May 2001: The Opening of the Terraces on Mount Carmel

Statement of the Universal House of Justice for the Opening of the Terraces on Mount Carmel

Haifa, Israel,
22 May 2001

[Delivered by Dr. Albert Lincoln, Secretary General of the Bahá'í International Community]

With joyful and thankful hearts, we welcome all who have come from near and far to join us on this auspicious occasion for the Bahá'ís of the world. We acknowledge with deep appreciation the presence of so many distinguished guests.

A century and a half have passed since that unspeakable tragedy in the northwest of Persia when the Báb faced the volley fired at Him from the rifles of 750 soldiers. The soldiers had followed the orders of the highest authorities in the land. The Báb's mangled body was then thrown on the side of a moat outside the city, abandoned to what His cold-blooded persecutors thought would be a dishonourable fate. They had hoped thus to put an end to the growing influence of His teachings on masses of people throughout the country. These masses had accepted, in the face of intense persecution, the Báb's claim to prophethood, and their lives were being transformed spiritually and morally as He prepared them for what He said was the dawn of a new age in which a world civilization would be born and flourish. The expectations that stirred countless hearts were heightened even more sublimely by the Báb's announcement that One greater than He would soon arise, One who would reveal the unparalleled character of the promised world civilization that would signify the coming of age of the entire human race.

May 1942: The passing of Hand of the Cause ‘Abdu’l-Jalil Bey Sa’ad

‘Abdu’l-Jalil was an early Egyptian believer and a civil magistrate by profession when he was introduced to the Faith by Mirza Abu'l-Fadl. He was a distinguished judge of the civil courts and as such was able to render significant services to the Faith. He wrote extensively advocating the principle that all religions should be treated equally. In spite of much opposition he was able to ensure that the Baha'i Declaration of Trust for legal recognition of the Faith was accepted. After writing a series of articles in defense of the Faith he was transferred, as a disciplinary measure, to a remote locality in upper Egypt, where he used the opportunity to translate The Dawn-Breakers and Baha’u’llah and the New Era into Arabic. For many years he was the chairman of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Egypt and the Sudan He obtained the permission to build a Haziratu'l-Quds in Cairo and was often found on site supervising the work. He died suddenly on 25 May 1942 and was posthumously appointed as a Hand of the Cause by Shoghi Effendi, in 1943. He was Egypt's first and only Hand of the Cause of God. (Adapted from the ‘Historical Dictionary of the Baha’i Faith’ by Hugh Adamson)

May 1863: Baha’u’llah leaves the Garden of Ridvan

The departure of Bahá'u'lláh from the Garden of Ridvan, at noon, on the 14th of Dhi'l-Qa'dih 1279 A.H. (May 3, 1863), witnessed scenes of tumultuous enthusiasm no less spectacular, and even more touching, than those which greeted Him when leaving His Most Great House in Baghdad. "The great tumult," wrote an eyewitness, "associated in our minds with the Day of Gathering, the Day of Judgment, we beheld on that occasion. Believers and unbelievers alike sobbed and lamented. The chiefs and notables who had congregated were struck with wonder. Emotions were stirred to such depths as no tongue can describe, nor could any observer escape their contagion.

Mounted on His steed, a red roan stallion of the finest breed, the best His lovers could purchase for Him, and leaving behind Him a bowing multitude of fervent admirers, He rode forth on the first stage of a journey that was to carry Him to the city of Constantinople. "Numerous were the heads," Nabil himself a witness of that memorable scene, recounts, "which, on every side, bowed to the dust at the feet of His horse, and kissed its hoofs, and countless were those who pressed forward to embrace His stirrups." "How great the number of those embodiments of fidelity," testifies a fellow-traveler, "who, casting themselves before that charger, preferred death to separation from their Beloved! Methinks, that blessed steed trod upon the bodies of those pure-hearted souls." "He (God) it was," Bahá'u'lláh Himself declares, "Who enabled Me to depart out of the city (Baghdad), clothed with such majesty as none, except the denier and the malicious, can fail to acknowledge." These marks of homage and devotion continued to surround Him until He was installed in Constantinople. (Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 155)

May 1844: The Birth of ‘Abdu’l-Baha

'Abdu'l-Baha was born in Tihran, Iran, on 23 May 1844. While still a child, He recognized His Father's station even before it had been openly revealed. He shared Baha’u’llah's banishment and exile and often served as His Father's deputy when dealing with officials and the public. Baha'u'llah described the station of 'Abdu’l-Baha in the Suriy-i-Ghusn (Tablet of the Branch). In the Kitab-i-'Ahdi (Book of the Covenant), He named 'Abdu'l-Baha as His successor and the authorized Interpreter of His Writings.

'[T]hough essentially human and holding a station radically and fundamentally different from that occupied by Baha'u'llah and His Forerunner,' Shoghi Effendi has explained, 'Abdu'l-Baha was 'the perfect Exemplar of His Faith . . . endowed with superhuman knowledge, and to be regarded as the stainless mirror reflecting His light.’ While not regarding 'Abdu'l-Baha as a prophet, Baha'is show special respect to His unique station by capitalizing pronouns referring to Him.

In about 1873 'Abdu’l-Baha married Munirih Khanum. Of their nine children, four daughters lived to adulthood. His eldest daughter Diya’iyyih was the mother of Shoghi Effendi.

April 1853: Baha’u’llah arrives in Baghdad

On January 12, 1853, “Bahá'u'lláh, together with some of the members of His family, and escorted by an officer of the Imperial body-guard and an official representing the Russian Legation, set out on His three months' journey to Baghdad. Among those who shared His exile was His wife, the saintly Navvab, entitled by Him the "Most Exalted Leaf," who, during almost forty years, continued to evince a fortitude, a piety, a devotion and a nobility of soul which earned her from the pen of her Lord the posthumous and unrivalled tribute of having been made His "perpetual consort in all the worlds of God." His nine-year-old son, later surnamed the "Most Great Branch," destined to become the Center of His Covenant and authorized Interpreter of His teachings, together with His seven-year-old sister, known in later years by the same title as that of her illustrious mother, and whose services until the ripe old age of four score years and six, no less than her exalted parentage, entitle her to the distinction of ranking as the outstanding heroine of the Bahá'í Dispensation, were also included among the exiles who were now bidding their last farewell to their native country. Of the two brothers who accompanied Him on that journey the first was Mirza Musa, commonly called Aqay-i-Kalim, His staunch and valued supporter, the ablest and most distinguished among His brothers and sisters, and one of the "only two persons who," according to Bahá'u'lláh's testimony, "were adequately informed of the origins" of His Faith. The other was Mirza Muhammad-Quli, a half-brother, who, in spite of the defection of some of his relatives, remained to the end loyal to the Cause he had espoused.

April 1848: On the orders of the Persian Grand Vizir the Báb is transferred from the fortress of Mah-Ku to the fortress of Chihriq

The Báb is transferred “to the fortress of Chihriq (about April 10, 1848), surnamed by Him the Jabal-i-Shadid (the Grievous Mountain). There He was consigned to the keeping of Yahya Khan, a brother-in-law of Muhammad Shah. Though at the outset he acted with the utmost severity, he was eventually compelled to yield to the fascination of his Prisoner. Nor were the kurds, who lived in the village of Chihriq, and whose hatred of the Shí'ahs exceeded even that of the inhabitants of Mah-Ku, able to resist the pervasive power of the Prisoner's influence. They too were to be seen every morning, ere they started for their daily work, to approach the fortress and prostrate themselves in adoration before its holy Inmate. "So great was the confluence of the people," is the testimony of a European eye-witness, writing in his memoirs of the Báb, "that the courtyard, not being large enough to contain His hearers, the majority remained in the street and listened with rapt attention to the verses of the new Qur'án." (Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 19)

April 1911: Louis Gregory makes a six-day pilgrimage to visit ‘Abdu’l-Baha in Ramleh, Egypt

Louis Gregory, the future Hand of the Cause of God, made a six-day pilgrimage to visit 'Abdu'l-Baha at Ramleh, at the direct invitation of the Master, from the 10th to the 16th of April. As soon as possible after his arrival, Gregory went to a store run by Mirza Hasan Khurasani (Khorassani), where he met several of the local Baha'is. He had a letter of introduction from Edward Getsinger, that had been translated into Persian, which he gave to Muhammad Yazdi. Yazdi asked: ‘"You want to see our Lord?" . . . Upon giving my assent, he agreed to act as guide . . . I reasoned that . . . I had no wish to take him away from his business. But he put my objections aside, saying, “This is spiritual business!”’ Louis Gregory was taken to 'Abdu'l-Baha's meeting where he met several others including Louisa Mathew, an English woman who would figure prominently in his future. Like many others, he wrote a pen-portrait of 'Abdu'l-Baha:

