Transcript of: Speaking at the U.S. National Bahá’í Convention
Horace Holley
1958
|
|
Note: the text below this box was generated by a computer and will contain many errors. The computer generated transcript has been added to reduce the work of transcribing the talk, and enable some limited search capability. If you would like to help proofread the transcript you can edit this page and make corrections as you listen.
|
Beloved friend when above declared his mission. They're was temporarily Onley one true believer in the world, the significance of the faith. To that believer, it was an overwhelming joy, a passion of self sacrifice on an intense yearning to share his experience with his fellow man. No question or principle of administration was involved at that point. Now we have seen this condition repeated many times during the world crusade, where a gallon pioneer has gone for to some country or some island and then the solitary Baha'i. In that area again, it is a question of joy and faith, of self sacrifice, of devotion, of intense yearning, to share the experience with others on until others are gathered together. Administration does not apply. Now we begin on, we see the teacher confirming or enrolling new Baha'i eyes one by one. Let us say we have a group of eight gradually evolve. Now the whole mystery, the world order of how long is contained within the experience of those eight. So because that is the interval of time allotted to us to enter so deeply into the spirit of the faith that we have true relationship with other behind and with our fellow men. If we do not employ rightly, that infinitely precious interval of time, we become part of a community with a spiritual assembly not qualified to deal with that new element possessed by the assembly. That is authority. Not where does the group of nine or the body of nine acquired 1\/3? It does not come by its own volition. It is not conferred by the national spirit. It is not a form of legal charter. It is a divine creation that which is given as a blessing. So the people up your soul becomes a torment. So the people of divided mine an undeveloped personality wherever we find suffering, a local community that is suffering through the relationship of the Baha'i. It is because we have turned the divine creation against ourselves, instead using it as a full film of our love, our aspiration and our human. We come into the cause as a physical being capable off a certain amount of aspiration and idealism, A certain amount, not too much, or we wouldn't be alive. Now if we attain faith, our universe is transformed. For example, if nine people enter a room which has seating accommodation for only seven or eight. One or two are obliged to stand because physically nine person came out occupy nine physical chair and the people perhaps moon advanced. There were only seven on chairs hurried in so they wouldn't be one wondered, too left stent that again human nature. But in the spiritual world, these distinctions do not exist on the spiritual world is here and not some mysterious place we find after death, the Greeks and the Romans place their golden age in the past on the Christians places some other side of the grave and Baha'i Allah placed it here. The spiritual kingdom exists here are exists nowhere. So the fundamental impetus we must acquire for strengthening the Baha'i institutions is not a role people. But you confirm anybody. I can memorize a few essential teachings and say Yes, I accept. I accept. I accept the will and testament of Abdu'l-Baha on its entirety. I will cooperate wholeheartedly with administrative order. That's a cad, A kiss and eyes not the significant step. It is sharing the experience of those Baha'i eyes who love the whole lot who know this sacrifice is the keenest full of joy on dhe who wish to share their experience. We have too many enrollments, few words. They are not enough confirmation now, if we take and a sure the quality of the enrolling class confirmation, it follows through the experience of the group and the people who tend to be too proud. I brought low because the others have the courage on the people who are too humble are raised because the other people have mercy and inside the people who wish to dominate our warning. Until they've learned their lesson, the people who wish to lean and cling on someone else would be dragged forward by them. They learn to walk by their own. So this infinitely subtle element of authority it's given us by Baha'i Allah in the institution, first of the local spirits of the seven. It is an authority which is not vested in any off the individual, although it has to express itself through them. It is a leverage given that to establish justice and peace upon the earth and not to make my new hair splitting decisions about abstract or artificial situations inflicted upon the family by an enrolled but unconfirmed community, and then one stage higher. We have the national spirit, and there you have the authority and the responsibility to recognize the existence of every local spiritualist. If that authority did not exist nine enemies and to give in town, you could say we are a spiritualist family and announce it to the press on out to the people of promise. And then the cause would be judged by their actions. But they can't get by the national spirits of the family. And that is why it is so important when a local assembly incorporates that in their statement of purpose, they function in accordance with the principal and under supervision off the national spiritualist so that they tie into the larger but and they're not isolated legal organism self sufficient in the in the eyes. The National spiritually assembly itself has a responsibility, infinitely transcending its authority. The National Spirits of Assembly has only gradually acquire a little authority and little influence through obedience to a higher power. All these years, the person the writings are beloved garden, and so your national spiritual assembly is the channel through which international plans objectives are transmitted to the local communities, the groups and the individual Baha'i the Guardian accepted the form of constitution and bylaws developed by the American believers and made it uniforms for all national local bodies throughout the world. Naturally, with some deviations here and there because off the local conditions. But fundamentally, if you are a member of a local community in San Francisco, Chicago or New York, and you go to any city in Europe, Asia, Africa, where there is a high community, your status is unchanged. The conditions, the principles are unchanged and then under the will and testament the guidance some years ago, appointed and of the car No, the hands are independent of administrative bodies. But service, too. The hands operate under the directors laid down by the Guardian and now by the collective body of hands, has transmitted through the nine custodian. But they are the servants of the behind. Their first obligation was to assist the national spiritualist, Emily's in the realization on the objectives of the 10 year plan, then never given responsibility for the protection of the faith violators and enemies within or without. And then, as you know, the guarding himself, Justin, a little while before he passed on, constituted them chief custodian so that they could qualify under the will intestine to appoint a body of nine as well a testament described and be recognized by the state of Israel. Now that's a tremendous thing. Show you defend the hell titled toe all those sacred property as God not as a person but as the guard. If it had not been for that provision in the will it testament, the hands were deployed, a body of nine. There would have been no one that the state of Israel, no matter how willing it might have been, there would be no one they could legally transfer the title to. But it was transferred to the Nine Custodian and the nine custodians following example and the wishes of the guard set up these Israel branch, his various national spirit of the seven and the titles of the properties are vested in those bodies. Now you see how tremendous vision the Guardian supposing that the state of Israel should be overthrown? I won't say by whom, but suppose well, the American behind citizens, I could go to their government and say here way have a vested interest in Israel. We hold title to the shrine of Baha'i, Allah and biology and the surrounding and Canada could go and India good. You see what a foundation is being laid for the for the universal House of Justice, which will not only rest upon existing national spiritual assemblies as the high body, we'll rest upon them as entities with legal interests in Israel. It's impregnable, but it's only impregnable if we stop being in role and start being confirmed. That's a strengthening of all Baha'i Institute when a committee or an assembly, local or national, is operated by people who love the car, who have no personal sensitiveness about someone else having a brighter idea at the committee or someone being sent on a mission that they wanted to. But when they see the cause of the part of you, the kingdom, everything is perfect. Wasn't Abdu'l-Baha how quoted, Well, Hammond said, Caste, blind eye and see if I can't see anything that is not perfect. He didn't mean the social, our physical world. He meant the world of the kingdom, Therefore, friends, if we wish, strengthen our administrative institution so that they can be the fulcrum upon which the door of justice is open to the human race, let us find within ourselves the birth of the spirit. Thank you
