Spiritual Food for Thought - from the Writings of Shoghi Effendi and Universal House of Justice: June 2015

June 30

How vast is the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh! How great the magnitude of His blessings showered upon humanity in this day! And yet, how poor, how inadequate our conception of their significance and glory! This generation stands too close to so colossal a Revelation to appreciate, in their full measure, the infinite possibilities of His Faith, the unprecedented character of His Cause, and the mysterious dispensations of His Providence.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 21 March 1930; ‘The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh’)

June 29

The friends should realize that there is nothing in the Texts to indicate that the election of the Universal House of Justice could be called only by the Guardian. On the contrary, 'Abdu'l-Bahá envisaged the calling of its election in His own lifetime. At a time described by the Guardian as "the darkest moments of His [the Master's] life, under 'Abdu'l-Hamid's regime, when He stood ready to be deported to the most inhospitable regions of Northern Africa," and when even His life was threatened, 'Abdu'l-Bahá wrote to Haji Mirza Taqi Afnan, the cousin of the Báb and chief builder of the 'Ishqabad Temple, commanding him to arrange for the election of the Universal House of Justice should the threats against the Master materialize. The second part of the Master's Will is also relevant to such a situation and should be studied by the friends.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a message dated 9 March 1965; Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986’)

June 28

The Báb, the Exalted One, is the Morn of Truth, the splendour of Whose light shineth through all regions. He is also the Harbinger of the Most Great Light, the Abha Luminary. The Blessed Beauty is the One promised by the sacred books of the past, the revelation of the Source of light that shone upon Mount Sinai, Whose fire glowed in the midst of the Burning Bush. We are, one and all, servants of Their threshold, and stand each as a lowly keeper at Their door.

- ‘Adu’l-Baha (Quoted by the Universal House of Justice in a letter dated 8 March 1965; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986’)

June 27

At the time of our beloved Shoghi Effendi's death it was evident, from the circumstances and from the explicit requirements of the Holy Texts, that it had been impossible for him to appoint a successor in accordance with the provisions of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. This situation, in which the Guardian died without being able to appoint a successor, presented an obscure question not covered by the explicit Holy Text, and had to be referred to the Universal House of Justice. The friends should clearly understand that before the election of the Universal House of Justice there was no knowledge that there would be no Guardian. There could not have been any such foreknowledge, whatever opinions individual believers may have held. Neither the Hands of the Cause of God, nor the International Bahá'í Council, nor any other existing body could make a decision upon this all-important matter. Only the House of Justice had authority to pronounce upon it. This was one urgent reason for calling the election of the Universal House of Justice as soon as possible.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a message dated 9 March, 1965; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986)

June 26

Shoghi Effendi, in various statements, celebrated the remarkable achievements and potential glories of that specially blessed community, but was moved to issue, in “The Advent of Divine Justice”, a profound warning which is essential to a proper understanding of the relation of that Baha?’i? community to the nation from which it has sprung. “The glowing tributes,” he solemnly wrote, “so repeatedly and deservedly paid to the capacity, the spirit, the conduct, and the high rank, of the American believers, both individually and as an organic community, must, under no circumstances, be confounded with the characteristics and nature of the people from which God has raised them up. A sharp distinction between that community and that people must be made, and resolutely and fearlessly upheld, if we wish to give due recognition to the transmuting power of the Faith of Baha?’u’lla?h, in its impact on the lives and standards of those who have chosen to enlist under His banner. Otherwise, the supreme and distinguishing function of His Revelation, which is none other than the calling into being of a new race of men, will remain wholly unrecognized and completely obscured.” It is the far- reaching, transformative implications of this distinction which we especially invite you to contemplate.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 29 December 1988 to the Baha?’i?s of the United States included in a compilation on ‘A New Race of Men’ prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice and attached to a letter dated 15 September 2013 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

June 25

…general appeals addressed to the communities as a body should be the only form in which the financial requirements of the Faith are to be met…

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated February 27, 1929; ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

June 24

The Assemblies have been established to administer the affairs of the Cause with authority. The believers have the right to vote for whoever they please. If they do not like their Assembly's acts, they must, for the sake of the unity of the Faith, abide by its decisions. The individual has the right to make suggestions, to protest, but he has no rights over the Assembly; his force is his vote. If one of the friends is dissatisfied over the local situation he should nevertheless co-operate with his Spiritual Assembly and do all he can to help it. He can pray for it, he can show through his own deeds a noble Bahá'í example. The system is perfect, but if the instruments are imperfect we must still uphold the system, knowing God will watch over and protect His Cause, and that such conditions are only temporary and will pass away as the Cause grows and the Bahá'ís mature.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 14 November 1948 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, Issues Concerning Community Functioning)

June 23

…each must, in his actions, words and demeanor, represent the transforming influence of the Teachings of Baha?’u’lla?h, such personal transformations being the key to the creation of that new race of men and women promised by the Teachings; indeed, it is only when our “inner lives and private character” are imbued with the standards of the Faith and are reflected in our actions that we may truly represent the Cause in the noble purposes for which it was sent by God through the Blessed Beauty.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 26 November 1985, written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a Baha?’i? couple included in a compilation on ‘A New Race of Men’ prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice and attached to a letter dated 15 September 2013 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

June 22

It befitteth the friends to hold a gathering, a meeting, where they shall glorify God and fix their hearts upon Him, and read and recite the Holy Writings of the Blessed Beauty - may my soul be the ransom of His lovers! The lights of the All-Glorious Realm, the rays of the Supreme Horizon, will be cast upon such bright assemblages, for these are none other than the Mashriqu'l-Adhkárs, the Dawning-Points of God's Remembrance, which must, at the direction of the Most Exalted Pen, be established in every hamlet and city…. These spiritual gatherings must be held with the utmost purity and consecration, so that from the site itself, and its earth and the air about it, one will inhale the fragrant breathings of the Holy Spirit.

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá’; compilation ‘Baha’i Meetings’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice)

June 21

There is an answer in the teachings for everything; unfortunately the majority of the Bahá'ís, however intensely devoted and sincere they may be, lack for the most part the necessary scholarship and wisdom to reply to and refute the claims and attacks of people with some education and standing.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 25 September 1942 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, Scholarship)

June 20

The news of the co-operation of the Bahá'í young men and women in Montreal, their establishment of a group for study and discussion, the sane and sober expression of their methods as expressed in the programme you had enclosed, and their thoughtful and enthusiastic outlook upon the future, all these have helped to create the liveliest hopes and the deepest satisfaction in the heart of our Guardian. It is indeed with no little pleasure that he welcomes the active co-operation of his young friends in Montreal, and he sincerely trusts that with an adequate study of the proper teachings and their spiritual significance coupled with a sufficient knowledge of the problems and perplexities that the world is beset with, you will be able to render great services to the Cause and therefore to humanity.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 20 March 1929 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, Scholarship)

June 19

'Abdu'l-Bahá explains that the human being has two natures, the spiritual or higher nature and the material or lower nature, and that the purpose of life is to gain mastery over the limitations and promptings of one's material nature and to cultivate spiritual qualities and virtues―the attributes of the soul which constitute one's true and abiding identity. Worldly desire is not the essence of a human being, but a veil that obscures it. Adherence to the Teachings of the Divine Educator refines the character and develops the potentialities with which each person is endowed; it liberates the individual and society from lower inclinations that give rise to the ills that afflict humanity.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 9 May, 2014, written on behalf of the Universal House of justice to an individual believer)

June 18

O thou sincere servant of the True One and spiritual physician of the people! Whenever thou attendest a patient, turn thy face toward the Lord of the Kingdom, supplicate assistance from the Holy Spirit and heal the ailments of the sick one...

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From a Tablet, compilation ‘Professions’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice)

June 17

Whensoever a company of people shall gather in a meeting place, shall engage in glorifying God, and shall speak with one another of the mysteries of God, beyond any doubt the breathings of the Holy Spirit will blow gently over them, and each shall receive a share thereof.

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá’; compilation ‘Baha’i Meetings’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice)

June 16

He urges you not to lose heart, and never to stop serving the Faith. No matter what the attitude of others may be, it cannot exonerate you from showing the right attitude; your duty is to God, and you should rest assured in the end He will solve all these problems.

June 15

Who, I may ask, when viewing the international character of the Cause, its far-flung ramifications, the increasing complexity of its affairs, the diversity of its adherents, and the state of confusion that assails on every side the infant Faith of God, can for a moment question the necessity of some sort of administrative machinery that will insure, amid the storm and stress of a struggling civilization, the unity of the Faith, the preservation of its identity, and the protection of its interests? To repudiate the validity of the assemblies of the elected ministers of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh would be to reject those countless Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wherein They have extolled the station of the “trustees of the Merciful,” enumerated their privileges and duties, emphasized the glory of their mission, revealed the immensity of their task, and warned them of the attacks they must needs expect from the unwisdom of their friends as well as from the malice of their enemies.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated February 27, 1929; ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

June 14

The accounts of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s travels and of the effect He had on those who met Him are legion. Some went to extraordinary lengths to enter His presence — going by boat, by foot, or even under railway trains — and, by the urgency of their desire to see Him, imprinted themselves on the consciousness of future generations of adults and children. The testimonies of those who were transformed by even a brief, sometimes near wordless encounter with their beloved Master remain deeply stirring. In the wide array of visitors He received — rich and poor, black and white, indigenous and émigré — the universal embrace of His Father’s Faith was unmistakably in evidence. It is impossible to adequately gauge the full scope of what ‘Abdu’l-Bahá accomplished within this period. Many of the seeds He planted, and which He nurtured towards maturity through an extensive correspondence that He maintained until the end of His life, would blossom into a steadfast community capable of bearing the great weight of work in the years to come, supporting the first structures of national Bahá’í administration and beginning to act on the Master’s longing that the divine teachings be brought to every city and shore.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a message dated 5 December, 2013)

June 13

The Bahá'ís are fully entitled to address criticisms to their Assemblies; they can freely air their views about policies or individual members of elected bodies to the Assembly, Local or National, but then they must whole-heartedly accept the advice or decision of the Assembly, according to the principles already laid down for such matters in Bahá'í administration.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 13 May 1945 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to a National Spiritual Assembly; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, Issues Concerning Community Functioning)

June 12

…when Bahá'ís permit the dark forces of the world to enter into their own relationships within the Faith they gravely jeopardize its progress; it is the paramount duty of the believers, the Local Assemblies, and particularly the National Spiritual Assembly to foster harmony, understanding and love amongst the friends. All should be ready and willing to set aside every personal sense of grievance -- justified or unjustified -- for the good of the Cause, because the people will never embrace it until they see in its community life mirrored what is so conspicuously lacking in the world: love and unity.

June 11

Love is the standard which must govern the conduct of one believer towards another. The administrative order does not change this, but unfortunately sometimes the friends confuse the two, and try to be a whole spiritual assembly, — with the discipline and justice and impartiality that body must show, — to each other, instead of being forgiving, loving and patient to each other as individuals.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated March 18, 1950, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Lights of Guidance’)

June 10

Bahá’u’lláh states that the knowledge of God is revealed through His Manifestation, Who has an innate awareness of the human condition and the social order, and Whose purpose is to set forth such precepts as will effect a profound transformation in both the inner life and external conditions of humankind. "No man, however acute his perception," He affirms, "can ever hope to reach the heights which the wisdom and understanding of the Divine Physician have attained."

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 9 May, 2014, written on behalf of the Universal House of justice to an individual believer)

June 9

Let it not be imagined that the House of Justice will take any decision according to its own concepts and opinions. God forbid! The Supreme House of Justice will take decisions and establish laws through the inspiration and confirmation of the Holy Spirit, because it is in the safekeeping and under the shelter and protection of the Ancient Beauty, and obedience to its decisions is a bounden and essential duty and an absolute obligation, and there is no escape for anyone.

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From a Tablet included in a letter dated 18 April 2001 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

June 8

While Bahá’ís hold specific beliefs about human identity, sexuality, personal morality, and individual and social transformation, they also believe that individuals must be free to investigate truth and should not be coerced. They are, therefore, enjoined to be tolerant of those whose views differ from their own, not to judge others according to their own standards, and not to attempt to impose these standards on society.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 9 May, 2014, written on behalf of the Universal House of justice to an individual believer)

June 7

…Bahá’u’lláh departed His House in Baghdad for the Najíbíyyih Garden, where He would, for the first time, openly disclose His prophetic mission. He left behind Him an edifice of surpassing sacredness that had sheltered Him for seven years. This sanctified residence, to which the Blessed Beauty would never return, was styled by Him the “Most Great House”; designated, along with the House of the Báb in Shiraz, as the place of Bahá’í pilgrimage; and addressed, by the Supreme Pen, in these stirring words:

“I testify that thou art the scene of His transcendent glory, His most holy habitation. Out of thee hath gone forth the Breath of the All-Glorious, a Breath that hath breathed over all created things, and filled with joy the breasts of the devout that dwell in the mansions of Paradise.”

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 17 July 2013)

June 6

When He arrived in the Holy Land… at the conclusion of His “epoch-making journeys” to Egypt and the West, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá eschewed any ceremony or fanfare just as He had at His departure. But between His going and His return, a defining period in Bahá’í history had unfolded — a “glorious chapter”, in the words of Shoghi Effendi, during which “seeds of undreamt-of potentialities” had been sown, “with the hand of the Centre of the Covenant Himself”, in the “fertile fields” to the west.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a message dated 5 December, 2013)

June 5

Say, O People: Verily the Supreme House of Justice is under the wings of your Lord, the Compassionate, the All-Merciful, that is under His protection, His care, and His shelter; for He has commanded the firm believers to obey that blessed, sanctified, and all-subduing body, whose sovereignty is divinely ordained and of the Kingdom of Heaven and whose laws are inspired and spiritual.

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha (From a Tablet, included in a letter dated 18 April 2001 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

June 4

The House of Justice calls upon the members of the community of the Greatest Name, young and old, men and women alike, to strive to develop and offer to humanity a new model of scholarly activity along the lines set out in this compilation, [on Scholarship] animated by the spirit of inquiry into the limitless meaning of the Divine Teachings. This scholarly endeavour should be characterized by the welcome it offers to all who wish to be involved in it, each in his or her own way, by mutual encouragement and cooperation among its participants, and by the respect accorded to distinguished accomplishment and outstanding achievement. The spirit and approach should be far removed from the arrogance, contention, and exclusiveness which have too often sullied the name of scholarship in the wider society, and which have created barriers to the sound development of this worthy pursuit.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 10 February 1995 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to selected National spiritual Assemblies)

June 3

…contributions to the local and national Funds are of a purely voluntary character… no coercion or solicitation of funds is to be tolerated in the Cause…

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated February 27, 1929; ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

June 2

As to your question whether Bahá’í institutions may take action in relation to the oppression of others, such as various groups in Iran, Bahá’í institutions can, and do, take part in activities that defend the human rights of others. For example, the Bahá’í International Community has often spoken out about the oppression of other religious and ethnic minorities in Iran. Of course, in determining what kinds of activities Bahá’ís and Bahá’í institutions may take part in, a crucial distinction should be drawn between those that possess a partisan political character — participation in which would be contrary to Bahá’í principles — and those that do not.

- The Universal House of Justice (From a letter dated 13 January 2015 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

June 1

…the whole machinery of assemblies, of committees and conventions is to be regarded as a means, and not an end in itself; …they will rise or fall according to their capacity to further the interests, to cöordinate the activities, to apply the principles, to embody the ideals and execute the purpose of the Bahá’í Faith.

- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated February 27, 1929; ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)