Directives of Guardian - Shoghi Effendi
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Page 46 of  87

122 MARRIAGE, BAHA'I (re: Consent of Natural Parents)
"Our beloved Guardian made it clear that it was the responsibility of the Baha'i body performing the marriage ceremony to confirm without question the fact that the living natural parents of the two individuals who are being married have given their consent to the marriage. It is preferable that this consent be given in writing, but if this is not possible, or inadvisable for some reason, verbal consent in the present of witnesses is sufficient."... "Regarding your question of applying the sanction of suspension of voting rights to people who marry without the consent of parents, this should be done from now on. The laws of the Kitab- i- Aqdas are explicit and not open to any ambiguity at all. As long as the parents are alive, the consent must be obtained; it is not conditioned on their relationship to their children. If the whereabouts of the parents is not known legally, in other words, if they are legally dead, then it is not necessary for the children to obtain their consent, obviously. It is not a question of the child not knowing the present whereabouts of the parents, it is a question of a legal thing-- if the parents are alive, they must be asked." (46:1)

123 MARRIAGE OF BAHA'U'LLAH
"It would, however, be very helpful for the friends to know that the question which the above- mentioned missionary has raised in connection with the marriage of Baha'u'llah and the provisions in the Aqdas regarding the institution of marriage have been explained by Abdu'l- Baha in a Tablet which the Guardian hopes to have translated and published in conjunction with the Aqdas. Moreover, as regards Baha'u'llah's marriage, it should be noted that His three marriages were all contracted before He revealed His Book of Laws, and even before His declaration in Baghdad, at a time when Baha'i marriage laws had not yet been made known, and the Revelation not yet disclosed." (46:2)

124 MASONRY, FREE (Membership in)
"Disapprove membership (in) Freemasonry." (46:3)

"Any Baha'i determined retain membership (in) Freemasonry loses voting rights." (46:4)

"The directive regarding membership in Freemasonry should be carried out by your Assembly in all areas under your Assembly's jurisdiction." (46:5)

125 MEDICAL SCIENCE (Leaving bodies to)
"There is nothing in the Teachings against leaving our bodies to Medical Science. The only thing we should stipulate is that we do not wish to be cremated, as it is against Baha'i Law." (46:6)

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