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Ridván
1994
Bahá'í Era 151
by
Universal House of Justice
1994
To the Bahá'ís
of the World
Dearly loved
Friends,
1 One year of the Three Year
Plan is now behind us, a year in which the turmoil of the world engendered in
hearts and minds both hope and fear, both optimism and despair, both
admiration of people's courage and shame at the cruelty to which mankind can
sink. Amidst these trials, the followers of Bahá'u'lláh press forward,
clear-visioned and confident, raising the structure of God's Kingdom,
suffusing society with a new spirit, and demonstrating to all people the
revitalizing effect of the divine Teachings.
2 At the World Centre, the
23rd of May saw the opening of a new five-year term of the membership of the
International Teaching Centre. In our first joint meeting we applauded the
many initiatives which it had pursued during the previous term and urged
their further development. Prominent among these initiatives was the guidance
given to the Continental Counsellors to promote consultation at local and
national levels, among institutions and believers, leading to the initiation
and sustaining of processes of growth in the Bahá'í community. Another was
the progressive clarifying of various approaches to the teaching work. As the
year has proceeded, these actions have intensified the impetus being given to
the development of the Faith and its institutions by the Counsellors, the
Auxiliary Board members and their assistants, reinforcing the insight and
encouragement that they give to the National and Local Spiritual Assemblies
and the individual believers.
3 The growing reputation of
the Faith in the eyes of the world, and the attention that this is drawing to
the World Centre, underscore the importance of completing the Terraces of the
Shrine of the Báb and the buildings for the World Administrative Centre of the
Cause of Bahá'u'lláh. Since the issuing of the special appeal to the Bahá'í
world to raise seventy-four million dollars for this project during the
course of the Three Year Plan, the response has been heartwarming, and it is
our ardent hope that the continuation of this spirit of sacrifice will result
in the speedy achievement of this goal and will ensure the uninterrupted
progress of the work, drawing to God's Holy Mountain the admiring gaze of
visitors and residents alike.
4 Study of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas
is illuminating the lives of the rank and file of the believers. Awareness of
the importance of upholding the principles of the Faith and obeying its laws
is rising. Universal application of the law of Huqúqu'lláh has aroused an
enthusiastic response. The friends' consciousness of their individual
obligation to teach the Faith is growing. As they discharge their spiritual
responsibilities and learn greater dependence on the confirmations of
Bahá'u'lláh, they find that their faith gains new vitality, and their hearts
fresh confidence. These are all areas where the action of the individual need
not wait for either urging or help. Alone, and aided solely by the power of
the Almighty, each believer is challenged to develop these spiritual
strengths which will contribute beyond measure to the evolution of the
community.
5 The human resources of the
Cause are being augmented in two ways. People of capacity are being moved to
embrace the Faith, reinforcing the ranks of those who are already serving.
The latter, for their part, have been enriching their experience and
acquiring greater capabilities through a more profound study of the Teachings
and through expressing them in action. Recognizing the need for a more
systematic deepening of their understanding of the Teachings and their
application to society, the friends have increased the use of workshops and
institutes, with notable success. In the year ahead these two complementary
processes--- attracting people of capacity and increasing our own
abilities---must be further advanced, stimulating individual action and the
harmonious development of a wide range of activities for the promotion of the
Faith.
6 As the potentialities of
the individual believers unfold, so the local and national Bahá'í
institutions are gaining ability to foster the quality of the life of their
communities and to conceive and implement imaginative programmes. In many
areas Local Spiritual Assemblies have collaborated in teaching the Faith in a
region. National Assemblies, likewise, have been evolving innovative projects
to seize the opportunities presented by developments outside the Cause. Some
examples of such activities, in very different fields, have been the Open
Letter Project in Albania; the response to the extraordinary receptivity of
the authorities and the general population in the Sakha and Buryat Republics
in Siberia; and the agreement signed between the National Spiritual Assembly
of the Marshall Islands and the local government of Majuro Atoll in response
to the national authorities' request that the Bahá'ís assume responsibility
for the operation of five state elementary schools.
7 The evolution of local and
national Bahá'í institutions has made possible an increased measure of
decentralization in the administration of the work. For this beneficial
process to expand, however, the crucial prerequisite in most countries is the
speedy improvement of the functioning of Local Spiritual Assemblies. This
calls for the close attention of every believer. These local Bahá'í
institutions, ordained in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas itself, constitute a reservoir of
strength and guidance which will amplify the effectiveness of the work of the
Cause as they mature.
8 We live in the midst of
populations which are in desperate need of the Message of Bahá'u'lláh. It is
our duty to present it lucidly and convincingly to as many souls as possible.
The darkness and suffering around us not only are the signs of a need, but
also present us with an opportunity which we must not fail to use. Conveying
the message is merely the first step. We must then ensure that it is
understood and applied, for, as we read in one of the letters written on
behalf of the Guardian: "Until the public sees in the Bahá'í
Community a true pattern, in action, of something better than it already has,
it will not respond to the Faith in large numbers." When people
embrace the Cause, they should then, through the Teachings, develop their
relationships with each other and with their fellow-citizens to gradually
produce a truly Bahá'í community, a light and haven for the bewildered.
9 After the glorious events
of the Heroic Age of the Faith, entry by troops of the peoples of the world
into the Cause of God first occurred in Africa during the ministry of Shoghi
Effendi, and then spread to other areas. Gradually, the Bahá'í communities of
those regions are learning through experience and are evolving methods and
programmes which aim to draw these large numbers of believers together in
functioning communities and to establish strong bases for continuing growth.
To assist them in their endeavours, to help the Bahá'ís in other countries to
initiate and maintain this process, and to dispel the misconceptions which
inevitably surround so challenging a concept, a compilation on
"Promoting Entry by Troops" has been issued. Study and application
of the principles and approaches described therein will undoubtedly assist
every Bahá'í teacher and community, whether in an area where entry by troops
has been a reality for many years, or in one where no sign of it has yet
appeared. In respect to the latter, it will help to convince individual
believers of the reality and validity of this process and will enable Bahá'í
communities to prepare themselves spiritually and materially for this surge
forward, to eagerly anticipate its occurrence, to take those steps which will
foster its beginning, and to ensure the measures which will perpetuate its
growth.
10 The notable rise in
international collaboration during the past year, the settlement of pioneers,
and the flow of travelling teachers have knit ever more closely the fabric of
the Bahá'í community. Leading the way in such achievements, Amatu'l-Bahá
Ruhíyyíh Khánum undertook an arduous journey for the encouragement of
the believers and the proclamation of the Faith, covering Russia and other
lands which were formerly parts of the Soviet Union, from the Baltic States
in the west to Siberia in the east, from the Central Asian republics in the
south to Saint Petersburg and Yakutsk in the north.
11 This Ridván seven inaugural
National Conventions will be held. Our representatives at these historic
events will be the Hand of the Cause Amatu'l-Bahá Ruhíyyíh Khánum for
the election of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Cambodia in
Phnom Penh, and for that of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of
Mongolia in Ulaan Baatar; the Hand of the Cause `Alí-Muhammad Varqá for the
election of the Regional Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Slovenia and
Croatia in Ljubljana; Counsellor Lauretta King for the election of the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Kazakhstan in Alma-Ata, and for
that of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Kyrgyzstan in
Bishkek; and Counsellor Shapoor Monadjem for the election of the National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Tajikistan in Dushanbe, and for that of
the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Uzbekistan in Tashkent. The
present Regional Spiritual Assembly of Central Asia, with its seat in
Ashkhabad, will then become the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of
Turkmenistan.
12 The end of the century is
fast approaching. There is so little time and so much to do. We call upon
every follower of the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh to consecrate the utmost endeavour
to the two primary tasks of teaching the Faith to every thirsting soul, and
of providing the material means for the completion of the monumental projects
being pursued on Mount Carmel. Whatever the outward conditions of mankind in
the year ahead, the Bahá'í community must gather strength, demonstrate more
clearly the distinguishing character of its way of life, reach out with
confidence to proclaim and teach its message, and draw down in ever-greater
measure the confirming assistance of the Hosts of the Supreme Concourse. In
every aspect of this work, it is the individual Bahá'í who holds the key to
victory.
The Universal
House of Justice
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