“To
the beloved of God and the handmaids of the Merciful …”

To the beloved of God and the handmaids of the Merciful
throughout the United States and Canada.

Best-beloved brothers and sisters in the love of
Bahá’u’lláh:

It would be difficult indeed to adequately express the
feelings of irrepressible joy and exultation that flood my heart
every time I pause to contemplate the ceaseless evidences of the
dynamic energy which animates the stalwart pioneers of the World
Order of Bahá’u’lláh in the execution of
the Plan committed to their charge. The signature of the contract, by
your elected national representatives, signalizing the opening of the
final phase of the greatest enterprise ever launched by the followers
of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh in the West, no
less than the extremely heartening progress recorded in the
successive reports of their National Teaching Committee, attest,
beyond the shadow of a doubt, the fidelity, the vigor, and the
thoroughness with which you are conducting the manifold operations
which the evolution of the Seven Year Plan must necessarily involve.
In both of its aspects, and in all its details, it is being
prosecuted with exemplary regularity and precision, with undiminished
efficiency, and commendable dispatch.

The resourcefulness which the national representatives
of the American believers have, in recent months, so strikingly
demonstrated, as evidenced by the successive measures they have
adopted, has been matched by the loyal, the unquestioning and
generous support accorded them by all those whom they represent, at
every critical stage, and with every fresh advance, in the discharge
of their sacred duties. Such close interaction, such complete
cohesion, such continual harmony and fellowship between the various
agencies that contribute to the organic life, and constitute the
basic framework, of every properly functioning Bahá’í
community, is a phenomenon which offers a striking contrast to the
disruptive tendencies which the discordant elements of present-day
society so tragically manifest. Whereas every apparent trial with
which the unfathomable wisdom of the Almighty deems it necessary to
afflict His chosen community serves only to demonstrate afresh its
essential solidarity and to consolidate its inward strength, each of
the successive crises in the fortunes of a decadent age exposes more
convincingly than the one preceding it the corrosive influences that
are fast sapping the vitality and undermining the basis of its
declining institutions.

For such demonstrations of the interpositions of an
ever-watchful Providence they who stand identified with the Community
of the Most Great Name must feel eternally grateful. From every fresh
token of His unfailing blessing on the one hand, and of His
visitation on the other, they cannot but derive immense hope and
courage. Alert to seize every opportunity which the revolutions of
the wheel of destiny within their Faith offers them, and undismayed
by the prospect of spasmodic convulsions that must sooner or later
fatally affect those who have refused to embrace its light, they, and
those who will labor after them, must press forward until the
processes now set in motion will have each spent its force and
contributed its share towards the birth of the Order now stirring in
the womb of a travailing age.

These recurrent crises which, with ominous frequency and
resistless force, are afflicting an ever-increasing portion of the
human race must of necessity continue, however impermanently, to
exercise, in a certain measure, their baleful influence upon a world
community which has spread its ramifications to the uttermost ends of
the earth. How can the beginnings of a world upheaval, unleashing
forces that are so gravely deranging the social, the religious, the
political, and the economic equilibrium of organized society,
throwing into chaos and confusion political systems, racial
doctrines, social conceptions, cultural standards, religious
associations, and trade relationships—how can such agitations,
on a scale so vast, so unprecedented, fail to produce any
repercussions on the institutions of a Faith of such tender age whose
teachings have a direct and vital bearing on each of these spheres of
human life and conduct?

Little wonder, therefore, if they who are holding aloft
the banner of so pervasive a Faith, so challenging a Cause, find
themselves affected by the impact of these world-shaking forces.
Little wonder if they find that in the midst of this whirlpool of
contending passions their freedom has been curtailed, their tenets
contemned, their institutions assaulted, their motives maligned,
their authority jeopardized, their claim rejected.

In the heart of the European continent a community
which, as predicted by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, is destined,
by virtue of its spiritual potentialities and geographical situation,
to radiate the splendor of the light of the Faith on the countries
that surround it, has been momentarily eclipsed through the
restrictions which a regime that has sorely misapprehended its
purpose and function has chosen to impose upon it. Its voice, alas,
is now silenced, its institutions dissolved, its literature banned,
its archives confiscated, and its meetings suspended.

In central Asia, in the city enjoying the unique
distinction of having been chosen by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
as the home of the first Mashriqu’l-Adhkár
of the Bahá’í world, as well as in the towns and
villages of the province to which it belongs, the sore-pressed Faith
of Bahá’u’lláh, as a result of the
extraordinary and unique vitality which, in the course of several
decades, it has consistently manifested, finds itself at the mercy of
forces which, alarmed at its rising power, are now bent on reducing
it to utter impotence. Its Temple, though still used for purposes of
Bahá’í worship, has been expropriated, its
Assemblies and committees disbanded, its teaching activities
crippled, its chief promoters deported, and not a few of its most
enthusiastic supporters, both men and women, imprisoned.

In the land of its birth, wherein reside the immense
majority of its followers—a country whose capital has been
hailed by Bahá’u’lláh as the “mother
of the world” and the “dayspring of the joy of mankind”—a
civil authority, as yet undivorced officially from the paralyzing
influences of an antiquated, a fanatical, and outrageously corrupt
clergy, pursues relentlessly its campaign of repression against the
adherents of a Faith which it has for well-nigh a century striven
unsuccessfully to suppress. Indifferent to the truth that the members
of this innocent and proscribed community can justly claim to rank as
among the most disinterested, the most competent, and the most ardent
lovers of their native land, contemptuous of their high sense of
world citizenship which the advocates of an excessive and narrow
nationalism can never hope to appreciate, such an authority refuses
to grant to a Faith which extends its spiritual jurisdiction over
well-nigh six hundred local communities, and which numerically
outnumbers the adherents of either the Christian, the Jewish, or the
Zoroastrian Faiths in that land, the necessary legal right to enforce
its laws, to administer its affairs, to conduct its schools, to
celebrate its festivals, to circulate its literature, to solemnize
its rites, to erect its edifices, and to safeguard its endowments.

And now recently in the Holy Land itself, the heart and
nerve-center of a world-embracing Faith, the fires of racial
animosity, of fratricidal strife, of unabashed terrorism, have lit a
conflagration that gravely interferes, on the one hand, with that
flow of pilgrims that constitutes the lifeblood of that center, and
suspends, on the other, the various projects that had been initiated
in connection with the preservation and extension of the areas
surrounding the sacred Spots it enshrines. The safety of the small
community of resident believers, faced by the rising tide of
lawlessness, has been imperiled, its status as a neutral and distinct
community indirectly challenged, and its freedom to carry out certain
of its observances curtailed. A series of murderous assaults,
alternating with outbursts of bitter fanaticism, both racial and
religious, involving the leaders as well as the followers of the
three leading Faiths in that distracted country, have, at times,
threatened to sever all normal communications both within its
confines as well as with the outside world. Perilous though the
situation has been, the Bahá’í Holy Places, the
object of the adoration of a world-encircling Faith, have,
notwithstanding their number and exposed position, and though to
outward seeming deprived of any means of protection, been vouchsafed
a preservation little short of miraculous.

A world, torn with conflicting passions, and perilously
disintegrating from within, finds itself confronted, at so crucial an
epoch in its history, by the rising fortunes of an infant Faith, a
Faith that, at times, seems to be drawn into its controversies,
entangled by its conflicts, eclipsed by its gathering shadows, and
overpowered by the mounting tide of its passions. In its very heart,
within its cradle, at the seat of its first and venerable Temple, in
one of its hitherto flourishing and potentially powerful centers, the
as-yet unemancipated Faith of Bahá’u’lláh
seems indeed to have retreated before the onrushing forces of
violence and disorder to which humanity is steadily falling a victim.
The strongholds of such a Faith, one by one and day after day, are to
outward seeming being successively isolated, assaulted and captured.
As the lights of liberty flicker and go out, as the din of discord
grows louder and louder every day, as the fires of fanaticism flame
with increasing fierceness in the breasts of men, as the chill of
irreligion creeps relentlessly over the soul of mankind, the limbs
and organs that constitute the body of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh
appear, in varying measure, to have become afflicted with the
crippling influences that now hold in their grip the whole of the
civilized world.

How clearly and strikingly the following words of
‘Abdu’l-Bahá are being demonstrated at this hour:
“The darkness of error that has enveloped the East and the West
is, in this most great cycle, battling with the light of Divine
Guidance. Its swords and its spears are very sharp and pointed; its
army keenly bloodthirsty.” “This day,” He, in
another passage has written, “the powers of all the leaders of
religion are directed towards the dispersion of the congregation of
the All-Merciful, and the shattering of the Divine Edifice. The hosts
of the world, whether material, cultural or political are from every
side launching their assault, for the Cause is great, very great. Its
greatness is, in this day, clear and manifest to men’s eyes.”

The one chief remaining citadel, the mighty arm which
still raises aloft the standard of an unconquerable Faith, is none
other than the blessed community of the followers of the Most Great
Name in the North American continent. By its works, and through the
unfailing protection vouchsafed to it by an almighty Providence, this
distinguished member of the body of the constantly interacting Bahá’í
communities of East and West, bids fair to be universally regarded as
the cradle, as well as the stronghold, of that future New World
Order, which is at once the promise and the glory of the Dispensation
associated with the name of Bahá’u’lláh.

Let anyone inclined to either belittle the unique
station conferred upon this community, or to question the role it
will be called upon to play in the days to come, ponder the
implication of these pregnant and highly illuminating words uttered
by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and addressed to it at a time
when the fortunes of a world groaning beneath the burden of a
devastating war had reached their lowest ebb. “The continent of
America,” He so significantly wrote, “is, in the eyes of
the one true God, the land wherein the splendors of His light shall
be revealed, where the mysteries of His Faith shall be unveiled,
where the righteous will abide, and the free assemble.”

Already, the community of the believers of the North
American continent—at once the prime mover and pattern of the
future communities which the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh
is destined to raise up throughout the length and breadth of the
Western Hemisphere—has, despite the prevailing gloom, shown its
capacity to be recognized as the torchbearer of that light, the
repository of those mysteries, the exponent of that righteousness and
the sanctuary of that freedom. To what other light can these
above-quoted words possibly allude, if not to the light of the glory
of the Golden Age of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh?
What mysteries could ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have
contemplated except the mysteries of that embryonic World Order now
evolving within the matrix of His Administration? What righteousness
if not the righteousness whose reign that Age and that Order can
alone establish? What freedom but the freedom which the proclamation
of His sovereignty in the fullness of time must bestow?

The community of the organized promoters of the Faith of
Bahá’u’lláh in the American continent—the
spiritual descendants of the dawn-breakers of an heroic Age, who by
their death proclaimed the birth of that Faith—must, in turn,
usher in, not by their death but through living sacrifice, that
promised World Order, the shell ordained to enshrine that priceless
jewel, the world civilization, of which the Faith itself is the sole
begetter. While its sister communities are bending beneath the
tempestuous winds that beat upon them from every side, this
community, preserved by the immutable decrees of the omnipotent
Ordainer and deriving continual sustenance from the mandate with
which the Tablets of the Divine Plan have invested it, is now busily
engaged in laying the foundations and in fostering the growth of
those institutions which are to herald the approach of the Age
destined to witness the birth and rise of the World Order of
Bahá’u’lláh.

A community, relatively negligible in its numerical
strength; separated by vast distances from both the focal-center of
its Faith and the land wherein the preponderating mass of its
fellow-believers reside; bereft in the main of material resources and
lacking in experience and in prominence; ignorant of the beliefs,
concepts and habits of those peoples and races from which its
spiritual Founders have sprung; wholly unfamiliar with the languages
in which its sacred Books were originally revealed; constrained to
place its sole reliance upon an inadequate rendering of only a
fragmentary portion of the literature embodying its laws, its tenets,
and its history; subjected from its infancy to tests of extreme
severity, involving, at times, the defection of some of its most
prominent members; having to contend, ever since its inception, and
in an ever-increasing measure, with the forces of corruption, of
moral laxity, and ingrained prejudice—such a community, in less
than half a century, and unaided by any of its sister communities,
whether in the East or in the West, has, by virtue of the celestial
potency with which an all-loving Master has abundantly endowed it,
lent an impetus to the onward march of the Cause it has espoused
which the combined achievements of its coreligionists in the West
have failed to rival.

What other community, it can confidently be asked, has
been instrumental in fixing the pattern, and in imparting the
original impulse, to those administrative institutions that
constitute the vanguard of the World Order of Bahá’u’lláh?
What other community has been capable of demonstrating, with such
consistency, the resourcefulness, the discipline, the iron
determination, the zeal and perseverance, the devotion and fidelity,
so indispensable to the erection and the continued extension of the
framework within which those nascent institutions can alone multiply
and mature? What other community has proved itself to be fired by so
noble a vision, or willing to rise to such heights of self-sacrifice,
or ready to achieve so great a measure of solidarity, as to be able
to raise, in so short a time and in the course of such crucial years,
an edifice that can well deserve to be regarded as the greatest
contribution ever made by the West to the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh?
What other community can justifiably lay claim to have succeeded,
through the unsupported efforts of one of its humble members, in
securing the spontaneous allegiance of Royalty to its Cause, and in
winning such marvelous and written testimonies to its truth? What
other community has shown the foresight, the organizing ability, the
enthusiastic eagerness, that have been responsible for the
establishment and multiplication, throughout its territory, of those
initial schools which, as time goes by, will, on the one hand, evolve
into powerful centers of Bahá’í learning, and, on
the other, provide a fertile recruiting ground for the enrichment and
consolidation of its teaching force? What other community has
produced pioneers combining to such a degree the essential qualities
of audacity, of consecration, of tenacity, of self-renunciation, and
unstinted devotion, that have prompted them to abandon their homes,
and forsake their all, and scatter over the surface of the globe, and
hoist in its uttermost corners the triumphant banner of Bahá’u’lláh?
Who else but the members of this community have won the eternal
distinction of being the first to raise the call of Yá
Bahá’u’l-Abhá in such highly important and
widely scattered centers and territories as the hearts of both the
British and French empires, Germany, the Far East, the Balkan States,
the Scandinavian countries, Latin America, the Islands of the
Pacific, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, and now more
recently the Baltic States? Who else but those same pioneers have
shown themselves ready to undertake the labor, to exercise the
patience, and to provide the funds, required for the translation and
publication, in no less than forty languages, of their sacred
literature, the dissemination of which is an essential prerequisite
to any effectively organized campaign of teaching? What other
community can lay claim to have had a decisive share in the worldwide
efforts that have been exerted for the safeguarding and the extension
of the immediate surroundings of its holy shrines, as well as for the
preliminary acquisition of the future sites of its international
institutions at its world center? What other community can to its
eternal credit claim to have been the first to frame its national and
local constitutions, thereby laying down the fundamental lines of the
twin charters designed to regulate the activities, define the
functions, and safeguard the rights, of its institutions? What other
community can boast of having simultaneously acquired and legally
secured the basis of its national endowments, thus paving the way for
a similar action on the part of its local communities? What other
community has achieved the supreme distinction of having obtained,
long before any of its sister communities had envisaged such a
possibility, the necessary documents assuring the recognition, by
both the federal and state authorities, of its Spiritual Assemblies
and national endowments? And finally what other community has had the
privilege, and been granted the means, to succor the needy, to plead
the cause of the downtrodden, and to intervene so energetically for
the safeguarding of Bahá’í edifices and
institutions in countries such as Persia, Egypt, ‘Iráq,
Russia, and Germany, where, at various times, its fellow-believers
have had to suffer the rigors of both religious and racial
persecution?

Such a matchless and brilliant record of service,
extending over a period of well-nigh twenty years, and so closely
interwoven with the interest and fortunes of such a large section of
the worldwide Bahá’í community, deserves to rank
as a memorable chapter in the history of the Formative Period of the
Faith of Bahá’u’lláh. Reinforced and
enriched as it is by the memory of the American believers’
earlier achievements, such a record is in itself convincing testimony
to their ability to befittingly shoulder the responsibilities which
any task may impose upon them in the future. To overrate the
significance of these manifold services would be well-nigh
impossible. To appraise correctly their value, and dilate on their
merits and immediate consequences, is a task which only a future
Bahá’í historian can properly discharge. I can
only for the present place on record my profound conviction that a
community capable of showing forth such deeds, of evincing such a
spirit, of rising to such heights, cannot but be already possessed of
such potentialities as will enable it to vindicate, in the fullness
of time, its right to be acclaimed as the chief creator and champion
of the World Order of Bahá’u’lláh.

Magnificent as has been this record, reminiscent as it
is, in some of its aspects, of the exploits with which the
dawn-breakers of an heroic Age have proclaimed the birth of the Faith
itself, the task associated with the name of this privileged
community is, far from approaching its climax, only beginning to
unfold. What the American believers have, within the space of almost
fifty years, achieved is infinitesimal when compared to the magnitude
of the tasks ahead of them. The rumblings of that catastrophic
upheaval, which is to proclaim, at one and the same time, the
death-pangs of the old order and the birth-pangs of the new, indicate
both the steady approach, as well as the awe-inspiring character, of
those tasks.

The virtual establishment of the Administrative Order of
their Faith, the erection of its framework, the fashioning of its
instruments, and the consolidation of its subsidiary institutions,
was the first task committed to their charge, as an organized
community called into being by the Will, and under the instructions,
of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Of this initial task they have
acquitted themselves with marvelous promptitude, fidelity, and vigor.
No sooner had they created and correlated the various and necessary
agencies for the efficient conduct of any policy they might
subsequently wish to initiate, than they addressed themselves, with
equal zest and consecration, to the next more arduous task of
erecting the superstructure of an edifice the cornerstone of which
‘Abdu’l-Bahá Himself had laid. And when that feat
was achieved, this community, alive to the passionate pleas,
exhortations, and promises recorded in the Tablets of the Divine
Plan, resolved to undertake yet another task, which in its scope and
spiritual potentialities is sure to outshine any of the works they
have already accomplished. Launching with unquenchable enthusiasm and
dauntless courage the Seven Year Plan, as the first and practical
step towards the fulfillment of the mission prescribed in those
epoch-making Tablets, they entered, with a spirit of renewed
consecration, upon their dual task, the consummation of which, it is
hoped, will synchronize with the celebration of the centenary of the
birth of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh. Well
aware that every advance made in the external ornamentation of their
majestic edifice would directly react on the progress of the teaching
campaign initiated by them in both the northern and southern American
continents, and realizing that every victory gained in the teaching
field would, in its turn, facilitate the work, and hasten the
completion, of their Temple, they are now pressing on, with courage
and faith, in their efforts to discharge, in both of its phases,
their obligations under the Plan they have dedicated themselves to
execute.

Let them not, however, imagine that the carrying out of
the Seven Year Plan, coinciding as it does with the termination of
the first century of the Bahá’í era, signifies
either the termination of, or even an interruption in, the work which
the unerring Hand of the Almighty is directing them to perform. The
opening of the second century of the Bahá’í era
must needs disclose greater vistas, usher in further stages, and
witness the initiation of plans more far-reaching than any as yet
conceived. The Plan on which is now focused the attention, the
aspirations, and the resources of the entire community of the
American believers should be viewed as a mere beginning, as a trial
of strength, a stepping-stone to a crusade of still greater
magnitude, if the duties and responsibilities with which the Author
of the Divine Plan has invested them are to be honorably and entirely
fulfilled.

For the consummation of the present Plan can result in
no more than the formation of at least one center in each of the
Republics of the Western Hemisphere, whereas the duties prescribed in
those Tablets call for a wider diffusion, and imply the scattering of
a far greater and more representative number of the members of the
North American Bahá’í community over the entire
surface of the New World. It is the undoubted mission of the American
believers, therefore, to carry forward into the second century the
glorious work initiated in the closing years of the first. Not until
they have played their part in guiding the activities of these
isolated and newly fledged centers, and in fostering their capacity
to initiate in their turn institutions, both local and national,
modeled on their own, can they be satisfied to have adequately
discharged their immediate obligations under ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s
divinely revealed Plan.

