Saturday 28 December 2019

Onwards and upwards…


Recent events and current trends may have made many people feel despondent for the future, but, despite the wealth of problems, the world can still move forward. Yes, we have some underlying and pressing needs, too many to list them all here, but which include our treatment of the environment, the continuing wars, and various social problems.

Firstly, the climate change conference which took place recently in Madrid has not been seen as a great success. The world is still heading towards a temperature increase of 3°C above its pre-industrial levels. Whatever the results of the conference, there is general agreement that we need to curb, and even reverse, our current level of exploitation of fossil fuels. There is an increasing feeling among the world’s population that we all need to use less. Despite the comparative failure of the conference, we can still each individually work towards reducing global warming, perhaps by following the advice of Bahá’u’lláh, the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, Who said: “Take from this world only to the measure of your needs, and forgo that which exceedeth them.”

Meanwhile, here in the United Kingdom, the country seems finally poised to leave the political and economic bloc of which it has been a member for over forty years. For many British people, leaving the European Union will be the realisation of a long-held ambition to renew their independence. But many others see it as a backward step, moving away from a close trading relationship and a collective identity with Europe. Whatever one’s views are on this particular bloc, what we really need is free trade and co-operation across the whole world. This would help to make all the countries of the world more equal in their income levels. We also need to recognise the oneness of the entire human race and, alongside this, the common origin of all the religions. Each of these three changes would by itself increase human happiness. As Bahá’u’lláh put it: “Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other.” Unity, brotherhood and equality are our future.

However, at the current time, people across the world are still suffering from the effects of war. Different ethnic, tribal, religious or political groups try to impose their will on others, or engage in what they see as necessary self-defence. Not only do the combatants suffer from the results of their actions, but so do the innocent, particularly the old people, the women and children. Death, injury, disability and deprivation all follow from these conflicts. What is really needed – as previously mentioned - is for all of mankind to be seen as one people, and for the whole earth to be seen as one country. Bahá’u’lláh said: “It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world. The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”

On a more limited scale, one worrying factor in human life at the present time is the amount of crime and senseless violence which afflicts many areas, but especially the inner cities. The causes of this behaviour are complex and are endlessly debated by those seeking to understand it, but it ruins the lives of victims and their families, not to mention the perpetrators and their families. The real needs of society are to be found in a completely different direction from the self-centred behaviour of the criminal or the impulsive responses of those lacking in self-worth. Humanity needs more open-hearted friendship, more honesty, and for everyone to be included in useful employment. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Who was Bahá’u’lláh’s Son, urged:  “Let your heart burn with loving kindness for all who may cross your path.”

At a time when communication between individuals across the world is becoming easier than ever, and is rapidly developing new forms and new channels, new challenges are arising. On “social” media there seems to be an epidemic of anti-social content, with people being unpleasant about others and towards others. Meanwhile, vested interests, which wish to manipulate things in particular ways, circulate fake news, and then proceed to dismiss anything proven by honest and open journalism as being itself “fake”. What is really needed is for each person to have a positive view of their own worth, for each human being to have a positive view of the worth of every other person, and for everybody to have a positive view of those groups which are undervalued, such as racial, cultural or tribal minorities, those whose behaviour is outside the norm, and those who are disabled or disadvantaged in some way. We must always choose our words with care. According to Bahá’u’lláh, “One word may be likened unto fire, another unto light, and the influence which both exert is manifest in the world,” and again: “One word is like unto springtime causing the tender saplings of the rose-garden of knowledge to become verdant and flourishing, while another word is even as a deadly poison.” When we put finger to keyboard or screen, we should aim to cheer and encourage others, not to denigrate and dismiss them.

At times, it can seem as if the negative forces which are leading to social disintegration and unhappiness are overwhelming. But the positive forces will win in the end. We can each make a difference. As individuals, it is our responsibility to make all our actions and words positive ones, so that these negative forces can be overcome. The power of example should not be underestimated. We must stand up and consciously work for the unity of humanity, so that the whole planet shares in a glorious future. We must be tirelessly helping to lead mankind onwards and upwards…




Sunday 1 December 2019

Two book-makers with faces the same


As a small child I was fascinated by books, and apparently used to read at the same time as I was (slowly) getting dressed in the morning! When my mother asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I allegedly replied, “Me and Stephen are going to be two book-makers with faces the same.” By “book-makers” I obviously meant producers of books, and naturally I never actually consulted my younger brother on this!

When I was a new Bahá’í, in my early twenties, the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Birmingham asked me if I would like to take over the running of their book sales. I accepted the suggestion, and I have been selling books ever since. When my wife Ann and I moved to the Warwick District, the new Bahá’í group set up the Warwick Bahá’í Bookshop. We were soon invited to be an official Bahá’í book agency, selling books over a wide area of the Midlands - at conferences and weekend schools, for example. When I was a new Bahá’í, I used to read every Bahá’í leaflet or pamphlet I could obtain, preferring these “bite-sized chunks” to adult-sized volumes, and now part of our work as a book agency was selling these same leaflets.

