Wilmette Institute

God Tests the Sincerity of an Emperor: Bahá’u’lláh’s first Tablet to Napoleon III This webinar will be the first of four webinars for the course: God Summons Europe (Part I). It will include: The first full English translation of Bahá’u’lláh’s first Tablet to Napoleon III. Line by line reading and analysis of the Tablet including the circumstance of its revelation and its reception by the French E...

Ideas, Approaches, and Social Change: Emerging insights from the Bahá’í Community's 75-year engagement with the United Nations In her talk, Dr. Berger traces the experience of a community whose ideas about social order and the mechanisms of social change are refashioning familiar notions of politics as well as religion. Focusing on the Bahá’í International Community (BIC), an international non-gov...

Part 2 The Public Reading of the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu'l-Baha: Perspective of some Western believers. This webinar will take the participant back to Haifa on the day in which the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was read publicly one hundred years ago. The webinar will also explore the significance of the last one hundred years of institution-building that has resulted from the implementat...

This two-part webinar series will take the participant back to Haifa on two auspicious moments one hundred years ago: the night of the Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, and the day in which the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was read publicly. This webinar will take the participant back to Haifa on the night of the Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, one hundred years ago, through the eye-witness accounts of...

Shoghi Effendi is sometimes alluded to as the architect of the Bahá’í administrative order, and most certainly he is worthy of this appellation. Yet, from another perspective he was carrying out the necessary steps to implement the Bahá’í administration as it had been shaped and refined by his beloved grandfather, In this presentation I will briefly explain why, among his other roles and responsib...

The “ADJ process” is the vision of Vonita McGee, who understood Shoghi Effendi’s book, The Advent of Divine Justice, to be an instruction manual. This manual delineates a spiritual process and provides practical instructions to aid us in eradicating racial prejudice, “the most vital and challenging issue” with which humanity is still grappling. Vonita McGee and Jeanais Brodie will provide an overv...

Laura Clifford Dreyfus-Barney, at a very tender age of twenty-one, heard about ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, a spiritual leader from the East, visited Him in Palestine, accepted the faith that He was promoting, and followed its teachings for the rest of her life. Many know of her greatest achievement: compiling Some Answered Questions, which is based on the questions that she posed to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and His respons...

The talk focuses on developments hastening the implementation of the principle of equality of men and women about two decades after Bahá’u’lláh’s ascension. It also highlights the station of the Greatest Holy Leaf, the uniqueness of the role she played in religious history, and the significance of the Arc, the focal center of her resting place and those of her mother and martyred brother.

For many observers, the prevailing order of modernity appears utterly incapable of creating peace, justice, and well-being for significant segments of humanity. Rather than provide amelioration, our dominant political and economic systems often appear to extend and recapitulate forces of oppression. Arguably, anti-black racism constitutes one of the most virulent forms of oppression that the organ...

This webinar is a summary and commentary on the soul of man. It documents a potential way to achieve spiritual growth and transformation. The presenter will reference Bahá’í passages regarding the soul and the capacity of the soul. Beginning with the knowledge of God and His Manifestations, the presentation will then focus on the relationships between God’s Manifestations and Man which is establis...

This webinar provides an introduction to the writings and utterances of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá (1844–1921), the son and successor of Bahá’u’lláh (1817–1892), the founder of the Bahá’í religion. Following a general discussion of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s sixty years of literary and oratory activity in the form of books, treatises, letters, prayers, poems, and speeches written or delivered in three languages, this chapt...

Illumining and Strengthening the Work of Bahá’í Writers Part 5 Baháʼí Publishers Panel Discussion with U.S. Baháʼí Publishing Trust, U.S. Review Office and George Ronald Publisher PRESENTERS: May Hofman and Erica Leith of George Ronald, Martha Schweitz of U.S. Review Office, and Bahhaj Taherzadeh from U.S. Baháʼí Publishing Trust MODERATOR: Dr. Robert Stockman, Wilmette Institute Director DESCRIPT...

Illumining and Strengthening the Work of Bahá’í Writers Part 4 PRESENTERS: Authors Michael Day and Angelina Allen DESCRIPTION: The history of the Baháʼí Faith is dense and complex. Those wishing to explore aspects of the Faith's history must find the stories they wish to tell, identify the sources at their disposal, and make a multitude of decisions regarding the audience, the context in which to...

