Deepening Class: The Covenant

Dr. Wig DeMoville

Preface

The information that follows is based on my notes for a study class on the Covenant presented to the Bahá'ís of McAllen and Mission Texas. It is included here in hopes that it may benefit others who wish to study the Covenant. Not all of the information here was presented in that study class, and, of course, the study class did not have the advantages available via the Internet to link with other sites and other information.

Because some of the terminology here may be unfamiliar to some who view this page, a glossary is presented. Items in the text that have terms explained in the glossary have a [Gxx] following them where xx refers to a number. Passing your mouse over the glossary (and footnote) references will cause those entries to appear in the appropriate frame below. Where possible, I have used the authoritative Bahá'í texts rather than my own words. All quotations are followed by [Fxx] where xx refers to the footnote number.

Wig DeMoville

Presentation Outline

1. Types of Covenants and definitions
2. The Covenant of the Báb
3. The Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh
4. The Covenant of 'Abdu'l-Bahá
5. Developments during the life of Shoghi Effendi
6. Developments under the Universal House of Justice
7. Covenant Breaking

I. Types of Covenants and Definitions

1. Definition of covenant - an agreement or contract or clause within a contract.
2. The Eternal or Ancient Covenant - God's covenant with mankind to provide it with guidance through Manifestations [G01]and man's agreement to follow such guidance. Also described as the Covenant God establishes with mankind when He inaugurates a new Dispensation. [G02] [F01]
3. The greater Covenant - the Covenant that each Manifestation of God makes with his followers regarding the subsequent Manifestation to appear.
4. The lesser Covenant - Bahá'u'lláh's [G03]covenant with His followers regarding the appointment of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. [G04] This covenant is unique in the history of the world.

Quotes

• "So firm and mighty is this Covenant that from the beginning of time until the present day no religious Dispensation hath produced its like."
• "It is indubitably clear that the pivot of the oneness of mankind is nothing else but the power of the covenant."
• "The lamp of the Covenant is the light of the world, and the words traced by the Pen of the Most High [G05]a limitless ocean."
• "The power of the Covenant is as the heat of the sun which quickeneth and promoteth the development of all created things on earth. The light of the Covenant, in like manner, is the educator of the minds, the spirits, the hearts and souls of men." [F02]
• "Through the power of the divine springtime, the downpour of the celestial clouds and the heat of the Sun of Reality, the tree of life is just beginning to grow. Before long, it will produce buds, bring forth leaves and fruits, and cast its shadow over the East and the West. This Tree of Life is the Book of the Covenant." [F03]

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II. The Covenant of the Báb

1. "The Greater Covenant into which, as affirmed in His (the Báb's [G05]) writings, God had, from time immemorial, entered, through the Prophets of all ages, with the whole of mankind, regarding the newborn Revelation, had already been fulfilled. It had now to be supplemented by a Lesser Covenant which He felt bound to make with the entire body of His followers concerning the One Whose advent He characterized as the fruit and ultimate purpose of His Dispensation. Such a covenant had invariably been the feature of every previous religion. ... In the Bábí Dispensation, however, it was destined to be established in clear and unequivocal language, though not embodied in a separate document." [F04]
2. "...the Báb chose to intersperse His Book of Laws, the Persian Bayán, with unnumbered passages, some designedly obscure, most indubitably clear and conclusive, in which He fixes the date of the promised Revelation, extols its virtues, asserts its pre-eminent character, assigns to it unlimited powers and prerogatives, and tears down every barrier that might be an obstacle to its recognition." [F05]
3. "A successor or vicegerent the Báb never named, an interpreter of His teachings He refrained from appointing. So transparently clear were His references to the Promised One, so brief was to be the duration of His own Dispensation, that neither the one nor the other was deemed necessary. All He did was, according to the testimony of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in "A Traveler's Narrative," to nominate, on the advice of Bahá'u'lláh and of another disciple, Mirza Yahyá, who would act solely as a figurehead pending the manifestation of the Promised One, thus enabling Bahá'u'lláh to promote, in relative security, the Cause so dear to His heart." [F06]

Shoghi Effendi quotes from the Báb's references to Bahá'u'lláh on pages 29-31 of God Passes By. A few of these quotes are shown below:

• "The Bayán is, from beginning to end, the repository of all of His attributes, and the treasury of both His fire and His light."
• "If thou attainst unto His Revelation, and obeyest Him, thou wilt have revealed the fruit of the Bayán; if not, thou art unworthy of mention before God."
• "O congregation of the Bayán, and all who are therein! Recognize ye the limits imposed upon you, for such a One as the Point of the Bayán Himself hath believed in Him Whom God shall make manifest before all things were created. Therein, verily, do I glory before all who are in the kingdom of heaven and earth."
• "In the year nine, ye shall attain unto all good."
• "After Him (68) a Cause shall be given unto you which ye shall come to know."
• "Ere nine will have elapsed from the inception of this Cause, the realities of the created things will not be made manifest. All that thou hast as yet seen is but the stage from the moist germ until We clothed it with flesh. Be patient, until thou beholdest a new creation. Say: 'Blessed, therefore be God, the most excellent of Makers!'"
• "Were He to appear this very moment, I would be the first to adore Him, and the first to bow down before Him."
• "I have written down in My mention of Him these gem-like words: 'No allusion of Mine can allude unto Him, neither anything mentioned in the Bayán.'"
• "I, Myself, am but the first servant to believe in Him and in His signs..."
• "The year-old germ, that holdeth within itself the potentialities of the Revelation that is to come, is endowed with a potency superior to the combined forces of the whole of the Bayán."
• "Better is it for thee to recite but one of the verses of Him Whom God shall make manifest than to set down the whole of the Bayán, for on that Day that one verse can save thee, whereas the whole of the Bayán cannot save thee."
• "All that hath been revealed in the Bayán is but a ring upon My hand, and I Myself am, verily, but a ring upon the hand of Him Whom God shall make manifest...He turneth it as He pleaseth, for whatsoever He pleaseth, and through whatsoever He pleaseth."
• "Bear Thou witness that, through this Book, I have covenanted with all created things concerning the mission of Him Whom Thou shalt make manifest, ere the covenant concerning My own mission had been established. Sufficient witness art Thou and they that have believed in Thy signs."
• "If on the day of His Revelation all that are on earth bear Him allegiance, Mine inmost being will rejoice, inasmuch as all will have attained the summit of their existence... If not, My soul will be saddened. I truly have nurtured all things for this purpose. How, then, can any one be veiled from Him?"

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III. The Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh

1. "To direct and canalize these forces let loose by this Heaven-sent process, and to insure their harmonious and continuous operation after His ascension, an instrument divinely ordained, invested with indisputable authority, organically linked with the Author of the Revelation Himself, was clearly indispensable. That instrument Bahá'u'lláh had expressly provided through the institution of the Covenant, an institution which He had firmly established prior to His ascension. This same Covenant He had anticipated in His Kitáb-i-Aqdas [G06], had alluded to it as He bade His last farewell to the members of His family, who had been summoned to His bed-side, in the days immediately preceding His ascension, and had incorporated it in a special document which He designated as "the Book of My Covenant," and which He entrusted, during His last illness, to His eldest son 'Abdu'l-Bahá." [F07]
2. This document, "designated by Bahá'u'lláh as His "Most Great Tablet," and alluded to by Him as the "Crimson Book" in His Epistle to the Son of The Wolf, can find no parallel in the Scriptures of any previous Dispensation... For nowhere in the books pertaining to any of the world's religious systems, not even among the writings of the Author of the Báb- Revelation, do we find any single document establishing a Covenant endowed with an authority comparable to the Covenant which Bahá'u'lláh had Himself instituted." [F08]
3. This Covenant -- known as the Kitáb-i-Ahd:
   • "extolled by the writer of the Apocalypse as `the Ark of God's Testament"
   • "associated with the gathering beneath the `Tree of Anisa' (Tree of Life) mentioned by Bahá'u'lláh in the Hidden Words" [G07]
   • glorified by Bahá'u'lláh as the "Ark of Salvation" and as "the Cord stretched betwixt the earth and the Abhá Kingdom"
   • "has been bequeathed to posterity in a Will and Testament which, together with the Kitáb-i-Aqdas and several Tablets....constitute the chief buttresses designed by the Lord of the Covenant Himself to shield and support, after His ascension, the appointed Center of His Faith and the Delineator of its future institutions." [F09]
4. "In this weighty and incomparable Document," Bahá'u'lláh: (20 items)
   • "discloses the character of that "excellent and priceless heritage" bequeathed by Him to His "heirs."
   • "proclaims afresh the fundamental purpose of His Revelation"
   • "enjoins the `peoples of the world' to hold fast to that which will `elevate' their `station'
   • "announces to them that `God hath forgiven what is past'
   • "stresses the sublimity of man's station
   • "discloses the primary aim of the Faith of God"
   • "directs the faithful to pray for the welfare of the kings of the earth"
   • "invests them with the rulership of the earth"
   • "singles out as His special domain the hearts of men;"
   • "forbids categorically strife and contention"
   • "commands His followers to aid those rulers who are `adorned with the ornament of equity and justice'"
   • "directs the Aghsán (His sons) to ponder the `mighty force and the consummate power that lieth concealed in the world of being'"
   • "He bids them, moreover, together with the Afnan (the Báb's kindred) and His own relatives to `turn, one and all, unto the Most Great Branch ('Abdu'l-Bahá); identifies Him with `the One Whom God hath purposed,' `Who hath branched from this pre-existent Root,' referred to in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas;
   • ordains the station of the `Greater Branch' (Mirza Muhammad-Alí) to be beneath that of the `Most Great Branch' ('Abdu'l-Bahá)
   • exhorts the believers to treat the Aghsán with consideration and affection;
   • counsels them to respect His family and relatives as well as the kindred of the Báb
   • denies His sons `any right to the property of others'
   • enjoins on them, on his Kindred, and on that of the Báb to `fear God, to do that which is meet and seemly' and to follow the things that will `exalt' their station
   • warns all men not to allow `the means of order to be made the cause of confusion, and the instrument of union an occasion for discord'
   • and concludes with an exhortation calling upon the faithful to `serve all nations' and to strive for the `betterment of the world.' [F10]

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IV. 'Abdu'l-Bahá's Will and Testament

1. The Guardian [G08] has indicated that Bahá'u'lláh's Dispensation may be divided into three ages:
   1. The Primitive Age - sometimes called the Heroic or Apostolic Age "the primitive period in which' the Founders [G09]`had lived, in which its life had been generated, in which its greatest heroes had struggled and quaffed the cup of martyrdom, and its pristine foundations had been established. Ended with the passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá
   2. The Formative Period--The Iron Age-- "the Age in which the institutions, local, national and international, of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh were to take shape, develop and become fully consolidated, in anticipation of the third, the last, the Golden Age.
   3. "The Golden Age destined to witness the emergence of a world embracing Order enshrining the ultimate fruit of God's latest Revelation to mankind, a fruit whose maturity must signalize the establishment of a world civilization and the formal inauguration of the Kingdom of the Father upon earth as promised by Jesus Christ Himself."[F11]
2. The Charter, which called into being, outlined the features and set in motion the processes of, this Administrative Order is none other than the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. His greatest legacy to posterity, the brightest emanation of His mind, and the mightiest instrument forged to insure the continuity of the three ages which constitute the component parts of His Father's Dispensation. [F12]
3. "The Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh had been instituted solely through the direct operation of His Will and purpose. The Will and Testament of ''Abdu'l-Bahá, on the other hand, may be regarded as the offspring resulting from that mystic intercourse between Him Who had generated the forces of a God-given Faith and the One Who had been made its sole Interpreter and was recognized as its perfect Exemplar. The creative energies unleashed by the Originator of the Law of God in this age gave birth, through their impact upon the mind of Him Who had been chosen as its unerring Expounder, to that Instrument, the vast implications of which the present generation, even after the lapse of twenty-three years, is still incapable of fully apprehending. This Instrument can, if we would correctly appraise it, no more be divorced from the One Who provided the motivating impulse for its creation than from Him Who directly conceived it. The purpose of the Author of the Bahá'í Revelation had, as already observed, been so thoroughly infused into the mind of ''Abdu'l-Bahá, and His Spirit had so profoundly impregnated His being, and their aims and motives been so completely blended, that to dissociate the doctrine laid down by the former from the supreme act associated with the mission of the latter would be tantamount to a repudiation of one of the most fundamental verities of the Faith." [F13]
4. The Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá was written in three sections at different stages in 'Abdu'l-Bahá's life. Shoghi Effendi summarized its features. The first section was written when Shoghi Effendi was only 8 years old.
   1. Shoghi Effendi's summary of ''Abdu'l-Bahá's Will and Testament

