Wedding Program Bahiyyih Phillips & Bill Baker October 10, 1998, Anita Purves Nature Center, Urbana, Illinois Musical Prelude on the Penny Whistle - Michael Felty 1 - Marriage - Dr. William K. Baker He is the Bestower, the Bounteous! Praise be to God, the Ancient, the Ever-Abiding, the Changeless, the Eternal! He Who hath testified in His Own Being that verily He is the One, the Single, the Untrammelled, the Exalted. We bear witness that verily there is no God but Him, acknowledging His oneness, confessing His singleness. He hath ever dwelt in unapproachable heights, in the summits of His loftiness, sanctified from the mention of aught save Himself, free from the description of aught but Him. And when He desired to manifest grace and beneficence to men, and to set the world in order, He revealed observances and created laws; among them He established the law of marriage, made it as a fortress for well-being and salvation, and enjoined it upon us in that which was sent down out of the heaven of sanctity in His Most Holy Book. He saith, great is His glory: "Marry, O people, that from you may appear he who will remember Me amongst My servants; this is one of My commandments unto you; obey it as an assistance to yourselves." - Baha'u'llah, Baha'i Prayers, p. 103. Musical Accompaniment - Michael Moutrie 2 - Love - Juliet Gentskow Know thou of a certainty that Love is the secret of God's holy Dispensation, the manifestation of the All-Merciful, the fountain of spiritual outpourings. Love is heaven's kindly light, the Holy Spirit's eternal breath that vivifieth the human soul. Love is the cause of God's revelation unto man, the vital bond inherent, in accordance with the divine creation, in the realities of things. Love is the one means that ensureth true felicity both in this world and the next. Love is the light that guideth in darkness, the living link that uniteth God with man, that assureth the progress of every illumined soul. - `Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of `Abdu'l-Baha, p. 27. 3 - Love - Shaun Mills The love which exists between the hearts of believers is prompted by the ideal of the unity of spirits. This love is attained through the knowledge of God, so that men see the Divine Love reflected in the heart. Each sees in the other the Beauty of God reflected in the soul, and finding this point of similarity, they are attracted to one another in love. This love will make all men the waves of one sea, this love will make them all the stars of one heaven and the fruits of one tree. This love will bring the realization of true accord, the foundation of real unity. - `Abdu'l-Baha, From a talk at 97 Cadogan Gardens, London, January 4th, 1913, Paris Talks, p. 180-181. 4 - Love - Michael Felty When you love a member of your family or a compatriot, let it be with a ray of the Infinite Love! Let it be in God, and for God! Wherever you find the attributes of God love that person, whether he be of your family or of another. Shed the light of a boundless love on every human being whom you meet… - `Abdu'l-Baha, From a talk delivered October 24, 1912, Paris Talks, p. 38. 5 - Consultation - Angeline Widmer The Great Being saith: The heaven of divine wisdom is illumined with the two luminaries of consultation and compassion. Take ye counsel together in all matters, inasmuch as consultation is the lamp of guidance which leadeth the way, and is the bestower of understanding. - Baha'u'llah, Lawh-i-Maqsúd, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 168. 6 - Unity - Bahiyyih Phillips If any differences arise amongst you, behold Me standing before your face, and overlook the faults of one another for My name's sake and as a token of your love for My manifest and resplendent Cause. We love to see you at all times consorting in amity and concord within the paradise of My good-pleasure, and to inhale from your acts the fragrance of friendliness and unity, of loving-kindness and fellowship. - Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, CXLVI, p. 315. 7 - Equality - Bill B. Baker O CHILDREN OF MEN! Know ye not why We created you all from the same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions, the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest. Such is My counsel to you, O concourse of light! Heed ye this counsel that ye may obtain the fruit of holiness from the tree of wondrous glory. - Baha'u'llah, The Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah, from the Arabic, number 68. ------------------------------------------------------------- | | | Wedding Ceremony - Bill Baker and Bahiyyih Phillips | | | | Vow: "We will all, verily, abide by the Will of God." | | | | - Baha'u'llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, Q3. | | | ------------------------------------------------------------- 8 - Prayer - Mulopo Mulomede Glory be unto Thee, O my God! Verily, this thy servant and this Thy maidservant have gathered under the shadow of Thy mercy and they are united through Thy favor and generosity. O Lord! Assist them in this Thy world and Thy kingdom and destine for them every good through Thy bounty and grace. O Lord! Confirm them in Thy servitude and assist them in Thy service. Suffer them to become the signs of Thy Name in Thy world and protect them through Thy bestowals which are inexhaustible in this world and the world to come. O Lord! They are supplicating the kingdom of Thy mercifulness and invoking the realm of Thy singleness. Verily, they are married in obedience to Thy command. Cause them to become the signs of harmony and unity until the end of time. Verily, Thou art the Omnipotent, the Omnipresent and the Almighty! - `Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i Prayers, p. 105. 9 - Prayer - Zivar Guyot O my Lord, O my Lord! These two bright moons are wedded in Thy love, conjoined in servitude to Thy Holy Threshold, united in ministering to thy Cause. Make Thou this marriage to be as threading lights of Thine abounding grace, O my Lord, the All-Merciful, the luminous rays of Thy bestowals, O Thou the Beneficent, the Ever-Giving, that there may branch out from this great tree boughs that will grown green and flourishing through the gifts that rain down from Thy clouds of grace. Verily, Thou art the Generous. Verily, Thou art the Compassionate, the All-Merciful. - `Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i Prayers, p. 105-106.