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Advancing the process o growth
As o this writing, 167 clusters with intensive programs o growth are projectedor Riḍván 2009, an increase o 77 in one year. Activities at the cluster level, with the institute process as their driving orce, will have yielded at least 2,500adult and youth enrollments, plus some 1,200 child and junior youth registra-tions. This not only ar exceeds each o the previous two years o the current Plan, it is an aggregate level o annual growth not seen in this country in wellover two decades.The two essential movements at the heart o the Plan—the progress o individu-als through the sequence o institute courses, and the consequent advancemento clusters rom one stage o growth to the next—have now become an estab-lished pattern throughout the Bahá’í world. Much is being learned rom year to year, and even rom cycle to cycle, about the dynamics o this process. We oerthe ollowing observations about recent experience in the United States.In last year’s annual report, we noted that a handul o clusters had producedhigh numbers o enrollments in the expansion phases o their growth cycles inthe preceding year. Three clusters saw about 50 new believers enter the Faith within periods o 10–14 days—and three more o them had about 100 in atleast one cycle. In the past year, however, these same clusters experienced muchmore modest levels o growth in each cycle. This decrease in enrollments wasthe result o decisions made by the same core teams that earlier had orga-nized collective teaching eorts; they were determined not to overwhelm thehuman resources available or proper consolidation to take place. The capacityto set enrollment goals commensurate with the capacity to nurture new believ-ers marks an important step orward in the maturation o the growth process.It is interesting to note that, although no clusters experienced the dramaticenrollments o the previous year, more clusters experienced growth. As a result,aggregate growth or the country rose considerably. In addition, new believersare now ar more likely to participate in one or more core activities.Collective teaching activities were the object o greater ocus in the past year. Receptive populations were identifed in specifc neighborhoods, where theentire array o core activities, plus direct teaching eorts o various kinds, wereestablished and took root. Many o the more successul eorts have emphasizedthe establishment o neighborhood children’s classes. In act, there is a highcorrelation between enrollments in a cluster and the existence o neighborhoodclasses or children. We are beginning to see patterns o community lie emerg-ing in these neighborhoods that include the participation o both veteran andnew believers, as well as large numbers o seekers. Last year we noted an emerging emphasis on direct teaching, “an open andbold assertion o the undamental verities o the Cause,” or which the co-gent presentation rom Ruhi Book 6 (commonly known as “Anna’s presenta-tion”) was serving as an eective model. A related element was the readiness
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lthough no clustersexperienced thedramatic enrollmentso the previous year, more clustersexperienced growth. As a result, aggregategrowth or the countryrose considerably. Inaddition, new believersare now ar more likelyto participate in one or more core activities.
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