The Best Homage

The Best Homage to the Third Guardian was offered by his Son, Mark Marangella when he answered the question raised by a Bahai in the name of Sabha Vejdani. See the question and the answer. 

Dear Mark keep it up. Our Guardian must be extra rejoicing due to your sincere efforts:

QUESTION

The Rights of God (Huququ’llah)

By God! In earthly riches fear is hidden and peril is concealed…

Dearly‐loved Friends,

One of the spiritual responsibilities of the followers of Baha’ullah is to observe the Huququ’llah (the Rights of God), a law requiring the payment of 19% of the surplus from the annual income of a Baha’i’s work, trade, or crop.

The Blessed Beauty has acknowledged the payment of Huququ’llah in the Kitab‐i Aqdas, as a means of increasing blessings and bounty, and to cause kindness in different respects.

The USNSA, with the assistance of the trustees of the Rights of God, will be holding 4 meetings on January 31st to Feb 1st 2015, on the East coast of the United States. This is in order to encourage the Friends to pay the Huquq’ullah, and to plan for its receipt.

They also intend to encourage those among the youth who are employed and possess particular skills to pay the Huququ’llah.

We should all observe the following issues regarding the very important status of the Huququ’llah.

1. According to Kitab‐i Aqdas, payment of the right of God is a private and personal affair. No one is permitted to ask for it. No one is allowed to insist upon its payment. Therefore, to hold meetings, public invitations for the Friends, and any such planning for the receiving of the Huququ’llah from the Friends, etc.; all such activities that the USNSA is engaging in, is not in compliance with the Baha’i Revelations.

2. Bahaullah, in His tablet, Lisan‐e‐Huzur (The Language of Presence) has prohibited the attempt to own, collect, or partially/wholly consume the Huququ’llah, without the permission of the Authority of the Cause.

Abdul‐Baha, in his Will and Testament, has clearly specified that “only the Guardian is the right authority of the Cause, and the Guardians will be the sole lawful recipients of the Huququ’llah.”

Moreover, in the “Nazar‐i Ejmali Bar dianat‐e‐Bahai” (an Introduction to the Bahai Faith, written By Ahmad Yazdani), the contents of which were approved and confirmed by the beloved Guardian, we read the following:

Payment of the Huququ’llah is a religious obligation; but none are authorized to ask for its payment. It will be collected by the trustee of the Huququ’llah, and will be submitted to the Guardian of each period, that sanctified reference and authority of the Baha’i Cause.And it will be utilized according to his decision.

(A. Yazdani, Nazari Ejmali, p81, no. 29,105 B.E. [1948])

The Universal House of Justice, despite its position in the Baha’i Faith is not allowed to receive the Huququ’llah. Only Shoghi Effendi during his own lifetime, and the Guardians who followed thereafter are authorized to receive and consume the Huququ’llah (Right of God).

3. The UHJ, during its more than 50 years of activity, has not provided any annual or periodic bill, for the large and frequent amounts received as donations, compensation, Huququ’llah, properties of the heirless deceased, etc., from Baha’is worldwide.

This lack of transparency in the financial affairs of the UHJ will lead to severe mistrust. It will also lead to accusations of the misappropriation of funds, accusations like the following: that such large amounts were used for expanding the already overly‐bureaucratic Baha’I administration, for payments to the Elective branch of the Baha’I administration, for the salaries of the 150 staff members of USNSA, or other unnecessary expenses, rather than towards public welfare, charity, or promotion of the word of God.

I sincerely invite the beloved Baha’i Friends to investigate the authorized persons and institutions for receipt of the Right of God (Huququ’llah), before committing to any such payment.

Sincerely Yours,

Sahba Vejdani

ANSWER

Dear Mr. Shahram ,

Your letter of Jan 29, 2015 and its commendable attached document, was recently forwarded to me. The writer (Sahba Vejdani) has exposed the wrong doing of the so called Universal House of Justice (UHJ) regarding the demanding and collecting the Right of God (Huququ’llah), without having any authority to do so and in contradiction to the provisions of the sacred Will and Testament of 'Abdu’l-Bahá.

