- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOT PROOFREAD OR FORMATTED TEXT BELOW COPIED FROM THE OCR-ED PDF ONLINE AT bahai.works THIS TEXT AND PDF ONLINE AT bahai-library.com/uhj_bahai_world_20 SEE TEXT FROM ANOTHER VERSION AT bahai-library.com/docs/bw/bahai_world_volume_20_bwc.txt - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - THE BAHA'I WORLD VOLUME XX 142-148 OF THE BAHA'i ERA 21 APRIL 1986-20 APRfL 1992 A.O. The Mashriqu 'l-Adhkar in New Delhi, India. THE BAHA'i WORLD AN INTERNATIONAL RECORD Prepared under the supervision ofthe Universal House ofJustice VOLUME XX 142-148 OF THE BAHA'i ERA 21 APRIL 1986-20 APRIL 1992 A.D. BAHA'i WORLD CENTRE HAIFA 1998 © 1998 The Universal House of Justice All Rights Reserved NOTE: The spelling of the Oriental words and proper names used in this volume of Th e Baha'i World is according to the system of transliteration established at one of the International Oriental Congresses. ISBN 0-85398-994-X A Cataloguing-in-Publication entTy is available from the British Library Set in Times New Roman at the Baha' i World Cenháe Printed in Italy, Stamperia Valdonega PREFACE THE successive volumes of The Baha 'i World have come to be anticipated by Baha'is as the record of their own collective endeavours on behalf of their Faith, of the establishment and development of its administrative order throughout the world and as the source of data, both historical and statistical, relating to the rise of the Faith during its formative age. For librarians and students The Baha 'i World represents a source of authentic inf01mation about the aims, tenets, history, activities, organization and growth of a world religion that is attracting ever-increasing public interes t. The editors therefore seek to preserve an even balance between the presentation of material of supreme interest to believers and of a fair and objective picture to enquirers. In this they are guided by the policy of Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, who directed the compilation of the successive volumes from I to XII covering the years 1925 to 1954. The first volume, known as Baha 'i Year Book, was in fact a one-year survey; the next seven volumes were biennial, terminating in 1940; volume IX recorded the four years from 1940 to 1944; volume X was again biennial and volumes XI and XII presented the periods 1946 to 1950 and 1950 to 1954 respectively. All these volumes were published in the United States under the supervision of the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith and the aegis of the National Spiritual Assembly. Volume XIII, which recorded the passing of the Guardian and the course and completion of his Ten Year Crusade, covered the entire period from 1954 to 1963 and was produced under the guidance of the Universal House of Justice, which thenceforth assumed responsibility for publication. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION AIMS AND PURPOSES OF THE BAHA'I FAITH, by David Hofman PART ONE THE BAHA 'i REV ELATION I. EXCERPTS FROM THE BAHA ' i SACRED WRlTINGS 1. Baha'u'llah .................................................................................................... 11 2. The Bab ......................................................................................................... 17 3. 'Abdu'l-Baha ..................................................... ........................................... 23 II. EXCERPTS FROM THE WRlTINGS OF SHOGHI EFFENDI Excerpts from Call to the Nations 29 PART Two THE COMMEMORATION OF HISTORIC ANNIVERSARIES I. THE SEVENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OF 'ABDU'L-BAHA'S VISIT TO THE WEST 1. The Visit of 'Abdu'l-Baha to the West ......................................................... 53 2. Commemorations of 'Abdu'l-Baha's Visit to the West 75 II. THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE F IRST SEVEN YEAR PLAN IN THE AMERICAS 1. The First Seven Year Plan of the Baha' is of the United States and Canada . . 78 2. Fiftieth Anniversary of the Faith in Latin America Celebrated 90 III. THE TEN Y EA R CRUSADE AND THE KNIGHTS OF BAI-IA 'U'LLAH 93 Vll CONTENTS PART THREE INTERNATIONAL SURVEY OF CURRENT BAHA 'f ACTIVITIES I. THE SIX YEAR INTERNATIONAL TEACHING PLAN 1986-1992 1. The Completion of the Six Year International Teaching Plan A. The Baha'i World Centtáe a. Publication of the Kitab-i-Aqdas in English ...................................... 115 b. Education of the Baha'i World in the Law of J:Iuq11qu 'llah .............. 116 c. Restoration and Protection of Holy Places ........................................ 120 d. Signing of the Status Agreement ....................................................... 123 e. The Arc and Tenaces on Mount Carmel ........................................... 124 f. Broadening the Basis oflnternational Relations of the Faith 131 g. Turmoil in the Middle East Enveloped the Holy Land ...................... 133 B. World-wide Objectives a. Carrying the Healing Message of Baha'u'llah to the Generality of Mankind . . . . . . . . .. . . . ...... .. .. .. ... .. .. ... . .. .. . .. ... . .. .. .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. ... ... ... . . .. . . . . . 136 b. Greater Involvement of the Faith in the Life of Human Society 149 c. Increasing the Worldwide Availability and Use of Baha'i literature 157 d. Further Acceleration in the Process of Maturation of Baha'i Con1ll1u¥nities .... .. .. ... .. .. ... ... .. .. .. ... . . . . . . .. . . . ... .. ... .. . . . . . . .. ... ..... .. ... .. .. ... .. ... ... ... . . . . . . . . . 160 e. Promoting Universal Participation and the Spiritual Emichment of Individual Believers ........................................................................... 170 f. Baba'i Education of Children and Youth and Baha'i Family Life 174 g. Pursuing Social and Economic Development Activities in Well-Estab¥lished Baha'i Communities ................................................................ 179 APPENDIX: "Health, Education and the Role of Women"...................... 191 2. Expansion and Consolidation of the Baha'i Faith: Sun1ll1aiy Statistics of the Six Year Plan 1986-1992.................................. ................................. 192 II. THE Two YEAR SUBSIDIARY PLAN 1990-1992 196 III. INTERNATIONAL SURVEY OF CURRENT BAHA'i ACTIVITIES 1986-1992 1. The Opening of the Fourth Epoch of the Formative Age ............................ . 225 A. A Letter from the Universal House of Justice ........................................ . 229 B. Statement by the Research Department on the Epochs of the Formative A~ ......................................................................................................... . 231 C. International Collaboration Goals .... .......................................................... . 236 D. Public Recognition of the True Character of the Baha'i Community a. "World Religious Statistics" ................................................................. . 239 b. "What is the Baha'i Faith?" ................... ............................................... . 242 2. Survey by Continents A. Africa .......................................... ......................................... ................... . 247 B. The Americas 269 C. Asia 303 D. Austtáalasia and the Pacific Islands 325 E. Europe 349 Vlll 3. The Persecution and Defense of the Baha'i Community ofiran 1986-1992 A. The Baha'i Question ............................................................................... . 371 B. Baha'is Killed in Iran Between Ri~van 1986 and 1992 .................. ....... . 383 C. Baha'is Killed in iran (1978-20 April 1992) ......................................... . 390 D. Baha'is Who Disappeared Without Trace in Iran and are Presumed Dead (1979-20 April 1992) ................................. ......................... ...... ............. . 398 E. Response ofthe United Nations to the Persecution ofthe Baha'is (1980¥20 April 1992) ........... .............................................................................. . 401 4. Women's Activities 409 5. Youth Activities A. Youth Year of Service 421 B. European Baha'i Youth Council ............................................................ . 432 C. Special Youth Projects .......................................... ................................. . 443 6. Baha'i Scholarship A. The Establishment of Baha'i Chairs at Universities .............................. . 453 B. Baha'i Courses in Universities ....................................................... ....... . 456 C. Landegg Academy and Institute ofInternational Education and Development 457 D. General Systems Research Conference, Budapest 1987 ......................... . 459 E. The Associations for Baha'i Sh1dies .............................. .. ...................... . 461 7. Baha'i Professional Associations ................................................................. . 471 8. Use of Computers by the Baha'i Community During the Six Year Plan 481 9. Relations Between National Spiritual Assemblies and Governmental and Non-Governmental Organizations and with the Public in General .............. 485 A. Brazil: Constitutional Reform ............................................................... . 485 B. South Africa: Views Submitted on Constitutional Reform 493 C. Singapore: Statement on National Ideology .......................................... . 500 D. United States: Statement on Racial Unity ............................................ .. 502 10. Individual Rights and Freedoms in the World Order ofBaha'u'llah 508 IV.BAl-IA'i INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY REPRESENTATION 1. The Baha'i Faith and the United Nations: Summary ofthe Years 1947-1986 519 2. The United Nations Office ofthe Baha'i International Conununity 1986-1992 521 Am1ex I ........................ ............................................................................... . 527 A1mex II .................................................. .............. ............... ..................... .. . 529 Am1ex III ............................................................................................ ........ . 536 3. The Office of Public Information 537 4. The Baha'i Office of the Environment 541 V. RECOGN ITI ON OF THE BAHA 'i FAITH I. Incorporation of National Spirihrnl Assemblies ........................................... 544 2. Incorporation of Local Spiritual Assemblies .... ............................................ 550 3. A Selection ofOther Documents Recording Official Recognition ofthe Faith 4. The German Court's Legal Recognition of Assembly Status ...................... 554 A. The decision of the Federal Constih1tional Cami, in German............... ..... 571 B. A Translation of this Decision into English................................................ 572 C. An Elucidation of the Abbreviations Used 600 D. Decision of the German Court: Background and Significance................... 602 IX CONTENTS PART FOUR THE WORLD ORDER OF BAHA'U'LLAH I. THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE 1. The Constitution of the Universal House of Justice 609 2. The Sixth International Convention for the Election of the Universal House of Justice .. ... ... . ... .. . .... ....... .. ... .. ... . ... .. .. ... .. .. .............. ...... .. ... ... .. .. . ... ... . . 618 II. THE HANDS OF THE CAUSE OF GOD 1. The Hands of the Cause of God and the Extension of their Functions into the Future A. The Rulers and the Learned .. ...... ... .... .. ..... .. ... .. .. .. .. . . .. .. .... .. .. .. .. ... ... . .. .. ..... 624 B. The Hands of the Cause of God .............................................................. 625 C. The Continental Boards of Counsellors 626 D. The International Teaching Centre ......................................................... . 630 2. The Work and Travels of the Hands of the Cause ....................................... . 634 3. Hands of the Cause Who Represented the Universal House of Justice at Conventions for the Election of National Spiritual Assemblies ................. . 672 4. The Development of the Institutions of the International Teaching Centre and the Continental Boards of Counsellors ........................................................ . 673 III. THE NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY 1. Introduction ................................................................................................... . 694 2. A Model Declaration of Trust and By-Laws for a National Spiritual Assen1bly ...................................................................................................... . 696 3. A Procedure for the Conduct of the Annual Baha'i Convention ................. . 705 4. New National Spiritual Assemblies 708 IV. THE LOCAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY 1 . Introduction .................................................................................................. . 718 2. By-Laws ofa Local Spiritual Assembly ...................................................... . 720 V. THE INSTITUTION OF THE MASHRJQU'L-ADHKAR 1. Foreword, by Horace Holley ........................................................................ . 728 2. The Spiritual Significance of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkar ................................. . 729 3. The Dedication ofthe first Mashriqu'l-Adhkar ofthe Indian Sub-Continent and the International Teaching Conference, New Delhi, India, 1986 ........... . 731 4. The Temple ofBahapur as Silent Teacher ................................................... . 743 VI. THE NON-POLITICAL CHARACTER OF THE BAHA'i FAITH 1. Excerpts from the Writings of Shoghi Effendi 754 VII. RELATIONSHIP TO GOVERNMENT I. Loyalty to Government ...................................................................................... 761 2. The Baha'i View of Pacifism ............................................................................ 762 3. Summary of the Guardian's Instructions on the Obligations of Baha'is in Connection with Military Service ................................................................. 762 x VlII.BAHA ' i CALENDAR, FESTIVALS AN D DATES OF HISTORJCAL SIGN IFICANCE 1. Foreword ............... ... ... .. ...... ....... .. ....................... .. ............. .. ................... .. ... . 2. Baha'i Feasts, Atmiversaries and Days of Fasting ......................... ............. . . 3. Baha ' i Holy Days on Which Work Should be Suspended .......................... . 4. Additional Material Gleaned from Nabil 's Narrative Regarding the Baha'i Calendar .... ............................................................. ................ ... .... .... .. ......... . 5. Historical Data Gleaned from Nabil's Narrative Regarding Baha'u' llah 6. Dates of Historical Significance in the Rise of the Baha'i Faith ... .... ...... ... . . PART FIVE IN MEMORIAM Ahdieh, Mansour ....... .... ........ . 873 Hopper Welsh, Eleanore Lorraine Alm1adiyeh, Hedayatoullah 984 (Rene) ... ......... ...... ......... ......... . 916 Aidun, Gol ............................. . 860 Iqani Koirala, Masheed 844 Ariki, Pa Tepaern ............. .... .. 953 Jarral\ $alal:i ............. .. ....... .. .. .. 931 Ashton, Beatrice Owen .. ....... .. 896 Jensen, Knud ................. .. ...... .. 885 Baghdadi, Adib Radhi 912 Kanyerezi, Max ..................... . . 1013 Bagley, Florence E. .. ............. . 1003 Kavelin, Howard Borrah 821 Bausani, Alessandro .... ... ...... .. 895 Kazemzadeh, Kazem ......... .. .. . 945 Bernal De Sanchez, Aura Maria 838 Khabirpour, 'Aziz .. ......... ... .... . 832 Bishop, Helen Pilkington 1005 Khadem, Zikrnllah ............ ... .. . 839 Blakely, Elsa Lilian (Judy) 929 Khan, Fazal Mohamad 784 Camey, Magdalene Margaret 1021 Khazeh, Jalal ........ ............. .. ... . 788 Caswell, Louise ............ ........ .. 867 Khianra, Dipchand L. ..... .. ..... . 829 Dobbins, Bertha .... ... ........ ...... . 848 Laws, Frederick .. .. .............. ... . 892 Duna, Rudolfo ........ ..... ......... .. 846 Leong, Yan Kee .. ... ............. .. .. 834 Evans, Esther .. ..... ... ........... .. .. . 942 Lindstrom, Shirley ........ .. ... ... . . 920 Featherstone, H. Collis 809 Lohse, Doris .......................... .. 970 Fitzpatrick, Henry Bertran 877 Lutchmaya, Roddy Dharmah 940 Fozdar, Shirin ........................ . 1027 Macdonald, Charles ............ .. .. 1015 Francis, Dorothy .......... ... ... .... . 990 Malakooti, Ehsanollah 943 Friedland, Eberhard K. 1025 Master, Mahvash .......... .......... . 977 Garcia Vazquez, Manuel 955 Mazakmat, Apelis .................. . 853 Giachery, Ugo ..................... .. . 777 McLaren, Edith ..................... . . 1011 Gualavisi Farinango, Rufino 965 McLaughlin, Robert W. 950 Gulick, Robert, Jr. .. .. .. .. ........ .. 882 Menking, JoAnne L. ............. .. 907 Habibi, Habib ........... ............. . 947 Mingorance Fernandez, Jose 837 I:Iaddad, Akbar ...................... . 991 Munje, Harilal ....................... . . 933 Haenni de Bons, Mona 1010 Nahvi, Saeed .................. .... ... .. 871 Harvey, Winnifred ........... ...... . 988 Navidi, Azizollah .... ...... ......... . 886 Hawthorne, Rose ........... ... ..... . 914 Newman, Beatrice ............... .. .. 937 Heller, Frances ......... ............. . 998 Nielsen, Lotus ....................... .. 101 8 Hoahania, Hamuel ................ .. 843 Nounou, Salim ...... ................ . . 975 Hollibaugh, Eleanor ....... .. .... .. 868 Olson, Cynthia and Edgar 899 H0eg, Johanne ........ .. ............. . 923 Ortiz Gutierrez, Aparicia 960 XI CONTENTS Papai, Ludwig ........................ . 997 Suleimani, Suleiman .... .. .. ....... 889 Parsa Mazzoni, Noranieh ....... . 995 Sumah, Mohamed Lamin 875 Perks, Thelma ........................ . 903 Tanyi Tambe, Solomon 968 Quigley, Robert Joseph 949 Te Paa, Epluáaim . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 971 Rice-Wray, Edris Rawshan 958 Trojankova-Bendova, Juliana 857 Rezvani, Monireh .................. . 1001 True, Edna M. ....... ......... ......... 925 Robarts, Jolm ......................... . 801 Umegae, Kazutomo .. .. ........... .. 1026 Saavedra Gallardo, Melit6n 921 Val~id-i-Tiluáani, Qudratu' llah 825 Sabet, Habib .......................... . 961 Vajdi, Khodadad H. ........... .. ... 957 Sabet, Ros tam ........................ . 963 Villiers-Stuart, Jane .... .. .... ....... 981 Sala, Emeric ........................... . 993 Walker, Zlmarian Stoakley 935 Sanchez Matiinez, Juan 880 Warde, Shirley A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1023 Sears, William ....................... . 795 White, Tumanuvao William 851 Shayani, 'Azizu'llah .............. . 910 Wi1manik and Mubarak ... ....... . 827 Sivapiragasam, Kandiah 891 Wolcott, Charles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .... 818 Stebbins Dodge, Isabelle 858 Wotih Lamb, Dora (Dee) 918 Storch, Juanita Marie ..... .. ... ... . 863 Zucker, Arthur Allen .... .......... . 1009 PART SIX DIRECTORY, BlBLIOGRAPHY, GLOSSARY I. BAI-IA 'i DIRECTORY 1. The Universal House of Justice ..................................................................... 1033 2. The Hands of the Cause of God .. .................. .... .. ..... ............. .... .. .. .... ............ 1033 3. The International Teaching Centre ...... ................... ....... ................................ 1033 4. Continental Boards of Counsellors ........................................................... .... 1033 5. Baha'i International Community ................................................................ ... 1034 6. National Spiritual Assemblies ....................................................................... 1034 7. Baha ' i Publishing Trusts .. ............ ..... ... ........ .... .... .... .. ..... ........................... ... 1035 II. BAI-IA 'i BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Baha'u'llah's Best-Known Works 1037 2. The Bab's Best-Known Works 1039 3. 'Abdu'l-Baha's Best-Known Works in English .......................................... . 1040 4. Some Compilations from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, the Bab and 'Abdu'l-Baha .......................... .... ......... ......................................................... . 1041 5. Shoghi Effendi's Best-Known Works .................................. ........................ . 1042 6. Language and Literature Achievements ........ ........... ............ ........................... .. 1043 7. A Bibliography of Theses Relating to the Baha' i Faith ............................. .. . 1044 8. A Patiial Listing of Cunent General Baha'i Periodicals A. Produced Under the Auspices of Baha'i Institutions ............................. . 1048 B. Produced Under Non-Institutional Auspices .......................................... . 1049 9. A Partial Bibliography of Conm1ercially Produced Slide Shows on the Baha'i Faith, 1971-1992 ........................................................................................... . 1049 XII III. ORIENTAL TERMS I. Transliteration of Oriental Words Frequently Used in Baha'i Literature 1053 2. Guide to Transliteration and Pronunciation of the Persian Alphabet 1055 3. Notes on the Pronunciation of Persian Words ................................. ............. 1056 4. Definitions of Some of the Oriental Terms used in Baha'i Literature 1057 PART SEVEN LITERARY AND MUSICAL WORKS I. ESSAYS AND REVIEWS 1. The Suffering, Tribulation, Exile, Captivity, and Confinement ofBaha'u'llah, compiled by Donald R. Witzel ...................................... ................................ 1069 2. The Concept of Law in the Baha'i Faith and the Law ofI:Iuququ'llah, by Amin Banani . .... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .. ..... .. .. ... . . . .. .. .. .. ... .. .. ... .. .. .. ... ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 1086 3. Interdependence of Baha'i Communities-Services of North American Baha'i Women to Iran, by Baharieh Rouhani Ma'ani .................................. 1091 4. Jamal Effendi, by Elham Afnan ............. ....................................................... 1115 5. The Fundamental Principle: Agriculture and the Promise of Peace, by Paul Hanley ........................................................................................................... 1119 6. The Spiritual Role of Art, by Ludwig Tuman ............................................... 1136 7. Altruism and Extensivity in the Baha'i Religion, by Wendy M. Heller and Hoda Mahmoudi ... .. .. .. ... ... .. .. . .... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .... ..... .. . . . .. .. .. . . .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .... 1159 II. VERSE 1170 III. MUSIC 1188 X Jll LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Frontispiece: The Mashriqu' l-Adhkar in New Delhi, India Part One: The Baha'i Revelation Page An ornamental eagle in front ofan entrance to the Mansion ofBaha'u'llah at Bahji 10 The doorway into the courtyard of the Mansion ofBaha'u'll3h at Mazra'ih ........ . 13 The western doorway into the Shrine of the Bab .................................................. . 16 Detail ofone of the columns along the Arcade of the Shrine ofthe Bab ............... . 19 The House of 'Abdu' l-Baha in 'Akka, known as the House of'Abdu ' llah Pasha .. . 22 Detail of the House of'Abdu' llah Pasha, in 'Akka 25 The Seat of the Universal House ofJustice, on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel ..... 28 Details of the pillars and gardens surrounding the Seat of the Universal House of Justice ............................. ............................................................................... . 37 Detail of a column and window of the Seat of the Universal House ofJustice ..... . 42 The Resting Place of Shoghi Effendi, in the Great Northern Cemetery, London, England .............. ........................................................................................ ..... . 49 Part Two: The Commemoration ofHistoric Anniversaries 'Abdu'l-Baha, the Master, in New York City; June 1912 ..... ................................ . 52 'Abdu'l-Baha in London, England; September 1911 ........................................... . 56 'Abdu'l-Baha with Baha'i friends in Chicago, Illinois; May 1912 ...................... . 60 'Abdu'l-Baha in Brooklyn, New York, with His secretary, translators, and com¥panions; June 1912 .......................................................................................... . 62 'Abdu' l-Baha meeting with friends in Oakland, California; October 1912 .......... . 63 Banquet for 'Abdu'l-Baha in New York City; November 1912 ............................ 66 'Abdu'l-Baha with Baha'i friends in Esslingen, Germany; April 1913 ................ . 71 ' Abdu'l-Baha with friends in the Austro-Hungarian Empire; April 1913 72 Pioneer Vivian Lismore with Baha'i friends in Havana, Cuba, in 1943 ............. .. . 79 Pioneer Gayle Woolson during formation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of San Jose, Costa Rica in April 1941 ................................................................... . 82 XIV Pioneer Louise Caswell visiting Baha'i friends in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, in October 1941 ... .. .. ... .. . . . . .. ... .. ... .. .. .. . . . ... .. ... .. . . . . . . .. ... .. ... .. .. ... ... .. .. .... ... ... ... .. . . .... .... . 83 Pioneers Gladys Stua1t and Cora Oliver visiting a group of believers in Belize, British Honduras, during the first Seven Year Plan ........................................... 86 Pioneers Honor Kempton, Helen Robenson, and Dagmar Dole in Anchorage, Alaska, in January 1944 ......... .. .. ....... .. ............................................................... 88 The fiftieth anniversary of the fo1mation of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Salva¥ dor, Bahia, Brazil, being celebrated in October 1990 ....................................... . 89 Th~ fiftieth anniversary of the Baha'i community in El Salvador being celebrated in November 1989 ......... ....... ............................................................................ . 92 Friends gathered in Sydney, Australia, to commemorate the Centenary of the Declaration of the Bab; May 1944 .... .. ............................................................... 98 The Hand of the Cause of God Leroy Joas greeting the friends on behalf of the Guardian during the first Intercontinental Conference, held in Uganda in 1953 . 99 Knights of Baha'u' llah to the Orkney and Shetland Islands, Charles Dunning and Brigitte Hasselblatt, posing together in the 1950s ...... .. ..................................... 102 Knights of Baha'u'llah to the Solomon Islands, Alvin and Gertiude Blun1, with their daughter Keithie, Mr. John Mills, and the Head of the Bamu Tribe; 1954 . 103 Knight ofBaha'u'llah to Goa, Feroza Yaganegi, with Mrs. Gulnar Aftabi; 1953 .. . 103 Knights of Baha'u'llah to French Togoland, Vivian Wesson and David Tanyi, with new believers in Accra in 1956 .................................................................. 104 Knight ofBaha'u' llah to the Queen Charlotte Islands, Edythe MacArthur; 1953 . 104 Knights ofBaha'u'llah to the Canary Islands, Gertrude Eisenberg, and George and Marguerite True, with Bany Tme; 1953 ................................... .. ...................... 105 The first Baha'i World Congress, held at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 1963 112 Part Three: International Survey ofCurrent Baha'i Activities First page of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, in the handwriting of 'Abdu' l-Baha 114 Attendees of the I:Iuq11qu'llah Conference held in Haifa in January 1987 ............ . 116 A deepening on the law ofl:luququ'llah in Kenya; November 1990 ..................... 119 A luncheon held as part of the opening ceremonies of the north wing of the House of 'Abdu' llah Pasha; April 1990 ...................... .. ................................ 120 Restoration of the stencilled artwork on the balcony of the Mansion of Baha 'u' llah atBahji; October 1987 ..... .. ................................ .. .............................................. 121 The ceiling of the colonnade of the Sluáine of the Bab, being refinished in 1991 122 A Status Agreement between the Governn1ent of Israel and the Baha'i World Centre being signed; April 1987 .................................................. .. ...... .. ............ 123 Members of the Universal House of Justice with architects Husayn Amanat and Fariburz $ahba on the consháuction site; March 1988 .......... ...... ................ ........ 125 Earthwork on the terraces below the Shrine of the Bab; October 1991 .................. 126 The pool on Terrace Nine, built during the Ministry of'Abdu '1-Baha, incorporated into the new te1Tace design .... ........ .. ................................................................ .. 126 Excavation of the site of the Centre for the Study of the Texts; Februa1y 1992 ..... 127 Model of the buildings planned for the east and south side of the Arc .. .. .. ............. 128 xv The Hand of _tJ1e Cause. of God Amatu'l-Baha RuJ:iiyyih Khanum greeting the President of the Marshall Islands, Amata Kabua, during his visit to the Baha'i World Centre in June 1990 .. .... ... .. ... ... .. ... ..... ... .... ... .... .. .. ..... .. ... ... .. .. ... ... ... .... ..... 129 The Hand of the Cause of God 'Ali-Akbar FurUtan greets Dizzy Gillespie during Mr. Gillespie's visit to the Baha'i World Cenháe in July 1991 ............... ............ 129 Members of the Universal House of Justice with the Prime Minister of the Cook Islands, Sir Thomc,is Davis, during the Prime Minister's visit to the Baha'i World Centre in August 1986 ........ .................................................................... 130 The Hand of the Cause of God 'Ali-Akbar Furutan accompanying the President of Israel, Chaim Herzog, during his visit to the Baha'i World Cenháe in May 1989 130 The President of Honduras, His Excellency Jose Azcona-Hoyo, visiting the Baha'i World Cenháe in May 1987 ................................................................................ 130 The British Ambassador to Israel, His Excellency Mark Elliot, and Mrs. Elliot, visiting the Baha'i World Cenháe in June 1989 .................................................. 130 Participants in the External Affairs Conference held in Langenhain, Germany, in November 1987 ..................... ........................................................................ 132 Participants in the External Affairs Conference held at the Baha'i World CentTe from 30 December 1988 to 1Januaty 1989 ....................................................... 133 Baha'i World Centre staff helping each other learn how to use gas masks in November 1990 .............................................................................. ................... 135 Baha'i youth from Antsirabe, Madagascar, walking to a village to teach the Faith in April 1988 ...................................................................................................... 136 In India, a bicycle for two was made in 1989 to facilitate teaching work .............. 139 In the Solomon Islands, a motorized canoe being used as a Maritime Teaching Institute; 1991 ...... ... ... .... ... ... .. ..... .. ..... ... ... ... .. ... .. .. .... ... .... ..... .. ...... .. ..... .. ... ...... .. .. 140 A teaching team emailing a new believer in Macau in May 1989 ......................... 142 El Viento Canta performing during the Baha'i International Music Festival held in Gaborone, Botswana, in December 1989 .......................................................... 144 Irish Baha'i youth taking part in a Walk for World Peace in October 1987 ........... 147 Counsellor Beatrice Asare presenting the Peace Statement to the Asantahene of the Asante State of Ghana in September 1988 ................................................... 150 Counsellor Violette Haake presenting the Peace Statement to the Deputy Prime Minister of the Cook Islands in October 1990 .. .. ... ...... .. .. ... .. ... .. ... .... ..... .. .. ... .... . 150 Baha'i representatives presenting the Peace Statement to NATO Base persom1el in Keflavik, Iceland, in October 1988 .... ................................................................ 150 Baha'is in Lesotho receiving the United Nations' "Peace Messenger Award" in September 1987 ................................................................................................. 152 Mr. Dexter King, son of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., at the Baha'i Peace Confer¥ence held in Oslo, Norway, in October 1986 ....... .............................................. 153 The President of France, His Excellency Franc;:ois Mitterrand, with a Baha'i pio¥neer to Reunion at a reception in Paris in March 1990 ...................................... 156 The booth staffed by the Baha'i Publishing Tmst of Argentina during the Interna¥tional Book Fair held in Buenos Aires in April 1989 .. ....... .... ...... .. .. .... .... .... ..... 158 Counsellor Edith Senoga visiting Baha'i communities in western Uganda in Feb¥mary 1990 ................................................................................ .......................... 161 XV I The National Spirihial Assembly of the Baha'is of French Guiana with two Auxil¥iary Board memb.ers in April 1987 .................................................................... 163 Participants in the National Convention of the Baha'is ofCiskei in April 1987 164 Members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Jamaica at the International Convention in Haifa, Israel, in April 1988 ....... ............................ 165 Counsellor Violette Haake at a meeting with Auxiliary Board members in New Caledonia in November 1991 ..................................................... ....................... 165 Participants in a conference for Auxiliary Board members ' assistants held in Swa¥kopmund, Namibia, in July 1988 ....................................................................... 166 Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre Magdalene Carney visit¥ing with the National Spirihial Assemblies of Senegal and the Gambia ............ 166 The Hand of the Cause of God Amah1 ' l-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum opening the Local Baha'i Centre in Sheun"g Simi, Hong Kong, i1~ November 1990 ............... 168 Counsellor Lucretia Warren with members of the National Spiritual Assembly of Mozambique in front of their newly acquired National Centre, March 1989 .... 168 The new offices of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Kiribati, dedicated in 1989 ... .. .. . . .. ........ .. ....... ... .. ......... .. ... ..... ....... .. . ... .. ....... . ... . . .... ... ... ... .. 168 Friends gathered for the inauguration of the Baha'i Centre in Ndava, Burundi, in October 1989 . . .. .. ... . . . .. ... ... .. .. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. .. . . . . ... .. ... .. ... .. .. ... . . . .. ... .... ... . . . . .. . . . . .. .. ... . . 168 Children in a Baha'i tutorial school in Ngoakiri, Central African Republic; 1987 .. 174 A Baha'i children's class in Florida, Uruguay, in November 1988 ....................... 175 A Baha'i tutorial school in Chaco, Paraguay, in March 1989 ................................ 176 The wedding of two Baha'i couples at the Lenakel Baha'i Centre on Taima Island, Vanuatu, in January 1987 . . . . . .. .. .......... ....... ... ... ........ .. ... .. .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. ... ........ 177 Children from the Inarajan Baha'i School on Guam, in the Mariana Islands, plant¥ing acacia seedlings in October 1990 .............. ................................... ........ .. ... ... 179 An experimental pepper farn1 being developed in Sarawak, Malaysia; 1988 181 The Dorothy Baker Centre in Bolivia, used for environmental studies; 1987 ........ 181 In Switzerland, Baha'is participating in the annual clean-up of marshland fo1med where the Rhone Rivers flows into Lake Geneva; March 1992 181 A Baha ' i doctor prescribing medicines to a patient she examined during a free medical camp held on Bhit Island near Karachi, Pakistan; 1989 ...... .... .... ...... ... 184 Inauguration of a public well built by the Local Spiritual Assembly of Bata, Equatorial Guinea; November 1988 .................................................................. 185 Participants in a fence-making course held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, as a rural development project in November 1988 ..................... .............. ......................... 186 A geography lesson at the Baha'i School of the Nations in Aracibo, Puerto Rico, in April 1992 ... . . . .. .. .. .... .. .. . . . ... ....... .. ..... .. . ......... .. .. ... .. .. ........ ..... .. .. ........ ..... .. .. .. .. . 187 The children of the Mbabane Pre-School in Swaziland singing a song; 1987 187 A Mobile Baha'i Institute in Cotonou, Benin, in January 1989 ............ .... . . . .. .. ... .. . 189 The first Nineteen Day Feast possible since the 1930s was celebrated in Moscow inAprill989 ...... ........ .... .. ...... ........ ..... ........... .. .................................................. 197 The first open teaching project in modern Russia; Murn1ansk, July 1989 ..... .... .... 200 A music group spontaneously forn1ed during a teaching project in Neptune, Roma¥nia, in July 1991, attracting large crowds to gather around Baha'is .................. 202 XVll LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Travelling teachers from Brazil singing for youth in Poland in 1990 .................... 202 Members of El Viento Canta being interviewed at a radio station in Zagreb, Yugo¥slavia; 1990 ......................................................................................................... 202 Participants in the first National Baha'i Conference of the Soviet Union, held in February 1990 near Moscow ............................................................................. 202 A group of Baha'is spent three weeks sailing on a Viking-styled ship down the Volga and Don Rivers teaching the Faith during the summer of 1990 .. ... .... .. .. . 204 The Hand of the Cause of God 'Ali-Akbar Funltan visiting Baha' is in Samarkand in April 1990 .. .. .... .. ... .. ... .. .. ..... ... .. ... .. ... . . .... ....... .. ... .. .... ........ .... .. ... .. .... ........ ... .. .. 206 A Baha'i delegation met with the President of Albania, His Excellency Ramiz Alia, in his offices in Dunes in November 1991 ............................................... 206 Baha'is attending the Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace, held in Ulaan-Baatar, Mongolia, in September 1990 ... .. ..... ... ... .. ... .. ... .. ..... ...... ..... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .... .. . ....... 209 Knight ofBaha'u'llah 'Abbas Katirai, who arrived, with his wife, Ric;Jvaniyyih, in Sakhalin in March 1990 ..................................................................................... 212 Baha'is in Tallin, Estonia, in June 1987 ............................. .................................... 214 Pioneers in Riga, Latvia, holding their first Nineteen Day Feast in September 1989 214 Baha'is attending the National Teaching Conference held in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, in October 1991 ..................................... ................................................................ 216 Participants in the regional conference held in Odessa, Ukraine, in February 1992 216 Baha'i youth from several countries staffing a display in Bratislava, Czechoslova¥kia, in August 1990 .... .. ..... ..... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. ....... .... .. ... .. .......... ..... . ........... .. .. .. ... .. .. . 218 Five members of New Zealand's Youth for One World, who travelled to teach in eastern Europe during the summer of 1990 ... .. .. .. ... .. ... .. ..... .. ..... .. ... ............ .. .. .. . 219 Knight ofBaha'u'llah for Mongolia Sean Hinton, seated with the first native Mon¥golian Baha'i, Oyundelger; 1990 ............................................... ........................ 220 Friends posing with the first issue of the Russian Baha'i newsletter, The Express, publishing in December 1991 ............... ............ ................................................. 224 Members of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of Marv, Turkmenistan, Russia. Elected in September 1990 .... ...... ......... .. ... .... ... .. ...... .. ... ..... .. ... .. ... .. ........... .... .. .. 224 Counsellor Donald Rogers meeting with community members in Kingston, St. Vincent, in May 1986, to consult about the Six Year Plan ............................ ... . 226 In Thailand, Baha'is living in refuge camp "Site Two" were married during acer¥emony held in October 1987 227 American Baha'i ente1iainers Leslie and Kelly holding a press conference during their teaching trip to Taiwan in May 1986 ......................................................... 235 Two Baha'i youth pariicipating in a cross-border teaching project held in Zacate¥cas, Mexico, in July 1987 ........................ ....................................................... .. 237 In St. Lucia, representatives of National Assemblies from thirteen eastern Carib¥bean countries gathered for a planning session held in October 1987 ....... ........ 238 Representatives of fiv e National Assemblies and Baha'i International Community offices in New York and Geneva met to discuss external affairs; Febmary 1988 238 Pope John Paul II meeting the Baha'i representative to the World Conference on Religion and Peace held in Italy in July 1991 .. .. .. ... .. .. ... . .... .. ... .. .. ...... .. ...... ... .. .. . 245 Presentation of the Peace Statement to the Prime Minister of the Bahamas, the Right Honorable Sir Lynden Pindling, in February 1988 ................... ........... .... 245 XVlll LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Liberian Baha'i refugee children in Cote d'Ivoire, March 1991. "Perchance ...the brilliant pearls of the Kingdom ..." .......................................................... ......... . 246 The President of the Seychelles, His Excellency Albert Rene, meeting with a Baha'i delegation in Victoria in December 1991 ........................................ ..... . 248 Baha'is taking part in a parade on the anniversary of the proclamation of indepen¥ dence of the Central African Republic, December 1986 .... .............................. . 249 During a teaching conference in Assomada, Cape Verde, in 1987, two youth present a theatrical piece about teaching in Iran .... ................................... ........ . 250 In Burkina Faso, a training and refresher course for primary health workers being held in Koalio in May 1990 ................................ .............. ..... ... ...... ...... ....... ..... . 252 In Lome, Togo, children in the Rainbow International School and Kindergarten during a Peace Festival held in March 1990 ................. .................... .. ........... .. . . 252 A literacy class being held in Ginkongozo-Rugazi Prefecture, Rwanda, in 1988 252 Staff members at Radio Baha'i Liberia (ELRB) in Monrovia in March 1987 254 The Baha'i booth during the Transkei Agricultural Show held in Umtata in Octo¥ ber 1990 ....... ........................................... .......... ..... ........................................... . 255 Two young musicians playing at the Baha'i International Music Festival held in Gaborone, Botswana, in December 1989 ........ .... .... ....... .................................. . 256 The Baha'is of Manzini, Swaziland, laying the cornerstone of their regional Baha'i Centre during a ceremony held in October 1990 ................................... . 258 Participants in a Family Life Conference held in Limbe, Cameroon; February 1991 áááááá áááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááá áááááááá áááááááááááááááááááá áá áááááá ááááááááááááááááááá 259 Pottery being created during the National Baha'i Women's Conference in Nakuru, Kenya, in February 1989 .................. ................................................................ . 259 A group ofBaha'is who walked 800 kilometres from their village to attend a con¥ ference held in the Fizi Zone of Zaire in July 1989 .... .... .... ....... ..... .... ... ...... .. ... . 259 New Baha'is in Lewfen, Senegal, who embraced the Faith during the Viera Teach¥ ing Project in 1988 ........... ..... ..... ....... ..... .................. .. ............. .. .......... .. .... .. ...... . 259 Youth participating in the 'Star 88' teaching project in Botswana; June 1988 261 Counsellor Lally Wanen visiting with friends in the village ofKabwafu, Malawi, in August 1990 .. ................................ ..... .......... .................. .............................. . 262 Teaching institute held at the William Masehla Baha'i Institute in Zambia; 1986 264 Participants in a deepening seminar held in Gueckedou, Guinea; December 1990 264 Baha'is helping with construction of their new Teaching Institute at Titye, Kashlu, Kigoma, Tanzania in 1990 ...................... .................................... .. ............... ..... . 264 On Rodriquez Island, friends in La Ferme pose with Counsellor Gilbert Robert and his wife, Daisy Robert, during their visit in October 1990 ......................... . 266 Friends working together to make mud bricks for the new Baha'i Primary School in Yakandor, Pujehun District, Siena Leone; 1987 .................................... .... .. . 266 A Teaching fastitute being held in Bamako, Mali, in December 1987 ................. . 266 A Baha'i doctor offering medicine to Liberian Baha'i refugees in Cote d'Ivoire. March 1991 ...... ........ ...... .......... ... ... ... ..... ................. ............ .............................. . 267 Friends attending the Baha'i International Peace Conference in San Francisco, California, in August 1986 .......................... ............. ........................................ . 268 Friends with plaque presented to the Brazilian Society of Educators for Peace; 1989 270 XIX LI ST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Members of the Raul Pavon teaching team with women in Puno, Peru. 1990 271 Singers Seals and Croft participating in the Martin Luther King Day Parade in Atlanta, Georgia, in January 1991 .. .. .. .. ... .. ... .... .. ... .. ... . . . .. .. .. ... ... .. . . . . ... . . . ... .. ... .. . . 272 Baha'is in Havana, Cuba, welcoming visitors from Mexico in November 1996 273 In the United States, First Lady Barbara Bush welcomes a Baha'i International Community representative to a White House reception held in June 1990 274 In Guadeloupe, a Baha 'i reads "Education for Peace" during a World Religion Day progranm1e held in January 1987 ............................................................... 274 In Trinidad, Baha' is gather to commemorate the United Nations' Human Rights Day in December 1988 .............. ....................................................................... . 274 A Radio Baha'i, Bolivia, staff member during a campaign to fight cholera; 1991 278 A Radio Baha'i, Panama, staff member preparing to broadcast music; 1987 278 The staff of WLGI, the Baha'i radio station in Hemingway, South Carolina, in November 1987 .................................... ............................................................. 278 Exterior view of the facilities for Radio Baha'i, Chile; February 1988 .................. 278 Friends teaching the Faith during a radio interview held in Colima, Mexico; 1987 279 A staff member of Radio Baha'i, Ecuador, interviewing a villager; 1987 ............. 279 Some of the friends who produce the weekly Baha'i radio programme in the Gua¥jiro language in Maracaibo, Venezuela; 1990 ................................................... 279 Exterior view of the facilities for Radio Baha'i, Peru; 1988 279 A Garifuna Baha'i teacher in the Carrib Territory of Dominica; 1991 285 Participants in the second Regional Youth Conference for the Caribbean, held in Grenada, August 1988 ........................ ...................... ......................................... 288 Participants in a youth conference held in Barbados in August 1990 .................... 289 Teaching on the island ofCayemite, off the coast of Haiti, in November 1989 290 Baha'i participants in an orientation for a teaching project in Belize; June 1990 290 Children performing traditional dances in the Guaymi Cultural Centre in Panama. April 1989 .......................................... ................................................................ 292 Friends gathered at the Peigan Baha 'i Institute, Alberia, Canada; December 1989 295 A Toba Baha'i woman in the Chaco Region of northern Argentina; 1989 296 Students of violin at the School of the Nations, Brasilia, Brazil; 1988 .................. 297 Exterior of the Maxwell Baha'i School near Vancouver, Canada; 1992 ................ 297 A Baha'i tutorial school in the Guajiro Region of Colombia; 1987 ....................... 297 Nicaraguan youth who took training classes in children's education; January 1992 297 Participants in a workshop that was part of the Baha'i winter school in Haiti; March 1987 ........................................ ................................................................ 300 Martinique's ninth National Convention, held in Fort-de-France; 1992 ................ 301 Members of a Baha'i Regional Native Council in Panama taking a break from their meeting to visit the House of Worship; June 1991 .. .... ... .. ... .. ... .. . . .......... .. 301 In Bermuda, friends gathered for a winter school held in February 1987 .......... .... 301 A moilier and daughter at the Local Baha'i Centre in Tai Dong, Taiwan; 1988 302 Baha'is consulting during the Vajdi Memorial Teaching Project held on Great Nicobar Island in February/March 1990 ......................................... ................... 306 Presentation of the Peace Statement to the wife of the Minister of Lands and Land Development of Sri Lanka; June 1988 .............................................................. 307 xx LIST OF ILLUSTRAT IONS The Crown Prince of Thailand receiving a handmade art object from a young rep¥ resentative of the Spiritual Assembly; September 1989 ..... .. ............................. 308 The Minister of Tourism for Nepal, Ram Hari Joshy, award ing a prize to a winner of the Baha' i youth song contest held at Naw-Ri'.1z in Kathmandu ... .. .. ............. 308 The Prime Minister of Bangladesh, Begum Khadela Zia, presenting Counsellor Jab bar Eidelkhani with the "Young Scientist Award 1990"; July 1991 ... . ......... 308 An Auxiliary Board member speaking about individual transformation during an á interfaith seminar held in Coimbatore, India, in January 1991 ................. .. ....... 3 10 The Hand of the Cause of God Amatu' l-Baha Ri'.1!)iyyih KMnum visiting with stu¥ dents from the School of the Nations in Macau in May 1989 ............................ 312 The Prime Minister of India, His Excellency Raj iv Gandhi, presenting a "Friends of Trees Award¥1986" to a representative of the Rabbani School ... ........... .. .. 312 Students in a class at the Tadong School in Ranipul, Sikkim, in 1991 312 Participants in a Baha'i Children 's Institute held in Larut Matang, Malaysia; December 1987 ..... ... ...... . . . .. ... .. .. ... .. . . ... .. ... .. .. ... .. .. ..... .. .. . . . .. .. .. .. ...... .. .... .. .. .. .. .. ... . 312 A Baha' i doctor during a three-day medical clinic sponsored by the National Spir¥ itual Assembly of the Philippines at Naw-Ri'.1z 1987 .. .. ..... .... ....... 3 15 The Local Baha' i Centre at Ban Vieng Kham Ta i, Laos, dedicated in May 1986 . 3 17 The Local Baha'i Centre at Mandalay, Myanmar, dedicated in January 1991 317 Baha'is participating in a World Religious Book Exhibition held in Tokyo, Japan, inJuly 1990 .. ............................................ ..... ..... ............................................... 318 Baha'is participating in the third International Book Fair held Beijing, China, in September 1990 ... . .. .. .... ... .. .. ... .. . . . .. ..... .. .. ... .. ... .. ... ... ... .. ... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ....... 318 A Mangyan Baha'i family on its way to a teaching conference held in Mansalay, Oriental Mindoro, Philippines, in 1986 ............................................................. 322 Baha'i children in Singapore supporting the country's Green and Clean Week in November 199 1 by designing and displaying banners about the environment .. 323 Two Baha' i friends at a National Teachi ng Conference in Sydney, Australia, "in December 1987 ............................................................. ..... ........................ ........ 324 Traditional dancers fro m Kimama vi llage in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea during a teaching project in 1989 ...... ........... .............................. .. .... .. ... 326 Baha' is dancing during a National Teaching Conference held in Apia, Samoa, in July 199 1 .. ...................... .. ... .. ... .. ... ............................................. ............... ........ 327 A New Zealand Baha' i with a long spear-like Maori weapon he turned into a dig¥ ging tool as a gift fo r the Baha'i House of Worship in India; 1988 .................... 328 Four Samoan Baha'i women visiting the Cook Islands in September 1991 as part of the Ocean of Light project .. ... .. .. .. ... ... .. .. ... .. .. ..... ... .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. . . . . .. .... .. .. .. .. .. ... . 329 Mr. Peter Kaltoli, the first local person to become a Baha'i in Vanuatu (then called the New Hebrides), with Counsellors Bruce Saunders and Sirus Naraqi in 1991 330 Counsell or member of the International Teaching Centre Donald Rogers visiting Baha'is in Perth, Western Australia, in 1990 ..................................................... 33 1 In the Marshal l Islands, President Amata Kabuajoining Baha' is during a dinner to commemorate the Internati onal Year of Peace; October 1986 .......................... 334 In Western Samoa, Baha'is walking with the conmrnnity's fl oat in a parade to cel¥ ebrate the 25th anniversary of the country's independence; June 1987 ............. 334 XX ! LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS In the Solomon Islands, Baha'i youth with the float they created to help celebrate the 10th anniversary of the country's independence; July 1988 ..................... .. 334 The National Spiritual Assembly ofthe Baha'is of the Eastern Caroline Islands; 1987 336 Baha'i representatives to the meeting sponsored by the South Pacific Commission and held in Fiji in September 1988 ................ .......... .......................................... 340 Children attending the Baha'i kindergarten KoloJo 'ou, Nuku'alofa in Tonga; 1990 342 Members of the group Youth for One World, which formed in 1990 to use music to proclaim the Faith, posing in Masterton, New Zealand ................................ 343 A special prayer service held at the Baha'i House of Worship in Samoa during the summer school in January 1987 ........................................................................ 346 A day-long gathering for Baha'i families and their friends held at the Baha'i House of Worship in Sydney, Australia, in 1988 .............................................. 346 Participants in the European Baha'i Youth Conference held in July 1989 in the Netherlands ..................... ................................................................................... 348 A view of the Great Eastern Conference held in Dieburg, Germany; March 1987 350 A mural painted by Baha'i youth ofthe Canary Islands in 1988 ............................ 352 The Hand of the Cause of God Dr. Ugo Giachery celebrating his 90th birthday during the summer school held in Filipstad, Sweden, in July 1986 ................... 353 Balloons being released in San Marino's main square during the European Baha'i Youth Conference held in July 1989 ..... ............ ................................................ 354 Participants in the National Baha' i Youth Conference held in Sete, France, in 1989 356 Romani (Gypsy) Baha'is ofTorrevieja, Spain, celebrate Naw-Ruz in 1987 ......... 358 Mrs. Meherangiz Munsiff with a family of Gypsies she met during her trip to Lappeeranta, Finland, in July 1987 .............. .............................................. ........ 358 Participants in a teaching project held in Cyprus in 199 l 358 Counsellor Louis Henuzet receiving the "Peace Messenger Award" on behalf of the Baha'i community of Belgium during a ceremony held in Brussels; 1987 ....... 360 A group of new Baha'is in Koyuslukow, Sivas, Turkey, gathering to establish their first Local Spiritual Assembly; January 1992 .................................................... 361 The first International Dialogue on the Transition to a Global Society being held at Landegg Academy in Switzerland in September 1990 ...................................... 362 Baha'is receiving a commemorative stamp issued by the Post Office of the United Kingdom to honour Bernard Leach, a potter and a Baha'i; November 1987 ..... 364 An exhibition of Baha'i books held as part of a Congress on Religious Studies at the New University in Lisbon, Portugal, in January 1992 ................................. 366 An exhibition of Baha'i books displayed during the International Book Fair in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, in October 1990 ............................................................. 367 Oneworld Publications' edition of The Hidden Words ofBaha'u'llah displayed in a Sherratt & Hughes bookstore in the United Kingdom in July 1989 ................ 368 The Hand of the Cause of God Collis Featherstone with other participants in the summer school held in Iceland in August 1987 ................................................. 369 Participants in the opening of the first Baha'i School in Vejle, Denmark, in Sep¥tember 1989 .......................................................... ....... .... .......................... ........ 369 The House of the Bab in Shiraz, being demolished by Iranian authorities soon after the Islamic revolution in 1979 ........................................................................... 370 xxii A photograph taken around 1896, showing a Baha'i father and son in chains after being arrested with fellow Baha'is. Both were subsequently executed ............ 372 A photograph taken in May 1955, showing members of the Shah's army and Mus¥lim leaders joining in the destruction of the National Baha'i Centre; Tihran, Iran 373 The House of the Bab in Shiraz, a place of pilgrimage for Baha'is, was destroyed by Revolutionary Guards in 1979 and later completely razed ........ ................... 375 Shortly after the Islamic Revolution, the National Baha'i Centre in Tihran was confiscated by authorities ......... ......................................................................... 377 Destruction of a Baha'i cemetery in Shiraz in 1979 ............................................... 381 Light fixture on the colonnade of the Shrine of the Bab ......................................... 382 Individual photographs of some of the martyrs .......................... ............................ 399 In the Gambia, participants in a Baha'i Women's Institute held in the Regional Baha'i Centre of Latri-Kunda in 1987 .... ............................................... .......... 408 In the United States of America, a reception to honour Laura Dreyfus-Barney held at the UNICEF House in Washington, D.C., in July 1988 ................................. 408 In Chad, the "Roses Noires" Baha'i women's group ofSarh learning sewing skills in June 1988 ..................................................... .................................................. 410 In Malaysia, Richard and Mona Grieser meet with participants in the "Traditional Media as a Change Agent" project in Sarawak; 1992 ........................................ 412 In Luxembourg, the Baha'i Women's Union organized a conference with concert heldin0ctoberl988 ..................................................................... .......... .......... 413 In Mexico, Rosalinda Espinoza de Frazelle talks about "Women and Peace" dur¥ing a Baha'i women's conference held in 1987 ..... ............................................ 413 In Bangladesh, Shirin Boman addresses a Baha'i women's conference held in Dhaka in 1986 ................................................................................................... 413 In Kenya, one of the friends makes a point during the National Baha'i Women's Conference held in the Nakuru Baha'i Centre in February 1989 ..... .................. 413 Uruguay hosted an International Baha'i Women 's Conference held in Montevideo in October l 989 ....... .... .. .. .. . ..... .. .. ..... ..... ..... .. .. ... ...... ... .. ........... .... .. ...... .. .. .. .. ...... 414 A Pacific Baha'i Women's Conference held in Hilo, Hawaii, in mid-1991 415 Louise Profeit-Leblanc gives a presentation during the Conference for the Associ¥ation for Baha'i Studies held in Irvine, California, in September 1989 ............. 417 In the Solomon Islands, Baha'i women and children presenting their custom danc¥ing during the Women's Week celebrations held in September 1988 ............... 418 In Pakistan, a public meeting held in memory of Tahirih was organized by the Local Ladies Committee of Karachi; August 1989 .......................... ................. 419 In the Philippines, President Corazon Aquino and the Vice President of the All Nations Women's Group, a Baha'i, in May 1990 .............................................. 420 Participants in the Rubi Institute International Training Course for Tutorial School Teachers and Preparation for Youth Year of Service, Colombia; November 1986 422 Youth volunteers in "The Temple Brigade" helping to clean the Baha'i House of Worship in New Delhi, India, in 1988 .............................................................. 423 Some of the youth serving at the Baha'i World Centre in March 1990 .................. 424 A Baha'i youth of Vanuatu with students of the literacy class he teaches on Tanna as part of his Year of Service; February 1992 ............................................... ..... 426 XXlll LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Youth Year of Service volunteers went into the Kalahari Desert in Botswana to hold deepenings for the Baha' is who live there; October 1987 ................... 427 In Hawaii, American Baha' i youth cooking during a two-week-long summer camp held on Maui for Russian youth in 1988 ....................... ..................................... 428 In the U.S. Virgin Islands, a Sparks for Peace team of Baha'i youth reinstalling a fence as a service project in a national park in 1989 ... ... ... .. ..... .. .. .. .. .. .. ....... .. .. ... 428 In the Dominican Republic, a young graduate of the Olinga Institute courses in service to the Cause teaching a children's class in 1991 .................................... 428 In Luxembourg, Baha'i youth volunteers working to clean and maintain the Gar¥den of Wiltz; 1990 ........................... .................................................................. 429 In Uganda, part of the youth programme during the summer school in Mbale was to help clean up the local hospital; 1991 ............................................................ 429 In Tonga, a Baha'i youth group after cleaning downtown Nukualofa in support of World Health Day; 1990 ................ .................................................................... 429 In Scotland, youth participants in Operation Mona, after cleaning up a section of the River Clyde in July 1986 ............................................................................. 430 In Singapore, young Baha'is after helping to clean up a beach as a community ser¥vice project in 1990 .... ..... ... ............ .. ..... .... . .... .. ... .. .. ... .. ...... .... ... ............. .. .. .... .. . 430 In St. Vincent, children and youth participating in a Baha'i-sponsored activity to clean up Villa Beach; April 1992 ...................................................................... 430 In Panama, Baha' i youth performing cultural dances as part of the International Day of Peace activities in Boca de! Monte; 1989 .............................................. 431 In Nigeria, members of the Baha'i youth 's football club, called The Peace Makers, during the semi-final match in a local soccer competition; 1987 ...................... 431 In Taiwan, six youth who enrolled in the Faith during the Muhajir Teaching Project in 1987 are members of three ethnic minorities .................................... 431 The third Peace Moves '89 Regional European Youth Conference, held in July 1989 in Madrid, Spain ................................................................................ 436 The members of the first European Baha'i Youth Council after their first meeting in London, England, in November 1989 ........................ .................................. .. 437 Participants in one of the four European Youth Conferences held in the summer of 1991 took place in Neptune, Romania ............................................................... 439 Participants in the George Adam Benke Project in Bulgaria attending the National Teaching Conference held in Plovdiv in October 1991 ..................................... 440 The members of El Viento Canta before beginning their tour of Europe in 1988 .. 443 Members of El Viento Canta with children on the grounds of the Baha' i House of Worship near Kampala, Uganda, during their tour of Africa in 1989 ... ............. 444 Members ofEl Viento Canta in Ulaan-Baatar, Mongolia, with Knight ofBaha'u'llah, Sean Hinton, and some of the first Mongolian Baha'is; 1990 ........................... 445 Members of the Wildfire Youth Theatre Group during a performance in New South Wales, Australia, in February 1989 ......................................................... 449 Light in the Darkness performing during the European Baha'i Youth Conference held in Neptune, Romania, in July 1991 ............................................................ 450 Musical entertainment being presented during a youth conference held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, in November/December 1991 ............................................. 451 XX IV Participants in Austria's National Youth Conference; Spital am Pyhrn; 1992 45 l The Prime Minister of Guyana, His Excellency Hamilton Greene, addressing the Caribbean Baba 'i Youth Conference held in Georgetown in August 1989 451 Friends attending a youth institute in P01t Moresby, Papua New Guinea, in December 1988 .. .. . . .. ... .. . . . . .. ...... ..... .......... .. .. ... ... .. ... .. .. ... .. .... . . ... ... . . .. ....... .. .. .. ..... 452 Participants in a quiz held during the National Youth Conference in Lahore, Paki¥stan, in September 1988 ............................................................................... ...... 452 A group photograph taken during the International Youth Conference held near Harare, Zimbabwe, in August 1990 ........... ........................................................ 452 Two guest lecturers and friends associated with the Chair for Baha'i Studies at the University oflndore, India, in January 1992 ....................................... .............. 455 The Hand of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha Rul~iyyih Khanum and Dr. Erwin Laszlo followipg the General Systems Research Conference in Hungary; 1987 460 Participants in the Australian National Baha'i Studies Conference, held in Ade¥laide in March 1989 ... ... ... .. ... .. .. ... .. ... .. ... . . .. .. .. .. ... ..... .. ... .. .. . . . . ... ... ... . . ... .. .. ... .. ...... 461 The first meeting of the Association for Baba 'i Studies in East, Central, and South Africa being held in Nairobi, Kenya, in September 1990 ........ .......................... 463 The Association for Baha'i Studies, French-Speaking Europe, holding its third annual meeting in Luxembourg in November 1986 ............................... ........... 465 The Association for Baha'i Studies, German-Speaking Europe, during its fifth ammal conference, held in Austria in 1989 ................................ ....................... 466 The Association for Baba 'i Studies, Japan, during its first a1mual conference, held in Tokyo in December 1991 .............................................................................. 467 A speaker during the thirteenth meeting of the Association for Baha'i Studies, N01th America, held in Ottawa, Canada, in October 1988 ................................ 468 A Seminar on Intercultural Issues preceding the Conference of the Association for Baha'i Studies held in Irvine, California, in 1989 .......... ............. ...................... 469 The Association for Baha'i Studies, Papua New Guinea, holding its second con¥ference, in Po1t Moresby in May 1989 .. ........................................ .......... .... ...... 470 A member of the Baha'i International Health Agency visiting the home of a Baha'i Health Education Agent in Sarh, Chad, in June 1988 ... . . . . . . . . . . .. . . .. . . . . .. ... 4 72 The European Baha ' i Business Fomm ho lding its second a1mual conference in Paris, France, during the late summer of 1991 ............................................. ..... 476 Participants in Art Forum '91, held at the Baha'i Conference Centre in De Poort, Netherlands ........................................................................................................ 479 Art Forum East, held in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia, in July 1991 ........................ 480 Students at the Tadong Baha 'i School in Sikkim, India, learning to use computers as part of their regular curriculum; 1991 . .. ... .. ... . .... .. . . . . .. . . .. ... .... .. .. .. ... .. .. ... . . . ... .. 483 Dr. Ethel Martens at the Baha'i International Community display during at the World Health Assembly held in Geneva, Switzerland, in May 1988 ... .. ... .. ... ... 524 A representative of the National Assembly of the Baha 'is of Brazil receiving the United Nations' "Peace Messenger Award;" September 1987 .......................... 526 Baha'i International Conmmnity representatives Mrs. Mary Sawicki Power and Mrs. Tinai Hancock at a South Pacific Committee Conference held in Suva, Fiji, in September 1988 ..................................................................................... 535 xxv LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS The Hand of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha Rul:J.iyyih Khanum presenting a copy of the Baha'i Statement on Nature to Prince Philip, the Duke of Edin¥ burgh, in Winchester, England, in October 1987 .... .. ........... .. ... ......................... 541 Certificate of Incorporation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the Cook Islands; 2 February 1989 ............ ......... .. ........ ....... ..... ......................... 545 Recognition of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Guinea-Bissau in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution; 7 July 1988 .... .... ... ..... .. 546 Receipt of the Declaration of Trust for the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Guinea; 29 May 1986 (first page) .................................................... 547 Certificate of change of name from the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of South and West Africa to the National Spiritual Assembly of South Africa; 27 March 1987 .. .... .. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. ... .. .. ... ... .. ... . . .. . . .. .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .. ... . . . . . ... .. .. .. .. .. .. ... .. . 548 Certificate of Incorporation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha 'is of the West Leeward Islands; 23 October 1991 ..................................................... 549 Decree by the Government of Quebec, Canada, regarding the Civil Registtáy of Baha'i Local Spiritual Assemblies in Hull, Iles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec, Longueuil, and Montreal; 1990 (first page) ....................................................... 551 Registration of the Baha'is of Ashkhabad of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Repub¥ lic by the Council of Religious Affairs at the Council of Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics; 25 Janua1y 1990 ................................................. 552 Recognition of the Baha 'is of Dushanbe of the Tadzhik Soviet Socialist Republic by the Council of Ministers ofTadzhikistan; 14 November 1990 ..................... 553 Appointment by the Attorney General of a Baha'i Marriage Office in the Com¥ monwealth of the Bahamas, Effective from 10 March 1988 ............................. 556 Approval of a legal representative of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Burundi by the Minister of Justice, dated 12 October 1988 ............. 557 Letter from the Ministry of Finance of Equatorial Guinea, recognizing the right of the National Spiritual Assembly to be exempt from taxes; 29 April 1986 ........ 558 Certificate of recognition of the Lomaivuna Baha'i Kindergarten by the MinistJ.y of Education of the Government ofFiji; 21August1987 .................................. 559 Circular Letter from the Minister for the AdministJ.áation of the Territories of Gabon stating that the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Gabon 560 may carry out all activities; 6 May 1987 ............................................................ Ce11ificate registering the offices of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha' is of Ireland as a place for the solemnisation of marriage; 8 September 1988 ááá áááááááááááááááá ááááááááááááááááááááááá ááá áá ááá ááááá ááá ááá áááá áááá áááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááá 561 The Malawi Gazette Supplement, dated 7 November 1986, giving notice of the licensing of the Baha'i Centre in Limbe, and the Baha'i Teaching mstitute in Amalika Village, as a place for the celebration of marriages ......... .. ................. 562 Rental agreement between the Baha'i Property Incorporate and three individuals for a Baha'i Centre, filed with the clerk of Courts on Santo Island, Kwajalein Atoll, in the Marshall Islands; 14 November 1986 .................. ....... ..... ....... ....... 563 Letter from the Department of Education for the Conunonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands recognizing Baha'i Holy Dates when children may be excused from classes; 10 September 1987 ....... .. .................... ............................... .. ........ 564 xxvi Notification by the Government of Pakistan's Ministry of Religious Affairs and Minority Affairs of the appointment of a Baha'i on the Advisory Council for Minorities Affairs ...................... ................................. .............. ....... .................. 565 Certificate of Registration of a Permitted School in Papua New Guinea for the Baha' i Study Centre to operate as a high school; 14 November 1986 ............... 566 Marriage contract of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the Philip¥ pines, which was approved by the government in 1987 .............. .. .................... 567 Certificate of Registration by the Republic of Zambia of the William Mmuthe Maseltha Baha' i Institute; 5 October 1988 .............. ...... ... ................... .............. 568 First Day Cover of a commemorative stamp portraying the House of Worship in Apia, issued by the Government of Western Samoa for Christmas 1988 .. .. .... .. 569 The Postal Department of India depicted the House of Worship in New Delhi on a postage stamp to mark the Diamond Jubilee of that city ........................ .... ...... . 570 Part Four: The World Order ofBaha 'u 'llah Partial view of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice from the south 608 Five Hands of the Cause leading friends attending the International Convention towards the Shrine of the Bab for the observance of the Ninth Day ofRic;lvan ... 619 A delegate casting her ballot during the election of the Universal House of Justice during the International Convention held at Ric;lvan 1988 .. .............. ... ... .. ...... ... 619 A delegate expressing his views during a consultative session during the Interna¥ tional Convention .. .. .... .. ... . . ... .. .. .. ...... ... .. ... ... .. ... .. .. ... .. ... .. ... ... ... ... ... . . . ... .. ... ... ... .. 620 A delegate during one of the special continental sessions held as part of the Inter¥ national Convention .... . . . . . . . . . ... .. ... .. ... .. .. ... .. .. ... ... . .... .. . .... ... ... .. ..... ... .. ... .. .. ... . . . .. ... 620 The Hands of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha Ri'1l;iyyih Khanum, Dr. 'Ali¥ Mul;ammad Varqa, and William Sears during International Convention, 1988 .. 622 The members of the Universal House of Justice elected at Ric;lvan 1988 .. .. ... .. ...... 623 The Hand of the Cause Jolm Robarts and his wife planting a tree in Northern Ire¥ land during their visit there in August 1986 ............ .............. .. .......................... 638 The Hand of the Cause H. Collis Featherstone and his wife attending the National Convention in Mauritius in May 1987 ... ... ... .. .. ... .. ... .. .. . . . . .. ... ... .. .. .. . ..... .. . ...... .. .. . 642 Amatu ' l-Baha Rul:iiyyih Khanum presenting a copy of the Peace Statement to the Governor of Macau in April 1989 .. .......... ...... ....... ........ .. .. ... ... .... ........ ........... ... 653 The Hand of the Cause of God Dr. Ugo Giachery with Lilian Alai and Tosi Malie¥ toa during the National Convention held in Apia, Western Samoa; April 1989 653 The Hand of the Cause H. Collis Featherstone and his wife attending the Aborigi¥ nal Baha'i Institute held in Forsayth, Australia, in June 1989 ........................... 656 The Hand of the Cause H. Collis Featherstone and his wife visiting Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, in August 1989 ......... .. ............. .......................................... ........ 658 Amatu ' l-Baha Rul:iiyyih Khanum meeting the President of Argentina, Dr. Carlos Menem, during the "Uniting the Americas" conference; Febrnary 1990 ......... . 662 The Hand of the Cause Mr. 'Ali-Akbar Furutan visiting with members of a Baha'i fa mily in Dushanbe, Tadzhik, in the Soviet Union, in March 1990 ..... .............. 663 xx vii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS The Hand of the Cause of God William Sears in Worcester, Massachusetts, in October 1.991, encouraging the friends to fill the Six Year Plan goalsá ..... L ..... 668 The Hand of the Cause Dr. 'Ali-Mul?ammad Varqa with Baha'i children in Green¥land in April 1992 .............................................................................................. 671 The members of the Universal House of Justice, five Hands of the Cause of God, Counsellor members of the International Teaching Centre, and members of the Continental Board of Counsellors in Haifa in May 1988 .................................. 682 Counsellor Beatrice Asare being greeted by member of the Universal House of Justice Dr. Peter Khan in the Seat of the International Teaching Centre; 1988 .. 682 The Hands of the Cause of God Dr. 'Ali-MuJ:iammad Varqa, William Sears, Amatu'l-Baha Rlil?fyyih Khanum, 'Ali-Akbar Furutan, and H. Collis Feather- stone at the Mansion of Mazra' ih during the Counsellors' Conference; 1988 .... 683 Counsellors Robert Harris and Arturo Serrano consulting with Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre Dr. Magdalene Carney; May 1988 ......... 683 The members of the International Teaching Centre; June 1988 ............................. 685 The Continental Board of Counse llors for Africa in 1991 ..................................... 688 The Continental Board of Counsellors for the Americas in 1991 688 The Continental Board of Counsellors for Asia in 1991 690 The Continental Board of Counsellors for Australasia in 1991 ......................... .. .. 690 The Continental Board of Counsellors for Europe in 1991 ................................... . 691 In Suriname, Counsellor Jacqueline Delahunt consults with Mrs. Terry Madison during the National Convention held in Paramaribo in April 1990 .................. . 692 In Czechoslovakia, Counsellor Rul?u' llah Mumtazi visits with friends in Prague in December 1986 ..................................................... ............................................ . 692 In Hawaii, Counsellor Gayle Morrison during a meeting with the National Spiritual Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands and the Local Assembly of Honolulu; 1987 692 In Korea, Counsellor Kim Myung Jung joins in the celebration of the Seventieth Anniversary of the Introduction of the Faith in Korea; Seoul, February 1992 .. 693 In Guatemala, members of the Continental Board of Counsellors for the Americas and some Auxiliary Board members meeting with members of the National Spiritual Assemblies of Central America; 1990 .... ............................................ 693 In Bophuthatswana, Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre Dr. Magdalene Carney meets with Counsellors Daniel Ramoroesi and Lally Warren, and Auxiliary Board members Enos Makhele and Sohail Rowhani; 1989 693 Counsellor Ursula Milhlschlegel participates in the National Convention held in Athens, Greece; April 1987 ......................................... ...................... ................ 706 New National Spiritual Assemblies Page Page Guinea-Bissau (1989) ................ .. 708 West Leeward Islands (1991) .. .. 711 Macau ( 1989) .................... ........ .. 709 Angola ( 1992) ........................ .. 711 Union of Soviet Socialist Republics The Baltic States ( 1992) .......... . 712 709 Albania (1992) ....................... .. 712 ( 199 1) ááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááááá áááá Romania ( 1991) .......................... . 710 Hungary (1992) ......... ............ .. 713 Czechoslovakia ( 1991) .............. .. 710 Poland (1992) ............ ............. . 713 XXV lll Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova Greenland (1992). . 714 (1992) ................................. .. 714 Bulgaria (1992) 715 Re-established National Spiritual Assemblies Page Page Zaire (1987) ................................ . 715 Niger (1992) .............................. 717 Azerbaijan ( 1992) ....................... . 716 Central Asia (1992) ................... 717 Congo Republic (1992) .............. . 716 Seven members of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Loja, Spain, in October 1986 724 The Local Spiritual Assembly of Ashkhabad, Turkmen, S.S.R., re-formed in 1989 after a lapse of fifty years .. ..... ..... .. ..... .. ... .. ... .. ... .. .. .... ... .. .. ... .... .. .. . ... .. ....... ... ...... 724 The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha' is of District 10 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, elected at Ri~van 1990 ....................................................................... 724 Members of the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Johannesburg, South Africa, consulting during a meeting in 1988 ................ ................................. .... 725 Children gathered for Baha'i classes in the local l:{a:.:-:iratu'l-Quds in Dzitya, Yucatan, Mexico, in 1987 ................................................................................ .. 725 Members of local youth committees meeting with the National Youth Committee ofGermany to consult about the Six Year Plan. Mainz, Germany; March 1987 725 A Nineteen Day Feast being. held á at the Khao-i-Dang Annex Refugee Camp in Thailand in 1987 ..............:........................................................................ ......... 726 Roslyn Buie reading a prayer during the devotional part of the Naw-Ruz celebra¥tions held in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in March 1992 . .... . ...... ... .. .. .. .... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 726 Children of Ambano, Madagascar, singing during the Naw-Ruz celebrations held in their community in March 1991 .. ... .. . .. .. .. ... .. .. . .... .. ... .. .. .. .. ... ... ... .. .... .. ......... ... 726 Friends enjoying the Ayyam-i-Ha celebrations sponsored by the Local Spiritual Assembly of San Jose, California, USA, in February 1988 ............................... 727 A social activity held during a Weekend Baha'i School in Macau in January 1988 727 Young friends providing entertainment during the Naw-Ruz celebration held in Paramaibo, Suriname, in March 1988 ............................................................... 727 The Mother Temple of the Asian Continent, in New Delhi, India, on the day of its Dedication, in December 1986 ...... .. .. .. .. ...... .. .. ... .. .. ... ..... .. .. .. ... ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. . 732 The three Hands of the Cause of God who attended the Indian Temple Dedication: Amatu' l-Baha RuJ:iiyyih Khanum, William Sears, and Collis Featherstone ...... 735 Three choirs performing during the Indian Temple Dedication service .............. ... 