Bahá'í Faith in Spain
Encyclopedia
The Bahá'í Faith in Spain begins with coverage of events in the history of the Bábí
religion in the 1850s. The first mention of Spain in Bahá'í literature
was `Abdu'l-Bahá
mentioning it as a place to take the religion to in 1916. The first Bahá'í to visit Spain was in 1930 and the first pioneer
to stay was Virginia Orbison in January 1947. Following some conversions to the religion the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Madrid was elected in 1948. As of 1959 there were 28 Bahá'ís registered in Spain. Following the spread of the religion the first National Spiritual Assembly was elected in 1962. Following the election the breadth of initiatives of the community increased privately until 1968 when the national assembly was able to register as a Non-Catholic Religious Association in the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Information and Tourism allowing public religious events and publication and importation of religious materials. Following this the diversity of initiatives of the community significantly expanded. Bahá'ís began operating a permanent Bahá'í school
and in 1970 the first Spanish Roma joined the religion. In 1981 the Bahá'ís held a separate school in the north central region of Spain to which over 100 people form 26 communities attended and the Spiritual Assembly of Mallorca held several month long classes (mostly for non-Bahá'ís) in computer usage in 1985. Fifty years after the first local assembly there were 100 assemblies. The Association of Religion Data Archives
(relying on World Christian Encyclopedia
) estimated some 12,800 Bahá'ís in 2005. In 2008 the Universal House of Justice
picked the Spanish community to host a regional conference for the Iberian peninsula and beyond.
(Barcelona and Madrid on different days of November). Most of the books found are translations of foreign authors or reference works like dictionaries, encyclopedias or manuals but there are some contributions made by Spanish authors. See also first contact between the Netherlands and the Bábí and Bahá'í faiths.
, the son of the founder of the religion, wrote a series of letters, or tablets, to the followers of the religion in the United States
in 1916-1917; 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 countries in Europe
including beyond where `Abdu'l-Bahá had visited in 1911-12. 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.
was an American pioneer living in Brazil when she saw to a translation into Spanish. She decided to go to Madrid
to study the Spanish language because Shoghi Effendi
, then head of the religion, wanted Spanish literature and she wanted to become proficient in the language. In July 1930 she boarded a French ship which first took her to several ports of call in West Africa and then to Barcelona. From Barcelona she proceeded to Madrid where she intended to take university courses. However she soon fell seriously ill with Scarlet fever
for a time and was unable to take courses at a university of Madrid
. When she recovered she went on Bahá'í pilgrimage
and afterwards focused her efforts in Latin and South America.
In September 1942 Bahá'í Virginia Orbison pioneered for the first time when she arrived in Santiago, Chile, from the United States to carry on the work begun by Marcia Atwater. See Bahá'í Faith in Chile
. After a few years she returned to the US briefly before moving south again -this time to Brazil where she met Leonora Armstrong and reviewed the translation Armstrong had contracted. Starting in 1946, following World War II
, Shoghi Effendi drew up plans for the American (US and Canada) Bahá'í community to send pioneers
to Europe including Spain; the Bahá'ís setup a European Teaching Committee chaired by Edna True. Orbison was the first pioneer under the European Committee to reach Spain in January 1947. The second pioneer to Spain was Eduardo Gonzales in June 1947 and stayed until March 1948. Orbison describes conditions early on - "You had to know someone well before you'd dare mention the Faith." Nevertheless a young bank employee had carried on correspondence about Esperanto
with a friend of Orbison's in the United States and they were able to meet and discuss the religion. Orbison mentioned that a universal auxiliary language was a Bahá'í teaching
. He and a friend returned the next day and both soon joined the religion. Other early contacts were afraid to be associated with the religion. By June 1947 there is mention of the first two converts. In 1948 the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Madrid was formed. Dorothy Beecher Baker, a prominent Bahá'í and member of the Committee, visited the Bahá'ís in Spain among other European countries in 1948 and again in 1951 when she was appointed as a Hand of the Cause. By June 1949 there were two assemblies in Spain when Orbison, Marion Little, and a Spaniard Bahá'í traveled to Barcelona to meet Bahá'ís there. By April 1950 Else Horneman had joined Orbison in Spain.
. In 1953 a large meeting was held by the Spaniards in Barcelona which Orbison attended. According to Orbison's recollection many years later the next morning the police investigated the meeting and the women staying in the apartment were arrested on investigation that they were communists. All the Bahá'ís of Barcelona were then gathered and questioned. The fact of converting one communist to a religion believing in God, and affirmations of Bahá'í teachings of obedience to government, may have played a role in relaxing the fears of the police. Regardless all were released. In October 1953 Americans pioneers Gertrude Eisenberg and Tenerife True pioneered to the Canary Islands
and in June 1954 a young Persian, Shoghi Riaz Rouhani, also moved there.
In 1955 the first native Carnarians joined the religion and in April the first assemblies of the Canaries were elected simultaeously in the cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
. By 1955 there was an assembly in Murcia
and Alicante
in 1956.
By April 1955 the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Ceuta
was elected.
A regional national assembly was elected for the Iberian peninsula from 1957 to 1962. The 1957 convention was witnessed by Charles Wolcott
as a representative of Shoghi Effendi. The Bahá'ís of Mallorca
elected their first assembly in 1957 as well. The members of the second regional assembly, of 1958, were: Charles Monroe Ioas, Ramón Escartin, Luis Ortuno, Sara Tiffon, Francisco Salas, Angelo Carneiro, Jose Lopez Monge, Virginia Orbison, and Isidro Torrella.
Born, raised, and married in Iran, Rúhu'lláh Furúghí moved to Spain in October 1958 with his wife and five children (the youngest, one year of age, the eldest fifteen). They had no knowledge of the language nor of the circumstances in their chosen goal. After spending nine months in Barcelona
he moved with his family to Mallorca
to assist with the formation of its first local assembly. Three years later the family pioneered once more, this time to Granada
where there had been no Bahá`ís. Guy Murchie
is Bahá'í and former staff writer for the Chicago Sunday Tribune and author of several books. For a time around 1958 he was living in Malaga
. As of 1959 there were 28 Bahá'ís registered in Spain. In May 1959 the first Bahá'í marriage was registered with the government as a civil ceremony.
The National Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Spain was first elected in 1962 with attendance by Hand of the Cause Paul Haney. Its first members were: Antonio Jimenez, Luis Ortuno, Francisco Salas, Jose Lopez Monge, Ruhollah Mehrabhkani, Carlos Chias, Ramon Escartin, Isidro Torrella, and Charles Ioas.
In 1963 statistics on the community counted as follows:
visited Bahá'ís of Murcia. Later a regional conference was held in Cartagena, in the south of Spain, to discuss the progress of the religion in Spain. The first assembly of Granada and Santa Maria de Barbara in Cataluñia was elected in 1965. The first national youth school was held in Valencia during July 1966 with about 60 youth attending giving several public talks. It was followed by a school in December in Murcia. In 1967 Hand of the Cause Paul Haney made a return trip through Spain. The English language weekly newspaper Guidepostof February 16, 1968 mentions the coming of Charles Ioas from Illinois in 1953 as a pioneer. The article mentions details of his work in Madrid as well as his activities in teaching and administration for the religion. In 1970 the first Spanish Roma, Maria Camacho Martinez, joined the religion in Sabadell
. In 1972 assembly of the Bahá'ís of Santa Cruz de La Palma
was elected and one year later the Arucas and La Laguna assemblies were elected on the Canaries. In 1975 Furúghí was elected a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Spain. He led a group of Bahá`í youth on a teaching trip of several weeks' duration in Ireland
and travelled thousands of miles across Spain giving public talks and carrying out different tasks in service to the religion. During the last two years of his life he served as the treasurer of the national assembly. In 1976 Iranian Bahá'í entertainer Ahdieh, who had appeared on Iranian radio & television, decided to move to Spain as a pioneer. Leaving Iran at the age of 25, she continued to build her musical career and has since performed widely at Bahá'í events. A regional conference on the growth of the religion in Spain in 1977 had weeks of public events in the region including a visit from Virginia Orbison, officially declared a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Spain. In April 1984, an autonomous Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Canary Islands was elected. By 1988 two assemblies were composed mostly of Roma. In 1988 the national assembly held its first international youth conference- attendies came from Canada, the Canary Islands, Crete, Holland, Italy, Northern Ireland, Puerto Rico, Spain and the United States. Madrid hosted the 1989 regional European youth conference of Bahá'ís which gathered some 700 attendees from 26 countries and members of three national assemblies.
. The inaugural summer school, with Hand of the Cause Dr. Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir
, in Liria in August 1971 with attendees from 19 communities. In July 1975 Hand of the Cause of God Ugo Giachery
gave a talk at the school. In winter 1976 there was a viewing of The Green Light Expeditiondocumenting Hand of the Cause Rúhíyyih Khanum
's trip up the Amazon River and into the high mountain ranges of Peru and Bolivia. The 1977 session of the school held sessions for children, youth and adults which attracted 227 people including 30 non-Bahá'ís, and 35 children. In 1981 the Bahá'ís held a second school in the north central region of Spain to which over 100 people form 26 communities attended. In 1983 some 200 Bahá'ís from 45 communities gathered for a spiritualization conference at the national school. In 1984 Continental Counselor
Mas'úd Khamsí toured among the communities of Bahá'ís and gave public interviews and met with institutions of the religion. The Spiritual Assembly of Mallorca held several month long classes (mostly for non-Bahá'ís) in computer usage in two cities on the island in 1985. In 1986 Bahá'ís in Terrassa and Cartagena held weekend institutes on the subject of the equality of women and men - a core Bahá'í teaching
. In 1987 some 170 Persian speaking Bahá'ís gathered at the national school -the keynote talk was given by Adib Taherzadeh
.
in Spain, as well as the importation and distribution of religious materials from outside the country. Following the registrations it was possible to hold public meetings for the first time and to present the religion a number of venues and several articles on the Faith were published in Catalonia, the Balearic and Canary Islands and elsewhere. Radio program broadcast mention of the religion for the first time. The national assembly initiatted the Baha'i News Bulletin internally while externally a number of articles were published by various journalists.