      "The Document establishing that Order, the Charter of a future world civilization, which may be regarded in some of its features as supplementary to no less weighty a Book than the Kitáb-i-Aqdas; signed and sealed by ''Abdu'l-Bahá; entirely written with His own hand; its first section composed during one of the darkest periods of His incarceration in the prison-fortress of 'Akka, proclaims, categorically and unequivocally, the fundamental beliefs of the followers of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh; reveals, in unmistakable language, the two-fold character of the Mission of the Báb; discloses the full station of the Author of the Bahá'í Revelation; assets that 'all others are servants unto Him and do His bidding'; stresses the importance of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas; establishes the institution of the Guardianship as a hereditary office and outlines its essential functions; provides the measures for the election of the International House of Justice, defines its scope and sets forth its relationship to that Institution; prescribes the obligations, and emphasizes the responsibilities, of the Hands of the Cause of God; and extols the virtues of the indestructible Covenant established by Bahá'u'lláh. That Document, furthermore, lauds the courage and constancy of the supporters of Bahá'u'lláh's Covenant; expatiates on the sufferings endured by its appointed Center; recalls the infamous conduct of Mirza Yahyá and his failure to heed the warnings of the Báb; exposes, in a series of indictments, the perfidy and rebellion of Mirza Muhammad-'Alí, and the complicity of his son Shu'a''u'llah and of his brother Mirza Badi'u'llah; reaffirms their excommunication, and predicts the frustration of all their hopes; summons the Afnan (the Báb's kindred), the Hands of the Cause and the entire company of the followers of Bahá'u'lláh to arise unitedly to propagate His Faith, to disperse far and wide, to labor tirelessly and to follow the heroic example of the Apostles of Jesus Christ; warns them against the dangers of [F14]

   2. 'Abdu'l-Bahá made the Hands of the Cause an auxiliary Institution of the Guardianship. "The Hands of the Cause of God must be nominated and appointed by the guardian of the Cause of God." [F15]
   3. "The sacred and youthful branch, the guardian of the Cause of God as well as the Universal House of Justice, to be universally elected and established, are both under the care and protection of the Abhá Beauty[G10], under the shelter and unerring guidance of His Holiness, the Exalted One [G11] (may my life be offered up for them both). Whatsoever they decide is of God. Whoso obeyeth him not, neither obeyeth them, hath not obeyed God; whoso rebelleth against him and against them hath rebelled against God; whoso opposeth him hath opposed God; whoso contendeth with them hath contended with God; whoso disputeth with him hath disputed with God; whoso denieth him hath denied God; whoso disbelieveth in him hath disbelieved in God; whoso deviateth, separateth himself and turneth aside from him hath in truth deviated, separated himself and turned aside from God. May the wrath, the fierce indignation, the vengeance of God rest upon him! 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, [G12] the Afnan, [G13] 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." [F16]
5. Shoghi Effendi has described the Guardianship and the Universal House of Justice as the twin pillars of the Administrative Order. Acting in their different but complementary and inseparable roles, these two institutions will guide and protect the community of Bahá'u'lláh's followers throughout history.

