1 At this resplendent,
festive season, we greet you all in a spirit of renewed hope.
2 A silver lining to the
dark picture which has overshadowed most of this century now brightens the
horizon. It is discernible in the new tendencies impelling the social processes
at work throughout the world, in the evidences of an accelerated trend towards
peace. In the Faith of God, it is the growing strength of the Order of
Bahá'u'lláh as its banner rises to more stately heights. It is a strength that
attracts. The media are giving increasing attention to the Bahá'í world
community; authors are acknowledging its existence in a growing number of
articles, books and reference works, one of the most highly respected of which
recently listed the Faith as the most widely spread religion after
Christianity. A remarkable display of interest in this community by
governments, civil authorities, prominent personalities and humanitarian
organizations is increasingly apparent. Not only are the community's laws and
principles, organization and way of life being investigated, but its advice and
active help are also being sought for the alleviation of social problems and the
carrying out of humanitarian activities.
3 A thrilling consequence of
these favourably conjoined developments is the emergence of a new paradigm of
opportunity for further growth and consolidation of our world-wide community.
New prospects for teaching the Cause at all levels of society have unfolded.
These are confirmed in the early results flowing from the new teaching
initiatives being fostered in a number of places as more and more national
communities witness the beginnings of that entry by troops promised by the
beloved Master and which Shoghi Effendi said would lead on to mass conversion.
The immediate possibilities presented by this providential situation compel us
to expect that an expansion of the Community of the Most Great Name, such as
has not yet been experienced, is, indeed, at hand.
4 The spark which ignited
the mounting interest in the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh was the heroic fortitude and
patience of the beloved friends in
5 This recognition prompted
a meeting in Germany last November of national Bahá'í external affairs
representatives from Europe and North America, together with senior
representatives of the Offices of the Bahá'í International Community, intent on
effecting greater coordination of their work. This was a preliminary step
towards the gathering of more and more National Spiritual Assemblies into a
harmoniously functioning, international network capable of executing global
undertakings in this rapidly expanding field. Related to these developments was
the significant achievement of international recognition accorded the Faith
through its formal acceptance last October into membership of the Network on
Conservation and Religion of the renowned World Wide Fund for Nature.
6 At one of the darkest
periods in the prolonged oppression of the dearly loved, resolutely steadfast
friends in Iran, Shoghi Effendi was moved to comfort them in a letter of
astounding insight. "It is the shedding of the sacred blood of the
martyrs in Persia" he wrote, "which, in this shining era, this
resplendent, this gem-studded Bahá'í age, shall change the face of the earth
into high heaven and, as revealed in the Tablets, raise up the tabernacle of
the oneness of mankind in the very heart of the world, reveal to men's eyes the
reality of the unity of the human race, establish the Most Great Peace, make of
this lower realm a mirror for the Abhá Paradise, and establish beyond any doubt
before all the peoples of the world the truth of the verse: `...the day when
the Earth shall be changed into another Earth.'" Reflections like
these, in adducing such wondrous future consequences from the horrific
suffering to which our Iranian friends are subjected, illuminate the
opportunity and the challenge facing us all at this crucial moment in the
fortunes of the Cause.
7 The great projects already
launched must be pursued to their completion. The Terraces below and above the
Shrine of the Báb and the Arc on Mount Carmel must be completed, fulfilling the
glorious vision of the efflorescence of God's holy mountain; the second World
Congress must be held in the City of the Covenant to celebrate the hundredth
anniversary of the inauguration of that Covenant; the steadily advancing work
on the translation and annotation of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the Most Holy Book,
must be brought to publication; the interest shown by the friends in the Law of
|Huqúqu'lláh must be cultivated; the pioneers and travelling teachers must go
forth; the expenses of the Cause must be met; all objectives of the Six Year
Plan must be achieved.
8 But the paramount purpose
of all Bahá'í activity is teaching. All that has been done or will be done
revolve around this central activity, the "head corner-stone of the
foundation itself", to which all progress in the Cause is due. The
present challenge calls for teaching on a scale and of a quality, a variety,
and intensity outstripping all current efforts. The time is now, lest
opportunity be lost in the swiftly changing moods of a frenetic world. Let it
not be imagined that expedience is the essential motive arousing this sense of
urgency. There is an overarching reason: it is the pitiful plight of masses of
humanity, suffering and in turmoil, hungering after righteousness, but "bereft
of discernment to see God with their own eyes, or hear His Melody with their
own ears". They must be fed. Vision must be restored where hope is
lost, confidence built where doubt and confusion are rife. In these and other
respects, "The Promise of World Peace" is designed to open the way.
Its delivery to national governmental leaders having been virtually completed,
its contents must now be conveyed, by all possible means, to peoples everywhere
from all walks of life. This is a necessary part of the teaching work in our
time and must be pursued with unabated vigour.
9 Teaching is the food of
the spirit; it brings life to unawakened souls and raises the new heaven and
the new earth; it uplifts the banner of a unified world; it ensures the victory
of the Covenant and brings those who give their lives to it the supernal happiness
of attainment to the good pleasure of their Lord.
10 Every individual
believer---man, woman, youth and child---is summoned to this field of action;
for it is on the initiative, the resolute will of the individual to teach and
to serve, that the success of the entire community depends. Well-grounded in
the mighty Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh, sustained by daily prayer and reading of
the Holy Word, strengthened by a continual striving to obtain a deeper
understanding of the divine Teachings, illumined by a constant endeavour to
relate these Teachings to current issues, nourished by observance of the laws
and principles of His wondrous World Order, every individual can attain
increasing measures of success in teaching. In sum, the ultimate triumph of the
Cause is assured by that "one thing and only one thing" so
poignantly emphasized by Shoghi Effendi, namely, "the extent to which
our own inner life and private character mirror forth in their manifold aspects
the splendour of those eternal principles proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh".
11 Beloved Friends---you who
are addressed by the Best Beloved, the Blessed Beauty, as "the solace
of the eye of creation", as "the soft-flowing waters upon
which must depend the very life of all men"---we urge you, with all
earnestness from the utter depths of our conviction as to the ripeness of the
time, to lay aside your every minor concern and direct your energies to
teaching His Cause---to proclaiming, expanding and consolidating it. You can
approach your task in full confidence that this clear field of progress
outstretched before you derives from the operation of that "God-born
Force" which "vibrates within the innermost being of all
created things" and which, "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."
12 Have no fear or doubts. The
power of the Covenant will assist you and invigorate you and remove every
obstacle from your path. "He, verily, will aid everyone that aideth
Him, and will remember everyone that remembereth Him".
13 You have our abiding
assurance of ardent and constant prayers for you all.
The Universal House of Justice