Bahá'u'lláh abolished feature of past religions whereby a special caste exercised interpretive authority[edit]
"Collateral with His summons to the pursuit of knowledge, Bahá’u’lláh has abolished entirely that feature of all past religions by which a special caste of persons such as the Christian priesthood or the Islamic ‘ulamá came to exercise authority over the religious understanding and practice of their fellow believers. In a letter written in Persian on his behalf to the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Istanbul, the Guardian is at some pains to underline the importance of this marked departure from past religious history:
"But praise be to God that the Pen of Glory has done away with the unyielding and dictatorial views of the learned and the wise, dismissed the assertions of individuals as an authoritative criterion, even though they were recognized as the most accomplished and learned among men, and ordained that all matters be referred to authorized centers and specified assemblies."
The Hands have no interpretive authority[edit]
"Like the Hands, the Counselors have no interpretive authority, an authority conferred by the Covenant only on ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá and the Guardian of the Faith. While some Counselors, like some of the Hands, will have pursued various academic or professional disciplines in their individual careers, their discharge of their duties is not dependent on proficiencies of this kind. All of them share fully in the vital task of encouraging believers everywhere in the acquisition of knowledge, in all its dimensions. All share, too, in the responsibility assigned to the institution of which they are members to protect the Faith against its enemies, both external and internal, a concern to which both the Master and the Guardian attached preeminent importance."
Hands must be nominated and appointed by the Guardian[edit]
"The Hands of the Cause of God must be nominated and appointed by the Guardian of the Cause of God."
- ('Abdu'l-Bahá, Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, section 1, par. 21)
Description[edit]
"The Hands of the Cause of God were individuals appointed by Bahá'u'lláh and charged with various duties, especially those of protecting and propagating His Faith. In Memorials of the Faithful 'Abdu'l-Bahá referred to other outstanding believers as Hands of the Cause, and in His Will and Testament He included a provision calling upon the Guardian of the Faith to appoint Hands of the Cause at his discretion. Shoghi Effendi first raised posthumously a number of the believers to the rank of Hands of the Cause, and during the latter years of his life appointed a total of 32 believers from all continents to this position. In the period between the passing of Shoghi Effendi in 1957 and the election of the Universal House of Justice in 1963, the Hands of the Cause directed the affairs of the Faith in their capacity as Chief Stewards of Bahá'u'lláh's embryonic World Commonwealth (see note 67). In November 1964, the Universal House of Justice determined that it could not legislate to make it possible to appoint Hands of the Cause. Instead, by a decision of the House of Justice in 1968, the functions of the Hands of the Cause in relation to protecting and propagating the Faith were extended into the future by the creation of the Continental Boards of Counsellors, and in 1973 through the establishment of the International Teaching Centre, which has its seat in the Holy Land."
- (Notes to the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, no. 183)
Individual Hands of the Cause[edit]
Stewardship of the Custodians (1957-1963)[edit]
"Chief Stewards of Baha'u'llah's embryonic World Commonwealth."
Writings as a Group[edit]
Writings as Individuals[edit]
Martha Root[edit]
Rúhíyyih Khánum[edit]
From Lights of Guidance (to categorize)[edit]
The Institution of "The Learned"[edit]
"...the beloved Guardian wrote on 4 November 1931: 'In this holy cycle the "learned" are, on the one hand, the Hands of the Cause of God, and, on the other, the teachers and diffusers of His teachings who do not rank as Hands, but who have attained an eminent position in the teaching work. As to the "rulers" they refer to the members of the Local, National and International Houses of Justice. The duties of each of these souls will be determined in the future.' (Translated from the Persian).
"The Hands of the Cause of God, the Counsellors and the members of the Auxiliary Boards fall within the definition of the 'learned' given by the beloved Guardian. Thus they are all intimately interrelated and it is not incorrect to refer to the three ranks collectively as one institution.
"However, each is also a separate institution in itself...."
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the Continental Boards of Counsellors and National Spiritual Assemblies, April 24, 1972: Messages from The Universal House of Justice, 1968-1973, p. 92, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1078)
The Hands of the Cause Not Heirs of Any Name or Title[edit]
"...The Hands of the Cause in this dispensation are not heirs of any name or title. Nay, they are holy personages, the rays of whose holiness and spirituality throw light on the minds of people. Hearts are attracted by the beauty of their morals, the sincerity of their intentions and the sense of equity and justice. Souls are involuntarily enamoured of their praiseworthy morals and laudable qualities; faces turn spontaneously to their manifest signs and traces. It is not a title that may be awarded to whomsoever it pleases, nor is it a chair of honour in which whosoever pleases sits. The Hands of the Cause are the Hands of God. Hence whosoever is the servant and the promoter of the Word of God, he is the Hand of God. The object is the spirit and not the letters or words. The more self-effacing one is, the more he is assisted in the Cause of God; and the more meek and humble, the nearer is he to God."