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V. The Guardianship

1. Shoghi Effendi, guided by the Tablet's of The Divine Plan authored by ''Abdu'l-Bahá, initiated a number of teaching plans or crusades destined to increase the mass of Bahá'u'lláh's followers and to establish the Administrative Order on a wide basis, thereby creating the foundation for the election of the Universal House of Justice.
2. The Guardian, through his many letters and books, provided the believers with an abundance of guidance and interpretation that only future ages will truly comprehend and fully appreciate. Not long before the Guardian's passing, he:

   1. vastly increased the numbers of the Hands of the Cause of God
   2. established a group of nine Hands of the Cause to reside in the Holy Land
   3. established the institution of the Auxiliary Board to assist the Hands of the Cause in their work, especially focusing on the roles of propagation and protection.

3. The Guardian died without living a written will. "Upon the death of Shoghi Effendi in November 1957 a situation existed which the Bahá'í community could not have foreseen. The Universal House of Justice explains its significance:

"At the time of our beloved Shoghi Effendi's death, it was evident, from the circumstances and from the explicit requirements of the Holy Texts, that it had been impossible for him to appoint a successor in accordance with the provisions of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. This situation, in which the Guardian died without being able to appoint a successor, presented an obscure question not covered by the explicit Holy Text, and had to be referred to the Universal House of Justice." [F17]

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VI. The Universal House of Justice

1. "The Universal House of Justice was therefore duly elected" in 1963 "in the manner provided for in the Writings and various related statements of the Guardian and took up its responsibilities for the guidance of the Cause." [F18]
2. The Universal House of Justice has provided some explanations regarding the relationship between The Universal House of Justice and the Guardianship.
   1. "Shoghi Effendi repeatedly stressed the inseparability of these two institutions. Whereas he obviously envisioned their functioning together, it cannot logically be deduced from this that one is unable to function in the absence of the other. During the thirty-six years of his Guardianship Shoghi Effendi functioned without the Universal House of Justice. Now the Universal House of Justice must function without the Guardian, but the principle of inseparability remains. The Guardianship does not lose its significance nor position in the Order of Bahá'u'lláh merely because there is no living Guardian." [F19]
   2. The Guardian, like 'Abdu'l-Bahá before him, left innumerable definitions and other interpretative commentary for the guidance of the Universal House of Justice in its exercise of its functions.

      The House of Justice points out the way in which this allows the institution of the Guardianship to continue exercising its influence even though the line of living Guardians has come to an end:

      "It should be understood by the friends that before legislating upon any matter the Universal House of Justice studies carefully and exhaustively both the Sacred Texts and the writings of Shoghi Effendi on the subject. The interpretations written by the beloved Guardian cover a vast range of subjects and are equally as binding as the Text itself." [F20]

      'Abdu'l-Bahá wrote regarding the unique powers given to the Universal House of Justice in the field of deduction in formulating its decisions:

      "Let it not be imagined that the House of Justice will take any decision according to its own concepts and opinions. God forbid! The Supreme House of Justice will take decisions and establish laws through the inspiration and confirmation of the Holy Spirit, because it is in the safekeeping and under the shelter and protection of the Ancient Beauty, and obedience to its decisions is a bounden and essential duty and an absolute obligation, and there is no escape for anyone...

      "Briefly, this is the wisdom of referring the laws of society to the House of Justice. In the religion of Islam, similarly, not every ordinance was explicitly revealed; nay not a tenth part of a tenth part was included in the Text; ...individual divines made conflicting deductions from the original revealed ordinances. All these were enforced. Today this process of deduction is the right of the body of the House of Justice, and the deductions and conclusions of individual learned men have no authority, unless they are endorsed by the House of Justice. The difference is precisely this, that from the conclusions and endorsements of the body of the House of Justice whose members are elected by and known to the worldwide Bahá'í community, no differences will arise; whereas the conclusions of individual divines and scholars would definitely lead to differences, and result in schism, division, and dispersion. The oneness of the Word would be destroyed, the unity of the Faith would disappear, and the edifice of the Faith of God would be shaken. [F21]

