{"componentChunkName":"component---src-templates-archive-page-jsx","path":"/archive/66/","result":{"pageContext":{"strings":{"about":"About","additional_articles":"Additional Articles","administration":"Administration","africa":"Africa","all_bahaiorg_sites":"All Bahai.org Sites","all_sites":"All sites","all_sites_arising_serve":"Arising to Serve","all_sites_arising_serve_caption":"A film recounting highlights of the 41 regional Bahá’í conferences called by the Universal House of Justice in 2008","all_sites_bahai_org":"The official website of the worldwide Bahá’í community","all_sites_bahai_org_library":"Bahá’í Reference Library","all_sites_bahai_org_library_caption":"The authoritative online source of Bahá’í writings","all_sites_bahaullah_org":"The Life of Bahá’u’lláh","all_sites_bahaullah_org_caption":"A photographic narrative of the life of Bahá’u’lláh","all_sites_bic":"Bahá’í International Community Representative Offices","all_sites_bic_caption":"The official website of the Bahá’í International Community’s Representative Offices. The site contains news and information about recent activity and provides access to BIC statements, reports, and other publications","all_sites_bicentenary":"Bicentenary of the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh","all_sites_bicentenary_bab":"Bicentenary of the Birth of The Báb","all_sites_bicentenary_caption":"The official international website for the bicentenary of the birth of Bahá’u’lláh","all_sites_frontiers_learning":"Frontiers of Learning","all_sites_frontiers_learning_caption":"This film captures the insights and experiences of people from four communities across the world whose efforts to build vibrant communities are at the frontiers of learning","all_sites_light_to_the_world":"Light to the World","all_sites_light_to_the_world_caption":"A feature film about the life and teachings of Bahá’u’lláh","all_sites_media_bank":"Bahá’í Media Bank","all_sites_media_bank_caption":"Photographs available for downloading","all_sites_national_communities":"National Bahá’í Communities","all_sites_national_communities_caption":"A page containing links to the websites of many national Bahá’í communities from around the world","all_sites_news_bahai_org_caption":"The official news website of the worldwide Bahá’í community","all_sites_title":"Official Bahá’í Sites","all_sites_universalhouseofjustice_org":"The Universal House of Justice","all_sites_universalhouseofjustice_org_caption":"Information about the Universal House of Justice and selected statements and letters","all_sites_widening_embrace":"A Widening Embrace","all_sites_widening_embrace_caption":"A documentary film about the community-building efforts of the Bahá’í world","americas":"Americas","android":"Android","archive_results_to_of_a":"Results","archive_results_to_of_b":"to","archive_results_to_of_c":"of","asia":"Asia","back_to_story":"Back to Story","bahai_international_community":"Bahá'í International Community","bahai_media_bank":"Bahá’í Media Bank","bahai_reference_library":"Bahá’í Reference Library","bahai_world_centre":"Bahá’í World Centre","bahai_world_news_service":"Bahá’í World News Service","bahai_world_news_service_bwns":"Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS)","bahaiorg_home":"Bahai.org Home","bahais_semnan":"The Bahá’ís of Semnan","battambang_cambodia_house_worship":"House of Worship in Battambang, Cambodia","battambang_cambodia_temple":"Battambang, Cambodia Temple Inauguration","before_downloading_terms":"Before downloading please refer to the [Terms of use](/legal/).","bic_un_office":"Bahá’í International Community\nUN Office","brief_history":"Brief history","bwns_noTranslation":"BWNS","cdn_documentlibrary_path":"http://dl.bahai.org/bwns/assets/documentlibrary/","cdn_images_path":"//bwns.imgix.net/","chile_house_worship":"Chile House of Worship","chile_temple":"Chile Temple Inauguration","close":"Close","closed_doors_denial_education_iran":"Closed Doors: Denial of Education in Iran","comma":",","comprehensive_report":"Comprehensive report","contact":"Contact","contact_h1":"Contacting the Bahá’í World News Service","contact_h2":"Contacting Bahá’í institutions","contact_h3":"Reporting technical problems","contact_information":"Contact Information","contact_p1":"General inquiries about BWNS can be directed to [news@bahai.org](mailto:news@bahai.org). Information regarding news and media contacts is available in the [Media Information](/media-information/) section.","contact_p2":"The Bahá’í Faith is established in more than 100,000 localities in virtually every country and territory around the world. At the national level, the affairs of the Bahá’í community are guided by National Spiritual Assemblies, and a list of websites for many national Bahá’í communities can be found at the [National Communities page](https://www.bahai.org/national-communities/) on Bahai.org.","contact_p3":"To report a technical problem with this site, please send a detailed description and screenshot of the issue, along with the address of the page where it occurred, to [webmaster@bahai.org](mailto:webmaster@bahai.org). Please note that this email address exists to receive reports of technical problems with the site and it is not possible to respond to other queries through this facility.","copy_link":"Copy Link","did_not_match_any_documents_showing_results_for":"did not match any documents. Showing results for","did_you_mean":"Did you mean:","download":"Download","download_highest_resolution":"Download highest resolution","email":"Email","email_address":"Email Address","enlarge":"Enlarge","error_page":"Error Occurred","error_page_p1":"Sorry. An error has occurred with your request. It would help us if you let us know what you were trying to do when this error occurred by using our [contact form](https://www.bahai.org/contact/).","europe":"Europe","featured_stories":"Featured stories","featured_videos":"Featured videos","follow_updates_via_instagram_twitter":"Follow the Bahá’í World News Service on Twitter and Instagram for regular updates and stories","from_bwns_archive":"From the Bahá’í World News Service archive","get_notified_stories":"Get notified of stories","highest_resolution":"Highest resolution","historical_photographs":"Historical photographs","homepage_feature_audio_h2":"Recent podcast episodes","homepage_feature_audio_h3":"Audio versions of stories","homepage_feature_audio_p1":"Selected audio content from around the globe","homepage_feature_h1":"Subscribe to BWNS Updates","houses_worship":"Houses of Worship","human_rights_iran":"Human Rights in Iran","images":"images","ios":"iOS","iran_news_stories":"Iran News Stories","key_terms_facts":"Key terms and facts","latest_headlines":"Latest headlines","latest_video_category":"Latest","legal":"Legal","legal_h1":"Privacy","legal_h2":"Terms of Use","legal_information":"Legal Information","legal_li_1":"They must at all times be attributed to the Bahá’í World News Service.","legal_li_2":"Photographs and stories cannot be used in any way (including, without limitation, suggesting an association with or endorsement of any product, service, opinion or cause) that conflicts with the intent and premise of the original source.","legal_li_3":"Photographs may be edited for size only. Captions must remain with the photographs at all times.","legal_li_4":"The Bahá’í World News Service will not be responsible to any person or organization for any liability for any direct, incidental,  consequential, indirect, or punitive damages that may result from any access to or use of the stories and/or photographs on our site.","legal_li_5":"Although this blanket permission to reproduce BWNS material is given freely such that no special permission is required, the Bahá’í World News Service retains full copyright protection for its stories and photographs under all applicable national and international laws.","legal_p1_1":"On this Web site we try to ensure your privacy. We collect only personal information provided by you on a voluntary basis, in order to respond to your queries and to send you any additional information and material that you request.","legal_p1_2":"Visitors to this Web site are not tracked, except to produce aggregate statistical data that does not identify individual users. Where we must use cookies to provide essential functionality, these are not used to track your use of the site or to store personally-identifiable information. Steps have been taken to ensure that all information collected from you will remain secure, free from unauthorized access, use or disclosure. Please keep in mind that if you leave this site via a link, the other site may have a different policy regarding privacy.","legal_p1_3a":"We occasionally update this privacy policy and encourage you to review it periodically. If you wish to correct your personal information, or have questions regarding this policy, please send an email message to","legal_p1_3b":"or call the Bahá’í World News Service at +972 (4) 835-8412, between 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. GMT +2, Sunday through Thursday.","legal_p2_1":"All stories and photographs produced by the Bahá’í World News Service may be freely reprinted, e-mailed, posted to the World Wide Web and otherwise reproduced by any individual or organization, subject to the following restrictions:","legal_p2_2":"The Bahá’í World News Service is an agency of the Bahá’í International Community, a nongovernmental organization that represents and encompasses the five million members of the Bahá’í Faith.","links_other_websites":"Links to other Web sites","listen":"Listen","listen_bwns":"Listen to BWNS","load_more_results":"Load more results","media_bank":"Media Bank","media_information":"Media Information","media_information_about_bwns":"About BWNS","media_information_administration_h2":"International","media_information_administration_h3":"National","media_information_administration_h4":"Local","media_information_administration_p1":"The Bahá’í Faith is administered by a series of elected bodies at the local, national, and international levels. There is no class of ecclesiastics or clergy.","media_information_administration_p2":"The Universal House of Justice is the international governing council of the Bahá’í Faith. It is the supreme administrative body ordained by Bahá’u’lláh in His book of laws. The Universal House of Justice is elected every five years at the International Bahá’í Convention, where members of the National Spiritual Assemblies (see below) around the world serve as delegates. The Universal House of Justice was first elected in 1963. Its permanent seat is on Mount Carmel in Haifa.","media_information_administration_p3":"At the national level, the affairs of the Bahá’í community are administered by the National Spiritual Assembly, a nine-member elected council responsible for guiding, co-ordinating, and stimulating the activities of Local Spiritual Assemblies and individual members of the Bahá’í community within a given country. The responsibilities of a National Spiritual Assembly include channelling the community’s financial resources, fostering the growth and vibrancy of the national Bahá’í community, supervising the affairs of the community including its social and economic development activities and its properties, overseeing relations with government, resolving questions from individuals and Local Spiritual Assemblies, and strengthening the participation of the Bahá’í community in the life of society at the national level.","media_information_administration_p4":"At the local level, the affairs of the Bahá’í community are administered by the Local Spiritual Assembly. Each Local Assembly consists of nine members who are chosen in annual elections. As with all other elected Bahá’í institutions, the Assembly functions as a body and makes decisions through consultation. The responsibilities of the Local Spiritual Assembly include promoting the spiritual education of children and young people, strengthening the spiritual and social fabric of Bahá’í community life, assessing and utilizing the community’s resources, and ensuring that the energies and talents of community members contribute towards progress.","media_information_administration_p5":"In addition, the Bahá’í Faith has **counsellors**, appointed to five-year terms by the Universal House of Justice, who serve as advisers in countries and regions around the world. Currently there are 90 such counsellors assigned to specific countries or regions, and an additional nine counsellors who constitute the membership of the International Teaching Centre at the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa.","media_information_administration_p6":"The Bahá’í International Community is a non-governmental organization that represents the worldwide Bahá’í community. It has been registered with the United Nations (UN) as a non-governmental organization since 1948. It currently has consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social council (ECOSOC) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), as well as accreditation with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI). The Bahá’í International Community collaborates with the UN and its specialized agencies, as well as member states, inter- and non-governmental organizations, academia, and practitioners. It has Representative Offices in Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, Geneva, Jakarta, and New York.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_li_4_a":"the Seat of the Universal House of Justice,","media_information_bahai_world_centre_li_4_b":"the International Teaching Centre,","media_information_bahai_world_centre_li_4_c":"the Centre for the Study of the Texts,","media_information_bahai_world_centre_li_4_d":"the International Archives Building.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p1":"The spiritual and administrative center of the Bahá’í Faith is permanently established in the Acre-Haifa area of northern Israel, following the explicit instructions of Bahá’u’lláh.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p2":"The burial place, or shrine, of Bahá’u’lláh near Acre and that of the Báb on Mount Carmel in Haifa are the holiest spots on earth for Bahá’ís. Other sites associated with the life of Bahá’u’lláh as well as the burial site of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá are revered by Bahá’ís as holy places.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p3":"The shrines are the object of pilgrimage for thousands of Bahá’ís each year.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p4":"The administrative offices are positioned in an Arc across Mount Carmel in Haifa and include:","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p5":"Also in Haifa are the Bahá’í International Community’s Secretariat and Office of Public Information.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p6":"The Bahá’í World Centre is known for the gardens surrounding the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh near Acre, and also for the gardens and terraces surrounding the golden-domed Shrine of the Báb on Mount Carmel in Haifa.","media_information_bahai_world_centre_p7":"At this time the Shrine of the Báb is open to the public.","media_information_brief_history_p1":"The Bahá’í Faith traces its origin to 1844 and the announcement by a young man, Siyyid ‘Alí-Muhammad, in Shiraz, Persia (now Iran), that He had been sent by God to prepare humanity for a new age and the imminent appearance of another Messenger even greater than Himself.","media_information_brief_history_p10":"During the 40 years of His exile, Bahá’u’lláh revealed a series of books, tablets, and letters that today form the core of the **holy writings of the Bahá’í Faith**. Comprising the equivalent of some 100 volumes, the writings of Bahá’u’lláh describe the nature of God and the purpose of human existence, give new religious laws, and outline a vision for creating a peaceful and prosperous global society.","media_information_brief_history_p11":"In His will, Bahá’u’lláh named His eldest son, ‘Abbás Effendi (1844-1921), as the head of the Bahá’í Faith and authorized interpreter of His teachings. ‘Abbás Effendi, known to Bahá’ís as ‘Abdu’l-Bahá (“Servant of Bahá”), became well-known in the Haifa/Acre area for his charitable works, and he also traveled through Europe and North America to encourage nascent Bahá’í communities and to proclaim Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings to the general public. The writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá are considered part of the sacred scriptures of the Bahá’í Faith.","media_information_brief_history_p12":"‘Abdu’l-Bahá passed away in 1921. In his will he had designated his grandson **Shoghi Effendi** (1897-1957) as his successor, with the title of **Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith**. During the ministry of Shoghi Effendi, the religion spread around the world, and its local and national administrative institutions were established. With the passing of Shoghi Effendi in 1957, the line of hereditary leaders of the Bahá’í Faith came to an end.","media_information_brief_history_p13":"Following provisions established by Bahá’u’lláh, in 1963 the **Universal House of Justice** was elected to direct the affairs of the worldwide Bahá’í community. The nine members of the Universal House of Justice are elected every five years by the members of the Bahá’í national administrative bodies around the world.","media_information_brief_history_p2":"Siyyid ‘Alí-Muhammad took the title of the **Báb** (meaning “Gate” in Arabic) and said the one whose coming He foretold would be the universal Manifestation of God sent to inaugurate an age of peace and enlightenment as promised in all the world’s religions.","media_information_brief_history_p3":"The Báb’s teachings, which spread rapidly, were viewed as heretical by the clergy and government of Persia. More than 20,000 of His followers, known as Bábís, perished in a series of massacres throughout the country.","media_information_brief_history_p4":"The Báb Himself was publicly executed in the city of Tabriz on 9 July 1850.","media_information_brief_history_p5":"Bahá’ís consider the Báb to be both an independent Messenger of God and the forerunner of **Bahá’u’lláh** (“the Glory of God” in Arabic), who is the founder of the Bahá’í Faith.","media_information_brief_history_p6":"Bahá’u’lláh, whose name was Mírzá Husayn ‘Alí, was born into a noble family in Tehran on 12 November 1817. In His mid-20s, He declined a life of privilege and became one of the leading disciples of the Báb.","media_information_brief_history_p7":"In 1852, in the course of the persecution of the Bábís, He was arrested, beaten, and thrown into an infamous dungeon in Tehran. After four months, He was released and banished from His native land – the beginning of 40 years of exile and imprisonment.","media_information_brief_history_p8":"He was first sent to Baghdad, where He and His companions stayed for 10 years. In 1863, on the eve of His further banishment to what is now Turkey and then to the Holy Land, Bahá’u’lláh announced that He was the Universal Messenger of God foretold by the Báb.","media_information_brief_history_p9":"In 1868, Bahá’u’lláh arrived in the Holy Land with about 70 family members and followers, sentenced by the Ottoman authorities to perpetual confinement in the penal colony of Acre. The order of confinement was never lifted, but because of the growing recognition of His outstanding character, He eventually was able to move outside the walls of the prison city. He lived His final years at a country home called Bahjí, where He passed away in 1892. He was interred there, and His shrine is the holiest place on earth for Bahá’ís.","media_information_description":"Contacts, facts, style guide,\ngeneral information, and photos","media_information_h1":"National and local","media_information_h2":"International","media_information_h2_a":"Bahá’í World News Service","media_information_h2_b":"Bahá’í International Community","media_information_h2_c":"Bahá’í International Community - United Nations Offices:","media_information_h2_e":"For languages other than English:","media_information_houses_worship_li_1":"Wilmette, Illinois, United States. Opened in 1953.","media_information_houses_worship_li_2":"Kampala, Uganda. Opened in 1961.","media_information_houses_worship_li_3":"Sydney, Australia. Opened in 1961.","media_information_houses_worship_li_4":"Frankfurt, Germany. Opened in 1964.","media_information_houses_worship_li_5":"Panama City, Panama. Opened in 1972.","media_information_houses_worship_li_6":"Apia, Samoa. Opened in 1984.","media_information_houses_worship_li_7":"New Delhi, India. Opened in 1986.","media_information_houses_worship_li_8":"Santiago, Chile. Opened in 2016.","media_information_houses_worship_li_9":"Battambang, Cambodia. Opened in 2017.","media_information_houses_worship_li_10":"Norte del Cauca, Colombia. Opened in 2018.","media_information_houses_worship_li_11":"Matunda Soy, Kenya. Opened in 2021.","media_information_houses_worship_li_12":"Tanna, Vanuatu. Opened in 2021.","media_information_houses_worship_li_13":"Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Opened in 2023.","media_information_houses_worship_li_14":"Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. Opened in 2024.","media_information_houses_worship_p1":"Bahá’u’lláh designated Bahá’í Houses of Worship as spiritual gathering places for prayer and meditation around which will cluster social, humanitarian, educational, and scientific institutions. Eight continental, two national, and four local Bahá’í Houses of Worship have been built.","media_information_houses_worship_p2":"The physical structure of a House of Worship comprises a central building—a House of Worship—along with several dependencies. While the House of Worship forms the focal point of worship in a geographical area, its purpose is not solely to provide a place for prayer. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explained that, through the provision of education, healthcare and other services it is also to support the social and economic progress of the community and afford shelter, relief and assistance to those in need. In this connection, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá anticipated that subsidiary branches—such as a hospital, school, university, dispensary, and hospice—would gradually be added to a House of Worship. Bahá’u’lláh refers to the House of Worship as a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, Arabic for “dawning place of the mention of God.”","media_information_houses_worship_p3":"Bahá’í Houses of Worship are located in:","media_information_houses_worship_p4":"Plans are underway to build a national House of Worship in Brazil, Canada, and Malawi. A local House of Worship is also being constructed in Batouri, Cameroon; Bihar Sharif, India; Kanchanpur, Nepal; and Mwinilunga, Zambia. At the local level, meetings for worship are held regularly in Bahá’í centers and in the homes of believers all over the world.","media_information_key_terms_facts_h1":"Name of the religion and of the organization – the Bahá’í Faith","media_information_key_terms_facts_h2":"Founder of the Bahá’í Faith – Bahá’u’lláh","media_information_key_terms_facts_h3":"Year of founding – 1844","media_information_key_terms_facts_h4":"Head of the religion – the Universal House of Justice","media_information_key_terms_facts_h5":"Number of Bahá’ís – more than 5 million","media_information_key_terms_facts_h6":"Description of the religion and key beliefs","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_a":"the unity of the races and elimination of prejudice,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_b":"the equality of women and men,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_c":"universal education,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_d":"the elimination of extremes of wealth and poverty,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_e":"a spiritual solution to economic problems,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_f":"establishment of a universal auxiliary language,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_g":"the harmony of science and religion,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_h":"the independent investigation of truth,","media_information_key_terms_facts_li_6_i":"the creation of a world commonwealth of nations that will keep the peace through collective security.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p1_a":"The Bahá’í Faith is an independent world religion.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p1_b":"A member is called a Bahá’í (plural: Bahá’ís). It is also correct to say that someone is a “member of the Bahá’í Faith,” a “follower of the Bahá’í Faith,” a “follower of Bahá’u’lláh,” or a member of the Bahá’í community of a given locality.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p1_c":"The term “Bahá’í International Community” refers to the non-governmental organization that represents the worldwide Bahá’í community. It has been registered with the United Nations (UN) as a non-governmental organization since 1948. It currently has consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social council (ECOSOC) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), as well as accreditation with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI). The Bahá’í International Community collaborates with the UN and its specialized agencies, as well as member states, inter- and non-governmental organizations, academia, and practitioners. It has Representative Offices in Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, Geneva, Jakarta, and New York.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p2":"Bahá’ís consider Bahá’u’lláh to be the most recent in a line of great religious teachers, or Messengers of God, that includes Abraham, Buddha, Jesus Christ, Krishna, Muhammad, Moses, Zoroaster, and others. Bahá’u’lláh—the name is Arabic for “Glory of God”—was born in 1817 in Tehran, Iran, and passed away in 1892 in Acre, Israel. The coming of Bahá’u’lláh was announced by the Báb (Arabic for “Gate”), also considered by Bahá’ís to be a divine Messenger.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p3":"There are a number of important dates in the establishment of the Bahá’í Faith, but the first announcement by the Báb of the new religion came in 1844.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p4":"The Universal House of Justice is the international governing council of the Bahá’í community, an elected body of nine men. Its seat is at the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa, Israel. Around the world, in almost all countries, a National Spiritual Assembly oversees the affairs of the Bahá’í Faith in that country, and Local Spiritual Assemblies oversee local affairs.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p6_a":"The Bahá’í Faith is an independent, monotheistic religion established in virtually every country of the world. Bahá’ís believe that the world’s major religions represent unfolding chapters in God’s teachings for humankind, and that the writings of Bahá’u’lláh represent God’s guidance for this age.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p6_b":"Bahá’u’lláh’s central teaching is the unity of humanity under one God.","media_information_key_terms_facts_p6_c":"Among the many Bahá’í principles are the following:","media_information_key_terms_facts_p7":"For more information, see [Bahai.org](https://www.bahai.org).","media_information_li_a_1":"Phone (office): +972 (4) 835-8412","media_information_li_a_2":"E-mail, for news inquiries: [news@bahai.org](mailto:news@bahai.org)","media_information_li_b_1":"Mr. Saleem Vaillaincourt (London)","media_information_li_b_2":"Senior information officer","media_information_li_b_3":"Phone (office): +1 (212) 803-2544","media_information_li_b_4":"E-mail: [media@bic.org](mailto:media@bic.org)","media_information_li_c_1":"Ms. Bani Dugal (New York)","media_information_li_c_2":"Principal Representative of the Bahá’í International Community to the United Nations","media_information_li_c_3":"Bahá’í International Community","media_information_li_c_4":"Phone: +1 (212) 803-2500","media_information_li_c_5":"After-hours phone: +1 (914) 329-3020","media_information_li_c_6":"E-mail: [uno-nyc@bic.org](mailto:uno-nyc@bic.org)","media_information_li_d_1":"Ms. Simin Fahandej (Geneva)","media_information_li_d_2":"Representative of the Bahá’í International Community to the United Nations","media_information_li_d_3":"Bahá’í International Community","media_information_li_d_4":"Phone: +41 (27) 798-5400","media_information_li_d_5":"After-hours phone: +41 (78) 880-0759","media_information_li_d_6":"E-mail: [geneva@bic.org](mailto:geneva@bic.org)","media_information_li_e_1":"Persian – Simin Fahandej, +41 (27) 798-5400","media_information_li_e_2":"French – Rachel Bayani, +32 (475) 750394","media_information_li_e_3":"To arrange other languages +972 (4) 835-8412","media_information_media_contacts":"Media Contacts","media_information_p1":"Editors, journalists, and other media professionals are encouraged to contact the National Office of the Bahá’ís of their own country. See [National Communities](https://www.bahai.org/national-communities/).","media_information_p2":"BWNS reports on major developments and endeavors of the global Bahá’í community.","media_information_p3":"Information about the Bahá’í Faith is available at [Bahai.org](https://www.bahai.org/)","media_information_p_native":"The website for BWNS is located at [news.bahai.org](https://news.bahai.org/)","media_information_photographs_p1":"To arrange for photographs, you are encouraged to contact the office of the National Spiritual Assembly of the  Bahá’ís of your country. See [National Communities](https://www.bahai.org/national-communities/).","media_information_photographs_p2":"For more information, or for international photographs, contact the Bahá’í World Centre:","media_information_photographs_p3":"Phone: +972 (4) 835-8412  \n            E-mail: [news@bahai.org](mailto:news@bahai.org)","media_information_photographs_p4":"Photographs here may be downloaded and published, with photo credit given to the Bahá’í World Centre. [Terms of use](https://news.bahai.org/legal/).","media_information_photographs_p5":"Additional photos are available through the [Bahá’í Media Bank](https://media.bahai.org/). Images attached to articles in the [Bahá’í World News Service](https://news.bahai.org/) main site may also be downloaded.","media_information_photographs_p6":"Photographs of Bahá’ís imprisoned in Iran are available in the [Iran Update](/human-rights/iran/iran-update/photos.html) section of this Web site.","media_information_sidecontent_h1":"Bahá’ís in Iran","media_information_sidecontent_li":"Updates, background, photos","media_information_statistics_p1":"There are more than 5 million Bahá’ís in the world.","media_information_statistics_p2":"The Bahá’í Faith is established in virtually every country and in many dependent territories and overseas departments of countries. Bahá’ís reside in well over 100,000 localities. About 2,100 indigenous tribes, races, and ethnic groups are represented in the Bahá’í community.","media_information_statistics_p3":"There are currently 188 councils at the national level that oversee the work of communities. A network of over 300 training institutes, offering formal programs of Bahá’í education, span the globe.","media_information_statistics_p4":"Of the several thousand Bahá’í efforts in social and economic development, more than 900 are large-scale, sustained projects, including more than 600 schools and over 70 development agencies.","media_information_statistics_p5":"There are currently 14 Bahá’í Houses of Worship – in Australia, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Germany, India, Kenya, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Uganda, the United States, and Vanuatu. Plans are underway to build a national House of Worship in Brazil, Canada, and Malawi. Local Houses of Worship are also being constructed in Batouri, Cameroon; Bihar Sharif, India; Kanchanpur, Nepal; and Mwinilunga, Zambia. At the local level, meetings for worship are held regularly in Bahá’í centers and in the homes of believers all over the world.","media_information_statistics_p6":"The Bahá’í International Community has been registered with the United Nations as a non-governmental organization since 1948. It currently has consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social council (ECOSOC) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), as well as accreditation with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI). The Bahá’í International Community collaborates with the UN and its specialized agencies, as well as member states, inter- and non-governmental organizations, academia, and practitioners. It has Representative Offices in Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, Geneva, Jakarta, and New York.","media_information_statistics_p7":"Bahá’í writings and other literature have been translated into more than 800 languages.","media_information_statistics_p8":"Each year, around one million people visit the Bahá’í Shrine, terraces, and gardens on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel.","media_information_statistics_p9":"In Iran, where the Bahá’í Faith originated, there are now about 300,000 Bahá’ís, constituting the largest religious minority in that country.","media_information_style_guide_h1":"Pronunciation guide","media_information_style_guide_h2":"Style guide and glossary","media_information_style_guide_p1":"**Bahá’í:**   Ba-HIGH  \n            **Bahá’u’lláh:**   Ba-ha-ul-LAH  \n            **Báb:**   Bahb (Bob)  \n            **‘Abdu’l-Bahá:**   Abdul ba-HAH  \n            **Naw-Rúz:**   Naw Rooz  \n            **Ridván:**   REZ-vahn","media_information_style_guide_p2_1":"**‘Abdu’l-Bahá** (1844-1921) – The son of Bahá’u’lláh who was the head of the Bahá’í Faith from 1892 to 1921. Bahá’u’lláh in His will had designated ‘Abdu’l-Bahá as His successor. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá occupies a special station as the authoritative interpreter of the writings of Bahá’u’lláh and as the perfect example of how a Bahá’í should live. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá traveled widely through Europe and North America from 1911-1913, explaining his Father’s teachings in talks, interviews, and addresses at universities, churches, temples, synagogues, and missions for the poor. (Bahá’ís capitalize pronouns—for example, “He”—that refers to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá out of respect for his special station. Such pronouns are not capitalized in this guide in deference to international journalistic style and also to avoid confusion with Bahá’u’lláh and the Báb, who are considered to be divine Prophets.) For more information, see [Bahai.org](https://www.bahai.org).","media_information_style_guide_p2_10":"**Bahá’í Faith** – The correct term for the religion is the Bahá’í Faith. It is an independent, monotheistic religion established in virtually every country of the world. It is not a sect of another religion. In a list of major religions, it would look like this: Hinduism, Zoroastrianism,  Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, the Bahá’í Faith.","media_information_style_guide_p2_11":"**Bahá’í International Community** – The Bahá’í International Community is a non-governmental organization that represents the worldwide Bahá’í community. It has been registered with the United Nations as a non-governmental organization since 1948. It currently has consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social council (ECOSOC) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), as well as accreditation with the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) and the United Nations Department of Public Information (DPI). The Bahá’í International Community collaborates with the UN and its specialized agencies, as well as member states, inter- and non-governmental organizations, academia, and practitioners. It has Representative Offices in Addis Ababa, Brussels, Cairo, Geneva, Jakarta, and New York. For more information, see [bic.org](https://www.bic.org).","media_information_style_guide_p2_12":"**Bahá’í World Centre** – The spiritual and administrative center of the Bahá’í Faith, comprising the holy places in the Haifa/Acre area in northern Israel and the Arc of administrative buildings on Mount Carmel in Haifa. The Bahá’í World Centre itself uses the spelling “Centre”; elsewhere both “Centre” and “Center” are used, depending on the custom of the country.","media_information_style_guide_p2_13":"**Bahá’u’lláh** – The founder of the Bahá’í Faith, who lived from 1817 to 1892, considered by Bahá’ís to be the most recent divine Messenger, or Manifestation of God, in a line of great religious figures that includes Abraham, Buddha, Jesus, Krishna, Moses, Muhammad, Zoroaster, the Báb, and others. Bahá’u’lláh was born in Tehran in present-day Iran, and passed away near Acre, in what is now Israel. “Bahá’u’lláh” is a title that means the “Glory of God” in Arabic; His name was Mírzá Husayn-‘Alí. His writings, which would equal about a hundred volumes, form the basis of the Bahá’í teachings. For more information, see [Bahai.org](http://www.bahai.org).","media_information_style_guide_p2_14":"**Bahjí** – The place near Acre where the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh (His burial place) is located, as well as the mansion that was His last residence and surrounding gardens. It is a place of pilgrimage for Bahá’ís. The word “Bahjí” is Arabic for “delight.”","media_information_style_guide_p2_15":"**children’s classes** – Classes in moral education, open to all, that are provided for children, operated at the community level by the Bahá’í training institute.","media_information_style_guide_p2_16":"**Convention** – See [International Bahá’í Convention](#internationalbahaiconvention) and [National Bahá’í Convention](#nationalbahaicconvention).","media_information_style_guide_p2_18":"**counsellor** – An adviser appointed by the Universal House of Justice who serves in a particular geographic area or at the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa. At present, there are 90 counsellors assigned to specific countries or regions, and nine counsellors who form the membership of the International Teaching Centre at the  Bahá’í World Centre. Appointments are for five years.","media_information_style_guide_p2_19":"**devotional meetings** – Gatherings, often in people’s homes, for prayers and to read the sacred writings of the Bahá’í Faith and other religions. Usually undertaken as an individual initiative.","media_information_style_guide_p2_2":"**accent marks** – Bahá’í, Bahá’u’lláh, and other names are written with accent marks, but many publications and websites do not have the facility for using such marks.","media_information_style_guide_p2_20":"**fast, the** – A period during which Bahá’ís abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sundown during the Bahá’í month of ‘Alá’, from 2 March to 20 March. Bahá’u’lláh enjoined His followers to pray and fast during this period. The sick, the traveler, and pregnant women, among others, are exempt.","media_information_style_guide_p2_21":"**feast** – See [Nineteen Day Feast](#nineteendayfeast).","media_information_style_guide_p2_22":"**Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith** – See [Shoghi Effendi](#shoghieffendi).","media_information_style_guide_p2_23":"**Haifa** – The city in northern Israel that, along with nearby Acre, is the location of the Bahá’í World Centre. The international administrative buildings of the Bahá’í Faith (including the Seat of the Universal House of Justice), the Shrine of the Báb, and surrounding terraces and gardens are all located on Mount Carmel in the heart of Haifa.","media_information_style_guide_p2_24":"**Holy days** – Eleven days that commemorate significant Bahá’í anniversaries. The nine holy days on which work is suspended are the Birth of Bahá’u’lláh, the Birth of the Báb, Declaration of the Báb, Ascension of Bahá’u’lláh, Martyrdom of the Báb, Naw-Rúz, Ridván (a 12-day festival, of which the first, ninth and 12th days are holy days). The other two holy days are the Day of the Covenant and the Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. *See names of individual holy days.