III

III

O grief-stricken and self-sacrificing souls! The Hand of Providence has ordained that those innocent victims of tyranny should once again be oppressed in the clutches of the wrong-doers, and the Will of God, the Ever-Living, the Almighty, has purposed that manifold tribulations and adversities should, like a torrential flood, descend successively upon that wronged community. In these years of dire stress our Lord, the All-Wise, has, as a preliminary measure for the fulfilment of His gracious pledge and in conformity with His undeviating principle, kindled a raging fire of trials in that country. Be not sorely grieved or dismayed. This is an effective means, preordained and irrevocable, which has been provided by the Causer of causes, through the operation of His immutable Will, and the exercise of His unquestionable power, and in the face of the machinations of every malicious opponent, so that the glory of His Cause may presently be unveiled before the assemblage of man and, in the days to come, His Faith may be rendered victorious and become securely established in that blessed land.

Let nothing frustrate or discourage you. Immerse yourselves in the study of the Holy Tablets. “I testify before God,” Bahá’u’lláh asserts, “to the greatness, the inconceivable greatness of this Revelation. Again and again have We, in most of our Tablets, borne witness to this truth, that mankind may be roused from its heedlessness.” In another connection this utterance has been revealed: “How great, how very great is this Cause. The day is fast approaching when its stupendous glory will have been made manifest and evident.”

This heavenly Faith cannot be compared to the transitory things of the world of existence, nor can it be identified with or likened to physical and earthly forces. Its tabernacle has been raised through dire oppression, its advancement and promulgation depend upon spiritual and mysterious agencies, and factors that are awesome, alarming and totally unexpected. The Tongue of the Ancient of Days, the Comforter of the people of the world, says: “Naught hath been ordained by the finger of His decree for His loved ones except that which is profitable unto them. We beseech Him to graciously enable them to show forth patience and fortitude that haply trials and ordeals might not deflect them from the path of God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing.”

Through the insults and indignities suffered by the well-assured and faithful maidservants of God, portals of everlasting honour will be flung open before the face of the women in Persia, nay everywhere in the world, and as a result of the beatings, torture, and cruelties inflicted upon the newly converted Bahá’í youth, a new spirit of liveliness and freshness will stream forth through the veins and arteries of the temple of the Cause of God. The lamentation of the disconsolate who have been made homeless as a result of this grievous event will reach the ears of the spiritually minded in the West, and its powerful repercussions will release a fresh energy in the world of existence, will forge new spiritual ties and lay bare the essence of this heavenly Revelation before the eyes of all men, be they friends or strangers.

Although the sufferings that have befallen the friends during the past few years were not as frequent, as grievous and widespread as the successive waves of afflictions that have been let loose in recent months, yet notwithstanding this and as a direct consequence of the pangs of anguish and devastating sorrow that have crushed the souls of the friends in Persia, the cherished Cause of God has blossomed forth astonishingly and is advancing with a fresh momentum throughout the five continents of the globe.

While Persia remains heedless and unaware and its sorely tried friends are beset by grievous repressions and cruelties, the hosts of life, the bearers of the divine Message of salvation, are moving far and wide over the extensive territories of the free world, and bending their energies to capture the citadels of men’s hearts. The motivating impulse, the driving power which is responsible for the successful achievements of these sanctified beings is derived from the heat and flame and the influence released through the relentless persecutions and ordeals which the pure-hearted friends in Persia are enduring. Wherefore has the Master said: “When the light of God is ignited in the East it will shed illumination upon the West and its evidences will become visible both in the North and in the South.”

O spiritual brethren! Although the horizons of that country are dark, and manifold hardships and tribulations are continuous and unremitting; although the foundations of that realm are sorely shaken, and the minds of its people in a state of confusion; although there is no peace or protection for the righteous, and the unbelievers are relentless in their hatred and animosity, this anguish and distress, this abasement and ignorance will not endure, nor will this cruelty, captivity, agitation, and disturbance persist. The day is fast approaching when God will have manifested from this horizon such light and power as will cause the sun to be darkened, will obliterate every trace of them that have turned away disdainfully from God, and will illumine the faces of the sincere.

It well beseems you to direct your eager gaze to the glad-tidings that have been revealed by the Pen of the Most High and to let the shining prophecies that are contained in His Most Holy Book and in other Tablets illumine your expectant eyes. Can one imagine a pronouncement sweeter, an utterance and promise more perfect, more appropriate, and more glorious than these conclusive verses that have streamed forth from the repository of the Abhá Pen? Exalted is His Word: “Let nothing grieve thee, O land of Ṭá,²¹ for God hath chosen thee to be the source of the joy of all mankind. He shall, if it be His Will … gather together the flock of God which the wolves have scattered… The eye of His loving-kindness shall everlastingly be directed towards thee. The day is approaching when thy agitation will have been transmuted into peace and quiet calm.” Moreover, the following significant and soul-stirring words have been set down by the pen of the Centre of the Covenant: “Erelong will it be witnessed that the government of the native land of the Blessed Perfection will become the most honoured government of this world, and Írán will become the most prosperous of all lands. This indeed is a token of God’s bountiful favour, and verily in this is there a lesson unto every beholder.”

Such God-given promises and sublime glad-tidings that the Pen of the Most High and the divinely aided and inspired fingers of the Centre of the Covenant have inscribed will, according to the following blessed verse, be unquestionably fulfilled. How enthralling is His Word: “Whatsoever hath streamed forth from the Pen of the Most High hath either already occurred or shall assuredly come to pass. Not a single letter thereof will remain unrealized, for verily the fair-minded shall behold it established upon the throne of fulfilment.”

However, the essential thing is patience, fortitude, courage, and audacity. The day is approaching when that country will have turned into a blissful paradise, when the wronged ones of Persia will have become the pride of the world and the leaders of mankind. And this is a promise that will not be belied.