The Local Spiritual Assembly/Attendance and Resignation
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IV. ATTENDANCE AND RESIGNATION
“Tt is only too obvious that unless a member can attend regularly the meetings of his local Assembly, it would be impossible for him to discharge the duties incumbent upon him, and to fulfil his responsibilities as a representative of the community. Membership in a local Spiritual Assembly carries with it, indeed, the obligation and capacity to remain in close touch with local Baha'i activities, and ability to attend regularly the sessions of the Assembly.”
(From letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, published in Principles of Baha’t Administration, p. 50)
“.. . it is establishing a dangerous precedent to allow
Assemblies to put a time limit on non-attendance of
their members at meetings of the S. A., beyond which
that person is automatically dropped from the Assembly
and a vacancy declared. . . There should be no time
limit fixed by Assemblies beyond which a person is
dropped. Every case of prolonged absence from the sessions of the Assembly should be considered separately
by that Assembly, and if the person is seen to not want
to attend meetings, or to be held away from them in
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definitely because of illness or travel, then a vacancy
could legitimately be declared and a new member be
elected.”
(From letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer—‘“‘Baha’t News” no. 208, June 1948)
“With reference to your question whether it would be permissible for a believer to resign from the Local Assembly; under special circumstances, such as illness, one may do so, but only after, and never before he has been elected to the membership of the Assembly. Personal differences and disagreements among Assembly members surely afford no sufficient ground for such resignation, and certainly cannot justify absence from Assembly meetings. Through the clash of personal opinions, as ‘Abdu’l-Baha has stated, the spark of truth is often ignited, and divine guidance revealed.”
(From letter dated April 19, 1939 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer)
“The remedy to assembly inharmony cannot be in the resignation or abstinence of any of its members. It must learn, in spite of disturbing elements, to continue to function as a whole, otherwise the whole system would become discredited through the introduction of exceptions to the rule.”
(From letter dated November 20, 1941 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer)