July 17. On this date in 2013, the Universal House of Justice sent a letter
"to the Bahá’ís of the World" announcing "with utter shock and
desolating grief that the Bahá’ís in Baghdad discovered on 26 June that
the “most holy habitation” of Bahá’u’lláh had been razed almost to the
ground to make way for the construction of a mosque," at the end of what
the Universal Hosue of Justice calls a "highly delicate situation in
Iraq over the last tumultuous decade."
It is somewhat ironic, that in the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the false information of Iraq's purported possession of weapons of mass destruction was leaked to the media by David Kelly,
a Bahá’í authority on biological warfare, employed by the British
Ministry of Defence, and formerly a weapons inspector with the United Nations Special Commission
in Iraq. David Kelly was found dead from an apparent suicide on July
17, 2003, two days after appearing before a before a parliamentary Foreign Affairs Select Committee.
The Universal House of Justice
To the Bahá’ís of the World
Dearly loved Friends,
A
century and a half ago, Bahá’u’lláh departed His House in Baghdad for
the Najíbíyyih Garden, where He would, for the first time, openly
disclose His prophetic mission. He left behind Him an edifice of
surpassing sacredness that had sheltered Him for seven years. This
sanctified residence, to which the Blessed Beauty would never return,
was styled by Him the “Most Great House”; designated, along with the
House of the Báb in Shiraz, as the place of Bahá’í pilgrimage; and
addressed, by the Supreme Pen, in these stirring words:
I testify that thou art the scene of His transcendent glory, His most holy habitation. Out of thee hath gone forth the Breath of the All-Glorious, a Breath that hath breathed over all created things, and filled with joy the breasts of the devout that dwell in the mansions of Paradise.
Yet,
in His own lifetime, the House in Baghdad was subjected to
mistreatment, and ownership of the building was temporarily wrested from
His followers. Bahá’u’lláh foretold, in poignant terms, the further
degradation that would befall His House.
This is not the first humiliation inflicted upon My House. In days gone by the hand of the oppressor hath heaped indignities upon it. Verily, it shall be so abased in the days to come as to cause tears to flow from every discerning eye. Thus have We unfolded to thee things hidden beyond the veil, inscrutable to all save God, the Almighty, the All-Praised.
Events
over the last one hundred and fifty years have borne out that to which
Bahá’u’lláh had thus alluded. The House in Baghdad was acquired for His
use about twenty-five years after its construction, which is thought to
have occurred in 1830. By the early 1900s, it had fallen into total
disrepair. When conditions were propitious, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá arranged for it
to be fully rebuilt, from the foundation upwards. As this work was
nearing completion, efforts to seize the building by those opposing the
Faith intensified, culminating in a wholly spurious claim to ownership
that was unjustly endorsed by the courts. Again, the Most Great House
was taken from the Bahá’ís.
Over
the years that followed, successive attempts were made by the
believers, under the direction of Shoghi Effendi, to regain control of
the property. The case was eventually taken up by the League of Nations,
which plainly condemned the injustice done to the Bahá’í community, but
even this brought about no redress. However, the confiscation of the
Blessed House and the response of the friends did lead to another
significant development, as Shoghi Effendi recounts in God Passes By:
Suffice it to say that, despite these interminable delays, protests and evasions, and the manifest failure of the Authorities concerned to implement the recommendations made by both the Council of the League and the Permanent Mandates Commission, the publicity achieved for the Faith by this memorable litigation, and the defence of its cause—the cause of truth and justice—by the world’s highest tribunal, have been such as to excite the wonder of its friends and to fill with consternation its enemies.
Now
is not the occasion to delve into the details of this “memorable
litigation”, but an extensive description has been set down by the
Guardian in his peerless account of the first Bahá’í century. We add
only that, since that time, the Most Great House has not been in the
possession of the Bahá’ís, having been turned into a Shí‘ah religious
endowment instead.
Owing
to the highly delicate situation in Iraq over the last tumultuous
decade, it was not possible for the friends to press their claim to this
sacred property. Nevertheless, the institutions of the Faith in that
country and individual believers remained vigilant regarding any
developments bearing on the security of the Most Great House and took
whatever measures were open to them to promote its protection and
preservation. Iraqis themselves, although not generally aware of the
special significance with which the property had been invested by
Bahá’u’lláh, were not oblivious to its historical and architectural
value. Only a year ago, the Department of Antiquities had published, in
the official gazette of the government, a decree intended to guarantee
the building against any action that might damage it, a decree that
carried with it the force of the law. Indeed, as far back as the early
1980s the authorities had recognized the House to be a fine example of
period architecture in Iraq, still in good condition, and had designated
it as a heritage site.
