History

This book examines the intersection of African American history with that of the Bahá’í Faith in the United States. Since the turn of the twentieth century, Bahá’ís in America have actively worked to establish interracial harmony within its own ranks and to contribute to social justice in the wider community, becoming in the process one of the country’s most diverse religious bodies. Spanning from the start of the twentieth century to the early twenty-first, the essays in this volume examine aspects of the phenomenon of this religion confronting America’s original sin of racism and the significant roles African Americans came to play in the development of the Bahá’í Faith’s culture, identity, administrative structures, and aspirations.

Includes essays by Loni Bramson, Christopher Buck, Gwendolyn Etter-Lewis, Louis Venters, Mike McMullen, and June Manning Thomas

On November 28, 1921, the head of the Bahá’í Faith, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, passed away. There were six Western believers in Haifa on the night of the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Mr. John Bosch and Mrs. Louise Stapfer Bosch from Geyserville, California; Dr. Florian Krug and Mrs. Grace Krug from New York, and Fraulein Johanna Hauff from Stuttgart. All of them were there as pilgrims. The only other Western believer present in Haifa was Mr. Curtis Kelsey from New York, who was in Haifa to install electrical power plants to light the shrines of the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh. This book tells the story of these believers, how they became Bahá’ís, the circumstances that led them to Haifa, and how their experience at the time of the ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá shaped their path of service to the Cause of God. The intent is to give the reader the feeling of being in the holy land, one hundred years ago, when the moon of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá set over Haifa.

A beautifully written account of 'Abdu'l-Baha's journey in North America in the early part of the twentieth century. For eight months, He traveled across the United States and into Canada, speaking about the Bahá’í teachings. He covered more than five thousand miles and touched the hearts of everyone with whom He came in contact.

This special edition of Voyage of Love, published to commemorate the centenary of the passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, includes a new preface from author Amy Renshaw and a selection of discussion questions designed to help junior youth and readers of all ages reflect on ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s approach to the promotion of race unity and other topics.

As people around the world mark the centenary of Abdu'l-Baha's passing and the completion of the first century of the Formative Age of the Bahá’í Faith, this anthology is designed to increase devotion to Abdu'l-Baha and aid profound reflection on His life, His mission and His unique qualities. Preserved in the testimonials and tributes collected here are the exemplary actions of that single soul out of all humankind who offered a pattern of right living to all people, for all time.

On a December day in 1973, Anisa Abdul-Razzaq Abbas heard a knock at the door of the Baghdad home she was visiting. She opened the door to greet two men from the Iraqi Al-Amn security force, who immediately placed her under arrest. Her crime: being a member of the Bahá’í Faith, a religious minority in her native Iraq.

Over the next six years, Anisa—along with other members of the Bahá’í community who were arrested at that time—would spend three years in Iraq’s infamous Abu Ghraib prison and a further three years in Al-Rashaad prison before her release in 1979. During her years of incarceration, Anisa would rely on her faith to meet the myriad challenges of prison life. Day after day, she and her fellow-prisoners experienced levels of cruelty and injustice that most would find unthinkable. Separated from her husband, who was being held in the men’s prison, and from her children who were without both parents, Anisa was sustained through her darkest days by the steadfast devotion and sacrificial love of her family, and by the strength and solidarity offered by her fellow Bahá’í prisoners.

Anisa’s story is one of patience, courage, and steadfastness in the face of religious prejudice and state-sponsored oppression, and it is a reminder to us all of the resilient strength of the human spirit.

This book concludes Earl Redman’s trilogy about ‘Abdu’l-Bahá as seen through the eyes of the pilgrims and other visitors to ‘Akká and Haifa and those who met Him in Europe and America. While Volume 1 of Visiting ‘Abdu’l-Bahá covered the years from 1897 to 1911, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s travels between 1910 and 1913 are described in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in Their Midst. This volume begins with the Master’s return to Haifa in 1913 and ends with His passing in 1921.

Two hundred years from the birth of the Báb, this volume offers a unique, wide-ranging exploration of the life and legacy of the Báb, the Bábí community of Iran, and the origins of the Bahá'í Faith.