Joel Bray Marangella is the present Guardian, or administrative and spiritual leader of the Orthodox Bahá'ís. The Orthodox Baháí Faith is a movement which started within the Baháí Faith, though now independent of it. ...

In 1960 Marangella was the chairman of the Bahá'í National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of France. When Charles Mason Remey announced his claim to the Guardianship of the Bahá'í Faith, Marangella recognised this claim. As a result Marangella was declared a "Covenant-Breaker" and expelled (Bahá'ís don't tend to use the term excommunicated) from the community. Five members of the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of France also recognised the claim of Remey, and the body itself was dissolved, as a result, by the Hands of the Cause. 1960 was a leap year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Seat of the Universal House of Justice, governing body of the Baháís The Baháí Faith is an emerging global religion founded by Baháulláh, a nineteenth-century Iranian exile. ... Mason Remey, Hand of the Cause Charles Mason Remey (May 15, 1874-1974) Born in Burlington, Iowa he was the eldest son of Rear Admiral George Collier Remey, U.S.N., and. ... Note: the term head of the Faith is used throughout the article, it is helpful to note that, since 1963, this refers, when referring to the larger Baháí group, to the elected nine-member Universal House of Justice. ... Excommunication is a religious censure which is used to deprive or suspend membership in a religious community. ... The Hands of the Cause in the Bahai Faith are a select group of appointed believers whose main function is to help propagate and protect the Bahai Faith on the international level. ...

In 1961 Remey wrote a letter appointing Marangella to be the third Guardian of the Orthodox Bahá'í Faith. In 1964, Remey, who had previously set up the Second International Bahai Council seen as the embryonic Universal House of Justice, appointed Joel Bray Marangella to be its President. Mason Remey activated the Council in October 1965 thereby appointing and making Joel Bray Marangella the third Guardian. 1961 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Orthodox Baháí Faith is a movement which started within the Baháí Faith, though now independent of it. ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... The Second International Bahai Council was activated by Mason Remey in October 1965. ...

Marangella serves as Guardian for the Orthodox Bahá'ís from 1965 to the present. Today (2005) there are about 79 locations where Orthodox Bahá'ís reside around the world; mostly in the U.S., India, and Africa. Exact figures as tomemebrship are not released according to the instructions of Abdul-Baha, son of the Founder, Baha'u'llah. The National Bahá'í Council of the United States, the governing body of the Orthodox Bahá'ís in the U.S., is headquartered in Espanola, New Mexico. The Orthodox Baháí Faith is a movement which started within the Baháí Faith, though now independent of it. ... 1965 was a common year starting on Friday (link goes to calendar). ...

See Also

• Bahá'í divisions

In the history of the Baháí Faith, as with most religions, there have been challenges to the new leadership at the death of the previous head of the religion. ...

External Sources

Joel Marangella's website