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| 2019 (In the year) |
Bahá'í Communities in a number of countries experienced persecution during 2019:
In Egypt where it had been estimated that there were between 1,000 and 2,000 believers, the law does not recognize the Bahá'í Faith or its religious laws and bans Bahá'í institutions and community activities. The law does not stipulate any penalties for banned religious groups or their members who engage in religious practices, but these groups are barred from rights granted to recognized groups, such as having their own houses of worship or other property, holding bank accounts, or importing religious literature. Since a 2009 court order, Baha'is are identified on their national identity cards by a dash where it indicates "Religion". Since the state does not recognize Bahá'í marriage, married Bahá'ís are denied the legal rights of married couples of other religious beliefs, including those pertaining to inheritance, divorce, and sponsoring a foreign spouse's permanent residence. Bahá'ís, in practice, file individual demands for recognition of marriages in civil court. The government continued to ban the importation and sale of Bahá'í literature and to authorize customs officials to confiscate their personally owned religious materials. [US State Department report]
In Brunei the Bahá'í community was banned as the Faith was considered "deviant."
In Iran, Bahá'ís faced multiple restrictions and were barred from certain types of work, especially in the food industry, because they were considered "unclean." Members of the faith also were blocked from government jobs, higher education institutions and receiving national pensions. They could not inherit property or have their marriages fully recognized.
In Eritrea, only four religious groups were officially recognized: the Eritrean Orthodox Church, Sunni Islam, the Roman Catholic Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Eritrea. Other religious groups cannot register and are treated as illegal. [Pew Research Centre report 15 November 2021]
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Persecution, Iran; Persecution, Egypt; Persecution, Brunei; Persecution, Eritrea; Egypt; Brunei; Iran; Eritrea |
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| 2019 19 Dec |
The US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated for sanctions, two judges presiding over branches of the Iranian regime's Revolutionary Court who, for years, had punished Iranian citizens and dual-nationals for exercising their freedoms of expression or assembly. In many cases, these judges sentenced political prisoners to death. Through their respective branches of the Revolutionary Courts, Abolghassem Salavati and Mohammad Moghisseh oversaw the Iranian regime's miscarriage of justice in show trials in which journalists, attorneys, political activists, and members of Iran's ethnic and religious minority groups were penalized for exercising their freedom of expression and assembly and sentenced to lengthy prison terms, lashes, and even execution.
Both Salavati and Moghisseh had been sanctioned by the European Union for presiding over a series of show trials following the June 2009 Iranian presidential election, which imposed long prison sentences and several death sentences for political activists and journalists.
Moghisseh, Head of Tehran Revolutionary Court, Branch 28, had also pressed questionable charges against several members of Iran's Bahá'í religious minority, prosecuting them for supposed participation in activities such as propaganda against the state and assembly and collusion against national security, after they reportedly held prayer and worship ceremonies with other members. [US Dept of the Treasury; Iran Press Watch 30 June 2017]
As the Head of Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court in Tehran, Judge Abdolghassem Salavati had been responsible for multiple human rights violations by presiding over unfair trials, suppressing protests, persecuting ethnic and religious minorities, making excessive use of the death penalty, and issuing heavy prison sentences for activists. He had prosecuted and delivered harsh sentences, including many death sentences, to scores of political prisoners, human rights activists, and peaceful demonstrators, earning him the moniker "the Judge of Death." Salavati is responsible for executing prison sentences for Bahá'í professors on the basis of their faith after they were charged with national security-related charges for their work at a virtual Bahá'í university. [ifmat.org]
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Abolghassem Salavati; Mohammad Moghisseh; Persecution, Iran; Washington, DC, USA; USA; Iran |
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| 2019 24 Nov |
Progress Report on the construction of the national Bahá'í House of Worship for Papua New Guinea the first Mashriqul-Adhkár to be designated as a national Temple.
The House of Worship will be situated on a hilltop in the country's sprawling capital city, Port Moresby. It will be located on the same property as the Bahá'í community's national offices and will include gardens and other meditative spaces. The central edifice will have nine gabled-roof entrances made of timber.
After receiving formal approval to commence construction from National Capital District's building board in August, the excavation work began. At the time of the report, the Temple's foundation was being laid and it was expected to be complete by December. Work on the steel superstructure was scheduled to begin in January.
Slideshow. Mashriqul-Adhkar
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Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Port Moresby; * Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); - Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, National; - Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Design; - Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Architecture; Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; Papua New Guinea |
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| 2019 17 Nov |
About 2,000 people were joined by representatives of the national government and members of the National Spiritual Assembly for the groundbreaking ceremony at the Temple site at Lenakel, on the island of Tanna, Vanuatu. A traditional wooden spade called a kakel was used to turn the soil symbolizing the start of construction on the local Bahá'í House of Worship. Local chiefs had presented the kakel to the Bahá'í community in a customary ceremony the day before to honour the eight tribes of Tanna that together offered the land for the Temple. [BWNS1373]
Slideshow of the event.
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Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Vanuatu; - Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Local; * Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); Architecture; Foundation stones and groundbreaking; Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); Lenakel; Vanuatu |
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| 2019 29 Oct |
The commemoration of the bicentenary of the Birth of the Báb gave rise to an outpouring of artistic expressions from people on every continent, a sure reminder of the profound influence that the life and mission of the Báb continues to have, and will increasingly exert, on artistic expression worldwide. This includes the following Bahá'í World articles:
Tales of Magnificent Heroism: The impact of the Báb and His followers on writers and artists by Robert Weinberg.
A Twofold Mission:
Some Distinctive Characteristics of the Person and Teachings of the Báb by Elham Afnan.
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Báb, Life of (chronology); - Bahá'í World volumes |
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| 2019 29 Oct |
The British Library published a blog to commemorate the Bicentenary of the Birth of the Báb. It is a commentary on the Star Tablet of the Báb or the
Haykal. |
British Museum and British Library; * Báb, Writings of; Talismans; Haykal and daira; Exhibitions of Bahá'í manuscripts and relics; Moojan Momen; Star Tablet of the Báb; London, England; United Kingdom |
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| 29 Oct |
Bicentenary of the Birth of the Báb
The Bahá'í world commemorated the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Báb. The bicentenary website chronicled just some of the thousands of celebrations.
In early October the Universal House of Justice sent a message to all who have come to honour the Herald of a new Dawn.
A film called Dawn of the Light was commissioned. It was made available in 10 languages in a variety of formats. The film portrayed several individuals from different continents as they related their own personal search after truth and meaning. They shared their discovery that God had sent two Divine Manifestations Whose teachings were revolutionizing human thought and behaviour, changing darkness into light. The film showed glimpses of how this same discovery was inspiring the efforts of many across the globe to serve humanity and to contribute to building a new pattern of life.
The site also featured four articles The Mission of the Báb by former Universal House of Justice member Douglas Martin, Religion Renewed, Divine Revelation, and Bahá'í Teachings in Action...
...and small sample from among the countless artistic expressions created by individuals and communities around the world for the occasion of the bicentenary.
During the celebrations there was live streaming of the services held the Bahá'í Houses of Worship.
In addition there was an official Facebook page and an Instagram account.
Some national communities had their own Facebook page such as the Bahá'ís of the United Kingdom and the Bahá'ís of the United States.
On the 8th of November the Universal House of Justice sent a message to the Bahá'ís of the World commenting on the celebrations and activities held by the worldwide Bahá'í community to commemorate the bicentenary of the Birth of the Báb.
See the English translation of the message of the Universal House of Justice dated the 24th of October addressed to the followers of Bahá'u'lláh in the sacred land of Iran.
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Twin Holy days; Holy days; Báb, Birth of; Centenaries; Dawn of the Light (film); Internet; - Basic timeline, Expanded |
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| 2019 22 Oct |
The Bahá'í World News Service provided an update on the progress of the construction of the local Bahá'í House of Worship in Matunda, Kenya. Located just west of the town of Matunda, the site of the Bahá'í Temple is in a region that is home to some of Kenya's earliest Bahá'í communities, where patterns of worship and service to humanity have been fostered over decades.
The foundation of the central edifice has been laid and work on other structural elements of the building was advancing.
