Marking 90 years since election of Australia’s first National Spiritual Assembly 

Delegates at the 2024 National Baha’i Convention have marked a momentous occasion, with this year’s gathering coinciding with the 90^th anniversary since the inception of the very first National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Australia and New Zealand.  

In the convention’s opening remarks, the National Spiritual Assembly’s outgoing chairperson remarked that only nine delegates had convened at the first convention – a stark difference to the 95 gathered for the convention today. 

“This is a testament to the power of God and His covenant … and we cannot help but be moved by this power,” she said. 

She said the occasion was, however, tempered by the sorrow felt due to the ongoing suffering of the friends in Iran, who continued to show courage and resilience in the face of such persistent tests. 

The national governing council of Australia and New Zealand was first elected in 1934, the same year as the National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of Iran. The Iranian Assembly was, however, dissolved in 1983 after the Iranian Prosecutor General called for the dismantling of the Baha’i administrative structure. 

The outgoing chairperson also said it was hoped this year’s national convention would honour the community’s achievements and spur the friends on as they were reminded of the following words from the Universal House of Justice: