Bahá’í World/Volume 22/Essays and Statements

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Ann Boyles comments on the effects of

the postmodernistperspective on our contemporary worldview and offers an al ternative fiamework for understanding current trends and events.

WORLD WATCH

Introduction

In the closing years of the twentieth century, the moral paradoxes and tragic juxtapositions of life on this planet are becoming increasingly insupportable. The horrors of tribal Violence in Rwanda and “ethnic cleansing” in the Balkans appear in Vivid images on television screens and magazine and newspaper pages around the globe, yet no agency seems to possess the moral and practical authority to do more than utter a hollow condemnation of the atrocities. The media report the proliferation of drug trafficking and child prostitution in various parts of the world and the rise in teenage Violence, but no body or government has stepped forward to curb these activities. The traffic of drugs that cause untold human misery is acceptable in some quarters because the income generated by the cultivation of drug—producing plants brings prosperity to impoverished rural Villages around the world. Child prostitution in southeast Asian cities is quietly condoned by some governments because it increases regional tourism. Powerful lobby groups in the United

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States agitate against more stringent gun control laws as an infringement on their personal liberty, while children With automatic weapons kill each other in schoolyards across the nation. The moral failings of politicians all over the world are widely publicized and condemned by a public that engages in many of the same activities. The gap between public morality and private life grows ever wider.

Such contradictions are, in no small measure, the legacy of intellectual and political ideas that have carried us through much of the twentieth century. On the one hand, we want to believe that we can build a better world, but on the other, while we may cry for the leadership that will assist us to build such a world, we reject the idea of central global authority or a structure of governance capable of dealing with the pressing problems confronting us all. The result is essentially a world adrift, where no certain values remain. There is a sense of events running out of control, accompanied by a perception of randomness—an impression that many things occur without cause and are therefore irresolvable.

Yet an irrepressible sense of hope remains: people still dare to believe that the world will become a place of peace, that the poverty-stricken will one day live in dignity, that the oppressed will be released from their bondage. The world looks hopefully towards a post-apartheid South Africa. Peace negotiations between entrenched foes inspire cautious optimism. And people’s unhappiness with their governments and leaders generates a re-examination of outworn political systems. In essence, then, the world is currently torn by two opposing forces: an almost nihilistic conviction that humanity is destined to pursue a path of self—destruction versus a drive towards redefinition of ourselves, our social systems, and our world. How can we come to terms With these two opposing Views? Is the world caught in an irreversible spiral towards anarchy, as many modern commentators would have us believe? In considering these questions, a critical look at a theory that has held sway over many thinkers during the past decades will be helpful.

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Modernism and Postmodernism

The problem with structure and authority that lies at the heart of modern life is part of a phenomenon that has acquired the designation “postmodernism.” It underscores discussions about organized religion and the authority of religious leaders, colors perceptions of political and civil life around the world, shapes current literature and contemporary arts, calls into question the validity of the traditional family as an institution, and determines theories and practices in the fields of business and economics.

Postmodernism’s precursor, the modernist movement, originated in the early years of the twentieth century, the result of the modern perception of a loss of center in the world and the search to regain that center. The postmodernist era into which we have moved in the latter half of this century could be termed a period when people have given up searching for that lost center and have come to believe that there never was such a thing in the first place. Among the major characteristics of postmodernism that have drifted from the intellectual arena into popular culture and thus affect our daily life are a real or perceived lack of leadership; a questioning and rejection of authority; an absence of systems of hierarchical ordering, resulting in fragmentation and a sense of randomness; attempts to redefine basic structures in society; an assertion of invalidity of many previously held beliefs; a lack of accountability; Violence; discordance; studied ugliness.

The paradigm contains both positive and negative implications. This is a pluralistic world, in many ways, where it is no longer generally acceptable to impose Western culture and values on others. Similarly, in the realm of belief, many people now recognize that there are many different religions and values systems operating in the world. It is no longer tolerable for one race or culture to be enslaved in any way by another.. These are forward steps. But the loss of a common point of reference or authority has alarming ramifications. Since there are no unalterable rules and everything is negotiable, nothing possesses absolute meaning. For example, if we talk about “human rights,” how can we agree on exactly what are human rights? Or

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if we talk about the equality of women and men, how can we agree exactly what that entails? If we accept that there is validity in many different religions, how do We decide which teachings, if any, are to be universally respected?

An illustration of the difficulties engendered by such a lack of authority is found in several issues arising in the field of medical ethics during 1993-94. Discussions concerning legality of euthanasia, the cloning of human embryos, and post-menopausal pregnancies exposed the ethical dilemmas created by the rapid advance of science beyond traditionally accepted limits. How can one resolve such discussions without recourse to a central, universally respected moral authority? Such is the difficulty encountered in many fields throughout the postmodern world, leaving us With more “deconstructions” than “constructions,” more of a fragmented View than one of wholeness, and more questions than answers.

Postmodernism and Reportage

While historical events of the past century have served to destabilize and fragment established patterns of society around the world, the rapid development of telecommunications has given steadily greater substance to Marshall McLuhan’s “global village,” so that we now have the technology to communicate in ways scarcely dreamed of in past ages. The technological tools available to create a peaceful, unified world exist. Yet they have seldom been effectively used towards such ends.

Contemporary reportage in the global media clearly evidences the tendencies and biases of postmodernism. Information is disseminated broadly and rapidly; strange juxtapositions occur, and What may be considered important one day is forgotten the next, as illustrated by the following example. “New world order” became a buzzword in the late 1980s with the breakup of the Soviet Union, the demolition of the Berlin Wall, the reunification of Germany, and a variety of other occurrences that were hailed widely by the international media as proof that the world was being reshaped and reconfigured into a new, global order that would be significantly different from

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and better than the previous one. Yet, within a very brief timespan, the same international media were trumpeting the downfall of the new order, branding it the “new world disorder” and generally heralding its quick demise.

Perhaps the world was too naive in its expectations about what the “new world order” would bring and about the effort required to ensure its survival. It quickly became apparent that the structure of this new order is ill-defmed—even chaotic; with one of the two former superpowers now gone, the tensions driving international relations, directing nations’ foreign policies, and governing international economics have radically changed. Small nations attempting to establish their own sovereignty are largely inexperienced in the art of governance; governments all around the world have been subverted by internal strife, corruption, public dissatisfaction, recalcitrant military forces, and by their own ineptitude. In some cases their structures have begun to disintegrate, and in others their stature has declined considerably. Who or what, then, will provide structure in this post—Colonial, post-Cold War world? To whom are people to turn as an authority? Such questions have assumed central importance as either explicit or implicit concerns of media coverage of current events.

The major stories and editorial commentaries of 1993-94 clearly reflect this preoccupation with our destabilized present and our uncertain future. In the spheres of politics and civil life, the press worried constantly about the absence of strong, upright leadership in various countries of the world, from the US to Russia, from J apan to Italy; civil uprisings against governments occurred in widely disparate areas, including Moscow in October 1993 and the Chiapas region of Mexico in January 1994; international organized crime was seen as a growing problem around the world.

In the realm of the family, 1994’s United Nations International Year of the Family sparked broad discussion about the Viability of the family as an institution, and commentators mused whether the family as a social unit needed to be redefined. Meanwhile, various stories in the media examined

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family breakdown, citing examples of neglect of children by their parents, the selling of children into prostitution, and the rise in Violence among teenagers.

The business world experienced a strange volatility in the stock markets, saw a “jobless recovery” to the global recession, and witnessed the emergence of competitive new economic centers around the world—particularly in the Far East and Latin America—to the consternation of traditional leaders such as Europe and the US. While China was hailed as a new “superpower” on the world scene, concerns about its human rights Violations were renewed, and in the West alarms were sounded about the North Korean government’s capability to produce nuclear arms.

Conflicts fuelled by racial and ethnic hatred escalated in various locations: “ethnic cleansing” occurred in Cambodia and in Bosnia, in spite of the establishment of “safe havens” by the United Nations peacekeeping forces; tribal Violence erupted in Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, and Algeria; there was a general backlash against foreigners in western Europe, and fascism gained popularity as a movement; the path to South Africa’s first multiracial democratic elections was paved with bloodshed. Commentators noted the rising number of conflicts between ethnic identity and the modern nation; such retreats into tribal and ethnic conclaves are marked by a disregard for laws of governments and established national boundaries.

Some of these conflicts were additionally kindled by religious strife; the term “religious nationalism” defined movements in which religious beliefs combined with political ambitions to create explosive situations such as the murder of Muslim worshippers in a mosque in Hebron, Israel, by a fanatical Zionist, the call by Hindu revivalists for India to become a solely Hindu nation, and the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York by Muslim fundamentalists. The Branch Davidian cult in Waco, Texas, also made the news with the Violent deaths of its members in a standoff with the FBI. In the mainstream Christian churches, the authority of the Pope came under heavy fire with regard to his position on abortion

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and birth control issues, and revisionist histories of the life of Christ promoted a far different understanding of His life and mission than the generally accepted one.

In the face of international disputes, the United Nations was pressed to send peacekeeping troops, but the success of these interventions was, at best, limited. The press endlessly debated the actions of UN peacekeepers in Somalia and Bosnia, and some commentators urged that the entire UN peacekeeping system be overhauled to meet the new and expanding demands placed upon it by the world situation. The reluctance of the US to assume a large share of peacekeeping duties was increased by the deaths of a number of American soldiers in Somalia. Meanwhile, members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) considered the post—Cold War future of the body, debating whether it should assume peacekeeping duties similar to those of the UN.

With increasing ethnic, racial, cultural, and religious conflicts, the number of the world’s refugees continued to rise dramatically in 1993-94, while fewer and fewer countries appeared willing to welcome them, fearing a decline in their own standard of living. Clearly such a global problem demands a comprehensive global solution, but none appears in sight.

Other stories featured in the news during 1993-94 dealt with widely contrasting issues: the resurgence of a number of diseases such as tuberculosis and malaria that health officials considered to be under control; the AIDS epidemic that continued to ravage populations, largely in Africa; the information highway on the anarchical Internet system, which allowed the millions who logged on instant access to information and other users in far distant locations. And finally, in the realm of arts and entertainment, the press obliged the public’s taste for scandal in its tabloid depictions of the private lives of celebrities.

All of these stories illustrate the sense of fragmentation, randomness, and inability to deal effectively with crises besetting humanity. But perhaps the most cogent and succinct example of the postmodernist View of the world offered to the reading public by contemporary commentators on the world

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scene can be found in an article entitled “The Coming Anarchy,” written by Robert Kaplan and published in the February 1994 issue of The Atlantic Monthly. This piece graphically depicts the social and political ramifications of the postmodern condition and makes shocking predictions about the future according to current trends. It is a graphic and compelling discussion, outlining, in Kaplan°s own words, the “political and cartographic implications of postmodernism—an epoch of themeless juxtapositions in which the classificatory grid of nation-states is going to be replaced by a jagged-glass pattern of city-states, shanty-states, nebulous and anarchic regionalisms.”

This View of “re-primitivized man,” depicting “warrior societies operating at a time of unprecedented resource scarcity and planetary overcrowding” and a world where “technology Will be used toward primitive ends,” comes to Kaplan through the research of scholars such as Thomas Fraser Homer—Dixon, whose study of planetary overcrowding suggests that global strife fuelled by environmental degradation, ethnic hatreds, overpopulation, and a widening gap between the rich and poor Will shape our future. Kaplan calls to witness incidents from his own travels through West Africa and the Balkan areas of Europe as support for his conclusions, and there are certainly major recent news stories that bear out these observations as well.

Tracing factors such as environmental degradation, ethnic and historical disputes, cultural conflicts, the breakdown of the family, the drift of populations away from rural life to the cities, and the population swell, Kaplan envisions three choices for future governance of the world: totalitarianism, fascist ministates, or road-warrior cultures. We live in a “bifurcated world,” as he expresses it, With “cadillac” societies on the one hand, impoverished have-not states on the other, and the gap between the two Widening With every passing day.

In Kaplan’s View, there is only one logical outcome to such a situation: conflict. War is, in fact, a step up for the povertystricken, he points out. There is “liberation in Violence,” and “worrying about mines and ambushes frees you from worrying about mundane details of daily existence.” Increasingly, he predicts, there will be a breakdown of the distinctions between

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“war” and “crime,” with wars waged by small “subnational” groups for “communal survival.” Witness, for example, the militia forces of Beirut in the 1980s and, more recently, those of Haiti. Maps, asserts Kaplan, no longer indicate real borders, nor do they indicate the impending global political crackup. The era of the nation is past. Rather, we Will retreat into ethnic enclaves and stay there in our isolated cocoons.

An Alternative Perspective

Kaplan’s graphic depiction of global social breakdown is welldocumented, but his scenario for the world’s future is colored by a number of rather doubtful assumptions about the nature of humans and society. In evaluating his analysis and predictions, we need to consider an alternative perspective offered by the Universal House of Justice, in a statement on peace addressed to the peoples of the world and Widely disseminated by the members of the Bahá’í community in 1986, the United Nations International Year of Peace, and in the years since.1

The document states unequivocally, “World peace is not only possible but inevitable. It is the next stage in the evolution of this planet. . ..” Lest one think this is some sort of naive utopian View, however, the Universal House of Justice goes directly on to position the world at a dramatic crossroads: “Whether peace is to be reached only after unimaginable horrors precipitated by humanity’s stubborn clinging to old patterns of behaviour, or is to be embraced now by an act of consultative will, is the choice before all Who inhabit the earth.” While Kaplan’s analysis and predictions seem to assume that humanity exercises no real choice in its actions but is merely prey to external forces and its own aggressive tendencies, the Universal House of Justice asserts that humanity can and must assert control over its own destiny and then outlines concrete actions it can take towards establishing a peaceful world.

One of the factors identified in the peace statement as crippling efforts to establish peace is a paralysis of Will

l. The Universal House of Justice, The Promise of World Peace (Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 1985).

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centering around a widely-held conception of human nature as incorrigibly selfish and aggressive. In “The Coming Anarchy,” for example, Kaplan asserts, “Physical aggression is part of being human,” and “Only When people attain a certain economic, educational, and cultural standard is this trait tranquilized.” Certainly relief from poverty and the benefits of education can allow people and their societies to develop; however, there are also examples from recent history amply demonstrating that relative prosperity and high educational standards do not necessarily lead to a peaceful society. Further, the word “tranquilized” suggests that the aggression remains beneath the surface much as the feral instinct remains in domesticated animals. Such a view ignores the widespread expression of longing for peace and harmony current in the world. It seems impossible to reconcile the View of human nature as innately aggressive with the widely—held desire for peace, and therefore some reassessment of our conception of human nature is in order.

Viewing selfish, aggressive behavior as a “distortion of the human spirit” rather than its true expression and accepting such behavior as part of a phase of immaturity promotes acknowledgement and transcendence; it frees us to establish social structures that will enhance the peace-building process. Then consultation can take place among the world’s peoples, leading to a “united search for appropriate solutions.” The longer humanity remains mired in the perception of innate aggression, the longer we impede the journey towards peace, as we merely justify our current behavior rather than promote the Will to change.

Other factors contribute to the world’s paralysis of will in addressing humanity’s current ills. One such factor, according to the statement on peace, is an unwillingness to face the implications of the establishment of a world authority; thus, we retreat into nationalistic or ethnic enclaves that mistrust each other, and no effective model of international authority exists to assure us that we should place our trust in it. Another factor is the incapacity of uneducated masses to articulate their desire for a new order. Additionally, the Universal House of Justice

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identifies several barriers to peace, including racism, disparity between the rich and poor peoples of the world, unbridled nationalism, and religious strife. These factors are very similar to those outlined in the Kaplan article, but the Universal House of Justice, in contrast, goes beyond mere analysis to articulate the means whereby, if humanity chooses, we may take the alternative route leading to peace, Without experiencing the preceding global anarchy.

The Bahá’í approach to the subject is essentially optimistic, but the pursuit of peace is recognized as complex, involving three essential prerequisites: the equality of the sexes, universal education, and improved global communication, including the selection of a universal auxiliary language. Underlying each of these is a notion of organic unity concerning human relationships; as the Universal House of Justice phrases it: “Acceptance of the oneness of mankind is the first fundamental prerequisite for reorganization and administration of the world as one country, the home of humankind.” This View stands in direct opposition to the prediction of retreat into ethnic enclaves, an action that an observer like Kaplan seems to regard as inevitable.

In its peace statement, the Universal House of Justice stresses that

the emancipation of women, the achievement of full equality between the sexes, is one of the most important, though less acknowledged prerequisites of peace. The denial of such equality perpetrates an injustice against one half of the world’s population and promotes in men harmful attitudes and habits that are carried from the family to the workplace, to political life, and ultimately to international relations. There are no grounds, moral, practical, or biological, upon Which such denial can be justified.

Women are strangely absent from Kaplan’s View of the future. Their status does not seem to be of any concern to him, though surely the condition of half of the world’s populationand, at that, the half that is chiefly responsible for raising the next generation—is significant to the direction humanity will take. Ignoring women perpetuates the idea that they are

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insignificant in factoring the course of humanity’s future. Surely this must be questioned. In fact, as the world gears up for the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women, to be held in Beijing in 1995, the situation and condition of women around the world is coming under growing scrutiny. To ignore the progress that has been made thus far, and the very real challenges that remain to be met, is to do a disservice to women and their power to shape the course of future generations as well as to participate in the governance of peoples around the world. Kaplan overlooks them at his own peril.

Further, to View education as “tranquilizing” aggressive tendencies is to disregard its power to change people’s attitudes and thus the course of the future. The Universal House of Justice identifies “ignorance [as] indisputably the principal reason for the decline and fall of peoples and the perpetuation of prejudice.” Further, it states, “No nation can achieve success unless education is accorded all its citizens.” This issue is crucial and is connected to the issue of women’s status. Although universal education is the ultimate objective, nations With limited resources must reconsider their priorities to meet this need; the Bahá’í teachings give preference to the education of women and girls, “since it is through educated mothers that the benefits of knowledge can be most effectively and rapidly diffused throughout society.” Significantly, one subject identified as crucial for study by all children is the concept of world citizenship. Within a generation or two, such study would certame promote the development of societies able to Withstand the temptation to retreat into ethnic, racial, or cultural enclaves.

“The Coming Anarchy” asserts that borders drawn on maps no longer represent any real separations into different collections of populations, as the idea of the state is outdated. Bahá’ís have held this View for over one hundred years, but their Vision of what is to replace the state is rather different. Baha’u’llah wrote, in the late nineteenth century, “The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”2 Then, writing in

2. Baha’u’llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust), 250; cited in The Promise of World Peace, 11.

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1936, Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith, analyzed the world situation in the following terms: “The anarchy inherent in state sovereignty is moving towards a climax. A world, growing to maturity, must abandon this fetish, recognize the oneness and wholeness of human relationships, and establish once for all the machinery that can best incarnate this fundamental principle of its life.”3 Where Kaplan sees humanity’s retreat into small ethnic or tribal enclaves as something amounting to the inevitable, Bahá’ís see another force at work in the world counteracting such action: “Together with the opposing tendency to warfare and self—aggrandizement against which it ceaselessly struggles, the drive towards world unity is one of the dominant, pervasive features of life on the planet during the closing years of the twentieth century.”4

The real issue here is choice—the exercise of human willand responsibility, not inevitability. The View represented in “The Coming Anarchy” may well prove to be an accurate picture of the direction humanity takes over the next years, but there is nothing inevitable about it. Governments and leaders in many fields have the knowledge necessary for them to Choose a path that addresses the fundamental problems Kaplan delineates. Issues related to human rights, global prosperity, the equality of men and women, and moral development need the world’s serious, sustained attention characterized by a unity of approach. Yet we cannot lay all the responsibility at the feet of governments. Individual citizens of this global Village need to be educated about their responsibilities as members of a new kind of civilization. If we envision ourselves on the threshold of maturity rather than retreating into a re-primitivized state, then we can raise ourselves up according to that vision. If we envision an ever—advancing civilization rather than a disintegrating one, then we have an orientation that will lead us forward rather than backward.

3. Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1974), 202; cited in The Promise of World Peace, 18-19. 4. The Promise of World Peace, 19.

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No consideration of society’s development and future can ignore the importance of religion as a force. Although religious strife abounds in the world, we cannot disregard the essential benefits conferred upon humanity by religion. It is a potent positive social force—“the greatest of all means for the establishment of order in the world and for the peaceful contentment of all that dwell therein,” in the words of Baha’u’llah, who also cautioned, “Should the lamp of religion be obscured, chaos and confusion will ensue, and the lights of fairness, of justice, of tranquillity and peace cease to shine.”5 Within religion lie the possibilities for the reconstruction of the world’s society on a more just and equitable basis.

At present, there are two processes simultaneously at work in the world: the rolling up of the old world order and the rolling out of the new. The media, with their postmodernist perspective, largely focus on the former, with its emphasis on Violence, randomness, disintegration, despair, and, eventually, complete breakdown and anarchy. But we can see evidence of this other process, which admittedly receives much less emphasis. Nevertheless, some of the news stories of 1993-94 can be summoned to witness this second process.

The world, for example, anticipated widespread bloodshed during the first democratic elections ever held in South Africa, and indeed, the prelude to the elections was Violent to the extreme.6 Yet, the voting itself was carried out peacefully, and the transition to the new government was an emotionally moving experience to witness, even for a cynical public. Despite tremendous difficulties, democratic elections were also held in Cambodia for the first time in over twenty years, under the watchful eyes of UN observers.

Economic forces led different governments to move towards regional and even global free trade zones. The North American Free Trade Agreement (N AFTA) and the qualified success of the

5. Baha’u’llah, Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh (Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 1978), 125; cited in The Promise of World Peace, 5.

6. For an account of the effects of this violence on the Bahá’í community of South Africa, see pp. 147—150.

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Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT) were heralded by some critics as disasters—the “GATTastrophe,” according to one commentator—and as major steps towards the recognition of a global economy by others. Whatever their limitations, they do show a world attempting to come to terms With itself on a global scale. Such agreements may be first steps towards more comprehensive endeavors, leading perhaps to a world economy.

While the United Nations and NATO struggled to make or maintain peace in some parts of the world, peace talks sprang up in some surprising locations and between some unlikely negotiators. In the Middle East, negotiations commenced in Israel between two former bitter rivals, With the goal of resolving longstanding disputes. In Ireland, the Irish Republican Army signalled its willingness to talk With the government about ending the twenty-odd years of Violence in Northern Ireland.

And in contrast to the divisive religious strife occurring in various locations, ecumenical activities proliferated, including the gathering of representatives of the world’s major faiths for the second Parliament of the World’s Religions. Held in Chicago in September 1993, the event demonstrated through the manifesto produced at the end of the session that goodwill and tolerance are possible among peoples of differing beliefs.

Such stories show that on the world stage there are efforts being made to come to grips with what it actually means to be part of a global society. Rather than focusing on disintegration, some forces and agencies have elected to focus on integration and redefinition. But efforts in this direction are also possible on a small scale, and the Bahá’í international community offers one working model of a functioning world entity. Throughout the world, the affairs of Bahá’í communities are governed by Local Spiritual Assemblies. As the Bahá’í Faith has no clergy, these nine-member bodies, elected by secret ballot in every community where there are nine or more adult believers in good standing, govern the affairs of the Bahá’í communities they serve. A 1993 count indicated that there were almost 18,000 of these bodies around the world. Members of these institutions are elected for their spiritual qualities and service to the community;

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they are not necessarily highly educated or even literate, though of course many are. Yet they learn to function as a united body through experience in the art of consultation. The existence and increasing maturity of functioning of these assemblies in all parts of the world is a potent argument against the kind of global anarchy that Kaplan predicts. If nations break down, Local Spiritual Assemblies Will still be able to govern the affairs of the communities they serve, often With a greater sense of service than officials elected through the traditional democratic process, Where campaigns feature empty promises, attacks on opponents, and various types of electioneering. In Bahá’í elections there is no campaigning or electioneering. Every adult believer is eligible to vote and to be voted for; if elected, she or he must serve. The existence of such a broad—based, functioning system of governance in the Bahá’í community around the world shows that all people, from Villagers in remote rural areas to inhabitants of large cities, can assume responsibility for the affairs that affect them. This sort of responsible community-based government is a strong alternative to the forces of Violence some see as taking over the world.

Kaplan himself posits, “Whereas the distant future Will probably see the emergence of a racially hybrid, globalized man, the coming decades will see us more aware of our differences than of our similarities.” To this assertion, one may well respond by asking Whether it is not possible to see both differences and similarities and to accept them as essential parts of our humanness. The unity about Which so much has been written in the Bahá’í Faith is not uniformity. Shoghi Effendi described it thus:

It can conflict with no legitimate allegiances, nor can it undermine essential loyalties. Its purpose is neither to stifle the flame of a sane and intelligent patriotism in men’s hearts, nor to abolish the system of national autonomy so essential if the evils of excessive centralization are to be avoided. It does not ignore, nor does it attempt to suppress, the diversity of ethnical origins, of climate, of history, of language and tradition, of thought and habit, that differentiate the peoples and nations of the world. It calls for a Wider loyalty, for a

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larger aspiration than any that has animated the human race. It insists upon the subordination of national impulses and interests to the imperative claims of a unified world. It repudiates excessive centralization on one hand, and disclaims all attempts at uniformity on the other. Its watchword is unity in diversity. . ..

Unity and diversity are not mutually exclusive or incompati ble, in the Bahá’í View. In fact, they enrich one another by their interaction. Against what, then, does the Bahá’í Faith stand? This question is, once again, answered succinctly by Shoghi

Effendi:

The call of Baha’u’llah is primarily directed against all forms of provincialism, all insularities and prejudices. If long-cherished ideals and time-honored institutions, if certain social assumptions and religious formulae have ceased to promote the welfare of the generality of mankind, if they no longer minister to the needs of a continually evolving humanity, let them be swept away and relegated to the limbo of obsolescent and forgotten doctrines. Why should these, in a world subj ect to the immutable law of change and decay, be exempt from the deterioration that must needs overtake every human institution? For legal standards, political and economic theories are solely designed to safeguard the interests of humanity as a whole, and not humanity to be crucified for the preservation of the integrity of any particular law or doctrine.

Conclusion

Could it be that our notions about what is happening in the world around us, shaped by postmodernist theorists, belong to those obsolescent doctrines that should be swept away because they no longer minister to our needs? Could it be that we are too attached to the prophecies of the doomsayers, which predict momentous and catastrophic future events far larger than the

7. Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh (Wilmette: Bahá’í Pub lishing Trust, 1974), 41- 42. 8. Ibid., 42.

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scope of individuals to deal with, thus paralyzing our collective will?

We choose the way we View the world. There are powerful forces at work to shape our View—political, journalistic, commercial, social—but we are capable of choosing Whether or not we wish to View the world through the lenses offered to us by these forces, which are often sustained by powerful selfinterest. Do we really believe that we are doomed to endure global anarchy and that there is nothing we can do to halt the process? Or can we adjust our vision somewhat to see that there are other constructive forces at work in the world, that what may appear randomly destructive is part of a process of renewal of civilization, and that it is in our power to determine the speed and course of that process?

