15 March 2011
Dear Bahá’í Friend,
Your email letter of 12 September 2010 regarding the permissibility of including talks of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in the devotional program of the Nineteen Day Feast has been received by the Universal House of Justice and we have been asked to reply as follows. We regret that the pressure of work at the Bahá’í World Centre has prevented us from responding sooner.
The beloved Guardian described that portion of the Feast in which prayers and other passages of the Sacred Scriptures of the Faith are read as being “devotional” in character and stated that its purpose is to inspire a prayerful attitude and stimulate a spirit of reverence in the hearts of the friends. Within this context, the choice of readings is, of course, free and the House of Justice does not wish to give specific directions on what may or may not be read during this portion of the Feast, beyond what the Guardian has already stated. The friends should not allow a difference of views on the subject to become a cause of disagreement and should questions arise, they may be referred to the Local Spiritual Assembly.
With loving Bahá’í greetings,
Department of the Secretariat
(Baha’i Library Online)