The Unfolding Destiny of the British Bahai Community Part 12

Thank you so very much for your clear good letter of Jan. 16th-Shoghi Effendi bids me say how much pleasure he always derives from the perusal of your letters-which are always expressed with such admirable clearness, and to the point. He has just now been discussing with me the various matters you mention.

He says that in one way we are not quite correct in the way we manage our elections for the National a.s.sembly-Shoghi Effendi says that the intention is, that when once the 19 delegates have been elected by the friends of the respective centres in the proportions you mention, i.e. 12 delegates from among the London friends, five from the Manchester friends, and two from the Bournemouth group, that then, these 19 delegates a.s.sembled should choose by secret ballot from the whole body of the believers in Gt.

Britain and Ireland, the nine friends they consider most suitable as members of the National a.s.sembly. Heretofore, as I understand it, it has rather been our practice that the 12 London delegates elected six from the London friends-the Manchester five delegates elected two from Manchester and the Bournemouth delegates elected one from Bournemouth. But, Shoghi Effendi says, all the 19 delegates must clearly understand that they must select from the whole body of the believers in Gt. Britain and Ireland those 9 whom they consider the most fit and suitable members to const.i.tute the National a.s.sembly. Therefore it will be necessary to supply each of the 19 delegates with a complete list of all those believers in Gt.

Britain and Ireland. From that complete list of course must be eliminated all those who from one cause or another are unable to serve on the National a.s.sembly. Also-Shoghi Effendi says that those 19 elected delegates should if possible meet during the Feast of Ridvan in London thus forming as it were a baby Convention! I had not realised before that the annual Baha'i Convention in the U.S.A. consists solely of those delegates who had been chosen by their respective Centres in order that they may elect the 9 to form the National a.s.sembly of that country. Did you understand this? I certainly did not. As Shoghi Effendi points out-it is quite possible that-e.g. in the future-7 members might be elected from the Manchester friends and only two from London! On the other hand-it is quite possible that all nine members chosen by the 19 delegates might be from the London group. Of course, on reflection one sees clearly that the proceedings must be as now described because in the future there may be 21 or 53 separate local a.s.semblies in Gt. Britain just as is now the case in the U.S.A.-and it would obviously be impossible for each of these a.s.semblies to elect one of their number to sit as their representative on the National a.s.sembly. No doubt I ought to have understood this before-but I must confess I did not!...

It is very grievous that our dear Mrs. Cropper should have been so ill-we have all been praying for her recovery since we knew of it and I am thankful to hear she is now making steady progress.

Since writing to you I too have had a bad influenza cold that swept through our house. But I am now quite recovered I am glad to say.

With all best wishes to yourself.

Your sincere friend in His service, Ethel Rosenberg

P.S. I have just remembered I have said nothing about the London area that should be included-Shoghi Effendi thinks it would save trouble if you drew your circle widely enough to include Mrs. Slade and her daughter! At first he inclined to agree with you that it would be best to take the middle one-the Postal Area-and make exceptions in favour of Mrs. Haybittel and her daughter. (Mrs. Ginman I hear from my brother has moved into town now) but it seemed to him that you might possibly have other friends residing or moving out to Surbiton etc., so that it might save you trouble in the future if you selected the widest area? This is merely a suggestion on his part-as it will no doubt be decided at the meeting of the London a.s.sembly.

But with regard to the choosing by the 19 delegates of the nine members of the National a.s.sembly, his instructions are quite definite and must not be departed from-as these instructions are as laid down by the Master in the Testament and other Tablets. Shoghi Effendi says you can even now soon select the day for the 19 delegates to come to London during Ridvan. By the way Ridvan begins exactly 31 days after the New Year so it starts almost always on April 21st and lasts for 12 days. I have recorded my notes on list enclosed.

Yours ever, E. Rosenberg

Shoghi(15) Effendi emphatically urges that the 19 friends elected as delegates should meet together during Ridvan-Shoghi Effendi has sent you three copies of the Baha'i Year Book, one for London, one for Manchester and one for Bournemouth.

