fbpx
Wikipedia

Baháʼí Faith in Taiwan

December 15, 2023

The Baháʼí Faith in Taiwan (Chinese: 巴哈伊教; pinyin: Bāhāyī Jiào) began after the religion entered areas of China[1] and nearby Japan.[2] The first Baháʼís arrived in Taiwan in 1949[3] and the first of these to have become a Baháʼí was Jerome Chu (Chu Yao-lung) in 1945 while visiting the United States. By May 1955 there were eighteen Baháʼís in six localities across Taiwan. The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Taiwan was elected in Tainan in 1956. The National Spiritual Assembly was first elected in 1967 when there were local assemblies in Taipei, Tainan, Hualien, and Pingtung. Circa 2006 the Baháʼís reported their numbers as 16,000 and 13 assemblies.[4][5]

Early days edit

Far East edit

The Baháʼí Faith entered the region of the Far East, in Hong Kong, in the 1870s, during the lifetime of Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith.[1] While the religion continued to enter other nearby regions to Taiwan — Baháʼís being in Shanghai in 1902,[6] Japan in 1912,[2] Canton in 1949,[6] and Macau in 1953,[7] there was no Baháʼí contact with the island until 1949. Between 1895 and 1945, until ending with World War II, Taiwan was under Japanese rule[8] and then there was the period of the Chinese Civil War.

Beginning in Taiwan edit

Four Baháʼís arrived in Taiwan in 1949 as part of the wave of refugees of Chiang Kai-shek's retreat from the mainland: Jerone Chu, Yan Hsu-chang, Chien Tien-lee, and Gellan Wang. The first Baháʼí in Taiwan[3] was Jerome Chu (Chu Yao-lung), a newspaper man, who had become a Baháʼí in Washington D.C. in 1945. Chu arrived in Taiwan after a stay in Nanking where an associate, Yuan Hsu-chang, had accepted the religion and also came to Taiwan. Major Chien Tien-lee (Lee L.T. Chang) had had a Baháʼí marriage ceremony in Denver, Colorado, U.S.A. and came to Taiwan after a stay in Shanghai.

The first American Baháʼí visitors to Taiwan were Dr. David Earl and Lt. Col. John McHenry in 1952, and Rafi and Mildred Mottahedeh in 1953. In October of that year Dhikru'llah Khadem visited Taiwan, the first Hand of the Cause — people who achieved a distinguished rank in service to the religion — to do so and at a meeting he held in Chu's home three more people accepted the Baháʼí Faith: these three were Professor Tsao Li-shih, who was an instructor of architecture at the College of Engineering at the National Taiwan University; Hong Li-ming (Jimmy), the first native-born Taiwanese to become a Baháʼí; and Wong Ho-len (Wong Ho-jen).[6]

Later, Mr. and Mrs. Suleimani, who were Baháʼís in Shanghai, left that city in 1950,[9] and arrived in Taiwan in 1954 at port Keelung[10] where they found there was already a community of ten Baháʼís spread among some of the cities of Taiwan: Taipei (2), Tainan (4), Taoyuan, Kaohsiung and Chiayi. Mrs. Suleimani was from a Baháʼí family from Ashqabad who left in 1923.[6]

Growth edit

By May 1955 there were eighteen Baháʼís in six localities across Taiwan. The first Baháʼí Local Spiritual Assembly in Taiwan was elected in Tainan in 1956,[3] which was noted by Shoghi Effendi, then head of the religion. The members were Mr. Wang Chi-chang, Mrs. Suleimani, Mr. Pai Chung-chen, Mrs. Ruthy Tu, Mr. Tsao Li-shih. Standing. Dr. Ni Jun-chung (ching), Mr. Chu, Mr. Winston Luk, and Mr. Ho Chung-tzu. Mrs. Tu was the first woman citizen of Taiwan to become a Baháʼí and was elected to be a delegate in 1957 to the election of the regional National Spiritual Assembly but was unable to travel. Noted Baháʼí Agnes Alexander visited the island in 1956, and, after being appointed as a Hand of the Cause, visited the island again in 1958 and 1962.

From 1955 through 1957, petitions by the Baháʼí community were submitted to the Taiwanese government to be recognized as a religion by the government had failed, though permission was given to have a temporary Baháʼí summer school in September 1957.[3]

In 1957, the first regional National Assembly election convention of the Baháʼís of North East Asia, held in Tokyo, was convened; the jurisdiction of the National Assembly included Taiwan.[3] In 1958, the second Local Spiritual Assembly of the island was established in Taipei with the arrival of two pioneers and one more citizen convert. By April 1958 the number of Baháʼís in Taiwan had reached twenty-two. The first official use of the Tainan Baháʼí Centre was in 1959. In 1960 the book Baháʼu'lláh and the New Era was revised, translated and reprinted and one copy was given to every Baháʼí in Taiwan. In 1963 Mrs. Tu was able to attend the first Baháʼí World Congress which also the year of the first Baháʼí marriage ceremony in Taiwan.

The first Baháʼí National Spiritual Assembly of Taiwan was first elected in 1967 — the members of the institution were[3] Mrs. Isabel Dean and Mrs. Ridvaniyyih Suleimani, Mr. Kuo Rong-hui, Mr. Robert Yen, Dr. Sidney Dean, Mr. S.A. Suleimani, Mr. Tsao Kai-min, Mr. Huang Tsen-min and Mr. Huang Ting-seng. At the time there were local assemblies in Taipei, Tainan, Hualien, and Pingtung. Then in 1970 the Baháʼí community of the island was recognized by the government.

In 1990, the Chief of the indigenous Puyuma Tribe, Mr. Chen Wen-sheng, became a Baháʼí.[3]

Social and spiritual activities edit

Since its inception the religion has had involvement in socio-economic development beginning by giving greater freedom to women,[11] promulgating the promotion of female education as a priority concern,[12] and that involvement was given practical expression by creating schools, agricultural coops, and clinics.[11] The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of Justice dated 20 October 1983 was released.[13] Baháʼís were urged to seek out ways, compatible with the Baháʼí teachings, in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived. Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Baháʼí socio-economic development projects. By 1987, the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482. In more recent years the Baháʼís of Taiwan have participated in a number of local and international activities. By 1995, the Baháʼí Office of the Environment for Taiwan, in collaboration with the national government, had trained hundreds of teachers throughout the country to introduce conservation issues into curricula. The Office also produced a series of national radio educational programs on environmental care and protection.[14] In December 1997 Baháʼís were invited to participate in a local exhibit of religions.[15] In 2001 Baháʼís from Taiwan attended the opening of the Seat of the International Teaching Centre.[16] In 2004, the Taiwanese Baháʼí community organizes 20 regular children's classes, attracting some 200 children.[10]

Modern demographics edit

Circa 2006, a Taiwanese government document with statistics on religious adherence reported the presence of 16,000 Baháʼís, or 0.1% of the national population, with 13 assemblies.[4][17] This number was voluntarily given by the Baháʼís to the authorities who do not collect or independently verify the statistics.[5] The Association of Religion Data Archives (relying mostly on the World Christian Encyclopedia) reported 16,252 Baháʼís in 2010.[18]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b Hassall, Graham (January 2000). . Official Website of the Baháʼís of Hong Kong. National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of Hong Kong. Archived from the original on 2008-08-27. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  2. ^ a b Alexander, Agnes Baldwin (1977). Sims, Barbara R. (ed.). "History of the Baháʼí Faith in Japan 1914-1938". Japan: Baháʼí Publishing Trust, Osaka, Japan. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g R. Sims, Barbara (1994). The Taiwan Baháʼí Chronicle: A Historical Record of the Early Days of the Baháʼí Faith in Taiwan. Tokyo: Baháʼí Publishing Trust of Japan.
  4. ^ a b . Government of Information Office. 2006. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
  5. ^ a b Department Of State. The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affairs. "China (includes Taiwan only)". 2001-2009.state.gov. Retrieved 2020-11-10.
  6. ^ a b c d Hassall, Graham (2003). "China in the Baháʼí Writings". Unpublished Articles. Baháʼí Academic Library. Retrieved 2008-08-16.
  7. ^ The Macau Baháʼí Community in the Early Years. Compiled by Barbara R. Sims. Japan: Baháʼí Academics Library. 1991.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  8. ^ Shao, Minghuang; Miller, Lyman (29 June 2002). "The Out-of-Tune 'Flowers on the Rainy Nights': Some Observational Aspects of Taiwan at Wartime". Minutes from the Conference on Wartime China: Regional Regimes and Conditions, 1937-1945. Cambridge, MA, USA: Harvard University. Retrieved 2006-07-19.
  9. ^ Universal House of Justice (1986). In Memoriam. Vol. XVIII. Baháʼí World Centre. pp. Table of Contents and pp.619, 632, 802–4. ISBN 978-0-85398-234-0. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)
  10. ^ a b International Community, Baháʼí (2004-12-16). "Attractive center holds fond memories". Baháʼí World News Service.
  11. ^ a b Momen, Moojan. "History of the Baháʼí Faith in Iran". draft "A Short Encyclopedia of the Baháʼí Faith". Bahai-library.com. Retrieved 2009-10-16.
  12. ^ Kingdon, Geeta Gandhi (1997). "Education of women and socio-economic development". Baháʼí Studies Review. 7 (1).
  13. ^ Momen, Moojan; Smith, Peter (1989). "The Baha'i Faith 1957–1988: A Survey of Contemporary Developments". Religion. 19: 63–91. doi:10.1016/0048-721X(89)90077-8.
  14. ^ "Conservation and Sustainable Development in the Baháʼí Faith". Windsor, England. 1995-05-03. 95-0503.
  15. ^ International Community, Baháʼí (1997-12-21). . Baháʼí International Community. Archived from the original on 2008-06-13.
  16. ^ International Community, Baháʼí (2001-01-16). "Gathering in Holy Land marks milestone in the development of the Baháʼí Faith". Baháʼí International Community.
  17. ^ "2006 Report on International Religious Freedom". U.S. Department of State. 2006. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
  18. ^ . www.thearda.com. Archived from the original on 2021-03-02. Retrieved 2020-11-10.

