NSA:United States
United States |
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 National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, 2024.
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| National Office | Evanston, Illinois | |
| Membership (2025) | ||
| - | Chairperson | David F. Young |
| - | Vice Chair | Rabi Ann Musah |
| - | Secretary | Kenneth E. Bowers |
| - | Assistant Secretary | Saphira Rameshfar |
| - | Treasurer | Muin Afnani |
| - | Fariba Aghdasi | |
| - | Nanabah Kahn Foguth | |
| - | June Manning Thomas | |
| - | Timothy L. Conley | |
| History: | ||
| - | Established | 1948 |
| - | Succeeded | United States and Canada |
| - | Preceded | Alaska (1957) |
| - | Preceded | Hawaiian Islands (1964) |
| How to contact: | ||
| - | Phone | 847-733-3559 |
| - | Fax | 847-733-3430 |
| - | See here | |
| - | Address | 1233 Central Street Evanston, IL 60201 |
| Official Website | http://www.bahai.us/ | |
| Sister Projects | ||
The National Spiritual Assembly of the United States is the national administrative body of the Bahá'í community of the United States.
History[edit]
The first administrative body of the American Bahá'ís was the Executive Board of Bahá'í Temple Unity, which was established at the first US National Convention in 1909.[1] This body was renamed the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States in 1922 on the instructions of Shoghi Effendi.[2] In 1925 the National Assembly of the Unites States and Canada was formally recognize.[3] [4] An official Declaration of Trust outlining the powers and responsibilities of the National Spiritual Assembly was produced at a meeting held from April 29 to May 2 of 1926.[5]
The United States and Canada elected independent National Spiritual Assemblies in 1948. Alaska elected an independent National Spiritual Assembly in 1957, and Hawaii in 1964. The decision to form those National Spiritual Assemblies was made by the Guardian when they were still territories of the United States and the decision was followed despite the territories later gaining statehood.
In 1997 the Universal House of Justice introduced the Regional Bahá’í Council as an Institution between Local Spiritual Assemblies and National Spiritual Assemblies. That year four Councils were formed under the United States Assembly which were the following[6]:
- Central Region
- Northeastern Region
- Southern Region
- Western Region
Currently there are thirteen Regional Councils under the Assembly which are as of 2020[7]:
- Appalachian States[8]
- Atlantic States[9]
- California[10]
- Florida
- Four Corners States
- Heartland States
- Midwestern States[11]
- Northeastern States[12]
- Northern Plains States
- Northwestern States
- Prairie States
- South Central States[13]
- Southeastern States[14]
As of 2025 the National Spiritual Assembly was elected by 171 elected delegates.[15]
Current Membership (2025)[edit]
| Name | Elected |
|---|---|
| David Young | 1999 |
| Kenneth Bowers | 2002 |
| Muin Afnani | 2007 |
| Fariba Aghdasi | 2011 |
| Rabi Musah | 2019 |
| Nanabah Kahn Foguth | 2022 |
| June Manning Thomas | 2023 |
| Saphira Rameshfar | 2024 |
| Timothy L. Conley | 2025 |
Past Membership[edit]
Publications[edit]
Bahai.works has a related page:
Author:United States NSA
Bahai.media has a related page:
Category:United States NSA
- 1947 - A Bahá’í Declaration of Human Obligations and Rights
- 1949 - Declaration of Trust and By-Laws of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States (revised in 1965 and 1975).
- 1953 - Jubilee Celebration
- 1956 - Charter of a Divine Civilization, compilation from works by Shoghi Effendi.
- 1963 - The Bahá’í Community: A Summary of its Organization and Laws
- 1970 - A New Wind Blowing[18]
- 1973 - A Fortress for Wellbeing: Bahá’í Teachings on Marriage[19]
- 1974 - The Light of Bahá’u’lláh: An Introduction to the Bahá’í Faith[20]
- 1976 - Bahá’í Community Life
- 1976 - Bahá’í Laws
- 1976 - Spiritual Teachings
- 1990 - Vision to Victory
- 1991 - The Vision of Race Unity: America's Most Challenging Issue[21]
- 1995 - So Great an Honor: Becoming a Bahá’í[22]
- 1997 - Diffusing the Divine Fragrances: Prayers and Excerpts from the Tablets of the Divine Plan, compilation from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
- 2000 - For the Celebration of My Praise[23]
- 2002 - Unrestrained as the Wind: Releasing the Spirit of Bahá’í Youth[24]
- 2023 - A Unifying Vision in Action: An Introduction to the Bahá’í Faith[25][26]
Notes[edit]
- ↑ https://bahai-library.com/tags/Bahai_Temple_Unity
- ↑ Star of the West, Vol. 13, No. 4, May 17, 1922
- ↑ Note from the US National Bahá'í Archive: Shoghi Effendi sent a letter dated March 5, 1922 to the Bahá’ís, which first discussed the need for National Spiritual Assemblies and their nature. The letter was read at the 1922 National Convention and was discussed. I’ve attached a portion of the Convention transcript: the Guardian’s letter begins on page 8 and the first reference to National Spiritual Assemblies appears on page 12. In June, 1922 they continued to use the Bahá’í Temple Unity letterhead, but changed the heading “Executive Board” (followed by a list of members) to “National Spiritual Assembly” with a list of members. By 1925 the letterhead had been changed, first to “National Bahá’í Assembly” and then “National Spiritual Assembly”. The earliest letter we have found from Shoghi Effendi to the National Assembly, addressing them as such, is dated December 23, 1922.
