41: O THOU WHO ART STEADFAST IN THE COVENANT, AND ...

O thou who art steadfast in the Covenant, and staunch! The letter which

thou didst write ... hath been shown to me, and the opinions expressed

therein were most commendable. It is incumbent upon the Spiritual

Consultative Assembly of New York to be in complete agreement with that of

Chicago, and for these two assemblies of consultation jointly to approve

whatever they consider suitable for publication and distribution.

Following that, let them send one copy to Akka, so that it may also be

approved from here, after which the material will be returned to be

published and circulated.

The question of co-ordinating and unifying the two Spiritual Assemblies,

that of Chicago and of New York, is of the utmost importance, and once a

Spiritual Assembly is duly formed in Washington, these two Assemblies

should also establish ties of unity with that Assembly. To sum it up, it

is the desire of the Lord God that the loved ones of God and the handmaids

of the Merciful in the West should come closer together in harmony and

unity as day followeth day, and until this is accomplished, the work will

never go forward. The Spiritual Assemblies are collectively the most

effective of all instruments for establishing unity and harmony. This

matter is of the utmost importance; this is the magnet that draweth down

the confirmations of God. If once the beauty of the unity of the

friends--this Divine Beloved--be decked in the adornments of the Abha

Kingdom, it is certain that within a very short time those countries will

become the Paradise of the All-Glorious, and that out of the west the

splendours of unity will cast their bright rays over all the earth.

We are striving with heart and soul, resting neither day nor night,

seeking not a moment's ease, to make this world of man the mirror of the

unity of God. Then how much more must the beloved of the Lord reflect that

unity? And this cherished hope, this yearning wish of ours will be visibly

fulfilled only on the day when the true friends of God arise to carry out

the Teachings of the Abha Beauty--may my life be a ransom for His lovers!

One amongst His Teachings is this, that love and good faith must so

dominate the human heart that men will regard the stranger as a familiar

friend, the malefactor as one of their own, the alien even as a loved one,

the enemy as a companion dear and close. Who killeth them, him will they

call a bestower of life; who turneth away from them, him will they regard

as turning towards them; who denieth their message, him will they consider

as one acknowledging its truth. The meaning is that they must treat all

humankind even as they treat their sympathizers, their fellow-believers,

their loved ones and familiar friends.

Should such a torch light up the world community, ye will find that the

whole earth is sending forth a fragrance, that it hath become a

delightsome paradise, and the face of it the image of high heaven. Then

will the whole world be one native land, its diverse peoples one single

kind, the nations of both east and west one household.

It is my hope that such a day will come, that such a splendour will shine

forth, that such a vision will be unveiled in its full beauty.

Selections from the writings of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá · 第 47 / 310 题