September 5. On this date in 1990, Emeric Sala, one of the first nine members of the NSA of Canada, died. In 1947, he received a letter from Shoghi Effendi stating "future Guardians: they cannot "abrogate" the interpretations of former Guardians, as this would imply not only lack of guidance but mistakes in making them; however they can elaborate and elucidate former interpretations, and can certainly abrogate some former ruling laid down as a temporary necessity by a former Guardian."

 

September 5. On this date in 1990, Emeric Sala, one of the first nine members of the NSA of Canada, died. In 1947, he received a letter from Shoghi Effendi stating "future Guardians: they cannot "abrogate" the interpretations of former Guardians, as this would imply not only lack of guidance but mistakes in making them; however they can elaborate and elucidate former interpretations, and can certainly abrogate some former ruling laid down as a temporary necessity by a former Guardian."

Emeric Sala was born on November 12, 1906 in the small Hungarian village of Havas Dombrovica, which roughly translates as “snowed-in village.” He was the first of four children born to a Jewish lumber inspector and his wife. His parents later moved to Herrmannstadt in Sibenbuergen, now Sibiu in Romania, where he spent his school years.

After the First World War and still in his teens, he made his way to Hamburg, where he landed a job as a ship’s helper and set sail for the west coast of Africa. The ship returned to Hamburg and then sailed for Montréal, where he arrived in 1927.

In addition to his native Hungarian, Sala spoke Romanian, some German, French and Italian, but he did not speak a word of English. Learning the language became his obsession. Rather than simply reading books, he wanted to hear people talk, so he attended every free lecture he could find. He was especially intrigued by one public meeting at which May Maxwell talked about the Bahá’í Faith; this led to his enrolment as a Bahá’í in 1929. He was a founding member of the first Canadian Bahá’í Youth Group in Montréal. They held classes, and attendance soon reached about 60. It was the first organized Bahá’í class for youth in the Western Hemisphere. He soon met his future wife, Rosemary Gillies, whom he married in 1934.

The English language, once his handicap, now became his strength. He established a small import business and travelled coast to coast, giving talks on the Bahá’í Faith wherever and whenever he could. In 1937, at the encouragement of May Maxwell, he extended a European business trip to include Haifa, where he had the privilege of spending an evening alone with Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith. Upon his return, Emeric Sala and Siegfried Schopflocher together purchased the first Canadian Bahá’í property at Beaulac, in the Laurentians, north of Montréal, where the country’s first Bahá’í summer and winter schools were held.

In 1945, as the world emerged from World War II, Sala published This Earth One Country. Both Emeric and Rosemary Sala were elected to the first National Spiritual Assembly of Canada in 1948, and they continued to serve until 1953. That year, they responded to Shoghi Effendi’s call for Bahá’ís to arise to serve humanity around the world. Sala transferred his business to his brother, and the couple sold their charming home on the banks of the St. Lawrence River in St. Lambert, Quebec, planning to settle in the Comoro Islands, off the east coast of Africa.

Despite their plans, the French authorities refused to grant them permission to reside in the Comoro Islands, so Shoghi Effendi asked them to settle in Zululand instead. There, they befriended many Africans, who came to refer to Rosemary Sala as “our mother”. Rosemary founded school libraries and organized shipments of books from North America. After returning to Canada briefly in the late 1960s, the couple left for Guadalajara, Mexico, and then travelled extensively throughout Central America.

Rosemary Sala died in Mexico on 24 January 1980. Emeric Sala continued to serve in Mexico and later remarried. His second wife, Donya Knox, became a Bahá’í, and together they travelled throughout America, China, India and Europe.

Emeric Sala died on September 5, 1990, a few weeks after his wife’s death.

On February 19, 1947, a letter addressed on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to Emeric Sala, stated "future Guardians: they cannot "abrogate" the interpretations of former Guardians, as this would imply not only lack of guidance but mistakes in making them; however they can elaborate and elucidate former interpretations, and can certainly abrogate some former ruling laid down as a temporary necessity by a former Guardian."

