New Caledonia

From Bahaikipedia

The Bahá’í Faith in New Caledonia was first mentioned by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in 1916,^[1] though the first Bahá’í arrived in 1952^[2] during a temporary visit because of restrictive policies on English-speaking visitors.^[3] In 1961 Jeannette Outhey was the first New Caledonian to join the religion and with other converts and pioneers elected the first Bahá’í Local Spiritual Assembly of Nouméa.^[4] The Bahá’í National Spiritual Assembly of New Caledonia was elected in 1977.^[3] Multiplying it's involvements through to today, the 2001 population was reported at 1,070 and growing.^[5]

Contents 1 First mention 2 Early phase 2.1 Governmental policies in the area 2.2 Pioneers and converts 3 National Spiritual Assembly 4 Mutiplying interests 5 Demographics 6 References

[edit] First mention

The first mention of New Caledonia in Bahá’í literature 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 in April 11, 1916, it was delayed in being presented in the United States until 1919 — after the end of the First World War and the Spanish flu. The seventh tablet was translated and presented by Mirza Ahmad Sohrab on April 4th, 1919, and published in Star of the West magazine on December 12th, 1919.^[6]

"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—Polynesia, Micronesia and Melanesia, and the islands attached to these groups, such as New Guinea, Borneo, Java, Sumatra, Philippine Islands, Solomon Islands, Fiji Islands, New Hebrides, Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia, Bismarck Archipelago, Ceram, Celebes, Friendly Islands, Samoa Islands, Society Islands, Caroline Islands, Low Archipelago, Marquesas, Hawaiian Islands, Gilbert Islands, Moluccas, Marshall Islands, Timor 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."^[1]

[edit] Early phase

[edit] Governmental policies in the area

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.^[3]

[edit] Pioneers and converts

Shoghi Effendi, 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.^[2] 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^[3] (see for example Vietnam.)

In this atmosphere of restricted visits, the first pioneer to reach New Caledonia was Australia's Margaret Rowling in early 1952.^[2] In January 1955 she described her experiences in New Caledonia in talks at Yerrinbool Bahá’í School in Australia.^[7] 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.^[2]

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.^[2][8]

In 1961 the first citizens of New Caledonia converted to the religion. Perhaps the first Bahá’í was Jeannette Outhey.^[4] 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.^[9] By the end of 1961 there were enough Bahá’ís to form a Local Spiritual Assembly in Nouméa with a smaller community in Thio. ^[10] 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.^[4]

In 1962 Hand of the Cause Collis Featherstone travelled between October 3 and November 12 with an itinerary that included Nouméa among many stops.^[11] A regional National Spiritual Assembly had been elected in 1959^[3] 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.^[2]

[edit] National Spiritual Assembly

In 1964 the regional national assembly was divided into seperate regional national assemblies with one based in Honiara, 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.^[3] 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.^[3]

[edit] Mutiplying interests

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^[12] and Health and Nutrition.^[13])

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,^[14] and then in 2000 the New Caledonia Bahá’í National Women's Association was established and based in Anse Vata.^[15]

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).^[16] 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.^[17]

[edit] 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%.^[5]

[edit] References

• "Bahá’í Faith in New Caledonia". Retrieved on 2008-07-31.