Dearly loved friends,
"The world is in travail, and its agitation waxeth day
by day. ... Such shall be its plight,
that to disclose it now would not be meet and seemly." The shattering
blows dealt to the old, divisive system of the planet and the constantly
accelerating decline in civilized life since that dire warning was uttered by
Baha'u'llah a hundred years ago, have brought mankind to its present appalling
condition. Consideration of how the Baha'is of Europe, confronted by this
situation, can meet their responsibilities, spiritually and actively, is the
main purpose of this Conference.
The holding of this Conference in Dublin calls to mind the
historic and heroic services of Ireland in spreading the divine religion
throughout pagan Europe. Europe's
response was to develop, through many vicissitudes, the most widespread and
effective civilization known. That civilization, together with all other
systems in the world, is now being rolled up, and Europe's plight in proportion
to her former pre-eminence, is desperate indeed. By the same token her
opportunity is correspondingly great. The challenges to her resilience, to her
deep-seated spiritual vitality, nourished over the centuries by the Teachings
of Christ -- now, alas, neglected and even contemned -- can and must call forth
a more magnificent response than was ever made by the divided and contending
peoples of olden times. Yours is the task to arouse that response. The power of
Baha'u'llah is with you and this Day, as attested by the Bab, is
"immensely exalted ... above the days of the Apostles of old."
In this great Day Europe is blessed as never before in its
history, for the Manifestation of God, the Lord of Hosts, spent five years of
His exiles within its borders, sending forth from His "remote prison"
the first of those challenging, world-shaking addresses to the kings and
rulers, six of whom were European potentates. There is no authenticated record
of a Manifestation of God ever before setting foot in Europe.
You are engaged on a Seven Year Plan and have made devoted
and sacrificial efforts to attain its objectives. But its ultimate purpose, as
that of all other plans, namely the attracting of the masses of mankind to the
all-embracing shelter of the Cause of God, still evades us. Particularly in
Europe. We have not, as yet, found the secret of setting aglow the hearts of
great numbers of Europeans with the divine fire. This must now be your constant
preoccupation, the subject of your deliberations at this Conference, the
purpose of your lives, to which you will attain "only if you arise to
trample beneath your feet every earthly desire." We call upon every Baha'i
in Europe to ponder this vital matter in his inmost soul, to consider what each
may do to attract greater power to his efforts, to radiate more brilliantly and
irresistibly the joyous, regenerating power of the Cause, so that the Baha'i
community in every country of Europe may stand out as a beacon light repelling
the dark shadows of godlessness and moral degradation now threatening to
obliterate the last remnants of a dying order. We call upon the Continental
Board of Counsellors to consult following this Conference with every National
Spiritual Assembly in Europe, and together, launch such a campaign of
spiritualization of the Baha'i community, allied with intensified personal
teaching, as has never been witnessed in your continent. The goals of the Seven Year Plan can all be
accomplished as the result of such a programme and the European Baha'i
community may achieve through it the spiritual force and character to
demonstrate to a stricken and declining civilization the peace and joy and
order of the long-awaited, Christ- promised Kingdom of God on earth.
May the loving spirit and saintly life of the Greatest Holy
Leaf, the fiftieth anniversary of whose ascension is commemorated in this
Conference, imbue your thoughts and aspirations and resolves with that
dedicated, self-sacrificing, utter devotion to Baha'u'llah and His Cause which
she so greatly exemplified.
With loving Baha'i greetings,
The Universal House of Justice
(‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1963-1986’)
