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NARGUESS BAGHDADI
1918—1995
REGARDING YOUR FAX LE'I‘TER OF 2 FEBRUARY 1995, ASSURE RELATIVES FRIENDS PRAYERS PROGRESS SOUL DEVOTED MAIDSERVANT CAUSE OF GOD NARGUESS BAGHDAD].
Universal House ofjustice February 3, 1995
0 ur mother, Narguess Taeed, was born in 1918 in Kéfién, Iran, into a Bahá’í family whose father, Esshagh Taeed, and mother, Mrs. Mehringhiz, were the first Bahá’ís in a large family with Jewish origins. The second of seven children, Narguess grew up under the inherited banner of the Faith and the care of her dear parents, whom she often remembered with cheerfulness and enthusiasm.
When she was fifteen years old, she married Mr. Rabi Baghdadi, the son of Ismae'l and Sarah Baghdadj, also of Káshán. Before the marriage, Mr. Baghdadi, an active Bahá’í in Ṭihrán, had a dream one night in which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá appeared to him and said, “You will go as a pioneer, and you will succeed in your task.”
The five children born of their union, four sons and one daughter, dedicated a significant portion of their lives as pioneers. The union also gave birth to ten grandchildren Of the people of Bahá. 'Ihe keystone of this family was total obedience to the Faith, respect for the Institutions, and Bahá’í behavior.
Their pioneering began with pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1953, initiated by our mother. It was during a time when the beloved Guardian was urging the Bahá’ís of Iran and the American continent to go out into the world to encounter thirsty hearts. During their memorable pilgrimage, the Guardian knew intuitively of our
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father’s unspoken desire and unformed question, and turning to him he said, “I have sensed that you would like to be a pioneer. It would be desirable for you to go to Algeria to found the first Local Spiritual Assembly there.”
The Guardian’s words stirred our parents’ hearts in such a way that in less than six months all their worldly goods including house and furniture were sold and their work as merchants suspended.
On January I, 1954, the Baghdadi’s three young children—aged three, eight, and thirteen years—were reunited with their parents in Algiers, after a month—long stay in Marseilles. We knew neither the language nor the customs of this country. We were joined by four other pioneer families who, with hearts beating to the rhythm of Ya Bahzi’u’l—Abhei,125 united to form the first Local Spiritual Assembly.
In October 1957, as a result of the civil war in Algiers and the wisdom of the
‘25 See Khodabakhch Artar—Hamedani, pp. 104—06.
Guardian that believers of the same origin should not stay, our parents and their three children left Algiers to settle in Montpellier, France, where their eldest son and other Bahá’í friends were already located. And so the first Local Spiritual Assembly of Montpellier was formed, and since this date the institution has formed each year.
The life of Mr. Baghdadi was inseparable from that of‘Narguess. They were two bodies with one spirit, and for more than sixty years, they shared a life of service to the Faith, making their home a center of attraction. Their house was called “The Haven of Peace.” The company was sometimes so numerous that we had to press together to accommodate more. Visitors would always receive a warm greeting, a smile, attention, kindness, sincerity, and a joyful offering, which would give dignity and prestige to the Faith. And that was indeed what Mr. and Mrs. Baghdadi had always wished.
Mr. Baghdadi attained the Abhá Kingdom with calm and deep acceptance on July 29, 1991, after an incurable disease. Narguess, resigned and smiling in spite of the pains of illness that she endured for more than four years, flew away to join her companion and the other angels of the Malakut—i—Abhá on February 1, 1995.
Adaptcdfiom an article written
in French by thefour ram OfRabz' and Nargum Baghdadz'