Thus,
it was with utter shock and desolating grief that the Bahá’ís in
Baghdad discovered on 26 June that the “most holy habitation” of
Bahá’u’lláh had been razed almost to the ground to make way for the
construction of a mosque. It has now been confirmed that the work was
undertaken without a legal permit. The destruction of the property, it
emerges, had been planned for some time, but the largest part of the
operation was carried out over just three days and nights, from 24 to 26
June, using heavy machinery. We understand that the Department of
Antiquities, which had previously been preparing to renovate the
property, is already taking steps to establish precisely what led to the
demolition, to attempt to halt any construction on the same spot, and
to bring to account those responsible.
In
the world at large, it has become all too familiar for a blow of this
severity, dealt to a hallowed site, to provoke an aggressive response.
The Bahá’ís of Iraq, trained by the hand of the Abhá Beauty, will of
course remain the embodiments of kindness and forbearance, hopeful of a
just outcome. They are under no illusion as to the magnitude of the loss
which they, on behalf of the worldwide Bahá’í community and beyond, are
being forced to bear. But their eagerness to render service to their
society will not be diminished by this calamity, nor will they be any
less conscious of the pressing need for the whole of humanity to be
acquainted with Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings. On the contrary. To gain
insight into what the Most Great House truly stands for—indeed, to
understand better the transcendent meaning of pilgrimage to that holy
edifice—one need only observe the response of Bahá’u’lláh’s followers
throughout the world to its destruction: high-mindedness, serenity,
trust in God. Their primary focus is on opening the hearts to the
implications of the message of the Blessed Beauty; events in Baghdad
will only serve to heighten the sense of urgency with which this work is
undertaken. At this time when the series of youth conferences, now
commencing, is about to propel forward the current stage in the
unfoldment of the Divine Plan, we beseech the Almighty to graciously
bestow upon the friends everywhere fortified resolve.
Bahá’u’lláh
foresaw that the Most Great House would be subjected to terrible
indignities, but He also stated that, no matter what adversities might
arise, the Cause was divinely protected. Let every believer take heart.
In a moving apostrophe addressed to that House, the Ancient Beauty
asserted: “God hath, in the world of creation, adorned thee with the
jewel of His remembrance. Such an ornament no man can, at any time,
profane.” He gave a promise, too, that, notwithstanding all that would
befall the Blessed House, the future glory of that sanctified place was
assured: “In the fullness of time, the Lord shall, by the power of
truth, exalt it in the eyes of all men. He shall cause it to become the
Standard of His Kingdom, the Shrine round which will circle the
concourse of the faithful.”
[signed: The Universal
On August 11, 2003, the Independent carried an article about David Kelly, noting "In October 2002, Dr Kelly
gave a slide show and lecture about his experiences as a weapons
inspector in Iraq to a small almost private gathering of the Baha'i
faith, which aims to unite the teachings of all the prophets. Dr Kelly
had converted to the religion three years earlier, while in New York on
attachment to the UN. When he returned to England he became treasurer
of the small but influential Baha'i branch in Abingdon near his home. Roger Kingdon,
a member, recalls: 'He had no doubt that [the Iraqis] had biological
and chemical weapons. It was clear that David Kelly was largely happy
with the material in the dossier.'"
From The Times article titled "Faith, peace and tolerance in Monterey", dated September 3, 2003...
September 3
By Chris Ayres and James Bone
Four
years ago David Kelly made a personal odyssey to the Californian resort
of Monterey. He was there, not to visit its military installations or
its tourist boutiques but to convert to the Baha'i faith
IT
WOULD SEEM an unlikely place to find peace for the soul. Monterey, an
affluent city on California's central coast, about an hour's flight
north from Los Angeles, is known more for its proximity to military
installations and its role as retirement city of choice for generals and
one-time spies than for any sense of spirituality. But it was to this
beautiful seaside resort, often shrouded in mist because of the hot air
from the Californian deserts hitting the cold Pacific, that David Kelly
came four years ago to make a declaration of faith to the Baha'i
religion.
On September 25, 1999,
he would have turned his back on the postcard landscape of sand dunes
and gleaming ocean that marks California's Pacific Coast Highway, and
taken the incongruously named Bonny Doon Road up through the towns of
Loch Lomond and Bracken Brae, until he came to the first signpost to the
Bosch Baha'i School, one of only four such establishments in the United
States and an inspiration for the British scientist and biological
weapons expert. He was possibly accompanied by his friend and spiritual
mentor Mai Pederson, the American woman thought to be responsible for
introducing him to the Baha'i faith.
Monterey,
with its proximity to the Defence Language Institute and other military
installations, was a natural destination for Dr Kelly; the Monterey
Institute of International Studies, which has its own Centre for
Nonproliferation Studies, the largest non-governmental organisation in
the world devoted to curbing the spread of weapons of mass destruction,
would have been an essential place for him to visit. The centre is
thought to have one of the largest databases of information on Saddam
Hussein's regime in the world. The city itself, an old fishing town
turned into a tourist mecca, with chi-chi boutiques and restaurants that
line the seafront — a kind of Covent Garden-on-sea — is similar to
other California coastal towns such as Carmel and Santa Barbara that
look out over the rolling surf of the Pacific. But it is thought that Dr
Kelly visited Monterey not for the expertise offered by the city's
scientists, but for the consolation of the soul that he would find in
the Baha'i school high above the city, overlooking the California
coastline.
