Feast of Bahá 174 B.E.

posted Mar 20, 2017, 2:19 AM by Charles Thilking

March 19, 2017

To the American Bahá’í community for the Feast of Bahá

Dearly loved Friends,

As we celebrate the festive occasion of Naw-Rúz, we extend to each and every one of you our warmest and most affectionate greetings and assurances of our prayers that in the weeks and months ahead you may receive such heavenly sustenance and blessings as only our Loving Lord can bestow.

News from many corners of the country continues to reach us of your positive response to our letter of February 25 on the theme of “America and the Five Year Plan,” examining the pressing issues facing the American nation and the manner in which we Bahá’ís must address them. Through our correspondence with the Universal House of Justice, we have received guidance confirming the themes of that letter, and the Supreme Body has called on us to pursue a number of associated tasks, the majority of which are applicable not only to the Assembly, but to the entire body of

believers in this richly blessed community.

In our interactions with others, the Supreme Body challenges us to:

[E]xplore and develop the nature of a conversation with the wider society
which, when added to the range of conversations already cultivated by the
institute process, can assist fellow citizens to transcend the languages and
practices in society that have resulted in an intractable divide, unite on the basis
of commonly held ideals and principles, and work together for a social order
free of prejudice and characterized by unity in diversity.

The second task is closely connected with our primary mission to teach the Faith―

namely, to:

[A]ppreciate how the pattern of action fostered by the Plan, involving community building, social action, and involvement in the discourses of society, is not only ensuring the upliftment of diverse populations who will be protagonists for the advancement of civilization, but is also creating the consciousness necessary for individuals to apply the remedy of Bahá’u’lláh through word and deed to society’s ills, not least that of race unity.

Finally, the House of Justice sets the expectation that “[e]ach fresh initiative undertaken along these lines must be closely followed in the years ahead, learning from experience so that they deepen and multiply, not only bearing immediate fruits, but charting the path over decades to the attainment of the expectations of the Master and the beloved Guardian for your land.”

We all will surely find in these words from the Supreme Institution of our Faith the reassurance and the resolve necessary to make great strides in the coming year. Let us appreciate the value of every day, each of us determined to contribute in every way we can to the forward march of the sacred Cause of God.

The beloved Master, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, addressing the friends―in one of the Tablets of the Divine Plan―on the occasion of another Naw-Rúz, reminded us of the joy and privilege that is uniquely reserved for those whose days are devoted to spreading the glad tidings of God’s Kingdom:

In reality every day which man passes in the mention of God, the diffusion of the fragrances of God and calling the people to the Kingdom of God, that day is his feast. Praise be to God that you are occupied in the service of the Kingdom of God and are engaged in the promulgation of the religion of God by day and by night. Therefore all your days are feast days. There is no doubt that the assistance and the bestowal of God shall descend upon you. . . .

A person declaring the glad tidings of the appearance of the realities and significances of the Kingdom is like unto a farmer who scatters pure seeds in the rich soil. The spring cloud will pour upon them the rain of bounty, and unquestionably the station of the farmer will be raised in the estimation of the lord of the village, and many harvests will be gathered.

Therefore, ye friends of God! Appreciate ye the value of this time and be ye engaged in the sowing of the seeds, so that you may find the heavenly blessing and the lordly bestowal. Upon you be Bahá’u’l-Abhá!

Be ever assured of our abiding love and our deepest gratitude.

With loving Bahá’í greetings, NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF

THE BAHÁ’ÍS OF THE UNITED STATES

Kenneth E. Bowers

Secretary

20170319 NSA Message for Feast of Baha 17.pdf

(167k)

Charles Thilking,

Mar 20, 2017, 2:19 AM

v.1

Comments