From the Council table

Dear Friends,

Greetings from the Bahá’í Council for Scotland. Highlight of the last few months was, of course, the historic meeting of the Forth-Clyde cluster on the 29th of January. The huge turnout, the packed hall, and the joyous spirit; all these things suggest that this new, combined cluster is considerably greater than the sum of its parts.
At the meeting we heard that so much progress had been made with the activities of the Five Year Plan that this cluster has now moved, with the National Spiritual Assembly’s blessing, to category ‘A’ status. This means we will now see the Intensive Programmes of Growth that according to the Plan will bring increased numbers of new enrolments.
None of this can happen without effort, and the Bahá’í communities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, and surrounding areas are sacrificing much of their time and energy to the activities of their first Intensive Programme of Growth. At the same time we note that attitudes have matured and welcome the approach of honest, ‘warts and all’ reporting that was taken during the cluster meeting. The culture of learning that we are asked to adopt can only work when our objectivity is not clouded by our ardent desire for results.
Altogether this was a perfect launch that set afloat Scotland’s first ‘A’ cluster from the banks of the Clyde. And to continue on the maritime theme: Two weeks earlier the Council met on the beautiful island of Mull and in the charming town of Oban, so as to emphasise that there is still a world outside urban Scotland and its priority cluster; a world where lots of good things are happening too and where great opportunities lie in store. In this case it was also a world of icy rain and long, dark nights, which made us appreciate the human warmth of these places all the more. The Council sends its love to all of you and wishes you joyful celebrations of Naw-Rúz and Ridván. With loving Bahá’í greetings,

With loving Bahá’í greetings,
The Bahá’í Council for Scotland

Exciting news from the Council’s Treasurer

At its January meeting and after prayerful deliberations, the Council decided to send the following proposal to the National Spiritual Assembly.

“Dear National Assembly,
“The Council for Scotland has been considering how the friends in Scotland could be encouraged to support the activities of the faith in Scotland more. In particular, we have been looking at our wonderful new centre in Edinburgh and realising that this centre will function both as a Scottish centre and an Edinburgh centre and that the ongoing maintenance of this building may well be beyond the means of the Edinburgh community. Scotland to raise £10,000 over the coming year towards the maintenance of the new centre. This would be reviewed after one year in light of the money actually raised and the more accurate estimates of the financial needs of the centre.
“We are confident that the friends in Scotland have the spirit and capacity to raise their level of donations and that by making a connection directly with the work of the faith in Scotland we will be better able to tap that spirit and capacity.”

We were delighted to share with you the news that, “The National Spiritual Assembly feels that this is an excellent idea and endorses it wholeheartedly...”
The Council is grateful to the NSA for giving us this special and sacred privilege, and is certain that the friends in Scotland, enthused and invigorated with the start of a new Five Year Plan, will rise to this challenge, and may even surpass the suggested level contribution.
Further guidance and information will be communicated in due course. Meanwhile if you have any queries about the above, please contact the Council Treasurer: Venus Alae-Carew, Tel 01387 262321.
With Loving Greetings,
Bahá’í Council for Scotland

Forth Clyde Cluster reaches out in a big way during first expansion phase

At the time of writing, information is still being collated on the results of the very first expansion phase to take place in an A cluster in Scotland. However it’s clear from the information already gathered that there has been a massive upsurge in activity during the two weeks accompanied by a lot of reaching out to the wider community. At least 40 different teaching activities took place during the fortnight including 11 devotional meetings and a range of other activities including arts-based activities, firesides and newly formed childrens classes. These activities were attended by over 70 non-Bahá’ís. Many Bahá’ís who had not previously organised their own events took the initiative during this period to do so. Some notable successes included a number of events which were held at the workplaces of Bahá’ís where work colleagues attended events and were touched by their encounter with the Word of God. The Area Teaching Committee is now working across the cluster to ensure that these successes are built on as we move into the consolidation phase and is analysing the information to see what can be learned for the next cycle which will probably begin in June.