# Covenant-breakers, Non-association with

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Bahá'u'lláh, Covenant-breakers, Non-association with, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Covenant-breakers, Non-association with
> 
> Bahá'u'lláh
> 
> Abdu'l-Bahá
> 
> Shoghi Effendi
> 
> Universal House of Justice
> 
> Continental Board of Counsellors
> 
> , compiler
> 
> 1999-12-7
> 
> Contents
> 
> Writings of Bahá'u'lláh
> 
> Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá
> 
> Extracts from the Writing of Shoghi Effendi and Letters on his Behalf
> 
> Extracts from Letters and messages of the Universal House of Justice
> 
> Extracts regarding Electronic Communication with Covenant-Breakers
> 
> WRITINGS OF BAHA'U'LLAH
> 
> "Protect
> yourselves with utmost vigilance, lest you be entrapped in the
> snare of deception and fraud." This is the advice of the Pen of
> Destiny. "Therefore, to avoid these people will be the nearest path by which to
> attain the divine good pleasure; because their breath is infectious, like unto
> poison."
> 
> "Endeavor to your utmost to protect yourselves, because Satan appears
> in different robes and appeals to everyone according to each person's own way,
> until he becomes like unto him -- then he will leave him alone."
> 
> "...If you detect in any man the least perceptible breath of violation, shun
> him and keep away from him." Then He says: "Verily, they are manifestations of
> Satan."
> 
> (Bahá'í World Faith, p.
> 431
> )
> 
> WRITINGS OF ABDU'L-BAHA
> 
> Bahá'u'lláh,
> in all the Tablets and Epistles, forbade the true and firm
> friends from associating and meeting the violators of the Covenant of His
> Holiness, the Báb, saying that no one should go near them because their
> breath is like the poison of the snake that kills instantly.
> 
> (Bahá'í World Faith, p.
> 430
> )
> 
> And
> now, one of the greatest and most fundamental principles of the Cause of
> God is to shun and avoid entirely the Covenant-breakers, for they will utterly
> destroy the Cause of God, exterminate His Law and render of no account all
> efforts exerted in the past.
> 
> (Bahá'í World Faith, p.
> 448
> )
> 
> My
> object is to show that the Hands of the Cause of God must be ever watchful
> and so soon as they find anyone beginning to oppose and protest against the
> guardian of the Cause of God, cast him out from the congregation of the people
> of Bahá and in no wise accept any excuse from him. How often hath grievous
> error been disguised in the garb of truth, that it might sow the seeds of doubt
> in the hearts of men!
> 
> (Will and Testament of Abdu'l-Bahá, p.
> 12
> )
> 
> EXTRACTS FROM THE WRITING OF SHOGHI EFFENDI AND LETTERS ON HIS BEHALF
> 
> With
> regard to avoiding association with declared
> Covenant-breakers, Shoghi Effendi says that this does not mean that if one or
> more of these attends a non-Bahá'í meeting any Bahá'ís present should feel
> compelled to leave the meeting or to refuse to take part in the meeting,
> especially if that part has been pre-arranged. Also if in the course of some
> business transaction it should become necessary to negotiate with one of these
> people, in order to clear up the business, that is permissible, provided the
> association is confined to the matter of the business in hand. It is different
> if one of these people should come to a Bahá'í meeting. Then it would become
> necessity to ask him in a most tactful and dignified way to leave the meeting
> as Bahá'ís are forbidden to associate with him.
> 
> (From a letter dated 16 May 1925 written on behalf of the Guardian to an
> individual believer)
> 
> You
> must of course send Avarih (a Covenant-breaker) his title deed
> through the Qamsar Local Spiritual Assembly, as it is his right. The friends
> must have full regard for his rights inasmuch as civil rights have no relation
> whatsoever to the beliefs of individuals. The Bahá'ís must be free and
> sanctified from religious prejudice and from ignorant fanaticism.
> 
> (From a letter to a Local Spiritual Assembly dated 15 February 1929 --
> Translated from the Persian)
> 
> Regarding
> Mr....'s question about the Covenant-breakers:
> Bahá'u'lláh and the Master in many places and very emphatically have told us to
> shun entirely all Covenant-breakers as they are afflicted with what we might
> try and define as a contagious spiritual disease; they have also told us,
> however, to pray for them. These souls are not lost forever. In the "Aqdas",
> Bahá'u'lláh says that God will forgive Mirza Yahya if he repents. It follows
> therefore that God will forgive any soul if he repents. Most of them don't want
> to repent, unfortunately. If the leaders can be forgiven it goes without saying
> that their followers can also be forgiven....Also, it has nothing to do with
> unity in the Cause; if a man cuts a cancer out of his body to preserve his
> health and very life, no one would suggest that for the sake of "unity" it
> should be reintroduced into the otherwise healthy organism! On the contrary,
> what was once a part of him has so radically changed as to have become a
> poison.
> 
> (From a letter dated 30 November 1944 written on behalf of the Guardian to an
> individual believer)
> 
> There
> is no excuse for believers continuing to associate with ...
> and those who, knowing everything, still insist on doing so, should be shunned
> by their fellow-Bahá'ís. The same applies to people who have left the Cause and
> associate with ... The point is that if the believers know and meet with people
> who are acquainted with Covenant-breakers there is no harm in this, for such
> individuals are not Bahá'ís and have nothing to do with the issues concerned.
> But those who have left the Cause, knowing all about such matters, and
> deliberately associate with Covenant-breakers, are well aware of what they do,
> and we must not associate with them at all. It is for the Local Assembly,
> guided by the National Spiritual Assembly, to enforce such decisions and the
> Cause in its area of jurisdiction.
> 
> The friends should, without too much dwelling on these negative things, be
> made to understand that some people are spiritually sick and that their disease
> is, alas, contagious. Some recover from it, as did ... whose heart could not
> rest till he returned to the fold; others do not. The Master and Bahá'u'lláh
> have taught us that associating with these souls is not likely to heal them at
> all, but on the contrary exposes one to grave danger of contagion. The history
> of the Faith has proved this over and over again.
> 
> The only way we can prove to such people that they are wrong is to censure
> their conduct; if we sympathize with them we only fortify their perversity and
> waywardness.
> 
> (From a letter dated 23 January 1945 written on behalf of the Guardian to
> individual believer)
> 
> It
> is better not to read books by Covenant-breakers because they
> are haters of the Light, sufferers from a spiritual leprosy, so to speak. But
> books by well-meaning yet unenlightened enemies of the Cause can be read so as
> to refute their charges.
> 
> (From a letter dated 19 March 1946 written on behalf of the Guardian to an
> individual believer)
> 
> He
> is very happy to know your dear sister is now happier, and more
> like her old self and the dark thoughts she had have been dispelled. Covenant-breaking is truly a spiritual disease, and the whole viewpoint and attitude of
> a Covenant-breaker is so poisonous that the Master likened it to leprosy, and
> warned the friends to breathe the same air was dangerous. This should not be
> taken literally; He meant when you are close enough to breathe the same air you
> are close enough to contact their corrupting influence. Your sister should
> never imagine she, loyal and devoted, has become a "carrier".
> 
> (From a letter dated 29 July 1946 written on behalf of the Guardian to an
> individual believer)
> 
> He
> noted the report of ... about her meeting with the grandchild of
> Subh-i Azal. He feels that the friends should as much as possible avoid her, as
> it is very unlikely she has anything but prejudice against Bahá'u'lláh, in view
> of her background.
> 
> (From a letter dated 24 October 1947 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
> 
> No
> intelligent and loyal Bahá'í would associate with a descendant
> of Azal, if he traced the slightest breath of criticism of our Faith, in any
> aspect, from that person. In fact these people should be strenuously avoided as
> having an inherited spiritual disease -- the disease of Covenant-breaking!
> Certainly such matters should be brought to the attention of the Assembly or
> National Spiritual Assembly within whose jurisdiction they occur.
> 
> (From letter dated 9 December 1948 to an individual believer)
> 
> Whenever
> we find a person who opposes some fundamental of our
> Faith, such as the Institution of the Guardianship, we must first be sure this is
> not due to ignorance or lack of proper training, before we take action. We must
> not suppose immediately that that person is necessarily tainted by the spirit
> of Covenant-breakers. If, however, this should prove to be the case, then
> strong action must be taken by the Assembly.
