hat same finality for
the Revelation with which they stand identified. "To believe that all
revelation is ended, that the portals of Divine mercy are closed, that
from the daysprings of eternal holiness no sun shall rise again, that the
ocean of everlasting bounty is forever stilled, and that out of the
tabernacle of ancient glory the Messengers of God have ceased to be made
manifest" must constitute in the eyes of every follower of the Faith a
grave, an inexcusable departure from one of its most cherished and
fundamental principles.

A reference to some of the already quoted utterances of Baha'u'llah and
'Abdu'l-Baha will surely suffice to establish, beyond the shadow of a
doubt, the truth of this cardinal principle. Might not the following
passage of the Hidden Words be, likewise, construed as an allegorical
allusion to the progressiveness of Divine Revelation and an admission by
its Author that the Message with which He has been entrusted is not the
final and ultimate expression of the will and guidance of the Almighty? "O
Son of Justice! In the night-season the beauty of the immortal Being hath
repaired from the emerald height of fidelity unto the Sadratu'l-Muntaha,
and wept with such a weeping that the concourse on high and the dwellers
of the realms above wailed at His lamenting. Whereupon there was asked,
Why the wailing and weeping? He made reply: As bidden I waited expectant
upon the hill of faithfulness, yet inhaled not from them that dwell on
earth the fragrance of fidelity. Then summoned to return I beheld, and lo!
certain doves of holiness were sore tried within the claws of the dogs of
earth. Thereupon the Maid of heaven hastened forth unveiled and
resplendent from Her mystic mansion, and asked of their names, and all
were told but one. And when urged, the first letter thereof was uttered,
whereupon the dwellers of the celestial chambers rushed forth out of their
habitation of glory. And whilst the second letter was pronounced they fell
down, one and all, upon the dust. At that moment a voice was heard from
the inmost shrine: 'Thus far and no farther.' Verily We bear witness to
that which they have done and now are doing."

In a more explicit language Baha'u'llah testifies to this truth in one of
His Tablets revealed in Adrianople: "Know verily that the veil hiding Our
countenance hath not been completely lifted. We have revealed Our Self to
a degree corresponding to the capacity of the people of Our age.