Wherever a Bahá'í community exists, whether large or small, let it be
distinguished for its abiding sense of security and faith, its high
standard of rectitude, its complete freedom from all forms of prejudice,
the spirit of love among its members, and for the close knit fabric of
its social life.
On April 21, 1963, the momentous first International Bahá'í Convention
yielded the long-awaited crown of the Bahá'í Administrative Order: the
Universal House of Justice. This institution came into being at an
unprecedented landmark in Bahá'í history known as the Most Great
Jubilee, which, all at once, displayed the rich harvest of the Ten Year
World Crusade inaugurated by the beloved Guardian of the Cause of God,
Shoghi Effendi, in 1953; brought to an auspicious conclusion at the
Bahá'í World Congress in London the dynamic ninth part of the spiritual
evolution of man that began with the Adamic C and ushered mankind
to the threshold of the tenth part of that divine process destined to
culminate in the Christ-promised Kingdom of God on earth.
Although the Guardian had passed away at the midway point of the Ten
Year Crusade, the Bahá'ís executed with unflagging determination the
goals of the Crusade in keeping with his explicit instructions. The
Hands of the Cause of God, the "Chief Stewards of Bahá'u'lláh's
embryonic World Commonwealth," impelled by the impending necessity to
restore unerring guidance to the day-to-day affairs of the swelling
Bahá'í community, called for the election of the supreme legislative
institution of the Faith as set forth in the Will and Testament of
'Abdu'l-Bahá.
Ever since its first reassuring message to the believers from the
platform of the Jubilee celebration in London, the Universal House of
Justice has been communicating its guidance to the Bahá'í world through
letters and
cablegrams. This volume contains major messages from April 1963 through
October 1968, six months following the second election of the Universal
House of Justice. Except for eight, these messages are addressed to all
national spiritual assemblies or to the Bahá'ís of the world, in such
terms as "Bahá'ís of the East and West," "Followers of Bahá'u'lláh
throughout the world," etc. Those addressed to the national spiritual
assemblies are marked by an asterisk (*) beside each date.
Three messages are addr two to the Bahá'í youth in
one to a specific nationa and two to an
individual believer. The latter three have been made available to the
Bahá'ís throughout the world by special permission of the Universal
House of Justice.
These messages enunciate the Nine Year Plan, analyze its progress, and
reflect the attention the Universal House of Justice has given to the
development of the institutions of the Faith and individual believers to
better equip them for the worldwide tasks of the Nine Year Plan.
NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY
BAH?'?S OF THE UNITED STATES
First Statement from the Universal House of Justice
Presented April 30, 1963, at the World Congress
"All praise, O my God, be to Thee Who art the Source of all glory and
majesty, of greatness and honor, of sovereignty and dominion, of
loftiness and grace, of awe and power. Whomsoever Thou willest Thou
causest to draw nigh unto the Most Great Ocean, and on whomsoever Thou
desirest Thou conferrest the honor of recognizing Thy Most Ancient Name.
Of all who are in heaven and on earth, none can withstand the operation
of Thy sovereign Will. From all eternity Thou didst rule the entire
creation, and Thou wilt continue for evermore to exercise Thy dominion
over all created things. There is none other God but Thee, the Almighty,
the Most Exalted, the All-Powerful, the All-Wise."
Beloved friends:
On this glorious occasion, the celebration of the Most Great Jubilee, we
raise our grateful thanks to Bahá'u'lláh for all His bounties showered
upon the friends throughout the world. This historic moment marks at one
and the same time the fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy, the hundredth
anniversary of the Declaration of the Promised One of all ages, the
termination of the first epoch of the Divine Plan of 'Abdu'l-Bahá
designed to establish the Faith of God in all the world, and the
successful conclusion of our beloved Guardian's world-encircling
Crusade, enabling his lovers and loved ones everywhere to lay this
glorious harvest of victory in his name at the feet of the Blessed
Beauty. This Most Great Jubilee is the crowning victory of the life work
of Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Cause of God. He it was, and he
alone, who unfolded the potentialities of the widely scattered,
numerically small, and largely unorganized Bahá'í community which had
been called into being during the Heroic Age of the Faith. He it was who
unfolded the grand design of God's Holy C set in motion the great
plans of teaching already outlined by 'Abdu'l-Bahá; established the
institutions and greatly extended the endowments at the World Center,
and raised the Temples of America, Africa, Australasia, and E
developed the Administrative Order of the Cause
and set the ark of the Cause true on its course. He appointed the Hands
of the Cause of God.
The paeans of joy and gratitude, of love and adoration which we now
raise to the throne of Bahá'u'lláh would be inadequate, and the
celebrations of this Most Great Jubilee in which, as promised by our
beloved Guardian, we are now engaged would be marred, were no tribute
paid at this time to the Hands of the Cause of God. For they share the
victory with their beloved commander, he who raised them up and appointed
them. They kept the ship on its course and brought it safe to port. The
Universal House of Justice, with pride and love, recalls on this supreme
occasion its profound admiration for the heroic work which they have
accomplished. We do not wish to dwell on the appalling dangers which
faced the infant Cause when it was suddenly deprived of our beloved
Shoghi Effendi, but rather to acknowledge with all the love and
gratitude of our hearts the reality of the sacrifice, the labor, the
self-discipline, the superb stewardship of the Hands of the Cause of
God. We can think of no more fitting words to express our tribute to
these dearly loved and valiant souls than to recall the words of
Bahá'u'lláh Himself: "Light and glory, greeting and praise be upon the
Hands of His Cause, through whom the
light of long-suffering hath shone forth, and the declaration of
authority is proven of God, the powerful, the mighty,
and through whom the sea of bestowal hath moved, and the breeze of the
favor of God, the Lord of mankind, hath wafted."
The members of the Universal House of Justice, all being in Haifa at the
time of the election, were able to visit the Holy Shrines of
Bahá'u'lláh, the Báb, and of 'Abdu'l-Bahá,
where they prostrated
themselves at the Sacred Thresholds and humbly sought strength and
assistance in the mighty task before them. Later, in London, they have
paid homage at the resting-place of Shoghi Effendi, the blessed and
sacred bough of the Tree of Holiness.
As soon as the House of Justice is able to organize its work and deploy
its forces, it will examine carefully all the conditions of the Cause of
God, and communications will be made to the friends. At this time we
call upon the believers everywhere to follow up vigorously the
opportunities opened up by the World Crusade. Consolidation and
deepening must go hand in hand with an eager extension of the teaching
work so that the onward march of the Cause may continue unabated in
preparation for future plans. Now that the attention of the public is
becoming more and more drawn to the Cause of God, the friends must brace
themselves and prepare their institutions to sustain the gaze of the
world, whether it be friendly or hostile, eager or idle.
