| ←455 | Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963-1986 Riḍván Message 1986 |
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| Riḍván 1986 |
To the Bahá’ís of the World
Dearly loved friends,
456.1 The Divine Springtime is fast advancing and all the atoms of the earth are responding to the vibrating influence of Bahá’u’lláh’s Revelation. The evidences of this new life are clearly apparent in the progress of the Cause of God. As we contemplate, however momentarily, the unfolding pattern of its growth, we can but recognize, with wonder and gratitude, the irresistible power of that Almighty Hand which guides its destinies.
Achievements during the Seven Year Plan
456.2 This progress has accelerated notably during the Seven Year Plan, witnessed by the achievement of many important enterprises throughout the Bahá’í world and vital developments at the heart of the Cause itself. The restoration [Page 725]and opening to pilgrimage of the southern wing of the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá; the completion and occupation of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice; the approval of detailed plans for the remaining edifices around the Arc; the expansion of the membership and responsibilities of the International Teaching Center and the Continental Boards of Counselors; the establishment of the offices of Social and Economic Development, and of Public Information; the dedication of the Mother Temple of the Pacific, and dramatic progress with the building of the Temple in India; the expansion of the teaching work throughout the world, resulting in the formation of twenty-three new National Spiritual Assemblies, nearly 8,000 new Local Spiritual Assemblies, the opening of more than 16,000 new localities and representation within the Bahá’í community of 300 new tribes; the issuing of 2,196 new publications, 898 of which are editions of the Holy Text and the enrichment of Bahá’í literature by productions in 114 new languages; the initiation of 737 new social and economic development projects; the addition of three radio stations, with three more soon to be inaugurated—these stand out as conspicuous achievements in a Plan which will be remembered as having set the seal on the third epoch of the Formative Age.[1]
Emergence from Obscurity
456.3 The opening of that Plan coincided with the recrudescence of savage persecution of the Bahá’í community in Iran, a deliberate effort to eliminate the Cause of God from the land of its birth. The heroic steadfastness of the Persian friends has been the mainspring of tremendous international attention focused on the Cause, eventually bringing it to the agenda of the General Assembly of the United Nations, and, together with world-wide publicity in all the media, accomplishing its emergence from the obscurity which characterized and sheltered the first period of its life. This dramatic process impelled the Universal House of Justice to address a Statement on Peace to the Peoples of the World and arrange for its delivery to Heads of State and the generality of the rulers.[2]
Maturation of the Institutions of the Cause
456.4 Paralleling these outstanding events has been a remarkable unfoldment of organic growth in the maturity of the institutions of the Cause. The development of capacity and responsibility on their part and the devolution upon them of continually greater autonomy have been fostered by the encouragement of ever closer co-operation between the twin arms of the Administrative Order.[3] This process now takes a large stride forward as the National Spiritual [Page 726]Assemblies and Counselors consult together to formulate, for the first time, the national goals of an international teaching plan.[4] Together they must carry them out; together they must implement the world objectives of the Six Year Plan as they apply in each country. This significant development is a befitting opening to the fourth epoch of the Formative Age and initiates a process which will undoubtedly characterize that epoch as national communities grow in strength and influence and are able to diffuse within their own countries the spirit of love and social unity which is the hallmark of the Cause of God.
World Center Goals
456.5 The goals to be achieved at the World Center include publication of a copiously annotated English translation of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas and related texts, education of the Bahá’í world in the law of the Ḥuqúqu’lláh, pursuit of plans for the erection of the remaining buildings on the arc, and the broadening of the basis of the international relations of the Faith.[5]
456.6 The major world objectives of the Plan have already been sent to National Spiritual Assemblies and Continental Boards of Counselors for their mutual consultation and implementation.
456.7 Dear friends, as the world passes through its darkest hour before the dawn, the Cause of God, shining ever more brightly, presses forward to that glorious break of day when the Divine Standard will be unfurled and the Nightingale of Paradise warble its melody.
- With loving Bahá’í greetings,
- THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE
Notes
- ↑ The third epoch included the years 1963–86.
- ↑ See messages no. 429 and 438.
- ↑ The twin arms of the Administrative Order are sometimes designated the “rulers” and the “learned.” In this context the “rulers” comprise the members of the Universal House of Justice, National Spiritual Assemblies, and Local Spiritual Assemblies; the “learned” comprise the Hands of the Cause of God, the International Counselors, the Continental Boards of Counselors, and the Auxiliary Board members and their assistants. Both terms also have a wider usage. For example, the term “learned” also embraces Bahá’ís who have attained a prominent position in the teaching work in addition to those who are members of the institutions so designated. For an explanation of the roles of and distinctions between these institutions, see message no. 111.
- ↑ See messages no. 447 and 453.
- ↑ The laws and ordinances of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas are applied gradually as the Bahá’í community matures. For an explanation of this principle, see message no. 27 on the translation and publication of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas. For a fuller discussion, see the introduction to A Synopsis and Codification of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas: The Most Holy Book of Bahá’u’lláh. Over the years the Universal House of Justice has taken steps to prepare the Bahá’í community for further application of such laws and ordinances by publishing the Synopsis and Codification (see message no. 125) and by releasing a compilation on the Law of Ḥuqúqu’lláh (see messages no. 404 and 430). The publication of annotated translations in English and Persian of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas represent further such steps. The buildings to be erected on the Arc are the seats of the International Teaching Center and the Center for the Study of the Texts, and the extension of the International Archives Building, which Shoghi Effendi completed in 1957. Terraces leading to the Shrine of the Báb are being constructed from the foot to the crest of Mount Carmel. The International Bahá’í Library remains to be built at a later date.
