Acknowledging these truths, this website is a personal tribute dedicated to the largely unsung "living American Baha'i martyrs", the heroes and heroines who have had a profound influence on my life and the lives of countless other friends by encouraging us to unflinchingly adhere to the preeminent principle and practice of " effective teaching", and have lovingly and firmly encouraged us to arise and teach audaciously undeterred by a fear of mistakes, as the beloved Guardian and supreme Universal House of Justice has exhorted all of us to do. (We will also pay tribute to some of the unsung American Baha'i heroes and heroines who have passed on to the Abha Kingdom or passed out to foreign pioneering posts.)

 

But more than a personal tribute, this website is a gift to the Baha'i youth and newer Baha'is whom have not had the bounty of living in the time of the Hands of the Cause of God but may yet experience a glimpse of their greatness in the living souls highlighted herein.

 

Having become a Baha'i as a youth in the 1970's, I had the bounty of meeting and being both directly and indirectly influenced by Hands of the Cause, such as William Sears, Enoch Olinga, Ruhiyyih Khanum, Dr. Muhajir, Mr. Furutan, and others, and by other illumined souls who actually met and were inspired by Baha'u'llah and 'Abdu'l-Baha. These spirit-filled souls and other mentors along the way encouraged me to be an audacious teacher of the Cause and helped me to overcome odds and obstacles to doing the same. Most of these mentors have passed on to the Abha Kingdom and some have permanently left the shores of America for pioneering posts, however some are still here in the flesh & spirit and are going strong in the teaching & training arena, though advanced in age.

 

This writer's contention is that if we don't have a sense of our history, that is, where we have been (our past), we cannot adequately know where we are (our present), nor where we are going (our future). This is especially true in relation to the growth and development of our community. These "living martyrs" have a direct and first-hand knowledge of the American Baha'i community's past growth and development, are still very involved in supporting and innovating the current processes of growth, and are visionary regarding the future growth and possibilities. Most importantly, however, they have continued for decades to overcome every obstacle to growth in this culture. Any culture or community which does not transmit the wisdom of its elders to its younger generation is doomed to repeat the mistakes of the past and partly relinquish its vision of the future.

And it is the contention of this writer that one of the main reasons that our American Baha'i community isn't growing now and hasn't been growing significantly in the past decade is because we are not listening to and learning from those souls who are and have been successfully facilitating such community expansion and growth their entire Baha'i lives.

 

So the main purpose of this website is not to memorialize the past and present noble and heroic endeavors of these noble souls but to give the current community, especially its youth and newer members, the opportunity to directly learn from their experience and wisdom and even possibly participate with them in learning how to audaciously generate systematic growth and how to overcome the apathy, lethargy, denial , materialism and every other obstacle to growth endemic to this culture.

 

To that end I will include contact information for each of these living heroes and heroines so that you may contact them directly, or feel free to contact this writer (pilgrim1@mindspring.com ) to get in touch with them. Some of them still travel to teach and train others. Others will be available to you via e-mail or phone. My strong suggestion to everyone reading this: don't waste any time in getting in touch with these "treasures of the earth" while they are still among us. And don't take anyone's word about them, good or bad--get to know them yourselves! That is what I did and it has changed my life. Under their guidance and sometimes accompanied by them I have traveled this and other countries effectively attracting, teaching and enrolling receptive souls, and training others to do the same. Their advice and example has almost always proven true, and they have also trained me in the effective follow-up and consolidation of new believers. Yes, you may hear that they are considered by some to be controversial figures, as most visionaries and activists are, however it is only because of fear and misunderstanding. They do strike fear in us; but it is the fear that Nelson Mandela spoke of in his inaugaration speech:

The souls highlighted herein reflect in the mirror of their lives that power and light to us, reminding us that if they can do it so can we, and that possibility is frightening.

One Auxiliary Board Member, when describing to me why some of these heroic souls are often feared and misunderstood, stated: "When they go into a room full of people, in a public place or anywhere, they really believe that everyone there is their brother and sister, or long lost cousin, and that each one has been prepared for the Cause of God in this age, so they take the time to meet and greet and teach some, and oftentimes find a soul immediately receptive to the Faith of God among these new found family members." Another friend observed that they, like the Master, see that the "temple is already built" when it is still only a vision, and they act on that vision as if it were true thereby bringing it to fruition.

This is so foreign and is such a new paradigm to most of us that it is easily misunderstood.

Finally, though the heroic souls highlighted herein are from diverse backgrounds, one thread you will notice in the vignettes about their lives in the next section is their great steadfastness in and great sacrifices for the teaching work.