Youth contributing to build better communities: A Bahá’í Perspective

THE experiences of Bahá’í communities worldwide suggest that the rising generation of youth can play an important role in building better communities, and that it is within their power to contribute significantly to shaping the societies of the coming decades.

We need to take our youth seriously, helping to develop their capacities and to channel their energy and enthusiasm towards transforming our communities.

The Universal House of Justice, the governing council of the Bahá’í international community states that “the transformation which is to occur in the functioning of society will certainly depend to a great extent on the effectiveness of the preparations the youth make for the world they will inherit”.

An effective preparation involves acquiring useful qualifications and spiritual qualities and, developing a high-minded outlook and an upright character.

We as parents and teachers have the arduous task of raising our children in a world overwhelmed with many problems and difficulties.

We have the challenge for consciously creating a global culture, one that emphasizes peace and justice. Education is the most effective way Education, of course, is the most effective way to harness the power of the values, attitudes, behaviours and skills of our children towards building better communities and a peaceful world.

However, it is important that education, whether at home or at school, guides our children and youth in their moral empowerment as well as their intellectual development.

The Bahá’í Writings state: “The proper education of children is of vital importance to the progress of mankind, and the heart and essential foundation of all education is spiritual and moral training” and “… it is in early childhood that a firm foundation must be laid. While the branch is green and tender it can easily be made straight”.

Such education should prepare our youth to act in the long-term interests of our communities and instil in them the awareness of the fundamental oneness of humankind.

They should be taught to consider all humanity as members of one family and to act justly towards everyone.

In our increasingly interdependent world, we need to nurture in our youth an appreciation for the richness and importance of the world’s diverse cultural, religious and social systems, as they contribute to social integration, justice and unity.

An adequate education, in the Bahá’í view, “will cultivate virtue as the foundation for personal and collective well-being, and will nurture in individuals a deep sense of service and an active commitment to the welfare of their families, their communities, their countries, indeed, all mankind”.

Guiding our youth to express their Godgiven talents and capacities, in service to humanity will help in bringing about social transformation.

It will help change their own lives from ones that are predominately self-interested to ones of serving and caring for others.

It is important to provide our youth with guidance that will lead them to combine science and religion, belief and reason, as this will help free them from religious fanaticism and superstition.

Placing emphasis on learning to think — rather than following adults out of fear — to reflect and reason — rather than to merely imitate — will motivate them to apply moral laws and guidance with understanding and conviction.

We need to converse with our youth, to listen to their opinions and to try to find out how we can help them enhance their potential capacities.

They should be guided to analyse the constructive and destructive forces operating in society and recognise the influence these forces have on their thoughts and actions.

Youth as partners in planning the world they will inherit

A desire to bring about constructive change, and a capacity for meaningful service, are both characteristics of youth. This is not limited to any race or nationality and it does not depend on material means.

It is the Bahá’í view that, “In selfless service to society is the possibility for both personal growth and enhancing capacity to contribute to social progress”.

Many of our current approaches to education, however, treat youth in a very passive way, as receptacles of information rather than active members of their community.

Yet young people are anxious to become partners in helping to plan the world they will inherit. It is through service to others that youth can grow personally and enhance their capacity to contribute to social progress.

Educating youth in the principle of service to humanity will arouse and maintain motivation, and when this is coupled with the acquisition of practical skills and appropriate technologies, will open many possibilities for development and advancement in our communities and building better societies.

“(T)he Bahá’í International Community is confident that the rising generations will play a vital role in weaving a new tapestry of community life that can propel humanity’s evolution towards a period of maturity and collective prosperity”.