The “pulsating heartbeat” of each cycle
The impulse to learn through action is, of course, present among
the friends from the very start. The introduction of quarterly cycles of
activity capitalizes on this emerging capacity and allows it to be steadily
reinforced. Although this capacity is specifically associated with the
reflection and planning phase of a cycle, especially the reflection gathering
that regulates its pulsating heartbeat, it also comes to be exercised at all
other points of the cycle by those pursuing related lines of action. We note
that, as learning accelerates, the friends grow more capable of overcoming
setbacks, whether small or large—diagnosing their root causes, exploring the
underlying principles, bringing to bear relevant experience, identifying
remedial steps, and assessing progress, until the process of growth has been
fully reinvigorated. (The Universal
House of Justice, Dec. 29, 2015)
Unifying thought and action
Reflection meetings at the level of clusters have become a
powerful means of unifying thought and action across institutions and
localities; they have lent a potent stimulus to institutional and individual
initiatives in a mutually supportive spirit. (The Universal House of Justice,
Ridvan 2003)
Reaching a consensus on short-term goals
A natural vehicle for multiplying core activities has been
reflection meetings. These meetings at the cluster level have been particularly
effective in well-established areas where an expanding pool of human resources
exists. In such gatherings the institutions and the believers, many of whom are
involved in the institute process, study the relevant Five Year Plan documents,
share experiences, and consult on the achievements and strengths within the
cluster. Avoiding "grandiose and elaborate plans," [29] the friends
reach a consensus on short-term goals which reflect the pledges of individual
initiatives and collective actions that have emerged from the consultation.
These goals are generally incorporated into a calendar of activities that
becomes the framework for the subsequent two-to-three-month period. In many
clusters around the world, how to hold productive and enjoyable reflection
meetings has - - - become an important area for learning. (The International
Teaching Center, ‘Building Momentum’, 2003)
The ability to organize productive and enjoyable reflection
meetings has also been a feature of well-developed clusters. (The International
Teaching Center, ‘Building Momentum’, 2003)
Learning matrix of the clusters
Two observations that are important to the ongoing
prosecution of the Five Year Plan can be made about the experience of working
in clusters. First, reflection meetings have become the learning matrix of the
clusters. These periodic consultations have enabled the believers to
"reflect on issues, consider adjustments, and maintain enthusiasm and
unity of thought. [53] The value of short-term goals is immediately recognized,
as accomplishments and challenges can regularly be evaluated, "obstacles
removed, resources multiplied and lessons learned,' [54] and modifications in
the goals made without losing continuity of action. Flexibility and patience
are encouraged, as essential prerequisites of the learning process. The friends
have begun to appreciate that not all answers can be tied down in advance but
are garnered through experience. In describing this process, the House of
Justice wrote:
Meetings of consultation held at the cluster level serve to
raise awareness of possibilities and generate enthusiasm. Here, free from the
demands of formal decision-making, participants reflect on experience gained,
share insights, explore approaches and acquire a better understanding of how
each can contribute to achieving the aim of the Plan. In many cases, such
interaction leads to consensus on a set of short-term goals, both individual
and collective. Learning in action is becoming the outstanding feature of the
emerging mode of operation. [55] (The International Teaching Center, ‘Building
Momentum’, 2003)
Collective Identity and Will
Reflection meetings at the cluster level are becoming a
forum for the discussion of needs and plans, creating a collective identity and
strengthening the collective will. (The Universal House of Justice, from a
message dated December 27, 2005)
A phase dedicated to reflection
Key to the progress of an intensive programme of growth is
the phase dedicated to reflection, in which the lessons learned in action are
articulated and incorporated into plans for the next cycle of activity. Its
principal feature is the reflection meeting - as much a time of joyous
celebration as it is of serious consultation. Careful analysis of experience,
through participatory discussions rather than overly complex and elaborate
presentations, serves to maintain unity of vision, sharpen clarity of thought
and heighten enthusiasm. Central to such an analysis is the review of vital
statistics that suggest the next set of goals to be adopted. Plans are made
that take into account increased capacity in terms of the human resources
available at the end of the cycle to perform various tasks, on the one hand,
and accumulated knowledge about the receptivity of the population and the
dynamics of teaching, on the other. When human resources increase in a manner
proportionate to the rise in the overall Baha'i population from cycle to cycle,
it is possible not only to sustain but to accelerate growth. (The Universal
House of Justice, from a message dated December 27, 2005)
Monitor progress, maintain unity of thought and mobilize the
energies of the friends
Meetings of reflection will have to be held periodically in
order to monitor progress, maintain unity of thought and mobilize the energies
of the friends. (The Universal House of
Justice, from a message dated December 27, 2005)
Analysis by respective institutions, review and consultation
with friends regarding dynamics of growth
The present Five Year Plan calls for an understanding of how
the diverse elements described in that message come together to create
conditions conducive to the growth of the Faith. In every cluster the
institutions and agencies guiding the process - the Auxiliary Board members and
the institute, together with the Area Teaching Committee - need to examine the
dynamics of growth on a regular basis and analyze the way in which these
elements are working together, in order to identify gaps and determine what
adjustments should be made. The analysis thus achieved must, of course, be the
subject of thorough consultation in a reflection meeting with the generality of
the believers, drawing them into the decision-making process. If there are
insufficient numbers moving through the sequence of institute courses, steps
will need to be taken to overcome this difficulty. If an environment is not
being fostered in which friends with capacity to serve as tutors feel empowered
to accompany others in their initial attempts to carry out acts of service, the
spiritual requisites for the creation of such an environment should be
explored. If those who have completed the courses are not being consistently
mobilized in the field of service, if a growing number of seekers are not being
brought into activities, if receptive populations are not being reached, then
thought must be given as to how to remedy the situation - not once, but over an
extended period of time in which an ongoing process of consultation, action,
and reflection leads to a better and better understanding of how to achieve
sustained growth. Regional Baha'i Councils will have to ensure that this
becomes the mode of operation in cluster after cluster across the United
States. (The Universal House of Justice, from a message dated 19 April 2007)
Planning and implementation have become more responsive to
circumstances on the ground
Not only does this advance in culture influence relations
among individuals, but its effects can also be felt in the conduct of the
administrative affairs of the Faith. As learning has come to distinguish the
community's mode of operation, certain aspects of decision making related to
expansion and consolidation have been assigned to the body of the believers,
enabling planning and implementation to become more responsive to circumstances
on the ground. Specifically, a space has been created, in the agency of the
reflection meeting, for those engaged in activities at the cluster level to
assemble from time to time in order to reach consensus on the current status of
their situation, in light of experience and guidance from the institutions, and
to determine their immediate steps forward. A similar space is opened by the
institute, which makes provision for those serving as tutors, children's class
teachers, and animators of junior youth groups in a cluster to meet severally
and consult on their experience. Intimately connected to this grassroots
consultative process are the agencies of the training institute and the Area
Teaching Committee, together with the Auxiliary Board members, whose joint
interactions provide another space in which decisions pertaining to growth are
taken, in this case with a higher degree of formality. The workings of this
cluster-level system, born of exigencies, point to an important characteristic
of Baha'i administration: Even as a living organism, it has coded within it the
capacity to accommodate higher and higher degrees of complexity, in terms of
structures and processes, relationships and activities, as it evolves under the
guidance of the Universal House of Justice. (The Universal House of Justice,
Ridvan 2010)
Occasions where the community's efforts, in their entirety,
are the subject of earnest and uplifting deliberation
Furthermore, the friends are conscious that the work of the
Cause proceeds at different speeds in different places and for good reason --
it is, after all, an organic phenomenon -- and they take joy and encouragement
from every instance of progress they see. Indeed, they recognize the benefit
that accrues from the contribution of each individual to the progress of the
whole, and thus the service rendered by each one, in keeping with the
possibilities created by a person's circumstances, is welcomed by all. Gatherings
for reflection are increasingly seen as occasions where the community's
efforts, in their entirety, are the subject of earnest and uplifting
deliberation. Participants learn what has been accomplished overall, understand
their own labours in that light, and enhance their knowledge about the process
of growth by absorbing the counsels of the institutions and drawing on the
experience of their fellow believers. Such experience is also shared in
numerous other spaces that are emerging for consultation amongst friends
intensely engaged in specific endeavours, whether they are pursuing a common
line of action or serving in a particular part of the cluster. All these
insights are located in a wider appreciation that progress is most easily
achieved in an environment imbued with love--one in which shortcomings are
overlooked with forbearance, obstacles are overcome with patience, and tested
approaches are embraced with enthusiasm. And so it is that, through the wise
direction of institutions and agencies of the Faith functioning at every level,
the friends' exertions, however modest individually, coalesce into a collective
effort to ensure that receptivity to the call of the Blessed Beauty is
identified quickly and nurtured effectively. A cluster in this condition is
clearly one where the relationships among the individual, the institutions, and
the community--the Plan's three protagonists--are evolving soundly. (The
Universal House of Justice, Ridvan 2013)
Some learned challenges to overcome
In some cases, challenges arose as a result of an inability
to establish one or another vital aspect of the framework for action. For
example, in certain clusters the institute process had not taken root so the
relationship between study and service intrinsic to the institute courses was
not realized. Thus, rather than bringing about an organic process in which more
and more individuals carry out more and more activities, a small number of
believers became overwhelmed by increasing responsibilities. Only when the challenge
of human resource development was resolved could the scope of endeavours
expand. In other clusters, the friends readily enrolled new believers but
struggled to help a significant number of them advance through the sequence of
courses and enter a path of service. There were also those instances when the
friends initiated many core activities among themselves, without giving due
attention to teaching and inviting participants from the wider community.
Reflection meetings sometimes centred too much on planning or instruction
rather than the opportunity to learn from experience and revise action
accordingly.
Occasionally, when addressing new, emerging facets of an
evolving programme of growth, misunderstandings surfaced, or, in some cases,
attention to a new aspect of the work led, inadvertently, to ignoring others.
For example, in some places a dichotomy was perceived between collective
teaching campaigns and the responsibility for personal teaching, when in
reality, every act of teaching represents a response of the community to the
Master’s Divine Plan. Sometimes, a focus on neighbourhoods was interpreted to
mean that core activities drawing participants from different parts of a
cluster should no longer be maintained. On occasion, there was a “tendency to
confuse focus with uniformity or exclusivity”, [36] leading either to an
insistence on a single fixed approach or, conversely, to the idea that all
individuals can establish any initiative they wish. (The International Teaching
Centre, ‘Insights from the Frontiers of Learning’, April 2013)
Expand vision and build unity of thought
The mobilization of individuals to ensure steady progress of
the program of growth is the principal focus of the Area Teaching Committee. It
fosters the process of reflection and planning by organizing the reflection
meeting, facilitating a sound reading of the cluster’s reality, and arranging
for the accurate gathering and careful analysis of its statistics — all of
which expand vision, build unity of thought, and illuminate the path for the
progress of the cluster. (The Universal House of Justice, from a message dated
5 January 2015)
