The Young Guardian

A retelling for children, based on God Passes By by Shoghi Effendi, where the Guardian tells of the events of late 1921 and early 1922.

Far away from his home in the Holy Land, a young man named Shoghi Effendi was busy with his studies at a famous school called Oxford, in England. He was the grandson of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, and he loved his grandfather dearly.

One day a message came to his rooms at the school — a cable, carrying news all the way across the sea. It told him something he could hardly bear to read. On a morning in late November, 'Abdu'l-Bahá had passed away in His house in Haifa, with the family gathered close. Shoghi Effendi had not been there. He had been here, far from home, when the news reached him.

He set out at once. This was not long after a great war, and traveling was slow and hard in those days. But he hurried as fast as the roads and ships would carry him, all the way back to the Holy Land. Before December was over, he reached Haifa at last.

When the family welcomed him home, they told him something he had never known before. 'Abdu'l-Bahá had written a special letter — a Will and Testament — in His own hand. It had been kept secret. No one had read it. A wise and gentle woman named Bahíyyih Khánum had been keeping it safe, and it was still sealed shut.

'Abdu'l-Bahá had given careful instructions about that letter. It was not to be opened by just anyone, or at any time. It had to wait until the members of the Holy Family and certain trusted believers could all be together. And so they waited until everyone was there.

On a January day, in the Master's own house in Haifa, the moment finally came. The family gathered, along with friends who had come from far away. The seal was broken. The letter was unfolded. And in a quiet room, the words of 'Abdu'l-Bahá were read aloud for everyone to hear.

The letter named, clearly and without any doubt, who would now guide the Bahá'í Faith. It named Shoghi Effendi. He was to be the Guardian — the one who would explain the meaning of the Bahá'í teachings, and stand at the very center of the Faith now that 'Abdu'l-Bahá was gone.

Imagine how Shoghi Effendi felt. He was only a young man, not much older than a big brother you might know. And suddenly he was being asked to carry something enormous — the care of the whole Faith, all over the world. The weight of it was so great that for a little while he was not even able to begin the work. It was simply too much, too fast.

But he was not left alone. Kind Bahíyyih Khánum stepped forward with a steady, loving hand and kept everything running smoothly through those hard days, so that the daily work of the Faith never stopped. She gave him the time he needed to gather his strength.

And by the springtime, Shoghi Effendi was ready. He stood up and took up the great task that had been given to him.

For thirty-six years — a very long time — he guided the Bahá'í Faith. He carefully turned the Bahá'í writings into English so more people could read them. He helped build the way the worldwide Bahá'í community is organized. He watched over the building of the beautiful Shrine of the Báb on Mount Carmel. And he helped carry the Faith to nearly every country on earth.

When Shoghi Effendi later wrote about that day for himself, he did not boast or make a big fuss about being chosen. He simply told what happened, plainly and humbly, as if it were the next quiet step in a long and beautiful plan. Sometimes the greatest tasks are given to those who do not go looking for them — and they are carried best by those who answer with a humble, willing heart.

This is a retelling for children. For the fuller account, see "The Appointment of Shoghi Effendi as Guardian".

Effendi, S.. (1944). *God Passes By*. Bahá'í Publishing Trust. https://www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/shoghi-effendi/god-passes-by/