> 
> (From a letter date 24 June 1948 written on behalf of the Guardian to an
> individual believer)
> 
> The
> friends are sometimes surprisingly naive and superficial in
> their approach to the subject of Covenant-breakers. They do not seem to
> understand that the descendants of Azal, with their mother's milk, drank hatred
> of Bahá'u'lláh, just as the descendants of Muhammad-Ali and his relatives have
> imbibed from babyhood a false concept of the Master. It takes practically a
> miracle to overcome this lifelong habit of wrong thought. Now, however, he has
> told the German believers to shun her.
> 
> (From a letter dated 18 August 1949 written on behalf of the Guardian to a
> National Spiritual Assembly)
> 
> A
> Covenant-breaker, as you know, is one who disobeys and turns away
> from the Centre of the Covenant. Until such time as they repent of this
> sincerely, and express their willingness to work under the Centre of the
> Covenant, their status must be considered the same. However, such matter should
> be discussed and decided upon within the National Spiritual Assembly itself.
> 
> (From a letter dated 16 March 1953 written on behalf of the Guardian to an
> individual believer)
> 
> EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS AND MESSAGES OF THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE
> 
> ...
> children
> of Covenant-breakers, who have grown up with and still
> associate with their parents, are probably thoroughly infused with the
> Covenant-breaking spirit, and the friends must not associate with them until
> the Hands of the Cause have ascertained that these children have understood the
> sin of their parents and dissociated themselves from them.
> 
> (From letter dated 5 February 1969 to an individual believer)
> 
> It
> should be explained that descendants of Covenant-breakers who
> have not positively repudiated their forebears and sought readmittance to the
> Cause should be viewed with caution as they may well have received the poison
> of Covenant-breaking from their parents and would then have to be shunned by
> the friends.
> 
> (From memorandum to the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land dated 2 December
> 1971)
> 
> The
> danger of meeting with children of Covenant-breakers is that
> even although they may never have been declared Bahá'ís there is
> always the likelihood that they have been strongly indoctrinated by their
> parents with the poison of Covenant-breaking.
> 
> (From a letter dated 9 June 1974 to an individual believer)
> 
> The
> Bahá'í students who go to schools which children of
> Covenant-breakers attend should be made, lovingly and wisely, to understand
> that as Bahá'ís they cannot and must not choose children of
> Covenant-breakers as their personal friends, without making the matter into an
> open issue before the school. Thus, there should be no hard and fast rule to
> the effect that no Bahá'í child should be enrolled in a school
> where children of Covenant-breakers are also enrolled, or that they should
> leave a school as soon as a child of a Covenant-breaker enters it. The
> important thing is to impress upon Bahá'í children that personal friendship and
> individual companionship with children of Covenant- breakers must be avoided.
> Should it be found that in a particular case the situation is such that the
> policy outlined above cannot be followed, then in such cases, which we hope can
> be kept to a minimum, it would be desirable for Bahá'í children to
> change schools.
> 
> (From a memorandum dated 22 January 1976 to the International Teaching Centre)
> 
> YOUR
> REPORT FICICCHIA RECEIVED STOP IF COVENANT-BREAKER ATTENDS
> PUBLIC MEETINGS HE SHOULD BE TREATED BY SPEAKER IN WISE MANNER SUCH AS USED BY
> DR. ... STOP BAHAIS OTHER THAN CHAIRMAN AND SPEAKER SHOULD AVOID CONVERSATION
> WITH HIM STOP SITUATION ILLUSTRATES VITAL IMPORTANCE DEEPENING COVENANT ALL
> BELIEVERS STOP
> 
> (Telegram dated 23 February 1976 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
> 
> In reply
> to your letter of April 19, 1977, enquiring whether ...
> may receive financial assistance from her Covenant-breaking father, we are
> instructed by the House of Justice to say that it feels, in the circumstances
> set forth in your letter, that it would be inadvisable for ... to accept such
> financial assistance.
> 
> (From a letter dated 4 May 1977 to a National Spiritual Assembly)
> 
> The
> Universal House of Justice has requested us to acknowledge your
> letter of 17 January 1978 and to say that ... need not feel guilty about
> selling items from her shop to Mr...., or engaging, as your Assembly states, in
> "distant business conversation" with him, should he call again at her shop.
> 
> (From a letter dated 14 February 1978 to a National Spiritual Assembly
> 
> )
> 
> EXTRACTS REGARDING ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION WITH COVENANT-BREAKERS
> 
> Regarding
> your concerns about Covenant-breakers participating in
> and posting material to the "Bahá'í Forum" on America Online (AOL), you should,
> of course, scrupulously and impartially uphold the rules of AOL's "Religion and
> Beliefs" area. You may warn the friends about interaction with
> Covenant-breakers if you feel it to be appropriate and if you can do so without
> violating the impartiality that you, as Forum manager, must demonstrate.
> 
> With
> respect to your concerns about your own contact with
> Covenant-breakers, you should feel no trepidation at having to interact with
> them in his particular situation and, if necessary, to read their postings. It
> is suggested, however, that your contact with them be kept to a minimum, as
> strictly required by your obligations as Forum manager. You will want to resist
> any temptation to be drawn into discussions or consideration of the arguments
> which they may advance.
> (From a letter dated 28 May 1998 written on behalf of the Universal House of
> Justice to an individual)
> 
> More
> generally, while it is disconcerting that Covenant-breaker
> material is being disseminated on the Internet, there is little that can or
> should be done to directly oppose such dissemination. Rather, the greatest
> protection to the Cause will be through ongoing deepening of the Bahá'í
> community in the Covenant and the history and teachings of the Faith. An
> important role that the Internet can play in this regard is to make authentic
> Bahá'í literature, on the Covenant and on Bahá'í teachings generally, easily
> available.
> (From a letter dated 19 December 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House
> of Justice to an individual)
> 
> The
> House of Justice feels that, when Bahá'ís are
> teaching in an online "chat room" and Covenant-breakers intrude upon the
> discussion, the friends should not feel obliged to sign off simply because
> Covenant-breakers are present in this virtual space. They should, however,
> refrain from knowingly engaging the Covenant-breakers in discussions and, in
> any case, should avoid being drawn into contentious or disputatious
> situations.
> 
> (From a letter dated 27 October 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House
> of Justice to an individual)
> 
> The
> Universal House of Justice has received your email message of
> 29 September 1997 regarding the Covenant-breaking material sent to your
> personal email account.
> 
> The House of Justice is aware of such activities on the part of
> Covenant-breakers, and while it is closely following this issue, it sees no
> cause for undue concern. The friends should, of course, ignore any materials
> produced by Covenant-breakers which they may receive unsolicited by email or
> happen on while exploring the World Wide Web. With regard to your concerns over
> the content of the message, you are advised to turn to your Local Spiritual
> Assembly or an Auxiliary Board member for assistance in dealing with the
> spurious claims advanced in that message.
> 
> The best countermeasure to Covenant-breaker initiatives and the greatest
> protection for the Cause is for the believers to acquire a deeper appreciation
> of the station and purpose of Bahá'u'lláh and to become
> well-grounded in His Covenant.
> 
> (From a letter dated 7 October 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House
> of Justice to an individual)
> 
> In
> principle, no person can be considered a Covenant-breaker unless
> he has been so designated by the Head of the Faith. However, it is strongly
> advised not to associate with those who have fallen under the pernicious
> influence of groups such as the "Orthodox Bahá'ís". They are infected with the
> spirit of Covenant-breaking, even if they are not all designated as such.
> Accordingly, the friends should not answer queries from individuals who
> obviously seek to draw them into the consideration of the spurious claims and
> logic of the Covenant-breakers.