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[Page 189]William S. Hatcher explores the philosophicalframework Of the Bahá’í' Faith as a basis for an adequate understanding of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Bahá’u’lláh ’5 Most Holy Book.

THE / ITAB lAQDAS: The Causality Principle in the

Worhi oi Being

Introduction

he usual articulation of the well—known Bahá’í principle that

prejudices are truly immoral and not just socially troublesome affective attitudes tends to obscure another, cognitive defect of prejudice: prejudiced thinking is lazy thinking, signifying the subject’s refusal to come to grips with the obj ect as it truly is, in all its dimensions. Prejudiced thinking is stereotypical thinking in which we try to assimilate or reduce something new to a previously known category. Such a reductionist approach to life deprives new experiences of their capacity to transform or change us. In our rigidity and self—satisfaction, we require that each newly encountered phenomenon somehow accommodate itself to our preconceived categories of thought and experience.

Nowhere else will the reductionistic approach to life be more disastrous than if applied in our attempt to understand the Kitábi-Aqdas, Baha’u’llah’s Most Holy Book, for this work can in no way be assimilated to any previous category of religious writing

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or any pre-existing conception of religious thought. It sees spiritual laws neither as social conventions nor as divinely imposed rules of behavior, but rather as exact expressions of fundamental, objective relationships inherent in the very structure of reality.

Thus, the worldview of the Kitab-i-Aqdas is fundamentally scientific. It considers that reality is structured by objective relationships of cause and effect (i.e., laws) Which can be rationally understood and articulated. The very purpose of the Kitab-i—Aqdas is the articulation of some of the most basic laws of spiritual reality. However, an adequate understanding of these laws also involves some knowledge of the overall philosophical framework of the Bahá’í Faith. The next four sections seek to provide the essentials of this framework, after Which we Will undertake a more direct and detailed study of the Kitab-iAqdas itself. Levels ofExistence; the Material World

The Bahá’í writings affirm that reality is an integrated Whole but that this wholeness is a unity in diversity, not a uniformity. In particular, within the context of overall wholeness, there are distinct levels of being. The lowest of these levels is the natural or material world, where the principle of existence is one of composition of elements. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has expressed it:

Nature is that condition, that reality, Which in appearance consists in life and death, or, in other words, in the composition and decomposition of all things.

This Nature is subjected to an absolute organization, to determined laws, to a complete order and a finished design, from Which it Will never depart—to such a degree, indeed, that if you look carefully and with keen sight, from the smallest invisible atom up to such large bodies of the world of existence as the globe of the sun or the other great stars and luminous spheres, Whether you regard their arrangement, their composition, their form or their movement, you Will find that all are in the highest degree of organization andare under one law from Which they Will never departl

1. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1981), 3.

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‘Abdu’l-Bahá further explains that this natural order, though objective, is an expression of the will of God: “. . .Nature, which has neither perception nor intelligence, is in the grasp of Almighty God, Who is the Ruler of the world of Nature; whatever He wishes, He causes Nature to manifest.”2 Bereft of the capacity for thought (intelligence) or experience (perception), the material world also lacks the power of will:

..when you look at Nature itself, you see that it has no intelligence, no will. ”3 In other words, the material world totally lacks the capacity of consciousness or self—awareness.

One of the consequences of the composite principle of existence in the material world is that all material systems are temporary; they have a finite life span. A material entity is born when the particular combination of elements that determines its existence is established. As long as the relationships necessary to sustain this configuration are maintained, the material entity exists, and when these relationships are destroyed it dies or decomposes, i.e., ceases to exist:

The whole physical creation is perishable. These material bodies are composed of atoms; When these atoms begin to separate decomposition sets in, then comes what we call death. This composition of atoms, Which constitutes the body or mortal element of any created being, is temporary. When the power of attraction, which holds these at40ms together, is withdrawn, the body, as such, ceases to exist.4

Another feature of the material world is that it is dynamic; it is in continual movement:

Absolute repose does not exist in nature. All things either make progress or lose ground. Everything moves forward or backward, nothing is Without motion. From his birth, a man progresses physically until he reaches maturity, then, having arrived at the prime of his life, he begins to decline, the strength and powers of his body decrease, and he gradually

2. Ibid., 4.

3. Ibid., 3.

4. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks (London: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1979), 9091.

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arrives at the hour of death. . .. All material things progress to a certain point, then begin to decline.

As explained here, the nature of movement in the material world is a reciprocal, back-and-forth motion both of progress and of regress. This, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explains, is because the material world is a tension of opposites, an arena of opposing forces: “The world of mortality is a world of contradictions, of opposites; motion being compulsory everything must either go forward or retreat.”6

Thus, the dynamic of the material world is one of continual motion within fixed limits. This kind of motion is called periodic or cyclic, and it is the fundamental characteristic of all material phenomena. From the beating of the human heart, to the movement of the planets around the sun, the material world exhibits this cyclic feature. Periodic motion is the way God has chosen to endow the material world with both dynamism and stability. Dynamism Without stability produces an unbridled, purely quantitative (and ultimately catastrophic) growth, while stability Without dynamism is death.

Even though the material world, and all material composites, are on the same ontological level, there is nonetheless an ordering or hierarchy among physical systems resulting from the relative complexity of their structure, the lower systems being less structured (or ordered) and the higher more structured. At the top of this hierarchy is the human body, which constitutes the most complex and highly structured physical system: “The body of man, Which is composed from the elements, is combined and mingled in the most perfect form; it is the most solid construction, the noblest combination, the most perfect existence.”7

5. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, 88—89. 6. Ibid., 90. 7. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, 143-144.

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That the human body is indeed the most complex of all systems in the known physical universe has also been confirmed and validated by modern neuroscience. 8

The Knowledge ofMaterial Reality

According to the Bahá’í teachings, God has not only established the laws that govern material reality, but He has also given to humanity the power for the rational and systematic understanding of these laws. This power is what we call ‘science’:

The outcome of this [human] intellectual endowment is science, which is especially characteristic of man. This scientific power investigates and apprehends created objects and the laws surrounding them. It is the discoverer of the hidden and mysterious secrets of the material universe and is peculiar to man alone. The most noble and praiseworthy accomplishment of man, therefore, is scientific knowledge and attainment. 9

‘Abdu’l-Bahá makes it clear that science is not just a serendipitous accident of history, but a divine, supernatural endowment:

All blessings are divine in origin, but none can be compared with this power of intellectual investigation and research, which is an eternal gift producing fruits of unending delight. Man is ever partaking of these fruits. All other blessings are temporary; this is an everlasting possession.... it is an eternal blessing and divine bestowal, the supreme gift of God to man.

...science or the attribute of scientific penetration is supernatural. . .. 10

8. See, for example, the four-volume series The Neurosciences: [First] Study Program, Rockefeller Press, New York 1967; Second Study Program, Rockefeller Press, New York, 1970; Third Study Program, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass., 1974; Fourth Study Program, MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass., 1979.

9. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgatz'on of Universal Peace (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1982), 29.

10. Ibid., 50.

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As we have already noted, material reality is composed of physical systems in continual movement. T hrough science, we gain knowledge of the laws governing the evolution of these systems and also of their current, particular conditions (states). This scientific knowledge enables us to determine and predictnot perfectly but with a practically significant degree of accuracy—the future states of these systems, given some particular set of initial conditions. This, in turn, enables us to act in the present so as to bring about a desired future configuration of a system: by deliberately establishing, in the short run, certain particular conditions of a system, we can bring about, in the long run, certain desired future states of the system, i.e., configurations that are favorable to our goals and our (perceived) interests. This is the power that scientific knowledge gives us, the power to control our future—to participate in the processes of the natural world and not just endure them. In other words, scientific knowledge has the effect of increasing our autonomy with regard to the natural world.

Of course, what we perceive to be in our own interest will, in itself, depend on our knowledge of reality, including the reality that is within us, the reality of our own selves. But Whatever we perceive our interest to be, we generally seek to bring about those configurations that will, according to our present knowledge of reality, maximize the joy and pleasure of life and minimize its pain and suffering. Thus, scientific knowledge is a knowledge of the relationship of cause and effect in material reality, and this knowledge, when properly used, gives us the power to produce or increase our material happiness and wellbeing.

This power of scientific knowledge to produce happiness and to increase our autonomy depends fundamentally on two things: (1) that the material world is regulated by obj ective laws, and (2) that we are able to apprehend these laws, if not absolutely, at least to a degree sufficient to allow for reasonably accurate predictions and manipulations of future events. These two features of the material world are all we need if our goal in life is to maximize our well-being and our autonomy. The other particular features of the material world (e.g., periodic motion,

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the temporary existence of objects) are incidental to this fundamental, binary goal.

Spiritual Reality Above and beyond material reality lies a second level of existence that is not directly accessible to physical observation. In the Bahá’í writings this is called spiritual reality or the spiritual world. Like material reality, spiritual reality has objective existence and is governed by lawful, cause-and-effect relationships. However, the laws governing spiritual reality, and the structure resulting from the operation of these laws, are significantly different from the laws and structures of material reality, mainly because the principle of existence in the spiritual world is different from that of the material world: spiritual entities exist as undivided wholes rather than as composites; and chief among these spiritual entities is the soul or spirit of each human being: “The soul is not a combination of elements, it is not composed of many atoms, it is of one indivisible substance and therefore eternal. It is entirely out of the order of the physical creation; it is immortal!”11

Because spiritual entities are noncomposite, there is no tension of opposites in spiritual reality, and thus no retrogresSlon:

In the world of spirit there is no retrogression. The world of mortality is a world of contradictions, of opposites; motion being compulsory everything must either go forward or retreat. In the realm of spirit there is no retreat possible, all movement is bound to be towards a perfect state. ‘Progress’ is the expression of spirit in the world of matter. The intelligence of man, his reasoning powers, his knowledge, his scientific achievements, all these being manifestations of the spirit, partake of the inevitable law of spiritual progress and are, therefore, of necessity, immortal.

Thus, in contrast to the movement of physical systems Which, as we have seen above, is cyclical and always Within fixed

11. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, 91. 12. Ibid., 90.

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limits, the motion of the soul is unidirected, irreversible and potentially infinite:

Now let us consider the soul. We have seen that movement is essential to existence; nothing that has life is without motion. All creation, whether of the mineral, vegetable or animal kingdom, is compelled to obey the law of motion; it must either ascend or descend. But with the human soul, there is no decline. Its only movement is towards perfection; growth and progress alone constitute the motion of the soul.

Divine perfection is infinite, therefore the progress of the soul is also infinite. 13

The Bahá’í writings teach that the fundamental capacities of the soul are those of knowledge, of love, and of will. That is, the soul has the intellectual capacity of understanding or mind, the affective capacity of feeling or emotion, and the voluntary capacity of willing or acting. Because the soul is a noncomposite entity, it has no parts. Thus, the soul’s capacities are inherent in its very nature, rather than being alienable parts of it.

This characteristic of the soul constitutes an extremely important difference from a physical system such as the body. The higher—order properties of the physical body are entirely due to its relative complexity in terms both of the number of its components (i.e., the cells of the body) and the complex nature of the relationship between these components. Any such composite entity has parts which may be alienated from the organism without necessarily destroying the organism. For example, a person may well survive the amputation of both his legs. But he Will have lost the function of autonomous ambulation.

According to the Bahá’í writings, the intrinsic capacities of the individual’s soul (called his ‘spiritual’ capacities) are eternally fixed. They can never be diminished or alienated from the soul, nor can they be increased; they can only be developed:

13. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, 89.

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Know thou that all men have been created in the nature made by God, the Guardian, the Self—Subsisting. Unto each one hath been prescribed a pre-ordained measure, as decreed in God’s mighty and guarded Tablets. All that Which ye potentially possess can, however, be manifested only as a result of your own volition. 1

Thus, the soul can never lose any of its capacities, unless it be totally destroyed, which, we are assured, God Will never do.

This fundamental difference between the nature of the soul and the nature of the physical body is important for an understanding of the difference between the laws governing spiritual reality and those governing material reality. Because it is such a delicate and complex system, the physical body is fragile and vulnerable. It is more or less continually threatened by the possibility of either a partial or total loss of functioning (i.e., death). But the soul is threatened by neither of these possibilities.

However, the soul does face a different kind of threat: it is threatened by the possibility of a relative underdevelopment of its intrinsic capacities. To say that the soul cannot retrogress is not to say that its progress is automatic:

My hope for you is that you will progress in the world of spirit, as well as in the world of matter; that your intelligence Will develop, your knowledge Will augment, and your understanding be widened.

You must ever press forward, never standing still; avoid stagnation. 15

The process of developing the intrinsic capacities of the soul is called ‘spiritual growth’ or ‘spiritual progress’. Such a process implies both an increase in spiritual autonomy and an increase in spiritual happiness and well-being.

The Bahá’í writings affirm that learning how to grow spiritually is the fundamental purpose of our existence. We

l4. Baha’u’llah, Gleam'ngs fiom the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1976), 149. 15. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, 90.

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accomplish this purpose by first understanding the laws that govern spiritual reality and then by applying them to the particular circumstances of our life. Just as scientific knowledge of the laws of physical reality enables us to act in the present in such a way as to produce a desired future state of increased material happiness, so a knowledge of the laws governing spiritual reality enables us to act in the present in such a way as to produce a desired future state of increased spiritual happiness. Thus, we progress towards spiritual happiness by increasing our knowledge of spiritual reality, and this, in turn, represents an increase in our spiritual autonomy. This accretion of spiritual happiness and spiritual autonomy is just another name for spiritual growth, or the development of the intrinsic capacities of our souls.

The Knowledge OfSpiritual Reality

In the foregoing, we have seen that science is the means God has given us for the understanding of material reality. Scientific method is based on direct observation of the physical world followed by logically sound deductions based on such observations. But spiritual reality is not directly observable. We do not have direct access to spiritual reality, only an indirect access through observation of the effects of the action of spiritual forces on observable phenomena, such as the action of the soul on the physical body. God has therefore ordained a second source of valid knowledge about reality: religion.

The Bahá’í writings make it clear that religion and science are just two different segments of a continuum of knowledge about reality. Since the laws governing spiritual reality are obj ective, they are potentially discoverable by scientific method. However, because of the relative inaccessibility of spiritual phenomena to spontaneous human observation, it would take us an impractically long time to discover even the simplest of spiritual laws by an unassisted application of scientific method. Thus, religion operates by revelation in which God freely explains or ‘reveals’ to us certain of the laws and principles governing spiritual reality. We are thus spared the pain and effort that would be involved in discovering these truths for

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ourselves. However, these spiritual truths are objective and can therefore be tested experientially and applied practically when once understood.

Thus, in the Bahá’í conception, religion, like science, is most correctly Viewed as a knowledge-generating enterprise, rather than a belief—affirming or rule-making enterprise: “. . .religion is the essential connection Which proceeds from the realities of things. [it] is the necessary connection Which emanates from the reality of things. . ..”16

This conception of religion clearly differs from the received idea that science is an expression of reason and rationality while religion operates on “blind” faith and unreasoned belief. Indeed, the Bahá’í writings define faith as the deliberate implementation of consciously-acquired knowledge: “Although a blind man produceth a most wonderful and exquisite art, yet he is deprived of seeing it. . .. By faith is meant, first, conscious knowledge, and second, the practice of good deeds.”17

The Bahá’í Faith teaches that the revelation of religious truth (that is, of valid knowledge of the laws and structure of spiritual reality) is a progressive phenomenon in Which God periodically communicates with humanity through the agency of a specially chosen human being or Manifestation. These Manifestations are none other than the great religious Founders of history, some of Whose names we know (such as Moses, Jesus, Buddha, Zoroaster, Muhammad, the Báb and Baha’u’llah, Founder of the Bahá’í Faith). These unique beings are endowed by God With a direct knowledge of spiritual reality, and this endowment allows them to become the teachers of the laws of spiritual reality to humanity:

Briefly, the supreme Manifestations of God are aware of the reality of the mysteries of beings. Therefore, They establish laws Which are suitable and adapted to the state of the world of man....the supreme Manifestations of God are aware of

16. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, 158-159.

17. Tablet of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, cited in Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá’í World Faith: Selected Writings of Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu ’l-Bahd (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1956), 382-3 83.

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the mysteries of beings, therefore, They understand this essential connection [emanating from the realit¥ of things], and by this knowledge establish the Law of God. 8

In further elaboration of this point, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explains:

Knowledge is of two kinds. One is subjective and the other objective knowledge—that is to say, an intuitive knowledge and a knowledge derived from perception.

The knowledge of things which men universally have is gained by reflection or by evidence....The circle of this knowledge is very limited because it depends upon effort and attainment.

But the second sort of knowledge, Which is the knowledge of being, is intuitive; it is like the cognizance and consciousness that man has of himself [i.e., of his own being or existence]....This knowledge is not the outcome of effort and study. It is an existing thing; it is an absolute gift.

Since the Sanctified Realities, the supreme Manifestations of God, surround the essence and qualities of the creatures, transcend and contain existing realities and understand all things, therefore, Their knowledge is divine knowledge, and not acquired—that is to say, it is a holy bounty; it is a divine irevelation.19

In other words, in the same way that ordinary human beings have the spontaneous knowledge of their own being and existence, the Manifestations of God are endowed With the spontaneous knowledge of the laws of all being. In fact, the Manifestations constitute a distinct ontological level intermediate between God and ordinarily-endowed humans: “Know that the conditions of [conscious] existence are limited to the conditions of servitude, Of prophethood, and of Deity, but the divine and the contingent perfections are unlimited [on each level of existence].”20

Elsewhere, it is explained that the Manifestations can be thought of as absolutely perfected human beings—as human

18. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, 158-159. 19. Ibid., 157-158. 20. Ibid., 230.

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beings all of Whose spiritual capacities have been developed to the maximum degree possible. They thus represent an ideal or model of the ultimate limits of human spiritual development. However, the Manifestations are created in this state of absolute perfection, Whereas ordinary humans can only progressively approximate this condition through the process of spiritual growth. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has stated, there is “progress in perfection but not in state.”21 In other words, ‘progress’ never implies a change from one level of being to another, only a progressive unfolding of the potential inherent in a given level of being.

We can thus sum up the Bahá’í teachings concerning the levels of existence as follows: Within the framework of the overall wholeness of reality, there are four distinct levels of being. The first and highest level is that of the essence or being of God. The second level is that of the Manifestation of God, Who perfectly manifests or incarnates all of the attributes of God but not His essence. The third level is that of the human soul, Which has consciousness and the capacity to reflect progressively all of the attributes of God. Finally, the lowest level is that of the material world, Which is totally devoid of consciousness and will.

The third level, that of the human soul, is the only level of being that exhibits true irreversible progress. God and the Manifestations are already in perfect states of existence on Their respective levels of being and therefore have no need of progression. The material world exhibits continual movement within fixed limits, Which involves temporary progression, but a progression that is always followed sooner or later by retrogression and degeneration. However, the human soul, while created in an unperfected state, has the potential for perfection. After being freed from the constraints of the material world, the only movement of the soul is an irreversible progression towards God. The rate of progression, however, is specific for each person and depends on the quality and appropriateness of that person’s response to the circumstances of his life.

21. Ibid., 237.

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The Bahá’í writings further explain that, from the point of View of human spiritual development, the material world functions as the womb of preparation for birth into the purely spiritual world. The special conditions in the physical womb of our mother enable us to progress from a one-eelled organism to a mature human form—effectively compressing five hundred million years of biological evolution into nine short months. In the same way, it is explained, the tests and trials of this material world provide us with the possibility of compressing an immense quantum of spiritual growth into the short period of a human physical lifetime.

However, whereas the physical growth and development in the maternal womb is an automatic process, our spiritual growth during our earthly lives depends on the efforts we make in response to the conditions of our lives. Moreover, during our earthly life, but not afterwards, our souls are subject to the effect of material forces that serve as a resistance against which we struggle in our efforts to grow spiritually. It is this aspect of the material world, the tension of opposition between spiritual and material forces, that provides the opportunity for rapid spiritual growth. But a necessary concomitant of this configuration is that both spiritual progression and spiritual retrogression can occur in this life, whereas (relative) progession alone is the movement of the soul in the next life.

Thus, the fundamental task of our earthly lives is to understand and apprehend the laws governing the process of spiritual growth so that we may generate the appropriate, growth—inducing responses to the circumstances of our lives and thereby profit from the unique opportunities for spiritual growth with which God has endowed this life. This knowledge and understanding can only come from religion and, more particularly, from the holy books of the Manifestations, which explain and expound the principles of spiritual reality.

The experience of five hundred million years of biological evolution is genetically encoded in the DNA of the human genome, and it is this “knowledge” that enables the human fetus to profit from the special environment of the maternal womb and accomplish its astonishing development from a single fertilized

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egg to a multi—billion—celled mature and complex organism. The teachings of the Manifestations may be thought of as the spiritual counterpart of the genetic code. These teachings are recorded (encoded) in the holy writings of the great religions, and When the knowledge they contain is implemented, genuine spiritual growth is the result.

The revelation of God to humanity is progressive, because spiritual growth is both collective and individual, and the knowledge appropriate to one stage of spiritual growth may not be appropriate to a later stage. Thus, as the most recent Manifestation of God, Baha’u’llah represents the most appropriate and mature expression of our understanding of spiritual laws and principles, and the Kitab-i-Aqdas is the Most Holy Book of Baha’u’llah—the book that epitomizes His divinely-inspired articulation of the laws governing spiritual reality.

Because spiritual growth is collective as well as individual, the laws and principles of the Kitab-i-Aqdas are partly social and partly individual. Indeed, Baha’u’llah explains that religion has always had these two fundamental aspects:

God’s purpose in sending His Prophets unto men is twofold. The first is to liberate the children of men from the darkness of ignorance, and guide them to the light of true understanding. The second is to ensure the peace and tranquillity of mankind, and provide all the means by Which they can be established. 22

According to Baha’u’llah, the history of the last few thousand years has been the history of the childhood and youth of humanity, during which most social forms and structures have had a temporary, experimental quality. We are now in late adolescence, in the transition towards full maturity, When all the potential latent Within the human being will be actualized. Thus, the social laws of the Kitab-i—Aqdas seek to provide the basis for this transition, as well as to establish the framework for the emerging, mature, and stable world order, founded on spiritual principles.

22. Baha’u’llah, Gleanings, 79-80.

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The Kitab-i-Aqdas therefore represents the culmination not only of the revelation of Baha’u’llah, but also of the process of progressive revelation itself. Humanity now stands on the brink of its maturity, and we are now in the throes of the greatest single transition in the history of the human race: the transition from our collective adolescence to our collective maturity. The Kitáb-i-Aqdas reveals to us the knowledge necessary for the successful completion of this transition.

The Laws ofSpiritual Reality

In God Passes By, Shoghi Effendi describes the Kitáb-i-Aqdas as, among other things:

...the principal repository of that Law Which the Prophet Isaiah had anticipated, and Which the writer of the Apoalypse had described as the “new heaven” and the “new earth,” as “the Tabernacle of God,” as the “Holy City,” as the “Bride,” the “New J erusalem coming down from God,” this “Most Holy Book,” Whose provisions must remain inviolate for no less than a thousand years, and whose system Will embrace the entire planet...as the brightest emanation of the mind of Baha’u’llah, as the Mother Book of His Dispelsation, and the Charter of His New World Order.23

In the light of this, and other similarly exalted descriptions of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, one might expect to be confronted with a formal legal text in an inflated style. Instead, one finds nothing less than an extended love letter from God to humanity, an outpouring of tenderness and concern for every detail of human existence such as to dispel any possible doubt of God’s overwhelming love for His creatures. Moreover, the Kitab-iAqdas exhibits a remarkable harmony of content and style that heightens this impression of God’s love and concern for us.

The development of ideas in the Kitab-i-Aqdas is not strictly linear but rather cyclical or spiral. The Author discusses certain

23. Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1957), 213; quoted in the introductory material of the first authorized English translation of the Kitab-i-Aqdas (Wihnette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1993), 13.

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questions, then turns to other issues, and later returns to the initial questions, amplifying and elaborating with each subsequent discussion. There is also an ongoing alternation between the abstract and the concrete, the general and the specific, the universal and the particular. Nevertheless there is an overall progression throughout this dialectical development.

Fundamentally, the Kitáb-i-Aqdas Views life as a continual dialogue between God and humanity. Thus, not only does the content of the Kitab-i-Aqdas treat a wide spectrum of life’s questions, the work’s very form reproduces our experience of life, in Which profound philosophical and moral issues are continually juxtaposed with practical and concrete questions of everyday life. By reproducing this existential juxtaposition Within the text itself, Baha’u’llah allows us to see how the most significant and abstract philosophical and spiritual questions are indeed related to the most homely issues of our material existence. Also, these textual juxtapositions help the reader make logical connections that might otherwise remain obscure. This, in turn, increases the reader’s autonomy in confronting and understanding the Kitab-i—Aqdas, enabling him to “see With his own eyes and hear with his own ears.”24

According to Baha’u’llah, our dialogue with God is pursued on both the individual and the collective level; it is initiated by God, who also establishes its parameters, but its success is dependent upon our ability to generate an appropriate response to God’s overtures. Thus, the laws and principles of the Kitab-iAqdas are presented in the form of a covenant or agreement in which God requires certain things from us but solemnly promises that spiritual growth, progress, and happiness will inevitably follow if these actions and attitudes on our part are forthcoming.

The opening paragraph of the Kitab—i—Aqdas states that the fundamental duty of man towards God is “the recognition of Him Who is the Dayspring of His Revelation and the Fountain of His laws...” and that the second duty is “to observe every

24. See ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu’l—Bahd Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1978), 29.

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ordinance of Him Who is the Desire of the world.” It is then stated that “These twin duties are inseparable. Neither is acceptable without the other.”25

Thus, the individual dialogue takes place within the framework of the collective dialogue. The collective dialogue is initiated by God’s sending of the Manifestations, and the first response required of us is to recognize and accept the spiritual authority of these figures. Indeed, if God has taken the trouble to send the Manifestations to give us valid knowledge of the laws governing spiritual reality, then the minimal acceptable response on our part is to turn to Them and follow Their instruction. In particular, we must signify our true acceptance by implementing the laws and principles They teach.

Following this opening statement, paragraphs 2-5 of the Kitab-i—Aqdas constitute a powerful articulation of the importance generally of obeying and implementing the laws of God and of the benefits to be derived from such obedience. For example:

O ye peoples of the world! Know assuredly that My commandments are the lamps of My loving providence among My servants, and the keys of My mercy for My creatures. . ..

