He the “Qá’im” (He Who ariseth) promised to the Shí’ahs, the
“Mihdí” (One Who is guided) awaited by the Sunnís, the “Return of John the
Baptist” expected by the Christians, the “Ushídar-Máh” referred to in the
Zoroastrian scriptures, the “Return of Elijah” anticipated by the Jews, Whose
Revelation was to show forth “the signs and tokens of all the Prophets”, Who
was to “manifest the perfection of Moses, the radiance of Jesus and the
patience of Job” had appeared, proclaimed His Cause, been mercilessly persecuted
and died gloriously. The “Second Woe,” spoken of in the Apocalypse of St. John
the Divine, had, at long last, appeared, and the first of the two “Messengers,”
Whose appearance had been prophesied in the Qur’án, had been sent down. The
first “Trumpet-Blast”, destined to smite the earth with extermination,
announced in the latter Book, had finally been sounded. “The Inevitable,” “The
Catastrophe,” “The Resurrection,” “The Earthquake of the Last Hour,” foretold
by that same Book, had all come to pass. The “clear tokens” had been “sent
down,” and the “Spirit” had “breathed,” and the “souls” had “waked up,” and the
“heaven” had been “cleft,” and the “angels” had “ranged in order,” and the
“stars” had been “blotted out,” and the “earth” had “cast forth her burden,”
and “Paradise” had been “brought near,” and “hell” had been “made to blaze,”
and the “Book” had been “set,” and the “Bridge” had been “laid out,” and the
“Balance” had been “set up,” and the “mountains scattered in dust.”
- Shoghi
Effendi (‘God Passes By’)
