The Unfolding Destiny of the British Bahai Community Part 44

Letter of 29 May 1946

29 May 1946

Dear Baha'i Brother,

Your letters (and those previously written by Mrs. Ferraby as secretary) dated March 19th and 21st; April 12th and 23rd; and May 2nd and 11th, as well as their enclosures, have all been received, and the Guardian has instructed me to answer them on his behalf.

Regarding the various points which have been raised in these letters.

As he already informed you by cable, he sees no objection to subst.i.tuting some other town for Cardiff if that has proved too unpromising....

People who for years have ceased to either attend meetings or show the slightest interest in the Cause can be dropped from the voting list; but any who are unable to attend meetings, but still consider themselves to be Baha'is and are desirous of keeping up their contact with the Faith, should naturally be kept on the voting list.

He feels at the present stage of the Cause's development in England it is perhaps wiser not to make any hard and fast rules about the boundaries of towns for a.s.sembly purposes. However, you should bear in mind that in the future some proper delineation will be necessary.

As to the question of the Publishing Trust about quoting excerpts from some of the Meditations; there is no objection to this at all.

He hopes you will be able to find some suitable quarters in London for your Baha'i Centre; he considers that at the present time, with the heavy and essential teaching programme you have undertaken, it is out of the question to purchase headquarters.

The Guardian takes the keenest interest in your Six Year Plan, and he wishes me to point out to you certain things in this connection: if the important goals of new a.s.semblies are to be achieved, he feels you will have to organise the work on a new basis. England now stands, one might say, on the brink of a new phase of its Baha'i life; the long years of war are over, the friends are not only awakened to a sense of their responsibilities, but have increased in numbers, in zeal, and in unity; there is a growing number of people who are anxious to do pioneer work.

What is needed is a planned and consistent form of teaching and administrative support of the activities your a.s.sembly is inaugurating.

He feels the time has come when the British Baha'is' resources are sufficient to enable them to embark on their teaching campaign in a manner similar to that already followed by the American and Indian Baha'is. In other words pioneers who volunteer for work, if they are not able to support themselves, should be supported by the National Fund until they either find work or their task is completed.

Likewise travelling teachers should be a.s.sisted financially to carry out the "projects" a.s.signed to them. The friends should not for a moment confuse this type of support with the creation of a paid clergy. Any Baha'i can, at the discretion of the N.S.A., receive this necessary a.s.sistance and it is clearly understood it is temporary and only to carry out a specific plan. Baha'u'llah Himself has not only enjoined on everyone the duty of teaching His Faith, but stated if you cannot go yourself, to send someone in your stead. The National a.s.sembly, through and with its Teaching Committee, should take immediate steps to get pioneers out into the goal towns and teachers circulating about, to not only support and inaugurate the new work, but to stimulate the existing a.s.semblies and groups, and help them to expand.

He hopes that your a.s.sembly, unitedly and with complete dedication to the great work that lies ahead of you, will concentrate all your forces on the teaching work. You may be sure he will pray for your success in the Holy Shrines, and that all the British Baha'is may realise to the full their historic responsibilities and arise to discharge them....

P.S. Your letter of May 29th has since been received and the extra photos of N.S.A. members will be forwarded to America.

[From the Guardian:]

Dear and valued co-workers,

The activities of the English Baha'i community in pursuance of the Plan, which in its scope and potentialities is wholly unprecedented in the history of the Faith in the British Isles, are now approaching a critical stage, and will, if not relentlessly expanded and consolidated, fall far short of their ultimate objective. They have now entered the third year of their Plan, and the work that still remains unaccomplished is considerable, but not beyond what their united and sustained endeavours can accomplish. The utmost support, if the Plan is to yield its promise, should be continually and increasingly extended to every pioneer, both moral and financial, who will arise to contribute his or her share to its success. All the inst.i.tutions of the Faith so laboriously erected since the inception of the Formative Age, most of the financial resources of the community that have been acc.u.mulated, the deliberations of the elected representatives of the entire body of the believers, both local and national, should henceforth be dedicated to the vital requirements and n.o.ble aims of an enterprise which, if successful, will pave the way, and provide the necessary agencies, for the proclamation of the Faith to the ma.s.ses throughout the British Isles.

