Bahaipedia:Today's featured individual/April 9

Knight of Bahá’u’lláh Charles Dunning

Charles Dunning was a Knight of Bahá’u’lláh named for pioneering to the Orkney Islands. Dunning was born, it would seem, to uphold the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh at the inception of its second century and to serve as a soldier of courage and fortitude in the greatest spiritual crusade of mankind's history. His pioneering road opened in March 1948 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Moving amongst the people of Belfast, Charles soon met its difficulties, "the suspicion and mistrust" - "there is a terrifying bitterness here" - the religious antagonism which greatly puzzled him. "for how can we say we love God, whom we have never seen, if we do not love all those around us, whom we can see?" He perceived that Belfast would "make great strides" should it come to understand the Bahá’í teachings. Within ten weeks he was arranging the first public meetings, to which George Townshend and his son Brian came from Dublin to speak.