In a letter dated March 12, 1923 to North America and seven other regions, the Guardian outlined how the delegates ought to be elected: by proportional representation by the communities with Local Spiritual Assemblies. He used the United States as the example of how to divide up the delegates. The text of this letter was published in Bahá’í Administration, beginning on page 34. This procedure required an up-to-date membership list for each Local Spiritual Assembly community. However, the National Spiritual Assembly did not have such membership lists in 1923 or 1924. It was not until 1925 that the Local Spiritual Assemblies were first asked to send their membership lists in advance of the National Convention. We don’t know the exact reason for this delay, but it might have been due partly to the fact that Alfred Lunt was a less efficient secretary than Horace Holley, who replaced him in 1924. In a March 17, 1925 letter from Horace Holley to Shoghi Effendi the last issue relating to the election of delegates was resolved for the 1925 National Convention election call. And as you pointed out, in God Passes By page 333, Shoghi Effendi gives the United States National Assembly’s date as 1925. - ↑ List of National Spiritual Assemblies
- ↑ Bahá'í World, Vol. 10, p313
- ↑ https://bahai-library.com/nsa_rbc_election_1997
- ↑ NSA of the United States, 2020 Annual Report, at archive.org
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/appalachiaRBC/
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/RBCatlantic/
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/bahaicouncilca/
- ↑ https://midwestbahai.org/council/
- ↑ https://rbcnortheast.org/
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/Regional-Bah%C3%A1i-Council-of-the-South-Central-States-162112300495169/
- ↑ https://www.rbcsoutheast.org/regional-bahai-council/
- ↑ https://www.bahai.us/115th-national-convention-national-spiritual-assembly-elected/
- ↑ https://www.nhonews.com/news/2010/apr/20/obituary-franklin-kahn/
- ↑ https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=157037935
- ↑ https://www.amazon.com/BLOWING-National-Spiritual-Assembly-Bahais/dp/B002J08WDG/ref=sr_1_4?dchild=1&qid=1608094683&refinements=p_27%3ANational+Spiritual+Assembly+Of+The+Baha%27is+Of+The+United+States&s=books&sr=1-4&text=National+Spiritual+Assembly+Of+The+Baha%27is+Of+The+United+States
- ↑ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2473256.A_Fortress_for_Well_Being
- ↑ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36058957-the-light-of-bah-u-ll-h
- ↑ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35583427-the-vision-of-race-unity
- ↑ https://www.amazon.com/So-Great-Honor-Becoming-Bahai/dp/0877432481/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&qid=1608094683&refinements=p_27%3ANational+Spiritual+Assembly+Of+The+Baha%27is+Of+The+United+States&s=books&sr=1-2&text=National+Spiritual+Assembly+Of+The+Baha%27is+Of+The+United+States
- ↑ https://www.amazon.com/Celebration-Praise-National-Spiritual-Assembly/dp/0877433046/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&qid=1608094683&refinements=p_27%3ANational+Spiritual+Assembly+Of+The+Baha%27is+Of+The+United+States&s=books&sr=1-3&text=National+Spiritual+Assembly+Of+The+Baha%27is+Of+The+United+States
- ↑ https://www.amazon.com/Unrestrained-As-Wind-Dedicated-BahaULlah/dp/087743283X/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=%22Bahai+Pub+Trust%22&qid=1608094580&sr=8-5
- ↑ https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/205173499-a-unifying-vision-in-action
- ↑ https://bahaibooks.com.au/products/unifying-vision-in-action?srsltid=AfmBOorTqQBl6Ivn9nA0rssLTJL4DPyy84qBqmrr1x0OTtBf-B4KrJt7
References[edit]
- "National Spiritual Assembly elected". National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States. 26 May 2018. Retrieved 1 June 2018.
- "National Spiritual Assembly Elected". National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States. 28 April 2012. Archived from the original on 4 May 2013. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
- "Election of the National Spiritual Assembly, 2010–2011". National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'is of the United States. 1 May 2010. Archived from the original on 6 July 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
- "U.S. Baha'i National Convention began Thursday, April 23". U.S. Bahá’í News. 2009-04-25. Archived from the original on 5 July 2014. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- Patricia Locke (1989). "The Return of the "White Buffalo Calf Woman": Prophecy of the Lakota". Interview. University of Georgia. Retrieved 24 Nov 2009.
- David L. (April 29, 1995). "Day Three -- US National Baha'i Convention -- April 29, 1995". bahai-library.com. Retrieved 21 November 2009.
- http://digitalcollections.library.cmu.edu/awweb/awarchive?type=file&item=472998: Assembly for unknown year reported (at least 1983)
- http://digitalcollections.library.cmu.edu/awweb/awarchive?type=file&item=711211: 1986-1987 Assembly reported
- https://eu019convention.wordpress.com/delegate-report/ 2017 member term lengths reported
Table Of Contents
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1.1 History
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2.2 Current Membership (2025)
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3.3 Past Membership
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4.4 Publications
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5.5 Notes
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6.6 References