*","media_information_style_guide_p2_25":"**Holy Land** – The area associated with present-day Israel, which is holy to a number of religions, including to Bahá’ís. The resting places of Bahá’u’lláh near Acre and of the Báb in Haifa are, to Bahá’ís, the holiest spots on earth.","media_information_style_guide_p2_26":"**International Archives Building** – One of the buildings at the Bahá’í World Centre on Mount Carmel in Haifa. The repository of many sacred relics of the Bahá’í Faith, it is visited by thousands of Bahá’í pilgrims each year.","media_information_style_guide_p2_27":"**International Bahá’í Convention** – A gathering every five years of delegates from around the world to consult on the affairs of the Bahá’í Faith and elect the members of the Universal House of Justice. Members of the National Spiritual Assemblies serve as delegates.","media_information_style_guide_p2_28":"**International Teaching Centre** – One of the institutions at the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa. The International Teaching Centre has nine members, all counsellors appointed by the Universal House of Justice. Appointments are for five years.","media_information_style_guide_p2_29":"**Local Spiritual Assembly** – At the local level, the affairs of the Bahá’í community are administered by the Local Spiritual Assembly. Each Local Assembly consists of nine members who are chosen in annual elections. As with all other elected Bahá’í institutions, the Assembly functions as a body and makes decisions through consultation. The responsibilities of the Local Spiritual Assembly include promoting the spiritual education of children and young people, strengthening the spiritual and social fabric of Bahá’í community life, assessing and utilizing the community’s resources, and ensuring that the energies and talents of community members contribute towards progress.","media_information_style_guide_p2_3":"**Acre**– English rendering of the name of the city north of Haifa where Bahá’u’lláh was exiled in 1868. He lived in or near the city until His passing in 1892. Bahá’ís often use the Arabic name, ‘Akká, which was the name in general use during the time of Bahá’u’lláh. In Hebrew the name is Akko.","media_information_style_guide_p2_30":"**Mount Carmel** – In Haifa, Israel, site of the Bahá’í World Centre, including several Bahá’í holy places, the most important of which is the Shrine of the Báb, and the buildings housing the administrative offices of the Bahá’í World Centre.","media_information_style_guide_p2_31":"**National Bahá’í Convention** – In each country, the annual gathering of elected delegates to discuss the affairs of the Bahá’í Faith in their jurisdiction and to elect the members of the National Spiritual Assembly.","media_information_style_guide_p2_32":"**National Spiritual Assembly** – At the national level, the affairs of the Bahá’í community are administered by the National Spiritual Assembly, a nine-member elected council responsible for guiding, co-ordinating, and stimulating the activities of Local Spiritual Assemblies and individual members of the Bahá’í community within a given country. The responsibilities of a National Spiritual Assembly include channelling the community’s financial resources, fostering the growth and vibrancy of the national Bahá’í community, supervising the affairs of the community including its social and economic development activities and its properties, overseeing relations with government, resolving questions from individuals and Local Spiritual Assemblies, and strengthening the participation of the Bahá’í community in the life of society at the national level.","media_information_style_guide_p2_33":"**Nineteen Day Feast** – An administrative gathering at the local level. The term refers to a spiritual “feast” of prayers,  consultation and fellowship. It is held every 19 days, on the first day of each Bahá’í month.","media_information_style_guide_p2_34":"**pilgrimage** – Each year thousands of Bahá’ís undertake pilgrimage, during which they forge a profound and lasting connection with the spiritual and administrative centre of their Faith, located in the Haifa-Acre area of what is now northern Israel. Bahá’í pilgrims pray and meditate at the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh and the Shrine of the Báb, as well as in the beautiful gardens that surround them. They also draw inspiration from the time spent at various historical sites associated with the lives of Bahá’u’lláh, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi, as well as from visits to the edifices dedicated to the worldwide administration of the Bahá’í Faith.","media_information_style_guide_p2_35":"**progressive revelation** – The central belief that Manifestations of God have successively provided the guidance necessary for humanity’s social and spiritual evolution.","media_information_style_guide_p2_36":"**Regional Bahá’í Council** – In some countries, the National Spiritual Assembly assigns certain of its functions to Regional Bahá’í Councils, which serve a designated geographical area within the land in question. The responsibilities of a Regional Council may include carrying out policies of the National Spiritual Assembly, supervising progress of particular plans and projects, and taking steps to stimulate and coordinate the growth of the Bahá’í community within the region.","media_information_style_guide_p2_37":"**Shoghi Effendi** (1897-1957) – The head of the Bahá’í Faith from 1921 to 1957. His title is Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith. He is the grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and the great-grandson of Bahá’u’lláh. For more information, see [Bahai.org](https://www.bahai.org).","media_information_style_guide_p2_38":"**Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh** – The resting place of the mortal remains of Bahá’u’lláh, located near the city of Acre in what is now Israel. The shrine is the holiest spot on earth to Bahá’ís and a place of pilgrimage.","media_information_style_guide_p2_39":"**Shrine of the Báb** – The resting place of the mortal remains of the Báb, located on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel. It is a sacred site to Bahá’ís and a place of pilgrimage.","media_information_style_guide_p2_4":"**‘Akká, Akko** – See entry above for “[Acre](#acre)”.","media_information_style_guide_p2_40":"**study circles** – A study circle is one of the principal elements of the process of distance education offered by the [Bahá’í training institute](https://www.bahai.org/action/response-call-bahaullah/training-institute). It is a small group that meets regularly to study the institute course materials.","media_information_style_guide_p2_41":"**Universal House of Justice** – The international governing council of the Bahá’í Faith. It is the supreme administrative body ordained by Bahá’u’lláh in His book of laws. The Universal House of Justice is elected every five years at the International Bahá’í Convention, where members of the National Spiritual Assemblies around the world serve as delegates. The Universal House of Justice was first elected in 1963. Its permanent seat is on Mount Carmel in Haifa.","media_information_style_guide_p2_5":"**Arc** – An area on Mount Carmel in Haifa, shaped like an arc, where the major international administrative buildings of the Bahá’í Faith, including the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, are situated.","media_information_style_guide_p2_6":"**Báb** – The title, meaning “Gate,” assumed by Siyyid ‘Ali-Muhammad, the Founder of the Bábí Faith and the Forerunner of Bahá’u’lláh. Considered by Bahá’ís to be one of the twin Manifestations of God associated with the Bahá’í Faith. Born on 20 October 1819, the Báb proclaimed Himself to be the Promised One of Islam and said His mission was to announce the imminent coming of another Messenger even greater than Himself, namely Bahá’u’lláh. Because of these claims, the Báb was executed by firing squad in the public square in Tabriz on 9 July 1850. His remains were hidden in Iran for many years before being taken to Haifa/Acre in 1899 and buried on Mount Carmel in 1909. For more information, see [Bahai.org](http://www.bahai.org).","media_information_style_guide_p2_7":"**Bábí Faith** – The religion founded by the Báb. After 1863 and the announcement by Bahá’u’lláh that He was the Messenger whose coming had been foretold by the Báb, the Bahá’í Faith gradually became established and most followers of the Báb began to call themselves Bahá’ís.","media_information_style_guide_p2_8":"**Badí‘ calendar** – The Bahá’í calendar, consisting of 19 months of 19 days each, with the addition of intercalary days known as Ayyám-i-Há. The number of these intercalary days varies according to the timing of the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere in successive years. The first day of the year corresponds to the spring equinox. The Bahá’í era (B.E.) begins with 1844, the year of the Báb’s declaration. For more information, see [Bahai.org](https://www.bahai.org/action/devotional-life/calendar).","media_information_style_guide_p2_9":"**Bahá’í** – (1) A noun referring to a member of the Bahá’í Faith. The plural is Bahá’ís. (2) An adjective describing a person, place, or thing related to the Bahá’í Faith. Examples: a Bahá’í book, the Bahá’í community, a Bahá’í holy day, a Bahá’í holy place.","media_reports":"Media Reports","menu":"Menu","meta_description_bwns":"The Bahá’í World News Service - BWNS - The official news source of the worldwide Bahá’í community, reports on major developments and endeavors of the global Bahá’í community.","minutes_short":"min","mobile_app":"Mobile app","national_bahai_communities":"National Bahá’í Communities","news_email":"news@bahai.org","news_service_home":"BWNS Home","no_matches_for":"No matches for","no_results_for":"No results for","number_of":"of","oceania":"Oceania","official_news_site":"Official news source of the worldwide Bahá’í community","one_country":"One Country","other_bahai_sites":"Other Bahá’í Sites","other_sites":"Other sites","other_stories":"Other Stories","overview_section":"Overview of this Section","page_link":"Page link","photographs":"Photographs","photographs_download":"Photographs for download","podcast":"Podcast","podcast_available":"Podcast available","podcast_description_bwns":"Reporting on major developments and endeavors of the global Bahá’í community.","podcast_p1":"The Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS) podcast reports on major developments and endeavors of the global Bahá’í community.","podcast_subscribe":"Subscribe to the BWNS podcast for additional audio content.","print":"Print","privacy":"Privacy","recent_articles":"Recent Articles","recent_headlines":"Recent headlines","recent_media_reports":"Recent media reports","recieve_stories_email":"Receive stories via email","related_stories":"Related Stories","results":"Results","return_top":"Return to top","rss":"RSS","search":"Search","search_bahai_reference_library":"Search the Bahá’í Reference Library","search_bahaiorg":"Search Bahai.org","search_news_service":"Search the News Service","section_shrine_of_abdulbaha_description":"Read reports on the progress","section_shrine_of_abdulbaha_title":"Coverage of Construction Work of the Shrine of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá","see_all":"See All","seven_bahais_leaders":"The Seven Bahá’í Leaders","share":"Share","share_this_article":"Share this article","share_this_page":"Share this page","show_more":"Show more","sign_up":"Sign Up","slideshow":"Slideshow","social_media_name_instagram":"Instagram","social_media_name_instagram_account":"bahaiworldnewsservice","social_media_name_twitter":"Twitter","social_media_name_twitter_account":"bahainews","special_reports":"SPECIAL REPORTS","special_reports_shrine_construction":"Coverage of construction work for the Shrine of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá","statistics":"Statistics","story_archive":"Story Archive","style_glossary_pronunciation_guide":"Style guide, glossary and pronunciation guide","subscribe":"Subscribe","subscribe-confirmation-message":"Thank you for your interest in Bahá’í World News Service (BWNS)","subscribe-souble-optin-email":"You will receive an email shortly, asking you to confirm your subscription.","subscribe_bot_submission":"This doesn't look like a human submission.","subscribe_check_email":"Please check your email to confirm your subscription!","subscribe_email_exists":"This email already exists! 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He also served in the US Peace Corps.\n\nThe Baha'i Chair for Peace is part of the University of Maryland's Center for International Development and Conflict Management, which adheres to the belief that \"peace building and development-with-justice are two sides of the same coin.\"\n\nThe Center's director, Jonathan Wilkenfeld, said that Dr. Grayzel, with his extensive background in conflict management, \"will be a good fit here.\"\n\nThe chancellor of the University of Maryland System, William E. Kirwan, said that through the chair, the values of the Baha'i Faith resonate on campus and support the major values and activities at the university.\n\n\"This is the first ... Baha'i Chair in existence, and was one of my most important initiatives as president of the College Park campus,\" Dr. Kirwan said.\n\nThe mission of the Baha'i Chair for Peace, in part, is to develop alternatives to the violent resolution of conflict, promote global education and spiritual awareness, and reflect the beliefs of the Baha'i world community in building a global society.\n\n(For a story on Professor Bushrui, see\n\n[https://news.bahai.org/story/282]( /story/282))\n\n(Reporting by Deborah Leigh Wood for \"The American Baha'i\".)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":401,"evergreenUrl":"women-scoop-awards-film-festival","title":"Women scoop awards at film festival","description":"A movie from a child's perspective about the equality of the sexes won the \"best film\" award at the Baha'i-inspired \"Harmony Film Festival\" held...","date":"2005-11-09","customDateline":null,"city":"SYDNEY","country":"AUSTRALIA","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433347-bwns7457-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433347-bwns7457-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Salman Stevenson (left) and Anise Pertl on location for the filming of the comedy \"Footsteps Femme Fatale,\" a film screened at the Harmony Festival in Australia.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"A movie from a child's perspective about the equality of the sexes won the \"best film\" award at the Baha'i-inspired \"Harmony Film Festival\" held in Australia's biggest city on 22 October 2005.\n\nThe Australian-made movie by Bita Haidarian, a Los Angeles-based filmmaker, tells the story of an eight-year-old girl whose father refuses to let her to swap her household chore (dishwashing) with her brother's (lawn mowing) because mowing is \"for boys.\"\n\nThe girl takes matters into her own hands and ends up with a humorous and telling result.\n\nMore than 600 people attended the festival, which had \"woman\" as its theme. Entries came from 25 filmmakers of diverse religious and cultural backgrounds and from countries including Australia, Japan, Spain, Russia, and the United States.\n\nThe films ranged from a gentle coming of age exploration (\"32EE\") and broad-based slapstick comedy (\"Footsteps Femme Fatale\") to documentaries about genocide in Sierra Leone (\"Mussu\") and female alienation in Russia (\"The Glass Island\").\n\nThe judges were from the film industry. They included documentary filmmakers Peter Butt and Mitzi Goldman, movie director Mojgan Khadem, film and television journalist Sandy George, and actor Nick Tate.\n\nEight of the 14 finalists were female directors, a gratifying result according to festival director Mehrzad Mumtahan.\n\n\"We chose 'woman' as the 2005 theme to draw attention to the issue of equality and the important role women can play as peacemakers in our troubled world,\" Mr. Mumtahan said.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"To have the majority of the finalists be female is an incredibly positive result. It shows that we're not just about words and platitudes -- but really making a difference.\"\n\nMr. Mumtahan said the festival was inspired by the Baha'i belief that the arts have a great capacity to awaken and uplift the heart. He said filmmakers can proclaim widely the message of peace, and encourage people to discuss vital issues relating to harmony and unity.\n\nEntrants in the festival were advised that a useful starting point in their exploration of the 2005 theme was \"The Promise of World Peace,\" a message issued in 1985 by the Universal House of Justice that highlighted an important relationship between the role of women and the establishment of world peace.\n\n\"The emancipation of women, the achievement of full equality between the sexes, is one of the most important, though less acknowledged prerequisites of peace,\" the message said.\n\n\"The denial of such equality perpetrates an injustice against one half of the world's population and promotes in men harmful attitudes and habits that are carried from the family to the workplace, to political life, and ultimately to international relations,\" it said.\n\n(For more of the statement, see [http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/uhj/PWP](http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/uhj/PWP) )\n\nShideh Faramand's six minute comedy \"In Time\" won both the \"audience choice\" and \"achievement\" awards. The film takes a humorous look at the social pressures on single women to get married and start a family.\n\nMs. Faramand said her inspiration in filmmaking was to \"make an impact on the world.\"\n\n\"They say the soul of society can be seen through the arts and we can see that its moral stance is so degrading. I would like to create its new soul,\" she said.\n\nThe award for the \"most original concept\" went to Anis Fanaeian for his film \"Remember Tomorrow,\" a film about a successful professional woman who chooses motherhood and the joy of having and raising children over a successful career.\n\nOne of the judges, documentary filmmaker Peter Butt, said the Harmony Film Festival is building a new paradigm for the film industry, providing a new platform for filmmakers to share with the world their hopes and dreams of a new civilization.\n\n\"You're talking to the grassroots and you're inspiring people to roll out new ideas to impact upon society,\" Mr. Butt said.\n\n\"It may not be from tonight that there's a big change, but it's the practitioners (filmmakers) that have the greatest impact.\"\n\nThe festival, now in its second year, was organized by a three-person team comprising Collis Ta'eed, Naomi Hall, and Mr. Mumtahan.\n\nThe festival films have already been seen in other Australian cities, in New Zealand, and in Israel, and will soon be screened in other countries.\n\nFor more information on the festival see [http://www.harmonyfilmfest.com](http://www.harmonyfilmfest.com)\n\n(Reporting by Farnaz Fanaian and Sabour Bradley.)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433347-bwns7456-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Harmony Film Festival organizers, from left, Naomi Hall, Collis Ta'eed, and Mehrzad Mumtahan."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433348-bwns7455-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Some of the audience at the Harmony Film Festival award night in Sydney, Australia."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433348-bwns7454-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Judges for the Harmony Film Festival in Australia, from left, Sandy George, Mojgan Khadem, Nick Tate, Mitzi Goldman, and Peter Butt."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433348-bwns7453-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Shideh Faramand, winner of the \"audience choice\" and \"achievement\" awards\" for her comedy \"In Time,\" displays a Harmony Film Festival T-shirt."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":398,"evergreenUrl":"religions-gather-pray-peace","title":"Religions gather to pray for peace","description":"Representatives of nine religious communities offered prayers on the International Day of Peace at a gathering organized by the Baha'i community...","date":"2005-11-09","customDateline":null,"city":"DAR ES SALAAM","country":"TANZANIA","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7445-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7445-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Chief Matange (second from right) and other members of an African traditional religion during prayers at the International Day of Peace gathering organized by the Baha'i community of Tanzania.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Representatives of nine religious communities offered prayers on the International Day of Peace at a gathering organized by the Baha'i community of Tanzania.\n\n\"This is an historic day,\" said keynote speaker, United Nations representative Eshila Maravanyika.\n\nMs. Maravanyika expressed her delight at witnessing representatives of the various religious denominations coming together in a united forum to offer prayers for peace on 21 September 2005.\n\nListening to her address were representatives of the Baha'i Faith, Buddhism, Christian denominations, Hinduism, Islam, and Zoroastrianism as well as from the Aga Khan Council and African traditional religion.\n\nIn a general discussion, participants presented their suggestions on what should be done to become peacemakers and how to make a contribution individually and jointly towards building a peaceful world.\n\nDr. Navruz Lakhani, a representative from the Aga Khan Council, said that we need to learn about other cultures, religions and traditions.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"Most of the times we have conflict it is because of our ignorance of others,\" Dr. Lakhani said.\n\n\"If as individuals we make an effort to learn about others, then the respect and tolerance will come,\" he said.\n\nMs. Gladys Denis, a Christian, said peace should start with individual people, who then take it to the community and make it collective.\n\n\"It should be responsibility of everyone,\" Ms. Denis said.\n\n\"Let's take the attitude of 'my responsibility', before we say 'we,'\" Ms. Denis said.\n\nMs. Jessica Mkuchu, the secretary of the Tanzania Ecumenical Dialogue Group said we need to believe in peace first.\n\n\"Then (we must) avoid conflict and violence,\" Ms. Mkuchu said.\n\nThe program included a parade by children who carried banners that read: \"Guess who are we? Children of one creator and flowers of one garden; guess what we need? peace, please.\"\n\nExplaining the reason for organizing the gathering, Baha'i spokesperson Mitra Deliri Sabet said that humanity now stands at the beginning of a great new era of peace as promised in scriptures of the world's religions.\n\n\"The purpose of the gathering was to provide a common ground where various religious organizations can come together and pray for a common goal -- peace,\" Ms. Sabet said.\n\nThe gathering followed other interfaith activities in which the Baha'is of Tanzania have also been involved, she said.\n\n\"We work hand-in-hand with other religious organizations in many areas, for example, poverty reduction, and in HIV programs,\" she said.\n\n(For an earlier story about the Baha'is in Tanzania, See [https://news.bahai.org/story.cfm?](/story.cfm?storyid=145))."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7449-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"A lighthearted moment during discussions at the International Day of Peace gathering organised by the Baha'is of Tanzania.(Front row) Secretary of interrelations dialogue of the Catholic Church Rev. Father Gallus Marandu (left), Aga Khan Council representative Dr Navruz Lakhani."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7448-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"A representative of the Buddhist community, Rev. M Pannaseeha, at the International Day of Peace gathering organized by the Baha'is of Tanzania."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7447-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Tanzania, Shabani Seffu, at the International Day of Peace gathering."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7446-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Keynote speaker, United Nations representative Eshila Maravanyika (right), with Aga Khan Council representative Dr Navruz Lakhani at the International Day of Peace gathering organized by the Baha'is of Tanzania."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433332-bwns7450-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":""}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":397,"evergreenUrl":"new-service-offered-readers","title":"New service offered to readers","description":"The Baha'i World News Service now offers readers an RSS feed for use in their news readers and Web logs (blogs). The RSS (Really Simple Syndication)...","date":"2005-11-03","customDateline":null,"city":"HAIFA","country":"ISRAEL","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1687959778-bwns-default-missing-image-endslate-still-8-1-1.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"The Baha'i World News Service now offers readers an RSS feed for use in their news readers and Web logs (blogs).\n\nThe RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed includes headlines, introductory paragraphs of stories, and links back to the complete stories.\n\nFor more information on the RSS feed, including instructions on how to subscribe, click on the XML button that appears at the bottom of the home page and news pages on the Baha'i World News Service Web site."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":395,"evergreenUrl":"edinburgh-gains-elegant-center","title":"Edinburgh gains elegant center","description":"An elegant Baha'i center in the Scottish capital has been obtained after a united effort by the local and national Baha'i communities. The center,...","date":"2005-11-01","customDateline":null,"city":"EDINBURGH","country":"SCOTLAND","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433317-bwns7443-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433317-bwns7443-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Some local Baha'is at the entrance to the new Baha'i center in Edinburgh.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"An elegant Baha'i center in the Scottish capital has been obtained after a united effort by the local and national Baha'i communities.\n\nThe center, at 44 Albany Street, is in the historic Georgian New Town area of the city, within the building conservation zone and close to Edinburgh's central business and shopping district.\n\nThe four-story building has many spacious rooms suitable for the reception of distinguished visitors and for meetings of the Baha'i Council for Scotland, the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Edinburgh, and the Baha'i community in general.\n\nThe search for a center began after a call in 2003 by the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United Kingdom to find a new center to replace the existing one, which could no longer meet the needs of the community.\n\nFundraising events throughout the United Kingdom began in 2004, the first donation being 35 pounds (US$62) raised by Baha'i children selling handmade bookmarks. (Baha'is do not accept donations from outside of the community's own membership).\n\nIn January 2005 a new momentum to the search for an appropriate building and to fundraising came as Baha'is from throughout the United Kingdom attended a gathering that included dramatic performance of events from the early history of the Baha'i Faith in Scotland. (See [https://news.bahai.org/story.cfm?](/story.cfm?storyid=347)).\n\nIn April 2005 a suitable building owned by a charitable organization was put on the market. On 23 May 2005, a Baha'i holy day commemorating the founding of the Baha'i Faith in 1844, the 1.2 million pound (US$2.12 million) offer by the Baha'is was accepted by the vendors."},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"A spokesman for the Edinburgh Baha'i community, John Parris, said the interior of the building is spacious and elegant and gains a lot of natural light due to its southern-facing aspect.\n\n\"The style is Georgian and it gives a great feeling of dignity to the center,\" said Dr. Parris, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United Kingdom.\n\nRefurbished in 1999, it retains its original features, including the cornice work, a cupola, fireplaces, stairways, and distinctive curved doors, Dr. Parris said.\n\nThe center is already being used for activities of the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Edinburgh, and many plans are being made for its future use to serve the community and welcome guests there."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433317-bwns7442-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"View from below of the staircase and cupola in the new Baha'i center in Edinburgh."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433317-bwns7441-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The entrance hall in the new Baha'i center in Edinburgh, Scotland."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433316-bwns7440-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The entrance to the new Baha'i center in Edinburgh, Scotland."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":393,"evergreenUrl":"magazine-wins-grand-award","title":"Magazine wins 'grand award'","description":"\"One Country,\" the newsletter of the Baha'i International Community, has won a prestigious \"Grand Award\" this year in the APEX 2005 Awards for...","date":"2005-10-27","customDateline":null,"city":"NEW YORK","country":"UNITED STATES","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433307-bwns7439-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433307-bwns7439-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Cover of the January-March 2005 edition of \"one Country.\"","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"One Country,\" the newsletter of the Baha'i International Community, has won a prestigious \"Grand Award\" this year in the APEX 2005 Awards for Publication Excellence.\n\nThe periodical reports mainly on activities of the worldwide Baha'i community in relation to issues of sustainable development, peace and world order, human rights, and the advancement of women.\n\n\"One Country\" won the Grand Award in the \"nonprofit, small office\" category.\n\nJust 100 Grand Awards were handed out, in 16 categories, from among 5,000 entries, according to APEX organizers.\n\n\"We're honored to have won a Grand Award from APEX this year,\" said Douglas Moore, the director of the Office of Public Information of the Baha'i International Community, the publisher of \"One Country.\"\n\n\"In the world of nonprofit and organizational publications, it is a sign of considerable recognition,\" Mr. Moore said.\n\nThe annual APEX awards are sponsored by Communications Concepts of Springfield, Virginia, USA. They aim at recognizing excellence in publications, including websites, by professional communicators.\n\nThe awards are based on excellence in graphic design, editorial content, and the ability to achieve overall communications excellence. Now in their 17th year, the APEX Awards have gradually grown in prestige. This year, for example, the editors of \"Foreign Policy Magazine\" won three Awards of Excellence, a fact that they have noted on their website.\n\nIn addition to the Grand Awards, APEX issues Awards of Excellence in 11 major categories, divided into some 109 subcategories.\n\nThis year \"One Country,\" whose editor is Brad Pokorny, also won an Award of Excellence in the \"Columns and Editorials\" subcategory for its Perspective Editorial titled \"Literacy and Development,\" which was published in the April-June 2004 issue (Volume 16, Issue 1).\n\n\"One Country\" has won a number of APEX awards in previous years for its news and feature stories, including a 1991 \"Grand Award\" in the Newsletters category.\n\n\"One Country\" is issued quarterly. In addition to an English edition, it is published in French, Spanish, Chinese, German, and Russian. The English edition goes to more than 38,000 people in 180 countries.\n\nTo see \"One Country\" on the Internet, go to [http://onecountry.org](http://onecountry.org)."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":392,"evergreenUrl":"stimulating-spirit-pervades-study-circle","title":"Stimulating spirit pervades study circle","description":"On a soft summer evening, conversation in the center of this Eastern European capital moved quickly past the transient issues of the day to the...","date":"2005-10-20","customDateline":null,"city":"SOFIA","country":"BULGARIA","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433289-bwns7437-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433289-bwns7437-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Members of the Sofia study circle with others at a session to study spiritual virtues.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"On a soft summer evening, conversation in the center of this Eastern European capital moved quickly past the transient issues of the day to the eternal questions.\n\nGathered were members of a Baha'i-inspired study circle that has met weekly in an exploration of spiritual and practical topics that have excited them for the past two years.\n\n\"We talk about the soul, life after death, prayers -- these are the eternal questions,\" said Iota Konstantinova, a corporate administrative manager.\n\nMs. Konstantinova, who is not a Baha'i, was referring to their discussions that arose out of studying \"Reflections on the Life of the Spirit,\" the first in a series of workbooks developed by the Ruhi Institute of Colombia. The study circle here has moved through the series now to the fourth of seven workbooks.\n\nThe workbooks were originally intended for members of Baha'i communities to use in study circles with the aim of fostering their own spiritual development and building their capacity to better serve others.\n\nHowever, popularity of the study circles has now spread far beyond the Baha'i community. In many countries, including Bulgaria, participation in study circles includes people from a wide range of religious and cultural backgrounds. They use a system of self-directed learning carried out in a group setting.\n\nStudy circles have tutors whose role is to facilitate discussion rather than instruct, and in this case it is Terry Madison, a Baha'i. Ms. Madison described the other members as people who \"love and respect\" the Baha'i Faith although not formally enrolled.\n\nAsk the members of the study circle to explain the benefits of their involvement and they respond with enthusiasm.\n\n\"Well-educated people enjoy such discussions,\" said Ms. Konstantinova, who holds a master's degree in civil engineering as well as qualifications in economics and journalism.\n\n\"It has given me new ideas, new points of view, new understandings.\"\n\nMs. Konstantinova said, for example, that her participation has inspired her to embark on a personal project to help eliminate gossip and backbiting in her environment.\n\n\"I read an extract from Baha'u'llah that says it is not one who calls himself a Baha'i who is His follower but one whose deeds are those of a Baha'i,\" she said, speaking of the importance of acquiring moral virtues rather than just labeling oneself as a member of a faith.\n\nAnother member of the study circle is Dyana Dafova, an award-winning Bulgarian singer and composer with an international following. In New York recently, she donated two songs for a compilation compact disc released by the United Nations Human Rights Commission. Her music has been played in space to US astronauts.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Ms. Dafova said she enjoys study circles because they allow one to see oneself from a different angle and to become more knowledgeable about important topics.\n\n\"I like to make contact with people who have a spiritual interest and have spirituality in life,\" she said.\n\n\"When you are leading a very hectic life, I think it is good to take time to look at these things. If you don't, you lose out on knowing how you have to live, about what is important. This is the most important thing you do in your life.\"\n\nAt home, she recites Baha'i prayers with her husband. She describes herself as a good friend of the Baha'i Faith.\n\n\"I have been to Haifa -- I had a wonderful experience there (at the Baha'i holy places), a special experience that I will remember for the rest of my life.\"\n\nPreviously her creative focus was in the jazz, pop, and classical genres but it has since changed to \"new music,\" combining the musical influence of different cultures, and presenting a message of love, peace, and tolerance.\n\n\"It is very serious music for thinking people. It is music for the mind and the soul.\"\n\nMs. Dafova's service activities include being president of the Morals and Ethics Association, a foundation she and Terry Madison established to build a moral society through education and the practice of virtues in daily life. The association arranges training programs for parents and teachers in virtues education, and it plans pilot \"virtues\" projects in schools.\n\nAnother member of the study circle, businessman Evgenie Kostourkov, said that members of the study circle discuss the spiritual development of the personality and how this intersects with their own lives, their families, and society.\n\n\"I enjoy this mostly because it is a very good group -- they are very intelligent women and have very interesting views -- and we love Terry and highly appreciate her tutorship.\"\n\nMr. Kostourkov said he has most enjoyed studying the lives of Baha'u'llah and the Bab, how They delivered spiritual teachings, knowing that would attract persecution. He said he is impressed with Their courage and endurance.\n\nInvolvement in the study circle, he said, has made him and his wife feel more relaxed, and they enjoy continuing the discussions at home after returning from the study circle meetings.\n\n\"We have started saying prayers -- Christian and Baha'i prayers. They are almost the same -- they must be the same, coming from the same source. When you are praying, it changes everything.\"\n\nHis wife Stephanie, known as Fanny, is an English translator who works closely with Terry Madison in a series of service projects, such as the Love That Child Foundation, which is involved in helping children in need, including children with disabilities.\n\nFor her, the study circle is a relief after the often trivial conversations encountered in normal daily life.\n\n\"Even professors here are not ready to talk about serious matters -- they are always joking and drinking. This discussion, though, is serious, it is very deep conversation.\"\n\n\"Since I have been with Baha'is there has been a change in me. During our upbringing in communist times religion was absolutely neglected -- in 40 years they eradicated 1,000 years of religious tradition.\"\n\nThe effect, she said, was to make it difficult for her to have any religious feeling and to make her feel \"terribly alone.\" Even now she doubts her capacity for true spiritual feeling although she can see that throughout her life she has been on a spiritual quest. One of the issues with which she is grappling is how God can allow children to suffer.\n\nSince being involved in the study circle she has been continually pondering the value of prayers, and she now experiments with reciting them.\n\n\"I sometimes pray that God will help me to relax and it works,\" she said.\n\n\"My great gain (from the study circle) is this idea to serve and help others. I feel the pleasure of doing it, it is very natural. I think how beautiful it is, how great it is to help others.\"\n\nFormerly a resident on the Caribbean island of St. Martin and Suriname, the study circle tutor Terry Madison is a television producer who has lived in Bulgaria for more than 14 years. She said there is a special spirit in the study circle.\n\n\"By the time the session is over everyone is uplifted. Even if they were depressed and didn't feel like coming initially, they are grateful for our sessions, and at the conclusion they are always joyful -- me too.\n\n\"I learn continually from these lovely souls,\" she said, mentioning their ability to deliver talks on deep spiritual matters not only during their own study circle sessions but at others in the city and at the Baha'i Center to bigger audiences.\n\nA day after the discussion in the apartment, the group met on the patio of the Kostourkov home for their regular session studying spiritual virtues.\n\nOthers present included a local lawyer, psychologist, and teachers -- all keen to consciously include spiritually virtuous behavior in their own lives and to assist their children and others to do the same.\n\nIt was a lively and vibrant session, including a skit, and lots of laughter. The same spirit of the study circle -- joy and intellectual and spiritual stimulation -- pervaded the gathering.\n\n(Photographs by Edit Kalman.)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433290-bwns7436-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Stephanie and Evgenie Kostourkov."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433289-bwns7435-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":""},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433290-bwns7434-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Study circle members Terry Madison (left) and Evgenie Kostourkov."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433289-bwns7430-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Study circle member Dyana Dafova."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433290-bwns7429-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Study circle member Iota Konstantinova."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433290-bwns7428-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Members of the Baha'i-inspired study circle in Sofia."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":391,"evergreenUrl":"values-highlighted-un-anniversary","title":"Values highlighted on UN anniversary","description":"In observance of the 60th anniversary of the United Nations, the Baha'i International Community has issued a major statement that focuses on...","date":"2005-10-07","customDateline":null,"city":"UNITED NATIONS","country":"UNITED STATES","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433279-bwns7424-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433279-bwns7424-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Cover of the newly released Baha'i International Community statement, \"The Search for Values in an Age of Transition,\" issued for the 60th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"In observance of the 60th anniversary of the United Nations, the Baha'i International Community has issued a major statement that focuses on the importance of the oneness of humanity and religious freedom as critical values in the process of UN reform.\n\n\"The blurring of national boundaries in the face of global crises has shown, beyond a doubt, that the body of humankind represents one organic whole,\" says the statement, which is titled \"The Search for Values in an Age of Transition.\"\n\nAccordingly, the oneness of humanity must become the overriding focus as humanity searches for solutions to global challenges such as poverty, AIDS, environmental degradation, terrorism, and the proliferation of weapons.\n\n\"It is clear that none of the problems facing humanity can be adequately addressed in isolation from one another,\" the statement says.\n\n\"The increasingly apparent interconnectedness of development, security and human rights on a global scale confirms that peace and prosperity are indivisible -- that no sustainable benefit can be conferred on a nation or community if the welfare of the nations as a whole is ignored or neglected.\"\n\nMoreover, the statement asserts that the issues surrounding religion and freedom of belief have now risen to a level of \"consuming global importance, which the United Nations cannot afford to ignore.\"\n\n\"While the General Assembly has passed a number of resolutions addressing the role of religion in the promotion of peace and calling for the elimination of religious intolerance, it struggles to grasp fully both the constructive role that religion can play in creating a peaceful global order and the destructive impact that religious fanaticism can have on the stability and progress of the world,\" the statement says.\n\n\"A growing number of leaders and deliberative bodies acknowledge that such considerations must move from the periphery to the center of debate -- recognizing that the full impact of religion-related variables on governance, diplomacy, human rights, development, notions of justice, and collective security must be better understood.\"\n\nWithin the framework of these two main themes, the statement offers a number of concrete recommendations to the United Nations. These recommendations fall in four broad areas: human rights, development, democracy, and collective security.\n\nAmong the recommendations are:\n\n-- A call for \"the United Nations to affirm unequivocally an individual's right to change his or her religion under international law.\"\n\n-- The establishment of a timeline for the universal ratification of international human rights treaties.\n\n-- That the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights should become \"the standard-bearer in the field of human rights and an effective tool in alleviating the suffering of individuals and groups whose rights are denied.\"\n\n-- An emphasis on education in UN development programs, since the \"capacity of people to participate in the generation and application of knowledge is an essential component of human development.\" Special attention should be given to the education of girls, which \"may well yield the highest return of all investments available in developing countries.\"\n\n-- That the rich countries of the world have a moral obligation to remove export and trade measures that bar the entry of countries struggling to participate in the global market.\n\n-- That the UN should develop modes for the \"constructive and systematic engagement with organizations of civil society (including businesses and religious organizations).\"\n\n-- That \"healthy democracy must be founded on the principle of the equality of men and women\" and efforts by member states to promote democracy must therefore \"vigilantly work for the inclusion of women in all facets of governance in their respective countries.\"\n\n-- That \"in our interconnected world, a threat to one is a threat to all,\" and the principle of collective security ultimately means that \"the United Nations must in due course move towards adopting a procedure for eventually eliminating permanent membership and veto power\" in the Security Council.\n\nThe Baha'i International Community has previously issued major statements on the important anniversaries of the founding of the United Nations. On the 10th anniversary, in 1955, the Community issued a statement offering \"Proposals to the United Nations for Charter Revision.\" And in 1995, on the 50th anniversary of the UN, it issued \"Turning Point for All Nations.\"\n\nThe full text of \"The Search for Values in an Age of Transition\" can be read at:\n\n[www.onecountry.org/e172/BIC_UN_60th.htm](http://www.onecountry.org/e172/BIC_UN_60th.htm)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":390,"evergreenUrl":"german-bahais-celebrate-100-years","title":"German Baha'is celebrate 100 years","description":"More than 1,800 participants at the centenary celebration of the German Baha'i community commemorated a history both \"dark\" with crisis and \"highlighted\"...","date":"2005-09-26","customDateline":null,"city":"STUTTGART","country":"GERMANY","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433252-bwns7422-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433252-bwns7422-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The nine members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Germany, the community's elected national governing council, addressed the jubilee gathering as a corporate body.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"More than 1,800 participants at the centenary celebration of the German Baha'i community commemorated a history both \"dark\" with crisis and \"highlighted\" by achievement.\n\nParticipants came from every region of Germany and at least 25 other nations for the day-long jubilee, held 10 September 2005 at the Stuttgart Congress Center.\n\nStuttgart was chosen as the host city because it was where the German Baha'i history had its beginning.\n\nFeaturing prayers, speeches, music, and theatrical performances, the program took note of the \"dark\" times when the Baha'i Faith was banned under Nazism in Germany -- and of the joyous highlights that have followed during modern Germany's reconstruction and prosperity.\n\nFor example, a series of performances, highlighted with old film clips and photographs, depicted events such as the 1913 visit of 'Abdu'l-Baha to Germany, the consecration of the Baha'i House of Worship in Langenhain, an interrogation at a police station during the prohibition of the Baha'i Faith under the Nazi regime, and the arrival of the first Baha'i in Germany, Dr. Edwin Fischer, in Stuttgart in 1905.\n\nDr. Fischer, a dentist, had emigrated in 1878 from Germany to New York, became a Baha'i there, and then returned to his home country to bring the message of Baha'u'llah. Dr. Fisher used every opportunity, including talking with his patients, to mention the Baha'i teachings, and in time a number of Germans embraced the new religion.\n\nOne of the speakers at the jubilee was Ian Semple, a former member of the Universal House of Justice, who represented the House of Justice at the occasion and read a message from it that referred to the arrival of the Baha'i Faith in Germany and its subsequent expansion.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"The spark lit in 1905,\" the message said, \"has burgeoned into a conflagration.\"\n\nThe Universal House of Justice said \"this is a moment for reflection, profound reflection -- one that recounts the highlights in contrast to the dark aspects punctuating the history of crisis and victory that depicts the evolution of the German (Baha'i) community.\"\n\nMr. Semple also delivered two talks in German which quoted from the writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha and Shoghi Effendi about the destiny of the German Baha'i community.\n\nHe said the central task for the German Baha'i community today lies in its contribution to the \"vital task\" for building a new, just and peaceful global society.\n\n\"In this age all the specific destinies are linked in the one enormous task of unifying the world and attaining the maturity of human society,\" said Mr. Semple.\n\nAnother speaker, Stuttgart's deputy mayor for social affairs, Gabriele Mueller-Trimbusch, thanked Baha'is for their initiative in starting World Religion Day.\n\n\"The respect you pay to other world religions, your openness for people who have different opinions, your message of peace for the world we live in, makes you a greatly appreciated partner for us,\" she said.\n\n\"Stuttgart highly values the activities of the Baha'i community, because it participates in the social life of our city in an exemplary manner,\" Ms. Mueller-Trimbusch said.\n\nThe National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Germany also addressed the gathering, as did a guest, the chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, William E. Davis, who emphasized the \"chain of deep and abiding love that binds our two communities.\"\n\nAfter World War II the American Baha'is sent to German Baha'is money, food and literature, and aided them in rebuilding the administrative structures.\n\nA US soldier stationed in occupied post-war Germany, John Eichenauer, who helped the German Baha'i community at that time, was a featured guest, and he told participants in the centenary festivities about his experiences during the first days of the reconvening of the German Baha'i community.\n\nThe festivities included a variety of musical performances and dances. A children's program for the event was also organized, in which participants sang, played games, and acted in plays.\n\nThe commemoration follows events in April and May to celebrate Germany's Baha'i jubilee. On 10 May 2005, the German Minister for Home Affairs, Otto Schily, addressed a congratulatory message to the German Baha'i community and on 22 April 2005 prominent parliamentarians attended a reception held at the national Baha'i center in Hofheim-Langenhain adjacent to the Baha'i House of Worship for Europe, which opened in 1964.\n\nGerman Baha'is now live in some 900 towns and cities throughout the country. There are 106 Local Spiritual Assemblies. The Baha'i community is active in the discourse on interfaith and gender equality issues, as well as in sustainable development and human rights education.\n\n(Photos by Alexander Schramm.)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433252-bwns7420-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"John Eichenauer, center, was interviewed about the role he played just after World War II in helping the German Baha'i community re-establish itself. A United States soldier stationed in occupied post-war Germany, Mr. Eichenauer made efforts to track down Baha'is in Stuttgart and re-connect them with the outside world."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433255-bwns7419-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The 10 September jubilee program featured theatrical performances -- such as this one depicting an interrogation during the prohibition of the Baha'i Faith under the Nazi regime -- that captured by \"dark\" and \"highlighted\" moments in German Baha'i history."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433253-bwns7418-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Among the performances at the jubilee was a dance routine performed by the local Baha'i children's class from the \"Anna Koestlin Schule.\""},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433256-bwns7417-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Ian Semple, a former member of the Universal House of Justice, gave two speeches at the jubilee on 10 September 2005."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433252-bwns7416-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"More than 1,800 people packed the Stuttgart Congress Center in a day-long program on 10 September 2005 that commemorated the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Baha'i community of Germany. Participants came from every region of Germany and at least 25 other nations."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":389,"evergreenUrl":"ambassador-talks-peace-green-acre","title":"Ambassador talks peace at Green Acre","description":"The Japanese ambassador to the United States told a gathering at Green Acre Baha'i School that he had \"deep admiration\" for the effort Baha'is...","date":"2005-09-13","customDateline":null,"city":"ELIOT, MAINE","country":"UNITED STATES","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433231-bwns7415-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433231-bwns7415-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Anne Gordon Perry, portraying Green Acre Founder Sarah Farmer, holding a peace flag, during ceremonies on 4 September 2005 commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"The Japanese ambassador to the United States told a gathering at Green Acre Baha'i School that he had \"deep admiration\" for the effort Baha'is have made in \"attending to world peace and human harmony.\"\n\nTaking the theme of \"Peace in the 21st Century,\" Ambassador Ryozo Kato spoke on 4 September 2005 about Japan's growing role in peacekeeping and peacebuilding efforts around the world.\n\n\"Japan is working around the world for the conservation of the environment, for disarmament, and for the eradication of poverty and disease,\" said Ambassador Kato.\n\nHis speech capped off a week-long celebration of the role played 100 years ago by a prominent US Baha'i, Sarah Farmer, in promoting activities that supported negotiations that ended the Russo-Japanese War.\n\nAmbassador Kato addressed some 175 people, including the Japanese news media, as did representatives of the Baha'i community of the United States and the Baha'i community of Japan.\n\nThe event was preceded by a week-long program commemorating the signing of the so-called Portsmouth Peace Treaty, which ended what many historians consider the first \"modern\" war, fought between Russia and Japan for 18 months in 1904-05.\n\nOn 26 August 2005, Suheil Bushrui, who holds the Baha'i Chair for World Peace at the University of Maryland, spoke on \"A Step Towards A Culture of Peace: Reflections on the Treaty of Portsmouth.\"\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Prof. Bushrui's talk was followed by five days of diverse educational activities exploring the cultural, economic, educational, political, and spiritual foundations for the creation of lasting peace.\n\nFeatures of the five-day program included a discussion of Russian contributions to the culture of peace, organized by the Boston-based Russian American Cultural Center, an interfaith panel discussion on the role of religion in promoting peace, a discussion of the role of the arts in creating a culture of peace, and an examination of African-American contributions to peace.\n\nOn 31 August 2005, as well, Mitsuru Kitano, minister for public affairs at the Japanese Embassy in Washington, DC, spoke at Green Acre about the significance of the Portsmouth Treaty.\n\nThe 4 September event also featured a dramatic re-enactment of the 1905 visit of the Japanese delegation to Green Acre and a commemorative raising of a \"Peace\" flag -- in honor of a similar flag hoisted 100 years ago by Ms. Farmer during the peace negotiations at the nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.\n\nMs. Farmer, an early member of the Baha'i Faith, founded Green Acre and sponsored a series of summer conferences about peace and inter-religious harmony in the opening years of the 20th century.\n\nThe Green Acre conference of 1904 closed with a program dedicated to the resolution of the Russo-Japanese war, and, the following year, when delegations from Russia and Japan met in nearby Portsmouth to negotiate an end to the war, Ms. Farmer was invited to witness the signing of the resulting treaty. She was the only woman at the event.\n\nCharles Doleac, co-chair of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty Anniversary Committee, said at the 4 September celebration that Ms. Farmer and other early Baha'is in the greater Portsmouth area played a critical role in pushing government delegations towards a settlement.\n\n\"The Baha'is in 1905 were really trying, through the work of Sarah Farmer, to resolve this dispute,\" said Mr. Doleac, who has done extensive research on the Portsmouth treaty process and history.\n\nFoad Katirai, who traveled from Japan as the representative of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Japan, said that the Portsmouth Peace Treaty process can be understood as among the first \"multi-track\" efforts at diplomacy, one that included not only various governments but also a civil society component.\n\n\"Many associations, many people, seek peace,\" said Dr. Katirai, who is the author of a book, \"Global Governance and the Lesser Peace.\"\n\n\"The Baha'i vision is perhaps unique in that we regard world peace as already having been born in the 20th century. What remains for us in the 21st century is to take the newborn peace and to see that it grows and develops into a mature and lasting system of global governance.\"\n\nErica Toussaint, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States, said that the signing of the peace treaty was a bold step on the part of the Japanese delegation in 1905.\n\n\"Because peace requires great courage,\" said Ms. Toussaint. \"That courage was to make a decision that to many people might be unpopular. When the Japanese delegation went home, there were riots.\"\n\nMs. Toussaint also quoted from a talk given by 'Abdu'l-Baha in London in September 1911. \"In that talk, he said: 'In the days of old an instinct for warfare was developed in the struggle with wild animals; this is no longer necessary; nay, rather, co-operation and mutual understanding are seen to produce the greatest welfare of mankind,'\" said Ms. Toussaint."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433230-bwns7414-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Erica Toussaint, Japanese Ambassador Ryozo Kato, and Foad Katirai, after Dr. Katirai gave Ambassador Kato a copy of his book, \"Global Governance and the Lesser Peace,\" on 4 September 2005 at Green Acre Baha'i School."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433230-bwns7413-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Participants in the 100th anniversary commemoration of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty march across the grounds at Green Acre Baha'i School carrying flags of the three nations that participated in the treaty signing 100 years ago, Japan, the United States, and Russia."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433230-bwns7412-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Japan's Ambassador to the United States Ryozo Kato speaks at Green Acre Baha'i School on 4 September 2005, in commemoration of the Portsmouth Peace Treaty, which ended the Russo-Japanese War 100 years ago."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":388,"evergreenUrl":"david-s-ruhe-1914-2005","title":"David S. Ruhe, 1914-2005","description":"Dr. David S. Ruhe, former member of the Universal House of Justice, died Tuesday, 6 September 2005, near his home in Newburgh, New York, following...","date":"2005-09-07","customDateline":null,"city":"HAIFA","country":"ISRAEL","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433221-bwns7411-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433221-bwns7411-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Dr. David S. Ruhe","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Dr. David S. Ruhe, former member of the Universal House of Justice, died Tuesday, 6 September 2005, near his home in Newburgh, New York, following a stroke in mid-August. He was 91.\n\nDr. Ruhe became a Baha'i in Philadelphia in 1941, subsequently serving on numerous Local Spiritual Assemblies and national Baha'i committees. Elected to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States in 1959, he served as its secretary from 1963 until 1968, when he was elected to the Universal House of Justice. His service on the Baha'i Faith's supreme governing council here extended for five terms of five years each until 1993.\n\nA medical doctor, Dr. Ruhe was also an accomplished film-maker, painter, and author. Graduating from Temple University School of Medicine in 1941, Dr. Ruhe began his medical career during World War II as a malaria researcher in the United States Public Health Service where he was promoted to the rank of Medical Director.\n\nIn l954, Dr. Ruhe was named the first professor of Medical Communications at the University of Kansas Medical School. Among the innovations he introduced there were the use of optical fibers for endoscopic cinematography, the projection of high-definition images in surgical theaters, and videotaping of psychiatric sessions for peer review.\n\nHe made scores of medical films, winning the Golden Reel award, the Venice Film Festival award, and the Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain award for his productions. In the course of his work in medical education he was appointed Director of the Medical Film Institute for the Association of American Medical Colleges.\n\nDr. Ruhe was a prolific writer. In his medical career, he authored many papers and two books on aspects of medicine and medical audiovisual communication.\n\nDuring his years at the Baha'i World Centre, Dr. Ruhe researched and wrote *Door of Hope,* detailed explanation of the history and significance of Baha'i holy places in Israel, published in 1983. Later, he wrote *Robe of Light,* a historical account of Baha'u'llah's early years, published in 1994. Dr. Ruhe was also an accomplished painter who was trained in the Lehigh Valley school of impressionism.\n\nUpon his 1993 departure from the Universal House of Justice, Dr. Ruhe and his wife, Margaret, returned to New York State where he produced a series of documentary TV programs about the Baha'i Faith.\n\nDr. Ruhe is survived by his wife, Margaret, and two sons, Christopher and Douglas, and their families."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":387,"evergreenUrl":"science-religion-explored","title":"Science and religion explored","description":"The relationship between science and religion was explored at the 29th annual Association for Baha'i Studies conference, which took place here...","date":"2005-09-02","customDateline":null,"city":"CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS","country":"UNITED STATES","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433200-bwns7410-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433200-bwns7410-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Five young scholars closed the conference discussing \"Walking the Academic Path with Baha'i Feet.\" From left to right: Julia Berger, Jose Uribe, panel chair Nava Ashraf, Arash Abizadeh, and Stephanie Urie.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"The relationship between science and religion was explored at the 29th annual Association for Baha'i Studies conference, which took place here on the 11-14 August 2005.\n\nAttended by some 1,300 people, the conference explored everything from the role of inspiration in scientific discovery to the value of prayer in healing. Presentations ranged over the gamut of natural and social sciences, from neuroscience to quantum mechanics, from philosophy to psychology.\n\nMore than 100 speakers presented during the course of the four-day event. Participants came mainly from the United States and Canada but also traveled from Australia, Austria, Chile, China, France, Gabon, Germany, Haiti, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Sudan, and the United Kingdom.\n\nThe conference was organized by the Association for Baha'i Studies--North America, one of 26 sister organizations around the world that provide forums for scholars and students to exchange ideas inspired by Baha'i principles.\n\nMost presentations focused on this year's conference theme, \"Science, Religion and Social Transformation.\" The Baha'i sacred writings explicitly uphold the underlying harmony of science and religion, and many scholars sought to show how these two systems are increasingly seen as complementary sides of the same reality.\n\nRedwan Moqbel, a professor of immunology at the University of Alberta, spoke on the role of inspiration in scientific endeavors.\n\nDr. Moqbel said that current science is beginning to corroborate Baha'u'llah's teaching that there are realms yet to be discovered at every level of existence.\n\n\"In the field of immunology, there is this concept of universes within universes,\" said Dr. Moqbel. \"As we discover one layer of this onion, you then peel it off and there is another layer.\n\n\"We are now beginning to discover that there are, at the molecular level, the signs and symptoms of a system within the tiniest units of a single cell,\" said Dr. Moqbel. \"And when you go to the Baha'i writings, Baha'u'llah tells you that there are worlds within worlds, universes within universes.\"\n\nDr. Moqbel said he believes that all knowledge emanates from God, and it is the responsibility of scientists to make themselves conduits of that knowledge through an attitude of utmost humility and cooperation with their colleagues.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"'Humble thyself before Me, that I may graciously visit thee,'\" said Dr. Moqbel, quoting from the writings of Baha'u'llah. \"Fellow scientists, this is our motto.\"\n\nJohn Hatcher, professor of English literature at the University of South Florida, delivered the Hasan M. Balyuzi Memorial Lecture, the conference's annual keynote address, titled \"Unveiling the Huri of Love.\"\n\nOften taking a lighthearted approach, Dr. Hatcher examined the relationship between the phenomenal world and spiritual reality, suggesting that the former is a physical manifestation of the latter and that human beings can attain greater intimacy with the spiritual world by progressing through the various stages of love revealed by Baha'u'llah.\n\nThe creation of physical reality, Dr. Hatcher said, is \"a means by which we can understand abstract concepts\" such as love.\n\nIn this light, everything possesses some attribute of God, Dr. Hatcher said. \"We love 'stuff' for example, because all 'stuff' manifests attributes of God.\"\n\nThe primary purpose of human existence, he said, is to \"climb the ladder of love,\" moving progressively from love for material things and love for self to love for others and finally to love for God above all else.\n\nAnother convention highlight was a talk by Douglas Martin, who served as a member of the Universal House of Justice until earlier this year. Mr. Martin in a plenary address urged the scholarly community to contribute its insights on the unprecedented learning process that Baha'is around the world have put at the center of their community life.\n\nMr. Martin likened the process, in which small groups of individuals gather informally to pray and study the Baha'i teachings, to the building of a bridge across a chasm. As more people engage in the process, the bridge is slowly built and the separation that humanity has always made between the mind and the heart gradually disappears.\n\nThe learning process referred to by Mr. Martin consists of three main activities: study circles, devotional gatherings, and children's classes. The study circles cover such topics as living a spiritual life, learning about the life of Baha'u'llah, the founder of the Baha'i Faith, and serving humanity. Each of the three activities -- whether it is group study, praying, or education of children -- is designed to bring participants to a closer understanding of their relationship to God.\n\nThe systematic and world-embracing scope of this process is unprecedented in human history, Mr. Martin said, and scholars are in a unique position to assess its impact on human behavior and community cohesion.\n\nAccording to one of the conference organizers, this year's theme of the harmony between science and religion attracted a more diverse group of speakers than usual.\n\n\"We do get strong submissions on the theme every year,\" said Kim Naqvi, the program coordinator, \"but I think we have a lot of people presenting new ideas this year and a lot of Baha'i medical practitioners as well.\n\n\"For example, Murray Skeaff came from New Zealand to present a study on fasting, and that's just the kind of presentation that we did not get before,\" said Ms. Naqvi. \"We have had many more empirical science-based studies, particularly in the medical and natural sciences, done in the context of the Baha'i Faith than we've had in previous years.\"\n\nA perennial feature at Association for Baha'i Studies conferences have been the artistic presentations, and this year's event showcased a mixture of chorale music, dancing, spoken word pieces, and musical performances.\n\nAnne Gordon Perry performed a monologue during the Friday plenary entitled \"Sarah Farmer: Raising the Flag of Peace,\" which recounted the triumphs and travails of the abolition-era figure who helped establish a center dedicated to peace and religious unity.\n\nMs. Farmer, who became a Baha'i at the turn of the century, was held in high esteem by 'Abdu'l-Baha, the son of Baha'u'llah. The center she helped found and which 'Abdu'l-Baha visited eventually turned into Green Acre Baha'i School, a facility that is used today for annual schools, conferences, and workshops dedicated to peace and unity-related themes. Green Acre is located in Eliot, Maine.\n\nThe weekend wrapped up with a panel of five speakers discussing their experience as young Baha'is in the academic and professional world. Speaking on the theme of \"Walking the Academic Path with Baha'i Feet,\" the panelists explored the challenges of applying Baha'i principles to the often thorny problems that spring up in their respective fields, which range from economics to law to political science to bioethics to international development.\n\nThe speakers concurred that as vital as are the divine teachings that are revealed to humanity by Baha'u'llah and the other Messengers of God, the challenge for Baha'is is to show to the wider public the applicability of these teachings to the practical problems of the day.\n\n\"My challenge,\" noted Julia Berger, a senior researcher and writer for the Baha'i International Community, \"is to never become lazy but to really think these concepts through. For example, when we talk about unity, what does it mean for today in the particular context that I might be thinking about it? How can I communicate this persuasively in a way that a community that has never heard of the Baha'i Faith can understand it?\"\n\n-- *Compiled from a report by the Canadian Baha'i News Service*"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433200-bwns7409-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Redwan Moqbel, director of the pulmonary research group at the University of Alberta, delivered a plenary address on \"That 'Eureka' Moment: The Role of Reflection and Inspiration in Scientific Discovery\""},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433200-bwns7408-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Douglas Martin urged scholars to pay attention to the process of learning being undertaken by Baha'is around the world."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":385,"evergreenUrl":"bahai-group-pays-homage-heroine","title":"Baha'i group pays homage to a heroine","description":"Towering trees sheltered ornate headstones that were almost hidden in the dense vegetation of an old cemetery in this eastern European capital....","date":"2005-08-03","customDateline":null,"city":"SOFIA","country":"BULGARIA","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7406-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7406-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Amelia Collins, later named a Hand of the Cause of God (standing third from left), is pictured in Esslingen, Germany, 1933 with a Baha'i group that includes two pioneers to Bulgaria: Marion Jack (seated second from left) and Louisa Mathew Gregory (seated third from left).","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Towering trees sheltered ornate headstones that were almost hidden in the dense vegetation of an old cemetery in this eastern European capital.\n\nIn this lush setting, a group of Baha'is from 15 countries slowly made its way along a path towards a grave of historic significance.\n\nAs the Baha'is turned a corner, they came upon a scene that was in complete contrast to what had come before. It was a small lawn cemetery in immaculate condition and enclosed by a low wall.\n\nThis is the British military cemetery where British Commonwealth servicemen from two world wars, and some civilians, are laid to rest. In its neat precincts is the dignified grave of one who bore the nickname of \"General Jack.\"\n\nThis is not the tomb of a great soldier but rather of a spiritual hero of the Baha'i world community.\n\nIt is the resting place of Marion Jack (1866-1954), who is acclaimed for her selfless role as a \"pioneer,\" one who moves to another country to help establish and develop a Baha'i community.\n\nThe belief in the oneness of humanity and the conviction that world unity is the key to a lasting international peace has inspired many Baha'is to pioneer to ensure that the teachings of Baha'u'llah are available to all peoples on the planet. The one acknowledged as the greatest of those pioneers is Marion Jack.\n\nHalf a century after her passing, the group of Baha'is gathered around her grave. They placed bouquets on the headstone.\n\n\"I had a strong feeling of respect and gratitude,\" Inga Daniels, a Baha'i from Iceland, recalled later.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"A woman who demonstrated such courage and perseverance in her role as a Baha'i pioneer is not only important to the history of the faith in Bulgaria, but is an example for anyone who likes to be of service to a worthwhile cause -- being at her grave was truly inspiring,\" said Ms Daniels.\n\nLike the others in the group, she had come to the cemetery after participating in a Baha'i conference held in Sofia 30 June-3 July 2005.\n\nThe Baha'is bowed their heads as several among them recited prayers, including one by Baha'u'llah for those who have passed away: \"Cause them to enter the garden of happiness, cleanse them with the most pure water and grant that they may behold thy splendors on the loftiest mount.\"\n\nThose with some knowledge of the life of Marion Jack spoke quietly to the gathering about the one whose epitaph, inscribed in gold letters, begins with the words: \"Immortal heroine.\"\n\nBorn and raised in Canada, Marion Jack had become a Baha'i while an art student in Paris. In 1908 she spent some months in Acre where she had the privilege of being with 'Abdu'l-Baha. He admired her sense of humor, joviality, and spiritual certitude, and He gave her the affectionate nickname of \"General Jack.\"\n\nDuring her stay in the Holy Land, she taught English to some of His grandchildren and met another of them, the young Shoghi Effendi. Some of her paintings done at that time are now on display in the Baha'i holy places in Israel, including the Mansion of Bahji.\n\nInspired by the guidance of 'Abdu'l-Baha , Ms. Jack took the message of the Faith to Alaska 1919-20. More than a decade later, when revisiting the Holy Land, Shoghi Effendi, then the head of the Faith, asked Ms. Jack, 65, to go as a Baha'i pioneer to Bulgaria. She went there directly from the Holy Land, arriving in 1930.\n\nIn cooperation with just a handful of other Baha'is, she helped establish thriving Baha'i communities in places such as Sofia and Varna.\n\nIn that first decade of her stay in Bulgaria, she lived through the world economic depression sustained only by a meager pension that afforded her basic accommodation and food. Then, during World War II, her living conditions became immeasurably worse.\n\nShoghi Effendi suggested she leave the country for Switzerland. However, he accepted, with great admiration, her plea to remain at her post. She had told him there was nobody there at the time who could replace her as a Baha'i pioneer.\n\nLiving in a city subject to aerial bombing and facing the possibility of internment by a pro-Nazi government, Ms. Jack demonstrated persistence, fearlessness, self-abnegation, and generosity.\n\nDuring the Stalinist-style political era that followed the war, she suffered from inadequate food, heating, and clothing. She lived in dank rented rooms -- once in a damp cellar with no windows.\n\nAmong the other difficulties she faced were serious health problems, an inability to master the Bulgarian language, theft of her belongings, extreme cold, plagues of bedbugs, and the irregular arrival of her pension. Yet she remained cheerful and steadfast. Shoghi Effendi said there was never a \"more inspiring pioneer.\"\n\nWhen she passed away, aged 87, on March 27, 1954, he urged the building of a suitable grave that was destined to \"confer eternal benediction\" on Bulgaria. It would, he said,  become in the future a place of visitation, a prediction that is being borne out by such visits as the one last month.\n\nAn extract of the tribute Shoghi Effendi paid her on her passing appears on the headstone of her grave: \"Immortal heroine...Greatly loved and deeply admired by 'Abdu'l-Baha. A shining example to pioneers...Her unremitting, highly meritorious activities...shed imperishable splendor on contemporary Baha'i history...Shoghi.\"\n\nMarion Jack's legacy lies in a Baha'i community now established in 100 localities throughout the country -- and in beautiful paintings adorning the meeting chamber of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Bulgaria and some of the walls of the Baha'i holy places in Acre and Haifa.\n\n(For more information on Marion Jack, see the book \"Never Be Afraid to Dare\" by Jan Teofil Jasion, George Ronald, Publisher, 2001. [http://www.grbooks.com](http://www.grbooks.com)).