Shoghi Effendi cabled the Bahá'í world with the successes of the Bahá'í work in the past year. [MBW3]
• The number of sovereign states and dependencies where the Faith was established reached 100, an increase of 22 countries since 1944.

  Approximate number of Localities where Bahá'ís resided in the largest Bahá'í communities.

• European Goal Countries: --> Over thirty localities.
• Germany and Austria: --> Over forty localities.
• British Isles: --> Over fifty localities.
• Australia and New Zealand: --> Over sixty localities.
• Dominion of Canada: --> Over eighty localities.
• India, Pakistan and Burma: --> Over eighty localities.
• Latin America: --> Over one hundred localities.
• Persia: --> Over seven hundred localities.
• United States of America: --> Over eleven hundred localities. [Baha'i Historical Facts, January 15, 2018 quoted from The Bahá'í Faith 1844-1950 Information Statistical and Comparative compiled by Shoghi Effendi]

In a cabled message, the Universal House of Justice called upon Bahá'í women around the world to arise and play an active role in the service of the Faith. [BW17:202]
• For the report of the response to this call see BW17:202–14.

The world population of Bahá'ís was estimated to be 3,217,000. [BW19p67]

It is believed that the first Bahá'ís, a couple, were in Italy in 1899. [BN #43 Aug 1930 p8]
• A Bahá'í group was established in Italy. [BBRSM:106]

Tablet of Visitation for Imám Husayn was revealed by Bahá'u'lláh. It was originally revealed as "Lawh-i-Zíyárat-Namih-i-Imám Husayn".
• For a translation by Khazeh Fananapazir with a commentary edited by Mehdi Wolf see Tablet of Visitation for Imám Husayn.

Based on initial experiences, the Institute for Studies in Global Prosperity learned that many people – including many university students and young professionals were interested in exploring the concepts the Institute was working with, and were interested in developing the capacity to contribute to contemporary discourses through a framework that drew on insights from both science and religion. Therefore, the Institute initiated another line of action focused on raising capacity in university students and young adults to contribute to the discourse on science, religion and development, as well as to other discourses related to the betterment of society. The Institute now conducts a series of undergraduate and graduate seminars in a growing number of countries for this purpose.
• Seminars for Undergraduate Students
  • See Australian brochure 2016 for a description of the course of study.
• Seminars for University Graduates

During a dialogue with the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination as it considered a report on measures taken to implement the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination the Iraqi Deputy Justice Minister, Hussein al-Zuhairi, said Bahaism is not a religion or faith. He further expressed the Iraqi government's commitment to legislation prohibiting the Bahá'í religion in 1970 and added that there was no religion above Islam since the Iraqi Constitution set the tenets of Islam as a source of law. He said that as Iraqi society was Muslim, it was not possible to ignore the tenets of Islam in legislation.
• Zuhairi's statement angered representatives of civil society and the delegations of organizations that presented parallel reports to the government's report in which they outlined the Iraqi government's and the Kurdistan Regional Government's violations of the rights of minorities. His statements raised concerns for the Bahá'ís and indicated that the Iraqi government cannot solve the conflict between respecting human rights called for in its constitution and the Islamic principles that are a key source of legislation. [Al-Monitor 11 December, 2018]

The Faith had spread to 35 countries, an increase of 20 since the passing of Bahá'u'lláh. [Patheos website]
• The additional countries were: Saudi Arabia, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Treat Britain, Hawaiian Islands, Holland, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Jordon, Russia, South Africa, Switzerland, Tunisia, and the United States.

The passing of Continental Board of Counsellor Lloyd Gardner. [Mess63-68p660]
• See BW19p663-665

The passing of Loulie Albee Mathews (b. October 12, 1869, New Castle, New Hampshire) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. She was buried in the Memorial Gardens Cemetery and Mausoleum, Colorado Springs, Colorado. [Wikitree]
• She was the author of Not Every Sea Hath Pearls, My Friendly Enemy - Life, and So Early in the Morning (1953) which was her memoirs of a childhood spent in New Castle, in 1880's.
• Find a grave.

The National Library Placement Committee offered to place one or two books in local libraries on behalf of any Assembly or group upon request. They could choose one or two titles from among the following three: The Promise of All Ages, Christ and Bahá'u'lláh, or Portals to Freedom and the committee would send the books directly to the library. [CBN No 124 May 1960 p4]
• Committee members as of this date were: Marjorie Merrick, George Spendlove, and Jan van der Vliet. [CBN No 127 August 1960 p6]

Bahá'u'lláh conceived of a plan, a plan that was endorsed by the Báb, to have the Báb appoint Mírzá Yahyá as the titular head of the Faith. Mírzá Yahyá was concealed and hidden while mention of him was on every tongue. It is speculated that as a further measure to reduce His public profile, Bahá'u'lláh retired to Karbalá via Baghdád for a period of some ten months. [UD631n234; TN37-38; GPB90; RoB1p53-54]

On the subject of the successor to the Báb the Guardian states:

A successor or vicegerent the Báb never named, an interpreter of His teachings He refrained from appointing. So transparently clear were His references to the Promised One, so brief was to be the duration of His own Dispensation, that neither the one nor the other was deemed necessary. All He did was, according to the testimony of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in "A Traveller's Narrative," to nominate, on the advice of Bahá'u'lláh and of another disciple, Mírzá Ya˙yá, who would act solely as a figure-head pending the manifestation of the Promised One, thus enabling Bahá'u'lláh to promote, in relative security, the Cause so dear to His heart. [GPB28—29]
.He has also referred to him as "titular head" and "a mere figurehead". [GPB90]
• See also Mírzá Yahyá Azal, Designation of in the Writings of the Báb written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice and published in Lights of Irfan Vol 8 pp387-391.

The Iranian Bahá'í Community addressed a letter to Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, outlining the scope of the persecution they faced for 25 years. The letter examined the persecution in light of those verses of the Qur'an and Islamic law that proscribe violence and uphold freedom of religion. It also noted that Iran signed and ratified the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and associated covenants that protect freedom of religion. It then recounted the government's recent duplicity in offering university enrollment to Bahá'í youth but then falsely recording them as Muslims. It ends with a call for the full emancipation of the Bahá'í community.
• The letter in English

The formation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Arabian Peninsula with its seat in Bahrayn (Bahrain). [BW15p296]
• The area was altered in 1972 for the formation of two National Spiritual Assemblies, Eastern Arabian and Kuwait. [BW15p297]

The Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) provided data from the World Christian Database (2010) regarding the distribution of the Bahá'í population throughout the world.

Nations (population 200,000+) with the highest percentage of their population Bahá'ís:

      1) Belize, 7,742 adherents indicating 2.5% of the population.

      2) Bolivia, 215,359 adherents indicating 2.2% of the population.

      3) Zambia, 231,112 adherents indicating 1.8% of the population.

Nations (population 200,000+) with the highest number of Bahá'ís:

      1) India, 1,897,651 believers (0.2% of the population).

      2) United States, 512,864 believers (0.2% of the population).

      3) Kenya, 422,782 believers (0.1% of the population).

