THE HANDS OF THE CAUSE AND "THE CHICAGO
MANIFESTO"
At the close of Volume Two of Mason Remey's "Daily Observations,"
he placed a statement in which he recapitulated what he observed in Haifa
in the years immediately following the death of Shoghi Effendi. One event
that he refers to is the development of a document by the American Hands
of the Faith and the NSA of the United States which was called "A
New Bahá'í Era," but which gained so much notoriety
that it came to be known as "The Chicago Manifesto."
I think that it is absolutely vital for those who identify themselves as
Bahá'ís not only to be aware of what Mason Remey discloses
about this event but to see that what has been reproduced in The Ministry
of the Custodians relating to "A New Bahá'í Era"
verifies what Mason Remey wrote. Furthermore, because "A New Bahá'í
Era" had within it so many of the beliefs of current heterodox Bahá'ís,
I think it is imperative that everyone knows exactly what that document
said and then answer this pivotal question: If the positions established
in 'A New Bahá'í Era' are now the accepted teachings of the
organization under the sans-Guardian UHJ--as they are--why were the Hands
of the Faith so "distressed" (as they themselves stated) about
what the "New Era" document said?
Is the explanation really that which the Hands in the Holy Land claimed
in the messages that they sent and which are recorded in The Ministry
of the Custodians? Or is the explanation what Mason Remey provided
in his "Daily Observations"?
Submitted to the reader herein are the following: 1) What Mason Remey included
in Volume Two of his "Daily Observations" regarding the situation
that centers on "A New Bahá'í Era," 2) What The
Ministry of the Custodians provides about the situation, 3) A copy
of the document "A New Bahá'í Era", which I surmise
most people have never read, and 4) Some personal comments and questions
regarding the Hands and "The Chicago Manifesto."
1. MASON REMEY'S PERSPECTIVE:
His Statement at the close of Volume Two of "Daily Obseervations":
"...in America, led by Horace Holley, a Manifesto from Chicago was
issued that was signed by Holley, Paul Haney, and Mrs. True, entitled 'A
New Bahá'í Era'. It spoke of the Faith, Sans Guardian,
and explained that the Guardianship was a closed subject.
"This Chicago Manifesto stirred up a good deal of discussion amongst
the Hands in the Holy Land, who, although thoroughly in sympathy with the
substance of this Manifesto (this they specifically wrote to Holley), called
him down for thus making a stand that publicly proclaimed the Sans Guardian
doctrine. Thus were these Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land playing a
double-faced game; for they, by avoiding the subject, were thus conditioning
the believers, if it were possible, to forget about the Guardianship. Thus
did they intend to reinforce themselves in their own leadership of the
Faith and in their plans for creating a House of Justice in 1963--a House
they claimed would be infallible Sans Guardian!
"In order to put over onto the Bahá'í world the plans
of these Custodian Hands of the Faith, they had decided in the first conclave
that all of their actions should be kept a secret from the proletariat
of the Cause. In the Chicago Manifesto, those American Hands who signed
it broke the pact of secrecy when they consulted with the N.S.A. of the
United States. All nine members of this N.S.A. approved; and together with
the three American Hands, they signed the Manifesto."
What Mason Remey wrote on pages four and five of Volume Two:
"Rúhíyyih Khánum went down to Kampala
for the 1958 conference there as planned by the Guardian and there at one
of the meetings she announced that the Guardianship was Bada and
ended. Then later in a meeting of the Hands here in Haifa she explained
herself, saying that she spoke on the spur of the moment and without thought
and should not have announced this. This slip of the tongue proved to me
her inner conviction and thought, for those who speak without thinking
always say what they really think.
"Through Rúhíyyih Khánum's slip of the
tongue [was the end of the Guardianship announced] - and possibly and even
probably that of others of the Hands of the Cause - the Hands in America.
Horace Holley and Paul Haney met with the American N.S.A. in Chicago and
they issued a Manifesto that was circulated to a certain extent announcing
definitely that the Guardianship was ended for this Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh.
A copy of this got to Germany in some way and from there a copy was sent
to Haifa, together with the word that this was soon to be sent out in printed
form from the N.S.A. of the U.S.A. This was not sent here to us in Haifa.
This, to Rúhíyyih Khánum and others was an
unwise move and was a great shock to them, and a cablegram was sent immediately
to Horace saying not to circulate this document (it was already being set
up in type) - thus at this eleventh hour this was thus forestalled. However,
the cat was out of the bag, for the believers in some places and countries
were upset and protesting. In our meeting here of the Hands it was even
suggested that any people in opposition in their views to those of the
Hands in Haifa be expelled from the Faith without ado, but on reconsideration
it was decided to ignore these voices from abroad. In one instance in Latin
America some friends who questioned this matter had their voting rights
taken from them because of this stand."
2. FROM THE MINISTRY OF THE CUSTODIANS
On page 60 of Ministry is a cablegram of the "HANDSFAITH"
to the American Hands and N.S.A. of the U.S. dated February 3, 1958, a
portion of which is cited here:
CUSTODIANS SERIOUSLY DISTURBED STATEMENT A NEW BAHÁ'Í ERA
ISSUED AMERICAN HANDS NSA INTERPRETING ADDING BAHJI PROCLAMATION CONSIDER
THIS GRAVE DANGER UNITY FAITH URGE DELETE ALL REFERENCE DOOR APPOINTMENT
SECOND GUARDIAN CLOSED RIGHT NINE EXPEL COVENANT BREAKERS STOP STATEMENTS
THIS NATURE CAN BE MADE ONLY ENTIRE BODY HANDS AS CHIEF STEWARDS AND NOT
BY ANY NSA OR GROUP HANDS STOP THIS STATEMENT NOT YET RECEIVED BY CUSTODIANS
BUT EXCERPTS FORWARDED HERE WITH PROTESTS STOP
On the next page is the response written by Horace Holley as Secretary
of the N.S.A. and dated February 4, 1958. Only the opening paragraph of
the three-paragraph message is provided here:
"In accordance with your urgent request, steps are being taken to
delete from our statement 'A New Bahá'í Era' the reference
to the door being closed to any hope for a future second Guardian, and
the passage attributing to your body the authority to expel Covenant-breakers
from the Faith."
On page 64 is reproduced the cablegram of the "HANDSFAITH" to
"HANDS CARE BAHÁI WILMETTE" on February 16, 1958. It reads:
AFTER READING STATEMENT A NEW ERA CUSTODIANS VERY DISTRESSED DETAILED INTERPRETATION
BAHJI ELABORATION PROCLAMATION HANDS MAKING STATEMENTS WE FEEL ONLY ENTIRE
BODY CHIEF STEWARDS SHOULD ISSUE STOP URGE DO NOT PRINT AND CIRCULATE THIS
STATEMENT FURTHER BUT UNOBTRUSIVELY LET MATTER DROP STOP LOVE FROM ALL.
HANDSFAITH
On February 17, 1958, the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land wrote a follow-up
letter to the Members of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís
of the United States, excerpts of which follow:
"The letter from the Hand of the Cause Horace Holley dated February
4th with copy of the statement you issued entitled "A New Bahá'í
Era" was received, and after studying it very carefully we wish to
share our views with you regarding it, and explain to you the reasons which
prompted our recent cable requesting that certain points be deleted from
it."
They then say they had not directly received any copy of the statement
but had received "excerpts forwarded here by some of the Hands of
the Cause in Europe who were very distressed over the repercussions it
might have, and indeed was already having, on the believers there."
The Hands in the Holy Land then tell of their own distress: "Dear
friends, the nine Hands of the Faith serving here at the World Centre have
been very distressed that a statement of this magnitude, interpreting as
it does the Proclamation made by the twenty-seven Hands of the Faith when
they gathered in Bahji after the ascension of the beloved Guardian...should
have been issued without consultation with either the Custodians or the
body of the Hands of the Cause who are dispersed all over the world."
They then establish their basic concern to be the necessity of "preserving
the world character of the Cause of God, and this can obviously only be
done from the International Centre of the Faith..." They state that
"a continental interpretation of events" precipitates dangers
to the Cause, and then they write: "We have just cabled you, asking
you, without making any undue fuss or attracting attention to the fact
that you are doing so, to quietly divert attention, so to speak, from this
statement which has been recently issued. If no further emphasis is given
to it and the believers are encouraged to concentrate their full forces
on making the forthcoming Intercontinental Conference in Chicago a tremendous
success, which will be in itself a worthy American memorial to our dearly
beloved Shoghi Effendi, we feel that no serious harm will have been done."
