Bahá'í Faith in New Caledonia
Encyclopedia
The Bahá'í Faith in New Caledonia was first mentioned by `Abdu'l-Bahá
in 1916, though the first Bahá'í
arrived in 1952 during a temporary visit because of restrictive policies on English-speaking visitors. In 1961 Jeannette Outhey was the first New Caledonia
n to join the religion and with other converts and pioneers
elected the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Nouméa
. The Bahá'í National Spiritual Assembly of New Caledonia was elected in 1977. Multiplying its involvements through to today, the 2001 population was reported at 1,070 and growing.
is in a series of letters, or tablets, to the followers of the religion in the United States
in 1916-1917 by `Abdu'l-Bahá, then head of the religion, asking the followers of the religion to travel to other countries; these letters were compiled together in the book titled Tablets of the Divine Plan
. The seventh of the tablets was the first to mention several island nations in the Pacific Ocean
. Written on April 11, 1916, it was delayed in being presented in the United States until 1919 — after the end of World War I
and the Spanish flu
. The seventh tablet was translated and presented by Mirza Ahmad Sohrab
on April 4, 1919, and published in Star of the West magazine on December 12, 1919.
As a special member of the former Second French colonial empire today's New Caledonia
has a Sui generis
relationship with France
. The French government oversight of the islands of French Polynesia
included an immigration policy
of denying non-French speakers/citizens long-term residency in French Overseas Territories. English speaking Australians Bahá'ís
were thus ineligible for permanent residency. Consequently, Australian Bahá'í pioneers were itinerant rather than permanent, and frequently returned to Australia or travelled between colonies when their visas expired. Access to the Loyalty Islands was even more restrictive as they were designated off-limits to all Europeans, including French citizens.
, head of the religion after the death of `Abdu'l-Bahá, communicated about New Caledonia in several letters: 3 June 1952, 30 April 1953, 7 May 1953, 31 December 1954, 24 January 1956, 3 May 1956 and 15 February 1957, before he died in November 1957. Overall there was poor growth of the Bahá'í community in the French Overseas Territories in the period following World War II
including New Caledonia which contrasted strongly with other areas of the Pacific (see, for example, Bahá'í Faith in Vietnam
).
In this atmosphere of restricted visits, the first pioneer to reach New Caledonia was Australia's
Margaret Rowling in early 1952 followed closely by Mariette Bolton in February the same year. While visiting Noumea
, Bolton went to Bourail
and Voh
communes
. Francois Feminier is mentioned as a convert by July 1952 but may not have been a resident. In January 1955 Rowling described her experiences in New Caledonia in talks at Yerrinbool Bahá'í School in Australia. Daniel Haumont became a Bahá'í in the Society Islands
in early 1955, and travelled to the Loyalty Islands in October 1955 and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh.
A Persian family, the Sohailis, denied entrance to Australia because of Australia's White Australia policy
was able to pioneer to New Caledonia in 1955. In 1958 representatives from the Bahá'í community of New Caledonia attended the 1958 intercontinental conference held in Sydney Australia. By 1959 translations in the Ajië language
(also called Houailou) were available.
In 1961 the first citizens of New Caledonia converted to the religion. Perhaps the first resident Bahá'í was Jeannette Outhey. She accepted the religion in Thio
on the north side of the island on 10 June 1961. In the same year the first people from the Loyalty Islands converted to the religion — they were a husband and wife who joined the religion in Nouméa on the south side of the main island but whose home was on Maré Island. By the end of 1961 there were enough Bahá'ís to form a Local Spiritual Assembly in Nouméa with a smaller community in Thio. Outhey took part actively in 1961 in the election of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of Nouméa and served on that body for nineteen consecutive years before serving in other capacities.
In 1962 Hand of the Cause Collis Featherstone travelled between October 3 and November 12 with an itinerary that included Nouméa among many stops. A regional National Spiritual Assembly had been elected in 1959 to whose annual convention a delegate from the Nouméa spiritual assembly attended first in 1963. Jean Sevin, who was designated a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh to the Tuamotu Archipelago region, was the only French Bahá'í to pioneer in the Pacific during the Ten Year Crusade
. In 1968, at the request of the Universal House of Justice
, Sevin moved to New Caledonia, settling in Nouméa.
