Baha'i Rants » Sundry

Baha’i Population Data for the United States

Baquia — Sun, 06 May 2012 22:18:00 +0000

In a recent discussion we looked at the question of growth in Baha’i communities. While it may be relatively easy to calculate the size and growth rate of an individual Baha’i community from the regular annual reports which show new enrollments, resignations, and deaths, coming up with an accurate aggregate national number is not so easy.

I know of no National Spiritual Assembly which shares this information in their annual reports. An alternative source is the government census data, as Steve pointed out in the comments section of that previous article.

In the US unfortunately we do not have access to census data because Public Law 94-521 prevents the US Census Bureau from collecting such information. So we must rely on third party or academic sources.

One such source is the Religious Congregations & Membership Study. The 2010 results of this study are shown below:

From it we can learn a few interesting facts: Most Baha’i communities are located in large cities or metropolitan areas. There is an almost complete penetration of US geographically with very few counties without a Baha’i presence. The West and East coast has high concentrations of Baha’is with central US states having less concentration. And for the most part there has been no major decadal change in Baha’i US population, with new declarants balancing losses.

South Carolina along with Arizona and New Mexico seem to be ‘hotspots’. Another source confirms South Carolina as the state with the highest per capita Baha’i population:

From the Association of Religious Data Archives

The data is a bit dated being from 2000 but it shows 17,586 Baha’is in South Carolina representing 0.438% of the state’s population. New Mexico is second with 2,665 and representing a relative 0.147% of that state’s population.

If you know of a more accurate source, please let us know in the comments below.

Abdul-Baha in America Centenary Celebrations

Baquia — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 05:34:26 +0000

The international Baha’i community has been preparing for the centenary celebration of Abdu’l-Baha’s visit to the West for more than two years. Every single community, large or small, will in some way observe the historic visit.

Not surprisingly, the largest celebrations are happening in the US. Below is a list of some of these:

The US Baha’i community has created a beautiful new website to aggregate and organize information on these events: Abdu’l-Baha in America 1912-2012

From there you can follow the city by city travels of the Master, read press clippings and see photos of the people and places. Here’s a gallery of photos of Abdu’l-Baha. They also have a list of events commemorating the centenary in major cities (Chicago, Washington, New York, San Francisco and Philadelphia).

There are also several multi-media and social media initiatives. One of the most intriguing is called “239 Days in America” which will chronicle Abdu’l-Baha’s itinerary on an hour by hour basis through twitter (@239Days) and using facebook‘s new timeline feature. Their website will also feature more in depth feature article.

239 Days in Ameica is the collaborative effort of Rob Sockett, Jonathan Menon and Caitlin Shayda Jones. Follow the Master along 100 years in the past using either twitter, facebook or their own website.

Kathleen Holmlund has created another website to document Abdu’l-Baha’s travel to the West. It too will feature daily reports of the activities of the Master and His travels. You can view the entries based on the country: US, UK, France, and other countries.

“The Journey West” is another group initiative with the same purpose as the other projects mentioned already. As well as stories and pictures of Abdu’l-Baha’s visit to the West, it also features a podcast reading of the many talks Abdu’l-Baha gave in churches, halls and people’s homes.

The blog “Abdu’l-Baha’s Journey in America” may be stylistically simpler and more humble than the previous online projects but it makes up for that by the sheer volume and quality of its content. Anne Perry has been writing consistently since April 2011 and has done a fantastic job describing the visit on a daily basis as well as showcasing the many individuals that Abdu’l-Baha came in contact with.

To complement the online travel journal, along with her husband Tim Perry and Bahram Jalalizadeh, Anne has also been working on a film documentary titled Luminous Journey. It has yet to be released but you can watch a short trailer at the previous link.

Another great resource to learn more about Abdu’l-Baha’s visit to the West (it involved much more than just the US!) is from wikipedia. Rainn Wilson has also published an interesting article: The Titanic’s Forgotten Survivor.

Finally, to finish off the list, I wanted to share with you an article written by Sen McGlinn which addresses the often misunderstood and therefore controversial quote of Abdu’l-Baha from one of His talks in America: Abdu’l-Baha and the African tribe.

And don’t forget, Kalimat Press is celebrating the event by providing their customers with a special gift on Baha’i books.

100 Year Anniversary Abdu’l-Baha’s US Visit – Special from Kalimat Press

100 Year Anniversary Abdu’l-Baha’s US Visit – Special from Kalimat Press

Baquia — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 04:49:17 +0000

In honor of the 100 year anniversary of Abdu’l-Baha’s historic visit to the US in 1912, Kalimat Press will gift a book to you with the purchase of any two or more books from their catalogue.

Here you can see a large collection of rare pictures of Abdu’l-Baha during that trip to the US.

