Siegfried Schopflocher
From Bahaikipedia
| Siegfried Schopflocher | |
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| Born | 1877 |
| Died | 1953 |
| Title(s) | Hand of the Cause |
| Appointed by | Shoghi Effendi, 1952 |
Siegfried Schopflocher (1877 - 1953) was a Hand of the Cause of God in the Bahá’í Faith appointed by Shoghi Effendi on February, 29 1952.
[edit] Life
Siegfried Schopflocher was born in Germany in 1877. Raised as an orthodox Jew, he turned towards agnosticism and a search for a more universal expression of religion after leaving school. He immigrated to Canada and, after becoming a successful businessman, became a Bahá’í in summer 1921. An "astute, hard-driving, forceful man of the business world," he was President of the Bronze Powder Works with offices around the globe, and held the world patent rights for bronze powder.
In 1922, Mr. Schopflocher made his first visit to Haifa, which was the beginning of many journeys to the World Centre of the Faith. His devotion to the Guardian was immediate and lasting and, for several of his international tours, the Guardian gave him specific assignments to carry out.
His trips, usually undertaken in conjunction with his business, took him to every corner of the globe, where he was able to visit Bahá’í communities and appreciate first-hand the extraordinary bond linking the believers throughout the world in their love for a common Cause. Normally, as Mr. Schopflocher had said, it would have been impossible for a Westerner to make contact with so wide a variety of peoples in the East and West, especially on such short and relatively infrequent visits to so many places; but the worldwide community of the believers destroyed all barriers.
As a Bahá’í he translated many letters and writings and was also a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of Germany like Adelbert Mühlschlegel. He was appointed a Hand of Cause on February 29, 1952 and continued his work of visiting Bahá’ís in Haifa and around the world. He died in 1953 only one year after his appointment to Hand of Cause.
By: Adib Shafipour
[edit] External links
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