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The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the Netherlands
Dear Bahá'í Friends,
[23.1] We are glad that you have brought to our attention the
questions perplexing some of the believers. It is much better
for these questions to be put freely and openly than to have
them, unexpressed, burdening the hearts of devoted believers.
Once one grasps certain basic principles of the Revelation of
Bahá'u'lláh such uncertainties are easily dispelled. This is
not to say that the Cause of God contains no mysteries.
Mysteries there are indeed, but they are not of a kind to
shake one's faith once the essential tenets of the Cause and
the indisputable facts of any situation are clearly
understood.
[23.2] The questions put by the various believers
fall into three groups. The first group centers upon the
following queries: Why were steps taken to elect a Universal
House of Justice with the foreknowledge that there would be
no Guardian? Was the time ripe for such an action? Could not
the International Bahá'í Council have carried on the work?
The Election of the Universal House of Justice
[23.3] At the time of our beloved Shoghi Effendi's death it was
evident, from the circumstances and from the explicit requirements
of the Holy Texts, that it had been impossible for him to appoint a
successor in accordance with the provisions of the Will and
Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. This situation, in which the
Guardian died without being able to appoint a successor,
presented an obscure question not covered by the explicit Holy
Text, and had to be referred to the Universal House of
Justice. The friends should clearly understand that before the
election of the Universal House of Justice there was no
knowledge that there would be no Guardian. There could not
have been any such foreknowledge, whatever opinions individual
believers may have held. Neither the Hands of the Cause of
God, nor the International Bahá'í Council, nor any
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other existing body could make a decision upon this
all-important matter.' Only the House of Justice had authority
to pronounce upon it. This was one urgent reason for calling
the election of the Universal House of Justice as soon as
possible.
[23.4 ] Following the passing of Shoghi Effendi the
international administration of the Faith was carried on
by the Hands of the Cause of God with the complete agreement
and loyalty of the National Spiritual Assemblies and the body
of the believers. This was in accordance with the Guardian's
designation of the Hands as the "Chief Stewards of
Bahá'u'lláh's embryonic World Commonwealth."2
[23.5] From the very outset of their custodianship of the Cause
of God the Hands realized that since they had no certainty of divine
guidance such as is incontrovertibly assured to the Guardian
and to the Universal House of Justice, their one safe course
was to follow with undeviating firmness the instructions and
policies of Shoghi Effendi. The entire history of religion
shows no comparable record of such strict self-discipline,
such absolute loyalty and such complete self-abnegation by the
leaders of a religion finding themselves suddenly deprived of
their divinely inspired guide. The debt of gratitude which
mankind for generations, nay, ages to come, owes to this
handful of grief-stricken, steadfast, heroic
souls is beyond estimation.
[23.6] The Guardian had given the Bahá'í world explicit and
detailed plans Covering the period until Ridvan 1963, the end
of the Ten Year Crusade. From that point onward, unless the
Faith were to be endangered, further divine guidance was
essential. This was the second pressing reason for the calling
of the election of the Universal House of Justice. The rightness
of the time was further confirmed by references in Shoghi
Effendi's letters to the Ten Year Crusade's being followed
by other plans under the direction of the Universal House of
Justice. One such reference is the following passage from a
letter addressed to the National Spiritual Assembly of the
British Isles on 25th February 1951, concerning its Two Year
Plan which immediately preceded the Ten Year Crusade:
[23.6a] On the success of this enterprise, unprecedented in its scope,
unique in its character and immense in its spiritual
potentialities, must depend the initiation, at a later period
in the Formative Age of the Faith, of undertakings embracing
within their range all National Assemblies functioning
throughout the Bahá'í world--undertakings constituting in
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themselves a prelude to the launching of worldwide enterprises
destined to be embarked upon, in future epochs of that same
Age, by the Universal House of Justice, that will symbolize
the unity and coordinate and unify the activities of these
National Assemblies.3
[23.7] Having been in charge of the Cause of God for six years,
the Hands, with absolute faith in the Holy Writings, called
upon the believers to elect the Universal House of Justice,
and even went so far as to ask that they themselves be not
voted for. The sole, sad instance of anyone succumbing to the
allurements of power was the pitiful attempt of Charles Mason
Remey to usurp the Guardianship.4
Principles Governing the Election of the House of Justice
[23.8] The following excerpts from a Tablet of
'Abdu'l-Bahá state clearly and emphatically the principles
with which the friends are already familiar from the Will and
Testament of the Master and the various letters of Shoghi
Effendi, and explain the basis for the election of the
Universal House of Justice. This Tablet was sent to Persia by
the beloved Guardian himself, in the early years of his
ministry, for circulation among the believers.
[23.9] . . . for 'Abdu'l-Bahá is in a tempest of dangers and infinitely abhors
differences of opinion . . . Praise be to God, there are no
grounds for differences.
[23.10] The Bab, the Exalted One, is the Morn of Truth, the splendor of Whose light shineth through all regions. He is also the Harbinger of the Most Great Light,
the Abha Luminary. The Blessed Beauty is the One promised by
the sacred books of the past, the revelation of the Source of
light that shone upon Mount Sinai, Whose fire glowed in the
midst of the Burning Bush. We are, one and all, servants of
Their threshold, and stand each as a lowly keeper at Their
door.
[23.11] My purpose is this, that ere the expiration of a
thousand years, no one has the right to utter a single word,
even to claim the station of Guardianship. The Most Holy Book
is the Book to which all peoples shall refer, and in it the
Laws of God have been revealed. Laws not mentioned
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in the Book should be referred to the decision of the
Universal House of Justice. There will be no grounds for
difference . . . Beware, beware lest anyone create a rift or
stir up sedition. Should there be differences of opinion, the
Supreme House of Justice would immediately resolve the
problems. Whatever will be its decision, by majority vote,
shall be the real truth, inasmuch as that House is under the
protection, unerring guidance and care of the one true Lord.
He shall guard it from error and will protect it under the
wing of His sanctity and infallibility. He who opposes it is
cast out and will eventually be of the defeated.
[23.12] The Supreme House of Justice should be elected according to the
system followed in the election of the parliaments of Europe.
And when the countries would be guided, the Houses of justice
of the various countries would elect the Supreme House of
Justice.
[23.13] At whatever time all the beloved of God in each
country appoint their delegates, and these in turn elect
their representatives, and these representatives elect a body,
that body shall be regarded as the Supreme House of Justice.
[23.14] The establishment of that House is not dependent upon the
conversion of all the nations of the world. For example, if
conditions were favorable and no disturbances would be caused,
the friends in Persia would elect their representatives, and
likewise the friends in America, in India, and other areas
would also elect their representatives, and these would elect
a House of Justice. That House of justice would be the Supreme
House of Justice. That is all. (Makatib-i-Abdu'l-Bahá, Vol. 111, pp. 500-501)
[ 23.15] The friends should realize that there is nothing in the Texts
to indicate that the election of the Universal House of
Justice could be called only by the Guardian. On the contrary,
'Abdu'l-Bahá envisaged the calling of its election in His own
lifetime. At a time described by the Guardian as "the darkest
moments of His [the Master's] life, under Abdu'l-Hamid's
regime, when He stood ready to be deported to the most
inhospitable regions of Northern Africa," and when even His
life was threatened, 'Abdu'l-Bahá wrote to Haji Mirza Taqi
Afnan, the cousin of the Bab and chief builder of the
'Ishqabad Temple, commanding him to arrange for the election
of the Universal House of Justice should the threats against
the Master materialize.5 The second part of the Master's Will
is also relevant to such a situation and should be studied by
the friends.
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The Authority of the Universal House of Justice
[23.16] The second series of problems vexing some of the friends
centers on the question of the infallibility of the Universal
House of Justice and its ability to function without the
presence of the Guardian. Particular difficulty has been
experienced in understanding the implications of the following
statement by the beloved Guardian:
[23.16a] Divorced from the institution of the Guardianship the
World Order of Bahá'u'lláh would be mutilated and permanently
deprived of that hereditary principle which, as 'Abdu'l-Bahá
has written, has been invariably upheld by the Law of God. "In
all the Divine Dispensations," He states, in a Tablet
addressed to a follower of the Faith in Persia, "the eldest
son hath been given extraordinary distinctions. Even the
station of prophethood hath been his birthright." Without such
an institution the integrity of the Faith would be imperiled,
and the stability of the entire fabric would be gravely
endangered. Its prestige would suffer, the means required to
enable it to take a long, an uninterrupted view over a series
of generations would be completely lacking, and the necessary
guidance to define the sphere of the legislative action of its
elected representatives would be totally withdrawn. ("The
Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh," The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh,
p. 148)
[23.17] Let the friends who wish for a clearer understanding
of this passage at the present time consider it
in the light of the many other texts which deal with the same
subject, for example the following passages gleaned from the
letters of Shoghi Effendi:
[23.17a] They have also, in unequivocal and emphatic language, appointed those twin
institutions of the House of Justice and of the Guardianship
as their chosen Successors, destined to apply the principles,
promulgate the laws, protect the institutions, adapt loyally
and intelligently the Faith to the requirements of progressive
society, and consummate the incorruptible inheritance which
the Founders of the Faith have bequeathed to the world.
