Ruhi Afnan

Afnan (right) with Keith Ransom-Kehler, 1927.

Ruhi Afnan (1899 - 1971) served as the Secretary of the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith from 1922 to 1936 however in 1941 he was declared a Covenant-breaker. Outside of the Faith he was a philosopher writing on existentialism and Zoroastrianism.

Biography

Ruhi was a grandson of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and the cousin of Shoghi Effendi. His mother was Túbá Khánum, a daughter of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and his father was Mírzá Muhsin. He had a brother, Soheil, who also served as a secretary of the Guardian. He married his cousin Zahra, daughter of Mírzá Jalál Shahid and Rúhá Khánum.

Ruhi served as a secretary for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and was the secretary who took dictation for the final Tablets He revealed shortly before His passing. In 1921 Shoghi Effendi became the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith following the passing of their Grandfather and in 1922 Ruhi became his cousins secretary for correspondence with the west.

In October 1923 Ruhi moved to London, England, to study law at university. In late September 1924 he spoke about the Bahá’í Faith alongside Mountfort Mills at the Conference of Some Living Religions within the British Empire held in London. By 1926 he had returned to the Holy Land.

In 1927 Ruhi visited the United States arriving in New York in June and the National Spiritual Assembly of the U.S. and Canada and Local Spiritual Assembly of New York organized an itinerary for him which included attending the Institute of World Unity held at Green Acre Summer School in August, the Annual Souvenir of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá at the Wilhelm Property, and the 1928 National Convention. In October 1927 Shoghi Effendi included the following in a letter to the National Spiritual Assembly of the U.S. and Canada:

"The warm hospitality accorded by the National Spiritual Assembly and the American believers to my dear cousin and co-laborer, Ruhi Effendi, has deeply touched me, particularly as I realize from the appreciative reports I have recently received that by his radiant and earnest spirit of service he has deserved well of his dear fellow-workers in that continent, and contributed substantially to their better appreciation of the teachings of the Cause. Much as I desire him to work by my side here in the Holy Land, I very gladly concur with your wish to further extend his sojourns with you, trusting that he will prove of great assistance to you all in the discharge of your noble task."

In September 1928 Ruhi visited Switzerland and attended a meeting held to consult on the future of the International Bahá’í Bureau.

Afnan (centre) at a reception in Chicago during his 1927 visit to America.

In 1935 Ruhi visited the United States again conducting teaching work in Cincinnati and attending a conference for members of Spiritual Assemblies in the Central States held at the House of Worship in Wilmette delivering a talk to what was estimated to be the largest crowd ever to gather at the House of Worship with ushers having to turn away hundreds due to lack of seating. During this visit he stayed with the family of Dorothy Baker for several days in their home in Lima, Ohio, and reportedly discouraged Baker from her heavy workload in service to the Cause, and he attended the Green Acre Summer School at which he reportedly made disparaging statements about Esperanto resulting in disturbance among some Bahá’ís. In 1936 he ceased serving as Shoghi Effendi's secretary.

In November 1941 Shoghi Effendi released a cable declaring Ruhi a covenant-breaker citing support for the marriage of his sister, Thurayya, to a covenant-breaker:

"Ruhi's sister married covenant-breaker Feyzi, whose mother joined and supported arch-enemy Muhammad Ali and whose father ‘Abdu’l-Bahá denounced openly and repeatedly as His deadly enemy. Ruhi's family concurred. Inform all believers (that) all manner (of) communication (with) excommunicated family (is) forbidden."

He sent a second cable accompanying the first in which he revealed that Ruhi's second visit to America was made without consulting him to receive approval first which he had not disclosed to the community:

"(The) flagrant disloyalty (of) Ruhi's family compels me (to) disclose information so long (and) patiently withheld (from) American believers concerning his failure (to) obtain my approval (of) his second visit (to) America."

Shoghi Effendi sent Rúḥíyyih Khánum to meet with Ruhi at some point in the 1940's in an attempt to have him reconcile with the Covenant and rejoin the community however he remained hostile towards Shoghi Effendi.

Ruhi and his family moved to Lebanon in 1948 in the wake of the Arab-Israeli war due to their links to the Arab community and he lived there for the rest of his life. Around the time of his departure Rúḥíyyih Khánum noted that his political affiliations were also a factor in his alienation from the Bahá’í community.

In 1950 Shoghi Effendi sent another cable regarding Ruhi:

"Inform friends that Ruhi, his mother, with Ruha, his aunt, and their families, not content with years of disobedience and unworthy conduct, are now showing open defiance. Confident that exemplary loyalty of American believers will sustain me in carrying overwhelming burden of cares afflicting me."

In May 1953 Shoghi Effendi sent an additional cable regarding Ruhi to the Bahá’í world:

"Treacherous Ruhi Afnan, not content with previous disobedience, correspondence with Ahmad Sohrab, contact with old Covenant-breakers, sale, in conjunction with other members of family, of sacred property purchased by Founder of Faith, and allowing his sister to marry son of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s enemy, is now openly lecturing on Bahá’í movement, claiming to be its exponent and is misrepresenting the teachings and deliberately causing confusion in minds of authorities and the local population. Inform National Assemblies."

References

Bahai.media has a related page: Category:Ruhi Afnan