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A trial for seven Iranian Baha'is that has come to symbolize the persecution of followers of the faith is set to unfold next week with added controversy and global attention.
Recent turmoil and governmental crackdowns on protesters in Iran have raised concern about the fate of the seven Baha'i community leaders who have been held at Tehran's Evin prison since their arrests in March and May 2008.
And now other Baha'is, arrested during demonstrations last month on the Shiite holy day of Ashura, will also face trial in the coming days, the semi-official Fars News Agency reported Saturday.
"These people were not arrested because they were Baha'is," said Abbas Jafari-Dolatabadi, prosecutor for Iran's Public and Revolution Courts. "In searching their homes, a number of weapons and ammunition were discovered."
He said the Baha'is had "played a role in organizing the riots and sending pictures of the riots abroad. That is why they were arrested."
But a spokeswoman for the Baha'is said the government's latest allegations were designed to sow prejudice and hatred against the minority faith in Iran.
"This is nothing less than a blatant lie," said Diane Ala'i, the Baha'i International Community's representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland. "Baha'is are by the most basic principles of their faith committed to absolute nonviolence, and any charge that there might have been weapons or 'live rounds' in their homes is simply and completely unbelievable."
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom has also criticized Iranian officials for blaming the Baha'is for anti-government demonstrations.
"These allegations are not only without merit, but downright fabricated," said Leonard Leo, chairman of the commission, which acts as an independent advisory board to the U.S. government.
"If the Iranian government moves forward next week with the trial of the seven Baha'i leaders, the U.S. government and international community must demand fair and transparent proceedings in accordance with international human rights standards," Leo said.
After two delays, that trial is scheduled to open Tuesday.
On Thursday, prominent Indians of the Baha'i faith held a news conference in New Delhi, urging their government to intervene.
"This trial is designed to harass and intimidate, and is one more in a long line of persecution of this community," said Maja Daruwala, director of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. "Our country has a long record of pluralism and tolerance and must speak out."
The Baha'i World Centre estimates there are more than 5 million Baha'is spread around the globe; India has the largest community, with about 2 million.
The seven Iranian Baha'i leaders -- two women and five men -- are accused of spying for Israel, spreading propaganda against the Islamic republic and committing religious offenses, charges that can carry the death penalty.
Ala'i said the trial has been delayed twice because the Iranian regime has no basis for a case.
"These people are innocent, and that's a problem," she said.
She said the Islamic regime is trying to rouse public sentiment ahead of that trial by accusing Baha'is in Iran of instigating the protests that were held on December 27, the day Iranians marked Ashura.
"In general, they are blaming everybody -- the foreign media, human rights activists and now the Baha'i," Ala'i said. "It's scapegoating."
Ala'i said concerns deepened Sunday, when her organization received word from families in Iran that 13 Baha'is had been rounded up from their homes, taken to Evin prison and asked to sign documents that they would not engage in future demonstrations.
"Putting two and two together, the situation facing these Baha'i leaders is extremely ominous," Ala'i said. "We are deeply concerned for their safety."
The Baha'i faith originated in 19th century Persia, but the the constitution of today's Islamic republic does not recognize it as a religion and considers followers as apostates.
The Iranian government denies mistreating Baha'is, who number about 300,000 in Iran and are the nation's largest non-Muslim religious minority, according to Baha'i International. But the Baha'is say believers in Iran are victims of systematic discrimination and targets of violence.
Ala'i said the trial of the community leaders in Tehran has mobilized Baha'is around the world and has taken on symbolic significance -- one that could very well transcend the fate of seven men and women.
By Moni Basu, CNN
January 9, 2010 7:54 a.m. EST
Universal benefits derive from the grace of the Divine religions, for they lead their true followers to sincerity of intent, to high purpose, to purity and spotless honour, to surpassing kindness and compassion, to the keeping of their covenanted, to concern for the rights of others, to liberality, to justice in every aspect of life, to humanity and philanthropy, to valour and to unflagging efforts in the service of mankind.
Abdu’l-Baha
Secret of Divine Civilization, p. 98
FAITH IN ACTION
By Katherine Marshall
Last Friday evening, in the quiet sanctuary of an old Catholic church in Brooklyn, a group gathered to talk about a community that works globally for peace and social justice, the Rome-based Community of Sant'Egidio. To understand this group, you have to explore the interwoven notions that they see as their special mark: prayer, friendship, and community.
Earlier that week, I had a conversation with Homa Sabet Tavangar about the challenges of giving today's children a sense that they belong to a common world community at the same time that they understand and savor diverse cultures. Her new book, "Growing up Global: Raising Children to be at Home in the World," is full of ideas for introducing children to the interconnected world they live in. Homa's vision and strength come in part from being part of the Baha'i community, whose members are scattered to the far corners of the world.
