A Woman's Perspective

A conversation with Dr. Richard Thomas on his recently published book chapter “How the Bahá’í Teachings on Racial Unity Influenced My Academic Focus on Race Relations in the United States.”

The Bahá’í Faith and African American Studies: Perspectives on Racial Justice, edited by Loni Bramson and Layli Maparyan – Contributions by Layli Maparyan; Richard Hollinger; June Thomas; Richard W. Thomas; Loni Bramson; Michael McMullen and Gwen Etter-Lewis

Dr. Richard Thomas  (Speaker)
Chitra Golestani (Moderator)

https://wilmetteinstitute.org/how-bahai-teachings-on-racial-unity-influenced-my-academic-focus/


How Bahá’í Teachings on Racial Unity Influenced My Academic Focus

Baha’is in South Carolina, like Baha’is around the world, are working to make the world a better and more peaceful place in which to live. Through the publication of “Trudy and the Baha’is’ Spiritual Path in South Carolina,” Annette Reynolds hopes readers will realize that everyone can work together to build peaceful spiritual communities no matter what belief and background one comes from.  This recording covers most of the Question and Answer session from Annette's Wilmette Institute Web Talk of Sunday, 22 January, 2017.

Trudy and The Baha'is: Q and A with Annette Reynolds

A recitation of the poem 'Ain't I A Woman?' by Sojourner Truth. It is interspersed with 'responses' from the Baha'i Writings to the 'questions' posed by her throughout the poem. Author: Hermione C. Pickens. All Rights Reserved.

Ain't I A Woman - The Re - Mix(3)

Why is gender inequality so pervasive? Where does it come from and what causes it to arise from time to time? Does it have cultural and religious roots? What values are needed to confront its resurgence worldwide and what policies will enable us to create societies in which being born a boy or a girl is no longer a reason for whether or not or for how long or to what a degree we can develop our human potential?

We will take a look at some of these difficult questions and measures their cost on the security of individuals and society as a whole. We focus on how various restrictions against women have a direct impact on the economy of countries and the world. We evaluate the ways in which they undermine the talent pool available to the private sector, distort family relationships, and lead to inefficiencies in the use of resources. We analyze how gender bias contributes to an environment in which women, de facto, are second-class citizens, with fewer options than men, lower quality jobs, and lower pay. And we look at the devastating consequences of such inequality in terms of health, life expectancy and violence against girls and women, from the cradle to the grave.

Women are not yet fully politically empowered to change laws and implement new legal instruments to ensure gender equality worldwide. We have still scant presence in the corridors of power, whether as finance ministers, central bank governors, prime ministers or on the boards of leading corporations. Most importantly, in many parts of the world, including countries which consider themselves “advanced” many girls still receive less educational opportunities and less encouragement to pursue the development of their highest potential. This alone creates a vicious cycle of inequality that persists generation after generation. But perhaps if we include an economic perspective in our arsenal to promote gender equality, the penny might finally drop. The bottom line is, we simply cannot afford gender discrimination any longer.

040 Equality Of Women Equals Prosperity For All

Jena Khodadad, “Biotechnology, Benefits and Perils: The Need for Spiritual Perspective in Achieving Harmony of Science and Religion”

Momentous advancement in the past century and a half in molecular biology of the gene has spurred a scientific and medical revolution, accompanied at once with undreamt of possibilities as well as considerable moral and ethical implications. Such developments include: breakthrough in the structure of the DNA molecule, the carrier of the genetic information in all living things; the mapping and decoding of the entire human genome; and the technology for editing and modifying the gene. The rapidly advancing technology of gene editing, bearing the acronym CRISPER, is acquiring increasing refinements, enhanced possibilities and wider applications.

Other biotechnologies, such as recombinant DNA, gene cloning, and stem cell research, are among numerous other advances which hold prospects for the welfare of humankind, but can also portend harmful outcomes. Among the significant benefits are: identification of the genetic base of disease, eradication of deadly diseases, development of drugs and therapies, prolongation of human life and much more. Among the adverse implications are: c, human cloning, generation of biohazards and their release into the environment.

