The Unfolding Destiny of the British Bahai Community Part 19

Shoghi Effendi is pleased to learn, from your letters of June 11th and 16th, of the new possibilities for the publication of Canon Townshend's book. Realising the number and force of the difficulties which have thus far stood in your way, he cannot indeed but feel gratified that you have at last been able to overcome some of them. He hopes that through your determination to have this valuable booklet published without any further delay some valuable and permanent result will be achieved, and that a few people of capacity and influence will be attracted to the Faith.

In case no publis.h.i.+ng firm accepts your offer for the printing of the booklet, the Guardian approves that the N.S.A. should undertake the publication.

Hoping to hear very soon some more definite and encouraging news about this matter, and with the Guardian's best wishes for you and for your collaborators in the N.S.A.

Yours in His Service,

[From the Guardian:]

With the renewed a.s.surance of my loving and continued prayers for the success of your unsparing efforts for the spread of His Faith and the consolidation of its inst.i.tutions,

Your true brother, Shoghi

Letter of 11 July 1934

11 July 1934

Dear Mrs. Slade,

On behalf of the Guardian I wish to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, and to a.s.sure you once more of his deepfelt appreciation of your highly-valued efforts for the publication of Canon Townshend's booklet on the Cause. He hopes that the believers the world over will co-operate with your N.S.A. for giving the work the widest publicity possible, and by ordering as many copies as they can for distribution in their own communities. They will surely appreciate, and draw great benefit from, this original and beautifully-written essay of Mr. Townshend, and they will certainly do their best to make it known by the outside world.

Shoghi Effendi wishes you to send him, as soon as the book is published, 150 copies for his library. He will also place some of them in Baha'u'llah's Mansion at Bahji for the benefit of the Baha'i as well as non-Baha'i visitors.

With the renewed a.s.surance of his best wishes and of his continued prayers on your behalf.

Yours in His Service,

[From the Guardian:]

May the Almighty bless your incessant and meritorious endeavours and crown them with unprecedented success,

Your true and grateful brother, Shoghi

Letter of 2 September 1934

2 September 1934

Dear Mrs. Slade,

The Guardian has received and read with much interest your letter of August 9th. It gives him pleasure to learn that the agreement for the publication of Canon Townshend's book has already been signed, and he is looking forward to see the book out of the press within the next few weeks. He hopes that your communications with the American N.S.A. for bringing out an American edition of this same book are proceeding satisfactorily, as he has every reason to believe that the friends in America will do their best to secure for that important publication the widest demand and publicity possible.

Shoghi Effendi would advise that you should also communicate with the N.S.A. of the Baha'is of Australia and New Zealand, and with other English speaking a.s.semblies, groups and individuals, informing them of this new publication, and asking for their a.s.sistance in creating for it as wide a demand as possible.

With his renewed greetings and best wishes to you and to all the friends in London,

Yours in His Service,

[From the Guardian:]

Dear and valued co-worker,

I have read your letter of May 22 and Aug. 9 with joy and thankfulness as both eloquently testify to your inflexible resolve to promote by every means in your power the best interests of our beloved Cause. I trust and pray that the effect of the publication of the "Promise" will be such as to gladden your heart and reinforce the constant efforts which you have so devotedly exerted in recent years for the propagation of the Faith. I will soon send the cheque for the books I have asked you to send me and which I will distribute as widely as I possibly can.

Your true and grateful brother, Shoghi

Letter of 30 September 1934

30 September 1934

Dear Mrs. Slade,

The Guardian has directed me to thank you for your welcome letter dated September fifth. The news of the pa.s.sing away of Mr. Simpson has deeply grieved his heart. He hopes and fervently prays that the Beloved may fully reward him for all the services which he has rendered the Faith in Great Britain, and particularly for the active part which he took during the early days of his a.s.sociation with the Movement, in establis.h.i.+ng the Cause of the Administration in that land. May the Almighty enable his soul to progress spiritually in the other world, and may the memory of his earlier services to the Faith sustain and encourage the friends in their labours for the propagation of the Cause in Great Britain.

The Guardian has already written Mr. ... concerning Mr. ... gift to the Cause and has expressed his profound appreciation of the suggestion made by him to have his property registered in the name of your National a.s.sembly. This step, he is convinced, would be of great help to your a.s.sembly, in that it would a.s.sist in enabling it to obtain full legal recognition from the authorities and thus become an effective and powerful organ for the administration of Baha'i affairs throughout the British Isles. But, if your a.s.sembly feels that such a step would be premature, he suggests that you should have the property registered in the name of the Palestine Branch of the American N.S.A., until such time as your own a.s.sembly would be in a position to acquire full legal recognition from the British authorities, and will be ent.i.tled to hold property in Palestine.

In the meantime the American N.S.A. can issue a statement testifying that this property is registered only temporarily in their name, and that as soon as the incorporation is effected they will have it transferred to the name of the National a.s.sembly of the British Isles.

Concerning the material which your a.s.sembly has been requested to provide for the writing of a history of the Cause in England, the Guardian feels the advisability of making as few references to individuals as possible.

He further suggests that emphasis be placed on two major events, the Master's visit to England, and the publication of Dr. Esslemont's "New Era" which, indeed, const.i.tutes a real landmark in the history of the Faith in that country.

There is another point to which the Guardian wishes to draw the attention of your N.S.A. It is the importance which national Baha'i summer schools are acquiring in the development and spread of the Cause. Two of these, as you know, have already been established and are now regularly functioning, that of America with its three branches in Green Acre, Lou-Helen Ranch and Geyserville, and that of Esslingen in Germany which in the last two years has considerably developed, and has attracted the attention of non-German believers throughout the Baha'i world. The Guardian suggests that pending the establishment of a similar Baha'i Summer School in England, your a.s.sembly should take into consideration the most effective way in which it can co-operate with the German friends in furthering the interests of their summer school at Esslingen. Meanwhile an effort should be made by our English believers to take the necessary steps for the formation of a similar inst.i.tution in Great Britain. Many Baha'i travellers in Europe, mostly American, have had this summer the opportunity of attending meetings and cla.s.ses of the friends in Esslingen. Mr. and Mrs. Greven, Mrs. Collins, Mr. and Mrs. Bishop representing the Baha'i Bureau at Geneva. Baha'is from Austria and Persia attended. Miss Jack and Mrs.

Gregory came specially from the Balkans, and gave detailed reports on the conditions of the Cause in the Balkans. In view of this international importance which the Esslingen summer school is thus acquiring, at least in Europe, the Guardian feels the advisability of your National a.s.sembly being represented at these important gatherings.

In closing I wish to ask you to convey the Guardian's greetings and love to Mr. As_gh_arzadeh who, as you write, seems to be suffering from ill-health. Will you kindly a.s.sure him of Shoghi Effendi's prayers for his complete recovery, and express his appreciation of his continued labours for the Cause in London.

With warmest greetings to you and to all the friends, Yours in His Service,

[From the Guardian:]

Dear and valued co-worker:

The utmost effort, I feel, should be exerted to ensure the incorporation of the British National a.s.sembly. Should the authorities require a doc.u.ment setting forth the laws and principles governing the activities of the community, the text of the Declaration of Trust and By-laws now operating in America and adopted by the National a.s.semblies of Egypt, India and 'Iraq should be presented to them. The text is published in Vol.

IV of the "Baha'i World" and const.i.tutes a pattern for all national Baha'i const.i.tutions. I would also greatly welcome close collaboration by the believers in England in the development of the very useful and promising summer school recently initiated in Esslingen and which has served this summer as a meeting place of teachers and representatives in Europe.

Your true brother, Shoghi