Howard Colby Ives tells
bahaistories.com archive · Read original
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When in Bahá'í history
Howard Colby Ives tells . . . a story when about 30 of the boys arrived for their meeting: . . . Among the last to enter the room was a colored lad of about 13 years. He was quite dark and, being the only boy of his race among them, he evidently feared that he might Not be welcome. When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá saw him, His face lighted up with the heavenly smile. He raised His hand and exclaimed in a loud voice, so that none could fail to hear; that here was a black rose. The room fell into instant silence. The black face became illumined with happiness and love hardly of this world. The other boys looked at him with new eyes. I venture to say that he had been called black many things, but never before a black rose.
Source: Earl Redman, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in Their Midst, p. 88
Collected from bahaistories.com (Subject: race-unity).
Discuss this story
For adults
- If you were to share this story aloud at a devotional gathering, which sentence would you read first?
- What in your own life does this story bring to mind?
- Where do love and unity meet in this story?
For teens
- How could the spirit of love show up in your week?
- What does this story say about how to face hard moments?
Reflection
- Is there someone in your life who would be helped by hearing this story?
- Where in your own life are you being asked to practice love?
- Take one line from this story and let it stay with you today.
Comprehension quiz
Which source is "Howard Colby Ives tells" drawn from?
What period of Bahá'í history does this story belong to?
Which historical figure is featured most prominently in this story?
Which virtue does this story most clearly illustrate?
Cite this story
Various. *bahaistories.com archive*. https://bahaistories.com/subject/race-unity
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