Four members of the Omagh Community recently met with the Chairman of Omagh District Council and presented him with a copy of Bahá'u'lláh, Who is Writing the Future, and The Prosperity of Humankind. It was a very successful meeting lasting for an hour and the Chairman constantly asked questions about the Faith. He was keen to know what Bahá'ís felt about abortion, divorce and life after death. The Bahá'í prayers were another aspect he showed great interest in and he asked each one if they had any particular favourites, one of the friends said a prayer for him, ‘O God, refresh and gladden my spirit...’. When leaving he escorted us out to the car and assured us he would read the books.
A special dramatic production was made at the holy day gathering in Londonderry on 20 October. Sarah Munro, Keith Munro, and Kerry Whiteside prepared and presented it as the local event to mark the 150th anniversary of the martyrdom of Tahirih. Using light, costumes, a ‘veil’ which extended across the room, and music, the life and mission of this disciple of the Báb was brought to a rapt audience in a moving and appropriate manner.
‘Women Then-and Now’ - Sarah Munro as Tahirih and Kerry Whiteside after the presentation
I remember there were moves a few years ago to try to get our holy days noted in diaries sold to the public and as a result some manufacturers started to put in one or two.
.Last week I bought a WHSmith diary for 2003 while in Scotland and was pleasantly surprised to see that no less than seven Bahá'í holy days were listed - all of our major nine except the ninth and twelfth days of Ridván. For comparison numbers of holy days listed for other faiths were Christian (Western) 9, Christian (Eastern Orthodox) 4, Hindu 3, Chinese 1, Buddhist 3, Jewish 7, Sikh 6, and Muslim 7.
A nice piece of recognition. How do dairies from other sources compare, I wonder?
Elizabeth Palin
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