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Show Bountiful Baha'is Join In World Observance July 9 The Baha'is of Bountiful will join their fellow believers in more than 70,000 communities com-munities around the world in observing on July 9 the anniversary an-niversary of the martyrdom of one of the central figures of their faith the Bab. M1RZA ALI Muhammad, a Persian youth of 25 years, who took the title of the Bab or Gate, prepared the way for the later unfoldment of the Baha'i Faith. From 1844 until his death in 1850, he urged his followers to develop distinctive distinc-tive spiritual and moral characters, and to prepare for the imminent appearance of a prophet who would be the promised one of all ages. As Persians from every walk of life eagerly responded to the Bab's religion, ecclesiastical and temporal leaders became increasingly alarmed. The Bab was jailed and moved to an extremity of the realm. The masses were encouraged to attack the adherents of this new movement. Approximately 20,000 of the Bab's followers were put to death. CONVINCED finally that only the execution of the Bab himself would stop the spread of this religion, the authorities authori-ties approved the death sentence. sen-tence. On July 9, 1850, the kBab, who was then only 30 W years old, was martyred by " firing squad in a public square in Tabriz, Iran, with thousands of people looking on. In 1863, Baha'u'llah, the prophet-founder of the Baha'i faith, announced that he was the one whose advent the Bab had foretold. Baha'u'llah, whose title means "the Glory of God," stressed the urgent need for social reforms as well as spiritual regeneration. regenera-tion. The primary teaching of the Baha'i faith is that mankind is one and must unite on a world scale to achieve the goals every divine educator has voiced. THE REMAINS of the Bab are interred at the World Center of the Baha'i faith in a beautiful golden-domed shrine on Mt. Carmel, Haifa, Israel. The anniversary of his martyrdom is observed each year by Baha'is throughout the world. |