The recent news from j.a.pan is most heartening-eight a.s.semblies in all.
Even though our dear Baha"i sister, Miss Alexander may be exhausted from years of labour, the harvest is so rich that it compensates for any inconvenience or suffering.
(signed by R. Rabbani)
(May 3, 1956)
[Letter of March 18, 1957]
To Mr. John McHenry III
He (the Guardian) is very happy that you can arrange your affairs so as to return to Korea... The phenomenal progress the Cause has made in that area (Korea) is practically exclusively due to the services of the young American Baha"is who are in the Armed Forces. Indeed, it is a great victory won by Baha"i youth.
(signed by R. Rabbani)
(March 18, 1957)
[Letter of August 18, 1957]
To Mr. William Maxwell
The Guardian was happy to learn that you are still in Korea and that you are able to continue in the teaching work of that important country. He knows that wherever you are you will carry forward the pressing requirements of the Faith with vigor and enthusiasm but he feels that Korea and even j.a.pan particularly need the help of yourself and other American pioneers at this time.
(signed by Leroy Ioas)
(August 18, 1957)
[Letter of October 18, 1957]
To Mr. Eugene Schreiber
The Master was most hopeful of the spread of the Faith in j.a.pan. Now that His Promises are being fulfilled, the friends must be very happy. Likewise this happiness must translate itself into renewed devotion so that the Call of G.o.d may be raised in all parts of that important country.
The Guardian is praying for the success of the teaching work in j.a.pan.
(signed by Leroy Ioas)
(October 18, 1957)
14: Shoghi Effendi Writes to Emperor Showa of j.a.pan
Emperor Showa (Hirohito) of j.a.pan had the longest reign (December 25, 1926 to January 7, 1989) of any reigning sovereign in j.a.pan. He was respected as a scholar; being an eminent marine biologist, and he was beloved by his people.
Following the custom in j.a.pan, the reign of a new emperor is given a specially selected name. After that emperor dies he takes on the name of the reign. Consequently, Emperor Hirohito, as he was known during his reign, is now known as Emperor Showa.
At the time of his coronation in the fall of 1928 seven specially bound Baha"i books were presented to His Majesty. The books which were sent in the name of two American Baha"is were presented by Dr. Rokuichiro Masujima, who was a friend of Miss Alexander and who was close to the Faith. He had access to the Imperial Household.
Shoghi Effendi was asked to write something to be sent with the books. The message sent to accompany the books was "May the perusal of Baha"i literature enable Your Imperial Majesty to appreciate the sublimity and penetrative power of Baha"u"llah"s Revelation and inspire you on this auspicious occasion to arise for its worldwide recognition and triumph."
The books arrived after the coronation ceremonies so the presentation was delayed. On May 22 of the following year Dr. Masujima received a letter from the Minister of the Imperial Household that the seven books had been presented to the Emperor that day.
During World War II the palace did not suffer destruction so undoubtedly the books and message are still there with the other coronation gifts.
In 1930 the great Baha"i teacher Miss Martha Root visited j.a.pan. She sent two gifts to the Emperor; a small Persian rug and a sheet of Holy Writings written in Persian script in the form of a beautiful bird. Accompanying the gifts was a cable from Shoghi Effendi: "Martha Root care American Emba.s.sy Tokyo. Kindly transmit His Imperial Majesty, Tokyo, j.a.pan on behalf of myself and Baha"is world over, expression of our deepest love as well as a.s.surance of heartfelt prayers for his well-being and prosperity of his ancient realm."
j.a.pan, after recovery from the devastation of World War II, shows the prosperity that the Guardian prayed for, and the Emperor, active and healthy until the end had a very long and fruitful reign.
15: Message from the Universal House of Justice to the North Pacific Oceanic Conference, Sapporo, j.a.pan, September, 1971
To the Friends of G.o.d a.s.sembled in the Conference of the North Pacific Ocean.
Dearly-loved Friends,
On the eve of the Fiftieth Anniversary of the opening of the Formative Age of our Faith we call to mind the high hopes often expressed by the beloved Master for the spread of the Cause in this region. His mention in the Tablets of the Divine Plan of many of the territories represented in this Conference, and the faithful and devoted services of that maid-servant of Baha"u"llah, the Hand of the Cause Agnes Alexander, who brought the Teachings to these sh.o.r.es in the early years of this century.
In these days we are witnessing an unprecedented acceleration of the teaching work in almost every part of the globe. In the North Pacific Ocean area great strides have been made in the advancement of the Cause since that historic Asia Regional Teaching Conference in Nikko just sixteen years ago. The next two years witnessed the formation of the National Spiritual a.s.sembly of Alaska and of the Regional National Spiritual a.s.sembly of North East Asia. To the Convention in Tokyo at Ridvan 1957 the Guardian addressed these prophetic words:
"This auspicious event, which posterity will regard as the culmination of a process initiated, half a century ago, in the capital city of j.a.pan ...
marks the opening of the second chapter in the history of the evolution of His Faith in the North Pacific area. Such a consummation cannot fail to lend a tremendous impetus to its onward march in the entire Pacific Ocean..."
Since that time National Spiritual a.s.semblies have also been firmly established in Korea and Taiwan.
Hokkaido, the site of this Conference, first heard of the Teachings less than fifteen years ago, and the first aboriginal peoples of this land accepted Baha"u"llah just over a decade ago. Now you are the witnesses to the beginnings of a rapid increase in the number of believers. Peoples in other islands and lands of the North Pacific, including the Ryukyus, Guam, the Trust Territories, the western sh.o.r.es of Canada and Alaska and the Aleutians are also enrolling under the banner of the Most Great Name, and next Ridvan yet another pillar of the Universal House of Justice is to be raised in Micronesia. We are heartened at the prospect that from indigenous peoples of this vast oceanic area, the Ainu, the j.a.panese, the Chinese, the Koreans, the Okinawans, the Micronesians, the American Indians, the Eskimos, and the Aleuts vast numbers will soon enter the Faith.
The final hours of the Nine Year Plan are fast fleeting. Praised be to G.o.d that you have gathered to consult on ways and means of a.s.suring complete victory so that from these outposts the Teachings may spread to those nearby lands where teeming millions have not as yet heard of the advent of this Most Great Dispensation.
The sweet perfume of victory is in the air, and we must hasten to achieve it while there is yet time. Vital goals, particularly on the homefronts of Taiwan and j.a.pan, remain to be won, and everywhere the roots of the faith of the believers must sink deeper and deeper into the firm earth of the Teachings lest tempests and trials as yet unforeseen shake or uproot the tender plants so lovingly raised in the islands of this great Ocean and the land surrounding it.
As you and the friends in the sister Conference in Reykjavik bring this series of eight Oceanic and Continental Conferences to a triumphant close, our prayers for the success of your deliberations ascend at the Holy Threshold. May G.o.d grant you the resources, the strength, and the determination to attain your highest hopes and enable you to open a new and glorious chapter in the evolution of His Faith in the North Pacific area.
With loving Baha"i greetings, The Universal House of Justice
Afterword