Ridvan 2006 Commentary

Ridvan Message, 2006; Summary and Commentary

By John Taylor; 2006 May 17

The LSA has tasked me with summarizing and commenting upon the UHJ's annual Ridvan Message for our Haldimand feast tonight, so I will lay out my notes here. Last year's Ridvan Message was the shortest in my memory, but this time around it is of more medium length. This year's Message marks the end of the old plan and inaugurates a new five year plan.

"The entire Baha'i world is stirred at contemplating the scope of the five-year enterprise that lies ahead, the depth of consecration it will demand, and the results it is destined to achieve."

Note the language, reminiscent of another five year mission of another Enterprise. Now that I think of it, Star Trek was cancelled after only three seasons, it never made it through to the end of its five year mission. God's plan, on the other hand, always does. The next five year plan will end in 2011, just before the centenary of the beginning of the Master's travels in Europe and North America. The coming plan is heavily cluster and Ruhi oriented, aimed at setting in motion mass entry in these areas. The house says,

"We now call upon each and every one of you to bend your energies towards ensuring that the goal of establishing over the next five years intensive programmes of growth in no less than 1,500 clusters worldwide is successfully met."

The House points out that the fine points of the coming plan were set forth in detail in another communication late last year; their object in this Ridvan message is only to set them into context. They begin by invoking the World Order letters of the Guardian, written in the early 1930's, which describe two processes, one destructive and the other constructive, set in motion by the spiritual impulse of Baha'u'llah's revelation. The Guardian warns against being misled by increasing prosperity into thinking that the crisis is over. The forces of disintegration are turning the foundations of order and morality into sand, and we will be washed away if we do not build upon rock. The Guardian mentioned terrorism, materialism, power mongering and the decline of the family as signs of a grave malady.

"The perversion of human nature, the degradation of human conduct, the corruption and dissolution of human institutions," about which Shoghi Effendi forewarned, are sadly revealing themselves "in their worst and most revolting aspects."

Coincidentally, last night CBC Radio's show "Ideas" broadcast an assessment of Jane Jacob's last book, "Dark Age Ahead," which predicts the imminent fall of the West into forgetfulness and dissolution if major changes do not take place fast. As one Nobel Prize winning economist pointed out on the program, Jacobs is a bone fide genius and her five factors of decline are danger signs not to be ignored. These, almost point by point, were named by Shoghi Effendi way back in the 1930's.

True, certain details differ; for example, Jacobs points to the danger of the learned professions losing their ability to police themselves. The Guardian deplored the corruption of these professionals in letters to individuals but did not apparently see it as a big issue. But that is a minor variation. Jacobs even names the decline of religion and the urgent need of the oppressed, overworked average person for reassurance. She sees consolation and words of comfort as a major task for high ruling functionaries. Think the loving, generally phrased talks of the Master in the West. As the House points out, the Baha'i Faith holds religion even more central:

"The Guardian lays the greatest share of the blame for humanity's moral downfall on the decline of religion as a social force. "Should the lamp of religion be obscured," he draws our attention to the words of Baha'u'llah, "chaos and confusion will ensue, and the lights of fairness, of justice, of tranquillity and peace cease to shine." The decades that followed the writing of his letters have seen not only a continued deterioration in the ability of religion to exercise moral influence, but also the betrayal of the masses through the unseemly conduct of religious institutions. Attempts at reinvigorating it have only given rise to a fanaticism that, if left unchecked, could destroy the foundation of civilized relationships among people."

They point to the renewal of Baha'i bashing in Iran as a sign of overshadowing by the "forces of darkness." As in the late 1930's the "lights are going out all over the world," an ominous pall of dire events about to happen overshadows our every joy and carefree moment. The House goes over the list of problems that affront us, and I notice only one new addition to the list not gone over before, one that will delight the ears of Baha'i environmentalists and regional planners to hear: "the indiscriminate exploitation of natural resources..." Though sincere efforts are being made to solve these problems, not even world unification will be enough. They again invoke Shoghi Effendi's translation of a famous Writing pointing out that Baha'u'llah is the Ultimate Physician and His Cure is the only way to make it through a parlous era.

The House also point to an optimistic side of all this. We have reason to hope. The forces of integration unleashed by this Revelation are manifesting themselves in a new "spirit of world solidarity" that is rising from the confusion, the personification of Baha'u'llah's principle of the oneness of humanity.

"... today its effect is apparent in a range of developments, from the rejection of deeply ingrained racial prejudices to the dawning consciousness of world citizenship, from heightened environmental awareness to collaborative efforts in the promotion of public health, from the concern for human rights to the systematic pursuit of universal education, from the establishment of interfaith activities to the efflorescence of hundreds of thousands of local, national and international organizations engaged in some form of social action."

The growth and increased vitality of the Baha'i Faith itself is an even more significant sign of hope, at least for us believers. We are very widespread and are being listened to in world level fora. The administrative order has an unique structure; on one side the wing of the Learned, who constitute an effective neural network around the globe, a thousand Board Members under eighty-one Counselors, all guided by the ITC at the World Centre. They then mention the Huqquq, not as a dumb, inert funding mass but as a vital institution in itself. This was a bit of a surprise for me.

"The Institution of Huququ'llah has steadily progressed under the stewardship of the Hand of the Cause of God Dr. `Ali-Muhammad Varga, appointed Trustee by Shoghi Effendi fifty years ago, culminating in the establishment in 2005 of an international board designed to promote the continued widespread application of this mighty law, a source of inestimable blessings for all humanity."

They pay homage to the activities of the BIC at the UN, and then, like those PBS quasi-advertisements at the end of the show, pay tribute to the contributions of the little guy, "the contributions of viewers like yourself,"

"The loyalty and devotion that the members of a community reflecting the diversity of the entire human race evince towards the Covenant of Baha'u'llah constitute a storehouse of strength the like of which no other organized group can claim."

The covenant, like the Huqquq, is an invisible institution, a unique resource for the future of the human race. Then they mention the NSA's and their maturation under the many plans of past years. They have taught us how to teach the Faith, to consult and devise children's programs, for Baha'is and the "wider community." Our literature is expanding, we are starting development projects, and of course, Ruhi, which has become more central to the attentions of the House with every passing year. In their own words:

"Particularly since the opening of the fifth epoch in 2001, it has made significant strides in multiplying its human resources through a programme of training that reaches the grassroots of the community and has discovered methods and instruments for establishing a sustainable pattern of growth."

Very directly, the House tells us that promoting entry by troops in this way should be our "dominant concern." As this happens the World Centre address itself to "fields such as external affairs, social and economic development, administration, and the application of Baha'i law." The number of pilgrims there will be doubled in 2007. Gardens around holy sites will be expanded, building restoration will go apace, and the last continental Mashriq in Chile will be built. This will require funding appeals, above and beyond the needs of the plan.

As always, the House turns its best eloquence up to "high" at the very end of its message, merging its words closely with the stirring words of the Guardian when he initiated the first of these plans, the Seven Year Plan. Here is their closing paragraph.

"Dear friends: That the forces of disintegration are gaining in range and power cannot be ignored. It is equally clear that the community of the Greatest Name has been guided from strength to strength by the Hand of Providence and must now increase in size and augment its resources. The course set by the Five Year Plan is straightforward. How can those of us aware of the plight of humanity, and conscious of the direction in which history is unfolding, not arise to the fullest of our capacity and dedicate ourselves to its aim? Do not the words of the Guardian that "the stage is set" hold as true for us today as they did when he wrote them during the first Seven Year Plan? Let his words ring in your ears: "There is no time to lose." "There is no room left for vacillation." "Such an opportunity is irreplaceable." "To try, to persevere, is to insure ultimate and complete victory." Be assured of our continued prayers at the Sacred Threshold for your guidance and protection."

As you see, the House briefly cites several snippets from the Guardian's words at the fateful beginning of the plans. Since they ask us to "let his words ring in your ears," let me end this by reading one of these passages at greater length, the closing paragraph of a letter of January 28, 1939, entitled by Horace Holley, "The Rarest Privilege ever conferred upon the American Baha'i Community." This was the most fervent call for pioneers since the Master's "Tablets of the Divine Plan" that came out during the Great War, in 1916. The Guardian wrote:

"Dearly-beloved friends! What better field than the vast virgin territories, so near at hand, and waiting to receive, at this very hour, their full share of the onrushing tide of Baha'u'llah's redeeming grace? What theatre more befitting than these long-neglected nine remaining states and provinces in which the true heroism of the intrepid pioneers of His World Order can be displayed? There is no time to lose. There is no room left for vacillation. Multitudes hunger for the Bread of Life. The stage is set. The firm and irrevocable Promise is given. God's own Plan has been set in motion. It is gathering momentum with every passing day. The powers of heaven and earth mysteriously assist in its execution. Such an opportunity is irreplaceable. Let the doubter arise and himself verify the truth of such assertions. To try, to persevere, is to insure ultimate and complete victory." (Shoghi Effendi, Messages to America, pp. 16-17)

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John Taylor

badijet@gmail.com