Baha'is in India persecuted by Hindus - Video

CURRENT EDUCATIONAL POLICIES IN INDIA AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR ACTION - By Payam Shoghi

INTRODUCTION

Education, in India has been going through a process of rapid change in recent times. These changes have opened up opportunities for the Faith in many ways. Many recent educational policies and guidelines appear to be aligned with the principles of the Faith, pointing to the possible impact of focused engagement, a decade and half back, notably by Mr. Sherif Rushdie and Dr. Tim Rost with the NCERT, and to a lesser degree, by a few other believers through aegis of the department of External Affairs of the National Spiritual Assembly.

Presented here is an overview of recent developments in the field of education in India and my perception of opportunities that these may have opened up from a Bahá'í perspective.

 

National Curriculum Framework (2005)

http://www.ncert.nic.in/rightside/links/pdf/framework/english/nf2005.pdf

The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), an apex resource organization set up by the Government of India to assist and advise the central and state governments on academic matters related to school education, revised and published the latest National Curriculum Framework (NCF) in the year 2005.

This outstanding document, while objectively identifying major problems that currently beset India’s school education system, offers appropriate solutions to each.  It shares insights into issues such as improving the quality of school education, incorporating innovative student-centric pedagogies based on the principles of Constructivism in classrooms, nurturing appropriate classroom environment, teachers’ roles, and subject related teaching. The following two focus areas of the NCF 2005 are of particular interest from a Bahá’í perspective: 

(Note: I have separately included references from the documents mentioned here to give an idea of the current thinking of the government and its agencies on the issues described.)

1.      Excessive Competition:

This is a theme that finds mentions throughout the document. The NCERT acknowledges that excessive competition is responsible for reducing education to an instrument of material success. It also laments the fact that too much competition in schools is responsible for children learning the wrong values. (One quote from the document separately mentioned.)

Cooperative Learning:

The NCERT advocates the introduction of cooperative learning as an element of classroom pedagogy.  Understandably so, since cooperative learning is an integral part of constructive learning, apart from its usefulness in helping children develop pro-social behavior, and ability to counter the harmful effects of excessive competition. (Two quotes from the document separately mentioned.)

2.      Emphasis on Education for Values and Ethics:

The NCF 2005 lays strong emphasis on ‘Education for Values’, and more specifically on ‘Peace Education’. The NCF makes a strong case for introducing structured programs of value education, and sees them as an integral part of the overall educational process. (Two quotes from the document separately mentioned.)

Peace Education:

The NCF 2005 strongly advocates developing constitutional and democratic values among students. However, as a formal educational intervention in schools, it favors programs that promote peace education with the rationale that without peace developing any set of values becomes a challenge. The document devotes an entire section on ‘Education for Peace’ (p. 61-64) delineating the need, nature, rationale and strategies for implementation. In fact reference to peace education can be found throughout the document.

The NCF 2005 laments the fact that important curricular areas have been relegated to “the peculiar orbit of the ‘extra-curricular’”. It mentions peace education among these, which also include arts, work, health and physical education. It goes on to state that these “have a fundamental significance for economic, social and personal development. Schools have a major role to play in ensuring that children are socialized into a culture of self-reliance, resourcefulness, peace-oriented values and health.” (p. 35)

The NCERT followed up its emphasis on peace education in NCF 2005 by publishing, in September 2006, a position paper by a national focus group on ‘Education for Peace’. http://www.ncert.nic.in/new_ncert/ncert/rightside/links/pdf/focus_group/education_for_peace.pdf

(Three quotes from the document separately mentioned.)

Appreciation of Beauty:

The NCF talks about appreciation of beauty as a value that children should be helped to imbibe, and links it to the very purpose and aims of education. (One quote from the document separately mentioned.)

Inclusive Education:

Inclusive education is a theme that has received much attention in the NCF. It is also a theme incorporated into a recent legislation making education a right for children between ages of 6-14 years (mentioned further below).

(Two quotes from the document separately mentioned.)

Junior Youth:

A unique feature of the NCF 2005 is that it recognizes adolescents as a distinct learning group within the school education system. It acknowledges that special measures need to be adopted while working with this age group of learners. (Two quotes from the document separately mentioned.)

The NCF 2005 has taken long finding application. Its provisions are only now beginning to be applied, but only in the area of curriculum and textbook design for government schools. Long drawn textual content is gradually being transformed into content that includes activities designed for peer learning, and which support higher order thinking. New curricula and textbooks also draw upon the NCF’s recommendation favoring an integrated approach to curriculum development.

The challenge, however, is to train thousands of teachers in the use of the new and innovative content now being developed. The government’s ground-level system for in-service teacher training is currently in a state of disarray and incapable of meeting this challenge effectively.

