Vaughn, super job of locating other references to "withholding". Thank you, that's right on target and what I was looking for.
Sandra, I quite agree that in this Tablet the Manifestation is addressing His own eyes, heart, ears and hands. But then, I believe He transitions into both viewing the Hands of the Cause as His own hands; or alternatively says that He will raise up the Hands of the Cause from His own Hands. In this passage He says just that, and that these Hands -- and from the term "these souls" He may well mean people -- will demonstrate the divine attributes of strength, might and ascendancy: "Gather then Thy servants beneath Thy shade that shadoweth all mankind. Stretch forth the hand of bounty over all creation, and the fingers of bestowal over all existence. This, verily, is that which beseemeth Thee, though the people understand it not. Whosoever turneth his face towards Thee doeth so by Thy grace, and as to him who turneth away, Thy Lord, in truth, is independent of all created things. Unto this bear witness His true and devoted servants. "Erelong shall God raise up, through Thee, those with hands of indomitable strength and arms of invincible might, who will come forth from behind the veils, will render the All-Merciful victorious amongst the peoples of the world, and will raise so mighty a cry as to cause all hearts to tremble with fear. Thus hath it been decreed in a Written Tablet. Such shall be the ascendancy which these souls will evince that consternation and dismay will seize all the dwellers of the earth. (The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, p. 22, sections 1.40-1.41)) I note that in the article about the Hands of the Faith written by Paul Haney for Baha'i World Vol. XIII, (p. 333) he begins by quoting this same passage with his own view that it is a significant reference to the Institution of the Hands. I may well be wrong in my views. But it seems to me that the loftiness of the Institution of the Hands is not well grasped, and I'm trying to understand it better. With thanks and best wishes Brent __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:archive@mail-archive.com Unsubscribe: send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe: send subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe: http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=bahai-st Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:bahai-st@list.jccc.edu Web - http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/?forum=bahai-st News - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Public - http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.net New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.edu
