Bahá’í News/Issue 333/Text
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| No. 333 | BAHA’I YEAR 115 | NOVEMBER, 1958 |
Birth of Baha’u’llah
Thou dost witness, O my God, how He Who is Thy splendor calleth Thee to remembrance, notwithstanding the manifold troubles that have touched Him, troubles which none except Thee can number. Thou beholdest how, in His prison-house, He recounteth Thy wondrous praises with which Thou didst inspire Him. Such is His fervor that His enemies are powerless to deter him from mentioning Thee, O Thou Who are the Possessor of all names!
Praised be Thou that Thou has so strengthened Him with Thy strength, and endowed Him by Thine almighty power with such potency, that aught save Thee is in His estimation but a handful of dust. The lights of unfading splendor have so enveloped Him that all else but Thee is in His eyes but a shadow.
And when Thine irresistible summons reached me, I arose, fortified by Thy strength, and called all that are in Thy heaven and all that are on Thy earth to turn in the direction of Thy favors and the horizon of Thy bounties. Some caviled at me, and determined to hurt me and slay me. Others drank to the full of the wine of Thy grace, and hastened towards the habitation of Thy throne.
I beseech Thee, O Thou Who are the Creator of earth and heaven and the Source of all things, to attract Thy servants through the fragrances of the Robe of Thine Inspiration and Thy Revelation, and to help them attain the Tabernacle of Thy behest and power. From eternity Thou wert by Thy transcendent might supreme over all things, and Thou wilt be exalted unto eternity in Thy Godhead and surpassing sovereignty.
Let Thy mercy, then, be upon Thy servants and Thy creatures. Thou art, in truth, the Almighty, the Inaccessible, the All-Glorious, the Unconditioned.
—Prayers and Meditations, pages 73-74
Verandah around the bedroom of Bahá’u’lláh
in the House of Abbúd, where He took His exercise. The Most Holy Book, the Kitáb-i-Aqdas,
was revealed in this House.
Message From the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land to the Fifth Intercontinental Conference in Singapore
AS THE last historic Conference marking the mid way point of the Crusade opens, our thoughts and our hearts turn with a great wave of mingled emotions to our beloved Guardian—and beyond and above him to Bahá’u’lláh, the supreme Manifestation, the Glory of the Father, the Eternal Beauty of God revealed in all its splendour to men in this age.
It is nearly a year since the historic “October Message” of 1957 was released to the Bahá’í World by our Guardian. We cannot but look back upon this year with feelings of awe and wonder; in spite of the great calamity which overtook us, our hearts are moved in profound thanksgiving to Bahá’u’lláh. Swiftly following upon the plans for the celebration of the halfway point of the Ten-Year Plan came the paralyzing shock of the sudden passing of our beloved Shoghi Effendi, our guide and leader, our appointed protector and Guardian. Added to our grief and consternation was a sense of bafflement at the ways of God—but only for a short time. East and West the followers of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh demonstrated how deep was their belief in Him, and how well His
Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds of Algiers, Algeria, located at 14 rue
Levacher, the third-floor apartment consisting of three
main rooms.
Guardian had built the foundations of His Divine
Order in the hearts of His servants. Chastened through
their great sorrow, purified through their great love,
the believers arose as one man to support unitedly
the institution of the Hands carefully erected by the
Guardian during the last decade of his life and
strongly reinforced by him just before his passing.
This profound unity manifest amongst the Hands of
the Cause themselves, and amongst all the widely
scattered Bahá’í communities throughout the world,
immediately attracted the protection and blessings
of Bahá’u’lláh.
The first of these five historic Conferences, held in Africa less than three months after the passing of the Guardian, witnessed a great release of spiritual power in that continent so dear to his heart. This was swiftly followed by the equally successful Australian, American, and European Conferences. An unprecedented number of believers gathered on these occasions, and large numbers of pioneers volunteered for service with a dedication reminiscent of that great wave of enthusiasm and consecration which in 1953 carried the pioneers to all corners of the earth, and in one brief year opened nearly all the virgin territories—a feat which was the source of immense pride to the beloved Guardian.
The Conferences held to date this year have also witnessed, pursuant with the expressed hope of the beloved Guardian, the raising of nearly three-quarters of a million dollars for the construction of the three Mother Temples of Africa, Europe, and Australia, and the attainment of the other goals of the Ten-Year Plan.
Had not Bahá’u’lláh overshadowed the followers of His Cause with His infinite love and bounty, at this time of grief and profound tests, had not Shoghi Effendi‘s own spirit remained with us, guiding and protecting us, we would not be able in this last historic Conference called for during this year by the Guardian, to look back over the past eleven months of victory and say, “Praise be to Thee, O God, for the outpourings of Thy Mercy and Bounty and Thine infinite protection.”
The overflowing measure of Divine grace we have witnessed has ensured that the Plan of Shoghi Effendi for these great Conferences has been successfully fulfilled, the spirit he hoped would be generated by them has been generated; the pioneers he hoped would arise, have arisen; and funds he hoped would be raised have been forthcoming; and the ways and means for the furtherance of the work of the Crusade which he urged should be discussed, have been deliberated upon and are bearing fruit already in different parts of the Bahá’í World.
These will be hard years for us all, but love has[Page 3]
matured us, grief steeled us. At these five Conferences we have gathered strength from the outpourings the Guardian promised us these gatherings would attract from on High, and from our association with each other. We must now go forth like good soldiers, a conquering army, each to his own post, to do his own battle, to keep his own tryst on the home or the pioneer front. This is not going to be easy. Every formation of something new involves a certain degree of death of the old self. The old order is dying and we see how harsh are its death pangs. Something of our protected past may well be said to have died with the closing of this conference. For over one hundred and fifteen years we Bahá’ís have been nursed and personally watched over. Now we are required to stand on our own feet and, in the path of service to this Holy Faith, we ourselves must watch over and assist our fellowmen to turn to the Supreme Manisfestation of God for this Day, and seek their salvation through Bahá’u’lláh. That patience and fairmindedness, that loving forgiveness and wise tolerance Shoghi Effendi invariably showered on us individually, we must emulate and show to each other as well as to the world. That justice he so impartially administered must be emulated by all elected Bahá’í bodies, that unflinching, adamant adherence to principle which won him the respect of government and layman alike. the believers, as individuals and when functioning as assemblies, must show forth at all times. In other words, dear friends, the spirit of Shoghi Effendi must go with us from this Conference, not only with the attendants gathered here, but with the believers all over the world, who surely, inwardly if not outwardly, have participated in these five majestic, stirring, creative commemorative Conferences. His spirit we must keep alive in our hearts, his love we must foster through loving him more, his radiant nature, which the Master so well knew, must always be remembered by us so that we may, as individuals, strive to acquire a little of that selfless radiance ourselves.
