Know that infallibility is of two kinds: essential infallibility and
acquired infallibility. In like manner there is essential knowledge and
acquired knowledge; and so it is with other names and attributes.
Essential infallibility is peculiar to the supreme Manifestation, for it
is His essential requirement, and an essential requirement cannot be
separated from the thing itself. The rays are the essential necessity of
the sun and are inseparable from it. Knowledge is an essential necessity
of God and is inseparable from Him. Power is an essential necessity of
God and is inseparable from Him. If it could be separated from Him,
He would not be God. If the rays could be separated from the sun, it
would not be the sun. Therefore, if one imagines separation of the Most
Great Infallibility from the supreme Manifestation, He would not be the
supreme Manifestation, and He would lack the essential perfections.

But acquired infallibility is not a natural necessity; on the contrary, it
is a ray of the bounty of infallibility which shines from the Sun of
Reality upon hearts, and grants a share and portion of itself to souls.
Although these souls have not essential infallibility, still they are under
the protection of God--that is to say, God preserves them from error.
Thus many of the holy beings who were not dawning-points of the Most
Great Infallibility, were yet kept and preserved from error under the shadow
of the protection and guardianship of God, for they were the mediators of
grace between God and men. If God did not protect them from error,
their error would cause believing souls to fall into error, and thus the
foundation of the Religion of God would be overturned, which would not
be fitting nor worthy of God.

To epitomize: essential infallibility belongs especially to the supreme
Manifestations, and acquired infallibility is granted to every holy soul.
For instance, the Universal House of Justice, if it be established under
the necessary conditions--with members elected from all the people--that
House of Justice will be under the protection and the unerring guidance
of God. If that House of Justice shall decide unanimously, or by a
majority, upon any question not mentioned in the Book, that decision and
command will be guarded from mistake. Now the members of the House of
Justice have not, individually, essential infallibility; but the body of
the House of Justice is under the protection and unerring guidance of
God: this is called conferred infallibility.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 171

The passage above is essentially in agreement with the one below from the
Tablets of Baha'u'llah except the passage from the writings of Baha'u'llah
makes no mention of infallibility belonging to groups of people (for example,
belonging to the Universal House of Justice), only belonging to the
two classes of prophets - Independent and Dependent (or "Lesser") prophets.
It therefore can be said to contradict Baha'u'llah's statement: "the Most
Great Infallibility is confined to the One Whose station is immeasurably
exalted beyond ordinances or prohibitions and is sanctified from errors
and omissions."

O thou who hast set thy face towards the Realm on High and hast quaffed
My sealed wine from the hand of bounteousness! Know thou that the term
`Infallibility' hath numerous meanings and divers stations. In one sense
it is applicable to the One Whom God hath made immune from error.
Similarly it is applied to every soul whom God hath guarded against
sin, transgression, rebellion, impiety, disbelief and the like. However,
the Most Great Infallibility is confined to the One Whose station is
immeasurably exalted beyond ordinances or prohibitions and is sanctified
from errors and omissions. Indeed He is a Light which is not followed
by darkness and a Truth not overtaken by error. Were He to pronounce
water to be wine or heaven to be earth or light to be fire, He speaketh
the truth and no doubt would there be about it; and unto no one is given
the right to question His authority or to say why or wherefore.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 108

It is also stated, "For instance, the Universal House of Justice, if it .." --
However, neither the body of the Universal House of Justice nor its members
are an instance of the "supreme manifestation" (the Most Great Infallibility) or
of "holy beings who were not dawning-points of the Most Great Infallibility"
(Dependent or Lesser prophets) as explained earlier. Also, the statement "Now
the members of the House of Justice have not, individually, essential infallibility"
is in error because as explained earlier in some detail (and later below), only
the supreme Manifestation can have "essential infallibility". So, logically the
members of the House (or indeed anyone else) cannot have "essential infallibility".

Briefly, it is said that the "Dayspring of Revelation" is the manifestation of
these words, "He doeth whatsoever He willeth"; this condition is peculiar to
that Holy Being, and others have no share of this essential perfection. That
is to say, that as the supreme Manifestations certainly possess essential
infallibility, therefore whatever emanates from Them is identical with the
truth, and conformable to reality. They are not under the shadow of the
former laws. Whatever They say is the word of God, and whatever They
perform is an upright action. No believer has any right to criticize; his
condition must be one of absolute submission, for the Manifestation arises
with perfect wisdom--so that whatever the supreme Manifestation says and
does is absolute wisdom, and is in accordance with reality.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 173
 

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