Lady Blomfield
Lady Blomfield | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1859 Ireland |
| Died | December 31, 1939 Hampstead, London, England. |
| Other names | Sara Louisa Ryan Sitarih Khánum |
| NSA member | British Isles 1923 - 1928 |
| Spouse(s) | Sir Arthur Blomfield (1829 - 1899) m. 1887 |
| Children | Mary, Ellinor |
Lady Sara Louisa Blomfield (1859 - December 31, 1939), granted the title Sitarih Khánum by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, was the first Irish Bahá’í and was prominent in the early establishment of the Bahá’í Faith in Europe.
Biography[edit]
Blomfield was born Sara Louisa Ryan in Ireland in 1859.[1] In 1887 she married Arthur Blomfield, a prominent English architect,[1] and they lived in London where she was known for hosting events. She became styled as Lady Blomfield when her husband was knighted. She was heavily involved in humanitarian pursuits in London society supporting suffragettes, women's rights, children's rights, prisoners rights, and animal rights, and also the peace movement and interfaith efforts.[2]
In 1907 Blomfield became the first person of Irish descent to become a Bahá’í being introduced to the religion by Ethel Rosenberg and Hippolyte Dreyfus-Barney during a visit to Paris.[3] After converting she was among the most active of the Bahá’ís of England in addition to remaining committed to philanthropy and also working with the League of Nations.[2] When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá visited Paris in 1911 Blomfield visited the city, met with Him, and assisted with the preparation of the book Paris Talks which was compiled from talks ‘Abdu’l-Bahá gave in the city.[4] When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá visited London in 1912 He visited Blomfield's home.[5]
When the First World War began in 1914 Blomfield was visiting Switzerland with her two daughters and they moved to Paris where they volunteered for the French Red Cross caring for wounded soldiers until March, 1915, when the hospital unit they were serving was shut down. Blomfield returned to England where she continued to volunteer as hospitals and also hosted wounded ANZAC soldiers in her home while they recovered.[6] She was able to maintain a correspondence with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during the war and intended to go on pilgrimage to the Holy Land after the wars conclusion however due to family matters she was unable to make the journey before the Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá on November 28, 1921.[7]
Shoghi Effendi was in London studying at Oxford at the time of the Ascension of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Blomfield accompanied him on the journey back to Haifa and remained in the Holy Land into 1922 to assist the family with the aftermath of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's passing. During this time she wrote an account of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's funeral in collaboration with Shoghi Effendi which was published as The Passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.[8] In 1923 the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles was established and Blomfield was elected as an inaugural member of the body.[9] In addition to serving on the Assembly Blomfield also visited Geneva, Switzerland, throughout the 1920's to support the work of the International Bahá’í Bureau,[10] and through her efforts the National Spiritual Assembly was named a Corporate Member of the League of Nations.[11]
In 1930 Blomfield made a second pilgrimage to Haifa,[11] and she interviewed many of the Bahá’ís in the Holy Land on the history of the Bahá’í Faith.[12] After her second pilgrimage she settled in Hampstead, England, where she lived with her daughter and worked on composing a history of the Bahá’í Faith based on the notes she had collected while on pilgrimage. She completed a manuscript shortly before her passing which she entrusted to David Hofman and requested that Hasan Balyuzi write a foreword for it and the work was posthumously published as The Chosen Highway.[11]
In her final days Blomfield was cared for in a nursing home up until her passing on the last day of 1939.[11]
Publications[edit]
- 1912 - Paris Talks, compilation of talks given by 'Abdu'l-Bahá
- 1922 - The Passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
- 1940 - The Chosen Highway
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Lady Sarah Louisa Ryan Blomfield on WikiTree
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Memorial to a shining star, article at Baha'i World News Service
- ↑ O.Z. Whitehead, Some Early Baha'is of the West, George Ronald: Oxford, 1976, p 58
- ↑ Earl Redman, Visiting ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Volume 1, George Ronald: Oxford, 2019, p 245
- ↑ Earl Redman, Visiting ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: Volume 1, George Ronald: Oxford, 2019, p 143
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1942). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Wilmette, Ill. Volume 8 (1938-1940), Pg(s) 652. View as PDF.
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1942). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Wilmette, Ill. Volume 8 (1938-1940), Pg(s) 653. View as PDF.
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1942). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Wilmette, Ill. Volume 8 (1938-1940), Pg(s) 653. View as PDF.
- ↑ Earl Redman, Shoghi Effendi Through the Pilgrim's Eye: Volume 1, George Ronald: Oxford, 2015, p 63
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1942). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Wilmette, Ill. Volume 8 (1938-1940), Pg(s) 653. View as PDF.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1942). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Wilmette, Ill. Volume 8 (1938-1940), Pg(s) 654. View as PDF.
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1942). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Wilmette, Ill. Volume 8 (1938-1940), Pg(s) 653. View as PDF.
