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| No. 386 | BAHA’I YEAR 120 | MAY, 1963 |
Declaration of the Báb[edit]
MAGNIFY Thou, O Lord my God, Him Who is the Primal Point, the Divine Mystery, the Unseen Essence, the Day-Spring of Divinity, and the Manifestation of Thy Lordship, through whom all the knowledge of the past and all the knowledge of the future were made plain, through Whom the pearls of Thy hidden wisdom were uncovered, and the mystery of Thy treasured name disclosed, Whom Thou hast appointed as the Announcer of the One through Whose name the letter B and the letter E have been joined and united, through Whom Thy majesty, Thy sovereignty and Thy might were made known, through Whom Thy words have been sent down, and Thy laws set forth with clearness, and Thy signs spread abroad, and Thy Word established, through Whom the hearts of Thy chosen ones were laid bare, and all that were in the heavens and all that were on the earth were gathered together, Whom Thou hast called ‘Alí-Muḥammad in the kingdom of Thy names, and the Spirit of Spirits in the Tablets of Thine irrevocable decree, Whom Thou hast invested with Thine own title, unto Whose name all other names have, at Thy bidding and through the power of Thy might, been made to return, and in Whom Thou hast caused all Thine attributes and titles to attain their final consummation. To Him also belong such names as lay hid within Thy stainless tabernacles, in Thine invisible world and Thy sanctified cities.
Magnify Thou, moreover, such as have believed in Him and in His signs and have turned towards Him, from among those that have acknowledged Thy unity in His Latter Manifestation — a Manifestation whereof He hath made mention in His Tablets, and in His Books, and in His Scriptures, and in all the wondrous verses and gem-like utterances that have descended upon Him. It is this same Manifestation Whose covenant Thou hast bidden Him establish ere He had established His own covenant. He it is Whose praise the Bayán hath celebrated. In it His excellence hath been extolled, and His truth established, and His sovereignty proclaimed, and His Cause perfected. Blessed is the man that hath turned unto Him, and fulfilled the things He hath commanded, O Thou Who art the Lord of the worlds and the Desire of all them that have known Thee!
Praised be Thou, O my God, inasmuch as Thou hast aided us to recognize and love Him. I, therefore, beseech Thee by Him and by Them Who are the Day-Springs of Thy Divinity, and the Manifestations of Thy Lordship, and the Treasuries of Thy Revelation, and the Depositories of Thine inspiration, to enable us to serve and obey Him, and to empower us to become the helpers of His Cause and the dispersers of His adversaries. Powerful art Thou to do all that pleaseth Thee. No God is there beside Thee, the Almighty, the All-Glorious, the One Whose help is
sought by all men!—Prayers and Meditations, pp. 84-86
Words of the Báb[edit]
O My beloved friends! You are the bearers of the name of God in this Day. You have been chosen as the repositories of His mystery. It behooves each one of you to manifest the attributes of God, and to exemplify by your deeds and words the signs of His righteousness, His power and glory. The very members of your body must bear witness to the loftiness of your purpose, the integrity of your life, the reality of your faith, and the exalted character of your devotion. For verily I say, this is the Day spoken of by God in His Book...
Citation presented by United Nations Association to the
Bahá’í community of Dallas, Texas, in a ceremony attended by 200 people at Southern Methodist University.
The citation was in appreciation of assistance given by
the believers in manning the UN booth at the State Fair
for two full days.
Built by the believers, these new Bahá’í Centers in Kenya are in constant use. UPPER LEFT: Givogi. UPPER RIGHT:
Muhudu. LOWER LEFT: Tiveywa, shown while still under construction. LOWER RIGHT: Wengondo.
Paths to Heaven[edit]
IT IS many years since I first read The Plumed Serpent by the late D. H. Lawrence, poet and novelist. Recently I have been reading this novel again and have quoted from it at Bahá’í meetings. A statement made by one of the characters is so apt that I would like to repeat it here.
“God is always God. But man loses his connection with God. And then he can never recover it again, unless some new Saviour comes to give him his new connection. And every new connection is different from the last, though God is always God. And now the people have lost God. And the Saviour cannot lead them to Him any more ... there must be a new Saviour with a new vision.”
One often comes across writings of a similar nature by other poets and novelists, though not so well expressed.
It seems as though a feeling of expectancy is in the minds of receptive men and women. Concerning this sense the late Maurice Maeterlinck once wrote that this was running through the world of nature, and that all created things were on tiptoe, as it were. Why not? Bahá’u’lláh has pointed out again and again that when a Manifestation appears the whole of creation is affected.
This may explain the stories recorded by the followers of former Prophets. At the time of the Buddha’s conquest of worldly temptation the clouds rained flowers upon Him, and at the birth of Zoroaster strange and unearthly music was heard in the air. Savage beasts followed Krishna when He wandered, playing His divine flute, in the forest, and flowers sprang up beneath His feet. Such stories have an inner and symbolic significance, we know. Yet they may have been literally true. Because human beings do not see these visible evidences does not mean that they are nonexistent. Strange and astonishing things happen to Manifestations. We shall never know, for instance, what Bahá’u’lláh Himself heard and saw when He was communicating with God. Whether the stories relating to the former Manifestations are true or not, they are a graceful decoration on the robe of truth.
