Bahai Administration Part 22

Events, of a startling character and of the utmost significance to the Faith of Baha'u'llah, have recently transpired throughout the Near and Middle East in such rapid succession, that I feel moved to write about them to those who, in distant lands and with eager hearts, are waiting to witness the fulfillment of the prophecies of Baha'u'llah. You will, I am certain, rejoice with me to learn that the quickening forces of internal reform are swiftly awakening from their age-long slumber of negligence those lands which, trodden by the feet of Baha'u'llah and wherein are enshrined the memorable scenes of His birth, His ministry, His exiles, His banishments, His suffering and His ascension, are destined in the fulness of time to play a pre-eminent role in the regeneration of the East-nay of all mankind.

The Promises of Our Departed Master

From Persia, the cradle of our Faith and the object of our tenderest affections, there breaks upon us the news of the first stirrings of that social and political Reformation which, as we firmly believe, is but the direct and unavoidable consequence of that great spiritual Revival ushered in by the Revelation of Baha'u'llah. These social and political forces now released by the Source of such a tremendous Revival are bound in their turn to demolish one by one the barriers that have so long impeded its flow, sapped its vitality and obscured its radiance.

From a communication addressed to me recently by the National Spiritual a.s.sembly of the Baha'is of Persia, as well as from reliable reports submitted by the local representatives of the Persian believers, and confirmed by the vivid narrative of visiting pilgrims, it is becoming increasingly manifest that the glowing promises so many times uttered by our departed Master are, with extraordinary exact.i.tude and remarkable swiftness, being successively fulfilled. Reforms of a revolutionary character are, without bloodshed and with negligible resistance, gradually transforming the very basis and structure of Persia's primitive society.

The essentials of public security and order are being energetically provided throughout the length and breadth of the _Sh_ah's domain, and are hailed with particular gratification by that much hara.s.sed section of the population-our long-suffering brethren of that land. The rapidity, the incredible ease, with which the enlightened proposals of its government, in matters of education, trade and finance, means of transportation and travel, and the development of the country's internal resources, are receiving the unqualified sanction of a hitherto reactionary Legislature, and are overcoming the resistance and apathy of the ma.s.ses, have undoubtedly tended to hasten the emanc.i.p.ation of our Persian brethren from the remaining fetters of a once despotic and blood-stained regime. The severely repressive and humiliating measures undertaken on the initiative of progressive provincial Governors, and with the connivance of State officials in the Capital, aiming at the scattering and ultimate extinction of a rapidly waning clergy, such as degradation, detainment, deportation and in some cases pitiless execution, are paving the way for the entire removal of the shackles imposed by an ignorant and fanatical priesthood upon the administration of State affairs. In matters of dress; in the obligatory enforcement of a uniform style of national head-gear; in the strict limitation of the number, the rights and the prerogatives of high ecclesiastical officials; in the growing unpopularity of the veil among almost every section of society; in the marked distinction which unofficially and in various phases of public life is being made by an enlightened and pressing minority between the tottering forms of a discredited Ecclesiasticism and the civil rights and duties of civilized society; in the general laxity in religious observances and ceremonies; in the slow and hidden process of secularization invading many a government department under the courageous guidance of the Governors of outlying provinces-in all of these a discerning eye can easily discover the symptoms that augur well for a future that is sure to witness the formal and complete separation of Church and State.

Regeneration of Persia

To this uplifting movement, various external factors are being added that are tending to hasten and stimulate this process of internal regeneration so significant in the life of renascent Persia. The multiplicity and increasing facilities in the means of transportation and travel; the State visit of energetic and enlightened reformers to Persia's capital; the forthcoming and widely-advertised journey of the _Sh_ah himself to the progressive capitals of Western Europe; the repercussion of Turkey's astounding reforms among an essentially sensitive and receptive people; the loud and persistent clamor of a revolting order in Russia against the evil domination and dark plottings of all forms of religious sectarianism; the relentless vigor with which Afghanistan's ambitious Ruler, reinforced by the example of his gracious Consort, is pursuing his campaign of repression against a similar order of a corrupted clergy at home-all tend to lend their force in fostering and fas.h.i.+oning that public opinion which can alone provide an enduring basis for the reform Movement destined to usher in that golden Era craved for by the followers of the Faith in Baha'u'llah's native land.

As a direct consequence of the birth of this new consciousness in the life of the nation, as evidenced by these early stirrings in the minds of the people, both high and low, meetings of an elaborate character, unprecedented in the number of their attendants, in the tone of the public addresses, in the undisturbed atmosphere of their proceedings, and the general impressiveness of their organization, have been publicly held in ?ihran, under the auspices of the National Spiritual a.s.sembly of the Baha'is of Persia. Particularly significant and impressive were those that were held in the Haziratu'l-Quds, the administrative and spiritual center of the Faith in the Capital, on the occasion of the twin Festivals commemorating the declaration of the Bab and the birth of 'Abdu'l-Baha, at the chief of which no less than two thousand representative Baha'is and non-Baha'is, leaders of public opinion, State officials and foreign representatives were officially invited. The addresses stressing the universality of the Teachings of the Cause, the formal and ordered character of the proceedings so unusual a feature to a gathering of such proportions, the mingling of the Baha'is with the recognized representatives of progressive thought in the Capital who, by virtue of their high office and stately appearance, lent color and weight to the concourse of attending believers, have all contributed to enhance the brilliance and spiritual significance of that gathering on that memorable occasion.

Moreover, reports of a highly encouraging nature, are being continually received from local a.s.semblies and individual believers, giving the names and stating the number of influential Persians who, hitherto reluctant to declare openly their faith in Baha'u'llah, are as a result of this rea.s.suring and promising state of affairs emerging from the obscurity of their concealment and enlisting under the erected banner of Baha'u'llah.

This has served to embolden the followers of the Faith to take the necessary steps, under the direction of their local a.s.semblies, for the inst.i.tution of Baha'i schools, for the holding of public gatherings, for the establishment of Baha'i hostels, libraries and public baths, for the construction of official headquarters for their administrative work, and for the gradual execution among themselves, within the limits imposed upon them by the State, of the laws and ordinances revealed in the Kitab-i-Aqdas. Words fail me to describe the feelings of those patiently suffering brethren of ours in that land who, with eyes dim with tears and hearts overflowing with thanksgiving and praise, are witnessing on every side and with increasing force the unfoldment of a Faith which they have served so well and love so dearly. Accounts pathetic and inspiring in their tone are being received from that steadfast and cheerful band of exultant believers, and are being shared with the resident friends in the Holy Land who, having had the privilege of close and continued a.s.sociation with the person of 'Abdu'l-Baha, cannot but marvel at the range, the potency and accuracy of the prophecies of their departed Master.

Baha'i Faith Vindicated in Turkey

From Turkey, on whose soil, for well nigh three score years and ten, were enacted some of the sublimest and most tragic scenes in the annals of the Cause; Turkey, under whose rule Baha'u'llah twice proclaimed Himself, was thrice exiled and banished, and finally ascended to the Abha Kingdom, and where 'Abdu'l-Baha spent more than fifty years of His Life, in incarceration and suffering; has of late been rudely awakened to a Call which it has so long obstinately despised and ignored. Following on the overthrow of that effete theocracy, resting on the twin inst.i.tutions of the Caliphate and Sultanate-those two sinister forces that have combined to inflict the deadliest blows to our beloved Faith in the earliest stages of its infancy and growth-an uncompromising policy aiming at the secularization of the State and the disestablishment of Islam was initiated and carried out with exemplary vigor. Religious inst.i.tutions and monastic orders which under the guise of religious propaganda were converted into hot-beds of political intrigue and sedition were peremptorily closed, their adherents scattered and banished, their funds confiscated, their privileges and prerogatives abolished. None, save the little band of Baha'u'llah's devoted followers, escaped the trenchant ax of the pitiless reformer; all, without fear or favor, had to submit to his searching investigations, his dictatorial edicts, his severe and irrevocable judgment. Lately, however, the Turkish Government, faithful to its policy of ceaseless vigilance, and fearful of the growing activities of the Baha'is under its rule, decided to order the Police in the town of Smyrna to conduct a close investigation into the purpose, the character and the effects of Baha'i activity in that town. No sooner were the representative Baha'is in that locality arrested and conducted to the Law Courts for purposes of investigation, than the President of the Baha'i Spiritual a.s.sembly of Constantinople who, having read in the morning papers the report of the Smyrna incident, had resolved unsummoned to offer the necessary explanations to the authorities concerned, was in his turn arrested and taken to the Police Headquarters where he soon afterwards was joined by the other members of the a.s.sembly. The official searching of their homes, the seizure of whatever Baha'i literature they had in their possession, their twenty-four hours detention at the Police station, the searching severity of the cross-examination to which they were subjected-all proved powerless to alarm and shake the faith of those intrepid champions of the Cause, or to evince anything detrimental to the best interests of the State. On the contrary, they served to deeply impress upon the minds and hearts of the officials concerned the sublimity, the innocence, and the dynamic force of the Faith of Baha'u'llah. So much so that their books were returned, a genuine desire to deepen their knowledge of the Cause was expressed by their examiners, and widespread publicity, as reflected in the articles of about a dozen leading newspapers of Turkey, was accorded by the Government, proclaiming the innocence of the Cause and lifting up the ban that now so oppressively weighs upon religious inst.i.tutions in Turkey.

