November 14, 1926: To Baha’is throughout the United States and Canada

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the United States and Canada.

Dearly-beloved friends:

The progress of various events, both within and outside the Bahá’í world, as well as the perusal of the able and illuminating report recently submitted by the Committee of the Persian National Spiritual Assembly in charge of the Tarbíyat School in Ṭihrán, have served to reinforce a gradually growing idea as to the desirability of arranging for the settlement in the capital of that country of one or two American believers who, having the means, the freedom and the capacity, can adequately meet the pressing requirements of a responsible position. Judging from their report, the situation in Ṭihrán though much confused and perplexing, is fraught with rich possibilities for the future of the Cause, both as affecting the national fortunes of Persia, as well as its influence upon the international development of the Cause.

October 29, 1926: To Baha’is throughout the West

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the West.

Dear fellow-workers in the Divine Vineyard:

It will gladden and rejoice every one of you to learn that from various quarters there has of late reached the Holy Land tidings of fresh developments that are a clear indication of those hidden and transforming influences which, from the source of Bahá’u’lláh’s mystic strength, continue to flow with ever-increasing vitality into the heart of this troubled world.

Both in the wider field of its spiritual conquests, where its indomitable spirit is forging ahead, capturing the heights, pervading the multitude; as well as in the gradual consolidation of the administrative structure which its avowed followers the world over are laboring to raise and fortify, the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh, we can increasingly discern, bids fair to become that force which, though not as yet universally recognized, none can afford to belittle or ignore.

October 17, 1926: To Baha’is throughout the West

17 October 1926

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the West.

Dearly-beloved brothers and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

In the course of the few months that have elapsed since my last communication to you regarding the appalling circumstances that have culminated in the martyrdom of our Persian brethren in Jahrum, events of the highest importance to the future welfare of our beloved Cause have transpired, and with startling suddenness conferred abiding solace upon those who still have to face the pains and terrors of unmitigated and shameless tyranny.

You have, most of you I presume, read with thrilling joy in one of the recent issues of the “Star of the West” that illuminating account given by our beloved sister, Miss Martha Root, wherein she tells with her characteristic directness and modesty the story of her moving interview with Her Majesty Queen Marie of Rumania and of the cordial and ready response which her gentle yet persuasive presentation of the principles of the Bahá’í Faith has evoked in the heart of that honoured Queen. One of the visible and potent effects which this historic interview proved capable of achieving was the remarkable appeal in the form of an open letter which Her Majesty freely and spontaneously caused to be published to the world at large testifying in a language of exquisite beauty to the power and sublimity of the Message of Bahá’u’lláh.

October 7th, 1926: To Baha’is throughout the West

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the West.

Dearly-beloved brothers and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá:

In the course of the few months that have elapsed since my last communication to you regarding the appalling circumstances that have culminated in the martyrdom of our Persian brethren in Jahrum, events of the highest importance to the future welfare of our beloved Cause have transpired, and with startling suddenness conferred abiding solace upon those who still have to face the pains and terrors of unmitigated and shameless tyranny.

May 11, 1926: To Baha'is throughout the West

11 May 1926

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the West.

Dearly beloved brothers and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

Grave and manifold as are the problems confronting the struggling Faith of Bahá’u’lláh, none appear more significant nor seem more compelling in their urgency than the incredible sufferings borne so heroically by our down-trodden brethren of the East. Recent reports confirming the news which I have lately communicated to you have all emphasised the barbarous severity practised on the innocent followers of our Cause. They reveal the possibility of the extension of this agitation, partly instigated for political purposes and selfish motives, to neighbouring towns and provinces, and dwell upon the traditional slackness of the local authorities to inflict prompt and severe punishment upon all the perpetrators of such abominable crimes. It has been ascertained that in the town of Jahrum women have suffered martyrdom in a most atrocious manner, that the knife of the criminal has mercilessly cut to pieces the body of a child, that a number have been severely beaten and injured, their bodies mutilated, their homes pillaged, their property confiscated, and the homeless remnants of their family abandoned to the mercy of a shameless and tyrannical people. In other parts of Persia, and particularly in the province of Ádhirbayján, in the town of Marághih, the friends have been pitilessly denied the civic rights and privileges extended to every citizen of the land. They have been refused the use of the public bath, and been denied access to such shops as provide the necessities of life. They have been declared deprived of the benefit and protection of the law, and all association and dealing with them denounced as a direct violation of the precepts and principles of Islám. It has even been authoritatively stated that the decencies of public interment have been refused to their dead, and that in a particular case every effort to induce the Moslem undertaker to provide the wood for the construction of the coffin failed to secure the official support of the authorities concerned. Every appeal made by these harassed Bahá’ís on behalf of their brethren, whether living or dead, has been met with cold indifference, with vague promises, and not infrequently with severe rebuke and undeserved chastisement.