In 1989, by which time we had moved to Southam, there was a hiccup in the supply of leaflets. People were ringing us up, asking for leaflets, but we were simply unable to obtain them – virtually every popular title had been allowed to go out of print! Ann said, “I wonder if we could write our own,” followed by, “I expect we could find a printer in Leamington to produce them – or maybe even in Southam!” So we found a printer (Clintplan Ltd) in Southam, and started writing our own leaflets. Ann designed a logo, and we were off! Our leaflets were also sold to Bahá’ís in other countries; many of them were even reprinted in the United States and in Australia. Over time, we produced more than sixty different leaflets. Steadily the number of individual leaflets sold also pushed ahead, passing the one million mark in 2016!

What are the leaflets for? Basically, they are a means of passing a bit of information on the Bahá’í Faith to people who know little or nothing about it. Some leaflets are general introductions, and try to give an overall picture of Bahá’í history, teachings and philosophy, but diluted down to get it onto what is essentially two sides of a sheet of A4 paper. Not an easy task, and you have to miss out so much! However, most of the leaflets we write are about one specific area, such as “Health and Healing”, “Caring for the Environment” or “The Way to World Peace”. Such leaflets are like holding a magnifying glass to one part of the Bahá’í teachings, and are helpful to Bahá’ís as well as to enquirers. They can also be used when Bahá’ís and their friends get together, each with a copy of the same leaflet, and study the topic together.

In 2012, the second edition of my simple introductory book, (imaginatively entitled “The Bahá’í Faith”), was due to be published by a proper publishing house. However, a set of unforeseen circumstances forced us to publish it by ourselves. Ann did the editing, and Clintplan organised all the technical side. This was then the beginning of another strand of publishing. It is now 2019, and we already have twelve small books published - four written by our daughter - all with ISBNs and attractive covers, and we sell them in significant numbers to Bahá’í distributors and suppliers in other English-speaking countries.

And what are the booklets about? “The Bahá’í Faith” is an illustrated introduction, originally meant for young people. Our daughter’s four books are 32-page short biographies, telling the reader “The Life of the Báb” or “The Life of Bahá’u’lláh”, for example. Almost every one of our titles is meant to give a simple, affordable and readable introduction to an aspect of the Bahá’í Faith. Most cost just 50p or £1! Generally, the Bahá’ís buy them for their children, to give away to their friends, or to lay out for people to take from Bahá’í stalls at public events.

There are a number of Bahá’í principles related to literature. “Independent investigation of truth” often appears first in a list of Bahá’u’lláh’s principles. Each individual has the right – or even duty – to investigate the truth for himself or herself. Freedom of speech and freedom of conscience are also Bahá’í principles. Alongside these basic principles, people who work in publishing non-fiction have a duty to investigate and publish the truth. As Bahá’u’lláh Himself put it: “The pages of swiftly-appearing newspapers are indeed the mirror of the world… endowed with hearing, sight and speech. It behoveth the writers thereof to be purged from the promptings of evil passions and desires and to be attired with the raiment of justice and equity. They should enquire into situations as much as possible and ascertain the facts, then set them down in writing.”

Another part of Bahá’u’lláh’s blueprint for the world is that the governments should choose either an existing language or a newly-created one as an auxiliary language, to be taught in all the schools of the world, alongside the mother tongue of each area. This would enable a traveller to talk to people wherever he/she went. Bahá’u’lláh also suggested that all the world’s literature should be translated into this common language, enabling us all to share in the world’s literary heritage: “O members of parliaments throughout the world! Select ye a single language for the use of all on earth, and adopt ye likewise a common script… This will be the cause of unity, could ye but comprehend it, and the greatest instrument for promoting harmony and civilisation.”

This development is still for the future, so at present we sell our books to predominately English-speaking countries such as Australia, South Africa and the United States of America. However, as part of the Bahá’í ideal that the world should become one, we are always happy to give permission to the Bahá’ís in other countries to translate our publications into their local languages (should they so wish), and demand no royalty for the Warwick Bookshop. One of our authors, who is entitled to a personal royalty, asks these other countries if they can afford to support a charity working in overseas development, instead of paying her personally.

And what of my brother Stephen? He has also recently become involved in the publishing of Bahá’í books. There is a talented and original Bahá’í artist living in Bristol, who has copiously illustrated over two dozen books either of Bahá’í Scripture or of quotations, with often stunning results. The quotation books are on themes, such as “Oneness” or “Mindfulness”, which speak to thoughtful people. Steve was appalled to learn that, following the death of the original owner of the publishing house used by the artist, the stock of each title was being run down, with no plans to reprint them. Steve and his wife Becky invested money into the reprinting of these illustrated works and have put time and effort into making them available to the wider world. Although my professional career was as a schoolteacher, and Stephen’s was in the world of examination boards, we have both accidentally ended up as “book-makers”, although whether our faces are the same, I will leave it for you to judge!