THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE

Riḍván 2022

To the Bahá’ís of the World
Dearly loved Friends,
A year of preparation and reflection, as well as of great exertion, has concluded,
distinguished by the efforts of the friends worldwide to mark the centenary of the Ascension of
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, including by sending representatives to participate in a special event honouring
Him in the Holy Land. Through these efforts, the inspiration offered by the life of
‘Abdu’l-Bahá has been felt by countless souls and not only Bahá’ís. His concern for every
member of the human family, His teaching work, His promotion of undertakings for education
and social well-being, His profound contributions to discourses in both the East and the West,
His heartfelt encouragement of projects to construct Houses of Worship, His shaping of early
forms of Bahá’í administration, His cultivation of varied aspects of community life—all these
complementary facets of His life were a reflection of His constant and complete dedication to
serving God and serving humanity. Beyond being a towering figure of moral authority and
surpassing spiritual insight, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was a pure channel through which the forces released
by the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh could act upon the world. To comprehend the society-building
power possessed by the Faith, one need look no further than the achievements of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
during His ministry and the transformative effects of the guidance that flowed unceasingly from
His pen. So many of the marvellous advances made by the present-day Bahá’í community—
which were surveyed in our message to you last Riḍván—trace their origins to the actions,
decisions, and directions of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.
How fitting, then, that the Bahá’í community’s collective tribute to its perfect Exemplar
should form the prelude to its commencement of a major undertaking focused on the release of
the society-building power of the Faith in ever-greater measures. The areas of endeavour that
fall within the scope of the Nine Year Plan, and of the current series of Plans, are directed
towards the fulfilment of this overarching objective. It is also the focus of the more than 10,000
conferences being held across the globe to mark the launch of this great spiritual enterprise.
These conferences, expected to welcome unprecedented numbers of participants, are bringing
together not only Bahá’ís but many other well-wishers of humanity who share with them a
longing to foster unity and better the world. Their determination and strong sense of purpose
are reflected in the spirit generated at the gatherings that have already occurred, where the
participants have been galvanized as much by the dynamic consultations to which they have
contributed as by the collective vision explored at these joyful events. We look with eager
anticipation to what the coming months and years will bring.

Bahá’í World Centre • P.O. Box 155 • 3100101 Haifa, Israel
Tel: +972 (4) 835 8358 • Email: secretariat@bwc.org

To the Bahá’ís of the World

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Riḍván 2022

Since we addressed our 30 December 2021 message to the Counsellors’ Conference,
National Spiritual Assemblies and Regional Bahá’í Councils have been earnestly assessing the
possibilities for intensifying the process of growth in the clusters within their jurisdiction during
the Nine Year Plan. We feel it would be helpful, for the purpose of gauging the progress made
over time, to view the Plan as unfolding in two phases of four and five years’ duration, and
National Assemblies were invited to consider the advances they expect to see in their respective
communities by Riḍván 2026 and then by Riḍván 2031. This exercise also involved a
re-evaluation of cluster boundaries, and the outcome of these adjustments is that the total
number of clusters in the world has risen by a quarter and now stands at over 22,000. Judging
by the forecasts received, it is estimated that, by the end of the Plan, a programme of growth at
some level of development will exist in around 14,000 of these clusters. From among them, the
number where the programme of growth could be considered intensive is projected to climb to
11,000 over the same time period. And of these, it is anticipated that the number of clusters
where the third milestone has been passed will rise above 5,000 by 2031. Without question, to
make such advances will entail colossal effort over the entire duration of the Plan. Yet we find
these to be worthy aspirations towards which to strive, for they represent an ambitious but
serious appraisal of what lies within reach.
This is telling. Such objectives could not be realistically contemplated if administrative
institutions and agencies had not evolved markedly, endowing them with significantly
heightened capacity to manage the affairs of a community whose activities have multiplied so
quickly, embracing a vast and growing number of kindred souls. It would not be possible to
aspire to such growth if a desire to learn—to act, to reflect, to capture insights, and to absorb
the insights emerging elsewhere—had not been cultivated at all levels, extending to the
grassroots of the community. And the effort implied by such projections would hardly be
feasible if a systematic approach to the teaching work and to human resource development had
not become increasingly manifest in the Bahá’í world. All this has brought about an advance in
the Bahá’í community’s awareness of its own identity and purpose. A determination to be
outward looking in the process of community building had already become an established
aspect of culture in many, many places; it has now blossomed, in a rising number of
communities, into a sense of real responsibility for the spiritual and material progress of larger
and larger groups within society, well beyond the membership of the Bahá’í community itself.
The efforts of the friends to build communities, to engage in social action, and to contribute to
the prevalent discourses of society have cohered into one global enterprise, bound together by a
common framework for action, focused on helping humanity to establish its affairs on a
foundation of spiritual principles. The significance of the developments we have described,
reaching this point one hundred years after the inauguration of the Administrative Order, cannot
be overlooked. In the extraordinary rise in capacity that has occurred in the last two decades—
and which has made it possible for the Bahá’í world to view its endeavours in terms of the
release of the society-building power of the Faith—we see incontrovertible evidence that the
Cause of God has entered the sixth epoch of its Formative Age. We announced last Riḍván that
the widespread phenomenon of large numbers participating in Bahá’í activities, being kindled
by faith, and acquiring the skills and abilities to serve their communities signalled that the third
epoch of the Master’s Divine Plan had commenced; thus, the One Year Plan, at its inception
then and at its conclusion now, has come to mark a set of historic advances made by the
company of the faithful. And at the threshold of a new, mighty undertaking, this united body of
believers stands ready to seize the possibilities wide open before it.

