I was born in Belfast on 5 January 1950 “between the mountains and the gantries…”, as the poet Louis MacNiece said in one of his poems (Carrickfergus).

As a child I attended the Methodist Sunday School, and often the Presbyterian Church in the evenings, as my parents belonged to those denominations. But by my twenties I had tired of ‘religion’ and had become at the very least, agnostic. But I envied those who seemed to have a faith in their religion, while at the same time being unable to accept the things that they taught, especially the idea that only one religion is right and that all others are wrong – a fact which every sect and denomination seemed to claim.

In 1980, I came across the Baha’i Faith in the home of Derek and Marianne Halligan in Belfast, and was invited to my first ‘fireside’ talk. I went along rather nervously, and though I can’t say I was impressed by that talk, I was impressed by the people I met. They seemed very friendly, open and willing to engage in debate about their beliefs, with no hint of prejudice towards any other religion.

For the next year or so, I became friendly with more Baha’is, but never thought about joining, as I was still somewhat ‘agnostic’. I should mention in particular Mr. Ghodrat Mazidian and Arjang and Edwina Agahi, who were my early ‘mentors’ and whose patience and kindness were remarkable. Other remarkable individuals like the late Mrs. Jane Villiers-Stuart, Dr. Beman Khosravi, Ms. Betty Reed and Ms. Grace Swann, all made great impressions on me. Finally, in mid-1983, I declared as a Bahá’í, having decided that I could always leave later if I found something better!

From 1983, I served for a long time (over thirty years) on Newtownabbey LSA – whilst that electoral area still existed, and also on the old Northern Ireland Teaching Committee.

If I were asked what the Baha’i Faith has given me, I would have to say it has taught me that the earth really is ‘one country’ and mankind its citizens, having had the privilege of meeting Baha’is from all over the globe, from Fiji to Malta to Mongolia, and discovering how alike we all really are. It has also given me a hope and faith which has sustained me through many difficult times. I have still to find anything better, either in religion or politics, which answers so many questions.

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Peter Black

Northern Ireland, April 2020