21 November 1947
He is so very happy to hear that there[25] are now 36 believers there and new souls coming into the Faith all the time!
He was also delighted to learn that at last the National Hazírá is secured. This is a most important step forwards, and will greatly enhance the prestige of the Faith in Germany.
You must never become discouraged; your services are both needed and appreciated, and the Guardian deeply values them.
He was pleased to hear Mrs Davison is helping you so much there with the work in Frankfurt, and he hopes she will be able to stay there another year.
Letter of 21 November 1947
21 November 1947
Regarding your questions: by holiness in our Bahá’í teachings is meant attachment to God, His Precepts and His Will. We are not ascetics in any sense of the word. On the contrary, Bahá’u’lláh 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 Bahá’ís 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!