Both God and the Messenger had given him the task of...

Both God and the Messenger had given him the task of instructing people in the verities of the Qur'an and the teachings of religion thus giving proper direction to their lives. Moreover the Imam is a channel for God's grace so that even if people were deprived of the government of justice and equity that the Inerrant Imams would have created - thanks to their own incapacity and lethargy - they did benefit from the other dimensions of the Imams' existence and activity.

They were the channels of God's grace irrespective of whether or not they were permitted to rule and lead…