, serving the South West Pacific Ocean (Solomon Islands, New Caledonia, Loyalty Is, New Hebrides). Later in 1971, the Solomon Islands formed their own National Assembly and the seat of the National Spiritual Assembly (NSA) of the South West Pacific Ocean was transferred from Honiara in the Solomon Islands to Nouméa. The same year pioneers for Tuamotus
were identified. The NSA was composed of Bahá'ís from New Hebrides, New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands. In 1977, the National Spiritual Assembly of New Caledonia and Loyalty Islands was elected.
hosted a Women's Congress and the community of Noumea
was visited by a Bahea'í travelor who shared stories of his father meeting Bahá'u'lláh
, the founder of the religion. The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of Justice
dated 20 October 1983 was released. Bahá'ís were urged to seek out ways, compatible with the Bahá'í teachings
, in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived. Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Bahá'í socio-economic development projects. By 1987, the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482. The Bahá'í community in New Caledonia has participated in a number of events in New Caledonia. In 1988, and then again 1991, the Bahá'í International Community
, who were meeting in New Caledonia, offered statements at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community
; the statements summarized Bahá'í projects across the Pacific basin by the Bahá'ís on projects related to initiatives of the United Nations (in this case Health, Education, and the Role of Women and Health and Nutrition).
In 1999, New Caledonian Bahá'í were attendees of "Partnerships for the Next Millennium" international conference by the Office for the Advancement of Women of the Bahá'í community of Australia, and then in 2000 the New Caledonia Bahá'í National Women's Association was established and based in Anse Vata.
In 2005, for the 80th anniversary of the Bahá'í Faith, in Fiji the New Caledonian Bahá'í community contributed a Cook Pine
in memory of those Bahá'ís who have been killed in Iran (see Persecution of Bahá'ís
). In 2007 representatives from New Caledonia National Spiritual Assembly addressed the delegates to the national convention for the election of the national spiritual assembly of the Bahá'ís of New Zealand on the occasion of their 50th anniversary.
alone, and three more are from the Loyalty Islands. In 1978 Meherangiz Munsiff, a Bahá'í from Great Britain, attracted publicity. In Nouméa, Munsiff participated in a one and one-half hour television broadcast mentioning Bahá'í teachings
on the role of women which was transmitted to many places in the South Pacific. In 1979 Bahá'ís sources state there were seven assemblies and 24 additional localities with at least one Bahá'í, plus six assemblies and 24 localities of at least one Bahá'í in the Loyalty Islands.
In the 1980s larger group dynamics began to come into play. In 1982 Bahá'ís in the Loyalty Islands from Maré Island
built a Bahá'í center for the Bahá'ís of Nakéty of Canala
province of the main island, in a traditional style - at the dedication some 100 non-Bahá'ís and village elders were moved by the act of service from one community to another. In 1986 tribal chiefs accepted news of the religion with enthusiasm when they understood that progressive revelation from a Bahá'í point of view neither negated nor condemned previous religions, and indeed their own tribal faith predicted the coming of a great "Peacemaker."
In 1990 in classes by Helen Perkins, a Bahá'í from Australia, aspects of the religion were emphasized as well as giving a chance to respond to questions of Bahá'ís. She also spoke at a large gathering.
. The Association of Religion Data Archives
(relying on World Christian Encyclopedia
) estimated some 880 Bahá'ís in 2005.
`Abdu'l-Bahá
‘Abdu’l-Bahá , born ‘Abbás Effendí, was the eldest son of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. In 1892, `Abdu'l-Bahá was appointed in his father's will to be his successor and head of the Bahá'í Faith. `Abdu'l-Bahá was born in Tehran to an aristocratic family of the realm...
in 1916, though the first Bahá'í
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
arrived in 1952 during a temporary visit because of restrictive policies on English-speaking visitors. In 1961 Jeannette Outhey was the first New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
n to join the religion and with other converts and pioneers
Pioneering (Bahá'í)
A pioneer is a volunteer Bahá'í who leaves his or her home to journey to another place for the purpose of teaching the Bahá'í Faith. The act of so moving is termed pioneering. Bahá'ís refrain from using the term "missionary"...
elected the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Nouméa
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
. The Bahá'í National Spiritual Assembly of New Caledonia was elected in 1977. Multiplying its involvements through to today, the 2001 population was reported at 1,070 and growing.
First mention
The first mention of New Caledonia in Bahá'í literatureBahá'í literature
Bahá'í literature, like much religious text, covers a variety of topics and forms, including scripture and inspiration, interpretation, history and biography, introduction and study materials, and apologia...
is in a series of letters, or tablets, to the followers of the religion in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1916-1917 by `Abdu'l-Bahá, then head of the religion, asking the followers of the religion to travel to other countries; these letters were compiled together in the book titled Tablets of the Divine Plan
Tablets of the Divine Plan
The Tablets of the Divine Plan collectively refers to 14 letters written between September 1916 and March 1917 by `Abdu'l-Bahá to Bahá'ís in the United States and Canada. Included in multiple books, the first five tablets were printed in America in Star of the West - Vol. VII, No. 10, September 8,...
. The seventh of the tablets was the first to mention several island nations in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. Written on April 11, 1916, it was delayed in being presented in the United States until 1919 — after the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and the Spanish flu
Spanish flu
The 1918 flu pandemic was an influenza pandemic, and the first of the two pandemics involving H1N1 influenza virus . It was an unusually severe and deadly pandemic that spread across the world. Historical and epidemiological data are inadequate to identify the geographic origin...
. The seventh tablet was translated and presented by Mirza Ahmad Sohrab
Mirza Ahmad Sohrab
Mírzá Aḥmad Sohráb was a Persian-American author and Bahá'í who co-founded the New History Society and the Caravan of East and West in New York, and was excommunicated from the Bahá'í Faith in 1939 by Shoghi Effendi.-Early life:...
on April 4, 1919, and published in Star of the West magazine on December 12, 1919.
"A party speaking their languages, severed, holy, sanctified and filled with the love of God, must turn their faces to and travel through the three great island groups of the Pacific Ocean—PolynesiaPolynesiaPolynesia is a subregion of Oceania, made up of over 1,000 islands scattered over the central and southern Pacific Ocean. The indigenous people who inhabit the islands of Polynesia are termed Polynesians and they share many similar traits including language, culture and beliefs...
, MicronesiaMicronesiaMicronesia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising thousands of small islands in the western Pacific Ocean. It is distinct from Melanesia to the south, and Polynesia to the east. The Philippines lie to the west, and Indonesia to the southwest....
and MelanesiaMelanesiaMelanesia is a subregion of Oceania extending from the western end of the Pacific Ocean to the Arafura Sea, and eastward to Fiji. The region comprises most of the islands immediately north and northeast of Australia...
, and the islands attached to these groups, such as New GuineaNew GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, BorneoBorneoBorneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
, JavaJavaJava is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
, SumatraSumatraSumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
, Philippine Islands, Solomon IslandsSolomon IslandsSolomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, Fiji Islands, New HebridesNew HebridesNew Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
, Loyalty IslandsLoyalty IslandsThe Loyalty Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific. They are part of the French territory of New Caledonia, whose mainland is away. They form the Loyalty Islands Province , one of the three provinces of New Caledonia...
, New CaledoniaNew CaledoniaNew Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, Bismarck ArchipelagoBismarck ArchipelagoThe Bismarck Archipelago is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea.-History:...
, CeramCERAMCERAM is a materials science and testing organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent specialising in the field of ceramics. The CERAM Group owns testing facilities around the world.-History:The British Refractories Research Association was formed in 1920...
, CelebesSulawesiSulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
, Friendly Islands, Samoa Islands, Society IslandsSociety IslandsThe Society Islands are a group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean. They are politically part of French Polynesia. The archipelago is generally believed to have been named by Captain James Cook in honor of the Royal Society, the sponsor of the first British scientific survey of the islands;...
, Caroline IslandsCaroline IslandsThe Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
, Low Archipelago, Marquesas, Hawaiian IslandsHawaiian IslandsThe Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
, Gilbert IslandsGilbert IslandsThe Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...
, Moluccas, Marshall IslandsMarshall IslandsThe Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
, TimorTimorTimor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, north of the Timor Sea. It is divided between the independent state of East Timor, and West Timor, belonging to the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara. The island's surface is 30,777 square kilometres...
and the other islands. With hearts overflowing with the love of God, with tongues commemorating the mention of God, with eyes turned to the Kingdom of God, they must deliver the glad tidings of the manifestation of the Lord of Hosts to all the people."
