Unlike the Dispensation of Christ, unlike the Dispensation
of Muhammad, unlike all the Dispensations of the past, the apostles of
Bahá’u’lláh in every land, wherever they labor and toil, have before them in
clear, in unequivocal and emphatic language, all the laws, the regulations, the
principles, the institutions, the guidance, they require for the prosecution
and consummation of their task. 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. Therein lies the strength
of the unity of the Faith, of the validity of a Revelation that claims not to
destroy or belittle previous Revelations, but to connect, unify, and fulfill
them. This is the reason why Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have both revealed
and even 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.
- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 21 March,
1930, printed in ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah')
