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Bahá'í Chronology: years 193-

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193-

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1930 In the early 1930's In Iran " [i]n the early years of the 1930s Bahá'í women joined the movement of discarding the veil and gradually abandoned the traditional veiling practice. This development opened new fields of service for women and made possible their fuller participation in the social and administrative activities of the communities." [BAHAISM v. The Bahai Community in Iran by V. Rafati] [key] Iran Women; Human rights; Veils
1930 (In the year) Leonora Holsapple Armstrong visited Gibraltar, the first Bahá’í to do so. Gibraltar Leonora Holsapple Armstrong first Bahá’í to visit Gibraltar
1930 (In the year) The publication of The Garden of the Heart by Francis Esty published by Roycrafters in New York. [Collins4.135]

A Bahá'í named Inez Greeven went on a prilgrimage. When she returned home she asked permission for two of her friends to go to Haifa and have the bounty of meeting the Master. The friends went and returned, apparently unaffected by the experience. In 1920, during her second pilgrimage, she asked 'Abdu'l-Bahá why her friends had not become Bahá'ís. This was His answer:

    “At the gate of the garden, some stand and look within, but do not care to enter. Others step inside, behold its beauty, but do not penetrate far. Still others encircle this garden, inhaling the fragrance of the flowers; and having enjoyed its full beauty, pass out again by the same gate. But there are always some who enter, and becoming intoxicated with the splendour of what they behold, remain for life to tend the garden." [Bahá'í Stories; The Garden of the Heart p14]
[key]
New York; United States The Garden of the Heart; Frances Esty; Inez Greeven
1930 (In the year) The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of England changed its name to become the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the British Isles. [Bahaipedia United Kingdom] [key] Britain National Spiritual Assembly, formation
1930 2 Jan Martha Root met with King Faisal of Iraq in Baghdad to discuss the issue of the House of Bahá'u'lláh. The King said that a committee had been formed to study the problem and to settle it in such a way as to satisfy all groups interested in the matter. [MRHK149] [key] Baghdad; Iraq House of Bahaullah (Baghdad); Martha Root; King Faisal
1930 Mar The intended pilgrimage of Queen Marie of Romania to the Bahá’í Shrines was thwarted. [GBF49; GPBXVIII; PP114]
  • For details of this episode see GBF49–50 and PP113–16.
  • In addition to visiting the Shrines Queen Marie had anticipated visiting her childhood friend, Lillian McNeill. She and her husband were resident in Mazra'ih at this time. [BW19p779-782] [key]
  • BWC; Mazraih Queen Marie of Romania; Pilgrimage; House of Bahaullah (Mazraih); Lilian Barron McNeill
    1930 18 Mar The International Bahá'í Bureau was registered as an International Working Unit by the League of Nations. [BIC History page 18 Mar 1939] [key] BIC; League of Nations; Bahai International Community
    1930 Apr A ceremony was held at the American annual convention in dedication of the resumption of the building activities on the Wilmette Temple. [BBRSM183; BW3:47]
  • Shoghi Effendi’s gift to the Temple was ‘the most valuable sacred possession in the Holy Land’ a ‘precious ornament of the Tomb of Bahá’u’lláh’, an exquisite Persian carpet. [BA180–1; BW4:208–12]
      The carpet, one of the most exquisite pieces ever woven in Persia, was made in Khurásán in about 1900-1905. It had been donated to by Díyá'ulláh Asgharzádih as a gift to Àbdu'l-Bahá Who immediately placed it in the Shrine of Bahjí. [BW4p208-210] [key]
  • Wilmette; United States Conventions, National; Bahaullah, Shrine of; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; Gifts; Carpets
    1930 Number of countries and territories where the Faith has been established: 42

    Number of National Spiritual Assemblies: 9

    Number of Local Spiritual Assemblies: 90 [from a pamphlet, The Bahá'í Faith and its World Community published by the NSA of Canada] [key]

    Statistics
    1930 30 May The New History Society came into conflict with the local Bahá’í Assembly. Sohrab refused to allow the New York Spiritual Assembly, to have oversight of the affairs of the New History Society. The Assembly saw the organization as a threat to the unity of the Bahá’í Faith. [BBRSM124]
  • Shoghi Effendi wrote to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada to make a definitive statement regarding that organization and the Cause.
  • BWC; New York; United States New History Society; Ahmad Sohrab; Covenant-breakers
    1930 Jul Shoghi Effendi completed his translation of the Kitáb-i-Íqán (The Book of Certitude), the first of his major translations of the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh. [BBRSM63–4; GT60; PP214] [key] BWC Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Translations by; Translation; Kitab-i-Iqan (Book of Certitude); Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Bahaullah, Writings of; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1930 Aug The National Spiritual Assembly published a statement in the Bahá'í News entitled The Case of Ahmad Sohrab and the New History Society. Summarized, the article stated that the “New History Society was begun in New York early in 1929 by Sohrab and "one of its avowed purposes being to spread the Bahá'í teachings. Neither the local nor the National Assembly was consulted in the matter, and the meetings and activities of the New History Society have been maintained apart from the principles of consultation which today, under the Will and Testament of 'Abdu’l-Bahá, form the basis of Bahá'í unity and the protection of the Cause."

    "Both the local and National Assembly on several occasions attempted, through oral and written communications, to bring about full and frank consultation with the leaders of the New History Society, but without success.

    "Under these conditions it becomes the obvious responsibility of the National Spiritual Assembly to inform the friends that activities conducted by Ahmad Sohrab through the New History Society are to be considered as entirely independent of the Cause, as outside the jurisdiction of the local and National Assembly, and hence in no wise entitled to the cooperation of Bahá'ís."

    This statement also quoted from a letter written on behalf of the Guardian by his Secretary to the National Spiritual Assembly on May 30, 1930: "To accept the Cause without the administration is like accepting the teachings without acknowledging the divine station of Bahá’u’lláh. To be a Bahá'í is to accept the Cause in its entirety...." "The administration is the social order of Bahá'u'lláh. Without it all the principles of the Cause will remain abortive. To take exception to this, therefore, is to take exception to the fabric that Bahá'u'lláh has prescribed, it is to disobey His law." [Ahmad Sohrab and the New History Society] [key]

    New York; United States Covenant-breakers; Ahmad Sohrab; New History Society
    1930 19 Aug Jean-Baptiste Louis Bourgeois, (b. 19 March 1856, Staint-Célestin de Nicolet, QC. d. Wilmette, IL), the architect of the first Bahá’i Temple of Worship in America, passed away. He was buried in East Lawn Memorial Park in Sacramento, California.[Find a Grave]

    He, like Sutherland Maxwell and Mason Remey, had studied at the École des Beaux Arts in Paris. These three and four others submitted designs for the Wilmette Temple for consideration. Other buildings designed by Louis Bourgeois include the Chicago Tribune Building, Evergreen Cabin in Englewood NJ where 'Abdu'l-Bahá hosted a Unity Feast, the Savoy Hotel in Chicago.

    He became a Bahá'í in New York sometime during the winter of 1906. In April of 1909 the National Spiritual Assembly called for design proposals for the first Bahá'í Hours of Worship in the West and he submitted is design proposal in October. It was finally accepted at the National Convention in 1920. [DP76-100] [key]

    Staint-Célestin de Nicolet, QC; Wilmette; Sacrmento, CA; United States In Memoriam; Louis Bourgeois; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette
    1930 20 Aug Louis Jean-Baptiste Bourgeois, (19 March, 1856, Saint-Célestin, Quebec, Canada) designer of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár in Wilmette, passed away in that city. He was buried in East Lawn Memorial Park Sacramento, Sacramento County, California, USA [DP145; Find a grave]
  • He had learned of the Faith in Boston through the efforts of Mary Hanford Ford. [Wikipedia]
  • For details of his life see DP76–86.
  • Saint-Celestin-de-Nicolet; Quebec; Wilmette; Boston; United States Louis Bourgeois; Architects; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Mary Hanford Ford first Bahá'í community in Boston.
    1930 22 Aug Martha Root returned to China for her third visit and stayed two months. She sailed from Shanghai on the 22nd of October 1930. [PH39-41; Film Early History of the Baha'í Faith in China 13min 46 sec ] [key] Hong Kong; Shanghai, China Martha Root
    1930 7 Oct Ruth White wrote to the High Commissioner of Palestine stating that she had sent a photograph of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Will and Testament to Dr Ainsworth Mitchell in England who had declared it a forgery. The High Commissioner requested she send that same evidence to him and he forwarded it to the Governor of Haifa who requested to meet with Shoghi Effendi and allow an expert to examine the original. The expert declared the Will authentic. [SETPET1p157]
  • See Mitchell's Mistake for a discussion of Mitchell's analysis of the handwriting of 'Abdu'l-Bahá by Senn McGlinn.
  • Haifa; Israel; United Kingdom Covenant-breakers; Ruth White; Abdul-Baha, Will and testament of; Shoghi Effendi, Life of; High Commissioners; Ainsworth Mitchell
    1930 Nov The National Assembly published a detailed supplementary statement in the Bahá’í News, quoting passages from the Aqdas, from the Master's Will and Testament, and from the Guardian's letters published in Bahá’í Administration followed by a reprint of the exchange of correspondence and cables with Mrs. Chanler, and with the Guardian, including the Guardian's cable to New York believers: "True unity can only be preserved by maintenance paramount position National Spiritual Assembly," and his cable approving the statement published in August, 1930, Bahá'í News.

    Further, in a letter from Haifa to the Yonkers Assembly, “The Guardian pointed out the difference between the freedom defined by Bahá'u'lláh ("To have liberty is to observe My commandments") and that advocated by Sohrab ("The other kind of freedom which is in defiance of law He (Bahá'u'lláh) considers to be animal, and far from being of any good to man"). [Ahmad Sohrab and the New History Society] [key]