For the full dataset go to the ARDA website. [ARDA]

• A chart showing world religions by adherents for 1910 and 2010 was published in The World's Religions in Figures: An Introduction to International Religious Demography, by John Wiley & Sons, 2013 pages 10, 59-62

The zone of Northwestern Africa was split into the two separate zones of Northern and Western Africa and to each of which were transferred parts of the Central and East African zone. The zone of Northern Africa comprised of Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Spanish Sahara. The zone of Western Africa consisted of Mauritania, Sénégal, the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, the Cape Verde Islands, Guinea, Mali, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, Upper Volta, Niger, Ghana, Togo, Dahomey, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and São Tomé and Príncipe. [Message of the Universal House of Justice dated 6 January 1975]
• In 1976 there was a ban on the Faith in Mali.

In August 1932 he died after a brief illness and was interred at Cypress Lawn cemetery. The Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of San Francisco expressed its "grief and sense of serious loss" and paid tribute to "the untiring services and inspiring leadership of their first Chairman, Dr Frederick W. D'Evelyn". [Bahá'í Council website]

Part 1: Baha'u'llah's arrival in the Holy Land [BWNS 1281]

Part 2: Out of exile, a light to the world [BWNS 1282]

Part 3: Out of exile, a light to the world [BWNS1284]
• 2000-04-20 —
  For a summary of achievements of the Four Year Plan see Ridván 2021 Message paragraphs 4-6 for a synopsis of the Plan.
  • See The Significance of the Four Year Plan by Andrew Alexander.
  • See A Personal Consideration of the Four Year Plan and its Legacy from an Irish Bahá'í Perspective by Brian Corvin.
  • See The Four Year Plan and the Twelve Month Plan, 1996-2001 prepared under the supervision of the International Teaching Centre and published by the Bahá'í World Centre.
• 2018-00-00 —
  The population of the Bahá'ís of the world was given as 8,327,581 or 0.10% of the population.
  1. India 2,011,510
  2. USA 543,635
  3. Kenya 448,148
  4. Vietnam 412,130
  5. Democratic Republic of the Congo 299,890
  6. Philippines 291,573
  7. Iran 266,194
  8. Zambia 255,578
  9. South Africa 252,843
  10. Bolivia 228,280

      ["Truth of Life" channel on YouTube]

• 2020-07-10 — In a message to an individual the Universal House of Justice stated that a Bahá'í was required to obey the civil laws mandating vaccination. [10 July 2020]
• 2020-12-08 — In a letter to an individual on the advisability of taking the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine the Universal House of Justice stated that the friends should follow the counsel of medical and other scientific experts. [12 December 2020]
• 2020-12-15 — In a letter to an individual the Universal House of Justice stated that an individual Bahá'í could not refuse a governmental mandate of vaccination on religious grounds. [15 December 2020]
• 2021-02-26 — In a letter to a National Spiritual Assembly the Universal House of Justice addressed the question of vaccination calling it a "social responsibility" and concluded that ultimately it it an individual decision whether to take it or not. [26 February 2021]
• 2020-04-08 — In a letter to a National Spiritual Assembly The Universal House of Justice clarified burial during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic. [8 April 2020]
• 1988-00-00 —
  The publication of La terre n'est qu'un seul pays! by Andre Brugiroux. Brugiroux, a French traveller, set out in 1955 at the age of 17 with 10 Francs in his pocket to fulfill his dream of travelling to every country in the world. He did so purely by hitchhiking and spent no more than a dollar a day on his journey. He travelled a total of 240,000 miles and ended his journey in South Sudan in 2011, having visited 251 countries and territories. He went on to write several books, this being the first. It was published in English as One People, One Planet: The Adventures of a World Citizen. [Wikipedia]
  • For a short video of 83 year old Andre Brugiroux see a Tweet by Reuters.
  • See an interview he did in 2001 in Sydney on the ABC with presenter Rachel Kohn on her program The Spirit of Things. Click on "show transcript".
  • His website.
• 2021-10-29 — In preparation for the commemoration of His passing, the Bahá'í communities around the world released a number of publications honouring 'Abdu'l-Bahá, recounting stories of His life and the principles He espoused. These included new translations of His Will and Testament, illuminated prayer books, stories of His life, and storybooks for children. New translations of His Writings have been made for the first time in a number of languages. [BWNS1544]
• 1905-07-04 —
  'Abdu'l-Bahá had been promising visiting pilgrims that He would visit America when the friends became united. A petition was sent to 'Abdu'l-Bahá signed by 422 of the American believers...
  They had covenanted together, so they wrote, to remain at one in all things, and the signatories one and all had pledged themselves to make sacrifices in the pathway of the love of God, thus to achieve eternal life. [SWABp243]
  • See 'Abdu'l-Bahá's response in a tablet translated by Ali Kuli Khan 3 January 1906 in By Thy Strengthening Grace Appendix I by Duanne Hermann iiiii
  • See an incomplete list of the signatories in Appendix II of the same book. iiiii
• 1909-00-00 — Martha Root became a Bahá'í. [SYH58]
• 1911-12-12 — 'Abdu'l-Bahá arrived in Egypt for His second stay in the country. This sojourn lasts 3 months and 14 days.
• 1892-05-24 —
  See Bibliography for the Tablets of Baha'u'llah: List of citations and resources for Tablets revealed 1877-1892 compiled by Jonah Winters.
  • See also Notes and Commentary on the Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh: Wilmette Institute study materials by Jonah Winters.
• 1921-00-00 — The first publication in Chinese was published by the Bahá'ís in Shanghai. [Video Early history of the Bahá'í Faith in China 7min40sec]
• 1990-04-22 — Earth Day went global, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries. [Earth Day website]
• 2010-04-22 — Earth Day Network launched https://www.earthday.org/billion-acts-green-reduce-ecological-footprint/"> A Billion Acts of Green and The Canopy Project. Earth Day 2010 engaged 75,000 global partners in 192 countries. [Earth Day website]
• 1968-00-00 —
  Twenty years prior, on December 10, 1948, the United Nations General Assembly adopted and proclaimed the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. To mark this event the UN General Assembly unanimously designated the whole of this year, 1968, as International Human Rights Year.

  The Bahá'í Communities of North America, on the occasion of the world-wide commemoration of the one hundredth anniversary of the call to the world's leaders to establish universal peace through justice and unity by Bahá'u'lláh, observed 1968 as the International Year for Human Rights. At the Bahá'í Intercontinental Conference in Chicago the Bahá'ís affirmed that in accordance with the Teachings of Bahá'u'lláh, human rights are God given rights.

