Bahá'í Faith in Egypt
Encyclopedia
The Bahá'í Faith in Egypt has a history over a century old. Perhaps the first Bahá'ís arrive in 1863. Bahá'u'lláh
, founder of the religion, was himself briefly in Egypt in 1868 when on his way to imprisonment in `Akká. The first Egyptians were converts by 1896. Despite forming an early Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly and forming a National Assembly, in 1960 following a regime change the Bahá'ís lost all rights as an organised religious community by Law 263 at the decree of then-President Gamal Abdel Nasser
. However, in 1963, there were still seven organized communities in Egypt. More recently the roughly 2000 Bahá'ís of Egypt have been embroiled in the Egyptian identification card controversy
from 2006 through 2009. There have been homes burned down and families driven out of towns.
circa 1860-70 who was arrested and banished to Sudan for 12 years soon after his entrance into Egypt. Other early Bahá'ís in Egypt were Haji Báqir-i-Káshání and Siyyid Husayin-i-Káshání who took up residence in Egypt during the period Bahá'u'lláh was in Adrianople. Another early Bahá'í was Hag Hassan Khurásáni who held weekly meetings in his home. Bahá'u'lláh and his family left Adrianople on August 12, 1868 and after a journey by land and sea through Gallipoli
and Egypt
arrived in `Akká on August 31, and confined in the barracks in the citadel in the city. From then on many well known Bahá'ís spent time in Egypt or joined the religion there. Nabíl-i-A`zam
made several journeys on behalf of Bahá'u'lláh and was imprisoned in Egypt in 1868. Robert Felkin
was in Egypt circa 1880s and published a number of books -later he coverted to the religion. In 1892 two converts in Egypt embarked to the West intending to spread the religion and were the first Bahá'ís to enter the United States where the first converts followed in 1894.
Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl-i-Gulpáygání, often called Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl
, was the first prominent Bahá'í to pioneer
to Egypt and made some of the first big changes to the community. Abdu'l-Fadl first came to Cairo
in 1894 where he settled for several years. He worked at Al-Azhar University
and was successful in converting more than fourteen and up to thirty of the teachers and students including the first native Egyptians to convert to the religion. Abu'l-Fadl also became friends with writers and magazine publishers, and many articles that he authored appeared in the Egyptian press. In 1896, when Nasiru'd-Din Shah was assassinated in Iran, Za`imu'd-Dawlih used the rumour that the assassination had been performed by Bahá'ís to cause a massacre of the Bahá'ís in Egypt. Abu'l-Fadl stood up in defence for the Bahá'ís and stated that he himself was a Bahá'í and his allegiance became public. Two publications came out during this time from Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl:
Following their publication al-Azhar University decreed that he was an infidel
. From 1901 to 1904 at the request of `Abdu'l-Bahá he traveled and gave talks among the new Bahá'í community in the United States. Meanwhile the Egytian community continued to publish materials and from 1900 to 1910 several articles and books including official Bahá'í literature
were published in Cairo. Abu'l-Fadl died in 1914 is buried in the cemetery called Al-Rawda Al-Abadeyya, the Eternal Garden.
managed to meet `Abdu'l-Bahá
, then head of the religion, after an accidental meeting with Lua Getsinger in 1908 in Egypt. `Abdu'l-Bahá traveled to Egypt in September 1910 after being released following events of the Young Turk Revolution
. This was the initial event of a series of journeys he took. Sometime from late September to mid-August 1910 until the winter of 1913, `Abdu'l-Bahá would travel from Egypt to various countries and back in two successive trips - first to Europe, second to America (United States and Canada) and back to Europe on the return trip. Before, between, and on return he would stop in Egypt. See `Abdu'l-Bahá's journeys to the West
. Wellesley Tudor Pole
became a Bahá'í after traveling to Egypt to interview him in November 1910. In the same year, `Abdu'l-Bahá referred to an early Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Cairo. Playwright Isabella Grinevskaya
traveled to meet `Abdu'l-Bahá in Egypt and became a member of the religion. Louis Gregory visited `Abdu'l-Bahá at Ramleh in 1911. `Abdu'l-Bahá was about to make long travels to the West. Just before `Abdu'l-Bahá's first trip, a message from Lady Blomfield
extended an invitation for `Abdu'l-Bahá when he was in London. `Abdu'l-Bahá then set sail August 11, 1911, reached as far as London, and returned in early December to rest for the winter. His next trip was more extensive and reached to California. He left March 25, 1912 and returned June 17, 1913 and on return stayed in Egypt almost six months before returning to Haifa/Akka. Upon his return he gave a number of talks. These were eventually published as `Abdu'l-Bahá in Egypt. After `Abdu'l-Bahá returned to Haifa, Martha Root
stayed there for six months in 1915. One of the earliest Bahá'ís of the west and a Disciple of `Abdu'l-Bahá
, Lua M. Getsinger, died in 1916 and she was buried in Egypt. And following `Abdu'l-Bahá laying the cornerstone for the first Bahá'í House of Worship
of the West, the Bahá'ís from Cairo, Port Said and Alexandria contributed to the Fund for its construction in Wilmette, Illinois. During World War I
Bahá'ís in Port Said were pillaged twice. Meanwhile Tudor Pole was stationed in Egypt and was directly involved in addressing the concerns raised by Ottoman threats against `Abdu'l-Bahá. As the battle lines advanced from Egypt through Palestine, the Ottomans had threatened that `Abdu'l-Bahá would be killed if the Ottomans had been forced to leave the region. This threat was taken seriously by the British Military who then sought to make his protection part of the plans for the Palestine theatre. General Allenby altered his plans for the prosecution of the war and succeeded in protecting `Abdu'l-Bahá.
and stopped in Egypt to change boats for Haifa.