On pages 66 and 67 of The Ministry of the Custodians is reproduced
the letter from the Hands in the Holy Land to Hand of the Cause, Horace
Holley, dated March 10, 1958. Again, the ostensible reason for the concern
of the Custodians is provided:
"...the Custodians have been made very conscious of the necessity
to strive for unity in the approach to fundamental matters affecting the
structure and future development of the Cause. The Custodians from East
and West are aware of the wisdom of avoiding statements or points of view
on basic issues which cannot be accepted equally by East and West, and
indeed by all of the Bahá'í world, especially in this period,
so soon after the ascension of the beloved Guardian, when we are still
unable to grasp the full implications of the present situation."
A follow-up paragraph begins: "You will now, we feel sure, understand
our delicate position and the reasons why we felt it necessary to urge
that the statement "A New Bahá'í Era" be withdrawn
from circulation."
On March 21, 1958, the Hands in the Holy Land wrote the other Hands, and
emphasis was placed on the necessity for the Holy Land being the focal
Centre of Unity, saying:
"...the only possible way the work of this holy Faith, which our beloved
Guardian inspired, organized and brought to such a high level, can be maintained
and further consolidated, is by focusing both the consciousness of the
believers and the work of the Cause of God upon its World Spiritual and
Administrative Centre. The strength of a wheel and its power to roll forward
are entirely dependent upon the hub, and the solidity of the spokes united
in the hub. We have come to see that the supreme work of the Hands--all
twenty-seven of them--is to maintain this focal Centre of Unity in the
Holy Land at this dangerous time the Faith is passing through." (Ministry,
p. 68)
Later in the letter reference to the Chicago Manifesto is made: "From
a recently issued statement of the America Hands and National Spiritual
Assembly, from letters received regarding remarks made by some of the Asiatic
and European Hands, it is becoming obvious that in a perfectly natural
course of human events, and with no awareness of its perils, there has
been a tendency for different interpretations of our present situation
and different prognostications of the future to be made. At times such
as this in history, when a firmly integrated organism is suddenly deprived
of its pivot, there is a strong centrifugal force released, and we believe
that the urgent and most sacred duty of the Hands now is to offset this
process at all costs." (Ministry, p. 69)
And still later: "Now with the sudden irreparable loss of our beloved
Guardian the Hands are compelled to see the Bahá'í world
as a whole, as he always did, to forget regional consciousness (although
of course they will continue to watch over the work in their respective
areas) , and to think on behalf of Shoghi Effendi of the world needs, world
protection, world consolidation of this mighty Faith." (Ministry,
p. 70.)
On June 12, 1958, the Hands in the Holy Land again wrote all the other
Hands and singled out one exception to the good news being received in
the Holy Land:
"the exception of one question which has weighed very heavily on our
minds and hearts and which we wish to share with you.
"You will remember we pointed out that from communications and reports
received here it was becoming obvious that there was a tendency for different
interpretations of our present situation and prognostications of the future
to be made.
"As most of you no doubt are aware, the American Hands issued, in
conjunction with the American National Spiritual Assembly, a statement
entitled 'A New Bahá'í Era' in order to meet the many questions
being raised by the believers and to assist them in focusing their attention
on the future work of the Crusade. We feel you should know that this statement
was read at forty conferences in the United States, and that copies were
mailed to all National Spiritual Assemblies who were daughter Assemblies
or allies of the America National Spiritual Assembly..." (Ministry,
p. 98.)
"We...felt a number of things should never have been said that were
included, though by and large, the whole statement is very sound. We therefore
cabled requesting that it be withdrawn from circulation and not appear
in 'Bahá'í News'. The American Hands and National Spiritual
Assembly immediately complied with this request and have since, in a most
loving and understanding manner, expressed their agreement with us. Unfortunately,
however, the statement has been widely published in Latin America. We have
received letters, because of this statement, and because of the nature
of the questions it attempted to answer, from the United States, the Canadian,
the Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Venezuela and Argentina, Bolivia,
Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay National Spiritual Assemblies, asking the Custodians
to state something clearly for the friends on the question so much discussed,
namely, the future of the Guardianship."
Two paragraphs later: "Believing, ourselves, that as we decided in
Bahji, the less said on this subject the better, we have until now strictly
refrained from going into the subject at all in any communications to Assemblies
or individuals sent from Haifa." (Ministry, p. 99)
On June 12, 1958, the Custodian Hands sent forth a "Statement regarding
the Guardianship" to those NSA's that had written about the issues
raised in the Chicago Manifesto. In the Custodians' statement they compressed
two non-adjacent paragraphs from the Manifesto into one, those that begin:
"Shoghi Effendi appointed no successor in his own lifetime..."
and "Since a successor could only be chosen and designated by Shoghi
Effendi..."
