The Bahá’ís of the Towne of St. George and the Parish of St. George’s will observe the Bicentenary of the Birth of the Báb, Prophet-Herald of the Bahá’í Faith with a presentation of Bermuda’s national tree to the Mayor of the Olde Towne and the Corporation of St. George.

To mark this significant milestone in the history of the Bahá’í Faith, the 200th anniversary of the Báb’s birth, the Mayor of the Olde Towne, the Worshipful George Dowling III will be presented with a Bermuda Cedar tree on this occasion, the first for the Bahá’ís of St. George’s.

The Báb was born in Shiraz, Iran (then Persia) in 1819 and His name means “Gate”. The Báb, considered by the Bahá’ís as a Prophet, is also regarded as the Herald of the Bahá’í Faith. He announced the coming of Bahá’u’lláh , the Prophet-Founder of the Bahá’í Faith.

It was in 1844, the Báb proclaimed that He was a Prophet of God and the Herald of One Greater than Himself, Whose coming would fulfill the prophecies of all the great religions and usher in a new age.

The film, The Gate which fairly depicts the historical declaration by the Báb can be seen on Thursday evenings 7pm at the Bahá’í National, 8 Brunswick Street, Hamilton City. Light refreshments will be served.

The Bermudian Bahá’í community has been in continual existence since 1948 when the first Bahá’í arrived here from North America, and the first Bermudian Bahá’í to embrace the Bahá’í Faith was the then student at the University of Western Ontario, Canada, the late Mr. Bryan Burland, author and artist, who accepted the Faith in February 1950. The Bryan Burland Research Centre exists in his name at the Bermuda College.

The first Administrative institution of the Bahá’í Faith established in Bermuda was the Local Spiritual Assembly in 1953, later incorporated in 1958 by an Act of the Bermuda Legislature. The Bahá’í Marriage Act passed in 1970, and the governing body of the Bermudian community, the National Spiritual Assembly emerged in 1981 and was incorporated in 1985.

Since 1983 the Bermudian Bahá’ís have participated in seven International Bahá’í conventions held every five years at the Bahá’í World Centre in the Holy Land where all National Spiritual Assemblies, about 190 elect the international governing body of the world-wide Bahá’í community, the Universal House of Justice.

• Press release from Bahá’í National Centre