The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act (2009)

http://ssa.nic.in/rte-docs/free%20and%20compulsory.pdf

The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act or Right to Education Act (RTE), is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted on 4 August 2009, which describes the modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education for children between 6 and 14 in India under Article 21A of the Indian Constitution. Formulated under the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals, India became one of 135 countries to make education a fundamental right of every child when the act came into force on 1 April 2010.

The Act covers a wide range of issues related to elementary education of children: availability of neighborhood schools, school infrastructure, teacher training, early childhood care and education, recognition and management of schools, curriculum completion, teacher-student ratio, school fee structures, funding for implementation of the Act, and others.

The Act stresses the need for inclusive education, going as far as mandating that all schools reserve 25% of their seats for weaker sections and disadvantaged groups from the neighborhoods. Other child-specific provisions of the Act include the following:

1.      No examinations till completion of elementary education.

2.      Physical punishment and harassment of children is now banned by law.

3.      Making children free of fear, trauma and anxiety, and helping them express views freely.

4.      Legal provisions for protection of child rights with oversight of an independent Commission provided for.

National Curriculum Framework for Teacher Education (2010)

http://www.azimpremjifoundation.org/pdf/NCFTE-2010.pdf

This is a document prepared by the National Council for Teacher Education, prescribing a curriculum and related methodologies and support structure for professional training of teachers based on the recommendations of NCF 2005. It is only now that certain universities are beginning to implement, albeit partially, the provisions of this framework.

 

Education for Values in Schools–A Framework (2012)

http://www.ncert.nic.in/departments/nie/depfe/Final.pdf

The Department of Educational Psychology and Foundation of Education at the NCERT published this document, responding to the need for articulating “a comprehensive and pragmatic approach to value education in schools.”

This is the first such document published at the highest level of educational policy-making in India, and is an indication of the importance with which value education is currently being regarded. The framework notes that ‘the whole enterprise of education is extricably linked with the development of values,’ and that ‘devoid of the potential to nurture values, education loses its heart and soul’.

This framework includes ‘vision, expectations, strategies and benchmarks for implementation and assessment of value education in schools’, and is deemed by the NCERT as ‘suggestive and not prescriptive to allow scope to customize the same suited to the varied needs, contexts and resource of the schools’.

1.      Choice of Values:

The framework leaves the choice of deciding about the final set of values to be included in programs of value education with schools themselves. However, it has suggesting a set of values that it feels should receive greater attention. These are: truthfulness, honesty, loyalty, love, peace, responsibility, trustworthiness and respect. It goes on to emphasize the importance of including values expressed in the Indian Constitution, noting that in its Preamble itself the Constitution lays down four universal values: justice, liberty, equality and fraternity.

The framework notes that, “Values are complex mix of understanding, attitudes, beliefs, behaviours and skills,” and that, “There are cluster of attitudes and beliefs associated with a particular value. For example, loyalty includes truth, peace is linked to commitment and justice.” (p. 39)

The framework recommends particular focus on the following core-values in programs of value education in schools:

1.      Health and Hygiene:

2.      Responsibility: (a) Towards self-development; (b) Responsibility towards one’s work/duty; (c) Social responsibility

3.      Love, care and compassion.

4.      Critical and creative thinking.

5.      Appreciation for beauty and aesthetics.

2.      A Whole School Approach:

The framework prescribes a ‘whole-school-approach’ to education for values where curricular content, pedagogy, school ethos, policies and practices are aligned with the schools’ set of core values. This also includes developing the abilities of teachers to relate their subject teaching to those values.

The framework emphasizes students’ autonomy and their participation in making and implementing rules. It also stresses creating “caring and cooperative school climate”, and freeing classrooms from excessive competition, threat and ridicule. The document notes that, “Excessive competition is detrimental to peace and harmony.” This theme finds reference in several places throughout the document.

3.      Religion and Value Education:

The document emphasizes allowing children to learn about different religions and faiths as part of an effective program of education for values. For a country that tenaciously upholds its secular credentials, this development is nothing short of miraculous! (Two quotes from the document separately mentioned.)

OPPORTUNITIES FOR ACTION

Recent developments in the field of education in India provide a host of opportunities particularly for Bahá’í inspired agencies to actively support and be seen supporting national policies on education aligned with the principles of the Faith, based on available learning and experience.

The Indian Bahá’í community has a lot to offer in a situation where the government, its agencies and developmental organizations active in this field are still grappling with the issue of translating policy into action.

Mentioned below are a few action-areas where Bahá’í inspired agencies and individual believers can assume a leading role:

1.     Helping Structure Value Education in Schools:

The new government at the centre has expressed its commitment to promoting value education in schools and has been working on different fronts to address this issue. It has identified value education as a key concern area in its new National Education Policy currently under preparation. The government is also exploring the possibility of making value education compulsory in schools for grades 1-10. In a recent development, the Supreme Court of India has sought the central government’s response on this matter.

