Chapter 1. Once ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was asked by two students of the American University to give a talk at their college. Then ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, on the following Monday evening gave a lecture about religion in America in the college of the university. It was attended by large number of people and the hall was full.
When the talk was over, Mrs. J. S. West was to give an interfaith talk on Christianity and on the following Sunday. Both meetings took place. One day before that, two women from the Baháʼí community had been invited to the university, one a Christian, the other a Jew.
The next morning, the two ladies with the Baháʼí speaker asked the latter to speak at the university. There was a large audience present. A day later, on November 20, ʻAbdu'l-Bahá gave a talk at the university. He stated "the purpose of the religion of Baháʼu'lláh and the importance of its spread all over the world."
In the evening an interfaith meeting was held at the university and many responded. After a week there were about three hundred Christians and Jews at the university. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá spoke on this occasion and said that the religion of Baháʼu'lláh was different from all other religions and that the Baháʼís did not ask people to adopt Baháʼu'lláh but simply recommended the religion of Baháʼu'lláh.
It was a difficult time for the converts to become Baháʼís at that time. The friends who sent them to the university were told by others that they were Christians and the new converts hesitated about joining the Baháʼí Faith. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá talked on this occasion and assured them: "You are not going to suffer a loss."
Then the two women who spoke on religion with the first convert of the university, a few days before, went to Mrs. West and expressed doubts about the Baháʼí Faith and spoke of all the suffering she had endured. The latter said: "I am a Baháʼí." Then the other woman asked if she was being misled. Mrs. West talked to them and said that their religious beliefs had some truth in them but that the Faith of Baháʼu'lláh was different.
Later two other converts joined the community: the first, a Catholic woman and the second a Catholic priest. The friends gave classes at their own expense in the large college of the university.
A short while later Mrs. West was able to attend a national convention of Baháʼís that was held in Chicago. The national chairman of the United States asked her to take her turn in the chair, but she declined and sent a letter explaining the reason why. She said:
I believe you understand why I do not want to be your national chairman, since I think our position is very precarious at this time. I think that every effort should be made at this time to make the American Baháʼís realize the danger which confronts us and therefore I find it hard to carry my part of a responsibility which I feel is not worth the responsibility it involves.
Then the chairman of the convention wrote her and thanked her for her cooperation.
In the meantime in the early part of January ʻAbdu'l-Bahá had another very long talk with a Mr. and Mrs. Calloway. He said "he had not come just to the Baháʼí communities but to teach the people of America in general," and therefore, he did not intend to stay for a long time in that place. He also remarked that even though people did not accept the religion he had come for, they would yet come to appreciate the religion, and in some way or other, would in the future serve it, and their coming was for the purpose of serving their brothers and sisters and the world.
It was at this time that Cradock was asked to leave his job. He did not accept it in a manner to be a hindrance to the community in any way. The members decided that no member of the community was to receive any salary or payment from any source. At the convention which lasted from February 2-19 the delegates decided to form an association with the name of the Universal House of Justice. They asked ʻAbdu'l-Bahá for advice and he wrote them a letter of recommendation for this purpose:
Dear Sirs:
I think it is very fitting that you should have an organization of yours own and should appoint a member to represent you in its councils. I would also suggest to you to adopt such title as you like best. But if you do so, please do not let it have any connection with the name of the Universal House of Justice, so that every one may remember that you are not seeking to usurp their work. The Universal House of Justice has for its office the representation of the world and has appointed delegates for every country to carry out its duties. But you should work on a similar basis, viz. your own.
In view of this instruction, the delegates elected a committee. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá wrote a response to this and told them to choose a committee of three people who had the confidence of the American community.
## Chapter 2. Birthday Celebration
In February of 1926 ʻAbdu'l-Bahá gave a talk at the university. The school president was called in and he and ʻAbdu'l-Bahá went together to another meeting which took place the next day. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá said:
If the Baháʼís should not know how to establish their religion in the United States in a short time, the members of the school faculty, the professors, the presidents of the university, the leading authorities, and indeed everyone are liable to be exposed to the greatest of misfortunes. Whatsoever difficulties befall you as you struggle for the establishment of this religion, I have the utmost confidence that they will not stand in the way of your establishment. Even though you might be confronted by the greatest difficulties, if you strive to preserve your rights and abide by your faith, if you can live in this country, these misfortunes will turn out to be blessings.
In the same letter ʻAbdu'l-Bahá called attention to the fact that if the members of the faculty did not respond to the call from God, they might find themselves in prison in a few years and for no reason whatsoever. If Baháʼís were asked to become members of the faculty then they might take some actions that would endanger them.
At the time the members of the community felt that ʻAbdu'l-Bahá needed some rest but that he would probably resume his trip by the sea which he and Shoghi Effendi usually made. When the news of the Baháʼís was spread at the university one of the students came to Mrs. West to ask her to leave the Baháʼí community because her religion was incompatible with Christianity. Later in the day another student came to see her. She told him that she was a Baháʼí and was very interested in the religion. A day or so later another student came to see Mrs. West and talked with her for a while. The news that she had become a Baháʼí spread on campus and it was not long before she was confronted with a lot of questions. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá himself wrote a letter about this:
My dear Sirs:
You must know that I have not come to the people of America in the capacity of an agitator nor do I intend to agitate nor to create any disturbance in the society. All that I have done is to establish the religion in the various cities. The American Baháʼí community must have unity and there must be harmony among them. Their faith must be such as to attract others to their help. The religion is of such a nature that those who adopt it should unite together and try to help and assist each other. If unity does not exist the religion will become scattered, hence my earnest desire is that unity should be established among the American Baháʼís. For that reason I ask the people of the country to show tact and forbearance towards each other. If they are united with one another the Cause will be established, otherwise no unity can be established in this country. The time has come for Baháʼís in America to understand the meaning of unity. If they do not do that they cannot realize the full goal of their own efforts. I hope that you will consider my suggestions and endeavor to introduce unity among the American Baháʼís, otherwise they will get into many troubles. And in a short time they will fall into a state of dispersion.
In another letter ʻAbdu'l-Bahá spoke of unity:
The best means of unity that can be found is to place an end to religious sects. Unity must be established on the basis of love for the unity of God and all men, or the love of God for His creatures and all men will not be achieved. Unity must be placed upon the foundation of truth and justice and based upon the