...“Observe My commandments, for the love of My beauty.” Happy is the lover that hath inhaled the divine fragrance of his Best-Beloved from these words, laden with the perfume of a grace which no tongue can describe.26

This portion of the text culminates (paragraph 5) in the following metaphor for the whole of the Kitab-i-Aqdas itself: “Think not that We have revealed unto you a mere code of laws. Nay, rather, We have unsealed the choice Wine with the fingers of might and power. . ..Meditate upon this, 0 men of insight!”27 The symbolic use of “Wine” in this passage powerfully conveys

25. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitab-i-Aqdas, K 1. The presently-published version of the Kitab-i-Aqdas has sequentially numbered paragraphs, which we will use as our main reference points in alluding to the text.

26. Ibid., K 3-4.

27. Ibid., K 5.

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the notion that implementation of the laws of spiritual reality produces an effect of spiritual euphoria—thus of extreme spiritual happiness. Bahá’u’lláh’s choice of image here is particularly significant given the fact that, subsequently in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, He strictly forbids the drinkng of Wine and other intoxicants (paragraph 119), stating, “It is inadmissible that man, Who hath been endowed With reason, should consume that Which stealeth it away.”28

Thus, true happiness—spiritual euphoria—comes not from the abandonment of rationality but by its disciplined applicatiori to an understanding of the laws governing spiritual reality. Divine prescriptions are not intended to deny us genuine j 0y but rather to teach us the conditions under which the greatest and most enduring joy can be obtained. What is being given us is no less than the keys to a true and lasting paradise.

In this way, the opening five paragraphs of the Kitab-i-Aqdas lay out the general parameters of the dialogue, or covenant, between God and humanity: God initiates the dialogue by sending the Manifestations to teach us the fundamental laws of spiritual reality. We respond by recognizing the spiritual authority (validity) of the Manifestation and obeying His laws. The result is increased spiritual development leading to increased happiness and, ultimately, to a state of extreme and enduring joy.

The Kitáb—i-Aqdas also affirms that the implementation of the laws of spiritual reality increases the individual’s spiritual autonomy, which Baha’u’llah calls “true liberty”:

Say: True liberty consisteth in man’s submission unto My commandments, little as ye know it. Were men to observe that Which We have sent down unto them from the Heaven of Revelation, they would, of a certainty, attain unto perfect liberty. Happy is the man that hath apprehended the Purpose of God in whatever He hath revealed. . .. Say: The liberty that profiteth you is to be found nowhere except in complete servitude unto God, the Eternal Truth. 29

28. Ibid., K 119. 29. Ibid., K 125.

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In this and other passages, Baha’u’llah makes unequivocally clear that God does not seek an obedience of childlike weakness, but a mature, intelligent obedience based on deliberate individual choice. We must submit our wills to God’s, but this submission results from a disciplined accretion of spiritual power to the individual, not from a helpless capitulation.

The Covenant and the Universal House of Justice

Before examining some specific laws and principles contained in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, it is important to understand several fundamental features of Baha’u’llah’s Covenant, which, as mentioned above, constitutes the basic framework for the dialogue between God and humanity. The first concerns the question of the interpretation of Baha’u’llah’s writings and, in particular, the interpretation of the Kitab-i-Aqdas. Baha’u’llah Himself wrote elucidations of several passages of the Kitab-iAqdas during His lifetime, many of which are included in the current English edition of the Kitab-i—Aqdas. Given the fact that certain laws of the Kitab-i-Aqdas “have been formulated in anticipation of a [future] state of society destined to emerge from the chaotic conditions that prevail today...,” Baha’u’llah foresaw the necessity of providing for further authoritative interpretation of His writings after His death.30 He therefore appointed His eldest son ‘Abdu’l-Bahá as the “Center of the Covenant,” the authorized interpreter of Baha’u’llah’s writings, and as the perfect exemplar of Bahá’í teachings. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá survived Baha’u’llah by twenty-nine years during which time He wrote a number of texts, including explanations of certain passages of the Kitab-i-Aqdas. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in turn appointed His eldest grandson, Shoghi Effendi, to succeed Him as the authorized interpreter of the Bahá’í writings.

Beginning in 1921, Shoghi Effendi’s ministry continued for thirty-six years until his death in 1957. During this period, Shoghi Effendi generated an extensive corpus of detailed commentary and interpretation of the writings of Baha’u’llah, including the Kitab-i-Aqdas. Certain portions of Shoghi

30. Baha’u’llah, Kitáb-i-Aqdas, 7.

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Effendi’s commentary are likewise included in the present English edition of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas.

Thus, in a certain sense, “the Kitab-i-Aqdas” is not just the relatively brief (but extraordinarily concentrated) text of the Kitab-i-Aqdas itself, but also includes the extensive body of authoritative commentaries by Baha’u’llah, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi.

Another fundamental aspect of Baha’u’llah’s Covenant derives from Baha’u’llah’s declared intention of establishing a system of divine governance adequate for the needs of humanity for at least a thousand years. Such a system must take into account permanence, stability, and order, on one hand, and change, progression, and dynamism, on the other. The specific laws of the Kitab—i—Aqdas constitute the permanent or stable underpinnings of Baha’u’llah’s system; they are to remain inviolate for at least a thousand years. To provide for change and flexibility in His system, Bahá’u’lláh has established a supreme legislative organ, called the Universal House of Justice.

According to the specific texts of Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá; the Universal House of Justice is invested With the authority to legislate on all matters not specifically dealt with in the Kitab-i-Aqdas or elsewhere in the Bahá’í sacred writings. Moreover, the Universal House of Justice can repeal or alter any of its previous decisions. This feature provides Baha’u’llah’s system with a great flexibility and adaptability. As the conditions of humanity change and as scientific progress alters various social realities, the Universal House of Justice can legislate in order to take into account this evolution.

For example, the Kitab-i-Aqdas specifically proscribes murder, defined as the willful taking of another human life. This, then, is an absolute prohibition. However, while specifying certain penalties for murder (either execution or life imprisonment), Baha’u’llah leaves the Universal House of Justice free to determine their application. Moreover, He also leaves to the Universal House of Justice the task of establishing various degrees of murder and the appropriate penalty for each degree. Or, to take another example, the laws of the Kitab-iAqdas do not deal directly With the question of birth control,

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leaving the House of Justice free to legislate (or not) in this area. It is therefore logically possible for the Universal House of Justice to legislate in a certain manner regarding this question and later, perhaps in the light of changed demographic circumstances, repeal or alter this legislation.

Though the Universal House of Justice cannot repeal or alter any of the laws of the Kitab-i—Aqdas, it is nevertheless empowered by Baha’u’llah to oversee the gradual and progressive application of those laws. The Universal House of Justice is also invested with the quasi-judicial function of rendering an authoritative and final verdict in all disputes or controversies that arise Within the Bahá’í community. These functions are summed up in the following passage from the Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá:

It is incumbent upon these members (of the Universal House of Justice) to gather in a certain place and deliberate upon all problems Which have caused difference, questions that are obscure and matters that are not expressly recorded in the Book. Whatsoever they decide has the same effect as the Text itself. And inasmuch as this House of Justice hath power to enact laws that are not expressly recorded in the Book and bear upon daily transactions, so also it hath power to repeal the same. . . .The House of Justice is both the initiator and the abrogator of its own laws. 31

The House of Justice was first elected in 1963' in the manner outlined by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and has functioned continually since that date. Election of the membership of the House of Justice is held every five years.

In the Kitab-i-Aqdas Baha’u’llah also establishes local Houses of Justice, Which have administrative jurisdiction on a local—usually municipal or county—level. Acting on the authority given Him by Baha’u’llah, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá established secondary Houses of Justice on an intermediate—national or

31. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Will and Testament of ‘Abdu’l—Bahd (VVihnette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1968), 20.

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regional—level. Membership in these governing councils is also by election.32

Thus, the administrative structure of the Bahá’í community exists at three levels: local, national, and international. Decisions of local Houses of Justice can be altered by the secondary House of Justice on which they depend, and the Universal House of Justice can change a decision of any local or secondary House of Justice.

Underlying all the laws and community structures in the Bahá’í Faith is a group decision-making process called consultation. This process was instituted by Baha’u’llah himself in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, and further elaborated and explained by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi. Essentially, Bahá’í consultation involves a frank but loving exchange of opinions by members of a group With a View towards the determination of the objective truth of some matter and the consequent establishment of a genuine group consensus. In particular, consultation is the basic mode of functioning of the Houses of Justice. Thus, in Baha’u’llah’s system of governance, all decision—making authority derives from consultative bodies. No individual has decision—making authority unless such authority has been specifically granted by an appropriate consultative decision of a collective organ functioning under one of the Houses of Justice.

The central role that consultation plays throughout Baha’u’llah’s system, and Bahá’í community life in general, gives a non—authoritarian, collaborative spirit to the functioning of the Bahá’í community at all levels. The ideal of Bahá’í consultation is to arrive at a unanimous decision of the consultative group. In the instances where such unanimity is not forthcoming, a vote is taken and the maj ority View prevails.

Unity, the F undamental Goal of the Bahá’í Faith

It is important here to stress that all of the laws, institutions, and principles that Baha’u’llah has established are expressions of the

32. It should be noted that local and secondary Houses of Justice are presently known as Spiritual Assemblies.

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two fundamental principles of justice and love. Justice has to do with the recognition of and respect for the role, status, and worth of a given individual, of a given social function, or of a given institution or principle. Justice provides the component of stability and order to the social fabric and to human relationships generally. Love is the underlying dynamic and motivating force of the whole of creation. Without love, justice degenerates into dry formalities, and without justice love may be improperly channeled and therefore unproductive of effective results.

The principles of justice and love are thus complementary, and each is essential to the fundamental Bahá’í goal of establishing the unity of humanity at all levels of human interaction. Indeed, the unity of the material world itself results from the natural laws (justice) which regulate the dynamic interactions (love) among the different physical forces and entities. According to Bahá’u’lláh, the ultimate expression of the unity of humanity will be the organization of the life of the entire planet into one coherent social system based on justice and cooperation: “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established.”3’3

Given the breathtaking scope of Bahá’u’lláh’s Vision of the future of mankind, we might anticipate that His system would exalt justice over love, order over dynamism. However, we will see that, if anything, the opposite is true: love is the most fundamental principle of all, and the laws of the Kitáb—i-Aqdas reflect the fact that, in all of God’s creation, justice is the servant of love. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has expressed it:

Love is the mystery of divine revelations!...Love is the breath of the Holy Spirit inspired into the human spirit! Love is the cause of the manifestation of the Truth (God) in the phenomenal world! Love is the necessary tie proceeding from the realities of things through divine creation! Love is the means of the most great happiness in both the material and spiritual worlds!...Love is the greatest law in this vast universe of God! Love is the one law which causeth and

33. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb-i—Aqdas, 12.

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controlleth order among the existing atoms!...Love is the cause of the civilization of nations in this mortal world!34

The Individual Dialogue with God

Having established, in the opening passages, the fundamental premise of the Kitab-i-Aqdas—the collective and individual dialogue or covenant between God and humanity—Baha’u’llah now turns, in paragraphs 6-15, to the first specific and most basic law of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, the law of prayer. Prayer is the foundation of the individual dialogue between God and man. Through it, the individual establishes a direct, unmediated, inner connection between his soul and God. Moreover, this relationship is the most fundamental of all relationships accessible to the individual. Unless this relationship be correctly and firmly established, all other relationships, Whether with other individuals, With society, or with nature, will be essentially flawed.

The following statement, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, illustrates the importance that Baha’u’llah gives to prayer:

How to attain spirituality is indeed a question to Which every young man and woman must sooner or later try to find a satisfactory answer. . ..

Indeed the chief reason for the evils now rampant in society is the lack of spirituality. The materialistic civilization of our age has so much absorbed the energy and interest of mankind that people in general do no longer feel the necessity of raising themselves above the forces and conditions of their daily material existence. There is not sufficient demand for things that we call spiritual to differentiate them from the needs and requirements of our physical existence. . ..

The universal crisis affecting mankind is,' therefore, essentially spiritual in its causes. ...the core of religious faith is that mystic feeling which unites Man with God. This state of spiritual communion can be brought about and maintained by means of meditation and prayer. And this is the reason Why Baha’u’llah has so much stressed the importance of

34. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Tablets of Abdu’l-Bahá Abbas (Chicago: Bahá’í Publishing Committee, 1930), vol. 3, 525-526.

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worship. ...The Bahá’í Faith, like all other Divine Religions, is thus fundamentally mystic in character. Its chief goal is the development of the individual and society, through the acquisition of spiritual virtues and powers. It is the soul of man Which has first to be fed. And this spiritual nourishment prayer can best provide.

Among the various prescriptions Baha’u’llah gives concerning prayer is a specific, daily obligatory prayer. This prayer has three forms: short, medium, and long. Baha’u’llah makes it clear that the individual is entirely free to choose, each day, whichever of the three forms he prefers, but is spiritually and morally obligated to offer an obligatory prayer at least once every twenty-four hours. The text of the short prayer is as

follows:

I bear Witness, 0 My God, that Thou has created me to know Thee and to worship Thee. I testify, at this moment, to my powerlessness and to Thy might, to my poverty and to Thy wealth.

There is none other God but Thee, the Help in Peril, the Self—Subsisting. 36

A detailed study of the obligatory prayers is beyond the scope of the present article, but one main feature is already clear from the content of the short obligatory prayer: the key to spiritual happiness and autonomy is recognition of our total dependence on God. In other words, spiritual grth is not a process of becoming more dependent on God, but of becoming more aware of our dependence on God.

The obligatory prayers, as well as other prayers, are offered individually in private. The Bahá’í Faith has no priesthood or clergy, and each individual believer is responsible before God for his own spiritual development.

The habit of regular prayer is collateral with other spiritual disciplines such as the daily reading of and meditation upon the

35. Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian. Compiled by Gertrude Garrida (N ew Delhi: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1973), 86-87. 36. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb—i-Aqdas, 101.

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texts revealed by Bahá’u’lláh. For example, in paragraph 149 of the Kitab-i—Aqdas, Baha’u’llah says: “Recite ye the verses of God every mom and eventide. Whoso faileth to recite them hath not been faithful to the Covenant of God and His Testament. ...”37 Thus, prayer, meditation, and the thoughtful study of the holy writings constitute the fundamentals of the individual covenant or dialogue between God and ourselves.

However, it is important to realize that the daily obligatory prayers constitute only a spiritual minimum, not a maximum or an optimum. Baha’u’llah stresses throughout His writings that we should pursue communion with God at every moment of our existence, in such wise that the attitude of prayerfulness pervades our entire life and all of our human interactions. As Shoghi Effendi has expressed in a letter written on his behalf: “We must become entirely selfless and devoted to God so that every day and every moment we seek to do only what God would have us do and in the way He would have us do it.”38

A second key element of individual spiritual discipline is fasting, and Baha’u’llah mentions the law of fasting in paragraph 16, immediately following his initial discussion of the obligatory prayers. He later elaborates the details of the law of fasting: Bahá’ís are to fast from sunrise to sunset for nineteen successive days during the same period (2 March to 21 March) each solar year. This periodic, temporary suspension of eating and drinking allows the individual to experience his soul as an entity separate from the body. In this way, the individual’s soul or spirit becomes a palpable reality and not just an intellectual abstraction.

Most of the other prescriptions pertaining to individuals are related, in one way or another, to prayer and fasting. For example, Bahá’u’lláh stresses physical cleanliness, stating that it has an effect on spiritual purity and thereby on the heart’s receptivity to communion with God. As mentioned above, He also forbids recourse to alcohol, opium, and other substances

37. Ibid., K 149. 38. Lights oquidance: A Bahá’í' Reference F ile. Compiled by Helen Hornby. 2nd rev. and enlarged ed. (N ew Delhi: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1988), 111.

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Which distort perception and thus inhibit the individual’s capacity to maintain an ongoing state of communion with God.

The importance Bahá’u’lláh gives to our individual relationship with God and the centrality of this relationship within Baha’u’llah’s system are expressions of the fundamental role that the love of God plays in all human relationships.

Lateral Relationships; Marriage

The vertical relationship between each individual and God is the necessary basis for harmonious and productive lateral relationships between and among human beings. Of all these lateral relationships, the most fundamental is that between husband and wife. Indeed, society comes forth from the family and the family from the couple. Ultimately, society cannot be more healthy than its families nor families more healthy than the relationship between wife and husband. Thus, Baha’u’llah devotes a portion of the Kitab-i-Aqdas to laying out the fundamental parameters of the marriage relationship.

As Viewed by Baha’u’llah, the relationship between husband and wife is govemed by two basic principles: equality (or reciprocity) and fidelity. The principle of equality is the expression of justice within the marriage, and the principle of fidelity is an expression of love. We will discuss each in turn.

The equality of women and men is a fundamental principle of the Bahá’í Faith. This principle implies not only social equality but total reciprocity Within the marriage relationship. In making decisions that are not purely individual—that relate to the married couple as a social entity—the marriage partners are enjoined to use consultation. As mentioned in our brief discussion of Bahá’í consultation above, the goal is to seek a consensual View of the matter at hand, and to abide by a majority view when such a consensus cannot be attained. When, as in the case of husband and wife, no non—unanimous maj ority is possible, then the couple must find a creative way of making a given decision when differences of opinion persist. This may involve either one deferring to the other in certain given instances, but in the Bahá’í conception of the marriage relationship, there is no presumption that either party should

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ever dominate the other or impose his or her will by force or manipulation.

Consultation, and the pursuit of justice within the marriage relationship, is best thought of as a lateral extension of the intimate dialogue between each individual and God. Viewed in this way, consultation between the couple becomes a sort of collective prayer: in the same way that the individual seeks the truth through his internal dialogue with God, so the couple must seek the truth in their intimate dialogue with each other.

Clearly, this conception of the relationship between marriage partners represents a certain challenge to the maturity of their relationship. But this can be seen as a healthy challenge, conducive to spiritual growth and thus to the purpose of human existence.

The second basic principle governing the relationship between husband and wife is absolute fidelity. Arnong other things, the Kitab-i-Aqdas specifically states that a sexual relationship is spiritually legitimate only between a man and a woman who are married to each other. Thus, sexual relationships outside of the marriage bond are proscribed in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, and those who Violate this prohibition are subj ect to a penalty which, in the case of consenting adults, is the payment of an identical fine by both parties, the amount being doubled with each subsequent offense. The penalty for other particular Violations of this law, such as rape, incest or adultery, are to be determined by the Universal House of Justice.

Baha’u’llah’s conception of loyalty between the marriage partners implies not only the act of sexual faithfulness, but also an attitude of mind in which each' partner continually gives priority to the well-being of the other in all circumstances. The importance Baha’u’llah gives to loyalty within marriage is apparent from His first mention of the principle in paragraph 19: “Ye have been forbidden to commit murder or adultery, or to engage in backbiting or calumny; shun ye, then, what hath been prohibited in the hon Books and Tablets.”39

39. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb-i-Aqdas, K 19.

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Just as murder is the most grievous possible Violation of the sanctity of individual life, so adultery is the most grievous possible Violation of the sanctity of the marriage relationship. Backbiting and calumny destroy the individual by assassinating his character and reputation rather than his physical person. Similarly, other more subtle forms of unfaithfulness may assassinate the marriage relationship. But sexual faithfulness is the minimum challenge to be met by the marriage partners.

Probably most people would agree that the combination of sexual chastity before marriage and faithfulness Within marriage will serve to strengthen the marriage bond. However, many may also feel that this discipline will impose an intolerable hardship on the individual. The accepted idea in many quarters is that men especially cannot be seriously expected to restrain themselves sexually before marriage or to confine themselves to only one partner after marriage.

Clearly, Baha’u’llah does not agree with such notions. To begin With, there is no trace whatsoever of any sexual double standard in the Kitab-i—Aqdas. Marriage is monogamous, the principles of chastity and fidelity are equally binding on men and women, and all penalties for Violations of these principles between consenting adults apply equally to both partners. Moreover, a number of special conditions regarding prayer and fasting apply to women only, such as special prayers to be said in lieu of fasting for menstruating women. The overall resultconfirmed in other writings of Baha’u’llah as well—is to exalt the position of the woman as the bearer and nurturer of life, While maintaining total social equality between women and men in all other respects.

As to the question of sexual discipline, Baha’u’llah considers this to be a particular means God has provided for our spiritual development. If God has so freely endowed us With the precious and potent gift of sexuality, He has also endowed us With the capacity for its disciplined and responsible use. Throughout His writings, Baha’u’llah insists that one of the basic principles God has established in His dealings with humanity is that He never requires from us anything of Which we are not truly capable: “He will never deal unjustly With any one, neither will He task

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a soul beyond its power.”40 Indeed, explains Baha’u’llah, everything God imposes upon us is for our benefit alone, for there is no self-interest on the part of God. God is totally self-sufficient and His love for us is absolutely pure.

Thus, according to Baha’u’llah, the sexual discipline of chastity and fidelity contained in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas is for our benefit and fully within our God—given power to accomplish. Had God withheld the gift of so powerful a sexuality from us, we would have been spared the tensions sometimes involved in the exercise of sexual discipline, but we would have been denied the opportunities for substantial and rapid spiritual growth this discipline affords. Thus, Baha’u’llah’s prescriptions regarding sexuality constitute a prime example of teachings that can be understood only in the light of Baha’u’llah’s conception of human purpose.

Although the prescription of chastity and fidelity are not original with the Bahá’í teachings, historical attempts to practice these disciplines have been marred by several factors. First is the often unspoken assumption that human sexuality is animalistic, dirty, or debased. The Bahá’í teachings specifically contradict this notion, teaching that all of the naturally-given human capacities—both physical and spiritual—come from God and are good in themselves. Any evil connected therewith is strictly a result of our misuse of them. Human sexuality is divine and sacred, not animal and exploitative, unless we debase it through willful misuse. Moreover, Bahá’u’lláh specifically states that there is no moral value whatsoever in celibacy itself. Not only does the Kitab-i—Aqdas condemn asceticism and other forms of extreme self—denial, it criticizes harshly anyone Who, for example, “hath secluded himself in the climes of India, denied himself the things that God hath decreed as lawful, imposed upon himself austerities and mortifications,” stating that such a person “hath not been remembered by God, the Revealer of Verses.”41

40. Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings, 106. 41. Baha’u’llah, Kitab-i-Aqdas, K 36.

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A second feature that has prevented mankind from benefiting appropriately from the disciplines of chastity and fidelity has been the historic inequality between men and women. Polygamous marriage (specifically forbidden in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas), the sexual double standard (in Which, curiously, women are blamed for male promiscuity), and the dominance of women by men generally have prevented the marriage relationship from reaping anything like the full benefits of sexual discipline, even When it was sincerely practiced. However, the channelling of sexual expression into long-term, stable marriage relationships, in conjunction with the Bahá’í practice of equality, reciprocity, and consultation between the marriage partners, Will undoubtedly allow marriage relationships to achieve unprecedented levels of harmony, loyalty, intimacy, and satisfaction. Indeed, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá is reported to have said that no human can conceive of the union and harmony that God has destined for husband and Wife.42 In Baha’u’llah’s View, such a consummation is more than adequate compensation for whatever temporary frustrations must be endured in the practice of sexual discipline before marriage.

Importantly, the Kitáb-i-Aqdas allows divorce:

Should resentment or antipathy arise between husband and wife, [they must] bide in patience throughout the course of one whole year, that perchance the fragrance of affection may be renewed between them. If, upon the completion of this period, their love hath not returned, it is permissible for divorce to take place. God’s Wisdom, verily, hath encompassed all things.43

It is often true that Whatever has great potential for good When properly implemented also has great potential for evil if misused. Thus, Baha’u’llah exalts the station of marriage and its positive spiritual potential, but recognizes that there is no spiritual value—and, in fact, much potential spiritual harm—in

42. From the “Marriage Tablet” of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá; see, for example, Star of the West 11:1 (21 March 1920), 20. 43. Baha’u’llah, Kitab-i-Aqdas, K 68.

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forcing a couple to maintain the formalities of a relationship that no longer exists in fact. Notice that the grounds for divorce are “resentment or antipathy,” not necessarily a specific act of (sexual or other) unfaithfulness. As With other aspects of marriage, both husband and wife have an equal right to divorce, when once the year of waiting has been accomplished. Neither party can block or refuse divorce to the other.

The F amily

We have seen that the two basic parameters of marriageequality and fidelity—are particular instances of the two fundamental pillars of all human relationships, justice and love. We now want to see how these same principles operate in the context of the next most intimate category of human relationships, namely the relationships Within the family.

Equality and reciprocity are the expression of justice Within the marriage relationship because Bahá’í marriage is conceived as a completely symmetrical relationship between two equally mature and competent adults. But other relationships within the family, and in particular the relationship between parents and children, are not symmetrical. Therefore, the expression of justice within the family involves certain subtleties and nuances, Which Baha’u’llah addresses in the Kitab-i-Aqdas.

To begin With, Bahá’u’lláh makes it clear that the primary purpose of spiritually healthy marriages is to bring forth spiritually healthy children. Indeed, a high quality of relationship between the marriage partners provides an appropriate milieu for the healthy growth and development of each member of the family and, in particular, for the children: “Enter into wedlock, O people, that ye may bring forth one who Will make mention of Me amid My servants. This is My bidding unto you; hold fast to it as an assistance to yourselves.”44 Thus, the purpose of the family is not just the physical propagation of children but also their spiritual education. The emphasis Which Baha’u’llah places on the parents’ responsibilities is indicated by the following commentary of Bahá’u’lláh:

44. Ibid., K 63.

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Unto every father hath been enjoined the instruction of his son and daughter in the art of reading and writing and in all that hath been laid down in the Holy Tablet. He that putteth away that which is commanded unto him, the Trustees are then to take from him that which is required for their instruction if he be wealthy and, if not, the matter devolveth upon the House of Justice. Verily we have made it a shelter for the poor and needy. He that bringeth up his son or the son of another, it is as though he hath brought up a son of Mine; upon him rest My glory, My loving-kindness, My mercy, that have compassed the world.

Elsewhere it is explained that the spiritual and moral obligation to educate children devolves equally upon both parents, but in different ways. The mother is declared to be the “first educator” of the child, and she has the right to material support from the father in this task. Indeed, each succeeding generation of the human race is founded on the willingness of its mothers to dedicate themselves to the best interests of their children. This pivotal role of motherhood is stressed throughout the Bahá’í writings. It means that society in general, and men in particular, must arrange their affairs so that mothers receive all of the necessary recognition, support, and reward for their accomplishment of this sacred task.

For example, Baha’u’llah states that sons and daughters must be educated equally (and, according to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, with the same curriculum), but that whenever choices must be made in the education of children, preference is given to daughters because it is they Who, upon becoming mothers, Will be the first educators of the next generation. This principle shows clearly a shift of values away from the traditional View that the primary goal of education is to prepare males for economic or material success and towards the View that education must serve the primary goal of fostering the spiritual development of the entire future generation.

Thus, according to Baha’u’llah’s View of the family, children have certain rights, such as the right to education, which the parents are obliged to respect. In a commentary on the Kitab—i

45. Baha’u’llah, Kitab-i-Aqdas, K 48.

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Aqdas, Baha’u’llah states that a parent who neglects these sacred obligations may be declared by the House of Justice to have lost his rights of parenthood: “Should a father neglect this most weighty commandment [to educate one’s children] laid down in the Kitab-i-Aqdas by the Pen of the Eternal King, he shall fggfeit rights of fatherhood, and be accounted guilty before God.”

Thus, children are not Viewed as chattels or possessions of their parents, and parents do not have absolute authority over their children. Appropriate community agencies and authorities, under the guidance of the House of Justice, can intervene when necessary for the protection of children. According to Baha’u’llah’s prescriptions, children reach the age of discretion at fifteen, after which they are held individually responsible for their actions and for the fulfillment of all adult spiritual responsibilities. Fifteen is also the age at which individuals are free to contract marriage.

A counterpart to these spiritual obligations devolving upon parents are similar obligations on children to respect the rights and station of their parents. Bahá’u’lláh has said:

Well is it with him who in the Day of God hath laid fast hold upon His precepts and hath not deviated from His true and fundamental Law. The fruits that best befit the tree of human life are trustworthiness and godliness, truthfulness and sincerity; but greater than all, after recognition of the unity of God, praised and glorified be He, is regard for the rights that are due to one’s parents....Observe how lovingkindness to one’s farents hath been linked to recognition of the one true God! 7

The mutual respect for the rights and obligations of each member of the family provides a framework of justice which allows for true and enduring love to exist within the family. In the past, family relationships have too often been based on power rather than love. If the power of the parents is dominant, then the family falls into an authoritarian mode in which

46. Ibid., 136. 47. Ibid., 136-137.

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children can become Virtual slaves to their parents’ purely egotistical Wishes. If the power of the children is dominant, the family tends to become indulgent and degenerates into anarchy and chaos.

In Baha’u’llah’s conception of the family, none have dominance over others. Rather, the entire family and its members are subject, one and all, to the spiritual authority of Bahá’í principles and laws. In particular, parents recognize and acknowledge that they also are guided by a moral law greater than their own individual Will. This acknowledgement confers upon them the necessary moral authority to direct, guide, and teach their children. Thus, the parents function as instruments or vehicles for the spiritual education of their children, not as tyrants or dictators Who rule over them.

Of course, this quality of education requires continual and significant sacrifice on the part of the parents. Thus, children are obliged to show forth respect and kindness for their parents as a recognition of the sacrifice their parents make for the sake of the children’s education. The experience of many Bahá’í families has been that children respond positively to principles to Which their parents also submit, Whereas the common experience of humanity is that children tend to resent the imposition of principles and rules they perceive as arbitrary dictates of their parents as individuals. Indeed, is it not the gap between deeds and words that so often leads the younger generation to View the older generation as hypocritical?

Because of the great sacrifice parents make for the spiritual education of their children, and because of the seriousness of marriage and its centrality to the human enterprise, Baha’u’llah requires that a couple, once they have freely chosen each other as future marriage partners, must seek the blessing and permission of their parents for the marriage. This requirement serves the fundamental Bahá’í goal of promoting unity. It can also be seen both as a formal recognition of the contribution the parents have made to the person’s spiritual development, as well as a protection against a hasty choice of marriage partner, perhaps made under a spell of infatuation. Here is Baha’u’llah’s statement of this principle in paragraph 65 of the Kitab-i-Aqdas:

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...marriage is dependent upon the consent of both parties. Desiring to establish love, unity and harmony amidst Our servants, We have conditioned it, once the couple’s Wish is known, upon the permission of their parents, lest enmity and rancor should arise amongst them. And in this We have yet other purgSoses. Thus hath Our commandment been ordained.

Those who have some knowledge of the immense cultural diversity abroad in the world today can appreciate the fineness and Wisdom With Which Baha’u’llah has established these various parameters of marriage and family relationships. One cultural extreme places the emphasis on absolute parental authority, Where marriages are forced and arranged for economic or cultural reasons having little or nothing to do With the quality of spiritual relationship between the marriage partners. This has led to such terrible abuses as bride selling, bride burning, and involuntary surrogate motherhood. Thus, Baha’u’llah makes it absolutely clear that, unless and until the marriage partners have made a personal decision that they desire to marry, the parents have no right to interfere in the process. Furthermore, the Kitabi-Aqdas strictly limits any dowry to a symbolic amount, thereby permanently removing any basis for the infernal manipulations so Widespread in many parts of the world today.

At the other end of the cultural spectrum, as for example in North America, marriage is usually Viewed as an absolute free choice between two individuals, Without regard for the perceptions or wishes of the parents. As a consequence of this pattern, marriages are often entered into for immature and frivolous reasons, and frequently Without the Vital and necessary support of the families involved. Consequently, marriages may begin under conditions of intolerable stress, leading to early and acrimonious divorce, with attendant destabilisation of the family milieu and catastrophic effects on the children involved. By making marriage conditional upon parental consent, “once the couple’s wish is known,” Baha’u’llah maximizes the possibility that marriages Will begin under conditions of loving family

48. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitab-i-Aqdas, K 65.

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support and that young people Will be protected from immature Choices.

Interestingly and significantly, Bahá’u’lláh has not made divorce conditional on the approval of others, once the year of waiting and attempted reconciliation has been faithfully observed. Thus, on one hand, Baha’u’llah optimizes the possibility that marriages Will be spiritually healthy and successful, and, on the other hand, He allows for the possibility that sincere mistakes can and will occur. Such a balanced, responsible and reasonable approach to the whole question of marriage and family shows the faith that Bahá’u’lláh has in the human potential for mature and responsible spirituality.

The Bahá’í principles regarding marriage and family life are not the only examples Where the Kitáb—i-Aqdas deals With the question of cultural relativity and conflicting cultural traditions. Indeed, many of the ordinances in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas represent liberalizations and abolitions of past practices. For example, in paragraphs 74-76 of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, Baha’u’llah states:

God hath decreed, in token of His mercy unto His creatures, that semen is not unclean. . .. _

God hath, likewise, as a bounty from His presence, abolished the concept of “uncleanness,” whereby divers things and peoples have been held to be impure. . ..

God hath enjoined upon you to observe the utmost cleanliness, to the extent of washing What is soiled with dust, let alone With hardened dirt and similar defilement.49

Thus, with one stroke of His pen, Baha’u’llah completely abolishes the whole, hoary fetish of ritual uncleanness, Which has lain at the root of centuries—indeed millennia—of superstitious and obsessive social practices in many parts of the world. He likewise stresses the importance of genuine physical cleanliness.

There are a number of other instances in the Kitab-i-Aqdas where Baha’u’llah specifically declares previous religious

49. Baha’u’llah, Kjtéb-i-Aqdas, K 74-76.

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practices to have been based on superstition or gross misinterpretation of previous holy texts such as the Qur’án or the Bible.

The Extended F amily; the Larger Society

In a certain sense, all of the challenges of human relationships are reproduced within the milieu of each extended family. The dynamics of family relationships are subtle and constantly changing. As time passes, the parents, who were once young, Vigorous, and powerful, become weak, fragile, and vulnerable; whereas the children, who were dependent, vulnerable, and untutored, become strong, Virile, and accomplished. The children no longer see their parents as god-like—as representing the ultimate in human accomplishment. They began to achieve things their parents have not or could not have achieved. When the parents approach old age, there is almost a complete reversal of roles in which they become, in some ways, like dependent children to the same younger generation they have propagated. Nevertheless, as grandparents, uncles, and aunts, they have various other important roles to play, providing a needed sense of historical perspective and continuity to the family. Under stable social conditions, the experiential oral history of a family can encompass almost a hundred years, involving three or even four generations.

These same dynamics exist within the larger society, in which roles and interdependencies are constantly shifting. This raises, in a very sharp way, the question of how to maintain the cohesion, the stability and progressiveness of social systems, while giving ample scope for individual freedom and initiative. Baha’u’llah articulates two fundamental principles that are necessary to the spiritual health of society: cooperation and service. These are the general social expression of justice and love. To the degree that society, at any level, is founded on cooperation and service, it will succeed and prosper, spiritually and materially. And, in the same way, the extent to which competition displaces cooperation and self—seeking displaces service in human motivation, society will degenerate. Here is one strong statement Baha’u’llah makes concerning the

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destructive effects of competition and self-seekjng in human society:

And amongst the realms of unity is the unity of rank and station. It redoundeth to the' exaltation of the Cause, glorifying it among all peoples. Ever since the seeking of preference and distinction came into play, the world hath been laid waste. It hath become desolate. Those Who have quaffed from the ocean of divine utterance and fixed their gaze upon the Realm of Glory should regard themselves as being on the same level as the others and in the same station. Were this matter to be definitely established and conclusively demonstrated through the power and might of God, the world would become as the Abhá Paradise.

Indeed, man is noble, inasmuch as each one is a repository of the sign of God. Nevertheless, to regard oneself as superior in knowledge, learning or Virtue, or to exalt oneself or seek preference, is a grievous transgression. Great is the blessedness of those Who are adorned with the ornament of this unity and have been graciously confirmed by God. 50

Although most people would admit that competition does indeed have negative aspects, the extreme individualism and competitiveness of modern Western society are often justified as an evil that is necessary for the achievement of excellence. However, Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá strongly reject this View. The pursuit of excellence proceeds by vertical comparisons between the performances of the same individual at different times; whereas competition proceeds by the horizontal comparison of the performances of different individuals at the same time. As a basic motivation, pure competition may sometimes stimulate the pursuit of excellence, but it may also generate efforts to sabotage or undermine the performance of others (by the passive refusal to collaborate, if not through more active means). The Bahá’í writings stress that the underlying motivation for the pursuit of excellence should be to put our God—given talents at the service of others. When this intrinsic

50. Quoted in a letter of the Universal House of Justice, published in Bahá’í’ Canada (June—July 1978), 3.

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motivation is dominant, individuals strive to enhance their performance for greater development both of society and self, regardless of whether this leads them to outperform other individuals.

The other pillar of the spiritualization of society is service. Service involves not only a general attitude towards others, but also the discipline of daily work at a chosen profession:

O people of Bahá! It is incumbent upon each one of you to engage in some occupation—such as a craft, a trade or the like. We have exalted your engagement in such work to the rank of worship of the one true God. Reflect, O people, on the grace and blessings of your Lord, and yield Him thanks at eventide and dawn. Waste not your hours in idleness and sloth, but occupy yourselves with what will profit you and others.

Other statements in the Bahá’í writings make it clear that the obligation to work is a spiritual law equally binding on everyone, regardless of the degree of material necessity. Homemaking is considered a noble profession and, accordingly, an act of worship. However, this in no way precludes mothers’ and homemakers’ engaging in other professions outside the home.

The Bahá’í View of work as worship brings us back again to the theme that the fundamental purpose of the laws and principles of the Kitab-i-Aqdas is to foster the spiritual and material development of humanity. Bahá’í morality is thus not a morality of avoidance and Withdrawal but a proactive dynamic of accomplishment and progression, motivated by the principles of justice and love, service and cooperation, reciprocity and

loyalty.

Inheritance Laws; Huqfiqu 'lláh

The application of the general social principles of service and cooperation can take many forms in particular contexts. In most instances, Baha’u’llah has left to individual judgment, and to the

51. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb-i-Aqdas, K 33.

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Universal House of Justice, the task of establishing or defining the implementation of these important principles. With regard to the age—old question of the distribution of wealth, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has enunciated the general principle that gross accumulation of wealth, whether by individuals or groups within society, should be avoided. He states that such overconcentration of wealth is harmful not only for society but also for the individuals involved. In the light of this principle, Baha’u’llah has instituted certain practical measures that, While allowing the necessary latitude for entrepreneurial initiative and individual freedom of economic action, nevertheless help to avoid extremes both of poverty and of excessive wealth.

One of these measures is called Ḥuqúqu’lláh or “the right of God.” In summary form, this measure stipulates that every believer must pay, once only, 19 percent of the value of his possessions, less various exempt items, such as one’s home and its furnishings. Bahá’u’lláh extols the spiritual benefits of Huqfiqu’lláh and states, “By this means He [God] hath desired to purify What ye possess and to enable you to draw nigh unto such stations as none can comprehend save those whom God hath willed.”52

Ḥuqúqu’lláh is paid to the Universal House of Justice, and thus sums derived from it can be redistributed and redeployed to maximum social benefit. One can imagine, for example, that favorable local conditions could create an economic boom in one area of the planet while difficult financial conditions elsewhere generate poverty. The Universal House of Justice could use the sums derived from the Ḥuqúqu’lláh paid in the prosperous region to help alleviate economic hardship in the depressed zone. Since such patterns of economic boom and bust are often temporary and shifting, it might be that, subsequently, the operation of redistribution of wealth Will take place in the opposite direction. In any case, the Universal House of Justice, as the supreme governing organ of the entire Bahá’í world, Will have the necessary information to assess accurately the situation

52. Bahá’u’lláh, Kitáb-i-Aqdas, K 97.

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and the necessary authority to implement the appropriate measures.

Through the payment of Ḥuqúqu’lláh, the believer “purifies” his savings. Bahá’u’lláh institutes another tax, called Zakat, through Which the believer purifies his means of sustenance: “It hath been enjoined upon you to purify your means of sustenance and other such things through payment of Zakat.”53 The term “Zakat” derives from the Qur’án and refers to an obligatory tax levied for the relief of the poor and other charitable purposes. Baha’u’llah has left to the Universal House of Justice the freedom to determine the various parameters of Zakat (e.g., exemptions, categories of income, scales of rates, frequency of payment).

Ḥuqúqu’lláh and Zakat, together With the general mandate given the Universal House of Justice, provide the necessary measures for the “horizontal” adjustment of gross economic disparities Within each generation. However, there is also the question of “vertical” inequities resulting from the gradual overconcentration of wealth over succeeding generations. Baha’u’llah addresses this issue by specifying certain principles for the distribution of inheritance in the absence of a will on the part of the deceased: “We have divided inheritance into seven categories...”54 With respect to the decease of a given individual, these categories are children, Wife or husband, father, mother, brothers, sisters, and teachers. Baha’u’llah specifies the proportion of a given inheritance that is to be allotted to each category. However: this distribution is obligatory only in the case that the individual dies without writing a will. Moreover, Baha’u’llah has specifically enjoined each individual to make a testament establishing the manner of distribution of that person’s accumulated wealth after his or her passing:

A person hath full jurisdiction over his property. If he is able to discharge the Huqfiqu’lláh, and is free of debt, then all that is recorded in his Will, and any declaration or avowal it containeth, shall be acceptable. God, verily, hath permitted

53. Ibid., K 146. 54. Ibid., K 20.

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him to deal with that which He hath bestowed upon him in Whatever manner he may desire.

Of course, it is presumed that, in writing his will, the individual will take into account the general Bahá’í principle of avoiding the ove51600ncentration of wealth in the hands of a few individuals.5

Gender Equality and the Membership of the Universal House of Justice

As is well known, and as already mentioned above in the discussion of marriage and the family, one of the fundamental principles of the Bahá’í Faith is the equality of men and women. The Bahá’í writings affirm unequivocally that women have historically been dominated and subjugated by men, creating a disastrous imbalance in society. For example, both Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá attribute the prevalence of war and bloodshed in human history primarily to the predominance of aggressiveness, which has tended to characterize men, over compassion and common sense, which have been more characteristic of women. If women had been allowed to achieve the same level of education as men, and contribute on an equal basis to civilization, then many historic injustices, such as slavery and child labor, would have been greatly diminished if not avoided altogether. Here is one of the many strong statements in the Bahá’í writings concerning these questions:

The world in the past has been ruled by force and man has dominated over woman by reason of his more forceful and aggressive qualities both of body and mind. But the scales are already shifting, force is losing its weight, and mental alertness, intuition, and the spiritual qualities of love and service, in which woman is strong, are gaining ascendency. Hence the new age will be an age less masculine and more permeated with the feminine ideals, or, to speak more exactly, will be an age in which the masculine and femsinine elements of civilization will be more properly balanced.57

55. Baha’u’llah, Kitab-i-Aqdas, 126. 56. Ibid., 183-184. 57. Star Ofthe West 9:7 (13 July 1918), 87.

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Not only does this passage acknowledge the imbalances of the past, it asserts that women tend to possess certain qualities to a degree superior to men. Elsewhere, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stresses that women possess all intellectual and creative abilities exhibited by men and that any lack of achievement on the part of women is due only to lack of adequate access to education: “If given the same educational opportunities or course of study, [women] would develop the same capacity and abilities [as men]” and this “Whether in scientific research, political ability or any other sphere of human activity.”58 Moreover, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá underlines the necessity for women to enter all arenas of social and public life:

So it will come to pass that When women participate fully and equally in the affairs of the world, When they enter confidently and capably the great arena of laws and politics, war Will cease; for woman Will be the obstacle and hindrance to it. This is true and Without doubt. 5

In the light of these and other strong statements in the Bahá’í writings concerning the capacity and role of women, it is surprising, and somewhat puzzling at first, that the Kitab-iAqdas restricts the membership of the Universal House of Justice, but not the local and secondary Houses of Justice, to men alone. Indeed, in all other public functions and roles instituted by Baha’u’llah, women and men have equal access. The only exception at any level is membership in the Universal House of Justice. Moreover, there is no indication whatsoever, in any statement of Baha’u’llah or ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, that exclusion of women from membership on the Universal House of Justice is based on any presumed incapacity of women to serve in this way.

The perception of paradox is reinforced When we recall that, as the supreme institution of Baha’u’llah’s world order, the Universal House of Justice is the chief promulgator of all Bahá’í principles, including the principle of the equality of men and

58. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation ofUniversal Peace, 281. 59. Ibid., 135.

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women. Why, one may reasonably ask, has Baha’u’llah excluded women from membership in the one institution that bears the primary responsibility for promoting the cause of the equality and rights of women?

This feature of Baha’u’llah’s system has long given rise to discussion and speculation. When questioned on this subject, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá only reiterated his affirmation that this restriction had nothing to do with the capacities of women and that the reason for their exclusion from membership in the Universal House of Justice would, in time, become absolutely clear to everyone.

Con clusions

The task of exploring the implications of so profound a work as the Kitab-i-Aqdas is ongoing and progressive. Certainly the present article cannot claim to be more than a modest, initial contribution to this enterprise. Nevertheless, the fundamental outlines of Baha’u’llah’s Vision of a global planetary order can already be clearly seen. The goal is a unified, universal society, founded on spiritual principles and allowing for both stability and dynamism, global order and individual initiative. This world order has two fundamental components, one personal and spiritual, the other social and structural.

The personal component is based on the direct relationship between each human soul and the God Who has created us all. The Kitab—i—Aqdas instructs us in the fundamental parameters of this relationship. Baha’u’llah thereby tells us that the ultimate category of existence, Being Itself, is not an abstract principle but a loving Person Who seeks intimate communion with each human being. '

This vertical relationship between each individual and God is the necessary source of the love and compassion that must infuse all human relationships. But this great force of love must be properly harnessed if it is to produce a truly progressive and stable society. The Kitáb-i-Aqdas therefore institutes appropriate, just social structures, at every level of society, to allow for the free and unhampered flow and diffusion of love. These structures constitute a system of rights and obligations

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within marriage, the nuclear family, the extended family, and ultimately the whole of society. They involve potent institutions which allow for the implementation, at all levels of society, of decisions taken through consultation. These structures also provide the basis of a stable but dynamic economic system which, while not imposing the unrealistic and unhealthy norm of total economic egalitarianism, nevertheless eliminates the extremes of poverty and the gross accumulation of wealth.

Human history has witnessed a wide variety of social systems. Some have crushed individual freedom and initiative either through dictatorship or else an extreme collectivism that attributes little intrinsic value to the individual person. At the other extreme are highly individualistic systems in which interpersonal competition tends to permeate every aspect of society. Such systems are certainly dynamic but tend to be volatile and unstable.

Social philosophers have often held that there is an intrinsic, logical opposition between the good of the individual and the good of society as a whole. As a consequence of this View, most social systems are seen as a compromise in which some degree of individual self—realization must be sacrificed for the sake of social order.

Baha’u’llah’s Vision of society challenges this received idea. In His View, there can be no contradiction between what is truly good for the individual and what is truly good for the collectivity. Indeed, Baha’u’llah conceives that the very purpose of society is to create a milieu that optimizes the opportunities for the spiritual growth and development of each of its members. In the Kitáb-i-Aqdas we have the balanced conception of a society that is founded on the sacred, intrinsic value of each individual human soul, independently of the role that person may play within society. At the same time, the Kitab-i-Aqdas lays the structural foundations of a stable and progressive social life that favors the maximum degree of self—realization for everyone.

Now that the publication of the full, annotated edition of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas is accomplished, the eyes of the Bahá’í world are turned towards the institution of the Universal House of Justice whose sacred task it is to oversee the wise, gradual but steady

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implementation of the laws and principles of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, which are nothing less than the laws governing the spiritual world, the world of being. But the ultimate responsibility for the implementation of these laws and principles lies not with any institution. Rather it lies with each of us, in Whose hearts and minds the intimate communion with our Creator must be diligently pursued. This is an immense responsibility, but also a unique privilege given us by God—that we can participate, to Whatever degree we choose, in the building of the mighty spiritual edifice of a world united on the basis of the very law of causality God has inscribed in the innermost recesses of reality.

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[Page 237]Ann Boyles surveys the Bahá’í community 19 past and present efforts to understand and practice the principle ofequalz'ty between

men and women.

CNWARDS THIGQAL

OFULL PARTNERSHIP: One Hunclred and Fifty Years of the

Advancement of Women

Between 4 and 15 September 1995, some twenty thousand participants from all parts of the world will converge in Beijing for the United Nations’ Fourth World Conference on Women. They Will focus on a number of critical areas of concern: the sharing of power and decision—making; mechanisms to promote the advancement of women; awareness of and commitment to women’s rights; poverty; women’s access to and participation in the definition of economic structures and policies and the productive process; access to education, health, and employment; Violence against women; and the effects on women of continuing national and international armed or other kinds of conflict. The Bahá’í community Will be represented by an official delegation at the conference itself, While a large representation of Bahá’ís from all regions of the world will participate in the Non—Governmental Organizations (NGO) Forum on Women, which is open to everyone and Will be held immediately preceding and overlapping the first four days of the conference.

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Members of the Bahá’í' delegation to the Asian and Pacific NGO Symposium on Women in Development, Manila, the Philippines,

16-20 November 1993, held in preparation for the Fourth World Conference on Women.

Bahá’ís have participated in the previous three world conferences on women in 1975, 1980, and 1985, and, indeed, the community’s delegations are uniquely well-equipped to consult on issues pertaining to the advancement of women. The Bahá’í world community has a distinctive approach to the subj ect, clearly delineated in its sacred writings; it has a century and a half of practical experience in promoting equality of the sexes; and it has a willingness to share its teachings and experience with others struggling to overcome inequality around the world.

Principles Distinctive t0 the Bahd ’l'Approach to Equality

Perhaps the most distinctive element of the Bahá’í approach to the issue of equality is the conviction that change must be a unifying force, leading towards full partnership of men and women—and beyond this toward the unity of the human family. Bahá’í activities focusing on the advancement of women take their direction from passages such as the following: “The world of humanity has two Wings—one is women and the other men. Not until both wings are equally developed can the bird fly.”1 Bahá’ís see the need to involve men in recognizing and promoting the issue of equality. What benefits Will accrue

1. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu ’l—Bahd (Haifa: World Centre Publications, 1978), 302; cited in Women: A Compilation, in The

Compilation of Compilations, vol. 2 (Australia: Bahá’í Publications Australia, 1991), 362.

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either to men or to women if only women see the need for equality in their lives? How can the sexes advance harmoniously and unitedly unless both become aware of this essential principle? For example, in many development projects focusing solely on women the results are not enduring for a number of reasons: women, by themselves, cannot effectively make cultural changes; the attitudes of women (and men) have not been fundamentally altered even Where the projects themselves have been successful; women’s concerns and women’s projects are seen to be unimportant to the society as a whole; or projects have tended to put women in the roles of “consumers” rather than training them to continue effecting change in their communities once the project ends. Often, gender—focused activities for women only have resulted in conflict between men and women and have therefore been seen as detrimental to community life rather than beneficial, since they may polarize the sexes rather than improve relationships between them. Conscious of this, the Bahá’í community has increasingly sought to involve both women and men in discussion and activities pertaining to the equality issue. Obviously the process of change is one that spans years and perhaps generations before effects are readily noticeable, but the Bahá’í community knows it is essential to lay the foundation now for future progress—for the flight of the bird of humanity.

If the first distinctive element of the Bahá’í approach to the advancement of women is the insistence that the process be a unifying force, it is no surprise that the second is its emphasis on equilibrium and harmony, as evidenced by this recorded utterance of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá:

The world in the past has been ruled by force, and man has dominated over woman by reason of his more forceful and aggressive qualities both of body and mind. But the balance is already shifting; force is losing its dominance, and mental alertness, intuition, and the spiritual qualities of love and service, in Which woman is strong, are gaining ascendancy. Hence the new age will be an age less masculine and more permeated With the feminine ideals, or,

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to speak more exactly,will be an age in Which the masculine and feminine elements of civilization Will be more evenly balanced.

Such pronouncements are far from being utopian Visions or expressions of pious hope. Laws and ordinances, woven into the fabric of the Bahá’í social order, facilitate the integration of women into all aspects of social life, and the Bahá’í administrative system promotes practical steps leading to a society Where equality Will be the norm. For example, while universal education is desirable, if the parents do not have the funds to send all their children to school, they must be guided by the Bahá’í teaching that the education of girls takes precedence over the education of boys, because the mother is the first educator of the child and society Will not progress as long as mothers remain in a state of ignorance. Within the school system, “daughters and sons must follow the same curriculum of study, thereby promoting unity of the sexes.”3 It is obvious that realizing this goal, of unity rather than hegemony in male-female relations, will radically alter the social life of the human family.

The Vision of a future society in which women and men enter into a full and equal partnership is, then, set unequivocally before the Bahá’í community. While employing the means to achieve the goal demands perseverance, audacity, imagination, and development of consultative skills, the ultimate objective remains clear. And this view of change leading to unity appears to be catching on in circles far Wider than the Bahá’í community itself, judging from recent statements made at the annual meeting of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, held in New York in March 1994. The planning committee for the NGO Forum ’95 described the upcoming event in Beijing as a place “to bring together women and men to challenge, create and transform global structures and processes at all levels through the empowerment and celebration of women.”4

2. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, quoted in John Esslemont, Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era, 5th rev. ed. (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1987), 149.

3. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgatz'on of Universal Peace, 2nd ed. (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1982), 175.