3. "The Universal House of Justice, which the Guardian said would be regarded by posterity as "the last refuge of a tottering civilization," is now, in the absence of the Guardian, the sole infallibly guided institution in the world to which all must turn, and on it rests the responsibility for ensuring the unity and progress of the Cause of God in accordance with the revealed Word. There are statements from the Master and the Guardian indicating that the Universal House of Justice, in addition to being the highest legislative body of the Faith, is also the body to which all must turn, and is the "apex" of the Bahá'í Administrative Order, as well as the "supreme organ of the Bahá'í Commonwealth." The Guardian in his writings specified for the Universal House of Justice such fundamental functions as the formulation of future worldwide teaching plans, the conduct of the administrative affairs of the Faith, and the guidance, organization, and unification of the affairs of the Cause throughout the world." [F22]
4. The Universal House of Justice announced that it "sees no way in which additional Hands of the Cause of God can be appointed." [F23]
   1. To continue the functions of propagation and protection, the Universal House of Justice determined, in consultation with
      the Hands of the Cause of God, to establish the Institution of the The Continental Boards of Counselors and to have them work with the Hands of the Cause. Their duties were to include:
      1. directing the Auxiliary Boards
      2. consulting and collaborating with National Spiritual Assemblies
      3. and keeping the Hands of the Cause and the Universal House of Justice informed concerning the conditions of the Cause in their areas.
   2. The members of the Continental Boards of Counselors are appointed by the Universal House of Justice. Continental Counselors appoint and direct the Auxiliary Board members. At this time, the right of expulsion is still the responsibility of the Hands of the Cause.
   3. 10/7/73 Extension of Services of Auxiliary Boards

      "Each Continental Board of Counselors given the discretion to authorize individual Auxiliary Board members to appoint assistants. The exact nature of the duties and the duration of the appointment of the assistants is also left to each Continental Board to decide for itself. ....Believers can serve at the same time both as assistants to Auxiliary Board members and on administrative institutions.

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VII. Covenant Breaking

1. Because of its negative nature, many Bahá'ís are reluctant to discuss the subject of covenant breaking. Yet such a discussion is both necessary and beneficial. On the one hand, it provides protection; on the other, it helps us to appreciate more fully the sufferings of Bahá'u'lláh, 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and to a lesser degree the Guardian and calls us to a greater measure of love and self-sacrifice.
2. 'Abdu'l-Bahá wrote, "Verily, 'Abdu'l-Bahá inhaleth the fragrance of the love of God from every meeting place where the Word of God is uttered, and proofs and arguments set forth, that shed their rays across the world; and where they recount the tribulations of 'Abdu'l-Bahá at the evil hands of those who have violated the Covenant of God. [F24]
3. The Universal House of Justice provides the following definition of covenant breaking:

   "When a person declares his acceptance of Bahá'u'lláh as a Manifestation of God he becomes a party to the Covenant and accepts the totality of His Revelation. If he then turns around and attacks Bahá'u'lláh or the Central Institution of the Faith he violates the Covenant. If this happens every effort is made to help that person to see the illogicality and error of his actions, but if he persists he must, in accordance with the instructions of Bahá'u'lláh Himself, be shunned as a Covenant breaker. Universal House of Justice, 3/23/75. [F25]

4. 'Abdu'l-Bahá has characterized Covenant breakers as "the souls that are deprived of the Spirit of God and are lost in passion and self and are seeking leadership." [F26]
5. Because no other dispensation has had such a clear covenant, there are no clear examples of covenant breaking from the past; however, if we consider the betrayal aspect of covenant breaking then we find a few examples.
   1. 'Abdu'l-Bahá refers to Judas in a few places and mentions his betrayal of Christ. [F27]
   2. 'Abdu'l-Bahá also describes the behavior of the Umayyad faction in Islam in similar terms. [F28]
   3. The Guardian wrote in Messages to America 1932-1946, pp 50-51:

      "Manifold, various, and at times extremely perilous, have been the tragic crises which the blind hatred, the unfounded presumption, the incredible folly, the abject perfidy, the vaulting ambition, of the enemy have intermittently engendered within the pale of the Faith. From some of its most powerful and renowned votaries, at the hands of its once trusted and ablest propagators, champions and administrators, from the ranks of its most revered and highly-placed trustees whether as companions, amanuenses or appointed lieutenants of the Herald of the Faith, of its Author, and of the Center of His Covenant, from even those who were numbered among the kindred of the Manifestation, not excluding the brother, the sons and daughters of Bahá'u'lláh, and the nominee of the Báb Himself, a Faith, of such tender age, and enshrining so priceless a promise, has sustained blows as dire and treacherous as any recorded in the world's religious history."

6. In the time of Bahá'u'lláh, the principal Covenant breaker was Mirza Yahyá whom the Guardian described as "the Arch-breaker of the Covenant of the Báb." F29]
   1. Nominated as a figure head by the Báb, he claimed to be the successor of the Báb and later claimed to be a Manifestation of God when he became aware of the claim of Bahá'u'lláh.
   2. His attacks upon Bahá'u'lláh included poisoning Bahá'u'lláh. He also poisoned the well providing water for the family of Bahá'u'lláh; and he attempted to organize an assassination of Bahá'u'lláh. He spread untruths about Bahá'u'lláh in Constantinople and his behavior played a significant role in provoking the Ottoman Turkish government to exile Bahá'u'lláh to Akka.
   3. Although unsuccessful in his efforts, Mirza Yahyá caused Bahá'u'lláh to suffer greatly. The Guardian wrote that his attack "brought incalculable sorrow to Bahá'u'lláh, visibly aged Him, and inflicted, through its repercussions, the heaviest blow ever sustained by Him in His lifetime." [F30]
7. In the time of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Mirza Muhammad Alí, a half-brother of 'Abdu'l-Bahá and holding a rank second only to 'Abdu'l-Bahá was "the arch-breaker of the Covenant." [F31]
   1. The Guardian wrote, "The true ground of this crisis was the burning, the uncontrollable, the soul-festering jealousy which the admitted pre-eminence of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in rank, power, ability, knowledge and virtue, above all the other members of His Father's family, had aroused not only in Mirza Muhammad-Alí, the arch-breaker of the Covenant, but in some of his closest relatives as well."
   2. Mirza Muhammad-Alí subjected 'Abdu'l-Bahá to abuse and to malicious unfounded accusations of perverting the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh and of depriving members of His family of their monetary allowances. He forged passages of the Holy Writings to distort their meaning; he launched a conspiracy for the murder of 'Abdu'l-Bahá; and his intrigues and misrepresentations resulted in renewal of the imprisonment of 'Abdu'l-Bahá.
   3. Another Covenant-breaker during 'Abdu'l-Bahá's time was Ibrahim-i-Khayru'llah, a Syrian doctor who taught the Faith mainly in Chicago. He collaborated with Mirza Muhammad-Alí and wrote publications denouncing the Master.
8. Several attempts were made to overthrow the provisions of the Covenant during the ministry of the Guardian.
   1. Ahmad Sohrab, a former secretary of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, impelled by ambition and a sense of self-importance, attacked the Administrative Order, "striving to deface 'Abdu'l-Bahá's noble handiwork and corrupt its administrative principles." [F32]
   2. Avarih, who had been a very active Bahá'í teacher, fell victim to his ambitions and violated the Covenant, attacking the Guardian in ten volumes of books. Described by the Guardian, as "condemned by posterity as being the most shameless, vicious, relentless apostate in the annals of the Faith," he found himself unable either to gather a following around him or to disrupt the Bahá'í community. [F33]
   3. Ruth White, an American Bahá'í, disputed the authenticity of the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. She had the ulterior motive of trying to discredit an administration which she personally opposed. Despite her efforts she was powerless to produce the slightest breach in the ranks of the believers.
   4. In more recent years, Hermann Zimmer, a Covenant breaker from Germany tried to revive Ruth White's assertions through distribution of a book titled, A Fraudulent Testament Devalues the Bahá'í Religion into Political Shoghism. The Universal House of Justice has addressed this topic in a letter to believers in Europe, and Hand of the Cause, Alí Akbar Furutan has also written a commentary on the matter at the request of the Universal House of Justice. [F34]
   5. The Guardian was also attacked by some of his closest relatives.
9. There have also been Covenant-breaking activities since the passing of the Guardian. The most notable instance was the attempt of Mason Remey, who had occupied the rank of Hand of the Cause of God, to usurp the Guardianship.

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