Bahá’í World/Volume 4/Bahá’u’lláh: The Voice of Religious Reconciliation
THE BAHA’I WORLD
BAHÁ’U’LLÁH:THE VOICE OF RELIGIOUS RECONCILIATION
The Unity and Continuity of Divine Revelation
THEY Who are the Luminaries of truth and the Mirrors reflecting the light of the unity of God, in whatever age and cycle they are sent down from their invisible habitations of ancient glory unto this world, to educate the souls of men and endue with grace all created things, are invariably endowed with an all-compelling power, and invested with invincible sovereignty. For these hidden Gems, these concealed and invisible Treasures, in themselves manifest and vindicate the reality of these holy words: ‘Verily God doeth whatsoever He willeth, and ordaineth whatsoever He pleaseth.’
“To every discerning and illumined heart it is evident that God, the unknowable Essence, the Divine Being, is immensely exalted beyond every human attribute, such as corporeal existence, ascent and descent, egress and regress. Far be it from His glory that human tongue should adequately recount His praise, or that human heart comprehend His fathomless mystery. He is and hath ever been veiled in the ancient eternity of His Essence, and will remain in His Reality everlastingly hidden from the sight of men. ‘No vision taketh Him in, but He taketh in all vision; He is the Subtile, the All-Perceiving.’ . . .
“. . . The door of the knowledge of the Ancient of Days being thus closed in the face of all beings, the Source of infinite grace, according to His saying: ‘His grace hath transcended all things; My grace hath encompassed them all’ hath caused those luminous Gems of holiness to appear out of the realm of the spirit, in the noble form of the human temple, and be made manifest unto all men, that they may impart unto the world the mysteries of the unchangeable Being, and tell of the subtleties of His imperishable Essence. These sanctified Mirrors, these Daysprings of ancient glory are one and all the Exponents on earth of Him Who is the central Orb of the universe, its Essence and Ultimate Purpose. From Him proceed their knowledge and power; from Him is derived their sovereignty. The beauty of their countenance is but a reflection of His image, and their revelation a sign of His deathless glory. They are the Treasuries of Divine knowledge, and the Repositories of celestial wisdom. Through them is transmitted a grace that is infinite, and by them is revealed the light that can never fade. . . .
“. . . These attributes of God are not
and have never been vouchsafed specially
unto certain Prophets, and withheld from
others. Nay, all the Prophets of God, His
well-favored, His holy and chosen Messengers,
are, without exception, the bearers of
His names and the embodiments of His
attributes. They only differ in the intensity
of their revelation, and the relative potency
of their light. Even as He hath revealed:
‘Some of the Apostles We have caused to
excel the others.’ It hath become therefore
manifest and evident that within the
tabernacles of these Prophets and chosen Ones
of God the light of His infinite names and
exalted attributes hath been reflected, even
though the light of some of these attributes
may or may not be outwardly revealed from
these luminous Temples to the eyes of men.
That a certain attribute of God hath not
been outwardly manifested by these Essences
of detachment doth in no wise imply that
they Who are the Daysprings of God’s
attributes and the Treasuries of His
holy[Page 4]
names did not actually
possess it. Therefore,
these illuminated Souls, these beauteous
Countenances have, each and every one of
them, been endowed with all the attributes
of God, such as sovereignty, dominion and
the like, even though, to outward seeming,
they be shorn of all earthly majesty. . . .
“. . Furthermore, it is evident to thee that the Bearers of the trust of God are made manifest unto the peoples of the earth as the Exponents of a new Cause and the Bearers of a new Message. Inasmuch as these Birds of the Celestial Throne are all sent down from the heaven of the Will of God, and as they all arise to proclaim His irresistible Faith, they therefore are regarded as one soul and the same person. For they all drink from the one cup of the love of God, and all partake of the fruit of the same tree of oneness. These Manifestations of God have each a twofold station. One is the station of essential unity. In this respect, if thou callest them all by one name, and dost ascribe to them the same attribute, thou hast not erred from the truth. Even as He hath revealed: ‘No difference do We make between any of His Messengers.’ For all of them summon the people of the earth to acknowledge the Unity of God, and herald unto them the Kawthar of an infinite grace and bounty. They are all invested with the robe of Prophethood, and honored with the mantle of glory. Thus hath Muḥammad, the Point of the Qur’án, revealed: ‘I am all the Prophets.’ Likewise, He saith: ‘I am Adam, Noah, Moses, and Jesus.’ A similar statement hath been made by Alí. Sayings such as this, which indicate the essential unity of those Exponents of Oneness, have also emanated from the Channels of God’s immortal utterance, and the Treasuries of the gems of Divine knowledge, and been recorded in the scriptures. These Countenances are the recipients of the Divine Command, and the Daysprings of His Revelation. This Revelation is exalted above the veils of plurality and the exigencies of number. Thus He saith: ‘Our Cause is but one.’ Inasmuch as the Cause is one and the same, the Exponents thereof also must needs be one and the same. Likewise, the Imáms of the Muḥammadan Faith, those lamps of certitude, have said: ‘Muḥammad is our first, Muḥammad our last, Muḥammad our all.’
“It is clear and evident to thee that all the Prophets are the Temples of the Cause of God, Who have appeared clothed in divers attire. If thou wilt observe with discriminating eyes, thou wilt behold them all abiding in the same tabernacle, soaring in the same heaven, seated upon the same throne, uttering the same speech, and proclaiming the same Faith. Such is the unity of these Essences of being, those Luminaries of infinite and immeasurable splendor. Wherefore, should one of these Manifestations of holiness proclaim, saying: ‘I am the return of all the Prophets,’ He verily speaketh the truth. In like manner, in every subsequent Revelation, the return of the former Revelation is a fact, the truth of which is firmly established. . . .
“. . . We have already in the foregoing pages assigned two stations unto each of the Luminaries arising from the Daysprings of eternal holiness. One of these stations, the station of essential unity, We have already explained. ‘No difference do We make between any of them.’ The other is the station of distinction, and pertaineth to the world of creation and to the change and chances thereof. In this respect, each Manifestation of God hath a distinct individuality, a definitely prescribed mission, a predestined Revelation, and specially designated limitations. Each one of them is known by a different name, is characterized by a special attribute, fulfils a definite Mission, and is entrusted with a particular Revelation. Even as He said: ‘Some of the Apostles We have caused to excel the others. To some God hath spoken, some He hath raised and exalted. And to Jesus, the Son of Mary, We gave manifest signs, and We strengthened Him with the Holy Spirit.’
“It is because of this difference in their station and mission that the words and utterances flowing from these Well-springs of Divine knowledge appear to diverge and differ. Otherwise, in the eyes of them that are initiated into the mysteries of divine wisdom, all their utterances are in reality but the expressions of one truth. As most of the people have failed to appreciate those stations to which We have referred, they therefore
Exterior of the Holy Tomb of Bahá’u’lláh at Bahjí.
Entrance to the Holy Tomb.
[Page 6]
feel perplexed and
dismayed at the varying utterances pronounced
by Manifestations that are essentially one
and the same.
"It hath ever been evident that all these divergences of utterance are attributable to differences in station. Thus, viewed from the standpoint of their oneness and sublime detachment, the attributes of Godhead, Divinity, Supreme Singleness, and Inmost Essence, have been and are applicable to those Essences of being, inasmuch as they all abide on the throne of Divine Revelation, and are established upon the seat of Divine Concealment. Through their appearance the Revelation of God is made manifest, and by their countenance the Beauty of God is revealed. Thus it is that the accents of God Himself have been heard uttered by these Manifestations of the Divine Being.
“Viewed in the light of their second station—the station of distinction, differentiation, temporal limitations, characteristics and standards—they manifest absolute servitude, utter destitution and complete self-effacement. Even as He saith: ‘I am the servant of God. I am but a man like you.’
