The emergence of organized local communities in most of the republics of
Latin America will be forever associated with the exploits that have shed
such luster on the first stage of the Divine Plan launched during the
concluding years of that first epoch of the Formative Age of our Faith.
The constitution of two independent duly elected national spiritual
assemblies for the northern and southern zones of Latin America is now to
be regarded as one of the most vital objectives of the Second Seven Year
Plan, whose inauguration synchronizes with the opening years of the second
Baha'i century, and which will be chiefly associated with the first phase
of the second epoch of that Age. The emergence of these two national
assemblies, precursors of the institutions which must participate in the
election, and contribute to the support, of the Universal House of
Justice--the last crowning unit in the erection of the fabric of the
Administrative Order of the Faith of Baha'u'llah--must lead gradually and
uninterruptedly, and in the course of successive epochs of the Formative
Age, to the constitution in each of the republics of Central and South
America, of a properly elected, fully representative national assembly,
constituting thereby the last stage in the administrative evolution of
that Faith throughout Latin America.
In order that these future tasks may be carried out with dispatch,
efficiency, harmony and in strict accordance with the administrative and
spiritual principles of our Faith, the Latin American promoters of the
present Seven Year Plan must focus their attention on the requirements of
the present hour, close their ranks, reinforce the bonds of unity, of
solidarity and of cooperation which unite them, rededicate themselves
individually to the sacred, all-important and vital task of teaching,
exert strenuous endeavors to deepen their knowledge of the history and
fundamentals of their Faith, steep themselves in the spirit and the love
of its teachings and acquire special training for future pioneer activity
throughout the length and breadth of the vast stretches of territory which
extend from the confines of the great republic in the north to the Straits
of Magellan in the south.
The process of the steady multiplication of spiritual assemblies, already
numbering thirty-seven, of groups whose number equals that of the
assemblies, and of the forty localities where isolated believers reside,
must vigorously and uninterruptedly continue. The incorporation of
well-grounded spiritual assemblies, following the example set by the
spiritual assemblies of San Jose, Costa Rica, of Bogota, Colombia, and of
Asuncion, Paraguay, as a preliminary to the incorporation of the future
national assemblies to be established in Latin America, must be
strenuously and efficiently carried out. A beginning, however modest,
should be made in the direction of establishing local Funds, supported by
native believers and designed to supplement the financial assistance
extended by the parent community in North America, for the furtherance of
pioneer activity, for the dissemination of Baha'i literature, for the
maintenance of local Baha'i headquarters, for the gradual initiation of
Baha'i endowments, such as the land offered for a Baha'i Temple in Chile,
for the holding of conferences and of summer schools, for the creation of
publicity agencies, and for the conduct and expansion of youth activities.
Strong and sustained support should be given to the vitally needed and
meritorious activities started by the native Latin American traveling
teachers, particularly in the pioneer field, who, as the mighty task
progresses, must increasingly bear the brunt of responsibility for the
propagation of the Faith in their homelands. Full advantage should be
taken of the facilities provided by the use of practical workshop courses
in Latin American pioneering at the International School at Temerity
Ranch. The two summer schools in Azeiza and Santiago, as well as one
planned in Vera Cruz, should be utilized, not only as centers for the
acquisition of Baha'i learning, but as training grounds for pioneering
among the Spanish and Portuguese speaking populations of all the republics
of Latin America. The regional conferences held in Buenos Aires and Panama
should be followed by conferences of a similar character, at which a
growing number of attendants from among the ranks of Latin American
believers will assume an ever-increasing share of responsibility in the
initiation and conduct of the affairs of a continually evolving community.
A deliberate effort should be made to increase, through correspondence
teaching and its extension to all the Spanish speaking countries, the
number of the active supporters of the Faith, so desperately needed in
view of the vastness of the field, the mighty responsibilities that have
been incurred, the smallness of the number of laborers, and the shortness
of the time at their disposal.
Other agencies, such as publicity and advertising in the press, the
multiplication of accurate and improved radio scripts, the extension of
teaching projects through regional teaching committees, visual education
and the organization of public meetings, should be fully utilized to
capture the attention, win the sympathy, and secure the active and
unreserved support of a steadily increasing proportion of the population
of the various Latin American republics. The publishing activities of a
constantly growing community should, likewise, be stimulated, their scope
should be continually widened, the quality of Baha'i publications in
Spanish, Portuguese and French be improved, and their dissemination over a
wide area be insured. The two Spanish bulletins, the one already published
in Santiago and the other planned in San Jose, should, likewise, as an
adjunct to Baha'i publications, be developed and widely circulated. The
contact established with the two hundred and forty-four Masonic Lodges
should be reinforced by similar contacts with schools as well as business
firms established throughout the various republics, for the sole purpose
of giving further publicity to the Faith, and winning ultimately fresh
recruits to the strength of its followers.