UK Bahá’í Curriculum

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SECTION NINE   ATTAINMENT TARGET TWO

KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF THE BAHÁ’Í FAITH AND OTHER RELIGIONS

e) SACRED SCRIPTURES

The human race spends a disproportionate amount of time and effort sifting through seemingly endless libraries seeking books that will provide answers to the problems of personal happiness and fulfilment, life-skills, relationships and paranormal phenomena. They search in vain among pages of words whose substance evaporates like mist under the summer sun when exposed to the harsh light of reality. Unbeknown to them the revelation of Bahá’u’lláh encompasses not only the whole universe but all the other realms of God beyond, never mind all the world’s libraries, all its science and philosophy, and all its belief systems.

 

The word of God, as revealed by Bahá’u’lláh, is, in this day, the ultimate treasure. It is the surging ocean that girdles the globe. It is the sparkling stream for the thirsty millions, the true manna to the spiritually starving multitudes, the touchstone for the hearts of humanity, and the source of all knowledge and wisdom. It is the blueprint for all human endeavour; the standard by which all human thought and action is measured. Through God’s immeasurable bounty, the Word is reclothed, renewed and released once more into the contingent world.

 

This creative word of God can alone transmute the dross of the human heart into the purest gold. Our children and youth must be so imbued with its life-giving properties that it becomes like the air they breathe, that it springs to their tongues as readily as words of love to lovers, that their very being resonates with its harmonies.

 

There is an element of trust here: that the words really mean what they say, that, no matter how extraordinary or improbable to the cynical mind their claims, they are true. This trust in the veracity of the sacred word must be as natural to our children and youth as laughter and curiosity. This is the point to which parents and teachers must bring them, through the personal example of daily reference to scripture and acting out its truth.

Programme of Study for Sacred Scriptures

ASPECTS OF REVELATION

  1. The nature of revelation, the Word of God to humanity, how it comes through, etc.
  2. The forms and types of revelation, prayers, tablets, sermons, meditations, codes of law, hymns of praise, etc.
  1. The language of revelation, high or classical register, use of symbolism, metaphor, imagery and other poetical and rhetorical devices
  1. Our attitude to sacred scripture and its uses, in private devotion, public worship, study, etc.

SACRED SCRIPTURE AND OTHER WRITINGS

  1. The writings of the Báb
  2. The writings of Bahá’u’lláh
  3. The writings and pronouncements of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
  4. The writings of Shoghi Effendi
  5. The messages and pronouncements of the Universal House of Justice

WIDENING THE FOCUS

  1. The relationship of Bahá’í scripture to other scripture, especially the Bible and the Qur’an
  2. The relationship of Bahá’í scripture to other classical, seminal or authoritative writings of humanity
  3. Relating scripture to the current concerns of humanity

KEY STAGE APPROPRIACY

KS 0, KS 1: Here sacred scriptures might chiefly be approached through copying or illustrating short passages of the writings and learning to recite them by heart, or sing them.

KS 2: Introduce the basic idea of revelation and other authoritative writings and their differences, get students to identify the different types of revelation, etc.

KS 3: Greater sophistication of approach, dealing in broader sweeps and greater depth; at this stage students should be studying passages of scripture to be able to extract inspiration and meaning for themselves.

KS 4: Enable students to discuss all aspects of sacred scripture with confidence, to be confident in using their knowledge and understanding of Bahá’í scripture, and to know how to enhance these in themselves and others.

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