April 22, 1926: To Baha’is in the West

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful through the West.

Fellow-laborers in the Divine Vineyard:

In the midst of the many vicissitudes which the creative Word of God is destined to encounter in the course of its onward march towards the redemption of the world, there breaks upon us the news of still another loss, more bewildering in its character, yet more inspiring in its challenge, than any of the gravest happenings of recent times. Once again the woeful tale of unabated persecution,  involving this time the martyrdom of twelve of our long-suffering brethren in Jahrum, southern Persia, has reached our ears, and filled us with a gloom which all the joys and ennobling memories of Riḍván have failed to dispel.

From the meagre reports which have thus far been received from that distracted country it appears that this shameful and atrocious act, though the outcome of a number of obscure and complex causes, has been chiefly instigated by that ever-present factor of fierce and relentless impulse of religious hostility. Persia—long neglected and sorely tried—continues, despite the revival of recent hopes, to be the down-trodden victim of unscrupulous personal rivalries and factious intrigue, of tribal revolt, political dissensions and religious animosities—all of which have in times past brought in their wake the shedding of the blood of so many of its innocent and choicest sons.

November 30, 1925: To Baha’is Worldwide

To the beloved of God and the handmaids of the Merciful in the East and in the West.

Dear fellow-workers:

It is with feelings of overwhelming sorrow that I communicate to you the news of yet another loss which the Almighty, in His inscrutable wisdom, has chosen to inflict upon our beloved Cause. On the 22nd of November, 1925, that memorable and sacred day in which the Bahá’ís of the Orient celebrated the twin Festivals of the Declaration of the Báb and the birthday of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Dr. John E. Esslemont passed on to the Abhá Kingdom. His end was as swift as it was unexpected. Suffering from the effects of a chronic and insidious disease, he fell at last a victim to the inevitable complications that ensued, the fatal course of which neither the efforts of vigilant physicians nor the devoted cares of his many friends could possibly deflect.

November 6, 1925: To Baha’is Worldwide

6 November 1925

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the East and throughout the West.

Dearly-beloved friends:

The sad and sudden crisis that has arisen in connexion with the ownership of Bahá’u’lláh’s sacred house in Baghdád has sent a thrill of indignation and dismay throughout the whole of the Bahá’í world. Houses that have been occupied by Bahá’u’lláh for well nigh the whole period of His exile in ‘Iráq, ordained by Him as the chosen and sanctified object of Bahá’í pilgrimage in future, magnified and extolled in countless Tablets and Epistles as the sacred centre “round which shall circle all peoples and kindreds of the earth”—lie now, due to fierce intrigue and ceaseless fanatical opposition, at the mercy of the declared enemies of the Cause.

I have instantly communicated with every Bahá’í Centre in both East and West, and urgently requested the faithful followers of the Faith in every land to protest vehemently against this glaring perversion of justice, to assert firmly and courteously the spiritual rights of the Bahá’í community to the ownership of this venerated house, to plead for British fairness and justice, and to pledge their unswerving determination to ensure the security of this hallowed spot.

May 27, 1925: To Baha’is of Germany

27 May 1925

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout Germany.

My dearly-beloved friends:

Our well-beloved brother and fellow-worker Dr. Esslemont acting on medical advice is proceeding to the Black Forest for treatment and recuperation. He has been suffering of late from ill-health which has interfered with the unique and most valuable work he has been doing in Haifa. His past services, his selflessness and devotion, his book of unsurpassed excellence, his noble character and great industry entitle him to the highest esteem and warmest affection of every true Bahá’í.

March 7, 1925: To Baha’is of Vienna

7 March 1925

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Vienna.

My dearly-beloved brothers and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

Your joint letter dated February 13th, 1925 has rejoiced my heart and has served to deepen my admiration for the splendid efforts displayed by your spiritual teacher, our never to be forgotten Bahá’í brother Mr. Herrigel. As I read the full list of your beloved names, I could not but feel a thrill of joy and gratitude for the manifold blessings of our departed Master who has graciously called upon you and chosen you to carry on the great work to which He dedicated His whole life. It is indeed a great privilege for you all to be able to labour in this Divine Vineyard, and to lay down the basis of the spiritual as well as the material development of your ancient and beloved country.

February 2, 1925: To Baha’is of Germany

2 February 1925

To my well-beloved Bahá’í brethren and sisters throughout Germany.
Care of the German National Spiritual Assembly.

Loyal and capable children of our beloved ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

I have received with the greatest pleasure from the National Spiritual Assembly, through our dearly-beloved Consul Schwarz, the report of your activities that reflect so vividly the unquenchable spirit of love and self-sacrifice which animates you in your service for the Beloved’s Cause. Your unremitting labours are worthy of the highest praise, the success you have so far achieved is well deserved. The refreshing vitality of your work, the unity of purpose and the concerted action attained recently by your fast-growing community are resplendent features of your activity. They continually remind us of the Master’s intense love for you, His high hopes in you, His often expressed admiration for the ardent devotion, the unquestioned sincerity, the unrivalled capacity of His loved ones in Germany. By what you have already accomplished, and by what you are determined to achieve in times to come, you have merited His abundant blessings and proved in the highest sense worthy of the unsurpassed affection He had for you.