We all realize the great wisdom of our Teachings; that is, that undue value should not be placed upon mystical experiences. Nevertheless, many Bahá’ís have ineffable and beautiful visions, and it were a pity to deny them. They are precious, wonderful glimpses of another and higher dimension. Exquisite and immortal moments when one is allowed into a region where time is not; a hint of the spiritual world that awaits all those who work to their highest capacity whether it be through art, science, administration or the humble (or perhaps not so humble) work of the man who cleans our streets and clears our chimneys.
But there are other paths to heaven. There are times in life when pain and anguish are experienced, whether caused by illness, bereavement, frustration or whatever. This is purification by suffering. And while we are enduring such, it seems to “partake of the nature of infinity.”
Entering the Sorrows of Others[edit]
It requires either a strong and vivid imagination or a similar experience to enable us to enter into the sorrows of others. The last named is perhaps the surest way. For when one has traveled the path oneself it is so much easier to understand another’s pain, so much easier to give the help that is needed. The recipients of such help will more readily accept it from those who have trodden the same way. There are times when people are supremely grateful to God for their own past experience of pain which has enabled them to be of such service to others, although at the time it had seemed unbearable.
There are certain forms of illness of a neurotic nature that are little understood by the whole, the young and the healthy. It is not enough to say that one must have faith in Bahá’u’lláh, although this is true. Another form of sympathy is required. There must be a sending out of the heart’s warmth, and a practical, living proof of Bahá’í love.
It seems that creation is based on sacrifice. No creature can attain to a higher existence without the sacrifice of the lower. So how can the highest form of creation, man, hope to escape? Through the Bahá’í Writings, one has a glimmering of Christ’s meaning when He said that he who loseth his life shall save it.
Many years ago I had the privilege of meeting a dear old Bahá’í, who has long since passed. He was a match seller (in the days when people did such things), was crippled from the legs upward and did all his selling from a bathchair. Both he and his wife, similarly afflicted and wholly bedridden, lived in one room, in appalling conditions. Yet they were the most cheerful people and were a shining example to the rest of us. One afternoon we had been speaking of another Bahá’í and I remarked that it was so sad that she, who was such a saint, should undergo trial after trial, tribulation on tribulation, when other and lesser beings went scatheless.
The old man said simply, “Ah, well! Bahá’u’lláh knows that she is worth it.” The sayings of the simple and so-called uneducated have a sort of immortality. I have always remembered this remark and have passed it on to others, who, no doubt, will pass it on in their turn.
The Creative Value of Suffering[edit]
It seems that suffering, especially if connected with some form of sacrifice, is of tremendous creative value. We know that the Message of Bahá’u’lláh would have reached the world in any case. But one wonders if the impact would have been quite so terrific if He Himself had not gone “down into the depths.” Even apart from His physical body, His sufferings must have been of a truly fearful nature. We know that He did suffer. If we, in our humble human way, grieve
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when many of those we know refuse to take the treasure we offer, what must He have felt?
The Word of God is indeed a treasure house, filled with the most sparkling and precious of gems. When the Administrative Order is firmly established we shall turn our minds to other, newer forms of teaching. The founding of the administration is of immediate necessity. All our future social laws depend upon its successful functioning. But administration is but the outward form of a divine inner reality. It is not the reality itself. The Word of God is the reality: that from which all art and beauty are born, from which scientific discoveries are made, from which genius itself is derived, and that which inspires the heroic sacrificial deeds of mankind. This Word has the power, as well we Bahá’ís know, of recreating every soul on this planet.
Hands Expose Covenant-Breaker[edit]
“Owing (to) continued poisonous attacks (against) sacred institutions (of the) Faith, Jamshed Meghnot (formerly of Latin America has been) declared (a) Covenant-breaker. All association (and) correspondence with him (is) forbidden.”
Haifa, Israel
March 30, 1963
Holy Days Recognized by Additional Schools[edit]
On March 1, 1963, the superintendent of Community High School District 88 granted the request of Bahá’ís of Villa Park, Illinois, to permit students attending Willowbrook and York High Schools to be absent from classes on three of the Holy Days, which are all that could be included at the present time. The Holy Days chosen are: First day of Riḍván, Declaration of the Báb and Birthday of Bahá’u’lláh. Students are to make prior arrangements for absence by presenting written requests and explanations from their parents to the deans of the schools.
The Spiritual Assembly of Greenville, South Carolina, reported on March 8, 1963, that the superintendent of the Greenville County Schools had agreed to excuse Bahá’í children from classes on the Holy Days provided the students deliver to their teachers notes of request from their parents.
District No. 4 of the Eugene (Oregon) Public School System has granted permission for children of Bahá’ís to be excused from classes on the Bahá’í Holy Days.
Burial Ground Acquired in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia[edit]
The Bahá’í community of Addis Ababa recently achieved further recognition as an independent religious community when a plot of land was allocated by the municipality for use as the Bahá’í burial ground.
