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from the Chronology

date event locations tags see also
1913 13 May Birth of H. Collis Featherstone, Hand of the Cause of God, at Quorn, South Australia. Quorn; Australia Collis Featherstone; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths
1920 10 Apr Clara and Hyde Dunn arrived in Sydney, Australia. [AB445] SBR158 says this was 18 Apr 1919.
  • They are thought to be the first Bahá'í pioneers to have arrived at their post after the release of the Tablets of the Divine Plan. [G. Hassel]
  • Within three years they had visited 225 towns. [Keynote address by Dr. Vahid Saberi at the Heroes Teaching Conference 6-7 April, 2019]
  • By the time Hyde passed away in Sydney in 1941 the Bahá'í Teachings had been taken to every State; Local Spiritual Assemblies had been established in Auckland, Sydney and Adelaide; the National Spiritual Assembly had been established in 1934 and the Yerrinbool Bahá’í School had been inaugurated in 1938. [Spiritual conquerors of this wide, brown land by Graham Hassall]
  • In 2020 the Australian community commemorated the centenary this event.
  • A 26-page booklet called A Vision of Unity was published.
  • See Outpost of a World Religion: The Bahá'í Faith in Australia 1920-1947 by Graham Hassall in SBBH14 p201 and in Journal of Religious History, 16:3, pages 315-338 1991-06.
  • Sydney; Australia Clara and Hyde Dunn; Clara Dunn; Hyde Dunn; Hands of the Cause
    1922 (In the year) Oswald Whitaker, a Sydney optometrist, and Euphemia Eleanor `Effie' Baker, a photographer, become Bahá'ís, the first Australians to accept the Faith. [BW14:320; SBR160-1, BW2p129]
  • In the 1930s Effie Baker travelled to Persia to take photographs of historical sites. [BW14:320]
  • See SETPE1p105-107 for her contribution while serving in Haifa.
  • For Effie Baker's obituary see BW14:320-1.
  • Australia; Iran Oswald Whitaker; Effie Baker; Photography; First Bahais by country or area
    1923 Dec The first local spiritual assembly in Australia was formed in Melbourne. Melbourne; Australia Local Spiritual Assembly
    1924 (In the year) Miss Nora Lee, who became a Bahá'í in New Zealand, was the first Bahá'í to travel to Fiji, working as a nanny in Labasa from 1924 to about 1930.
  • Gretta Lamprill became the first Bahá'í in Tasmania in the latter part of the year. [SBR162]
  • In 1924 Clara and Hyde Dunn spent three months in Hobart together with two Melbourne Baha’is. Their visit attracted a small number of individuals to the Bahá'í Faith, the first of whom was a nurse, Gretta Lamprill. She was gradually joined by others in Hobart, Launceston and Devonport. The first Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Hobart was established in 1949, providing the basis for the effective functioning of the Baha’i community since that time. [Australian Baha'i Community site]
  • Fiji; Tasmania; Hobart; Launceston; Devonport, Australia First Bahais by country or area; First travel teachers and pioneers; Clara Dunn; Hyde Dunn
    1924 Jul The second local spiritual assembly in Australia was formed in Perth. Perth; Australia Local Spiritual Assembly, formation find reference
    1934 15–18 May The first National Convention of the Bahá’ís of Australia and New Zealand was held in Sydney, with nine delegates in attendance. [SBR165]
  • The first Regional Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand was elected with its seat in Sydney. [GPB333,SBR165] iiiii
  • Those elected were: Percy Almond, Ethel Blundell, Hilda Brooks, Robert Brown, Hyde Dunn, Silver Jackman, Charlotte Moffitt, Margaret Stevenson, and Oswald Whitaker. [A Vision of Unity p10-11]
  • Sydney; Australia; New Zealand Conventions, National; National Spiritual Assembly, formation; First conventions
    1936 (In the year) The National Assembly of Australia and New Zealand first issued its news organ, the Bahá’í Quarterly. Australia; New Zealand National Spiritual Assembly
    1937 2 May The Yerrinbool Bahá’í School (originally known as ‘Bolton Place’) was officially opened in Australia. [Yerrinbool Bahá'í School 1938 - 1988: An Account of the First Fifty Years by Graham Hassall; Yerrinbool Bahá'í School and the Australian Bahá'í Community by Fazel Naghdy]
  • Bahaipedia.
  • Yerrinbool; Australia Yerrinbool Bahai School; Bahai inspired schools
    1938 Jan The National Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand incorporated. [GPB336] Australia; New Zealand National Spiritual Assembly of Australia; National Spiritual Assembly of New Zealand; National Spiritual Assembly, incorporation; Incorporation; Recognition (legal)
    1941 17 Feb John Henry Hyde Dunn, passed away in Sydney. [BW9:595; SBR166]
  • Shortly after his passing Shoghi Effendi appointed him to the rank of Hand of the Cause of God. (26 April, 1952) [MoCxxii]
  • For the story of his life see SBR153–68.
  • For his obituary see BW9:593–7.
  • For a biography see The Bahá'í Encyclopedia Project
  • Photo of his grave. [BW9p72]
  • See Bahá'í Chronicles.
  • Sydney; Australia Hyde Dunn; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; In Memoriam; Hands appointed posthumously by Shoghi Effendi
    1944 (In the year) Hand of the Cause Collis Featherstone and his wife, Madge, were introduced to the Bahá’í Faith by Bertha and Joe Dobbins in Adelaide, Australia. They became Bahá’ís later in the year. Adelaide; Australia Collis Featherstone; Madge Featherstone; Bertha Dobbins; Joe Dobbins
    1944 (In the year) The National Spiritual Assembly of Australia was incorporated. Australia National Spiritual Assembly, Incorporation find reference
    1947 (In the year) The Australian-New Zealand teaching plan, the Australian Six Year Plan (1947–53), comprising internal goals only, was launched. [BBRSM158; LGANZ97; The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]