The Universal House of Justice greets you all lovingly and joyfully at
this time, and asks you to pray fervently for its speedy development and
the spiritual strengthening of its members.
Message to National Conventions — 1963
The marvelous happenings which have transpired during and immediately
after the twelve days of Ridván attest the greatness of the Cause of
God, and fill every Bahá'í heart to overflowing with joy and gratitude.
It was in obedience to the summons of the Lord of Hosts Himself that the
elected representatives of the fifty-six national and regional
communities of the Bahá'í world were called to elect, in the shadow of
God's Holy Mountain and in the house of the Center of His Covenant, the
members of the Universal House of Justice. It was the Sign of God on
earth, the Dayspring of Divine Guidance, the Guardian of the Cause of
God, who gathered more than six thousand Bahá'ís from all parts of the
earth to the celebration of the Most Great Jubilee in London.
The first of these historic occasions was marked by events of extreme
spiritual and administrative significance at the World Center of the
Faith. The daily visits of large groups of believers, of many varying
backgrounds, to the sacred shrines in
the holding
of the first International Bahá'í Convention and the successful
accomplishm the celebration of the Ridván Feast by
some three hundred believers in the company of the Hands of the Cause of
God in the precincts of the Haram-i-Aqdas, are events of unique
character and untold significance in the history of our beloved Faith.
The celebration of the Most Great Jubilee in London must be described
elsewhere. Suffice it to say now that this greatest gathering of Bahá'ís
ever held in one place was
permeated by a spirit of such bliss as could only have come from the
outpourings of the Abhá Kingdom. The review of the progress of the
C the presentation of believers from the new races and countries of
the world brought within the pale of the Faith during the beloved
Guardian's Ten Year Crusade, of the Knights of Bahá'u'lláh, those
valiant souls who carried the banner of Bahá'u'lláh to the unopened and
often inhospitable
the spontaneous outbursts of
singing of "Alláh-u-Abhá," the informal gatherings, the constant
greetings of Bahá'u'lláh's warriors known to each other only by name and
the unprecedented publicity in the press,
the daily stream of visitors to the beloved
Guardian's resting- the radiant faces and heightened awareness of
the true and real brotherhood of the human race within the Kingdom of
the Everlasting Father, are among the outstanding events of this supreme
occasion, the crowning victory of the life work of Shoghi Effendi.
REAFFIRMING A TRIBUTE
The Universal House of Justice wishes to reaffirm at this time the
tribute which it felt moved to pay to the Hands of the Cause of God at
the World Congress, those precious souls who have brought the Cause
safely to victory in the name of Shoghi Effendi. We wish also to
remember the devoted work of their Auxiliary Board members, as well as
the services of the Knights of Bahá'u'lláh, of the army of pioneers, the
members of the national and regional spiritual assemblies, the services
and prayers and sacrifices of the believers everywhere, all of which in
the sum total have attracted such bounties and favors from Bahá'u'lláh.
The Universal House of Justice, in several sessions held in the Holy
Land and in London, has been able to initiate
its work and to make arrangements for the establishment of the
institution in Haifa. It has no officers and henceforth its
communications to the Bahá'í world will be signed UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF
JUSTICE over an embossed seal.
The Cause of God, launched on the sea of the Divine Plan of
'Abdu'l-Bahá, has achieved, under the superb leadership of its beloved
Guardian, a spread throughout the world and a momentum which must now
carry it forward on the next stage of its world-redeeming mission, the
second epoch of the Divine Plan. The Universal House of Justice, in
close consultation with the Hands of the Cause, is examining the vast
range of Bahá'í activity and growth in order to prepare a detailed plan
of expansion for the whole Bahá'í community, to be launched at Ridván
1964. But there are some objectives to be achieved at once.
IMMEDIATE OBJECTIVES
The consolidation of the goals and new communities of the Bahá'í world
is an urgent and immediate task facing the fifty-six national spiritual
assemblies, and an essential preparation for the launching of the new
plans. Pioneers must be maintained at their posts and all the local
spiritual assemblies strengthened through a firm establishment of Bahá'í
community life and an active teaching program. Those national spiritual
assemblies which rest on the basis of a small number of local spiritual
assemblies must make great efforts to insure that this number will be
increased at Ridván 1964. Pioneers ready to go to consolidation areas,
as well as those eager to open new territories, should make their offers
through their national spiritual assembly.
The great work of teaching must be extended, not only in those areas
where mass conversion is beginning, but everywhere. The high intensity
of teaching activity reached at the end of the World Crusade, far from
slackening, must
now be increased as the friends everywhere draw on the vast spiritual
powers released as a result of the celebration of the Most Great Jubilee
and the emergence of the Universal House of Justice.
The Ten Year Crusade witnessed the completion of the structure of the
Mother Temple of Europe. It is now imperative to complete, without
delay, the interior decoration, to install utilities and lay access
roads, to landscape grounds, and to construct the caretaker's house.
This work will cost not less than $210,000, but if delayed it will cost
considerably more. The House of Justice calls upon the national
spiritual assemblies to allocate substantial budgets for the immediate
completion of this work.
PROJECTS TO BE EMBARKED UPON
The plan to be embarked upon next Ridván, the details of which will be
announced during the coming year, will include such projects as the
extension and embellishment of the endowments at the World C
collation of the writings of Bahá'u'lláh, 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and Shoghi
E continual reinforcement of the ties binding the Bahá'í world to
the United N formation of many more national spiritual
assemblies, both by division of existing regional spiritual assemblies
and the development of new Bahá'í communities, together with the
purchase of national Hazíratu'l-Quds, Temple sites, and national
the opening of new territories to the F detailed plans
for national spiritual assemblies involving, in some areas,
consolidation goals, in others the multiplication of Bahá'í institutes
and schools, in others a great enrichment of Bahá'í literature, and in
all a vast increase in the number of Bahá'ís, and the holding of oceanic
and intercontinental conferences.
All such expansion and development of the Faith will
be dependent upon the Bahá'í Fund. The Universal House of Justice calls
the attention of every believer to this vital and pressing matter, and
asks the national spiritual assemblies to pay special attention to the
principle of universal participation, so that every single follower of
Bahá'u'lláh may make his offering, however small or great, and thereby
identify himself with the work of the Cause everywhere. It is our hope
that a constant flow of contributions to the International Fund will
make it possible to build up sufficient reserves for the launching of
the new plan in 1964.