In 1972 an observance of Human Rights Day
was sponsored by the Bahá'ís of Barcelona with some 200 persons attending. The guest speaker's talk was entitled "Equality of Rights and Opportunities, Especially Regarding Women" while Bahá'í Professor Mehrabkhani presented "The Spiritual Source of Human Rights." The event was held again in 1973 and the Bahá'ís of Tarasa held its first. In 1974 the first televised broadcast mentioning the religion was aired with interviews of Bahá'ís and the Bahá'ís organized their first institute on children. In 1979 radio coverage of the religion expanded with a variety of programs including some regular programs.
In 1979 the Bahá'í community of Palma Majorca was among nine religious groups asked to participate in a round table discussion sponsored by an ecumenical organization. The Bahá'ís suggested that a group be formed to help teachers include spiritual education, without proselytizing, in the regular school curricula. The Bahá'ís were then asked to develop the idea and present a plan of action at a later meeting. Monthly meetings presided over by a priest were held at the Bahá'í center to work on the project. In 1980 the national assembly began to publish "Pensamiento Baha'i" (Baha'i Thought), in bi-monthly form.
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.
In the Canaries in 1990 European youth gathered in Gran Canaria some of whom when on to form "Art Sano," in 1998 and performed around the island. Bahá'ís were present in the University of La Laguna
since the late eighties and officially formed the University Bahá'í Club began to 1993. In November 1992 seventy-two Bahá'ís from the Canaries participated in the second Bahá'í World Congress
. In 1994 the Bahá'ís of the Canaries formed the Bahá'í Association of Women.
Regional conferences were called for by the Universal House of Justice
in October 2008 and one was held for the Iberian peninsula 24–25 January 2009 to celebrate recent achievements in grassroots community-building and to plan their next steps in organizing in their home areas. More than 1,000 Bahá'ís from Spain, 140 from Portugal, and 135 from the Canary Islands attended. In addition, two Baha’is came from the principality of Andorra in the Pyrenees Mountains, and nine from the Spanish city of Melilla in North Africa. Other people came from Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia to share in the gathering.
, Juan Carlos Grau, within the Foreign Affairs Parliamentary Committee, which was once again unanimously approved by all parties and passed by the Spanish House of Representatives asking the Spanish government to call for the release of the seven (7) Baha’i leaders [formerly known as the Yaran, or "Friends"] in Iran and to condemn the systematic persecution of the Baha’is. It also condemns the human rights violations committed by the Islamic Republic of Iran. See Persecution of Bahá'ís
.
(relying on World Christian Encyclopedia
) estimated some 12,800 Bahá'ís in 2005. As of 2007 Bahá'ís established in all the Canary islands spread among about fifty municipalities.
Babi
Babi may refer to:* Babı, a municipality in Azerbaijan* Babi Dynasty, founded in 1735 by Muhammed Sher Khan Babi , Nawabs of this dynasty went on to rule over Junagadh in Gujarat, from the 18th to the 20th century....
religion in the 1850s. The first mention of Spain in Bahá'í literature
Bahá'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...
was `Abdu'l-Bahá
`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...
mentioning it as a place to take the religion to in 1916. The first Bahá'í to visit Spain was in 1930 and the first pioneer
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"...
to stay was Virginia Orbison in January 1947. Following some conversions to the religion the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Madrid was elected in 1948. As of 1959 there were 28 Bahá'ís registered in Spain. Following the spread of the religion the first National Spiritual Assembly was elected in 1962. Following the election the breadth of initiatives of the community increased privately until 1968 when the national assembly was able to register as a Non-Catholic Religious Association in the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Information and Tourism allowing public religious events and publication and importation of religious materials. Following this the diversity of initiatives of the community significantly expanded. Bahá'ís began operating a permanent Bahá'í school
Bahá'í school
A Bahá'í school at its simplest would be a school run officially by the Bahá'í institutions in its jurisdiction and may be a local class or set of classes, normally run weekly where children get together to study about Bahá'í teachings, Bahá'í central figures, or Bahá'í administration...
and in 1970 the first Spanish Roma joined the religion. In 1981 the Bahá'ís held a separate school in the north central region of Spain to which over 100 people form 26 communities attended and the Spiritual Assembly of Mallorca held several month long classes (mostly for non-Bahá'ís) in computer usage in 1985. Fifty years after the first local assembly there were 100 assemblies. 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 12,800 Bahá'ís in 2005. In 2008 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...
picked the Spanish community to host a regional conference for the Iberian peninsula and beyond.
Early phase
There were more than 160 references to the Bábí and Bahá'í religions in the Spanish daily press, books, periodicals and manuscripts from the founding of the religions in 1844 to 1947. The earliest press articles found were published in 1850 and announce the news of the Zanjan upheaval (Madrid October 24) and the Execution of the BábExecution of the Báb
On the morning of July 9, 1850 in Tabriz, a young Persian merchant known as the Báb was charged with apostasy and shot by order of the Prime Minister of the Persian Empire...
(Barcelona and Madrid on different days of November). Most of the books found are translations of foreign authors or reference works like dictionaries, encyclopedias or manuals but there are some contributions made by Spanish authors. See also first contact between the Netherlands and the Bábí and Bahá'í faiths.
`Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablets of the Divine Plan
In the history of the Bahá'í Faith the first mentions of Spain start in the twentieth century. `Abdu'l-Bahá`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...
, the son of the founder of the religion, wrote 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; 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 countries in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
including beyond where `Abdu'l-Bahá had visited in 1911-12. 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.
"In brief, this world-consuming war has set such a conflagration to the hearts that no word can describe it. In all the countries of the world the longing for universal peace is taking possession of the consciousness of men. There is not a soul who does not yearn for concord and peace. A most wonderful state of receptivity is being realized.… Therefore, O ye believers of God! Show ye an effort and after this war spread ye the synopsis of the divine teachings in the British Isles, France, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Russia, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Portugal, Rumania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece, Andorra, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Monaco, San Marino, Balearic Isles, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, Crete, Malta, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Shetland Islands, Hebrides and Orkney Islands."
Establishment of the community
Leonora ArmstrongLeonora Armstrong
Leonora Holsapple Armstrong was the first Bahá'í to live in Brazil and she is regarded as a 'Spiritual Mother of the Bahá'ís of Latin America'...
was an American pioneer living in Brazil when she saw to a translation into Spanish. She decided to go to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
to study the Spanish language because Shoghi Effendi
Shoghi 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...
, then head of the religion, wanted Spanish literature and she wanted to become proficient in the language. In July 1930 she boarded a French ship which first took her to several ports of call in West Africa and then to Barcelona. From Barcelona she proceeded to Madrid where she intended to take university courses. However she soon fell seriously ill with Scarlet fever
Scarlet fever
Scarlet fever is a disease caused by exotoxin released by Streptococcus pyogenes. Once a major cause of death, it is now effectively treated with antibiotics...
for a time and was unable to take courses at a university of Madrid
University of Madrid
The Complutense University of Madrid is a public university in Madrid, Spain, and one of the oldest universities in the world.The University of Madrid may also refer to:* The Autonomous University of Madrid, a public university founded in 1968...
. When she recovered she went on Bahá'í pilgrimage
Bahá'í pilgrimage
A Bahá'í pilgrimage currently consists of visiting the holy places in Haifa, Akká, and Bahjí at the Bahá'í World Centre in Northwest Israel. Bahá'ís do not have access to other places designated as sites for pilgrimage....
and afterwards focused her efforts in Latin and South America.
In September 1942 Bahá'í Virginia Orbison pioneered for the first time when she arrived in Santiago, Chile, from the United States to carry on the work begun by Marcia Atwater. See Bahá'í Faith in Chile
Bahá'í Faith in Chile
The Bahá'í Faith in Chile begins with references to Chile in Bahá'í literature as early as 1916, with the first Bahá'ís visiting as early as 1919. A functioning community was not founded in Chile until 1940 with the beginning of the arrival of coordinated pioneers from the United States finding...
. After a few years she returned to the US briefly before moving south again -this time to Brazil where she met Leonora Armstrong and reviewed the translation Armstrong had contracted. Starting in 1946, 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...
, Shoghi Effendi drew up plans for the American (US and Canada) Bahá'í community to send 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"...
to Europe including Spain; the Bahá'ís setup a European Teaching Committee chaired by Edna True. Orbison was the first pioneer under the European Committee to reach Spain in January 1947. The second pioneer to Spain was Eduardo Gonzales in June 1947 and stayed until March 1948. Orbison describes conditions early on - "You had to know someone well before you'd dare mention the Faith." Nevertheless a young bank employee had carried on correspondence about Esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
with a friend of Orbison's in the United States and they were able to meet and discuss the religion. Orbison mentioned that a universal auxiliary language was a Bahá'í teaching
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...
