World ![]() |
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date | event | tags | firsts |
1949 9 Nov 194- |
The Bahá'í International Community, in a letter addressed to Mr Trygve Lie, the Secretary-General of the United Nation, informed the United Nations of the spiritual nature of the Bahá'í Faith.
[BW12p598-600]
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Bahá'í International Community; New York City, NY; USA | |
1949 16 Aug 194- |
The passing of Lilian Vaughan McNeill (b.1 December, 1879). In May, 1931 she and her husband, Brigadier General Angus McNeill had taken a lease on the abandoned property at Mazra'ih where they lived until her passing. They had restored the house and property respecting the fact that Bahá'u'lláh and His family had lived there from June 1877 until September, 1879. In 1981 the staff at the Bahá'í World Centre discovered her simple grave in the Commonwealth Cemetery in Haifa and, with the permission of her family, erected a befitting and dignified memorial.
She had been a childhood friend of Marie Alexandra Victoria (Queen Marie of Romania).
During her latter years at Mazra'ih she wrote a series of short stories, some of which were published in the local English-language newspaper. [BW19p779-782]
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In Memoriam; Lilian Barron McNeill; Angus McNeill; House of Bahá'u'lláh (Mazraih); Cemeteries and graves; Queen Marie of Romania; Anita Graves; Mazraih, Iran; Akka, Israel; Cyprus | |
1949 5 – 7 Aug 194- |
The second European Teaching Conference was held in Brussels. [BW11:52] | Conferences, Teaching; Conferences, Bahá'í; - Conferences, International; - Conferences; Brussels, Belgium; Belgium; - Europe | |
1949 Summer 194- |
Green Acre did not open for summer school this year or the next as an austerity measure so that funds could be directed to the completion of the Wilmette Temple. [SYH236] | Green Acre, Eliot, ME; Green Acre, Eliot, ME | |
1949 30 Apr 194- |
An Act to incorporate the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Canada was passed. The act established the name, named the officers as directors, stated the location of the headquarters, defined the objectives, gave it the right to manage the affairs of the Bahá'ís, to make by-laws and to hold property. It was used as a model for registration/incorporation in other states.
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National Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; National Spiritual Assembly; Firsts, other; Recognition (legal); Canada | first national spiritual assembly to be formally incorporated. |
1949 24 Apr 194- |
The passing of Montfort Mills.
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House of Bahá'u'lláh (Baghdad); In Memoriam; Edward Granville Browne; Births and deaths; Covenant-breakers; USA; Baghdad, Iraq; Iraq | |
1949 21 Apr 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly of Denmark was established in Copenhagen.
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Local Spiritual Assembly; Copenhagen, Denmark | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Denmark |
1949 20 Apr 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Portugal was established in Lisbon. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Lisbon, Portugal | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Portugal |
1949 15 Apr 194- |
Dr M. E. Lukmani, a homeopathic physician from India, arrived in Colombo, the first Bahá'í to settle in Ceylon (Sri Lanka). | M. E. Lukmani; Colombo, Sri Lanka | first Bahá’í to settle in Ceylon |
1949 4 - 9 Apr 194- |
Bahá'í delegation to the United Nations International Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations consisted of Amin Banani, Mildred R. Mottahedeh, Hilda Yen and Matthew Bullock. [BIC History 1949} | Bahá'í International Community; Amin Banani; Mildred Mottahedeh; Hilda Yen; Matthew Bullock; Lake Success, NY | |
1949 4 Feb 194- |
There was an attempt on the life of the Shah during a ceremony commemorating the founding of Tehran University. The enemies of the Faith took advantage of the instability to launch attacks against the Bahá'ís throughout Iran. [SCF107] | - Sháh; Persecution, Iran; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1949 21 Jan 194- |
Shoghi Effendi had a private interview with Prime Minister Ben Gurion of Israel. [GBF136; PP174–5, 289] | * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Ben Gurion; - Prime Ministers; Prominent visitors; Israel | |
1949 (In the year) 194- |
The Misaghieh Hospital was gifted to the Bahá'í community in 1949 by a Bahá'í named Abdolmisagh Misaghieh and was managed by the Bahá'í community.
After the Islamic Revolution, the Mostazafan Foundation – in English, the Foundation for the Oppressed – confiscated properties belonging to members of the Bahá'í community. The Misaghieh Hospital was among these properties. After its confiscation, the hospital's name was changed to Shahid Mostafa Khomeini Hospital. [Iran Wire] |
Misaghieh Hospital; Abdolmisagh Misaghieh; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1949 (In the year) 194- |
Agnes Harrison (née Parent), an Athabascan, became a Bahá'í in Alaska, the first Native Alaskan to accept the Faith in the country. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Alaska, USA; USA | first Native Alaskan |
1949 (In the year) 194- |
A Bahá'í in Kamshatti, near Calcutta, was martyred by a religious fanatic. [BW11:34] | Persecution, India; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; Kolkata, India; India | |
1949 (In the year) 194- |
Construction began on the superstructure of the Shrine of the Báb. [BBD210]
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Báb, Shrine of; * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; - Bahá'í World Centre; Mount Carmel | |
1949 (In the year) 194- |
The pamphlet written by by George Townshend to all Christians under the title The Old Churches and the New World Faith was sent out to 10,000 "responsible people" in the British Isles on the occasion of his resignation from the church. [UD470] | George Townshend; - Christianity; Interfaith dialogue; Proclamation; Ireland; United Kingdom | |
1948 19 Dec 194- |
Shoghi Effendi sent a further cable regarding his brother: "Faithless brother Hussein, already abased through dishonorable conduct over period (of) years followed by association with Covenant-breakers (in) Holy Land and efforts (to) undermine Guardian's position, recently further demeaned himself through marriage under obscure circumstances with lowborn Christian girl (in) Europe". [Bahá'í News, No. 229, p.1; Bahá'í News, No. 236, p.4; CoB 362; BN No 229 March 1956 p1] | Husayn Ali Rabbani; Covenant-breakers; Haifa, Israel | |
1948 10 Dec 194- |
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It set out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages. [United Nations]
Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights recognized freedom of religion as a central value of the post-World War II international legal order. The right was cemented in Article 18 of the 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. |
Universal Declaration of Human Rights; Paris, France | first universal document to set out basic human rights. |
1948 9 Dec 194- |
The crime of genocide was defined in international law in the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide. The Genocide Convention was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 9 December 1948. The Convention entered into force on 12 January 1951. By April 2022, 153 nations have ratified the Genocide Convention and over 80 nations have provisions for the punishment of genocide in domestic criminal law.
Every year on 9 December, the United Nations marks the adoption of the Genocide Convention, which is also the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime. [Ratification of the Genocide Convention] The crime of genocide has three elements: 1. Acts of genocide committed with, 2. intent to destroy, in whole or in part, 3. a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. For more detailed information see Genocide Watch. On that site Dr Gregory Stanton lists the ten states of genocide: Classification, Symolization, Discrimination, Dehumanization, Organization, Polarization, Preparation, Persecution, Extermination and Denial. [Ten Stages]. iiiii |
- Persecution; Genocide; United Nations; Paris, France; France | |
1948 9 Dec 194- |
The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted the Resolution entitled Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.
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Genocide; United Nations; Justice; Law, International; World War II; War; History (general) | |
1948 Dec 194- |
Amjad Ali arriveed in East Pakistan, from Chapra in Bihar, northern India, the first pioneer in the country. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Bangladesh; - Asia | first pioneer to East Pakistan |
1948 18 Jun 194- |
The Bahá'í International Community took part in its first United Nations conference, on human rights. [BW11:43; BIC History 18 June 1948] | Bahá'í International Community; United Nations; Human Rights; Geneva, Switzerland | first United Nations conference, on human rights |
1948 22 – 26 May 194- |
The first Bahá'í European Conference was held in Geneva. [BW11:51]
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Conferences, Bahá'í; - Conferences, International; Geneva, Switzerland; Switzerland; - Europe | first Bahá’í European Conference |
1948 14 May 194- |
The British Mandate in Palestine ended and the state of Israel was proclaimed.
The notion of a Jewish state evolved during the nineteenth century and in the aftermath of the French Revolution, which generated the idea of nation states and nationhood in the modern sense. The first plans came from non-Jewish sources. Napoleon Bonaparte suggested the settlement of European Jews in the Suez region to safeguard a canal project he had envisaged. Lord Palmerstone, British Foreign Secretary from 1830-1841, seeking to halt French advances in the East, planned the establishment of a British-backed Jewish client-state in Palestine to stop their advance and block Muhammad Ali´s progress. Plans of this kind set up by the Powers for safeguarding their own interests were quite numerous. When the Germans were constructing the Berlin-Baghdad Railway in the years before its completion in 1940, plans were made to settle Jews in Asia Minor alongside the rails or bestow an Ottoman Pashaliq (Territorial administrative division) upon the territory occupied by them. After the French Revolution the Jews of Central and Western Europe now felt that they were citizens of their respective countries. Orthodox Jews refused the idea of a Jewish state believing that only when the Messiah came that such a state could be founded. But then anti-Semitism was on the rise in Europe from the early and mid 1800s with such beliefs as Social Darwinism, Eugenics, Scientific Racism, Racial Hierarchy: the Nazi Racial Theories and the lingering concepts of colonialism and imperialism. The horrors of the Holocaust played a significant role in discrediting and rejecting these racial and biological ideologies that were not based on sound scientific findings. Jews had started to immigrate into Palestine after the first anti-Jewish pogroms in Russia in 1881 and more especially after the establishment of the World Zionist Organization in 1897, it was of a different, a political nature. The Jewish immigrants came now with the explicit aim to establish a state of their own and to the exclusion of the Arab inhabitants of the land. "The Jewish Colonial Projects in Palestine" refer to the efforts by Jewish individuals and organizations to establish settlements and communities in the region of Palestine, primarily during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These efforts were part of the broader Zionist movement which aimed to establish a Jewish homeland in what was then part of the Ottoman Empire and later became the British Mandate of Palestine. These projects played a significant role in the eventual establishment of the State of Israel in 1948. First Aliyah (1882-1903): The First Aliyah was a wave of Jewish immigration to Palestine that began in the early 1880s. During this period, many Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe and Russia settled in agricultural communities, known as "moshavot," in various parts of Palestine. They aimed to establish self-sustaining agricultural settlements and escape persecution in their home countries. Baron Edmond de Rothschild's Support: Baron Edmond de Rothschild, a wealthy European financier, provided financial support to many Jewish settlers in Palestine. His contributions were crucial for the development of Jewish agricultural communities and wineries in the region. Second Aliyah (1904-1914): The Second Aliyah brought another wave of Jewish immigrants to Palestine. Many of these immigrants were inspired by socialist and labour-oriented ideologies. They established kibbutzim and collective communities, which emphasized communal living and shared resources. Jewish National Fund (JNF): The JNF, founded in 1901, played a pivotal role in acquiring and developing land in Palestine for Jewish settlement. It purchased and reclaimed land, planted forests, and financed infrastructure projects. Balfour Declaration (1917): During World War I, the British government issued the Balfour Declaration, expressing support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine. This declaration laid the foundation for future Zionist aspirations. British Mandate Period (1920-1948): After World War I, the League of Nations granted Britain the mandate to govern Palestine. During this period, Jewish immigration and settlement continued, despite tensions with the Arab population. The Arab-Jewish conflict over land and political control intensified. Haganah and Israel Defense Forces: Jewish settlers organized defense forces, such as the Haganah, in the 1920s to protect their communities. They provided defence for Jewish communities and countered Arab attacks, facilitated the illegal immigration of Jewish refugees to Palestine, coordinated the various Jewish paramilitary groups and were involved in the acquiring and stockpiling of weapons and military equipment. These groups later evolved into the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). 1948 Arab–Israeli War (1947-1949) With the British Mandate coming to an end, the United Nations approved the partition plan for Palestine, leading to the declaration of the State of Israel on the 14th of May 1948. The following day a military coalition of Arab states, including Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Iraq, invaded Israel to prevent its establishment. They took control of the areas designated for Arabs and attacked the Jewish forces and settlements. As a result of the war Israel got all the lands mandated to them by the UN and 60% of the territory meant for the Arabs as well as the area that had been meant for an "international zone". Israel had retained its independence and had expanded its territory. This period is known as "Nakba" ("catastrophe" in Arabic). Some historians estimate that around 720,000 out of the 900,000 Palestinian Arabs that had lived in the land that was to become Israel were expelled. Another estimate says the 400 Palestinian villages were destroyed, civilians were massacred and around a million men, women, and children were expelled from their homes at gunpoint. [The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine by Ilan Pappe; Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu´l-Bahá's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p24; Palestinian Expulsion and Flight] Further details on the conflicts, Causes, Key Events of the War, as well as Outcomes and Consequences can be found here. The UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) is a UN agency established in 1949 that supports the relief and human development of Palestinian refugees. It's mandate encompasses Palestinians displaced by the 1948 Palestine War and subsequent conflicts, as well as their descendants, including legally adopted children. As of 2023, more than 5.9 million Palestinians are registered with UNRWA as refugees. [UNRWA] |
British history; History (general); Ethnic divisions; Palestine; Israel | Creation of the state of Israel declared |
1948 24 - 25 Apr 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Dominion of Canada was established. [BBRSM:186; BW13:856; MBW143; PP397]
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National Spiritual Assembly, formation; Conventions, National; Laura Davis; Rowland Estall; Lloyd Gardner; Doris Richardson; John Robarts; Emeric Sala; Rosemary Sala; Siegfried Schopflocher; Ross Woodman; Canada | first NSA Canada |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first Local Spiritual Assembly was established in Edinburgh, Scotland [SBBH Vol 14 p275] | Local Spiritual Assembly, formation; Edinburgh, Scotland; Scotland | The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Edinburgh |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local assembly was established in Geneva, Switzerland. [BQYM201] | Local Spiritual Assembly; Geneva, Switzerland; Switzerland | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland. |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local assembly was established in Bern, Switzerland. [BQYM201 | Local Spiritual Assembly; Bern, Switzerland; Switzerland | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Bern, Switzerland. |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first Local Spiritual Assembly was established in Oslo. [BQYM201] | Local Spiritual Assembly; Oslo, Norway; Norway | first the first Local Spiritual Assembly in Norway. |
1948 21 - 22 Apr 194- |
The 2nd Battle of Haifa: A Jewish offensive to gain control of the strategic port of Haifa. Prior to the 30-hour battle, the Arab population of Haifa was estimated to be 65,000 compared to 70,000 Palestinian Jews. At the end of the operation, the Arab population was reduced to about 4,000 people. [Battle of Haifa] | War; History (general); Haifa, Israel | |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly was elected in the United States. Those elected were: Dorothy Baker (Chair), Paul Haney (Vice·Chalr), Horace Holley (Secretary), Philip Sprague (Treasurer), Elsie Austin, Kenneth Christian, Edna True, Amelia Collins, and George Latimer. [USBN No. 207 May, 1948 p 4] | National Spiritual Assembly of the United States; Dorothy Baker; Paul Haney; Horace Holley; Philip G. Sprague; Elsie Austin; Kenneth Christian; Edna True; Amelia Collins; George Latimer; USA | first National Spiritual Assembly of the United States |
1948 Ridvan 194- |
The formation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly in Cardiff. See CG9 for a picture. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Cardiff, Wales; Wales; United Kingdom | the first Local Spiritual Assembly in Cardiff |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first Bahá'í institution in Italy, the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Rome was elected.
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Local Spiritual Assembly; Rome, Italy; Italy | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Italy |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Spain was established in Madrid. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Madrid, Spain | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Spain |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The Local Spiritual Assembly of Budapest reformed. The Assembly was forced to dissolve again near the end of 1950 under the new regime. Most Bahá'ís fled the country during or after the Revolution in 1956. [www.bahai.hu]. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Local Spiritual Assembly, re-formed; Budapest, Hungary; Hungary | |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Sweden was established in Stockholm. [BW11:689]
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Local Spiritual Assembly; Stockholm, Sweden | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Sweden |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first All-Native Bahá'í Assembly was established on the Omaha Reservation in Macy, Nebraska. [BW13:837; CF72]
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Amelia Collins; Local Spiritual Assembly; Macy, NE; Nebraska, USA; USA | first All-Native Local Spiritual Assembly Macy, Nebraska |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Ireland was established in Dublin. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Dublin, Ireland; Ireland | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Ireland |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Afghanistan was established in Kabul. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Kabul, Afghanistan; Afghanistan | firstLocal Spiritual Assembly in Afghanistan |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Belgium was established in Brussels. [BW11p727] | Local Spiritual Assembly; Brussels, Belgium; Belgium | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Belgium |
1948 Ridván 194- |
When the state of Pakistan was formed it was incorporated into the National Spiritual Assembly of India and Burma. The name of the new assembly was known as the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of India, Pakistan and Burma.
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National Spiritual Assembly, formation; India; Pakistan; Myanmar | |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The newly formed National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Canada launched a Five Year Plan (1948-1953). [Ruhi 8.2 p46; BBRSM158; Letter from Shoghi Effendi dated 14 April. 1948]
Some objectives were; |
- Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; Canada | |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The Germano-Austrian teaching plan, the German Five Year Plan(1948–53), comprising of internal goals only, was launched. [BBRSM158; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]
Some goals were: |
- Teaching Plans; Germano-Austrian Five Year Plan; Germany; Austria | |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Egypt and Sudan launched a Five Year Plan (1948-1953). [Ruhi 8.2 p46, BBRSM158; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]
Some goals were: |
- Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; Egypt; Sudan | |
1948 Ridván 194- |
The formation of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Amsterdam, the first in the Netherlands. [BQYM204; BW11p654]
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Local Spiritual Assembly; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Netherlands | first local spiritual assembly in the Netherlands |
1948 19 Apr 194- |
The Havana Bahá'ís incorporated as an 'assembly', meaning 'group'.
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Local Spiritual Assembly; Local Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; Havana, Cuba | |
1948 Apr 194- |
Contracts were placed in Italy for the rose Baveno granite columns for the Shrine of the Báb. [BBD210; DH140]
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Báb, Shrine of; Granite; Italy | |
1948 18 Apr 194- |
The name 'Bahá'í International Community' was first used to refer to the eight existing National Spiritual Assemblies recognized collectively as a non-governmental organization. Those Assemblies were those of North America; the British Isles; Germany and Austria; Egypt and Sfidan; 'Iráq; Iran (Persia); India, Pakistan and Burma; and Australia and New Zealand. Subsequently to these eight bodies were added the National Spiritual Assemblies of the Bahá'ís of Canada, of Central America and of South America. Each National Spiritual Assembly in its application established the National Assembly of the United States as its representative in relation to the United Nations. [BBRSM149; BW11:43; BW12:597; BIC History 18 April 1948]
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Bahá'í International Community; NGO; Bahá'í International Community (general); Mildred Mottahedeh; UNICEF; UNIFEM; UNEP; Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC); World Health Organization (WHO); Firsts, other; - Basic timeline, Expanded; * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); New York, USA; USA | The name ‘Bahá’í International Community’ is first used |
1948 20 Mar 194- |
The marriage of Gladys Andersen to Ben Weeden took place in Jerusalem under the auspices of the Spiritual Assembly of Amman. They made efforts to have their marriage recognized at the American Consulate and at the offices of the British Mandate but were unable to do so considering the shifting situation. After the end of the British Mandate they took the matter up with the new state of Israel and it was handled expeditiously thus obtaining full recognition of the Faith and its right to perform marriages. [SETPE1p341] | Weddings; Recognition (legal); Israel; Amman, Jordan; Jordan | First Bahá'í marriage to be registered in the new state of Israel. First wedding of Western Bahá'ís by Eastern Bahá'ís. |
1948 11 Jan 194- |
Habíbu'lláh Húshmand was martyred in Sarvistán, Iran. [BW18:390] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; Sarvestan, Iran; Iran | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
War broke out in Palestine.
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War; History (general); Covenant-breakers; Palestine | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
The owners of a house near the Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh fled and the house became government property. [DH226]
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Bahá'u'lláh, Shrine of; House of Bahá'u'lláh (Bahji); Pilgrim Houses; Pilgrim house, Bahji; Restoration; Bahji, Israel | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
Pauline Campbell arrived in Bermuda, where her husband was stationed at the United States Air Force Base. She was the only Bahá'í in Bermuda until 1951. | First travel teachers and pioneers; Bermuda | first Bahá’í resident in Bermuda |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
A Bahá'í was killed after an attack on his home at Chálih-Zamín, Iran. [BW18p390] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; Chalih-Zamin, Iran; Iran | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
The Bahá'í centre in Tihrán was attacked by a mob incited by Áyatu'lláh Káshání. [BW18p390] | Ayatullah Kashani; Ayatollahs; Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Destruction; - Persecution; - Persecution, Mobs; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
The Bahá'í Temple in 'Ishqábád (now Ashgabat, Turkmenistan) was damaged by an earthquake. The strength of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár saved it from the devastating earthquake which demolished all dwellings. It was the only building of stature which, although damaged, withstood the earthquake's completely destructive effects [BBD 122; BW14:480; YSxvii] | Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Ishqabad; Earthquakes; * Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); Ashgabat; Turkmenistan | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
Albert Bennett White was the first Bahá'í of Māori descent. He was the son of an English immigrant trader, and a Ngāti Awa woman of high rank. [The Newsroom 6 July 2022]
One of his daughters, Dame Robin White, is a New Zealand painter and printmaker, recognized as a key figure in the regionalist movement of 20th-century New Zealand art. Her art is the subject of a book called Robin White: Something is Happening Here by Dr Sarah Farrar, Dr Nina Tonga and Jill Trevelyan. |
Albert Bennett White; Dame Robin White; Whangarei, NZ | Albert Bennett White was the first Bahá’í of Māori descent |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
The first publication of The Pattern of Bahá'í Life in London by the Bahá'í Publishing Trust. Reprints were subsequently done in 1953, 1963 and 1983. [Collins4.189-4.190]
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Pattern of Bahá'í Life (compilation); - Compilations; London, England; United Kingdom | |
1948 - 1951 194- |
The Bahá'í Centre in Yazd, Iran, was attacked by a mob incited by Shaykh Khalisízádih. He was a man consumed with hatred toward religious minorities, most ferociously against the Bahá'ís in and around Yazd. He had some twenty hooligans on salary to harass, intimate and assault the local Bahá'ís. He had the tacit support of some local government officials who had been ordered by Prime Minister Haj 'Alí Razmara to ignore any complaints from Bahá'ís. [BW18p390; SCF105] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Destruction; - Persecution; - Persecution, Mobs; Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Yazd, Iran; Iran | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
Douglas P. Hillhouse, a Captain in the United States military, was stationed on St Thomas until 1951, the first Bahá'í to reside on the island. | Douglas Hillhouse; St. Thomas Island | first Bahá’í to reside on St Thomas |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
In the German Democratic Republic all Bahá'í activities were banned. In 1991, for the first time in 53 years, the Bahá'ís in eastern Germany elected delegates to the National Assembly. After 55 years, the Spiritual Assembly was re-formed in Leipzig. [German Bahá'í website] | Persecution, Germany; Germany | |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
The first Bahá'í school in Haiti was inaugurated in Carrefour, a suburb of Port-au-Prince. | - Bahá'í inspired schools; Firsts, other; Haiti | first Bahá’í school in Haiti |
1948 (In the year) 194- |
Starting in 1948 the Bahá'í women of Iran published a monthly magazine called Tarāna-ye omīd. Its purpose was to educate and entertain Bahá'í families with special attention to women's affairs. After some years of suspension it reappeared in 1973 and continued to publish until 1979. [BAHAISM v. The Bahai Community in Iran by V. Rafati] | Taranaye Omid; * Publications; Iran | |
1947 31 Dec 194- |
Suzette Hipp became a Bahá'í in Luxembourg, the second Luxembourger to accept the Faith and the first to do so in Luxembourg. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Luxembourg | first to become Bahá'í in Luxembourg |
1947 12 Dec 194- |
The first pioneer to Portugal, Valeria Lamb Nicols, arrived from a pioneer post in Denmark. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Portugal | first pioneer to Portugal |
1947 17 Nov 194- |
The first two Danes to accept the Faith, May Marit Vestby and Palle Benemann Bischoff became Bahá'ís. | May Marit Vestby; Palle Benemann Bischoff; Denmark | first two Danish Bahá’ís |
1947 30 Sep 194- |
George Townshend, at the age of 71 years, resigned his position with the Church of Ireland. [GT195]
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George Townshend; Ireland | first ordained priest of a Protestant church to renounce his Orders and become Bahá'í |
1947 13 Sep 194- |
The passing of Haji Mahmúd Qassabchí. In 1933 Qassabchí had suffered a severe attack of paralysis which he narrowly survived and as a result of which he could hardly move or speak for the rest of his life. He was buried at Salman Pak, about thirty miles southeast of Baghdad. [BW11p502-503]
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Hájí Mahmud Qassabchi; In Memoriam; House of Bahá'u'lláh (Baghdad); Báb, Shrine of; Musa Banani; Restoration; Baghdad, Iraq; Avashiq, Iraq; Iraq | first Hazíratu'l-Quds in Iraq in the village of Avashiq |
1947 Sep 194- |
Léa Nys became a Bahá'í in Belgium, the first Belgian to accept the Faith after World War Two.