    New York; United States Covenant-breakers; Ahmad Sohrab; New History Society
    1930 Nov Louise Gregory sailed on the SS Sinaia from Providence, Rhode Island with a destination of Constanta in Romania. The ship carried her via the Azores, Algiers and Istanbul. In all possibility she visited Bucharest and Poland before arriving at her destination of Sofia some time in January. [SYH169]
  • Marion Jack had been on pilgrimage and Shoghi Effendi suggested she might go to Sofia to help Louise. She left Haifa near the end of March, stopped over briefly in Cyprus then on to Trieste and then to Sofia. Meanwhile Louise had been informed by the American Legation that the police had become suspicious of her "non-Christian" work and she had to vacate the country before the expiration of her visa. [SYH172, NBAD122, 143-144]
  • Louise left Sofia on the 8th of April. She stopped in Geneva, Switzerland to visit her friends at the international Bahá'í Bureau. After making her way to England she departed from Liverpool on the SS Britannic on the 24th of April arriving in Boston on the 2nd of May. [SYH241]
  • Marion had arrived in Sofia on the 9th of April 1931. [SYH172] [key]
  • Sofia; Bulgaria; Geneva, Switzerland Louise Gregory; Marion Jack; Pilgrimage; International Bahai Bureau
    1930 17 Nov Ethel Rosenberg, (b.6 August, 1858, Bath) Disciple of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, ‘England’s outstanding Bahá’í pioneer worker’, passed away in London. She was buried in Gap Road Cemetery, Wimbledon, England. [BW4:118–119, 262-263; EJR274–5; Find a grave]
  • She became a Bahá’í around 1899 and went on her first pilgrimage in 1901.
  • While ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was in London, Ethel Rosenberg was His social secretary, arranging appointments for the Master.
  • ‘Abdu’l-Bahá asked Ethel Rosenberg and a number of other people to form a committee to decide what to do about collecting funds and publishing Bahá’í books. Their first published book was ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in London.
  • She made her third pilgrimage in November 1921, but arrived just after ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s passing. Shoghi Effendi sent her home with instructions to call for the election the first National Spiritual Assembly of England. She served on this body for a number of years. Shoghi Effendi named her an ‘Apostle of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’. [In the Footsteps of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá p9]
  • For her obituary see BW4:262–3.
  • For her biography see Weinberg, Ethel Jenner Rosenberg and SEBW55–64.
  • London; United Kingdom Ethel Rosenberg; In Memoriam; Disciples of Abdul-Baha; Births and deaths
    1930 Dec The first Asian Women’s Conference was held in India. [BW17:180] [key] India Conferences, Bahai; Conferences, Women; First conferences; Asia first Asian Women’s Conference
    1931 (In the year) The publication of Bahá'ism: Its Origins, History and Teachings by Reverend William McElwee Miller, a Presbyterian missionary working in Mashhad, Iran. He wrote the "All impartial observers of Bahá'ism in Persia are agreed that here in the land of its birth this religion...is now steadily losing ground...It is only a matter of time until this strange movement...shall be known only to students of history." [MCSp766]
  • In 1923 he visited Shoghi Effendi in Haifa. [SETPE1p62]
  • See 1974 when he published the updated version of his polemic entitledThe Bahá'í Faith: Its History and Teachings.
  • Mashhad; Iran Criticism and apologetics; William McElwee Miller
    1931 (In the year) The first Chinese translation of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era was published. [PH36]
  • The translation was made by Dr Tsao Yun-siang, President of the Xinhua University in Beijing. [PH36] [key]
  • Beijing; China Bahaullah and the New Era (book); Esslemont; First translations; Translation; Publications first Chinese translation of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era
    1931 (In the year) The publication of the Kitáb-i-Íqán (The Book of Certitude) as translated into English by Shoghi Effendi. It was published by the Bahá'í Publishing Committee in New York and republished in 1931 and 1937. [Collins1.77]
  • It has seen numerous publications since then by the American Bahá'í Publishing Trust and by Bahá'í Publishing Trust in London. [Collins1.78-85] [key]
  • Kitab-i-Iqan (Book of Certitude); Publications; Translation; Bahaullah, Writings of
    1931 13 Jan Consul Albert Schwarz, (b. December 14, 1871, Stuttgart, Germany), Disciple of Abdu’l-Bahá, ‘Germany’s outstanding Bahá’í pioneer worker’ passed away. He was buried in Pragfriedhof – Stuttgart. [BW4:118–19, 264; Find a grave]
  • For his obituary see BW4:264–6.
  • See as well Bahá'í Chronicles.
  • Stuttgart; Germany Consuls; Albert Schwarz; In Memoriam; Births and deaths
    1931 15 Jan Flames swept through the dome of Bahá'í House of Worship which was nearing completion. Damage was estimated at $50,000. The loss due to the fire was covered by insurance and as a "blessing in disguise" because the Faith receive a great deal of publicity as a result of the incident. [Tribune Archive Photo / Chicago Tribune, Sept. 18, 2014]
  • See the report in BN No 48 February 1931 p5.
  • Wilmette; United States Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship)
    1931 Mar Marion Jack painted a view from the Mansion at Bahjí. The painting was eventually hung in the Mansion. [CT174] [key] Bahji Marion Jack; House of Bahaullah (Bahji)
    1931 There were still only 30 Bahá’ís in Canada by this date. [BBRSM186] [key] Canada Statistics
    1931 Apr Marion Jack arrived in Sofia, Bulgaria, to begin her pioneering service. Sofia; Bulgaria Marion Jack
    1931 Ridván The formation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Iraq. [GPB333; BBRSM:121; BW4p169] [key] Iraq National Spiritual Assembly, formation
    1931 28 Apr Mr Refo Capari (Chapary), the first Albanian Bahá’í, arrived in Tirana, Albania from New York where his family had immigrated.
  • He became a Bahá’í in America some time before 1931.
  • In 1983 account were found in the International Archives of the pioneering work done by Mr. Capari. He had stayed in Albania and died alone and of starvation. [BW20p198] [key]
  • Tirana; Albania First Bahais by country or area; Refo Capari; Refo Chapary first Albanian Bahá’í
    1931 May A permanent summer school is established at Louhelen Ranch near Davison, Michigan. [BW10:181; GPB340] [key] Davison; Michigan; United States Summer schools
    1931 May Lilian Barron McNeill, an English Bahá’í, and her husband, a retired British army officer, rented the house at Mazra‘ih. [DH92]
  • They restored the house, which had deteriorated, preserving those parts unchanged from the time of Bahá’u’lláh. [DH92–3, BW19P779-782] [key]
  • Mazraih; Akka Lilian Barron McNeill; House of Bahaullah (Mazraih); Restoration; - Bahai World Centre buildings, monuments and gardens
    1931 1 May The superstructure of the Wilmette House of Worship was completed and turned over by the Fuller Company at the opening of the National Convention, nineteen years after the day on which the Master had blessed the undertaking. It was then dedicated. [BW10:180; DP:156–7; SBBH1:145] [key] Wilmette; United States Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship)
    1931 May The passing of Mrs Claudia Coles in London. (b. 1863 or 1866 in Charleston, South Carolina). She accepted the Faith in Washington DC and moved to London in 1920. She was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the British Isles many times and often served as secretary. [BW4264-265]
  • See tribute from Shoghi Effendi.
  • See Portraits of Some Bahá’í Women by O.Z. Whitehead, GR, Oxford, 1996 pages 29-48.
  • Washington DC; United States; London; United Kingdom Claudia Coles; In Memoriam
    1931 (Summer) The first German Bahá’í summer school was held, at Esslingen. [BBRSM182; BW5:44]
  • UD98 and BW5p30 put this date as 1932.
  • Esslingen; Germany Summer schools; First summer and winter schools first German Bahá’í summer school
    1931 10 Jul The administration in Palestine wrote to Ruth White advising her that they would take no further action with respect to her claim that the will of 'Abdu'l-Bahá was a forgery.
  • "All Mrs White ever achieved was to stir up a temporary and insignificant cloud of dust". [PP119]
  • Mrs White wrote letters to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada as well as to some believers objecting to the directives of Shoghi Effendi and to the administration of the Cause through local and national assemblies. One of her converts was Dr Wilhelm Herrigel, one of the founding members of the German community. Later, Dr Herrigel became conscious of the mistake he had made. [SETPE1p158]
  • Likewise, Ruth White's husband was repentant, was offered a path back into the Faith but failed to take it. [SETPE1p158] iiiii
  • See WOB4 for Shoghi Effendi's thoughts on such an action as taken by Ruth White.
  • Ruth White; Covenant-breakers
    1931 27 Jul Swiss Bahá’í Auguste Forel, (b. 1 September, 1848 Morges, Switzerland, d. 27 July, 1931 Yvorne Switzerland) world-renowned psychiatrist, entomologist, anatomist, social reformer and peace worker, passed away. [FGM2]
  • For the Good of Mankind: August Forel and the Bahá’í Faith by John Paul Vader, (published by George Ronald, Oxford, 1984) was originally written as a doctoral dissertation in the field of the history of medicine at the University of Lausanne on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of Dr Forel's passing. The book documents Dr Forel's activities as a Bahá'í.
  • "The famous scientist and entomologist, Dr. Auguste Forel, was converted to the Faith through the influence of a Tablet sent him by 'Abdu'l-Bahá, one of the most weighty the Master ever wrote." [GPB307-308, 316, 375; AB448-449]
  • The Tablet from 'Abdu'l-Bahá to Dr Forel can also be found in The Bahá’í World Vol. XV, pp. 37–43.
  • See The Life and Times of August Forel by Sheila Banani published in Lights of Irfan, Volume 6, pages 1-20 Wilmette, IL: Irfan Colloquia, 2005
  • See as well Auguste Forel; His Life and Enlightenment by A. M. Ghadirian, M.D.
  • August Forel Defends the Persecuted Persian Bahá'ís: 1925-1927 by John Paul Vader published in Bahá'í World, Vol. 18 (1979-1983), pages 970-974 1986 (the pdf)
  • See Shoghi Effendi's mention of Dr Forel in Lights of Divine Guidance Vol 2 page 5, and his letter to his daughter, Mrs. Marta Brauns-Forel, regarding his status as a believer on pages 18-19.
  • See Auguste Forel and the Bahá'í Faith published by George Ronald in 1978. It was translated from Brief An Forel originally published by Bahá'í Verlag GmbH. It contains Forel's letter to 'Abdu'l-Bahá, His reply, and a commentary by Peter Mühlschlegel.
  • His autobiography, Rückblick auf mein Leben (1935) has been translated as Out of My Life and Work by Bernard Miall and published by Allen & Unwin Ltd in 1937.
  • See the article The World Vision of a Savant by Dr Auguste H Forel. [BW3p284—287]
  • See Wikipedia article.
  • Find a grave.
  • Switzerland Auguste Forel; In Memoriam
    1931 Oct Notwithstanding the fact that her visa had not been renewed the previous year, Louise Gregory returned to Bulgaria, this time to Varna, a resort on the Black Sea. Marion Jack was able to join her from Sofia and their teaching efforts met with some success. Marion had not only continued Louise's work in Sofia but started a group in Turnova. Much credit is due to George Adam Benke for his part in her success. [SYH173; NBAD137] [key] Varna, Bulgaria; Turnova, Bulgaria; Sofia Louise Gregory; Marion Jack; George Adam Benke
    1931 Nov The New York Bahá’í community drafted the by-laws of a Bahá’í local assembly. [GPB335]
  • These by-laws became the pattern for all local Bahá’í constitutions throughout the world. [BBRSM122; GPB335; PP303] [key]
  • New York; United States By-laws
    1932 (In the year) The Iranian government introduced measures against the Bahá’ís throughout Iran. Restrictions were placed on the import of Bahá’í books and periodicals by post and on the publication of Bahá’í literature. Bahá’í marriages were not recognized. [BW18p388] [key] Iran Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Bans; Persecution
    1932 (In the year) Shoghi Effendi’s translation of Nabíl’s Narrative entitled The Dawn-Breakers was published. Maṭāleʿ al-anwār, as Nabíl's word was entitled, was the most authentic and the main primary source on the early history of the Bábí movement in Iran, was regarded by the Bahá'ís as the definitive account of the Bāb’s dispensation. The work has been translated into many languages, and it has played a major role in familiarizing the Bahá'ís around the world with the historical background of their faith and helping them understand its link to the socio-religious climate of the Persian society in the early days of its development. The original Persian manuscript of Maṭāleʿ al-anwār, has been preserved at the International Bahá'í Archives in Haifa. It is comprised 1,014 pages of 22-24 lines.[“Nabil-e aʿzam Zaranadi, Mollā Mohammad,” by Vahid Rafati, Encyclopædia Iranica, GBF91; PP215]
  • Shoghi Effendi's translation covered only the first part of Nabil's manuscript, up to 1852, and it may have been an abridgement. The original covered up until the time of the book's completion in 1890. [RR425]
  • The work took him two years of research. [PP217]
  • He sent Effie Baker to Iran to take photographs for the book. [PP217]
  • For George Townshend’s assistance to the project see GT59, 60, 64–9.
  • For Shoghi Effendi’s purpose in translating and editing the book see WOB123.
  • See also BBD64; GBF913 PP215–18.
  • In the "Acknowledgement" Shoghi Effendi credited Lady Blomfield for her suggestions, "an English correspondent for his help in the preparation of the Introduction, Mrs E Hoagg for typing the manuscript and Effie Baker for the photographs. [DB page lxi]
  • See RR422-440 for other historical accounts that might be used as source documents for the Bábí-Bahá'í history.
  • See Mary Maxwell's article The Re-florescence of Historical Romance in Nabil. [BW5p595]
  • See Shoghi Effendi: The Range and Power of His Pen by ‘Ali Nakhjavani p82 for information on the writing of The Dawn-Breakers.
  • Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Translations by; Nabil-i-Azam; Dawn-Breakers (book); Effie Baker; George Townshend; Publications; Translation; Lady Blomfield; Amatul-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1932 (In the year) The publication of The Religion of the Baha'is by J R Richards, a CMS Missionary in Shiraz. Published by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge in London. London The Religion of the Bahais; J R Richards
    1932 (In the year) Johanne Sorensen translated and paid for the publication of Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era in Danish. [SRR14p235] [key] Denmark Bahaullah and the New Era (book); Johanne Sorensen; translation
    1932 (In the year) Land for a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár was purchased at Ḥadiqa, northeast of Tehran, and a design for this building by Mason Remey was approved by Shoghi Effendi whom 'Abdu'l-Bahá had chosen as the architect. [MAŠREQ AL-AḎKĀR Encyclopaedia Iranica]
  • The construction of the Temple was an unfulfilled goal of the Ten Year Crusade and was made a goal of the Nine Year Plan. Pending the construction, the National Spiritual Assembly built an extensive wall around the property and surveyed the land and located the site of the building.
  • The architect’s elevation of the Temple can be see at BW14p495.
  • Tihran; Iran Mashriqul-Adhkar, Tihran; Mason Remey, architect
    1932 17 Feb The Chicago Bahá’í Assembly incorporated, the first local spiritual assembly in the world to do so. This set the pattern for other Assemblies. [GPB336, Century of LIght p57] [key] Chicago; United States Local Spiritual Assembly; Incorporation; Recognition (legal); Firsts, Other First LSA in the world to incorporate.
    1932 27 Feb Race Amity gatherings became an effective way promote the principle of racial equality. A number pf banquets were held and at one such gathering held in Los Angeles, the circle of racial amity activities was widened to include not only white and coloured but also Native Americans, as well as Chinese and Japanese. At the banquet dinner, Nellie French represented the National Assembly and Chief Luther Standing Bear, who attended in full regalia with a number of his tribesmen, offered a prayer and spoke of peace as a covenant among all races. A Native American tribal dance followed as part of the programme. [Louis Gregory, ‘Racial Amity in America: An Historical Review’, in BW7p652-666.] [key] Los Angeles; California; United States Race (general); Race Amity; Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity; Native Americans; Chinese diaspora; Japanese diaspora
    1932 21 Mar The first Local Spiritual Assembly of Tokyo, consisting of journalists and other professional people, was formed.
  • Owing to the situation in Japan, it was disbanded two years later. [In memoriam Barbara Sims by Universal House of Justice, Sheridan Sims, and Sandra S. Fotos] [key]
  • Tokyo Local Spiritual Assembly first LSA Tokyo
    1932 Apr Pilgrims were able to stay overnight at Bahjí for the first time. [GBF101; PP232] [key] Bahji House of Bahaullah (Bahji); Pilgrims first time pilgrims stay overnight at Bahjí
    1932 (Spring) Louise Gregory left Varna in the early Spring to go first to Prague Brno and, then to Budapest. She continued her tour around Europe and by July she was in Salzburg, Austria. She spent the summer in the coolness of the mountains of Germany and Austria. By the autumn of 1932 she was back in Varna once again having visited Hamburg, Leipzig, Vienna, Salzburg and Budapest. [NBAD176; SYH177]
  • Marion Jack was based in Varna at this time.
  • In May, 1933 she left Varna for Salzburg, Austria where she spent four days before moving on to Hamburg, Germany to depart for New York. She arrived on the 26th of May 1933 on the SS Hamburg of the Hamburg-American Line. During this trip she had visited Varna, Bulgaria and Brno in Czechoslovakia, Budapest in Hungary, Salzburg in Austria, Berchtesgaden and Stuttgart in Germany. [SYH178, 241] [key]
  • Varna, Bulgaria Louise Gregory
    1932 May or Jun Two Bahá'ís from Germany settled in Sofia, Bulgaria to assist Marion Jack. Lina and George Benke had become Bahá'ís in Leipzig after hearing of the Faith from Harlan and Grace Ober and Alma Knobloch. From June 1931 and later in May 1932 the couple travelled to Sofia and settled there as pioneers where their contacts were mostly in the Esperanto community. In the few months they were there George travelled to Stara Zagora, Varna and Plovdiv, all towns some distance from Sofia. He was elderly and in frail health and passed away in November, 1932. [SYH176] [key] Sofia; Stara Zagora; Varna; Plovdiv; Bulgaria George Benke; Lina Benke
    1932 10 Jun The American National Spiritual Assembly addresseed a petition to the Sháh of Iran requesting that the ban on Bahá’í literature be removed and asking that its representative, Mrs Keith Ransom-Kehler, be recognized to present in person the appeal. [BW5:390–1] [key] United States; Iran National Spiritual Assembly; Petitions; Reza Shah Pahlavi; Shahs; Keith Ransom-Kehler; Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Bans; Persecution
    1932 15 Jul The Greatest Holy Leaf, Bahíyyih Khánum, ‘outstanding heroine of the Bahá’í Dispensation’ passed away in Haifa about one hour after midnight. [BW5:169; GPB108]
  • Her passing marked the end of the Heroic Age of the Faith. [BBD102; WOB98]
  • She was comparable in rank to Sarah, Ásíyih, the Virgin Mary, Fátimih and Táhirih. [GPB347] And from the publication in her honour by the World Centre in 1982 p34...
  • Shoghi Effendi was in Switzerland and immediately went to Italy to commission a memorial for her grave. [DH156]
  • Shoghi Effendi asked the Bahá'í World to observe a period of mourning for her of nine months. [This Decisive Hour #3]
  • For Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá revealed in her honour see BW5:171–3; by Bahá’u’lláh; by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá; and for tributes by Shoghi Effendi as well as by Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhiyyih Khánum.
  • See BW19 pg39-74 The Greatest Holy Leaf, The Fiftieth Anniversary of the Passing of Bahiyyih Khanum.
  • For Shoghi Effendi’s tribute to her see BW5:174–9.
  • For Marjory Morten’s obituary of her see BW5:181–5.
  • The design of the monument for the resting place of the Greatest Holy Leaf is a symbol of the Bahá’í administrative order. [CB298]
  • See also Bahíyyih Khánum published by the World Centre in 1982 and Khánum, The Greatest Holy Leaf by Marzieh Gail published by George Ronald in 1982; BBD42; CB121–2, 305; DH156–61; GBF65–8; PP144–8.
  • See A Gift of Love; Offered to the Greatest Holy Leaf by Abu'l-Qasim Faizi.
  • Meditation on Passing of Bahíyyih Khánum from Bahíyyih Khánum, compiled by the Research Department pp23-30
  • See The Greatest Holy Leaf's Unparalleled Role in Religious History and the Significance of the Arc, the Site of Her Resting Place by Baharieh Rouhani Ma'ani. The paper was presented at the Irfan Colloquia Session #121 [English], Louhelen Bahá'í Center: Davison, Michigan, USA, October 10–13, 2013 and has been published in Lights of Irfan, volume 15.
  • BWC; Mount Carmel Bahiyyih Khanum (Greatest Holy Leaf); Heroic Age; Marjory Morten; In Memoriam; Monument Gardens; Architecture; Cemeteries and graves; - Bahai World Centre buildings, monuments and gardens; World Centre; Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1932 15 Aug Keith Ransom-Kehler met the Iranian Court Minister Taymur Tash. [BW5:392]
  • She presented the American petition to him asking that the ban on Bahá’í literature in Iran be lifted and received assurances from him that this would be affected. [BW5:392; PH46]
  • She made seven successive petitions addressed to the Sháh of Persia. [GPB345]
  • For the history and unsuccessful outcome of this effort see BW5:391–8.
  • Iran; United States Keith Ransom-Kehler; National Spiritual Assembly; Petitions; Reza Shah Pahlavi; Shahs; Keith Ransom-Kehler; Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Bans; Persecution
    1932 3 Oct The term of The Kingdom of Iraq under British Administration or "Mandatory Iraq" came to an end. It had been created in 1921 following the Iraqi Revolt in 1920 and enacted via the 1922 Anglo-Iraqi Treaty. The British chose Faisal I bin Hussein bin Ali al-Hashimi as king of of Iraq and Syria. He fostered unity between Sunni and Shiite Muslims and tried to promote pan-Arabism with the goal of creating an Arab state in Iraq, Syria and the rest of the Fertile Crescent. Faisal died in Switzerland while there for a medical examination at the age of 48, under what some consider to be suspicious circumstances. [Wikipedia]
  • Iraq was admitted to the League of Nations. [BW5p357] [key]
  • Baghdad; Iraq King Faisal; History (General); British history; Imperialism/colonialism
    1932 Nov A number of Bahá’ís were arrested in Adana, Turkey. [BBR474] [key] Adana; Turkey Persecution, Turkey; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution
    1932 3 Nov-6 Dec Meeting of the 22nd Session of the Permanent Mandates Commission of the League of Nations in Geneva at which the Bahá’ís pleaded their case for the possession of the House of Bahá’u’lláh in Baghdád. [BW5:351–4] [key] Geneva; Baghdad; Iraq League of Nations; House of Bahaullah (Baghdad)
    1932 23 Nov The passing of George Adam Benke (b. Fredericksfelt, south Russia in 1878) in Sofia, Bulgaria. Shoghi Effendi declared him to be "the first European martyr. [BW5:416–418, LDG1p263]
  • He had become a Bahá'í as a result of the visit of Harlan and Grace Ober to Leipzig in 1920 and the further efforts of Miss Alma Knoblock. [BW5p416]
  • He translated the works of Bahálláh that had been translated into Russian by Thomansky and Rosenberg.
  • In June of 1931 he was called upon to help Marion Jack in Sofia where is knowledge of Russian facilitated his efforts. He stayed for three months.
  • Again in 1932 he was asked to go to Sofia where he passed away after a very short period of discomfort.
  • Shoghi Effendi called him the first European martyr. [LDG1:263; MC359]
  • Photo 1 of his gravesite in Sofia.
  • Photo 2 of his headstone.
  • Fredericksfelt(Russia); Russia; Sofia; Bulgaria George Benke; In Memoriam; George Adam Benke; Names and titles; Martyrs; Firsts, Other first European martyr
    1932 2 Dec By this time there were 15 Bahá’ís under arrest in Adana, Turkey. [BBR474] [key] Adana; Turkey Persecution, Turkey; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution
    1933 (In the year) The construction of the Akka-Haifa highway. The town of Haifa was taking on a greater importance with the opening of the deep-water port on 31 October 1933. By 1936 there were over 100,000 inhabitants. [Sunburst p99; Wikipedia Akka; Israel; Palestine; Haifa; Palestine Statistics
    1933 (In the year) Bahá’ís in Gulpáygán, Iran, were refused admission to the public baths. Shaykh Ja‘far Hidáyat was beaten and expelled from the town. [BW18:388] [key] Gulpaygan; Iran Persecution, Iran; Persecution
    1933 (In the year) The Tavakkul Bahá’í School in Qazvín, Iran, was closed. [BW18:388] [key] Qazvin; Iran Bahai schools; Persecution, Iran; Persecution
    1933 (In the year) On the initiative of Martha Root, Mr. György Steiner, an Esperantist in the city of Győr translated J.E. Esslemont’s Bahá’u’lláh and The New Era into Hungarian between 1931-33. This was the first major work published in Hungarian about the Bahá’í Faith. The Preface of the book was written by Mr. Rusztem Vámbéry, son of Arminius Vámbéry. [www.bahai.hu] [BW5p377, 609] [key] Hungary Gyorgy Steiner; Esperanto; Rusztem Vambery; Arminius Vambery; Bahaullah and the New Era (book); Esslemont; First translations; Translation; Publications First Bahá'í publication in Hungarian
    1933 Jan The National Spiritual Assembly of India and Burma incorporated in Lahore, in the state of Punjab under the provisions of the Societies Registration Act of 1960. [GPB336] [key] India; Lahore; Punjab; Pakistan; Myanmar (Burma) Recognition (legal)
    1933 6 Feb By this date there were about 50 Bahá’ís under arrest in Adana, Turkey. [BBR475; PP317] [key] Adana; Turkey Persecution, Turkey; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution
    1933 18 Mar After five years of deliberations and intervention from the League of Nations, the Iraqi government decided to protect the house as part of an urban improvement plan. The property was originally designated for destruction. [BIC History page 18 Mar 1933] [key] Baghdad; Iraq House of Bahaullah (Baghdad)
    1933 End Mar The 50 Bahá’ís imprisoned in Adana were released. [BBR475] [key] Adana; Turkey Persecution, Turkey; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution
    1933 21 Apr In his letter titled "America and the Most Great Peace written this day, Shoghi Effendi described the progress of the growth of the Faith in America as falling into four distinct periods:
  • (1893–1903), characterized by a process of slow and steady fermentation, may be said to have culminated in the historic pilgrimages undertaken by ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá’s American disciples to the shrine of Bahá’u’lláh.
  • (1903–1913), so full of the tests and trials which agitated, cleansed and energized the body of the earliest pioneers of the Faith in that land, had as their happy climax ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá’s memorable visit to America.
  • (1913–1923), a period of quiet and uninterrupted consolidation, had as its inevitable result the birth of that divinely-appointed Administration, the foundations of which the Will of a departed Master had unmistakably established.
  • (1923–1933), distinguished throughout by further internal development, as well as by a notable expansion of the international activities of a growing community, witnessed the completion of the superstructure of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár—the Administration’s mighty bulwark, the symbol of its strength and the sign of its future glory. [WOB80]

    "In 1933 he gave the North American Bahá'ís America and the Most Great Peace, which dealt largely with the role this part of the world has been destined by God to play during this period in history, recalled the self-sacrificing journeys and services of the Master in the West and recapitulated the victories already won for the Faith by this favoured Community." [PP213]

    "In America and the Most Great Peace written in 1933, Shoghi Effendi states America's position in unmistakable terms: out of the anguish following the Master's passing, he wrote, "the Administration of Bahá'u'lláh's invincible Faith was born". The ascension of 'Abdu'l-Bahá released "potent energies" which "crystallized into this supreme, this infallible Organ for the accomplishment of a Divine Purpose." The Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá had set forth its character and provisions, America had espoused the cause of the Administration: "It was given to her, and to her alone,...to become the fearless champion of that Administration, the pivot of its new-born institutions and the leading promoter of its influence." [PP340-341] [key]

  • United States; Canada World Order of Bahaullah (book)
    1933 9 or 13 Sep (or possibly mid-November) Louise Gregory sailed from Boston to Europe on the SS Sinai. She spent some time in Salzburg and met with Miss Steffi Fürth whom she had met a year earlier. She had become, perhaps, the first believer in Salzburg [SYH180-181]
  • By October she was settled in Varna, Bulgaria where there was a small group of active believers. [SYG181]
  • On the instructions of the Guardian she left Varna for Belgrade to help Martha Root with the teaching work. Louise arrived on the 14th of March 1934. [SYH186] [key]
  • Salzburg, Germany; Varna, Bulgaria; Belgrade; Yugoslavia Louise Gregory; Steffi Fürth; Martha Root the first believer in Salzburg
    1933 23 Oct Keith Ransom-Kehler died of smallpox in Isfahán after a year of intensive travel around Iran. [BW5:24, 398; BN No 80 January 1934 p11]
  • For her obituary see BW5:389–410.
  • She was buried near the grave of the King of Martyrs. [BW5:398]
  • For a picture of her grave see BW5:399.
  • Shoghi Effendi named her America’s ‘first and distinguished martyr’. [BW5:398]
  • Shoghi Effendi elevated her to the rank of Hand of the Cause on 28 October, 1933. [BW5:398, MoCxxii]
  • See message from the Guardian dated 30 October 1933.
  • For her mission in Iran see BW5:23–7.
  • See also PP306–7.
  • See Other People Other Places by Marzieh Gail (pages 176-181) for a pen portrait of Keith Ransom-Kehler.
  • See FMH51-52]
  • See Bahá'í Chronicles.
  • Photo of her grave. [BW9p68] [key]
  • Isfahan; Iran Keith Ransom-Kehler; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; In Memoriam; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi; Hands of the Cause, Activities; Cemeteries and graves; Names and titles; Firsts, Other first American martyr
    1933 23 Oct-4 Nov The 24th session of the Permanent Mandates Commission of the League of Nations was held in Geneva at which the case of the possession of the House of Bahá’u’lláh in Baghdád was again raised. [BW5:354–5] [key] Geneva; Baghdad; Iraq League of Nations; House of Bahaullah (Baghdad)
    1933 (Near the end of the year) Mr Sabri Effendi Elias had come to Ethiopia from Alexandria in Egypt at the behest of the National Spiritual Assembly who had been asked by Shoghi Effendi to send a pioneer to that country. He printed one thousand pamphlets in Amharic, and translated Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era. The same work was later printed in Abyssinian.
  • In 1935 when Ethiopia was invaded by the Italians he was forced to return to Egypt, he immediately set off for the Holy Land so see Shoghi Effendi taking with him 18 copies of these translated works. Upon arrival Shoghi Effendi greeted him with, "You have returned victorious and triumphant - because you were the cause of linking the north of Africa to the south".
  • Mr Elias brought with him an an animal skin as a personal gift to Shoghi Effendi who accepted it as a gift from Ethiopia to the Bahá'í World Centre and had Sabri himself place it in the Archives which was at the back of the Shrine of the Báb at the time. This gift was the fulfillment of the prophecy in Isaiah 18:7. [KoB58] Note: The reference said it was a "gorzia skin but no reference to such an animal could be found. Perhaps an Abyssinian black-and-white colobus.
  • In 1944 he pioneered to Ethiopia again, this time with his wife Fahima and their children Husayn and Safá. [Bahá'í Communities by Country: Research Notes by Graham Hassall; KoB58-61]
  • For more details on his life of service see The Bahá'í World: In Memoriam 1992-1997 p255-257.
  • Ethiopia Knight of Bahaullah
    1934 (In the year) The first National Spiritual Assembly of Iran was elected. [BBRSM:121; BW6:268]
  • For a picture see BW6:268.
  • Iran National Spiritual Assembly, formation first NSA Iran
    1934 (In the year) The government of Iran took several measures against the Bahá’ís throughout the country. [BW18p389]
  • Nineteen Bahá’í schools are closed in Káshán, Qazvín, Yazd, Najafábád, Ábádih and elsewhere. [ARG109]
  • Bahá’í meetings were forbidden in many towns, including Tihrán, Mashhad, Sabzivár, Qazvín and Arák.
  • Bahá’ís centres in Káshán, Hamadán and Záhidán were closed by the authorities.
  • Some Bahá’í government employees were dismissed.
  • Some Bahá’í military personnel were stripped of their rank and imprisoned.
  • Bahá’ís in many places were harassed over the filling-in of marriage certificates, census forms and other legal documents.
  • Iran; Kashan; Qazvin; Yazd; Najafabad; Abadih; Tihran; Mashhad; Sabzivar; Arak; Hamadan; Zahidan Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Education; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Tarbiyat School; Bahai schools
    1934 (In the year) The Declaration of Trust was legalized in Egypt as a result of the work of Montfort Mills and 'Abdu'l-Jalíl Bey Sa'ad. This greatly facilitated future transactions with the Government. [BW9p598] [key] Egypt Montfort Mills; Abdul-Jalil Bey Saad; Declaration of Trust and By-Laws
    1934 (In the year) In Egypt, a certain learned Shaykh el Kharashi attacked the Faith in a series of articles under the heading, "The Bahá'í Faith Is a Pleasing Illusion". 'Abdu'l-Jalíl Bey Sa'ad refuted his arguments with a series of fourteen articles under the heading "The Bahá'í Faith Is an Everlasting Truth". Having failed to counter 'Abdu'l-Jalíl's arguments the Shaykh and his associates appealed to the authorities to stop his articles on the grounds that they were anti-Muhammadan. The matter was raised to the Minister and then to Parliament where both parties were asked to stop publication. 'Abdu'l-Jalíl was transferred to a remote part of the country where, it was hoped that he would not be able to resume his activities. [BW9p598] [key] Egypt Criticism and apologetics; Abdul-Jalil Bey Saad
    1934 23 Jan Shoghi Effendi gave Queen Marie of Romania the gift of a Tablet in the handwriting of Bahá’u’lláh. [GBF50; PP116] [key] Romania Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Queen Marie of Romania; Gifts; Manuscripts; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1934 23 Jan Agnes S. Parsons died after an automobile accident. [BW5:410; SBR96; BN No 82 April 1934 p4]
  • She is primarily remembered for her contribution to the cause of race unity in North America. [BW5:413]
  • For her obituary see BW5:410–14.
  • See also Diary of Agnes Parsons; SBR76–96.
  • See as well FMH47-49 for the story of how she came to accept the Cause through three supernatural signs during her pilgrimage in 1910.
  • Washington DC; United States Agnes Parsons; Race (general); Unity; In Memoriam
    1934 14 Mar Louise Gregory arrived in Belgrade to join Martha Root in the teaching work. Their overlap lasted until the 25th of March when Martha left for Athens. [SYH186-187]
  • Martha had arranged for a new believer, Mrs Draga Ilić, to translate Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era as well as the Hidden Words into Serbian. [SYH187]
  • During her time here Louisa received American visitors Charles and Helen Bishop from Portland, OR, who were on their way to Geneva to take up service at the International Bahá'í Bureau. They had been on pilgrimage in Haifa. [SYH188; BW6p133]
  • Louise established herself as a language teacher giving private lessons. On the 19th of June she moved to a larger house near the Austrian border then after a few weeks went to Salzburg to meet with Miss Fürth until the end of July. When Marion Jack arrived they travelled together to Munich and Göppingen and then to Esslingen to attend the German Bahá'í summer school at the request of Shoghi Effendi. It ran from the 5th to the 12th of August. [SYH190-191, 195]
      For photos taken at the summer school see SYH198-199.
  • After the summer school Marion and Louise went to Stuttgart and arrived back in Salzburg on the 3rd of September. She had trouble having her visa renewed and ultimately had to go to Vienna for this purpose. She returned to Belgrade by boat down the Danube. [SYH196-197]
  • A report on her teaching work in Belgrade was printed in the Bahá'í News No 90 March 1935 pg11.
  • Because her visa expired she was obliged to return to America. She left Belgrade near the end of April and went to England with plans to visit her relatives before boarding the Laconia in Liverpool destined for Boston on the 11th of May 1935. She had been away from home some 18 months on this teaching trip and had visited Varna in Bulgaria, Salzburg in Austria, Belgrade in Yugoslavia, Esslingen, Munich, Göppingen and Stuttgart in Germany, Salzburg and Vienna in Austria. [SYH 203-205, 242] , [key]
  • Belgrade; Yugoslavia; Salzburg; Munich; Germany Louise Gregory; Martha Root; Draga Ilić; Bahaullah and the New Era (book); Language; Translation; Charles Bishop; Helen Bishop; International Bahai Bureau; Bahai International Community first pioneer in Yugoslavia
    1934 3rd week Mar Martha Root arrived in Athens to oversee the work of translating and publishing Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era in Greek with the translator, Dionysios Devaris, the editor of an Athens newspaper. [MR401] [key] Athens; Greece Martha Root; translation; Bahaullah and the New Era
    1934 26 Apr The first national convention of the Bahá'ís of Iran was held in Tehran over a period of eight days. The social and religious affairs of the national community prior to this time had been directed by the former Central Assembly of Tehran. Following the formation of the National Spiritual Assembly, the by-laws of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States were translated into Persian and adopted with modifications. Also, national committees were appointed to help the National Spiritual Assembly with specific tasks. [GPB333; BW6p22-23; WOB99; BAHAISM v. The Bahai Community in Iran by V. Rafati]
  • ARG83, 118 (photo) says that 1933 was the date of the first National Convention.
  • BW6p94 says that 1935 was the date of the first National Convention.
  • Tihran; Iran By-laws; Conventions, National; Central Assembly of Tehran; National Spiritual Assembly, formation first National Convention in Iran
    1934 10 May Bahá’í properties on Mount Carmel were granted tax exemption. [GBF122; PP269, 285-286; BN No 84 June 1934 p14]
  • Shoghi Effendi stated that this was tantamount to securing indirect recognition of the Faith. [GBF122; PP269] [key]
  • BWC; Mount Carmel; Haifa; Israel Tax exemption; Recognition (legal); Mount Carmel; - Bahai World Centre buildings, monuments and gardens
    1934 15–18 May The first National Convention of the Bahá’ís of Australia and New Zealand was held in Sydney, with nine delegates in attendance. [SBR165]
  • The first Regional Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand was elected with its seat in Sydney. [GPB333,SBR165] iiiii
  • Those elected were: Percy Almond, Ethel Blundell, Hilda Brooks, Robert Brown, Hyde Dunn, Silver Jackman, Charlotte Moffitt, Margaret Stevenson, and Oswald Whitaker. [A Vision of Unity p10-11]
  • Sydney; Australia; New Zealand Conventions, National; National Spiritual Assembly, formation; First conventions first National Convention Australia and New Zealand; first NSA Australia and New Zealand
    1934 Jul The formation of a Spiritual Assembly, the first in the Balkans, elected in Sofia in July, 1934 by a community of thirty or more. [BW6p133 NBAD138] [key] Sofia; Bulgaria Local Spiritual Assembly, formation The first Local Spiritual Assembly in the Balkans. The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Sofia.
    1934 28 Aug Mishkín-Qalam’s calligraphic rendering of the Greatest Name was registered as a trademark with the United States patent office. [BW6:350] [key] United States Mishkin-Qalam; Greatest Name; United States patent office; Copyright and trademarks
    1934 20 Oct The publication of the dictionary used by the Guardian.

    In a message from the Universal House of Justice to a department at the World Centre, Amatu’l-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum is quoted as saying:

    …that the English dictionary to which the beloved Guardian habitually referred was “Webster’s New International Dictionary of the English Language”, second edition, unabridged, 1934, London G. Bell and Sons Ltd., Springfield, Massachusetts, R. and C. Merriam Co. We presume that if there were two versions published, one American and one British, it will have been the British one that the Guardian used. Reference to this specific edition of this dictionary is, obviously, very important when gauging the exact meaning intended by Shoghi Effendi in the use of certain words. [Dictionary Used by the Guardian by/on behalf of Universal House of Justice 1997-12-08]

  • See Wikipedia.
  • BWC; London Shoghi Effendi, Dictionary of; Webster dictionary; Dictionaries; Translation; English language; Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; Shoghi Effendi, Translations by; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1934 23 Oct Dr Susan Moody (b. Amsterdam, NY 20 November 1851) passed away in Iran. She had become a Bahá'í in May 1903 as a result of an intense study of the Faith with Isabella Brittingham. [BFA2:359, 361]
  • For her services in Iran and an obituary see BW6:483–6.
  • She was buried near the graves of Lillian Kappes and Sarah Clock in the Tihrán Bahá’í cemetery. [BW6:486] [key]
  • Tihran; Iran Susan Moody; Lillian Kappes; Sarah Clock; In Memoriam; Cemeteries and graves
    1934 8 Nov There were ten Bahá'ís in Addis Ababa when the first LSA was elected. Its members were Atto Sium Gabril-ch, Atto Haila Gabril-vc, Habib Boutros, Sabri Elias-sec, Edouard Goubran, El-Saad Said, E-saad Mansour, Abdu'llahi ahmed, and Aurahil Egsabaihir.
  • A cable announcing formation of the Assembly was sent to Shoghi Effendi, who replied "rejoiced, praying, love, gratitude".
  • In 1934 Sabri Elias was able to have Baha'u'lláh and the New Era translated into Amharic and then published. This was an important step in disseminating the teachings of the Bahá'í Faith across the country. The book was distributed to local libraries and to Bahá'ís around the world. In 1936, a copy of the book was given to the then - Ethiopian King, His Majesty Haile Selassie when he was visiting Jerusalem by a Canadian Bahá'í Mrs. Lorol Schipeflocher. [bahai.org]
  • A circular letter of 21 August 1935 informed LSAs that spiritual meetings had been suspended due to the "present condition of Ethiopia". Elias was forced to leave Ethiopia by socio-political events in 1935, but he and Mrs Elias returned to Addis Ababa in January 1944. [BW10p57]
  • This Assembly became the first incorporated Local Spiritual Assembly in Africa. [BW13p287] [key]
  • Addis Ababa; Ethiopia Local Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; LSA, formation first incorporated LSA in Africa
    1934 25 Nov The first Spiritual Assembly of Addis Ababa was formed. [BW6:70]
  • The community was established by Sabri Elias, and Fahima Elias, pioneers from Egypt who thus earned the title Knights of Bahá'u'lláh. Later Elias was asked to return home with other foreigners. [BW6:71]
  • Ethiopia was the only independent Kingdom in Africa at this date. [BW6:70]
  • Wikipedia says that the Assembly was formed in "late 1934".
  • Addis Ababa; Ethiopia Local Spiritual Assembly; Sabri Elias; Fahima Elias; Knights of Bahaullah first LSA Addis Ababa; first African to take the Faith to another African country.
    1934 Dec The National Spiritual Assembly of Egypt and the Sudan incorporated. [GPB336; BN No 321 November 1957 p4,/a<]
  • This is the first national assembly in an Islamic country to secure civil recognition and the status of an independent religion. [BW6:24] [key]
  • Egypt; Sudan National Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; National Spiritual Assembly, formation first NSA in Islamic country to secure civil recognition and the status of an independent religion
    1934 6 Dec The Tarbíyat Bahá’í Schools in Tihrán and all other Bahá'í schools across the country were closed by order of the Minister of Education (headed by 'Ali-Asghar-i-Hikmat, a well-known Azali) when they failed to open on a holy day. [BBD221–2; BW18:389; CB312; GPB363; PP308; RoB4p313; BN No 97 January 1936 p1]
  • In spite of (or because of) their high standards of education, the Bahá'í schools, which attracted ordinary people as well as a number of rich, famous and influential families to send their children as pupils, faced harsh opposition, mainly from the more traditional and conservative elements in the society, and specifically from the Shi‘i clerics. This was hardly surprising, given the strong animosity towards the Bahá'ís in Shi‘i Iran. According to Shoghi Effendi, while the ‘ulama’ headed the opposition to the Bábis and Bahá'ís, it was the Qajar kings and governors who willingly became the means through which this opposition was translated into action, as a way to obtain the clerics’ support and backing for their own policies. But as far as Nasir al-Din Shah was concerned, he had his own reasons for persecuting Bábis and Bahá'ís (between whom he did not appear to differentiate) . In 1852 an inept attempt had been made on his life. [The Forgotten Schools: The Baha’is and Modern Education in Iran, 1899–1934 p97]
  • For Western accounts of the episode see BBR475–9.
  • Tihran; Iran Tarbiyat school; Bahai schools; Holy days; Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Azali Babis; Social and economic development
    1935 (In the year) Husayn Uskuli, a Bahá’í resident in Shanghai, traveled to Taiwan, the first Bahá’í known to visit the island. [PH28; The Taiwan Bahá'í Chronicle by Barbara R. Sims p3] [key] Taiwan Husayn Uskuli; First Bahais by country or area first Bahá’í known to visit Taiwan
    1935 (In the year) The persecution against the Bahá’ís in Iran continued. [BW18p389]
  • Meetings in the Bahá’í Centre in Tihrán were banned.
  • A number of Bahá’ís in Bandar Sháh were arrested and imprisoned.
  • The secretary of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Arák was arrested.
  • Bahá’ís in Qazvín were arrested and harassed.
  • A Bahá’í in Záhidán was arrested.
  • Iran; Tihran; Bandar Shah; Arak; Qazvin; Zahidan Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Local Spiritual Assembly
    1935 (In the year) The publication of Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh. [Gleanings; Collins1.37]
  • Described by Shoghi Effendi as being, "a selection of the most characteristic and hitherto unpublished passages from the outstanding works of the Author of the Bahá'í Revelation," [GBF93]
  • Also see Introduction to Bahá'í Books.
  • BWC Gleanings from the Writings of Bahaullah; Bahaullah, Writings of; Shoghi Effendi, Translations by; Translation; Publications; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1935 Mar World Order magazine was founded. [SBR236; BWNS1289]
  • The publication included essays, poems, personal recollections, and historical pieces. The periodical brought together into one volume works by scholars, poets, artists, and practitioners from various fields of endeavour. The first volume also included excerpts from a letter by Shoghi Effendi titled "The Goal of a New World Order."
  • There was a break in publication from 1949 to 1966. [Bahá'í Works]
  • PDFs of most volumes are available for downloading from the Bahá'í Works website.
  • United States World Order magazine; - Periodicals; First publications; Publications; BWNS first publication World Order magazine
    1935 07 May In response to a letter from a very successful National Convention in Germany the Guardian called the German community the standard bearers of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh in the continent of Europe. [LDG72] [key] Germany
    1935 Jul The Archives Committee of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada made an appeal to collect all of the Tablets sent by 'Abdu'l-Bahá to those western believers who had been designated Disciples of 'Abdu'l-Bahá by Shoghi Effendi.
  • The Disciples were:

    Dr. J. E. Esslemont, Mr; Thornton Chase, Mr. Howard MacNutt, Miss Sarah Farmer, M. Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney, Miss Lillian Kappes‘, Mr. Robert Turner, Dr. Arthur Brauns, Mr. W. H. Randall, Mrs. Lua M. Getzinger, Mr. Joseph Hannen Mr. C. I. Thacher, Mr. Charles Greenleaf, Mrs. J. D. Brittingham, Mrs. Thornburgh, Mrs. Helen S. Goodall, Mr. Arthur P. Dodge, Mr. William H. Hoar, Dr. J. G. Augur. [BW3p84] [key]

  • United States Disciples of Abdul-Baha
    1935 Jul Shoghi Effendi asked the Bahá’ís to withdraw from church membership. [BBRSM146, 221; BW6:198; SBBH1:201] [key] Church membership; Membership; Membership of other organizations
    1935 12 Jul - 8 Aug When Martha Root landed in Iceland in 1935 she immediately made contact with Hólmfríôur Árnadóttir, with whom Amelia Collins had struck up a friendship during her short visit in 1924. The following year Hólmfríôur had visited Milly and stayed in her home for nine days while she was attending an International Congress at Columbia University. The two had also exchanged notes of greeting over the decade since that time.

    Hólmfríôur facilitated Martha's teaching efforts with her knowledge of the language and local contacts. During her stay in Iceland she gave lectures and did radio interviews. In one of her radio appearances she did a review of Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era and left copies of this book in the libraries. The first ever article on the Bahá'í Faith in the Icelandic language was published in a newspaper. An editor interviewed her for an article and wrote another explaining the basics of the Faith. As she usually did, Martha made contact with the Theosophists and the Esperanto Society and presented a lecture in Esperanto. [The Soul of Iceland-A Bahá'í Saga by Martha Root; BW6p684]

