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| No. 422 | BAHA’I YEAR 123 | MAY, 1966 |
Universal House of Justice Hails Anniversary of Tablets of The Divine Plan[edit]
Joyously hail fiftieth anniversary revelation
first of Tablets Divine Charter propagation
Faith throughout world.
Praying Shrines observance occasion may be
source renewed enthusiasm dedicating friends
accomplish goals win fresh laurels.
Received March 23, 1966
COMMENTARY:
In the month of March 1916, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá addressed the first of three Tablets of the Divine Plan to the believers in the Northeastern States, the Southern States and the Central States, respectively. The others, addressed either to the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada as one body, or to the five regional areas of North America, followed at various times to March 1917. All of the Tablets, now published under the title Tablets of The Divine Plan, were revealed during World War I at a time of reminiscent the most dangerous period of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s incarceration in the prison fortress of ‘Akka. Through them the Master invested the North American believers with a world mission which, in the words of Shoghi Effendi, was destined “to shed deathless glory upon the Faith and its administrative institutions.”
During the first and second Seven Year Plans the beloved Guardian guided the American believers in the establishment of the basic local and national administrative institutions of the Faith essential to carrying out the mandate embodied in the Tablets of The Divine Plan. Then, in 1953, he launched them upon the intercontinental teaching plan of the Ten-Year World Crusade involving all the then existing (twelve) National and Regional Spiritual Assemblies.
Although Shoghi Effendi passed away less than five years later, the Plan went forward without interruption under the loving guidance of the Hands of the Cause and culminated in the glorious World Congress in London in 1963.
Now, under the infallible guidance of The Universal House of Justice, we are engaged in a Nine Year Plan whose goal is to consolidate the victories won, to “win fresh laurels” for the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh and to make “the whole earth resound with the praises of its majesty and greatness.”
Finland Acquires Temple Site; Canada Assists[edit]
Another goal of the Nine Year Plan was achieved when the National Spiritual Assembly of Finland purchased its Temple site near Helsinki, the capital city. The Canadian National Spiritual Assembly gave financial and spiritual support as their part of this joint project assigned by The Universal House of Justice.
A group of Bahá’ís and friends from four Bahá’í communities in Finland were present at the special prayer meeting held on November 6, 1965 at the recently acquired site. The meeting was opened by a prayer which was followed by reading selections from the different holy books and a suitable tablet by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Concluding the occasion, prayers were read in various languages.
The Canadian Bahá’í News writing of this event, states: “Another international bond has been forged in the Faith, and as a result there will always be something special in the relationship between the Canadian and Finnish communities. This is why goals are given to us beyond the borders of our countries, to make us raise our sights and enlarge our horizons to embrace the world. The two arms of this embrace are the national fund and our constant prayers for the progress of the Faith throughout the world, to provide the ‘financial and spiritual support’ which our Finnish brothers have mentioned. Let us make sure that both these arms are powerful enough to embrace the world.”
The Temple site is located about twenty-two miles from Helsinki and is about 3,480 square meters in area.
Finnish Bahá’ís gathered on November 6, 1965 to commemorate acquisition of its Temple site near Helsinki,
a goal of the Nine Year Plan. The National Spiritual
Assembly of Canada assisted Finland on this project.
THE FIRST WORLD HOLY DAY[edit]
When ‘Alí-Muḥammad declared His Mission in the city of Shíráz, Persia, on May 23, 1844, He created the first occasion in all known history which can be observed by the peoples of the entire world with equal right, for one purpose, and in the same spirit. For He whom we now know as the Báb came as one of the Prophets of God, but His mission was not a preliminary but a culmination of the great cycle of the past. Through Him shone forth the Dawn-Light of the day of the creation of mankind. When He revealed the divine Word, the separation of the peoples was annulled, their division transcended, their hostility overcome. Man as the highest kingdom of reality under the Prophets received the inspiration to arise as one organic and mysterious being and enter into his true heritage as the sign of God and the expression of His will. The Báb summoned the races and peoples to respond to their glorious destiny by uniting in obedience to the divine decree.
There is no distinction between the Manifestations of God. Human beings can not say that their Prophet is superior to others, revealed a more sublime Word, or endowed them with special authority over the people of other Faiths. What is distinctive is the stage of development in men at the time the Prophet comes to them to re-illumine the one true path. The Báb is the first World Prophet, and His Declaration the first World Holy Day, because in our own time the process of spiritual and social evolution had completed the preliminary stages in the unfoldment of human attributes and attained to the condition of universal civilization.
