Hooper Harris – “one of the leading apostles of Baha'u'llah"; “the example he has set by his single-mindedness, his eloquent presentation of the essentials of God's Faith and his exemplary devotion to its cause”

With the passing of our dearly beloved Baha'i brother, Hooper Harris, from this phenomenal world to the invisible eternal realm, the world-wide Baha'i Community sustained the loss of one more of those faithful and devoted souls who gave the best years of their lives to the promotion and establishment of the Faith of Baha'u'llah in the West and in the East.

William Hooper Harris was born in New York City, December 14, 1866. All his early years, however, were spent in Nashville, Tenn. After finishing High School, financial difficulties at home precluded his intended study of law at college. He therefore worked by day, studied law at night and was admitted to the bar in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1893. In 1887, he married Sarah Gertrude Rawls of Birmingham and in 1894, they came to New York City to live, where he became an expert court reporter, doing work of unusually high quality till the very day of his death.

In New York City, in 1899, his wife, ever persistent in her desire and search for Truth, was told, by Mrs. Archie Fisk, of the Baha'i Faith and Mrs. Harris soon realized it to be the object of her search.

Hooper Harris accompanied her to hear the Baha'i Message and ere long he, too, realized the Light and Bounty of the Revelation of Baha'u'llah. Thereupon he became a faithful and devoted student of the Baha'i Revelation and of all the previous Revelations of Truth to mankind, especially those parts of the various Books which prophesied this Great Day of Light.

His continuous study and untiring efforts to know the Truth spiritually as well as mentally proved to be a timely preparation which enabled him to answer the call of 'Abdu'l-Baha in 1906 for an American to go to India to teach the Cause. On November 10, 1906, Mr. Harris, accompanied by Harlan Ober of Beverly, Mass., left New York City for 'Akka to receive the blessing and instructions from 'Abdu'l-Baha. In answer to Mr. Harris' request for specific instructions as to how to teach in India, 'Abdu'l-Baha's only reply was, "Face the people with a smile on your face and the love of God in your heart and rely wholly upon the Holy Spirit."

     

Left to right: Mirza Mahmud-i-Zarqani, Hooper Harris, Harlan Ober, Hand of the Cause Ibn-i-Abhar         

'Abdu'l-Baha sent with Mr. Harris and Mr. Ober, as companions and teachers, two Iranian teachers neither of whom could speak English. One was Janabi Ibn-i-Abhar, an elderly Iranian who had suffered for years in prison and in chains for his Faith, the other Mirza Mahmud, a young man whom we knew later when he came to America with 'Abdu'l-Baha in 1912.

From the time of the first address given aboard the ship by request of the Captain, just before reaching Naples, Mr. Harris was engaged continuously, day by day, for a period of seven months, in promulgating the Faith. The letters which he sent from the East to the friends in America form a large volume and give most vivid descriptions of his activities in Bombay, Poona, Lahore, Calcutta, Rangoon and Mandalay.

He was privileged to address large audiences of the Brama Somaj and Arya Somaj movements, Theosophical Societies, The National Association of Indian Women, and a Conference of Religions held at Lahore. He was interviewed by many interested seekers individually. He wrote a series of six articles upon the Faith for the Zoroastrian daily newspaper and other articles for the "Bombay New Thought Magazine" and the "Times of India."

His work in India was well done and time alone will reveal the harvest from the seeds planted so carefully and prayerfully in the fertile soil of India.

Mr. Harris returned to New York in 1907 and continued ceaselessly to set forth the teachings, stressing the logical fulfillment of the successive Covenants of God and bearing witness to the inspiration, glory, and responsibilities of living in this Day of fulfillment.

His constant and efficient work in teaching caused him to be appointed by the National Spiritual Assembly as Chairman of the National Teaching Committee of the Northeastern States, and the Conventions and Conferences arranged by him proved a great benefit to those privileged to attend.

He served as a faithful, conscientious and active member of the New York Spiritual Assembly for all but a few scattered years from 1901 till his death on July 27, 1934, and the present Spiritual Assembly feels deeply the loss of his sincere and disinterested counsel.

Seated, left to right: Clement Woolson, Howard Mac Nutt, Arthur P. Dodge, Charles E. Sprague Standing, left to right: Anton F. Haddad (honorary), Frank E. Osborne, Hooper Harris, William H. Hoar, Andrew Hutchinson, Edwin A. Putnam 

At one time, in the early years of the Cause in America, the Harris home served as headquarters for the "Board of Counsel"; in fact, his home was open at all times to the friends. Many of the teachers of Iran sent to America by 'Abdu'l-Baha were his guests.

 Mr. and Mrs. Harris were rejoiced to have 'Abdu'l-Baha Himself spend an afternoon and night in their home in 1912.

 The many Tablets which Hooper Harris received from 'Abdu'l-Baha-now preserved in the National Archives in Chicago-were a constant stimulant toward ever greater effort to serve.

 Hooper Harris' life of loving devotion to the Cause can be measured only by the All-Seeing Eye of God Himself. We see and know but a few of the traces of his spirit; Baha'u'llah knows the full record. Our prayer is that Baha'u'llah may eternally shower His love and bounty upon our beloved brother in the Faith, Hooper Harris.

 From a letter received by Mrs. Harris from Shoghi Effendi, dated September 20, 1934, the following excerpt is quoted:

 "His passing in these early days of the formative period of our Faith is, indeed, a severe loss not only to his friends and relatives but also and mainly to all the American followers of the Movement who had found in his person not only a real and sincere fellow believer but also an active and capable exponent of the teachings and principles of the Cause."

 From the same letter, the postscript written by the Guardian:

 "The irreparable loss of your very dear husband has removed a distinguished figure from the community of the American believers and inflicted a severe blow to its best interests. The share he has had in lending fresh impetus to the teaching activities of its members, the contributions he has made to the advancement of its institutions, the example he has set by his single-mindedness, his eloquent presentation of the essentials of God's Faith and his exemplary devotion to its cause will long be remembered after him. He was indeed one of the leading apostles of Baha'u'llah."

(The Baha’i World 1934-1936)