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Bahá’í News

April 1980

Bahá’í Year 137

The Hand of the Cause of God Ḥasan M. Balyúzí

[Page 0] WITH BROKEN HEARTS ANNOUNCE PASSING DEARLY LOVED HAND CAUSE ḤASAN BALYÚZÍ. ENTIRE BAHÁ’Í WORLD ROBBED ONE OF ITS MOST POWERFUL DEFENDERS MOST RESOURCEFUL HISTORIANS. HIS ILLUSTRIOUS LINEAGE HIS DEVOTED LABOURS DIVINE VINEYARD HIS OUTSTANDING LITERARY WORKS COMBINE IN IMMORTALIZING HIS HONOURED NAME IN ANNALS BELOVED FAITH. CALL ON FRIENDS EVERYWHERE HOLD MEMORIAL GATHERINGS. PRAYING SHRINES HIS EXEMPLARY ACHIEVEMENTS HIS STEADFASTNESS PATIENCE HUMILITY HIS OUTSTANDING SCHOLARLY PURSUITS WILL INSPIRE MANY DEVOTED WORKERS AMONG RISING GENERATIONS FOLLOW HIS GLORIOUS FOOTSTEPS.

UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE

February 12, 1980

[Page 1]

Contents

Radio Bahá’í
Short wave facility tested on anniversary of Bahá’u’lláh’s Birth	2
Ethiopia
Bahá’í community praised for new booklet to aid literacy push	6
Núr Bahá’í School
In Chile, the first Bahá’í grammar school in western hemisphere	8
Barrow, Alaska
Above the Arctic Circle, a new Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds is dedicated	9
Hiroshi Yamamoto
Eldest son of the world’s first Japanese Bahá’í passes away	10
Around the world
News from Bahá’í communities in every corner of the globe	12

Cover

For the third time in six months, the Bahá’í world community was saddened to learn of the passing of a Hand of the Cause of God when the Universal House of Justice announced on February 12 that the renowned historian and scholar Ḥasan M. Balyúzí had died. Mr. Balyúzí, the author of immensely popular books about the three Central Figures of the Faith, was an Afnán—that is, a relative of the Báb—who came from a Persian family distinguished for its scholarship and administrative ability. He was with the Persian service of the British Broadcasting Corporation until 1958, and served for many years as chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles. He was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God in October 1957 by Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Faith. Mr. Balyúzí’s latest book, Bahá’u’lláh: The King of Glory, was published in March.

Change of address should be reported directly to Office of Membership and Records, Bahá’í National Center, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091, U.S.A. Please attach mailing label. Subscription rates: one year, U.S. $8; two years, U.S. $15. Second class postage paid at Wilmette, IL 60091. Copyright © 1980, National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. World Rights Reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.

Bahá’í News is published monthly for circulation among Bahá’ís only by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, as a news organ reporting current activities of the Bahá’í world community. Manuscripts submitted should be typewritten and double spaced throughout; any footnotes should appear at the end. The contributor should keep a carbon copy. Send materials to: Bahá’í News Editorial Office, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091, U.S.A.

[Page 2]

Radio Bahá’í

Short wave test broadcast marks yet another milestone

On November 12, 1979, the anniversary of the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh, another milestone in the progress of the Faith in Latin America was reached with the first test broadcast of short wave facilities of Radio Bahá’í in Ecuador.

The National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador was granted the short wave frequency last August by the Ecuadorian government’s Office of Telecommunications, thanks in large measure to the persistent efforts of Sra. Isabel de Calderón, the legal representative for Radio Bahá’í. The letter of approval stated in part:

“The National Frequency Office of IETEL (Instituto Ecuatoriano de Telecommunicationes) in response to your petition of 23 May 1979, has assigned to you frequency 2.340 kHz to be utilized by Radio Bahá’í in the city of

The Radio Bahá’í short wave station overlooks Lake Cuicocha, the ‘Lake of the Gods.’ The large expanse of land owned by the Bahá’ís on which the newly-constructed short wave facility is situated extends out to the lake.

[Page 3] Otavalo. The transmission will be situated at Cuicocha, and will operate with a potential of 1KW ...”

Upon receiving the letter of approval, the National Spiritual Assembly set a target date of November 12 for the first test broadcast.

Mrs. Helen Hornby, a pioneer to Ecuador, has forwarded the following eyewitness account of that historic occasion:

•

A group of Bahá’ís from Quito has just arrived at the Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum Bahá’í Institute in Otavalo somewhat later than scheduled due to car trouble.

Michael Stokes, the production director for Radio Bahá’í, leans his head out of the recording studio. “I’m sorry I can’t speak and shake hands with you now,” he says. “I’m busy recording. This tape has to be ready by three o’clock this afternoon to go on the air.”

With that, Mr. Stokes returns to the studio. Outside, there is a festive atmosphere. Everyone is smiling and happy. Having experienced the birth-pangs of Radio Bahá’í on its inauguration day in October 1977, and its formal dedication in August 1978, there is a quiet confidence among the participants that all will go well.

Dean. Stephens, Radio Bahá’í’s consultant/engineer, had arrived in Ecuador from Puerto Rico a week earlier with equipment to be installed, a part of which was temporarily impounded by customs officials at the airport in Quito.

