Messages to Canada

"Messages to Canada" by Shoghi Effendi is a historical account written in the mid-20th century. The work comprises a collection of letters and communications directed toward the Canadian Bahá'í community, detailing the establishment, development, and organizational strategies pivotal to the Bahá'í Faith in Canada. The text outlines significant events and initiatives undertaken by the community, including the implementation of various plans to promote and consolidate the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh across the nation. At the start of the text, Shoghi Effendi addresses the Bahá'í believers in Canada, expressing his joy at establishing direct correspondence. He emphasizes the importance of the community's role in breaking down prejudices and sectarian beliefs through the teachings of the Faith. The initial letters highlight the community's early struggles and triumphs, particularly the election of the first National Assembly and the commissioning of a Five-Year Plan aimed at recruitment, education, and establishing local spiritual assemblies. Effendi's words serve as a call to action, inspiring steadfastness among the Canadian Bahá'ís as they undertake various missions to further the Faith during a crucial time in its history. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Shoghí Effendi (; Persian: شوقی افندی; 1 March 1897 – 4 November 1957) was an Ottoman-born Iranian religious figure and the Guardian of the Baháʼí Faith from 1921 to 1957. As the grandson and successor of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá, he was responsible for creating a series of teaching plans that oversaw the expansion of the Baháʼí Faith to a number of new countries, and also translated many of the written works of crucial Baháʼí leaders. Upon his death in 1957, the Hands of the Cause, which included his Canadian wife Rúhíyyih Khánum, took on the role of overseeing the transfer of the religion's supreme legal authority to the Universal House of Justice, which has held elections every five years since 1963.