For the next eight years Chicago had two parallel Bahá’í organizations, one confined to men, the other to women.

On September 16, 1912, 'Abdu’l-Bahá spoke at the home of Corinne True, who would later be appointed a Hand of the Cause of God by Shoghi Effendi. She had written 'Abdu’l-Bahá a letter on February 25, 1902 about the exclusion of women from the Chicago Bahá’í governing body, noting that "many" felt it should be a "mixed board" because "women in America stand so conspicuously for all that is highest & best in every department." In his response 'Abdu’l-Bahá stated that while "in the sight of God, the conduct of women is the same as that of men" and there was "no difference" between the sexes, nevertheless the "House of Justice" had to consist only of men and that the "reason will presently appear, even as the sun at midday." True accepted 'Abdu’l-Bahá’s ruling–which also affirmed the equality of the sexes–and poured her energy into the Chicago Bahá’í women’s organization, which 'Abdu’l-Bahá highly praised. For the next eight years Chicago had two parallel Bahá’í organizations, one confined to men, the other to women.

Whether women will eventually be allowed to serve on local houses of justice (which the current local spiritual assemblies will one day evolve into) remains a contentious issue which generated a discussion on reddit as well.