Nor should it for a moment be supposed that the
completion of a task which aims at the multiplication of Bahá’í
centers and the provision of the assistance and guidance necessary
for the establishment of the Administrative Order of the Bahá’í
Faith in the countries of Latin America realizes in its entirety the
scheme visualized for them by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. A
perusal, however perfunctory, of those Tablets embodying His Plan
will instantly reveal a scope for their activities that stretches far
beyond the confines of the Western Hemisphere. With their
inter-American tasks and responsibilities virtually discharged, their
intercontinental mission enters upon its most glorious and decisive
phase. “The moment this Divine Message,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
Himself has written, “is carried forward by the American
believers from the shores of America and is propagated through the
continents of Europe, of Asia, of Africa, and of Australasia, and as
far as the islands of the Pacific, this community will find itself
securely established upon the throne of an everlasting dominion.”

And who knows but that when this colossal task has been
accomplished a greater, a still more superb mission, incomparable in
its splendor, and foreordained for them by Bahá’u’lláh,
may not be thrust upon them? The glories of such a mission are of
such dazzling splendor, the circumstances attending it so remote, and
the contemporary events with the culmination of which it is so
closely knit in such a state of flux, that it would be premature to
attempt, at the present time, any accurate delineation of its
features. Suffice it to say that out of the turmoil and tribulations
of these “latter years” opportunities undreamt of will be
born, and circumstances unpredictable created, that will enable, nay
impel, the victorious prosecutors of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s
Plan, to add, through the part they will play in the unrolling of the
New World Order, fresh laurels to the crown of their servitude to the
threshold of Bahá’u’lláh.

Nor should any of the manifold opportunities, of a
totally different order, be allowed to pass unnoticed which the
evolution of the Faith itself, whether at its world center, or in the
North American continent, or even in the most outlying regions of the
earth, must create, calling once again upon the American believers to
play a part, no less conspicuous than the share they have previously
had in their collective contributions to the propagation of the Cause
of Bahá’u’lláh. I can only for the moment
cite at random certain of these opportunities which stand out
preeminently, in any attempt to survey the possibilities of the
future: The election of the International House of Justice and its
establishment in the Holy Land, the spiritual and administrative
center of the Bahá’í world, together with the
formation of its auxiliary branches and subsidiary institutions; the
gradual erection of the various dependencies of the first
Mashriqu’l-Adhkár of the West, and the
intricate issues involving the establishment and the extension of the
structural basis of Bahá’í community life; the
codification and promulgation of the ordinances of the Most Holy
Book, necessitating the formation, in certain countries of the East,
of properly constituted and officially recognized courts of Bahá’í
law; the building of the third Mashriqu’l-Adhkár
of the Bahá’í world in the outskirts of the city
of Ṭihrán, to be followed by the rise of a similar House
of Worship in the Holy Land itself; the deliverance of Bahá’í
communities from the fetters of religious orthodoxy in such Islamic
countries as Persia, ‘Iráq, and Egypt, and the
consequent recognition, by the civil authorities in those states, of
the independent status and religious character of Bahá’í
National and Local Assemblies; the precautionary and defensive
measures to be devised, coordinated, and carried out to counteract
the full force of the inescapable attacks which the organized efforts
of ecclesiastical organizations of various denominations will
progressively launch and relentlessly pursue; and, last but not
least, the multitudinous issues that must be faced, the obstacles
that must be overcome, and the responsibilities that must be assumed,
to enable a sore-tried Faith to pass through the successive stages of
unmitigated obscurity, of active repression, and of complete
emancipation, leading in turn to its being acknowledged as an
independent Faith, enjoying the status of full equality with its
sister religions, to be followed by its establishment and recognition
as a State religion, which in turn must give way to its assumption of
the rights and prerogatives associated with the Bahá’í
state, functioning in the plenitude of its powers, a stage which must
ultimately culminate in the emergence of the worldwide Bahá’í
Commonwealth, animated wholly by the spirit, and operating solely in
direct conformity with the laws and principles of Bahá’u’lláh.

The challenge offered by these opportunities the
American believers, I feel confident, will, in addition to their
answer to the teaching call voiced by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
in His Tablets, unhesitatingly take up, and will, with their
traditional fearlessness, tenacity, and efficiency, so respond to it
as to confirm, before all the world, their title and rank as the
champion-builders of the mightiest institutions of the Faith of
Bahá’u’lláh.

Dearly beloved friends! Though the task be long and
arduous, yet the prize which the All-Bountiful Bestower has chosen to
confer upon you is of such preciousness that neither tongue nor pen
can befittingly appraise it. Though the goal towards which you are
now so strenuously striving be distant, and as yet undisclosed to
men’s eyes, yet its promise lies firmly embedded in the
authoritative and unalterable utterances of Bahá’u’lláh.
Though the course He has traced for you seems, at times, lost in the
threatening shadows with which a stricken humanity is now enveloped,
yet the unfailing light He has caused to shine continually upon you
is of such brightness that no earthly dusk can ever eclipse its
splendor. Though small in numbers, and circumscribed as yet in your
experiences, powers, and resources, yet the Force which energizes
your mission is limitless in its range and incalculable in its
potency. Though the enemies which every acceleration in the progress
of your mission must raise up be fierce, numerous, and unrelenting,
yet the invisible Hosts which, if you persevere, must, as promised,
rush forth to your aid, will, in the end, enable you to vanquish
their hopes and annihilate their forces. Though the ultimate
blessings that must crown the consummation of your mission be
undoubted, and the Divine promises given you firm and irrevocable,
yet the measure of the goodly reward which every one of you is to
reap must depend on the extent to which your daily exertions will
have contributed to the expansion of that mission and the hastening
of its triumph.

“Dearly beloved friends! Great
as is my love and admiration …”

Dearly beloved friends! Great as is my love and
admiration for you, convinced as I am of the paramount share which
you can, and will, undoubtedly have in both the continental and
international spheres of future Bahá’í activity
and service, I feel it nevertheless incumbent upon me to utter, at
this juncture, a word of warning. The glowing tributes, so repeatedly
and deservedly paid to the capacity, the spirit, the conduct, and the
high rank, of the American believers, both individually and as an
organic community, must, under no circumstances, be confounded with
the characteristics and nature of the people from which God has
raised them up. A sharp distinction between that community and that
people must be made, and resolutely and fearlessly upheld, if we wish
to give due recognition to the transmuting power of the Faith of
Bahá’u’lláh, in its impact on the lives and
standards of those who have chosen to enlist under His banner.
Otherwise, the supreme and distinguishing function of His Revelation,
which is none other than the calling into being of a new race of men,
will remain wholly unrecognized and completely obscured.

How often have the Prophets of God, not excepting
Bahá’u’lláh Himself, chosen to appear, and
deliver their Message in countries and amidst peoples and races, at a
time when they were either fast declining, or had already touched the
lowest depths of moral and spiritual degradation. The appalling
misery and wretchedness to which the Israelites had sunk, under the
debasing and tyrannical rule of the Pharaohs, in the days preceding
their exodus from Egypt under the leadership of Moses; the decline
that had set in in the religious, the spiritual, the cultural, and
the moral life of the Jewish people, at the time of the appearance of
Jesus Christ; the barbarous cruelty, the gross idolatry and
immorality, which had for so long been the most distressing features
of the tribes of Arabia and brought such shame upon them when
Muḥammad arose to proclaim His Message in their midst; the
indescribable state of decadence, with its attendant corruption,
confusion, intolerance, and oppression, in both the civil and
religious life of Persia, so graphically portrayed by the pen of a
considerable number of scholars, diplomats, and travelers, at the
hour of the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh—all
demonstrate this basic and inescapable fact. To contend that the
innate worthiness, the high moral standard, the political aptitude,
and social attainments of any race or nation is the reason for the
appearance in its midst of any of these Divine Luminaries would be an
absolute perversion of historical facts, and would amount to a
complete repudiation of the undoubted interpretation placed upon
them, so clearly and emphatically, by both Bahá’u’lláh
and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

How great, then, must be the challenge to those who,
belonging to such races and nations, and having responded to the call
which these Prophets have raised, to unreservedly recognize and
courageously testify to this indubitable truth, that not by reason of
any racial superiority, political capacity, or spiritual virtue which
a race or nation might possess, but rather as a direct consequence of
its crying needs, its lamentable degeneracy, and irremediable
perversity, has the Prophet of God chosen to appear in its midst, and
with it as a lever has lifted the entire human race to a higher and
nobler plane of life and conduct. For it is precisely under such
circumstances, and by such means that the Prophets have, from time
immemorial, chosen and were able to demonstrate their redemptive
power to raise from the depths of abasement and of misery, the people
of their own race and nation, empowering them to transmit in turn to
other races and nations the saving grace and the energizing influence
of their Revelation.

In the light of this fundamental principle it should
always be borne in mind, nor can it be sufficiently emphasized, that
the primary reason why the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh
chose to appear in Persia, and to make it the first repository of
their Revelation, was because, of all the peoples and nations of the
civilized world, that race and nation had, as so often depicted by
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, sunk to such ignominious depths, and
manifested so great a perversity, as to find no parallel among its
contemporaries. For no more convincing proof could be adduced
demonstrating the regenerating spirit animating the Revelations
proclaimed by the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh
than their power to transform what can be truly regarded as one of
the most backward, the most cowardly, and perverse of peoples into a
race of heroes, fit to effect in turn a similar revolution in the
life of mankind. To have appeared among a race or nation which by its
intrinsic worth and high attainments seemed to warrant the
inestimable privilege of being made the receptacle of such a
Revelation would in the eyes of an unbelieving world greatly reduce
the efficacy of that Message, and detract from the self-sufficiency
of its omnipotent power. The contrast so strikingly presented in the
pages of Nabíl’s Narrative between the heroism that
immortalized the life and deeds of the Dawn-Breakers and the
degeneracy and cowardice of their defamers and persecutors is in
itself a most impressive testimony to the truth of the Message of Him
Who had instilled such a spirit into the breasts of His disciples.
For any believer of that race to maintain that the excellence of his
country and the innate nobility of its people were the fundamental
reasons for its being singled out as the primary receptacle of the
Revelations of the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh
would be untenable in the face of the overwhelming evidence afforded
so convincingly by that Narrative.

To a lesser degree this principle must of necessity
apply to the country which has vindicated its right to be regarded as
the cradle of the World Order of Bahá’u’lláh.
So great a function, so noble a role, can be regarded as no less
inferior to the part played by those immortal souls who, through
their sublime renunciation and unparalleled deeds, have been
responsible for the birth of the Faith itself. Let not, therefore,
those who are to participate so predominantly in the birth of that
world civilization, which is the direct offspring of their Faith,
imagine for a moment that for some mysterious purpose or by any
reason of inherent excellence or special merit Bahá’u’lláh
has chosen to confer upon their country and people so great and
lasting a distinction. It is precisely by reason of the patent evils
which, notwithstanding its other admittedly great characteristics and
achievements, an excessive and binding materialism has unfortunately
engendered within it that the Author of their Faith and the Center of
His Covenant have singled it out to become the standard-bearer of the
New World Order envisaged in their writings. It is by such means as
this that Bahá’u’lláh can best demonstrate
to a heedless generation His almighty power to raise up from the very
midst of a people, immersed in a sea of materialism, a prey to one of
the most virulent and long-standing forms of racial prejudice, and
notorious for its political corruption, lawlessness and laxity in
moral standards, men and women who, as time goes by, will
increasingly exemplify those essential virtues of self-renunciation,
of moral rectitude, of chastity, of indiscriminating fellowship, of
holy discipline, and of spiritual insight that will fit them for the
preponderating share they will have in calling into being that World
Order and that World Civilization of which their country, no less
than the entire human race, stands in desperate need. Theirs will be
the duty and privilege, in their capacity first as the establishers
of one of the most powerful pillars sustaining the edifice of the
Universal House of Justice, and then as the champion-builders of that
New World Order of which that House is to be the nucleus and
forerunner, to inculcate, demonstrate, and apply those twin and
sorely needed principles of Divine justice and order—principles
to which the political corruption and the moral license, increasingly
staining the society to which they belong, offer so sad and striking
a contrast.

Observations such as these, however distasteful and
depressing they may be, should not, in the least, blind us to those
virtues and qualities of high intelligence, of youthfulness, of
unbounded initiative, and enterprise which the nation as a whole so
conspicuously displays, and which are being increasingly reflected by
the community of the believers within it. Upon these virtues and
qualities, no less than upon the elimination of the evils referred
to, must depend, to a very great extent, the ability of that
community to lay a firm foundation for the country’s future
role in ushering in the Golden Age of the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh.

How great, therefore, how staggering the responsibility
that must weigh upon the present generation of the American
believers, at this early stage in their spiritual and administrative
evolution, to weed out, by every means in their power, those faults,
habits, and tendencies which they have inherited from their own
nation, and to cultivate, patiently and prayerfully, those
distinctive qualities and characteristics that are so indispensable
to their effective participation in the great redemptive work of
their Faith. Incapable as yet, in view of the restricted size of
their community and the limited influence it now wields, of producing
any marked effect on the great mass of their countrymen, let them
focus their attention, for the present, on their own selves, their
own individual needs, their own personal deficiencies and weaknesses,
ever mindful that every intensification of effort on their part will
better equip them for the time when they will be called upon to
eradicate in their turn such evil tendencies from the lives and the
hearts of the entire body of their fellow-citizens. Nor must they
overlook the fact that the World Order, whose basis they, as the
advance-guard of the future Bahá’í generations of
their countrymen, are now laboring to establish, can never be reared
unless and until the generality of the people to which they belong
has been already purged from the divers ills, whether social or
political, that now so severely afflict it.

Surveying as a whole the most pressing needs of this
community, attempting to estimate the more serious deficiencies by
which it is being handicapped in the discharge of its task, and ever
bearing in mind the nature of that still greater task with which it
will be forced to wrestle in the future, I feel it my duty to lay
special stress upon, and draw the special and urgent attention of the
entire body of the American believers, be they young or old, white or
colored, teachers or administrators, veterans or newcomers, to what I
firmly believe are the essential requirements for the success of the
tasks which are now claiming their undivided attention. Great as is
the importance of fashioning the outward instruments, and of
perfecting the administrative agencies, which they can utilize for
the prosecution of their dual task under the Seven Year Plan; vital
and urgent as are the campaigns which they are initiating, the
schemes and projects which they are devising, and the funds which
they are raising, for the efficient conduct of both the Teaching and
Temple work, the imponderable, the spiritual, factors, which are
bound up with their own individual and inner lives, and with which
are associated their human and social relationships, are no less
urgent and vital, and demand constant scrutiny, continual
self-examination and heart-searching on their part, lest their value
be impaired or their vital necessity be obscured or forgotten.

Of these spiritual prerequisites of success, which
constitute the bedrock on which the security of all teaching plans,
Temple projects, and financial schemes, must ultimately rest, the
following stand out as preeminent and vital, which the members of the
American Bahá’í community will do well to ponder.
Upon the extent to which these basic requirements are met, and the
manner in which the American believers fulfill them in their
individual lives, administrative activities, and social
relationships, must depend the measure of the manifold blessings
which the All-Bountiful Possessor can vouchsafe to them all. These
requirements are none other than a high sense of moral rectitude in
their social and administrative activities, absolute chastity in
their individual lives, and complete freedom from prejudice in their
dealings with peoples of a different race, class, creed, or color.

The first is specially, though not exclusively, directed
to their elected representatives, whether local, regional, or
national, who, in their capacity as the custodians and members of the
nascent institutions of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh,
are shouldering the chief responsibility in laying an unassailable
foundation for that Universal House of Justice which, as its title
implies, is to be the exponent and guardian of that Divine Justice
which can alone insure the security of, and establish the reign of
law and order in, a strangely disordered world. The second is mainly
and directly concerned with the Bahá’í youth, who
can contribute so decisively to the virility, the purity, and the
driving force of the life of the Bahá’í
community, and upon whom must depend the future orientation of its
destiny, and the complete unfoldment of the potentialities with which
God has endowed it. The third should be the immediate, the universal,
and the chief concern of all and sundry members of the Bahá’í
community, of whatever age, rank, experience, class, or color, as
all, with no exception, must face its challenging implications, and
none can claim, however much he may have progressed along this line,
to have completely discharged the stern responsibilities which it
inculcates.

A rectitude of conduct, an abiding sense of undeviating
justice, unobscured by the demoralizing influences which a
corruption-ridden political life so strikingly manifests; a chaste,
pure, and holy life, unsullied and unclouded by the indecencies, the
vices, the false standards, which an inherently deficient moral code
tolerates, perpetuates, and fosters; a fraternity freed from that
cancerous growth of racial prejudice, which is eating into the vitals
of an already debilitated society—these are the ideals which
the American believers must, from now on, individually and through
concerted action, strive to promote, in both their private and public
lives, ideals which are the chief propelling forces that can most
effectively accelerate the march of their institutions, plans, and
enterprises, that can guard the honor and integrity of their Faith,
and subdue any obstacles that may confront it in the future.

This rectitude of conduct, with its implications of
justice, equity, truthfulness, honesty, fair-mindedness, reliability,
and trustworthiness, must distinguish every phase of the life of the
Bahá’í community. “The companions of God,”
Bahá’u’lláh Himself has declared, “are,
in this day, the lump that must leaven the peoples of the world. They
must show forth such trustworthiness, such truthfulness and
perseverance, such deeds and character that all mankind may profit by
their example.” “I swear by Him Who is the Most Great
Ocean!” He again affirms, “Within the very breath of such
souls as are pure and sanctified far-reaching potentialities are
hidden. So great are these potentialities that they exercise their
influence upon all created things.” “He is the true
servant of God,” He, in another passage has written, “who,
in this day, were he to pass through cities of silver and gold, would
not deign to look upon them, and whose heart would remain pure and
undefiled from whatever things can be seen in this world, be they its
goods or its treasures. I swear by the Sun of Truth! The breath of
such a man is endowed with potency, and his words with attraction.”
“By Him Who shineth above the Dayspring of sanctity!” He,
still more emphatically, has revealed, “If the whole earth were
to be converted into silver and gold, no man who can be said to have
truly ascended into the heaven of faith and certitude would deign to
regard it, much less to seize and keep it…. They who dwell within
the Tabernacle of God, and are established upon the seats of
everlasting glory, will refuse, though they be dying of hunger, to
stretch their hands, and seize unlawfully the property of their
neighbor, however vile and worthless he may be. The purpose of the
one true God in manifesting Himself is to summon all mankind to
truthfulness and sincerity, to piety and trustworthiness, to
resignation and submissiveness to the will of God, to forbearance and
kindliness, to uprightness and wisdom. His object is to array every
man with the mantle of a saintly character, and to adorn him with the
ornament of holy and goodly deeds.” “We have admonished
all the loved ones of God,” He insists, “to take heed
lest the hem of Our sacred vesture be smirched with the mire of
unlawful deeds, or be stained with the dust of reprehensible
conduct.” “Cleave unto righteousness, O people of Bahá,”
He thus exhorts them, “This, verily, is the commandment which
this wronged One hath given unto you, and the first choice of His
unrestrained will for every one of you.” “A good
character,” He explains, “is, verily, the best mantle for
men from God. With it He adorneth the temples of His loved ones. By
My life! The light of a good character surpasseth the light of the
sun and the radiance thereof.” “One righteous act,”
He, again, has written, “is endowed with a potency that can so
elevate the dust as to cause it to pass beyond the heaven of heavens.
It can tear every bond asunder, and hath the power to restore the
force that hath spent itself and vanished…. Be pure, O people of
God, be pure; be righteous, be righteous…. Say: O people of God!
That which can insure the victory of Him Who is the Eternal Truth,
His hosts and helpers on earth, have been set down in the sacred
Books and Scriptures, and are as clear and manifest as the sun. These
hosts are such righteous deeds, such conduct and character, as are
acceptable in His sight. Whoso ariseth, in this Day, to aid Our
Cause, and summoneth to his assistance the hosts of a praiseworthy
character and upright conduct, the influence from such an action
will, most certainly, be diffused throughout the whole world.”
“The betterment of the world,” is yet another statement,
“can be accomplished through pure and goodly deeds, through
commendable and seemly conduct.” “Be fair to yourselves
and to others,” He thus counseleth them, “that the
evidences of justice may be revealed through your deeds among Our
faithful servants.” “Equity,” He also has written,
“is the most fundamental among human virtues. The evaluation of
all things must needs depend upon it.” And again, “Observe
equity in your judgment, ye men of understanding heart! He that is
unjust in his judgment is destitute of the characteristics that
distinguish man’s station.” “Beautify your tongues,
O people,” He further admonishes them, “with
truthfulness, and adorn your souls with the ornament of honesty.
Beware, O people, that ye deal not treacherously with anyone. Be ye
the trustees of God amongst His creatures, and the emblems of His
generosity amidst His people.” “Let your eye be chaste,”
is yet another counsel, “your hand faithful, your tongue
truthful, and your heart enlightened.” “Be an ornament to
the countenance of truth,” is yet another admonition, “a
crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the temple of
righteousness, a breath of life to the body of mankind, an ensign of
the hosts of justice, a luminary above the horizon of virtue.”
“Let truthfulness and courtesy be your adorning,” is
still another admonition; “suffer not yourselves to be deprived
of the robe of forbearance and justice, that the sweet savors of
holiness may be wafted from your hearts upon all created things. Say:
Beware, O people of Bahá, lest ye walk in the ways of them
whose words differ from their deeds. Strive that ye may be enabled to
manifest to the peoples of the earth the signs of God, and to mirror
forth His commandments. Let your acts be a guide unto all mankind,
for the professions of most men, be they high or low, differ from
their conduct. It is through your deeds that ye can distinguish
yourselves from others. Through them the brightness of your light can
be shed upon the whole earth. Happy is the man that heedeth My
counsel, and keepeth the precepts prescribed by Him Who is the
All-Knowing, the All-Wise.”

