believers, are often in my thoughts and prayers. I will continue to pray
for the realization of your highest hopes. Do not despair, nay be assured
that a glorious future awaits you all, more brilliant than any you can
imagine.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF 6 JUNE 1939
6 June 1939
My Dear Friend,
I am directed by Shoghi Effendi to thank you for your letter of May 19th.
Although he was very sorry to hear of the deep misunderstandings and lack
of unity that still exists in ..., he is thankful to you for your writing
him about it, and he knows full well that you wrote because you are
animated with a deep desire to remove all ill-feelings among the friends
there.
The fact is that the Guardian is very sad over the present condition and
because it is almost impossible for him to intervene from such a distance
and without hearing both sides, he has written over and over again asking
that the friends should gather, should talk frankly and fully without
ill-feeling and should solve their difficulty. This to Shoghi Effendi's
deep disappointment has not been possible, Mr. Herrigel has been
uncompromising and firm and the result is that the Cause in ... is at a
standstill. This is why Shoghi Effendi would ask everyone and especially
yourself to make every effort and help the situation....
[From the Guardian:]
My dear co-worker:
A trusted friend of ours, Dr. Yunis _Kh_an is proceeding to Germany to
visit the Baha'i centres and I trust he will be enabled to promote true
understanding and sustained cooperation in.... He is most trustworthy and
capable. I will continue to pray for you from the depths of my heart. Rest
assured and never feel disheartened.
Your true brother, Shoghi
LETTER OF 5 NOVEMBER 1945
5 November 1945
Dear Baha'i-Brother:
The message signed by you and other of our dear Baha'i-friends, and dated
Sep. 16th, Esslingen, reached our beloved Guardian, and brought great joy
to his heart. He wishes you if possible to convey the following message to
those who addressed him:
Tell them that it was a source of deep comfort and gratification to him to
receive a word of love and devotion from some of the German Baha'is after
all these years of silence and danger. He was so happy to know they are
well and have been able to meet with you and receive news of the progress
of the Faith in other lands.
He hopes that now that the war is over, and the regime which banned all
Baha'i activities in Germany is no more, the believers there will exert
their utmost to teach this great religion of ours to their
fellow-countrymen. No doubt after so many years of deep suffering and
bitter disillusion there are many souls eager for the truth, and more
awakened to the need of a spiritual solution for the world's problems.
Please convey his love to them all, and assure them they are, and have
been, often remembered in his ardent prayers.
The Guardian was so very glad to know you had been able to meet with some
of the German Baha'is. He urges you to help and inspire them all you can.
His loving prayers surround you, you may be sure...
[From the Guardian:]
Dear and valued co-workers:
I was thrilled by the message you have sent, and feel profoundly thankful
to Baha'u'llah for having preserved you and your dear co-workers in that
land, and for the spirit, which, despite the sufferings and turmoil that
have afflicted your country, you so powerfully display and exemplify. I
cherish great hope for the future of your work, and I pray from all my
heart for the Almighty's richest blessings on your activities. Rest
assure, be happy, and persevere in your historic and meritorious labours.
Your true and grateful brother, Shoghi
LETTER OF 30 DECEMBER 1945
30 December 1945
Beloved Baha'i Friends:
Your letter of April 4th has just been received by our beloved Guardian,
and he has instructed me to answer it at once on his behalf.
It was with feelings of great pride and deep sorrow that he read of the
sufferings of the German believers for their Faith and the persecutions
they underwent so heroically, and with such unflinching loyalty, for our
Holy Cause.
All during these long and tragic years of war his thoughts have been with
the Community of the German believers, and his prayers have constantly
been offered for their protection and the lightening of their heavy
burden. Other Baha'i Communities, like France and England, have also
suffered, but not to the extent of the German and Burmese friends who have
been in lands ravaged by war and invasion, and in the hands, at the same
time, of political parties who persecuted them.