Schools in India are still far from adopting a whole-school approach to value education as envisaged by the NCERT. But there is growing awareness among them about the importance of value education, and they are more receptive than ever before to receiving help with structuring meaningful and effective programs of value education.

Working in the field of school-based value education can be seen as the next natural step for Bahia’s to get actively involved in school-based programs of value education, given the experience, learning and credibility acquired through years of focused action on similar community-based programs.

2.     Peace Education:

Promoting a cluster of values that support peace education is clearly a priority with the NCERT. However, no meaningful program of peace education currently exists in India other than the one developed by late Dr. Tim Rost. The NCERT, which Dr. Rost kept in the loop during the development and testing of his program has viewed it favorably. This gives us the opportunity of taking the lead in promoting peace education among schools in India.

3.     Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning can be a potent response to excessive competition in the Indian schools. Universities that have recently revised their curricula for under-graduate teacher education courses have included cooperative learning in a big way, although they do not currently have access to the appropriate content for teaching the prescribed syllabus.

Another recent development is that Spencer Kegan, a globally well known and successful promoter of cooperative learning is setting up shop in India.

Clearly, cooperative learning is the way forward in India’s school education, also being an integral part of constructivist student-centric pedagogy.

Fortunately, a fair amount of knowledge and experience with cooperative learning is available in pockets within the Indian Bahá’í community. Cooperative learning has been part of the core-curriculum of NEDI/NETTC for many years now. Also, Dr. Rost has incorporated it into his peace education curriculum. An army of NEDI/NETTC graduates, and individuals who have worked with Dr. Rost and were trained by him can be harnessed for promoting cooperative learning in schools in India. While on the subject, it is important to note that majority of students who have passed out of NETTC are denied the opportunity of utilizing their special capabilities, as schools require them to only focus on teaching assigned academic subjects.

4.     Junior Youth Spiritual Empowerment Program:

NCERT’s acknowledgement that adolescents constitute a distinct and special learning group opens up the opportunity of promoting the JYSEP in Indian schools. Some experience and learning in this area is already available. For example, as part of her individual efforts, a member of the Bahá’í community of Pune has been working with junior youth groups in two local schools for years. In addition to impacting a large number of students of these schools, this initiative has brought many parents in contact with the Faith. The leadership of both these schools have overtime also developed into admirers and supporters of the Faith.  

5.     Teacher Training:

The innovative approaches currently unfolding in India’s school education system are not being received as well as one would expect. This explains why implementation of recent government policies has been so slow. The RTE, a law framed by the Indian Parliament, was opposed by private schools en-block, involving years of litigation.

This points to the opportunity, and the need for working with schools and teachers along programs designed to help change attitudes and mindsets. We currently have access to some of the most effective tools for this. The Ruhi and FUNDAEC courses, and insights into the discourse on science and religion can be very effective in helping teachers develop better understanding of human reality and the purpose of education. Helping teachers to see children as noble beings, and themselves as agents responsible for bringing out their innate nobility is one of the greatest services that can be rendered in the present context.

6.     Social Action:

Working with schools for promoting government policies aligned with the principles of the Faith offers communities a new dimension for social action involving active participation of Baha’is and seekers alike.

SUGGESTED LINES OF ACTION

The following lines of action are suggested for taking advantage of the above-described opportunities for actions:

1.      Setting up and supporting Bahá’í-inspired NGOs, or existing ones augmenting their program to include working with schools.

2.      Initially working to develop a critical mass of schools to achieve sufficient learning, credibility and visibility for a gradual gain in momentum of action. It does makes sense to first start working with Bahá’í-inspired schools, unifying them in common and coherent lines of action.  

3.      Pooling human resources with relevant capabilities and utilizing their expertise. It could be something as simple as collaborating with a few animators for establishing and working with junior youth groups in a few local schools, or something as complex as such as networking with and mobilizing NETTC graduates from different parts of the country.

4.      It is perhaps time to adopt a new level of ‘outward looking orientation’, to strive to become more familiar with current policies and priorities of the government, and look in them for opportunities for concerted action that can lead to service as well as recognition.

A case in point is NETTC’s decision to discontinue peace education training of its students a few years back. Perhaps it would not have done so with the knowledge that the NCERT regards peace education with so much importance.