Further reading edit

  • David A. Palmer (2012). "From "Congregations" to "Small Group Community Building"". Chinese Sociological Review. 45 (2): 78–98. doi:10.2753/CSA2162-0555450205. hdl:10722/189427. ISSN 2162-0563. S2CID 144740503.

External links edit

  • Baháʼí News of Taiwan
  • the Newsletter of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baháʼís of Taiwan - List of issues
  • Taiwan Baháʼí Chronicle
  • Hong Kong National Spiritual Assembly 2017-07-16 at the Wayback Machine

December 15, 2023
baháʼí, faith, taiwan, chinese, 巴哈伊教, pinyin, bāhāyī, jiào, began, after, religion, entered, areas, china, nearby, japan, first, baháʼís, arrived, taiwan, 1949, first, these, have, become, baháʼí, jerome, lung, 1945, while, visiting, united, states, 1955, ther. The Bahaʼi Faith in Taiwan Chinese 巴哈伊教 pinyin Bahayi Jiao began after the religion entered areas of China 1 and nearby Japan 2 The first Bahaʼis arrived in Taiwan in 1949 3 and the first of these to have become a Bahaʼi was Jerome Chu Chu Yao lung in 1945 while visiting the United States By May 1955 there were eighteen Bahaʼis in six localities across Taiwan The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Taiwan was elected in Tainan in 1956 The National Spiritual Assembly was first elected in 1967 when there were local assemblies in Taipei Tainan Hualien and Pingtung Circa 2006 the Bahaʼis reported their numbers as 16 000 and 13 assemblies 4 5 Contents 1 Early days 1 1 Far East 1 2 Beginning in Taiwan 2 Growth 3 Social and spiritual activities 4 Modern demographics 5 See also 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksEarly days editFar East edit The Bahaʼi Faith entered the region of the Far East in Hong Kong in the 1870s during the lifetime of Bahaʼu llah the founder of the Bahaʼi Faith 1 While the religion continued to enter other nearby regions to Taiwan Bahaʼis being in Shanghai in 1902 6 Japan in 1912 2 Canton in 1949 6 and Macau in 1953 7 there was no Bahaʼi contact with the island until 1949 Between 1895 and 1945 until ending with World War II Taiwan was under Japanese rule 8 and then there was the period of the Chinese Civil War Beginning in Taiwan edit Four Bahaʼis arrived in Taiwan in 1949 as part of the wave of refugees of Chiang Kai shek s retreat from the mainland Jerone Chu Yan Hsu chang Chien Tien lee and Gellan Wang The first Bahaʼi in Taiwan 3 was Jerome Chu Chu Yao lung a newspaper man who had become a Bahaʼi in Washington D C in 1945 Chu arrived in Taiwan after a stay in Nanking where an associate Yuan Hsu chang had accepted the religion and also came to Taiwan Major Chien Tien lee Lee L T Chang had had a Bahaʼi marriage ceremony in Denver Colorado U S A and came to Taiwan after a stay in Shanghai The first American Bahaʼi visitors to Taiwan were Dr David Earl and Lt Col John McHenry in 1952 and Rafi and Mildred Mottahedeh in 1953 In October of that year Dhikru llah Khadem visited Taiwan the first Hand of the Cause people who achieved a distinguished rank in service to the religion to do so and at a meeting he held in Chu s home three more people accepted the Bahaʼi Faith these three were Professor Tsao Li shih who was an instructor of architecture at the College of Engineering at the National Taiwan University Hong Li ming Jimmy the first native born Taiwanese to become a Bahaʼi and Wong Ho len Wong Ho jen 6 Later Mr and Mrs Suleimani who were Bahaʼis in Shanghai left that city in 1950 9 and arrived in Taiwan in 1954 at port Keelung 10 where they found there was already a community of ten Bahaʼis spread among some of the cities of Taiwan Taipei 2 Tainan 4 Taoyuan Kaohsiung and Chiayi Mrs Suleimani was from a Bahaʼi family from Ashqabad who left in 1923 6 Growth editBy May 1955 there were eighteen Bahaʼis in six localities across Taiwan The first Bahaʼi Local Spiritual Assembly in Taiwan was elected in