These two concepts of community -- Sant'Egidio and Baha'i -- are robust yet complex. In both instances, the sense of membership is strong but there's no signing on the dotted line. Both communities are grounded in faith but see themselves as profoundly part of the larger world, with responsibilities that call them to act on their beliefs, at both local and global levels.
The Community of Sant'Egidio has grown from a small group of high school students to something akin to a federation of locally grounded groups, in some 70 countries. Friendship is a word they use constantly. What they mean by it is a robust type of friendship that is deeply welcoming but not cloying. It encompasses humor, joy in life, and profound caring. Friendship is what draws the community to people who are lonely and excluded, down to living on the street or fleeing from war. They care, and show their caring by the time they spend and the true bond of knowing and appreciating each individual. The community is clearly religious - daily prayer is a central feature - and proudly Catholic. But they are grounded in the earth's problems and skilled in its very secular politics. One senior cleric said to me: "They are what we would like the Church to be."
The Baha'i community that Homa describes is a diverse group (with only about 5 million members worldwide) that, in whatever far flung corner, welcomes and supports those who are born into or adopt the faith. Baha'is have no clergy and no formal rituals, so much of this welcome takes place in homes. Once again, this personal quality of caring is something that conveys the sense of a community that transcends boundaries. The Baha'i belief in the oneness of mankind, in the common values among faiths, of true equality of men and women, lends the community a palpable sense of belonging and of mission, one that encompasses both the spiritual and the secular. The Baha'i are among the faith traditions who are most active in international settings, bringing always their belief that human rights are an integral part of their faith. At a time when understandings of what gender equality really means for daily life are rather convoluted in various faith traditions, the Baha'i conviction that equality means equality is striking.
Religious communities are extraordinarily diverse, of course, and the question of who belongs and what that suggests about those who do not is never easy to answer. Homa and I agreed that of all dimensions of diversity, differences in belief may be the hardest to address. What people believe is often deeply emotional, and deeply part of how they see their identity, on many dimensions. That challenge, however, makes it doubly important to reflect on how to balance belonging and exclusion, diverse community and common purpose. That's what gives the reflections about community by Sant'Egidio and the Baha'is a special significance.
Community is a common term these days but it's not always easy to pin down exactly what it really means. We are, most of us, part of several or many communities, bound by threads that are loose or strong. The language of community can be at the same time as familiar as the street sounds of Brooklyn and as elusive as the soft mutterings of a forgotten foreign language. Community is, in the first instance, the counter to the alienating anonymity that is so easy today, whether the individual is lost on a busy city street, lacking the identity papers that allow them to study or get a job, or dying in an isolated hut of HIV/AIDS or shamed by fistula.
Community is about friendship and caring. It is also about shared beliefs and sense of purpose. Community is one of the great gifts of religious traditions, offering welcome and comfort, and a sense of belonging. Within that framework, the robust, articulate, and welcoming ideas of community that come from two very different faith traditions and histories - the Community of Sant'Egidio and the Baha'i faith - offer a flash of welcome insight into what the social capital of religion can represent.
Katherine Marshall is a senior fellow at Georgetown's Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs, a Visiting Professor, and a senior adviser for the World Bank.
Today the call of the Kingdom is the magnetic power which draweth to itself the world of mankind, for capacity in men is great. Divine teachings constitute the spirit of this age, nay rather the sun of this age. Every soul must endeavor that the veils that cover men’s eyes may be torn asunder and that instantly the sun may be seen and that heart and sight may be illumined thereby. Now, through the aid and bounty of God, this power of guidance and this merciful bestowal are found in thee. Arise, therefore, in the utmost Power that thou mayest bestow spirit upon moldering bones, give sight to the blind, balm and freshness to the depressed, and liveliness and grace to the dispirited. Every lamp will eventually be extinguished save the lamp of the Kingdom, which increaseth day by day in splendor.
