57: The Ancient Beauty, the Most Great Name, ...
[183] The Ancient Beauty, the Most Great Name, has, through the splendours of His grace in this most glorious of all ages, made this world of dust to radiate light. The loving counsels of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have turned the beloved of the Lord into signs and tokens of humility and lowliness. He has taught them selflessness, and freedom from material things, and detachment from the world, and has enabled them to understand the verities of Heaven.
In that supernal realm we are all but motes; in the court of the Lord God’s majesty we are but helpless shadows. He is the Shelter for all; He is the Protector of all; He is the Helper of all; He is the Preserver of all. Whensoever we look upon ourselves, we, one and all, despair; but He, with all His grace, His bestowals, His bounties, is the close Companion of each one.
It is certain that tests and trials are inseparable from this life and a vital requirement thereof, especially for the human race and above all for those who claim to have faith and love. Only through trials can the genuine be known from the worthless, and purity from pollution, and the real from the false. The meaning of the sacred verse: ‘Do men think when they say ‘We believe’ they shall be let alone and not be put to proof?’[184] prevails at all times and is applicable at every breath, and fire will only bring out the brightness of the gold.
So it is my hope that with lowliness and a contrite heart, with supplications and prayers, with good intentions and faithfulness, with purity of heart and adherence to the truth, with rising up to serve and with the blessings and confirmations of the Lord, we may come into a realm, and arrive at a condition, where we shall live under His overshadowing mercy, and His helping hand shall come to our aid and succour.
58: After the construction of the Báb’s Shrine ...
[185] After the construction of the Báb’s Shrine on Mount Carmel, it was the wish and intention of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá—may our lives be sacrificed for His holy dust—to open a path that would lead directly from the Shrine to the German Avenue. Time and again He referred to this project and explained how it should be built. You are no doubt familiar with this matter. However, in those days many obstacles stood in the way, preventing the execution of this important project. Among them was a house located at the beginning of this path at the foot of the mountain, which belonged to one of the German settlers. This house had become a serious barrier, inasmuch as the owner had turned down every offer for the purchase of the property. The German community had adopted a policy in the administration of the real estate within the boundary of their settlement which required them not to sell any tract of land or any house within that area to outsiders, no matter how lucrative the payment might be. This ruling was strictly observed by them and had developed into an insurmountable barrier. Another obstacle was that the projected path would pass through tracts of land which belonged to different people, and some of them were unable to sell their property due to legal problems, while others deliberately would not sell since they had perceived that this path was exclusively intended for access to the Bahá’í Shrine and that the Bahá’ís would eventually be compelled, no matter when, to pay an enormous sum for the acquisition of this land. Thus immersed in the sea of visionary hopes and dreams they categorically refused to sell. So days and nights, and months and years passed by until the hand of divine power wrought a change in the whole situation, and the truth of the words: ‘He shall establish His ascendancy over His dominion as He pleaseth’ was fulfilled; for not long afterwards this territory was occupied by the equitable Government of Great Britain, and the local authorities, acting according to their own judgement, decided that the existence of the above house in that locality was undesirable. Therefore they demolished the house, cleared the site and carried away the stones. Then the Municipal Engineer prepared a design for the path, emphasizing that the opening of that path to the Bahá’í Shrine was imperative. This design received the blessed attention of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá Who graciously approved it and expressed His satisfaction and appreciation to the Municipal Engineer. Later on, with the aid of divine confirmations, enough land was purchased from the remaining tracts through which the path passed.