The Formative Period, the Iron Age, of that Dispensation was now beginning,
the Age in which the institutions, local, national and international, of
the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh were to take shape, develop and become
fully consolidated, in anticipation of the third, the last, the Golden Age
destined to witness the emergence of a world-embracing Order enshrining
the ultimate fruit of God's latest Revelation to mankind . . . To this World
Order the Báb Himself had, whilst a prisoner in the mountain fastnesses
of Adhirbáyján, explicitly referred in His Persian
Bayán, the Mother Book of the Bábí Dispensation, had
announced its advent, and associated it with the name of Bahá’u’lláh,
Whose Mission He Himself had heralded. "Well is it with Him"
is His remarkable statement in the sixteenth chapter of the third Váhid,
"Who fixeth his gaze upon the Order of Bahá'u'lláh, and
rendereth thanks unto His Lord! For He will assuredly be made manifest.
. . " To this same Order Bahá'u'lláh Who, in
a later period, revealed the laws and principles that must govern the operation
of that Order, had thus referred in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, the Mother
Book of His Dispensation: "The World's equilibrium hath been
upset through the vibrating influence of this Most Great Order. Mankind’s
ordered life hath been revolutionized through the agency of this unique,
this wondrous System, the like of which mortal eyes have never witnessed."
Its features ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, its great Architect,
delineated in His Will and Testament, whilst the foundations of its rudimentary
institutions are now being laid after Him by His followers in the East and
the West in this the Formative Age of the Bahá’í Dispensation."
(pp. 324-325)
The Charter which called into being, outlined the features and set in motion
the processes of, this Administrative Order is none other than the Will
and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, His greatest legacy to posterity,
the brightest emanation of His mind and the mightiest instrument forged
to insure the continuity of the three ages which constitute the component
parts of His Father’s Dispensation. The Covenant of Bahá’u’lláh
had been instituted solely through the direct operation of His Will and
purpose. The Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, on the
other hand, may be regarded as the offspring resulting from the mystic intercourse
between Him Who had generated the forces of a God-given Faith and the One
Who had been made its sole Interpreter and was recognized as its perfect
Exemplar . . .This Instrument can, if we would correctly appraise it, no
more be divorced from the One Who provided the motivating impulse for its
creation than from Him Who directly conceived it. (p.325)
The Administrative Order which this historic Document [the
Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá] has established,
it should be noted, is by virtue of its origin and character, unique
in the annals of the world’s religious systems. . . the
Administrative Order which the authorized Interpreter of Bahá’u’lláh’s
teachings has instituted, an Order which by virtue of the administrative
principles which its Author has formulated, the institutions He has established,
and the right of interpretation with which He has invested its Guardian,
must and will, in a manner unparalleled in any previous religion, safeguard
from schism the Faith from which its has sprung. (p.326)
. . .the essential provisions of the immortal Document [the
Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá] from which that Order
derives its authority, . . . (p.327)
The Document [the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá] establishing
that Order, the Charter of a future world civilization, which may be regarded
in some of its features as supplementary to no less weighty a Book than
the Kitáb-i-Aqdas . . . establishes the institution of the Guardianship
as a hereditary office and outlines its essential functions; provides the
measures for the election of the International House of Justice, defines
its scope and sets forth its relationship to that Institution; prescribes
the obligations, and emphasizes the responsibilities of the Hands of the
Cause of God; and extolls the virtues of the indestructible Covenant established
by Bahá’u’lláh. (p.328)
. . . that world-embracing Administrative system designed to evolve into
a World Order which posterity must acclaim as the promise and crowning glory
of all the Dispensations of the past. (p.329)
. . . that Divine Charter, [the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-
Bahá] delineating the features of the Administrative Order of the
Faith of Bahá’u’lláh . . . (p.330)
It would, however, be helpful and instructive to bear in mind certain basic
principles with reference to the WILL AND TESTAMENT of ‘Abdu'l-Bahá,
which together with the KITÁB-I-AQDAS, constitutes the chief depository
wherein are enshrined those priceless elements of that Divine Civilization,
the establishment of which is the primary mission of the Bahá’í
Faith. A study of the provisions of these sacred Documents will reveal
the close relationship that exists between them, as well as the identity
of purpose and method which they inculcate. Far from regarding their specific
provisions as incompatible and contradictory in spirit, every fair-minded
inquirer will readily admit that they are not only complimentary but
that they mutually confirm one another, and ARE INSEPARABLE PARTS OF ONE
COMPLETE UNIT. . In fact, he who reads the Aqdas with care and diligence
will not find it hard to discover that the Most Holy Book anticipates in
a number of passages the institutions which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
ordains in His Will. (pp. 3-4)
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 Kitáb-i-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 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 [the Will and
Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá] to claim for ourselves a
complete understanding of all its implications, or to presume to have grasped
the manifold mysteries it undoubtedly contains. Only future generations
can comprehend the value and the significance attached to this Divine Masterpiece,
which the Master-builder of the world has designed for the unification and
the triumph of the world-wide Faith of Bahá’u’lláh.
