Message for widespread distribution to the friends

27 February 2026 / 3 Intercalary Days 182

To the followers of Bahá’u’lláh in Canada

Dear Bahá’í Friends,

We turn to you with love during these joyful days of Ayyám-i-Há. How delighted we have been to hear of gatherings, prayers, and special acts of service offered in honour of these days! Yet even as families, friends and neighbours turn toward one another, grateful for the gift of companionship and shared service, these celebrations unfold within a dark age marked by peril and uncertainty. In such times, it is not surprising that joy and sorrow should embrace.

Amidst wave upon wave of suffering experienced by different segments of humanity, our brothers and sisters in Iran are especially in our thoughts and prayers. All who have been touched by love for Bahá’u’lláh are bound by a direct tie to the birthplace of His Cause, and cannot help but be deeply affected by the turmoil in that land. How much more so the friends of Persian background, whose feet have trodden the streets that now appear in newscasts, and whose families and loved ones are among the believers described by the Universal House of Justice as “the pride of the Bahá’í world and a source of joy to the hearts of their fellow believers.”1 How ardent have been the prayers, offered in countless settings across the country, for the relief of suffering.

Beloved friends, as we were about to send this letter to you, we learned of a stirring message of today’s date, addressed by the Universal House of Justice to the “steadfast and faithful followers of the Greatest Name in the Cradle of the Faith”, which can be found here in English, and here in Persian. During the period of the Fast, let us intensify our prayers. Let us find, and give, solace through sharing those prayers with others, through conversation that plants seeds of hope, through whatever service to the Plan our circumstances allow. And as you prepare for that sacred time in the remaining Intercalary Days, as you call upon the Creator as “My God, my Fire and my Light!”, may that Fire and Light blaze in your hearts and kindle a flame in those around you as, confident and determined, you play your part in building the world anew.

With loving Bahá’í greetings,

Karen McKye, Secretary