rs. Invariably, the Master's actions were as
eloquent as the words He used. In the United States, for example, nothing
could have more clearly communicated Baha'i belief in the oneness of
religion than 'Abdu'l-Baha's readiness to include references to the
Prophet Muhammad in addresses to Christian audiences and His energetic
vindication of the divine origin of both Christianity and Islam to the
congregation at Temple Emanu-El in San Francisco. His ability to inspire
in women of all ages confidence that they possessed spiritual and
intellectual capacities fully equal to those of men, His unprovocative but
clear demonstration of the meaning of Baha'u'llah's teachings on racial
oneness by welcoming black as well as white guests at His own dinner table
and the tables of His prominent hostesses, and His insistence on the
overriding importance of unity in all aspects of Baha'i endeavour--such
demonstrations of the way in which the spiritual and practical aspects of
life must interact threw open for the believers windows on a new world of
possibilities. The spirit of unconditional love in which these challenges
were phrased succeeded in overcoming the fears and uncertainties of those
whom the Master addressed.

Greater yet than the effort expended on His public exposition of the Cause
was the time and energy the Master devoted to deepening the believers'
understanding of the spiritual truths of Baha'u'llah's Revelation. In city
after city, from early morning to late at night, the hours that were not
taken up by the public demands of His mission were given over to
responding to the questions of the friends, meeting their needs, and
infusing into them a spirit of confidence in the contributions each could
make to the promotion of the Cause they had embraced. His visit to Chicago
provided the opportunity for 'Abdu'l-Baha to lay, with His own hands, the
cornerstone of the first Baha'i House of Worship in the West, a project
inspired by the one already under way in 'I_sh_qabad and likewise
encouraged from the moment of its conception by 'Abdu'l-Baha.

The Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar is one of the most vital institutions in the
world, and it hath many subsidiary branches. Although it is a House of
Worship, it is also connected with a hospital, a drug dispensary, a
traveler's hospice, a school for orphans, and a university for advanced
studies.... My hope is that the Ma_sh_riqu'l-A_dh_kar will now be
established in America, and that gradua