Concealment of religious opinions by Bahai Hierarchy
During Shoghi Effendi’s Office
3. Concealment of religious opinions During Shoghi Effendi’s Office
Effendi was a title formerly used after a name as 'Mister'. Shoghi Effendi means Mr Shoghi. This title respect was given by sir Abbas Effendi to his grand son Shoghi Effendi. Like Mirza Ahmad Sohrab whose name in printed words appears as Mirza Ahmad Sohrab, namely Mr Ahmad Sohrab, Shoghi Effendi made a point of affixing his signature to official documents in the land of Palestine as Shoghi Effendi, i.e. Mr Shoghi.
In the considered opinion of Shoghi Effendi, after accession to power and not before, Bahaism was an independent religion and not a sect or an order of Islam. However in his time too Bahaism was an exportable commodity and not for local consumption.
Smarting under the pain of dissemblance practised by Baha and Sir Abbas Effendi, and in an innovation to make a departure from the established practice of concealment, Shoghi Effendi, in a confidential, directive intended for "God's Loved Ones", who grope for the illusive and elusive Aqdas, called upon them to eschew and discard affection, imitation, sycophancy and dissemblance of one's faith, and to observe as far as possible the rules and the ordinances contained in the Aqdas.
The text of the relevant passage sums as follows:
و سنن و احکام و قواعد کتاب مستطاب اقدس را به قدر وسع مقدور اجرا نمائید و از تظاهر و تقلید و مواهنه و نفیه بپرهیزند.
نافه شوقی افندی ص 26 مطبوعه بریتیش اندیا پریس بمبئی خروری سنه 1927
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