4. Cited in One Country: Newsletter of the Bahá’í International Community 6.1 (April-June 1994), 9.

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Principle oquuality: an Historical Overview

The power of the Bahá’í teachings to reshape radically the attitudes and lives of the approximately five million men and women around the world who call themselves Bahá’ís is firmly and uniquely rooted in what they consider to be divine revelation: the Bahá’í Faith is the only major religion in recorded history whose Founder has unequivocally stated the principle of the equality of women and men. Over one hundred years ago, Baha’u’llah wrote: “In this Day the Hand of divine grace hath removed all distinctions. The servants of God and His handmaidens are regarded on the same plane.”5 The revolutionary and revolutionizing power of this statement may be lost on many readers in the late twentieth century, but set in the context of nineteenth century Persia, where women were treated as chattel or as mere reproductive vessels, were held Virtually as domestic prisoners, and were not deemed worthy of any formal education that would equip them for any role in greater society—or, indeed, that would adequately prepare them to be educators of their own children—this fundamental spiritual principle enunciated by Baha’u’llah presented an electrifying challenge to all who heard it.

One small incident suffices to illustrate the difficulty posed to Persian society by the idea of equality. The veil was held to be the symbol of a woman’s purity; according to the dictates of Persian Islamic society, a man simply did not look at the face of a respectable woman who was not a family member. Thus, when one of the heroines of the Babi Faith6 appeared unveiled in a gathering of fellow believers, the men were greatly distressed, one so much that he ran off and slit his throat. In Persian society at large, reactions were even more extreme, Violent, and abusive. But such limited human responses could not thwart divine

5. Baha’u’llah, extract from a previously untranslated tablet; cited in Women, 358.

6. The Babi Faith, proclaimed in Persia in 1844 by Siyyid ‘Ali Muhammad, entitled “The Báb” or “The Gate,” was the revelation immediately preceding the Bahá’í dispensation and was intimately linked to it. The Báb Himself stated that He had come to prepare the way for “Him Whom God Shall Make Manifest,” the Promised One of all the religions who would bring unity to the entire world—B aha’u’lláh.

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revelation: Baha’u’llah proclaimed women to be equal, and so humanity began its slow and often painful journey towards the realization of this ideal.

To foster a deeper understanding of the principle both within the Bahá’í community and in the general public, Baha’u’llah’s son ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, authorized interpreter of His Father’s writings and appointed by Him as Center of His Covenant and the one to Whom all Bahá’ís should turn as the source of authority, expounded this theme of equality. In a tablet to an individual woman He wrote,

Know thou, O handmaid, that in the sight of Bahá’í, women are accounted the same as men, and God hath created all humankind in His own image, and after His own likeness. That is, men and women alike are the revealers of His names and attributes, and from the spiritual Viewpoint there is no difference between them. 7

‘Abdu’l-Bahá also elaborated upon this theme in many public talks He gave in Europe and America, Where He travelled from 1911 to 1913 after His release from imprisonment in Palestine. Speaking in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, He said,

Woman’s lack of progress and proficiency has been due to her need of equal education and opportunity. Had she been allowed this equality, there is no doubt she would be the counterpart of man in ability and capacity. The happiness of mankind will be realized When women and men coordinate and advance equall§, for each is the complement and helpmeet of the other

‘Abdu’l-Bahá made a crucial distinction in these elucidations of His Father’s teachings. In asserting that women will be the “counterparts” of men in ability and capacity when they are offered equal opportunities for education, He did not assert that

7. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, 79-80; cited in Women, 362.

8. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation ofUm'versal Peace, 182; cited in Women, 365-366.

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women are or will be identical to men. Thus, Bahá’ís understand that equality does not mean identity of function; rather complementarity is its hallmark, according to the Bahá’í teachings.

During the period 1921-1957, Shoghi Effendi, who was chosen by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to be His appointed successor as interpreter of Bahá’í scripture and named Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith in His Will and Testament, encouraged Bahá’í communities to grow further into the notion of equality of the sexes, particularly in their service to Bahá’í administrative institutions. In a letter to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of India and Burma, written in 1923, he urged the women of those countries to

endeavour to the best of their ability to acquire a better and more profound knowledge of the Cause, to take a more active and systematic part in the general affairs of the Movement, and prove themselves in every way enlightened, responsible and efficient co-workers to their fellow-men in their common task for the advancement of the Cause throughout their country. 9

During the period of his leadership, he actively encouraged women as well as men to arise and assist in efforts to establish the Bahá’í Faith widely throughout the globe by resettling in foreign countries.

Since its establishment in 1963, the supreme governing body of the Bahá’í world community, the Universal House of Justice, has further educated the Bahá’í community on the principle of equality, writing of the “mutual and complementary duties” of men and women within the context of the family as well as the “much Wider sphere of relationships between men and women” that should be considered “in the context of Bahá’í society, not in that of past or present social norms.”10 The Bahá’í writings

9. Shoghi Effendi, from a letter dated 27 December 1923 to the National Spiritual Assembly of India and Burma; cited in Women, 402.

10. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, dated 28 December 1980, to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of New Zealand; cited in Family Life, in The Compilation of Compilations, vol. 1, 414-415.

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clearly give the mother the role of her children’s first educator, but the Universal House of Justice also points out:

...this does not by any means imply that the place of woman is confined to the home. On the contrary, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has stated:

In the Dispensation of Baha’u’llah, women are advancing side by side with the men. There is no area or instance Where they will lag behind: they have equal rights with men, and will enter, in the future, into all branches of the administration of society. Such Will be their elevation that, in every area of endeavour, they Will occupy the highest levels in the human world.

and again:

So it will come to pass that when women participate fully and equally in the affairs of the world, When they enter confidently and capably the great arena of laws and politics, war will cease. . ..

There are no universal, compulsory rules governing how women balance their responsibilities both as mothers and as active members of society outside the home. The Universal House of Justice has stated that this decision must be made by the individual, saying: “It is for every woman, if and When she becomes a mother, to determine how best she can discharge on the one hand her chief responsibility as a mother and on the other, to the extent possible, to participate in other aspects of the activities of the society of Which she forms a part...”12 Thus, for the first time in religious history, women have been

11. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, dated 28 December 1980, to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of New Zealand; cited in Women, 392-393. The first cited passage is a revised translation of part of a talk by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá from Paris Talks, 11th ed. (London: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1972), 182; the second is from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, 135.

12. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, dated 22 April 1981 to an individual believer; cited in Women, 393.

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recognized and are treated as mature, responsible human beings, capable of arranging their lives individually to meet the demands placed upon them.

To assist women and men to understand their evolving roles within the family and in the world at large, the Universal House of Justice has, over the past number of years, released compilations of Bahá’í writings Which group together passages on various subjects. The publication in January 1986 of a compilation of extracts dedicated solely to the subject of women, taken from the writings of Baha’u’llah, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, and the Universal House of Justice, constitutes a direct invitation to Bahá’ís around the world to deepen their knowledge on this subject, to discuss What they learn With others, and to apply it in their daily lives.

It is an indication of humanity’s spiritual development that we are capable of recognizing equality as a complex and profound spiritual principle with ramifications in all areas of life, and undoubtedly society Will continue to evolve to accommodate such a shift in consciousness. Consider, for example, the effects that heeding the following passage of Bahá’u’lláh Will have on humanity:

Women and men have been and will always be equal in the sight of God.

The friends of God must be adorned with the ornament of justice, equity, kindness and love. As they do not allow themselves to be the object of cruelty and transgression, in like manner they should not allow such tyranny to Visit the handmaidens of God. 13

From the level of the family, the realm of domestic Violence, to that of society, where, for example, sexual harassment, pornography, and forced prostitution plague women in all corners of the world, the effects, of acting upon this directive Will be dramatic and far—reaching.

13. Bahá’u’lláh, from a previously untranslated tablet; cited in Women, 379.

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Women as Peacemakers

Even more dramatic, far-reaching, and profound ramifications of equality are evident When one considers the role of women in establishing world peace. As mothers, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has said, women Will reach a stage When they are no longer willing to send their sons to war:

In past ages humanity has been defective and inefficient because it has been incomplete. War and its ravages have blighted the world; the education of woman Will be a mighty step toward its abolition and ending, for she Will use her Whole influence against war. Woman rears the child and educates the youth to maturity. She will refuse to give her sons for sacrifice upon the field of battle. In truth, she Will be the greatest factor in establishing universal peace and international arbitration. Assuredly, woman will abolish warfare among mankind. . .. 14

Furthermore, as participants in “the great arena of laws and politics” women will have effective means to enact laws to ensure they Will not be forced to send their children to wage war. But the importance of the emancipation of women goes far beyond the laying down of arms, as the Universal House of Justice points out in a message written to the peoples of the world on the occasion of the United Nations International Year of Peace, saying: “Only as women are welcomed into full partnership in all fields of human endeavour Will the moral and psychological climate be created in Which international peace can emerge.”15 The abandonment of weapons is certainly necessary and important in the achievement of peace, but without the proper “moral and psychological climate” such an action is ultimately fruitless.

Outstanding Women The Bahá’í writings offer a dynamic Vision of the potentialities of women and the changes they can effect in the world, and the

14. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, 108. 15. The Universal House of Justice, The Promise of World Peace (Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 1985), 12.

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history of the Bahá’í Faith offers many examples of outstanding women who serve as models or paradigms of this “new womanhood.” Two women in particular stand out, one associated with qualities of strength and audacity and the other with tenderness and servitude. The first is Táhirih, the Persian poet and fearless defender of the Babi Faith, for Which she eventually suffered a martyr’s death, and the second is Bahíyyih Khanum, the daughter of Baha’u’llah who served her Father selflessly throughout His life, forgoing marriage and the establishment of a family of her own in order to care for Him.

Táhirih was an exceptional woman for her time and place, breaking the bonds that normally enslaved women in nineteenth century Persia. She attained a level of education unusual for women; she composed poems still widely regarded as masterpieces of literature; as one of the original nineteen followers of the Báb, she became a leader of the Babi community and taught her faith fearlessly; she had the temerity to refuse a proposal of the Shah, who was greatly attracted by her beauty, that she become one of his wives; she is reported to have said, shortly before her death, “You can kill me as soon as you like, but you cannot stop the emancipation of women.”16

In addressing her, the Báb wrote: “0 Qurratu’l-‘Ayn! I recognize in Thee none other except the ‘Great Announcement’—the Announcement voiced by the Concourse on high. By this name, I bear witness, they that circle the Throne of Glory have ever known Thee.”17 What is the nature of this “Announcement” personified, according to the Báb, by Táhirih? The answer seems to lie in Shoghi Effendi’s reference to her as “the first woman suffrage martyr.”18 Intrepid and outspoken, she did not allow the social dictates of her society to hold her back from reaching her potential. Yet she paid a terrible price for her courageous acts; she was imprisoned for some time by her

16. Cited by Shoghi Effendi in God Passes By, 3rd ed. (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1974), 75.

17. The Báb, Selections from the Writings of the Báb (Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 1976), 72. Qurratu’l-‘Ayn means “solace of the eyes” and is a title given Táhirih by her teacher.

18. Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, 75.

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husband, and when she escaped she was forced to leave her children behind, never to see them again. Brief years later, she was again imprisoned, this time by government officials who were disturbed by her success in winning converts to the Faith of the Báb, which they saw as heretical to Islam and a threat to the stability of Persian government and society. A group of soldiers was sent to end her life by strangulation, and her body was thrown down a well. Yet her final words proved prophetic; they express a certainty about the future—a vision evoking both hope and strength.

Táhirih, “the Great Announcement,” ranks as the foremost woman of the Babi revelation, and in the Bahá’í dispensation another female figure has been accorded a similar distinction. Bahíyyih Khanum, the saintly daughter of Baha’u’llah who was given the title “the Greatest Holy Leaf,” was addressed by her Father in the following words: “Verily, We have elevated thee to the rank of one of the most distinguished among thy sex, and granted thee, in My court, a station such as none other woman hath surpassed.”19 Shoghi Effendi, her great—nephew, extolled her as “the outstanding heroine of the Bahá’í Dispensation.”20 The qualities of her character that led to this distinction are summed up in the following passage, also written by him:

Whether in the management of the affairs of His Household in which she excelled, or in the social relationships which she so assiduously cultivated in order to shield both Baha’u’llah and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, whether in the unfailing attention she paid to the everyday needs of her Father, or in the traits of generosity, of affability and kindness, which she manifested, the Greatest Holy Leaf had by that time abundantly demonstrated her worthiness to rank as one of the noblest figures intimately associated with the life-long work of Bahá’u’lláh.21

19. Bahíyyih Khdnum: The Greatest Holy Leaf A Compilation (Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 1982), 3.

20. Ibid., 62.

21. Ibid., 34-35.

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Shoghi Effendi remarked upon her serenity in the face of the terrible deprivations and degradations of exile and imprisonment, through which she accompanied her Father from the time she was six years old. He pointed to her care for all the members of the holy family and of the pilgrims who came Bahíyyih Khdnum, from both East and West. Her daughter of Bahá’u’lláh physical frailty belied her spiritual strength, which was fully demonstrated at the time of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s passing: Shoghi Effendi, then a young student at Oxford University, was first devastated by the news of his Grandfather’s death and was subsequently overwhelmed at the prospect of assuming the leadership of the Bahá’í world community, as set forth in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s Will and Testament. While the young Guardian secluded himself and prepared to take up the burden and responsibility that had been bequeathed to him, his elderly aunt, at that time over seventy years of age, took the reins of the Bahá’í community in her hands and directed its affairs until his return. Years later, in an eloquent tribute written at the time of her death, Shoghi Effendi described her as his “chief sustainer,” his “most affectionate comforter,” “the j 0y and inspiration of [his] life.”22

In Bahíyyih Khanum’s own writings, letters written to Bahá’ís all over the world, her strength of character and of expression is evident. The treacherous actions of some members of her own family taught her all too well the difficulties posed by disloyalty and disunity; thus the following passage, written just after the passing of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá at a time of crisis in the Bahá’í world, takes on great significance:

All the Virtues of humankind are summed up in the one word ‘steadfastness’, if we but act according to its laws. It

22. Ibid., 31.

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draws to us by a magnet the blessings and bestowals of Heaven, if we but rise up according to the obligations it implies. 23

Similarly, her writings on service show the focus of her life:

In this Day nothing is so important as service. Did not ‘Abdu’l-Bahá voluntarily call Himself the ‘Servant’ of Baha, manifesting also in His life the perfections of servitude to God and man?

We, wishing to follow. the commands left by Baha’u’llah, spread and lived by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, we can take no greater step toward the Heavenly Kingdom—can give no greater joy to the present beloved Guardian of the Causei Shoghi Effendi—than that of loving service to all mankind. 4

The examples of Táhirih and Bahíyyih Khánum show vividly how both strength and audacity as well as “the spiritual qualities of love and service”. are part of the paradigm of Bahá’í womanhood.25 Since their time, numerous Bahá’í women from many different cultural backgrounds have arisen to demonstrate through their actions how these qualities can be combined. One such woman who served the cause of international peace was Laura Dreyfus-Barney, an American who became a member of the first Bahá’í community in Europe around 1900. A leader in promoting the advancement of women in the early years of this century, she focused her attention on mobilizing women for peace and represented the International Council of Women (ICW) in the League of Nations when it was established following World War I. In 1937 she was elected president of ICW’s Peace and Arbitration Commission, and following World War 11 she played an important role in the development of the relationship between the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and non-governmental organizations. These are only a few highlights of Mme DreyfusBarney’s many humanitarian activities, undertaken over the

23. Bahz'yyih Khdnum: The Greatest Holy Leaf A Compilation, 148. 24. Ibid., 224. 25. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, cited in Bahá’u’lláh and the New Era, 149; Women, 369.

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entire span of her adult life and motivated by her deep love for humankind and her Vision of the earth as one home for all peoples.

While women are called upon to enter the great arena of laws and politics, they should not sacrifice their qualities of love and service in order to advance. By their actions, and by the actions of a society which supports them, they must change the world so that man no longer dominates and “the masculine and feminine elements of civilization will be more evenly balanced.”26 When that balance is attained—when feminine qualities are valued and respected, when women’s traditional activities such as mothering are seen as a valuable, meritorious contribution to society, when women speak confidently and are accorded respect for their contributions in public life, and when society changes to recognize women’s diverse roles and capacitiesthen peace will be a real possibility in the world. That is the goal towards which Bahá’í women and men look with eager anticipation; that is the reason for the long history of Bahá’í efforts to advance the cause of women; that is the lesson learned from the examples of Táhirih and Bahíyyih Khanum, as well as Laura Dreyfus-B arney.

Bahá’í' Efi’orts to Advance the Cause of Women As we have seen, the impetus for Bahá’í efforts to advance the cause of women comes directly from the spiritual teachings of the Faith’s Founder, and thence from the succession of leadership, first appointed and later elected, throughout the Faith’s lSO-year history. The Bahá’í community’s commitment to the issue is well-grounded in divine scripture, and history provides examples of women who embody the ideals outlined in the Faith’s sacred writings, but, one may well ask, how has the Bahá’í commitment been translated into action on a wider scale, and have activities been carried out in all parts of the world?

In arriving at a clear, broad understanding of the term “advancement of women,” it is necessary to consider the many ways this term can be understood in different parts of the world.

26. Ibid.

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For example, What does the advancement of women mean in societies Where women must still haul water or firewood long distances each day for their households, as they must in rural communities of Cameroon or Bolivia, compared to societies Where women executives must deal With the “glass ceiling” that bars promotion to top positions, as seen predominantly in the more “developed” countries? Although these two manifestations of inequality are undeniably different in degree of oppression, with the former condemning women to a life of Virtual slavery, the net result in both cases is the same: women are denied the opportunity to “progress” and become “proficient” outside traditionally accepted spheres of activity. Similarly, the effects on men, on families, and ultimately on society, are the same. As the Universal House of Justice pointed out in its message on peace:

The denial of such equality perpetrates an injustice against one half of the world’s population and promotes in men harmful attitudes and habits that are carried from the family to the workplace, to political life, and ultimately to international relations. There are no grounds, moral, practical, or biological, upon which such denial can be justified. 27

Thus, although promotion of the advancement of women may manifest itself at many different levels, serve many different needs, and involve many different activities, the end goal is the same. Through a diversity of approaches, commensurate With the requirements of the societies in Which they operate, the Bahá’ís seek one ultimate goal: the unity of humanity, of Which the equality of women is an integral part. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated: “As long as women are prevented from attainng their highest possibilities, so long Will men be unable to achieve the greatness Which might be theirs.” 28

To hasten the achievement of this “greatness,” since the time of Baha’u’llah and of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the Bahá’í community

27. The Promise of World Peace, 11—12. 28. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, 133; Women, 366.

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around the world has striven to put these teachings and principles into action. As one might expect in the context of an evolving community, its efforts to promote the advancement of women have likewise evolved. Through the years, one can see an increase in the number of activities as well as an increasing diversity in approaches. Some of these projects include efforts to improve the basic literacy of women through establishment of schools, Whether simple tutorial schools or more formal educational institutions; training in income-generating skills; education about health care and hygiene; skill-building in community development; conferences on women’s issues; environmental involvement; administrative training; publications for and by women; and international collaboration between women in the Bahá’í community. A brief survey of some of these efforts follows.

Literacy Training and the Education of Women Perhaps the first concrete expression of the Bahá’í community’s commitment to the advancement of women was the establishment of a number of girls’ schools in Persia (now Iran) at the turn of the century. Writing to one group which had asked for advice concerning the establishment of schools for children of both sexes in their community, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said:

The school for girls taketh precedence over the school for boys, for it is incumbent upon the girls of this glorious era to be fully versed in the various branches of knowledge, in sciences and the arts and all the wonders of this pre-eminent time, that they may then educate their children and train them from their earliest days in the ways of perfection. If, as she ought, the mother possesseth the learning and accomplishments of humankind, her children, like unto angels, will be fostered in all excellence, in right conduct and beauty. Therefore the School for Girls that hath been established in that place must be made the obg'ect of the deep concern and high endeavours of the friends. 9

29. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, cited in A Compilation 0n Bahá’í' Education, in The Compilation ofCompilations, vol. 1, 284.

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The pre-eminent girls’ school established in Persia at this time was the Tarbiyat School in Tehran. Funded through the cooperation of members of the Persian and American Bah”i communities, the Tarbiyat Girls’ School began operating in 1911. The involvement of American Bahá’ís in the endeavor meant that the methods used and subjects taught were considered progressive—even radical—by traditional Persian standards. Girls at Tarbiyat had recess and gymnastics more than fifteen years before government schools allowed physical education for girls, as Holly Hanson Vick points out in her article about earlal Bahá’í social and economic development projects in Iran.3 Furthermore, in the Tarbiyat School girls were allowed to dance, sing, and pray aloud, and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá repeatedly stressed in tablets to the school’s organizers that there should be no difference between the curriculum offered to boys and that offered to girls. To support the mothers of the children in the school, monthly conferences were held for women, where different topics designed to interest and inform them were covered 1n p1ays,talks, and demonstrations. 3Between three and four hundred women attended these events.31The result of all this activity was a remarkable degree of progress among the Persian Bahá’í women. As Hanson Vick points out, the girls’ schools established throughout Persia in these very early years of the development of the Bahá’í community trained “the first generation of professional women in Iranian society, and the example3 set by Baha” 1 women had an impact on the whole society.’3 2These early Baha’ ai efforts also had a dramatic effect on the literacy rate among Persian Bahá’í women. Hanson Vick states, “In 1973 it was announced that the Baha’ ais had achieved a literacy rate of 100 percent among women under the age of 40, despite the national literacy rate of 15 percent.”3’3

30. Holly Hanson Vick, “Shining Example in Cradle of Faith,” US. Bahá’í News 675 (June 1987), 9.

31. Genevieve L. Coy, “Educating the Women of Persia,” Star of the West 17:2 (May 1926), 50-55; cited in Hanson Vick, 9-10.

32. Hanson Vick, 10.

33. Hanson Vick, 10. See also “A Current Survey of Bahá’í Activities,” The Bahá’í World , vol. 15 (1969-1973) (Haifa: World Centre Publications, 1976), 248.

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From their early beginnings in Persia, Bahá’í projects designed to foster the development of women have set a high standard that the community has striven to surpass as it gains experience and expertise. And indeed, there has been consistent progress, both quantitative and qualitative, in the efforts it has undertaken on behalf of women.

Since those first efforts, numerous Bahá’í schools have begun to operate around the world. Most of them are co-educational, but the particular need to educate girls, as outlined in the writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, has not been neglected. A case in point is the recent establishment of a girls’ school in Africa. In January 1993, seeing a need for educational opportunities among the young women of Zambia, Bahá’ís opened the Banani International Secondary School for Girls. Only 20 percent of girls in Zambia receive basic education, and to correct this situation the Banani School, built entirely by the Bahá’í community, accepts only girls. Currently consisting of six classrooms, a 120—bed dormitory, and a dining hall, the school concentrates on providing practical training in science and agriculture. Upon graduation, students receive the International General Certificate of Secondary Education.34

The Bahá’í Vocational Institute for Rural Women in Indore is another educational facility addressing the particular needs of a population—this time the women of rural India. The institute offers programs relating to literacy, health care, hygiene, and income-generating skills, with the overall focus of improving the education and status of women, the poorest members of society; in rural India. Inaugurated on 24 February 1983, its development was swift; Within two years it had developed resources and programs and was functioning regularly, offering one three-week course per month. Originally funded entirely by Bahá’ís, the institute’s success has prompted the Indian government, the Canadian High Commission, and numerous individuals to offer their assistance With grants and

34. See The Bahá’í World 1992—93: An International Record (Haifa: World Centre Publications, 1993), 141.

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donations of various materials. The institute has also begun to reach out to the Wider community: in June 1986, for example, the Government of India’s Madhya Pradesh Council of Science and Technology asked the institute to conduct a workshop on socio-economic development of tribal women and appropriate technology. Such requests are becoming more frequent as the fame and prestige of the institute grows throughout the region.

In a society Where females are generally considered valuable only for reproduction and manual work, Where there is a 90 percent illiteracy rate among women, and Where the mortality rate for females is very high due to the neglect of girl babies and grown women, there is a great need to change established attitudes. The institute’s explicit goal is to improve the lives of rural Indian women by training them in crafts, literacy, health, and hygiene. In keeping With Bahá’í principles, the program integrates the spiritual and the practical, With the object not only of making an immediate material difference in the women’s lives but also of changing attitudes about women among participants and their families. The spiritual component of education is seen as central to the process, for only through a transformation of heart and mind can meaningful change take place.

The program, accommodating up to thirty women for each residential course, fosters independence and raises consciousness about the current and historical role of women in Indian society. Programs focus on Bahá’í principles, encouraging participants, Whether Bahá’ís or not, to develop their spiritual identities and encourage similar development in their children once they return home.

Through the years, the institute has evolved and become more diversified, With sub-centres opening in nearby Villages. In each of these locations fifteen women who have already gone through the program at Indore receive a further six months of training in literacy and weaving. Their training is paid for by the government during the program, following Which the government also provides, at 75 percent subsidy, handlooms for the women to use in their homes. The institute has received

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large orders for clothing produced by its students and graduates, and the government has agreed to supply worksheds for the women’s training.

The institute is becoming well-known as a center for the concrete application of Bahá’í principles in service to humanity. A telling example of the changes in attitudes it has effected involves women from two untouchable tribes that normally never eat together, intermarry, or even meet. Members from both tribes were chosen to participate in the institute and thus were expected to live and work together during their stay at Indore. Initially prejudiced against each other through years of social conditioning, at the institute they overcame the taboos of the caste system to live and work to gether once they understood the Bahá’í principle of the oneness of humanity.

Numerous other educational programs operate for women around the world, including literacy classes in locations as diverse as C6te d’Ivoire, Gabon, Guinea Bissau, India, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Zaire, and Zambia. In France, the Bahá’í community has sponsored literacy classes for Turkish-speaking women, in cooperation with non-government agencies, and the United States has also offered literacy classes for new immigrants. In many cases, Bahá’ís do not View the acquiring of literacy skills as an end in itself. The Guaymi Cultural Center in Panama, for example, has placed the advancement of women at the forefront of its activities and has redesigned literacy materials around this and similarly progressive moral principles, rather than focusing solely on topics such as food production and land ownership. The idea behind this approach is that such elements of moral education, which form the foundation for cooperation among individuals and unity in the community, will ultimately have a far more lasting effect on the quality of life in participants’ communities than the simple acquisition of skills.