The beloved Guardian often said that whenever he suffered, the work of the Cause went forward. We may ask ourselves if this unworthy world did not require the supreme sacrifice of the life of its Guardian to release those forces, at this critical juncture in human history, which are necessary to carry it forward into that Golden Age of spiritual civilization which the Bahá’í Dispensation must give rise to. Whatever interpretation we place upon the passing of Shoghi Effendi, an event which in its very essence is one of the mysteries of God, one thing must be evident to all,—the sacrifice of this infinitely precious life must not for an instant, to the slightest degree, be in vain. We must be the ransom that pays for that sacred blood. We, all the Bahá’ís everywhere, East and West. young and old, new in the Faith or veterans, must arise with complete unity, a more mature consecration, a deeper love for Bahá’u’lláh, and ensure that the vital objectives of the Ten-Year Crusade are completed, and in many fields added to and markedly surpassed.
We have had a soul-shattering shock; deepest grief, longing for our beloved Guardian so suddenly removed from our midst, has moved us to the depths of our being and made our hearts restless with desire to do many things for him now which we neglected to do when he was alive. The Bahá’ís have rallied to his conferences, helped in the protection of the Faith to which he gave all his service, and have supported the appointed Hands of the Cause and the elected representatives of the believers. This, however, is only the first step. Before us he almost five years of hard work, years, we may well believe, of turmoil in the world, years when, in the face of a steady process of deterioration in human affairs, our institutions must be painstakingly erected and consolidated, the foundations for the future Universal House of Justice securely built, in order that this Supreme Edifice, when it comes into being, may be in a position to fulfill its Divinely appointed functions, the spirit of the Faith made to bum brighter, its teachings disseminated far and wide, and that process of mass conversion so often referred to by the Guardian, set in motion and given increasing momentum.
Bahá’í Endowment in Luxembourg, situated in the Commune d’Eich, Section C de Weigner Kirch: Rue des Forarms.
Purity of heart, honesty of mind, sincerity of motive were characteristics deeply prized by Shoghi Effendi. These characteristics he felt were strongly represented in the so-called primitive peoples; they drew him to them and increased his conviction that the Cause of God has a tremendous future amongst the dark-skinned peoples of the world, and that they have great racial gifts of mind and heart to bring to the service of this Faith. It is significant to ponder that the first. the opening of this halfway point of the World Crusade was chosen by him for the heart of Africa, and that the last, the closing Conference, was set midway in the Pacific-Asian region. He did not thus honor the old world and the new. No, he chose the black people and the brown people for this distinction. He visualized the African and the Pacific peoples vying with each other in the spread of the Faith. Each marked increase in membership in one region was relayed by him to the other, with the hope of stimulating a fresh burst of enthusiastic teaching efforts. Much of his joy, during the last years of his life, came from the news of the remarkable progress[Page 4]
the Faith was making in these two areas.
The first of the two annual teaching congresses was held in Managua, Nicaragua, on July 26-27, 1958. Seventeen Bahá’ís and six guests attended. Sessions were arranged to allow for everyone to enjoy a simple meal together on both days. The teachers, Pablo Pérez, Hooper Dunbar, and Donald and Mignon Witzel, covered the most important phases of teaching in Latin America, as well as the spiritual fundamentals of the Faith.
The African Conference released a great spiritual power among the Negro believers, who returned from it to their tribal homes to teach with new enthusiasm and understanding, and to convince their own peoples of the truth of Bahá’u’lláh’s Message. We feel confident that the representatives of many of the peoples of the Pacific region attending this Conference will do likewise, and that this will mark the beginning of a vast process of conversion of the inhabitants of the islands of this immense ocean to the Cause of God.
Who knows, perhaps it is the immediate destiny of our great Faith to be raised on the two wings of the black and brown races through a great wave of mass conversion which will have repercussions all over the world, and, releasing spiritual powers as yet untapped, enable the leaven of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh to penetrate into the lives of the peoples of the older yellow and white civilizations, so materialistic, so disillusioned, so morally corrupt and spiritually bankrupt.
The first evidences of this mighty process envisaged by our beloved Guardian have already become manifest in the extraordinary, the truly heartening conversion of such a large number of people in the Mentawai Islands and the Gilbert and Ellice Islands to this new religion. Those who have had the privilege of carrying the Message of Bahá’u’lláh to them can testify how deep is the faith with which they have embraced it, how steadfast their intent to serve it and uphold its laws, how ripe their hearts to enfold its truth and make it a part of their lives.
Another evidence of the unfoldrnent of this process has been the formation of Bahá’í schools in the new Hebrides, in Mentawai, and in the Gilbert and Ellice Archipelago—schools of which Shoghi Effendi was immensely proud. How many pilgrims watched enthralled as the strong, forceful, and fascinating hand of the Guardian pointed to the spots on the map of the world he had filled in, and tapped the circle which marked one of these precious schools. How bright the light that lit up his blessed face as he stated this was no mere summer school, but a real school, opened and maintained by Bahá’ís, in which the children of indigenous people were being educated in both a normal curriculum and in the Bahá’í standards. It was his ardent hope that these schools should be maintained, reinforced, and similar ones established on a sound and permanent basis in other areas. He repeatedly made it clear that in these unspoiled regions of the world lay a great hope for the future. He constantly encouraged pioneers to move into them, and in these fertile fields of service, busy themselves with the teaching work where it promised the greatest success.
This culminating Conference held during this sad but fruitful year must yield, for all believers present, as well as for those throughout the Bahá’í world, a special harvest. Our hearts, still bleeding in separation from our dearly beloved Guardian, we must anneal in the fire of self-sacrifice to this infinitely precious Faith. The need of our fellowmen is to hear the Glad-Tidings of Bahá’u’lláh greater than ever. The doors to pioneering, to the construction of the Mother Temples called for in the Ten-Year Plan, to the founding of Bahá’í schools, to the dissemination of our literature, to the erection of our administrative institutions, still stand open. Before some world catastrophe closes them devastatingly, albeit temporarily in our faces, let us not waste one precious moment!
Shoghi Effendi’s love is burning in our hearts, his appeals are still fresh in our ears. The vision he gave us of our present task is clear and perfect: let us keep it forever before our eyes.