From Constantinople in European Turkey to the eastern confines of Anatolia, on the banks of the river Euphrates, where a small and flouris.h.i.+ng Baha'i Community has been recently established, a wave of public interest, criticism and inquiry has been sweeping over the surface of the land, as witnessed by the character and number of the leading articles, the ill.u.s.trations and caricatures that have appeared in the most prominent newspapers of the capital and the provincial towns of Asiatic Turkey. Not only Turkey, but its neighboring countries of the East and the West, have lifted up their voice in the vindication of the Baha'i truth.

From information thus far gathered we learn that in Hungary, in 'Iraq, Egypt and Syria, and as far west as France and England, newspapers have, of their own accord, with varying degree of accuracy, and in more or less detail, reported this incident in their columns, and have given, unasked and unaware, such publicity to our beloved Faith which no campaign of teaching, however elaborately organized by the believers themselves, could ever hope to achieve at the present time. Surely the invincible arm of Baha'u'llah, working through strange and mysterious ways, will continue to guard and uphold, to steer the course, to consolidate, and eventually to achieve the world-wide recognition and triumph of His holy Faith.

Our Most Vital Opportunity

And while the East, through suffering and turmoil, is moving on in its slow and toilsome march towards the acceptance of G.o.d's holy Faith, let us turn for a moment our gaze to the Western Hemisphere, and particularly to the American continent, and attempt to visualize the possibilities of the future spread of the Cause, and to estimate afresh those golden yet swiftly pa.s.sing opportunities which Baha'u'llah in those far-away lands has accorded to His chosen people. I feel thoroughly convinced, and am moved to share this firm conviction within me with that great company of western believers, that in the speedy resumption of the sorely-neglected construction of the Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar at Wilmette lies our undoubted privilege, our primary obligation, our most vital opportunity to lend an unprecedented impetus to the advancement of the Cause, not only throughout the West but in every country of the world. I would not stress at this moment the prestige and good name of the Cause, much as they are involved in this most pressing issue, I would not dwell upon the eager expectancy with which the unnumbered followers of the Faith as well as the vast number of the non-believers in almost every section of society throughout the East are awaiting to behold that n.o.ble structure rear its head in the heart of that far-western continent; nor would I expatiate on the ineffable beauty of this holy Edifice, its towering glory, its artistic design, its unique character, or its functions in the organic life of the Baha'i community of the future. But I would with all the strength of my conviction emphasize the immeasurable spiritual significance of an Edifice, so beauteous, so holy, erected solely by the concerted efforts, strained to the utmost degree of self-sacrifice, of the entire body of the believers who are fully conscious of the significance of the Revelation of Baha'u'llah. In this vast endeavor, unparalleled in modern times, its world-wide range, its spontaneity, its heroic and holy character, the American believers, on the soil of whose country Baha'u'llah's first universal House of Wors.h.i.+p is to be built, must, if they be faithful to their trust, claim and fulfill a pre-eminent share in the collective contributions offered by the Baha'is of the world.

'Abdu'l-Baha's Cherished Desire

For this reason do I feel impelled to direct by incessant plea in particular to the followers of the Faith in the United States and Canada to arise and play their part, while there is yet time, and not to allow their earnest strivings to be swamped and superseded by the self-sacrificing heroism of the mult.i.tude of their brethren in Persia.

Again I feel the urge to remind you one and all of the necessity of keeping ever in mind this fundamental verity that the efficacy of the spiritual forces centering in, and radiating from, the first Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar in the West will in a great measure depend upon the extent to which we, the pioneer workers in that land will, with clear vision, unquenchable faith, and inflexible determination, resolve to voluntarily abnegate temporal advantages in our support of so meritorious an endeavor. The higher the degree of our renunciation and self-sacrifice, the wider the range of the contributing believers, the more apparent will become the vitalizing forces that are to emanate from this unique and sacred Edifice; and the greater, in consequence, the stimulating effect it will exert upon the propagation of the Faith in the days to come. Not by the abundance of our donations, not even by the spontaneity of our efforts, but rather by the degree of self-abnegation which our contributions will entail, can we effectively promote the speedy realization of 'Abdu'l-Baha's cherished desire. How great our responsibility, how immense our task, how priceless the advantages that we can reap!