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First Bahá'ís by country or area; Belgium | first Belgian Bahá'í |
1947 9 Jul 194- |
Shoghi Effendi, as Head of the Bahá'í Faith resident in the Bahá'í World Centre, received a letter from the chairman of the United Nations Special Committee on Palestine requesting a statement on the relationship the Bahá'í Faith had to Palestine and the Bahá'í attitude to any future changes in the status of the country. [BW11:43, Text]
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United Nations; * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); * Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; - Statements; * Publications; Shoghi Effendi, Works of; Politics; Peace; - Bahá'í World Centre; Haifa, Israel; Palestine; Israel | |
1947 5 Jul 194- |
Manuel Garcia Vasquez became a Bahá'í in Spain, the first believer in the country. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Spain | first Bahá'í in Spain |
1947 4 Jul 194- |
'Abbás Sháhídzádih was martyred in Sháhí, Mázandarán, Iran and a fellow Bahá'í, Habib Allah Hushmand, was murdered in Sarvistan. [BW18:390, Towards a History of Iran's Bahá'í Community During the Reign of Mohammad Reza Shah, 1941-1979 by Mina Yazdani.] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; Shahi, Iran; Mazandaran, Iran; Iran | |
1947 20 Jun 194- |
George Townshend sent a letter of resignation from the Church of Ireland to the Bishop of Killaloe, naming 30 September for the effective date. [GT195] | George Townshend; Ireland | |
1947 18 Jun 194- |
The International Bahá'í Bureau contributed to the preparatory work of the Human Rights Commission for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. [BIC History 18 Jun 1947] | United Nations; Bahá'í International Community; New York City, NY | |
1947 5 Jun 194- |
Shoghi Effendi issued a directive to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada. Among other objectives he assigned tasks to the Canadian community in preparation for establishing their own National Spiritual Assembly. They were to carry the message to territories not yet opened in country and externally to Newfoundland and Greenland. [Bahá'í News No 198 August 1947 p8] In 1948 the newly formed National Spiritual Assembly of Canada established a Teaching Committee for Greenland and Newfoundland. [Bahá'í News No 210 August 1948 p7] | Greenland; Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada | |
1947 18 May 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada was accredited by the United Nations as a non-governmental organization with observer status. [BW12:597; PP303; BIC site History 18 May 1947] | National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada; United Nations; NGO; Bahá'í International Community; New York, USA; USA | |
1947 May 194- |
Clarence Iverson visited the Bahamas, the first recorded visit to the islands by a Bahá'í. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Islands; Bahamas | first recorded visit to Bahamas |
1947 Apr 194- |
The Tokyo Spiritual Assembly, suspended during the war, was re-established. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Tokyo, Japan | |
1947 Ridván 194- |
The Bahá'ís of Germany held their first National Convention since Himmler's proclamation in 1937, marking the removal of more than a decade of oppression and the establishment of a return to normalcy. This freedom would not last long in the eastern part of Germany, as the newly-formed communist German Democratic Republic banned all Bahá'í activities again in 1948. Bahá'í activities were encouraged to continue in the Western Zone, under the new government now known as West Germany. The ban on the Faith in the GDR would last for the entirety of the GDR, where the Faith was not officially recognized until after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1990. During this time, the Bahá'ís of Germany distributed Bahá'u'lláh's messages of peace and unity throughout Eastern Europe.
|
Persecution, German Democratic Republic; Germany | |
1947 Ridván 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of India and Burma added the newly formed nation of Pakistan to their unit. As the state of Pakistan was created on the 14th of August 1947 it can be assumed that the National Spiritual Assembly of India, Pakistan and Burma was created after this date. In a letter from the Guardian 24 October 1947 he mentions all three nations as one unit. [MSEIp289] ] | National Spiritual Assembly, formation; India; India; Myanmar | |
1947 Ridván 194- |
The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Quito was established. Those elected were: Hascle Coxnbleth, Chaixman, Eithel Santos, Recording Secretary, Hans Levy, Vice-chairman, Eloy Maran, Treasurer, Hans Dory, Secretary, Nelson Sanchez, Librarian, Rosario Vera B., Jose Elias Cedeño, ama Lais Alcivar Z. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p.33] | Quito, Ecuador | first local spiritual assembly of Quito |
1947 Ridván 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand launched a Six Year Plan (1947-1953). [Ruhi 8.2 p46] | - Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; Australia; New Zealand | |
1947 Ridván 194- |
The Bahá'ís of Iraq launched a Three Year Plan (1947-1950). [Ruhi 8.2 p46; BBRSM158]
The goals were: |
- Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; Iraq | |
1947 20 Feb 194- |
Ugo and Angeline Giachery moved from New York to Rome. [BN No 192 Feb 1947 p1]
|
Ugo Giachery; Angeline Giachery; Pioneer; Augusto Salvetti; Italy | |
1947 7 Feb 194- |
Honor Kempton arrived in Luxembourg, the first pioneer to the country. | Honor Kempton; Luxembourg | first pioneer to Luxembourg |
1947 1 Feb 194- |
Reflecting the unity in diversity highly valued by the Bahá'í community, Amin Banani, Mildred Mottahedeh, Hilda Yen, and Matthew Bullock presented the statement "A Bahá'í Declaration of Human Obligations and Rights" to the UN, which ended by quoting a well-known passage by Baha'u'llah: "The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens."
|
United Nations; Matthew Bullock; Bahá'í International Community; Firsts, other; Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); Amin Banani; Mildred Mottahedeh; Hilda Yen; New York, USA; USA | the first delegation of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations |
1947 (In the year) 194- |
The first summer school in Chile took place in Loncoche on property donated by Mrs Fabienne Guillon. | Fabienne Guillon; Loncoche, Chile; Chile | first summer school in Chile |
1947 (In the year) 194- |
The Australian-New Zealand teaching plan, the Australian Six Year Plan (1947–53), comprising internal goals only, was launched. [BBRSM158; LGANZ97; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]
The homefront goals were: |
- Teaching Plans; Australia-New Zealand Six Year Plan; Australia; New Zealand | |
1947 (In the year) 194- |
The Hazíratu'l-Quds of Tihrán was completed. [BW11:588] | Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1947 (In the year) 194- |
Gladys Anderson Weeden arrived at the World Centre to assist Shoghi Effendi, and took responsibility for liaising with government and other officials. [BW18:694]
|
Gladys Anderson Weeden; Ben Weeden; - Bahá'í World Centre | |
1947 (In the year) 194- |
The first Chilean Teaching Conference was held in Santiago. | Conferences, Bahá'í; Conferences, Teaching; Teaching; - First conferences; Santiago, Chile; Chile | first Teaching Conference in Chile |
1946 23 Dec 194- |
Virginia Orbison, from the United States, left Brazil for a pioneer post in Madrid.
|
Virginia Orbison; Madrid, Spain | |
1946 13 Dec 194- |
The passing of Muhammad Taqí Isfahání. He had been born in Persia and was horrified by the behaviour of Mullá Muhammad Báqir (The Wolf) and Imám-Jum'íh who had killed the two brothers Muhammad Husayn and Muhammad Hasan so he left for Egypt and encountered many believers on his way. He passed through Akka and met both Bahá'u'lláh and 'Abdu'-Bahá.
|
- Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; Hands of the Cause, Appointments; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi; Hands of the Cause, Activities; In Memoriam; Muhamman Taqi Isfahani; Lua Getsinger; Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani; * Translation; Egypt | |
1946 22 Nov 194- |
Amelia Collins was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God by Shoghi Effendi. [PP258; PSBW878]
|
Amelia Collins; - Hands of the Cause; In Memoriam; Hands of the Cause, Appointments; Hands of the Cause, First Contingent | |
1946 Oct 194- |
The Persian Women's Four Year Plan (1946-1950) was launched. Some goals were to: -Hold literacy classes for girls and adult women -Hold regional conventions semi-annually for Bahá'í women -Hold a national convention annually with the participation of representatives of regional committees -Issue a periodical covering topics of both Bahá'í and general history, science, literature, health, hygiene, housekeeping and care of children |
- Teaching Plans; Iran | |
1946 Oct 11 194- |
The Bahá'ís of Iran launched a Forty-five Month Plan, the Persian 45 Month Plan ( 11 October 1946 to 9 July 1950, The Centenary of the Martyrdom of the Báb). Every province had specific assignments. [BBRSM158; CB316]
The objectives of the plan included; 1. Consolidation of all local Bahá'í communities. 2. Reestablishment of 62 dissolved Assemblies. (93 LSAs formed) 3. Formation of 22 groups. (37 established) 4. Creation of 13 new centres. (24 localities established) 5. Development of Assemblies from groups in three adjoining countries, namely in Kabul, Afghanistan, Mecca, Arabia and Bahrein Island, Persian Gulf. 6. The formation of groups in four localities on the Arabian Peninsula. 7. The sending pioneers to India and 'Iráq to assist in the formation of new groups. The Bahá'ís of Tehran were called upon to send out 50 families into the pioneer field. (160 arose) Every individual Bahá'í was included in the operation of the Plan-as a volunteer, by deputizing a pioneer, by contributing funds, by circuit teaching or by providing hospitality to students whose parents had become pioneers. [BW4p34-35; BW11p34-36] |
- Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; Social and economic development; Women; Iran; India; Pakistan; Myanmar | |
1946 14 Sep 194- |
The first native Ecuadorian woman to accept the Faith was Judith Franco. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p21] | Judith Franco; Quito, Ecuador; Ecuador | first Ecuadorian woman to accept the Faith |
1946 11 Aug 194- |
The passing of Orcella Rexford (b. Louise Cutts-Powell, 12 Jun 1887 in Tracey, Minnesota) in Los Angeles. She was buried near the grave of Thornton Chase in the Inglewood Park Cemetery. [BW11p495-498; Find a grave]
|
Orcella Rexford; Births and deaths; In Memoriam; Cemeteries and graves; Thornton Chase; Los Angeles, CA; USA | |
1946 5 Aug 194- |
The Bahá'í Faith was registered as a cultural, religious and social organization in Haiti. | Recognition (legal); Haiti | |
1946 22 Jul 194- |
The passing of John David Bosch (named "Núraní by 'Abdu'l-Bahá) at his home near Geyserville, California (b. August 1, 1855 at Neu-St Johann, Canton Gall, Switzerland) He had become a Bahá'í in 1905. His teachers being Mrs Beckwith, Mrs Goodall, Mrs Cooper and Thornton Chase. He was buried in the Olive Hill Cemetery, Geyserville. [BW11p488]
|
In Memoriam; John Bosch; Louise Bosch; Geyserville, CA; California, USA; USA; - Bahá'í schools (conference centres); Bosch Bahá'í School | |
1946 20 Jul 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States enquired of the Guardian whether the existence of the United Nations in its present form changed the attitude of the Baha'is toward military duties which might require the taking of human life. The Guardian's reply, written by his secretary, was:
...the Bahá'ís should continue to apply, under all circumstances, for exemption from any military duty that necessitates the taking of life. There is no justification for any change of attitude on our part at the present time. The Universal House of Justice amplified this later statement:
There is no objection in a Bahá'í enlisting voluntarily in the armed forces of a country in order to obtain a training in some trade or profession, provided that he can do so without making himself liable to undertake combatant service.[BW17:384–5] |
Military (armed forces); Military; Weapons; War; USA | |
1946 (In the year 1946 or 1947) 194- |
While visiting in Famagusta (Gazimağusa) Rúḥíyyih Khánum is quoted as saying: "Shoghi Effendi was working very intensely in Haifa and people were knocking on his door all the time to ask questions; because of that, during his unofficial travels to rest (holidays), he was traveling around quietly (incognito), and without contacting the believers. We came to Cyprus together for two or three weeks in one of the years 1946 or 1947 – if I look (in my diary) I can find the year. We went to Nicosia, and then we got a car and went to Famagusta, Larnaca and then again Nicosia. I can't remember whether we went to Limassol. Afterwards we went to St. Hilarion. There weren't good hotels in the Troodos area then, and because of that we stayed in a small house for a while. This is all I can say about this visit." [Notes of the Visit to Famagusta of Amatu'l-Bahá Rúḥíyyih Khánum in the home of Erol & Şafak Olkar Notes taken by: Erol Olkar. The English translation of the original Turkish language handwritten manuscript of Erol Olkar was by Deniz Oraç.] | Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum, Journeys of; Famagusta, Cyprus; Nicosia, Cyprus; Larnaca, Cyprus; St. Hilarion, Cyprus; Cyprus | |
1946 21 Jun 194- |
The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women. It was established as a functional commission of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) on this day in 1946. UN Document E/90] | United Nations; Commission on the Status of Women; New York, USA; New York, USA | |
1946 Jun 194- |
Rita Marshall, the first person native to St Vincent in the Caribbean to become a Bahá'í, accepted the Faith while in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
|
First Bahá'ís by country or area; St. Vincent, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Halifax, NS; Nova Scotia, Canada; Canada | first Bahá'í of St Vincent |
1946 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Panama was established Panama City. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Panama | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Panama |
1946 Ridván 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of Germany and Austria was re-established. [BN No 187 September 1946 p8-9]
|
National Spiritual Assembly, formation; Germany; Austria | |
1946 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Brazil was established in Rio de Janeiro. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Brazil |
1946 Ridván 194- |
The Second Seven Year Plan of the United States and Canada (1946-1953) was launched. [BBR180; BBRSM158, 185; MA87-89, MA89]
|
Second Seven Year Plan, US and CA (1946-1953); - Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; Formative Age; Ages and Epochs; USA; Canada | |
1946 Ridván 194- |
India and Burma launched a Four and One-Half Year Plan, Indian 4½ Year Plan. (1946-1951) [Ruhi 8.2 p46; BW11p32; DND141-143; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]
- To increase the number of Local Assemblies from 21 to 63 - To give special attention to areas marked by sharp cultural and political divisions As the plan unfolded, the National Assembly added the following additional goals: - To publish the Esslemont book - 'Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era' in eighteen new languages - To acquire a National Hazíratu'l-Quds in New Delhi - To carry the Bahá'í message to Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand |
- Teaching Plans; - Teaching Plans, National; India, Pakistan and Burma Four and a Half Year Teaching Plan; India; Pakistan; Myanmar | |
1946 11 Apr 194- |
Shoghi Effendi instructed Sutherland Maxwell to set plans in motion for the first stages of the building of the superstructure of the Shrine of the Báb. [GBF104–5] | Sutherland Maxwell; Báb, Shrine of; * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; - Bahá'í World Centre; Mount Carmel; Haifa, Israel | |
1946 20 - 25 Jan 194- |
The first teaching conference in Latin America was held in Panama City on the instructions of Shoghi Effendi.
