“FATHER, FORGIVE THEM, FOR THEY KNOW NOT WHAT THEY DO” – JESUS CHRIST

The above words uttered by Jesus Christ on the cross at the hour of His crucifixion may aptly be applied to the equally despicable spiritual crucifixion by the Hands of the Cause of Mason Remey, following the issuance of his Proclamation to the Baha’í World at Ridván 1960, as the second Guardian of the Cause of God.

Can we forgive, however, the inexplicable spiritual blindness and loss of faith in the indestructible Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh and the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá—the sacred and immortal “Child of the Covenant”—exhibited by his fellow-Hands, who had but recently attained their spiritual rank. For, in the hasty and unwarranted decision they would make to declare the Guardianship at an end upon the passing of Shoghi Effendi in 1957, they would destroy not only the “Center of the Cause” but, as well, the institution of the Hands of the Cause (who are solely appointed by the Guardian) and the Universal House of Justice, over which only the Guardian presides for life as its “sacred head” under the terms of the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. And thus, they would shamefully dismantle “the machinery of its highest institutions” and “the supreme organs of its unfolding Order” that Shoghi Effendi had “at long last” erected “in their embryonic form” at “the World Center of the Faith” as announced in his message of 30 June 1952 to the Baha’í World.

These now wayward Hands turned a deaf ear to both Mason Remey’s written appeals and the frequent verbal appeals he had made to reconsider their abandonment of the Guardianship during a period of two and a half years following the passing of Shoghi Effendi. They then subsequently failed, upon the receipt of his Proclamation at Ridván 1960 to recognize his rightful and clear accession to the Guardianship on the basis of his appointment by Shoghi Effendi as the President of the International Baha’í Council—the embryonic Universal House of Justice—whose Presidency can only be exercised by the Guardian of the Faith (and, for this reason, had been carefully retained as an inactive body during the remaining years of Shoghi Effendi’s ministry). In their persistent blindness these fallen Hands did not seem to realize what they had done in declaring the Guardianship of the Faith at an end, for if this ignominious decision would remain unchallenged, the World Order of Bahá’u’lláh, this “most great Order”—“the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven”—could never become a reality, in the absence of the divinely-appointed Institutions of the Bahá’í Administrative Order, as delineated by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in His Will and Testament.

Little wonder that Shoghi Effendi had chosen Mason Remey as his successor, despite his age, for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, had frequently eulogized him in His Tablets, addressing him in one Tablet as His “dear son” and in another significantly promising him that, “Ere long, thy Lord shall make thee a sign of guidance among mankind.” Moreover, his multiple outstanding services to the Faith during more than half a century had far surpassed the services of any other believer. The spiritual blindness of these Hands, who, unlike those who condemned Jesus to death, had never been His followers, whereas, in marked contrast, the Hands had formerly been champions of the Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh and faithful believers who had attained their rank as Hands of the Cause and been appointed by Shoghi Effendi in recognition of their exemplary service to the Faith. Therefore the inexplicable faithlessness they had now exhibited in their abandonment of the Guardianship and failure to recognize Shoghi Effendi’s appointed successor was stark evidence of an inexcusable spiritual blindness that even surpassed that which had afflicted those who failed to recognize the station of Jesus Christ and had then ignominiously condemned Him to death on the cross.

Little did the Hands realize that Mason Remey, whom they had accused of apostasy and cast out of the sans-Guardian Faith that they now espoused and whom they imagined had been consigned forever to a spiritual death would, with the issuance of his Proclamation, arise triumphantly from this death and be recognized by a small band of believers who had steadfastly retained an unwavering faith in the indestructibility of the Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh and in the immutability of the provisions of the divinely-conceived and sacred Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. These believers joyfully responded to his Proclamation that set forth in completely valid and rational arguments the basis for his accession to the Guardianship and accordingly embraced him as the second Guardian of the Faith. They have now faithfully embraced, as well, his duly appointed successor.

For further detailed information that provides conclusive and undeniable proof that Shoghi Effendi faithfully provided for the continuation of the Guardianship of the Cause of God, as enjoined by the sacred provisions of the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, visit the following web page: Bahai-Guardian.com