sense of the word. On the contrary, Baha'u'llah says God has created all
the good things in the world for us to enjoy and partake of. But we must
not become attached to them and put them before the spiritual things.
Chastity in the strict sense means not to have sexual intercourse, or
sexual intimacies, before marriage. In the general sense it means not to
be licentious. This does not mean we Baha'is believe sexual relations to
be impure or wrong. On the contrary they are natural and should be
considered one of God's many blessings. He does not know anything about
whether albumen and delicious food affect sex; this is a medical question.
Sex is a very individual matter, some people are more passionate by nature
than others, and might consequently suffer more if forced to be continent.
But when the world becomes more spiritual there will not be such an
exaggerated emphasis on sex, as there is today, and consequently it will
be easier for young people to be chaste and control their passions. A man
of noble character and strong willpower, could certainly remain faithful
to his wife during a long absence!

Any good orientalist could probably refer you to commentaries on the
Qur'an and on the Buddhist Scriptures. 'Abdu'l-Baha has stated that all
references of Muhammad to fighting refer to defensive war, not to
aggression.

LETTER OF 25 NOVEMBER 1947

25 November 1947

He is very happy to see that you are all studying the Baha'i Teachings,
and preparing yourselves to be worthy servants of Baha'u'llah, and of
humanity, when you grow older.

You may be sure he will pray for you all in the Holy Shrines, and that you
may attract other children and young people to the Baha'i Cause. No one is
ever too young to teach this Message to others.

LETTER OF 27 NOVEMBER 1947

27 November 1947

He was very happy to hear of the progress being made spiritually there(26)
, and that now there are 9 Baha'is in all. He hopes this will enable you
to form a Spiritual Assembly. You may be sure he will pray that this may
come about.

[From the Guardian:]

Assuring you of my loving prayers for your success in the service of our
beloved Faith and its God-given institutions,

Your true brother,
Shoghi

LETTER OF 8 DECEMBER 1947

8 December 1947

Baha'i Gemeinde Esslingen

Dear Baha'i Friends:

Your loving greeting to our beloved Guardian, dated Nov. 12th, 1947, was
received and he has instructed me