“From these incontrovertible and fully demonstrated statements strive thou to apprehend the meaning of the questions thou hast asked, that thou mayest become steadfast in the Faith of God, and not be dismayed by the divergences in the utterances of His Prophets and Chosen Ones. “Were any of the all-embracing Manifestations of God to declare: ‘I am God!’ He verily speaketh the truth, and no doubt attacheth thereto. For it hath been repeatedly demonstrated that through their Revelation, their Attributes and Names, the Revelation of God, His Names and His Attributes, are made manifest in the world. Thus, He hath revealed: ‘Those shafts were God’s, not Thine!’ And also He saith: ‘In truth, they who plighted fealty to Thee, really plighted that fealty to God.’ And were any of them to voice the utterance: ‘I am the Messenger of God,’ He also speaketh the truth, the indubitable truth. Even as He saith: ‘Muḥammad is not the father of any man among you, but He is the Messenger of God.’ Viewed in this light, they are all but Messengers of that Ideal King, that unchangeable Essence. And were they all to proclaim: ‘I am the Seal of the Prophets,’ they verily utter but the truth, beyond the faintest shadow of doubt. For they are all but one person, one soul, one spirit, one being, one revelation. They are all the manifestation of the ‘Beginning’ and the ‘End,’ the ‘First’ and the ‘Last,’ the ‘Seen’ and 'Hidden’—-all of which pertain to Him Who is the innermost Spirit of Spirits and eternal Essence of Essences. And were they to say: ‘We are the servants of God,’ this also is a manifest and indisputable fact. For they have been made manifest in the uttermost state of servitude, a servitude the like of which no man can possibly attain. Thus in moments in which these Essences of being were deep immersed beneath the Oceans of ancient and everlasting holiness, or soared to the loftiest summits of Divine mysteries, they claimed for their utterance to be the Voice of Divinity, the Call of God Himself. Were the eye of discernment to be opened, it would recognize that in this very state, they have considered themselves utterly effaced and non-existent in the face of Him Who is the All-Pervading, the Incorruptible. Methinks, they have regarded themselves as utter nothingness, and deemed their mention in that Court an act of blasphemy. For the slightest whisperings of self, within such a Court, is an evidence of self-assertion and independent existence. In the eyes of them that have attained unto that Court, such a suggestion is itself a grievous transgression. How much more grievous would it be, were aught else to be mentioned in that Presence, were man’s heart, his tongue, his mind or soul, to be busied with anyone but the Well—Beloved, were his eyes to behold any countenance other than His beauty, were his ear to be inclined to any melody but His voice, and were his feet to tread any way but His way.
“In this day the breeze of God is wafted, and His Spirit hath pervaded all things. Such is the outpouring of His grace that the pen is stilled and the tongue is speechless.
“By virtue of this station, they have claimed for themselves to be the Voice of Divinity and the like; and by virtue of their station of Messengership, they have declared themselves‘ the Messengers of God. In every
‘Abdu’l-Bahá in the garden surrounding the Tomb at Bahjí. May 1, 1921.
[Page 8]
instance they have voiced an
utterance that would conform to the requirements
of the occasion, and have ascribed all these
declarations to themselves, declarations ranging
from the realm of Divine Revelation to the
realm of creation, and from the domain of
Divinity even unto the domain of earthly
existence. Thus it is that whatsoever be their
utterance, whether it pertain to the realm
of Divinity, Lordship, Prophethood,
Messengership, Guardianship, Apostleship or
Servitude, all is true, beyond a shadow of
doubt. Therefore, these sayings which We
have quoted in support of our argument
must be attentively considered, that the
divergent utterances of the Manifestations of
the Unseen and Daysprings of holiness may
cease to agitate the soul and perplex the
mind. . . .
“. . . Consider the past. How many, whether high or low, have, at all times, yearningly awaited the advent of the Manifestations of God in the sanctified persons of His chosen Ones. How often have they expected His coming, how frequently have they prayed that the breeze of divine mercy may blow, and the promised Beauty may step forth from behind the veil of concealment, and be made manifest unto all the world. And whensoever the portals of grace would open, and the clouds of divine bounty would rain upon mankind, and the light of the Unseen would shine above the horizon of celestial might, they all denied Him and turned away from His face—the face of God Himself. . . .
“. . . Reflect, what could have been the motive for such deeds? What could have prompted such behavior towards the Revealers of the beauty of the All-Glorious? And whatever hath in days gone by been the cause of the denial and opposition of those people hath now led to the perversity of the people of this age. To maintain that the testimony of Providence was incomplete, that it hath therefore been the cause of the denial of the people, is but open blasphemy. How far from the grace of the AllBountiful, and from His loving providence and tender mercies, to single out a soul from amongst all men for the guidance of His creatures, and, on one hand, to withhold from Him the full measure of His divine testimony, and, on the other, inflict severe retribution on His people for having turned away from His chosen One! Nay, the manifold bounties of the Lord of all beings have at all times, through the Manifestations of His Divine Essence, encompassed the earth and all that dwell therein. Not for a moment hath His grace been withheld, nor have the showers of His loving-kindness ceased to rain upon mankind. Consequently, such behavior can be attributed to naught save the petty-mindedness of such souls as tread the valley of arrogance and pride, are lost in the worlds of remoteness, walk in the ways of their idle fancy, and follow the dictates of the leaders of their faith. Their chief concern is mere opposition, their sole desire to ignore the truth. Unto every discerning observer it is evident and manifest that had these people in the days of each of the Manifestations of the Sun of Truth sanctified their eyes, their ears and their hearts from whatever they had seen, heard, and felt, they surely would not have been deprived of beholding the beauty of God, nor strayed far from the habitations of glory. But having weighed the Testimony of God by the standard of their own knowledge, gleaned from the teachings of the leaders of their faith, and found it at variance with their deficient understanding, they arose to perpetrate such unseemly acts. . . .