  • See National Bahá'í Review Issue 4 April 1968 for the events associated with the commemoration.
  • A pamphlet titled A Bahá'í Declaration of Human Obligations and Rights was published by the Bahá'í Publishing Trust in Wilmette.
• 1969-08-00 — New Statistics based on information received from the Universal House of Justice:
  Countries Opened to the Faith: Independent countries ..... 139
  Significant territories and islands .................. 173
  Totals ................. 312

  Number of Localities where Bahá'ís Reside:
  United States ............. 2,533
  Worldwide ................ 33,326

  Number of Administrative Bodies:
  National spiritual assemblies ................ 83
  Local spiritual assemblies worldwide .............. 6,828
  Local spiritual assemblies in the United States ............ 440

  Number of languages into which Bahá'í literature has been translated ..... 428

  Bahá'í schools and institutes-worldwide ........ 109

  Sites acquired for future houses of worship ....... 51

  Number of tribes and minority groups representedworldwide .............. 1,136 [Bahá'í National Review Issue 20 August 1969 p16]

• 1971-04-21 — Localities: 46,707

  Local Assemblies: 10,461

  National Assemblies: 113 [from a pamphlet published by the NSA of Canada "Baha'i A New Man A New World Order"]

• 1973-04-21 — Localities: 54,102

  Local Assemblies: 13,737

  National Assemblies: 113

  Tribes and minorities represented: 1,191

  Literature translated into 567 languages

  Schools and Institutes: 153

  Independent countries and important territories opened to the Bahá'í Faith: 317 [from a pamphlet published by the NSA of Canada "Baha'i A New Man A New World Order"]

• 1930-04-21 — Number of countries and territories where the Faith has been established: 42

  Number of National Spiritual Assemblies: 9

  Number of Local Spiritual Assemblies: 90 [from a pamphlet, The Bahá'í Faith and its World Community published by the NSA of Canada]

• 1985-04-21 — Number of countries and territories where the Faith has been established: 355

  Number of National Spiritual Assemblies: 148

  Number of Local Spiritual Assemblies: 29,664

  Indigenous tribes, races and ethnic groups represented in the Faith: 2,112 [from a pamphlet, The Bahá'í Faith and its World Community published by the NSA of Canada]

• 1912-04-15 — The Titanic was the largest steamship ever built. She was 882 feet long, 96 feet wide, displacing 45,000 tons. Her luxurious appointments included a theatre seating 1,200, a church somewhat smaller, a ballroom accommodating 500 couples, beautiful salons, palm courts, gymnasium, bowling alley, tennis court and a swimming pool. She could accommodate nearly 4,000 passengers and carried a crew of 860. She set forth on her first and fatal voyage from Southampton, England, April 10, 1912, the pride of her builders and an admiring world. At 11:40 p. m., Sunday, April 14, she grazed a mammoth iceberg, tore open her hull, and in two and one-half hours sank in 2,000 fathoms, taking over 1,500 souls to a watery grave.—The Editors. [SoW Vol 4 No 12 16 Oct 1913 p210]
• 1968-04-21 — The formation of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands. A special celebration was held in a hotel in Kirkwall, and Philip Hainsworth came and represented the National Spiritual Assembly. [Uk Bahá'í Histories]
• 1941-10-15 — The first Bahá'í group was formed in Quito. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p5]
• 1947-04-21 — The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Quito was established. Those elected were: Hascle Coxnbleth, Chaixman, Eithel Santos, Recording Secretary, Hans Levy, Vice-chairman, Eloy Maran, Treasurer, Hans Dory, Secretary, Nelson Sanchez, Librarian, Rosario Vera B., Jose Elias Cedeño, ama Lais Alcivar Z. [Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 p.33]
• 1935-05-07 — In response to a letter from a very successful National Convention in Germany the Guardian called the German community the standard bearers of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh in the continent of Europe. [LDG72]
• 1944-04-20 —
  The end of the first Seven Year Plan. Some of the accomplishments of the plan were:
  • Local Spiritual Assemblies were established in every province of Canada, in every state in the United States and in 14 republics in Latin America.
  • Seven National Spiritual Assemblies were established during this approximate period.
  • The exterior of the House of Worship in Wilmette was completed.
  • In North America, 136 LSAs, 197 groups and 1,300 localities were established. [The Spiritual Conquest of the Planet (Supplement) p2]
• 1986-04-20 — The world population of Bahá'ís was estimated to be 4,335,000. [BW19p67]
• 1921-10-00 —
  Shoghi Effendi visited the Bahá'í community of Manchester. At his first meeting with the friends he reported on 'Abdu'l-Bahá's reaction to the news that Nora Crossley had cut off her hair and offered it for auction to raise funds as her contribution for the construction of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár in Chicago.
  • See Some Bahá'ís to Remember p56 for the Tablet that 'Abdu'l-Bahá sent to Nora Crossley and the circumstances under which Shoghi Effendi presented it, as well as gifts from 'Abdu'l-Bahá, to her in the presence of the Bahá'ís of Manchester.
  • Although not one to allow pictures to be taken of himself, Shoghi Effendi insisted that a photo be taken of himself with the Manchester group. It can be seen at Worldwide Community of Bahá'u'lláh.
  • See as well Memoirs of Nora Crossely: 1921. She writes that ...all the honours that were showered on me by the Beloved Master, were NOT solely because of my gift to the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár, as most people think, but because I loved Him so much, I was prepared to obey Him, and carry out His wishes, AT ALL COST."
  • See also A Tribute to Nora Crossley by Rob Wienberg and the video based on Rob's paper.
• 2022-04-20 —
  The end of the One Year Plan

  Achievements

  • Gathering in the Holy Land November 2021 for the Centenary of the Ascension of 'Abdu'l-Bahá.
  • Programs of growth under way in over 6,000 clusters and close to 5,000 of those will have passed the 2nd milestone and that in 1300 have advanced further.
  • Construction continued on the Houses of Worship around the world and on the Shrine of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. [Ridván 2022]
• 2023-04-21 — More than 40 political, social and human rights activists inside and outside Iran, some from inside the Islamic Republic's prisons, joined a virtual seminar to try to answer the question: How to save Iran?

  Mahvash Sabet and Fariba Kamalabadi were among the prisoners who sent a written note from their cells in Evan Prison to this symposium that was held on the Clubhouse app. After their message was published, both women were barred from receiving visitors or using their phones for three weeks. [IranWire 24 April, 2023; IranWire 15 May 2023]

• 1798-07-01 — The start of the French invasion of Egypt. It ended in a military disaster for France, albeit a political springboard for the 29-year old future emperor but it was a cultural and scientific enterprise that played a crucial role in the development of modern Egypt. The objectives were to free Egypt from the tyranny of the Mamluk ruling warrior class and to cut off Britain's trade route to India. It was the first major incursion of a European power into a central country of the Islamic world since the Crusades.

  Although the plan to colonize Egypt failed it did inaugurate an era of intensive and prolonged rivalry between Britain and France, soon to be joined by Russia. The Age of Colonization had begun. In 1814 35% of the world was ruled by the colonial powers. By 1914 it was 85%.

  The French captured Alexandria easily and were victorious in the Battle of the Pyramids, however the British under Horatio Nelson sunk the French fleet in the Battle of the Nile in August. The British and the Ottomans laid siege to Acre in May of 1799 at the same time a plague epidemic struck the French soldiers. Napoleon fled back to dance in August of 1799 abandoning his troops to an eventual surrender in August of 1801.

  After the expulsion of Napoleon's troops from Egypt by a combined British-Ottoman operation in 1801, Egypt underwent, under Muhammad Ali Pasha (1805-48). a period of comprehensive reforms. The elimination of the Mamluk feudal lords, the confiscation of their lands and the establishment of a state-controlled monopoly of the chief products, mainly cotton, enabled the enlightened ruler to initiate an extensive program of socio-economic change. Industries flourished, military and medical academies were established, students were sent abroad to study in Paris. A modern army was built up and the Egyptian navy soon surpassed the Ottoman navy which controlled the Eastern Mediterranean. [Wikipedia; Colonialism, Nationalism and Jewish Immigration to Palestine: Abdu'l-Baha's Viewpoints Regarding the Middle East by Kamran Ekbal p26-27; Napoleon and the Scientific Expedition to Egypt]

• 2015-10-27 — The Universal House of Justice announced the appoint of the Counsellors (81) who will serve for the next five years. [Bahá'í Canada October 2015]
• 1968-06-24 — The Universal House of Justice made the first appointments to the Continental Board of Counsellors. [Mess63-86 No 60]
• 1978-03-27 — Counsellors do not have any legislative, executive or judicial authority, priestly functions, and can not make authoritative interpretations, however, the Universal House of Justice explained that they outrank Assemblies and the Assemblies are to keep them informed and consider their advice and recommendations. The relationship between the Councellors and the Assemblies is to be one characterized by love and a common desire to serve rather than by rank or station. [27 March 1978]
• 1995-12-26 — The Universal House of Justice clarified the functioning of the Continental Boards:
  "Fundamental to the work of the Counsellors is the understanding that all members of the Continental Board are responsible for the entire continent, and should, to the degree possible, endeavor to familiarize themselves with the conditions of the Cause in the countries therein. Through periodic reports from individual Counsellors, the Board is kept abreast of developments in all areas of the continent and is able to offer guidance to assist its members in the execution of their duties. Whereas no Counsellor should be regarded as having exclusive responsibility for any one territory, the detailed familiarity acquired by each through close interaction with the National Spiritual Assembly and Auxiliary Board members in a particular area is in fact a valuable asset to all the Counsellors on the Board."
  [26 December 1995]
• 1953-09-09 — Rooho'llah Mavadatt arrived in Algeria as a pioneer. [BN No277 p8]
• 1985-07-02 — In his report to the UN Human Rights Commission, the special rapporteur on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide Benjamin Whitaker, used the term genocide in connection with the treatment of Bahá'ís by the Islamic Republic. It is believed that it was the first time the word had been applied to this situation in an official context. This assertion, although it was in an official UN report, was not pursued by the United Nations.

  Resolution 96 of the UN General Assembly, of December 11, 1946, titled "The Crime of Genocide," describes genocide as the "denial of the right of existence of entire human groups, as homicide is the denial of the right to live of individual human beings."

  In an article in IranWire of 15 November 2023, author Faramaz Dakar asks, "Is the Islamic Republic Committing a Silent Genocide Against the Bahá'ís?".

  Q. What groups are the victims of genocide? A. Victims of the crime of genocide fall into four specific groups: ethnic, national, religious and racial. This means that, for example, a political group cannot be considered a victim of genocide based on its legal definition. What is relevant in genocide is the annihilation of a group or a community as a unit and even as a whole.

  Q. What specific actions constitute genocide? A. Behaviors that constitute the crime of genocide fall into five groups: (1) killing the members of the group; (2) inflicting physical harm that can gradually lead to the loss of life or impose permanent and extensive suffering on a person's life; (3) imposing conditions with the intent of annihilating the target group, such as starvation or cutting access to water, or depriving the members of the group of the means of survival such as seizing and confiscating their residences and businesses which ultimately makes it impossible for them to live that an environment; (4) creating conditions that prevent birth and childbearing or lead to the sterilization of people, and make the birth of a new generation of that religious, ethnic, racial or national group impossible; (5) the forced removal of the children of the target group.

  Iran is a signatory to the Convention Against Genocide therefore the the Islamic Republic must be held accountable for the systematic persecution of the Baha'is. There is no sign that this government has ever had any intention of doing so and Iranian laws do not address the crime of genocide in any form. [IranWire 15 November 2023

• 2001-05-06 — In a letter to an individual in response to a query about the wisest course that a believer can adopt when encountering attacks on the Faith in Internet discussions, the Department of the Secretariat attached extracts from an earlier letter from the Universal House of Justice titled Defending the Cause against its Opponents.
• 2008-05-01 — The publication of Iranian Bahá'is from Jewish Background: A Portrait of an emerging Bahá'í Community by Arsalan Geula. The book was independently published.

  This book presents a look at the history of early Iranian Bahá'ís who recognized the promised Messiah and the resulting effects on their lives—including severe hardships and stunning achievements. The gradual emergence of a Bahá'í identity among believers of Jewish background is explained. It shows the organic growth of faith and identity—a process that all new adherents to the Faith undergo.

• 2023-03-08 —
  The publication of One More Mountain: Fleeing Iran for America by Mansur Nurel with Jeannette Monger. It was independently published. It is an autobiographic story of a young man of 25 who, with two friends, crossed the Zagros Mountains in the height of winter to seek asylum in Turkey. His journey took him to the United State more than a year later where he started his new life.
  • Read/hear an interview with the author in the Longmont Leader.
• 2023-09-15 — The publication of Rúhíyyih Khánum by Hussein Ahdieh and Hillary Chapman. The biography was published by Baha'i Publications Australia.
• 1955-04-21 — The first Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Monaco was established.

  The first person to become a Bahá'í in Monaco was Margaret Lantz, of Luxembourg. Soon after her a Frenchman, Mr. Charbonnet, who owed an antique shop in Monaco, also accepted the Faith. Charlottte Campana was the first person of Monegasque nationality to become a Bahá'í.

  Bahá'í writings translated into Monegasque were officially presented to Crown Prince Albert in 2001. [Newspaper Archive on BLO]

• 1919-07-17 — From the newspaper Globe and Commercial Advertiser in New York, Àbdu'l-Bahá was quoted as saying :
  "If the Zionists will mingle with the other races and live in unity with them, they will succeed. If not, they will meet certain resistance. For the present I think a neutral government like the British administration would be best. A Jewish government might come later.

  "There is too much talk today of what the Zionists are going to do here. There is no need of it. Let them come and do more and say less.

