He was very pleased to see with what determination and dedication you are serving the Cause in Alaska. Now that two pioneers have gone forth from there, your labour is all the more important, and he certainly hopes that, through the medium of the Arctic Trails Shopping Service, the public meetings being held weekly, and the devoted labours of all the dear friends there, the Faith will rapidly reach and enlighten many new souls. There is such a confusion in the world today, so much uncertainty, so much materialism, that it is very hard to hold the attention of even the more spiritually minded people. But we must persevere and do our best knowing this is our duty and that conditions will eventually change completely and follow Bahá’u’lláh’s Pattern. Please give his love to the Anchorage friends. You may be sure he will pray for you all, and for the success of your work, in the Holy Shrines. With warm Bahá’í love, R. Rabbani [From the Guardian:] Assuring you of my special and fervent prayers for your success, for the steady extension of your valued activities, for the consolidation of the historic work already achieved, and the realization of every hope you cherish for the promotion of our beloved Faith, Your true and grateful brother, Shoghi (59) November 14, 1947 (59) November 14, 1947 Dear Bahá’í Sister: Your letter to our beloved Guardian dated October 31st has been received, and, in spite of the fact that he is terribly busy, he has instructed me to answer you on his behalf because he would not like in any way to ever hurt the feelings of one of the friends. However, he suggests in the future you refer such questions to the N.S.A. and ask them to put you in touch with a Bahá’í teacher who can correspond with you. He himself cannot do this kind of work, because he is so overworked with the more urgent administrative affairs of the Faith. To answer you briefly what the original state of the universe was no one as yet knows. But we believe God is a spiritual Being and did create it; how we do not know. We will have experience of God’s spirit through His Prophets in the next world, but God is too great for us to know without this Intermediary. The Prophets know God, but how is more than our human minds can grasp. We believe we attain in the next world to seeing the Prophets. There is certainly a future life. Heaven and hell are conditions within our own beings. He urges you to study carefully the Bahá’í books, and he will pray for your advancement and the success of your Bahá’í activities. With loving greetings, R. Rabbani [From the Guardian:] May the Beloved bless your efforts, guide and sustain you in your meritorious activities, in such a distant field, and enable you to win great and memorable victories in the teaching field. Your true and grateful brother, Shoghi (60) March 18, 1952 (60) March 18, 1952 Dear Bahá’í Sister: