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Letter of 31 March 1949
82
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First, let me say that one of the reasons God has given us the
institution of Guardianship is to prevent men from crystallizing
the Cause of God into a rigid system. Your questions are mostly
along the line of trying to lay down a fixed pattern for future
society, long before the time for such a pattern is ripe. Remember
that Bahá’u’lláh says what is not already revealed, the International
House of Justice must in the future legislate, and it can
make, and abrogate if necessary, its own laws. This means not
fixity in guiding society, but fluidity!
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No. 1 Bahá’u’lláh and the Master mention only Local, National
and an International House of Justice. There is no provision for
divisional ones. Each city will have its own Spiritual Assembly,
not a number of district ones. Naturally, district 19 Day Feasts can
be held where there are very many Bahá’ís in one city.
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No. 2 The Hands of the Cause will have executive authority in
so far as they carry out the work of the Guardian.
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No. 3 Spiritual Assembly is the name at present for the body
which in future will be called “House of Justice”.
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No. 4 The Badí Calendar will be used generally. The Bahá’í
week has seven days.
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No. 5 There is nothing about “ground organization”. These
details are left for future legislation.
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No. 6 No. Such things are for the consideration of the legislative
bodies in future.
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No. 7 No. But ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated there are other worlds than
ours which are inhabited by beings capable of knowing God.
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No. 8 The Bahá’í Temple in America has been dragging on,
uncompleted, since 19..(figures unreadable); its completion is
absolutely essential. We are builders, we have confidence in the
protection of God. We cannot give up our work just because the
atom bomb has been invented! This would be cowardly! The
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United Nations disposes of millions and millions of dollars and
part of its work is to educate humanity towards peace and against
war. Our completion of the Bahá’í Temple will cost 3/4 of a
million; what could this sum do in comparison to the efforts of
the United Nations?
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The thing the German believers must do is to deepen
themselves in the Covenants of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
Mere intellectual understanding of the teachings is not enough.
Deep spirituality is essential, and the foundation of true spirituality
is steadfastness in the Covenant.
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