От: Roland St-Onge [roland@netrover.com]
Отправлено:
понедельник 12 февраля 2001 8:05
Кому:
bahai-spiritual-development@egroups.com
Тема: [Bahб'н Spirit] Fw:
Moving & historic journeys to Haifa
Hello Dear Friends,
I know
that many of you are also on Baha'i Discuss, but those who are not, I had to
send you that story, I just couldn't help it! I was so enlighten when I read it,
it was a must for me to share that feeling with other
Baha'is.
Roland
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mike M."
<m9@interlog.com>
To: "Baha'i Discuss"
<Bahai-Discuss@BCCA.Org>
Sent: Sunday, February 11, 2001 8:47
PM
Subject: Fw: Moving & historic journeys to Haifa
>
Below: part of a forwarded account by Susan Sheper,
> an Auxiliary Board
member in Kinshasa, Democratic
> Republic of Congo (DRC), describing the
emotional
> impact of, and incidents from, the recent meeting
> of
the Universal House of Justice with Councillors
> and Auxiliary Board
members. Mike
The 5 people from the east of Congo were traveling only
with travel documents and there was some hesitation about whether or not they
could let them in to the country with no passports. Finally the immigration
officer said "well you know, if it iswith the Baha'is then there isn't any
problem".
Instructions were then given to all the immigration officers to
facilitate the Baha'is entry. There was some World Centre staff waiting to
welcome us on the other side of immigration. They said that the grass on the
slopes of Mount Carmel was vibrating in anticipation of our arrival.
Our
first destination in Israel was Netanya where we had to spend 2 nights before
heading to Haifa. The look of sheer delight on the faces of Papa Lomo (a 76 year
old man from Mbandaka) and Iwassa Bolinga (from Boende - a small town in the
middle of the Equateurian forest) as they sat in the front seats of the bus that
took us up the freeway from Tel Aviv to Netanya was worth a thousand words.
They, of course had never been on a vehicle even remotely resembling the tour
bus we were on and had certainly never seen a road like the one we were
travelling on. So many of them commented "we have left the world we know and we
are in a different world".
Once in our hotel in Netanya, our group
decided to meet in the lobby at 8pm to go out to find some dinner. I thought
that at least for the first time, I'd better help them out since they had no
idea how to find a restaurant and how or what to order.
We all went to
drop our things in our rooms and at 8 o'clock we were in the lobby - all except
Mpulondo. We waited a little while, then I called up to his room. The phone rang
a few times, then there was a hesitant hello (he had never used a phone before).
I asked him if he was planning to join us since we were all gathered in the
lobby and ready to go and eat. He said "Madame, I made a mistake". "What's the
matter?" I asked. Mpulondo replied, "I forgot to ask you how to use the
elevator. I'm stuck up here in my room and I have no idea how to get down." At
that I said "Wait there, I'm coming to get you."
I found the poor
fellow, an Auxiliary Board member, Director of the Provincial Institute,
standing helplessly in the hall staring at the elevator, a look of
exasperation on his face. One quick lesson, and he was his own man again. But it
really opened my eyes to how much we take for granted.
On the streets of
Netanya we were wooed by the restaurant owners who hadn't seen any
tourists for some time because of the recent trouble in Israel. Netanya itself
had been the victim of a series of bombings only days before our arrival.
We settled on felafels (Middle eastern sandwich containing fried
chick pea balls) which quickly got renamed by the Congolese who are always
quick to make a joke and especially when it means a play on words. So felafel
became "faire l'affaire" because felafels fell well within their daily food
budget.
Sunday was a free day which I think for our group was a bounty
and a chance to get at least a little bit acclimatised to this new world. It was
fortunate that we arrived in Israel a couple of days early, because had we gone
straight to Haifa, the sight of the World Centre may just have been too
much.
Breakfast at the hotel that day, for anyone who was not a Baha'i,
must have been quite an experience. The restaurant was full of Africans, most
quite unsure of what it was that they were eating - but that did not stop them
from eating A LOT!!
More people arrived throughout the day: Marshall
Islands, New Caledonia, St. Martin, Haiti, New Zealand, Australia. It was only
possible to understand the love that immediately existed between all these
people in the light of Baha'u'llah's message.
A large group of french
speaking Central Africans gathered in the afternoon to practice singing a song
called "Prisonier d'Akka" (The Prisoner of Akka). Being African does not mean
you CAN sing, it only means you LIKE to sing--and Prisonier d'Akka never sounded
worse -but boy we were having fun. We certainly wern't named to the Auxiliary
Board because of our voices and we proved it that afternoon!
January 8,
2001. Noon took ages to arrive. That was the time the bus was to come to take us
to Haifa. The buses were organised by hotel, so we were all split up at that
point since we were all staying at different hotels. Laetitia and I arrived at
the Beth Shalom hotel where there was a World Centre volonteer there waiting for
our bus. Everything was, of course, perfectly organised. Special personalised
briefcases were waiting for us full of Conference information, a pad of writing
paper, a gift of photos of the Holy Places and even a pen inscribed with the
name of the Conference!! I was overwhelmed!! I can't even imagine what Papa Lomo
was thinking!
Laetitia and I quickly dumped our baggage in our room and
headed straight for the Pilgrim House. From there to the Shrine of the Bab,
walking through what the Beloved Guardian had purposed as preparatory gardens
for entry into the Holy precincts. It is not of this world and yet it is
fundamental to this world and everything that happens in it. I found myself
asking, how could I have the bounty of being here AGAIN! This Place. This Holy
of Holies. I felt like a child who had eaten his fill and was now stuffing his
pockets with extra candy. It was bounty upon bounty being there with my
Congolese friends.
Back in the pilgrim house, it was still very difficult
to assimilate that all these people were Auxiliary Board Members. Of course the
number and variety was staggering. A group of us including Congolese, Tongans,
Sai Panese and South
Africans all went out for felafels together. We felt we
had known each other for years.
For the next 5 days we were all divided
into groups of about 25 and treated to a mini-pilgrimage which included visits
to the Prison in Akka, the House of Abbud, the House of Abdu'llah Pasha, the
upper terraces, the Centre for the Study of the Holy Texts, the new visitor
information centre (for visiting dignitaries, study groups and journalists) The
Archives building, The House of the Master, The Seat of the Universal House of
Justice and on the final day, Bahji and the Shrine of Baha'u'llah.
It
felt very right that we started at the prison and finished at Bahji, that
majestic Palace worthy of housing the King of the Worlds. At the prison, we
stood across from the window of the cell of Baha'u'llah. There was a tearful and
reverent attitude amongst all of the people in the group. We were also taken
into the courtyard of the prison where the story of Mirza Mihdi's tragic fall
through the skylight was told. The visit to the room in the House of Abbud where
Baha'u'llah revealed the Kitab-i-Aqdas was also very moving; to see the level of
reverence paid by people of every nationality towards that house and especially
that room.
Our group had 7 people from the D.R.Congo and the commentary
was in English so I was on tap for simultaneous translation. This continued
throughout our visits. One of the remarkable things about the arranged visits to
the Holy Places was the organisation of the groups. On pilgrimage, you are in
one group of the same people from the beginning to the end of the pilgrimage. On
this special visit, the organisers had arranged mini groups (ours, for example
was 7 people from Congo) who were with a different larger group each day, so
that we all had exposure to as many different people and nationalities as
possible. For example, the first day, we were with some Canadians, Tongans,
Croatians and Germans. The second day, people from Haiti, New Caledonia,
Albania, Turkey and Mongolia. And so on, each day, a new group. We were all
amazed at how smoothly this experiment in diversity worked!
The next day
we started at the top of the terraces for the descent to the base of the arc,
where we were to cross over to the Centre for the Study of the Holy Texts. The
terraces are exquisite beyond description. The flowing lines, the gurgling
water, the vivid and multiple colours, the perfume of the flowers combined with
the spectacular view of the Bay of Haifa looking straight toward Bahji create a
atmosphere of heightened spirituality suitable to it's position on the Mountain
of God. On those terraces, everywhere one looks, there is perfection. All one
hears is the falling water and birds rejoicing. Every Terrace offers a different
view of the Shrine of the Bab and the Arc.
We walked down as far as the
Archives building then back up from behind it and over to the Centre for the
Study of the Texts for a brief tour. The friends were awed by the perfection of
design and construction of this beautiful building. We were then led back down
to the Visitor's information centre which is located under the Hatzionut bridge.
Walking in, one is overwhelmed by the dignity of the place. One is met in the
entrance hall by a hologram of a turning globe projected on to a large slab of
glass upon which is engraved "The earth is but one country and mankind its
citizens", so the principle teaching of Baha'u'llah confronts people in a very
powerful way as soon as they enter the building. In the ajacent reception
rotunda, the words "Your Lord cherishes in His heart the desire to behold
humanity as one body and one soul" are inscribed around the base of the ceiling.
the rest of the rooms in the complex are dedicated to exhibitions outlining the
life and teachings of Baha'u'llah.
Returning towards the Shrine of the
Bab, I ran into one of the Baha'is from Congo. He was literally speechless. He
could not find any words to say how he was feeling. It was a moving
encounter.
I am now going to skip to January 14, the day that we climbed
from the bottom of the terraces up to the Shrine of the Bab. If I give the
details of all the days, this will just get too long. This day, January 14, was
for me, probably the highlight. The bus took us to the base of the mountain and
we were told that photography would not be permitted and that we were requested
to climb the mountain in silence and a reverent attitude. I was so grateful for
this. Taking pictures and having pictures taken all around you really takes away
from the experience (I can say this very objectively because I am a
photographer).
At the base of the terraces, we were greeted by a member
of the World Centre staff who reminded us of Baha'u'llah's Tablet of Carmel and
also what Baha'u'llah said about the terraces - that this was the avenue of the
Kings and rulers of the earth and that they would ascend and circumambulate the
Shrine of the Bab. He then said in a very significant way that the House of
Justice had decided that we should be the first to ascend those terraces. I was
doing simultaneous translation at the time and was just thinking that it was
difficult to translate and feel the full significance of the Words at the same
time, when suddenly, the full significance of the Words hit me square in the
heart, and I was unable to continue translating for the rest of the talk. I was
suddenly overwhelmed by the whole event, by it's historical nature, by the love
of the Universal House of Justice and the incredible gift It had given us to be
there. I cannot explain the emotion that overtook me so unexpectedly and was
grateful for Laetitia's hand which held mine and helped me to keep my balance
as
we climbed the terraces - black and white, south and north together - up
to the Shrine of the Bab.
We circumambulated the Shrine in a slow,
reverent, highly diverse and highly unified circle of humanity, and then
continued up over Terrace 11, which is the Hatzionut bridge. (I say bridge,
because it is structurally a bridge over Hatzionut Avenue, it is also the bridge
that links the lower terraces and the Shrine of the Bab to the upper terraces.
But when you are on Terrace 11, there is no sense whatever of being on a bridge.
You are in a garden, a park of outstanding beauty and perfection - and peace) I
slowly regained my equilibrium as we walked across the Arc and joined the
gathering crowd that was standing in line to enter the Intenational Teaching
Centre Building for a historical tour.
The building is, of course,
exquisite. There is a 9-pointed star skylight in the main concourse which
introduces a sparkling play of light on the walls and floor below. We were led
into the Council Chamber of the International Teaching Centre - I think everyone
was very much aware that this was where our "Boss" made its decisions and that
the directives that we as Auxiliary Board members receive come from the wise and
loving circle of people who sit around the beautiful round mahogany table that
was in front of us. The windows give a spectacular view of the Shrine of the Bab
and the Arc with the azure blue Mediterranean sea as a backdrop. The room is
presided over by a beautiful colour portrait of Abdu'l-Baha. Our tour continued
to the library, an exquisite wood panelled room leading out on to an upper
balcony overlooking the Arc, then on to a multipurpose room, the communications
nerve centre of the ITC, and a beautiful 390 seat auditorium. Everything was the
essence of dignity and perfection.
