- 1921-00-00 —
The beginning of The First Epoch of the Formative Age. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 February 1986; Mess63-86 p710-716]
- See the attachment for the above-referenced message entitled The Epochs of the Formative Age prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice.
- It began with the passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and ended with the conclusion of the first Seven Year Plan pursued by the Bahá'ís of North America under Shoghi Effendi's direction in which the skeleton of the Administrative Order was set up. [Mess86-01p815]
- 1921-11-28 —
Ascension of `Abdu'l-Bahá
`Abdu'l-Bahá passed away at about 1:00 a.m., in Haifa. [AB452; BBD4; BBR347; GPB311; UD170]
- For details of His passing see DOMH210-216, AB452, BW1:19-23; BW15:113-15 and GPB310-11. Westerners who were present in the Holy Land at the time included: Grace and Florian Krug, Louise and John Bosch from the USA, Ethel Rosenberg from London and Fräulein Johanna Hauff from Stuttgart as well as American Curtis Kelsey who was in the Holy Land to attend to the electrical installations in the Shrine of the Báb at the time. [AB462-463]
Note: In fact, Ethel Rosenberg was en route to visit the Master when He ascended. She arrived from Port Said by train on the 2nd of December having learned of His ascension from a member of the staff on the train. [EJR182]
- Sir Herbert Samuel and Sir Ronald Storrs led the funeral procession. [CH226]
- This marked the end of the Apostolic, Heroic or Primitive Age of the Bahá'í Faith and the beginning of the Transitional Formative or Iron Age. [BBD35-6]
- For a photograph of the cable sent announcing His passing see SW12, 15:245.
- See The Passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá by Shoghi Effendi and Lady Blomfield.
- For a pen portrait of 'Abdu'l-Bahá see The Oriental Rose by Mary Hanford Ford pg 158-159
- Also see AB452-83; HLS93-100.
- This date marks the beginning of the First Epoch of the Transitional, Formative or Iron Age of the Faith.
- See an account of the passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá compiled by David Merrick.
- See Part IX of The Utterance Project by Violetta Zein.
- See WMSH26-52 for an account by John and Louise Bosch of the passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, the funeral, the reading if the Will, their subsequent time in the Holy Land and Egypt, and their teaching trip to Italy, Switzerland, and Germany. They arrived in New York on the 23rd of April and proceeded to Chicago to attend the National Convention. Shoghi Effendi had entrusted them with eight passages from the Will to be presented to the North American friends.
- See The Station and Titles of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in The Bahá'í World on line.
- 1944-05-22 —
Centenary of the Declaration of the Báb.
- For a survey of the growth and development of the Bahá'í Faith in the hundred years since its inception see BW10:142–9.
- Celebrations were held in many parts of the world:
- Britain [BW10:188–201]
Sir Ronald Storrs delivered an address at the opening of the Bahá'í Centenary Exhibition in
London. These are extracts from that speech: "My first glimpse of 'Abbás Effendi was in the
summer of 1909, when I drove round the Bay of Acre in an Arab cab, visited him in the
barracks and marveled at his serenity and cheerfulness after 42 years of exile and
imprisonment. I kept touch with him through my confidential agent, Husayn Bey Ruhi, son of
a Tabriz martyr. [BW10p189-195]
- India [BW10:202–8]
- Egypt [BW10:208–17]
- Iraq [BW10:217–22]
- Australia [BW 10:222–8]
- Latin America [BW10:228–33]
- The end of the celebrations marking this occasion signal the end of the First Epoch of the Formative Age. [BBD79; CF5; PP390]
- See the publication The Bahá'í Centenary 1844-1944.
- 1946-00-00 —
The end of the First Epoch and the beginning of The Second Epoch of the Formative Age. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 February 1986; Mess63-86 p710-716]
- See the attachment for the above-referenced message entitled The Epochs of the Formative Age prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice.
- It began with the launching of the second Seven Year Plan and the adoption of similar plans by other national communities throughout the Bahá'i world and ended with the conclusion of the Ten Year Crusade and the election of the Universal House of Justice. [Mess86-01p815]
- 1946-04-21 —
The Second Seven Year Plan of the United States and Canada (1946-1953) was launched. [BBR180; BBRSM158, 185; MA87-89, MA89]
- For details of the plan see BW16:81–2.
Objectives:
- Consolidate victories won;
- Complete
interior ornamentation;
- Form 3 NSAs
in Canada, Central and South America;
- Support spread of Faith into Europe;
- Supplemental goals to support Africa. [The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement)p2]
- This marked the end of the First Epoch and the beginning of the Second Epoch of the Formative Age. [CB316; CF5–6]
- The Second Epoch was marked by the global spread of the Faith and concluded with the election of the Universal House of Justice.
- 1963-00-00 —
The end of the Second Epoch and the beginning of The Third Epoch of the Formative Age. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 February 1986; Mess63-86 p710-716]
- See the attachment for the above-referenced message entitled The Epochs of the Formative Age prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice.
- This Epoch included the Nine, Five, and Seven Year Plans formulated by the Universal House of Justice. [Mess86-01p815]
- 1963-04-21 —
Establishment of the Universal House of Justice
- The Universal House of Justice was elected for the first time. [BW14:427; MoC424]
Those elected were: Charles Wolcott, ‘Alí’ Nakhjavani, H. Barrah Kavelin, Ian Semple, Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím, David Hofman, Hugh Chance, Amoz Gibson, and Ḥushmand Fatheazam. [BW14p425]
- The election was held at 9:30 in the morning at the home of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, 7 Haparsim Street, Haifa. [BW14:427; MoC425]
- Ballots were received from all 56 national spiritual assemblies. [BW14:427]
- 288 members of 51 national spiritual assemblies were present at the election. [BW14:427]
- For a list of the electors see MoC406–13.
- For details of the election see BW14:425–9 and MoC20–1.
- The election marked the end of the Second Epoch during which time the Faith had spread globally. The Third Epoch began.
- 1963-10-01 —
After the International Conference in London, those members of the newly elected Universal House of Justice who were not already resident in Haifa returned to their homes to make plans to relocate. This was finally completed by October.
- The Universal House of Justice announced the launch, at Ridván 1964, of the Nine Year Plan. [WG14]
- As a preliminary step 19 new national spiritual assemblies were to be formed at Ridván 1964. [WG15–17]
- The next election of the Universal House of Justice will be in spring 1968. [WG17]
- The Faith had now entered the third epoch of the Formative Age. [WG17]
- 1964-04-21 —
The Nine Year Plan (1964-1973) was launched. [BBRSM159; VV1; WG22–7]
- The NIne Year Plan was first mentioned by the Universal House of Justice in its message of 7 May 1963 to all National Conventions. In its message of October 1963, addressed to "The Followers of Bahá'u'lláh throughout the World", the Universal House of Justice first informed the friends that the new Plan would extend over a period of nine years.
- This marked the beginning of the second epoch of Abdu'l-Bahá's Divine Plan which ended in 2021 with the close of the Fifth Five Year Plan. [AWH178; Epochs of the Formative Age by Research Department of the Universal House of Justice]
- See the letter from the Universal House of Justice addressed to all 69 national/regional assemblies with details of the plan entitled The Launching of the Nine Year Plan. [BW14:104-123]
- To see the goals of the plan sorted geographically see Goals of the Nine Year Plan.
- For a listing of collaboration projects fo the plan see Collaboration Projects of the Nine Year Plan.
- 1986-00-00 —
The end of the Third Epoch and the beginning of The Fourth Epoch of the Formative Age. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 February 1986; Mess63-86 p710-716]
- See the attachment for the above-referenced message entitled The Epochs of the Formative Age prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice.
- See Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 February 1986]
- 1986-01-02 —
The Universal House of Justice ended the Counsellors' Conference at the Bahá'í World Centre by announcing in a letter that the Bahá'í world has entered the fourth epoch in the Formative Age of the Cause. [AWH39–42; BBD79, 85; BW19:29; VV91]
- The seven major objectives of the Six Year Plan, to begin at Ridván 1986, were outlined. [AWH40]
- On the closing day of the Counsellors' Conference, the Universal House of Justice announced certain features of the Six Year Plan and the methods by which the national goals were to be worked out in consultation between the Counsellors and National Spiritual Assemblies. [Mess63-86p717]
- The year from Ridván 1992 was designated a Holy Year. [AWH40–1]
- 1986-02-05 — The message from the Universal House of Justice addressed to all National Assemblies with the compilation entitled The Epochs of the Formative Age prepared by the Research Department. [Messages63-86p710-716]
- 2001-01-16 —
The end of the Fourth Epoch of the Formative Age, an Epoch that included the Six, Three, Four Year, and Twelve Month Plans from the Universal House of Justice as well as the commemoration for the centenary of the Ascension of Bahá'u'lláh. This Epoch was characterized by the initiation of social and economic projects and the emergence from obscurity and the fact that national communities took responsibility for their own development. [Mess86-01p815]
- The Faith of Bahá'u'lláh entered the Fifth Epoch of the Formative Age. [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 16 January 2001]
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