Not all humanity has yet become conscious of what happened on May 23, 1844. Those who have this realization, and prepare to observe its anniversary this year, demonstrate their conviction of the oneness of God by meeting certain tests which infallibly determine both their knowledge and their sincerity.
The first condition of universality is recognition of the unique station of the Manifestation of God, the Prophet, as the sole connection between mankind and the Creator. One may have all rational knowledge, but lacking this recognition he lingers outside the precincts of spiritual truth.
The second condition is the acceptance of the equality of all the Manifestations, the founders of revealed religion. To reject one, whether He be Christ, Moses or Muḥammad, is to reject all the Messengers by substituting one’s own limited conception for the reality itself. For if we reject one portion of the Path, we are not on the Path. The identifying landmarks are lost; we must try and recover the way.
The third condition is understanding of the principle or method by which the guiding truth is brought to this world, by recurrence of revelation, and in accordance with a progressive enlargement of the scope of truth. Thus it is not enough to say that one believes in all the Prophets because they all brought the same message. Such a view is one’s own limitation arbitrarily imposed upon the successive statements of truth as revealed and accessible in the Sacred Scriptures of all Faiths. Were religion only that scheme of recurrent repetition which some philosophers teach, the very essence of progress and development would be removed from human life.
The fourth condition is acceptance of mankind itself; the willingness to discard the old formulas of separation which sought to justify pride of race, creed or class, and reduced true ethical principles to the realm of convention and convenience. These myriad barriers which divide humanity are nothing more than expressions of prejudice. True faith impels one to help banish these shadows from the world.
The fifth condition is confident realization that the day of spiritual victory has dawned; that the promise of ancient faiths is being swiftly fulfilled; that the world is being inspired to conquer superstition, overcome ignorance and surmount inertia; that the nations will attain peace; that world civilization has already been created as the pattern of reality for the new age.
To observe with reverence and gratitude the date of May 23, 1944 as the Centenary of the Báb’s Declaration of His mission, far from belittling or ignoring the Holy Days of the past, in reality exalts each of them by connecting it with its essential aim and fulfillment. For in Him have returned Jesus, Muḥammad, Moses and all the Prophets. There is no other way in which the peoples of today can honor their ancestral traditions than by honoring Him in whom faith is life and not memory nor imagination.
Religions of Vietnam Join in Bahá’í Fast[edit]
A number of newspapers throughout Vietnam published an announcement of the beginning of the Bahá’í fasting period. Publicity was also given to the fact that the Council of Religions composed of religious leaders of the Catholic, Caodaic and two branches of the Buddhist religion called upon their followers to join the Bahá’ís on March 2 in keeping one week of the period of fasting, dedicating this time toward the attainment of peace and unity for the nation.
The Saigon Post also stated the following: “While enjoining both fasting and prayers on the Bahá’ís as two most important aspects of the spiritual growth of the individual, His Holiness, Bahá’u’lláh, Founder of the Bahá’í Faith nevertheless boldly focused His message on humanity’s greatest need for unity and peace by clearly proclaiming that the highest form of worship is selfless service for humanity.”
Journey Through Northern Iran[edit]
Editorial Note: This is another in a series of articles written by Guy Murchie from his diary kept on his travels to Irán in 1964 and printed with the permission of the Universal House of Justice.
The photos were taken by Mr. Murchie
April 7
Babol[edit]
In Babol, which was called Bárfurúsh last century and is located near the southern shore of the Caspian Sea, we visited places sacred to the memory of Quddús, who was born, lived and died here and ranked second only to the Báb Himself in the Bábí Cause. Here too is the old caravanseri to Sabzih-Maydan where Múllá Husayn’s band of Bábís foregathered preparatory to going to Fort Tabarsí, during which meeting three of them were shot dead by Muslims while sounding the adhan or call to prayer (at his command) from the roof. The third Bábí was just able to finish it before he fell (see The Dawn Breakers p. 337-38). The Thursday Bazaar here, where some of the martyrdoms took place, still follows its ancient tradition of having a market day for peasants of the region every Thursday, just as neighboring towns meet on other days of the week. Yet today, a Tuesday, we passed fish lying displayed on the sidewalks and 30 ducks waddling loose in the fowl market followed by geese, chickens and a few turkeys. At a 400-year-old mosque near by several dozen sheep huddled just outside the open door through which we could see and hear the solemn funeral chants going on for the chief mulla who died on Sunday.
Near the edge of town we walked through a park and broad square that cover what on May 16, 1849 was a prairie of long grass where Quddús in chains was tortured and paraded naked before a savage crowd before being torn to pieces and burned at the Sabzih-Maydan. Orange trees, palms and stately pines decorate the park where the heirs of that awful carnage today stroll heedlessly under the blue sky, enjoying a peace that Quddús, among many others, died to give them.