Sahba has justifiably requested Bahá’is to: “investigate the authorized persons and institutions for receipt of the Right of God (Huququ’llah)” 

The Will and Testament of Master, 'Abdu’l-Bahá, undeniably establishes the fact that the Guardian of the Cause of God is the Center of the Cause and regarding the Right of God (Huququ’llah), clearly reveals that:

“It is to be offered through the Guardian of the Cause of God”

Shoghi Effendi, the first Guardian of the Cause of God, has emphasized that:

“According to the Master's Will, which complements the Aqdas, the Huquq goes only to the Guardian." -  (To Mr. George O. Latimer, Portland, Oregon, dated Haifa, June 17, 1933. Extracts from the USBN)

Nosrat’u’llah Bahremand is the Guardian of the Cause of God, the Center of the Cause, and as did the Guardian before him, considers that presently it is not obligatory for the Bahá’is to pay Huququ’llah.

To the contrary:

The illegitimate UHJ, which has no such authority to demand Huququ’llah, is doing just that.   In fact, even a legitimate Universal House of Justice, which in the future and in due time, will be established in accordance to the provisions of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu’l-Bahá, cannot claim such authority.

It is important to note that the so called UHJ was spuriously created by the former Hands of the Cause, without authority and in total contradiction to the provisions of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu’l-Bahá, in which it is clearly ordained that the Guardian of the Cause of God is “its sacred head and the distinguished member for life of that body. Should he not attend in person its deliberations, he must appoint one to represent him. Should any of the members commit a sin, injurious to the common weal, the Guardian of the Cause of God hath at his own discretion the right to expel him, whereupon the people must elect another one in his stead.” - (The Will and Testament of 'Abdu’l-Bahá)

The Tablet of Lisan‐e‐Huzur, revealed by 'Abdu’l-Bahá, in response to the questions of a person (Wahid Lisan‐e‐Huzur), can be found in the Ma'idih-yi-Asmani, V2 p75.  This Tablet contains a total of 646 words, in response to different questions asked by Wahid Lisan-e-Huzur, of which only 13 words are included in the specific answer by 'Abdu’l-Bahá relating to one unknown question. It is this answer, which was selectively picked up by the bogus UHJ in 1972, that was used as justification for their actions regarding Huquq, which states:

 “Disposition of the Huquq, wholly or partly, is permissible, but this should be done by permission of the authority in the Cause”

Then in their translation from the original text to English, the illegitimate UHJ, in their own words, added:  “to whom all must turn” and then claimed that: “In another Tablet 'Abdu'l-Bahá referred to the Universal House of Justice as "the authority to whom all must turn"

Subsequent to this notice and their bogus claim of authority to demand Huququ’llah  in 1972, the illegitimate UHJ has yet to this day been able to reveal the claimed tablet of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to the Bahá’i World or provide any substantiating reference as to its origin.  This is obviously because no such table exist, as it would be in contradiction to what ‘Abdul’-Bahá had made very clear in his Will and Testament, that:

 "The authority to whom all must turn" is none other than Guardian of the Cause of God.

“The mighty stronghold shall remain impregnable and safe through obedience to him who is the Guardian of the Cause of God. It is incumbent upon the members of the House of Justice, upon all the Aghsán, the Afnán, the Hands of the Cause of God to show their obedience, submissiveness and subordination unto the Guardian of the Cause of God, to turn unto him and be lowly before him. He that opposeth him hath opposed the True One, will make a breach in the Cause of God, will subvert His Word and will become a manifestation of the Center of Sedition.”   - (The Will and Testament of 'Abdu’l-Bahá)

Coincidently, in the same Tablet of Lisan‐e‐Huzur, 'Abdu’l-Bahá explains that:

“Aghsan (Branches) are not limited and restricted to certain people, they have perpetual motion, whoever will be steadfast will be accepted and whoever be wavering will fall”

I hope that this response provides you with some clarity as to the question regarding the authority of the illegitimate UHJ in demanding and collecting the Right of God (Huququ’llah).  I would also encourage you to visit the website of the Guardian of the Cause of God, Nosrat'u'llah Bahreman @ http://www.bahai-guardian.com, where you will find many in-depth and scholarly writings that address the question of the twin institutions of the Guardianship and the Universal House of Justice and their sacred relationship, as established by 'Abdu'l-Bahá in His Will and Testament.

As the Secretary of the National Bahá’i Council of the Orthodox Bahá’i Faith of the United States, I warmly welcome any future communication from you and again commend Ms. Sahba Vejdani for her insightful challenge of the illegitimate demands of an absolutely bogus UHJ. 

Faithfully in the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh Under the Guardianship of the Bahá'i Faith,

Mark V. Marangella

Secretary

National Bahá'i Council of the United States

of the Orthodox Bahá'i Faith

   The following photo was taken in Sedona, Arizona during the year before my father passed and is one of my favorites that I would like to share with all the friends. 

Mark