Marion Little
Marion Little | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | October 2, 1891 New Orleans, Louisiana, USA |
| Died | March 10, 1973 Paris, France |
| NSA member | Italy & Switzerland 1953 - ???? |
Marion Little (October 2, 1891 - March 10, 1973) was an American Bahá’í who pioneered to Europe assisting with the development of Bahá’í communities in Italy and Switzerland.
Biography[edit]
Early life in America[edit]
Little was born Marion Mellen in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1891. Her father, Delos, was French and her mother, Corinne, was Spanish. She had two brothers, Grenville and William, and they were raised as Roman Catholics with Little being educated at the Sacred Heart Convent in New Orleans.[1]
As of the 1910's Little was living in New York City where she was introduced to the Bahá’í Faith by Loulie Mathews and she declared shortly after learning about the religion. She helped with the organization of a Summer School on Mathews property in Pine Valley, Colorado, conducting deepening classes. At some point she married Raymond D. Little who was prominent in the New York publishing profession.[2]
As of 1928 Little had been appointed the secretary of the Bahá’í Publishing Committee based in New York, and in 1930 she oversaw the publication of the third volume of The Bahá’í World which earned her praise from Shoghi Effendi. In 1932 she assisted in efforts to have The Dawn-Breakers published collaborating closely with Shoghi Effendi on the project. She later went on to be appointed to the U.S. National Teaching Committee and the Inter-America Committee.[2]
In 1931 Little's husband passed away and in 1933 she left New York moving to Covington in Louisiana.[2] She later returned to New Orleans from Covington remaining there until Shoghi Effendi inaugurated the Seven Year Plan. In 1947 Little embarked on a travel teaching trip to Europe to assist with the Seven Year Plan however while she intended to make a short trip she settled in Europe and remained on the continent for the rest of her life.[3]
Service in Europe[edit]
Little initially toured Spain in 1947 helping establish the second Local Spiritual Assembly in the country and around the same time she assisted with teaching work in Luxembourg. In 1949 she pioneered to Italy settling in Florence with a Local Spiritual Assembly being established through her efforts.[3]
In 1953 the National Spiritual Assembly of Italy and Switzerland was established with sessions of the Convention at which it was established being held in Little's home. She was also elected to the body as an inaugural member and at some point she pioneered from Italy to Switzerland settling in Vevey and strengthening an existing community and then pioneering to Lausanne where she established a new community.[3]
Little later pioneered to France settling in Metz where her efforts successfully established a Local Spiritual Assembly and she remained in the city for the rest of her life.[3] In early 1973 she suffered three heart attacks and she passed away in Paris in March. The Universal House of Justice conveyed the following message after her passing:
ASCENSION ABHA KINGDOM MARION LITTLE STEADFAST DEVOTED SERVANT BAHAULLAH MORE THAN FIFTY YEARS TEACHING PUBLISHING PIONEERING UNITED STATES SOUTH AMERICA EUROPE DEPRIVES AMERICAN BAHAI COMMUNITY ONE ITS BRIGHTEST ORNAMENTS EUROPE ONE MOST RADIANT PIONEERS STOP HER LOYALTY CHEERFULNESS COURAGE UPLIFTED SPIRITS FRIENDS ASSURES BOUNTEOUS REWARD STOP OFFERING PRAYERS SACRED THRESHOLD PROGRESS HER SOUL RECOMMEND GERMAN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY HOLD BEFITTING MEMORIAL SERVICE MOTHER TEMPLE EUROPE[4]
References[edit]
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1976). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 15 (1968-1973), Pg(s) 547. View as PDF.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1976). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 15 (1968-1973), Pg(s) 548. View as PDF.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1976). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 15 (1968-1973), Pg(s) 549. View as PDF.
- ↑ The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1976). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 15 (1968-1973), Pg(s) 547. View as PDF.
