“a development eagerly anticipated by the Guardian”

The opportunity which electronic communication technology provides for more speedy and thorough consultation among the friends is highly significant. Without doubt, it represents another manifestation of a development eagerly anticipated by the Guardian when he foresaw the creation of "a mechanism of world intercommunication ... embracing the whole planet, freed from national hindrances and restrictions, and functioning with marvellous swiftness and perfect regularity". 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 19 May 1995, written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Science and Technology’, compiled by Research Department of the Universal House of Justice and attached to a Memorandum from the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, dated 13-August 1997) 

“Confession of sins and transgressions…”

When the sinner findeth himself wholly detached and freed from all save God, he should beg forgiveness and pardon from Him. Confession of sins and transgressions before human beings is not permissible, as it hath never been nor will ever be conducive to divine forgiveness. Moreover such confession before people results in one’s humiliation and abasement, and God—exalted be His glory—wisheth not the humiliation of His servants. Verily He is the Compassionate, the Merciful. 

- Baha’u’llah  (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)

To purify one’s own character: “The most vital duty, in this day”

The most vital duty, in this day, is to purify your characters, to correct your manners, and improve your conduct. The beloved of the Merciful must show forth such character and conduct among His creatures, that the fragrance of their holiness may be shed upon the whole world, and may quicken the dead, inasmuch as the purpose of the Manifestation of God and the dawning of the limitless lights of the Invisible is to educate the souls of men, and refine the character of every living man — so that blessed individuals, who have freed themselves from the murk of the animal world, shall rise up with those qualities which are the adornings of the reality of man....

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Selections from the Writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá’, also quoted by Shoghi Effendi in ‘The Advent of Divine Justice’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Excellence in All Things)

References to Baha’u’llah by “Isaiah, the greatest of the Jewish prophets”

To Him Isaiah, the greatest of the Jewish prophets, had alluded as the “Glory of the Lord,” the “Everlasting Father,” the “Prince of Peace,” the “Wonderful,” the “Counsellor,” the “Rod come forth out of the stem of Jesse” and the “Branch grown out of His roots,” Who “shall be established upon the throne of David,” Who “will come with strong hand,” Who “shall judge among the nations,” Who “shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips slay the wicked,” and Who “shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.” 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

Baha’u’llah’s stupendous Revelation

Centuries, nay ages, must pass away ere the Day-Star of Truth shineth again in its mid-summer splendor, or appeareth once more in the radiance of its vernal glory... How thankful must we be for having been made in this Day the recipients of so overwhelming a favor! Would that we had ten thousand lives that we might lay them down in thanksgiving for so rare a privilege, so high an attainment, so priceless a bounty! 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Quoted by Shoghi Effendi in a letter dated February 8, 1934; ‘The Dispensation of Baha’u’llah’)

To “follow” the “heavenly example” of the Báb

Consider how the Báb endured difficulties and tribulations; how He gave His life in the Cause of God; how He was attracted to the love of the Blessed Beauty, Bahá'u'lláh; and how He announced the glad tidings of His manifestation. We must follow His heavenly example; we must be self-sacrificing and aglow with the fire of the love of God. We must partake of the bounty and grace of the Lord, for the Báb has admonished us to arise in service to the Cause of God, to be absolutely severed from all else save God during the day of the Blessed Perfection, Bahá'u'lláh, to be completely attracted by the love of Bahá'u'lláh, to love all humanity for His sake, to be lenient and merciful to all for Him and to upbuild the oneness of the world of humanity. Therefore, this day, 23 May, is the anniversary of a blessed event. 

-' Abdu'l-Baha  (From a talk by ‘Abdu’l-Baha, 23 May 1912, Cambridge, Massachusetts; ‘The Promulgation of Universal Peace: Talks Delivered by 'Abdu'l-Bahá during His Visit to the United States and Canada in 1912’)

The Báb’s “chosen disciples, the Letters of the Living, and their companions, the trail-breakers of the New Day”

The heroes whose deeds shine upon the record of this fierce spiritual contest, involving at once people, clergy, monarch and government, were the Báb’s chosen disciples, the Letters of the Living, and their companions, the trail-breakers of the New Day, who to so much intrigue, ignorance, depravity, cruelty, superstition and cowardice opposed a spirit exalted, unquenchable and awe-inspiring, a knowledge surprisingly profound, an eloquence sweeping in its force, a piety unexcelled in fervor, a courage leonine in its fierceness, a self-abnegation saintly in its purity, a resolve granite-like in its firmness, a vision stupendous in its range, a veneration for the Prophet and His Imáms disconcerting to their adversaries, a power of persuasion alarming to their antagonists, a standard of faith and a code of conduct that challenged and revolutionized the lives of their countrymen. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