    The homefront goals were:
      - To establish two new Spiritual Assemblies in Australia
      - To establish nineteen groups in Australasia

    Australia; New Zealand Teaching Plans; Australia-New Zealand Six Year Plan
    1947 Ridván The National Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand launched a Six Year Plan (1947-1953). [Ruhi 8.2 p46] Australia; New Zealand Teaching Plans; Teaching Plans, National
    1957 Ridván The formation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Canberra, the last capital city in Australia to form. Canberra; Australia Local Spiritual Assembly find reference
    1957 7 May Shoghi Effendi sent a fragment of the plaster from the room of the Báb in the Fortress of Máh-Kú to Australia to be set in the foundations of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár in Sydney. [LANZ134; SBR172] Sydney; Australia Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship); Mashriqul-Adhkar, Sydney; Fortress of Mah-Ku; Gifts; Relics; Boxes containing dust, earth or plaster; Shoghi Effendi, Life of
    1957 Oct Shoghi Effendi called for the convocation of a series of Intercontinental Conferences to be held successively in Kampala, Uganda (Regional Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Central and East Africa); Sydney, Australia (National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Australia); Chicago, United States (National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States of America,; Frankfurt, Germany (National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Germany and: Austria); and Djakarta, Indonesia (Regional Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of South-East Asia). [BW13:311–12; MBW125]

    The five-fold purpose of the International Conferences was:

    1. offering humble thanksgiving to the Divine Author of our Faith, Who has graciously enabled His followers, during a period of deepening anxiety and amidst the confusion and uncertainties of a critical phase in the fortunes of mankind,
    2. to prosecute uninterruptedly the Ten-Year Plan formulated for the execution of the Grand Design conceived by 'Abdu'l-Bahá,
    3. of reviewing and celebrating the series of signal victories won so rapidly in the course of each of the campaigns of this world-encircling Crusade,
    4. of deliberating on ways and means that will insure its triumphant consummation,
    5. and of lending simultaneously a powerful impetus, the world over, to the vital process of individual conversion -the preeminent purpose underlying the Plan in all its ramifications - and to the construction and completion of the three Mother Temples to be built in the European, the African, and Australian continents. [CBN No 94 Nov 1957 p1]
    BWC; Kampala; Uganda; Sydney; Australia; Chicago; United States; Frankfurt; Germany; Djakarta; Indonesia Conferences, Bahai; Conferences, Teaching; Conferences, Intercontinental; Ten Year Crusade
    1958 21–24 Mar The second Intercontinental Conference was held at the mid-point of the Crusade convenes in Sydney, Australia. [BW13:319]
  • Hand of the Cause Charles Mason Remey, who had been designated by the Guardian as his representative and who was the architect of the Mother Temple of Australasia, attended, accompanied by four other Hands of the Cause. [BW13:317]
  • For the message of the Custodians to the conference see MC72–5.
  • For a report of the conference see BW13:319–21.
  • Sydney; Australia; Australasia Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Activities; Charles Mason Remey; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Sydney; Conferences, Bahai; Conferences, Teaching; Conferences, Intercontinental; Ten Year Crusade; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Design; Architecture; Architects
    1958 22 Mar The foundation stone of the first Mashriqul-Adhkár of the Antipodes in Sydney was laid by Hands of the Cause Charles Mason Remey and Clara Dunn. [BW13:321] Sydney; Australia Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship); Mashriqul-Adhkar, Sydney; Charles Mason Remey; Clara Dunn; Foundation stones and groundbreaking
    1958. 21 Jun The South Australian Government Gazette announced that Mr. Harold Collis Featherstone had been registered as an officiating registrar under the Marriage Act, 1936-1937. This meant that local spiritual assemblies in South Australia could now conduct marriages in conjunction with the Officiating Registrar. [BN No 333 November 1958 p8] Australia Recognition (legal)
    1960 18 Nov Clara Dunn, Hand of the Cause of God, passed away in Sydney. (b.12 May 1869) [BW13:859; MoC245]
  • For her obituary see BW13:859–62.
  • For cable from the Hands see MoC245.
  • See also SBR153–75.
  • Shoghi Effendi had appointed her among the second contingent on the 29th of February, 1952. She was one of only eight women appointed. [MoCxxiii]
  • For a biography see The Bahá'í Encyclopedia Project.
  • Remembering Clara Dunn by Melanie Lotfali.
  • Sydney; Australia Clara Dunn; Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; In Memoriam; Hands of the Cause, Second Contingent
    1961 23 Jun Fred Murray, early Indigenous believer and member of the Minen tribe (Mirning Yirkala) to become a Bahá’í, enrolled. In 1963 he attended the World Congress in London. [BW14:369]
  • See the article A Tribute to Fred Murray by June Perkins.
  • Australia Fred Murray; Aboriginal people; Indigenous people; June Perkins
    1961 16 Sep The House of Worship in Sydney, the Mother Temple of the Antipodes, was dedicated by Hand of the Cause Rúhíyyih Khánum in a service for Bahá’ís only. [BW13:729; MoC15]
  • For details of the service and pictures see BW13:726–32.
  • Sydney; Australia Mashriqul-Adhkar, Sydney; Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship); Amatul-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum; Dedications
    1961 17 Sep The House of Worship in Sydney, the Mother Temple of the Antipodes, was officially opened by Hand of the Cause Rúhíyyih Khánum in two public services, each attended by 900 people. [BW13:732]
  • For message of the Custodians to the dedication service see MoC309–12.
  • For cable of the Custodians to the Bahá’ís of the world see MoC313.