Abdu’l-Bah
Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bah 310
Innerviews: Dentist grins at life "We went to Canada in '77 and arrived here in January of '78. I had to go through a cultural shock coming over here. One thing is the honesty and simplicity of the people. In those other countries, you live with so much corruption, from the milkman who delivers milk to your house that he has diluted with water to the policeman who is supposed to keep your security and have your interests in mind but takes a bribe to put you in jail whether you are at fault or not. It's a corrupt nation. It's the poverty. You have to feed your family, so you do anything to make that extra buck. "We chose Charleston because my uncle, Cyrus Mali, is a doctor from Pakistan and had gotten into the residency program at CAMC. He was the chief urology resident. He's still practicing there. We just came here to kind of get our bearings and, 30 years later, we're still here, so I am a West Virginian at heart. I went to George Washington High School, then to Marshall, and got my dentistry degree at WVU. "I chose dentistry in rebellion toward my parents. They wanted me go into medicine, and I was going to teach them that they can't tell me what to do. My father was very disappointed. I was on the waiting list for medical school, so should I go with the one that gave me entrance, or should I wait? So I took dentistry, and I haven't regretted it a second. "In 1987, when I was a third-year student, I went to Pakistan with my mom and grandmother. I'm a Baha'i by faith. In India, the Baha'i House of Worship had just been built and we wanted to go see it. It's in the form of a lotus. Lotus has many symbolic meanings in the Indian culture. We wanted to be there for the opening of the building in New Delhi. "My grandmother remembered that we have a close family friend in India. We made connections and they invited us to come. We planned to stay four days. The third day, their son proposed to me. To get to know him a little better, we ended up staying three more days. I told him I wasn't sure, that I was in America and he was in India. I told him, 'When you make it to America, give me a call.' "A month later, he was in America. He lived with my family for a month, and we got to know each other, and a month later, we were married. Met in August, married in November, and 22 years later, here we are. "In Pakistan, when we went to visit my grandmother's family, I walked into the streets and looked at the dentistry as opposed to what they were teaching me at WVU, and it was like night and day. I have a picture of a whole array of teeth where I think people would go in and try a tooth in their mouth to see if it fit. If that denture fit, that's what they would go home with. But I think that is the lower class of dentistry. "I went to the government hospitals where you pay a very minimal amount of money. There was one dentist and two technicians. The technician had taken out a slew of teeth on this patient and had let the patient go while the dentist was still analyzing the X-rays. "I saw the technician numb the patient with a needle that is not disposable. Who knows how many others it was used on or how dull or sharp it was. Normally, you give a patient a few minutes to let the numbness take effect. But before it had time, he grabbed an instrument and used it on the patient and dropped the instrument in a dish of disinfectant. The next patient was a child. The mother and father held this poor baby down. The dentist numbed him in a hurry and reached back into that disinfectant and pulled out several instruments and went to town. It was really Third World, although this was 20 years ago. "My first job was in Man. One of my instructors said, 'You are going to wear your rubber boots, aren't you? You will be stepping into a lot of you-know-what when you go there.' I don't know what he meant. It was three years of wonderful times, getting to know people in the tiny town. I think they have a population of less than 1,000. Once my husband graduated from engineering school in Morgantown, he joined me in Man. "A lot foreigners go to Man: Filipinos, Colombians, Thai, Indians. All are physicians here on a visa trying to get their green card. If you work in a rural area for two or three years, you get your green card. So we had an international community in this coal town. I worked at the community health clinic. My best memories were there. My first child was born in Logan. "Right after that, my husband decided engineering was not his thing, so we went to Lewisburg so he could go to the osteopathic school. We lived there for about four years, and I practiced with another dentist. Then we moved to Charleston because he wanted to do his residency here. "I work with Dr. Sami Ghareeb in Poca. I've been with him 13 years. I work part time, just Monday and Friday. Once a month, I work with his son, Dr. Steve Ghareeb, here on Jefferson Road. When I'm needed, I cover the dental offices of his other son, Mitri, in Cross Lanes, and his son-in-law, Matthew Scarberry, in St. Albans. So it's one big, happy family in dentistry. "We have a small Baha'i community here, less than 40. It is a global faith that started in 1844 in Iran. It has seen persecution and has had a lot of enemies from the cradle of its faith, which is Iran. The founder is Bahaullah. His name in Arabic means 'glory of god.' "Bahaullah has brought us principles that all point to the unification of mankind. We believe in one god, that divine power that guides us, the same God all religions believe in but call by a different name. We believe that no matter what your philosophy or faith or color or nationality, we all came from one source. "I believe in the truth of all the other religions. I recognize that Christ came from God, that Muhammad and Buddha came from God. They are all divinely inspired. They all just came at different ages and times. "In the Muslim faith, they believe that Muhammad was the last prophet, and no one is to come after him. Bahaullah has claimed that he has come from God, so a lot problems have risen from the clergy who feel threatened by another faith. "My dream is to see conflict amongst mankind end. Baha'is believe we will have peace. Whether it is an act of consciousness of bringing that about in a peaceful, mindful way, or whether it will be a result of unimaginable horrors is a choice mankind will have to make. Bahaullah has promised there will be peace. We just don't know when or how." Sandy Wells san...