Read and approved. Shoghi

Editor's Note:

From December 1926 to April 1927, while the secretary who was then helping with the English correspondence was away from Haifa, Miss Ethel J.

Rosenberg (addressed in letters by the Guardian as "My dear Rosa"), was on pilgrimage and kept up a lengthy and repet.i.tive correspondence with George P. Simpson. In these letters from Miss Rosenberg are many instructions from the Guardian to the British National a.s.sembly. The letter reproduced in this compilation, dated January 29th, 1927 is important for many reasons:

1. It is the only one from Miss Rosenberg which carried the handwriting of Shoghi Effendi where he "Approved" what had been written.

2. It outlined the principle for the election of the National Spiritual a.s.sembly by delegates which the British N.S.A. had not then appreciated from the earlier letters of the Guardian (of 1923, 1294, 1925, later published in "Baha'i Administration").

3. It insisted upon Convention being held in London during Ridvan.

4. It clarified the need to have a recognised voting area for London but left the final decision to the local Spiritual a.s.sembly of London.

As a result of this letter 13 delegates attended Convention and 4 voted by post; ten members were elected to the National a.s.sembly (Guardian's letter of May, 13th, 1927 refers), and the London area was defined as having a radius of 36 miles.

Letter of 12 February 1927

12 February 1927(16)

To the beloved of the Lord and the handmaids of the Merciful throughout the West.

Dearly-beloved brothers and sisters in 'Abdu'l-Baha:

The trend of various events, affecting directly and indirectly the interests of the Baha'i Cause, have of late served to bring into further prominence the character as well as the significance of a Faith destined to regenerate the world.

Of all the diverse issues which today are gradually tending to consolidate and extend the bounds of the Revelation of Baha'u'llah, the decision of Egypt's religious Tribunal regarding the Baha'is under its jurisdiction appears at the present moment to be the most powerful in its challenge, the most startling in its character, and the most perplexing in the consequences it may entail. I have already alluded in my letter of January 10, 1926, addressed to the National Spiritual a.s.sembly of the Baha'is of the United States and Canada, to a particular feature of this momentous verdict, which after mature deliberation has obtained the sanction of Egypt's highest ecclesiastical authorities, has been communicated and printed, and is regarded as final and binding. I have stressed in my last reference to this far-reaching p.r.o.nouncement the negative aspect of this doc.u.ment which condemns in most unequivocal and emphatic language the followers of Baha'u'llah as the believers in heresy, offensive and injurious to Islam, and wholly incompatible with the accepted doctrines and practice of its orthodox adherents.

A closer study of the text of the decision will, however, reveal the fact that coupled with this strong denunciation is the positive a.s.sertion of a truth which the recognised opponents of the Baha'i Faith in other Muhammadan countries have up to the present time either sedulously ignored or maliciously endeavoured to disprove. Not content with this harsh and unjustifiable repudiation of the so-called menacing and heretical doctrines of the adherents of the Baha'i Faith, they proceed in a formal manner to declare in the text of that very decision their belief, that the Baha'i Faith is a "new religion", "entirely independent" and, by reason of the magnitude of its claim and the character of its "laws, principles and beliefs," worthy to be reckoned as one of the established religious systems of the world. Quoting various pa.s.sages judiciously gleaned from a number of Baha'i sacred Books as an evidence to their splendid testimony, they proceed in a notable statement to deduce the fact that henceforth it shall be regarded as impossible for the followers of such a Faith to be designated as Muslim, just as it would be incorrect and erroneous to call a Muhammadan either Christian or Jew.

It cannot be denied that in the course of the inevitable developments of this present situation the resident Baha'is of Egypt, originally belonging to the Muslim Faith, will be placed in a most humiliating and embarra.s.sing position. They, however, cannot but rejoice in the knowledge that whereas in various Muhammadan countries and particularly in Persia the overwhelming majority of the leaders of Islam are utterly opposed to any form of declaration that would facilitate the universal recognition of the Cause, the authorised heads of their co-religionists in one of the most advanced communities in the Muhammadan world have, of their own initiative, published to the world a doc.u.ment that may justly be termed as the first charter of liberty emanc.i.p.ating the Baha'i Faith from the fetters of orthodox Islam. And in order to insure the complete rupture of Baha'i official relations with Muslim Courts they lay down in unmistakable terms the condition that under no circ.u.mstances can the marriage of those Baha'is who have been required to divorce their Muslim wives be renewed by the Muslim Court unless and until the husbands formally recant their faith by solemnly declaring that the Qur'an is the "last" Book of G.o.d revealed to man, that no law can abrogate the Prophet's Law, no faith can succeed His Faith, no revelation can claim to fulfill His Revelation.

While unwavering in their belief in the Divine station of the Author of the Qur'an and profoundly convinced of the necessity and worldwide influence of His Divine mission, Baha'is in every land stand undeterred and unabashed in the face of the strong condemnation p.r.o.nounced against their brethren in Egypt. Indeed, they together with their fellow-workers in all Muslim countries welcome with gladness and pride every opportunity for further emanc.i.p.ation that they may set forth in a truer light the sublime mission of Baha'u'llah.

In the face of such an outspoken and challenging declaration, the Baha'is of the West cannot but feel the deepest sympathy with their Egyptian brethren who, for the sake of our beloved Cause and its deliverance, have to face all the embarra.s.sments and vexations which the severance of old-established ties must necessarily entail. They will, however, most certainly expect every staunch and loyal believer in the Faith who resides in that land to refrain in view of the grave warning uttered expressly by our opponents, from any practice that would in any manner const.i.tute in the eyes of a critical and vigilant enemy a repudiation of the fundamental beliefs of the people of Baha. They will most a.s.suredly, whenever the moment is opportune, step forth with eager hearts to offer every support in their power to their fellow-workers who, with stout hearts and irreproachable loyalty, will continue to hold aloft the standard of G.o.d's struggling Faith. They will not fail to come to the rescue of those who with joyous confidence will endure to the very end such vicissitudes as this New Day of G.o.d, now in its birth-throes, must needs suffer and surmount.

We cannot believe that as the Movement grows in strength, in authority and influence, the perplexities and the sufferings it has had to contend with in the past will correspondingly decrease and vanish. Nay, as it grows from strength to strength, the fanatical defendants of the strongholds of orthodoxy, whatever be their denomination, realising the penetrating influence of this growing Faith, will arise and strain every nerve to extinguish its light and discredit its name. For has not our beloved 'Abdu'l-Baha sent forth His glowing prophecy from behind the prison walls of the citadel of Akka-words so significant in their forecast of the coming world turmoil, yet so rich in their promise of eventual victory:-

"How great, how very great is the Cause; how very fierce the onslaught of all the peoples and kindreds of the earth! Erelong shall the clamour of the mult.i.tude throughout Africa, throughout America, the cry of the European and of the Turk, the groaning of India and China be heard from far and near. One and all they shall arise with all their power to resist His Cause. Then shall the Knights of the Lord, a.s.sisted by grace from on high, strengthened by faith, aided by the power of understanding and reinforced by the legions of the Covenant, arise and make manifest the truth of the verse: 'Behold the confusion that hath befallen the tribes of the defeated!'"

Dearly beloved friends, upon us devolves the supreme obligation to stand by His side, to fight His battles and to win His victory. May we prove ourselves worthy of this trust.

Your true brother, Shoghi

Letter of 26 February 1927

26 February 1927

...quite in order to utilise the Baha'i Fund for the payment of at least half of the travelling expenses of the Friends who come to London from a distance, "one chief object of the Fund should be to help the Friends in these difficulties".

(Quoted in National Spiritual a.s.sembly Minutes)

Letter of 22 March 1927

22 March 1927

LOVING APPRECIATION AFFECTIONATE REMEMBRANCE.

SHOGHI

Letter of 27 April 1927