> (From a letter dated 3 July 1997 written on
> behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual)
> 
> Your
> faxed message dated 14 May 1997, requesting guidance
> concerning the attention given by the friends to postings by Covenant-breakers
> on the Internet, was received by the Universal House of Justice and referred to
> our Department for reply. The House of Justice is aware of the electronic
> postings on the Internet by Covenant-breakers. While it is closely following
> this issue, it sees no cause for undue concern. "The Bahá'í
> World", a Web site developed by the Bahá'í International Community's Office of
> Public Information, was launched in July 1996. It, together with a range of
> specialized Bahá'í Internet presentations such as the new "One
> Country" site, now provides individuals interested in learning about the
> Bahá'í Faith with a large and ever-expanding body of authentic
> material on the Faith, attractively presented and illustrated. Sites maintained
> by Covenant-breaker groups will have a diminishing impact in the context of the
> information deluge on the Internet and against the background of the authorized
> Bahá'í source now accessible.
> 
> The greatest protection to the Cause will, of course, be through ongoing
> deepening of the Bahá'í community in the Covenant and the history
> and teachings of the Faith. To facilitate this, you may wish to bring attention
> to the availability of the Sacred Text on the Web site
> "The Bahá'í World"
> and
> on the
> Bahá'í World Centre FTP server
> .
> 
> (From a letter dated 4 June 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of
> Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly)
> 
> Your
> email of 11 April 1997 regarding contact through the Internet
> between the friends and Covenant-breaker groups has been received by the
> Universal House of Justice. It is not possible to provide you with a list of
> Internet addresses of Covenant-breaker groups as you have requested, as no such
> listing is being maintained at the Bahá'í World Centre at this time.
> 
> Any plans that you have to alert the friends to Covenant-breaker activity
> on the Internet should, of course, be undertaken with wisdom and discretion so
> as to avoid giving Covenant-breakers more attention or prominence than they
> would otherwise receive.
> 
> (From a letter dated 4 May 1997 written on behalf of the Universal House of
> Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly)
> 
> Thus
> , if any participant in an email discussion feels that a view
> put forward appears to contradict or undermine the provisions of the Covenant,
> he should be free to say so, explaining candidly and courteously why he feels
> as he does. The person who made the initial statement will then be able to
> re-evaluate his opinion and, if he still believes it to be valid, he should be
> able to explain why it is not contrary to either the letter or the spirit of
> the Covenant. The participants in such a discussion should avoid disputation
> and, if they are unable to resolve an issue, they should refer the point to the
> Universal House of Justice since, in accordance with the Will and Testament of
> 'Abdu'l-Bahá, "By this body all the difficult problems are to be
> resolved..." and it has the authority to decide upon "all problems which have
> caused difference, questions that are obscure, and matters that are not
> expressly recorded in the Book." In this way the Covenant can illuminate and
> temper the discourse and make it fruitful.
> 
> (From a letter dated 16 February 1996 written on behalf of the Universal House
> of Justice to an individual)
> 
> There
> is an ever increasing use by believers of the Internet and
> other available computer based means of communication. These open unlimited
> possibilities for continuous proclamation and teaching, bringing the Creative
> Word and the Sacred Writings as well as the ideas of individual believers to
> hearts and mind everywhere. It also offers easy access to these same believers
> by those whose purpose is to undermine their faith. By being constantly alert
> we are able to encourage the use of this medium by the friends while ensuring
> their protection from those who would prey on them.
> 
> (From a letter dated 11 May 1995 written by the International Teaching Centre
> to a Continental Counsellor)
> 
> Participation
> by enemies of the Faith or members of
> Covenant-breaker groups may, indeed, occur in the dialogue on electronic
> forums. It is not advisable for the institutions of the Faith or its individual
> members to become directly involved in such discussion. It is neither wise nor
> possible to interfere with postings on public forums, but if it is observed
> that such activity is taking place on Bahá'í-only forums National
> Assemblies should be alerted so that they may provide appropriate advice to the
> administrator of the forum. The greatest protection to the Faith will not be
> through intervention on either open or closed electronic forums, but through
> ongoing deepening of the Bahá'í community in the Covenant and the
> history and Teachings of the Faith.
> 
> (From a letter dated 24 February 1995 written by the International Teaching
> Centre to a Continental Board of Counsellors)
> 
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> — *Covenant-breakers, Non-association with (Used by permission of the curator)*