CMR Third Encyclical Letter

THIRD ENCYCLICAL LETTER

Page 1

TO THE BAHA'I WORLD

THIS IS THE THIRD OF A SERIES OF ENCYCLICAL LETTERS FROM MASON REMEY, GUARDIAN OF THE BAHA'I FAITH

Sent Forth From Washington 4, D.C., U.S.A. P.O. Box 418

Now is A Time of Judgement of the people of the Bahá'í Faith.

Unknown to anyone until his Proclamation to the Bahá'í world, he, the Second Guardian of the Faith, had been upon guard over the believers for these past two years and more of his Guardianship since the departure of the Beloved First Guardian of the Faith.

During the period of his occultation, as his mission in the administration of the Faith was gradually being born into his consciousness and his responsibilities were moving him to protect the Faith, the Second Guardian stood alone against the united Custodian Hands of the Faith, they insisting that the Guardianship of the Faith be abandoned and he frankly telling them that they, by their stand, were violating the Will and Testament of the Master 'Abdu'l-Bahá and that everything they were doing in their organization was wrong and in opposition to the Administration of the Faith that had been inaugurated by the Beloved Guardian Shoghi Effendi.

To all of his entreaties and appeals the erring Custodian Hands turned a deaf ear. Neither these Custodians nor the entire body of the Hands when seated in conclave wanted another Guardian. Thus, for reasons of their own, they were against then, as they are now, the continuation of the Guardianship. Thus, through their influence among the Bahá'ís at home and abroad, the Cause now finds itself under this present cloud of violation and dominated by these erring Hands of the Faith.

The present Guardian of the Faith forebore as long as possible to call these violating Hands to the judgement of their iniquities, for according to the Bahá'í standard of sin, there is no greater iniquity than that of the violation of divine holy law and writ. During this period before his declaration, your Guardian was ever pleading and urging the erring Hands not to abandon the Administration, the heart of which is the Guardianship of the Faith. But finally, as Ridván 117 B.E. approached, this violation had attained such proportions that it was becoming too great a menace to the Faith throughout the entire world to be allowed to continue. Therefore, your Guardian was obliged to take drastic action against this violation by coming forth and revealing himself in his supreme station as the Administrator of the Faith, thereby forcing this issue of the Guardianship upon the believers throughout

Page 2

the entire Bahá'í world. He therefore called all believers, without exception, before the Bahá'í Bar of Justice, where every individual believer must now make his stand either for or against the Guardianship!

No middle course is allowed. The division must be clear and distinct, and it must be so maintained.

Those who follow the erring Hands of the Faith and reject the Guardianship will inevitably fall into confusion and division amongst themselves, and they will leave naught behind them in this world save a page in the history of the Cause that will be known to future generations as "The Epoch of the Great Violation of the Bahá'í Faith". Upon the other hand, those who remain firm under the guidance of the Guardian of the Faith will lead the Cause on and on toward victory after victory in the triumphant growth and expansion of the spiritual power of the Faith.

Believers, followers, and upholders of the Faith, witness the power of your Guardian! At the approach of the Feast of Ridván 117 B.E., when apparently all the Bahá'í world endorsed and unitedly supported the program of the erring Hands for 1963, a program that would definitely establish their own Universal House of Justice Sans Guardian (all in direct defiance of the Master 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Will and Testament)--at that time when practically the entire Bahá'í world supported this violation, your Guardian then arose as but one believer in solitary opposition to all others on earth and called a halt to this violation of the Hands of the Faith. He, but one individual, pitted his power against all others; he, standing single and alone, was confirmed in changing the entire course of the Faith from the chaos of violation, and with his Proclamation he put the leadership of the Faith back again under the Guardianship. At the moment when the violation of the erring Hands was apparently without question, your Guardian struck them a blow that sent them and their many supporters into a state of confusion that resounds around the world, a state of dismay that demonstrates the fallacy of their stand against the Will and Testament of the Blessed Master 'Abdu'l-Bahá.

Every individual Bahá'í in the entire world is now compelled to make his or her stand either with and for the Guardianship, or against the Guardianship and for the violation of the Faith. Thus will the Cause be cleansed of this present violation.

The Guardian of the Faith expels from the Faith all who stand with and give support to these former Hands of the Faith, who are leading this movement in violation of the Guardianship. The Guardian enjoins all believers and supporters of the Administration of the Guardianship to have naught to do with these enemies of the Faith. There must be a clean-cut and a strict line drawn dividing these peoples. This is a very definite and clear-cut issue before the Bahá'í world, and it bears no compromise.

Page 3

The most immediate duty of the believers who are firmly established in the Guardianship is to save as many as they can of those who are following the violation of the Faith. These firm believers should also, and at all times, strive to give the message of the Bahá'í Faith (that is, the message of the Guardianship of the Faith) to all the peoples of the world in general, and thus to carry on and win the World Crusade.

Since the day of the First Guardian of the Faith, the message that he taught the believers to propagate has not been given by the erring Hands of the Faith and those supporting them in their violation. They have been making great efforts and sending out their teachers all over the world, and many people have been brought into the violating Bahá'í belief that these erring Hands have propagated. But in their propagation of error, they have not been building up the true Bahá'í Faith which is "Pro Guardianship". During these last two years and more they have been converting people to their "Sans Guardianship" doctrine, thus assembling and organizing, in all parts of the world, cohorts who now follow and support them in their violation and who, in reality, are the enemies of the only true Bahá'ís-- those who are following and supporting the Guardianship of the Faith.

