Dear Bahá’í Friends,
It is with profound happiness that we greet the dear friends who are gathered for the first National Convention of the Bahá’ís of Latvia. This significant achievement is the fruit of the united efforts of all the friends in the Baltic States, together with the assistance of the many dedicated souls who have visited your country, beginning with Miss Martha Root, who first brought the light of Bahá’u’lláh's Revelation to Latvia during her visit to Riga in April 1927. Today, your community has acquired the strength to elect its own National Spiritual Assembly, and stands ready to carry forward the noble work of the Cause.
Dear friends, the task before you is indeed challenging. Yours is the duty to show forth, by your words and by your deeds, the power of the Word of God to transform human character and the ordering of society. You must strive, by the force of your example of harmony and of love towards all people, to play your part in obliterating the racial, religious and political animosities which have for so long plagued humankind. Your countrymen are eagerly receptive to the gift which you can offer them, and opportunities for advancing the Cause have never been so plentiful. Your National Assembly, as a divinely ordained institution of the Administrative Order, is the channel for the outpouring of heavenly guidance and assistance, and your faithful and loving allegiance to it will be the surest means for the attainment of your highest aspirations.
Be assured that we shall offer ardent prayers in the Holy Shrines that the believers in your dear country will put forth a great effort in their love for Bahá’u’lláh. May He bless and guide your every step.
With loving Bahá’í greetings,
The Universal House of Justice
(Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1986-2001)