April 8
Amul[edit]
Approaching Amul, some 25 miles west of Babol on the Caspian coast, we drove along a road lined with beautiful old pollared willows, figs, mulberry trees and poplars, here and there farmers plowing with black oxen in paddy fields and in one place a woman carrying a basket of fish on one arm and a baby in the other. We stopped in the town in a deserted square (about 50 yards on each side) where stood the old mosque and courtyard where Bahá’u’lláh was bastinadoed some 115 years ago. The brick building had been turned into a mosque, we were told, in 1839, and now has a rather thick octagonal minaret, but the basic structure is much older and before it was a mosque it served as a theatre, whose painted murals of mounted saints on parade and birds fighting in a rose garden are still plain to see.
Place where Bahá’u’lláh was bastinadoed in Amul, Mázindarán.
It was in the court behind the mosque evidently that
Bahá’u’lláh was subjected to the torture, which consists
of having one’s feet tied in a raised position by ropes
while one lies on one’s back on the ground, the bare
soles then whacked with rods (often of stout bamboo)
until they are a bloody pulp. The acting governor of
Amul had ordered the bastinadoing to appease a crowd
of fanatical siyyids who were demanding the death of
this “heretic.” But the acting governor secretly sympathized with Bahá’u’lláh and, after the punishment, had
Him led through one of the big grilled doors of the
mosque and imprisoned in a corner room out of which,
by quietly opening a hole in a wall at night, he
conducted Him to the safety of his own home. A gentle
rain, typical of Mázindarán province, was falling as we
looked around the mosque and soon the old orange tree
in the courtyard started dripping as if weeping from its
memory of this brutal blasphemy of so long ago, while
a broad-tailed hawk slowly circled like an unassailable
seraph far overhead. We ended our visit to Amul with a
look at the 165-year-old bridge of twelve pointed arches
over the Haras River and from which a Bábí named
Múllá Nematollah from Fort Tabarsí was thrown limb
by limb into the water to a death which, if only his
murderers could have realized it, was not the oblivion
they intended but rather a glorious immortality.
April 15
Qazvin[edit]
Qazvin, 80 miles west of Ṭihrán, is the native city of Ṭáhirih and was once so prominent it was the capital of the country and even the great Caspian Sea derived its name from it. As we walked through its now poorly-kept streets to visit the ruins of her father’s house, the most distinctive feature of the town seemed to be the extraordinary tameness of the crows, both black and gray ones, cawing and flapping among the poplar trees
[Page 5]
and walking the mud walls on every hand. Although
they are probably the commonest birds in Persia,
elsewhere in the country they behave about as shy as
crows in America — yet, for some reason, here they are
almost like park pigeons, walking the streets with the
people and sitting confidently on fenceposts within a
foot of passersby. And their nests are tenement rookeries, sometimes a hundred to a single great poplar,
touching each other and continuing downward in tiers
to within three feet of the ground. Could it be that, in
some mysterious way, these birds have inherited a
faint influence from Ṭáhirih’s audacious casting off of
her chadur veil?
The ruins of Táhirih’s House in Qazvín.
The first place we stopped was inside a large garden
owned by Bahá’ís that Bahá’u’lláh Himself approved
as the site for a future temple. And next door was a
house containing a vaulted brick cellar with a closet in
which Ṭáhirih once hid for three days when Muslim
fanatics were seeking to kill her. Perhaps half a mile
farther on we drew near to the large house where
Ṭáhirih grew up but we had difficulty getting to it because what is left is now surrounded by Muslim neighbors and a mosque. But at length, after inquiries at several doors, we were admitted by a round-about route
through two other houses and entered a roofless area
of perhaps half an acre of ruins surrounding an overgrown garden. We took a couple of pictures of the partly
demolished rows of wall niches, some of which may
once have held books of the extensive library that extraordinary woman grew up with, and could imagine
her walking gracefully through the long halls or writing
an ode under a mulberry tree beside the fountain. As
we left, a youngish man approached from a dark passage shouting, “Why are they taking pictures of the
house? Is it a shrine of the heretics?” His fanatical rancor alarmed my guides enough so that they hastily summoned a cab and we departed the area, forcefully reminded by this rabble-rousing demonstration that enemies of the new age are still all too plentiful and ready
with their brickbats, hardly yet much less dangerous
than they were in the days of “the Pure One” herself.