19 February 1947

To Emeric Sala

Dear Bahá'í Brother:

Your letters dated October 16th and December 19th, with enclosures, were both received, and our beloved Guardian regrets very much the unavoidable delay in answering you, caused by pressure of certain urgent matters that arose.

He feels that there must have been some misapprehension on your part of his statements regarding future Guardians: they cannot "abrogate" the interpretations of former Guardians, as this would imply not only lack of guidance but mistakes in making them; however they can elaborate and elucidate former interpretations, and can certainly abrogate some former ruling laid down as a temporary necessity by a former Guardian.

You asked his views about your statement on the Bahá'í Faith and Communism: frankly he feels that the less the friends discuss Communism, and the Faith in connection with it, the better these days, as the subject is a burning issue, and no matter how discreet we are we run the risk of being involved in this highly political issue.

He wishes you to know that he very deeply appreciates the innumerable services you and your dear wife render the Faith. Reports of your South American work have reached him, as well as your own report of your fifth western trip, and he is delighted to see the response you are getting from the public. Your book has, likewise, been a very useful addition to the teaching literature of the Faith in English, and you must rejoice to see the way God is blessing your labours for His Cause.

Tremendous work still remains to be done in Canada before the approaching election of its first National Spiritual Assembly ; he hopes you and Mrs. Sala will devote as much of your time to this field as you can.

Assuring you of his loving prayers on your behalf, and for the success of your services.

Yours with Bahá'í love,

R. Rabbani

P.S. Through Mr. Schopflocher he recently learned of your joint gift of a property to the Cause in Canada for a Summer School. This is much appreciated, and he hopes it will develop into a fine institution in the future!

May the Beloved, Whose Cause you are serving with such zeal, devotion and perseverance, reward you for your labours, guide every step you take in the path of service, and aid you to enrich the record of your meritorious and notable accomplishments,

Your true and grateful brother,

Shoghi

September 5. On this date in 1973, John Ferraby, a Hand of the Cause of God and from 1959 to 1963 one of the nine Custodians, died. He wrote All Things Made New, which is notable for the changes made from the original publication in 1957 to subsequent editions published after the death of Shoghi Effendi. For example, comparing the original 1957 edition to the 1987 edition, among the numerous alterations, is the replacement of his dedication of the book to "The First Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith" to simply "The Guardian." Other references to "the Guardian" have been replaced with "the Universal House of Justice."

 

September 5. On this date in 1973, John Ferraby, a Hand of the Cause of God and from 1959 to 1963 one of the nine Custodians, died. He wrote All Things Made New, which is notable for the changes made from the original publication in 1957 to subsequent editions published after the death of Shoghi Effendi. For example, comparing the original 1957 edition to the 1987 edition, among the numerous alterations, is the replacement of his dedication of the book to "The First Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith" to simply "The Guardian." Other references to "the Guardian" have been replaced with "the Universal House of Justice."

Born on January 9, 1914, in Southsea, England, into a Jewish family, he was educated at Malvern College and King's College, Cambridge. He became a Bahá'í in 1941 and was elected as secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly, which he remained until 1959. In October 1957, Ferraby was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God by Shoghi Effendi. From 1959 to 1963, he served as one of the nine Custodians at the Bahá'í World Centre.

In 1941 that he was told about the Faith by a non-Bahá’í. Wanting to know more, he found John Esslemont's book Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era in a public library. John Esslemont's book Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era remains an important text that has been used in Bahá'í missionary activity. However, from in its initial publication to later editions, Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era has been significantly edited, with references to Avarih removed in subsequent editions published after Avarih's apostasy from the Bahá'í Faith.

Ferraby was by then living in London, so he started to look for the Bahá’ís there, but he had difficulty in finding them because during the blitz, the Bahá’í Centre was empty most of the time. However, finally he found someone and after a couple of visits he wanted to be accepted as a member of the community. Almost imediately he began to work for the Faith, becoming in less then an year a member of the London Spiritual Assembly and of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the British Isles. In 1943 he married a fellow member of the National Assembly, Dorothy Cansdale.

