Defense of Faith http://www.defenseoffaith.net Mon, 28 Dec 2009 04:13:07 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 DefenseOfFaithhttp://feedburner.google.com On Baha’i Nabil Huening Is Famous in China: It’s more than his blonde hair and green eyes http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DefenseOfFaith/~3/PhIXp4z2smI/ http://www.defenseoffaith.net/2009/12/27/on-bahai-nabil-huening-is-famous-in-china-its-more-than-his-blonde-hair-and-green-eyes/#comments Mon, 28 Dec 2009 04:13:07 +0000 admin http://www.defenseoffaith.net/2009/12/27/on-bahai-nabil-huening-is-famous-in-china-its-more-than-his-blonde-hair-and-green-eyes/ On Nabil Huening is famous in China. -gw 
 
 
The American walks down the street and is approached by star-struck teenagers chasing his autograph. The 1.9-m tall man stoops down to please his fans who are familiar with his blonde hair and green eyes from Chinese TV.
 
Nabil Huening is a 34-year-old Chinese-speaking actor, songwriter, singer and old China hand. At 17 he left Chicago after graduating from college to further his study in Asian culture and literature at the Beijing Foreign Studies University, where he fell in love with a Korean classmate who is now the mother of his three children.
 
Today, the multi-talented Huening has performed across China, regularly playing lead roles in CCTV dramas and sitcoms. …
 
His most recent project is the completion of his first music album, "The Tree of Life," a collection of 12 songs, in both English and Mandarin, which has found its way on iTunes and M-Zone and is currently being promoted across China.
 
 
Websites:

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Greatly enhanced international endowments in Holy Land in twin cities of Acre and Haifa, now include twin Holy Shrines situated on plain of Acre and slope of Mount Carmel; twin Mansions of Bahjí and Mazra’ih, twin historic Houses inhabited by Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá; twin International Archives adjoining the Báb’s Sepulcher and the resting-place of the Greatest Holy Leaf; twin Pilgrim Houses, constructed for Oriental and Occidental pilgrims; twin Gardens of Riḍván and Firdaws, associated with the memory of the Author of the Bahá’í Dispensation. – Shoghi Effendi, 1951

There are 130 passages in which the word “twin” is used in the Baha’i Writings, starting with, of course, reference to the Twin Manifestations of God, the Bab and Baha’u'llah.

On our walk today I was admiring twin barns that are the most distinctive man-made feature of the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge, the subjects of many a photograph, including my own today, and I thought of the significance of ”twins” for Baha’is.

The air was crisp, the sun was out for a while, but faint, and there was still thick frost in the shadows late in the afternoon. Bird-life was in abundance at Nisqually today, as it is a wintering over-spot for dozens of varieties of birds. -gw

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Let's open our eyes, and open our ears,

Or we're not gonna make it

Through another year.

People of all Faiths and nationalities,

From land to land, and sea to sea…

So let us everyone teach our

Children of Unity.

To love everyone with equality.

La la la, la la la, la la la la la la,

La la la, la la la, la la la la la la,

La la la la la la,

La la la la la la.

-The Equality song

 
There is a story here about opening doors to diverse expression. You can read the whole story on the bahai.us site. -gw
 
Veda spent the next year gathering sheet music, making a CD of some Baha’i songs and getting permission for artists to use their music.
 
“Every door has opened,” she said, “it’s meant to be.”
 
All 55 schools in her district now have the book, and the Mosavi family has been sending it to any school district that requests it, including schools outside of California.
 
Jasmine, who is now in the fifth grade, said the year-long project taught her an important lesson.
 
“I learned that I should not feel left out,” she said. “It doesn’t matter if you celebrate Christmas or not, we’re all the same inside. We shouldn't feel separated by the way we worship. I wanted my teachers to know that I am a Baha'i and to let them know that we believe in the unity of all religions." …
 
Those interested in the booklet can e-mail Jasmine and her mom at: musicfortheschools "at" gmail.com. (The booklet includes sheet music and a CD compilation for "Blessed is the Spot"; "O God, Educate these children"; "Listen"; and "The Equality Song")
 

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This sounds like heavenly experience for the friends fortunate to be able to attend. -gw
 
21 days Winter camp organized by Denzong Baha’I Institute of Sikkim began from 20th December 2009 at Baha’I School, Tadong. The camp will go till 9th January 2010. The participants are from Sumbuk (South Sikkim), Pachey (Pakyong) and Gangtok. The camp of this kind was first started at Saramsa (Ranipool) in December 2000 by Denzong Baha’I Institute of Sikkim. At that time the participants used to be from Bhutan, Darjeeling and Sikkim. But in the later years in order to make it convenient and manageable the Institute decided to decentralize  it and have it in different centers. Now for past three four years, for the people of Darjeeling it is organized in Darjeeling itself and for Sikkim in Sikkim itself.
 
This is a kind of spiritual empowerment program. Here participants are taught to be tolerant and encourage fellowship among the people irrespective of cast, creed, colour, religion, race and nation. They get insights of the concept, God is one, man is the creation of one God and source of all religion is one. In the camp classes are conducted in a participatory method. The participants are divided in a different groups. For each group one tutor is appointed who coordinates the class and help the class to go ahead in a right track. Each group has to go through systematic sequence of courses which is from level 1 to level 7. The materials which they study are designed each with different subjects. They are as follows:
 
Level 1: Reflection on the life of the spirit.
Level 2 : Arising to serve.
Level 3 : Teaching children’s classes, Grade I
Level 4 : The twin manifestations.
Level 5 : Teaching children classes, Grade II
Level 6 : Teaching the Faith.
Level 7 : Walking together on a path of service.
 
These materials represent the experience gained by the institutions in raising up individuals capable of working for the benefit of their families and society.
 
 

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How did I miss this KC Porter produced CD from 2003 of sacred and classical music for children? Available on DivineNotes.com and iTunes.
 

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]]> http://www.defenseoffaith.net/2009/12/26/on-sacred-and-classical-music-for-children-thanks-kc/feed/ 0 http://www.defenseoffaith.net/2009/12/26/on-sacred-and-classical-music-for-children-thanks-kc/#utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=on-sacred-and-classical-music-for-children-thanks-kc On an Ode to Hair: May the hair of my head declareth the power of Thy sovereignty and might http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/DefenseOfFaith/~3/C3niU543gos/ http://www.defenseoffaith.net/2009/12/26/on-an-ode-to-hair-may-the-hair-of-my-head-declareth-the-power-of-thy-sovereignty-and-might-2/#comments Sun, 27 Dec 2009 04:16:49 +0000 admin http://www.defenseoffaith.net/2009/12/26/on-an-ode-to-hair-may-the-hair-of-my-head-declareth-the-power-of-thy-sovereignty-and-might-2/

The limbs of my body testify to Thy unity, and the hair of my head declareth the power of Thy sovereignty and might. —Bahá’u’lláh

 
 
Hair has always been a big deal in our family. My son Rahmat got his hair cut yesterday.  He has had big hair for years, so that is quite a change. This is how he looked today, walking with his bike to the bus stop headed back home to his apartment.

 
 
This photo above is of me (r) back in 1971. Hair was a big deal to me as I was coming into adulthood. Afros became the rage. The musical "Hair" was a hit back in 1968.
 
Chris Rock's "Good Hair" has been a topic of cultural discussion.
 
My son Taraz caught an impromptu barbershop scene in the video footage he did at Louis Gregory Institute back in 2005. We all go to great effort to have our appearance be pleasing to our peers and in the eyes of God.
 
PICT6847 PICT6846 PICT6845 PICT6844 PICT6843 PICT6842 PICT6841 PICT6840 PICT6839 PICT6838 PICT6837 PICT6836 PICT6835 PICT6834 PICT6833 PICT6832 PICT6831 PICT6830 PICT6829 PICT6828 PICT6827 PICT6826 PICT6824 PICT6823 PICT6821 PICT6820 PICT6819
 
All this got me to thinking about the diversity of hair styles existent in the world. So here is my ode to hair.-gw
 

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