Bahá’í World/Volume 2/Introduction to The Promulgation of Universal Peace
PART FOUR
INTRODUCTION TO
“THE PROMULGATION OF UNIVERSAL PEACE”
HOWARD MACNUTT
[The passing from this world of Mr. Howard MacNutt of Brooklyn, N. Y., in December, 1926, has prompted us to reproduce this Introduction to the Addresses of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá delivered in America in 1912 published under the title, ”The Promulgation of Universal Peace,” which were compiled and edited by Mr. MacNutt. We do this knowing it is a fitting memorial to him as intended and recorded by the pen of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. In a Tablet dated at Palestine, July 20, 1919, addressed to Albert Windust, Chicago, printer of the book, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wrote: “Name the book which Mr. MacNutt is compiling, ‘The Promulgation of Universal Peace.’ As to its Introduction, it should be written by Mr. MacNutt himself when in heart he is turning toward the ‘Abhá kingdom, so that he may leave a permanent trace behind him. Send a copy of it to the Holy Land.” The English original was sent to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá for approval. By His direction it was translated into Persian and returned to the printer with instructions that both English and Persian should appear in the publication.—EDITORS.]
TWO years before the crash of the world war shook the continents and upheaved oceans ‘Abdu’l-Bahá ‘Abbas visited the United States of America proclaiming the glad-tidings of Universal Peace and the oneness of the world of humanity. In His message He reviewed social, religious and political conditions of the nations, foretold clearly the impending clash and conflict of militarism, summoning mankind to the standard of divine guidance upraised in this cycle of the cycles by the Manifestation and Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh. His visit extending from April to December, 1912, covered an itinerary across the continent and return, involving an extraordinary and incredible expenditure of energy on the part of one who at the threshold of three score years and ten had spent practically His whole lifetime in exile and imprisonment for the cause of God.
This treasury of His words is a compilation of informal talks and extempore discourses delivered in Persian and Arabic, interpreted by proficient linguists who accompanied Him, and taken stenographically in both Oriental and Occidental tongue.
Upon the day of His arrival in New
York He said, “It is my purpose to set
forth in America the fundamental principles of the Revelation and Teachings of
Bahá’u’lláh. It will then become the duty
of the Bahá’ís of this country to give
these principles unfoldment and application in the minds, hearts and lives of the[Page 220]
people.” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s words therefore
will be found characterized by a broad
clear simplicity and practical basis, marked
by an absence of metaphysical flights,
philosophical speculation and mere rhetorical eloquence; always reflecting the
pure beauty of the Word of God, that
primal, essential, eternal foundation upon
which rest religion, science and all human
advancement.
Everywhere in His journeying throughout the United States ‘Abdu’l-Bahá was received and welcomed in a spirit of love and reverence. Temples and churches of all denominations, synagogues, peace societies, religious and educational institutions, colleges, women’s clubs, metaphysical groups and new-thought centers opened their doors, pulpits and platforms willingly and without reservation to His message. He attended peace conferences at Lake Mohonk, visited the open forum at Green Acre on the Piscataqua, addressed large gatherings at Columbia and Leland Stanford Universities, spoke before scientific associations, socialistic bodies, ethical cults, welfare and charitable organizations, attended receptions and banquets in the mansions of the rich, visited the poor and lowly in their humble homes, carried the light of hope and uplift to darkened souls in Bowery Mission; in brief, proclaimed His message and teachings universally to every degree and capacity of humankind, with such pure and sincere motive that all heard Him gladly and without prejudice or antagonism. Furthermore, His beneficent activity in the cause of God and loving service to mankind was without money and without price, for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in no instance accepted remuneration—a most unusual precedent and a wholesome variation from the money—getting methods of other visitors from the Orient. On the contrary, it was His custom to make liberal donations to needy churches and religious bodies, often assisting by generous gift and contribution, societies and associations devoted to universal principles and ideals. Standing in the doorway of Bowery Mission one night He‘ distributed two hundred dollars in silver to a long line of poor, disconsolate men, speaking words of uplift and encouragement as they passed before Him. Under all circumstances ‘Abdu’l-Bahá refused "to accept money for Himself or the cause He represented. When the Bahá’ís of this country received word of His intended visit, the sum of eighteen thousand dollars was subscribed toward the expense of His journey. He was notified of this action and a part of the money forwarded to Him by cable. He cabled in answer that the funds contributed by His friends could not be accepted, returned the money and instructed them to give their offering to the poor.
Briefly, the visit of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to the United States was unique and characteristic of His high, holy mission, reflecting an unmistakable altruism of purpose and purity of motive. Philosophers, scientists, agnostics, materialists, professors, diplomats and officials were found in His audiences intently listening, sincerely questioning His presentation of the exalted principles and perfect ideals of the Bahá’í revelation in their application to the education, uplift and unification of mankind. Everywhere in editorial comment and publication of news concerning Him the daily press was reverent and respectful in its tone and statement instinctively recognizing His high purpose and the manifest virtue of His teachings to the world.
