Association for Baha'i Studies - North America

09/01/2026

08/12/2026

https://www.youtube.com//videos

07/31/2026

This presentation explores the identification of the cause of peace with the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh, and distinguishes political peace from the expansive conception of peace—both of which are described in His teachings. The Bahá’í community’s contributions to the advancement of both forms of peace are considered, with a particular focus on how the current endeavours of the Bahá’ís throughout the world, which are focused on building distinctive communities that carry the imprint of Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings, give practical expression to humanity’s oneness. By addressing the causes of conflict at their most profound level, these endeavours represent the construction of “havens of peace”. The sustained effort to construct a new pattern of life and social relationships justifies Bahá’ís being regarded as “true practitioners of peace”.

07/28/2026

The challenges our healthcare system both faces and poses extend beyond surface-level discussions of funding, staffing, and policy. Looking deeper, we find that questions of human worth, injustice, and a lack of unity lie at the foundation of the inequities faced by the people these systems serve. This presentation examines two specific expressions of structural disparity in Canadian healthcare — those faced by First Nations populations and women, reflecting race- and gender-related inequities respectively — as viewed through a Bahá'í lens. We explore how justice, elimination of prejudice, oneness of humanity, and consultation can help reorient these broken systems and advance us toward a divine civilization in which material and spiritual progress are inseparable.

Image: Beau Carpenter

07/26/2026

A chance to meet your favourite authors, get your book signed, and talk about their work!

We are delighted to meet with Julia Berger, Leslie Cole, Michael Penn, Heather Harvey, William Collins, Omid Ghaemmaghami, Shahi Vafai, Michael Orona, Ilya Shodjaee-Zrudlo, and Sascha Allard

Image: Nadiia Shuran

07/24/2026

This presentation offers a cohesive framework for examining artificial intelligence and consciousness through scientific and Bahá’í perspectives. It addresses major societal questions: Can AI ever possess consciousness? Could it surpass human intelligence? Is Artificial General Intelligence achievable? By distinguishing functional intelligence from conscious experience and drawing on Bahá’í teachings about the soul and the progressive unfoldment of knowledge, the talk integrates empirical insight with spiritual understanding. It argues that AI reflects human creativity rather than embodying consciousness and proposes ethical principles to guide its development in service to human progress.

Image: Fethi Bouhouchine

07/21/2026

In this conference presentation, two emerging scholars reflect on their efforts to learn how to explicate a wider conception of power and attempt to articulate its implications in their respective dissertation contexts: Indigenous teacher education in Argentina and alternative education high schools in the United States. Each author will reflect on how a more nuanced conception of power informed their research methods and how they shared their findings within their field. The presentation will conclude with all participants being invited to identify relevant concepts and their implications within a context with which they are familiar.

Image: Yidai Song

07/18/2026

"The House of Justice looks to rising generations of Bahá’ís to wholeheartedly address a wide range of intellectual challenges, overcome all pitfalls and obstacles, and render service for the betterment of the world. In the decades ahead, then, a host
of believers will enter diverse social spaces and fields of human endeavour.
To this arena, pregnant with possibilities, the Association for Bahá’í Studies can offer an important contribution." (24 July 2013)

Celebrating 50 years of ABS conferences, this issue of JBS offers personal reflections of long-time collaborators of ABS, together with a historical overview and a look to an exciting future of learning together.

Free online and available at the ABS conference bookstore at a special, celebratory price.

Poetry by Meredith Folley and Julio Savi. Cover artwork by the amazing Meleyna Bighorn

https://journal.bahaistudies.ca/online

07/17/2026

Contemporary societies face fragmentation marked by political polarization, tribalism, and increasingly materialistic worldviews. This presentation explores religious revelation—particularly the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh—not as a system of beliefs, but as a transformation in how knowledge is generated, integrated, and disseminated. Drawing on insights from philosophy, literary theory, and historical precedents, it examines how revelation disrupts rigid rational frameworks and enables new forms of intellectual synthesis. It further argues that mystical experience, far from opposing reason, provides a standpoint above all knowledge systems from which such synthesis becomes possible. Participants are invited to consider the role of Bahá'ís as learners and interlocutors, contributing humbly to collaborative discourses on humanity's collective maturation.

Image: Engin Akyurt

07/15/2026

In this breakout session, a panel will share several recent experiences introducing ideas from academic discourse on technology and society in professional settings. These modest experiences extend the ABS special interest group on technology’s learning about seminars for professionals into a variety of other contexts, including roundtable discussions, curriculum development, and professional development workshops. Extension to such settings represent some of the special interest group’s efforts to develop an outward-looking culture within the Association through collaborative initiatives. Following panelists’ remarks, participants will be invited to discuss contributions to technology discourse and how to introduce them into ongoing conversations.

Image: Philipp Hubert