Beloved friends, we enter the second epoch of the Divine Plan blessed
beyond compare, riding the crest of a great wave of victory produced
for us by our beloved Guardian. The Cause of God is now firmly rooted in
the world. Forward then, confident in the power and protection of the
Lord of Hosts, Who will, through storm and trial, toil and jubilee, use
His devoted followers to bring to a despairing humanity the life-giving
waters of His supreme Revelation.
May 7, 1963 — (London)
Seat of the Universal House of J
New Arrangements for Pilgrims
The Universal House of Justice has been deeply moved and its hopes have
been raised high by the many messages of love, devotion, and eager
anticipation which have been received from national conventions and
national spiritual assemblies.
Two decisions have been taken by the Universal House of Justice
involving a further development of the institutions at the World Center.
The former offices of the International Bahá'í Council at 10 Haparsim
Street being inadequate for the far greater volume of work facing the
Universal House of Justice, it has been decided to take over the whole
of this building (until now called the Western Pilgrim House) as the
seat, for the present time, of the Universal House of Justice.
This decision made it necessary to find other accommodation for the
western pilgrims and led directly to the second decision. After careful
consideration of the alternatives, the House of Justice has decided that
the time has come to take the significant step, anticipated by our
beloved Guardian, of housing all pilgrims in one place. It was found
possible, by slight alterations, to accommodate all pilgrims, without
lessening the number, in the former Eastern Pilgrim House and its
adjacent buildings. We have therefore established one Pilgrim House, at
the Bahá'í gardens on Mount Carmel. The friends should note that this is
where they should go on arrival.
All friends whose pilgrimages have been confirmed for
1963-64 are therefore expected. There are still vacancies after December
1963, but only a very few before that date.
We have asked the Hands of the Cause residing in the Holy Land to
continue to be responsible for the program of the pilgrims while they
are here, but letters requesting permission to come should be addressed
to the Universal House of Justice.
June 16, 1963*
In April 1969 a new action was taken by the Universal House of Justice
to open the door of pilgrimage to a greater number of believers, and
instructions were given the national spiritual assemblies concerning
procedures to be followed.
The Guardianship
We wish to share with you the text of the following resolution:
"After prayerful and careful study of the Holy Texts bearing upon the
question of the appointment of the successor to Shoghi Effendi as
Guardian of the Cause of God, and after prolonged consultation which
included consideration of the views of the Hands of the Cause of God
residing in the Holy Land, the Universal House of Justice finds that
there is no way to appoint or to legislate to make it possible to
appoint a second Guardian to succeed Shoghi Effendi."
Please share this message with the friends in your jurisdiction.
October 6, 1963*
Second World-Encircling Enterprise
Six years ago when nearing the midway point of the Ten Year Crusade, the
Bahá'í world found itself abruptly deprived of the guiding hand of its
beloved Guardian. The anguish which then seized our hearts, far from
paralyzing the progress of the Cause, stiffened our resolve and fired
our zeal to complete the tasks which God, through His Chosen Branch, had
laid upon us. The august institution of the Hands of the Cause of God,
which he had, but recently, in compliance with the instruction of the
Master's Will, raised up, kept the people of this Cause faithfully to
the path which had been shown to us by the pen of Divine guidance, and
brought us not only to the triumphal conclusion of that Crusade but to
the culminating point of the construction of the framework of
Bahá'u'lláh's World Order.
In March 1930 Shoghi Effendi wrote that Bahá'u'lláh and
'Abdu'l-Bahá had
"in unequivocal and emphatic language, appointed those twin institutions
of the House of Justice and of the Guardianship as Their chosen
successors, destined to apply the principles, promulgate the laws,
protect the institutions, adapt loyally and intelligently the Faith to
the requirements of progressive society, and consummate the
incorruptible inheritance which the Founders of the Faith have
bequeathed to the world." After long and prayerful consultation, the
House of Justice, as the friends have already been informed, found that
there is no way in which it can legislate for a second Guardian to
succeed Shoghi Effendi. The Universal House of Justice has therefore
begun, in humble obedience to the will of God,
and strengthened by daily prayer in the holy shrines, to undertake the
heavy tasks laid upon it. In the words of our beloved Guardian it "will
guide, organize, and unify the affairs of the Movement throughout the
world" and "will have to consider afresh the whole situation, and lay
down the principle which shall direct, so long as it deems advisable,
the affairs of the Cause."
COVENANT OF BAH?'U'LL?H
The Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh is unbroken, its all-encompassing power
inviolate. The two unique features which distinguish it from all
religious covenants of the past are unchanged and operative. The
revealed Word, in its original purity, amplified by the divinely guided
interpretations of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi, remains immutable,
unadulterated by any man-made creeds or dogmas, unwarrantable
inferences, or unauthorized interpretations. The channel of Divine
guidance, providing flexibility in all the affairs of mankind, remains
open through that institution which was founded by Bahá'u'lláh and
endowed by Him with supreme authority and unfailing guidance, and of
which the Master wrote: "Unto this body all things must be referred."
How clearly we can see the truth of Bahá'u'lláh's assertion: "The Hand
of Omnipotence hath established His Revelation upon an enduring
foundation. Storms of human strife are powerless to undermine its basis,
nor will men's fanciful theories succeed in damaging its structure."
RESPONSIBILITY OF THE INSTITUTIONS
As the significance of the Cause of God continues in the years ahead to
become more clearly apparent to the eyes of men, a great responsibility
to watch over its security rests upon all of its institutions. The
institution of the Hands of
the Cause of God, charged in the Sacred Texts with the specific duties
of protecting and propagating the Faith, has a particularly vital
responsibility to discharge. In their capacity as protectors of the
Faith, the Hands will continue to take action to expel Covenant-breakers
and to reinstate those who sincerely repent, subject in each instance to
the approval of the Universal House of Justice. Exercising their
function of propagating the Faith, the Hands of the Cause will inspire,
advise, and assist the national spiritual assemblies in the work as they
did in the time of our beloved Shoghi Effendi, assisted by the members
of their Auxiliary Boards, who will continue to fulfill those functions
outlined for them by him.
We stand now upon the threshold of the second epoch of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's
Divine Plan, with the outposts of the Cause established in the remotest
corners of the earth, and having already witnessed the beginnings of
that entry into the Faith by troops promised by the Master Himself. The
foundation of the Kingdom has been securely laid, the framework has been
raised. The friends must now consolidate these achievements, safeguard
their institutions, and gather the peoples and kindreds of the world
into the ark which the Hand of God has built.
SECOND WORLD-ENCIRCLING ENTERPRISE
Next Ridván will be launched the second of those world-encircling
enterprises destined in the course of time to carry the Word of God to
every human soul. The standard bearers of this Nine Year Plan are the
Hands of the Cause of God. The responsibility for directing the work
will rest upon the shoulders of the national spiritual assemblies, the
generals of the army of Light, under the guidance of the Universal House
of Justice.