“O army of God!” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
“Through the protection and help vouchsafed by the Blessed
Beauty—may my life be a sacrifice to His loved ones—ye
must conduct yourselves in such a manner that ye may stand out
distinguished and brilliant as the sun among other souls. Should any
one of you enter a city, he should become a center of attraction by
reason of his sincerity, his faithfulness and love, his honesty and
fidelity, his truthfulness and loving-kindness towards all the
peoples of the world, so that the people of that city may cry out and
say: ‘This man is unquestionably a Bahá’í,
for his manners, his behavior, his conduct, his morals, his nature,
and disposition reflect the attributes of the Bahá’ís.’
Not until ye attain this station can ye be said to have been faithful
to the Covenant and Testament of God.” “The most vital
duty, in this day,” He, moreover, has written, “is to
purify your characters, to correct your manners, and improve your
conduct. The beloved of the Merciful must show forth such character
and conduct among His creatures, that the fragrance of their holiness
may be shed upon the whole world, and may quicken the dead, inasmuch
as the purpose of the Manifestation of God and the dawning of the
limitless lights of the Invisible is to educate the souls of men, and
refine the character of every living man….” “Truthfulness,”
He asserts, “is the foundation of all human virtues. Without
truthfulness progress and success, in all the worlds of God, are
impossible for any soul. When this holy attribute is established in
man, all the divine qualities will also be acquired.”

Such a rectitude of conduct must manifest itself, with
ever-increasing potency, in every verdict which the elected
representatives of the Bahá’í community, in
whatever capacity they may find themselves, may be called upon to
pronounce. It must be constantly reflected in the business dealings
of all its members, in their domestic lives, in all manner of
employment, and in any service they may, in the future, render their
government or people. It must be exemplified in the conduct of all
Bahá’í electors, when exercising their sacred
rights and functions. It must characterize the attitude of every
loyal believer towards nonacceptance of political posts,
nonidentification with political parties, nonparticipation in
political controversies, and nonmembership in political organizations
and ecclesiastical institutions. It must reveal itself in the
uncompromising adherence of all, whether young or old, to the clearly
enunciated and fundamental principles laid down by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
in His addresses, and to the laws and ordinances revealed by
Bahá’u’lláh in His Most Holy Book. It must
be demonstrated in the impartiality of every defender of the Faith
against its enemies, in his fair-mindedness in recognizing any merits
that enemy may possess, and in his honesty in discharging any
obligations he may have towards him. It must constitute the brightest
ornament of the life, the pursuits, the exertions, and the utterances
of every Bahá’í teacher, whether laboring at home
or abroad, whether in the front ranks of the teaching force, or
occupying a less active and responsible position. It must be made the
hallmark of that numerically small, yet intensely dynamic and highly
responsible body of the elected national representatives of every
Bahá’í community, which constitutes the
sustaining pillar, and the sole instrument for the election, in every
community, of that Universal House whose very name and title, as
ordained by Bahá’u’lláh, symbolizes that
rectitude of conduct which is its highest mission to safeguard and
enforce.

So great and transcendental is this principle of Divine
justice, a principle that must be regarded as the crowning
distinction of all Local and National Assemblies, in their capacity
as forerunners of the Universal House of Justice, that Bahá’u’lláh
Himself subordinates His personal inclination and wish to the
all-compelling force of its demands and implications. “God is
My witness!” He thus explains, “were it not contrary to
the Law of God, I would have kissed the hand of My would-be murderer,
and would cause him to inherit My earthly goods. I am restrained,
however, by the binding Law laid down in the Book, and am Myself
bereft of all worldly possessions.” “Know thou, of a
truth,” He significantly affirms, “these great
oppressions that have befallen the world are preparing it for the
advent of the Most Great Justice.” “Say,” He again
asserts, “He hath appeared with that Justice wherewith mankind
hath been adorned, and yet the people are, for the most part,
asleep.” “The light of men is Justice,” He moreover
states, “Quench it not with the contrary winds of oppression
and tyranny. The purpose of justice is the appearance of unity among
men.” “No radiance,” He declares, “can
compare with that of justice. The organization of the world and the
tranquillity of mankind depend upon it.” “O people of
God!” He exclaims, “That which traineth the world is
Justice, for it is upheld by two pillars, reward and punishment.
These two pillars are the sources of life to the world.”
“Justice and equity,” is yet another assertion, “are
two guardians for the protection of man. They have appeared arrayed
in their mighty and sacred names to maintain the world in uprightness
and protect the nations.” “Bestir yourselves, O people,”
is His emphatic warning, “in anticipation of the days of Divine
justice, for the promised hour is now come. Beware lest ye fail to
apprehend its import, and be accounted among the erring.” “The
day is approaching,” He similarly has written, “when the
faithful will behold the daystar of justice shining in its full
splendor from the dayspring of glory.” “The shame I was
made to bear,” He significantly remarks, “hath uncovered
the glory with which the whole of creation had been invested, and
through the cruelties I have endured, the daystar of justice hath
manifested itself, and shed its splendor upon men.” “The
world,” He again has written, “is in great turmoil, and
the minds of its people are in a state of utter confusion. We entreat
the Almighty that He may graciously illuminate them with the glory of
His Justice, and enable them to discover that which will be
profitable unto them at all times and under all conditions.”
And again, “There can be no doubt whatever that if the daystar
of justice, which the clouds of tyranny have obscured, were to shed
its light upon men, the face of the earth would be completely
transformed.”

“God be praised!” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
in His turn, exclaims, “The sun of justice hath risen above the
horizon of Bahá’u’lláh. For in His Tablets
the foundations of such a justice have been laid as no mind hath,
from the beginning of creation, conceived.” “The canopy
of existence,” He further explains, “resteth upon the
pole of justice, and not of forgiveness, and the life of mankind
dependeth on justice and not on forgiveness.”

Small wonder, therefore, that the Author of the Bahá’í
Revelation should have chosen to associate the name and title of that
House, which is to be the crowning glory of His administrative
institutions, not with forgiveness but with justice, to have made
justice the only basis and the permanent foundation of His Most Great
Peace, and to have proclaimed it in His Hidden Words as “the
best beloved of all things” in His sight. It is to the American
believers, particularly, that I feel urged to direct this fervent
plea to ponder in their hearts the implications of this moral
rectitude, and to uphold, with heart and soul and uncompromisingly,
both individually and collectively, this sublime standard—a
standard of which justice is so essential and potent an element.

As to a chaste and holy life, it should be regarded as
no less essential a factor that must contribute its proper share to
the strengthening and vitalization of the Bahá’í
community, upon which must in turn depend the success of any Bahá’í
plan or enterprise. In these days when the forces of irreligion are
weakening the moral fiber, and undermining the foundations of
individual morality, the obligation of chastity and holiness must
claim an increasing share of the attention of the American believers,
both in their individual capacities and as the responsible custodians
of the interests of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.
In the discharge of such an obligation, to which the special
circumstances resulting from an excessive and enervating materialism
now prevailing in their country lend particular significance, they
must play a conspicuous and predominant role. All of them, be they
men or women, must, at this threatening hour when the lights of
religion are fading out, and its restraints are one by one being
abolished, pause to examine themselves, scrutinize their conduct, and
with characteristic resolution arise to purge the life of their
community of every trace of moral laxity that might stain the name,
or impair the integrity, of so holy and precious a Faith.

A chaste and holy life must be made the controlling
principle in the behavior and conduct of all Bahá’ís,
both in their social relations with the members of their own
community, and in their contact with the world at large. It must
adorn and reinforce the ceaseless labors and meritorious exertions of
those whose enviable position is to propagate the Message, and to
administer the affairs, of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.
It must be upheld, in all its integrity and implications, in every
phase of the life of those who fill the ranks of that Faith, whether
in their homes, their travels, their clubs, their societies, their
entertainments, their schools, and their universities. It must be
accorded special consideration in the conduct of the social
activities of every Bahá’í summer school and any
other occasions on which Bahá’í community life is
organized and fostered. It must be closely and continually identified
with the mission of the Bahá’í youth, both as an
element in the life of the Bahá’í community, and
as a factor in the future progress and orientation of the youth of
their own country.

Such a chaste and holy life, with its implications of
modesty, purity, temperance, decency, and clean-mindedness, involves
no less than the exercise of moderation in all that pertains to
dress, language, amusements, and all artistic and literary
avocations. It demands daily vigilance in the control of one’s
carnal desires and corrupt inclinations. It calls for the abandonment
of a frivolous conduct, with its excessive attachment to trivial and
often misdirected pleasures. It requires total abstinence from all
alcoholic drinks, from opium, and from similar habit-forming drugs.
It condemns the prostitution of art and of literature, the practices
of nudism and of companionate marriage, infidelity in marital
relationships, and all manner of promiscuity, of easy familiarity,
and of sexual vices. It can tolerate no compromise with the theories,
the standards, the habits, and the excesses of a decadent age. Nay
rather it seeks to demonstrate, through the dynamic force of its
example, the pernicious character of such theories, the falsity of
such standards, the hollowness of such claims, the perversity of such
habits, and the sacrilegious character of such excesses.

“By the righteousness of God!” writes
Bahá’u’lláh, “The world, its vanities
and its glory, and whatever delights it can offer, are all, in the
sight of God, as worthless as, nay even more contemptible than, dust
and ashes. Would that the hearts of men could comprehend it. Wash
yourselves thoroughly, O people of Bahá, from the defilement
of the world, and of all that pertaineth unto it. God Himself beareth
Me witness! The things of the earth ill beseem you. Cast them away
unto such as may desire them, and fasten your eyes upon this most
holy and effulgent Vision.” “O ye My loved ones!”
He thus exhorts His followers, “Suffer not the hem of My sacred
vesture to be smirched and mired with the things of this world, and
follow not the promptings of your evil and corrupt desires.”
And again, “O ye the beloved of the one true God! Pass beyond
the narrow retreats of your evil and corrupt desires, and advance
into the vast immensity of the realm of God, and abide ye in the
meads of sanctity and of detachment, that the fragrance of your deeds
may lead the whole of mankind to the ocean of God’s unfading
glory.” “Disencumber yourselves,” He thus commands
them, “of all attachment to this world and the vanities
thereof. Beware that ye approach them not, inasmuch as they prompt
you to walk after your own lusts and covetous desires, and hinder you
from entering the straight and glorious Path.” “Eschew
all manner of wickedness,” is His commandment, “for such
things are forbidden unto you in the Book which none touch except
such as God hath cleansed from every taint of guilt, and numbered
among the purified.” “A race of men,” is His
written promise, “incomparable in character, shall be raised up
which, with the feet of detachment, will tread under all who are in
heaven and on earth, and will cast the sleeve of holiness over all
that hath been created from water and clay.” “The
civilization,” is His grave warning, “so often vaunted by
the learned exponents of arts and sciences, will, if allowed to
overleap the bounds of moderation, bring great evil upon men…. If
carried to excess, civilization will prove as prolific a source of
evil as it had been of goodness when kept within the restraints of
moderation.” “He hath chosen out of the whole world the
hearts of His servants,” He explains, “and made them each
a seat for the revelation of His glory. Wherefore, sanctify them from
every defilement, that the things for which they were created may be
engraven upon them. This indeed is a token of God’s bountiful
favor.” “Say,” He proclaims, “He is not to be
numbered with the people of Bahá who followeth his mundane
desires, or fixeth his heart on things of the earth. He is My true
follower who, if he come to a valley of pure gold will pass straight
through it aloof as a cloud, and will neither turn back, nor pause.
Such a man is assuredly of Me. From his garment the Concourse on high
can inhale the fragrance of sanctity…. And if he met the fairest
and most comely of women, he would not feel his heart seduced by the
least shadow of desire for her beauty. Such an one indeed is the
creation of spotless chastity. Thus instructeth you the Pen of the
Ancient of Days, as bidden by your Lord, the Almighty, the
All-Bountiful.” “They that follow their lusts and corrupt
inclinations,” is yet another warning, “have erred and
dissipated their efforts. They indeed are of the lost.” “It
behooveth the people of Bahá,” He also has written, “to
die to the world and all that is therein, to be so detached from all
earthly things that the inmates of Paradise may inhale from their
garment the sweet smelling savor of sanctity…. They that have
tarnished the fair name of the Cause of God by following the things
of the flesh—these are in palpable error!” “Purity
and chastity,” He particularly admonishes, “have been,
and still are, the most great ornaments for the handmaidens of God.
God is My Witness! The brightness of the light of chastity sheddeth
its illumination upon the worlds of the spirit, and its fragrance is
wafted even unto the Most Exalted Paradise.” “God,”
He again affirms, “hath verily made chastity to be a crown for
the heads of His handmaidens. Great is the blessedness of that
handmaiden that hath attained unto this great station.” “We,
verily, have decreed in Our Book,” is His assurance, “a
goodly and bountiful reward to whosoever will turn away from
wickedness, and lead a chaste and godly life. He, in truth, is the
Great Giver, the All-Bountiful.” “We have sustained the
weight of all calamities,” He testifies, “to sanctify you
from all earthly corruption and ye are yet indifferent…. We,
verily, behold your actions. If We perceive from them the sweet
smelling savor of purity and holiness, We will most certainly bless
you. Then will the tongues of the inmates of Paradise utter your
praise and magnify your names amidst them who have drawn nigh unto
God.”

“The drinking of wine,” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
“is, according to the text of the Most Holy Book, forbidden;
for it is the cause of chronic diseases, weakeneth the nerves, and
consumeth the mind.” “Drink ye, O handmaidens of God,”
Bahá’u’lláh Himself has affirmed, “the
Mystic Wine from the cup of My words. Cast away, then, from you that
which your minds abhor, for it hath been forbidden unto you in His
Tablets and His Scriptures. Beware lest ye barter away the River that
is life indeed for that which the souls of the pure-hearted detest.
Become ye intoxicated with the wine of the love of God, and not with
that which deadeneth your minds, O ye that adore Him! Verily, it hath
been forbidden unto every believer, whether man or woman. Thus hath
the sun of My commandment shone forth above the horizon of My
utterance, that the handmaidens who believe in Me may be illumined.”

It must be remembered, however, that the maintenance of
such a high standard of moral conduct is not to be associated or
confused with any form of asceticism, or of excessive and bigoted
puritanism. The standard inculcated by Bahá’u’lláh
seeks, under no circumstances, to deny anyone the legitimate right
and privilege to derive the fullest advantage and benefit from the
manifold joys, beauties, and pleasures with which the world has been
so plentifully enriched by an All-Loving Creator. “Should a
man,” Bahá’u’lláh Himself reassures
us, “wish to adorn himself with the ornaments of the earth, to
wear its apparels, or partake of the benefits it can bestow, no harm
can befall him, if he alloweth nothing whatever to intervene between
him and God, for God hath ordained every good thing, whether created
in the heavens or in the earth, for such of His servants as truly
believe in Him. Eat ye, O people, of the good things which God hath
allowed you, and deprive not yourselves from His wondrous bounties.
Render thanks and praise unto Him, and be of them that are truly
thankful.”

As to racial prejudice, the corrosion of which, for
well-nigh a century, has bitten into the fiber, and attacked the
whole social structure of American society, it should be regarded as
constituting the most vital and challenging issue confronting the
Bahá’í community at the present stage of its
evolution. The ceaseless exertions which this issue of paramount
importance calls for, the sacrifices it must impose, the care and
vigilance it demands, the moral courage and fortitude it requires,
the tact and sympathy it necessitates, invest this problem, which the
American believers are still far from having satisfactorily resolved,
with an urgency and importance that cannot be overestimated. White
and Negro, high and low, young and old, whether newly converted to
the Faith or not, all who stand identified with it must participate
in, and lend their assistance, each according to his or her capacity,
experience, and opportunities, to the common task of fulfilling the
instructions, realizing the hopes, and following the example, of
‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Whether colored or noncolored,
neither race has the right, or can conscientiously claim, to be
regarded as absolved from such an obligation, as having realized such
hopes, or having faithfully followed such an example. A long and
thorny road, beset with pitfalls, still remains untraveled, both by
the white and the Negro exponents of the redeeming Faith of
Bahá’u’lláh. On the distance they cover,
and the manner in which they travel that road, must depend, to an
extent which few among them can imagine, the operation of those
intangible influences which are indispensable to the spiritual
triumph of the American believers and the material success of their
newly launched enterprise.

Let them call to mind, fearlessly and determinedly, the
example and conduct of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá while in their
midst. Let them remember His courage, His genuine love, His informal
and indiscriminating fellowship, His contempt for and impatience of
criticism, tempered by His tact and wisdom. Let them revive and
perpetuate the memory of those unforgettable and historic episodes
and occasions on which He so strikingly demonstrated His keen sense
of justice, His spontaneous sympathy for the downtrodden, His
ever-abiding sense of the oneness of the human race, His overflowing
love for its members, and His displeasure with those who dared to
flout His wishes, to deride His methods, to challenge His principles,
or to nullify His acts.

To discriminate against any race, on the ground of its
being socially backward, politically immature, and numerically in a
minority, is a flagrant violation of the spirit that animates the
Faith of Bahá’u’lláh. The consciousness of
any division or cleavage in its ranks is alien to its very purpose,
principles, and ideals. Once its members have fully recognized the
claim of its Author, and, by identifying themselves with its
Administrative Order, accepted unreservedly the principles and laws
embodied in its teachings, every differentiation of class, creed, or
color must automatically be obliterated, and never be allowed, under
any pretext, and however great the pressure of events or of public
opinion, to reassert itself. If any discrimination is at all to be
tolerated, it should be a discrimination not against, but rather in
favor of the minority, be it racial or otherwise. Unlike the nations
and peoples of the earth, be they of the East or of the West,
democratic or authoritarian, communist or capitalist, whether
belonging to the Old World or the New, who either ignore, trample
upon, or extirpate, the racial, religious, or political minorities
within the sphere of their jurisdiction, every organized community
enlisted under the banner of Bahá’u’lláh
should feel it to be its first and inescapable obligation to nurture,
encourage, and safeguard every minority belonging to any faith, race,
class, or nation within it. So great and vital is this principle that
in such circumstances, as when an equal number of ballots have been
cast in an election, or where the qualifications for any office are
balanced as between the various races, faiths or nationalities within
the community, priority should unhesitatingly be accorded the party
representing the minority, and this for no other reason except to
stimulate and encourage it, and afford it an opportunity to further
the interests of the community. In the light of this principle, and
bearing in mind the extreme desirability of having the minority
elements participate and share responsibility in the conduct of
Bahá’í activity, it should be the duty of every
Bahá’í community so to arrange its affairs that
in cases where individuals belonging to the divers minority elements
within it are already qualified and fulfill the necessary
requirements, Bahá’í representative institutions,
be they Assemblies, conventions, conferences, or committees, may have
represented on them as many of these divers elements, racial or
otherwise, as possible. The adoption of such a course, and faithful
adherence to it, would not only be a source of inspiration and
encouragement to those elements that are numerically small and
inadequately represented, but would demonstrate to the world at large
the universality and representative character of the Faith of
Bahá’u’lláh, and the freedom of His
followers from the taint of those prejudices which have already
wrought such havoc in the domestic affairs, as well as the foreign
relationships, of the nations.

Freedom from racial prejudice, in any of its forms,
should, at such a time as this when an increasingly large section of
the human race is falling a victim to its devastating ferocity, be
adopted as the watchword of the entire body of the American
believers, in whichever state they reside, in whatever circles they
move, whatever their age, traditions, tastes, and habits. It should
be consistently demonstrated in every phase of their activity and
life, whether in the Bahá’í community or outside
it, in public or in private, formally as well as informally,
individually as well as in their official capacity as organized
groups, committees and Assemblies. It should be deliberately
cultivated through the various and everyday opportunities, no matter
how insignificant, that present themselves, whether in their homes,
their business offices, their schools and colleges, their social
parties and recreation grounds, their Bahá’í
meetings, conferences, conventions, summer schools and Assemblies. It
should, above all else, become the keynote of the policy of that
august body which, in its capacity as the national representative,
and the director and coordinator of the affairs of the community,
must set the example, and facilitate the application of such a vital
principle to the lives and activities of those whose interests it
safeguards and represents.

“O ye discerning ones!” Bahá’u’lláh
has written, “Verily, the words which have descended from the
heaven of the Will of God are the source of unity and harmony for the
world. Close your eyes to racial differences, and welcome all with
the light of oneness.” “We desire but the good of the
world and the happiness of the nations,” He proclaims, “…that
all nations should become one in faith and all men as brothers; that
the bonds of affection and unity between the sons of men should be
strengthened; that diversity of religion should cease, and
differences of race be annulled.” “Bahá’u’lláh
hath said,” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “that
the various races of humankind lend a composite harmony and beauty of
color to the whole. Let all associate, therefore, in this great human
garden even as flowers grow and blend together side by side without
discord or disagreement between them.” “Bahá’u’lláh,”
‘Abdu’l-Bahá moreover has said, “once
compared the colored people to the black pupil of the eye surrounded
by the white. In this black pupil is seen the reflection of that
which is before it, and through it the light of the spirit shineth
forth.”

“God,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
Himself declares, “maketh no distinction between the white and
the black. If the hearts are pure both are acceptable unto Him. God
is no respecter of persons on account of either color or race. All
colors are acceptable unto Him, be they white, black, or yellow.
Inasmuch as all were created in the image of God, we must bring
ourselves to realize that all embody divine possibilities.” “In
the estimation of God,” He states, “all men are equal.
There is no distinction or preference for any soul, in the realm of
His justice and equity.” “God did not make these
divisions,” He affirms; “these divisions have had their
origin in man himself. Therefore, as they are against the plan and
purpose of God they are false and imaginary.” “In the
estimation of God,” He again affirms, “there is no
distinction of color; all are one in the color and beauty of
servitude to Him. Color is not important; the heart is all-important.
It mattereth not what the exterior may be if the heart is pure and
white within. God doth not behold differences of hue and complexion.
He looketh at the hearts. He whose morals and virtues are
praiseworthy is preferred in the presence of God; he who is devoted
to the Kingdom is most beloved. In the realm of genesis and creation
the question of color is of least importance.” “Throughout
the animal kingdom,” He explains, “we do not find the
creatures separated because of color. They recognize unity of species
and oneness of kind. If we do not find color distinction drawn in a
kingdom of lower intelligence and reason, how can it be justified
among human beings, especially when we know that all have come from
the same source and belong to the same household? In origin and
intention of creation mankind is one. Distinctions of race and color
have arisen afterward.” “Man is endowed with superior
reasoning power and the faculty of perception”; He further
explains, “he is the manifestation of divine bestowals. Shall
racial ideas prevail and obscure the creative purpose of unity in his
kingdom?” “One of the important questions,” He
significantly remarks, “which affect the unity and the
solidarity of mankind is the fellowship and equality of the white and
colored races. Between these two races certain points of agreement
and points of distinction exist which warrant just and mutual
consideration. The points of contact are many…. In this country,
the United States of America, patriotism is common to both races; all
have equal rights to citizenship, speak one language, receive the
blessings of the same civilization, and follow the precepts of the
same religion. In fact numerous points of partnership and agreement
exist between the two races, whereas the one point of distinction is
that of color. Shall this, the least of all distinctions, be allowed
to separate you as races and individuals?” “This variety
in forms and coloring,” He stresses, “which is manifest
in all the kingdoms is according to creative Wisdom and hath a divine
purpose.” “The diversity in the human family,” He
claims, “should be the cause of love and harmony, as it is in
music where many different notes blend together in the making of a
perfect chord.” “If you meet,” is His admonition,
“those of a different race and color from yourself, do not
mistrust them, and withdraw yourself into your shell of
conventionality, but rather be glad and show them kindness.”
“In the world of being,” He testifies, “the meeting
is blessed when the white and colored races meet together with
infinite spiritual love and heavenly harmony. When such meetings are
established, and the participants associate with each other with
perfect love, unity and kindness, the angels of the Kingdom praise
them, and the Beauty of Bahá’u’lláh
addresseth them, ‘Blessed are ye! Blessed are ye!’”
“When a gathering of these two races is brought about,”
He likewise asserts, “that assemblage will become the magnet of
the Concourse on high, and the confirmation of the Blessed Beauty
will surround it.” “Strive earnestly,” He again
exhorts both races, “and put forth your greatest endeavor
toward the accomplishment of this fellowship and the cementing of
this bond of brotherhood between you. Such an attainment is not
possible without will and effort on the part of each; from one,
expressions of gratitude and appreciation; from the other, kindliness
and recognition of equality. Each one should endeavor to develop and
assist the other toward mutual advancement…. Love and unity will be
fostered between you, thereby bringing about the oneness of mankind.
For the accomplishment of unity between the colored and white will be
an assurance of the world’s peace.” “I hope,”
He thus addresses members of the white race, “that ye may cause
that downtrodden race to become glorious, and to be joined with the
white race, to serve the world of man with the utmost sincerity,
faithfulness, love, and purity. This opposition, enmity, and
prejudice among the white race and the colored cannot be effaced
except through faith, assurance, and the teachings of the Blessed
Beauty.” “This question of the union of the white and the
black is very important,” He warns, “for if it is not
realized, erelong great difficulties will arise, and harmful results
will follow.” “If this matter remaineth without change,”
is yet another warning, “enmity will be increased day by day,
and the final result will be hardship and may end in bloodshed.”

A tremendous effort is required by both races if their
outlook, their manners, and conduct are to reflect, in this darkened
age, the spirit and teachings of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.
Casting away once and for all the fallacious doctrine of racial
superiority, with all its attendant evils, confusion, and miseries,
and welcoming and encouraging the intermixture of races, and tearing
down the barriers that now divide them, they should each endeavor,
day and night, to fulfill their particular responsibilities in the
common task which so urgently faces them. Let them, while each is
attempting to contribute its share to the solution of this perplexing
problem, call to mind the warnings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
and visualize, while there is yet time, the dire consequences that
must follow if this challenging and unhappy situation that faces the
entire American nation is not definitely remedied.

Let the white make a supreme effort in their resolve to
contribute their share to the solution of this problem, to abandon
once for all their usually inherent and at times subconscious sense
of superiority, to correct their tendency towards revealing a
patronizing attitude towards the members of the other race, to
persuade them through their intimate, spontaneous and informal
association with them of the genuineness of their friendship and the
sincerity of their intentions, and to master their impatience of any
lack of responsiveness on the part of a people who have received, for
so long a period, such grievous and slow-healing wounds. Let the
Negroes, through a corresponding effort on their part, show by every
means in their power the warmth of their response, their readiness to
forget the past, and their ability to wipe out every trace of
suspicion that may still linger in their hearts and minds. Let
neither think that the solution of so vast a problem is a matter that
exclusively concerns the other. Let neither think that such a problem
can either easily or immediately be resolved. Let neither think that
they can wait confidently for the solution of this problem until the
initiative has been taken, and the favorable circumstances created,
by agencies that stand outside the orbit of their Faith. Let neither
think that anything short of genuine love, extreme patience, true
humility, consummate tact, sound initiative, mature wisdom, and
deliberate, persistent, and prayerful effort, can succeed in blotting
out the stain which this patent evil has left on the fair name of
their common country. Let them rather believe, and be firmly
convinced, that on their mutual understanding, their amity, and
sustained cooperation, must depend, more than on any other force or
organization operating outside the circle of their Faith, the
deflection of that dangerous course so greatly feared by
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and the materialization of the hopes
He cherished for their joint contribution to the fulfillment of that
country’s glorious destiny.

Dearly beloved friends! A rectitude of conduct which, in
all its manifestations, offers a striking contrast to the
deceitfulness and corruption that characterize the political life of
the nation and of the parties and factions that compose it; a
holiness and chastity that are diametrically opposed to the moral
laxity and licentiousness which defile the character of a not
inconsiderable proportion of its citizens; an interracial fellowship
completely purged from the curse of racial prejudice which
stigmatizes the vast majority of its people—these are the
weapons which the American believers can and must wield in their
double crusade, first to regenerate the inward life of their own
community, and next to assail the long-standing evils that have
entrenched themselves in the life of their nation. The perfection of
such weapons, the wise and effective utilization of every one of
them, more than the furtherance of any particular plan, or the
devising of any special scheme, or the accumulation of any amount of
material resources, can prepare them for the time when the Hand of
Destiny will have directed them to assist in creating and in bringing
into operation that World Order which is now incubating within the
worldwide administrative institutions of their Faith.

In the conduct of this twofold crusade the valiant
warriors struggling in the name and for the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh
must, of necessity, encounter stiff resistance, and suffer many a
setback. Their own instincts, no less than the fury of conservative
forces, the opposition of vested interests, and the objections of a
corrupt and pleasure-seeking generation, must be reckoned with,
resolutely resisted, and completely overcome. As their defensive
measures for the impending struggle are organized and extended,
storms of abuse and ridicule, and campaigns of condemnation and
misrepresentation, may be unloosed against them. Their Faith, they
may soon find, has been assaulted, their motives misconstrued, their
aims defamed, their aspirations derided, their institutions scorned,
their influence belittled, their authority undermined, and their
Cause, at times, deserted by a few who will either be incapable of
appreciating the nature of their ideals, or unwilling to bear the
brunt of the mounting criticisms which such a contest is sure to
involve. “Because of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,”
the beloved Master has prophesied, “many a test will be visited
upon you. Troubles will befall you, and suffering afflict you.”

Let not, however, the invincible army of Bahá’u’lláh,
who in the West, and at one of its potential storm centers is to
fight, in His name and for His sake, one of its fiercest and most
glorious battles, be afraid of any criticism that might be directed
against it. Let it not be deterred by any condemnation with which the
tongue of the slanderer may seek to debase its motives. Let it not
recoil before the threatening advance of the forces of fanaticism, of
orthodoxy, of corruption, and of prejudice that may be leagued
against it. The voice of criticism is a voice that indirectly
reinforces the proclamation of its Cause. Unpopularity but serves to
throw into greater relief the contrast between it and its
adversaries, while ostracism is itself the magnetic power that must
eventually win over to its camp the most vociferous and inveterate
amongst its foes. Already in the land where the greatest battles of
the Faith have been fought, and its most rapacious enemies have
lived, the march of events, the slow yet steady infiltration of its
ideals, and the fulfillment of its prophecies, have resulted not only
in disarming and in transforming the character of some of its most
redoubtable enemies, but also in securing their firm and unreserved
allegiance to its Founders. So complete a transformation, so
startling a reversal of attitude, can only be effected if that chosen
vehicle which is designed to carry the Message of Bahá’u’lláh
to the hungry, the restless, and unshepherded multitudes is itself
thoroughly cleansed from the defilements which it seeks to remove.

It is upon you, therefore, my best-beloved friends, that
I wish to impress not only the urgency and imperative necessity of
your holy task, but also the limitless possibilities which it
possesses of raising to such an exalted level not only the life and
activities of your own community, but the motives and standards that
govern the relationships existing among the people to which you
belong. Undismayed by the formidable nature of this task, you will, I
am confident, meet as befits you the challenge of these times, so
fraught with peril, so full of corruption, and yet so pregnant with
the promise of a future so bright that no previous age in the annals
of mankind can rival its glory.

“Dearly beloved friends! I
have attempted, in the beginning …”

Dearly beloved friends! I have attempted, in the
beginning of these pages, to convey an idea of the glorious
opportunities as well as the tremendous responsibilities which, as a
result of the persecution of the far-flung Faith of Bahá’u’lláh,
now face the community of the American believers, at so critical a
stage in the Formative Period of their Faith, and in so crucial an
epoch in the world’s history. I have dwelt sufficiently upon
the character of the mission which in a not too distant future that
community must, through the impelling force of circumstances, arise
and carry out. I have uttered the warning which I felt would be
necessary to a clearer understanding, and a better discharge, of the
tasks lying ahead of it. I have set forth, and stressed as far as it
was in my power, those exalted and dynamic virtues, those lofty
standards, which, difficult as they are to attain, constitute
nonetheless the essential requirements for the success of those
tasks. A word, I believe, should now be said in connection with the
material aspect of their immediate task, upon the termination of
which, at its appointed time, must depend not only the unfoldment of
the subsequent stages in the Divine Plan envisaged by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
but also the acquisition of those capacities which will qualify them
to discharge, in the fullness of time, the duties and
responsibilities demanded by that greater mission which it is their
privilege to perform.

The Seven Year Plan, with its twofold aspects of Temple
ornamentation and extension of teaching activity, embracing both the
Northern and Southern American continents, is now well advanced into
its second year, and offers to anyone who has observed its progress
in recent months signs that are extremely heartening and which augur
well for the attainment of its objectives within the allotted time.
The successive steps designed to facilitate, and covering the entire
field of, the work to be achieved in connection with the exterior
ornamentation of the Temple have for the most part been taken. The
final phase which is to mark the triumphant conclusion of a
thirty-year old enterprise has at long last been entered. The initial
contract connected with the first and main story of that historic
edifice has been signed. The Fund associated with the beloved name of
the Greatest Holy Leaf has been launched. The uninterrupted
continuation to its very end of so laudable an enterprise is now
assured. The poignant memories of one whose heart so greatly rejoiced
at the rearing of the superstructure of this sacred House will so
energize the final exertions required to complete it as to dissipate
any doubt that may yet linger in any mind as to the capacity of its
builders to worthily consummate their task.

The teaching aspect of the Plan must now be pondered.
Its challenge must be met, and its requirements studied, weighed, and
fulfilled. Superb and irresistible as is the beauty of the first
Mashriqu’l-Adhkár of the West, majestic as
are its dimensions, unique as is its architecture, and priceless as
are the ideals and the aspirations which it symbolizes, it should be
regarded, at the present time, as no more than an instrument for a
more effective propagation of the Cause and a wider diffusion of its
teachings. In this respect it should be viewed in the same light as
the administrative institutions of the Faith which are designed as
vehicles for the proper dissemination of its ideals, its tenets, and
its verities.

It is, therefore, to the teaching requirements of the
Seven Year Plan that the community of the American believers must
henceforth direct their careful and sustained attention. The entire
community must, as one man, arise to fulfill them. To teach the Cause
of God, to proclaim its truths, to defend its interests, to
demonstrate, by words as well as by deeds, its indispensability, its
potency, and universality, should at no time be regarded as the
exclusive concern or sole privilege of Bahá’í
administrative institutions, be they Assemblies, or committees. All
must participate, however humble their origin, however limited their
experience, however restricted their means, however deficient their
education, however pressing their cares and preoccupations, however
unfavorable the environment in which they live. “God,”
Bahá’u’lláh, Himself, has unmistakably
revealed, “hath prescribed unto everyone the duty of teaching
His Cause.” “Say,” He further has written, “Teach
ye the Cause of God, O people of Bahá, for God hath prescribed
unto everyone the duty of proclaiming His Message, and regardeth it
as the most meritorious of all deeds.”

A high and exalted position in the ranks of the
community, conferring as it does on its holder certain privileges and
prerogatives, no doubt invests him with a responsibility that he
cannot honorably shirk in his duty to teach and promote the Faith of
God. It may, at times, though not invariably, create greater
opportunities and furnish better facilities to spread the knowledge
of that Faith, and to win supporters to its institutions. It does
not, however, under any circumstances, necessarily carry with it the
power of exercising greater influence on the minds and hearts of
those to whom that Faith is presented. How often—and the early
history of the Faith in the land of its birth offers many a striking
testimony—have the lowliest adherents of the Faith, unschooled
and utterly inexperienced, and with no standing whatever, and in some
cases devoid of intelligence, been capable of winning victories for
their Cause, before which the most brilliant achievements of the
learned, the wise, and the experienced have paled.

“Peter,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has
testified, “according to the history of the Church, was also
incapable of keeping count of the days of the week. Whenever he
decided to go fishing, he would tie up his weekly food into seven
parcels, and every day he would eat one of them, and when he had
reached the seventh, he would know that the Sabbath had arrived, and
thereupon would observe it.” If the Son of Man was capable of
infusing into apparently so crude and helpless an instrument such
potency as to cause, in the words of Bahá’u’lláh,
“the mysteries of wisdom and of utterance to flow out of his
mouth,” and to exalt him above the rest of His disciples, and
render him fit to become His successor and the founder of His Church,
how much more can the Father, Who is Bahá’u’lláh,
empower the most puny and insignificant among His followers to
achieve, for the execution of His purpose, such wonders as would
dwarf the mightiest achievements of even the first apostle of Jesus
Christ!

“The Báb,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
moreover, has written, “hath said: ‘Should a tiny ant
desire, in this day, to be possessed of such power as to be able to
unravel the abstrusest and most bewildering passages of the Qur’án,
its wish will no doubt be fulfilled, inasmuch as the mystery of
eternal might vibrates within the innermost being of all created
things.’ If so helpless a creature can be endowed with so
subtle a capacity, how much more efficacious must be the power
released through the liberal effusions of the grace of Bahá’u’lláh!”

The field is indeed so immense, the period so critical,
the Cause so great, the workers so few, the time so short, the
privilege so priceless, that no follower of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh,
worthy to bear His name, can afford a moment’s hesitation. That
God-born Force, irresistible in its sweeping power, incalculable in
its potency, unpredictable in its course, mysterious in its workings,
and awe-inspiring in its manifestations—a Force which, as the
Báb has written, “vibrates within the innermost being of
all created things,” and which, according to Bahá’u’lláh,
has through its “vibrating influence,” “upset the
equilibrium of the world and revolutionized its ordered life”—such
a Force, acting even as a two-edged sword, is, under our very eyes,
sundering, on the one hand, the age-old ties which for centuries have
held together the fabric of civilized society, and is unloosing, on
the other, the bonds that still fetter the infant and as yet
unemancipated Faith of Bahá’u’lláh. The
undreamt-of opportunities offered through the operation of this
Force—the American believers must now rise, and fully and
courageously exploit them. “The holy realities of the Concourse
on high,” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “yearn,
in this day, in the Most Exalted Paradise, to return unto this world,
so that they may be aided to render some service to the threshold of
the Abhá Beauty, and arise to demonstrate their servitude to
His sacred Threshold.”

A world, dimmed by the steadily dying-out light of
religion, heaving with the explosive forces of a blind and triumphant
nationalism; scorched with the fires of pitiless persecution, whether
racial or religious; deluded by the false theories and doctrines that
threaten to supplant the worship of God and the sanctification of His
laws; enervated by a rampant and brutal materialism; disintegrating
through the corrosive influence of moral and spiritual decadence; and
enmeshed in the coils of economic anarchy and strife—such is
the spectacle presented to men’s eyes, as a result of the
sweeping changes which this revolutionizing Force, as yet in the
initial stage of its operation, is now producing in the life of the
entire planet.

So sad and moving a spectacle, bewildering as it must be
to every observer unaware of the purposes, the prophecies, and
promises of Bahá’u’lláh, far from casting
dismay into the hearts of His followers, or paralyzing their efforts,
cannot but deepen their faith, and excite their enthusiastic
eagerness to arise and display, in the vast field traced for them by
the pen of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, their capacity to play
their part in the work of universal redemption proclaimed by
Bahá’u’lláh. Every instrument in the
administrative machinery which, in the course of several years, they
have so laboriously erected must be fully utilized, and subordinated
to the end for which it was created. The Temple, that proud
embodiment of so rare a spirit of self-sacrifice, must likewise be
made to play its part, and contribute its share to the teaching
campaign designed to embrace the entire Western Hemisphere.

The opportunities which the turmoil of the present age
presents, with all the sorrows which it evokes, the fears which it
excites, the disillusionment which it produces, the perplexities
which it creates, the indignation which it arouses, the revolt which
it provokes, the grievances it engenders, the spirit of restless
search which it awakens, must, in like manner, be exploited for the
purpose of spreading far and wide the knowledge of the redemptive
power of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh, and for
enlisting fresh recruits in the ever-swelling army of His followers.
So precious an opportunity, so rare a conjunction of favorable
circumstances, may never again recur. Now is the time, the appointed
time, for the American believers, the vanguard of the hosts of the
Most Great Name, to proclaim, through the agencies and channels of a
specially designed Administrative Order, their capacity and readiness
to rescue a fallen and sore-tried generation that has rebelled
against its God and ignored His warnings, and to offer it that
complete security which only the strongholds of their Faith can
provide.

The teaching campaign, inaugurated throughout the states
of the North American Republic and the Dominion of Canada, acquires,
therefore, an importance, and is invested with an urgency, that
cannot be overestimated. Launched on its course through the creative
energies released by the Will of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and
sweeping across the Western Hemisphere through the propelling force
which it is generating, it must, I feel, be carried out in conformity
with certain principles, designed to insure its efficient conduct,
and to hasten the attainment of its objective.

Those who participate in such a campaign, whether in an
organizing capacity, or as workers to whose care the execution of the
task itself has been committed, must, as an essential preliminary to
the discharge of their duties, thoroughly familiarize themselves with
the various aspects of the history and teachings of their Faith. In
their efforts to achieve this purpose they must study for themselves,
conscientiously and painstakingly, the literature of their Faith,
delve into its teachings, assimilate its laws and principles, ponder
its admonitions, tenets and purposes, commit to memory certain of its
exhortations and prayers, master the essentials of its
administration, and keep abreast of its current affairs and latest
developments. They must strive to obtain, from sources that are
authoritative and unbiased, a sound knowledge of the history and
tenets of Islám—the source and background of their
Faith—and approach reverently and with a mind purged from
preconceived ideas the study of the Qur’án which, apart
from the sacred scriptures of the Bábí and Bahá’í
Revelations, constitutes the only Book which can be regarded as an
absolutely authenticated Repository of the Word of God. They must
devote special attention to the investigation of those institutions
and circumstances that are directly connected with the origin and
birth of their Faith, with the station claimed by its Forerunner, and
with the laws revealed by its Author.

Having acquired, in their essentials, these
prerequisites of success in the teaching field, they must, whenever
they contemplate undertaking any specific mission in the countries of
Latin America, endeavor, whenever feasible, to acquire a certain
proficiency in the languages spoken by the inhabitants of those
countries, and a knowledge of their customs, habits, and outlook.
“The teachers going to those parts,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
referring in one of the Tablets of the Divine Plan to the Central
American Republics, has written, “must also be familiar with
the Spanish language.” “A party speaking their languages
…,” He, in another Tablet, has written, “must turn
their faces to and travel through the three great Island groups of
the Pacific Ocean.” “The teachers traveling in different
directions,” He further states, “must know the language
of the country in which they will enter. For example, a person being
proficient in the Japanese language may travel to Japan, or a person
knowing the Chinese language may hasten to China, and so forth.”

No participator in this inter-American campaign of
teaching must feel that the initiative for any particular activity
connected with this work must rest solely with those agencies,
whether Assemblies or committees, whose special concern is to promote
and facilitate the attainment of this vital objective of the Seven
Year Plan. It is the bounden duty of every American believer, as the
faithful trustee of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s Divine
Plan, to initiate, promote, and consolidate, within the limits fixed
by the administrative principles of the Faith, any activity he or she
deems fit to undertake for the furtherance of the Plan. Neither the
threatening world situation, nor any consideration of lack of
material resources, of mental equipment, of knowledge, or of
experience—desirable as they are—should deter any
prospective pioneer teacher from arising independently, and from
setting in motion the forces which, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
has repeatedly assured us, will, once released, attract even as a
magnet the promised and infallible aid of Bahá’u’lláh.
Let him not wait for any directions, or expect any special
encouragement, from the elected representatives of his community, nor
be deterred by any obstacles which his relatives, or fellow-citizens
may be inclined to place in his path, nor mind the censure of his
critics or enemies. “Be unrestrained as the wind,” is
Bahá’u’lláh’s counsel to every
would-be teacher of His Cause, “while carrying the Message of
Him Who hath caused the dawn of Divine Guidance to break. Consider
how the wind, faithful to that which God hath ordained, bloweth upon
all regions of the earth, be they inhabited or desolate. Neither the
sight of desolation, nor the evidences of prosperity, can either pain
or please it. It bloweth in every direction, as bidden by its
Creator.” “And when he determineth to leave his home, for
the sake of the Cause of his Lord,” Bahá’u’lláh,
in another passage, referring to such a teacher, has revealed, “let
him put his whole trust in God, as the best provision for his
journey, and array himself with the robe of virtue…. If he be
kindled with the fire of His love, if he forgoeth all created things,
the words he uttereth shall set on fire them that hear him.”

Having on his own initiative, and undaunted by any
hindrances with which either friend or foe may, unwittingly or
deliberately, obstruct his path, resolved to arise and respond to the
call of teaching, let him carefully consider every avenue of approach
which he might utilize in his personal attempts to capture the
attention, maintain the interest, and deepen the faith, of those whom
he seeks to bring into the fold of his Faith. Let him survey the
possibilities which the particular circumstances in which he lives
offer him, evaluate their advantages, and proceed intelligently and
systematically to utilize them for the achievement of the object he
has in mind. Let him also attempt to devise such methods as
association with clubs, exhibitions, and societies, lectures on
subjects akin to the teachings and ideals of his Cause such as
temperance, morality, social welfare, religious and racial tolerance,
economic cooperation, Islám, and Comparative Religion, or
participation in social, cultural, humanitarian, charitable, and
educational organizations and enterprises which, while safeguarding
the integrity of his Faith, will open up to him a multitude of ways
and means whereby he can enlist successively the sympathy, the
support, and ultimately the allegiance of those with whom he comes in
contact. Let him, while such contacts are being made, bear in mind
the claims which his Faith is constantly making upon him to preserve
its dignity, and station, to safeguard the integrity of its laws and
principles, to demonstrate its comprehensiveness and universality,
and to defend fearlessly its manifold and vital interests. Let him
consider the degree of his hearer’s receptivity, and decide for
himself the suitability of either the direct or indirect method of
teaching, whereby he can impress upon the seeker the vital importance
of the Divine Message, and persuade him to throw in his lot with
those who have already embraced it. Let him remember the example set
by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and His constant admonition to
shower such kindness upon the seeker, and exemplify to such a degree
the spirit of the teachings he hopes to instill into him, that the
recipient will be spontaneously impelled to identify himself with the
Cause embodying such teachings. Let him refrain, at the outset, from
insisting on such laws and observances as might impose too severe a
strain on the seeker’s newly awakened faith, and endeavor to
nurse him, patiently, tactfully, and yet determinedly, into full
maturity, and aid him to proclaim his unqualified acceptance of
whatever has been ordained by Bahá’u’lláh.
Let him, as soon as that stage has been attained, introduce him to
the body of his fellow-believers, and seek, through constant
fellowship and active participation in the local activities of his
community, to enable him to contribute his share to the enrichment of
its life, the furtherance of its tasks, the consolidations of its
interests, and the coordination of its activities with those of its
sister communities. Let him not be content until he has infused into
his spiritual child so deep a longing as to impel him to arise
independently, in his turn, and devote his energies to the quickening
of other souls, and the upholding of the laws and principles laid
down by his newly adopted Faith.

Let every participator in the continent-wide campaign
initiated by the American believers, and particularly those engaged
in pioneer work in virgin territories, bear in mind the necessity of
keeping in close and constant touch with those responsible agencies
designed to direct, coordinate, and facilitate the teaching
activities of the entire community. Whether it be the body of their
elected national representatives, or its chief auxiliary institution,
the National Teaching Committee, or its subsidiary organs, the
regional teaching committees, or the local Spiritual Assemblies and
their respective teaching committees, they who labor for the spread
of the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh should, through
constant interchange of ideas, through letters, circulars, reports,
bulletins and other means of communication with these established
instruments designed for the propagation of the Faith, insure the
smooth and speedy functioning of the teaching machinery of their
Administrative Order. Confusion, delay, duplication of efforts,
dissipation of energy will, thereby, be completely avoided, and the
mighty flood of the grace of Bahá’u’lláh,
flowing abundantly and without the least obstruction through these
essential channels will so inundate the hearts and souls of men as to
enable them to bring forth the harvest repeatedly predicted by
‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

Upon every participator in this concerted effort,
unprecedented in the annals of the American Bahá’í
community, rests the spiritual obligation to make of the mandate of
teaching, so vitally binding upon all, the all-pervading concern of
his life. In his daily activities and contacts, in all his journeys,
whether for business or otherwise, on his holidays and outings, and
on any mission he may be called upon to undertake, every bearer of
the Message of Bahá’u’lláh should consider
it not only an obligation but a privilege to scatter far and wide the
seeds of His Faith, and to rest content in the abiding knowledge that
whatever be the immediate response to that Message, and however
inadequate the vehicle that conveyed it, the power of its Author
will, as He sees fit, enable those seeds to germinate, and in
circumstances which no one can foresee enrich the harvest which the
labor of His followers will gather. If he be member of any Spiritual
Assembly let him encourage his Assembly to consecrate a certain part
of its time, at each of its sessions, to the earnest and prayerful
consideration of such ways and means as may foster the campaign of
teaching, or may furnish whatever resources are available for its
progress, extension, and consolidation. If he attends his summer
school—and everyone without exception is urged to take
advantage of attending it—let him consider such an occasion as
a welcome and precious opportunity so to enrich, through lectures,
study, and discussion, his knowledge of the fundamentals of his Faith
as to be able to transmit, with greater confidence and effectiveness,
the Message that has been entrusted to his care. Let him, moreover,
seek, whenever feasible, through intercommunity visits to stimulate
the zeal for teaching, and to demonstrate to outsiders the zest and
alertness of the promoters of his Cause and the organic unity of its
institutions.

Let anyone who feels the urge among the participators in
this crusade, which embraces all the races, all the republics,
classes and denominations of the entire Western Hemisphere, arise,
and, circumstances permitting, direct in particular the attention,
and win eventually the unqualified adherence, of the Negro, the
Indian, the Eskimo, and Jewish races to his Faith. No more laudable
and meritorious service can be rendered the Cause of God, at the
present hour, than a successful effort to enhance the diversity of
the members of the American Bahá’í community by
swelling the ranks of the Faith through the enrollment of the members
of these races. A blending of these highly differentiated elements of
the human race, harmoniously interwoven into the fabric of an
all-embracing Bahá’í fraternity, and assimilated
through the dynamic processes of a divinely appointed Administrative
Order, and contributing each its share to the enrichment and glory of
Bahá’í community life, is surely an achievement
the contemplation of which must warm and thrill every Bahá’í
heart. “Consider the flowers of a garden,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
has written, “though differing in kind, color, form, and shape,
yet, inasmuch as they are refreshed by the waters of one spring,
revived by the breath of one wind, invigorated by the rays of one
sun, this diversity increaseth their charm, and addeth unto their
beauty. How unpleasing to the eye if all the flowers and plants, the
leaves and blossoms, the fruits, the branches and the trees of that
garden were all of the same shape and color! Diversity of hues, form
and shape, enricheth and adorneth the garden, and heighteneth the
effect thereof. In like manner, when divers shades of thought,
temperament and character, are brought together under the power and
influence of one central agency, the beauty and glory of human
perfection will be revealed and made manifest. Naught but the
celestial potency of the Word of God, which ruleth and transcendeth
the realities of all things, is capable of harmonizing the divergent
thoughts, sentiments, ideas, and convictions of the children of men.”
“I hope,” is the wish expressed by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
“that ye may cause that downtrodden race [Negro] to become
glorious, and to be joined with the white race to serve the world of
man with the utmost sincerity, faithfulness, love and purity.”
“One of the important questions,” He also has written,
“which affect the unity and the solidarity of mankind is the
fellowship and equality of the white and colored races.” “You
must attach great importance,” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, “to the Indians, the
original inhabitants of America. For these souls may be likened unto
the ancient inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula, who, prior to the
Revelation of Muḥammad, were like savages. When the Muḥammadan
Light shone forth in their midst, they became so enkindled that they
shed illumination upon the world. Likewise, should these Indians be
educated and properly guided, there can be no doubt that through the
Divine teachings they will become so enlightened that the whole earth
will be illumined.” “If it is possible,”
‘Abdu’l-Bahá has also written, “send ye
teachers to other portions of Canada; likewise, dispatch ye teachers
to Greenland and the home of the Eskimos.” “God willing,”
He further has written in those same Tablets, “the call of the
Kingdom may reach the ears of the Eskimos…. Should you display an
effort, so that the fragrances of God may be diffused among the
Eskimos, its effect will be very great and far-reaching.”
“Praise be to God,” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
“that whatsoever hath been announced in the Blessed Tablets
unto the Israelites, and the things explicitly written in the letters
of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, are all being fulfilled. Some
have come to pass; others will be revealed in the future. The Ancient
Beauty hath in His sacred Tablets explicitly written that the day of
their abasement is over. His bounty will overshadow them, and this
race will day by day progress, and be delivered from its age-long
obscurity and degradation.”

Let those who are holding administrative positions in
their capacity as members of either the National Spiritual Assembly,
or of the national, the regional, or local teaching committees,
continually bear in mind the vital and urgent necessity of insuring,
within as short a time as possible, the formation, in the few
remaining states of the North American Republic and the provinces of
the Dominion of Canada, of groups, however small and rudimentary, and
of providing every facility within their power to enable these newly
formed nuclei to evolve, swiftly and along sound lines, into properly
functioning, self-sufficient, and recognized Assemblies. To the
laying of such foundations, the erection of such outposts—a
work admittedly arduous, yet sorely needed and highly inspiring—the
individual members of the American Bahá’í
community must lend their unstinted, continual, and enthusiastic
support. Wise as may be the measures which their elected
representatives may devise, however practical and well conceived the
plans they formulate, such measures and plans can never yield any
satisfactory results unless a sufficient number of pioneers have
determined to make the necessary sacrifices, and to volunteer to
carry these projects into effect. To implant, once and for all, the
banner of Bahá’u’lláh in the heart of these
virgin territories, to erect the structural basis of His
Administrative Order in their cities and villages, and to establish a
firm and permanent anchorage for its institutions in the minds and
hearts of their inhabitants, constitute, I firmly believe, the first
and most significant step in the successive stages through which the
teaching campaign, inaugurated under the Seven Year Plan, must pass.
Whereas the external ornamentation of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár,
under this same Plan, has now entered the final phase in its
development, the teaching campaign is still in its initial stages,
and is far from having extended effectively its ramifications to
either these virgin territories, or to those Republics that are
situated in the South American continent. The effort required is
prodigious, the conditions under which these preliminary
establishments are to be made are often unattractive and unfavorable,
the workers who are in a position to undertake such tasks limited,
and the resources they can command meager and inadequate. And yet,
how often has the pen of Bahá’u’lláh
assured us that “should a man, all alone, arise in the name of
Bahá, and put on the armor of His love, him will the Almighty
cause to be victorious, though the forces of earth and heaven be
arrayed against him.” Has He not written: “By God,
besides Whom is none other God! Should anyone arise for the triumph
of our Cause, him will God render victorious though tens of thousands
of enemies be leagued against him. And if his love for me wax
stronger, God will establish his ascendancy over all the powers of
earth and heaven.” “Consider the work of former
generations,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has written;
“During the lifetime of Jesus Christ the believing, firm souls
were few and numbered, but the heavenly blessings descended so
plentifully that in a number of years countless souls entered beneath
the shadow of the Gospel. God has said in the Qur’án:
‘One grain will bring forth seven sheaves, and every sheaf
shall contain one hundred grains.’ In other words, one grain
will become seven hundred; and if God so wills He will double these
also. It has often happened that one blessed soul has become the
cause of the guidance of a nation. Now we must not consider our
ability and capacity, nay rather we must fix our gaze upon the favors
and bounties of God, in these days, Who has made of the drop a sea,
and of the atom a sun.” Let those who resolve to be the first
to hoist the standard of such a Cause, under such conditions, and in
such territories, nourish their souls with the sustaining power of
these words, and, “putting on the armor of His love,” a
love which must “wax stronger” as they persevere in their
lonesome task, arise to adorn with the tale of their deeds the most
brilliant pages ever written in their country’s spiritual
history.

“Although,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, has written, “in most of the
states and cities of the United States, praise be to God, His
fragrances are diffused, and souls unnumbered are turning their faces
and advancing toward the Kingdom of God, yet in some of the states
the Standard of Unity is not yet upraised as it should be, nor are
the mysteries of the Holy Books, such as the Bible, the Gospel, and
the Qur’án, unraveled. Through the concerted efforts of
all the friends the Standard of Unity must needs be unfurled in those
states, and the Divine teachings promoted, so that these states may
also receive their portion of the heavenly bestowals and a share of
the Most Great Guidance.” “The future of the Dominion of
Canada,” He, in another Tablet of the Divine Plan, has
asserted, “is very great, and the events connected with it
infinitely glorious. The eye of God’s loving-kindness will be
turned towards it, and it shall become the manifestation of the
favors of the All-Glorious.” “Again I repeat,” He,
in that same Tablet reaffirms His previous statement, “that the
future of Canada, whether from a material or a spiritual standpoint,
is very great.”