Such technological advances bring to the forefront the benefits but also the perils of biotechnology, recalling the dystopian predictions in the “Brave New World” of Aldous Huxley.

Followers of traditional religions may adopt a stance against such technologies, which they believe tamper with the gene and trespass into the realm of God’s creation. The sacred writings of the Bahá’í Faith, however, inculcate the importance of scientific investigation and knowledge. Hence Bahá’í scientists will likely choose to promote progress in scientific learning toward “the extermination of disease, to the extension of scientific research, to the raising of the standard of physical health, to the sharpening and refinement of the human brain, … to the prolongation of human life, and to the furtherance of any other agency that can stimulate the intellectual, the moral, and spiritual life of the entire human race.” (Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha’u’llah, p. 204) while at the same time remaining vigilant of their harmful implications.

Jena Khadem Khodadad, holds a Ph.D from Northwestern University in biological sciences (cell and molecular biology). Her academic career as professor on the medical and graduate college faculties has entailed teaching of cell and molecular biology and neuroscience and research on the molecular organization of biological membranes. The results of her work were presented before national and international scientific forums and published in scientific journals and books. Jena has served on institutions and agencies of the Bahá’í Faith. As an advocate of human rights, Jena has presented before human rights organizations including Amnesty International and the American Jewish Committee on the denial of higher education to Bahá’ís in Iran. As an active member of an interfaith organization, she is dedicated to interfaith understanding and dialogue.

Jena is the daughter of Hand of the Cause of God, Zikrullah Khadem and Javidukht Khadem and was raised in a household infused with love and passion of the Bahá’í Faith. She has attained the presence of Shoghi Effendi and presented at numerous conferences, seminars and classes on “Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith”– a theme which is integral to the focus of this web talk.  Jena’s most recent writing, The Dynamics of Growth: Scientific Principles at Work in the Worldwide Advancement of the Bahá’í Faith, is published by George Ronald. This book applies insights from science to the question of growth of the Bahá’í Faith in particular and to growth of religions in general. Jena and her husband, Manuchehr, live in the United States in the Chicago area.

047 Biotechnology, Benefits and Perils -The Need for Spiritual Perspective | Jena Khadem Khodadad

Part 2 of "Todd Lawson Web Talk Series on the Báb, His Artistry, His Audience, and His Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph"

In this session:  The Islamic philosophic or mystical tradition, frequently indistinguishable from the Islamic tradition in general, has long been distinguished by the intensity with which it venerates and celebrates certain specific divine teachings from the Qur’án or the Hadith on the spiritual value of beauty. “God is beautiful and loves beauty” is just one such teaching. There are countless others. The purpose of this web talk is to link the Islamic veneration of beauty with the coming of the new revelation of the Báb and, later, Bahá’u’lláh, who is widely known and referred to by Bahá’ís as the Blessed Beauty. 

The study of “beauty” as such is, of course, impossibly broad. In the course of the web talk we will focus on two aspects, revelation and manifestation as “messengers” of divine beauty. First, there will be a summary and elucidation of the aesthetic dimension of the Qur’anic revelation. Secondly, we will present the Islamic belief that Joseph, the subject of the Báb’s proclamatory Commentary introduced in web talk #1, was a unique embodiment of both spiritual and physical divine or blessed beauty. Muhammad, prophet and divine manifestation (and founder of Islam) is seen by the Islamic tradition as a reappearance of such spiritual and moral beauty. 

As we know, the Bahá’í Faith emphasizes the quality of beauty as elements of both the revelation and person of the divine manifestations, the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh. The role of beauty as religious or spiritual value, then, may be seen to be inherited, enriched and universalized by the Bahá’í revelation.