Only those who come after us will be in a position to realize the value
of the surprisingly strong emphasis that has been placed on the institution
of the House of Justice and of the Guardianship.(p.8)
I strongly feel the urge to elucidate certain facts, which would at once
reveal to every fair-minded observer the unique character of that Divine
Civilization the foundations of which the unerring hand of Bahá’u’lláh
has laid, and the essential elements of which the Will and Testament of
‘Abdu’l-Bahá has disclosed. I consider it my duty to warn
every beginner in the Faith that the promised glories of the Sovereignty
which the Bahá’í teachings foreshadow, can only be revealed
in the fullness of time, that the implications of the Aqdas and the
Will of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, as the twin repositories
of the constituent elements of that Sovereignty, are too far-reaching
for this generation to grasp and fully appreciate. (p.16)
That Bahá’u’lláh in His Book of Aqdas, and later
‘Abdu’l-Bahá in His Will – a document which
confirms, supplements and correlates the provisions of the Aqdas –
have set forth in their entirety those essential elements for the constitution
of the world Commonwealth, no one who has read them will deny. According
to these divinely-ordained administrative principles, the Dispensation of
Bahá’u’lláh – the Ark of human salvation – must
needs be modelled. . . . He, [Bahá’u’lláh] as well
as ‘Abdu’l-Bahá after Him, has unlike the Dispensations
of the past, clearly and specifically laid down a set of Laws, established
definite institutions, and provided for the essentials of a Divine Economy.
These are destined to be a pattern for future society, a supreme instrument
for the establishment of the Most Great Peace . . . 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.
(pp.19-20)
>
Both in the administrative provisions of the Bahá’í Dispensation,
and in the matter of succession, as embodied in the twin institutions of
the House of Justice and of the Guardianship, the followers of Bahá’u’lláh
can summon to their aid such irrefutable evidences of Divine Guidance that
none can resist, that none can belittle or ignore. Therein lies the distinguishing
feature of the Bahá’í Revelation. . . . This is the reason
why Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
have both revealed and insisted upon certain details in connection with
the Divine Economy which they have bequeathed to us, their followers. This
is why such an emphasis has been placed in THEIR Will and Testament
upon the powers and prerogatives of the ministers of their Faith [House
of Justice and Guardianship]. (pp.21-22)
For nothing short of the explicit directions of THEIR Book, and the
surprisingly emphatic language with which THEY have clothed the provisions
of THEIR Will could possibly safeguard the Faith for which
they have so gloriously labored all their lives. (p.22)
Out of the pangs of anguish which His bereaved followers have suffered,
amid the heat and dust which the attacks launched by a sleepless enemy had
precipitated, the Administration of Bahá’u’lláh’s
invincible Faith was born. The potent energies released through the ascension
of the Center of His Covenant crystallized into this supreme, this infallible
Organ [His Will and Testament] for the accomplishment of a Divine Purpose.
The Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá unveiled its character,
reaffirmed its basis, supplemented its principles, asserted its indispensability,
and enumerated its chief institutions. (p.89)
It was ‘Abdu’l-Bahá Who, through the provisions of His
weighty Will and Testament, has forged the vital link which must for ever
connect the age that has just expired with the one we now live in – the
Transitional and Formative period of the Faith . . . (p.98)
Anticipating the System which the irresistible power of His [Bahá’u’lláh’s]
Law was destined to unfold in a later age, He writes: The world’s
equilibrium hath been upset through the vibrating influence of this most
great, this new World Order. Mankind’s ordered life hath been revolutionized
through the agency of this unique, this wondrous System – the like of which
mortal eyes have never witnessed." (p.109)
"The foundation of the belief of the people of Bahá is this,"
thus proclaims one of the weightiest passages of that last document
[the Will and Testament] left to voice in perpetuity the directions
and wishes of a departed Master. . ." (p.133)
He is, and should for all time be regarded, first and foremost, as the Center
and Pivot of Bahá’u’lláh’s peerless and all-enfolding
Covenant, His most exalted handiwork, the stainless Mirror of His light,
the perfect Exemplar of his teachings, the unerring Interpreter of His Word,
the embodiment of every Bahá’í ideal, the incarnation
of every Bahá’í virtue, the Most Mighty Branch sprung
from the Ancient Root, the Limb of the Law of God, [Note the spiritual relationship]
the Being "round Whom all names revolve," the Mainspring
of the Oneness of Humanity, the Ensign of the Most Great Peace. the Moon
of the Central Orb of this most holy Dispensation – styles and titles that
are implicit and find their truest, their highest and fairest expression
in the magic name ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. He is above and beyond
these appellations, the "Mystery of God" – an expression by which
Bahá’u’lláh, Himself, has chosen to designate Him
and which, while it does not by any means justify us to assign to Him the
station of Prophethood, indicates how in the person of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
the incompatible characteristics of a human nature and superhuman knowledge
and perfection have been blended and are completely harmonized. (p.134)
In the Súriy-i-Ghusn (Tablet of the Branch) the following
verses have been recorded: . . . "They who deprive themselves
of the shadow of the Branch, are lost in the wilderness of error, are consumed
by the heat of worldly desires, and are of those who will assuredly perish."
(p. 135)
His (‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s) Will and Testament
should thus be regarded as the perpetual, the indissoluble link
which the mind of Him Who is the Mystery of God has conceived in order to
insure the continuity of the three ages that constitute the component parts
of the Bahá’í Dispensation . . . The creative energies
released by the Law of Bahá’u’lláh, permeating and
evolving within the mind of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, have by their
very impact and close interaction given birth to an Instrument which may
be viewed as the Charter of the New World Order which is at once
the glory and promise of this Most Great Dispensation. The Will may thus
be acclaimed as the inevitable offspring resulting from that mystic intercourse
between Him Who communicated the generating impulse of His divine Purpose
and the One Who was its vehicle and chosen recipient. Being the Child
of the Covenant – the Heir of both the Originator and the Interpreter
of the Law of God – the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
can no more be divorced from Him Who supplied the original and motivating
impulse than from the One Who ultimately conceived it. . . . The Administrative
Order. . . may be considered as the framework of the Will itself, the inviolable
stronghold wherein this new-born child is being nurtured and developed.
This Administrative Order, as it expands and consolidates itself,
will no doubt manifest the potentialities and reveal the full implications
of this momentous Document . . . It will, as its component parts, its organic
institutions, begin to function with efficiency and vigor, assert its claim
and demonstrate its capacity to be regarded not only as the nucleus but
the very pattern of the New World Order destined to embrace in the
fullness of time the whole of mankind. (pp. 143-144)
. . . this Administrative Order is fundamentally different from anything
that any Prophet has previously established, inasmuch as Bahá’u’lláh
has Himself revealed its principles, established its institutions,
appointed the person to interpret His Word and conferred the necessary authority
on the body designated to supplement and apply His legislative ordinances.
Therein lies the secret of its strength, its fundamental distinction, and
the guarantee against disintegration and schism. (p.145)
To what else if not to the power and majesty which this Administrative Order
– the rudiments of the future all-enfolding Bahá’í Commonwealth
– is destined to manifest can these utterances of Bahá’u’lláh
allude: "The world’s equilibrium hath been upset through
the vibrating influence of this most great, this new World Order. Mankind’s
ordered life hath been revolutionized through the agency of this unique,
this wondrous System – the like of which mortal eyes have never witnessed."
