Last Sunday night I arrived back in San Jose after one of the most faith affirming weekends of my life. The last four days had been spent at the exquisitely situated Bosch Baha'i School at the annual BNASAA Conference. For those of you who don't know, BNASAA is an acronym for the Baha'i Network on Aids, Sexuality, Addictions and Abuse. Over the weekend, I had the honour of praying with, crying with, singing with, laughing with, hugging wih, consulting with and healing with some extraordinarily courageous souls who, due to BNASAA specific issues, have felt misunderstood or marginalized both within and without the Baha’i Community. I met gay Baha'is, Baha'is who have struggled with addiction to drugs, alcohol and gambling, Baha'is who are survivors of rape, child sex abuse and domestic violence and Baha'is with HIV or AIDS - essentially, a cross-section of any contemporary Western population at this time of radical unrest and spiritual upheaval. While we came to the weekend with a variety of histories to share, hurts to mend and triumphs to celebrate, the common thread was our sincere desire to express our love for Baha'u'llah through faithfulness to His Covenant. It was truly beautiful. I believe this is what the beloved Guardian was talking about when he declared that the ideal Baha'i Community will be characterised by "unity in diversity". – Shoghi Effendi, Dawn of a New Day, p. 47.
Arguably, the areas BNASAA focusses on are some of the most difficult issues facing the Baha'i Community at this point in our evolution. In an emerging culture where the highest standards of morality have been prescribed, Baha'i Communities and Institutions are still learning how to acknowledge and support those of us who face spiritual tests in these areas, while at the same time ensuring they do not condone behaviour that transgresses Baha'i Law. In Al-Anon speak, it's called "supporting the alcoholic, not the alcoholism" and make no mistake, it is an art.
As the Baha'i Faith becomes more visible to seekers of diverse backgrounds, we are going to need to be artists one and all, adept at wielding some hefty spiritual qualities. I am not talking here about judgment, punishment, fire or brimstone. The most effective tools we possess for the building of a unified, inclusive Baha’i Community wholly committed to humanity's salvation are humility, tolerance, open-mindedness, justice and above all, unconditional love.
"...all of you ought with your hearts and minds to endeavour to win the people with kindness, so that this great Unity may be established...” – ‘Abdu’l-Baha, ‘Abdu’l-Baha in London, p. 45
Back in 1998 on a visit to a BNASAA Conference, Counselor Stephen Birkland commented that these brave men and women whom God has chosen to perfect through intense tests are the 'vanguards' of the Baha'i Faith. As survivors of abuse, as Baha'i's in Recovery, as individuals who have learned to sublimate desires that run counter to Baha'i Teachings, BNASAA has something unique to offer the both the Baha'i Community and the world at large: expertise in overcoming hardships through Baha'u'llah's Grace.
As our worldwide Community grows, this expertise is going to be indispensable. I seriously doubt that when - as has been prophesised - large groups of people start to be attracted to Baha'u'llah's healing Revelation, they will be celebrities, soccer mums and stockbrokers. Indeed, as an Auxiliary Board Member (who participated in the weekend and shall therefore remain anonymous) reminded us; these affluent, 'upwardly mobile' members of society are in fact the least receptive demographic to the Baha’i Faith. On the contrary, I believe the future champions of Baha'u'llah's Cause will be survivors of all manner of atrocities because they - like BNASAA members - will understand first-hand that Baha'i Law is “the Law of God, through which the breezes of justice have been wafted over all who are in heaven and on earth." - Baha’u’llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 81. Integrating these people into our Community is not going to be glamorous or easy. I'm talking about refugees, war-orphans, torture and rape-victims. The global Baha'i Community will need to be prepared to deal with post-traumatic stress en masse.
However, therein will lie our greatest victories. Not only will we be galvanised and unified by drawing together to serve our brothers and sisters, I believe we will benefit enormously from the amazing insights these individuals will have when it comes to teaching the Faith. I can testify to this from very personal experience. I am so grateful that the blessed sister who introduced me to Baha'u'llah - and incidentally, I have her permission to tell you this - was an ex-crack addict and former prostitute who I met in Food Addicts in Recovery Anonymous. Paradoxically, it was her unconventional past that initially convinced me to investigate Baha'u'llah's claims, chiefly because it was so at odds with the ordinances He had laid down. My teacher had tried the very opposite of these ordinances and found it to be a spiritual, emotional, material and social dead-end - just as I had. Yet here she was, with an unwavering conviction that the guidance contained within the Baha'i Faith held real answers. It was irresistably compelling. I'm sorry to say I would not have been receptive had she been a picket-fence-living, apron-wearing, cookie-baking Nancy...no offence to any readers named Nancy.
In an AA Meeting, it’s often the newcomer talking to themselves in the back row smelling vaguely of urine who is the most cherished person in the room. Why? Because us sober ones know that if they manage to recover, it will provide further proof of God’s infinite love and the solution offered by the 12 Step program. We also know that if he or she gets well, their story may help countless others who are in need of the same solution. Hmmm. Countless others…in need of a solution…Now why does that sound familiar?
“The fundamental purpose animating the Faith of God and His Religion is to safeguard the interests and promote the unity of the human race, and to foster the spirit of love and fellowship amongst men...after meditating on its needs, take counsel together and, through anxious and full deliberation, administer to a distressed and sorely-afflicted world the remedy it requireth.” – Baha’u’llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah, p. 215
So when we encounter such a soul as described above, AA members stick out our hands, offer our phone numbers and do all we can to make them feel uber-welcome. We call it 'loving them back to life'. I look forward to the day when the Baha'i Community not only nurtures but celebrates its most disenfranchised members as 'vanguards of the Faith' in a culture of love and encouragement. In this way, perhaps we can all experience the unique camaraderie born of overcoming our common challenges by leaning on Baha’u’llah and then helping others to do the same. Open, honest, authentic dialogue about who we are and what we're struggling with is where true community will begin. BNASAA has started that conversation. You, dear reader, are most warmly invited to join us.