As the first step inaugurating this great undertaking we
rejoice to announce the formation next Ridván of nineteen national
spiritual assemblies, resulting in the dissolution of six of the
existing regional national spiritual assemblies, and bringing the total
number of these pillars of the Universal House of Justice to sixty-nine.
The national and regional national assemblies now to be formed are:
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of North West Africa,
with its seat in Tunis, comprising Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Spanish
Sahara, Rio de Oro, Mauritania, the Canary Is., and Madeira.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of West Africa, with
its seat in Monrovia, comprising Liberia, Senegal, Gambia, Portuguese
Guinea, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Mali, Upper Volta, Ivory Coast, and Cape
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of West Central
Africa, with its seat in Victoria, comprising Cameroon, Spanish Guinea,
St. Thomas I., Fernando Po I., Corisco I., Nigeria, Niger, Dahomey,
Togo, and Ghana.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Uganda and Central
Africa, with its seat in Kampala, comprising Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi,
the Republic of the Congo (Ex-Belgian), the Congo Republic (Ex-French),
Central African Republic, Gabon, and Chad.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Kenya, with its
seat in Nairobi.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Tanganyika and
Zanzibar, with its seat in Dars-es-Salaam, comprising Tanganyika,
Zanzibar, Mafia I., and Pemba I.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of South Central
Africa, with its seat in Salisbury, comprising Nyasaland, Northern
Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia, and Bechuanaland.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of South and West
Africa, with its seat in Johannesburg, comprising Angola, South West
Africa, South Africa, Zululand, Swaziland, Basutoland, Mozambique, and
St. Helena.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Indian Ocean,
with its seat in Port Louis, comprising Mauritius, the Malagasy
Republic, Reunion I., Seychelles Is., Comoro Is., and the Chagos
Archipelago.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Hawaiian
Islands, with its seat in Honolulu.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the South Pacific
Ocean, with its seat in Suva, comprising the Gilbert and Ellice Is.,
Nauru I., Fiji, Samoa Is., Tonga Is., and Cook Is.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the South West
Pacific Ocean, with its seat in Honiara, comprising the Solomon Is., New
Hebrides Is., New Caledonia, and Loyalty Is.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of North East Asia,
with its seat in Tokyo, comprising Japan, Formosa, Hong Kong, and Macau.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Korea, with its
seat in Seoul.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Malaysia, with its
seat in Kuala Lumpur, comprising Malaya, Singapore, Brunei, Sabah, and
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of
Indonesia, with its seat in Djakarta, comprising Indonesia, the Mentawai
Is., Portuguese Timor, and West Irian.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Viet Nam, with its
seat in Saigon, and having jurisdiction over the Bahá'ís of Cambodia.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Thailand, with its
seat in Bangkok, and having jurisdiction over the Bahá'ís of Laos.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Philippines,
with its seat in Manila.
The detailed goals of the Plan, which will include sixty-nine national
plans, have yet to be announced, but they must be such as to develop
still further the World Center of the Faith and the work of its
to consolidate those territories which have already been
opened to the F to bring God's healing Message to many more of the
peoples and territories of the world including all the unopened
territories of the Ten Year Crusade and all the remaining independent
and to achieve worldwide proclamation of the Faith
to mark the Centenary of Bahá'u'lláh's Proclamation to the kings and
rulers in .
In the spring of 1968 the next election for the Universal House of
Justice will take place.
THIRD EPOCH OF FORMATIVE AGE
Beloved friends, the Cause of God, guarded and nurtured since its
inception by God's Messengers, by the Center of His Covenant, and by His
Sign on earth, now enters a new epoch, the third of the Formative Age.
It must now grow rapidly in size, increase its spiritual cohesion and
executive ability, develop its institutions, and extend its influence
all strata of society. We, its members, must, by constant study of the
life-giving Word, and by dedicated service, deepen in spiritual
understanding and show to the world a mature, responsible, fundamentally
assured, and happy way of life, far removed from the passions,
prejudices, and distractions of present-day society. Relying upon God
alone, we can promote His Cause and establish His Kingdom on earth. Only
thus can we prove our love for Those Who brought this new Day into
being. Only thus can we prove the truth of Their Divine Mission and
demonstrate how valid was Their sacrifice.
October 1963
A Service Every Believer Can Render
With the rapid approach of the launching of the Nine Year Plan, the
Universal House of Justice feels that it is timely to lay clearly before
the Bahá'ís of all countries the needs of the Fund at all its levels:
local, national, continental, and international.
The continual expansion of the Faith and the diversification of the
activities of Bahá'í communities make it more and more necessary for
every believer to ponder carefully his responsibilities and contribute
as much and as regularly as he or she can. Contributing to the Fund is a
service that every believer can render, b for this
is a spiritual responsibility in which the amount given is not
important. It is the degree of the sacrifice of the giver, the love with
which he makes his gift, and the unity of all the friends in this
service which bring spiritual confirmations. As the beloved Guardian
wrote in August 1957: "All, no matter how modest their resources, must
participate. Upon the degree of self-sacrifice involved in these
individual contributions will directly depend the efficacy and the
spiritual influence which these nascent administrative institutions,
called into being through the power of Bahá'u'lláh, and by virtue of the
design conceived by the Center of His Covenant, will exert."
Not only the individual's responsibility to contribute is important at
this time, but also the uses to which the fund is put and the areas in
which it is expended.
Much of the present rapid expansion of the Faith is taking place in
areas of great poverty where the believers,
however much they sacrifice, cannot produce sufficient funds to sustain
the work. It is these very areas which are the most fruitful in
teaching, and a sum of money spent here will produce ten times — even a
hundred times — the results obtainable in other parts of the world. Yet
in the past months the Universal House of Justice has had to refuse a
number of appeals for assistance from such areas because there just was
not enough money in the International Fund.
It should therefore be the aim of every local and national community to
become not only self-supporting, but to expend its funds with such
wisdom and economy as to be able to contribute substantially to the
Bahá'í International Fund, thus enabling the House of Justice to aid the
work in fruitful but impoverished areas, to assist new national
assemblies to start their work, to contribute to major international
undertakings of the Nine Year Plan such as oceanic conferences, and to
carry forward the work of beautifying the land surrounding the holy
shrines at the World Center of the Faith.
Nor should the believers, individually or in their assemblies, forget
the vitally important continental funds which provide for the work of
the Hands of the Cause of God and their Auxiliary Boards. This divine
institution, so assiduously fostered by the Guardian, and which has
already played a unique role in the history of the Faith, is destined to
render increasingly important services in the years to come.
