One of the notable ‘firsts’ that took place in Hawai´i was the conversion of the first Japanese Bahá’í in the world. His name is Kanichi Yamamoto. “Mr. Yamamoto played a vital role in the development of the Bahá’í community of Oakland and Berkeley and raised a large family, distinguished in service to the Faith and to society.” “In 1916 the first Chinese-American embraced the Bahá’í Faith. He was Anthony Yuen Seto.” Born and raised in Hanapepe, Kauai, he became one of the first Chinese to practice law in Hawai´i. The first soul of Hawaiian descent embraced the Bahá’í teachings in the early 1920s. Her name is Mrs. Mary Tilton Fantom, known affectionately as “Auntie May” to all who knew her.“As a crossroads between East and West and between the North and South Pacific, Hawai´i’s influence has long extended beyond its shores. Hawaii is a focal point for the diffusion of the Bahá’í Faith as well.” Many thousands of souls have found their Lord in this — the most remote archipelago on earth – and gone on to spread the Glad Tidings to many other lands. Today the Bahá’í communities can be found in over 200 nations. The voluminous Sacred Scriptures of the Bahá’í Revelation have been translated into over 800 languages. Today the Bahá’ís of Hawaii are found on every inhabited island of the Hawaiian chain. Every race and ethnic group found in the islands is reflected in the Bahá’í community, reflecting Bahá’u’lláh’s statement that we were all ‘fruits of one tree’ and ‘flowers of one garden’.

HISTORY OF THE BAHÁ’Í FAITH IN THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

December 2001 marked the 100th anniversary of the Bahá’í Faith in the Hawaiian Islands. On December 26, 1901 Agnes Baldwin Alexander — a native of Hawai´i — returned to Honolulu from a trip to Rome where she discovered the Bahá’í Revelation. While staying in a pension in Rome, Ms. Alexander was drawn to a Mrs. Charlotte Dixon and her two daughters and overheard them talking about a new Truth. Overcoming her natural shyness Agnes approached Mrs. Dixon and asked her what it was “she had”. Agnes later wrote, “The third evening after meeting with Mrs. Dixon, when I retired to my room, sleep did not come. That night an overwhelming realization came to me, which was neither a dream nor vision, that Christ had come on the earth. All night I waited, unable to close my eyes. When morning came, I met Mrs. Dixon as she came from breakfast, and together we entered my room. There I turned to her and said, “Christ is on this earth!” She replied, “Yes, I can see by your face that you know it.” After studying the Bahá’í Faith in Europe and America Ms. Alexander sailed home to Honolulu. She rejoiced that she was continuing work begun by her distinguished grandparents (Rev. Dr Dwight and Charlotte Baldwin and Rev. William Patterson and Mary Ann Alexander) who were in the fourth and fifth companies to bring Christianity to the Hawaiian Islands. She later wrote, “To my dear grandparents I owe a debt of deep gratitude. If God has used me in His plan and I have received His favors, the praise belongs to the heritage which He bestowed on me, that from a timid creature He raised me up to serve His Cause.”

At the time of Ms. Alexander’s conversion the Bahá’í Faith was only 56 years old worldwide. The first American believer – Thornton Chase – didn’t convert until 1894. Since that time the Bahá’í Faith has –according to the Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook for 1992 – become the second most widespread faith on the face of the Earth. Its rapid growth can in part be attributed to its universal appeal for peace, justice and unity and its ability to convince peoples of all races, creeds, and beliefs that the Bahá’í Revelation fulfills the promises of all the world’s Holy Books.

During the incredible span of 70 years (1900-1971) Agnes Baldwin Alexander nurtured the Bahá’í communities in Hawai´i despite her more than 30 years of Bahá’í service in Japan and the Far East.