“. . . Consider Moses! Armed with the
rod of celestial dominion, adorned with the
white hand of divine knowledge, and proceeding
from the Parán of the love of God,
and wielding the serpent of power and
everlasting majesty, He shone forth from the
Sinai of light upon the world. He summoned all
the peoples and kindreds of the
earth to the kingdom of eternity, and invited
them to partake of the fruit of the
tree of faithfulness. You are surely aware
of the fierce opposition of Pharaoh and his
people, and of the stones of idle fancy which
the hand of the infidel has cast upon that
blessed tree. So much so that Pharaoh and
his people finally arose and exerted their
utmost endeavor to extinguish with the waters
of falsehood and denial the fire of that
sacred tree, oblivious of the truth that no
earthly water can quench the flame of divine
wisdom, nor mortal blasts
extinguish[Page 9]
the lamp of everlasting
dominion. Nay,rather, such water cannot but
intensify the burning of the flame, and such
blasts cannot but ensure the preservation of
the lamp, were ye to observe with the eye of
discernment and to walk in the way of God’s holy
will and pleasure. . . .
“. . . And when the days of Moses were ended, and the light of Jesus, striving forth from the Daysprings of the Spirit, encompassed the world, all the people of Israel rose in protest against Him. They clamored that He Whose advent the Bible had foretold must needs promulgate and fulfil the laws of Moses, whereas this youthful Nazarene, who lay claim to the station of the Divine Messiah, had annulled the law of divorce and of the Sabbath day . . . the most weighty of all the laws of Moses. Moreover, what of the signs of the Manifestation yet to come? These people of Israel are even unto the present day expecting that Manifestation which the Bible hath foretold! How many Manifestations of holiness, how many Revealers of the light everlasting have appeared since the time of Moses, and yet Israel, wrapt in the densest veils of satanic fancy and false imaginings, is still expectant that the idol of her own handiwork should appear with such signs as she herself hath conceived! Thus hath God laid hold of them in their vices, hath extinguished in them the spirit of faith, and tormented them with the flames of the nethermost fire. And this for no other reason except that Israel refused to apprehend the meaning of such words as have been revealed in the Bible concerning the signs of the coming Revelation. As she never grasped their true significance, and, to outward seeming, such events never came to pass, she therefore remained deprived of recognizing the beauty of Jesus and of beholding the Face of God. ‘And they still await His coming.’ From time immemorial even unto this day all the kindreds and peoples of the earth have clung to such fanciful and unseemly thoughts, and thus deprived themselves of the clear waters streaming from the springs of purity and holiness. . . .
“. . . To them that are endowed with understanding it is clear and manifest that when the fire of the love of Jesus consumed the veils of Jewish limitations, and His authority was made apparent and partially enforced, He, the Revealer of the Unseen Beauty, addressing one day His spiritual companions, referred unto His passing, and kindling in their hearts the fire of bereavement, said unto them: ‘I go away and come again unto you.’ And in another place He said: ‘I go and another will come Who will tell you all that I have not told you, and will fulfil all that I have said.’ Both these sayings have but one meaning, were you to ponder upon the Manifestations of holiness with divine insight. Every discerning observer will recognize that in the Qur’ánic Dispensation both the Book and the Cause of Jesus were confirmed. As to the matter of names, Muḥammad Himself declared: ‘I am Jesus.’ He recognized the truth of the signs, prophecies, and words of Christ, and testified that they were all of God. In this sense, neither the person of Christ nor His writings have differed from that of Muḥammad and of His holy Book, inasmuch as both have championed the Cause of God, uttered His praise, and revealed His commandments. Thus it is that Jesus Himself declared: ‘I go and shall again return.’ Consider the sun. Were it to say now: I am the sun of yesterday, it would speak the truth. And should it, bearing the sequence of time in mind, claim to be other than that sun, it still would speak the truth. In like manner, if it be said that all the days are but one and the same, it is correct and true; differ, that again is true. For although one and the same, yet one doth recognize in each a separate designation, a specific attribute, a particular character. Conceive accordingly the distinction, variation and unity characteristic of the various Manifestations of holiness, that you may comprehend the allusions made by the Creator of all names and attributes to the mysteries of distinction and unity, and discover the answer to your question as to why that everlasting Beauty should have, at sundry times, called Himself by a different name and title. . . .
