May 16. On this date in 1933, Shoghi Effendi wrote Adelbert Mühlschlegel that "whatever we say of Germany, we have to admit that its people are endowed with a spiritual vitality quite superior to many other races."

 

May 16. On this date in 1933, Shoghi Effendi wrote Adelbert Mühlschlegel that "whatever we say of Germany, we have to admit that its people are endowed with a spiritual vitality quite superior to many other races."

16 May 1933

Dear Dr. Muhlschlegel:

The Guardian ... does sincerely hope that the reports we receive here about the sentiments rampant in Germany are untrue to fact, that it is a regeneration of the people rather than a retrogression towards a dead past. Because whatever we say of Germany, we have to admit that its people are endowed with a spiritual vitality quite superior to many other races. Being in the heart of that populated continent and being inspired by such a strong religious spirit, Germany can easily achieve a wonderful task in regenerating the world. The eyes of the world are surely centered around it expecting to see what it will do.

Yet we Bahá'ís should remember that we stand above politics. That that field does not interest us; that we attribute importance to things of the spirit, that we await salvation to come from the Faith that burns in our hearts.

In his moments of prayer and meditation at the Blessed Shrines, the Guardian will think of you and the other friends in Germany and ask God to guide you and assist you in playing your important role of spiritualizing the whole world--so immersed at present in material pursuits and interests....

In the Guardian's own handwriting:

Dear and precious co-worker:

I was so pleased to receive your letter. I long to hear more fully and more frequently from you. You are a tower of ... and a pillar of His Faith in that land. Germany has a glorious future under the banner of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. Its mission is to champion the cause of God in Europe and establish it firmly in the heart of that continent. The tests and trials which have beset the Faith in that land were necessary and providential. It is for the German believers, who have weathered the storm, to arise and promote the Cause, to proclaim the non-political character of their Faith, to establish its nascent institutions and prove by their words and acts their freedom from every taint of particularism and prejudice. May the Almighty guide their steps, sustain them in their efforts and bless their activities.

Shoghi