, another western Bahá'í, was able to stop at Egypt for a time but failed to make landfall in Haifa. In early 1934 Sabri Elias pioneered to what was then called Abyssinia, (see Bahá'í Faith in Ethiopia
) where he was soon joined by further Egyptians by mid 1934 - enough to elect the first Assembly in Addis Ababa
. In 1935 the national assembly saw to the translation of the Kitáb-i-Íqán
into Arabic and it's publication. The Bahá'ís returned from Ethiopia when war was breaking out. Meanwhile the publishing committee of Alexandria published the Tablet to The Hague
in one of the local papers on the occasion of the question of peace. By early 1937 Mostafa Kamel of Egypt was able to act as a youth international correspondent for a youth newsletter.
became the first Islamic state to legally recognize the Bahá'í Faith as an independent religion apart from Islam and creating two cemeteries for the Bahá'ís - one in Cairo and the other in Ismaïlia. As a result of the decision when certain Muslims attacked Bahá'ís in Kom El-Sayeda the perpetrators were excommunicated from Islam for the attack. In 1936 following interest from citizens of Belqas
as well as visitors from Tanta
it became known that Saad Effendi Salim Nosseir was a Bahá'í and opposition was stirred up such that the interested citizens and Nosseir were unable to leave their homes. Nossier, being a public servant, appealed for a change in residence and serve in another district and was at first refused despite his good reputation. However in time he was transferred. And in late 1938 there were extraordinary events concerning the burial of Mohammed Effendi Soliman of Ismaïlia
who had died December 9, 1938. Having informed family and friends of his wish for a Bahá'í funeral, and drawing up a Will requiring his heirs to submit to the Local Assembly of Ismaïlia, the assembly informed the police of the papers and arrangements. A non-Bahá'í brother agitated against this funeral and became so threatening that he was detained by the police. However when it came time to take the casket to the cemetery a large angry crowd made travel impossible despite police protection. That night the casket was transferred to police headquarters though fighting injured eight policemen. On the next day after midnight a truck took the casket out of town to be buried in the desert sands. The home of the deceased was attacked by a mob, and demonstnitions were continued in the streets throughout the night. In 1939, after the national assembly elections, petition was made to have Bahá'í marriage ceremonies legal in Egypt - as part of the justification a copy of a marriage contract issued by the Spiritual Assembly of Haifa and legalized by both Palestine authorities and the Egyptian Consulate in Jerusalem was enclosed. However by 1944 a Bahá'í marriage was compulsorily annulled because the wife had originally been Moslem, in spite of her statement in court that she now considered herself a Bahá'í. Sabri Elias married and went on Bahá'í pilgrimage
and then returned to Ethiopia and then some years later went on to Djibouti. Shoghi Effendi
came through Egypt during a personal trip with his wife Rúhíyyih Khanum
through Africa in 1940.
. After many efforts by the National Assembly, the confiscated copies were released on condition that this book should not be distributed in Egypt or sent out of the country. The Censorship Bureau of the Egyptian Ministry of the Interior requested the Assembly to renew their guarantee every fifteen days that the said book will not be put in circulation. Also in 1942 Hand of the Cause Abdu'l-Jalil Bey Sa'd, a notable student of Abu'l-Fadl, died and was buried with memorial services called for in the east and west.
to commemorate the centenary of the founding of the Bahá'í Faith. Inside Egypt some 500 Bahá'ís were able to gather to mark the event at the national center. During the three days of events in Cairo, talks were presented on "The Position of Women in the Bahá'í Cause", "The life of Qurratu'l-`Ayn" (see Táhirih
), "The Accord between Religion and Science", "Why Bahá'ís feel tranquility", and various quotes from Bahá'í literature
s. By the end of 1944 there were four assemblies (Cairo, Alexandria, Port-Said, Isma'iliyyih) and an additional 16 smaller communities in Egypt, and the Bahá'í community in Egypt began to include Kurdish, Coptic, and Armenian peoples.
, Tanta
and Sohag. During this period of growth pioneers
went beyond the Middle East to Scotland. A public lending library was established in Cairo to satisfy inquires being made but anti-Bahá'í pamphlets were published and posted in Tanta instigating violence and individuals in other cities were actually attacked. Opposition began to reach out from Egypt in the form of article in an Egyptian Daily newspaper circulated in the United States published a story subtitled "Necessity of a Moslem Cultural Center in America to Inform the Americans of the True Moslem Cult." And attacks in Tanta escalated to the point that a government official publicly addressed the summoned ringleaders saying "Your evil deeds have shown you to be far removed from the teachings of Islám for Islám is a religion of peace" and made them sign a statement of good behavior. In May 1948 Shoghi Effendi announced goals for the Egyptian Bahá'í community evolving increasing the number of assemblies, smaller groups of Bahá'ís, and purchases of lands. A number of events and incidents brought the religion to the awareness of diverse audiences. There were formal representations from the Egyptian Bahá'í community to the government, invitations to Egyptian leaders and random incidents and in the public media. There were specific developments in the community in 1951. An assembly was established in El-Mahalla El-Kubra
, and it was announced that the Egyptian Government had given recognition to Bahá'í marriages. At this time women were allowed to be and were elected according to the rules of Bahá'í administration to local assemblies in Cairo, Alexandria, and Port Said, (indeed some were elected officers in 1952.) Also publishing Bahá'í material resumed which had been curtailed for a time. And a wave of pioneers left Egypt in 1951 for North and Central Africa (see Bahá'í Faith in Uganda
for a start.)
and Shibin El Kom in 1956 in El Mansoura In 1959 the Bahá'ís held their first winter school. At this time the Bahá'ís may have reached 3000 in Egypt. Sabri Elias with his family returned from pioneering to Ethiopia and beyond back to Egypt in 1959.
