Community invited to Baha’is of Carmel Valley celebration Oct. 28

The Baha’is of Carmel Valley invite the public to join in its bicentennial celebration of the birth of the Bab, the Herald of the Baha’i Faith. The event will be held on Monday, Oct. 28, at 7 p.m. at Del Mar Hills Academy (School) and will include music, storytelling and theater. The event is free of charge.

In May 1844, at the age of 25, a young merchant from Shiraz, Persia known as The Bab, which means “The Gate” in Arabic announced his mission as a Manifestation of God who would announce and prepare the way for the advent of one greater than Himself, to inaugurate an era of righteousness and peace. The Bab proclaimed the imminent appearance of a Divine Educator who would fulfill the prophetic expectations set forth in the scriptures of the world’s major religions. His goal was realized when Baha’u’llah founded the Baha’i religion in 1863. Since then, the Baha’i Faith has grown to include over 7.1 million followers in 221 countries, with several hundred residing in San Diego.

Clothed in a set of modern social teachings, the Baha’i Faith promotes the oneness of mankind, equality of race and gender, and teaches that the world’s major religions come from the same source and share a common purpose.

The Baha’is of Carmel Valley offer educational classes for children ages 3-11 on Saturdays from 2-3:30 p.m. at the Carmel Valley Recreation Center. The Carmel Valley Junior Youth Empowerment Program also meets weekly with youth mentors to design and implement community service projects, while developing leadership and collaborative abilities. These programs are free and open to children and junior youth of all faith backgrounds. They emphasize the development of character, morals, and virtues such as unity, love, justice, courtesy, truthfulness and they encourage the participants to render service to humanity and the community they live in.

For more information about the children and youth programs, please contact Niky Farid at nikyfarid@gmail.com and about the local events leading up to the main bicentennial celebration on Oct. 28, contact Lisa Aryan at lisayaryan@gmail.com. Del Mar Hills Academy (School) is located at 14085 Mango Drive, Del Mar , CA 92014.