Chapter 18
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 grat.i.tude, 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 inst.i.tutions, and above all, its national a.s.sembly. I will appeal to our brethren in East and West to offer every a.s.sistance 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 a.s.sist 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
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 a.s.sures 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 a.s.sure 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 a.s.sured 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 a.s.sembly after all these years, since that important inst.i.tution 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 members.h.i.+p 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?ihran and spend it on the Cause and its inst.i.tutions 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 a.s.sist you, and his ardent prayers are offered on your behalf, for your a.s.sistance, 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 a.s.sembly, 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 a.s.semblies, extend any a.s.sistance 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 a.s.sured, if you persevere in your task and arise to discharge befittingly your responsibilities. The considerable sums acc.u.mulated in?ihran 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 a.s.sure you, often in my thoughts and prayers, and I will continue to supplicate for you the Master's richest blessings.
Rest a.s.sured, persevere, and be happy.
Your true and grateful brother, Shoghi