No sooner is this initial step taken, involving as it
does the formation of at least one nucleus in each of these virgin
states and provinces in the North American continent, than the
machinery for a tremendous intensification of Bahá’í
concerted effort must be set in motion, the purpose of which should
be the reinforcement of the noble exertions which only a few isolated
believers are now making for the awakening of the nations of Latin
America to the Call of Bahá’u’lláh. Not
until this second phase of the teaching campaign, under the Seven
Year Plan, has been entered can the campaign be regarded as fully
launched, or the Plan itself as having attained the most decisive
stage in its evolution. So powerful will be the effusions of Divine
grace that will be poured forth upon a valiant community that has
already in the administrative sphere erected, in all the glory of its
exterior ornamentation, its chief Edifice, and in the teaching field
raised aloft, in every state and province, in the North American
continent the banner of its Faith—so great will be these
effusions that its members will find themselves overpowered by the
evidences of their regenerative power.

The Inter-America Committee must, at such a stage, nay
even before it is entered, rise to the level of its opportunities,
and display a vigor, a consecration, and enterprise as will be
commensurate with the responsibilities it has shouldered. It should
not, for a moment, be forgotten that Central and Southern America
embrace no less than twenty independent nations, constituting
approximately one-third of the entire number of the world’s
sovereign states, and are destined to play an increasingly important
part in the shaping of the world’s future destiny. With the
world contracting into a neighborhood, and the fortunes of its races,
nations and peoples becoming inextricably interwoven, the remoteness
of these states of the Western Hemisphere is vanishing, and the
latent possibilities in each of them are becoming increasingly
apparent.

When this second stage in the progressive unfoldment of
teaching activities and enterprises, under the Seven Year Plan, is
reached, and the machinery required for its prosecution begins to
operate, the American believers, the stout-hearted pioneers of this
mighty movement, must, guided by the unfailing light of Bahá’u’lláh,
and in strict accordance with the Plan laid out by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
and acting under the direction of their National Spiritual Assembly,
and assured of the aid of the Inter-America Committee, launch an
offensive against the powers of darkness, of corruption, and of
ignorance, an offensive that must extend to the uttermost end of the
Southern continent, and embrace within its scope each of the twenty
nations that compose it.

Let some, at this very moment, gird up the loins of
their endeavor, flee their native towns, cities, and states, forsake
their country, and, “putting their whole trust in God as the
best provision for their journey,” set their faces, and direct
their steps towards those distant climes, those virgin fields, those
unsurrendered cities, and bend their energies to capture the citadels
of men’s hearts—hearts, which, as Bahá’u’lláh
has written, “the hosts of Revelation and of utterance can
subdue.” Let them not tarry until such time as their
fellow-laborers will have passed the first stage in their campaign of
teaching, but let them rather, from this very hour, arise to usher in
the opening phase of what will come to be regarded as one of the most
glorious chapters in the international history of their Faith. Let
them, at the very outset, “teach their own selves, that their
speech may attract the hearts of their hearers.” Let them
regard the triumph of their Faith as their “supreme objective.”
Let them not “consider the largeness or smallness of the
receptacle” that carries the measure of grace that God poureth
forth in this age. Let them “disencumber themselves of all
attachment to this world and the vanities thereof,” and, with
that spirit of detachment which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
exemplified and wished them to emulate, bring these diversified
peoples and countries to the remembrance of God and His supreme
Manifestation. Let His love be a “storehouse of treasure for
their souls,” on the day when “every pillar shall
tremble, when the very skins of men shall creep, when all eyes shall
stare up with terror.” Let their “souls be aglow with the
flame of the undying Fire that burneth in the midmost heart of the
world, in such wise that the waters of the universe shall be
powerless to cool down its ardor.” Let them be “unrestrained
as the wind” which “neither the sight of desolation nor
the evidences of prosperity can either pain or please.” Let
them “unloose their tongues and proclaim unceasingly His
Cause.” Let them “proclaim that which the Most Great
Spirit will inspire them to utter in the service of the Cause of
their Lord.” Let them “beware lest they contend with
anyone, nay strive to make him aware of the truth with kindly manner
and most convincing exhortation.” Let them “wholly for
the sake of God proclaim His Message, and with that same spirit
accept whatever response their words may evoke in their hearers.”
Let them not, for one moment, forget that the “Faithful Spirit
shall strengthen them through its power,” and that “a
company of His chosen angels shall go forth with them, as bidden by
Him Who is the Almighty, the All-Wise.” Let them ever bear in
mind “how great is the blessedness that awaiteth them that have
attained the honor of serving the Almighty,” and remember that
“such a service is indeed the prince of all goodly deeds, and
the ornament of every goodly act.”

And, finally, let these soul-stirring words of
Bahá’u’lláh, as they pursue their course
throughout the length and breadth of the southern American continent,
be ever ready on their lips, a solace to their hearts, a light on
their path, a companion in their loneliness, and a daily sustenance
in their journeys: “O wayfarer in the path of God! Take thou
thy portion of the ocean of His grace, and deprive not thyself of the
things that lie hidden in its depths…. A dewdrop out of this ocean
would, if shed upon all that are in the heavens and on earth, suffice
to enrich them with the bounty of God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing,
the All-Wise. With the hands of renunciation draw forth from its
life-giving waters, and sprinkle therewith all created things, that
they may be cleansed from all man-made limitations, and may approach
the mighty seat of God, this hallowed and resplendent Spot. Be not
grieved if thou performest it thyself alone. Let God be
all-sufficient for thee…. Proclaim the Cause of thy Lord unto all
who are in the heavens and on the earth. Should any man respond to
thy call, lay bare before him the pearls of the wisdom of the Lord,
thy God, which His Spirit hath sent down upon thee, and be thou of
them that truly believe. And should anyone reject thy offer, turn
thou away from him, and put thy trust and confidence in the Lord of
all worlds. By the righteousness of God! Whoso openeth his lips in
this day, and maketh mention of the name of his Lord, the hosts of
Divine inspiration shall descend upon him from the heaven of my name,
the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. On him shall also descend the
Concourse on high, each bearing aloft a chalice of pure light. Thus
hath it been foreordained in the realm of God’s Revelation, by
the behest of Him Who is the All-Glorious, the Most Powerful.”

Let these words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
gleaned from the Tablets of the Divine Plan, ring likewise in their
ears, as they go forth, assured and unafraid, on His mission: “O
ye apostles of Bahá’u’lláh! May my life be
sacrificed for you!… Behold the portals which Bahá’u’lláh
hath opened before you! Consider how exalted and lofty is the station
you are destined to attain; how unique the favors with which you have
been endowed.” “My thoughts are turned towards you, and
my heart leaps within me at your mention. Could ye know how my soul
gloweth with your love, so great a happiness would flood your hearts
as to cause you to become enamored with each other.” “The
full measure of your success is as yet unrevealed, its significance
still unapprehended. Erelong ye will, with your own eyes, witness how
brilliantly every one of you, even as a shining star, will radiate in
the firmament of your country the light of Divine Guidance, and will
bestow upon its people the glory of an everlasting life.” “I
fervently hope that in the near future the whole earth may be stirred
and shaken by the results of your achievements.” “The
Almighty will no doubt grant you the help of His grace, will invest
you with the tokens of His might, and will endue your souls with the
sustaining power of His holy Spirit.” “Be not concerned
with the smallness of your numbers, neither be oppressed by the
multitude of an unbelieving world…. Exert yourselves; your mission
is unspeakably glorious. Should success crown your enterprise,
America will assuredly evolve into a center from which waves of
spiritual power will emanate, and the throne of the Kingdom of God
will, in the plenitude of its majesty and glory, be firmly
established.”

It should be remembered that the carrying out of the
Seven Year Plan involves, insofar as the teaching work is concerned,
no more than the formation of at least one center in each of the
Central and South American Republics. The hundredth anniversary of
the birth of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh
should witness, if the Plan already launched is to meet with success,
the laying, in each of these countries, of a foundation, however
rudimentary, on which the rising generation of the American believers
may, in the opening years of the second century of the Bahá’í
era, be able to build. Theirs will be the task, in the course of
successive decades, to extend and reinforce those foundations, and to
supply the necessary guidance, assistance, and encouragement that
will enable the widely scattered groups of believers in those
countries to establish independent and properly constituted local
Assemblies, and thereby erect the framework of the Administrative
Order of their Faith. The erection of such a framework is primarily
the responsibility of those whom the community of the North American
believers have converted to the Divine Message. It is a task which
must involve, apart from the immediate obligation of enabling every
group to evolve into a local Assembly, the setting up of the entire
machinery of the Administrative Order in conformity with the
spiritual and administrative principles governing the life and
activities of every established Bahá’í community
throughout the world. No departure from these cardinal and clearly
enunciated principles, embodied and preserved in Bahá’í
national and local constitutions, common to all Bahá’í
communities, can under any circumstances be tolerated. This, however,
is a task that concerns those who, at a later period, must arise to
further a work which, to all intents and purposes, has not yet been
effectively started.

To pave the way, in a more systematic manner, for the
laying of the necessary foundation on which such permanent national
and local institutions can be reared and securely established is a
task that will very soon demand the concentrated attention of the
prosecutors of the Seven Year Plan. No sooner has their immediate
obligation in connection with the opening up of the few remaining
territories in the United States and Canada been discharged, than a
carefully laid-out plan should be conceived, aiming at the
establishment of such a foundation. As already stated, the provision
for these vast, preliminary undertakings, the scope of which must
embrace the entire area occupied by the Central and South American
Republics, constitutes the very core, and must ultimately decide the
fate, of the teaching campaign conducted under the Seven Year Plan.
Upon this campaign must depend not only the effectual discharge of
the solemn obligations undertaken in connection with the present
Plan, but also the progressive unfoldment of the subsequent stages
essential to the realization of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s
vision of the part the American believers are to play in the
worldwide propagation of their Cause.

These undertakings, preliminary as they are to the
strenuous and organized labors by which future generations of
believers in the Latin countries must distinguish themselves,
require, in turn, without a moment’s delay, on the part of the
National Spiritual Assembly and of both the National Teaching and
Inter-America Committees, painstaking investigations preparatory to
the sending of settlers and itinerant teachers, whose privilege will
be to raise the call of the New Day in a new continent.

I can only, in my desire to be of some service to those
who are to assume such tremendous responsibilities, and to suffer
such self-denial, attempt to offer a few helpful suggestions which, I
trust, will facilitate the accomplishment of the great work to be
achieved in the very near future. To this work, that must constitute
an historical landmark of first-class importance when completed, the
energies of the entire community must be resolutely consecrated. The
number of Bahá’í teachers, be they settlers or
travelers, must be substantially increased. The material resources to
be placed at their disposal must be multiplied, and efficiently
administered. The literature with which they should be equipped must
be vastly augmented. The publicity that should aid them in the
distribution of such literature should be extended, centrally
organized, and vigorously conducted. The possibilities latent in
these countries should be diligently exploited, and systematically
developed. The various obstacles raised by the widely varying
political and social conditions obtaining in these countries should
be closely surveyed and determinedly surmounted. In a word, no
opportunity should be neglected, and no effort spared, to lay as
broad and solid a basis as possible for the progress and development
of the greatest teaching enterprise ever launched by the American
Bahá’í community.

The careful translation of such important Bahá’í
writings as are related to the history, the teachings, or the
Administrative Order of the Faith, and their wide and systematic
dissemination, in vast quantities, and throughout as many of these
Republics as possible, and in languages that are most suitable and
needed, would appear to be the chief and most urgent measure to be
taken simultaneously with the arrival of the pioneer workers in those
fields. “Books and pamphlets,” writes ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
in one of the Tablets of the Divine Plan, “must be either
translated or composed in the languages of these countries and
islands, to be circulated in every part and in all directions.”
In countries where no objections can be raised by the civil
authorities or any influential circles, this measure should be
reinforced by the publication, in various organs of the Press, of
carefully worded articles and letters, designed to impress upon the
general public certain features of the stirring history of the Faith,
and the range and character of its teachings.

Every laborer in those fields, whether as traveling
teacher or settler, should, I feel, make it his chief and constant
concern to mix, in a friendly manner, with all sections of the
population, irrespective of class, creed, nationality, or color, to
familiarize himself with their ideas, tastes, and habits, to study
the approach best suited to them, to concentrate, patiently and
tactfully, on a few who have shown marked capacity and receptivity,
and to endeavor, with extreme kindness, to implant such love, zeal,
and devotion in their hearts as to enable them to become in turn
self-sufficient and independent promoters of the Faith in their
respective localities. “Consort with all men, O people of
Bahá,” is Bahá’u’lláh’s
admonition, “in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship. If ye
be aware of a certain truth, if ye possess a jewel, of which others
are deprived, share it with them in a language of utmost kindliness
and goodwill. If it be accepted, if it fulfill its purpose, your
object is attained. If anyone should refuse it, leave him unto
himself, and beseech God to guide him. Beware lest ye deal unkindly
with him. A kindly tongue is the lodestone of the hearts of men. It
is the bread of the spirit, it clotheth the words with meaning, it is
the fountain of the light of wisdom and understanding.”

An effort, moreover, can and should be made, not only by
representative Bahá’í bodies, but also by
prospective teachers, as well as by other individual believers,
deprived of the privilege of visiting those shores or of settling on
that continent, to seize every opportunity that presents itself to
make the acquaintance, and awaken the genuine interest, of such
people who are either citizens of these countries, or are in any way
connected with them, whatever be their interests or profession.
Through the kindness shown them, or any literature which may be given
them, or any connection which they may establish with them, the
American believers can thereby sow such seeds in their hearts as
might, in future circumstances, germinate and yield the most
unexpected results. Care, however, should, at all times, be
exercised, lest in their eagerness to further the international
interests of the Faith they frustrate their purpose, and turn away,
through any act that might be misconstrued as an attempt to
proselytize and bring undue pressure upon them, those whom they wish
to win over to their Cause.

I would particularly direct my appeal to those American
believers, sore-pressed as they are by the manifold, the urgent, and
ever-increasing issues that confront them at the present hour, who
may find it possible, whatever be their calling or employment,
whether as businessmen, school teachers, lawyers, doctors, writers,
office workers, and the like, to establish permanently their
residence in such countries as may offer them a reasonable prospect
of earning the means of livelihood. They will by their action be
relieving the continually increasing pressure on their Teaching Fund,
which in view of its restricted dimensions must provide, when not
otherwise available, the traveling and other expenses to be incurred
in connection with the development of this vast undertaking. Should
they find it impossible to take advantage of so rare and sacred a
privilege, let them, mindful of the words of Bahá’u’lláh,
determine, each according to the means at his or her disposal, to
appoint a deputy who, on that believer’s behalf, will arise and
carry out so noble an enterprise. “Center your energies,”
are Bahá’u’lláh’s words, “in
the propagation of the Faith of God. Whoso is worthy of so high a
calling, let him arise and promote it. Whoso is unable, it is his
duty to appoint him who will, in his stead, proclaim this Revelation,
whose power hath caused the foundations of the mightiest structures
to quake, every mountain to be crushed into dust, and every soul to
be dumbfounded.”

As to those who have been able to leave their homes and
country, and to serve in those regions, whether temporarily or
permanently, a special duty, which must continually be borne in mind,
devolves upon them. It should be one of their chief aims to keep, on
the one hand, in constant touch with the National Committee
specifically entrusted with the promotion of their work, and to
cooperate, on the other, by every possible means and in the utmost
harmony, with their fellow-believers in those countries, whatever the
field in which they labor, whatever their standing, ability, or
experience. Through the performance of their first duty they will
derive the necessary stimulus and obtain the necessary guidance that
will enable them to prosecute effectively their mission, and will
also, through their regular reports to that committee, be imparting
to the general body of their fellow-believers the news of the latest
developments in their activities. By fulfilling their other duty,
they will insure the smooth efficiency, facilitate the progress, and
avert any untoward incidents that might handicap the development of
their common enterprise. The maintenance of close contact and
harmonious relationships between the Inter-America Committee,
entrusted with the immediate responsibility of organizing such a
far-reaching enterprise, and the privileged pioneers who are actually
executing that enterprise, and extending its ramifications far and
wide, as well as among these pioneers themselves, would set, apart
from its immediate advantages, a worthy and inspiring example to
generations still yet to be born who are to carry on, with all its
increasing complexities, the work which is being initiated at
present.

It would, no doubt, be of exceptional importance and
value, particularly in these times when the various restrictions
imposed in those countries make it difficult for a considerable
number of Bahá’í pioneers to establish their
residence and earn their livelihood in those states, if certain ones
among the believers, whose income, however slender, provides them
with the means of an independent existence, would so arrange their
affairs as to be able to reside indefinitely in those countries. The
sacrifices involved, the courage, faith, and perseverance it demands,
are no doubt very great. Their value, however, can never be properly
assessed at the present time, and the limitless reward which they who
demonstrate them will receive can never be adequately depicted. “They
that have forsaken their country,” is Bahá’u’lláh’s
own testimony, “for the purpose of teaching Our Cause—these
shall the Faithful Spirit strengthen through its power…. By My
life! No act, however great, can compare with it, except such deeds
as have been ordained by God, the All-Powerful, the Most Mighty. Such
a service is indeed the prince of all goodly deeds, and the ornament
of every goodly act.” Such a reward, it should be noted, is not
to be regarded as purely an abstract blessing confined to the future
life, but also as a tangible benefit which such courage, faith and
perseverance can alone confer in this material world. The solid
achievements, spiritual as well as administrative, which in the
far-away continent of Australasia, and more recently in Bulgaria,
representative believers from both Canada and the United States have
accomplished, proclaim in terms unmistakable the nature of those
prizes which, even in this world, such sterling heroism is bound to
win. “Whoso,” Bahá’u’lláh, in a
memorable passage, extolling those of His loved ones who have
“journeyed through the countries in His Name and for His
praise,” has written, “hath attained their presence will
glory in their meeting, and all that dwell in every land will be
illumined by their memory.”

I am moved, at this juncture, as I am reminded of the
share which, ever since the inception of the Faith in the West, the
handmaidens of Bahá’u’lláh, as
distinguished from the men, have had in opening up, single-handed, so
many, such diversified, and widely scattered countries over the whole
surface of the globe, not only to pay a tribute to such apostolic
fervor as is truly reminiscent of those heroic men who were
responsible for the birth of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh,
but also to stress the significance of such a preponderating share
which the women of the West have had and are having in the
establishment of His Faith throughout the whole world. “Among
the miracles,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá Himself has
testified, “which distinguish this sacred Dispensation is this,
that women have evinced a greater boldness than men when enlisted in
the ranks of the Faith.” So great and splendid a testimony
applies in particular to the West, and though it has received thus
far abundant and convincing confirmation must, as the years roll
away, be further reinforced, as the American believers usher in the
most glorious phase of their teaching activities under the Seven Year
Plan. The “boldness” which, in the words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
has characterized their accomplishments in the past must suffer no
eclipse as they stand on the threshold of still greater and nobler
accomplishments. Nay rather, it must, in the course of time and
throughout the length and breadth of the vast and virgin territories
of Latin America, be more convincingly demonstrated, and win for the
beloved Cause victories more stirring than any it has as yet
achieved.

To the Bahá’í youth of America,
moreover, I feel a word should be addressed in particular, as I
survey the possibilities which a campaign of such gigantic
proportions has to offer to the eager and enterprising spirit that so
powerfully animates them in the service of the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh.
Though lacking in experience and faced with insufficient resources,
yet the adventurous spirit which they possess, and the vigor, the
alertness, and optimism they have thus far so consistently shown,
qualify them to play an active part in arousing the interest, and in
securing the allegiance, of their fellow youth in those countries. No
greater demonstration can be given to the peoples of both continents
of the youthful vitality and the vibrant power animating the life,
and the institutions of the nascent Faith of Bahá’u’lláh
than an intelligent, persistent, and effective participation of the
Bahá’í youth, of every race, nationality, and
class, in both the teaching and administrative spheres of Bahá’í
activity. Through such a participation the critics and enemies of the
Faith, watching with varying degrees of skepticism and resentment,
the evolutionary processes of the Cause of God and its institutions,
can best be convinced of the indubitable truth that such a Cause is
intensely alive, is sound to its very core, and its destinies in safe
keeping. I hope, and indeed pray, that such a participation may not
only redound to the glory, the power, and the prestige of the Faith,
but may also react so powerfully on the spiritual lives, and
galvanize to such an extent the energies of the youthful members of
the Bahá’í community, as to empower them to
display, in a fuller measure, their inherent capacities, and to
unfold a further stage in their spiritual evolution under the shadow
of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.

Faithful to the provisions of the Charter laid down by
the pen of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, I feel it my duty to draw
the special attention of those to whom it has been entrusted to the
urgent needs of, and the special position enjoyed by, the Republic of
Panama, both in view of its relative proximity to the heart and
center of the Faith in North America, and of its geographical
position as the link between two continents. “All the above
countries,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, referring to the
Latin States in one of the Tablets of the Divine Plan, has written,
“have importance, but especially the Republic of Panama,
wherein the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans come together through the
Panama Canal. It is a center for travel and passage from America to
other continents of the world, and in the future it will gain most
great importance.” “Likewise,” He again has
written, “ye must give great attention to the Republic of
Panama, for in that point the Occident and the Orient find each other
united through the Panama Canal, and it is also situated between the
two great oceans. That place will become very important in the
future. The teachings, once established there, will unite the East
and the West, the North and the South.” So privileged a
position surely demands the special and prompt attention of the
American Bahá’í community. With the Republic of
Mexico already opened up to the Faith, and with a Spiritual Assembly
properly constituted in its capital city, the southward penetration
of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh into a
neighboring country is but a natural and logical step, and should, it
is to be hoped, prove to be not a difficult one. No efforts should be
spared, and no sacrifice be deemed too great, to establish even
though it be a very small group in a Republic occupying, both
spiritually and geographically, so strategic a position—a group
which, in view of the potency with which the words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
have already endowed it, cannot but draw to itself, as soon as it is
formed, the outpouring grace of the Abhá Kingdom, and evolve
with such marvelous swiftness as to excite the wonder and the
admiration of even those who have already witnessed such stirring
evidences of the force and power of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.
Preference, no doubt, should be given by all would-be pioneers, as
well as by the members of the Inter-America Committee, to the
spiritual needs of this privileged Republic, though every effort
should, at the same time, be exerted to introduce the Faith, however
tentatively, to the Republics of Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador,
Nicaragua, and Costa Rica which would link it, in an unbroken chain,
with its mother Assemblies in the North American continent.
Obstacles, however formidable, should be surmounted, the resources of
the Bahá’í treasury should be liberally expended
on its behalf, and the ablest and most precious exertions should be
consecrated to the cause of its awakening. The erection of yet
another outpost of the Faith, in its heart, will constitute, I firmly
believe, a landmark in the history of the Formative Period of the
Faith of Bahá’u’lláh in the New World. It
will create limitless opportunities, galvanize the efforts, and
reinvigorate the life, of those who will have accomplished this feat,
and infuse immense courage and boundless joy into the hearts of the
isolated groups and individuals in the neighboring and distant
Republics, and exert intangible yet powerful spiritual influences on
the life and future development of its people.

“Such, dearly beloved friends,
is the vista that stretches …”

Such, dearly beloved friends, is the vista that
stretches before the eyes, and challenges the resources, of the
American Bahá’í community in these, the
concluding years of the First Century of the Bahá’í
Era. Such are the qualities and qualifications demanded of them for
the proper discharge of their responsibilities and duties. Such are
the requirements, the possibilities, and the objectives of the Plan
that claims every ounce of their energy. Who knows but that these few
remaining, fast-fleeting years, may not be pregnant with events of
unimaginable magnitude, with ordeals more severe than any that
humanity has as yet experienced, with conflicts more devastating than
any which have preceded them. Dangers, however sinister, must, at no
time, dim the radiance of their new-born faith. Strife and confusion,
however bewildering, must never befog their vision. Tribulations,
however afflictive, must never shatter their resolve. Denunciations,
however clamorous, must never sap their loyalty. Upheavals, however
cataclysmic, must never deflect their course. The present Plan,
embodying the budding hopes of a departed Master, must be pursued,
relentlessly pursued, whatever may befall them in the future, however
distracting the crises that may agitate their country or the world.
Far from yielding in their resolve, far from growing oblivious of
their task, they should, at no time, however much buffeted by
circumstances, forget that the synchronization of such world-shaking
crises with the progressive unfoldment and fruition of their divinely
appointed task is itself the work of Providence, the design of an
inscrutable Wisdom, and the purpose of an all-compelling Will, a Will
that directs and controls, in its own mysterious way, both the
fortunes of the Faith and the destinies of men. Such simultaneous
processes of rise and of fall, of integration and of disintegration,
of order and chaos, with their continuous and reciprocal reactions on
each other, are but aspects of a greater Plan, one and indivisible,
whose Source is God, whose author is Bahá’u’lláh,
the theater of whose operations is the entire planet, and whose
ultimate objectives are the unity of the human race and the peace of
all mankind.

Reflections such as these should steel the resolve of
the entire Bahá’í community, should dissipate
their forebodings, and arouse them to rededicate themselves to every
single provision of that Divine Charter whose outline has been
delineated for them by the pen of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
The Seven Year Plan, as already stated, is but the initial stage, a
stepping-stone to the unfoldment of the implications of this Charter.
The impulse, originally generated through the movement of that pen,
and which is now driving forward, with increasing momentum, the
machinery of the Seven Year Plan, must, in the opening years of the
next century, be further accelerated, and impel the American Bahá’í
community to launch further stages in the unfoldment of the Divine
Plan, stages that will carry it far beyond the shores of the Northern
Hemisphere, into lands and among peoples where that community’s
noblest acts of heroism are to be performed.

Let anyone inclined to doubt the course which this
enviable community is destined to follow, turn to and meditate upon
these words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, enshrined, for all
time, in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, and addressed to the entire
community of the believers of the United States and Canada: “The
full measure of your success,” He informs them, “is as
yet unrevealed, its significance still unapprehended. Erelong, ye
will, with your own eyes, witness how brilliantly every one of you,
even as a shining star, will radiate, in the firmament of your
country, the light of Divine Guidance, and will bestow upon its
people the glory of an everlasting life…. The range of your future
achievements still remains undisclosed. I fervently hope that in the
near future the whole earth may be stirred and shaken by the results
of your achievements. The hope, therefore, which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
cherishes for you is that the same success which has attended your
efforts in America may crown your endeavors in other parts of the
world, that through you the fame of the Cause of God may be diffused
throughout the East and the West, and the advent of the Kingdom of
the Lord of Hosts be proclaimed in all the five continents of the
globe.” “The moment,” He most significantly adds,
“this Divine Message is carried forward by the American
believers from the shores of America, and is propagated throughout
the continents of Europe, of Asia, of Africa, and of Australasia, and
as far as the islands of the Pacific, this community will find itself
securely established upon the throne of an everlasting dominion. Then
will all the peoples of the world witness that this community is
spiritually illumined and divinely guided. Then will the whole earth
resound with the praises of its majesty and greatness.”

No reader of these words, so vibrant with promises that
not even the triumphant consummation of the Seven Year Plan can
fulfill, can expect a community that has been raised so high, and
endowed so richly, to remain content with any laurels it may win in
the immediate future. To rest upon such laurels would indeed be
tantamount to a betrayal of the trust placed in that community by
‘Abdu’l-Bahá. To cut short the chain of victories
that must lead it on to that supreme triumph when “the whole
earth may be stirred and shaken” by the results of its
achievements would shatter His hopes. To vacillate, and fail to
“propagate through the continents of Europe, of Asia, of
Africa, and of Australasia, and as far as the islands of the Pacific”
a Message so magnificently proclaimed by it in the American continent
would deprive it of the privilege of being “securely
established upon the throne of an everlasting dominion.” To
forfeit the honor of proclaiming “the advent of the Kingdom of
the Lord of Hosts” in “all the five continents of the
globe” would silence those “praises of its majesty and
greatness” that otherwise would echo throughout “the
whole earth.”

Such vacillation, failure, or neglect, the American
believers, the ambassadors of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh,
will, I am firmly convinced, never permit. Such a trust will never be
betrayed, such hopes can never be shattered, such a privilege will
never be forfeited, nor will such praises remain unuttered. Nay
rather the present generation of this blessed, this repeatedly
blessed, community will go from strength to strength, and will hand
on, as the first century draws to a close, to the generations that
must succeed it in the second the torch of Divine Guidance, undimmed
by the tempestuous winds that must blow upon it, that they in turn,
faithful to the wish and mandate of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
may carry that torch, with that self-same vigor, fidelity, and
enthusiasm, to the darkest and remotest corners of the earth.

Dearly beloved friends! I can do no better, eager as I
am to extend to every one of you any assistance in my power that may
enable you to discharge more effectively your divinely appointed,
continually multiplying duties, than to direct your special
attention, at this decisive hour, to these immortal passages, gleaned
in part from the great mass of Bahá’u’lláh’s
unpublished and untranslated writings. Whether in His revelation of
the station and functions of His loved ones, or His eulogies of the
greatness of His Cause, or His emphasis on the paramount importance
of teaching, or the dangers which He foreshadows, the counsels He
imparts, the warnings He utters, the vistas He discloses, and the
assurances and promises He gives, these dynamic and typical examples
of Bahá’u’lláh’s sublime utterance,
each having a direct bearing on the tasks which actually face or lie
ahead of the American Bahá’í community, cannot
fail to produce on the minds and hearts of any one of its members,
who approaches them with befitting humility and detachment, such
powerful reactions as to illuminate his entire being and intensify
tremendously his daily exertions.

“O friends! Be not careless of the virtues with
which ye have been endowed, neither be neglectful of your high
destiny…. Ye are the stars of the heaven of understanding, the
breeze that stirreth at the break of day, the soft-flowing waters
upon which must depend the very life of all men, the letters
inscribed upon His sacred scroll.” “O people of Bahá!
Ye are the breezes of spring that are wafted over the world. Through
you We have adorned the world of being with the ornament of the
knowledge of the Most Merciful. Through you the countenance of the
world hath been wreathed in smiles, and the brightness of His light
shone forth. Cling ye to the Cord of steadfastness, in such wise that
all vain imaginings may utterly vanish. Speed ye forth from the
horizon of power, in the name of your Lord, the Unconstrained, and
announce unto His servants, with wisdom and eloquence, the tidings of
this Cause, whose splendor hath been shed upon the world of being.
Beware lest anything withhold you from observing the things
prescribed unto you by the Pen of Glory, as it moved over His Tablet
with sovereign majesty and might. Great is the blessedness of him
that hath hearkened to its shrill voice, as it was raised, through
the power of truth, before all who are in heaven and all who are on
earth…. O people of Bahá! The river that is Life indeed hath
flowed for your sakes. Quaff ye in My name, despite them that have
disbelieved in God, the Lord of Revelation. We have made you to be
the hands of Our Cause. Render ye victorious this Wronged One, Who
hath been sore-tried in the hands of the workers of iniquity. He,
verily, will aid everyone that aideth Him, and will remember everyone
that remembereth Him. To this beareth witness this Tablet that hath
shed the splendor of the loving-kindness of your Lord, the
All-Glorious, the All-Compelling.” “Blessed are the
people of Bahá! God beareth Me witness! They are the solace of
the eye of creation. Through them the universes have been adorned,
and the Preserved Tablet embellished. They are the ones who have
sailed on the ark of complete independence, with their faces set
towards the Dayspring of Beauty. How great is their blessedness that
they have attained unto what their Lord, the Omniscient, the
All-Wise, hath willed. Through their light the heavens have been
adorned, and the faces of those that have drawn nigh unto Him made to
shine.” “By the sorrows which afflict the beauty of the
All-Glorious! Such is the station ordained for the true believer that
if to an extent smaller than a needle’s eye the glory of that
station were to be unveiled to mankind, every beholder would be
consumed away in his longing to attain it. For this reason it hath
been decreed that in this earthly life the full measure of the glory
of his own station should remain concealed from the eyes of such a
believer.” “If the veil be lifted, and the full glory of
the station of those who have turned wholly towards God, and in their
love for Him renounced the world, be made manifest, the entire
creation would be dumbfounded.”

“Verily I say! No one hath apprehended the root of
this Cause. It is incumbent upon everyone, in this day, to perceive
with the eye of God, and to hearken with His ear. Whoso beholdeth Me
with an eye besides Mine own will never be able to know Me. None
among the Manifestations of old, except to a prescribed degree, hath
ever completely apprehended the nature of this Revelation.” “I
testify before God to the greatness, the inconceivable greatness of
this Revelation. Again and again have We, in most of Our Tablets,
borne witness to this truth, that mankind may be roused from its
heedlessness.” “How great is the Cause, how staggering
the weight of its Message!” “In this most mighty
Revelation all the Dispensations of the past have attained their
highest, their final consummation.” “That which hath been
made manifest in this preeminent, this most exalted Revelation,
stands unparalleled in the annals of the past, nor will future ages
witness its like.” “The purpose underlying all creation
is the revelation of this most sublime, this most holy Day, the Day
known as the Day of God, in His Books and Scriptures—the Day
which all the Prophets, and the Chosen Ones, and the holy ones, have
wished to witness.” “The highest essence and most perfect
expression of whatsoever the peoples of old have either said or
written hath, through this most potent Revelation, been sent down
from the heaven of the Will of the All-Possessing, the Ever-Abiding
God.” “This is the Day in which God’s most
excellent favors have been poured out upon men, the Day in which His
most mighty grace hath been infused into all created things.”
“This is the Day whereon the Ocean of God’s mercy hath
been manifested unto men, the Day in which the Daystar of His
loving-kindness hath shed its radiance upon them, the Day in which
the clouds of His bountiful favor have overshadowed the whole of
mankind.” “By the righteousness of Mine own Self! Great,
immeasurably great is this Cause! Mighty, inconceivably mighty is
this Day!” “Every Prophet hath announced the coming of
this Day, and every Messenger hath groaned in His yearning for this
Revelation—a revelation which, no sooner had it been revealed
than all created things cried out saying, ‘The earth is God’s,
the Most Exalted, the Most Great!’” “The Day of the
Promise is come, and He Who is the Promised One loudly proclaimeth
before all who are in heaven and all who are on earth, ‘Verily
there is none other God but He, the Help in Peril, the
Self-Subsisting!’ I swear by God! That which had been enshrined
from eternity in the knowledge of God, the Knower of the seen and
unseen, is revealed. Happy is the eye that seeth, and the face that
turneth towards, the Countenance of God, the Lord of all being.”
“Great indeed is this Day! The allusions made to it in all the
sacred Scriptures as the Day of God attest its greatness. The soul of
every Prophet of God, of every Divine Messenger, hath thirsted for
this wondrous Day. All the divers kindreds of the earth have,
likewise, yearned to attain it.” “This Day a door is open
wider than both heaven and earth. The eye of the mercy of Him Who is
the Desire of the worlds is turned towards all men. An act, however
infinitesimal, is, when viewed in the mirror of the knowledge of God,
mightier than a mountain. Every drop proffered in His path is as the
sea in that mirror. For this is the Day which the one true God,
glorified be He, hath announced in all His Books, unto His Prophets
and His Messengers.” “This is a Revelation, under which,
if a man shed for its sake one drop of blood, myriads of oceans will
be his recompense.” “A fleeting moment, in this Day,
excelleth centuries of a bygone age…. Neither sun nor moon hath
witnessed a day such as this Day.” “This is the Day
whereon the unseen world crieth out, ‘Great is thy blessedness,
O earth, for thou hast been made the footstool of thy God, and been
chosen as the seat of His mighty throne.’” “The
world of being shineth, in this Day, with the resplendency of this
Divine Revelation. All created things extol its saving grace, and
sing its praises. The universe is wrapt in an ecstasy of joy and
gladness. The Scriptures of past Dispensations celebrate the great
Jubilee that must needs greet this most great Day of God. Well is it
with him that hath lived to see this Day, and hath recognized its
station.” “This Day a different Sun hath arisen, and a
different Heaven hath been adorned with its stars and its planets.
The world is another world, and the Cause another Cause.” “This
is the Day which past ages and centuries can never rival. Know this,
and be not of the ignorant.” “This is the Day whereon
human ears have been privileged to hear what He Who conversed with
God [Moses] heard upon Sinai, what He Who is the Friend of God
[Muḥammad] heard when lifted up towards Him, what He Who is the
Spirit of God [Jesus] heard as He ascended unto Him, the Help in
Peril, the Self-Subsisting.” “This Day is God’s
Day, and this Cause His Cause. Happy is he who hath renounced this
world, and clung to Him Who is the Dayspring of God’s
Revelation.” “This is the King of Days, the Day that hath
seen the coming of the Best Beloved, He Who through all eternity hath
been acclaimed the Desire of the World.” “This is the
Chief of all days and the King thereof. Great is the blessedness of
him who hath attained, through the sweet savor of these days, unto
everlasting life, and who, with the most great steadfastness, hath
arisen to aid the Cause of Him Who is the King of Names. Such a man
is as the eye to the body of mankind.” “Peerless is this
Day, for it is as the eye to past ages and centuries, and as a light
unto the darkness of the times.” “This Day is different
from other days, and this Cause different from other causes. Entreat
ye the one true God that He may deprive not the eyes of men from
beholding His signs, nor their ears from hearkening unto the shrill
voice of the Pen of Glory.” “These days are God’s
days, a moment of which ages and centuries can never rival. An atom,
in these days, is as the sun, a drop as the ocean. One single breath
exhaled in the love of God and for His service is written down by the
Pen of Glory as a princely deed. Were the virtues of this Day to be
recounted, all would be thunderstruck, except those whom thy Lord
hath exempted.” “By the righteousness of God! These are
the days in which God hath proved the hearts of the entire company of
His Messengers and Prophets, and beyond them those that stand guard
over His sacred and inviolable Sanctuary, the inmates of the
celestial Pavilion and dwellers of the Tabernacle of Glory.”
“Should the greatness of this Day be revealed in its fulness,
every man would forsake a myriad lives in his longing to partake,
though it be for one moment, of its great glory—how much more
this world and its corruptible treasures!” “God the true
One is My Witness! This is the Day whereon it is incumbent upon
everyone that seeth to behold, and every ear that hearkeneth to hear,
and every heart that understandeth to perceive, and every tongue that
speaketh to proclaim unto all who are in heaven and on earth, this
holy, this exalted, and all-highest Name.” “Say, O men!
This is a matchless Day. Matchless must, likewise, be the tongue that
celebrateth the praise of the Desire of all nations, and matchless
the deed that aspireth to be acceptable in His sight. The whole human
race hath longed for this Day, that perchance it may fulfill that
which well beseemeth its station and is worthy of its destiny.”

