Batoul Taheri

Batoul Taheri
Born	Batoul Rafii August 25, 1925 Rafsanjan, Kirman, Iran
Died	December 1, 2018 La Palma Island, Canary Islands.
Spouse(s)	Issa Taheri
Children	Rouhallah, Farzad, Farhang
Parent(s)	‘Alí Akbar Rafí‘í Rafsanjání, Sháyistih Rafí'í

Batoul Taheri (b. 1925) was a Persian Bahá’í who pioneered to Afghanistan before Shoghi Effendi announced the start of the 10-year Crusade. She later pioneered to Morocco and the Canary Islands where she served on several Local Spiritual Assemblies.

Biography

Batoul became a Bahá’í in her adolescence. Her parents were ‘Alí Akbar Rafí‘í Rafsanjání and Sháyistih Rafí'í. In 1952 Batoul, together with her husband, Issa Taheri, visited the Holy Land where they had the bounty of meeting Shoghi Effendi. Batoul shared with the beloved Guardian her desire to dedicate her life to share Baha’u’llah’s vision for humanity by pioneering wherever she was needed. She also shared with The Guardian her disappointment as she could not count on the support of her family to pioneer as she was the mother of two little boys, who at that time were two and four and they needed a stable home to be raised. After hearing Batoul´s concerns, The Guardian told her that there were two places that pioneers were needed, Afghanistan and Africa, and He assured her that He would keep her in His prayers and that she also should continue praying. Shoghi Effendi and Batoul’s prayers were answered the same day that Batoul and Issa came back to Tehran, Iran. Issa was gone all morning and when he came back for lunch he shared with Batoul that he had met with the National Pioneering Committee of Iran in order to ask them for pioneering opportunities outside Iran. The Pioneering Committee explained to Issa that Afghanistan needed pioneers urgently, as The Guardian wished that the Local Spiritual Assembly of Kabul be formed soon. Batoul could not be happier and in only a few days, they prepared everything for their departure to Kabul, Afghanistan together with their two children. There they served for two years until in 1954 the Afghan government asked all foreigners to leave the country. Given the situation, Batoul’s father ‘Alí Akbar Rafí‘í Rafsanjání, who was pioneering at that time in Morocco, asked the Guardian if Batoul and her family could relocate to Morocco as pioneers and accompany them in their service. Shoghi Effendi accepted their petition and Batoul, together with her husband and children, reunited with her parents ‘Alí Akbar Rafí‘í Rafsanjání and Sháyistih Rafí'í and siblings ‘Abbás and Nosrat who are all Knights of Baha'u'llah. They never moved back to Iran as they were committed to share the message of Baha’u’llah around the world. They served in Morocco for four years until the National Spiritual Assembly of North West Africa asked them to serve as pioneers in the Canary Islands where there was a need of creating more Local Spiritual Assemblies. They dedicated the rest of their lives to teach the Cause of Baha’u’llah to every soul they met and they contributed enormously to the growth of the faith and the creation of many first Local Spiritual Assemblies in the Canary Islands.