|
Conferences, Bahá'í; Conferences, Teaching; - Conferences, International; Teaching; Panama; Latin America | first teaching conference in Latin America |
1946 Jan-Feb 194- |
Canadian Elizabeth Greenleaf went on pilgrimage in Haifa. [SETPE1p114] | Elizabeth Greenleaf; Pilgrims; Haifa, Israel | |
1946 (In the year) 194- |
An Egyptian Bahá'í, a Dr Ahmad, moved to Edinburgh in order to study medicine and to fulfill one of the goals of the Six Year Plan, He invited travel teacher to speak in Edinburgh and was soon joined by Jean Court from Canada. He returned to Egypt prior to the formation of the local spiritual assembly two years later. [from The Bahá'í Community in Edinburgh, 1946-1950 by Ismail Valesco in SBBH Vol 14 p275] | Dr Ahman; Jean Court; Edinburgh, Scotland; Scotland | |
1946 (In the year) 194- |
The first Bahá'í summer school in Argentina was held in Ezeiza. [BW11:45] | Summer schools; First summer and winter schools; Ezeiza, Argentina; Argentina | first Bahá’í summer school in Argentina |
1946 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of Abdul Baha's Questioned Will and Testament by Ruth White. The book contains the report of Dr C Ainsworth Mitchell, the handwriting expert for the British Museum. | Ruth White; Covenant-breakers; `Abdu'l-Bahá, Will and Testament of; Beverly Hills, CA; California, USA | |
1946 (In the year) 194- |
The first issue of the News Exchange was published by the International Bahá'í Bureau in Geneva. The last issue was published in December of 1956. It was published in English, French and German. [CBN No 89 June 1957 p5] | International Bahá'í Bureau; Bahá'í International Community; - Newsletters; * Publications; News Exchange; Anne Lynch; Geneva, Switzerland; Switzerland | |
1946 (In the year) 194- |
The restoration of the House of Bahá'u'lláh in Tihrán was completed. | House of Bahá'u'lláh (Tihran); Restoration; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1946 (In the year) 194- |
In the second Seven Year Plan from 1946 to 1952, the American Bahá'í community was given the responsibility of working for the establishment of bahá'í communities in several european countries. A European Teaching Committee, which was responsible to the North American National Spiritual Assembly, was set up in Geneva in 1946. Its task was to coordinate the pioneer activities in ten European goal countries; Denmark, Norway, Sweden, The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Italy, Spain and Portugal. [SBBR14p239]
|
European Teaching Committee; Edna True; Geresina Campani; Denmark; Norway; Sweden; Netherlands; Belgium; Luxembourg; Geneva, Switzerland; Switzerland; Italy; Spain; Portugal | |
1946 - 1963 194- |
The end of the First Epoch and the beginning of The Second Epoch of the Formative Age. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 February 1986; Mess63-86 p710-716]
|
Ages and Epochs; Formative Age | |
1945 Dec 15 194- |
The passing of Emogene Hoagg (Henrietta Emogene Martin Hoagg) [BW10p520] | In Memoriam; Emogene Hoagg | |
1945 24 Oct 194- |
The United Nations was formally established. There were Bahá'í representatives in San Francisco in 1946 for the signing of the Charter. [BWNS1772]
|
United Nations; Secret of Divine Civilization (book); Collective security; Prophecies; World War II; War; Peace; History (general); Bahá'í International Community; San Francisco, CA; California, USA; USA | |
1945 20 Oct 194- |
Emeric and Rosemary Sala of St. Lambert, Quebec departed on a four month tour of Central and South America. They visited 19 republics and Mr Sala gave seventy-nine talks. They visited many pioneers and paid homage at the grave of May Maxwell at Quilmes, about one hour from Buenos Aires. [TG93-101] | Emeric Sala; Rosemary Sala; Central America; Latin America; St. Lambert, QC; Quebec, Canada; Canada | |
1945 2 Sep 194- |
The war in Japan ended. | World War II; War; History (general); Japan | |
1945 14 Aug 194- |
The German Bahá'ís, 80 per cent of whom lived in the American sector of occupied Germany, obtained permission to re-organize. [BBRSM185]
|
Persecution, Germany; - Persecution, Other; - Persecution; World War II; Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); John Eichenauer; Germany | |
1945 1 Aug 194- |
Initially founded as a hostel for Bahá'í children with sixteen children, what was the New Era High School and Senior Secondary had grown to become a leading international co-educational institution with many hundreds of students.
|
New Era High School, India; - Bahá'í inspired schools; New Era Development Institute, India; Social and economic development; Panchgani, India; Maharashtra, India; India | |
1945 Aug 194- |
Marguerite Wellby Preston, an English Bahá'í married to a Kenyan tea grower, settled in Sotik, Kenya, becoming the first Bahá'í in the country. [UD484]
|
Marguerite Preston; Sotik, Kenya; Kenya | first Bahá’í in Kenya |
1945 Jun 194- |
The 20 Bahá'ís in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, were a sufficient number for the local spiritual assembly to gain legal recognition for the Bahá'í Faith as a religion.
|
Local Spiritual Assembly; Port-au-Prince, Haiti; Haiti | |
1945 8 May 194- |
The war in Europe ended.
|
World War II; War; History (general); - Europe | |
1945 25 Apr 194- |
The United Nations convened in San Francisco.
|
United Nations; San Francisco, CA | |
1945 15 Apr 194- |
Shoghi Effendi sent the following cable to the Bahá'í world: "My faithless brother Husayn, after long period of dishonourable conduct, has abandoned the Master's home to consort with his sister and other Covenant-breakers". [Bahá'í News, No. 174, p.2; This Decisive Hour #141] | Covenant-breakers; Husayn Ali Rabbani; Haifa, Israel | |
1945 (Ridván) 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly of Venezuela was established in Caracas. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Caracas, Venezuela | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Venezuela |
1945 (Ridván) 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly of Bolivia was established in La Paz. | Local Spiritual Assembly; La Paz, Bolivia | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Bolivia |
1945 (Ridván) 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in the Dominican Republic was established in Santo Domingo.
|
Local Spiritual Assembly; Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Dominican Republic |
1945 (Ridván) 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Ecuador was established in Guayaquil. The founding members were: Eduardo Gonzalez Lopez, Luis Guillermo Molina DeFranc, Emilio Minervini, Jorge Sarco, Jorge Jalón Fer, Juan Luis Aguirre Tarpeau, Mme. Marie Constantine Claudet de Thomas, Else Jorgensen, and Lauro Sánchez. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p17, 84] | Local Spiritual Assembly; Guayaquil, Ecuador; Ecuador | firstLocal Spiritual Assembly in Ecuador |
1945 Ridván 194- |
The election for the National Spiritual Assembly was held by postal ballot. The tellers completed their work in the Temple Foundation Hall. Those selected as members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada were: Horace Holley, Dorothy Baker, Philip Sprague, George Latimer, Amelia Collins, Louis Gregory, Leroy Ioas, Allen McDaniel, Roy C. Wilhelm. [BN No175 Jun 1945 p3]
|
Conventions, National; National Spiritual Assembly, election of; Horace Holley; Dorothy Baker; Philip G. Sprague; George Latimer; Amelia Collins; Louis G. Gregory; Leroy Ioas; Allen McDaniel; Roy C. Wilhelm; Wilmette, IL; USA | |
13 Mar 194- |
The murder of Siyyid Mustafá Rúmí (b. Baghdad 1846 d. Mandalay Region, Myammar). He became a Baha'i in 1875 through the teaching of Jamal Effendi. He was nearly 99 years old at the time of his death. [Find a grave]
. . . the Burmese Bahá'ís . . . have lost almost everything, including Bahá'í institutions destroyed and, above all, their wonderful pioneer-teacher, Siyyid Mustafa Roumi, was cruelly murdered by Burmese villagers together with a number of other Bahá'ís. But they have gathered in their ruined village, and with the utmost faith and devotion are seeking to rebuild their Baha' institutions; they have already started their school and elected their Assembly. Such evidences of the deep attachment of Bahá'ís to their religion are, indeed, inspiring! . . . |
In Memoriam; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi; Siyyid Mustafa Rumi; Jamal Effendi; Myanmar; Daidanaw, Myanmar; Thingangyun, Myanmar | |
1945 (In the year) 194- |
Marzieh Gail and her father, 'Ali Kuli Khan made a provisional translation of the Long Healing Prayer that was hand-typed and distributed informally among the friends. [The Long Healing Prayer of Bahá'u'lláh: The Metaphysics of Unity 12.56]
|
Healing prayer, Long; Marzieh Gail; `Alí Kulí Khán | |
1945 (In the year) 194- |
See BBRSM166–7 for a chart showing the distribution of the Bahá'í Assemblies and localities in this year. | Statistics; - Worldwide | |
1945 (In the year) 194- |
The World Forestry Charter Gathering was founded in Britain by Richard St Barbe Baker. [VV106; WH75] | Richard St. Barbe Baker; Environment; United Kingdom | |
1945 (In the year) 194- |
Bahá'ís throughout Iran were dismissed from National Teacher Training Colleges by the National Board of Education. [BW18p390] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Education; - Persecution; Iran | |
1945 (In the year) 194- |
The Persian Bahá'í community published several periodicals. One of the most popular, aiming at the educational and intellectual training of Bahai youth, was named Āhang-e badīʿ. It was established in Iran in 1945 as a publication of the Tehran Bahá'í Youth Committee and then became a national magazine which gained the support of 1,200 subscribers in the early 1950s. Suspended for five years (1955-60) due to intensified restrictions by the government, Āhang-e badīʿ was published for more than three decades until it was stopped by the onset of the Islamic régime. [BW12p292; BW16p263; BW12p570; BAHAISM v. The Bahai Community in Iran by V. Rafati] | Ahang-e badi; Iran | |
1944 Nov (mid) 194- |
The publication of God Passes By, a survey of the history of the first century of the Bábí and Bahá'í Faiths by Shoghi Effendi. [BBRSM137; CB308; PG217-218; GPBXI; Collins5.62]
|
* Shoghi Effendi (chronology); God Passes By (book); * Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; Gifts; * Publications; * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of; - Historical overviews by Central Figures or BWC; - Bahá'í World Centre | |
The passing of John Stearns, pioneer to Quito while in Lima, Peru for medical treatment. He was buried in the British Cemetary. [BW10p539-540; Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p11] | In Memoriam; John Stearns; Lima, Peru; Peru | ||
1944 Nov 194- |
Shoghi Effendi sent the cable below to the Bahá'í world: "Monib Shahid, grandson of both `Abdu'l-Bahá and the King of Martyrs, married according to the Moslem rites the daughter of a political exile who is nephew of the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. This treacherous act of alliance with enemies of the Faith merits condemnation of entire Bahá'í world." [Bahá'í News, December, 1944 No. 172] | Covenant-breakers; Munib Shahid; Haifa, Israel | |
1944 Nov 194- |
The Local Spiritual Assembly of Bogotá, Colombia, was disbanded.
