1951: Representatives of the Baha'i International Community at the Regional Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations of United Nations held in Managua, Nicaragua

 Left to right: Artemus Lam (Costa Rica), Raquel Francois de Constante (Panama), and Julio C Hernandez (Nicaragua) 

(The Baha'i World 1950-1954)

‘Abdu’l-Baha’s response to a believer’s concern regarding ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s imprisonment

O thou, my honorable friend! Verily I scented the fragrance of meekness and humbleness from the orchard of the meanings of thy letter and was caused to rejoice, smile and be made glad that God hath made thee humble and submissive to His beloved. Verily this is the greatest bounty from God and by it the breast of Abdul-Baha is dilated in this remote prison.

O friend! Verily the prison is my paradise and the chains my necklace; my balance (or testing) is my redemption (or salvation) and the castle is my fortified safety, for this imprisonment is in the path of my Lord and it is my salvation, my joy, my gratitude and happiness. Verily, in calamity the face of Abdul-Baha shineth and through hardship joy is attained by this servant in all conditions.

O thou friend! Be not sorrowful because of my imprisonment and lament not for my difficulties; nay, rather ask God to increase my hardship in His path, for therein lies a wisdom which none are able to comprehend save the near angels.

O thou friend! Verily, those among the friends who were martyred in the path of God—verily this is a favor from God which He bestoweth upon whomsoever He chooses; verily God is the most bountiful!—they attained what the holy ones in the Supreme Kingdom yearned for, and quaffed the wine of grace from the bountiful hand of thy Lord the Merciful—may my spirit be a sacrifice to them!

Therefore, be not sorrowful, for in it is a great bounty for them and by it (martyrdom) the fire of the love of God is increased in glowing, the Word of God in spreading, the standard of God in elevation, the fragrances of God in diffusion, and by this blood the tree of peace is watered, the orchard of unity and harmony pruned, and by it the fragrances of holiness emanate from the Tree of Life and are being diffused in the world. Verily this is from the mercy of God, which is bestowed upon whomsover He wishes.

O friend! I implore to God to make thee a banner of the banners of the Kingdom, firm and steadfast, unshaken by the most severe winds of tests and trials in this terrestrial world; to confirm thee in the servitude of the Sublime Threshold; to guide through thee many souls and to make thee a sign of meekness and humbleness before the beloved of God, the Mighty, the Protecting! 

- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Tablets of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, vol. 2)

The Báb’s reference to the “Order of Bahá’u’lláh”

It should be noted, in this connection, that in the third Váhid of this Book [the Bayán] there occurs a passage which, alike in its explicit reference to the name of the Promised One, and in its anticipation of the Order which, in a later age, was to be identified with His Revelation, deserves to rank as one of the most significant statements recorded in any of the Báb’s writings. “Well is it with him,” is His prophetic announcement, “who fixeth his gaze upon the Order of Bahá’u’lláh, and rendereth thanks unto his Lord. For He will assuredly be made manifest. God hath indeed irrevocably ordained it in the Bayán.” It is with that self-same Order that the Founder of the promised Revelation, twenty years later—incorporating that same term in His Kitáb-i-Aqdas—identified the System envisaged in that Book, affirming that “this most great Order” had deranged the world’s equilibrium, and revolutionized mankind’s ordered life. It is the features of that self-same Order which, at a later stage in the evolution of the Faith, the Center of Bahá’u’lláh’s Covenant and the appointed Interpreter of His teachings, delineated through the provisions of His Will and Testament. It is the structural basis of that self-same Order which, in the Formative Age of that same Faith, the stewards of that same Covenant, the elected representatives of the world-wide Bahá’í community, are now laboriously and unitedly establishing. It is the superstructure of that self-same Order, attaining its full stature through the emergence of the Bahá’í World Commonwealth—the Kingdom of God on earth—which the Golden Age of that same Dispensation must, in the fullness of time, ultimately witness. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘God Passes By’)

1972: “Among the more salient objectives to be attained by the local Spiritual Assembly in its process of development to full maturity”

Among the more salient objectives to be attained by the local Spiritual Assembly in its process of development to full maturity are

• to act as a loving shepherd to the Bahá'í flock,
• promote unity and concord among the friends,
• direct the teaching work,
• protect the Cause of God,
• arrange for Feasts, Anniversaries and regular meetings of the community,
• familiarize the Bahá'ís with its plans,
• invite the community to offer its recommendations,
• promote the welfare of youth and children, and
• participate, as circumstances permit, in humanitarian activities.

In its relationship to the individual believer, the Assembly should continuously invite and encourage him

• to study the Faith,
• to deliver its glorious message,
• to live in accordance with its teachings,
• to contribute freely and regularly to the Fund,
• to participate in community activities, and
• to seek refuge in the Assembly for advice and help, when needed.

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated July 30, 1972 to the National Spiritual Assembly of Bolivia, July 30, 1972; compilation: 'Lights of Guidance')