See Also:
Part 1: https://youtu.be/JAUzFdDHAfs
The Báb’s Artistry in His Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph   Todd Lawson

051 Part 2: Understanding the Báb’s Audience- Blessed Beauty in Islam | Todd Lawson

Part 3 of "Todd Lawson Web Talk Series on the Báb, His Artistry, His Audience, and His Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph"

In the Kitáb-i-Íqán Mulla Husayn is referred to by Bahá’u’lláh thus: But for him, God would not have been established upon the seat of His mercy, nor ascended the throne of eternal glory. This suggests, among other things, that had Mulla Husayn not recognized the Báb’s station and accepted His claims the new era would not have begun. We know from Bahá’í history that what enabled Mulla Husayn to acknowledge the truth of the Báb’s claims was in fact the first chapter of the Qayyúmu’l-Asmá’, also known as the Commentary on the Súrih of Joseph. In this web-talk we will enumerate in detail the various features of this brief composition, features that we may assume were of such striking originality and obvious divine authority (another way to translate the Arabic word mulk) that Mulla Husayn had no choice but to become the Báb’s first follower or, as he is sometimes referred to, the gate of the Gate.

052 Part 3: The Báb’s Great Announcement to Mulla Husayn- Cpt 1 of the Qayyúmu’l-Asmá’- Todd Lawson

The numerically largest Bahá’í community in the world resides in India, and most of those Bahá’ís come from a Hindu background. Bahá’ís readily acknowledge Hinduism as one of the great religions, and identify Krishna as one of the “Manifestations of God”. Yet, generally speaking, Bahá’ís outside of India know little about this religion, and very little about Krishna. They are not alone. Most non-Hindus may be able to evoke a few common perceptions, such as Hindus believe in many gods; cows sacred for Hindus; they believe in reincarnation and are vegetarians, right?, yet otherwise have little knowledge of this religion.

This talk aims to “decode” elements of what constitutes “Hinduism”, an ancient and vastly complex religion, to address these perceptions, and to examine points of convergence and divergence between Hinduism and the teachings of the Bahá’í Faith. 

More specifically, I will examine the following questions:

What do Bahá’í authoritative texts say about Hinduism and Krishna?
Who was Krishna and how is He understood in the history of Hinduism?
What are some of the areas of doctrinal difference and convergence between Hinduism and the Bahá’í Faith?
What are the basics of Hindu ethics and practice, including ritual and worship, and what might be some fruitful points of interfaith discussion from a Bahá’í perspective?
The talk will end with an overview of the history of the Bahá’í Faith in South Asia, including the Bahá’í House of Worship in New Delhi, now one of the most visited sites in India.

Anne M. Pearson holds a Ph.D. in religious studies, specializing in South Asian religions. She taught for many years in the Department of Religious Studies at McMaster University, Hamilton, as well as the University of Toronto and the University of Waterloo, teaching courses on world religions, Hinduism, gender and religion, Gandhi and nonviolence, among others. She has authored a book (“Because it gives me peace of mind—Ritual Fasts in the Religious Lives of Hindu Women”), articles and book chapters on various topics including on Hinduism in Canada. She has been a faculty member of the Wilmette Institute since the 1990s, involved with courses on Hinduism and Buddhism for deepening and dialogue, and preparing for interfaith dialogue, among other courses. She lived in India for a number of years, and continues to visit and be involved with organizations that promote women’s empowerment and peace-building. She has also been an active participant in the Baha’i community since embracing the Faith as a student in the late 1970s.

Explore more webtalks and courses on the Baha'i Faith here:
https://wilmetteinstitute.org

054 Decoding Hinduism: Sacred Cows, Krishna, and the Bahá’í Faith | Anne Pearson

The song, “Youthful Báb/One Human Race” is a collaboration from individuals spanning the globe and stands as an example of the effort of love, prayer, meditation, consultation and belief in the capacity of everyone involved. It is a showing of the beautiful work that can be created when people around the world work together as one human race.

Youthful Bab/One Human Race

Womanism is a worldview that emerged from African American women’s culture-based belief systems and historical experiences spanning Africa and the global African diaspora. Within the last 40 years, womanist scholars have documented the manifold dimensions of this worldview and also articulated its social / environmental / spiritual movement implications for all humanity. Understanding this worldview has the potential to illuminate dimensions of the Black experience – inside and outside the Bahá’í community – that shape the contours of community life, teaching, interpersonal relations, and even our ability to make progress on the Most Challenging Issue. In this web talk, major contours of womanism will be outlined and brought into dialogue with Bahá’í themes and issues.