In 1946 he became secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the British Isles, working at first in his spare time and from 1950 as full-time secretary. This work he continued, living in the National Hazíratu'l-Quds in London from December 1954, until he went to serve in the Holy Land at the end of 1959. During a good deal of the time he was also manager of the British Bahá’í Publishing Trust, as well as being an active teacher and committee member. From 1951 to 1956 he was busily involved in the work of the Africa Committee and during the opening of the various territories in Africa, at that time mostly colonies or protectorates, he attended to most of the government relationship, acting in his capacity of national secretary. He attended the first Intercontinental Conference, held in Kampala, Uganda, in 1958, as well as the successive Intercontinental Conferences which were held in Europe.

In January 1955, he made the Bahá'í pilgrimage. While in Haifa, Shoghi Effendi advised him to write his book All Things Made New. The book has been widely used, running to one edition of the British Isles and three in the United States. All Things Made New, which is notable for the changes made from the original publication in 1957 to subsequent editions published after the death of Shoghi Effendi. For example, comparing the original 1957 edition to the 1987 edition, among the numerous alterations, is the replacement of his dedication of the book to "The First Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith" to simply "The Guardian." Other references to "the Guardian" have been replaced with "the Universal House of Justice."

In 1957, Shoghi Effendi named Ferraby in the last group of Hands of the Cause. He carried a big share of the work and responsibility for the arrangements when Shoghi Effendi died and was buried in London. After that he took part in the gathering of the Hands of the Cause in Haifa and stayed on there for over three months to help. In December 1959, John went to live in Haifa as one of the Hands of the Cause resident in the Holy Land and remained there until Riḍván 1963. After that he returned to England and lived in Cambridge for the last ten years of his life, working for the first few years as one of the Hands of the Cause in the continent of Europe, dealing with their secretariat and traveling a good deal. Later it became no longer possible for him to serve in this way.

He died on September 5, 1973.

August 21. On this date in 1912, an entry in Mahmud's Diary recounts an encounter of 'Abdu'l-Bahá with "a young girl:" ‘I have come to ask for your assistance. Please tell me what I am fitted to do so that I may occupy myself with it.’ The Master asked, ‘Do you have trust in me?’ She replied, ‘Yes.’ He then said to her, ‘Be a perfect Bahá’í. Associate with Bahá’ís. Study the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh. Then you will be assisted in whatever you undertake to do.’ She then said, ‘I am a good Jewess.’ The Master then said: 'A good Jew can also become a Bahá’í. The truth of the religion of Moses and of Bahá’u’lláh is one. Turn toward Bahá’u’lláh and you will acquire peace and tranquillity, you will hear the melody of the Kingdom, you will stir people’s souls and you will attain the highest degree of perfection. Be assured of this.' When she heard the Master’s words she was so impressed that she threw herself at His feet and wept.

 

August 21. On this date in 1912, an entry in Mahmud's Diary recounts an encounter of 'Abdu'l-Bahá with "a young girl:" ‘I have come to ask for your assistance. Please tell me what I am fitted to do so that I may occupy myself with it.’ The Master asked, ‘Do you have trust in me?’ She replied, ‘Yes.’ He then said to her, ‘Be a perfect Bahá’í. Associate with Bahá’ís. Study the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh. Then you will be assisted in whatever you undertake to do.’ She then said, ‘I am a good Jewess.’ The Master then said: 'A good Jew can also become a Bahá’í. The truth of the religion of Moses and of Bahá’u’lláh is one. Turn toward Bahá’u’lláh and you will acquire peace and tranquillity, you will hear the melody of the Kingdom, you will stir people’s souls and you will attain the highest degree of perfection. Be assured of this.' When she heard the Master’s words she was so impressed that she threw herself at His feet and wept.

