You suggest the possibility that, for the good of the Cause,
certain information concerning the succession to Shoghi Effendi is being
withheld from the believers. We assure you that nothing whatsoever is being
withheld from the friends for whatever reason. There is no doubt at all that in
the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l‑Bahá
Shoghi Effendi was the authority designated to appoint his successor, but he
had no children and all the surviving Aghsán
had broken the Covenant. Thus, as the Hands of the Cause stated in 1957, it is
clear that there was no one he could have appointed in accordance with the
provisions of the Will. To have made an appointment outside the clear and
specific provisions of the Master’s Will and Testament would obviously have
been an impossible and unthinkable course of action for the Guardian, the
divinely appointed upholder and defender of the Covenant. Moreover, that same
Will had provided a clear means for the confirmation of the Guardian’s
appointment of his successor, as you are aware. The nine Hands to be elected by
the body of the Hands were to give their assent by secret ballot to the
Guardian’s choice. In 1957 the entire body of the Hands, after fully
investigating the matter, announced that Shoghi Effendi had appointed no
successor and left no will. This is documented and established.
- The Universal
House of Justice (From a letter dated 27 May 1966; ‘Messages from the Universal
House of Justice 1963-1986)
