2012

Centuries:	20th century 21st century 22nd century
Decades:	1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s 2030s
Years:	2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Categories:	Births - Deaths - Declarations Establishments - Publications
Media:	2012 (Events)

2012 was a leap year of the Gregorian calendar, the 2012th year of the Common Era (CE), the 12th year of the 21st century, and the 3rd year of the 2010s decade. 2012 corresponds to the years 168–169 of the Bahá'í Era (BE) according to the Badi calendar.

Events

Bahá’í representatives greet Queen Elizabeth II at a reception on February 21 to mark her Diamond Jubilee.

Marquee at the Chicago Theatre advertising the centenary of the Bahá’í House of Worship in Wilmette, April 28.

• February 1: Publication of the book Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh in Korean is announced.
• February 21: Representatives of the Bahá’í community of the United Kingdom join members of eight other religions at a special gathering to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.
• February 24: The International Symposium on Religion, Spirituality, and Education for Human Flourishing is held in Marrakech, Morocco, with a Bahá’í delegation in attendance.
• March 2: A government-sponsored initiative to encourage people of all beliefs to help improve their local neighborhoods is launched at the national Bahá’í center in London, United Kingdom.
• March 18: The book Donde Brilla La Luz ("Where the Light Shines"), about the Bahá’í Faith and the impact that the Bahá’í House of Worship in Santiago, Chile is intended to have, is published along with an accompanying website.
• April 15: Prominent Christian clergymen pay tribute to the Bahá’í community of Naples, in commemoration of the 100 years passed since the RMS Cedric, carrying ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to the United States of America, docked in the city.
• April 21: Plans for the erection of the first local and national Mashriqu’l-Adhkárs are announced in the Universal House of Justice's Ridván message. The first two national Mashriqu’l-Adhkárs are to be raised up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Papua New Guinea. Local Houses of Worship are planned for the clusters of Battambang, Cambodia; Bihar Sharif, India; Matunda Soy, Kenya; Norte del Cauca, Colombia; and Tanna, Vanuatu.
• April 29: The Bahá’í House of Worship in Wilmette hosts three special services designed to provide a unique opportunity for people to remember ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 100 years after He broke the ground and laid the cornerstone upon which the House of Worship was built.
• June 11: Bahá’í poet Robert Hayden, the first African-American to be appointed a United States Poet Laureate, is honoured on a postage stamp issued by the U.S. Postal Service.
• October 30: Xavier Bettel, the mayor of Luxembourg City, unveils a monument marking the 50th anniversary of the first election of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá‘ís of Luxembourg.
• November 22: The Bahá’í community of India sponsors a seminar on "Ending Violence against Children", held nearby to the Lotus Temple in New Delhi.
• November 26: In a message to all National Assemblies, the Universal House of Justice shares a statement on social action prepared by the Office of Social and Economic Development at the Bahá’í World Centre.
• December 5: Government ministers and members of parliament in the United Kingdom welcome more than 80 Baha’is to an event in London to pay tribute to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 100 years after His visit to Britain, the first time the British government has hosted a special reception specifically for the Bahá’í community.

Persecution of Bahá’ís in Iran

Main article: Persecution

• January 2–12: Over 70 percent of Bahá’í-owned businesses in Sari and Ghaemshahr in Mazandaran province, and a number in Gorgan and Gonbad in Golestan province, are searched in order to find some excuse on which to threaten or arrest Bahá’ís. Authorities also search the houses of Bahá’ís who work from home, in some cases more than two years since they closed up their stores.
• February 24: The film Iranian Taboo, by Dutch-Iranian filmmaker Reza Allamehzadeh, premieres in Los Angeles.
• March 2: Amnesty International publishes a report entitled 'We are ordered to crush you': Expanding Repression of Dissent in Iran, noting an increase in the number and severity of attacks against Bahá’ís, ranging from arrests to arson, and the publishing of slanderous articles in the press.
• October 29: The Bahá’í International Community publishes a special report on The Baha'is of Semnan: A Case Study in Religious Hatred.
• December: Sangesar’s old Bahá'í cemetery is thoroughly covered in soil and rubble by bulldozers and trucks, completely obscuring all the graves.

Establishments

Publishers

• Yaran Publishers

Deaths

• January 5: Reynaldo Galindo Pohl, former United Nations Commission on Human Rights' Special Representative on Iran, who revealed Iran's 1991 "Baha'i Question" memorandum.
• January 8: Abdelfattah Amor, United Nations Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief from 1993 to 2004.
• February 20: Anneliese Bopp, former Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre, at Bad Bruckenau, Northern Bavaria, Germany.

Publications

Compilations

• Talks by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: The Existence of God compiled by Bahá'í Publishing.
• Talks by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: The Spirit of Christ compiled by Bahá'í Publishing.
• The Human Soul compiled by Bahá'í Publishing.
• Obedience to God compiled by Bahá'í Publishing.
• Make This Youth Radiant: Prayer Book for Junior Youth illustrated by Gita-Shekufeh.

Books

• ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in New York by Hussein Ahdieh and Hillary Chapman.
• Creating Excellent Relationships: The Power of Character Choices by Susanne M. Alexander.
• Empowered Healing by Susanne M. Alexander and Craig A. Farnsworth.
• Retrieving Our Spiritual Heritage by Suheil Bushrui.
• The Bahá'í Faith in Words and Images by John Danesh and Seena Fazel.
• Man Is My Mystery by James Elijio.
• Human Rights in an Advancing Civilization by Aaron Emmel.
• Negotiating Shadows by Grace Growing Medicine.
• Unfurling the Divine Standard by Barron Harper.
• Daily Reflections and Stories for Children, Book 3: Stories of Bahá’u’lláh by Munirih Hodge, illustrated by Margo Styan.
• 'Abdu'l-Bahá in the West: A Biographical Guide of the People Associated with His Travels by Jan Jasion.
• The Last Day: An Exploration of Humankind's Spiritual History and Destiny by Walied Jassat.
• A Most Noble Pattern. Collected Essays on the Writings of the Báb, ‘Alí Muhammad Shírází (1819 – 1850) compiled by Todd Lawson and Omid Ghaemmaghami.
• Knight with a Briefcase: The Life of Knight of Bahá’u’lláh, Ezzat Zahrai by Judith Kaye Logsdan-Dubois.
• Barli Development Institute for Rural Women: An Alternative Model of Women's Empowerment in India by Jana Palta McGilligan.
• A Celestial Burning: A Selective Study of the Writings of Shoghi Effendi by Jack McLean.
• A Tutorial On the Dispensation of Bahá’u’lláh: Exploring the Fundamental Verities by Fazel Naghdy.
• The Maxwells of Montreal: Middle Years 1922-1923; Late Years 1937-1952 by Violette Nakhjavani.
• Remaining Faithful by Phyllis K. Peterson.
• Of Wars and Worship: The Extraordinary Story of Gertrude and Alvin Blum by Keithie Saunders and Prue Rushton.
• The Big Bahá’í Activity Book for Little Bahá’ís by Bre Vader.
• Lady Blomfield: Her Life and Times by Robert Weinberg.
• Bahá’í Basics: A Guide to the Beliefs, Practices, and History of the Bahá’í Faith by Frances Worthington.

Albums

• Raise Me Up: Songs for Spiritual Community by Badasht.
• Under One Sun by Brina.
• Free Thyself by Jody Cooper.
• Canopy by MJ Cyr.
• The Master's Travels by John Ebata.
• Les Roses d'Ispahan by Ramtin Ghazavi.
• Teaching the Cause by Mana.
• The Photograph by Grant Hindin Miller, Elika Mahony, Luke Slott, and Sonbol Taefi.
• Birdsong by Grant Hindin Miller.
• The Bag of Jewels: A Sparkling Collection of Wisdom Stories Celebrating the Virtues by Sarah Perceval.
• Don't Go Back to Sleep by Luke Slott.
• The Home of Laughter by Luke Slott.
• The Light of Unity by Luke Slott.
• The Mystery by Smith & Dragoman.
• The Orange Tree by Lisa Haese Smith.
• Nightsong by Munirih Sparrow.
• Pearls From an Endless Sea by Gwendolyn Watson.
• Phoenix of Love by Shidan Toloui-Wallace.
• Long Journey by Ramine Yazhari.

References

• GR publications listed in Jan Jasion's George Ronald: A Bibliographic History, accessed online April 30, 2019.
• 2012 Publications at BahaiBooks.com.au