Hello friends

For some time I have been busy with translating "Jewels from the words by Abdu'l-Bahá. "I hope you welcome some of them. They truly impart hope and life.

 "Rest thou assured that in this era of the spirit, the Kingdom of Peace will raise up its tabernacles on the summits of the world, and the commandments of the Prince of Peace will so dominate the arteries and nerves of every people as to draw into its sheltering shade all the nations on earth. From springs of love and truth will the true Shepherd give His sheep to drink."

How,  you may wonder , is this possible in this turbulent present age. in this dispirited era ?Is Abdu'l-Bahá at all aware of the state of mankind and of the state of the climate on earth.

Yes He is.

"The ice of Greenland will melt", both the inner  ice of the heart and  the outer ice.

"Chaos and confusion are daily increasing in the world. They will attain such intensity as to render the frame of mankind unable to bear them. Then men will be awakened and become aware that religion is the impregnable stronghold and the manifest light of the world, and its laws, exhortations and teachings the source of life on  earth." 

"Today humanity is bowed down with trouble, sorrow and grief; no one escapes. The world is wet with tears; but, thank God, the remedy is at our doors. Let us turn our hearts away from the world of matter and live in the spiritual world! It alone can give us freedom! If we are hemmed in by difficulties, we have only to call upon God, and by His great Mercy we shall be helped."

The  Universal Cause of God as revealed by Bahaullah will grow  just as it has always done.

Other materialistic visions will  continue to dwindle into oblivion. Whatever crises  and calamities turn up will make people understand "Earth is but one country and mankind its citizens". Because this is the time of the end of the old world order.

 "Consider the days of Christ, when none but a small band  followed Him; then observe what a mighty tree that seed became, behold ye its fruitage. And now shall come to pass even greater things than these, for this is the summons of the Lord of Hosts, this is the trumpet-call  of the living Lord, this is the anthem of world  peace, this is the standard of rigteousness and trust and understanding raised up among all the variegated peoples of the globe; this is the splendour of the Sun of Truth, this is the holiness of the spirit of God Himself. "

The standard is:

"O ye friends of God! Show ye an endeavour that all the nations  and communities of the world ,even the enemies, put their trust, assurance and hope in you; that if a person falls into errors for a hundred-thousand  times he may yet turn his face unto you, hopeful that you will forgive his sins; for he must not become hopeless, neither grieved nor despondent." 

What faith hasn't been put on trial.? If one's faith is not tried, how does God,  or you ,know you have faith?       There exists  a state of the soul which includes even an intense longing for  tests . When the soul is truly fashinated by the works of God and sees no faults in His creation, -the ordeals are for him as blessings, full of meaning and inner significances. (See "The seven Valleys "of Bahaullah)What school master gives tests to pupils who  he knows haven't done their lessons.? They are the lukewarm ones. (Jesus)

"When calamity striketh, be ye patient and composed. However afflictive your sufferings may be, stay ye undisturbed, and with perfect confidence in the abounding grace of God, brave ye the tempest of tribulations and fiery ordeals."

Do you want to spread the divine hope, do you want to become the life of the world? 

"Wherefore must the loved ones of God, laboriously, with the waters of their striving, tend and nourish and foster this tree of hope. In whatsoever land they dwell, let them with a whole heart befriend and be companions to those who are either close to them, or far removed. Let them, with qualities like unto those of heaven, promote the institutions and the religion of God. Let them never lose heart, never be despondent, never feel afflicted. The more antagonism they meet, the more let them show their own good faith; the more torments and calamities  they have to face, the more generously let them pass round the bounteous cup. Such is the spirit which will become the life of the world, such is the spreading light at its heart..." 

"Do not allow your minds to dwell on the present, but with eyes of faith look into the future, for in truth the Spirit of God is working in your midst."

"Do not take into consideration your own aptitudes and capacities, but fix your gaze on the consummate bounty, the divine bestowal and the power of the Holy Spirit - the power that converteth the drop into a sea and the star into a sun."

"Pray that your hearts may be cut from yourselves and from the world, that you may be confirmed by the Holy Spirit and filled with the fire of the love of God..nothing shall be impossible to you if you have faith...."

"O MY LORD AND MY HOPE! Help Thou Thy loved ones to be steadfast in Thy mighty Covenant, to remain faithful to Thy manifest Cause, and to carry out the commandments Thou didst set down for them in Thy Book of Splendours; that they may become banners of  guidance and lamps of the Company above, wellsprings of Thine infinite wisdom, and stars that lead aright, as they shine down from the supernal sky.

Verily art Thou the Invincible, the Almighty, the All-Powerful"

"Mortal charm shall fade away, roses shall give way to thorns, and beauty and youth shall live their day and be no more. But that which eternally endureth is the beauty of the True One, for its splendour perisheth not and its glory lasteth for ever; its charm is all-powerful and its attraction infinite. Well is it then with that countenance that reflecteth the splendour of the Light of the Beloved One!"

Bye for now

From your friend in Faith

Laila