Governmental policies in the area
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
has a Sui generis
Sui generis
Sui generis is a Latin expression, literally meaning of its own kind/genus or unique in its characteristics. The expression is often used in analytic philosophy to indicate an idea, an entity, or a reality which cannot be included in a wider concept....
relationship with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The French government oversight of the islands of French Polynesia
French Polynesia
French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...
included an immigration policy
Immigration policy
An immigration policy is any policy of a state that deals with the transit of persons across its borders into the country, but especially those that intend to work and to remain in the country. Immigration policies can range from allowing no migration at all to allowing most types of migration,...
of denying non-French speakers/citizens long-term residency in French Overseas Territories. English speaking Australians Bahá'ís
Bahá'í Faith in Australia
The Bahá'í Faith in Australia has a long history beginning with a mention by `Abdu'l-Bahá, the son of the founder of the religion, in 1916 following which United Kingdom/American emigrants John and Clara Dunn came to Australia in 1920. They found people willing to convert to the Bahá'í Faith in...
were thus ineligible for permanent residency. Consequently, Australian Bahá'í pioneers were itinerant rather than permanent, and frequently returned to Australia or travelled between colonies when their visas expired. Access to the Loyalty Islands was even more restrictive as they were designated off-limits to all Europeans, including French citizens.
Pioneers and converts
Shoghi EffendiShoghi Effendi
Shoghí Effendí Rabbání , better known as Shoghi Effendi, was the Guardian and appointed head of the Bahá'í Faith from 1921 until his death in 1957...
, head of the religion after the death of `Abdu'l-Bahá, communicated about New Caledonia in several letters: 3 June 1952, 30 April 1953, 7 May 1953, 31 December 1954, 24 January 1956, 3 May 1956 and 15 February 1957, before he died in November 1957. Overall there was poor growth of the Bahá'í community in the French Overseas Territories in the period following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
including New Caledonia which contrasted strongly with other areas of the Pacific (see, for example, Bahá'í Faith in Vietnam
Bahá'í Faith in Vietnam
The Bahá'í Faith in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam started in a late phase of the First Indochina War. The history of the development of the Bahá'í Faith in Vietnam would begin with its arrival out of India more than a century after its founding in Persia...
).
In this atmosphere of restricted visits, the first pioneer to reach New Caledonia was Australia's
Bahá'í Faith in Australia
The Bahá'í Faith in Australia has a long history beginning with a mention by `Abdu'l-Bahá, the son of the founder of the religion, in 1916 following which United Kingdom/American emigrants John and Clara Dunn came to Australia in 1920. They found people willing to convert to the Bahá'í Faith in...
Margaret Rowling in early 1952 followed closely by Mariette Bolton in February the same year. While visiting Noumea
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
, Bolton went to Bourail
Bourail
Bourail is a commune in the South Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.- Geography :This is a rural town of Grande Terre . The municipality is located in both the mountains and along the sea beaches are tourist but remain wild, they are a place popular...
and Voh
Voh
Voh is a commune in the North Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.It has become famous for the aerial photography known as The Heart of Voh, a large formation of vegetation that resembles a heart seen from above...
communes
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
. Francois Feminier is mentioned as a convert by July 1952 but may not have been a resident. In January 1955 Rowling described her experiences in New Caledonia in talks at Yerrinbool Bahá'í School in Australia. Daniel Haumont became a Bahá'í in the Society Islands
Society Islands
The Society Islands are a group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean. They are politically part of French Polynesia. The archipelago is generally believed to have been named by Captain James Cook in honor of the Royal Society, the sponsor of the first British scientific survey of the islands;...
in early 1955, and travelled to the Loyalty Islands in October 1955 and was named a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh.
A Persian family, the Sohailis, denied entrance to Australia because of Australia's White Australia policy
White Australia policy
The White Australia policy comprises various historical policies that intentionally restricted "non-white" immigration to Australia. From origins at Federation in 1901, the polices were progressively dismantled between 1949-1973....
was able to pioneer to New Caledonia in 1955. In 1958 representatives from the Bahá'í community of New Caledonia attended the 1958 intercontinental conference held in Sydney Australia. By 1959 translations in the Ajië language
Ajië language
Ajië is an Oceanic language spoken in New Caledonia. It has approximately 4,000 speakers.-External links:*...
(also called Houailou) were available.
In 1961 the first citizens of New Caledonia converted to the religion. Perhaps the first resident Bahá'í was Jeannette Outhey. She accepted the religion in Thio
Thio, New Caledonia
Thio is a commune in the South Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.A novel Aerial tramway existed here at the start of the 20th century to facilitate loading ore ships offshore...
on the north side of the island on 10 June 1961. In the same year the first people from the Loyalty Islands converted to the religion — they were a husband and wife who joined the religion in Nouméa on the south side of the main island but whose home was on Maré Island. By the end of 1961 there were enough Bahá'ís to form a Local Spiritual Assembly in Nouméa with a smaller community in Thio. Outhey took part actively in 1961 in the election of the first Local Spiritual Assembly of Nouméa and served on that body for nineteen consecutive years before serving in other capacities.
