Planet Bahá'í

Bahá'ís have embraced the Internet as a potent medium for spreading Bahá'u'lláh's message around the world. Even before the World Wide Web and the explosion of Internet useage, a few Bahá'ís were active on electronic bulletin boards and networks such as Compuserve. Computer-literate Bahá'ís jumped on the WWW bandwagon early and others followed as 'net knowledge and usage increased. Today you'll obtain thousands of hits when typing "Baha'i" into your favorite search engine.

Yet in spite of this, it may not be as easy as you'd think to find what you want to know about Bahá'ís and their religion on the Web. I haven't done a scientific study of the state of the Faith on the Web, but as someone who has spent considerable time searching for and indexing useful Bahá'í sites, I have a few observations to make. They may surprise you. If you're a Bahá'í webmaster, I hope you'll think of them as a call to action.

1. What's Out There?

First, let's get a feel for what kind of sites Bahá'ís and others interested in the Faith have been developing. Oddly enough, when I count up categories and subcategories, I find there are nine:

• Official sites:
• International sites: There are very few of these, maintained by the Bahá'í International Community and agencies of the Universal House of Justice. The most important is The Bahá'ís, the official presence of the Bahá'í Faith on the Web and the only site in the world that is required to undergo Bahá'í review.
• National sites: Over the past few years, increasing numbers of national Bahá'í communities have established presences on the Web. These sites are overseen by National Spiritual Assemblies (NSAs) to provide information regarding their communities. They vary widely in their depth and design. A few are very rudimentary, but most provide overviews of the Faith, some details about their national communities, and contact information. Official sites for the Bahá'í Houses of Worship are generally part of their respective national community sites.
• Local sites: Although many local Bahá'í communities do have a presence on the Web, many more do not. Larger communities may hire a professional developer, but smaller communities must rely on members with the skills and time to do the job on a volunteer basis. As a result, the quality and depth of local sites are all over the board. Some consist of little more than contact information. (I've seen a few that don't offer even that!) Others are stunning creations providing a wealth of material on the Faith and the local community. Most local sites offer introductory material, a few links, an events calendar and contact information. Local sites are generally supervised by Local Spiritual Assemblies (LSAs), but it isn't always clear how close this supervision is.
• Organizational sites: Bahá'í schools, some agencies of NSAs and LSAs, publishers and other commercial enterprises often maintain Web sites. These sites are usually not concerned with providing general information about the Faith, but rather are vehicles for promoting the products and services of their owners or for disseminating information to the Bahá'í community.
• Indices:
• Compiled by Bahá'ís: Many pages on the Web (Bahá'í and otherwise) consist of little more than links to other pages. Others provide both extensive categorized links and original content. In the Bahá'í realm, a few of these sites have grown to be major players in the Web search game. You're looking at one of them now. ;-) Others include A Bahá'í Faith Page (originally known as "Glen Little's Page" but later run by Cary Enoch Reinstein and currently by Larry Curtis) and The Bahá'í Faith Index run by Casper Voogt (which includes the Bahá'í Web Ring and a search engine that can be placed on other pages).
• Compiled by others: There are other lists of Bahá'í links out there, some on commercial information sites and some maintained by individuals who have some tangential interest in the Bahá'í Faith. However, these lists often pose problems for people who are just learning about the Faith. Many times sites that have a vested interest in discrediting or distorting the Bahá'í Faith are included in these indices. While there is some value in becoming familiar with such materials, there is also the very real danger that the misinformation presented by such sites will be accepted at face value.
• Personal sites: Personal home pages abound on the Web, and many Bahá'ís have staked their claims in cyberspace. You never know what you'll find when you visit a personal Bahá'í site, which can be the source of both fun and frustration. Most personal pages offer little more than links and maybe the briefest of overviews, while others provide an in-depth look at topics dear to the webmaster's heart. None of these can be considered either official or authoritative, but the best of them are treasures. However, not all of these sites are presented by Bahá'ís in good standing, so a bit of caution is called for. (See below.)
• Topical sites: These are sites (usually personal ones) that focus sharply on particular topics within the Bahá'í Faith. They may deal with history, administration, specific Bahá'í principles, the arts or any of a number of other topics. Although relatively few in number at the present time, such sites generally offer good materials for obtaining a deeper understanding of particular subjects.
• Academic sites: A small number of Bahá'í Web sites provide resources for Bahá'í scholars and the academic community generally. The principle sites are those run by the Association for Bahá'í Studies and the Bahá'í Library Online, the latter being the best all-around academic resource. Be forewarned that material offered by these sites is of a scholarly nature, not light reading!

Anyone searching for Bahá'í materials on the Web should be forewarned that there are a number of organizations and individuals who, for various reasons, would like to discredit the Bahá'í Faith, and they are just as active on the Internet as Bahá'ís are. Some of this opposition derives from a belief that the Bahá'í Faith is a false religion. Some are authored by ex-Bahá'ís, a few of whom seem to have legitimate complaints and others who found the Faith to be something other than what they personally wanted. Finally, some belong to organizations and individuals who call themselves Bahá'í but who have rejected the administrative order ordained by Bahá'u'lláh, placing themselves beyond the pale of the Bahá'í Faith. (These organizations have official names based on "Bahá'í Faith" but with additional verbiage.) While all of these sites may contain some valid material, they also typically present many inaccurate statements and interpretations.

Now that we have an idea of what's out there, let's look at how good it is.

2. How Good Is It?

In terms of visual quality, most Bahá'í sites are quite good. This is especially true of the official sites presented by national and the larger local communities, which typically have the resources to produce high-quality sites. Many smaller localities, too, have created high-quality Web sites by drawing on the expertise of their resident technophiles. Personal sites are more of a mixed breed, but I find that the visual appeal of most keeps to the high side of average.

Bahá'í sites most often run into trouble with content and organization. Although a flashy site may be appealing to the eye, few people visit a Bahá'í Web site to be mesmerized by spinning nine-pointed stars. They want to know what the Bahá'í Faith is, what Bahá'ís believe and where they can find Bahá'ís. The good news is that most sites do indeed present this material. The bad news is that it is often sketchy, presuming no prior knowledge of the Faith, and vital contact information is frequently shunted to the side or bottom of the page.

Material for newcomers is of course important. The Bahá'í Faith is still largely unknown. But imagine the frustration of William Surfer, a Canadian inquirer. He picks John Q. Bahá'í's page from his search engine output. This page features the "12 principles." Intrigued, William wants to know more about this harmony of science and religion business, so he follows John's link to Shirin Bahá'í's page and finds a mention of the "three onenesses." Of course, those were part of the 12 principles. But not to fear, here is a link to another site run by a Floridian community. Clicking it, he finds (again) the "12 principles" and a phone number for contacting the community. He doesn't want to place an international call, so he goes back to his search engine, selects another site, and finds the "12 principles" and an email address for the Webmaster, who lives in Zimbabwe.

Although a bit contrived, this scenario isn't so far from the truth as you might think. The overwhelming majority of Bahá'í material on the Web is very basic. You may in time discover a wealth of academic articles and the publications of the Bahá'í International Community, but many of these are not accessible to the general reader. They are too detailed, too technical. Where is the middle ground?

The answer, I'm afraid, is that the middle ground doesn't exist. A few people have written detailed and accessible examinations of key Bahá'í principles and practices, but in the main this potentially useful level of Internet exposition remains undeveloped.

Interested people want to know how to contact Bahá'ís. Recently I talked with Tim Tyson, National Media Coordinator for the U.S. National Teaching Committee. He suggested that Web sites should be viewed primarily as mechanisms for helping people get in touch with Bahá'ís. Teaching, he noted, is more about connecting hearts than about delivering information. While providing accurate information is important, it is only one part of the process. Spiritual connections must be made in person. Did you know that the number one question asked by callers to the U.S. Bahá'í community's 1-800-22-UNITE information line is, "Where can I find you?" Some Bahá'í Web sites do a good job of facilitating personal contacts, but many do not.

Likewise, events calendars on Bahá'í sites are often a mixed blessing. To be useful, events calendars must be not merely up-to-date but up-to-the-minute. If I had a dime for every outdated calendar I've seen online, I could quit my day job and work full-time on Planet Bahá'í. ;-) But all kidding aside, I believe this is a serious problem. Old calendars make Bahá'ís look bad and lose potential contacts. I feel it is better not to have an events calendar at all than to have one that is six months old and counting.

Lest you get the idea that the Faith is not well-represented on the Web, let me assure you that it is. There are many good sites out there and some excellent ones. When browsing my Subjects, keep an eye out for the "Best of the Net" awards. These are sites that I have found to be exceptional in content or design. They can be used as models for your own Web development efforts.

And speaking of models, how can we go about designing high-quality Bahá'í Web sites? Keep reading. I have a few ideas...

3. Tips for a Better Web Site

Based on what I've seen and on my own experiences with creating Web pages, I have a few suggestions for those of you who are designing or maintaining Bahá'í sites. These are primarily general principles that won't stifle your creativity in the least. Indeed, they will help you apply your creative ideas to best effect.

1. Organizational tips:
1. Visual appeal is important. It doesn't compensate for lack of good content, but it is important. Play with different layouts, different graphics, and different color schemes. Study how successful sites use these elements. Ask others for their opinions on your layout. (Consult!) Avoid color schemes that induce eyestrain or are hard to read.
2. Don't put too much on one page. "Heavy" pages take longer to load and can be frustrating to scroll through in search of information. Better to break large amounts of information and graphics into several well-organized pages.
3. Provide a clear and consistent navigation system to help visitors move from page to page within your site. Study large commercial sites to see how they do it. Menus in the margins, for example, are a simple and fairly standard technique. However you decide to do it, make it look and function the same on every page in your site. It's more work, but your users will appreciate how it takes the guesswork out of site navigation.
2. Content tips:
1. Yes, introductory material is important. Include it if it's appropriate to your site. If not, include some obvious links to other sites that provide it. (My own introductory page wouldn't be a bad choice, but there are many other good sites, too.)
2. But don't stop there. Once a visitor's appetite is whetted, they are likely to want more. The exact content you provide depends on your site of course, but every site can provide greater detail on some aspect of the Bahá'í Faith. For example:
1. Local community sites can include community history, significant activities in which the community is regularly involved, statements from the Local Spiritual Assembly on issues affecting their area and an events calendar.
2. Personal sites can include detailed information on any aspect of the Faith that is of particular interest to their owners, "How I Became a Bahá'í" stories and personal accounts of Bahá'í activities. (Don't underestimate the value of such personal accounts!)
3. Bahá'ís who have expertise in fields closely related to principles of the Bahá'í Faith can develop a wide variety of materials for examining those principles in theory and in practice. Such material could be targeted to an audience that already has some knowledge of the Faith but which is not necessarily interested in scholarly treatments. More advanced material could, of course, be provided for those who want it.
3. Contact information should always be prominently displayed! Don't leave your visitors hanging. If you can't put it prominently on your main page, create some obvious links to it. Point it out a few times in your text. I suggest providing four levels of contact information:
1. Personal contact information (your email address) allows visitors to ask you questions and report any problems they might encounter with your site.
2. Local community contact information (email and Web site addresses of your LSA and, if available, a phone number and mailing address) allows visitors in or near your community to make contact with the community. However, bear in mind that most of your visitors may be from far away, which is why you shouldn't stop here.
3. National contact information (national Web site address, national phone numbers and addresses, if available) allows visitors from anywhere in your country to get in touch with Bahá'ís. For many guests, this will be far more useful than the local community contact information. U.S. Bahá'ís should prominently display the 1-800-22-UNITE toll-free number, through which anyone in the U.S. can request information and personal contact from Bahá'ís in their area.
4. For your international guests, you might want to link to a listing of national Bahá'í sites, such as the one I maintain here.
5. Unless your ambition is to compete with Casper Voogt and I and the handful of others who have made a career out of building massive indices to Bahá'í Web sites, do not make your site just another collection of links. Indices have their place, but we don't really need thousands of little link pages. We do need thousands of informative community sites and thousands of pages of well-developed materials explaining the Faith and its impact on the lives of ordinary people. It's fine to have links, of course, but links are not what makes a site special. Well, not unless you have as many of them as Casper and company do!
3. Maintenance tips:
1. If you want to encourage repeat visits, you'll need to update your site periodically. The more often you update, the more likely people are to come back. This is particularly true of sites that provide news and events information.
2. If you have an events calendar, please keep it up-to-date. Put events on it as far in advance as possible and remove them when they are past. The format of the calendar isn't half as important as its currency. If you can't keep it current, get rid of it until such time as you can.
3. Periodically check for broken links and fix or remove them.

I hope this gives you some food for thought. If you have any comments on Bahá'í Web site design, join us in our forum. We'd be happy to discuss it!