One of the Infallibles has said...

One of the Infallibles has said: وَ إِنَّ الْعَالِمَ الَّذِي يُعَلِّمُ النَّاسَ مَعَالِمَ دِيـنِهِمْ وَ يَدْعُوهُمْ إِلـى إِمَامِهِمْ أَفْضَلُ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ أَلْفَ عَابِدٍ “Surely the scholar who instructs the people in matters of their religion and invites them to their Imam is better than seventy thousand worshippers.”[^1] In another tradition, this one from Imam ‘Ali b.

Muhammad al-Hadi (as) it is stated that: لَوْ لاَ مَنْ يَبْقى بَعْدَ غَـيْـبَةِ قَائِمِناَ مِنَ الْعُلَمَاءِ الدَّاعِـينَ إِلَيْهِ وَ الدَّالِّينَ عَلَيْهِ وَ الذَّابِّـينَ عَنْ دِيـنِهِ بِحُجَجِ اللٌّهِ وَ الْمُنْقِذِينَ لِضُعَفَاءِ عِبَادِ اللٌّهِ مِنْ شِبَاكِ إِبْلِيسَ وَ مَرَدَتِهِ وَ مِنْ فِخَاخِ الْنَّوَاصِبِ لَمَا بَقِيَ أَحَدٌ إِلاَّ ارْتَدَّ عَنْ دِيـنِ اللٌّهِ وَ لٌكِنَّهُمُ الَّذِينَ يُمْسِكُونَ أَزِمَّةَ قُلُوبِ ضُعَفَاءِ الشِّيعَةِ كَمَا يُمْسِكُ صَاحِبُ السَّفِـينَةِ سُكَّانَهَا.

أُوْلٌئِكَ هُمُ الأَفْضَلُونَ عِنْدَ اللٌّهِ عَزَّ وَّ جَلَّ “If after the occultation of your Qa`im (ajtf) there were not to remain a person from amongst the scholars who invite towards him (the Imam) guide others to him defend his religion by the proofs of Allah, rescue the downtrodden servants of Allah from the snares of Iblis and his hoards, and the traps of the enemies (of the Ahlul Bayt), then there would not remain a single person (on Earth) except that he would have left the religion of Allah.