Ameliorating the Suffering of the Bahá’ís in Iran

22 March 2006 

To the Iranian believers living outside Iran

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

As you may be aware, the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief has recently issued a statement raising grave apprehension regarding government actions being taken against the believers in the Cradle of the Faith, which she characterizes as “impermissible and unacceptable”. There can be no doubt that the Blessed Beauty watches over His oppressed followers in Iran and enfolds them in His tender embrace. For our part, we are directing systematic action at the international and national levels to place before the world our concern over this heightened threat to that much-cherished Bahá’í community. As a result of the swift efforts of those who have been assigned responsibility for this work, the plight of the Bahá’ís in Iran is receiving attention from United Nations agencies, national governments, non-governmental organizations, and the media in many countries around the world. May a mighty outcry be raised everywhere to stay the hands of the aggressors.

These current developments mark another moment of intensity in the persecution besetting the Bahá’ís of Iran, an unending adversity that has ebbed and surged ever since the inception of the Faith in that land more than a century and a half ago. The Islamic Revolution in 1979 opened a new phase of this oppression. When in recent years the pressures on the friends seemed to lessen, they decided to join with their fellow believers throughout the rest of the world in establishing the institute process in their country. In November 2003, we addressed a message to the Bahá’ís of Iran in which we expressed our admiration and that of the Bahá’í world for their steadfastness in the face of continuous persecution and focused their attention on the spiritual enterprise Bahá’u’lláh Himself has assigned to them. A year later, they addressed a letter to the former president seeking redress for the long-standing infringement of their human and civil rights. The response of the authorities to all of this was to instigate a spate of arbitrary arrests and detentions.

Next Stage in the Evolution of the Cause in Egypt

9 March 2006

To the Followers of Bahá’u’lláh in Egypt

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

Since the inception of the fifth epoch of the Formative Age of the Faith in January 2001, the operations of the Major Plan of God and His Minor Plan have steadily gained impetus and have already created far-reaching changes in the world at large and transformed the Bahá’í community. During this period, your own community has, as have others in the Bahá’í world, engaged in activities and processes that have enhanced your learning about effective promotion of the Faith. Your dearly loved, sorely tried community, established during the days of the ministry of Bahá’u’lláh Himself, blessed by the visits of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and whose members were praised by Shoghi Effendi as "heroes in the arena of servitude", is now called to take stock and see the way forward as you stand poised to enter a new stage in the evolution of the Cause in your country.

Your brilliant record of past achievements is marked by heroism and sacrifice. The Guardian lovingly extolled you as “the second most persecuted yet resolute community established in the heart of both the Arab and Muslim worlds". In your country "the banner of the independence of the Religion of Bahá" was first raised—a feat, in the words of Shoghi Effendi, "whose like has never been recorded in the history of ages past", and which was accomplished “valiantly, with dauntless courage and complete detachment from the world". In response to the vital responsibilities assigned in the global teaching plans of the Faith, you raised up exemplary teachers, pioneers, and administrators, as well as scholars and translators who helped enrich and disseminate Bahá’í literature in Arabic. In a special tribute to the “valiant endeavours” of your spiritual forebears, the Guardian lauded their qualities and summarized their many accomplishments, including

“. . . their exemplary loyalty to both the spiritual and administrative principles of the Cause they have espoused ... their strenuous efforts for the emancipation and recognition of their Faith . . . their assiduous labours for its propagation in their homelands ... their fearless defence of its tenets and institutions. ...”

Cinference of the Continental Board of Counsellors

31 December 2005 

To the Bahá’ís of the World

Dearly loved Friends,

As the gathering of the Continental Counsellors in the Holy Land draws to a close, we are moved to share with you the feelings of joy, triumph and confidence which have characterized several days of focused deliberation on the present Five Year Plan and on the global enterprise that will succeed it.

The Hand of the Cause of God ‘Alí-Muhammad Varqá opened the conference with a stirring appeal for resolute action, infusing the proceedings with a spirit of unwavering determination. Stories poured forth of the inspiring activities of the friends and the longing and responsiveness of the peoples of the world, conveying assurances that the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh is blossoming more abundantly in all parts of the globe. Persistent questions of how to sustain the process of growth, of how to achieve a balance between expansion and consolidation, that have engaged the Bahá’í community for nearly half a century found clear answers in the experiences shared from diverse clusters on all continents. Accounts of obstacles surmounted, fresh learning acquired, and creative insights discovered made it evident that the Army of Light is prepared to advance towards new horizons.

There can be no doubt that the Plan soon to end marks an upturn in the fortunes of the Faith. We look to the next decade and a half, the final years of the first century of the Formative Age, with great expectations of what will be accomplished. From this vantage point, the Bahá’í world can readily appreciate the significant extent to which the International Teaching Centre provided the impetus so indispensable to blazing the course set over these past few years and can, as well, discern the rich possibilities that its consecrated endeavors portend for the future.

Our message of 27 December addressed to the conference, which has already been transmitted to National Spiritual Assemblies, summarizes the learning about growth to date and delineates the priorities for the next Plan. Careful study of the message by all believers and institutions will be an essential requisite for the upcoming consultations that will take place at every level of the community upon the return home of the Counsellors.

The Universal House of Justice

(Online Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Center)