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The 50 Year Jubilee Celebration
Over 200 guests at the opening and dedication ceremony of the new Bahá’í National Centre, held on 24 December 2004, included representatives of the Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, and Muslim communities. Also present were the nation's solicitor-general, Mr. Raymond Sock and Mrs. Sock, Alhaji Luntung Jaiteh, the Alkalo or Headman of Bakau, a representative of the mayor of Kanifing Municipality, business people, and other dignitaries.
Bahá’í participants came not only from The Gambia -- including remote areas -- but also from neighboring Senegal and from Cape Verde, Mali, Mauritania, Guinea, and Guinea Bissau, as well as other countries in Africa, Europe, and North America, and Iran. Eleven members of the Continental Board of Counsellors attended part or all of the festivities.
An uplifting performance by the Dakar Bahá’í choir opened the dedication ceremony, followed by the reading of messages from the National Spiritual Assembly and other Bahá’í institutions and individuals around the world. Precious gifts from the beleaguered Bahá’í community in Iran were presented and gratefully received. The keynote speaker, Dr. Wendi Momen, a member of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United Kingdom, told the gathering that the Bahá’í Faith is centered on a profound understanding of the interconnectedness of all people and all countries.
"Baha'is believe that by developing our spiritual nature, by acquiring those virtues and personal values that are truly reflections of the divine…individuals are better placed to work with others to create communities and a world that is peaceful, just, prosperous, and united," said Dr. Momen, who first came to The Gambia in 1976 to do her doctoral research. The ceremony continued with a performance by a “Les Etincelles”, dance troupe from Dakar, followed by a photo-history display, a book display and dinner.
The center will provide a venue for administrative and devotional meetings, study circles, children's classes, and social and economic development programs, such as free computer lessons for the public. The program for the jubilee celebrations, which began on 25 December 2004, opened with performances on the balafon (African xylophone) followed by the History of the Bahá’í Faith in the Gambia in Wolof and in English. The Gambia Bahá’í choir “Nightingales of the Gambia” entertained with songs and drumming to touch the hearts of all.
The story of the introduction of the Bahá’í Faith to The Gambia, by Fariborz Ruzbehyan, came from his grandson, Iraj Sarvian, who traveled to The Gambia from the United States for the occasion. Mr. Ruzbehyan arrived in The Gambia on 19 February 1954. For that service, Shoghi Effendi bestowed upon him the accolade of Knight of Bahá’u’lláh. Shortly after his arrival, suffering greatly from asthma and fever, Mr. Ruzbehyan had to be admitted to a hospital but his seeming misfortune turned into delight when he was able to introduce the Faith to a fellow patient, Nelson Ethan Thomas, who soon became the first indigenous Bahá’í.
During his two years in The Gambia, Mr. Ruzbehyan saw 300 people accept the Bahá’í teachings, and he helped with the elections of six Local Spiritual Assemblies. He returned briefly in 1957 and purchased a house in Serrekunda to serve as the first local Bahá’í Center.
Mr. Jerreh Manneh who became a Bahá’í in the late 50s and served Mr. Enayatullah Fananapazir as translator and traveling companion, Mr. Muhammad Al-Salihi mentioned the blessings that are showered on those who serve the faith, Mrs. Nosrat Ardekani who accompanied Amatu'l-Bahá Ruhiyyih Khanum on her Africa safari for 17 days in The Gambia, Mr. Sheriffo Badjie whose older brother Kebba Badjie spontaneously accepted the faith during Ruhiyyih Khanum's visits to Foni, Mr. Neysan Rassekh who recalled the lasting impression of moonlight songs and stories for the junior youth at the famed regional winter schools in Latrikunda-Sabiji, Mr. Bakary Bojang who related the brief but dedicated services of a youth who died young, and Mr. Kobina Fynn who spoke of the great sacrifices of the late Yaw Asare.
Special tribute was paid to those who passed away while serving here: Mrs. Shahlah Ardekani-Neyestani for many years served on the National Spiritual Assemblies of Senegal and The Gambia. Her devotion to the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh started in her tender years in Morocco and continued all her life. Her love for the people was unlimited, her town and village teaching was tireless.
Mr. Yaw Asare came from Ghana where he served on the National Spiritual Assembly. He had just secured a good job at home when he answered the call to drive the mobile institute and teach for one year in the Gambia. This extended to nearly 5 years. He taught with love and energy and dreamed of dying as a martyr. In 1992 returning from a teaching trip, he perished when the bus he was on plunged into the river. He is buried in Sankulikunda.
Mrs. Ramatoulie Dem, the first Gambian woman elected to the National Spiritual Assembly was remembered by her granddaughter and namesake Ramatoulie Barry who recalled that her grandmother was a Bahá’í, her mother and her father are Bahá’ís and she is a Bahá’í. Like them, she is teaching her friends the Faith.
The program on 26 December 2004 began with the reciting of payers and verses by Bahá’í children from Lamin Village. Then the keynote speaker, prominent Bahá’í author Dr. Moojan Momen, who served the Faith in the Gambia as a youth in 1968, addressed the participants about the Bahá’í Faith, world peace, and how the contributions of the individuals rather than just leaders were so vital in this period of history. He said “in the past, revolutions and social upheavals really only changed the few people at the top and left the masses at the bottom. In this day, a truly extraordinary change enunciated by Bahá’u’lláh is in the process of being realized… This change puts the affairs of the people in the hands of the people. It is an empowerment that requires great changes in the traditions, thinking, and acting of the people. It is not something that will occur suddenly; rather it is a gradual but inevitable process
Two members of the Continental Board of Counsellors, Beatrice Asare of Ghana and Tessema Asfaw of Ethiopia, also addressed the gathering.The joyous celebrations concluded with a picnic at Sanyang Beach.