At this time there was a large concentration of believers in South Kivu, there were Bahá'ís in Western Kasai, in Kinshasa and in Lubumbashi. The election took place in the home of Belgian pioneers Jean-Pierre and Anne-Marie Laperches. Hand of the Cause Mr Faizi was in attendance to represent the Universal House of Justice. [A Remarkable Response Film 26:55

• For picture see BW15:144.

     Countries opened to the Faith:
          Independent countries                134
          Significant territories and islands  179
                                  Total        373

     Number of localities where Bahá'ís reside   43,341

     Number of local spiritual assemblies        10,318

Haik had learned of the Faith from his father who had embraced the Faith in his birthplace, Gaziantep Aintab, Turkey. In 1937 the family emigrated from Aleppo, Syria to Argentina and they stopped on the way to visit the Holy Land where they spoke with the Guardian about pioneering. They arrived in Buenos Aires on the 29th of March after a another stop in Bahia to visit Leonora Holsapple.

On February 29th, 1940 May Maxwell, accompanied by her niece Jeanne Bolles arrived in Buenos Aires and it was from Haik that she received the a telephone call to welcome her. The following morning when the Kevorkian family called at the City Hotel they learned that May Maxwell had passed during the night. Haik and Wilfrid Barton searched for a befitting spot for her interment and Haik spent the rest of his life honouring and caring for her resting place.

Haik taught the Faith in the interior of Argentina and make international trips to Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Chile Brazil and Ecuador. He assisted in the formation of the first spiritual assembly in Guayaquil and won the honour of being named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh when he settled in the Galapolos Islands in May 1954. A record of his service there can be found in Heroes of God: History of the Bahá'í Faith in Ecuador, 1940-1979 by Helen Bassett Hornby.

Upon his return from the Galapolos to Buenos Aires he married Aurora de Eyto and they had one surviving son, Daniel Claudio (b.1960). [BW15p483-485]

• See National Bahá'í Review Issue 10 October 1968 p3

It was first published in 1924 in Farsi when the Persian transcripts that had been corrected by 'Abdu'l‑Bahá were compiled into a single volume.

Bahai.ca: Bahá'í Shrine in Montréal

See as well the referenced document Reviewing: Practice and Functions of Literature Review by Shoghi Effendi and Universal House of Justice compiled by Research Department of the Universal House of Justice.

Local Assemblies: 10,461

National Assemblies: 113 [from a pamphlet published by the NSA of Canada "Baha'i A New Man A New World Order"]

The itinerary was as follows:

The itinerary was as follows:

The Stockholm Declaration provided the first global set of principles for future international cooperation on environmental issues.

They became embroiled in controversy in 1974 due to the title track of their Unborn Child album, an anti-abortion song written from the fetus' point of view. The album was a critical failure, while the single flopped and outraged abortion advocates, who held demonstrations at many of the duo's shows. [Article in the TexasMonthly, February, 2020 entitled The Secret Oil Patch Roots of 'Summer Breeze'; Biography by Steve Huey]

The Continental Board of Counsellors sponsored the first West African Bahá'í Youth Conference in conjunction with the National Spiritual Assembly of Upper West Africa. The Conference was held in The Gambia on the campus of Yundum College some fifteen miles from the capital city of Bathurst. Youth representing nine countries in this zone attended: Nigeria, Upper Volta, Ghana, Liberia, Mali, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, Senegal and Mauritania, plus pioneers originating from the United States, Mauritius, Malaysia, Iran, and friiq. A young Bahá'í from Sweden was able to greet the friends during a brief stop on a boat cruise. Counsellors Mr. H. R. Ardikani and Dr. William Maxwell Jr., were present as well as six of their Auxiliary Board members, Mr. Amos Agwu, Mr. Muhammad Al-Salihi, Mrs. H. Vera Edwards, Mr. Friday Ekpe, Mr. Shidan Kouchekzadeh and Dr. B. Sadiqzadeh. A total of fifty-six persons attended. [Bahá'í News 504]

Local Assemblies: 13,737

National Assemblies: 113

Tribes and minorities represented: 1,191

Literature translated into 567 languages

Schools and Institutes: 153

Independent countries and important territories opened to the Bahá'í Faith: 317 [from a pamphlet published by the NSA of Canada "Baha'i A New Man A New World Order"]

In response the National Spiritual Assembly of Canada established the Canadian Association for Studies on the Bahá'í Faith. From 1974 to 1979 four annual meetings were held. The Association grew in membership, published a series of high quality monographs, initiated work on a textbook on the Faith of university calibre and stimulated formal presentation at universities and colleges throughout Canada. [Analysis of the Five Year International Teaching Plan 1974-1979 p76; BW18p194]

The conference was seen as an historic one in that it was the first to which participants had come to order to discuss the whole area of the European Arctic and sub-Arctic stretching from Finland in the west in Greenland in the east, from Svalbard in the extreme north to the Scottish islands in the south.

Iceland is the only country in Europe that has planned and systematically carried out, year by year, a program of proclamation (now in its fourth year) that has taken the Faith throughout the entire country, north, south, east and west. (Betty Reed, Continental Board of Counsellors for Europe) [BN No 525 8 December 1974 p10-11]

See the statement released by the Bahá'í Community in New York on the 25th of February 1975.

   Now, on the occasion of the commencement of the construction of the seat of the Universal House of Justice, they recounted the progress of the Faith in the eighteen years since the completion of the first building on the Arc, the International Archives Building in June of 1957. In the time between 1957 to 1975.......
  - National Spiritual Assemblies have increased from 26 to 119
  - Local Spiritual Assemblies have increased from 1,000 to 17,000
  - Localities have increased from 4,500 to over 70,000 [Message from the Universal House of Justice dated 5 June 1975]

Presentations were made to the president of the Republic of Iceland, the Bishop of Iceland and the Rev. Arelius Nielsson, who was described as " the best beloved priest in this country and surely the most renown. [BN No 537 December 1975 p15]

Her publications were:

It is also published under the title "Fountain of Wisdom: A Collection of Writings from Baháʼu'lláh".

Sixteen Tablets revealed by Bahá'u'lláh during the later years of His life, including the Tablet of Carmel, the Book of the Covenant, and the Tablet of Wisdom, as well as excerpts from other Writings. Six of the tablets in this volume were translated into English and published in 1917. The translations were improved upon by Shoghi Effendi, and those not translated by him were filled in with the publication in 1978 under the supervision of the Universal House of Justice. [wikipedia]

Publications:

• Do'a: On Wings of Prayer: First published in 1933, then in 1938 and 1953 as Do'a: The Call to Prayer. It was reprinted in 1974 and later in 1984. The book has been described as "A broad Bahá'í approach to prayer and mediation of 'the practice of the presence of the Spirit of God', using quotations from the Bahá'í Faith and other religions." [BELp105] Her formula, which has become known as the "Five Steps of Prayer", and was printed in Principles of Bahá'í Administration published by the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles in 1953 and was cited by the Universal House of Justice in its message of the 11 October 1978.
• New Keys to the Book of Revelation: Published in New Delhi in 1977 and reprinted in 1989. [Collins p105] It contains a chronology of the events in the Holy Land.
• A Pilgrimage to the Holy Land: Published in Honolulu 1980. This was also entitled Visting the Bahá'i World Centre. It consisted of notes from her pilgrimage May 17 - September 17, 1954. [Collins p105]
• The Cause of the Rise and Fall of Civilizations: This was a chart that she produced after her pilgrimage. It is her own interpretation of history.
• Her essay, The Dynamics of Prayer was published in SoW Vol 21 Issue 2 p47 in May 1930. A 'cleaner' PDF is available here.

Persecution included but was not limited to:

Arrests and imprisonment: Bahá'ís were often arrested on false charges, including espionage or propaganda against the state, and were subjected torture and to long prison sentences.

Discrimination in education and employment: Bahá'ís were barred from higher education and many forms of employment within the public sector initially and then it expanded to all sectors of the economy. Their business licences were often revoked or they were prevented from starting businesses.

Property confiscation: Bahá'í properties, including holy sites, cemeteries, and religious centres, were desecrated, vandalized, confiscated or destroyed by the government.

