What we have already witnessed in connection with the latest developments
regarding the case of Baha'u'llah's House in Ba_gh_dad affords abundant
evidence of the truth of the observation that has just been made. In its
initial stages appearing to the superficial observer as a petty dispute
submitted to an obscure and antiquated Shiite court, the case has
gradually evolved into a paramount issue engaging the attention of the
highest tribunal of 'Iraq. In its latest stages, it has gathered such
strength, secured such publicity, and received such support from the
chancelleries of Europe, as to become a subject fit for the consideration
not only of the specific international Commission ultimately responsible
for the administration of Mandated Territories but of the leading
Signatories of the Covenant of the League of Nations that are represented
in the Council of the League itself.
Few if any among those closely associated with the case did at first
imagine or expect that dwellings which to outward seeming appeared only as
a cluster of humble and decrepit buildings lost amid the obscure and
tortuous lanes of old Ba_gh_dad could ever obtain such prominence as to
become the object of the deliberations of the highest international
Tribunal that the hand of man has thus far reared for the amicable
settlement of his affairs. Whatever the decision of the world's highest
Tribunal regarding the petition submitted to it by the Baha'is of
'Iraq--and none can deny that should its verdict be in our favor, a triumph
unparalleled in its magnitude will have been achieved for our beloved
Faith--the work already accomplished is in itself an abundant proof of the
sustaining confirmations that are being showered upon the upholders of the
case from the realm on high.
I cannot refrain from giving expression in this connection to my feelings
of profound appreciation of the ceaseless vigilance and marked distinction
with which our precious brother and fellow-worker, Mr. Mountfort Mills,
has undertaken and is still shouldering this sacred and historic mission
committed to his charge. His unremitting labors, despite ill-health and
domestic anxieties and cares, are worthy of the highest praise and will be
gratefully recorded in the annals of an immortal Cause.
Surely, if we read the history of this case aright, we cannot but discern
the direction which the forces, released by these prophetic utterances of
Baha'u'llah sixty years ago, are destined to take in the eventual solution
of this mighty issue:--
"In truth I declare, it shall be so abased in the days to come as to cause
tears to flow from every discerning eye.... And in the fullness of time
shall the Lord, by the power of truth, exalt it in the eyes of all the
world, cause it to become the mighty standard of His Dominion, the Shrine
round which shall circle the concourse of the faithful."
Your true brother,
SHOGHI.
Haifa, Palestine,
January 1, 1929.
Letter of February 12, 1929.
To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout
the West.
Fellow-laborers in the Divine Vineyard:
I feel impelled by the force of various circumstances to share with you
the news of recent happenings in those countries of the Near and Middle
East which, by the ruling of Providence, are in these days undergoing a
transformation which is as startling in its features as it is significant
in its bearings upon the interests of our beloved Faith.
I have already in my previous communication briefly referred to the nature
and effects of that momentous Revolution which has, with surprising
swiftness, substituted a westernized and rejuvenated Turkey for the
primitive and decrepit Ottoman Empire. I have also attempted to describe
the first stages of that recent and moving episode which has served in a
manner that is truly providential to thrust the Baha'i community in Turkey
out of the obscurity of oppressive neglect into the broad daylight of
official and public attention.
Recently, however, from the reports that have been received from the
elected representatives of the believers in different parts of Turkey, it
appears that the investigations conducted by the Police authorities in the
capital and provinces of that land have proved but a preliminary to a more
official and detailed inquiry into the Baha'i position with respect to the
laws recently promulgated by the Republican government. For no sooner were
the followers of Baha'u'llah released from detention at the Police
headquarters and given the assurance that their Faith was in no way
associated with any political design or motive, than an official
communication was delivered to their representatives summoning them to
appear before the State's criminal Tribunal on the charge of infraction of
the law of the Republic requiring the registration and authorization of
all public gatherings and associations within the jurisdiction of the
State. To this summons our brethren yielded immediate and implicit
obedience. They indeed welcomed this further opportunity to assert not
only the innocence of their Faith but to vindicate as well the sublimity
of the teachings of Baha'u'llah. Realizing that with this fresh
development their case has assumed a solemn and juridical character, the
undaunted champions of the Cause resolved to seek the assistance of an
expert and sympathetic advocate, who would reinforce from a purely legal
standpoint the spiritual argument which they reserved for themselves to
propound. For a period ranging from a week to eighteen days the attention
of the officers of the Court, of the elected representatives of the
believers, of their officially appointed advocates, and of the visiting
public was focused upon the deliberations of a Court that closely
scrutinized not only the conduct and motives of the Baha'i followers but
the laws and principles, the past history and the present position of the
Faith itself.