After reaching the
series of wooden cabins that make up the school's campus — passing,
first, the four garden gnomes, dressed in 19th-century peasant outfits,
that wave cheerfully to those curious or devoted enough to go further —
he made his simple declaration of faith. According to Joanne McClure, a
youthful 66-year-old who pays $65 (£41) a night for room and board at
the school, to an untrained eye this would have seemed an almost casual
affair, the kind of non-ritual ritual beloved of the Baha'is, who pride
themselves on having no formal initiation ceremony, sacrament or clergy.
"First we would make sure initiates know who Baha'ullah is — the
founder of the faith — and that they really knew what they were doing,"
says McClure. "Then they would sign a card saying that there are certain
laws they need to obey." These include abstaining from drink, drugs and
gambling; supporting the institution of marriage; believing that God
created the universe; and encouraging the end of racial, class, and
religious prejudices. After Dr Kelly had signed the card, it would have
been sent to the Baha'i national headquarters in Wilmette, Illinois,
where the new believer would be put on the mailing list for the American
magazine The Baha'is. From then on, Dr Kelly would have been encouraged
to attend feasts held every 19 days, which involve prayer-chants,
administrative discussions with local spiritual assemblies, and general
socialising.
Dr Kelly would have
been attracted to the peacefulness and tolerance of the Baha'is, who
believe that all religions are essentially valid. As McClure says: "I
could never understand why God was going to send all these people to
Hell just because they didn't believe in the same things." As a
scientist, perhaps seeking spiritual succour within an intellectual
framework, he would also have been attracted to the faith's openness to
modernity and its lack of fundamentalist dogma.
Throughout
1999 Dr Kelly travelled to New York for six or seven two-week trips to
work with fellow experts at UN headquarters, and he visited at least
twice more for the regular six-monthly meetings of the UN Special
Commission's (UNSCOM's) college of commissioners. During this year, he
often appeared at Baha'i meetings on the other side of the continent in
Monterey, at the group's traditional 19th-day feasts. Pederson, who was
studying at the Defence Language Institute, a heavily guarded military
facility that taught American soldiers how to speak Japanese during the
Second World War, was also at the feasts. The two had met and become
friends when she served under the scientist on a UN mission to Iraq in
1998, the last inspection before the withdrawal of UN inspectors.
John
VonBerg, whose wife was the secretary of the local Baha'is' spiritual
assembly at the time, says: "He has been to my home several times. We
had special events on holy days, representing various things. His
principles were so close to those of the Baha'i faith."
The last time Dr Kelly visited, VonBerg remembers the Baha'i group going to gaze out over the bay.
Noreen
Steinmetz, a friend of Dr Kelly and Pederson, recalls: "He would pass
through here every once in a while and we would have the opportunity to
sit down with him and go on hikes and chat. I met him through Mai
Pederson." She adds that Dr Kelly always arrived at meetings by himself,
and other Baha'is assumed that he was working at the nearby Monterey
Institute, where several of his UN colleagues worked. But scientist
friends at the centre say he never visited them there.
A
glance around the Bosch Baha'i School's bookshop reveals some possible
sources of tension for Dr Kelly. Several tomes focus on the divine
importance of the UN, which was eventually ignored by the United States
and Britain after it refused to support a military campaign to remove
the Iraqi regime.
With that in mind, it is hard to see how Dr Kelly could ever have supported an Iraq war without UN approval.
Even
more ominous, however, is a tract entitled Political Non-Involvement
and Obedience to Government, compiled by Peter J. Khan. The book spells
out the Baha'is' belief that they should not become involved in any form
of politics, because politics can create divisions that could destroy
the Baha'i community.
As part of
this argument, Baha'is believe that they should support their
government, whether just or unjust (there are, however, exceptions). On
page 28, Khan poses a question that Dr Kelly himself could have asked:
What should we do when controversies arise as a result of government
policies?
The answer, provided by
the Guardian of the Baha'i faith, the late Shoghi Effendi Rabbani, is
this: "In such controversies they should assign no blame, take no side,
further no design, and identify themselves with no system prejudicial to
the best interests of that worldwide fellowship which it is their aim
to guard and foster."
Khan's book
makes it clear that any Baha'i who does not follow this advice is
ultimately weakening the Baha'i religion. Given this official position
from the Guardian, it is not hard to imagine Dr Kelly's horror when he
was named as the alleged source of a story blaming Britain's decision to
go to war on a press secretary who "sexed up" intelligence reports.
But
would the Guardian have condoned suicide? "Let's just say," says Mrs
VonBerg, "that it would not follow the teachings of the Baha'i faith."
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