Austria Celebrates World Religion Day[edit]
For the first time, a Roman Catholic priest took part in Vienna’s World Religion Day observances this year. He was Father L. Koch from the San Gabriel mission in Moedling, who had first attracted Bahá’í attention through his statement published in Catholicism’s The Christian Sunday, (No. 11, ’58): “Religions of the world, unite!” Returning for World Religion Day from a trip to Germany on one of the winter’s coldest days (on a train which was unheated and arrived six hours late), he nevertheless gave an enthusiastic and conciliatory talk. The other speakers, also notables in their communities, were a rabbi, a Protestant, an Old Catholic (this group formed after Vatican I as a protest against the doctrine of Papal Infallibility), a Liberal Catholic, a Muslim professor, and for the Bahá’í Faith Dr. Eugen Schmidt of the German National Spiritual Assembly. A string quartet from the Vienna Conservatory and a chorus of young women singers were likewise featured. For the first time the University of Vienna permitted the Bahá’ís to use its large auditorium for the event, which attracted seven hundred people.
Meanwhile on a less friendly note, Vienna’s Jesuit publication Der Grosse Entschluss published, in October and November, a two-part article on the Bahá’í Faith, “Zum Bahaismus,” by Dr. Adele Spuller, to which Austria’s NSA is preparing a reply.
Other cities in Austria observing World Religion Day — an event which arouses even more attention in divided Europe than in the U.S. — included Graz, with representatives of various religions: Hindu, Jewish, Catholic, Protestant, Muslim, and the noted Persian scholar, Dr. Ahmedzadeh for the Bahá’í Faith, and an audience of eighty; and Linz, addressed by the original Bahá’í pioneer and settler in Austria, Herr Franz Poellinger, who has labored in this country since the twenties and accomplished outstanding services for the Faith, among them his teaching work with Martha Root.
Salzburg, which the Guardian considered an important center and a bridge between Munich and Vienna, has recently and successfully tried out an experiment. It maintains a handsome showcase at the entrance to a popular cinema, thus attracting public notice in an environment where the usual media, such as radio and television, are as a rule not available to the Faith.
Salzburg’s World Religion Day observance was unusual in that the featured Bahá’í speaker, a German intellectual from nearby Bavaria, had first heard of the Faith on this same occasion in 1960, when a newspaper advertisement attracted him to the Salzburg event. This was Dr. Hans G. H. Buettner, psychologist and educator, who declared himself as a Bahá’í in 1962, and who heads one of Germany’s best-known reform centers for youthful first-time offenders. Now completing a philosophical study on the oneness of life, Dr. Buettner said when recently interviewed that in the Bahá’í Faith he has found his “spiritual home.”
The Mansion of Mazra‘ih — Cherished Spot to All Believers[edit]
Mazra‘ih is the historic dwelling place of Bahá’u’lláh following His confinement for over nine years within the prison city of ‘Akká. He lived at Mazra‘ih for perhaps two years before taking up residence at Bahjí.
Situated about four miles north of ‘Akká, the Mansion of Mazra‘ih was even then a lovely place surrounded by gardens, with a stream flowing through the grounds.
Later it fell into other hands and remained there for more than fifty years, until it was turned over to the Bahá’ís by the Israeli authorities in 1951. On that occasion the beloved Guardian, who immediately set about furnishing the Mansion in anticipation of pilgrimage, sent the following message to the believers around the world: “Ties, linking the World Center of the Faith with the newly-emerged, rapidly consolidating sovereign state in the Holy Land, have been reinforced through the delivery by the Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Mazra‘ih Mansion into Bahá’í custody....”
- Pictures, clockwise from upper left:
- The entrance to the Mansion of Mazra‘ih.
- View of the rear of the Mansion.
- The original stairway leading to Bahá’u’lláh’s quarters.
- The bedroom of Bahá’u’lláh.
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The ten-foot-high model of the Temple in its colorful setting at the Chicago World Flower and Garden Show. The bright hues of the actual gardens were faithfully reproduced in the flowers, shrubs and other vegetation.
Miniature Temple Garden Attracts Wide Attention at Important Chicago Exhibition[edit]
Considerable publicity accrued to the Faith from the showing of a replica, in reduced size, of one of the famous Wilmette Temple gardens at the Chicago World Flower and Garden Show. An accolade of another sort was a special award of merit made to the exhibit. In addition a large picture and full description of the display were included in the official guide book distributed during the show.
A record-breaking crowd of over 350,000 people visited this year’s affair, held March 16 to 24 in McCormick Place, Chicago’s great convention and exhibit hall on the shore of Lake Michigan.
Information on the Faith was made available at a booth separate from the display itself. Over 23,000 pieces of literature were given out and a special repeating projector presented a continuous showing of color slides of the Temple and gardens.
The Bahá’í exhibit was sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly and arranged by Superintendent L. Wyatt Cooper and his staff from the Temple, with the cooperation of Hilbert Dahl (Temple gardens architect) and the Temple Maintenance Committee.
A separate literature and information booth at the
Flower Show was staffed from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. by
believers in the Chicago area. Booths were provided
for all exhibitors.
As long ago as last summer flower-show officials Frank
Dubinsky, managing director (at left), and Harold O.
Klopp, show designer (at right), examined the Temple
gardens in Wilmette.
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ABOVE LEFT: Summer school held at Huehuetenango, Guatemala, last December. ABOVE RIGHT:
A Bahá’í family in the village of Chimolon, where there is a local assembly. Three of the believers shown are members of it. AT LEFT: Vincente Castañeda, who taught the Faith for nine years without being aware of the Crusade.
Horizons of Faith Glow Brightly in Guatemala at Crusade’s End[edit]
Much ardent and devoted work marked the teaching in Guatemala during the winter and spring, particularly in one section of the country. A Bahá’í school was held in Huehuetenango late in December, and in view of what happened a little later this seems to have been like a spiritual spark dropped on waiting tinder.
Believers and contacts came from Retalhuleu, Quezaltenango, Chichicastenango, Cobán, Sacapulos, Quiche and Guatemala City, and an average of thirty attended every day, planning with great enthusiasm to work hard in the remaining Crusade months and attract the masses to the Faith.
A free radio program was given by a contact from Cobán who is editor of a newspaper there, and it was indicative of the spirit of the occasion that while he had been asked to speak on his impressions of the city, much of his broadcast centered around the events which he found stimulating at the school. He has since enrolled in the Faith.
Subsequently members of two families left Quezaltenango to teach elsewhere. A devoted couple, Evangelina and Manuel Moreno, moved to Quiche with their six children to help strengthen that community. Marion Tyler and the little Guatemalan boy she had adopted went to help in the teaching work around Huehuetenango. Here, also, Alice and Dale Sinclair had been working tirelessly during the past eight months, and eventually the following event, reported in a letter from the former, occurred.
“Manolo and I had just returned from an all-day trip to Chinaca, about twelve miles from Huehuetenango. On the return trip I was so tired that I had to rest, so we found a shady spot. Dozens of people passed by and we greeted each one, but one man with beautiful eyes—who turned out to be Vincente Castañeda—came over to us like a magnet. We asked him when we could come to his village to give the people a beautiful message about the new Messenger that God had sent to the world.
“He immediately said, ‘Are you Bahá’ís?’ I nearly fell dead, and said, ‘Yes.’ He then said, ‘I am a Bahá’í.’
“Tears came into his eyes as he embraced us and said, ‘I’ve hunted all over the country for Louise Caswell, who told me about the Faith in 1953, for I wanted to know more. I went to Guatemala City, Retalhuleu, Matzatenango and other places looking for her.’
“Then the dear soul fumbled in the bottom of his sack and pulled out an old prayer book wrapped in pieces of cloth and said, ‘She gave me this and I always pray to Bahá’u’lláh to let me find out more about this wonderful story. Now I finally have found it again. My children believe me that this is such a beautiful religion, and many of my friends in other towns. Others laugh and say that it isn’t true. My wife said this religion is false and destroyed the books — all but the prayer book — then she soon died, so that proves it wasn’t false. Please get me books. I’ll be there on Wednesday with my friends to pick them up.’
“When I told him we would have tortillas and coffee for them on Wednesday, he said, ‘No, we want spiritual food instead.’ ”
During a subsequent month more than sixty entered the Faith in this fertile area around Huehuetenango. The principle project of the National Teaching Committee for the remaining weeks of the Crusade came to be the sending out of groups of believers with Vincente Castañeda to the various towns and hillsides where he had been teaching during the past nine years. This devoted soul had been working diligently for the Faith without knowing about the World Crusade until a comparatively few weeks ago.
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Members of the United States National Assembly discuss news release regarding the Most Great Jubilee
and the World Congress which were the subjects of a
press conference held in Chicago on March 28. Mr.
Kavelin spoke to reporters representing all major
Chicago newspapers and the New York Times. The
event coincided with the visit of King Hassan II of
Morocco to the United States, and this attracted questions from the press concerning the persecution of the
Bahá’ís in Nador and Tangier. Left to right: Hugh E.
Chance (secretary), H. Borrah Kavelin (chairman),
Amoz Gibson, Arthur L. Dahl (treasurer).
Librarian of Fort Myers (Florida) Public Library is
presented with copy of “Some Answered Questions” by
Derald Hendry of the local assembly. Display in background is one of two that were in the library about two
months, which the Librarian said attracted more attention than any previous display.
Spiritual Assembly of Vevey, Switzerland, incorporated
October 18, 1962. Left to right, seated: Miss Irene Bennett (secretary), Mrs. Bertha Ramseyer, Miss Emmeline Maillard, Mrs. Marion Little (chairman), Mrs.
Alice Brawley. Standing: Mrs. Marjorie Mann Giorgi,
Mrs. Yvonne Gordon (vice-chairman), Jacques Giannoni (recording secretary), Mrs. Eleanor Hollibaugh
(treasurer).
Spiritual Assembly of Unley, South Australia, incorporated November 13, 1962. Left to right, seated: Mrs.
Leith Victor, Miss Eliza Paterson, Mrs. Ann Pearce,
Mrs. Maude Osborn. Standing: Walter Motteram, Mrs.
Rose Hawthorne, Mrs. Clarice Stanton, Mrs. Evilda
Reid, Herbert Osborn.