- ('Abdu'l-Bahá: Mahmoud's Diary, pp. 29-30, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1079)
Tablet Revealed for the Hands of the Cause[edit]
"May My praise, salutations, and greetings rest upon the stars of the heaven of Thy knowledge--the Hands of Thy Cause--they who circled round Thy Will, spoke not save after Thy leave, and clung not save unto Thy hem. They are servants whose mention and praise are recorded in the Holy Writ, Thy Books and Tablets wherein are extolled their services, victories, and high resolve. Through them the standards of Thy oneness were raised in Thy cities and realms, and the banners of Thy sanctity were uplifted in Thy Kingdom. They utter not a word on any subject ere Thou hast spoken, for their ears are attuned to hear Thy Command, and their eyes are expectant to witness the effulgence of Thy Countenance. They are servants who have been well-favoured, have attained Thy good-pleasure, and have arisen in Thy Cause. The people of the world, the denizens of the Kingdom, and the dwellers of Paradise and the Realm on High, and beyond them, the Tongue of Grandeur send salutation upon them. Praise be to Thee, O my God, that Thou hast aided me to make mention of them and to praise them and their stations in Thy Cause and in Thy days.
"No God is there save Thee, the Reckoner, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise."
- (Tablet of Bahá'u'lláh, translated in the Holy Land: Bahá'í News, No. 420, p. 2, March 1966, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1080)
Auxiliary Institution of Guardianship[edit]
"...The institution of the Hands of the Cause of God was brought into existence in the time of Bahá'u'lláh and when the Administrative Order was proclaimed and formally established by Abdu'l-Bahá in His Will, it became an auxiliary institution of the Guardianship. The Auxiliary Boards, in their turn, were brought into being by Shoghi Effendi as an auxiliary institution of the Hands of the Cause."
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the Continental Boards of Counsellors and National Spiritual Assemblies, April 24, 1972: Messages from The Universal House of Justice, 1968-1973, p. 92, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1081)
Functions of the Hands of the Cause[edit]
"...The institution of the Hands of the Cause of God, charged in the Sacred Texts with the specific duties of protecting and propagating the Faith, has a particularly vital responsibility to discharge. In their capacity as protectors of the Faith, the Hands will continue to take action to expel Covenant-breakers and to reinstate those who sincerely repent, subject in each instance to the approval of the Universal House of Justice."
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the Followers of Bahá'u'lláh throughout the World, October 1963: Wellspring of Guidance, pp. 13-14, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1082)
The Authority of Expulsion and Reinstatement Exercised by the Hands of the Cause[edit]
"The authority of expulsion and reinstatement will be exercised by the Hands of the Cause of God, subject in each instance to the approval of the Universal House of Justice. When a member of the Continental Board of Counsellors learns of any incipient Covenant-breaking, the matter should be reported without delay to a Hand of the Cause available in the area, who will deal with the matter. A copy of the report should be sent to the Hands in the Holy Land and to the other members of the Board. Should no Hand of the Cause be available in the area, the report should be sent to the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land, with copy to the other members of the Board, in which case the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land will deal with the matter. Such reports should contain full details of actions already taken.
"Reinstatement of Covenant-breakers will follow similar procedures."
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the Continental Boards of Counsellors, June 24, 1968, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1083)
Prerogative and Obligation of the Hands of the Cause to Consult with Boards of Counsellors and National Assemblies[edit]
"The Hands of the Cause of God have the prerogative and obligation to consult with the Continental Boards of Counsellors and National Spiritual Assemblies on any subject which, in their view, affects the interests of the Cause....
"...The House of Justice will call upon them to undertake special missions on its behalf, to represent it on both Bahá'í and other occasions and to keep it informed of the welfare of the Cause ... they will operate increasingly on an intercontinental level, a factor which will lend tremendous impetus to the diffusion throughout the Bahá'í world of the spiritual inspiration channelled through them--the Chief Stewards of Bahá'u'lláh's embryonic World Commonwealth."
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the Bahá'ís of the World, June 24, 1968: Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1968-1973, pp. 7-8, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1084)
Inappropriate for Them to Serve on Administrative Institutions[edit]
"The exalted rank and specific functions of the Hands of the Cause of God make it inappropriate for them to be elected or appointed to administrative institutions, or to be elected as delegates to national conventions. Furthermore, it is their desire and the desire of the House of Justice that they be free to devote their entire energies to the vitally important duties conferred upon them in the Holy Writings...."
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the Bahá'ís of the World, November 1964: Wellspring of Guidance, p. 42, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1085)
The Rank and Position of the Hands of the Cause of God[edit]
"The rank and position of the Hands of the Cause are superior to the position of the National Assemblies. In writing concerning the Hands, therefore, when there is reference to the Institutions of the Faith, after the Guardian[+F1 (and the Universal House of Justice)], should be mentioned the Hands, and then the National bodies. Because the Guardian has restrained the Hands at this time, and given as one of their functions, aiding the National bodies in winning the goals of the Ten Year Crusade, the National bodies should not misunderstand the true position of the Hands. They should report to the Hands, where teaching assistance is needed, etc., so the Hands, and their Auxiliary Boards, may be of the greatest assistance."
- (From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, April 30, 1957, in Lights of Guidance, no. 1086)
