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"The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens."
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"The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens."
50 stories on this theme.
Mary Maxwell of Montreal married Shoghi Effendi on 25 March 1937 in a simple, private wedding; as Rúḥíyyih Khánum she later served as a Hand of the Cause and travelled to 185 countries and territories.
On the evening of her wedding Munírih Khánum received Bahá’u’lláh’s blessing, then awaited ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in the bridal room. The service was very simple, with no choir, decorations or cake, just cups of tea.
Before leaving London, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá married a young Persian couple, asking each whether they loved the other with all their heart and soul. The writer recalls the simplicity of His own wedding and His words on the holiness of marriage.
In the matter of divorce, as in that of marriage, the instructions of the Prophets have varied in accordance with the circumstances of the times.
The following particulars regarding the marriage of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá were kindly supplied to the writer by a Persian historian of the Bahá’í Faith:— During the youth of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá the question of a suitable marriage for Him was naturally one …
Bahá’u’lláh, like Muḥammad, forbids His followers to lead lives of monastic seclusion.
Bahá'u'lláh intended His niece Shahr-Banu Khanum to marry His eldest Son, but relatives in Tihran prevented the match and forced her into another marriage, which left her in lasting grief.
Bahíyyih Khánum recalls her mother Ásíyih Khánum's marriage to Bahá'u'lláh, her forty mules of wedding treasures, and their life of caring for the poor. The jewelled buttons were later exchanged for bread on the road to exile.
Corinne True's daughter Arna feared she had tuberculosis and felt she could not marry Leo Perron. 'Abdu'l-Bahá took her thermometer, broke it in two, and told her she would be well and could marry. She soon recovered.
Visiting the poet Elizabeth Gibson Cheyne and her invalid husband, Dr T. K. Cheyne, in Oxford, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was moved to tears by her loving care and called her an angelic woman.
Grace very much wanted to attend the Unity Feast at West Englewood, but Dr Krug wanted her to play golf with him. 'Abdu'l-Bahá told her she must always consider the Doctor, who later became a Bahá'í.
Munírih Khánum recalls how Bahá’u’lláh summoned her from Iṣfahán, her guarded journey by way of Mecca to ‘Akká, and her simple wedding to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, at which Bahá’u’lláh Himself chanted the prayers.
In New York in 1912, Lua Getsinger told Grace Robarts that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wished her to marry Harlan Ober, a man she scarcely knew. Grace obeyed, and the Master Himself performed their marriage.
When Ásíyih Khánum married Bahá'u'lláh, forty mules carried her wedding treasures. Together they cared for the poor, and when hard times came, her jewels paid for food and her gold buttons were traded for bread.
In 1937 Mary Maxwell of Montreal married Shoghi Effendi in Haifa. Almost no one knew beforehand, and there was no celebration, no wedding dress and no reception.
In 1912 'Abdu'l-Bahá united two American Bahá'ís in marriage. At the wedding, before guests from many countries, He chanted a prayer for them.
Near the end of Louis Gregory’s pilgrimage, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá expressed the wish that he and Louisa Mathew, a white English pilgrim, should marry. They did, and their marriage endured many pressures as a symbol of the unity of the races.
Munírih Khánum writes that the fifty years of her married life with 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and His love, mercy and bounty, could never be adequately described.
Bahíyyih Khánum remembered her mother, Ásíyih Khánum, who married Bahá'u'lláh in 1835: her wealth as a bride, her gentleness, and the care for the poor that led people to call her the Mother of Consolation.
Years later, the wife of the Báb told Munírih Khánum of the dreams that came before their marriage, of His hours of prayer, and of the night Mullá Ḥusayn came to their home in Shíráz.
Louis Gregory, an African American lawyer, and Louisa Mathew, an Englishwoman, met as pilgrims in 1911. 'Abdu'l-Bahá expressed the wish that they marry, and on 27 September 1912 they became the first interracial Bahá'í couple in America.
On pilgrimage in 1911 Louis Gregory heard ‘Abdu’l-Bahá urge the races to intermarry; the next year the Master encouraged his marriage to Louisa Mathew, the first marriage between a Black and a white Bahá’í.
On 17 July 1912 'Abdu'l-Bahá united Harlan Ober and Grace Robarts in marriage. At the evening ceremony, performed by Howard Colby Ives before guests from many lands, the Master chanted a prayer for the couple.
Rúḥíyyih Khánum recalls her marriage to Shoghi Effendi on 25 March 1937: a visit to the Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh, a simple ceremony in the room of the Greatest Holy Leaf, and no celebration at all.
On 1 October 1911 in London, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá performed the marriage of Mírzá Yuhanna Dáwúd and Núr Mahal Khánum, telling them He had never before united anyone in marriage except His own daughters.
The Mashriqu’l-Adhkár is one of the most vital institutions in the world, and it hath many subsidiary branches.
O thou dear handmaid of God! Thy letter hath been received, and its contents were noted.
As for the question regarding marriage under the Law of God: first thou must choose one who is pleasing to thee, and then the matter is subject to the consent of father and mother.
O thou memento of him who died for the Blessed Beauty! In recent days, the joyful news of thy marriage to that luminous leaf hath been received, and hath infinitely gladdened the hearts of the people of God.
O ye my two beloved children! The news of your union, as soon as it reached me, imparted infinite joy and gratitude.
O thou who art firm in the Covenant! The letter thou hadst written on 2 May 1919 was received. Praise thou God that in tests thou art firm and steadfast and art holding fast to the Abhá Kingdom.
O God, my God!
O thou who hast bowed thyself down in prayer before the Kingdom of God!
O ye two believers in God! The Lord, peerless is He, hath made woman and man to abide with each other in the closest companionship, and to be even as a single soul.
Writing home from Constantinople while her husband Ali-Kuli Khan was away, Florence Khan described with humour her quiet life, her devotion to him, and the ‘guardians’ he had set to watch over her.
Rúḥíyyih Khánum recalls her marriage to Shoghi Effendi on 25 March 1937: a quiet visit to the Shrine of Bahá’u’lláh, a ring, and no celebration, flowers or wedding dress.
O maid-servant of God! Thy letter reached me and I prayed God to bless thee by His heavenly blessing in thy marriage with Mr. ........ and to confirm both of you with comfort and repose and the turning of your heart to the Kingdom of God.
O thou favored maid-servant of the Kingdom of God! The letter, which thou hast written, was received.
O thou spiritual son! Verily I have received thy lettter … and its contents were known. I supplicate God to open to thee a way and prepare for thee and guide thee in thy affair.
O thou who art advancing unto God!
O thou who art agitated as oceans by the winds blown from the direction of the Kingdom of God!
O thou who art attracted to the Bounty of El-ABHA!
O thou who art speaking the praise of god in that vast and extensive region!
O thou who art yearning for the Glad-tidings of God!
O thou who hast humbled thyself before the Kingdom of God! Blessed art thou that thine heart is attracted to the Beauty of God, is illumined with the light of knowledge and the ray of the Kingdom hath shone within it.
Bahíyyih Khánum recalls how a daughter born after the Báb's prayer for a childless follower came to the Holy Family, and how, at Bahá'u'lláh's request, 'Abdu'l-Bahá took her as His wife.
The Master taught that divorce should not be made easier, but marriage more difficult. Lady Blomfield records two cases from the years of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in the Holy Land.
Bahíyyih Khánum recalls that on the day of His wedding, after carefully preparing to receive the guests, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá quietly withdrew to keep His habit of visiting the poor and sick.
John Robarts tells of George, an African Bahá’í whose wife opposed the Faith. With only one room in their house, she waited under the banana tree during his meetings, and became a Bahá’í during the rainy season.
Near Lake Dublin, New Hampshire, in August 1912, 'Abdu'l-Bahá spoke to a gathering of Black people about unity between Black and white, and told them of the coming marriage of Louisa Mathew and Louis Gregory.