November 27, 1924: To Baha’is of Germany

27 November 1924

To my dearly-beloved brothers and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

My most precious brothers and sisters in the love of God!

Your most welcome letter bearing the signatures of those who have attended your Annual Bahá’í Congress recently held in Stuttgart filled my heart with a joy that I cannot express. As I read it over and over again I could feel from every word, nay every syllable, of that soul-stirring message of yours the promised quickening power of the Word of Bahá’u’lláh and the love of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá which will, in time, I am certain, achieve the most far-reaching transformation throughout Germany.

Your great and promising country, dear to you all, blest by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s sacred feet, and the object of the hope and affection of Bahá’ís in every land, is in a most startling manner rising phoenix-like from the ashes of humiliation and despair, determined now to raise aloft victoriously and serene the Standard of Bahá’u’lláh and with His love set all the world aflame.

November 24, 1924: To Baha'is Worldwide

To my dearly-beloved brothers and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: care of the American National Spiritual Assembly [1]

Dearest friends:

The day is drawing near when, for the third time, we shall commemorate the world over the passing of our well-beloved ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. May we not pause for a moment, and gather our thoughts? How has it fared with us, His little band of followers, since that day? Whither are we now marching? What has been our achievement?

We have but to turn our eyes to the world without to realize the fierceness and the magnitude of the forces of darkness that are struggling with the dawning light of the Abhá Revelation. Nations, though exhausted and disillusioned, have seemingly begun to cherish anew the spirit of revenge, of domination, and strife. Peoples, convulsed by economic upheavals, are slowly drifting into two great opposing camps with all their menace of social chaos, class hatreds, and worldwide ruin. Races, alienated more than ever before, are filled with mistrust, humiliation and fear, and seem to prepare themselves for a fresh and fateful encounter. Creeds and religions, caught in this whirlpool of conflict and passion, appear to gaze with impotence and despair at this spectacle of unceasing turmoil.

September 24, 1924: To Baha’is of Great Britain [1]

24 September 1924

The beloved of the Lord and the hand-maids of the Merciful in Great Britain.

Care of the National Spiritual Assembly.

Dear Friends,

I return to the Holy Land with an overpowering sense of the gravity of the spiritual state of the Cause in the world. Much as I deplore the disturbing effect of my forced and repeated withdrawals from the field of service, I can unhesitatingly assure you that my last and momentous step was taken with extreme reluctance and only after mature and anxious reflection as to the best way to safeguard the interests of a precious Cause.

My prolonged absence, my utter inaction should not, however, be solely attributed to certain external manifestations of unharmony, of discontent and disloyalty—however paralysing their effect has been upon the continuance of my work—but also to my own unworthiness and to my imperfections and frailties.

February 23, 1924: To Baha’is Throughout America

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout America.

My dear fellow-workers:

I gather from various sources that the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh, in the course of its sure yet toilsome march towards the salvation of the world, has encountered of late further obstacles, which in the eyes of some appear to retard its progress and hinder its growth. I have learned with feelings of sadness and surprise that some vague sense of apprehension, a strange misconception of its immediate purpose and methods, is slowly gaining ground, steadily affecting its wholesome growth and vigorous development throughout the continent.

Though such signs should appear from time to time, and however unrepresentative they be of the vast and growing mass of its convinced and zealous supporters, the world over, what, I wonder, could have caused this uneasiness of mind? Are such misgivings possible, though on the part of but a few, in the face of the remarkable manifestations of so remarkable a movement? To what extent do they form a part of those mental tests and trials destined at various times by the Almighty to stir and reinvigorate the body of His Cause, and how far are they traceable to our imperfect state of understanding, to our weaknesses and failings?

Decembers, 1923: To Baha'is of India and Burma

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout India, and Burma. Care of the National Spiritual Assembly.

Decembers, 1923

My dearest friends:

It is a great pleasure and privilege for me to renew the bonds of fellowship and affection that have always united our hearts in the service of our beloved Master. I need not recall to your minds the warm and abiding place which that gifted Dominion has always occupied in our Beloved's heart, and the high hopes He cherished for its future 'contribution towards the triumph of the Movement in those distant regions of the earth.

I am sure the hour has struck when those dearly-beloved pioneers of the Master's Cause, scattered throughout the length and breadth of that vast and promising land, should unite, consolidate their forces, and effectively combine for the laying of a firm foundation for the future progress of their noble task. It is my earnest hope and my most cherished desire that at the forthcoming convention the vigour and enlightened efforts of the Bahá'í youth of India, coupled with the generous support and devotion of the old beloved Parsee friends, and reinforced by the vast numbers of the ardent followers of the Faith in Burma, may, by imparting power and brilliancy to its proceedings, herald an era of unprecedented activity for the ultimate recognition of the Cause by the peoples of that country.

December 31, 1923: To Baha'is of Hamburg, Gera, Schwerin, Rostock and Wärnemunde, Germany

31 December 1923

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Hamburg, Gera, Schwerin, Rostock and Wärnemunde.

My dearly-beloved brethren and sisters in the love of God!

The letter of our beloved and highly-esteemed fellow-worker, Dr. Grossmann, together with the enclosed Bahá’í leaflets and reports, as well as the most welcome and encouraging circular letters sent out by the Hamburg and Gera Bahá’í Assemblies, have all been received and read with pride and gratitude. So unexpected were these messages that were conveyed to us from those uttermost corners of Germany, and so beautiful their spirit, that we all felt at once surprised, gladdened and inspired. How wondrous, how all-conquering is the Spirit of our beloved Master which, despite the terrible distress now reigning all over Germany, and notwithstanding the confusion and the gross materialism in which mankind is now sunk, is causing these vigorous, radiant and hopeful Bahá’í centres to be established, linked together and strengthened, in even the uttermost regions of your great country.

December 28, 1923: To Baha’is of Leipzig, Germany

28 December 1923

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Leipzig, Germany, Care of his honour, Mr. Herrigel.

My dearest brethren and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá:

I need not emphasize the deep and genuine pleasure I felt when I received and read your most welcome letter dated November 11th. 1923. With what pride and gratitude I learned from it that already, through the ever-present and omnipotent spirit of our departed Master a fresh start has been made and a promising center established in that beautiful city of yours, one of the leading centres of thought in your beloved country.

True, your fatherland is now fallen a prey to chaotic conditions and severe distress, yet in this hour of trial and suffering we should all remember the inspired words of our Beloved who, more than once, declared that out of this humiliating turmoil Germany is sure to rise again, united and mighty, ready to render her services, spiritual as well as material, to the cause of mankind.

December 4, 1923: To Baha'is of Germany

4 December 1923

To the dearly-beloved friends throughout Germany. Care of the National Spiritual Assembly

My well-beloved friends:

What a joy to correspond with you again, and express, after a long and unbroken silence, my warm sentiments of love and affection for those tried, yet steadfast, lovers of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá! Your trials and sufferings have been a constant source of anxiety and painful sorrow, not to me alone, but to the Ladies of the Household as well as to the friends at large.

True, humanity is to-day widely afflicted with unprecedented ills and calamities, but you, the chosen and favoured children of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, have, by some wisdom inscrutable to us all, received the fullest measure of this distress, and are carrying the burden of your cares with heroic fortitude, unflinching faith, and undaunted courage worthy of the admiration of even the most severely tried of your fellow-sufferers in far-away Persia.

November 14, 1923: To Baha'is Throughout America

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout America, care of the members of the American National Spiritual Assembly.

Fellow-laborers in the Divine Vineyard:

Upon my return, after a forced and prolonged absence, to the Holy Land, it is my first and most ardent wish to renew and strengthen those ties of brotherly love and fellowship that bind our hearts together in our common servitude to His sacred Threshold.

The two years that have elapsed since the passing of our beloved Master have been for the Cause, as well as for mankind, years of deep anxiety and pain. The momentous changes that are taking place in the history of both have proved so swift and far-reaching as to arouse in certain hearts a strange misgiving as to their stability and future.

June 2, 1923: To Baha'is of Mandalay, Daidanaw-Kala, and Tanbingyanng

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Mandalay, Daidanaw-Kala, and Tanbingyanng. Care of Aqa Seyed Mustapha, Mandalay, Burma.

June 2, 1923

Dearly beloved brethren and sisters in 'Abdu'1-Baha!

The detailed report I have recently received from the tried and faithful servant of Bahá'u'lláh, Aqa Seyed Mustapha, regarding the progress of your labours in those remote regions of the world has filled my heart with hope and gladness, and has served to fortify the ties of loving fellowship that bind our hearts together in the service of His Cause.

June 1, 1923: To Baha'is of Rangoon

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Rangoon, Care of the Members of the Spiritual Assembly.

June 1, 1923

Dearly beloved brethren and sisters in 'Abdu'1-Baha!

Your most welcome letter has rejoiced my heart, and has redoubled my confidence and hope in that little band of earnest and ardent followers of the Baha'i Faith who labour so devotedly for the diffusion of the Light of Bahá'u'lláh throughout the world.

The glowing account you give me of your recent efforts and activities to extend and consolidate the Campaign of Service in that land has been shared with the resident friends and pilgrims in the Holy Land, and incorporated in the circular letter which the Haifa Spiritual Assembly addresses to the Bahá'í world. It will send, I am sure, a thrill of enthusiasm and courage throughout the body of the friends the world over, and will serve to strengthen the ties that bind us all to you, our beloved co-workers in that far-eastern land!

May 10, 1923: To Baha’is of Japan

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Japan: Susumu Aibara, E. Tanakamuru, Y.S. Lo, K.C. Ling, N. Yawata, Y. Ishigumo, H.C. Waung, M. Hataya, E. Noguchi, F. Takahashi, Ida Finch, Agnes Alexander, K. Sawada, Kenjiro Ono, Tokujiro Torii.

Dearest brethren and sisters in Bahá'u'lláh!

The most welcome letter of our dearly beloved Bahá'í sister, Miss Agnes Alexander, imparting the glad news of the progress of her glorious services in Japan has rejoiced my heart, and has served to strengthen my hope and confidence in the future glories of that far eastern land.

The Ladies of the Holy Household are highly gratified and comforted to learn of your untiring labours in His Vineyard, of the success that has attended your efforts, of the perseverance and ardour with which you conduct your teaching work in those distant regions of the earth. 'Abdu'l-Bahá is with you always and your success is assured!

20 April 1923: To Baha'is of Canada

THE BELOVED OF THE LORD AND THE HANDMAIDS OF THE MERCIFUL THROUGHOUT THE DOMINION OF CANADA, c/o THE SECRETARY TO THE MONTREAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY

My dearly beloved friends!

I was deeply interested and immensely grateful to read the newly received messages and letters from that distant land, all testifying to the growth of a new spirit of enthusiasm and fellowship recently kindled in the hearts of those few, yet earnest, workers for the Cause of Baha’u’llah. The report sent to me recently by the Secretary of the Montreal Spiritual Assembly, as well as the letters which our beloved spiritual sister, Mrs. Scbopflocherber, has received from America, all gave me the assurance that a new era of spiritual activity is dawning upon the people of that land. May the repeated promises of 'Abdu'l-Baha regarding the ultimate religious revival of that spiritually conservative country, and the universal and whole-hearted response of its people to the Call of Ya'-Baha’u’l-Abha' be speedily fulfilled.

circa March, 1923:To Baha’is of Brooklyn

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.A. Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly

Dear brethren arid sisters in 'Abdul-Baha:

In these days of world unrest, of political upheavals, of social disruption and spiritual ferment, the one Power that can bind effectively together the scattered and conflicting elements of human society and breathe into them the vivifying and eternal Spirit of Life is indeed the power of the Call of Ya Baha’u’l-Abha.

We, of this noble Faith, the chosen ones of God, who carry with us this wholesome Medicine for the ills and sicknesses of this world, must now bestir ourselves to further activity and relentless efforts in the great and urgent mission entrusted to us by Baha’u’llah, that we may minister freely and effectively to the needs of mankind.

circa March, 1923:To Baha’is of Washington, D.C.

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Washington, D.C., U.S.A. Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly.

Dearest Friends:

I welcome gladly and heartily this first opportunity of expressing to you in writing what I have always felt in the depths of my heart of my confident hopes for your whole-hearted assistance in the great task that is before me.

I know too well of the spirit of ardent devotion and steadfast love that animates you in your labors for the Cause, and it is primarily upon this that I confidently rely in facing the great responsibilities of the future.

March 12, 1923: To Baha’is throughout America, Great Britain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Japan and Australasia

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout America, Great Britain, Germany, France, Switzerland, Italy, Japan and Australasia.

Fellow-workers in the Vineyard of God!

Over a year has elapsed since that calamitous Hour, when the glorious Person of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was veiled from mortal eyes and His Spirit ascended to the Kingdom of Glory; and I feel that the time is now ripe to take those fresh and momentous decisions which will enable us to fulfill, speedily and faithfully, the last wishes of our departed Master.

The year has been to the outside world a year of fear and suffering, of disillusion and turmoil. To us, however, the bereaved followers of a gracious and loving Master, it has been, despite the passing cares which His sudden departure must necessarily entail, a period of hope, of wholesome activity, marked throughout with a spirit of undiminished confidence in His power and of fidelity to His Cause.

16 February 1923: To Baha'is of Germany

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout Germany, Care of the members of the National Spiritual Assembly.

My dearest brethren and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

I have received with mixed feelings of sadness and gratitude your long expected letter, sent on behalf of the National Spiritual Assembly (National Body), and written by our sincere and devoted brother Consul Schwarz. It made me feel relieved and grateful at receiving at last the news of your safety and the assurance of your unwavering determination to serve with heart and soul and to the very end the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh; and it filled me with sorrow to hear of the grievous calamity that has befallen your land and the hardships that are afflicting your country.

Let me assure you, at the outset, of the deep sympathy of the Ladies of the Household, of the friends the world over, and of myself, in your great suffering, and our unfailing prayers to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, that He may dissipate these gathering clouds of animosity and strife, and relieve your great and beloved country from its present state of uncertainty and peril.