    Reykjavik; Iceland Travel Teaching; Teaching; Martha Root; Holmfriour Arnadottir; Milly Collins; Amelia Collins
    1935 Aug Mary Maxell pioneered to Germany. Her first meeting with the Bahá'ís was at the Esslingen Summer School. [WMSH45] [key] Germany Mary Maxell; Pioneer
    1935 20 Sep The passing of Jinab-i-Fádil-i-Shírází (Shaykh Muhammad Ibráhim) (b.1863) in Tehran. [ARG109, M9YA418, 433]
  • A biography of this learned servant of Bahá'u'lláh has been written by his grand-daughter, Houri Faláhi-Skuce entitled A Radiant Gem: A biography of Jinab-i-Fadil-i-Shirazi.
  • Note: ARG164-166 gives his passing as August 1935. The date given by the Persian calendar, 27 Shahrívar 1314 converts to 19 September 1935. He passed at 1:30 AM on the following day.
  • Tihran; Iran Fadil-i-Shirazi (Shaykh Muhammad Ibrahim); In Memoriam; Houri Falahi-Skuce
    1935 Sep or Oct Louise Gregory returned to Europe for her last teaching trip on that continent. Over the Christmas period she had a month-long visit from Martha Root who subsequently went on to Sofia to assist Marion Jack.
  • Louise left Belgrade on the 16th of May 1936 and travelled to Norway. She sailed from Oslo to New York on the SS Bergensfiordon the 26th of May and arrived in New York on the 4th of June. [SYH206-212] [key]
  • Belgrade; Yugoslavia Louise Gregory; Martha Root
    1935 Oct Shoghi Effendi wrote to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada stating that the laws of fasting, obligatory prayer, the consent of parents before marriage, the avoidance of alcoholic drinks and monogamy should be regarded as universally applicable and binding. [CB313] iiiii United States; Canada Laws; Gradual implementation of laws; Kitab-i-Aqdas (Most Holy Book); - Basic timeline, Expanded; Obligatory Prayer; alcohol
    1935 24 Nov The passing of Dr. Howard Luxmoore Carpenter (b. 1906, d. 24 November 1935). He was buried at the Sunset View Cemetery in El Cerrito, California. [Find a grave]
  • A graduate of the Stanford Medical School in 1932.
  • He married Mardiyyih Nabil (later Marzieh Gail) in 1929, and in 1932 he and his wife left San Francisco for Vienna, where he took a medical course, and afterward at the Guardian’s direction traveled through Central Europe and the Balkans. With Martha Root in Vienna, Budapest and Belgrade, he then spent five weeks in Sofia, Bulgaria, assisting Miss Marion Jack, after which he stopped briefly in Saloniki and went on to Tirana, Albania, to visit Refo Chapary. He then left for Haifa, where he stayed three weeks on his way to Tihran.
  • In Iran, notwithstanding the efforts of the Assembly, he was prevented for more than one year from obtaining a medical license. His health failed, and he was bedridden for many months. At last his physical condition improved, he resumed activities as a member of the Unity of the East and West Committee, and the authorities granted him a license to practise medicine. At this time he was stricken with paralysis. He lay seven months in a hospital, after which Mr. and Mrs. Rahmat ‘Alá’í invited him to their home, surrounding him with the same loving care which they had given Keith Ransom-Kehler the year before. His doctors advised a return to the United States as his only hope for recovery; he braved the long journey across the desert by motor, the presence of the 'Ala’is, who escorted him to Haifa, helping him to survive it.
  • After nine days in Haifa, during which the Guardian visited him daily, he took a ship for New York where he was greeted by the National Spiritual Assembly, and then left by way of the Panama Canal for San Francisco. Here he had recourse to the best medical authorities, but was pronounced incurable. He passed away November 24, 1935 . He is buried at Sunset Memorial Park in Berkeley. The Bahá’í service held for him was conducted by Leroy Ioas of San Francisco; Bahá’ís of Berkeley, Oakland, Geyserville, San Francisco and Santa Paula were present, and the words of Bahá’u’lláh on immortality radiated such power as to efface all thought of death. [BW6 p491-493]
  • See Shoghi Effendi's tribute to him where he said:
      Next to the late Mrs. Ransom-Kehler he may, indeed, be well considered as the foremost American believer who has, in the last few years, been assisted in rendering invaluable help to the Persian believers in their efforts for the establishment of the Administration in their country… . ["Uncompiled Published Letters"]
  • Berkely; United States; Budapest; Hungary; Belgrade; Serbia; Sofia; Bulgaria; Tirana; Albania; Tihran; Iran In Memoriam; Howard Carpenter; Marzieh Gail; Marion Jack; Marion Jack; Refo Chapary; Keith Ransom-Kehler; Rahmat Alai
    1936 (In the Year) The publication of Massacres de Babis en Perse by A.L.M. Nicolos. Paris; France A.L.M. Nicolas; Massacres de Babis en Perse; Publications
    1936 (In the year) Because the Bahá'í teachings were considered "international and pacifist" the Nazi close the Bahá'í summer school in Esslingen. [SYH208] [key] Germany Persecution, Germany
    1936 (In the year) The Bahá’í Journal was instituted in England. [United Kingdom: History of the Bahá'í Faith by Moojan Momen. United Kingdom Bahai Journal
    1936 (In the year) Mr E. R. and Mrs Loulie Mathews arrived in Guatemala, the first Bahá’í teachers to visit the country. Guatemala E. R. Mathews; Loulie A. Mathews (Loulie Mathews); Travel teaching; First Bahais by country or area first Bahá’í teachers to visit Guatemala
    1936 (In the year) The first woman was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly of India, Shirin Fozdar. India Shirin Fozdar; Women; NSA; Firsts, Other first woman elected to NSA India
    1936 (In the year) The National Assembly of Australia and New Zealand first issued its news organ, the Bahá’í Quarterly. Australia; New Zealand National Spiritual Assembly first publication Bahá’í Quarterly
    1936 (In the year) The Seven Valleys was published in revised translation by Ali Kuli Khan by the US Bahá'í Publishing Committee. A later revision by Khan and Marzieh Gail was published in 1945. [Collins1.113; About the Seven Valleys and the Four Valleys; Collins1.114]
  • In 1968 the US Bahá'í Publishing Trust bundled it with another allegorical treaties that was revealed in the late Baghdad period, under the title The Seven Valleys And the Four Valleys. It had several reprints until 1984. [Collins1.114, 1.115, 1.116, 1.117]
  • These two works were part of the publication Call of the Divine Beloved published in 2019. .
  • United States Haft Vadi (Seven Valleys); Chahar Vadi (Four Valleys); Ali Kuli Khan; Marzieh Gail; Call of the Divine Beloved (book)
    1936 Feb Martha Root met with Queen Marie of Romania for the eighth and last time. [MRHK413] [key] Romania Martha Root; Queen Marie of Romania
    1936 Jun The persecution of the Bahá’ís of Iran continued. [BW18p389]
  • All Bahá’í meetings were banned throughout Iran.
  • Several local Bahá’í centres were attacked or closed down.
  • Bahá’ís in Bandar Sháh were interrogated by the police for closing their shops on Bahá’í holy days.
  • Iran; Bandar Shah Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Holy days
    1936 summer Britain held its first Bahá’í summer school. [GT137; UD109] [key] United Kingdom First summer and winter schools; Summer schools first British Bahá’í summer school
    1936 Jul Following on the success of the initial Race Amity conferences in Washington, DC, the National Spiritual Assembly formed a racial amity committee. For a list of the committees complete with membership from 1921 until 1932 see The Bahá'í 'Race Amity' Movement and the Black Intelligentsia in Jim Crow America: Alain Locke and Robert Abbot by Christoper Buck. [Bahá'í Studies Review 17, 2011, 3–46]
  • In July, 1936 it was announced that "The National Spiritual Assembly had not appointed a Race Amity Committee that year. Its view was that race amity activities have sometimes resulted in emphasizing race differences rather than their unity and reconciliation within the Cause. Local Assemblies were requested to provide for amity meetings and regard them as a direct part of teaching." [TMW213] [key]
  • United States Race (general); Race Amity; Race unity; Conferences, Race Amity; Unity; National Spiritual Assembly
    1936 (Summer) While on a a cruise, on the way to Norway, Mrs French made a stop in Iceland where she distributed some Bahá'í literature. [BN No 104 December 1936 p8] [key] Reykjavik; Iceland Travel Teaching; Teaching; Mrs French
    1936 1 Jul The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada appointed the first Inter-America Committee, beginning an organized and coordinated effort to establish the Faith in the Republics of Central and South America. [BW10:181] [key] America National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada first Inter-America Committee
    1936 3–16 Jul The World Congress of Faiths was held in London under the auspices of the World Fellowship of Faiths. [GPB342; GT123]
  • Shoghi Effendi was asked in a personal letter from the chairman of the Congress, Sir Francis Younghusband, to contribute a paper, a task Shoghi Effendi delegated to George Townshend. [GT123; UD104]
  • George Townshend read the paper Bahá’u’lláh’s Ground Plan of World Fellowship, which had been approved by Shoghi Effendi. [BW7:635; GT132–3]
  • For text of the paper see BW6:614–19.
  • For the conference programme see BW7:634–45.
  • London; United Kingdom World Congress of Faiths; Francis Younghusband; George Townshend; Interfaith dialogue; Shoghi Effendi, Life of
    1936 (Latter half of the year) Mrs Randolph Bolles and her daughter Jeanne, two American Bahá'ís, (aunt and cousin of Mary Maxwell respectively), were sent to Budapest by Shoghi Effendi to open Hungary to the Faith. At the time of their departure there were seven Bahá'ís in Budapest, mostly of Jewish background. [Rebirth: Memoirs of Renée Szanto-Felbermann p103-5] [key] Budapest; Hungary First travel teachers and pioneers
    1936 (Fall) Lorol Schopflocher departed for Europe to do teaching work in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, England, France and Geneva, Switzerland. [BN No107 April 1937 p2] [key] Sweden; Norway; Denmark; United Kingdom; France; Geneva; Switzerland Travel teaching; Lorol Schopflocher
    1936 Nov Renée Szanto-Felbermann became a Bahá’í, the first to accept the Faith in Hungary. She was considered the first person to accept the Faith by some notwithstanding the events of 1913. [BW19:633]
  • See also Renée Szanto-Felbermann, Rebirth: The Memoirs of Szanto-Felbermann p104.
  • This document prepared by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'í Community of Hungary says that Mr. Arminius Vámbéry is the first believer in Hungary. See www.bahai.hu
  • See BW5p329 for the testament written by Professor Vámbéry and published in the Egyptian Gazette September 24th, 1913.
  • Hungary; Budapest First Bahais by country or area; Arminius Vambéry first to accept Bahá'í Faith in Hungary
    1936 31 Dec Khusraw Bimán (Thábit) passed away in Bombay at the age of 103 or 104. [Imm:56]
  • He is the first Zoroastrian to accept the Faith in India. [Imm:44–6]
  • For the story of his life see Imm:39–60.
  • Mumbai (Bombay); India Khusraw Biman; In Memoriam; First believers by background; Zoroastrianism; Conversion first Zoroastrian to accept the Faith in India
    1937 (In the year) The British Bahá’í Publishing Trust was founded. [BBRSM184; BW9:32; GT138–42] [key] United Kingdom Publishing Trusts
    1937 (In the year) The persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran continued throughout the country. [BW18p389]
  • Many Bahá’ís employed in the police force, army and government departments were dismissed.
  • Six members of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Ahváz were arrested.
  • Bahá’ís who closed their shops on Bahá’í holy days in Bandar Sháh were arrested.
  • All Bahá’í meetings in Kirmánsháh, Bírjand, Arák and other towns were prohibited by police order.
  • Five Bahá’í families were attacked in their homes in Cham-tang, near Hindíyán. They were severely beaten and forced to leave the village.
  • Iran; Ahvaz; Bandar Shah; Kirmanshah; Birjand; Arak; Cham-tang Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Other; Persecution; LSA; Holy days
    1937 (In the year) Mrs Mabel Ives made an extended trip to Moncton, New Brunswick to teach the Faith. She was assisted by Rosemary Sala of St. Lambert. [TG102, 108] [key] Moncton; New Brunswick; Canada Travel teaching; Mabel Rice-Wray Ives; Rosemary Sala
    1937 (In the year) The marriage of Ruth Browne and Ellsworth Blackwell in Chicago. Theirs was the second United States inter-racial Bahá'í marriage. [from White and Negro Alike. Stories of Baha'i Pioneers Ellsworth and Ruth Blackwell]

    In a cablegram, in 1939, the Guardian asked American Bahá’ís, “White and Negro alike,” to arise and move to foreign lands, especially to countries in the Caribbean and in Central America. Ellsworth and Ruth Blackwell volunteered to give up jobs and leave their home in Chicago and go where the need was greatest. In 1940, they were the first Bahá’í pioneers to move to Haiti, where they spent more than half of the next thirty-five years. Here are stories, many told in their own words, of the victories, as well as the challenges, they experienced in Haiti and in periods when they returned to Chicago between 1940 and 1975.

    Chicago, IL Ruth Browne; Ruth Blackwell; Ellsworth Blackwell; Marriage; interracial marriage
    1937 14 Jan Louis and Louise Gregory sailed to Haiti with the assignment to introduce the Faith to prominent Haitians. Although they met with success they were not able to extend their stay.. They were watched by the authorities and undermined by a "high ecclesiastical authority". They were denied permission to hold meetings so they left the country on the 10th of April and returned home via Kingston, Jamaica. [SYH218, 242; TMW246-251]
  • See the report as given by the Inter-America Committee in BN no 109 July 1937 p3-5.
  • Haiti Louise Gregory; Louis Gregory; Persecution, Haiti
    1937 2 Feb The passing of Mary Hanford Finney Ford (b. 1 November, 1856, in Meadville, PA) in Clearwater, FL. She was buried at the Forest Hill Cemetery in Kansas City, MI.
  • She was active in the sufferage movement throughout most of her life.
  • She found the Bahá'í Faith through Sarah Farmer, Green Acre, and Mirza Abu'l-Fadl, and helped form the first community of Bahá'ís in Boston where Louis Bourgeois, future architect of the first Bahá'í House of Worship in the West, then joined the religion.
  • In 1907 she went on pilgrimage where, it is said, 'Abdu'l-Bahá gave her access to teachings not universally given and to Tablets that were not to be copied. [FMH72]
  • In 1910 she published The Oriental Rose: The Teachings of Abdul Baha Which Trace the Chart of "The Shining Pathway"
  • She traveled with `Abdu'l-Bahá during some of his journeys in various places in Europe and then in America.
  • She published The World of Abdul Baha first in 1921 and then three subsequent printings.
  • In the latter part of her life she often traveled to Europe for some months of the year and during this period introduced the Faith to Ugo Giachery. [Wikipedia]
  • Find a grave.
  • Meadville PA; Clearwater FL; United States Mary Hanford Ford; In Memoriam
    1937 25 Mar Shoghi Effendi married Mary Maxwell, Amatu’l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum. [PP151; UD115; BN No107 April 1937 p1]]
  • For a description of the simple wedding see GBF68–9 and PP151–2.
  • Shoghi Effendi stressed that the marriage drew the Occident and the Orient closer together. [GBF69–70; PP153]
  • The American Bahá’í community sent $19 from each of its 71 Assemblies as a wedding gift. [GBF70; PP153]
  • An extension was built onto Shoghi Effendi’s apartment on the roof of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s house in Haifa to accommodate the couple. [BBD107; DH152]
  • See also MA89.
  • Haifa Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Amatul-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum; Interracial marriage; Gifts; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1937 11 Apr The passing of Dr. Zíá Bagdádí (b. February 9, 1882, Beirut, Lebanon) in Augusta, Georgia. He was buried in Westover Memorial Park, Augusta, Georgia.
  • Dr. Bagdádí attended the American University of Beirut and graduated as a physician. In September 1909, on ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s advice, he moved to Chicago to further his medical studies and soon emerged as a pillar of the Chicago Bahá’í community. A major translator of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s tablets into English and the editor of the Persian pages of Star of the West, he accompanied ‘Abdu’l-Bahá on much of His North American travels in 1912. In the year 1929, Dr. Bagdádí wrote a book telling of his birthplace and travels in the Orient under the title, Treasures of the East. He wrote of his experiences in the presence of Bahá'u'lláh as a child.
  • He married Zeenat Khanum who was the daughter of Hasan Aqa Tabrizi, aunt of Ali Nakhjavani who went to the Holy Land to give information relating to the restoration of the house of ‘Abdu’llah Pasha. Zeenat’s sister was Fatimih Khanum (Ali Nakhjavani’s mother) who spent her youth in service to the Greatest Holy Leaf. These two sisters, when they were young girls in ‘Akka, nine and eleven years old, were accepted into the household of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. They were married in the first Bahá’í marriage in Montreal, Canada which took place on April 30, 1914. [Bahá'í Chronicles] iiiii
  • Augusta, Georgia; United States; Beirut; Lebanon; Montreal; Canada In Memoriam; Zia Bagdadi; Bagdadi family (Baghdadi family); Star of the West; Zeenat Khanum; Hasan Aqa Tabrizi; Fatimih Khanum; Ali Nakhjavani; House of Abdullah Pasha; American University of Beirut; Restoration
    1921 - 1937 In the period from the inception of the Guardianship to 1937 Shoghi Effendi laid the foundation of the World Order of Bahá'u'lláh in conformity with the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Some of the major accomplishments were:
  • Continued the translation work that began while he was still an assistant to 'Abdu'l-Bahá and later as a student at Oxford.
  • Explained the principles and structure of the Administrative Order.
  • Developed the constitutional structure of the local and national spiritual assemblies.
  • Clarified the relationships of these assemblies with the community of believers and elucidate the manner of their election and operation.
  • Emphasized that the Administrative Order was the channel through which the spirit of God would flow and instructed that they be ever watchful lest "the means supersede the end". [Pg209]
  • Imparted the vision of the new world order through his letter which have become to be know as "The World Order Letters". [PG209-215]
  • Shoghi Effendi, Life of; World Order of Bahaullah (book); Administrative Order; Administration; Local Spiritual Assemblies; National Spiritual Assemblies
    1937 Ridván The First Seven Year Plan (1937-1944) was launched in North America. [BBD180; BBRSM158; BW7:17–18; MA9, 11-12, 87]
  • The Guardian's Seven Year Plan for the American Bahá'ís
  • For the role of individuals, local spiritual assemblies and the National Spiritual Assembly see MA11–12.
  • The Plan called for:
    • the completion of the exterior of the Wilmette Temple. BW7:17–18; PP385]
    • the establishment of a local spiritual assembly in each state and province of the United States and Canada. [PP385]
    • the establishment of a centre in each of the republics of Latin America. [PP385; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement)p2]

