268. Development of Local Spiritual Assemblies in Areas of Large-Scale Growth

268

Development of Local Spiritual Assemblies in Areas of Large-Scale Growth

17 August 2016

The National Spiritual Assembly
of the Bahá’ís of India

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

268.1 The Universal House of Justice has received your email letter dated 24 June 2016 regarding the meeting of members of a Regional Bahá’í Council with Local Spiritual Assemblies. As you have rightly indicated, such visits should have a specific purpose decided upon by the Regional Council and should not merely be at the initiative of an individual member. Of course, the mandate that has been given to Councils in connection with the development of Local Assemblies goes beyond such occasional meetings. Your Assembly would naturally wish to follow closely the trajectory along which Local Assemblies grow in capacity and, in close consultation with the Counsellors, support Regional Councils as they direct their efforts towards stimulating this process. To assist you with your own exploration of this matter, we have been asked to convey the following.

268.2 Endeavours to enhance institutional capacity represent a long-term process, one which is intricately linked to the implementation of the provisions of the global Plans. The Cause has now entered a stage in its organic development defined by the systematic advancement in the process of entry by troops through the strengthening of all three of the Plan’s protagonists—the individual, the institutions, and the community. In this light, it is evident that the strengthening of the institution of the Local Spiritual Assembly cannot be pursued in isolation from other essential aspects of the Plan.

268.3 In the message dated 28 December 2010, the House of Justice envisioned the emergence of Local Assemblies in clusters worldwide, which would come into existence and steadily develop along “a trajectory parallel with, and intimately tied to, the fledgling process of growth”. Individual awareness of that process, born of the personal involvement in it by Assembly members, must coalesce “into a collective consciousness that recognizes both the nature of the transformation under way and the obligation of the Assembly to foster it.” These Local Assemblies, vital protagonists of the Plan, must emerge and develop in locality after locality in the precious years ahead to reinforce and coordinate the efforts of the believers. As the House of Justice explained:

Its continued development implies adherence to the injunction laid down by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá that “discussions must all be confined to spiritual matters that pertain to the training of souls, the instruction of children, the relief of the poor, the help of the feeble throughout all classes in the world, kindness to all peoples, the diffusion of the fragrances of God and the exaltation of His Holy Word.” Its steady advancement requires an unbending commitment to promote the best interests of the community and a vigilance in guarding the process of growth against the forces of moral decay that threaten to arrest it. Its ongoing progress calls for a sense of responsibility that extends beyond the circle of friends and families engaged in the core activities to encompass the entire population of the village. And sustaining its gradual maturation is unshakable faith in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s assurance that He will enfold every Spiritual Assembly within the embrace of His care and protection.

268.4 Currently, well over half of the clusters with a programme of growth in India do not have any Local Spiritual Assemblies. Nevertheless, in these clusters there are usually one or more localities in which the friends are implementing the pattern of action called for in the Plan, often accompanied by agencies that serve at the cluster level, as well as by Auxiliary Board members and their assistants. Such clusters often have a high proportion of youth, only a few of whom may have formally enrolled in the Faith. In time, and with an increase in the number of adult believers in each locality, the Regional Council must learn how to introduce into the ongoing conversations among the friends in these clusters a discussion about Local Spiritual Assemblies, which, even as loving parents, are “charged with the responsibility of promoting at all times the best interests of the communities within their jurisdiction”. This would also include discussing the responsibility of every adult believer to “regard it his sacred duty to take part, conscientiously and diligently,” in their election and to support the Assembly once formed. Such conversations will be especially urgent in those clusters that have advanced beyond the second milestone.

268.5 To foster a more systematic approach to the emergence and development of Local Assemblies, you are advised to consult with the Counsellors, select a few of the stronger Regional Councils, and help them initiate a process of learning in selected clusters about how to introduce the believers to the basics of Bahá’í administration, facilitate the election of Assemblies, and support the Assemblies as they gain in experience and maturity. Thoughtful attention to the guidance in the 28 December 2010 and 29 December 2015 messages will ensure that Assemblies emerge in a sound manner that takes advantage of and complements the wide range of developments at the level of locality and cluster. Early steps would of course be modest. Over time, the Regional Councils, with the close support of the Counsellors, would seek to address many issues that naturally arise in the course of the development of Local Assemblies.

268.6 Among these are the need to learn about the nature of a conversation about administration and the election of an Assembly and how such a conversation can be introduced; the basic concepts that need to be understood by all community members; whether it would be necessary or desirable in certain contexts to take some preliminary administrative steps as a precursor to the formation of a Local Assembly; how the first election would be organized; what means the Board member, or his or her assistant, could use early on to help orient the members of an Assembly to the nature of their responsibilities as envisioned in the 28 December 2010 message, for example, what can be done to assist the Assembly to lay the foundation of “that uniquely affectionate and genuinely supportive relationship” with individual believers and to reinforce the community activities already taking place in the locality; and how the Assembly will begin to address its initial administrative responsibilities, such as holding regular meetings, arranging for the Nineteen Day Feast, and establishing the local Fund. The scope of this endeavour should include learning about the contribution that must be made to this process by National Spiritual Assemblies, Regional Bahá’í Councils, Auxiliary Board members and their assistants, Area Teaching Committees, and the training institute.

268.7 Further, the matter of the jurisdiction of Local Assemblies may need consideration. In this regard, thought will need to be given as to whether a modification in the approach to establishing the jurisdiction of a Local Assembly would enable it to better align itself to the growth process in the cluster. Following consultation with the Counsellors, kindly share your conclusions with the House of Justice and seek its views.

268.8 In time, your Assembly should be able to document the experience being gained about the development of Local Assemblies, from their early inception to higher levels of mature functioning. Such a document will prove invaluable for all the Regional Bahá’í Councils in India. In all your efforts in this regard, you will no doubt take into account the many lessons and insights that are already imparted to the generality of believers through the sequence of courses of the training institute. While all the courses are relevant to this end, those that come later in the main sequence aim more specifically at building capacity for the development of the communities and institutions.

268.9 Of course, the responsibility of Regional Councils is not confined to the formation of new Local Assemblies in those clusters and localities that do not have one at this time. Local Assemblies, each at a different stage of development, already exist in every region of the country and these would also need varying degrees of assistance to ensure that they are formed each year and steadily grow in strength and maturity. One matter before all Assemblies at this time is preparations for the observances of the bicentenaries of the Twin Birthdays in 2017. As the House of Justice indicated in its letter of 18 May 2016, the locus of activity for the bicentenaries will be at the local level, in both rural and urban settings, and, wherever Assemblies have at least a basic level of functioning, they will play an important part in the arrangements.⁴⁰ Indeed, focusing on a concrete task of this significance could help Assemblies develop critical capacities in such areas as planning and organizing befitting activities, raising resources, rallying the believers, interacting with segments of the wider society, and managing the follow-up efforts after the events conclude.

268.10 The House of Justice assures you of its prayers at the Sacred Threshold that the institutions in India may be surrounded by the guidance and abundant confirmations of the Blessed Beauty in all their endeavours.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

Department of the Secretariat