March 20, 2018

1927: Baha’i books were presented to the President of German Republic and other officials during a visit by Martha Root

A letter dated February 20, 1927, from Martha L. Root states that she has visited and given public lectures in sixteen cities in Germany. Shoghi Effendi had told her if she could visit all the Baha’i centres in Germany it would be very good… She was one of the speakers at a Peace Society meeting when five hundred people were present.

“The Promulgation of Universal Peace” was presented to President von Hindenburg of the German Republic. The following letter of thanks was received: 

“The President of the German Republic tenders his best thanks for the book The Promulgation of Universal Peace, which was presented to him. The President has had the book forwarded to the library of the Foreign Office.”

Other Baha’i books were presented to Dr. Gustav Stresemann, chief of the Foreign Office; Dr. Loebe, President of the Reichstag, and books were sent to Mr. Bronislaw Huberman, the great violinist. Mr. Huberman wrote that he would study them.

Miss Root further wrote that she felt there was no city in the world more important for Baha’i teachers to visit than Berlin. If some very scholarly Baha’i teacher could go and live for one year in Berlin as Mirza ’Abul’ Fazl came to the United States, it might mean that a thousand great teachers would eventually go out from Berlin. 
(Baha’i News, no. 19, August 1927)