During the visit of a group of Bahá’ís with the Master, a young girl came in and said, ‘I have come to ask for your assistance. Please tell me what I am fitted to do so that I may occupy myself with it.’ The Master asked, ‘Do you have trust in me?’ She replied, ‘Yes.’ He then said to her, ‘Be a perfect Bahá’í. Associate with Bahá’ís. Study the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh. Then you will be assisted in whatever you undertake to do.’ She then said, ‘I am a good Jewess.’ The Master then said:

A good Jew can also become a Bahá’í. The truth of the religion of Moses and of Bahá’u’lláh is one. Turn toward Bahá’u’lláh and you will acquire peace and tranquillity, you will hear the melody of the Kingdom, you will stir people’s souls and you will attain the highest degree of perfection. Be assured of this.

When she heard the Master’s words she was so impressed that she threw herself at His feet and wept.

August 10. On this date in 1968, Universal House of Justice member Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím died in Haifa, Israel. He had served on the International Bahá’í Council from 1951 until 1963, and on the Universal House of Justice from 1963 until his death.

 

 

August 10. On this date in 1968, Universal House of Justice member Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím died in Haifa, Israel. He had served on the International Bahá’í Council from 1951 until 1963, and on the Universal House of Justice from 1963 until his death.

Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím was born in 1888 in Iran to a prominent Bahá'í family. His paternal grandfather, Hakím Masíh, was the court physician for the Qajar dynasty and the first Jewish convert to the Bahá'í Faith. When Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím's father, Hakim Sulayman, died, Lutfu'llah was placed under the care of his elder brother, Dr. Arastu Khan.

On September 4, 1911, while studying physiotherapy in London, Ḥakím was among the Bahá'ís who greeted 'Abdu'l-Bahá during his visit to Great Britain. During this period, Hakím was close friends with John Esslemont, who would go on to become a Bahá'í in 1915. 'Abdu'l-Bahá would dedicate several Tablets to Ḥakím and eventually summoned him to Haifa to serve there. In 1920, 'Abdu'l-Bahá sent Ḥakím to England with Shoghi Effendi to accompany him on his journey. By the time of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's death on November 28, 1921, Ḥakím had returned to Haifa. In 1924 he went to Iran to work in Susan Moody's clinic.

In 1951, Shoghi Effendi called him to Haifa and appointed him to the International Bahá'í Council. In 1963 Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím was elected as an inaugural member of the Universal House of Justice, on which body he served until asking to retire in 1967 due to ill health. He died in 1968.

On his death, the Universal House of Justice sent the following cablegram:

To all National Spiritual AssembliesDear Bahá’í Friends,We share with you the following cable which we have just sent to the National Spiritual Assembly of Persia:GRIEVE ANNOUNCE PASSING LUṬFU’LLÁH ḤAKÍM DEDICATED SERVANT CAUSE GOD. SPECIAL MISSIONS ENTRUSTED HIM FULL CONFIDENCE REPOSED IN HIM BY MASTER AND GUARDIAN HIS CLOSE ASSOCIATION WITH EARLY DISTINGUISHED BELIEVERS EAST WEST INCLUDING HIS COLLABORATION ESSLEMONT HIS SERVICES PERSIA BRITISH ISLES HOLY LAND HIS MEMBERSHIP APPOINTED AND ELECTED INTERNATIONAL BAHÁ’Í COUNCIL HIS ELECTION UNIVERSAL HOUSE JUSTICE WILL ALWAYS BE REMEMBERED IMMORTAL ANNALS FAITH BAHÁ’U’LLÁH. INFORM BELIEVERS HOLD BEFITTING MEMORIAL MEETINGS ALL CENTERS. CONVEY ALL MEMBERS HIS FAMILY EXPRESSIONS LOVING SYMPATHY ASSURANCE PRAYERS PROGRESS HIS RADIANT SOUL ABHÁ KINGDOM.In view of Dr Ḥakím's long and devoted record of services to the Faith other National Spiritual Assemblies are requested to hold memorial gatherings. Special commemorative services should also be held in the four Mother Temples of the Bahá’í World.With loving Bahá’í greetings,THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE

On January 6, 1957, Luṭfu’lláh Ḥakím sent a cable to the National Spiritual Assembly of Iran, advising pioneers to "scatter to make new centers" and "not to gather in one place but to scatter in different places."

