But nearness to God is not an easy accomplishment. During
the time Jesus Christ was upon the earth mankind sought nearness to God, but in
that day no one attained it save a very few—His disciples. Those blessed souls
were confirmed with divine nearness through the love of God. Divine nearness is
dependent upon attainment to the knowledge of God, upon severance from all else
save God. It is contingent upon self-sacrifice and to be found only through
forfeiting wealth and worldly possessions. It is made possible through the
baptism of water and fire revealed in the Gospels. Water symbolizes the water
of life, which is knowledge, and fire is the fire of the love of God; therefore,
man must be baptized with the water of life, the Holy Spirit and the fire of
the love of the Kingdom. Until he attains these three degrees, nearness to God
is not possible. (‘Abdu’l-Baha, excerpt from a talk, May 26, 1912, New York; ‘The
Promulgation of the Universal Peace’) (To read the entire talk please visit ‘Talks of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)
