# Pilgrim's Notes

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-18 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Nellie French, Pilgrim's Notes, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Pilgrim's Notes
> 
> Nellie French
> 
> 1952-04-21
> 
> [page 1]
> 
> Pilgrim Notes — Mrs. N. French 4/21/52
> 
> The spirit of the Cause is not enough. We need the institutions. The
> institutions are the embodiment of the spirit of the Cause, the channel
> thru which the spirit flows. Any idea, any work .... of education,
> religion, social life .... will never be effective in the world unless it
> is translated into an institution: For example, education.... it will
> never have its influence felt upon society unless the idea of education is
> incarnated in an institution or college. So with everything else. An
> ideal must be translated into an institution; and the Bahá'í Faith, which
> is primarily a powerful spirit in the world, must be embodied in an
> institution, incorporate itself in an institution ... if it is to exert
> its power in the world. We must recognize the station of Bahá'u'lláh , the Bab, and the Master,
> and at the same time recognize the necessity of institutions thru which the
> spirit of these three central figures is flowing .... guiding, preserving
> and promoting.
> 
> These institutions have not been established by us. They have been
> established by the Founder of the Faith Himself. That is why we are
> essentually different from the Christian Church. Because we have
> institutions and they have institutions ... we call it assembly, they call
> it church. If they say, "you are doing the same thing we are doing," we
> say, "yours was man-made, ours is divinely appointed." Not established by
> the Master in the Will, nor announced by the Bab; but provided for and
> established by Bahá'u'lláh in the Most Holy Book....the Book of Laws.
> This is the fundamental difference between our institutions and the
> institutions belonging to all other religions. They are essentially
> man-made. Ours are divinely appointed. But always remember these are a
> means to an end. We have to utilize these institutions for a purpose.
> Our purpose is the carry out the Divine Plan of the Master.
> 
> We had to wait ever since the Master revealed these tablets. 1915, 1916, 1917 .....
> twenty years, until the administrative order was sufficiently established and beginning
> to function in order to utilize them for this purpose. The Master gave instructions to the
> American Believers to establish the Cause throughout the world.... the Divine Plan ... a
> few years before He passed away. In those days we didn't have the means. A few
> individuals were working. Martha Root started on her travels, Mr. and Mrs. Dunn went
> from Calif. to Australia; you and Imogene went to Italy, but all on an individual basis....
> not organized, not systematic, not continuous; more or less spasmodic, purely on an
> individual basis. It was not directed twoards an definite plan .. so unlike the present plans
> the Bahá'ís have formulated throughout the world.... different plans... National
> Assemblies have each their own plan.
> 
> When the Master passed away, the first thing we did was establsih the Administrative
> Order, establish local assemblies, national assemblies. He saw the House of Justice
> would be established eventually.
> 
> Then we started along and laborious task of raising the structure of the
> Administrative Order. It took us two decades ... twenty years to do that.
> As the work progressed some of the Bahá'ís began to wonder whether that
> was going to be the sole concern of the Bahá'ís... to establish these
> institutions. Some began to doubt, some to citicize. Ahmad Sohrab
> entirely misunderstood our purpose, for the simple reason that I asked the
> Bahá'ís to think of nothing else but building these institutions that were
> to be the means in our hands to achieve a purpose later on. It took us
> twenty years to establish two stages of this administrative order
> ....local and national assemblies. When the local and national assemblies
> were established and were beginning to finction, then I directed the
> attention of the Bahá'ís to the purpose for which these institutions had
> been created and were being perfected. For two decades ... and then the
> Divine Plan of the Master. The first part in the plan, the Amercas...
> Latin Americ, So. America, Canada. The second stage in Europe (then I
> think he said... both Latin America to achieve what was established, and
> then in Europe). Now we have started in Africa. That is why the Cause is
> progressing so rapidly. In Switzerland, as you know, Mrs. Lynch worked,
> and labored for years.... not on a sound basis, not organized. It could
> not be,
> 
> [page 2]
> 
> the time was not ripe. The same thing in Denmark (?) Worked fifty years
> in England, but as soon as local assemblies were formed, National
> assemblies were formed ... then they began to formulate their own plans.
> All the attention of the British believers was concentrated on their plan.
> Then it began to progress. It took 50 years to establish two assemblies..
> but in five years they established 19 assemblies... not only in England,
> but in Scotland, Wales and Ireland.
> 
> Representatives from France will attend the Stockholm Conference. At that
> conference they will consider ways of spreading the Cause in the remaining
> countries of Europe and the Islands. (then, I think he said.... Germany,
> Persia and ten goal countries will collabrate in arranging a campaing in
> Russia.)
> 
> Two fundamental reasons why the Cause is progressing: 1. establishment of
> institutions being used for that purpose. We have fashioned the
> instrument, we have erected the instrument. 2. We are utilizing these
> instruments for a definite purpose which is the Divine Plan revealed by
> the Master. It is the power behind that plan, the potency of that plan and
> the instrument we are using.
> 
> In the early days the Cause did not progress rapidly, because we had no
> instruments, nor had we any definite plan to carry out the instructions of
> the Master, Lsa's. Nat'l. Assemblies, schools....Ahmad Sohrab made a great
> mistake. He saw us fashioning instruments and he thought we considered
> that a means in itself. He misunderstood our purpose. Now he is beginning
> to realize our purpose was to perfect the instrument, in order to use it
> for a definite purpose.
> 
> Love of the Master is not enough. We must have deep FAITH. Three things
> we must remember ...Faith, the Covenant, the Administration. The Covenant
> is the child of the Faith. The Administrative order is the child of the
> covenant.
> 
> We have to explain the Center of the Faith is a mystery. We must admit
> the Master is a mystery... Bahá'u'lláh called him "The Mystery of God", we
> must never hope to unravel that mystery. We admit he is a mystery. The
> mystery is that he is not a Prophet, we cannot claim for him the station
> of a Prophet. (Then I think he said, "The Prophet is pre-existent"). The
> Master has the quality of perfection, but he is not a prophet of God. The
> Master's station is between Prophet and Guardians. God, Holy Spirit,
> Prophet and Successor. God (Father), Prophet (Son), Apostles and Holy
> Spirit. Allah (Prophet) Messenger of God, Imams. God, Bahá'u'lláh,
> Guardians. but in addition we have something which other relgions do not
> possess... Institutions of Center of Covenant. He stands between Prophet
> and Guardians. Mystery because he shares not in nature of the
> Manifestation — perfect but not divine... that is why... a
> MYSTERY....Abdu'l-Bahá all knowing, but not a Prophet of God.
> 
> What is really new in the Bahá'í Faith is its teachings. These are
> unique. If they ask us which, we say, "The Unity of Mankine"...Absolutely
> NEW. Nothing like it in the teachings of previous religions. We must
> explain the unity of Mankind. There is a passage in the writings of
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá. In previous religions it was not possible to teach such a
> thing because the world was not ready on a world scale. The Prophets of
> God in the past stressed amity, concord, but They did not stress the idea
> of the unity of mankind. They never said the world was ripe to be
> organized and unifies.... but the world has reached that stage now. God
> has sent, because of the condition of mankind, Bahá'u'lláh, with this
> particular teaching.
> 
> The Pope of Buddhism is in the capitol of Tibet. Daniel speaks of
> something to happen in 100 years after the Flight of MuHammad....he could
> have based his calculations on the Jewish calendar. Three years
> difference every century, 112 days every year, between solar and lunar
> time. 1963 is the year for the spread of the Faith all over the world ...
> not the Most Great Peace. One hundred years from the Declaration of
> Bahá'u'lláh in Ridvan. One hundred lunar years will have elapsed, etc.
> regarding date 1335 mentioned in the Bible.
> 
> METADATA
> 
> Views10416 views since posted 2003-10-15; last edit 2025-09-30 14:30 UTC;
> 
> previous at archive.org.../french_pilgrims_notes;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
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> Typed 1998 by Robert Stauffer; Proofread 1998 by Thellie Lovejoy.
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> Shortlink: bahai-library.com/729
> Citation: ris/729
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> — *Pilgrim's Notes (Used by permission of the curator)*