|
Local Spiritual Assembly; Bogota, Colombia; Colombia | |
1944 after Aug 194- |
Following the murder of Bahá'ís at Sháhrúd, Iran, and the widespread publicity on the outcome of the trial, there was an upsurge in persecution of Bahá'ís throughout Iran. [BW18p389]
|
Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Destruction; - Persecution, Other; - Persecution; Iran; Ábádih, Iran; Bandar-Jaz, Iran; Bandar Shah, Iran; Bushrúyih, Iran; Faran, Iran; Kashan, Iran; Nain, Iran; Gulpaygan, Iran; Zabul, Iran; Bujnurd, Iran; Gunabad, Iran; Tabas, Iran; Mahmudabad, Iran; Miyan-du-ab, Iran; Rafsanjan, Iran; Sangesar, Iran; Sirjan, Iran; Qasr-i-Shirin, Iran | |
1944 8 Aug 194- |
Three Bahá'ís were murdered in Sháhrúd, Iran, after three weeks of anti-Bahá'í agitation. Many Bahá'í houses were attacked and looted. [BW18:389]
|
Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution, Other; - Persecution, Court cases; - Persecution; Human Rights; Court cases; Shahrud, Iran; Iran | |
1944 23 May 194- |
Shoghi Effendi unveiled the model of the Shrine of the Báb at the centenary celebration of the Declaration of the Báb in Haifa. [BBD210; BW10:154, 157; DH140; GBF104; PP239–40; UD166]
|
Báb, Shrine of; Báb, Declaration of; Centenaries; Models; * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Shoghi Effendi, Works of; - Bahá'í World Centre; Mount Carmel; Haifa, Israel | |
1944 22 May 194- |
Centenary of the Declaration of the Báb.
|
Centenaries; Báb, Declaration of; Formative Age; Ages and Epochs; - Worldwide | |
1944 22–23 May 194- |
The Centenary of the Declaration of the Báb was celebrated at the House of the Báb in Shíráz. [BW10:181]
|
Báb, Declaration of; Báb, House of (Shiraz); Conventions, National; NSA; Centenaries; Shíráz, Iran; Iran | |
1944 22–23 May 194- |
The Centenary of the Declaration of the Báb was commemorated in the Holy Land. [BW10:150]
|
Centenaries; Báb, Declaration of; Haifa, Israel | |
1944 19–25 May 194- |
An international celebration of the Centenary of the founding of the Faith was held at the House of Worship in Wilmette.
|
Centenaries; Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Wilmette; Wilmette, IL; USA | |
1944 12 May 194- |
Bahá'ís were persecuted at Ábádih, Iran. The Bahá'í centre was attacked by a mob of four thousand, the building was looted and destroyed and several Bahá'ís badly beaten. [BW18p389]
|
Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Destruction; - Persecution; - Persecution, Mobs; Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Ábádih, Iran; Iran | |
1944 2 May 194- |
The German government held a public trial of some of the jailed Bahá'í leaders in Darmstadt. Dr. Hermann Grossmann was allowed to testify as a witness for the defense about the non-political nature of the Bahá'í Faith and the attitude of the trial had been pre-ordained. The government found the Bahá'ís guilty, levied large fines and banned all Bahá'í institutions ordering that they be immediately disbanded. [Bahá'í Teachings; German Bahá'í website archives] | Persecution, Germany; Hermann Grossmann; Darmstadt, Germany; Germany | |
1944 May 194- |
The first All-American Bahá'í Convention was held. Those elected to the National Spiritual Assembly were: George 0. Latimer, (Chair), Allen McDaniel, (Vice), Horace Holley, (Sec'y), Louis Gregory, (Recording Sec'y), Roy Wilhelm, (Treas), Dorothy Baker, Amelia Collins, Philip Sprague, and Leroy Ioas. [BW No 169 September 1944 p6]
|
Conventions, National; Conventions, District; First conventions; Hilda Yen; North America; USA | first All-American Bahá’í Convention |
1944 May 194- |
The British at their national convention, decided to ask the Guardian for their own Six Year Plan. [UDXVI]
|
Conventions, National; - Teaching Plans, National; Firsts, other; LSA; United Kingdom; Ireland | first British collective enterprise |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The thirty-sixth National Convention was held in Wilmette and hosted representatives of the Bahá'í communities of Central and South America. Those elected to serve the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada were: George O. Latimer (Chairman), Allen B. McDaniel (Vice), Horace Holley (Secretary), Louis G. Gregory (Recording Secretary), Roy C. Wilhelm (Treasurer), Dorothy Baker. Amelia E. Collins, Philip G. Sprague, Leroy Ioas. The Assembly appointed Siegfried Schopflocher to serve as the Treasurer of the Canadian Bahá'í Fund. [BN No 169 July 1944 p2; BN No285 Nov 1954 p3-4] |
Conventions, National; George Latimer; Allen McDaniel; Horace Holley; Louis G. Gregory; Roy C. Wilhelm; Dorothy Baker; Amelia Collins; Philip G. Sprague; Leroy Ioas; Siegfried Schopflocher; North America; USA; Canada | |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Peru was established in Lima. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p10] | Local Spiritual Assembly; Lima, Peru | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Peru |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Honduras was established in Tegucigalpa. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Tegucigalpa, Honduras | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Honduras |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Colombia was established in Bogotá. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Bogota, Colombia | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Colombia |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Puerto Rico was established in San Juan. | Local Spiritual Assembly; San Juan, Puerto Rico | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Puerto Rico |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Jamaica was established in Kingston. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Kingston, ON | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Jamaica |
1944 Ridván 194- |
The Bahá'ís of the British Isles launched a Six Year Plan, the British Six Year Plan (1944-1950). [Ruhi 8.2 p46]
|
- Teaching Plans; British Six Year Plan; United Kingdom | |
1944 20 Apr 194- |
The end of the first Seven Year Plan. Some of the accomplishments of the plan were:
|
Seven Year Plan | |
1944 Apr 194- |
The first Bahá'í shortwave radio broadcast was beamed from New York towards South America. [BW9:44–5]
|
Bahá'í Radio; Firsts, other; New York, USA; USA | first Bahá’í shortwave radio broadcast |
1944 21 Mar 194- |
On the occasion of the Centenary of the Declaration of the Báb, the Guardian provided two gifts to the Bahá'í world. To the Western believers it was God Passes By, and to the friends in the East, The Tablet of Naw-Rúz 101. Both dealt with the history of the Cause in the course of the century, a history of persecution and oppression, a history of suffering and victory, a history of joy and love, a history of the growth of the Cause of God, of its rise and of its descent into a wave-tossed sea of happenings, of its evolution from an embryonic state to its triumphant march towards its culminating point determining the destiny of man.
The Tablet of Naw-Rúz 101 has been named Lawh-i-Qarn (Tablet of the Centennial). It was unveiled in a solemn pilgrimage ceremony at the House of the Báb in the presence of the 91 delegates exactly one hundred years after the visit of Mullá Husayn. A partial English translation of this Persian document can be found in Tablet of the Centennial by Shoghi Effendi translated by Khazeh Fananapazir. This paper also makes reference to the article below. Dr Àlí Muhammad Varqa's article, Le Style persan du Gardien, was presented at the Association for Bahá'í Studies 9th Annual Conference in Ottawa in 1984 and can be found in the book of the proceedings of that conference, The Vision of Shoghi Effendi p209. In his paper he quotes from a number of Tablets to describe the style of Shoghi Effendi's writing in Persian, one of them is the Tablet of the Centennial. On 28 November 2023 the Universal House of Justice, in a message to the Bahá'ís of the world, provided a review of the previous 100 years of the Formative Age. |
Lawh-i-Qarn (Tablet of the Centennial); * Shoghi Effendi, Writings of; Centenaries; - Historical overviews by Central Figures or BWC; Shíráz, Iran; Iran | |
1944 22 Jan 194- |
Prior to mailing the manuscript to Horace Holley, Shoghi Effendi made the last corrections of the last installment of God Passes By. At that time the book had the working title of "Prospect and Retrospect". This marked the culmination of approximately two years of almost continuous work. [PP222] | God Passes By (book); - Bahá'í World Centre | |
1944 Jan 194- |
A Memorial to Keith Ransom-Kehler was erected in Isfahan to commemorate her work in Iran. She was the second American Bahá'í to die in Iran while serving the Cause. See picture. [BN No 169 Jul 1944 p8 | Keith Ransom-Kehler; In Memoriam; Isfahan, Iran; Iran | |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
As early as 1944 Mr. Rajab–Ali Vahdat, an agronomist of Iranian origin was the first Bahá'í to settle in what is now called the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the company of his wife of Belgian nationality. They settled in the city of Kabongo, then in the city of Kamina in what is now Upper Katanga. [bahai.org] | Rajab-`Alí Vahdat; Kabongo, Democratic Republic of Congo; Kamina, Democratic Republic of Congo | first pioneer to settle in the Democratic Republic of the Congo |
1944 (In the Year) 194- |
The publication of The Divine Art of Living: Selections from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, the Báb, and 'Abdu'l-Bahá by the Chicago Publishing Committee. It was compiled by Mabel Hyde Paine. The book saw four revisions and up until 2006 and is still being reprinted. [Collins4.114 - 4.117]
|
Divine Art of Living (book); Mabel Hyde Paine; Marian Crist Lippitt; Mary Francis Baral; Chicago, IL | |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
The first Bahá'ís arrived in the Mariana Islands.
|
Joseph F. Peter; Joseph Tierno; Saipan, Mariana Islands | first Bahá’ís in Mariana Islands |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
The National Spiritual Assembly of Australia was incorporated. | National Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; Australia | |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
A Bahá'í committee in Tihrán identified the House of Bahá'u'lláh in the city and purchased it. | House of Bahá'u'lláh (Tihran); Purchases and exchanges; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
Hand of the Cause Collis Featherstone and his wife, Madge, were introduced to the Bahá'í Faith by Bertha and Joe Dobbins in Adelaide, Australia. They became Bahá'ís later in the year. | Collis Featherstone; Madge Featherstone; Bertha Dobbins; Joe Dobbins; Adelaide, Australia; Australia | |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
Gerardo Vega, of Costa Rica, was the first Latin-American native to pioneer when he began work in Panama. [BN No 171 November 1944 p4-5] | Pioneer; Gerardo Vega; Costa Rica; Panama | Gerardo Vega, of Costa Rica, was the first Latin-American native to pioneer when he began work in Panama. |
1944 (In the year) 194- |
In Iran a Central Women's Progress Committee was formed to organize women's activities throughout the country. Some of the fundamental tasks accomplished by this committee and its supportive bodies in various localities included holding the first convention of Anjoman-e Tarraqī-e Neswān (Society for the Advancement of Women) in 1947 in Tehran following which local and regional conferences, educational gatherings, and regular classes for illiterate women were conducted. As a result of continued effort and educational training, particularly during the Four Year Plan (1946-1950) the Bahá'í Persian women were enabled to acquire sufficient self-confidence and social recognition to fill elective and appointive offices in the community. [BW11p563; BW12p65; BAHAISM v. The Bahai Community in Iran by V. Rafati] | Central Womens Progress Committee; Society for the Advancement of Women; Women; Social and economic development; Iran | |
1943 22 Dec 194- |
The passing of Disciple of Àbdu'l-Bahá Alma Knobloch (b. 1864 Bautzen; Germany d. 23 December 1943 Cabin John MD). She was interred in the family plot in Prospect Hill Cemetery in Washington, DC.