February 3, 1923: To Baha’is of New York city

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful, throughout the City of New York, U. S. A. Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly.

Dear and faithful friends of 'Abdu'l-Baha!

The welcome letter which the members of your Spiritual Assembly have sent me is indeed a fresh and remarkable testimony of your wise, patient and persistent efforts to promote the Cause of God and deepen its foundations in the heart of that great city.

All throughout the various vicissitudes which the Movement has encountered during this past year of bereavement and uncertainty, the faithful lovers of the Master in New York have, by their wisdom in teaching, the range and character of their activities, their perseverance in their labors and their unity in service, proved themselves worthy of the blessings which our beloved 'Abdu'l-Baha showered upon them during his repeated visits to their city. It is my earnest hope and prayer that now at this decisive hour of the Cause of God the friends may with clear vision and redoubled energy endeavor to deepen still further the essential truths of the Cause in their own lives, and then extend the sphere of their activity, endeavoring at all times to infuse the regenerating Spirit of Baha'u'llah into the divers communities, creeds and classes that are represented in that most cosmopolitan city of the American continent.

19 January 1923: To Baha'is of Germany

19 January 1923

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout Germany, Care of the members of the National Spiritual Assembly.

My dearly-beloved friends!

Ever since I have resumed my work in the Holy Land I have been awaiting with eager and particular interest the detailed letters, individual as well as collective, of my loved ones in Germany, who, I am sure are arduously, devotedly and efficiently carrying on the Great Work which the Master has destined for them in this world.

Much as I desire to correspond individually with every one of you, yet I find that in view of the marvellously rapid extension of the Movement all over the world to start and maintain individual correspondence with the vast and ever-increasing number of Bahá’ís in the East and the West would entail so much time and energy on my part as to prevent me from paying adequate attention to my other duties that are so urgent and vital in these days.

January 16, 1923: To Baha’is throughout the United States and Canada

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the United States and Canada. [1]

Beloved Brethren and Sisters in 'Abdu'l-Baha:

Our dear friend, Jinab-i-Fadil-i-Mazindarani, accompanied by his family, has gladly and gratefully responded to the kind invitation of the American friends to visit them once more and extend his helping hand to the many friends who are so faithfully labouring throughout that continent for the Cause of Baha'u'llah.

Deeply appreciative of the sentiments of warm and abiding affection which his co workers of that land have abundantly shown him in the past, fired with the zeal of service which the passing of our Beloved has kindled in every heart and hopeful of the immediate future of the Cause in those regions, he is proceeding to America with the sole purpose of promoting far and wide and with greater efficiency and vigour the all important work of Teaching.

January 9, 1923: To Baha'is of India and Burmah

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout India and Burmah, Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly.

Beloved co-workers in the Vineyard of God!

It has been my great pleasure and privilege to send you, since my return to the Holy Land, first my general message of confidence and of love addressed to all believers throughout the East, and later another letter wherein I appeal in particular to those faithful lovers of His Cause in that vast and distant dominion to labour whole-heartedly and to the very end for the diffusion of His Light and the spread of His Cause. Remembering, however, the few among my friends in that land who are as yet unfamiliar with the Persian Tongue, I have thought of sending these few lines to them in particular and through them to the rest of my brethren and sisters in those regions who, despite the diversity of tongue, of race and custom are all united at heart and animated by one common desire to uplift humanity and carry out His Divine Purpose for this world.

January 8, 1923: To Baha’is in a number of cities in America and Canada's St. John, N.B

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Asbury Park, N. Ga.; Beverly Salem, Mass.; Bisbee, Ariz.; Buffalo, N. Y.; Eliot, Maine; Cambri, Penn.; Fernandina, Fla.; Fruitport, Mich.; Grand Rapids, Mich. Geyserville, Cal.; Haven, Mich.; Haverhill, Mass.; Ithaca, N.Y.; Johnstown, N. Y.; Miami, Fla.; Milwaukee, Wis.; New Haven, Conn.; Omaha, Neb.; Okanagan, Wash.; Peoria, Ill.; San Diego, Cal.; Santa Barbara, Cal.; Santa Paula, Cal.; Santa Rosa, Cal.;  Springfield, Ill; St. John, N.B; St. Louis, Mo.; St. Paul, Minn.; Trenton, N. Y.; Worcester, Mass.      

Care of tile members of the National Spiritual Assembly.

Dearest Fellow workers in the Vineyard of God:

Though your number in each of these cities be small and limited, yet by virtue of that Celestial Potency bequeathed to every one of you by our departed Master, you are assured that ere long your small company shall expand and wield such power and influence as no earthly power can ever hope for or attain. Who can doubt that he is ever watching from his Station on High over his scattered fold and is guiding and strengthening his faithful lovers who toil and labour for the fulfillment of his Word and the realization of his Purpose for mankind?

January 5, 1923: To Baha’is of Cleveland

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A. Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly.

My beloved friends:

I trust now that I have returned refreshed and strengthened from my needed retirement, I shall very soon hear from you such news as shall encourage and strengthen me in my labours for His Holy Cause.

I look forward with eager anticipation to the welcome news of increased unity among the loved ones of God, of renewed ardour in their ceaseless service to the Cause and of crowning achievements in their field of service throughout that country.

5 January 1923: To Baha'is of Great Britain, Germany, Italy, and Switzerland

The beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Switzerland.

The glory of the All-Glorious rest upon them!

Beloved brethren and sisters in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá!

His honor, Jináb-i ‘Abdu’l-Ḥusayn-í Avárih, fired with the spirit of service and teaching which the passing of our beloved Master has kindled in every heart, is proceeding to Europe and will visit every Bahá’í centre in that great continent, that he may with the aid of the many friends in those regions raise the Call of Yá-Bahá’u’l-Abhá and stimulate interest in the Cause of God. He is indeed qualified for such an eminent noble task and I am confident that by the Grace of God and with the whole-hearted assistance of the loved ones of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, he may be enabled to promote far and wide the universal Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh.

2 January 1923: To Baha'is of Canada

THE BELOVED OF THE LORD AND THE HANDMAIDS OF THE MERCIFUL THROUGHOUT

C/O THE MEMBERS OF THE SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY IN MONTREAL

Dear friends!

It is a great pleasure and privilege to me to enter into direct and I trust permanent correspondence with those faithful fiends of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, who , though few in number and scattered over that vast and flourishing country, will I trust act as a powerful leaven to the mass of that spiritually-minded people.

Though its people be firmly entrenched in their religious sectarianism and strongly attached to their religious doctrines and traditions, yet who can doubt that with courage and persistence, kindliness and wisdom, the all-conquering words of Baha’u'llah can fail to break down all these barriers of prejudice and religious exclusiveness and conquer this long-standing stronghold of sectarian belief!

December 30, 1922: To Baha’is of Philadelphia

To the Beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the merciful in Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.A. Care of the Members of the Spiritual Assembly.

My Loving Friends:

Whenever I recall the tender affection with which the beloved Master referred to you in His spoken as well as in His written words I feel that the day may not be distant when the friends of that city will as the standard-bearers of the Cause herald to their fellow countrymen and to the world at large the glad tidings of this glorious Revelation.

Assured and strengthened by the memories of the many blessings that have been yours in the past, it is now assuredly the time to arise with one accord for the fulfillment of our sacred obligations, the pre-requisites of the speedy realization of such brilliant success in the Cause.

December 30, 1922: To Baha’is of San Francisco

The Beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in San Francisco, Calif. U.S.A.

Beloved Friends:

The various tidings that have directly and indirectly reached the Holy Land regarding the combined efforts which the friends of the Western States have recently exerted for the promotion of the Cause in those regions, and in which the friends in that city have shared in no small degree, have filled our hearts with a joy that no words can express.

It is indeed gratifying to learn how your flourishing city, so rich and splendid in its material gifts, so similar in its atmosphere and peaceful surroundings to the Holy Land, and potentially endowed with such spiritual capacity, is now taking a leading part in lending a fresh impetus to the onward march of the Movement in regions which, though distant and remote, are yet so near and dear to the Master's heart.

December 29, 1922: To Baha’is of Chicago

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful in Chicago, Ill. U.S.A. Care of the members of the Spiritual Assembly.

Beloved brethren and sisters in the Cause of God:

May I assure you in this short message of mine of my sincere admiration for and firm attachment to those old and tried believers who have been engaged ever since the earliest days of the Cause in that land in the noble pursuit of spreading far and wide the Universal Teachings of Baha'u'llah.

23 December 1922: To Baha'is of Great Britain

To my beloved brethren and sisters throughout Great Britain. Care of the members of the Bahá’í Council.

Dearest Friends,

I have during the last few days been waiting eagerly for the first written messages of my Western friends, sent to me since they have learned of my return to the Holy Land. How great was the joy when dear Miss Rosenberg’s letter—the very first that reached me from the West—was handed to me this evening, bearing the joyful news of the safety, the unity and the happiness of my British friends across the seas! I read it and re-read it with particular pleasure and felt a thrill of delight at the welcome news of the harmonious and efficient functioning of your Spiritual Assembly.

I very sincerely hope that now that I have fully re-entered upon my task, I may be enabled to offer my humble share of assistance and advice in the all-important work which is now before you. I fervently pray to God that the field of your activities may go on expanding, that your zeal and efforts may never diminish, and that new souls, active, able and sincere, may soon join with you in bearing aloft the Glorious Standard of the Cause in that land….

