Directives From The Guardian Part 18

181: SPIRITUALITY (THE TROUBLES OF THIS WORLD Pa.s.s)

"As we suffer these misfortunes we must remember that the Prophets of G.o.d Themselves were not immune from these things which men suffer. They knew sorrow, illness and pain too. They rose above these things through Their spirits, and that is what we must try and do too, when afflicted. The troubles of this world pa.s.s, and what we have left is what we have made of our souls; so it is to this we must look--to becoming more spiritual, drawing nearer to G.o.d, no matter what our human minds and bodies go through."

182: SUMMER SCHOOLS (THE BAHa'i)

"Definite courses should be given along the different phases of the Baha'i Faith and in a manner that will stimulate the students to proceed in their studies privately once they return home, for the period of a few days is not sufficient to learn everything. They have to be taught the habit of studying the Cause constantly, for the more we read the Words the more will the truth they contain be revealed to us."

183: SUMMER SCHOOLS (BAHa'i ATMOSPHERE IN)

"He (the Guardian) thinks the less time spent on such topics as 'Current Events in the light of the Baha'i Faith', and 'The Baha'i Faith and Modern Science' the better. There is no harm in having an evening lecture by a qualified speaker once on each of these subjects, but he certainly does not feel that much time should be spent on them, for the very simple reason that there is so little that can be said on the subject."

"The Baha'is must realize that they belong to a world-wide Order, and not an American civilization. They must try and introduce the Baha'i atmosphere of life and thought into their Summer Schools, rather than making the Summer School an episode and a pleasant vacation period, during which they learn a little more about the Faith."

184: SUPREME TRIBUNAL

"The Supreme Tribunal is an aspect of a world Superstate; the exact nature of its relations.h.i.+p to that state we cannot at present foresee. Supreme Tribunal is the correct translation; it will be a contributing factor in establis.h.i.+ng the Lesser Peace. There is no statement in the teachings indicating that the Lesser Peace will definitely be established by 1957 or 1963."

185: TABLETS OF 'ABDU'L-BAHa

"The work of collecting and publis.h.i.+ng the Tablets is one of the most important tasks that this generation has to undertake for upon it depends our true understanding of the Cause and its principles. Only Tablets with the Master's signature and in the original tongue should be recognised.

Any translation or copies of them fail having real authority. This shows the importance of collecting the original Tablets that bear the Master's signature."

186: TEACHERS (UNQUALIFIED LOYALTY)

"In connection with the problems facing the friends in their teaching work; these, the Guardian is well aware, are by no means easy to overcome, specially in view of the limited number and resources of the believers.

But in the field of Baha'i service, as the history of the Cause abundantly demonstrates, there is no obstacle that can be said to be unsurmountable.

Every difficulty will, in due time, be solved. But continued and collective effort is also needed. The Baha'i teacher should not get discouraged at the consciousness of the limitations within or without him.

He should rather persevere, and be confident, that no matter how numerous and perplexing the difficulties that confront him may appear, he is continually a.s.sisted and guided through Divine Confirmations. He should consider himself as a mere instrument in the Hands of G.o.d, and should, therefore, cease looking at his own merits.

"The first and most important qualification of a Baha'i Teacher is, indeed, unqualified loyalty and attachment to the Cause. Knowledge is, of course essential; but compared to devotion it is secondary in importance."

187: TEACHERS AND ADMINISTRATORS (CAN SERVE AS BOTH)

"Regarding the statement made by the Guardian ... concerning the fact that believers can serve both as teachers and administrators. Shoghi Effendi would approve your a.s.sembly making this fact known to all the friends. For although it is essential for the believers to maintain always a clear distinction between teaching and administrative duties and functions, yet they should be careful not to be led to think that these two types of Baha'i activity are mutually exclusive in their nature and as such cannot be exercised by one and the same person. As a matter of fact, the friends should be encouraged to serve in both the teaching and the administrative fields of Baha'i service. But as there are always some who are more specially gifted along one of these two lines of activity it would seem more desirable that they should concentrate their efforts in acquiring the full training for that type of work for which they are best suited by nature. Such a specialization has the advantage of saving time and of leading to greater efficiency, particularly at this early stage of our development. The great danger, however, lies in that by so doing the friends may tend to develop a sort of cla.s.s consciousness which is fundamentally contrary to both the spirit and actual teachings of the Faith.

"It is precisely in order to overcome such a danger that the Guardian thinks it advisable that the friends should be encouraged to serve from time to time in both the teaching and the administrative spheres of Baha'i work, but only whenever they feel fit to do so."

188: TEACHERS, BAHa'i (A PRINCIPLE)

"Regarding the principle that the Cause must not be allowed to center around any Baha'i personality, the Guardian wishes to make it clear that it was never intended that well qualified individual teachers should not receive from local a.s.semblies every encouragement and facilities to address the public. What the Guardian meant was that the personality and popularity of such a speaker should never be allowed to eclipse the authority or detract from the influence of the body of the elected representatives in every local community. Such an individual should not only seek the approval, advice and a.s.sistance of the body that represents the Cause in his locality, but should strive to attribute any credit he may obtain, to the collective wisdom and capacity of the a.s.sembly under whose jurisdiction he performs his services. a.s.semblies and not individuals const.i.tute the bedrock on which the Administration is built.

Everything else must be subordinated to, and be made to serve and advance the best interests of these elected custodians and promoters of the laws of Baha'u'llah."

189: TEACHING

"The Cause of G.o.d is developing rapidly in the virgin areas of the Crusade; but on the home front we seem to be not so successful. No doubt this is due to the fact that the friends at home are not as diligently taking advantage of every teaching opportunity as the pioneers do in foreign lands. Success will crown the efforts of the friends on the home front when they meditate on the teaching, pray fervently for divine confirmations for their work, study the teachings so they may carry the spirit to the seeker, and then act,--and above all persevere in action.

When these steps are followed, and the teaching work carried on sacrificially and with devoted enthusiasm, the Faith will spread rapidly."

190: TEACHING (LOVE FOR BAHa'U'LLaH)

"...Without the spirit of real love for Baha'u'llah, for His Faith and its Inst.i.tutions, and the believers for each other, the Cause can never really bring in large numbers of people. For it is not preaching any rules the world wants, but love and action..."