Layli Maparyan

Layli Maparyan, PhD, is the Katherine Stone Kaufmann ’67 Executive Director of the Wellesley Centers for Women and Professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College. She is best known for her scholarship in the area of womanism and is the author of two groundbreaking texts in the field of womanist studies, The Womanist Reader (Routledge, 2006) and The Womanist Idea (Routledge, 2012); a third book is forthcoming. Maparyan has also published significantly in the areas of adolescent development, social identities, (including biracial/biethnic identity and the intersections of racial/ethnic, sexual, spiritual/religious, and gender identities), Black LGBTQ studies, Hip Hop studies, and history of psychology.

Maparyan’s scholar-activist work interweaves threads from the social sciences and the critical disciplines, incorporating basic and applied platforms around a common theme of integrating identities and communities in peaceable, ecologically sound, and self-actualizing ways.

065 African American Womanism And The Bahá’í Faith: New Approaches | Layli Maparyan |

What are the major risks for humankind today?
What are the conclusions of the Global Risk Report 2020 by the World Economic Forum?
What do the Baha'i teachings say about potential future risks?
What does this mean for us living in these critical times?

This is the first in a series of interactive "Bahá'í Conversations on Climate Change."

Other talks in the series are to be scheduled, and will include:

How Will Climate Change Affect All of Us?
Many people all over the world are already suffering or even dying because of the impacts of climate change such as heatwaves, droughts, wildfires, more extreme storms, floods, and sea-level rise. How does this affect our belief in the oneness of humankind, and how can this spiritual principle guide us in our actions to mitigate climate change?

Why is the Earth Warming and What Can We Do about it?
Knowing more about the causes of global warming and what can be done to slow it down empowers us for meaningful actions. It will also make us think more deeply about the meaning of justice, the “best beloved of all things”.

What Do Scientists Say Needs to Be Done to Avoid a Climate Catastrophe? - The Spiritual Challenge of Climate Change
What are the projections for the future? How urgent is the issue of climate change really? How quickly do we need to act? It is now a widely accepted view that knowledge about climate change is not sufficient for human behavioral change. How can the Baha'i teachings motivate and guide our actions?

The Interconnectedness of Climate Change with other Environmental and Social Problems
Climate Change cannot be solved in isolation. How can we alleviate poverty, feed increasing numbers of people, and bring the Earth's climate system back into balance? What can we Baha'is and other people of faith do to bring healing to the Earth and its peoples?

Christine Muller
I was interested in environmental issues already at a young age and became a Bahá’í when I was 17, which was the beginning of a life-long study of the Bahá’í Faith. As the environmental crisis was worsening, I began to systematically study climate change at a time when not much information was easily available. I also searched the Bahá’í teachings for a spiritual solution to the climate crisis. At that time, climate change was not known to most people and there were no educational materials available. That’s why I wrote Scientific and Spiritual Dimensions of Climate Change – an Interfaith Study Course, which the International Environment Forum posted in 2009. I served on the board of RI Interfaith Power&Light for nine years and currently serve on the board of the Bahá’í-inspired International Environment Forum (iefworld.org).

070 Bahá'í Perspectives on Global Risks with Christine Muller

Feeling anxious? Find out the real cause of anxiety and how to lessen its impact on the mind, body and soul.

Achieving Inner Peace

Dealing with Anxiety and Inner Turmoil (Part 1)

The Wilmette Institute was founded in 1995 to provide basic and advanced courses on the Bahá’í Faith. In 1998, the Wilmette Institute moved to a largely online study approach in order to provide educational classes to a broader student body. It now offers more than 50 unique courses on the web to an average of 30 students per course.

070 Bahá'í Perspectives on Global Risks with Christine Muller

Wilmette Institute

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