April 13. On this date in 1919, Phoebe Hearst passed away. She was an early Bahá'í, a wealthy philanthropist, the wife of Senator George Hearst, and the mother of publisher William Randolph Hearst. She later became estranged from the Bahá'í Faith due to being extorted for money by other Bahá'ís.

 

April 13. On this date in 1919, Phoebe Hearst passed away. She was an early Bahá'í, a wealthy philanthropist, the wife of Senator George Hearst, and the mother of publisher William Randolph Hearst. She later became estranged from the Bahá'í Faith due to being extorted for money by other Bahá'ís.

Phoebe Hearst was raised a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian faith in the 1840s. In 1898 she converted to the Bahá'í Faith, and undertook a Bahá'í pilgrimage to Palestine to meet 'Abdu'l-Bahá with other American pilgrims, including Ibrahim George Kheiralla, Lua Getsinger and May Boles. It was during this trip, in Akka, that Kheiralla witnessed firsthand the conflict between 'Abdu'l-Bahá and his brothers, leading him, upon his return to America in 1899, to form the "Society of Behaists" which would later be led by Shua Ullah Behai and to author a book, Beha'u'llah, wherein he states his belief that 'Abdu'l-Bahá was equal in rank to his brothers Mírzá Muhammad `Alí, Díyá'u'lláh, and Badi'u'lláh.

Phoebe Hearst helped play a key role in the spread of the Bahá'í Faithin in the United States. In October 1912 she invited 'Abdu'l-Bahá, who would arrive in the United States the following month,to stay at her home for a long weekend, even though at that time she had become estranged from the Bahá'í Faith. During his stay 'Abdu'l-Bahá mentioned that anyone who tried to extort money or goods from others should not be considered a true Bahá'í. Mrs. Hearst had been a victim of such an incident, which had caused her estrangement from the religion.