It is incumbent upon them to take counsel together and to have regard for the interests of the servants of God, for His sake, even as they regard their own interests, and to choose that which is meet and seemly. Thus hath the Lord your God, the Gracious, the Pardoner, commanded you. Beware lest ye put away that which is clearly revealed in His Tablet. Fear God, O ye that perceive.
LSA - Relationships
Bahá’u’lláh, Synopsis and Codification of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 13
In short, whatsoever thing is arranged in harmony and with love and purity of motive, its result is light, and should the least trace of estrangement prevail the result shall be darkness upon darkness.... If this be so regarded, that assembly shall be of God, but otherwise it shall lead to coolness and alienation that proceed from the Evil One.... Should they endeavour to fulfil these conditions the Grace of the Holy Spirit shall be vouchsafed unto them, and that assembly shall become the centre of the Divine blessings, the hosts of Divine confirmation shall come to their aid, and they shall day by day receive a new effusion of Spirit.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 88-89
It is again not permitted that any one of the honoured members object to or censure, whether in or out of the meeting, any decision arrived at previously, though that decision be not right, for such criticism would prevent any decision from being enforced.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 88-89
The first condition is absolute love and harmony amongst the members of the assembly. They must be wholly free from estrangement and must manifest in themselves the Unity of God, for they are the waves of one sea, the drops of one river, the stars of one heaven, the rays of one sun, the trees of one orchard, the flowers of one garden. Should harmony of thought and absolute unity be nonexistent, that gathering shall be dispersed and that assembly be brought to naught.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 88
The second condition is that the members of the assembly should unitedly elect a chairman and lay down guide-lines and by-laws for their meetings and discussions. The chairman should have charge of such rules and regulations and protect and enforce them; the other members should be submissive, and refrain from conversing on superfluous and extraneous matters.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 88
They must, when coming together, turn their faces to the Kingdom on high and ask aid from the Realm of Glory.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, p. 88