The Faith is too circ.u.mscribed at present, its resources too limited, its range too restricted, and the number of its active supporters too few, to allow a systematic and nation-wide campaign designed to awaken the ma.s.ses, to be effectively inaugurated. The present Plan is but a stepping stone that must lead eventually the English believers to execute so tremendous and meritorious an undertaking. The duties and responsibilities now facing them must, however, be fully discharged. No time or effort should be wasted. All, young and old, must be aroused to a new consciousness of their collective responsibilities. A greater measure of self-sacrifice, a greater audacity, a greater reliance on the sustaining grace of Baha'u'llah, are required to lend the necessary impetus to the progressive unfoldment and ultimate fruition of this dynamic process which the followers of Baha'u'llah, labouring in the heart of a world encircling empire, have set in motion. May signal success crown their historic labours.

Shoghi

Letter of 7 June 1946

7 June 1946

National Youth Committee

Dear Baha'i Sister,

Your letter dated May 16th and written on behalf of the National Youth Committee, was received, and the beloved Guardian has instructed me to answer it on his behalf.

He is very happy to see that the Baha'i Youth of the British Isles are now organised and working with enthusiasm for the spread of the Faith there.

He feels that they have a great and important role to play during the next few years in fulfilling the objectives of the Six Year Plan.

Young people, being, for the most part, freer than the older believers, are in a position to arise as pioneers and move to new towns as settlers.

A great number of the pioneers in America, who left their native cities, and often their native land, in order to fulfil the Seven Year Plan, were young people-some of them so young that the Spiritual a.s.semblies they helped to establish they were themselves not yet old enough to be elected to!

The Guardian has enjoyed very much meeting Capt. Philip Hainsworth, who had the unique privilege of being in Haifa for over a month, and he feels sure that upon his return to England he will lend great impetus to both the Youth and teaching work.

He heartily approves of your "Youth Bulletin" project and urges you to place special emphasis on articles that are of pertinent interest to young people, such as those dealing with the economic, social and moral aspects of society.

a.s.suring you, and all the members of your Committee, of his loving prayers for the success of your labours....

[From the Guardian:]

May the Beloved bless your meritorious endeavours, guide every step you take in the path of service, aid you to extend the range of your activities, and enable you to promote, by every means in your power, and in a most effective manner, the vital interests of a Plan with which the immediate destinies of the members of the English Baha'i Community, both young and old, are so inextricably interwoven.

Your true brother, Shoghi

Letter of 18 June 1946

18 June 1946

Dear Baha'i Brother,

The beloved Guardian has instructed me to send you the following copy of a cable he sent the N.S.A. on the 7th of this month: "DELIGHTED LATEST REPORT TEACHING ACTIVITIES. PRESENT YEAR CRUCIAL FORTUNES PLAN.

CONCENTRATE 5 MOST PROMISING GOAL TOWNS, ALSO EXERT UTMOST RE-ESTABLISH TORQUAY, BOURNEMOUTH a.s.sEMBLIES. SUCCESS IMMEDIATE PLAN WILL NECESSITATE INCREASE CONVENTION DELEGATES BRITISH ISLES TO TWICE 19. UPON CONSUMMATION ENTIRE PLAN FURTHER INCREASE TO THREE TIMES 19 WILL BECOME ESSENTIAL.

CABLING FIVE HUNDRED POUNDS FOR TRAVEL SETTLEMENT PIONEERS. PROSPECTS BRIGHT, REDOUBLED EFFORTS ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL, EXERTION YOUTH VITAL.

FORTHCOMING GATHERING SUMMER SCHOOL SHOULD DEVOTE SPECIAL ATTENTION REQUIREMENTS PLAN. ARDENTLY PRAYING TRIUMPHANT SUCCESS FIRST STAGE COLLECTIVE EFFORT DEARLY BELOVED ENGLISH BELIEVERS".

In the first draft of this cable sent you a word was left out, namely "twice" before the "19" in reference to the first increase of the number of convention delegates. This was corrected the same day by cable.

The Guardian has so far received no acknowledgment of the receipt of this long cable and he is anxious to know if it reached you safely? Also the five hundred pounds which was forwarded by cable, through Barclays Bank, to your name?

a.s.suring you of his loving prayers on your behalf....

P.S. He was very happy to hear that the N.S.A. is now united, and that sources of misunderstanding and uneasiness have been entirely cleared up.