“Let there be no mistake. The avowed, the primary aim of this Spiritual Crusade is none other than the conquest of the citadels of men’s hearts. The theater of its operations is the entire planet, its duration a whole decade. Its commencement synchronizes with the Centenary of the birth of Bahá’u’lláh’s Mission. Its culmination will coincide with the Centenary of the Declaration of that same Mission. The agencies assisting in its conduct are the nascent administrative institutions of a steadily-evolving, divinely appointed Order. Its driving force is the energizing influence generated by the Revelation heralded by the Báb and proclaimed by Bahá’u’lláh. Its Marshal is none other than the Author of the Divine Plan. Its standard-bearers are the Hands of the Cause of God appointed in every continent of the globe. Its generals are the . . . national spiritual assemblies participating in the execution of its design. Its vanguard is the chief executors of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s Master Plan, their allies and associates. Its legions are the rank and file of believers standing behind these same . . . national assemblies and sharing in the global task embracing the American, the European, the African, the Asiatic, and Australian fronts. The charter directing its course is the immortal Tablets that have flowed from the Pen of the Center of the Covenant Himself. The armor with which its onrushing hosts have been invested is the glad-tidings of God’s own Message in this Day, the principles underlying the Order proclaimed by His Messenger, and the laws and ordinances governing His Dispensation, The battle cry animating its heroes and heroines is the cry of Yá Bahá’u’l-Abhá.”
—HANDS OF THE FAITH IN THE HOLY LAND
Villakollo, Bolivia. All the surroundings are like this, without a single tree or plant, except clumps of straw (paja brava).
THREE new Indian groups in Bolivia have recently accepted the Bahá’í Faith through the efforts of the La Paz and the Canton Huañuni Indian Assemblies. In Potosí there is a group of five cholas (a mixture of the white and Indian races), in Huañacota there are eight Indian Bahá’ís, and in Chalapiti there are five Indian believers, The two latter places were opened by Andrés Jachacollo, who went on a forty-six day teaching trip, and Isidro Jachacollo, on a twenty-six day teaching trip, both of whom are dedicated Canton Huañuni friends.
Both state that there are a number of other Indians interested in the Faith in these places, and that they will continue with their efforts, hoping to confirm enough to make local spiritual assemblies before long. One of these friends is also going on a teaching trip to Potosi to cooperate with the cholos there in several weeks of joint efforts.
An idea of the sacrifice required can be given when one learns that these Bahá’ís must walk for a total of ten days going and returning to their own village.
Pure-Hearted Bolivian Indians In Primitive, Inhospitable Land Are Awakening to Baha’i Faith[edit]
Juana Topa, the first Bahá’í of Chola back ground in Bolivia, who accepted the Faith on July 12, 1958.
In a recent teaching trip, Athos Costas, secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay, recorded the following impressions of his two days’ stay in Canton Huañuni:
“The Bahá’ís of Vilakollo are almost all young, numbering seventeen believers with twelve children in the community. They are very hospitable and amiable, having a great desire for spiritual, cultural, and social progress. They are much nearer to the real values of life than city inhabitants.
“They are pure of heart, and the progress of the Faith there could be li.ke Africa. On leaving them, I thought of these people who live in the mountains, enduring such extreme cold, and with such arid soil, living in their tiny huts made of adobe and thatched with straw, with unglassed openings for doors and windows, and felt that a part of my heart remains with them.
Bahá’ís of the Vilakollo Indian community. The picture at the right shows a typical house of adobe brick and the “paja brawl” straw thatched roof. In the picture to the left are Estanislao Alvarez, member of the National Indian Committee, and Athos Costas, secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraquay, and Uruguay.
“At the end of my Bolivian teaching trip, I thought[Page 6]
that the Bahá’ís should not spend their energies in the arid spiritual climate of the great cities, but go out to the provinces, the little ‘pueblitas’ where the people live a more primitive life, much less superficial, where the Faith will progress much more rapidly through contact with consecrated pioneers.”
That Bolivia is awakening to the Faith is evident from the report of Mr. Costas on his August teaching trip. In Cochabamba he gave a radio talk, and spoke at a public meeting in the Centro Cultural Boliviano-Norte-americano before a group of eleven Bahá’ís and twenty-three guests, mostly young people who showed great interest.
The newspaper El Pueblo gave a full summary of the talk.
In La Paz, a public meeting was held in the Municipal Library, with on attendance of eight Bahá’ís and fifty guests. This was preceded by announcements on the radio, and was followed by a summary of the talk in the newspaper La Nacion. Many of the contacts in La Paz were brought by the three Indian Bahá’ís resident in that city.
In Santa Cruz a talk was given in the salon of the radio station “Grigotá,” with an attendance of thirty. The entire forty minute talk was also broadcast by the radio station, and two newspapers published summaries of the talk. One publication used a photograph of the Bahá’í House of Worship as an illustration.
Land for Mother Temple of Paraguay Purchased Near Capital City of Asuncion[edit]
Among the additional goals set by the Guardian before his passing was the purchase of land for the Mother Temples of Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Paraguay achieved this goal on September 30, 1958, after months of searching and disappointments over excessively priced land. The National Spiritual Assembly of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay joyfully announces that an area of three hectares (about seven and one-half acres) has been bought.
Bahá’í delegates at the third All-Vietnam. Teaching Conference held at Tourane, which was attended by over seventy Bahá’ís and their friends.
The land is located fifteen kilometers from the capital city of Asuncion.
This land should increase in value in the future, as it is located about three kilometers from the National Airport, on the road between the well-known towns of Luque and San Lorenzo. About half of the land is a coco palm tree plantation, overlooking a typical Paraguayan panoramic view.
Esperantists at World Congress in Germany Attend Baha’i Meeting, View Exhibits[edit]
Almost one hundred people from eleven countries attended the Bahá’í meeting at the Forty-Third World Congress of the Esperantists at Mainz, Germany, on August 3, 1958.
After the program was opened with music and the reading of a prayer of Bahá’u’lláh, W. von der Ley spoke on the teachings of the Bahá’í Faith. Guests from England, France, Sweden, The Netherlands, Poland, Italy, Spain, Brazil, the United States, and Germany left their names and addresses on the contact list.
Over two hundred people visited the Bahá’í exhibit, where Bahá’í literature in Esperanto, and pictures of interest to Esperantists were displayed. The pictures included a large portrait of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, photographs of leading Bahá’ís and Esperantists such as Martha Root, Lidja Zamenhof (the daughter of the founder of the Esperantist movement), and John E. Esslemont. Other photos showed Haifa and the Shrine of the Báb, views of the House of Worship in Wilmette, and pictures of the Intercontinental Conferences in 1953.
Public Teaching Launched at Palmer, Alaskan Goal City[edit]
Since Mr. and Mrs. Verne Stout and their two children went to Palmer, Alaska, a few months ago to open that goal city, they have been quietly but steadily making friends for the Faith. The Matanuska Valley fair, held August 29 to September 1, provided an occasion for public proclamation through the Bahá’í exhibit, with some 400 pieces of literature distributed.
The booth, centrally located and displaying a Temple model, photographs, and literature, was unavoidably visible to all 14,000 persons who attended the fair. Chairs were provided in the booth so that visitors could rest and read various Bahá’í books and pamphlets on a small table, including the latest Bahá’í World volume, and Appreciations of the Bahá’í Faith. Newspaper advertisements of public meetings in other Alaskan cities were on display. The booth was also utilized as a means of presenting Bahá’í literature (including Destiny of America, and A Pattern for Future Society) to a number of civic leaders on a local and state level.
Bahá’í visitors to the booth came from Kodiak, Unalaska, Tanana Valley, Bethel, and Anchorage, Alaska, the first two places representing World Crusade goals.
The Matanuska Valley, flanked by the Chugach Mountains, is the richest farming area of Alaska and is the site of the well-known “farm-colony” experiment be gun in the 1930’: under the US. government, when this land was first cleared and settled.
First Photographs From British Cameroons Illustrate Results of Continuous Teaching By Regional Committee and Local Assemblies[edit]
First Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Tinto, British Cameroons, formed an April 21, 1958. This assembly successfully hosted a teaching conference.
The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Bakebe, British Cameroons. This responsible body actively helped to organize a successful teaching meeting in their town.
About half of the believers of the Bahá’í community of Bakebe,
British Cameroons, photographed after a teaching conference.
Some of the believers of Tinto, British Cameroons, who attended the teaching conference there.
The outstanding record of achievements in
Nigeria and British Cameroons, reported in
BAHÁ’Í NEWS for August 1958, is due to A
well-known, yet potent, formula: continuous
organized teaching activities.
The mainspring in these countries is Northwest Africa’s Regional Teaching Committee No. Ten. This body plans a never-ending series of teaching meetings, conferences, and other activities throughout the area.
Then the local spiritual assemblies concerned cooperate in organizing the numerous details and notifying the believers. If appropriate, the believers then extend invitations to their friends and contacts.
The result is invariably the same: a well-attended meeting in that distinctly Bahá’í atmosphere, so wonderful to experience, so conducive to spiritual regeneration.
S. Australian Government Appoints Baha’i to Officiate at Marriages by Local Assemblies[edit]
The Australian Bahá’í Bulletin for August 1958 has reprinted an extract from the South Australian Government Gazette for July 3, 1958, as follows:
Marriage Act Registration[edit]
“Notice is hereby given that, under authority of His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor, dated 21st June 1953, the Principal Registrar has registered Mr. Harold Collis Featherstone of Port Adelaide (Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Port Adelaide, Incorporated) as an officiating registrar under the Marriage Act, 1936-1937.
A. W. Bowden, Principal Registrar”
The Bahá’í Bulletin points out that local spiritual assemblies in South Australia may conduct marriages in conjunction with the Officiating Registrar.
Baha’is of Belgium and Luxembourg Hold Joint Conference to Study Teachings[edit]
A “National Bahá’í Day of Belgium and Luxembourg” was held in Charleroi, Belgium, in September, under the auspices of the National Teaching Committee for these two countries. The day was dedicated to the study of the Bahá’í Teachings, and proved to be an immense success.
There were thirty-four Bahá’ís and five guests present, from Brussels, Luxembourg City, Antwerp, Liege, Ostende, and Charleroi, as well as a Persian pioneer family from Tunesia.
The program was excellently planned, with three subjects for discussion: “Spiritual Qualities Which Conform to the Bahá’í Life,” “The Stature of Bahá’u’lláh Among the Other Prophets," and “The Twin Nature of Man,” presented respectively by Miss Suzanne de Koninck, Louis Henuzet, and Marcel Mathot.
This National Day was designed as a substitute for a summer school this year, due to the Intercontinental Conference held at Frankfurt, Germany, in July.
Sholapur and Ahmedabad, India, Schools Recognize Baha’i Holy Days[edit]
The educational authorities of Sholapur and Ahmedabad, India, have given permission to Bahá’í children attending schools in their respective jurisdictions to observe Bahá’í Holy Days as holidays.
—NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF INDIA AND BURMA
Correction[edit]
References to Shoghi Effendi as “the divine Guardian,” attributed to Mrs. Amelia Collins in the account of the Frankfurt Intercontinental Conference prepared by the National Spiritual Assembly of Germany and Austria for the October issue of BAHÁ’Í NEWS, should have been reported as “the beloved Guardian.”
National Bahá’í Day of Belgium and Luxembourg, held at Charleroi, Belgium on September 21.
First Summer School of Southern States Held at Blue Ridge in August[edit]
A SUMMER sun . . . an early dusk . . . the scent of the spruce and the pine . . . misty clouds bowing low to hide majestic mountain peaks . . . a solemn stillness . . . a nearness to God . . . all this is Blue Ridge, and here from August 23-28, 1958, nearly eighty Bahá’ís and friends held the first Bahá’í Summer School of the South. Here, deep in the mountains of western North Carolina, this interracial group gathered with love and harmony.
Conferences had been conducted at Blue Ridge in other years, but this was a school, and from the very onset this was evident to all in attendance. The study and consultation were serious. Although it was required that each person take at least two classes, nearly everyone attended all three. A great impetus for further study was generated. The time was short and the schedule heavy. Each day began at 7:30 with Devotions.
Morning courses, running simultaneously from 9:15 to 11:15 were: “Islam,” taught in a masterly fashion by Roy Mottahedeh; “World Crusade,” clearly outlined by Lorana Kerfoot; and “Introductory Class,” ably given by Erma Hayden.
Afternoon courses, running simultaneously from 1:15 to 2:45 were: “Advent of Divine Justice,” warmly presented by Albert James; and “Bahá’í Administration,” dramatically set forth by Zella Svendsen.
Attendants at the first Bahá’í Summer School of the Southern States, held at Blue Ridge, N. Car, August 23-28.
The evening course from 7:15 to 9:00 was: “Covenant and Covenant Breaking,” effectively directed by
Jack Davis.
In each case we were blessed with exemplary teachers, who gave devotedly of their time.
The youth attended morning and evening classes with the adults, but in the afternoon held their own class where they consulted on many aspects of the Faith, particularly those that concerned the Youth most directly.