|
In Memoriam; Alma Knobloch; Washington, DC, USA | |
1943 4 Sep 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Alaska was established at Anchorage. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Anchorage, AK; Alaska, USA; USA | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Alaska |
1943 16 Aug 194- |
The passing of Sydney Sprague (b. Oshkosh WI in 1875) in Los Angeles. He was buried in Inglewood Cemetery. His grave is beside that of Tom Collins, husband of Amelia Collins, and lies just across the road from the grave of Thornton Chase, "First Bahá'í of America." [BW9p633-635]
|
Sydney Sprague; Covenant-breakers; Ameen Fareed (Amin Farid); Mírzá Asadullah-i-Isfahani; Kai Khosroe; Travel Teaching; In Memoriam; Los Angeles, CA; USA; India; Myanmar; Lahore, India; Pakistan | first Western Bahá'í to visit the Bahá'í communities on the Indian sub-continent. first Occidental Bahá'í for whom an Oriental Bahá'í had sacrificed his life. |
1943 18 Jun 194- |
The passing of Mabel Rice-Wray Ives (Rizwanea) (b. in St. Louis, MO in 1878) in Oklahoma, OK. She was buried in Memorial Park Cemetery. [BW9p616; Find a grave]
She first heard of the Faith at the age of 21 in 1899 under miraculous circumstances. [Mable Ives & The Mysterious Trolley Car Ride] In 1903 she married Theron Canfield Rice-Wray and had three children. They lived in California from 1909 to 1914 where her marriage ended and she returned to the East. In 1919 she met Howard Colby Ives and they married in 1920 and she became known to many who loved her as "Rizwanea". For nearly twenty years they traveled and taught the Faith often teaming with Grace and Harlan Ober as well as Doris and Willard McKay in both business and the teaching work. It was their entire life. They traveled through the New England states, through Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, New York and many many more in Canada as well-always teaching, always leaving an established Assembly behind them." For example they came to Toronto in November of 1938 and stayed for about 10 months. During that time Mabel gave more than 150 lectures in Toronto and about 70 in Hamilton, Toronto's expansion goal. Howard, who was had had heart problems and who was rapidly losing for sight and hearing at the time, complemented her abilities by doing personal deepening with receptive souls. [TMLF62-67, SEBW139-154]
See the story of how Mabel resolved the situation when she could no longer tolerate the itinerate lifestyle in the story When Mable Ives Could Endure No More, She Prayed . See the tribute paid to her in the Canadian Bahá'í News No 202 November 1966 p4. |
Mabel Rice-Wray Ives; In Memoriam; St. Louis, MO; Oklahoma, USA | |
1943 30 May 194- |
The dedication of the Memorial to May Ellis Maxwell, Quilmes Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Argentina. [Bahá'í News July 1943 No 169 page 3, 564/1186] | May Maxwell (Bolles); Cemeteries and graves; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Argentina | |
1943 23 May 194- |
Melba M. King (née Call) became a Bahá'í in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the first full-blooded Eskimo, a Yup'ik, to accept the Faith. [BW18:687–8] | Melba M King; Albuquerque, NM; New Mexico, USA | first full-blooded Eskimo Bahá'í |
1943 2 May 194- |
The passing of Narayanrao Rangnath (Shethji) Vakil (b. Navsari, 1866) in Poona. He was the first person from the Hindu community to identify himself with the Bahá'í activities in India and the first chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of India and Burma. He learned of the Faith through Mírzá Mahram Isfáhání in about 1908. [BW9p637-641]
|
In Memoriam; Narayanrao Rangnath Vakil; Mahram Isfahani; Mumbai, India; Pune, India; India | first Hindu Bahá'í; |
1943 5 Apr 194- |
Sir Ronald Storrs visited the House of the Báb in Shiraz. [BW 11:461] | Ronald Storrs; Báb, House of (Shiraz); Shíráz, Iran; Iran | |
1943 8 Jan 194- |
The exterior ornamentation of the Wilmette Temple was completed. [BW10:181; UD155–6]
|
Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Wilmette; * Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); Wilmette, IL; USA | |
1943 (In the year) 194- |
In 1943 Raphael Lemkin published Axis Rule in Occupied Europe: Laws of Occupation, Analysis of Government, Proposals for Redress (Foundations of the Laws of War) in which he first used the term "genocide,"by combining "genos" (race, people) and "cide" (to kill). He defined genocide as follows:
This study was an elaboration of ideas he first proposed in 1933 in his address to the Fifth International Conference for the Unification of Penal Law (1933), which argued that attacks on racial, religious and ethnic groups should be considered international crimes. Important for the prosecution of the Nazis, it helped to establish the framework for all subsequent efforts to punish crimes against humanity. When Lemkin proposed a treaty against genocide to the United Nations in 1945, he defined it as follows:
|
Genocide; United Nations | |
1943 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of Bahá'í World Faith: Selected Writings of Bahá'u'lláh and Abdu'l-Bahá by the Bahá'í Publishing Committee in Wilmette and edited by Horace Holley. [BN No 347 Jan 1960 p1] It was intended to replace the earlier compilation Bahá'í Scriptures with newer translations. Neither is considered authoritative because they were not prepared by the Bahá'í World Centre.
|
Bahá'í World Faith (book); * Publications | |
1943 (In the year) 194- |
Margot Vandenbroeck-Levy (Galler) became a Bahá'í in Chicago, the first native Luxembourger to accept the Faith.
|
Margot Vandenbroeck-Levy; Chicago, IL; Luxembourg | First Bahá'í of Luxembourg |
1943 - 1944 194- |
Fereidoon Adamiyyat, one of the most influential and widely acknowledged Iranian historians of the 20th century, argued in his Book, Amir Kabir and Iran, considered perhaps the most influential scholarly work of history published prior to the Islamic Revolution, that British intelligence officers were behind a plot which led to the creation of the Bábí Faith. He falsely claimed that Arthur Conolly, a British intelligence officer who was executed in Bukhara in 1842, had in his Journey to the North of India through Russia, Persia and Afghanistan admitted that Mulla Husayn Bushrui, the first follower of the Báb, was an agent working for him. Adamiyyat further concluded that without the aid of foreign powers such a religious sect could not have survived for so long, thus giving further credence to the conspiracy theories of his time and culture. Although He subsequently came to accept that Conolley had never made such a claim and removed the allegations in later editions of his book, the influence of his initial claim proved to be lasting among Iranians.
Note:Amir Kabir was the 19th century Iranian Qajar minister who ordered the execution of many members of the early Bahá'í movement. [Iran Press Watch 1407] |
Conspiracy theories; Criticism and apologetics; Arthur Conolly; Fereidoon Adamiyyat; Iran; United Kingdom | |
1943 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of A Commentary on the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá written by David Hofman by a new publisher, George Ronald. They went on to publish books on business ethics, comparative religion, studies of sacred texts, Islam, poetry, music, novels, biography and philosophy as well as a number of other subjects. George Ronald is primarily a publisher of books related to the history, teachings, doctrines and personalities of the Bahá'í Faith. See the reference for a list of Bahá'í books published up to 2013. [George Ronald
A Bibliographic History
by
Jan Jasion]
|
`Abdu'l-Bahá, Will and Testament of; George Ronald; Firsts, other; Publishing; Publishing Trusts; * Publications; David Hofman; United Kingdom | first book published by George Ronald. |
1943 (In the year) 194- |
The first Bahá'í group was formed in Bogotá, Colombia, with the celebration of a Unity Feast. | Unity Feast; Bogota, Colombia; Colombia | first Bahá’í group in Bogotá, Colombia |
1943 (In the year) 194- |
The first Local Spiritual Assembly was formed in Jamaica. [BWNS233] | Local Spiritual Assembly; Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); Jamaica | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Jamaica |
1943 (In the Year) 194- |
The founding of the publishing house George Ronald by David Hofman using his stage name. Its first title was The Renewal of Civilization, a book he wrote as an introduction to the Baháʼí Faith. Later publications were Bahá'u'lláh, the Prince of Peace: A Portrait, Commentary on the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and George Townshend, A Life.
They published intermittently until 1947 when consultations began with Shoghi Effendi and the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles when it became a full-time business. They published on a variety of subjects until about the mid 1960's when they concentrated on Bahá'í themes. [Bahaipedia] |
Publishing; Oxford, England; United Kingdom | |
1942 Late in the year 194- |
Shoghi Effendi asked Sutherland Maxwell to design the superstructure of the Shrine of the Báb. [BBD210; DH140; GBF103–5] | Sutherland Maxwell; Báb, Shrine of; Architecture; - Architects; * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Haifa, Israel; Mount Carmel | |
1942 18 Dec 194- |
The Assembly of Egypt, after obtaining government permission to maintain a Bahá'í cemetery, arranged for the transfer of the remains of Abu'l-Fadl and of Lua Moore Getsinger from their respective graves. The members of the National Spiritual Assembly, together with its committee who carried out the transfer, accompanied by representatives of all Bahá'í communities of Egypt, conducted a service at the Bahá'í cemetery during the reinterment. See BW9p82; 83; 87 for photos. After Abdu'l-Fadl passed away in early 1914 the American believers, in gratitude for the contribution he had made to the American Bahá'í community, collected a sum of money for the construction of a suitable monument for his grave. The work was interrupted with the Ascension of the Master and the money collected was reverted the National Fund. That money was now sent to the National Spiritual Assembly of Egypt. [BW9p89] |
Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani; - Apostles of Bahá'u'lláh; Lua Getsinger; Cemeteries and graves; In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Cairo, Egypt; Egypt | |
1942 16 Nov 194- |
Manuel Bergés Chupani, of Sánchez, Dominican Republic, became a Bahá'í, perhaps the first native Dominican person to accept the Faith. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Dominican Republic | first native Bahá'í in Dominican Republic |
1942 26 Oct 194- |
Marion Lord Maxwell ('Miss Mac') became a Bahá'í, the first Jamaican to accept the Faith. [BW17:429]
|
Marion Lord Maxwell; Jamaica | first Bahá'í in Jamaica |
1942 Aug 194- |
Lidia Zamenhof was killed in the gas chambers at Treblinka. [HDBF516]
|
Lidia Zamenhof; World War II; Persecution, Poland; Esperanto; Treblinka, Poland; Poland | |
1942 25 Jun 194- |
'Abdu'l-Jalíl Bey Sa'ad died in Egypt and Shoghi Effendi appointed him to the rank of Hand of the Cause of God on the day of his passing. [LoF57-59; MoCxxii; BW9:597]
|
- 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; `Abdu'l-Jalil Bey Saad; Declaration of Trust and By-laws; Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Dawn-Breakers (book); Esslemont; - Arabic language; * Translation; Egypt | |
1942 9 Jun - 15 Feb 1943 194- |
John Stearns began sponsoring a radio program
in Quito under the auspices of his small business, "Kandy Kitchen",
which presented classical music and readings from the Bahá'í Writings. These broadcasts came over short wave (32.05 meter,
9355 Kc) Monday evenings at 8:00 PM Eastern Standard Time. The broadcasts could be heard all over South America and
occasionally in Spain.
The Bahá'í Radio Hour, "Words and Music" was broadcasted every Sunday from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM and a program called "Bahá'í Echo" three times a week Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:15 to 9:30 PM. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p5] |
Bahá'í Radio; John Sterns; Quito, Ecuador; Ecuador | |
1942 Jun 194- |
The Spiritual Assembly of San José, Costa Rica, was legally registered with the government, the first local assembly to be incorporated in Latin America. [BW11:46] | Local Spiritual Assembly; San Jose, CA; Costa Rica | firstLocal Spiritual Assembly incorporated in Latin America |
1942 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Haiti was established in Port-au-Prince. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Port-au-Prince, Haiti | first Local Spiritual Assembly in Haiti |
1942 Ridván 194- |
The first local assembly in El Salvador was established in San Salvador. | LSA; San Salvador, El Savador | first LSA in El Salvador |
1942 Ridván 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Cuba was established in Havana. [One Country Issue 1 Vol 17 Apr-Jun 2008]
|
Local Spiritual Assembly, formation; Havana, Cuba; Cuba | first LSA in Cuba |
1942 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of The Bahá'í Temple: House of Worship of a World Faith Commemorating Completion of Exterior Ornamentation 1942, by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada. | Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Wilmette; * Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); Dedications; * Publications; Chicago, IL; Illinois, USA | |
1942 13 Feb 194- |
Ustád Habíbu'lláh Mu'ammarí was martyred in Nayríz, Iran. [BW18:389] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; Nayriz, Iran; Iran | |
1942 16 Jan 194- |
The passing of Carole Lombard Gable (b. 6 October 1908 in Ft Wayne, IN) near Las Vegas. She was buried at the Forst Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, California. She was a second generation Bahá'í, her mother, Elizabeth Peters, had been brought into the Faith my Mrs Orol Platt. Carole, at the age of 14, wrote to 'Abdu'l-Bahá to ask for His permission to pursue a career in Hollywood. His Tablet came, praying for her success. She accepted the Faith in Los Angeles in about April of 1938. Her closest Bahá'í friend was the well-known teacher, Mrs. Beulah Storrs Lewis.