Kalimat Press has a wide catalogue of books which includes many historical and academic works on the Babi and Baha’i Faiths. For example, R. Jackson Armstrong-Ingram’s “Written in Light: Abdu’l-Baha and the American Baha’i Community, 1898-1921″

Browse through the history of the American Báhá’í community with this delightful collection of photo- graphs and text. Several new photos of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá are included which show his intimate relationship with the American believers. Other photos give a glimpse of early American Báhá’ís at work and at play, in Báhá’í meetings and in each others homes. These pictures– some serious, some playful–include children, youth, and adults. They demonstrate the strength, the depth, and the remarkable racial diversity of the early Báha’ís. Get this “family album” and discover the rich heritage left by our spiritual ancestors.
A beautiful, coffee-table sized book with sixty-two unique photographs. Perfect as a gift!

Who Owns the Expanding Lakeshore at the Wilmette Temple ?

Baquia — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 04:07:17 +0000

An interesting development on the Lake Michigan shoreline adjacent to the Baha’i Temple at Wilmette is presenting a challenge to the Wilmette Park District and the Baha’is of the United States.

Over the past 40 years what used to be merely a thin sandy beachfront has grown to become about two acres of land. That’s large enough to fit two football fields or more than 87,000 square feet.

The issue hinges on whether the new land was created as a result of natural processes or whether it was man-made. If it is deemed to be natural, then the Baha’is will continue to have ownership of it. If it is shown to be a result of artificial origin, then the it will default to the state of Illinois.

To view a larger aerial view of the area with the disputed lakefront area marked by a red rectangle, click the image below:

What complicates the situation further is that the Army Corps of Engineers dredged up sand from the lake and deposited on the south beach in 1976 and 1978 with the express purpose of expanding the beach area. Another similar project was done in 1980.

The size and location of the new real estate makes it very valuable. Especially as a de facto expansion of the Sheridan Shores Yacht Club. There has been no official move by the Wilmette Park District to claim ownership. That would most probably begin a lengthy legal dispute.

For more information, see this recent Chicago Tribune article.

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Baha’i Fast: Sunrise, Sunset Hours at High Altitude

Baquia — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 14:01:17 +0000

Baha’is who are at high elevations might have a tough time fasting from sunrise to sunset. Of course, this is because when you are far, far away from the equator, the usual day night cycle is skewed.

To clarify this issue, the Universal House of Justice has explained that in such cases, Baha’is are free to depend on the clock to set the time of prayer and fasting.

For more see this letter from the NSA of Canada which contains the quote from the House of Justice:

9 March 2012 / 8 Loftiness 168

Dear Baha’i Friends,

As you may be aware, in high latitudes where there is great variation in sunrise and sunset times during the course of the year, the times of prayer and fasting can be determined by the clock. The National Spiritual Assembly’s policy is that the hours for sunrise and sunset in communities north of 60 degrees latitude will, year-round, be 0630h and 1800h respectively.

The National Assembly received an inquiry from an individual believer regarding whether it is mandatory for the friends living north of 60 degrees latitude to follow the clock during the Fast or whether they may choose to follow the sun. The National Assembly sought the guidance of the Universal House of Justice and we are happy to share the following reply:

“As you are aware, Baha’u'llah states that it is permissible in high latitudes to observe the laws of prayer and fasting in accordance with the clock rather than with the rising and setting of the sun. The House of Justice has left it to National Spiritual Assemblies to make the decision as to which areas of their countries and for which months of the year the beginning and ending of the Baha’i day are to be reckoned by the clock rather than by the sun and to fix the times to be observed for fasting, bearing in mind that the daily period of fasting lasts about twelve hours. By this ruling it is possible for the believers in the high latitudes to use the same standard for both prayer and fasting as well as for fixing the ending of each day in the Baha’i calendar, in determining the time for the starting of each Holy Day, and the holding of the Nineteen Day Feasts.

“The friends will, naturally, abide by the decision of the National Assembly. However, there can be no objection if a person chooses to fast for a longer period according to the hours of actual daylight. The decision of the National Assembly determines when the friends may apply the special provision for high latitudes; it does not compel them to do so.”
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada dated 5 September 2011)

We send you the National Assembly’s best wishes during these special days of fasting.

With loving Baha’i greetings,
NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF THE BAHA’IS OF CANADA

Arabic Chant of Tablet of the Fast

Atef Sedkaoui Wows French Audience at “The Voice”

Baquia — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 14:52:17 +0000

The French TV show “The Voice” recently featured an aspiring singer who impressed the judges and the audience with his touching rendition of “Ben” by Michael Jackson:

European visitors may be able to view the video here. Others can see a shorter version here.

The singer, Atef Sedkaoui, is hardly an amateur. Born in Marseille, France to Tunisian parents he has been singing since early childhood. Here he is more than 10 years ago at the celebrations for the opening of the terraces in Haifa:

For more information check out his personal website.