REFERENCES FROM GOVERNMENT POLICY DOCUMENTS QUOTED ABOVE

National Curriculum Framework (2005)

1.      Excessive Competition:

Individual aspirations in a competitive economy tend to reduce education to being an instrument of material success. The perception, which places the individual in exclusively competitive relationships, puts unreasonable stress on children, and thus distorts values. It also makes learning from each other a matter of little consequence. Education must be able to promote values that foster peace, humaneness and tolerance in a multicultural society. (p. 2)

2.      Cooperative Learning:

. . . there is a social aspect in the construction process in the sense that knowledge needed for a complex task can reside in a group situation. In this context, collaborative learning provides room for negotiation of meaning, sharing of multiple views and changing the internal representation of the external reality. (p. 17)

In the company of others, one has opportunities of participating in larger tasks where one may find a niche to contribute to, thus achieving something above one’s own potential, and one may be able to try out what one does not fully know. Group learning tasks, taking responsibility, and contributing to a task at hand are all important facets of not only acquiring knowledge but also in the learning of arts and crafts. (p. 20)

3.      Emphasis on Education for Values and Ethics:

The development of self-esteem and ethics, and the need to cultivate children’s creativity, must receive primacy. In the context of a fast-changing world and a competitive global context, it is imperative that we respect children’s native wisdom and imagination. (p. 5)

Ethics is concerned with all human values, and with the rules, principles, standards and ideals which give them expression. In relation to action and choice, therefore, ethics must be conceded primacy over each of the forms of understanding. Ethical understanding involves understanding reasons for judgements—for what makes some things and some acts right and others wrong—regardless of the authority of the persons involved. Furthermore, such reasons will be reasons for anyone; reason, equality and personal autonomy are therefore very intimately connected concepts. (p. 61)

4.      Peace Education:

Building a culture of peace is an incontestable goal of education. Education to be meaningful should empower individuals to choose peace as a way of life and enable them to become managers rather than passive spectators of conflict. Peace as an integrative perspective of the school curriculum has the potential of becoming an enterprise for healing and revitalising the nation. (p. 6-7)

A clear orientation towards values associated with peace and harmonious coexistence is called for. Quality in education includes a concern for quality of life in all its dimensions. This is why a concern for peace, protection of the environment and a predisposition towards social change must be viewed as core components of quality, not merely as value premises. (p. 9)

The space for peace education within the framework of National School Curriculum document is compellingly clear in the light of the escalating trends of, and taste for, violence globally, nationally and locally. Education is a significant dimension of the long-term process of building up peace–tolerance, justice, intercultural understanding and civic responsibility. However, education as practiced in schools often promotes forms of violence, both real and symbolic. Under these circumstances, the need to reorient education and therefore the school curriculum takes priority. As a value, it cuts across all other curricular areas, and coincides with and complements the values emphasized therein. It is, therefore, a concern cutting across the curriculum and is the concern of all teachers. (p. 61)

5.      Appreciation of Beauty:

Education must provide the means and opportunities to enhance the child’s creative expression and the capacity for aesthetic appreciation. Education for aesthetic appreciation and creativity is even more important today when aesthetic gullibility allows for opinion and taste to be manufactured and manipulated by market forces. The effort should be to enable the learner to appreciate beauty in its several forms. (p. 11)

6.      Inclusive Education:

. . . disadvantages in education arising from inequalities of gender, caste, language, culture, religion or disabilities need to be addressed directly, not only through policies and schemes but also through the design and selection of learning tasks and pedagogic practices, right from the period of early childhood. (p 5)

As public spaces, schools must be marked by the values of equality, social justice and respect for diversity, as well as of the dignity and rights of children. These values must be consciously made part of the perspective of the school and form the foundation of school practice. An enabling learning environment is one where children feel secure, where there is absence of fear, and which is governed by relationships of equality and equity. Often this does not require any special effort on the part of the teacher, except to practice equality and not discriminate among children. (p. 81-82)

7.      Junior Youth:

Adolescence is a critical period for the development of self-identity. The process of acquiring a sense of self is linked to physiological changes, and also learning to negotiate the social and psychological demands of being young adults. Responsible handling of issues like independence, intimacy, and peer group dependence are concerns that need to be recognised, and appropriate support be given to cope with them. The physical space of the outside world, one’s access to it, and free movement influence construction of the self. This is of special significance in the case of girls, who are often constrained by social conventions to stay indoors. These very conventions promote the opposite stereotype for boys, which associates them with the outdoors and physical process. These stereotypes get especially heightened as a result of biological maturational changes during adolescence . . .