736 Arna tu 'I-Baba Ruf:iiyyih Khanum addressing the opening session of the Interna¥tional Teaching Conference held in New Delhi in December 1986 .................. 739 Exterior and interior views ofthe "Lotus ofBahapur" .............. ............................. 741 Aerial view and details of the exterior of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkar ......................... 742 The British High Commissioner in Delhi during his visit to the Baha' i House of Worship in January 1989 .................................................. ................................. 747 The Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church being escorted to the Temple for an official visit in January 1989 ............................................... .......................... 747 XXIX LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS The Assistant Permanent Representative of Haiti to the United Nations at the Mashriqu'l-Adhkar in February 1989 ................................................................ 747 The Prime Minister of Sri Lanka during his visit to the Temple in March 1988 .... 748 The Ambassador of the United States to India attending the Dedication ceremo~ nies for the House of Worship in December 1986 ................ ............................. 748 The Ambassador ofThailand to India at the Lotus Temple in April 1990 ............. 748 The Vice-Minister of the Chinese Ministry of Broadcasting, Film and Television at the Baha'i House of Worship in October 1990 .............................................. 749 A delegation of Soviet film artists visiting the Temple in January 1989 ......... ....... 750 The Ethiopian Minister of Labour and Social Welfare during his visit to the "Lotus ofBahapur" in January 1990 ............................................................................. 752 Part Five: In Memoriam Giachery, Dr. Ugo ...................... . Khadem, Zikrullah (Dhikru'llah Khadim) ................................... . Khazeh, Jalal (Jalal'u'Ilah Kha<;li') Sears, William ............................ . Roba1is, John ............................. . Featherstone, Collis .................... . Wolcott, Charles ......................... . Kavelin, Borrah .......................... . Tihrani, Qudratu ' llah .... . Winnanik and Mubarak ... .. .. ... ... . Khianra, Dipchand ..................... . Khabirpour, 'Aziz ('Azizu'llah Khabirpur) ............................... . Leong, Yan Kee .......................... . Mingorance Fernandez, Jose .. ... . Bernal de Sanchez, Aura Maria .. . Khan, Fazal Mohamad ............... . Hoahania, Hamuel ...................... . Koirala, Masheed Iqani (Mashid iqani Koirala) ............. ...~...... . Duna, Rudolfo ................. ........... . Dobbins, Bertha ..................... .. .. . . White, Tumanuvao William ....... . Mazakrnat, Apelis ...................... . Trojankova-Bendova, Juliana ... . . Dodge, Isabelle Stebbins ............ . Aidun, Go! .................................. . Storch, Juanita Marie ........... ... .... . Caswell, Louise .......................... . Page Page 778 Hollibaugh, Eleanor ..... ............. . 870 Nahvi, Saeed (Sa'id Na~vi) ....... . 872 788 Ahdieh, Mansour (Man~t'.ir 791 'Ahdiyyih) ........................ ...... . 874 797 Su mah, Mohamed Lamin ......... . 876 806 Fitzpatrick, Henry Bertron ........ . 878 815 Sanchez Martinez, Juan ...... ...... . 881 819 Gulick, Robert Jr. .................... .. . 883 823 Jensen, Knud ............................ . 885 826 Navidi, Azizollah ('Azizu'llah 828 Navidi) ................................... . 888 831 Suleimani, Suleiman (Sulayman Sulaymani) ............................. . 890 834 Sivapiragasam, Kandiah ............ . 891 835 Laws, Frederick ........................ . 894 838 Bausani, Alessandro ................. . 895 839 Ashton, Beatrice Owens ......... .. . 898 841 Olson, Cynthia and Edgar ......... . 900 844 Perks, Thelma ........................... . 906 Menking, Jo Anne .................... . 908 845 Shayani, 'Azizu'llah ................. . 911 847 Baghdadi, Adib Radhi (Adib Ra<;li 849 Baghdadi) ............................... . 914 852 Hawthorne, Rose ...................... . 916 855 Hopper Welsh, Eleanore (Rene) 917 858 Lamb, Dora Worth (Dee) .......... . 920 860 Lindstrom, Shirley (Adaz 862 Ayamdagoot) ............................ . 921 865 Saavedra Gallardo, Melit6n ...... . 923 868 H0eg, Johanne ......................... . 925 xxx True, Edna ................................. . Blakely, Elsa Lillian (Judy) ....... . Jami~, $ala~ ... ................. ... ........ . Munje, Harilal Walker, Zlmarian Newman, Beatrice ...... ................ . Lutchmaya, Roddy Dharma ...... .. Evans, Esther ........ ...................... . Malakooti, Ehsanollah (I~sanu'llah MalakUti) .................................. . Kazemzadeh, Kazem (Ka~im Ka~imzadih) .. .. ............ ........... . Habibi, Habib (I:fabib I:fabibi) .... . Quigley, Robert Joseph ........ .... . .. McLaughlin, Robert ................. .. Pa Tepaeru Ariki (Lady Davis) .. . Garcia Vazquez, Manuel ............. Vajdi, Khodadad ....................... . Rice-Wray, Edris ........... ............. . Ortiz Gutierrez, Aparicia ............ . Sabet, Habib (I:fabib Thabit) ..... .. Sabet, Rostam (Rustam Thabit) .. . Gualavisi Farinango, Rufino ..... .. Tanyi Tambe, Solomon ........ ...... . Lohse, Doris ............................... . Te Paa, Ephraim ......................... . Nounou, Salim ............................ . 928 Master, Mahvash ..................... .. 978 930 Villiers-Stuart, Jane ................ .. . 983 933 Ahmadiyeh, Hedayatoullah 934 (Hidayatu'llah A~madiyyih) .. . 986 936 Harvey, Winnifred .................... . 989 939 Francis, Dorothy ....................... . 991 941 I:faddad, Akbar .......................... . 992 942 Sala, Emeric ............................... 995 Parsa Mazzoni, Noranieh 944 (Nuraniyyih Parsa Mazzoni) .. . 997 Papai, Ludwig ........................... . 998 947 Heller, Frances Gordon ........... .. 999 948 Rezvani, Monireh (Munirih 950 Ri<;lvani) .................................. . 1002 952 Bagley, Florence .................. ...... 1004 955 Bishop, Helen .......................... . 1007 956 Zucker, Arthur Allen ............... .. 1009 957 Haenni de Bons, Mona .............. 1011 959 McLaren, Edith ......................... . 1013 960 Kanyerezi, Max ...................... ... 1014 962 Macdonald, Charles .................. . 1017 964 Nielsen, Lotus ........... ........... ...... 1019 967 Camey, Magdalene .................. . 1022 969 Warde, Shirley ........................... 1024 970 Friedland, Eberhard ......... ......... . 1026 973 Umegae, Kazutomo ........ ......... .. 1027 976 Fozdar, Shirin ........................... . 1029 Part Six: Directory, Bibliography, Glossary Relics ofBaha'u'llah, including His pen and pencase .......................................... 1032 The International Baha'i Archives Building, on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel .... 1052 Part Seven: Literary and Musical Works The Prison Cell in the Most Great Prison in 'Akka .... . .. ....... .. ..... ....... ...... .. ........ .... 1068 Lua Getsinger, whom 'Abdu'l-Baha surnamed Liva (Banner) ...................... ........ 1092 Miss Lillian Kappes, Dr. Sarah Clock, and Dr. Susan Moody with Mu~tafa Khan and Tahirih Khanum in Tihran, iran; circa 1912 ......................................=... 1093 Dr. Susan Moody with two young children on her lap. Tihran; circa 1912 ....... .. ... 1095 Miss Lillian Kappes, Muchul Khanum, Dr. Susan Moody, Dr. Sarah Clock, and Miss Elizabeth Stewart with children and a servant in Tihran; circa 1912 1097 xxxi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Miss Lillian Kappes with boys in the Tarbiyat School in Tihran; circa 1912 1100 Miss Lillian Kappes, Dr. Sarah Clock, Dr. Susan Moody, and Miss Elizabeth StewartinTiluáan; 1913 ..................................................................................... 1102 Dr. Genevieve L. Coy during her visit to Haifa in April 1922, on her way to take up her post at the Girl's Tarbiyat School in Tihran ............................................ 1103 Miss Adelaide Sharp with the Baha'i Youth Group in Tihran; circa 1937 ............. 1104 Keith Ransom-Kehler at the seventh Persian National Baha'i Convention; 1933 .. 1107 Martha Root with Baha'i women in Tihran; 1930 ................................................. 1110 Jamal Effendi with friends in Egypt ....................................................................... 111 7 Students of the New Era Development Institute's Community Development Facil¥itator Course planting rice with fellow Baba 'is in Maharashtra, India; 1991 1123 Members of the Baha 'i community of Caserta, Italy, planting acorn seedlings on a hillside as an environmental project in March 1987 .......................................... 1123 A papaya farm in Dzitya, Yucatan, Mexico, which Baha'is are working as a rural development project; 1986 .............. .......... .... .............. .............. .... .. .... .. .. .. .. .. .... 1 130 A piggery project in Liancou1i, Haiti, conducted by the local Baha'i community; 1987 ................................................... ................................................................ 1130 The Tahirih Farm in Moissala, Chad, initiated by the local Baha'i community as a social and economic development project; 1989 ............................................... 1130 A gift from the Baha'is of Alaska to the Baha'is of Samoa for the House of Wor¥ship in Apia ............. ........................................................................................... 1137 Roya Aschari playing the violin during Art Forum '91, organized by the Baha'i Association for the Arts and held at De Poort, Netherlands .............................. 1140 Baha'is using street theatre to teach principles of development during an 'aware¥ness camp' held in Jhapua, Madhya Pradesh, India; May 1988 ................ .. ...... I 144 Detail of a tapestry by Vickie Hu Poirier made as a gift for the first Sino-American Women's Conference, held in Beijing in 1990 .................................................. 1151 In Vanuatu, Baha'is in Lawital, Tanna, performing a custom dance during a Spiri¥tualization and Teaching Institute held in January 1992 .................................... 1154 The Baha' i puppet theatre group known as El Retablo del Mosquito, from the May Maxwell Cultural Centre in Buenos Aires, Argentina, performing in 1988 ...... 1156 A painting by a prisoner in Yazd, fran, showing nine felled trees representing the 1158 nine ma1tyrs of Yazd in the 1980s ..................................................................... . The Huxtables-a Baha'i family on St. Helena Island, in the South Atlantic; 1986 1161 In Malawi, friends help to get the car of a visitor up the road; August 1990 .......... 1161 Members of the Spirit ofBadi' teaching project in New Zealand; 1988 ................ 1161 Children in the Baha'i literacy classes in the Upper Corentyne District ofBerbice, Guyana, searching for letters which spell "I Love Guyana"; 1990 .................... 1164 An American Baha'i Youth Year of Service volunteer in Botswana using a globe to make a point during a deepening session with some friends; 1987 ............... 1164 Women learning to read and write at the Baha'i Vocational Institute for Rural Women in Kalyanpura, Madhya Pradesh, India; 1988 ...................................... 1164 XXXll INTRODUCTION AIMS AND PURPOSES OF THE BAHA'i FAITH DAVID H OFMAN RELIGION has two objectives, the re¥generation of men and the advancement of mankind. All men have been. created to canyforward an ever advancing civilization proclaims Baha 'u 'llah, and Th e purpose of the one true God, exalted be His glo1y, in. revealing Himself unto men is to lay bare those gems that lie hidden within the mine of their true and inmost selves. These aims of religion, universal and eternal, nevertheless have been conditioned to the capacities of each age or dispensation and the great religions of the past have developed their social orders within gener¥ally definable times and areas. Judaism, for instance, attained its peak under Solomon and was confined, before the dispersion, to the Near East; Zoroastrianism remained Persian until the Arab conquest and the settlement of a renmant in Western India; Christianity became the religion of Euro¥pean civilization; the building of the nation state undertaken by Islam remained a Muslim experiment until feudal Europe learned the lesson and its city states gave way to and adopted the more advanced order. It has remained for the Baha'i religion to declare and promote the cause of world order-the sine quo non of its existence-and to disclose the concomitant unities of religion, of mankind and of historical purpose. 'Unity of family, of lTibe, of city-state, and nation have been successively attempted and fully established. World unity is the goal towards which a harassed humanity is striving. Nation-building has come to an end. The anarchy inherent in state sovereignty is moving towards a climax. A world, growing to maturity, must abandon this fetish, recog¥nize the oneness and wholeness of human relationships, and establish once and for all the machinery that can best incarnate this fundamental principle of its life.' 1 Religion sees the course of history as an organic process, moving towards the full realization of all the potentialities implanted in man. The vicissitudes, the great advances, the hiatuses it regards as the natural w1fold¥ment of that process just as the succession of bud, leaf, flower and frnit is the natural unfoldment in the life of a háee; or infancy, childhood, youth and maturity in that of a man. Indeed, Baha'i scripture explains, the process is the same. The sun is the effective agent in the organic life of the earth; religion in that of humanity. The Sun of Truth is the Word of God upon which depends the edu¥cation of those who are endowed with the power of understanding and of utteran.ce. 2 The creative Word, revealed in each stage of human progress by a Manifestation of God, and conditioned to the requirements of the time, is the effective agent in the long, single process of humanity's development from I Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, The Unfold111e11t of World Civilization. 2 Baha'u ' llah , Dniyiry-i-Dlr11i0_. infancy to World Order. This truth is enshrined in all revealed religion although it needs the illumination ofBaha'u'llah's reve¥lation to enable men to perceive it. 'The first picture presented in the Bible is that of human unity in its simplest form; that of a single family. The last picture is that of a unity manifold and universal in which all kindreds and tongues and peoples and nations are gathered into one and unified in the enjoyment of a common worship, a common happiness, a common glory. 'The great problem which, according to the Bible, confronts the human race in its progress is that of advancing from the bar¥est, baldest unity through a long experience of multiplying diversities till ultimately a balance between the two principles is struck, poise is gained and the two forces of variety and unity are blended in a multiple, highly developed world fellowship, the perfection of whose union was hardly suggested in the prinlitive simplicity of early man.' 1 This spiritual view of evolution is the constant theme of religion. Each revelation refers to the past, looks forward to the future and concentiáates upon the immediate need for spiritual regeneration and enlightenment. The Prophet evokes in human hearts a sacri¥ficial love which transcends self-interest and causes the early believers to dedicate them¥selves entirely to the practice and diffusion of the new message. As it spreads it works like leaven in society, reforming its morals, uplifting its vision and promoting a greater diffusion of love in social action. 'World history at its core and in its essence is the story of the spiritual evolution of mankind. From this all other activities of man proceed and round it all other activities revolve. '2 Unlike the revelations of the past, the Baha'i revelation releases not only the creative Word necessary to the renewal of spiritual vitality in the human spirit, but I George Townshend, The Heart ofthe Gospel, 1939. 2 ibid. I WORLD embodies that divine energy in an adminis¥trative order capable of bringing within its shade all the diversified ethnic groups and myriad types of the human race, who may find within its wide embrace a full, happy and purposeful life. Baha'i activity therefore is directed not only, as in the past, to the spreading of the Word, but to the establish¥ment of the fabric of that Order which, enshrined within the creative Word itself, becomes the chief instrument for the further diffusion and social application of the Divine Message. This World Order, which the Baha'i Faith exists to establish, is none other than that long-promised Kingdom in which peace, justice and brotherhood shall prevail universally and 'the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea'. 3 The establishment of this World Order is depen¥dent upon the regeneration of mankind which must tum again to God and recognize His purpose. The two aims of religion are, therefore, interacting and interdependent. Such a world-shaking transformation ca1mot be brought about by any movement ofrefom1, however disinterested, nor by any unaided human effort. Modem man has turned away from God, and bereft of his traditional sanctions, has inevitably wrecked his old order which, in truth, is lamentably inadequate to modern conditions and is not susceptible of repair. Soon, is Baha'u'llah's prophetic view of our day, will the present¥day order be rolled up, and a new one spread out in its stead. Likewise, The signs of impending convulsions and chaos can now be discerned, inasmuch as the prevail¥ing order appears to be lamentably defective. The current aim of religion, embodied in the aims and purposes of the Baha'i Faith, is the promotion of the next stage in the organic process of human evolution-the coming of age of the human race. The achievement of this maturity will be attested by the unifica¥tion of mankind and the federation of the 3 Habakkuk 2: 14. world in a single, all-embracing world society of human brotherhood. But great objectives are reached by dedicated pursuit of the preliminary and intermediate stages of the task, without ever losing sight of the ultimate goal, and this has been and is now the occupation of the Baha'i world commu¥nity-the completion within specified times of specified goals. These teaching plans to which the Baha'is eagerly devote their lives do far more than simply increase the size and consolidation of that world conununity. They are devised and launched by the head of the Faith-the Guardian and now the Universal House of Justice-and are therefore conceived from a global view, directed to the immediate needs of the great objective, conservative of the conununity's resources, world-wide in scale permitting the organic development of each part according to its stage of growth but with due regard for the needs of the whole, fostering intensively the unity, the international co-operation, the diversification of the ethnic, religious and social backgrounds of its increasing mem¥bership and developing new resources for the next step fo1ward. It should be noted that none of these plans is isolated in aim or conception but all are directed towards the implementation of three great charters, enshrined in Balla' i sacred Writings, which authorize and guide the expansion of the Faith and the development of its institutions. In past Dispensations the command to 'spread the Gospel' has been general and unspecified. It was the inspired guidance of the beloved Guardian of the Baha'i Faith which disclosed to a spiritually delighted and grateful community yet another of the unique features of this Dis¥pensation in the specific guidance given in these three chatters for the implementation of this eternal command. Baha'u'llah's Tablet of Carmel is the charter for the development of the Baba' i World Centre in the twin cities of 'Akka and Haifa, the site of its most sacred Shrines¥the tombs of the twin Prophets and of 'Abdu'l-Baha, the Centre of the Covenant¥its monuments and gardens, and of its 'world¥shaking, world-embracing, world-directing administrative institutions' .1 The Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Baha is the charter for the development of the administrative order of the Faith. In this majestic document, the child of 'that mystic intercourse between Him Who communi¥cated the generating influence of His divine Purpose and the One Who was its vehicle and chosen recipient, '2 are delineated the structure of the administrative order, its modus operandi, its main institutions, the chain of authority, the source of guidance and the position of every believer vis-a-vis the Covenant. It has been well called the 'Charter of the New World Order of Baha'u'llah'. The Tablets of the Divine Plan, a series of fourteen letters written by 'Abdu'l-Baha to the believers of the United States and Canada, some addressed to the entire com¥pany of believers in the North American continent and others to those in named geo¥graphical areas of the continent, constitute the charter for teaching the Faith throughout the world. 'Abdu'l-Baha names the places, the people to whom teachers must go, the conditions under which they must travel and settle and He reveals several prayers for those who undertake this all-impo1tant task. All the international plans of the Faith launched so far have set specific goals aimed at implementing these three charters and it is incontrovertibly apparent that never in any preceding Dispensation has the command to spread the Word of God been given, in the sacred text, such explicit guidance and detailed objectives. As the Faith of Baha'u'llah increases in size and influence other aims and objectives become apparent and possible of pursuit. The relationship with agencies, institutions and authorities of the non-Baha'i world I Shoghi Effendi, Messages to America. 2 Shoghi Effendi, The Dispensation ofBahn 'u 'l/tih. THE BAHA ' i WORLD becomes an important consideration once the community emerges from obscurity, and has led to public relations programmes and the development of closer association with the United Nations. The Baha'i International Community is accredited as a non-govern¥mental agency with consultative status to the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and in various ways to other agencies of the United Nations. The fostering of this relationship has been the goal of all international plans so far, and is visualized as a continuing process. There are other objectives related to the special char¥acteristics of Baha'i life which become more and more important as the Faith grows and engages greater and greater public attention. They affect Baha'i individuals, conununities and institutions alike. TI1ese objectives fall into two groups-those concerned specifically with standards of conduct and those which relate to special Baha'i practices. The &tandards of conduct enjoined by the Prophet are invariably different from and sometimes diametTically opposed to the generally accepted ones of His day. High standards of conduct are, throughout Baha'i scripture, constantly upheld and urged upon the believers, but the Guardian of the Faith in an essay written in 193 8 addressed to the believers in the United States and Canada laid great stress upon the 'spiritual prerequi¥sites. .. which constitute the bedrock on which... all teaching plans ... must ultimately rest... 1 He writes of ' .. . a high sense of moral rectitude in their social and administra¥tive activities, absolute chastity in their individual lives, and complete freedom from prejudice in their dealings with peoples of a different race, class, creed or colourá.2 In his expansion of this theme he declared that 'This rectitude of conduct, with its implica¥tions ofjustice, equity, truthfulness, honesty, fairn1indedness, reliability, and trustworthi¥ness, must distinguish every phase of the life 1 Shoghi Effendi, The Advent ofDivine Justice. 2 ibid. of the Baha'i conummity.' 3 'A chaste and holy life must be made the controlling prin¥ciple in the behaviour and conduct of all Baha'is, both in their social relationships with the members of their own conununity, and in their contacts with the world at large. '4 'It requires total abstinence from all alcoholic drinks, from opium, and from similar habit-forming drugs. It condel1Uls the prostitution of art and of literature, the practices of nudism and of companionate marriage, infidelity in marital relationships, and all maimer of promiscuity, of easy familiarity, and of sexual vices. '5 'As to racial prejudice, the corrosion of which, for well nigh a century, has bitten into the fibre, and attacked the whole social structure of American society, it should be regarded as constituting the most vital and challenging issue confronting the Balla 'i conununity [of that country] at the present stage of its evolution. '6 The regeneration of men-the first objec¥tive of religion mentioned in this essay-is therefore seen as the prime objective of the Baha'i Faith. Membership in the Faith is drawn from that society which permits and indulges itself in all those conupt, inrn1oral and prejudiced activities which Baha' is are required to renounce, and since the Faith is steadily but persistently growing in numbers there is reason to hope that slowly but surely a regeneration will take place. Further, these Baha'i standards of con¥duct are not for individuals alone. They must be the hallmark of Baha'i institutions and conununities. 'Such a rectitude of conduct,' wrote the Guardian, ' must manifest itself, with ever-increasing potency, in every verdict which the elected representatives of the Baha'i collIDmnity, in whatever capacity they may find themselves, may be called upon to pronounce. It must be constantly reflected in the business dealings of all its 3 Shoghi EITendi , The Adve111 ofDivine Justice. 4 ibid. 5 ibid. 6 ibid. members, in their domestic lives, in all man¥ner of employment, and in any service they may, in the future, render their government or people." 'It must be made the hallmark of that numerically small, yet intensely dynamic and highly responsible body of the elected national representatives of every Baha' i community, which constitutes the sustaining pillar, and the sole instrument for the election in every community, of that Universal House whose very name and title, as ordained by Baha'u' llah, symbolizes the rectitude of conduct which is its highest mission to safeguard and enforce. '2 The attitudes deriving from such stan¥dards, and from all the varied teachings of Baha'u' llah, must pervade all Baha'i communities and imbue them with distinc¥tive characteristics which can be recognized, amid the welter of opposing or mutually uninterested groups and factions into which modern society is disintegrating, as easily as the features of an individual in a crowd. Those special Baha'i practices which will inevitably characterize the Baha'i commu¥nity, are the regular observances of its Holy Days and Festivals, the abstention from work on nine such days during the year, the observances by all members of the commu¥nity of the annual fast, of the laws governing marriage and divorce, of daily prayer, of the invariable practice of consultation in all affairs of life, and particularly by the regular observance of the Nineteen Day Feast. The habitual practice of such laws and ordinances is an objective pursued by all Baha'is and Baha'i families. It is seen that the aims and purposes of the Baha'i Faith may be stated as the raising up of a world-wide community recruited from every race, nation, colour, religious and social background known on the planet, inspired, united and regenerated by the spiritual teachings and love of Baha'u'llah, dedicated to the building of that New World I Shoghi Effendi, The Adve111 ofDivine Juslice. 2 ibid. Order which 'may well be regarded as the brightest emanation '3 of His mind and is none other than the long hoped for, Christ¥promised Kingdom of God on earth. To prepare men for the gifts of that Kingdom¥peace, brotherhood, spirituality-and to raise its very fabric in the world, are the immedi¥ate and long-time objectives of the Baha'i Faith. The energies of the Baha' is therefore, in pursuance of these aims, flow in three major channels: individual spiritual development, conveying the message of Baha 'u' llah to others, and developing the pattern of world society embodied in the Baha'i administra¥tive order. All these activities derive from the sacred text and it is the unique feature of the Baha' i revelation that whereas the first two are common to all revealed religions it is only Baha'u'llah Who creates the insti¥tutions and reveals the laws, delineates the social order and establishes the principles of the civilization to which His revelation will give rise. Neither Moses nor Christ, Mul~ammad, Buddha, Zoroaster or Krishna did this, although They all foretold that it would be done by Him Who would take the government upon His shoulders and establish the Kingdom in peace and righteousness. None of the traditional motives operates to create the Baha'i community, neither former associations, political or economic identity of interest, racial or patriotic group¥ing. Only the recognition and love of Baha'u' llah brings into close relatedness and co-operative action people from every human background, of all types of character and personality, divergent and diversified interest. Through their brotherhood in Baha'u'llah the old crystallized forms of human divisiveness to which they formerly belonged, whether of class, race, religion, occupation, temperament or degree of civi¥lization lose their rigidity and eventually disintegrate. The growing Baha'i community on the other hand is essentially based on 3 Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 213. THE BAHA ' I WORLD love, is a brotherhood, a family, each member delighting in the diversity of its membership, welcoming the former pariah or outcast as a new flower in the garden, each as proud of his humanity as was ever the fo1mer chauvinist of his country. Within such .a community the sun of Baha'u'llah's revelation can evoke new morals, new attitudes, new conventions, new hopes and visions, all enshrined within the text of the revelation itself and which pro¥vide the spiritual atmosphere and distinctive culture of the new day. Such a community, as it grows, becomes more and more a true social order, providing a soil to human life, a climate for its best development, an arena for the practice of its highest aspirations, and a beacon light to attract and guide the disil¥lusioned, spiritually impoverished, frenetic and frustrated peoples of the earth. The energies of this new culture, guided and conserved to the service of human wel¥fare by the agencies of Baha'u 'llah's World Order, will result in the proliferation of new arts and sciences, new social and economic relationships, new educational methods and a general accession of well-being and felicity. The vision of the Baha'i Faith, though glori¥ous, is a practical one, and the number 'Jf its dedicated promoters grows with increasing speed. Itis summarized in the fo llowing words by the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith, in his essay The Unfoldment of World Civilization: 'The unity of the hun1an race, as envisaged by Baha'u'llah, implies the establishment of a world commonwealth in which all nations, races, creeds and classes are closely and per¥manently united, and in which the autonomy of its state members and the personal freedom and initiative of the individuals that compose : . .:mare definitely and completely safeguarded. This commonwealth must, as far as we can visualize it, consist of a world legislature, whose members will, as the hustees of the whole of mankind, ultimately control the entire resources of all the compo¥nent nations, and will enact such laws as shall be required to regulate the life, satisfy the needs and adjust the relationships of all races and peoples. A world executive, backed by an international Force, will carry out the decisions atTived at, and apply the laws enacted by, this world legislature, and will safeguard the organic unity of the whole commonwealth. A world tribunal will adju¥dicate and deliver its compulsory and final verdict in all and any disputes that may arise between the various elements constituting this universal system. A mechanism of world inter-communication will be devised, embrac¥ing the whole planet, freed from national hindrances and resháictions, and functioning with marvellous swiftness and perfect regular¥ity. A world meháopolis will act as the nerve centre of a world civilization, the focus towards which the unifying forces of life will converge and from which its energizing influence will radiate. A world language will either be invented or chosen from amo ng the existing languages and will be taught in the schools of all the federated nations as an auxiliary to their mother tongue. A world script, a world literature, a uniforn1 and universal system of currency, of weights and measures, will simplify and facilitate inter¥course and understanding among the nations and races of mankind. In such a world society, science and religion, the two most potent forces in human life, will be reconciled, will co-operate, and will harmoniously develop. The press will, under such a system, while giving full scope to the expression of the diversified views and convictions of man¥kind, cease to be mischievously manipulated by vested interests, whether private or public, and will be liberated from the influence of contending governments and peoples. The economic resources of the world will be organized, its sources of raw materials will be tapped and fully utilized, its markets co¥ordinated and developed, and the disháibution of its products will be equitably regulated. 'National rivalries, hatred, and inháigues will cease, and racial animosity and preju¥dice will be replaced by racial amity, understanding and co-operation. The causes of religious strife will be permanently removed, economic baniers and restrictions will be completely abolished, and the inordi¥nate distinction between classes will be obliterated. Destitution on the one hand, and gross accumulation of ownership on the other, will disappear. The enormous energy dissipated and wasted on war, whether eco¥nomic or political, will be consecrated to such ends as will extend the range of human inventions and technical development, to the increase of the productivity of mankind, to the extennination of disease, to the extension of scientific research, to the raising of the standard of physical health, to the sharpening and refinement of the human brain, to the exploitation of the unused and unsuspected resources of the planet, to the prolongation any other agency that can stimulate the intel¥lectual, the moral, and spiritual life of the human race. 'A world federal system, rnling the whole earth and exercising unchallengeable author¥ity over its unimaginably vast resources, blending and embodying the ideals of both the East and the West, liberated from the curse of war and its miseries, and bent on the exploitation of all the available sources of energy on the surface of the planet, a system in which Force is made the servant of Justice, whose life is sustained t y its universal recognition of one God and by its allegiance to one common Revelation-such is the goal towards which humanity, impelled by the unifying forces of life, is moving.' PART ONE THE BAHA'i REVELATION THE BAl-L.\'i WORLD An ornamental eagle infront of an entrance to the courtyard ofthe Mansion ofBahri 'u 'llrih at Ball}i. I EXCERPTS FROM THE BAHA'i SACRED WRITINGS 1. BAHA'U'LLAH I EXTRACTS FROM THE KrTAB-I-AQDAS 37 Whoso layeth claim to a Revelation you through the power of truth. We are truly direct from God, ere the expiration of a full almighty. Whoso hath recognized Me will thousand years, such a man is assuredly a arise and serve Me with such dete1mination lying impostor. We pray God that He may that the powers of earth and heaven shall be graciously assist him to retract and repudiate unable to defeat his purpose. such claim. Should he repent, God will, no doubt, forgive him. If, however, he per¥53 Should differences arise amongst you sisteth in his error, God will, assuredly, send over any matter, refer it to God while the down one who will deal mercilessly with Sun still shineth above the horizon of this him. Terrible, indeed, is God in punishing! Heaven and, when it hath set, refer ye to Whosoever interpreteth this verse otherwise whatsoever hath been sent down by Him. than its obvious meaning is deprived of the This, verily, is sufficient unto the peoples of Spirit of God and of His mercy which the world. Say: Let not your hearts be per¥encompasseth all created things. Fear God, turbed, 0 people, when the glory of My and follow not your idle fancies . Nay, rather, Presence is withdrawn, and the ocean of My follow the bidding of your Lord, the Al¥utterance is stilled. In My presence amongst mighty, the All-Wise. Erelong shall clamorous you there is a wisdom, and in My absence voices be raised in most lands. Shun them, 0 there is yet another, inscrutable to all but My people, and follow not the iniquitous God, the Incomparable, the All-Knowing. and evil-hearted. This is that of which We Verily, We behold you from Our realm of gave you forewarning when We were dwell¥glory, and shall aid whosoever will arise for ing in 'Iraq, then later while in the Land of the triumph of Our Cause with the hosts of Mystery, and now from this Resplendent the Concourse on high and a company of Spot. Our favoured angels. 38 Be not dismayed, 0 peoples of the world, 58 Beware lest the desires of the flesh and when the day-star of My beauty is set, and of a corrupt inclination provoke divisions the heaven of My tabernacle is concealed among you. Be ye as the fingers of one hand, from your eyes. Arise to further My Cause, the members of one body. Thus counselleth and to exalt My Word amongst men. We are you the Pen of Revelation, if ye be of them with you at all times, and shall strengthen that believe. THE BAHA'i WORLD 105 Whoso interpreteth what hath been sent down from the heaven of Revelation, and altereth its evident meaning, he, verily, is of them that have perverted the Sublime Word of God, and is of the lost ones in the Lucid Book. 121 When the ocean of My presence hath ebbed and the Book of My Revelation is ended, tum your faces toward Him Whom God hath purposed, Who hath branched from this Ancient Root. 132 0 peoples of the world! Give ear unto the call of Him Who is the Lord of Names, Who proclaimeth unto you from His habita¥tion in the Most Great Prison: "Verily, no God is there but Me, the Powerful, the Mighty, the All-Subduing, the Most Exalted, the Omniscient, the All-Wise." In tn1th, there is no God but Him, the Onmipotent Ruler of the worlds. Were it His Will, He would, tluáough but a single word proceeding from His presence, lay hold on all mankind. Beware lest ye hesitate in your acceptance of this Cause-a Cause before which the Con¥course on high and the dwellers of the Cities of Names have bowed down. Fear God, and be not of those who are shut out as by a veil. Burn ye away the veils with the fire of My love, and dispel ye the mists of vain imagin¥ings by the power of this Name through which We have subdued the entire creation. 161 Blessed is the man that hath acknowl¥edged his belief in God and in His signs, and recognized that "He shall not be asked of His doings". Such a recognition hath been made by God the ornament of every belief and its very foundation. Upon it must depend the acceptance of every goodly deed. Fasten your eyes upon it, that haply the whisperings of the rebellious may not cause you to slip. 162 Were He to decree as lawful the thing which from time immemorial had been for¥bidden, and forbid that which had, at all times, been regarded as lawful, to none is given the right to question His authority. Whoso will hesitate, though it be for less than a moment, should be regarded as a transgressor. 163 Whoso hath not recognized this sublime and fundamental verity, and hath failed to attain this most exalted station, the winds of doubt will agitate him, and the sayings of the infidels will distract his soul. He that hath acknowledged this principle will be en¥dowed with the most perfect constancy. All honour to this all-glorious station, the remembrance of which adorneth every exalted Tablet. Such is the teaching which God bestoweth on you, a teaching that will deliver you from all manner of doubt and perplexity, and enable you to attain unto sal¥vation in both this world and the next. He, verily, is the Ever-Forgiving, the Most Bountiful. He it is Who hath sent forth the Messengers, and sent down the Books to proclaim "There is none other God but Me, the Almighty, the All-Wise". 174 0 people of the world' When the Mystic Dove will have winged its flight from its Sanctuary of Praise and sought its far-off goal, its hidden habitation, refer ye whatso¥ever ye understand not in the Book to Him Who hath branched from this mighty Stock. 175 0 Pen of the Most High! Move Thou upon the Tablet at the bidding of Thy Lord, the Creator of the Heavens, and tell of the time when He Who is the Dayspring of Divine Unity purposed to direct His steps towards the School of Transcendent One¥ness; haply the pure in heart may gain thereby a glimpse, be it as small as a needle's eye, of the mysteries of Thy Lord, the Almighty, the Onmiscient, that lie con¥cealed behind the veils. Say: We, indeed, set foot within the School of inner meaning and explanation when all created things were unaware. We saw the words sent down by The doorway into the courtyard ofthe Mansion ofBaha 'u 'llah at Mazra 'ih. Him Who is the All-Merciful, and We accepted the verses of God, the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting, which He 1 pre¥sented unto Us, and hearkened unto that which He had solemnly affirmed in the Tab¥let. This We assuredly did behold. And We assented to His wish through Our behest, for truly We are potent to command. I The Bab. 176 0 people of the Bayan! We, verily, set foot within the School of God when ye lay slumbering; and We perused the Tablet while ye were fast asleep. By the one true God! We read the Tablet ere it was revealed, while ye were unaware, and We had perfect knowledge of the Book when ye were yet unborn. These words are to your measure, not to God's. To this testifieth that which is enshrined within His knowledge, if ye be of THE BAHA ' I WORLD them that comprehend; and to this the tongue of the Almighty doth bear witness, if ye be of those who understand. I swear by God, were We to lift the veil, ye would be dumbfounded. 177 Take heed that ye dispute not idly concerning the Almighty and His Cause, for lo! He hath appeared amongst you invested with a Revelation so great as to encompass all things, whether of the past or of the future. Were We to address Our theme by speaking in the language of the inmates of II the Kingdom, We would say: "In tn1th, God created that School ere He created heaven and earth, and We entered it before the letters B and E were joined and knit together." Such is the language of Our ser¥vants in Our Kingdom; consider what the tongue of the dwellers of Our exalted Dominion would utter, for We have taught them Our knowledge and have revealed to them whatever had lain hidden in God's wisdom. Imagine then what the Tongue of Might and Grandeur would utter in His All¥Glorious Abode! EXCERPT FROM THE LAWI:I-I-RA 'IS, TRANSLATED FROM THE PERSIAN WHEN I was still a child and had not yet attained the age of maturity, My father decided to make arrangements in Tihran for the marriage of a grown-up brother of Mine; and as is customary in that city, the wedding festivities lasted for seven days and nights. On the last day it was announced that a spe¥cial entertai1m1ent named after Shah Sul~an Salim would be presented on that same day. A large number of princes, dignitaries, and prominent people of the capital were present for the occasion, and I ascended to one of the upper rooms of the building where I sat down to observe the scene. Presently a tent was pitched in the courtyard, and before long some small figures in human form, each of which seemed no more than about a handspan in height, came out of the tent, and raised the call "The Sultan is coming! Set out the chairs!" Other figures then emerged, some of whom were seen to be engaged in sweeping, others in sprinkling water, and thereafter another character, who was pro¥nounced to be the chief herald, raised up his voice and bade the people assemble for an audience with the king. Next, three groups of figures made their appearance and took their places, the first group attired in hats and cummerbunds after the Persian fashion, the second wielding battle-axes, and the third comprising a number of sergeants-at-am1s and executioners bearing clubs and canes. Finally a splendid figure, arrayed in regal majesty, wearing a kingly diadem upon his head, and bearing himself with the utmost haughtiness and grandeur-now advancing, now pausing in his progress-came strutting onto the scene and, with unparalleled solem¥nity, gravity, and sedateness, proceeded to seat himself upon a throne, whereupon a vol¥ley of shots was fired, a fanfare of tmmpets was sounded, and the king and tent were enveloped in a pall of smoke. When the smoke had cleared, the king was seen to be ensconced upon his throne and surrounded by a suite of ministers, princes, and dignitaries of state who, having taken their places, were standing at attention in his presence. At this moment a captured thief was brought before the king, who gave the order that the offender should be beheaded. Without a moment's delay the chief execu¥tioner proceeded to execute upon him the royal sentence, whereupon a red-coloured liquid resembling blood came trickling from his headless torso. This done, the king fell into conversation with those in attendance, and while he was thus engaged, intelligence arrived that rebellion had broken out on such and such a frontier. Thereupon the king reviewed his troops and despatched several regiments supported by units of artillery to quell the uprising. A few minutes later can¥nons were heard booming from behind the tent, and it was announced that the king's troops were at that moment engaged in battle with the insurgents. I was greatly perplexed and bewildered to conceive the nature of this spectacle. When the show was over, the curtain of the tent was drawn. Then, after some twenty minutes, a man emerged from behind the tent carrying a box under his arm. "What is this box?" I asked him, "and what was the nature of this display?" "All these lavish trappings," he replied, "the king, the princes, and the ministers, their pomp and glory, their might and power, everything you saw, are all now contained within this box." I swear by My Lord Who hath brought into being all things through a single word from Him that, ever since that day, all the trappings of the world have seemed in the eyes of this You th akin to that same spec¥tacle. They have never been, nor will ever be, possessed of any weight, though it be to the extent of a grain of mustard seed. How greatly I used to marvel that men would pride themselves upon such vanities, whilst those possessed of insight, ere they witness any evidence of human glory, perceive with certainty the inevitability of its waning. "Never have I looked upon any thing save that I have seen extinction before it; and God, verily, is a sufficient witness ." It behoveth eve1yone to traverse this brief span of life with sincerity and fairness. Should one fail to attain unto the recognition of Him Who is the Eternal Truth, let him at least comport himself with reason and jus¥tice. Erelong these outward trappings, these heaped-up treasures, these earthly vanities, these amassed battalions, this gorgeous finery, these proud and overweening souls¥all shall pass into the confines of the grave, as though into that box. In the eyes of those possessed of insight, all this conflict, dissen¥sion and vainglory hath been, and will ever be, like unto the sport of children. Take thou good heed, and be not of those who see and yet deny. THE BAHA'i WORLD The western doorway into the Shrine ofthe Bab. 2. THE BAB I EXCERPTS FROM THE QAYYUMU'L-ASMA' (SELECT!ONS FROM Tf-IE WRITINGS OF Tf-IE BAB) 0 PEOPLES of the world! Whatsoever ye have offered up in the way of the One True God, ye shall indeed find preserved by God, the Preserver, intact at God's Holy Gate. 0 peoples of the earthl Bear ye alle¥giance unto this resplendent light wherewith God hath graciously invested Me tluáough the power of infallible Truth, and walk not in the footsteps of the Evil One.1 inasmuch as he prompteth you to disbelieve in God, your Lord, and verily God will not forgive disbelief in Himself, though He will forgive other sins to whomsoever He pleaseth.2 Indeed His knowledge embraceth all things .. . (Chapter XVII.) 0 PEOPLES of the East and the West! Be ye fearful of God concerning the Cause of the true Joseph and barter Him not for a paltry price3 established by yourselves, or for a trifle of your earthly possessions, that ye may, in very truth, be praised by Him as those who are reckoned among the pious who stand nigh unto this Gate. (Chapter XX!.) 0 QURRATU'L-'AYN!4 We have, verily, dilated Thine heart in this Revelation, which stands truly unique from all created things, and have exalted Thy name through the manifestation of the Bab, so that men may become aware of Our transcendent power, and recognize that God is inm1easurably 1 cf. Qur'an 2:204. 2 er. ibid. 4:5 1. 3 ct". ib id. 12:20. 4 In these passages of the Qayyt'.1mu'l-Asma' the name Qu1Tatu'l-'Ayn (Solace of the Eyes) refers to the Bab Himself. sanctified above the praise of all men. He is verily independent of the whole of creation. (Chapter XXlll.) ISSUE forth from your cities, 0 peoples of the West and aid God ere the Day when the Lord of mercy shall come down unto you in the shadow of the clouds with the angels circling around Him,5 exalting His praise and seeking forgiveness for such as have truly believed in Our signs. Verily His decree hath been issued, and the conm1and of God, as given in the Mother Book, hath indeed been revealed ... Become as true brethren in the one and indivisible religion of God, free from dis¥tinction, for verily God desireth that your hea1ts should become minors unto your bretluáen in the Faith, so that ye find your¥selves reflected in them, and they in you. This is the true Path of God, the Almighty, and He is indeed watchful over your actions. (Chapter XLVI.) BE Thou patient, 0 Qurratu '1-'Ayn, for God hath indeed pledged to establish Thy sover¥eignty throughout all countries and over the people that dwell therein. He is God and verily He is powerful over all things. (Chapter Lf!J.) THIS divinely-inspired Book hath firmly es¥tablished His Proof for all those who are in the East and in the West, hence beware lest ye utter aught but the truth regarding God, for I swear by your Lord that this supreme Proof ofMine beareth witness tmto all things ... 5 cf. Qur'an 2:206. THE BAHA'I WORLD 0 servants of God! Be ye patient, for, God grant, He Who is the sovereign Truth wi ll suddenly appear amongst you, invested with the power of the mighty Word, and ye shall then be confounded by the Truth itself, and ye shall have no power to ward it off, 1 and verily I am a witness over all mankind. (Chapter LIX) THE infidels of a truth, seek to separate God from His Remembrance,2 but God hath determined to perfect His Light3 through His Remembrance, and indeed He is potent over all things .. . (Chapter LX/.) 0 PEOPLES of the earth! Verily the resplendent Light of God hath appeared in your midst, invested with this unerring Book, that ye may be guided aright to the ways of peace and, by the leave of God, step out of the darkness into the light and onto this far-extended Path ofTruth4 ... God hath, out of sheer nothingness and through the potency of His command, created the heavens and the earth and whatever lieth between them. He is single and peerless in His eternal unity with none to join partner with His holy Essence, nor is there any soul, except His Own Self, who can befittingly comprehend Him ... 0 peoples of the earth! Verily His Remembrance is come to you from God after an interval during which there were no Messengers,5 that He may purge and purify you from uncleanliness in anticipation of the Day of the One true God; therefore seek ye whole-heartedly divine blessings from Him, inasmuoh as We have, in truth, chosen Him to be the Witness and the Source of wisdom unto all that dwell on earth ... 0 Qurratu' l-'Ayn! Proclaim that which hath been sent down unto Thee as a token of the grace of the merciful Lord, for if Thou 1 cf. Qur'an 21 :40. 2 cf. ibid. 4: 149. 3 cf. ibid. 9:32. 4 cf.ibid.5:15-1 8. 5 cf. ibid. 5:22. do it not, Our secret will never be made known to the people,6 while the purpose of God in creating man is but for him to know Him. Indeed God hath knowledge of all things and is self-sufficient above the need of all mankind. (Chapter LX!!.) WHENEVER the faithful hear the verses of this Book being recited, their eyes will overflow with tears and their hearts will be deeply touched by Him Who is the Most Great Remembrance for the love they cher¥ish for God, the All-Praised. He is God, the All-Knowing, the Eternal. They are indeed the inmates of the all-highest Paradise wherein they will abide for ever. Verily they will see naught therein save that which hath proceeded from God, nothing that will lie beyond the compass of their understanding. There they will meet the believers in Para¥dise, who will address them with the words 'Peace, Peace' lingering on their lips ... 0 concourse ofthe faithful! Incline your ears to My Voice, proclaimed by this Remembrance ofGod. Verily God hath revealed unto Me that the Path ofthe Remembrance which is set fmih by Me is, in very truth, the straight Path of God, and that whoever professeth any reli¥gion other than this upright Faith, will, when called to account on the Day of Judgement, discover that as recorded in the Book no bene¥fit hath he reaped out of God's Religion ... Fear ye God, 0 concourse of kings, lest ye remain afar from Him Who is His Remem¥brance [the Bab], after the Truth hath come unto you with a Book and signs from God, as spoken through the wondrous tongue of Him Who is His Remembrance. Seek ye grace from God, for God hath ordained for you, after ye have believed in Him, a Garden the vastness of which is as the vastness of the whole of Paradise. Therein ye shall find naught save the gifts and favours which the Almighty hath graciously bestowed by vir¥tue of this momentous Cause, as decreed in the Mother Book. (Chapter LXJJJ.) 6 cf. ibid. 5:7 1. Detail ofone ofthe columns along the arcade ofthe Shrine ofthe Bab. SAY, 0 peoples of the world! Do ye dispute with Me about God by vi1iue of the names which ye and your fathers have adopted for Him at the promptings of the Evi l One?1 God hath indeed sent down this Book unto Me with truth that ye may be enabled to rec¥ognize the true names of God, inasmuch as ye have strayed in error far from the Trnth. Verily We have taken a covenant from every created thing upon its coming into being concerning the Remembrance of God, and there shall be none to avert the binding com¥mand of God for the purification of mankind, as ordained in the Book which is written by the hand of the Bab. (Chapter LXVff!) DOTH it seem sháange to the people that We should have revealed the Book to a man from among themselves in order to purge them and give them the good tidings that ef. Qur'an 7:69; 12:40. they shall be rewarded with a sure stance in the presence of their Lord? He indeed beareth witness unto all things ... When the verses of this Book are recited to the infidels they say: 'Give us a book like the Qur'an and make changes in the verses. ' Say: 'God hath not given Me that I should change them at My pleasure.' I follow only what is revealed unto Me. Verily, I shall fear My Lord on the Day of Separation, whose advent He hath, in very hi.1th, irrevocably ordained.2 (Chapter LX.Xf.) 0 PEOPLES of the ea1th' Verily the hi.1e God calleth saying: He Who is the Remem¥brance is indeed the sovereign Truth from God, and naught remaineth beyond háuth but error, 3 and naught is there beyond en-or save fire, irrevocably ordained ... 2 er Qur'an I 0: 16. 3 er ibid. 10: 33 . THE BAHA'i WOR LD 0 Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Point to Thy trnthful breast through the power of truth and exclaim: I swear by the One true God, herein lieth the vicegerency of God; I am indeed the One Who is regarded as the Best Reward 1 and I am indeed He Who is the Most Excellent Abode. (Chapter LXX!f.) 0 YE concourse of the believers! Utter not words of denial against Me once the Truth is made manifest, for indeed the mandate of the Bab hath befittingly been proclaimed unto you in the Qur'an aforetime. I swear by your Lord, this Book is verily the same Qur'an which was sent down in the past. (Chapter LXXXI.) HAD it been Our wish, We would have brought all men into one fold round Our Remembrance, yet they will not cease to differ,2 unless God accomplish what He wil¥leth through the power of truth. In the estimation of the Remembrance this command¥ment hath, in very truth, been irrevocably ordained ... God hath indeed chosen Thee to warn the people, to guide the believers aright and to elucidate the secrets of the Book. (Chapter LXXXV.) SHOULD it be Our wish, it is in Our power to compel, through the agency of but one let¥ter of Our Revelation, the world and all that is therein to recognize, in less than the twin¥kling of an eye, the truth of Our Cause .... Truly other apostles have been laughed to scorn before Thee,3 and Thou art none other but the Servant of God, sustained by the power of Truth. Ere long We shall prolong the days of such as have rejected the Truth by reason of that which their hands have wrought,4 and verily God will not deal unjustly with anyone, even to the extent of a speck on a date-stone. (Chapter LXXXV!f.) 1 cf. Qur'an 18:42. 2 cf. ibid. 11: 120. 3 cf ibid. 6: I0. 4 cf. ibid. 3 172. 0 YE peoples of the earth! By the righteous¥ness of God, the True One, the testimony shown forth by His Remembrance is like unto a sun which the hand of the merciful Lord hath raised high in the midmost heart of the heaven, wherefrom it shineth in the plenitude of its meridian splendour ... With each and every Prophet Whom We have sent down in the past, We have estab¥lished a separate Covenant concerning the Remembrance of God and His Day. Mani¥fest, in the realm of glory and through the power of truth, are the Remembrance of God and His Day before the eyes of the angels that circle His mercy-seat. (Chapter XCI) 0 HOUR of the Dawn! Ere the resplendent glory of the divine Luminary sheddeth its radiance from the Dayspring of this Gate, call thou to mind that the appointed Day of God will indeed be at hand in less than a twinkling of an eye. Thus hath the decree of God been issued in the Mother Book. (Chapter XC! V.) GOD had, in truth, proposed Our Mission unto the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to bear it and were afraid thereof. However, Man, this 'Ali, Who is none other but the Great Remembrance of God, undertook to bear it. Hence God, the All-Encompass ing, hath referred to Hirn in His Preserved Book as the 'Wronged One', and by reason of His being undistinguished before the eyes of men, He hath, according to the judgement of the Book, been entitled 'the Unknown' ... 5 Erelong We will, in very truth, tonnent such as waged war against I:Iusayn [Imam I:Iusayn ], in the Land of the Eupluates, with the most afflictive torment, and the most dire and exemplary punishment. ... God knoweth well the heart of I~Iusayn, the heat of His burning thirst and His long¥suffering for the sake of God, the Incompara¥ble, the Ancient of Days; and unto Him God is verily a witness. (Chapter Xff.) 5 cf. Qur'an 33 :72. THIS Book which We have sent down is indeed abounding in blessings 1 and beareth wih1ess to the Truth, so that the people may realize that the conclusive Proof of God in favour of His Remembrance is similar to the one wherewith Mul)ammad, the Seal of the Prophets, was invested, and verily great is the Cause as ordained in the Mother Book. (Chapter LXVI.) WE have in truth sent Thee forth unto all men, by the leave of God, invested with Our signs and reinforced by Our unsurpassed sovereignty. He is indeed the appointed Bearer of the Trust of God... 0 Qurratu'l-'Ayn! Persevere steadfastly as Thou art bidden and let not the faith less amongst men nor their utterances grieve Thee, since Thy Lord shall, by the righteousness of God, the Most Great, pass judgement upon them on the Day of Resurrection, and surely God wih1esseth all things. (Chapter LXXXIV) THIS Religion is indeed, in the sight of God, the essence of the Faith of Mu~ammad; haste ye then to attain the celestial Paradise and the all-highest Garden of His good¥pleasure in the presence of the One True God, could ye but be patient and thankful before the evidences of the signs of God. (Chapter XL VIII.) 0 MY servants! This is God's appointed Day which the merciful Lord hath promised you in His Book; wherefore, in very truth, glorify ye abundantly the name of God while treading the Path of the Most Great Remembrance .. . Verily God hath granted leave to His Remembrance to say whatsoever He willeth in whatever manner He pleaseth. Indeed whatsoever He chooseth is none other than what is chosen by Us. TI1e Lord, in truth, wih1esseth all things. (Chapter LCCCV!f.) INDEED We conversed with Moses by the leave of God from the midst of the Burning Bush in the Sinai and revealed an infinitesi¥mal glimmer of Thy Light upon the Mystic Mount and its dwellers, whereupon the Mount shook to its foundations and was crushed into dust. .. 0 peoples of the earth! I swear by your Lord! Ye shall act as fmmer generations have acted. Warn ye, then, yourselves of the terrible, the most grievous vengeance of God. For God is, verily, potent over all things. (Chapter LIII.) 0 QURRA TU'L-'A YN! I recognize in Thee none other except the 'Great Announce¥ment'-the Announcement voiced by the Concomse on high. By this name, I bear witness, they that circle the Throne of Glory have ever known Thee. 0 concourse of the believers! Do ye har¥bour any doubt as to that whereunto the Remembrance of God doth summon you? By the righteousness of the One true God, He is none other than the sovereign Truth Who hath been made manifest tluáough the power of Truth. Are ye in doubt concerning the Bab? Verily He is the One Who holdeth, by Our leave, the kingdoms of earth and heaven in His grasp, and the Lord is in h-uth fully aware of what ye are doing ... Indeed I am but a man like unto you. However, God bestoweth upon Me whatever favours He willeth as He pleaseth, and that which your Lord hath decreed in the Mother Book is unbounded. (Chapter LXXXVIII.) 0 QURRATU'L-'AYN' Say: Verily I am the One Who is hailed in the Mother Book as the 'Great Announcement'. Say: TI1e people have grievously differed over Me, whereas in truth there is no difference between Me and the Bab; and God, the Eternal Truth, is sufficient wimess. (Chapter LXXVII.) 1 cf. Qur'an 6:93. THE BAHA' I WORLD The House of 'Abdu 'l-Baha in 'Akka, known as the House of 'Abdu 'llah Pasha. 3. 'ABDU'L-BAHA DEARLY loved friends of' Abdu' 1-Baha, Your letter bearing the happy news of the election of the Spiritual Assembly hath an-ived, affording great pleasure in the knowledge that-praise be to God!-the friends in your area have conducted the elec¥tion in a spirit of the utmost fellowship, concord and amity, and have been successf-t.il in electing consecrated souls and well¥favoured servants ofHis heavenly Threshold whose firmness in the Covenant is acknowl¥edged by the generality of the believers. Now, with all radiance, joy and heartfelt devotion, attracted by the fragrances of God and the confirmations of the Holy Spirit, the members of this newly elected Assembly must devote themselves to service; and, in II SOON will the Western regions become as radiant as the horizons of the East, and the Sun of Truth shine forth with a refulgence that will cause the darkness of error to fade away and vanish. Great is the multitude who will rise up to oppose you, who will oppress you, heap blame upon you, rejoice at your misfortunes, account you people to be shunned, and visit injury upon you; yet shall your heavenly Father confer upon you such spiritual illumination that ye shall become even as the rays of the sun which, as they chase away the sombre clouds, break forth to flood the surface of the earth with light. It is incumbent upon you, whensoever these tests may overtake you, to stand firm, and to be patient and enduring. Instead of repaying like with like, ye should requite opposition with the utmost benevolence and loving¥kindness, and on no account attach their efforts to raise on high the Word of God, to shed abroad His holy fragrances, to educate the souls of men, and to promulgate the Most Great Peace, they must become standard-bearers of guidance, and ensigns of the Concourse on high. Truly, those who have been elected are blessed, holy souls. When I read their names, my heart was immediately filled with joy, joy at the tidings that-praise be unto God!-souls have been raised up in that land who are ser¥vants of the Kingdom, and who stand ready to lay down their lives in the way of the Peerless King. From a Tablet dated 29 May 1907 to the Assembly of Chi cago. importance to cruelties and injuries, but rather regard them as the wanton acts of children. For ultimately the radiance of the Kingdom will overwhelm the darkness of the world of being, and the holy, exalted character of your aims will become unmis¥takably apparent. Nothing shall remain concealed: the olive oil, though stored within the deepest vault, shall one day burn in brightness from the lamp atop the beacon. The small shall be made great, and the pow¥erless shall be given strength; they that are of tender age shall become the children of the Kingdom, and those that have gone astray shall be guided to their heavenly home. From a Tablet dated 14 November 1909 to an individal, published in Crisis and Vic101y (London: Baha' i Pub¥lishing Trust, 1988), p. 24. THE BAHA 'i WORLD III ERELONG the wicked-doers in that the holy Manifestations, the people acted in land will arise to heap denunciations upon just this manner; and now, in these days, the true believers, and vent their spite upon it is inevitable that they will repeat such the company of the faithful. Each day they actions, nay, act with greater perversity than will inflict a galling wound, each hour a before ... Hence it is certain that thou wilt be stunning blow. Rebuking the friends for afflicted with adversities, tests and injuries the love they bear Baha'u'llah and 'Abdu'l¥for the sake of the Blessed Beauty; yet these Baha, they will consider justified their afflictions shall be the purest bounties and denunciations, their scorn and malice, and bestowals, and a token of thy acceptance at spare no effort to do the friends whatever the Divine Threshold. injury it lieth within their power to inflict. Such conduct is at one with the modes and practices of the people aforetime: in bygone From an undated Tablet to an individual, published in centuries, in the days of the appearance of Crisis and Victo1y (London: 1988), p. 6. IV 0 THOU Pure and Omnipotent God! 0 the Pacific Ocean, to reach the shores of Thou my kind Lord! Grant us such power as both East and West. to enable us to withstand the perils of the entire world, and give us such might as to cause the waves of our endeavours, like unto From a Tablet to an individual. v 0 YE denizens of the Kingdom! unto you. It is high time that ye should, in How many are those who devote their recognition of these manifold bounties, set lifetime to pious worship and to asceticism, your hearts firmly upon Him, draw nearer cherishing the ardent desire for admission unto His court and become so captivated and into the Kingdom. Yet they all failed. How¥inflamed that the music of the hymns ye sing ever, ye have achieved this goal and entered in praise of the Desired One may ascend the Kingdom without any toil or hardship unto the Celestial Concourse, that each one even as, in the days of Christ, the Pharisees of you may, even as a nightingale, warble and the priests were denied access to the melodies in glorification of the Lord of Kingdom while Peter, John and Andrew Hosts and be enabled to foster the education attained thereto though they were neither of all mankind. fanatical worshippers nor ascetics. Therefore render ye thanks unto God, Who hath crowned you with this diadem of eternal From a Tablet to the friends in Switzerland and glory and vouchsafed these endless favours Germany. Detail ofthe House of 'Abdu 'llah Pasha, in 'Akka. VI ... THOU shouldst initially adopt that demeanour, thy fervour, thy chaste and lucid course of prudence that the Faith enjoins. In utterance, thou shalt have succeeded in win¥ the early stages, thou shouldst seek out the ning the affection of one and all, then shall company of the eminent members of the the portals of heavenly guidance be opened populace and, turning thyself in utter lowli¥wide; then shall the bounteous cup be borne ness to the unseen realm of Glory, thou around and all the souls that drink therefrom shouldst pray for succour and protection be inebriated with the wine of holy myster¥ so that the Holy Spirit may, through the ies and truths. outpourings of its grace, grant thee its assis¥ tance. When, by thy godly conduct and From a Tablet to an individua l. THE BAl-IA'i WORLD VII YE should strive to widen the circle of those with whom ye enjoy friendly relations, and to establish the closest contact with those benevolent souls whose only thought is to do good, who are labouring in the cause of universal peace, and who cherish no desire but to wih1ess the unification of the world of humanity. Ye should seek out the company of such people as these, that ye may imbue them with an awareness of the heavenly Kingdom, for albeit their motives are of the finest, yet they do not realize that all the powers of the earth are impotent either to establish universal peace or to pro¥mote the oneness of the human world. Nothing short of the power of the Word of God and the breaths of the Holy Spirit can ever succeed. From a Tablet dated 13 July 1912 to the Assembly of New York. VITT 0 THOU who art turning W1to theKingdom of God! Thy Jetter hath been received and perused. It afforded us joy and pleasure, gave us good news and is a token of the wealth of thy love. This period of time is the Promised Age, the assembling of the human race to the Resurrection Day and now is the great Day of Judgement. Soon the whole world, as in springtime, will change its garb. The turn¥ing and falling of the autumn leaves is past; the bleakness of the wintertime is over. The new year hath appeared and the spiritual springtime is at hand. The black earth is becoming a verdant garden; the deserts and mountains are teeming with red flowers; from the borders of the wilderness the tall grasses are standing like advance guards before the cypress and jessamine háees; while the birds are singing among the rose branches like the angels in the highest heav¥ens, announcing the glad-tidings of the approach of that spiritual spring, and the sweet music of their voices is causing the real essence of all things to move and quiver. 0 my spiritual friend! Dost thou know from what airs emanate the notes sung by those birds? They are from the melodies of peace and reconciliation, of love and unity, of justice and security, of concord and har¥mony. In a short time this heavenly singing will intoxicate all humanity; the foundations of enmity shall be destroyed; unity and affection shall be wimessed in every assem¥bly; and the splendours of the love of God will shine forth in these great festivals. Therefore, contemplate what a spirit of life God hath given that the body of the whole earth may attain life everlasting! The Abha Paradise will soon spread a pavilion in the midmost heart of the world, under whose shelter the beloved shall rejoice and the pure hearts shall repose in peace. From a Tablet dated 1903 to an individual. lX Q FRIENDS ofGod! Do ye know in what cycle ye are created and in what age ye exist? This is the age of the Blessed Perfection and this is the time of the Greatest Name! This is the century of the Manifestation, the age of the Sun of all hori¥zons and the beautiful springtime of the Eternal One! The earth is in motion and growth; the mountains, hills and prairies are green and pleasant; bounty is overflowing; mercy uni¥versal; rain is descending from the clouds of compassion; the brilliant sun is shining; the full moon adometh the ethereal horizon; the great ocean-tide is flooding every little stream; gifts and favours follow one upon the other and a refreshing breeze is blowing, wafting the fragrant perfume of the blossoms. Ifwe are not happy and joyous at this sea¥son, for what other season shall we wait and for what other time shall we look? x 0 YE beloved friends of God and hand¥maids of the Merciful! Call ye to mind the blessed Name of our peerless Beloved, the Abha Beauty, in an uplifting spirit of unbounded ecstasy and delight, then unloose your tongues in His praise in such wise that the realm of the heart may be purged from the woes and sor¥rows of the world of water and clay, that the great heights of spiritual perception may be unveiled before your eyes, that the glorious signs of His Divine Unity may shine resplendent, a fresh outpouring of His grace may stream forth, and a liberal effusion of celestial confirmations may be vouchsafed unto you. His Name is indeed the healing medicine for every illness, and imparteth warmth unto those starving with cold. It is the sovereign remedy and the supreme talisman. It is the Boundless treasure is in the hand of the King of Kings! Lift the hem of thy gam1ent to receive it. This is the time for growing; the season for joyous gathering! Take the cup of the Testament in thy hand; leap and dance with ecstasy in the triumphal procession of the Covenant! Place your confidence in the everlasting bounty, turn to the presence of the generous God; ask assistance from the kingdom of Abha; seek confirmation from the Supreme World; tum thy vision to the horizon of eternal wealth; and pray for help from the Source of Mercy! Soon shall ye see the friends attaining their longed-for destination and pitching their tents, while we are but in the first day of our journey. To the Assembly in Samarkand, Russia. New transla¥tion of a Tablet published earlier in Tablets of Abdu/¥Bnha Abbas, p. 641. source of life in both worlds, and of sal¥vation unto such as have gone astray. Today this hallowed Name serveth as a shield for all mankind, and as a veritable refuge for the children of men. It is the wondrous accent of the Lord of Mercy, and His celestial melody. Wherefore, 0 faithful friends, raise ye the triumphal cry of Ya-Baha'u'l-Abha! 0 ye who yearn after the Beauty of the Almighty! Lift up your faces toward the Supreme Hori¥zon. Rest not, even for a moment. Breathe not a single breath save in remembrance of His love and in recognition of His grace, in the promulgation of His Utterances and the vindication of His Testimonies. Verily, this is the Magnet of divine con¥firmations . This is the mighty Force which will surely attrnct heavenly assistance. From a Tablet to a group of believers. The Seat ofthe Universal House ofJustice, on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Tsrael. II EXCERPTS FROM THE WRITINGS OF SHOGHI EFFENDI FROM CALL TO THE NATIO NS HUMAN1TY, whether viewed in the light of man's individual conduct or in the existing relationships between organized communities and nations, has, alas, strayed too far and suffered too great a decline to be redeemed through the unaided efforts of the best among its recognized rulers and states¥men-however disinterested their motives, however concerted their action, however unsparing in their zeal and devotion to its cause. No scheme which the calculations of the highest statesmanship may yet devise; no docháine which the most distinguished exponents of economic theory may hope to advance; no principle which the most ardent of moralists may strive to inculcate, can pro¥vide, in the last resort, adequate foundations upon which the future of a distracted world can be built. No appeal for mutual tolerance which the worldly-wise might raise, however compel¥ling and insistent, can calm its passions or help restore its vigour. Nor would any gen¥eral scheme of mere organized international cooperation, in whatever sphere of human activity, however ingenious in conception, or extensive in scope, succeed in removing the root cause of the evil that has so rudely upset the equilibrium of present-day society. Not even, I venture to assert, would the very act of devising the machinery required for the political and economic unification of the world-a principle that has been increas¥ingly advocated in recent times-provide in itself the antidote against the poison that is steadily undermining the vigour of orga¥nized peoples and nations. What else, might we not confidently affirn1, but the unreserved acceptance of the Divine Programme enunciated, with such simplicity and force as far back as sixty years ago, 1by Baha'u'llah, embodying in its essentials God's divinely-appointed scheme for the unification of mankind in this age, coupled with an indomitable conviction in the unfailing efficacy of each and all of its provisions, is eventually capable of with¥standing the forces of internal disintegration which, if unchecked, must needs continue to eat into the vitals of a despairing society. It is towards this goal-the goal of a new World Order, Divine in origin, all-em¥bracing in scope, equitable in principle, challenging in its features-that a harassed humanity must strive. To claim to have grasped all the impli¥cations of Baha'u'llah's prodigimis scheme for world-wide human solidarity, or to have fathomed its import, would be presumptuous on the part of even the declared supporters 1 Written in I93 1. THE BAl-IA' i WORLD of His Faith. To attempt to visualize it in all its possibilities, to estimate its future bene¥fits , to picture its glory, would be premature at even so advanced a stage in the evolution of mankind. All we can reasonably venture to attempt is to strive to obtain a glimpse of the first streaks of the promised Dawn that must, in the fullness of time, chase away the gloom that has encircled humanity. All we can do is to point out, in their broadest outlines, what appears to us to be the guiding principles underlying the World Order ofBaha'u'llah .... That the umest and suffering afflicting the mass of mankind are in no small measure the direct consequences of the World War 1 and are attributable to the unwisdom and short-sightedness of the framers of the Peace Treaties only a biased mind can refuse to admit. ... It would be idle, however, to con¥tend that the war, with all the losses it involved, the passions it aroused and the grievances it left behind, has solely been responsible for the unprecedented confusion into which almost every section of the civilized world is plunged at present. Is it not a fact-and this is the central idea I desire to emphasize-that the fundamental cause of this world unrest is attributable, not so much to the consequences of what must sooner or later come to be regarded as a transitory dislocation in the affairs of a continually changing world, but rather to the failure of those into whose hands the imme¥diate destinies of peoples and nations have been committed, to adjust their systems of economic and political institutions to the imperative needs of a rapidly-evolving age? Are not these intermittent crises that convulse present-day society due primarily to the lamentable inability of the world's recog¥nized leaders to read aright the signs of the times, to rid themselves once for all of their preconceived ideas and fettering creeds, and to reshape the machinery of their respective governments according to those standards Written in 193 1 and refers to the first World War. that are implicit in Baha'u'llah's supreme declaration of the Oneness of Mankind-the chief and distinguishing feature of the Faith He proclain1ed? For the principle of the Oneness of Mankind, the corner-stone of Baha'u'llah's world-embracing dominion, implies nothing more or less than the enforce¥ment of His scheme for the unification of the world-the scheme to which we have already refen-ed. "Jn eve1y Dispensation," writes 'Abdu' l-Baba, "the light of Divine Guidance has been focused upon one central theme ... In this wondrous Revelation, this glorious centwy, the foundation of the Faith of God and the distinguishing feature of His Law is the consciousness of the Oneness of Mankind." How pathetic indeed are the efforts of those leaders of human institutions who, in utter disregard of the spirit of the age, are striving to adjust national processes, suited to the ancient days of self-contained nations, to an age which must either achieve the unity of the world, as adumbrated by Baha'u'llah, or perish. At so critical an hour in the hist01y of civilization it behoves the leaders of all the nations of the world, great and small, whether in the East or in the West, whether victors or vanquished, to give heed to the clarion call of Baha 'u'llah and, thoroughly imbued with a sense of world solidarity, the sine qua non of loyalty to His Cause, arise manfully to cany out in its entirety the one remedial scheme He, the Divine Physician, has prescribed for an ailing humanity. Let them discard, once for all, every preconceived idea, every national prejudice, and give heed to the sublime counsel of 'Abdu'l-Baha, the authorized Expounder of His teachings. "You can best serve your country ", was 'Abdu'l-Baha's rejoinder to a high official in the service of the federal government of the United States of America, who had questioned Him as to the best manner in which he could promote the interests of his government and people, "il you strive, in your capacity as a citizen ofthe world, to assist in the eventual application of the principle of federalism underlying the government ofyour own countly to the rela¥tionships now existing between the peoples and nations ofthe world." In The Secret of Divine Civilization, 'Abdu'l-Baha's outstanding contribution to the future reorganization of the world, we read the following: "True civilization will unfurl its banner in the midmost heart of the world whenever a certain number of its distinguished and high-minded sovereigns-the shining exem¥plars of devotion and determination-shall, for the good and happiness of all mankind, arise, with firm resolve and clear vision, to establish the Cause of Universal Peace. They must make the Cause of Peace the object of general consultation, and seek by every means in their power to establish a Union ofthe nations ofthe world. They must conclude a binding treaty and establish a covenant, the provisions of which shall be sound, inviolable and definite. They must proclaim it to all the world and obtain for it the sanction of all the human race. This supreme and noble undertaking-the real source of the peace and well-being of all the world-should be regarded as sacred by all that dwell on earth. All the forces of humanity must be mobilized to ensure the stability and permanence ofthis Most Great Covenant. In this all-embracing Pact the limits and ji-ontiers of each and every nation should be clearly fixed, the principles underlying the relations of governments towards one another definitely laid down, and all international agreements and obli¥gations ascertained. In like manner, the size of the armaments of evety government should be strictly limited, for ifthe prepara¥tions for war and the militmy forces of any nation should be allowed to increase, they will arouse the suspicion ofothers. The fundamental principle underly ing this solemn Pact should be so fixed that if any government later violate any one of its provisions, all the governments on earth should arise to reduce it to utter submission, nay the human race as a whole should resolve, with eve1y power at its disposal, to destroy that government. Should this great¥est of all remedies be applied to the sick body of the world, it will assuredly recover fiwn its ills and will remain eternally safe and secure." "A few," He further adds, "unaware ofthe power latent in human endeavour, consider this matter as highly impracticable, nay even beyond the scope of man's utmost efforts. Such is not the case, however. On the contrary, thanks to the unfailing grace of God, the loving-kindness of His favoured ones, the unrivalled endeavours of wise and capable souls, and the thoughts and ideas of the peerless leaders of this age, nothing whatsoever can be regarded as unattainable. Endeavour, ceaseless endeavour, is required. Nothing short of an indomitable determina¥tion can possibly achieve it. Many a cause which past ages have regarded as purely visionmy, yet in this day has become most easy and practicable. Why should this most great and lofty cause-the day-star of the firmament of true civilization and the cause of the glory, the advancement, the well¥being and th e success of all humanity-be regarded as impossible of achievement? Surely the day will come when its beauteous light shall shed illumination upon the assemblage ofman." In one of His Tablets 'Abdu'l-Baha, elucidating further His noble theme, reveals the following: "In cycles gone by, though harmony was established, yet, owing to the absence of means, the unity of all mankind could not have been achieved. Continents remained widely divided, nay even among the peoples of one and the same continent association and interchange of thought were well-nigh impossible. Consequently intercourse, under¥standing and unity amongst all the peoples and kindreds ofthe earth were unattainable. In this day, however, means of communica¥tion have multiplied, and the jive continents ofthe earth have virtually merged into one .... Tl-IE BAl-IA' i WORLD Jn like manner all the members ofthe human family, whether peoples or governments, cities or villages, have become increasingly interdependent. For none is self-sufficiency any longer possible, inasmuch as political ties unite all peoples and nations, and the bonds of trade and industry, of agriculture and education, are being strengthened every day. Hence the unity of all mankind can in this day be achieved. Verily this is none other but one of the wonders of this won¥drous age, this glorious century. Ofthis past ages have been deprived, for this century¥the centwy oflight-has been endowed with unique and unprecedented glo1y, power and illumination. Hence the miraculous unfold¥ing ofa fi'esh marvel eve1y day. Eventually it will be seen how bright its candles will burn in the assemblage ofman. "Behold how its light is now dawning upon the world's darkened horizon. The first candle is unity in the political realm, the early glimmerings of which can now be discerned. The second candle is unity of thought in world undertakings, the consum¥mation of which will ere long be witnessed . . Th e third candle is unity in freedom which will surely come to pass. The fourth candle is unity in religion which is the corner-stone of the foundation itself, and which, by the power of God, will be revealed in all its splendour. The fifth candle is the unity of nations-a unity which in this century will be securely established, causing all the peoples ofthe world to regard themselves as citizens of one common fatherland. The sixth candle is unity ofraces, making ofall that dwell on earth peoples and kindreds ofone race. The seventh candle is unity of language, i.e. the choice of a universal tongue in which all peoples will be instructed and converse. Each and every one ofthese will inevitably come to pass, inasmuch as the power of the Kingdom ofGod will aid and assist in their realization." Over sixty years ago, 1 in His Tablet to Queen Victoria, Baha'u'llah, addressing 1 Now well over a century; the Tablet to Queen Victoria was written about 1870. "the concourse of the rulers of the earth", revealed the following: "Take ye counsel together, and let your concern be only for that which profiteth mankind and bettereth the condition thereof .. . Regard the world as the human body, which, though created whole and pe1fect, has been afflicted, through divers causes, with grave ills and maladies. Not for one day did it rest, nay its sicknesses waxed more severe, as it fell under the treatment of unskilled physicians who have spurred on the steed of their worldly desires and have erred grievously. And ifat one time, through the care of an able physician, a member of that body was healed, the rest remained afflicted as before." ... In a further passage Baha'u'llah adds these words: "We see you adding every year unto your expenditures and laying the burden thereof on the people whom ye rule; this verily is naught but grievous injustice. Fear the sighs and tears of this Wronged One, and burden not your peoples beyond that which they can endure .... Be reconciled among yourselves, that ye may need armaments no more save in a measure to safeguard your territories and dominions. Be united, 0 concourse of the sovereigns of the world, for thereby will the tempest of discord be stilled amongst you and your peoples find rest .. .. Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifestjustice." What else could these weighty words signify if they did not point to the inevitable curtailment of unfettered national sover¥eignty as an indispensable preliminary to the formation of the future Commonwealth of all the nations of the world? Some form of a world super-state must needs be evolved, in whose favour all the nations of the world will have willingly ceded every claim to make war, certain rights to impose taxation and all rights to maintain armaments, except for purposes of maintaining internal order within their respective dominions. Such a state will have to include within its orbit an International Executive adequate to enforce supreme and unchallengeable authority on every recalcitrant member of the common¥wealth; a World Parliament whose members shall be elected by the people in their respective countries and whose election shall be confirmed by their respective gov¥ernments; and a Supreme Tribunal whose judgement will have a binding effect even in such cases where the parties concerned did not voluntarily agree to submit their case to its consideration. A world community in which all economic barriers will have been permanently demolished and the inter¥dependence of Capital and Labour definitely recognized; in which the clamour of religious fanaticism and strife wi ll have been forever stilled; in which the flame of racial animosity will have been finally extinguished; in which a single code of international law¥the product of the considered judgement of the world's federated representatives-shall have as its sanction the instant and coercive intervention of the combined forces of the federated units; and finally a world commu¥nity in which the fury of a capricious and militant nationalism will have been trans¥muted into an abiding consciousness of world citizenship-such indeed appears, in its broadest outline, the Order anticipated by Baha'u' llah, an Order that shall come to be regarded as the fairest fruit of a slowly maturing age. "Th e Tabernacle of Unity," Baha ' u' llah proclaims in His message to all mankind, "has been raised; regard ye not one another as strangers .... Ofone tree are all ye the fruit and of one bough the leaves .... The world is but one count1y and mankind its citizens .... Let not a man glory in that he loves his country; let him rather glory in this, that he loves his kind. " Let there be no misgivings as to the animating purpose of the world-wide Law of Baha' u' llah. Far from aiming at the subver¥sion of the existing foundations of society, it seeks to broaden its basis, to remould its institutions in a manner consonant with the needs of an ever-changing world. It can conflict with no legitimate allegiances, nor can it unde1111ine essential loyalties. Its purpose is neither to stifle the flame ofa sane and intelligent patriotism in men's hearts, nor to abolish the system of national autonomy so essential if the evils of excessive central¥ization are to be avoided. It does not ignore, nor does it attempt to suppress, the diversity of ethnical origins, of climate, of history, of language and tradition, of thought and habit, that differentiate the peoples and nations of the world. It calls for a wider loyalty, for a larger aspiration than any that has animated the human race. It insists upon the subordina¥tion of national impulses and interests to the imperative claims of a unified world. It repu¥diates excessive centra lization on one hand, and disclaims all attempts at uniformity on the other. Its watchword is unity in diversity such as'Abdu'l-Baha Himself has explained: "Consider the flowers of a garden. Though differing in kind, colour, form and shape, yet, inasmuch as they are refreshed by the waters of one spring, revived by the breath of one wind, invigorated by the rays of one sun, this diversity increaseth their charm. and addeth unto their beauty. How unpleasing to the eye if all the flowers and plants, the leaves and blossoms, the fruit, the branches and the trees of that garden were all of the same shape and colour! Diversity ofhues, form and shape enricheth and ador¥neth the garden, and heighteneth the effect thereof Jn like manner, when divers shades of thought, temperament and character, are brought together under the power and influ¥ence of one central agency, the beauty and glory of human p e1fection will be revealed and made manifest. Naught but the celestial potency of the Word of God, which ruleth and transcendeth the realities of all things, is capable of harmonizing the divergent thoughts, sentiments, ideas and convictions ofthe children ofmen. " The call of Baha'u'llah is primarily directed against all forms of provincialism, THE BAHA'I WORLD all insularities and prejudices. If long-cher¥ished ideals and time-honoured institutions, if certain social assumptions and religious formulae have ceased to promote the welfare of the generality of mankind, if they no longer minister to the needs of a continually evolving humanity, let them be swept away and relegated to the limbo of obsolescent and forgotten doctrines. Why should these, in a world subject to the immutable law of change and decay, be exempt from the deterioration that must needs overtake every human institution? For legal standards, politi¥cal and economic theories are solely designed to safeguard the interests of humanity as a whole, and not humanity to be crncified for the preservation of the integrity of any particular law or doctrine. Let there be no mistake. The principle of the Oneness of Mankind-the pivot round which all the teachings of Baha' u'llah revolve-is no mere outburst of ignorant emotionalism or an expression of vague and pious hope. Its appeal is not to be merely identified with a reawakening of the spirit of brotherhood and good-will among men, nor does it aim solely at the fostering of harn1onious co-operation among individual peoples and nations. Its implications are deeper, its claims greater than any which the Prophets of old were allowed to advance. Its message is applicable not only to the individual, but concerns itself primarily with the nature of those essential relationships that must bind all the states and nations as members of one human family. It does not constitute merely the enunciation of an ideal, but stands inseparably associated with an institution adequate to embody its truth, demonstrate its validity, and perpetuate its influence. It implies an organic change in the structure of present-day society, a change such as the world has not yet experienced. It constitutes a challenge, at once bold and universal, to outworn shibboleths of national creeds-creeds that have had their day and which must, in the ordinary course of events as shaped and controlled by Providence, give way to a new gospel, fundamentally different from, and infinitely superior to, what the world has already conceived. It calls for no less than the reconstruction and the demilitarization of the whole civilized world-a world organically unified in all the essential aspects of its life, its political machinery, its spiritual aspiration, its trade and finance, its script and language, and yet infinite in the diversity of the national characteristics of its federated units. It represents the consummation of human evolution-an evolution that has had its ear¥liest beginnings in the birth of family life, its subsequent development in the achievement of tribal solidarity, leading in turn to the constitution of the city-state, and expanding later into the institution of independent and sovereign nations. The principle of the Oneness of Mankind, as proclaimed by Balla 'u' llah, carries with it no more and no less than a solemn assertion that attainment to this final stage in this stupendous evolution is not only necessary but inevitable, that its realization is fast approaching, and that nothing short of a power that is born of God can succeed in establishing it. ... Who knows that for so exalted a concep¥tion to take shape a suffering more intense than any it has yet experienced will have to be inflicted upon humanity? Could anything less than the fire of a civil war with all its violence and vicissitudes-a war that nearly rent the great American Republic-have welded the states, not only into a Union of independent units, but into a Nation, in spite of all the ethnic differences that char¥acterized its component parts? That so fundamental a revolution, involving such far-reaching changes in the strncture of so¥ciety, can be achieved through the ordinaty processes of diplomacy and education seems highly improbable. We have but to turn our gaze to humanity's blood-stained hist01y to realize that nothing short of intense mental as well as physical agony has been able to precipitate those epoch-making changes that constitute the greatest landmarks in the history of human civilization. Great and far-reaching as have been those changes in the past, they cannot but appear, when viewed in their proper perspective, except as subsidiary adjustments preluding that transformation of unparalleled majesty and scope which humanity is in this age bound to undergo. That the forces of a world catastrophe can alone precipitate such a new phase of human thought is, alas, becoming increasingly apparent. That nothing shoti of the fire of a severe ordeal, unparalleled in its intensity, can fuse and weld the discor¥dant entities that constitute the elements of present-day civilization, into the integral components of the world commonwealth of the future, is a truth which future events will increasingly demonstrate. The prophetic voice ofBaha'u'llah warn¥ing, in the concluding passages of The Hidden Words, the peoples of the world that an unforeseen calamity is following them and that grievous retribution awaiteth them tlrrows indeed a lurid light upon the immedi¥ate fotiunes of sorrowing humanity. Nothing but a fiery ordeal, out of which humanity will emerge, chastened and prepared, can succeed in implanting that sense ofresponsi¥bility which the leaders of a new-born age must arise to shoulder. I would again direct your attention to those ominous words of Baha'u'llah which I have already quoted: "And when the appointed hour is come, there shall suddenly appear that which shall cause the limbs of mankind to quake." ... One word more in conclusion. The procla¥mation of the Oneness of Mankind-the head corner-stone of Baha'u'llah's all-embracing dominion-can under no circumstances be compared with such expressions of pious hope as have been uttered in the past. His is not merely a call which He raised, alone and unaided, in the face of the relentless and combined opposition of two of the most powerful Oriental potentates of His day¥while Himself an exile and prisoner in their hands. It implies at once a warning and a promise-a warning that in it lies the sole means for the salvation of a greatly suffering world, a promise that its realization is at hand. Uttered at a time when its possibility had not yet been seriously envisaged in any part of the world, it has, by virtue of that celestial potency which the Spirit of Baha'u'llah has breathed into it, come at last to be regarded, by an increasing number of thoughtful men, not only as an approaching possibility, but as the necessary outcome of the forces now operating in the world. Surely the world, contracted and trans¥fmmed into a single highly complex organism by the marvellous progress achieved in the realm of physical science, by the world-wide expansion of commerce and industry, and snuggling, under the pressure of world economic forces, amidst the pitfalls of a materialistic civilization, stands in dire need of a restatement of the Truth underlying all the Revelations of the past in a language suited to its essential requirements. And what voice other than that of Baha'u'llah¥the Mouthpiece of God for this age-is capa¥ble of effecting a transformation of society as radical as that which He has already accomplished in the hearts of those men and women, so diversified and seemingly irrec¥oncilable, who constitute the body of His declared followers tluáoughout the world? That such a mighty conception is fast budding out in the minds of men, that voices are being raised in its support, that its salient features must fast crystallize in the consciousness of those who are in authority, few indeed can doubt. That its modest begimtings have already taken shape in the world-wide Administration with which the adherents of the Faith of Baha 'u' llah stand associated only those whose hearts are tainted by prejudice can fail to perceive.... Excerpts from The Goal ofa New World Order, in Call to the Nations (Hai fa: Baha'i World Centre, 1977). Chapter II. THE BAHA ' I WORLD 11 FEW will fail to recognize that the Spirit breathed by Baha'u'llah upon the world, and which is manifesting itself with varying degrees of intensity through the efforts con¥sciously displayed by His avowed supporters and indirectly through certain humanitarian organizations, can never permeate and exercise an abiding influence upon mankind unless and until it incarnates itself in a visible Order, which would bear His name, wholly identify itself with His principles, and function in conforniity with His laws. That Baha'u'llah in His Book of Aqdas, and later 'Abdu'l-Baha in His Will-a document which confirms, supplements, and correlates the provisions of the Aqdas-have set forth in their entirety those essential elements for the constitution of the world Baha'i Common¥wealth, no one who has read them will deny. According to these divinely-ordained adniin¥istrative principles, the Dispensation of Baha'u'llah-the Ark of human salvation¥must needs be modelled. From them, all future blessings must flow, and upon them its inviolable auth01ity must ultimately rest. For Baha'u 'llah, we should readily recog¥nize, has not only imbued mankind with a new and regenerating Spirit. He has not merely enunciated certain universal princi¥ples, or propounded a particular philosophy, however potent, sound and universal these may be. In addition to these He, as well as 'Abdu 'l-Baha after Him, has, unlike the Dispensations of the past, clearly and specif¥ically laid down a set of Laws, established definite institutions, and provided for the essentials of a Divine Economy. These are destined to be a pattern for fuh1re society, a supreme instrument for the establishment of the Most Great Peace, and the one agency for the unification of the world, and the proclamation of the reign of righteousness and justice upon the earth .... Leaders of religion, exponents of political the01ies, governors ofhuman institutions, who at present are witnessing with perplexity and dismay the bankruptcy of their ideas, and the disintegration of their handiwork, would do well to him their gaze to the Revelation of Baha'u'llah, and to meditate upon the World Order which, lying enshrined in His teach¥ings, is slowly and imperceptibly rising amid the welter and chaos of present-day civilization. They need have no doubt or anxiety regarding the nature, the origin, or validity of the institutions which the adher¥ents of the Faith are building up tluáoughout the world. For these lie embedded in the teachings themselves, unadulterated and unobscured by unwarrantable inferences, or unauthorized interpretations of His Word .... THE omushing forces so miraculously released through the agency of two indepen¥dent and swiftly successive Manifestations are now under our very eyes and tluáough the care of the chosen stewards of a far-flung Faith being gradually mustered and disciplined. They are slowly crystallizing into institutions that will come to be regarded as the hallmark and glory of the age we are called upon to establish and by our deeds i1m11ortalize .... It would be utterly misleading to attempt a comparison between this unique, this divinely-conceived Order and any of the diverse systems which the minds of men, at various periods of their history, have contrived for the government of human institutions. Such an attempt would in itself betray a lack of complete appreciation of the excellence of the handiwork of its great Author. How could it be otherwise when we remember that this Order constih1tes the very pattern of that divine civilization which the almighty Law of Baha'u'llah is designed to establish upon earth? The divers and ever-shifting systems of human polity, whether past or present, whether originating in the East or in the West, offer no adequate criterion where¥with to estimate the potency of its hidden virtues or to appraise the solidity of its foundations. Details ofthe pillars and gardens surrounding the Seat ofthe Universal House ofJustice. The Baha'i Commonwealth of the future, of which this vast Administrative Order is the sole framework, is, both in theory and practice, not only unique in the entire history of political institutions, but can find no parallel in the aru1als of any of the world's recognized religious systems. No form of democratic government; no system of autoc¥racy or of dictatorship, whether monarchical or republican; no intermediary scheme of a purely aristocratic order; nor even any of the recognized types of theocracy, whether it be the Hebrew Commonwealth, or the various Christian ecclesiastical organizations, or the Imamate or the Caliphate in Islam-none of these can be identified or be said to conform with the Administrative Order which the master-hand of its perfect Architect has fashioned. This new-born Administrative Order incorporates within its structure certain elements which are to be found in each of the tluáee recognized forms of secular gov¥ernment, without being in any sense a mere replica of any one of them, and without introducing within its machinery any of the objectionable features which they inherently possess. It blends and harmonizes, as no govermnent fashioned by mortal hands has as yet accomplished, the salutary h-uths which each of these systems undoubtedly contains without vitiating the integrity of those God-given verities on which it is ultimately founded. The Adminisháative Order of the Faith of Baha'u'llah must in no wise be regarded as purely democratic in character inasmuch as the basic assumption which requires all THE BAHA'I WORLD democracies to depend fundamentally upon getting their mandate from the people is altogether lacking in this Dispensation. In the conduct of the administrative affairs of the Faith, in the enactment of the legislation necessary to supplement the laws of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, the members of the Univer¥sal House of Justice, it should be borne in mind, are not, as Baha'u'llah's utterances clearly imply, responsible to those whom they represent, nor are they allowed to be governed by the feelings, the general opinion, and even the convictions of the mass of the faithful, or of those who directly elect them. They are to follow, in a prayerful attitude, the dictates and promptings of their conscience. They may, indeed they must, acquaint themselves with the conditions prevailing among the community, must weigh dispassionately in their minds the merits of any case presented for their consideration, but must reserve for themselves the right of an unfettered decision. "God will verily inspire them with whatsoever He willeth," is Baha'u'llah's incontrovetiible assurance. They, and not the body of those who either directly or indirectly elect them, have thus been made the recipients of the divine guidance which is at once the life-blood and ultimate safeguard of this Revelation .... Nor can the Baha'i Administrative Order be dismissed as a hard and rigid system of unmitigated autocracy or as an idle imitation of any form of absolutistic ecclesiastical government, whether it be the Papacy, the Imamate or any other similar institution, for the obvious reason that upon the international elected representatives of the followers of Baha'u'llah has been conferred the exclusive right of legislating on matters not expressly revealed in the Baha'i writings. Neither the Guardian of the Faith nor any institution apati from the International House of Justice can ever usurp this vital and essential power or encroach upon that sacred right. The abo¥lition of professional priesthood with its accompanying sacraments of baptism, of communion and of confession of sins, the laws requiring the election by universal suf¥frage of all local, national, and international Houses of Justice, the total absence of epis¥copal authority with its attendant privileges, corruptions and bureaucratic tendencies, are further evidences of the non-autocratic character of the Baha'i Administrative Order and of its inclination to democratic methods in the administration of its affairs. Nor is this Order identified with the name ofBaha'u'llah to be confused with any sys¥tem ofpurely aristocratic government in view of the fact that it upholds, on the one hand, the hereditary principle and entrusts the Guardian of the Faith with the obligation of interpreting its teachings, and provides, on the other, for the free and direct election from among the mass of the faithful of the body that constitutes its highest legislative organ. Whereas this Administrative Order cannot be said to have been modelled after any of these recognized systems of government, it nevertheless embodies, reconciles and assim¥ilates within its framework such wholesome elements as are to be found in each one of them. The hereditary authority which the Guardian is called upon to exercise, the vital and essential functions which the Universal House of Justice discharges, the specific provisions requiring its democratic election by the representatives of the fa ithful-these combine to demonstrate the trnth that this divinely revealed Order, which can never be identified with any of the standard types of government referred to by Aristotle i.n his works, embodies and blends with the spiritual verities on which it is based the beneficent elements which are to be found in each one of them. The admitted evils inherent in each of these systems being rig¥idly and permanently excluded, this unique Order, however long it may endure and however extensive its ramifications, cannot ever degenerate into any form of despotism, of oligarchy, or of demagogy which must sooner or later corrupt the machinery of all man-made and essentially defective political institutions .... Significant as are the origins of this mighty administrative strncture, and how¥ever unique its features, the happenings that may be said to have heralded its birth and signalized the initial stage of its evolution seem no less remarkable. How striking, how edifying the contrast between the process of slow and steady consolidation that charac¥terizes the growth of its infant strength and the devastating onrush of the forces of disintegration that are assailing the outworn institutions, both religious and secular, of present-day society! The vitality which the organic institutions of this great, this ever-expanding Order so strongly exhibit; the obstacles which the high courage, the undaunted resolution of its administrators have already surmounted; the fire of an unquenchable enthusiasm that glows with undiminished fervour in the hearts of its itinerant teachers; the heights of self-sacrifice which its champion-builders are now attaining; the breadth of vision, the confident hope, the creative joy, the inward peace, the uncompromising integrity, the exemplary discipline, the unyielding unity and solidarity which its stalwart defenders manifest; the degree to which its moving Spirit hath shown itself capable of assimilat¥ing the diversified elements within its pale, of cleansing them of all forms of prejudice and of fusing them with its own shucture¥these are evidences of a power which a disillusioned and sadly shaken society can ill afford to ignore. Compare these splendid manifestations of the spirit animating this vibrant body of the Faith of Baha'u'llah with the cries and agony, the follies and vanities, the bitterness and prejudices, the wickedness and divisions of an ailing and chaotic world. Witness the fear that torn1ents its leaders and paralyses the action of its blind and bewildered states¥men. How fierce the hatreds, how false the ambitions, how petty the pursuits, how deep¥rooted the suspicions of its peoples! How disquieting the lawlessness, the conuption, the unbelief that are eating into the vitals of a tottering civilization! Might not this process of steady deterio¥ration which is insidiously invading so many departments of human activity and thought be regarded as a n~cessary accompanin1ent to the rise of !his almighty Arm of Baha'u'llah? Might we not look upon the momentous happenings which . . . have so deeply agitated every continent of the earth as ominous signs simultaneously proclaiming the agonies of a disintegrating civilization and the birth-pangs of that World Order¥that Ark of human salvation-that must needs arise upon its rnins? Excerpts from The World Order ofBahn "u 'I/ah: Further Considerations and 771e Dispensation of Bah a '11 'I/ah, 111 Call to the Nations. Chapter Ill . THE BA HA'i WORLD III THE contrast between the accumulating evidences of steady consolidation that accompany the rise of the Administrative Order of the Faith of God, and the forces of disintegration which batter at the fabric of a travailing society, is as clear as it is arresting. Both within and outside the Baha' i world the signs and tokens which, in a mysterious manner, are heralding the birth of that World Order, the establishment of which must signalize the Golden Age of the Cause of God, are growing and multiplying day by day. No fair-minded observer can any longer fail to discern them. He cannot be misled by the painful slowness characteriz¥ing the unfoldment of the civilization which the followers of Baha'u'llah are labouring to establish. Nor can he be deluded by the ephemeral manifestations of returning prosperity which at times appear to be capa¥ble of checking the disruptive influence of the chronic ills afflicting the institutions of a decaying age. The signs of the times are too numerous and compelling to allow him to mistake their character or to belittle their significance. He can, if he be fair in his judgement, recognize in the chain of events which proclaim on the one hand the irre¥sistible march of the institutions directly associated with the Revelation ofBaha'u' llah and foreshadow on the other the downfall of those powers and principalities that have either ignored or opposed it-he can recognize in them all evidences of the operation of God's all-pervasive Will, the shaping of His perfectly ordered and world¥ embracing Plan. "Soon," Baha'u'llah's own words pro¥claim it, "will the present-day Order be rolled up, and a new one spread out in its stead. Verily, thy Lord speaketh the truth and is the Knower of things unseen. " "By Myself," He solemnly asserts, "the day is approaching when We will have rolled up the world and all that is therein, and spread out a new Order in its stead. He, verily, is powerful over all things." "The world's equilibrium'', He explains, "hath been upset through the vibrating influence of this Most Great, this new World Order. Man¥kind 's ordered life hath been revolutionized through the agency of this unique, this wondrous System, the like of which mortal eyes have never witnessed." "The signs of impending convulsions and chaos," He warns the peoples of the world, "can now be discerned, inasmuch as the prevailing Order appeareth to be lamentably defective." ... No machinery falling short of the stan¥dard inculcated by the Baha'i Revelation, and at variance with the sublime pattern ordained in His teachings, which the collec¥tive efforts of mankind may yet devise can ever hope to achieve anything above or beyond that "Lesser Peace" to which the Author of our Faith has Himself alluded in His writings. "Now that ye have refi1sed the Most Great Peace," He, admonishing the kings and rulers of the earth, has written, "hold yefast unto this the Lesser Peace, that haply ye may in some degree better your own condition and that ofyour dependents." Expatiating on this Lesser Peace, He thus addresses in that same Tablet the rulers of the earth: "Be reconciled among yourselves, that ye may need no more armaments save in a measure to safeguard your territories and dominions ... Be united, 0 kings ofthe earth, for thereby will the tempest of discord be stilled amongst you, and your peoples find rest, if ye be of them that comprehend. Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice." The Most Great Peace, on the other hand, as conceived by Baha'u'llah-a peace that must inevitably follow as the practical con¥sequence of the spiritualization of the world and the fusion of all its races, creeds, classes and nations-can rest on no other basis, and can be preserved through no other agency, except the divinely appointed ordinances that are implicit in the World Order that stands associated with His holy name. In His Tablet, revealed almost seventy 1 years ago to Queen Victoria, Baha'u'llah, alluding to this Most Great Peace, has declared: "That which the Lord hath ordained as the sover¥eign remedy and mightiest instrument for the healing ofall the world is the union ofall its peoples in one universal Cause, one common Faith. This can in no wise be achieved except through the power of a skilled, an all-powe1ful and inspired Physician. This, verily, is the truth, and all else naught but error" ... "ft beseemeth all men in this Day", He, in another Tablet, asserts, "to take .firm hold on the Most Great Name, and to establish the unity of all mankind. There is no place to flee to, no refitge that any one can seek, except Him. " The Revelation of Baha'u' llah, whose supreme mission is none other but the achievement of this organic and spiritual unity of the whole body of nations, should, if we be faithful to its implications, be regarded as signalizing tluáough its advent the coming ofage ofthe entire human race. It should be viewed not merely as yet anotl1er spiritual revival in the ever-changing fortunes of mankind, not only as a further stage in a chain of progressive Revelations, nor even as the culmination of one of a series of recurrent prophetic cycles, but rather as marking the last and highest stage in the stupendous evolution of man's collec¥tive life on this planet. The emergence of a world conununity, the consciousness of world citizenship, the founding of a world civilization and culture-all of which must syncluonize with the initial stages in the unfoldment of the Golden Age of tl1e Baha'i Era-should, by their very nature, be regarded, as far as this planetary life is concerned, as the furthermost limits in the organization of human society, though man, as an individual, will, nay must indeed as a result of such a consununation, continue indefinitely to progress and develop. 1 Written in 1936. Now more than a hundred. (The Tablet to Queen Victoria was written about 1870.) That mystic, all-pervasive, yet indefinable change, which we associate with the stage of maturity inevitable in the life of the individual and the development of the fruit, must, if we would correctly apprehend the utterances of Baha'u'llah, have its counter¥pari in the evolution of the organization of human society. A similar stage must sooner or later be attained in the collective life of mankind, producing an even more striking phenomenon in world relations, and en¥dowing the whole human race with such potentialities of well-being as shall provide, tluáoughout the succeeding ages, the chief incentive required for the eventual fulfil¥ment of its high destiny .... Only those who are willing to associate the Revelation proclaimed by Baha 'u'llah with the consununation of so stupendous an evolution in the collective life of the whole human race can grasp the significance of the words which He, while alluding to the glories of this promised Day and to the duration of the Baha'i Era, has deemed fit to utter. "This is the King of Days," He exclaims, "the Day that hath seen the coming of the Best¥Beloved, Him Who, through all eternity, hath been acclaimed the Desire of the World." "The Scriptures of past Dispensa¥tions," He further asserts, "celebrate the great jubilee that must needs greet this most great Day of God. Well is it with him that hath lived to see this Day and hath recognized its station ." ... Though the Revelation ofBaha'u' llah has been delivered, the World Order which such a Revelation must needs beget is as yet unborn. Though the Heroic Age of His Faith is passed, the creative energies which that Age has released have not as yet crystallized into that world society which, in the fullness of time, is to mirror forth the brightness of His glory. Though the framework of His Administrative Order has been erected, and the Formative Period of the Baha'i Era has begun, yet the promised Kingdom into which the seed of His institutions must ripen remains as yet uninaugurated. Though His THE BA HA' I WORLD Detail ofa column and window ofthe Seat ofthe Universal House ofJustice. Voice has been raised, and the ensigns of His Faith have been lifted up in no less than fo1ty countries 1 of both the East and the West, yet the wholeness of the human race is as yet unrecognized, its unity unproclaimed, and the standard of its Most Great Peace unhoisted .... For the revelation of so great a favour a period of intense tmmoil and widespread suffering would seem to be indispensable. Resplendent as has been the Age that has witnessed the inception of the Mission with which Baha'u'llah has been entrusted, the interval which must elapse ere that Age yields its choicest fruit must, it is becoming increasingly apparent, be overshadowed by Written in 1936, since when the number has increased to 235, comprising 190 independent coun¥tries and 45 dependent territories. such moral and social gloom as can alone prepare an unrepented humanity for the prize she is destined to inherit. Into such a period we are now steadily and irresistibly moving. Amidst the shadows which are increasingly gathering about us we can faintly discern the glimmerings of Baha'u' llah's unearthly sovereignty appea r¥ing fitfully on the horizon of history. To us, the "generation of the half-light'', living at a time which may be designated as the period of the incubation of the World Common¥wealth envisaged by Baha'u'llah, has been assigned a task whose high privilege we can never sufficiently appreciate, and the ardu¥ousness of which we can as yet but dimly recognize. We may well believe, we who are called upon to experience the operation of the dark forces destined to unloose a flood of agonizmg afflictions, that the darkest hour that must precede the dawn of the Golden Age of our Faith has not yet struck. Deep as is the gloom that already encircles the world, the afflictive ordeals which that world is to suffer are still in preparation, nor can their blackness be as yet imagined. We stand on the threshold of an age whose con¥vulsions proclaim alike the death-pangs of the old order and the birth-pangs of the new. Through the generating influence of the Faith announced by Baha'u'llah this New World Order may be said to have been conceived. We can, at the present moment, experience its stirrings in the womb of a travailing age-an age waiting for the appointed hour at which it can cast its burden and yield its fairest fruit. "The whole earth," writes Baha'u'llah, "is now in a state ofpregnancy. The day is approaching when it will have yielded its noblest ji-uits, when fi'om it will have sprung forth the loftiest trees, the most enchanting blossoms, the most heavenly blessings .... " "The Call of God," 'Abdu'l-Baha has written, "when raised, breathed a new life into the body ofmankind, and infi1sed a new spirit into the whole creation. ft is for this reason that the world hath been moved to its depths, and the hearts and consciences of men been quickened. Ere long the evidences ofthis regeneration will be revealed, and the fast asleep will be awakened." ... Unification of the whole of mankind is the hallmark of the stage which human society is now approaching. Unity of family, of tráibe, of city-state and nation have been successively attempted and fully established. World unity is the goal towards which a harassed humanity is striving. Nation¥building has come to an end. The anarchy inherent in state sovereignty is moving towards a climax. A world, growing to maturity, must abandon this fetish, recog¥nize the oneness and wholeness of human relationships, and establish once for all the machinery that can best incarnate this funda¥mental principle of its life. "A new life," Baha' u'llah proclaims, "is, in this age, stirring within all the peoples of the earth; and yet none hath discovered its cause, or perceived its motive." "O ye children of men," He thus addresses His generation, "the fimdamental purpose ani¥mating the Faith ofGod and His Religion is to safeguard the interests and promote the unity ofthe human race... This is the straight path, the fixed and immovable foundation. Whatsoever is raised on this foundation, the changes and chances ofthe world can never impair its strength, nor will the revolution of countless centuries undermine its structure." "The well-being of mankind," He declares, "its peace and security are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly estab¥lished." "So powerful is the light ofunity," is His further testimony, "that it can illuminate the whole earth. The one true God, He Who knoweth all things, Himself testifieth to the truth of these words... This goal excelleth eve1y other goal, and this aspiration is the monarch of all aspirations." "He Who is your Lord, the All-Merciful," He, moreover, has written, "cherisheth in His heart the desire ofbeholding the entire human race as one soul and one body. Haste ye to win your share ofGod 's good grace and mercy in this Day that eclipseth all other created days." The unity of the human race, as envisaged by Baha'u'llah, implies the establishment of a world commonwealth in which all nations, races, creeds and classes are closely and pe1rnanently united, and in which the auton¥omy of its state members and the personal freedom and initiative of the individuals that compose them are definitely and completely safeguarded. This commonwealth must, as far as we can visualize it, consist of a world legislature, whose members will, as the hi.1stees of the whole of mankind, ultimately control the entire resources of all the compo¥nent nations, and will enact such laws as shall be required to regulate the life, satisfy the needs and adjust the relationships of all races and peoples. A world executive, backed by an international Force, will carry THE BAHA'i WORLD out the decisions arrived at, and apply the laws enacted by, this world legislature, and will safeguard the organic unity of the whole commonwealth. A world háibunal will adju¥dicate and deliver its compulsory and final verdict in all and any disputes that may arise between the various elements constituting this universal system. A mechanism of world intercommunication will be devised, embracing the whole planet, freed from national hindrances and restrictions, and functioning with marvellous swiftness and perfect regularity. A world metropolis will act as the nerve centre of a world civiliza¥tion, the focus towards which the unifying forces of life will converge and from which its energizing influences will radiate. A world language will either be invented or chosen from among the existing languages and will be taught in the schools of all the federated nations as an auxiliary to their mother tongues. A world script, a world literature, a uniform and universal system of currency, of weights and measures, will simplify and facilitate intercourse and understanding among the nations and races of mankind. In such a world society, science and religion, the two most potent forces in human life, will be reconciled, will co¥operate, and will harmoniously develop. The press will, under such a system, while giving full scope to the expression of the diversified views and convictions of mankind, cease to be mischievously manipulated by vested interests, whether private or public, and will be liberated from the influence of contend¥ing governments and peoples. The economic resources of the world will be organized, its sources of raw materials will be tapped and fully utilized, its markets will be co-ordi¥nated and developed, and the distribution of its products will be equitably regulated. National rivalries, hatreds, and intrigues will cease, and racial animosity and preju¥dice will be replaced by racial amity, understanding and co-operation. The causes of religious sháife will be pennanently removed, economic barriers and restrictions will be completely abolished, and the inordi¥nate distinction between classes will be obliterated. Destitution on the one hand, and gross accumulation of ownership on the other, will disappear. The enormous energy dissipated and wasted on war, whether economic or political, will be consecrated to such ends as will extend the range of human inventions and technical development, to the increase of the productivity ofmankind, to the exte1111ination of disease, to the extension of scientific research, to the raising of the stan¥dard of physical health, to the sharpening and refinement of the human brain, to the exploitation of the unused and unsuspected resources of the planet, to the prolongation of human life, and to the furtherance of any other agency that can stimulate the intellec¥tual, the moral, and spiritual life of the entire human race. A world federal system, ruling the whole earth and exercising unchallengeable author¥ity over its unimaginably vast resources, blending and embodying the ideals of both the East and the West, liberated from the curse of war and its miseries, and bent on the exploitation of all the available sources of energy on the surface of the planet, a system in which Force is made the servant of Jus¥tice, whose life is sustained by its universal recognition of one God and by its allegiance to one conm1on Revelation-such is the goal towards which humanity, impelled by the unifying forces of life, is moving. Exce1vts from The Unfold111ent ofWorld Civilizntion, in Call to the Nations, Chapter IV. IV As we gaze in retrospect beyond the immediate past, and survey, in however cursory a manner, the vicissitudes afflicting an increasingly tormented society, and recall the strains and stresses to which the fabric of a dying Order has been increasingly subjected, we cannot but marvel at the sharp contrast presented, on the one hand, by the accumulated evidences of the orderly unfoldment, and the uninterrupted multipli¥cation of the agencies, of an Administrative Order designed to be the harbinger of a world civilization, and, on the other, by the ominous manifestations of acute political conflict, of social unrest, of racial animosity, of class antagonism, of immorality and of irreligion, proclaiming, in no uncertain terms, the co1Tuption and obsolescence of the insti¥tutions of a bankrupt Order. ... "The winds ofdespair," writes Baha'u'llah, as He surveys the immediate destinies of mankind, "are, alas, blowing fro m eve1y direction, and the strife that divides and afflicts the human race is daily increas¥ing .... " "Such shall be its plight," He, in another corn1ection, has declared, "that to disclose it now would not be meet and seemly." "These fruitless strifes," He, on the other hand, contemplating the future of man¥kind, has emphatically prophesied, in the course of His memorable interview with the Persian orientalist, Edward G. Browne, "these ruinous wars shall pass away, and the 'Most Great Peace' shall come .... These strifes and this bloodshed and discord must cease, and all men be as one kindred and one family. " .. . "All nations and kindreds," 'Abdu'l-Bahi likewise has written, " ... will become a single nation. Religious and sectarian antagonism, the hostility ofraces and peoples, and differ¥ences among nations, will be eliminated. All men will adhere to one religion, will have one common faith, will be blended into one race, and become a single people. All will dwell in one common fatherland, which is the planet itself." What we witness at the present time, during "this gravest crisis in the history of civilization," recalling such times in which "religions have perished and are born," is the adolescent stage in the slow and painful evolution of humanity, preparatory to the attainment of the stage of manhood, the stage of maturity, the promise of which is embedded in the teachings, and enshrined in the prophecies ofBaha'u'llah. The tumult of this age of transition is characteristic of the impetuosity and irrational instincts of youth, its follies, its prodigality, its pride, its self¥assurance, its rebelliousness, and contempt of discipline. The ages of its infancy and childhood are past, never again to return, while the Great Age, the consummation of all ages, which must signalize the coming of age of the entire human race, is yet to come. The convulsions of this transitional and most turbulent period in the annals of humanity are the essential prerequisites, and herald of the inevitable approach, of that Age of Ages, "the time ofthe end," in which the folly and tumult of strife that has, since the dawn of history, blackened the annals of mankind, wi ll have been finally transmuted into the wisdom and the tranquillity of an undisturbed, a universal, and lasting peace, in which the discord and separation of the children of men will have given way to the worldwide reconciliation, and the complete unification of the divers elements that constitute human society. This will indeed be the fitting climax of that process of integration which, starting with the family, the smallest unit in the scale of human organization, must, after having called successively into being the tribe, the city-state, and the nation, continue to operate until it culminates in the unification of the whole world, the final object and the crown¥ing glory of human evolution on this planet. It is this stage which humanity, willingly or THE BAHA'l WORLD unwillingly, is resistlessly approaching. lt is for this. stage that this vast, this fiery ordeal which humanity is experiencing is mysteri¥ously paving the way. It is with this stage that the fortunes and the purpose of the Faith of Baha'u'llah are indissolubly linked. It is the creative energies which His Revelation has released... that have instilled into humanity the capacity to attain this final stage in its organic and collective evolution. It is with the Golden Age of His Dispensa¥tion that the consummation of this process will be forever associated. It is the structure of His New World Order, now stirring in the womb of the administrative institutions He Himself has created, that will serve both as a pattern and a nucleus of that world common¥wealth which is the sme, the inevitable destiny of the peoples and nations of the earth. Just as the organic evolution of mankind has been slow and gradual, and involved successively the unification of the family, the tribe, the city-state, and the nation, so has the light vouchsafed by the Revelation of God, at various stages in the evolution of religion, and reflected in the successive Dispensations of the past, been slow and progressive. Indeed the measure of Divine Revelation, in evety age, has been adapted to, and commensurate with, the degree of social progress achieved in that age by a constantly-evolving humanity. " ft hath been decreed by Us," explains Baha'u' llah, "that the Word of God, and all the potentialities thereof; shall be manifested unto men in strict conformity with such conditions as have been fore-ordained by Him Who is the All-Knowing, the All-Wise... Should the Word be allowed to release suddenly all the energies latent within it, no man could sustain the weight ofso mighty a Revelation." "All created things," ' Abdu' l¥Baha, elucidating this truth, has affirmed, "have their degree or stage of maturity. The period of maturity in the life of a tree is the time ofitsji-uit-bearing .... The animal attains a stage offull growth and completeness, and in the human kingdom man reaches his maturity when the light of his intelligence attains its greatest power and development .... Similarly there are periods and stages in the collective life ofhumanity. At one time it was passing through its stage of childhood, at another its period ofyouth, but now it has entered its long-predicted phase ofmaturity, the evidences ofwhich are eve1ywhere appar¥ent. . . . That which was applicable to human needs during the early history of the race can neither meet nor satisfy the demands of this day, this period ofnewness and consum¥mation. Humanity has emerged ji-om its former state of limitation and preliminmy training. Man must now become imbued with new virtues and powers, new moral standards, new capacities. New bounties, pe1f ect bestowals, are awaiting and already descending upon him. Th e gifts and bless¥ings of the period ofyouth, although timely and sufficient during the adolescence of mankind, are now incapable of meeting the requirements ofits maturity." ... This is the stage which the world is now approaching, the stage of world unity, which, as 'Abdu'l-Baha assures us, will, in this centmy, be secmely established. "The Tongue of Grandeur," Baha'u'llah Himself affirms, "hath ... in the Day ofHis Manifestation pro¥claimed: 'ft is not his to boast who loveth his country, but it is his who loveth the world."' "Through the power," He adds, "released by these exalted words He hath lent a fresh impulse, and set a new direction, to the birds of men's hearts, and hath obliterated eve1y trace of restriction and limitation from God's Holy Book." A word of warning should, however, be uttered in this connection. The love of one's country, instilled and sttáessed by the teach¥ing of Islam, as "an element ofthe Faith of God," has not, through this declaration, this clarion-call of Ba ha 'u 'llah, been either con¥demned or disparaged. It should not, indeed it cannot, be construed as a repudiation, or regarded in the light of a censure pronounced against a sane and intelligent pattáiotism, nor does it seek to undermine the allegiance and loyalty of any individual to his country, nor does it conflict with the legitimate aspira¥tions, rights, and duties of any individual state or nation. All it does imply and proclaim is the insufficiency of patriotism, in view of the fundamental changes effected in the economic life of society and the interdependence of the nations, and as the consequence of the contraction of the world, through the revolution in the means of transportation and conununication-condi¥tions that did not and could not exist either in the days of Jesus Cluáist or ofMuhanm1ad. It calls for a wider loyalty, which should not, and indeed does not, conflict with lesser loy¥alties. It instills a love which, in view of its scope, must include and not exclude the love of one's own counh-y. It lays, tluáough this loyalty which it inspires, and this love which it infuses, the only foundation on which the concept of world citizenship can thrive, and the sh-ucture of world unification can rest. It does insist, however, on the subordination of national considerations and particularistic interests to the imperative and paramount claims of humanity as a whole, inasmuch as in a world of interdependent nations and peoples the advantage of the paii is best to be reached by the advantage of the whole. The world is, in truth, moving on towards its destiny. The interdependence of the peoples and nations of the earth, whatever the leaders of the divisive forces of the world may say or do, is already an accom¥plished fact. Its unity in the economic sphere is now understood and recognized. The welfare of the part means the welfare of the whole, and the distress of the part brings disháess to the whole. The Revelation of Baha'u'llah has, in His own words, "lent a fi'esh impulse and set a new direction" to this vast process now operating in the world. The fires lit by this great ordeal are the consequences of men's failure to recognize it. They are, moreover, hastening its consum¥mation. Adversity, prolonged, world-wide, afflictive, allied to chaos and universal destruction, must needs convulse the nations, stir the conscience of the world, disillusion the masses, precipitate a radical change in the very conception of society, and coalesce ultimately the disjointed, the bleeding limbs of mankind into one body, single, organi¥cally united, and indivisible. To the general character, the implications and features of this world commonwealth, destined to emerge, sooner or later, out of the carnage, agony, and havoc of this great world convulsion, I have already referred in my previous conummications. Suffice it to say that this consummation will, by its very nature, be a gradual process, and must, as Baha'u'llah has Himself anticipated, lead at first to the establishment of that Lesser Peace which the nations of the earth, as yet unconscious of His Revelation and yet unwittingly enforcing the general principles which He has enunciated, will themselves establish. This momentous and historic step, involving the reconstruction of mankind, as the result of the universal recognition of its oneness and wholeness, will bring in its wake the spiritualization of the masses, con¥sequent to the recognition of the character, and the acknowledgment of the claims, of the Faith of Baha'u'llah-the essential condition to that ultimate fusion of all races, creeds, classes, and nations which must signalize the emergence of His New World Order. Then will the coming of age of the entire human race be proclaimed and celebrated by all the peoples and nations of the earth. Then will the ba1mer of the Most Great Peace be hoi sted Then will the worldwide sover¥eignty of Baha' u' llah-the Establisher of the Kingdom of the Father foretold by the Son, and anticipated by the Prophets of God before Him and after Him-be recognized, acclaimed, and firmly established. Then will a world civilization be born, flourish, and perpetuate itself, a civilization with a fullnes s of life such as the world has never seen nor can as yet conceive. Then will the Everlast¥ing Covenant be fu lfilled in its completeness. THE BA l-IA' i WORLD Then will the promise enshrined in all the Books of God be redeemed, and all the prophecies uttered by the Prophets of old come to pass, and the vision of seers and poets be realized. Then will the planet, galvanized through the universal belief of its dwellers in one God, and their allegiance to one common Revelation, mirror, within the limitations imposed upon it, the effulgent glories of the sovereignty of Baha 'u' llah, shining in the plenitude of its splendor in the Abha Paradise, and be made the footstool of His Tluáone on high, and acclaimed as the earthly heaven, capable of fulfilling that ineffable destiny fixed for it, from time immemorial, by the love and wisdom of its Creator. Not ours, puny mortals that we are, to attempt, at so critical a stage in the long and checkered history of mankind, to arrive at a precise and satisfactory understanding of the steps which must successively lead a bleeding humanity, wretchedly oblivious of its God, and careless ofBaha'u'llah, from its calvary to its ultimate resurrection. Not ours, the living witnesses of the all-subduing potency of His Faith, to question, for a moment, and however dark the misery that enshrouds the world, the ability of Baha'u'llah to forge, with the hanu11er of His Will, and tluáough the fire of tTibulation, upon the anvil of this háavailing age, and in the particular shape His mind has en¥visioned, these scattered and mutually deshi.1ctive fragments into which a perverse world has fallen, into one single unit, solid and indivisible, able to execute His design for the children of men. Ours rather the duty, however confused the scene, however dismal the present out¥look, however circumscribed the resources we dispose of, to labour serenely, confidently, and unremittingly to lend our share of assis¥tance, in whichever way circumstances may enable us, to the operation of the forces which, as marshalled and directed by Baha'u'llah, are leading humanity out of the valley of misery and shame to the loftiest Sutlli11its of power and glory. Excerpts from Messages to the Bahná; World and The Promised Day is Come in Call to the Nations, Chapter V. The Resting Place ofShoghi Effendi, in the Great Northern Cemete1y, London, England. PART TWO THE COMMEMORATION OF HISTORIC ANNIVERSARIES THE BAHA'i WORLD 'A bdu 'l-Baha-th e Master-in New York City; June 1912. I THE SEVENTY-FIFTH ANNIVERSARY OF 'ABDU'L-BAHA's VISIT TO THE WEST 1. THE VISIT OF 'ABDU'L-BAHA TO THE WEST SH ERNA D EA MER IN September 1910, 'Abdu' l-Baha-the and Cairo. On 11 August 1911 He sailed Head of the Baha'i Faith-left His home in with a party of four to Marseilles, and pro¥the Holy Land and traveled first to Egypt, ceeded, after brief stays at Thonon-les-Bains and then to the West, visiting England and and Geneva, to London, where He arrived Scotland, France, Germany, Hungary, Aus¥on 4 September. A follower of Baha'u'llah tria and Switzerland, and the United States -Sara Louisa, Lady Blomfield, whom of America and Canada. His journey lasted 'Abdu '1-Baha called Sitarih Khanum-put for three years, and everywhere He went her apartment at 97 Cadogan Gardens at His He proclaimed the Teachings of Baha'u' llah disposal. "He arrived, and who shall picture through word and through deed. Him?" she asks. '"Abdu'l-Baha was at this time broken in A silence as of love and awe overcame health", His grandson, Shoghi Effendi, tells us. us, as we looked at Him; the gracious He suffered from several maladies figure, clothed in a simple white garment, brought on by the strains and stresses of a over which was a light-coloured Persian tragic life spent almost wholly in exile 'aba; on His head He wore a low¥and imprisonment. He was on the thresh¥crowned taj, round which was folded a old of three-score years and ten. Yet as small, fine-linen turban of purest white; soon as He was released from His forty-year His hair and short beard were of that long captivity ... He arose with sublime snowy whiteness which had once been courage, confidence and resolution to con¥black; His eyes were large, blue-grey with secrate what little strength remained to long, black lashes and well-marked eye¥Him, in the evening ofHis life, to a service brows; His face was a beautiful oval with of such heroic proportions that no parallel warm, ivory-coloured skin, a straight, to it is to be found in the annals of the finely-modelled nose, and firm, kind first Baha'i century. 1 mouth. These are merely outside details He spent almost a year in Egypt, first in by which an attempt is made to convey Port Said, and then in a residence in Ramleh, an idea of His arresting personality. His a suburb of Alexandria, later visiting Zayrun figure was of such perfect symmetry, and so full of dignity and grace, that the first impression was that of considerable 1 Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By (Wilmette: Baha' i Publishing Trust, 1987), p. 279. height. He seemed an incarnation of loving THE BAHA ' I WORLD understanding, of compassion and power, of wisdom and authority, of strength, and of a buoyant youthfulness, which some¥how defied the burden of His years; and such years! One saw, as in a clear vision, that He had so wrought all good and mercy that the inner grace of Him had grown greater than all outer sign, and the radiance of this inner glory shone in every glance, and word, and movement as He came with hands outstretched. 'I am very much pleased with you all. Your love has drawn me to London. I waited forty years in prison to bring the Message to you. Are you pleased to receive such a guest?" 'Abdu'l-Bah:i gave the Message of the Baha'i Faith, in eloquent and unequivocal terms, in a number of public talks during His stay in England. The first was from the pulpit ofthe City Temple in Holborn on 10 Septem¥ ber 1911, at the invitation of the Reveiáend R. J. Campbell. "Oh Noble friends; seekers after God!", He began: Praise be to God! Today the light of Truth is shining upon the world in its abundance; the breezes of the heavenly garden are blowing throughout all regions; the call of the Kingdom is heard in all lands, and the breath of the Holy Spirit is felt in all hearts that are faithful... The sea of the unity of mankind is lifting up its waves with joy, for there is real communication between the hearts and minds of men. The banner of the Holy Spirit is uplifted, and men see it, and are assured with the knowledge that this is a new day. This is a new cycle of human power. All the horizons of the world are luminous, and the world will become indeed as a garden and a paradise. It is the hour of unity of the sons of men and of the drawing together of all races and all 1 Blomfield, Lady, The Chosen Highway (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1967), pp. 149-150. For editorial consistency, the personal pronouns related to 'Abdu'1-Baha in this and other old texts quoted in the article have all been capitalized. classes. You are loosed from ancient superstitions which have kept men ig¥norant, destroying the foundation of true humanity. The gift of God to this enlight¥ened age is the knowledge of the oneness of mankind and of the fundamental oneness of religion. War shall cease between nations, and by the will of God the Most Great Peace shall come; the world will be seen as a new world, and all men will live as brothers.2 This was a powerful call to the West to recognize the new Light from the East and He expanded His theme when addressing the congregation of St. John the Divine, at Westminster, at the request of the Venerable Archdeacon Wilberforce. He spoke to the Theosophical Society at their headquarters, at the express request of their president, and also to a meeting at the Higher Thought Centre in London. From the point of view of His hostess, however, "The history of 'Abdu'l-Bah:i's stay in our house lies in the relating of vari¥ous incidents, connected with individuals, who stand out from amongst the crowd of those persons who eagerly sought His Presence". Oh, these pilgrims, these guests, these visitors! Remembering those days, our ears are filled with the sound of their footsteps-as they came from every country in the world! Every day, all day long, a constant stream. An interminable procession! Ministers and missionaries, Oriental scholars and occult students, practical men of affairs and mystics, Anglican-Catholics and Nonconformists, Theosophists and Hindus, Christian Sci¥entists and doctors of medicine, Muslims, Buddhists, and Zoroastrians. There also called: politicians, Salvation Army sol¥diers, and other workers for human good, women suffragists, journalists, writers, 2 'Abdu '/-Baha in London; Addresses and Notes of Con versations (London: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1982), pp. 19-20. poets and healers, dressmakers and great ladies, artists and artisans, poor workless people and prosperous merchants, mem¥bers of the dramatic and musical world, these all came; and none were too lowly, nor too great, to receive the sympathetic consideration of this holy Messenger, who was ever giving His life for others' good.1 "He rose very early, chanted prayers, took tea, wrote Tablets, and dictated others," Lady Blomfield tells us. "He then received those who flocked to see Him, some arriving soon after dawn, patiently waiting on the doorsteps until the door would be opened for their entrance." These visitors were received individually, or by twos or threes. "Then, about nine o'clock, He would come into the dining room whilst we were at breakfast to greet us. 'Are you well? Did you sleep well?'" Certain of those who thronged to see the Master, having travelled from far countries, were naturally anxious to spend every possible moment with Him ... Therefore it came about that day after day, whilst the Master was teaching, the luncheon gong would sound, and those who remained would be invited to sit at food with Him. We grew to expect that there would be nineteen guests at table, so often did this number recur. These were much-prized times; 'Abdu'l-Baha would continue the interrupted discourse, or tell some anecdote, often humorous, mean¥while frequently serving the guests with His own hands, offering sweets, or choosing various fruits to distribute to the friends. 2 At the invitation of the Lord Mayor of London, 'Abdu'l-Baha breakfasted with him at the Mansion House. On another occasion, He sat in the bow window in the after¥noon sunshine, His arm round a very ragged but very happy little boy who had come to ask for sixpence for his money box and for his invalid mother, whilst round Him in the room were gathered men 1 The Chosen Highway, pp. 150-15 1. 2 ibid. p. 161. and women discussing Education, Social¥ism, the first Reform Bill, and the relation of submarines and wireless telegraphy to the new era on which man is entering.3 One day after a meeting when, as usual, many people had crowded round Him, 'Abdu '1-Baha arrived home very tired. We were sad at heart that He should be so fatigued, and bewailed the many steps to be ascended to the flat. Suddenly, to our amazement, the Master ran up the stairs to the top very quickly without stopping. He looked down at us as we walked up after Him, saying with a bright smile, from which all traces of fatigue had vanished: 'You are all very old! I am very young!' Seeing me full of wonder, 'Abdu'l-Baha said: 'Through the power of Bah a 'u' llah all things can be done. I have just used that power.' That was the only time we had ever seen Him use that power for Himself, and I feel that He did so then to cheer and comfort us, as we were really sad concerning His fatigue. Might it not also have been to show us an example of the great Reserve of Divine Force always available for those of us who are working in various ways in the 'Path ofthe Love ofGod and ofMankind.' A celestial strength which reinforces us when our human strength fails.4 Another lesson was given to the friends as they walked with 'Abdu' l-Baha in Richmond Park "as the evening light was waning. Rows of shining lamps beneath the trees, stretching as far as our eyes could see into the distance, made that part of London into a glowing fairyland." 'I am very much pleased with this scene. Light is good, most good. There was much darkness in the prison at 'Akka,' said the Master. Our hearts were sad as we thought on those sombre years within that dismal for¥tress ... When we said 'We are glad ... that 3 God Passes By, p. 285. 4 Th e Chosen Highway, p. 169. THE BAHA'I WORLD 'Abdu 'l-Baha in Passmore Edwards Settlement Hall, London, England; 29 September 1911. you are free ', He said: 'Freedom is not a matter of place, but of condition. I was happy in that prison, for those days were passed in the path of service. To me prison was freedom. Troubles are a rest to me. Death is life. To be despised is honour. Therefore was I full of happiness all through that prison time. When one is released from the prison of self, that is indeed freedom! For self is the greatest prison. When this release takes place, one can never be imprisoned. Unless one accepts dire vicissitudes, not with dull resignation, but with radiant acquies¥cence, one cannot attain this freedom. ' 1 Lady Blomfield recorded a number of stories such as these, but, she wrote, "There is a note in 'Abdu'l-Baha's character that has not been emphasized, and without which no idea of Him is complete. The impressive dignity which distinguishes His presence and bearing is occasionally lighted by a delicate and tactful humour, which is as unaffected as it is infectious and delightful." She continued: On His last afternoon in London, a reporter called to ask Him of His future plans... When, in answer to this query, 'Abdu'l-Baha told in perfect English of His intention to visit Paris and go from there to Alexandria, the press representa¥tive evinced surprise at His faultless pronunciation. Thereupon 'Abdu'l-Baha proceeded to march with a free stride up and down the flower-scented drawing room, His Oriental garb contrasting strangely with His modern surroundings; and, to the amusement of the assembly, uttered a string of elaborate English words, [including 'hippopotamus', H.M. Balyuzi tells us on p.155 ofhis book about'Abdu'l¥Baha2] laughingly ending, 'Very difficult English words I speak! ' 1 The Chosen Highway, p. 166. On 3 October 'Abdu'l-Baha was sched¥ uled to leave for Paris. The secretaries and friends were ready to start for the train, but 'Abdu' l-Baha sat calmly writing. When reminded that it was time to leave, He looked up, saying: "There are things of more impor¥ tance than trains," and He continued to write. Suddenly in breathless haste a man came in, carrying in his hand a beautiful garland of fragrant white flowers. Bow¥ing low before the Master, he said: 'In the name of the disciples of Zoroaster, The Pure One, I hail Thee as the "Promised Shah Bahram"! ' Then the man, for a sign, garlanded 'Abdu' l-Baha, and proceeded to anoint each and all of the amazed friends who were present with precious oil, which had the odour of fresh roses. This brief but impressive ceremony concluded, 'Abdu 'I-Baba, having carefully divested Himself of the garland, departed for the train. We had witnessed a solemn act in the Mysterious Sacred Drama of the World. 'Abdu' l-Baha's sojourn in London was ended. We stood bereft of His presence.1 In Paris, an apartment was found for 'Abdu'l-Baha by Hippolyte and Laura Dreyfus-Barney at 4 avenue de Camoens, adjacent to the Trocadero Gardens where the Master often took solitary, restful walks. As in London, every morning, the Master expounded the principles of the Teaching ofBaha'u'llah to those who gathered round Him, the learned and the unlearned, eager and respectful. They were of all nationalities and creeds, from the East and from the West, including Theosophists, agnostics, materialists, spiritu¥alists, Christian Scientists, social reformers, Hindus, Sufis, Muslims, Buddhists, Zoro¥astrians, and many others. Often came workers in various humanitarian societies, who were striving to reduce the miseries of the poor. These received special sympathy and blessing ... 2 Balyuzi, H.M., 'Abdu "/-Baha (Oxford: George Ronald, 1987), p. 155. 1 The Chosen Highway, pp. 173-174. The visit of one man made a profound impression upon us: 'O 'Abdu' l-Baha, I have come from the French Congo, where I have been engaged in mitigating the hardships of some of the natives. For six¥teen years I have worked in that country.' 'It was a great comfort to me in the dark¥ ness ofmy prison to know the work which you were doing. '2 Horace Holley, who was an eyewitness, was quoted as saying that "As London emphasized the social and spiritual aspects of Bahaism, so Paris revealed its intellectual content and unparalleled power of defi¥nition."3 One reality 'Abdu' l-Baha clearly defined is that man-the true man-is soul, not body. For example, on 17 November 'Abdu'l-Baha told the friends: There are in the world of humanity three degrees; those of the body, the soul, and spirit. The body is the physical or animal degree of man. From the bodily point of view man is a sharer of the animal kingdom .... unlike the animal, man has a rational soul, the human intelli¥gence. This intelligence of man is the intermediary between his body and his spirit. ... Illumined by the spirit through the instrumentality of the soul, man's radi¥ant intelligence makes him the crowning¥point of Creation. But on the other hand, when man does not open his mind and heart to the blessing of the spirit, but turns his soul towards the material side, towards the bodily part of his nature, then he is fa llen from his high place and he becomes inferior to the inhabitants of the lower animal kingdom.4 As events brought closer the outbreak of the first World War, 'Abdu' l-Baha also described the causes of war in no uncertain terms. For example, on 21 October, 'Abdu'l¥Baha told the friends that "The news of the Battle ofBenghazi grieves my heart. I wonder 2 The Chosen Highway, p. 181. 3 'Abdu"/-Baha, p. 159. 4 'Abdu'l-Baha, Paris Talks (London: Baha'i Publish¥ ing Trust, 1972), pp. 96-97. at the human savagery that still exists in the world!" He continued: How is it possible for men to fight from morning until evening, killing each other, shedding the blood of their fellowmen: And for what object? To gain possession of a part of the earth!. . . However great the conqueror, however many countries he may reduce to slavery, he is unable to retain any part of these devastated lands but one tiny portion-his tomb! .. . But war is made for the satisfaction of men's ambition; for the sake of worldly gain to the few, terrible misery is brought to numberless homes, breaking the hearts of hundreds of men and women! How many widows mourn their husbands, how many stories of savage cruelty do we hear! How many little orphaned children are crying for their dead fathers, how many women are weeping for their slain sons! There is nothing so heart-breaking and terrible as an outburst of human savagery! 1 The Japanese Ambassador to Madrid, Viscount Arawaka, and his wife were in Paris at the same time as 'Abdu' 1-Baha and were told of His presence. They were anxious to meet Him, but the wife of the Ambassador had a severe cold and could not go out. Upon hearing this, 'Abdu'l-Baha offered to call upon them. Accordingly, they met in the Tapestry Room of the Hotel d'Jena. 'Abdu'l-Baha talked with the Ambas¥sador and his wife of conditions in Japan, of the great international importance of that country, of the vast service to mankind, of the work for the abolition of war, of the need for improving conditions of life for the worker, of the necessity of educating girls and boys equally. 'The religious ideal is the soul of all plans for the good of mankind. Religion must never be used as a tool by party politi¥cians. God 's politics are mighty, man's ibid. pp. 28-29. politics are feeble.' Speaking of religion and science, the two great wings with which the bird of humankind is able to soar, He said: 'Scientific discoveries have increased material civilization. There is in existence a stupendous force, as yet, happily, undiscovered by man. Let us supplicate God, the Beloved, that this force be not discovered by science until spiritual civilization shall dominate the human mind. In the hands of men of lower material nature, this power would be able to destroy the whole earth. '2 This is a very prescient and profound statement considering Japan's later experi¥ence in the second World War. But 'Abdu'l-Baha did not dwell on the ills of the world around Him. Rather, He focussed His audiences on the prescription for remedying those ills. "All true healing comes from God!" He told His audience on 19 October. "There are two causes for sick¥ness, one is material, the other spiritual. If the sickness is of the body, a material remedy is needed, if of the soul, a spiritual remedy."3 Baha'u' llah had come to bring the spiritual remedy that humanity needs for this Day. During His last public talk in England, to the Theosophical Society, on 30 September, He had for the first time made a systematic presentation of some of the basic principles of the Faith of His Father; in Paris He pre¥sented them again and again. Shoghi Effendi summarized these as follows: The independent search after truth, unfettered by superstition or tradition; the oneness of the entire human race, the piv¥otal principle and fundamental doctrine of the Faith; the basic unity of all religions; the condemnation of all forms of preju¥dice, whether religious, racial, class or national; the harmony which must exist between religion and science; the equality of men and women, the two wings on 2 The Chosen Highway, pp. 183-184. 3 Paris Talks, p. 19. which the bird of human kind is able to soar; the introduction of compulsory education; the adoption of a universal auxiliary language; the abolition of the extremes of wealth and poverty; the institution of a world tribunal for the adjudication of disputes between nations; the exaltation of work, performed in the spirit of service, to the rank of worship; the glorification of justice as the ruling principle in human society, and of reli¥gion as a bulwark for the protection of all peoples and nations; and the establish¥ment of a permanent and universal peace as the supreme goal of all mankind .. . I "The words of 'Abdu'l-Baha can be put on to paper," Lady Blomfield wrote, "but how to describe the smile, the earnest plead¥ing, the loving-kindness, the radiant vitality, and at times the awe-inspiring authority of His spoken words? The vibrations of His voice seemed to enfold the listeners in an atmosphere of the Spirit, and to penetrate to the very core of being. We were experi¥encing the transforming radiance of the Sun of Truth; henceforth, material aims and unworthy ambitions shrank away into their trivial, obscure retreats."2 In fornrnl talks in Paris, 'Abdu'l-Baha continued to use the "unparalleled power of definition" of the Baha'i Faith to explain the human mind, body, spirit, and soul, the Holy Spirit, God, and the relationship between all of these. With individuals He went from the general to the specific, such as the evening an artist was presented to Him in the home of Monsieur and Madame Dreyfus-Barney: 'Thou art very welcome. I am happy to see thee. All true art is a gift of the Holy Spirit.' 'What is the Holy Spirit?' 'It is the Sun of Truth, 0 Artist.' 'Where, where, is the Sun of Truth?' 'The Sun of Truth is everywhere, It is shining on the whole world.' 'What of the dark night, when the Sun is not shining?' 'The darkness 1 God Passes By, pp. 28 1-282. 2 The Chosen Highway, p. 181. of night is past, the Sun has risen.' 'But, Master, how shall it be with the blinded eyes that cannot see the Sun's splendour? And what of the deaf ears that cannot hear those who praise its beauty?' 'I will pray that the blind eyes may be opened, that the deaf ears may be unstopped, and that the hearts may have grace to understand.' As 'Abdu'l-Baha spoke, the troubled mien of the artist gave place to a look of relief, satisfied understanding, joyous emotion.3 "It was of great interest'', Lady Blomfield wrote, "to notice the effect the presence of 'Abdu'l-Baha had upon some children. One little girl whispered, 'Look, that is Jesus when He was old.' Perhaps their unstained nature sensed the breath of holiness which was always with Him, and caused these little ones to liken Him to the most Holy One of Whom they were conscious."4 This effect was dramatically displayed two days before the close of'Abdu'l-Baha's visit in Paris, when a woman came hur¥riedly into the gathering at the avenue de Camoens: Oh, how glad I am to be in time! I must tell you the amazing reason of my hurried journey from America. One day, my little girl astonished me by saying: 'Mummy, if dear Lord Jesus was in the world now, what would you do?' ... 'I would feel like getting on to the first train and going to Him as fast as I could.' 'Well, Mummy, He is in the world.' ... 'What do you mean, my precious? How do you know?' I said. ' He told me Himself, so of course He is in the world.' Full of wonder, I thought: Is this a sacred message which is being given to me out of the mouth of my babe? And I prayed that it might be made clear to me. The next day she said, insis¥tently and as though she could not understand: 'Mummy, darlin', why isn 't you gone to see Lord Jesus? He's told me 3 ibid. p. 182. 4 ibid. p. 186. THE BAHA'I WORLD 'Abdu 'l-Baha with Baha 'i friends in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois, on3May /912. two times that He is really here, in the world.' 'Tiny love, Mummy doesn't know where He is, how could she find Him?' ... I was naturally perturbed. The same afternoon, being out for a walk with my child, she suddenly stood still and cried out, 'There He is! There He is!' She was trembling with excitement and pointing at the windows of a magazine store where there was a picture of 'Abdu'l-Baha. I bought the paper, found this address, caught a boat that same night, and here I am. 1 "The reader will understand that it is impossible to find fitting words for the thoughts and feelings which were with us in those Paris days", Lady Blomfield concludes.2 From France, 'Abdu' l-Baha returned to Egypt in December 1911 where He again took up His residence in Ramleh. In the course of His several visits to Egypt He had more than one interview with the Khedive, 'Abbas I:Iilmi Pasha II, was introduced to Lord Kitchener, met the Mufti, Shaykh Mu~ammad Bakhit, as well as the Khedive's Imam, Shaykh Mu~ammad Rashid, and associated with several 'ulamas, pashas, Persian notables, members of the Turkish Parliament, editors of leading newspapers in Cairo and Alexandria, and other leaders and representatives of well-known institutions, both religious and secular.3 'Abdu'l-Baha embarked on His second journey to the West on the steamship Cedric, setting out on 25 March 1912 and sailing via Naples direct to New York. He arrived in America on 11 April. He comes on a mission of international peace, to attend and address the Peace Conference at Lake Mohonk the latter part of this month, and to address various I ibid. pp. 185-186. 