      This date, the inception of the First Seven Year Plan of the North American Bahá’í community, marked the opening of the First Epoch of the Divine Plan. This epoch concluded with the successful completion of the Ten Year Crusade in 1963. [Epochs of the Formative Age by Research Department of the Universal House of Justice] [key]

  • United States; Canada Seven Year Plan, US and CA (1937-1944); Teaching Plans; Teaching Plans, National; LSA; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; Ages and Epochs; Tablets of the Divine Plan
    1937 May Fred Schopflocher contributed and additional $100,000 (see 16 March, 1929) to the goal of $350,000 to complete the exterior ornamentation of the House of Worship. For his dedication to the construction the Guardian designated him as "Chief Temple Builder". [LoF 388-390, BW12p664] [key] Wilmette; United States Mashriqul-Adhkar, Wilmette; Fred Schopflocher; Funds
    1937 May Several prominent Bahá’ís were arrested in Yazd. [BW18:389]
  • They were imprisoned in Tihrán for four years; one died in prison. [BW18:389] [key]
  • Yazd; Tihran; Iran Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Deaths; Persecution
    1937 2 May The Yerrinbool Bahá’í School (originally known as ‘Bolton Place’) was officially opened in Australia. [Yerrinbool Bahá'í School 1938 - 1988: An Account of the First Fifty Years by Graham Hassall; Yerrinbool Bahá'í School and the Australian Bahá'í Community by Fazel Naghdy]
  • Bahaipedia.
  • Yerrinbool; Australia Yerrinbool Bahai School; Bahai inspired schools
    1937 21 May All Bahá’í activities and institutions were banned in Germany by a special order of the Reichsführer SS and the Gestapo Chief of Staff Heinrich Himmler when he banned the Bahá'í Faith in Germany. He blamed it on the religion’s “international and pacifist tendencies.” The Nazi government increasingly targeted the Bahá'ís after Himmler’s edict, first by tearing down the public memorial to 'Abdu’l-Bahá in Bad Mergntheim and then, in 1939, making mass arrests of the former members of the National Spiritual Assembly. Bahá'ís went to jail, some for very long periods, without charges. In 1942, more mass arrests occurred. Many of the Bahá'ís from Germany and the surrounding countries disappeared in the Nazi concentration camp system. [BBRSM185; Bahá'í Teachings; German Bahá'í website archives; The German Baha'i Community under National Socialism p19]]
  • See talk by David Langness entitled Nazi Germany: The Untold Story of the Bahá'ís.
  • See Shoghi Effendi's letter of 11 February 1934 where he says in part:

      The wave of nationalism, so aggressive and so contagious in its effects, which has swept not only over Europe but over a large part of mankind is, indeed, the very negation of the gospel of peace and of brotherhood proclaimed by Bahá’u’lláh. The actual trend in the political world is, indeed, far from being in the direction of the Bahá’í teachings. The world is drawing nearer and nearer to a universal catastrophe which will mark the end of a bankrupt and of a fundamentally defective civilization. [LDG1p55]
  • See letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi 10 November 1938 regarding the German community's efforts to have the government rescind the ban. [Messages from Shoghi Effendi to the Benelux countries pp38-40]
  • Germany Persecution, Germany; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Bans; Persecution, Court cases; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Court cases; World War II
    1937 Jun Martha Root made her final trip to China, arriving in Shanghai from Japan. She was evacuated on the 14th of August because Shanghai was under bombardment from the Japanese forces. From there she sailed to the Philippines, arriving in Manila on the 20th of August. [PH41; Film Early History of the Baha'í Faith in China 25 min 46 sec ] [key] Shanghai, China Martha Root
    1937 Jul Nine Bahá’ís were imprisoned in Sangsar, Khurásán, Iran, for closing their shops on Bahá’í holy days. [BW18:389]
  • They were imprisoned for two months. [BW18:389] [key]
  • Sangsar; Khurasan; Iran Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution; Holy days
    1937 Dec The writing of Episodes in the History of the Covenant by Shoghi Effendi originally written as "Waqáy-i-Tárikhiyyih dar 'Ahd wa Mitháq-i-Iláhi" for the friends in Iran. In 1997 it was translated by Khazeh Fananapazir and edited by Mehdi Wolf. [Episodes in the History of the Covenant][key] BWC; Iran Covenant (general); Covenant-breakers; Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1937 20 Dec Muhammad-‘Alí, half-brother of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Arch-breaker of the Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh, died. [CB355; GPB320; MA11]

    During Bahá’u’lláh's ministry, Mírzá Muhammad-`Alí was known by the title Ghusn-i-Akbar (the Greater Branch). After he broke the Covenant, believers referred to him as the Naqid-i-Akbar (the Arch-Covenant-breaker).

    "The Hand of Omnipotence has removed the archbreaker of Bahá'u'lláh's Covenant, his hopes shattered, his plottings frustrated, the society of his fellow-conspirators extinguished. God's triumphant Faith forges on, its unity unimpaired, its purpose unsullied, its stability unshaken. Such a death calls for neither exultation nor recrimination, but evokes overwhelming pity at so tragic a downfall unparalleled in religious history." [Cablegram December 20, 1937 MA11)

          This perfidious man, consumed by a “soul festering jealousy” toward Abdu’l-Baha, behaved in a way that “…agitated the minds and hearts of a vast proportion of the faithful throughout the East, eclipsed, for a time, the Orb of the Covenant, created an irreparable breach within the ranks of Bahá’u’lláh’s own kindred, sealed ultimately the fate of the great majority of the members of His family, and gravely damaged the prestige, though it never succeeded in causing a permanent cleavage in the structure, of the Faith itself.” [GPB246]

          He had changed the text of at least one tablet of Bahá'u'lláh to make it appear that Bahá'u'lláh was condemning the wicked deeds of'Abdu’l-Bahá. He plotted to murder 'Abdu’l-Bahá. He made repeated false allegations about 'Abdu’l-Bahá to the Ottoman authorities so that the Master came perilously closed to being exiled to a remote part of the Libyan desert. In addition, from 1892 to 1929, Muhammad Ali and his relatives occupied the mansion of Bahji, where Bahá'u'lláh’s tomb was located, and it was not until 1952 that the property surrounding the Shrine was finally owned, without hindrance, by the Bahá'í community. [CoB153; PP231-233]

          He “was stricken with paralysis which crippled half his body; lay bedridden in pain for months before he died; and was buried according to Muslim rites, in the immediate vicinity of a local Muslim shrine, his grave remaining until the present day (1944) devoid of even a tombstone—a pitiful reminder of the hollowness of the claims he had advanced, of the depths of infamy to which he had sunk, and of the severity of the retribution his acts had so richly merited.” [GPB319-320]

  • For details of his death and funeral see DH117 and GPB320.
  • Akka Muhammad-Ali; Covenant-breakers; Births and deaths
    1937 20 Dec Mírzá Ḥusayn-‘Alíy-i-Jahrumí represented the arch-breaker of the Covenant, Mírzá Muhammad-'Ali, in Persia.

    Mírzá Ḥusayn-i-Shírázíy-i-Khurṭúmí represented the arch-breaker of the Covenant in India.

    Ḥájí Muḥammad-Ḥusayn-i-Káshání represented him in Egypt. [GPB318] [key]

