2005: Centenary Anniversary of the Baha’i Faith in Germany

10 September 2005

To the friends gathered on the occasion of the Centenary of the Faith in Germany

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

It is with jubilant hearts and feelings of deep gratitude that we greet all of you who have gathered to celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh in Germany. No other community in the Western world can claim to have demonstrated a greater resilience in the face of formidable obstacles that threatened to rob you of the shining triumph, the potent prospects, signalized by your very meeting on so auspicious an occasion.

The spark lit in Stuttgart with the arrival in 1905 of Dr. Edwin Fischer, which was fanned into a flame with the momentous visit of the beloved Master to that city eight years later, has burgeoned into a conflagration that bids fair to enkindle the hearts of troop after troop of your spiritually hungry, fellow citizens. Especially is this evident in the dynamic efforts currently afoot to intensify the expansion and consolidation process at the crux of the Five Year Plan.

This is a moment for reflection, profound reflection—one that recounts the highlights in contrast to the dark aspects punctuating the history of crisis and victory that depicts the evolution of the German community. It should enable you to appreciate more fully than before the outstanding results of the early believers’ trust in Bahá’u’lláh and His unfailing guidance, which emboldened them to persevere despite the persecution they suffered and the prohibitions inflicted on their efforts. Their exemplary conduct assured the community of the capacity to rise like a phoenix from the devastation of the Second World War and thenceforward to become vibrant collaborators with their sister communities in prosecuting the great tasks set by the Divine Plan. How brilliantly do the signs of their success shine! Suffice it to mention a few: the erection on German soil of the first European House of Worship; the legal recognition accorded by the highest court in the land to the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh, underscoring the equality of its status to that enjoyed by other major religions; the wealth of Bahá’í literature translated and published in German; and the dispatch of pioneers to goal countries. Among these distinctions was the emergence of distinguished believers, including two Hands of the Cause of God whose tireless endeavours galvanized the will of the community to accomplish such wonderful feats.

2001: The “centenary of the arrival of the Baha’i Faith in the Pacific region”

16 December 2001 

To the Friends assembled at the “Fire in the Pacific" Conference in Honolulu

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

With joyous hearts we send our loving greetings to all the dear friends gathered in Honolulu to commemorate the centenary of the arrival of the Baha’i Faith in the Pacific region.

You assemble at a time when the turmoil and confusion in the world created through the operation of the Major Plan of God is giving rise to apprehension and unease among the mass of humanity. Now, as never before, should the followers of Bahá'u'lláh demonstrate, through both word and deed, their confidence in the future and their awareness that enduring harmony and tranquillity can be found only by aligning oneself with the constructive forces of change at work throughout the planet today.

In the course of your centenary celebration, you are urged to give full consideration to the needs of the Cause of God in the Pacific region at this critical point in the Five Year Plan. The opportunities for the advancement of the Faith through energetic and creative pursuit of the teaching work in all parts of the Pacific are immense. The prospect before you is that of bringing into being vibrant Baha’i communities which demonstrate the transforming power of the Faith and offer a haven to those in search of unity.