Will And Testament Of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá

picture info	Will And Testament Of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá The ''Will and Testament of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá'' was a seminal document of the Baháʼí Faith, written in three stages by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá. Several sections were written under imminent threat of harm. The first section was probably written in 1906. This document constitutes one of the central and defining pieces of Baháʼí primary source literature, and is considered to be intimately connected to Baháʼu'lláh's (ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's father) '' Most Holy Book''. The ''Will and Testament'', along with the ''Tablets of the Divine Plan'' and the '' Tablet of Carmel'', were described by Shoghi Effendi as the charters of the Baháʼí administration. Overview of the ''Will and Testament'' The Covenant is a critical aspect of the Baháʼí Faith. The ''Will and Testament of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá'' is sometimes seen as the culmination of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's role as the "Centre of the Covenant". In it he describes his circumstances, lays out his testimony, refers to the machinations of certain en ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the Middle East, where it has faced ongoing Persecution of Baháʼís, persecution since its inception. The religion is estimated to have 5–8 million adherents, known as Baháʼís, spread throughout most of the world's countries and territories. The Baháʼí Faith has three central figures: the Báb (1819–1850), considered a herald who taught his followers that God would soon send a prophet similar to Jesus or Muhammad; the Báb was executed by Iranian authorities in 1850; Baháʼu'lláh (1817–1892), who claimed to be that prophet in 1863 and faced exile and imprisonment for most of his life; and his son, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (1844–1921), who was released f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Manifestation Of God (Baháʼí Faith) The Manifestation of God ( fa, ''maẓhar ẓohūr'') is a concept in the Baháʼí Faith that refers to what are commonly called prophets. The Manifestations of God are appearances of the Divine Spirit or Holy Spirit in a series of personages, and as such, they perfectly reflect the attributes of the divine into the human world for the progress and advancement of human morals and civilization through the agency of that same Spirit. In the Baha'i Faith, it is believed that the Manifestations of God are the only channel for humanity to know about God because contact with the Spirit is what transforms the heart and mind, creating a living relationship between the soul and God. They act as perfect mirrors reflecting the attributes of God into the physical world. Baháʼí teachings hold that the motive force in all human development is due to the coming of the Manifestations of God. The Manifestations of God are directly linked with the Baháʼí concepts of progressive revelati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Ruth White (Baháʼí Author) Ruth (Berkeley) White was an early American Baháʼí Faith, Baháʼí who became known for challenging the ''Will and Testament of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá'', one of the founding documents behind the Baháʼí administration. She was designated a Covenant-breaker by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá's successor, Shoghi Effendi. White met ʻAbdu'l-Bahá in 1912 in America, and again in 1920 when she went on pilgrimage to Haifa. When ʻAbdu'l-Bahá passed away in 1921, he left a will that designated Shoghi Effendi as the one that Baháʼís should turn to for guidance. It was this appointment that she opposed, and she went on to claim that the will was forged. Her claim was based in part on her belief that ʻAbdu'l-Bahá would never advocate for a hierarchy, much less the establishment of a "papacy". During her time of opposition, White wrote several letters to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of the United States and Canada objecting to Shoghi Effendi and the idea of Spiritual Assemblies. She w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
	Hermann Zimmer Hermann Zimmer was an early pioneer of the Baháʼí Faith in Germany. Zimmer is one of a few Baháʼís who revived the efforts of Ruth White to oppose Shoghi Effendi, claiming that the ''Will and Testament of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá'' was forged. Will and Testament of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá The Will and Testament was written in three parts and covers a wide range of topics. It reiterates some of the fundamental teachings of the Baháʼí Faith, clearly calls out Mírzá Muhammad ʻAlí as being a Covenant-breaker, establishes a new institution of the Guardian and clarifies its roles as compared to those of the Universal House of Justice, and also defines the responsibilities of the Hands of the Cause. Opposition Zimmer was a Baháʼí in good standing during World War II, and as a German, traveled to Berlin to unsuccessfully lobby the Nazi government to rescind their ban of the Baháʼí Faith. By 1971, however, he wrote a book titled ''A Fraudulent Testament devalues the Baháʼí Religion in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Hands Of The Cause Of God A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "hand" and fingerprints extremely similar to human fingerprints) are often described as having "hands" instead of paws on their front limbs. The raccoon is usually described as having "hands" though opposable thumbs are lacking. Some evolutionary anatomists use the term ''hand'' to refer to the appendage of digits on the forelimb more generally—for example, in the context of whether the three digits of the bird hand involved the same homologous loss of two digits as in the dinosaur hand. The human hand usually has five digits: four fingers plus one thumb; these are often referred to collectively as five fingers, however, whereby the thumb is included as one of the fingers. It has 27 bones, not including the sesamoid bone, the number ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Universal House Of Justice The Universal House of Justice ( fa, بیت‌العدل اعظم) is the nine-member supreme ruling body of the Baháʼí Faith. It was envisioned by Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, as an institution that could legislate on issues not already addressed in the Baháʼí writings, providing flexibility for the Baháʼí Faith to adapt to changing conditions. It was first elected in 1963, and subsequently every five years, by delegates consisting of the members of Baháʼí National Spiritual Assemblies throughout the world. The Universal House of Justice, as the head of the religion, has