Baha'i sacred day remembered with festivities
In two Eugene locations, members and non-members
celebrated the birth of their messenger, Baha'u'llah
BY JARED PABEN
NEWS EDITOR
Friday’s holiday wasn’t marked
with gift giving or grandiose pa
rades, but for members of the cam
pus Bahd’f community, it marked
one of the most sacred days of the
year. On Friday, campus Baha’is cel
ebrated the anniversary of the birth
of Baha’u’llah, who was a messen
ger from God and the founder of
their religion.
Locally, University Bahi’fs
observed the holiday with celebra
tions at the Eugene Veterans Memo
rial Building and at Lane Communi
ty College. At the veterans club,
members of the University’s Baha’i
Campus Association enjoyed
Persian dancing, food and music
to celebrate the birth of their reli
gion’s founder.
Adviser for the Baha’i Campus
Association Don Addison — who
played piano at one of the celebra
tions and spoke at the other —
said the holiday is one of the most
central for followers of the interna
tional faith.
“(It was) one of the most impor
tant holidays in the whole year
because it celebrated the birthday
of the founder of the Bahd’i faith,”
said Addison, an instructor and
student at the University. “And we
don’t look up on him as just
some nice guy — although people
automatically felt a great spirit
from him — but we believe that
he was God’s latest messenger
to humanity, exactly along the
same order as Jesus or Moses
or Abraham.
“That celebration night there ...
meant that we are thrilled to be part
of this thing that’s so international,”
he said.
University student Brett Wartchow,
who played at the event with his
friends and family, said the escape
from commercialization and materi
alism helped him reconnect with his
religion and his beliefs.
“For the Baha’is, it’s a time for cel
ebrating. ... It’s a time to celebrate his
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life and the message he brought to
the world,” Wart chow said.
The Baha’i faith is a clergy
less faith with members around
the world who believe in the unity of
humanity. Members come from many
different religions and believe in the
major figures of most of those faiths.
BaM’u’llah claimed he was God’s
messenger and the teacher who fulfills
the promises of other religions.
Bahd’u’llah, which means “glory
of God,” was born in 1817, died
in 1892 and was the founder of the
independent religion, Addison said.
Addison said that the Baha’i Cam
pus Association is open to everybody,
but has about 30 to 50 regular mem
bers. The association’s house, located
at 1458 Alder St., is the same house
that belonged to Gordon Jackson, who
became the first Bahd’i in the area
when he moved to Eugene in the
1940s, Addison said.
The association has activities every
Sunday and is also open to those
who don’t follow the religion, Addi
son said.
Wartchow said he didn’t even
know many of those who attended
the Friday festivities because many of
them weren’t Baha’is.
“It means different things
for everybody. ... It’s really nice
for me, at least, to really spend
some time reflecting on what exact
ly my faith means to me,”
Wartchow said. “I really appreciate
how in this faith things aren’t com
mercialized. For me, it’s a purely
spiritual experience.”
jaredpaben@ daily emerald, com
International: 'Ridiculous'
process frustrates students
Continued from page 1
“I’m European, so it wasn’t that
difficult,” he said.
Now, the process is “more compli
cated,” and requires fingerprinting, bio
metric measurements and an inter
view, he said. When he left the United
States, Garcia said he had to go through
some of these steps on his return trip.
“When I was entering the country,
it was just incredible,” he said. “(US
CIS) took me to an office and made
me wait for two hours. They checked
everything. ”
Shirzadegan said the process can
leave some students, particularly
those from Muslim countries, hu
miliated and has discouraged
students from coming to the United
States at all.
Unardi said he felt the process
was “ridiculous” and added that it
frustrates many people.
Attiah, who had to go to Portland
to get fingerprinted after Sept. 11,
said he is similarly frustrated with
the increased scrutiny on interna
tional students. But he added that
he understood why the process had
to be so difficult and lengthy.
“The government has to work to
make sure that the people are safe,”
he said. “But that doesn’t mean I
wasn’t humiliated.”
moriahbalingit® daily emerald, com
INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION WEEK
This week, the U.S. Department of State
and the U.S. Department of Education are
hosting International Education Week, a
chance to celebrate the benefits of an
international education. Events will take
place on campuses across the country,
including the University. For a full listing of
events at this University and others, visit
exchanges.state.gov.
Now. 17: The Office of International
Programs will host a Study Abroad Fair from
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the EMU Fir Room.
A University Peace Corps representative will be
present to answer questions.
Nov. 21: The President's Reception for
International Students will be held from 3 p.m.
to 4:30 p.m. in Gerlinger Hall and is a formal
event open to new and returning international
students. University President Dave
Frohnmayer and Eugene Mayor Jim Torrey
will speak.
Source: exchanges.state.gov
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