As my interpreter and I rode out of Qazvín on a ramshackle bus for Zanján 100 miles further northwest, we soon left the wooded region west of the town which is covered with pistachio and walnut orchards almost as dense as a forest while numerous flocks of white sheep and black goats graze under the trees. People also rode by on donkeys, well wrapped against the north wind, and occasionally the bus stopped to pick up some ill-kempt wayfarer, such as one who entered crying “Praise be to Muḥammad!” to which the other passengers responded with a sort of cheering shout in unison. As we careened westward over the washboarded gravel, wallowing through mud holes and fording many small rivers, the wheat and barley land gave way to sparse brown grass with the inevitable poplars and willows only in stream beds but, more and more often, a scraggly vineyard harboring a busy platoon of crows. Several times we passed camel caravans, plodding over the yellow earth, and in one of them rode a new-born baby camel tied into a snug bundle upon his mother’s back. Later we saw two dozen brownish vultures homing in on a camel carcass at which as many more were already feeding.
Ṭáhirih[edit]
“... the first woman suffrage martyr, who, at her death, turning to the one in whose custody she had been placed, had boldly declared: ‘You can kill me as soon as you like, but you cannot stop the emancipation of women.’ Her career was as dazzling as it was brief, as tragic as it was eventful. Unlike her fellow-disciples, whose exploits remained, for the most part unknown, and unsung by their contemporaries in foreign lands, the fame of this immortal woman was noised abroad, and traveling with remarkable swiftness as far as the capitals of Western Europe, aroused the enthusiastic admiration and evoked the ardent praise of men and women of divers nationalities, callings and cultures. Little wonder that ’Abdu’l-Bahá should have joined her name to those of Sarah, of Ásíyih, of the Virgin Mary and of Fáṭimih, who, in the course of successive Dispensations, have towered, by reason of their intrinsic merits and unique position, above the rank and file of their sex. ‘In eloquence,’ ’Abdu’l-Bahá Himself has written, ‘she was the calamity of the age, and in ratiocination the trouble of the world.’ He, moreover, has described her as a ‘a brand afire with the love of God’ and ‘a lamp aglow with the bounty of God.’
“Many and diverse are her ardent admirers who, throughout the five continents, are eager to know more about her. Many are those whose conduct has been ennobled by her inspiring example, who have committed to memory her matchless odes, or set to music her poems, before whose eyes glows the vision of her indomitable spirit, in whose hearts is enshrined a love and admiration that time can never dim, and in whose souls burns the determination to tread as dauntlessly, and with that same fidelity, the path she chose for herself, and from which she never swerved from the moment of her conversion to the hour of her death.”
Conferences, Summer Schools Concentrate on Nine Year Goals[edit]
Bolivia[edit]
The Sixth Bahá’í Congress of Bolivia held in Sucre.
The first youth group in
Oruro, Bolivia with Persian pioneer, Z. Vojdani in
center. At left and at right
are Mario and Eddy
Zuñiga.
Youth Conference held in Sucre, Bolivia.
Nicaragua[edit]
Part of the group attending a summer school session
in Estelí, Nicaragua, February 12 and 13, 1966. Courses
were taught by Mrs. Louise Caswell and Rodrigo
Tomás on the Nine Year Plan, the Covenant and on
Teaching. The children also gave programs.
“Steadfast and Immovable in His Cause”[edit]
Bahá’u’lláh repeatedly counsels those who accept His teachings to “become as steadfast and immovable as the mountain in His Cause.” Unless we become “steadfastly enduring,” that flame of acceptance that first illumines the mind and enkindles the heart will burn low, or even become extinguished by the winds of tests.
How do we remain steadfast? Bahá’u’lláh tells us that it is the “first and foremost duty ... next to the recognition” of the Manifestation of God. It is part of a “twofold obligation” that rests upon each believer. The second obligation in itself contains the secret of steadfastness, the source of strength from which comes perseverance and endurance under all conditions. This is “strict observance of the laws He hath prescribed — through which truth may be distinguished and separated from falsehood.”
From Nicaragua comes a story of steadfastness and perseverance that should give special inspiration to every lone Bahá’í in the world. It was nearly twenty years ago that Sebastian Arguello of Puerto Cabezas read a newspaper article about the Faith that ignited the spark of belief in his heart. He was alone and knew no Bahá’ís and could find no one who would share his enthusiasm. By mail he obtained some pamphlets from Managua, but in these early years he only saw one or two Bahá’ís briefly. In 1950 a Turkish ship docked in the harbor and Sebastian learned that the entire crew and its captain were Bahá’ís. These were joyous days for him. He could not communicate in their language, nor they in his, but they shared a love and fellowship born of faith in Bahá’u’lláh. They taught him the meaning and value of prayer, and through it he remained firm and steadfast through the years.
Today there is a community of eight in Puerto Cabezas. They take an active part in teaching the Indians in nearby villages. Sebastian knows the Indian language, Misquito, which is invaluable in reaching the people, some of whom are now becoming Bahá’ís. Puerto Cabezas contributes regularly to the local and national funds and maintains weekly children’s classes.
Soon there will be a local spiritual assembly in Puerto Cabezas. Everyone who reads this story might take a moment of prayer in gratitude for the steadfastness of Sebastian and toward the formation of a new spiritual assembly in this small city on the eastern coast of Nicaragua that faces out toward the Qiblih of the Bahá’í world.
Australia[edit]
Hand of the Cause H. C. Featherstone and Frank Khan
presiding at a class session at the Australian Summer
School, Dec. 25-31, 1965.
The Drops Will Become an Ocean![edit]
The West Central Africa Newsletter tells of effective teaching work in several countries. In Cameroon Republic the Mamfe District Teaching Committee reports declarations from Ekwe area, Mamfe Division, in the villages of Esukutan, Araru, Ajaman, Otu and Ayumojok. A believer from Mbarkang has gone to Inokum to open a sixth village. In the past two years five strong communities have formed local spiritual assemblies through the efforts of single, dynamic Bahá’ís, isolated in towns and villages where no Bahá’í lived before. Alone and unaided, they arose with enthusiasm and faith to teach. So Bahá’u’lláh has promised that drops will become oceans, gnats will become eagles and a single seed will give a great harvest through the power of God.
A delayed report from Nigeria tells of the establishment of a community of fifty believers in Afaha Ofiong, Uyo Province, through the teaching work of the Etinan Bahá’í Community. Last Riḍván there was only one Bahá’í in Etinan. In August the first Feast was celebrated in Afaha Ofiong. Where there was one lone Bahá’í in this area there are now two thriving communities.
Pioneer reinforcements have been received in Niger and good teaching results are reported in Takoradi and in Sekondi, two villages in Ghana.
The pioneering goals explained by Pioneer Committee member. The Universal House of Justice urged the school to concentrate on goals of the Nine Year Plan.
The National Teaching Committee secretary explaining the use of pamphlets and books in teaching.
NSA of Honduras Pays Tribute to American Pioneer[edit]
Since the death of Mr. George Haley in Tulsa, Oklahoma on December 25, 1965, the NSA of Honduras has paid tribute to the self-sacrificing services of Mr. Haley, who, with his family, pioneered in their country from November 1956 until Mr. Haley’s health which was always frail necessitated the family’s return to the U.S. in the summer of 1964.
Mr. Haley was elected a member of the NSA when it was first formed and for three years he served as its treasurer and chairman of the National Teaching Committee. It was his bounty to see fifteen local Spiritual Assemblies come into being in Honduras during his sojourn there.
THE HOUSE OF WORSHIP[edit]
SILENT TEACHER OF THE BAHA'I FAITH[edit]
WILMETTE[edit]
Visitors to the Temple.
Visitors this year to the House of Worship — they
numbered nearly 120,000 in 1965 — find a warm and
sincere welcome to “The Dawning Place of the Mention
of God.” Since that moment in 1902 when ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
approved the building of a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, Bahá’ís
have dedicated themselves to service in this “Mother
Temple of the West.”
Perhaps to visitors the friendly warmth and sincerity — always a Bahá’í hallmark — is more apparent this year, as the efforts of the various committees serving the House of Worship are now coordinated through the Department of Temple Activities. The committees remain diversified in their responsibilities but unified in their efforts from planning through producing stages. Through Department communications and its staff coordinator, Miss Helena Somerhalder, each committee is aware of all Temple activities and events. As a result, each committee effectively plans its work to participate in the overall Temple teaching program.
Committees functioning under the Department of Temple Activities are: Worship (which includes the Holy Days programs); Public Meetings; Guides; Ushers; and Teaching Aids. Reports of these committees are included in the Annual Report of this Department. The Department of Temple Activities has responsibility for teaching activities and works closely with the National Center Properties Department, responsible for the physical appearance and maintenance of the House of Worship. Both Departments report directly to the National Spiritual Assembly.
Visitors are welcomed to the House of Worship by guides and ushers who have prepared for this valuable service in a series of volunteer conferences and workshops. Visiting hours have been extended and groups — there were 219 last year — are scheduled at any time. Prayer books are available in the vestibule for those who wish to pray and meditate in the Auditorium. After viewing the new exhibits and displays and touring the building, visitors can have a “fireside chat” with a guide in an area of Foundation Hall set aside for this purpose. Literature is made more accessible for visitors and the Bahá’ís who serve behind the book counter are able to assist inquirers in the selection of literature. A new packet of literature is available which includes a variety of pamphlets, a fact sheet on the House of Worship and a listing of Bahá’í literature available, along with a return card for information on Bahá’í meetings and announcements.
Visiting hours at the House of Worship have been extended and the Auditorium is now open at dawn on all Holy Days.
Weekly Sunday public meetings are held in Foundation Hall and all Special Events Days are observed with activities to which the public is invited. These gatherings are announced in a Calendar of Events to Bahá’í communities in the Temple area and on a bulletin board for visitors.
A new narrated slidefilm, the first in a series, is shown in Foundation Hall and tells the story of the House of Worship, the Word of God for this day, and the people who are Bahá’ís, in twelve colorful minutes of words and pictures.
Exhibits are being updated and a colorful portable display unit has been added to highlight timely subjects.
|
“Concerning the corner-stone of the Temple, which was laid by the Master, Shoghi Effendi says that it has no other special significance than a great honor conferred by the Master upon that building and it should be treated as a cornerstone and nothing more.” —from the Guardian’s Secretary
to the National Spiritual Assembly of the U.S., published in BAHÁ’Í NEWS, Nov. 1930, p. 6 |
Devotions in the Auditorium are planned with a meaningful program for visitors and the purpose of the devotions at the House of Worship is explained on the program and in an exhibit in Foundation Hall. All Holy Day observances are open to the public. Summertime evening devotions are to be held on Sundays in the Auditorium.
Bahá’ís who visit the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár receive a specially prepared guidelist to acquaint them with the House of Worship. Those Bahá’ís who wish to offer their services to the teaching program at the House of Worship are encouraged to write the Coordinator, Department of Temple Activities, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois 60091.
[Page 9]
Interior of dome of Bahá’í Temple in Germany, showing the louvered perforations which release a diffused
light throughout the auditorium.
The Mother Temple of Europe[edit]
Near Frankfurt am Main in Germany, this House of Worship was dedicated on July 4, 1964 to the unity of God and of mankind. The Edifice stands on a low hill in the midst of peaceful, green countryside near the village of Langenhain in the Taunus Hills. It was built at the behest of Shoghi Effendi by the Bahá’ís in Germany, assisted by the believers throughout the world.
The building is 158 feet in diameter and has a dome supported by twenty-seven pillars. The auditorium seats about 500 people. The dome, which has 570 glass panels, admits a maximum amount of light, bringing about an interesting play of light and shadows as the sun illumines the glass. In the interior, at the apex of the dome, is the Greatest Name in gold against a light blue background.
At the time of dedication the Hands of the Faith stated, of this Temple, “In accordance with the Divine promises of the sacred edifice, consecrated to the everlasting glory of the Most Great Name, it will become a point of light radiating the spirit of Bahá’u’lláh’s Teachings and hasten fulfillment of the spiritual destiny of the entire continent.”
Conference of the National Teaching Committee and
the regional committees held in Langenhain, Germany,
near site of Bahá’í Temple.
A recent picture of the Bahá’í Temple near Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
Public fireside in Cologne, Germany with Hands of the Cause, A. Faizí and Dr. Mühlschlegel, in center.
Bahá’í Books Placed in Northernmost Outpost of the Planet[edit]
During the past summer, the long-time pioneer to Thule in north Greenland, Bill Carr, traveled to the northern-most point ever visited by a Bahá’í on the planet. He flew to the tiny settlement of Alert at the northern tip of Ellesmere Island in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The purpose was to bring the Faith to the world’s northernmost permanent settlement, only 500 miles from the north pole. Although there was a restriction on freedom because of security, Bahá’í literature was placed in the library. Bill Carr states that there is a good possibility of civilian employment at the weather station there. [From the Canadian Bahá’í News]
Agnes Alexander Sends Love and Prayers from Tokyo Hospital[edit]
The National Spiritual Assembly of North East Asia has recently sent a letter to all other national spiritual assemblies to report on the health and well-being of Hand of the Cause, Miss Agnes Alexander in Japan. A few days after her 90th birthday in July, 1965, she came to Tokyo, Japan, and suffered a fractured thigh. She has been in a hospital since that time, recuperating. The National Assembly of North East Asia wishes to convey, on her behalf, her appreciation for all of the prayers and good wishes on the part of the friends and to send her love to all Bahá’ís and her prayers for them.
Miss Alexander, who lived in Hawaii at the time, was the first Bahá’í in the Pacific area, although she actually enrolled in Italy while spending a few months there in 1900. Her signed enrollment card was sent to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in Haifa, as was the practice in those years. She is one of three people, all women, mentioned in the Tablets of The Divine Plan by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Among many other victories she has won for the Faith, she was among the first to carry the Bahá’í message to Japan in 1914, and the first to take it to Korea in 1921.
In trying to explain her own efforts, she has often said, “If we are nothing, God can use us.” She often says, in effect, that God has a plan for everything. It is up to us to pray and search for the plan and the will of God.
Bahá’í exhibit at Chicago World Flower and Garden
Show held in Chicago March 19-27, 1966. This is the
fourth year that the Bahá’ís have been represented at
this important event and again this year the Bahá’í exhibit received an award of merit. Horticulture Magazine for March, 1966 used a photo of last year’s Bahá’í exhibit to advertise this year’s Flower Show.
Regional Teaching Conference held in Taipei, Taiwan, China, December 25-26, 1965 with participants from Hong Kong, Korea, Japan and Taiwan, sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly of Northeast Asia for the purpose of teaching the Chinese people. Active on the program were Auxiliary Board members Charles Duncan, Taipei and John McHenry III of Korea; Philip Marangella of Japan; Mr. and Mrs. S. A. Suleimani, Jerome Chu, John Huston and Mrs. Abbie Maag, all of Taiwan.
What the conference lacked in numbers was overshadowed by the high standard of the program and the enthusiastic spirit with which all contributed to its success. Reports of progress achieved during the past year, especially among the aborigine tribes, was very encouraging. The only disappointment was the absence of friends from
the Philippines, South Vietnam and Malaysia, who were unable to attend. Mrs. Suleimani and her husband were the first pioneers to Taiwan.
News Briefs[edit]
Intercalary Observances[edit]
The three communities of Portland, Multnomah County and Washington County in Oregon joined in an international potluck dinner and party which brought the communities closer together and demonstrated to friends the Bahá’í way of enjoying these days. Everyone was asked to come in a costume of another country and be prepared to present a skit if they wished. Exotic foreign dishes were brought and there was much laughter, singing and general good fun. The Bahá’í youth presented charades on the twelve principles.
An intercommunity party was held at the Euclid Recreation Center in Euclid, Ohio, in which eleven communities participated together to make the occasion a success. Over a hundred adults and children, including many guests attended the event which began with a program of songs and Bahá’ís prayers recited by the children. The children were then entertained in another room where they enjoyed games, prizes and refreshments. The program for the adults included a warm welcome and explanation of the Intercalary Days followed by a social period.
In Tulsa, Oklahoma the Bahá’ís had an observance on each of the four intercalary days, beginning with a meeting of devotions for the believers on Friday night and ending with similar devotions on Monday night. On Saturday afternoon the friends gave a party at the local YWCA for a group of girls. This included games, music, story telling and refreshments. That evening a potluck supper for the Bahá’ís and their friends brought fun and fellowship to all. Then on Sunday the children were taken to the Will Rogers Museum with lunch afterwards in a restaurant.
The Bahá’í Community of Key West, Florida invited friends to an Intercalary Days party in a local community house at which a brief talk on the Bahá’í Calendar with explanation of the Intercalary Days was followed by a social hour with music and refreshments. The visitors and Bahá’ís enjoyed this opportunity to share thoughts about the Faith and it is believed that this was one of the most successful events in years held by the Community of Key West.
A three day Youth Conference was held in Syracuse, New York during the Intercalary Days, attended by fifty youth of whom at least a third were not Bahá’ís. One declaration and one intention of declaring soon were two of the tangible results of this conference, built around workshops on Bahá’í laws and administration. Leaders were: Steve Yamamoto, from Penn State; Rudy Handel of Colgate University and Weldon Woodard from Syracuse (now pioneering in Venezuela).
The Mayor, City Assessor, and several local dignitaries were among the guests at an Intercalary Days Open House, February 27 in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Local officials and persons who deal with the Bahá’ís in business or community service projects were mailed invitations to the informal event, as were all local churches. The meeting was designed to fill the teaching opportunity gaps left between firesides, public meetings and personal contact, to appeal to those persons who have heard of the Faith or have rendered a service, but have not as yet attended meetings or given serious consideration to the Bahá’í message. There were no speeches. Audio-visual aids were used including: a
Youth Conference at Syracuse, New York during Intercalary Days, 1966.
display featuring the basic principles, posters showing
Bahá’ís around the world, literature displays, and slides
which were shown continuously in one part of the room.