. He and a friend returned the next day and both soon joined the religion. Other early contacts were afraid to be associated with the religion. By June 1947 there is mention of the first two converts. In 1948 the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Madrid was formed. Dorothy Beecher Baker, a prominent Bahá'í and member of the Committee, visited the Bahá'ís in Spain among other European countries in 1948 and again in 1951 when she was appointed as a Hand of the Cause. By June 1949 there were two assemblies in Spain when Orbison, Marion Little, and a Spaniard Bahá'í traveled to Barcelona to meet Bahá'ís there. By April 1950 Else Horneman had joined Orbison in Spain.
Towards a national organization
In September 1951 the first Iberian conference took place with nine native Bahá'ís and other pioneers who had attended the Fourth European Teaching Conference – recommendations from the consultation included exchanging updated information and further coordination between the communities, and to send contributions for the final work on the Shrine of the BábShrine of the Báb
The Shrine of the Báb is a structure in Haifa, Israel where the remains of the Báb, founder of Bábism and forerunner of Bahá'u'lláh in the Bahá'í Faith, have been laid to rest; it is considered to be the second holiest place on Earth for Bahá'ís, after the Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh in Acre...
. In 1953 a large meeting was held by the Spaniards in Barcelona which Orbison attended. According to Orbison's recollection many years later the next morning the police investigated the meeting and the women staying in the apartment were arrested on investigation that they were communists. All the Bahá'ís of Barcelona were then gathered and questioned. The fact of converting one communist to a religion believing in God, and affirmations of Bahá'í teachings of obedience to government, may have played a role in relaxing the fears of the police. Regardless all were released. In October 1953 Americans pioneers Gertrude Eisenberg and Tenerife True pioneered to the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
and in June 1954 a young Persian, Shoghi Riaz Rouhani, also moved there.
In 1955 the first native Carnarians joined the religion and in April the first assemblies of the Canaries were elected simultaeously in the cities of Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital , second-most populous city of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the 21st largest city in Spain, with a population of 222,417 in 2009...
and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria commonly known as Las Palmas is the political capital, jointly with Santa Cruz, the most populous city in the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the ninth largest city in Spain, with a population of 383,308 in 2010. Nearly half of the people of the island...
. By 1955 there was an assembly in Murcia
Murcia
-History:It is widely believed that Murcia's name is derived from the Latin words of Myrtea or Murtea, meaning land of Myrtle , although it may also be a derivation of the word Murtia, which would mean Murtius Village...
and Alicante
Alicante
Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest...
in 1956.
By April 1955 the first Bahá'í Local Spiritual Assembly of Ceuta
Ceuta
Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish...
was elected.
A regional national assembly was elected for the Iberian peninsula from 1957 to 1962. The 1957 convention was witnessed by Charles Wolcott
Charles Wolcott
Charles Wolcott served as a member of the Universal House of Justice, the supreme governing body of the Bahá'í Faith, between 1963 and 1987.Wolcott was born in Flint, Michigan, USA...
as a representative of Shoghi Effendi. The Bahá'ís of Mallorca
Mallorca
Majorca or Mallorca is an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the Balearic Islands.The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera Archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca...
elected their first assembly in 1957 as well. The members of the second regional assembly, of 1958, were: Charles Monroe Ioas, Ramón Escartin, Luis Ortuno, Sara Tiffon, Francisco Salas, Angelo Carneiro, Jose Lopez Monge, Virginia Orbison, and Isidro Torrella.
Born, raised, and married in Iran, Rúhu'lláh Furúghí moved to Spain in October 1958 with his wife and five children (the youngest, one year of age, the eldest fifteen). They had no knowledge of the language nor of the circumstances in their chosen goal. After spending nine months in Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
he moved with his family to Mallorca
Mallorca
Majorca or Mallorca is an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, one of the Balearic Islands.The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Cabrera Archipelago is administratively grouped with Majorca...
to assist with the formation of its first local assembly. Three years later the family pioneered once more, this time to Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
where there had been no Bahá`ís. Guy Murchie
Guy Murchie
Guy Murchie , the son of Ethel A. and Guy Murchie Sr., was a Chicago Tribune photographer, staff artist and reporter, who had served as a war correspondent in England and Iceland from 1940 to 1942. He was briefly married to Barbara Cooney , with whom he shared two children...
is Bahá'í and former staff writer for the Chicago Sunday Tribune and author of several books. For a time around 1958 he was living in Malaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
. As of 1959 there were 28 Bahá'ís registered in Spain. In May 1959 the first Bahá'í marriage was registered with the government as a civil ceremony.
The National Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Spain was first elected in 1962 with attendance by Hand of the Cause Paul Haney. Its first members were: Antonio Jimenez, Luis Ortuno, Francisco Salas, Jose Lopez Monge, Ruhollah Mehrabhkani, Carlos Chias, Ramon Escartin, Isidro Torrella, and Charles Ioas.
In 1963 statistics on the community counted as follows:
| Assemblies | |||||||
| Alicante Alicante Alicante or Alacant is a city in Spain, the capital of the province of Alicante and of the comarca of Alacantí, in the south of the Valencian Community. It is also a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city of Alicante proper was 334,418, estimated , ranking as the second-largest... |
Barcelona Barcelona Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of... |
Ceuta Ceuta Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish... |
Cartagena Cartagena, Spain Cartagena is a Spanish city and a major naval station located in the Region of Murcia, by the Mediterranean coast, south-eastern Spain. As of January 2011, it has a population of 218,210 inhabitants being the Region’s second largest municipality and the country’s 6th non-Province capital... |
L'Hospitalet de Llobregat L'Hospitalet de Llobregat L'Hospitalet de Llobregat or briefly L'Hospitalet is a city to the immediate southwest of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain, and the second largest in Catalonia by population... |
Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Las Palmas de Gran Canaria Las Palmas de Gran Canaria commonly known as Las Palmas is the political capital, jointly with Santa Cruz, the most populous city in the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the ninth largest city in Spain, with a population of 383,308 in 2010. Nearly half of the people of the island... |
Madrid Madrid Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan... |
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| Montgat Montgat Montgat is a municipality in the comarca of the Maresme inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated on the coast between Badalona and El Masnou, to the north-east of... |
Murcia Murcia -History:It is widely believed that Murcia's name is derived from the Latin words of Myrtea or Murtea, meaning land of Myrtle , although it may also be a derivation of the word Murtia, which would mean Murtius Village... |
Sabadell Sabadell Sabadell is the second largest city in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental in Catalonia, Spain. It is in the south of the comarca, on the River Ripoll, 20 km north-west of Barcelona... |
Santa Cruz de Tenerife Santa Cruz de Tenerife Santa Cruz de Tenerife is the capital , second-most populous city of the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands and the 21st largest city in Spain, with a population of 222,417 in 2009... |
Tarrasa | Valencia | ||
| Smaller Groups of Bahá'ís | |||||||
| Abanilla Abanilla Abanilla is a Spanish municipality located in the Comarca Oriental in the Autonomous Community of Murcia. It lies close to the border of the province of Alicante in the Autonomous Community of Valencia.-Geography:... |
Badalona Badalona Badalona is a city in eastern Catalonia, Spain. It is located in the comarca of the Barcelonès, near the city of Barcelona and part of its metropolitan area. It is situated on the left bank of the small Besòs River and on the Mediterranean Sea, backed by the Serra de la Marina mountain range... |
Cheste Cheste Cheste is a municipality in the comarca of Hoya de Buñol in the Valencian Community, Spain, located 26 km from the capital Valencia.- History :... |
Granada Granada Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea... |
Santa María de Bárbara | Teresa de Cofrentes Teresa de Cofrentes Teresa de Cofrentes is a municipality in the comarca of Valle de Cofrentes in the Valencian Community, Spain.... |
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| Isolated Bahá'ís | |||||||
| Béjar Béjar Béjar is a town and municipality in the province of Salamanca, western Spain, part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It lies had a population of 15,016 .-History:... |
Cornella de Llobregat Cornellà de Llobregat Cornellà de Llobregat is a municipality in the comarca of the Baix Llobregat inCatalonia, Spain. It is situated on the left bank of the Llobregat river.- History :... |
El Ferrol | Jaén Jaén, Spain Jaén is a city in south-central Spain, the name is derived from the Arabic word Jayyan, . It is the capital of the province of Jaén. It is located in the autonomous community of Andalusia.... |
Linares | Málaga Málaga Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe... |
San Juan Despi | Villanueva y Geltrú |
Since forming a national community
In 1964 Hand of the Cause John FerrabyJohn Ferraby
John Ferraby was a British Bahá'í born in Southsea, England into a liberal Jewish family. He was educated at Malvern and at King's College, Cambridge, to which he won a major scholarship....
visited Bahá'ís of Murcia. Later a regional conference was held in Cartagena, in the south of Spain, to discuss the progress of the religion in Spain. The first assembly of Granada and Santa Maria de Barbara in Cataluñia was elected in 1965. The first national youth school was held in Valencia during July 1966 with about 60 youth attending giving several public talks. It was followed by a school in December in Murcia. In 1967 Hand of the Cause Paul Haney made a return trip through Spain. The English language weekly newspaper Guidepostof February 16, 1968 mentions the coming of Charles Ioas from Illinois in 1953 as a pioneer. The article mentions details of his work in Madrid as well as his activities in teaching and administration for the religion. In 1970 the first Spanish Roma, Maria Camacho Martinez, joined the religion in Sabadell
Sabadell
Sabadell is the second largest city in the comarca of the Vallès Occidental in Catalonia, Spain. It is in the south of the comarca, on the River Ripoll, 20 km north-west of Barcelona...
. In 1972 assembly of the Bahá'ís of Santa Cruz de La Palma
Santa Cruz de La Palma
Santa Cruz de la Palma is located on the eastern part of the island of La Palma in the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife of the Canary Islands. Santa Cruz de la Palma is the second largest city and is the capital of the island...
was elected and one year later the Arucas and La Laguna assemblies were elected on the Canaries. In 1975 Furúghí was elected a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Spain. He led a group of Bahá`í youth on a teaching trip of several weeks' duration in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and travelled thousands of miles across Spain giving public talks and carrying out different tasks in service to the religion. During the last two years of his life he served as the treasurer of the national assembly. In 1976 Iranian Bahá'í entertainer Ahdieh, who had appeared on Iranian radio & television, decided to move to Spain as a pioneer. Leaving Iran at the age of 25, she continued to build her musical career and has since performed widely at Bahá'í events. A regional conference on the growth of the religion in Spain in 1977 had weeks of public events in the region including a visit from Virginia Orbison, officially declared a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for Spain. In April 1984, an autonomous Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Canary Islands was elected. By 1988 two assemblies were composed mostly of Roma. In 1988 the national assembly held its first international youth conference- attendies came from Canada, the Canary Islands, Crete, Holland, Italy, Northern Ireland, Puerto Rico, Spain and the United States. Madrid hosted the 1989 regional European youth conference of Bahá'ís which gathered some 700 attendees from 26 countries and members of three national assemblies.
Bahá'í Schools
In August 1968 the national assembly purchased land for a permanent Bahá'í schoolBahá'í school
A Bahá'í school at its simplest would be a school run officially by the Bahá'í institutions in its jurisdiction and may be a local class or set of classes, normally run weekly where children get together to study about Bahá'í teachings, Bahá'í central figures, or Bahá'í administration...
. The inaugural summer school, with Hand of the Cause Dr. Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir
Rahmátu'llah Muhájir
Raḥmatu'lláh Muhájir was a prominent fourth generation Bahá'í, born on 4 April 1923 in the town of 'Abdu'l-'Azím, Iran. In 1954, Dr Muhájir married Írán Furútan, the daughter of `Alí-Akbar Furútan, and together they pioneered to the Mentawai Islands of Indonesia...
, in Liria in August 1971 with attendees from 19 communities. In July 1975 Hand of the Cause of God Ugo Giachery
Ugo Giachery
Ugo Giachery was a prominent Italian Bahá'í from an aristocratic family from Palermo. At an anniversary of the founding of the spiritual assembly of Perugia Giachery told the story of how, as a young wounded soldier, still ignorant of the Bahá'í Faith, he was in Perugia in 1916...
gave a talk at the school. In winter 1976 there was a viewing of The Green Light Expeditiondocumenting Hand of the Cause Rúhíyyih Khanum
Rúhíyyih Khanum
Amatu'l-Bahá Rúhíyyih Khánum , born Mary Sutherland Maxwell was the wife of Shoghi Effendi, the head of the Bahá'í Faith from 1921–1957. She was appointed by him as a Hand of the Cause, and served an important role in the transfer of authority from 1957–1963...
's trip up the Amazon River and into the high mountain ranges of Peru and Bolivia. The 1977 session of the school held sessions for children, youth and adults which attracted 227 people including 30 non-Bahá'ís, and 35 children. In 1981 the Bahá'ís held a second school in the north central region of Spain to which over 100 people form 26 communities attended. In 1983 some 200 Bahá'ís from 45 communities gathered for a spiritualization conference at the national school. In 1984 Continental Counselor
Institution of the Counsellors
The Counsellors are part of the administrative order of the Bahá'í Faith, and are part of a greater administrative branch called the Institution of the Counsellors, established by the Universal House of Justice in 1968....
Mas'úd Khamsí toured among the communities of Bahá'ís and gave public interviews and met with institutions of the religion. The Spiritual Assembly of Mallorca held several month long classes (mostly for non-Bahá'ís) in computer usage in two cities on the island in 1985. In 1986 Bahá'ís in Terrassa and Cartagena held weekend institutes on the subject of the equality of women and men - a core Bahá'í teaching
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 1987 some 170 Persian speaking Bahá'ís gathered at the national school -the keynote talk was given by Adib Taherzadeh
Adib Taherzadeh
Adib Taherzadeh served as a member of the Universal House of Justice, the supreme governing body of the Bahá'í Faith, between 1988 and 2000.-Biography:...
.
Multiplying interests
In July 1968 that the national assembly received registry number 2 in the Register of Non-Catholic Religious Associations in the Ministry of Justice. This recognition of the National Spiritual Assembly carries with it the automatic legal recognition of all Local Spiritual Assemblies duly formed in accordance with the Statutes of the National Spiritual Assembly after various government levels and to the Supreme Court denied options. In December 1966 a new basic law of the land was approved by national referendum, and one provision of the new law provided for government protection of all religions. To implement this new concept, a Law on Religious Liberty was passed by the national Parliament on June 28, 1967. At the same time the religion was registered in the Ministry of Information and Tourism thus permitting the publication of 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...
in Spain, as well as the importation and distribution of religious materials from outside the country. Following the registrations it was possible to hold public meetings for the first time and to present the religion a number of venues and several articles on the Faith were published in Catalonia, the Balearic and Canary Islands and elsewhere. Radio program broadcast mention of the religion for the first time. The national assembly initiatted the Baha'i News Bulletin internally while externally a number of articles were published by various journalists.
