The Baha'i Studies Listserv He knew it would end in time? Isn't some of the Imam lineages stil surving like Aga Khan IV of the Nizari Ismai'ilis?
________________________________ From: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> To: Baha'i Studies <[email protected]> Sent: Thu, January 14, 2010 12:51:04 AM Subject: Re: RE: Sects The Baha'i Studies Listserv > What would have happened if the Guardian had a son and at the time he > died the son was an infant or a child? If an infant certainly they In the Bahai guardianship, like the Shiah Imamate, succession is not by automatic rules (like the British crown for example): rather it is by designation, with a presumption of primogeniture. Logically - and using the history of the Shiah Imamate as an example - Abdu'ul-Baha and Shoghi Effendi must have anticipated that such a system could not continue indefinitely. The Guardian was bound to wait, before designating his successor, until the capabilities of the most likely candidate were clear. Sooner or later, a Guardian would die before the choice was made official, and the line would end. This is another reason for rejecting the claim that the Universal House of Justice needs a living Guardian. If Abdu'l-Baha had believed that a Guardian was essential, he could have chosen a system which - like the French monarchy - could continue for centuries. Instead he chose something like the succession of the Imamate, which he must have known would ensure that the line would end in time. Sen __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[email protected] Unsubscribe: send a blank email to mailto:[email protected] Subscribe: send subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [email protected] Or subscribe: http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=bahai-st Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:[email protected] Web - http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/?forum=bahai-st News (on-campus only) - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[email protected] Unsubscribe: send a blank email to mailto:[email protected] Subscribe: send subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [email protected] Or subscribe: http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=bahai-st Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:[email protected] Web - http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/?forum=bahai-st News (on-campus only) - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