    Iran; Egypt; India Covenant-breakers; Mirza Husayn-Aliy-i-Jahrumi; Mirza Muhammad-Ali; Mirza Husayn-i-Shiraziy-i-Khurṭumi; Haji Muḥammad-Husayn-i-Kashani
    1938 to 1955 The fourth Trustee of the Huqúqu'lláh was Jináb-i-Valíyu'lláh Varqá, the third son of Varqá the martyr. He was born in Tabriz and after the death of his father and brother he was raised by his grandmother, a fanatical Muslim. At the age of 16 his uncle removed him from the home and taught him the Faith. He attended the American University at Beirut and spent summers with 'Abdu'l-Bahá and accompanied the Master to America and served as His interpreter. He returned to Iran where he served on local and national assemblies and was made a Trustee of the Huqúqu'lláh in 1938 at a time when the observance of the law spread throughout Iran. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 25 March, 1985]
  • He was elevated to a Hand of the Cause of God in 1951 and passed away in Tubingen, Germany in 1955 while taking a treatment for an illness. [BW13p831-834] [key]
  • Tubingen; Germany; Tabriz; Iran; Beirut; Lebanon; Akka Varqa, Valiyullah; Huququllah; Huququllah, Trustees of; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Appointments; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; Hands of the Cause, Activities; American University of Beirut; Varqa
    1938 (In the year) Persecution of the Bahá’ís of Iran continued throughout the country. [BW18p389]
  • Bahá’ís marrying without a Muslim ceremony were investigated, including several hundred in Tihrán alone. Most were imprisoned pending trial and were imprisoned for six to eight months afterwards and fined.
  • Bahá’í meetings in Kirmánsháh, Záhidán, Mashhad and other towns were harassed by the police.
  • Iran; Tihran; Kirmanshah; Zahidan; Mashhad Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Other; Persecution
    1938 (In the year) William DeForge became the first Bahá’í to visit the Dominican Republic. He made a one-day trip from Puerto Rico. Dominican Republic; Central America First Bahais by country or area first Bahá’í visits the Dominican Republic
    1938 (In the year) The first native person to become a Bahá’í in Canada, Melba Loft (née Whetung), a Chippewa, accepted the Faith. Canada Melba Loft first native to become Bahá’í in Canada
    1938 (In the year) The first Bahá’í to be resident in Finland, Aminda Josephine Kruka, an American nurse, arrived in the country. Finland First Bahais by country or area first Bahá’í resident Finland
    1938 (In the year) Shoghi Effendi remained in Europe for the year owing to terrorist activities in Palestine. [PP219]
  • "The Great Revolt" raged in Palestine from 1936 to 1939. It was a nationalist uprising by Palestinian Arabs in Mandatory Palestine against the British administration of the Palestine Mandate, demanding Arab independence and the end of the policy of open-ended Jewish immigration and land purchases with the stated goal of establishing a "Jewish National Home".
  • An innocent casualty of the unrest was Habib Miskar. He was one of the oldest Bahá'ís in Haifa at the time. On the 6th of March, 1939, while on his way home he was passing the gate of the house of 'Abdu'l-Bahá when he noticed a party of militia pursuing a fleeing man. He hurried towards the entrance of the garden to take refuge but the soldiers, having no way of knowing that he was not the terrorist they were pursuing, shot them both. [BW8p679] [key]
  • Europe; Palestine Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; History (general)
    1938 (In the year) The publication of Prayers and Meditations of Bahá'u'lláh. [P&M; Collins1.100]
  • It contained 186 pieces.
  • BWC Prayers and Meditations of Bahaullah (book); Bahaullah, Writings of; Prayer; Meditation; Shoghi Effendi, Translations by; Translation; Publications; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1938 - 1939 Shoghi Effendi disbanded the Haifa Spiritual Assembly which had been in operation since 1922, and sent the local community away. The 1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine made local conditions dangerous with the Arab nationalist contending with the threat of the apparent open-ended Jewish immigration and land purchases and the stated goal of establishing a "Jewish National Home". Perhaps another factor in his decision was the impending war in Europe. [PP348]
  • The disbanding of the spiritual assembly apparently did not mean the end to the publication of the "Haifa News Letter" in which news from the World Centre had been forwarded to all the Bahá'í centres in the East in Persian with an English translation of the publication distributed in the West. The last known mention of the Haifa News Letter was in letter dated the 6th of March, 1946 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to Britain. UD182 refers. [PP50, 282,348] [key]
  • Haifa Haifa Spiritual Assembly; Local Spiritual Assembly; Haifa News Letter; Newsletters; Haifa Bahai Assembly
    1938 (In the year) The publication of The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, a compilation of the communications to the North American Bahá'í community between 1929 and 1936. "These...communications unfold a clear vision of the relation between the Bahá'í community and the entire process of social evolution under the Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh." [WOBv; Collins5.145]
  • It is available online at the Bahá'í Reference Library.
  • World Order of Bahaullah (book); Dispensation of Bahaullah (letter); World order (general); Publications; Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Peace; World peace (general); Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1938 (In the year) Felix Maddela became the first Filipino Bahá’í. His first encounter with the Bahá’í Faith was in 1924 when a purchase he made was wrapped in a piece of old newspaper which contained an article by Martha Root about the religion and a picture of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. As the author’s address did not appear in the article, it was another 14 years before he encountered more about the religion. In the early spring of 1937, Loulie Albee Mathews arrived in Manila on board the “Franconia.” As the boat was to dock for only a few hours, she managed to place a few pamphlets in a college library on the shelf of comparative religions. A few months later, on a visit to Manila from Solano, Nueva Vizcaya, Mr. Maddela came across the literature. This started a series of correspondence with the Bahá’í Publishing Committee of the United States. With Madella so fired up, he immediately taught his family and friends. Shortly before World War II, the Bahá’í’s of Solano numbered around fifty. When war broke out all communications ceased. Immediately after the war, contact was re-established thru Alvin Blum, who was attached to the medical unit of the United States Army. Hitch-hiking to Solano, which was in ruins, he located the Maddelas living in impoverished conditions. Of the fifty enrolled Bahá’í’s, twenty-five had been killed or were missing. The others had survived by hiding in rice fields for three years. [WikipediaThe Bahá’í Faith in the Philippines]
  • On the 2nd of December 1946, the Local Spiritual Assembly of Sloano was incorporated. At Ridván 1964 the first National Spiritual Assembly was formed and during the Ten Year Crusade Hand of the Cause Dr Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir led the mass conversion with brought the Faith far and wide throughout the islands. [BW19p798]
  • Travel teachers that had visited the Philippines were: Jamal Effendi, Mirzá Husayn Tútí, Martha Root and Siegfried Schopflocher. [BW19p798] [key]
  • Manila; Solano; Philippines Felix Maddela; Loulie A. Mathews (Loulie Mathews); Alvin Blum; Jamal Effendi; Martha Root; Siegfried Schopflocher first Filipino Bahá’í
    1938 (In the year) The Bahá'í Faith was banned in Austria. [SYH209] [key] Austria; Persecution, Austria
    1938 Jan The National Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand incorporated. [GPB336] [key] Australia; New Zealand National Spiritual Assembly of Australia; National Spiritual Assembly of New Zealand; National Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; Incorporation; Recognition (legal)
    1938 5 Feb Bahá'ís in the Soviet Union were persecuted by the authorities. [BBR473, BW8p87-90, 179-81, BW14p479-481, SETPE1p155; YS6]
  • Five hundred Bahá'í men were imprisoned in Turkistán. [Bw8p89]
  • Many Persian Bahá'ís living in various cities of the Soviet Union were arrested, some are sent to Siberia, others to Pavladar in northern Kazakhstan and yet others to Iran. [BW8p87, 179, 184]
  • Six hundred Bahá'í refugees-women, girls, children and a few old men, went to Iran, most to Mashhad. [BW8p89]
  • The Bahá'í Temple in Ishqábád (now Ashgabat, Turkmenistan) was confiscated and turned into an art gallery. [BDD122, BW8p89]
  • The Bahá'í schools were ordered closed. [BW8p89]
  • Spiritual Assemblies and all other administrative institutions in the Caucasus were ordered dissolved. [BW8p89]
  • Shoghi Effendi included all these territories in his Ten Year Plan, unveiled in 1953, as follows:
    • The National Spiritual Assembly of Germany and Austria was made responsible for opening Albania, Estonia, Finno—Karelia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldavia (Moldova), Romania and White Russia (Belarus) and for consolidating Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic (S.F.S.R.), and Yugoslavia.
    • The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of lran was made responsible for opening Kirgizia (later named Kyrgyzstan), Mongolia, Tajikistan (Tadzhikistan) and Uzbekistan, and for consolidating Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, and Turkmenistan.
    • The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States was responsible for opening Kazakhstan, Sakhalin, and the Ukraine. [BW20p196-197]
    [key]
  • Soviet Union; Russia; Caucasus; Turkistan; Ishqabad; Turkmenistan; Kazakhstan; Iran; Mashhad Mashriqul-Adhkar, Ishqabad; Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship); Persecution, Russia; Persecution, Arrests; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Bahai schools; Local Spiritual Assembly
    1938 15 Mar Mary Virginia Thornburgh-Cropper (Maryam Khánum), the first Bahá’í of the British Isles, passed away in Kensington, London.
  • Find a Grave.
  • She was known to her friends as Minnie and first heard of the Bahá’í Faith in 1898 when she was 41.
  • She was an American living in London and had been married to an Englishman.
  • Shortly after reading about the Báb in an encyclopedia, by coincidence, she was invited by her friend Phoebe Hearst to be part of the first group of Western Bahá’í pilgrims to visit ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in the Holy Land.
  • She is considered to be the first person to become a Bahá’í in the UK and throughout her life was a very active member of the community.
  • She was a member of the first elected National Spiritual Assembly of England (later Great Britain).
  • She made her motor-car available to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during His visits. [SBR30, BW4p375, In the Footsteps of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá p9]
  • For details of her life see BSR17–30.
  • For her obituary see BW8:649–51.
  • Notes: It is possibly she, rather than her mother, Mrs Thornburgh, who is referred to as a Disciple of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in BW3:84–5. The picture is not that of Mrs Thornburgh-Cropper.
  • London; United Kingdom Mary Virginia Thornburgh-Cropper; Disciples of Abdul-Baha; In Memoriam first Bahá’í of British Isles
    1938 Apr The first local spiritual assembly in the whole of Latin America was formed in Mexico City. [bahai.org;Wikipedia] [key] Mexico City Local Spiritual Assembly first LSA in Latin America
    1938 Ridván The National Spiritual Assembly of India, (Pakistan) and Burma launched a Six Year Plan, the Indian Six Year Plan (1938-1944). [Ruhi 8.2 p46, BBRSM158; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]
  • Although the plan was not initiated by Shoghi Effendi, it received his commendation and encouragement. Lack of funds prevented the plan from being implemented until 1940. [DND70-71, 96-97, 100-101; SBBH2:160] [key]
  • India; Pakistan; Myanmar (Burma) Teaching Plans; Teaching Plans, National; India, Pakistan and Burma Six Year Plan
    1938 27 Apr In a message addressed to the Thirtieth National Convention the Guardian announced:
      "As token my gratitude to such community entrusted beloved co-worker Mrs. Collins locks Bahá’u’lláh’s most precious hair arranged preserved by loving hands Greatest Holy Leaf to rest beneath dome of Temple nobly raised by dearly beloved believers in American continent." [BN Issue 116 June 1938 p1]
      "This is the Tablet read by Mrs. Thomas (Amelia) Collins in presenting at the Convention the Guardian's gift of locks of Bahá'u'lláh's Hair. The Tablet is shared with the believers with the Guardian's permission." [BN Issue 121 December 1938 p11] Though the translation had been approved by Shoghi Effendi, it was more recently (2001) sent to the Bahá'í World Center to verify its authenticity. The translation given here is an authorized translation from the BWC, approved for distribution. Translator not identified.
  • See also provisional translations of the remaining six Tablets of the Hair, that have been completed by Adib Masumian. There are a total of eleven Tablets of the Hair. [Adib Masumian's personal website]
  • Chicago, IL; United States Bahaullah, Writings of; Alvah-i-Shaarat (Tablets of the Hair); Amelia Collins; Conventions; Conventions, National; Gifts; Hair (general); Relics
    1938 30 Apr Munírih Khánum, the Holy Mother, wife of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, passed away. [BBD166; BW8:260; CB358; DH161]
  • Note: UD119 records this was 28 April.
  • She died while the American National Convention was in session in Chicago. Shoghi Effendi cabled the Convention to say that all Ridván celebrations were to be suspended and that the delegates should devote a special session to her remembrance. [SEPE1p266]
  • Shoghi Effendi interred her body just west of the Shrine of Bahíyyih Khánum and erected a simple monument over her grave. [DH161]
  • For excerpts from her autobiography see BW8:259–63.
  • For tributes to her see BW8:263–7.
  • BWC; Mount Carmel Munirih Khanum; In Memoriam; Monument Gardens; Cemeteries and graves; - Bahai World Centre buildings, monuments and gardens; World Centre; Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1938 1 May The National Convention was held in Chicago. Those elected to the National Spiritual Assembly were: Dorothy Baker, Allen McDaniel, Horace Holley, Roy Wilhelm, George Latimer, Seigfried Schopflocher, Amelia Collins, Harlan Ober, and Charles Ioas. [BN Issue 116 June 1938 p4]
  • Grace Roberts Ober, who had just given a report on a travel teaching trip to Louisville KY and on her work in Toronto where she had been the previous Fall, collapsed into the arms of the Convention chairman, Harlan Ober in view of the assembled delegates while ending her address. She was removed from the convention hall and passed away shortly thereafter. See TG75-76 and FMH273-274 for the background to this story.
  • Born in Thorold, ON of Sarah E. Wilson and the Rev Thomas Tempest Robarts, a cannon in the Anglican Church, Grace's life's work was that of a teacher.
  • During 'Abdu'l-Baha's tour of America she served as his household manager, going ahead to secure an apartment for him and acting as His housekeeper and hostess.
  • On July 17, 1912 she married Harlan Ober at 'Abdu'l-Bahá's suggestion. The legal marriage was conducted by Howard Colby Ives. [BW8p656-660] [key]
  • Chicago; United States Grace Robarts Ober; In Memoriam; Dorothy Baker; Allen McDaniel; Horace Holley; Roy Wilhelm; George Latimer; Seigfried Schopflocher; Amelia Collins; Harlan Ober; Charles Ioas; Conventions, National; National Assembly, election of
    1938 June In the June issue of Bahá'í News Shoghi Effendi recommended the translation of the Qur'an as done by Sales as being the best English translation. He said it was the most accurate rendering available, and it was the most widespread. [BN Issue 116 June 1938 p1] [key] Quran; Quran, translation of
    1938 Jul The first Finnish Bahá’í, Pastor Väinö Rissanen, accepted the Faith. He was taught by Miss Josephine Kruka [BW8:935; BW17:129]
  • For a letter from him about Finland see BW8:936.
  • Finland First Bahais by country or area first Finnish Bahá’í
    1938 25 Jul The passing of Queen Marie of Romania. [BBD144; GPB395]
  • For her services to the Bahá’í Faith see GPB389–96.
  • For tributes paid by her to the Bahá’í Faith see BW8:269–71.
  • For her relationship with the Bahá’í Faith see BW8:271–6.
  • For tributes to her see BW8276–82.
  • For her biography see Her Eternal Crown - Queen Marie Of Romania And The Baha'i Faith by Della Marcus and published by George Ronald Publisher.
  • In 2018 a film was made about her life titled Maria Inima Romaniei (Maria Heart of Romania) by John Florescu of Chainsaw Film Productions. Trailer.
  • Romania Queen Marie of Romania; In Memoriam; Births and deaths
    1938 Sep The first Bahá’í summer school to be held in India took place in Simla. [BBRSM194; BW8:199] [key] Shimla; Himachal Pradesh; India Summer schools; First summer and winter schools first Bahá’í summer school held in India
    1938 11 Nov The passing of Pocahontas Kay (Grizzard) Pope (b. 1864 or 1865 Pocahontas Kay in Halifax County, NC, USA) in Hyattsville, Prince George’s County, Maryland. She is buried in National Harmony Memorial Park Cemetery in Hyattsville, Prince George's County, Maryland, USA. Her original burial location fell into obscurity after 1960 when her grave, along with 37,00 others, was moved from Columbian Harmony Cemetery to National Harmony Memorial Park. None of the original markers was retained, rendering her grave essentially anonymous. The site of her grave was located thanks to the research efforts of local Bahá’ís. [Bahá’í Teachings; Find a grave]

    On the 30th of April, 2018 the Bahá’ís of the Washington, DC Metro Area unveiled a grave marker for Pocahontas Pope, the city’s first African American Bahá’í, in National Harmony Memorial Park. Another ceremony was held on the 19th of May to honour her. A history of her life and accomplishments was read and a monologue in her voice was performed. [DC Bahá’í Community website; Bahá’ís of the US website]

    Pocahontas Pope was employed by Alma Knobloch to help her as a seamstress in her dressmaking business. In 1906 she became a Bahá’í and wrote a letter of declaration to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. In His reply He wrote in part,

      “Render thanks to the Lord that among that race thou art the first believer, that thou hast engaged in spreading sweet-scented breezes, and hast arisen to guide other… [T]he pupil of the eye is black, it is the source of light. Thou shalt likewise be.”

    The complete Tablet can be found at Bahá’í Chronicles, In Alma Sedonia Knobloch p392 by Jennifer Redson Wiebers and in Aflame with Devotion p.67-68 by Judy Hannen Moe.

    From that point until at least 1918 she hosted talks in her home, and one of the people she led to the Faith was Alain Locke, “Father of the Harlem Renaissance” among many others who would go on to render service to the Cause. [ Bahá’ís of the US website]

    See as well The Bahá’í Faith in America Vol 2 p 225-226 by Robert Stockman, Alma Sedonia Knobloch p27-29, 33 by Jennifer Redson Wiebers.

    Hyattsville; MD; USA; Washington,DC; USA In Memoriam; Pocahontas Pope First African American Baha'i in Washington, D.C.
    1938 27 Nov In a letter to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the British Isles, Shoghi Effendi outlined the attitudes and obligations of Bahá’ís regarding military service. [BW17:384–5; UD122–3] [key] United Kingdom Armed forces; Military; Weapons; War (general)
    1938 25 Dec Shoghi Effendi addressed The Advent of Divine Justice, a book-length letter, to the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. [ADJ; PG215]
  • See A Tutorial on the Advent of Divine Justice: Spiritual Values for a New World Order by Fazel Naghdy.
  • See as well a Study Guide at the Crimsom Academy. iiiii
  • BWC Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; Advent of Divine Justice (letter); Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1939 (In the year) Amelia Collins continued to support the spread of the religion in Iceland as she supported the publication of the first translation of Baháʼí literature, John Esslemont's Baháʼu'lláh and the New Era, in Icelandic in 1939. [CBN No 93 Oct 1957 p2Collins, Amelia: The Fulfilled Hope of 'Abdu'l-Bahá by Richard Francis] [key] Iceland Amelia Collins; Publications; Publishing
    1939 Date approximate Honor Kempton opened a bookshop lending library, calling it “The Book Cache". [Bahá'í News No 131 November 1939 pg3] [key] Anchorage; Alaska
    1939 Date uncertain Miss Janet Whitenack, relocated from New York to Alaska, became the first person to declare in Alaska. She had studied the Cause previously in New York. The young woman was a graduate of Syracuse University. [Bahá'í News No 131 November 1939 p4] [key] Faitbanks; Alaska First Alaskan Baha'i
    1939 (In the year) The first Bahá’í of Paraguay, Maria Casati, of Formosa, Paraguay, became a Bahá’í in Buenos Aires. Argentina Maria Casati first Bahá’í of Paraguay
    1939 (In the year) Shoghi Effendi ordered twin monuments from Italy similar in style to that of the Greatest Holy Leaf and sought permission from the British authorities to reintere the remains of Navváb and the Purest Branch on Mount Carmel near those of Bahíyyih Khánum and the Holy Mother. Marble for the monuments came from Chiampo, Italy as for the Archives Building, the Shine of the Báb, the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, The Terraces project, and the Houses of Worship in India and Samoa. It was cut and chiseled by a firm called Margraf, formerly known as Industria Marmi Vincentini. [DH162; PP259] [key] BWC; Mount Carmel Navvab (Asiyih Khanum); Mirza Mihdi (Purest Branch); Mount Carmel; Bahiyyih Khanum (Greatest Holy Leaf); Monument Gardens; World Centre; Marble; Cemeteries and graves; Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Margraf
    1939 (In the year) Emeric Sala gave a talk in Regina proclaiming the Faith for the first time in Saskatchewan. Regina is one of five cities he visited on this business trip. [TG104] [key] Regina; Saskatchewan; Canada Emeric Sala first public mention of the Faith in Saskatchewan
    1939 7 Feb In a letter to the National Spiritual Assembly of India the Guardian encouraged the concept of expansion by settlement to which he applied the name "pioneering". [MSEIp179] [key] BWC Pioneering first known use of the term "pioneering" in official correspondence.
    1939 21 Feb Situation in Egypt: Background Information

    "riots which broke out with exceptional fury in Ismá'ílíyyih, when angry crowds surrounded the funeral cortege of Muhammad Sulaymán, a prominent Bahá'í resident of that town, creating such an uproar that the police had to intervene, and having rescued the body and brought it back to the home of the deceased, they were forced to carry it without escort, at night, to the edge of the desert and inter it in the wilderness." [GPB367-368]

  • The National Spiritual Assembly of Egypt had, in respect to the decision of the 10th of May, 1925 declaring the Báhá'í Faith to be non-Muslim, petitioned the government for the right to administer laws of personal status to the Bahá'í community according to its Bahá'í Laws affecting Matters of Personal Status.
  • On the 29th of February, 1939, the Grand Muftí ruled that the Bahá'ís were not to be considered Muslims and had no right to be buried in Muslim cemeteries. Four plots of land were allocated to serve as cemeteries for the Bahá'í community in Cairo, Alexandria, Port Said and in Ismá'ílíyyih.
  • Immediately following this decision the remains of Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl were transferred followed by the exhumation from a Christian cemetery in Cairo the remains of Lua Getsinger and subsequent re-interment in an adjacent plot. [GPB368-369] [key]
  • Cairo; Alexandria; Port Said; Ismailiyyih; Egypt Lua Getsinger; Mirza Abul-Fadl Gulpaygani first Bahá'í cemetery
    1939 28 Feb The passing of Louis Alphonse Daniel Nicolas, signing A.L.M. Nicolas , (b. March 27 , 1864 in Rasht, Iran) in Paris. He was an historian and French orientalist, official interpreter of the Legation French abroad, and France's consul general in Tabriz.
          After reading Gobineau's Trois ans en Asie, 1855-1858 he checked all the information Gobineau had written in his book, corrected some of it, and then began to translate the writings of the Báb. Seduced by this young doctrine, he converted to Bábism and thus became the first Western Bábí. He wrote various works Seyyed Ali Mohamed dit le Báb (1905) and was the first to translate a work of the Báb into French: the Arabic Beyan and the Persian Beyan, an Essai sur le Chéikhisme (1911) and several articles in newspapers such that Review of the Muslim World. Nicolas became knight of the Legion of Honour in 1909.
  • Moojan Momen says of him, "No European scholar has contributed so much to our knowledge of the life and teachings of the Báb as Nicholas. His study of the life of the Báb and his translations of several of the most important books of the Báb remain of unsurpassed value." [BBR36]
  • His important collection of manuscripts were auctioned and the items relevant to the Bahá’í and Bábí Faiths are purchased by the Bahá’í World Centre.
  • See BW8p885-887 for An Interview with A. L. M. Nicolas of Paris by Edith Sanderson.
  • See a short biography by Nader Nasiri Moghaddam in Encyclopaedia Iranica Online.
  • A chronological list of his publications:
    • Le Livre des Sept Preuves [Dalá'il-i-Sab'ih translated from Persian into French], Paris, 1902, 68 pp.
    • A propos de deux manuscrits 'Bábís' de la Bibliothèque Nationale, Revue de l'Histoire des Religions, Paris, volume 47, 1903, pp. 58-73
    • Le Béyan Arabe [Bayán al-'arabiyya translated from Arabic into French], Paris, 1905, 235 pp.
    • Seyyed Ali Mohammed dit le Báb [biography of the Báb, selections translated into English in this volume], Paris, 1905, 458 pp.
    • En Perse : Constitution [translation by A.L.M. Nicolas], Revue du Monde Musulman, Paris, volume 1, 1907 (décembre 1906), p. 86-100
    • Sur la Volonté Primitive et l'Essence Divine d'après le Báb, Revue de l'Histoire des Religions, Paris, volume 55, 1907, pp. 208-212
    • Essais sur le Chéïkhisme, 4 volumes :
    • Cheïkh Ahmed Lahçahi, Paris, volume 1, 1910
    • Séyyèd Kazem Rechti, Paris, volume 2, 1914
    • Le Chéïkhisme. La Doctine, Paris, volume 3, 1911 [extract from Revue du Monde Musulman]
    • La Science de Dieu, Paris, volume 4, 1911
    • Le Club de la fraternité [translation of an article by Atrpet by A.L.M. Nicolas], Revue du Monde Musulman, Paris, volume 13, 1911, pp. 180-184
    • Le Dossier russo-anglais de Seyyed Ali Mohammed dit le Báb, Revue du Monde Musulman, Paris, volume 14, 1911, pp. 357-363
    • Le Béyan Persan [Bayán-i-fársí translated from Persian into French], four volumes, 1911-1914
    • Abdoul-Béha et la situation, Revue du Monde Musulman, Paris, volume 21, 1912, pp. 261-267
    • Le Béhahis et le Báb, Journal Asiatique, Paris, volume 222, 1933, pp. 257-264
    • Massacre de Babis en Perse, Paris, 1936, 42 pp. [A Short Biography of A. L. M. Nicholas by Peter Terry 2008] [key]
  • Rasht; Iran; Paris; France A.L.M. Nicolas; In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Translation; First believers; Nader Nasiri Moghaddam; Edith Sanderson the first Western Bábí; the first to translate a work of the Báb into French
    1939 Apr The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the British Isles incorporated after a long and difficult struggle. [BW8:161–2; UD127] [key] United Kingdom National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom; National Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; Recognition (legal)
    1939 Ridván The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Budapest was elected. There were about 14 believers in the community, mostly of Jewish ancestry. This caused difficulty for the community in the Nazi persecutions that followed. [Rebirth: Memoirs of Renée Szanto-Felbermann p108]

          According to the description of Renée Szántó-Felbermann, they could not even meet in Budapest: „It was at their (the Sugárs) house in Alag (today part of Budakeszi) that we elected the first Spiritual Assembly in the history of Hungary, Ridvan 1939. When we boarded the train for Alag, in order to avoid suspicion, we Bahá’ís did not remain together, but went by twos and threes. The same procedure was repeated on our arrival to Alag. It was a memorable, unforgettable evening, that Feast of Ridván in the small house at Alag fragrant with spring flowers. We were all deeply moved. And our dear Bertha Matthiesen was radiant. … Jenő Sugár was elected chairman, Mária Kleinberger became treasurer and I continued as secretary.” [www.bahai.hu]

  • See www.bahai.hu for a list of community members.
  • Ms Bertha Matthiesen spent a lot of time in Hungary between 1937 and 1939 when most declarations took place and the first spiritual assembly was formed. [www.bahai.hu]
  • Mr Emeric Sala (Imre Szalavetz) a Canadian Bahá'í who was born in Hungary visited Budapest in 1933 and in 1937. [www.bahai.hu]
  • Canadian travel teacher Ms Lorol Schopflocher visited Budapest in March-April 1937. [www.bahai.hu] [key]
  • Budapest; Hungary Local Spiritual Assembly; World War II; War (general); Persecution, Hungary; Persecution, Other; Persecution; Jews First Spiritual Assembly in Budapest
    1939 8 May Philip and Laili June Marangella arrived in Cuba, the first Bahá’í pioneers to the country. Cuba First travel teachers and pioneers first pioneers to Cuba
    1939 18 May Mathew Kaszab arrived in Panama and immediately launched a vigorous proclamation campaign through the press, radio and public talks. By October the first permanent pioneers, Louise Caswell and Cora Oliver, arrived along with John Eichenaur (enroute to El Salvador). [Historical Background of the Panama Temple by Ruth Pringle] [key] Panama Mathew Kaszab; Louise Caswell; Cora Oliver; John Eichenauer first pioneers in Panama
    1939 4 Jun In a letter addressed to the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles written on behalf of the Guardian he urged them to "appeal to the government for exemption from active military service in a combatant capacity, stressing the fact that in doing so they are not prompted by any selfish considerations but by the sole and supreme motive of upholding the Teachings of their Faith, which make it a moral obligation for them to desist from any act that would involve them in direct warfare with their fellow-humans or any other race or nation." [UD128]
  • See other correspondence on this theme: UD122; UD134; UD259
  • United Kingdom Armed forces; Military; Weapons; War (general)
    1939 Aug The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the British Isles incorporated as an unlimited non-profit company under the Companies Act of 1929. GPB336 United Kingdom National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom; Incorporation; National Spiritual Assembly, recognition; Recognition (legal)
    1939 27 Aug The first Bahá’í resident in Guatemala, Gerrard Sluter-Schlutius, arrived in the country from Toronto. [OBCC228] [key] Guatemala First Bahais by country or area first resident in Guatemala
    1939 3 Sep World War II began with Britain and France declaring war on Germany after Germany invaded Poland. Europe; Germany; United Kingdom; France; Poland World War II; History (general); War (general)
    1939 18 Sep John and Rosa Shaw arrived in Kingston, Jamaica, from San Francisco, the first Bahá’ís to visit the country. Kingston; Jamaica First travel teachers and pioneers first to visit Jamaica
    1939 22 Sep The State of Illinois issued the first Bahá’í marriage licence, authorizing the Spiritual Assembly of Chicago to solemnize Bahá’í marriages and issue Bahá’í marriage certificates. [GPB373] [key] Illinois; United States Marriage; Weddings; Recognition (legal); Firsts, Other first Bahá’í marriage licence
    1939 28 Sep Martha Root, ‘foremost Hand raised by Bahá’u’lláh’, passed away in Honolulu. (b. 10 August,1872 Richwood Union County Ohio, USA) [BBD198–9; GPB388; MRHK486; PP105]
  • Photos of her gravesite 1, 2 and 3.
  • Directions to her gravesite.
  • For Shoghi Effendi’s tribute to her see GPB386–9 and MA30.
  • Shoghi Effendi called her the ‘archetype of Bahá’í itinerant teachers’, the ‘foremost Hand raised by Bahá’u’lláh since ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s passing’, ‘Leading ambassadress of His Faith’ and ‘Pride of Bahá’í teachers’. [GPB386]
  • From the Guardian...her "acts shed imperishable lustre American Bahá'í Community". [PP106]
  • For her obituary see BW8:643–8.
  • She was buried in the Nuuanu Cemetery, Honolulu.
  • See also Garis, Martha Root: Lioness at the Threshold and Martha Root: Herald of The Kingdom.
  • See Other People Other Places by Marzieh Gail (pages 170-175) for a pen-portrait of Martha Root.
  • She was designated a Hand of the Cause of God on the 3rd of October, 1954. [MoCxxii] iiiii
  • Honolulu; Hawaii Martha Root; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; Hands of the Cause, Activities; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi; Cemeteries and graves; In Memoriam
    1939 Oct Antonio Roca, the first Bahá’í in Honduras, entered the country. Honduras First Bahais by country or area first Bahá’í in Honduras
    1939 1 Oct The national Bahá’í office of the United States was established at 536 Sheridan Road, Wilmette, Illinois. [BW10:181]
  • Horace Holley, the full-time secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada, transfered his office from New York to the Hazíratu’l-Quds in Wilmette. [SBR238] [key]
  • Wilmette; United States Horace Holley; Haziratul-Quds
    1939 25 Oct John Eichenauer, the first pioneer to El Salvador, arrived in San Salvador from Phoenix, Arizona.
  • He was just 17 years old, the youngest pioneer sent out in the First Seven Year Plan.
  • San Salvador; El Salvador; Phoenix; Arizona; United States John Eichenauer first pioneer to El Salvador
    1939 Nov F. Ferrari became a Bahá’í, the first to accept the Faith in Honduras. Honduras First Bahais by country or area first to accept Faith in Honduras
    1939 1 Nov Mathew Kaszab, arrived in Nicaragua, the first Bahá’í pioneer to that country.
  • In March 1942 he was arrested and imprisoned for 23 days; he was again arrested in September 1942; he was sent back to the United States very ill, where he died in January 1943 from the effects of his imprisonment. [BW9:614–16] [key]
  • Nicaragua Mathew Kaszab first pioneer to Nicaragua
    1939 2 Nov The first people to become Bahá’ís in El Salvador, Luis O. Pérez, Emilio Bermudez and José Manuel Vela, accepted the Faith in San Salvador. San Salvador; El Salvador First Bahais by country or area first to become Bahá’ís in El Salvador
    1939 4 Nov The first Nineteen Day Feast was held in San Salvador with four Bahá’ís in attendance. San Salvador; El Salvador Nineteen Day Feast first Nineteen Day Feast in San Salvador
    1939 (Late in the year) Sr. Perfecto Perez Toledo, the first Cuban Bahá’í, accepted the Faith. Cuba First Bahais by country or area first Cuban Bahá’í
    1939 3 Dec Shoghi Effendi obtained permission from the British authorities in Palestine to reinter the bodies of Navváb and the Purest Branch on Mount Carmel. [DH162; PP260]
  • For the report of the Haifa District Commissioner see BBR460–1.
  • Mount Carmel; BWC Navvab (Asiyih Khanum); Mirza Mihdi (Purest Branch); Mount Carmel; Monument Gardens; Shoghi Effendi, Life of
    1939 5 Dec Shoghi Effendi disintered the remains of Navváb and the Purest Branch. [DH162; PP260]
  • He went to the 'Akká cemetery at daybreak to and removed the remains of Navváb to a new coffin. [DH162; PP260]
  • He then went to the Nabí Sálib cemetery and transfered the remains of the Purest Branch to a second new coffin. [DH162; PP260]
  • He transported them both to Mount Carmel, near the grave of the Greatest Holy Leaf. [DH162; PP260] [key]
  • Akka; Mount Carmel Navvab (Asiyih Khanum); Mirza Mihdi (Purest Branch); Monument Gardens; Cemeteries and graves; Shoghi Effendi, Life of
    1939 8 Dec Margaret Lentz, a German stenographer, arrived in the Dominican Republic from Geneva, the first Bahá’í to settle in that country. Dominican Republic Margaret Lentz first Bahá’í to settle in Dominican Republic
    1939 12 Dec The Bahá’ís of Caracas, Venezuela, held their first Nineteen Day Feast and afterwards elected a ‘Provisional Assembly’. Caracas; Venezuela Local Spiritual Assembly first Nineteen Day Feast in Caracas, Venezuela
    1939 24 Dec Shoghi Effendi reinterred the remains of Navváb and the Purest Branch. [DH162; GBF116; GPB347–8]
  • Two vaults were cut into the solid rock in the garden area near the monument of the Greatest Holy Leaf. [DH162]
  • For Shoghi Effendi’s cable announcing this see DH162 and PP262.
  • For Shoghi Effendi’s letters and cables concerning this see BW8:245–53, DH162 and PP261.
  • For a description of the reinterment see BW8:253–8.
  • For the prayer of visitation to the resting place of Navváb see BW8:251 and DH166.
  • Mount Carmel; BWC Navvab (Asiyih Khanum); Mirza Mihdi (Purest Branch); Bahiyyih Khanum (Greatest Holy Leaf); Tablets of Visitation; Monument Gardens; World Centre; Cemeteries and graves; - Bahai World Centre buildings, monuments and gardens; Shoghi Effendi, Life of; Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of
    1939 30 Dec The passing of Grace Crossman Krug (b. 1870 Brooklyn, d. 30 December 1939 Chester, NY). [Find a Grave]
  • She had been predeceased by her husband, Dr Florian Drug in 1924. ["Abdu'l-Bahá in America 1912-1912]
  • After speaking in the Krug home ‘Abdu’l-Bahá summoned their son Carl Krug to ride home with Him. Seated in the taxicab, He instructed Carl to write what He was about to say. Then ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said: “You must be very grateful to your mother—you must appreciate her greatly—you do not realize her station now or what a great honour she has bestowed on your household. She will be one of the famous women of America. You must appreciate and love her very much. All will know of her servitude.” [BW8p676] [key]
  • Brooklyn; NY; Chester, NY In Memoriam; Grace Krug; Florian Krug; Carl Krug
    1939 31 Dec Lady Sara Louisa Blomfield, entitled Sitárih Khánum, (b. 1859) passed away in London. She was buried in Hampstead Cemetery, Borough of Camden, London. [BW8:651; SEBW109]
  • For details of her life see SEBW101–110, Daily Note from Bahá'í History and Bahá'í Chronicles.
  • For her obituary see BW8:651–6.
  • See Wikipedia.
  • See First Obligation-Lady Blomfield and the Save the Children Fund by Rob Weinberg on the UK Bahá'í Heritage site.
  • Find a grave.
  • London; United Kingdom Lady Blomfield; In Memoriam
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