At the home of Mr. and Mrs. Kinney on December 2,
‘Abdu’l-Bahá announced His departure. “These are the days of my farewell to
you, for I am sailing on the 5th of the month. Wherever I went in this country
I returned always to New York City.” The Master gave a beautiful exhortation
ending with these words: “Be illumined, be spiritual, be divine, be glorious,
be quickened of God, be a Bahá’í.”
This was not yet the end. In spite of all the final
preparations, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá continued to have meetings at the Kinneys’, mostly
with Bahá’ís. However, ministers and rabbis still sought to reach Him for
guidance until the last day. His final public appearance was made the evening
before His departure, at the Theosophical Society, where He delivered an
address on the eternity of creation, the evolution of the spirit, and the power
of the Manifestation of God.
- Eliane A. Hopson (‘Abdu’l-Baha in New York: The
City of the Covenant)
