> i could think of a good reason, unless the House has openly stated that a
> particular individual is the spokesperson for the House, the person speaking
> for the House is speaking out of turn....as well, whatever the resaons are
> they are between Sen and the House, should Sen wish to reveal the resaons to
> either friend or foe.....that would be within his right...that still does
> not change the reality that whatever the relationship between Sen and the
> House IS....the relationship is still between Sen and the House...like a
> marriage.
> third parties like children can side with one party or another for whatever
> reason....but it doesnt alter the reality one bit.
Dear Maidenleaf,
If there was any private communication between Sen and the House it
was some years ago and he has chosen to disclose its contents, which
is his right. To my knowledge they have not communicated with him
directly in recent years. Their decision to remove Sen from the rolls
was conveyed to him through the NSA of the Netherlands. Likewise their
statement regarding Sen's book was made publicly, not privately. In
short, if the House wished this to remain a private matter between it
and Sen McGlinn, they would not have publicized it by sending this
letter to the all of the National Spiritual Assemblies:
14 November 2005
Transmitted by email
To all National Spiritual Assemblies
Dear Bahá'í Friends,
Recently, questions have arisen which have prompted the Universal House
of Justice to comment further on matters treated in the compilation
"Issues Related to the Study of the Bahá'í Faith".
The Bahá'í principle calling for investigation of reality encourages an
unfettered search for knowledge and truth by whoever wishes to engage
in it. When applied to the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, it inevitably
gives rise to a wide range of responses. Some, attracted to the
Message, embrace the Cause as their own. Some may respond positively to
certain precepts or principles and willingly collaborate toward shared
aims. Some may find it to be an interesting social phenomenon worthy of
study. Still others, content with their own beliefs, may reject its
claims. Bahá'ís are taught to be respectful of the views of others,
believing that conscience should not be coerced.
Upon becoming a Bahá'í, one accepts certain fundamental beliefs; but
invariably one's knowledge of the Teachings is limited and often mixed
with personal ideas. Shoghi Effendi explains that "an exact and
thorough comprehension of so vast a system, so sublime a revelation, so
sacred a trust, is for obvious reasons beyond the reach and ken of our
finite minds." Over time, through study, prayerful reflection, and an
effort to live a Bahá'í life, immature ideas yield to a more profound
understanding of Bahá'u'lláh's Revelation. Service to the Cause plays a
particular role in the process, for the meaning of the Text is
clarified as one translates insights into effective action. As a matter
of principle, individual understanding or interpretation should not be
suppressed, but valued for whatever contribution it can make to the
discourse of the Bahá'í community. Nor should it, through dogmatic
insistence of the individual, be allowed to bring about disputes and
arguments among the friends; personal opinion must always be
distinguished from the explicit Text and its authoritative
interpretation by 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi and from the
elucidations of the Universal House of Justice on "problems which have
caused difference, questions that are obscure and matters that are not
expressly recorded in the Book".
In searching for understanding, Bahá'ís naturally acquaint themselves
with published materials from a variety of sources. A book written by
a disinterested non-Bahá'í scholar about the Faith, even if it reflects
certain assumptions and puts forward conclusions acceptable within a
given discipline but which are at variance with Bahá'í belief, poses
no particular problem for Bahá'ís, who would regard these perceptions
as an honest attempt to explore a religious phenomenon as yet little
understood generally. Any non-biased effort to make the Faith
comprehensible to a thoughtful readership, however inadequate it might
appear, would evoke genuine Bahá'í appreciation for the perspective
offered and research skill invested in the project. The matter is
wholly different, however, when someone intentionally attacks
the Faith.
An inescapable duty devolves upon the friends so to situate themselves
in the knowledge of the Teachings as to be able to respond
appropriately to such a challenge as it arises and thus uphold the
integrity of the Faith. The words of Bahá'u'lláh Himself shed light on
the proper attitude to adopt. He warns the believers "not to view with
too critical an eye the sayings and writings of men". "Let them", He
instructs, "rather approach such sayings and writings in a spirit of
open-mindedness and loving sympathy. Those men, however, who, in this
may, have been led to assail, in their inflammatory writings, the
tenets of the Cause of God, are to be treated differently. It is
incumbent upon all men, each according to his ability, to refute the
arguments of those that have attacked the Faith of God."
A different type of challenge arises when an individual or group, using
the privilege of Bahá'í membership, adopts various means to impose
personal views or an ideological agenda on the Bahá'í community. In one
recent instance, for example, an individual has declared himself a
"Bahá'í theologian, writing from and for a religious community," whose
aim is "to criticize, clarify, purify and strengthen the ideas of the
Bahá'í community, to enable Bahá'ís to understand their relatively new
Faith and to see what it can offer the world". Assertions of this kind
go far beyond expressions of personal opinion, which any Bahá'í is free
to voice. As illustrated, here is a claim that lies well outside the
framework of Bahá'í belief and practice. Bahá'u'lláh has liberated
human minds by prohibiting within His Faith any caste with
ecclesiastical prerogatives that seeks to foist a self-assumed
authority upon the thought and behaviour of the mass of believers.
Indeed, He has prescribed a system that combines democratic practices
with the application of knowledge through consultative processes.
The House of Justice is confident that the principles herein presented
will enable the friends to benefit from diverse contributions resulting
from exploration of the manifold implications of Bahá'u'lláh's vast
Revelation, while remaining impervious to the efforts of those few who,
whether in an explicit or veiled manner, attempt to divert the Bahá'í
community from essential understandings of the Faith.
With loving Bahá'í greetings,
Department of the Secretariat
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