2 ibid. p. 187. 3 Cod Passes By, p. 283. peace meetings, educational societies, religious organizations, etc.', wrote Wendell Phillips Dodge, a reporter for the New York City News Association, who boarded the Cedric at quarantine and interviewed 'Abdu'l-Baha coming up the bay. The story was given to all of the New York newspapers and, through the Associated Press, was sent to newspapers throughout the world. 1 Indeed, 'Abdu '1-Baha spoke of world peace during His first public address in America, given only three days after His arrival to the congregation of the Church of the Ascension in New York City. Today . the world of humanity is in need of international unity and concilia¥tion. To establish these great fundamental principles a propelling power is needed. It is self-evident that the unity of the human world and the Most Great Peace cannot be accomplished through material means. They cannot be established through political power, for the political interests of nations are various and the policies of peoples are divergent and conflicting. They cannot be founded through racial or patriotic power, for these are human powers, selfish and weak. The very nature of racial differences and patriotic prejudices prevents the realization of this unity and agreement. Therefore, it is evidenced that the promotion of the oneness of the king¥dom of humanity, which is the essence of the teachings of all the Manifestations of God, is impossible except through the divine power and breaths of the Holy Spirit. Other powers are too weak and are incapable of accomplishing this. For man two wings are necessary. One wing is physical power and material civilization; the other is spiritual power and divine civilization. With one wing only, flight is impossible. Two wings are essential. Therefore, no matter how much material civilization advances, it cannot 1 Star of tlie West, vol. 111, no. 3, p. I (28 April 1912). attain to perfection except through the uplift of spiritual civilization.2 'Abdu 'l-Baha proclaimed the message of universal peace from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast of North America and back again. For eight months He traveled, often having as His hostess Grace Robarts, a teacher of domestic science in a college in Canada. He would ask her to go ahead and secure an apartment for Him and prepare it for His arrival. Then she would serve as housekeeper and hostess. "She kept the home immaculate," we are told, "and always ready for the constant stream of guests from morning to night, Baba' is and enquirers and souls in difficulty to whom 'Abdu'l-Baha was always the loving Father."3 Volumes have and wi ll continue to be written about the activities of ' Abdu '1-Baha in America, but in God Passes By Shoghi Effendi selects seven which he states fully demonstrate the importance of that visit: The laying with His own hands, of the dedication stone of the Mashriqu '1¥Adhkar, by the shore of Lake Michigan . .. the dynamic affirmation by Him of the implications of the Covenant instituted by Baha'u'llah, following the reading of the newly translated Tablet of the Branch, in a general assembly of His followers in New York ... the moving ceremony in Inglewood, California, marking His spe¥cial pilgrimage to the grave of Thornton Chase, the 'first American believer,' and indeed the first to embrace the Cause of Baha'u'llah in the Western world; the symbolic Feast He Himself offered to a large gathering of His disciples assem¥bled in the open air ... at West Englewood, in New Jersey; the blessing He bestowed on the Open Forum at Green Acre, in Maine .. . which was to evolve into one of the first Bah a'[ summer schools of the Western Hemisphere ... His address to an 2 'Abdu'l-Baha, The Pro111u/gatio11 ofUniversal Peace (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1982), pp. 11-12. 3 T/ie Bafia á; World, vol. VIII (Wilmette: Baha'i Pub¥ lishing Committee, 1942), p. 658. THE BAHA ' I WORLD 'Abdu 'l-Baha in Brooklyn, New York, in June I 9 I 2 with His secretary, Mirza Ma~mud-i¥Zarqani, His translators A~madSohrab and Amin 'ullah Farid, and His companions 'Ali-Akbar Nal5J!javani, Valiyu 'llah Varqa and Siyyid Asadu 'llah Qumi. audience of several hundred attending the last session of the newly-founded Baha'i Temple Unity held in Chicago; and, last but not least, the exemplary act He per¥formed by uniting in wedlock two of His followers of different nationalities, one of the white, the other of the Negro race. 1 'Abdu'l-Baha laid the cornerstone of the first Baha'i House of Worship of the West on 1May1912, in Wilmette, lllinois. For the doing of the first work a golden trowel was presented ... 'Abdu'l-Baha next called for the implements necessitated by the gravelly nature of the soil, and in response there was brought to Him first an axe and then a shovel. With these tools of the everyday life of the workers of the world 'Abdu'l-Baha and friends from every race present, excavated a resting place for a stone which had been brought to the spot 1 God Passes By, p. 288. as a loving contribution ... It was truly a symbolic seed sowing for countless of thou¥sands of similar loving contributions ... 2 The second act highlighted by Shoghi Effendi-the affirmation by 'Abdu'l-Baha of the implications of the Covenant instituted by Baha'u'llah-took place in New York City. The Tablet of the Branch revealed by Baha'u'llah in Adrianople, had recently been translated, and read, in part: There hath branched from the Sadratu 'l¥Muntaha this sacred and glorious Being, this Branch ofHoliness; well is it with him that hath sought His shelter and abideth beneath His shadow. Verily the Limb of the Law ofGod hath sprung forth from this Root which God hath firmly implanted in the Ground ofHis Will, and Whose Branch hath been so uplifted as to encompass the whole of creation... Render thanks unto 2 Star ofthe West, vol. III , no. 4, p. 6 ( 17 May 1912). 'Abdu 'l-Baha in Oakland, California, at a meeting with the friends at the home of Helen S. Goodall, 12 October 1912. God, 0 people, for His appearance; for verily He is the most great Favor unto you, the most peifect bounty upon you; and through Him every mouldering bone is quickened. Whoso turneth towards Him hath turned towards God, and whoso tur¥neth away from Him hath turned away from My Beauty, hath repudiated My Proof, and transgressed against Me. He is the Trust of God amongst you, His charge within you, His manifestation unto you and His appear¥ance among His favored servants ... 1 When this Tablet was read to the assem¥ blage on 19 June, 'Abdu'l-Baha declared His own station: the Center of the Covenant. In fom1er cycles no distinct Covenant was made in writing by the Supreme Pen; no distinct personage was appointed to be the Standard differentiating falsehood from truth ... But in this Dispensation of the Blessed Beauty among its distinctions is that He did not leave people in per¥plexity. He entered into a Covenant and Testament with the people. He appointed a CENTER OF THE COVENANT. He wrote with His own pen and revealed it in the Kitab¥i-Aqdas, the Book of Laws, and Kitab-i¥'Ahd, the Book of the Covenant, appoint¥ing Him ('Abdu'l-Baha) the Ex-pounder of the Book... This is an explicit text of the Blessed Beauty. So there is no excuse left for anybody.2 'Abdu'l-Baha had already traveled to the West when He heard that Thornton Chase had passed away on 30 September. He jour¥neyed from San Francisco to Los Angeles especially to visit the grave of the "first American believer'', and on 19 October He, with about twenty-five of the friends, took the streetcar to the cemetery in Inglewood 2 1 Shoghi Effendi, The World Orde1' ofBa ha 'u 'I/ah Star ofthe West, vol. 111, no. 14, p. 9 (23 November (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1982), p. 135. 1912). THE BAHA 'i WORLD where He scattered flowers over Chase's resting place. Then, still facing the grave, He turned in the direction of 'Akkci and chanted the Tablet of Visitation-the Tablet which is read in the Shrines of the Bab and Baha'u'llah. Following that, He chanted a prayer for Thornton Chase and spoke of the services which that dedicated man had rendered to the Faith .... At the con¥clusion of His visit, 'Abdu' l-Baha knelt on the ground and kissed the grave of Thornton Chase. 1 He asked the friends to visit the site every year on His behalf. 'Abdu'l-Baha gave a unity feast in West Englewood, New Jersey, on Saturday 29 June for the Baha'is of New York City and the vicinity. About three hundred attended. There in the fragrant pine grove, on a brightJune day, 'Abdu'l-Baha, Himself the host, smiling joyously and radiating the spirit of good will, welcomed the happy friends ....He talked to them from the center of a large circle around which the tables were arranged. He said [in paii]: 2 'This is a delightful gathering; you have come here with sincere intentions, and the purpose of all present is the attainment of the virtues of God. The motive is attraction to the divine Kingdom. Since the desire of all is unity and agreement, it is certain that this meeting will be pro¥ductive of great results ... Such gatherings as this have no equal or likeness in the world of mankind, where people are drawn together by physical motives or in furtherance of material interests, for this meeting is a prototype of that inner and complete spiritual association in the eter¥nal world of being. True Baha'i meetings are the mirrors of the Kingdom wherein images of the Supreme Concourse are reflected. In them the lights of the most great guidance are visible... Rejoice ... 1 'Abdu á1-Baha, pp. 309-310. 2 Star ofthe West, vol. Ill, no. 8, p. 16 (I August 19 12). How many blessed souls have longed for this radiant century, their utmost hopes and desires centered upon 'the happiness and joy of one such day as this ... '3 On 16 August 1912 'Abdu'l-Baha traveled to Green Acre, an estate of nearly two hun¥dred acres on the banks of the Piscataqua River in Eliot, Maine. It was owned by Sarah Farmer, who had opened it in 1894 as a conference center for people of advanced and liberal views. Two years later she had embraced the Baha'i Faith, and while on pilgrimage to 'Akka she had offered the facil¥ities to 'Abdu'l-Baha, thus making Green Acre one of the earliest Baha'i endowments in America. 'Abdu'l-Baha spent one week at Green Acre. Some of His efforts, I:Iasan Balylizi wrote, ...were inevitably directed towards coun¥tering the effects of the eccentric ideas being disseminated by various pseudo¥mystics and cranks who were attracted to the free platform provided there. On one occasion He was seen distributing sweets to a group of people, telling them that they ought to eat and enjoy their food ... Spirituality, He said, had nothing to do with abstaining from food, with the mortification of the flesh. On another occasion He spoke about the rigorous disciplines of the ascetics, and the harm ensuing from them. He cited superstitions to be found in India. He also had to face fortune-tellers and palmists whom He treated with great kindliness.4 On 20 August Fred Mortensen arrived at Green Acre to see 'Abdu'l-Baha. "In my youth'', he wrote later, "my environment was not of the best and being around boys of hard character I guess I determined to be as tough as any, which I very easily did ..." He had gotten into trouble with the law, and Albert Hall, a Baha'i, had helped to get him out of prison and had told him about the 3 Promulgatio11, pp. 213-214. 4 'Abdu '/-Baha , pp. 240-241. Baha'i Faith. Mr. Mortensen, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, wanted to meet 'Abdu'l-Baha. When he heard a rumor that He might not travel to the West he determined to go to see Him. "As my finances were low I of neces¥sity [lay on the rods between the wheels of trains] to Green Acre." There, 'Abdu'l-Baha greeted him warmly and asked if he had had a pleasant journey. I explained to Him how I rode on the trains, after which He kissed both my cheeks, gave me much fruit, and kissed the dirty hat I wore, which had become soiled on my trip to see Him.1 Shoghi Effendi included 'Abdu'l-Baha's address to an audience attending the public session of the Baha'i Temple Unity as having special significance. This took place on 30 April in the Masonic Temple in Chicago. The Baha' i Temple Unity was a national organization created in March 1909 at a convention called under 'Abdu'l-Baha's direc¥tion to carry out the construction of the first Baha'i House of Worship in the West. It was incorporated in the State of Illinois and invested with full authority to hold title to the Temple property and to provide ways and means for its construction. The fourth annual convention ofBaha'i Temple Unity was being held while ' Abdu 'l-Baha was in Chicago. Among the institutes ofthe Holy Books is that of the foundation of places of wor¥ship. That is to say, an edifice or temple is to be built in order that humanity might find a place of meeting, and this is to be conducive to unity and fellowship among them. The real temple is the very Word of God; for to it all humanity must tum, and it is the center of unity for all mankind ... Temples are the symbols of the divine uniting force so that when the people gather there in the House of God they may recall the fact that the law has been . .rev...ealed _for J:b.em_and J:hat-1.h.e Jaw.J.s J:o unite them. They will realize that just as 1 Star ofthe West, vol. XIV, no. 12, p. 367 (March 1924). this temple was founded for the unification of mankind, the law preceding and creat¥ing it came forth in the manifest Word .. .. That is why Baha'u'llah has conunanded that a place of worship be built. .. 2 " ...and, last but not least," Shoghi Effendi wrote of'Abdu'l-Baha's activities in America, was "the exemplary act He performed by uniting in wedlock two of His followers of different nationalities, one of the white, the other of the Negro race ..." The two Baha'is were Louisa Mathew and Louis Gregory, and their union apparently came about in the following way. Miss Mathew and Mr. Gregory had met each other as Baha'i pilgrims visiting 'Abdu'l-Baha in Ramleh, and in the Holy Land, " ... and although greatly attracted to each other not even dimly realized its future bearing." In America, 'Abdu '1-Baha gave Miss Mathew a white rose to give to Mr. Gregory, and in other ways conveyed that He wished her to marry Mr. Gregory. Curiously enough after this love began to grow in my heart & the desire for the marriage whereas before I only liked Mr. Gregory as a friend. Later 'Abdu'l¥Baha said before Dr. Getsinger, Fareed & others in the train to Chicago to me, 'How are you & Mr. Gregory getting along?' Startled I answered, 'What do you mean, we are good friends? ' To which He replied emphatically & with His face wreathed in mischievous smiles, ' You must be very good friends .. . Later. .. He told Louis it would give Him much pleasure if he & I would marry, which came as an utter surprise to Louis who had no thoughts of marriage. 'Abdu'l-Baha said, 'What is the matter? Don' t you love her?' 'Yes as a friend' Louis said. 'Well think of it' said 'Abdu'l-Baha, '&let me know; ...marriage is not an ordinance & need not be obeyed, .but_i.t w..o.uld .gi v_e ..me Jllll.Cb ple.asur.e if you & Miss Mathew were to marry.' 2 Promulgation, p. 65. THE BAHA'i WORLD 'Abdu 'l-Baha at a banquet held in His honor at the Great Northern Hotel in New York on 23 November 1912. The wedding took place at noon on 27 September 1912 in the parsonage of an Episcopal church in New York City. 'Abdu'l-Baha was on a train headed westward from Denver at the time, but His encouragement 'contributed to the Baha'i atmosphere of the wedding' .1 'Abdu'l-Baha's activities with the Ameri¥ can Baha' is were designed to " ... pave the way for the erection of their central House of Worship, to fortify them against the tests they were soon to endure, to cement their unity, and to bless the beginnings of that Adminis¥trative Order which they were soon to initiate and champion'', wrote Shoghi Effendi. No less remarkable were 'Abdu'l-Baha's public activities in the course ofHis associa¥tion with the multitude ofpeople with whom He came in contact during His tour across a continent. A full account ofthese diversified activities which crowded His days during 1 Morrison. Gayle. To Move the World (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1982), pp. 66-68. no less than eight months, would be beyond the scope of this survey. Suffice it to say that in the city ofNew York alone He delivered public addresses in, and made formal visits to, no less than fifty-five different places .... Secretaries of State, Ambassadors, Congressmen, distinguished rabbis and churchmen, and other people of eminence attained His presence, among whom were such figures as Dr. D.S. Jordan, President of Leland Stanford University, Prof. Jack¥son of Columbia University, Prof. Jack of Oxford University, Rabbi Stephen Wise of New York... Alexander Graham Bell, Rabindra Nath Tagore, Hon. Franklin K. Lane, Mrs. William Jennings Bryan, Andrew Carnegie, Hon. Franklin Mac¥Veagh, Secretary of the United States Treasury, Lee McClung, Mr. Roosevelt, Admiral Wain Wright, Admiral Peary, the British, Dutch and Swiss Ministers in Washington .. . 2 2 God Passes By, pp. 288-290. ... pictures from the tragic past ... must have many a time overpowered Him with feelings of mingled gratitude and sorrow, as He witnessed the many marks of respect, of esteem, and honor now shown Hirn and the Faith which He represented. "O Baha 'u 'llah! What hast Thou done?" He, as reported by the chronicler of His travels, was heard to exclaim one evening as He was being swiftly driven to fulfil His third engagement of the day in Wash¥ington, "O Baha 'u '!!ah! May my life be sacrificed for Thee! 0 Baha 'u '!!ah! May my soul be offered up for Thy sake! How full were Thy days with trials and tribula¥tions! How severe the ordeals Thou didst endure! How solid the foundation Thou hast finally laid, and how glorious the banner Thou didst hoist! "1 'Abdu 'l-Baha bade farewell to the Ameri¥ can Baha'is and sailed for Europe on board the S.S. Celtic on 5 December, arriving at Liverpool on 13 December 1912. He stayed in that port city for two days, speaking to the Theosophical Society on 14 December, and at Pembroke Chapel, a Baptist Church, on 15 December. "When I was in America, I had many opportunities of addressing the Theosophical Society there'', He began His first talk. The Theosophists are very dear to me, for they have abandoned all prejudice .... All the religions of the world are submerged in prejudice. A Jew is a Jew because his father was before him. A Christian is such for the same reason, and it is the same with a Musselman. All follow the precepts of their fathers, refus¥ing to go forth and seek for themselves ... All the different religions of God that have risen on the face of the earth have one purpose: to educate man and to inform him of the spiritual, the luminous, the divine, so that he may partake of heavenly spirit and find eternal life, show forth the virtues of mankind, and from a world of darkness enter a world of light. ibid. p. 293. There is no other reality of meaning to the different religions. Their purpose is one, the teaching is one.2 'Abdu'l-Baha moved on to London on 16 December. Lady Blornfield again put her residence in Cadogan Gardens at the disposal of the Master, and it seemed that His first visit to the British capital was being reenacted. There was, as before, a stream of visitors from every walk of life at all hours of the day and into the night. One day a woman asked to be permitted to see the Master. 'Have you an appoint¥ment?' 'Alas! No.' 'I am sorry,' answered the over-zealous friend who met her in the hall, 'but He is occupied now with most important people, and cannot be dis¥turbed.' The woman turned away, feeling too humble to persist in her appeal, but, oh! so bitterly disappointed. Before she had reached the foot of the stairway, she was overtaken by a breathless messenger from 'Abdu'l-Baha. 'He wishes to see you, come back! He has told me to bring you to Him.' We had heard His voice from the door of His audience room speaking with authority: 'A heart has been hurt. Hasten, hasten, bring her to me!' Another day, whilst several personages were talking with 'Abdu'l-Baha, a man 's voice was heard at the hall door. 'Is the lady of this house within?' ... After a while the poor fellow began his pitiful story: 'I was not always as you see me now, a dis¥reputable, hopeless object. My father is a country rector, and I had the advantage of being at a public school. Of the various causes which led to my arrival at the Thames embankment as my only home, I _need not speak to you. Last evening I had decided to put an end to my futile, hateful life, useless to God and man! Whilst tak¥ing what I had intended should be my last walk, I saw "a Face" in the window of a newspaper shop. I stood looking at the face as if rooted to the spot. He seemed to 2 Star ofthe West, vol. Ill, no. 17, p. 3 (19 January 19 13). THE BAHA'I WORLD speak to me, and call me to Him! 'Let me see that paper, please,' I asked. It was the face of 'Abdu'l-Baha. I read that He is here, in this house. I said to myself, 'If there is in existence on earth that person¥age, I shall take up again the burden of my life. I set off on my quest. I have come here to find Him. Tell me, is He here? Will He see me? Even me?' Of course He will see you. Come to Him. In answer to the knock, 'Abdu' l-Baha Himself opened the door, extending His hands, as though to a dear friend, whom He was expecting. 'Welcome! Most welcome! I am very much pleased that thou hast come. Be seated.' The pathetic man trembled and sank on to a low chair by the Master's feet, as though unable to utter a word. The other guests, meanwhile, looked on wonderingly to see the attention transferred to the strange-looking new arrival, who seemed to be so overburdened with hopeless misery. 'Be happy! Be happy! ' said 'Abdu'l-Baha, holding one of the poor hands, stroking tenderly the dishevelled, bowed head. Smiling that wonderful smile of loving compassion, the Master continued: 'Do not be filled with grief when humiliation overtaketh thee. The bounty and power of God is without limit for each and every soul in the world. Seek for spiritual joy and knowledge, then, though thou walk upon this earth, thou wilt be dwelling within the divine realm. Though thou be poor, thou mayest be rich in the Kingdom of God. ' These and other words of comfort, of strength, and of healing were spoken to the man, whose cloud of misery seemed to melt away in the warmth of the Master's loving pres¥ence. As the strange visitor rose to leave Him Whom he had sought and found, a new look was upon his face, a new erect¥ness in his carriage, a firm purpose in his steps. 'Please write down for me His words. I have attained all I expected, and even more.' 'And now what are you going to do?' I asked. 'I'm going to work in the fields. I can earn what I need for my simple wants. When I have saved enough I shall take a little bit of land, build a tiny hut upon it in which to live, then I shall grow violets for the market. As He says 'Poverty is unimportant, work is worship.' I need not say "thank you," need I? Fare¥well. ' The man had gone. 1 During ' Abdu'l-Baha's first visit to Britain the only city He had stayed in beside London was Bristol. During the nearly six weeks of His second visit He not only revisited Bristol, but also trav¥eled to Edinburgh and Oxford. Every place He went He was welcomed by dis¥tinguished leaders of thought. However, when it was suggested that a meeting might be arranged between King George V and 'Abdu'l-Baha, 'Abdu'l-Baha advised against it. He had come to the West to meet the poor, He said, not monarchs and noblemen. He would meet any seeker with affection, but had no particular wish to meet the rulers. Moreover, He noted, such moves could be misunderstood and misconstrued, and might create alarm. 2 On 22 December 'Abdu'l-Baha attended a performance of Eager Heart, a play pre¥ sented at Church House, Westminster. This was a memorable occasion, as it was the first time He had ever witnessed a dramatic performance. The Master wept during the scene in which the Holy Child and His parents, overcome with fatigue, and suffering from hunger, were met by the hesitation of Eager Heart to admit them to the haven of rest which she had prepared, she, of course, failing to recog¥nize the sacred visitors. The Master afterwards joined the group of players. It was an arresting scene. In the Eastern set¥ting the Messenger, in His Eastern robes, speaking to them in beautiful Eastern words of the Divine significance of the events which had been portrayed.3 1 Th e Chosen Highway , pp. 159-161. 2 'Abdu "/-Balui, p. 370. On Christmas night, 'Abdu'l-Baha visited the poor of the Salvation Army Shelter, Westminster, where each year a Christmas dinner is provided for those who have no homes and no friends, and but for the shelter would have no lodg¥ings. There were about 1,000 present on this occasion. It was a most impressive scene-the dinner for the homeless and the Master from the East delivering Christ's message to the poor. As a true test of attention, many of the hungry men forgot to eat and listened intently ... 'I feel tonight great joy and happiness to be in this place, because my meetings and callings have ever been mostly with the poor, and I call myself one of them. My lot has ever been with those who have not the goods of this world. When we look at the poor of humanity, we behold a world of brothers. All are sheep of God; God is the real shepherd ... Consider His Holiness Christ: He appeared in the world as one of the poor. He was born of a lowly family; all the apostles of Christ were of humble birth and His followers were of the very poorest of the com¥munity. This is what Christ states in the Gospels. "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God." ... Sorrow not, grieve not. Be not unhappy because you are not wealthy. You are the brothers of Jesus Christ. Christ was poor; Baha'u'llah was poor. For forty years He was imprisoned in poverty . ... Be ever happy ... Trust in God.. .' I At the close of His talk, 'Abdu'l-Baha made a contribution to the Shelter so that the poor might have a similar dinner on New Year's night. He was shown all around the hostel, and at the door he said to the attendant in charge, "May God prosper you. May you all be under the protection of the Almighty!" 3 The Chosen Highway, pp. I 54-I 55. 1 Star ofthe West, vol. III , no. I8, pp. 8-9 (7 February I9I3). When He reached Cadogan Gardens that night, it was apparent that the condition of the unfortunate had distressed Him. As always, He did not dwell on the prob¥lem. True help for the poor in this Day could only be found in His Father's Teachings, and the most useful immediate action that one could take would be to spread the Message. During a discussion of Spiritual Assemblies held on 16 January He said: All the deliberations, all consultation, all the talks and addresses must revolve around one focal center and that is: TEACH THE CAUSE! TEACH! TEACH! Convey the Message! Awaken the souls! Now is the time of laying the foundation. Now must we gather brick, stone, wood, iron, and other building materials! Now is not the time of decoration. We must strive day and night and think and work. What can I say that may become effective? What can I do that may bring results? What can I write that may bring forth fruits? Nothing else will be useful, today. The interests of such a Glorious Cause will not advance without undivided atten¥tion. While we are carrying this load we cannot carry any other load! 2 On 21 January 1913, 'Abdu'l-Baha left London for Paris, where He stayed at 30 rue St. Didier. This second visit to the French capital, which lasted two months, assumed certain characteristics of its own ... numbers of Baha'is had arrived from the East for the specific purpose of attaining His presence ... Moreover, vicis¥situdes of fortune had brought to Paris a multitude of emigres from iran and the Ottoman Empire. These men were from the ranks both of reactionaries-supporters of the old regime-and of liberals and constitutionalists. Many of them sought 'Abdu'l-Baha and requested to meet Him. To them, too, He gave of His time impartially.3 2 Star ofthe West, vol.IV, no. I, p. I 6 (2 I March I 9 I 3). 3 'Abdu '1-Bahci, p. 372. THE BAHA'I WORLD I:Iaji Amin, who was the trustee of the I:Iuquq, had brought seven hundred pounds to present to ' Abdu'l-Baha. In a humorous mood, 'Abdu'l-Baha said that the I:Iaji had brought seven hundred pounds, but had already obtained a thousand pounds from Him for this and that. Zarqani comments that one indeed marvelled at the way 'Abdu'l-Baha administered His finances. He spent freely to uphold the dignity of the Faith, and gave generously to relieve distress and poverty, and to aid the sick. But He Himself did not possess a good winter coat. His attendants had to beg again and again to obtain His permission to order a new coat to be made for Him. 1 Lady Blomfield wrote: One striking fact was that 'Abdu'l¥Baha never asked for donations, and even refused to accept money or any costly gifts that were offered to Him. One day in my presence a lady said to Him: 'I have here a cheque from a friend, who begs its ac¥ceptance to buy a good motor-car for your work in England and Europe.' The Master replied: 'I accept with grateful thanks the gift of your friend. ' He took the cheque into both His hands, as though blessing it, and said 'I return it to be used for gifts to the poor. ' 'We have never seen the like before. Surely such deeds are very rare' , it was whispered amongst the friends.2 A number of Iranian students visited 'Abdu' l-Baha on January 31st. He spoke to them about agriculture and industry and commerce and told them that Iran needed iron-smelting plants, because industry and agriculture alike depended on found¥ries. In the evening of that day a meeting was held at the home of Monsieur and Mme Dreyfus-Barney. These weekly meet¥ings of the Baha'is, to which seekers and enquirers came as well, were a regular feahire of the life of the Paris community. Other homes, M. and Mme Scott's and 1 'Abdu '/-Bahri, pp. 373-374. 2 The Chosen Highway, p. 157. Miss Edith Sanderson's, were also venues for these gatherings which 'Abdu' l-Baha addressed from time to time.3 On 17 February, ' Abdu'l-Baha accepted an invitation to speak at Pasteur Monnier's Theological Seminary in Paris. The audience was composed of professors, clergy, and theological students, and they had prepared a list of questions: "Who was Christ, and what was He? What is your belief about Him"; "What is the similarity between the Cause of Christ and that of Baha'u'llah? And what relation do they hold towards each other?"; "What is the relation of Christ and Baha'u'llah with God?"; and, "Is the unifica¥tion ofreligion possible? Ifso, when and how and through what channel will it be realized?" 'Abdu'l-Baha answered each question clearly and reasonably, explaining the Faith's teachings on progressive revelation as He had to audiences all during His travels¥Christian, Jew, and Muslim. "In short", He concluded, ... misunderstanding between the religions is conducive to differences. When these misunderstandings and blind imitations are forgotten then the unification of the religions will become a reality. ... there have been wars and rumors of war amongst the people of the world for many thousand years; much innocent blood has been shed, many kingdoms and empires have been laid waste. Now it is enough! Religion must be the means of good fellowship and love. It must upraise the standard of harmony and solidarity. If religion is conducive to hatred and enmity, irreligion is better, because such pseudo-religion gives no result, nay rather its existence is harmful to the welfare of the body-politic. Pasteur Monnier asked, "Is your aim to found a new religion?" 'Abdu'l-Baha answered: "Our aim is to free the foundations of the religion of God from dogmas, for the Sun of Reality 3 'Abdu '/-Balza, p. 376. 'Abdu 'l-Bahci with Bahci 'i friends in Esslingen, Germany, on 4 April 1913. is prevented from shining forth by black impenetrable clouds. We desire to dispel these clouds, so that the regions of the world may be flooded and illumined with its luminous rays, so that these foul clouds may never return. The rays of the Sun of Reality may encircle all countries, for this Sun has no beginning and no ending."1 The strain of His continual travels began to trouble 'Abdu'l-Baha in Paris. He did not sleep well and occasionally had a fever. The food at His hotel did not agree with Him, and by 26 February He had succumbed to a severe cold. Meanwhile, the Baha'is of Germany were pleading with Him to visit their country, and He received a letter from Mr. and Mrs. Stark inviting Him to visit Hungary. During the first week of March, a group ofBaha'is from Germany arrived with their pioneer teacher, Miss Alma Knobloch. They once again begged for the bounty of receiving Him.2 1 Star ofthe West, vol. IV, no. 3, pp. 54-5 (28 April 1913). 2 'Abdu 'I-Balza , p. 379. By the end of March 'Abdu'l-Baha felt strong enough to make another journey, so took the train from Paris to Stuttgart, arriv¥ing during the evening of 1 April. He stayed in the Hotel Marquardt and soon established His routine of meeting with the friends in His hotel in the mornings, and going out to meetings at their homes or elsewhere in the afternoons and evenings. One day He "remarked that the hotelier might leave his hotel and seek refuge elsewhere, because of such numbers pouring in. Indeed the staff of the hotel were shaken and astonished to see so many of their countrymen pay such atten¥tion and respect to an Easterner who, as it seemed, had come from nowhere."3 On 2 April He went to the home of Herr Wilhelm and Frau Marie Herrigel, where a great number of people had gathered. "How are you all?", He asked, and addressed them in Persian which was translated into English by Mirza AJ:.imad Sohrab, and then rendered into German by Herr Herrigel. 3 ibid. p. 380. THE BAHA ' i WORLD Praise be to God! because your faces are radiant with the light of the Glory of God; your hearts are attracted to the Kingdom of Abha ... . Your hearts are illu¥minated, your inner vision clear. ...You must live in accordance with the Teach¥ings of Baha'u'llah. Be loving to all mankind. Consort with all religions in amity and fragrance. You must be the cause of the education of the world of humanity. At present the world is still very dark. From one side there threatens the darkness of ignorance; from another side black enmity is visible; from the other side we hear of war and rumors of war. We must, like a candle, shine with the light ofBaha'u'llah, in order that through your efforts this darkness may be dispelled. 1 1 Star ofthe West, vol. IV, no. 4, p. 67 ( 17 May 1913). 'Abdu 'l-Bahti visited Budapest and Vienna after His travels in North America. This photograph was taken in April 1913, during His one-month stay in the Austro¥Hungarian Empire. Meetings were held in the homes of other Baha'is including Herr Eckstein, Consul Albert and Frau Alice Schwarz, and Herr Friedrich and Frau Annemarie Schweizer. During the evening of3 April, ' Abdu'l-Baha addressed a large audience in the upper hall of the City (Burger) Museum, on 5 April spoke to the Esperanto Society, and on 6 April gave a well-attended public talk at the Obere Museum. "We have had some wonderful meetings", Alma Knoblock wrote to her sister Pauline (Mrs. Joseph Hannen), but "the one in Esslingen surpassed them all." It was the children's meeting, last Friday, April 4th, 1913, in the afternoon. They had secured a very pretty hall, which was most beautifully decorated with greens, plants and flowers, with large and small tables near the walls and round tables in the center. About fifty children and eighty adults were present. In a smaller room adjoining the hall the children had been assembled holding flowers in their hands, forming two lines for 'Abdu'l-Baha to pass through. It looked most beautiful as 'Abdu'l-Baha came upstairs. He passed through a short hall and looked so pleased and delighted to see the dear children. 1 'Abdu 'I-Baba intended to leave for Budapest on April 7th, but was persuaded by Consul Schwarz to visit Bad Mergen¥theim, approximately sixty miles distant from Stuttgart, where the Consul owned the hotel and the mineral bath. 'Abdu'l¥Baha said at Bad Mergentheim that since He had left Persia He had never until then heard so many nightingales singing in such beautiful sutToundings. However, He would not stay for more than one night.2 On 8 Apri l, ' Abdu'l-Baha reh1rned to Stuttgart and then caught the 8:00 p.m. train for Budapest which He visited "at the invita¥ tion of the Hungarian Peace, Esperanto and Feminist societies, and of the Oriental Com¥ mercial Academy... He spoke to a great public gathering arranged by these institu¥ tions and besides, on three evenings, to the Theosophical Society, to the Star of the East members and the Turanian Society. About 800 people listened to His address .... During 'Abdu'l-Baha's sojourn in Bu¥dapest He received many distinguished visitors, among others the celebrated Hungarian Orientalists, Prof. Vambery and Prof. Goldzieher. Prof. Robert Nadler, a Hungarian painter of great renown, made a portrait sketch of 'Abdu' l-Baha. More important than the outward hon¥ors given to Him is that His words and personality gave a new start to the Baha' i Cause in Hungary, which is on the border of the East and the West... 'Abdu'l-Baha honored Mr. Leopold Stark, whose ad¥dress is II Nyulucta 5, by charging him to unite all those in Budapest who are likely 1 S1ar o/1he Wes!, vol. IV, no. 9, p. 155 (20 August 1913). 2 'A bdu '1-Bahci, p. 383. to form the first nucleus. Baha'i friends all over the world are requested to help by sending good advice and propaganda literature.3 From Budapest, 'Abdu'l-Baha went to Vienna on 19 April, where He took residence in the Grand Hotel. His first courtesy call in that city was to the Turkish Ambassador in Vienna, who was so impressed by this visit that he insisted on keeping ' Abdu ' l-Baha for luncheon. The Master spoke to the Theoso¥phists of Vienna on three occasions, was visited by Iranian residents of the Austrian capital, and was the guest of the Persian Minister. Before 'Abdu'l-Baha left Vienna Frau Tyler called to express her newly-found devotion, and He also received among others Baroness von Suttner, a well-known worker for the cause of peace. "As you may know," Wi lhelm Herrigel wrote to the Star of the West at a later date, "I was invited by our dear Master, ' Abdu'l¥Baha, to accompany Him from Stuttgart to Budapest and Vienna. While in Vienna He permitted a sculptor to model Him, and this sculptor asked me to spread copies of this statuette ia all Baha'i centers of the world. Therefore, I am sending one to you for reproduction in the Star of the West. This statuette can be ordered through me ... "4 'Abdu'l-Baha left Vienna and traveled back to Stuttgart, where He arrived on 25 Apri l and took rooms again in the Hotel Mar¥quardt. During this second visit to Stuttgart, which also lasted a week, He was not well. A cold contracted in Budapest had persisted and was now affecting His chest. The Baha'is of Stuttgart had arranged and advertised a meeting for the evening of the 25th at the Burger Museum. In the afternoon the condition of His chest wors¥ ened, causing great concern. Physicians told Him that He should not go out... His health was for the purpose of serving the Faith ['Abdu'l-Baha said]. While Wilhelm 3 Siar of!he Wes!, vol. IV, no. 5, p. 86 (5 June 1913). 4 Siar ofthe West, vol. IV, no. 9, p. 158 (20 August 19 13). THE BAHA ' I WORLD Herrigel was giving a talk in His stead, He walked into the hall, to the utmost delight and surprise of the audience, and using His full voice delivered a discourse on the need of world peace and the power that guarantees it. 1 On the morning of May 1st 'Abdu'l¥Baha met the Baha'is ofStuttgart in groups. He spoke very tenderly to them. To one group He said that He wished to converse with them, but His chest was not helpful; He would always anticipate their good news. To another, He spoke of the two ways in which people say farewell ; for some, memories gradually fade away, but others keep their memories ever fresh .. . To a third group He said that, although His time in Stuttgart was limited, He hoped that the harvest would prove limit¥less. Then He left for Paris. On this third visit to Paris, 'Abdu'l¥Baha resided at Hotel Baltimore, in ave¥nue Kleber... His physical strength had suffered greatly and He was unable, on several occasions, to go to the meetings held in the homes of the Baha' is. But He was always receiving visitors at the hotel, giving a talk whenever they gathered in numbers. He also kept, as far as possible, His daily habit of a walk out of doors. [On I0 May] He spoke of the Cove¥nant, that its purpose was to safeguard the strength and the power of the Cause; without it the circle of Baha'is would have broken up completely. 'Some peo¥ple have imagined,' He said, 'that the Blessed Perfection had taken relations between father and son into account. They do not know that He has instituted the power of the Covenant for the propa¥gation of the Cause of God and for the victory of His Word.'2 On May 23rd, Baha'is came with bou¥quets of flowers throughout the day, as 1 'Abdu '1-Bahii, p. 389. 2 ibid., pp. 390-392. it was the anniversary of the birth of 'Abdu'l-Baha, but He told them that the day should be considered and celebrated only as the anniversary of the Declaration of the Bab. That was why it was a blessed Day. It was incidental that He had been born on the same date. The Feast was celebrated in the evening at the home of Laura and Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney ... May 30th witnessed a noteworthy gath¥ering at the home of the Dreyfus-Barneys, when diverse nationalities were represented. Consul Schwarz had come from Germany and spoke at the meeting. In His talk, 'Abdu 'l-Baha underlined the true import of that harmonious and loving association ofpeople ofso many origins, brought about by the power ofBaha'u' llah.... On June 12th at 8 a.m. 'Abdu'l-Baha left His hotel for the station. There He spoke with the Baha'is who had come to say farewell, urging them to be united at all times. At noon His train left for Marseilles, which it reached twelve hours later. He stayed the night at a hotel next to the station, and boarded the P. & 0. steamer, Himalaya, at 9 a.m. the next morning. 'Abdu'l-Baha's historic tour of the West 3 was over. Shoghi Effendi puts the journey into this perspective: A most significant scene in a century¥old drama had been enacted. A glorious chapter in the history of the first Baha' i century had been written. Seeds of undreamt-of potentialities had, with the hand of the Center of the Covenant Him¥self, been sown in some of the fertile fields of the Western world. Never in the entire range of religious history had any Figure of comparable stature arisen to perform a labor of such magnitude and imperishable worth.4 3 ibid., pp. 394-395. 4 God Passes By, p. 294. 2. COMMEMORATIONS OF 'ABDU'L-BAHA's VISIT TO THE WEST FROM August 1911 to December 1913, 'Abdu'l-Baha traveled through North America and Europe writing, what Shoghi Effendi calls in God Passes By, a "glorious chapter in the history of the first Baha' i century." "Never in the entire range of religious history had any Figure of comparable stature arisen to perform a labor of such magnitude and imperishable worth," he continued. Celebrations of the seventy-fifth anniversary of those travels were held by Baha'is in those countries which 'Abdu' l-Baha visited. THE UNITED STATES A moving event was held in the Baha'i Temple in Wilmette, Illinois, on 1 May 1987, where friends gathered to commemorate the laying of its foundation stone by 'Abdu'l¥Baha. Twelve believers who had met the Center of the Covenant shared some of their recollections of Him. On the following day, a formal commemorative program in the House of Worship was attended by a number of civic leaders. Meetings held in Chicago between 1 and 5 May included commemorations of the Master's talk in All Souls Church, and His address to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Near Boston, Massachusetts, Dr. Firuz Kazemzadeh spoke about 'Abdu'l-Baha's life, and the significance of His visit to America, during a meeting held on 5 June at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. The following day, Boston's Baha'i community held a ceremony to honor the couple who founded Freedom House, an organization dedicated to bettering the lives of minority youth by enabling many to go to college. Following the presentation, Baha'is and their friends walked along the path taken by the Master during His visit to Boston. During the weekend of 26 and 27 June 1987, approximately 1,500 picnics were held across the United States to celebrate the Unity Feast 'Abdu' l-Baha had hosted in West Englewood, New Jersey, on 29 June 1912. The Hand of the Cause of God William Sears, Counsellors Wilma Brady and Robert Harris, and members of the National Spiritual Assembly attended the special picnic held on the site in New Jersey hallowed by the presence of the Master. In New York City, on 8 July 1987, a copy of The Promise of World Peace was pre¥sented to William F. Gibson, the chaimrnn of the National Association for the Advance¥ment of Colored People. The presentation was made by the Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States, whose remarks included statements made by 'Abdu'l-Baha when He addressed the fourth annual convention of the NAACP in Chicago on 30 April 1912. The presentation was made during the annual convention of the NAACP, and was given an enthusiastic reception by the audience. CANADA The Hand ofthe Cause of God William Sears visited all ten provinces of Canada and two territories from 30 August to 9 September 1987-the period corresponding to 'Abdu'l¥Baha's sojourn in that country. Baha'is all over the country held special teaching projects during the same period, both in support of Mr. Sears' efforts and to supple¥ment them. In Montreal, firesides were held in French and English, during which Mr. Sears shook the hand of each child present and gave each one a souvenir. Nightly firesides were held by the friends for the eleven days in Halifax THE BAHA ' i WORLD and throughout Nova Scotia. In Winnipeg, a new Baha'i Center was opened and, in Calgary, a Baha'i meeting was attended by more than 1,000 friends. During a meeting in Vancouver, the friends were urged to become more heroic, more saintly, and to appreciate their station as Baha'is. In White¥horse, Baha'i children presented the Hand of the Cause with their impressions of 'Abdu' 1¥Baha in prose and poetry. In the Northwest Territories, a two-day conference was held for the friends. In Toronto, two people embraced the Faith during Mr. Sears' visit. A Peace Train paralleling 'Abdu'l-Baha's journey from Montreal to Niagara Falls via Toronto carried 127 Baha'is on 6 and 7 Sep¥tember 1987. Five hundred other friends greeted the travellers at stops along the route. Hundreds of copies of Th e Prom.ise of World Peace were deli vered by the train travellers, and the Baha'i message was given to scores of people, including the Mayor of Niagara who expressed interest in learning about the Faith. FRANCE AND SWITZERLAND The Hand of the Cause of God Amatu' l¥Baha Ru!;iiyyih Khanum, accompanied by Mrs. Violette Na~avani, traveled to Europe to participate in some of the activities held to commemorate the Master's visits on that continent. In France, the Hand of the Cause took part in a National Teaching Conference held in Paris on 28 and 29 November 1987 which was attended by about 500 friends. In adc dition to talks given by Amatu' l-Baha, Counsellor Agnes Ghaznavi and members of the French National Spiritual Assembly addressed the gathering, stressing the needs of the Six Year Plan. Following the Conference, the Local Spiritual Assembly of Paris entertained Ru!;iiyyih Khanum at lunch, then conm1emo¥rated her visit by going to the Eiffel Tower to have a photograph taken in the same place where the beloved Master had been photo¥graphed seventy-five years earlier. At the end of 1987, 210 Baha'is from France and Switzerland met for a winter school held at Sevrier. The high point of the school was the evening commemorating the seventy-fifth anniversary of 'Abdu'l-Baha's visit to the West through lectures and audio¥visual aides. UNITED KINGDOM In late February or early March 1988, members of the Bristol Baha'i community celebrated the seventy-fifth anniversary of the visit of 'Abdu'l-Baha to Bristol in 1913. The event was held in the Holiday Inn with about 260 people attending, including 50 guests of Baha'is. One special guest was the resident at 17 Royal York Crescent, where 'Abdu'l-Baha had stayed while in Bristol. The program included music, a slide show of 'Abdu'l-Baha's visit to England pre¥sented by Counsellor Adam Thorne, and a reading of"The Seven Candles of Unity" by some of the Baha'i children. GERMANY The Hand of the Cause ofGod Amatu'l-Baha Rul?iyyih Khanum joined approximately 1,200 friends gathered in Stuttgart on 9 April 1988 for a conference held during the festiv¥ities related to the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Master's visit to that country. Also present at the conference were member of the International Teaching Center Anneliese Bopp, Counsellor Ursula Milhlschlegel, and members of the National Spiritual Assembly. Amatu'l-Baha Ru!;iiyyih Khanum addressed the conference in the German language. On 10 April, the Hand of the Cause was the special guest at a festive event held in the historic Kurhaus in Bad Cannstatt, Stuttgart, to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of the visit of 'Abdu'l-Baha to Germany. The Mayor of Stuttgart, Dr. Man¥fred Rommel, gave the welcoming address to the nearly 900 friends and guests who had gathered for the event. fn her ceremonial address, Amatu'l-Baha Ru!;iiyyih Khanum fondly recalled her time in Germany in 1936 and 193 7, and spoke of the early followers of Baha'u'llah in that land. Counsellor Anneliese Bopp, Dr. Massoud Berdjis and Werner Gollmer spoke of the life, teachings and travels of 'Abdu'l-Baha, and selections from His Writings were read. Press confer¥ences were attended by representatives of major newspapers and broadcast services. HUNGARY On 9, 10 and 17 April 1988 the Baha' is of Budapest held celebrations to mark the anni¥versary of 'Abdu'l-Baha's visit to that city, with the Austrian musical group The Dawn¥Breakers participating. The main event took place in the home of Barbara Maennig, with about twenty friends from Hungary and Austria attending. The program consisted of a spiritual portion with music, and a social potiion with refreshments. AUSTRIA On 16 April 1988, the Hand of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha RuJ:iiyyih Khanum joined the Baha '[ community in celebrating the anniversary of 'Abdu'l-Baha's visit to Vienna. The event was held in the Ingenieur und Architektenverein, and people of capac¥ity in Austrian society had been sent special letters of invitation. Counsellors Ursula Milhlschlegel and Leo Niederreiter also attended the ceremony, as did friends from many parts of Europe. In honor of the occa¥sion, the Local Spiritual Assembly produced a German publication entitled, 'Abdu 'l-Baha im Wien, and a committee of the National Spiritual Assembly published a booklet, also m German, entitled, 'Abdu 'l-Baha im Budapest. UNITED KINGDOM On 30 June 1988, the first Human Rights Award presentations in the United Kingdom were made at St. John's Church, Westminster, London, commemorating the Master's visit to London in 1911. The six recipients were: Dr. Edward Carpenter, awarded for his work in the field ofreligious unity; the Right Rev¥erend Bishop Trevor Huddleston, honored for his work to promote racial unity; the late Richard St. Barbe Baker, whose award was received on his behalf by the Chairman of the Men of the Trees; the late Bernard Leach, whose award was received on his behalf by his wife, Janet Leach; Bob Geldof, for his work to aid the famine victims in Ethiopia, the award being received on his behalf by Dr. Gessess, Director of Band Aid; and Bertha Bradby, for her work for women's rights. An article about the ceremony was published in the Church Times, the official newspaper of the Church of England. FRANCE Activities celebrating 'Abdu'l-Baha's jow11ey through Marseilles led to extensive procla¥mation of the Faith in March 1989. After an official ceremony held in the Palais du Faro, a public meeting was held in the Odeon Theatre. Announcements of the event were broadcast on radio and television, printed in newspapers, and distributed throughout the city on 11,000 posters of different sizes. The theme of the program was peace, and about 160 people attended. A variety of music and a slide show were presented, followed by a concert by an American Baha'i pianist, Marc Ochu, who accompanied his performance with comments on the Peace Statement. II THE FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST SEVEN YEAR PLAN IN THE AMERICAS 1. THE FIRST SEVEN YEAR PLAN OF THE BAHA'is OF THE UNITED STATES AND CANADA Sl-IERNA D EAMER "'T' 1 RAVEL ye to the East and to the West of the world and summon the people to the Kingdom of God," 'Abdu'l-Baha wrote to the Baha'is in the United States and Canada only three-and-a-half years after His historic visit to America in 1912. In a series of Tab¥lets that have come to be known collectively as the Tablets of the Divine Plan, 'Abdu'l¥Baha exhorted the American Baha'is to spread the Faith. " ... do ye not think it per¥missible to leave [any] region deprived of the breezes ofthe Morn ofGuidance. " In a Tablet revealed on 8 April 1916 in the garden outside the Sllfine ofBaha'u'llah, 'Abdu'l-Baha specifically told the North American friends to carry the Faith through¥out the Hemisphere: Alaska is a vast counliy ... yet the call of the Kingdom of God is not yet raised through that spacious territory. Likewise the Republic of Mexico is ve1y important... Similarly, the six Central American Republics, situated south of Mexico-¥Guatemala, Honduras, Salvador, Nicara¥gua, Costa Rica, Panama and the seventh country Belize or British Honduras ... You must attach great importance to the Indians, the original inhabitants of America. For these souls may be likened unto the ancient inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula, who, prior to the Rev¥elation ofMu~1ammad, were like savages. When the Mu~iammadan Light shone forth in their midst, they became so enkin¥dled that they shed illumination upon the world. Likewise, should these Indians be educated and properly guided, there can be no doubt that through the Divine teachings they will become so enlight¥ened that the whole earth will be illumined. All the above countries have impor¥tance, but especially the Republic of Panama, wherein the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans come together through the Pan¥ama Canal. It is a center for travel and passage from America to other continents ofthe world, and in the fitture it will gain most great importance. Likewise the islands ofthe West Indies, such as Cuba, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, the islands of the Lesser Anti¥lles, Bahama Islands, even the small Watlings Island, have great importance; especially the two black republics, Haiti and Santo Domingo, situated in the clus¥ter of the Greater Antilles. Likewise the cluster of the islands of Bermuda in the Atlantic Ocean have importance. Mrs. Vivian Lismore, seated second from left, pioneered to Havana, Cuba, during the Seven Year Plan. She is shown in her home in 1943, surrounded by Cuban Baha 'is. Jn a similar way, the republics of the continent of South America-Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, British Guiana, Dutch Guiana, French Guiana, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Venezuela; also the islands to the north, east and west of South America, such as Falkland Islands, the Galapagos, Juan Fernandez, Tobago and Trinidad. Like¥wise the city of Bahia, situated on the eastern shore of Brazil. Because it is some time that it has become known by this name, its efficacy will be most potent. .. . send to those parts fluent speakers, who are detached from aught else save God, attracted with the fragrances of God, and sanctified and purified from all desires and temptations. Their sustenance and food must consist of the teachings of God. First they must themselves live in accordance with those principles, then guide the people... Should you be aided to render such a service, rest ye assured that your heads shall be crowned with the diadem ofeverlasting sovereignty, and at the threshold ofoneness you will become the favored and accepted servants. 1 A few individuals and local communities responded immediately to the Master's call. Martha Root took her first journey around South America in 1919, and in February 1921 Leonora Holsapple became the first Baha'i to live in Latin America when she moved from the United States to Bahia, Brazil, to teach the Faith. But in the main, 'Abdu'l-Baha's mission went unfulfilled because no institutions existed capable of arousing unified action. It was left to Shoghi Effendi, after the passing of 'Abdu'l-Baha, to slowly, pains¥takingly, raise up the Administrative Order, first in the United States and Canada, and then elsewhere around the world. Nor was 1 ' Abdu ' l-Baha, Tablets a/the Divine Plan (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1977), pp. 31-34. THE BAHA'i WORLD this undertaking only a matter of establishing Assemblies and committees. The Guardian had to help the community to move beyond the subjective and personal elements of faith to a world of action. There needed to be a transition from the idea of teaching as an individual achievement to an understanding that the greatest results for the Faith came when these separate efforts were gu ided and coordinated. In a letter written to the North American Baha'is dated 21 April 1933, the Guardian helped the friends understand the develop¥ment of the Faith during its first forty years in America: The first of these four decades ( 1893¥1903), characterized by a process of slow and steady fermentation, may be said to have culminated in the historic pilgrimages undertaken by 'Abdu'l-Baha's American disciples to the shrine ofBaha'u'llah. The ten years which followed (1903-1913), so full of the tests and trials which agitated, cleansed and energized the body of the earli est pioneers of the Faith in that land, had as their happy climax 'Abdu'l¥Baha's memorable visit to America. The third period (1913-1923), a period of quiet and uninterrupted consolidation, had as its inevitable result the birth of that divinely¥appointed Administration, the foundations of which the Will of a departed Master had unmistakably established. The remain¥ing ten years (1923-1933), distinguished throughout by further internal develop¥ment, as well as by a notable expansion ofthe international activities of a growing community, witnessed the completion of the superstructure of the Mashriqu 'l¥Adhkar-the Administration's mighty bul¥wark, the symbol of its strength and the sign of its future glory.1 The first stage of the fonnative period came to end in 1935, Shoghi Effendi announced, and in a letter to the North 1 Shoghi Effendi, The World Order ofBahci '11 '//ah (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1974), p. 80. American believers dated 10 January 1936, he directed the friends towards a more active teaching program. This new stage in the gradual unfold¥ment of the Formative Period of our Faith into which we have just entered-the phase of concentrated teaching activity¥synchronizes with a period of deepening gloom, of universal impotence, of ever¥increasing destitution and widespread dis¥illusionment in the fortunes of a declining age. This is truly providential and its sig¥nificance and the opportunities it offers us should be fully apprehended and utilized.2 In his message to the 1936 Convention of the Baha'is of the United States and Canada, the Guardian moved from the general to the specific in terms of teaching goals: WOULD TO GOD EVERY STATE WITHIN AMERI¥CAN REPUBLIC AND EVERY REPUBLIC IN AMERICAN CONTINENT MIGHT ERE TERMINA¥TION THIS GLORIOUS [FIRST BAHA'i) CENTURY EMBRACE LIGHT FAITH BAHA'U'LLAH AND ESTABLISH STRUCTURAL BASIS HIS WORLD 3 ORDER. "The Convention was electrified", wrote Garreta Busey in an article entitled "Unit¥ing the Americas". "Tardily aware of the instructions given so long ago by the Master, only half comprehending their implications, slow to believe in their own ability to pursue a teaching program so much more extensive than that of the present time, the American Baha'is were at first dazed and then galva¥nized into action by the sweeping demands of the message." 4 Between Ric;lvan 1936 and 1937 Baha'i groups or individual believers were estab¥lished in five of the twelve unopened States or Provinces-Nebraska, Wyoming, Okla¥homa, North Dakota, and North Carolina¥and the Faith had been carried to forty-two 2 Shoghi Effendi, Messages to America (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Committee, 1947), p. 6. 3 ibid. p. 6. 4 The Bahci á;World, vol. IX (Wilmette: Baha 'i Pub¥ lishing Committee, 1945), p. 187. new cities in North America. But the work in Latin America was largely untouched. Garreta Busey stated: To most of the people in the United States, the countries in South and Central America, thus opened up before us, were unknown, romantic lands much more distant than the continent of Europe soon to be closed to us completely. Teaching in the United States and Canada seemed already to tax to the utmost our spiritual energies. How then could we succeed in establishing the Cause in every republic of the southern continent? The time for the unfoldment of that particular phase of the Divine Plan had, however, come, and on May 19 the Guardian cabled his call for pioneers permanently to reside in Central and South America, and gave £300 as the nucleus of a fund for the new teaching work. The action of the National Spiritual Assembly in response to these messages was the establishment of a special teach¥ing fund of $30,000 in the national budget and the appointment of the first Inter¥American Committee.1 Shoghi Effendi was pleased with the ini¥ tial response, but on 30 May 1936 he wrote to the Baha' is ofthe United States and Canada: A systematic, carefully conceived, and well-established plan should be devised, rigorously pursued and continuously extended. Initiated by the National repre¥sentatives of the American believers, the vanguard and standard-bearers of the radiant army of Baha' u'llah, this plan should receive the whole-hearted, the sustained and ever-increasing support, both moral and financial, of the entire body of His followers in that continent. .. The field is immense, the task gigantic, the privilege immeasurably precious. Time is short, and the obligation sacred, paramount and urgent. The American community must muster all its force, concentrate its resources, summon to its ibid. p. 187. aid all the faith, the determination and energies of which it is capable, and set out, single-minded and undaunted, to attain still greater heights in its mighty exertions for the Cause of Baha'u'llah.2 In his message to the Convention of 1937, Shoghi Effendi first called the teaching ini¥tiative the Seven Year Plan, adding to the goals before the American believers that of completing the exterior ornamentation on the House of Worship in Wilmette: DUAL GIFT PROVIDENTIALLY CONFERRED AMERJCAN BAHA'i COMMUNITY INVESTS RE¥CIPIENTS WITH DUAL RESPONSIBILITY FULFIL HISTORJC MISSION. FIRST PROSECUTE UNrN¥TERRUPTEDL Y TEACHING CAMPAIGN INAUGU¥RATED LAST CONVENTION rN ACCORDANCE DIVINE PLAN. SECOND RESUME WITH INFLEX I¥BLE DETERMrNATION EXTERJOR ORNAMENTA¥TION ENTIRE STRUCTURE TEMPLE.... ADVISE PROLONGATION CONVENTION SESS IONS EN¥ABLE DELEGATES CONSULT NATIONAL AS¥SEMBLY TO FORMULATE .FEASIBLE SEVEN YEAR PLAN TO ASSURE SUCCESS ... NO SACRI¥FICE TOO GREAT FOR COMMUNITY SO ABUN¥ 3 DANTLY BLESSED REPEATEDLY HONORED. "At the beginning of the Seven Year Plan," Leroy Joas reported in an article entitled "Teaching in North America", "after the Faith had existed in this country for 43 years, there were 72 Spiritual Assemblies in 26 States and Provinces, with 24 Baha'i Groups and 246 Isolated Believers with the Faith established in 303 cities. In the remaining seven years of the first Baha'i century, the American Baha'is were called upon.to establish.the Faith in 34 new States and Provinces, 10 of . which did not have even one Baha'i. Furthermore, these areas were found to be among the most backward, not only from the standpoint of religious intolerance, but also in the way of educa¥tional development, cultural achievements, and economic welfare."4 2 Messages ta America, p. 7. 3 ibid. p. 9. 4 Th e Balui 'i World. vol. IX, p. 202. THE BAHA'i WORLD The first Local Spiritual Assembly ofSan Jose, Costa Rica, organized on 21 April 1941, was also the first Local Assembly in Central America. Pioneer Gayle Woolson stands back center. The challenge of bringing the Faith to Latin America was even more daunting as in that vast area there was only Leonora Holsapple, still at her post in Bahia, Brazil; Isabel Dodge, who had gone with her geolo¥gist husband to his job site in Chupaca, Peru; and one or two other resident Baha'is. The task would have been insurmountable without the constant love, encouragement, and vision offered by the Guardian. For example, on 25 November 1937 he wrote: ...As I lift up my gaze beyond the strains and stresses which a struggling Faith must necessarily experience, and view the wider scene which the indomitable will of the American Baha'i community is steadily unfolding, I can not but marvel at the range which the driving force of their ceaseless labors has acquired and the heights which the sublimity of their faith has attained. The outposts of a Faith, already persecuted in both Europe and Asia, are in the American continent steadily advancing, the visible symbols of its undoubted sovereignty, are receiving fresh luster every day and its manifold institutions are driving their roots deeper and deeper into its soil. Blest and honored as none among its sister communities has been in recent years, preserved through the inscrutable dispensations of Divine Providence for a destiny which no mind can as yet imagine, such a community cannot for a moment afford to be content with or rest on the laurels it has so deserv¥edly won. It must go on, continually go on, exploring fresh fields, scaling nobler heights, laying firmer foundations, shed¥ding added splendor and achieving added renown in the service and for the glory of the Cause of Baha'u'llah. The seven year plan which it has sponsored and with which its destiny is so closely interwoven, must at all costs be prosecuted with increasing force and added consecration. All should arise and participate. Upon the measure of such a participation will no doubt depend the welfare and progress of Pioneer Louise Caswell visits some Baha '£friends in the Parque La Concordia in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, in October 1941. those distant communities which are now battling for their emancipation. To such a priceless privilege the inheritors of the shining grace ofBaha'u' llah cannot surely be indifferent. The American believers must gird up the loins of endeavor and step into the arena of service with such heroism as shall astound the entire Baha'i world. Let them be assured that my prayers will continue to be offered on their behalf. 1 And on I 0 September 1938: I feel truly exhilarated as I witness the ever-recurrent manifestations of unbroken solidarity and unquenchable enthusiasm that distinguish every stage in the pro¥gressive development of the nation-wide enterprise which is being so unflinchingly pursued by the whole American Baha'i community. The marked deterioration in world affairs, the steadily deepening gloom that envelops the storm-tossed peoples and nations of the Old World, invest the Seven Year Plan, now operating in both the northern and southern American con¥tinents, with a significance and urgency that cannot be overestimated.2 The Seven Year Plan can be divided into four periods: (I) from Ricfyan 1937 to 1939; (2) from Ri<;lvan 1939 to mid-point in the Plan; (3) from October 1940 to Ri<;lvan 1942; and (4) the final two years. The first phase was characterized by friends traveling to teach. Mr. and Mrs. Louis Gregory spent several months in Haiti, and left a number of serious students of the teachings. Mrs. Nellie French sailed by ship around South America and had particular success in Bahia, where she met up with Leonora Holsapple, and in Lima, where she worked with Isabel Dodge. Mrs. Frances Stewart attended the People's Conference at Buenos Aires in November 1937, and found interest among the Latin American delegates. Messages to America, pp. I 0-11 . 2 ibid. p. 14. THE BAHA'I WORLD Beatrice Irwin devoted some six months to teaching in Mexico City and other Mexican towns during 1937, lecturing, holding study groups and supplying literature to people of influence and capacity. Mrs. Stewart also went to Mexico City and found it possible to instruct a group who, on 21 April 1938, pro¥ceeded to establish the first Local Spiritual Assembly in the Americas outside of the United States and Canada. The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada invited a represen¥tative of the new Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Mexico City to participate in the National Convention held in April 1939. Four Mexican Baha'is accepted the hospital¥ity, including Sra. Maria del Refugio Ochoa, recorded as the first Mexican Baha' i. "The occasion was one of great rejoicing," we are told by Garreta Busey, "inspiring both to the older community and to the new believers, who on their return to Mexico City, incorpo¥rated their assembly, began issuing a News Letter, and plunged into the work of translat¥ing the Writings into Spanish." 1 The Guardian sent a cable to the Conven¥tion, praising the American Baha' is on the victories they had won, and setting out the new work to be accomplished: BRILLIANT CONCLUSION SECOND YEAR SEVEN YEAR PLAN EVOKES UNIVERSAL ADM IRATION BAHA'i WORLD, DEEPENS SPIRITUAL CONSCIO USNESS MITIGATES HARDSHIPS ITS INCREASINGLY HARASSED COMMUNITIES. CLOSING PHASE TEMPLE ORNAMENTATION ALREADY ENTERED. INITIAL STAGE INTER¥CONTINENTAL TEACHfNG CAMPA IGN SUC¥CESSFULLY TERMINATED. FIRM ANCHORAGE INSTITUTIONS ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER PERMANENTLY ESTABLISHED EVERY STATE PROVfNCE NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT. MEXICO, LYING FOREFRONT SOUTHWARD MARCHING ARMY, RECENTLY ENLISTED. PEDRO ESPINOSA 'S AUSPICIOUS ATTENDANCE CONVENTION WELCOME EVIDENCE. SETTLE¥MENT CENTRAL AMERICAN REPUBLICS NEXT 1 Th e Bahri "i World, vol. IX, p. 190. STEP PROGRESSIVE, SYSTEMATIC PENETRA¥TION LATIN AMERICA. UPSURGE BAHA'U¥'LLAH'S IMP ELLING SPIRIT CAN NOT, WILL NOT, BE STEMMED IMPEDED. METHODICAL ADVANCE ALONG LINE TRACED PEN 'ABDU' L¥BAHA IRRESISTIBLE. GUATEMALA, HONDU¥RAS, SALVADOR, NICARAGUA, COSTA RICA, PANAMA, CUBA, DOMINICA, HAITI IMMEDIATE OBJECTIVES. THOUGH POLITICALLY UNSET¥TLED, RELIGIOUSLY INTOLERANT, SOCIALLY BACKWARD CLIMATICALLY INHOSPITABLE, THESE UNEXPLORED TERRITORIES HOLD FORTH INESTIMABLE PRIZES AUDACIOUS ADVENTURES PATH BAHA'i SERVICE.2 That same year, the Guardian's inspiring and challenging message "To the beloved of God and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the United States and Canada'', The Advent ofDivine Justice, was published. "Be unrestrained as the wind, " is Baha'u'llah's counsel to every would-be teacher of His Cause, "while carrying the Message ofHim Who hath caused the dawn ofDivine Guidance to break. Consider how the wind, faithful to that which God hath ordained, bloweth upon all regions of the earth, be they inhabited or desolate. Neither the sight ofdesolation, nor the evidences of prosperity, can either pain or please it. It bloweth in eve1y direction, as bidden by its Creator." "And when he determineth to leave his home, for the sake ofthe Cause ofhis Lord, " Baha' u' llah, in another passage, referring to such a teacher, has revealed, "let him put his whole trust in God, as the best provision for his journey, and array himself with the robe of virtue....Ifhe be kindled with the fire of His love, if he forgoeth all created things, the words he uttereth shall set on fire them that hear him. "3 The community of the organized promoters of the Faith of Baha'u' llah in the American continent-the spirititual 2 Messages to America, p. 20. 3 Shoghi Effendi, Th e Advent ofDivine Justice (Wil¥mette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, rev. ed. 1984), p. 50. descenants of the dawn-breakers of an heroic Age, who by their death pro¥claimed the birth of that Faith-must, in turn, usher in, not by their death but through living sacrifice, that promised World Order, the shell ordained to enshrine that priceless jewel, the world civilization, of which the Faith itself is the sole begetter. 1 By now the response was too great to chronicle with individual's names, specific locations, and exact dates. But at least two North American dawn-breakers did sacrifice their very lives to spread the Faith during the Seven Year Plan. "Departure South America by wish of beloved Guardian!" May Ellis Maxwell had cabled before departing from New York on 24 January 1940 on the steam¥ship Brazil. "She was able to teach 'one lovely woman on the boat, the wife of a distinguished arn1y man"', Marion Holley wrote about the trip. In Rio de Janeiro, with the aid of Leonora Holsapple who had come from Bahia, she arranged two teas at her hotel, the Gloria, one for nineteen guests, while a third meeting was held at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Lee Worley. She spoke also to the president of the Homeopathic College. Yet despite these two weeks of exhilarating success, she was eager to reach Buenos Aires ... They arrived [May Maxwell and her niece, Jeanne Bolles] on February 27th, after one-day stops in Santos and Mon¥tevideo .. . On the night of February 29th they dined alone in her room at City Hotel ... her mood was radiant. But the next morning a terrible pain came high in her breast, and though the doctor reas¥sured them both, by afternoon 'the Wi ll of God took her from our midst'. "Priceless honor (of a) martyr's death!" Shoghi Effendi included in his tribute to May Maxwelt.2 ibid. p. 7. Another North American Baha'i who gave his life to spread the Faith was Mathew Kaszab, who had been a student at the University of New York when he met Mrs. Louise Talbot and learned about Baha'u'llah. "From that moment, Mathew's real life began", wrote Loulie Mathews. "The heroic age of the Bab and the martyrs absorbed his mind and The Dawn-Breakers became his constant companion .. . " "When Shoghi Effendi's Advent ofDivine Justice was published in February, 1939 ... [its] dynamic utterances carried Mathew away, and without delay he set out for Panama." The Inter-America Committee asked him to go on to Nicaragua, and, "the good soldier of Baha'u' llah that he was, he accepted our suggestion ..."3 He went to work in the gold mines of Blue Fields. He described the deplorable conditions of poverty and vice and was so appalled by the ignorance of the miners' children, that he took a night shift and taught school in the day time. When I remonstrated with him because he was giving himself no time for sleep, he replied that his time was so short he could not afford to sleep! All his efforts at bet¥terment in Blue Fields having failed, he returned to Managua. Suddenly, while walking on the street, he was arrested. The reason given was that he uttered words in criticism of the Nicaraguan government. This may have been the reason or not-the cause is very obscure. He remained in prison from March 1st to 23rd. As suddenly as he was interned, he was liberated. He determined to leave Nicaragua, sensing danger, and began to make prepa¥rations for his departure. When they were complete, he came to say goodbye to our first native believer, who was teaching school nearby. He was loved by the 2 Th e Baha'i World. vol. VIII (Wilmette: Baha'i Pub¥lishing Committee, 1942), pp. 631-642. 3 Th e Baha'i World. vol. IX, pp. 614-615. THE BAHA'I WORLD Pioneers Gladys Stuart and Cora Oliver, sitting on the left side ofthe stairs, visit a group of believers in Belize, British Honduras, during the Seven Year Plan. children ofthe school, who gathered around him and sang their songs for him ... When he reached the airport, an officer stepped forward and presented a warrant for his arrest. The day was September 28th of 1942. It was some time before his friends .learned the sad news. On November first Mathew was attacked by an illness the nature of which was never learned, his condition was so grave that he was moved from the dungeon to the guard's hospital.... At that time death seemed imminent but his strength slowly returned and he was sent back to the prison. On December 28 the authorities announced that he was free, but must leave the country. Silently and alone, he took a plane to Mexico City and there reembarked for Brownsville, Texas, where he died January 13th, 1943.1 By mid-point in the Seven Year Plan, in October 1940, assemblies had been estab¥lished in Mexico City, Bahia, and Buenos Aires, and groups in Havana, Tegucigalpa, Guatemala, Montevideo, and Panama. As early as April, Shoghi Effendi cabled to the Convention his joy that the believers had outstripped the goal set for 1939-1940. By April 1942 the number of assemblies was nine: Mexico City, Puebla, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Tegucigalpa, San Salvador, San Jose, Puntarenos, and Havana. In his message to the National Conven¥tion of the Baha' is of the United States and Canada sent on 26 April 1942, Shoghi Effendi wrote: ... FIRST BAHA' I CENTURY FAST RUNNING OUT. AGONIES TRAVAILING AGE INEXORABLY CULMINATING. BAB'S STIRRING UNIQUE IN¥JUNCTION DIRECTING PEOPLES WEST LEA VE THEIR CITIES ENSURE TRIUMPH DIVINE CAUSE RECORDED CENTURY AGO QA YYDMU'L-ASMA'. BAHA'U'LLAH'S SIGNIFICANT SUMMONS CALLI NG UPON ALL PRESIDENTS REPUBLICS WESTERN HEMISPHERE CHAMPION CAUSE JUSTICE ISSUED SEVENTY YEARS AGO JN HI S MOST HOLY BOOK. BROAD OUTLINES 1 The Baha 'i World, vol. IX, pp. 615-6 16. 'ABDU'L-BAHA'S MATCHLESS DESIGN CON¥CEIVED TWENTYFIVE YEARS AGO BENEFIT NORTH AMERICAN BELIEVERS TRANSMITTED POSTERITY TABLETS DIVINE PLAN. SEVEN YEAR ENTERPRISE REGARDED INITIAL STAGE EXECUTION WORLD MISSION ALREADY LAUNCHED. GIGANTIC TEMPLE UNDERTAK¥ING CONSTITUTING MAJOR OBLIGATION THIS ENTERPRISE, VIRTUALLY CONSUMM ATE D. VAST INTERCONTINENTAL TEACHING CAM¥PAIGN VISIBLY YIELDING FIRST FRUITS EVERY REPUBLIC LATIN AMERICA. UPON CRUCIAL YEAR AHEAD HI NG E FORTUNES HISTORIC CRUSADE... MYSELF DEPRIVED PERSONAL PAR¥TICIPATION TASK ALLOTTED PROSECUTORS EPOCH MAKING PLAN IMPELLED DEPUTIZE FIVE MEMBERS AMERICAN BAHA'i COM MUN I¥TY HELP FULFILL MY BEHALF WHATEVER PIO¥NEER FIELD MOST VITAL ITS URGENT REQU IREMENTS. PLEDG ING FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS ACCOMPLISHMENT THIS PURPOSE.1 In "Uniting the Americas", Garreta Busey reported: ... the most noticeable characteristic of this last period of the Seven Year Plan was the work undertaken by the local believers. Many of them were engaged in translating Baha'i literature. The Mexican believers ... had begun that great task. It was continued by the Baha'is of Buenos Aires, and in Uruguay three believers, having finished the "Thirty-Six Lessons'', embarked upon the gigantic task of trans¥lating "The Dawn-Breakers" .. . Latin American teachers arose. Sr. Tormo went, with Wilfred Barton, to Paraguay. Sr. Ulloa went from Costa Rica to Panama to assist the pioneers there. Study groups in three cities of Argentina were taught by believers from Buenos Aires. The Baha'is of Santiago were car¥rying the Faith into other parts of Chile. As time went on the visits between communities were more frequent until in 1941 the Inter America Committees wrote: 'Thus the Divine Plan continually Messages to America, p. 55. evolves. Threads of friendly human con¥tacts weave back and forth, bringing out in ever elaborated beauty the Divine Plan of World Unity.' As individuals became more active, the communities as units began also to take on more responsibilities, demonstrating their growing maturity under the Administrative Order. One sign of their development was the recognition of the Costa Rican assemblies and that of Montevideo by their respective govern¥ments. The Assembly ofBuenos Aires now accepted the responsibility of publishing and disseminating Baha' i books in Latin America. The Mexican assemblies were carrying on extension work in various parts of their country. San Salvador had begun teaching in Santa Ana, the second largest city of El Salvador. Youth groups and children's classes were organized ... 