Fazl-e-Umar — Page 227
Fazle Umar 227 Prophet [saw] he snuffed it out instantly and made it quite clear, as the Promised Messiah [as] had himself done repeatedly, that everything that was bestowed upon him was due to his devoted obedience to the Holy Prophet [saw] , and as a spiritual reflection of the Holy Prophet [saw]. On the other hand, he constantly reminded the Community that in the words of the Holy Prophet [saw] , the Promised Messiah was a just arbiter and that all his pronouncements were binding upon the Community and not one of them could be contravened with impunity. A dv I S OR y C O n SU LTAT I v E C OU n C I L ( M A j L I SE M ASHA w A R AT ) He laboured constantly to build up the organisation of the Community so as to fashion it as an effective instrument for the achievement of the purposes of the Movement. For instance, in 1922 he established the Advisory Consultative Council ( Majlise Mashawarat ) which is normally convened once a year to submit its advice to the Khalifa on such matters as might be committed to it for advice. It is composed of elected representatives of every branch of the Movement in the country. Practical considerations had at one time imposed the limitation of representation in the Council to branches of the Movement in the country, but currently the International Advisory Consultative Council meets whenever called to do so by the Khalifa, in the country where he is resident. The Khalifatul Masih himself presides over the deliberations of the Council, except on the rare occasion when any matter involving the personal interest of the Khalifa is the subject of consideration. The Council also discusses the Annual Budget of the Movement and submits its recommendations on it. After the session of the Council is opened with an address by the Khalifatul Masih, committees are set up for the detailed consideration of the items