- 1940-09-00 — William Sears, Hand of the Cause of God, became a Bahá'í in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- 1957-10-00 —
The third contingent of Hands of the Cause of God was appointed: Enoch Olinga, William Sears, John Robarts, Hasan Balyuzi, John Ferraby, Collis Featherstone, Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir and Abu'l-Qásim Faizí. [GBF111; MBW127; PP254, 442; SS47]
- See TG160 for the story of how Enoch Olinga reacted to the news of being appointed a Hand of the Cause of God.
- 1960-05-31 —
In a letter addressed to all National Assemblies in the Western Hemisphere and to the Auxiliary Boards, the Hands of the Faith Corrine True, Hermann Grossmann, and William Sears provided an update on the activities of Charles Mason Remey. Some salient points were:
- Of all the National Spiritual Assemblies only France failed to reject Remey's claims. Hand of the Cause Faizi made a visit to investigate and, with the co-operation of the European Hands, arranged for a new election.
- Remey had sent two letters calling for support and in the second he deemed the remaining twenty-six Hands of the Cause "violators".
- It was made known that for the previous two years Remey had been trying to convince his fellow Hands to appoint a Guardian. Until the previous Ridván he hadn't disclosed that it was he, himself, that he had in mind. Remey was aware and had been shown a letter from the Guardian clearly stating that the Hands did not have the authority to appoint a Guardian, only to ratify the choice. He had made his claim notwithstanding the vow that he had taken along with the other Hands in November, 1957 at Bahjí, and re-affirmed in 1958 with their signatures, to complete the Plan and elect the Universal House of Justice at Ridván, 1963. The question of the Guardianship would be referred to the Universal House of Justice.
- The Hands had spent two years trying to convince Remey of the impossibility of appointing a Guardian. Up to this point they had taken no action other than to warn the friends of his intentions and to ask them to refrain from associating with him.
- They urged the friends to concentrate their full energies on completing the Plan. [Statement on Mason Remey from the Western Hands of the Faith] iiiii
- 1992-03-25 —
William Benard Sears, (b.28 Mar 1911), Hand of the Cause of God, passed away in Tucson, Arizona. He was buried in East Lawn Palms Cemetery and Mortuary Tucson, Arizona. [BINS267; VV124]
- Shoghi Effendi had appointed him among the third contingent on the 2nd of October, 1957. [MoCxxiii]
- Find a grave.
- See LoFp496-506 for a short biography.
- He was the author of several books:
- All Flags Flying, The NSA of South and West Africa, (1958)
- A Cry from the Heart: The Bahá'ís of Iran, George Ronald, (1982)
- God Love Laughter, George Ronald, (1960 and multiple re-prints)
- The Prisoner and the Kings, General Publishing Company, (1971)
- Release the Sun, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, (1957)
- Thief in the Night or The Strange Case of the Missing Millennium, Talisman Books, (1961 and multiple re-prints
- The Wine of Astonishment, George Ronald, (1963 and multiple re-prints)
- The Flame; The Story of Lua, (with Robert Quigley), George Ronald, (1972) [Collins7.2354-79]
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