Pioneers: “Let these words of ‘Abdu’l Bahá…ring… in their ears”

Let these words of ‘Abdu’l Bahá, gleaned from the Tablets of the Divine Plan, ring likewise in their ears, as they go forth, assured and unafraid, on His mission: “O ye apostles of Bahá’u’lláh! May my life be sacrificed for you!… Behold the portals which Bahá’u’lláh hath opened before you! Consider how exalted and lofty is the station you are destined to attain; how unique the favors with which you have been endowed.” “My thoughts are turned towards you, and my heart leaps within me at your mention. Could ye know how my soul gloweth with your love, so great a happiness would flood your hearts as to cause you to become enamored with each other.” “The full measure of your success is as yet unrevealed, its significance still unapprehended. Erelong ye will, with your own eyes, witness how brilliantly every one of you, even as a shining star, will radiate in the firmament of your country the light of Divine Guidance, and will bestow upon its people the glory of an everlasting life.” “I fervently hope that in the near future the whole earth may be stirred and shaken by the results of your achievements.” “The Almighty will no doubt grant you the help of His grace, will invest you with the tokens of His might, and will endue your souls with the sustaining power of His holy Spirit.” “Be not concerned with the smallness of your numbers, neither be oppressed by the multitude of an unbelieving world.… Exert yourselves; your mission is unspeakably glorious. Should success crown your enterprise, America will assuredly evolve into a center from which waves of spiritual power will emanate, and the throne of the Kingdom of God will, in the plenitude of its majesty and glory, be firmly established.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

Pioneers: - “let these soul-stirring words of Bahá’u’lláh… be ever ready on their lips, a solace to their hearts, a light on their path, a companion in their loneliness, and a daily sustenance in their journeys”

And, finally, let these soul-stirring words of Bahá’u’lláh, as they pursue their course throughout the length and breadth of the southern American continent, be ever ready on their lips, a solace to their hearts, a light on their path, a companion in their loneliness, and a daily sustenance in their journeys: 

“O wayfarer in the path of God! Take thou thy portion of the ocean of His grace, and deprive not thyself of the things that lie hidden in its depths.… A dewdrop out of this ocean would, if shed upon all that are in the heavens and on earth, suffice to enrich them with the bounty of God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. With the hands of renunciation draw forth from its life-giving waters, and sprinkle therewith all created things, that they may be cleansed from all man-made limitations, and may approach the mighty seat of God, this hallowed and resplendent Spot. Be not grieved if thou performest it thyself alone. Let God be all-sufficient for thee.… Proclaim the Cause of thy Lord unto all who are in the heavens and on the earth. Should any man respond to thy call, lay bare before him the pearls of the wisdom of the Lord, thy God, which His Spirit hath sent down upon thee, and be thou of them that truly believe. And should anyone reject thy offer, turn thou away from him, and put thy trust and confidence in the Lord of all worlds. By the righteousness of God! Whoso openeth his lips in this day, and maketh mention of the name of his Lord, the hosts of Divine inspiration shall descend upon him from the heaven of my name, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. On him shall also descend the Concourse on high, each bearing aloft a chalice of pure light. Thus hath it been foreordained in the realm of God’s Revelation, by the behest of Him Who is the All-Glorious, the Most Powerful.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

Pioneers: - virtues to be cognizant of and strive for

Let some, at this very moment, gird up the loins of their endeavor, flee their native towns, cities, and states, forsake their country, and, “putting their whole trust in God as the best provision for their journey,” set their faces, and direct their steps towards those distant climes, those virgin fields, those unsurrendered cities, and bend their energies to capture the citadels of men’s hearts—hearts, which, as Bahá’u’lláh has written, “the hosts of Revelation and of utterance can subdue.” Let them not tarry until such time as their fellow-laborers will have passed the first stage in their campaign of teaching, but let them rather, from this very hour, arise to usher in the opening phase of what will come to be regarded as one of the most glorious chapters in the international history of their Faith.

• Let them, at the very outset, “teach their own selves, that their speech may attract the hearts of their hearers.”
• Let them regard the triumph of their Faith as their “supreme objective.”
• Let them not “consider the largeness or smallness of the receptacle” that carries the measure of grace that God poureth forth in this age.
• Let them “disencumber themselves of all attachment to this world and the vanities thereof,” and, with that spirit of detachment which ‘Abdu’l Bahá exemplified and wished them to emulate, bring these diversified peoples and countries to the remembrance of God and His supreme Manifestation.
• Let His love be a “storehouse of treasure for their souls,” on the day when “every pillar shall tremble, when the very skins of men shall creep, when all eyes shall stare up with terror.”
• Let their “souls be aglow with the flame of the undying Fire that burneth in the midmost heart of the world, in such wise that the waters of the universe shall be powerless to cool down its ardor.”
• Let them be “unrestrained as the wind” which “neither the sight of desolation nor the evidences of prosperity can either pain or please.”
• Let them “unloose their tongues and proclaim unceasingly His Cause.”
• Let them “proclaim that which the Most Great Spirit will inspire them to utter in the service of the Cause of their Lord.”
• Let them “beware lest they contend with anyone, nay strive to make him aware of the truth with kindly manner and most convincing exhortation.”
• Let them “wholly for the sake of God proclaim His Message, and with that same spirit accept whatever response their words may evoke in their hearers.”
• Let them not, for one moment, forget that the “Faithful Spirit shall strengthen them through its power,” and that “a company of His chosen angels shall go forth with them, as bidden by Him Who is the Almighty, the All-Wise.”
• Let them ever bear in mind “how great is the blessedness that awaiteth them that have attained the honor of serving the Almighty,” and remember that “such a service is indeed the prince of all goodly deeds, and the ornament of every goodly act.”

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“the American believers, the stout-hearted pioneers” “launch an offensive against the powers of darkness, of corruption, and of ignorance”

When this second stage in the progressive unfoldment of teaching activities and enterprises, under the Seven Year Plan, is reached, and the machinery required for its prosecution begins to operate, the American believers, the stout-hearted pioneers of this mighty movement, must, guided by the unfailing light of Bahá’u’lláh, and in strict accordance with the Plan laid out by ‘Abdu’l Bahá, and acting under the direction of their National Spiritual Assembly, and assured of the aid of the Inter-America Committee, launch an offensive against the powers of darkness, of corruption, and of ignorance, an offensive that must extend to the uttermost end of the Southern continent, and embrace within its scope each of the twenty nations that compose it. 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“Central and Southern America” “are destined to play an increasingly important part in the shaping of the world’s future destiny.”

The Inter-America Committee must, at such a stage, nay even before it is entered, rise to the level of its opportunities, and display a vigor, a consecration, and enterprise as will be commensurate with the responsibilities it has shouldered. It should not, for a moment, be forgotten that Central and Southern America embrace no less than twenty independent nations, constituting approximately one-third of the entire number of the world’s sovereign states, and are destined to play an increasingly important part in the shaping of the world’s future destiny. With the world contracting into a neighborhood, and the fortunes of its races, nations and peoples becoming inextricably interwoven, the remoteness of these states of the Western Hemisphere is vanishing, and the latent possibilities in each of them are becoming increasingly apparent. 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“virgin states and provinces in the North American continent” and “awakening of the nations of Latin America to the Call of Bahá’u’lláh”

No sooner is this initial step taken, involving as it does the formation of at least one nucleus in each of these virgin states and provinces in the North American continent, than the machinery for a tremendous intensification of Bahá’í concerted effort must be set in motion, the purpose of which should be the reinforcement of the noble exertions which only a few isolated believers are now making for the awakening of the nations of Latin America to the Call of Bahá’u’lláh. Not until this second phase of the teaching campaign, under the Seven Year Plan, has been entered can the campaign be regarded as fully launched, or the Plan itself as having attained the most decisive stage in its evolution. So powerful will be the effusions of Divine grace that will be poured forth upon a valiant community that has already in the administrative sphere erected, in all the glory of its exterior ornamentation, its chief Edifice, and in the teaching field raised aloft, in every state and province, in the North American continent the banner of its Faith—so great will be these effusions that its members will find themselves overpowered by the evidences of their regenerative power. 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

Canada: “the future of Canada, whether from a material or a spiritual standpoint, is very great”

“The future of the Dominion of Canada,” He [‘Abdu’l-Bahá], in another Tablet of the Divine Plan, has asserted, “is very great, and the events connected with it infinitely glorious. The eye of God’s loving-kindness will be turned towards it, and it shall become the manifestation of the favors of the All-Glorious.” “Again I repeat,” He, in that same Tablet reaffirms His previous statement, “that the future of Canada, whether from a material or a spiritual standpoint, is very great.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

USA: - The diffusion of divine “fragrances” in all states

“Although,” ‘Abdu’l Bahá, in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, has written, “in most of the states and cities of the United States, praise be to God, His fragrances are diffused, and souls unnumbered are turning their faces and advancing toward the Kingdom of God, yet in some of the states the Standard of Unity is not yet upraised as it should be, nor are the mysteries of the Holy Books, such as the Bible, the Gospel, and the Qur’án, unraveled. Through the concerted efforts of all the friends the Standard of Unity must needs be unfurled in those states, and the Divine teachings promoted, so that these states may also receive their portion of the heavenly bestowals and a share of the Most Great Guidance.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“putting on the armor of His love”

Let those who resolve to be the first to hoist the standard of such a Cause, under such conditions, and in such territories, nourish their souls with the sustaining power of these words, and, “putting on the armor of His love,” a love which must “wax stronger” as they persevere in their lonesome task, arise to adorn with the tale of their deeds the most brilliant pages ever written in their country’s spiritual history. 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