To the National Spiritual Assembly of Iran

Letter of January 6, 1957

Regarding pioneers#) going to Japan, Brazil … and other places, the beloved Guardian states that they must not gather in one place but scatter to make new centers, e.g., Mr. Assassi and his wife, and Mr. Labib who travelled to Japan must not stay in Tokyo but should go to places where there are no Bahá’ís, or very few Bahá’ís to make new centers. Furthermore (he) says that the National Spiritual Assembly of Iran must write to all pioneers that have left Iran for other parts of the world and instruct them not to gather in one place but to scatter in different places. He says that the matter stated above is very important… (translated from the original Persian)

(signed by Dr. Hakim)

August 9. On this date in 1984, the Universal House of Justice wrote "The Bahá'ís believe that God's Revelation is under His care and protection and that the essence, or essential elements, of what His Manifestations intended to convey has been recorded and preserved in Their Holy Books. However, as the sayings of the ancient Prophets were written down some time later, we cannot categorically state, as we do in the case of the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, that the words and phrases attributed to Them are Their exact words"

August 9. On this date in 1984, the Universal House of Justice wrote "The Bahá'ís believe that God's Revelation is under His care and protection and that the essence, or essential elements, of what His Manifestations intended to convey has been recorded and preserved in Their Holy Books. However, as the sayings of the ancient Prophets were written down some time later, we cannot categorically state, as we do in the case of the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, that the words and phrases attributed to Them are Their exact words"

...The Bahá'ís believe that God's Revelation is under His care and protection and that the essence, or essential elements, of what His Manifestations intended to convey has been recorded and preserved in Their Holy Books. However, as the sayings of the ancient Prophets were written down some time later, we cannot categorically state, as we do in the case of the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, that the words and phrases attributed to Them are Their exact words.

(9 August 1984 to an individual believer)

August 6. On this date in 1858, Ethel Jenner Rosenberg, the first English Bahá'í, was born. Born in the city of Bath, Somerset to a Jewish family, she became a Bahá'í when she converted in 1899, after having been introduced to the Bahá'í Faith by Mary Thornburgh-Cropper, an American resident in London who had converted in 1898.

Pictured above are early Western Bahá'í pilgrims. Standing left to right: Charles Mason Remey, Sigurd Russell, Edward Getsinger and Laura Clifford Barney; Seated left to right: Ethel Jenner Rosenberg, Madam Jackson, Shoghi Effendi, Helen Ellis Cole, Lua Getsinger, Emogene Hoagg

August 6. On this date in 1858, Ethel Jenner Rosenberg, the first English Bahá'í, was born. Born in the city of Bath, Somerset to a Jewish family, she became a Bahá'í when she converted in 1899, after having been introduced to the Bahá'í Faith by Mary Thornburgh-Cropper, an American resident in London who had converted in 1898.

Ethel Jenner Rosenberg was born on August 6, 1858, in the city of Bath, Somerset to a Jewish family and was a painter trained at the Slade School of Fine Art in London. Rosenberg became a Bahá'í when she converted in 1899, after having been introduced to the Bahá'í Faith by Mary Thornburgh-Cropper, an American resident in London who had converted in 1898.

She was 'Abdu'l-Bahá's social secretary during his visits to London. 'Abdu'l-Bahá asked her, among others, to give consideration to publishing Bahá'í books, which resulted in the publication of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in London and A Brief Account of the Bahai Movement. Rosenberg also assisted Laura Clifford Barney in compiling Some Answered Questions and Lady Blomfield in compiling Paris Talks.

Rosenberg traveled to America three times, initially doing so with Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl and Laura Clifford Barney. She would spend many months in the United States and stayed with Phoebe Hearst.

