BAHA'i YEAR 120 APRIL 1963 Most Great Festival . . . King Of
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' NEWS PUBL ISHED BY THE NATIONAL SPIRITUAL ASSEMBLY OF THE BAHA'IS OF THE UNITED STATES FOR CIRCULATION AMONG BAHA'IS ONLY No. 385 BAHA'I YEAR 120 APRIL 1963 • 1863 Most G reat F estival . K ing of F es tiv als . F estiv al of God . R ejoice, with exceeding gladness, 0 people of B ahri! as ye call to remembrance the Day of supreme felicity, the Day where on the T ongue of the Ancient of Days hath spoken ... Arise, and proclaim unto the entire creation the tidings that He Who is the All-Merciful hath directed H is steps towards the R icJ,vr:in and en tered it. 1 -BAHA'U' LLAH 1963 Should be worthily commemorated through the worldwide celebrations of the " Most Great Festiv al," the "King of F estiv als" - the F estival associated w i th the accessi on of Him Who is the Lord of the Kingdom to the throne of everlast ing glory . 2 The Most Great Jubilee, which will ali ke commemorate the Centenary of the formal assumption by the Author of the Baha'i Rev elation of H i s Prophetic Office, and mark . the worldwide establishment of the Fai th ... thu s pav ing the way for the adv ent of the Golden Age destined to witness .. the ultimate triumph of the Cause of B ahci'u'llcih. 3 -SHOGHI EFFENDI (1) GPB, pp.153,154; (2) MA, pp.100,101 ; (3) MBW, p .1 8. (At left: Wilmette T emple floodlighted at night.) 2 APRIL 1963 First European House of Worship Moves Toward Completion Except for a brief period in January, work on the Frankfurt Temple has continued in spite of the unusually severe winter which has been felt all over Europe. In order to protect the labor force and the construction work it was necessary to in stall a canvas shelter around the ambulatory, which hides the many glassed entrances already finished. Pictures, clockwise from upper left: The snowy foreground shows the need for protecting the am bulatory section. Interior view of the glassed lantern. Work goes forward on the roof of the ambulatory. One of the completed entrances partially hidden by shelter. BAHA'I NEWS 3 The Cause of Life to the World By ERIC BOWES Let your ambition be the achievement on earth of a Heavenly civilization! I ask for you the supreme blessing, that you may be so filled with the vitality of the Heavenly Spirit that you may be the cause of life to the world. -'A1mu'L-BAHA N PREPARING this material I have presupposed each other with love for the whole human race, invoke I one thing only - that is: When each of us became God with perfect joy and fragrance . .. The owner of a Baha'i, each knew exactly what he or she was doing. the house must personally serve the beloved ones." I'm assuming each one of us was perfectly satisfied If we meet in the true spirit of reverence, humility that Baha'u'llah was the Spirit of God manifested and, and adoration for God, then, He says, "that supper is that being so, each one of us is prepared to accept His the 'Lord's Supper. ' '' dictates without question and to render unto Him our In another place 'Abdu'l-Baha said: "Whenever such love and allegiance. I'm assuming that because He an entertainment is arranged through spiritual senti made the appointment, 'Abdu'l-Baha becomes to us ments, shining faces and merciful hearts, it is a the perfect example of how we should think and act 'Lord's Supper.' For the brilliancy of the Kingdom throughout our lives, and, because of what we believe of Abha will shine and the spirituality of 'Abdu'l-Baha 'Abdu'l-Baha to be, we accept unquestioningly His become manifest. This is that 'divine table' (or food) appointment of Shoghi Effendi as the Guardian of of which mention is made in the prophecies: 'On the Cause of God. that day they shall gather at the divine table,' and If this assumption is correct, we will believe in, and 'people shall come from the East and West and ar- fulfill to the utmost of our human ability, all the teach rive in His Kingdom.' " . ings and all the directions which come to us from In his book: Religion for Mankind, Horace Holley those three sources. And to handle this subject logical has written: " The B aha'i month is signalized through ly, it has to be divided into two sections, separate yet out the year by the special observance of its first interdependent- the individual, and the community. day. At that time the believers in their local commu I shall treat community from the two obvious points nities gather together for their Nineteen-Day Feast. of view: the Baha'i community and the civil com They receive in humility the supreme Feast, the