A tape recording, with earphones for private listening,
allowed guests to hear an explanation based on the
pamphlet, “Basic Facts of the Bahá’í Faith.” Refreshments and the singing of Bahá’í songs by a youth group
as well as the presence of Bahá’í hosts helped make the
occasion warm and friendly.
The Denver Community has had two “fun parties” of attraction which, the friends believe, have been needed for some time. The latest, held as an Intercalary Day event, was a “Western Roundup” well attended by adults, children and even babies from nearby communities of: Aurora, Arvada, Jefferson County and Boulder in Colorado. Everyone came in casual attire and enjoyed an evening given over entirely to fun — including square dancing. Almost fifty came, representing a wide variety of races and nationalities and proving to the guests that Bahá’ís can do something else in addition to giving serious lectures.
Other communities reporting festive celebration of the Intercalary Days were: Ann Arbor, Michigan and Columbus, Indiana. The former held an “International Folksing” while the latter held a buffet supper and children’s party.
Bahá’í on the Air[edit]
Radio Station KVIP of Redding, California recently, at the request of some of its (non-Bahá’í) listeners invited the Bahá’ís of that town to send a representative to the program, “The Last Word” which goes for over two hours each morning. Mrs. Viviana Lisota accepted the invitation and was interviewed by the program director who asked leading questions about the Bahá’í Faith. When the program was opened later to the public who telephoned in to ask questions the lines were kept busy with questions from inquirers even after the program was off the air. The Bahá’ís are thankful for this opportunity to present the Faith to so many and in a clear as well as dignified manner. The awareness and general understanding of the Faith and what it stands for are more widespread and in the
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minds of more people in this
town as a result of the
program.
The Spokane, Washington community and Bahá’ís nearby were happy to witness and take part in the successful Bahá’í meetings held when a Bahá’í visitor from Írán, Miss Rouhi Yeganeh was with them. One newspaper gave excellent coverage of Miss Yeganeh’s visit and she was interviewed on a local television program, being given ten minutes on the air. As a result of this publicity the fireside at which she spoke attracted quite a number of inquirers, many of whom are studying comparative religion. One declaration and a number of inquiries about future meetings are some of the results of the infectious spirit of love, humility and complete sincerity which Miss Yeganeh brought to the gatherings.
Local Spiritual Assembly of Tulsa, Oklahoma, formed at Riḍván, 1965. Back row, left to right: Houshi Jazayerri, James Lovelady, Vivian Haley, Mike Greenberg, Kay Powell. Seated, left to right: George Haley, Virginia McCoy, Grace Jones, Patti Creighton.
Bahá’í Publishing Trust[edit]
Bahá’í News Index, Volume III. No. 323 to No. 393. January 1958 — December 1963. Prepared by Amine DeMille. We are pleased to announce that another five years of BAHÁ’Í NEWS issues have been indexed. Inasmuch as many Bahá’ís have some or most of the issues involved in this edition of the Index, it is hoped that they will utilize it. A large volume of correspondence could be eliminated at the national center if the local assemblies, committees and individuals would take the responsibility of looking up information and answers to various questions which they may have, rather than writing in to various departments, requesting that information be supplied and re-supplied to them again and again. If all the issues are not available to an individual, often someone in the community has a complete file, or the local assembly itself has a complete file of the BAHÁ’Í NEWS issues. [The supply of back issues of BAHÁ’Í NEWS, and the time available to supply them, are both extremely limited at the National Administrative Office where back issues are handled.]
Per copy | $2.00 |
Note: Except in situations where payment had already been sent for the BAHÁ’Í NEWS Index, back orders are not being shipped, since many go back too far and a number of names and addresses are no longer applicable. Please reorder. Standing orders, however, are being shipped on this title.
The price of the Bahá’í Teaching Guide for Children, Intermediate Teacher’s Manual, is incorrectly listed on page 16 of the April issue of BAHÁ’Í NEWS. This Manual, like the Pre-Primary and Primary Manual, has 240 pages and the price is $2.50.
Order from: BAHÁ’Í PUBLISHING TRUST, 110 LINDEN AVENUE, WILMETTE, ILLINOIS 60091
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 (3:30 a.m.)
Baha’i House of Worship[edit]
- Daily
- 10:00 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Sundays
- 3:30 to 4:00 p.m.
- Sundays
- 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: Mrs. Sylvia Parmelee, Managing Editor; Mrs. Eunice Braun, International Editor; Miss Charlotte 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, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, U.S.A. 60091.
Change of address should be reported directly to National Bahá’í Office, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, U.S.A. 60091.