March 1957: The Guardian appoints Agnes Alexander a Hand of the Cause

On the passing of George Townshend, Agnes Alexander was appointed a Hand of the Cause and the Guardian sent the following cablegram to the Baha'i world on 27 March 1957: 

Inform Hands and national assemblies of the Baha'i world of the  passing into Abha Kingdom of Hand of Cause George Townshend, indefatigable, highly talented, fearless defender of the Faith of  Baha'u'llah.  Agnes Alexander, distinguished pioneer of the Faith, elevated  to rank of Hand of Cause. Confident her appointment will spiritually reinforce teaching campaign simultaneously conducted in north, south and heart of Pacific Ocean.(Shoghi Effendi, 27 March 1957, in Messages to the Baha'i World.) 

March 1957: Hand of the Cause George Townshend passes away

George Townshend was born in Dublin, Ireland, and educated at Oxford. Townshend was ordained as an Anglican priest in 1906 in the United States. He first heard of the Baha'i Faith after his return to Ireland when a friend wrote to him from the United States. He soon began to work for the Faith although it was not until 1947 that he formally resigned his orders and became a full member of the Baha'i community. He was among the first group of Hands of the Cause named by Shoghi Effendi in 1951. He wrote a number of books, the most well-known being The Promise of all Ages (1934), The Heart of the Gospel (1939), and Christ and Baha'u'llah (1957). He died 25 March 1957. (Wendi Momen, A Basic Baha’i Dictionary)

March 1922: The Guardian invites a number of well-known believers to the Holy Land for consultation

In March, 1922 Shoghi Effendi called a number of well-known believers to the Holy Land for consultation concerning the advisability of calling for the election of the Universal House of Justice. It became apparent that the election of that body had to wait until such time as local and national spiritual assemblies could be formed in various countries and were fully functioning. (Adapted from ‘The Child of the Covenant’, by Adib Taherzadeh, p. 294)

March 1866: Baha'u'llah changes His residence from the house of Amru'llah, to the house of Rida Big, withdraws from the community and allows only the members of His own family and one servant to attain His presence

At this point [Adrianople, early March 1866] Baha'u'llah decided to formally declare to Mirza Yahya[His half-brother] as the nominee of the Báb, His claim to be the Author of a new Revelation, 'Him Whom God shall make manifest', as foretold by the Báb. Of course, Mirza Yahya was well aware of Baha'u'llah's declaration in the Garden of Ridvan and the Tablets subsequently revealed by Him. But now the time had come for the Supreme Manifestation of God to formally announce His station to the one who was nominated by the Báb to be the leader of His followers until the advent of 'Him Whom God shall make manifest'. 

In order to communicate this message to Mirza Yahya, Baha'u'llah revealed the Suriy-i-Amr (Surih of Command) in His own handwriting and instructed His amanuensis Mirza Aqa Jan to take the Tablet to Mirza Yahya, read it aloud and demand a conclusive reply from him. On being apprised of the contents of the Tablet and the claims of Baha'u'llah, Mirza Yahya indicated that he needed some time during which to meditate on the subject. The following day he sent a message to Baha'u'llah that he himself had become the recipient of divine Revelation and it was incumbent upon all to obey and follow him. 

March 1848: Mulla Husayn visits the Báb at Maku

On 21 March 1848 Mulla Husayn visits the Báb at Maku. ( Chronology of Principle Events - Dawn Breakers)

In His solitary chamber He was not permitted to have even a lighted lamp. The winter was so severe that the water with which He washed Himself would freeze in drops upon His face. It was during this time that Mulla Husayn decided to visit Him at Maku. He had been teaching the Cause industriously in the city of Mashhad, greatest center of pilgrimage in all Persia. Half of the city derived its living from the flow of visitors. All these people were now joined together against this teacher who might possibly deprive them of their livelihood. To denounce abuses of religion might be all right in any other city, they said, but it was certainly not proper to denounce them in Mashhad where everyone of every class was thriving upon them. It was all very well for the Promised One to come, and perhaps He had the right, but He certainly was a public nuisance. Mulla Husayn was told plainly, by actions as well as words, that it might be very thrilling to undertake the conquest of the world with the Báb, but there was a big risk involved, not to mention fatigue and danger, especially now, while everyone was enjoying perfect peace in a fine city where business was good and one could earn a living with ease and security. Mulla Husayn left Mashhad in disgust. He was hungry for the pure, holy presence of the Báb. He told his friends: "I have resolved to go on foot the entire distance that separates me from my Beloved. I shall not rest until I have reached my destination."

March 1897: The Birth of Shoghi Effendi – the Guardian of the Cause of God

In the course of the fourth year after Baha’u’llah’s passing it became apparent that the portion of the House of Abbud available for occupation was inadequate for His[‘Abdu’l-Baha’s] enlarged family. With characteristic vigour Abdu’l-Baha took action and towards the end of the year (c. October) 1896 arranged to rent the main building of the former Governorate of Abdu’llah Pasha’ in the Mujadalih Quarter in the north-western corner of the city. He established it as His official residence, and as a home also for His daughters, their husbands and families.

Thus it came about that in March 1897, in an upper room of the south wing, a child was born who was ordained to hold the destiny of the Faith in his hands for thirty-six years and to become its ‘beloved Guardian’, the child named Shoghi by his Grandfather, who grew up under His loving and solicitous care and whose family name was to be Rabbani, ‘divine’, a name given by that same knowing Grandparent.

The Guardian’s childhood and upbringing in that house are warmly described by Amatu’l-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum in The Priceless Pearl:

March 1856: Birth of William Hoar – a Disciple of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, and probably the fifth North American to become a Baha’i

William H. Hoar, was a Chicago businessman who was born in Nova Scotia on 22 March 1856. He had been in the audience at the World's Parliament of Religions when the Reverend Henry Jessup's paper, which closed with a reference to Baha'u'llah, was read. The reference intrigued William, who searched for more information until he came across a reference to Ibrahim Kheiralla’s Baha’i class. He became a Baha’i in 1895, possibly the fifth North American to do so. While attending Kheiralla's classes, Hoar met Thornton Chase, whose close friend he became. About the end of 1897 William and Anna Hoar moved to Fanwood, New Jersey, a New York suburb, but he continued to communicate with Thornton Chase and eventually formed a business partnership with him.

Another Chicago believer who, like William Hoar, was among the first to move to New Jersey was Arthur Dodge. Arthur was a New Englander and a jack of all trades: a lawyer, magazine publisher, author and inventor. He was described by Thornton Chase as having a 'sweet soul'. Arthur Dodge and William Hoar became two of the most prominent Baha’is in greater New York and they were the first New York Baha'is to visit 'Abdu'l-Baha in the autumn 1900 when they undertook their pilgrimage,along with their wives, Elizabeth and Anna and in the company of Lua and Edward Getsinger. (Adapted from ‘The Baha’i Faith in America’, by Robert Stockman, vol.1, p. 39, and vol. 2, p. 31)

March 1856: Baha’u’llah returns to Baghdad from Kurdistan

Deciding to terminate the period of His retirement Bahá'u'lláh bade farewell to the shaykhs of Sulaymaniyyih, who now numbered among His most ardent and, as their future conduct demonstrated, staunchest admirers. Accompanied by Shaykh Sultan, He retraced His steps to Baghdad, on "the banks of the River of Tribulations," as He Himself termed it, proceeding by slow stages, realizing, as He declared to His fellow-traveler, that these last days of His retirement would be "the only days of peace and tranquillity" left to Him, "days which will never again fall to My lot."

On the 12th of Rajab 1272 A.H. (March 19, 1856) He arrived in Baghdad, exactly two lunar years after His departure for Kurdistan. (Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 126)

March 1937: Shoghi Effendi marries Mary Maxwell (Ruhiyyih Khanum)

The marriage of Shoghi Effendi and Mary Maxwell took place on 25 March 1937. For a brief description by Ruhiyyih Khanum, please visit Baha’i Stories. (The Priceless Pearl, p. 137)

February 1980: Hand of the Cause Hasan Balyuzi passes away

Balyuzi, Hasan Munaqqar (1908-1980). (Hand of the Cause of God.) A linguist, historian, author, and BBC Radio announcer by profession, he was born on 7 September 1908 in Shiraz, Iran, into a very distinguished Babi/Baha’i family (his parents were Mirza 'Ali Aqa and Munavvar Khanum). He was related to Shoghi Effendi through a common great-grandfather, Haji Mirza Abul-Qasim, and was therefore a member of the Afnan family. His superb mastery of the English language is perhaps due to the fact that he was brought up from the age of four in a diplomatic environment - his father being at one time the governor of the Gulf Ports and Islands. Two scholarly friends of his father tutored him in Persian, Arabic, and history.

When his father was exiled to India during World War I, he learned Urdu and pursued his studies of English in Bishop's College, Poona. After returning to Iran, where his father died in 1921, he was sent, at the age of 17, to the Preparatory School of the American University of Beirut, where he met Shoghi Effendi. Having taken a bachelor's degree in chemistry and a master's degree in diplomatic history, he left Beirut to take his M.S. (in economics) at the London School of Economics (he achieved this in 1935, but the outbreak of World War II cut short his studies for a doctorate).

February 1876: The birth of Hand of the Cause Keith Ransom-Kehler

Keith was born Nannie Keith Bean on 14 February 1876 in Dayton, Kentucky. She attended a private school in Cincinnati and later graduated from Vassar. She undertook post-graduate work at the Universities of Michigan, Arizona and Chicago and was eventually awarded an MA degree. She taught French at Albion College, later heading the department of English Literature.

In 1903 Keith married Ralph (Guy) Ransom and went with him to Paris, where he studied art for a few years. When Keith was 32 years old, her husband died of tuberculosis. In order to support her daughter, Julia, Keith took an intensive course in design and then became head of the interior decoration section of the Carson, Pirie, Scott department store in Chicago. In 1910 she married James Kehler, a former colleague from Albion College and now an advertising executive from New York. His death in 1923 was a great and lasting sorrow to her.

From 1918 to 1922 Keith was leader of the Liberal Religious Fellowship in Chicago and Chief Counsellor for the Home Beautiful Service. She was involved in Hull House settlement work, prison reform at Sing Sing, and fruit and chicken farm operations. Her work on Municipal Ownership was incorporated in a report of the Federal Bureau of Labour and Statistics. She published articles and lectured on psychology, comparative religions and interior decorating. Under such titles as 'The Divine Adventure--Why be Unhappy?' 'Psychology of Human Relations', 'Making the Most of Ourselves', 'Child Guidance', 'Is Universal Brotherhood Possible?', 'Life's Essential Purpose', 'What is Permanent?', 'Crime and its Remedy', 'A Journey of the Soul', 'Making Houses Homes', 'The Beautiful Necessity' and 'Interior Decorating'.['Presenting Keith Ransom-Kehler', p. 1]

Keith met 'Abdu'l-Baha in London on 13 September 1911; the exact circumstances of the meeting are unknown. It seems, however, Keith did not become a Baha'i until May 1921. She was elected to the Local Spiritual Assembly of Chicago and served as its secretary. A part of Chicago's elite society, Keith gave up her social life when she became a Baha'i, although she retained her sense of beauty and elegance. When she was in Iran in 1933 she impressed the young Zikrullah Khadem as 'the most stylish woman he had ever met'. (Barron Harper, Lights of Fortitude, p. 100)

February 1925: John Esslemont is acting as Shoghi Effendi’s English-language speaking secretary. He also helps the Guardian with the translation of Hidden Words and other passages from the Writings of Baha’u’llah

The Guardian had written to the London Baha'is in January 1923 expressing his need for a 'competent assistant in my translation work'[Priceless Pearl, p. 91] but no one had responded to the appeal. Advised to leave Scotland before the onset of winter, John[Esslemont] received an invitation from the Guardian to come to Haifa, which he gladly accepted. He arrived in the Holy Land on 21 November 1924.

John immediately began Persian lessons. In November he helped the Guardian translate the Tablet of Ahmad and by December he was reading and translating extracts from Nabil's Narrative. In February 1925 he assisted Shoghi Effendi to translate the Hidden Words and other passages from the Writings of Baha'u'llah. Concerned with the burden of work placed on the young Guardian, John was anxious to be of whatever service he could. When the Guardian asked him to make Haifa his home, John quickly agreed. By February 1925 he was acting as Shoghi Effendi's English-language secretary. Shortly afterwards, however, his health deteriorated again. An attack of pleurisy, a complication of his tuberculosis, put him in hospital for more than two weeks in March.

During his illness, Martha Root came to Haifa as a pilgrim. She and Dr Esslemont spent time together studying Esperanto. She found his book to be an excellent teaching tool and she believed him to be a great scholar. (Barron Harper, 'Lights of Fortitude', p. 82)