\n\n(Editor’s Note: A change was made to paragraph 16 on 6 June 2017 to reflect that Marion Jack went to Bulgaria in 1930, not 1931.)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7405-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Light shines through the door leading to the living quarters of 'Abdu'l-Baha in Marion Jack's 1908 painting of a scene at the House of 'Abdu'llah Pasha, Acre."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7404-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Baha'is who were later named Hands of the Cause of God are pictured at Eliot, Maine, United States, circa 1926, when Marion Jack (standing center in dark gown) was present. Those later elevated to the rank of Hand of the Cause include Mary Maxwell (later Madame Ruhiyyih Rabbani), seated second from the right; Paul Haney (partially obscured in back row to the right of man in eastern-style hat); Louis Gregory, standing second from right next to his wife, Louisa, who was the first Baha'i pioneer to Bulgaria. May Maxwell, a prominent Baha’i and mother of Mary Maxwell, stands at the left in dark gown with hands together. Physician and educator Dr. Susan Moody is seated to the left of Mary Maxwell. Stanwood Cobb, a Baha'i author, is wearing a suit and is standing near the left of the group."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7403-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Marion Jack, pictured in pre-war Germany."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433163-bwns7402-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Marion Jack, aged about 18."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7401-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Baha'is of Sofia, 1932. Marion Jack is seated fourth from left in the second row, next to Lina Benke, who, with her husband, George Adam Benke, is holding a photograph of 'Abdu'l-Baha. Two Baha'is in the front row are displaying a representation in calligraphy of Baha'ullah's name."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433170-bwns7400-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"At the grave of George Adam Benke in 1932...Hand of the Cause of God Martha Root (1872-1939), right, Marion Jack (center), and an unknown mourner."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7399-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Resting place in Sofia of George Adam Benke (1878-1932), a Baha'i pioneer to Bulgaria."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433174-bwns7398-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Ornate sculptures in the dense vegetation on the way to the immaculate lawn cemetery where Marion Jack is buried."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433163-bwns7397-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":""},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433171-bwns7396-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"\"Immortal heroine..\" An extract from the tribute to Marion Jack by Shoghi Effendi is inscribed on the headstone of her grave."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7395-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Painting by Marion Jack of the Shrine of Baha'u'llah, 1931."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433164-bwns7393-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Marion Jack(1866-1954)."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433171-bwns7392-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"\"A place of visitation\"....At the graveside in Sofia of Marion Jack, Baha'is pray for the progress of her soul."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433174-bwns7391-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Bouquets for a heroine... Stana Radoslavova, the chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Bulgaria (right), and Melody Donnelly, a member of the Plovdiv Baha'i community, place flowers at the resting place of Baha'i pioneer Marion Jack."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":384,"evergreenUrl":"value-system-could-protect-diversity","title":"'Value system' could protect diversity","description":"The challenge of establishing unity in diversity was among the topics explored at a conference held here to examine the impact of the Baha'i...","date":"2005-07-28","customDateline":null,"city":"DUBLIN","country":"IRELAND","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433148-bwns7390-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433148-bwns7390-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"\"Unity in diversity,\" the topic addressed at the conference, was the theme of an event hosted earlier this year by the Baha'i community of Cork as its contribution to the \"European Capital of Culture 2005\" program. People from 16 countries, some pictured here, attended the event, which included songs from the Dublin-based Townshend Baha'i choir, dramatic presentations, a salsa performance and lesson, traditional \"canciones\" ballads from Mexico, rhythmic melodies of Uganda, and Irish poetry. A member of the \"Capital of Culture\" organizing committee, Tom McCarthy, said the event captured the true spirit of the festival, uniting the hearts of the people who attended.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"The challenge of establishing unity in diversity was among the topics explored at a conference held here to examine the impact of the Baha'i teachings on a wide range of contemporary issues.\n\nThe concept of \"unity in diversity,\" which addresses the underlying similarities of different populations and cultures, is increasingly studied by social scientists as policy makers seek to integrate populations of various ethnic and religious allegiances. It is also a central principle of the Baha'i Faith.\n\nAddressing the annual conference of the Association of Baha'i Studies -- English-Speaking Europe, Dr. Iarfhlaith Watson, a lecturer in sociology at University College Dublin, said sociologists have been looking at this issue since their discipline began.\n\n\"As humanity experiences its collective coming of age, the challenge is to find a way of holding people together -- not so tightly that pathological consequences ensue nor too loosely that they become lost,\" Dr. Watson said at the event, which was held 2-3 July 2005.\n\nDr. Watson concluded that allegiance to a higher cause -- such as one common faith -- could provide people with a shared value system that allows order to be maintained but provides the freedom for diversity to be protected and flourish.\n\nAmong the guests at the conference was Dr. Sheikh Shaheed Satardien, a Muslim cleric from the Dublin Inter-Faith Roundtable.\n\nDr. Satardien and his colleagues recently organized a conference entitled \"Towards a New Religious Model for Global Peace,\" which aimed to bring together scholars, religious leaders, and commentators from the worlds of media and politics.\n\n\"Virtually all faiths oppose war and yet many of the world's conflicts contain religious elements,\" said Dr. Satardien.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"Ireland is becoming the world in microcosm with new races, creeds, and cultures arriving on a daily basis. Potentially this country is a macro-laboratory for examining and testing strategies to promote peace that may have relevance on the global stage.\"\n\nDr. Satardien said he is very taken by the vision of peace and global justice found in the Baha'i teachings.\n\n\"I think the presentations at this conference should be heard by all people -- from academics to the man in the street -- to help them understand more about what the Baha'is are doing and how these teachings can be applied.\"\n\nTalks included presentations from Baha'is who came from a range of countries including Ireland, England, Scotland, the United States, Germany, Norway, and Malaysia.\n\nThe Association was formed to foster the intellectual life of the Baha'i community and to assist Baha'is in the application of their teachings to the challenges of modern-day society.\n\nDr. Masoud Afnan, a specialist in infertility at the Birmingham Women's Hospital, explored the concept of the soul in the world's religions and the implications such concepts have on the ethics of contemporary fertility treatments and research.\n\n\"The differing ideas about when the soul associates itself with the new life in the womb has major implications on how the religions view such treatments, and how governments develop laws and policies,\" Dr. Afnan said.\n\nAmong other presentations was an overview of the forces of history from the \"big bang\" through to the emergence of global civilization by Dr. Nahal Mavaddat, a medical academic, from Birmingham, England.\n\nDr. Mavaddat said that millions of years of evolution have brought us to the point where human life, at the apex of the evolutionary process on this planet, is emerging towards its fulfillment -- global consciousness and the recognition of the oneness of humanity.\n\nLawrence Staudt, chairman of the Irish Renewable Energy Council, explored the notion of the natural world being an expression of the will of God.\n\nMr. Staudt examined the metaphorical nature of the physical world, that through \"creation\" we learn lessons about spiritual reality.\n\nNew research was also presented on figures from the history of the Baha'i faith including Dr. William Cormick, an Irish physician who lived in 19th century Persia and who was the only European known to have met the Bab.\n\nVincent Flannery from Ireland outlined information he obtained from a descendent of Dr. Cormick about his work as physician to crown prince Nasirid-Din.\n\nAnother historical figure discussed was Frank Edwin Scott, an American Impressionist painter resident in Paris and a member of the first Baha'i community in Europe. 'Abdu'l-Baha gave talks in his Paris studio and Shoghi Effendi visited him in 1920.\n\nMalaysian-born Sathia Varqa, examined the actions of five of the world leaders addressed by Baha'u'llah in the middle of the 19th century.\n\n(Report by Rob Weinberg.)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433148-bwns7390-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"\"Unity in diversity,\" the topic addressed at the conference, was the theme of an event hosted earlier this year by the Baha'i community of Cork as its contribution to the \"European Capital of Culture 2005\" program. People from 16 countries, some pictured here, attended the event, which included songs from the Dublin-based Townshend Baha'i choir, dramatic presentations, a salsa performance and lesson, traditional \"canciones\" ballads from Mexico, rhythmic melodies of Uganda, and Irish poetry. A member of the \"Capital of Culture\" organizing committee, Tom McCarthy, said the event captured the true spirit of the festival, uniting the hearts of the people who attended."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433148-bwns7388-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Dr. Masoud Afnan, a specialist in infertility at the Birmingham Women's Hospital, who addressed the annual conference of the Association of Baha'i Studies -- English-Speaking Europe."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433148-bwns7387-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Dr. Iarfhlaith Watson, a lecturer in sociology at University College Dublin, presented a paper on unity in diversity to the annual conference of the Association of Baha'i Studies -- English-Speaking Europe."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433152-bwns7386-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Participants in the annual conference of the Association of Baha'i Studies -- English-Speaking Europe."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":383,"evergreenUrl":"prophets-daughter-tells-story-an-exceptional-woman","title":"'Prophet's Daughter' tells story of an exceptional woman","description":"A woman who was assigned principal responsibility for the administration of an independent world religion is the subject of a book recently launched...","date":"2005-07-20","customDateline":null,"city":"HAIFA","country":"ISRAEL","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433136-bwns7380-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433136-bwns7380-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The cover of \"Prophet's Daughter.\"","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"A woman who was assigned principal responsibility for the administration of an independent world religion is the subject of a book recently launched at a major book fair in New York.\n\n\"Prophet's Daughter,\" by Dr. Janet Khan, tells the story of Bahiyyih Khanum (1846-1932), who held the reins of the  Baha'i Faith at crucial formative stages in the history of the youngest of the world religions.\n\nThe book describing the life of the daughter of Baha'u'llah was presented at BookExpo America held in New York on 3-5 June 2005.\n\nGeneral manager of Baha'i Publishing Lee Minnerly said the book describes the accomplishments of Bahiyyih Khanum and her exceptional ability to transcend adversity.\n\n\"The book delivers a strong message of encouragement and hope to anyone concerned about humanity's ability to combat ignorance, prejudice, and repression,\" Mr. Minnerly said.\n\nThe author, a  member of the Research Department at the Baha'i World Centre in Haifa, Israel, holds a doctorate in counseling. She coauthored with her husband, Dr. Peter  Khan, the 1998 book \"The Advancement of Women: A Baha'i Perspective.\"\n\n\"Prophet's Daughter\" analyzes the significant role Bahiyyih Khanum played in the development of the religion's administrative structure and in its emergence as a worldwide faith.\n\n\"In the mid-nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when Middle Eastern women were largely invisible, confined to the home, deprived of education and social status, Bahiyyih Khanum was an active participant in the dramatic early years of the Baha'i Faith,\" Dr. Janet Khan said.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"\"The book illustrates how Bahiyyih Khanum transcended the cultural constraints of the time she lived in,\" she said.\n\nFrom her earliest years Bahiyyih Khanum suffered with her family as the authorities in Persia confiscated their home and possessions, and exiled them from their homeland to eventually be imprisoned in Acre in the Holy Land.\n\n\"Bahiyyih Khanum's role in the early history of the Baha'i Faith was different at different points of time,\" Dr. Khan said.\n\n\"It is clear though that from her childhood she had an appreciation and understanding of the significance of her Father's station and the new religious revelation He brought,\" she said.\n\nBaha'u'llah passed away in 1892 and appointed His eldest son, 'Abdu'l-Baha, as His successor as head of the Faith.\n\nBetween 1911 and 1913, during 'Abdu'l-Baha's travels to Europe and America, He entrusted His sister, then in her mid 60s, with the responsibilities of the day-to-day administration of the Faith.\n\nIn her brother's absence Bahiyyih Khanum welcomed dignitaries and officials, met with Baha'i pilgrims, and handled the affairs of 'Abdu'l-Baha's extended family.  Like her brother, she gave assistance to the poor and provided medical services to the sick.\n\nAnother significant phase of her life came after the passing of 'Abdu'l-Baha, in 1921. In His Will and Testament, 'Abdu'l-Baha appointed His eldest grandson, Shoghi Effendi, as head of the Faith, with the title \"Guardian.\"\n\nShocked by the sudden passing of his grandfather and conscious of the weighty task ahead of him, the 24-year-old Shoghi Effendi had to prepare himself for this unexpected responsibility.\n\nFor the next three years Shoghi Effendi spent extended periods of time in contemplation, prayer, and planning in Switzerland, during which he assigned the task of the supervision of the Baha'i community to Bahiyyih Khanum.\n\n\"This meant that for the first time in history a woman was appointed to direct the affairs of a world religion and that Shoghi Effendi had the confidence that Bahiyyih Khanum would succeed in this task,\" Dr. Khan said.\n\nHer appointment to this position came during a critical period of transition for the Baha'i Faith and its community, Dr. Khan said. She possessed the necessary skills and qualities of character to carry out her assigned functions.\n\nBahiyyih Khanum had a vision of how the Faith should unfold, Dr. Khan said, because she understood the succession of the Faith's administrative order as preordained by Baha'u'llah.\n\n\"By corresponding with Baha'i communities worldwide she facilitated the transition process between the passing of 'Abdu'l-Baha, the Guardianship, and the election of spiritual assemblies, the governing councils of local Baha'i communities,\" she said.\n\n\"To me, Bahiyyih Khanum was not only highly refined spiritually, she was also a woman of great strength, resilience, and practicality. She was a prisoner from the age of six but always remained optimistic, and encouraging, a strong and complex woman, action oriented, and forward looking.\n\n\"The book intends to analyze aspects of Bahiyyih Khanum's legacy that have continuing relevance to men and women, not only in the present day but also in the future,\" said Dr. Khan.\n\nThe full title of the book is \"Prophet's Daughter: The Life and Legacy of Bahiyyih Khanum, an Outstanding Heroine of the Baha'i Faith.\"\n\n\"Prophet's Daughter\" can be ordered at general bookstores in the United States. For those living outside the United States, the book can be ordered through the United States Baha'i Distribution Service, at bds@usbnc.org."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433136-bwns7379-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The resting place of Bahiyyih Khanum, Baha'i World Centre, Mount Carmel, Haifa, Israel."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433136-bwns7377-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Dr. Janet Khan with her recently published book \"Prophet's Daughter.\""}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":382,"evergreenUrl":"junior-youth-take-inspired-steps","title":"Junior youth take inspired steps","description":"Junior youth from the Singaporean Baha'i community entertained more than 500 youth at a recent event organized by the World Bank. The young Baha'is...","date":"2005-07-14","customDateline":null,"city":"SINGAPORE","country":"SINGAPORE","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433128-bwns7370-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433128-bwns7370-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Pointing to a united future -- dancers in the Singaporean Baha'i junior youth dance troupe performing at an event for youth organised by the World Bank.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Junior youth from the Singaporean Baha'i community entertained more than 500 youth at a recent event organized by the World Bank.\n\nThe young Baha'is performed dances portraying the need for unity among the peoples of the world and the vital necessity to eliminate prejudice of all kinds.\n\nHigh school and university students from a variety of religious and ethnic backgrounds enthusiastically applauded the performance by the Baha'is at the event, which was held at the Anglo Chinese Junior College on 1 June 2005.\n\nThe World Bank organized the occasion to increase the awareness of development issues among young Singaporeans and to inspire them to volunteer to assist local non-governmental organizations.\n\nThe Baha'i junior youth (aged 12-15) come from Chinese, Indian, European, and Persian backgrounds. An active group, they performed, for example, at an event earlier in the year and recently visited Baha'is and their friends in remote regions of Sabah in East Malaysia."},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433127-bwns7371-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Baha'i junior youth dancers from a variety of backgrounds won applause from an audience of more than 500 youth at an event organized in Singapore by the World Bank."