The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Dededo, Guam
First Mention
The
first mention of the Bahá'í Faith in the Mariana Islands occured in 1936, when a
Bahá'í from Hawaii, Mrs. Mary Sweyze, the wife of scientist Dr. Otto Herman Sweyze,
joined her husband on a survey to study insects on Guam. Dr. and Mrs. Sweyze arrived on
Guam on 27 April, 1936 and remained until 30 November, a period of seven months. It was
during this time that Mrs. Sweyze introduced the Bahá'í Faith to members of the
Manibusan family in Sinajana. This is the first mention of the name of Baha'u'llah in the
Marianas of which we are aware.
Better
known is the time spent on Tinian and Saipan towards the end of the Second World War,
around 1945, by Mr. Paul Pettitt, a member of the United States Armed Forces. Mr. Pettitt
has written an account for our records of the "first teaching conference" held
on Saipan by himself and two other young Bahá'í servicemen.
In April
and May of 1954, the first Bahá'í settlers, Robert Powers, Jr. and Cynthia R. Olson,
arrived on Guam, seperately. Cynthia was soon joined by her husband Edgar, better known as
Olie. Soon afterwards, in July, Mrs. Mildred Mottahedeh, a well known Bahá'í of
international stature, travelled through Guam as the first Bahá'í "travelling
teacher." This was soon followed by the first Bahá'í Holy Day observance, and
weekly advertisements of the Faith's activities in the "Guam Daily News."
In November
of that same year the first presentation of Bahá'í books was made to island libraries.
The Bahá'í Fund was established and contributions were soon being sent to the Bahŕ'í
International Fund, and to a special fund to assist the persecuted Bahá'ís in Iran.
Before a year had elapsed, in March l955, the first declaration of belief in Baha'u'llah
by a local resident was made by a U.S. civil service worker, Mr. Charles Mackey, followed
by the first mention of the Bahá'i Faith on radio, KUAM, made by Cynthia Olsen as part of
the "Calendars of the World" program.
One of
the most historic events to occur in these early days was the enrollment of the first
Micronesian Bahá'í, a Palauan by the name of Joe Erie Ilengelkei, aged 21. This
enrollment assured the formation of the first Spiritual Assembly in Micronesia, the Guam
Spiritual Assembly, on April 21, 1956. Members included: Charles T. Mackey, Ellis S.
Adkins, Antonio Alfonso, Joe Erie Ilengelkei, DeWitt Haywood Jr., Louanna Haywood, Robert
Powers, Jr., Cynthia R. Olson and Edgar A. Olson - representing members of the African,
Caucasian, Asian and Pacific Island peoples. (See official photo: The Bahá'í World, Vol.
Xlll, p. 1126.)
That
summer, the first Chamorro translation of Bahá'í Writings, "Blessed is the
Spot," was prepared by Mrs. Angeline Isezaki of Umatac. Later in 1956, the Guam
Department of Education recognized Bahá'í Holy Days and permitted Bahá'í children to
be absent from school on those days. The "Bahá'í Grapevine," a newsletter for
the Bahá'í community, also commenced publication during 1956. In August, the Olsons were
the first to make a teaching trip to the island of Rota. And on 12 November - the
anniversary of the Birth of Baha'u'llah - a series of half-hour radio programs on the
Bahá'í Faith began on KUAM radio.
The Guam
Spiritual Assembly was officially incorporated in April of 1957, and the first Bahá'í
marriage took place in June of that year, with precedent-setting legal recognition which
has remained in effect on Guam to this day. As a climax to those first 3 years of
"firsts," in November of 1957, Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian and Head of the
Bahŕ'í Faith at that time, identified and recorded the Mariana Islands as an
"Outstanding Centre." The goal set for the Bahŕ'ís in the Marianas at that
time was to have these islands "opened," with at least one believer residing
here. This goal was exceeded three-fold with the formation of the Guam Spiritual Assembly,
its legal incorporation, and the translation of Bahá'í literature into the indigenous
language.
The
first Bahá'í settler in the Northern Marianas, Miss Virginia Breaks, who had been the
first Bahá'í resident in the Eastern Caroline Islands, arrived on Saipan in June of
l962. Her job had been transferred to Saipan when the Trust Territory Government was moved
there from Chuuk. A year later, in July 1963, the first Bahá'í television program was
aired in the Mariana Islands, a slide slow on Bahá'í history, produced by Edgar Olson
and shown on Guam's KUAM-TV.