    Specifics

      Location:Sydney, Australia (Ingleside on the MonaVale Road).
      Foundation Stone: 26 Jan 1958 (Clara Dunn and Hand of the Cause Charles Mason Remey, who had been designated by the Guardian as his representative, while attending the 2nd International Conference 21-24 March, 1958. A small bag of earth from the inner Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh and a piece of plaster from the room of the Báb in Máh-Kú was deposited under the floor.)
      Construction Period: 1957-1961
      Site Dedication:16 September 1961 (Amatu’l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum brought a gift from the Guardian- a green silk carpet from the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh.)
      Architect C.M. Remey
      Seating: 500
      Dimensions: 124ft at the base and 130ft high
      Cost: Original budget was 120,000 Pounds Sterling
      Dependencies:
      References: BW13:319-322, BW13p720-732 CEBF241
  • Sydney; Australia Mashriqul-Adhkar (House of Worship); Mashriqul-Adhkar, Mother Temples; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Quick facts; Mashriqul-Adhkar, Sydney; Amatul-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum; Dedications; Clara Dunn; Mason Remey, architect; Architects; Boxes containing dust, earth or plaster; Bahaullah, Shrine of; Mah-Ku; Gifts; - Basic timeline, Expanded
    1966. 11 Sep The rescue of six Tongan boys from the uninhabited island of 'Ata by Peter Warner and his crew on his yacht the Just David. The boys, all students at St Andrew's College, had stolen a 25 foot whaling boat and, on their first night at sea, had lost the sails and the rudder in a storm. They lost the little food they had carried as well. They were adrift for 8 days without water before reaching the island in June 1965. By the time Warner arrived, the boys had set up a commune with a food garden, hollowed-out trees to store rainwater, a gymnasium, badminton court, chicken enclosures. and a permanent fire. [Wikipedia]
  • This documentary was made in 1966 shortly after the rescue.
  • Here is Peter Warner's own story of the rescue.
  • A documentary has been made of the experience. Here is the trailer.
  • In 1974 Peter Warner was once more in the right spot at the right time, when he rescued a shipwrecked sailing crew on Middleton Reef in the Tasman Sea, with the help of Sione Filipe Totau, one of the Tongans he had rescued earlier.
  • Mr Warner lived in Tonga for thirty years where he became a Bahá'í and help found Ocean of Light International School. His time there was documented in his autobiography called Ocean of Light: 30 Years in Tonga and the Pacific. In the 1990s he moved to the Northern Rivers of NSW, and become a noted macadamia farmer and tree manager near Lismore, before settling in Ballina. This period of his life was covered in his autobiography Twilight of the Dawn.
  • He died on the 13th of April 2021 at the age of 90 after his boat capsized during an attempted crossing of the Ballina Bar in rough conditions. [The Echo]
  • Nukualofa; Tonga; Ballina; Australia Peter Warner; In Memoriam; Bahai schools; Ocean of Light International School
    1967 5 – 10 Oct Six Intercontinental Conferences were held simultaneously in Panama City, Wilmette, Sydney, Kampala, Frankfurt and New Delhi to celebrate the centenary of the proclamation of Bahá’u’lláh to the kings and rulers of the world in September/October of 1867. [BW 14:221]
  • For the message of the Universal House of Justice to the conferences see BW14:221–2.
  • For descriptions of each conference see BW14:223–58.
  • See CG68-69 for a brief description of the Intercontinental Conference in Kampala.
  • The six Hands of the Cause representing the Universal House of Justice at the conferences travelled to Adrianople to visit the House of Bahá’u’lláh before dispersing to the conferences. [BW14:236, 458; VV2]
  • Panama; Wilmette; Sydney; Australia; Kampala; Uganda; Frankfurt; Germany; New Delhi; India Conferences, Bahai; Conferences, Intercontinental; Tablets to Kings and rulers; Centenaries
    1968 1 or 2 Jan The passing of Euphemia (Effie) Eleanor Baker (b.25 March 1880 at Goldsborough, Victoria) in Waverley, New South Wales.
  • For Effie Baker's obituary see BW14:320-1.
  • She became a Bahá'í in 1922 after attending a lecture by Clara and Hyde Dunn in Melbourne. She was the first woman to converted to the Faith in Australia.
  • She served in Haifa from 1925 to 1936. See SETPE1p105-107 for her contribution during that period.
  • In the 1930s Effie Baker travelled to Persia to take photographs of historical sites. Many of these photographs were included in The Dawnbreakers. [BW14:320]
  • Hear The Life of Effie Baker written and read by Sonjel Vreeland.
  • She was buried in the Bahá'í Cemetery in Mona Vale. [Australian Dictionary of Biography]
  • Waverly; New South Wales; Australia Effie Baker; In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Cemeteries and graves; Dawn-Breakers (book)
    1969 4 – 6 Apr The first National Youth Conference of Australia opened at Bolton Place summer School. [BW15:329]
  • For picture see BW15:328.
  • Bolton Place; Australia Conferences, Bahai; Conferences, Youth; Conferences, National; Conferences, First
    1975 (In the year) The Bahá’í Publishing Trust of Australia was established. Australia Publishing Trusts
    1982 9 – 12 Apr The first Conference on Bahá’í Scholarship to be held in Australia took place at Yerrinbool Bahá’í School in New South Wales. [BW18:202-203] New South Wales; Australia Conferences, Other; Conferences; Bahai studies; First conferences
    1982 2 – 5 Sep A Bahá’í International Conference to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the passing of the Greatest Holy Leaf was held in Canberra, Australia, attended by some 2,400 Bahá’ís, twice as many as were expected, from 45 countries. [BW18:100; VV61]
      This conference was originally scheduled to be held in Manila, in the Philippines. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated March 1981]
  • For the message of the Universal House of Justice see BW18:159–60.
  • For a pictorial report see BW18:147–50.
  • Canberra; Australia Conferences, Bahai; Conferences, International; Bahiyyih Khanum (Greatest Holy Leaf)
    1984 Jun The Association for Bahá’í Studies, Australia, was established in Perth. [BW19:356] Perth; Australia Bahai Studies, Associations for
    1986 Jul Jack Malardy, 88-year-old tribal leader of the Karradjarrie people of Australia, and his wife Lilly become Bahá’ís in Lagrange, Australia. [BINS156:3; BINS179:1] Australia Jack Malardy; Lilly Malardy
    1987 (In the year) The first National Children’s Camp in Australia was held in Yerrinbool School with 36 children between 9 and 13 years of age in attendance. [BINS173:10] Yerrinbool; Australia Yerrinbool Bahai School; Bahai schools; Children
    1987 Sep The United Nations Secretary-General designated the Bahá’í International Community and the National Spiritual Assemblies of Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Kenya and Lesotho as Peace Messengers, an honour given to only 300 organizations worldwide for their support of the UN Year of Peace 1986. [BINS173:4] New York; United States; Australia; Belgium; Brazil; Kenya; Lesotho United Nations; Bahai International Community; International Year of Peace; Peace
    1990 29 Sep The passing of Hand of the Cause of God H. Collis Featherstone in Katmandu, Nepal. He was born at Quorn, South Australia on May 5th, 1913. [BINS232:8, VV12, The Bahá'í Encyclopedia, Find a grave]
  • For his obituary see BW20p809-818.
  • Shoghi Effendi had appointed him among the third contingent on the 2nd of October, 1957. [MoCxxiii]
  • See Bahá'í Recollections for an article complete with pictures by Narenda Pande about Mr. Featherstone's last days and funeral.
  • See LoF434-448 for a biography.
  • Find a grave.
  • Kathmandu; Nepal; Quorn; South Australia Hands of the Cause; Hands of the Cause, Births and deaths; Births and deaths; Collis Featherstone; In Memoriam; Hands of the Cause, Third Contingent
    1992 23 – 26 Nov The Second World Congress was held in New York City to commemorate the centenary of the passing of Bahá'u'lláh and the completion of the Six Year Plan. It was attended by some 28,000 Bahá'ís from some 180 countries. [BBD240; VV136-141; BW92-93p95-102, 136]
  • Nine auxiliary conferences were held in Buenos Aires, Sydney, New Delhi, Nairobi, Panama City, Bucharest, Moscow, Apia and Singapore. [BINS283:3-4]
  • For pictures see [BINS283:9-10], [BW92-3p100] and [VV136-141]
  • "New York will become a blessed spot from which the call to steadfastness in the Covenant and Testament of God will go forth to every part of the world." - 'Abdu'l-Bahá [AWH77-8 90-1 105-6]
  • On the 25th of November a concert was held in Carnegie Hall as a birthday tribute to Dizzy Gillespie called "Celebrating the Bahá'í Vision of World Peace". [VV141]
  • On the 26th of November Bahá'ís around the world were linked together by a live satellite broadcast serving the second Bahá'í World Congress, the nine auxiliary conferences and the Bahá'í World Centre and it was received by those with access to satellite dish antennas. [BINS283:1–5, 8; BINS286:10; BINS287:4]
  • For the message of the Universal House of Justice read on the satellite link see BW92–3:37–4.
  • For accounts of personal experiences by some of the attendees see In the Eyes of His Beloved Servants: The Second Bahá'í World Congress and Holy Year by J. Michael Kafes.
  • The film, 'Abdu'l-Bahá: Mission to America, made by Elizabeth Martin, was prepared for the World Congress program and also used in the Theme Pavilion. [HNWE45]
  • New York; United States; Buenos Aires; Argentina; Sydney; Australia; New Delhi; India; Nairobi; Kenya; Panama; Bucharest; Romania; Moscow; Russia; Apia; Samoa; Singapore World Congresses; Carnegie Hall; Centenaries; Bahaullah, Ascension of; Dizzy Gillespie; - Basic timeline, Expanded; film; Abdul-Baha: Mission to America; Elizabeth Martin
    1993 Oct The Australian Bahá'í community and the Arrente Aboriginal tribe co-sponsored an intercultural celebration of indigenous peoples, ‘Heart of Australia Calling' in Alice Springs to mark UN International Year for the World's Indigenous Peoples. [BW93–4:90] Alice Springs; Australia Indigenous people
    1994 (Summer) A Maoris teaching team visited British Columbia. The visit was reciprocated by The Journey of Teech-ma, the First Nations Travel Teaching Trip to the South Pacific. See entry for 24 March, 1997. [SDSC370] British Columbia; Canada; Australia; New Zealand First Nations; Maoris; Indigenous people; Travel teaching
    1997. 24 Mar - 16 May The nine member First Nations Travel Teaching Trip to the South Pacific, called "The Journey of Teech-ma" consisted of Canadian Bahá'ís from Kwakiutl, Nuu-Cha-Nuth, the Ojibway First Nations, a Yupik Bahá'í from Alaska and three non-Native Canadian friends. They shared their culture and their Faith with the Maori, other New Zealanders, the Aborigines and other Australians as well as the ne-Vanuatu peoples. See entry for 1994 (Summer). [SDSC370] New Zealand; Australia; Vanuatu; Canada First Nations; Travel Teaching; Pacific; Maoris; Aboriginal people; Indigenous people
    2004 29 Jun The passing of Gloria Faizi (b. Gloria Alá'í on 12 March, 1921 in Tehran) in Brisbane, Australia. The Universal House of Justice said they remembered with appreciation "her many contributions to the progress of the Bahá'í communities, including her pioneering in Bahrain with her illustrious husband, her work at the Bahá'í World Centre, and her devoted travels far and wide as a teacher of the Cause."
  • Gloria Faizi was born into the Ala'i family, distinguished for its service to the Faith. She met the head of the Faith, Shoghi Effendi, when she accompanied her father to the Holy Land as a child. When she was 17, she married Abu'l-Qásim Faizi, and together they assisted Baha'i communities in a remote rural area of Iran before settling in Bahrain in the mid-1940s. Their two children, Naysan and May, were born during their 15 years there. [BWNW318, BW04-05p287]
  • Some of her publications were:
    • The Bahá'i Faith, An Introduction (1971) Lebanon
    • Fire on the Mountain Top (1973) London
    • Flowers of One Garden (1977) Poona, India
    • Stories about 'Abdu'l-Bahá
    • Bahá'u'lláh: The Promised One (2002)
    • Stories About Bahá'í Funds (1993)
  • Brisbane; Australia; Bahrain Gloria Faizi; In Memoriam; Births and deaths; Abul-Qasim Faizi
    2004 16 Oct The first annual Australian Bahá'í Film Festival at the Sydney Bahá'í Centre for which more than 30 short films had been submitted. [Australian Bahá'í Film Fest] Sydney; Australia Film festivals; Film
    2009 24 – 25 Jan Regional Conferences were held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, Sydney, Australia and Madrid, Spain. [BWNS690] Ulaan Baatar; Mongolia; Sydney; Australia; Madrid; Spain Conferences, Regional; BWNS
    2009. 3 - 9 Dec The 2009 Parliament was convened with the theme Make a World of Difference: Hearing Each Other, Healing the Earth with 6,000 participants. Environmental issues were prominently featured and the Convening included an Assembly of Indigenous Elders from different parts of the world in dialogue with Australian Aboriginal Elders. [Melbourne 2009] Melbourne; Australia Parliament of the Worlds Religions
    2009. 4 Jan See the letter from the Department of the Secretariat of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Australia regarding the development of the Yerrinbool Bahá'í Centre of Learning. Yerrinbool; Australia Bahai Studies; Bahai Academics; Bahai Scholarship
    2011. 9 Apr The debut of the film A Deeper Calling: Reflections on the transformative power of Prayer. This film was created for the 2022 World Conference in Brisbane, Australia (8-10 April, 2022), and was one of hundreds of global conferences taking place after being called for by the Universal House of Justice. It is is a short film which shares the stories of five youth from Inala, a small neighbourhood in Brisbane, Australia. It explores what each of these young people have learnt about the power of prayer through their involvement in the Ruhi Institute Process and Baha’i community life. Brisbane; Australia film; A Deeper Calling
    2011 - 2016 (The Five Year Plan) The annual number of seminars for undergraduate students offered by the Institute for Studies in Global Prosperity rose from 21 at the start of the Plan to 39. More than 4,000 youth in more than 60 countries were served.
  • The seminar for university graduates and for young professionals, first offered in North America in 2008, was extended to Australia, Europe, Latin America and south and Southeast Asia over the duration of the Plan. As of this date more than 700 individuals had taken part. [The Five Year Plan 2011-2016: Summary of Achievements and Learning pg113] iiiii
  • Australia; Europe; Latin America; South-East Asia; South Asia; North America Institute for Studies in Global Prosperity (ISGP); Statistics
    2016 25 Apr The passing of former member of the International Teaching Centre, Joy Stevenson (b. 1919) in Queanbeyan, Australia. She made a distinctive contribution to the advancement of Bahá'í communities in Australasia as a Counsellor and an Auxiliary Board member and as a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Australia. [BWNS1103]
  • Bahaipedia.
  • Queanbeyan; Australia In Memoriam; Joy Stevenson; International Teaching Centre, Members of; BWNS; Auxiliary Board Members
    2019. 6 - 7 Apr The Heroes Teaching Conference was an historic gathering of over 1,000 Baha'i adults, youth, junior youth and children, as well as some of their like-minded friends from all over Southern Queensland and Northern New South Wales, Australia. It was organised by the Regional Bahá'í Council and Board of Counsellors, the program aimed to help its participants find their place in service to Bahá’u’lláh and humanity, by drawing on the heroism of the past, inspiring them to arise, through humble service, and become heroes of the Faith for this age. [Conference Website] Brisbane; Australia Heroes Teaching Conference; Conferences, Teaching; Conferences; Regional Bahai Councils
    2020. 24 Sep The passing of former member of the International Teaching Centre Violette Haake (b.1928 in Iran) in Melbourne, Australia. She served in the United States and in Australia in the role of Auxiliary Board Member, as a Continental Counsellor in Australasia and ten years as a member of the International Teaching Centre. [BWNS1452] Melbourne; Australia Violette Haake; In Memoriam; Auxiliary Board Members
    2020. 25 Nov The release of Creating an Inclusive Narrative, a publication of the Australian Bahá’í community. Hundreds of discussion were held all across the country to consider the future of their country. The results of the meetings were reported in this document.

    The Bahá’ís of Australia embarked on the two year project to facilitate discussion on social cohesion and related questions with hundreds of participants—including officials, organizations of civil society, journalists, and numerous social actors—across all states and territories.

    The project began in 2017 and by 2018 the Office of External Affairs had become more engaged. With the encouragement of different social actors and government departments, the idea for Creating an Inclusive Narrative began to take shape. Australia is a country of over 80 ethnic and racial groups in more than 417 localities and the process had to involve diverse voices from different realities throughout the country—east and west, rural and urban, and from the grassroots to the national level. In order for this to scale, many people were involved as facilitators. It was important that facilitators were residents of the areas in which gatherings were taking place ensuring their familiarity with local issues and concerns. This approach meant that facilitators and participants could continue their discussions in between the monthly gatherings, resulting in growing enthusiasm and interest among participants to continue the process. The project eventually sustained monthly gatherings concurrently across several states, resulting in a total of 50 roundtables. [BWNS1504; BWNS1470; BWNS1498]

  • The document is available in PDF format
  • Australia Creating an Inclusive Narrative (publication)
    2023. 18 Jan The publication of a revised edition Journey of Courage; From Disability to Spiritual Ability compiled by Frances Mezei & Shirlee Smith. It was published by Bahá'í Publications Australia. Australia Frances Mezei; Shirlee Smith

    from the Chronology Canada

    date event locations tags see also
    1997. 24 Mar - 16 May The nine member First Nations Travel Teaching Trip to the South Pacific, called "The Journey of Teech-ma" consisted of Canadian Bahá'ís from Kwakiutl, Nuu-Cha-Nuth, the Ojibway First Nations, a Yupik Bahá'í from Alaska and three non-Native Canadian friends. They shared their culture and their Faith with the Maori, other New Zealanders, the Aborigines and other Australians as well as the ne-Vanuatu peoples. See entry for 1994 (Summer). [SDSC370] New Zealand; Australia; Vanuatu; Canada First Nations; Travel Teaching; Pacific; Maoris; Aboriginal people; Indigenous people