The loss of all the records of the National and Local Assemblies is indeed
very great, and he hopes that your family, Dr. Muehlschlegel, Dr. Schmidt,
Herr Joern, Anna Koestlin, Frau Schweizer, Frau Schwarz--, in fact, all the
old believers, will try and reconstruct from memory, and write down, as
much of the history of the Cause in Germany as they can remember, so that
some accurate records for the future will remain. He would also like you
to write a comprehensive account of what the Baha'is have endured in
Germany since 1937 for the "Baha'i World", vol. X, and send it to him as
soon as possible. The news of the German believers' activities has been
sadly missed in the last two volumes, and he is anxious to have them take
their place again as soon as possible.
He has just written to N.S.A. of America urging them to help, and do all
they can to protect the German Baha'is; he has also urged them to make
every effort to get German Baha'i books published, and sent to Germany as
soon as possible.
You all have a tremendous task before you. He knows how great is the
suffering for just ordinary German citizens at present as an aftermath of
the war--but in spite of these physical hardships the German believers are
called upon to establish again the institutions of their Faith, teach its
life-giving message to the masses, and help their country to obtain the
spiritual destiny 'Abdu'l-Baha foresaw for it. You may be sure the
Guardian and the Baha'is everywhere will do all in their power to help the
German believers accomplish their tasks.
Please assure all the friends--especially those who have lost dear ones in
the war--of his most loving and ardent prayers on their behalf, and of his
feelings of pride and gratitude for their devotion and loyalty to the
Faith.
To you all he sends his loving greetings, his deep appreciation of your
spirit, and the assurance of his constant prayers....
[From the Guardian:]
Dearly-beloved friends:
My heart is filled with joy, pride and gratitude as I witness, thru the
receipt of your most welcome letter, the evidences of the protection of
the Almighty and of the vitality of the faith of the long-suffering German
believers, who have laboured so devotedly and valiantly during so long and
crucial a period and who as a community have survived the greatest ordeal
in the history of their Faith in that land. My prayers during these years
of danger, of stress, of suspense and anxiety have ever surrounded them,
and I rejoice to learn of their safety, their unity, their zeal, and their
determination to arise and resume the great and historic work they are
destined to carry to a triumphant conclusion in the years that lie ahead.
The organization of spiritual assemblies, the reestablishment of the
national assembly, the formation of national committees are the immediate
objectives, and should, if possible be carried out with the utmost speed
and vigour, for upon them will rest the expansion and consolidation of the
activities of a sorely-tried Faith. I am appealing to various Baha'i
communities in East and West to lend their assistance in whatever manner
possible to the arduous task of reconstruction that now faces the German
believers. I long to hear of the news of the friends in other parts of
that land and will do my utmost to aid them to resume their activity and
services to our beloved Faith. Please assure them all of my great love, of
my profound admiration, of my bright hopes for their future, of my
heartfelt gratitude for their perseverance and of my fervent prayers for
their future success.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF DEC. 30TH, 1945
Dec. 30th, 1945
Dear Baha'i Friends:
It was with great joy that the beloved Guardian received your letter of
Aug. 1st, and he has instructed me to answer it on his behalf.
During these long, sad, years of separation his thoughts have constantly
been with the well-loved German Baha'is, and his ardent prayers have been
offered in the Holy Shrines for their protection and the protection of the
Faith there.
Now that the friends are once again free to profess their beliefs, hold
their meetings, teach the Cause, and uphold its institutions, he hopes
they will exert their utmost to reestablish, as speedily as possible, the
Baha'i Communities of Germany. The Faith in that land had, before it was
suppressed and banned, just began to enjoy the fruits of many long years
of labour to promulgate it, and create its administrative bodies; he hopes
that all the German Baha'is will unite to bring it to the former level of
prosperity it enjoyed.
He wishes to assure you all, and through you, all your Baha'i brothers and
sisters in Germany, that he will do all in his power to assist you in your
labours, and that your fellow-Baha'is the world over will likewise aid you
as much as they can.
