The Arc (Bahá'í) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Arc is a number of Bahá'í

Bahá'í Faith

The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....

administrative buildings at the Bahá'í World Centre

Bahá'í World Centre

The Bahá'í World Centre is the name given to the spiritual and administrative centre of the Bahá'í Faith. The World Centre consists of the Shrine of Bahá'u'lláh near Acre, Israel, the Shrine of the Báb and its gardens on Mount Carmel in Haifa, Israel, and various other buildings in the area...

on Mount Carmel located at Haifa

Haifa

Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...

, Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

. They include the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, the Seat of the International Teaching Centre, the International Archives, and the Centre for the Study of the Sacred Texts. A fifth building, the International Bahá'í Library, has yet to be built.

Symbolism

Bahá'u'lláh

Bahá'u'lláh , born ' , was the founder of the Bahá'í Faith. He claimed to be the prophetic fulfilment of Bábism, a 19th-century outgrowth of Shí‘ism, but in a broader sense claimed to be a messenger from God referring to the fulfilment of the eschatological expectations of Islam, Christianity, and...

, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, in his Tablet of Carmel, wrote that God would "sail His Ark" on Mount Carmel

Mount Carmel

Mount Carmel ; , Kármēlos; , Kurmul or جبل مار إلياس Jabal Mar Elyas 'Mount Saint Elias') is a coastal mountain range in northern Israel stretching from the Mediterranean Sea towards the southeast. Archaeologists have discovered ancient wine and oil presses at various locations on Mt. Carmel...

and saying, the mountain will be "the seat of His throne." This statement was interpreted by Shoghi Effendi

Shoghi Effendi

Shoghí Effendí Rabbání , better known as Shoghi Effendi, was the Guardian and appointed head of the Bahá'í Faith from 1921 until his death in 1957...

, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, as referring to the establishment of the Universal House of Justice

Universal House of Justice

The Universal House of Justice is the supreme governing institution of the Bahá'í Faith. It is a legislative institution with the authority to supplement and apply the laws of Bahá'u'lláh, the founder of the Bahá'í Faith, and exercises a judicial function as the highest appellate institution in the...

, the governing body of the Bahá'ís; connected with this establishment, the prophecy was linked to a number of administrative institutions which would be established on Mount Carmel. Shoghi Effendi decided that the buildings housing the institutions would be designed on an arc and surrounded by gardens. The fulcrum of arc would be Monument Gardens, which hold the graves of some of the members of the Bahá'í holy family.

Buildings

The first of the buildings to be built was the International Archives. Shoghi Effendi chose the site of the building and its classical style, which has been used as a model for the other buildings. While the building was erected under Shoghi Effendi's supervision, but he died before the completion of the interior and thus he was not able to arrange the historic exhibits which he had been collecting. Instead the Hands of the Cause

Hands of the Cause

The Hands of the Cause of God, Hands of the Cause, or Hands were a select group of Bahá'ís, appointed for life, whose main function was to propagate and protect the Bahá'í Faith...

completed and arranged the interior and it was opened to Bahá'í pilgrims during 1961.

Later in 1972, the Universal House of Justice

Universal House of Justice

started planning its own Seat. The architect for the project was chosen to be Husayn Amanat in 1973, and construction of the building started in 1973 and was completed in 1982. This -story building was situated at the apex of the Arc, and included the chamber where the Universal House of Justice holds its meetings as well as a reception concourse, banquet room, reference library and office space.

The building of the past two buildings to be constructed, the Seat of the International Teaching Centre, and the Centre for the Study of the Sacred Texts was announced in 1987 and started in 1992. At the same time an underground extension to the Archives building were constructed. The Centre for the Study of the Texts was completed in 1999, and the International Teaching Centre was completed in 2000. The fifth and yet to be built building, the International Bahá'í library, is planned to be eventually built at the eastern end of the Arc.

The buildings include bomb shelters as required by law and an underground passage which connects the buildings.

External links

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