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Bahá’í News

August 1980

Bahá’í Year 137

A visit to the Managalas

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Contents

House of Justice
Work on the Seat for the Supreme Body proceeds on schedule	2
Bahá’í International Community
A luncheon at the UN explores the ‘Right to Development’	3
The Managalas
In Papua, attending a Bahá’í Convention has its ups and downs	7
Around the world
News from Bahá’í communities in every corner of the globe	10

Cover

Few inhabited areas are more remote than the villages in rural Papua New Guinea’s Afore sub-province. Finding these villages is difficult, and reaching them is sometimes all but impossible. Nevertheless, two Bahá’ís, Margaret Bluett and Michael Homerang, undertook a trip to the sub-province earlier this year to help delegates from that area attend the national Bahá’í Convention. Mrs. Bluett’s first-person account of their journey begins on Page 7.

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

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

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Seat of the House of Justice

Work is proceeding on schedule on the new building for the Seat of the Universal House of Justice in Haifa, Israel. In the photo above, taken during Riḍván 1980, the building is shown as seen from the International Archives Building. The small cement block structure in the left foreground is the contractor’s site office, and will be removed when the building is completed. At left, another photo, also taken during the Riḍván period, shows plastering work under way in the large entrance hall on the main floor of the building.

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United Nations

Bahá’í International Community explores ‘Right to Development’ at UN luncheon

The Bahá’í International Community hosted a successful luncheon program May 1 at the United Nations with the theme, “The Right to Development: Exploring Its Human Dimensions.”

There were two main speakers at the luncheon: Dr. Ervin Laszlo, a member of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research and the prestigious Club of Rome, and Dr. Jane Faily, a Bahá’í and clinical psychologist specializing in group therapy who spent nearly a year in West Africa in 1978-79 visiting Bahá’í communities and contacting government and other officials as the Bahá’í International Community’s consultant in Africa for the International Year of

A large number of representatives of government missions to the United Nations, members of the UN Secretariat, and representatives of non-governmental organizations at the UN were present May 1 for a luncheon sponsored by the Bahá’í International Community whose theme was ‘The Right to Development: Exploring Its Human Dimensions.’

[Page 4] Dr. Ervin Laszlo, a member of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, spoke about ‘The Social Implications of the New International Development Strategy.’

the Child.

The luncheon was attended by representatives of government missions to the UN, members of the UN Secretariat, and representatives of non-governmental organizations at the UN.

The purpose of the gathering, according to Victor de Araujo, the Bahá’í International Community’s representative to the UN, was to focus attention on the interrelationship between human rights and social and economic development, and to try to demonstrate that the complex social and economic problems we face cannot be resolved without new moral and spiritual standards built on a consciousness of the organic oneness of humanity.

The Bahá’í International Community, said Dr. de Araujo, is aware of the importance of deliberations now under way at the UN to effect a developmental strategy for the ’80s and is continually alert to the possibility of making a contribution to those deliberations that will culminate in a special session of the UN General Assembly from August 25 to September 5 of this year.

In opening the meeting, which was chaired by Gerald Knight, the Bahá’í International Community’s alternate representative to the UN, Dr. de Araujo explained that the Bahá’í International Community wishes to explore the human dimensions of the right to development and to investigate the kinds of development we want for ourselves, our families and the world. The luncheon program, he said, would probe the complex and multi-faceted social implications of the development strategy for the ’80s as well as the search for common values to unite us in our efforts to build a true global family in a world with lasting peace.

Dr. Laszlo, a special fellow at the Project on the Future, UNITAR (United Nations Institute for Training and Research), speaking on “The Social Implications of the New International Development Strategy,” said he feels that the Bahá’í idea of the organic oneness of humanity is much-needed, and that the global negotiations now under way at the UN are an essential forerunner of an order for all humanity as well as part of the slow and difficult process that will lead eventually to the emergence of the kind of world commonwealth envisaged in the Bahá’í Teachings.

Dr. Laszlo said that whereas the global development strategies of the ’60s and ’70s had primarily economic objectives, his studies indicate that the new strategy seems likely to place its greatest emphasis on social questions.

There is, he feels, a new recognition of development as “an integral process embodying both economic and social objectives.”

Dr. Laszlo mentioned that among the provisions of the new development strategy is an ongoing review and appraisal mechanism, adding that he sees an important role for non-governmental organizations to feed back into this process relevant information on the relationship between the adopted goals and the social, cultural and human conditions in various parts of the world. Unfortunately, he said, a disregard for the local specificity of human and social conditions was a hallmark of previous development strategies.

Emphasizing the importance of research, he said, “We must go to the people themselves, whose voices are not ordinarily heard.” We should, he emphasized, find out from the people their expectations, conditions, options, social and cultural preferences. In this way, we can feed back into the strategy to ensure that those who are supposed to be the beneficiaries aren’t left out. This, Dr. Laszlo feels, is the role of UNITAR, and is a role that would also fall naturally to non-governmental organizations.

[Page 5] Dr. Laszlo: ‘We must go to the people themselves ...’

Dr. Faily then discussed “The Search for Common Values” and the dichotomy that exists between what every enlightened person realizes—that we are one globe and one humanity—and the problems we face today because of short-term political antagonisms.

“We are speaking about the need for a new international order,” she said, “and we live in an age of terrific disorder. The source of that disorder is the evolution of the planet. Institutions and ideologies which we have inherited from history are not yet capable of implementing the fact of the oneness of this planet, and the disorder created by this inherited system is what brings us to living in days of crisis, even though, mentally, we can see and we can understand the need for global consciousness.

“The pragmatic fact of the oneness of humanity surrounds us. If a flu virus is born in Hong Kong, it won’t be long before we sneeze in New York City.

“What is the problem? Let me speak as a psychologist. When reality is disregarded, something else is afoot. I have said that, pragmatically, we are one planet, one people. This is our reality—but we do not behave that way in the political arena, nor in the economic arena. When someone behaves in disregard of reality, he is in the power of some delusion. I think the most powerful, most life-threatening delusions that occupy the minds of individuals and nations are racism and nationalism.

“The delusion that a particular race or language group is superior, or that evil has been created by another race or language group, this delusion is costing energy, is costing intelligence, and is costing those resources that are necessary to build the new order that we so desperately need.

“In the face of difficult problems, there is a healthy human response—coping, looking at the problem, registering your fear and discomforts, and realistically going about finding a solution. And some of that takes place every day in the buildings all around us here. There is also an unhealthy response to frightening human problems, and I believe our world is careening in the direction of one of those. That is flight from the problem, reaching out for some palliative, something that makes us feel better quickly and takes our mind off that particular problem.

“What is our favorite palliative? What is the substance with which we drug ourselves as individuals and as nations so that we are not forced to come to grips with the problem of international disorder? I believe that the most severe addiction in the world today is materialism.

“Materialism exists in the developing coun-

Dr. Jane Faily, a Bahá’í and clinical psychologist specializing in group therapy, spoke about ‘The Search for Common Values’ in a world torn by strife and dissidence.

[Page 6] Dr. Faily: ‘Material power cannot produce security.’

tries and it exists in the developed countries, and as long as we partake of it, we are too foggy-headed, we are too far from being in touch with reality, to create the new economic order, the new social order, the new world order that must be created.

“Everyone needs enough to eat, a place to live—there is nothing wrong with material progress. But there is something gravely wrong when material power is looked to for the ultimate security. You see, what we really face is a crisis of values. And why is that so? Because the ownership of wealth, or the control of wealth, or the manipulation of power, does not in fact create security. That is why I call materialism an addiction. It is something that gives you the illusion of well-being without in fact giving you that well-being.

“Material power cannot produce security. It gives you the illusion that it will—the next missile, the next aircraft carrier, the next whatever—but of course it’s a competitive race, man against man, nation against nation, alliance against alliance, and so it is a form of addiction to materialism to hope that from whatever weaponry, from whatever control of trade or wealth, security will result.

“I say the crisis is a moral crisis because, while the addiction of materialism sweeps around the world, destroying communities—I was thinking of some of the places I had seen in West Africa while Dr. Laszlo was speaking—village areas that once were intact communities are now ghost towns where the very old and very young live, and the rest have gone off to the city to be unemployed there.

“This is a moral crisis. The solution to it is a commitment to the oneness of mankind, and also a system of life in which material goods are made subservient to the quality of life. In other words, we need to use the resources of the world to enhance the quality of human life.

“We need schools; we need hospitals; we need a recognition of the equality of men and women. We need a system—a social system—in which the grass-roots can participate in decision-making and in progress; in which there is expertise at the top that is the servant of the grassroots needs, rather than the manipulator of the consumer. This is the moral crisis.

“The first element in creating order in a group,” said Dr. Faily, “is trust, and trust is created only from two components—justice and love—because we human beings rightly distrust any system that does not care about us or does not provide justice. Justice without caring is too sterile an atmosphere for the growth of the human spirit. So the new economic order requires the same thing that the human family requires—trust, which is based on a standard of justice and a spirit of fellowship, good-will and well-being.

“The most important, the first urgency is an awareness of the unity of mankind. Until that unity is realized, no other program can succeed. We cannot achieve real development in any part of the world when we ignore or disregard the need for unity. That is impossible.

“What is needed, then, is a moral vigor that is strong enough to face such delusions as racism and nationalism—an individual strength that is strong enough to reject materialism in all its delicious forms. We need a social ethic—a community. People behave according to what is expected of them. They tend to repeat acts that are rewarded. We need a community that values honor and wisdom more than wealth and power.

“The fact of the oneness of mankind, of the unity of the world, is out there. It’s a pragmatic reality. But the emergence of a consciousness that we are one family is still in progress, and the final assurance, the final energy from which this new world order must be built comes from an individual as well as a national commitment to the oneness of mankind, and a rejection of such addictive delusions as materialism.”

Dr. Faily ended by saying that “... whatever our immediate perils, whatever calamities we will choose to experience in our pursuit of material security, the ultimate outcome must be in conformity with reality—the pragmatic reality that this world is one homeland, and the spiritual reality that mankind is one family.”

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A visit to the Managalas

In Papua, attending a Convention isn’t always easy

By MARGARET BLUETT

The Managalas live in the Afore sub-province of the Northern Province of Papua, an island group in Australasia. The story of these people and the establishment of the Bahá’í Faith among them is quite interesting.

The Managalas belong to the same language group as the people in Mountain Brown where there are many Bahá’í villages. In 1976 two Bahá’ís from Mountain Brown, Wili Amana and Beporo, spent six weeks in Afore teaching the people about the Faith. From there they traveled to Lae, the capital of Papua and site of the National Bahá’í Center, carrying with them about 460 declaration cards—the village people had responded warmly to the Message of Bahá’u’lláh.

Following their visit, other Bahá’ís went to the area including Sue Podger, John Gapo, Sirus Naraqi and Erena Ari. The people began to build local Bahá’í Centers in about six villages.

These activities aroused the attention of the local churches, and verbal attacks on the Bahá’ís began. They were accused of stirring up trouble, and complaints against them were made eventually to the government. A government official, following an investigation of the complaints, told David Podger by phone that as far as he was concerned, the troubles were being caused by others, not the Bahá’ís, and that would be the essence of his report to the government.

The problems did not cease immediately. Threats against the Bahá’ís continued, until finally one of the strongest Bahá’ís in the area, a member of the local Government Council, was murdered, ostensibly in an argument over a pig. This unfortunate incident, while disquieting, did serve to end the agitation against the Bahá’ís.

Last December, two Bahá’ís from New Zealand, W. Parkinson and B. Plowman, spent some time in the area. Apparently through their efforts at the Afore district headquarters, holding a public meeting and explaining the Bahá’í Teachings in English to the officials, everyone in the area, including those who were opposed to the Faith, now understands what it represents, and the hostility has subsided.

That is the situation Michael Homerang and I found when we visited Afore in April. We went there to assist the delegates to travel to the National Convention and to remind the villagers of the upcoming elections of Local Spiritual Assemblies.

The delegates from that area hadn’t attended the Convention the previous year, and it was thought they might not be able to come again without help. I flew our family’s little plane to Popondetta, where Michael was waiting for me. He had spent a few days in Popondetta with his

The author and Michael Homerang in front of the Bluetts’ small plane before taking off on their trip to the Afore sub-province of Papua.

[Page 8] Above: A view of the village of Ogan in Papua’s Northern Province. Below: Some of the believers at the Bahá’í Center in Manusi Village, Papua.

brother-in-law, Cedric Kunak, and his family. Cedric, who like Michael is from New Ireland, is a devoted believer; he and his family look after all the Bahá’í teachers who have been trooping through town for the past few years. At Riḍván, Cedric was one of those elected to the National Spiritual Assembly.

Arriving at the airstrip in Popondetta, Michael and I were told that the airstrip at Afore was closed because of long grass. We decided to return to Popondetta township and try to find a vehicle going to Afore overland. This proved fruitless, and we sat for two days in a park waiting for vehicles to Afore to appear.

It was an interesting experience, as many people came to us and asked courteously what we were doing there. It must have been a rather strange sight to them, this dark man from New Ireland and a white woman waiting together for a passenger vehicle. Several people invited us to stay with them if we had nowhere else to sleep.

An interesting fact emerged from these conversations, and that is that everyone knew about and respected the Bahá’í Faith. The visit of a teaching team of black American Bahá’ís for a week in 1979 was mentioned by several people.

By Monday morning I was getting desperate, as time was running out if we were to reach Afore and accomplish what we had planned. At length we spoke to a pilot who suggested that we fly to another airstrip at Sila, which was five miles from Afore, and walk the rest of the way. It sounded like a good idea, and soon we were on our way above the towering mountain range between Popondetta and Afore.

Landing at the Sila airstrip was a unique experience. The strip ran up the side of a mountain at a nine per cent slope, was covered with grass and quite bumpy. There were no buildings in the area, but a few village people were there, hoping to board the plane. We could see Afore in the distance, an open area of grass, but ahead of us lay a hilly terrain that took four hours to cross, walking through rivers, rain forest, hills and gardens, then across grassy slopes to the Afore Station.

Arriving at the small cluster of houses, we wondered what to do next. Night was coming, and our feet were tired and sore. Then a man came up to us and said, “Can I help you?” After hearing that we were Bahá’ís, he said, “I’ll get some boys to show you where the Bahá’ís sleep.” We walked with them down through the houses to the bottom of a hill where a small village was nestled among the trees.

By this time I was ready to drop from exhaustion. We asked for the Bahá’ís, to which a very cheerful fellow replied, “We are all Bahá’ís here.” What a relief.

The little village was so peaceful, its tiny wooden houses on stilts looking toward a deep mist-shrouded valley partially surrounded by food gardens, rain forest and a clear, cool and fragrant mountain stream. After resting, eating and talking to the villagers, we found where the delegates were, and decided which villages we could visit in the next two days, leaving another two days for traveling to Sogeri for the National Convention.

In the morning we walked to Manusi and found Ipipi Nameri, a Bahá’í who had been in Lae for a conference. He explained to us something about the way the people in Afore are living. Most of the villages, he said, have been abandoned to the old, the sick, and the children, because those who are able to work have gone into the forest, growing and picking cardamon, which has become the most important crop in that area. This means that the former Bahá’í Cen-

[Page 9] ters are neglected, and the places where Assemblies were are gone, replaced by new villages in the forest.

We walked to Bua where we found the Center neglected, as the men are away from the village. Learning that two of the delegates were nearby, we sent them a message to come to Bua. Meanwhile, we relaxed in the village, washed in a stream, and talked to the people who were there. We were told that the reason we hadn’t been able to get a vehicle going into the area was because the only road in was closed by a landslide.

No vehicles were moving in the area at all, and I began to worry that we wouldn’t get out with the delegates in time to reach the Convention at Sogeri. By the next morning, however, we had found the delegates, asked them to prepare to leave for Sogeri early Thursday, and said we would pray for a vehicle to arrive, as there was no plane to Sila either that day or the next.

The following day we returned to the Afore Station to ask at the post office whether the delegates’ air tickets to Sogeri had arrived. No one had thought to go and look for them. We arrived at the Station at noon. It was steaming hot, and we had huge blisters on our feet from walking. But, thank God, the tickets were at the post office.

As we were leaving, a man called to us from a large building nearby: “I want to ask you two some questions.”

Wondering what it could be he wanted, we climbed the steps into his house and were seated.

“I have just completed Lesson 1 of the Bahá’í correspondence course,” he told us, “and want to know if my answers are correct.”

I asked how he knew we were Bahá’ís. He replied that Bahá’í teachers are the only people who ever walk in there—I think he meant the only foreigners.

While in the Northern Province, the author and Michael Homerang helped the villagers in Ogan elect their Local Spiritual Assembly.

This photo was taken at Naneri Village, another of the small rural hamlets in Papua’s Northern Province visited by Margaret Bluett and Michael Homerang.

Returning to the village of Ogan for the night, we helped the villagers elect their Local Spiritual Assembly. In the clear stillness of the night we heard the sound of a vehicle in the direction of the Afore Station. Luckily, it was returning to Popondetta, and the next morning we managed a ride, picking the delegates up along the road. The small truck was jammed full of passengers as it ran jauntily down the winding roads and across a flooded river.

At one point the wet brakes failed, the truck went into a ditch, and everyone fell out. Fortunately, no one was hurt, though the accident certainly added an element of excitement to the trip.

We boarded our plane at Siva, and reached Popondetta in time to collect Cedric and another delegate and catch the plane for Moresby in time to arrive for the Convention. The delegates promised they would help with the election of the remaining Local Spiritual Assemblies in their villages upon their return from the Convention.

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Around the world

Costa Rica

One hundred children ages 3 to 14 and 35 adults participated in a day-long institute for Bahá’í children last January 6 in Villa Colon, Costa Rica. The institute, organized by the Bahá’í Committee for the Education of Women and Children, included class sessions for three age groups, games, and arts and crafts activities. The institute’s theme was ‘Who is Bahá’u’lláh and What Is His Message.’

Liberia

Eileen Cregge Tyson, an American pioneer to Monrovia, Liberia, recently became the first white Bahá’í to have graduated from a Liberian university. Mrs. Tyson, who has been pioneering in Liberia with her husband for more than eight years, was graduated summa cum laude in English and secondary education.

Pakistan

At a national teaching conference last December 29 in Hyderabad, Pakistan, the National Spiritual Assembly of Pakistan reported that Assembly and locality goals of the first two-year phase of the Seven Year Plan had been won.

The secretary of the National Assembly, in making the report, added that much remained to be achieved in the areas of consolidation and expansion.

Two Auxiliary Board members also addressed the 150 conference participants who came from 12 localities.

Twenty-five suggestions regarding publications, translations, new materials, and a “definite consolidation pattern” for mass-taught areas were adopted by conference participants for consideration by the National Spiritual Assembly.

Burhání’d-Dín Afshín, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for South Central Asia, addressed an audience of more than 200 Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís in Karachi, Pakistan, March 26.

The topic of discussion, the elimination of racial prejudice, was the theme of similar public meetings March 21 in Lahore, and March 30 in Hyderabad. Counsellor Afshín addressed more than 100 guests from 15 communities attending the public meeting in Lahore.

More than 70 youth participated March 28-29 in a Bahá’í youth conference in Hyderabad. Counsellor Afshín was a guest speaker at the conference, sponsored by the National Youth Committee.

Counsellor Afshín, who lives in India, visited all of the major Bahá’í communities in Pakistan during his 42-day visit to that country. He consulted with members of the

[Page 11] Auxiliary Board and their assistants as well as with members of the National Spiritual Assembly. Mr. Afshín also participated in firesides and deepening sessions.

Auxiliary Board member Parvin Yazamedi, her assistants, and the Spiritual Assembly of Karachi’s education committee organized a children’s weekend institute in Karachi in early February.

More than 70 Bahá’í children from five cities participated. Auxiliary Board member Meherban Jamshedi was one of the participants who spoke to the children.

Eight Bahá’í youth volunteered to become pioneers during a youth symposium held March 25 in Karachi. The symposium was sponsored by the Youth Committee of Karachi.

Consolidation trips to the cities of Quetta, Sibi, Rawalpindi and Thatta, Pakistan, were undertaken during the first week of April by a group of believers from neighboring countries.

Kenya

“DELIGHTED NEWS SUMMER SCHOOL NAKURU PRAYING SHRINES BOUNTIFUL BLESSINGS MAY SURROUND FRIENDS IN EFFORTS PROMOTE TEACHING WORK.”

•

This message from the Universal House of Justice was in reply to a cable to the Supreme Institution from the group of believers attending one of Kenya’s first two summer-winter school sessions in Nakuru, Kenya, February 29-March 2.

Counsellor Peter Vuyiya and Auxiliary Board member Chowghi Rouhani were among the teachers at the other new Bahá’í school in Mombasa, Kenya. The first school sessions at the Mombasa Bahá’í Center were held March 21-23.

Thirty-five believers from eight localities in Kenya gathered February 17 in a grove of huge mango and banana trees in the village of Mitunguu for a pilot conference on the Bahá’í education of children.

The conference, held near the home of a Bahá’í, was conducted by Dr. Tim Rost with the assistance of Auxiliary Board member Vi Gilbert.

The four major topics covered were the importance of Bahá’í education for children, the role of parents in child education, the role of Local Spiritual Assemblies and community members, and the character development of children.

The Spiritual Assembly of Mombasa, Kenya, conducted two proclamation activities in February in support of Kenya’s 1980 National Year of the Handicapped.

Children at the Ziwani School for the Deaf learned about the Bahá’í Faith through their teachers and then participated in an art contest based on the theme, “The world is but one country and mankind its citizens.” Representatives of the Spiritual Assembly of Mombasa went to the school February 27 for the judging that was completed with the help of a professional artist. Prizes were awarded and a copy of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era was presented to the school.

Representatives from the Assembly visited the Port Reitz School for the Disabled two days later to tell pupils about the Faith and show the filmstrip, “Out of God’s Eternal Ocean.”

A student at the Ziwani School for the Deaf in Mombasa, Kenya, receives his prize in an art contest arranged by the Spiritual Assembly of Mombasa in observance of Kenya’s National Year of the Handicapped.

Zimbabwe

More than 50 believers attended the four-day summer school April 4-7 at the National Center in Salisbury, Zimbabwe. The theme for this year’s school was “The People of Bahá.”

Auxiliary Board members Enayat Sohaili and Tobias Mumvuma conducted classes that included sessions on the Central Figures of the Faith, prayer, and Bahá’í Administration. A Nineteen Day Feast was demonstrated to help the friends better understand this important facet of Bahá’í life.

Singing and arts and crafts classes were included in the program of activities. Members of the National Youth Committee arranged sports activities for the afternoons. Evenings were devoted to Bahá’í films and slide shows. A talent show was presented on one evening.

Classes were so interesting that some speakers went over their allotted time limits and still left questions unanswered, according to Iran Sohaili, a member of the Zimbabwe Summer School Committee.

[Page 12]

Mexico

More than 60 people including Counsellor Carmen de Burafato, two representatives of the National Spiritual Assembly of Mexico, and five Auxiliary Board members from various parts of Mexico participated in the dedication March 21 of the Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds in San Miguel Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico.

The Bahá’í Center, created through the unified efforts of the entire local Bahá’í community, is the first to be built in Mexico under the direction and financial support of a Local Spiritual Assembly. Only a small amount of financial help was needed from the National Spiritual Assembly.

Architectural work for the Center was provided by Counsellor Burafato’s husband, Sam. Local believers installed electricity, painted, cleaned and decorated the new Center.

Approximately 30 people attended a fireside in the new facility following the dedication and a buffet dinner.

Members of the San Miguel Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico, Bahá’í community and guests including Counsellor Carmen de Burafato, representatives of the National Spiritual Assembly of Mexico, and five Auxiliary Board members participated March 21 in the dedication of the local Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds. The new Bahá’í Center represents the unified contributions, both financial and physical, of the entire local Bahá’í community.

Alaska

Bahá’ís from 11 communities in Alaska attended the Auxiliary Board Conference for Southeast Alaska held February 17-18 in Juneau.

Counsellor Velma Sherrill presented an overview of the Faith from its inception in 1844 to the present critical juncture of history. Auxiliary Board member Howard Brown discussed the Covenant.

Auxiliary Board member Lauretta King spoke about the Seven Year Plan and how it relates to the development of Assemblies and communities. She also conducted the second day of conference activities that were devoted to indigenous believers.

The difficulties and challenges facing Bahá’í youth in present-day society were discussed by three speakers. Talks were kept short to allow more time for question-and-answer periods.

The weekend conference closed with a potluck dinner and final remarks by the Auxiliary Board members.

Taiwan

Children from various Bahá’í children’s classes in northern Taiwan performed before an audience of about 70 people during Taiwan’s National Bahá’í Convention held April 26-27 in Taipei. Although many of the children are not from Bahá’í families, their parents are enthusiastic about their participation in the classes. The National Convention also featured a segment of the film, ‘The Green Light Expedition,’ a documentary record of the travels of the Hand of the Cause of God Amatu’l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum in South America. Auxiliary Board member Kit Yin Kiang, the first person to pioneer to Tatwan from Malaysia, was honored during the Convention along with Mr. Suleimani, the first Bahá’í pioneer to Taiwan.

[Page 13]

French Antilles

An excellent article on the Faith in the French-language daily newspaper, France-Antilles, last January 29 resulted from a visit to the French Antilles by a Bahá’í from Belgium, Lea Nys.

The article described the international character of the Bahá’í community in Pointe-á-Pitre, Guadeloupe, and the growth of the Faith on three of the islands in the French Antilles: Marie-Galante, Martinique and Guadeloupe.

The report mentioned that Mrs. Nys has visited the Bahá’í Center in Pointe-á-Pitre almost every year for the past 12 years to teach the Faith.

After reporting on Mrs. Nys’ address to a gathering at the Bahá’í Center, the article offered a superb presentation of the Faith, saying in part:

“If the Bahá’ís reject the appellation of ‘sect’ it is because their 136-year history, their literature, their 20,000 martyrs, the zeal of their members, who are neither clergy nor missionaries, but volunteers ... have cast new light on the truths of all religions of the past, in a unanimous desire for respect, brotherhood and universality.”

India

Members of the National Bahá’í Youth Committee of India are (left to right) Pradeep Rastogi, Marzia Rowhani, Samina Dawood, Shahnaz Furudi, Arjun Rastogi and Sanjay Sathe. Not present for this photograph was Darius Rafaat. The youth committee has planned a student teaching campaign to be launched in New Delhi in August, 1980. The committee may be contacted for further information through your National Spiritual Assembly.

Approximately 100 people embraced the Cause immediately after a Naw-Rúz celebration in Lucknow, India, that was attended by more than 300 residents.

The program at Lucknow’s Clark Hotel was opened by the Hon. Mr. Justice M. H. Beg, a former Chief Justice of India. Other speakers included Dr. S. Vasudevan Nair, secretary of the National Teaching Committee.

The 95 students of the Bahá’í Primary School in Dharmanagar, India, assembled with their teachers for this recent photograph. The school principal, B.R. Singh (seated in the center), is a pioneer to Tripura, one of the states in northeastern India. Mr. Singh opened the school in August 1979 with 10 students. Nine months later, the enrollment had reached 95.

[Page 14]

United States

Bahá’í books were displayed along with books from various academic publishers during a book fair March 21 at Howard University in Washington, D.C.

Participation in the book fair for university faculty members was arranged by the Bahá’í Club of Howard University with the support of the Spiritual Assembly of Washington, D.C.

Thirteen university faculty members at the fair requested a total of 16 complimentary copies of Bahá’í books, and the Washington, D.C., Assembly helped the university Bahá’í Club in covering the costs.

The director of Howard University bookstores later requested that the Bahá’í Club arrange a private showing of Bahá’í book titles for consideration as part of the selection available for sale to students at the university.

Soo Fouts, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States (fourth from the right in the second row), met with believers in several countries last November and December during an around-the-world business trip. Mrs. Fouts is shown here with a group of Bahá’í youth in Bombay, India. She attended a number of firesides, deepenings, and other meetings and visited with a number of American pioneers in Hawaii, Japan, Hong Kong, China, Formosa, Thailand, India, Germany, Italy, England and France.

Finland

These Bahá’ís from Norway, Finland and Sweden were among participants in the national teaching conference March 29-30 in Rovaniemi, Finland. Rovaniemi is a goal locality in Finnish Lappland. Auxiliary Board member Kamran Namdar is standing second from the left. To his right is Lisa Oja, who represented the National Spiritual Assembly of Finland at the conference.

Many non-Bahá’ís were among the 125 people who participated in the Bahá’í Winter School last December 29 in the goal town of Hämeenlinna, Finland.

Classes included workshops on Spiritual Assemblies, training courses for Assembly officers, and sessions on the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, as well as special programs for children and youth.

A public meeting was held in the town hall and an article about the Bahá’í school appeared in the local newspaper.

Swaziland

The dedication late last year of a regional Bahá’í Center in Pigg’s Peak, Swaziland, was marked by the participation of Her Royal Highness Princess Gcinaphi who is a Bahá’í. The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, a member of Parliament and 300 others from many localities in Swaziland also attended.

Princess Gcinaphi made a short but powerful speech refuting false allegations made about the Faith and the Bahá’ís. She praised the Faith as a religion, divine in origin, whose purpose is the establishment of peace and the unity of religions and races.

She emphasized the Bahá’ís obedience to government, belief in life after death, and respect for Swazi traditions and customs.

Both the princess and the Foreign Minister expressed a wish that the Bahá’í Center would become a cause of unity and spiritual development for the people of Swaziland.

The dedication program received publicity on two newscasts of the Swaziland Broadcasting Service.

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Guyana

Children at the Georgetown, Guyana, public hospital enjoy refreshments during a party sponsored by the Bahá’ís of Eccles-Ramsburg during Ayyám-i-Há. Standing behind the children are (left to right) Brian O’Toole, a pioneer from the United Kingdom; Frances James, secretary of the Spiritual Assembly of Georgetown; Terrence, a Bahá’í youth; and Monica Pooran.

Ivory Coast

Counsellor Mihdí Samandarí, speaking February 12 to members of the Bahá’í community of Ivory Coast, and to a gathering of Bahá’í youth there on February 21, urged every believer to set personal goals in the context of the Seven Year Plan.

Dr. Samandari described the conditions necessary for success in teaching as including prayer, humility, detachment, and obedience to the institutions of the Faith.

The duty of every Bahá’í, he said, is to adopt individual goals and then to cooperate with the elected and appointed administrative institutions to help accomplish them.

Bahá’í history, according to Dr. Samandari, demonstrates the importance of patience in the teaching work.

As an example, he cited the growth of the Faith in India. Many traveling teachers visited India for more than a century, he said, and the result was only 800 new believers.

Today, he said, that number has risen above two million. This tremendous growth, he explained, is due to the steadfastness, patience and perseverance of the friends.

Cyprus

Two Auxiliary Board members from Turkey participated in a teaching conference February 24 in Kyrenia, Cyprus, that was attended by 50 believers.

Four native Cypriots from northern Nicosia declared their faith in Bahá’u’lláh during the conference.

Participants sent the following cable to the World Centre: “Hearts overflowing with love for Bahá’u’lláh we present loving greetings and loyalty to the Supreme House. Special prayers were offered for the noble souls of the Hands of the Cause of God ascended to Abhá Kingdom, also for the friends in the Cradle Faith whose valiant deeds and unflinching loyalty and fortitude are a source of inspiration for us all ...”

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Portugal

Thirty-five believers from 10 communities in Portugal participated last February 23-24 in the Northern Regional Bahá’í School in Vila Nova de Gaia.

Participants deepened on subjects including consultation, the Heroic Age of the Faith, and the spiritual revolution of modern society.

A member of the National Teaching Committee of Portugal announced the initiation of a new teaching plan aimed at teaching and consolidation in the Spanish border areas of Portugal. The plan was launched in memory of the Hand of the Cause of God Raḥmatu’lláh Muhájir.

Children and youth contributed to a lively evening of fund-raising through an auction of homemade handicrafts. A non-Bahá’í guest from a nearby goal town declared her belief in Bahá’u’lláh during the final school session.

Participants in the first National Youth Conference held last September at the National Bahá’í Center in Lisbon, Portugal. The 50 youth represented most of the Portuguese Bahá’í communities.

Auxiliary Board member Fedross Imani was among the 25 participants at a regional teaching conference last October in Portimao, Portugal.

Malaysia

“Deeply grieved untimely passing devoted coworker Imperaju Chinniah his outstanding untiring services institutions Faith both Malaysia and South-east Asia set lustre annals Cause entire region. Praying Holy Threshold progress soul in Abhá Kingdom. May beloved friends Malaysia increase fervour servitude Bahá’u’lláh following example departed friend compensate his loss their midst. Assure family friends sympathy. Advise hold befitting memorial meetings.”

Universal House of Justice

•

Mr. Chinniah, 47, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for South East Asia, died February 7 following a heart attack. Several hundred Bahá’ís and many non-Bahá’í friends attended the burial at the Bahá’í burial ground in Seremban, Malaysia.

Prior to his appointment to the Continental Board of Counsellors, Mr. Chinniah had served for nearly 10 years as an Auxiliary Board member.

Burundi

More than 300 students at Notre Dame College in Gitega, Burundi, attended a recent public meeting sponsored by the Bahá’í Group of Gitega with the assistance of the National Teaching Committee of Burundi.

The two speakers presented different aspects of the Faith to the audience. The college amphitheatre had been decorated with posters and flowers for the occasion.

Students and faculty members asked many questions about the Faith. The college director expressed satisfaction with the meeting and invited the Gitega Bahá’í Group to organize another meeting in the near future.

This was the first time that the Faith had been proclaimed publicly in Gitega.

Barbados/Windward Is.

An important achievement and a significant step in the legal recognition of the Faith in the Windward Islands took place last November 2, when three local Assemblies in Grenada were incorporated by the passage of People’s Law Number 82.

The law also makes provision for other local Assemblies, yet to be formed, to incorporate by order of the Governor-General.

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El Salvador

More than 100 believers from 17 communities in El Salvador and four other countries attended El Salvador’s Bahá’í Summer School last December 29-January 1. Instructors included Dr. Hedi Aḥmadíyyih, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors for Central America and the Antilles, and Edgardo Tay, an Auxiliary Board member from Guatemala. Participants included believers from Belize, Costa Rica, Brazil, and a group of 15 from Guatemala.

Bermuda

Robert McLaughlin, who has served as an architectural consultant to the Universal House of Justice, presented a deepening last February 17 at the Bahá’í National Center in Bermuda. Mr. McLaughlin and his wife, Katherine, an Auxiliary Board member, spent 34 days in January and February visiting with members of the Bahá’í community of Bermuda.

Auxiliary Board member Katherine McLaughlin addresses believers at the Bahá’í National Center in Bermuda. Mrs. McLaughlin and her husband, Robert, visited Bermuda last January 15-February 18. During that time she met with each of Bermuda’s Local Spiritual Assemblies.

Auxiliary Board member Katherine McLaughlin and her husband, Robert, spent 34 days in Bermuda in January and February visiting members of the Bermudian Bahá’í community.

During her visit, Mrs. McLaughlin met on several occasions with the island-wide Bahá’í community as well as with each of its Local Spiritual Assemblies and the Bermuda Teaching Committee. She also participated in Bermuda’s observances of the Feasts of Ṣultán and Mulk.

Mr. McLaughlin, who has served as an architectural consultant to the Universal House of Justice and is a former member of the U.S. National Spiritual Assembly, presented a deepening February 17 on the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh. On February 9, he was guest of honor at a dinner party hosted by the Spiritual Assembly of Hamilton Parish.

United Kingdom

A weekly, hour-long radio call-in program in Suffolk, England, was devoted last October 29 to questions and answers on the Bahá’í Faith.

Both the program moderator and listeners were eager to know more about the Faith. The program host launched right into questions without the usual preliminary statement.

Listeners who called in were put on hold to await their chance to ask questions of the panel of four that had been selected by the Local Assembly. The broad range of questions allowed the panel members to present a well-rounded picture of the Faith.

One listener, the Malaysian non-Bahá’í wife of a Mauritian believer, became so enthusiastic on hearing the Faith publicly proclaimed that she phoned the chairman of the Local Assembly. She then declared her belief in Bahá’u’lláh during a personal visit that followed her phone call.

[Page 18] A Traveler’s Narrative. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s engrossing account of the rise of the Bábí and Bahá’í Faiths—essential reading for students of the origins and history of these faiths.

Translated by Edward G. Browne.
Catalog No. 7-06-27. Cloth $8.75

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