On Tales of Perseverance and Triumph: Death is a messenger of joy
Put yourself in the shoes of the late Mrs. Ashraf Khanjani and walk in them for a mile to understand what has befallen her family and how she has been a constant source of perseverance and resolve. Any fair-minded observer would think that after losing a brother to execution at the hands the Islamic government and the appointing of her husband to the group of Yárán, which itself caused the family much anguish and harassment over the next three decades with multiple summons to the Ministry of Intelligence and prison visits, she would have caved in and demanded that her family “cool it”, so to speak, and decrease their Bahá'í activities, so as to not be in spotlight or constantly on the radar of the authorities, with her home functioning as a “crime scene” frequented by intelligence agents. Rather, she raised her children as active members of the Bahá'í religion and they went on to have children of their own, all of whom, despite seeing the “disadvantages” of membership in the Bahá'í community such as their parents’ and grandfather’s frequent summons and visits to the Iranian Revolutionary Courts and deprivation of jobs and education, chose to be active members of the Bahá'í community and have provided service to Iran, the country they hold sacred, as outstanding citizens.
Above is a portion of testimony from Nizam written upon reading about the funeral of Ashraf Khanjani, as passed on to me by Praveen.
We've had a death in our community. Below is a portion of the testimony written by Tim about the living son of the dear soul who just passed on. There is such love in the Baha'i community. -gw
It was my privilege to sit with Toby for an hour on his front steps. That guy is just a effulgent mirror of love. With all his grief, medical pain, and numerous other challenges, he just really lets it shine. He says they are going to take in two more kids. One of them is the half-sister of one of Toby’s granddaughters, but no blood relation to Toby. He seemed a little doubtful, so I assured Toby that he was a good son to his parents. OMG... How many people could have done a fraction of what he did? And with ten times the resources? Like he said today, “Everybody thinks their Mom is crazy. Mine was certifiable.” But he is missing her so much. I left there walking on air. Ya Baha’ul’Abha!
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