. All Bahá'í community properties, including Bahá'í centers, libraries, and cemeteries, were confiscated by the government except the cemetery Al-Rawda Al-Abadeyya. In obedience to the government is a core principal of the religion. In 1963, Bahá'í communities were still counted in Abu Qir
, Mansoura, Alexandria
, Port Said
, Cairo
, Zeitoun
, and Ismaïlia
. But there were also episodic waves of arrests of Bahá'ís in the mid-1960s, 1972 and 1985. In early 1987 48 Bahá'ís had sentences pronounced against them for activities as Bahá'ís. However two were found not guilty after they recanted their faith. Charges against the Bahá'ís included gathering in small groups, praying together in private homes, and being in possession of Bahá'í holy writings and prayer books. 32 of the Bahá'ís were acquitted in one bunch and 13 in another by mid 1988.
dated 20 October 1983 was released. Bahá'ís were urged to seek out ways, compatible with the Bahá'í teachings
, in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived. Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Bahá'í socio-economic development projects. By 1987, the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482. However the current Egyptian Bahá'í community has had fatwa
s issued against it by Al-Azhar's Islamic Research Center, which charges Bahá'ís with apostasy in Islam
. There are still allegations of Bahá'í involvement with other powers
and accusations of "using religion to promote deviant ideas to spark sedition or disdain the heavenly religions or their followers or to harm national unity." There have been homes burned down and families driven out of their communities.
was born in Alexandria
in 1912 and was one of the most famous Egyptian portrait painters. A member of the Bahá'í Faith
he was arrested in the 1980s by the state security investigation bureau in a clamp-down on Bahá'ís in Egypt. Nevertheless Bikar received the State Merit Award in 1978, the Merit Medal in 1980 and, in 2000, shortly before his death, the Mubarak Award. The Universal House of Justice
, the highest governing body of the Bahá'í Faith, paid tribute to his contributions to Egyptian society after his death in 2002.
in official identification cards.
The ruling left Bahá'ís unable to obtain the necessary government documents to have rights in their country unless they lied about their religion, which conflicts with Bahá'í religious principle. However a 2008 ruling accepted the compromise solution offered by the Bahá'ís, allowing for them to obtain identification papers without the Bahá'í Faith being officially recognized, however through February 2009 there have been appeals and procedural choices made trying not to give such cards. There was coverage of the issue internationally - Poland for example. Finally the first identification cards were issued to two Bahá'ís under the new policy on August 8, 2009.
(relying on World Christian Encyclopedia
) estimated some 6,000 Bahá'ís in 2005.
Bahá'u'lláh
Bahá'u'lláh , born ' , was the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. He claimed to be the prophetic fulfilment of Bábism, a 19th-century outgrowth of Shí‘ism, but in a broader sense claimed to be a messenger from God referring to the fulfilment of the eschatological expectations of Islam, Christianity, and...
, founder of the religion, was himself briefly in Egypt in 1868 when on his way to imprisonment in `Akká. The first Egyptians were converts by 1896. Despite forming an early Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly and forming a National Assembly, in 1960 following a regime change the Bahá'ís lost all rights as an organised religious community by Law 263 at the decree of then-President Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
. However, in 1963, there were still seven organized communities in Egypt. More recently the roughly 2000 Bahá'ís of Egypt have been embroiled in the Egyptian identification card controversy
Egyptian identification card controversy
The Egyptian identification card controversy is a series of events, beginning in the 1990s, that created a de facto state of disenfranchisement for Egyptian Bahá'ís, atheists, agnostics, and other Egyptians who did not identify themselves as Muslim, Christian, or Jewish on government identity...
from 2006 through 2009. There have been homes burned down and families driven out of towns.
Early history
The first known Bahá'í to come to Egypt was Mirza Heyder Ali during the reign of Isma'il PashaIsma'il Pasha
Isma'il Pasha , known as Ismail the Magnificent , was the Khedive of Egypt and Sudan from 1863 to 1879, when he was removed at the behest of the United Kingdom...
circa 1860-70 who was arrested and banished to Sudan for 12 years soon after his entrance into Egypt. Other early Bahá'ís in Egypt were Haji Báqir-i-Káshání and Siyyid Husayin-i-Káshání who took up residence in Egypt during the period Bahá'u'lláh was in Adrianople. Another early Bahá'í was Hag Hassan Khurásáni who held weekly meetings in his home. Bahá'u'lláh and his family left Adrianople on August 12, 1868 and after a journey by land and sea through Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
arrived in `Akká on August 31, and confined in the barracks in the citadel in the city. From then on many well known Bahá'ís spent time in Egypt or joined the religion there. Nabíl-i-A`zam
Nabíl-i-A`zam
Mullá Muḥammad-i-Zarandí , more commonly known as Nabíl-i-A`ẓam or Nabíl-i-Zarandí , was an eminent Bahá'í historian during the time of Bahá'u'lláh, and one of the nineteen Apostles of Bahá'u'lláh...
made several journeys on behalf of Bahá'u'lláh and was imprisoned in Egypt in 1868. Robert Felkin
Robert Felkin
Robert William Felkin was a medical missionary and explorer, a ceremonial magician and member of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, a prolific author on Uganda and Central Africa, and early anthropologist, with an interest in ethno-medicine and tropical diseases.He was founder in 1903 of the...
was in Egypt circa 1880s and published a number of books -later he coverted to the religion. In 1892 two converts in Egypt embarked to the West intending to spread the religion and were the first Bahá'ís to enter the United States where the first converts followed in 1894.
Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl-i-Gulpáygání
Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl
' , or ' was the foremost Bahá'í scholar who helped spread the Bahá'í Faith in Egypt, Turkmenistan, and the United States. He is one of the few Apostles of Bahá'u'lláh who never actually met Bahá'u'lláh...
, was the first prominent Bahá'í to pioneer
Pioneering (Bahá'í)
A pioneer is a volunteer Bahá'í who leaves his or her home to journey to another place for the purpose of teaching the Bahá'í Faith. The act of so moving is termed pioneering. Bahá'ís refrain from using the term "missionary"...
to Egypt and made some of the first big changes to the community. Abdu'l-Fadl first came to Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
in 1894 where he settled for several years. He worked at Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University is an educational institute in Cairo, Egypt. Founded in 970~972 as a madrasa, it is the chief centre of Arabic literature and Islamic learning in the world. It is the oldest degree-granting university in Egypt. In 1961 non-religious subjects were added to its curriculum.It is...
and was successful in converting more than fourteen and up to thirty of the teachers and students including the first native Egyptians to convert to the religion. Abu'l-Fadl also became friends with writers and magazine publishers, and many articles that he authored appeared in the Egyptian press. In 1896, when Nasiru'd-Din Shah was assassinated in Iran, Za`imu'd-Dawlih used the rumour that the assassination had been performed by Bahá'ís to cause a massacre of the Bahá'ís in Egypt. Abu'l-Fadl stood up in defence for the Bahá'ís and stated that he himself was a Bahá'í and his allegiance became public. Two publications came out during this time from Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl:
- Fara'id (The Peerless Gems): A book written in 1898 in reply to an attack on the Kitáb-i-ÍqánKitáb-i-ÍqánThe Kitáb-i-Íqán is one of many books held sacred by followers of the Bahá'í Faith; it is their primary theological work. One Bahá'í scholar states that it can be regarded as the "most influential Koran commentary in Persian outside the Muslim world," because of its international audience. It is...
and published in Cairo. Generally considered Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl's greatest work.
- Al-Duraru'l-Bahiyyih (The Shining Pearls): Published in 1900, it is a collection of essays on the history of the Bahá'í Faith. Since it was wrriten in ArabicArabic languageArabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, it was responsible for making the Bahá'ís known in Egypt.
Following their publication al-Azhar University decreed that he was an infidel
Infidel
An infidel is one who has no religious beliefs, or who doubts or rejects the central tenets of a particular religion – especially in reference to Christianity or Islam....
. From 1901 to 1904 at the request of `Abdu'l-Bahá he traveled and gave talks among the new Bahá'í community in the United States. Meanwhile the Egytian community continued to publish materials and from 1900 to 1910 several articles and books including official Bahá'í literature
Bahá'í literature
Bahá'í literature, like much religious text, covers a variety of topics and forms, including scripture and inspiration, interpretation, history and biography, introduction and study materials, and apologia...
were published in Cairo. Abu'l-Fadl died in 1914 is buried in the cemetery called Al-Rawda Al-Abadeyya, the Eternal Garden.
`Abdu'l-Bahá
Stanwood CobbStanwood Cobb
Stanwood Cobb was an American educator, author and prominent Bahá'í of the 20th century.He was born in Newton, Massachusetts to Darius Cobb - a Civil War soldier, artist and descendent of Elder Henry Cobb of the second voyage of the Mayflower - and Eunice Hale - founding president of the Ladies...
managed to meet `Abdu'l-Bahá
`Abdu'l-Bahá
‘Abdu’l-Bahá , born ‘Abbás Effendí, was the eldest son of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. In 1892, `Abdu'l-Bahá was appointed in his father's will to be his successor and head of the Bahá'í Faith. `Abdu'l-Bahá was born in Tehran to an aristocratic family of the realm...
, then head of the religion, after an accidental meeting with Lua Getsinger in 1908 in Egypt. `Abdu'l-Bahá traveled to Egypt in September 1910 after being released following events of the Young Turk Revolution
Young Turk Revolution
The Young Turk Revolution of 1908 reversed the suspension of the Ottoman parliament by Sultan Abdul Hamid II, marking the onset of the Second Constitutional Era...
. This was the initial event of a series of journeys he took. Sometime from late September to mid-August 1910 until the winter of 1913, `Abdu'l-Bahá would travel from Egypt to various countries and back in two successive trips - first to Europe, second to America (United States and Canada) and back to Europe on the return trip. Before, between, and on return he would stop in Egypt. See `Abdu'l-Bahá's journeys to the West
`Abdu'l-Bahá's journeys to the West
`Abdu'l-Bahá's journeys to the West were a series of trips `Abdu'l-Bahá undertook starting at the age of 67 from Palestine to the West from 1910 to 1913. `Abdu'l-Bahá was imprisoned at the age of 8 and suffered various degrees of privation most of his life...