They then wrote: "We call upon all the believers, for the sake of
preserving the unity of our beloved Faith for which the Bab was martyred,
Bahá'u'lláh and the Master imprisoned, and for which the
beloved Guardian so completely sacrificed himself, to concentrate on the
thoughts expressed in the Proclamation, and to desist from all further
speculation on the future development of the institutions of the Faith--speculation
which can only give rise to those very differences of interpretation forbidden
by Bahá'u'lláh and 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and against which
they repeatedly warned us." (Ministry, pp. 100-101.)
3. THE DOCUMENT A NEW BAHÁ'Í ERA
"A NEW BAHÁ'Í ERA"
With the passing of the beloved Guardian, we believers have entered a new
era in the history of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. The landscape
has changed; in some aspects it is unfamiliar; we pause in temporary confusion
until we become accustomed to the new condition and can see its relationship
to the eternal verities of the revelation we have accepted with all our
hearts.
The American Hands of the Cause and the National Assembly deeply appreciate the need for reorientation in order to reunite the powers of understanding with the power of faith, since the Bahá'í Faith is conscious knowledge and not traditional indoctrination nor blind credulity. Ardor emanates from the unity of our whole being, when there is reconciliation and fusion of will, feeling and knowledge in the mystery of a God-given faith.
As we relate ourselves anew to the Bahá'í Revelation in its successive eras of unfoldment, we are assured that the Martyr-Prophet, the Bab, fulfilled His mission in terminating the prophetic era and inaugurating the era of world religion and world unity. We have full assurance that Bahá'u'lláh manifested the divine Love and Purpose in establishing a Universal Faith, a new Order. We likewise have full assurance that 'Abdu'l-Bahá, the Center of His Covenant with mankind, completed the structural pattern of the new Order, united the understanding and devotion of the Bahá'ís of East and West, revealed the Tablets of the Divine Plan destined to prepare humanity for the Most Great Peace, and conferred upon the Bahá'ís the unique blessing of the Guardian. The beloved Shoghi Effendi, appointed Guardian, interpreted the Master's Testament, pointed out the essential purpose of the Revelation, translated basic Bahá'í writings, preserved and developed the Holy Shrines, defined the functions of the Bahá'í institutions, and instituted successive teaching plans culminating in the World Crusade. From 1921 until 1957 Shoghi Effendi stood forth as the world leader of the Bahá'ís, their inspirer, guide and teacher, their link with the Heroic Age of their Faith. Without Shoghi Effendi, without a successor to the station of Guardianship, without his guidance for the future Universal House of Justice, how are we believers to teach the Cause and fulfill our individual and collective missions?
Here, as all the friends realize, are the vital questions we must answer before we can release our potential energies in service to the Cause of God. The answers are supremely important to our Bahá'í generation, even though if we fail in our mission we know that the Faith of God will raise up new Bahá'ís to take our place and complete our work.
The American Hands and your National Assembly therefore appeal for most earnest consideration, understanding and acceptance of the following facts and truths.
The Proclamation
The Proclamation prepared by the Hands of the Cause assembled in the Mansion of Bahá'u'lláh adopted and promulgated in their capacity of "Chief Stewards of the Embryonic World Commonwealth of Bahá'u'lláh," a station conferred upon the Hands by the Guardian in his last message to the Bahá'í world - a message written only a few weeks before his death. It is known from the physicians' examination after the Guardian's passing that his death was not caused by disease but by the complete exhaustion incurred during the unremitting labors of his thirty-six years of sacrifice to the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. This particular responsibility was therefore assigned to the Hands in the Guardian's awareness of his condition in order to create an international Bahá'í authority qualified to act after his own passing. The very phrase, "Chief Stewards of the Embryonic World Commonwealth of Bahá'u'lláh," establishes this fact. Herein lies the foundation for our rational understanding and acceptance of the new Bahá'í era.
As we know, the Proclamation conveyed the determination of the Hands "to carry out every aspect of the Guardian's wishes and hopes," thereby defining in these words their function and purpose to be trustees and custodians of Shoghi Effendi's expressed plans, which laid down the road of Bahá'í progress for years to come.
The Proclamation, likewise, in appointing nine of their number to serve at the World Center, revealed obedience to a definite provision of the Master's Testament. The work of the nine Hands is clearly explained in the text of the Proclamation, as is the function of the International Bahá'í Council in its evolution to fulfilment in the election of the Universal House of Justice, "the source of all good and freed from all error."
All claim to capacity of interpretation by the Hands is disavowed in the Proclamation. They will coordinate the activities of the National Assemblies, energize the believers in their services to the World Crusade, receive and act upon reports from the Hands of the Cause located in the several continents, and answer questions by references to the Teachings which throw light upon the particular problem. Finally, (also in accordance with the Master's Testament) the nine Hands will exercise the authority to expel Covenant-Breakers from the Bahá'í community.
The Guardianship
Shoghi Effendi appointed no successor in his own lifetime because he himself had no natural heir and because no member of the Holy Family qualified. The Master's Testament is the sole authority controlling the appointment of successive Guardians, and its specific provisions were scrupulously upheld by the Guardian in his non-appointment of a second Guardian.
Shoghi Effendi, moreover, could not leave a written will and testament because he possessed no personal estate but held title to the Shrines and the International Fund solely in his capacity as Guardian. The designation of the Hands as Chief Stewards provides a body of trustees capable of serving as custodians but not as successor to the Guardianship.
Since a successor could only be chosen and designated by Shoghi Effendi in his own lifetime, the friends must dismiss all hopeful expectation that a will appointing a second Guardian may later be found. The door to the appointment of a second Guardian, as far as can be determined by reference to the Bahá'í writings, is closed. Neither the Hands of the Cause nor the Universal House of Justice has been endowed with authority for such appointment.
The Universal House of Justice
Shoghi Effendi wrote "The Dispensation of Bahá'u'lláh" in February, 1934. The twenty-three and a half years intervening between that date and the hour of his passing produced a stupendous development in the operation of local and National Assemblies, the station of the Hands of the Cause, and in our knowledge of the laws and principles as well as teachings recorded in the Holy Text. In fact, the Bahá'í World Community received from Shoghi Effendi the guidance and direction needed until 1963 and for years thereafter. The Guardianship continues in terms of Shoghi Effendi's peerless accomplishments even though the person of the Guardian has been called to a higher world.
No Bahá'í text declares that the House of Justice cannot be elected without a Guardian. The House, as an independent institution, is assured of Divine Guidance in acting upon matters lying within its own special province. More than once Shoghi Effendi declared that he need not attend all sessions of the House of Justice as he would be occupied with his own separate affairs. In the Guardian's writings the members of the House of Justice possess a body of material uniquely supplementing the Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh and of 'Abdu'l-Bahá.
A New Bahá'í Era
The final question which arises from the grief-stricken hearts of Bahá'ís is: why should we be deprived of a Guardian? Even though we begin to realize how we can serve and how we can teach, the mystery of this loss still remains. It marks a change in the structural pattern of the Bahá'í World Community which has come about for no human cause or reason.
Here, beloved friends, we must raise our vision to that highest realm, the Will of God, which (as the Guardian pointed out in his letter referring to the Persian persecutions) can intervene in the Bahá'í Plan, apparently disrupt its operation, but in the long run reinforce the Bahá'í Plan. That Realm of Mystery is higher even than the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh; it is whence all the Manifestations are bidden to appear and whence They are inspired and directed.
The passing of the Guardian does not and cannot represent a failure of the Master to perpetuate a faithful Holy Family, nor of Bahá'u'lláh to guide and guard His Faith. It represents no failure of Shoghi Effendi, whose record as Guardian elicits our profoundest admiration and gratitude. We can only behold in this strange event an intervention of God's Plan and await with certitude a mighty reinforcement of Bahá'í capacity and opportunity, and a great, unexpected spiritual quickening within the peoples of the world.
This is the answer to the why. The year 1957 was a fateful period for the nation and for human survival as well as for all Bahá'ís.
Understanding is fulfilled in action. We Bahá'ís are confronted with the greatest challenge our generation of believers has ever encountered. We are called upon to attain true maturity, as when youth becomes manhood with the death of a kind and protective father, and destiny can no longer be met at second hand.
Not only the individual believer but also the local and national Assemblies must become mature, fulfilling their functions as trustees elected by the community and charged with definite responsibilities for the progress of the Faith. Our goal is 1963, the termination and climax of the World Crusade, when the foundations must be prepared for the election of the future House of Justice. That revered body, in consultation with the surviving Hands of the Cause, can determine the future operation of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh. We are the bridge between the passing of the Guardian and the formation of the Universal House of Justice. We pray to God that we may be faithful to our sacred trust.
"Lauded be thy Name, O Lord my God! Darkness hath fallen upon every land, and the forces of mischief have encompassed all the nations. Through them, however, I perceive the splendors of Thy wisdom, and discern the brightness of the light of Thy providence.
"They that are shut out as by a veil from Thee have imagined that they have the power to put out Thy light, and to quench Thy fire, and to still the winds of Thy grace. Nay, and to this Thy might beareth me witness! Had not every tribulation been made the bearer of Thy wisdom, and every ordeal the vehicle of Thy providence, no one would have dared oppose us, though the powers of earth and heaven were to be leagued against us. Were I to unravel the wondrous mysteries of Thy wisdom which are laid bare before me, the reins of Thine enemies would be cleft asunder.
"Glorified be Thou, then, O my God! I beseech Thee by Thy most Great Name to assemble them that love Thee around the Law that streameth from the good pleasure of Thy will and to send down upon them what will assure their hearts.
Potent art Thou to do what pleaseth Thee. Thou art, verily the Help in Peril, the Self-Subsisting."
American Hands of the Cause
National Spiritual Assembly
*****
4. In his "Daily Observations" Mason Remey described what happened during the course of the first conclave of the Hands of the Cause in November of 1957. He told how one of the Persian Hands sprang to his feet and proposed that the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Baha be pronounced as bada and that the Guardianship be ended. He noted that the motion was supported by the Persian Hands and Ruhiyyih Khanum so that the issue was carried by the majority, but, as Mason Remey pointed out "these Hands decided that it would not do at that time to announce to the world their abandoment of the Guardianship since there would be many believers to whom this would be a great shock and disappointment; therefore, it was decided in their Proclamation to the world that no mention was to be made of the word 'Guardianship'..." So why the subsequent cover-up? Was it really to prevent the believers throughout the world from experiencing shock and disappointment?
Furthermore, what was it within the document "A New Baha'i Era" that created such concern--not only within the Hands in the Holy Land but in the believers throughout the world? After all, aren't the statements in that document now accepted by mainstream Baha'is as the basic tenets of the changed covenant to which they themselves are loyal?
Yet in a letter of February 17, 1958 here were the Hands in the Holy
Land recommending to the American N.S.A. that they should "quietly
divert attention...from this statement." And in their letter to Horace
Holley of March 10, 1958, they refer to "the wisdom of avoiding statements
or points of view on basic issues which cannot be accepted equally by East
and West, and indeed by all the Baha'i world". Or, as they phrase
it in their February 17, 1958, letter to the American NSA, "a continental
interpretation of events" could precipitate dangers to the Cause.
To which statements were they referring? Were they any of the following?
What the Hands in the Holy Land singled out in their cablegram of February
3, 1958 to the American Hands and the American N.S.A, calling for their
deletion, were the "REFERENCE DOOR APPOINTMENT SECOND GUARDIAN CLOSED"
and "RIGHT NINE EXPEL COVENANT BREAKERS."
Therefore, what were the so-called "statements or points of view on
basic issues which cannot be accepted equally by East and West, and indeed
by all the Baha'i world" to which they referred?
The fact is that to the followers of the sans-Guardian UHJ today, just
about all of "A New Baha'i Era" is considered to be basic to
their organization--even the right of the Hands of the Faith to expel Covenant-Breakers,
but especially the references to the impossibility of there being another
Guardian.
I am one of those who do not ascribe to the beliefs of the sans-Guardian
UhJ organization regarding the succession of the Faith or of the Hands
being authorized to expel Covenant-Breakers. It is my contention that the
mainstream Baha'is now have their "New Baha'i Era" primarily
because of the success of the Hands of the Cause in conditioning the believers
to believe that the "Chief Stewards of Baha'u'llah's embryonic World
Commonwealth" could be a collective guardianship and in the Hands'
selling the idea that Shoghi Effendi had called for the formation of a
sans-Guardian Universal House of Justice at the conclusion of the World
Crusade in 1963 . For that conditioning process to work, the Hands had
to be united in what they provided to the believers. Mason Remey, of course,
was opposed to that conditioning process, and as his "Daily Observations"
show, until his departure from the Holy Land he constantly remonstrated
with the Hands regarding their abandonment of the Guardianship and of the
Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Baha, for he recognized what they were doing
was a "double-faced game," essentially because the other Hands
of the Faith did not want a second Guardian.
In their now-established Guardian-less Baha'i Era, the mainstream Baha'is
in the year 2000 are united in an organizational pattern that resulted
from the calculated efforts of all the Hands of the Faith, save one.
Sincerely,
Frank Schlatter