strict accordance with the principles of a steadily expanding, divinely
appointed Administrative Order, building up the essential and primary
institutions which are destined to act as the chief and most powerful
instruments for the proclamation of the Faith to the masses of their
countrymen, at a subsequent stage in the development of the Faith in their
land. As these institutions expand and are consolidated, the community
will find itself equipped, not only to carry the Message of the New Day to
the multitudes throughout the length and breadth of its homeland, but
prepared and fortified to initiate teaching campaigns beyond the shores of
its native land, and in distant territories and various parts of the
Empire of which that land is the heart and centre.
Theirs is the duty, during these coming years, to lay patiently,
assiduously and unitedly the foundation on which the structure of their
future international services to their beloved Faith can be firmly and
unassailably established. Upon the success of the Plan they are now so
diligently and devotedly prosecuting, must depend the scope and
effectiveness of their two-fold task of proclaiming the verities of their
Faith to their fellow countrymen at home, and of implanting its banner
abroad amidst the peoples and races of a far-flung Empire.
That they may carry out, in a befitting manner and by the appointed time,
the preliminary steps so essential for the fulfilment of their high
destiny is my dearest wish and constant prayer.
Shoghi
Letter of 20 March 1947 (To First Regional Youth Conference)
20 March 1947 (To First Regional Youth Conference)
PROFOUNDLY APPRECIATE MESSAGE CONFERENCE URGE CONCENTRATE NEEDS PLAN
PRAYING GREAT VICTORIES.
SHOGHI
Letter of 21 March 1947
21 March 1947
OVERJOYED PROSPECTS PRAYING ARDENTLY CONSUMMATION CHERISHED HOPES APPEAL
ENTIRE COMMUNITY EXERT SUPREME EFFORT ENSURE TOTAL SUCCESS MIGHTY
ENTERPRISE DEEPEST LOVING APPRECIATION ABIDING GRATITUDE.
SHOGHI
Letter of 28 March 1947
28 March 1947
ADVISE APPORTION DELEGATES COMING CONVENTION IN STRICT ACCORDANCE NUMBER
BELIEVERS ACTUALLY RESIDING IN FOUR COMMUNITIES MENTIONED LETTER FEBRUARY
24TH.
SHOGHI
Letter of 7 April 1947
7 April 1947
National Youth Committee
Dear Baha'i Friends,
Your letters dated August 10th (from the secretary) and December 19th and
March 18th (from the Business Manager of the Editorial Committee) were
received, and as our beloved Guardian is greatly overburdened by his
steadily expanding correspondence, he has instructed me to answer these
communications all in one.
He was very pleased to receive copies of "Youth Bulletin," which he thinks
is starting out in the right direction; he would like to receive this
publication regularly.
The work you are doing is very important, and the British Baha'i Youth
should feel very encouraged to see the way some of their members have
arisen and gone forth to pioneer. He hopes others will follow this example
in order to ensure the success of the Six Year Plan.
You may be sure his loving prayers are offered for you all in the Holy
Shrines....
[From the Guardian:]
May the Spirit of Baha'u'llah sustain, bless and guide you in your
notable, meritorious, and deeply appreciated activities, aid you to extend
the range of your services, and lend a great impetus to the progress of
the Plan which the English believers are so devotedly and assiduously
prosecuting.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
Letter of 16 April 1947
16 April 1947
OVERJOYED HISTORIC SUCCESS APPROVED MINUTE 590 PRAYING STILL GREATER
VICTORIES HEARTFELT CONGRATULATIONS ABIDING GRATITUDE.
SHOGHI
Letter of 29 April 1947
29 April 1947
ACCLAIM PRIDE GRATITUDE VICTORY ACHIEVED REVITALISED TRIUMPHANT DEARLY
BELOVED BRITISH BAHA'I COMMUNITY MARVELLOUS CONSUMMATION ARDUOUS TASK
CRUCIAL YEAR HISTORIC PLAN UNPRECEDENTED ANNALS FIFTY YEARS BRITISH BAHA'I
HISTORY SISTER COMMUNITIES EAST WEST NORTH SOUTH HAIL SIGNIFICANT VICTORY
WON NOTWITHSTANDING PROLONGED STRAIN FORMIDABLE OBSTACLES SMALLNESS
NUMBERS DIVERSITY TRIALS CONFIDENT ALL MEMBERS COMMUNITY YOUNG OLD
TEACHERS PIONEERS ADMINISTRATORS WILL RESOLUTELY SAFEGUARD PRIZES WON
FORGE AHEAD UNDIMINISHED ZEAL ATTAIN GOALS WITHIN REACH CABLING ONE
THOUSAND POUNDS PROMOTION GREAT TASKS AHEAD TOKEN MY ABIDING GRATITUDE
SIGNAL SERVICE RENDERED FOLLOWERS FAITH BAHA'U'LLAH BRITISH ISLES.