. Wellesley Tudor Pole
Wellesley Tudor Pole
Major Wellesley Tudor Pole O.B.E. was a spiritualist and early British Bahá'í.He authored many pamphlets and books and was a lifelong pursuer of religious and mystical questions and visions, being particularly involved with spiritualism and the Bahá'í Faith as well as the quest for the Holy Grail...
became a Bahá'í after traveling to Egypt to interview him in November 1910. In the same year, `Abdu'l-Bahá referred to an early Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Cairo. Playwright Isabella Grinevskaya
Isabella Grinevskaya
Isabella Grinevskaya was the pen name of Berta Friedberg, daughter of the author Abraham Shalom Friedberg and the first wife of Mordechai Spector....
traveled to meet `Abdu'l-Bahá in Egypt and became a member of the religion. Louis Gregory visited `Abdu'l-Bahá at Ramleh in 1911. `Abdu'l-Bahá was about to make long travels to the West. Just before `Abdu'l-Bahá's first trip, a message from Lady Blomfield
Lady Blomfield
Lady Sara Louisa Blomfield was a distinguished early member of the Bahá'í Faith in the British Isles, and a supporter of the rights of children and women....
extended an invitation for `Abdu'l-Bahá when he was in London. `Abdu'l-Bahá then set sail August 11, 1911, reached as far as London, and returned in early December to rest for the winter. His next trip was more extensive and reached to California. He left March 25, 1912 and returned June 17, 1913 and on return stayed in Egypt almost six months before returning to Haifa/Akka. Upon his return he gave a number of talks. These were eventually published as `Abdu'l-Bahá in Egypt. After `Abdu'l-Bahá returned to Haifa, Martha Root
Martha Root
Martha Louise Root was a prominent traveling teacher of the Bahá'í Faith in the late 19th and early 20th century. Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith called her "the foremost travel teacher in the first Bahá'í Century", and named her a Hand of the Cause posthumously...
stayed there for six months in 1915. One of the earliest Bahá'ís of the west and a Disciple of `Abdu'l-Bahá
Disciples of `Abdu'l-Bahá
Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, designated nineteen Western Bahá'ís as Disciples of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and 'Heralds of the Covenant':*Dr. John E. Esslemont*Thornton Chase*Howard MacNutt*Sarah Farmer*Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney*Lillian Kappes...
, Lua M. Getsinger, died in 1916 and she was buried in Egypt. And following `Abdu'l-Bahá laying the cornerstone for the first Bahá'í House of Worship
Bahá'í House of Worship
A Bahá'í House of Worship, sometimes referred to by its Arabic name of Mashriqu'l-Adhkár ,is the designation of a place of worship, or temple, of the Bahá'í Faith...
of the West, the Bahá'ís from Cairo, Port Said and Alexandria contributed to the Fund for its construction in Wilmette, Illinois. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
Bahá'ís in Port Said were pillaged twice. Meanwhile Tudor Pole was stationed in Egypt and was directly involved in addressing the concerns raised by Ottoman threats against `Abdu'l-Bahá. As the battle lines advanced from Egypt through Palestine, the Ottomans had threatened that `Abdu'l-Bahá would be killed if the Ottomans had been forced to leave the region. This threat was taken seriously by the British Military who then sought to make his protection part of the plans for the Palestine theatre. General Allenby altered his plans for the prosecution of the war and succeeded in protecting `Abdu'l-Bahá.
After the death of `Abdu'l-Bahá
The period between the world wars was a time of mixed events - public opposition to Bahá'ís became more widespread as the religion grew and in addition to growing, the Bahá'ís of Egypt began to publish materials to be more easily read. At the death of `Abdul-Bahá in 1921, Shoghi Effendi left England with the assistance of Lady BlomfieldLady Blomfield
Lady Sara Louisa Blomfield was a distinguished early member of the Bahá'í Faith in the British Isles, and a supporter of the rights of children and women....
and stopped in Egypt to change boats for Haifa.
Progress of the religion
The assembly of Alexandria was formed in 1924 for the first time and Subhê Eliçs was among the elected - he was re-elected until 1961 and left an oral history recorded from his experiences in the community in 1977. It was also the year of the first election of the regional National Spiritual Assembly of Egypt and Sudan. In 1928 the Bulletin was first published by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Egypt, in English, Arabic and Persian. The national conventions continued to elect the national assembly. By 1930 most of the Egyptian Bahá'ís were native Egyptians and despite circumstances an Egyptian Bahá'í woman was able to attend the 1931 Women's Conference of All-Asia held in Lahore, Burma. Marie of EdinburghMarie of Edinburgh
Marie of Romania was Queen consort of Romania from 1914 to 1927, as the wife of Ferdinand I of Romania.-Early life:...
, another western Bahá'í, was able to stop at Egypt for a time but failed to make landfall in Haifa. In early 1934 Sabri Elias pioneered to what was then called Abyssinia, (see Bahá'í Faith in Ethiopia
Bahá'í Faith in Ethiopia
The Bahá'í Faith in Ethiopia begins after `Abdu'l-Bahá wrote letters encouraging taking the religion to Africa in 1916. Probably the first Bahá'í to settle in the country came in early 1934 and with further pioneers by mid 1934 the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of the country was elected...
) where he was soon joined by further Egyptians by mid 1934 - enough to elect the first Assembly in Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa
Addis Ababa is the capital city of Ethiopia...
. In 1935 the national assembly saw to the translation of the Kitáb-i-Íqán
Kitáb-i-Íqán
The Kitáb-i-Íqán is one of many books held sacred by followers of the Bahá'í Faith; it is their primary theological work. One Bahá'í scholar states that it can be regarded as the "most influential Koran commentary in Persian outside the Muslim world," because of its international audience. It is...
into Arabic and it's publication. The Bahá'ís returned from Ethiopia when war was breaking out. Meanwhile the publishing committee of Alexandria published the Tablet to The Hague
Tablet to The Hague
The Tablet to The Hague is a letter which `Abdu'l-Bahá wrote to the Central Organisation for Durable Peace in The Hague, The Netherlands on 17 December 1919.It was delivered in person by Ahmad Yazdání and Hand of the Cause Ibn-i-Asdaq in 1920....
in one of the local papers on the occasion of the question of peace. By early 1937 Mostafa Kamel of Egypt was able to act as a youth international correspondent for a youth newsletter.
Instances of opposition
1924 began with an apparent triumph when following a controversy over a burial of a Bahá'í in a Moslem cemetery, EgyptEgypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
became the first Islamic state to legally recognize the Bahá'í Faith as an independent religion apart from Islam and creating two cemeteries for the Bahá'ís - one in Cairo and the other in Ismaïlia. As a result of the decision when certain Muslims attacked Bahá'ís in Kom El-Sayeda the perpetrators were excommunicated from Islam for the attack. In 1936 following interest from citizens of Belqas
Belqas
Belqas is a town located in the north-western corner of the Dakahlia Governorate in Egypt.-Economy:One part of the town's economy is the resort of Gamasa. The town also depends on its natural gas fields in the region of Abu Mady...
as well as visitors from Tanta
Tanta
Tanta is a city in Egypt. It is the country's fifth largest populated area, with an estimated 429,000 inhabitants . Tanta is located north of Cairo and southeast of Alexandria...
it became known that Saad Effendi Salim Nosseir was a Bahá'í and opposition was stirred up such that the interested citizens and Nosseir were unable to leave their homes. Nossier, being a public servant, appealed for a change in residence and serve in another district and was at first refused despite his good reputation. However in time he was transferred. And in late 1938 there were extraordinary events concerning the burial of Mohammed Effendi Soliman of Ismaïlia
Ismaïlia
-Notable natives:*Osman Ahmed Osman, a famous and influential Egyptian engineer, contractor, entrepreneur, and politician, was born in this town on 6 April 1917....
who had died December 9, 1938. Having informed family and friends of his wish for a Bahá'í funeral, and drawing up a Will requiring his heirs to submit to the Local Assembly of Ismaïlia, the assembly informed the police of the papers and arrangements. A non-Bahá'í brother agitated against this funeral and became so threatening that he was detained by the police. However when it came time to take the casket to the cemetery a large angry crowd made travel impossible despite police protection. That night the casket was transferred to police headquarters though fighting injured eight policemen. On the next day after midnight a truck took the casket out of town to be buried in the desert sands. The home of the deceased was attacked by a mob, and demonstnitions were continued in the streets throughout the night. In 1939, after the national assembly elections, petition was made to have Bahá'í marriage ceremonies legal in Egypt - as part of the justification a copy of a marriage contract issued by the Spiritual Assembly of Haifa and legalized by both Palestine authorities and the Egyptian Consulate in Jerusalem was enclosed. However by 1944 a Bahá'í marriage was compulsorily annulled because the wife had originally been Moslem, in spite of her statement in court that she now considered herself a Bahá'í. Sabri Elias married and went on Bahá'í pilgrimage
Bahá'í pilgrimage
A Bahá'í pilgrimage currently consists of visiting the holy places in Haifa, Akká, and Bahjí at the Bahá'í World Centre in Northwest Israel. Bahá'ís do not have access to other places designated as sites for pilgrimage....
and then returned to Ethiopia and then some years later went on to Djibouti. Shoghi Effendi
Shoghi Effendi
Shoghí Effendí Rabbání , better known as Shoghi Effendi, was the Guardian and appointed head of the Bahá'í Faith from 1921 until his death in 1957...
came through Egypt during a personal trip with his wife Rúhíyyih Khanum
Rúhíyyih Khanum
Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum , born Mary Sutherland Maxwell was the wife of Shoghi Effendi, the head of the Bahá'í Faith from 1921–1957. She was appointed by him as a Hand of the Cause, and served an important role in the transfer of authority from 1957–1963...
through Africa in 1940.
Up to the time of dissolution
Getting permission in 1941 the remains of Lua Getsinger were transferred in 1943 to be next to the transferred remains of Abu'l-Fadl (she facing west, he east, at the direction of Shoghi Effendi) to the Bahá'í Cemetery in Cairo, that was ornamented by 1947. However opposition also continued to grow - though work on translation had begun in 1934, in 1942 Egyptian police confiscated Arabic translations of The Dawn-breakersThe Dawn-breakers (book)
The Dawn-Breakers: Nabíl’s Narrative of the Early Days of the Bahá’í Revelation or Nabíl's Narrative is a historical account of the early Bábí and Bahá'í Faiths penned by Nabíl-i-A`zam in 1887-8...
. After many efforts by the National Assembly, the confiscated copies were released on condition that this book should not be distributed in Egypt or sent out of the country. The Censorship Bureau of the Egyptian Ministry of the Interior requested the Assembly to renew their guarantee every fifteen days that the said book will not be put in circulation. Also in 1942 Hand of the Cause Abdu'l-Jalil Bey Sa'd, a notable student of Abu'l-Fadl, died and was buried with memorial services called for in the east and west.
Centenary observances
Despite the ongoing World War, some 200 Bahá'ís, including from Egypt and other nearby areas, were able to gather for 3 days in May 1944 at the Shrine of the BábShrine of the Báb
The Shrine of the Báb is a structure in Haifa, Israel where the remains of the Báb, founder of Bábism and forerunner of Bahá'u'lláh in the Bahá'í Faith, have been laid to rest; it is considered to be the second holiest place on Earth for Bahá'ís, after the Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh in Acre...
to commemorate the centenary of the founding of the Bahá'í Faith. Inside Egypt some 500 Bahá'ís were able to gather to mark the event at the national center. During the three days of events in Cairo, talks were presented on "The Position of Women in the Bahá'í Cause", "The life of Qurratu'l-`Ayn" (see Táhirih
Táhirih
Táhirih or Qurratu'l-`Ayn are both titles of Fátimih Baraghání , an influential poet and theologian of the Bábí Faith in Iran. Her life, influence and execution made her a key figure of the religion...
), "The Accord between Religion and Science", "Why Bahá'ís feel tranquility", and various quotes from Bahá'í literature
Bahá'í literature
Bahá'í literature, like much religious text, covers a variety of topics and forms, including scripture and inspiration, interpretation, history and biography, introduction and study materials, and apologia...
s. By the end of 1944 there were four assemblies (Cairo, Alexandria, Port-Said, Isma'iliyyih) and an additional 16 smaller communities in Egypt, and the Bahá'í community in Egypt began to include Kurdish, Coptic, and Armenian peoples.
Further growth
By the end of the 1940s assemblies in Egypt had been extended into SuezSuez
Suez is a seaport city in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez , near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal, having the same boundaries as Suez governorate. It has three harbors, Adabya, Ain Sokhna and Port Tawfiq, and extensive port facilities...
, Tanta
Tanta
Tanta is a city in Egypt. It is the country's fifth largest populated area, with an estimated 429,000 inhabitants . Tanta is located north of Cairo and southeast of Alexandria...
and Sohag. During this period of growth pioneers
Pioneering (Bahá'í)
A pioneer is a volunteer Bahá'í who leaves his or her home to journey to another place for the purpose of teaching the Bahá'í Faith. The act of so moving is termed pioneering. Bahá'ís refrain from using the term "missionary"...
went beyond the Middle East to Scotland. A public lending library was established in Cairo to satisfy inquires being made but anti-Bahá'í pamphlets were published and posted in Tanta instigating violence and individuals in other cities were actually attacked. Opposition began to reach out from Egypt in the form of article in an Egyptian Daily newspaper circulated in the United States published a story subtitled "Necessity of a Moslem Cultural Center in America to Inform the Americans of the True Moslem Cult." And attacks in Tanta escalated to the point that a government official publicly addressed the summoned ringleaders saying "Your evil deeds have shown you to be far removed from the teachings of Islám for Islám is a religion of peace" and made them sign a statement of good behavior. In May 1948 Shoghi Effendi announced goals for the Egyptian Bahá'í community evolving increasing the number of assemblies, smaller groups of Bahá'ís, and purchases of lands. A number of events and incidents brought the religion to the awareness of diverse audiences. There were formal representations from the Egyptian Bahá'í community to the government, invitations to Egyptian leaders and random incidents and in the public media. There were specific developments in the community in 1951. An assembly was established in El-Mahalla El-Kubra
El-Mahalla El-Kubra
El-Mahalla El-Kubra is a large industrial and agricultural city in Egypt, located in the middle of the Nile Delta on the western bank of the Damietta branch. It is known for its dominant textile industry...
, and it was announced that the Egyptian Government had given recognition to Bahá'í marriages. At this time women were allowed to be and were elected according to the rules of Bahá'í administration to local assemblies in Cairo, Alexandria, and Port Said, (indeed some were elected officers in 1952.) Also publishing Bahá'í material resumed which had been curtailed for a time. And a wave of pioneers left Egypt in 1951 for North and Central Africa (see Bahá'í Faith in Uganda
Bahá'í Faith in Uganda
The Bahá'í Faith in Uganda started to grow in 1951 and in four years time there were 500 Bahá'ís in 80 localities, including 13 Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assemblies, representing 30 tribes, and had dispatched 9 pioneers to other African locations...
for a start.)
Regional Assembly
The Sudan/Egypt regional National Assembly existed until 1953 when it became a regional assembly for North East Africa. It included French Somaliland; Egypt, Sudan, Abyssinia, Libya, Eritrea, British Somaliland; Italian Somaliland; and Socotra Is. The Bahá'í summer school in Alexandria began having integrated classes with women and men in 1953 and a newsreel carrying the dedication of the Bahá'í Temple in Wilmette was shown in movie houses in Egypt. In 1955 two new assemblies in Egypt were elected - DamanhurDamanhur
Damanhur is a city in Lower Egypt, and the capital of the Beheira Governorate. It is located northwest of Cairo, and E.S.E. of Alexandria, in the middle of the western Nile Delta....
and Shibin El Kom in 1956 in El Mansoura In 1959 the Bahá'ís held their first winter school. At this time the Bahá'ís may have reached 3000 in Egypt. Sabri Elias with his family returned from pioneering to Ethiopia and beyond back to Egypt in 1959.
Dissolution
However since 1960 with a regime change, the Bahá'ís lost all rights as an organized religious community by Law 263 which specified a minimum sentence of six months' imprisonment or a fine for any assembly-related activities. This law came into being seven years after the declaration of the Arab Republic of Egypt, at the decree of then-President Gamal Abdel NasserGamal Abdel Nasser
Gamal Abdel Nasser Hussein was the second President of Egypt from 1956 until his death. A colonel in the Egyptian army, Nasser led the Egyptian Revolution of 1952 along with Muhammad Naguib, the first president, which overthrew the monarchy of Egypt and Sudan, and heralded a new period of...
. All Bahá'í community properties, including Bahá'í centers, libraries, and cemeteries, were confiscated by the government except the cemetery Al-Rawda Al-Abadeyya. In obedience to the government is a core principal of the religion. In 1963, Bahá'í communities were still counted in Abu Qir
Abu Qir
Abū Qīr is a village on the Mediterranean coast of Egypt, northeast of Alexandria by rail, containing a castle used as a state prison by Muhammad Ali of Egypt....
, Mansoura, Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
, Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
, Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, Zeitoun
Zeitoun
Our Lady of Zeitoun, also known simply as El-Zeitoun, Zeitun or rarely Our Lady of Light, was a mass Marian apparition that occurred in the Zeitoun district of Cairo, Egypt, over a period of 2–3 years beginning on April 2, 1968.-Apparition:...
, and Ismaïlia
Ismaïlia
-Notable natives:*Osman Ahmed Osman, a famous and influential Egyptian engineer, contractor, entrepreneur, and politician, was born in this town on 6 April 1917....
. But there were also episodic waves of arrests of Bahá'ís in the mid-1960s, 1972 and 1985. In early 1987 48 Bahá'ís had sentences pronounced against them for activities as Bahá'ís. However two were found not guilty after they recanted their faith. Charges against the Bahá'ís included gathering in small groups, praying together in private homes, and being in possession of Bahá'í holy writings and prayer books. 32 of the Bahá'ís were acquitted in one bunch and 13 in another by mid 1988.
Modern community
Since its inception the religion has had involvement in socio-economic development beginning by giving greater freedom to women, promulgating the promotion of female education as a priority concern, and that involvement was given practical expression by creating schools, agricultural coops, and clinics. The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of JusticeUniversal House of Justice
The Universal House of Justice is the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith. It is a legislative institution with the authority to supplement and apply the laws of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, and exercises a judicial function as the highest appellate institution in the...
dated 20 October 1983 was released. Bahá'ís were urged to seek out ways, compatible with the Bahá'í teachings
Bahá'í teachings
The Bahá'í teachings represent a considerable number of theological, social, and spiritual ideas that were established in the Bahá'í Faith by Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the religion, and clarified by successive leaders including `Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'u'lláh's son, and Shoghi Effendi, `Abdu'l-Bahá's...
, in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived. Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Bahá'í socio-economic development projects. By 1987, the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482. However the current Egyptian Bahá'í community has had fatwa
Fatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
s issued against it by Al-Azhar's Islamic Research Center, which charges Bahá'ís with apostasy in Islam
Apostasy in Islam
Apostasy in Islam is commonly defined in Islam as the rejection in word or deed of one's former religion by a person who was previously a follower of Islam...
. There are still allegations of Bahá'í involvement with other powers
Allegations of Bahá'í involvement with other powers
Opponents of the Bahá'í Faith, especially certain Iranians, have accused the faith's followers of dual loyalty and of being involved with foreign or hostile powers. These accusations are used to justify persecution of this religious minority....
and accusations of "using religion to promote deviant ideas to spark sedition or disdain the heavenly religions or their followers or to harm national unity." There have been homes burned down and families driven out of their communities.
Hussein Bikar
Hussein BikarHussein Bikar
Hussein Amin Bikar , is one of the most famous Egyptian portrait painters. His career, however, spanned a number of disciplines, notably caricature, teaching, journalism and art criticism....
was born in Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
in 1912 and was one of the most famous Egyptian portrait painters. A member of the Bahá'í Faith
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
he was arrested in the 1980s by the state security investigation bureau in a clamp-down on Bahá'ís in Egypt. Nevertheless Bikar received the State Merit Award in 1978, the Merit Medal in 1980 and, in 2000, shortly before his death, the Mubarak Award. The Universal House of Justice
Universal House of Justice
The Universal House of Justice is the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith. It is a legislative institution with the authority to supplement and apply the laws of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, and exercises a judicial function as the highest appellate institution in the...
, the highest governing body of the Bahá'í Faith, paid tribute to his contributions to Egyptian society after his death in 2002.
Identification Controversy
The controversy resulted from a ruling of the Supreme Administrative Council of Egypt on December 16, 2006 against the Bahá'ís stating that the government may not recognize the Bahá'í FaithBahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
in official identification cards.
The ruling left Bahá'ís unable to obtain the necessary government documents to have rights in their country unless they lied about their religion, which conflicts with Bahá'í religious principle. However a 2008 ruling accepted the compromise solution offered by the Bahá'ís, allowing for them to obtain identification papers without the Bahá'í Faith being officially recognized, however through February 2009 there have been appeals and procedural choices made trying not to give such cards. There was coverage of the issue internationally - Poland for example. Finally the first identification cards were issued to two Bahá'ís under the new policy on August 8, 2009.
Demographics
Circa 2006 there are reports of 500 to 2,000 or so Bahá'ís in Egypt. The Association of Religion Data ArchivesAssociation of religion data archives
The Association of Religion Data Archives is a free source of online information related to American and international religion. Founded as the American Religion Data Archive in 1997, and online since 1998, the archive was initially targeted at researchers interested in American religion...
(relying on World Christian Encyclopedia
World Christian Encyclopedia
World Christian Encyclopedia is a reference work published by Oxford University Press, known for providing membership statistics for major and minor world religions in every country of the world, including historical data and projections of future populations.The first edition, by David B. Barrett,...
) estimated some 6,000 Bahá'ís in 2005.