Promise of divine assistance from ‘Abdu’l Bahá

“Consider the work of former generations,” ‘Abdu’l Bahá has written; “During the lifetime of Jesus Christ the believing, firm souls were few and numbered, but the heavenly blessings descended so plentifully that in a number of years countless souls entered beneath the shadow of the Gospel. God has said in the Qur’án: ‘One grain will bring forth seven sheaves, and every sheaf shall contain one hundred grains.’ In other words, one grain will become seven hundred; and if God so wills He will double these also. It has often happened that one blessed soul has become the cause of the guidance of a nation. Now we must not consider our ability and capacity, nay rather we must fix our gaze upon the favors and bounties of God, in these days, Who has made of the drop a sea, and of the atom a sun.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

Promises of divine assistance from Bahá’u’lláh

The effort required is prodigious, the conditions under which these preliminary establishments are to be made are often unattractive and unfavorable, the workers who are in a position to undertake such tasks limited, and the resources they can command meager and inadequate. And yet, how often has the pen of Bahá’u’lláh assured us that “should a man, all alone, arise in the name of Bahá, and put on the armor of His love, him will the Almighty cause to be victorious, though the forces of earth and heaven be arrayed against him.” Has He not written: “By God, besides Whom is none other God! Should anyone arise for the triumph of our Cause, him will God render victorious though tens of thousands of enemies be leagued against him. And if his love for me wax stronger, God will establish his ascendancy over all the powers of earth and heaven.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“the first and most significant step in the successive stages through which the teaching campaign…must pass”: - “To implant…the banner of Bahá’u’lláh in the heart of these virgin territories, to erect the structural basis of His Administrative Order in their cities and villages, and to establish a firm and permanent anchorage for its institutions in the minds and hearts of their inhabitants”

Let those who are holding administrative positions in their capacity as members of either the National Spiritual Assembly, or of the national, the regional, or local teaching committees, continually bear in mind the vital and urgent necessity of insuring, within as short a time as possible, the formation, in the few remaining states of the North American Republic and the provinces of the Dominion of Canada, of groups, however small and rudimentary, and of providing every facility within their power to enable these newly formed nuclei to evolve, swiftly and along sound lines, into properly functioning, self-sufficient, and recognized Assemblies. To the laying of such foundations, the erection of such outposts—a work admittedly arduous, yet sorely needed and highly inspiring—the individual members of the American Bahá’í community must lend their unstinted, continual, and enthusiastic support. Wise as may be the measures which their elected representatives may devise, however practical and well conceived the plans they formulate, such measures and plans can never yield any satisfactory results unless a sufficient number of pioneers have determined to make the necessary sacrifices, and to volunteer to carry these projects into effect. To implant, once and for all, the banner of Bahá’u’lláh in the heart of these virgin territories, to erect the structural basis of His Administrative Order in their cities and villages, and to establish a firm and permanent anchorage for its institutions in the minds and hearts of their inhabitants, constitute, I firmly believe, the first and most significant step in the successive stages through which the teaching campaign, inaugurated under the Seven Year Plan, must pass. Whereas the external ornamentation of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, under this same Plan, has now entered the final phase in its development, the teaching campaign is still in its initial stages, and is far from having extended effectively its ramifications to either these virgin territories, or to those Republics that are situated in the South American continent. 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“the Israelites”: - God’s “bounty will overshadow them”

“Praise be to God,” writes ‘Abdu’l Bahá, “that whatsoever hath been announced in the Blessed Tablets unto the Israelites, and the things explicitly written in the letters of ‘Abdu’l Bahá, are all being fulfilled. Some have come to pass; others will be revealed in the future. The Ancient Beauty hath in His sacred Tablets explicitly written that the day of their abasement is over. His bounty will overshadow them, and this race will day by day progress, and be delivered from its age-long obscurity and degradation.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“the original inhabitants of America”; “the Eskimos”

“You must attach great importance,” writes ‘Abdu’l Bahá in the Tablets of the Divine Plan, “to the Indians, the original inhabitants of America. For these souls may be likened unto the ancient inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula, who, prior to the Revelation of Muhammad, were like savages. When the Muhammadan Light shone forth in their midst, they became so enkindled that they shed illumination upon the world. Likewise, should these Indians be educated and properly guided, there can be no doubt that through the Divine teachings they will become so enlightened that the whole earth will be illumined.” “If it is possible,” ‘Abdu’l Bahá has also written, “send ye teachers to other portions of Canada; likewise, dispatch ye teachers to Greenland and the home of the Eskimos.” “God willing,” He further has written in those same Tablets, “the call of the Kingdom may reach the ears of the Eskimos.… Should you display an effort, so that the fragrances of God may be diffused among the Eskimos, its effect will be very great and far-reaching.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

“the fellowship and equality of the white and colored races”

“One of the important questions,” He [‘Abdu’l-Baha] also has written, “which affect the unity and the solidarity of mankind is the fellowship and equality of the white and colored races.” 

- Shoghi Effendi (‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)