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“Kind of Like a Theme Park… But a Holy One”

Baquia — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 23:58:03 +0000

The recent completion of the renovation of the Shrine of the Bab has lead to Time magazine to feature a short article on the Baha’i World Center in Haifa and its gardens:

Stepping into the gardens of the Shrine of the Bab is like entering a hallucination. They rise in steps all the way up the mountainside above Haifa’s downtown, and at the midway point, at midmorning, the clear light off the Mediterranean combines with the precise efforts of 150 gardeners to achieve a combination of lucid depth and dazzling color.

The Little Religion That Persists: The Baha’i in Israel

The Time magazine journalist talks to Rob Weinberg who is one of the BWC’s external communication people as well as to several regular people visiting the gardens.

Jonas Mejer, a student visiting from Copenhagen says:

“It’s kind of like a theme park, where they’re keeping everything ‘just so’. But it’s a holy place.”

I chuckled after reading that because it displays a child-like innocence and honesty. My own impression after visiting the gardens was that they were maintained and manicured to an inch of their lives.

From afar they were much more beautiful than from up close. It is difficult to explain or perhaps I lack the eloquence of Jonas but there was a cosmetic vibe to it that didn’t sit well with me. I suppose the House of Justice is only trying to maintain the high standards set by Shoghi Effendi when he, with his own hands, created the gardens with much effort and sacrifice.

You won’t have to look far to guess what one of my most favorite spots was in the gardens (look up!).

Here is a short video from August 2010 from CNN.com talking with Rob Weinberg:

Egyptians Celebrate World Religion Day Early

Baquia — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 07:41:48 +0000

Next Sunday, January 16th 2011, is the 3rd Sunday of January and that means that it will be celebrated worldwide as “World Religion Day” by Baha’i communities around the world.

The observance of WRD began in 1950 when a few weeks earlier in December 1949, the NSA of the Baha’is of the United States issued a simple proclamation:

The National Spritiual Assembly has instituted an annual World Religion Day to be observed publicly by the Baha’i communities whenever possible throughout the United States.

So look for events in your local community.

But the Egyptians honored the spirit of World Religion Day a bit early this year.

The Coptic Orthodox Christian church and believers in Egypt have always had a very uneasy and difficult time in Egypt. They have suffered major discrimination and even violence on a regular basis. Last week on New Year’s Eve, they suffered an especially painful attack when a suicide bomber detonated at Saints Church in Alexandria and killed 21 people.

The Muslim community of Egypt responded to a call by prominent liberal minded Egyptian muslims such as Mohamed El-Sawy to rally in support of the beleaguered minority and hold candle light vigils around Coptic churches this Friday during their mass.

In this way, the Muslims proclaimed their solidarity with their Christian brethren and faced terrorism head on, declaring that the attack was not just against the Copts but on Egypt itself. For more, see this article from ahram online.

Of course, as with all extremists, there is more than enough discrimination and violence to go around. The Baha’i community in Egypt has also been battling a very difficult problem for many years. The Baha’is are not only faced with the same discrimination but an even thornier issue.

This being that the Egyptian government would not issue proper government documents to Baha’is because it did not recognize the Baha’i Faith as a religion. This lead to a host of complications for Egyptian Baha’is. There has been some slight shifts in the policy but it is far from resolved. For more details and to keep up with back story and developments, visit the Baha’i Faith in Egypt blog.

To give you an example of the type of froward attitudes faced by Baha’is in Egypt, here is a sample of several clips from Egyptian TV with English subtitles:

The first few minutes of the video features Abd Al-Fattah Al-Sheik, the former president of Al-Azhar. Yes, that Al-Azhar…

Disney Amusement Park Coming to Haifa

Baquia — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 22:48:29 +0000

Disney World is coming to Haifa, Israel!

Well, sort of.

Walt Disney Company’s investment arm Shamrock Holdings in partnership with the local privately owned firm, New Lineo Cinemas, will build a massive 30,000-square meter Disney amusement park as well as a 25 screen theatre complex and shopping plazas. The project is still in development stages but it is estimated to cost $170 million (600 million shekels) and to be completed by 2013.

The Disney amusement park will be located at a 20 acre empty plot of land adjoining other existing cinemas, but rather far from the Baha’i gardens and shrines (denoted by ‘A’ on the map):

Click to see larger image

The transition of Haifa from an industrial port city with heavy industries, factories and corrosively bad air quality is gaining pace with this project. Haifa is already famous within Israel for its diverse community of people who live in peaceful coexistence. Hopefully, the transformation will continue and the city will come to reflect economic diversity as well with less pollution causing service businesses like this.

One news report had this amusing quote:

If things go as planned, Haifa’s landmark sites such as the Bahai Temple or the Carmelite cable car could soon be replaced by Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and friends.

Perhaps this might be a good time to remind my dear fellow Baha’is that the point of pilgrimage is not and never has been to Haifa or the surrounding areas. So where is it then?

That, I’m happy to tell you, is “a little known fact”.