holy munity in which we live as citizens and as Baha'is. and creative Word, the Message revealed by the Mani festation for His cycle and age. They consult and dis Nineteen-Day Feast - the "Lord 's Supper" cuss on matters pertaining to the Baha'i community Let us now direct our thoughts to the individual in and service to their Faith. They break bread to the Baha'i community. The first and most important gether, Baha'is of different races and peoples, all thing in a Baha'i's life is the Nineteen-D ay Feast. This those who have found the way of union and agreement was instituted by the Bab, it was ratified by Baha'u' in the Cause of Baha'u'llah. The fulfillment of all llah, it was commended by 'Abdu'l-B aha and en holy communion is here, as the fulfillment of the couraged as a privilege not to be taken lightly, by Word in the coming of the Glory of God." the Guardian. We should regard it as a privilege and Sacredness of Occasion a sacred duty, which should take precedence over every other engagement we have - visitors, busi With those noble sentiments concerning the Feast ness appointments, social engagements and any other in our minds, it is hard to understand how some men meeting whatsoever - excepting those very rare oc can attend such a sacred meeting in an open-neck casions ~at1&rs are be:y_ond our control. sport shirt and slacks. How some people, both men The Baspec1fied thenrst day ofthe Baha'i month and women, can attend in sandals and bare feet! to be observed as the Nineteen-D ay Feast. Speaking One wouldn't enter the dining room of a decent hotel of the F east, 'Abdu'l-Baha said: " This Feast was without a collar and tie and coat on; neither would established by His Holiness, the Bab, to occur once one sit at a friend's table for a meal without a coat in nineteen days. Likewise, the Blessed Perfection on, unless being first invited to remove it. Yet I've hath commanded, encouraged and reiterated it. There seen some believers attend a Feast in the most in fore, it hath the utmost importance. Undoubtedly you formal attire. This should not be taken as a reflection must give the greatest attention to its establishment on any mode of indigenous dress, neither does it and raise it to the highest point of importance, so relate to the person who wears the best he or she that it may become continual and con stant." can a fford. At the Feast, He said, we should conduct ourselves We are told th at in America, in the days of 'Abdu'l with the greatest dignity and "encourage and inspire Baha, one d id not attend a Feast without first bathing 4 APRIL 1963 and then putting on one's best clothes. Those early obligatory prayers, is a spiritual and vital obligation believers appreciated the solemnity of the occasion. enjoined by Bah a 'u'llah upon every believer fifteen And the spirit in which we attend a Feast is most years of age and over. Baha'u'llah writes: " We have important. It is not an occasion when, on arrival, commanded you to pray and fast from the beginning we catch up on the latest bit of gossip, nor should of maturity; this is ordained by God, your Lord and we recite our recent illnesses, nor discuss the virtues the Lord of your forefathers." of our youngsters. But we should approach the Feast It is essentially a period of prayer, meditation and in an attitude of prayer. In one's own home, or in spiritual recuperation and should not be neglected the home of a friend, the observance of the Nineteen on the ground that one gets too hungry! We should Day Feast is as reverent as holy communion conduct learn to make the necessary adjustments in our mode ed in the greatest of cathedrals. of living so that we have time for spiritual intake to offset the normal food intake. Community Life - Key to Spiritual Evo lution Coming to a Baha'i's everyday life, how are we di rected to live it? Let me ask another question: How Possibly the next most important thing in one's do we earn our everyday living? By making our Baha'i life, in the Baha'i community, is one's relation selves familiar with the job, whether it be in the home, ship to the local and national assemblies. To appreci industry or commerce. So it is in living the Baha'i ate the Baha'i way of life, or the Baha'i Administrative life ; we cannot expect to know how, unless we know Order, one must regard it as the forerunner of a new why 1 That is one reason why it is essential that we way of life and a new world order, ordained and should each set aside every day time for reading established by divine decree, and entrusted to man the Baha'i Writings and for prayer and meditation.