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The Purpose of Life
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Summary:
What is the purpose of life?
1.To know God.
2.To love God.
3.To aquire virtues.
“I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee
and to worship Thee.” -Bahá'u'lláh
How do we know God?
1.God is unknowable.
2.We gain knowledge of God through knowledge of the Manifestations of
God.
"The Knowledge of the Reality of the Divinity is impossible and unattainable,
but the knowledge of the Manifestations of God is the knowledge of God.”
-`Abdu'l-Baha
How do we know the Manifestations of God?
1.By reading the Holy Writings.
2.By reading about Their lives.
How do we love God?
1.By praying to God.
2.By being obedient to His laws.
“Observe My commandments, for the love of My beauty.”-Bahá'u'lláh
Memorize:
“I bear witness,
O my God,
that Thou hast created me
to know Thee
and to worship Thee.”
-Bahá'u'lláh
Lesson Plan: The Purpose of Life
Opening Prayers:
We will begin by saying prayers. Please remember what `Abdu'l-Bahá
said: “When you wish to pray, you must first know that you
are standing in the presence of the Almighty.” I will say
the first prayer and then we will take turns in a circle.
“O God! Educate these children. These children are the plants
of Thine orchard, the flowers of Thy meadow, the roses of Thy garden.
Let Thy rain fall upon them; let the Sun of Reality shine upon them with
Thy love. Let Thy breeze refresh them in order that they may be trained,
grow and develop, and appear in the utmost beauty. Thou art the Giver.
Thou art the Compassionate.” -`Abdu'l-Bahá
Praise and encourage the children for sitting nicely and saying good prayers.
Lesson: (# = pause, praise and correct
the children's answers)
Today we are going to talk about the purpose of our lives.
Q: Why are we alive? Why did God create us?#
A: God created us to know Him and to love Him. Bahá'u'lláh
says: “I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created
me to know Thee and to worship Thee.”
God also created us to acquire virtues. Once someone asked `Abdu'l-Bahá
“What is the purpose of our lives?” and he replied: “To
acquire virtues.” So, the purpose of our lives is to know
God, to love God, and to aquire virtues.
Q: How do we know God?#
A: God is unknowable, but we can gain knowledge of God through knowledge
of the Manifestations of God. `Abdu'l-Bahá says: "The
Knowledge of the Reality of the Divinity is impossible and unattainable,
but the knowledge of the Manifestations of God is the knowledge of God,
for the bounties, splendors and divine attributes are apparent in Them.
Therefore, if man attains to the knowledge of the Manifestations of God,
he will attain to the knowledge of God." So, we know God
by knowing the Manifestations of God.
Q: How do we know the Manifestations of God?#
A: By reading the messages They brought to us from God, which is the Holy
Writings. And by reading stories about when They were alive.
Q: How do we love God?#
A: We love God by praying. `Abdu'l-Bahá says: “When
a man falls in love with a human being, it is impossible for him to keep
from mentioning the name of his beloved. How much more difficult to keep
from mentioning the Name of God when one has come to love Him.”
And we love God by being obedient to His laws. Bahá'u'lláh
says: “Observe My commandments, for the love of My beauty.”
Singing:
This is a time for children to learn to chant the prayers of God in a
beautiful and melodious voice. Choose one prayer to practice until all
the children can sing it well and sound good together.
Snack/break:
Prepare beforehand a simple and healthy snack to refresh the children.
It can also be a time for the children to talk together and maybe play
a bit but it should not be too lively because you will have to calm them
down and bring them back to class time. Active social play can happen
before and/or after class. Social play is very important for building
friendships and having a fun time.
Story and coloring:
Provide colouring pages showing people feeding the hungry and giving medicine
to the sick.
Everyone was always welcome in the house of Bahá'u'lláh
and His wife Navvab, and no one was ever turned away. The people called
Navvab 'Mother of Consolation', and Bahá'u'lláh was known
as 'Father of the Poor'.
Sometimes people came to them because they were ill, or had sore eyes.
Navvab would give them ointment or other medicine to make them better.
Sometimes people came who were hungry and poor; then Bahá'u'lláh
would give them food and money to help them.
Sometimes they were worried or lonely or sad, and Bahá'u'lláh
would love them as though they were members of His own family.
Once, when someone asked what work Bahá'u'lláh did, he was
told that Bahá'u'lláh cheered the sad and fed the hungry.
And, when asked what important job or special title Bahá'u'lláh
had, the person answered, 'He has none, apart from befriending the poor
and the stranger.'
Arts and Crafts:
Give each child a binder to be their prayer and Holy Writings book. Add
three-hole punched coloured paper to the binder. Print a prayer that all
the children have memorized on a sheet of paper in large print. Cut one
inch around all the edges. Have all this prepared ahead of time. Have
each child glue the prayer onto a coloured page and then give each child
some stickers to decorate the page. They may also illuminate the page
with crayons or markers or coloured pencils. At the next class after this
one, the children will glue into their binders the Holy Writing they memorized
from this week, which is: “I bear witness, O my God, that
Thou hast created me to know Thee and to worship Thee.”-
Baha'u'llah
Review lesson:
Ask the children what they remember learning today. Praise their answers.
Explain their homework which is to memorize the prayer: “I
bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know Thee and to
worship Thee.”- Baha'u'llah
Closing Prayers/Singing:
Remind the children of the rules for saying prayers properly.
Remind them that:“When you wish to pray, you must first
know that you are standing in the presence of the Almighty.” -`Abdu'l-Bahá
Related Writings:
Question: What is the purpose of our lives?
`Abdu'l-Baha: To acquire virtues.
"I bear witness, O my God, that Thou hast created me to know
Thee and to worship Thee. I testify, at this moment, to my powerlessness
and to Thy might, to my poverty and to Thy wealth.
There is none other God but Thee, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting."
- Baha'u'llah
"The Knowledge of the Reality of the Divinity is impossible
and unattainable, but the knowledge of the Manifestations of God is the
knowledge of God, for the bounties, splendors and divine attributes are
apparent in Them. Therefore, if man attains to the knowledge of the Manifestations
of God, he will attain to the knowledge of God." -`Abdu'l-Baha
"Turn thy sight unto thyself, that thou mayest find Me standing
within thee, mighty, powerful and self-subsisting." -Baha'u'llah
Resources:
The Love of Baha'u'llah
Stories retold by Jacqueline Mehrabi
A book of short stories about the life of Baha'u'llah specifically for
children. This book includes beautiful illustrations on every page by
Michael Sours.
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