Part 121 (1/2)

?ASAN M. BALYUZI, Hand of the Cause of G.o.d

He was first elected to the National Spiritual a.s.sembly of the Baha'is of the British Isles in 1933 and served continuously until 1960, when he retired in order to devote his whole time to the work of the Hands of the Cause. He served at the World Centre, and travelled to South America and throughout Canada in 1961. Mr. Balyuzi was Secretary of the first Summer School Committee in 1936, on the National Teaching Committee in 1940 and Chairman of the National a.s.sembly almost every year from 1942 until his retirement. He was elevated to the rank of Hand of the Cause in 1957, and has made invaluable contributions to the literature of the Faith with his trilogy, ”Baha'u'llah”, ”'Abdu'l-Baha” and ”The Bab”; his ”Edward Granville Browne and the Baha'i Faith”, his pamphlet on ”Baha'i Administration”, and ”Mu?ammad and the Course of Islam”. (See page 490)

FRANK HURST

An early worker in the Trade Union Movement in Britain, Frank was an outspoken sympathiser of the Faith for over twenty years before actually accepting it in Bradford in 1939. He died in Leeds in 1949.

MRS. MARY BASIL-HALL (PARVINE)

Daughter of Lady Blomfield, she was active in the Faith from her youth, particularly during the visit to Britain of the Master Whom she served with such devotion, and Who bestowed upon her the name ”Parvine” on His first visit in 1911. She served for five years on the National Spiritual a.s.sembly and for a short time on the National Teaching Committee of the Six Year Plan. At her pa.s.sing the National a.s.sembly cabled the Guardian, ”PARVINE GLORIED IN SUCCESS PLAN Pa.s.sED TO ABHa KINGDOM MORNING 28TH”

(April 1950).

ALBERT AND JEFF JOSEPH

a.s.sociated with the Faith from the very beginnings of the Administration in the British Isles, the Joseph brothers gave long and outstanding service to the Cause. Jacob (later ”Jeff”) was Chairman and Albert (then Ibrahim) a member of the first ”Spiritual Council” of the Baha'is of Manchester. Jacob was a member of the first ”All-England Baha'i Council”

in 1922 and of the first National Spiritual a.s.sembly in 1923. Both were mentioned in and received some Tablets from the Master and both were warmly regarded by the Guardian for their services to the Faith. Jeff died in August 1969 in Manchester and Albert in August 1978.

RICHARD ST. BARBE BAKER, O.B.E., LL.D., FOR.D.I.P. (CAMBRIDGE)

On his return from Kenya in 1924 where he had served as a.s.sistant Conservator of Forests since 1920, R. St. Barbe Baker was asked to speak on the faiths of the Kikuyu under the t.i.tle: ”Some African Beliefs” at the 'Conference of Living Religions within the Empire', and was approached afterwards by Claudia Stewart-Coles who exclaimed ”You are a Baha'i”. He subsequently accepted the Faith and has introduced it to many thousands of people in all walks of life in many lands, for more than half a century.

The Guardian became the first Life Member of the Men of the Trees in Palestine in 1929. Later, for twelve consecutive years, he sent an official message to St. Barbe's World Forestry Charter Gatherings attended by Amba.s.sadors from up to sixty-two countries each year. St. Barbe took an active part on the Committee celebrating the Centenary of the Declaration of the Bab in 1944. After his first Sahara University Expedition carrying out an ecological survey of 9,000 miles in 1953, and in response to the Guardian's desire, St. Barbe attended the First African Conference in Kampala. In 1975 St. Barbe was called upon to advise on tree planting of the site of the ?ihran House of Wors.h.i.+p in consultation with Quinlan Terry, architect. Afterwards, in collaboration with architect Hossein Amanat, he recorded his observations for the Universal House of Justice for the landscaping of their site on Mt. Carmel and for tree-scaping at Bahji. St. Barbe attended the Intercontinental Conference Nairobi, in October 1976 and still (1979) at almost 90 is introducing or teaching the Faith in many lands and would be content to ”lay down his bones in service to the Faith” in his beloved Africa.

MISS JESSICA YOUNG

Historically was the first British pioneer to arise when she went for a short time to Bristol.