Dearest friends across Wisconsin,
We send you love, greetings and best wishes during this final year of
the Five Year Plan! We also invite you to participate in an upcoming
Teaching Conference for Bahá’is and friends of the Faith. These
teaching conferences are being organized and promoted by the
Continental Board of Counselors, Auxiliary Board members and regional
institutions across the 21 regions of North America. The conferences
offer an opportunity to reflect on the spiritual legacy of North
America, the land which ‘Abdu’l-Baha referred to as a “center from
which waves of spiritual power will emanate”, whose Bahá’i community
the Guardian described as “the spiritual descendants of the
Dawn-breakers”, and about which the Universal House Justice stated,
“there are opportunities for the advancement of the process of entry
by troops, the like of which presently exist in no other place on
earth.”
In addition to providing an opportunity to think about and plan how
each cluster might reach their next stage of development, the teaching
conference will also be a wonderful space for friends throughout
Wisconsin to spend time together in prayer and fellowship, and reflect
on our next steps towards reaching the goals of the current Five Year
Plan.
Conferences have played a wonderful part in the history of our beloved
Faith. In 1975 the Universal House of Justice wrote a letter to all
National Spiritual Assemblies highlighting the critical role
conferences play in the life of our communities:
“Teaching Conferences can have a great value for the advance of the
Faith. Their aim is to strengthen the bonds of unity and fellowship
among the friends, to increase their involvement in the teaching work
and their interest in its progress, and to serve as magnets to attract
divine confirmation. They are also rallying points for the believers,
evidence of the vitality of their love for Bahá’u’lláh, and potent
instruments for generating enthusiasm and spiritual drive for
advancing the interests of the Faith.”
In this, the final year of the current Five Year Plan, we are reminded
of the task we were called to at its outset. The Universal House of
Justice counseled the friends around the world that the goal to raise
up 5,000 intensive programs of growth would be “truly formidable” and
would require no less than a “herculean effort”.
Given the current reality of the COVID-19 pandemic and continued
guidance of local health authorities to maintain social distancing,
the Conference will be held virtually via Zoom. The schedule is as
follows:
Saturday, July 18th:
9:30am – 10:00am: Zoom meeting opens
10:00am – 12:00pm: Teaching Conference
12:00pm – 1:00pm: Break for lunch
1:00pm – 3:00pm: Teaching Conference resumes
Sunday, July 19th:
9:30am – 10:00am: Zoom meeting opens
10:00am – 12:00pm: Teaching Conference
In addition to the sessions for adults, we plan to have virtual
programs for children ages 5 – 10, and for junior youth ages 11 – 14.
Please fill out the registration form via this link:
https://eur05.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforms.gle%2FfomHdnugSGjHi4qE8&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cb110ccb48c2f445fbcda08d81d555bc0%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637291599726144671&sdata=CAe0GFItHte4xVaepXdOwSWenRitvUvKIJEEdwFqx1M%3D&reserved=0
Many of the conference sessions will be in separate Zoom breakout
rooms; therefore, it is important for everyone to register ahead of
time so that we can plan the breakout rooms accordingly. If possible,
please register by Friday, July 10th.
If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out
to us. We very much look forward to spending time with you all on July
18th and 19th.
With love,
Auxiliary Board members serving Wisconsin:
Sue Manners, Auxiliary Board Member for Protection
Jordan van Rijn, Auxiliary Board Member for Propagation
Zoom log in information:
Zoom meeting link: https://eur05.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fzoom.us%2Fj%2F2035093000&data=02%7C01%7C%7Cb110ccb48c2f445fbcda08d81d555bc0%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637291599726144671&sdata=hdWZG84gSKKvLiQuwqxXmmOHXm9JjCTmhB9uHHp2tYM%3D&reserved=0
Meeting ID: 203 509 3000
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