    from the Main Catalogue

    1. 75 Years of the Bahá'í Faith in Australasia (1996). Papers from the proceedings from the 1995 National Bahá'í Studies Conference, Australia. [about]
    2. Ambassador at the Court: The Life and Photography of Effie Baker, by Graham Hassall (1999). Extensive biography of Effie Baker, an early Australian Bahá'í. [about]
    3. Australia: History of the Bahá'í Faith, by Graham Hassall (1998). Short history of the Bahá'í community of Australia. [about]
    4. Australian Bahá'í Studies: Vol. 2, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, vol. 2 (2000). The complete issue of volume 2. Some papers were delivered at the 18th annual ABS conference "The Creative Inspiration: Arts and Culture in the Bahá’í Faith" (Melbourne, September 1999). [about]
    5. Australian Women and Religious Change: Margaret Dixson and the First Melbourne Baha'is, by Graham Hassall, in Proceedings of the Association for Bahá'í Studies (1988). Women played an important role in the initial spread and development of the Bahá’í Faith in Australia. In doing so, they struggled to break the bounds that traditionally defined women's place in the life and organization of a religious community. [about]
    6. Australian-New Zealand Bahá'í Connections, The, by David Brown Carr, in 75 Years of the Bahá'í Faith in Australasia (1996). History and relationship of the early Australian and New Zealand Bahá'í communities, the magazine Herald of the South, and some brief biographies. [about]
    7. Bahá'í Communities by Country: Research Notes, by Graham Hassall (2000). Brief notes on the history of Bahá'í activities and the dates of NSA formation in Africa, China, Australia, and elsewhere. [about]
    8. Bahá'í Community of Randwick: A Survey of 75 Years, by Graham Hassall, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, 1:1 (1999). History of the Bahá'í community of Randwick, Australia. [about]
    9. Baha'i country notes: Australia, by Graham Hassall (1997). [about]
    10. Bahá'í Faith: Prophecy and Conversion, by Brian J. Mistler (2001-02). Results of a field study of Bahá'ís in the United States and Australia which demonstrate that family connections and social teachings are greater incentives to conversion than prophecy is. [about]
    11. Bahá'í Faith in Australia: 75 Years Remembered, by Graham Hassall, in Herald of the South (1995-06). An overview of the development of the Bahá'í Faith in Australia from its origins up to the mid-1990s; House of Worship in Sydney; the journal Herald of the South; Clara and Hyde Dunn and other early believers. [about]
    12. Bahá'í Faith in Australia 1947-1963, by Graham Hassall, in 75 Years of the Bahá'í Faith in Australasia (1996). Major episodes in the evolution of the Australian Bahá'í community during the years 1947-1963, noting the way in which religious communities can transform over time; the temple in Sydney; the 10-year world crusade; aboriginal Bahá'ís. [about]
    13. Bahá'í Faith in Tasmania 1923-1963, by Graham Hassall, in The Family: Our Hopes and Challenges (1995). Early history of the Bahá'í community of Tasmania. [about]
    14. Bahá'í News Publications Seek to Elevate Thought, Inspire Action, by Bahá'í World News Service, in Bahá'í World (2018-10-12). Brief overview of the histories of various Bahá'í journals: Star of the West, Khurshid-i khavar, Sonne der Wahrheit, Wirklichkeit, The Dawn, Herald of the South, The Bahá'í World, World Order, and Bahá’í World News Service. [about]
    15. Bahá'ís in the West, in Studies in the Bábí and Bahá'í Religions, volume 14 (2004). Essays and illustrations on the beginnings of the Faith in Australia and New Zealand, Denmark, Hungary, and the United States. [about]
    16. Baháʼí Houses of Worship: A Visual Overview (2020). A collection of collages, exterior and interior images of Baháʼí Houses of Worship constructed, under construction, or planned worldwide. [about]
    17. Bioprospecting and Indigenous Knowledge in Australia: Implications of Valuing Indigenous Spiritual Knowledge, by John Hunter and Chris Jones (2006-07). Co-authored/painted paper by Aboriginal and 'Western' authors primarily focusing on spiritual issues in law. [about]
    18. Centenary of the Bahá'í Faith in Australia, by Boris Handal (2020). Overview of the 100-year history of the Faith in Australia and New Zealand, starting from the arrival of pioneers Clara and Hyde Dunn in 1920. [about]
    19. Clara Dunn: A Spiritual Pioneer, by Michael Day (2010). Brief bio of Dunn, followed by an overview of the Australian Bahá'í community. [about]
    20. Creating an Inclusive Narrative, by Australian Bahá'í Community (2020-11). Culmination of a series of nationwide round tables, conveying the vision of Australians to foster a socially cohesive society. [about]
    21. Death Penalty, The: Australian Legal Institutions vs the Bahá'í Faith?, by Roger Le Lievre, in 75 Years of the Bahá'í Faith in Australasia (1996). The Bahá'í teachings accept the application of the death penalty as a punishment for murder as an expression of retributive justice. [about]
    22. Distinguishing Personal Correspondence of Secretaries from Letters on Shoghi Effendi's Behalf, by Universal House of Justice (2019-02-18). Distinguishing letters on behalf of Shoghi Effendi from personal correspondence of secretaries. Also addresses authenticity of two letters attributed as being on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, published in the 1997 version of Messages to the Antipodes. [about]
    23. Domestic Temporalities: Sensual Patterning in Persian Migratory Landscapes, by Simone Dennis and Megan Warin, in Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, 7:2 (2007-09). Embodied paths of patterning, memory and emotion amongst Persian immigrant women in Adelaide, especially the Bahá'í expatriate community. Link to document (offsite). [about]
    24. Dunn, Clara and Hyde, by Graham Hassall (2000-01). Biography of two early Bahá'í teachers and pioneers. [about]
    25. Dunn, Clara and John Henry Hyde, by Graham Hassall, in The Bahá'í Encyclopedia (2009). On the couple who went to Australia in 1920 in response to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s call for worldwide expansion of the Bahá’í Faith and firmly established it in the Antipodes, designated Hands of the Cause of God by Shoghi Effendi. [about]
    26. Effects of addiction/alcoholism, acculturation, physical, emotional and sexual violence on the education of aboriginal children, The, by Tjanara Goreng-Goreng, in The Family: Our Hopes and Challenges (1995). The social problems facing many Australian aboriginal children; the need to involve indigenous peoples themselves in responding to these problems. [about]
    27. Fazel Mohammad Khan, by Graham Hassall, in Bahá'í World, Vol. 20 (1986-1992) (1999). The life of Fazel "Frank" Khan, an Australian Muslim convert to the Bahá'í Faith. [about]
    28. First and Finest: John Henry and Clara Hyde Dunn in Australia, by Graham Hassall, in Herald of the South (1985-07). Introduction of the Bahá'í Faith to Australia and New Zealand. [about]
    29. From: Ron Price's Epic Autobiographical History: Pioneering Over Five Epochs: A History of The Bahá'í Faith in The Northern Territory and Adjoining Regions of Australia: 1947 to 1997, by Ron Price, in Published Essays in Cyberspace, At: Bahai Library Online (2001-2004). This Bahai Library Online document contains The History of the Bahá'í Community in the Northern Territory of Australia and adjacent regions: 1947-1997. This history is written in some three dozen short instalments totalling about 10000 words. [about]
    30. Hilda Brooks and the Australian Bahá'í Community, by Graham Hassall, in The Role of Women in an Advancing Civilization, ed. Sitarih 'Ala'í & Colleen Daws (1989). The role played by Hilda Margaret Brooks (1896-1969) in the development of the Australian Bahá'í Community. [about]
    31. In Memoriam: Bill Washington, by Universal House of Justice and National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Australia (2014-11). Messages of condolence from the Universal House of Justice and the National Assembly of Australia. [about]
    32. Indigenous Messengers of God, by Christopher Buck and Kevin Locke (2014-2020). 68 essays on Native American theology and history from the perspective of Bahá'í teachings. [about]
    33. Itchyfeet: Travels with Reg Priestley, by Reginald L. Priestley (1991/2001). Autobiography of a world traveller who visited many places in and around Israel while in the Palestine Policeman service in the 1940s, and the story of his acceptance of the Bahá'í Faith. [about]
    34. Letters inscribed upon His sacred scroll: An anthology of poetry by Australian Bahá'ís 1999, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, vol. 2 (2000). A collection of 16 poems. [about]
    35. Letters to Australia and New Zealand, by Shoghi Effendi (1971). [about]
    36. List of Articles on BahaiTeachings.org, by Christopher Buck (2020). List of online essays and articles by Christopher Buck since 2014. [about]
    37. Lonely road to native title determination, A, by Walter Waia, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, vol. 2 (2000). A personal account of the Saibai Island Native Title Claim: a story of an Indigenous Australian who "walked a learning road to fulfill his obligations to his family, his clan and to the community." [about]
    38. Messages to the Antipodes (Australasia), by Shoghi Effendi (1997). [about]
    39. Mr Faizi and Mr Furútan in Australia: The Yerrinbool tapes, by Abu'l-Qasim Faizi and Ali-Akbar Furutan, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, vol. 2 (2000). Lengthy talks of Hands of the Cause A.Q. Faizi and A.A. Furútan in Australia at the Yerrinbool summer school. [about]
    40. Outpost of a World Religion: The Bahá'í Faith in Australia 1920-1947, by Graham Hassall, in Journal of Religious History, 16:3 (1991-06). An updated version of a paper published in two places. [about]
    41. Outposts of a World Religion by a Bahá'í Traveler: Journeys Taken in 1933-1935, Accompanied by Edward R. Mathews, by Loulie Mathews (n.d.). Autobiography of trips to New Zealand, New Guinea, Australia, Hawaii, and South America teaching the Faith. [about]
    42. Perfection and Refinement: Towards an Aesthetics of the Bab, by Moojan Momen, in Lights of Irfan, 12 (2011). The writings of the Bab have implications for the "plastic" arts; significance for native traditions; relevance to the performing arts; and the concept of refinement which comes across in both the person and the writings of the Báb. [about]
    43. Persian Bahá'ís in Australia, by Graham Hassall, in Religion and Ethnic Identity, An Australian Study, Abe Ata, ed. (1989). Overview of the history and modern activities (ca. 1989) of the Persian Bahá'í community in Australia. [about]
    44. Return of the Dreamtime, by Pym Trueman, in The Family: Our Hopes and Challenges (1995). Brief history of Christianity and missionary work in Samoa and Australia, and how native Samoan customs and beliefs were changed or lost. [about]
    45. Ridván 1996 (Four Year Plan) - To the Followers of Bahá'u'lláh (in Australia and the Pacific): Bahá'í Era 153, by Universal House of Justice (1996). Country-specific portion of the annual message to the Bahá'ís of the world: South Pacific. [about]
    46. Scholarship from an Aboriginal Perspective, by Diana Rose Yoka, in Bahá'í Studies in Australasia vol. 3 (1996). Scholarship can be demonstrated in our daily lives, through how we interact with each other and put Bahá'u'lláh's admonitions into action; it is not limited to the written word: to have meaning it needs to include experiential learning. [about]
    47. Seventy Five Years of the Bahá'í Faith in Victoria, Australia, by Graham Hassall (1998-12). History of the Bahá'í community of Victoria, Australia. [about]
    48. Singular Room, A: An Exploration of Bahá'í Houses of Worship, by Sama Shodjai (2023-12). Overview of the design principles followed in building the Bahá'í temples, and the intricacies and considerations involved in their design, using Canada as a case study. (Link to document, offsite). [about]
    49. Something Regal: Uncle Fred Murray Extracts from a compilation of tributes, photographs and stories, by June Perkins, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, vol. 2 (2000). Stories about and pictures of Fred Murray, an early Indigenous Baha’i. [about]
    50. Táhirih's Message to the Modern World, by Martha Root, in Bahá'í World, Vol. 8 (1938-1940) (1941). Transcript of a radio address from Sunday April 21, 1940, telling the story of Ṭáhirih, describing her as the foremost woman of her generation known across Persia for her beauty, intelligence, and courage, who gave her life for the emancipation of women. [about]
    51. Talk given by Hand of the Cause of God A.Q. Faizi, Australia, by Abu'l-Qasim Faizi, in Conqueror of Hearts (1969-11-21). Discussion of "Standards and Values, "Explanations from the Writings of the Báb," and "How to Study the Book of Íqán" [about]
    52. Teaching the Faith in Australia 1963-1975: Personal Recollections, by Hedi Moani, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, 1:2 (1999). [needs abstract] [about]
    53. Thelma Perks, by Graham Hassall, in Bahá'í World, Vol. 20 (1986-1992) (1998). Perks (1901-1988) was a prominent Australian Bahá'í who served at various times on the National Spiritual Assembly of Australia, and as an inaugural Auxiliary Board member and later Continental Counselor. [about]
    54. Women and Religious Change: A case study in the colonial migrant experience, by Miriam Dixson, in Australian Bahá'í Studies, vol. 2 (2000). The story of Margaret Dixson, and one woman's growth from Anglicanism, via numerology and astrology, to commitment to the world ideals of the Bahá'í Faith. [about]
    55. Yerrinbool Bahá'í School 1938 - 1988: An Account of the First Fifty Years, by Graham Hassall (1988). History of an early Australian Bahá'í school. [about]
     
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