I am an ecologist at heart, a spiritual ecologist at the core. I see every created thing as a sign of the Creator and fully embrace that I am intrinsically interwoven with it all — my thoughts, intentions, words, actions and deeds are all having an effect on everything and everyone, just as much as I am being affected by all that is happening in the world around me. Through this lens, the interconnectedness of all things and the spirit flowing through it come into focus — even down to my simple morning cup of French-pressed coffee. As the coffee is being prepared, a prayer of gratitude flows ..read more

I know I am not the only one who considers Grant Hindin Miller to be musically legendary. I remember when I mentioned to a fellow youth that I hadn’t heard of him before and they replied, “You haven’t heard of Grant Hindin Miller?!” His soulful acoustic sounds have accompanied my life ever since. It’s a joy to hear from Grant about his latest album called Ten Angels, released during this historic 40th anniversary of the execution of ten Baha’i women in Shiraz. Singer-songwriter Grant Hindin Miller For our readers who aren’t familiar with your music, can you tell us a little about yourself? I ..read more

The following is our monthly newsletter. You can get a copy sent directly to your inbox! On March 25th, 1880, a baby girl was born in Goldsborough, Victoria. At the tender age of six, she was sent to live with her grandparents. The little girl’s name was Effie Baker, and her grandfather, Henry Evans Baker, was a former sea captain. After having made his fortune in gold mining, he pursued his passion at the Ballarat Observatory, where he built the famous Baker telescope, the first of its kind in Australia. Captain Baker nurtured Effie’s interest in scientific instruments and creative ..read more

Anise Vance, a biracial Baha’i living in the United States, has written a debut novel about racial justice. Hush Habor was long-listed for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and was listed as a “Most Anticipated Book” in The Rumpus as well as a “Most Anticipated Crime Fiction Book of Fall 2023” in CrimeReads. Published by Harper Collins, this book explores issues of resistance, belonging, and justice in the context of police violence on black bodies. I’m so grateful to Anise for taking the time to tell us about his book. Author Anise Vance Can you tell us a little about yourse ..read more

Australian Baha’i Horizons is a brand new online magazine of insights, stories and reflections from the Australian Baha’i Community. The site exists to share news, community-building endeavours, individual initiatives, events and announcements from across the country in a public, easily accessible format. The editorial team for the new site writes that: The National Spiritual Assembly [of Australia] has lovingly invested in the production of this news website in order to further reflect the developments taking place across the county, to strengthen the ties between the three protagonists of ..read more

Maya Jaros is the heart and mind behind Near&Dear, a company that creates e-cards for Baha’i holy days, special occasions of other faiths, and secular celebrations. Her e-cards are joyful and vibrant; they offer a splash of colour and a dash of love in our current virtual ways of communicating. Maya kindly agreed to tell us a bit more about her e-cards but first, here’s a small sampling of what Near&Dear offers (be sure to click on each image to see how it is animated): View this post on Instagram A post shared by Near&Dear (@nearandearhere) View this post on Instagram A post ..read more

Dr. Michael Knopf is a concert guitarist and composer, a dedicated teacher and a music researcher living in South-East Queensland. Michael has many, many compositions and projects to his name and we were recently delighted to learn about a 38 song collection of devotional music called The Paramount Project. In Michael’s own words, “The Paramount Project is collection of new devotional songs presented in the tonic sol fa music reading system and supported by music notation and piano keyboard note learning. Its aim is to assist community and personal development in both social and devotion ..read more

The following is our monthly newsletter. You can get a copy sent directly to your inbox! In the Oxford Online Dictionary “glory” is defined as high renown or honour won by notable achievements; magnificence or great beauty; praise, worship, and thanksgiving offered to a deity; a luminous ring or halo, especially as depicted around the head of Jesus Christ or a saint; and the act of taking great pride or pleasure in something. In this month’s newsletter, I thought I would highlight some new Baha’i Blog content that introduces us to a group of writers, illustrators, musicians, and stor ..read more

In the context of human unity, the Baha’i teachings convey a simple yet profound truth: “Ye are the fruits of one tree, and the leaves of one branch.” Baha’u’llah1 This guiding principle not only shaped my understanding of oneness, but it also found resonance in my upbringing. As a child of interracial marriage, I was lucky to grow up in a place where most of my friends were also mixed-race, and this contributed to a sense of normalcy around diverse family structures. Growing up on Saipan, an island in the South Pacific, interracial marriage was so normalised that the idea of my parents bein ..read more

My family loves podcasts and audio books for driving in the car or for quiet times at home. Over the years my children have consistently been enraptured by storytellers whose art and craft have enchanted them and as a parent, I am very grateful for them. You can imagine the thrill when I learned about a new podcast series featuring stories about Abdu’l-Baha put together by Sana Vasli. The episodes are accessible for young listeners but are truly enjoyable for all ages and they can be listened to on Spotify or Apple podcasts. I am delighted Sana was able to share with us all about “Stories of ..read more