Thelma Allison, Louise Jackson, Alice Walton, and Marion Goldstein conducted the children’s classes, and on the last morning the children presented the Devotions and displayed their handiwork.
Each day formally ended with Devotions at 9:15; however, informal gatherings lasted long into the night. Mrs. Allison and Mrs. Svendsen shared the stories of their pilgrimages to Haifa. slides of the Temple and Shrine Gardens were shown, and Bahá’í experiences were exchanged over cups of coffee. The warmth and feeling in these evening get-togethers are never to be forgotten.
The recreational facilities at Blue Ridge are many,
among them hiking, swimming, and horseback riding.
While many spent their leisure time pursuing these,
at the same time others used the hours to come together for discussion and visiting with the teachers[Page 10]
and each other.
Many who had attended other summer schools in the past felt that this was the best in spirit and content, and it was hoped that we might continue to have a school in this beautiful setting. This seemed impossible, as we had not near the attendance that the YMCA management required to renew our contract. However, at the time the School Committee was meeting with the management the entire group gathered together for prayers, and great was our joy when we were offered the facilities for three years.
Five days are not many. All too soon they sped by. We gathered for the last time on the huge veranda of the main house. We felt the knowledge and the beauty fill our minds and hearts. The time of parting was near . . . still we stood. These past days we had prayed, studied, laughed, wept and had fellowship together. Reluctantly we bid goodbye to old friends and new. Our feelings were divided—a part of us yearned to stay, to partake forever of this closeness, and yet already stirring within was the great longing and urgency to hurry fortl-i—back to share our re-awakened faith with fellow believers, and to take what we had gained to a thirsting world.
This was the first Blue Ridge Summer School. The sun was warm, the mountains stood like sentinels against the sky‘ The clouds bowed low, the air was still—and God was there.
—GAIL CURWIN
Pioneers From United States Settle in Five Central American Countries[edit]
A group of devoted new pioneers have been welcomed to five of the Central American countries during the past few months, to assist at this crucial time in the Ten-Year Crusade.
To Costa Rica has come Richard Mirkovitch from California, who is working as a physical education director at the Methodist School in Escazu.
Hooper Dunbar, also from California, is teaching English in Managua, Nicaragua.
Honduras has now become the home of Grace Dean from New Mexico, Seymour Malkin from California, and David Mathieson from Connecticut, all of whom are getting oriented in Tegucugalpa. Robert Anker from Nevada is now in San Pedro Sula looking for work there or in one of the goal cities along die Caribbean coast.
Mrs. Edith McLaren, a pioneer from New York state, has recently arrived in Guatemala.
Frank Wilson, another Californian, is getting established in Santa Tecla, El Salvador.
Successful pioneering demands many personal sacrifices which later bring manifold blessings. A vivid example is that of Donald and Mignon Witzel, devoted, hard-working, and valiant pioneers for many years in hot, inhospitable Managua, Nicaragua.
This year, after a series of trying housing difficulties, they found a perfect house, but decided that it is more important to spread the Faith than to live comfortably, so they sub-let the house and moved to Masaya. where they will commute each day to their positions in the American School in Managua, despite high transportation expenses.
Bahá’í group of Retalhuleu, Guatemala.
Retallhuleu, Guatemala, Bahá’í Community Functions Without Resident Pioneer[edit]
The city of Retalhuleu, Guatemala, is one of those rare spots in the civilized world that does not seem to be contaminated with materialism and fanaticism. The people are friendly, spiritually minded, and unprejudiced.
This city was opened to the Bahá’í Faith a few years ago by Louise Caswell, who took advantage of the visit of another Bahá’í to announce, through leaflets distributed by a jeep and with the assistance of a public address system, a series of public lectures in the movie theater and in an open-air garden.
The first two lectures were well attended, but no one came to the third one. However, Louise made her presentation, and the speaker, Artemus Lamb, gave his lecture to an invisible audience which gradually gathered outside the garden and in the street. At the end, three women and a man came in, and another lecture was given.
Today there is a happy little Bahá’í community formed, a|nd it is maintained without the help of a resident pioneer, a rare occurrence in Central America.
Just two miles away is the Indian village of San Sebastian, where there are Latin Bahá’ís and Indian contacts. There is much optimism for its Bahá’í development.
Pakistan Temple Land Purchased, Assembly Attains Registration by Government[edit]
Two goals of the Guardian’s Six-Year Plan for Pákistán have been achieved, according to the National Spiritual Assembly there:
About twenty-two acres of land has been purchased for the first Mashriqu’l-Adhkár of Pakistan in Dell Ibrahim Hyderi, Karáchí.
The National Spiritual Assembly has been registered under the Societies‘ Registration Act on May 28, 1958.
Bahá’í Indian Center at Gallup Redecorated by Weekend Work Party[edit]
THE Bahá’í Indian Center at Gallup was given a face-lifting within and without when a work party of pioneers and members of the American Indian Service Committee painted, remodeled, and decorated the Center on the weekend of July 19.
Part of the new adornment placed in the Center was a beautiful rendition of the “Greatest Name” made by Don Hawley and Kahin Radpour, and color prints of the Shrine of the Báb and the House of Worship.
On Saturday evening the group gathered among the paint pots to hear a wonderful talk by Ted Cardell, well known British pioneer to Africa, who was a member of the work party. Then on August 16, during the famous Gallup Indian ceremonials, a dinner and open house were held at the Center with Ted Cardell and his wife, formerly Alicia Ward of Tempe, as guests of honor.
Pioneers From Peoria New Hash at Center[edit]
Anthony and Josie Madonia, resident pioneers at the Center during these activities, have now moved from Gallup to nearby Fort Defiance, Ariz., where Mr. Madonia is employed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Their places as hosts and pioneers at the Center have been taken by Mr. and Mrs. Richard Wright and their family, who arrived from Peoria, 111., on August 19. The Gallup group, which includes the original pioneer to this “Indian capital of the world,” James Stone, is starting new teaching and service activities for the benefit of the many Indians in that city.
“Open House” at the newly decorated Bahá’í Indian Center in Gallup on August 16.
The work party redecorating the Bahá’í Indian Center
at Gallup. N. Mex., on the weekend of July 19.
Baha’i Youth Serve the Indians[edit]
An Open Letter[edit]
The American Indian Service Committee shares the following letter, feeling that its appeal extends to all believers, although it is addressed to Bahá’í Youth. Its author, Tim Rost, became a pioneer among the Indians immediately after his graduation from college two years ago. He is presently teaching school and serving among the Indians of the Fort Totten (Sioux) reservation in North Dakota.