Often literacy classes are combined with skills training, as in the Gabon project, where women are also taught sewing, cooking, and child care. Sometimes focus rests more on the acquisition of income-generating skills; some Indian projects teach participants to sew and to make a variety of crafts, and also promote topics such as appropriate technology and sustainable agriculture. Such skill-intensive training can result

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in unexpected benefits; for example, a sewing, home crafts, and food-rnaking proj ect in Papua New Guinea has blossomed into a catering proj ect that has garnered much praise from government officials. “Skills training” may also deal with the basic concepts of preparing young women for adult life, and so in several countries, the Bahá’í community is sponsoring development courses specifically for teenage girls. Projects can also aim at empowering women through validating the skills they already possess: in Finland a project has been organized to encourage local Same women to appreciate and preserve the handicrafts of

their culture. Health Care

In addition to promoting the advancement of women through basic education and skills training, the Bahá’í community has been active from the early years of the twentieth century in the field of health care, when the pioneering efforts of a number of American Bahá’í women who settled in Tehran resulted in a primary health care project and the holding of classes for mothers. Although they were unable to establish the nursing school they had envisioned, their years of selfless service to the community in Iran provided the Bahá’ís in that country with a potent example of the capacity of women.35

Health care has been a central component of many different undertakings throughout the Bahá’í world ever since that time. In India, students at the Bahá’í Vocational Institute for Rural Women at Indore are taught how to establish and maintain a simple kitchen garden to improve their families’ nutrition. They are also educated about hygiene and trained to generate awareness in their communities concerning personal and home hygiene, sanitation, child care, immunization, nutrition, and first aid. As a result of its services to women, and in particular its contribution to the eradication of guinea worm caused by contaminated water in 302 Villages in central India, the institute was given a “Global 500 Award” in 1992 by the United Nations Environment Program for outstanding environmental achievement.

35. See Hanson Vick, 11.

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In Africa, the Bahá’í women have also addressed the issue of nutrition. In Imo State, Nigeria, women have introduced a social and economic development proj ect promoting the use of soya bean products to provide much—needed proteins for families Who cannot afford to include animal milk, eggs, or meat in their daily diet. An institute to teach the method of making soya milk was organized in November 1990 for men and women in the area and was attended by over one hundred people. Primary health education training programs in countries such as Zambia have also met With success.

The national Bahá’í Women’s Committee in Malaysia has launched a five-year program to assist women, especially those in squatter camps and rural areas, to become more self-reliant and to develop more of their potential. Here again, an important feature in the program is two health proj ects, resulting in improved cleanliness and personal hygiene of the communities involved. In the more remote and conservative Villages, project facilitators have found that once the women overcome their initial reticence they begin to question the validity of many local myths, fallacies, and superstitions concerning health in light of What they have learned in the proj ect.

Environmental issues bear no small relation to those of health, and in Uganda, the Bahá’í women in the Mbale district have become involved in the Ugandan tree planting movement and have subsequently been given a plot of five hectares in the Namanve forest to grow trees. Commended for their activities by the Regional Forest Officer, they are showing their commitment to environmental preservation, not only for themselves but for their children and generations to come.

“Traditional Media as Change Agent” Project In keeping with both the broad base of Bahá’í efforts to advance the status of women and the evolutionary nature of activities undertaken throughout the past years, in October 1991 the Bahá’í community embarked upon an imaginative and ambitious development project on three far-flung sites: Cameroon, Bolivia, and Malaysia. Entitled “Traditional Media as Change Agent” and funded through the Bahá’í International Community by the United Nations Development Fund for

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Women (UNIFEM), the proj eet has sought to use traditional media of song, dance, and drama to promote social and economic well-being by uplifting the status of women.

Many development proj ects focus on implementing new technology or teaching project-specific skills to a particular population, but the Bahá’í—UNIFEM endeavor adopts a different approach, emphasizing communication itself. Since messages presented through traditional media are taken very seriously in the target communities; proj ect originators felt that such effective channels could be used to generate discussion about the roles of women and men.

The underlying assumption of the proj ect is that change in the status of women Will not occur until attitudes change, and attitudes change only When hearts are transformed. Such an approach recognizes the importance of the spiritual dimension. to the partnership between men and women, raising the issue to a level of principle far beyond that of many gender-based discussions.

To promote an atmosphere of trust, Where meaningful, constructive dialogue between the sexes can occur Without alienating confrontations, the proj ect trains people in the art of “consultation,” the non—adversarial, non-threatening method of discussion and deeision-making used in Bahá’í communities around the world. Following from this, the basic method of the project is simple, often using the membership of alreadyexisting, functioning Bahá’í administrative bodies, called Local

Participants in the “Traditional Media as Change Agent” project in Cameroon list the tasks men and women perform in their village.

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Spiritual Assemblies, as core groups of volunteers trained to facilitate consultation, conduct participatory surveys, and lead focus groups, with the object of identifying community needs, assessing them, keeping records, and organizing further activities.

The consultative process, a fundamental Bahá’í approach to problem-solving, forms the basis for fostering community change in a positive atmosphere. In one exercise designed to help project participants analyze gender roles in their Village, men and women are asked to list daily tasks; invariably, men’s lists are scarcely half as long as women’s. From here, the group makes use of Bahá’í consultation with the understanding that the moral principle of equality is to be the basis for discussion; this enables the group to undertake an informed and enlightened grassroots—level analysis of the situation, draw its own conclusions from its own findings, and translate those conclusions into non—threatening, locally appropriate media presentations, which are then presented to the larger community at gatherings. And what conclusions have been drawn in the different locations? Not surprisingly, in all three project sites, consultation and analysis have revealed a commonality of concerns: women’s illiteracy, men’s mismanagement of family money, and the unfair burden of work on women. Participants, feeling a sense of “ownership” of the issues because they have been involved in the process of identification and examination, have responded positively to the challenge of raising the status of women.

In Eastern Province, Cameroon, for example, where the proj ect has operated in seven Villages, the results by the end of the first two—year phase were heartening: men were joining the women to work in the fields, consulting more about family finances, and allowing women to take a greater part in community decision-rnaking. A 1992 survey indicated that men were making all financial decisions alone, while a 1993 survey showed that more than 80 percent of such decisions were being made after consultation between husbands and wives. The survey also indicated that the number of girls being sent to school in one of the Villages increaSed by 82 percent since

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the start of the proj ect. Proj ect participants themselves testify to the effect their experience has had on them. One female farmer and mother of six put it this way:

At the beginning, the proj ect did not mean anything to me. Later on I discovered the advantages of the proj ect. NowI see that my husband, who was not helping me before the proj ect, has now changed. We work together at home and in the field. My husband helps me more now with the housework that before he thought was the sole duty of woman. He carries the baby, cleans the dishes and clothes. I also learned the importance of children’s education and that it is first my responsibility and now I try to take better care of them. I got those ideas through songs because through the songs I listened carefully to what was being said.3

A male participant also testified to the change occurring in his community as a result of the UNIFEM proj ect:

Here in the Village men and women were not used to working together but through the proj ect I was surprised to see that they are working hand in hand. I personally have witnessed a change in my way of life. Concerning the equality of man and woman I see also that there is a change in the attitude of men. Now they consult with their wives. And I do the same. Before the proj ect it was very difficult to know what women do with their money, but now my wife consults with me. I also work with my wife in the same farm, and I help With cleaning the house, for example; things I have never done before. 37

Similarly, in the eight participating Villages of the southern central province of Chuquisaca, Bolivia, women say they are now participating more in community decision—making, are more willing to express desire for education, and are receiving more help from men with daily chores. The first woman ever elected to the local political council was recently voted into office, and shortly after her election the council passed a

36. Cited in One Country 5:3 (October-December 1993), 9. 37. Ibid.

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resolution urging greater attention to the concerns of women. F inally, in Malaysia, where the proj ect has included two Villages and an urban area, reports indicate that in one of the remote Villages community decision—rnaking has resulted in a new vegetable garden, new latrines, and adult literacy classes designed for women but open to men.

While the projects have been organized by Bahá’í communities, the Bahá’í population ranges from less than 1 percent to about 10 percent in project locations; thus, in order to make any real difference in attitude, proj ects must seek to effect change within the entire population of areas involved. In bringing about such transformation, the traditional media have been instrumental.

Within the Bahá’í community itself there have been some noticeable effects. For example, in all three project sites, more women are being elected to Bahá’í Local Spiritual Assemblies since the beginning of the project. And the project has inspired other Bahá’í communities: at the national level, Nigeria and Brazil have launched their own projects, while other local Malaysian Bahá’í communities, impressed by what they have seen in the project areas, have also started similar programs. With this kind of response, the Bahá’í International Community hopes to continue the proj ect and expand the number of sites.

Conferences, Seminars, and Workshops

While the UNIFEM-funded proj ect and numerous other Bahá’í efforts to promote women’s well-being and advancement have focused directly on basic grassroots issues, a wide variety of activities exists around the world. In many cases, the Bahá’í community has encouraged women to move beyond the sphere of their homes and to address the larger concerns of the society in which they live. Conferences, seminars, and workshops furthering discussion of the equality of the sexes are useful means for accomplishing this goal.

All over the world, from Chad to New Zealand to Alaska to the Netherlands, conferences and meetings of various sizes seem to be the forums most widely used by Bahá’ís for exploring the issue of equality. Organized at local, regional, and national levels, such gatherings have resulted in the establishment of broad networks

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of groups, often crossing international boundaries around the globe. Their focus has been wide-ranging, dealing with issues such as sexual abuse, family Violence, aboriginal women’s concerns, mothering, careers, and other topics, but always turning to the Bahá’í teachings as their point of reference.

One of the largest Bahá’í-sponsored conferences held to highlight the equality of women occurred in September 1989 when the North American Association for Bahá’í Studies’ fourteenth annual conference, held in Irvine, California, was entitled “Full Partnership” and focused on the equality of the sexes. For three days over eight hundred conference attendees took part in sessions on “Universals of Equality,” “Women and Equality,” and “Men and Equality”; they heard papers in plenary sessions, took part in small-group workshops, and were treated to a variety of artistic presentations, including drama, music, and dance. Several noted scholars in women’s studies were invited to present papers at the conference, and a lively exchange of Views took place.

A Pacific women’s conference, entitled “Empowering Women to Achieve” took place at the University of Hawaii in 1992. Sponsored by national and local Bahá’í governing bodies, it attracted the participation of 140 women from nineteen islands and countries bordering the Pacific basin. The purpose was to offer them information, education, and new technologies that would strengthen their leadership skills and educational foundations.

In recent years New Zealand has organized a number of national “huis” (conferences, in Maori) focusing on the encouragement of women. Additionally, both the New Zealand and the Australian National Spiritual Assemblies have taken an important step to empower women by establishing Offices for the Advancement of Women to liaise with government and nongovernmental organizations concerned with the rights, status, and well—being of women. Australia has also appointed a national committee for the advancement of women, the terms of reference for which “focus on the need to develop the skills of women so that they are more actively engaged in teaching the

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[Bahá’í Faith] and the need to promote greater understanding and support of the equality of men and women Within the community.”38 It plans to develop systematic training programs and will establish regional groups to assess particular needs and carry out various activities.

A large women’s conference for European Bahá’í women was held in 1989 in the Netherlands, followed some two years later by another women’s conference in Barcelona. From these two events a number of significant developments have occurred. The first is the establishment in 1992 of the European Task F oroe for Women, Which has taken the lead in promoting small conferences for women throughout Europe on the themes of encouragement, transformation, and service. In a statement of its Vision for women, the task force, in collaboration with the Continental Board of Counsellors in Europe, an appointed arm of the Bahá’í administration, urged the European Bahá’í women to “become a source of inspiration for all Who are in their company” by becoming, among other things, distinguished examples of Bahá’í life and leaders in all fields of service in the Bahá’í community, confident teachers of the Bahá’í Faith, nourishers of growth and development in the Bahá’í community, a force for change in society, and establishers of universal peace. To achieve this Vision in practical terms, the task force’s goal is to train a number of women from each country in the continent, Who Will then return home and train others to conduct discussion groups at the local level. In this way, the Bahá’í women throughout the entire continent Will be united in their focus on the issue. To encourage the development of the next generation, they are also sponsoring young women’s weekends Where girls come together to study the Bahá’í teachings regarding women, to learn about the lives of Bahá’í heroines, to talk about issues of concern to them, and to socialize With other Bahá’í girls their own age.

On an international level, different Bahá’í professional associations have focused on the issue of equality in their activities.

38. Australian Bahá’í’z’ Bulletin, July 1994, l.

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For example, in 1993-94 the Bahá’í Justice Society chose to highlight the advancement of women as a particular principle of justice and encouraged members to initiate proj ects, write papers, and attend conferences which would particularly further the cause of women’s advancement. The information highway has also facilitated an international exchange of ideas among women and men on the issue of equality, and in the spring of 1994, a Bahá’í women’s discussion group was formed at the instigation of a number of women who wished to have a special forum on the Internet.

Bahá’í women have founded international organizations to study women’s issues, to establish cooperative and collaborative relationships, and to promote an exchange of ideas, scholars, and research. Research on the status of women in society is one of the topics proposed for study by the Bahá’í Chair at Indore University in India. At the Bahá’í Vocational Institute for Rural Women, Indore, research work on women’s issues has been carried out side by side with the running of the institute. Bahá’í women in J apan have begun publishing a scholarly periodical entitled F ujin Journal, for and about women in support of their efforts to promote the advancement of their sex. In Singapore, the Bahá’í Women’s Committee collaborated with the Singapore Council of Women’s Organizations to produce a comprehensive survey of the women’s movement, released in 1993 and entitled Voices and Choices: The Women is Movement in Singapore. One of the two most prominently featured women in the publication is Shirin Fozdar, a Bahá’í who founded the Singapore Council of Women in 1952, was a spokesperson for the Singapore Women’s Committee in the 1950s and 19603, and is regarded as a pioneering proponent of women’s rights in Asia.

Women as Leaders and Administrators The encouragement of women was a topic of consultation at the 1993 Bahá’í International Convention, where delegates reiterated the importance of women’s leadership roles within the Bahá’í community and urged that this issue be addressed. Subsequently, an evening session of the Counsellors’ conference following the Convention focused on women and involved

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members of the senior elected and appointed institutions that serve the Faith throughout the world.

Such events are a strong indication that Within the Bahá’í community’s administrative order, action is being taken With regard to women’s development as administrators. A further indication of the encouragement of women in this area is the fact that, at the specific direction of the institutions of the Faith, more and more women are assuming greater roles in the Bahá’í administrative system. This is, in large part, due to the particular encouragement of the Universal House of Justice. In 1975, for example, the Universal House of Justice called upon eighty National Spiritual Assemblies to organize Bahá’í activities for women “which will stimulate and promote the full and equal participation of women in all aspects of Bahá’í community life, so that through their accomplishments the friends will demonstrate the distinction of the Cause of God in this field of human endeavour.”39 The degree to Which this guidance has been put into practice to this point varies according to the development of the social milieu in Which the Bahá’í community is operating, but nevertheless strides are being made. In Australia, for example, the Australian National Women’s Committee stated in its annual report for 1993-94 that throughout the country female membership on Local Spiritual Assemblies was 48.5 percent nationally, and 20 percent of the chairpersons’ roles are occupied by women.40 Similar figures exist for most developed countries, but in many developing countries the percentages are much lower, and these demand attention. Overall, While the percentage of women serving as national administrators in Bahá’í communities around the world is respectable, With some 28 percent female participation on National Spiritual Assemblies,41 there is a strong impetus, originating from the Universal House of Justice, for the principle of equality to imbue life in the Bahá’í community so

39. From a letter written by the Universal House of Justice to all National Spiritual Assemblies, dated 15 May 1975; in Women, 403.

40. See the Australian Bahá’í' Bulletin, June 1994.

41. Figure for 1992-93, compiled 13 October 1993 by the Statistics Department, Bahá’í World Centre.

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thoroughly that more capable women will be trained and then

recognized for their capacity to serve on elected and appointed bodies.

Bahá’ís at the United N ations

One of the great developments with regard to the advancement of women is increasing collaboration between Bahá’í communities and other agencies. Perhaps the longest-standing and certainly one of the most productive such associations has been with the United Nations. In 1945 Bahá’í representatives were present at the historic San Francisco conference which gave birth to the United Nations, and the Bahá’í International Community was first registered as an international non-governmental organization in 1948. In the years since, the Bahá’ís have been granted consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and have been active in working through the UN system to improve the status of women. The Bahá’í International Community has contributed to the work of the UN Commission on the Status of Women, has cooperated with other NGOs working for the advancement of women, and has made numerous statements on various aspects of equality to United Nations bodies. The Bahá’í International Community has been especially effective in raising the issue of the importance of the girl—child at the level of the United Nationsfione of the first agencies to do so in this international forum.

During the United Nations Decade for Women, 1975-1985, the Bahá’í International Community developed a solid reputation for its work promoting the advancement of women. Officially accredited Bahá’í representatives participated in the first, mid-decade, and end-of-decade conferences in Mexico City, Copenhagen, and Nairobi, and Bahá’ís were also active in planning parallel activities for NGOs at these meetings, having established ongoing working relationships with major likeminded organizations such as UNICEF, UNIFEM, UNDP (the United Nations Development Program), and UNFPA (the United Nations Fund for Population Activities).

The Bahá’í International Community has also forged some unique links among different kinds of organizations in its work.

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It currently serves as convenor of Advocates for African Food Security: Lessening the Burden for Women, a coalition of representatives Of NGOS, UN agencies, and intergovernmental organizations. Seeking to highlight concerns of African women farmers, the main producers of food for domestic use in Africa, the coalition is unusual for its unique combination of members. To assist in coordinating the proliferating number of activities for women around the globe and to foster future developments in international forums, the Bahá’í International Community’s Office for the Advancement of Women officially opened on 26 May 1993, in New York City. Its establishment had been announced on 10 December 1992, in a letter from the Universal House of Justice, Which identified the agency’s primary role as providing “a Visible instrument for the practical application of one of the cardinal principles of the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh.” Designed to “promote the principles of the Faith through its interaction With international entities concerned With matters

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affecting the rights, status and well-being of women,” the office also works within the Bahá’í community throughout the world, identifying “programs and projects in which the involvement of the community can encourage efforts towards the realization of the equality of men and women.”42

Looking towards the 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, the director of the Bahá’í International Community’s Office for the Advancement of Women serves as the chairperson of the NGO Committee on the Status of Women in New York. In this capacity, the director is also a member of the global NGO Facilitating Committee which is organizing the NGO Forum on Women ’95. Bahá’í representatives have been active in the NGO preparatory conferences leading up to Beijing, including the Asia/Pacific Symposium of Non-Governmental Organizations on Women in Development, held in Manila in November 1993, and the NGO Forums that were held at the time of the Regional United Nations Preparatory Conferences for the Fourth World Conference on Women. Official delegations of Bahá’ís represented the Bahá’í International Community at the five regional UN conferences.

During the International Year of the F amily, 1994, Bahá’í communities have been active around the world, promoting the family and particularly stressing the importance of the role of the mother in the education of the next generation. A Bahá’í delegation of twenty-three from some thirteen countries attended the international conference in Malta in December, and both individual Bahá’ís and the Bahá’í International Community were awarded “testimonials” by the United Nations in appreciation of their work in speaking out and working on issues relating to the family and the United Nations’ year in honor of it. In promoting the “new culture of partnership” identified by the conference as one of its foci, the Bahá’í International Community sponsored a workshop entitled “Breaking the Equality Barrier: Emerging Roles of Men and Women in the Family.” Aside from participating in such major events, Bahá’í communities all around the world have held hundreds of events

42. The Universal House of Justice, from a letter to all National Spiritual Assemblies, 10 December 1992.

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in honor of the Year of the Family, many of them in collaboration With other like-minded organizations. The ability of the global Bahá’í community to focus unitedly on such issues is one of the unique advantages of its administrative structure and a result of the undivided Vision of its community.

Challenges F acing the Bahd ’z’ Community

Regarding the Issue 0quuality

Although the Bahá’í community can rightly point to its longstanding commitment to the issue of equality, dating from the time of Bahá’u’lláh, a number of challenges must be met if it is to continue to be in the vanguard of promoting this issue at all levels in human society. At the local level, there is a need for more programs aimed at promoting the equality of women, especially in developing countries, to put into practical terms the paradigm outlined in the Bahá’í sacred writings. Projects such as those described above are exciting, but the number of such efforts needs to increase greatly. In concert With the necessary increase in the number of projects and their venues is a need for further development of qualitative assessment methods to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of work accomplished. Fortunately, the Bahá’í community has the tools to continue improving its skills in these areas, with Bahá’í Local Spiritual Assemblies in almost eighteen thousand localities around the world forming a broadly based grassroots system of developmental support and united in their commitment to this central principle of their Faith.

The “Traditional Media as Change Agent” proj ect has shown how the Bahá’í community can actively address one of the main concerns resulting from development proj ects aimed at raising the status of women—the need to address male labor patterns. This is particularly important in communities Where women have undergone training to become more self—sufficient and now have skills to work and contribute to the maintenance of the home. Once women become trained to pursue incomegenerating work, of What real benefit Will this be to them if, in addition to this new work, they are still solely responsible for the work at home that has traditionally been their lot? Thus,

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involving men in the practical and active encouragement of women as they begin to assume their new roles in society is key to effecting real change.

In the “developed” world, the paradigm shift to equality of the sexes may not be as dramatically evident as in other parts of the planet, but the changes, while perhaps more subtle, are crucial to any significant permanent improvement in the status of women. How are husbands and fathers in Bahá’í families actively supporting the advancement of women? How are they addressing the issue of labor patterns in homes Where women are making attempts to “enter the great arena of laws and politics”? Are Bahá’í women encouraged to adopt leadership roles? Because principle is something that must be internalized before it can truly be lived, and internalization requires conscious knowledge, volition to Change, and ultimately action, an ongoing discussion and promotion of the issue of equality and the encouragement of women is crucial in Bahá’í communities all over the world.

In order to ground discussions in a unifying framework and to develop an appreciation of the concept of “equality” at a level beyond the superficial, the Bahá’í community must advance further in its concentrated study and understanding of the materials available on the subj ect. It must learn to use the sacred writings as the measure of behavior, since those writings are divine in nature and regarded as authoritative by all Who have embraced the Bahá’í Faith. While secular theories and stances may be useful to consider, the Bahá’í teachings are the balance in Which Bahá’ís measure “the sayings and doings of men.” As Baha’u’llah cautions in the Kitab-i-Aqdas, His Most Holy Book:

Weigh not the Book of God With such standards and sciences as are current amongst you, for the Book itself is the unerring Balance established amongst men. In this most perfect Balance whatsoever the peoples and kindreds of the earth possess must be weighed, While the measure of its weight should be tested according to its own standard, did ye but know it. 43

43. Baha’u’llah, The Kitab-i-Aqdas (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1993), K 99. '

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In order to “weigh” this important principle and conduct constructive, focused discussion on it, development of consultative skills is necessary. Equality is a topic that carries much explosive emotional weight in today’s society, and combative confrontational exchanges have been the norm at many levels. Indeed, media in many parts of the world thrive on depicting “the battle of the sexes.” In Bahá’í consultation, however, discussants learn how to be both “frank” and “loving,” a difficult but rewarding combination of qualities that can ultimately lead to new levels of understanding and thus greater progress for the human family.

Finally, both women and men must adopt a new understanding of the concept of service, so important in the new paradigm of human behavior presented in the Bahá’í writings. Women, who historically have been the “servants’ ’ of society through its development and who now often reject that role, must begin to see the value of service and the station of servitude. The example of Bahíyyih Khanum plays an important part in such rethinking, and the example of Táhirih adds the quality of audacity which needs to be developed in concert with the humility of servitude—-a delicate and challenging balance! Likewise, men, who have in many societies traditionally taken the role of master or superior, must also begin to rethink the station of servitude, looking at the example of ‘AbduH-Baha and learning not to exploit women’s desire to serve, but rather to encourage her audacity—also a challenging role!

Conclusion

The Bahá’í View of human history and of humanity’s progress is, as has already been noted, essentially optimistic, with its perspective of “an ever—advancing civilization.”44 For this reason, Bahá’ís see their community life as a workshop rather than as a perfect model; they make efforts according to the teachings of their Faith and have confidence that in the future others will build upon the lessons learned from these early activities.

44. Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, 2nd rev. ed. (Wilmette: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1976), 215.

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Bahá’ís possess more than an inspired Vision of the future; their Prophet—Founder Baha’u’llah has given them the practical, universal tools With Which to build a new world order. Whether in Bombay or Moscow or Caracas, or any other community in Which Bahá’ís reside and the Bahá’í administrative order has taken root, the vision remains constant, as do the means to shape it into reality.

Bahá’ís believe that human society is advancing now, as it has always advanced, through the influence of the Prophets or Manifestations of God, Who appear at various stages in our development. They educate us and train us both spiritually and socially, leading us to the next level of our development. This is what Baha’u’llah has done, What Muhammad and J esus have done, and What Krishna and the Buddha and Abraham and Moses have done. The religions are not in conflict With each other; on the contrary, they build upon each other to help humanity move forward. This concept is known to Bahá’ís as “progressive revelation.”

At this stage, the Manifestation of God, Baha’u’llah, has decreed that women and men must at last be treated equally. It is not merely a good idea; it is a prerequisite for human growth and development—and perhaps even survival. When this fundamental spiritual principle is fully acted out on the world stage, the effects on humanity as a Whole Will be far-reaching and glorious. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá described it thus: “When all mankind shall receive the same opportunity of education and the equality of men and women be realized, the foundations of war Will be utterly destroyed.”45 Bahá’ís around the world all hold this common Vision of humanity’s future, no matter how imperfect their current efforts. In this “ever—advancing civilization,” women and men are “two helpmates, two intimate friends, Who should be concerned about the welfare of each other.”46 With this ideal before their eyes, Bahá’í men and women can learn the new steps necessary for them to move forward hand in hand, in a divinely choreographed dance of harmony. They can

45. The Promulgation of Universal Peace, 174-175; Women, 376. 46. Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu ’l—Bahd, 122; Women, 379.

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strengthen the Wings of the bird of humanity and experience its glory as it takes flight.

This is the Vision for Which Táhirih died—and for Which Bahíyyih Khánum lived. This is the Vision that has led the Bahá’ís into remote Villages in Africa, India, Australasia, and all over the globe, to promote dialogue, understanding, and unified action. This is the Vision that led them to Mexico City in 1975, to Copenhagen in 1980, and to Nairobi in 1985. It Will lead them to Beijing in 1995, and beyond that towards a future society Where the objectives identified by the Fourth World Conference on Women, of equality, peace, justice, inclusiveness, and full participation of all, Will be not merely words but a way of life for the entire human race.

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[Page 276][Page 277]Thefollowing statement is based on a submission by the Bahá’í’ Community of Canada to the Royal Commission an Aboriginal Peoples in November 1993.

A Bahá’í Perspective on ISSueS of Concern to the

ORLD’S XSgBQRIGWAL PEQPLES

he suffering of human beings during the twentieth

century has nowhere been more acutely felt than in the lives, families, and communities of the world’s aboriginal or indigenous peoples. To right the wrongs experienced by aboriginal peoples is a daunting challenge. The experience of the Bahá’í international community, however, provides a measure of hope that humanity can find solutions to the difficulties that have brought such intense suffering and can embark on a process of healing and social development. The solidarity of all the world’s peoples Will be both a consequence of that process and its most crucial enabling factor.