First National Spiritual Assembly of Luxembourg, 1962-1963. Left to right, seated: Suzette Hipp, Honor Kempton, Betty Thompson, Faizollah Namdar. Standing:
Ronald Bates (chairman), Nancy Jordan, Claude Levy,
Pierre Bram, Leslie Marcus (secretary).
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Pokai.
Some of the Bahá’ís of Sikabaluan.
Forward March of the Faith in the Mentawei Islands[edit]
Typical Bahá’í communities of the Mentawei Islands are shown in these pictures. There are also communities in Saibi, Ulu; Sarereket, Ulu; Sarereiket, Ugai; Silakoinan, Ulu; Silakoinan, Ilir; Simatalu Uju, Tengah; Sikalangai, Beremen; all of which maintain Bahá’í schools, and in Sikalabu; Muara Siberut; Silokeinan, Ulu; Simatalu Seibi, Tengah.
Simatalu Seibi, Ulu.
Sipapajek, Ilir.
Sikatiri, where there is a Bahá’í school.
Some of the believers of Simatalu Udju, Ulu.
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LEFT: Foreign students and a hostess at an Intercalary Day dinner given by the Decatur (Illinois) Bahá’í Group.
RIGHT: Believers and friends at an Intercalary Day party in Gallup, New Mexico, at which two Indians made their declarations and several of the guests were enjoying their first Bahá’í gathering.
Unusual Celebrations Mark Intercalary Days[edit]
To demonstrate hospitality for the Intercalary Days, the Decatur (Illinois) group entertained foreign students of Milliken University at a buffet dinner, followed by games and entertainment. Of the eighteen foreign students at the school, eleven attended the party. Nine countries were represented — Korea, Japan, India, Iran, Syria, Germany, British Guiana, West Indies and Hong Kong. The Bahá’ís were told that it was the first time these students had been invited into an American home, except those of the president and dean of the university.
The Decatur believers had decided to do no direct teaching on the occasion, but to have follow-up meetings. Some of the visitors mentioned knowing of the existence of the Faith, most of them having heard about it in their native lands. The guests expressed very great appreciation for the hospitality, the demonstration of togetherness and the thoughtfulness which prompted the affair.
Having had excellent response in past years to a single public event during the Intercalary Days, the Nashville (Tennessee) community decided this year that all four days would honor non-Bahá’í friends and proclaim the Faith. An evening of prayer and meditation to strengthen the friends was arranged for February 25. On each of the following three evenings a fellowship supper was given. Three different Bahá’í families having volunteered to be hosts, any expense to the community was eliminated. All believers were free to attend and bring guests as long as they notified the hosts in advance.
On the first evening, slides of the five Bahá’í houses of Worship were shown with informative comments given by a youth. Twenty-one were present, ten of whom were guests. The next night in another home thirty were in attendance, including twenty guests. Much interest was shown in a tape of the Bob Quigley Show with Eileen Norman, and several good questions were asked. The third event was held at the Bahá’í Center and drew forty-five, twenty-eight being guests. Again slides were shown with a commentary which brought out many of the Teachings. A final gathering at the Center after the Feast was arranged by the Fisk University Bahá’í Club with some adult assistance. About fifteen young people from Fisk and Tennessee A & I Universities were among those enjoying the party.
The Nashville community was gratified to have the black, white and yellow races represented at some of the gatherings, and felt that an exciting feature was the spirit among the guests and the believers. Most important, of course, will be the results achieved through various follow-up programs.
Intercalary Days in Nashville, Tennessee. LEFT: One group at the first fellowship supper. RIGHT: Section of the audience waiting for slide show after the third fellowship supper.
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First Spiritual Assembly of Douglas, Alaska, formed
December 23, 1962. Left to right, standing: Sally Anderson, Lois Weisberg, Marion Johnson, Martha Reed,
Georgine Moul. Seated: Donald Anderson, Herbert
Johnson, Bob Reed, Robert Moul.
First Spiritual Assembly of Redding, California, formed
March 2, 1963. Left to right, seated: Winnie Nevin, Viviana Lisota (secretary), Soo Jones, Anna Marney.
Standing: Turaj Medhat, Thomas Lisota (chairman),
Ernie Jones (vice-chairman), Michael Marney (treasurer), Amir Farzanih.
First Spiritual Assembly of Monterey-Carmel J.D., California, formed September 17, 1962. Left to right: Donald
Stevens (vice-chairman), Mrs. Beatrice Rinde (secretary), Mrs. Helen Carter, Mrs. Joyce Dahl, Mrs. Lorraine Stevens, Paul Thiele (chairman), Mrs. Elizabeth
Meyer, Arthur Dahl (treasurer), Victor Meyer.
First Spiritual Assembly of National City, California,
formed February 24, 1963. Left to right, seated: Erma
Haukedahl (secretary), Vina MacPherson, Gladys Loudon, Ann Stein. Standing: Art Kuhwald (vice-chairman), Patricia Hull (treasurer), Melvin Chester (chairman), Margret Chester, Arnie Stein.
First Spiritual Assembly of Costa Mesa, California,
formed April 1962. Left to right, seated: Mrs. Mary-Jean
Rovin, Mrs. Emily Schiemann, Mrs. Ester Singer (recording secretary), Jack Singer (treasurer). Standing:
Mrs. Francis Hoy, Mrs. Helen Mirkovich (vice-chairman), Mrs. Patricia Ferrell, Mrs. Lois Drake (secretary), Tom Drake (chairman).
First Spiritual Assembly of Fort Myers, Florida,
formed April 1962. Left to right, seated: Mary Jane
Matthisen, Doris Corbin, Nina Matthisen, Marion Goodfellow. Standing: Robert Pickering Jr., A. Lawrence
Price, Helen Price, Donald Corbin, Derald Hendry.
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Councilman Frank Curran of San Diego, California,
presents Dr. Dwight Allen (left) with key to the city
at a luncheon given in November by the Bahá’ís for
representatives of news media and educators in San
Diego County. Publicity for the occasion was very
good, including two TV interviews, a telecast of the
meeting and at least three newspaper items.
Kokomo Believers Create Stir with Proclamation Activities[edit]
During the winter and spring the believers of Kokomo, Indiana, created a stir in their city with their proclamation activities. Prominent in the latter were large-space newspaper advertisements — one of them page-high and three columns wide — and similarly generous publicity articles.
Some of the ads (all of which invited readers to public lectures) led off with provocative, attention-getting headlines such as “5,000,000 Bahá’ís Believe Bahá’u’lláh is Christ’s Return” and “Christian Missionary Accepts Bahá’u’lláh.”
This aroused at least two churches, one of which invited readers of an advertisement to come and hear why “a true follower of Jesus Christ cannot embrace the Bahá’í Faith.” Another, in a closely packed page-high ad full of scriptural quotations, undertook to prove that “true Christian missionaries do not accept Bahá as Christ’s return.”
The results of these opposing efforts will no doubt become apparent as time goes on.
Faith Proclaimed Through the Arts[edit]
Widespread newspaper, radio and television publicity and four performances of a ballet composed by Dan Jordan, Chicago Bahá’í, have provided an unusual opportunity for presenting the Bahá’í Teachings to the general public.
Since the inspiration for the ballet, entitled “Metamorphosis of the Owls,” came from the opening lines of the Tablet of Aḥmad, and one of the principal dancers who took a leading role in the performance is Miss Michelle Bernstein, a Bahá’í youth, many interviewers included facts about the Faith in their accounts.
After each performance a public fireside was held at which Mr. Jordan spoke on the parallel between the ballet and the Teachings of the Faith, thus hundreds of people heard of Bahá’u’lláh for the first time. In addition, the publicity brought a variety of invitations to Mr. Jordan, chairman of the American National Teaching Committee, to speak on the Bahá’í Faith in nearby communities.
International News Briefs[edit]
One Universal Faith, in Flemish, has recently been published in Belgium. The pamphlet is intended particularly for the teaching work in Flanders.
Fifty believers from the German-speaking section of Switzerland gathered in Lucerne on January 27 for a final conference before the close of the World Crusade. The beloved Guardian’s communications to Switzerland, recently published in German, were highlighted. Reports from the Luxembourg conference, called by the European Hands and attended by ‘Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum, were shared with those present.
Mayor George Sharrock of Anchorage, Alaska, issued a special proclamation for World Religion Day 1963, and for the third Sunday in January of each year.
Appu Raman, an official in the Department of Social Welfare of Malaya and a Bahá’í, spent a week in Charleston, West Virginia, visiting the Rehabilitation Center as part of his program on a United Nations Fellowship, preparatory to establishing that type of project in his own country. Mr. Raman spoke at a public meeting and at five firesides, telling of the coming of independence to Malaya and thrilling stories of the Faith there.
The believers in the metropolitan area of Baltimore, Maryland, staged a proclamation week which included four public meetings as well as radio, newspaper and TV publicity. Although attendance at the meetings was relatively small, 1500 telephone inquiries resulted from the publicity. Without doubt many new contacts are now being assiduously courted.
Mass conversion has definitely started in Korea, with the number of local assemblies doubling between December and the end of February. Kajo, with a population of nearly one thousand, is now an all-Bahá’í village.
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Spiritual Assembly of Austin, Texas, incorporated December 17, 1962. Left to right, seated: Neenah Smith,
Catherine Gent, Musette Christian, Sookja Kim Winters.
Standing: Grover Gonzalez, Lura Rouse, Frank Bethune,
Henrietta Trutza, Philip Trutza.
Spiritual Assembly of Augusta, Georgia, incorporated
February 14, 1963. Left to right, seated: Mrs. Annie
Lee Williams, Mrs. Lillian P. Golden, Mrs. Allene V.
Allen, Mrs. Margaret T. Mason. Standing: William H.
Saunders, Miss Yvonne R. Harrop, Miss Nell E. Golden,
Ashburn P. Searcy, Jackson H. Golden.
Officers of the Bahá’í Club at the University of Wisconsin. The picture and an article on the club are included in the school yearbook.
Officers of the Bahá’í Club at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, with the faculty adviser.
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Items for BAHA'I NEWS
News stories and any photographs illustrating an event should be mailed at the same time, and immediately after the occasion. Information or pictures that are weeks and months old lose news value, and are often omitted. In this connection all reporters and correspondents are reminded that it takes several weeks to produce and mail BAHÁ’Í NEWS, which explains why material must reach Wilmette by the twentieth of the second month preceding date of issue. (July closing date is May 20).