Dear friends,
This letter is addressed to those Youth who wish to strive to live the Laws of God’s Faith and to serve humanity with no selfish motives, with no desire for rewards, with willingness to lay down their lives if necessary, and with tender spiritual love. The Indians await you.
You are not inadequate, If you are not yet ready—and remember, you are still young—you can train yourselves to become 504 There is nothing to fear. You must act promptly before it is too late.
We who are on or near the reservations can perhaps most fully realize how badly you are needed.
Your generation has a great responsibility in this[Page 12]
matter. Anguish fills our hearts when we consider
how much work there is to be done, and how few
to do it.
Contact Bahá’ís who have had experience in this work. Visit places where Indians can be found. Get to know Indian Bahá’ís. You can then glimpse their great spiritual potentialities.
If you plan to attend college or are now in college, find out what kinds of occupations can lead to positions on or near reservations, or in towns with at least some Indian inhabitants. If there are Indians in your college or university, try to cultivate their friendship.
The American Indian Service Committee can give you invaluable help. Contact them.
Sometimes it is best for a young Bahá’í to choose a place to pioneer near other Bahá’ís who can give spiritual and material help. This work is not always easy.
Prayer is a dynamic force. Use it in dealing with them. They will respond sooner or later. Be free. Do not let them take advantage of you—they will lose respect for you. They are very observant.
Be especially obedient to the Laws of the Faith dealing with morals. Disobedience can lead to disaster.
The rewards are great. The love of a little Indian child is like a precious jewel. No one can really help them except us. This fact is constantly becoming clearer and clearer.
You must raise the level of their thoughts by raising your own. You must raise their morals by raising your own. You must give them hope for the future by having more confidence that the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh will uplift the poor ones of the earth.
Don’t expect immediate responses from them. Remember, you too are being trained. Be patient.
There is no doubt whatsoever that the Bahá’í Youth can meet the challenge. The Bahá’í Faith, as we all know, presents basically a joyous Message. You can find this joy with them.
—TIM ROST
95 Students From 11 States Attend First Southwestern Bahá’í Summer School[edit]
The first Bahá’í Summer School in the southwestern part of the United States was held at Bachman’s Lake on the site of the YMCA-Camp Kiwanis. It was a precedent-setting event in that it marked the first time that facilities of the resort area were made available to Negroes.
All who were privileged to attend the week-long session of the Southwestern Bahá’í Summer School were impressed with the facilities and highly appreciative of the job done by the committee. One of the most warmly expressed appreciations was a report on the school written shortly after his return to Roswell, N. Mex., by P. R. Meinhard, editor of the Area Teaching Committee Bulletin for the Rocky Mountain States. We take the liberty of quoting verbatim Mr. Meinhard’s excellent report:
“Blessed to a rare degree with a spirit of combined consecration, studiousness, and fellowship, the opening session of the new Southwestern Summer School was indeed a joyous and fruitful occasion. It was conducted at the spacious YMCA-Kiwanis camp on Bachman’s Lake on the outskirts of Dallas, Texas. The time was August 23 to 30. An unofficial count indicated that about 95 students came from eleven states to attend. And, thanks to the energetic and resourceful committee, faculty and staff, all seemed to share a double sense of having spent a profitable week and of having helped to open an important new teaching facility.
First Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Lincoln, Neb., formed on April 21, 1958.
“The study courses and teachers were as follows:
Bahá’í Administration and Institutions of the Faith,
Mrs. Velma Sherrill; Know Your Bahá’í Literature, Mr.
Lloyd Sherrill, The World Crusade and Its Relationship
to the Divine Plan, Miss D. Thelma Jackson and Mr.
David Baral; The Covenant and Covenant-Breaking,
Mrs. Florence Mayberry. In addition, special events included classes on Teaching the Minority Groups and on
Firesides, both by Mr. Ellsworth Blackwell, and a session in which the students, guided by Mr. Robert Hopkins, framed suggested Bahá’í answers to frequently
asked questions.
“In the first of two successful public meetings, Mrs. Velma Sherrill gave an excellent general talk on the Faith. The second one presented a panel comprised of Mrs. Florence Mayberry, Ellsworth Blackwell, and Dr. Neill McFarland of the Divinity School of Southern Methodist University. Dr. McFarland created a mild sensation by foreshadowing a distinctly liberalized Protestant attitude of ‘coexistence’ toward all other faiths.
“Interspersed with all these events were recreation
periods for both youngsters and grown-ups, and evenings of sociability under the soft Texas moon. All in
all, the week impressed those present with the great
significance and value of the new teaching center.
Needless to say, it offers essential Bahá’í training to
many believers hitherto unable to reach a summer
school. Its very inauguration apparently proved a great
‘invigorator’ to the valiant believers of the surrounding
area. And it provides a broad, new gateway through
which the beloved colored people may pass to find the
Faith. In short, the school is a great boon to the American Bahá’í community in general, and to its Southwest[Page 13]
ern members in particular.”
Cooperation, and assistance wherever help was needed, on the part of members of the Dallas Bahá’í community contributed greatly to the success of the Southwestern Summer School. Children’s classes and activities were conducted by Mrs. Pauline Hansen of Dallas and Mrs. Marjorie Heath of San Antonio.
John D. Thomas of Dallas was convenor of the Southwestern Bahá’í Summer School Committee, which consisted of these committee members: Jack Raborn, Robert Hopkins, Mrs. Allene Squires, all of Dallas; Miss D. Thelma Jackson, San Antonio; E. D. Gray, Houston; and Mrs. Thelma Thurston Gorham, Oklahoma City.
Conferences in Chautauqua and Phoenix Study Baha’i Principles of Child Education[edit]
A conference on the Bahá’í philosophy of child education was held at Chautauqua, N.Y., on August 30-31, 1958, with sixty-three registrants representing twenty-seven communities in seven states. Frank Meese, chairman of the East Central States Area Teaching Committee, served as chairman of the conference.
Mrs. Martha McCloskey of Hamburg, N.Y., spoke on the philosophy of education. She explained that the word “to educate” means “to draw out,” not “to fill in,” and that philosophy meant wisdom underlying a system of knowledge.
In order for education to be effective, she stated, one must teach the whole being. The three elements in Bahá’í education were stated as: (1) The independent search after truth, (2a) Science and religion must agree, (2b) The oneness of the world of existence, and (3) The law of God.
Laurence La Rocque, Oak Park, Ill., chairman of the National Child Education Committee, was the principal speaker. He told of an extensive survey by the committee on methods of teaching the Faith to children.
The Chautauqua Conference on the Bahá’í philosophy of child education, held at Chautauqua, N.Y., on August 30-31, 1958.