(Letter dated 21 March 1930, The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh,
p. 20)
[23.17b] It must be also clearly understood by every
believer that the institution of Guardianship does not under
any circumstances abrogate, or even in the slightest degree
detract from, the powers granted to the Universal House of
Justice by Bahá'u'lláh in the "Kitabu'l-Aqdas," and repeatedly
and solemnly confirmed by 'Abdu'l-Bahá in His Will. It does
not constitute in any manner a contradiction to the Will and
Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, nor does it nullify any of His
revealed instructions. It
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enhances the prestige of that exalted assembly, stabilizes its
supreme position, safeguards its unity, assures the continuity
of its labors, without presuming in the slightest to infringe
upon the inviolability of its clearly defined sphere of
jurisdiction. We stand indeed too close to so monumental a
document to claim for ourselves a complete understanding of
all its implications, or to presume to have grasped the
manifold mysteries it undoubtedly contains.... (Letter dated
27 February 1929, The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 8)
[23.17c] From these statements it is made indubitably clear and evident
that the Guardian. of the Faith has been made the
Interpreter of the Word and that the Universal House of
Justice has been invested with the function of legislating on
matters not expressly revealed in the teachings. The
interpretation of the Guardian, functioning within his own
sphere, is as authoritative and binding as the enactments of
the International House of Justice, whose exclusive right and
prerogative is to pronounce upon and deliver the final
judgment on such laws and ordinances as Bahá'u'lláh has not
expressly revealed. Neither can, nor will ever, infringe upon
the sacred and prescribed domain of the other. Neither will
seek to curtail the specific and undoubted authority with
which both have been divinely invested. ("The Dispensation of
Bahá'u'lláh," The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, pp. 11 49-50)
[23.17d] Each exercises, within the limitations imposed upon it, its
powers, its authority, its rights and prerogatives.
These are neither contradictory, nor detract in the slightest
degree from the position which each of these institutions
occupies. ("The Dispensation of BaMV16h," The World Order of
Bahá'u'lláh, p. 148)
[23.17e] Though the Guardian of the Faith has been
made the permanent head of so august a body he can
never, even temporarily, assume the right of exclusive
legislation. He cannot override the decision of the majority
of his fellow-members ("The Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh," The
World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 150)
[23.18] Above all, let the hearts of the friends be assured by these
words of Bahá'u'lláh:
[23.18a] The Hand of Omnipotence hath established His Revelation upon
an unassailable, an enduring foundation. Storms of
human strife are powerless to, undermine its basis, nor will
men's fanciful theories succeed in damaging its structure.
(The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 109)
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and these of 'Abdu'l-Bahá:
[23.18b] Verily, God effecteth that which He pleaseth; naught
can annul His Covenant; naught can obstruct His favor nor
oppose His Cause! He doeth with His will that which pleaseth
Him and He is powerful over all things! (Tablets of
Abdu'l-Bahá Abbas, Vol. III, P. 598)
[23.19] It should be understood by the friends that before legislating upon any
matter the Universal House of Justice studies carefully and
exhaustively both the Sacred Texts and the Writings of Shoghi
Effendi on the subject. The interpretations written by the
beloved Guardian cover a vast range of subjects and are
equally as binding as the Text itself.
Interpretations of the Guardian and Elucidations of the Universal House of Justice
[23.20] There is a profound difference
between the interpretations of the Guardian and the
elucidations of the House of Justice in exercise of its
function to "deliberate upon all problems which have caused
difference, questions that are obscure and matters that are
not expressly recorded in the Book." The Guardian reveals what
the Scripture means; his interpretation is a statement of
truth which cannot be varied. Upon the Universal House of
Justice, in the words of the Guardian, "has been conferred the
exclusive right of legislating on matters not expressly
revealed in the Bahá'í writings.6 Its pronouncements, which
are susceptible of amendment or abrogation by the House of
Justice itself, serve to supplement and apply the Law of God.
Although not invested with the function of interpretation, the
House of Justice is in a position to do everything necessary
to establish the World Order of Bahá'u'lláh on this earth.
Unity of doctrine is maintained by the existence of the
authentic texts of Scripture and the voluminous
interpretations of Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi together
with the absolute prohibition against anyone propounding
"authoritative" or "inspired" interpretations or usurping the
function of Guardian. Unity of administration is assured by
the authority of the Universal House of Justice.
[23.21] 'Such," in the words of Shoghi Effendi, "is the
immutability of His revealed Word. Such is the elasticity
which characterizes the functions of His appointed ministers. The
first preserves the identity of His Faith, and guards the
integrity of His law. The second enables it, even as a living
organism, to expand and adapt itself to the needs and
requirements of an ever-changing society."