Plan of Unified Action

I cannot refrain, however, from giving expression to my gratification and appreciation of the substantial and continued support already accorded, and in particular during the past year by the believers in the United States and Canada, under the wise and judicious direction of their elected national representatives, to the Plan of Unified Action, whose declared purpose is to insure, ere the present Baha'i year comes to a close, the raising of the funds required for the building of the first Unit of the Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar. The vigilance and fidelity with which the National a.s.sembly of the United States and Canada has observed its pledge in connection with the limitation of the current administrative expenses of the Cause, and the zeal and ready response manifested by local a.s.semblies and individual believers to curtail their local and personal expenditures in order to concentrate on the Temple Fund, are worthy of the highest praise, and will deservedly attract the manifold blessings of a loving and bountiful Master. Much indeed has been accomplished during this past year of concentrated and consecrated self-sacrifice for so glorious a purpose.

Much more still remains unachieved if we are to vindicate, in the eyes of an expectant world, the honorable name, the inexhaustible and miraculous vitality of the Revelation of Baha'u'llah.

In the mid-watches of the night, commemorating the pa.s.sing of Him Who with His own hands laid the head-cornerstone of His Father's House of Wors.h.i.+p in that land, seated within the hallowed precincts of His shrine, and keeping vigil in the company of His closest companions, I have more than once in the midst of my devotions prayerfully remembered those chosen ones of G.o.d on whose shoulders has fallen so weighty a responsibility, whose destiny is to bring to full fruition so excellent a heritage. I have recalled on that peaceful and moonlit night, with much emotion and grat.i.tude, the inestimable bounties He lavished while on earth upon you. I have revived in my memory the glowing promises that His unfailing guidance and gracious a.s.sistance would continue from His station on high to be showered upon you. I have pictured in my mind that beauteous vision of a Cause unfolded in all its glory which in His immortal writings He has revealed unto you. And with my head upon His threshold, I have prayed and prayed again that we may all prove ourselves worthy disciples of so gracious a Master, that we may, when called unto Him, transmit, undiminished and unimpaired, our share of the immeasurably precious heritage bequeathed by Him to us all.

And in closing, dearly-beloved friends, what more appropriate thought with which to conclude my fervent plea than these pregnant words fallen from the lips of Baha'u'llah: "O My friends! I bear witness that the Divine Bounty has been vouchsafed unto you, His Argument has been made manifest, His Proof has been revealed, and His Guidance has shone forth upon you.

Let it now be seen what your endeavors in the path of renunciation can reveal."

Your true brother, SHOGHI.

Haifa, Palestine, December 6, 1928.

Letter of December 6, 1928.

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the East and West.

Dear fellow-workers:

I desire to convey to you in a few words my impressions of the recently published "Baha'i World," copies of which, I understand, have already, thanks to the a.s.siduous care and indefatigable efforts displayed by the Publis.h.i.+ng Committee of the American National Spiritual a.s.sembly, been widely distributed among the Baha'i countries of East and West.

The Baha'i World

This unique record of world-wide Baha'i activity attempts to present to the general public, as well as to the student and scholar, those historical facts and fundamental principles that const.i.tute the distinguis.h.i.+ng features of the Message of Baha'u'llah to this age. I have ever since its inception taken a keen and sustained interest in its development, have personally partic.i.p.ated in the collection of its material, the arrangement of its contents, and the close scrutiny of whatever data it contains.

I confidently and emphatically recommend it to every thoughtful and eager follower of the Faith, whether in the East or in the West, whose desire is to place in the hands of the critical and intelligent inquirer, of whatever cla.s.s, creed or color, a work that can truly witness to the high purpose, the moving history, the enduring achievements, the resistless march and infinite prospects of the Revelation of Baha'u'llah. Eminently readable and attractive in its features, reliable and authoritative in the material it contains, up-to-date, comprehensive and accurate in the ma.s.s of information it gives, concise and persuasive in its treatment of the fundamental aspects of the Cause, thoroughly representative in the ill.u.s.trations and photographs it reveals:-it stands unexcelled and unapproached by any publication of its kind in the varied literature of our beloved Cause. It will, without the slightest doubt, if generously and vigorously supported, arouse unprecedented interest among all cla.s.ses of civilized society.

I earnestly request you, dearly-beloved friends, to exert the utmost effort for the prompt and widespread circulation of a book that so faithfully and vividly portrays, in all its essential features, its far-reaching ramifications and most arresting aspects, the all-encompa.s.sing Faith of Baha'u'llah. Whatever a.s.sistance, financial or moral, extended by Baha'i Spiritual a.s.semblies and individual believers, to those who have been responsible for such a highly valuable and representative production will, it should be remembered, be directly utilized to advance the interests and reinforce the funds that are being raised in behalf of the Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar, and will indirectly serve to exert a most powerful stimulus in removing the malicious misrepresentations and unfortunate misunderstandings that have so long and so grievously clouded the luminous Faith of Baha'u'llah.

Your true brother, SHOGHI.

Haifa, Palestine, December 6, 1928.