“It seemed to us,” he said, “that to pour facts into
the mind of a child was not education. Our direct
aim should not be to make Bahá’ís, but to so educate
and guide the children that through their own experience they would be led to Bahá’u’lláh.”
Mr. La Rocque spoke on the children’s classes at the Bahá’í Temple in Wilmette, used as a laboratory for trying out the ideas of the committee.
Knowledge comes in three ways, he explained: through sensation, through perception, and through conception.
The children in the primary class, who range in age from three to five years, learn through their senses. These children are taught that there are three kingdoms of creation, without attempting to have them comprehend these kingdoms, and that God is a Mystery, a Power, Unknown. They are encouraged to talk and to discuss the ideas they bring up. They play, sing, tell stories, and take walks. Visual education materials are used extensively.
The six-to-eight-year age group learns through perception. They learn of the kingdom of man; the qualities and needs of the human kingdom; the social laws; obedience to God, society, and the world about him; their physical tools and their spiritual tools, such as prayer. Plans and participation are encouraged, using dramatics in acting out a given situation. The goal is a spiritual basis for a solution of their personal problems.
The nine-to-twelve-year age group learns through
conception, as well as by sensation and perception.
They have an understanding of abstract ideas and can
deal with the powers of man. An understanding of
self in relation to the world and to God is stimulated,[Page 14]
with a conception of the inner and outer worlds.
The children lead the discussion; the teacher begins
to be merely a guide.
The thirteen-to-fourteen-year age group studies the unity of science and religion, and progressive revelation. The story of religions are related to the Bahá’í Revelation as an evolutionary development, with no attempt to show the Bahá’í Faith as superior. These children should fully study the Bahá’í Faith, its institutions, history, and teachings.
Mr. La Rocque concluded his talk with the following suggestions: Teach the children the kingdom of heaven, emphasize the mystery of God, guard against analogies of God, and keep alive the wonderment of life. The goal of child education is to awaken and to train the child’s soul.
On Sunday morning the conference continued with Mrs. Jane Czerniejewski presiding. She emphasized the obligation of teaching, and stressed the point that no one is excused.
Charles Grindley of Ontario, Canada, explained his plan of teaching based on the compilation The Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, and Frank Meese concluded the conference with the reading of a BAHNI NEWS insert on “Education.”
Phoenix Conference Studies Teaching Activities[edit]
On September 7 an Open House for the Child Guidance Classes, jointly sponsored by the Phoenix and Phoenix Suburban Area North Assemblies, Ariz., gave members of the two communities an opportunity to observe highlights of these activities. As teachers and children told of their current study an interesting program was disclosed.
First and second graders are studying the attributes of God, such as Love, Kindness, and Mercy, illustrated through Hidden Words, prayers, favorite children’s poems, and short stories, not only of the Bahá’í Faith but of other religions as well.
The third graders go a step further and investigate reasons behind our physical, cultural, and religious differences with the aid of the book, All About Us by Eva Knox Evans, stories of other lands, illustrative crafts, prayers, and discussions.
Fifth and sixth grade students are beginning a study of social and cultural conditions of children circa 1840, with the focus of interest on the children of Persia and the early life of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. The class has voted to have a conference in January which will cover the life and teachings of each Manifestation of God as its extra achievement project.
Following a year-long course on the Bible and the Qur’án, a study of The Dawnbreakers, and some sections of God Passes By is providing the junior youth with a background understanding of progressive revelation, as well as a general knowledge of the history and literature of the Faith.
The youth class is studying the “Origin, Powers, and Conditions of Man,” using Some Answered Questions as text, with supplementary material from Bahá’í and other sources, reading from the books in class followed by roundtable discussion.
The adult group, composed chiefly or parents of children attending classes, provides an opportunity for discussion of steps in spiritual growth of children and their parents, as revealed in the Bahá’í writings.
The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Rochester, NY. for 1958-1959, incorporated on September 23, 1958.
Children’s classes in Phoenix have had a long and interesting history. Originally sponsored by the
Phoenix Assembly and carried on with one teacher
and an average attendance of from three to nine
children, the classes were co-sponsored with the Assembly of adjacent Phoenix Suburban Area North,
beginning in 1951. Teachers increased to three and
attendance to fifteen. Presently there are six teachers
with an average attendance of twenty-eight. Meetings
are held every Sunday morning from 10 to 11 in
various Bahá’í homes on a monthly rotating basis.
Plans for the devotional period with which the classes begin are made by the host family. Simple prayers with a background of recorded classical music makes up the program generally, after which the children divide into their classes. Dens, kitchens, bedrooms, and outdoor patios, as well as dining and living rooms serve as locale for these groups.
Teachers meet regularly to discuss any problems, make necessary changes, and assess their progress. In selecting material for study, attention is paid to the capacity and interests of the children’s age levels, continuity of instruction, and the underlying responsibility to provide each growing child with the knowledge he will need for intelligent and devoted acceptance of the Faith at age fifteen. In general, class divisions are made according to grades in school, but the happiness and adaptability of individual children is always considered.
Currently all teachers are parents, and each has made time for this work amid other Bahá’í responsibilities.
1,000 Members of Grandmother Clubs Tour House of Worship in Wilmette[edit]
On October 6, 1,000 of the 1,500 “Grandmas” gathered in Chicago for the seventeenth annual meeting of the National Federation of Grandmother Clubs of America, visited the Bahá’í House of Worship in twenty chartered busses. These women came from all parts of the United States and showed great interest in the Temple.
Bahá’í exhibit at the “Fiesta de la Luna” during September 1958, prepared by the Bahá’ís
of Chula Vista, Catil. This display was exhibited
for five days, and many contacts were made.
Over 1500 pieces of literature were distributed.
This was the first Bahá’í exhibit at the annual
Chute Vista “Fiesta.”
Guardian’s Messages From 1950 to 1957 To Be Published in November[edit]
Messages to the Bahá’í World, 1950-1957, by Shoghi Effendi, the new work containing the Guardian’s messages during this period to the entire Bahá’í world community, is expected to be available by the Bahá’í Publishing Trust of the U.S. by November 10. This is an historic work, eagerly anticipated by Bahá’ís throughout the world.
From 1922 until 1950, the letters and cablegrams from Shoghi Effendi in his capacity as Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith were addressed to individual national spiritual assemblies or national Bahá’í communities conveying various directives and explanations. For example, the letters written to the American Bahá’í community between 1927 and 1932 were published under the title, Bahá’í Administration, and a later series as The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh.
In 1950 the Guardian changed his emphasis from the needs and activities of national bodies to the Bahá’í World community, culminating in his initiation of the Ten-Year World Crusade launched in 1953 and calling for the first time upon the participation of all Bahá’ís in one common world plan. These letters likewise announced the establishment of the International Bahá’í Council, the institution of the Hands of the Cause, and other important international developments.
The present volume includes the major communications which Shoghi Effendi addressed to the Bahá’í world from April 25, 1950, to his last general letter of October 1957. They possess unique importance in documenting the progress of the World Crusade and determining its progressive unfoldment to the year 1963, the Centenary of Bahá’u’lláh’s announcement of His prophetic mission—a Crusade which is not only establishing the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh throughout the world, but is also preparing the way for the formation of the Universal House of Justice.
These are messages that require deep and prayerful study on the part of every Bahá’í. It is not possible for us, who long to carry out Shoghi Effendi’s plan, to fathom the measure of wisdom. divine guidance, and sacrifice that has given us these messages or the Plan that they outline. We can only bring a humility of heart and a resurgence of our own determination to fulfill our rightful part in these precious years that remain of the Ten-Year Plan.
Foreign Students of Seven Countries Attend National Dress and Costume Party in New York[edit]
Twenty foreign students from Írán, Trinidad, Ghana, Turkey, India, Pákistán, and Japan attended a “National Dress & Costume” party at the invitation of the Intercontinental Committee of the New York Spiritual Assembly on September 5, at the New York Bahá’í Center. Among the guests were the president and vice-president of the Ghana Students Union.
The guests were impressed by the warmth and sincerity of the Bahá’ís; most of them were introduced to the Faith for the first time, although some had heard of the Faith in their native lands.
At a follow-up “Fireside” some of the guests attended and heard H. Borrah Kavelin, chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly, speak on “One World.”
This was the first organized mass effort to attract foreign students in which results were evident. Many friends were made for the Faith and similar activities of this nature are planned for the future by the Intercontinental Committee. This committee was formed by the New York Local Spiritual Assembly, following the advice of the Guardian to contact foreign students.
50 Attend Race Amity Follow-Up Public Meeting at St. Petersburg[edit]
On September 28 Miss Olive Alexander of Miami, Florida, spoke at a public meeting given by the Bahá’ís of St. Petersburg, Florida, at the Metropolitan Council House, headquarters for the National Council for Negro Women in St. Petersburg. The room was offered to the Bahá’ís free of charge “because of their service to the Negro people in this city.” About 50 people attended, representing both races.
This meeting was planned as a follow up to Race Amity Day when a mixed audience of approximately 175 responded to the 500 invitations sent.
Miss Alexander’s talk on The Advent of Divine Justice was well received. A large quantity of literature was taken, and several inquiries were made about future meetings.
The St. Petersburg Bahá’ís are to be highly commended for their efforts. Though small in number, they have successfully combined audaciousness with careful planning.
Central American Teaching Committee Plans Summer School in El Salvador for December[edit]
An international summer school at Lake Coatepeque, El Salvador, will be held on December 24 to 28, sponsored by the Central American Teaching Committee.
“To Teach and Confirm Bahá’ís,” a class for believers, will study the goals of the World Crusade, and a class for Bahá’ís and their guests will examine “The Standards of Bahá’í Life.”
A special project of the school will be a visit to the Pepil Indian town of Izalco to present a Bahá’í program there.
San Antonio Uses “Baha’i News” to Discuss World Crusade Progress at Feasts[edit]
BAHÁ’Í NEWS has been used at Feasts in the San Antonio, Texas, community in a way that should be of interest to other communities as well.
Someone is appointed to review the current issue of BAHÁ’Í NEWS before each Feast to formulate pertinent questions about the international and national progress of the Faith. These questions form the basis for a short discussion during the consultation period. A large world map is also used to make the news of the victories and needs of the Crusade more meaningful.
This discussion of the BAHÁ’Í NEWS stories has proven helpful in creating an awareness of the current events of the World Crusade.
National Baha’i Addresses[edit]
Please Address Mail Correctly!
National Bahá’í Administrative Headquarters:[edit]
536 Sheridan Road, Wilmette, Ill.
National Treasurer:[edit]
112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Ill.
Make Checks Payable to: National Bahá’í Fund
Bahá’í Publishing Trust:[edit]
110 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Ill.
Bahá’í News:[edit]
Editorial Office: 110 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Ill.
Subscription and change at address: 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Ill.
Baha’i Publishing Trust[edit]
=====Messages of the Bahá’í World, 1950-1957.===== By Shoghi Effendi. Introduction by Horace Holley. This volume contains the major communications which Shoghi Effendi addressed to the Bahá’í world from April 25, 1950, to his last general letter dated October 1957.
These messages cover the historic events initiated and announced by the beloved Guardian in his messages to the entire Bahá’í world community, and his reports on the achievements of the World Crusade. Bound in blue cloth, stamped in gold, in same size and format as other works of Shoghi Effendi
Per copy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$2.00
=====Bahá’í Calendar, 1959. (Bahá’í year 115-116).===== This is our standard 9x12 calendar depicting Feasts and Holy Days in separate colors and listing all essential information concerning Holy Days and Anniversaries on the back. It carries a black and white photograph of the Temple gardens in Wilmette, with a close-up of one of the Temple pylons.
Per copy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$ .25
10 copies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$2.00
50 copies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$S7.50
Calendar of Events[edit]
FEASTS[edit]
November 4—Qudrat (Power)
November 2—Qaw1 (Speech)
HOLY DAYS[edit]
November 12—Birth of Bahá’u’lláh
November 26—Day of the Covenant
November 28—Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
(1:00 a.m.)
NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY MEETINGS[edit]
November 21-23
STATE CONVENTIONS[edit]
December 7
Baha’i House of Worship[edit]
Visiting Hours[edit]
Weekdays
1:00 p.m. to 4100 p.m. (Auditorium only)
Sundays and Holidays
10:30 a.m. to 5100 p.m. (Entire building)
Service of Worship[edit]
Sundays
3:30 to 4:10 p.m.
BAHÁ’Í NEWS is published 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.
Reports, plans, news items. and photographs of general interest are requested from national committees and local assemblies of the United States as well as from national assemblies of other lands. Material is due in Wilmette on the first day of the month preceding the date of issue for which it is intended.
BAHÁ’Í NEWS is edited by an annually appointed Editorial Committee. The Committee for 1958-59: Mrs. Eunice Braun, Miss Charlotte Linfoot, Richard C. Thomas.
Editorial Office: ll0 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, U.S.A.
Change of address should be reported directly to National Bahá’í Office, 112 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois, U.S.A.
