Hartmut Grossmann, Remarks of, Concerning the Timing of the Lesser Peace

2012-10-22

1. Letter to the House of Justice

Subject: Enquiry concerning remarks of Mr. Hartmut Grossmann concerning the timing of the Lesser Peace
August 28, 2012

Dear Secretariat,

A document has been circulating on the Internet [e.g. here] dated June 2012 purporting to be notes of Mr Hartmut Grossman from presentations at the Swedish Baha’i Winter school, notes prepared by David Maytan.

Specifically these notes appear to represent or confirm the views of the Universal House of Justice on the timing of the Lesser Peace, to be established by the year 2021: For instance:

“During Mr. Grossmann’s opening remarks, he mentioned that he had a consultation with the Universal House of Justice about what he would be allowed to share with the Friends at the German and Swedish Winter Schools. All that he will say comes from the Writings, the messages of the Universal House of Justice and his consultation with the Universal House of Justice. Remember that Mr. Grossmann was a member of the Universal House of Justice from 2005-2010 and a member of the ITC 20 years before that.

He stated that The Lesser Peace will be established by 2021 (war forbidden) and that by then the leaders of the world will gather to investigate alternatives after a period of great suffering and will turn to the Baha’is to reorganize the world as the Baha’i Faith has shown only to be of service to mankind and is established around the world. The troops will then come in even in greater numbers”

And

“The lesser peace will be established by 2021 when world leaders recognize that only the Baha’is offer a world system established all over the world which is service-minded and concerned for all people’s well-being.”

Could the Department of the Secretariat please confirm or deny the correctness of these views on the timing of the Lesser Peace and whether they are indeed held by the Universal House of Justice or are in fact just the personal private opinions of Mr. Grossmann or Mr. Maytan’s portrayal of those remarks.

We are aware of a number of letters of both the House of Justice and the Guardian which indicate that the date of the Lesser Peace is not and cannot be known.

...

2. Response from the Universal House of Justice

Transmitted by email
22 October 2012

Dear Bahá’í Friend,

Your email letter of 28 August 2012, forwarding notes taken by a believer of remarks purportedly made by Mr. Hartmut Grossmann concerning various topics including the date of the Lesser Peace during a talk he gave at a Bahá’í winter school, has been received at the Bahá’í World Centre and passed to our Office for reply. The following has been provided in response to a similar query posed to the Universal House of Justice about the same set of notes:

It is unclear whether the notes are accurate. Nevertheless, while the perspectives of former members of the Universal House of Justice are no doubt accorded a certain respect because of insights that derive from their experience, such views are to be regarded by their fellow believers as matters of personal opinion and weighed in light of the Teachings.

With regard to the timing of the Lesser Peace, Shoghi Effendi stated, in a letter written on his behalf in 1946, “All we know is that the Lesser and the Most Great Peace will come—their exact dates we do not know.”
      (From a letter dated 19 March 2012 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

With loving Bahá’í greetings,
Office of Correspondence