ctions of our
loving Master, and above all by its radiant spirit of enthusiasm and true
fellowship, prove itself one of the greatest landmarks in the history of
the Cause in America.

May the all-pervading Spirit of Baha'u'llah so permeate the souls of its
members as to cause it to mirror forth the glories and the splendors of
the Celestial Concourse.

Your devoted brother,
SHOGHI.

Haifa, Palestine.
April 8, 1923.

Letter of April 9th, 1923.

To the members of the American National Spiritual Assembly.

Dearest friends:

I have lately received your long-awaited reports on the present situation
of the Movement in that land, and have read them all, together with their
enclosures, with the utmost care and deepest interest.

I am much impressed and feel deeply gratified to learn of your devoted and
unremitting labors, individually and collectively in the field of service
to the Cause; of your constant vigilance and watchful care in upholding
its fundamental principles and guarding its essential interests; of the
efficiency, faithfulness and vigor with which you are conducting the
administration of its affairs throughout that land.

Many and grave may be the obstacles, whether from within or from without,
which we shall have to encounter in the days to come, but we feel sure
that if we but maintain consistently before our eyes a broad and noble
vision of its significance and vital necessity in these days, and above
all of its universality and all-conquering power, we shall be enabled to
surmount them, one and all, and by the Power of Faith, carry the Ark of
the Covenant to its Haven of Safety and Triumph.

It is, I firmly believe, of the utmost urgent importance that, with unity
of purpose and action firmly established in our midst, and with every
trace of the animosity and mistrust of the past banished from our hearts,
we should form one united front and combat, wisely and tactfully, every
force that might darken the spirit of the Movement, cause division in its
ranks, and narrow it by dogmatic and sectarian belief.

National Spiritual Assemblies

It is primarily upon the elected members of the National Spiritual
Assemblies throughout the Baha'i world that this highly important duty
devolves, as in their hands the direction and management of all spiritual
Baha'i activities have been placed and centralized, and as they constitute
in the eyes of the people of their country the supreme body in t