We were led back down to a lower floor
(there are 9 of them!! only 2 of which are visible from the outside) where we
were told we would receive refreshments. I was again moved by an inexplicable
emotion as we entered a large dining area filled with row upon row of tables,
all set with plates, cups and saucers. Plates of home-made cakes and cookies
filled the centre of the tables. Teams of people were busily serving coffee and
tea to those seated and clearing and re-setting the tables as the diners left.
The people serving were accountants, translators, communications experts,
electrical engineers, secretaries and so on. I was so touched by the love
expressed in that gesture of serving refreshments (to 1000 people) and the
dignity in which it was done that I found myself having difficulty eating
anything.
When we finished eating, we were ushered to yet another part
of the building where an exhibition honouring the Hands of the Cause had been
installed. It was very personal and offered a glimpse into the diversity of the
people who were named Hands and the one thing that they all had in common -
their devotion and service to the Faith.
The afternoon was dedicated to a
Devotional programme hosted by the Universal House of Justice in the main
concourse of It's seat, in which a message by the House to the Conference was
read, outlining the three major areas of focus for the upcoming 5 year plan: the
further development of Training Insitutes, Systematic growth and Individual
Initiative. The prayers and readings were in English, Persian, French, Kannada
(an Indian language) Spanish and Russian. The final part of the devotionals
required us all to gather on the steps of the Seat of the Universal House of
Justice facing the golden-lit Shrine of the Bab. There, in the twilight, Hand of
the Cause of God, Mr. Ali Akbar Furutan chanted the Tablet of Visitation in
Arabic and Mr. Glenford Mitchell (member of the Universal House of Justice) said
it in English. It was the perfect end to a perfect day.
I walked back
across the Arc, past the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, the Centre for
the Study of the Holy Texts and cross back behind the Archives building to get
to the Hatzionut Bridge terrace in order to cross over to the Shrine of the Bab.
What my eyes saw that evening, under a perfect deep indigo velvet sky with stars
sparkling like diamonds and the moon shining down in a smile upon the floodlit
Shrine surrounded by lamps dotting the gardens - this is one of the images that
I find I am trying to hold on to. I never want it to fade - a beauty so perfect,
so peaceful, so full of promise - why does the rest of the world not see? And
when one knows the suffering and the toil that went into creating what is before
our eyes today, initiated by a Prisoner, on a mountain of solid rock, in a
desert climate, in a country torn apart by war, is this not proof enough that we
are capable of anything? World peace, the unity of mankind, a world parliament,
all these things ARE inevitable.
The next two days were dedicated to the
joint conference of the Counsellors and Auxiliary Board members, presided over
by the Universal House of Justice and the International Teaching Centre. After
initial addresses, the floor was opened to the participants. Of course, the
organisation was perfect. Everyone who wanted to speak had 3 minutes and
simultaneous translation was done through headphones. People from every corner
on earth shared their experiences: Tanzania, Equador, Haiti, Russia, Australia,
Uganda, Philipines, Liberia, Fiji, Canada, Albania, Guinea, Mongolia and so on
and so on. What I found most wonderful about these consultations was that
everyone had had different experiences, but we all spoke the same language (this
expression works better in French "on parle les langues differentes mais
on parle tous le mкme langage") In other words, since we were all Auxiliary
Board members, every one of us was somehow involved in the Institute process,
many of us intimately, we all encourage individual initiative in teaching and
are working to systematize our teaching efforts. So even though we came from the
farthest reaches of the earth and our individual experiences differed, our
overall experience and understanding was united.
There were 2 refreshment
breaks and a lunch break each day and I mention them because they were so
extraordinary in their efficiency. We had 45 minutes for the refreshment break
in which 1000 people were served at several tables behind the Seat of the
Universal House of Justice with coffee, tea, juice and homemade! cookies and
cakes. And when the 45 minutes were up, all 1000 people were back in their seats
and the programme started again! ON TIME. For lunch we had an hour and a half.
And in that time, all 1000 people walked over to the International Teaching
Centre building, found places already set with their food in front of them, ate
their sandwiches (made by World Centre volunteers) and oranges, drank their
water and juice, and got back to their seats in the concourse ON TIME. What a
lesson in discipline and WILL. No one wanted to be late - so no one was
late!
The last day of the conference was special because we broke up into
Continental conferences. Africa was in the Multi - Purpose room of the Seat of
the Universal House of Justice. And since it was the African continent, our
procedings started with song. I don't think the Seat has ever felt such energy!
I was soooo grateful to be a part of the African group. The room was not only
vibrating - it was jumping! That day was also special for us Congolese because
when it came time for lunch, when everyone else was going off to the
International Teaching Centre building, we (we were now 21) were invited to have
lunch in the lunch room of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice with our 4
Counsellors (Congo is so complicated and so large that we need 4 Counsellors)
plus Joany Lincoln and Firaydoun Javaheri from the International Teaching Centre
and the host of our lunch, Mr. Ali Nakhjavani.
We were all seated at a
large table and quickly and politely served our lunch by a group of at least 5
servers. We all sat there almost too stunned to eat. When we finished, the
tables were quickly cleared and Mr. Nakhjavani spoke to us in French. He spoke
about the suffering of the Congolese people which dated back to the beginning of
the time of the Belgians, how that suffering continued under Mobutu and how it
continues today with the war that is tearing our country apart. He said that he
felt, the main reason Congolese were so receptive to the Faith was because of
their suffering. He also predicted that the present situation would not continue
for a long time. Maybe 2 years or less. And things would start to get better. He
said we must be prepared to take advantage of the better times to come to help
Congo launch itself back into the forefront of the African Baha'i community - as
it was in the past. We all found it very curious that while we were in the
Shrines praying for peace in our country (one evening we all gathered at the
Shrine of the Bab to pray together), and while Mr. Nakhjavani was
predicting an end to the present misery, such a drastic change should be
happening back in Kinshasa, with the assasination of the president. More on that
later.
The conference ended with an address to the Baha'is of the World
by the Universal House of Justice, in which It announced to a cheering, crying
representation of humanity that the Baha'i Faith had entered into the fifth
epoch of the Formative Age. The lightbulbs in the room needed no electricity -
such was the energy created by that announcement. The realisation that we were
all there at that moment of history - making history - was truly overwhelming.
After devotions, everyone filed out of the Seat congratulating each
other on the new epoch. There was such a celebratory air. I received a report
later from a World centre staff that that evening, there was a beautiful rainbow
over the Bay of Haifa!!
Everyone tried to hold on to those last moments.
Each of us painfully aware that it was coming to a close. Many of us spent some
last precious moments in the Shrines before heading back to our hotels to pack
and wait for our busses. It was hard to say goodbye to that Place, but something
told me that I would never really leave. I know I belong there. My heart lives
there. It is Home.
I found Laetitia already back in our room well into
packing. We caught the bus at the prescribed time, then someone said to us "have
you been following the news?" (the world could have stopped turning for all I
was following the news for the last 9 days) Then He said "President Kabila has
been shot and is probably dead". We were on such a high, that even that
news had little impact. My immediate concern was about getting to my family, but
somehow I didn't feel worried or frightened.
As we got to the airport in
Tel Aviv, more reports were coming in and it became obvious that the airport in
Kinshasa was closed. Arriving in Addis Ababa, we tried to find out what was
going on, but reports were confused. The next morning, we were told that the
flight was on and we would be catching the bus for the airport as planned. Then
after breakfast, I got a call from Ethiopian airways saying that there would not
be a flight to Kinshasa.
At this time the Congo friends were all
gathering in one of our rooms for prayers for the country. I told them the news
and said that I was trying to find out what arrangements were being made for us.
They continued to pray. It was again confirmed that the flight had been
cancelled and then, just as the prayer meeting was breaking up, the supervisor
came back on the line and said "the flight has been reinstated - you should go
to the airport immediately".
We managed to find everyone and got to the
airport in time for the flight. We arrived in Kinshasa where everything was very
calm and seemingly very normal. We 21 who had just experienced miracles in the
Holy Land felt convinced that our prayers there had been listened to, in a way
that we would never have expected.
.....
Susan
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