# Creating a Culture of Learning

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-19 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Sylvia Kaye, Creating a Culture of Learning, bahai-library.com.
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> 
> Creating a Culture of Learning
> 2002 – Port Elizabeth
> 
> Sylvia Kaye
> 
> A New World Order
> 
> The teachings of Bahá’u’lláh represent a Divine plan designed to transform human
> character and existence and will bring into being a new World Order. Bahá’u’lláh
> proclaimed in many instances: “The world’s equilibrium hath been upset through the
> vibrating influence of this most great, this new World Order.” 1 “By My Self! The day
> is approaching when We will have rolled up the world and all that is therein, and
> spread out a new order in its stead. He, verily, is powerful over all things.”2 The
> changes involved can only be imagined and indeed may even be beyond present
> human comprehension, as they represent paradigm shifts in every attitude, practice
> and belief held to be sound and true by humankind at this present stage of
> development. The Universal House of Justice guides the Bahá’í community in
> envisaging the vast changes in store:
> 
> At the very core of the aims of the Faith are the establishment of justice and unity in
> the world, the removal of prejudice and enmity from among all people, the awakening
> of compassion and understanding in the hearts of all men and women, and the
> raising of all souls to a new level of spirituality and behaviour through the vitalising
> influence of divine Revelation.3
> 
> The transformations and changes needed to bring about the new World Order are
> revealed and written throughout the Bahá’í Writings and apply to every aspect of
> the way we think about things, act, and believe.
> 
> One example is presented in a recent message from the Bahá’í International
> Community, “Who is Writing the Future?”4:
> 
> The central spiritual issue facing all people, Bahá’u’lláh says, whatever their nation,
> religion, or ethnic origin, is that of laying the foundations of a global society that can
> reflect the oneness of human nature. The unification of the earth’s inhabitants is
> neither a remote utopian vision nor, ultimately, a matter of choice. It constitutes the
> next, inescapable stage in the process of social evolution, a stage toward which all the
> experience of past and present is impelling us. Until this issue is acknowledged and
> addressed, none of the ills afflicting our planet will find solutions, because all the
> 
> 1 Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 136.
> 2 Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 313.
> 3 Universal House of Justice, letter dated 2 July 1996, in a compilation titled “Issues related
> 
> to the Study of the Bahá’í Faith.”
> 4 Who is Writing the Future? Bahá’í International Community, Feb. 1999.
> essential challenges of the age we have entered are global and universal, not
> particular or regional. (p.2)
> 
> Here, the concept referred to - that humanity is one, its unity inevitable - has far-
> reaching implications, and challenges age-old practices and attitudes. Given the
> inordinate importance many place upon cultural practices, it frequently leads to the
> assumption that one’s cultural ways are the best, and others are somehow inferior.
> This further leads to comparisons and value judgments and becomes a source of
> disunity; by implication a difficult transition from superiority to inclusiveness and
> unity. Such value judgments apply to religious beliefs as well, in that followers
> fervently believe that their own religion is the best and superior to others. This
> attitude in its extreme is fanaticism; in the past and present, the cause of misery
> and suffering for countless groups of people.
> 
> Creating a culture of learning is one way of aiding individuals and community to
> adopt new attitudes and practices of a new world order.
> 
> Culture
> 
> Culture has been defined in many different ways, but an informal definition is
> simply that culture is “the way we do things”; or, sets of beliefs, values, attitudes
> and practices familiar to a group of people. Because people are taught culture right
> from birth, it continues to exert an influence throughout life. Much of culture is
> unconscious; it is often difficult to articulate one’s cultural attitudes. One of the
> views of gender, for example, is that it is a social or cultural construction. Biological
> influences add another dimension to the construction of a gendered identity. We
> “know” intuitively what is appropriately male or female, and may shy away from
> behaviour that fails to conform to the “norm.” It is usually difficult to articulate this
> knowledge; much of it is hidden and its teaching unspoken, something learned by
> the examples of people around us. The definition of appropriate gendered behaviour
> furthermore varies across ethnic divisions. But the influence of culture persists and
> is part of the way in which an individual defines him/herself.
> 
> Within religious communities, groups conform to cultural standards that are
> identifiable not only by their belief systems, but also the way the communities act.
> Can we identify a group as being “Christian”, “Moslem”; “Jewish”, even though
> within each of religious communities, the beliefs themselves are very varied? With
> Christianity, there are vast differences in beliefs making some values and practices
> inconsistent, but one may expect a Christian community to be, at least on one level,
> concerned with charity, salvation, forgiveness. One would further expect that
> teaching or preaching to the community or congregation often employs the method of
> parables and stories to teach its main doctrines. The strength of the teachings of
> Religions is such that they continue to exert a strong influence over centuries, even
> when distorted over a long span of time.
> 
> In the Bahá’í community, a new culture may be perceived to be evolving. Bahá’ís are
> gradually adopting the principles of Bahá’u’lláh and are continually questioning and
> modifying their own cultural beliefs when in conflict with its teachings. Whilst not
> an easy process, nonetheless transformation will continue as the community grows
> in strength and in its ability to practice its Faith.