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433127-bwns7372-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":""}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":380,"evergreenUrl":"bahais-address-historic-un-hearings","title":"Baha'is address historic UN hearings","description":"A representative of the Baha'i International Community outlined specific recommendations for reform of the United Nations during an address at...","date":"2005-07-05","customDateline":null,"city":"UNITED NATIONS","country":"UNITED STATES","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433119-bwns7374-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433119-bwns7374-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Diane Ala'i, a representative of the Baha'i International Community to the United Nations in Geneva, prepares for her role as an \"active participant\" on 23 June 2005 at the United Nations during informal interactive hearings with the UN General Assembly.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"A representative of the Baha'i International Community outlined specific recommendations for reform of the United Nations during an address at historic hearings between non-governmental organizations and the UN General Assembly.\n\nRoberto Eghrari, who is from Brazil, put forward the Baha'i position on 24 June at a session chaired by the president of the UN General Assembly, Jean Ping.\n\nAmong the recommendations Mr. Eghrari outlined were:\n\n-- That advancement of the role of women is an essential element in strengthening the effectiveness of the UN.\n\n-- That the Human Rights Commission should be greatly strengthened by creating a standing \"Human Rights Council.\"\n\n-- That mechanisms for funding the United Nations should be strengthened, beyond voluntary contributions.\n\n-- That the capacities and diverse experiences of civil society must be included in all aspects of UN work-- from decision making to on-the-ground implementation.\n\nMr. Eghrari said the guiding principle that must now animate reform \"is the oneness of humanity, a spiritual principle that underpins the very nature of human reality.\"\n\n\"We are one human family, and each member of the human race is born into the world as a trust of the whole,\" said Mr. Eghrari. \"It is on the basis of this recognition of our essential oneness that a process of reform can be successful.\"\n\nThe Baha'i International Community was among some 200 international civil society organizations invited to participate in the series of interactive hearings held 23-24 June 2005.\n\nIn advance of September's Millennium Plus Five Summit of world leaders, the General Assembly sought input from NGOs on four main themes: human rights, poverty elimination, peace and security, and United Nations reform.\n\nThe hearings featured statements by select NGOs, along with a dialogue between a larger group of NGO representatives and government delegations. It was the first time the UN General Assembly has held this type of meeting.\n\nThe Baha'i International Community's representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Diane Ala'i, was also chosen as an \"active participant\" in the hearing on human rights, which was held 23 June.\n\nThat designation entitled Ms. Ala'i to offer a response during the dialogue held on \"Freedom to Live in Dignity.\"\n\nIn her remarks, Ms. Ala'i also supported the creation of a Human Rights Council. Such a council should continue to utilize so-called \"special procedures\" by which the current Human Rights Commission can create special rapporteurs that can monitor human rights in specific countries.\n\nShe also stressed the importance of maintaining the understanding that human rights are universal, as outlined in the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433119-bwns7373-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Roberto Eghrari, a representative of the Baha'i International Community, during his address at historic hearings between non-governmental organizations and the UN General Assembly on 24 June 2005."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":379,"evergreenUrl":"unity-stressed-interfaith-conference","title":"Unity stressed at interfaith conference","description":"The key to interfaith harmony is to focus on the essential oneness of all religions, a Baha'i International Community representative told a groundbreaking...","date":"2005-06-28","customDateline":null,"city":"UNITED NATIONS","country":"UNITED STATES","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433110-bwns7364-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433110-bwns7364-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The Baha'i International Community's principal representative to the United Nations, Bani Dugal, addressing the interfaith conference.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"The key to interfaith harmony is to focus on the essential oneness of all religions, a Baha'i International Community representative told a groundbreaking conference on interfaith cooperation.\n\n\"It is this essential unity of religion, across the tremendous diversity of history, culture, tradition, philosophy, and practice, that should now become the operating principle of religious discourse,\" said the Community's principal representative to the United Nations, Bani Dugal.\n\nMs. Dugal was among some two dozen speakers at the \"Conference on Interfaith Cooperation for Peace,\" which was held on 22 June 2005.\n\nThe conference was sponsored by a tripartite group that included 16 governments, three UN agencies, and  eight religious and civil society organizations.\n\nIt is the first time such a group has convened a substantive interfaith event at the United Nations -- an institution that rarely holds interfaith gatherings of any type.\n\nA report of the conference will be communicated to world leaders at the planned Millennium Summit Plus Five conference in September.\n\nSecretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines Alberto G. Romulo, who opened the conference, said his government chose to co-sponsor the event because of the \"vital role\" that religions have in the promotion of peace.\n\n\"Religions lie at the heart of each culture and civilization,\" said Dr. Romulo. \"We embark on this tripartite partnership as an historic and inspired approach to the collective pursuit of universal peace as a fundamental goal enshrined in the UN Charter and in the 2000 Millennium Declaration.\"\n\nIn her address, Ms. Dugal said persistent religious intolerance requires \"a fundamental change in the way that believers of different religions relate to one another.\"\n\n\"The remedy for the repeated crises plaguing our communities today is to center our efforts and frank deliberations on that which we hold in common rather than that which sets us apart,\" Ms. Dugal said.\n\nGrowing numbers of people are already coming to realize that the truth underlying all religions is, in its essence, one, she said.\n\n\"This recognition arises not through a resolution of theological disputes but through an awareness of the reality that there is only one human family and that the Divine Essence, from which all life has sprung, has also been the impulse behind the principles and laws of the great religions of the world.\n\n\"The diversity of regulations and observances associated with the various faiths need not pose a challenge to the idea of religion's essential oneness. That religions differ from one another is to be attributed to the different requirements of the age in which they appeared.\"\n\nMs. Dugal told the conference that the Baha'i sacred writings offer numerous passages stating the purpose of religion 'is to establish unity and concord amongst the peoples of the world.'\"\n\nShe also urged governments everywhere to observe the right, outlined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, for individuals to freely adopt and change their religious beliefs.\n\n\"The individual's search for truth is an activity intimately linked with the human conscience and with the essence of life itself,\" Ms. Dugal said.\n\n\"At a time when religious extremism, intolerance, and discrimination are threatening peace in many parts of the world, religious leaders must unequivocally support, if not lead, efforts to ensure that all people are afforded this fundamental freedom,\" she said.\n\nMs. Dugal called for women and girls to be involved alongside men and boys in laying the foundation for interfaith understanding and sustainable peace.\n\nFull participation of women should be \"passionately pursued, not only at the level of pragmatism but as the expression of the spiritual and moral principle that men and women are equal in the sight of God.\"\n\nOther speakers included Jean Ping, President of the UN General Assembly; Rapil Zhoshybaev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kazakhstan; Katherine Marshall, Director and Counselor to the President of the World Bank; Dr. H.M. Din Syamsuddin, Vice-Chairman of Muhammadiyah (Indonesia); Laurence Bropleh, Permanent Representative to the UN, World Council of Churches; Maleeha Lodhi, High Commissioner for Pakistan in London; Ambassador Gunter Mulack, Commissioner for Dialogue with the Islamic World (Germany); and William Vendley, General Secretary, World Conference of Religions for Peace.\n\nGovernment co-sponsors of the event were: Argentina, Bangladesh, Ecuador, Gambia, Germany, Indonesia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Morocco, Pakistan, Philippines, Senegal, Spain, Thailand, and Tunisia.\n\nUN agency co-sponsors were: the Department of Economic and Social Affairs; the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the World Bank.\n\nCivil Society Organization co-sponsors were: the Baha'i International Community, the Committee of Religious NGOs at the United Nations, the International Public Policy Institute, Soka Gakkai International, Temple of Understanding, United Methodist Church, United Religions Initiative, and World Peace Prayer Society."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":378,"evergreenUrl":"equality-principle-inspires-winner","title":"Equality principle inspires winner","description":"An award-winning businesswoman is attributing her success partly to a Baha'i principle taught to her as a child. Jyoti Munsiff was named \"Businesswoman...","date":"2005-06-19","customDateline":null,"city":"LONDON","country":"ENGLAND","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433100-bwns7344-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433100-bwns7344-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Jyoti Munsiff (standing, second left) with other award winners at the Asian Women Achievement Awards ceremony, 2005. Photo courtesy of Asian Women of Achievement Awards.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"An award-winning businesswoman is attributing her success partly to a Baha'i principle taught to her as a child.\n\nJyoti Munsiff was named \"Businesswoman of the Year\" at the Asian Women of Achievement Awards ceremony, held here on 26 May 2005, attended by Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales, and his wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.\n\nAmong the VIPs attending the award ceremony were the eminent British lawyer and a patron of the awards, Cherie Booth, who is the wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and Kamalesh Sharma, the High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom.\n\nThe Asian Women of Achievement Awards were established to celebrate the commitment, dedication, and determination of Asian women within commercial, professional, artistic, and humanitarian sectors.\n\nTwo years ago, another Baha'i, Professor Faraneh Vargha-Khadem, was named \"Professional of the Year\" at the Asian Women of Achievement Awards 2003. (See [https://news.bahai.org/story.cfm?storyid=219](/story.cfm?storyid=219))\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"In her acceptance speech, Ms. Munsiff said she attributed her career achievements to the confidence given to her by her parents who brought her up with the Baha'i principle that men and women are equal in the sight of God.\n\n\"The Baha'i teachings have been the foundation stone of how I have conducted myself in a working environment,\" Ms. Munsiff said.\n\nBorn in Mumbai to Indian parents, Ms. Munsiff is corporate general counsel and the company secretary of Shell Transport. She is one of the most senior women in Shell world-wide.\n\nMs. Munsiff joined the legal department of petroleum giant Shell in 1969 and became a project lawyer in most Shell businesses. She then led groups of lawyers that provided advice to Shell's businesses globally.\n\nMs. Munsiff is about to take up a new post in Shell as chief compliance officer with the task of ensuring that Shell's companies around the world operate in a legal and ethical way.\n\nPresenting her with the award, Member of Parliament Theresa May said that Ms. Munsiff had \"marked herself out in a male dominated arena, which says a lot about her strength of character and charisma.\n\n\"She has not been vocal about her achievements, preferring to be out there and doing what she does best.\"\n\nMs. Munsiff is also director of and honorary legal counsel to the Prince of Wales' International Business Leaders' Forum. She is president of the Commonwealth Association for Corporate Governance and also is a governor of the College of Law, a trustee of the Imperial War Museum and chair of the IMW Trading Company.\n\nThe other contenders in the Business Woman of the Year category were Monica Fan of RBC Capital Markets, Surinder Hundal of Nokia, and Rhodora Palomar-Fresnedi of Unilever.\n\n(Report by Rob Weinberg.)"}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433100-bwns7343-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"A patron of the Asian Women of Achievement Awards Cherie Booth, the wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair, at the award ceremony, 2005. Photo courtesy of Asian Women of Achievement Awards."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433100-bwns7342-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Member of the Parliament Theresa May (right), who presented the \"Business Woman of the Year\" award at the Asian Women of Achievement Awards ceremony, 2005, to Jyoti Munsiff. Photo courtesy of Asian Women of Achievement Awards."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433100-bwns7341-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The Prince of Wales, Prince Charles, addressing the Asian Women of Achievement Awards ceremony, 2005. Photo courtesy of Asian Women of Achievement Awards."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433100-bwns7339-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"Jyoti Munsiff, who was named \"Business Woman of the Year\" at the Asian Women of Achievement Awards ceremony, 2005. Photo courtesy of Asian Women of Achievement Awards."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null},{"storyNumber":377,"evergreenUrl":"government-officials-visit-bahai-center","title":"Government officials visit Baha'i center","description":"Senior government officials and representatives of diverse religious groups in Cuba gathered with Baha'is for an interreligious event in the...","date":"2005-06-13","customDateline":null,"city":"HAVANA","country":"CUBA","thumbnail":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433090-bwns7127-0.jpg"},"featureAudio":null,"feature":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ImageRecord","image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433090-bwns7127-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The chief of religious affairs in the Cuban government, Caridad Diego Bello, addresses the interreligious gathering held at the national Baha'i center on 23 May 2005. At left is the secretary of the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Havana, Ernesto Santirso.","imageStyle":"body-right","imageLink":""}],"storyContent":[{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"Senior government officials and representatives of diverse religious groups in Cuba gathered with Baha'is for an interreligious event in the newly reconstructed Baha'i center in central Havana last month.\n\nCaridad Diego Bello, the chief of religious affairs in the Cuban government, and two other officials from her office joined Baha'is and representatives from Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and African Yoruba religious communities at the gathering, which was held on 23 May 2005.\n\nMs. Diego expressed her gratitude to the Baha'i community of Cuba for bringing together the diverse group, and then spoke about the major social principles of the Baha'i Faith and on the theme of inter-religious harmony.\n\n\"These are principles that even I as a non-follower of any religion would agree with,\" said Ms. Diego, who is a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba.\n\nAmong the social principles of the Baha'i Faith are the equality of women and men, racial unity, and the abolition of extremes of wealth and poverty.\n\n"},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_InlineImageRecord","slideshowImageNumber":2},{"__typename":"DatoCMS_ParagraphRecord","paragraphText":"The inter-religious event was the second major gathering held this year in the Baha'i center, which was acquired by the Baha'i community in 1956 but which recently required complete rebuilding.\n\nMembers of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Cuba hosted Ms. Diego and her staff on a tour of the center.\n\nThe secretary of the Local Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Havana, Ernesto Santirso, welcomed all the guests and explained that the purpose of the gathering was to open the center to other religious communities.\n\nMr. Santirso read extracts from the 2002 message by the Universal House of Justice to the world's religious leaders in which the Baha'i governing council supported inter-faith dialogue and called upon those involved to address the implications of \"the over-arching truth that God is one and that, beyond all diversity of cultural expression and human interpretation, religion is likewise one.\" (Full text available at: https://www.bahai.org/documents/the-universal-house-of-justice/letter-worlds-religious-leaders.\n\nAfter Baha'i speakers read quotations from Baha'u'llah on religious harmony, the representative of the Jewish community, Jose Miller, addressed the gathering.\n\n\"Salvation comes from deeds and not from beliefs alone,\" Dr. Miller said.\n\n\"We should have deeds that will improve the condition of the world today and bring peace to our society.\"\n\nA representative of the Institute for Bible and Theological Studies said the three Baha'is currently studying Christian theology with the Institute were an important asset to the school.\n\nAmong the other guests were the chairman of the Islamic Association, Pedro Linares, and a high priest (babalao) of the African Yoruba religion, Stanislav Berboa.\n\nThe Baha'i community of Cuba has five Local Spiritual Assemblies and has another center in Camaguey. The community has regular children's classes, devotional meetings, and study circles where guests are welcome.\n\nThe first Local Spiritual Assembly in Cuba was established in Havana in 1941. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Cuba was formed in 1961."}],"disableInlineCaptions":false,"slideshow":[{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433090-bwns7126-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The interreligious gathering at the national Baha'i center in Havana, Cuba, 23 May 2005."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433090-bwns7125-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":""},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433090-bwns7124-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The chief of religious affairs in the Cuban government, Caridad Diego Bello (second from right), and her staff in discussion with some members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Cuba at the national Baha'i center."},{"image":{"url":"https://www.datocms-assets.com/6348/1543433090-bwns7122-0.jpg"},"imageDescription":"The newly reconstructed Baha'i center in the heart of Havana."}],"pushRelatedContentDown":null,"relatedContent":[],"updatedContent":false,"excludeFromHomepage":false,"category":[],"highlightClip":null}],"lang":"en","language":"en","location":"/archive/66/"}},"staticQueryHashes":["2762707590"]}