Rosenberg made three pilgrimages to Haifa, in 1904, 1909 and 1921. When she arrived in Haifa for her third pilgrimage, in 1921, she found that 'Abdu'l-Bahá had recently died. Remaining in Haifa, she greeted Lady Blomfield, Shoghi Effendi, and Shoghi Effendi's sister Ruhangiz when the three arrived from England on December 29, 1921. Shoghi Effendi gave her instructions for the calling of the first National Spiritual Assembly of England, which she would serve on.

Ethel Jenner Rosenberg died on November 17, 1930.

November 1930

(on the death of Miss Ethel J. Rosenberg, 17 November 1930)

DEEPLY GRIEVED PASSING ROSENBERG ENGLAND'S OUTSTANDING BAHA'I PIONEER WORKER. MEMORY HER GLORIOUS SERVICE WILL NEVER DIE ABDU'L-BAHA'S FAMILY JOIN ME IN EXPRESSING HEARTFELT CONDOLENCES HER BROTHER RELATIVES URGE FRIENDS HOLD BEFITTING MEMORIAL SERVICE.

SHOGHI

August 2. On this date in 1953, Fred Schechter arrived in Djibouti City for which he was named a Knight of Baha'u'llah for French Somaliland. He also travelled as a pioneer to several countries in Latin America and served thirteen years as a Continental Counsellor in the Americas and served on the International Teaching Centre from 1993 to 1998.

August 2. On this date in 1953, Fred Schechter arrived in Djibouti City for which he was named a Knight of Baha'u'llah for French Somaliland. He also travelled as a pioneer to several countries in Latin America and served thirteen years as a Continental Counsellor in the Americas and served on the International Teaching Centre from 1993 to 1998.

Born in 1927 to a Jewish family in Brooklyn, New York, Fred Schechter served in the Navy then attended Syracuse University. A comparative religion course provided his first serious look at the Bahá’í Faith, and he became a believer in spring 1949. He soon focused his studies on library science and administration after being advised such a degree could help him find work in many parts of the world. By the time he earned a master’s degree in 1952 he was serving on the Local Spiritual Assembly and a regional teaching committee, and exploring the possibility of international pioneering.

He first went to Kenya to help fulfill the Two Year Plan assigned to the British Bahá’í community. A few months later Shoghi Effendi asked the Bahá’ís to disperse to meet goals of the Ten Year Crusade of 1953–1963, so in October 1953 Fred arrived in French Somaliland. He was one of three honored by Shoghi Effendi as Knights of Bahá’u’lláh for their roles in opening that territory to the Faith. Lack of employment kept that stay brief, and his job search took him to Ethiopia before he landed in Cape Town, South Africa, in 1954. A year later Fred made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, where he conversed with the Guardian.

Continuing to respond to the needs of the Bahá’í community’s development, in 1957 he accepted an invitation by William Sears, then an Auxiliary Board member and later a Hand of the Cause, to move to his family’s farm near Johannesburg. Based there, he helped to teach the Faith and to prepare for election of the Regional Spiritual Assembly of South and West Africa, established only a year earlier.

Soon the goals of the Crusade were met in Africa. But the needs were still acute in South America, so Fred, along with Bill Sears Jr., traveled to Uruguay. During a campaign to strengthen the Bahá’í community there, Fred met his life partner, fellow Bahá’í Julia Bulling, and they married in her home country of Chile in 1960. Bill Sears Jr. married Julia’s sister Mariel. Months passed before Fred and Julia settled down; to meet Bahá’í community needs they traveled to the Dominican Republic and then to Ecuador, where their first son was born. It emerged that Uruguay was where they were needed most, so they returned to live there through 1965, welcoming a second son. Fred and Julia were members of Uruguay’s National Spiritual Assembly, with Fred serving as secretary.

Economic conditions caused them to move to the United States, and their daughter was born there. Living for many years in La Mesa, California, Fred continued to teach and support the Faith energetically, serving the region as a member of a teaching committee and later as an Auxiliary Board member. He was elected several times as a delegate to the Bahá’í National Convention. In 1980 he began 13 years’ service as a member of the Continental Board of Counselors for the Americas. He retired in 1990 from the administration of the San Diego Public Library System. In 1993 he was called to the Bahá’í World Center to serve as a Counselor member of the International Teaching Center, returning to California in 1998.

For years Fred offered courses at Bosch and Louhelen Bahá’í Schools, the Southern California summer school and other gatherings, speaking on Bahá’í history, the Guardian and the Hands of the Cause, the worldwide Plans, and other topics.

Fred’s wife, Julia Bulling Schechter, preceded him in death. His survivors include their three children, Charles, Jim and Amy; and eight grandchildren.

July 28. On this date in 1936, Shoghi Effendi stated "the Qur'an, which book is more authentic than the Bible...The Bible is not wholly authentic, and in this respect is not to be compared with the Qur'an, and should be wholly subordinated to the authentic writings of Bahá'u'lláh."

July 28. On this date in 1936, Shoghi Effendi stated...

1688. Genesis 22:9--Sacrifice of Ishmael

"As to the question raised by the Racine Assembly in connection with Bahá'u'lláh's statement in the 'Gleanings' concerning the sacrifice of Ishmael: Although this statement does not agree with that made in the Bible, Genesis 22:9, the friends should unhesitatingly, and for reasons that are only too obvious, give precedence to the sayings of Bahá'u'lláh which, it should be pointed out, are fully corroborated by the Qur'an, which book is more authentic than the Bible including both the New and the Old Testaments. The Bible is not wholly authentic, and in this respect is not to be compared with the Qur'an, and should be wholly subordinated to the authentic writings of Bahá'u'lláh."

(From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada, July 28, 1936: Bahá'í News, No. 103, p. 1, October 1936)

July 27. On this date in 1953, Siegried Schopflocher, a Hand of the Cause of God, died. The youngest of 18 children, he was raised an Orthodox Jew in Germany, and later became a Bahá’í at Green Acre after having emigrated to Canada. A 1936 letter by Shoghi Effendi states that "it was mainly due to his unfailing and most generous assistance that the Temple in Wilmette was built."

July 27. On this date in 1953, Siegried Schopflocher, a Hand of the Cause of God, died. The youngest of 18 children, he was raised an Orthodox Jew in Germany, and later became a Bahá’í at Green Acre after having emigrated to Canada. A 1936 letter by Shoghi Effendi states that "it was mainly due to his unfailing and most generous assistance that the Temple in Wilmette was built."

Here is an article about Siegfried Schopflocher from the Bahá’í Encyclopedia Project.

On September 25, 1936, Shoghi Effendi wrote the following introduction to the National Spiritual Assembly of India...

Visit of Mr. Schopflocher to India

I am addressing you these few lines on behalf of our beloved Guardian to ask you to kindly inform your fellow-members in the Indian N.S.A. of the happy news of the projected visit of dear Mr. Siegfried Schopflocher to India, and to request you to take any step that your Assembly deems advisable in order to make his journey as fruitful and abundant in its results as possible.

Mr. Siegfried Schopflocher is not in need of any introduction, as his long and manifold services to the Cause in America and particularly his generous and unfailing support of the local, national as well as international Baha'i funds, have endeared him to all the friends, whether in the East or in the West.

For many years he has been a member of the American N.S.A. and he contributed no small part in the steady development and consolidation of the Administration ever since the early days of its establishment in the States. He is indeed an outstanding champion of the Administration not only in America but also in the West, and has proved in deeds his profound attachment and loyalty to all its principles, laws and institutions.

His name will be ever associated with the beloved Temple in Wilmette. Had it not been for the continued and whole-hearted support, both financial and moral, which he so generously extended to it, that edifice could have never been reared so steadily and efficiently. The friends will always remember with deep gratitude the eminent services he has rendered the Faith in this connection.

In view of these labours so devotedly accomplished, the Guardian wishes your Assembly to urge the friends to draw full benefit from Mr. Schopflocher's visit to India. He is confident that you will extend to him a most hearty welcome, and will, through association with him, draw fresh strength and inspiration in your arduous labours for the Cause.

September 25, 1936