The following day, while some of the friends supplicated to Bahá’u’lláh for help, Mr. Stephens had returned to the airport with a Bahá’í from Írán, Khamran Mansuri (who never seems to take “no” for an answer). They explained to the officials that the equipment was for Radio Bahá’í, and shortly afterward it was released. The day before the scheduled test broadcast, Curt Grover and Mrs. Jean Laite arrived from Puerto Rico with more equipment, and this time there was no trouble with the customs officials.

It is now five minutes before the three o’clock broadcast time. The small studio is crowded with spectators who have come to congratulate the station’s personnel and to stare at the large transmitter with its many mysterious knobs, dials and switches. As three o’clock approaches, Michael Stokes works his way through the crowd, carrying the tape on which have been recorded the materials for this first historic test broadcast.

As the hour approaches, one can see the tension on Mr. Stokes’ face as he stands near the tape recorder, ear plugs on and remote control switch in hand, waiting for the countdown.

Ralph Dexter, the chief engineer at Radio Bahá’í, appears outwardly calm as he climbs atop the transmitter for some last-minute adjustments. Mr. Stephens, showing intense concentration as he regulates switches and knobs, says to the audience, “Don’t congratulate us yet. Please wait.”

The friends who haven’t been able to enter the studio are seated in a circle outside the station, waiting patiently to hear the first short wave broadcast of Radio Bahá’í.

At exactly three o’clock on the afternoon of November 12,

Bahá’ís from many parts of Ecuador were present last November 12 for the first test broadcast of Radio Bahá’í’s short wave facilities.

[Page 4] An inspector from the Ecuadorian government’s Office of Telecommunications was on hand to look over the Radio Bahá’í short wave transmitter and antenna before the test broadcast last November 12.

1979, the program begins. Its elements are as follows:

1. Prayer—“The Day of God” (Bahá’í Prayers, No.11, pp. 20-21), in Spanish.
2. Prayer—“O my God! O my God! I am a servant attracted to Thee ...” (Bahá’í Prayers, British edition, No. 79, p. 82), in English.
3. Hidden Words—Nos. 36, 41 and 42 (Arabic), in the Quechua language.
4. Prayer—“Glory be to Thee, O King of Eternity ...” (Bahá’í Prayers, No. 7, p. 139), in Portuguese.
5. Selections from Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, “Proclaim unto every longing lover ...”
6. Identification of Radio Bahá’í, in Quechua.
7. Song—“Dius Taita Cachamun,” sung by Miss Ann Miller, in Quechua.
8. Words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, from Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era, in Spanish.
9. Selections from the Writings of the Báb, in Portuguese.
10. Selections from Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, p. 38, “Say: My army is My reliance on God ...”
11. Prayer—“O Compassionate God! Thanks be to Thee ...” (Bahá’í Prayers, pp. 95-96).
12. Selections from Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, pp. 12-14, “The time fore-ordained unto the peoples ...”
13. Rendition of “The Greatest Name.”
14. Closing prayer, in Quechua.

The broadcast has successfully ended, and the friends are congratulating the station personnel. One can hear many expressions of gratitude as the believers enter the studio for prayers of thanksgiving to Bahá’u’lláh for having showered such manifold bounties on Ecuador.

Later, as the happy Bahá’ís are leaving the building, they are approached by a group of Germans who have been camping near Lake Cuicocha and have come to see what is going on in this remote spot. The Germans say they have visited the Bahá’í House of Worship near Frankfurt and are delighted to find two Bahá’ís from Germany among the group at the station.

Mr. Stephens takes the time to explain as best he can to an audience untrained in radio technology that the short wave

Another view of the studio and antenna at Radio Bahá’í’s short wave station near Lake Cuicocha in Ecuador, called by engineer/consultant Dean Stephens of Puerto Rico ‘one of the finest short wave broadcasting sites in the world.’

[Page 5] station’s “rhombic” antenna, which is actually four antennae that make up a square whose sides are 64 meters long, can be tuned from the studio so that different areas can be covered with a strong signal.

For example, he says, the antenna can be switched to a “rhombic” that points southwest and northeast, or a rhombic that points northwest and southeast, receiving a power increase five times greater in the direction pointed to—“in other words, we can serve an area like the Oriente (Amazon basin), or the Andes, directly during two- or three-hour intervals at different times of the day.

“For instance, in the mornings we’ll serve the Andes region from Guayaquil up to Colombia; and late at night, we’ll serve the area from Esmeraldes to the Oriente (east), depending on how the antenna is controlled from inside the studio.”

The antenna and transmission poles, he says, can be tuned to any frequency on a high frequency bank. This means that in the future, depending upon licensing from the Frequency Office, Radio Bahá’í could operate on frequencies that would carry its signal anywhere in the world without having to make any modifications in its facilities.

The cost of the four poles linking the antenna, which were cut from local eucalyptus trees, was less than 2,000 sucres ($76 U.S.). The total cost of the antenna, including all cabling, was about $1,000 U.S., or approximately one-tenth the cost of any comparable antenna.

The station has three 4-meter by 4-meter rooms housing the transmitter and generator, with a room for the watchman. These can be expanded when required.

Mr. Stephens explains how the marvelous site for the short wave station, nestled in the mountains near Lake Cuicocha, the “Lake of the Gods,” was chosen:

Dean Stephens of Puerto Rico, the engineer/consultant for Radio Bahá’í, leaves the studio for a closer look at the short wave antenna (background) before the test broadcast last November 12.

“We sat down with maps of Ecuador, topographical maps of the entire region, and found three places that seemed good for short wave transmission. One of them turned out to be inaccessible. We then drove to the other two, and this was by far the superior site.

“So it was not by chance that this place was chosen; we negotiated with the government for two years to get this particular site, which is one of the finest short wave broadcasting sites in the world.”

[Page 6]

Ethiopia

The Bahá’í community earns praise for developing a new literacy aid

By BELETE WORKU

When the United Nations General Assembly decided in December 1976 that 1979 would be designated the International Year of the Child (IYC), the Bahá’í International Community requested that Bahá’í National Spiritual Assemblies support the year-long UN event with meaningful programs.

Responding to that request, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Ethiopia called upon Auxiliary Board member Mehtsun Tedla, a talented artist and architect, to come up with a program or an idea that would be especially applicable to the needs of children during IYC.

After months of hard work, and without even taking time out for weekends or holidays, Mr. Tedla produced an excellent literacy teaching aid, “Ha Hu in Nine Days,” which is designed to help an illiterate person learn the Amharic alphabet in only nine days. The teaching aid was presented to the National Spiritual Assembly at its regular meeting early last December.

The National Assembly suggested some additions (a nine-pointed star on the cover, several Bahá’í quotations, and a passage from “God and His Messengers” as reading material), then appointed a three-member delegation to present the 33-page booklet on its behalf to representatives of UN agencies in Ethiopia and to the Ethiopian Minister of Education, who was also chairman of the IYC National Commission.

On the evening of December 30, the National Assembly briefed its delegation—consisting of Auxiliary Board member Asfaw Tessema, Berhane Gila, and Belete Worku—saying that the booklet should be presented to the government and UN officials before the end of the year.

Although appointments with these officials are hard to make, sometimes taking weeks to confirm, the Bahá’í delegation was surprised to find upon phoning the officials the following day that appointments could be arranged almost within minutes. John Allen, the UNESCO representative in Ethiopia and liaison officer for the UN Economic Commis-

Auxiliary Board member Asfaw Tessema (second from left) explains the Bahá’í literacy booklet to Adebayo Adedeji, executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) as Bahá’ís Berhane Gila (left) and Belete Worku look on.

[Page 7] John Allen (right), UNESCO representative in Ethiopia and liaison officer for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), meets with a delegation of Bahá’ís last December 31 at UNECA headquarters. Mr. Allen and other UN and government officials were presented a Bahá’í booklet, ‘Ha Hu in Nine Days,’ developed by Auxiliary Board member Mehtsun Tedla. The booklet is designed to help an illiterate person learn the Amharic alphabet in only nine days. Shown during the presentation are (left to right) Belete Worku, a member of the Bahá’í delegation; a newspaper reporter from The Ethiopian Herald; the UNECA public relations officer; Bahá’ís Berhane Gila and Auxiliary Board member Asfaw Tessema; and Mr. Allen.

sion for Africa (UNECA), agreed to meet with the Bahá’ís at 11 a.m. At 11:30, the delegation was to meet with Dr. Ahmad Manzoor, the UNICEF representative in Ethiopia.

Adebayo Adedeji, the UNECA executive secretary, was out of the country, but was scheduled to return at 10:20 that morning. His secretary made an appointment with the Bahá’í delegation for noon. Lt. Col. Goshu Wolde, the Minister of Education and chairman of the National Commission for IYC, agreed to meet with the delegation at 3 p.m.

At each meeting, the Bahá’í literacy booklet was presented, and the officials were given a brief oral description of the status of the Bahá’í International Community as a consultative non-governmental organization (NGO) at the United Nations, and the support given by the Bahá’í International Community to UN events such as IYC, both directly and through the various National Spiritual Assemblies, since 1948.

A reporter and photographer from the English-language newspaper, The Ethiopian Herald, were present at each of the meetings, and a comprehensive article about the presentations and the Bahá’í effort to help ease the country’s literacy problems appeared in the paper the following day.

In addition, UNECA published a report of the presentations to UN officials for circulation among UN staff members and employees. The press release was headlined, “Bahá’í Booklet Will Help Wipe Out Illiteracy in Ethiopia.”

The UN and government officials expressed great appreciation for the Bahá’í booklet, and each of them praised the Bahá’í community for its interest in the welfare of the country’s children and its efforts to promote literacy among the Ethiopian people.

The Minister of Education also paid tribute to the Bahá’ís for their efforts in cooperation with the United Nations to promote world peace and understanding. He added that the Ministry would do its best to use the Bahá’í literacy booklet during the literacy campaign being conducted throughout the country, after asking permission of the National Spiritual Assembly to do so.

The National Assembly believes the presentation of the booklet, and the subsequent article in The Ethiopian Herald, will greatly enhance the prestige and recognition of the Faith among government authorities while opening new doors through which to reach the people with the Message of Bahá’u’lláh.

[Page 8]

The Núr Bahá’í School

Western hemisphere’s first Bahá’í-owned grammar school is three years old

(The following report of the Núr Bahá’í School in Santiago, Chile, was written for Bahá’í News by Reed Chandler, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Chile.—Ed.)

•

In March 1977, following more than two years of extensive consultation with the Universal House of Justice and the Continental Board of Counsellors for South America, and great sacrifices on the part of the Chilean Bahá’í community, the Núr Bahá’í School (Colegio Bahá’í Núr) opened its doors in Santiago as the first Bahá’í-owned and sponsored grammar school in the western hemisphere.

The idea for the school sprang from discussions among a group of Bahá’í school teachers in La Cisterna (a suburb of Santiago). It was nurtured and supported by the National Spiritual Assembly of Chile, which relayed the idea to the Board of Counsellors and, through them, to the Universal House of Justice, which gave the project its blessings and support.

The school was housed at first in a large building that was rented by the National Spiritual Assembly of Chile. After two years of sacrifice by Chilean Bahá’ís, and following a generous contribution from the Universal House of Justice, a permanent site and building for the school were purchased in May 1979.

The Núr Bahá’í School has classes for kindergarten through eighth grade. All courses conform to the official educational programs and standards of the Chilean government and its Ministry of Education.

Among the school’s special features are its classes on Progressive Revelation, and its special classes on the laws, principles and teachings of the Bahá’í Faith.

The school’s director is Mrs. Sylvia San Cristobal. The faculty consists of a team of 12 teachers who are Bahá’ís.

The school’s objectives are:

1. To offer an educational service of the highest quality to the children of the local communities.
2. To give the students a better orientation toward their participation in society, paying special attention to the development of each student through a more flexible and effective educational program.
3. To give the children an opportunity to understand the importance of the teachings and laws of religion.
4. To be a center of artistic stimulus and activity by sponsoring and organizing cultural, musical, and sports events for the students.

The school is now at a crucial stage in its development. The purchase of the property last May exhausted all available funds. Needed now are additional classrooms and rest rooms to keep abreast of government regulations.

More than 100 students now attend the Núr School, the majority of whom are non-Bahá’ís. The school’s good reputation is spreading rapidly throughout the capital city of Santiago.

If anyone is interested in obtaining more information about the Núr Bahá’í School—its needs, goals, etc.—he or she may contact the National Spiritual Assembly of Chile, Casilla 3731, Santiago, Chile.

[Page 9]

Barrow, Alaska

Above the Arctic Circle, a new Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds is dedicated

The Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds in Barrow, Alaska, said to be the world’s northernmost Bahá’í Center, was dedicated last November on the anniversary of the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh.

The dedication ceremony, held during the evening of November 11, served as the basis for a proclamation and fireside campaign that included television and radio exposure as well as posters and printed invitations to the dedication sent to a number of selected individuals.

Auxiliary Board member Lauretta King was the featured speaker at the dedication, while Donald Anderson represented the National Spiritual Assembly of Alaska. The program included the presentation of gifts for the new Center from the National Spiritual Assembly, as well as from individual Alaskan believers and Bahá’ís at the Green Acre Bahá’í School in Eliot, Maine.

The friends at the dedication contributed $530 in honor of the event to be divided equally among the National Fund, Continental Fund, and International Fund.

The dedication of the new Center followed by nearly four years the establishment of Barrow’s first Local Spiritual Assembly, on January 10, 1976.

The Barrow community is well above the Arctic Circle at the latitude of mid-Greenland in the frozen Arctic Ocean. The opening of its Center represents the culmination of more than 25 years of effort by a small band of pioneers and traveling teachers.

In 1954, the Spiritual Assembly of Anchorage asked the Guardian about the desirability of sending pioneers to Barrow. In his reply, Shoghi Effendi said this was a “highly meritorious field” and added that there was “a great significance to having believers serving so far north.”

Frances Wells, who had helped form the first Spiritual Assembly in Fairbanks, moved to Barrow in 1955. A second pioneer, Margaret Pirkey, joined Mrs. Wells during a summer vacation that year. The Guardian cabled “DELIGHTED, ASSURE LOVING PRAYERS.”

Two years later, Margaret Pirkey returned to Barrow, thus forming with Mrs. Wells the first Bahá’í Group there. A few months later Miss Pirkey contracted Asiatic flu and left Barrow for treatment. She passed away later that year.

Almost immediately another pioneer, Mable Amidon, took her place to maintain the Barrow Group.

Mrs. Wells, in poor health, was forced to leave Barrow in 1958. Before doing so, she turned her home over to the National Spiritual Assembly to be used as a permanent Bahá’í Center.

The following year Tom and Dottie Baumgartner and their five sons arrived in Barrow in response to an appeal for a married couple to pioneer there. Soon afterward, poor health forced Mrs. Amidon to leave, and her departure was followed a year later by that of the Baumgartners.

In 1960, Ruth Tazruk, an Eskimo youth, had become the first person to accept the Faith in Barrow, but the departure of the Baumgartners left the Bahá’í Center empty.

Repeated efforts to send other pioneers to Barrow failed, and in 1962 the National Assembly sold the Center, deciding it was unwise to leave it unattended.

Barrow had no pioneers for nine and one-half years. However, Alaska’s Nine Year Plan goal of re-establishing a Bahá’í Center in Barrow was won with the arrival there in 1970 of David and Carolyn Baumgartner. This opened a new chapter for the Faith in Barrow that led six years later to the formation of its first Spiritual Assembly.

All the members of that first Assembly, with the exception of David Baumgartner, were Eskimo, part-Eskimo or Indian.

David Baumgartner of the Barrow, Alaska, Bahá’í community stands in front of the Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds in Barrow before exterior improvements were made to the building.

[Page 10]

Hiroshi Yamamoto

The passing of the eldest son of the world’s first Japanese believer

(The following tribute to Hiroshi Yamamoto was written for Bahá’í News by Mrs. Marion Yazdi of Rancho Palos Verdes, California.—Ed.)

This photo of the 10-year-old Hiroshi Yamamoto was taken July 17, 1919, in Yanai, Yamaguchi, Japan.

Hiroshi Yamamoto, eldest son of Kanichi (Moto) Yamamoto, the first Japanese Bahá’í in the world, died September 18, 1979, at the age of 70.

Hiroshi was the brother of Shinji Yamamoto, retired State Architect of Wisconsin who now serves on committees planning the new national Archives building in Wilmette. He was also the brother of Mas Yamamoto of Oakland, Fumiko Ono of Berkeley, and Mich Yamamoto of Santa Paula, California.

Hiroshi’s childhood was exceptional. He lived with his parents in the Oakland home of Mrs. Helen S. Goodall at 1537 Jackson St. Mrs. Goodall, after moving to San Francisco, kept the Jackson St. house open for Bahá’í gatherings with Moto in charge. His sons, Hiroshi, Shinji and Masao, were favorites with the early believers who met there.

When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá came to California on October 3, 1912, He stayed at 1815 California St., San Francisco, and it was Moto who lived in that house and joyously served Him. The Master showed great love for three-year-old Hiroshi and his two brothers. He would hold Hiroshi on His knee and talk and play with him. He gave the young boy the Arabic name “Hassan,” meaning “goodness.”

For a description of Hiroshi at that time we are indebted to Juanita Storch (who was 17 years old at the time) and the entry in her diary on October 12, 1912. She described the scene as the Bahá’í children, their parents and friends started to gather for an historic afternoon meeting with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá:

It was Columbus Day and the people were about Lake Merritt enjoying the celebration but we were going to see Abdul Baha.

Abdul Baha and his party were eating in the dining room and I saw a glimpse of them as I went through the hall to take off my coat. Mrs. Cooper greeted us and made us feel at home. The Bahai atmosphere always encourages those few who had like us come early.

Then Katherine and I went outside into the garden. Moto’s wife and little boys were on the lawn in the back yard ... Katherine and I sat in the teahouse for awhile and then walked around the house a few times. It seemed a wonderful privilege to encircle the house in which the Blessed Abdul Baha was at that moment.

I asked Hiroshi to walk with me but he only smiled

[Page 11] The Master, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, with a large group of Bahá’ís at the home of Helen S. Goodall in Oakland, California, on October 16, 1912. Three-year-old Hiroshi Yamamoto is in the front center of the picture, held on the lap of Juanita Storch.

and scampered off. As we went around one side of the house, he went around the other and when we met he slipped his little soft hand into mine and looked up with his little black shiny eyes and gave me another of his happy smiles. He sat between us for awhile on a big seat in the teahouse and didn’t say a word, but his face was actually aglow with smiles. Then he gently slipped from us and ran to his mother who was sitting in a swing under a Magnolia tree.

(Later that afternoon when a photo was taken of Abdul Baha on the top step of Mrs. Goodall’s home and the friends were gathered on the other steps, I was on the bottom one, and Hiroshi was sitting on my lap.)

In 1919, after the Oakland home was sold, Moto moved to Berkeley to be near Alec and Kathryn Frankland. It was most important to him that his children be taught the Bahá’í Faith. Mrs. Frankland, and later Marion Carpenter (Yazdi) held weekly Junior classes attended by Hiroshi and his brothers and sister. Hiroshi learned prayers and Hidden Words and gave little talks in a shy, endearing way. At the first Western Bahá’í Teaching Conference, held in San Francisco on November 24-26, 1922, he and the other children took part. They were irresistible—attractive, well-mannered, sparkling and intelligent.

Hiroshi was a member of the Berkeley Bahá’í community until December 7, 1941. After the attack at Pearl Harbor he and his family were interned with other Japanese-Americans, first at the Tanforan race track in South San Francisco, and later at Camp Topaz, 150 miles south of Salt Lake City, Utah. The family was allotted one room. Even though faced with severe hardships, they never complained.

After the war, Hiroshi taught at Yale University for the Navy. He attended the Bahá’í National Convention in 1948 with his father and Kathryn Frankland. There was always a special bond between Hiroshi (in fact, all the Yamamotos) and Mrs. Frankland.

Hiroshi worked for more than 20 years for Pan American World Airways. He moved from Berkeley to Los Angeles and Hawaii, traveling for his company as a field representative. Always, a letter of identification written by the secretary of the Spiritual Assembly of Berkeley went with him. He presented the letter to the Assembly when he returned in the spring of 1977 to become once again a member of the Berkeley Bahá’í community.

Hiroshi was quite ill during his last years. Still, it was good to talk to him on the telephone and to receive his letters. He was always cheerful, kind, and full of appreciation. He was devoted to the Faith, his family, and his friends.

It was in keeping with his character that he made an heroic effort in 1978 to attend the memorial services for a close friend, Ali Yazdi. He sat next to Ali’s wife at the graveside and stood with the others for prayers. Because he was paralyzed on one side, it was difficult for him. He had a tremendous sense of loyalty.

As we pay loving tribute to dear, courageous Hiroshi Yamamoto, we feel acutely the loss of yet another of that valiant little band of early believers who knew the Master.

Hiroshi Yamamoto at a retirement party given for him by Pan American Airways in 1970.

[Page 12]

Around the World

Samoa

About 40 Samoan Bahá’í youth attended a conference at the Samoan Temple site in Tiapapata, Western Samoa, last September 8-9. The conference, designed to stimulate youth to join in expansion and consolidation activities, included classes on various aspects of Bahá’í life. Youth who have been participating in ‘work parties’ at the Temple site have now been allotted some land on which they will raise vegetables. Funds earned from the sale of the vegetables will be used to support youth activities. Participants at the September conference included pioneers from Canada, Australia, and Írán as well as the adult Samoan sponsors.

Caroline Islands

The Bahá’ís of Udot Island in the Truk Lagoon have a new Bahá’í Center, thanks largely to the efforts of a pioneer and a traveling teacher.

Siumma Fifita, a pioneer to the Caroline Islands from Tonga, and Austin Bowden, an American Bahá’í, planned and began construction of a Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds at Penia. The land for the Center was donated by a local believer, Kai Simon.

When the building was completed, friends from all over the island attended a gala dedication party.

The Bahá’ís of Penia use the new Center for children’s classes, women’s activities, deepenings, firesides and meetings of the Local Spiritual Assembly.

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Caroline Islands has chartered a sailboat to transport traveling Bahá’í teachers to the central Caroline Islands.

The boat, a trimaram, is based at Ponape. It is owned by Californian Kenneth D’Ammasso, a pioneer to the Caroline Islands.

Guatemala

More than 60 people attended a deepening institute for children and their parents last December 16 in Mazatenango, Department of Suchitepequez, Guatemala, sponsored by the Bahá’í National Women’s and Children’s Committee. Parents attended discussions about the role of women in contemporary society, the importance of living a Bahá’í, deepening, and the importance of teaching their children. The children, meanwhile, learned prayers, songs and aspects of the history of the Faith. The children also learned about the life of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and took part in a drawing contest.

[Page 13]

Portugal

More than 70 Bahá’í youth from all parts of Portugal participated last September 22-23 in that country’s first National Youth Conference in Lisbon. The conference was organized by the National Youth Committee of Portugal.

Bahá’ís in Setubal, Portugal, built and staffed this booth last August at the Santiago Fair, one of the largest provincial fairs in Portugal. Thousands of Portuguese saw the booth, which included a display on the rearing and education of children. It was the second year in which the believers in Setubal created a booth for that event. Following the fair, attendance at the weekly firesides in Setubal increased dramatically.

Australia

To celebrate the International Year of the Child, the Bahá’í communities of Woollahra, Waverly and Randwick, Australia, sponsored an Art and Craft Exhibition last October that featured 1,000 paintings and craft articles by children 12 years old and under.

More than 1,000 people visited the week-long showing at the Bondi Beach Pavilion in Waverly.

Invitations were sent to every school in the three eastern suburbs of Sydney, as well as to children’s libraries and day care centers. The Waverly Council provided more than 3,000 handouts and use of the gallery free of charge. The exhibition drew participation from children throughout the eastern suburbs.

Guest speakers at the exhibition’s opening ceremony, attended by more than 100 people, included Vera Eagle, national director of UNICEF, and Syd Einfeld, the minister of Consumer Affairs.

Bahá’ís supervising the exhibition received many questions about the Faith, and interested persons attended firesides that were held in the three participating communities.

Participants in the opening ceremony of a children’s Art and Craft Exhibition honoring the International Year of the Child sponsored last October by the Bahá’í communities of Woollahra, Waverly and Randwick, Australia, included (left to right) Mrs. Syd Einfeld; Syd Einfeld, Australia’s minister of Consumer Affairs; master of ceremonies Gary Grainger, a member of the Waverly Bahá’í community; Vera Eagle, Australia’s director of UNICEF; Ernie Page, the mayor of Waverly; and Mrs. Judy Hassalt.

[Page 14]

Alaska

About 20 Bahá’ís and their guests from six western Alaska communities and Greenland participated last October 26-28 in the Yu-Kwin Council, a deepening for Native believers in Alaska’s Western Region, held in McGrath:

Participants in the conference, sponsored by the Auxiliary Board and hosted by the Spiritual Assembly of McGrath, traveled to the conference site from Grayling, Holy Cross, Unalakleet, Lower Kalskag and Eagle River, Alaska, with one, Jens Lyberth, coming all the way from Greenland.

The program featured slides of Indian Bahá’ís, films of Bahá’í Native Councils, and stories about the lives of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

The sessions were presided over by Auxiliary Board member Lauretta King with help from assistants to the Auxiliary Board Ernie Baumgartner, Audrie Reynolds and Joyce Shales.

Mr. Lyberth, who has translated Bahá’í prayers into the Eskimo language, read the Tablet of Aḥmad in Eskimo.

Forty-eight adults and youth along with 29 children attended the 17th Annual Winter Conference at Petersburg, Alaska, last November 9-11. With the theme “International Year of the Child,” the conference featured classes and activities for first through ninth grade children as well as separate sessions for youth and adults.

Child-related conference presentations included: “The Anisa Model,” “Conversations Between Parent and Teen-Ager,” “Art in Training Children,” and “Communication Within the Family.”

Argentina

Bahá’í and non-Bahá’í children participated in special activities during the ‘Week of the Child’ last November 12-19. The week-long program was sponsored by the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Buenos Aires in recognition of the International Year of the Child.

Spain

The Bahá’í community of Palma, the capital of Majorca in the Balearic Islands off the eastern coast of Spain, was among nine religious groups asked to participate in a recent round table discussion sponsored by an ecumenical organization.

Bahá’ís who attended the meeting had an opportunity to present the Bahá’í teachings on spiritual education as a means of preventing or eliminating prejudice, violence, alcoholism, drug abuse, delinquency, and other harmful social conduct.

The Bahá’ís suggested that a group be formed to help teachers include spiritual education, without proselytizing, in the regular school curricula.

The Bahá’ís were then asked to develop the idea and present a plan of action at a later meeting.

Those present agreed to get together on a monthly basis, with one of the meeting places to be the Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds in Palma.

The priest who presided at the first meeting referred to the persecution of Bahá’ís in Írán, calling it a case of flagrant injustice.

[Page 15]

Publications

The U.S. Bahá’í Publishing Trust is preparing to release a number of new books and revised editions in late April in time for the National Bahá’í Convention. The publications include one by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, one by Shoghi Effendi, an introduction to the Faith, and a new series for children.

Foremost among the new books is the revised edition of A Traveler’s Narrative, by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. First published in 1891, this is the Master’s fascinating account of the rise of the Bábi Faith and of events in the lives of the Báb’s followers, including Bahá’u’lláh. Many Bahá’ís have never read A Traveler’s Narrative, as it has been out of print for many years.

Another revised edition is The Promised Day Is Come, Shoghi Effendi’s eloquent and forceful letter to the Western Bahá’ís explaining that the reason for the present worldwide moral and social chaos is man’s rejection of Bahá’u’lláh.

A clothbound version of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era, the widely-read introduction to the Bahá’í Faith by J. E. Esslemont, will be published in its fourth revised edition. The clothbound edition, which includes recent statistics and developments, is often presented as a gift to libraries and public officials.

An innovative new series of children’s books—Sunflower Books for Young Children—will add to the excitement at the National Convention. The four Sunflower Books, written by Deborah Christensen, are titled My Bahá’í Book, My Favorite Prayers and Passages, Our Bahá’í Holy Places, and God and Me. Designed especially for three- to seven-year-olds, they offer basic information, give children a good feeling about the Bahá’í Faith, and provide simple activities—coloring, drawing, matching, pasting—that involve each child personally.

Details of these and other new books and materials will be announced to all Bahá’í librarians, Bahá’í Publishing Trusts, and national distribution services.

The Proud Helper and The Unfriendly Governor are the latest in a series of children’s paperback books about ‘Abdu’l-Bahá distributed by the U.S. Bahá’í Publishing Trust. Both were adapted for children by Anthony A. Lee, illustrated in color and black and white by Rex John Irvine, and are published by Kalimát Press.

The Proud Helper ($2.50 NET, 24 pp., Catalog No. 7-52-72) tells of the efforts of a young American Bahá’í pilgrim to help ‘Abdu’l-Bahá serve the poor in ‘Akká. The author adapted the story from Howard Colby Ives’ book, Portals to Freedom.

The Unfriendly Governor ($2.50 NET, 24 pp., Catalog No. 7-52-73) relates the dramatic story of a plot against the Bahá’ís by an unfriendly official in ‘Akká and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s surprising response. The story is adapted from Lady Blomfield’s The Chosen Highway.

Both books illustrate such Bahá’í values as love, service, courage, integrity, and obedience. To order, see “How to Order” below.

How to Order: Please order from your librarian, Bahá’í Publishing Trust, or Sales/Distribution Committee. If necessary, order directly from the Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091 U.S.A.

Postage and Handling: Inside U.S.: Add 75 cents on orders under $5. Outside U.S.: For surface shipment, add 10 per cent of order (minimum $1.50).

Sri Lanka

Twenty-five children attended a tea party in Colombo, Sri Lanka, last October 13 for the children of Bahá’í families and their friends. The party was given in honor of the International Year of the Child, and was highlighted by songs and dances performed by the children. Parents of the non-Bahá’í children were given Bahá’í literature.

[Page 16]

United Kingdom

Councillor Patrick Devine (seated center), the mayor of Londonderry, Northern Ireland, is presented a book containing the Bahá’í writings by John Long (third from left), chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom, during an interview in the mayor’s office last December 16 with the members of the National Spiritual Assembly that lasted close to an hour. Other members of the Assembly (left to right) are Betty Goode, treasurer; Dr. Ridvan Moqbel; Simon Mortimore; Philip Hainsworth; Enayatu’llah Rawhani, secretary; Dr. Keith Munro; Edmund Cardell; Mary Hardy.

To meet more members of the Bahá’í community, the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom held some of its regular meetings in 1979 away from the National Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds in London. Towns in various areas of Great Britain were visited, and all nine members of the National Assembly participated in the last such meeting, on December 14-16 in Londonderry, Northern Ireland.

That meeting was followed by a gathering, arranged by the Spiritual Assembly of Londonderry, with some 50 believers from throughout Northern Ireland.

The National Assembly’s visit received wide publicity in newspapers and on radio. The mayor of Londonderry received the members of the National Assembly at city hall, and was given a book containing Bahá’í writings during an interview that lasted nearly an hour.

A new textbook entitled Eight Major Religions in Britain, published by Edward Arnold Ltd., includes a chapter on the Bahá’í Faith.

Since the inclusion of a chapter on the Faith in a book produced by such a reputable publisher may provide an incentive for other publishers to follow suit, the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom has appointed a special committee to explore that possibility.

Canada

The Hand of the Cause of God ‘Ali-Muḥammad Varqá participated in Canada’s first French-Canadian Council held last October 21 in Montreal, Quebec.

The historic Council, sponsored by the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada through its National Teaching Committee, drew more than 70 French-Canadian believers from New Brunswick, northeastern Ontario, the three regions of Quebec, and as far away as the Magdalen Islands and Val-d’Or in Abitibi.

Other participants included Auxiliary Board members Ted Oliver and Jean-Yves Larin.

The Council provided an opportunity for the friends to consult in French on teaching the Faith to French-Canadians while it created a better understanding of the French-Canadian reality within the Canadian community.

Throughout the day, in both the plenary sessions and workshops, there was a constant stream of ideas, contributions, comments, and suggestions.

The National Spiritual Assembly plans to hold a second Council to continue the work begun at the first meeting of French-Canadian believers.

[Page 17]

Zaire

All of the inhabitants of three villages in Zaire’s Equateur Province accepted the Faith last September and October during a teaching trip there by Auxiliary Board member Rohan Vahhabi.

Miss Vahhabi reported that 25 Groups and isolated centers were formed among the receptive people of the Zone of Bolomba.

“Many people from among the local authorities accepted the Faith and were enrolled as Bahá’ís, and many prominent members of Catholic and Protestant churches expressed favorable and respectful views of the Faith,” she said.

On a second trip, to the Zone of Bikoro, two classes were held to instruct local Bahá’í teachers, with 26 participating in the study of Bahá’í history, administration, and laws.

The Regional Teaching Committee plans to send these deepened teachers to help open new areas of Zaire to the Faith.

Taiwan

The Hand of the Cause of God Collis Featherstone (second from left) consulted with a number of Bahá’ís in Taiwan during his six-day visit there last November. Shown here with Mr. Featherstone are Auxiliary Board member Roxanne Terrel (second from right) and assistants to the Auxiliary Board James Rossing (left) and Tan Hock Khen.

The Hand of the Cause of God Collis Featherstone visited the Bahá’ís of Taiwan last November where he stressed to the National Spiritual Assembly the need for proclamation, especially to officials and influential residents of Taiwan. Mr. Featherstone discussed the nature of the institutions of the Faith during an informal meeting at the National Center.

The Hand of the Cause spoke at public meetings in Yungho and Hsintien; served as guest speaker for the observance of the Day of the Covenant at the National Center, and met informally with believers in Tainan and Kaohsiung where he also conducted firesides and met the Local Spiritual Assemblies.

Following his six-day visit to Taiwan, Mr. Featherstone, accompanied by his wife, returned to Australia.

Bahá’ís from Taiwan gather at TaoYuan International Airport to welcome the Hand of the Cause of God Collis Featherstone and Mrs. Featherstone. The Featherstones arrived in Taiwan last November 24 for a six-day visit. The welcoming party was composed of Bahá’ís of Chinese, Malaysian, Korean, Persian and American backgrounds.

Rhodesia

More than 60 believers from nine communities in Matabeleland participated last October 25-26 in the first Regional Teaching Conference at Bulawayo, Zimbabwe Rhodesia.

Participants included Auxiliary Board members Helen Wilks, Carlos Kaupo and Enayat Sohaili along with Doreen Mpofu, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly.

A flip chart on the Bahá’í Fund was demonstrated, and the friends were told that three more charts soon would be available for Area Teaching Committees to use as deepening aids.

On the day after the close of the conference, a group of believers visited the unopened locality of Nevada Farm, many of whose residents were gathered together to hear about the Faith. Mrs. Iran Sohaili volunteered to return later to Nevada Farm to follow up on the teaching efforts there.

[Page 18] Memories of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, a warm, personal account of the early days of the Bahá’í Faith in California—days highlighted by the 1912 visit of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

By Ramona Allen Brown. Catalog no. 7-32-10. Cloth. $9.95

Bahá’í Publishing Trust
415 Linden Avenue/Wilmette, IL 60091 U.S.A.