In 1972 an observance of Human Rights Day
Human Rights Day
Human Rights Day is celebrated annually across the world on 10 December.The date was chosen to honor the United NationsGeneral Assembly's adoption and proclamation, on 10 December 1948, of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , the first global enunciation of human rights...
was sponsored by the Bahá'ís of Barcelona with some 200 persons attending. The guest speaker's talk was entitled "Equality of Rights and Opportunities, Especially Regarding Women" while Bahá'í Professor Mehrabkhani presented "The Spiritual Source of Human Rights." The event was held again in 1973 and the Bahá'ís of Tarasa held its first. In 1974 the first televised broadcast mentioning the religion was aired with interviews of Bahá'ís and the Bahá'ís organized their first institute on children. In 1979 radio coverage of the religion expanded with a variety of programs including some regular programs.
In 1979 the Bahá'í community of Palma Majorca was among nine religious groups asked to participate in a round table discussion sponsored by an ecumenical organization. The Bahá'ís suggested that a group be formed to help teachers include spiritual education, without proselytizing, in the regular school curricula. The Bahá'ís were then asked to develop the idea and present a plan of action at a later meeting. Monthly meetings presided over by a priest were held at the Bahá'í center to work on the project. In 1980 the national assembly began to publish "Pensamiento Baha'i" (Baha'i Thought), in bi-monthly form.
Modern community
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. The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of JusticeUniversal 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.
In the Canaries in 1990 European youth gathered in Gran Canaria some of whom when on to form "Art Sano," in 1998 and performed around the island. Bahá'ís were present in the University of La Laguna
University of La Laguna
The University of San Fernando de La Laguna, also known as the ULL is situated in San Cristóbal de La Laguna, on the island of Tenerife. It is the oldest university in the Canary Islands, and has the highest student population of any university in these islands. It is also considered the most...
since the late eighties and officially formed the University Bahá'í Club began to 1993. In November 1992 seventy-two Bahá'ís from the Canaries participated in the second Bahá'í World Congress
Bahá'í World Congress
The Bahá'í World Congress is a large gathering of Bahá'ís from across the world that is called irregularly by the Universal House of Justice, the governing body of the Bahá'ís...
. In 1994 the Bahá'ís of the Canaries formed the Bahá'í Association of Women.
Regional conferences were called for by 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...
in October 2008 and one was held for the Iberian peninsula 24–25 January 2009 to celebrate recent achievements in grassroots community-building and to plan their next steps in organizing in their home areas. More than 1,000 Bahá'ís from Spain, 140 from Portugal, and 135 from the Canary Islands attended. In addition, two Baha’is came from the principality of Andorra in the Pyrenees Mountains, and nine from the Spanish city of Melilla in North Africa. Other people came from Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia to share in the gathering.
Spanish Government statements
In 2000 Spain rose in support of a resolution about concern over the Bahá'ís in Iran as well as taking steps to further document conditions. In 2006, all party groups backed a motion in the Foreign Affairs Parliamentary Committee calling on the Iranian government to respect the rights of the Bahá'ís in Iran. This motion was unanimously approved by all parties represented in that Committee and passed by the Spanish House of Representatives. In 2009, a similar motion was introduced by a member of the conservative People's PartyPeople's Party (Spain)
The People's Party is a conservative political party in Spain.The People's Party was a re-foundation in 1989 of the People's Alliance , a party led and founded by Manuel Fraga Iribarne, a former Minister of Tourism during Francisco Franco's dictatorship...
, Juan Carlos Grau, within the Foreign Affairs Parliamentary Committee, which was once again unanimously approved by all parties and passed by the Spanish House of Representatives asking the Spanish government to call for the release of the seven (7) Baha’i leaders [formerly known as the Yaran, or "Friends"] in Iran and to condemn the systematic persecution of the Baha’is. It also condemns the human rights violations committed by the Islamic Republic of 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...
.
Demographics
The Association of Religion Data ArchivesAssociation 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 12,800 Bahá'ís in 2005. As of 2007 Bahá'ís established in all the Canary islands spread among about fifty municipalities.
External links
- Official Website of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Spain Comunidad Bahá'í de España
- Asociaciones de Mujeres Baha'is en España and regional branches.
- Artístík community and arts projects and blog of the Office of External affairs.
- Comunidad Bahá'í de Barcelona
- Comunidad Bahá'í de Zaragoza
- Los Baha'is
- Los Bahá'ís, Una presentación de La Fe Bahá'í y de su comunidad mundial