In the midst of a civilization torn by strifes and enfeebled by
materialism, the people of Bahá are building a new world. We face at
this time opportunities and responsibilities of vast magnitude and great
urgency. Let each believer in his inmost heart resolve not to be seduced
by the ephemeral allurements of the society around him, nor to
be drawn into its feuds and shortlived enthusiasms, but instead to
transfer all he can from the old world to that new one which is the
vision of his longing and will be the fruit of his labors.
December 18, 1963
Call to Action — Nine Year Plan
The divinely propelled process, described in such awe-inspiring words by
our beloved Guardian, which began six thousand years ago at the dawn of
the Adamic Cycle and which is destined to culminate in "the stage at
which the light of God's triumphant Faith shining in all its power and
glory will have suffused and enveloped the entire planet," is now
entering its tenth and last part.
The Ten Year Crusade, so recently consummated in a blaze of victory and
rejoicing, constituted the entire ninth part of this process. It saw the
Cause of God leap forward in one mighty decade-long effort to the point
at which the foundations of its Administrative Order were laid
throughout the world, thus preparing the way for that awakening of the
masses which must characterize the future progress of the Faith.
From the beginning of this Dispensation the most urgent summons of the
Word of God, voiced successively by the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh,
has been to
teach the Cause. 'Abdu'l-Bahá, in His own words, "spent His days and
nights in promoting the Cause and urging the peoples to service." Shoghi
Effendi, discharging the sacred mission laid upon him, raised the
Administrative Order of the Faith, already enshrined within the Sacred
Writings, and forged it into a teaching instrument to accomplish through
a succession of plans, national, international, and global, the entire
Divine Plan of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and he clearly foresaw in the "tremendously
long" tenth part of the process already referred to a series of plans to
be launched by the Universal
House of Justice, extending over "successive epochs of both the
Formative and Golden Ages of the Faith."
The first of these plans is now before us. Opening at Ridván 1964, while
the memories of the glorious Jubilee of 1963 still surge within our
hearts, it must, during its nine-year course, witness a huge expansion
of the Cause of God and universal participation by all believers in the
life of that Cause.
TASKS AT THE WORLD CENTER
At the World Center of the Faith the tasks of the Plan include:
Publication of a synopsis and codification of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the
Most Holy B
Formulation of the constitution of the Universal House of J
Development of the institution of the Hands of the Cause of God, in
consultation with the body of the Hands of the Cause, with a view to the
extension into the future of its appointed functions of protection and
Continued collation and classification of the Bahá'í Sacred Scriptures
as well as of the writings of Shoghi E
Continued efforts directed towards the emancipation of the Faith from
the fetters of religious orthodoxy and its recognition as an independent
The preparation of a plan for the befitting development and
beautification of the entire area of Bahá'í property surrounding the
Extension of the existing gardens on Mount C
Development of the relationship between the Bahá'í Community and the
The holding of oceanic and intercon
The coordination of worldwide plans to commemorate, in 1967/68, the
centenary of Bahá'u'lláh's Proclamation to the kings and rulers which
centered round His revelation of the Súriy-i-Mulúk in Adrianople.
TASKS FOR THE WORLD COMMUNITY
In the world community the Plan involves:
The opening of seventy virgin territories and the resettlement of
The raising of the number of national spiritual assemblies, the pillars
sustaining the Universal House of Justice, to one hundred and eight,
nine times the number which embarked on the first historic World Crusade
Increasing the number of local spiritual assemblies to over thirteen
thousand seven hundred, scattered throughout the territories and islands
of the world, at least one thousand seven hundred of them to be
The raising of the number of localities where Bahá'ís reside to over
The building of two more Mashriqu'l-Adhkárs, one in Asia and one in
The acquisition of:
Thirty-two teaching institutes,
Fifty-two national Hazíratu'l-Quds,
Fifty-four national endowments, and
Sites for sixty-two future T
Wide extension of recognition by civil authorities of the Bahá'í holy
days and Bahá'í m
The translation of literature into one hundred and thirty-three more
languages, and its enrichment in major languages into which translations
The establishment of four new Bahá'í publishing trusts, and
A vast increase in the financial resources of the Faith.
THE ROLE OF THE INDIVIDUAL
The healthy development of the Cause requires that this great expansion
be accompanied by the dedicated effort of every believer in teaching, in
living the Bahá'í life, in contributing to the Fund, and particularly in
the persistent effort to understand more and more the significance of
Bahá'u'lláh's Revelation. In the words of our beloved Guardian, "One
thing and only one thing will unfailingly and alone secure the undoubted
triumph of this sacred Cause, namely, the extent to which our own inner
life and private character mirror forth in their manifold aspects the
splendor of those eternal principles proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh."
TWIN OBJECTIVES OF THE NINE YEAR PLAN
Expansion and universal participation are the twin objectives of this
initial phase of the second epoch of the Divine Plan, and all the goals
assigned to the sixty-nine national communities are contributory to
them. The process
of cooperation between national spiritual assemblies, already initiated
by the beloved Guardian, will, during the course of this Plan, apply to
over two hundred specific projects and will further strengthen this
process which may well assume great importance in future stages of the
Formative Age.
Once more, dear friends, we enter the battle, but with an incomparably
greater array than that which embarked upon the World Crusade in 1953.
To that small force of twelve national communities, now veteran
campaigners, have been added fifty-seven new legions, each under the
generalship of a national spiritual assembly, each destined to become a
veteran of this and future campaigns. That Crusade began with slightly
more than six hundred local spiritual assemblies, the greater part of
which were situated in Persia, North America, and E the home
fronts now comprise nearly four thousand six hundred local spiritual
assemblies scattered throughout the continents and islands of the world.
We begin this Plan with a tremendous momentum, exemplified by the
addition, since last Ridván, of over four thousand new centers and
thirteen national spiritual assemblies, and by the beginning, in several
countries, of that entry by troops into the Cause of God prophesied by
'Abdu'l-Bahá and so eagerly anticipated by Him.
The standard bearers of this Nine Year Plan are those same divinely
appointed, tried, and victorious souls who bore the standard of the
World Crusade, the Hands of the Cause of God, whose advice and
consultation have been invaluable in the working out of this Nine Year
Plan. Supported by their "deputies, assistants, and advisers," the
members of the Auxiliary Boards, they will inspire and protect the army
of God, lead through every breach to the limit of available resources,
and sustain those communities struggling over intractable or stony
ground, so that by 1973
the celebrations befitting the centenary of the revelation of the Most
Holy Book may be undertaken by a victorious, firmly established,
organically united world community, dedicated to the service of God and
the final triumph of His Cause.
