Iowa City, Iowa
Iowa City | ||
|---|---|---|
 First LSA of Iowa City, 1970.
|
||
| History: Firsts |
||
| - | Local Assembly | 1970 |
| How to contact: | ||
| - | Phone | (319) 400-3964 |
| - | icbahais@gmail.com | |
| - | Address | Iowa City Bahá’í Community P.O. Box 1761 |
| Official Website | http://iowacitybahai.org/ | |
 Related media
|
||
Iowa City is a city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is the county seat of Johnson County and the location of the University of Iowa. Despite its name it is not the state capitol.
History[edit]
In 1939 Gayle Woolson, a Bahá'í from Minnesota, gave a talk on the Bahá'í Faith's aim for World Peace at a meeting of the Altrusa club, a group focused on community service, in the Jefferson Hotel in Iowa City.[1] The 1944 Bahá'í Centenary was reported in a local Iowa City newspaper.[2]
In 1947 Robert Lee Moffett, a Bahá'í speaker, was invited to speak on the Faith at a local class on religious groups of America held in Iowa City by Dr. Marcus Bach, a pastor with a PhD in religion from the University of Iowa who taught on little known religions at the University. Dr. Bach later interviewed Shoghi Effendi in Akka and wrote a book about him.[3][4]
As of 1954 Iowa City was a virgin goal city, that is a city with no Bahá'í presence or activity. The U.S. National Teaching Committee called on the Bahá'í community to open the city to the Faith in 1954.[5] By July 1954 it was no longer a virgin goal, and was instead classified as a consolidation goal.[6]
By January 1955 Iowa City was noted to have regular Bahá'í meetings being held.[7] This was largely due to the efforts of Graham Conroy, a Bahá'í student at the University of Iowa who spoke on the Faith at the Universities School of Religion and at the Methodist Church in Iowa City in addition to holding meetings. He was described as conducting a "one-man Bahá'í teaching campaign" in 1955 by the Central States Area Teaching Committee.[8] In November 1955 speakers were requested to give public lectures in Iowa City at a Central States Area Teaching Conference.[9] In June 1956 the first Iowa Teaching Institute, held to train Bahá'ís to teach the Faith, was held at a Quaker Farm School property near Iowa City.[10] In 1959 Hugh Chance gave a talk on the Faith at the Iowa Memorial Union building in Iowa City, and the Bahá'í community continued to regularly use the building for events.[11]
In 1960 the Bahá'í group of Iowa held a World Religion Day observation at the Iowa Memorial Union building.[12] As of 1963 the Bahá'ís of Iowa City were holding regular Devotions and a Children's Study Class at the Iowa Memorial Union building.[13] In 1967 Bahá'í students of the University of Iowa established a Bahá'í College Club on the campus, aiming to sponsor symposiums and guest speakers to promote the Faith.[14]
The Local Spiritual Assembly of Iowa City was established in 1970.[15] In 1975 Joanne Marion, a young Bahá'í, was awarded the Outstanding Young Religious Leader award by the Iowa City Junior Chamber of Commerce.[16] Regular firesides and public talks were held by the Bahá'í community of Iowa City throughout the 1970's, mostly at the Coralville Unibank. In 1981 a memorial service for Bahá'í martyrs of Iran was held in Danforth Chapel.[17]
In recent years the Iowa City Bahá'í community offers classes for children and junior youth for the community as well as study circles for older youth and adults, devotional gatherings for all,[18] and firesides for people interested in learning about the Bahá'í Faith.[19]
References[edit]
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1939-1-12, p 3
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1944-5-21, p 2
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1947-11-06, p 5
- ↑ http://marcusbach.wwwhubs.com/
- ↑ Baha'i News (1954). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 277, Pg(s) 11. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1954). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 281, Pg(s) 12. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1955). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 287, Pg(s) 6. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1955). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 295, Pg(s) 11. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1956). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 299, Pg(s) 7. View as PDF.
- ↑ Baha'i News (1956). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 307, Pg(s) 15. View as PDF.
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1959-02-05, p 8
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1960-1-5, p 6
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1963-3-30, p 2
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1967-10-12, p 7
- ↑ Baha'i News (1970). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 472, Pg(s) 6. View as PDF.
- ↑ Cedar Rapids Gazette, 1975-07-10, p 39
- ↑ Daily Iowan, 1981-7-9, p 2
- ↑ http://iowacitybahai.org/devotions-and-study/
- ↑ http://iowacitybahai.org/
