Association
for Bahá’í Studies in Southern Africa
C/O P.O. Box 2142
Houghton, 2041 RSA
Website: www.bahaistudies.org.za
email: abs@bahai.org.za
or (kayes@nu.ac.za)
21 August 2003
To the
friends in Southern Africa
Dearly
loved Bahá’í Friends,
An Invitation to
join a Study Course on The Century of
Light
The
Association for Bahá’í Studies (ABS) in Southern Africa invites the friends to
join a distance education study course on the Century of Light. This course is offered through the medium of
electronic mail.
This is the
second distance education course being offered through the ABS - the first one
was the study of Bahá’u’lláh’s The Kitáb-i-Íqán, (The Book of Certitude). Farzin Aghdasi so very capably
and lovingly developed and conducted this first course, which was taken by over
70 people (see our website for further information on the course).
Participants
in this form of class can either study individually or in small discussion
groups. The appropriate materials for the course, including the text, syllabus,
discussions, and optional reading materials are all available electronically.
The class
will begin on 1st September,
and will end on 7th December
2003. This is approximately the duration of one semester at a college or
university. There are no minimum requirements for the course, but it does need
at least 2 – 3 hours of study per week. There will be two short breaks to help those who may fall behind
to get caught up. There are no examinations, but there will be suggestions for
literary, artistic, and presentational projects.
The course
materials have been developed by the Wilmette Institute, who has very
generously given the ABS in Southern Africa permission to use them for this
distance education course. The course is divided into 12 units, one unit per
week. Each unit has a reading assignment and discussion suggestions relating to
major themes of the book.
The major
themes of Century of Light - change in the world, emergence of the Faith,
and the convergence of the two - are examined through the use of thematic
questions.
The major
thematic questions are:
˘ What are the unprecedented profound changes
that the world underwent during the past century?
˘ What were the factors that led to the
emergence of the Bahá’í Faith from obscurity?
˘ What indicates that during the last century “a
fundamental shift in consciousness was under way throughout the world”[1]
which effectively is leading to a “crumbling” of “barriers”
standing in the way of the oneness of humankind?
˘ How did the Bahá’í Cause demonstrate on a
global scale its unifying power?
˘ What do you find to be spiritually enriching
in Century of Light?
˘ What are the challenges facing humanity at
the outset of the 21st century and what are you expected to do about
them?
˘ As a result of studying Century of Light, in what way do you think that your sharing
with others the revelation of Bahá'u'lláh will differ from the way you share it
now?
There will be three members of the ABS administering the course: Farhad Aghdasi; Robert Sarracino, and Sylvia Kaye.
If you are
interested in joining the course, please send an email to: kayes@nu.ac.za.
We will
then send you the materials and register you!
With loving
Bahá’í greetings,
Sylvia Kaye,
Secretary
Association
for Bahá’í Studies in Southern Africa
Telephone:
031-260-1219; 072-349-5578 (cell)
Cc: National Spiritual Assembly of the
Bahá’ís of South Africa