In 1962 Hand of the Cause Collis Featherstone travelled between October 3 and November 12 with an itinerary that included Nouméa among many stops. A regional National Spiritual Assembly had been elected in 1959 to whose annual convention a delegate from the Nouméa spiritual assembly attended first in 1963. Jean Sevin, who was designated a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh to the Tuamotu Archipelago region, was the only French Bahá'í to pioneer in the Pacific during the Ten Year Crusade
Ten Year Crusade
The Ten Year World Crusade was launched by Shoghi Effendi in an effort to facilitate an organized expansion of the Bahá'í Faith....
. In 1968, at the request of the Universal House of Justice
Universal House of Justice
The Universal House of Justice is the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith. It is a legislative institution with the authority to supplement and apply the laws of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, and exercises a judicial function as the highest appellate institution in the...
, Sevin moved to New Caledonia, settling in Nouméa.
National Spiritual Assembly
In 1964 the regional national assembly was divided into separate regional national assemblies with one based in HoniaraHoniara
Honiara, population 49,107 , 78,190 , is the capital of the Solomon Islands and of Guadalcanal Province, although it is a separately administered town...
, serving the South West Pacific Ocean (Solomon Islands, New Caledonia, Loyalty Is, New Hebrides). Later in 1971, the Solomon Islands formed their own National Assembly and the seat of the National Spiritual Assembly (NSA) of the South West Pacific Ocean was transferred from Honiara in the Solomon Islands to Nouméa. The same year pioneers for Tuamotus
Tuamotus
The Tuamotus or the Tuamotu Archipelago are a chain of islands and atolls in French Polynesia. They form the largest chain of atolls in the world, spanning an area of the Pacific Ocean roughly the size of Western Europe...
were identified. The NSA was composed of Bahá'ís from New Hebrides, New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands. In 1977, the National Spiritual Assembly of New Caledonia and Loyalty Islands was elected.
Mutiplying interests and growth
Since its inception the religion has had involvement in socio-economic development beginning by giving greater freedom to women, promulgating the promotion of female education as a priority concern, and that involvement was given practical expression by creating schools, agricultural coops, and clinics. In 1975 the assembly of MaréMaré
Maré is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.The commune of Maré is made up of Maré Island and the much smaller Dudun Island, which lie among the Loyalty Islands, to the northeast of New Caledonia's mainland. The settlement...
hosted a Women's Congress and the community of Noumea
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
was visited by a Bahea'í travelor who shared stories of his father meeting Bahá'u'lláh
Bahá'u'lláh
Bahá'u'lláh , born ' , was the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. He claimed to be the prophetic fulfilment of Bábism, a 19th-century outgrowth of Shí‘ism, but in a broader sense claimed to be a messenger from God referring to the fulfilment of the eschatological expectations of Islam, Christianity, and...
, the founder of the religion. The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of Justice
Universal House of Justice
The Universal House of Justice is the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith. It is a legislative institution with the authority to supplement and apply the laws of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, and exercises a judicial function as the highest appellate institution in the...
dated 20 October 1983 was released. Bahá'ís were urged to seek out ways, compatible with the Bahá'í teachings
Bahá'í teachings
The Bahá'í teachings represent a considerable number of theological, social, and spiritual ideas that were established in the Bahá'í Faith by Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the religion, and clarified by successive leaders including `Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'u'lláh's son, and Shoghi Effendi, `Abdu'l-Bahá's...
, in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived. Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Bahá'í socio-economic development projects. By 1987, the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482. The Bahá'í community in New Caledonia has participated in a number of events in New Caledonia. In 1988, and then again 1991, the Bahá'í International Community
Bahá'í International Community
The Bahá'í International Community, or the BIC, is an international non-governmental organization representing the members of the Bahá'í Faith; it was first chartered in March 1948 with the United Nations, and currently has affiliates in over 180 countries and territories.The BIC seeks to "promote...
, who were meeting in New Caledonia, offered statements at the Secretariat of the Pacific Community
Secretariat of the Pacific Community
The Secretariat of the Pacific Community, or SPC , is a regional intergovernmental organisation whose membership includes both nations and territories...
; the statements summarized Bahá'í projects across the Pacific basin by the Bahá'ís on projects related to initiatives of the United Nations (in this case Health, Education, and the Role of Women and Health and Nutrition).
