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| Bahá’í News | June 1982 | Bahá’í Year 139 |
The permanent seat
of the Universal House of Justice
Bahá’í News[edit]
The Riḍván 1982 message from the Universal House of Justice | 1 |
Reaction of UN and other international bodies to persecution in Iran | 2 |
A new UN Declaration seeks to combat religious discrimination | 10 |
Around the world: News from Bahá’í communities all over the world | 11 |
Bahá’í News is published monthly 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 the Periodicals Office, Bahá’í National Center, Wilmette, IL 60091, U.S.A. Changes of address should be reported to the Office of Membership and Records, Bahá’í National Center. 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 © 1982, National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. World rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.
World Centre[edit]
The Riḍván 1982 message from the Universal House of Justice[edit]
To the Bahá’ís of the World
Dearly-loved Friends,
Triumphs of inestimable portent for the unfoldment of the Cause of God, many of them resulting directly from the steadfast heroism of the beloved Persians in face of the savage persecutions meted out to them, have characterized the year just ending. The effect of these developments is to offer such golden opportunities for teaching and further proclamation as can only lead, if vigorously and enthusiastically seized, to large scale conversion and an increasing prestige.
Heartwarming progress in the construction of the Indian and Western Samoan Mashriqu’l-Adhkárs, the opening of the second Bahá’í radio station of Latin America in Peru, the establishment of the European office of the Bahá’í International Community in Geneva, steady advances in the second phase of the Seven Year Plan, encouraging expansion of the systematized Bahá’í education of children, sacrifice and generous outpouring of funds from a growing number of friends, all testify to the abundant confirmations with which Bahá’u’lláh rewards the dedicated efforts of His loved ones throughout the world. The world-wide attention accorded the Faith in the media, which has opened wide the doors of mass proclamation of the divine Message, and the sympathetic discussion of it in the highest councils of mankind with the resulting actions taken by sovereign governments and international authorities, are unprecedented in Bahá’í history.
All this, dear friends, augurs well for the coming year which is rich in Bahá’í occasions. The fiftieth anniversary of the passing of the Greatest Holy Leaf will be commemorated at the five International Conferences and by the publication of a book, compiled at the World Centre, comprising texts about her and some hundred of her own letters; the move to the permanent Seat of the Universal House of Justice will take place; in November the twenty-fifth anniversary of the passing of our beloved Guardian will coincide with the midway point of the Seven Year Plan and the year will terminate with the fifth International Convention when members of National Spiritual Assemblies throughout the world will come to Haifa to elect the Universal House of Justice.
The distinguished and invaluable activities of the beloved Hands of the Cause are a source of pride and joy to the entire Bahá’í world. The assumption of wider responsibilities by each Continental Board of Counsellors is proving an unqualified success and we express our warm thanks and admiration to the International Teaching Centre and all the Counsellors for the great contribution they are making, in increasing measure, to the stability and development of the embryonic world order of Bahá’u’lláh.
As to Bahá’í youth, legatees of the heroic early believers and now standing on their shoulders, we call upon them to redouble their efforts, in this day of widespread interest in the Cause of God, to enthuse their contemporaries with the divine Message and thus prepare themselves for the day when they will be veteran believers able to assume whatever tasks may be laid upon them. We offer them this passage from the Pen of Bahá’u’lláh:
“Blessed is he who in the prime of his youth and the heyday of his life will arise to serve the Cause of the Lord of the beginning and of the end, and adorn his heart with His love. The manifestation of such a grace is greater than the creation of the heavens and of the earth. Blessed are the steadfast and well is it with those who are firm.”
The rising sun of Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation is having its visible effect upon the world and upon the Bahá’í community itself. Opportunities, long dreamed of for teaching, attended by showering confirmations, now challenge in ever-increasing numbers, every individual believer, every Local and National Spiritual Assembly. The potent seeds sown by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá are beginning to germinate within the divinely-ordained Order expounded and firmly laid by the beloved Guardian. Humanity is beaten almost to its knees, bewildered and shepherdless, hungry for the bread of life. This is our day of service; we have that heavenly food to offer. The peoples are disillusioned with deficient political theories, social systems and orders; they crave, knowingly or unknowingly, the love of God and reunion with Him. Our response to this growing challenge must be a mighty upsurge of effective teaching, imparting the divine fire which Bahá’u’lláh has kindled in our hearts until a conflagration arising from millions of souls on fire with His love shall at last testify that the Day for which the Chief Luminaries of our Faith so ardently prayed has at last dawned.
Riḍván 1982
Bahá’í International Community[edit]
The United Nations and other bodies react to persecution of Bahá’ís in Iran[edit]
During the past three years, awareness of the persecution of the followers of the Bahá’í Faith in Iran has been steadily growing throughout the world. Many Bahá’ís, and others, are now wondering why the United Nations has failed to take positive and decisive action in this and other cases of massive human rights violations.
The answer is that the 157 governments that constitute the membership of this almost universal intergovernmental body are not yet ready to create the necessary machinery within the UN to deal with such cases. This reluctance springs from a general unwillingness on the part of many countries to surrender any part of their national sovereignty by granting to an international agency the power to intervene in what they consider to be purely domestic matters.
Nevertheless, significant and important steps have been taken during the 36 years since the signing of the United Nations Charter, which set the universal standards to which all the Member States are deemed to subscribe. Most notable among these are the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the General Assembly in 1948, and two major covenants—the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. These Covenants were adopted in 1966 and came into force in 1976, when they were ratified by a sufficient number of states.
This summary review of the reaction of the United Nations and other inter-governmental organs to the persecution of Bahá’ís in Iran was prepared for Bahá’í News by Gerald Knight, the alternate representative of the Bahá’í International Community to the United Nations.
Members of the Bahá’í International Community’s delegation to the 38th Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, which met February 2-March 12 in Geneva, Switzerland, included Mme. Mahshid Fatio (left) from the European branch of the Bahá’í International Community in Geneva and Gerald Knight, the alternate representative to the United Nations. Also in the delegation was Giovanni Ballerio, the Bahá’í International Community representative in Europe, who was absent when the official photographs were taken.
The specific provisions of these international instruments relating to religious rights and practices are contained in Article 18 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, and in
Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Recently, these provisions have been considerably amplified by the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly on November 25, 1981. The adoption of this Declaration at the 36th Session of the General Assembly has been described as one of the most important achievements of the Session, and certainly the most important recent achievement of the UN Commission on Human Rights (which drafted it) and of its parent body, the Economic and Social Council (which passed it to the General Assembly for adoption). For a separate article on this Declaration, see Page 10.
It is appropriate here to quote Declan O’Donovan of Ireland, chairman of the General Assembly’s Third Committee, who shepherded the passage of
[Page 3]
the Declaration. At a special ceremony
held at UN headquarters in New York
on Human Rights Day, December 10,
1981, Mr. O’Donovan referred to the
need, through the United Nations human rights instruments such as the
Universal Declaration of Human
Rights and the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance
and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief, “to inform, to educate
and to persuade the people of the
world, and thus to bring to bear the
weight of international public opinion.”
In the case of the government of Iran and its treatment of the Bahá’ís, international public opinion apparently has little effect. However, a number of developments indicate that the government of Iran does care about the opinion of the international community.
First, the government of Iran has repeatedly chosen to deny any persecution of Bahá’ís. There have been numerous instances of this denial, but the most recent and notable were in statements made to the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly and to the Commission on Human Rights. In addition, the Iranian government has chosen, in the same forums, to defend its policy on summary executions.
Growth of international awareness[edit]
Let us now briefly review the progress of international awareness concerning the plight of the Bahá’ís in Iran.
The decision to bring the situation of the Bahá’ís in Iran to the attention of international forums was taken in 1980, when it became apparent that all appeals to the Iranian government by Bahá’ís both inside and outside Iran were going unheeded.
The first body to which an appeal was made by the Bahá’í International Community was the United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities (see chart on this page for an overview of the relationship between the various human rights organs of the United Nations). In a resolution adopted on September 10, 1980, the Sub-Commission expressed its profound concern for the safety of the members of the Bahá’í community in Iran and requested the government of Iran to protect the fundamental human rights and freedoms of this religious minority.
On September 19, 1980, following appeals to its members by the Bahá’í communities of Europe, the European Parliament unanimously adopted a resolution condemning the persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran and calling upon the Iranian government to grant recognition to the Bahá’í community.
Also as a result of appeals by the European Bahá’ís, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe published a written Declaration (first tabled on September 29, 1980) on the plight of the Bahá’í in Iran, calling upon the Committee of Ministers of the 21 Member States of the Council of Europe to make urgent representations to the Iranian authorities to put an end to the persecutions (see chart on Page 7 showing the membership and structure of the European Parliament and the Council of Europe).
Following the resolution by the European Parliament, the foreign ministers of several member governments of the European Community informed the Bahá’ís in their own countries that the nine Member States of the European Community shared the concern of the European parliamentarians for the plight of the Bahá’ís in Iran. Since, however, efforts to improve the treatment of the Bahá’ís there had met with no positive results, the foreign ministers of the nine states recommended that the Bahá’í International Community take the matter to the human rights organs of the United Nations, where the support of the nine governments was assured.
Acting on that recommendation, the Bahá’í International Community made two statements to the 37th Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, which met in Geneva,
[Page 4]
Switzerland, from February 2 to
March 13, 1981.
In its first statement, the Bahá’í International Community drew the attention of the Commission to the kidnapping of three prominent Bahá’ís and to the arrest and subsequent disappearance of the nine members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Iran and two appointed officers of the Faith. In its second statement, the Bahá’í International Community described the recent persecutions in Iran and emphasized the deliberate omission of the Bahá’ís from the Iranian Constitution and the systematic nature of the persecution.
Many delegates from among the hundred or so governments represented at the Commission were extremely sympathetic to the Bahá’í case, and four governments—Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom—made specific reference to the persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran in general statements on the violation of human rights.
Concerned that there had been no response from the government of Iran either to the appeals of Bahá’ís or to those of international bodies and governments, and increasingly anxious to stem the rising tide of persecution against their fellow believers, the Bahá’ís in Europe again appealed to the European Parliament, which, on April 10, 1981, adopted a second unanimous resolution on the Bahá’í case, calling on the foreign ministers of the 10 Member States of the European Community (Greece had joined the nine on January 1, 1981) to make the necessary representations to the Iranian government.
In a statement to the European Parliament on May 6, 1981, the foreign minister of the Netherlands (who was at that time chairman of the Council of Ministers of the European Community) stated that the situation of the Bahá’ís in Iran had been discussed by the Council of Ministers on various occasions and would continue to receive the full attention of the 10 Member States.
At the spring 1981 session of the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations (ECOSOC), held in New York City in April and May, the 10 Member States of the European Community, in a joint statement dealing with religious intolerance, drew the attention of the assembled delegates to the plight of the Bahá’ís in Iran. The Canadian delegation also referred to the Bahá’ís in its comments on the same subject.
In response to renewed appeals from the Bahá’í International Community, the United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities adopted, on September 9, 1981, its second resolution on the Bahá’í case, expressing its “profound concern” for the “perilous situation” facing the Bahá’ís in Iran, and requesting the UN Secretary-General to submit all relevant information concerning the treatment of the Bahá’ís in that country to the forthcoming session of the UN Commission on Human Rights.
On many occasions during the past few months, the UN Secretary-General, and a number of individual governments, have expressed their concern to the Iranian authorities through appropriate diplomatic channels.
Developments at the UN General Assembly[edit]
Public demonstrations of concern have also increased recently. Prompted perhaps by the appeals of Bahá’ís in their own countries, and encouraged by the second resolution of the United Nations Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, the governments of Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Sweden, the United Kingdom (on behalf of the 10 Member States of the European Community) and the United States have drawn attention to the persecution of the Bahá’ís in their
This photo, taken early in 1979, shows a Muslim rally being held at the former Bahá’í National Center in Tehran, Iran. The Center was seized by Revolutionary Guards in February 1979.
[Page 5]
statements to the Social, Cultural and Humanitarian Affairs Committee of the United Nations General Assembly. This committee, otherwise known as
the Third Committee, deals with the
human rights items that appear on the
agenda of the General Assembly. (The
work of the General Assembly is divided between seven main committees,
each one of which deals with a major
area of work. All states that are members of the UN participate in the meetings of these seven committees.)
In government statements at the General Assembly referring specifically to the Bahá’ís in Iran, the United States spoke under the item dealing with racial discrimination, and the United Kingdom (on behalf of the European Community) spoke under the item dealing with the Draft Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief. The UK’s statement under this item evoked a response from Iran (see box on this page).
Other delegations chose to refer to the Bahá’ís in Iran under agenda item 12, which deals with human rights violations in any part of the world. In response to these statements (which were made by Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, New Zealand and Sweden), Iran made a single reply that was directed not only against the Bahá’í Faith but also against “England and its colonies, including Canada” (see box on Page 8).
Many delegations made statements in support of the Draft Declaration and referred to present situations of religious intolerance in the world. This served to bring to the minds of many delegates the plight of the Bahá’ís in Iran, even though they were not specifically named. One example was the reference to “religious fanaticism” in the statement made by Morocco, which also provoked a reply from Iran—even though that country was not named by Morocco.
Following formal adoption of the Declaration at the plenary session of the General Assembly held November 25, 1981, the delegation from Iran asked for the floor to indicate that it could support the Declaration “insofar as it is in total conformity with Islamic jurisprudence.”
An agenda item dealing with summary executions was a major focus of
| The following verbatim reply of the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to statements made by Sweden, Australia, the Netherlands, Canada and New Zealand at the United Nations with respect to human rights violations throughout the world is taken from official tapes:
It is not surprising to us that now that the British government was not able to get sympathy for her colonial agents in Iran, namely the so-called Bahá’í group, the by-product of the same British colonialism in Iran, now they are attempting to maneuver, through their other colonies, once more, for their vain attempt. We believe this is one of the many endless conspiracies of imperialism and colonialism against the noble religion of Islam and against all the Muslims of the world. Any attempt to exploit the issue of Bahá’ísm, which we do not consider a religion but rather as a conspiratorial fifth column of the colonialism in Iran, in reality is a direct challenge of one billion Muslims all over the world which in this issue are in total agreement with us. It is very amusing that when the criminal deposed Shah, one of the biggest agents of the U.S. imperialists and Britain and the Zionists, was murdering tens of thousands of Muslim Iranians, we did not even hear one single cry of objection from the distinguished representative of England and her royal colonies. But now that the remainder of the criminal Shah’s regime and the agents of the CIA and Zionist Israel are engaged in killing hundreds of our young and old, bombing the governmental buildings, killing more than seventy-three of the representatives of the thirty-five million people of the Islamic Republic of Iran, murdering our beloved President, Mr. Rajai, and our dear Prime Minister, Mr. Bahonar, now they are understandably objecting to their arrest and their punishment because now that they are not directly present in Iran they cannot afford to lose all their friends. Mr. Chairman, without any compromise we punish all the criminals according to the tenets of Islam which we are deeply committed to. We stress once more—nobody because of his or her opinion is under any pressure in the Islamic Republic of Iran—however, we will not allow anyone to conspire against our people and against our hard-earned constitution. In this regard we will not put any exception on anybody, even be it the son of a member of our parliament. It is ridiculous that the distinguished delegates of England and her colonies do not respect the belief of millions of our people, who voted in support of our constitution which is unique in the history of any country at any time in terms of participation, but now viciously pretends to be concerned about the human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. I suggest that the distinguished representatives from Britain study Islamic jurisprudence, which I am confident they are very ignorant of, and then impose their biased and prejudiced opinion on us. At the end, once more, we stress that the distinguished delegates of England and her colonies, who do not have a bright reputation in the Muslim world, abandon to be the loudspeaker of all the conspirators against our people; otherwise we will expose their true intention, which is beyond any doubt continued fight against the noble religion of Islam, to all Muslims of the world. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. December 2, 1981 In the Name of God, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Mr. Chairman, I would like to make a point of clarification. I may have missed the mention of the name of Canada; however, I would like to stress our position that when we said Britain and her colonies we meant Canada as well. Thank you. |
[Page 6]
Shown is the 19-member delegation
that represented the Bahá’í International Community last January 29 at the
Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France. At
the 27th Sitting of the 33rd Ordinary
Session the Assembly unanimously
adopted Resolution No. 768 calling
upon the Iranian authorities “to extend to the Bahá’í community the constitutional guarantees with respect to
religious, ethnic and philosophic minorities included in the new Iranian
Constitution,” and urging the governments of the member states of the
Council of Europe to “utilise every possible opportunity including European Community and United Nations
channels, with a view to convincing the
Iranian Government of the necessity to
respect the law and international conventions to which it is a party.” The
Bahá’í representatives, sent to Strasbourg by 16 National Spiritual Assemblies in Europe to support the work of the Bahá’í International Community,
are (front row left to right) Mario Marques, Portugal; Giovanni Fava, Italy; Eric Fienieg, Netherlands; Mrs. Mahshid Fatio, BIC representative; Halldór Thorgeirsson, Iceland; and (back row
left to right) Giovanni Ballerio, BIC representative; Jack Costelloe, Republic of Ireland; Ulf Persson, Sweden; Ms. Elna Lodrup, Norway; Mrs. Edith
Ovesen, Denmark; Francisco J. Gonzales M., Spain; Mrs. Mary Hardy,
United Kingdom; Dr. Gerhard
Schweter, Austria; Mrs. Rina Driesen,
Belgium; Francois Petit, France; Gerald Knight, BIC representative; Mrs.
Anita Bontemps, Luxembourg; Dr.
Hellmut Schmidt, Germany; Miss Ginette Dunand, Switzerland. Mr.
Knight, representing the Bahá’í International Community, addressed the
Parliamentary Assembly.
attention by many delegations. Only
one, the United Kingdom (on behalf of
the Member States of the European
Community) actually mentioned Iran,
but it was clear that many delegations
regarded Iran as the prime offender in
today’s world. A resolution (A/36/22)
entitled “Arbitrary or Summary Executions” was adopted by the General
Assembly. This resolution condemned
“the practice of summary executions
and arbitrary executions,” strongly
deplored “the increasing number of
summary executions as well as the continued incidence of arbitrary executions,” and requested the Committee
on Crime Prevention and Control to examine the problem of arbitrary executions and summary executions at its
seventh session in March 1982. The Bahá’í International Community sent a
representative to the meeting of that
committee in Vienna, Austria, to provide information about the summary
and arbitrary execution of Bahá’ís in
Iran during the last two years.
Other international developments[edit]
The situation of the Bahá’ís in Iran also has been of concern recently to two other international organs. The first was the United Nations Human Rights Committee, a committee of 18 individual experts that was set up to monitor the performance of states who are parties to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (which includes in its provisions “the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion”). To date, 70 states (including Iran) have ratified this Covenant, and therefore have an obligation to abide by its provisions—one of which is that they should present a report indicating the measures they have adopted that give effect to the rights outlined in the Covenant. During the past year, the Human Rights Committee has several times expressed its concern at the human rights situation in Iran, and has pressed the gov-
[Page 7]
ernment of Iran to submit its report.
The most recent request for a report
was conveyed to the government of
Iran in April 1982 when the chairman
of the Human Rights Committee met
with the Iranian Ambassador to the
United Nations in New York.
The Human Rights Committee meets three times a year and, although lacking the authority to enforce the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, is nevertheless an extremely important instrument of international human rights monitoring.
Another body that dealt recently with the Bahá’í case was the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, which, in a statement issued on November 25, 1981, expressed its deep concern over reports of the continuing persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran. The statement also called for an intensification of the endeavors of the United Nations to improve the lot of the Bahá’í community there, and indicated that the Committee of Ministers would follow events closely, particularly at the next session of the UN Commission on Human Rights.
The next international forum to take up the matter was the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, meeting from January 25-29, 1982, in Strasbourg, France. On its agenda for Friday, January 29, was the item: “Persecutions in Iran: Rapporteur M. Dejardin.” Monsieur Dejardin’s report dealt with the over-all human rights situation in Iran and included extensive references to the persecution of Bahá’ís. A two-hour debate culminated in the adoption of a resolution that called upon the government of Iran to extend constitutional guarantees to the Bahá’í community.
Resolution 8 (XXXIV) of the UN Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorites, adopted September 9, 1981, specifically drew the attention of the Commission on Human Rights to the “perilous situation faced by the Bahá’í community in Iran” and requested the UN Secretary-General to “submit all relevant information about the treatment of the Bahá’ís in Iran to the Commission on Human Rights at its 38th session.” Accordingly, the Secretary-General’s Note containing summaries received from the Bahá’í International Community, together with two letters from the government of Iran, was circulated as an official document of the Commission on Human Rights when it met for its 38th session from February 2 to March 12, 1982.
The resolution of the Sub-Commission, and the document cited above, were referred to by six delega-
[Page 8]
Gerald Knight (left), alternate representative of the Bahá’í International
Community to the United Nations, and
Giovanni Ballerio, representative of
the Bahá’í International Community to
the UN in Geneva, Switzerland, ring
the ‘peace bell’ at UN headquarters in
New York City on Human Rights Day,
December 10, 1981. The occasion was
the celebration of the adoption by the
UN General Assembly of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms
of Intolerance and of Discrimination
Based on Religion or Belief. The
bronze peace bell and housing were donated to the UN in 1954 by the United
Nations Association of Japan.
tions—Australia, Canada, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and the United States—when the report of the Sub-Commission was being examined. In this way, the delegations indicated their intention to raise the situation of the Bahá’ís in Iran under the relevant agenda item later in the session. The Bahá’í International Community also made a statement in the context of the examination of the Sub-Commission’s report.
Later, under an agenda item dealing
with gross violations of human rights
in any part of the world, many delegations spoke of the situation in Iran,
and referred specifically to the religious persecution of the Bahá’ís. The
first five speakers in this debate—Italy,
the Netherlands, Australia, the Federal Republic of Germany and Denmark
| In reply to the statement by the United Kingdom on October 28, 1981, which was made on behalf of the 10 Member States of the European Community, the representative of Iran, Siyyid Raja’i Khorasani, is reported to have said:
In an Islamic court, no privilege could be accorded to anyone, not even to members of Parliament, and the Bahá’ís were no exception to that rule ... The allegations made by the United Kingdom representative were merely an excuse to undermine the Iranian revolution ... ... in the mid-1970s ... it had been easy ... for many politicians to support traitors; their Bahá’í friends, but those days were over ... He was surprised to hear the United Kingdom’s representative speaking so sympathetically for the Bahá’ís ... He assured the representative of the United Kingdom that Iran did not persecute innocent persons; its restraint was guided only by Islamic principles ... |
—all emphasized the plight of the Bahá’ís, as did later speakers including Canada, the United Kingdom, Togo, Zambia, Belgium, Norway and Ireland. Statements also were made by Iran and by the Bahá’í International Community.
A draft resolution sponsored by nine countries—Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Denmark, the Federal Republic of Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom—was adopted by the Commission on March 11, 1982. This resolution, which expresses concern about grave violations of human rights in Iran, requests the UN Secretary-General to “establish direct contact with the Government of Iran on the human rights situation prevailing in that coun-
[Page 9]
try and to continue his efforts to endeavor to ensure that the Bahá’ís are
guaranteed full enjoyment of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.” In the following paragraph,
the Secretary-General is requested to
“submit to the Commission on Human
Rights at its 39th session a report compiled on the basis of all available information, including information on
any direct contacts which he may have
established with the Government of
Iran concerning the general human
rights situation prevailing in that country;
The significance of this resolution lies in the fact that it marks the first time that the Commission on Human Rights—the body specifically established within the United Nations to deal with human rights violations—has adopted a resolution on the situation in Iran and, in particular, on the plight of the Bahá’ís there. The adoption of this resolution firmly establishes Iran (including the Bahá’ís) on the agenda of the Commission. (It should be noted that previous UN resolutions dealing with the persecution of the Bahá’ís were adopted by the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities—a body of independent experts, not governments—that is a subsidiary body to the Commission on Human Rights.)
Conclusion[edit]
The Bahá’í case, then, has been examined and will be further examined by those organs of the United Nations that are specifically concerned with human rights: the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities, the Commission on Human Rights, the Economic and Social Council, the Human Rights Committee, and the General Assembly.
These organs have no authority over member states and no power to enforce their decisions. International agreement on creating more effective machinery for dealing with human rights violations is perhaps far off. Nevertheless, inter-governmental organs, both regional and international, are the principal channels through which international public opinion is mobilized—and the weight of international public opinion is a major deterrent to any government engaged in massive and continuing violations of human rights.
Members of the Bahá’í clan of the Buyir-Ahmad tribe from Kata, a small village near Isfahan, are shown leaving Isfahan to set up a tent city outside of Isfahan. They were driven from their village and housed in the Bahá’í Center in Isfahan until driven out. There are several clans in this tribe, and the people in this photo are members of one of the clans that is composed entirely of Bahá’ís.
United Nations[edit]
A new UN declaration seeks to combat religious intolerance and discrimination[edit]
The internationally established rights to religious freedom as contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights have been considerably amplified by a new international instrument—the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief—which was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on November 25, 1981.
The specific provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights relating to religious freedom are contained in Article 18 of each of these instruments as follows:
Universal Declaration of Human Rights[edit]
- Article 18: Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or in private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights[edit]
- Article 18: 1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include freedom to have or adopt a religion or belief of his choice, and freedom, either individually, or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in worship, observance, practice and teaching.
- 2. No one shall be subject to coercion which would impair his freedom to have or to adopt a religion or belief of his choice.
- 3. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs may be subject only to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health, or morals or the fundamental rights and freedoms of others.
- 4. The States Parties to the present Covenant undertake to have respect for the liberty of parents and, when applicable, legal guardians to ensure the religious and moral education of their children in conformity with their own convictions.
The adoption of the Declaration was an extremely important development at the most recent session of the UN General Assembly. Following its adoption, this statement was made by Mr. Jaap A. Walkate of the Netherlands, one of the delegates most closely involved in the latter stages of the negotiations that led to the adoption of the Declaration:
“It is with a feeling of particular joy, gratitude and relief that my delegation has witnessed the adoption by the General Assembly of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination Based on Religion or Belief without a vote.
“The history of the road at the end of which we now stand has often been recalled; it has been a road which was long, arduous and full of obstacles. The Netherlands delegation recalls with respect how the two Chairmen of the Working Group of the Commission on Human Rights over the past seven years, Ambassador Yvon Beaulne of Canada and Judge Abdoulaye Dieye of Senegal, have conducted the negotiations of the delegations participating actively in the legislative process.
“Standing at the end of the road we must realize that we still have another long and equally arduous road ahead of us: the road of complying with the principles and rights contained in this Declaration. It would of course be naive to believe that as from today all religious discrimination and intolerance would have been eliminated by the mere adoption of the text. All Member States of this great organization have an obligation under the Charter to promote the observance of human rights and by adopting the Declaration they have indicated (their willingness) to comply with that obligation. All individuals under the jurisdiction of the Member States have the right to remind their governments of that obligation and may avail themselves of the rights set forth in the Declaration.
“The Declaration is an impressive elaboration of the rights and freedoms contained in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and of Article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both dealing with the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. As Article 8 of the Declaration just adopted rightly confirms, those rights stand and cannot be affected by the present Declaration. In particular, the exercise of the right to maintain, change and manifest one’s religion or belief should be seen as a healthy sign of freedom and democracy.”
The world[edit]
U.S. pioneer to Norway spearheads approval of ‘world religions’ classes[edit]
The concerns of an American pioneer to Norway about the religious education of her children have resulted in the establishment of the first Bahá’í classes in any Norwegian public school and government approval of a new “world religions” class.
The Bahá’í classes are provided for the four Bahá’í children in Kjerknesvagen, Norway, with the authorization and cooperation of local authorities.
Dari Fossum and her Norwegian husband have two school-age children. Mrs. Fossum was the first person to request an alternative to the Christian education classes offered on the school’s entrance forms.
The school’s headmaster was cooperative but indicated that it would take time to respond to the request.
Meanwhile, the parents of other Bahá’í children in the community, who had previously considered the existing religious program in the schools harmless, decided it was not suitable for their children and helped Mrs. Fossum develop a proposal for a world religion class that could be open to any child who wished to attend.
While that proposal was being considered, authorities in Oslo sent a letter to all of the country’s headmasters directing them to create alternative religious classes in their schools if requested to do so.
“While our proposal (for a world religions class) was being considered,” wrote Mrs. Fossum, “we were given permission to use the class time, the classroom and school supplies to teach Bahá’í classes to the four Bahá’í children ... two separate days a week for one hour each.”
These, she says, may be the first Bahá’í classes in any school in all of Scandinavia.
Permission to conduct a world religions class for any children who wished to attend was granted, and Mrs. Fossum was accepted as its teacher.
She describes her appointment as teacher as miraculous, because, she says, “I have no Norwegian documents for teaching, and to get such a teaching position without documents is, in fact, a ‘miracle.’ ”
Ecuador[edit]
A 40-day teaching campaign planned and carried out by the Spiritual Assembly of Guayaquil, Ecuador, ended last October with the enrollment of 90 new Bahá’ís and good proclamation through the press and public meetings, especially at the universities.
Zaire[edit]
Shown here are participants in Zaire’s first Bahá’í summer school held last October 9-11 in the capital city of Kinshasa. Auxiliary Board member John-Pierre La Perche is in the top row, sixth from right.
More than 70 Bahá’ís and their guests attended Zaire’s first Bahá’í Summer School last October 9-11 in the capital city of Kinshasa.
The school was organized by the Summer School Committee of Kinshasa to fulfill one of Zaire’s goals of the Seven Year Plan.
Classes were offered on prayer, teaching, Bahá’í history, the role of women, the unity of religions, personal preparation, the unity of mankind, the Bahá’í life, and the Covenant.
Participants viewed a film made at the Bosch Bahá’í School in California and another film, “The Green Light Expedition,” which chronicles a visit to South America by the Hand of the Cause of God Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum. The latter film proved to be so interesting that the friends insisted on remaining until the last reel was finished, at 2 a.m.
Shortly after the school ended, a local newspaper printed an article describing the school and including some tenets of the Faith.
The friends were so inspired by the school that several of them volunteered to teach in the nearby Bas-Zaire region. That week-long effort resulted in the enrollment of 62 new believers and the formation of two Local Spiritual Assemblies.
Trinidad/Tobago[edit]
Shown here are Bahá’ís who attended a National Deepening Institute held January 23-24 at the Palmyra Bahá’í Center in Palmyra Village, San Fernando, Trinidad. Auxiliary Board member Laurence Coward is third from left, and Auxiliary Board member Stephen Burris is standing in the doorway, second from left. During the institute the National Spiritual Assembly of Trinidad launched its permanent teaching team program with 12 teams, each of which will work regularly in specific localities and eventually grow and split into two more teams.
Taiwan[edit]
Presentations at the second Bahá’í Humanitarian Service Awards dinner last October 23 in Taipei, Taiwan, were made by Taiwan’s former Interior Minister, Chyou Chwang-Hwan, who is now vice-premier of Taiwan.
The Bahá’í-sponsored event was attended by 60 people including several government officials from the Ministry of the Interior and several well-known individuals in education and music circles.
Awards were given to a faculty member at National Taiwan University and to a well-known vocalist.
The program was emceed by the chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of Taiwan and by Nora Chen, a long-time believer from Hualien.
Parviz Kiani, a pioneer from Iran who is studying in Taiwan, spent his school vacation January 9-February 18 making a teaching trip around the island.
Traveling alone by motorcycle, Mr. Kiani visited cities and remote villages in all the counties of Taiwan. He distributed more than 4,000 pamphlets, placed 823 posters, and presented 159 proclamation brochures. His direct teaching efforts resulted in the enrollment of two people.
Portugal[edit]
Approximately 100 Bahá’ís from all over Portugal along with several Bahá’í youth from Spain attended the Bahá’í Summer School last September in Linhó-Sintra, Portugal. Participants are shown here with their special conference guest, the Hand of the Cause of God Ugo Giachery (front row, near center, holding portfolio). During the school an excursion was organized to take Dr. Giachery to Cape Roca, the most westerly point on the European continent, where a prayer for the unity of mankind was read. Many of the youth took part in a Spanish-Portuguese teaching trip that left from the Summer School to teach in towns along the Spanish-Portuguese border.
Greenland[edit]
Erik Breinbjerg Nielsen of Denmark, the lone pioneer to the Greenland goal city of Qaqortoq, recently received Mrs. Gol Aidun, a traveling teacher from Canada, who spoke to a woman’s club, to two classes at a school, and to evening firesides.
Mr. Nielsen, in Qaqortoq since 1977, hopes for others to join him or for local people soon to declare their faith, as, he says, “nearly everyone in the town has heard about the Faith.”
Sri Lanka[edit]
Nearly 600 people attended a successful World Religion Day observance January 17 at a conference hall in Colombo, Sri Lanka, that is used exclusively for state functions and international conferences.
Speakers at the Bahá’í-sponsored event represented the Bahá’í, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Islamic and Zoroastrian faiths.
The theme of this second annual World Religion Day observance in Sri Lanka was “The Foundation of All Religions Is One.”
Media coverage of the event included the first mention ever of the Faith on Sri Lanka’s national television network, which carried a one-minute story on the program.
There was substantial coverage both before and after the program on the national radio network whose director had first heard of the Faith from an American believer whom he had met at the airport in Panama City four years ago.
Three newspapers in Colombo carried feature articles about the event with photos, and one, the Daily News, which describes itself as “the English daily with the largest circulation in Sri Lanka,” also published one of the Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh on the front page of its January 20 edition in its “Thought for the Day” column.
A banner announces the second annual World Religion Day observance in Sri Lanka, held last January 17 at this international conference hall in Colombo that is reserved for state functions and international conferences. Last year’s program also was held in this building, and arrangements have been made to have the 1983 observance there also.
Messages of congratulations and good wishes from President J.R. Jayewardene of Sri Lanka and the country’s minister of cultural affairs were instrumental in lending official recognition to the event.
Following the observance, a successful week-long book exhibit was held at the Bahá’í National Center in Colombo. Hundreds of people visited the display to see the books and to ask questions about the Faith.
M.L.C. Chandrasekera, secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of Sri Lanka, addresses the nearly 600 people who attended the second annual World Religion Day observance in that country last January 17 in Colombo. The event was publicized by newspapers, radio and television. Messages of congratulations were received from the president of Sri Lanka and the minister of cultural affairs.
France[edit]
The Bahá’í Information Office of France, a committee of the National Spiritual Assembly, sponsored a “mass media weekend” last November 14-15 in Paris to encourage and instruct Bahá’í media representatives in their work with local press, radio and television.
Topics included advice from the Universal House of Justice on disseminating the principles of the Faith in reporting on persecutions; the viewpoints of reporters; how to prepare accurate and effective press releases; and a presentation on video systems.
Participants viewed a film on the daily operations of a newspaper office and a video tape of a news program in which a Bahá’í was interviewed.
South and West Africa[edit]
More than 100 Bahá’ís from Cape Town and seven nearby communities attended a teaching conference last November that was arranged by the National Teaching Committee of South and West Africa.
Among the participants at the conference, which was called to stimulate the believers into action, was Counsellor Bahiyvih Winckler. The need for homefront pioneers was explained, and some of the friends volunteered.
“One is particularly impressed by the willingness of the women to serve,” said Counsellor Winckler following meetings with the friends at the conference and in a nearby town. “Nothing is too hard if it is for the Faith.”
Nigeria[edit]
More than 70 people, the largest group at any Bahá’í school in Nigeria, attended the third annual Seven-Day School last December 27-January 2 in Makurdi, Benue State.
Participants, representing nine nationalities, came from 14 Nigerian states.
The school was organized by the Spiritual Assembly of Makurdi to fulfill a goal of the Seven Year Plan to conduct an annual Bahá’í school in Nigeria with low costs to attract the largest possible number of believers and seekers.
Classes covered prayer, Bible prophecy, teaching Christians, the importance of teaching and deepening, and the history of the Faith in Nigeria.
Speakers included Auxiliary Board member Paul Alu and Don Addison, an assistant to the Auxiliary Board.
There were readings from the holy Writings each morning and evening.
In separate sessions planned for them, the children learned prayers and songs, heard stories of the Faith, and worked on art and craft projects that were displayed at the end of the school sessions.
A television station in Makurdi broadcast a story about the school during its main news program. The report included a positive description of the Faith and an excerpt from a talk by one of the speakers.
Radio reports about the school prompted Bahá’ís from nearby villages to attend.
Music was an integral part of the school’s evening sessions with the friends singing songs in English, Tiv, Efik, Yoruba, Igbo and other Nigerian vernacular languages.
After observing the Feast of Sharaf at the school, a convoy of cars was formed to drop believers at selected villages along the Makurdi-Lafia Road where there are a number of Bahá’í villages. The Bahá’ís helped the friends in these villages to observe the Feast.
A similar convoy was formed the following day for teaching along two roads near the city.
Shown are some of the more than 70 people who attended the third annual Seven Day Bahá’í School last December 27-January 2 in Makurdi, Nigeria.
Reporters from a radio and television station in Ibadan, Nigeria, along with representatives of all the major newspapers in that country attended a news conference January 15 that was organized by the National Proclamation Committee to once again bring the plight of Iranian believers to the attention of the public in Nigeria.
Among the results were an article in the Daily Sketch entitled “Save the Bahá’ís in Iran,” a three-minute news story the following day on Ibadan television, and reports of the news conference that were broadcast the following day over an Ibadan radio station.
When television crew members who were scheduled to record a Bahá’í program January 16 in Ibadan, Nigeria, failed to show up, the friends who had been waiting for them turned their meeting into a deepening in the form of a mock television interview conducted by Auxiliary Board member Dr. Kiser Barnes.
The deepening led to street teaching in Orugun, an extension teaching goal for the Ibadan community, during which more than 100 people heard about the Faith.
That evening, the friends took their teaching effort to the campus of the University of Ibadan.
On January 15-16, two villages near Sasa, Nigeria, were opened to the Faith when two people in one village and eight in the other declared their belief in Bahá’u’lláh.
The village of Kusa, Benue State, Nigeria, whose population is 95 percent Bahá’í and whose Spiritual Assembly includes both men and women, is making organized efforts to fulfill the goals of the second phase of the Seven Year Plan.
The Assembly holds regular meetings and Nineteen Day Feasts without outside help. Classes for women and children also are held in Kusa, and a deepening program has begun.
Bahá’í women made toys for children during a recent women’s workshop. Visiting teachers have helped villagers learn songs and prayers.
Vanuatu[edit]
A statement prepared by the Continental Board of Counsellors in Australasia was read on behalf of the Bahá’í International Community at the 21st South Pacific Conference last October by a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Vanuatu.
The conference was held October 24-30 in Vila, Vanuatu.
The Bahá’í statement, which includes some words of the Guardian, is entitled “The Preservation of the High Qualities of Life in the Pacific.”
It suggests that, while it is not desirable to return to a strictly traditional life style, a new pattern of life and society should be developed that preserves the best of what has been inherited while helping each island country and people to seek its place in an evolving world society.
Western Samoa[edit]
His Highness Malietoa Tunamafili II watches the pouring of concrete last December 18 for the first foundation pad of the Mother Temple of the Pacific Islands. He is accompanied by Counsellor Suhayl ‘Alá’í. Speaking at the laying of the foundation stone for the Temple in January 1979, His Highness said, ‘When completed, this edifice will undoubtedly strengthen and develop further that mysterious power in the spirit of man that once it is attracted to the true worship of its Creator will bring about happiness, brotherhood and unity.’
The first concrete for the Mother Temple of the Pacific Islands was poured December 18, 1981, at the Temple site in Apia, Western Samoa.
Belgium[edit]
Pioneers to St. Niklaas, Belgium, who together formed that community’s first Local Spiritual Assembly last spring, were surprised when a reporter for a local newspaper requested an interview.
They were even more surprised and unprepared for the resulting full-page article with photos that was published by the paper.
The sympathetic article described the local Bahá’í community as “not a troublesome people.” The friends were pleased to see this rather oblique compliment because it was meant to show clearly that the Faith is not a sect like some religious groups in Belgium that sometimes are resented.
The newspaper article included an address and phone number for weekly firesides and other information.
The article concludes by saying, “Though we have all known these principles of the Bahá’ís, yet for the first time we have found the source.”
Guyana[edit]
Counsellors for the Americas Lloyd Gardner and Peter McLaren visited the Bahá’ís of Guyana early in January. They consulted with members of the National Spiritual Assembly and were speakers at a meeting that was arranged for the friends and held at the National Center in Georgetown.
Counsellor McLaren was able to remain in Guyana for a week, traveling to many parts of the country to meet with the Bahá’ís and to inspire them in their teaching work.
Guyana already has won its assigned Assembly and locality goals for the current phase of the Seven Year Plan.
An historic meeting was held in Berbice County where members of the National Spiritual Assembly and Dr. McLaren held their first consultative session with local believers in that area of the country. Members of the institutions had dinner with the homefront pioneers who are striving to consolidate that mass-taught area.
Alaska[edit]
More than 150 Bahá’ís and their guests from 24 communities throughout Alaska attended a special Winter Weekend held January 1-3 in Wasilla.
Speakers included John Kolstoe, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of Alaska; Auxiliary Board members Jim Schoppert and Hal Sexton; and several other believers who spoke on a variety of topics including pioneering, Bahá’í wills, proclaiming the Faith, family unity, progressive revelation, and Bahá’í pilgrimage.
Classes for youth were held during the first hour of each morning with the youth themselves acting as teachers for discussions of trustworthiness, honesty and decency, amusements and entertainment. They also prepared and presented a skit on teaching.
Approximately 20 children attended special classes prepared for them in which they visited an array of “learning centers” that focused on the Nineteen Day Feasts, the Bahá’í calendar, people and places in the Faith, the Kingdom of God, the family, and cause and effect.
Each day a “demonstration Assembly” consulted on topics that often are found on a Spiritual Assembly’s agenda such as questions that might arise from consultation regarding a Bahá’í marriage.
Evening entertainment included music, a talent show, a dance and an art show. The weekend ended with the formation of a “unity circle.” A seeker from Unalakleet, Alaska, who attended the Winter Weekend declared his belief in Bahá’u’lláh after returning home.
Suriname/French Guiana[edit]
Shown here are participants in the first Bahá’í Summer School in French Guiana, held last November 14-15 in Cayenne. This first Summer School fulfilled an important goal for French Guiana and neighboring Suriname.
An important Seven Year Plan goal for Suriname and French Guiana was fulfilled last November 14-15 when some 30 people attended the first Bahá’í Summer School to be held in French Guiana.
Participants included a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, an Auxiliary Board member, three assistants to the Auxiliary Board, members of Local Spiritual Assemblies and of regional teaching committees.
The program was planned to focus on the Central Figures of the Faith and on teaching. An immediate outcome of consultation was the “discovery” of three new localities in which believers already are residing.
Benoit Girard, a pioneer from Canada, made a presentation on the relationship between the Faith and Christianity. Other believers spoke about the Central Figures: the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
The school, held at the Bahá’í Center in Cayenne, closed on an especially touching note. Jean-Marc Tesson, a pioneer from the United States, read the “Fire Tablet” while participants stood holding hands with tears in their eyes as they recalled the plight of their spiritual brothers and sisters in Iran.
Mexico[edit]
Shown here are some of the children who attend regular Bahá’í children’s classes in the Indian village of Huilotepec, Mexico. In addition to learning the principles and history of the Faith, the children are taught Bahá’í prayers and songs in Spanish and in their native Zapotec language.
One hundred-twenty Bahá’ís and their guests attended the dedication of a new Bahá’í Center last October in Dzitya, Yucatán, Mexico.
The program, arranged by the Spiritual Assembly of Dzitya, included prayers, readings from the Writings, songs and talks.
This small Bahá’í community, says Counsellor Artemus Lamb, “has striven with such a loving spirit of zeal and sacrifice that it serves as an example for other communities.”
United Kingdom[edit]
Shown here are some of the more than 150 Bahá’ís from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland who gathered last February for a special conference called to consult on ways that believers in the two Irish communities, North and South, can work together toward common goals. Speakers at the conference, held in the Northern Ireland seaside town of Bangor, included a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Republic of Ireland, two members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom, and Auxiliary Board members Quentin Gargan, Dr. Beman Khosravi and Dr. Keith Munro. This was the second such conference since the formation in 1972 of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Republic of Ireland.
Pakistan[edit]
A two-member delegation representing the National Spiritual Assembly of Pakistan and including its secretary, Anisur Rehman Dehlavi, met in February with the Canadian ambassador to Pakistan, the UN high commissioner for refugees, and a representative of Pakistan’s minister of religious affairs—minority affairs wing.
The officials were presented copies of a report on the persecution of Bahá’ís in Iran that was prepared by the Bahá’í International Community at the UN headquarters in New York City.
The diplomats and ministerial officers were told about stranded believers from Iran and their need for permanent settlement elsewhere. They listened to the Bahá’í representatives with interest, and assured them of their full cooperation regarding Bahá’í refugees from Iran.
Bangladesh[edit]
Shawn are participants at the National Bahá’í Winter School held February 13-14 in Rajshahi, Bangladesh.
- For the seventieth anniversary
- of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s historic trip to America
- A NEW EDITION of
- For the seventieth anniversary
THE
PROMULGATION
OF
UNIVERSAL
PEACE
Features of new edition
- 139 talks by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
- new foreword
- Howard MacNutt’s original introduction written at ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s behest
- detailed table of contents
- chronology of dates, cities, and addresses of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s talks
- new index
The Promulgation of Universal Peace is a compilation of many of the talks and discourses ‘Abdu’l-Bahá delivered during His historic 239-day visit to the United States and Canada in 1912.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s purpose in coming to the West was “to set forth in America the fundamental principles of the revelation and teachings of Bahá’u’lláh.”
His topics included:
- the equality of men and women
- the harmony of science and religion
- the need for universal education and a universal language
- the oneness of God
- the oneness and continuity of the prophets of God
- the oneness of mankind
- the elimination of racial prejudice
All are essential for the universal peace that Bahá’u’lláh came to bring, and that gives the book its title.
Cloth edition only. xx + 469 pages, chronology of talks, index.
Catalog No. 106-039. $16.00*
*Valid only in the 48 contiguous States of the United States.
All others write for prices and ordering and shipping instructions.
This new edition, published to mark the seventieth anniversary of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s trip to America, is a special gift—and a challenge to fulfill the obligation of arising and carrying on the work of teaching the Cause that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá “so gloriously initiated.”
- Available from
415 LINDEN AVENUE, WILMETTE, IL 60091