> 
> Some of the Bahá’í values that influence its culture may be said to be: prayer;
> acceptance of the absolute Divinity of Bahá’u’lláh’s Teachings; unity; consultation;
> welcoming diversity; equity and justice; generosity; service; world vision; peace;
> obedience; individual initiative; humility; to name but a few. The power of faith in
> Bahá’u’lláh, the presence of a wealth of Writings, the unity of the Faith, the
> continued guidance from the time of its Founder, Bahá’u’lláh, to today and which
> will extend into the future; all are compelling forces at work that allow the Bahá’ís
> the opportunity to adopt a culture of change and a culture of transformation, making
> the evolution of culture towards something unlike any of the known cultures of the
> past.
> 
> Given the mix of cultural and ethnic groups in most Bahá’í communities, there are
> inevitably concerns about what, and whose, cultural values matter. The value of
> unity in diversity is overarching: it can override the desire to have one’s own
> cultural ways of doing things dominate, allow for the varied expressions of all
> cultural groups to be valued. What is evolving may or may not be an as yet clearly
> defined Bahá’í culture, rather, a community that is more concerned with values and
> principle and less with insignificant practices. Sometimes an individual’s culture
> may value a particular principle of the Faith more than another, for example,
> courtesy, or, a desire to include parents in the adult lives of the children. In these
> instances, a person would have less of an internal conflict to overcome, but all
> cultures have something which is contrary to the teachings of the Faith, so all have
> something to overcome, however different they may be for different cultures.
> 
> Learning
> 
> The understanding of learning continues to evolve. Educational research and
> theories especially from the latter part of the twentieth century have moved away
> from strictly behaviourist or cognitive definitions of learning, and have begun to
> understand through broader views. Learning, as it is currently being defined in
> expanding circles, is the process by which people construct understanding, taking
> into account their uniqueness: all the qualities, attributes, experiences, socio-
> cultural influences that make up the unique individual. We “construct” knowledge
> and meaning, we make sense out of the world, we look for meanings and
> connections. Learning then is an on-going process, we never stop learning and our
> understanding constantly changes. Constructivism and situated learning, examples
> of two current theories, allow for the consideration of collective (community) and
> individual (the soul) spirituality, concepts previously discounted in many learning
> theories.
> 
> Learning in this context is concerned with cognitive processes – the methodology
> utilized to learn; behavioural – what helps a person change behavioural patterns;
> and the interactions of culture, spirituality, biological, and life experiences on the
> individual’s learning. It describes human learning as the process by which people
> attempt to make sense of events; to connect them; to categorise and group them in
> an ever evolving view of the world and of the self.
> 
> One very powerful incentive or inhibitor to learning new concepts is rooted in
> emotional responses to events and ideas. Emotions may be visualised as being
> “thoughtless”, meaning that a feeling or emotion may have little to do with logic or
> critical thought, even though the root of the emotion can sometimes be identified
> upon reflection. People may react positively or negatively to others and to events and
> whilst gaining understanding into why one reacts a certain way is helpful in
> knowing one’s own self, at the moment of the response, it often overpowers reason.
> Bringing oneself to account each day, knowing one’s own self, is essential in
> grappling with the force exerted by emotions.
> 
> Understanding the role of emotions in learning and teaching is quite essential, as it
> acknowledges that emotions are part of the human condition. For example, passion,
> from one perspective a base attitude, can be transformed or manifested as a passion
> for learning, for accomplishing the goals of the Plan, or a passion for acquiring
> virtues. Love is an emotion expressed as the love of God or of humanity, or the
> teachings of Bahá’u’lláh, or of learning. In this context, music, the arts, drama,
> stories, have the capability of drawing upon both emotions and spiritual responses.
> 
> It is useful to separate learning from teaching. We may teach, but the learning
> belongs to the learner. As educators, or as teachers of the Bahá’í Faith, as parents,
> this issue is demonstrated frequently. As an educator, one knows that the learners’
> understanding is uniquely individual. In one’s efforts to teach the Bahá’í Faith, one
> is taught especially in the example of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá that it necessary to know the
> person one is speaking with in order to give a proper explanation. One may teach:
> the question is - what has the person learned? Parents know this concept well as
> they attempt to teach children. Often, a parent attempts to teach a child a lesson,
> however, the child learns quite another lesson that was completely unintended.
> 
> The Bahá’í Writings refer to this frequently, by explaining that the human heart is
> the home of God, we therefore, have no influence over what is in an individual’s
> heart, his/her perceptions, what is a person’s true aspirations, what motivates each
> individual, and the like. Learning belongs to the individual; teaching to the
> educator.
> 
> Learning, or the acquisition of knowledge, from a Bahá’í perspective, is unending,
> that meanings upon meanings are inherent in the world of nature and the spiritual
> world. Humanity is only beginning to grasp meanings in the world of science and in
> the world of the mind, let alone relationships between the physical and spiritual
> worlds or other such abstract and illusive ideas. Understanding is unlimited. It is
> not surprising that each of us may understand concepts very differently and none
> may definitely claim they are right. Bahá’ís are advised not to cling to opinion;
> partially, no doubt, because we have no way of verifying the absolute truth of the
> view.
