Bahá'u'lláh and the New EraEsslemont, J. E. (John Ebenezer)
Religion
Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era
Esslemont, J. E. (John Ebenezer)
Bahai Faith; Bahá'u'lláh, 1817-1892
The four corrupt officials who constituted the last investigating
commission arrived in Akká in the early part of the winter of 1907, stayed
one month, and departed for Constantinople, after finishing their
so-called “investigation,” prepared to report that the charges against
‘Abdu’l-Bahá had been substantiated and to recommend His exile or
execution. No sooner had they got back to Turkey, however, than the
Revolution broke out there and the four commissioners, who belonged to the
old regime, had to flee for their lives. The Young Turks established their
supremacy, and all political and religious prisoners in the Ottoman Empire
were set free. In September 1980 ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was released was prison, and
in the following year ‘Abdu’l-Ḥamíd, the Sulṭán, became himself a
prisoner.
Western Tours
After His release, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá continued the same holy life of ceaseless
activity in teaching, correspondence, ministering to the poor and the
sick, with merely the change from Akká to Haifa and from Haifa to
Alexandria, until August 1911, when He started on His first visit to the
Western world. During His tours in the West, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá met men of every
shade of opinion and amply fulfilled the command of Bahá’u’lláh to
“Consort with all the people with joy and fragrance.” He reached London
early in September 1911, and spent a month there, during which, besides
daily talks with inquirers and many other activities, He addressed the
congregations of the Rev. R. J. Campbell at the City Temple, and of
Archdeacon Wilberforce at St. John’s, Westminster, and breakfasted with
the Lord Mayor. He then proceeded to Paris, where His time was occupied in
giving daily addresses and talks to eager listeners of many nationalities
and types. In December He returned to Egypt, and next spring, in response
to the earnest entreaty of the American friends, He proceeded to the
United States, arriving in New York in April 1912. During the next nine
months He traveled through America, from coast to coast, addressing all
sorts and conditions of men—university students, Socialists, Mormons,
Jews, Christians, Agnostics, Esperantists, Peace Societies, New Thought
Clubs, Women’s Suffrage Societies, and speaking in churches of almost
every denomination, in each case giving addresses suited to the audience
and the occasion. On December 5 He sailed for Great Britain, where He
passed six weeks, visiting Liverpool, London, Bristol and Edinburgh. In
Edinburgh He gave a notable address to the Esperanto Society, in which He
announced that He had encouraged the Bahá’ís of the East to study
Esperanto in order to further better understanding between the East and
the West. After two months in Paris, spent as before in daily interviews
and conference, He proceeded to Stuttgart, where He held a series of very
successful meetings with the German Bahá’ís; thence to Budapest and
Vienna, founding new groups in these places, returning, in May 1913, to
Egypt, and on December 5, 1913, to Haifa.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account