Friends of the Faith under the Guardianship! At present we are but few in comparison with our enemies, who are commanded by the violating Hands who were formerly of the Faith; but now victory over all opposition is vouchsafed to us, and to us only, for we have been given the power under the Guardianship to stand up against this violation. We will win this battle.

There is no doubt in the mind of your Guardian but that the vast majority of the avowed Bahá'ís, who are now supporting the violations of the former Hands of the Faith, are sincere in their faith in these violators. But while sincerity is a virtue when following in the true path, sincerity in following the wrong path can lead only to destruction. Therefore, let every avowed Bahá'í study and restudy the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and the words and works of our late Beloved Guardian so that each can understand for himself or for herself the path prescribed for Bahá'ís to follow. The believer will find that there is but one path to follow--the path directed by the Guardian of the Faith. Any and all other paths will lead the followers astray.

As previously explained, this "Epoch of the Great Violation" is indeed a "Time of Judgement" of the people of the Bahá'í Faith. The Faith has been spreading throughout the world these past few decades, and now the believers are being tested. Those who are firm in the Covenant and in the Administration under the Guardianship will stand. Those who oppose the Guardianship will fall, and they and their works will come to naught. Let all ponder and think well and deeply with study and prayer. Let each make his or her stand in the Faith.

Page 4

This is the day of division, when the sheep and the goats are being sorted out, one from the other, and when the wheat and the tares are being separated. We are told in Bahá'í holy writ that the day would come when only pure virtue would pass the test and be accepted. The Master 'Abdu'l-Bahá told us of this time when only a few might stand, but following which those who stood firm would arise and carry the Cause to victory after victory.

In that period does the Bahá'í Faith now find itself plunged. No one can escape it. It seemingly has come upon the believers with suddenness, as it were, striking the believers all over and around the world and in such a manner that no one individual can escape. Every individual is compelled by force of the circumstances of this situation to take his or her stand either for or against the Guardianship. The division must be clean-cut and decisive beyond a doubt. Therefore, for the safety of the Faith, the Second Guardian now commands all faithful followers to have nothing at all to do with the works and activities of any and all of those who oppose the Guardian of the Faith, the Faith that has been firmly established by the First Guardian of the Faith in the manner directed by the Will and Testament of the Master 'Abdu'l-Bahá.

Let every firm believer, to whom this Encyclical Letter is addressed, do what he or she can to bring back into the fold of the Faith those who are now following and supporting the violation of the Guardianship. Let him or her make every effort to turn them from their erring way, but if they refuse, leave them to themselves and, with radiant heart, go forth to the people of the world who are awaiting and ready for the Bahá'í message of the World Crusade, a message that only the Bahá'ís, led and protected by the Guardian of the Faith, have to give them.

The Guardian urges every firm believer to take it upon himself to seek out those avowed believers who are confused and who are questioning the Guardianship. Let the firm friends do all they can to help these wavering ones and to confirm them in the Guardianship. But should any refuse and decide to stand with the violators against the Guardian of the Faith, then let the Bahá'ís separate themselves entirely from these enemies of the Faith.

All true Bahá'ís should take their stand for the support of the Guardianship of the Faith. Let all see and understand from the pronouncements of the erring former Hands of the Faith that this body stands against the Guardianship.

Let every true and sincere Bahá'í forsake this violation, turn to the Guardian of the Faith, and openly, and before the world, avow his allegiance to the present Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, who was appointed Guardian by our late Beloved First Guardian Shoghi Effendi. Then, when that state of unity of

Page 5

the pure Faith is re-established as it was in the day of the Beloved First Guardian, when the Cause is free from violation--then, and not until then, will the victory of the Faith be assured and the way made for the triumphant completion of the World Crusade of the Bahá'í Faith.

The confirmation and blessings of Él Abhá will descend upon all who make this stand under the Guardianship and arise to give this message to the world. Then we can succeed in reaching the goal set by the Beloved Guardian in the World Crusade.

With Bahá'í Love to All

Faithfully in Él ABHA,

MASON REMEY, GUARDIAN of the BAHA'I FAITH

POSTSCRIPT :

THE BAHA'I FAITH under the Administration of the Guardianship is THE Bahá'í faith--the only TRUE Bahá'í faith! Other organizations, such as the New History Society in New York City, as well as the organization of the former Hands of the Faith of Haifa, Israel, both of which proclaim themselves to be "Bahá'ís Sans Guardianship", should not be considered as Bahá'ís, for the only true and legitimate Bahá'ís are those now serving under the Second Guardian of the Faith. These Believers need not trouble themselves at the pretensions, claims, and assertions of those who claim themselves to be "Sans Guardian Bahá'ís". You Bahá'ís under the Guardianship should pay no attention to the declarations of any of the "Sans Guardian" followers, for you are occupied in serving under the infallibly appointed Second Guardian of the Faith and in proclaiming this message to the people of the world. You should ignore all these opposing people.

To reiterate once more in this letter to all Bahá'ís: The Bahá'ís under the Guardianship have two very clearly defined duties to perform. They should make every effort to bring into the Faith those who have been led astray by all "Sans Guardian" propaganda; and they should go forth into the world teaching of the fulfillment by Bahá'u'lláh of the Covenants of the Religious Revelations of the Manifestations of the past ages and calling all people to the Administration under the Guardianship of His Cause that is now engaged in carrying forward the Bahá'í World Crusade and giving the message to all the

Page 6

world of the triumphant coming of the Kingdom of God upon earth under the Administration of the infallible Guardianship of the Bahá'í Faith.

M.R., G. of the Bahá'í Faith

Source: Dave Cornell