> 
> Culture of Learning
> What is a culture of learning in the Bahá’í context? The Universal of Justice has
> recently introduced several ideas about the development of new cultural attitudes to
> be developed in the Bahá’í community. One is represented with the introduction of
> systematic planning. In the Ridván 2000, message, the House of Justice informed us
> that,
> 
> …The culture of the Bahá’í community experienced a change. This change is
> noticeable in the expanded capability, the methodical pattern of functioning and the
> consequent depth of confidence of the three constituent participants in the Plan – the
> individual, the institutions and the local community… In a word, they entered into a
> learning mode from which purposeful action was pursued. The chief propellant of this
> change was the system of training institutes established throughout the world…
> 
> … The members of the community came gradually to appreciate how systematisation
> would facilitate the processes of growth and development. This raising of
> consciousness was a huge step that led to an upgrading of teaching activities and a
> change in the culture of the community.5
> 
> The House of Justice presents another explanation in their letter of 9 January 2001
> addressed to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors, the culture of
> growth:
> 
> Training alone, of course, does not necessarily lead to an upsurge in teaching activity.
> In every avenue of service, the friends need sustained encouragement. Our
> expectation is that the Auxiliary Board members, together with their assistants, will
> give special thought to how individual initiative can be cultivated, particularly as it
> relates to teaching. When training and encouragement are effective, a culture of
> growth is nourished in which the believers see their duty to teach as a natural
> consequence of having accepted Bahá’u’lláh… In such a culture, teaching is the
> dominating passion of the lives of the believers. Fear of failure finds no place. Mutual
> support, commitment to learning, and appreciation of diversity of action are the
> prevailing norms (p. 3).
> 
> In a talk given by Dr. Peter Khan, he defines the new culture of growth “we want
> this culture where your natural expectation is that it is a growing community… this
> new culture should have a universal approach to learning. Thinking about things,
> taking action which gives experience, reflecting on this, and modifying one’s action.”
> 
> Dr. Khan further describes other elements of such a culture, for example, implicit in
> a culture of growth is the need for unity in diversity and harmony. “It further has to
> maintain a balance between individual initiative and obedience to collective action.”
> 
> 5 The Universal House of Justice, Ridván 2000.
> 6 Langenhain, Germany, 3 June 2001, Dr. Peter J. Khan, transcribed by an individual
> 
> believer.
> A culture of learning as presented by the House of Justice can be created with
> changes in attitudes and practices, with the adoption of a vision that learning is at
> the heart of all that we do and all that we are.
> 
> The point is therefore that learning is an on-going process; the acquisition of new
> understanding and knowledge requires constant re-thinking with the aim of
> advancing our comprehension. Another attitude is in the acknowledgement that “the
> source of all learning is the knowledge of God.”7, and the acceptance of such a
> concept creates an attitude of humility in the learner. Freedom from pride allows
> one to reflect and to be open to new meanings and interpretations, to adopt new
> methods and be willing to learn from all people and all experiences, however alien
> they may at first seem.
> 
> Bahá’u’lláh teaches: “Indeed, man is noble, inasmuch as each one is a repository of
> the sign of God. Nevertheless, to regard oneself as superior in knowledge, learning
> or virtue, or to exalt oneself or seek preference is a grievous transgression.”i
> 
> Another attitude is that learning comes from many sources. It is not solely in
> reading and reflection, but in learning through spiritual inspiration, intuition,
> through stories, the arts and drama, through music, through the powerful means of
> example. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’, designated as the Perfect Exemplar, taught in countless
> instances by His example. It is a common practice amongst the Bahá’ís to both
> recount stories in which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá taught by example as well as to privately
> wonder to oneself when confronted with difficulties, “What would ‘Abdu’l-Bahá do?”
> 
> Summary
> 
> A culture of learning, thus, may be summarised as: one that allows for diversity of
> expression; which understands the wide variety of ways in which people learn; and
> attempts to adapt these to its own ways of doing things. It implies openness to new
> ideas, new learning and a dynamic, organic growth not restricted by the past. By
> acknowledging that the source of learning is in the knowledge of God, it can be kept
> from fanaticism and dogma or the quest for extremes that may violate good sense or
> principle, maintaining balance and moderation. It is a culture of excitement, of
> challenge, of beauty and faith.
> 
> Since the inception of the Bahá’í Faith, new learning has always been an essential
> element of being a follower of Bahá’u’lláh, as Bahá’ís are continually exhorted to
> study with the intent of gaining understanding of the world, to be active participants
> in the process of transformation. The evolution of a distinct new world order
> requires profound refinement and change, sheltered in a culture of learning.
> 
> i Quoted in a letter from the Universal House of Justice, 19 October 1993, in a compilation
> 
> titled “Issues related to the Study of the Bahá’í Faith.”
> 
> 7 Bahá’u’lláh, Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 170.)
>
> — *Creating a Culture of Learning (Used by permission of the curator)*