(p.146)
. . . in the verses of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas the implications of which
clearly anticipate the institution of the Guardianship . . . (p.147)
An attempt, I feel should at the present juncture be made to explain the
character and functions of the twin pillars that support this
mighty Administrative Structure – the institutions of the Guardianship
and of the Universal House of Justice . . . To define with accuracy
and minuteness the features and to analyze exhaustively the nature and relationships
which, on the one hand, bind together these two fundamental organs
of the Will of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and connect, on the other,
each of them to the Author of the Faith and the Center of His Covenant is
a task which future generations will no doubt adequately fulfill. (p.147)
It should be stated, at the very outset, in clear and unambiguous language,
that these twin institutions of the Administrative Order of Bahá’u’lláh
should be regarded as divine in origin, essential in their functions
and complementary in their aim and purpose. Their common, their fundamental
object is to insure the continuity of that divinely-appointed authority
which flows from the Source of our Faith, to safeguard the unity of its
followers and to maintain the integrity and flexibility of its teachings.
Acting in conjunction with each other these two inseparable institutions
administer its affairs, co-ordinate its activities, promote its interests,
execute its laws and defend its subsidiary institutions . . . Far from being
incompatible or mutually destructive, they supplement each other’s
authority and functions and are permanently and fundamentally united in
their aims. (p. 148)
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. . . Without such an institution the integrity
of the Faith would be imperilled, 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. (p. 148)
Severed from the no less essential institution of the Universal House of
Justice this same System of the Will of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá would
be paralyzed in its action and would be powerless to fill in those gaps
which the Author of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas has deliberately left in the
body of His legislative and administrative ordinances. (p.148)
"The mighty stronghold," He further explains, "shall
remain impregnable and safe through obedience to him who is the Guardian
of the Cause of God." It is incumbent upon the members of the House
of Justice, upon all the Aghsán., the Afnán, the Hands
of the Cause of God, to show their obedience, submissiveness and subordination
unto the Guardian of the Cause of God." (p.149)
"It is incumbent upon the members of the House of Justice,"
Bahá’u’lláh, on the other hand, declares
in the Eighth Leaf of the Exalted Paradise, "to take counsel
together regarding those things which have not been outwardly revealed in
the Book, and to enforce that which is agreeable to them. God will verily
inspire them with whatsoever He willeth and He is verily the Provider, the
Omniscient." "Unto the Most Holy Book" (the Kitáb-i-Aqdas),
"Abdu’l-Bahá states in His Will, "every one
must turn, and all that is not expressly recorded therein must be referred
to the House of Justice. That which this body, whether unanimously or by
a majority doth carry, that is verily the truth and the purpose of God Himself.
Whoso doth deviate therefrom is verily of them that love discord, hath shown
forth malice, and turned away from the Lord of the Covenant." (p.149)
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 judgement
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. (pp. 149-150)
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,
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.
(p.150)
[Note: It is clear from the above quoted statement from Shoghi Effendi that,
without the living Guardian presiding as its sacred and permanent head to
insure that the enactments of the Universal House of Justice are always
in complete conformity with the "meaning" and "spirit"
of the "revealed utterances" of Bahá’u’lláh,
a headless sans-Guardian UHJ would be subject to error in its enactments
and consequently would unquestionably not be the infallible institution
delineated by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in His sacred and immortal Will
and Testament].
. . . he [the Guardian] who symbolizes the hereditary principle in this
Dispensation has been made the interpreter of the words of its Author, and
ceases consequently, by virtue of the actual authority vested in him, to
be the figurehead invariably associated with the prevailing systems of constitutional
monarchies. (p.153)
Let no one, while this System is still in its infancy, misconceive its character,
belittle its significance or misrepresent its purpose. The bedrock on which
this Administrative Order is founded is God’s immutable
Purpose for mankind in this Day [ the Day of God]. The Source from
which it derives its inspiration is no less than Bahá’u’lláh
Himself . . . The axis round which its institutions revolve are the authentic
provisions of the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá .
. . The pillars that sustain its authority and buttress its structure are
the twin institutions of the Guardianship and of the Universal House
of Justice. (pp.156-157)