The 1.5-meter central mound on which the 18-meter-tall Temple will stand had been completed. Work on columns had begun and construction of its auxiliary structures, such as a visitor's center, was well underway. [BWNS1363]
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Bahá'í World News Service (BWNS); * Mashriqu'l-Adhkár (House of Worship); - Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Local; Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, Matunda Soy, Kenya; Matunda Soy, Kenya; Kenya |
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| 2019 11 Oct |
'Ali Nakhjavani, (b. 19 September, 1919 in Baku, Azerbaijan) former member of the Universal House of Justice (1963-2003), passed away in Molsheim, Alsace, France. He was 100 years old. The Universal House of Justice requested all National Assemblies that memorial services be held for him. [BWNS1361]
After his father's death when he was two years old, his family was advised by 'Abdu'l-Bahá to move to Haifa where he grew up. In 1939 he received the Bachelor of Arts degree with distinction from the American University of Beirut, and then in the early 1940s he relocated to Iran, residing first in Tehran, then Tabriz and finally in Shiraz. In 1950 he was elected to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís Iran where he served until the following year.
In 1951 he and his family moved to Uganda to assist with the development of the Bahá'í community in that country. He made his living as a teacher and lecturer. During his early years there, Enoch Olinga became a Bahá'í, and in 1953 Mr Nakhjavání and his wife Violette, along with Mr Olinga and two other Bahá'ís, travelled from Uganda to Cameroon to help spread the Bahá'í Faith in that country.
From 1954-61 he was a member of the Auxiliary Board in Africa, and later from 1956 to 1961 he was served on the Bahá'í National Spiritual Assembly of Central and East Africa.
In 1961 he was elected to the International Bahá'í Council and so moved to Haifa. In 1963 he was elected to the Universal House of Justice during its inaugural convention, and served as a member of that body until 2003.
[Find a grave]
For a video tribute to Mr Nakhjavani see YouTube.
See Shoghi Effendi: The Range and Power of His Pen by 'Ali Nakhjavani.
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`Alí Nakhjavání; In Memoriam; American University of Beirut; Enoch Olinga; Violette Nakhjavani; International Bahá'í Council; Auxiliary board members and assistants; Bandar Anzali, Iran; Azerbaijan; Beirut, Lebanon; Lebanon; Molsheim, France; France |
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| 2019 2 Oct |
The British Library marked the bicentenary of the birth of the Báb with various initiatives alongside the launch of a new website, Discovering Sacred Texts. With the launch of this website there were companion exhibitions which featured examples of the Faith's original texts.
The library displayed three rare and exquisite pieces in its Treasures Gallery: an original of the Báb's own handwriting, in the shape of a five-pointed star; calligraphic exercises written by Bahá'u'lláh in His childhood; and an example of "Revelation Writing", the form in which Bahá'u'lláh's words were recorded at speed by His secretaries as they were revealed. These manuscripts were on display at the library for six months.
Coinciding with the launch of the site and the exhibition was the publication of an article by Moojan Momen, specially commissioned by the library for the 200th anniversary of the birth of the Báb. Dr. Momen wrote about the three original works on display at the exhibition, set in the context of a brief historical account of the life of the Bab.
To further mark the bicentenary, the library invited actor and comedian Omid Djalili to stage his one-man show A Strange Bit of History written by Annabel Knight. The play recounts events surrounding the appearance of the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh. This performance ran for four days. It was first performed at the 1993 Edinburgh Festival, where it won the Spirit of the Fringe Award. Over the next four years it was performed 109 times in 10 different countries.
[BWNS1358]
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Annabel Knight; Omid Djalili; Moojan Momen; Exhibitions of Bahá'í manuscripts and relics; British Museum and British Library; London, England; United Kingdom |
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| 2019 1 Oct |
The Bahá'í International Community announced the appointment of Dr. David Rutstein as its new Secretary-General. He succeeded Dr. Joshua Lincoln who had been serving in this capacity since 2013. The role of the Secretary-General is to act on behalf of the Universal House of Justice in the conduct of its external affairs, including its relations with Israel. [BWNS1357] |
David Rutstein; Joshua Lincoln; Bahá'í International Community; Secretary-General; - Bahá'í World Centre |
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| 2019 1 Oct |
The publication of the message from the Universal House of Justice marking the bicentenial of birth of the Báb.
An audio file of the message in English can be found on YouTube. |
Twin Holy days; Holy days; Báb, Birth of; Centenaries; - Bahá'í World Centre |
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