SHOGHI
Letter of 8 May 1947
8 May 1947
Dear Baha'i Brother,
Your letters dated Jan. 19th and 23rd; Feb. 16th, 27th and 28th; March 8th
and 25th; and April 4th, 19th, 20th, 22nd and 23rd, 1947, have all been
received, together with their enclosures and the material sent under
separate cover, and our beloved Guardian has instructed me to answer you
on his behalf.
Regarding the various questions you have raised.
He has already informed the American N.S.A. that he feels Mr. Townshend's
services to the Faith can best be rendered by his writing about it, as he
obviously has an outstanding ability in this direction, combined with
knowledge and zeal, and can render a very valuable service this way; he
also feels that Mr. Townshend, now that his church association seems about
to be broken, could be used as part of the pioneer force in Eire. It is
his own land, he knows his own people, and the need for workers there is
very particularly great this year....
If Mr. Townshend has not as yet been registered as a voting believer he
certainly should be immediately. Everyone knows he has been a most devoted
Baha'i for many years and his contributions should certainly be considered
those of a voting Baha'i.
He would appreciate receiving, for the files here in Haifa, a copy of the
revised Articles of Association.
Regarding the prayer translated by Dr. _Kh_an and his daughter: although
he has not taken time to compare it with the original, he assumes it is a
faithful translation. Unfortunately it is not a style which in our
language can convey the richness and power of the original, and he would
not recommend that this version of it be printed. There is no objection,
however, to its circulation among the friends if they want it.
As to certain of your voting members who have long been inactive, and
whose conduct you disapprove of, he suggests you make an effort to find
out if they still believe in the Faith, and if they do, and wish to be
members of it, then they should be helped to mend their ways. If this
patient and loving method does not prove successful and they refuse to
identify themselves with the Faith, they should be removed from the voting
list.
Miss ... should be advised, for the sake of better serving the Cause she
loves so dearly, to take care of her health; also she should be made to
realise that a pessimistic and critical approach (although perhaps fully
justified by the situation) produces no results. We, having the power of
the Faith to draw on, must always be constructive in our efforts, as this
will produce results and attract Divine blessings upon them.
Concerning the membership of ... in the synagogue: as this concerns his
non-Baha'i Jewish wife and means a great deal to her--even involving the
place of her burial--the Guardian does not feel it is right to request him
to take a step which would deprive her of her own religious rights. On the
other hand, he sees no reason why ... should not write a letter to the
appropriate authority in this synagogue, explaining that he is a
practising Baha'i but is keeping his synagogue membership for the benefit
of his wife and children. Some similar action should be taken by ..., or
he should give up his synagogue membership.
He realises the difficult position of the London community, but the goals
of the Plan, and its success, justify any temporary weakening of the work
in the capital, which in the end will be greatly strengthened by the
national spread of the Faith. He certainly will specially pray for this
work in London.
The achievement of all goals during this crucial year has been very great,
and brought him a conviction that the Cause in the British Isles is now
operating on an entirely new footing, and that the community of believers
there has thrown off once and for all time a certain lethargy which seemed
to have retarded its progress in the past. Although so much still remains
to be accomplished, the combination of the new zest for work and the
determination of the friends to succeed, and the unfailing assistance of
Baha'u'llah, promised to all who arise and put their faith in Him, will
surely mow down all obstacles and carry the British believers through to
victory.
He feels that the way your assembly is working, with its many and active
committees, and the plans you have outlined in your report, are excellent.
Any suggestions he has to make, as the work unfolds, he will communicate
to you.
The Summer School, he feels, is of great importance, and he hopes
gradually believers from the continent will visit it and be helped and
inspired by their contact with the now active and flourishing British
Baha'i community!
You may be sure in the prayers he offers in the Holy Shrines you and your
assembly's work are often remembered....
[From the Guardian:]
Dear and valued co-workers,
The success that has crowned the strenuous efforts exerted by the entire
British Baha'i community in the course of this crucial year, has raised
immensely its prestige in the estimation of its sister communities in East
and West, and has demonstrated in a very striking manner, the vitality,
resourcefulness and determination of its members, and merits the praise
and blessings of the concourse on high, and particularly of our beloved
Master, who in the course of two successive visits showered His loving
kindness on the English believers, and chose the capital city of their
country as the scene of His first public appearance before a western
audience. This remarkable exploit, unparelleled since the inception of the
administrative order in that land, and unsurpassed by any achievement
associated with the followers of Baha'u'llah in the British Isles since
the introduction of His Faith into their country, augurs well for the
successful termination of the Initial Phase of the Plan, and fills me with
hope that total victory will ultimately be achieved, at the appointed
time, by the prosecutors of this bold, this historic and far-reaching
enterprise.
The Plan itself when consummated will signalise the opening of a new epoch
in British Baha'i history, an epoch which must witness, simultaneously
with the vigorous initiation of subsequent Plans designed to broaden the
basis, and multiply the institutions, of a steadily evolving
administrative order, the inauguration of systematic undertakings, jointly
launched by the English, the Scottish, the Irish and Welsh believers, and
aiming, on the one hand, at the proclamation of the Divine Message to the
masses of their respective countrymen, and, on the other, at the
establishment of the structural basis of a divinely appointed
Administrative Order throughout the far-flung dependencies of the British
Crown.
For the present, however, and as an essential preliminary to the vast and
challenging tasks that await them beyond the shores of their homeland, the
eyes of the prosecutors of the present Plan must be focused on the vital
and urgent requirements in England, and particularly Scotland, Wales and
Ireland, wherein the nuclei that have been recently formed, should, ere
the expiry of the present year, be converted into full-fledged assemblies.
The erection of the administrative institutions of the Faith of
Baha'u'llah in these virgin territories will no doubt befittingly mark the
termination of the initial phase of the Plan, and proclaim to the entire
Baha'i world the resolution, as well as the ability, of its valiant
promoters to create the indispensable agencies required for an intensive
propagation of the Faith at home, and the planting of its banner overseas.
Theirs is an unspeakably thrilling task, an awe-inspiring obligation, a
priceless opportunity. Their recent victories inspire a confident hope
that a no less outstanding success will mark their future endeavours.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
Letter of 14 May 1947
14 May 1947
DEEPLY APPRECIATIVE PLEDGE PRAYING ABUNDANT BLESSINGS DELIBERATIONS.
SHOGHI
Letter of 24 May 1947
24 May 1947
TOWNSHEND'S RESIGNATION IMPERATIVE. ALLOCATION FIVE HUNDRED POUNDS FROM
NATIONAL FUND EXCESSIVE. ADVISE USE PART RELIEF FUND THIS PURPOSE PRAYING
SOLUTION PROBLEM.
SHOGHI
Letter of 18 June 1947
18 June 1947
OVERJOYED TOWNSHEND'S MEMORABLE DECISION NOBLE EXAMPLE COMMENDABLE
DETERMINATION SETTLE DUBLIN ARDENTLY PRAYING SUCCESS PROTECTION REMOVAL
DIFFICULTIES DELIGHTED STAHLER'S PIONEERING SUPPLICATING ABUNDANT
BLESSINGS CHERISH BRIGHT HOPES FRUITION ASSEMBLY'S HISTORIC TASK DEEPEST
LOVE APPRECIATION.
SHOGHI
Letter of 28 June 1947
28 June 1947
National Youth committee
Dear Baha'i Sister,
Your letter, with enclosures, to our Beloved Guardian, on behalf of the
National Youth Committee, and dated February 26th, was received and he has
instructed me to answer it on his behalf. He did not reply sooner because
he is so very busy and overworked, and feels sure you understand the
reason for the delay.
The services which the Baha'i young people are rendering the Cause, not
only in England but in Scotland and in Eire, please him greatly, as the
Youth are the ones who perforce, in the near future, will find themselves
carrying on the administrative and teaching work of the Faith, and the
sooner they prepare themselves for this heavy responsibility through
actual experience in the pioneer field, the better.
He is delighted to see the steady progress of your activities and the way
your Bulletin is progressing, and he assures you all of his loving prayers
for the success of all your undertakings....
[From the Guardian:]
May the Beloved bless continually your meritorious efforts, guide and
sustain you in your activities, and aid you to fulfil your heart's desire
in the service of His glorious Faith.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
Letter of 19 July 1947
19 July 1947
ADVISE TOWNSHEND TRANSFER RESIDENCE OUTSIDE IRELAND IF NECESSARY APPROVE
PROVISION COAL AMERICAN BELIEVERS.
SHOGHI
Letter of 20 August 1947
20 August 1947
OVERJOYED MAGNIFICENT PROGRESS SUMMER SCHOOL ASSURE ATTENDANTS LOVING
PRAYERS GRATEFUL ADMIRATION CONGRATULATE ENTIRE BRITISH COMMUNITY
ASTOUNDING ACHIEVEMENTS BAHA'IS WORLD PROUD UNFORGETTABLE VICTORIES
BRITISH ISLES.
SHOGHI
Letter of 12 September 1947
12 September 1947
DELIGHTED TOWNSHEND SETTLEMENT MAGNIFICENT SUCCESS SUMMER SCHOOL BELOVED
MASTER ABHA KINGDOM WELL PLEASED CONSTRUCTIVE HISTORIC MANIFOLD
ACHIEVEMENTS VIRILE BRITISH BAHA'I COMMUNITY PRAYING INCREASING FERVOUR
DIVINE GUIDANCE SURMOUNT OBSTACLES RESOLVE PROBLEMS WIN STILL GREATER
VICTORIES HEARTFELT GRATITUDE ABIDING LOVE.
SHOGHI
Letter of 25 September 1947
25 September 1947
The National Baha'i Youth Committee of the British Isles
Dear Baha'i Friends,
Your letter to our beloved Guardian, dated August 21st, as well as the
note of your Secretary, Miss Howes, dated August 29th, have been received,
together with the copy of your Youth Letter, and I have been instructed to
answer you on his behalf.
He is very happy to hear of the formation of the new Youth Groups you
mention, as this will not only greatly stimulate the Baha'i Youth and
enable them to attract new young people to the Faith, but will also do the
general work of the Cause in these cities a great deal of good. He urges
your Committee to make every effort to establish youth groups wherever
there are Spiritual Assemblies, and circumstances permit. He would like to
receive five copies of your Youth Letter if this is convenient.
Your services are very deeply valued, and he assures you all of his loving
prayers for the success and expansion of your activities....
[From the Guardian:]
Dear and valued co-workers,
The activities initiated and diligently pursued by the members of your
committee deserve the highest praise. The devotion, the perseverance, the
loyalty, the assiduous care with which you are striving to promote the
interests of the Baha'i Youth throughout the British Isles rejoice my
heart, and will no doubt act as a magnet that will attract the blessings
of the Almighty. Persevere in your historic labours, and rest assured that
the Beloved is well pleased with your splendid accomplishments. I will
continue to pray from the depths of my heart for the extension of your
valued activities.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
Letter of 9 October 1947
9 October 1947
Assembly Development Committee Dear Baha'i Friends,
Your letter to our beloved Guardian dated Aug. 4th, has been received and
he has instructed me to answer it on his behalf.
He is very pleased to see the work your Committee is undertaking and feel
that it is of the greatest importance. The unity, love, harmony and proper
understanding of the administration of the Cause which exists in a
community are the measure of its progress, and on them depend directly the
expansion of the Faith.
He wishes you every success, and assures you of his prayers in support of
your labours....
P.S. He has received your bi-monthly news letter and thinks it is very
well written and excellent in every way.
[From the Guardian:]
May the Almighty bless continually your valued activities, aid you to
overcome all obstacles in your path, promote effectively the vital
interests of our beloved Faith, and contribute, in a notable manner, to
the multiplication of its nascent institutions.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
Letter of 9 October 1947
9 October 1947
Child Education Committee
Dear Baha'i Friends,
Your letter to our beloved Guardian, dated Sept. 1st, has been received by
him, and he has instructed me to answer it on his behalf.
He was very pleased to see the enthusiasm and devotion with which you have
entered into this important branch of Baha'i activity, and he hopes your
labours will be richly rewarded with success.
He would suggest that wherever classes for Baha'i children are held,
liberal minded parents be invited to send their children too, so that
their minds may receive the broad, basic and tolerant doctrines of our
glorious Faith.
He assures you of his loving prayers for the success of your activities.