Generating the Will to engage in this process of healing requires a fundamental change in our understanding of human society. Such a change begins With an appreciation of spiritual principles, including the fundamental truth of our age that humanity is one. Such an appreciation engenders a shift in consciousness that helps us identify other key features of the transformational process necessary if we are to reconstitute

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society to extend and deepen justice and increase social unity. Issues deserving attention in this transformational process include self-determination and local community governance, the nature of social and economic development, the significance of healing, the equality of women and men, the central place of the family, the need for rapid evolution of legislation so that diversity of culture and unity of all peoples become the touchstones of human progress and civilization, and the crucial role of education.

Spiritual Principles

The Bahá’í community has had over one hundred years of experience applying spiritual principles to challenges of community development. During a period of rapid increase in numbers the world over, the Bahá’í community has seen a particularly keen response among indigenous peoples; it is in no small part because of their adherence to the message of the Bahá’í Faith that recent demographic surveys indicate it to be the second most Widely spread religion on the planet. While Bahá’ís live in Virtually every country and count members from almost every background imaginable, a disproportionate number of the Faith’s approximately five million followers are indigenous peoples.

That fact provides ample evidence of the appeal that universal spiritual principles hold for aboriginal peoples. The appeal begins With the Bahá’í conception of human nature as transcendent and moral standards as the primary laws through which society can advance. It includes a Vision of social and economic development that sees human society itself as spiritual and progressive. Throughout all centuries and all cultures human civilization has drawn breath from the divine impulse periodically manifested in the words and actions of prophets and spiritual leaders and reflected both in nature and in human talents and capacities. The sacred is universal and not restricted to one particular culture or tradition, nor to one time period. Far from being empty ideals, spiritual principles are essential foundation stones of healthy communities, and When they are not respected, social breakdown ensues.

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When social programs or legislation lack a basis in explicitly articulated principles, they also lack Vision and coherence, and the motivation and collective resolve to accomplish desired obj ectives falter. “Concrete” or “direct” solutions often amount to superficial programs that may provide jobs for social workers, teachers, or civil servants but produce few lasting results in the attitudes and practices of a people. Only by addressing the spiritual conditions of communities can profound and lasting social change occur.

It is significant that when aboriginal cultures approach the discussion of social problems, leaders and members of the community refer frequently to the Creator and to the human spirit. Yet social, economic, and political theories and practices of the West during the past two to three hundred years have been driven by an excessive and socially corrosive materialism that has, in turn, driven approaches to governance and economic and social development. Failure to appreciate the implications of the gap between these two approaches to social reality explains much of the injustice and misunderstanding between aboriginal peoples and the peoples of dominant cultures.

‘ Ingenuity and free inquiry, industrial productivity, and material success have made many positive contributions to human civilization. There is, however, no greater barrier to progress in achieving social justice and the well-being of aboriginal peoples than an ideology of materialism that lacks consistent and Viable moral principles. Bahá’ís are convinced that to effect genuine changes in attitudes and policy and to devise enduring solutions, it is timely to adopt an orientation and approach fundamentally different from the methods generated by the failed assumptions of secularism and materialism.

The sense of superiority inherent in any culture of materialism lies at the heart of the unhappy relationship between aboriginal peoples and the rest of society. Fundamental to genuine spirituality is the recognition of the equality of all human beings, that all are created by the same God, that all have rights before God. Material wealth or might, secular rank or status, do not guarantee moral worth. Only on the basis of a universal spiritual orientation can we begin to re—establish the

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sense of self-worth, dignity, and nobility that materialism and secularism have eroded. Only With the mutual respect engendered by spiritual values of human nobility and compassion can relationships be healed. Only through such values can injustice and disrespect, prejudice and discrimination, denial and neglect be eliminated.

Aboriginal peoples have been among the most intensely affected Victims of the dominant social forces operating in ignorance, or in systematic neglect, of spiritual principles pivotal to human happiness and the common weal. The social catastrophe that has resulted from several centuries of social experimentation with secular approaches to the governance and conduct of human affairs, including communism and industrial capitalism, gives the surest evidence of the futility of pursuing political and economic plans that are merely the latest version of that same philosophy of social change. Those methods have been pragmatic, not principled; short—term, not Visionary. They have been and are still reactive, pushed this way and that by special interests because society has not tried to identify its general interests as an organic Whole.

A new set of assumptions and orientations in Which the sacred or spiritual replaces the secular as the basis for social, economic, and political action can, Bahá’ís assert, genuinely penetrate and heal society. The generation of policies and legislation that put in place processes of social transformation can only come out of a recognition of the real nature of the human being and human society.

The survival among many aboriginal peoples of an evident religious inclination and transcendent aspiration must be supported and encouraged at official as well as informal levels in Whatever programs and policies are developed by nations and international bodies. The existence in many aboriginal communities of strong systems of religious belief and practice represent important resources for social development that must not be overlooked as this century nears its close.

The Oneness ofHumanity Bahá’ís understand many of the complex problems of society to

I

be inevitable features of an historical process that Baha’u’llah

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foresaw would come to dominate the twentieth century. His Vision of the eventual integration of humankind and the emergence of a global society in which unity in diversity would be the principal characteristic has been confirmed by the events of this century—accelerating as we near its close. Many of our most acute problems can be resolved if we become conscious of this historical process and respond in ways that take proper account of the oneness of humanity—the principle of social organization for the age now dawning in human history. Failure to understand and make the necessary adjustments in how human affairs are administered on this planet only intensifies the degree of suffering that reaches into the communities of Virtually every country and region on earth.

Bahá’ís View the current phase of rapidly changing world conditions in a hopeful way, aware of the anguish created by current chaotic social dislocations but seeing them as part of a long—term process of adjustment, the pain of which can best be alleviated if we become conscious of its nature and direction. The current period of human history is one of those axial periods understood best perhaps in the phrase “the coming of age of humanity.” The period of relative isolation of various peoples of the world has ended. We have now collectively entered a new world where boundaries, if they exist at all any more, are no longer impenetrable. The interdependence of humanity with all its diversity of cultures, nations, and peoples will continue to increase. Exclusive sovereignties are no longer possible.

The culmination of this process will be some form of an integrated world economy and political structure in which all of us will feel as much a part of world society as we feel a part of our own community. This is not a hope or a wish. It is a reality apparent in current trends. If we understand this process and act consciously, we will be in a much better position than if we remain unaware of its implications. In that regard, it is important to understand nationalism as a stage of history on the way to a more mature set of human relations on this planet. Nationalism and its cultural variants may be Viewed as features important to humanity’s adolescence but far less important to its maturity than an overriding consciousness of its essential oneness.

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The present wave of nationalism is the culmination of a process born in the nineteenth century. It aggressively asserts the dominance and frequently the uniformity of the nation—state, and it also gives rise to immoderate, often extreme, ethnic and cultural affirmation. It checks the necessary development of local government and blocks the establishment of international institutions and practices.

Bahá’ís see the principle of the oneness of humanity as the pivotal social, economic, and political tenet of our age. However, it is a principle of unity in diversity, Where unity is seen to be essential if the diversity of all peoples and cultures is to flourish in place of the dominance of any particular one. In this conception, the enhancement of diversity is itself a direct measure of unity, and genuine unity is promoted as differences—Whether of culture, race, temperament, education, or other categories—are recognized and embraced. Unity does not result from conformism or uniformity—both, it is useful to note, consequences of materialism and nationalism.

If the future of the human race is to Witness an increase in justice, humankind Will have to establish institutions of governance that respect this principle of unity in diversity and that honor and protect cultural diversity. Such institutions will need to come under the umbrella of a federal system operating at the level of the entire planet in ways that protect cultures, guarantee sufficient levels of autonomy and independence for different peoples, and enhance unity and harmony among all sectors of society.

Achieving a federal system of this kind must also take into account the rapidity and unpredictability of the historical and social processes currently at work so that newly conceived social and political arrangements are as flexible as possible. If properly understood, just as unity and diversity presuppose each other, unity and flexibility are also mutually sustaining prerequisites.

What is striking in the Bahá’í experience around the world is that aboriginal peoples have a keen desire to encounter and enter into just and equitable relationships with other peoples. In the Bahá’í emphasis on unity in diversity, aboriginal peoples find an

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ideal that matches their own aspirations. Their drive towards self-determination and self—reliance reflects their desire to enter directly into relationships with other peoples without the filter of a dominant culture or government that makes their participation in the global village indirect and secondary.

Unity among the aboriginal peoples and unity with all other peoples of the planet are both Vital if justice and social wellbeing are to be assured. The extent to which new governmental arrangements and structures increase unity at all levels is the surest measure of their Viability and usefulness over the longer term. Unity must be considered at the outset of deliberations and planning; it is the only foundation on which problems can be solved.

Self-Determination and the Local Community

Perhaps the most powerful motivation behind the interest in selfdetermination is the desire of aboriginal peoples—indeed of all peoples——to have greater local control over their lives and communities, the lack of which is often more dramatic for aboriginal peoples than for society generally. The kind of society Bahá’ís see emerging from contemporary social upheaval is one in which local government will have a far greater role than it does today. That all members should have a say in how they are governed is a principle that today surely very few would deny, and the most effective level at which such widespread participation can be realized is local, not national. 'A sense of local community, local control, and local development is absolutely Vital, and the level of government closest to day-today life must have at its disposal an adequate share of the material resources that the earth provides.

The extent to which Bahá’ís value the importance of local levels of governance is seen in the historical development of the administration of the Bahá’í community. Rather than establishing international and national administrative levels at the outset of its growth as a global community under the leadership of the head of the Bahá’í Faith at the time, Shoghi Effendi, Bahá’ís adopted as early as the 19203 the strategy of first concentrating on the development of strong local executive

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bodies, adding national administrative agencies When enough local institutions were established. In 1963 these agencies were strong enough to support the first election of an international executive, in a democratic process that embraced all adult Bahá’ís throughout the world.

While the right to self—determination of all peoples is most effectively carried forward at the local level, such local development———and the enhancement of the autonomy enjoyed by distinctive, diverse cultures implied by that developmentrequires a more global context if parochial and narrow hegemonies are to be avoided. International and worldwide institutions of governance, both legislative and executive, must be established to insure harmonious and cooperative relationships among all the nations and all the distinct cultures and peoples of the world.

Laws and constitutions can be developed based on universal spiritual principles to Which all peoples can assent. Thus, a global framework can be established While the actual form and processes by Which local governments operate remain a challenge of interpretation and application of universal principles, of concrete decisions based on conditions and cultural predilections particular to distinct localities and peoples.

The actual process of making local, community decisions and of organizing and developing a community is one of the most important aspects of self—government. To promote Widespread participation and to overcome factionalism and divisiveness, the Bahá’í community uses a process called “consultation.” Applied in the Bahá’í community over many decades and in many cultures and settings, the consultative process guides the manner in Which community-wide discussion is pursued and the way in Which decision—making bodies resolve disputes and plan strategies of community development.

This principle is central to the functioning of the Bahá’í community. Baha’u’llah declared that, together, consultation and compassion form the “law” of the age of humanity’s maturity. Among the principles that guide Bahá’í consultation are the following:

- The prohibition of factionalism or partisanship;

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The provision of opportunities for all to participate in the consultative process that leads to decision—making;

The encouragement of all to speak freely according to their own consciences;

The responsibility for all participating to exercise courtesy and moderation in the expression of their Views; The moral obligation to be detached from one’s own contribution so that the group or collective itself can come to own that contribution;

The primacy of the interests of the group or community over individual interests, even though individual freedom of expression is absolutely safeguarded;

A clear distinction between this broad form of consultation and the deliberations of a democratically elected body or governing council that takes the responsibility for decisions;

The requirement that, once a decision is taken, both the majority favoring it and those originally opposed respect, support, and carry out the decision in unity. Such unanimous and community—Wide support ensures decisions are not subverted and sabotaged. Only through such support can a decision be properly evaluated and changed if genuine deficiencies in the decision itself are detected;

The obligation of all decision—making bodies to evaluate continually their work and pursue ongoing consultation With the Wider community to assess and, if necessary, revise their decisions; and

The value of unity. Other essential valuesusuch as freedom of expression, honesty and courage in stating one’s own Views, moderation of expression, courtesy and listening to different Views—are critical to community development and progress, but unity is the most important value of all.

Most of the world’s current political institutions were conceived for the needs of an earlier and very different age. Little wonder that throughout the world we see movements and attempts to incorporate a less adversarial and more consultative mode of governing. Whether these be supplementary systems of

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ad hoc arrangements, parliamentary committees, commissions and citizen consultations, they all bear Witness to the desire to overhaul in dramatic ways the relationship between governments and peoples and the manner in Which civic life and political deliberation proceeds. Bahá’ís are convinced that governance and the administration of human affairs should be carried on through the principle of consultation in Which all peoples have a say in how decisions affect them.

Economic Development

Economic questions, as much as social and political questions, have a direct relationship to spiritual conditions and values existing in the local community and in the Wider society. It is especially important to consider the matter of economic development in the light of principles that are essential to the well-being and advancement of a people.

The effects of material deprivation are most acutely felt at the local level, and Baha’u’llah’s admonition to eliminate existing extremes of wealth and poverty is most readily appreciated there. The social devastation to which current extremes contribute is painfully Visible throughout the world, Within both the poorer and the wealthier countries. Tragically, many aboriginal communities are among those that most vividly illustrate the consequences of the lack of justice and moderation inherent in existing economic practices and patterns.

Economic development challenges entrepreneurs, workers, farmers, local government councils, and labor representatives to learn new ways to cooperate, using the opportunities and resources particular to each local community and region, Without overlooking existing aboriginal interests and traditional land-based skills. Paths of economic development are diverse, depending on the nature of resources and opportunities available to each locality and region. The resources of consultation outlined above, complemented by the renewal of those centuries-old virtues of honesty, trustworthiness, courage, and a spirit of service to the community, must combine to create locally tested economic ventures. At the same time it must

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be emphasized that, just as With the development of local governance, economic self—determination requires a global economic framework that allows for local communities’ survival and economic productivity. An international economy requires universally acceptable laws and a system in Which both communities and individuals are protected from being sacrificed to popular concepts of increasing material efficiency and consumption Without limit or moderation.

Furthermore, as self—determination Within a global and national framework is an important feature of community development, so too must the individual right to gainful employment be accepted as universal. Viewing unemployment as an unavoidable feature of an economic system amounts to an unacceptable admission of human impotency. Employment is a God—given right and responsibility. In Baha’u’llah’s words: “It is enjoined upon every one of you to engage in some form of occupation. ...We have graciously exalted your engagement in such work to the rank of worship unto God. . . .” Baha’u’llah also identifies economic security as a God—given responsibility of any society: “Know ye that the poor are the trust of God in your midst. . .. Ye Will most certainly be called upon to answer for His trust...” Our governing institutions, acting on our behalf, must redirect social and economic resources in order to ensure that no peoples are deprived of either employment opportunities or basic living needs.

Finally, since international forces play such a considerable and increasing role in the economy, it is surely time to be far bolder and more creative in the development of new arrangements of governance at the international level. The international economy, environmental resources, and land-base on Which all economic activity ultimately depends call for much stronger institutions of international governance With levels of sovereignty appropriate to a new global society and economy. The voices of all peoples must be allowed some reasonable say in the direction such agencies might take the world economy. The aboriginal peoples, as distinctive cultures, might well take the lead in identifying more publicly and on the international

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stage those principles or objectives appropriate to a new economy based on sustainable development. Such work needs to complement efforts at self—government and economic development if the latter are to have any chance of success.

The Need for Healing

Aboriginal leaders and spokespersons repeat frequently the crucial importance of addressing the healing of families and communities with resources dedicated to this stage in the overall process of aboriginal development. Without such healing other developmental processes of governance, economic development, and education will not succeed. Current social ills rob aboriginal communities of the opportunities their youth should have in order to grow and provide leadership, and dedication to a process of healing is essential.

Among the several important issues that bear on the matter of healing, our own experiences and convictions prompt us to highlight the equality of women and men and the central place of the family as two of the most pressing areas of concern. The importance. of legal and political evolution to redress inadequacies and injustice of past laws is also essential.

The Equality of Women and Men

Whatever new arrangements and new directions are taken in the world, the principle of the equality of women and men requires explicit recognition. The moral authority of Baha’u’llah’s teachings on this point makes it clear that God makes no distinction between the worth of the soul of a woman or a man. Gender does not decide value in the spiritual world. As we come out of an era of history in which emphasis on physical strength or material considerations impeded women’s full participation in society, the full emancipation of women remains a significant challenge. A11 peoples, whatever their culture or tradition, must give their unequivocal support for the principle of the equality of women and men.

As women are welcomed into full partnership in all fields of human endeavor, the moral and psychological climate will change throughout all societies, facilitating the generation of

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suitable social and political arrangements. All of us, men and women alike, share the responsibility to act With courage, fairness, and humility to make this principle a reality.

Not merely will society in a general way become healthier, but the economy and political life of society Will improve once women gain their rightful place alongside men. Such issues as the provision of social, economic, and political measures to enhance the lives of children and the family, and measures for safer, less Violent communities, will become more central on our various agendas. If we continue to neglect or marginalize the principle of full and absolute equality of women and men, mothers and children Will continue to suffer disproportionately. There is a direct relationship between the predominance of men in positions of social, economic, and political leadership and the lack of support given mothers during those critical years When they give birth, nurse their children, and first educate the very young. This inattention of fathers and of a patriarchal society and lack of support for the best possible conditions for mothers, children, and the family, have contributed to social disintegration. So, too, the absence of women in leadership roles throughout all levels of society has prevented progress towards a more peaceful and productive economy and civil life. Indeed, the two conditions are directly linked.

The Family A great deal more of society’s financial resources and time on the local, national, and international agenda must be given to supporting the family, that fundamental building block of society in Which children are born, nurtured, and raised.

The health of the family forms the basis of the health of a people, of a nation, and ultimately of the world itself, and to prosper it must have greater support from all social institutions. The family and society need education and laws that Will support parenting instead of allowing competition for the resources of time and energy that should be devoted to it. The family unit has been a cherished and prized element in the community and social life of aboriginal peoples around the world, and the more dominant cultures might Wisely look to the reverence and regard aboriginal peoples give to it.

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The education and training of children occurs best through united and healthy families. Children’s rights are most effectively protected if the family itself becomes much more central in the programs of all levels of governments and in Whatever new institutions and arrangements are made over the coming years in aboriginal governance and national and international governance. The importance of this issue cannot be overstated.

Affirmative Action

“If any discrimination is at all to be tolerated, it should be a discrimination not against, but rather in favor of the minority, be it racial or otherwise.” This is a Bahá’í principle that the community’s administrative practice tries to uphold. Justice demands such a principle, often translated as “affirmative action.” Without it, social change Will be too slow and the privileges of members of dominant and majority peoples will continue to eclipse the rights of those from minority or oppressed sectors of society.

Programs of affirmative action are temporary measures to balance the ills that contemporary society and a history of injustice have produced. If action is not taken, our economic and social well-being will be among the first elements of society to suffer and deteriorate, for tomorrow’s economy, like that of the past, benefits most if all its members are healthy, well educated, and contributing to the wealth and productivity of all.

The Evolution of Law, Legislation,

and Political Structures Bahá’ís believe that the material world is a reflection of the spiritual world, and that laws and political structures must evolve commensurate With the ever—evolving needs of the human species. Genuine social transformation occurs through changes in the spiritual conditions of society. However, this also implies that social reality is in constant evolution. Thus, the rapid evolution in our laws and administrative structures is as necessary as the creation of new spiritual understandings and conditions.

It is apparent that the entire world, including the aboriginal peoples in many lands, is now at a new stage of maturity

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requiring new forms of government and social and economic participation that are universal and inclusive. Bahá’ís View efforts to incorporate protection of fundamental and collective human rights into the legal and constitutional frameworks of different countries as major contributions to the progress of human civilization.

The legitimacy of collective rights—that the well-being of an entire community may at times require specific attention and legal safeguards—must receive Wider discussion and exposure in public education programs. Whatever the merits of a liberal philosophy, it has consistently overlooked the organic nature of human society and the necessity, even for the ultimate wellbeing of the individual, to protect the rights and unity of the entire community.

We believe, as Bahá’ís, that With sufficient consultation, collective and individual rights are not contradictory but complementary. That they remain apart only means that people have not talked together long enough or With enough humility, moderation, courtesy, and courage. Society as a Whole and collective segments Within it need protection as much as individuals do. From the Bahá’í perspective, the ‘unity of society is the best measure of justice and the surest indicator of how effectively rights are enacted ifi‘legislation. In this context, it seems particularly critical to realize that the identification of universal principles on Which laws can be constructed Will promote a unity of law that allows for a diversity of interpretation and application of policies and decisions at the local level.

Furthermore, the process of developing legislation is itself an important community—building process and one in Which the legitimate representatives of peoples, nations, and countries must engage With unceasing energy and commitment. Such detailed work requires the best that government and legal experts can manage. A11 segments of society must then be educated to support the rule of law and encourage the government at each level. Without such respect for law and support for our leaders, even the wisest law, the most effective administrative practice, and the most inspired leadership cannot

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bring well-being to a society. The world talks much about having leaders listen to the’ people, but there is a great deal to learn about encouraging and supporting leaders in their difficult work.

Education

As important as legislation and government are, the most important way in which the relationships among aboriginal peoples and the rest of society can be transformed is through education. Since education prpreeminentovides the means through Which identity and self—esteem can be secured and protected and by Which healing and justice can be promoted, it is incumbent on society to concentrate its resources and attention on this issue Which, in very broad terms, includes processes and populations outside as well as inside current education systems.

Greater investment in education is needed, both in aboriginal communities and in the schools attended by children and young people from all other segments of society, With the principle of unity in diversity serving as a core concept in school curricula and educational programs, whether those programs focus on race unity, morality and religion, history, or literature. In this way, unity in diversity Will become central in the consciousness of young people.

It is noteworthy that the Bahá’í community of Iran, now numbering some 350,000, endured more than a century of persecution and human rights abuses while reaching literacy levels of 90 percent in three generations (compared to 40 percent for the rest of Iranian society). That community produced many of Iran’s most educated leaders in technical, social, and professional fields, an achievement due to the underlying emphasis on unity. This reliance on universal principles also allowed the Iranian Bahá’í community to achieve the success it did before it was once again set upon in 1979 by those segments of Iranian society intent on returning the country to an age of ignorance and darkness. Throughout the world, more than a thousand Bahá’í social and economic development projects demonstrate

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again and again the practicality and power of unity as a preeminently important social value.

Much reflection and consultation focusing on unity as a core theme and on spiritual and moral values as principal elements in educational programs is required to generate specific recommendations. However, it may be worthwhile to consider an example of how the principle of unity can generate new ideas. Education in human suffering and sacrifice is not limited to any one culture on this planet. A fuller relationship between members of different cultures and communities that have survived tragedy on a Wide scale can help them understand and transcend their own particular histories. Indeed, as all the cultures of the world become unified the shared burden of history’s many tragedies and injustices may well fall into a pattern of mutual understanding and finally allow for the kind of redemption that permits genuine healing.

Whatever creative programs are devised, they would do well to pay heed to the principle of oneness and unity in Which all cultures are respected and none are considered superior. We should set aside a mindset that seems determined to combat every existing evil of society instead of building curricula and programs with an emphasis on positive goals. For instance, let there be programs on race unity instead of anti—racism, on personal and social development instead of drug abuse prevention, on universal spiritual and religious teachings instead of expelling religious education from the schools because of a few extremist or fundamentalist elements. Too often the current approach isolates social problems and then turns to the school to redress them, one by one, instead of conceiving of school programs With a focus on themes of unity and integration, inclusion, health, and development. We must create curricula in Which subj ect matter is not cut up and parcelled out but built on an educational approach that seeks out relationships between people, subject areas, and different sectors of life; that seeks unity in diversity; and that instills a value of service to the broader good of society as the point around Which young people develop their identities.

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Whatever educational programs are conceived, it must be explicitly acknowledged in any proposed solutions that knowledge is essential in order to motivate the necessary development of will and resolve required for action. If longstanding social patterns are to change, people’s knowledge needs to be increased, for only through understanding is human Will and energy set in motion. If they do nothing to increase knowledge, laws and new structures of government will accomplish little.

Conclusion

A great deal of work must be done to right wrongs, to create justice, and to educate a new generation. Bahá’ís know that instant solutions are not possible. The Bahá’í community is itself still small, albeit rapidly growing. But it is committed to working towards the creation of justice and unity, healing and well-being. Bahá’ís firmly believe that, in the course of time and in conditions of prosperity and well—being, the aboriginal peoples of our planet Will make even greater contributions to the happiness, the progress, and the spiritual illumination of the entire human family than they have already made through their suffering and sacrifice. That belief in the capacity and character of the aboriginal peoples lies enshrined in the sacred writings of the Bahá’í Faith. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, eldest son of Baha’u’llah, called attention to the importance of the aboriginal peoples When He wrote to the Americas from Palestine during World War I:

You must attach great importance to the Indians, the original inhabitants of America. For these souls may be likened unto the ancient inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula. ...When the Muhammadan Light shone forth in their midst, they became so enkindled that they shed illumination upon the world. Likewise, should these Indians be educated and properly guided, there can be no doubt that through the Divine teachings they Will become so enlightened that the whole earth will be illumined.

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[Page 295]T he following statement was submitted by the Bahd ’2' International Community to the

first session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development, New York, 14—25 June 1993.

WORLD CITIZENSHIP:

A Global Ethic tor. Sustainable Development

In the spirit ongenda 21, as “a dynamic programme ” destined to “evolve over time in the light ofchanging needs and circumstances, ”1 the Bahá’í International Community offers the following proposal: T0 inspire the peoples of the world to champion sustainable development, the education programs and public awareness campaigns called for in Agenda 21 should foster the concept of WORLD CITIZENSHIP.

The Vision of World Citizenship

he greatest challenge facing the world community as it mobilizes to implement Agenda 21 is to release the enormous financial, technical, human, and moral resources required for sustainable development. These resources Will be freed up only as the peoples of the world develop a profound sense of responsibility for the fate of the planet and for the wellbeing of the entire human family. This sense of responsibility can only emerge from the acceptance of the oneness of humanity and will only be sustained by a unifying Vision of a peaceful, prosperous world

1. Agenda 21 , chapter 1.6.

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society. Without such a global ethic, people will be unable to become active, constructive participants in the worldwide process of sustainable development.2

While Agenda 21 provides an indispensable framework of scientific knowledge and technical know-how for the implementation of sustainable development, it does not inspire personal commitment to a global ethic. This is not to say that ethics and values were ignored during the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) process. The call for unifying values was heard throughout this process from Heads of State to UN officials to representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and individual citizens. In particular, the concepts of “our common humanity,” “world citizenship” and “unity in diversity” were invoked to serve as the ethical undergirding for Agenda 21 and the Rio Declaration.3

The world community has, thus, already come to a basic accord on the need for a global ethic t0 Vitalize Agenda 21. We suggest that the term world citizenship be adopted to encompass the constellation of principles, values, attitudes, and behaviors that the peoples of the world must embrace if sustainable development is to be realized.

