The Baha'i Studies Listserv For David: "Erelong shall the snow-white hand of God rend an opening through the darkness of this night and unlock a mighty portal unto His City. On that Day shall the people enter therein by troops, uttering what the blamers aforetime exclaimed, that there shall be made manifest in the end that which appeared in the beginning." (Baha'u'llah, The Summons of the Lord of Hosts p.47) STC: Perhaps some world-shaking event will occur that draws international attention to the Faith.
"I beg of God to strengthen these spiritual bonds as day followeth day, and make this mystic oneness to shine ever more brightly, until at last all shall be as troops marshalled together beneath the banner of the Covenant within the sheltering shade of the Word of God; that they may strive with all their might until universal fellowship, close and warm, and unalloyed love, and spiritual relationships, will connect all the hearts in the world." (Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 19) STC: To me this simply suggests that the believers must manifest the teachings in their own lives - 'many souls in one body'. "To use a metaphor, when an army is placed under various commanders, each with his own strategy, they will obviously differ as to battle lines and movements of the troops; but once the Supreme Commander, who is thoroughly versed in the arts of war, taketh over, those other plans will disappear, for the supremely gifted general will bring the whole army under his control. This is intended only as a metaphor, not an exact comparison." (Abdu'l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p. 63) STC: While we appreciate diversity in all aspects, sometimes I feel that at the local assembly level, especially, some individuals rely on "personal preference solutions" rather than collectively researching the writings to find a solution. "If, for example, a high-minded sovereign marshals his troops to block the onset of the insurgent and the aggressor, or again, if he takes the field and distinguishes himself in a struggle to unify a divided state and people, if, in brief, he is waging war for a righteous purpose, then this seeming wrath is mercy itself, and this apparent tyranny the very substance of justice and this warfare the cornerstone of peace. Today, the task befitting great rulers is to establish universal peace, for in this lies the freedom of all peoples." (Abdu'l-Baha, The Secret of Divine Civilization, p. 70) STC: Perhaps when the Baha'is themselves are "waging war for a righteous purpose" to win the hearts of the masses. This is taking place to some extent in Iran today where the world is learning of the unjustified imprisonment of educators. "As to thee -- O thou who art confessing the Oneness of God! -- rise with all thy power to keep firm in the Testament of God, and firmly believe that, verily, all troops are defeated save those of the Testament and all banners are reversed, save that of the Covenant of God, which will wave over all horizons and will overshadow the hosts of spirit, love and peace, while agitated by the breeze of the favor of God. Be thou of the number of this great host and among the vanguard of this great and powerful army." (Abdu'l-Baha, Tablets of Abdu'l-Baha v1, p. 108) Lovingly offered, Sandra ----- Original Message ----- From: David Regal To: Baha'i Studies Sent: Saturday, November 05, 2011 2:42 AM Subject: Entry by troops - Ever defined? The Baha'i Studies ListservThere's a lot in Baha'i literature about entry by troops. I don't know that it is ever really defined, though. How do we know if strong membership growth is enough to be regarded as entry by troops or whether, while impressive, it isn't entry by troops? Is there anything on the subject that would give us an idea of the statistical threshold to reach for entry by troops? Regards, David __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[email protected] Unsubscribe: send a blank email to mailto:leave-618519-27401.54f46e81b66496c9909bcdc2f7987...@list.jccc.edu Subscribe: send subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [email protected] Or subscribe: http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=bahai-st Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:[email protected] Web - http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/?forum=bahai-st News (on-campus only) - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