|
Carole Lombard; Ft Wayne, IN; Las Vegas, NV; USA | |
1942 1 Jan 194- |
Shoghi Effendi announced the expulsion of his sister Mehrangiz. [Baha'i News #150 January 1942 p1] | Covenant-breakers; - Bahá'í World Centre | |
1942 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of Selected Writings of Bahá'u'lláh: Author of the Bahá'í Dispensation by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada. It was published by the Bahá'í Publishing Committee in Wilmette. 43p. | * Publications; Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh | |
1942 (In the year) 194- |
In the village of Daidanaw eleven Bahá'ís were slain. Records, books and documents that had been transferred to Daidanaw from the headquarters in Mandalay and Rangoon were lost when the headquarters building was destroyed by fire. [BW11p33] | Persecution, Myanmar (Burma); - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution, Destruction; - Persecution; Daidanaw, Myanmar; Mandalay, Myanmar; Yangon, Myanmar; Myanmar | |
1942 (In the year) 194- |
Dr Malcolm King, a Jamaican who had become a Bahá'í in the United States, introduced the Faith to his homeland. [SDSCp425 note 2]
|
First Bahá'ís by country or area; Jamaica | first Jamaican Baha'i |
1942 (The early 20th Century) 194- |
Bahá'í Scholarship The publication in 1865 of the Comte de Gobineau's (1816-1882),Les Religions et Les Philosophies dans l'Asie Centrale created an interest in Europe. A scholar that was inspired by Gobineau was E.G.Browne. He travelled to Iran and also visited Bahá'u'lláh in Akka in the latter days of His life. He translated two histories of the new religion and published two other books as well as a number of articles. He also made an important collection of manuscripts that he gave to Cambridge University Library. Bahá'ís have criticized Browne's work for being too sympathetic to Azal, Baha'u'llah's half-brother and implacable enemy. One of the books that Cobineau for Les Religions... was Násikhu't-Taváríkh (the 'history to abrogate all previous historiies') by Lisánu'l-Mulk. This book had been condemned by Bahá'u'lláh as a falsification of history one which even an infidel would not have had the effrontery to produce. [SUR36-37] A.L.M. Nicolas (1864-1939) was a French consular official in Iran who researched and wrote a biography of the Báb as well as translating three of the Báb's major works into French. Just as the Báb was the centre of the scholarly interests of Gobineau, Browne and Nicolas, some Russian scholars who were more interested in Bahá'u'lláh. Baron Viktor Rosen (1849-1908), the director of the Oriental Department of the University of St. Petersburg was assisted by Aleksandr Tumanski (1861-1920). He spent a great deal of time with the Bahá'í community of Ashkhabad and with Mirza Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani. Although he did not write as much as Browne or Nicolas, what he did write was derived from a very deep and thorough investigation. [L&E43-83]
There was much interest in scholarship in the early days of the Faith because almost all of the most important disciples of the Báb were Islamic religious scholars, as were many of the leading converts to the Bahá'í Faith in later years. The most important of these was the above mentioned Mirza Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani (1844-1914). He was learned in the Zoroastrian and Jewish scriptures and spent some time in the Christian West at the request of 'Abdu'l-Bahá prior to His visit. During the 1930s to 1960s, a second generation of Iranian Bahá'í scholars, such as Fadil Mazandarani (1881-1957), 'Abdul-Hamid Ishraq-Khavari (1902-1972), and 'Azizu'llah Sulaymani (1901-1985) systematized Bahá'í theology and law, developed aids for scholars such as dictionaries of Bahá'í terminology, and wrote histories and biographies. This was of course a more traditional style of scholarship than is current in the West, but it continues to be useful to all present scholars. The above-described initial flurry of interest in the Bábí and Bahá'í religions in the West was not sustained and from the 1920s to the 1970s, there were no Western scholars who were as deeply engaged as the above-named ones and only a handful of studies that can be said to have done much to advance knowledge. From the 1970s onward, there gradually emerged a new stream of scholars who can be said to be a fusion of the above two groups, the Western and the Bahá'í scholars. This new generation of scholars mostly began as Bahá'ís, although some have subsequently left the religion. They use Western academic methodology and most operate from within Western universities but they have access to insider information and resources. Apart from these individuals, the Bahá'í Faith has been very little studied by Western scholars of religion. A word must also be said about what passes for scholarship on the Bahá'í Faith in Iran and to a lesser extent in the rest of the Middle East. Bahá'ís have been persecuted in many Middle Eastern countries and rejected by Islamic leaders, and one form of this discrimination has involved the manipulation of information. For most of the last 100 years, deliberately distorted or falsified information and documents have been created mostly by some within the Islamic religious establishment and then distributed as though these were facts about the Bahá'í Faith. Since the Bahá'ís have had no ability to respond to this material in the Middle East, these distortions have gradually become accepted in the Middle East as the truth. One example is the forged memoirs of Count Dolgorukov, the Russian ambassador to Iran in the 1840s to 1850s. This and other contradictions were so clearly spurious that even some Iranian scholars debunked them when they were first published in the 1940s. But despite this, they are often regularly cited by Middle Eastern writers up to the present day as though they are a reliable source for the history of the religion. Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, this manufacturing of disinformation and forged material has increased greatly with programs in the media, articles, and books appearing on a frequent basis, especially in the government-run media. The result is that there is almost nothing published in the Middle East that has reliable information about the Bahá'í Faith in it. A little of this sort of scholarship has also appeared in the West; some Christian missionaries, notably Reverend William McElwee Miller(1892-1993)(Also see WOB83) have written anti-Bahá'í material and ex-Bahá'ís have published academic work that is calculated to make the Bahá'í community resemble a cult as portrayed in the anti-cult campaigns that were carried out in the Western media in the 1980s. [The above was copied from the website Patheos and has been edited for brevity. It was contributed by Dr. Natalie Mobini] |
Bahá'í studies; Scholarship; Orientalism; Bábísm; Comte de Gobineau; Edward Granville Browne; A.L.M. Nicolas; Baron Rosen; Alexander Tumansky; Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani; Mírzá Asadullah Fadil-i-Mazandarani; `Abdu'l-Hamid Ishraq-Khavari; Azizullah Sulaymani; Reverend William McElwee Miller; Francesco Ficicchia; Baron Viktor Rosen | |
1942 – early 194- |
The publication in Iran of The Political Confessions or Memoirs of Prince Dolgoruki (or, simply, Dolgorukov's Memoirs). The book contends that the Bábí Faith was simply an element in a plot to destabilize Iran and Islam. [22 February, 2009 Iran Press Watch]
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Conspiracy theories; Criticism and apologetics; Prince Dolgorukov; Persecution, Iran; - Persecution; Iran | |
1942 (In the year) 194- |
The House of the Báb in Shíráz was attacked and damaged by fire. [BBD108; BW18p389] | Báb, House of (Shiraz); Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Destruction; - Persecution; Shíráz, Iran; Iran | |
1941 Dec 194- |
The excommunication of Shoghi Effendi's sister, Mehrangíz Rabbáni with this message. "Sister Mehrangis [Mehrangiz] followed example Ruhi's sister. Justice demands announce believers her expulsion."(UD149)
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Covenant-breakers; Mehrangiz Rabbani; - Bahá'í World Centre | |
1941 31 Nov 194- |
Some members of the National Spiritual Assembly filed suit against Sohrab to try to stop him from using the name Bahá'í. He had opened a Bahá'í bookshop in New York in 1939. This suit was filed in the Supreme Court of New York County. The judge granted a motion to dismiss, stating that "the plaintiffs have no right to a monopoly of the name of a religion. The defendants, who purport to be members of the same religion, have an equal right to use the name of the religion..." The judge mentioned that the complaint could be further amended and the NSA appealed but the Appellate Court affirmed the decision of the lower court.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada distributed a mimeographed statement concerning the New History Society entitled The Basis of the Bahá'í Community, which explained the purpose and outcome of the lawsuit entered against the founders of the New History Society to prevent their misuse of the name "Bahá'í" on which the National Spiritual Assembly had obtained a trademark patent. [The Basis of the Bahá'í Community: A Statement Concerning the New History Society] |
Covenant-breakers; New History Society; Ahmad Sohrab; The Basis of the Bahá'í Community; New York, USA; USA | |
1941 2 Nov 194- |
Shoghi Effendi sent two cables the the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada. The first was to announce that Thrayyá Afnán, the daughter of 'Abdul-Bahá's fifth daughter, Tubá Khnum, had married Faydí Afnan, a known Covenant-breaker and son of Siyyid 'Alí who had supported Mírzá Muhammad-'Alí.
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Covenant-breakers; Thrayya Afnan; Ruhi Afnan; - Bahá'í World Centre | |
1941 18 Oct 194- |
Four members of a Bahá'í family were killed and several other family members were severely beaten in an attack on their home by an armed mob in Panbih-Chúlih, near Sárí, Iran. [BW18:389] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; - Persecution, Mobs; Panbih-Chulih, Iran; Sari, Iran; Iran | |
1941 15 Oct 194- |
The first Bahá'í group was formed in Quito. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p5] | Quito, Ecuador | first Baha'i group in Quito |
1941 16 Sep 194- |
In Iran, Ridá Sháh abdicated and Muhammad-Ridá Sháh ascended to the throne. His rule was to last until 1979. [BBR482]
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Mohammed Reza Shah Pahlavi; - Shahs; - Shahs, Throne changes; History (general); Iran, General history; Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Other; - Persecution; Iran | |
1941 6 Aug 194- |
The passing of Elizabeth Roemer Greenleaf (b. 1863) in Eliot Maine. She was buried at the Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum. [BW9p608]
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Elizabeth Greenleaf; In Memoriam; Eliot, ME; Maine, USA; USA | |
1941 20 Jun 194- |
The passing of Howard Colby Ives (b. 11 Oct 1867, Brooklyn, New York, d. Pulaski County, Arkansas, USA). He was buried in Pinecrest Memorial Park and Garden Mausoleum, Alexander, Saline County, Arkansas. [BW9p608-613; Find a grave]
Some of his works were:
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Howard Colby Ives; In Memoriam; Mabel Rice-Wray Ives; Little Rock, AR; Brooklyn, NY; Toronto, ON | |
1941 Jun 194- |
Eve Nicklin arrived in Peru from Jamestown, NY, the United States and became the first resident pioneer to settle in Lima. FMH
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Eve Nicklin; Peru | first resident pioneer in Lima |
1941 18 May 194- |
Yvonne Cuellar, a French woman, became a Bahá'í in Bolivia.
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First Bahá'ís by country or area; Bolivia | first Bahá’í in Bolivia |
1941 13 May 194- |
The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of St. Paul, Minnesota was elected. [A Saint Paul Bahá'í Community History: The Early Years] | Local Spiritual Assembly, election; Saint Paul, MN; Minnesota, USA | The first Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of St. Paul, Minnesota |
1941 8 Apr 194- |
The passing of Urbain Joseph Ledoux (b. August 13, 1874 in Ste Hélène de Bagot, Quebec). He was buried in Saint Joseph's Cemetery
Biddeford, Maine.
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Urbain Ledoux (Mr Zero); In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Social and economic development; Bread lines; Charity and relief work; New York, USA; USA | |
1941 28 Mar 194- |
The publication of The Promised Day is Come. It was, in effect, a survey of the world in relation to the Bahá'í Faith during its first century. [AY305; PG215-217]
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Promised Day is Come (letter); Bahá'í history; History (general); Peace; World peace; Tablets to kings and rulers; - Historical overviews by Central Figures or BWC; USA | |
1941 17 Feb 194- |
John Henry Hyde Dunn, passed away in Sydney. [BW9:595; SBR166]
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Hyde Dunn; - Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; In Memoriam; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi; Sydney, Australia; Australia | |
1941 11 Feb 194- |
The passing of Margaret Stevenson, the first New Zealand Bahá'í (b. 30 November 1865, in Onehunga) in Auckland. She was buried in Hillsborough Cemetery. She initially heard of the Bahá'í Faith through reading an article in "The Christian Commonwealth" sent to her by her sister, Amy, who was studying music in London. Margaret, though, later admitted that she "did not think any more about it". However, in 1913 Miss Dorothea Spinney, a professional actress who performed in many parts of the world, arrived in Auckland from California and stayed at the Stevenson home in Devonport. During that visit there were many opportunities for Miss Spinney to tell the Stevenson family about the Bahá'í Cause. After embracing the new Faith, Margaret began to speak to others of her new found beliefs – a courageous act for a middle-class woman in the then conservative society where following a new religion was considered odd. As New Zealand's only Bahá'í, she held on steadfastly to her faith for many years. Finally, after the visit of the first Bahá'í travelling teachers to New Zealand in December 1922, a handful of individuals from Margaret's social circle also became Bahá'ís. A class was established at her home in Parnell to study the Teachings in more depth and was held there regularly for 10 years. In January 1923 the first Bahá'í Nineteen Day Feast was held at her home. Margaret held various administrative roles within the Bahá'í community and remained an active and dedicated Bahá'í until her passing. [from a post by Tricia Hague-Barrett in Facebook page "Women of Bahá"; BW9p601] There is evidence to indicate that Margaret Stevenson was not the first believer in New Zealand. Dr Robert Felkin arrived in New Zealand in early 1912 while Margaret Stevenson became a believer later in that same year. [BCIB119-120] |
Margaret Stevenson; Dorothea Spinney; In Memoriam; Births and deaths | |
1941 Jan 194- |
Nine Bahá'ís were arrested in Sangsar, Khurásán, Iran, and banished to other towns for closing their shops on Bahá'í holy days. BW18:389] | Persecution, Iran; - Persecution, Arrests; - Persecution; Holy days; Sangesar, Iran; Khurásán, Iran; Iran | |
1941 194- |
'Abdu'l-Jalíl Bey Sa'ad translated The Dawn-Breakers into Arabic. His translation was published but because of the war it had to be referred to the Publicity Section of the Egyptian government for approval. From that department it was passed to the high Muslim authorities who determined that it was against the Muslim faith and so should be condemned. The entire publication run was gathered for destruction and upon hearing this 'Abdu'l-Jalíl interviewed all the officers concerned and not only secured the release of the books but obtained official permissions to distribute them in Egypt and abroad. [BW-598-599] | Dawn-Breakers (book); Nabil-i-Azam; `Abdu'l-Jalil Bey Saad; * Translation; * Publications; - Arabic language; Opposition; Egypt | |
1941 (In the year) 194- |
John Ferraby, Hand of the Cause of God, heard about the Bahá'í Faith from Victor Cofman, a non-Bahá'í. | John Ferraby | |
1941 (In the year) 194- |
Aura Sanchez became a Bahá'í in Colombia, considered the first Bahá'í of the country. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Colombia | first Bahá’í in Colombia |
1941 (In the year) 194- |
Shaykh Kázim was martyred in Bunáb, Ádharbáyján. [BW18:389] | Persecution, Adharbayjan; - Persecution, Deaths; - Persecution; Bunab, Iran; Azerbaijan | |
1941 (In the year) 194- |
Shoghi Effendi congratulated the Spiritual Assembly of San Jose upon formation. [Divine Springtime — Louise Coswell Recalls p59] | Local Spiritual Assembly, formation; San Jose, CA; Costa Rica | first local spiritual assembly in Central America |
1941 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of The Epistle to the Son of the Wolf. [ESW; Collins1.25]
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Lawh-i-Ibn-i-Dhib (Epistle to the Son of the Wolf); Aqa Najafi (Son of the Wolf); Shoghi Effendi, Translations by; * Translation; * Publications; * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; * Bahá'u'lláh, Writings of; Shoghi Effendi, Works of; - Bahá'í World Centre | |
1940 27 Dec 194- |
Elizabeth Cheney, the 'spiritual mother of Paraguay', arrived in Paraguay, the first pioneer to the country. [Bahaipedia] | Elizabeth Cheney; Names and titles; First travel teachers and pioneers; Paraguay | first pioneer to Paraguay |
1940 27 Dec 194- |
Shoghi Effendi and Rúhíyyih Khánum returned Haifa. [PP181] | * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum; * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Haifa, Israel | |
1940 Dec 194- |
Gerald and Vivian MacBeans, a Jamaican couple, and their niece, Miss May Johnson, became the first people to accept the Faith in Haiti. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Haiti | first Bahá'ís in Haiti |
1940 Dec 194- |
Eduardo Gonzales, a university student, accepted the Faith and became the first native Bahá'í of Ecuador. He was accepted as a Bahá'í on the occasion of his 21st birthday on the 15th of October 1943. Eduardo (Les) Gonzalez performed outstanding service for the Cause both as an itinerant teacher abroad and pioneer to Spain and Venezuela. Sadly, in later years he became a Covenant-breaker and had to be ex-communicated.