Illumining and Strengthening the Work of Bahá’í Writers Part 2 Writing for Junior Youth and Youth PRESENTERS: Authors Amy Renshaw and Susan Engle DESCRIPTION: With so much content competing for their attention, how can we engage the minds and hearts of junior youth and youth? What are some useful approaches to creating materials for this age group that inspire action and reflection? How can we edu...

Illumining and Strengthening the Work of Bahá’í Writers Part 3 Dr. DeGruy’s research focuses on the intersection of racism, trauma, violence and American chattel slavery. She has over thirty years of practical experience as a professional in the field of social work. She conducts seminars, lectures, and trainings in the areas of Intergenerational/Historical trauma, mental health, social justice, i...

Illumining and Strengthening the Work of Bahá’í Writers Part 1 Creating Engaging Stories and Devotional Content for Young Children and Their Families PRESENTERS: Authors Elaheh Bos and Linda Ahdieh Grant DESCRIPTION: How can we craft material that will inspire the youngest members of our communities and nurture devotional habits and meaningful conversations in the home? As young families strive to...

‘Abdu’l-Bahá was a friend, guide and confidant to all humanity. Those who encountered Him recognized a character of matchless virtue, an all-embracing love and altruism, extraordinary spiritual acuity, and super-human knowledge. In this conversation to mark the centenary of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s passing, Robert Stockman talks to writer Rob Weinberg – compiler of the new book, Ambassador to Humanity – abo...

Topic Comparative Visions of the Afterlife: Heaven, Hell, and Divine Judgment Description The concept of an afterlife that there is an immortal future, which might either be a lamentable half-existence or a place that includes physical survival, rewards, and punishments, has been central in Western thought. By understanding different conceptions of what happens to us after we die, we explore how t...

In the twentieth century, the field of religious studies underwent a profound and striking transformation. Such terms as “comparative approach,” “ecumenical studies,” and “interreligious dialogue” have become commonplace in scholarly research, discussion, and literature on the subject. The twenty-first century has added another innovating concept to these rapidly changing viewpoints – trans-religi...

The Great Law of Peace and the Most Holy Book - Dr. Lee Brown Summary: This talk is a comparative study of the Great Law of Peace articulated by the Peacemaker and founder of the Iroquois Confederacy and Kitab-i- Aqdas promulgated by Baha'u'llah. Bio: Dr. Lee Brown is the former Director of the Institute of Aboriginal Health in the College of Health Disciplines at the University of British Columbi...

Interfaith Devotional And Climate Conversation Workshop 11.29.2021 More information: https://wilmetteinstitute.org/climate-conversation-series/ The Bahá’í-inspired Interfaith Climate Group hosts a series of writing and conversation workshops to facilitate participation in the discourses of society on the social and environmental challenges of our time. Participants: *Reflect on spiritual teachings...

Jan Jasion, 'Abdu'l-Bahá and the Other This presentation is based on reflections on Bahá’u’lláh’s Tablet of the Land of Bá and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s statement published in Paris Talks and His activities in America. ʻAbdu’l-Bahá met with people of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds and He delighted in doing so. The Bahá’ís are very proud of this, and justly so. Many scholars have investigated the travels...

Climate Change is about survival, one world...and our future. with Gary Reusche Climate change is already adversely affecting people in many parts of the world and seriously threatens the survival of human civilization. The present-day world order is disintegrating before our eyes, and increasing climate change impacts are compounding social problems. At the same time, we can see the integrative f...

Mikhail Sergeev, "The Issue of Self-Identity in Transhumanism and Bahá’í Writings" Transhumanism or H+ is an intellectual and cultural movement whose ultimate goal is to achieve “singularity” – the merging of human biology and computer technology in order to enhance human capabilities and, in the long run, to make humanity immortal. The concept of singularity applies first and foremost to the brai...

Divine Wisdom Revealed: Beyond Bahá’u’lláh’s Reprimand of the Two Powerful Ottoman Officials This is the first of four webinars hosted by Shahrokh Monjazeb for the course “Bahá’u’lláh’s Summons to Two Ottoman Prime Ministers” which begins on October 22, 2020. The course will closely examine the three Tablets, Súriy-i-Ra’ís, Law h-i-Ra’ís, and Lawh-i-Fu’ád, addressed by Bahá’u’lláh to the two power...