239 Days in America, Day 17: April 27, 1912 | Washington, DC

 At 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue ¹

President Taft had invited ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to visit him at the White House at 12:30 [on Sunday, April 28th]. On Friday morning ‘Abdu’l-Bahá had spoken at the President’s church, All Souls Unitarian on Harvard Street. Then, on Saturday, members of the Taft family had attended an evening reception that Mrs. Parsons had held for 300 dignitaries in the capital.

William Sulzer, the Democratic Congressman from New York, had also come to the Parsons’ for a private interview with ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. He was Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and said later that he felt he had just talked with the prophet Elijah, and Moses. Shortly afterward, another invitation arrived: this one came from Champ Clark (D-Missouri), the Speaker of the House of Representatives, who asked ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to address Congress the following week on his vision of world peace.

Washington D. C. ²

At the Parsons’ reception in the afternoon He [‘Abdul-Bahá] said to a Justice of the Supreme Court, “‘It is possible to establish such unity among the powers of the whole world as is found in the United States of America.’”

To some of the doctors He said, “‘I hope that you will raise the standard of the universal peace.’”

To a mathematician He said, “‘I hope that you will try to teach the truth and principles of divine relations to different nations as you are teaching mathematics to different persons in your school.’”

To Admiral Peary He said, “‘I hope that you will explore the invisibilities of the Kingdom.’”

To the Archbishop He said, “‘I hope you will throw away the injurious formalism, enforce the truth of the teaching of Christ, and remove all those dogmas that are against science and reality.’”

To a member of Congress He said, “‘As you are endeavoring for the good of America, so you must put forth your energy for the good of the whole world and all the nations.’”

 “Remembering those who looked into His eyes” ³