The following letter was written by Mark Marangella to a friend who recently joined the Orthodox Baha'i Faith:
Dear John,
Welcome to the Orthodox Baha'i Faith where we very simply distinguish ourselves in the belief that the writings of the prophet Baha'u'llah, the founder of the Faith and manifestation of God, and his son, his appointed successor, Abdu'l-Baha are sacred and indisputable. The 'orthodoxy' is in the fact that we have remained fervent in the belief of this sacredness and have been unwilling to accept any modification or compromise to the language and the explicit guidance and direction provided in these writings. Central, of course, to this position, is the Baha'i Administrative order, which was conceived in the unified spiritual consciousness and connection between Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha and was manifested in the Will and Testament of Abdu'l-Baha. The necessity of a Guardian, as head of the Faith and sole interpreter of these sacred writings is complemented by a unified legislative body, in its fourth and final stage, the Universal House of Justice, to which the Guardian is the sacred head for life. This is a very basic concept that has been emphasized by the First Guardian of the Faith, Shoghi Effendi, and followed in this emphasis by the subsequent Guardians, Mason Remey, Joel Marangella, and at present, Nosratullah Bahremand. As Orthodox Baha'is, we recognize that there is no other legitimate structural formation, other than that stipulated in this Will and Testament, that will achieve the purposeful balance inherent in these two sacred institutions. Your challenge as an Orthodox Baha'is experience, is to remain steadfast in the face of challenges to this orthodoxy. May I suggest that it is much easier and part of our human nature, to become attracted to a large following of like minded people, regardless of the legitimacy of that attraction, than to stand with a few who are founded on a commitment to legitimacy. Thank you John for choosing to stand with us.
Your Baha'i Brother
Mark
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