The beloved Master cherished very bright hopes for the future of the
German Baha'is. His promises and prophecies will surely be fulfilled, and
the Holy Faith not only be reestablished in Germany but grow and expand as
never before.
The Guardian has urged the American N.S.A. to supply the German Baha'is
with literature as soon as possible; this will enable you to bring the
teachings to your sore-stricken countrymen, and enlist them under the
banner of Baha'u'llah.
You may be sure the Guardian's loving prayers surround you all and sustain
you in your labours for the Cause....
[From the Guardian:]
Dearly-beloved Friends:
Your joint and most welcome letter brought indescribable joy to my heart.
I am thrilled by this latest and indeed most significant evidence of the
unfailing protection of the Almighty, and of His manifold blessings
vouchsafed to His dearly-beloved and worthy servants labouring so
heroically for His Faith in that land. Though I am greatly saddened by the
fate that has overtaken a few of them during this prolonged ordeal they
have experienced, I rejoice and am filled with gratitude, pride and
happiness to realize that the Faith itself has survived this fiery test,
and has demonstrated its resilience, its vitality and incorruptibility
after so crucial a period of stress, of suffering and danger. The duty
facing the triumphant community in your land is to reconstruct, with the
utmost speed and vigour its administrative institutions, and above all,
its national assembly. I will appeal to our brethren in East and West to
offer every assistance in their power for the rehabilitation of a
community which is destined to play, in accordance with 'Abdu'l-Baha's
prophecy, so vital a role in the future orientation and expansion of the
world-wide Faith of Baha'u'llah. I will do everything I possibly can to
help it in its task and assist it in the achievement of its high destiny.
I will pray and supplicate on its behalf the abundant blessings of the
Almighty, that its influence may revive, its number increase, its
activities multiply, its resource develop, and its mission be fulfilled.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF 8 APRIL 1946
8 April 1946
Dear Baha'i Friends:
Your loving message, addressed to our beloved Guardian, brought him great
joy, and he has instructed me to answer you on his behalf.
We all know how dark, and spiritually dead, the world is today, and how
desperately it stands in need of spiritual guidance. The Baha'is alone,
through the Message of Baha'u'llah, hold the key to the solution of
humanity's ills, and as much of the tremendous work which lies ahead will
perforce have to be undertaken by young people, he attaches great
importance to the activities of Baha'i Youth everywhere.
He hopes you will all study deeply the teachings, as this alone will give
you the foundation you need for your services to the Faith. You should
also make every effort to distinguish your lives from those of other young
people of your generation, and thus, by the display of Baha'i virtues and
morals, attract the interest and esteem of others.
You may be sure that his loving prayers will be offered for your guidance
and protection in the Holy Shrines....
[From the Guardian:]
Dearly-beloved friends:
I was so pleased and thankful to receive your most welcome message, and to
learn of the resumption of your activities to which I attach the utmost
importance. I will pray for your success from the depths of my heart, and
urge you to get in touch, as soon as possible, with the Baha'i Youth in
various parts of the world, and to strengthen the bonds that unite you to
them, and to work in close collaboration and under the supervision of your
national assembly as soon as it is elected. May the Beloved bless,
sustain, and guide you at all times, and crown your activities with signal
success.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF 4 MAY 1946
4 May 1946
Dear Baha'i Friends:
Your letter of March 17th (the copy of which Mr. Eichenauer also
forwarded) has been received by the beloved Guardian, and he has
instructed me to answer you on his behalf.
He is very anxious for the young Baha'is, everywhere, to deepen their
knowledge of the teachings, of Baha'i administration and laws, and to live
an exemplary Baha'i life in order to prepare themselves for their work in
the Cause as teachers and administrators. They are the ones who will toil
in the glorious and difficult days that lie ahead, and they must now fit
themselves to be worthy of their future high responsibilities and duties.
He assures you all he will pray for your services, your progress and
development, in the Holy Shrines, and he cherishes great hopes for your
future....
[From the Guardian:]
Dear co-workers:
My heart rejoiced and my soul was refreshed at the receipt of your most
welcome message, signed by so great a number of ardent and youthful
co-workers in a land so rich in promise, so blessed by our Beloved, and so
severely tried by the vicissitudes of war. You are, I assure you, often in
my thoughts and prayers, and I cherish the brightest hopes for your future
work. You are, I feel confident, destined to achieve memorable victories,
both in your native land and on the continent of Europe, and you should
diligently and unitedly prepare yourselves for this glorious task.
Persevere, redouble your efforts, and rest assured that the Beloved will
bless and sustain you always.
Your true brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF 30 JULY 1946
30 July 1946
Dear Baha'i Friends:
Your letter of June 29th, with its translation, was received, and our
beloved Guardian has instructed me to answer it on his behalf.
He was so very happy to hear from your Assembly after all these years,
since that important institution was disbanded, and hopes from time to
time you will send him reports of your work.
As regards the question you asked him: he feels that the Baha'is in
Germany should, by all means, follow the same procedure as regards
withdrawing from church membership as that in America. You should point
out to the believers that, by belonging to other organized religious
bodies, we are not acting openly because we firmly believe Christ has come
again--so how can we belong to a church which does not accept Baha'u'llah
and His message as the fulfilment of Jesus' message and the reappearance
of Jesus Himself?
He is very anxious that ways should be found for you to receive the money
collected in Tihran and spend it on the Cause and its institutions in
Germany. The eagerness of the people to hear of the Faith imposes a sacred
duty on all the German Baha'is to see that they are not denied this Divine
Revelation in their hour of need.
You may be sure the Guardian will do all he can to assist you, and his
ardent prayers are offered on your behalf, for your assistance, your
guidance, and the success of your sacred labours to give to Germany the
news of this precious Faith's existence, and to administer with wisdom the
affairs of the Cause there.
He urges you to hold as frequent meetings as possible, and, in cooperation
with the American N.S.A. to get as much literature printed and
disseminated as you can....
[From the Guardian:]
Dear and valued co-workers:
Your letter brought great joy to my heart. I rejoice to hear of the
formation of your assembly, the cornerstone of the foundation of the Faith
in that land. I urge you to consult and deliberate as frequently as you
can on the affairs of the Faith, devise the most effective measures for
its spread, extend the range of Baha'i publications, and the friends to
scatter as widely as they can in order to multiply the centres and
establish new assemblies, extend any assistance you can to the friends in
Vienna and take whatever steps are required to enable you to establish the
centre of the Faith in Frankfurt. Your task is immense, the obstacles
formidable, the need of your fellow countrymen for the healing truths of
the Faith urgent and pitiful, the promised help from on high ready and
assured, if you persevere in your task and arise to discharge befittingly
your responsibilities. The considerable sums accumulated in Tihran will
aid you to extend the scope of your activities and to consolidate your
achievements. You should, though these sums have not yet reached you,
embark on great projects, and devise, after careful deliberation,
effective methods for the propagation of our beloved Faith. I am following
the progress of your highly important activities with intense interest.
You are, I assure you, often in my thoughts and prayers, and I will
continue to supplicate for you the Master's richest blessings.
Rest assured, persevere, and be happy.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF 31 JULY 1946
31 July 1946
Dear Baha'i-Brother:
Your letter of July 1st was received by our beloved Guardian, and he has
instructed me to answer you on his behalf.
He was delighted to hear of the Baha'i wedding which recently took place
in your Community of Stuttgart Baha'is and he thanks all the dear friends
who were present, whose names you forwarded to him on the list enclosed in
your letter, for their greetings and their loving thought of him.
In connection with the National Administrative Center of the Faith being
in Frankfurt, he wishes to point out to you the following:
This is a purely practical measure because Frankfurt a/M is so much more
centrally located than Stuttgart in the south of Germany. The dear friends
of Stuttgart must not for a moment feel that this detracts from the unique
place their city occupies in the history of the Faith in Germany.
It is very similar to what has happened in the United States; 'Abdu'l-Baha
conferred many honours on New York and called it the "City of the
Covenant", but this did not prevent Chicago from being chosen as the
National Administrative Headquarters owing to its central position in
America.
The Stuttgart friends should do all in their power to foster the
development of this Administrative Headquarters in Frankfurt, and to
ensure its success, as this is what is best for the development of the
Faith in Germany. But you can be sure Stuttgart holds a unique position
and has received from the Master Himself unique distinction.
It is probable, but not certain, that the first Temple will also, for the
same reason, be in Frankfurt. The publishing work, likewise, should be
there in the future, but at present its location is for the N.S.A. to
decide.
He was very pleased to hear you are requiring all Baha'is to withdraw from
church membership and similar organizations; he considers your Community
the mother community in spirit, and is confident it will continue to lead
the way in its exemplary conduct.
You may be sure his loving prayers will be offered for the success of the
teaching and administrative work of the Stuttgart believers...
P.S. In the future Stuttgart must naturally have its own administrative
headquarters for that city, and he hopes you will soon have found a
suitable meeting place.
[From the Guardian:]
Dear and valued co-workers:
I was so pleased to receive your most welcome letter. The friends in that
centre are very dear and near to me, and I cherish the brightest hopes for
their future in the service of our beloved Faith. The Beloved poured forth
His manifold blessings upon them and greatly admired their spirit. May His
Spirit continue to guide, sustain and bless them in their future services
and high endeavors for the promotion of His Faith.
Your true and grateful brother,
Shoghi
LETTER OF 22 NOVEMBER 1946
22 November 1946
Dear Baha'i Friends:
Your most welcome letter of Aug. 21st reached our beloved Guardian after a
long delay, as you can see, but brought him great joy. He has instructed
me to answer it on his behalf.
He is fully aware of the very sad and difficult conditions under which you
are labouring to reestablish the spiritual well-being of the German and
Austrian believers, but he feels confident that your great faith,
determination and devotion will enable you to achieve your ends and the
aid of Baha'u'llah is surely vouchsafed you as you serve His Cause and
seek to bring enlightenment and inner comfort to the war-weary German
people.
In connection with the various points you raise in your letter:
He is very anxious to see the "Sonne der Wahrheit" published again; as it
will greatly assist you in sustaining and guiding the German believers and
in teaching other German-speaking people. He urges you to go on
petitioning the U.S. authorities for permission to resume this important
activity.
That so many members of the former "Baha'i World Union" should now be
seeking enrollment as believers greatly pleases him, and he feels you
should by all means accept them as registered Baha'is, unless you
yourselves have any reason to question some individuals' sincerity.
He would like to receive regularly the minutes of your assembly's meetings
in German; it is not necessary to translate the whole thing each time, but
if a short summary of the important points could also be sent in English
he would appreciate it.
The flourishing activities of the Baha'i Summer School at Esslingen
greatly pleased him, and he is so happy to see the way the friends have
not only protected this Baha'i Home during the long years of war and
persecution, but immediately rallied around it again and made it once more
a source of unity and a center of Baha'i study.
The long sessions of your National Assembly meetings are very essential
for the promotion of the work in Germany and the rehabilitation of the
affairs of the Cause there. In your meetings he urges you to give
considerable attention to carrying out the following very important tasks:
It is of the utmost importance that the friends be well supplied with not
only Baha'i literature, but with a regular Baha'i News letter--the organ of
your assembly--and also with their own magazine, the "Sonne der Wahrheit".
He therefore urges you all to persevere in pushing these publication
matters forward. Needless to say the translation work must also go on
uninterruptedly and receive first attention, as there is now a wealth of
Baha'i literature in English for you to draw upon and which is much needed
by the German friends to help deepen their understanding of the Divine
Cause, and better enable them to teach it.