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USBN #220 June 1949 p2
"He also wishes that it could be brought home to the believers that not only they, with the exigencies of their Temple and their foreign teaching work, are really being hard put to it to stand up to the time of test which is at hand, but all their brothers the world over! In fact in most other countries the difficulties to be overcome, though not spread over such a wide range, are more stubborn. In the East, for example, the friends have to surmount violent religious prejudices, prejudices which debar them from so much as obtaining visas for the countries their Plans embrace, and which, when they do get there, sometimes endanger their lives. The British Baha'is, a mere handful, extremely limited financially, find themselves called upon to carry out their courageous Plan and forced to find ways and means of making one pound do the work of ten and one pioneer the work of at least three! And yet they are wholly absorbed in winning their goals, and are bringing all the traditional British grit into play!
"The Guardian himself, already tired out with the work of the last twenty-seven years-which has been steadily growing with the growth of the Cause the world over - now finds himself simply engulfed in a sea of new problems, responsibilities and worries in connection with the work on the Bab's Shrine. Much as this glorious enterprise is dear to his heart, much as he sees the necessity for carrying it on, and foresees the tremendous advantages to the Faith which will accrue from its unfoldment, he cannot be blind to the fact that it has doubled his load and will be, for some years to come, a back-breaking task for him and all concerned here with it.
"So, as the American believers survey with some trepidation and dismay the gigantic work before them, and the tremendous sums that must be raised, let them remember that for them, even as for their Guardian and their spiritual brothers and sisters all over the globe, there can be no turning back, no escape from duty, no easy way out! Indeed, seeing the plight of all the peoples of the world, they should realize that this whole Planet is in the throes of an unmistakable ordeal, a time of bitter transition and profound testing. If the spiritually dead are in this condition, how can the spiritually alive not be expected to be summoned to active duty, to be called upon to bear heavy burdens and to sacrifice deeply for the future."
dated April 11, 1949:
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