The Báb “revealed no less than five hundred thousand verses on different subjects”

Everyone is eagerly awaiting His appearance, yet since their inner eyes are not directed towards Him sorrow must needs befall Him. In the case of the Apostle of God—may the blessings of God rest upon Him—before the revelation of the Qur’án everyone bore witness to His piety and noble virtues. Behold Him then after the revelation of the Qur’án. What outrageous insults were levelled against Him, as indeed the pen is ashamed to recount. Likewise behold the Point of the Bayán. His behaviour prior to the declaration of His mission is clearly evident unto those who knew Him. Now, following His manifestation, although He hath, up to the present, revealed no less than five hundred thousand verses on different subjects, behold what calumnies are uttered, so unseemly that the pen is stricken with shame at the mention of them. But if all men were to observe the ordinances of God no sadness would befall that heavenly Tree. 

- The Báb  (‘Selections from the Writings of the Báb)

To “seek with determination and constancy” the promised Beloved – as did Mulla Husayn

Do not the peoples of the earth testify that the fundamental purpose of their creation is the knowledge and adoration of God? It behoves them to arise, as earnestly and spontaneously as you [Mulla Husayn] have arisen, and to seek with determination and constancy their promised Beloved. 

- The Báb  (Quoted by Mulla Husayn in Nabil’s narrative ‘The Dawn-Breakers’, translated and edited by Shoghi Effendi)

The Báb’s “arch-enemy”

The arch-enemy who repudiated His claim, challenged His authority, persecuted His Cause, succeeded in almost quenching His light, and who eventually became disintegrated under the impact of His Revelation was the Shí’ah priesthood. Fiercely fanatic, unspeakably corrupt, enjoying unlimited ascendancy over the masses, jealous of their position, and irreconcilably opposed to all liberal ideas, the members of this caste had for one thousand years invoked the name of the Hidden Imám, their breasts had glowed with the expectation of His advent, their pulpits had rung with the praises of His world-embracing dominion, their lips were still devoutly and perpetually murmuring prayers for the hastening of His coming. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

The Báb

He…was none other than the promised Qá’im (He who ariseth), the Sáhibu’z-Zamán (the Lord of the Age), Who assumed the exclusive right of annulling the whole Qur’ánic Dispensation, Who styled Himself “the Primal Point from which have been generated all created things ... the Countenance of God Whose splendor can never be obscured, the Light of God Whose radiance can never fade.” 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

The people among whom the Báb appeared

The people among whom He [the Báb] appeared were the most decadent race in the civilized world, grossly ignorant, savage, cruel, steeped in prejudice, servile in their submission to an almost deified hierarchy, recalling in their abjectness the Israelites of Egypt in the days of Moses, in their fanaticism the Jews in the days of Jesus, and in their perversity the idolators of Arabia in the days of Muhammad. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By)

To “set aside superstitious beliefs, traditions and blind imitation of ancestral forms in religion and investigate reality”

First among the great principles revealed by Him [Baha’u’llah] is that of the investigation of reality. The meaning is that every individual member of humankind is exhorted and commanded to set aside superstitious beliefs, traditions and blind imitation of ancestral forms in religion and investigate reality for himself. Inasmuch as the fundamental reality is one, all religions and nations of the world will become one through investigation of reality. The announcement of this principle is not found in any of the sacred Books of the past. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a talk, November 15, 1912, New York; ‘The Promulgation of Universal Peace’)

Union with one’s beloved in the next world

...the possibility of securing union with his beloved in the next world is one which the Baha’i Teachings are quite clear about. According to Baha’u’llah the soul retains its individuality and consciousness after death, and is able to commune with other souls. This communion, however, is purely spiritual in character, and is conditioned upon the disinterested and selfless love of the individuals for each other. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated January 3, 1936 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi; ‘Dawn of a New Day’)

The “enmity and opposition of the world”

‘Abdu’l-Baha has emphatically stated that the enmity and opposition of the world will increase in direct proportion to the extension and progress of the Faith. The greater the zeal of the believers and the more striking the effect of their achievements, the fiercer will be the opposition of the enemy. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 20 January 1935 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi; ‘Dawn of a New Day’)

Teaching the Cause of God – Teacher’s state of mind and heart

The aim is this: The intention of the teacher must be pure, his heart independent, his spirit attracted, his thought at peace, his resolution firm, his magnanimity exalted and in the love of God a shining torch. Should he become as such, his sanctified breath will even affect the rock; otherwise there will be no result whatsoever. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Bahá  (‘Tablets of the Divine Plan’)

The “Feast is rooted in hospitality”

…it is illuminating indeed to view the Nineteen Day Feast in the context in which it was conceived. It is ordained in the "Kitáb-i-Aqdas" in these words: "It hath been enjoined upon you once a month to offer hospitality, even should ye serve no more than water, for God hath willed to bind your hearts together, though it be through heavenly and earthly means combined". It is clear, then, that the Feast is rooted in hospitality, with all its implications of friendliness, courtesy, service, generosity and conviviality. The very idea of hospitality as the sustaining spirit of so significant an institution introduces a revolutionary new attitude to the conduct of human affairs at all levels, an attitude which is critical to that world unity which the Central Figures of our Faith laboured so long and suffered so much cruelty to bring into being. It is in this divine festival that the foundation is laid for the realization of so unprecedented a reality. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated August 27, 1989)

To “to encourage each other”

O friends, show forth your fidelity! O my loved ones, manifest your steadfastness and your constancy! O ye who invoke His Name, turn ye and hold fast unto Him! O ye who lift up your hearts and implore His aid, cling to Him and walk in His ways! It is incumbent upon every one of us to encourage each other, to exert our utmost endeavour to diffuse His divine fragrances and engage in exalting His Word. We must, at all times, be stirred by the breeze that bloweth from the rose-garden of His loving-kindness, and be perfumed with the fragrances of the mystic flowers of His grace. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Quoted by Shoghi Effendi in ‘Bahiyyih Khanum - The Greatest Holy Leaf’; a compilation from Bahá'í sacred texts and writings of the Guardian of the Faith and Bahiyyih Khanum's own letters compiled by The Research Department at the Bahá'í World Centre 1982)

In this world no one can conceive a greater “union and harmony” than that between husband and wife

God has created such union and harmony between man and wife that no one can conceive in this world a greater plane of union. You must irrigate continually the tree of your union with the water of love and affection, so that it may remain green and verdant throughout all the seasons, producing the most luscious fruits for the healing of the nations. 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Excerpt from a talk, December 22, 1918, Haifa; Star of the West, vol. 11, no. 1, March 21, 1920) (To read the entire talk please visit Talks of ‘Abdu’l-Baha)

To be thankful for having recognized the latest Manifestation of God

Thank thou God that thou hast stepped into the arena of existence in such a blessed Age and hast opened thine ears and thine eyes in such a Promised Day. The Splendor of the Sun of Truth thou hast beheld and the divine Call thou hast heard. To thine ultimate desire thou hast attained and from the sweetness of the love of God thou hast tasted. Consequently, supplicate ardently for spiritual attraction and ecstasy. 

- ‘Abdu'l-Baha  (‘Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha Vol. 3)

“every part of the universe is connected with every other part”

Reflect upon the inner realities of the universe, the secret wisdoms involved, the enigmas, the interrelationships, the rules that govern all. For every part of the universe is connected with every other part by ties that are very powerful and admit of no imbalance, nor any slackening whatever.... 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a Tablet; ‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha; also in The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Conservation of the Earth's Resources)

“The emancipation of women”: - “one of the most important…prerequisites of peace”

The emancipation of women, the achievement of full equality between the sexes, is one of the most important, though less acknowledged prerequisites of peace. The denial of such equality perpetrates an injustice against one half of the world's population and promotes in men harmful attitudes and habits that are carried from the family to the workplace, to political life, and ultimately to international relations. There are no grounds, moral, practical, or biological, upon which such denial can be justified. Only as women are welcomed into full partnership in all fields of human endeavour will the moral and psychological climate be created in which international peace can emerge. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated October 1985; ‘The Promise of World Peace’)

“The Promised One”

Say, God is my witness! The Promised One Himself hath come down from heaven, seated upon the crimson cloud with the hosts of revelation on His right, and the angels of inspiration on His left, and the Decree hath been fulfilled at the behest of God, the Omnipotent, the Almighty. Thereupon the footsteps of everyone have slipped except such as God hath protected through His tender mercy and numbered with those who have recognized Him through His Own Self and detached themselves from all that pertaineth to the world.

Hearken thou unto the Words of thy Lord and purify thy heart from every illusion so that the effulgent light of the remembrance of thy Lord may shed its radiance upon it, and it may attain the station of certitude. 

- Baha’u’llah  (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)

“Chaos and confusion are daily increasing in the world”

The order of the world has been disrupted, and severe and numerous convulsions have shaken its foundation. Conditions worsen daily, confusion and fear have gripped mankind, and the pain and difficulties experienced by the generality of peoples have greatly increased. The destructive forces of materialism dominate both the East and the West and have brought about a quagmire of injustice and prejudice that has sullied and rendered powerless the wings of society, whilst the human spirit, which is created to ascend towards the divine realm, has been enslaved in the talons of greed and wilfulness and become deprived of the bounty of the light of true religion. The problems of the world—which are clearly evident in the arenas of politics, economics, social conditions, and the environment—confront humanity’s future with inescapable dangers and yet its leaders remain unaware of their fundamental causes, are unable to remedy them, and are fearful of their consequences. The situation of the world calls to mind the following statement of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá: “Chaos and confusion are daily increasing in the world. They will attain such intensity as to render the frame of mankind unable to bear them. Then will men be awakened”. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From an authorized translation of a letter dated 24 October 2018, to the believers in the Cradle of the Faith)

We have “a partial and imperfect understanding of” the Baha’i Faith

A Bahá'í… will not make the mistake of regarding the sayings and beliefs of certain Bahá'ís at any one time as being the Bahá'í Faith. The Bahá'í Faith is the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh: His Own Words as interpreted by 'Abdu'l-Bahá and the Guardian. It is a revelation of such staggering magnitude that no Bahá'í at this early stage in Bahá'í history can rightly claim to have more than a partial and imperfect understanding of it. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 3 January 1979 addressed to the Participants in the Bahá'í Studies Seminar held in Cambridge on 30 September and 1 October 1978; Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963 to 1986)

A proof of one’s recognition of Baha’u’llah

Arise to further My Cause, and to exalt My Word amongst men. We are with you at all times, and shall strengthen you through the power of truth. We are truly almighty. Whoso hath recognized Me, will arise and serve Me with such determination that the powers of earth and heaven shall be unable to defeat his purpose. 

- Baha’u’llah  (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh’)

Not to “belittle the thought of another” during consultation

The honoured members [of a spiritual assembly] must with all freedom express their own thoughts, and it is in no wise permissible for one to belittle the thought of another, nay, he must with moderation set forth the truth…

- 'Abdu'l-Bahá  (Cited in Shoghi Effendi, ‘Bahá'í Administration: Selected Messages 1922-1932’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, The National Convention)

Consent of parents for Baha’i marriage

The validity of a Bahá'í marriage is dependent upon the free and full consent of all four parents. The freedom of the parents in the exercise of their right is unrestricted and unconditioned. They may refuse their consent on any ground, and they are responsible for the decision to God alone. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 19 March 1938, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Consent of Parents to Marriage’, prepared by the Research Department)

Need to “exercise tact and wisdom” when observing “the laws of God”

Indeed, the laws of God are like unto the ocean and the children of men as fish, did they but know it. However, in observing them one must exercise tact and wisdom... Since most people are feeble and far-removed from the purpose of God, therefore one must observe tact and prudence under all conditions, so that nothing might happen that could cause disturbance and dissension or raise clamor among the heedless. Verily, His bounty hath surpassed the whole universe and His bestowals encompassed all that dwell on earth. One must guide mankind to the ocean of true understanding in a spirit of love and tolerance. The Kitab-i-Aqdas itself beareth eloquent testimony to the loving providence of God. 

- Baha’u’llah  (Quoted by the Universal House of Justice in a letter dated April 1973; ‘Synopsis and Codification of the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)

Baha’i Summer Schools

 The Guardian fully agrees with your idea that the permanent welfare of the Faith demands the steady development of local Bahá'í community life. This is the bedrock of Bahá'í national growth and development. Great emphasis, he feels, should be placed upon Bahá'í Summer Schools. A greater number of believers and visitors should be encouraged to attend them, their scope should, if not too expensive, be systematically widened, the atmosphere pervading them must be given a distinctive Bahá'í character, and the level of their discussions and the standard of their studies must be raised. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 10 September 1932 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States and Canada; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Centers of Baha’i Learning)

How to express one’s opinion during consultation

The second condition: They [members of the spiritual assembly] must when coming together turn their faces to the Kingdom on High and ask aid from the Realm of Glory. They must then proceed with the utmost devotion, courtesy, dignity, care and moderation to express their views. 

- 'Abdu'l-Bahá  (Cited in Shoghi Effendi, ‘Bahá'í Administration: Selected Messages 1922-1932’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, The National Convention)