Neighborhood Children's Classes in Parksville

childrensclass.parksvillebahai.org/home

Bahá’ís see the young as the most precious treasure a community can possess. In them are the promise and guarantee of the future. Yet, in order for this promise to be realised, children need to receive spiritual nourishment. In a world where the joy and innocence of childhood can be so easily overwhelmed by the aggressive pursuit of materialistic ends, the moral and spiritual education of children assumes vital importance.

Children are born in a state of potentiality, ready to develop their unique spiritual qualities in order to contribute to the welfare of society. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated that “the hearts of all children are of the utmost purity,” and that “they are mirrors upon which no dust has fallen”. Like a young plant or tree, children will grow and develop based on the training they receive and the influences they experience. Nurturing children, in both the community and at home, is integral to the life of the community, for children “bear the seeds of the character of future society”.

The Aim of Bahá’í Children’s Classes is

• to nurture the tender hearts and minds of children by helping them to develop spiritual qualities and the habits and behaviours that constitute the essential attributes of a spiritual being.

Teachers of Bahá’í children’s classes are volunteers, often youth or adults who live in the neighbourhood where classes are offered. They see teaching children’s classes as a service to offer the younger generation, who will soon inherit the spiritual and material progress of their community.

Nurture a relationship with their Creator

Develop spiritual qualities such as love, generosity, unity, truthfulness, kindness and justice

Discover their unique talents and capacities

Develop a strong moral purpose

Support artistic expression

Saying prayers

Singing songs

Memorizing quotations

Learning stories

Playing games

Arts and crafts