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When you support an official Bahá’í publication, you
not only benefit from the standpoint of deepening your
understanding of the Teachings, but you take advantage of the privilege and the bounty of helping to build
the World Order. It is not difficult to realize the importance of the printed word in this day. It is obviously
suited to the task of awakening the people of the
world to the importance of investigating the truth for
themselves.
The editors of The Child’s Way, who have been appointed by the National Assembly of the United States, strive to make this magazine an instrument for personal deepening as well as for teaching assistance. It has been found to be useful all over the world in a great variety of situations because it is thoughtfully oriented to non-Bahá’ís as well as Bahá’ís.
Please send your orders to: THE CHILD’S WAY, BOX 245, WILMETTE, ILLINOIS. The cost per year is $2.00 in continental USA — $2.50 in Alaska, Hawaii and overseas.
BAHA'I IN THE NEWS[edit]
On December 7 Die Zeit, a leading German weekly, published an illustrated article on the Faith and the Frankfurt Temple, including an explanation of the “Richtfest.” It was well written and gave many details. Following this article many German papers carried accounts of the “Richtfest.”
In Basel, Switzerland, the newspaper Cooperation on January 5 carried a front page story on the Moroccan Bahá’í situation, written in a sympathetic vein, and went on to give the principles and some of the history of the Faith. There was also an editorial appeal to the Moroccan authorities to rectify the miscarriage of justice.
Among a series of miscellaneous items, the January issue of the Senior Citizen carried an abbreviated version of the Bahá’í principles and gave the address of the U.S. National Headquarters. The publication is issued monthly in Washington, D.C., as the organ of the Senior Citizens of America.
A magazine section in the January 20 issue of the San Francisco Chronicle carried a two-page spread on the city’s fabled Clement Street, which caters to many nationalities and “united them as a community.” Tucked in among small shops, says the article, is “a welter of religious establishments, including the Bahá’í ...” Referred to is the Center maintained on the exotic street by the local believers.
Negro Digest for January includes an article of nearly six pages on “What is the Bahá’í Faith?” In question-and-answer style, it was prepared from Convincing Answers. On the first page is an illustration of the Wilmette House of Worship, and a brief Editor’s Note which says in part: “The Bahá’í Faith is one of the world’s youngest and most rapidly growing religions. (The article) is presented in an effort to shed some light on the faith and its origin and tenets.”
Under the headline “For All Creeds” the newspaper Republica on February 6 published on its front page one of the best pieces of Bahá’í publicity yet to appear in Portugal. The three-column 1200-word article, accompanied by a prominent illustration of the Wilmette Temple, was authored by a journalist who had recently visited that edifice. Covered were the history, principles and teachings of the Faith and its mission of establishing unity between all races and religions.
Jewish Post & Opinion, a New York City newspaper, recently ran an article entitled “Missionary Agitation in Israel,” referring to efforts to convert Jewish children and adults in the Holy Land. The article included this statement: “A splendid positive example is set by the Bahá’í Faith. Although their world center is in Israel, this religion has made it a matter of deliberate policy not to carry on missionary activity here and not even to accept converts within Israel, in recognition of the hospitality which the Bahá’ís enjoy here.”
A recent issue of Chinh Nghia, published in Saigon, included seven pages, with illustrations, on the Faith and activities on its behalf in South Vietnam.
A relatively brief but well-written story on the Frankfurt Temple appeared in the January 12 issue of the Philadelphia Gazette-Democrat, a German-language newspaper published in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It reported a constant stream of visitors even before the building’s completion, the believers’ efforts — in the face of stern opposition — to find a site near Frankfurt as bidden by Shoghi Effendi, their eventual success, and the non-militant nature of the Faith.
The publication of the Chicago Regional Rose Society, Rose Items, devoted three pages to the Temple gardens and the reproduction of one of them at the World Flower and Garden Show in March. Much of the material was reprinted from an article by Wyatt Cooper, who is largely responsible for maintaining the beauty of the gardens.
A great many newspapers in the United States as well as in other countries have carried editorials, articles or comments on the Moroccan Bahá’í situation. In addition The Nation for February 16, in commenting on the trial, quoted Mark Tobey as a prominent Bahá’í in connection with the principles and aims of the Faith. Radio and TV commentators have spoken strongly against the decision of the court. The well-known radio and TV program “Meet the Press” had King Hassan II as a guest on March 31. During the course of the interview he was asked about the Bahá’í case but gave a very unsatisfactory answer.
The Daily Kansan, University of Kansas student newspaper, on February 27 carried a report on a petition addressed to the U.S. government, asking for investigation of the situation in Morocco. Nearly a hundred faculty members joined in the plea. The local believers feel that the Bahá’í youth on campus helped to bring this about through their endeavors.
A retrospective exhibition of 135 works of Bahá’í artist Mark Tobey, shown at the Chicago Art Institute from February 22 to March 24, enjoyed extensive publicity in Chicago newspapers, notably the Daily News, Sun-Times and Tribune — including a full-color reproduction in the latter’s magazine section. Bahá’í references in the publicity were sparse but it seemed to be generally conceded that, as the Tribune said, the Faith was “one of the great influences in his life and career.” The exhibit was organized by New York’s Museum of Modern Art, which had shown it earlier.
[Page 15]
LEFT: Alaska’s Fourth Annual Winter Workshop at University of Alaska in December attracted about eighty believers and guests. RIGHT: Leaders for the three-day conference, including one of the first Athabascan Indians (left center) to become a Bahá’í.
Because its name automatically makes it rank high
in the alphabetical listings of religious organizations
given in many telephone books, the Faith came in for
special attention in the first sentence of an article in
the March Moody Monthly, a religious organ published
in Chicago. The opening undertook to illustrate what
the unattached seeker might encounter in such lists.
Thereafter the article, devoted largely to the recruiting
methods of unorthodox Christian sects, had nothing
more to say about the Faith except that it might interest people with “a bent toward probing the philosophy of the mystics.”
Some of the participants at a youth conference held
the middle of February at the Bahá’í Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Six of the young people who attended
were inquirers.
During the December summer school at Port Dickson,
Malaya, some of the believers visited the aboriginal
Asli village of Kampang Klangi, where an assembly
was formed the first evening.
LEFT: Part of the Bahá’í community of Hong Kong and guests at a dinner celebrating the anniversary of the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh. RIGHT: Some of the believers of Hong Kong.
[Page 16]
On February 23 the Church News department of
the San Francisco (California) Chronicle led off with
an article prominently titled “Principle of Bahá’í —
Oneness.” Credited to the Manchester Guardian (England) the piece accurately sketched the history and
some of the Teachings of the Faith.
An extensive article on Vic Damone in the Stage section of the San Francisco Examiner for February 17 included a description of a new personal outlook, which he attributed to having found and embraced the Faith.
A Where and When to Worship page in the February 28 issue of Wilmette Life, a weekly newspaper, carried a handsome interior picture of the Wilmette Temple. The otherwise accurate descriptive legend, entitled Church of the Week, flattered the human race by saying that the Temple’s nine-sided design “symbolizes purity of mankind.”
The 1963 issue of Who’s Who in the West includes the name of T. Finlay Hollinger, with the notation that he is vice-chairman of the Bahá’í assembly of Honolulu, Hawaii.
Following a feature writer’s interview of Kenneth Kalantar of Meriden, Connecticut, the nearby Hartford Courant on March 3 carried an article covering his three years of pioneering in Colombia, from which he had recently returned. Norman Smith, chairman of the Hartford Assembly, was also quoted extensively to round out an interesting story on the Faith.
The March issue of Fate, a pocket-size occult magazine published in Evanston, Illinois, carried an article entitled “The Miracle ‘Gate’ to Bahá’í.” Centering around the Báb’s martyrdom, the story was supposedly told to the author by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in ‘Akká in 1901. Differing from accepted Bahá’í sources, the account was nevertheless interesting and provocative.
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Editors Request Cooperation
It is essential that references be furnished with all articles and reports which contain quotations from Bahá’í literature. References must be from current, authentic sources and include page numbers. |
The Lord Is One. Seymour Weinberg. An edifying discussion of the spiritual meaning of Israel and the relationship of Judaic prophecy to the coming of Bahá’u’lláh, this brochure was prepared especially to appeal to people of Jewish background. Slimline, designed by Marge Hawbaker, prestige format with a photographic cover of a star cluster by courtesy of Mount Wilson and Palomar Observatories, in midnight blue.
10 Copies | $1.00 |
Another Religion Calls Israel Home. Reprinted from The Reconstructionist magazine by permission of the Jewish Reconstructionist Foundation. A friendly article concerning the Bahá’í Faith and its world center in Haifa. 4 pages, 8½ by 11, folded to letter size as a self-mailer. It is useful as an “attention-getter,” with The Lord Is One to give a deeper understanding of the Faith. The latter can be enclosed in this circular and sealed with a sticker for mailing together.
25 copies | $1.00 |
100 copies | $3.50 |
Calendar of Events[edit]
- FEASTS
- May 17—‘Aẓamat (Grandeur)
- June 5—Núr (Light)
- HOLY DAYS
- May 23—Declaration of the Báb
- May 29—Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh (3:00 a.m.)
Baha’i House of Worship[edit]
(as of May 15)
- Weekdays
- 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Entire building)
- 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (Auditorium only)
- Sundays and Holidays
- 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (Entire building)
- 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (Auditorium only)
- Sundays
- 3:30 to 4:10 p.m.
- Sunday, May 19
- 4:15 p.m.
BAHÁ’Í NEWS is published for circulation among Bahá’ís only by the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, as a news organ reporting current activities of the Bahá’í World Community.
BAHÁ’Í NEWS is edited by an annually appointed Editorial Committee: Mr. and Mrs. P. R. Meinhard, Managing Editors; Mrs. Eunice Braun, International News Editor; Miss Charlotte M. Linfoot, National Spiritual Assembly Representative.
Material must be received by the twentieth of the second month preceding date of issue. Address: Bahá’í News Editorial Office, 110 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, U.S.A.
Change of address should be reported directly to National Bahá’í Office, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, U.S.A.