@wvgazette.com, August 2, 2009 This is the Day in which God's most excellent favors have been poured out upon men, the Day in which His most mighty grace hath been infused into all created things. It is incumbent upon all the peoples of the world to reconcile their differences, and, with perfect unity and peace, abide beneath the shadow of the Tree of His care and loving-kindness. It behoveth them to cleave to whatsoever will, in this Day, be conducive to the exaltation of their stations, and to the promotion of their best interests. Happy are those whom the all-glorious Pen was moved to remember, and blessed are those men whose names, by virtue of Our inscrutable decree, We have preferred to conceal. (Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 6)
Bahais <o:p></o:p>
My great-grandfather, from whom our family derives our last name, knew the twomain foundersof the Bahaᡒi religion.<o:p></o:p>
My paternal grandfather taught our family to respect Bahais and to treat them with affection. Theirs is an extraordinary faith.<o:p></o:p>
I wish I could say that I was taken by surprise by stories like this one, and that I was heretofore unaware of the sad, common tale of persecution contained therein. But the truth is that the persecution of the BahaҒis by the Islamic regime in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region> is a long-running affair.<o:p></o:p>
Too bad so many people have failed to take notice for so long.<o:p></o:p>
Pejman Yousefzadeh newledger.com June 27th, 2009<o:p></o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
He is Alpha and Omega. He is the One that will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life and bestow upon the sick the remedy of true salvation. He whom such grace aideth is verily he that receiveth the most glorious heritage from the Prophets of God and His holy ones. The Lord will be his God, and he His dearly-beloved son.<o:p></o:p>
(Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 12)<o:p></o:p>
'It's such a freedom'<o:p></o:p>
Baha'i reflects on persecution in Iran, joy of open worship here<o:p></o:p>
Shahla Howitz of <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Modesto</st1:place></st1:city> knows all about religious discrimination.<o:p></o:p>
Raised in the Baha'i faith in her native <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>, she came to this country with three of her sisters when she was 25 to escape the oppression.<o:p></o:p>
"They didn't like me in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region> because they don't give the Baha'i faith freedom," she said. "They say that prophecy ends with Islam, Mohammed. They say we are fake. But we say no.<o:p></o:p>
The Modesto Baha'i community is holding a public forum to describe the plight of seven Baha'is imprisoned in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region> for more than a year. They have been charged with spying for <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Israel</st1:place></st1:country-region>, insulting religious sanctities and propaganda against the Islamic government, as well as "spreading corruption on earth," which carries the death penalty.
The meeting will be held at noon today at the Modesto Baha'i Center, <st1:street w:st="on"><st1:address w:st="on">1100 Carver Road</st1:address></st1:street>. It is a free event.
The Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of Modesto has about 75 members, many of whom are religious refugees from <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>. About 300,000 Baha'is live in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>, making them the largest minority religion.<o:p></o:p>
"They (Iranian officials) put the Baha'is in jail or kill them. My father was in jail for one year just because of his religion. Baha'i children there cannot go to public schools. Their youth cannot go to any universities in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>. The government says, 'If you're Baha'i, you can't work.' "<o:p></o:p>
The 47-year-old said things in the Muslim country are bad for other religions as well, but that even Jews and Christians can find work and go to college.<o:p></o:p>
"I personally think Christianity and (Judaism) are old religions, so the Muslims aren't so hard on them," she said. "Baha'i is the new religion.<o:p></o:p>
"When <st1:country-region w:st="on">Iran</st1:country-region> was fighting with <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iraq</st1:place></st1:country-region> back in 1987, the Baha'is were sending their youth to the war, too, to serve their country. Baha'is are doing everything to listen to the government, but the government doesn't accept them."<o:p></o:p>
It's not just <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>, either. Throughout the <st1:place w:st="on">Middle East</st1:place>, restrictions have been placed on Baha'is. In <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Egypt</st1:place></st1:country-region>, for example, Christians, Jews and Muslims could all get mandatory ID cards needed to enroll in a university, start a job and open a bank account; Baha'is could not.<o:p></o:p>
Howitz well remembers the night her father was taken away.<o:p></o:p>
