Dearly loved Friends,
At the outset of the Nine Year Plan, the Universal House of Justice asked us to focus all our energies on the lofty purpose of releasing the society-building power of the Faith in ever-greater measures. One of the most potent tools we have for this release is the training institute. Through study circles, junior youth groups, and children’s classes, the light of Baha’u’llah’s Revelation can reach vast numbers. Any individual can enter a seamless spiritual educational process beginning from age five and continuing through adulthood, intertwining study of the Holy Writings with building capacity for service.
Now, one year into the Nine Year Plan, your Regional Baha’i Council and Regional Training Institute Board wish to share an audacious goal for the next year–a goal set with the knowledge of the transformative power of the training institute and the urgent need for its activities to expand across the Northeast. We ask that all individuals, communities, and institutions work
to double the number of educational activities–study circles, junior youth groups, and children’s classes–with a significant increase in each, by Ridvan 2024.
As of this past April, our region had a little more than 500 educational activities: 103 children’s classes, 57 junior youth groups, and 349 study circles. We ask every believer in the Northeast to contribute to the goal, helping the region exceed 1,000 educational activities within the year ahead.
To increase the number of children’s classes, junior youth groups, and study circles across our region, we must, at the local level, expand the number of people, both Baha’is and those who are helping us build a better world, who are participating in the activities, while at the same time raising, among both groups, new teachers, animators, and tutors to help win the goal.
The Universal House of Justice stated, “Appreciating the effectiveness of the institute process, every follower of Bahá’u’lláh will feel a desire to contribute to its advancement in some way.” Therefore, we encourage you to consult with others about how you can contribute to this goal. We also request that you pray regularly for its success, beseeching Baha’u’llah to confirm the region’s efforts to advance the institute process, so essential for releasing the society-building power of the Faith in the Northeast.
With loving Baha’i greetings,
Regional Baha’i Council of the Northeastern States
Regional Training Institute Board of the Northeastern States
Marie McNair, Secretary
Aleah Douglas, Secretary