2. One of the most often-repeated themes of Agenda 21 is the Vital importance of “broad public participation in decision-making”; “commitment and genuine involvement of all social groups”; “real social partnership”; and “new levels of cooperation among States, key sectors of societies and people.”

3. The call for a global ethic was raised often during the UNCED process, with particular intensity at the Earth Summit and Global Forum, from Heads of State to UN officials to NGO representatives; through official UNCED documents, NGO treaties, workshops, books, and artistic presentations. The following are just a few examples:

0 speeches to the Earth Summit by the President of Brazil; the President of France; the Prime Minister of Ireland; the Prime Minister of Japan; the President of the Republic of the Marshall Islands; the President of the United Mexican States; the Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Morocco; the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; the Prime Minister of Turkey; the Prime Minister of Tuvalu; the Secretary of State of the Holy See; and the Secretary—General of UNCED;

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World citizenship begins With an acceptance of the oneness of the human family and the interconnectedness Of the nations of “the earth, our home.”4 While it encourages a sane and legitimate patriotism, it also insists upon a Wider loyalty, a love of humanity as a Whole. It does not, however, imply abandonment of legitimate loyalties, the suppression of cultural diversity, the abolition of national autonomy, nor the imposition of uniformity. Its hallmark is “unity in diversity.” World citizenship encompasses the principles of social and economic justice, both Within and between nations; non—adversarial decision making at all levels of society; equality of the sexes; racial, ethnic, national, and religious harmony; and the Willingness to sacrifice for the common good. Other facets of world citizenship—all of Which promote human honor and dignity, understanding, amity, cooperation, trustworthiness,

° NGO Treaties prepared at the Global Forum including The Youth T reaty; The Earth Charter; The Rio de Janeiro Declaration; The Peopleis Earth Declaration; The Treaty on Environmental Education for Sustainable Societies and Global Responsibiligz; and The T realy ofEthz'cal Commitments;

- Global Forum activities, including the Evening Series in the Park, reflecting “the cultural diversity of the Human Family”; and the Peace Monument, Whose inscription reads; “The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens”;

- Statements and publications by governments, UN Agencies and NGOs to the various Preparatory Committee sessions and other UNCED-related events including The Universal Code of Environmental Conduct (N GO/Media Symposium, October 1990); In Our Hands: Women and Children First (Report of the UNCED/UNICEF/UNFPA Symposium, May 1991); The Earth Charter (U S Citizens Network on UNCED, July 1991); One Earth Community (The Working Group of Religious Communities on UNCED, August 1991); Caring for the Earth (IUCN/UNEP/WWF, October 1991); An Earth Charter (International Coordinating Committee on Religion and the Earth, 1991); Agenda Ya

Wananchi (Roots of the Future, December 1991); An Environmental Ethic 0r Earth Charter (UNEP-UK National Committee, February 1992); Principles on General Rights and Obligations (General Assembly document, A/ CONF.151/PC/WG.III/L.28, 9 March 1992); Earth Charten Japan (Peoples Forum, Japan, 1992); Earth Repair Charter (Earth Repair Foundation, 1992); and Our Country, The Planet (Sir Shridath Ramphal, 1992).

4. Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, Preamble.

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compassion and a desire to serve—can be deduced from those already mentioned. A few of these principles5 have been articulated in Agenda 21—most, however, are noticeably lacking. Moreover, no overall conceptual framework is provided under Which they can be harmonized and promulgated.

F ostering world citizenship is a practical strategy for promoting sustainable development. So long as disunity, antagonism, and provincialism characterize the social, political, and economic relations within and among the family of nations, a global, sustainable pattern of development can not be established.6 Over a century ago Bahá’u’lláh warned, “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established.” Only upon a foundation of genuine unity, harmony, and understanding among the diverse peoples and nations of the world, can a sustainable global society be erected.

We, therefore, recommend that world citizenship be taught in every school and that the oneness of humanitywthe principle underlying world citizenship—be constantly asserted in every nation.

The concept of world citizenship is not new to the world community. It is both implicit and explicit in a host of UN documents, charters, and agreements, including the opening words of the UN Charter itself: “We the peoples of the United Nations...” It is already being promoted around the world across all cultures by diverse NGOs, academics, citizens’ groups, entertainers, educational programs, artists, and media. These efforts are significant but need to be greatly increased. A carefully planned and orchestrated, long-term campaign to foster world citizenship, involving all sectors of society—-local, national, and international—meeds to be put into place. It must be pursued With all the Vigor, moral courage, and

5. For example, see Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, principles 5, 8, 20, 25; and Agenda 21, chapters 1, 2, 3, 23, 24 and 36. 6. See Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, principle 25.

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conviction that the United Nations, its member states and all Willing partners can muster.

The Promotion of World Citizenship The following proposal for a campaign to promote world citizenship7 fits naturally into the framework for reorienting education, public awareness, and training toward sustainable development, Which is presented in chapter 36 of Agenda 21. Education Education—formal, non-formal, and informal—is indisputably the most effective way to shape values, attitudes, behaviors and skills that will equip the peoples of the world to act in the longterrn interests of the planet and humanity as a Whole.8 The United Nations, governments, and educational agencies should seek to make the principle of world citizenship part of the standard education of every child.

The details of educational programs and activities incorporating this principle Will vary a great deal Within and among nations. However, if world citizenship is to be understood as a universal principle, all programs must have certain aspects in common. Based on the principle of the oneness of the human race, they should cultivate tolerance and brotherhood, nurturing an appreciation for the richness and importance of the world’s diverse cultural, religious, and social systems and strengthening

7. Within the context of the principle of world citizenship, this program should be “carried out by the various actors according to the different situations, capacities and priorities of the countries and regions” (Agenda 21, chapter 1.6.).

8. Agenda 21, chapter 36.3. affirms that “Education...should be recognized as a process by Which human beings and societies can reach their fullest potential. Education is critical for promoting sustainable development and improving the capacity of the people to address environment and development issues... Both formal and non-formal education are indispensable to changing people’s attitudes... It is also critical for achieving environmental and ethical awareness, values and attitudes, skills and behaviour consistent with sustainable development and for effective public participation in decision—making. To be efiective. . .education. . .should deal with the dynamics of both the physical/biological and socio-economic environment and human (Which may include spiritual) development.”

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those traditions that contribute to a sustainable, world civilization. They should teach the principle of “unity in diversity” as the key to strength and wealth both for nations and for the world community. They should foster an ethic of service to the common good and convey an understanding of both the rights and the responsibilities of world citizenship. These programs and activities should build 011 the country’s positive efforts and highlight its tangible successes, including models of racial, religious, national, and ethnic unity. They should emphasize the importance of the UN in promoting global cooperation and understanding; its universal goals, objectives and programs; its immediate relevance to the peoples and nations of the world; and the role that it must increasingly assume in our evercontracting world.

Before undertaking a campaign to promote world citizenship, a common understanding of the concept Will need to be developed and agreed upon. The Commission on Sustainable Development might set up a special committee or working group to begin developing guidelines for world citizenship and proposals for incorporating this principle into existing formal and non—formal educational programs. Alternatively, the Commission might seek the assistance of the High Level Advisory Board on Sustainable Development or the InterAgency Committee on Sustainable Development. The UN Secretariat might even choose to set up a World Citizenship Unit, similar to the erstwhile Peace Studies Unit, to develop these guidelines and coordinate the system-Wide implementation of world citizenship education. Whatever path is chosen, this task must be given high priority.

World citizenship could be incorporated easily into all of the activities suggested in chapter 36.5. of Agenda 21 for reorienting education toward sustainable development. A few examples illustrate:

- National advisory bodies/round tables (36.5.0) should facilitate the incorporation of world citizenship into educational programs Within the country.

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° Pre—service and in—service training programs for all teachers, administrators, educational planners, and nonformal educators (36.5.d) should include the principle of world citizenship in their programs.

- Educational materials on sustainable development produced by UN agencies should encourage world citizenship (36.5. g), as should educational materials about the United Nations.

° Agenda 21 calls for “the development of an international network” to support global efforts to educate for sustainable development (36.5 .k). This network could both encourage UN agencies and member NGOs to create materials based on the guidelines for world citizenship, and provide the means for sharing them. "

° Governments and educational authorities have already been called upon to “eliminate gender stereotyping in curricula” as a means to promote sustainable development (36.5111). We would recommend that, in the spirit of world citizenship, stereotyping based on religion, culture, race, class, nationality, and ethnicity also be eliminated.

Public Awareness People need to think of themselves as world citizens and understand their personal responsibility to promote sustainable development.9 Campaigns to raise public awareness of the challenges of world citizenship must make use of the full range of media and the arts, including television, Video, film, radio, electronic networks, books, magazines, posters, flyers, theater, and music. These campaigns should enlist the advertising and entertainment industries, the media—both traditional and nontraditional—the entire UN system, all member states, NGOs, and popular personalities. They should reach out to the home, the work place, public areas, and schools. The guidelines for

9. Agenda 21, chapter 36.9 calls attention to the importance of promoting “broad public awareness as an essential part of a global education effort to strengthen attitudes, values and actions Which are compatible With sustainable development.”

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world citizenship called for above should be appropriate for use by such public awareness campaigns and should serve as basic reference for all media programming.

World citizenship could be included in the activities presented in chapter 36.10. of Agenda 21 for increasing public awareness and sensitivity about sustainable development. The following examples illustrate:

National and international advisory boards (36.10.a) could encourage the various media to adopt the guidelines for world citizenship. The media have done much to raise public awareness of global interdependence and the enormous challenges facing the world community. They have also highlighted the seemingly insurmountable differences that divide us.

The media have a responsibility to help people understand that diversity need not be a source of conflict; rather, diversity can and must now serve as a resource for sustainable development. They can do so by focusing on the constructive, unifying, and cooperative undertakings that prove humanity’s capacity to work together to meet the enormous challenges facing it.

In promoting “a cooperative relationship With the media”

‘(36.10.e), the United Nations must boldly define its own

identity and the promise it holds for the world community. The United Nations was established on high ideals and With a Vision of a peaceful, progressive world. By providing a framework for communication and cooperation, and by initiating innumerable, constructive projects, it has added significantly to the understanding, hope and goodwill in the world. Yet its accomplishments are little known to the generality of mankind.

Using the concept of world citizenship as an integrating theme, the United Nations should publicize its ideals, activities, and goals, so that people come to understand the unique and Vital role the UN plays in the world and, therefore, in their lives. Similarly, the UN should promote world citizenship in all its public activities, including

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celebrations of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations and tours of UN headquarters. Every UN document that deals With sustainable development should also include this principle—beginning With the preamble of the proposed Earth Charter. World citizenship must become the single most important point of ethical reference in all UN activities.

° The services of the advertising industry (36.10.e) should be enlisted to promote world citizenship. Campaigns could be organized around such themes as:

° We the Peoples of the United Nations: Celebrating Unity in Diversity

° One Planet, One People

' In All Our Diversity, We Are One Family

- Our Common Future: Unity in Diversity

° Contests should be held and awards presented for promoting world citizenship (36.10.e).

° While heightening public awareness “regarding the impacts of Violence in society” (36.101), the media can generate commitment to world citizenship by highlighting examples of constructive, unifying undertakings that show the power of unity and common Vision.

Each country should be encouraged to earmark resources for promoting world citizenship. Consideration should also be given to including among the proposed “indicators of sustainable development” (40.6.) the promotion of this principle. Countries could, for example, be encouraged to report efforts to foster tolerance and appreciation of other cultures, equality of the sexes, and the concept of one human family through curricula, entertainment, and the media.

The Challenge Of World Citizenship

In conclusion, world citizenship is a concept as challenging and dynamic as the opportunities facing the world community. We, the peoples and nations of the world, would be Wise to embrace courageously its underlying principles and be guided by them in

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all aspects of our lives—from our personal and community relations to our national and international affairs; from our schools, work places, and media to our legal, social, and political institutions. We, therefore, urge the Commission to encourage the entire UN system to incorporate the principle of world citizenship into the full range of its programs and activities.

The Bahá’í International Community, which for over a century has been fostering world citizenship, would be pleased to assist the Commission, governments, NGOs, and others to further develop the concepts contained in this document; to provide practical models of racial, religious, national, and ethnic unity for sustainable development; and to take part in consultations on this Crucial issue. As a global community encompassing the diversity of humanity and sharing a common Vision, the Bahá’í International Community will continue to promote sustainable development by encouraging people to see themselves as citizens of one world, the builders of a just and prosperous world civilization.

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[Page 305]T he following statement by the Bahd ’2’ International Community was first distributed at the World NGO Forum launching the United Nations International Year Ofthe Family, Malta, November 1993.

fflhMHX

WMJQD COMMUNHY

Like the world as a Whole, the family is in transition. In every culture, families are disintegrating, fragmenting under pressure of economic and political upheavals and weakening in the face of moral and spiritual confusion.

The conditions surrounding the family surround the nation. The happenings in the family are the happenings in the life of the nation. 1

Bahá’ís see these disturbances as signs of humanity’s struggle toward a new age in its collective development, an age of maturity. The family, as the most basic unit of society, must in this process be remolded and revitalized according to the same principles that are reshaping civilization as a Whole.

The central principle for this new day is the oneness of humanity. “The well—being of mankind, its peace and security,”

1. A11 quotations are from the Bahá’í writings.

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Baha’u’llah, the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, asserted over a century ago, “are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established.” Acceptance of the interrelatedness and interdependence of all people implies the renewal of every social institution on the planet, including the family.

Unity in the F amily

If love and agreement are manifest in a single family, that family Will advance, become illumined and spiritual.

The Bahá’í approach to family unity combines elements of traditional Wisdom With progressive principles and practical tools. Adherence to these teachings offers a bulwark against the forces of disintegration and a framework for the creation of strong, healthy, unified families.

The foundation and precondition for a Bahá’í family is the loving relationship of husband and Wife. Marriage, a divine creation, is intended to unite a couple “both physically and spiritually, that they may ever improve the spiritual life of each other.” A man and woman, having freely chosen one another and having obtained the consent of their parents, marry, according to Bahá’í law, in the presence of witnesses designated by the elected governing council of the community, the Local Spiritual Assembly. With the words “We will all, verily, abide by the Will of God,” recited by both bride and groom, the two commit themselves to God and, thereby, to one another.

One purpose of marriage is the creation of a new generation Who Will love God and serve humanity. The task of the family is, therefore, to establish a loving, respectful and harmonious relationship among parents and children.

Harmony and cooperation in the family, as in the world, are maintained in the balance of rights and responsibilities. All family members “have duties and responsibilities towards one another and to the family as a Whole,” which “vary from member to member because of their natural relationships.”

Children, for instance, have the duty to obey their parents. They also have the corresponding right to be cared for, educated

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and protected. Mothers, as bearers and first educators of children, are primarily, but not exclusively, responsible for their spiritual education and the creation of a loving, nurturing home. Fathers bear primary, but again not exclusive, responsibility for the financial well-being of the family and for the formal education of the children.

The personal moral standards promoted by the Bahá’í teachings condemn many of the agents that contribute to the break-up of families. Alcohol is forbidden to Bahá’ís, as are mind—altering drugs. No form of violence or abuse Within the family is ever to be tolerated. According to the Bahá’í sacred writings:

The integrity of the family bond must be constantly considered, and the rights of the individual members must not be transgressed.

Although strongly discouraged by Baha’u’llah, divorce is permitted on the grounds of antipathy between husband and Wife. It may be granted only after a year of waiting during Which a couple lives separately and makes every attempt to reconcile their differences. Protected against hasty decisions and rash emotions, many couples are able to rebuild their marriages during this year of reflection. If, however, reconciliation proves impossible, the couple may divorce.

The Equality of the Sexes

The principle of the equality of men and women is transforming relationships Within Bahá’í marriages. Because they are equal partners, a status embodied in their identical wedding vows, neither husband nor Wife may dominate. Decision—making is to be shared.

Always, the atmosphere Within a family as Within the community as a

whole should express. . .not arbitrary power, but the spirit of frank and loving consultation.

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The Bahá’í principles of consultation are tools for discussing openly, honestly and tactfully any problem Which arises Within the family. The goal is to allow “the truth to be revealed” in a way Which Will solve the problem to the benefit of all. When used by a couple or a family, consultation is a powerful means for maintaining unity.

Recognition of equality and the use of consultation allow a husband and Wife flexibility to meet the demands of a rapidly changing world. Although men and women have complementary capacities and functions in certain areas, roles are not rigidly defined and may be adjusted, When necessary, to meet the needs of each family member and the family as a Whole. While women are encouraged to pursue their careers, it is in a manner that does not conflict With their role as mothers. And fathers are not exempt from household duties and child-rearing.

When relations Within the family are conducted With due regard for justice, it Will be an important factor in bringing about peace in the world. When women are denied equality and respect in the family, men and boys develop harmful attitudes and habits Which they carry into the workplace, into political life, and ultimately into international relations. As more and more children grow up in families Where the rights of all members are respected and problems are solved With the benefit of consultation, prospects for peace in the world improve.

Education and the F amily

Although the child receives formal education at school, it is at home that character is developed and moral and spiritual attitudes are formed. Therefore, “all the Virtues must be taught the family.” Patience, loyalty, trustworthiness, justice, honestysuch Virtues as these constitute the building blocks of character. The Virtues named by all sacred traditions as the common elements of spirituality are the reflection of the divinity in each person.

While nurturing the highest qualities and values in each member of the family, parents must also provide for the integrated development of all their children’s capacities—spiritual, moral, intellectual, emotional, and physical. Therefore, girls

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and boys are to be formally educated according to the same basic curriculum. Should limited resources force a choice, daughters, as the potential trainers of the next generation, are to be granted a “prior right to education over sons.”

The F amily and the Community

The Bahá’í Faith has over 17,000 organized local communities in more than 200 independent countries and territories. These communities act in some ways like extended families.

Bahá’ís come from all nations, ethnic groups, cultures, professions and classes. Although the Bahá’í wedding ceremonies vary Widely from culture to culture, the marriage laws and vows are universal and apply whether the partners are Bahá’ís or not. Bahá’ís around the world are finding that the principles and laws

Which give a distinctive shape to Bahá’í family life are conducive to love and unity.

Conclusion

As the foregoing principles are gradually put into practice around the world, families are being created which are able to play a part in building a unified world society. For the link between the family, the nation, and a world civilization destined to come in time is inescapable:

Compare the nations of the world to the members of a family. A family is a nation in miniature. Simply enlarge the circle of the household and you have the nation. Enlarge the circle of nations and you have all humanity

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[Page 310][Page 311]Thefollowing statements were submitted by the Bahd ’z' Internatianal

Community to the United Nations

World Conference on Human Rights, Vienna, Austria, 14-25 June 1993.

GENDA AITEM 9

General debate on the progress made in the field of human rights since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and on the identification ofobstacles to further progress in this area, and ways in which they can be overcome.

The community of nations has come a long way in the forty-five years since the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a common standard for all people and nations. Clearly, however, it has a long way to go before the commitments inherent in the Declaration and related instruments are translated into a universal respect for human rights. Acutely aware that many obstacles hinder us from converting resolution into realization, the Bahá’í International Community would like to address three obstacles that we believe particularly need close attention.

It is perhaps a truism to say that the exercise of unfettered national sovereignty is a major obstacle to the safeguarding of the human rights of all peoples, but the point deserves to be made at the outset of any discussion on the subject. Despite the establishment of international standards for human rights, many nations cling to the view that respect for those rights should be granted or Withheld at the discretion of national governments. This attitude ignores the operation of forces that are drawing the world together and paving the way for the establishment of a new order based on the recognition that what happens to one member of the human family happens to us all.

A second obstacle is the lack of adequate mechanisms to enforce adherence to the provisions of the conventions.

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International human rights standards are not legally binding on all governments, and compliance, even by those states that have ratified specific conventions, is voluntary. An urgent priority of the international community, therefore, is to press for the universal ratification of the existing covenants and conventions. Alongside this process of ratification must go the strengthening of the role of the various committees established to monitor implementation, such as the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. In addition, international criminal jurisdiction for crimes against humanity and for flagrant Violations of internationally recognized human rights should also be invested in a permanent body.

The third obstacle to humanity’s progress in this important field of development is the general lack of awareness of human rights, particularly among those entrusted with administering justice at the local level. The discussion of human rights needs to be moved from the area of legal and political policy—making to the local community, where the lives of individuals Will be touched and lasting changes can be made. Educating those Who administer justice about the basic human rights set forth in the Declaration is just the beginning. All citizens need not only to learn about their own rights but to develop respect for the rights of hunianity in general.

It seems to us self—evident that the mobilization of effort needed to overcome all three of the obstacles discussed in the foregoing must come from a recognition that humanity constitutes a single people. In the View of the Bahá’í International Community the organic oneness of humanity is a fundamental social and spiritual truth of our age. Indeed, the conviction that we are all citizens of one earth, together With a commitment to the well-being and happiness of all mankind, is the foundation for the realization of the ideals expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “The earth,” Baha’u’llah said over a century ago, “is but one country, and mankind its citizens.”

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[Page 313]GENDA AITEM 10

Consideration of the relationship between development, democracy and the universal enjoyment of all human rights, keeping in view the interrelationship and indivisibilitjy of economic, social, cultural, civil, and political rights.

For Bahá’ís, the most fundamental of human rights is the right of each individual to investigate reality for himself or herself, and to benefit from the results of this exploration. That such a right exists is to us self—evident from the fact that the human consciousness is endowed with the intellectual, moral, spiritual, and aesthetic capacities needed to undertake such an effort.

Most of the world’s people would no doubt express in

religious terms their agreement With this postulate. Throughout human history the conviction that each person has not only the right but the responsibility to “know and worship God,” by whatever terminology they may have described this ultimate reality, has been ineulcated by the world’s great religions, arguably the most important force in the civilizing of human nature. _ The central issue, however, is not a theological one. The historical record is relevant here because the religious forms are the ones through which the greater part of humanity have so far principally exercised the right to investigate reality. However hedged about that investigation no doubt was, because of the intellectual and social limitations of earlier ages, the right itself represents no new and untested hypothesis, but has lain at the foundation of what we call culture.

In exercising this right and responsibility, each individual will call, to varying degrees, on the range of capacities that characterize human nature. The development and exertion of physical well-being, experimentation with aesthetic and intellectual capacities, and the struggle to cultivate moral and spiritual

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insight are, therefore, aspects of the practice of this inalienable feature of human life. Any or all of these capacities are engaged as human consciousness begins to explore the inner and external worlds that provide its frame of reference and constitute its field of activity.

In undertaking this search, a search that is for all practical purposes synonymous With the living of a life that can be said to be truly human, every individual needs the assurance that the exercise of the faculties referred to Will enjoy access to Whatever benefits, protections, and opportunities can reasonably be provided by the society in which he or she lives. These benefits include, as our draft agenda reminds us, not only civil and political rights, but also rights in the area of economic, social, and cultural life.

The session’s agenda also points out, however, that this

system of rights is one and indivisible. Without economic ‘

rights, the exercise of civil or social rights is severely attenuated. Without cultural rights, an individual or community Will have the greatest difficulty in exercising political or economic rights to a degree that meets the essential requirements of their respective situations.

Since humanity is so diverse, true development can best be assessed by people themselves, acting individually and as communities, in terms of the overall improvement in their quality of life. So long as such determinations do not infringe on the rights of others, the United Nations human rights system has a clear obligation to foster a climate of opinion and to elaborate a system of controls that Will make this possible.

In contributing to the discussion of this subject, the Bahá’í International Community feels an obligation to share With this important session of the World Conference on Human Rights its conviction that the entire range of human rights under discussion derives its integrity from the right of every human being on earth to explore reality to the fullest extent of the resources available to such an effort. It is, we believe, this irreducible principle that gives the appeal for human rights both its integrity and imperative.

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[Page 315]GENDA AITEM 11

Consideration of contemporary trends in and new challenges to the full realization of all human rights of women and men, includin g those ofpersons belon gin g to vulnerable groups.

The Bahá’í International Community welcomes the opportunity to speak to agenda item 11 at this historic World Conference. We hope that comprehensive consideration of the human rights of women will continue at all future gatherings for the advancement of human rights, and we support the resolution adopted by the Commission on the Status of Women at its 1993 session urging that women’s rights and concerns be considered under all substantive items of the provisional agenda for the World Conference on Human Rights.

The persistence and growth of Violence directed against women, both personal and institutional, is largely attributable to the traditional exclusion of women from processes of development and decision—making. A profound adjustment in humanity’s collective outlook is needed, guided by the consideration of universal values and spiritual principles. Legislation is needed which lends practical expression to the equality of the sexes by dealing with the particular injustices which women face.

Domestic Violence is a fact of life for many women throughout the world, regardless of race, class, or educational background. In many societies traditional beliefs that women are a burden make them easy targets of anger. In other situations, men’s frustration is vented on women and children when economies shrink and collapse. In all parts of the world, violence against women persists because it goes unpunished.

Beliefs and practices that contribute to the oppression of women must be reexamined in the light of justice. When properly understood, the principle of the fundamental equality of men and women will eventually transform all social relations, allowing each person to develop his or her unique gifts and

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talents. The utilization of everyone’s strengths will foster the maturation of society. As the principle of equality gains acceptance, the challenge of transmitting it to the next generation must be undertaken by parents, schools, governments and NGOs.

The family is the basic unit of society: all of its members should be educated according to spiritual principles. The rights of all need to be safeguarded and children trained to respect themselves and others. According to the Bahá’í writings, “The integrity of the family bond must be constantly considered, and the rights of the individual members must not be transgressed.”

Education in spiritual values is necessary not only to protect women but, indeed, to foster respect for all people, so that human honor and dignity may be preserved and a global ethos may evolve in Which all human rights are upheld. The Bahá’í International Community is convinced that nothing short of an infusion of spiritual values can effect the transformation of individuals and institutions that Will ensure respect for the human rights of all people. a

The Bahá’í community, through local and national administrative councils in more than 165 countries, is working in a variety of ways to change the status and perception of women. One noteworthy example is a collaboration between UNIFEM and Bahá’í communities in Bolivia, Cameroon, and Malaysia aimed at improving the status of rural women by using traditional media, such as music and dance, to stimulate Village-wide discussion of women’s roles. Our community’s experiences and the teachings of Baha’u’llah make us confident that our world is destined to move beyond the present condition to one in which all members of the human family enjoy equally the full realization of their human rights.

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