  "The Zionists should make it clear that their principle is to elevate all the people here and to develop the country for all its inhabitants. This land must be developed, according to the promises of the prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah and Zachariah. If they come in such a spirit they will not fail. [SoW Vol 10 Issue 10 September 8, 1919 p194-195]

• 1926-09-00 — In a letter addressed to the Persian Baha'is he emphasizes the importance of compiling a general history of the Faith.
• 1988-01-01 — The publication of Fountain of Wisdom: A Collection of Writings from Bahá'u'lláh by the Bahá'í Publishing Trust in Wilmette. It is a re-printed and re-titled Tablets of Baha'u'llah Revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas.
• 1940-04-21 — Annual Report National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of India and Burma 1938-1940
• 17 - 24 Se —
  The first Italo-Swiss Joint Summer School was held September 17-24 in Bex les Bains in Switzerland, and was attended by as many as 75 friends. Dr. Ugo R. Giachery, Hand of the Cause, discussed the Ten-Year Crusade, and Prof. Zeine-Zeine of Beirut lectured on the Kitáb-i-Iqán. For these sessions all the friends were together. Smaller groups, by language, were formed for study of Bahá’í Administration. [Baha'i News. Issue 286, December 1954p4]
  • For a photo see Bahá'í News Issue 291 May 1955 p14.
• 1994-11-01 —
  The publication of Olya's Story: A Survivor's Dramatic Account of the Persecution of Bahá'ís in Revolutionary Iran by Olya Roohizadegan. It was published by Oneworld Publications of London, UK
  • For a review see One Country Vol 6 issue 3 Oct-Dec 1994 p16->15
• 1914-04-25 — The Bahá'í Temple Unity Convention was held in Chicago at the Corinthian Hall, Masonic Temple. See the report of the Convention written by Alfred Lunt. [SoW Vol 5 Issue 10 8 September 1914 p147-151]

  Those elected to the Executive Board of the Bahá'í Temple Unity were: Albert H. Hall, (President), Mrs. Annie L. Parmerton, (Vice-President), Mr. Alfred E. Lunt, (Secretary), Mr. William H. Randall, (Assistant Secretary), Mrs. Corinne True, Mr. Bernard M. Jacobsen, (Treasurer), Mr. William C. Ralston, Mr. Edward B. Kinney, and Mr. Mountfort Mills.

• 2023-06-02 — The Huthi-affiliated Grand Mufti in Sana’a attacked the Bahá'ís in Yemen in his Friday sermon, accusing them of seeking to harm the country and inciting violence against them. [Amnesty International 23 May 2024]
• 1958-04-21 — The first Local Spiritual Assembly was formed in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe (the Southern Rhodesia. [KoB111]
• 2003-05-00 — The publication of For the Celebration of My Praise by the Bahá'í Publishing Trust in Wilmette the celebration of, to quote the inscription in the inside cover, the "Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Dedication of the First Mashriqu'l-Adhár of the Western World to Public Worship Wilmette, Illinois.May 1955-May 2003. The book contained writings from Bahá'u'lláh, Àbdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi and the Universal House of Justice as well as stories and prayers for the Mashriqu'l-Adhár as well as a pictoral history from 1907 to 2002.
• 2024-11-11 — The Bahá'í International Community in New York announced the launching of a new publication titled Outsiders: Multifaceted Violence Against Bahá'ís in the Islamic Republic of Iran. It is the latest in a series of highly significant independent reports and statements about the Bahá'íis in Iran published in recent months.

  The new report was prepared by the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran, in partnership with Eleos Justice at Monash University, a think tank created and directed by Mai Sato, the new UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran. The report focuses on violence perpetrated against the Bahá'í community since the Baha’i Faith emerged in 1844, by documenting three forms of violence as described by sociologist Johan Galtung; direct, structural and cultural, showing them to be part of the Iranian government’s systematic effort to eliminate the Bahá'í religious minority from society.

  One major finding of the report, however, is that the Iranian population has increasingly “resisted” the policy of discrimination against the Bahá'í community. There appears to have been a shift in public attitudes toward Bahá'ís from contempt and avoidance around the time of the Revolution to increasing indifference, acceptance and even support of the Bahá'í community. [BIC News 11NOV24]

• 2024-04-01 — The publication of The Boot on My Neck: Iranian Authorities' Crime of Persecution Against Bahá'ís in Iran by Human Rights Watch. The report draws on extensive documentation by Human Rights Watch and Iranian human rights groups regarding violations against Bahá'ís in Iran. . [BIC News 2MAY24]

  A summary of the report is available in English and in Farsi.

• 2024-07-31 — The Special Rapporteurs working the field of cultural rights, the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances; the Special Rapporteur on the right to education; the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran; the Special Rapporteur on minority issues; the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief; the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences and the Working Group on discrimination against women and girls jointly addressed the government of Iran on the increase in the systematic targeting of Bahá'í women in Iran.

  The message contained details of the treatment of 47 women. They pointed out that over the last year that two-thirds of all Bahá'í prisoners in Iran have been women and that a significant number were being held without due process and their whereabouts were unknown. Many of the victims have been mothers of young children and that they have had to endure the harsh conditions of solitary confinement, frequent interrogations, inadequate medical attention, and restricted family contact.

  They called on the government of Iran to provide additional information of the 47 cases mentioned, as well as legal grounds for the steps taken against them and updates on their individual health. They also called for an end to the discrimination against Bahá'í citizens in Iran.

• 2024-11-25 — The Bahá'í World Centre advised that the work on the Shrine of the Báb that had begun some four months earlier had been completed. The project implemented several features to enhance accessibility, particularly for wheelchairs. The main paths approaching the Shrine from both east and west were paved with Jerusalem Red Limestone, while the expansion of the plaza immediately in front of the Shrine was finished with Galil Gold Limestone—the same stone used for the floor of the Shrine’s colonnade and the terraces above and below on Mt. Carmel.

  The expansion of the plaza was inspired by drawings prepared by William Sutherland Maxwell—Hand of the Cause and distinguished Canadian architect—who designed the Shrine’s superstructure in the early 1940s. The building’s harmonious blend of Eastern and Western architectural styles has made it a familiar and well-loved landmark. [BWNS1764]

  See some "before" images.

  In its letter of 26 July 2024 it was stated that "the opportunity will be taken to carry out some preparatory work inside the Shrine so that, in due course, all rooms can be dedicated to prayer and worship as part of the single Shrine of the Báb."

• 2024-11-27 — The European Parliament passed a joint motion for a resolution on the increasing and systematic repression of women in Iran in light of the recent increase in the number of arrests, prosecutions and imprisonments of Bahá'í women. [European Parliament resolution; BIC-Brussell]
• 1957-02-00 — As authorized by the Guardian, Mrs. Morassa (Yazdi) Rawhani arrived as a pioneer to Rabat, Morocco. She actively participated in the formation of two Assemblies, that of Rabat and Sale, and although of advanced age, she was occupied in deepening the friends and teaching the children in these two localities.

