They should justify their claim to be Bahá'ís by deeds and
not by name... He is a true Bahá'í who strives by day and by night to progress
and advance along the path of human endeavor, whose most cherished desire is so
to live and act as to enrich and illuminate the world, whose source of
inspiration is the essence of Divine virtue, whose aim in life is so to conduct
himself as to be the cause of infinite progress. Only when he attains unto such
perfect gifts can it be said of him that he is a true Bahá'í. For in this holy
Dispensation, the crowning glory of bygone ages and cycles, true Faith is no
mere acknowledgement of the Unity of God, but rather the living of a life that
will manifest all the perfections and virtues implied in such belief....
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha
(The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, Trustworthiness: A Cardinal
Bahá'í Virtue; compilation: 'Lights of Guidance’)