2 Nor was the work in North America neglected. " ... on March 28, 1944, we find 136 Spiritual Assemblies, 197 Baha'i Groups, and the Faith vigorously functioning in over 1,300 cities on the North American continent;-the Faith of Baha'u'llah shining in resplendent glory from the vast expanses of Alaska to the Keys of Florida; from the isolation of Prince Edward Island to the sunny shores of California. "3 In addition, the exterior ornamentation of the Baha'i House of Worship was completed in 1943. Shoghi Effendi cabled to the friends gathered for the All-American Centennial Convention on 13 April 1944: The greatest collective enterprise ever launched by the Western followers of Baha' u'llah and indeed ever undertaken by any Baha'i community in the course of an entire century, has been gloriously consummated. A victory of undying fame has marked the culmination of the fifty year long labors of the American Baha'i community in the service of Baha' u'llah 2 . The Baha 'i World, vol. IX, pp. 197-I98. J ibid. p. 202. THE BAHA'I WORLD Pioneers Honor Kempton, Helen Robenson and Dagmar Dole shown in Anchorage, Alaska, in Januaiy 1944. and has shed imperishable lustre on the immortal records of His Faith during the first hundred years of its existence. The exploits that have marked the progress of this prodigious, this three-fold enterprise, covering a field stretching from Alaska in the North to the extremity of Chile in the south, affecting the destinies of so great a variety of peoples and nations, involving such a tremendous expenditure of treasure and effort, calling forth so remarkable a spirit of heroism and self¥sacrifice, and undertaken notwithstanding the vicious assaults and incessant machi¥nations of the breakers of' Abdu'l-Baha's Covenant, and despite the perils, the trials and restrictions of a desolating war of unexampled severity, augur well for the successful prosecution, and indeed assure the ultimate victory, of the remaining stages of the Plan conceived, a quarter of a century ago, by 'Abdu'l-Baha for the followers of Baha'u'llah in the North American continent. To the band ofpioneers, whether settlers or itinerant teachers, who have forsaken their homes, who have scattered far and wide, who have willingly sacrificed their comfort, their health and even their lives for the prosecution of this Plan; to the several committees and their auxiliary agencies that have been entrusted with special and direct responsibility for its efficient and orderly development and who have discharged their high responsi¥bilities with exemplary vigor, courage and fidelity; to the national representatives of the community itself, who have vigi¥lantly and tirelessly supervised, directed and coordinated the unfolding processes of this vast undertaking ever since its inception; to all those who, though not in the forefront of battle, have through their financial assistance and through the instru¥mentality of their deputies, contributed to the expansion and consolidation of the Plan, I myself, as well as the entire Baha'i world, owe a debt of gratitude that no one can measure or describe. To the sacrifices they have made, to the courage they have so consistently shown, to the fidelity they have so remarkably displayed, to the resourcefulness, the discipline, the constancy and devotion they have so abundantly demonstrated, future genera¥tions viewing the magnitude of their labors in their proper perspective, will no doubt pay adequate tribute-a tribute no less ardent and well-deserved than the recognition extended by the present-day builders of the World Order ofBaha'u'llah to the Dawn-Breakers, whose shining deeds have signalized the birth of the Heroic Age of His Faith . . . . to all the privileged attendants of such an epoch-making Convention, I, on my own behalf, as well as in the name of all Baha'i communities sharing with them, at this great turning-point in the history of our Faith, the joys and triumphs of this solemn hour, feel moved to convey the expression of our loving admiration, our joy and our gratitude for the brilliant conclusion of what posterity will no doubt acclaim as one of the most stirring episodes in the history of the Formative Age of the Faith of Baha' u'llah, as well as one of the most momentous enterprises undertaken during the entire course of the first Century of the Baha'i Era.1 1 Messages In America, pp. 69-71. __..._á _j_ ' ' Celebration ofthe fiftieth anniversaiy ofthe Local Spiritual Assembly ofSalvador, Bahia, Brazil-the oldest Assembly in South America. Mrs. Margot Worley, seated center, served on the first Local Assembly. THE BAHA'I WORLD 2. FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FAITH IN LATIN AMERICA CELEBRATED FROM Ric;Ivan 1937 to Ric;!van 1944, the Baha'is of the United States and Canada engaged in the first Seven Year Plan in response to the call from the Guardian: WOULD TO GOD EVERY STATE WITHIN AM ERI¥ CAN REPUBLIC AND EVERY REPUBLIC IN AMERICAN CONTINENT MIGHT ERE TERMINA¥ TION THIS GLORIOUS [IST BAHA'I] CENTURY EMBRACE LIGHT FAITH BAHA'U'LLAH AND ESTABLISH STRUCTURAL BASIS HIS WORLD ORDER. By the end of the Plan, the Faith had been established from Alaska to Chile. No state in the United States, province in Canada, or country in Latin America was without a group of believers. Celebrations of the 50th anniversaries of these victories were held throughout Latin America. ARGENTINA The Hand of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha Ru~iyyih Khanum attended the "Uniting the Americas" conference held in Buenos Aires from 27 February to 1 March 1990 to cele¥brate the fiftieth anniversary of the Faith in Argentina. The conference also honored the memory of May Bolles Maxwell, the mother of Rul~fyyih Khanum, whose flame-like love for the Cause led her, at the age of seventy and in ill health, to voyage to Buenos Aires and, in the words of Shoghi Effendi, "lay down her life in such a spirit of consecration and self-sacrifice as to merit the crown of martyrdom". About 1,250 attended the conference including Counsellors Eloy Anello, Isabel de Calderon, and Shapoor Monadjem. As many as 400 of the participants were not Baha'is and, during the course of the three days, twelve people enrolled in the Faith. While in Argentina, Amatu'l-Baha, ac¥companied by Mr. Monadjem and a member of the National Spiritual Assembly, had an interview with the President of Argentina, Carlos Menem, and two Cabinet members. The Hand of the Cause also called on the Mayor of Buenos Aires and presented him with a copy of the pamphlet "A Pattern for Future Society'', which consists of an extract from the writings of Shoghi Effendi on the coming world civilization. Media coverage of the conference was excellent. There were items on both radio and television, and articles in several news¥papers including one with two full pages, one of which was in color. BOLIVIA About 150 Baha'is and their friends attended a public meeting held in the salon of the National Library in Bogota on 12 December 1991 to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Faith in Bolivia. Rosario de Moazes presented a short summary of the Baha' i activities during the Faith's half-century in the country, and Roberto Nothaft gave a talk on the Baha'i Faith and the new World Order. A story about the celebration was broad¥cast on the television news that evening. BRAZIL The Local Spiritual Assembly of Salvador, in the state of Bahia, Brazil, is the oldest Assembly on the Continent. Established in 1940, it is the "Mother Assembly" of South America. On 16 October 1990, the Local Spiritual Assembly held a reception to celebrate its fiftieth anniversary. About two hundred people attended, including Margot Worley, one of the first Baha'is of South America and a member of the first Local Spiritual Assembly. Also attending was Rolf van Czekus, a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors in the Americas. The Assembly received messages of congratulations from the Governor-elect, Antonio Carlos Magalhaes, the commanding officer of the consular corps of Bahia, and many other non-Baha' is. Commendations were also received from the National Spiritual Assembly of Brazil, the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, and a large number of Local Spiritual Assem¥blies in Brazil. As part of the anniversary events, two special prayer sessions were held at the graveside of Leonora Stirling Armstrong, "the spiritual mother ofthe Baha'is ofBrazil'', with many local Baha'is attending. A photographic exhibit of the first fifty years of Baha'i activities in Bahia was assembled and displayed, and a video docu¥mentary of the history of the Cause in Bahia was launched. An article about the develop¥ment of the Faith in Bahia was published in A Tarde, the widest circulated newspaper in the state. COSTA RICA The fiftieth anniversary of the election of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of San Jose, Costa Rica, was held on 21 April 1991 in the auditorium of the Federal College of Engi¥neers and Architects in San Jose. The event was attended by the head of the national Social Security system, a representative of the Governor of the Province of San Jose, the President of the San Jose City Council, and the Rector of the University of Costa Rica. Special guest for the celebration was Mrs. Gayle Woolson, one of the first two pioneers to Costa Rica and a member of the first Local Assembly. The other special guest was also a member of the first Assem¥bly, Mrs. Consuelo Miranda Yda. de Araya. The beautiful commemorative program was enriched by the music performed by a choir called "Heredia Canta." CUBA On 2 December 1989, the Baha'is of Cuba filled the National Center in Havana to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the Faith in their country. Songs and dances were performed and, fol¥lowing a lavish luncheon, a commemorative cake was served. Perfecto Rerez Toledo, the first Cuban to recognize Baha'u' llah, spoke to the Baha'is and their guests. Evoking those early days of 1939, he paid tribute to the Baha'is who helped to found and develop the Cuban Baha'i community: Philip and Laily Maran¥gella, Josephine Kruka, Jean Silver, William de Forge, Emogene Hoagg, Gayle Woolson, and Ruth Moffett. He also mentioned the Hands of the Cause of God Zikrullah Khadem [Dhikru'llah Khac:Iim], Dr. Ugo Giachery, and "the unforgettable Dorothy Baker." EL SALVADOR On 12 November 1989, the Baha'i community of El Salvador celebrated the Anniversary of the Birth ofBaha'u'llah and the fiftieth anni¥versary of the arrival of the Faith's first pioneer to their country, John Eichenauer. Mr. Eichenauer was able to be present for the occasion. The program was held in the Instituto Baha' i Jamaliyyih, about 35 kilometres from the capital, with more than 200 people attending. One of the friends talked about the year 1920, when the Hand of the Cause of God Amelia Collins had walked the streets of old San Salvador saying the Great¥est Name, and Mr. Eichenauer told of how, hearing of this, he was inspired to go to El Salvador to pioneer. The Faith enjoyed extensive television exposure during the weeks preceding the celebration. During one interview, the Baha'is were able to speak for two hours on the Baha'i approach to peace in response to THE BAHA ' I WORLD The first pioneer to El Salvador, Mr. John Eichenauer (seated center with the Greatest Name plaque), returned to celebrate the Baha'i community's fiftieth anniversary. The event was held at Jamaliyyih Baha'i Institute on 12 November 1989. generally helpful and friendly questions from the moderator and the television audience. PARAGUAY A memorial service for the first Baha'i of Paraguay, Sr. Roque Centurion Miranda, was held on 30 January 1990 to commemo¥rate the thirtieth anniversary of his passing on that date. A floral offering was carried to the Baha'i Cemetery in Lambare, and under the pine trees by his gravesite prayers were read and Sr. Centurion Miranda's two daugh¥ters shared anecdotes about their father. During the evening of 30 January, a pro¥gram was held at the National Baha'i Center in Asuncion to celebrate the fiftieth anniver¥sary of the Baha'i Faith in Paraguay. The Director of the Performing Art School of the Municipality of Asuncion participated, as did Mercedes Janet, a noted actress. A young student gave a reading of the biogra¥phy of Sr. Roque Centurion Miranda as a Paraguayan citizen, and as a lover of the national theater. A local newspaper pub¥lished an article about the commemoration. URUGUAY A series of events called "Days of Peace on the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Baha'i Faith in Uruguay", organized by the Maldonado community and held from 18 to 20 November 1988, was given extensive media coverage in the area. Activities began with a slide show of the Baha'i Holy Places and a presentation of statistical information about the Faith in Uruguay. On the second day members of the Baha'i community visited a home for the aged and the Children's Council, and held a youth gathering. On the third day, a program for chi ldren was held with clowns and acting. The final activity was a presenta¥tion about women and peace. A display of books and photographs about the Baha'i Faith was exhibited at the Baha'i Centre for the three "Days of Peace". III THE TEN YEAR CRUSADE AND THE KNIGHTS OF BAHA'U'LLAH Adapted from a talk gi ven by MR. ' ALf NAKHJAVANi to the Baha'i World Centre staff in April 1992 MANY of us are working here and abroad to prepare for the events of the coming Holy Year-the Centenary of the Ascension of Baha'u'llah. Among the events which will be held in the Holy Land will be a reception for the Knights of Baha'u'llah. These pre¥cious souls had a unique part to play in an extremely important period of Baha'i his¥tory, the Ten Year Crusade. As we look back over the development of the Faith during the one hundred years since the passing of the Blessed Beauty, it is appropriate to take the time to review a subject which engaged the entire Baha'i world during the latter years of the ministry of Shoghi Effendi. The significance of the Ten Year Crusade was described by Shoghi Effendi in a message he sent to the Intercontinental Con¥ference in America on 4 May 1953. It was a long message, read to the assembly by Amatu' l-Baha Rt'.tl~iyyih Khanum, towards the end of which he reviewed the entire spiritual evolution of humanity. He said that this process-this stupendous vast process¥consists of ten parts. Part one consisted of all of the Prophets of God before the Bab. Part two began with the Bab, and then fol¥lowed five parts representing major phases of the Faith up to 1921. The eighth part was his own ministry up to 1953. Then he wrote: The ninth part of this process-the stage we are now entering-is the further diffusion of that same light over one hun¥dred and thirty-one additional territories and islands in both the Eastern and West¥ern Hemispheres, through the operation of a decade-long world spiritual crusade whose termination will, God willing, coincide with the Most Great Jubilee commemorating the centenary of the dec¥laration ofBaha'u'llah in Ba~dad.1 The tenth part is everything we will be doing till the end of the Dispensation of Baha'u'llah. Shoghi Effendi continues: And finally the tenth part of this mighty process must be the penetration of that light, in the course of numerous crusades and of successive epochs of both the For¥mative and Golden Ages of the Faith, into all the remaining territories of the globe through the erection of the entire machin¥ery ofBaha'u'llah's Administrative Order in all territories, both East and West, the stage at which the light of God's trium¥phant Faith shining in all its power and glory will have suffused and enveloped the entire planet.2 Of the entire range of the Baha'i Dispen¥ sation, we are in the tenth part. The ninth part-only ten years-was the Ten Year 1 Messages to rhe Baha 'i World, A compi lat ion of letters from Shoghi Effendi (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1958), pp. 154-155. 2 ibid. p. 155 . THE BAHA'I WORLD Crusade. And in the entire range of the uni¥versal process of spiritual evolution of humanity this stage stands out. This is an indication of the importance of the topic. TEACHING PLANS From 1844 to 193 7 there were no Baha'i Teaching Plans. The friends knew about teaching, about traveling to teach, and about martyrdom. 'Abdu'l-Baha had encouraged the friends to form local assemblies and to set up funds and associations, and He had given the American believers the Tablets of the Divine Plan but there was no Adminis¥trative Order to prosecute this vision. During the first years of his ministry, Shoghi Effendi began to create the structures that we know today. He named the United States as the cradle of the Administrative Order as there was one National Spiritual Assembly there as well as for Canada, and they had been the recipients ofthe Tablets of the Divine Plan. Everything in terms of the formal inauguration of the Administrative Order began with the North American Baba'i community. For 16 years, from 1921 to 1937, he said he built up the Administrative Order in the United States and Canada. Then, at Ric;lvan 1937, he gave them the first Seven Year Plan. Although it was a national plan, the messages were shared with the Baha'i world collectively. At the end of the first Seven Year Plan, in 1944, the Guardian gave the American friends a two-year respite. Then he gave them the second Seven Year Plan, from Ric;lvan 1946 to 1953. During the second Seven Year Plan of the United States, he urged the other ten National Spiritual Assemblies to have Plans, too. Consequently, the second Plan was paralleled by other Plans in Asia, Africa, Europe and Australasia. In letters from the Guardian, there was reference to a third Seven Year Plan to take place after three years of respite. However, he changed his mind and decided that imme¥diately upon the completion of the second Seven Year Plan there would be a Ten Year Plan, not only for the United States and Can¥ada, but for the entire Baha'i world. Therefore, that third Seven Year Plan was cancelled, and was superseded by the Ten Year Plan. The first Plan with world-wide international collaboration was the Ten Year Crusade. At the mid-way point of the Ten Year Plan, Shoghi Effendi passed away. The Hands of the Cause of God took over custo¥dianship of the Faith and the Spiritual Crusade was completed. The Universal House of Justice came into existence and it took one year to review the situation before it developed, after consultation with the Hands of the Cause, the Nine Year Plan, from 1964 to 1973. Following Shoghi Effendi's style, the House of Justice gave a year of respite from Ric;lvan 1973 to 1974, then gave the friends the Five Year Plan to carry out from 1974 to 1979, followed by the Seven Year Plan, 1979 to 1986, and the Six Year Plan, 1986 to 1992. Now we have the Holy Year, Ric;lvan 1992 to 1993, then we are to have the Three Year Plan, 1993 to 1996. What will happen after that, only Baha'u'llah knows. MESSAGES LEADING UP TO THE TEN YEAR CRUSADE The Guardian used the word "Crusade" as far back as 1939. Of course, this word has historical connotations in connection with the military expeditions of the European Christians who went to the Holy Land to lib¥erate Jerusalem from Muslim rule. In 1939, two years after the inauguration of the first Seven Year Plan of the American believers, he began to use the term "Crusade" instead of "Plan." In his Persian writings he used the word "Jihad," which is "Holy War." He subsequently used "Crusade" for the second Seven Year Plan, and then for the Ten Year Plan so that the latter became known as the Ten Year Crusade, even more than the Ten Year Plan. He sometimes referred to the pioneers as "crusaders." Shoghi Effendi did not give the Baha'i world any indication of this Crusade in the earlier years of his Guardianship. However, in 1951 , six years before he passed away, when he began to build up the World Centre by inviting outstanding believers to come to the Holy Land to serve on the International Baha'i Council or to come as Hands of the Cause of God, he started referring to some¥thing very great that was going to happen. For example, on 25 February 1951 , in a letter to the British National Spiritual Assembly (and almost on the same date he sent a cable to the American National Spiri¥tual Assembly repeating virtually word for word what he had told the British Baha'is), he instructed the British Baha'i community to have a Two Year Plan, beginning in 1951 and ending in 1953, to recruit pioneers to Africa. On the success of this enterprise, [the Two Year Plan] unprecedented in its scope, unique in its character and immense in its spiritual potentialities, must depend the initiation, at a later period in the For¥mative Age of the Faith, of undertakings embracing within their range all National Assemblies functioning throughout the Baha' i World, undertakings constituting in themselves a prelude to the launching of world-wide enterprises destined to be embarked upon, in future epochs of that same Age [the Formative Age], by the Universal House of Justice, that will symbolise the unity and coordinate and unify the activities of these National 1 Assemblies. This was the first hint Shoghi Effendi gave of the Ten Year Crusade. Under the Two Year Plan, he had instructed only five National Assemblies to work together to open Africa south of the Sahara and he put these National Assemblies under the aus¥pices and coordination of the British 1 Unfolding Destiny: The Messages from the Guardian ofthe Baha 'i Faith to the Baha 'i Community of the British ls/es (London: Baha'i Publishing Trust, I98 I), p. 261. National Assembly. In this letter he stated that at the end of the Two Year Plan, the Baha'i world was to have undertakings which would involve and engage all National Assemblies, and there were eleven at that time. In this letter he also gave the Baha'i world a foreshadowing of two stages: one period with undertakings involving all National Spiritual Assemblies, that is, the Ten Year Crusade; to be followed throughout the Epochs of the Formative Age by enterprises which would be launched by the Universal House of Justice. I remember the discus¥sions in Tihran by the scholars of the Faith about why Shoghi Effendi had said that those enterprises would be embarked upon by the Universal House of Justice. Why didn't he say under the aegis of the Guardianship? In this one short paragraph, Shoghi Effendi told the friends about the future in two ways. First something great was going to happen, then major enterprises were to occur under the aegis of the Universal House of Justice. Nine months later, on 30 November 1951, the Guardian sent a message in which he said that the Baha'i World would hold intercontinental conferences for the first time. There had always been local and national conferences. Now, he said, the Faith was entering a new phase. Forthcoming celebrations must be signalized through inauguration long anticipated intercontinental stage in administrative evolution of Faith marking its gradual development through succes¥sive phases of local, regional, national, international Baha' i activity. Initiation this highly significant measure further cementing Baha' i National Assemblies in five continents of globe will be acclaimed by posterity as counterpart to consolida¥tion Faith at its World Centre through recent formation International Baha'i Council in Holy Land.2 2 Messages, p. I 7. TH E BAHA'I WORLD This was another hint that the Baha'is were to engage in collaboration involving all National Spiritual Assemblies very soon. At Naw-Ruz 1952, Shoghi Effendi announced that the eleven National Spiritual Assemblies of the Baha'i world were to be joined by a twelfth, the Halo-Swiss National Assembly. He praised the work of Dr. Ugo Giachery in that cable, and said how impor¥tant it was that at the beginning of this new international phase we had a new National Spiritual Assembly. Anticipate entrusting to the youngest among the twelve National Assemblies of the Baha' i World a specific plan enabling it, in conjunction with its sister National Spiritual Assemblies of the Baha'i World, to promote in the course of the ten years separating the second from the Most Great Jubilee the Global Crusade designed to hoist the standard of Baha' u' llah in the remaining states, dependencies and islands of the whole planet. 1 Here it was: the first intimation of the Ten Year Crusade. The next message I want to quote was written in June 1952 and was heartrending: No matter how long the period that separates them from ultimate victory; however arduous the task; however formi¥dable the exertions demanded of them; .. . however grievous the ordeal of temporary separation from the heart and nerve-center of their Faith which future unforeseeable disturbances may impose upon them, I adjure them, by the precious blood that flowed in such great profusion, by the lives of the unnumbered saints and heroes who were immolated, by the supreme, the glorious sacrifice of the Prophet-Herald of our Faith, by the tribulations which its Founder, Himself, willingly underwent, so that His Cause might live, His Order might redeem a shattered world and its glory might suffuse the entire planet-I adjure them, as this solemn hour draws 1 Messages, p. 23. nigh, to resolve never to flinch, never to hesitate, never to relax, until each and every objective in the Plans to be pro¥claimed, at a later date, has been fully consummated.2 That shook the Baha'i world. The friends realized that while there was a wonderful thing happening-there would also be national Plans; each of these twelve National Spiri¥tual Assemblies was going to have its own Plan, just as the Halo-Swiss was to have its own Plan-and that there would be some rough times ahead. Then came the auspicious moment, on 8 October 1952, when Shoghi Effendi announced the summary of the Ten Year Crusade. He gave the Baha'i world the Cru¥sades's objectives, and the preamble of the message read as follows: Feel hour propitious to proclaim to the entire Baha'i world the projected launching on the occasion of the convocation of the approaching Intercontinental Conferences on the four continents of the globe the fate¥laden, soul-stirring, decade-long, world¥embracing Spiritual Crusade involving the simultaneous initiation of twelve national Ten Year Plans and the concerted partici¥pation of all National Spirih1al Assemblies of the Baha'i world aiming at the immedi¥ate extension of Baha'u'llah's spiritual dominion as well as the eventual establish¥ment of the struchire of His administrative order in all remaining Sovereign States, Principal Dependencies comprising Princi¥palities, Sultanates, Emirates Shaykhdoms, Protectorates, Trust Territories, and Crown Colonies scattered over the surface of the entire planet. The entire body of the avowed supporters of Baha'u 'llah's all¥conquering Faith are now summoned to achieve in a single decade feats eclipsing in totality the achievements which in the course of the eleven preceding decades illuminated the annals ofBaha'i pioneering.3 2 ibid., pp. 38-39. 3 ibid., p. 41. He went on giving a summary of these goals. This message had an electrifying effect on the friends. By May 1953, Shoghi Effendi had already announced not only the summary but the details of the Ten Year Plan. Intercontinen¥tal conferences were held. To each one he sent a special message enumerating all the goals pertaining to that continent. He sent Hands of the Cause to be present at the Conferences, with a designated Hand repre¥senting him personally. All of this happened during that Holy Year. HOLY YEARS The Guardian first used the term "Holy Year" in a letter written on his behalf by his secre¥tary to the American Baha'i community in November 1951. He explained in that letter that the Holy Year was to mark the Year Nine, a reference to the Bab's prophecy that in the Year Nine-that is nine years after 1844, His own Declaration-the Promised One would come and the new Revelation would be born. The Year Nine began from the time when Baha'u'llah received the intimation of His Revelation in the Siyah-Chal in Tihran. He entered the Siyah-Chal in August of 1852, and stayed in that Black Pit for four months. Shoghi Effendi explained that this intima¥tion-this dream or mystic experience that Baha'u'llah wrote about-occurred at the mid-way point of this period of four months. Baba 'u 'llah entered the Siyah-Chal approxi¥mately on 15 August, so Shoghi Effendi took 15 October as the beginning of the Holy Year. To better understand the Holy Years, I refer you to this passage from God Passes By: The first dawnings of that Light of peerless splendor had ... broken in the city of Shiraz. The rim of that Orb had now appeared above the horizon of the Siyah¥Chal of Tihran. Its rays were to burst forth, a decade later, in Baghdad, piercing the clouds which immediately after its rise in those somber surroundings obscured its splendor. It was destined to mount to its zenith in the far-away city of Adrianople, and ultimately to set in the immediate vicinity of the fortress-town of'Akka. 1 In these three short sentences, Shoghi Effendi described the process of the Revela¥tion of Baha'u'llah. What happened during the period of the Bab should be considered as the period of the dawn. As the rim of the orb of the Sun appeared-sunrise-that mo¥ment was the birth of the Baha'i Revelation in the Siyah-Chal in Tihran. That began the first Holy Year. The Morning Sun was seen in Baghdad, the Declaration by Baha'u'llah ofHis Mission. The process reached its zenith in Adrianople, when Baha'u'llah wrote His letters to the Kings, the Proclamation of His Faith: That "Sun" proceeded on its predes¥tined path and then set in the city of'Akka, at Bahji, in 1892. As to the second Holy Year: sunrise fixed the time for the first Holy Year, and sunset will fix the time for the second Holy Year. The first Holy Year, announced by Shoghi Effendi, stretched from 15 October 1952 to 15 October 1953, and during this time the first four Intercontinental Confer¥ences were held. The second Holy Year, announced by the Universal House of Jus¥tice, is to begin at Ric;lvan 1992 and end at Ric;!van 1993 with commemorative events to be held in the Holy Land in May 1992, and the second Baha'i World Congress in New York in November 1992. CENTENARIES Another subject which might be helpful as background is the centenaries we have had so far during the Formative Age. The first was the Centenary of the Declaration of the Bab, the First Jubilee, in May 1944, the 1 Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 2nd ed., 1987), pp. I 02-103. THE BAHA ' i WORLD Friends from Australia and New Zealand gathered in Sydney for the Dedication ofthe National Ifazirat 'ul-Quds and the Commemoration ofthe Centenary ofthe Declaration ofthe Bab, 20 May 1944. highlights of which were celebrations held all over the Baha'i world. The second was the Centenary of the "Martyrdom of the Bab in July 1950, for which Shoghi Effendi called on the entire Baha'i world to hold commem¥orative events. Next was the Birth of the Revelation of Baha'u'llah, the intimation of His Mission, referred to by the Guardian as the Second Jubilee, or sometimes the Great Jubilee. This was the beginning of the first Holy Year, as described above, and its high¥lights were the first four Intercontinental Conferences. The fourth centenary was the Centenary of Baha'u'llah's Declaration in April 1963. This was the Third Jubilee, or, as Shoghi Effendi called it in other writings, the Most Great Jubilee. The highlights were worldwide celebrations, particularly culminating in the first Baha'i World Congress held in London. Next was the Centenary of the Revelation of the Suriy-i-Muluk in Adrianople where, Shoghi Effendi said, the Sun "had reached its zenith." This was in September 1967, and the highlights were the six Intercontinental Conferences convened by the Universal House ofJustice. Hands of the Cause of God went to all of these Intercontinental Confer¥ences. Six of the Hands first visited the House of Baha'u' llah in Adrianople before scattering, carrying with them a copy of the portrait ofBaM'u'llah taken in Adrianople, which the friends at these conferences were privileged to view. The Centenary of the Ascension ofBaha'u'llah is ahead of us, and the beginning of the Holy Year, Ric;lvan 1992 to Ric;ivan 1993. The highlights will be the events here and in New York. THE TEN YEAR CRUSADE Shoghi Effendi sent his manuscript of the Ten Year Plan to two National Spiritual Assemblies, the United States ahd the British Isles, asking each of them t6 publish it. It is called, The Bahti 'i Faith 1844 to 1952, Information Statistical and á Comparative, and it is in two parts. The first part consists of statistics of the Baha' i world as of 1953. The second part is called, "Supplement: Ten The Hand ofthe Cause ofGod Leroy Joas greeting the friends on behalfofthe Guardian during the first Baha'i Intercontinental Conference, held in Kampala, Uganda, from 12 to 18February1953. Year International Baha'i Teaching and Consolidation Plan 1953-1963." The bottom of the cover reads: "Compiled by Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Baha'i Faith." From pages 50 to 74 are the details of the Ten Year Crusade as laid out by the Guardian in full detail and in full splendor. The first goal was, "Adoption of prelimi¥nary measures for the construction of Baha'u'llah's Sepulchre in the Holy Land." Some of the friends asked if Shoghi Effendi was plaiming to build a superstructure for the Shrine ofBaha'u'llah. He answered that what he had in mind was to cleanse the sun-oundings of the Shrine and to create the I:Iaram-i-Aqdas. This was accomplished. The second goal was the opening of one hundred and thirty-one virgin territories, whose names he specified. At that time roughly the same number of territories had already been opened, so opening one hun¥dred and thirty-one new territories was equal to doubling the number of "countries within the pale of the Faith." There were forty-one countries in Asia, thirty-three countries in Africa, thirty countries in Europe, twenty¥seven countries in the Americas. However, during the evolution of the Plan, one new territory was added raising the total to one hundred and thirty-two, as will be explained later. The next goal was the translation and publication of Baha'i literature into ninety¥one additional languages, the names ofwhich Shoghi Effendi specified. There were to be forty in Asia, thirty-one in Africa, ten in Europe, ten in the Americas, and he assigned responsibility for translating and publishing these books and publications to designated National Spiritual Assemblies. The fourth goal concerned the construction of two Mashriqu' l-Adhkars, one in Tihran and one in Frankfurt. Circumstances in Iran did not pennit the construction ofthe Temple in Tihran so, at a later date, he announced that the Kampala Temple in Uganda would replace the Temple in Tihran as a goal. A few months later he added Sydney, Australia, so two Houses of Worship were erected instead of the one in Tihran. THE BAHA'i WORLD Next was the acquisition of a site for the Temple on Mount Carmel. Mrs. Amelia Collins provided the funds, and Shoghi Effendi was able to purchase that very precious and impor¥tant property which had been blessed by the footsteps of Baha'u' llah Himself at the time He revealed the Tablet of Carmel. Another goal completed was the erection of the first dependency of the Temple in Wilmette, the Home for the Aged. Next was the purchase of Temple sites in eleven countries, which he named-three on the American continent, three in Africa, two in Asia, two in Europe and one in Australasia. The eighth goal was, "Development of the functions of the institution of the Hands of the Cause". That became very important as the years went by. During the years that he was alive after launching the Ten Year Plan, Shoghi Effendi added more Hands to the number he had already appointed, then called on them all to appoint Auxiliary Boards of nine for each continent. Later he said that there should be two Auxiliary Boards instead of one-one for protection and one for teaching the Faith. Towards the end of his life he added more Hands of the Cause, and described them as the Chief Stewards of the Embryonic World Commonwealth. As can be seen, the institution of the Hands developed very rapidly during those four-and-on e-half years. The ninth goal was the establishment of a Baha'i Court in the Holy Land. Shoghi Effendi did not intend for there to be a court which would supervise and oversee the judicial decisions of National Spiritual As¥semblies, since the Head of the Faith was supervising and coordinating the work of the National Assemblies. The intention was something different. Just as other religions in Israel had certain rights according to the civil and religious laws of the land and had the right to have religious courts, so too should the Baba' i Faith have a right to a reli¥gious court in Israel. But that court never materialized because there occurred a trend in Israel towards referral to secular instead of religious courts, and indeed a reduction of the power and authority of religious courts. This was studied very carefully by the Hands of the Cause, who produced docu¥ments explaining why this goal was not feasib le under current circumstances. The next goal was the codification of the Laws and Ordinances of the Kitab-i-Aqdas. Shoghi Effendi himself worked on this, and a large package of his notes was passed to the Universal House of Justice when it was elected. These form the basis of the present Synopsis and Codification of the Kitab-i¥Aqdas that was published, almost ninety-five per cent of which was the work of Shoghi Effendi. The Universal House of Justice completed and published the book. Next was the establishment of six Baha'i courts in chief cities of the Middle East. He named them: Tihran, Cairo, Baggdad, New Delhi, Karachi, Kabul. None of these were possible, some for the same reason that a court could not be established in Israel, and others because in those countries they were ultra-orthodox in their attitudes. The friends tried and were able, for example in Pakistan, to have the Baha' i marriage certificate recognised, which is part of the work of a Baha'i court, so some aspects of the goal were achieved. Likewise in New Delhi it was possible to obtain official recognition of the Baha'i marriage certificate. The twelfth goal was the extension of the international Baha' i endowments in the Holy Land. Shoghi Effendi acquired many parcels of property both in Bahji and in Haifa during the four years he was alive at the beginning of the Plan. Had he not acquired these prop¥erties on Mount Carmel we would not be able to work on the Arc and Terraces as we are now. Construction of the International Baha' i Archives Building was a goal which caused tremendous problems. Shoghi Effendi had the design made by Mason Remey, under his own supervision, and had it erected but could not complete it. During the last few years of the Plan, after the passing of Shoghi Effendi, the building was completed under the direc¥tion of the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land and all the archives that had been kept in the three rooms to the south of the Shrine of the Bab were transferred to the new location. It was a goal to construct a Tomb for the Wife ofthe Bab in Shiraz. The National Spiri¥tual Assembly of Iran did its best, but until today it has not been possible to achieve this important goal of the Ten Year Plan. The next goal was the transfer of the remains of the Father ofBaha'u' llah and the Mother and the Cousin ofthe Bab to the Baha'i cemetery in Baghdad. The remains of the Father ofBaha'u'llah were actually transferred and they are now in the Baha'i cemetery. But the remains of the Mother and the Cousin of the Bab have still not been identified. These are among the last wishes of Shoghi Effendi that wil l have to be carried out in future years. The sixteenth goal was the acquisition of four Baha'i Holy Places in iran and 'Iraq. Circumstances did not permit any progress in realizing the goal in 'Iraq. In Iran, how¥ever, although it was possible to acquire two of the properties, these were subsequently confiscated by the authorities after the Revolution. The seventeenth goal was the establish¥ment of forty-eight new National Spiritual Assemblies. All of these were established during the Ten Year Crusade. The next goal was met with the acquisi¥tion of forty-nine new I:Ia?'.iratu' 1-Quds. The acquisition of forty-nine national endowments and the framing of national Baha' i constitutions for each of the new National Spiritual Assembl ies was the next goal. Unfortunately in some countries, such as Iran, it was not possible to incorporate the National Assembly. However, national con¥stitutions were drawn up and the National Assemblies operated within the terms of these documents. Next was the incorporation of fifty-one National Spiritual Assemblies, which is related to the goal above. As was explained, some of these National Assemblies could not be incorporated. The twenty-first goal was the establish¥ment of six national Publishing Trusts. All of these were established-two in the Americas, two in Asia, one in Africa and one in Europe. Next, "Participation by the women of Per¥sia in the membership of National and Local Assemblies," was accomplished with flying colors. The first year that this permission was made effective two Baha'i women were elected to the National Spiritual Assembly offran. (Incidentally, Shoghi Effendi gave the same instruction to the National Spiritual Assembly of Egypt and Sudan, one year after Persia.) The next goal was the establishment of seven Israeli branches of National Spiritual Assemblies. This was ve1y interesting. Shoghi Effendi established under Israeli law what are today called "friendly societies." Instead of calling them, let us say, "Baha'i Holding Societies," he had each one named after a National Assembly operating at that time: for example, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States-Israel Branch. One of the wonderful things that he did was to incorporate one of these "friendly societies" in the name of the National Spiri¥tual Assembly of the Baha' is of Iran-Israel branch. Shoghi Effendi used to say that in Iran the authorities did not recognize us but in Israel the National Spiritual Assembly of Iran had been incorporated. He transferred property in the names of these various legal entities. On Panorama Road, above the Shrine of the Bab, there is still a piece of land recorded in the land registry in the name of the National Spiritual Assembly ofthe Baha' is of Iran-Israel branch. The twenty-fourth goal was the establish¥ment of a national Baha'i Printing Press in Tihran. This was with the understanding that the National Assembly of iran would be incorporated and have its own printing press. This was not possible. However, the National Assembly of iran succeeded in establishing THE BAHA'i WORLD an informal publishing house which pub¥lished Baha'i books without actually owning a printing press. The books were typed, mimeographed, bound and distributed. Many books in our Baha'i library today are those published during that period of the Ten Year Crusade. It was not official, but it was on the path to the fulfilment of this goal fonnulated by the Guardian. Baha'is had ties with the United Nations, but Shoghi Effendi made it a goal to rein¥force them. Two years before he passed away, the persecutions in Iran allowed the friends to develop much closer connections with various UN agencies such as the Security Council, the Human Rights Commission and other agencies in New York. The Guardian seemed to have anticipated this development, and urged the friends to build on those rela¥tionships. This process has continued, and now we have an efficient office in New York, another in Geneva, yet another in the Pacific, and so on. For the purposes of the Ten Year Crusade Shoghi Effendi treated the Soviet Union as two parts, the European section which he counted as part of Europe, and the Asian republics which he regarded as part of Asia. According to his reports, there were thirteen unopened republics in the Soviet Union and Charles Dunning, the Knight ofBaha 'u 'llah for the Orkney Islands, with Brigitte Hasselblatt, the Knight of Bahci 'u 'llahfor the Shetland Islands, c. 1954. he named them. It was subsequently learned that there were Baha'is in some of these areas, whose presence had not been reported to him. A few territories were opened by traveling teachers. We will discuss these matters later. The last goal, the twenty-seventh goal, was the convocation of the Baha'i World Congress áin 1963 in Bag!:!dad. As events unfolded, it was not possible to have the Con¥gress in Bag!:!dad and it was held in London. In retrospect it seems so appropriate that it was held in London because that was where Shoghi Effendi had passed away. Many Baha'is went to that first Congress, on the one hand to pay their respects to their Guardian who had passed away while labouring for the Cause at the mid-way point of his Spiri¥tual Crusade, and on the other to celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of the Decla¥ration ofBaha'u 'llah. After giving the friends the objectives of the Ten Year Crusade, Shoghi Effendi explained that it was to have four phases. The first phase was the opening of the virgin territories, to occur over the first year. Dur¥ing the year he named the Knights as they arrived at their pioneer posts. Second was the acquisition of national I:Ia~iratu'l-Qudses and endowments, over a period of two years. There was a tremendous effort by the Baha'is all over the world to win these goals. Third, the multiplication of Baha'i localities and the formation of sixteen new National Spiritual Assemblies over a period of two years. This was done. And then, just before his passing, he said the fourth phase was to witness a vast increase in the number of believers and localities and the erection of the Temples of Africa, Australasia and Europe. The Hands of the Cause of God continued working on this fourth phase for the rest ofthe ten years. THE KNIGHTS OF BAHA'U'LLAH The word translated as "knights" was used by Baha'u'llah in His Writings. 'Abdu'l-Baha also used the word, as well as the word "horsemen." By knights they meant heroes: Knights ofBaha 'u 'llah Alvin and Gertrude Blum at their post in the Solomon Islands with their daughter, Keithie (front), John Mills (left) and the Head ofthe Bamu Tribe in 1954. they used the word as translated by Shoghi Effendi with a lower case "k." Shoghi Effendi took this word and used it as an accolade. It became a title, with a capital "K." After annow1cing the goals ofthe Ten Year Crusade, Shoghi Effendi made this announcement on 28 May 1953: Planning inscribe, chronological order, names spiritual conquerors illuminated Roll of Honor, to be deposited entrance door inner Sanctuary Tomb ofBaha'u'llah, as permanent memorial contribution champions His Faith victorious conclusion opening campaign Global Crusade ... 1 This was the first time he had used the words "Roll of Honor." It was a new term for the Baha'is, as were "Holy Year" and "Crusade," and of course, "Knights" as a title. As we just saw, Shoghi Effendi wanted one hundred and thirty-one countries and territories of the world opened to the Faith during one year. To encourage the friends to arise, he said he would open a list upon which he would inscribe the names of those 1 Messages, p. 49. pioneers who would go to these uncon¥ quered regions. This caught the imagination ofBaha'is all over the world. About a month later, Shoghi Effendi explained what he had in mind. In letters written on his behalf, he gave many explana¥tions, two of which I will quote from: There are no objections to more than one pioneer settling in these areas [mean¥ing these virgin areas]. Ifthe original one to whom the territory has been assigned [meaning the NSA] cannot proceed at this moment, they will still be reaching their goal even though someone else might reach that point sooner than they. All who proceed to these points at this time will be designated as Knights ofBaha'u'llah and their names be carried on the Roll of Honor to be deposited permanently in the Shrine of Baha'u' llah. All pioneers reaching virgin areas at this time are carried on the honor roll as Knights of Baha'u'llah. In other words, there may be four or five Knights of Baha'u 'llah for one country. The Guard¥ian has been considering how long this period of settlement by the Knights of Baha'u'llah should continue, but has not yet set the date. Up until that time, every individual settling in a virgin area will be carried on the honor roll. Feroza Yaganegi (left), one of the Knights of Baha 'u 'llah for Goa, with Gulnar Aftabi, wife ofthe other Knight ofBahQ 'u 'llahfor Goa in 1953. THE BAHA'I WORLD The Knights ofBaha 'u 'llah for French Togo/and, David Tanyi (second from left) and Vivian Wesson (second from right), with new believers in Accra in 1956. Friends started rushing: they longed to be on the Roll of Honor and among the Knights of Baha'u'llah. When you examine the Roll of Honor today you will see that some of the difficult countries only have one solitary Knight, and some of the easier coun¥tries have five, six, seven Knights. Then, in May 1954, came this ominous announcement: The Roll of Honor, after the lapse of one year since the launching of the World Crusade, is now closed, with the excep¥ tion of pioneers who have already left for their destination, as well as those first arriving in the few remaining virgin territories ... 1 When Mr. Abbas and Mrs. Rezvanieh Katirai went to the Sakhalin Islands in 1990, they became Knights since it was the last unopened territory left from the Ten Year Crusade. They set the seal on the Knights of Baha'u'llah. The total number of territories opened by Knights was 122, with a footnote which reads, "Including the Gulf Islands, supplementing the Anticosti Islands, both in Canada." The story of this footnote is as follows. 1 Messages, p. 69. Shoghi Effendi had named 131 territories to be opened, including Anticosti Island in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, Canada. The National Assembly wrote to Shoghi Effendi to state that no pioneer could go to Anticosti as it was owned and entirely controlled by a paper company. Only people employed by that company could go there, and Baba'is had been unsuccessful in obtaining jobs. Two further possibilities were for hunters or for people related to the islanders to go there, but neither of these were opened to Baha'is. Shoghi Effendi wrote back to tell them to choose another island. They consulted and chose the Gulflslands, which Shoghi Effendi approved. In the end, the National Assembly was able to open Anticosti Island, as originally envisaged. Shoghi Effendi named a Knight for Anticosti and it is on the Roll of Honor. Because the Gulf Islands had already won the honor of being a virgin territory which produced a Knight, the Baha'i world ended with 132 virgin territories instead of the original 131. One may note that 122 territories opened by Knights of Baha'u' llah do not equal the 132 virgin territories named by Shoghi Edythe MacArthur, who moved to the Queen Charlotte Islands ofCanada in 1953 and was named a Knight ofBaha 'u 'llah. Effendi. This is because 10 were opened by other means. There were some countries where there were Baha'is about whom Shoghi Effendi had never received reports. When he learned of these he announced in one of his Ri9van messages that he now considered these countries already opened. As the Baha'is there had gone before the opening of the Ten Year Crusade they could not be named Knights. In other cases, countries were opened by traveling teachers who could not reside there-Baha'is who went back and forth-and through them people enrolled in the Faith. Usually it was not just one person, but a whole group of people who went at different times. Together there were JO territories in these categories which explains the 122. The total number of Knights was 257: 131 men; 126 women. The total number of Knights still alive is 159. The total number still living at pioneering posts is 14. The number settled during the lifetime of Shoghi Effendi and still at their post is 10-God bless them. The number of Knights intend¥ing to be present at the Centenary events in the Holy Land is 108. THE ROLL OF HONOR The Roll of Honor is on a parchment that Shoghi Effendi himself ordered. He also found the artist who would put the names on the Roll. It has spaces, like cartouches, for each country, in four columns. If there was more than one Knight of Baha'u'llah for a country their names were written in smaller letters, and if there was just one name, that name enjoyed the full space of the cartouche. This Roll of Honor wi II be displayed when the Knights ofBaha'u'llah come to the World Centre. The next day, it will be placed in a special sealed box and then laid by Amatu'l¥Baha Rlil)iyyih Khanum at the entrance to the Shrine of Baha'u'llah. We know where Shoghi Effendi had planned to deposit it because when he sent a picture of the new door to the Shrine (the present door to the Shrine) to the American National Assembly he asked them to publish the picture and describe it and to add that immediately behind this door the Roll of Honor would be deposited. A map has also been made. It is in the style of the maps of Shoghi Effendi, and shows the 132 territories. From each country there is a line on which the name of each Knight is written, and like an arrow the line pierces the country. It is in color, and will also be displayed. A copy will, of course, be made available to the friends. The Knights ofBaha 'u 'llah to the Canary Islands, Gertrude Eisenberg (right) and George and Marguerite True, with the True 's son Barry in 1953. [Reprints of the Roll of Honor as well as the map showing the 132 territories drawn by Shoghi Effendi, are enclosed in the cover pockets of this volume of The Baha 'i World.] THE BAHA 'f WORLD THE KNIGHTS OF BAHA'U'LLAH LISTED BY VIRGIN TERRITORIES AND DATES OF SETTLEMENT 1953-1990 ADMIRALTY ISLANDS Violet Hoehnke VII 1954 ALBANIA Found to be already open ALEUTIAN ISLANDS Elaine Caldwell VIII 1953 Jenabe Caldwell VIII 1953 Elinore Putney V 1954 ANDAMAN ISLANDS Khodadad M. Fozdar XI 1953 ANDORRA William Danjon X 1953 ANTICOSTI ISLAND Mary Zabolotny IV 1956 Supplemented by: GULF ISLANDS Catherine Huxtable IX 1959 Clifford Huxtable IX 1959 ASHANTI PROTECTORATE Benedict Eballa IV 1954 AZORES Lois Nolen X 1953 Richard Nolen X 1953 BAHAMA ISLANDS V. Gail Curwin X 1953 Gerald Curwin X 1953 Ethel Holmes X 1953 Maurice Holmes X 1953 Andrew Matthisen I 1954 Nina Matthisen I 1954 BALEARlC ISLANDS Virginia Orbison VIII 1953 Jean Deleuran XII 1953 Tove Deleuran XII 1953 Charles Ioas I 1954 BARANOF ISLAND Grace Bahovec Helen Robinson IX 1953 Gail Avery II 1954 BASUTOLAND Elizabeth Laws X 1953 Frederick Laws X 1953 BECHUANALAND Audrey Robarts II 1954 John Robarts II 1954 Patrick Robarts II 1954 BHUTAN Ardeshir Faroodi VI 1954 Shapoor Rowhani VI 1954 BRlTISH CAMEROONS Enoch Olinga X 1953 BRlTISH GUIANA Malcolm King X 1953 BRlTISH HONDURAS Cora Oliver IX 1953 Shirley Warde X 1953 BRlTISH TOGOLAND Albert Buapiah IV 1954 Edward Tabe IV 1954 BRUNEI Harry Clark II 1954 Charles Duncan II 1954 John Fozdar IV 1954 CANARY ISLANDS Gertrude Eisenberg X 1953 George True X 1953 Marguerite True X 1953 Shoghi Riaz Ruhany VI 1954 CAPE BRETON ISLAND Frederick Allen X 1953 Jean Allen X 1953 Grace Geary X 1953 Irving Geary X 1953 CAPE VERDE ISLANDS Howard Menking I 1954 Joanne Menking I 1954 CAROLINE ISLANDS Virginia Breaks XI 1953 CHAGOS ARCHIPELAGO Puva Murday V 1957 CHANNEL ISLANDS Ziaoullah Asgarzadeh IX 1953 Evelyn Baxter IX 1953 CHILOE ISLAND Zunilda de Palacios X 1953 Louise Groger VI 1954 COCOS ISLANDS Frank Wyss VI 1955 COMORO ISLANDS Mehraban Sohaili VIII 1954 COOK ISLANDS Edith Danielsen X 1953 Dulcie Dive I 1954 CRETE Rolf Haug X 1953 CYPRUS Abbas Vakil VIII 1953 R. Hugh McKinley IX 1953 Violet McKinley XI 1953 Samira Vakil XI 1953 DAMAN Ghulam Ali Kurlawala VI 1953 DIU Gulnar Aftabi XII 1953 Kaykhusraw Dehmobedi XII 1953 Bahiya Rowhani XII 1953 DUTCH GUIANA Elinor WolffX 1953 Robert WolffX 1953 DUTCH NEW GUINEA Elly Becking X 1953 Lex Meerburg IV 1954 DUTCH WEST INDIES Matthew Bullock XI 1953 John Kellberg IV 1954 Marjorie Kellberg IV 1954 ESTONIA Opened by traveling teachers FALKLAND lSLANDS John Leonard II 1954 FAROE ISLANDS Eskil Ljungberg VIII 1953 FINNO-KARELIA Opened by traveling teachers FRANKLIN K. Gale Bond IX 1953 J. Jameson Bond IX 1953 FRENCH CAMEROONS Meherangiz Munsiff IV 1954 Samuel Njiki IV 1954 THE BAHA ' i WORLD FRENCH EQUATORIAL AFRICA Max Kanyerezi IX 1953 FRENCH GUIANA Eberhard Friedland X 1953 FRENCH SOMALILAND Fred Schechter VIII 1953 Fahimah Elias V 1954 Sabri Elias V 1954 FRENCH TOGOLAND David Tanyi IV 1954 Mavis Nymon V 1954 Vivian Wesson V 1954 FRENCH WEST AFRICA Labib I~fahanf XI 1953 Habib I~fahani IV 1954 FRISIAN ISLANDS Elsa Grossmann IX 1953 Geertrui Ankersmit X 1953 Ursula Yon Brunn X 1953 GALAPAGOS ISLANDS Gayle Woolson IV 1954 Haik Kevorkian V 1954 GAMBIA Feriborze Roozbehyan II 1954 GILBERT & ELLICE ISLANDS Elena Fernie III 1954 Roy Fernie III 1954 GOA Roshan Aftabi VII 1953 Feroza Yaganegi VII 1953 GRAND MANAN ISLAND Doris Richardson IX 1953 GREECE Amin Banani VIII 1953 Sheila Banani VIII 1953 Carole Allen IX 1953 Dwight Allen IX 1953 HADHRAMAUT Adib Baghdadi XII 1953 Wahida Baghdadi XII 1953 Husayn I:Ialabf II 1954 HAINAN John Z.T. Chang VIII 1959 HEBRIDES Geraldine Craney X 1953 lTALIAN SOMALILAND Soheil Samandari III 1953 Mehdi Samandari XI 1953 Ursula Samandari XI 1953 JUAN FERNANDEZ ISLAND Adela I. de Tormo X 1953 Salvador Tormo X 1953 KARIKAL Salisa Kermani VIII 1953 Shirin Noorani VIII 1953 KEEWATIN Dick Stanton IX 1953 KEY WEST Arthur Crane VII 1953 Ethel Crane VII 1953 Howard J. Snider IX 1953 KAZAKHSTAN Found to be already open KIRGIZIA Found to be already open KODIAK ISLAND Jack Huffman VI 1953 Rose Perkal VII 1953 Bernard Guluáke II 1954 KURJA-MURJA ISLANDS Munir Vakil I 1954 LABRADOR Howard Gilliland IV 1954 Bmce Matthew IV 1954 LATVIA Found to be already open LEEWARD ISLANDS Earle Render X 1953 Ben Weeden X 1953 Gladys Weeden X 1953 Charles Dayton II 1954 Mary Dayton II 1954 David Schreiber II 1954 LIECHTENSTEIN Amir Huschmand Manutschehri VIII 1953 LITHUANIA Opened by traveling teachers LOFOTEN ISLANDS Mildred Clark VIII 1953 Loyce Lawrence VIII 1953 LOYALTY ISLANDS Daniel Haumont X 1955 MACAO Frances Heller X 1953 Carl Scherer XIJ 1953 Loretta Scherer XII 1953 MADEIRA Ella Duffield IX 1953 Elizabeth Hopper IX 1953 Sara Kenny IX 1953 Adah Schott IX 1953 MAGDALEN ISLANDS Kathleen Weston IX 1953 Kay Zinky IV 1954 MAHE Lionel Peraji X 1953 Khodarahm Mojgani III 1954 Qudratollah Rowhani III 1954 MALTA Una Townshend X 1953 Olga Mills XI 1953 John Mitchell VII 1954 MARGARJTA ISLAND R. Katharine Meyer X 1953 MARJANA ISLANDS Robert Powers Jr. V 1953 Cynthia Olson V 1954 MARQUESAS ISLANDS Gretta Jankko III 1954 MARSHALL ISLANDS Marcia Atwater VIII 1954 MAURITIUS Ottilie Rhein XI 1953 MENTAWAI ISLANDS Ral~matu'llah Muhajir II 1954 Iran Muhajir II 1954 ST. PIERRE AND MIQUELON Ola Pawlowska X 1953 MOLDAVIA Annemarie Kriiger MONACO Nellie French IX 1953 Azizullah Navidi II 1954 Shamsi Navidi II 1954 Olivia Kelsey III 1954 Florence Ullrich III 1954 MONGOLIA Sean Hinton XII 1988 MOROCCO (INTERNATIONAL ZONE) Manoutchehr Hezari IX l 953 Hormoz Zendeh IX l 953 Elsie Austin X 1953 Mohammed Ali Jalali X 1953 Hossein Rowhani Ardekani XI 1953 Nosrat Rowhani Ardekani XI 1953 Ali Akbar Hassanzadeh Rafii-Rafsandjani XI l 953 Shayesteh Rafii-Rafsandjani XI 1953 Abbas Rafii Rafsandjani XI 1953 Mary L. Suhm IV l 954 Richard Suhm IV 1954 Evelyn Walters IV l 954 Richard Walters IV 1954 NEW HEBRIDES Bertha Dobbins X l 953 NICOBAR ISLANDS Margaret Bates VII l 957 Jeanne Frankel VII 1957 NORTHERN TERRITORIES PROTECTORATE Julius Edwards IX 1953 Martin Manga IV 1954 ORKNEY ISLANDS Charles Dunning X 1953 PONDICHERRY Saeed Nahvi VII 1953 Shyam Behari Lal VIII 1953 Shokat Nahvi XI 1953 PORTUGUESE GUINEA Hilda Rodrigues IX 1953 Jose Xavier Rodrigues IX 1953 PORTUGUESE TIMOR Florence Fitzner VI 1954 Harold Fitzner VI 1954 Jose Marques VII 1954 QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS Edythe MacArthur VIII 1953 REUNION Opal Jensen X 1953 Leland Jensen III 1954 RHODES Elizabeth Bevan I 1954 RIO DE ORO Amin Battah X 1953 ROMANIA Fereidun Khazrai XI 1968 RUANDA-URUNDI Dunduzu Chisiza VI 1953 Mary Collison VI 1953 Rex Collison VI 1953 ST. HELENA Elizabeth Stamp V 1954 ST. THOMAS ISLAND Elise Schreiber II 1954 SAKHALIN Abbas Katirai Ill 1990 Rezvanieh Katirai III 1990 SAMOA ISLANDS Lilian Wyss I 1954 SAN MARINO Tabandeh Payman IX 1953 Sohrab Payman IV 1954 SARDINIA Marie Ciocca XI 1953 THE COMMEMORATION OF HISTORIC ANNIVERSARIES 1 1 1 SEYCHELLES ISLANDS Kami! Abbas XI 1953 Abdul Rahman Zarqani I 1954 SHETLAND ISLANDS Brigitte Hasselblatt IX 1953 SICILY Carol Bagley X 1953 Florence Bagley X 1953 Gerrald Bagley X 1953 Stanley Bagley X 1953 Susan Bagley X 1953 Emma Rice X 1953 SIKKIM Udai Narain Singh VIII 1953 SOCIETY ISLANDS Gretta Lamprill X 1953 Gladys Parke X 1953 SOCOTRA ISLAND Mirza Aqa Khan Kamali-Sarvistani III 1955 SOLOMON ISLANDS Alvin Blum III 1954 Gertrude Blum III 1954 SOUTH WEST AFRICA Ted Cardell X 1953 SOUTHERN RHODESIA 'Izzatu'llah Zahra'i VI 1953 Claire Gung X 1953 Eyneddin Alai XII 1953 Tahereh Alai XII 1953 Kenneth Christian I 1954 Roberta Christian I 1954 SPANISH GUINEA Elise Schreiber V 1954 SPANISH MOROCCO Earleta Fleming X 1953 John Fleming X 1953 Alyce Janssen X 1953 SPANISH MOROCCO (continued) Luella McKay X 1953 Bahia Zeinol-Abedin X 1953 Fawzi Zeinol-Abedin X 1953 SPANISH SAHARA MuJ:iammad Mu~tafa X 1953 SPITS BERGEN Paul Adams VI 1958 SWAZILAND John Allen IV 1954 Valera Allen IV 1954 Bula Mott Stewart IV 1954 TADZHIKISTAN Found to be already open TIBET Udai Narain Singh IX 1955 TONGA ISLANDS Stanley Bolton Jr. I 1954 Dudley Blakely VII 1954 Elsa Blakely VII 1954 TUAMOTU ARCHIPELAGO Jean Sevin I 1954 UKRAINE Found to be already open UZBEKISTAN Found to be already open WHITE RUSSIA Helmut Winkelbach XII 1978 WINDWARD ISLANDS Esther Evans X 1953 Lillian Middlemast X 1953 YUKON Joan Anderson IX 1953 R. Ted Anderson IX 1953 N View ofthe interior ofthe Royal Albert Hall in London, England, as it looked when thousands ofSaha 'is gathered for the first Saha 'i World Congress, heldfrom 28 April-2 May 1963. PART THREE INTERNATIONAL SURVEY OF CURRENT BAHA'I ACTIVITIES 142-148 OF THE BAHA'i ERA 21 APRIL 1986-20 APRIL 1992 '-"" i First page ofthe Kitab-i-Aqdas in the handwriting of 'Abdu 'l-Baha. This Tablet belonged to Baha 'u '!!ah Himself. I THE SIX YEAR INTERNATIONAL TEACHING PLAN 1986-1992 1. THE COMPLETION OF THE SIX YEAR INTERNA TI ON AL TEACHING PLAN A. THE BAHA'f WORLD CENTRE a. Publication of the Kitab-i-Aqdas in English In its Ric:Ivan message of 1986, the Universal House of Justice announced that the time had come for the preparation of a copiously annotated English háanslation of the complete text of the Most Holy Book. The accom¥plislm1ent of this project was specified as a major goal of the Six Year Plan for the World Cenháe. Its publication was scheduled during the Holy Year. Shoghi Effendi himself had already háans¥lated just over one-third of the text of the Aqdas. The basic task, then, was to provide suitable renderings of the remaining passages of the Book. This was initially assigned to a conmlittee ofháanslators at the World Cenháe. Their work was subsequently reviewed and revised a number of times until an accept¥able version was approved. The standards adopted to guide the translation were accu¥racy of meaning, beauty of language, and conformity of style with that employed by Shoghi Effendi. During the course of the work, a well¥advanced draft was shared with a number of knowledgeable Baha'is around the world who were asked for their comments and sugges¥tions. The points they submitted were then considered by the review committee and the draft was amended as needed. During the same period a companion work, Questions and Answers, was also translated from the Persian for inclusion in the volume; this work consists of questions put to Baha'u'llah regarding certain laws of the Aqdas, and His responses. Parallel with this process, researchers began collecting pertinent passages from the Baha'i Sacred Writings, the Holy Books of the past, the interpretations of Shoghi Effendi and other materials needed in the prepara¥tion of the extensive annotations that were to accompany the text. A list of the items requiring notes was first prepared and approved. In composing the notes, the focus of concentration was on those points about which the reader would need elucidation. The notes are not intended to be a compre¥hensive commentary on the text, which would be a task beyond the capacity of present resources. The volume also include_s a preface, an inháoduction, Shoghi Effendi's description of the contents of the Book, supplementary passages, a synopsis and codification of the laws and ordinances of the Aqdas, a glossary and an extensive index. THE BAHA'i WORLD Attendees ofthe Jfuququ 'llah Conference held at the Baha'i World Centre in Janumy I 987 From left to right,fiáont row: Mr. Hugh Chance, Dr. 'Ali-Muhammad Varqa, Mr. Salim Nounou, Mr. Hadi Rahmani. Middle row: Mr. Jan Semple, Mr. 'Ali NaY!Javani, Mr. Glenford Mitchell, Mr. Mas 'iid Khamsi, Mr. Hushmand Fatheazam, Dr. Amin Banani, Mr. Charles Wolcott, Dr. Dmyush Haghighi. Back row: Mr. Parviz Hatami, Mr. Khudarahm Payman, Dr. David Ruhe, Mr. Borrah Kave/in, and Mr. David Hofman. b. Education of the Baha'i World in the The first compilation was supplemented Law of J.luququ'llah in due course by a study guide comprising The Universal House of Justice decided to a simple codification of the law, a brief initiate a program of education about the law history of the development of the institution of l:J.uququ'llah for Baba ' is throughout the of l:J.uququ 'llah, and the text of an informa¥world to explain the details and, above all, tive address given at the International Baha'i the spiritual significance of this law, and had Convention in 1988 by the Trustee of a compilation of texts on l:J.uququ'llah pre¥l:J.uququ'llah, the Hand of the Cause of God pared and sent to all national communities in Dr. 'Ali-Muhammad Varqa. These materials 1985. With these materials in hand, educa¥were translated into many languages and tion of the body of believers became a goal were further supplemented by the production of the Six Year Plan. of many other educational items in different parts of the world. To prepare for the world¥wide application of the law, the Universal House of Justice called the first }::Iuququ'llah Conference in the Holy Land in 1987, attended by the Trnstee, five of his deputies, representatives of the International Teaching Centre and the World Centre's Department of Finance. Of the many meetings and conferences subsequently held on }::Iuququ'llah during the Plan, the gathering called by Dr. Yarqa in conjunction with the 1988 International Convention and attended by over fifty depu¥ties and representatives, including seven Continental Counsellors, deserves mention. This conference promoted increased cooper¥ation among the institutions of the Faith in the implementation of the goal and gave a renewed impetus to the education of the believers. One of the steps taken by the Trnstee in preparation for the worldwide application of the law was to greatly increase the number of deputy háustees on all continents as well as the number of representatives selected by these deputies to assist them in their work. Numerous activities for the education of the friends were also undertaken by the Conti¥nental Boards of Counsellors and the National Spiritual Assemblies. Perhaps the best indicator of the success of these efforts was the increase in the num¥ber of believers observing this law. During the Six Year Plan the amount received by the I:Iuququ 'llah fund greatly increased. One of the most gratifying aspects of this increase was the number of payments received from Western believers who, although not then obligated to fulfill the law, paid the I:Iuququ¥'llah eagerly because of their love for Baha'u'llah and their increased awareness of its importance. In 1991 the Universal House of Justice announced in its Ri9van message that the law of }::Iuququ 'llah would become, as of the following Ri9van, universally applicable: Such an exceptional confluence of immi¥ nent achievements-the publication of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, the progress of the build¥ ing projects on Mount Carmel, the conclu¥ sion of the Six Year plan, the inception of the Holy Year-animates the expectations of the Baha'i world, sets the stage for mightier endeavours than have already been attempted, and points us all to the opening of a new phase of history. It seems fitting, then, that the sacred law which enables each one to express his or her personal sense of devotion to God in a profoundly private act of conscience that promotes the common good, which directly connects the individual believer with the Central Institution of the Faith, and which, above all, ensures to the obe¥ dient and the sincere the ineffable grace and abundant blessings of Providence, should, at this favourable juncture, be embraced by all who profess their belief in the Supreme Manifestation of God. With humility before our sovereign Lord, we now anno1mce that as ofRi9van 1992, the beginning of the Holy Year, the Law of I:Iuququ' llah, the Right of God, will become universally applicable. All are lovingly called to observe it. In response to this am1ouncement Hand of the Cause of God Dr. 'Ali-Mul~ammad Yarqa called another International }::Iuququ¥'llah Conference to prepare for the universal application of the law. This was held at Landegg Academy in Switzerland in August 199 1, and was attended by twenty-three deputy trustees from all over the world. In November 1991, following consulta¥tion with the Trustee, the Universal House of Justice announced the establishment of a central office for I:Iuqi'.1qu' llah in the Holy Land. One of the fruits of this new develop¥ment was the publication in January 1992 of the first edition of a }::Iuququ'llah newsletter designed to link the greatly increased num¥ber of deputy trnstees and representatives around the world by exchanging news of their activities and providing them with helpful material for their rapidly expanding functions. LIST OF COMPILATIONS ANO CODIFICATIONS OF ~IUQUQU'LLAH (BY LANGUAGE) HELO IN Tl-IE BAHA'I WORLD CENTRE LIBRARY The Research Department of the Universal Huququ 'llah (June 1986); and, Development House of Justice prepared: Compilation of of Huqilqu 'llah (March 1987). These have l:fuqilqu 'llah (July 1985); Codification of been translated into the following languages: Language Title Publisher Year Afrikaans Hugt'.1gu'llah , die reg va n God -Abri dged NSA of So uth Africa 1988 Compilation and Codification Amharic Ye Hugt'.19u'llah hig ater ):'.ale trazi -Abridged NSA of Ethiopia 1991 Compilation Be):'.e ariestu sir l:'.e takafafelul:'.e Hugugu 'llah hig NSA of Ethiopia 199 1 Codification Arabic Huqugu'llah -Compilation Editora Baha'i, Brasil 1986 Hugt'.1gu'llah -Compi latio n NSA of Pakistan 1986? Chinese "Hu ku gu la" gu-gui BPT of Malaysia 1987 Danish Hugt'.1gu ' llah, Guds rel -Compi lation NSA of Denmark 1989 Dutch Hugugu'llah, het recht van God -Compilation NSA of the Netherlands 1988 English Hugugu' Jlah -Compilation NSA of New Zealand 1985 HuqC1gu'llah, the Right of God -Compilation BPT of United Kingdom 1986 Hugt'.1qu'llah -Development and Codification BPT of Malaysia 1987 and Abridged Compilation l-lugt'.1gu'Jlah -Compilation NSA of Malaysia 1985 The Law of Hugt'.19u'Jl ah -Codification and NSA ofTranskei 1987 Development and Abridged Compilation l-lu9C1qu'Jlah -Compilation BPT of India 1986 l-lugC1gu'Jlah, a Stud):'. Guide -Codification and BPT of United Kingdom 1989 Development, and The Right of God (by Dr. Varga) l-luqC1qu'Jlah, the Ri1jht of God -Compilation BPT of United Kingdom 1989 Huqugu'llah -Compilation Baha'i Canada Publications 1989 Finnish Hugugu' llah, Kokoelma -Abridged NSA of Finland 1991 Compilation French Hugt'.1gu'llah ou le droit de Dieu -Compilation MEB of Belgium 1987 Hugugu' Jlah, historigue et codification MEB of Belgium 1987 German Hu9C1gu'Jlah -Comp ilation NSA ofGennany 1987 Systematische Darstellung des Hugugu'llah-NSA ofGennany 1987 Gesetzes -Codification I ban Hugt1qu'Jlah -Comp ilation State Baha'i Council of 1992 Sarawak, Ma laysia Icelandic Login um Huqugu'llah -Abridged Compilation Icela nd 1992 INTE RNA TIO NA L SURVEY O F CURRENT BA HA' I ACT IVIT IES 119 Language Title Publisher Year Ita li an Huq(1gu ' ll ah -Co mpilati on Casa Ed i trice Baha' i 1987 Korean Hugugu ' ll ah -Compi lation Seoul 1992 Norwegian Lovem om Hugugu ' ll ah -Co mpi lation Baha' i Forlag 1990 1984 Spanish El Huqugu'llah ):' los Fondos Baha'is Editorial Baha'i de Espana 1991 Persian Hugugu'llah -Compilation Dr. Varga, Canada Swedish Huguqu ' ll ah -Co mpil ati on Baha' i fo rlaget 1988 Tamil Hu kukull a -Abridged Comp ilation BPT Committee of Ma laysia 1987 Urd u Hugugu ' llah BPT of Pakistan 1986 A deepening in the law ofHuququ '!!ah at Menu Balui 'i Institute, Western Province ofKenya, November l 990. THE BAHA'I WORLD A luncheon held as part ofthe opening ceremonies ofthe north wing of the House of 'Abdu 'llah Pasha, 28 April 1990. c. Restoration and Protection of Holy Places The Office ofHoly Places mobilized most of its resources and efforts during the Six Year Plan to accomplish two major tasks: the restoration of the north wing of the House of 'Abdu'llah Pasha; and completion of the urgently needed architectural, photographic, and inventory documentation of the Holy Places-sacred and priceless legacies that must be protected from environmental and political perils. In addition, several other major projects were completed. The restoration of the north wing of the House of 'Abdu'llah Pasha began in 1987 and took three years to complete. The project-phase two of an overall plan for the building-followed restoration of the south wing, which had been completed in 1983. The restoration was based on the design work of architect Mr. Saeed Samadi, with the work supervised and managed by archi¥tect Mr. Fariburz $ahba. On 19 June 1990, the Universal House of Justice sent the following messages to all National Spiritual Assemblies: REJOICE ANNOUNCE COMPLETION RESTORA¥TION NORT H WING OF HOUSE OF 'ABDU ' LLAH PASHA IN 'AKKA PERMITTING FIRST VISIT ADDITIONAL AREA THIS HOLY PLACE BY CURRENT GROUP PILGRIMS ON SEVENTEENTH JUNE. WING CONTAINS HALL JN WHICH 'ABDU'L-BAHA HELD FEASTS AND OTHER GATHERINGS AND ALSO ROOM OCCUPIED BY SHOGHI EFFEND I DURJNG BOYHOOD, BOTH ROOMS BEFITTINGLY FURNISHED BY AMATU ' L¥BAHA RU~liYYIH KHANUM. During this time, RuJ:iiyyih Khanum also personally undertook the furnishing of two additional rooms in the south section which were then opened to pilgrims, namely the biruni of 'Abdu'l-Baha and a room that was used for teaching children. Several properties encroaching on the courtyard of the House or bordering the walls were also acquired, ensuring the future protection of the perimeter. The vaults and underground sections were surveyed. In addition to the work on the House of 'Abdu'llah Pasha, architectural, as built, drawings of most of the Holy Places were completed, together with photo-documenta¥tion of the buildings and their contents. Identification and description of items according to museum standards neared com¥pletion. The following major tasks were also accomplished during the Plan: -The coordinates, both latitude and longitude on the Israeli Grid, of the resting place ofBaha'u'llah were finally established accurately, enabling the direction of the Qiblih to be ascertained from any point on the earth's surface. Restoration ofthe stencilled artwork on the balcony ofthe Mansion ofBaha 'u 'llah at Bahji, October 1987. -The ceiling of the colonnade of the Shrine ofthe Bab was plastered and refinished and the specially designed brass ornamental light fixtures were affixed, completing the design of the Hand of the Cause of God William Sutherland Maxwell for this part of the superstructure. The superstructure of the Shrine was care¥fully washed, and the dome was repainted and protected against rain water seeping into the interior. A new scaffolding system for accessing the interior and exterior of the dome was erected. -The Room in which Baha'u'llah passed away in the Mansion of Bahji was com¥pletely restored. Particular care was taken to replicate the beautiful pattern of the sten¥cilled artwork both in this room and in the balcony area. -Detailed research on the Prison Cell of Baha'u'llah was undertaken in preparation for its complete restoration. This was accom¥plished with the cooperative efforts of the Israeli Antiquities Authority. The plaster layer covering the walls was removed to expose the stones that were there at the time ofBaha'u'llah. -The Ri<;[van Garden fountain was care¥fully excavated after serious cracks developed in the structure, and it was completely restored. The Pump House erected by the Guardian over the older structure that was in place at the time of 'Abdu'l-Baha and which had collapsed, was also restored. Extensive restoration work also took place on the peb¥bled paths and the exterior of the building housing the Room ofBaha'u'llah. Using old photographs and photogram¥metric measurement techniques, drawings were made of the original bench of Baha'u¥'llah and the other benches used by pilgrims. This was done in preparation for completely rebuilding the benches. A property within the Firdaws Garden that was sometimes used by the Master was re-acquired. -The property of the Junein Garden, which Baha'u'llah used at one time, was THE BAHA'f WORLD acquired and restoration begun. It is located in Nahariyyih, close to Mazra'ih. -Tiles on the roof of the International Archives Building were removed and protec¥tive layers placed. The roof was completely re-tiled. -The Monuments of the Greatest Holy Leaf, the Purest Branch, Navvab and Munirih Khanum were carefully cleaned and restored. -At the Haifa Cemetery, following the establishment of the Qiblih coordinates and the demolition ofold structures that were ille¥gally occupied, work began to align graves and paths, erect new retaining walls, and complete landscaping. -All remains of Baha'is still in the Mus¥lim cemetery in Tiberias were transferred to the Baha'i cemetery in En Gev which houses the remains ofBaha'u'llah's faithful brother Mirza Mul:iammad Quli and his family. -The land for a Baha'i cemetery in Jerusalem was acquired, the Qiblih coordi¥nates established, and the perimeters for the cemetery secured and built. -The property ofKhan-i-'Avamid, which does not belong to the Faith but which is visited by pilgrims during the pilgrimage program, was surveyed and documented for future purposes. The ceiling ofthe colonnade ofthe Shrine ofthe Bab was plastered and refinished, and the specially designed brass ornamental light fixtures were affixed. 1991. d. Signing of the Status Agreement Adapted from a letter from the Universal House ofJustice to the Baha 'is of the world dated 30 April 1987. On 22 April 1987, in a ceremony at Israel's Foreign Ministry, an Agreement comprising an exchange of letters was signed by Mr. Shimon Peres, Vice-Premier and Foreign Minister, on behalf of the Government of Israel and Mr. Donald Barrett, Secretary¥General ofthe Baha'i International Community, on behalf of the Baha'i World Centre. Among the contents of this Agreement are the following statements of recognition: The Government of Israel recognizes the members of the Baha'i Faith as a rec¥ognized religious community in Israel in accordance with Article 2 of the Palestine Order in Council, 1922-1947, and con¥firms that the Baha'i World Centre is the world spiritual and administrative centre of the Baha'i world community and that the Universal House of Justice in Haifa is the Head of the Baha'i Faith and its Supreme Institution in accordance with its Constitution. The Government of Israel recognizes that the holiest places of the Baha'i Faith, in accordance with the Baha'i Sacred Scriptures, are located in Israel, and con¥firms that the Universal House of Justice is the Trustee of the Baha'i International Community over the Holy Places of the Baha'i Faith in Israel and over the Baha'i endowments in Israel. These friendly relations trace their foun¥ dation to the inspired initiatives of 'Abdu'l¥Baha Himself, particularly during the period following the Revolution of the Young Turks in 1908 when a general amnesty was effected for religious and political prisoners held under the old regime. The prestige acquired by the Faith through the dynamic force of the Master's unique spirit was demonstrated after his release from imprisonment in the actions He took to establish His residence in Haifa at the foot of Mount Carmel, to inter A Status Agreement was signed by His Excellency Shimon Peres, Vice-Premier and Minister ofForeign Affairs (center), and by Mr. Donald Barrett, Secretary-General ofthe Baha 'i International Community (right), on 22 April 1987. Minister Moshe Shahal (left) looks on. THE BAHA' i WO RLD the sacred remains of the Bab in the mauso¥leum which had been erected by Him on the spot designated by Baha'u' llah Himself, and to travel extensively in the West. Subsequent to these travels, it was more conspicuously illustrated through the excellent relations He forged with high and low alike, the social impact of His liberal ministrations to the needs of the people in the Holy Land, and the conferring of a knighthood upon Him by the British Crown. This legacy of prestige was evident in the recognition accorded Shoghi Effendi as Head of the Faith by the authorities of the British Mandate. The extent of the Guardian's energetic exertions to achieve recognition of the independent status of the Faith, whose permanent spiritual and admin¥istrative centres in the Holy Land, is beyond the scope of this letter and must, in due time be afforded full háeatment in the work of future historians. Let it suffice to reaffim1 here that what he was able to accomplish during the years of the Mandate, in securing custody of Baha 'i properties in obtaining official protection of the Holy Places, recog¥nition of the Baha'i marriage certificate and of the Baha'i Holy Days, and relief from certain taxes, combined to reflect a status for the Faith which was accepted by the new Government when the State of Israel was established in 1948. Dear Friends, the Status Agreement now achieved makes an indelible mark on the Formative Age of our Faith, assuming a spe¥cial place among the swiftly accumulating evidences of the divine confomations which have thus far distinguished the opening period of the fourth epoch of that Age. One practical and spiritually confirming effect of the signing of the Status Agreement is that it brings us within reach of the real¥ization of the beloved Guardian's vision for the Arc on God 's Holy Mountain. For with the Agreement in hand formidable obstacles to the execution of the Arc Project have been removed. The conjunction of the completion of the architect's design and the favourable action of the Government thus signals the ripeness of the time to pursue the obligation acutely felt by the entire Baha'i world to bring to frnition, as soon as possible, the work begun by Shoghi Effendi in the erec¥tion of the Archives Building and carried forward in the completion four years ago of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice. The plans to be made and the material requirements for so extraordinary an under¥taking will, of course, be communicated to the friends in due course. e. The Arc and Terraces on Mount Carmel In His soul-stirring Tablet of Carmel, Baha'u' llah glorified Mount Carmel and declared that God had made it "the dawning¥place of His signs and the dayspring of the evidences of His Revelation." He also com¥municated to 'Abdu 'l-Baha His majestic vision for the holy mountain. 'Abdu' l-BaM undertook the great work of erecting a suitable resting place for the Sacred Remains of the Bab. He Himself consháucted the original mausoleum, and in 1909 interred in it the Blessed Dust of the Bab. Soon after 'Abdu'l-Baha 's passing, Shoghi Effendi added three additional rooms, and in 1953 completed the splendid superstructure of the Holy Shrine, designed by Mr. Sutherland Maxwell. He also beauti¥fied the holy spot with magnificent gardens, and took the first steps to shape the lower nine terraces. With the Tablet of Carmel as his guide, the Guardian initiated consháuction of a series of buildings upon an arc on Mount Carmel that would constitute the adminisháative center of the Baha'i world. Shortly before his death in 1957 he oversaw the completion of the Archives building, the first of five buildings to rise in the immediate vicinity of the sacred resting places of four members of the Holy Family. After the passing of the beloved Guardian, the challenging task of erecting the remaining four buildings of the Arc and of completing the terraces became Members ofthe Universal House ofJltstice with architects Husayn Amanat and Farfburz $ahb6 on the construction site, March l 988. From left to right: Dr. Peter Khan, Mr. Glenford Mitchell, Dr. David Ruhe, Mr. David Hofman, Mr. 'Ali Na!E!Javani, Mr. Hugh Chance, Mr. Amanat, Mr. Sahba, and Mr. Borrah Kave/in. the responsibility of the Universal House of Justice. In 1983, the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, designed by Mr. Hossein Amanat, was completed at the apex of the Arc. Then in 1986, as the Six Year Plan opened, the House of Justice announced its plan to com¥mence rearing the remaining buildings on the Arc, employing designs by the same architect. It also appointed Mr. Fariburz $ahba, the architect of the Indian House of Worship, to design the terraces above and below the Shrine of the Bab, and to function as Project Manager for constrnction of the additional buildings envisaged in the plan. In a letter to the followers of Baba 'u' llah throughout the world, dated 31 August 1987, the Universal House of Justice wrote, in part: Five closely related projects demand our attention: the erection of the three remaining buildings on the Arc and, added now to these, the conshuction of the terraces of the Shrine of the Bab and the extension of the International Archives Building. A brief description of each of these will convey an impression of their significance for the Faith. The Terraces of the Shrine of the Bab. In His plans for the development of Mount Carmel, 'Abdu'l-Baha envisaged nineteen monumental tenaces from the foot of the mountain to its crest, nine leading to the tenace on which the Shrine of the Bab itself stands, and nine above it. These plans were often refetTed to by Shoghi Effendi, and he completed in preliminary form the nine tenaces consti¥tuting the approach to the Shrine fro m the central avenue of the fom1er German Templer Colony. The International Teaching Centre will be the seat of that institution which is specifically invested with the twin func¥tions of the protection and propagation of the Cause of God. The institution itself, referred to by the beloved Guardian in his THE BAHA ' I WORLD Some historic features ofthe terraces, such as the water cistern and pool built during the Ministry of 'Abdu '1-Bahti, have been retained and incorporated into the new terrace design. Ninety percent of work on the main terrace had been completed by 15February1991. Earthwork on the terraces below the Shrine ofthe Bab in October 1991. Excavation ofthe site ofthe Centre for the Study ofthe Sacred Texts, between the Seat ofthe Universal House ofJustice and the International Archives Building, in February 1992. writings, was established in June 1973, bringing to fruition the work of the Hands of the Cause of God residing in the Holy Land and providing for the extension into the future of functions with which that body has been endowed. The Centre for the Study of the Texts. This building will be the seat of an institu¥tion of Baha'i scholars, the efflorescence of the present Research Department of the World Centre, which will assist the Universal House of Justice in consulting the Sacred Writings, and will prepare translations of and commentaries on the authoritative texts of the Faith. The International Archives Building. We have decided to construct, westwards, an extension to the basement of the present Archives Building to provide accommo¥dation for the central office of the ever¥growing Archives at the World Centre. This institution is charged with responsi¥bility for the preservation of the Sacred Texts and Relics and the historic docu¥ments of the Cause of God. The International Baha'i Library. This Library is the central depository of all literature published on the Faith, and is an essential source of information for the institutions of the World Centre on all subjects relating to the Cause of God and the conditions of mankind. In future decades its functions must grow, it will serve as an active centre for knowledge in all fields, and it will become the kernel of great institutions of scientific investigation and discovery. In August 1988, the Mount Carmel Projects Office was established in Haifa to design the terraces of the Shrine of the Bab, to take charge of the project management and construction administration of all the projects, and to represent the Baha'i World Centre in all matters related to the projects and act as liaison between the Universal House of Justice and consultants, contrac¥tors, and the different departments and offices of the Baha'i World Centre as eventual users of the buildings and faci lities to be con¥structed. From its establishment to Ric;!van 1992 the office grew to include structural, mechanical, irrigation, and electronic engi¥neers, architects, and experts in the area of management, design and supervision. Throughout the Six Year Plan many chal¥lenges were met in pursuing the vision of Baha'u'llah, 'Abdu'l-Baha, and Shoghi Effendi. The House of Justice advised the Baha' i world that it must accumulate a fifty million dollar reserve before any construction could begin, a goal achieved by February 1991. Other challenges included meeting legal and procedural requirements of the national and municipal governments and their agencies. THE BAHA 'i WORLD With the problems came unexpected bounties. The City of Haifa announced its hopes to renovate the harbor and to begin to restore the nineteenth-century German Tem¥pler Colony which lines Ben Gurion A venue northward from the foot of the terraces. Plans were made for a promenade at the crest of the mountain above the projected nineteenth terrace. Through the efforts of the Mount Carmel Projects Office, these exter¥nal, independent plans are being integrated to the extent possible with the grand design for the World Centre properties. The official approval of the Town Plan¥ning Scheme, essential for the initiation of the Projects, was given by the Local Town Planning Committee and Haifa City Council on 11 October 1989. District Commission approval to the proposed Scheme was given on 23 July 1990. In the course of mnnging for the Town Planning Scheme and the various building permits, much time was devoted to identifying and documenting the properties making up the Baha' i World Centre holdings on Mount Carmel. On 24 May 1990, the Universal House of Justice sent the following message to all National Spiritual Assemblies: With feeling ofprofound joy announce to followers of Baha'u'llah in every land that on morning of twenty-third May, one hundred forty-six years after the Declara¥tion of the Bab, work on extension ter¥races commenced. This historic occasion marked by visit His Shrine and Shrine of 'Abdu' l-Baha by Hands of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha Ru~iyyih Khanum and 'Ali-Akbar Furutan, the members of the Universal House of Justice and Counsel¥lor members of the International Teaching Centre with Fariburz ~ahba, architect of the Terraces and manager of the Arc Project to pray for Divine confirmations enable uninterrupted prosecution this majestic enterprise. The first phase of the Terraces Project was the lengthening and reinforcement of the main terrace on which stands the Shrine of the Bab, the facing of its wall with stone and reinforcement of its base, and the extension of the te1nce gardens eastward over a new building that will house workshop service areas for the gardens, thereby making the ter¥race symmetrical on both sides ofthe Shrine. In June 1991 phase two commenced: excavation for the Centre for the Study of the Texts and for the extension of the Archives building, an unusually massive excavation for the nine levels of the new buildings, six of which will be below ground. The excess rock from the construction site was trans¥ported down the mountain to raise and shape the lower terraces, while a thirty-meter-high retaining wall, anchored by deep-seated metal bars, stabilized the mountain behind the future buildings. The Universal House of Justice wrote to the followers of Baha'u'llah throughout the world on 31 August 1987: The great work of constructing the terraces, landscaping their surroundings, and erecting the remaining buildings of the Arc will bring into being a vastly aug¥mented World Centre structure which will be capable of meeting the challenges of corning centuries and of the tremen¥dous growth of the Baha' i community which the beloved Guardian has told us to expect.... This is the time for which we must now prepare ourselves; this is the hour whose coming it is our task to hasten. Model ofbuildings on the Arc as seen from the northeast. The Hand ofthe Cause ofGod Amatu 'l-Baha Riihiyyih Khanum greets the President ofthe Marshall Islands, Amata Kabua, during his visit to the Baha'i World Centre, 23 June l 990. The Hand ofthe Cause ofGod 'Ali-Akbar Fun/tan greets well-known musician and Baha'i Dizzy Gillespie during Mr. Gillespie's visit to the Baha'i World Centre on 17 July 199 l. THE BAHA'I WORLD The Hand of the Cause ofGod 'A Ii-Akbar Funltan accompaning the President ofIsrael, Chaim Herzog (centre) during his visit to the Baha 'i World Centre on. 25 May J 989. Members ofthe Universal House ofJustice at the Mansion ofBahji with the Honourable Sir Thomas Davis, Prime Minister of the Cook Islands (secondfiáom right, Font), who visited the Bahiz 'i World Centre in August 1986. / Above: The President ofHonduras, His Excellency Jose Azcona-Hoya, visiting the Baha'i World Centre on. 30 May J 98 7. Right: The British Ambassador to Jsrael, His Excellency Mark Elliot, and Mrs.Elliot (centre), visiting the Baha'i World Centre 28 June J 989. f. Broadening the Basis of International Relations of the Faith As Islamic religious leaders increasingly as¥sumed control of the Revolutionary Republic of Iran in the years following 1979, the country's government began to lend official support to a systematic, organized campaign to destroy eve1y trace of the Baha'i Faith in the land of its birth. "It is absolutely certain that in the Islamic Republic of Iran there is no place whatsoever for Baha'is and Baha'ism," the President of the Revolutiona1y Court in Shiraz announced. Baha'is of the world tushed to the defence oftheir co-religionists. Guided by the Univer¥sal House of Justice, the Baha'i International Commmlity sought intervention by the United Nations Secretary-General and by United Nations specialists in human rights; National Spiritual Assemblies sought swift and clear condemnation of the persecution from their governments and from other national lead¥ers; and Local Spiritual Assemblies sought support for the Baha'is of iran tluáough the media and tluáough their local govermnent representatives. These actions coincided with a new stage in the unfoldment of the World Order of Baha'u'llah-the introduction of social and economic development projects, an integral part of Baha'i activity. After decades of energy concenháated on the establishment of groups at the local level across the entire planet, some critical mass had been reached which gave Baha'is the human and material resources needed to apply the Teachings of Baha'u' llah to solve the most practical of problems. Health, education, appropriate teclmology, enviro1m1ental studies ... individ¥ual Baha ' is had always worked to help the conmmnity at large, but all Baha'is were enjoined to work toward "the ordering of human affairs in such a way as to bring into being a world unified in all the essential aspects of its life." (Letter from the Univer¥sal House of Justice to the Baha 'is of the World, dated 20 October l 983) In 1985, the Universal House of Justice addressed all of humanity about the central issue facing the human race-global peace. In a letter "To the Peoples of the World" entitled The Promise of World Peace, the Statement cha1is the one course that can lead humanity into the next century, and offers countless evidences that global peace is within our grasp. "If the Baha'i experience can conháibute in whatever measure to rein¥forcing hope in the unity of the human race," the House of Justice stated in the concluding section, "we are happy to offer it as a model for study." As soon as the Statement had received the signature of the Universal House of Justice, presentation copies were sent by courier to the waiting National Assemblies through¥out the world who had already been asked to seek audiences with the Heads of State of their respective nations and territories. This fo1mal approach to the leaders of the world was the first stage in a program ofdishibution designed eventually to enlist the pa1iicipation of every follower ofBaha'u 'llah and to reach millions of human beings with the message of peace. The combined effo1is of the Baha'is on behalf of their co-religionists in Iran, in sup¥port of social and economic development, and pursuant of world peace resulted in the emergence of the Faith from obscurity. All over the world at all levels of society people became aware of Baha'u'llah and the followers of His Faith. Awareness brought curiosity; Baha'is were asked for more information, and they strnve to provide it. It became clear that coordination was needed to best cha1mel these eff01ts in exter¥nal affairs and public relations. The Universal House of Justice created an Office of Public Information in 1985 as a specialized agency of the Baha'i International Conmmnity to systematize the handling of inf01rnation on the Cause at the international level. The report of its activities during the Six Year Plan can be found starting on page 537 of this volume. Tl-IE BAl-IA ' i WORLD The House of Justice also convened a planning meeting for all senior staff members of Baha'i International Community offices in Haifa, New York and Geneva who worked in external affairs and public relations. Held in New York City from 31 October to 7 November 1986, the meeting marked "a new, potent stage in the development of the external affairs of the worldwide Baha'i community," the House of Justice wrote to those gathered. "This stage ... is characterized by the new, inescapable challenges immedi¥ately to be met as a direct result of the operation of the omushing processes through which are evolving the reconstructive influ¥ences ofBaha'u'llah's World Order." Representatives of the National Spiritual Assemblies of Canada and the United States were also asked to join in the deliberations to "pave the way for closer collaboration in fields United Nations and public information activities" and "further reinforce divinely ordained ties two leading Baha'i communities N01ih America." One year later, the Universal House of Justice called an International Conference on External Affairs, held from 27 to 29 November 1987 at Langenhain, Ge1many. Specifically, the Supreme Body invited the National Spiritual Assemblies of Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Genuany, the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands, Nor¥way, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States to send representatives to meet with a mem¥ber of the Universal House of Justice and with representatives of the United Nations Office and the Office of Public Information of the Baha'i International Community. Presentations were made by National Spiritual Assembly representatives on the relationships they had established with their national governments. Next, the possibilities and dynamics were explored of the cross¥national sharing of human resources as a means of supporting the diplomatic or public information work. Reports were presented about the activities of the Baha'i Interna¥tional Community's United Nations Offices in New York and Geneva, the Office of Public Inf01mation in Haifa and New York. Then, consultation was held on communication and coordination concerning external affairs between the Baha'i World Centre and National Spiritual Assemblies. It was a "ground-breaking event," the member of the Universal House of Justice stated. "Foundations have been laid upon which we can build more 'stately mansions ' for the Cause of God." A proposal was put forward for follow-up meetings: a Pan¥European Conference; and a meeting for representatives of five National Assemblies (Canada, France, Germany, the United King dom, and the United States). This recom¥mendation was sent to the House of Justice. Participants in the External Affairs Conference held in l angenhain, Germany, fiwn 27 to 29 November 1987. The Universal House of Justice called for a Pan-European Meeting in 1988. It was held from 25 to 28 December at Langenhain, Germany, and was attended by thirty-eight representatives from nineteen countries. Again reports were given of relevant activities, insights were shared from experience gained, and consultation was held on proposals made. One such proposal was that perhaps a Baha'i International Community office for European Affairs could be established to contribute to the ongoing growth and unified actions of external affairs work and to help mobilize the energy of the European communities for the development of the Cause. A meeting of senior officers of Baha'i International Community offices in Haifa, New York, and Geneva, and representatives of five National Spiritual Assemblies (Can¥ada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States) took place at the Baha'i World Centre from 30 December to 1 January 1989. "FAR-REACHING DELIBERATIONS CENTRED ON INCREASED EXTERNAL ACTIVITIES FAITH", the Universal House of Justice wrote to all National Spiritual Assemblies on 5 January 1989. "MUCH ENCOURAGED EVI¥DENCES EVER CLOSER TIES COLLABORATION WITH UNITED NATIONS, ITS AGENCIES A D NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS MANY LANDS, RESULTING EXPANDED SPHERE INFLUENCE FAITH FIELD INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVES. HEARTENED BY REVIEW INDICATING fNCREAS¥ING OPPORTUNITIES SHARE BAHA'U'LLAH'S Participants in the External Affairs Conference held at the Baha'i World Centre, Haifa, Israel 30 December 1988 to 1 January 1989. WORLD-REDEEMING MESSAGE VAST REGIONS... SOVIET UN ION AND EASTERN EUROPE. REJOICE JN MOUNTING PRESTIGE CAUSE GOD WORLD¥WIDE. INVITE ALL FRIENDS JOIN IN OFFERJNG PRAYERS THANKSGIVING BAHA'U'LLAH FOR HIS SUSTA INED ABUNDANT BLESSINGS." g. Turmoil in the Middle East Enveloped the Holy Land On 2 August 1990, the Government of Iraq invaded Kuwait. The international reaction which quickly followed suggested the proba¥bility of a concerted military effo1i to reverse the invasion. One feature of the mounting crisis was a threat by Iraq that if it were attacked by any nation it would attack Israel in retaliation. Consequently, the Israeli gov¥ernment began a series of civi l defence measures, and the Universal House ofJustice began to review actions that could be taken to protect the Baha'i Holy Places and the staff of the Baha'i World Centre. On 29 August, the Universal House of Justice appointed an Emergency Prepared¥ness Task Force to act as liaison with the Israel Civil Defence officials and provide the World Centre with information as needed. On 30 September the World Centre staff was advised that emergency supplies of food would be distributed the following week, and that 20-litre jerrycans of water should be fil led, battery-operated radios and flashlights checked, and plastic tape for seal¥ing windows should be stored in a readily THE BAl-L.\'i WORLD accessible place. The staff received training in use of the protective kits distributed by the Israeli Government, and gas masks and kits were handed out on 5 November. In each principal work place at the World Cenháe, an emergency team was appointed and a "safe room" assigned. The rooms were stocked with supplies of food, water, and protective materials, and several air raid drills were held for emergency preparedness. On 8 October 1990, a letter to National Spiritual Assemblies was written on behalf of the Universal House ofJustice which read: The Universal House of Justice has been following with close attention the development of the situation in the Mid¥dle East, and has decided to postpone all pilgrimages which have been scheduled between the beginning of the pilgrimage season on 29 October and 31 December 1990. Messages to this effect are being sent to all those who have been invited for that period. The Baha'i World Centre itself will continue to function as usual, as it has during all the previous disturbances which have tluáeatened or shaken the Holy Land. Whatever háanspires, we can be confident that it will be but one more step in the mysterious unfoldment of God's Major Plan for the unification of the world and the establishment of His Kingdom on earth. On 3 December 1990, the following letter to National Spiritual Assemblies was sent on behalf of the Universal House of Justice: Further to our letter of 8 October 1990, in view of the continued unsettled condi¥tions in the Middle East, the Universal House of Justice has decided that pilgrim¥ages to the Holy Land up to the end of March 1991 should be cancelled. The individual pilgrims scheduled for this period are also being informed. For the same reason, the conference for the Counsellors which was scheduled to be held in the Holy Land from 28 December 1990 tluáough 3 January 1991 has also been cancelled. The House of Justice hopes it will be possible to con¥vene such a conference at a later date. The friends should not allow their con¥cern about the situation in these regions to deter them from their efforts to pro¥mote the vital interests of the infinitely precious Faith of God. On 7 January 1991, the Universal House of Justice wrote to all National Assemblies : We are conscious that the friends around the world are concerned by the unsettled conditions in the Middle East, so we are writing to assure you that we have taken all steps that are necessa1y to safeguard the essential requirements of the Cause of God. In January 1981 we addressed a mes¥sage to all Continental Boards of Coun¥sellors through the International Teaching Centre, and a copy of that message was shared at that time with all National Spiri¥tual Assemblies. It confitmed that if at any time communication with the World Centre would be cut off, the Counsellors would, both collectively and individually, assist National Spiritual Assemblies to ensure the unintem1pted continuation of the normal administration of t11e Faith by these Assemblies until conununications could be restored. We rely now, as then, on the Continen¥tal Boards of Counsellors and the National Spiritual Assemblies to ensure that the all-important work of teaching the Faith and consolidating its institutions will con¥tinue with unabated zeal in every part of the world. On a number of occasions in the his¥tmy of the Faith the World Centre has been threatened by dangers of various kinds, and the knowledge of how the Almighty has preserved the vital interests of His Faith in the past will reinforce the certainty of all the believers that whatever occurs will but serve to carry forward the realization of His immutable purpose for mankind. We shall remember you all at the Sacred Threshold and shall pray for the bounties of Baha'u'llah to guide and sus¥tain you in the execution of your vital responsibilities in the promotion of His Cause. Meanwhile, World Cenháe staff had been organized into "Neighborhood Groups," with "telephone trees" so that information could be distributed systematically during non¥office hours. Additionally, a number of staff members had been ttáained in first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation. On 15 January 1991, the Universal House of Justice wrote to the friends at the Baha'i World Cenháe: We have noted with waim appreciation the devoted spirit in which, despite the increasingly tense situation in the Middle East, the friends are going about their usual business; and we wish to assure you of our continued prayers that the Blessed Beauty will sunound the World Cenháe with His protection now as in the past. Every practical step is being taken to attend to the needs of the World Cenháe as circumstances require. The Emergency Preparedness Task Force will keep you info1med and advised as necessary. The Task Force has our full confidence, and we urge you to follow its instructions in case of a real emergency arising from the situation in the Gulf. Our hea1is are now huned to the dear, steadfast friends in Iraq, Kuwait and adja¥cent counháies. We invite you to join us in praying on their behalf at this time when great danger bangs over them. At midnight on 15 January 1991 Eastern Standard Time in the United States (0700 on 16 January in Israel), the United Nations' deadline for Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait passed. That day the World Cenháe staff members were advised to start carrying their gas masks with them at all times. At approximately 0530 on 17 January, the staff was advised by way of the Neighbor¥hood Group "telephone ttáees" that a coalition of governments had launched a massive aerial attack against Iraq, and that work was suspended for the day. At about 0315 on 18 January staff members were awakened by the sounds of explosions, air raid sirens going off, and telephone calls from neighbors announcing that Iraq had started its retaliatory raids against Israel. Once again work was sus¥pended for the day. The Baha'i World Cenháe stayed on "emergency footing" for the duration of the War-from 17 January to 28 February 1991 . Work was suspended for four days, and hours were shortened for eight days. During the "100 hours" of the Gulf War, a total of thirty-nine missiles were reported to have been fired at Israel during 18 sepa¥rate attacks. Of these, six landed in the Haifa/Akka area causing extensive property damage but no injuries. There was no dam¥age to any of the Baha'i prope1iies. On 28 February 199 1, the President of the United States, George Bush, announced that the multinational fo rce was stopping all offensive action. At noon the Israeli Civil Defence authorities said the emergency was over, and that people could pack their gas masks in their original boxes and unseal their "safe" rooms. The Baha'i World Cen¥tre went off "emergency footing". The Gulf War was over. World Centre staffhelp each other learn how to use gas masks in case ofan attack. THE BAHA ' i WORLD Baha'i youth ofAntsirabe, Madagascar, walking to a village five kilometers away to teach the Faith on 2 I April I 988. B. WORLD-WIDE OBJECTIVES a. Carrying the Healing Message of Baha'u'llah to the Generality of Mankind The Six Year Plan witnessed a further emer¥gence of the Faith from obscurity as the followers ofBaha'u 'llah spread His message in new and creative ways to an increasingly diverse audience throughout the world. The Universal House of Justice, in its message of Ric;lvan 1992, declared that the proclamation of the Faith "attained an entirely new stage" during this period. The emollment of at least one and a half million new Baha'is was one consequence. L ARGE-SCALE ENROLLMENT In its Ric;lvan 1987 message the Universal House of Justice a1mounced that "the stage is set for universal, rapid and massive growth of the Cause of God." One year later it shared the news that "more and more national communities witness the beginnings of that entry by troops promised by the beloved Master and which Shoghi Effendi said would lead on to mass conversion." In a summary report of the Plan the National Assembly of Brazil made a comment which could be echoed by many sister communities: "The preoccupation with teaching on a wide scale was a tonic in this Six Year Plan, and efforts were made to help the diverse regions to tum examples of successful projects into foun¥tains of enthusiasm to stimulate the whole country." Although some form of large-scale en¥rollment occurred on every continent, the most dramatic numbers of new believers entered the Faith in Asia. India launched approximately 300 teaching projects, more than doubling the number of Baha'is from fewer than 1 million to more than 2.2 million. The Baha'i population in Bangladesh increased from 9,000 to nearly 63,000 believers, al¥most a sevenfold gain; during a single three¥month period in 1988 alone, some 5,000 new souls embraced the Cause and 108 new Local Spiritual Assemblies were formed. By the end of the Plan the populations of nearly one hundred villages in Bangladesh were won over to the Faith. Two major projects in Taiwan resulted in a sevenfold increase in the community from fewer than 2,000 to more than 14,000 believers; during the early months of its Muhajir Project the National Assembly of Taiwan reported an average of ten to fifteen individuals enrolling per day. National communities doubled in Hong Kong, trebled in Pakistan, and, with at least twelve full-time mass teachers in the field each year, the Philippines witnessed an in¥crease of some 37,000 believers. India's Muhajir Project, which alone was responsible for bringing more than 14,000 souls into the Cause, demonstrated how systematic efforts could bring about large¥scale enrollment. Spanning a little over one year, the project consisted of three "move¥ments": an initial teaching conference and call for volunteers followed immediately by a week-long teaching campaign; the creation of a local task force to organize permanent teaching and community activities; and ap¥pointment of assistants to Auxiliary Board members to help the task force create strong Local Spiritual Assemblies. The powerful effects of applying orga¥nized and concentrated teaching efforts to a particularly receptive area were also witnessed on the other side of the world in Guyana, where a tluáee-year pilot project launched in 1989 was instrnmental in achieving the Plan's final success of almost 36,000 new believers. The Resident Teacher Project began with thi11een overseas believ¥ers and sixteen local believers teaching full¥time; within six months, 12,000 people had declared their faith in Baha'u'llah. During this pilot project, forty-two local teachers and eighteen international participants volunteered their services, and fifteen local youth spent six months to one year each serving full-time on the teams. In Brazil entry by troops was also pur¥sued systematically, with the establislunent of a national Department for Teaching on a Wide Scale. Special materials were prepared and seminars regularly held, leading to such successes as 1,500 emollments in Pauda Lima and nine hundred in the southern conmmnity of Alvarado, where many of the new believ¥ers had been made aware of the Faith through a Baha'i school in the town. A year of teaching in Ecuador dedicated to the Hand of the Cause Dr. Rahmatu'llah Muhajir brought some 2,300 people into the Faith during its first eight months by target¥ing five goal areas and offering four week¥long teacher-training institutes. The work of full-time teams from within Ecuador was supplemented by visiting teachers from seven countries, and forty-six new Baha' is joined the more experienced teachers to make the campaign a success. Short-term mass teaching projects also achieved impressive results. A month-long project in Venezuela, spearheaded by an international travelling teacher, welcomed 400 believers into the Cause and formed twenty-six new Local Assemblies; another series of projects in that country, dedicated to the Baha' is of Iran and called We Cannot Fail Them, resulted in more than 1,000 en¥rollments. A total of 548 Bolivians joined the Faith in one week when ten teams of Baha'is, inspired by a two-day conference in Sucre on the theme of entry by troops, set out for ten different places to proclaim Baha'u'llah's message. In total nearly 2,000 new souls embraced the Faith in the most receptive areas. Although ongoing campaigns spanning several years and involving numerous teach¥ers contributed significantly to large-scale enrollment, focus and dedication were more important characteristics of teaching teams than size. When a team of twelve teachers from five different counháies spent nine THE BAHA'l WORLD weeks among the Garifuna people of Belize, more than 1,000 embraced the Faith. One of the most dramatic teaching victories oc¥ctmed in Pem where 1,764 people became Baha'is during five days of teaching follow¥ing a two-day mass teaching workshop in the Lake Titicaca region; at one high school in the area, the principal, all teachers and students emailed. In Trinidad and Tobago teaching projects with a few full-time, self-supporting teach¥ers and one homefront pioneer who arose for about nine months increased the number of Baha'is by more than 5,000. Although Asia and Latin America proved the most receptive to enháy by háoops, focused teaching efforts achieved a fair mea¥sure of success on all continents. In Kenya a variety of short-term projects led to the en¥rollment of 17,950 people, and in Nigeria 802 members of the Yoruba háibe were brought into the Cause by six youth who spent one week visiting five villages. In the Mariana Islands a full-time teaching team serving on Saipan for three months in 1990 enrolled more than 1,000 believers. In Fiji the Olinga Project, carried out between August 1989 and July 1991, brought into the Cause some 1,500 individuals, with almost equal propotiions from each of the islands' major ethnic groups. Even in Europe, where growth in numbers remained relatively slow until the former Eastern Bloc dramatically opened to the Faith, the effects of pointed and consistent efforts were fully demonsháated. "The whole Italian Baha'i community has been galvanized by a new spiritual atmosphere," reported that cow1try's National Assembly after between sixty and seventy people began attending each fireside in the goal town of Portici. One of the main features of this project was the inunediate involvement of the newly enrolled Baha' is in the consultative process and their assumption of responsibility for specific activities. Within a year approximately 100 people had embraced the Faith and enroll¥ments continued at a fairly steady pace. REACHING P EOPLE OF ALL BACKGROUNDS When two pioneers settled in Sakhalin in 1990, the last remaining territorial goal named by Shoghi Effendi in his Ten Year Global Plan was fulfilled. After the miracu¥lous opening to the Faith of the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe and the successful prosecution of the subsidiary Two Year Teaching Plan in those areas, the Universal House of Justice was able to state in its Ri~van 1992 message that "the Faith of Baha'u'llah is represented in every country on earth." In 1988, the Baha'i conmmnity's success in the wide diffusion of Baha'u'llah's mes¥sage and settlement of its adherents was publicly recognized when the Encyclopaedia Britannica, in its Britannica Book of the Year, tem1ed the Faith the second most widely spread religion after Christianity. The numerical enrollment victories of the Six Year Plan were possibly exceeded by achievements in increasing both the diversity of the populations with whom the message was shared and, more impmiantly, the diver¥sity of the Baha'i conummity itself. Ongoing efforts to spread the Faith to all comers of the globe were expanded by campaigns to share its teachings with a greater number of etlmic groups and to reach individuals from all social sháata. Within national borders the dissemination of Baha'u'Jlah's teachings to all areas continued. Thus in South America Baha'is established themselves in all the states of Brazil; in Chile they created a "virtual chain of communities reaching from the far nmih and extending to the far south"; and in Paraguay Local Assemblies were elected in almost every pati of the counh-y. Japan 's goal of having Baha'is in all the country's prefectures was accomplished during the Plan. In Taiwan 145 new localities, including three previously lU1opened islands, claimed new adherents. In the Philippines 1,800 new localities were opened. Nations as diverse as No1way and Malawi were similar in their fulfillment of geographic distribution goals: Norway reached its aim of opening all coun¥ties to the Faith, in the process bringing the message to seven different islands, while Malawi achieved its objective of 1,500 localities. In addition numerous minority groups were reached for the first time, from the Dhimal and Sherpa of Nepal to the Gypsies of Thailand and the Travelling People of Ireland. In the Philippines thirty-eight new háibal areas were opened to the Faith. Mali reported that all ethnic groups in the counháy could count at least one Baha' i. In Taiwan tluáee entirely tribal Local Assemblies were formed. Just as geographic representation was often widened by focused teaching in partic¥ular areas, so was greater ethnic diversity attained by concenháated efforts. In Spain an international conference to analyze the process of teaching and deepening Gypsies, followed by three national consultative meetings and a compilation on the subject issued by the National Assembly, resulted in a considerable increase in Gypsy enrollments. In Ausháalia formation of the Aboriginal and Islander Working Group in 1988 was fol¥lowed by a surge in conversions among those populations. Ausháia experienced group dec¥larations among Turkish workers when it "concentrated on making their participation in our community life possible" tluáough lan¥guage courses, special unity feasts and folk In India, a bicycle for two was made to facilitate travel teaching in Uttar Pradesh. 1991. Since women cannot travel alone in this area, the cycle made it possible for two women or husband and wife teams to participate in the teaching work. music dming gatherings. A substantial increase in declarations of faith among Carolinians and Chuukese on Saipan in the Mariana Islands occurred when, at the Baha'i Center, Chuukese believers shared Baha'i songs, along with island dance and food, with their relatives. The Guaymi Cultural Center in Panama, inaugurated in 1987, provides an outstanding example of the Baha 'i community's efforts to help an indigenous people preserve its cul¥tural heritage and simultaneously strengthen the Faith. The Center became the focus of a Guaymi tutorial school network and cultural, health and agricultural activities, all support¥ed by the broadcasts ofRadio Baha'i Panama. Effo1is were made in many countries to reach people from all social strata with an emphasis on people of capacity. Courtesy calls on government officials were made, in¥terfaith prayer gatherings sponsored and attended, and receptions held to inháoduce Baha'i professionals to their colleagues. Many government and religious leaders, professionals and academics who were made aware of the Faith's central teachings re¥sponded favorably. In several countries consistent effo1is to inform government officials about the Faith were rewarded when they began attending and even addressing Ba ha 'I-sponsored events. Cabinet ministers and chiefs in Botswana often attended Baha'i events, and the THE BAHA'I WORLD counháy's Minister of External Affairs ad¥dressed a reception held in honour of the African Board of Counsellors. Five minis¥ters in Bangladesh attended functions at the National Center, and in Hong Kong the Director of Environmental Protection and the Consuls-General of Israel, Panama and Chile participated in a celebration of the Birthday ofBaha'u'llah. Two of the most significant signs of growing govenm1ent awareness of the Faith occurred at the end of the Plan. Brazil's Federal Chamber of Deputies announced its intention to conu11emorate the Centenary of the Ascension of Ba ha' u' llah with a spe¥cial solenm session; and the Prime Minister of Guyana, the Honorable Hamilton Green, addressed the United States' National Con¥vention at Ridvan 1992. One activity which conháibuted very sig¥nificantly to the Faith's emergence from obscurity was the continuing disháibution of The Promise of World Peace. By Ri~van 1987 the statement had been presented to heads of state, a large number of the mem¥bers of national governments, diplomats, teachers, háade unionists, leaders of religion, eminent members of the judiciary, the police, legal, medical and other professions, members of local governments, clubs and associations, and thousands of individuals. While initial presentations had concentrated on national govenm1ent leaders and people of prominence, during the Plan it was car¥ried to peoples everywhere from all walks of life. Such were the accomplishments in bringing Baha'u'llah's healing message to people of all national, ethnic, economic and educational backgrounds that the Universal House of Justice affamed at Ridvan 1990 that: "a significant milestone in the fourth epoch" had been reached, and "the Adminis¥trative Order now embraces a community of wider diversity than ever before." CHINESE TEACHING The House of Justice has repeatedly empha¥sized the importance of teaching the Chinese people around the world. The establishment in March 1989 of the Baha'i International Community's Office of Public Infotmation in Hong Kong, and the launching of the Chi¥nese edition of One Country in mid-1990, were two major steps taken to atháact the interest of the world's Chinese population. Additionally, the appoinh11ent of the Baha'i Conmuttee for China by the House of Justice in June 1989 signalled the importance of careful planning and coordination of various efforts in this area. Between 1988 and 1990, the Hand of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha Rul:iiyyih Khanum, accompanied by Mrs. Violette Na1!!javani, visited mainland China four times. She met with numerous prominent Jn the Solomon Islands, Auxiliary Board members have overcome the prob¥lem oftransport between the many islands by using a motorized canoe to serve as a Maritime Baha'i Teaching Institute. J99 I. people, particularly in Beijing and Dalian, showed slides of her trip to the Amazon entitled the Green Light Expedition to vari¥ous distinguished guests, and addressed students and staff at Nankai University in Tianjin, where both Martha Root and Agnes Alexander had also spoken during their visits to China. Her four visits included a one-month trip, in the summer of 1988, to Guangzhou (Canton), Urumqi, Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou and Guilin, as well as a one-week trip to Tibet in 1990. In the fall of 1989 she made a five-week trip to Taiwan, travelling over 2,000 kilome¥ters and visiting some mass-teaching areas, as well as major cities. During this visit she presented a special copy of the Peace Statement in Chinese to the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Taiwan, was received by the Minister of the Interior and the Secreta1y¥General of the National House of Represen¥tatives, and had interviews with several maJOr newspapers. While in the Far East Amah1'l-Baha also attended a large formal banquet organized by the Spirih1al Assembly of Hong Kong in honor of the passage, by the Legislative Council, of "the Baha'i Ordinance" Act, and visited Ulaan-Baatar in Mongolia for one week, in 1989. The Hand of the Cause of God H. Collis Featherstone and Mrs. Madge Featherstone travelled to China for the first time in September 1988. They visited Guangzhou, Lanzhou and Beijing before departing at the begi1ming of October. During a tour of Zhongshan University (Sun Yat-sen Univer¥sity) in Guangzhou, Mr. Featherstone was invited unexpectedly to speak to the sh1dents of the Department of Philosophy about the Faith. Two days later he presented a lecture on "The Baha'i Faith: Its History, Teachings and World-wide Development." The sub¥jects covered included the oneness of mankind, the oneness of the Prophets, the relation of Baha'u'llah to the Founders of the previous religions and the importance of eliminating prejudices. The Green Light Expedition videotape was broadcast in five segments i11 Guangzhou in November 1989, reaching approximately five million people. The same month a cam¥era crew from China National Television in Beijing visited Bahapur, India, to include the House of Worship in a documentary film about India. The videotape Jewel in the lotus about the Temple in India was aired in Tianjin in two segments in January 1992, reaching more than 3.5 million viewers each time. The nanation was dubbed in Mandarin, and Baha'is in the area reported encmmtering people who were deeply moved by the film. A series of ten-minute radio programs produced by the Baha'i Office of the Envi¥ronment ofTaiwan, an agency ofthe National Spiritual Assembly of Taiwan, reached approximately three million primary school students. These weekly programs, which contained Baha'i spiritual principles and which mentioned the name of the Faith, were broadcast to primary schools tluáough¥out Taiwan for a ten-week period begi1ming in March 1992. The Ministry of Education sponsored and partially funded these educa¥tion programs. The Chief of the Beinan Tribe in Taiwan, Chen Wen-Sheng, adopted the Faith in August 1990. He was the first tribal chief of Taiwan (and greater China) to become a Baha'i. His son, Chen Chien-Hong, the next hereditary chief, also emailed at the same time. The Beinan Tribe (also known as the Puyuma Tribe) is the fifth most populous of the nine major aboriginal tribes in Taiwan. Taiwan's Ministry of the Interior reported the total population of the Beinan to be over 8,500 at the end of 1988. Efforts were made to share ideas about Chinese teaching among national conmmni¥ties. The International Chinese Teaching Conunittee sponsored six highly successful international teaching conferences around the globe between 1988 and 199 1. In order to exchange ideas and strengthen their teach¥ing program, members of the Taiwanese THE BAHA'i WORLD Members ofa teaching team enrolling a new believer in Macau in May 1989. conmmnity visited twenty-one countries which had established Chinese Teaching Conm1ittees. In some countries association with Chinese co11ill1tmity organizations facilitated Chinese teaching, as in Hawaii, where interaction with the Worldwide Farmers' Association opened the door to sponsorship of a China Peace and Friendship Tour in 1992. More than one hundred Chinese community lead¥ers in Hawaii were presented with the Peace Statement. The quantity of Baha'i literature in Chinese languages was greatly increased during the Plan. The Baha' i committee for China and the International Chinese Teach¥ing Conu11ittee jointly worked on translating selections from Gleanings jimn the Writings of Baha 'u '/Lah under the auspices of the Baha' i World Centre. Other translations were made of selected compilations produced at the World Centre. A group of Baha'is in China translated a compilation of various Writings and prayers which was subsequent¥ly published by the Spiritual Assembly of Macau. MASS MEDIA When the Six Year Plan began, the press was aware of the Baha'i Faith largely because of the persecutions in Iran. Wide distribution of the peace statement provided opportunities to broaden that image. Increas¥ingly, members of the media sought out Baha 'is for stories on their peace-related activities, and even the press which had been resistant to the Faith in some areas became more receptive. The shift in press interest from the persecutions in Iran to the teach¥ings of Baha'u' llah was exemplified in the United States, where the number of significant articles about the Baha' i Cause increased from approximately 2,000 to 3,800 per year. This greater publicity provided the .neces¥sary incentive for Baha'is to develop more sophistication in dealing with the media, and encouraged them to produce more accept¥able material for use in radio, television and newspapers. Radio was widely used for proclamation, and Baha' i radio operations became increas¥ingly involved in teaching effmis. In addition to the progranuning on newly launched Baha'i-owned radio stations in Chile and Liberia, and the continuing broadcasts of Baha'i stations in the United States, Ecuador, Panama, Pem, and Bolivia, Baha'i programs were aired on non-Baha' i stations in very many countries, including such places as Guyana, Belize, Grenada, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Malaysia, Thailand, Spain, Chad and Lesotho. In Rwanda, broadcast of a weekly ten-minute radio program began in 1989 and quickly attracted a large audience. The fol¥lowing year, when civil disturbances made travelling extremely difficult, the program became one of the few means still available for teaching. The listeners were invited to send questions, and the subsequent corre¥spondence led to an average of ten declarations per day. In El Salvador public service a1mounce¥ments about peace were broadcast twenty times per day for one month, and in the Republic of Ireland feahire subjects on the Faith were transmitted on all but one of the newly legalized local stations. Radio stations throughout the length of Chile aired selec¥tions from The Hidden Words on an hourly basis for over a month as a public service project; and Baha'i stations repeatedly pre¥sented the Writings. The International Baha'i Audio-Visual Centre (IBA VC), through its offices and representatives in several lands, continued to support Baha'i spot use of radio and tele¥vision by providing materials and advice. Over fifty workshops and training seminars in the production and use of audio-visual media were conducted by IBA VC in thirty¥seven countries and in all continents of the globe. Ten different monographs were pro¥duced during the Plan, ranging from relating spirihiality to media subjects to highly specific 'how-to' papers, such as how to pre¥pare radio spot announcements. IBAVC distTibuted radio scripts and tapes in various languages to countries throughout the world, and adapted many films and videotapes, including the Green light Expedition, to the various television standards used in the world market. Large-scale distribution of videotapes and audio-tapes has been steadily expanded by IBAVC from its bases in the United States and Venezuela, and the new Music Clearinghouse began a libraiy of music tapes by Baha'i composers and perfom1ers developed for radio, Nineteen Day Feasts and other uses. A number of regular television programs about the Faith were also aired. The Canadian-produced Bahci 'i Perspective was broadcast a total of sixty-six hours; Baha'is in El Salvador produced fifty-four episodes of a weekly program; a thirty-minute program was shown twice monthly in Dominica; twelve shows on the Faith were screened in Kenya; and Alaska produced four award¥wim1ing, sixty-second public service an¥nouncements called Peace Talks. Numerous single-episode programs were produced, such as half-hour shows screened tluáoughout the United Kingdom and Portu¥gal, a panel discussion on peace with representatives of various religions in Lesotho, and the broadcast of a Baha'i chil¥dren's program on Transkei television. In many countries television news coverage of Baha'i events included interviews with local Baha 'is, travelling teachers and Counsellors. Further significant programs included: the broadcast of the International Convention video in Bolivia, Saint Lucia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Thailand; references made to the Faith on C-SPAN and CNN in the United States; and a seven-minute story on the Faith which aired nationwide in prime time in Australia. Proclamation in newspapers increasingly included regular publication of selected Writings, press releases about Baha'i events, and feature a1iicles prepared about the Faith and its followers. By the end of the Plan most National Assemblies had a public relations office or committee to prepare and review informa¥tion about the Faith. In most cases, the officer chiefly concerned with the work also served as the national representative for the THE BAHA'I WORLD global network created by the Baha'i International Community's Office of Public Info1mation, receiving news from this source. Many Local Assemblies also appointed individuals or cmmnittees to monitor the public relations activities of the conm1unity. The Office of Public Infmmation created a manual to guide the work of these agencies, distributing it tluáough its worldwide net¥work. Some national conm1w1ities also held training sessions, such as Brazil's "Latin American Baha'i Seminar on Public Rela¥tions and External Affairs" in early 1992, and Canada's public affairs training confer¥ences held across the country. Training was also held locally in Bangladesh, Ecuador, Mauritius, Norway, Thailand, Taiwan, Trinidad and Tobago, and Zimbabwe. The majority of training in public rela¥tions occurred through practical experience, as the media increased their attention to Baha'i activities during the Plan. One prom¥inent example of iliis was in Hawaii where specific issues such as the status of women and the state of the environment were identi¥fied from the Peace Statement, and an external affairs officer was made responsible for developing a portfolio on each issue. At the end oft11e Plan, Hawaii called its external affairs program an indispensable part of its teaching work. THE ROLE OF THE ARTS That day will the Cause spread like wildfire when its spirit and teachings are presented on the stage or in art and literature as a whole. Art can better awaken such noble sentiments...especially among the mass of the people. (From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi dated 10 October 1932, Baha 'i News, 73 [May 1933] p. 7.) The truth of these words was increasingly demonstrated as a growing number of music, drama and dance performances proclaimed both the content and spirit of the Baha'i teachings to ever-wider audiences. Most of the performing arts groups were composed of youth. El Viento Canta (The Wind Sings), a group which formed while its members were serving at the Baha'i World Centre, shared Latin American fo lk music as well as the principles of the Faith with audiences throughout Europe, Africa, the fo1mer Soviet El Viento Canta pe1forming in Botswana in December J989 during the Bahiz 'i International Music Festival held in Gaborone. Union, Mongolia and China. The group played to substantial audiences (for example, 3,000 attended one concert in Spain) and received extensive radio and television cov¥erage which often included long interviews and led to many enrollments. Another Latin American youth group, Planeta Paz (Planet Peace), began perfonning in Brazil in August 1991 and spearheaded a national proclamation effort in Argentina in December. Each show combined music with Baha'i themes, folk music and slide shows, opening with a tribute to Baha'u'llah and ending with invitations to embrace the Cause. The National Assembly of Brazil attributes at least three hundred declarations of faith to their concerts in that country. Other musical groups formed by youth included Let It Be This Generation which completed a 150-concert tour of Canada; Light in the Darkness, a European group which attracted eighty new believers during one concert in Romania; and the Carmel Minstrels, six young Guyanese musicians who shared the Baha'i message throughout the Caribbean in 1987. Travelling to other continents to perfom1 was not unusual: Malawi's Kwayera Mbee was invited to tour Europe; the Thailand performances of a group from New Zealand and Australia called Wildfire led to hundreds of enroll¥ments; and New Zealand's Youth for One World taught the Faith in Hong Kong. Music played a pa1iicularly impmiant role in Africa, where numerous local choirs were formed and Baha'i songs composed. The International Music Festival in Botswana was described by the nation's Assembly as "one of the most significant achievements" of its Plan, and Kenya's Assembly reported that "many of our Baha'i communities have been kept alive because of music and thou¥sands have become Baha'is because ofit." The history and principles of the Faith were also widely shared through drama. The Sacred Writings were combined with music and dance to tell the story of the Bab when Badasht was performed at the International Theatre Festival in Canada. Peace Child, a musical drama produced by a committee of the National Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands, was performed at the Kennedy Cen¥ter in Washington, D.C., and a documentary was made of it by a major television net¥work. In Australia an Aboriginal theater group called The Storytellers was fo1med. The power of dance to transcend language barriers and connect hea1is was demonsháat¥ed by the enthusiastic responses of audiences to various performing groups. For example, dance groups called Youth Workshops formed throughout the United States and at Canada's Maxwell School; Youthquake toured in the United Kingdom; and a well-known Lakota Sioux Indian believer perfo1med a háaditional hoop dance in numerous commu¥nities in Canada, the United States, Europe and elsewhere. Baha'is also used other fine arts to spread the message. In Denmark an exhibit of artwork based on Baha'i quotations and ac¥companied by Baha'i books was displayed three times. Excerpts from the Peace State¥ment formed the basis of an art exhibit in Belize. The organizers of a peace festival in Japan invited the Balla 'is to conháibute a display that blended photographs, háaditional floral arrangements, artwork on peace themes by local children, and Baha'i books. Consultation on the use of arts in teaching was facilitated by the founding, in August 1986, of the International Baha'i Associa¥tion for Arts, by several forums held at Landegg Academy in Switzerland, and by the development of the Baha'i Youth Insti¥tute in Costa Rica as a center for háaining youth to use arts in service to mankind. Con¥sultation was followed by teaching projects having an explicitly artistic emphasis. The European Baha'i Youth Council organized a project called Peace Through A1iistic Expression in Yugoslavia in 1990 during which hundreds attended special open-air concerts. In Belize a 1988 project which centered around the arts was reported to result in at least seventy-nine enrollments. THE BAHA'I WORLD In 1991 the Music, Arts and Drama Committee of Czechoslovakia organized a one-week Art Forum in collaboration with the Baha'i Association For Arts chapter in Bratislava; Baha'i artists and musicians from more than fifteen countries, including repub¥lics of the former Soviet Union, shared ideas for proclaiming the Name of Baha'u'llah, and public performances were held daily. In 1988 approximately 1,000 people participat¥ed in Canada's first Festival of the Human Spirit, a four-day series of workshops, ex¥hibits and performances on using the arts in teaching. EXPANDING THE TEACHING FORCE Efforts to encourage and support individual teaching, provide teacher training and estab¥lish permanent teaching teams all helped stimulate an increase in the number of dedi¥cated souls actively spreading Baha' u' llah's Message. The Universal House of Justice reiterated the crucial importance of personal teaching in its Ric;!van l 988 message, saying: "Every individual believer-man, woman, youth and child-is summoned to this field of action; for it is on the initiative, the reso¥lute will of the individual to teach and to serve, that the success of the entire commu¥nity depends." National Assemblies encouraged individ¥ual initiative in a variety of ways. A series of Vision to Victory conferences in the United States ended with participants submitting personal pledges of teaching service. The National Assembly of the Eastern Caroline Islands sent a booklet called A Personal Teaching Campaign to all Local Assemblies to be shared with their communities. Numer¥ous National Assemblies sent circular letters to Local Assemblies and held local seminars on the topic. While evidence of increased individual personal teaching is not easily monitored, National Assemblies on all continents made observations such as "a greater commitment to individual teaching"; "more involvement and efforts in the field of teaching"; and "many Baha'is have concrete personal goals." In Brazil a Campaign oflndividual Teaching from Heart to Heart had 500 regular partici¥pants over a two-year period. Zimbabwe reported that a corps of travelling teachers, averaging between six and ten individuals, was in the field at any given time. The National Assembly of Switzerland estimated that some 2,000 teaching activities were ca1Tied out by 230 believers. India reported that the number of friends taking part in teaching activities increased tenfold. Teacher training took a variety of forms, from orientation sessions for travelling teach¥ers and pioneers to seminars and institutes open to all believers. Several pennanent in¥stitutes provided ongoing training, such as the '!!mi Teaching Institute in Lahore, Pakistan, which in l 991 began to offer ten days of classes per month, and the Jamaliyyih Institute in EI Salvador which trained approximately I 00 teachers. Annual national and regional teaching conferences were held on all continents. One paiiicular innovation which expanded the teaching force was the Universal House of Justice's call for sho1i-term pioneers. In September 1989 National Assemblies were assigned a number of short-term pioneering goals measured by months of service. Be¥cause the believers filling these goals did not intend to stay permanently (some stayed only three months) they were freed from the need to find employment, and thus more of the friends were able to participate. The teaching work was also carried out by permanent teams in a number of coun¥tries. For example, the permanent teams of Guyana's Resident Teacher Project inspired similar teams in Belize, Brazil, EI Salvador and Honduras; and full-time teams were formed in four states of the United States near the end of the Plan. Also in the United States, approximately 1,000 teaching institutes were formed, with members committing themselves to teach a particular segment of the population over a period of at least five years. Teaching institutes were also tried in five pilot areas of Turkey and then spread all over the country. A highlight of the teaching work was the growing involvement and initiative of indigenous peoples. Following a seminar in Bolivia in July 1989 on the development of the Faith among the Indian peoples of Latin America, a one-week teaching project was held during which some 500 people emolled. The seminar had been attended by seventy Balla' is representing nine distinct indige¥nous groups from eight countries. In 1986 a gathering of all the sacred societies of the Peigan Reserve in Albe1ia, Canada, was called by Elder Joe Crowshoe, a Balla' i, to explain the teachings and plan for further intersocietal gatherings. Indigenous believers increasingly volun¥teered travel teaching services. Four Garifuna teachers from Belize and Honduras formed a team called Trail of Light and shared the Faith with the Carib descendants of their ancestors in Dominica. Mayan believers played a significant role in a 1989 project in Mexico which led to the enrollment of 220 people in the first week. Teams of Bri Bri from Costa Rica joined the teaching pro¥grams in Honduras. INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION With strong encouragement from the Uni¥versal House of Justice, many steps were taken to win the goals of international col¥laboration in the teaching field. Conferences on border teaching were held in Europe and Central America, and successful exchanges of teachers took place when the Thai-Cam¥bodian border opened for trade in 1991. Major international collaboration among in¥stitutions was achieved when the Promise of World Peace Tour was organized: sixty-two Balla'is from eight nations travelled to the Soviet Union in 1989 to disseminate the Peace Statement. Probably the most dramatic examples of international collaboration occuned when the countries bordering Eastern Europe were given responsibility for quickly organizing teaching plans and sending teachers when the Eastern Bloc opened to the Faith. Myriad other international teaching projects were canied out collaboratively during the Plan. !rish Baha'i youth walked ji-om Cork to Limerick, a distance of64 miles, on behalfofWorld Peace in October 1987. THE BAHA'i WORLD YOUTI-I The Six Year Plan witnessed a widespread acceptance by Baha'i youth in many parts of the world of the concept of a period of service, undertaken generally as a temporary interruption to their formal educational pro¥gram and devoted fully to the promotion of the teaching work. Youth in all continents were reported to be in the forefront of teach¥ing activity. In its Ridvan 1992 message the Universal House of Justice affirmed that Youth activities took on a special char¥ acter shaped by the idea of a youth year of service. The involvement of the youth in the Six Year Plan as short-te1m pio¥ neers, travelling teachers and projecteers had a profound effect on the teaching work overall... Youth dominated the teaching work in Eastern Europe. Other examples of signifi¥cant youth activity include the four STAR teaching projects carried out between 1987 and 1990 in Botswana with international participation, and the ongoing Sparks of Peace project which brought youth together every summer for an intensive campaign throughout the English-speaking Caribbean. The United States reported that youth partic¥ipated in nearly every ongoing project and comprised most of the full-time teaching teams. The initiative taken by youth to form music, dance and drama groups to proclaim the Faith is yet another aspect of the promi¥nent role they played in the teaching work. The level of initiative and organization demonstrated by youth also rose, as exem¥plified by the establishment by the House of Justice in October 1989 of a European Baha'i Youth Council charged with coordinating the various activities of the European Baha'i youth and representing them in dealings with other youth groups and agencies. In Malawi a strong National Youth Committee planned and canied out the Collis Featherstone Project with a focus on reaching refugees from Mozambique. In the Netherlands the Youth Committee composed its own plan and invit¥ed each youth to choose a personal goal toward its fulfillment. HOUSES OF WORSHIP Since the Mother Temple of the Indian sub¥continent was dedicated to public worship in December 1986, more than thirteen million people have crossed its threshold, one day alone registering 143,635 visitors; it is now one of the most visited religious edifices in India. As the Temple's fame spread, its visi¥tors ' log became a roster of dignitaries from around the globe: heads of state, government ministers, ambassadors, scholars and reli¥gious leaders wrote of their admiration for the unique strncture, and for the principles that inspired its singular and enthralling beauty. The Houses of Worship on each of the other continents continued to act as silent teachers of the Cause. The national commu¥nities in Australia and Samoa took particular advantage of their Mashriqu'l-Adhkars to introduce prominent people to the Faith; special services held in conunemoration of United Nations Days were well attended by people of capacity from many professions. Refurbishment of the Temple in Uganda began, to make it once again East Africa's jewel. In Panama the national secretariat was moved to the Temple grounds and a large auditorium consháucted for visitors. At the Mother Temple of the West in Wilmette, U.S.A., a long process of rehabilitating the architectural concrete components began. In 1991 Germany's House of Worship was classified as a Cultural Monument under the provisions of the Historical Monument Preservation Law. In all of the Houses of Worship, many teaching programs comple¥mented the regular worship services. b. Greater Involvement of the Faith in the Life of Human Society When the Six Year Plan began, the Universal House of Justice had just offered, in The Promise of World Peace, the experience of the Baha'i community as a model for the peoples of the world to study. Throughout the six years the believers increasingly shared that experience through association with indi¥viduals and organizations working to solve the problems addressed by Baha'u'llah. By Ridvan 1992 Baha'i views and participation were actively sought by individuals and gov¥ernments alike. CONTACT WITH PROMINENT PEOPLE AND AUTHORITIES The Promise of World Peace, which intro¥duced people from all walks of life to the Baha'i Faith, led to unprecedented contacts with prominent people and government authorities. By the end of the Plan Baha'i views on peace had been shared with gov¥ernment authorities in nearly every nation of the world. A sample of the prominent people who were presented with the Peace Statement includes: all 559 senators and congressmen undertaking to write Brazil's new constitution; delegates to the Chuuk State Constitutional Convention and the Federated States of Micronesia National Constitutional Conven¥tion, both in the Eastern Caroline Islands; and the presidents of seven South American nations attending an intergovernmental meet¥ing in Uruguay. Presentations of the statement to government and media officials in Cuba were reported to have been warmly received. After the Baha'is of Cambridge, Massa¥chusetts, U.S.A., presented The Promise of World Peace to their city council, the council unanimously passed a resolution encourag¥ing citizens to read and study the document and paid tribute to the Baha'is for their lead¥ership in a range of peace-related issues. In 1987 the Kansas State House of Representa¥tives in the United States also encouraged study of the peace statement. As government officials became increas¥ingly aware of Baha'i teachings and activities related to peace and world order, Baha'i communities took bolder steps to assert to those in authority the indispensability of Baha'u'llah's principles. In countries under¥going constitutional revisions such as Brazil, Haiti, Paraguay, South Africa and Thailand, National Assemblies submitted to their gov¥ernments documents offering suggestions for new national constitutions. The President of the South African Law Commission, the judge acting on behalf of the government, commented that the Baba' is were the one group whose ideas had provided a "spiritual and moral foundation" for a constitution. Baha'i views were also made known to various governmental organizations concerned with solving social problems. In May 1991 the National Assembly of Barbados submit¥ted The West Indies in the 90's and Beyond-A Baha 'i Perspective to the West Indian Commission Preparing the West Indies for the Future, a body established to study the future of the Caribbean community and regional unification. A number of presen¥tations were also made to that Commission on behalf of other National Assemblies. In Taiwan the Ministry of the Interior arranged a special seminar called "Resolving Social Ills through the Teachings of the Baha'i Faith." Significant connections were also made with professionals of many specialties. Sem¥inars were held to share Baha'i ideas with experts in various fields, receptions for prominent Baha'i professionals brought them together with colleagues who were not Baha'is, and monographs providing a Baha'i perspective in special fields such as educa¥tion and the environment were distributed. Baha'is also helped form professional asso¥ciations related to peace, such as the Association of Physicians for Peace and the Association of Educators for Peace, both in THE BAHA'I WORLD Counsellor Violette Haake presents a copy of the Peace State¥ment to the Deputy Prime Minister ofthe Cook Islands, Mr. lnatio Akaruru, in October J990. Baha 'i representatives present a copy ofthe Peace Statement to NA TO Base personnel in Kejl.avik, Iceland, in October J988. Brazil. Baha'i involvement with social and economic development projects also brought the Faith to the attention of professionals in development-related fields, such as educa¥tion and health care. The presentation of awards sponsored by Baha'i communities to honor individuals for their service to humanity created many opportunities to meet and encourage com¥munity leaders. In Alaska the Honor Kempton Award for Service to Humanity, which is named after the woman known to Baha'is as the spiritual mother of Alaska and Luxembourg, continued to be presented aimually; each year more than 100 guests, including prominent figures, attended the awards banquet. Presentation of the National Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands' annual Agnes Baldwin Alexander Award for Ser¥vice to Humanity received substantial press coverage. In 1988 the Baha'is of the United Kingdom presented their first Human Rights A wards as pati of their commemoration of the 75th anniversary of 'Abdu'l-Baha's visit to London. LIKE-MINDED 0RGANIZA TIONS Baha' is contributed their knowledge of Baha'u'llah's Teachings and their time to many of the organizations which promote Baha'i ideals. Numerous individuals volun¥teered with local and international groups, such as commissions working to prevent dmg abuse. In addition, Baha'i communities increased their support of United Nations' activities and their involvement in interfaith associations. Some of the most substantial collabora¥tion with United Nations initiatives took place in the United States where the National Assembly, through its office at the United Nations, worked throughout all six years toward the ratification of various UN human rights Conventions, helped to commemo¥rate the International Year of Peace and the International Year of Literacy, and became more actively involved in UN Association activities. In 1988, Baha'is in Burkina Faso were the only members of a religious community in the country to take part in a commemora¥tion of the UN's International Peace Day and Children's Day; and for the first time in that country, Baha'is were invited to partici¥pate in an official UN Day reception. The National Assembly of Venezuela par¥ticipated in a meeting of the UN Economic and Social Council for Latin America which led to the Assembly's hosting a meeting of non-govenm1ental organization represen¥tatives; Baha'is subsequently helped to form the Association of Non-Governmental Orga¥nizations in Venezuela. Baha'is demonstrated their belief in reli¥gious unity tluáough closer association with other religions. The Inter-Religious Under¥standing Association was formed by fifteen groups in India including Baha' is; a signifi¥cant relationship was reported to have developed between the Baha'is of Nepal and the Asian Conference on Religion and Peace; an "active and thriving link" was established between Baha'is and the Interfaith Group which represents most religions in Fiji; and Guatemalan Baha'is participated in a Con¥gress for Peace with representatives of all the country's religious denominations. In 1990 the Baha' i International Community formally associated itself with the World Conference on Religion and Peace. The interfaith groups occasionally ad¥dressed a pressing social need. In Zimbabwe members of an association of religious groups collaborated with UNICEF to help alleviate the physical sufferings of children in southern Africa. In Hawaii the Council of Churches co-sponsored the first Institute for the Healing of Racism in that state. The insti¥tute was formed by the Baha'is, modelled after similar institutes in North America. Baha'is often addressed envirom11ental issues by co-sponsoring fomms, seminars and exhibits in conjunction with other groups. For example, the National Assembly of the United States became a member of the Global Tomonow Coalition, an organization THE BAHA'I WORLD of 150 groups involved in issues related to resources, the environment and sustainable development. That Assembly also became a member of the Advisory/Planning Board of the North American Environmental Sabbath Committee; a Baha'i symbol now appears on the newsletter masthead and Baha'i quota¥tions were included in 10,000 kits distributed for a special event. COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES Increasingly, Baha'is not only participated in activities with like-minded organizations, but also initiated their own events and orga¥nized groups dedicated to addressing problems facing society. Numerous Baha'i seminars, conferences and public meetings were augmented by unique events such as Brazil's International Exposition on Education for Peace, carried out with the collaboration of twenty-three embassies and educational institutions, and Singapore's Arts for Nature exhibit which earned favorable recognition from the Min¥istry of the Environment and the Council of Women's Organizations. Several events initiated by Baha'is have gradually become a part of life in the greater community. Annual Race Unity celebrations are held in hundreds of United States cities. Observances of World Religion Day have become annual national events in Suriname. The Baha'i commemorations of UN Human Rights Day have evolved into a government event in Berrnuda. Essay contests on peace, sponsored in a number of lands, draw the attention of youth to the teachings of the Faith. Balla'i organizations were foimed to pro¥mote Baha'i principles among specific audiences including the Baha'i Medical Association in France and Health for Humanity in the United States. When renewed incidents of interracial violence erupted in the United States, the Baha'i community was already offering its healing perspective on the problem through distribution of the statement The Vision of Race Unity: America's Most Challenging Issue, and through the holding of a series of Institutes for the Healing of Racism. S IGNS OF RECOGNITION A growing number of prominent individuals and groups sought the support of Baha'is during the Plan. Invitations to participate in peace-related activities, public mention of Baha'i views by prominent people, and requests for advice all pointed to increasing recognition that the Faith offers solutions to the crises facing humanity. Milestone changes occurred in recogni¥tion of the Faith by public officials. The Prime Minister of the Cook Islands, Sir Thomas Davis, accompanied by Lady Davis, visited the World Centre in August 1986 to In Lesotho, Baha 'is were invited to the Royal Banquet Hall on 15 September 1987 to receive the United Nations' "Peace Mes¥ senger Award"for the ¥ community's involve¥ment in peace activities. consult with the Universal House of Justice about world peace. Later that year the Presi¥dent of Dominica quoted from The Promise of World Peace during a radio broadcast on the International Day of Peace. In April 1990 President Amata Kabua of the Mar¥shall Islands, while officially visiting Israel, came to Haifa with his secretary and his ambassador to confer informally with mem¥bers of the Universal House of Justice on the role of the Marshall Islands in establishing world peace. Baha'i views on issues related to social justice were sought by the Central American Institute for Business Administration during its seminar on "Post-War National Recon¥struction in El Salvador"; the Vice-President of Guyana requested a meeting with the National Assembly of that country to discuss Baha'i participation in the "Social Impact Amelioration Program"; and the Macau Basic Law Consultative Committee asked the Macau Spiritual Assembly to send three representatives to a joint meeting with the Basic Law Drafting Committee from China and various religious groups, after which the Baha'is were asked to submit their views in a formal paper. In the United States Mrs. Coretta Scott King, wife of the late civil rights leader, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., invited Baha'is to co-chair the National Religious Involvement Committee of the Mr. Dexter King (right), son ofDr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was the keynote speaker at a Bahiz 'i Peace Conference held in Oslo, Norway, on 23 October 1986. Here he is being inter¥viewed by the press. Martin Luther King Federal Holiday Com¥mission. In 1992 the Baha'i representative to the King Center in Atlanta, Georgia, was invited to a gathering of 500 religious leaders convened by former President Jimmy Carter to explore religious involvement in "Project Atlanta," a social and economic development project. The Baha 'i representative was then elected to the project's six-member Advisory Council. Intensive Baha'i involvement in ecology¥related activities led to requests for Baha'is to take greater leadership roles. Two mem¥bers of Hawaii's National Assembly were the only religious representatives among sixty-two groups invited to patiicipate in the Governor's statewide Eaiih Day planning session in 1990. A member of the United States National Assembly's Washington, D.C., staff became pa1i of a working group to draft suggestions for the United States govern¥ment's Ea1ih Summit position paper m 1992. Awareness of the Baha'i teachings on religious unity were demonstrated when a Baha'i became the only non-Buddhist speaker invited to address a public meeting held in conjunction with the "Asian Buddhist Con¥ference for Peace" in Mongolia. In Guyana Baha'is were appointed to the President's Advisory Committee on Religious Affairs. Baha'is were included in panel discussions on "Action Through Faith" and "East Meets THE BAHA'I WORLD West" at the International People's College in Denmark. Baha'is in Hawaii were asked to serve in a significant number of advisory groups: the Governor's Permanent Commission for the Commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Week; the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women; and the Governor's Task Force on AIDS. Also in Hawaii, the chairman of a government task force chose the Baha'i submission on education refmm for broadcast on the radio. ACADEMIC CIRCLES In 1990 in the United States the Baha'i Chair for World Peace was established at the Uni¥versity ofMaryland's Center for International Development and Conflict Management. Pro¥posed by a non-Baha'i professor in response to the Peace Statement, the Chair was created to conduct and publish research, design courses and lead seminars in the field of Baha'i studies and world peace within an interdisciplinary context; to initiate public fornms for discussing the issues proposed in The Promise ofWorld Peace; and to establish academic links with, and provide technical assistance to, Baha'i institutions in the fields of peace education and international devel¥opment. The creation of the Chair marked the first initiative by a prestigious institution of higher learning to fornmlate a serious pro¥gram ofBaha'i studies. Later that year Indore University and the National Assembly of India signed a document establishing another Chair for Baha'i Studies with a similar range of functions to be developed. Recognition of the Faith~s principles as legitin1ate and irnportant subjects of study was cultivated when Baha'is delivered papers and lectures relating the teachings to current issues. A Baha'i scholar presented his analy¥sis of the Third World debt at the prestigious World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzer¥land; papers on refugee mental health and a case study on a Baha'i refugee settlement program were received with considerable interest at the World Conference on Refugee Mental Health in New Zealand; and the director of Ghana's Institute of Renewable Natural Resources spoke to a group from Cameroon's International Relations Institute on "Religion in a World in Search of Peace -A Baha'i Approach" and on agroforestry, noting that the Faith offers solutions to glo¥bal environmental problems. The Faith was also directly presented to the world of academia during meetings with professors, presentations of The Promise of World Peace to university faculties, and conferences related to religious studies. A visiting professor at Belgium's University of Antwerp taught a course on the Faith to the faculty of the Comparative Religion Depart¥ment; a member of Portugal's National Assembly spoke at the Congress on Religious Studies held at the New University of Lisbon; and the National Assembly of Guyana sent an overview of Baha'i community pro¥grams to 240 faculty members of the University of Guyana. Awareness of the Baha'i Faith among scholars increasingly led to its inclusion in university courses. In some cases Baha'i approaches were incorporated into the study of other issues, such as at the University of California, Santa Cruz, U.S.A., where the Baha' i Club helped to design a course called "The Economics of a World Common¥wealth." In Guatemala 300 student teachers studied the booklet Education for Peace over a period of twenty sessions. In other cases the Faith itself became the subject of study: lectures were given in comparative religion courses at Bermuda College, Malawi's Chancellor College and the University of Zimbabwe; the Faith was pari of an exten¥sion course on religious studies at Fiji's University of the South Pacific; and entire courses on the Faith were offered at Brazil's Federal University of Santa Catarina and the University of Hawaii's Hilo Campus. An office of the United States National Assem¥bly drafted A Curriculum Guide to the Baha'i Faith to help college professors include the Faith in their courses. Two institutions which contributed to the increasing respect afforded the Faith in scholarly circles were the Associations for Baha'i Studies, with their international co¥ordinating centre in Canada, and Landegg Academy, founded in Switzerland in 1988. Baha'is also influenced the curriculum of public schools at the primary and secondary levels. In Australia, after a retired Baha'i teacher offered a multifaith religious educa¥tion course to Queensland school officials, the Queensland Department of Education invited a Baha'i representative to be present at Curriculum Development Committee meetings, and the State Religious Education Advisory Committee voted to offer commit¥tee membership to officers of the Faith. In Peru high school teachers assigned research concerning the Faith as homework, refer¥ring to Radio Baha'i as a resource. British Columbia's Ministry of Education in Canada accepted The Hidden Words and The Seven Valleys as literature which could be studied in high schools. ADVOCATING CONSULTATION As Baha'is worked to improve the level of consultation within their communities (see also "Higher Levels of Consultation," p. 167), they simultaneously increased efforts to share this dynamic concept with the rest of the world. Education about consultation took various forms. In Guyana members of the Women's Affairs Task Force presented the principle to sixteen representatives of women's groups; the Baha'i model was demonstrated in a graduate course at the University of Hawaii to overwhelmingly positive response; and Tonga's National Women's Greater Involve¥ment in the Life of Human Society Committee sponsored a highly successful conference on consultation. In different ways, Baha'is seized opportu¥nities to educate decision-making bodies about the impo1iance of consultation. When the government of Singapore invited groups to submit their views on the core values that should guide the nation, the Assembly ofthat country offered its Statement on the National Ideology, which recommended that consulta¥tion be applied to the whole decision-making process. Two pioneers at the University of Benin conducted a research project in which they used consultation with local farmers to demonstrate its value in rural development. Increasingly, a variety of organizations recognized the value of this important Baha'i principle, and requested advice and training. In 1986, following a three-hour session on consultation led by Baha'is, the Social and Ethics Committee of the Canadian Nuclear Association requested that the Baha'is facili¥tate discussion between the various factions in the nuclear energy debate. A mayor in New Zealand called the Local Assembly on behalfofhis city council to request a meeting on consultation; the council met with three Baha'is who explained and demonstrated the concept. PROMOTING EQUALITY OF THE SEXES The believers initiated and supported numer¥ous activities to promote the equality of men and women. In most cases this took the form of enhancing the status of women. Baha'is sponsored hundreds of conferences open to the public; formed Baha'i women's groups which associated with other organizations pursuing similar aims; and participated in various commissions and projects dedicated to equality of the sexes. (See also "Women's Activities", p. 409.) Local, regional and national conferences were hosted by Baha'is to address this issue in such diverse locations as Cape Verde, Chad, Grenada, Korea, Paraguay and Spain. The most noteworthy of these gatherings were: a 1988 international women's confer¥ence in the United States which provided a forum for more than 1,000 women from sixty-five countries to discuss their role in the global peace-making process; the Pacific Women's Conference spearheaded by Hawaii's South Hilo Local Assembly in 1991 and attended by seventy people from THE BAI-IA ¥j WORLD seventeen nations; and a Caribbean Women's Conference held in the Leeward Islands in 1988 with pa1iicipants from twelve countries. Baha'i groups forged links with non¥Baha'i associations working toward similar goals by registering with umbrella organiza¥tions, co-sponsoring events and speaking at meetings. The Baha'i Women's Committee of Singapore collaborated with the Sin¥gapore Council of Women's Organizations, which is composed of thirty-four groups; two Baha' is served as Executive Board members for a combined total of four years. In Nigeria the Baha'i Women's Development Board registered with the National Council of Women's Societies. Ireland's Baha'i National Committee for Fostering the Equality of the Sexes fom1ed strong ties with other commu¥nity groups. Since 1988 a representative of the Faith has served as convenor of "Advocates for African Food Security: Lessening the Burden of Women," a coalition of United Nations agencies with non-governmental and inter¥governmental organizations. Participants educate policymakers about women's vital contributions to food production in Africa and the importance of their involvement in all levels of decision-making. A number of related projects and com¥missions benefited from the involvement of individual oelievers and Baha'i communities. The Faith was represented by both women and men at meetings called by the UN Com¥mission on the Status of Women, including global and regional conferences, seminars and workshops. During the Plan fifteen state¥ments were presented to the Commission on such topics as social and economic develop¥ment, education and the status of girls. One direct result of this involvement was a joint project supported by the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) called "Traditional Media As Change Agent." In cooperation with various consultants Baha'i agencies, National Assemblies, and UNIFEM, Baha'is created a project using traditional means, such as music and dance, to stimulate discussions about women's and men's roles in society. The project commenced in localities in Bolivia, Brazil, Cameroon, Malaysia and Nigeria. The President of France, His Excellency Franr;ois Mitterand, with Mrs. Peggy Maichoo, pioneer to Reunion (right), at a reception at the Elysee Palace in Paris, in commemoration ofInternational Wom ens ' Day, 8 March 1990. c. Increasing the Worldwide Availability and Use of Baha'i Literature A worldwide increase in the translation, production, distribution and use of Baha'i literature was designated as a priority during the Six Year Plan with a view to proclaiming the Faith and its principles to all sections of society and broadening the Baha'i commu¥nity's understanding of Baba'u'llah and His Message. This objective was energetically addressed throughout the Baha'i world in a number of ways. AVAILABILITY Efforts to present Baha'i literature to both the general public and the Baha'i commu¥nity were intensified, taking many fo1ms. The most widespread were the participation of Baha'is in book fairs and exhibitions, the distribution of Baha'i literature to public libraries, and the establishment of book depots and lending libraries. It is not possi¥ble to enumerate the achievements of every community in this sphere of activity, but to focus on the accomplishments of a few is revealing. In India the Baha'is participated in some thirty-eight book fairs, held nearly two hundred book exhibitions and established as many as 110 book depots and 865 lending libraries. In one Indian state the Baha'is received a request from the Director of Public Libraries for 3,000 copies of Baha'i books to be distributed among the 1,500 public libraries throughout the state. In Argentina the Baha'is took part in the ammal Buenos Aires Book Fair, one of the most important in Latin America, drawing nearly a million people each year. At the Interna¥tional Book Fair held in Yugoslavia and attended by nearly 400,000 people, the Baha'i Book Distribution Service of Austria gave out some 2,800 items. Baha'i publish¥ers attended three ammal International Book Fairs in Beijing, China. In Chad the Olinga Bookstore-Library was opened in Moissala in the presence of religious, civil and military leaders; the library, open to the public daily, has a permanent collection of 1,000 volumes and also sells Baha'i books. In addition, the Local Spiritual Assembly ofMoissala, noting the paucity of educational facilities available to villagers, started a mobile library in col¥laboration with the Local Spiritual Assembly of Munich, Ge1many; it contains both Baha 'i and general reference materials and travels between villages, spending one day in each place. PRO DUCTION AND TRANSLATION Translations ofBaha'i literature were signifi¥cantly increased in a number of languages, covering a greater range of subj ect matter. Spiritual Assemblies strnve to enrich Baha'i literature in national and local languages. Many such efforts were acclaimed for their conháibution towards the preservation of cul¥ture and heritage. In Dominica, for example, the first háanslation of The Hidden Words into Creole was received with appreciation by a high-ranking government official and was seen as advancing the culture of the island. The National Spiritual Assembly of Switzerland published a booklet in Ladin, a main dialect of Romansch, the fourth lan¥guage of Switzerland; the booklet was disháibuted to the media and to agencies engaged in preserving the language. In the Netherlands a national teaching conference was organized by a Local Assembly to cele¥brate the publication and to develop plans for the use of a compilation of the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha in Frisian, a language of the Frisian Islands and the northern Netherlands. In Togo and Benin, where selected Writ¥ings were háanslated into the native tongues of villagers, a powerful effect on Baha'i conmmnities was achieved. To encourage application of Baha'i teachings certain háibal chiefs also made recordings of the obliga¥tory prayers so that illiterate villagers could listen to the Words of Baha'u'llah; other audio recordings of the Writings amplified this mode of learning prayers and studying the Creative Word. THE BAHA'I WORLD In Papua New Guinea a booklet ofprayers from several of the world's major religions was translated into Nalik, one of the local languages, the first book ever printed in that language; a written forn1 of Nalik had to be created by Baha'is before this could occur. The booklet, entitled Saaule Nakmai, a tradi¥tional Nalik call for assistance from God, was part of the Baha'i community's contri¥bution to the United Nations International Literacy Year. A clear trend emerged and gained momen¥tum during the Plan to produce more Baha'i literature on a broader range of subjects. New Baha'i publications appeared on themes such as health and healing, marriage and family, decision-making and consultation, implications and applications of peace, and a range of social and economic development issues. Prior to the Plan only a handful of Baba 'i publications existed on the subject of literacy. By its close, the number of Baha'i publications related to literacy easily reached forty. Among the languages in which Baha'i literacy materials can now be found are: Hindi and Marathi for India; French and Creole for Haiti; Lunda for Zambia; Guaymi for Panama; and Spanish, Portuguese and Quechua for Latin America. It is also interesting to note the marked upsurge in the publication of Baha'i refer¥ence materials. The Six Year Plan witnessed the publication of a number of bibliographies of Baha'i works and an English-language Baba'i dictionary. Two more concordances were added to the seven already available, and the Sacred Writings in an electronic format became accessible for the first time through the publication of two software programs. With the overall enrichment of Baha'i literature throughout the world, it became necessary to ensure that the desire to create variety did not overshadow the need to make basic Baha'i literature available to the masses of humanity. Cognizant of this need, the International Teaching Centre fostered a program that is now known as the "core literature" program. Core literature refers to a selection of titles comprised of Holy Writ¥ings, works on the Life and Mission of Baha'u'llah, and introductory and deepening materials, which are printed in large num¥bers and made available to the friends at affordable prices. The list of titles chosen as core literature for a given language not only is unique to that language, but grows and changes as the community develops and as the general enrichment of literature progresses. Nowhere did this approach prove more useful than in the former Eastern Bloc, where the sudden opening of the countries of the region to the rest of the world in late An estimated 1,000,000 people visited the international Book Fair held in Buenos A ires in April I 989. This was the sixth year the Bahri 'i Publishing Trust of Argentina partici¥pated in the Fair and its booth attracted much attention. 1989, and the large-scale teaching efforts that followed, created an unprecedented demand for Baha'i literature. In languages spoken in those countries experiencing large¥scale expansion, namely Albanian, Bulgarian, Romanian and Russian, a packet of basic core literature was printed in large quantities to put essential items into the hands of the people. While the production and distribu¥tion of core literature was vigorously pursued, parallel plans were developed to create a broad spectium of Baha'i literature in these languages. Both processes gradually gath¥ered momentum during the last two years of the Plan and will continue for many years to come. However, it was not only in the former Eastern Bloc where this approach proved useful. Core literature programs were also developed for languages spoken in other regions of the world where large-scale expan¥sion is taking place, including Hindi, Khmer, Lao, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Portuguese and several vernacular languages of Africa, such as Bemba, Igbo, Yoruba and Sara. COLLABORATION Greater collaboration among Publishing Trusts and Baha'i publishers was brought about by technological advances in the field of printing and the increase in organizational capacity throughout the Baha'i world. On an operational level, closer collaboration was witnessed in the increasing number of Pub¥lishing Trusts sharing computer discs and/or films of manuscripts to facilitate the printing of the same book in different locations, thus avoiding the cost, difficulties and delays of transporting books over long distances and across borders. On an organizational level, this collabora¥tion was reflected in the number of international gatherings and consultative meetings about literature which took place during the Plan. In 1987, for example, Argentina held the first Baha'i conference on the production of literature in Spanish to coordinate and systematize efforts in translation, publication and distribution on the various continents. Likewise, the first International Chinese Baha'i Writers' Seminar was held in Malay¥sia in June 1991, which explored the need for suitable Baha'i materials in Chinese. In order to enhance the range of Baha'i litera¥ture available in Arabic, a committee known as the "Reviewing Board of Baha'i Litera¥ture in Arabic" was appointed by the House of Justice in September 1991, with its base in London. A Baha'i publishers' conference, held in England in February 1992, was attended by forty-four representatives of twenty-two publishers from seventeen coun¥tries. As an outgrowth of that conference, the International Association of Baha'i Publishers was formed with its base in the Netherlands. DISSEM INATION The capacity of the Baha'i world to dissemi¥nate literature on specific issues to thousands of people increased enormously. The release of The Promise of World Peace provided the impetus for the development of this capacity. Since the appearance of the Peace State¥ment, some National Spiritual Assemblies have published items focusing on issues rel¥evant to their own countries and have called upon their national communities to use these publications extensively in their proclama¥tion and teaching efforts. The most outstanding example is the statement prepared by the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States in 1991 entitled The Vision of Race Unity: America 's Most Challenging Issue. There is every indication that this newly acquired capacity will be fully utilized in the dissemination of the Statement on Baha'u'llah. Issued in April 1991, the State¥ment had already been translated into at least forty-eight languages by the close of the Plan, and reports were received at the World Centre of its presentation to many prominent figures in various lands. THE BAHA'I WORLD d. Further Acceleration in the Process of the Maturation of Baha'i Communities The Six Year Plan itself, its goals and the method used to fommlate them, reflected a new level of community maturity. In its let¥ter of2 January 1986 the Universal House of Justice stated: "This new process ...signalizes the inauguration of a new stage in the unfoldment of the Administrative Order." STRENGTHENING LOCAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLIES In some areas of the world, most notably Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union and East Asia, the number of Local Assem¥blies significantly increased, reaching and sometimes surpassing national goals. A mile¥stone in Local Assembly formation occurred when the central authorities in Moscow approved the Baha'is' application to restore the long-lost Assembly of Ashkhabad ('Ishqabad) in 1989. Yet the primary empha¥sis during the Plan was on encouraging existing Local Assemblies to manifest their full potential. National Assemblies created innovative and effective deepening programs for mem¥bers of Local Assemblies, and Auxiliary Board members and their assistants worked tirelessly to nmture these vital institutions. Local Assemblies took greater initiative in holding regular meetings, canying out their administrative functions, reformillg themselves without outside assistance, and conducting extension teaching projects. A number of National Assemblies pro¥duced deepening materials for their local institutions. In Brazil a set of nine booklets called Forming Conscientious Local Spiritual Assemblies was shared with more than 200 Local Assemblies. Standards for organizing and conducting secretariat and treasury tasks were formulated by the National Assembly of the Eastern Caroline Islands and sent to all Local Assemblies. The National Assembly of Fiji taped and distributed materials related to Assembly development in Fijian, Hindi and English. An illustrated booklet outlining the major tasks of a Local Assembly was distributed at a national convention in Togo. Seminars, workshops and regular visits provided the other major fom1 of education. In the United States, Auxilia1y Board mem¥bers, assistants, Counsellors and National Assembly representatives conducted a series of eighteen local conferences as part of the "Local Spiritual Assembly Development Program" launched in 1989. The sessions were based on training modules and on a new compilation prepared at the National Center called Developing Distinctive Bahti 'i Communities: Guidelines for Local Spiritual Assemblies. Members of the various institutions working together in Spain established tl1e "Consolidation Project for Local Spiritual Assemblies." A similar National Conunittee for the Support of Local Spiritual Assem¥blies was created in the Netherlands. In the Philippines a simplified Local Assembly manual translated into Tagalog was distributed during seminars run by the Area Teaching Committees' "Local Spiritual Assembly Development Project." A "Travel Deepeners' Program," created in Tanzania, worked with twenty Assemblies during the Plan, and the National Assembly of Ethiopia conducted mini-deepenings for members of its urban Assemblies. The Assembly of Chad reported that individual Baha'is travelled thousands of kilometers per year by bicycle to regularly visit, encourage, deepen and deliver mail to Local Assemblies, greatly contributing to their development. Similarly, in tl1e Central African Republic, the assistant secreta1y of the National Assembly rode some 1,200 kilometers by bicycle to hold institutes for thirteen Local Spiritual Assemblies in five locations, reaching nearly 300 individuals. The effects of such efforts could be seen as local institutions began demonstrating more responsibility and initiative. Local Assemblies increasingly handled their basic duties without undue reliance on Counsellor Edith Senoga (second from left) visits Baha 'i communities in the remote western region ofUganda, near the Ruwenzori Mountains; Februmy 1990. National Assemblies. For example, by the end of the Plan, incorporated Assemblies in Singapore and Hawaii were handling their own administrative work to maintain incor¥poration, and eight Assemblies in Taiwan had assumed responsibility for their own local centers. The minutes of Norway's Local Assemblies showed these institutions to be increasingly advising individuals on their personal problems and on avenues for service to the Cause. Hawaii reported that the number of personal cases reaching the National Assembly radically decreased after the Auxiliary Board members held deepen¥ings with Local Assemblies on how they might handle this aspect of Assembly responsibility themselves. Many Assemblies went beyond basic functioning and fully developed local activity plans. All Local Assemblies in the Netherlands composed their own arumal plans which were then confim1ed by the National Assembly. Thailand reported that four Assemblies created their own plans, became financially self-sufficient and supported surrounding communities. Italy's National Assembly dissolved its National Corrunittee for the Assistance of Local Assemblies because of the level of maturity that had been achieved. Finally, more Assemblies developed sufficiently to begin initiating activities of benefit to the wider community. Several Local Assemblies in Bolivia organized and locally financed regional conferences with between 200 and 600 participants each. Fifty Canadian Assemblies initiated their own deepening programs and fourteen were over¥seeing the functioning of bookstores and info1mation centers at the end of the Plan. Eleven Local Assemblies in Transkei adopted and pursued twenty-four extension teaching goals. D EVELOPING LOCAL BAHA'I COMMUNITIES "It is not enough to expand the rolls of Baha'i membership, vital as that is," the Universal House of Justice reminded the believers of the world in its message of Ri~van 1989. "Souls must be transfmmed, communities thereby consolidated, new models of life thus attained." It is difficult to measure the develc.pment of local communities, because no numbers can be applied to the spirit at a Holy Day celebration, to the level of cooperation among the friends on a daily basis, or to the creativity poured into preparation for a Nineteen Day Feast. However, as the National Assembly of the Cook Islands reported, "...if the spirit of enthusiasm and loving unity among the members of our community has anything to do with the maturity of the community, then we have made great strides over the past six years in this area." The National Assembly of Nepal THE BAHA'I WORLD similarly reported, "no doubt the greatest progress during the Six Year Plan has been registered in the area of the maturation of local communities." The successes of large-scale enrollment in various parts of the world created an immediate and pressing need for community consolidation. India's "Muhajir Project" combined deepening with mass teaching, using a mobile deepening institute to help newly formed communities to hold Nineteen Day Feasts, Holy Day celebrations and to perform administrative functions. Also in India, the Baha'i Academy in Panchgani significantly contributed to the process of consolidation through well-designed courses which were attended by Baha'is from both India and abroad, and conferences and semi¥nars for Auxiliary Board members and assistants. In the Khulna area of Bangladesh, where the populations of approximately 100 vil¥lages came close to becoming 100 percent Baha'i, the Regional Teaching Committee designated a few as "model Baha'i villages" and focused efforts on making the difference between Baha'i and other villages readily apparent. One outstanding sign of community growth was the greater participation of native believers in activities and institutions. As culh1ral expressions of indigenous people were better incorporated into Baha'i com¥munity life and as Baha'is sought to preserve the most positive aspects of native cultures, local people took greater responsibility for their Baha'i communities. Zimbabwe, for example, reported that one of the highlights of the Six Year Plan was the transfom1ation of pioneer-dominated activities into collec¥tive efforts supported by local believers. The increased number of native believers elected to institutions reflected this greater participation. At the end of the Plan the majority of the members of twenty-two Local Assemblies in Guatemala were indigenous people. The first indigenous Local Assembly in the Amazonas State in Brazil, composed of members of the Mura Tribe, was elected at Ri~van 1990. The number of native Sene¥galese on the National Assembly of that country reached eight in the last year of the Plan; as the number of pioneers decreased, the Senegalese have "taken over, in the administration as in the teaching, and in so doing, have developed a greater sense of belonging to the Faith". The Pygmies of the Central African Republic fom1ed their first Local Assembly in 1987. Another sign of maturation was the attention given to achieving greater equality between men and women within the Baha'i community. Women's issues and the topic of equality were studied at numerous Baha'i schools, conferences, mini-courses and sem¥inars, and entire conferences focusing on women were held in countries as diverse as Puerto Rico, Korea, Austria, Mauritius and Cape Verde. Baha'i groups were formed to provide support for women and to encourage com¥munities to address the issue of equality. The Women's Association for Development of Peace and Unity in France consisted of ninety members in four regional groups and held deepenings at various Baha'i gather¥ings. In Spain the National Committee for Women was created to provide articles, lectures and deepenings. A committee in the Eastern Caroline Islands, which was formed to foster equality, developed a participatory workshop on the topic. Women from rnral areas and indigenous tribes also exhibited greater pariicipation in community life. In Costa Rica in 1992, tluáee indigenous communities were represented by women at the National Convention for the first time. In India large numbers of women were reported to be taking responsibility for the affairs of the Faith in Rajasthan, and in November 1988 sixty-two Indian women from thirteen villages attended a deepening conference at the Malhousi Baha'i Center in Uttar Pradesh, a reported "miracle" for women to leave their homes to share their views with others. STRENGTHENING NATIONAL SPIRJTUAL ASSEMBLIES Between 1986 and 1992, new National Spiri¥tual Assemblies were formed or re-fo1med in Angola, the Congo Republic, Guinea, Guinea¥B issau, Greenland, Macau, Niger, the West Leeward Islands, Zaire and throughout East¥ern Europe and Central Asia. The twelve National Assemblies formed at Ria:van 1992 alone equalled the total number in the world of forty years ago. Overall, National Assemblies functioned more effectively as secretariats improved; elections more closely reflected the Baha'i idea; Assemblies delegated more tasks to strong committees or councils; and members generally developed greater understanding of their roles. Record-keeping and organization of the administrative work ofAssemblies improved with greater access to office technology. Membership records were computerized in numerous places, including Dominica, Taiwan, Sri Lanka, the Eastern Caroline Islands and Zimbabwe; and many secretari¥ats tluáoughout the Baha'i world acquired word processors and fax machines to facili¥tate their correspondence work. In Canada comprehensive information on localities was entered into a database and a history of Local Assembly establishment was compiled. The emphasis in some areas on educating convention delegates in the unique nature of The Spiritual Assembly ofthe Baha 'is ofFrench Guiana, with two Auxilimy Board members, in April 1987. Baha'i elections, often carried out by the Counsellors, contributed to greater Assem¥bly maturity and improved the quality of elections, so that they reflected an increas¥ingly spiritual atmosphere. One recurring deepening program, which was developed in Hawaii for delegates, evolved into a national educational program on the electoral process. Higher levels of cooperation and greater understanding of how to apply Baha'i prin¥ciples were reported by Assembly members. Kenya reported growth in planning, consul¥tation and organization, stating "members are more committed, more loving, more vigor¥ous, and they have been trying to play their rightful role as 'servants'." Togo's Assembly reported becoming more understanding of the importance of administering with justice the affairs and property of the Faith. The National Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands declared that its degree of growth "is reflected in the fundamental unity among its members, the increased reliance on the power of divine assistance in decision¥making, and the constant attempt to make decisions based on principle and to arrive at consensus and wrnnimity ..." In several communications to National Assemblies, the Universal House of Justice recognized greater Assembly maturity by delegating more responsibility to these insti¥tutions. In 1986 Assemblies were urged to develop their own national archives, and in THE BAHA ' I WORLD 1990 the House of Justice encouraged National Assemblies to begin selecting pio¥neers to be deputized and to match them with sponsors, thereby complementing the efforts of the International Deputization Fund. Some National Assemblies, in turn, moved to decentralize their activities as their communities and workloads grew. Malay¥sia's first State Baha'i Councils were established, and several oflndia's Councils, created in 1986, developed sufficiently to include their own secretariats, committees, Feast newsletters and journals. Encouraged by the Counsellors to appoint stronger committees, Hawaii held its first two¥day National Committee Training Institute, focused on making committees into effec¥tive arms of the Assembly, with authority to act without further approval except in cases involving a principle, policy or major funding. COLLABORATION AMONG INSTITUTIONS As Baha'i institutions at all levels matured, greater efforts were made toward sharing ideas and encouraging collaboration in common goals among Local Assemblies, National Assemblies, and between the elected and appointed institutions. At least twenty collaborative endeavors involving 105 Local Assemblies took place in Canada; forty-one Assemblies in Guyana participated in regional conferences in 1991 ; and Assemblies in the Netherlands worked together to provide deepenings and children's classes. In some cases Local Assembly collaboration was international: seventy believers from twenty-five localities in Belgium, France and the United Kingdom met in 1988 to consult on ways they could join efforts to better teach in their local communities. Regional consultations among National Assemblies provided additional opportuni¥ties for exchange. In October 1990 the Continental Board of Counsellors in the Americas organized a meeting in Guatemala for seven Central American National Assem¥blies. Thirty-seven representatives of the twelve National Assemblies of the Eastern Caribbean met in Saint Lucia in 1987 to foster collaboration among the participating communities. That same year representa¥tives of the Assemblies of Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan began what became annual joint meetings; they were joined by the new Assembly of Macau in 1990. Representatives of the Assemblies of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Bang¥ladesh, India, Nepal, Sikkim and Sri Lanka met in India in 1989. Several joint meetings and institutes have been held between the Assemblies of Thailand and Laos. In Africa members from the National Spiritual Assemblies of Zimbabwe, Zambia and Malawi met with Counsellors in 1988 to Participants in the National Convention ofthe Baha 'is in Ciskei, April 1987. Members ofthe National Spiritual Assembly ofthe Bahri 'is ofJamaica at the Interna¥tional Convention in Haifa, Israel, 1988. discuss the goal of entry by troops on that continent. In Europe that year members of the National Assemblies of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland met in Belfast with some 150 Baha'is from both countries to consult on winning border¥teaching goals. The Netherlands reported greater collaboration among the National Assemblies of Belgium, Gem1any, Luxem¥bourg and the United Kingdom, including the regular exchange of teachers. In June I 987 the Universal House of Justice assigned international collaboration goals to National Assemblies. National com¥munities were encouraged to aid each other with teaching, contribute toward properties and needed equipment, share course materi¥als and collaborate on literature translation projects. (See also "Increasing ... Baha'i Literature'', p. 157.) In May 1986 the House of Justice announced an expansion of the Boards of Counsellors and the Auxiliary Boards, and throughout the Plan these institutions forged ever-stronger relationships with National and Local Assemblies. A few examples of efforts to increase consultation between Counsellors and Assemblies include joint regional and national conferences of the elected and appointed institutions held in Pakistan; annual meetings between the Assembly of Chad and its Auxiliary Board members; and annual weekend meetings with representatives of . ... . . .. ' -' ..... ¥ I ¥ e ¥ ' , ¥¥¥ 4 '. ~ .' .,, ..,.... ' ' .. ' .... . '¥'' 11¥¥¥ I ¥ ¥ ~ I ¥¥ e I 4 I I ¥ I ' ~ I 1 ¥ \ ¥¥¥¥ ' ( 1¥ ' .~ .' ' \ . , . . -. ' Counsellor Violette Haake (right) meeting with Auxiliary Board members in New Caledonia in November 1991. both institutions in Belgium. Several National Assemblies made observations similar to Hawaii's: "Trust and confidence between the institutions and the collaborative spirit of learning from each other, growing and working together have characterized the two arms of the administrative order. ..." This spirit of cooperation manifested itself in gatherings of representatives of all the institutions. One conference held in Moscow in 1990 was sponsored by the National Assembly of Germany and attended by members of three Continental Boards of Counsellors and all Assemblies involved in teaching in the Soviet Union. A national Six Year Plan conference in Canada brought together representatives from every institution, which then was followed by five meetings for large groupings of Local Assemblies and, finally, six smaller regional gatherings. Togo's National Assem¥bly reported that a "big step forward in the process of maturity" took place when members of both institutions held two con¥secutive meetings to discuss divergent points of view on the best time in the teaching process to elect Local Assemblies. The frank consultation "brought the participants to tum to the directives and advice of the Guardian and of the Universal House of Justice. This effort... has released an energy which has spurred our efforts during the last three months of the Plan." THE BAHA'I WORLD Participants in a conference for Auxiliary Board members' assistants held at Swakopmund, Namibia in July 1988. COMMUNICATION AND DISSEMINATION OF NEWS Baha'i news and ideas continued to be shared among the believers primarily through pub¥lications and radio, but communication was enhanced by increasing access to television, fax and electronic mail. When the Office of Public lnforn1ation at the Baha'i World CentTe a1mounced the creation of a Baha'i International Information Network to better coordinate effmts to proclaim the Cause and defend its interests, another step was taken toward increasing unity through improving communication among Baha'is. Newsletters for assistants to Auxiliary Board members and regional bulletins pub¥lished by Teaching Conmlittees complemented national newsletters and Feast letters to form the backbone of inforn1ation exchange. Baha'i radio stations, which by the end of the Plan were broadcasting an average of thirteen hours per day each, seven days a week, year-round, also served to unite believers in their listening areas. Particularly in Africa, radio was used to announce Feasts, Holy Days and teaching campaign events; in India national public radio was available for a1mouncements. Radio has served as a primary vehicle for conmlllnica¥tion in rmal areas of South America, where a considerable amount of programming is done in native languages such as Guaynli, Quechua, Mapuche and Aymara. Counsellor member ofthe International Teaching Centre Magdalene Carney met NSAs ofSenegal and Gambia, May 1990. Advanced technology-including fax machines, conference calls and electronic mail-enabled a worldwide network of Baba'i communication to be established. Electronic bulletin boards such as "News¥wire" in the United States, and international and national computer networks such as "bahai-net," allowed individual believers in far-flung locations to exchange ideas and make contacts. The regular use of satellites to link believers in the Cook Islands, Hawaii, Western and American Samoa and the United States, beginning in 1986, fore¥shadowed a time when satellites would connect the whole Baha'i world. In 1990 the Media Services Depa1tment of the United States National Center began regularly producing Baha 'i Newsreel, a video¥tape highlighting Baha'i events around the world. Six editions of the newsreel were produced and sent to almost all National Spiritual Assemblies during the Plan. In the final year, tapes also became available in Spanish and French. The importance of face-to-face communi¥cation was not lost in the midst of the new possibilities opened up by technology. The United States initiated two programs to foster greater unity among members of its geographically widespread community: the "Weekend Visits Program," begun in 1989, brought groups of fifteen to thirty Baba 'is to the National Center to exchange thoughts and concerns with the National Assembly; the "Town Meetings Program" begun in 1990 and planned by the Treasurer's Office and members of the Auxiliary Boards, "fostered increasingly open and frank discussion with the conununity and has provided. .. vital information about many aspects of the com¥munity's life." In Taiwan the National Assembly and national committees held meetings around the country to help members meet as many individual believers as possible. In Zimbabwe the Regional Teaching Committee system created a communication network using trav¥eling teachers to deliver news and messages. HIGHER LEVELS OF CONSULTATION A sign of growing maturity in Baha'i com¥munities was the importance given to better practicing the art of consultation. The believ¥ers developed materials, organized classes and seminars, and began Assembly meetings with deepenings on this fine art. Among the materials created and distrib¥uted were Brazil's Baha'i Consultation and Consult to Decide Better; audio-visual aids and a booklet were produced and dissemi¥nated in Bangladesh; a complete course was prepared in Madagascar; and a document was written for presentations during Baha'i hannattan schools in Togo. Consultation was often studied in confer¥ences, institutes and summer schools in many countries. India organized an annual conference on it, and workshops were held in Botswana, Burkina Faso, Denmark, El Salvador, Luxembourg and Spain. The practice of consultation formed a major portion of several courses. During a nine-day workshop in Australia, Baha'is from three Aboriginal Reserves elected a mock Assembly and practiced consulting on hypo¥thetical issues; an Auxiliary Board member joined the process, thereby helping partici¥pants to gain insight into the role of that institution. At a conference in the Western Caroline Islands sponsored by a Regional Teaching Committee, participants formed "families" for a demonstration of consulta¥tion in this context; the groups discussed the rights and responsibilities of each family member, family discipline and the elimina¥tion of prejudice. National Assemblies in Bolivia, Guyana, Mali and Norway reported reserving time during their meetings for regular study of passages in the Baha'i Writings on consulta¥tion. SUPPORT OF THE FUND The health of the Baha'i Fund is yet another indicator of the community's developing maturity. Although there is no way to mea¥sure the spirit of sacrifice and sense of duty behind voluntary contributions, effo1is by local believers to take more responsibility for the needs of national and international funds indicate spiritual growth. In 1989 Landegg Academy held its first study course on "Effective Fund Manage¥ment for the Development of the Faith," which illustrated the importance of fostering a spiritual basis for donations. In the United States the "Local Assembly Goals Program for the National Fund" was launched in October 1990. Based on factors such as locality size and past record of donations, the National Assembly made specific recommendations to a number of Local Assemblies which reflected the level of sacrifice felt to be within the local com¥munity's power. In Canada the Local Assembly of West Vancouver, British Columbia, initiated what became a national program to contribute in specified units toward elimination of the 1990-91 National Fund deficit. The number of regular contributors to the National Fund of Thailand increased four¥teenfold after the national treasurer began making personal visits to communities and sessions on the Fund were included in nearly all schools and conferences. Local communities in several countries regularly supported their National Funds by planting crops to sell just for this purpose. The Hand ofthe Cause ofGod Amatu 'l-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum open¥ing the local Baha'i Center in Sheung Shui, Hong Kong, in November J990. Right: Counsellor Lucretia Warren with members ofthe National Spiritual Assembly ofMozambique in fiwit oftheir newly acquired National Baha'i Center, 1989. Above: The new National Office ofthe National Spiritual Assembly ofthe Baha 'is ofKiribati which was dedicated in 1989. Right: Friends gathered at the Baha 'i Center in Ndava, Burundi, for the inauguration held 22 October 1989. Frnit grown on the national endowment property at Fam1ers, St. Thomas Parish, Barbados, was used to make jam to sell for the Fund. The Local Assembly ofNyiakungu, Kenya, grew and sold tomatoes to become the first Assembly to meet its contribution goal for the National Fund. The Local Assem¥bly of Tshilaka, Zaire, harvested crops of coffee, com, manioc, beans and peanuts to benefit the Fund. Believers in Danane, Cote d'Ivoire, cultivated rice for three consecu¥tive years to support their Local Fund. BAHA'I PROPERTIES As the Baha'i community expanded, a greater number of localities were able to build, purchase or rent local, regional and national Baha'i centers. Efforts were also made to renovate existing properties, encouraged by the message from the House of Justice in October 1990 outlining standards for main¥taining Baha'i properties. New national centers were acquired in Ciskei, Macau, Mozambique, Romania and Saint Lucia. In Botswana, Project "Buy a Brick" was initiated in 1988 to accelerate contributions for the new center. The great¥est number of new regional centers were acquired in African countries such as Burnndi, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, Siena Leone and Zimbabwe. More than 200 local centers were opened throughout the world. Two of the most significant achievements in this area were the constmction of the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent, which was dedicated to public worship in December 1986 (see pp. 731-740), and the opening of the De Poort Conference Centre in the Netherlands in June 1987. De Poort, which means "the gate," is owned and oper¥ated by the Dutch Baha'i community and hosts gatherings sponsored by members of the European Baha'i community and various other organizations. Renovation of a number of Baha'i proper¥ties also took place, the most extensive being the refurbishment of the Houses of Worship in Kampala, Uganda, and in Wilmette, U.S.A. LEGAL RECOGNITION OF BAHA'i INSTITUTIONS The Universal House of Justice was able to call for the re-formation of the National Assemblies of the Congo Republic and Niger at Ri9van 1992 after the Faith had been legally recognized by the authorities in both countries. These significant events were part of a trend toward governments ' officially recognizing the Faith's independence. This facilitated the incorporation of its Assem¥blies, and acceptance of the legality of Baha'i maniage and absences of Baha'i students from public schools on Holy Days. A milestone in legal recognition of the Faith occurred in Germany in February 1991 when the Federal Constitutional Court, the highest legal authority in the country, affirmed the legality of Assembly bylaws, upholding the constih1tional appeal made by the Local Spiritual Assembly of Ti.ibingen after a series of lower courts had refused incorporation. The lower courts had based their decision on the grounds that the author¥ity granted to the National Assembly in the bylaws of the Local Assembly violated the legal principle requiring all legally incorpo¥rated associations to be autonomous. In a decision with far-reaching implications, the Federal Court affi1med the right of the Baha'is to organize as a hierarchically shuctured legal community according to the revealed Law of God. Because the decision was based partially on the constitutional right to freedom of religious practice, the Court declared its recognition of the Faith as an independent religion, stating, "the charac¥ter of the Baha'i Faith as a religion and the Baha'i Community as a religious community is evident, in actual everyday life, cultural tiáadition, and in the understanding of the general public as well as of the science of comparative religion." The Court even took the rare step of issuing a statement to the press explaining its decision. In June 1988, the Legislative Council of Hong Kong passed an ordinance giving the Baha'i Assembly a new status which may THE BAHA'I WORLD well afford the Faith further legal protection in the years beyond 1997 when Hong Kong becomes a part of the People's Republic of China. The National Assembly of Saint Lucia was also incorporated, and the Ciskei Assembly's constitution was approved by its Government. Government documents acknowledging the Faith were used in India, where the Director of the Census instlucted all enu¥merators to record the Baha'i Faith as an independent religion and list the believers properly. In Turkey, some fifty believers were able to change the religion section of their birth certificates from "Islam" to "Baha'i." In Austria, Baha'i credentials became accepted as valid documents for obtaining visas, and, in Saint Lucia, Baha'i registration of births and deaths was recognized. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands was issued mailboxes in the State Senate and the House of Represen¥tatives to receive copies of all bills before the legislature. Baha'i institutions received tax exemptions in Equatorial Guinea, Guinea¥Bissau, New Caledonia and Loyalty Islands, and Uruguay. Advances were made in recognition of Baha'i maniage. The Nigerian government pern1itted Baha'i institutions to issue gov¥ernment maniage certificates; five additional Local Assemblies in Uganda were authorized to conduct legally valid marriage ceremo¥nies; Baha'i marriages were recognized for the first time in an additional nine National Assembly areas; and Baha'i marriage offic¥ers were appointed in Grenada, Guyana, Pakistan, Saint Lucia and Transkei. Progress was also made toward excusing more students and teachers from schools on Baha'i Holy Days. In Ecuador permission was granted for the Raul Pavon School to close on Holy Days. In Uganda the Educa¥tion Department of Mbale granted students exemption from classes on the nine Holy Days, the first instance ofHoly Day recogni¥tion since the 1979 ban on the Faith was lifted. Chicago's Board of Education in the United States, the Superintendent of Education for the Northern Mariana Islands, Germany's Bavarian State Ministiáy for Education and Culture, and the Cantonal authorities in Bern, Switzerland, all gave permission for Baha'is to be absent on Holy Days. In Zimbabwe the Holy Days are listed on government calendars. Authorities in three counties of the Republic of Ireland have granted a holiday to all pupils for the Birthday of Baha'u'llah. e. Promoting Universal Participation and the Spiritual Enrichment of Individual Believers In its Ric;lvan message of 1988, the Universal House of Justice wrote: ...it is on the initiative, the resolute will of the individual to teach and to serve, that the success of the entire community depends .... The ultimate tiáiumph of the Cause is assured by that 'one thing and only one thing' so poignantly emphasized by Shoghi Effendi, namely, 'the extent to which our own inner life and private character mirror forth in their manifold aspects the splendor of the eternal princi¥ples proclaimed by Baba 'u'llah'. UNIVERSAL PARTICIPATION Baha'i institutions nurtured believers toward higher levels of participation in community life and service to the Cause by using educa¥tional methods that reached the widest possible Baha'i audience, and by relating the Teachings to the particular backgrounds of the individuals in the community. A wide Baha' i audience was reached through ongoing study guides published in national newsletters, such as the course on the Kitab-i-Iqan that ran in the October and November 1989 issues of The American Bahiz 'i and was reproduced by the National Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands and mailed to all believers through Local Assem¥blies. In addition, a study guide on the Epistle to the Son of the Wolf was published in the Febrnary, March and April 1991 issues. Other methods used to reach believers included an experimental program in India offering insh-uction through television, and increased use in Brazil of riverboats to carry Baha'is along the Amazon River and its trib¥utaries, providing deepening from village to village. Correspondence courses were used to reach believers who might not otherwise have access to regular deepenings or be able to attend Baha'i schools. During the Plan courses were developed in places such as Canada, El Salvador, Bangladesh, Thailand, Burkina Faso and Tanzania, and previously published lessons continued to be disháibuted in Saint Lucia, India, Botswana, Chad and Malawi. In Belize, Brazil and Bangladesh, all of which experienced the challenges of consolidation following large-scale emoll¥ments, at least one correspondence course was sent to each new believer. Zimbabwe reported that 4,500 believers participated in correspondence courses. Courses specifi¥cally for children were published in Taiwan and Malaysia. New believers were helped to establish the foundations of their Baha'i identities in a variety of ways, the most common being the sending of Baha'i books, compilations of the Writings, or correspondence courses with welcome cards. In Guyana a "National Deepening Program" for new believers was launched in 1992, in which 1,000 have pa11icipated. In the Netherlands all new believers were invited to the National Center to meet the National Assembly and study the administration, and to a special weekend of study at De Po011 Conference Centre. The National Assembly ofBurw1di regularly reserved one day of its program of classes fo r new Baha'is to ask questions. The National Assembly of Rwanda regularly corresponded with new believers, sending news, deepening courses and selections from the Holy Writings. In Puerto Rico several regional conferences for new believers were held. Particular efforts were made to help believers integrate their ethnic identities and their Baha'i identities, particularly for indig¥enous people entering the Faith. In New Zealand a "Whare Wananga" (School of Leaming) was established in June 1987 to provide twice-yearly intensive courses for the Maori Baha'is on the teachings and history of the Faith and the relationship between Maori culture and the teachings. Also in New Zealand 107 Maori Baha'i women, including National Assembly and National Teaching Committee members, held their first National Women's "Hui", or traditional gathering, in Febrnary 1987. In May of that year the National Convention ofNew Zealand was held for the first time at a "marae" (háaditional Maori meeting place). The message from the Convention to the World Centre said the decision to hold the convention at a "marae" tapped the spiritual reservoir of the indigenous culture. In the United States in August 1988, Native American men and women represent¥ing fifty háibes gathered under a giant tent surrounded by teepees near the sacred burial site of Chief Sitting Bull at Standing Rock Reservation in South Dakota to attend the Baha'i-sponsored "Fifth Continental Indige¥nous Council". Written pledges to serve the Cause and carry the Faith to Africa, Europe and South America were received by the National Assembly on the last night of the Council. In July 1989 Baha'is from eight countries joined seven Counsellors for a conference in Bolivia on the development of the Faith among the indigenous peoples of Latin America. Deepening conferences and training programs specifically for the Lunda people of Zambia also resulted in offers to háavel to teach and homefront pioneer. In Saint Lucia assistance was provided for indigenous believers to take part in overseas conferences and teaching projects. Zimbabwe provides another example of success in encouraging the pai1icipation of native believers. The majority of Regional Teaching Committee members were local THE BAHA'I WORLD Baha'is, ninety percent of Convention dele¥gates were indigenous, deepening institute teachers were indigenous and classes were conducted in vernacular languages. Strengthening the Baha'i identities of new believers was particularly crucial in areas where mass enrollment had occmTed. The method used by resident teaching teams in Guyana of immediately revisiting new believers, providing deepening, and involv¥ing them in the teaching work right away, spread to other countries experiencing entry by troops. For example, a 1988 teaching project in Bolivia began with a two-day spiritualization and training course at the Firdawsi Institute in Caracollo, resulted in the enrollment of more than 1,000 new souls and ended with deepening courses designed to maintain the momentum of expansion and consolidation. INDIVIDUAL SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT Regular deepenings sponsored by Baha'i institutions or initiated by individual believ¥ers, and armual summer, winter and spring schools held regionally or nationally contin¥ued to provide consistent opportunities for the Baha'is to develop their understanding of the Teachings and to experience the spiri¥tual unity of these gatherings. The focus of study shifted more and more to the Life of Baha'u'llah as the Holy Year approached. In Alaska all believers were sent a copy of the Statement on Baha'u'llah. The Assembly ofThailand reported greater enthusiasm and participation in Baha' i sum¥mer and winter schools when the programs were changed from lecture format to interac¥tive learning. The word "institute" was used to designate a variety of Baha'i educational entities, from comprehensive consolidation and spiritual enrichment programs, to permanent facilities offering regular courses, to one-time week¥end workshops. One example of a comprehensive program was Hawaii's Spiritualization Campaign, which focused the entire community on the basics of Baha'i life by producing two com¥pilations, Prayer and Meditation and Shining Examples, and then launching a National Teaching Conmlittee plan, printed in booklet fo1m, called Spiritualization in Action. Meet¥ings on each island conducted by National Assembly members began in November 1991. The Spiritual Enrichment Committee produced a series ofleaflets on the requisites for spiritual growth to be used to stimulate consultation during Nineteen Day Feasts. Material promoting reflection on spiritual principles was also provided to national conmmnities by the Universal House of Justice. A compilation on tmstworthiness prepared by the Research Department of the Baha'i World Centre was sent to all National Assemblies in January 1987, and extracts from the Writings concerning the sanctity of Baha'i marriage, together with a statement on preserving Baha'i maniages, were sent in December 1990. LITERACY In its Ri<;lvan 1989 message the Universal House of Justice stated that "further system¥atic attention needs to be given to the eventual elimination of illiteracy from the Baha'i community, an accomplishment which would, beyond anything else, make the Holy Word accessible to all the friends and thus reinforce their efforts to live the Baha'i life." The importance of such a campaign was again emphasized when the House of Justice wrote a Jetter to all National Assemblies on 10 July 1989, calling on each to address itself to this objective. "Access to [the Holy Word]," the Jetter read, "constant study of it and daily use of it in our individual lives are vital to the inner personal háansformation towards which we sháive and whose ultimate outer manifestation will be the emergence of that divine civilization which is the promise of the World Order ofBaha'u'llah." Baha'is responded to this call in various ways, participating in commemorations of the United Nations International Literacy Year in 1990, joining local adult literacy programs and creating their own programs. BAHA'i SCHOLARSHIP Notable advances were made in the develop¥ment of Baha'i scholarship during the course of the Plan, such that an increasing number of believers were engaged in analyzing the problems of humanity and demonstrating the efficacy of the Baha ' i teachings in solving these problems. The process of relating the Teachings to the cunent issues of concern to the people of the world was fostered by the activities of the Associations for Baha'i Sh1dies which are to be found now in every continental area, and which attract a growing number of people, both Baha'is and others, to their periodic meetings on such topics as racial unity, the equality of men and women, the development of world order, and the spiri¥rual foundations of social development. (See also pp. 461-470) A significant role is played by the Associ¥ation for Baha'i Sh1dies in North America, which has published proceedings of some of its conferences in books such as Unity: The Creative Foundation ofPeace; Racial Unity: An Imperative for Social Progress; The Bah6. 'i Faith and Islam; and The Baha'i Faith and Marxism .. The inauguration in 1988 of Th e Journal of Baha 'i Studies, a quarterly, trilingual journal that publishes articles by scholars of the Baha'i Writings, created a fornm open to all researchers. Several Baha'is participated in a scientific conference organized by the International Society for General Systems Research in Budapest, Hungary, in 1987. Dr. Ervin Laszlo, a renowned scientist and member of the Club of Rome, had encouraged the Baha 'is to participate and requested that a paper on the Faith be presented. The Baha'i Community as a Model for Social Change, which described the society-building pro¥cesses of the Baha'i community and the operation of the Administrative Order using the language and concepts of general evolu¥tion and systems theories, was ve1y well received. Contact with this society, later renamed the International Society for the Systems Sciences, was maintained through the presentation of papers with Baha'i con¥tent at each of its annual meetings. (See also "General Systems ...", pp. 459-460) In 1988 Switzerland 's Landegg Confer¥ence Center, a venue used for conferences, seminars and summer schools since being acquired by Baha' is in 1983, became the home of Landegg Academy which offers seminars, symposia, conferences and fornms for Balla' is, such as a conference for young professionals on "Reaching People of Capacity," and for the wider academic community, such as symposia on conflict resolution and the global environmental crisis. In September 1990 the historic first "International Dialogue on the Transition to a Global Society," organized by Landegg in cooperation with the Vienna Academy for the Srudy of the Furure and the University of Maryland, brought together eighty leaders of thought from around the world to present papers and discuss the changing world order. In August 1989 Landegg launched the "Ce11ificate Programme in Baha ' i Srudies." Designed to foster systematic Baha ' i schol¥arship as called for by Shoghi Effendi, the three-year independent srudy course requires pa11icipants to spend the month of August each year at Landegg and to submit a num¥ber of papers throughout the rest of the year. The program began with twenty-eight srudents from eleven countries. The establishment of Baha'i Chairs at universities in the United States and India also marked a significant step in the devel¥opment of Baha'i scholarship. TH E BAHA'I WORLD f. Baha'i Education of Children and Youth and Baha'i Family Life The education of chilc!Jen and youth and the nurturing of Baha'i families have been im¥p01iant components of several recent Plans. However, the efforts required to open new areas to the Faith and to consolidate new communities often meant that few resources were available for this crucial concern. Dur¥ing the Six Year Plan the institutions of the Faith, encouraged by the Counsellors, gave fresh attention to the needs of children and youth. As the Plan drew to a close the training of children's teachers and the development of children's materials were progressing with increased vigor and resolve, often as a major activity of the growing number of permanent teaching institutes. Renewed focus on the imp01iance of educating children, youth and families, and greater understanding of the requirements for building successful programs, were major achievements of the Plan in this area. BAHA'I CI-llLDREN 'S EDUCATION A December 1988 letter from the Interna¥tional Teaching Centre to all Continental Counsellors shared a vision of the children of the world as teachers of their own genera¥tion, and as agents for the deepening of others, placing pa1iicular emphasis on chil¥dren aged ten to sixteen. The Counsellors had seen how in conmmnities where strong traditions of child education had been estab¥lished ten or twenty years earlier, previously weak Local Assemblies were beginning to function and new generations of stalwart believers were arising. Following this letter and others in a simi¥lar vein, the idea of placing emphasis on children and youth increasingly became the focus of the believers' thinking, consultation and planning. In Africa, Latin America and Asia, as a result of large-scale enrollments among the masses, many Baha'i communi¥ties were particularly obliged to take a new look at the challenges of child education. In Colombia, beginning in 1990, háaditional campaigns of expansion and consolidation were altered to pay greater attention to children and junior youth and, through them, to their parents. In the Caribbean also, it was found that where organized children's classes occurred, they provided the greatest access to the people. In many villages of the world it was not only Baha'i children but also children and junior youth in the general population who showed an ardent desire to receive Baha'i education. As the Plan drew to a close, more communities were incorpo¥rating the establishment of children's classes into their plans of action for large-scale expansion. Teachers of children's classes were trained during a number of seminars organized by national and local Baha'i institutions and by Children in a Bahri 'i tutorial school in Ngoakiri 11, in the Central Aji-ican Republic, 1987. permanent institutes. The International Teach¥ing Centre, in a letter to all Counsellors in November 1992, foresaw the Six Year Plan setting the stage for the corning Three Year Plan, and stated that "the rapid multiplica¥tion of programs for the training of children's class teachers represents one of the most promising developments of institutes around the world". The Ruhi Institute in Colombia continued to train youth as facilitators capable of stim¥ulating other youth to educate themselves in order to become effective Baha'i teachers for the children in their communities. Ruhi materials are designed to help the believers learn to study the Sacred Writings on their own and to apply them in their daily lives, thus spurring them on to higher and higher levels of service to the Cause. The materials were also used in other Latin American coun¥tries, several African nations and in India. The National Assembly of India published one of the Ruhi Institute manuals in Hindi, and in June 1991 held an intensive course to prepare over forty individuals as trainers of children's class teachers. This effort formed part of a program to train hundreds of teach¥ers in the Hindi-speaking states. The New Era Development Institute in India and Nur University in Bolivia also pre¥pared material for training teachers. Special activities to complement classes added to the positive Baha'i experiences of A Bahci 'i children 's class in Florida, southern Uruguay, poses for a happy photograph, November J988. children. Nicaragua 's first National Chil¥dren's Conference was held in Managua in 1990, with more than forty children from six communities participating in deepenings, singing, games and the breaking of a traditional "piiiata" filled with gifts. Two children's conferences were held in Japan in the last year of the Plan. The first "Children's Unity Camp" was organized in Malaysia. CURRICULA AND EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS Efforts to create materials for use in chil¥dren's classes were carried out in a number of countries. The Children's Education Task Force in Australia developed a complete cur¥riculum of Baha'i studies for children up to age fifteen and worked to fulfill its National Assembly's international collaboration goal to produce and exchange materials with other National Assemblies in the Pacific. The School of the Nations in Brazil and the Maxwell International School in Canada each began long-range projects of rewriting the curricula of their academic courses to reflect a spiritual approach to the subjects and to provide appropriate ethical content. Curricular materials for Baha'i children's classes were developed in many communi¥ties, including Canada, Fiji, France, Gabon, Kenya, Norway, Singapore, Thailand and the United States. A number of National Assemblies and Baha'i educational institutions developed THE BAHA'i WORLD curricula for teaching comparative religion and the Baha'i Faith in public schools. A particular milestone was the approval of a Baha'i curriculum for public schools in the states of New South Wales and Queensland, in Australia. The Chilean Ministry of Educa¥tion approved the inclusion of study programs about the Faith in the general high school cur¥riculum, and the National Assembly prepared teachers for this task. Courses on religion and moral education prepared by Baha'is were used in Brazilian public schools, and efforts were made to introduce courses on the Faith in the educational systems of Bolivia, Cameroon and Spain. Near the end of the Plan, Malawi's Regional Education Officer in the Southern Region accepted a plan for Baha'is to present the history and moral teachings of the Faith in secondary schools. Also, a curriculum on the Faith developed by the National Assem¥blies of Jamaica and of Trinidad and Tobago was submitted to the Caribbean Examina¥tions Council for use in the English-speaking Caribbean islands. Publications for children also helped to involve children in the rhythm of Baha'i community life. A one-page lesson in every Feast letter in Zimbabwe was said to be in¥shumental in establishing children's classes in rural areas; a separate Feast letter for chil¥dren was distributed in Brazil; and in Puerto Rico a page of the national newsletter was A Bahci 'i tutorial school in Chaco, Paraguay, in March 1989. reserved for children. Chile published chil¥dren's letters and artwork in a quarterly bulletin called Capullitos, and a publication for children called Light of the Lotus was produced in the Canary Islands. YOUTH Throughout the Plan the Baha'i education of youth took a variety of forms, including national and international youth conferences á (often organized largely by the youth them¥selves), deepening retreats, youth camps and week-long study institutes. For example, in the United States an international youth conference organized in 1988 attracted some 8,000 participants. Youth schools, youth symposia and forums for young profession¥als, held at Landegg Academy in Switzerland, among other places, provided opportunities for intensive study and international ex¥change. Education programs that focused on pre¥paring youth for the teaching field proved particularly successful. In the summer of 1991 , following several intensive teacher háaining courses for youth that were sponsored by the National Teaching Committee in the United States and included field experience, some sixty full-time teaching teams arose. Some of the youth became so excited by their experiences that they decided to postpone their studies for one year to continue teach¥ing full-time. ASSISTING PARENTS Parental guidance is central to the education of Baha'i youth and children, and a number of programs were devised to help parents prepare for their vital role. Efforts were made to assist African mothers who wished to supplement their education so that they would be better prepared to educate their children; the African women Counsellors in particular saw this as a worthy mission and undertook extensive travels to further this aim. The Baha'i Programme for Mothers, an expanding series of booklets published by the National Spiritual Assembly of Kenya, provided guidance on raising healthy chil¥dren, teaching good character and creating a spiritual home environment. Translated into almost forty languages, the booklets are widely used by parents throughout Africa, and in 1987 a set was sent by the House of Justice to all National Assemblies. The Baha 'i Education Network Commit¥tee in Canada collaborated with various Local Assemblies to sponsor more than thirty workshops on helping parents teach values and virtues to children. The workshops were attended by over 1,000 people, half of whom were not Baha'is. In Costa Rica a confer¥ence devoted to fami ly consultation and parent-child relations was well attended. In July 1986 classes for women in Pakistan on the basics of health care, hygiene and the feeding of infants, attended by fifty women The wedding oftwo Bahti 'i couples at the l enakel Bahti 'i Centre on Tanna island in Va nuatu. Janumy 1987. and fifty children needing medical háeat¥ment, were commended by the government. In Papua New Guinea a National Women's Conference in October 1987 covered the háaining of children. The Baha'i Mothers' Deepening Project of the Baha'i National Teaching Committee of the Philippines was designed to give Filipina Baha'i mothers and future mothers guidance on the care, education and training of chil¥dren; on maintaining a Baha'i atmosphere in their homes; and on cultivating rapport with their husbands and fami lies. The intensive project began in February 1988 with the holding of twenty-one Mothers ' Deepening Classes in different parts of the counh-y, and culminated in seven large Family Life Con¥ferences in March and April 1988. A meeting to explore the principle of the equality of women and men was held in Cote d'Ivoire in October 1990, in which the Baha'is were joined by a dozen other concerned parties to discuss the role of women as the first educa¥tors of their children, the importance of mutual support and common goals among women, and ways to enhance understanding between mothers and daughters. BAHA'i MARRIAGE AND FAM ILY LIFE Various efforts were made throughout the world to develop programs to foster whole¥some Baha'i family life, including deepenings, conferences and special classes at summer THE BAHA'I WORLD and winter schools. Baha'i families were encouraged to become fully involved in practicing the basic teachings of the Faith, with emphasis on prayer, maintenance of a loving and humble attitude toward others, reading of the Writings, upholding family unity through consultation and encouraging teaching of the Cause. A conference was held in Cameroon in June 1986 to discuss the development of women, marriage, family life and child edu¥cation. Also in Cameroon, mothers and fathers were invited to paiiicipate in regional conferences on family life held periodically during the Plan; topics discussed included chastity, consultation in the family, the role of fathers, discipline without physical pun¥ishment, and the effects on children of parents' words and deeds. The Baha'is of San Juan, Pue1io Rico, sponsored weekly talks on "Marriage as a Fortress for Well-Being". The talks, pre¥sented by a Baha'i psychiatrist under the auspices of the Auxiliary Board, attracted media attention which led to five radio sta¥tions' broadcasting weekly announcements about the project, and one popular station's airing two-hour "call-in" shows for several months on topics related to healthy marriage. Elsewhere around the world, a prominent Baha'i psychiatrist conducted a one-week seminar on marriage at the Landegg Academy in Switzerland in 1986, which participants reported was practical, scholarly and cre¥ative. In September 1987 the National Baha'i Women's Committee of Zaire held a Re¥gional Women's Conference in Kinshasa, Zaire, on marriage, family life and the edu¥cation of children. A traveling teacher visited Singapore in August 1989 and conducted a workshop on "Marriage and Family Life", which focused on setting life goa ls, defining one's personality, determining what one has to offer the Faith, and examining one's expectations from a partner. A traveling teacher in Lesotho conducted a three-day In¥ternational Deepening Institute on Marriage and Family Life; the issues provoked intense interest among the participants, and invita¥tions to address the public followed. A National Women's Conference, held at the Nakuru Baha'i Center, Kenya, in February 1990, focused on the spiritual, intellectual and material well-being of the Baha'i family; the National Women's Committee arranged television publicity and invited women rep¥resentatives of the Government of Kenya to take part. The Baha'i youth of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands joined other island youth to form a discussion group on Baha'i mar¥riage in July 1990. The State Baha'i Council of Andhra Pradesh in India held a "Baha'i Family Conference" in November 1990. In addition to studying the topic of family life, communities worked to create Baha'i activities for families to enjoy together. Every year the House of Worship in Sydney, Australia, hosted a Children's Day celebra¥tion in which families participated in readings, prayers and festivities. In Liberia a 400-acre fatm owned by the National Assembly was used early in the Plan as a center for the education of families. In Belize a nineteen¥day program of readings and activities for families was distributed. The Assembly of Sri Lanka reported that its efforts to hold family conferences and deepenings and to arrange individual visits to homes resulted in an increase in the number of identifiable Baha'i families. Families were the focus of teaching efforts in one city of El Salvador. A Local Spiritual Assembly chose a middle-class neighborhood where a Baha'i family lived in which to proclaim the Faith during March 1990. Of the 355 families visited by mem¥bers of the Baha'i community, almost all accepted literature, and follow-up visits were made to thirty-six families. About fifty people from the neighborhood attended at least one evening event. By the end of four weeks ten people had embraced the Faith and there continued to be interest among people in at least ninety households. Classes in morality and virtues were established and offered to the children in the neighborhood. g. Pursuing Social and Economic Develop¥ment Activities in Well-Established Baha'i Communities The dramatic worldwide expansion of Baha'i social and economic development activities since the October 1983 message by the Universal House of Justice contributed in no small measure to the emergence of the Baha'i community from obscurity and con¥stitutes one of the distinguishing characteristics of the development of the Cause of God in the past decade. The virtually exponential expansion achieved in the number of devel¥opment activities during the Seven Year Plan (1979-1986) became more gradual dur¥ing the Six Year Plan as Baha'i communities Jn Guam, l 8 children from the Jnarajan Baha'i School planted 600 acacia seedlings on 2 l October l 990. A statement ofappre¥ciation was issued by the Forestry Division ofGuam's Department ofAgriculture. strengthened existing programs to ensure that new ventures proceeded from a strong foundation. Baha'is worldwide now general¥ly possess a much clearer understanding of the unique Baha'i approach to development and have gained invaluable experience in developing the art of applying spiritual con¥cepts to the practical challenges of daily life. At the conclusion of the Plan a reported 1,344 Baha'i development endeavors were functioning throughout the world under the jurisdiction of 137 National Spiritual As¥semblies. (See Appendix.) Baha'i programs established a reputation for honest management and altJ.uistic service. Collaboration with other organizations gained momentum as support was received from organizations such as UNICEF, the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNlFEM), and governments as widespread as Canada, India and Norway. Baha'i insti¥tutions began to be identified as important contJ.áibutors to international development, while the Baha'i administJ.áative network was seen as a potent force for coordinating development activities within a global frame¥work. Many communities developed their consultative skills in order to more effective¥ly identify feasible projects, formulate the necessary plans, and guide the resulting undertakings. The wisdom of starting small and ensuring that initial activities could be canied out successfully with local resources became increasingly evident. Assemblies became more adept at recognizing whether and how proposed development projects would contribute to the sttáengthening of the community. Many communities, especially those with permanent programs, began taking steps to ensure that effective development activities would continue even if external sources of supp01i were to be withdrawn. To an ever greater degree, National Spiritual Assemblies recognized the importance of in¥creasing the local communities' awareness of needs and possibilities, and of guiding and coordinating the efforts resulting from such awareness. Administtáative capabilities THE BAHA'I WORLD grew and Baha'i institutions continued the process of building the organizational infra¥structure needed to guide and nurture more complex programs. The diversity of Baha'i development undertakings also increased dramatically. A high proportion of these ventures, especially in basic education and vocational training, targeted women and youth. Effective models for stimulating self¥sustaining community development were fo1mulated and refined during the Six Year Plan and, as Baha'i communities throughout the world began to address their develop¥ment concerns, a remarkably diverse pattern of activities emerged. From modest coopera¥tive agricultural projects which raise funds for construction of a local Baha'i center, to community health education programs which increase the prevention of endemic diseases; from ttáee-planting efforts to training semi¥nars which combat racism; from programs which offer succor to orphaned children to those which confront the problems of mug abuse; Baha'i communities discovered myriad ways to express their faith through service to humanity. New ttáaining programs for teach¥ers ofBaha'i childiáen's classes emerged, based on an increasingly sophisticated understand¥ing of the learning needs of prospective teachers who generally possessed limited educational backgrounds and teaching expe¥rience. Baha'i educators began rewriting traditional academic curricula to reflect the spiritual perspective of the teachings. They also developed curricula for public schools, for adult literacy programs, and for courses on the Faith or on human values. All these notable areas of progress either emerged or became more evident during the Six Year Plan, and are described in more detail below. AGRICULTURE Small-scale agricultural activities, including training courses for the improvement of fa1m¥ ing practices and productivity, were carried out by a number of Baha'i communities in developing counttáies. In some cases the objective was to supplement or improve the nutritional value of the local diet, while in other instances the friends contributed their labor to cultivate a communal field to raise money for a useful purpose, such as the Baha'i Fund, a Baha'i center or a tutorial school. For some communities agricultural self-sufficiency was the goal. A highly successful fish culture program was implemented by the Baha 'is of Enteban Ulu in Malaysia. The seven fish ponds pro¥duced enough fish to meet the needs of the entire village of two hundred people. The Community Development Program of the Rabbani School, Gwalior, India, achieved notable success with its model farm. The farm enabled this residential school to become almost self-sufficient in food production, while providing a real-world laboratory for the students to learn practical agricultural skills, and setting an outstanding example for area farmers. Technical assis¥tance was offered to local agriculturists who wanted to introduce ecologically sound farming practices. In Queensland, Australia, forty acres of bushland were donated by a Baha'i family to be used by Aboriginal people for growing bananas and other crops. It was dedicated in a ceremony attended by many Aborigines as well as the Hand of the Cause of God H. Collis Featherstone. INTEGRATED COMMUNITY D EVELOPMENT Certain Baha'i development programs have been conceived and designed with a con¥scious understanding that all social and spiritual needs are interrelated. This requires that social and spiritual change go hand in hand, progressing from simple to more com¥plex unde1iakings. Activities of the Bayanda Project in Zaire and the New Era Develop¥ment Institute in India are examples of this approach. From the first contact of the Bayanda people (the Pygmies of northeastern Zaire) with the Faith, they received assistance and encouragement from the Baha 'i community. Jn Bolivia, Baha 'is use the Dorothy Baker Center for Environmental Studies. 1987. An experimental pepper farm is a Bahci 'i economic development project in Sarawak, Malaysia. 1988. Jn Switzerland, Bahci 'is participate in the annual clean¥up ofthe marshland formed where the Rhone River flows into Lake Geneva. March 1992. THE BAHA'I WORLD During the Plan agricultural activities enabled the Bayanda to improve their diet and to become relatively self-sufficient; classes were held for the children; many adults learned to read and write: and health education programs improved nutrition, sanitation and hygiene. The Bayanda developed greater confidence and a new vision for their future thus enabling them to interact more success¥fully with the wider community. The Community Development Facilitator Program of India's New Era Development Institute trained young people to stimulate and assist local communities to embark on the path of self-sustaining development. Dm¥ing the closing months of the Plan institute staff reported major success in implementing a new model for community development in which a group of highly unified trainees with modest development-related skills spent four or five days in a village and conducted a training institute for the local youth. The program included moral education classes, conununity service activities and training in a practical skill which could be learned quickly. The unity and spirit of service exemplified by the group of visitors, who would share in the life of the village for a relatively extended period of time, com¥bined with integrated spiritual education and valued community service, had a profound impact. In one instance the entire village enrnlled in the Faith and appeared ready to introduce important changes in the organiza¥tion of village life based on their growing understanding of the Baha'i teachings. CONSERVATION/ENVIRONMENT Creation reflects the names and attributes of God, and mankind has a profound responsi¥bility to protect the natural environment and preserve its ecological balance. Thus, in its 1989 Ric;lvan message the Universal House of Justice called on Baha 'is to increase their activities in support of environmental con¥setvation, and in October it announced the establishment of the Office of the Environ¥ment as an agency of the Baha'i International Community responsible for conducting the activities of the Faith related to the environ¥ment. A compilation entitled Conservation of the Earth's Resources was subsequently issued by the World Centre. Communities and schools sponsored environmental educa¥tion and action programs involving wetlands conservation, afforestation, pollution control, teclmological advancements, community re¥sources and energy efficiency. Outstanding environn1ental programs were canied for¥ward in Taiwan and Bolivia. During the final year of the Plan the Office of the Envi¥ronment and the Baha'i community ofBrazil diligently prepared for the Earth Summit to be held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992. Among other Earth Sunmlit activities, a major recognition award was to be bestowed upon the Baha'i Vocational Institute for Rural Women in Indore, India, for its guinea worm eradication project. During the concluding year ofthe Six Year Plan twenty-six Baha'i tree-planting projects were undertaken, along ,with twenty-six other enviro1m1ental activities. Many of these activities were conducted in support of government-sponsored programs or to mark World Environn1ent Day and Earth Day. Some of the more notable initiatives during this period were those of the Anis Zunuzi Baha'i School in Haiti and the Rabbani School in India, where tree nurseries were established and many thousands of seedlings were planted in villages. In 1986 the Rabbani School received a national award for its afforestation activities. Subsequently, its wasteland reclamation effo11s, both at the school farm and in the surrounding villages, which had already reclaimed many acres of salt-affected soil, attracted widespread atten¥tion from government authorities of Madhya Pradesh. This continuing project was con¥ducted in collaboration with the Society for Promotion of Wasteland Development in New Delhi. Among others, collaborative tree-planting eff011s were conducted in Colombia and Guam. In Colombia Baha'i youth joined forces with a group called the Corporation to Defend the Bucaramanga Plateau and planted numerous trees. On the island of Guam, a group of eighteen Baha'is assisted a govern¥ment foresháy agency in its tree-planting work. A very successful environmental program was developed in Taiwan where the National Assembly's Baha'i Office of the Environ¥ment and the Taiwan Council of Agriculture collaborated in a "Nature Awareness Educa¥tion Project." During 1990 thirty-six workshops on environmental education for more than 750 kindergarten and elementary school teachers were conducted. A second series of twenty-seven workshops was held in 1991. Public awareness of the Faith in Taiwan consequently rose and cordial relations with government authorities were promoted. In Cochabamba, Bolivia, the Dorothy Baker Center for Environmental Studies, a private non-profit institution owned by Baha 'is, managed an environmental research center and an interactive educational facility. The Center developed a unique approach to environmental studies integrating elements of academic and environmental education, sustainable agriculture and health care. In Northern Ireland believers organized an environmental education program to learn about community resources. Topics included wind power, conversion of agricultural wastes, small-scale water power, integrated education of children, tree planting, fish stocks in the area, willow biomass and fuel from the wetlands. Similarly, the Associa¥tion for Baha'i Studies in Colombia and a socio-ecological group of the United Nations organized an ecological fo1um entitled "Edu¥cation has an Enviromnental Conscience." In Brittany, France, Baha 'is joined members of a regional Society for the Study and Pro¥tection of Nature to carry out a tluáee-week conununity service project to beautify a nature reserve; tasks included collecting firewood, clearing the land, making observa¥tion lookouts for animal and bird watchers, and painting and repairing a house. HEALTI-1 The importance of both preventive and cura¥tive health care is clearly stated in the Writings. When the Universal House of Justice released its message on social and economic development in 1983, there was only one modest Baha'i health care project in operation; by the end of the Six Year Plan, national communities around the world had undertaken fifty-six health projects of vary¥ing scopes. Baha'i community health education pro¥grams were conducted in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Kenya, Laos, Malawi, Malaysia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, Zaire, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Generally speaking, pro¥grams were organized to serve areas having a significant number of relatively well¥established Baha'i communities. Participating communities nominated one or more mature and dedicated believers to receive háaining which would prepare them to serve as volun¥teer health educators. The initial course normally lasted approximately two weeks, focusing on inununization, basic hygiene and sanitation, maternal and child health, nutrition and first aid. The participants also received intensive spiritual education based on the Baha'i teachings, such as learning prayers and passages on health from the Writings. A further development of the com¥munity health workers' program was the selection and training of some of the experi¥enced volunteers to serve as háainers for future participants. The volunteers, working with their Local Assemblies in a mutually supportive way, were expected to offer at least several hours of service per week to their local communities, often working in tandem with govenm1ent health workers. In some cases, usually where funding had been obtained from an international development agency, it was possible to provide minimal full-or pati¥time staff support to coordinate activities and maintain contact with the volunteers. Overall, dropout rates were very low and THE BAHA'i WORLD indicators of community health status sug¥gested that the programs were having a significant impact. The outstanding success of several of these programs attracted the attention of development agencies and gov¥ernments at local, national and international levels. For example, the Baha'i Community De¥ve lopment Project on Health commenced operation in Sarh, Chad, in 1984 as a humanitarian relief project in response to the emergency situation which had resulted from civil war and widespread famine. The project expanded rapidly, and by the end of the Plan community health workers were providing health care services in almost sixty villages to more than 12,000 people. The project, which received support from inter¥national funding agencies, was praised by Chadian government officials. In 1991 a government official stated that the Baha'i health program had been responsible for blocking the spread of a cholera epidemic into the district of Moyen-Chari, where the project operated and the largest concentra¥tion of Baha'i communities in the country was found. The health program also gave rise to the development of a network of eigh¥teen tutorial schools serving over 1,300 children. In addition to health educational programs, a number of endeavors aimed at offering Dr. Zeeba Faroughi prescribing medicine to a patient she has examined during a ji-ee medical camp held on Bhit Island near Karachi, Pakistan. 1989. medical assistance were also pursued in the Baha'i world. A few Baha'i communities and individuals constructed small rural hos¥pitals or clinics to serve areas with limited access to medical care. In such areas the pro¥vision of curative care as well as preventive health measures contributed significantly to the level of health of the communities which they served. The Bayan Project in Palacios, Honduras, composed of a small hospital with out-patient services, was established in 1985 by two doctors and their families who pioneered to . this remote area on the Caribbean coast. Before its establishment the nearest hospital was more than four hundred kilometers away and was only accessible by air or water transport. The new hospital provided medi¥cal consultation and surgical treatment, and its staff conducted health education in the local area. The hospital received support from various Baha'i and non-Baha'i sources. Baha'i communities in several counháies, especially Bangladesh, India and Pakistan, conducted medical camps in areas where access to medical facilities was limited, offering free consultations and basic medi¥cines. Camps specializing in eye and dental care were particularly effective. One of the most successful medical assis¥tance programs was conducted in Guyana where a number of Baha'i physicians from other countries offered their professional services to the health authorities on a short¥tem1 basis. Some physicians made repeated visits, providing specialty care and conduct¥ing in-service seminars for medical staff. Following this initiative, arrangements were made to provide shipments of medical sup¥plies to hospitals. Not only did the success of these activities foster wa1m relations between the Guyanese authorities and the National Assembly of Guyana, but it also inspired the creation of a similar program in Nicaragua. RACE UNITY ACTIVITIES Baha'i communities in the United States launched institutes for racial understanding and cooperation in response to this, "the most vital and challenging issue" facing the American nation. In addition to many con¥ferences and seminars, training sessions were conducted for members of several local police departments at their request. Within a framework emphasizing the oneness of humanity, police officers and cadets were encouraged to adopt positive attitudes and behavior in their interactions with minority groups. SOCIAL SERVICES Tluáoughout the world Baha'i communities operated programs offering compassionate assistance to people in need: sufferers from Inauguration ofa public well built for the community by the Local Spiritual Assembly of Bata, Equatorial Guinea. November 1988. substance abuse, orphans and homeless peo¥ple, the elderly and handicapped, persons with marital difficulties, refugees and victims of disasters. In Hawaii the Baha'i Community Assis¥tance Program (B-CAP) was established in 1987 to provide deepening and counseling on marriage and remarriage, assistance for family problems, a food bank and an elders' program. Three essential characteristics of B-CAP were its reliance on Baha'i Writings for approaches to personal problems; refer¥rals to professional agencies, doctors or social workers qualified to handle particular problems; and Local Assembly supervision of each program. B-CAP, as an arm of the National Assembly of the Hawaiian Islands, became a means by which the Baha'i com¥munity could begin to take care of its own members, as well as train a cadre of volunteers. In Brazil the Lar Linda Tanure Center for Social Well-Being, begun in 1986, offered shelter, aid and education to needy children who were referred by the Juvenile Justice Court in the Amazonas area. It had thirty resident children, with 150 children attending its preschool and youth programs. The Cen¥ter fo1med part of the Association for the Coherent Development of the Amazon. Its activities for youth emphasized moral edu¥cation and agricultural skills. The Center also provided courses for women in health, THE BAHA 'i WORLD hygiene, nutrition and the prevention of disease. A number of American and Canadian Baha'i communities assisted refugees and new immigrants to adapt to life in North America. Often the Baha'is conducted classes in English as a second language, helped the newcomers to find jobs, and oriented them to available social services. Several Baha'i conununities assisted with disaster relief operations in the wake of devastating storms. Relying on prayer and consultation, Baha'i conununities drew upon the friends' spirit of service to play an important role in quickly and calmly mobi¥lizing the community during emergencies and in coping with the lingering effects of a disaster. As one example, in the aftem1ath of Hurricane Hugo in 1989, the Baha' is of the Virgin Islands actively assisted with food distributions, counseling, provision of temporary roofing for homes of the elderly, management of a shelter, and opened a local Baha'i center to a homeless family-all this despite the fact that many of the Baha'is' own homes were damaged or destroyed. WOMEN Many Baha'i development act!Vlt1es fo¥cused specifically on realizing the potential of women. The Baha'i Vocational Training Institute for Rural Women in Indore, India, is the longest-running example of such a program. It taught village women, most of whom came from extremely isolated tribal areas in Madhya Pradesh and many of whom had never been away from home before, to read and write, and provided training in practical skills which would enable them to be self-supporting in their home conununities. Moral education, personal hygiene, nutrition and basic agricultural techniques were also taught by a devoted staff which surrounded the young women with loving-kindness and personal attention. The consistent result was a dramatic transformation in the characters and competence of the participants, and the women's home communities shared in these benefits upon their return. Another project, involving Baha'i com¥munities in Bolivia, Brazil, Cameroon, Malaysia and Nigeria, promoted the equality of men and women. During the programs men and women examined traditional gender roles based on the perspective of the Baba' i teachings. The facilitators strove to create a loving, supportive atmosphere to encourage participants to modify their behavior in appropriate ways. In Bolivia, Cameroon and Malaysia these activities were supported by UNIFEM. In Uganda the Baha'is collaborated with the Uganda Women's Finance and Credit Trust and the Uganda Women Lawyers ' Association in a five-day gathering which enhanced the participants' knowledge of Participants in a fence-making course held by Bahri 'is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, as a rural development project in November 1988. A geography lesson at the Baha'i School ofthe Nations in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, in April I 99 2. The children ofthe Mbabane Pre-School in Swaziland pose for the photographer while singing one oftheir favorite songs; I 987. THE BAHA'i WORLD financial management, marketing, book¥keeping, legal issues and laws of marriage and succession. The workshop, which brought together nearly thirty leading women, had the overall aim of enabling these women to become more effective in guiding their own destinies and in contributing to the progress of their country. YOUTH Youth around the world provided much of the energy, enthusiasm and spirit of service animating Baha'i development programs by participating in a broad range of community service activities, and especially as tutorial school or children's class teachers. A large number of proj.ects were also specifically aimed at enhancing the social and spiritual development of these young people. Two such locally initiated programs in the United States, the Elbow Learning Lab and Fathers Incorporated, gained warm commendation and recognition for their services. The Elbow Learning Lab in Griffin, Georgia, helped to meet the remedial education needs of children and youth in a low-income area where illiteracy and other social problems were widespread. In July 1992 the project received recognition as a "Point of Light" from the President of the United States. Fathers Incorporated provided academic assis tance and positive role models for inner-city youth in Detroit, Michigan, with the goal of improving academic competence and enhanc¥ing self-esteem. Activities included workshops and consultations on marriage and family life, interviewing and resume writing, dress, behavior, peer pressure and substance abuse. Knowledge of the program's success spread in the wider community, and outside finan¥cial assistance was received to help fund a summer project. BAI-IA' i SCHOOLS At the end of the Plan there were almost 500 Baha'i tutorial schools se1ving an estimated 20,000 children in developing countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific. These schools conducted simple village-level programs which provided basic education for children with limited educational opportu¥nities. In many cases Baha'i tutorial school teachers themselves possessed only modest levels of education, but they often compen¥sated for their lack of academic training through their love for the children and the spirit of service which animated their work. Likewise, the wholehearted support of the sponsoring local Baha'i community contrib¥uted to the success of such ventures. The teacher frequently functioned as a key believer who stimulated a wide variety of activities in the local Baha'i community, and the tutorial school became a center for addi¥tional activities. During the Plan many Baha'i tutorial schools, even some of those which had commenced operating under a háee, evolved to t11e stage of offering a basic primary school education in accordance with the government-approved curriculum. At the end of the Plan the most notable tutorial school programs were those oflndia, where Baha'is operated almost 200, and Zaire, where over ninety were functioning. Other countries with major tutorial school programs included Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Chad, Colombia, Malawi, Panama and the Philippines. In contrast to tutorial schools, Baha'i academic schools are formally established institutions which have, or seek, official accreditation from government authorities. These schools employ full-time staff and usually offer academic subjects which are taught according to government standards. During the Plan the number of Baha'i academic schools increased from forty-one to one hundred and seventy-eight largely due to the evolution of many tutorial schools. In general, enrollments substantially increased, the range of subjects taught broadened, and physical facilities were expanded or upgraded. Major academic schools include the New Era, Rabbani and Tadong Schools in India; the New Day School in Pakistan; the Santitham School in Thailand; the Ruaha School in Tanzania; School of the Nations in Brazil; the Anis Zumizi School in Haiti; Colegio Nill in Chile; the Raul Pavon School in Ecuador; and the Maxwell International School in Canada. Baha'i schools increasingly distinguished themselves through their academic achieve¥ments and the praiseworthy character of their students. The schools generally followed a formal academic program, as established by the educational authorities, complemented by regular prayers, religious studies, commu¥nity service and vocational training. Several schools pioneered efforts to infuse Baha'i concepts into their entire academic curricula. In addition to schools operated by Baha'i institutions, a number of private educational establishments were founded by believers who strove to operate their programs in ac¥cordance with the basic principles, aims and objectives which vivify Baha'i development activities. Nill University in Bolivia and the School of the Nations in Macau are perhaps the best known ofthese institutions ofleaming. TRAINING INSTITUTES During the Six Year Plan several permanent Baha' i institutes emerged as major centers of the Faith's social and economic develop¥ment activities. The New Era Development Institute in India and the William Mmutle A Mobile Baha'i Insti¥tute in Cotonou, Benin, in January 1989. Masetlha Baha'i Institute in Zambia had per¥haps the most highly diversified programs. Others effective in promoting development activities included the Vocational Institute for Rural Women in India, the Djalal Eghrari Polytechnic Institute in the Amazon region of Brazil, the Ruhi Institute in Colombia, the Yukon Institute in Canada and, in the United States, the Native American Baha'i Institute, the Louis Gregoty Institute, and Louhelen, Bosch and Green Acre Baha'i Schools. LITERACY Access to the transforming power of the Word of God is an essential human right. In July 1989 the Universal House of Justice called on all National Assemblies to aim at the elimination of illiteracy from the Baha'i community. In response to this call many Baha'i communities and the offices of the Baha'i International Community actively supported the United Nations International Literacy Year in 1990 and either instituted literacy programs or began to support exist¥ing ones. During the Plan the number of reported Baha'i literacy programs, many of them short-term, rose from sixty-seven to 186. Their goal was to teach reading and writing to youth and adults who either had been deprived of a formal education or who had left school functionally illiterate. Baha'i THE BAHA ' i WORLD educators specializing in literacy began to advocate an approach using "root" or "generative" words with spiritual meanings in order to teach vocabulary while evoking meaningful discussions on vital issues. Re¥sults have indicated the effectiveness of this approach for teaching literacy and, of equal importance, for stimulating personal growth and community development. For example, in Panama, Guaymi Indian Baha'is collaborated with government liter¥acy instructors to develop a literacy course in their native tongue focusing on the use of words having spiritual significance as part of a systematic effort to preserve and revive traditional culture. The most ambitious literacy project was established by the National Assembly ofIndia. Its goal was to eventually achieve universal literacy among the more than two million Baha'is in the subcontinent. Comprehensive teaching materials were developed for courses in the Hindi and Marathi languages, and ini¥tial tráaining sessions for prospective trainers of literacy instructors were conducted. CURRICULUM D EVELOPMENT A number of National Spiritual Assemblies and Baba' i educational institutions have developed curricula to teach comparative religion. Baha'is have also contributed to improving the overall curricula of some public schools. The Baha'is ofNamibia were invited to participate in efforts to restructure the national education system, while the Baha'i community of Swaziland has been involved in a significant manner in the train¥ing of preschool teachers nationwide. Also in Swaziland two Baha' i educators have been developing core international curricula for environmental education based on the per¥spective of the teachings. Ongoing teaching efforts in colleges and universities have resulted in a large number of short courses on the Baha'i Faith and its principles. The most notable achievements were the establishment of two university Chairs related to Baha'i Studies: one at the University of Maryland in the United States in January 1990 and one at Indore Univer¥sity in India in April 1990. The accomplishments of the Baha'i com¥munity in the area of social and economic development during the Six Year Plan reflect great audacity and cornn1itrnent to service. The believers worked to apply spiritual prin¥ciples to practical needs. The goodwill towards the Cause generated by these services has created countless opportunities for the future. The friends have seen that their endeavors in the path of service, no matter how modest, have set in motion pro¥cesses which will long continue to produce beneficial effects. Bahn 'f lnlernationa/ Community Statement, Ninlh Meeting of !he Committee of Representatives of Governments and Administralions, South Pacific Commission, 23rd lo 27th May 1988, Noumea, New Caledonia. Health, Education and the Role of Women The Baha'i International Community representing the Baha'i Communities of the Pacific Region wishes to express its appreciation to the South Pacific Commission for the invitation to attend this meeting of the Committee of Gov¥ernments and Administrations. Although we are keenly interested in the variety of concerns being discussed at this meeting, we would like to direct our comments to the areas of health and education. The dynamic relationship between these two dimensions of human development is fundamental to the realization of all others. Baha'is believe that health is more than the absence of disease or infirmity. In addition to the three widely rec¥ognised aspects of health-physical, mental and social well-being-the spiritual dimension is likewise important and should be manifested not only in the individual, but also in the life of the family and the community. Consequently, Baha'i communities strive to address the needs of individuals, families, and the community as a whole in their activities. The role of education in the realization of this harmonious balance between all aspects of life cannot be overemphasized and the education of women is of particular importance in this process. Women, as the main agents of primary health care, play an essential role in maintaining family and community health. They are the ones who are most aware of sickness and suffering in the community because of their social role as nurturers and care-takers of the young, the old, the sick and the handicapped, and they exert an important innuence on health habits in the family. Although it is o ften recognised that primary health care has to respond to the needs of people, and that women have the most extensive awareness of these needs, their opinion is hardly ever solicited when health care programmes are being formulated. In order for communities to benefit from the knowledge which women possess, a renewed self-confidence of women has to be encouraged. Women have to learn to regard themselves as capable human beings with important contributions to make on the basis of their life experience and their accumulated wealth of knowledge. Furthermore a conscious effort has to be made to enable women to organise and to vocalize the information they have acquired. If this participation is to become a reality, women must penetrate all levels and all areas of the health care sys¥tem. They have to be doctors, nurses, community development agents, educators, agricultural extension workers, public health officials, planners, legislators, politicians. At the same time, they have to encourage the participation of people at the grass-roots, including women and women's organizations, in the decisions affecting individual and community health. None of these results can be realized unless special efforts are made to organise education and vocational and professional training in such a way that more girls and women can take advantage of them. Investing resources in primary health care programmes which includes health education and the application of health promoting activities based on simple but scientifically sound measures in which women can participate at the local level, is likely to provide more benefits than traditional efforts dedicated to the formation of highly skilled physicians who practice medicine in clinics and hospitals. Primary health care activities should be fully integrated with the activities of other sectors involved in commu¥nity development, agriculture, education, public works, housing, and communication, and the local population should be actively involved in the formulation and implementation of these activities, so that health care can be brought into line with local needs and priorities. These priorities will be based on decisions resulting from a contin¥uous dialogue between the people and the services. The Baha'i International Community is actively involved in primary health care. In India, Malaysia, Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia and many more countries including the Pacific region, Baha'i villages are implementing health and educational programmes of many kinds and are having much success. It is our view that these programmes are suc¥cessful because the overall education of women is the key factor and consequently they recognize their own value, thereby enabling them to participate more readily in decisions concerning their communitys' health. While the Baha'i International Community continues to work toward the improvement of life in our communi¥ties through these programmes we also welcome the opportunity to lend support to health programmes which require local as well as professional volunteers. THE BAHA'I WORLD 2. EXPANSION AND CONSOLIDATION OF THE BAHA'i FAITH SUMMARY STATISTICS OF THE SIX YEAR PLAN 1986-1992 WORLD TOTALS 21April1986 20 April 1992 National Spiritual Assemblies....................................... ...... .. 148 165 National I:Ia'.?iratu 'l-Quds ... ...... ...................... .......... .. ...... ..... 141 146 Baha'i Temples. ... .............. ........ ..... ............................ ........... 6 7 Sites for national Baha'i Temples.................... .......... ... ... .. ... 124 127 Baha' i Publishing Trusts... .................................................... 25 28 Languages into which Baha'i literature has been translated. 802 NIA+ Baha'i schools .............................................. ....................... .. 599 666 Social and economic development projects ..... ........ .. ..... .. ... . 431 678 . (other than schools) Countries that exempt the Baha'i community from payment of taxes on properties .... .. .. ......... .. ...... ..... .. . . Countries that recognize Baha'i Holy Days ................ ......... . 61 76 77 81 -. Countries that recognize Baha'i maITiage ....... ...... ............... . 60 70 Localities where Baha'is reside .... ..... ... ..... ..... .. .... ... .. ... .. ...... . 114,988 120,046 Isolated centres and groups .................. ..... ........ ... ...... ..... ..... . 89,658 99,611 Local Spiritual Assemblies ........... .... .. ... ....... .... ... ..... .......... .. . 25 ,330 20,435* + No information available. * Between 1986 and l988, a numerical decrease of 11,000 Local Spiritual Assemblies and 6, I00 localities occurred in India due to revised civil areas ofjurisdiction. Similar changes took place in some other countries. I AFRICA 2 l April I 986 20April 1992 National Spiritual Assemblies.................... ........................... 43 47 National I:Iaziratu '1-Quds ...................................................... 41 42 Baha'i Temples...................................................................... 1 1 Sites for national Baha'i Temples ......................................... 36 36 Baha'i Publishing Trusts. ............. .......... ......... ............. ......... 4 4 Languages into which Baha' i literature has been translated. 266 NIA Bahc't' i schools . . .. . .. ... .. . .. . . . . .. . .. ... ... .. .. . ... .. ... .. . . . . . . . . ... .. . . .. .. ... . . . . 143 166 Social and economic development projects ..... ........... ..... ..... 139 120 (other than schools) Countries that exempt the Baha' i community from payment of taxes on properties. .... ....................... .. ... 16 21 Countries that recognize Baha'i Holy Days .......................... . Countries that recognize Baha'i marriage ....... ... ..... ....... ...... . . Localities where Baha'is reside ............................. ................ . Isolated centres and groups .................... ........................ ....... . Local Spiritual Assemblies .................................................... . AMERlCAS National Spiritual Assemblies........................... .... ................. National I:Ia?'.iratu'l-Quds .............. ......................................... Baha'i Temples .... ......................................... ............. ............ Sites for national Baha'i Temples............................... ........... Baha'i Publishing Trusts........................................................ Languages into which Baha'i literature has been translated. . Baha'i schools ............................................................ ............ Social and economic development projects . .. .. ... ...... ........ .. .. . (other than schools) Countries that exempt the Baha'i community from payment of taxes on properties ................................ .. Countráies that recognize Baha'i Holy Days .... ..................... .. Countries that recognize Baha'i marriage ............................ .. Localities where Baha'is reside ............................................. . Isolated centráes and groups .................................................... Local Spiritual Assemblies ....... ......................... ....... ............. . ASIA National Spiritual Assemblies ....... ~.......................... .. ........... . National I:Ia?'.iratu'l-Quds ...................................................... . Baha'i Temples ....... ............................................................. .. Sites for national Baha'i Temples ........................................ .. Baha'i Publishing Trusts ....................................................... . Languages into which Baha'i literature has been tráanslated .. Baha'i schools ............................ ........................................... . Social and economic development projects ........................ .. (other than schools) Counháies that exempt the Baha'i conununity from payment of taxes on properties ................................ .. Countráies that recognize Baha' i Holy Days ....... .... .............. .. Countráies that recognize Baha'i marriage ......... .................... . Localities where Baha'is reside ........................... .................. . Isolated cenháes and groups ................................................... . Local Spiritual Assemblies .................................................... . 16 10 36,145 29,878 6,267 21April1986 41 40 2 32 3 172 106 98 18 24 13 26,514 20,303 6,211 21Aprill986 27 23 0 22 8 174 342 15 1 11 13 12 46,270 34,976 11 ,294 18 13 33,270 27,366 5,904 20April 1992 43 41 2 31 3 NIA 184 195 23 25 17 27,470 22,079 5,391 20April 1992 29 25 24 9 NIA 300 232 13 13 12 51 ,119 43,700 7,419 THE BAHA'I WORLD AUSTRALASIA National Spiritual Assemblies ............................................... . National I:Ia~iratu'1-Quds ............. ...... ..... ..... ........ ... ..... ......... . Baha'i Temples ................................................................ .... . . Sites for national Baha'i Temples ........................................ .. Baha'i Publishing Trusts .................................................. ..... . Languages into which Baha'i literature has been translated .. Baha'i schools ....................................................................... . Social and economic development projects (other than schools) ............................................................ Countries that exempt the Baha'i community from payment of taxes on properties ............................... ... Countries that recognize Baha'i Holy Days .......................... . Countries that recognize Baha'i marriage ............................ .. Localities where Baha' is reside ............................................ . Isolated centres and groups .................... ............................... . Local Spiritual Assemblies ................................................... . EUROPE National Spirih1al Assemblies ................................................ National I:Ia~iratu'l-Quds........... . ....... .. ...... . ........... .. ........ . ..... Baha'i Temples ...................................................................... Sites for national Baha'i Temples.......................................... Baha'i Publishing Trusts .. ........... ........................................... Languages into which Baha'i literature has been translated.. Baha'i schools ................................ ........................................ Social and economic development projects .............. ........... .. (other than schools) Countries that exempt the Baha'i community from payment of taxes on properties .................................. Countries that recognize Baha'i Holy Days ........................... Countries that recognize Baha'i marriage ............................. . Localities where Baba' is reside ............................ ................ . Isolated centres and groups ................................................... . Local Spirih1al Assemblies ............... ........ ............ .... ..... ...... .. 21 Aprill986 17 17 2 15 2 110 8 20 8 11 16 3,062 2,257 805 21Aprill986 20 20 19 8 80 0 23 8 12 9 2,997 2,244 753 20April 1992 17 17 2 16 2 NIA 16 101 8 12 18 4,094 3,218 876 20April 1992 29 21 20 10 NIA 0 30 12 13 10 4,093 3,248 845 II THE Two Y EAR SUBSIDIARY PLAN 1990-1992 ON 8 Febrnary 1990, the Universal House of Justice sent the following cable to the fol¥lowers ofBaha'u'llah throughout the world: FAR-REACHING EVENTS BEING ENACTED WORLD STAGE, PARTICULARLY JN EASTERN EUROPE AND SOV IET UN ION, ON THRESHOLD FINAL FATE-LADEN DECADE CENTURY OF LIGHT, PROVIDE FURTHER DRAMATIC EV IDENCE RES ISTLESS OPERAT ION OF GOD'S MAJOR PLAN FOR TRANSFORMATION OF HUMAN SOCIETY. RAPID UNFORESEEN DEVEL¥OPMENTS NECESSITATE CORRESPONDING PARALLEL ACCELERATION IN LIFE-GIVING ENTERPRISES BEING PURSUED BY INHERITO RS BAHA¡U'LLAH'S RESPLENDENT REVELATION. REJOICE THEREFORE ANNOUNCE LAUNCHING AT RIQVA. 1 OF SUBSIDIARY TWO YEAR TEACHING PLAN FOR VAST REMAINING REACHES EASTERN EUROPE AND AS IA. MOMENTOUS STEP INVOLVES FURTHER SYS¥TEMATIC UNFOLDMENT PROVISIONS TABLETS MASTER-PLAN OF 'ABDU'L-BAHA ALREADY IN ADVANCED STAGE OF OPERATION OTHER AREAS PLANET. REG IONAL ENTERPRISE, CON¥CEIVED IN CONSULTATION INTERNATIONAL TEACHING CENTRE, DESIGNED SIGNIFICANT¥LY RE INFORCE CURRENT SIX YEAR GLOBAL PLAN. OBJECTIVES INCLUDE ATTRACTION NUMEROUS NEW SUPPORTERS FAITH, GREAT INCREASE TRANSLATION, PUBLICATION AND DISSEMINATION BAHA'i LITERATURE IN REQUISITE LANGUAGES ENTIRE AREA, AND EXTENSION BENEFICENT INFLUENCE DJVINELY APPOINTED ADMIN ISTRATIVE ORDER THROUGH ERECTION FRAME-WORK LOCAL NAT IONAL BAHA'i INSTITUTIONS IN AS MANY EASTERN COUNTRIES AS POSSIBLE UP TO AND INCLUD¥ING RTQVAN I992. CALLING UPON THOSE NATIONAL ASSEM ¥BLIES EUROPE, ASIA AND AMERICA WHICH BEAR PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITY FOR INDIVID¥UAL NATIONS INVOLVED, TO CONSULT WITH COUNSELLORS AND FORMULATE DETAILS SPECIFIC GOALS INCORPORATING AND SUP¥PLEMENTING THOSE ALREADY ADOPTED AND IN PROCESS ACCOMPLISHMENT UNDER SIX YEAR PLAN. MOVED PAY TRIBUTE PRESENT HOUR REMARKABLE UNSUNG ACH IEVEMENTS THOSE INSTITUTIONS A D INDIVIDUAL BELIEVERS PRESE TLY LABOURING AD¥VANCEMENT CAUSE IN EASTERN EUROPE AND SOVIET UNION, ACHIEVEMENTS WHICH HAVE BLAZED TRAILS FOR COMING LARGE-SCALE INITIATIVE. CALL UPON BAHA'i WORLD ARISE SUPPORT DIFFUSION WORLD-REDEEMING MESSAGE FAITH GOAL AREAS THROUGH SET¥TLEMENT PIONEERS AND THROUGH DISPATCH STEADY FLOW TRAYELLING TEACHERS, ESPE¥CIALLY THOSE WITI-1 KNOWLEDGE LANGUAGES COUNTRIES AND REPUBLICS EASTERN BLOC. CONCOM ITANT TH ESE MEASURES, VITAL ONGOlNG PROCESS CHINESE TEACHING RE¥CEIVING FURTHER IMPETUS. BROAD VISTAS NOW OPEN TO FA ITH GOD PROVIDE UN PRECEDENTED OPPORTUN ITI ES WIN FRESH VICTORIES AS WORTHY OFFERING SACRED THRESHOLD BLESSED BEAUTY OCCAS ION COMMEMORATION FIRST CENTE¥NARY HIS ASCENS ION COMING HOLY YEAR. fMPLORING ABUNDANT OUTPOURING DIVIN E CONFIRMATIONS PARTICIPANTS ALL FACETS HISTORIC SIX YEAR CAMPAIGN. THE BAHA'I WORLD 1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND The countries included in what was known as the Eastern Bloc had witnessed signifi¥cant developments in the spread of the Cause towards the end of the nineteenth century and in the early decades of the twen¥tieth. In Baha'u'llah's lifetime, Baha'is were living in Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, and Turkistan (now known as Central Asia), the first Baba' is settling in the latter in 1882. A flourishing Baha' i community devel¥oped in Ashkhabad ('lshqabad) and became a centre of Baha'i scholarship. In 1902, construction began in Ashkhabad of the first Mashriqu'l-Adhkar of the Baha'i world, an act characterized by Shoghi Effendi as "the first major undertaking launched through the concerted efforts of His followers in the Heroic Age of His Faith". Russia became the first country to extend full recognition, justice, and protection to the followers of the Baha'i religion. Strong Baha' i communities, with their own Local Spiritual Assemblies, were eventually established in Moscow, Balm, and other centres in the Soviet Union; indeed in 1925 two National Spiritual Assemblies, that of the Caucasus, with its seat in Baku, and that of Turkistan, with its seat in Ashkhabad, came into being. The Faith had also attracted the attention of prominent figures in Russia, such as Leo Tolstoy. A Russian translation of the Kitab¥i-Aqdas had been made by Aleksandr Grigorevich Tumanskil and a compilation of the Writings of Baha'u'llah in Arabic was published in St. Petersburg in 1908. The poetess and dramatist Grinevskaya had writ¥ten two dramas, one on the Bab and one on Baha'u'llah; they had been performed in St. Petersburg and other places, including in Germany after they had been translated by the poet Fielder. In the countries ofEastern Europe outside the Soviet Union, the Faith had been intro¥duced by various means. 'Abdu'l-Baha Himself visited Budapest in 1913 and aroused the interest of eminent Hungarians. He expressed the wish that Budapest "might become a centre for the reunion of the East and West, and that from this city the light might emanate to other places". The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Budapest was elected in 1939. The indomitable Martha Root visited Albania, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Yugoslavia during the 1920s and 1930s. Queen Marie of Romania penned her heart¥felt tributes to Baha'u' llah and His Message, earning the immortal distinction of being the first among royalty to raise her voice in His praise. Small Baha' i communities grew in a number of these lands. Yuk Echtner, in Czechoslovakia, learned of the Faith in 1925 and later was imprisoned for being a Baha'i. Bulgaria was blessed from 1930 to 1954 by the selfless labours of Marion Jack, whom Shoghi Effendi called a "shining example to pioneers'', and by the laying to rest in its soil of her and of Adam Benke, the pioneer from Germany whom Shoghi Effendi designated as the first European Baba' i martyr. Esperanto played an important role in the spread of the Faith in these regions, particu¥larly in Hungary and Czechoslovakia, where believers continued to reside throughout the entire period. The earliest records of the Baha'i Faith in the Baltic States mention four persons in Lithuania in the early 1930s who were Esperanto correspondents of Dr. Hermann Grossmann and his wife, Anna. These men showed interest in the Baha'i teachings and were eventually visited by Martha Root in 1934. One of the earliest and most outstanding believers in Poland was Lidia Zamenhof, daughter of the creator of Esperanto. With the consolidation of Communist rule in the Soviet Union, restrictions began to be imposed upon Baha'i communities, becom¥ing more pronounced in 1928 and increasing during the next ten years. The Soviet author¥ities confiscated documents, books, and a The Saha 'is of Moscow celebrating a Nineteen Day Feast for the first time since the 1930s. The event took place in the Hainsworths' home. 9 April 1989. printing press, dissolved Baha'i committees, and took over Baha'i schools. Hundreds of Baha'is were imprisoned, some were sentenced to exile in Siberia and other penal settlements, and others were deported to Iran. The National Assembly of Turkistan was dissolved. The Temple in Ashkhabad was expropriated and turned into an art gallery. A small number of Baha'is continued to reside in the region, striving to keep the flame of their faith alive in the face of inten¥sive atheist propaganda, the ever-present danger of renewed persecution, and the disability imposed by the prohibition of teaching religion to anyone under the age of eighteen. For these reasons, the flow of news from the Baha'is in the Soviet Union to their fellow believers outside virtually ceased, and only very gradually over the years did it become possible to re-open avenues of communication in a few instances. World War II and the subsequent advance of Communism in Eastern Europe left only tiny remnants of Baha'i communities. Devoted individuals and families remained steadfast through many difficult years. De¥spite this situation, Shoghi Effendi included all these territories in his Ten Year Plan, unveiled in 1953, as follows. The National Spiritual Assembly of Ge1many and Austria was made responsible for opening Albania, Estonia, Finno-Karelia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldavia (Moldova), Romania and White Russia (Belarus) and for consolidating Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, the Russian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic (S.F.S.R.), and Yugoslavia. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Iran was made responsible for opening Kirgizia (later named Kyrgyzstan), Mongolia, Tajikistan (Tadzhikistan) and Uzbekistan, and for consolidating Azerbaijan, Am1enia, Georgia, and Turkmenistan. The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States was responsible for opening Kazakhstan, Sakhalin, and the Ukraine. Goals for the translation of Baha'i litera¥ ture into many of the languages of these countries were also part of the Ten Year á Crusade. The Guardian expressed all these goals as being subject to "circumstances pem1itting." Nevertheless, activities were carried out with increasing efficacy through all the succeeding decades. The Baha'is of Germany and Austria in particular were spurred on by words of the Guardian such as these: ...a community that has achieved so much in the past for our Faith, that has been so dearly loved by 'Abdu'l-Baha, and is destined to spread, as He foretold, the light of God's sacred Revelation not only in the heati of Europe but through¥ out that dark, war-devastated spiritually famished continent. (22 November 1946) THE BAHA'I WORLD ... carry the fame of this community ... as far as the Eastern fringes of the Asiatic continent. (30 October 1951) The administrative base from which it must spread out into Eastern and South¥ ern Europe, and beyond these spheres into the heart of Northern Asia, as far as the China Sea, must first be thoroughly consolidated. (30 October 1951) The beloved Guardian referred to these tasks as "the Mission envisaged for them by 'Abdu ' l-Baha, and now confirmed through the provisions of the Ten-Year Plan". (14 August 1957) As the years passed and new National Assemblies came into existence, some of the goals originally allotted to the community of Germany and Austria were reassigned. The newly formed National Assembly of Austria was given responsibility for Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Yugoslavia. The National As¥sembly of Finland was given responsibility for the goals in Estonia, a country whose language is akin to Finnish. TI1e National Assembly of Sweden was given responsibility for Latvia and Lithuania. Responsibility for Sakhalin was transferred from the National Assembly of the United States to that of North East Asia (later Japan). Fi1mo-Karelia ceased to be a separate Soviet Socialist Re¥public (S.S.R.) and became an Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (A.S.S.R.) of the Russian S.F.S.R. When persecutions in the Cradle of the Faith made it no longer feasible for the Iranian Baha'i community to pursue its goals in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Mongolia, responsibility for these areas was transferred. Mongolia and the republics of Centrnl Asia for which Iran had been responsible were given first to the National Assembly of India, then to Germany, while the Caucasian republics (Almenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia) were transferred directly to Germany. The Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan and the Ukraine remained under the jurisdiction of the National Assembly of the United States. The work continued patiently, and quietly, with relays of travelling teachers continually crossing and recrossing these lands, contact¥ing old believers, bringing new souls into the Faith, and fostering wann relationships with seekers. Such was the danger that little if any of this activity could be reported to the Baha'i world. Already during the latter years of the Guardian's lifetime it was found that there were Baha'is living in certain of the Central Asian republics which had previously been reported to be virgin territories. Later Firaydun Khazra' i settled in Romania and Helmut Winkelbach settled in White Russia (Belarus), becoming Knights ofBaha'u'llah. Moldavia (Moldova) was opened to the Faith by a single believer, Annemarie Kri.iger, who through persistent visits and teaching brought the first native Moldavian into the Faith in Kishinev (Ch~in~u); she was named a Knight of Baha'u'llah by the Uni¥versal House of Justice for this achievement. In 1979, a Baha'i ofPolish background, Alma Monadjem, pioneered with her family to Po¥land and settled on the farm of her ancestors. During the 1980s, accounts were found in the International Archives of the pioneering work done in Albania by Mr. Refo <;:apari, a Baha'i of Albanian descent from New York who had anived in Tirana in 1931. He had stayed in Albania and died there alone and of starvation. Meanwhile, a flourishing Baba 'i community had been established which had conesponded with the Guardian. The records revealed that the conditions of World War II and its afte1math had dispersed these believ¥ers, and indicated that members of Mr. <;:apari's family might be living in Yu¥goslavia. The National Assembly of Austria therefore sent Baha ' is to look for them. The search was fruitful, and these faithful, long¥suffering believers put the Baha'i institutions in touch with another member of their family who had been living as the only Baha'i in Albania for forty years, raising her children as firm believers in the Faith. Thus began the unprecedented efflorescence of the Baha'i community of Albania. The emergence of the policies of glasnost and perestroika in the mid-1980s and the re¥forms launched in the Soviet Union aroused intense interest in the countries which were responsible for the establishment of the Faith there. These new opportunities and the steps necessary to take advantage of them were major themes of the consultation at the Counsellors' Conference held in the Holy Land at the end of 1986. Shortly thereafter the National Assembly of Germany held a special conference, at the end of March 1987 in Langenhain, for the representatives of the various responsible National Assemblies and committees to consult on the situation. This was immediately followed by a "Great Eastern Conference" in Dieburg. At the re¥quest of the National Assembly of Germany, which attached great importance to these conferences, the Universal House of Justice sent one of its members to represent it. At that time it was unclear whether the precious opportunities then available would remain for long. It was decided that, in either even¥tuality, it was vital for the Baha'is to seize their chance without delay. Two Counsellors particularly stimulated and assisted the teach¥ing work in Eastern countries: 'Abbas Katirai in Asian Russia and Sohrab Youssefian in Albania and Romania. Paul Semenoff was noteworthy for his work in European Russia and the Ukraine. The fourteen believers who made up the Hungarian community in 1987 were blessed to be visited by the Hand of the Cause of God Amatu'l-Baha R!'.Il_iiyyih Khanum, who inspired them with a vision of the future. The Hand of the Cause also visited Mongolia in 1989, where she was invited to give lec¥tures about her travels and about world peace to students of English at a university. In some cases, the Faith could be directly promoted, as in Poland where a Baha'i booth was set up at the World Esperanto Congress in 1987 and public events were held to proclaim the Faith. But generally, teaching consisted of making friends and preparing for a time when restrictions on religion would be lifted. An example of the kind of painstaking, persistent work which helped make possible the open teaching projects of the Two Year Plan, comes from an individual who saw a need and arose to fill it. In October 1987, Lynda Godwin made her first journey to the Soviet Union, travelling under the auspices of a programme called Citizen Diplomacy, which encouraged individuals to design pro¥jects ofcultural exchange between Americans and Soviets. She developed one project, called the Soviet/American Teachers Task Force, which brought American teachers to the Soviet Union to team teach in Soviet class rooms, and another called Birthday Friends for Peace, which made pen pals out of Soviet and American children with common birth dates. The projects were so successful that she was invited back numerous times, making more friends each visit as she worked with Soviet guides and translators and ananged for visitors to stay in Soviet homes. Between October 1987 and April 1992, Lynda Godwin made at least twenty trips into what became the forn1er Soviet Union, each time intrn¥ducing a new group to the region and finding different avenues for exchange. Two plans projected by the Universal House of Justice were the opening of Baha'i Inforn1ation Offices in Moscow and Buda¥pest. Documentation was prepared, a search was begun for suitable premises in both cities, and a formal approach was made to the appropriate agency of the Soviet Govern¥ment on behalf of the Baha'i International Community. However, events advanced so rapidly that these initiatives were subse¥quently superseded by the rapid spread of the Faith in both countries and the establish¥ment of Local and National Assemblies. The accelerating growth of the Baha'i communities and the drastically changing conditions in the Soviet Union and the East¥ern Bloc impelled the Universal House of Justice to call for a subsidiary Two Year Teaching Plan to rnn from Ric;lvan 1990 to Ric;lvan 1992, with greatly increased goals for all these lands. THE BAHA'I WORLD 2. TRAYELLING TEACHERS AND PLONEERS The laws concerning the practice and shar¥ing of religion in the Soviet Union had begun to change in 1989, the same year that the Berlin Wall was breached. Restrictions on bringing in literature were lifted and the first open teaching event occurred when Baha'is from Scandinavia participated in the Murmansk Peace Festival organized by the Red Army. In August 1989, an individual working in the region wrote: "This is a very special moment in the history of the Russian nation and the Soviet peoples. It is a mo¥ment, I feel, as do most of those who are deeply involved in the work there, especially created by God to facilitate the presentation of the Greatest Gift, the Message which the King of Glory has brought for all mankind. There are mighty spiritual forces at work throughout the length and breadth of that land ... forces which make possible the real¥ization of the most audacious of plans. All that is required is for the instruments of His Faith, we the believers, to be present, to hT1st fully in and be willing to follow the clear direction given by Bahi'u'llah." In November 1989, The Promise of World Peace Tour became the largest group of Bahi'is ever invited to enter the Soviet Union with a specific Baha'i purpose ap¥proved by Soviet officials: to disseminate the Peace Statement. After studying the Statement, holding fund-raisers, and giving interviews about the project during the course of a year, sixty-two Bahi'is from eight nations entered the Soviet Union under the auspices of Youth Ambassadors Interna¥tional. They presented 3,000 copies of the Peace Statement and proclaimed the Teach¥ings of Baha'u'llah from public platforms, in schools and universities, and in Soviet homes. The man largely responsible for the first public presentation of the Statement in Kazan later embraced the Faith, was elected chairman of the first Spiritual Assembly there, and eventually was elected to the first National Spiritual Assembly of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics at Ri~van 1991. As laws and attitudes changed, a hunger for information about the Faith became evi¥dent, and Lynda Godwin found herself in the position to help meet this need. She was able to draw on her experience and contacts from leading projects sponsored by non-Bahi'is to organize explicitly Baha'i endeavours. A company called Inter National Soviet Re¥sources, Inc. was formed to oversee the work. Another group of Bahi'is in the United States created the Soviet-American Cooper¥ative Society, and in Canada NetEast was established to assist Canadian Bahi'is to un¥derstand the needs of the Faith in the Soviet Union and how they could be of service. Th e Baha'i display at the Murmansk Peace and Environment Festival, organized by the Red Army in July 1989. This was ~ the first open teaching event in the U.S.S.R. Among the projects Lynda Godwin and others organized were two international women's forums which allowed Baha'is and non-Baha'is from different backgrounds to share their ideas about the issues facing women; two business seminars in the Ukraine to share the Baha'i principles related to eco¥nomics and ethics; the Lesson in Peace teaching trip; and tours of the musical per¥formers Red Grammer, El Viento Canta, and Days tar. In fact, Baha'i musicians and singing groups responding to the call of the Two Year Plan brought many people into contact with the Baha'i Faith for the first time. A variety of talented performers drew large crowds in the streets, parks, schools, and theatres of the Eastern Bloc, as they demon¥strated the unique beauty of art expressed in praise of God. When audience members sought the source of the artists' special spirit, they found Baha'u'llah. El Viento Canta, a group which had formed at the Baha'i World Centre and which had travelled throughout Western Europe and Africa sharing traditional Latin Ameri¥can music and teaching the Faith (see also "Special Youth Projects'', p.443), began a three-month tour of the newly opening areas in January 1990. Their route took them from Yugoslavia to Hungary, Poland, Estonia, Russia, the Ukraine, Siberia, and Mongolia. They played before audiences ranging from fifty to 1,000, and performed and were inter¥viewed on television in Yugoslavia, Hungary, and in Leningrad and Moscow in Russia. Following El Viento Canta's concerts, lively discussions of the Faith continued for hours around the stage and in coffee shops, hotel lobbies, and private homes. One night in Odessa, conversations about the Faith were in progress in four dormitory rooms at once, in English, German, Spanish, and Russian. It was not uncommon for people to stand in line for over half an hour after conce1is to register in a guest book for later contact and literature. More than once, audience mem¥bers travelled many hours to see El Viento Canta perform at its next destination, as they deeply missed being near the spirit of the group. One admirer journeyed thirty-two hours. Another perforn1ing group which had formed at the Baha'i World Centre and which greatly stimulated the teaching work in the Soviet Union was Daystar. Twenty¥three singers and dancers and a French mime artiste spent July 1990 enchanting hearts, making friends, and sharing Baha'u'llah's Message in the major cities of the Soviet Union. The group travelled with eight Soviet guides and stayed in Russian homes, learn¥ing as much as they could about the culture they were privileged to visit. Among the venues for Daystar's well¥attended concerts were parks, a philharmonic hall, a children's camp, and the dining car of the train from Leningrad to Kiev. A presen¥tation on the Faith, which included slides, was shown nightly in hotel lobbies. The group's members had the honour of being the first Baha'is ever to visit Chernovtsy, in the Ukraine, where they met children who had never before seen anyone from outside Russia. In the summer of 1991, six youth formed Daystar II as part of the "Youth Can Move the World" project. The project drew on the spirit and talents of Daystar, another music group called Bridges which played folk, bluegrass, contemporary, and country music from the United States, and thirty-eight other international participants. The group was divided into three teams, each assisted by four or five Russians who served as guides and translators. Through their efforts people were able to witness, some for the first time, living examples of the transforming power ofBaM'u'llah. Light in the Darkness, a music group which had formed in Italy in December 1988, spread the Faith in Yugoslavia, Poland, and Romania during the Plan. Audience mem¥bers at their concerts heard the principles of the Faith explained between the singing of Baha ' i songs and popular songs about peace. THE BAHA'I WORLD A music group spontaneously formed among participants in the Tahirih II Teaching Project in Neptune, Romania, in July J 99 J. ft pe1formed in the streets, causing crowds to gather. Travelling teachers ji-om Brazil sing for Members ofEl Viento Canta giving a radio youngFiends in Poland in J990. interview in Zagreb, Yugoslavia, 1990. Baha 'is attending the first National Baha 'i Conference to be held in the US.SR. in about 60 years. The event took place on 24-25February1990 near Moscow. At the end of each concert, audience mem¥bers were directly invited to join the Baha'i community. In summer 1991, Light in the Darkness performed at the first European Youth Con¥ference in Neptune, Romania, and at other locations in the area. When the group took a break during one concert that had 1,000 spectators, people began lining up at a Baha'i information booth near the stage. Eighty of them declared their belief in Baha'u 'llah. The world renowned jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie mentioned the Baha'i Faith from the stage during concerts in East Berlin, Moscow, and Prague in May 1990. The musical tour was organized by professional agencies in honour of a European event called One World Week. At each concert, about 2,000 people heard the announcement that the performance was a contribution of the Baha'i community to the special week and that it was dedicated to peace and global understanding. The East Berlin concert was attended by the President of the East Geiman Parliament, and portions of it were broadcast on East Gern1an television. In Moscow, the performance was held under the patronage of Mrs. Raisa Gorbacheva and was followed by a one-hour press conference attended by eighty international journalists. The Presi¥dent of the new Republic of Czechoslovakia, Vaclav Havel, and his wife attended the con¥cert in Prague. Following a press conference with about one hundred reporters, Dizzy Gillespie and the Baha'i representatives were received privately by the President. In July 1991, an International Baha'i Art Forum, held in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia, brought together approximately fifty aiiists from around Europe and the Soviet Union to exchange ideas, share their work, and dis¥cuss the contributions artists could make to the coming Baha'i Holy Year. An art gallery exhibited works by Baha'i artists, and every evening for a week, public performances were held. Two musicians embraced the Faith during the week. Renowned violinist Bijan Khadem¥Missagh shared his talents during one of the public concerts associated with the Ali Forum. Mr. Khadem-Missagh and singer Ahdieh Pakravan also brought the name of the Faith to many of the inhabitants of Dushanbe, Tajikistan, during concerts given in the autumn of 1991. The European Baha' i Youth Council helped channel the energies of European youth into the work of the Two Year Plan by organising teaching projects in Czecho¥slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Yugoslavia during the summer of 1990. In addition, the George Adam Benke Project held in the autumn led to the forn1ation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly in Bulgaria since World War II. The Youth Council continued to contribute significantly to the teaching work during the remainder of the Plan. (See also "European Baha'i Youth Council", p.432.) With the Tablets of the Divine Plan as their guide, a group of youth from the United States formed the Marion Jack Teaching Project in the summer of 1990 to bring Baha'u'llah's Message to the Soviet Union. Canying 10,000 copies of the Peace State¥ment and 2,000 copies of The Hidden Words in Russian, the youth travelled from the Ukraine to Siberia. When members of the team visited the village ofKolodnia, Siberia, the chief invited them to return to "our village and tell us how to become a Baha'i village". A second Marion Jack Project was organized for January 1991, and Marion Jack III took place that summer. While members of the first Marion Jack Project were traversing the Soviet Union west to east, nineteen Baha'is from nine countries were sailing south down the Volga and Don Rivers from Petrozavodsk toward the Black Sea. A group of Soviet citizens had decided to build three Viking-style ships and sail them from the Soviet Union to the Holy Land. When Captain Alexander Dubovsky, who had become a Baha'i in the summer of THE BAHA'i WORLD 1989 at an Army-sponsored peace fair, heard of the plan for the Golden Age Mission, he recruited Baba'is for it. When none of the other passenger groups showed up for the journey, it became a mission for Bah a 'u 'llah. Down the rivers they sailed, going ashore and teaching by setting up display stands with pictures and Baha'i literature in town after town. Conditions were extremely rug¥ged, as the little ships (18 x 20 metres) had no cabins and were caught in storms several times. Yet each member carried a copy of a letter of encouragement from the Universal House of Justice, and they "huddled around it during storms, shouted it in exaltation and mutmured it in wonder and praise". In al¥most every port of call, one or more people embraced the Faith, and eleven members of the ships' crews became believers. Although the Baha'is had to end their journey in the Soviet Union, the ship called "Hope" arrived in Haifa in September with twenty-four Russians aboard. The travellers spent three days meeting with members of the Baha'i World Centre staff and visiting the Holy Shrines. Many groups organized themselves dur¥ing this period to make short-term teaching trips. For one week in June 1991, fifteen Baha' is from Austria and Italy travelled to Albania and were able to enrol 150 people into the Faith. "Teaching was carried out everywhere", a participant reported, "in the streets, in the houses of the friends where we were received with unforgettable hospitality, on the beach, in the hall of the Albanian Par¥liament, in hotels, in universities, and musical academies-and enrolments occurred every¥where". In August 1991, thirteen Baha' is from six European countries took part in teaching projects in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and in Bishkek, Kirgizia. The teams set up book stalls in a busy square, in a town, and at a university; spoke about the Faith to mem¥bers of a spiritual organization; and were interviewed for radio and television. On 1 January 1991, a French Baha'i group, calling itself Caravan of Peace, was able to present the Peace Statement to the authorities of Sarajevo, Yugoslavia. The collapse of the Eastern Bloc's politi¥cal, economic, and social systems, coupled with the region's emergence from decades of isolation, created great demand for infor¥mation on a wide range of topics. Baha 'i experts in various fields travelled to the area to share their professional experience and to explain how Baha'u'llah's principles speak to the needs of the modem world. The Hand of the Cause 'Ali-Akbar Furutan was able to visit Russia in 1990 after more than sixty years away. He was invited to speak to the approximately 380 partici¥pants of the "International Conference of Young Psychologists" at Moscow University. A group ofnineteen Baha 'is spent three weeks sailing down th e Volga and Don Rivers on this and two other Viking ¥style ships in the summer of1990, teaching the Faith to both ship crews and dock-side visitors. Mr. Furutan also gave a lecture on education at the Murmansk Institute of Pedagogy. Counsellors conducted seminars on moral education in Albania and Czechoslovakia, and possibilities for future cooperation and exchange were discussed. Also in Czecho¥slovakia, an environmental consultant was able to approach high-ranking government officials responsible for environmental issues. In 1988, a presentation entitled "Participa¥tory Radio for Rural Development: the Baha'i Experiments" was presented at the International Colloquium on Communication and Culture in Bled, Yugoslavia. A number of Baha'i doctors were able to consult their Eastern European colleagues for the first time. In the spring of 1990, a doctor visiting Uzbekistan was able to share the Faith at a hospital in Tashkent. In every depa1tment, at least one doctor read the Peace Statement and discussed it with fellow physicians. In the autumn of 1991, a Baha'i was invited by the Institute of Preventative Medicine in Uzbekistan, to present two pa¥pers at a congress of genetics and molecular biology. The doctor was able to mention the Faith in his speech and during informal talks with doctors and scientists. He stressed the impo1tance of cooperation between the East and the West. Three doctors from three different coun¥tries spent twelve days in August 1991 at the university town of Olomouc, Czechoslova¥kia, where they conducted an unprecedented combined course in medical English and "The Promise of World Peace" for a group of Czechoslovakian doctors. Also at the University of Olomouc, the Baha'is helped organize a symposium called "Rational Faith and Blind Science?" which was addressed by a Baha'i physicist from Germany. Two Baha 'is were frequent visitors to Czechoslo¥vakia, where they lectured on psychology at different universities and assisted with the teaching work. Media coverage of many Baha'i-sponsored events was excellent, as journalists eagerly sought information about life outside the Eastern Bloc. In addition to coverage of the events described above and fairly regular interviews of travelling teachers around the region, several films on the Faith were broadcast. Russian television aired a docu¥mentary on the Baha'i Faith called "A Temple on My Way" which was produced by the Russian company Rus-film. The video "Jewel in the Lotus'', about the Baha'i House of Worship in India, was broadcast on national television in Bulgaria through the unified efforts of the Varna Baha'i commu¥nity and travelling teachers. Polish television aired a documentary about the Faith called "The Fold of the Ninth Prophet". As the teaching work began to include more and more native believers, (see also sec¥tion on "Numerous New Supporters attracted to the Faith'', p. 207 .) teaching conferences were held to stimulate and coordinate these efforts. The first national teaching confer¥ence in Albania, held in Durres in November 1991 , drew 200 Albanian Baha'is from ten different localities and fifty travelling teach¥ers. A journalist who attended all the sessions decided to spread the Faith through his newspaper. The teaching conference ended with a public meeting at a hall in the centre of the city. The first national teaching confer¥ences of Bulga1ia, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, and Yugoslavia also occurred in 1991. In January 1992, the first teaching conference of Croatia and Slovenia took place in Kranj. Approximately 400 believers performed "the prince of all goodly deeds" during the Two Year Plan, leaving their homes to reset¥tle in the Soviet Union or Eastern Europe. The final two pioneering goals of the Ten Year Crusade were fulfilled when Sean Hinton settled in Mongolia and 'Abbas and Ric;lvaniyyih Katirai settled in Sakhalin. As the Plan progressed, native believers began arising to pioneer. The first Slovak home¥front pioneers of Czechoslovakia moved to Jindrichuv Hradec in 1991. The first Ukrai¥nian pioneer settled in Minsk in early 1992. THE BAHA'I WORLD The Hand ofthe Cause ofGod 'Ali-Akbar Funitan in Samarkand (US.SR.), visiting with some Baha 'i fiáiends on 1 April I 990. Baha'is meeting with the President ofAlbania, His Excellency Ramiz Alia, in his offices in Durres, J November J99 I. Shown Ji-om left: Mrs. Luci Bylykbashi ofthe Local Assembly of Durres, President Alia, Counsellor member ofthe International Teaching Centre Farzam Arbab, Mrs. Laurie Arbab, and Mr. Gian-Franco Mazzoni ofthe National Assembly ofItaly. 3. NUMEROUS NEW SUPPORTERS ATTRACTED TO THE FAITH By the end of the Two Year Plan, more than 12,000 people in Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, and Mongolia had embraced the Cause of Baha'u'llah and thousands more had been exposed to His Message. Many who had not formally emolled in the community had expressed their deep appre¥ciation for the teachings and helped make it possible for them to spread. People from all backgrounds became Baha'is. The comments of one travelling teacher in Albania were very typical: "Many different kinds of people accepted the Faith-cultured people, artists, professionals, students, musi¥cians, actors, directors, judges, refugees and the unemployed". A seventy-year-old nun, after forty-eight years of service to the Cath¥olic Church, accepted the Baha'i Faith in Maribor, Yugoslavia. After reading Thief in the Night, she said, "I came to the clear understanding that I have to strive for com¥plete integration into the Baha'i community." In the village ofKolindo in Sakhalin, a mayor and leaders of the indigenous minority were among more than 150 people who declared their allegiance to Baha'u'llah. A readiness to accept the Faith quite soon after first hearing about it was not unusual in Eastern Europe. In one case, a Baha'i was speaking to an Albanian lawyer regarding official recognition for the Faith when the lawyer said, "I have always believed in these teachings . Please register my name. I want to be a Baha'i." The Baha'i who had been speaking to her was surprised by her readi¥ness and asked for an opportunity to explain more. During the next fifteen minutes, she stopped him two or three more times, repeat¥ing her wish to emol. The next day, when contacted by one of the local believers, the lawyer said, "I have consulted all my friends .... They all want to join [the Faith]". When she was visited later by her original teacher and was offered a wall hanging with three prayers on it, she said she already knew the short obligatory prayer almost by heart from reading it in Baha 'u 'llah and the New Era. Also in Albania, a young man approached some travelling teachers to ask them where they came from, and upon hearing of the Faith, said that a Faith like this can only be hue. He said the oneness of mankind is the highest aspiration of today's man. After emolling in the Faith three days later, the man shared the teachings with a co-worker who then requested a meeting with the trav¥elling teachers. After some discussion, this man called on yet another friend and said, "I have met some Italian friends who have disclosed to me a religion that spiritualizes democracy and democratizes spirituality." Both men joined the Faith, the latter return¥ing to his home, waking up his wife and seventeen-year-old son, and sharing the Cause with them. Both accepted Baha'u'llah that night. In Romania, 350 people in at least sixty different localities accepted the Faith during a three-week teaching campaign. In the Soviet Union, it was more common for those first hearing about the Faith to ea¥gerly begin an intense study and application of its teachings which could continue for a number of years before emolment in the community. Travelling teachers were often amazed at the depth of tmderstanding and commitment demonstrated by seekers and new believers. One of the numerous examples of this comes from the Ukraine. A man was ex¥posed to the Faith at a Baha'i business forum, and after the Baha'is left, he continued to think deeply about what he had learned. He began abstaining from the use of alcohol and then made the major decision to resign his membership in the Communist Party, a move that would cause him to lose his job as manager at a large plant. He formed the goal of creating his own business based on the principles learned at the Baha'i fornm. He also decided that although he would like his THE BAl-IA'i WORLD family members to become Baha'is, and that according to tradition he could issue this de¥cree, he would instead expose them to the teachings and let them reach their own con¥clusions. "My whole family will be Baha'i someday but it must be when they discover it in their hearts," he said. For several years prior to 1990, four men from Leningrad University had studied the Faith without knowing that there were any Baha'is in their city or that there was litera¥ture in Russian. The situation came to light when the men wrote a letter to the Associa¥tion for Baha'i Studies in Canada. When a pioneer later visited them, she found four dedicated believers. When a travelling teacher asked a mem¥ber of a new Local Spiiitual Assembly about the election, the relatively new Baba 'i ex¥plained in great detail the whole election procedure, including rules for absentee votes and tellers, and showed the ballot that had been carefully prepared. The visitor stood in silence as the native believer demonstrated his clear understanding of the important pro¥cess of which he had become a part. A fervent eagerness to share their new¥found Faith with others was common among new believers throughout the Eastern Bloc. Speaking about some of the 126 people who enrolled in Bulgaria duriI1g December 1991 and January 1992, one travelling teacher said, "Watching them teach and talk about Baha'u'llah made one wonder whether these are the ones who could cross the seven valleys in 'seven steps, nay rather in seven breaths, nay rather in a single breath'". Within a day or two of enrolling, some of them took full responsibility for the teaching efforts, translating talks and articles, distrib¥uting leaflets, giving public talks, inviting people to join the Faith and giving their phone numbers as contact points. In Albania, a travelling teacher found that "once they heard about the Faith, they immediately be¥came active so as to make their contribution to the establishment of the World Order of Baha'u'llah". One of the people to declare his faith in the Soviet Union just before the Two Year Plan was a sixteen-year-old boy who imme¥diately taught his mother what he had learned. A few months later, she enrolled and set in motion the Russian film project about the Faith. She in tum taught her parents who brought nine residents of their Ukrainian village into the Faith. Much of the teaching work was facilitated by the enthusiastic support of non-Baha'is who appreciated Baha'i prmciples and con¥tributed to their diffusion. One family, who discovered the Baha ' i Faith when they offered to host a travelling Baha'i in their home, called themselves devout atheists, yet they regularly talked late into the night with their guest about God, religion, Christianity, and the Teachings ofBaha'u'llah. Each day they would share what they had learned with co-workers. When Baha'is returned to the city for other teaching projects, the family repeatedly allowed their home to be used as a central point of contact for Baha'is need¥ing to exchange messages. Another woman who hosted a travelling Baha'i made her modest flat available for firesides, coming home from work each night and preparing food for twenty-five to thirty-five people on a tiny two-burner stove. Following a Baha'i business seminar in the Soviet Union, one company chief called all his employees together to announce that the office would begin applying some newly¥leamed spiIáitual principles to its work. He told the employees that they would be using consultation so he could hear their cont1ibu¥tions and feedback. This was an entirely new concept, and the employees were amazed. In one of the Soviet cities where the music group Daystar performed, the director of a philharmonic hall offered the facility and the staff at no charge. F ollowmg El Viento Can¥ta' s tour, university students in another city instantly prepared the necessary documents to make the visits of more Baha'i groups possible and offered to cover the expenses of the concert hall and accommodations. One university student in the Ukraine, who was not a Baha'i, received the highest mark in his class for his presentation on the Faith in a course called "Scientific Atheism". The student had discovered the teachings when he volunteered to help guide a group of travelling teachers. He read all the books he was given and prepared a thirty minute oral presentation which won the praise of his professor. In Mongolia, the organizers of the eighth Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace invited the Baha'i International Community to send representatives. The delegation received a warm response to its statement, "The Com¥mon Goal of Universal Peace in Buddhism and the Baha'i Faith'', which was delivered by the only woman speaker at the gathering. A Baha'i International Community represen¥tative was the only non-Buddhist speaker to address a public meeting arranged for the conference's final day. Other support for spread of the Faith came from the organizers of the centenary Univer¥sal Czech Exhibition. The Bahi'is were the only religion to have a special exhibit, be¥cause the organizers were attracted to the concept of the oneness of religions and felt the Baha'i Faith could represent all the faiths. The Albanian Minister of Education attended the opening session of a national symposium called "A New Framework for Moral Education" held in Tirana in 1991. In fact, the Ministry co-sponsored the event, which was initiated by Baha'is and well¥received by the 300 university professors, teachers, educational administrators, and students who attended. The Ministry offi¥cials said the symposium had provided them with the impetus they needed to begin changing their educational system in a fundamental way. After a successful public meeting in Sofia, Bulgaria, a high government official asked the Baha'is to help draft legislation on reli¥gious tolerance. In Tajikistan, a member of the Supreme Soviet attended quite a few Baha'i meetings and expressed several times her great respect and love for Tahirih and for the Baha'i Faith in general. The forn1er President of Uzbekistan said he was deeply impressed and highly interested in the Faith after visiting the House of Worship in India and then meeting Baha'is back in Uzbekistan. After the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Croatia was visited and present¥ed with The Promise ofWorld Peace, he said, "Your Peace Message has been studied in our Ministry and we support this initiative". One of the prominent people who not only supported the Baha'is but joined the community was the first Deputy Minister of Culture of Tajikistan, who became a Baha'i along with twenty-four members of the Opera Choir in Dushanbe, after the concert of Bijan Khadem-Missagh in 1991. The delegation ofthe Baha 'i International ' Community, which was invited to attend the eighth Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace, held in Ulaan-Baatar, Mongolia, in September J990. THE BAHA'I WORLD For both those who declared their belief in Baha'u'llah and those who chose to take more time to investigate, their encounters with the Faith often meant an end to many forms of isolation. Living in societies where ideas were tightly controlled, spiritual needs were not acknowledged, and interaction with foreigners was extremely limited, the people of these regions had been deprived of exposure to the world's growing acceptance of oneness. At one international women's forum which the Baha'is organized in Len¥ingrad, a participant commented that it was a whole new thought for her to realize that she was part of a global sisterhood. Similarly, a Baha'i who travelled to the Soviet Union and participated in a Baha'i business forum observed: "The Soviets made a 180 degree tum from the first day to the last. They realized that they are not alone in their strug¥gles. Even the West is going through hard times and must change. We can encourage each other and share skills to implement up¥to-date thinking as we jointly prepare for the twenty-first century." A Soviet participant in the school said it was the first time she had seen the eyes of the businessmen shine. When the first Moscow Baha'i conference took place in December 1990, it was a com¥pletely new experience for the Soviets to openly gather for expressly spiritual reasons, to meet people from different areas without the need for suspicion, and to realize that there was no hierarchy among them. Even though they had known there were Baha 'is scattered throughout their vast country, it was the first time they actually sat side by side. 4. TRANSLATION, PUBLICATION, AND DISSEMINATION OF B AHA 'f LITERATURE IN REQUISITE LANGUAGES OF THE ENTIRE AREA In the early years of the twentieth century, a number of translations of Baha'i Sacred Writings and introductory materials about the Faith were produced in the languages of the region that later became the Eastern Bloc. As already mentioned, a Russian trans¥lation of the Kitab-i-Aqdas was made, and a compilation of the Writings ofBaha'u'llah was published in St. Petersburg in 1908. In addition, Paris Talks was printed in Polish in 1915. Literature printed in Albanian in¥cluded Words ofWisdom in 1930, the Kitab¥i-Iqan in 1932, and Baha 'u '!Lah and the New Era in 1933. A Bulgarian translation of The Hidden Words was printed in 1937. During the decades that followed, a few other publications were also produced. An Introduction to the Bah6 'i Faith in Albanian came out in 1954. Paris Talks was printed in Estonian in 1968. A book of selections from Baha 'u '!Lah and the New Era in Hungarian was printed in 1979, followed by a selection of prayers in 1981 , and The Hidden Words in 1982. A Polish translation of The Hidden Words was produced in 1979. Publications in Romanian included a prayer book printed in 1982, Bah6 'u 'llah and the New Era in 1983, and The Hidden Words in 1984. The Eastern Literature Committee in Germany was particularly active, preparing and pub¥lishing Baha'i literature in most of the languages of the countries for which the German community had responsibility. However, as manuscripts were not allowed into or out of the countries of the Eastern Bloc before the collapse of communism, the translations were often done by native speakers living in exile, many of whom did not speak the most current version of the language. In 1989, the laws restricting reli¥gious literature in the Soviet Union were lifted, and in 1990 the Spiritual Assembly of Moscow obtained government permission to have Baha'i books published in Russian. Despite the obstacles that existed when the Six Year Plan began, nearly two dozen Baha'i books, booklets, Tablets and intro¥ductory pamphlets were translated and printed in Russian during this period. Also, 50,000 copies of a Russian edition of the Hand of the Cause of God 'Ali Akbar Furlitan's book Mothers, Fathers and Chil¥dren were printed in 1992. To serve the needs of the rapidly expand¥ing Baha'i communities in Albania, Bulgaria, Romania, and Russia, particular effo1is were made to quickly print large quantities of"core literature" in the languages of these coun¥tries. (See p.158 for an explanation of the core literature programme.) In all the nations of the former Eastern Bloc, previous transla¥tions were revised, new translations made, and reprints of existing materials produced. The translations and publications are too numerous to list, but a few examples will provide a sense of the range of projects undertaken in such a short period of time. During the Two Year Plan, prayer books were printed in Azeri, Croatian, Macedonian, and Slovene; the Kitab-i-Iqan was printed in Romanian; Selections from the Writings of Ba!ui 'u 'llah was printed in Hungarian; the Kitab-i-'Ahd was printed in Polish; The Re¥ality of Man was printed in Czech and Slovak; Paris Talks was printed in Serbian; The Promise of World Peace was translated into Estonian, and printed in A1menian, Georgian, and Latvian; Baha 'u 'llah and the New Era was translated into Lithuanian; and Pathway to Peace was printed in Mongolian and Uzbek. The Hidden Words was published in Armenian in the prestigious bimonthly newspaper Punik in 1991. Even before the Two Year Plan, book fairs in the Eastern Bloc had provided an im¥po1iant vehicle for bringing Baha'i literature to the attention of a wide audience, and they continued to serve this vital function . The German Baha'i Publishing Trust, in collaboration with other Baha'i Publishing Trusts, began its successful biennial repre¥sentation at the Moscow International Book Fair significantly before the Two Year Plan, and continued participation until the fair's cancellation in 1989. At the close of several book fairs , Baha'i books were donated to the Lenin Library in Moscow which in tum dis¥tributed them to other libraries, including one of the main libraries in Leningrad. An annual international book and video fair in Budapest, Hungary, first held in 1989, included Baha'i participation every year. The Publishing Trust of the United Kingdom organized the Baha'i booth, which was visit¥ed by prominent people such as the Minister of Education, and drew the attention of the Hungarian National Television and Radio Company. Hundreds of items of literature were distributed each year. The Baha'i Committee for Eastern Litera¥ture organized a very successful book fair in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, in 1989, at which 4,500 copies of the Perspective Series booklet The Bahci 'i Faith in Serbian were disháibuted. The following year, the Baha'i Book Distribution Service Austria participat¥ed in the thirty-fifth International Book Fair in Belgrade. Approximately 2,000 introduc¥tions to the Faith, 700 copies of The Promise of World Peace, and one hundred copies of prayers were distributed. A Baha'i Book Exhibition, held in Riga, Latvia, in October 1990 under the auspices of the Central Latvian State Library, attract¥ed some 600 people. Following the exhibit a great number of the Baha'i books were con¥tributed to the State Library. It is difficult to convey the significance of the translation, production, and distribution work which intensified during the Two Year Plan. Perhaps its importance can be hinted at by recounting the story of a Russian believer, who, when she saw Baha 'u 'llah and the New Era in Russian for the first time, was "like a starving person who just found food". She grabbed two copies, held them to her breast and cried, "Now my friends can see that I am telling the truth ... they can read these". THE BAHA ¥j WORLD Knight ofBaha 'u 'llah 'Abbas Katirai (left) arrived in Sakhalin on 24 March 1990 with his wife, Ri