(Letter dated 21 March 1930, The World Order of
Bahá'u'lláh, p. 23)
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[23.22] Every true believer, if he is to deepen in his understanding
of the Cause of Bahá'u'lláh must needs combine profound faith
in the unfailing efficacy of His Message and His Covenant,
with the humility of recognizing that no one of this
generation can claim to have embraced the vastness of His Cause nor to have comprehended
the manifold mysteries and potentialities it contains. The words
of Shoghi Effendi bear ample testimony to this fact:
[23.22a] How vast is the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh! How great the
magnitude of His blessings showered upon humanity in
this day! And yet, how poor, how inadequate our conception of
their significance and glory! This generation stands too close
to so colossal a Revelation to appreciate, in their full
measure, the infinite possibilities of His Faith, the
unprecedented character of His Cause, and the mysterious
dispensations of His Providence. (Letter dated 21 March 1930,
The World Order Bahá'u'lláh, p. 24)
[23.22b] We are called upon by our beloved Master in His Will and Testament not only to
adopt it [Bahá'u'lláh's new world order] unreservedly, but to
unveil its merit to all the world. To attempt to estimate its
full value, and grasp its exact significance after so short
a time since its inception would be premature and presumptuous
on our part. We must trust to time, and the guidance of God's
Universal House of Justice, to obtain a clearer and fuller
understanding of its provisions and implications. . . . (Letter dated
23 February 1924, published in Bahá'í Administration, p. 62)
[23.22c] As to the order and the management of the spiritual affairs
of the friends, that which is very important now is the
consolidation of the Spiritual Assemblies in every center,
because on these fortified and unshakable foundations, God's
Supreme House of justice shall be erected and firmly
established in the days to come. When this most great Edifice
shall be reared on such an immovable foundation, Gods purpose,
wisdom, universal truths, mysteries and realities of the
Kingdom, which the mystic revelation of Bahá'u'lláh has
deposited within the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, shall
gradually be revealed and made manifest. (Letter dated 19
December 1923-translated from the Persian)
[23.23 ] Statements such as these indicate that the full meaning of the
Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, as well as an
understanding of the implications of the World Order ushered
in by that remarkable document can be revealed only gradually
to men's eyes, and after the Universal House of Justice has
come into being. The friends are called upon to trust to time
and to await the guidance of the Universal House of Justice,
which, as circumstances require, will make pronouncements that
will resolve and clarify obscure matters.
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The Authority to Expel Members of the House of Justice
[23.24] The third group of queries raised by the friends
concerns details of functioning of the Universal House of
Justice in the absence of the Guardian, particularly the
matter of expulsion of members of the House of Justice. Such
questions will be clarified in the Constitution of the House
of Justice, the formulation of which is a goal of the Nine
Year Plan. Meanwhile the friends are informed that any member
committing a 'sin injurious to the common weal," may be
expelled from membership of the House of Justice by a majority
vote of the House itself.7 Should any member, God forbid, be
guilty of breaking the Covenant, the matter would be
investigated by the Hands of the Cause of God, and the
Covenant-breaker would be expelled by decision of the Hands
of the Cause of God residing in the Holy Land, subject to the
approval of the House of Justice, as in the case of any other
believer. The decision of the Hands in such a case would be
announced to the Bahá'í world by the Universal House of
Justice.
[23.25] We are certain that when you share this letter
with the friends and they have these quotations from the
Scriptures and the Writings of the Guardian drawn to their
attention, their doubts and misgivings will be dispelled and
they will be able to devote their every effort to spreading
the Message of Bahá'u'lláh, serenely confident in the power
of His Covenant to overcome whatever tests an inscrutable
Providence may shower upon it, thus demonstrating its ability
to redeem a travailing world and to upraise the Standard of
the Kingdom of God on earth.
With loving greetings,
THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE
NOTES
23-1. The International Bahá'í Council, first appointed by Shoghi
Effendi in 1951 and, after his passing, elected in 1961 by
members of National Spiritual Assemblies, was a precursor of
the Universal House of Justice. It ceased to exist upon the
election of the Universal House of Justice in 1963.
23-2. MBW, p. 127.
23-3. UD, P. 261. 23-4. Charles Mason Remey, a prominent
early American believer who was much loved by Abdu'l-Bahá,
traveled widely in service to the Faith. In January 1951 he
was appointed by Shoghi Effendi to be President of the
International Bahá'í Council and, the following year, was
appointed a Hand of the Cause of God to serve in the Holy
Land. After the passing of Shoghi Effendi on 4 November 1957,
Charles Mason Remey served as one of the nine Custodian Hands
designated by the body of the Hands of the Cause to administer
the Faith from Haifa. In April 1960 he proclaimed himself to
be the Second Guardian of the Cause (see BW 13:353 n). This
attempt to usurp the Guardianship resulted in his expulsion
from the Faith as a Covenant-breaker. For the announcement of
his passing, see the message dated 5 April 1974 (no. 144).
23-5. WT, P. 20; WOB, P. 17
23-6. WOB, P. 153.
23-7. WT, P. 14. See also CUHJ, p. 12.