Dear Bahá'í friends,
The centennial year of the revelation of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas
has already witnessed events of such capital significance in the annals of the
Bahá'í Dispensation as to cause us to contemplate with awe the rapidity with
which Divine Providence is advancing the Cause of the Most Great Name. The time
is indeed propitious for the establishment of the International Teaching
Centre, a development which, at one and the same time, brings to fruition the
work of the Hands of the Cause residing in the Holy Land and provides for its
extension into the future, links the institution of the Boards of Counsellors
even more intimately with that of the Hands of the Cause of God, and powerfully
reinforces the discharge of the rapidly growing responsibilities of the
Universal House of Justice.
This International Teaching Centre now established will, in
due course, operate from that building designated by the Guardian as the seat
for the Hands of the Cause, which must be raised on the Arc on Mount Carmel in
close proximity to the Seat of the Universal House of Justice.
The duties now assigned to this nascent institution are:
- To co-ordinate, stimulate and direct the activities of the Continental Boards of Counsellors and to act as liaison between them and the Universal House of Justice.
- To be fully informed of the situation of the Cause in all parts of the world and to be able, from the background of this knowledge, to make reports and recommendations to the Universal House of Justice and give advice to the Continental Boards of Counsellors.
- To be alert to possibilities, both within and without the Bahá'í community, for the extension of the teaching work into receptive or needy areas, and to draw the attention of the Universal House of Justice and the Continental Boards of Counsellors to such possibilities, making recommendations for action.
- To determine and anticipate needs for literature, pioneers and travelling teachers and to work out teaching plans, both regional and global, for the approval of the Universal House of Justice.
