A hat, Bahá’u’lláh warns, is no proof of ignorance, and a turban no proof of knowledge; ‘Abdu’l-Bahá adds that the humble man in a congregation may know more of God than the cleric ordained to teach him. The warning is not against learning but against what office does to it: the self-seeking leaders who gathered every right and power to themselves, the profit in upholding inherited imitations, the denunciation of science when it disturbs old superstitions, the papal government that forgot Christ once worldly sovereignty was secured, and the meddling in politics that made whole peoples resentful of religion itself. There were blessed souls among the Popes too, especially in the early centuries, and the criticism is careful to say so. James gives a test any community can apply to its teachers: wisdom shows in gentleness, mercy and the fruits of conduct [1]. With no priestly caste, the work of care and encouragement rests in every believer’s hands. The journey continues into the independent investigation of truth, the end of confession to a human intermediary, and the paring away of ritual so that reality itself can be seen.
They even considered the garb of the learned as a sign of piety and devotion, and took outward appearance as evidence of good character. They became sources of sedition and corruption in the verses of revelation.
That is why the Blessed Beauty said: "Not every hat is a sign of ignorance, nor every turban a mark of knowledge. How many a hat has raised high the banner of knowledge, and how many a turban has cast down the law of God. If human excellence were measured by turbans, then the camel that carries a thousand turbans would have to be counted among the most learned of scholars."
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken on 1913-Jun-05 in Paris -- ABU1249)
02
A clergy, assuming that he is ordained to his ministry he may think that he knows more about God, while the humble man in his congregation may know more. This sacerdotal and theological position makes many a clergy proud and haughty!
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words to Stanwood Cobb, spoken at Rue Lauriston 97 on 1913-Mar-28 -- ABU2599)
03
The religions of the past have fallen into decay on account of self-seeking leaders who in the course of time appropriated all the rights and powers unto themselves and looked down contemptuously upon the rest of their co-religionists as ignorant and deprived of the knowledge of God.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken on 1914-May-23 in Tiberias -- ABU0722)
04
It is also to the profit of the religious leaders to foster and uphold these spurious imitations because they keep their rule and sway intact.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words to the friends, spoken on 1915-Feb-01 -- ABU0761)
05
After some time, they abandoned the religion of their ancestors and the priests became self-centered and dishonest, were steeped in pride and became the source of all kinds of evil.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 1903 ca., to Gushtasb Ardishir et al -- AB04903)
06
We testify that they have been a barrier between God and His loved ones. The Tongue of Grandeur beareth witness to this in this exalted station.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1307 ? [1889-1890], to Mirza Taqi Mim Nun -- BH01818)
07
Then know thou thyself to be more learned than those who have not entered the stronghold of My Cause, lest the pride of the turbaned ones who have disbelieved and associated partners with God cause thee to slip.
(Bahá’u’lláh, 1290 [1873] or earlier, to Rahim -- BH05298)
08
He has posed a question in the manner of the divines. Glory be to God! If only such souls possessed the understanding of even a lowly student in those filthy schools.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, to Mirza Abu'l-Fadl Gulpaygani -- AB03573)
09
The priests are attached to ancient superstitions and when these are not in keeping with science, the priests denounce science.
Among the Popes there have indeed been some blessed souls who followed in the footsteps of Christ, particularly in the early centuries of the Christian era when earthly means were lacking and heaven-sent trials were severe. But when the means of temporal sovereignty were secured, and worldly honour and prosperity were obtained, the papal government entirely forgot Christ and occupied itself with earthly dominion and grandeur, with material comforts and luxuries. It put people to death, opposed the diffusion of learning, persecuted men of science, obstructed the light of knowledge, and gave the order to slay and to pillage.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Chapter 34, Peter and the Papacy, 1905-Jan -- AB00256)
11
When asked concerning the station of the "Pope" who recently departed this life, he answered: "His condition there, in the world of spirit, is the same as it was here. While here, his eyes were not opened to the real spiritual light, neither did he comprehend the real Truth of god. Thus, when he left the earth, his spiritual eyes were not opened, neither his spiritual ears. He occupied a great and exalted station in this world, inasmuch as he was chosen and elected by men to be a mediator between them and God.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words to Sigurd Russell et al, spoken on 1904-Apr-14 -- ABU0931)
12
Similarly, their meddling in political affairs resulted in their own abasement and degradation, for the more the priests opposed and interfered in matters of state, the more resentful the government and masses alike became of religion altogether - and this resentment eventually grew so profound that all those priests were cast out from the seat of government in such a manner as to utterly humiliate and bewilder them.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken on 1913-Mar-01 at Rue St. Didier 30 in Paris -- ABU3675)
13
This state of affairs can be attributed only to the mistakes made by the leaders of religion, who rather than serve as channels to promote the tenets of the religion of God, instead became the cause of hatred and ruin.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken on 1913-Mar-12 in Paris -- ABU3697)
14
The Christian Church with its hierarchy of clerics has reversed Christ's and Paul's teaching of unity.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words spoken to Miss St. in Aug 1910 -- ABU3038)
15
Question: "What do the Baha'is teach?"
Answer: "They teach that the internal, spiritual Idea is the same in all the religions, that a unique, general plan underlies the foundation of the past Faiths, that priestcraft has discredited the religion of God, that the palpitating divine Idea is hidden under the encrustation of dead ecclesiasticism, that religion must shuffle off its tattered garments of medieval Ages and put on the robe of Universal precepts of God."
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Interview with five American teachers, Haifa, 1914-Jul-21 -- ABU3057)
16
Let thine abode be under the stone,
but seek not the shelter of the cleric.
The Blessed Perfection has uptorn the root of the tree of superstitions and religious offices. In the past the ambitious leaders of religions have been the cause of the retrogression and ignorance of a nation. In this Cause there are no religious titles, no ceremonies of ordination. One is not respected simply because he wears a peculiar dress or carries a religious title or has inherited it from the Fathers.
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Words to the Persian friends, spoken on board the SS Cedric at sea, 1912-Apr-01 -- ABU2150)
Further quotations · supplied wording and references
18
Collateral with His summons to the pursuit of knowledge, Baha'u'llah has abolished entirely that feature of all past religions by which a special caste of persons such as the Christian priesthood or the Islamic `ulama came to exercise authority over the religious understanding and practice of their fellow believers.
(14 Mar. 1996 on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, quoted here)
Supplied quotation · catalogue passage not verified
19
We have no priests, therefore the service once rendered by priests to their religions is the service every single Baha'i is expected to render individually to his religion. He must be the one who enlightens new souls, confirms them, heals the wounded and the weary upon the road of life, and gives them to quaff from the chalice of everlasting life the knowledge of the Manifestation of God in His Day.
COC#2009 (5 Jul. 1957 on behalf of Shoghi Effendi)
Supplied quotation · catalogue passage not verified