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Eduardo Gonzales; First believers by background; Indigenous people; Ecuador | first native Bahá’í of Ecuador |
1940 Dec 194- |
Luis Carlo Nieto became the first Bahá'í in Colombia.
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First Bahá'ís by country or area; Colombia | first Bahá’í in Colombia |
1940 20 Oct 194- |
Ralph Laltoo, the first Trinidadian to become a Bahá'í, accepted the Faith in Halifax, Nova Scotia. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Halifax, NS; Nova Scotia, Canada | first Bahá'í from Trinidad |
1940 Sep 194- |
William Sears, Hand of the Cause of God, became a Bahá'í in Salt Lake City, Utah. | William Sears; - Hands of the Cause; Salt Lake City, UT; Utah, USA; USA | |
1940 1 Aug 194- |
The first four people to become Bahá'ís in Costa Rica accepted the Faith after Gayle Woolson and Amelia Ford from the United States arrived in Puerto Limón on 29 March 1940.
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First Bahá'ís by country or area; Costa Rica; Central America | first four Bahá’ís in Costa Rica |
1940 Aug 194- |
Daoud Toeg, then resident in Baghdad, made a trip to the district of Sulaymáníyyih in Kurdistán to try to determine where Bahá'u'lláh took refuge during His time there 1854 10 April - 1856 19 March. He photographed four possible sites. The story of his trip was published by Newsletter of the Haifa Spiritual Assembly and reprinted in Bahá'í News No 145 p11 and 12.
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* Bahaullah (chronology); Daoud Toeg; Caves; Sar Galu Mountain; Sulaymaniyyih, Iraq; Kurdistan; Iraq | |
1940 28 Jul 194- |
Shoghi Effendi, Rúhíyyih Khánum and Sutherland Maxwell left England for South Africa aboard the SS Capetown Castle. It was Mr Maxwell's close friendship with the Canadian High Commissioner in London, Vincent Massey, that helped them secure the sea passage. [PP180]
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* Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum, Journeys of; Sutherland Maxwell; World War II; * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; - Basic timeline, Expanded; United Kingdom; - Africa; South Africa; Congo, Democratic Republic of; Sudan; Egypt | |
1940 Jul 194- |
Gerrard Sluter, a German with Canadian citizenship and previously a pioneer in Guatemala, arrived in Colombia, the first Bahá'í to settle in the country.
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Gerrard Sluter-Schlutius; Covenant-breakers; Colombia | first Bahá’í to settle in Colombia |
1940 30 Jun 194- |
George Townshend preached a sermon in St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, proclaiming the Bahá'í Faith to the congregation. [GT171] | George Townshend; - Christianity; Interfaith dialogue; Dublin, Ireland; Ireland | |
1940 2 Jun 194- |
Shoghi Effendi, Rúhíyyih Khánum and Sutherland Maxwell left St Malo, France, for England and arrived the next morning In Southhampton. The following day St. Malo was occupied by the Nazis. Shoghi Effendi seemed acutely aware of the danger to himself and to the Faith should he fall into the hands of the Nazis because the Cause had already been banned in Germany and his inveterate enemy, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, was allied with them. [PP 179–80]
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* Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum; World War II; Saint-Malo, France; France | |
1940 25 May 194- |
After having obtained a visa for Britain in Rome, Shoghi Effendi and Rúhíyyih Khánum left for England. They entered France at Menton and then travelled to Marseilles and eventually to St. Malo. A few days later the Italians enter the war against the Allies. [PP179] | * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum; World War II; Rome, Italy; Italy; Menton, France; Marseilles, France; France; United Kingdom | |
1940 14 or 15 May 194- |
Shoghi Effendi determined to go to England; he and Rúhíyyih Khánum left Haifa for Italy via aquaplane en route to London. [PP 178]
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* Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Shoghi Effendi, Travels of; Amatul-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum; * Shoghi Effendi, Basic timeline; World War II; - Basic timeline, Expanded; Haifa, Israel; Genoa, Italy; Italy; London, England; United Kingdom | |
1940 13 May 194- |
American Baha'i John Stearns sailed from Los Angeles to Guayaquil, Ecuador to take up his pioneer post. He took up residence in Quito and became the first established pioneer in Ecuador. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p.vii; p1] | Pioneer; John Stearns; Guayaquil, Ecuador; Ecuador | first established pioneer to Ecuador. |
1940 Ridván 194- |
Annual Report of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States and Canada 1939-1940 | Annual Report, National Spiritual Assembly; USA; Canada | |
1940 Ridván 194- |
Annual Report National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Iran | Annual Report, National Spiritual Assembly; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1940 Ridván 194- |
Annual Report National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of India and Burma 1938-1940 | Annual Report, National Spiritual Assembly | |
1940 Ridván 194- |
Annual Report of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Australia and New Zealand 1838-1940. | Annual Report, National Spiritual Assembly; Sydney, Australia; Australia | |
1940 Ridván 194- |
Annual Report National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Iraq 1938-1940 | Annual Report, National Spiritual Assembly; Baghdad, Iraq; Iraq | |
1940 Apr 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly of Argentina was established in Buenos Aires. | Local Spiritual Assembly; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Argentina | first LSA in Argentina |
1940 Mar 194- |
Emeric and Rosemary Sala of St. Lambert, Quebec arrived in Venezuela, the first pioneers to that country. During their eleven month stay in Caracas they made an eight-day trip by car over the Andes to visit a pioneer in Bogota, Columbia. [TG76-82] | Emeric Sala; Rosemary Sala; Venezuela | first pioneers to Venezuela |
1940 1 Mar 194- |
May Bolles Maxwell (b. 14 January 1940 in Englewood, NJ) passed away in Buenos Aires. [BBD153; TG49]
Shoghi Effendi called her "the spiritual mother of Canada" and Montreal the "mother city of Canada". [OBCC35] May Maxwell, the severed teacher firebrand of the love of God and spreader of the fragrances of God Mrs Maxwell, forsook her native land and hastened to the most distant countries out of love for her Master and yearning to sound the call to the Cause of her Lord and her inspiration, until she ascended to the highest summit attaining the rank of martyrdom in the capital of the Argentine. The furthermost boundary the countenances of paradise invoke blessings upon her in the glorious apex saying, may she enjoy with healthy relish the cup that is full and brimming over with the wine of the love of God for the like of this should the travaillers travail. Inform all the friends of the announcement of this mighty victory.[A talk] given by Mr Dunbar 28:08] |
May Maxwell (Bolles); Births and deaths; Names and titles; Sutherland Maxwell; Architecture; - Disciples of `Abdu'l-Bahá; First Bahá'ís by country or area; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Argentina | First Bahá'í on European soil. |
1940 9 Feb 194- |
The monuments of Navváb and the Purest Branch were dedicated at a ceremony in Haifa. [ZK293]
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Navvab (Asiyih Khanum); Mírzá Mihdi (Purest Branch); Monument Gardens; Marble; Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); * Shoghi Effendi (chronology); Edward Keith-Roach; Mount Carmel; - Bahá'í World Centre; Chiampo, Italy; Italy | |
1940 13 Jan 194- |
María Teressa Martín de López (Irizarry), from Puerto Rico, became a Bahá'í in the Dominican Republic while on a visit. She was the first Puerto Rican Bahá'í and the first person to become a Bahá'í in the Dominican Republic.
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First Bahá'ís by country or area; Dominican Republic | first Puerto Rican Bahá’í; first declaration Dominican Republic |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
Ruth and Ellsworth Blackwell were the first Bahá'í pioneers to move to Haiti, where they spent more than half of the next thirty-five years. The book, White and Negro Alike. Stories of Baha'i Pioneers Ellsworth and Ruth Blackwell tells the story of the victories and the challenges they experienced in Haiti and in periods when they returned to Chicago between 1940 and 1975. It was written by Audrey Mike and published by Our Life Words.
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Ellsworth Blackwell; Ruth Blackwell; Haiti; Madagascar; Congo, Democratic Republic of | first pioneers to settle in Haiti |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
An institution for Bahá'í orphans was founded which served the community for many years. [BW9p251]
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Orphanages; Property; Endowments; Public baths (bathhouses); Iran | |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
ʿAbd-al-Mīṯāq Mīṯāqīya, ( 'Abdu'l-Missagh Missaghiyeh) a well-known Bahá'í of Tehran, built a hospital and donated it to the Bahá'í community. The hospital rapidly developed to employ highly respected physicians, and to obtain advanced equipment. It became known as one of the best medical centres in Tehran.
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Abd-al-Mitaq Mitaqiya; `Abdu'l-Missagh Missaghiyeh; Tehran, Iran; Iran | |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
The first local spiritual assembly in Brazil was established in Bahia, with the assistance of Leonora Holsapple Armstrong.
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Leonora Holsapple Armstrong; Local Spiritual Assembly, formation; Bahia, Brazil; Brazil; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Brazil; Sao Paulo, Brazil | first LSA in Brazil |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
The Canadian Department of National Defence exempted Bahá'ís from combatant military duty. | Exemption; Recognition (legal); Military (armed forces); Military; Canada | |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
A Bahá'í centre was opened in Havana, Cuba, and an organized group was formed. | Haziratul-Quds (Bahá'í centres); Havana, Cuba; Cuba | |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
The publication of I, Mary Magdalen by Juliet Thompson. It was a novel with a semi-autobiographical account of her contact with 'Abdu'l-Bahá. [Collins7.2554] | Juliet Thompson; I, Mary Magdalen; New York, USA; USA | |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
Narayenrao Rangnath Shethji, a Bahá'í from India surnamed Vakíl, visited Nepal, the first Bahá'í to do so. | Narayenrao Rangnath Shethji; Nepal | first Bahá’í to visit Nepal |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
Marcia Atwater, from the United States, arrived in Santiago, Chile, as the first long-term pioneer. | Marcia Atwater; First travel teachers and pioneers; Santiago, Chile; Chile | first long-term pioneer |
1940 (In the year) 194- |
Eleanor Smith Adler, a new Bahá'í from Los Angeles, settled in La Paz, the first pioneer to Bolivia. | Eleanor Smith Adler; La Paz, Bolivia; Bolivia | first pioneer to Bolivia |
1940 (in the decade) 194- |
Bahá'ís in Argentina faced opposition throughout the decade with both the police and nationalists intimidating them. | Persecution, Argentina; - Persecution, Other; - Persecution; Argentina | |
1940 (in the decade) 194- |
The first Egyptian Bahá'í summer school was held in the mid-1940s. | Summer schools; First summer and winter schools; Egypt | first Egyptian Bahá’í summer school |
1940 (in the decade) 194- |
The first Bahá'ís to reside in the Belgian Congo (Zaire) were Mr Rajah Ali Vahdat and Mme Marthe Molitor. | First travel teachers and pioneers; Congo, Democratic Republic of | first resident Bahá’ís in Belgian Congo |
1940 (In the decade) 194- |
By the mid-1940s Corporal Thomas Bereford Macauley became a Bahá'í in Nigeria, the first Bahá'í in the country. | First Bahá'ís by country or area; Nigeria | first Bahá’í in Nigeria |
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