A very
prominent Bahá'í, Mr. H. Collis Featherstone, came to visit the Bahá'ís of the
Marianas in May of 1965. This was the first of nine visits he would eventually make here.
A teaching conference was held on Guam during that visit, and Mrs. Patience Robinson, an
African-American who was living on Saipan, became the first resident from that island to
declare her Faith in Baha'u'llah. The first Bahá'í to actually be enrolled on Saipan was
Sibina Siren, a Chuukese nurse stationed there. She was also the first Chuukese to become
a Bahá'í. A year and a half later, the first Chamorro believer, "Duke"
Manibusan of Sinajana, declared his belief in Baha'u'llah.
Another
prominent Bahá'í, Mr. A. Q. Faizi, visited the Marianas in January of 1970, and this
began a period of great change for the Bahá'í Faith here. The first National Teaching
Committee for Micronesia, appointed by the Hawaiian National Spiritual Assembly as a
precursor to the first National Spiritual Assembly of the region, was subsequently formed
and based on Guam. In preparation for that welcome event, the Bahá'ís on Guam valiantly
arose to travel and teach the Faith throughout the islands of Micronesia, forming 4
Spiritual Assemblies: 2 in Pohnpei, 1 in Truk and 1 in Majuro. A year later, in April of
1971, the Spiritual Assembly of Guam was divided into four village, or local, Assemblies:
Dededo, Inarajan, Mangilao and Tamuning. And at the end of that year, Dr. Rahmatu'llah
Muhajir, another prominent Bahá'í, also visited the Marianas.
The
first National Spiritual Assembly of the North West Pacific Ocean was formed during April
of l972. Members included: Francis Reimer (Marshalls), Rose Makwelung, Harlan Lang, Yaokin
Francis, Saimon Rehobson and Stem Salle (Eastern Carolines), Joy Benson, Richard Benson
and Cynthia Olson (Marianas). The following April, 1973, Superior Court of Guam Judge Mr.
Richard Benson was the first person from Micronesia to be appointed to the Bahá'í
Continental Board of Counsellors for Australasia.
Significant
developments continued to occur on a yearly basis. A special meeting was held on Guam on 3
April 1976 to discuss the need for a National Bahá'í Center, with $15,000 raised that
day. In l977 the National Assembly of the Marshall Islands was formed, and at the National
Convention for the North West Pacific Ocean, held on Guam, Mr. Featherstone read a letter
from the Universal House of Justice announcing that the formation of the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Marianas Islands would take place on April 21
during the following year, l978.
Land for a
Bahá'í House of Worship site in the Marianas was purchased in August of 1977, and the
National Bahá'í Center land was acquired in January of 1978. Local Centers were also
acquired, first on Saipan and then in Dededo, Guam, both of which fulfilled national
Bahá'í goals during those years.
In May of
1978, Dr. Muhajir, returned to the Marianas to attend its first National Convention. A
banquet was held at the Guam Reef Hotel, with the Governor of the Territory of Guam and
his party attending, and, as a part of this occasion, a ground-breaking ceremony was held
for the National Bahá'í Center in Malojloj-Inarajan, Guam. Dr. Muhajir's assurance that
"...in the Mariana Islands, you have the potential to become a model Bahá'í
community" has been frequently quoted and is a continuing source of inspiration.
The Bahá'í Faith quickly spread to all villages on Guam and most of the inhabited islands of the Northern Marianas. There are now twelve local Spiritual Assemblies in the Mariana Islands Bahá'í Community - which includes both Guam and the islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas - and a National Spiritual Assembly with its seat in Malojloj, Guam. There are currently local Bahá'í Centers on Marine Drive in Dededo, Guam, on the main road in the village of Inarajan, Guam and on Capital Hill in the village of Tanapag on Saipan. The members of the Marianas Bahá'í community represent many ethnic groups - Chamorro, Filipino, Korean, Marshallese, Chuukese, Yapese, Kosraean, Palauan, Pohnpeian, Persian, American, European, Chinese and Malaysian - and all worship and conduct their activities together.
(Most of the information for this page was taken from
historical research conducted by Patricia Daniels)
The Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Dededo, Guam
Local Contact
To find out more about the Bahá'ís in the Mariana Islands, feel free to call the Bahá'í National Office on Guam at (671) 828-8639. You may also send us an email at: nsamar@kuentos.guam.net.