To the Bahá’ís of the World

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Riḍván 2022

A prominent feature of the epoch that now ends was the erection of the last of the
continental Houses of Worship and the initiation of projects to establish Houses of Worship at
the national and local levels. Much has been learned, by Bahá’ís the world over, about the
concept of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár and the union of worship and service it embodies. During
the sixth epoch of the Formative Age, much more will be learned about the path that leads from
the development within a community of a flourishing devotional life—and the service which it
inspires—to the appearance of a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár. Consultations are beginning with various
National Spiritual Assemblies, and as these proceed, we will periodically announce places
where a Bahá’í House of Worship will be raised up in the coming years.
Our joy at seeing the community of the Greatest Name go from strength to strength is
tempered by our deep sorrow at seeing the persistence of conditions and conflicts in the world
that create misery and desperate suffering—in particular, at observing the recrudescence of
destructive forces that have disordered international affairs while visiting horrors upon
populations. We know well and are reassured that, as Bahá’í communities have repeatedly
demonstrated in many different contexts, the followers of Bahá’u’lláh are committed to offering
relief and support to those around them, no matter how straitened their own circumstances. But
until humanity as a whole undertakes to establish its affairs on foundations of justice and truth,
it is, alas, fated to stagger from one crisis to another. We pray that, if the recent outbreak of war
in Europe is to yield any lessons for the future, it will serve as an urgent reminder of the course
that the world must take if it is to attain genuine and enduring peace. The principles enunciated
by Bahá’u’lláh to the monarchs and presidents of His time, and the weighty responsibilities
with which He charged rulers past and present, are perhaps even more pertinent and imperative
today than when they were first recorded by His Pen. For Bahá’ís, the inexorable advance of
the Major Plan of God—bringing with it ordeals and upheavals, but ultimately impelling
humanity towards justice, peace, and unity—is the context within which the Minor Plan of God,
with which the believers are chiefly occupied, unfolds. The dysfunctional state of present-day
society makes the need for the release of the society-building power of the Faith abundantly
clear and pressing. We cannot but expect that, for now, convulsions and disturbances will
continue to afflict the world; you will no doubt appreciate, then, why every earnest supplication
we offer for all God’s children to be relieved from bewilderment and bitter hardship is coupled
with an equally heartfelt prayer for the success of the much-needed service you are rendering
for the Cause of the Prince of Peace.
In every cluster where the activities of the Plan are gaining momentum, we see the
development of communities with the noble characteristics we described in the 30 December
2021 message. As societies experience stresses of various kinds, the followers of the Abhá
Beauty must stand out more and more for their qualities of resilience and rationality, for their
standard of conduct and their adherence to principle, and for the compassion, detachment, and
forbearance they demonstrate in their pursuit of unity. Time and again, the distinctive
characteristics and attitudes shown by the believers in periods of acute difficulty have prompted
people to turn to Bahá’ís for explanation, counsel, and support, especially when the life of a
society has been upset by peril and unforeseen disruptions. In sharing these observations, we
are mindful that the Bahá’í community itself also experiences the effects of the forces of
disintegration at work in the world. Moreover, we are conscious that the greater the friends’
efforts to promote the Word of God, the stronger the countervailing forces they will encounter,
sooner or later, from various quarters. They must fortify their minds and spirits against the tests
that are sure to come, lest these impair the integrity of their endeavours. But the believers know

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Riḍván 2022

well that whatever storms lie ahead, the ark of the Cause is equal to them all. Successive stages
of its voyage have seen it weather the elements and ride the waves. Now it is bound for a new
horizon. The confirmations of the Almighty are the gusts that fill its sails and propel it towards
its destination. And the Covenant is its lodestar, keeping the sacred vessel set on its sure and
certain course. May the hosts of heaven send blessings upon all who sail within.