An understanding of the mission and
significance of this radiant Herald of the
New Day would not be complete without
vision of the cumulative chain of religious
history which extends backward from the
time of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s appearance here
to a period practically contemporary with
the birth of American Independence in
1776. This is of especial importance too
in the light of the fact that when Bahá’u’lláh sent epistles to the kings and rulers
of the earth in 1868 He addressed one to
the republic of the United States in which
He said, “O concourse of statesmen! Assist the broken-hearted with the hands of
justice and crush the mighty oppressors[Page 221]
with the scourges of the commands of
your Lord, the Powerful, the Wise.” A
very brief summary will be sufficient to
show this spiritual sequence and historical
progression of which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá is the
apex and consummation.
The earliest dawning rays of the effulgent Sun of Truth, the Word of God which shone forth from the heaven of the divine will upon the horizon of the human world in this luminous cycle were reflected in the pure mirrors of sanctity Shaykh Aḥmad of Aḥsá’í and Hájí Siyyid Kázim of Rasht. As stars of morning precede the coming of the mighty luminary of day, these brilliant souls arose successively in Persia toward the close of the eighteenth century, piercing the sombre shadows of night and proclaiming the splendor of the approaching Manifestation. This mission completed, the lamps of their physical existence were extinguished in 1826 and 1844 respectively.
On May 23, 1844, His Holiness Mirzá ‘Ali Muḥammad the Báb suddenly enkindled the world by declaring in Shíráz, Persia that the Day of God was at hand. For six years as herald and forerunner this winsome messenger of the kingdom sounded His heavenly call, until in 1850 the flaming tongue and pen of His eloquence were stilled in the throes of a glorious martyrdom.
Then the heaven of religion overspread with the brilliant radiance of His Holiness Bahá’u’lláh, Glory of God, the Manifest Word and Sun of Reality which poured its bounty upon the world of mankind forty years, extending to the time of its occultation in 1892. Throughout these years this Glorious Being was subjected to continuous exile, imprisonment and oppression by earthly rulers until after infinite hardships and suffering He ascended from these abject conditions and surroundings of religious and political tyranny to His abode in the supreme world.
But the equation of divine purpose was not yet complete. The coming of Bahá’u’llah, had fulfilled the prophetic promises of the sacred books of the Jews, Christians, Muḥammadans, Zoroastrians, Hindus, Buddhists and others. Like mighty rivers restricted to their own watersheds these separate systems of religious belief and worship, incapable of mingling in their courses, had found their destined union and confluence in the infinite ocean of Bahá’u’lláh’s utterance. Furthermore, the supreme and ultimate product of divine revelation, the apotheosis of prophecy and the universal outcome in which all the heavenly religions would consummate was that quintessence of the cycles, that “Mystery of God,” a perfected “Servant” in whom the divine and human wills had found complete blending. This sanctified personage was to appear in the great Day of God, that Day of universal splendor when “the glory of the Lord should be revealed and all flesh should see it together.”
In the latter half of the nineteenth
century the nations and peoples of the
world had become so closely associated
and wrought together in their physical
existence, so interwoven and interdependent in the necessities and requirements of
life that the problems and politics of one
government now affected and influenced
the conditions of them all. The world
had become one vast human family wherein interests were intimately related, responsibilities mutual and problems universal. Therefore the Word of God
revealed by Bahá’u’lláh was universal in
its provision and remedy for the conditions of mankind; conditions which although they were direct outcomes of
human will and making, had been eternally foreseen by the Omniscient eye and
spoken by the tongues of Prophets as recorded in all the holy books. Great numbers of brilliant souls throughout the East
had accepted and followed this manifest
standard of unity and reconciliation. In
religious heredity, training and belief they
had been diverse, hostile and irreconcilable but under the benign, penetrating
influence of the Holy Spirit of the Word
made flesh in Bahá’u’lláh they attained[Page 222]
the blessed station of oneness and love
in the heaven of the kingdom.
To strengthen, safeguard and increase this unity and love Bahá’u’lláh appointed a successor to whom all should turn for guidance and illumination after His own departure; naming in the Book of the Covenant written by His own blessed hand, His eldest son, the Greatest Branch, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Center of the Covenant in whom Bahá’ís throughout the world recognize the authority of perfect servitude at the threshold of the manifest Word. This is the essence of His title, entity and being, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Servant of Bahá.
The great wisdom of this appointment is shown in many ways. It is particularly evident when we realize that from His earliest childhood ‘Abdu’l-Bahá had been inseparably associated with Bahá’u’lláh. Born in Tihran May 23, 1844, the day and date of the Báb’s declaration, His very birth foretokened the significance of His life and being in the divine processes and consummations of this luminous cycle. At the age of eight years He was one of the little band of exiles who crossed the Persian border into ‘Iráq-‘Arabi, sharing vicissitudes and suffering with heroic strength and subjected with the rest to continuous imprisonments in various cities until they reached the prison-fortress of ‘Akká in Syria, August 31, 1868. Throughout this long and faithful vigil of devotion to Bahá’u’lláh and loyalty to the cause of God, the record of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s life is pure and spotless, wonderful in its exaltation and effulgent with the beauty of holiness. When the tyrannous regime of Sultan ‘Abdu’l-Hamid ended, the gates of ‘Akká were thrown open and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá came forth free upon the fortieth anniversary of His entrance into that neglected and unspeakable place. This was August 31, 1908. In 1911, two years after His release from a living martyrdom of fifty-six years and at the age of sixty-seven He visited Europe, returning to Egypt from whence in 1912 He sailed for America as stated.
Thus far the evidences of divine forces and influences surrounding the life of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá should be sufficient to impress and convince any thoughtful soul that we are viewing an unusual and majestic personality, a world-commanding figure who has appeared for the uplift, unification and peace of mankind. Dark indeed are the world-horizons unless we behold the shining beauty of this Sun of Reality. The human world plunging deeper and deeper with ever-increasing momentum into seas of materialism is crying out in its crucial need and stress for help and remedy—for a new creative spirit of life and regeneration—a power and healing direct from God. And just at this time ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Messenger of Universal Peace and the oneness of the world of humanity, is sounding His call of salvation to the nations of the earth in heavenly words fortified by an impelling dynamic spiritual power and surcharged with the pure breaths of the Holy Spirit.
The divine Covenant outworking its
purpose and plan in the history and destiny of mankind has been revealed progressively according to the necessities of
the age and the degree of human capacity.
In each dispensation of its bounties it has
infused a new and spiritual impulse into
minds and hearts through channels of
religious belief. These irrigating currents
have been the source of life to the human
world and its only civilizing impetus. The
standard of human requirement in every
cycle has been obedience to the divine
Word and purpose, firmness and steadfastness in the ancient Covenant of God.
History shows how invariably and inevitably the people of the Covenant, as in the
time of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muḥammad became the mightiest civilizing
forces and formative influences in human
progression, and how through obedience
and fidelity to the Messenger of the Covenant the exigencies confronting them in
their day were overcome, their difficulties
surmounted, their questions answered
and uncertainties dispelled, so that ever-widening vistas of nobler attainments and
loftier ranges of vision were opened to
them in the horizons of human destiny.
In reality this evolution and progression[Page 223]
constitute the bounties of the Covenant
itself, divine bestowals of higher capacity
for development, discovery and advancement. That is to say, in each dispensation,
through the gifts and bestowals of the
Covenant the people of the Covenant have
been quickened by a power which enabled
them to overcome the menace of difficulties surrounding them, dominate their
environments, make conditions minister
to their advancement and growth, purify
their lives and laws, strengthen their institutions and uplift themselves to the
beatitude of peace, prosperity and unity;
whereas those who denied the Covenant
and were deprived of its bounties have
succumbed to forces and surrounding
conditions and have passed into oblivion,
incapable of existence and continuance.
This is the inner, penetrating power of
the pure religion of God, the divine
leavening spirit of the Covenant which
has manifested itself in every age through
an appointed or collective Center whom
all were commanded to acknowledge in
allegiance and steadfastness lest they become deprived of the outpouring and
overflowing bestowals of God.
Inasmuch as this wonderful century, this Day of God is universal in its conditions and requirements, characterized by an inter-relationship and interdependence never before witnessed among the nations of the world, and inasmuch as the Book of the Covenant has been revealed in this day by the tongue and pen of His Holiness Bahá’u’lláh to all races, religions and peoples without preference or favor, naming in holy words and text the one to whom all must turn in obedience and loyalty, it therefore follows that the source of effulgent power and heavenly bestowals, the collective center and point of unity from which the bounties of the Covenant are now overflowing to the world of mankind is ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Servant of Baha, Center of the Covenant of God. He is the channel of purifying, unifying religious belief, the new impulse and dynamic, the creative spirit of regeneration, the power and healing direct from God, the irrigating current of life to the world of man, the answerer of questions, the explainer of the Book, the bestower of spiritual capacities, the uplifting impetus of civilization, the Servant of all mankind, the point of agreement and reconciliation for all the divine religions, the Standard-bearer of Universal Peace and Messenger of the Glad-tidings of the Oneness of the World of Humanity.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s station of servitude in the divine cause is therefore world-wide and universal, beyond the limitation of race, denomination, creed or nationality; a station supreme in its loftiness, perfect in its humility: Servant of the servants of God. Significant indeed is His visit to the shores of the western world; pregnant indeed are His words to the highly organized material civilizations of the Occident; potent indeed His message of peace and unity of mankind cementing the East and the West in spiritual solidarity, blending the world that is old and the world that is new under the beneficent laws of the heavenly kingdom.
In obedience to the direct command of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, this Introduction has been written by a humble follower of His light and a devoted lover of His beauty. May the glory of God illumine this heart and guide this pen to do His will in this most great responsibility.
