(201) Praise be to God that through the gracious assistance of the Abhá
Kingdom those devoted friends have been enabled to achieve that which
befits the glory of the Cause of God and the protection of the community
of the followers of Bahá’u’lláh. This is none other than to foster unity
and fellowship under all conditions, to strengthen the bonds of harmony
and concord in all things, and to avoid political matters. It is
particularly important to refrain from making unfavourable remarks or
statements concerning the friends and the loved ones of God, inasmuch as
any expression of grievance, of complaint or backbiting is incompatible
with the requirements of unity and harmony and would dampen the spirit of
love, fellowship and nobility. Therefore it is incumbent upon the members
of the exalted Spiritual Assembly to exercise the utmost care with firm
determination and not to allow the doors of complaint and grievance to be
opened, or permit any of the friends to indulge in censure and backbiting.
Whoever sets himself to do so, even though he be the very embodiment of
the Holy Spirit, should realize that such behaviour would create
disruption among the people of Bahá and would cause the standard of
sedition to be raised.
In these days when the peoples of the world are thirsting for the
teachings of the Abhá Beauty—teachings that provide the incomparable,
life-giving waters of immortality—when we Bahá’ís have pledged ourselves
to proffer these living waters to all mankind and are known to be prepared
to endure every suffering and tribulation, how pitiful it would be if,
despite all this, we were to neglect our binding obligations and
responsibilities and to occupy ourselves with disagreeable discussions
that provoke irritation and distress and to turn our attention to matters
that lead to ill-feeling, to despondency and unhappiness and reduce the
penetrating influence of the Word of God.
74: Your letter was received and its contents ...
(202) Your letter was received and its contents were perused. The scrolls
you had enclosed were clearly understood. They are of no consequence
whatsoever, nor are they worthy of any attention. The letter you have
written in reply, although brief, is adequate and conclusive. What you
have written, even as the tablet of your heart, is illumined with the
light of constancy and steadfastness, and indicates your firmness and
determination in upholding His Covenant. In truth this is the essential
thing.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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