We have but to turn our eyes to the world without to realize the
fierceness and the magnitude of the forces of darkness that are struggling
with the dawning light of the Abha Revelation. Nations, though exhausted
and disillusioned, have seemingly begun to cherish anew the spirit of
revenge, of domination, and strife. Peoples, convulsed by economic
upheavals, are slowly drifting into two great opposing camps with all
their menace of social chaos, class hatreds, and worldwide ruin. Races,
alienated more than ever before, are filled with mistrust, humiliation and
fear, and seem to prepare themselves for a fresh and fateful encounter.
Creeds and religions, caught in this whirlpool of conflict and passion,
appear to gaze with impotence and despair at this spectacle of unceasing
turmoil.
Such is the plight of mankind three years after the passing of Him from
whose lips fell unceasingly the sure message of a fast-approaching Divine
salvation. Are we by our thoughts, our words, our deeds, whether
individually or collectively, preparing the way? Are we hastening the
advent of the Day He so often foretold?
None can deny that the flame of faith and love which His mighty hand
kindled in many hearts has, despite our bereavement, continued to burn as
brightly and steadily as ever before. Who can question that His loved
ones, both in the East and the West, notwithstanding the insidious
strivings of the enemies of the Cause, have displayed a spirit of
unshakable loyalty worthy of the highest praise? What greater perseverance
and fortitude than that which His tried and trusted friends have shown in
the face of untold calamities, intolerable oppression, and incredible
restrictions? But such staunchness of faith, such an unsullied love, such
magnificent loyalty, such heroic constancy, such noble courage, however
unprecedented and laudable in themselves, cannot alone lead us to the
final and complete triumph of such a great Cause. Not until the dynamic
love we cherish for Him is sufficiently reflected in its power and purity
in all our dealings with our fellow-men, however remotely connected and
humble in origin, can we hope to exalt in the eyes of a self-seeking world
the genuineness of the all-conquering love of God. Not until we live
ourselves the life of a true Baha'i can we hope to demonstrate the
creative and transforming potency of the Faith we profess. Nothing but the
abundance of our actions, nothing but the purity of our lives and the
integrity of our characters, can in the last resort establish our claim
that the Baha'i spirit is in this day the sole agency that can translate a
long-cherished ideal into an enduring achievement.