The substance is, that prior to the completion of a thousand years, no individual may presume to breathe a word. All must consider themselves to be of the order of subjects, submissive and obedient to the commandments of God and the laws of the House of Justice. Should any deviate by so much as a needle's point from the decrees of the Universal House of Justice, or falter in his compliance therewith, then is he of the outcast and rejected.
- 'Abdu’l-Baha (‘Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá’; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Establishment of the Universal House of Justice)