Tainan in 1956 3 which was noted by Shoghi Effendi then head of the religion The members were Mr Wang Chi chang Mrs Suleimani Mr Pai Chung chen Mrs Ruthy Tu Mr Tsao Li shih Standing Dr Ni Jun chung ching Mr Chu Mr Winston Luk and Mr Ho Chung tzu Mrs Tu was the first woman citizen of Taiwan to become a Bahaʼi and was elected to be a delegate in 1957 to the election of the regional National Spiritual Assembly but was unable to travel Noted Bahaʼi Agnes Alexander visited the island in 1956 and after being appointed as a Hand of the Cause visited the island again in 1958 and 1962 From 1955 through 1957 petitions by the Bahaʼi community were submitted to the Taiwanese government to be recognized as a religion by the government had failed though permission was given to have a temporary Bahaʼi summer school in September 1957 3 In 1957 the first regional National Assembly election convention of the Bahaʼis of North East Asia held in Tokyo was convened the jurisdiction of the National Assembly included Taiwan 3 In 1958 the second Local Spiritual Assembly of the island was established in Taipei with the arrival of two pioneers and one more citizen convert By April 1958 the number of Bahaʼis in Taiwan had reached twenty two The first official use of the Tainan Bahaʼi Centre was in 1959 In 1960 the book Bahaʼu llah and the New Era was revised translated and reprinted and one copy was given to every Bahaʼi in Taiwan In 1963 Mrs Tu was able to attend the first Bahaʼi World Congress which also the year of the first Bahaʼi marriage ceremony in Taiwan The first Bahaʼi National Spiritual Assembly of Taiwan was first elected in 1967 the members of the institution were 3 Mrs Isabel Dean and Mrs Ridvaniyyih Suleimani Mr Kuo Rong hui Mr Robert Yen Dr Sidney Dean Mr S A Suleimani Mr Tsao Kai min Mr Huang Tsen min and Mr Huang Ting seng At the time there were local assemblies in Taipei Tainan Hualien and Pingtung Then in 1970 the Bahaʼi community of the island was recognized by the government In 1990 the Chief of the indigenous Puyuma Tribe Mr Chen Wen sheng became a Bahaʼi 3 Social and spiritual activities editSince its inception the religion has had involvement in socio economic development beginning by giving greater freedom to women 11 promulgating the promotion of female education as a priority concern 12 and that involvement was given practical expression by creating schools agricultural coops and clinics 11 The religion entered a new phase of activity when a message of the Universal House of Justice dated 20 October 1983 was released 13 Bahaʼis were urged to seek out ways compatible with the Bahaʼi teachings in which they could become involved in the social and economic development of the communities in which they lived Worldwide in 1979 there were 129 officially recognized Bahaʼi socio economic development projects By 1987 the number of officially recognized development projects had increased to 1482 In more recent years the Bahaʼis of Taiwan have participated in a number of local and international activities By 1995 the Bahaʼi Office of the Environment for Taiwan in collaboration with the national government had trained hundreds of teachers throughout the country to introduce conservation issues into curricula The Office also produced a series of national radio educational programs on environmental care and protection 14 In December 1997 Bahaʼis were invited to participate in a local exhibit of religions 15 In 2001 Bahaʼis from Taiwan attended the opening of the Seat of the International Teaching Centre 16 In 2004 the Taiwanese Bahaʼi community organizes 20 regular children s classes attracting some 200 children 10 Modern demographics editCirca 2006 a Taiwanese government document with statistics on religious adherence reported the presence of 16 000 Bahaʼis or 0 1 of the national population with 13 assemblies 4 17 This number