It is a time when the given and internalised norms and ideas are questioned, while at the same time the opinions of the peer group become very important. It is important to recognise that adolescents need social and emotional support that may require reinforcement of norms of positive behaviour, acquisition of skills essential to cope with the risky situations that they encounter in their lives, manage peer pressure and deal with gender stereotypes. The absence of such support can lead to confusion and misunderstanding about these changes, and affect their academic and extracurricular activities. (p. 16)

As children grow older, their reasoning capabilities develop. However, they are still not mature enough to question assumptions and norms. Inspired by the need to impress others and validate their self-image as strong and capable individuals, they tend to violate rules. At this stage, facilitating reflection on the basis of rules and norms, restrictions, constraints, duties and obligations, etc., through discussion and dialogue, produces insights into the linkage between the collective good, the value of restraint, sacrifice, compassion, etc., which constitute the moral ways of being. (p. 63)

Education for Values in Schools–A Framework (2012)

1.      Religion and Value Education:

The study of religious stories highlighting the essentials of all religions would be rewarding as a step towards harmony among religions as basic teachings of all great religions of the world are the same. A lot of ingenuity, however, is required to present the themes relating to unity of faith. In the literature of every religion, stories and parables figure, highlighting ethical values. The narration of such stories by parents and teachers can be most effective particularly in the junior classes. At the post elementary stage, it is essential that students are given time to study the lives of great religious and spiritual leaders of all important faiths. (p. 58)

Although we take a great deal of pride in a multi-cultural society, our knowledge about other social groups is pathetic. It can come about if students know enough about others’ beliefs, norms, each others’ culture and religion. At the root of education for values should be the value of integration. This is possible only by providing opportunities in schools, by knowing, discovering, studying and celebrating each others’ culture and religion through active engagement. Some schools organize inter-faith communication programmes which help in looking into and understanding each others’ faith thereby providing opportunities for reducing or eliminating prejudices and biases. (p. 74)

Non-association with Covenant-breakers

WRITINGS OF BAHA'U'LLAH

1. "Protect yourselves with utmost vigilance, lest you be entrapped in the snare of deception and fraud." This is the advice of the Pen of Destiny. "Therefore, to avoid these people will be the nearest path by which to attain the divine good pleasure; because their breath is infectious, like unto poison."

"Endeavor to your utmost to protect yourselves, because Satan appears in different robes and appeals to everyone according to each person's own way, until he becomes like unto him -- then he will leave him alone."
"...If you detect in any man the least perceptible breath of violation, shun him and keep away from him." Then He says: "Verily, they are manifestations of Satan."
      (Bahá'í World Faith, p. 431)

WRITINGS OF ABDU'L-BAHA

2. Bahá'u'lláh, in all the Tablets and Epistles, forbade the true and firm friends from associating and meeting the violators of the Covenant of His Holiness, the Báb, saying that no one should go near them because their breath is like the poison of the snake that kills instantly.
         (Bahá'í World Faith, p. 430)
3. And now, one of the greatest and most fundamental principles of the Cause of God is to shun and avoid entirely the Covenant-breakers, for they will utterly destroy the Cause of God, exterminate His Law and render of no account all efforts exerted in the past.
         (Bahá'í World Faith, p. 448)
4. My object is to show that the Hands of the Cause of God must be ever watchful and so soon as they find anyone beginning to oppose and protest against the guardian of the Cause of God, cast him out from the congregation of the people of Bahá and in no wise accept any excuse from him. How often hath grievous error been disguised in the garb of truth, that it might sow the seeds of doubt in the hearts of men!
         (Will and Testament of Abdu'l-Bahá, p. 12)
   
   

EXTRACTS FROM THE WRITING OF SHOGHI EFFENDI AND LETTERS ON HIS BEHALF

5.       With regard to avoiding association with declared Covenant-breakers, Shoghi Effendi says that this does not mean that if one or more of these attends a non-Bahá'í meeting any Bahá'ís present should feel compelled to leave the meeting or to refuse to take part in the meeting, especially if that part has been pre-arranged. Also if in the course of some business transaction it should become necessary to negotiate with one of these people, in order to clear up the business, that is permissible, provided the association is confined to the matter of the business in hand. It is different if one of these people should come to a Bahá'í meeting. Then it would become necessity to ask him in a most tactful and dignified way to leave the meeting as Bahá'ís are forbidden to associate with him.
         (From a letter dated 16 May 1925 written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer)
6.       You must of course send Avarih (a Covenant-breaker) his title deed through the Qamsar Local Spiritual Assembly, as it is his right. The friends must have full regard for his rights inasmuch as civil rights have no relation whatsoever to the beliefs of individuals. The Bahá'ís must be free and sanctified from religious prejudice and from ignorant fanaticism.
         (From a letter to a Local Spiritual Assembly dated 15 February 1929 -- Translated from the Persian)
7.       Regarding Mr....'s question about the Covenant-breakers: Bahá'u'lláh and the Master in many places and very emphatically have told us to shun entirely all Covenant-breakers as they are afflicted with what we might try and define as a contagious spiritual disease; they have also told us, however, to pray for them. These souls are not lost forever. In the "Aqdas", Bahá'u'lláh says that God will forgive Mirza Yahya if he repents. It follows therefore that God will forgive any soul if he repents. Most of them don't want to repent, unfortunately. If the leaders can be forgiven it goes without saying that their followers can also be forgiven....Also, it has nothing to do with unity in the Cause; if a man cuts a cancer out of his body to preserve his health and very life, no one would suggest that for the sake of "unity" it should be reintroduced into the otherwise healthy organism! On the contrary, what was once a part of him has so radically changed as to have become a poison.
         (From a letter dated 30 November 1944 written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer)
8.       There is no excuse for believers continuing to associate with ... and those who, knowing everything, still insist on doing so, should be shunned by their fellow-Bahá'ís. The same applies to people who have left the Cause and associate with ... The point is that if the believers know and meet with people who are acquainted with Covenant-breakers there is no harm in this, for such individuals are not Bahá'ís and have nothing to do with the issues concerned. But those who have left the Cause, knowing all about such matters, and deliberately associate with Covenant-breakers, are well aware of what they do, and we must not associate with them at all. It is for the Local Assembly, guided by the National Spiritual Assembly, to enforce such decisions and the Cause in its area of jurisdiction.
   
         The friends should, without too much dwelling on these negative things, be made to understand that some people are spiritually sick and that their disease is, alas, contagious. Some recover from it, as did ... whose heart could not rest till he returned to the fold; others do not. The Master and Bahá'u'lláh have taught us that associating with these souls is not likely to heal them at all, but on the contrary exposes one to grave danger of contagion. The history of the Faith has proved this over and over again.
   
         The only way we can prove to such people that they are wrong is to censure their conduct; if we sympathize with them we only fortify their perversity and waywardness.
         (From a letter dated 23 January 1945 written on behalf of the Guardian to individual believer)
9.       It is better not to read books by Covenant-breakers because they are haters of the Light, sufferers from a spiritual leprosy, so to speak. But books by well-meaning yet unenlightened enemies of the Cause can be read so as to refute their charges.
         (From a letter dated 19 March 1946 written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer)
10.       He is very happy to know your dear sister is now happier, and more like her old self and the dark thoughts she had have been dispelled. Covenant-breaking is truly a spiritual disease, and the whole viewpoint and attitude of a Covenant-breaker is so poisonous that the Master likened it to leprosy, and warned the friends to breathe the same air was dangerous. This should not be taken literally; He meant when you are close enough to breathe the same air you are close enough to contact their corrupting influence. Your sister should never imagine she, loyal and devoted, has become a "carrier".
          (From a letter dated 29 July 1946 written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer)
11. He noted the report of ... about her meeting with the grandchild of Subh-i Azal. He feels that the friends should as much as possible avoid her, as it is very unlikely she has anything but prejudice against Bahá'u'lláh, in view of her background.
          (From a letter dated 24 October 1947 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
12. No intelligent and loyal Bahá'í would associate with a descendant of Azal, if he traced the slightest breath of criticism of our Faith, in any aspect, from that person. In fact these people should be strenuously avoided as having an inherited spiritual disease -- the disease of Covenant-breaking! Certainly such matters should be brought to the attention of the Assembly or National Spiritual Assembly within whose jurisdiction they occur.
          (From letter dated 9 December 1948 to an individual believer)
13. Whenever we find a person who opposes some fundamental of our Faith, such as the Institution of the Guardianship, we must first be sure this is not due to ignorance or lack of proper training, before we take action. We must not suppose immediately that that person is necessarily tainted by the spirit of Covenant-breakers. If, however, this should prove to be the case, then strong action must be taken by the Assembly.
          (From a letter date 24 June 1948 written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer)
14. The friends are sometimes surprisingly naive and superficial in their approach to the subject of Covenant-breakers. They do not seem to understand that the descendants of Azal, with their mother's milk, drank hatred of Bahá'u'lláh, just as the descendants of Muhammad-Ali and his relatives have imbibed from babyhood a false concept of the Master. It takes practically a miracle to overcome this lifelong habit of wrong thought. Now, however, he has told the German believers to shun her.
          (From a letter dated 18 August 1949 written on behalf of the Guardian to a National Spiritual Assembly)
15. A Covenant-breaker, as you know, is one who disobeys and turns away from the Centre of the Covenant. Until such time as they repent of this sincerely, and express their willingness to work under the Centre of the Covenant, their status must be considered the same. However, such matter should be discussed and decided upon within the National Spiritual Assembly itself.
          (From a letter dated 16 March 1953 written on behalf of the Guardian to an individual believer)
    
    

EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS AND MESSAGES OF THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE

16. ...children of Covenant-breakers, who have grown up with and still associate with their parents, are probably thoroughly infused with the Covenant-breaking spirit, and the friends must not associate with them until the Hands of the Cause have ascertained that these children have understood the sin of their parents and dissociated themselves from them.
          (From letter dated 5 February 1969 to an individual believer)
17. It should be explained that descendants of Covenant-breakers who have not positively repudiated their forebears and sought readmittance to the Cause should be viewed with caution as they may well have received the poison of Covenant-breaking from their parents and would then have to be shunned by the friends.
          (From memorandum to the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land dated 2 December 1971)
18. The danger of meeting with children of Covenant-breakers is that even although they may never have been declared Bahá'ís there is always the likelihood that they have been strongly indoctrinated by their parents with the poison of Covenant-breaking.
          (From a letter dated 9 June 1974 to an individual believer)
19.       The Bahá'í students who go to schools which children of Covenant-breakers attend should be made, lovingly and wisely, to understand that as Bahá'ís they cannot and must not choose children of Covenant-breakers as their personal friends, without making the matter into an open issue before the school. Thus, there should be no hard and fast rule to the effect that no Bahá'í child should be enrolled in a school where children of Covenant-breakers are also enrolled, or that they should leave a school as soon as a child of a Covenant-breaker enters it. The important thing is to impress upon Bahá'í children that personal friendship and individual companionship with children of Covenant- breakers must be avoided. Should it be found that in a particular case the situation is such that the policy outlined above cannot be followed, then in such cases, which we hope can be kept to a minimum, it would be desirable for Bahá'í children to change schools.
          (From a memorandum dated 22 January 1976 to the International Teaching Centre)
20.       YOUR REPORT FICICCHIA RECEIVED STOP IF COVENANT-BREAKER ATTENDS PUBLIC MEETINGS HE SHOULD BE TREATED BY SPEAKER IN WISE MANNER SUCH AS USED BY DR. ... STOP BAHAIS OTHER THAN CHAIRMAN AND SPEAKER SHOULD AVOID CONVERSATION WITH HIM STOP SITUATION ILLUSTRATES VITAL IMPORTANCE DEEPENING COVENANT ALL BELIEVERS STOP
    (Telegram dated 23 February 1976 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
21.       In reply to your letter of April 19, 1977, enquiring whether ... may receive financial assistance from her Covenant-breaking father, we are instructed by the House of Justice to say that it feels, in the circumstances set forth in your letter, that it would be inadvisable for ... to accept such financial assistance.
          (From a letter dated 4 May 1977 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
22. The Universal House of Justice has requested us to acknowledge your letter of 17 January 1978 and to say that ... need not feel guilty about selling items from her shop to Mr...., or engaging, as your Assembly states, in "distant business conversation" with him, should he call again at her shop.
          (From a letter dated 14 February 1978 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
    
    

EXTRACTS REGARDING ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION WITH COVENANT-BREAKERS

23. Regarding your concerns about Covenant-breakers participating in and posting material to the "Bahá'í Forum" on America Online (AOL), you should, of course, scrupulously and impartially uphold the rules of AOL's "Religion and Beliefs" area. You may warn the friends about interaction with Covenant-breakers if you feel it to be appropriate and if you can do so without violating the impartiality that you, as Forum manager, must demonstrate.
    
    With respect to your concerns about your own contact with Covenant-breakers, you should feel no trepidation at having to interact with them in his particular situation and, if necessary, to read their postings. It is suggested, however, that your contact with them be kept to a minimum, as strictly required by your obligations as Forum manager. You will want to resist any temptation to be drawn into discussions or consideration of the arguments which they may advance.

(From a letter dated 28 May 1998 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)

24. More generally, while it is disconcerting that Covenant-breaker material is being disseminated on the Internet, there is little that can or should be done to directly oppose such dissemination. Rather, the greatest protection to the Cause will be through ongoing deepening of the Bahá'í community in the Covenant and the history and teachings of the Faith. An important role that the Internet can play in this regard is to make authentic Bahá'í literature, on the Covenant and on Bahá'í teachings generally, easily available.

(From a letter dated 19 December 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)

25. The House of Justice feels that, when Bahá'ís are teaching in an online "chat room" and Covenant-breakers intrude upon the discussion, the friends should not feel obliged to sign off simply because Covenant-breakers are present in this virtual space. They should, however, refrain from knowingly engaging the Covenant-breakers in discussions and, in any case, should avoid being drawn into contentious or disputatious situations.

(From a letter dated 27 October 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)

26. The Universal House of Justice has received your email message of 29 September 1997 regarding the Covenant-breaking material sent to your personal email account.
    
    The House of Justice is aware of such activities on the part of Covenant-breakers, and while it is closely following this issue, it sees no cause for undue concern. The friends should, of course, ignore any materials produced by Covenant-breakers which they may receive unsolicited by email or happen on while exploring the World Wide Web. With regard to your concerns over the content of the message, you are advised to turn to your Local Spiritual Assembly or an Auxiliary Board member for assistance in dealing with the spurious claims advanced in that message.
    
    The best countermeasure to Covenant-breaker initiatives and the greatest protection for the Cause is for the believers to acquire a deeper appreciation of the station and purpose of Bahá'u'lláh and to become well-grounded in His Covenant.

(From a letter dated 7 October 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)

27. In principle, no person can be considered a Covenant-breaker unless he has been so designated by the Head of the Faith. However, it is strongly advised not to associate with those who have fallen under the pernicious influence of groups such as the "Orthodox Bahá'ís". They are infected with the spirit of Covenant-breaking, even if they are not all designated as such. Accordingly, the friends should not answer queries from individuals who obviously seek to draw them into the consideration of the spurious claims and logic of the Covenant-breakers.

(From a letter dated 3 July 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)

28. Your faxed message dated 14 May 1997, requesting guidance concerning the attention given by the friends to postings by Covenant-breakers on the Internet, was received by the Universal House of Justice and referred to our Department for reply. The House of Justice is aware of the electronic postings on the Internet by Covenant-breakers. While it is closely following this issue, it sees no cause for undue concern. "The Bahá'í World", a Web site developed by the Bahá'í International Community's Office of Public Information, was launched in July 1996. It, together with a range of specialized Bahá'í Internet presentations such as the new "One Country" site, now provides individuals interested in learning about the Bahá'í Faith with a large and ever-expanding body of authentic material on the Faith, attractively presented and illustrated. Sites maintained by Covenant-breaker groups will have a diminishing impact in the context of the information deluge on the Internet and against the background of the authorized Bahá'í source now accessible.
    
    The greatest protection to the Cause will, of course, be through ongoing deepening of the Bahá'í community in the Covenant and the history and teachings of the Faith. To facilitate this, you may wish to bring attention to the availability of the Sacred Text on the Web site "The Bahá'í World" and on the Bahá'í World Centre FTP server.

(From a letter dated 4 June 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly)

29. Your email of 11 April 1997 regarding contact through the Internet between the friends and Covenant-breaker groups has been received by the Universal House of Justice. It is not possible to provide you with a list of Internet addresses of Covenant-breaker groups as you have requested, as no such listing is being maintained at the Bahá'í World Centre at this time.
    
    Any plans that you have to alert the friends to Covenant-breaker activity on the Internet should, of course, be undertaken with wisdom and discretion so as to avoid giving Covenant-breakers more attention or prominence than they would otherwise receive.

(From a letter dated 4 May 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly)

30. Thus, if any participant in an email discussion feels that a view put forward appears to contradict or undermine the provisions of the Covenant, he should be free to say so, explaining candidly and courteously why he feels as he does. The person who made the initial statement will then be able to re-evaluate his opinion and, if he still believes it to be valid, he should be able to explain why it is not contrary to either the letter or the spirit of the Covenant. The participants in such a discussion should avoid disputation and, if they are unable to resolve an issue, they should refer the point to the Universal House of Justice since, in accordance with the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, "By this body all the difficult problems are to be resolved..." and it has the authority to decide upon "all problems which have caused difference, questions that are obscure, and matters that are not expressly recorded in the Book." In this way the Covenant can illuminate and temper the discourse and make it fruitful.

(From a letter dated 16 February 1996 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)

31. There is an ever increasing use by believers of the Internet and other available computer based means of communication. These open unlimited possibilities for continuous proclamation and teaching, bringing the Creative Word and the Sacred Writings as well as the ideas of individual believers to hearts and mind everywhere. It also offers easy access to these same believers by those whose purpose is to undermine their faith. By being constantly alert we are able to encourage the use of this medium by the friends while ensuring their protection from those who would prey on them.

(From a letter dated 11 May 1995 written by the International Teaching Centre to a Continental Counsellor)

32. Participation by enemies of the Faith or members of Covenant-breaker groups may, indeed, occur in the dialogue on electronic forums. It is not advisable for the institutions of the Faith or its individual members to become directly involved in such discussion. It is neither wise nor possible to interfere with postings on public forums, but if it is observed that such activity is taking place on Bahá'í-only forums National Assemblies should be alerted so that they may provide appropriate advice to the administrator of the forum. The greatest protection to the Faith will not be through intervention on either open or closed electronic forums, but through ongoing deepening of the Bahá'í community in the Covenant and the history and Teachings of the Faith.

(From a letter dated 24 February 1995 written by the International Teaching Centre to a Continental Board of Counsellors)