ʻAlí-Muhammad Varqá (;‎ 191122 September 2007) was a prominent adherent of the

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 ...

. He was the longest surviving

Hand of the Cause of God 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 o ...

, an appointed position in the Baháʼí Faith whose main function is to propagate and protect the religion on the international level. Varqá was born in 1911 in

Tehran, Iran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

to a well-known

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

ian Baháʼí family. His grandfather Mírzá ʻAlí-Muhammad Varqá, from whom he received his name, was an Apostle of Baháʼu'lláh, and his father,

Valíyu'lláh Varqá Mírzá Valíyu'lláh Khán-i-Varqá (‎ ; 18841955) was a prominent Persian Baháʼí who was appointed a Hand of the Cause by Shoghi Effendi. He was the son of Varqá, the martyr-poet, and the father of ʻAlí-Muhammad Varqá, (1911 ...

, was also a Hand of the Cause. Varqá moved to Paris and studied at the Sorbonne, where he obtained a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism '' licentia docendi'' ("licence to teach ...

in 1950. He then returned to Iran and taught at the universities of

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

and

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

. During this time, he also served in various administrative capacities in the Baháʼí community of Iran. After his father's death, Varqá was appointed as a Hand of the Cause by

Shoghi Effendi Shoghí Effendi (; ;1896 or 1897 – 4 November 1957) was Guardian of the Baháʼí Faith from 1922 until his death in 1957. As the grandson and successor of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, he was charged with guiding the development of the Baháʼí Faith, in ...

on November 15, 1955. He served in that capacity for 52 years until his death in 2007, and was the last surviving Hand of the Cause. As part of his role, he travelled to many countries, and attended the first Baháʼí national conventions of many countries including

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and

Central African Republic The Central African Republic (CAR) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to Central African Republic–Chad border, the north, Sudan to Central African Republic–Sudan border, the northeast, South Sudan to Central ...

. He also served as the trustee of

Huqúqu'lláh Ḥuqúqu'lláh (, "Right of God") is a voluntary wealth tax paid by adherents of the Baháʼí Faith to support the work of the religion. Individuals following the practice calculate 19% of their discretionary income (after-tax income minus essen ...

since 1955, a role which his father also held. In 1979, he moved to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

and later to

Haifa Haifa ( ; , ; ) is the List of cities in Israel, third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropolitan area i ...

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

where the

Baháʼí World Centre The Baháʼí World Centre is the name given to the spiritual and administrative centre of the Baháʼí Faith, representing sites in or near the cities of Acre and Haifa, Israel. Much of the international governance and coordination of the ...

is located. He died on 22 September 2007 in Haifa and was buried in the Baháʼí cemetery there.

Notes

References

* * Iranian Bahá'ís Bahá'í Faith in Israel Hands of the Cause Iranian emigrants to France Iranian emigrants to Israel Academic staff of the University of Tehran University of Paris alumni Academics from Tehran 1911 births 2007 deaths Date of birth missing 20th-century Bahá'ís 21st-century Bahá'ís Iranian emigrants to Canada Exiles of the Iranian Revolution in Canada {{Baháʼí-stub