Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney
Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | April 12, 1873 Paris, France |
| Declared | 1901 |
| Died | December 20, 1928 Paris, France |
| Appointed by | Shoghi Effendi |
Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney (April 12, 1873 - December 20, 1928) was the first French Bahá’í and was appointed by Shoghi Effendi as one of the 19 Disciples of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
Life[edit]
Hippolyte Dreyfus earned his doctorate in law in February 1898 and became the first French Bahá’í in 1901. In 1903 he gave up his legal career to devote himself to oriental studies. He enrolled at the École pratique des hautes études university in Paris, where he studied Arabic and Persian to be able to translate the Bahá’í writings into French. He was one of the only Western Bahá’ís of his generation to receive such formal training. He was the author of numerous books, articles and translations of the Bahá’í faith. After his marriage (1911) with the American Bahá’í Laura Clifford Barney, he adopted the name Dreyfus-Barney. He also traveled to numerous countries and represented the Bahá’ís in legal disputes. He died on 20 December 1928 and was buried in the Montmartre Cemetery in Paris.
Translations and writings[edit]
Dreyfus-Barney translated from Arabic or Persian, the following works of Baha'u'llah into French: the Book of Certitude, the Seven Valleys, the Hidden Words, the Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, the Sura of the Temple (right and preaching), Ishráqat (The glory) Lawḥ-i-Aqdas, Lawḥ-i-Hikmat (Tablet of wisdom), Tajalliyát (the radiance), Tarázát (The jewelry), Words of Paradise.
The translations were published individually or in the anthologies "Les Precepts Béhaïsme" or "L'oeuvre de Baha'u'llah". Dreyfus-Barney also translated the Kitab-i-Aqdas and the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, which were not yet published. Dreyfus-Barney also published an introductory work on the Bahá’í faith, entitled "Essai sur le Béhaïsme" and various articles and lectures and conference reports. His lecture at the university with the title "Le babisme et le béhaïsme" was released in German. Dreyfus-Barney translated, together with Laura Clifford Barney, the Persian transcripts of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's answers to their philosophical and theological questions. The translation was published under the title "Les Leçons de Saint-Jean-d'Acre" (later, Some Answered Questions). Dreyfus-Barney also accompanied and interpreted for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during his travels through Europe.
Travels and protection of the Faith[edit]
Dreyfus-Barney attained in September 1902 with an American Bahá’í Lua Getsinger an audience with Muzaffar al-Din Shah in Paris. During this meeting the Shah was personally handed a petition to protect their co-religionists in Iran.
In 1914 Hippolyte and Laura Dreyfus-Barney visited the German colony of Qingdao, China, wanting to go on to travel up the Yangzi river (and overland) to Kunming, Yunnan Province. However due to the first world war breaking out (in 1914) they returned to Europe, escaping from Qingdao thanks to Hippolyte's adroitness. They got away from the German colony and returned to France in time for him to assume his military obligations.[1]
In the twenties, Baha'u'llah's house in Baghdad fell into the hands of fanatical opponents of the Bahá’í Faith. Dreyfus Barney fought for this issue which concluded with the League Council condemning the occupation of the house. In Tunisia, he defended the Faith against the French administration. Dreyfus-Barney intervened around 1925 when a religious vocation Court in Egypt declared three marriages invalid because their spouses' were Bahá’ís. Dreyfus-Barney visited most European countries, the United States, Canada, Cuba, Mexico, Algeria, Tunisia, Burma, China, India, French Indochina, Japan, Persia, and many times the Holy Land.
Works[edit]
- Bahá'u'lláh, Kitab-i-Iqan (Le Livre de la Certitude (Kitab al-Ikan), un des livres du Sacres Behaisme, Ernest Leroux, Paris, 1904
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, Le Bábísme et le Béhaïsme in the book Religions et Sociétés, 1905
- Bahá'u'lláh, Les Paroles de cachées Persan, Ernest Leroux, Paris 1905
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, Babism and Baha'i: lectures at the College of Social Sciences in Paris, New Frankfort Verl, Frankfurt aM 1907
- Bahá'u'lláh, Les Precepts du Béhaïsme, Ernest Leroux, Paris, 1906
- `Abdu'l-Baha, Les Leçons de Saint-Jean-d'Acre, E. Leroux, Paris, 1908
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, Le Béhaïsme, lecture of 23 May 1908 in Lyon
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, Essai sur le Béhaïsme, Ernest Leroux, Paris 1909, 4 Edition 1973
- Bahá'u'lláh, L'Epitre au Fils du Loup, Honoré Champion, Paris 1913
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, Le mouvement Baha'is, Conference Report, 6 International Congress Progrès religieux, 1913
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, single religion: its effect on government, education, social policy, women's rights and the individual personalities, Bahai *Association, Stuttgart in 1917
- Hippolyte Dreyfus, Le Bahaism in the journal "Vers l'unité", 1924.
- Bahá'u'lláh, L'oeuvre de Bahá'u'lláh, Ernest Leroux, Paris, Vol I, 1923, Vol II, 1924, Vol III, 1928
References[edit]
- Article for The Baha'i World, Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney, by Laura C. Dreyfus-Barney (https://bahai-library.com/dreyfus-barney_biography_hippolyte_dreyfus-barney)
- Shoghi Effendi, Roger White (ed.), A Compendium of volumes of The Baha'i World I-XII, pp 464-465
- Mariam Haney, Star of the West, Vol 15, No. 8, November 1924, pp 230-234
External links[edit]
- Letter from Shoghi Effendi to Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney
- Biography of Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney on iranica.com
- The Universal Religion: Bahaism - Its Rise and Social Import by Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney at LibriVox (audiobooks)
- https://bahai-library.com/dreyfus-barney_biography_hippolyte_dreyfus-barney
- Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney at Find a Grave
- Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney on WikiTree - family tree
Notes[edit]
