The Bahai Revelation by Thornton Chase on Free Audio Book Download

Thornton Chase (1847 вЂ“ 1912) is commonly recognized as the first convert to the BahГЎ'Г Faith of Occidental background. During his life he organized many BahГЎ'Г activities in Chicago and Los Angeles and was considered a prominent BahГЎ'Г. In 1894, Chase met Ibrahim Kheiralla, a BahГЎ'Г from Beirut who had recently come to the United States. Chase and a small group of Chicagoans began to study the BahГЎ'Г Faith with him. By 1895 he had completed the class and become a BahГЎ'Г. In 1907 Chase was able to go on pilgrimage. Though Chase was able to be with вЂAbdu'l-BahГЎ in Akka for only three days, the experience transformed him. вЂAbdu'l-BahГЎ, highly impressed by Chase's qualities, conferred on him the title ThГЎbit, "steadfast". On returning home, Chase wrote an account of his pilgrimage, which was published under the title In Galilee in 1908. The short work gives a detailed and poignant description of вЂAbdu'l-BahГЎ's home and family in Akka, as well as a moving description of вЂAbdu'l-BahГЎ himself. Chase then turned his thoughts to an introductory book on the BahГЎ'Г Faith. Published as The Bahai Revelation in 1909, this work was one of the most comprehensive and accurate introductions to the BahГЎ'Г Faith written by an early American BahГЎ'Г. It continued to be reprinted until the 1920s. The work emphasized the BahГЎ'Г Faith and its teachings as a vehicle for personal spiritual transformation. Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the BahГЎ'Г Faith, later honoured him as one of the Disciples of вЂAbdu'l-BahГЎ (also termed "Heralds of the Covenant").