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By WILFRED LANGMAID
For The Daily Gleaner

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For some 60 years, a Baha'i faith community has existed in the Fredericton area. It now consists of more than 70 members who meet in one another's homes.

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Their life of showing belief through action is extending to their younger members with an innovative local program that benefits the community greatly.

According to Judah Bunin, the chairman of the Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Douglas, "Within many Baha'i communities, including our own, we encourage members to contribute to different Baha'i funds, and the money collected is then used for various local, national and even international projects and programs."

People are often surprised to hear that only Baha'is are able to contribute to these funds and that members consider it "a privilege as well as a moral responsibility," Bunin said.

"It is always emphasized that it is the act of participating and the spirit of sacrifice that are important in donating to the funds, rather than the amount of money donated. Interestingly, donations are always given in private and only the treasurer of a community is aware of the actual donations, if any, made by any particular individual."

That said, one often assumes that such action is solely by adults. That is not the case with the Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Douglas

"In order to help instill these values in the younger members of our community, we have encouraged them to set goals for themselves in this area as well."

There are now 12 children and youth under the age of 16 in the Douglas Baha'i community, and together this past year they donated more than $300 of their own money into the Children's Fund. They then collectively consulted on where this money should be allocated at the end of the year, and it was decided to donate the bulk of it, $250, to the Fredericton Food Bank, with the remainder being sent to help with the construction of a new temple, Baha'i House of Worship, in Santiago, Chile.

In previous years, these children have allocated the funds they donated to various other causes, such as helping provide literacy materials for a Baha'i community in West Africa, and to helping with Baha'i projects at the national level.

"One of the many blessings that we have as members of the Baha'i community in Douglas is that we have always had a special relationship with contributing to the funds; it seems that we all feel that it is actually a bounty to participate rather than merely just another financial obligation. This attitude has, apparently, filtered down to the next generation, as their generous contributions and spirit of giving have attested in recent years," Bunin said.

Baha'i-inspired moral and spiritual education classes take place each Sunday at the Nashwaaksis Middle School. They are geared to children aged 5-15 and are open to everyone in the greater Fredericton area.

"We normally have about 20 children there," Bunin said.