[From the Guardian:]
As the end of the Plan to which your community stands committed inexorably
approaches, my anxious thoughts increasingly turn towards you and your
fellow workers, on whose shoulders a staggering responsibility--grave as
well as inescapable--is weighing so heavily in these days. I am fully aware
of the character of the manifold and unexpected trials this community has
been called upon to face in India, Pakistan and Burma since its inception.
The ordeal of internal disorder and of civil strife; the dislocation of
the machinery of internal administration, the inevitable consequence of
the vast political changes that have been effected in these countries; the
reverses suffered by this same community through the temporary seizure of
its newly acquired administrative headquarters and the loss of some of its
precious assets in both India and Burma; the hardships endured by the
pioneers of this community as well as its administrators as a consequence
of severely imposed restrictions, outbursts of fanaticism and civil
riots--have been such as to dismay the stoutest heart and tax to the
uttermost the determination of the most resolute.
And yet, in spite of these successive afflictions the members of this
community have forged ahead, valiantly, unitedly and determinedly, and
have even extended the original range of their Plan by embarking on fresh
and historical enterprises beyond the confines of these territories,
through the despatch of pioneers to the neighbouring Dominion of Ceylon
and the adjacent Kingdom of Siam and the Republic of Indonesia. Whatever
the fate of the Plan which they are now seeking to bring to its
consummation, this striking evidence of the indomitable spirit of faith
that animates the rank and file of this community, and which has prompted
it to seek fresh laurels in virgin territories beyond the frontiers of its
homeland, will, without the slightest doubt, redound eternally to its
credit, and be abundantly rewarded by a vigilant and all-Bountiful Master.
To enhance the value of so rich a prize won, in so short a period, by a
community so burdened by cares and anxieties, in territories for the most
part overshadowed by discord and internal revolution, through the
triumphant conclusion of the major task entrusted to its hands, and the
successful conclusion of the second collective enterprise embarked upon by
its indefatigable and resolute members, on the morrow of a
world-encircling conflict, must now be the paramount and all-absorbing
purpose of all who are privileged to participate in this mighty endeavour.
Time is short. Every week is precious. The resources of the community,
financial, moral and spiritual are, I firmly believe, adequate to meet the
needs of this critical hour. So golden an opportunity, if missed, will not
recur for who knows how extensive a period. The launching of subsequent
enterprises destined to culminate in the triumph and ascendancy of a
struggling Faith in the subcontinent of India, as well as in the
establishment of its institutions in South-East Asia, will be inevitably
and indefinitely postponed.
Undaunted by the setbacks it has experienced; heartened by the settlement
and the initial victory won by its pioneers in the newly opened virgin
territories in the North, the South and the East; fully conscious of its
ability
to perform adequately its task and discharge befittingly its
responsibility; relying on the unfailing grace of an all-Powerful, ever
solicitous, continually watching Providence; deriving fresh inspiration
and confidence from the amazing feat achieved, by the small band of its
brethren, in the West, and in a continent more devastated by the ravages
of war than any other continent of the globe; let this community, while
time still remains, gird up its loins, sink its differences, rededicate
itself to its urgent task, sweep away every barrier that confronts it, and
rise, with an upsurge of unprecedented enthusiasm and determination, to
those heights to which its spiritual destiny is now beckoning it.
With a heart, aglow with gratitude for what this community has in the
initial stage of its administrative development accomplished, filled with
confidence in the potentialities with which our beloved Master has endowed
it in the years of His earthly ministry, and overflowing with love for
those who, through their incessant labours and heroic self-sacrifice, have
achieved unforgettable victories in recent years, I will continue to
supplicate for all its members, at home and abroad, in their
administrative spheres of activity as well as in the teaching field such
blessings as will enable them to crown their concerted efforts with a
success that will resound throughout the Baha'i world.