Therefore let each of the sixty-nine communities seize its tasks, at
once consider how best to accomplish them within the allotted span,
raise its band of pioneers, consecrate itself to unremitting labor, and
set out on its mission. Now is the golden opportunity. For whatever
convulsions the waywardness of a godless and materialistic age may yet
precipitate in the world, however grievous may be the effects of the
rolling up of the present order on the plans and efforts of the
community of the Most Great Name, we must seize the opportunities of the
hour and go forward confident that all things are within His mighty
grasp and that, if we but play our part, total and unconditional victory
will inevitably be ours.
Ridván 1964
Dedication of the Mother Temple of Europe
We have just witnessed the dedication of the Mother Temple of Europe — a
project of untold significance and tremendous potential for the spread
of the light of God's Faith in that continent. One of the major
achievements called for by our beloved Guardian at the outset of the Ten
Year Crusade, this Mashriqu'l-Adhkár was triumphantly raised during its
closing years as the fruit of long and arduous labors in the face of
determined opposition and upon the sacrificial gifts of believers from
all parts of the world. Now dedicated in the opening months of the Nine
Yea Plan, it forms a striking link between these two great crusades,
demonstrating afresh the organic progress of the Cause whereby the
efforts exerted in one period bear fruit in the next, which in turn
endow the Bahá'í community with new and greater capacities for the
winning of still greater victories.
You are now gathered in this conference to deliberate on ways and means
of accomplishing the goals which are set before you. Let every believer,
as he considers in detail these various goals, bear in mind four supreme
objectives: to carry the Message of Bahá'u'lláh to every stratum of
society, not only in the towns and cities but also in the villages and
country districts where the virus of materialism has had much less
effect to take urgent, wise, and well-considered
steps to spread the Faith to those countries of Eastern Europe in which
it has not ye to reinforce strongly the heroic band
of pioneers
in the islands of the Mediterranean and the North Sea — islands which are
to play such an important role in the awakening of the entire
continent — as well as to prosecute energetically the goals you are
called upon to achieve in other c and to foster the
cooperation between national communities and between national spiritual
assemblies and the Hands of the Cause of God which has contributed, so
markedly to the work of the Faith on that continent and is so essential
for its future development.
Above all, let every European Bahá'í have ever-present in his mind that
these are the five years during which Bahá'u'lláh sojourned on the soil
of that continent a century ago. Let him resolve so to deepen his
knowledge of the Faith and so to increase his standards of
self-sacrifice and dedication to the Cause as to play his part in
building a community which will be worthy of this supreme bounty and
which will be a beacon light to the peoples of this fear-wracked world.
In 1953 Shoghi Effendi wrote that the continent of Europe had "at last
at this critical hour — this great turning point in its fortunes entered
upon what may well be regarded as the opening phase of a great spiritual
revival that bids fair to eclipse any period in its spiritual history."
Those who have been privileged to witness the extraordinary
strengthening and consolidation of the Cause in Europe during the course
of the last eleven years are well aware of the reservoir of spiritual
potential that has been building up and the transformation of the life
of the European Bahá'í community that has ensued. May the completion and
dedication of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár be the signal for the unleashing of
this potential, bringing about on the European mainland and in the
islands around its shores a quickening of the process of individual
conversion comparable to those
events which have transpired with such astonishing suddenness in other
continents of the globe.
The above message was addressed to those gathered in the European
Teaching Conference called on the occasion of the dedication of the
Mother Temple of Europe.
Teaching the Masses
When the masses of mankind are awakened and enter the Faith of God, a
new process is set in motion and the growth of a new civilization
begins. Witness the emergence of Christianity and of Islám. These masses
are the rank and file, steeped in traditions of their own, but receptive
to the new Word of God, by which, when they truly respond to it, they
become so influenced as to transform those who come in contact with
God's standards are different from those of men. According to men's
standards, the acceptance of any cause by people of distinction, of
recognized fame and status, determines the value and greatness of that
cause. But, in the words of Bahá'u'lláh: "The summons and Message which
We gave were never intended to reach or to benefit one land or one
people only. Mankind in its entirety must firmly adhere to whatsoever
has been revealed and vouchsafed unto it." Or again, "He has endowed
every soul with the capacity to recognize the signs of God. How could
He, otherwise, have fulfilled His testimony unto men, if ye be of them
that ponder His Cause in their hearts." In countries where teaching the
masses has succeeded, the Bahá'ís have poured out their time and effort
in village areas to the same extent as they had formerly done in cities
and towns. The results indicate how unwise it is to solely concentrate
on one section of the population. Each national assembly therefore
should so balance its resources and harmonize its efforts that the Faith
of God is taught not only to those who are
readily accessible but to all sections of society, however remote they
The unsophisticated people of the world — and they form the large
majority of its population — have the same right to know of the Cause of
God as others. When the friends are teaching the Word of God they should
be careful to give the Message in the same simplicity as it is
enunciated in our teachings. In their contacts they must show genuine
and divine love. The heart of an unlettered soul is
any trace of prejudice on the part of the pioneer or teacher is
immediately sensed.
When teaching among the masses, the friends should be careful not to
emphasize the charitable and humanitarian aspects of the Faith as a
means to win recruits. Experience has shown that when facilities such as
schools, dispensaries, hospitals, or even clothes and food are offered
to the people being taught, many complications arise. The prime motive
should always be the response of man to God's Message, and the
recognition of His Messenger. Those who declare themselves as Bahá'ís
should become enchanted with the beauty of the teachings, and touched by
the love of Bahá'u'lláh. The declarants need not know all the proofs,
history, laws, and principles of the Faith, but in the process of
declaring themselves they must, in addition to catching the spark of
faith, become basically informed about the Central Figures of the Faith,
as well as the existence of laws they must follow and an administration
they must obey.
After declaration, the new believers must not be left to their own
devices. Through correspondence and dispatch of visitors, through
conferences and training courses, these friends must be patiently
strengthened and lovingly helped to develop into full Bahá'í maturity.
The beloved Guardian, referring to the duties of Bahá'í assemblies in
assisting the
newly declared believer, has written: ". . . the members of each and every
assembly should endeavor, by their patience, their love, their tact and
wisdom, to nurse, subsequent to his admission, the newcomer into Bahá'í
maturity, and win him over gradually to the unreserved acceptance of
whatever has been ordained in the teachings."
Expansion and consolidation are twin processes that must go hand in
hand. The friends must not stop expansion in the name of consolidation.
Deepening the newly enrolled believers generates tremendous stimulus
which results in further expansion. The enrollment of new believers, on
the other hand, creates a new spirit in the community and provides
additional potential manpower that will reinforce the consolidation
We would like to share with you some of the methods by national
assemblies in various continents that have proved useful in teaching the
masses, and attach a list. Certain of these may be valuable in your
area, in addition to any methods you may yourself devise.