“Through the movement of Our Pen of Glory We have,
at the bidding of the Omnipotent Ordainer, breathed a new life into
every human frame, and instilled into every word a fresh potency. All
created things proclaim the evidences of this worldwide
regeneration.” “O people! I swear by the one true God!
This is the Ocean out of which all Seas have proceeded, and with
which every one of them will ultimately be united. From Him all the
Suns have been generated, and unto Him they will all return. Through
His potency the Trees of Divine Revelation have yielded their fruits,
every one of which hath been sent down in the form of a Prophet,
bearing a Message to God’s creatures in each of the worlds
whose number God, alone, in His all-encompassing knowledge, can
reckon. This He hath accomplished through the agency of but one
Letter of His Word, revealed by His Pen—a Pen moved by His
directing Finger—His Finger itself sustained by the power of
God’s Truth.” “By the righteousness of the one true
God! If one speck of a jewel be lost and buried beneath a mountain of
stones, and lie hidden beyond the seven seas, the Hand of Omnipotence
would assuredly reveal it in this Day, pure and cleansed from dross.”
“Every single letter proceeding from Our mouth is endowed with
such regenerative power as to enable it to bring into existence a new
creation—a creation the magnitude of which is inscrutable to
all save God. He verily hath knowledge of all things.” “It
is in Our power, should We wish it, to enable a speck of floating
dust to generate, in less than the twinkling of an eye, suns of
infinite, of unimaginable splendor, to cause a dewdrop to develop
into vast and numberless oceans, to infuse into every letter such a
force as to empower it to unfold all the knowledge of past and future
ages.” “We are possessed of such power which, if brought
to light, will transmute the most deadly of poisons into a panacea of
unfailing efficacy.”

“The days are approaching their end, and yet the
peoples of the earth are seen sunk in grievous heedlessness, and lost
in manifest error.” “Great, great is the Cause! The hour
is approaching when the most great convulsion will have appeared. I
swear by Him Who is the Truth! It shall cause separation to afflict
everyone, even those who circle around Me.” “Say: O
concourse of the heedless! I swear by God! The promised day is come,
the day when tormenting trials will have surged above your heads, and
beneath your feet, saying: ‘Taste ye what your hands have
wrought!’” “The time for the destruction of the
world and its people hath arrived. He Who is the Pre-Existent is
come, that He may bestow everlasting life, and grant eternal
preservation, and confer that which is conducive to true living.”
“The day is approaching when its [civilization’s] flame
will devour the cities, when the Tongue of Grandeur will proclaim:
‘The Kingdom is God’s, the Almighty, the All-Praised!’”
“O ye that are bereft of understanding! A severe trial pursueth
you, and will suddenly overtake you. Bestir yourselves, that haply it
may pass and inflict no harm upon you.” “O ye peoples of
the world! Know, verily, that an unforeseen calamity is following
you, and that grievous retribution awaiteth you. Think not the deeds
ye have committed have been blotted from My sight.” “O
heedless ones! Though the wonders of My mercy have encompassed all
created things, both visible and invisible, and though the
revelations of My grace and bounty have permeated every atom of the
universe, yet the rod with which I can chastise the wicked is
grievous, and the fierceness of Mine anger against them terrible.”
“Grieve thou not over those that have busied themselves with
the things of this world, and have forgotten the remembrance of God,
the Most Great. By Him Who is the Eternal Truth! The day is
approaching when the wrathful anger of the Almighty will have taken
hold of them. He, verily, is the Omnipotent, the All-Subduing, the
Most Powerful. He shall cleanse the earth from the defilement of
their corruption, and shall give it for an heritage unto such of His
servants as are nigh unto Him.” “Soon will the cry, ‘Yea,
yea, here am I, here am I’ be heard from every land. For there
hath never been, nor can there ever be, any other refuge to fly to
for anyone.” “And when the appointed hour is come, there
shall suddenly appear that which shall cause the limbs of mankind to
quake. Then, and only then, will the Divine Standard be unfurled, and
the Nightingale of Paradise warble its melody.”

“In the beginning of every Revelation adversities
have prevailed, which later on have been turned into great
prosperity.” “Say: O people of God! Beware lest the
powers of the earth alarm you, or the might of the nations weaken
you, or the tumult of the people of discord deter you, or the
exponents of earthly glory sadden you. Be ye as a mountain in the
Cause of your Lord, the Almighty, the All-Glorious, the
Unconstrained.” “Say: Beware, O people of Bahá,
lest the strong ones of the earth rob you of your strength, or they
who rule the world fill you with fear. Put your trust in God, and
commit your affairs to His keeping. He, verily, will, through the
power of truth, render you victorious, and He, verily, is powerful to
do what He willeth, and in His grasp are the reins of omnipotent
might.” “I swear by My life! Nothing save that which
profiteth them can befall My loved ones. To this testifieth the Pen
of God, the Most Powerful, the All-Glorious, the Best Beloved.”
“Let not the happenings of the world sadden you. I swear by
God! The sea of joy yearneth to attain your presence, for every good
thing hath been created for you, and will, according to the needs of
the times, be revealed unto you.” “O my servants! Sorrow
not if, in these days and on this earthly plane, things contrary to
your wishes have been ordained and manifested by God, for days of
blissful joy, of heavenly delight, are assuredly in store for you.
Worlds, holy and spiritually glorious, will be unveiled to your eyes.
You are destined by Him, in this world and hereafter, to partake of
their benefits, to share in their joys, and to obtain a portion of
their sustaining grace. To each and every one of them you will, no
doubt, attain.”

“This is the day in which to speak. It is
incumbent upon the people of Bahá to strive, with the utmost
patience and forbearance, to guide the peoples of the world to the
Most Great Horizon. Every body calleth aloud for a soul. Heavenly
souls must needs quicken, with the breath of the Word of God, the
dead bodies with a fresh spirit. Within every word a new spirit is
hidden. Happy is the man that attaineth thereunto, and hath arisen to
teach the Cause of Him Who is the King of Eternity.” “Say:
O servants! The triumph of this Cause hath depended, and will
continue to depend, upon the appearance of holy souls, upon the
showing forth of goodly deeds, and the revelation of words of
consummate wisdom.” “Center your energies in the
propagation of the Faith of God. Whoso is worthy of so high a
calling, let him arise and promote it. Whoso is unable, it is his
duty to appoint him who will, in his stead, proclaim this Revelation,
whose power hath caused the foundations of the mightiest structures
to quake, every mountain to be crushed into dust, and every soul to
be dumbfounded.” “Let your principal concern be to rescue
the fallen from the slough of impending extinction, and to help him
embrace the ancient Faith of God. Your behavior towards your neighbor
should be such as to manifest clearly the signs of the one true God,
for ye are the first among men to be re-created by His Spirit, the
first to adore and bow the knee before Him, the first to circle round
His throne of glory.” “O ye beloved of God! Repose not
yourselves on your couches, nay, bestir yourselves as soon as ye
recognize your Lord, the Creator, and hear of the things which have
befallen Him, and hasten to His assistance. Unloose your tongues, and
proclaim unceasingly His Cause. This shall be better for you than all
the treasures of the past and of the future, if ye be of them that
comprehend this truth.” “I swear by Him Who is the Truth!
Erelong will God adorn the beginning of the Book of Existence with
the mention of His loved ones who have suffered tribulation in His
path, and journeyed through the countries in His name and for His
praise. Whoso hath attained their presence will glory in their
meeting, and all that dwell in every land will be illumined by their
memory.” “Vie ye with each other in the service of God
and of His Cause. This is indeed what profiteth you in this world,
and in that which is to come. Your Lord, the God of Mercy, is the
All-Informed, the All-Knowing. Grieve not at the things ye witness in
this day. The day shall come whereon the tongues of the nations will
proclaim: ‘The earth is God’s, the Almighty, the Single,
the Incomparable, the All-Knowing!’” “Blessed is
the spot, and the house, and the place, and the city, and the heart,
and the mountain, and the refuge, and the cave, and the valley, and
the land, and the sea, and the island, and the meadow where mention
of God hath been made, and His praise glorified.” “The
movement itself from place to place, when undertaken for the sake of
God, hath always exerted, and can now exert, its influence in the
world. In the Books of old the station of them that have voyaged far
and near in order to guide the servants of God hath been set forth
and written down.” “I swear by God! So great are the
things ordained for the steadfast that were they, so much as the eye
of a needle, to be disclosed, all who are in heaven and on earth
would be dumbfounded, except such as God, the Lord of all worlds,
hath willed to exempt.” “I swear by God! That which hath
been destined for him who aideth My Cause excelleth the treasures of
the earth.” “Whoso openeth his lips in this day, and
maketh mention of the name of his Lord, the hosts of Divine
inspiration shall descend upon him from the heaven of My name, the
All-Knowing, the All-Wise. On him shall also descend the Concourse on
high, each bearing aloft a chalice of pure light. Thus hath it been
foreordained in the realm of God’s Revelation, by the behest of
Him Who is the All-Glorious, the Most Powerful.” “By the
righteousness of Him Who, in this day, crieth within the inmost heart
of all created things, ‘God, there is none other God besides
Me!’ If any man were to arise to defend, in his writings, the
Cause of God against its assailants, such a man, however
inconsiderable his share, shall be so honored in the world to come
that the Concourse on high would envy his glory. No pen can depict
the loftiness of his station, neither can any tongue describe its
splendor.” “Please God ye may all be strengthened to
carry out that which is the Will of God, and may be graciously
assisted to appreciate the rank conferred upon such of His loved ones
as have arisen to serve Him and magnify His name. Upon them be the
glory of God, the glory of all that is in the heavens and all that is
on earth, and the glory of the inmates of the most exalted Paradise,
the heaven of heavens.” “O people of Bahá! That
there is none to rival you is a sign of mercy. Quaff ye of the Cup of
Bounty the wine of immortality, despite them that have repudiated
God, the Lord of names and Maker of the heavens.”

“I swear by the one true God! This is the day of
those who have detached themselves from all but Him, the day of those
who have recognized His unity, the day whereon God createth, with the
hands of His power, divine beings and imperishable essences, every
one of whom will cast the world and all that is therein behind him,
and will wax so steadfast in the Cause of God that every wise and
understanding heart will marvel.” “There lay concealed
within the Holy Veil, and prepared for the service of God, a company
of His chosen ones who shall be manifested unto men, who shall aid
His Cause, who shall be afraid of no one, though the entire human
race rise up and war against them. These are the ones who, before the
gaze of the dwellers on earth and the denizens of heaven, shall arise
and, shouting aloud, acclaim the name of the Almighty, and summon the
children of men to the path of God, the All-Glorious, the
All-Praised.” “The day is approaching when God will have,
by an act of His Will, raised up a race of men the nature of which is
inscrutable to all save God, the All-Powerful, the Self-Subsisting.”
“He will, erelong, out of the Bosom of Power, draw forth the
Hands of Ascendancy and Might—Hands who will arise to win
victory for this Youth, and who will purge mankind from the
defilement of the outcast and the ungodly. These Hands will gird up
their loins to champion the Faith of God, and will, in My name, the
Self-Subsistent, the Mighty, subdue the peoples and kindreds of the
earth. They will enter the cities, and will inspire with fear the
hearts of all their inhabitants. Such are the evidences of the might
of God; how fearful, how vehement is His might!”

“One more word in conclusion.
Among some of the …”

One more word in conclusion. Among some of the most
momentous and thought-provoking pronouncements ever made by
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, in the course of His epoch-making
travels in the North American continent, are the following: “May
this American Democracy be the first nation to establish the
foundation of international agreement. May it be the first nation to
proclaim the unity of mankind. May it be the first to unfurl the
Standard of the Most Great Peace.” And again: “The
American people are indeed worthy of being the first to build the
Tabernacle of the Great Peace, and proclaim the oneness of
mankind…. For America hath developed powers and capacities greater
and more wonderful than other nations…. The American nation is
equipped and empowered to accomplish that which will adorn the pages
of history, to become the envy of the world, and be blest in both the
East and the West for the triumph of its people. …The American
continent gives signs and evidences of very great advancement. Its
future is even more promising, for its influence and illumination are
far-reaching. It will lead all nations spiritually.”

The creative energies, mysteriously generated by the
first stirrings of the embryonic World Order of Bahá’u’lláh,
have, as soon as released within a nation destined to become its
cradle and champion, endowed that nation with the worthiness, and
invested it with the powers and capacities, and equipped it
spiritually, to play the part foreshadowed in these prophetic words.
The potencies which this God-given mission has infused into its
people are, on the one hand, beginning to be manifested through the
conscious efforts and the nationwide accomplishments, in both the
teaching and administrative spheres of Bahá’í
activity, of the organized community of the followers of Bahá’u’lláh
in the North American continent. These same potencies, apart from,
yet collateral with these efforts and accomplishments, are, on the
other hand, insensibly shaping, under the impact of the world
political and economic forces, the destiny of that nation, and are
influencing the lives and actions of both its government and its
people.

To the efforts and accomplishments of those who, aware
of the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, are now
laboring in that continent, to their present and future course of
activity, I have, in the foregoing pages sufficiently referred. A
word, if the destiny of the American people, in its entirety, is to
be correctly apprehended, should now be said regarding the
orientation of that nation as a whole, and the trend of the affairs
of its people. For no matter how ignorant of the Source from which
those directing energies proceed, and however slow and laborious the
process, it is becoming increasingly evident that the nation as a
whole, whether through the agency of its government or otherwise, is
gravitating, under the influence of forces that it can neither
comprehend nor control, towards such associations and policies,
wherein, as indicated by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, her true
destiny must lie. Both the community of the American believers, who
are aware of that Source, and the great mass of their countrymen, who
have not as yet recognized the Hand that directs their destiny, are
contributing, each in its own way, to the realization of the hopes,
and the fulfillment of the promises, voiced in the above-quoted words
of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

The world is moving on. Its events are unfolding
ominously and with bewildering rapidity. The whirlwind of its
passions is swift and alarmingly violent. The New World is being
insensibly drawn into its vortex. The potential storm centers of the
earth are already casting their shadows upon its shores. Dangers,
undreamt of and unpredictable, threaten it both from within and from
without. Its governments and peoples are being gradually enmeshed in
the coils of the world’s recurrent crises and fierce
controversies. The Atlantic and Pacific Oceans are, with every
acceleration in the march of science, steadily shrinking into mere
channels. The Great Republic of the West finds itself particularly
and increasingly involved. Distant rumblings echo menacingly in the
ebullitions of its people. On its flanks are ranged the potential
storm centers of the European continent and of the Far East. On its
southern horizon there looms what might conceivably develop into
another center of agitation and danger. The world is contracting into
a neighborhood. America, willingly or unwillingly, must face and
grapple with this new situation. For purposes of national security,
let alone any humanitarian motive, she must assume the obligations
imposed by this newly created neighborhood. Paradoxical as it may
seem, her only hope of extricating herself from the perils gathering
around her is to become entangled in that very web of international
association which the Hand of an inscrutable Providence is weaving.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s counsel to a highly placed
official in its government comes to mind, with peculiar
appropriateness and force: You can best serve your country if you
strive, in your capacity as a citizen of the world, to assist in the
eventual application of the principle of federalism, underlying the
government of your own country, to the relationships now existing
between the peoples and nations of the world. The ideals that fired
the imagination of America’s tragically unappreciated
President, whose high endeavors, however much nullified by a
visionless generation, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, through His
own pen, acclaimed as signalizing the dawn of the Most Great Peace,
though now lying in the dust, bitterly reproach a heedless generation
for having so cruelly abandoned them.

That the world is beset with perils, that dangers are
now accumulating and are actually threatening the American nation, no
clear-eyed observer can possibly deny. The earth is now transformed
into an armed camp. As much as fifty million men are either under
arms or in reserve. No less than the sum of three billion pounds is
being spent, in one year, on its armaments. The light of religion is
dimmed and moral authority disintegrating. The nations of the world
have, for the most part, fallen a prey to battling ideologies that
threaten to disrupt the very foundations of their dearly won
political unity. Agitated multitudes in these countries seethe with
discontent, are armed to the teeth, are stampeded with fear, and
groan beneath the yoke of tribulations engendered by political
strife, racial fanaticism, national hatreds, and religious
animosities. “The winds of despair,” Bahá’u’lláh
has unmistakably affirmed, “are, alas, blowing from every
direction, and the strife that divides and afflicts the human race is
daily increasing. The signs of impending convulsions and chaos can
now be discerned….” “The ills,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
writing as far back as two decades ago, has prophesied, “from
which the world now suffers will multiply; the gloom which envelops
it will deepen. The Balkans will remain discontented. Its
restlessness will increase. The vanquished Powers will continue to
agitate. They will resort to every measure that may rekindle the
flame of war. Movements, newly born and worldwide in their range,
will exert their utmost for the advancement of their designs. The
Movement of the Left will acquire great importance. Its influence
will spread.” As to the American nation itself, the voice of
its own President, emphatic and clear, warns his people that a
possible attack upon their country has been brought infinitely closer
by the development of aircraft and by other factors. Its Secretary of
State, addressing at a recent Conference the assembled
representatives of all the American Republics, utters no less ominous
a warning. “These resurgent forces loom threateningly
throughout the world—their ominous shadow falls athwart our own
Hemisphere.” As to its Press, the same note of warning and of
alarm at an approaching danger is struck. “We must be prepared
to defend ourselves both from within and without…. Our defensive
frontier is long. It reaches from Alaska’s Point Barrow to Cape
Horn, and ranges the Atlantic and the Pacific. When or where Europe’s
and Asia’s aggressors may strike at us no one can say. It could
be anywhere, any time…. We have no option save to go armed
ourselves…. We must mount vigilant guard over the Western
Hemisphere.”

The distance that the American nation has traveled since
its formal and categoric repudiation of the Wilsonian ideal, the
changes that have unexpectedly overtaken it in recent years, the
direction in which world events are moving, with their inevitable
impact on the policies and the economy of that nation, are to every
Bahá’í observer, viewing the developments in the
international situation, in the light of the prophecies of both
Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
most significant, and highly instructive and encouraging. To trace
the exact course which, in these troubled times and pregnant years,
this nation will follow would be impossible. We can only, judging
from the direction its affairs are now taking, anticipate the course
she will most likely choose to pursue in her relationships with both
the Republics of America and the countries of the remaining
continents.

A closer association with these Republics, on the one
hand, and an increased participation, in varying degrees, on the
other, in the affairs of the whole world, as a result of recurrent
international crises, appear as the most likely developments which
the future has in store for that country. Delays must inevitably
arise, setbacks must be suffered, in the course of that country’s
evolution towards its ultimate destiny. Nothing, however, can alter
eventually that course, ordained for it by the unerring pen of
‘Abdu’l-Bahá. Its federal unity having already
been achieved and its internal institutions consolidated—a
stage that marked its coming of age as a political entity—its
further evolution, as a member of the family of nations, must, under
circumstances that cannot at present be visualized, steadily
continue. Such an evolution must persist until such time when that
nation will, through the active and decisive part it will have played
in the organization and the peaceful settlement of the affairs of
mankind, have attained the plenitude of its powers and functions as
an outstanding member, and component part, of a federated world.

The immediate future must, as a result of this steady,
this gradual, and inevitable absorption in the manifold perplexities
and problems afflicting humanity, be dark and oppressive for that
nation. The world-shaking ordeal which Bahá’u’lláh,
as quoted in the foregoing pages, has so graphically prophesied, may
find it swept, to an unprecedented degree, into its vortex. Out of it
it will probably emerge, unlike its reactions to the last world
conflict, consciously determined to seize its opportunity, to bring
the full weight of its influence to bear upon the gigantic problems
that such an ordeal must leave in its wake, and to exorcise forever,
in conjunction with its sister nations of both the East and the West,
the greatest curse which, from time immemorial, has afflicted and
degraded the human race.

Then, and only then, will the American nation, molded
and purified in the crucible of a common war, inured to its rigors,
and disciplined by its lessons, be in a position to raise its voice
in the councils of the nations, itself lay the cornerstone of a
universal and enduring peace, proclaim the solidarity, the unity, and
maturity of mankind, and assist in the establishment of the promised
reign of righteousness on earth. Then, and only then, will the
American nation, while the community of the American believers within
its heart is consummating its divinely appointed mission, be able to
fulfill the unspeakably glorious destiny ordained for it by the
Almighty, and immortally enshrined in the writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
Then, and only then, will the American nation accomplish “that
which will adorn the pages of history,” “become the envy
of the world and be blest in both the East and the West.”

SHOGHI

December 25, 1938