provided direction to the worldwide Baháʼí community primarily through a series of multi-year plans, as well as through annual messages delivered during the Ridván festival. The messages have focused on increasing the number of Local Spiritual Assemblies, translating Baháʼí literature, establishing Baháʼí Centres, completing Baháʼí Houses of Worship, holding in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Hands Of The Cause Hand of the Cause was a title given to prominent early members of the Baháʼí Faith, appointed for life by the religion's founders. Of the fifty individuals given the title, the last living was ʻAlí-Muhammad Varqá who died in 2007. Hands of the Cause played a significant role in propagating the religion, and protecting it from schism. With the passing of Shoghi Effendi in 1957, the twenty-seven living Hands of the Cause at the time would be the last appointed. The Universal House of Justice, the governing body first elected in 1963, created the Institution of the Counsellors in 1968 and the appointed Continental Counsellors over time took on the role that the Hands of the Cause were filling. The announcement in 1968 also changed the role of the Hand of the Cause, changing them from continental appointments to worldwide, and nine Counsellors working at the International Teaching Centre took on the role of the nine Hands of the Cause who worked in the Baháʼí World Centre. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Guardian (Baháʼí Faith) Shoghí Effendi (; 1 March 1897 – 4 November 1957) was the grandson and successor of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, appointed to the role of Guardian of the Baháʼí Faith from 1921 until his death in 1957. He created a series of teaching plans that oversaw the expansion of the faith to many new countries, and also translated many of the writings of the Baháʼí central figures. He was succeeded by an interim arrangement of the Hands of the Cause until the election of the Universal House of Justice in 1963. Shoghi Effendi spent his early life in ʻAkká, but went on to study in Haifa and Beirut, gaining an arts degree from the Syrian Protestant College in 1918, then serving as secretary and translator to ʻAbdu'l-Bahá. In 1920 he attended Balliol College, Oxford, where he studied political science and economics, but his second year was interrupted by the death of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá and his appointment as Guardian at the age of 24. Shoghi Effendi was the leader and head of the Baháʼí Fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Mírzá Muhammad ʻAlí Mírzá Muhammad ʻAlí ( fa, 1853–1937) was one of the sons of Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith. He was the eldest son of his father's second wife, Fatimih Khanum, later known as Mahd-i-'Ulya, whom Baháʼu'lláh married in Tehran in 1849. Muhammad ʻAlí received the title from his father of ''G͟husn-i-Akbar'' ("Greatest Branch" or "Greater Branch").The elative is a stage of gradation in Arabic that can be used both for a superlative or a comparative. ''G͟husn-i-Akbar'' could mean "Greatest Branch" or "Greater Branch." Early years Mírzá Muhammad ʻAlí was born on December 16, 1853, in Baghdad during Baháʼu'lláh's first year of exile in that city. In 1863, at the age of nine, he accompanied his family in their exile to Constantinople and Adrianople. During the final days in Adrianople, Mírzá Muhammad ʻAlí wrote about eighty letters to the believers of the Baháʼí Faith, such as those in Baghdad and its surrounding towns. He also a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Mirza Yahya Nuri Subh-i Azal Ṣubḥ-i-Azal (1831–1912, born Mírzá Yaḥyá) was an Iranian religious leader of Azali, Azali Bábism, known for his conflict with his half-brother Baháʼu'lláh over leadership of the Bábí community after 1853. In 1850, when he was just 19 years old, he was appointed by the Báb to lead the Bábí community. When a pogrom began against the Bábís in 1852, Azal fled for Baghdad and spent 10 years there before joining the group of Bábí exiles that were called to Istanbul. Tensions with Baháʼu'lláh grew during the time in Baghdad, as Bábí pilgrims began to turn to him for leadership. The Ottoman government further exiled the group to Edirne, where Baháʼu'lláh's announcement of divine revelation turned the tension into an open conflict, which culminated in a public debate that Azal failed to show up to, and an attempt by Azal to poison Baháʼu'lláh. In 1868 the Ottoman government further exiled Azal and his followers to Cyprus, and Baháʼu'lláh and his foll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	Báb The Báb (b. ʿAlí Muḥammad; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850), was the messianic founder of Bábism, and one of the central figures of the Baháʼí Faith. He was a merchant from Shiraz in Qajar Iran who, in 1844 at the age of 25, claimed to be a messenger of God. He took the title ''Báb'' (; ar, باب; meaning "Gate" or "Door"), a reference to the deputy of the Hidden Imam, while instigating a religious revolution that proposed the abrogation of Islamic laws and traditions, and the establishment of a new religion. Though he was popular among the lower classes, he faced opposition from the orthodox clergy and government, which eventually executed him and thousands of his followers, known as Bábís. The Báb composed numerous letters and books in which he introduced the ideas of a new social order and a promise that a new divine messenger was coming soon. He encouraged learning arts and sciences, gave prescriptions to regulate marriage, divorce, and inheritance, and set ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]
picture info	ʻAbdu'l-Bahá ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (; Persian language, Persian: ‎, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás ( fa, عباس), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh and served as head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 until 1921. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was later Canonization, canonized as the last of three "central figures" of the religion, along with Baháʼu'lláh and the Báb, and his writings and authenticated talks are regarded as a source of Baháʼí sacred literature. He was born in Tehran to an Aristocracy, aristocratic family. At the age of eight his father was imprisoned during a government crackdown on the Bábism, Bábí Faith and the family's possessions were looted, leaving them in virtual poverty. His father was exiled from their native Iran, and the family went to live in Baghdad, where they stayed for nine years. They were later called by the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman state to Istanbul before going into another period of confinement in Edirne and finally the prison-city of Acre, Pal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu]