John Ferraby
| John Ferraby | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | John Graham Ferraby January 9, 1914 Southsea, England |
| Died | September 5, 1973 |
| NSA member | British Isles 1942 - 1959 |
| Hand of the Cause | Europe 1957 - 1959 1963 - 1973 Holy Land 1959 - 1963 |
| Custodian | 1959 - 1963 |
| Spouse(s) | Dorothy Cansdale |
| Children | Bridget |
| Signature |  |
John Graham Ferraby (January 9, 1914 - September 5, 1973)[1] was a British Bahá’í and Hand of the Cause of God appointed by Shoghi Effendi. From 1959 to 1963 he served as a Custodian of the Bahá’í Faith at the World Centre in Haifa, Israel.
Biography[edit]
Ferraby was born in Southsea, England, in 1914 and educated at Cambridge attending Malvern and earning a scholarship to study at King's College.[2]
In 1941 Ferraby was introduced to the Bahá’í Faith by someone who was not a Baha'i and borrowed a copy of Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era from a library to investigate further. He was eventually able to contact the Bahá’í community of London and officially join the religion. He was elected to the Local Spiritual Assembly of London and the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles shortly after declaring and in 1943 married fellow National Assembly member Dorothy Cansdale. In 1946 he became the secretary of the Assembly which evolved into a fulltime position in 1950 with his residence becoming the National Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds in London in December 1954.[2]
In 1951 Ferraby began serving on the British Assembly's Africa Committee responsible for helping open Africa to the Faith and he attended the Kampala Intercontinental Conference in 1953 and served on the Committee until 1956.[2] He and his wife volunteered to pioneer internationally when the Ten Year Crusade was launched in 1953 however Shoghi Effendi advised them to remain in England to ensure the functionality of the National Assembly was not impeded.[3]
In the winter of 1953 Ferraby went on pilgrimage and met with Shoghi Effendi.[4] In January 1955 he made a second pilgrimage and Shoghi Effendi encouraged him to write on the Faith prompting him to author All Things Made New. He also served as manager of the British Publishing Trust.[2]
In October 1957 Shoghi Effendi appointed Ferraby a Hand of the Cause. When Shoghi Effendi passed away in November Ferraby was very involved in the planning of his funeral. He attended the first Conclave of the Hands in the Holy Land in November 1957 and lived in the Holy Land for three months to assist in the management of the international Bahá’í community. In December 1959 he moved to the Holy Land to serve as a Custodian of the Faith serving in the role until the establishment of the Universal House of Justice in 1963.[5]
After the formation of the Universal House of Justice Ferraby settled in Cambridge and for a few years served as secretariat for the Hands of the Cause for Europe and traveled extensively to assist European Bahá’í communities. He retired from actively serving the Faith due to poor health in his later years before his passing in 1973.[6]
The Universal House of Justice conveyed the following message after his passing:
REGRET SUDDEN PASSING HAND CAUSE JOHN FERRABY. RECALL LONG SERVICES FAITH BRITISH ISLES CROWNED ELEVATION RANK HAND CAUSE VALUABLE CONTRIBUTION BAHÁ’Í LITERATURE THROUGH HIS BOOK ALL THINGS MADE NEW. REQUESTING BEFITTING GATHERINGS MASHRIQU'L-ADHKARS MEMORIAL MEETINGS ALL COMMUNITIES BAHÁ’Í WORLD.[7]
Publications[edit]
- 1954 - Bahá’í Teachings on Economics.[8]
- 1954 - Progressive Revelation, short booklet.[9]
- 1957 - All Things Made New.[10]
- 1958 - The Passing of Shoghi Effendi, written with Rúhíyyih Khánum.[11]
Notes[edit]
- ↑ Rabbani, R. (Ed.) (1992). The Ministry of the Custodians 1957-1963. Bahá’í World Centre. pp. p. xxiii. ISBN 085398350X.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1978). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 16 (1973-1976), Pg(s) 510. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i World: In Memoriam 1992-1997, p 138
- ↑ Baha'i World: In Memoriam 1992-1997, p 139
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1978). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 16 (1973-1976), Pg(s) 511. View as PDF.
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1978). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 16 (1973-1976), Pg(s) 512. View as PDF.
- ↑ https://bahai.works/MUHJ63-86/135/Passing_of_the_Hand_of_the_Cause_of_God_John_Ferraby
- ↑ https://bahai.works/Bahá’í_Teachings_on_Economics
- ↑ https://bahai.works/Progressive_Revelation_(Ferraby)
- ↑ https://bahai.works/All_Things_Made_New
- ↑ https://bahai.works/The_Passing_of_Shoghi_Effendi
Reference[edit]
- The Universal House of Justice. The Bahá’í World - An International Record Vol XVI 1973-1976 From a letter written by Dorothy Ferraby. Haifa, Israel: World Centre Publications.
- Harper, Barron (1997). Lights of Fortitude (Paperback ed.). Oxford, UK: George Ronald. ISBN 0-85398-413-1.
