July 21. On this date in 1875, Agnes Baldwin Alexander was
born in Honolulu on July 21, 1875, to descendants of Christian
missionary families, the Baldwins and the Alexanders, who were among the
families of whom James A. Michener said, "They came to the islands to
do good, and they did right well."
She became a Bahá’í in 1900 while visiting Italy.
After returning in 1901, she remained in Hawaii for 12 years, and of her experiences there wrote Personal Recollections of a Bahai Life in the Hawaiian Islands.
Upon 'Abdu’l-Baha's request, Agnes Baldwin Alexander
moved to Japan in 1914. In 1921 she became the first to introduce the
religion to Korea. Except for extended vacations in Hawaii, Alexander
spent over thirty years in Japan.
Also
at the request of 'Abdu’l-Baha, Alexander became an early advocate of
Esperanto and used that new international language to spread the Bahá’í
teachings at meetings and conferences. At Shoghi Effendi's request,
Alexander wrote two histories: Forty Years of the Bahá’í Cause in Hawaii: 1902-1942 and History of the Bahá’í Faith in Japan: 1914-1938.
Both of these volumes were published posthumously. In 1957, Shoghi
Effendi appointed her a Hand of the Cause of God. In 1964, Alexander
represented the Universal House of Justice, at the election of Hawaii’s
first National Spiritual Assembly, which is distinct from the National
Spiritual Assembly of the United States. After suffering a broken hip in
1965, and spending two years in a Tokyo hospital, Alexander returned
home to Honolulu in 1967.
On January 1, 1971, Alexander died. She was buried behind Kawaiahao Church with her missionary forebears.
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