1. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France was duly elected on the 23rd of April 1960 during Ridván of
the year 117, the only period during which National Spiritual Assemblies
may be elected, in conformity with the instructions of the first
Guardian, Shoghi Effendi and in conformity with the decisions and
preparations of The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of
France for the year 116 ( from the 25th of April 1959 to 22 April 1960)
and in accord with its statutes.
Its members and elected officers are the following:
Mr. Joel B. Marangella, president;
Mr. Bernard Fillon, secretary;
Mr. Donald Harvey; treasurer;
Mr. Alain Tamenne, vice-president;
Mrs. Henriette Samimy, reporting secretary;
Mrs. Sara Kenny, member;
Mr. M. Barafroukhteh, member ;
Mr. Monir Derakhchan, member;
Mr. Jacques Soghomonian, member,
2. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France has never ceased to exist between Ridván 117 and Ridván 118,
(the period of Ridván extends, according to the Bahá’í calendar,
from the 21st of April to the 2nd of May).
3. No one person, nor group of persons, nor
whatever institutions, excepting the Guardian or a future Universal
House of Justice inseparable from the living Guardian, (Universal House
of Justice whose date for establishment has not yet been fixed either by
the first Guardian Shoghi Effendi, or his successor, the second Guardian
Mason Remey) have not the right nor the power, nor the possibility to
dissolve a National Spiritual Assembly, whatever it is or whatsoever it
does.
Note: The "forerunner" of the UHJ
(Universal House of Justice) – The International Bahá’í
Council – was established by Shoghi Effendi on 9 January, 1951.
4. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France has placed itself in status-quo of its own free will between
the 7th of May 1960 and the 14th of August 1960. At that last date, it
had resumed its normal activities, with the approbation of Mason Remey.
5. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France, once it had resumed its activities on the 14th of August,
1960, convened for the meeting, only the five members remaining faithful
to the living Guardian: Messrs. Monir Derakhchan, Bernard Fillon
(secretary), Donald Harvey (treasurer), Joel B. Marangella (president)
et Jacques Soghomonian. In fact, the four other members : Messrs Alain
Tamenne (vice-president), A. M Barafroukhteh, et Mrs Henriette Samimy (
reporting secretary ) et Sara Kenny, who revolted and disobeyed,
auto[matically]-expelled themselves, at their own behest, by repudiating
the living Guardian as members of The National Spiritual Assembly of the
Bahá’ís of France, reconvened in its meeting of the 14th of August,
legalized this fact by approving these expulsions within its midst.
(expulsions from The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of
France only) This legalization was obviously necessary in
conformity with article 9 of the Statutes of The National Spiritual
Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France.
At the start of this reunion, the 14 August,
1960, whilst not in possession of the resignations of the five members
in the majority, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of
France considered the latter in a manner which [would] put an end to its
status quo. In order to do this, it refused [to accept] these five
resignations by a motion unanimously moved and accepted. Furthermore, it
made the following changes concerning its officers.
Vice-president: Mr. Jacques Soghomonian;
Reporting Secretary: Mr. Donald Harvey.
6. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France is the only proprietor of its Haziratu’l-Quds or central
office, 11 rue de la Pompe, Paris 16th, as well as all that it contains,
material, documents, library, and others, and is the only one to retain
the authority to receive and deposit funds in its name, whether these
assets be cash or in the Bank.
7. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France does not recognize, in whatsoever manner, any organization,
even those appropriating its own proper title,[NSABF] who pretends to or
would claim to be its substitute. This includes, among others, the
organization which, in June 1960, appropriated the name of the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France as well as its goods and
rights and prerogatives and was installed through illegal elections and
whose members are the following: ( the list published by this
organization which took on the title of [as thought it was] the proper
publication of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of
France, June 1960, No. 1.): Mr. Alain Tamenne, Miss Lucienne Migette,
Mr. A. M. Barafroukhteh, Mr. François Petit, Mrs. Sara Kenny, Mr.
Yadullah Yazdanian, , Mr. Lucien McComb, Mr. A. E. Naimi and includes as
well as those illegal organizations under the title of "Local
Spiritual Assemblies" of Paris, Orléans, Chateauroux, Lyon,
Marseille, Nice and Montpellier, who were auto[matically]-expelled from
the Bahá’í community of France by their repudiation of the living
Guardian, and who continue nonetheless to retain and usurp the title of
this Local Spiritual Assembly of Bahai’s .
8. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France, having found, shortly after the 8th of May 1960, the front
door of its central office (Haziratu’l-Quds), 11 rue de la Pompe,
Paris 16th , locked with the new lock installed, without doubt, by this
organization who appropriated its name and its goods and as a
consequence did not have the key, decided then, in conformity to the
statutes, to transfer temporarily its central office. It chose, for its
means, the residence of its secretary Mr. Bernard Fillon, 135 Avenue
Versailles , Paris, 16th arrondissement.
9. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France no longer possessing at Ridván 118 a sufficient number of
Local Spiritual Assemblies so that its delegates ( nineteen delegates,
the number fixed by the first Guardian Shoghi Effendi) are able to elect
the members of The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of
France for the Bahá’í year 118 ( not later than the 2nd of May 1961
until at the latest the 2nd of May 1962) ceases, naturally, to exist on
the 2nd of May, 1961.
10. Only the second Guardian, Mason Remey or one
of his legal successors designated by him or by them, in conformity with
the Will and Testament of `Abdu’l-Bahá, the Centre of the Covenant of
Bahá’u’lláh, could designate the person or the group of persons
who would be charged to prepare the election of the future National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France – successor to the
present one – and only this new National Spiritual Assembly, resulting
from this election, can then take possession of this document and the
goods and chattels of the present National Spiritual Assembly of the
Bahá’ís of France to use as they see fit.
11. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France had locked away during the night of the 7th of May its most
important documents, that of the registration of the modifications
(stamped by the Prefecture of Police of Paris) as well as the cash funds
and chequebook, within the safe (in the secretariat of its central
office rue de la Pompe, Paris, 16th) and changed the combination. The
two keys to the safe (only two existed) together with the keys to the
front door, which were held by the Secretary and Treasurer, were put
away in a secure location, by the Treasurer, Mr. Donald Harvey, who
alone knew where to find them. Only the Treasurer and the Secretary Mr.
Bernard Fillon knew the combination to the safe, (Several members of the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France and the Local
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Paris, in addition to the
Treasurer and Secretary of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France, were also in possession of the front door keys to the central
office of the said National Spiritual Assembly of France. The premises
of the central office being loaned permanently to the Spiritual Assembly
of Paris for its own activities.
If this safe is opened before the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France can present itself [to
open it],the legal successor [to the NSABF] and loyal to the living
Guardian by those who have undersigned this document, it will have only
been done so by a professional, at the request of persons or the
organization having illegally occupied the central office of the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France and forced open
by these same persons or organization.
12. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France recognizes the right of its legal successor described in
paragraph 10 of the present declaration; to undertake every measure
deemed necessary, measures both simple or judicial, to reclaim
possession of its goods, assets ( cash and bank) and others.
13. The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís
of France certifies that as of the date of 2 May 1961, the persons whose
names appear below, are part of the community of the Bahá’ís of
France, loyal to the living Guardian, Mason Remey ( designated in
accordance with the instructions of the Will and Testament of `Abdu’l-Bahá)
Mr. John Byers, 10, boulevard d’Angleterre,
Le Vésinet
(Seine-et-Oise) ;
Mrs. Madeleine Byers, 10, boulevard d’Angleterre,
Le Vésinet
(Seine-et-Oise);
Mrs. Margaret Aducat, 7, rue Jousselin,
Orléans (Loiret)
;
Mrs. Georgine Carré, Maison L’Enfant,
Uhart-Cize,
par
Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (B.-Pyr.) ;
Mrs. Inglis Carré, Maison L’Enfant,
Uhart-Cize,
par
Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (B.-Pyr.) ;
Mr. John Carré, Maison L’Enfant, Uhart-Cize,
par
Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port (B.-Pyr.) ;
Mr. Monir Derakhchan, 115, rue Paradis,
Marseille 6
(B.-du-R.);
Miss Madeleine Férahian, 6, passage des
Écoliers,
Paris 15;
Monsieur Bernard Fillon, 135, avenue de
Versailles,
Paris 16 ;
Mrs. Marguerite-Marie Fillon , 135, avenue de
Versailles,
Paris 16 ;
Mr, Donald Harvey, 3, rue René-Bazin,
Paris 16;
Mrs. M.-Antoinette Lacascade, 249 Le Corbusier,
boulevard Michelet,
Marseille 8
(B.-du-R.);
Mrs. Patricia Lilly, Maison L’Enfant,
Uhart-Cize,
par Saint
Jean-Pied-de-Port (B.-Pyr.) ;
Mrs. Irene Marangella , 7, rue Jousselin,
Orléans;
Mr. Joel B. Marangella, 7, rue Jousselin,
Orléans (Loiret)
;
Miss Marguerite Mignon, 62, rue de Coulmier,
Orleans (
Loiret ) ;
Miss Eulalie A. Ouvry, 232, rue Paradis,
Marseille 6
(B.-du- R. ) ;
Mrs. Marie-Louise Péreira, Cours Lafayette,
La
Chaize-Dieu (Haute-Loire ) ;
Mrs. Aurore Reynaud, 33, rue Milly,
Marsellle
6 (B.-du- R.) ;
Mr. Jacques Soghomonian 51 rue Paul-Bert,
Lyon (Rhône
)
14. To testify on behalf of the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of France for the year 117 (from
the 23rd of April 1960 until the 2nd of May 1961), the five remaining
majority members whom are formed, sign the present declaration, three
copies of which are:
– one for the Second Guardian of the
Faith, Mason Remey, P.O. Box 418, Washington 4, D.C., The United
States of America;
– one for the office of the Associations
of the Prefecture of Police of the Seine in Paris;
– one for the Archives (of the Bahá’í
year 117) of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of
France.
