Bahá’í Academy

Unlike every other course in this series, this one is written for Baha’is — and it has a single aim: to get you excited about becoming an effective Dawn-Breakers teacher. Not a scholar. Not a historian. A teacher. Most Baha’is know they’re supposed to study the Dawn-Breakers. Few do. Those who try often give up — the names are unpronounceable, the history is unfamiliar, and the book feels impenetrable. Worse, many Baha’is carry quiet misunderstandings about the book itself: who wrote it, why it matters, and what the Guardian actually asked us to do with it. This course clears the ground. Lesson 1 tackles the deepest misunderstanding — what teaching actually is (hint: it’s not techniques). Lesson 2 reveals the true provenance of the book — and it’s not what you think. Lesson 3 removes the practical barriers: the Islamic history, the pronunciation, the geography you need to read with confidence. Lesson 4 gives you a lesson plan — a map for studying the book yourself and teaching it to others.

An introduction to the world’s oldest living religious tradition — from the cosmic hymns of the Rig Veda to the philosophical depths of the Upanishads, from the battlefield wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita to the devotional poetry of Kabir. Discover a civilization that has been asking the deepest questions about God, self, and reality for over 3,000 years.

An introduction to Buddhist thought and practice — from the Buddha’s awakening under the Bodhi tree to the meditation halls of Zen. Through the Dhammapada, the Suttas, and the Diamond Sutra, discover a 2,500-year tradition dedicated to ending suffering and awakening compassion.

An introduction to Jewish thought, scripture, and practice — from the creation narrative in Genesis to the mystical depths of the Zohar. Through the Torah, the Prophets, the Psalms, and the Talmud, discover a 3,000-year tradition of covenant, law, justice, and an unbroken conversation between God and humanity.

An introduction to Christian thought and scripture — from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount to Paul’s letters, from Augustine’s City of God to the mystical tradition. Through the Gospels, the Epistles, and the great thinkers, discover how a carpenter’s son from Nazareth transformed the world.

An introduction to Islam — from the Prophet Muhammad’s first revelation in a desert cave to the mystical poetry of Rumi. Through the Qur’an, the Hadith, and the Sufi masters, discover a tradition of radical monotheism, disciplined practice, and the quest for nearness to God that has shaped the lives of nearly two billion people.

What if the greatest detective story ever told was hiding in plain sight in the pages of the Bible? This course follows William Sears’ Thief in the Night — a detective-story investigation of Biblical prophecy and its fulfillment. Along the way, students encounter the Baha’i Faith: its origins, its central figures, and its claim that the promises of Scripture have already been kept. The course also draws on Shoghi Effendi’s 1947 letter to the United Nations for a broad introduction to the Baha’i Faith, and relevant passages from Baha’u’llah’s Kitab-i-Iqan (Book of Certitude).