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Station of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá |
The unique station assigned to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá by the Blessed
Perfection is indicated in the following passage written by the
latter:—“When the ocean of My presence hath ebbed and the
Book of My Revelation is ended, turn your faces towards Him
Whom God hath purposed, Who hath branched from this
Ancient Root.” And again:—“ … refer ye whatsoever ye
understand not in the Book to Him Who hath branched from
this mighty Stock.” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá Himself wrote the following:—“In accordance with the explicit text of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas
Bahá’u’lláh hath made the Center of the Covenant the
Interpreter of His Word—a Covenant so firm and mighty that
from the beginning of time until the present day no religious
Dispensation hath produced its like.”
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The very completeness of the servitude with which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
promulgated the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh in East and West
resulted at times in a confusion of belief concerning His station
on the part of believers. Realizing the purity of the spirit animating
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His word and deed, surrounded by religious influences
marking the breakdown of their traditional doctrines, a number
of Bahá’ís felt that they honored ‘Abdu’l-Bahá by likening Him
to a Manifestation, or hailing Him as the “return of Christ.”
Nothing caused Him such intense grief as this failure to perceive
that His capacity to serve Bahá’u’lláh proceeded from the
purity of the mirror turned to the Sun of Truth, and not from
the Sun itself.
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Moreover, unlike previous Dispensations, the Faith of
Bahá’u’lláh had within it the potency of a universal human
society. During ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s mission covering the period
1892 to 1921, the Faith evolved through successive stages of
development in the direction of a true world order, Its development
required continuous direction and specific instruction
from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Who alone knew the fullness of that new
potent inspiration brought to earth in this age. Until His own
Will and Testament was revealed after ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s departure
from the flesh, and its significance was expounded by
Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Faith, the Bahá’ís almost
inevitably attributed their beloved Master’s guidance a
degree of spiritual authority equaling that of the Manifestation.
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The effects of such naive enthusiasm are no longer felt
within the Bahá’í community, but with a sounder realization
of the mystery of that incomparably devotion and servitude,
the Bahá’ís can today all the more consciously appreciate the
unique character of the mission which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá fulfilled.
The Faith which in 1892 seemed so weak and helpless in the
physical exile and imprisonment of its Exemplar and Interpreter,
has since, with irresistible power, raised up communities
in many countries,
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and challenges the weakness of a decaying
civilization with a body of teachings that alone reveal the
future of a despairing humanity.
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The Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá itself set forth with
complete clarity the mystery of the stations of the Báb and of
Bahá’u’lláh, and His own mission:—69
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This is the foundation of the belief of the people of
Bahá (may my life be offered up for them): “His Holiness,
the Exalted One (the Báb), is the Manifestation
of the Unity and Oneness of God and the Forerunner of
the Ancient Beauty. His Holiness the Abhá Beauty (may
my life be a sacrifice for His steadfast friends) is the
Supreme Manifestation of God and the Dayspring of His
Most Divine Essence. All others are servants unto Him
and do His bidding.”
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By this statement, and by numerous others in which
‘Abdu’l-Bahá emphasized the importance of basing one’s
knowledge of the Faith upon His general Tablets, a foundation
for unity of belief was established, with the result that the
differences of understanding caused by reference to His Tablets
to individuals, in which the Master answered personal questions,
rapidly disappeared. Above all, the establishment of a
definite administrative order, with the Guardian at its head,
transferred to institutions all authority previously wielded in
the form of prestige and influence by individual Bahá’ís in the
various local groups.
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1. | In 1969, 139 independent states and 173 significant territories and islands. (See Epilogue) [ Back To Reference] |