20 December 1922: To Baha'is of Australia

To the Baha’is of Australia

My dearest co-workers in that distant land:-

How great was my joy to learn that in that far-away continent, remote from the turmoil and restlessness of a weary world, the Voice of God has been raised and proclaimed and has attracted such a promising number of ardent and faithful lovers of Baha’u’llah.

I offer you my heartfelt love and sympathy and the assurance of my unfailing assistance in the great work of service to mankind which is now so gloriously unfolding itself to your eyes.

17 December 1922: To Baha'is of Germany

Blest and beloved ones of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá! [throughout Germany]

To have been unable, owing to sad circumstances over which I have had no control, to keep in close and constant touch with you, the beloved children of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, since His passing from this world, is to me a cause of sad surprise and deep and bitter regret. To say that ever since the Dawn of a New Day has broken upon me I have in the least felt reluctant or disinclined to enter into relationship with every one of you, or felt indifferent to a Cause which is so close and dear to your hearts, would indeed betray every sentiment of love and fellowship which animates every one of us in our servitude to His Holy Threshold. It was rather my utter exhaustion, my profound feelings of sorrow, the overwhelming sense of my own position and responsibilities and the extreme pressure of work that have caused me to maintain such a long silence and seem forgetful of those brave and valiant lovers of the Master in that land.

Of the thoughts that sustained and comforted me during my hours of restful retirement was the realization, never dismissed from my mind, that in the German friends the Master will surely find loyal and grateful children who will repay the tender love and paternal care which He had for them with a devotion and service, so profound and lasting that will prove worthy of the many blessings that have been theirs in the past.

December 17, 1922: To Baha’is of Japan

Dear friends, the chosen ones of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in that Far Eastern land!

Having brought to an end my long hours of retirement and meditation, one of my first thoughts upon my return to these hallowed surroundings has been to inquire after the well-being and spiritual happiness of my far-away fellow-workers who toil and labour in those remote regions of the earth for the blessed Cause of Bahá'u'lláh. How great was my joy when I learned that you were well safe and happy, content and determined, untiring in your labours and hopeful of the future!

That my sudden withdrawal from the field of active service would leave you undeterred in your activities, would never damp your tender hopes nor shake your resolution to stand firmly for the Cause, I never doubted as I knew well the indelible marks of loyalty and steadfastness which the words of our beloved Master have wrought in your lives. I am equally certain that now when we join hands again in carrying the Cause of God a stage yet further, your assistance wholehearted as ever before will give it a fresh impetus that will lead to the establishment of throbbing centres of spiritual activity in those outlying regions of the world.

December 16, 1922: To Baha'is Throughout the Continent of America

To the loved ones of 'Abdu'l-Baha throughout the continent of America

Dear fellow-workers in the Holy Vineyard of Baha!

Now that my long hours of rest and meditation are happily at an end, I turn my face with renewed hope and vigor to that vast continent the soil of which is pregnant with those seeds that our beloved Master has so tenderly and so profusely scattered in the past. Prolonged though this period has been, yet I have strongly felt ever since the New Day has dawned upon me that such a needed retirement, despite the temporary dislocations it might entail, would far outweigh in its results any immediate service I could have humbly tendered at the Threshold of Bahá'u'lláh.

I am now confident that the energies of my beloved brethren and sisters across the seas, far from being damped by my sudden disappearance from the field of service, will henceforth be fully maintained, nay redoubled in their intensity, that we may all together carry triumphantly to the uttermost corners of the world the glorious Standard of Baha.

16 December 1922: The Guardian's First Letter To the Baha'is in Great Britain

To my spiritual brethren and sisters in Great Britain. Care of the members of the Spiritual Council.[1]

My dearest brethren and sisters in the faith of God!

May I at the very outset of this, my very first letter to you, convey to your hearts in words, however inadequate but assuredly deeply felt and sincere, a measure of my burning impatience, during my days of retirement, to return speedily and join hands with you in the great work of consolidation that awaits every earnest believer in the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh.

Now that happily I feel myself restored to a position where I can take up with continuity and vigour the threads of my manifold duties, the bitterness of every disappointment felt, time and again, in the course of the past weary months at my feeling of unpreparedness, have been merged in the sweetness of the present hour, when I realise that spiritually and bodily I am better equipped to shoulder the responsibilities of the Cause. The thought, so often comforting and sustaining, that in the counsels of my British co-workers of that land, I shall find spontaneous and undiminished support as well as wise and experienced assistance, is surely one of those forces which will hearten me in the midst of my future labours for the Cause.

December 15, 1922: To Baha’is of Japan

To the believers in Japan care Agnes Alexander.

Refreshed and reassured I now stretch to you across the distant seas my hand of brotherly cooperation in the Cause of Baha.

Shoghi

(cable dated December 15, 1922)

(Shoghi Effendi, ‘Japan Will Turn Ablaze’, p. 59)