was voluntarily given by the Bahaʼis to the authorities who do not collect or independently verify the statistics 5 The Association of Religion Data Archives relying mostly on the World Christian Encyclopedia reported 16 252 Bahaʼis in 2010 18 See also editBahaʼi Faith by country History of Taiwan Religion in Taiwan Hilda YenReferences edit a b Hassall Graham January 2000 The Bahaʼi Faith in Hong Kong Official Website of the Bahaʼis of Hong Kong National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahaʼis of Hong Kong Archived from the original on 2008 08 27 Retrieved 2008 08 16 a b Alexander Agnes Baldwin 1977 Sims Barbara R ed History of the Bahaʼi Faith in Japan 1914 1938 Japan Bahaʼi Publishing Trust Osaka Japan a href Template Cite journal html title Template Cite journal cite journal a Cite journal requires journal help a b c d e f g R Sims Barbara 1994 The Taiwan Bahaʼi Chronicle A Historical Record of the Early Days of the Bahaʼi Faith in Taiwan Tokyo Bahaʼi Publishing Trust of Japan a b Taiwan Yearbook 2006 Government of Information Office 2006 Archived from the original on 29 September 2007 Retrieved 2007 09 01 a b Department Of State The Office of Electronic Information Bureau of Public Affairs China includes Taiwan only 2001 2009 state gov Retrieved 2020 11 10 a b c d Hassall Graham 2003 China in the Bahaʼi Writings Unpublished Articles Bahaʼi Academic Library Retrieved 2008 08 16 The Macau Bahaʼi Community in the Early Years Compiled by Barbara R Sims Japan Bahaʼi Academics Library 1991 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint others link Shao Minghuang Miller Lyman 29 June 2002 The Out of Tune Flowers on the Rainy Nights Some Observational Aspects of Taiwan at Wartime Minutes from the Conference on Wartime China Regional Regimes and Conditions 1937 1945 Cambridge MA USA Harvard University Retrieved 2006 07 19 Universal House of Justice 1986 In Memoriam Vol XVIII Bahaʼi World Centre pp Table of Contents and pp 619 632 802 4 ISBN 978 0 85398 234 0 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a journal ignored help a b International Community Bahaʼi 2004 12 16 Attractive center holds fond memories Bahaʼi World News Service a b Momen Moojan History of the Bahaʼi Faith in Iran draft A Short Encyclopedia of the Bahaʼi Faith Bahai library com Retrieved 2009 10 16 Kingdon Geeta Gandhi 1997 Education of women and socio economic development Bahaʼi Studies Review 7 1 Momen Moojan Smith Peter 1989 The Baha i Faith 1957 1988 A Survey of Contemporary Developments Religion 19 63 91 doi 10 1016 0048 721X 89 90077 8 Conservation and Sustainable Development in the Bahaʼi Faith Windsor England 1995 05 03 95 0503 International Community Bahaʼi 1997 12 21 Taiwan Bahaʼis at Religious Exhibition Bahaʼi International Community Archived from the original on 2008 06 13 International Community Bahaʼi 2001 01 16 Gathering in Holy Land marks milestone in the development of the Bahaʼi Faith Bahaʼi International Community 2006 Report on International Religious Freedom U S Department of State 2006 Retrieved 2007 09 01 Most Baha i Nations 2010 QuickLists The Association of Religion Data Archives www thearda com Archived from the original on 2021 03 02 Retrieved 2020 11 10 Further reading editDavid A Palmer 2012 From Congregations to Small Group Community Building Chinese Sociological Review 45 2 78 98 doi 10 2753 CSA2162 0555450205 hdl 10722 189427 ISSN 2162 0563 S2CID 144740503 External links editBahaʼi News of Taiwan Phoenix the Newsletter of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahaʼis of Taiwan List of issues Taiwan Bahaʼi Chronicle Collection of News Articles and Papers Hong Kong National Spiritual Assembly Archived 2017 07 16 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bahaʼi Faith in Taiwan amp oldid 1176601324, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.