26th Annual Conference
Towards a Spiritual Civilization: Spirit into Action

The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh is destined to produce, as Shoghi Effendi wrote, “the flowering of a civilization, divinely inspired, unique in its features, world-embracing in its scope, and fundamentally spiritual in its character.” But what are the connections, both conceptual and practical, between spiritual insight and a spiritualized society? How does spirit find embodiment in action?  How is capacity for action encouraged, developed, and channeled?

The 26th Annual Conference of the Association for Bahá'í Studies-North America is the second in a series to focus on the creation of a spiritual civilization. The subtheme “Spirit into Action” emphasizes the multiplicity of ways in which knowledge, insight into God’s Creative Word, artistic inspiration, individual transformation, and understanding of spiritual principle are related to visible action for social change and progress. In the Bahá’í system, education at all levels is central to this process. Science is the companion of religious insight, as they mutually support and discipline each other.  Basic assumptions and approaches in fields such as economics, political science, education, religious studies, medicine, law, and international relations all must shift and develop in new directions if they are to contribute to solving modern problems in accordance with spiritual principle. New developments in disciplines including psychology and sociology are beginning to shed more light on aspects of individual transformation and on community building that can only be described as “spiritual.”

Presenters from every field, discipline, and profession are invited to analyze these topics in relationship to their own area of specialization, to explore their role as contributors to and participants in the creation of spiritual civilization, and to examine the ways in which the Bahá’í teachings illuminate their object of study, as well as how knowledge generated in these fields of endeavor can contribute to the understanding and advancement of these processes.

In addition to all of the broad fields mentioned above, specific topics for which presenters are sought include: participatory action research, including its application within the Bahá’í community; individual and collective capacity-building; the processes of systematic and spiritual planning; advancing learning within the Bahá'í community; aspects of the “visible Order” of Bahá’u’lláh – His laws, principles, institutions, and economic precepts; new avenues for collaboration between theoreticians and practitioners in various fields; work in such fields as human rights, the advancement of women, moral development, racial and religious unity, and human prosperity that is of particular value in Bahá’í external affairs work and in advancing global processes of transformation.