Denial of citizenship rights: Bahá'ís faced difficulty in obtaining identification documents, which denied them citizenship rights and access to essential services.

Hate propaganda and vilification: Bahá'ís were subjected to hate propaganda through state-controlled media and religious leaders, portraying them as morally corrupt, enemies of Islam and the state. [Iran Press Watch]

Physical violence and harassment: Bahá'ís were targeted for physical violence, harassment, and intimidation by both government authorities and extremist groups.

Efforts by the international community, international human rights organizations, and individuals raised awareness of the persecution faced by Bahá'ís in Iran, urging the Iranian government to respect their human rights and provide them with the freedom to practice their religion without fear of persecution. In the early years of the Revolution about 200 Bahá'ís were executed but in the face of international pressure the regime resorted to more subtile and systematic means of oppression. On the whole the regime was defiant in the face of pressure from other countries, the United Nations and other Human Rights groups. [Iran Press Watch]

.....it has already established the policy that doctoral theses do not have to be reviewed unless there is a proposal to publish them in larger quantities than is required by the examining body.

Also included were comments / a small compilation from the Research Department at the World Centre on the seminar and on Bahá'í scholarship. They concluded by discussing the two particular dangers to which Bahá'í scholars are exposed.

  The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on the day the police in Sharpeville, South Africa, opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration against apartheid "pass laws" in 1960. [United Nations website.

For a picture of this first Local Spiritual Assembly see the for the National Community.

The world population of Bahá'ís was estimated to be 3,217,000. [BW19p67]

A change of name which was recommended by the Canadian National Assembly and approved by the Universal House of Justice in April 1981 reflecting the emerging nature of the Association's membership and activities with national affiliates established in a number of countries. lts executive committee included, for the first time, members from the United States as well as Canada. Serving on the Executive Committee were Hossain Danesh, Glen Eyford, Richard Gagnon, Jane Goldstone, William Hatcher, Douglas Martin, Peter Morgan, Nasser Sabet and Christine Zerbinis, of Canada. Firuz Kazemzadeh and Dorothy Nelson served as liaison officers in the United States. [BW18p194]

See Wikipedia for a current list of association for Bahá'í Studies worldwide.

In 1979 the Universal House of Justice gave a further goal to the Canadian community for the Seven Year Plan: 'Expand the opportunities for teaching in Canadian institutions of higher learning and further develop the Canadian Association for Studies on the Bahá'í Faith.'

And in 1981, when the second phase of the Seven Year Plan was launched, the Universal House of Justice restated this goal and divided it into two parts: 'Foster the development of the Canadian Association for Studies on the Bahá'í Faith' and "Expand and intensify the teaching of the Faith in Canadian institutions of higher learning.'

The goal of cultivating opportunities for formal presentations and courses remained a primary objective of the Association, but the Universal House of Justice also encouraged specific attention to the development of the Association itself. The Association had become a significant feature of the intellectual, social and spiritual life of the Canadian community, and for increasing numbers of Bahá'ís worldwide.

In March of 1981 the Association for Bahá'í Studies announced the acquisition of a property in the heart of the University of Ottawa campus, the first such centre in the world. It is located at 34 Copernicus Street Ottawa, Ontario KIN 7K4. [BW18p195]

The Bahá'í Children's Savings Company, known in Iran as Shirkat-i Nawnahalan, began as a savings bank for Bahá'í children in 1917. As successive generations of Bahá'í children grew up, they kept their savings–primarily intended for their future educations–with the company, and local and national Bahá'í institutions also placed their deposit funds there. The Iranian government raided and took over the offices of this company in early June of 1979, freezing and then confiscating all of its assets, estimated at $5 million—literally stealing money from children. [Bahá'í Teachings 4 Oct 2012]

Subsequently, on 11 September 1980, the Universal House of Justice sent a message to all National Assemblies informing them of an article published in the 29 August edition of Le Monde, by a non-Bahá'í contributor, Eric Rouleau condemning Iran for the complete disappearance of these nine Bahá'ís.

The Bahá'í Hospital, the Misaghieh Hospital, in Tehran was confiscated. See the documentation (page 7) for the list of charges against it.