Kingdom of His Cause, as the shaft or spindle of a
millstone, and all the other laws and ordinances must needs revolve around
this one. In the temple of God's religion the Centre of the Cause can be
likened to the heart, for upon it depends the life of the human body as
one entity, as well as the relationships of its organs and their essential
growth and vitality. In human society the Centre of the Cause can be
compared to the sun, whose magnetic force controls the movements and
orbits of the planets. The Centre of the Cause is also like the spine of a
book, for by it the pages are all banded together into one book, and
without the spine the papers would become loose and scattered.

Now each separate member of the community who is within the shelter of
that blessed unity is, according to his rank and station, the recipient of
grace; and that rank is respected and protected, in conformity with the
verse: 'Not one of us but hath his clearly designated station.'(151) Thus,
in the body of man, the eye has a preordained station, one not belonging
to some lesser members; and yet, should it once depart from the whole, and
its connection with the centre be broken, then its membership in the body,
and its very life, are ended, let alone its previous station and degree.
Or should the eye be plucked from its place, torn out of the body, it
would be deprived of life itself, how much less would it continue to enjoy
the station that rightly belongs to the eye.

How strange! With reference to one who smokes opium, the Ancient Beauty,
the Most Great Name, has said: 'He is not of Me', making no distinction
here between one enjoying God's special favour, and some other. If the
smoking of opium, which is one of the secondary and lesser prohibitions,
completely severs the smoker from membership in the community and from
relationship to the Person of the Manifestation, then what must be the
condition of him who refuses to acknowledge the Centre of the holy
Covenant? In the words of Christ, 'If thine eye cause thee to stumble,
pluck it out ... if thy hand offend thee, cut it off...'(152)

O would that they had contented themselves with their refusal to recognize
that shining Being--with their failure to obey Him and to be lowly before
Him. But no, they beat upon rebellion's drum, and hoisted the flag of
contumacy and spite, and blew the trumpet of calumnies across the world.
In the hearts of the credulous they sowed seeds of disaffection, a