Changing Times Blog

Tsehai Loves Learning

(ky) Love. At once the strongest, yet most elusive emotion. And I’m not talking about a Pepé Le Pew kind of love, I mean the pure love between mother and child. Now imagine describing this love for kids who have lost their parents to HIV and Aids. This is what ‘Tsehai Loves Learning‘ does, in an award winning cartoon, made for Ethiopian pre-school children.

Baha’i-inspired Whiz Kids Workshop, the show’s producers, have recently released a new DVD of their international award-winning program “Tsehai Loves Learning.” You can help them continue providing quality educational programs for millions of Ethiopian children by buying a copy of their DVD.

Every 600 DVDs sold online at tsehai.com covers the production of a new episode of “Tsehai Loves Learning” for an estimated 2.8 to 5 million children with access to television in Ethiopia. This means when you purchase a DVD online, you’re not only providing great content for your children, but bringing a new episode of “Tsehai Loves Learning” to more than 4,650 children in Ethiopia. You can help educate millions of children in Ethiopia.

Buy a copy of “Tsehai Loves Learning” today at tsehai.com.

6000 at Sydney Conference

(mv) Over 6,000 Baha’is from Australia and abroad descended upon Sydney last weekend, gathering for the largest Regional Conference held to date. A stirring didgeridoo performance, a recognition of the Indigenous people of the land, served as the opening to this historical event which endeavoured to celebrate the community’s achievements, deliberate on its progress and plan courses of action for the remainder of the Five Year Plan. A giant bouquet of roses served as the centrepiece of the stage in the main auditorium, representing the Baha’is in Iran that are unable to share in the bounty of this series of spiritually uplifting and historically momentous conferences.

In attendance at the Conference were two representatives of the Universal House of Justice – International Counsellors Zeni Ramirez from the Philippines and Counsellor Stephen Hall of Australia. The unwavering support and encouragement that the Counsellors relayed on behalf of the House of Justice brought overwhelming joy to the hearts the mass of attendees. Participants described the event as “life-changing”, “spiritually exhilarating” and “the perfect platform to energise the community and confirms the indispensible role of the Baha’i Faith in establishing the unity of the whole of mankind.”

Sydney was also blessed to have a third day added to the Conference devoted specifically for the youth, the theme of the day being to “seize thy chance.” 1,500 youth were spilling out of the Baha’i Centre, listening intently to the Counsellors’ guidance and encouragement to accelerate their efforts even further as they are indeed the spearheads of the Baha’i community. Youth from across the country also shared uplifting success stories from their respective clusters and the day’s activities concluded with the attendees pledging to establish over 700 new junior youth groups and children’s classes by the end of the Five Year Plan.

Andy Grammer – Chasing Cars

We found this posted just four days back and couldn’t resist showing you. Andy performed at Changing Times 08 and we fell in love with him and his music all over again. Bringing to you:
Andy Grammer with Nick Hughes – a shoot by X. Dean Lim

http://www.vimeo.com/2937627

Comic: Prison Break in Iran

In recent months, Iran has escalated its campaign of arrests against Baha’is. Dozens of Baha’is currently languish in prisons, with no hope of being accorded a fair trial. Those reportedly arrested weren’t criminals, thieves or murderers but were in fact community leaders, social activists and educators who strove to serve their communities. The Iranian regime has adopted the mission of preventing the progress of Baha’is, both within and outside Iran, and there is no telling how far it is willing to go to fulfill its mission.

The CENSEO team at the Muslim Network for Bahai Rights has created yet another comic about the absurdity of this situation:

Devon Gundry says “Get Off the Couch”

(af) Here’s a great little video aimed at raising awareness of climate change. It stars musician Devon Gundry (singer in the ‘Armed’ music video). If you think it should win the Environmental Defense Action Fund’s ‘Climate Activist’s Choice Award’ then vote now!

Thanks for the heads up Afshin

Interview with an Iranian Baha’i Student

Last winter semester (2007/08) 1000 Baha’i students had passed their entrance exams for university. 800 of them were denied entrance because of “incomplete files”. Sholeh is one of them. We hear her story…

[The following is only an extract from the interview. We have asked Iran Press Watch to publish the complete interview at http://www.iranpresswatch.org/2009/01/interview-with-an-iranian-bahai-student]

What made you come to study in Durham?
I am not able to study in Iran – my home country — because I am a Bahá’í. Even though I was always top of my class, I have been banned by the government from entering university or any further education. It’s not just I who have been banned – no young Baha’is, even though many of them are top students in their own fields, are allowed to enter university. Even those who used to be students have been expelled.

So how did you complete your education?
We tried to study by ourselves. The local Baha’i community gathered together, and tried to teach the children and provide a basic education, but it didn’t work adequately. There was a lack of qualified teachers, especially for my courses in math and physics. Anyhow, we tried to study and read the books. That year was really difficult, but we finished it.

What was your experience of going through the Bahá’í Institute of Higher Education (BIHE)?
It was very difficult. I don’t want to complain because I really think that I’ve been one of the lucky ones. Even though I faced some difficulties in trying to further my education, there have been lots of youth who’ve been expelled from their universities since the revolution. They have been unable to study for different reasons. Some cannot afford to enter the BIHE. We have to travel from our city to Tehran to do the classes. Others cannot because they’re busy with their jobs.

How do you feel this situation has affected the quality of your education?
It’s very difficult to solve problems when you study alone – fortunately I haven’t been alone at any stage. There have been some students who were alone, with no other BIHE students studying their course in their locality. Our Internet is quite slow, and very expensive, something that not all families can afford. Before the online system came to BIHE two or three years ago, if a student found him or herself to be the only one in his town it was extremely challenging to motivate and teach oneself. Fortunately I have always had some classmates close by. When students are isolated, they try to maintain telephone contact with their fellow students, consulting questions regarding their studies together.

This student is one among many, and her situation is common among hundreds of young Baha’i’s in Iran today. As we speak, hundreds of Baha’i’s are being refused entry to academic institutions, and the situation worsens every day. By sharing this story, we hope to encourage everyone who reads it to spread their knowledge of this cruel injustice, and to find opportunities to voice their concern about this matter, whether in their own educational institutions, with their colleagues, or people of influence with whom they may come into contact. It is clear that the surest way of ending this harsh persecution is to ensure a heightened awareness about it across the globe, forcing the government to stop its oppressive policies. It has been done before, and it can be done again. We have the luxury of a voice that can be heard without fear of imprisonment or punishment, and with that comes the responsibility to use it.

[All names have been changed in order to preserve the anonymity of the interviewee, as a precaution to ensure her safety. This interview was conducted by Amy Ridvan Tidswell for the Changing Times Blog]

The Secret of Kajang

(mn) A few months ago I featured some of the excellent activists that I had met. One of them was Satiswary who ran virtues development classes for children in a really rough neighborhood [Kajang, Malaysia].

We chatted with some neighbors and found out that every week there was a killing in this area! It was easy to believe.

A few minutes before, 2 boys inched their car closer and closer to me. They were pointing at me and having a good laugh in the car. And it was completely unprovoked! I was just standing in the carpark minding my own business when these boys decided to scare me with their threatening antics.

Just the week before, at about noon, in full view of all the residents (including children), a man was chopped and murdered in broad daylight!

One of the neighbors lamented, “di sini, budak baik pun mesti jadi tak baik.” (”even good kids turn out bad”) She would know – her own child has ended up in jail.

“Setiap kali saya datang sini saya takut!” (”every time I come here I am scared”). I remained humbled by the risks they taking just to keep this small class alive.

By Manesh Nesaratnam at Good People We Meet (http://goodpeoplewemeet.wordpress.com)

‘Faith 39′ -BBC Documentary

(af) While surfing Friday night TV I stumbled across an informative and unique documentary on the BBC titled ‘Around the World in 80 Faiths’, which briefly mentioned the Baha’i Faith (’Faith 39′) in its ‘Middle East’ edition to the series. The programme travels across the globe to seek out different faiths and their rituals, although the presenter Pete Owen presents some details about the Baha’i Faith oddly, he expresses his hope that this type of world-embracing religion is the future.

Pete Owen Jones presents the definitive guide to faith on earth, with eighty rituals across six continents in the space of a year.

The big six world religions are only part of the story. Faith is belief in the sacred, and it is expressed in a rich diversity of rituals, in denominations, sects, cults, tribal faiths and new religious movements. Pete’s mission is to witness and take part in rites rarely filmed before, to take the religious pulse of the planet and to understand the depth of humanity’s fascination with the divine. As an Anglican priest, Pete will be confronting cultures that will challenge his values and prejudices – he will be surprised, even offended, but also enlightened.

Video: Around the World in 80 Faiths (Tune into 6mins 10secs)

From: Poetry of Peace by Afshin Rohani