  She was born in 1887 and named Akkawiya (the one who belongs to ‘Akká) by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. She was the granddaughter of Hadji Abderrehim Yazdi, one of the first bearers of the Sacred Standard. Born in the fortress of ‘Akká, she grew up in the Sacred Household under the shelter of the Greatest Holy Leaf.
  With her mother, she moved to Alexandria, Egypt where for a few months she was in charge of cleaning the private room of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and was asked by Him several times to sew some of His clothes. She was entrusted to be the Early Prayer Reader of His private quarters.She was the first woman to become a member of the Spiritual Assembly of Alexandria, and dedicated her time to deepening the women in her locality.
  She passed away on October 6, 1971 and was buried in the Bahá’í Cemetery at Rabat, Morocco. Her funeral was attended by a large number of believers of Morocco, the majority native believers; also in attendance was a representative from the Íránian Embassy in Rabat. A message was sent from the Universal House of Justice to honour her life of service. [BN No 490 January 1972 p7]

• 1972-00-00 — Egyptian security services have exploited the decree to orchestrate six major crackdowns on the Bahá'í community , in 1965, 1967, 1970, 1972,1985 and 2001. The authorities arrested a total of 236 Egyptian Bahá'ís in these crackdowns, on grounds that they had violated the decree or on charges of "contempt of religion" On the few occasions on which arrests were followed by prosecutions, none of the defendants were ever found guilty of violating Law 263/1960 or any other law." from "IV. Egypt's Baha'is and the Policy of Erasure" in Prohibited Identities: State Interference with Religious Freedom by Human Rights Watch.
• 1967-00-00 — Egyptian security services have exploited the decree to orchestrate six major crackdowns on the Bahá'í community , in 1965, 1967, 1970, 1972,1985 and 2001. The authorities arrested a total of 236 Egyptian Bahá'ís in these crackdowns, on grounds that they had violated the decree or on charges of "contempt of religion" On the few occasions on which arrests were followed by prosecutions, none of the defendants were ever found guilty of violating Law 263/1960 or any other law." from "IV. Egypt's Baha'is and the Policy of Erasure" in Prohibited Identities: State Interference with Religious Freedom by Human Rights Watch.
• 1966-00-00 — Egyptian security services have exploited the decree to orchestrate six major crackdowns on the Bahá'í community , in 1965, 1967, 1970, 1972,1985 and 2001. The authorities arrested a total of 236 Egyptian Bahá'ís in these crackdowns, on grounds that they had violated the decree or on charges of "contempt of religion" On the few occasions on which arrests were followed by prosecutions, none of the defendants were ever found guilty of violating Law 263/1960 or any other law." from "IV. Egypt's Baha'is and the Policy of Erasure" in Prohibited Identities: State Interference with Religious Freedom by Human Rights Watch.

"That all nations should become one in faith, and all men as brothers; that the bonds of affection and unity between the sons of men should be strengthened; that diversity of religion should, and differences of race, be annulled; what harm is there in this? Yet so it shall be. These fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars shall pass away, and the "most great peace" shall come. Do not you in Europe need this also? Let not a man glory in this, that he loves his country; let him rather glory in this that he loves his kind." -Bahá'u'lláh

Shoghi Effendi wrote that "in every locality where the number of adult declared believers exceeds nine" Assemblies should be elected. [BA37]
• From this time forward the term "Assembly" meant a duly-elected local spiritual assembly and not a group. [BA20]

The First Seven Year Plan was launched in North America. [BBD180; BBRSM158; BW7:17–18; MA9]
• For the role of individuals, local spiritual assemblies and the National Spiritual Assembly see MA11–12.
• The Plan called for:
  • the completion of the exterior of the Wilmette Temple. BW7:17–18; PP385]
  • the establishment of a local spiritual assembly in each state and province of the United States and Canada. [PP385]
  • the establishment of a centre in each of the republics of Latin America. [PP385]
• At this time there were 2 local spiritual assemblies and eighteen localities. [OBCC307]

Melba Loft, (née Whetung), a Chippewa, became a Bahá'í while she was living in Michigan. She was the first Native Canadian to become a Bahá'í. [A Selected timeline related to the history of the Baha'is of Alberta]
• Another source, says the date of her declaration was August 5, 19

Following the directive from the Guardian following the passing of the Greatest Holy Leaf in 1932, the National Spiritual Assembly called for a period of mourning of nine months in which all Festive Anniversaries were to be replaced by simple gatherings for prayers and administrative gatherings including the 19-Day Feasts were to be held with the utmost simplicity. [CBN No 97 February 1958 p1]
• For a number of messages of condolence and an account of the funeral of Shoghi Effendi see CBN No 95 Dec 1957 p5-8.

The Community Properties Fund were intended to provide the ongoing material resources necessary for this advancement. The National Spiritual Assembly contributed an initial $2.5 million to this Fund, and called on the community to match this amount over the remainder of the current Five Year Plan. Returns from this sum will then generate funds allocated to community properties. [Bahá'í Canada 2019-03-27

O God! We pray that from now on, Thou, the Beloved
will bestow upon Shoghi Effendi all the strength and
vigor that will enable him to pursue over a long unbroken
period of strenuous labor, the supreme task of achieving,
in collaboration with the friends in every land, the
speedy triumph of the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh.

This was adapted from his letter dated the 14th of November 1923

I cherish the hope that, from now on, the Beloved may bestow upon me all the strength and vigor that will enable me to pursue over a long and unbroken period of strenuous labor the supreme task of achieving, in collaboration with the friends in every land, the speedy triumph of the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh. This is the prayer I earnestly request all my fellow-brethren and sisters in the Faith to offer on my behalf.

He also had a prayer for the believers:

"Let us pray to God that in these days of world-encircling gloom, when the dark forces of nature, of hate, rebellion, anarchy and reaction are threatening the very stability of human society, when the most precious fruits of civilization are undergoing severe and unparalleled tests, we may all realize, more profoundly than ever, that though but a mere handful amidst the seething masses of the world, we are in this day the chosen instruments of God's grace, that our mission is most urgent and vital to the fate of humanity, and, fortified by these sentiments, arise to achieve God's holy purpose for mankind."

The National Spiritual Assembly published the policy on membership in Freemasonry.
• From the American Bahá'î News, September; 1955: "A recent issue of the British Bahá'í Journal contained the text of two cables from the Guardian concerning membership of Bahá'îs in Freemasonry:
  'Disapprove membership (in) Freemasonry' (November 11, 1954);
  'Any Bahá'î determined retain membership (in) Freemasonry loses voting rights' (December 22, 1954) .
  • The National Spiritual Assembly inquired of the Guardian whether this directive applied to the United States. In a letter written on behalf of the Guardian, dated July 9, 1955, this question was answered:
    'The directive regarding membership. in Freemasonry should be 'carried out by your Assembly in all areas under your Assembly's jurisdiction.'The Guardian's directive about Freemasonry is an application of the general principle he laid down some years ago to the effect that Bahá'îs are not to affiliate with organizations, any of whose purposes and methods contradict fundamental principles of the Bahá'í teachings. This directive closes our ranks for the forth-coming new period of public responsibility when enemies of the Cause will do their best to find ways to discredit our principles of complete neutrality with respect to various social organizations in East and West."

