The Dinner and Discussions got off to a great start this year, with the first meeting having taken place October 24th at Professor Arash Abizadeh's home. As the name entails the evening consisted of eating together and then discussing an article that students were asked to read ahead of time. About sixteen people were able to attend, and while space around the dinner table was hard to find, together they still managed to finish three deeply delicious lasagnas.

The article discussed this time was called "Globalization and the Hidden Words" by Todd Lawson, a Baha'i and professor of Islamic studies. The article is a careful study of one of Baha'u'llah's most loved and widely-read works, the Hidden Words. Baha'u'llah, prophet founder of the Baha'i Faith, wrote this collection of short, pithy meditations, on the fundamental spiritual and ethical teachings of the world's religious traditions, in Baghdad in 1857 -- a place of intense religious diversity and conflict. Lawson argues that the very style and language that Baha'u'llah used expresses the text's universalist teachings: it transceds the world of Baghdad and its religious division, to address humanity as a whole.

Conversation of the night moved from a general critique to examining different aspects of the article's main arguments, guided by Arash's thought-provoking questions. A lot of time was spent exploring the accessibility and universality of the Hidden Words. Students also shared opinions on how different cultures would respond to the Baha'i Writings given that they sometimes feature reference to Semitic traditions.

With appetites piqued by the stimulating discussion, participants set out on a quest for dessert. Defeated by the lengthy line at Juliettte et Chocolat they marched around Outremont, danced in the street, and finally triumphed over hot chocolate and cheesecake at Café Olympico.

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