On August 27th, some 100 people
gathered at the Ottawa Bahá'í Centre
for an evening of reflection and inspiration aimed at honouring and
praying for the safety of the seven Bahá’í
leaders imprisoned in Iran for their faith. The event featured the art
of Rosita Niknafs and the music of Montreal-based group The Hidden
Words.
The
program presented a balance between uplifting art and more sober
reflection, with creativity woven into visual and musical
presentations. The host began by saying, “The true nature of the human
soul is endowed with love and the desire to create is one expression of
that love.” The focus of the evening was an exhibition called ‘Seven
Deadly Sins,’ montages created by Rosita Niknafs highlighting the
plight of the former Yaran (Friends of Iran), who served the basic
needs of the Bahá'í community there until their sudden and arbitrary
arrest more than three years ago.
The artist spoke about the
inspiration of her work as she viewed the lives of these individuals,
who seemed to be lifted up out of a life of ordinariness into a more
rarefied condition as they continue to endure – with steadfastness,
nobility, peacefulness and refined dignity – the 20 year sentence laid
upon them. She challenged the audience to honour their lives by
emulating their qualities of character, service to others, and
sacrifice for the common good.
A representative of the Baha'i
Community of Canada’s Office of Governmental Relations also provided
background to the situation of the Bahá'ís in Iran. He spoke about the
general deterioration of the human rights situation in Iran, which has
had dire consequences for many oppressed groups. Among them are the
Bahá'ís, the country’s largest religious minority, which has seen an
intensification of persecution over the past number of years. This has
included an increasing rate of arbitrary arrests and recent attacks on
the Bahá'í Institute for Higher Education – an initiative of the Bahá'í
community to provide advanced education in an informal setting to youth
excluded from universities by state policy. The actions of the
Government of Canada to continually raise such human rights issues were
praised, and broader social action was urged to raise voices in
solidarity with the Bahá'ís in Iran.
The evening included the
work of another artist, Del Carry who composed music that formed the
backdrop to his slide presentation. After an intermission, which
included light refreshments and an opportunity to view the works and
speak to the artists, the musical group called “Hidden Words” performed
lyrical and upbeat music composed by Alden Penner.
