“The believers should learn to turn more often to their assemblies for advice and help at an earlier date, and the assemblies, on the other hand, should act with more vigilance and a greater sense of community responsibility towards every situation that may damage the prestige of the Faith in the eyes of the public. When decisions have been reached by the Assembly, they must be carried out loyally and willingly, by all concerned.”

“One of the fundamentals involved in our Administrative Order, which we must remember will become the pattern for our World Order, is that even if an assembly makes an ill-advised decision it must be upheld in order to preserve the unity of the community. Appeal can be made from the Local Assembly’s decision to the National Assembly … But the principle of authority invested in our elected bodies must be upheld. This is not something which can be learned without trial and test…”

“The believers should have confidence in the directions and orders of their assembly, even though they may may not be convinced of their justice or right. Once the assembly, through a majority vote of its members, comes to a decision, the friends should readily obey it. Specially those dissenting members within the assembly whose opinion is contrary to that of the majority of their fellow-members should set a good example before the community by sacrificing their personal views for the sake of obeying the principle of majority vote that underlies the functioning of all Bahá’í assemblies.”

“The Assembly may make a mistake, but, as the Master pointed out, if the Community does not abide by its decisions, or the individual Bahá’í, the result is worse, as it undermines the very institution which must be strengthened in order to uphold the principles and laws of the Faith. He tells us God will right the wrongs done. We must have confidence in this and obey our Assemblies. He therefore strongly urges you to work directly under your Bahá’í Assembly, to accept your responsibilities as a voting member, and do your utmost to create harmony within the community.”

“What the Master desired to protect the friends against was continual bickering and opinionatedness. A believer can ask the Assembly why they made a certain decision and politely request them to reconsider. But then he must leave it at that, and not go on disrupting local affairs through insisting on his own views. This applies to an Assembly member as well. We all have a right to our opinions, we are bound to think differently; but a Bahá’í must accept the majority decision of his Assembly, realizing that acceptance and harmony—even if a mistake has been made—are the really important things, and when we serve the Cause properly, in the Bahá’í way, God will right any wrongs done in the end.”

“Just as the individual believers are bound to support and sustain the spiritual assembly, for the preservation of the unity of the Faith and the strengthening of its as yet embryonic World Order, so must the local assemblies obey and sustain their national representatives. The closer the co-operation between the local and national assemblies, the greater will be the power and radiance which can and must stream forth from these institutions to the suffering ranks of humanity.”