With warmest greetings,
[From the Guardian:]
May the Spirit of Baha'u'llah guide and sustain you in your highly
important and vital undertaking, enable you to extend continually the
range of your meritorious activities, and lend a great impetus to the
consolidation of the institutions of our glorious Faith.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
Letter of 10 October 1947
10 October 1947
HIGHLY APPROVE ARRANGE MARION HOFMAN RESUME SECRETARYSHIP TEACHING
COMMITTEE URGE ENTIRE COMMUNITY PERSEVERE UNITED STRENUOUS EFFORTS ENSURE
TRIUMPHANT TERMINATION PRESENT PHASE PLAN STATUS NEWLY FORMED ASSEMBLIES
MUST BE MAINTAINED AT ALL COSTS ATTENTION SHOULD MOREOVER BE FOCUSED
ESTABLISHMENT FIRM FOUNDATION HISTORIC ASSEMBLIES SCOTLAND WALES EIRE ERE
TERMINATION CURRENT YEAR CABLING FIVE HUNDRED POUNDS ASSIST ASSEMBLY
VIGOROUS PROSECUTION MIGHTY ENTERPRISES CONFERRING IMPERISHABLE LUSTRE
DIVINELY SUSTAINED VICTORIOUSLY ADVANCING DEARLY BELOVED BRITISH BAHA'I
COMMUNITY.
SHOGHI
Letter of 16 October 1947
16 October 1947
DELIGHTED EVIDENCES PROGRESS EDINBURGH DUBLIN BLACKPOOL HEARTFELT ABIDING
APPRECIATION.
SHOGHI
Letter of 24 October 1947
24 October 1947
Dear Baha'i Brother,
Your letters to our beloved Guardian, dated May 18th and 27th; June 4th,
9th and 16th; July 5th, 8th (two of this date), 12th and 14th; August 9th
and September 15th, 20th and 29th; and October 6th and 13th, have all been
received, as well as their enclosures, and he has instructed me to answer
you on his behalf....
He received a letter direct from the World Congress of Faiths, and wrote
them offering full Baha'i co-operation, and informing them he was ready to
appoint a Baha'i representative to attend any conference they may hold.
The discovery of the Master's letter to Andrew Carnegie is very
interesting, in spite of the very poor translation of this Tablet, and he
will be very pleased to receive a photostat of the original, or at least a
faithful copy of the text in Persian.
He would be pleased to continue receiving the reports of the Assembly
Development Committee.
Regarding the question you asked him: he feels that in the case of a
believer who will be 21 years old on April 22nd, there is no objection, at
this time, when the work of the Cause is so urgent and the workers so few,
in permitting him to vote on April 21st.
The conduct of ... is an excellent example of why he, (and 'Abdu'l-Baha
before him), feels it so necessary to be very strict about the admission
of Orientals into the communities of the Western world. The British
people, being shrewd by nature and having had considerable experience with
Orientals and peoples of all races, are far less vulnerable to the
insidious influence of the insincere than are the more naive and less
experienced Americans. People such as this young man, Baha'i in name
whenever it suits their convenience to be so, caring really nothing about
the Faith at heart, and ready to abandon it at a moment's notice if the
pleasures to be gained outweigh the humiliation of ostracism, are a real
menace to the Cause, especially to the faith of young and untried
believers. It is to protect the Cause against such individuals that the
Guardian is at present so strict about not permitting Persians to visit
America at this time.
In regard to your question about qualifications of delegates and assembly
members: the qualifications which he outlined are really applicable to
anyone we elect to a Baha'i office, whatever its nature. But those are
only an indication, they do not mean people who don't fulfil them cannot
be elected to office. We must aim as high as we can. He does not feel the
friends should attach so much importance to limitations--such as people
perhaps not being able to attend assembly or convention meetings, because
if they do, then the fundamental concept of everyone being willing to do
Baha'i service on administrative bodies will be weakened, and the friends
may be tempted to vote for those who, because of independent means or
circumstances in their lives, are freer to come and go but less qualified
to serve.
Regarding "'Abdu'l-Baha in London". Nothing can be considered scripture
for which we do not have an original text. A verbatim record in Persian of
His talks would of course be more reliable than one in English because He
was not always accurately interpreted. However such a book is of value,
and certainly has its place in our literature.
He assures you all of the deep appreciation of your valiant labours and
his loving prayers on your behalf....
[From the Guardian:]
Dear and valued co-workers,