those youth who, in respect of this period, have already engaged in some activity within their national and local communities or in collaboration with their peers in other countries, and call upon them to persevere in their unyielding efforts to acquire spiritual qualities and useful qualifications. For if they do so, the influence of their high-minded motivations will exert itself upon world developments conducive to a productive, progressive and peaceful future.

May the youth activities begun this year be a fitting prelude to and an ongoing, significant feature throughout the International Year of Peace, 1986.

The present requirements of a Faith whose responsibilities rapidly increase in relation to its rise from obscurity impose an inescapable duty on the youth to ensure that their lives reflect to a marked degree the transforming power of the new Revelation they have embraced. Otherwise, by what example are the claims of Baha'u'llah to be judged? How is His healing Message to be acknowledged by a skeptical humanity if it produces no noticeable effect upon the young, who are seen to be among the most energetic, the most pliable and promising elements in any society?

The dark horizon faced by a world which has failed to recognize the Promised One, the Source of its salvation, acutely affects the outlook of the younger generations; their distressing lack of hope and their indulgence in desperate but futile and even dangerous solutions make a direct claim on the remedial attention of Bahá’i youth, who, through their knowledge of that Source and the bright vision with which they have thus been endowed, cannot hesitate to impart to their despairing fellow youth the restorative joy, the constructive hope, the radiant assurances of Baha'u'llah's stupendous Revelation.

The words, the deeds, the attitudes, the lack of prejudice, the nobility of character, the high sense of service to others—in a word, those qualities and actions which distinguish a Bahá’i must unfailingly characterize their inner life and outer behavior, and their interactions with friend or foe.

Rejecting the low sights of mediocrity, let them scale the ascending heights of excellence in all they aspire to do. May they resolve to elevate the very atmosphere in which they move, whether it be in the school rooms or halls of higher learning, in their work, their recreation, their Bahá’i activity or social service.

Indeed, let them welcome with confidence the challenges awaiting them. Imbued with this excellence and a corresponding humility, with tenacity and a loving servitude, today's youth must move towards the front ranks of the professions, trades, arts and crafts which are necessary to the further progress of humankind—this to ensure that the spirit of the Cause will cast its illumination on all these important areas of human endeavor. Moreover, while aiming at mastering the unifying concepts and swiftly advancing technologies of this era of communications, they can, indeed they must also guarantee the transmittal to the future of those skills which will preserve the marvelous, indispensable achievements of the past. The transformation which is to occur in the functioning of society will certainly depend to a great extent on the effectiveness of the preparations the youth make for the world they will inherit.

We commend these thoughts to your private contemplation and to the consultation you conduct about your future.

And we offer the assurance of our prayerful remembrances of you, our trust and confidence.