"He had a car dealership in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>, and the soldiers just took it from him," she said. "They came to our house and took my father, and they kept him for one year. They took personal belongings from us. We couldn't live there anymore. But they wouldn't let us leave. So we went to <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region> and lived there for two years before we got our visa to come to <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">America</st1:place></st1:country-region>."<o:p></o:p>
Life here, she said, is so much nicer.<o:p></o:p>
"It's such a freedom," Howitz said. "I can be a member of the (Baha'i) assembly and no one puts me in jail. In <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>, I couldn't dare do this. Here, we can have any activities that we want to. It's impossible to compare it. It feels so good.<o:p></o:p>
"I want the public to know that the Baha'i religion doesn't harm anyone. We just praise God. We believe in Jesus. We believe in Mohammed. I love all of them. We don't harm anybody; I don't understand why they harm us."<o:p></o:p>
Besides her dad, she said there was a close friend living next door to her family in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<o:p></o:p>
"They put him in jail for two years and then they killed him. His biggest sin was his Baha'i (faith). Anywhere we live, in any country, we're supposed to obey the government. In <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Iran</st1:place></st1:country-region>, we obey them there, too. But they don't like us."<o:p></o:p>
After moving to this country, she met her husband, Timothy Howitz, at a Baha'i gathering for singles in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Santa Cruz</st1:place></st1:city>. They were married three months later and have three sons: Roi, 17; Rai, 15; and Rian, 5.<o:p></o:p>
The Howitzes attend the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Modesto</st1:place></st1:city> Baha'i Center -- only those 21 years or older are allowed to become members -- while their sons regularly attend the feasts held every 19 days.<o:p></o:p>
The rest of Shahla Howitz's family -- father, mother and six siblings -- all eventually emigrated to this country. Most live in the <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Modesto</st1:place></st1:city> area.<o:p></o:p>
Baha'i Basics<o:p></o:p>
Founder<o:p></o:p>
Baha'u'llah, a native of <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Persia</st1:place></st1:country-region>, announced in 1863 that he was God's messenger for the age. His teachings and sacred writings are the basis of the Baha'i faith. He claimed his divine mission was to bring about the spiritual rebirth and the unity of mankind. He promised that this would lead to the establishment of permanent world peace and to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placetype w:st="on">kingdom</st1:placetype> of <st1:placename w:st="on">God</st1:placename></st1:place> on Earth.<o:p></o:p>
Baha'u'llah proclaimed that God sends divine messengers with teachings that enable humanity to know and worship God. These great manifestations, which have appeared throughout history at intervals of about 500 to 1,000 years, bring human civilization to ever higher levels of spiritual and material advancement. Baha'u'llah is revered as the latest in this long line of divine messengers, which has included Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Mohammed, Krishna, Buddha and Zoroaster.<o:p></o:p>
Baha'u'llah was imprisoned, tortured and exiled, but continued to urge emperors, kings and other national leaders to reconcile and pursue world peace. He died in 1892.<o:p></o:p>
Baha'is believe<o:p></o:p>
The purpose of life is to know and worship God, to acquire virtues, to promote the oneness of humankind and to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization.<o:p></o:p>
All humanity was created by one God and is part of one human race.<o:p></o:p>
Work performed in the spirit of service is a form of worship.<o:p></o:p>
The soul, created at the moment of conception, is destined by God to reach the afterlife, where it will continue to progress until it attains the presence of God.<o:p></o:p>
Baha'is practice<o:p></o:p>
Daily prayer and communion with God;<o:p></o:p>
High moral principles, including trustworthiness, chastity and honesty;<o:p></o:p>
Independent investigation of truth;<o:p></o:p>
A life dedicated to the service of humanity;<o:p></o:p>
Fellowship with the followers of all religions;<o:p></o:p>
Avoidance of excessive materialism, partisan politics, backbiting, alcohol, drugs and gambling.<o:p></o:p>
-- Source:http://bahai.us <o:p></o:p>
Sue Nowicki snowicki@modbee.com, Jun. 28, 2009<o:p></o:p>
<o:p> </o:p>
<o:p></o:p>
<o:p> </o:p>
As to you, O ye loved ones of God! Loose your tongues and offer Him thanks; praise ye and glorify the Beauty of the Adored One, for ye have drunk from this purest of chalices, and ye are cheered and set aglow with this wine. Ye have detected the sweet scents of holiness, ye have smelled the musk of faithfulness from Joseph's raiment. Ye have fed on the honey-dew of loyalty from the hands of Him Who is the one alone Beloved, ye have feasted on immortal dishes at the bounteous banquet table of the Lord. This plenty is a special favour bestowed by a loving God, these are blessings and rare gifts deriving from His grace. In the Gospel He saith: 'For many are called, but few are chosen.'<1> That is, to many is it offered, but rare is the soul who is singled out to receive the great bestowal of guidance. 'Such is the bounty of God: to whom He will He giveth it, and of immense bounty is God.'<2><1 Matthew 22:14> <2 Qur'n 57:21><o:p></o:p>
<o:p> (Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 9)</o:p>
