‘Remain confirmed and assisted’: The hope for the Baha’is in Iran
The new year is the harbinger of reflection and renewal, and Baha’i Naw Ruz is no exception.
As communities across Australia and the world celebrated the occasion with a myriad of festivities animated by a spirit of love, unity and diversity, the Universal House of Justice – the international governing council of the Baha’i Faith – marked “the beginning of the soul-stirring spring” by sending a special message to followers and helpers of the Faith in Iran, as it does every Naw Ruz.
Touching on the “complexity, and interconnectedness of the challenges” facing the world at present and the “profound and far-reaching crisis that is destabilizing and disrupting its order”, the Universal House of Justice encourages the friends to remain steadfast as they cling to the teachings of the Faith and “serve the cause of the peace and unity of the world”.
In this important undertaking, every member of the human family has a share. In purifying the heart and cleansing its mirror from prejudice on the one hand, and in creating the social conditions for peace and unity on the other, every individual has agency and the capacity to play a part. All souls are able to promote the culture of peace and unity in their interactions with friend and stranger alike. And in this day, such an intention will attract the confirmations of God. As a result souls come to inspire each other, increase their endurance in the face of difficulties, assist one another in dealing with problems, build amity and solidarity, and advance on a constructive path towards a bright future.
The Universal House of Justice
Following constant reassurance and loving guidance to the friends who, in their words, have persevered “in the face of unnumbered adversities”, the Universal House of Justice ends the message with the following words of ‘Abdu’l-Baha:
I hope this New Year will be happy and blessed and will become the cause of the attainment of divine assistance and confirmation, so that ye may become the cause of the unity of the world and proclaim the oneness of the human race, may change enemies into friends and make those who are deprived the confidants of the mysteries of the world’s Great Peace.
The full message can be accessed in Persian and English by visiting the Payamha Iran website, where you can subscribe to receive the messages as they are published.
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The Universal House of Justice
The Universal House of Justice is the international governing council of the Baha’i Faith. Ordained by Baha’u’llah in His book of laws, the Kitab-i-Aqdas, it is a nine-member body elected every five years by the entire membership of all national Baha’i assemblies.
Published in March, 2024, in Baha'i Institutions > Guidance
Available online at: horizons.bahai.org.au/bahai-institutions/remain-confirmed-and-assisted-the-hope-for-the-bahais-in-iran/
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