Posted by Brett Zamir (12.248.92.43) on October 22, 2003 at 16:20:08:

In Reply to: What is a covenant breaker? posted by Jiveh on October 22, 2003 at 10:48:05:

In response to your questions:
> How does one become a covenant breaker?

See the Will and Testament of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, part 1, paragraph 17 at:
http://www.bahai-library.org/writings/abdulbaha/wt/1.html#Paragraph%2018

and Messages from the Universal House of Justice, p. 16 and section 132.6:

(this file is large and may take a while to load unless your internet service provides large bandwidth; these files have also been scanned in and may be unclear or inaccurate in parts)
http://bahai-library.org/published.uhj/messages.1963-86.html#16
http://bahai-library.org/published.uhj/messages.1963-86.html#s132.6
Term defined at http://bahai-library.org/published.uhj/messages.1963-86.html#737

>What does one have to do to be considered a covenant breaker?
>How does one, if un-aware of his poisition in the Baha'i faith, begin to etertain such vein imaginings?

Besides the comments Misagh offered (and those above) on Covenant-breaking involving opposition to the center of the Covenant, http://bahai-library.org/?file=compilation_non-association_covenant_breakers.html#13 indicates that such opposition does not include "ignorance or lack of proper training". There are other passages stating that it is due to their own egos (at http://bahai-library.org/published.uhj/counsellors.html#16 and http://bahai-library.org/uhj/c-breakers.and.remey.html . For example, the latter passage states "it represents a spiritual contagion threatening the well-being of the individual believer because of its subtle appeal to the human ego." It is also stated at http://bahai-library.org/unpubl.compilations/internet.html#54 that they would readily be reinstated if they were sincere. As is mentioned at http://bahai-library.org/uhj/c-breakers.and.remey.html :

"The personal failings that lead people to violate the Covenant to which they know they have committed themselves have been described by the Guardian as "the blind hatred, the unbounded presumption, the incredible folly, the abject perfidy, the vaulting ambition" which, in varying degrees, afflict the persons concerned. While some of these may have been duped by others, 'Abdu'l-Baha has said of them: These do not doubt the validity of the Covenant, but selfish motives have dragged them to this condition. It is not that they do not know what they do--they are perfectly aware and still they exhibit opposition."

> What could lead others to think "hey this person is acting like a coventant breaker"?

The passage cited above at http://bahai-library.org/unpubl.compilations/internet.html#54 also mentions that these individuals have soft tongues, and while they may seem friendly, they may couch their criticisms of the authority of the Central Figures or institutions in subtle terms (yet their purpose of raising doubts as to the Successorship is clear). We are told by 'Abdu'l-Baha to be quite wary about this and shun those even exhibiting the spirit of Covenant-breaking. This is of course obviously different (as is confirmed in the Writings) than someone who does not consider themselves as Bahá'ís or who is struggling to understand the wisdom of certain teachings/principles.

Brett

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