We are fervently praying that all national and local spiritual
assemblies, supported by the individual believers, will achieve
outstanding success in the fulfillment of this glorious objective.
July 13, 1964*
Teaching the Masses — Annex
1. Materials are sent at once to the new believers. In some places this
material is in the form of printed cards, mainly in color, portraying a
Bahá'í theme or principle. This helps the new believer to know that his
declaration
has been accepted and to feel that he now belongs to the new Faith.
2. Training courses of about two weeks duration are held. To facilitate
attendance and reduce cost, a number of villages are grouped together as
one zone in which the course is held. The students to the courses are
usually selected, so that the more capable participate and teaching is
facilitated. Transportation expenses, feeding, and accommodation are
provided if it is found that the participants are unable to cover such
expenses themselves. The material to be taught is prepared ahead of
time, presented in simple language, and translated into the vernacular.
After the course, the more promising students are picked out and with
their consent, are requested to undertake teaching projects for a
limited period. It is sometimes found that long-term projects are also
useful. These projects generally are carefully planned as to their
duration, places to be visited, and material to be taught. If the
traveling teachers are not able to cover their expenses, traveling and
living expenses are provided by the Fund for the execution of a given
and temporary teaching project.
3. Shorter training courses in the form of conferences over a long
weekend are held.
4. These activities — training courses and conferences — are repeated as
frequently as possible and are not dependent upon the acquisition of
teaching institutes. In the absence of such institutes, these courses
and conferences are normally held in Bahá'í homes or hired quarters,
such as schools, etc. In order to facilitate the physical catering and
accommodation of the participants, they are sometimes asked to come to
the course with their eating utensils and bedding.
5. In the visits made to the villages, the visiting teacher meets with
the local communities to give them basic Bahá'í
knowledge, such as living the Bahá'í life, the importance of teaching,
prayer, fasting, Nineteen Day Feasts, Bahá'í elections, and
contributions to the Fund. The question of contributions to the Fund is
of utmost importance, so that the new believers may quickly feel
themselves to be responsible members of the community. Each national
assembly must find ways and means to stimulate the offering of
contributions, in cash or kind, to make it easy for the friends to
contribute and to give proper receipts to the donors.
These are but suggestions based on experience which may help you in your
efforts to teach and deepen the spiritually starved multitudes in your
In the course of carrying out such a tremendous spiritual campaign among
the masses, disappointments may well be encountered. We tabulate a few
instances that have been brought to our notice:
a) Visiting pioneers or teachers may find, in some places, newly
enrolled believers not so enthusiastic about their religion as expected,
or not adjusting to standards of Bahá'í life, or they may find them
thinking of material benefits they may hope to derive from their new
membership. We should always remember that the process of nursing the
believer into full spiritual maturity is slow, and needs loving
education and patience.
b) Some teaching committees, in their eagerness to obtain results, place
undue emphasis on obtaining a great number of declarations to the
detriment of the quality of teaching.
c) Some teaching teachers, in their desire to show the result of their
services, may not scrupulously teach their contacts, and in some rare
cases, if, God forbid, they are insincere, may even give false reports.
Such irregularities have happened and can be repeated, but must not be a
source of discouragement. By sending a
team of teachers to an area, or by sending at intervals other teachers
to those areas, and through correspondence and reports, such situations
can be detected and immediately adjusted. The administration of the
Faith must at all times keep in close touch with the teaching work.
To sum up:
1. Teaching the waiting masses is a reality facing each national
2. The friends must teach with conviction, determination, genuine love,
lack of prejudice, and a simple language addressed to the heart.
3. Teaching must be followed up by training courses, conferences, and
regular visits to deepen the believers in their knowledge of the
teachings.
4. The close touch of the national office or teaching committees with
the work is most essential, so that through reports and correspondence
not only is information obtained and verified, but stimulation and
encouragement is given.
5. Expansion and consolidation go hand in hand.
Universal Participation
In our message to you of April 1964, announcing the Nine Year Plan, we
called attention to two major themes of that Plan, namely ". . . a huge
expansion of the Cause of God and universal participation by all
believers in the life of that Cause."
The enthusiastic vigor with which the believers throughout the world,
under the devoted guidance of their national spiritual assemblies, have
arisen to meet the challenge of the Plan, augurs well for the huge
expansion called for. We now ask you to bend your efforts and thoughts,
with equal enthusiasm, to the requirements of universal participation.
In that same message we indicated the meaning of universal
participation: ". . . the dedicated effort of every believer in teaching,
in living the Bahá'í life, in contributing to the Fund, and particularly
in the persistent effort to understand more and more the significance of
Bahá'u'lláh's Revelation. In the words of our beloved Guardian, 'One
thing and only one thing will unfailingly and alone secure the undoubted
triumph of this sacred Cause, namely, the extent to which our own inner
life and private character mirror forth in their manifold aspects the
splendor of those eternal principles proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh.' "
"Regard the world as the human body," wrote Bahá'u'lláh to Queen
Victoria. We can surely regard the Bahá'í world, the army of God, in the
same way. In the human body, every cell, every organ, every nerve has
its part to play. When all do so the body is healthy, vigorous, radiant,
ready for every call made upon it. No cell, however humble,
lives apart from the body, whether in serving it or receiving from it.
This is true of the body of mankind in which God "has endowed each
humble being with ability and talent," and is supremely true of the body
of the Bahá'í world community, for this body is already an organism,
united in its aspirations, unified in its methods, seeking assistance
and confirmation from the same Source, and illumined with the conscious
knowledge of its unity. Therefore, in this organic, divinely guided,
blessed, and illumined body the participation of every believer is of
the utmost importance, and is a source of power and vitality as yet
unknown to us. For extensive and deep as has been the sharing in the
glorious work of the Cause, who would claim that every single believer
has succeeded in finding his or her fullest satisfaction in the life of
the Cause? The Bahá'í world community, growing like a healthy new body,
develops new cells, new organs, new functions and powers as it presses
on to its maturity, when every soul, living for the Cause of God, will
receive from that Cause, health, assurance, and the overflowing bounties
of Bahá'u'lláh which are diffused through His divinely ordained Order.
In addition to teaching, every believer can pray. Every believer can
strive to make his "own inner life and private character mirror forth in
their manifold aspects the splendor of those eternal principles
proclaimed by Bahá'u'lláh." Every believer can contribute to the Fund.
Not all believers can give public talks, not all are called upon to
serve on administrative institutions. But all can pray, fight their own
spiritual battles, and contribute to the Fund. If every believer will
carry out these sacred duties, we shall be astonished at the accession
of power which will result to the whole body, and which in its turn will
give rise to further growth and the showering of greater blessings on
all of us.
The real secret of universal participation lies in the
Master's oft-expressed wish that the friends should love each other,
constantly encourage each other, work together, be as one soul in one
body, and in so doing become a true, organic, healthy body animated and
illumined by the spirit. In such a body all will receive spiritual
health and vitality from the organism itself, and the most perfect
flowers and fruits will be brought forth.
Our prayers for the happiness and success of the friends everywhere are
constantly offered at the holy shrines.
September 1964
Development of the Institution of the Hands of the Cause of God
Once again the World Center of our Faith has been the scene of historic
events, affecting profoundly the immediate prosecution of the Nine Year
Plan and the future development of the World Order of Bahá'u'lláh. The
occasion was the gathering in the Holy Land, for a period of fourteen
days, of the Hands of the Cause of God to discuss their vital
responsibilities, and particularly as standard bearers of the Nine Year
The Universal House of Justice took advantage of this opportunity not
only to receive the advice, opinions, and views of the Hands on the
progress of the Nine Year Plan, but to consult them on the highly
important goal announced by Ridván 1964 under World Center goals as
"Development of the institution of the Hands of the Cause of God, in
consultation with the body of the Hands of the Cause, with a view to the
extension into the future of its appointed functions of protection and
propagation."
It was apparent that the elucidation of this vital goal, affecting as it
does the relationship of the Hands of the Cause of God to all other
institutions of the Cause, was imperative to the prosecution of the
all-important teaching work and the development of the Bahá'í World
Accordingly, the Universal House of Justice gave its full attention to
this matter and, after study of the Sacred Texts and hearing the views
of the Hands of the Cause themselves, has arrived at the following
decisions:
There is no way to appoint, or to legislate to make it possible to
appoint, Hands of the Cause of God.
Responsibility for decisions of matters of general policy affecting the
institution of the Hands of the Cause, which was formerly exercised by
the beloved Guardian, now devolves upon the Universal House of Justice
as the supreme and central institution of the Faith to which all must
It is with great joy that we are able to share with you the initial
steps now taken to attain the goal.
The assignment of the Hands to various continents remains unchanged,
but, in order to expedite the work, the continents of Asia and the
Western Hemisphere will each be divided into zones for the day-to-day
work of the Hands, one or more Hands being responsible for each zone.
Asia will consist of two zones: the Middle East, comprising the
countries from and including Pakistan westwards and also Asiatic
U.S.S.R.; and South and East Asia, comprising the remainder of the
continent. The Western Hemisphere will consist of three zones: North
America, Central America (including Mexico) and the Antilles, and South
America. The Hawaiian friends will be included in the Australasian
continental area, as listed in the recently issued statistical summary.
MEMBERS OF AUXILIARY BOARDS INCREASED
The number of members of the Auxiliary Boards for the propagation of the
Faith will be increased in every continent, raising the total number of
Auxiliary Board members in Africa from eighteen to twenty- in Asia
from fourteen to thirty- in Australas in Europe
from eighteen to twenty- and in the Western Hemisphere from
eighteen to thirty-six.
The Hands of the Cause in each continent are called upon to appoint one
or more members of their Auxiliary Boards to act in an executive
capacity on behalf of and in the name of each Hand, thereby assisting
him in carrying out his work.
The exalted rank and specific functions of the Hands of the Cause of God
make it inappropriate for them to be elected or appointed to
administrative institutions, or to be elected as delegates to national
conventions. Furthermore, it is their desire and the desire of the House
of Justice that they be free to devote their entire energies to the
vitally important duties conferred upon them in the Holy Writings. The
importance of close collaboration between the Hands of the Cause and
national spiritual assemblies cannot be overstressed, and a separate
communication is being addressed to national assemblies on this subject,
supplementing guidance given in earlier letters.
We anticipate announcing at Ridván 1965 plans for oceanic and
intercontinental conferences, an overall plan for worldwide proclamation
of the Faith during 1967-68, the centenary year of the revelation of the
Súriy-i-Mulúk, involving cooperation of national and local assemblies
throughout the world, and conditions of entry for a competition for the
design of the Mashriqu'l-Adhkár of Panama.
Teaching the masses is the greatest challenge now facing the followers
of Bahá'u'lláh. No work is more important than that of carrying His
Message with utmost speed to the bewildered and thirsting peoples of a
spiritually parched world. Now, as the Hands return to their various
continents, reinforced by a wider and more efficient organization of
their work, we are confident that the whole Bahá'í world will, with
rising enthusiasm and ever-increasing success, press forward with the
teaching work, greatly increase
the flow of pioneers, more widely participate in the financial support
of the work of the Cause, and add rapidly to the list of goals already
accomplished.
November 1964
Unassailable Foundation of the Cause of God
The following letter concerning questions about the Universal House of
Justice was addressed to a National Spiritual Assembly and made
available for the edification of the Bahá'ís throughout the world.
We are glad that you have brought to our attention the questions
perplexing some of the believers. It is much better for these questions
to be put freely and openly than to have them, unexpressed, burdening
the hearts of devoted believers. Once one grasps certain basic
principles of the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh such uncertainties are
easily dispelled. This is not to say that the Cause of God contains no
mysteries. Mysteries there are indeed, but they are not of a kind to
shake one's faith once the essential tenets of the Cause and the
indisputable facts of any situation are clearly understood.
The questions put by the various believers fall into three groups. The
first group centers upon the following queries: Why were steps taken to
elect a Universal House of Justice with the foreknowledge that there
would be no Guardian? Was the time ripe for such an action? Could not
the International Bahá'í Council have carried on the work?
THE BASIS FOR ELECTION
At the time of our beloved Shoghi Effendi's death it was evident, from
the circumstances and from the explicit requirements of the Holy Texts,
that it had been impossible for him to appoint a successor in accordance
with the provisions of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. This
situation, in which the Guardian died without being able to appoint a
successor, presented an obscure question not covered by the explicit
Holy Text, and had to be referred to the Universal House of Justice. The
friends should clearly understand that before the election of the
Universal House of Justice there was no knowledge that there would be no
Guardian. There could not have been any such foreknowledge, whatever
opinions individual believers may have held. Neither the Hands of the
Cause of God, nor the International Bahá'í Council, nor any other
existing body could make a decision upon this all-important matter. Only
the House of Justice had authority to pronounce upon it. This was one
urgent reason for calling the election of the Universal House of Justice
as soon as possible.
Following the passing of Shoghi Effendi the international administration
of the Faith was carried on by the Hands of the Cause of God with the
complete agree