At the close of 1996 and the beginning of a new year, an individual espousing orthodox Bahá'í views attempted to establish on the heterodox Bahá'í newsgroup "soc.religion.bahai" a series of points regarding the continuing Guardianship. The series was intended to direct the reader's attention to what the writings of the Faith offer concerning the actual Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh. But the projected post, which contains the following statements, was rejected by a co-moderator of the newsgroup, whose statements about the posting are provided following the series of points. The reader is encouraged to note that the heterodox Bahá'í position is diametrically opposed to what can be found in the writings of the Faith.
Here are cited passages within the posting that was rejected by the heterodox Bahá'í newsgroup:
1. Shoghi Effendi in "The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh" states that the Kitab-i-Aqdas and the Will and Testament of Abdu'l-Bahá are "inseparable parts of one complete unit". page 4
2. The Will and Testament decrees that all, including the members of the Universal House of Justice, must "show their obedience, submissiveness and subordination unto the guardian of the Cause of God". W&T, p. 11, 1944 edition.
3. Responsibilities of the Guardian, as stated in the
W&T, include:
a. "Expounder of the words of God" - p. 11
b. To appoint in his own lifetime a successor - p. 12
c. To nominate and appoint the Hands of the Cause of God - p. 12
d. To be the director of the Hands for he "must continually urge them
to strive and endeavor ...." - p. 13
e. Is the "sacred head" of the UHJ "for life of that body"
- p. 14
f. "Should he [the guardian] not attend in person its [ the UHJ's]
deliberations, he must appoint one to represent him." - p. 14
g. "Should any of the members [of the UHJ] commit a sin injurious
to the common weal, the guardian of the Cause of God hath at his own discretion
the right to expel him..." p. 14
h. "...the executive [the guardian] must aid and assist the legislative
body [the UHJ] so that through the close union and harmony of these two
forces, the foundation of fairness and justice may become firm and strong..."
p. 15
i. The Huquq "is to be offered through the guardian of the Cause of
God..." p. 15
j. "The mighty stronghold shall remain impregnable and safe through
obedience to him who is the guardian of the Cause of God." p. 11
4. Shoghi Effendi in "The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh",
page 8, states that the guardianship --
a. "Enhances the prestige" of" the UHJ
b. Stabilizes the UHJ's supreme position
c. Safeguards the unity of the UHJ
d. Assures the continuity of the UHJ's labors
5. On p. 148 of "The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh", Shoghi Effendi states that the Guardian is the "Interpreter of the Word of God". (See also pages 149-150.)
6. On page 150 of "The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh", Shoghi Effendi states: "...He (the Guardian) cannot override the decision of the majority of his fellow-members [of the UHJ], but is bound to insist upon a reconsideration by them of any enactment he conscientiously believes to conflict with the meaning and to depart from the spirit of Bahá'u'lláh's revealed utterances..."
7. Responsibilities of the UHJ as stated in the W&T
:
a. "Unto the Most Holy Book every one must turn and all that is not
expressly recorded therein must be referred to the Universal House of Justice"
- p. 19
b. The UHJ "enacteth all ordinances and regulations that are not to
be found in the explicit Holy Text." - p. 14
c. The "guardian of the Cause of God is its sacred head and the distinguished
member for life" of the UHJ. - p. 14
d. "The legislative body must reinforce the executive." - p.
15
e. The members of the UHJ must "show their obedience, submissiveness
and subordination unto the guardian of the Cause of God, to turn unto him
and be lowly before him." - p. 11
"Once the mind and heart have grasped the fact that God guides men through a Mouthpiece, a human being, a Prophet, infallible and unerring, it is only a logical projection of this acceptance to also accept the station of Abdu'l-Bahá and the Guardians....In this Dispensation, divine guidance flows on to us in this world after the Prophet's ascension, through, first the Master, and then the Guardians." - Shoghi Effendi, "Bahá'í News", June 1950, page 8.
============= End of statements given in the submitted post =================
The moderator rejected the posting, using the following explanation:
"As it stands, your submittal strongly implies a need for a living Guardian. Posts such as this that are contrary to the Covenant are forbidden by the newsgroup charter. An acceptable post would have quotes from the Hands of the Cause and the Universal House of Justice which explain the situation and how the Covenant has remained intact with the absence of the Guardian. Good references for such quotes are the message to all National Spiritual Assemblies from the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land dated October 15, 1960, a cablegram from the Universal House of Justice dated October 6, 1963 and the letter dated May 27, 1966 from the Universal House of Justice and quoted beginning on page 81 of the book Wellspring of Guidance."
He also wrote: "These implications might be that no one has the right to put forward their interpretation of the 'binding terms of reference' as authoritative in the slightest degree. Although, if there were a Guardian today, he would surely have the right to interpret and expound upon the words of wisdom from those authorities that came before him, that right is now gone for anyone among us until 'Almighty God shall reveal His new Manifestation'. Until then, we have our Guardian who - although not physically living - is still very much with us 'absolute and immutable'."
When the writer of the original post, in a follow-up e-mail, asked how the words of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi could be contrary to the Covenant, the moderator wrote: "All of your quotes paint half a picture if you will. They are all quotes which imply the need for the Universal House of Justice and the Guardian to work together. Particularly that they must work together physically - as, of course, was assumed by the Bahá'ís until the time of Shoghi Effendi's death. What you have failed to include was mention of the fact that Shoghi Effendi was not able to appoint another Guardian, and thus, these two Institutions must interact only figuratively instead of physically.
"Since your post does not refer at all to this but only leaves the impression that both Institutions must co-exist physically at the same time - it leaves an impression for the non-Bahá'ís in our audience which is contrary to the clear Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh established by the twin documents of Bahá'u'lláh's Kitab-i-Ahd and the Will and Testament of Abdu'l-Bahá. Such a post is rejectable by the moderators according to the charter of the newsgroup."
The moderator then reiterated that to balance the posting, the writer should use quotations from the Hands of the Cause and the body that heterodox Bahá'ís know as a Universal House of Justice [minus its sacred head], and then the document could perhaps be placed on the newsgroup.
Those of us who are Orthodox Bahá'ís find it very difficult to comprehend how heterodox Bahá'ís can come to their astonishingly different perspective of the Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh in light of the words of both 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi regarding the institutions of the Administrative Order of Bahá'u'lláh. The "clear Covenant" that the moderator of the heterodox newsgroup has in mind is obviously very different from the Covenant that is provided in 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Will and Testament and elucidated by Shoghi Effendi in "The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh."