Themes of the Colloquia

Close readings of the revealed Word — tablets, súrihs, and epistles of Bahá’u’lláh, the Báb, and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

The knowledge of God, the divine names and attributes, and the Manifestation.

The Qur’ánic, Shí‘í, and Persian matrix from which the Faith arose.

Dialogue with Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and the religions of the East.

The Bábí revelation, its early community, and the martyrs of the heroic age.

Peace, world order, governance, and the Bahá’í vision for humanity.

Being, reality, and the dialogue of Bahá’í thought with the philosophical tradition.

Method, hermeneutics, and the practice of Bahá’í scholarship itself.

Learning, pedagogy, and the practice of consultation.

The Covenant, the Guardianship, the House of Justice, and the order of Bahá’í institutions.

The mystical dimension — ‘irfán, the seven valleys, the heart, and the path of the seeker.

Evolution, cosmology, and the harmony of science and religion.

Manifestation, prophecy, dispensation, and the unfolding of religion through the ages.

Moral philosophy, Bahá’í law, and the meaning of justice.

Poetry, music, and the arts in Bahá’í life and scripture.

The ministry and exiles — Baghdád, Constantinople, Adrianople, and ‘Akká.

Prayer, meditation, fasting, and the devotional life.

Resurrection, return, the Day of God, and apocalyptic expectation.

The Most Holy Book and the ordinances, laws, and principles it sets forth.

The station of women and the principle of the equality of the sexes.

The Book of Certitude and the nature of faith, proof, and recognition.