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Hernando Today

Local Baha'i's Focus On Education

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By MAUREA SLEESMAN Hernando Today correspondent

Published: January 12, 2008

HERNANDO COUNTY - When nine or more Baha'i's vote to form a new faith group, instead of calling it a church, it is an LSA - Local Spiritual Assembly. There is no clergy. There are governing bodies at the local, national and international levels, which all consist of nine elected members - no nominations or electioneering. The LSA's oversee the activities of the faith communities.

"The Baha'i Faith is an independent world religion with over seven million believers worldwide consisting of almost all nationalities, and, outside of Christianity, it is the fastest growing religion today," said. Bill Newell, the Local Spiritual Assembly Public Information Officer. He has been a Baha'i for 43 years since his wife, Carol, introduced him to the faith.

"The faith was founded over a century ago in Persia by Baha'u'llah, the prophet founder of the Baha'i Faith," Bill Newell continued. "Baha'u'llah means 'Glory of God.'"

Similar to Islamic calendars, the Baha'i year has a different numeration of days.

"The significance of the Baha'i New Year," said Dori Peloquin, another member of the local group, "is that it coincides with the Spring Equinox, which is in astronomy the beginning of a new cycle or year of the Earth's rotation around the sun. Baha'i's months have 19 days each, with New Year's and an annual Fast in March."

Seven Baha'i members met at the home of Faye McInnis last Monday to discuss plans for 2008. Education is a main focus in 2008 for the group and an ongoing one for both Newells. Carol Newell is a retired teacher, while her husband's career included counseling. He hosts the local TV talk show "Speaking Out" on Channel 614, and both Newell's are known for active outreach in many civic organizations, including Rotary, Boys and Girls Club and the African American Club and the Filipino American Social Club.

Baha'i's are known for being active in civic organizations and for promoting education, Bill Newell said.

He is contacting several college newspaper editors to discuss the plight of Baha'i's in Iran and Egypt. Many Baha'i students in colleges there are harassed, denied enrollment and even killed because of religious prejudice and intolerance in predominantly Islamic theocracies, he said.

Local Baha'i member Walter Klein, who lives in Weeki Wachee, was raised as a Holland Dutch (protestant) in Indonesia and was sponsored in his emigration to America by a Baha'i in Cincinnati about 50 years ago. He tutors a few students in learning to read, write and speak English.

"We Baha'i's pray and meditate each day. The One God is universal and it is important that we connect with God throughout the day," he said.

He pointed out that libraries are of keen interest to the faith and that local libraries have an abundance of shelved Baha'i material donated by the local Baha'i Faith.

Large Baha'i temples, located in Samoa, Germany, India, Panama, Australia, Africa and the United States, are monuments of architecture. The temples are places of learning, open to people of all races, nationalities and religions. The temples are dedicated to all major religions so that people may read and study sacred texts of all religions with the purpose of greater respect and understanding.

"A beautiful copy of the Koran was presented to the United Nations' library by the Baha'i's as a gesture of goodwill," Klein said.

Last night the Baha'i's sponsored a free talk at First United Church of Christ in the fellowship hall, as they do on the second Friday each month. The speaker was Dr. Jay Mohindra, a Baha'i who resides in Chicago, where he practices Internal Medicine. "Progressive Revelation - The Oneness of World Religions," was his topic.

"Baha'i's believe in the common foundation of all religions, the equality of men and women and the elimination of all forms of prejudice," the doctor said, adding that the Baha'i Faith is a world religion stressing the importance of unity and striving for world justice and peace.

Marlyn Baffa, another Baha'i Faith member, who lived in Puerto Rico, paints rocks. When asked how that ties in with being educational, she explained "Lili Carson and I teach VOW - Virtues of the Week - lessons at the Boys and Girls Club as volunteers. We read aloud select library books to children mostly ages 5 to 11. The colorful books illustrate moral lessons and certain virtues. If it's a pig main character for instance, we either have the children help paint little rocks pink or we paint them. Then we paint on faces for mementos to remind the children of the story."

Baffa showed a small box displaying several storybook rock virtues such as honesty, kindness, politeness and being helpful. The varnished treasures depicted brightly hued ladybugs, turtles, frogs, elephants and other creatures.

"We also create games such as Bingo, where the squares have the 'virtue' words in them, and the winners get little prizes," said Carson, a former New Yorker who doesn't miss the snow.

Bill Newell donates time to help the club's children learn about music and calls on professional, local musicians, such as Michael Tranchida and Jim Wise, to assist with teaching.

Newell admires the late Dizzy Gillespie as a trumpeter and a Baha'i. Newell plays jazz trumpet himself and has donated lessons and music instruments to promising students. Carol noted that the students and their parents sign accountability contracts to encourage practicing, keeping the instruments in good repair and other responsibilities.

Advocacy for children, by volunteering as a Guardian Ad Litem, is a favorite form of service of some members, including Dori Peloquin.

"Children are so important. We must teach them, guide them and help them," she said. "The Baha'i Faith is growing because it speaks to the needs and concerns of people today. A lot of people are seeking spiritual comfort, and Baha'is are taught to make a change through educating and serving, learning from and respecting all religions, uniting instead of dividing."

Peloquin said her daughter, Miranda, is a student at the University of Central Florida, where she teaches about the faith to the children in the Orlando area.

Local Baha'i's also help support the Dawn Center, Jericho Road Ministries, Katrina and local emergency relief efforts and the Salvation Army. They have fun, too, such as watching old movies with the youth and children, learning to dance, enjoying a wide range of cooking and feasting and having game nights or attending festivals and concerts.

Another Baha'i member, Faye McInnis, appreciates her faith's tenets to embody and respect diverse cultures.

"People gathered in our devotionals are encouraged to say and share their various prayers and to honor and keep ethnic music and be expressive," she said. "Walter, for instance, writes beautiful poetry. I make a mean lasagna."

McInnis has one of the member lending libraries inside her foyer. She demonstrated two exploratory spiritual self-discovery workbooks of the faith for use by adults and youth. Writings from Baha'u'llah are followed by questions and essay spaces for group and individual learning and reflection.

Baffa spoke about a quote from Baha'u'llah, one that initially inspired her and still does daily: "Love me that I may love thee. If thou loveth me not, my love can in no wise reach thee."

Group hugs, smiles, soft good-byes and handshakes ended the meeting. Dori Peloquin smiled quietly as she quoted the main perspective of her faith: "The purpose of life is to know and love God and to help carry forth an ever-advancing civilization."

Baha'i's meet the second Friday at First United Church of Christ, located at 4244 Mariner Blvd., Spring Hill, and at member homes. For more information, call Dori Peloquin at 666-7280 or Faye McInnis at 686-8283. Visit the Baha'i Web site at www.bahai.org

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