    The Canadian National Spiritual Assembly regards the Guardian's directives as general policy with equal application to Canada. [CBN No 72 Jan 1956p3-4]

• 1962-03-00 — Some Statistics as of March, 1962:
  Montreal; 27
  Ottawa: 24
  Toronto: 35
  Hamilton: 30
  Winnipeg: 15
  Regina:26
  Edmonton:18
  Vancouver: 23
  Peigan Reserve (Piikani Nation): 27
  Pasqua Reserve (Pasqua First Nation):22
  Poorman Reserve (Kawacatoose First Nation): 59 {CBN No 146 Mar 1962 p4]
  
  Poorman Reserve (Kawacatoose First Nation): 74 This is the largest community in Canada. [CBN No 147 Apr 1962 p2]
• 1956-09-00 — The National Spiritual Assembly published the policy for the performing of a Bahá'í marriage by a local spiritual assembly. [CBN No 80 September 1956 p4]
• 2021-06-15 — The Universal House of Justice determined that, exceptionally, the new term for Auxiliary Board Members would begin on 1 July 2021 rather than on the Day of the Covenant this year, to provide the Board members with sufficient time to make preparatory arrangements for the conference of the Continental Boards of Counsellors and Auxiliary Board members called for January 2022.

  The Continental Board of Counsellors appointed the following 26 Auxiliary Board members to serve in Canada. Those serving on the Propagation Board:

  Mert Ozyonum, Atlantic Provinces
  Betty Dai, Anthony Jjumba, Shawyun Refahi and Anisa Skuce-Newell in British Columbia
  Lita Cameron, Elisa Cooper, Neda Farahmandpour, Caitlin Moore in Ontario
  Maëlle Turbide in Québec
  Dagmawit E. Habtemariam in Saskatchewan-Manitoba
  Drew Erickson in Alberta
  Those serving on the Protection Board:
  Alanna Robertson Vreeland in the Atlantic Provinces
  Agazzi Abay Tsehaye, Nabih Ardekany, Navid Jaberi, Lori Mason in British Columbia
  Ravin Appadoo, Rebecca Hamilton-Bachiu, Justin Kianfar, Bronwyn Naylor and Golbon Singh in Ontario
  Mona Pirmoradi in Québec
  Anis Sabet in Saskatchewan-Manitoba
  Karolina Drabik and Shabnam Shakibaei in Alberta

  The Counsellors expressed their love and gratitude to these distinguished friends who have served so faithfully and sacrificially and who will be relieved of this service as of 1 July 2021. They were: Sara Chesley, Sohayl Ghadirian, Alaleh Rohani, Robert M. Ngunjiri, Rhona Scoffield, Sophie Turbide, Stacey-Michelle Tekye, and Tahirih North. [Letter from the National Assembly to the Canadian community dated 16 June 2021 S113255]

• 1968-07-10 — The passing of Mariette Germaine Roy Bolton (b. 1900 Québec) in New South Wales, Australia. She was buried in the Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium North Ryde, Ryde City, New South Wales, Australia.

  Mariette G. Roy was born into a Catholic French Canadian family of farmers. In 1923 she married Stanley Bolton and the couple emigrated to Sydney, Australia in 1924. She first heard of the Bahá'í Faith from the Dunns in 1925 and she and Stanley declared after meeting Keith Ransome-Kehler in 1931.

  The Bolton's moved to Detroit in the United States in 1931. Their son Stanley Jr. fell ill and was treated by a chiropractor prompting the Boltons to move to Iowa and study chiropractic at Palmer College in Davenport. They established a chiropractic practice when they returned to Sydney in 1934.

  In 1936 the Bolton's purchased land in Yerrinbool and built the first Australian Bahá'í Summer School on the property. Siegfried Schopflocher visited shortly after the first building was completed and suggested it be named 'Bolton Place'.

  The Boltons moved to Yerrinbool in 1943 and both Stanley and Mariette served on the first Yerrinbool Local Spiritual Assembly. Mariette and Stanley managed the Yerrinbool School themselves before turning over administration to the National Spiritual Assembly in 1945. They continued to serve as caretakers of the Summer School property until moving to Orange, NSW in 1963.

  Mariette and Stanley undertook a teaching trip to New Caledonia in February 1952. Her knowledge of French allowed her to teach the Faith effectively, and at least one local became a Bahá'í during her visit. They were among the first teachers to the Pacific Islands, a process which culminated in the formation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the South West Pacific Ocean, with its seat in Noumea, at Riḍván, 1971. [BN No 255 May 1952 p10; BN No 257 July 1952 p5]

  In 1953 she travelled extensively with Stanley, attending Intercontinental Teaching Conferences in Stockholm and Delhi, attending the dedication of the American House of Worship as representatives of the Australian National Spiritual Assembly, and making a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. She is believed to be the only French Canadian believer to have met the Guardian.

  She was a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Australia and New Zealand serving as secretary from 1948 until 1951.

  She made teaching trips to the United States and Canada in 1957 and 1963 when she attended the Most Great Jubilee in London in that year. Her last teaching trip abroad was in 1968 when she visited Noumea, New Caledonia a few months prior to her death on July 10. She must surely be recognized as one of the most succesful Bahá'í teachers in Australia. [OBCC100n34; Find a grave; BW15p435-437]

• 2018-05-30 —
  The publication of Stumbling in the Half-Light: The Stories by John D Sargent. The book was publish by Friesen Press.
  • See the official website.
    Stumbling in the Half-Light follows a self-professed "chubby little half-breed" from the Six Nations reservation as he embarks on a lifetime of spiritual adventures within the Baha'i community. Through fifty-two short, autobiographical stories, John Sargent retells a life of humour, humility, loss, and faith. John's endearing openness leads him through a life of adventure—from a childhood on the reserve, to years in Africa, to a career in architecture and finally as an administrator of First Nations communities. But his real calling: was to bring the Bahá'í faith to First Nations communities throughout North America.
• 1981-00-00 — The founding of the Canadian Bahá'í International Development Agency (CBIDA). It takes on projects in areas like education, sustainable development through agriculture, and community development that aim to enrich the social and spiritual life of the community. The CBIDA supports its partners usually by means of providing access to funding, often in collaboration with the Canadian International Development Agency, as well as assisting with project design and monitoring and helping to build organizational capacity. [CBNS 1 November 2006]
• 1910-01-05 — On this date a contribution was recorded to "Temple Unity" from an unknown Bahá'í in Winnipeg. [Bloodworth, Grains of Wheat p6]
• 1978-04-21 — [CBN No 315 June/July 1978 p5]
• 1934-00-00 — The first talk on the Bahá'í Faith was given in Calgary. May Maxwell had arrived by train at the Palliser Hotel situated at 9th Avenue and 1st Street West where she spoke to a women's Peace Club meeting. Her husband, William Sutherland Maxwell was the architect of the hotel. [The Distance Traversed a presentation by Bev Knowlton and Joan Young 2022]
• 1963-03-00 — At this time there were 1,500 enrolled Bahá'ís in Canada, 500 of these were First Nations. [CBN Special Editions May 1963]
• 1962-00-00 — Native believer Shirley Lindstrom enrolled in the Faith in the Yukon. Months after becoming a Bahá'í she travelled alone to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories to help establish the first Local Spiritual Assembly there. Later she move with her family to Saskatchewan where they remained for several year to work with the First Nations people a the Fort Qu'Appelle Bahá'í Institute. [Native Conversion, Native Identity: An Oral History of the Bahá'í Faith among First Nations People in the Southern Central Yukon Territory, Canada by Carolyn Patterson Sawin p97]
• 1956-02-00 — With the growing number of Bahá'ís in the Yukon they were able to send their first delegates to the National Convention. Three of the six delegates elected at the first Yukon Bahá'í Convention were Native: Annie Drugan (later Auston), Shirley Lindstrom and Liz Jackson. [Native Conversion, Native Identity: An Oral History of the Bahá'í Faith among First Nations People in the Southern Central Yukon Territory, Canada by Carolyn Patterson Sawin p98]
• 2007-08-03 — In an email addressed to all Local Spiritual Assemblies and Bahá'í Groups, Gerald Filson, the Director of External Affairs announced the launch of a new site of the Bahá'í Community of Canada, bahainews.ca The purpose of the site is to feature news articles of Bahá'í-related activities in Canada, listings of upcoming events, and headlines of newspaper articles from across the country that mention the Bahá'í Faith."
• 2006-11-18 — The members of the Spiritual Assemblies in Canada voted for the members of their respective Regional Councils in six regions: Alberta; the Atlantic Provinces; British Columbia & Yukon, Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan, Manitoba & Northwestern Ontario. [NSA letS6660 22 November 2006] iiiii

  What is the function of the Regional Bahá'í Councils?

  The primary responsibility of Regional Councils at this time is to support and guide the work of expansion and consolidation in cluster after cluster. Not only does this require them to interact directly with training institutes, Area Teaching Committees, and Local Spiritual Assemblies operating in their respective regions, they must also function in close collaboration with the Counsellors and their auxiliaries …Regional Councils gather and analyze essential information, ensure the efficient use of financial resources, and arrange for the dispatch of homefront pioneers. Moreover, they maintain regular communication with the friends in their regions, keeping them apprised of the progress of plans and facilitating the rapid dissemination of lessons learned. – February 22, 2012 Letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice
  The House of Justice highlights, among other things, the need for Councils to pay close attention to the operation of the regional institute, including the scheme of coordination the institute establishes at the level of the cluster. The Councils must ensure, too, the timely appearance and dynamic functioning of Area Teaching Committees. The discharge of these duties, carried out with the assistance of the Counsellors and their auxiliaries, will serve to foster the participation of increasing numbers of the friends in a rising number of programs of growth--and this, in turn, conduces to the sound development of the individual, the community, and the institutions. — August 9, 2012 Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States
• 1995-04-00 — The publication of When Your Patient is a Bahá'í; An information sheet for health care professionals by the Baha'i Medical Association of Canada.
• 1992-11-00 — The formation of The Bahá'í Medical Association of Canada (BMAC). [Canadian Bahá'í News Service 23NOV2007]
• 2016-09-07 — The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Canada paid tribute to Professor Irwin Cotler at the Reception Centre of the Bahá'í Shrine in Montreal. They expressed the gratitude of the Bahá'í community for his unwavering defence of the Bahá'ís in Iran over more than 25 years in public life and presented him with a beautiful piece of Arabic calligraphy – the second of Bahá'u'lláh's "Hidden Words" – that highlights justice as "the best beloved of all things in My sight".

  Professor Cotler was the Director of the Human Rights program in the Law Faculty at the University of McGill and was a Member of Parliament from 1999 until 2015. During this time he served as Justice Minister from 2003-2006.

  After his retirement from public life Mr Cotler founded the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights. [CBNS 27 Sep 2016]

  In late 2022 the film First to Stand: The Cases and Causes of Irwin Cotler was released. It was written, directed and produced by Irene Lilienheim Angelicco and Abbey Jack Neidik and follows international human rights lawyer Irwin Cotler and his team of young activists at the Raoul Wallenberg Centre as they take on the cases and causes of political prisoners and human rights activists including Raif Badawi and Shaparak Shajarizadeh, battling against the world's most repressive regimes.

• 1912-01-25 —
• 1953-01-00 — A special edition of the Canadian Bahá'í News focused on the purpose of the Haziratu'l-Quds as a symbol of unity and focus that will contribute to the prestige of the Faith. The Guardian asked other National Communities to contribute to the project. [CBN No 35 January 1953; Bahá'í Canada Summer/Fall 2023 p16]
• 2023-11-27 — The National Spiritual Assemblies announced the names of those who were selected to serve on the Regional Councils for the following year. [Bahá'í Canada online]

  Alberta: Milad Asdaghi, Nazila Ghasemi, Tony Liu, Shamim Mehrabkhani, and Sina Misaghian
  The Atlantic Provinces: Ryan Brennan, Kristi Petro, Hedda Schuurman, Gnei (Kumala) Sobhani, and Kelley Wright
  British Columbia:
  Charlene Antinuk, Jason Burtwistle, Tabasom Eblaghie, Nabet Fani, Neil MacMillan, Chohre Rassekh, Alaleh Rohani, Pegah Seisan, and Cindy Snedden
  Ontario:
  Sonya Appadoo, Tyrone Davids, Livia Dittmer, Jeff Hamilton-Bachiu, Jane Hoy, Pejman Mosleh, Roya Mostaghim-Vaezi, Todd Smith, and Melanie Vafaie
  Quebec:
  Josée Cardinal, Dave Courtemanche, Gregory Fortin-Vidah, Mitra Javanmardi, Nabil Nakhostine, Ilya Shodjaee-Zrudlo, Leyla Shodjai, Anne Skeaff and Laurie Zrudlo
  Saskatchewan and Manitoba:
  Sandra Agahi, Sally Greenough, Ward Johnston, Payam Towfigh, and Joanne Yeo

• 1976-00-00 —
  In the International Survey of Current Bahá'í Activities of the Bahá'í World special mention was made of the marathon voyage of Mohsen and Felicity Enayat, travelling teachers from Canada, who for nearly two years travelled across the length and breadth of West Africa, touching almost every country in the zone. Their love, devotion and humility coupled with their deep knowledge and creative methods of teaching and deepening, made them especially effective wherever they went. [BW17p149]
  • It was mentioned that Felicity and Mohsen played a valuable role at the training institute held in Yaoundé. [BW16p163]
• 1930-00-00 — There were a few French Canadian Baha’is in Montreal by this time:
    Jeanette French, the first Francophone to become a Bahá'í in Canada circa 1920.
    Mrs Jeanne Tremblay first appeared on the Montreal membership list in 1931.
    Joseph René Roy, a chocolate maker, November of 1931.
    Mariette Bolton, (1931) sister of the above, spent most of her life in Australia.
    P Bernard Lagueux was a nephew of Archbishop Msgr Lagueux of Quebec City enrolled March 1934.
    Henri Drouin September (1934). [OBCC94-95]
• 1956-12-00 — Winnifred Harvey became the first pilgrim from Ottawa and she was the only Western pilgrim at the time. She took copious (80 pages) notes, some in shorthand. She met with the Guardian over dinner seven times. When hearing that 40% of the Canadian population was French-speaking, the Guardian replied that the same percentage of Bahá’ís must be French-Canadians, or the Faith would appear to be Anglo-Saxon. [Our Bahá'í Legacy, ppt presentation by Heather Harvey 22NOV24]