In 1999, New Caledonian Bahá'í were attendees of "Partnerships for the Next Millennium" international conference by the Office for the Advancement of Women of the Bahá'í community of Australia, and then in 2000 the New Caledonia Bahá'í National Women's Association was established and based in Anse Vata.
In 2005, for the 80th anniversary of the Bahá'í Faith, in Fiji the New Caledonian Bahá'í community contributed a Cook Pine
Araucaria
Araucaria is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees in the family Araucariaceae. There are 19 extant species in the genus, with a highly disjunct distribution in New Caledonia , Norfolk Island, eastern Australia, New Guinea, Argentina, Chile, and southern Brazil.-Description:Araucaria are mainly...
in memory of those Bahá'ís who have been killed in Iran (see Persecution of Bahá'ís
Persecution of Bahá'ís
The persecution of Bahá'ís is the religious persecution of Bahá'ís in various countries, especially in Iran, where the Bahá'í Faith originated and the location of one of the largest Bahá'í populations in the world...
). In 2007 representatives from New Caledonia National Spiritual Assembly addressed the delegates to the national convention for the election of the national spiritual assembly of the Bahá'ís of New Zealand on the occasion of their 50th anniversary.
Growth
Growth by conversion had been sporadic but accelerating by the end of the 1970s. In the 1970s a number of gatherings of Bahá'ís resulted in teams of people who cooperated in efforts to bring the religion to the attention of people in New Caledonia. In one nine-week period in early 1977 29 people converted to the religion; 12 being from the town of ThioThio
The prefix thio-, when applied to a chemical, such as an ion, means that an oxygen atom in the compound has been replaced by a sulfur atom. This meaning is especially valid in organic chemistry. For example, the word ether refers to an oxygen-containing compound having the general chemical...
alone, and three more are from the Loyalty Islands. In 1978 Meherangiz Munsiff, a Bahá'í from Great Britain, attracted publicity. In Nouméa, Munsiff participated in a one and one-half hour television broadcast mentioning Bahá'í teachings
Bahá'í teachings
The Bahá'í teachings represent a considerable number of theological, social, and spiritual ideas that were established in the Bahá'í Faith by Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the religion, and clarified by successive leaders including `Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'u'lláh's son, and Shoghi Effendi, `Abdu'l-Bahá's...
on the role of women which was transmitted to many places in the South Pacific. In 1979 Bahá'ís sources state there were seven assemblies and 24 additional localities with at least one Bahá'í, plus six assemblies and 24 localities of at least one Bahá'í in the Loyalty Islands.
In the 1980s larger group dynamics began to come into play. In 1982 Bahá'ís in the Loyalty Islands from Maré Island
Maré Island
Maré Island is the second-largest of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune of Maré, in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia....
built a Bahá'í center for the Bahá'ís of Nakéty of Canala
Canala
Canala is a commune in the North Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.-History:On 25 April 1995 about 47% of the territory of Canala was detached and became the commune of Kouaoua....
province of the main island, in a traditional style - at the dedication some 100 non-Bahá'ís and village elders were moved by the act of service from one community to another. In 1986 tribal chiefs accepted news of the religion with enthusiasm when they understood that progressive revelation from a Bahá'í point of view neither negated nor condemned previous religions, and indeed their own tribal faith predicted the coming of a great "Peacemaker."
In 1990 in classes by Helen Perkins, a Bahá'í from Australia, aspects of the religion were emphasized as well as giving a chance to respond to questions of Bahá'ís. She also spoke at a large gathering.
Demographics
A 2001 estimate for the number of Bahá'ís in the countrly was listed at 0.50% of the national population or 1,070 individuals with an annual growth rate of +2.1% by Operation WorldOperation World
Operation World is a reference book and prayer guide, begun by Patrick Johnstone and continued by Jason Mandryk, both from WEC International. Operation World is published by , and produced by...
. The Association of Religion Data Archives
Association of religion data archives
The Association of Religion Data Archives is a free source of online information related to American and international religion. Founded as the American Religion Data Archive in 1997, and online since 1998, the archive was initially targeted at researchers interested in American religion...
(relying on World Christian Encyclopedia
World Christian Encyclopedia
World Christian Encyclopedia is a reference work published by Oxford University Press, known for providing membership statistics for major and minor world religions in every country of the world, including historical data and projections of future populations.The first edition, by David B. Barrett,...
) estimated some 880 Bahá'ís in 2005.