At this point, one of the attendees inquired: ‘How, then, are we to defend ourselves?’ [if attacked physically] To this, the Master replied:
Indeed, reward and punishment constitute the basis of order in this world. For instance, were a person to come here and attempt to strike you - or even murder you - it would be unseemly for me to sit and remain silent. In such a situation, I must certainly rise up to defend you.
- 'Abdu'l-Baha (Words of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, 25 December 1912, London, England, recorded by Mahmud Zarqani, His secretary and chronicler during His travels in the West; ‘Mahmud’s Diary’, vol. 2: ‘Abdu’l-Baha in Europe 1912-1913)