“. . . When the Unseen, the Eternal, the Divine Essence, caused the Daystar of Muḥammad to rise above the horizon of knowledge,
Looking towards ‘Akká and Haifa from the mansion at Bahjí.
The tomb of Bahá’u’lláh and the mansion from the pines at Bahjí.
[Page 11]
among the objections
which the Jewish divines raised against
Him was that after Moses no Prophet should
be sent of God. Yea, mention hath been made
in the scriptures of a Soul Who must needs
be made manifest and Who will advance the Faith,
and promote the interests of the people of
Moses, so that the Law of the Mosaic
Dispensation may encompass the whole earth.
Thus hath the King of eternal glory referred
in His Book to the words uttered
by those wanderers of the vale of remoteness
and error: ‘The hand of God,’ say the
Jews, ‘is chained up.’ Chained up by their
own hands! And for that which they have
said, they were accursed. ‘Nay, outstretched
are both His hands.’ ‘The hand of God is
above their hands.’
“Although the commentators of the Qur’án have related in divers manners the circumstances attending the revelation of this verse, yet thou shouldst endeavor to apprehend the purpose thereof. He saith: 'How false that which the Jews have imagined! How can the Hand of Him Who is the King in truth, Who caused the countenance of Moses to be made manifest, and conferred upon Him the robe of Prophethood—how can the hand of such a One be chained and fettered? How can He be conceived as being powerless to raise up yet another Messenger after Moses? Behold the absurdity of their saying; how far it hath strayed from the path of knowledge and understanding!’ Observe how in this day also, all this people have occupied themselves with such foolish absurdities. For over a thousand years they have been reciting this verse, and unwittingly pronouncing their censure against the Jews, utterly unaware that they themselves, openly and privily, are voicing the sentiments and belief of the Jewish people! Thou art surely aware of their idle contention, that all Revelation is ended, that the portals of Divine mercy are closed, that from the Daysprings of eternal holiness no sun shall rise again, that the Ocean of everlasting bounty is forever stilled, and that out of the Tabernacle of ancient glory the Messengers of God have ceased to be made manifest. Such is the measure of the understanding of these small-minded, contemptible people! The flow of God’s all—encompassing grace and plenteous mercies, the cessation of which no mind can contemplate, these have imagined it to have been arrested. From every side they have risen and girded up the loins of tyranny, and exerted the utmost endeavor to quench with the bitter waters of their idle fancy the flame of God’s burning Bush, oblivious that the globe of power shall within its own mighty stronghold protect the Lamp of God. . . .
“. . . Behold how the sovereignty of Muḥammad, the Messenger of God, is today apparent and manifest amongst the people. You are well aware of what befell His Faith in the early days of His dispensation. What woeful sufferings did the hand of the faithless and the lost, the divines of that age and their associates, inflict upon that spiritual Essence, that most pure and holy Being! How abundant the thorns and briars which they have strewn over His path! It is evident that that wretched generation, in their wicked and satanic fancy, regarded every injury to that immortal Being a means to the attainment of abiding felicity; inasmuch as the recognized divines of that age, such as ‘Abdu’lláh-i-Ubay, Abú-‘Ámir, the hermit, Ka’b-Íbn—i-Ashraf, and Nard-Íbn-i-Hárith, have all treated Him as an impostor, and pronounced Him a lunatic and a calumniator. Such sore accusations they brought against Him that in recounting them God forbiddeth the ink to flow, Our pen to move, or the page to bear them. These malicious imputations provoked the people to arise and torment Him. And how fierce would be that torment if the divines of the age be its chief instigators, if they denounce Him to their followers, cast Him out from their midst, and declare Him a miscreant! Hath not the same befallen this servant, and been witnessed by all?
"For this reason did Muḥammad cry out:
‘No Prophet of God hath suffered such harm
as I have suffered.’ And in the Qur’án are
recorded all the calumnies and cavillings
uttered against Him, as well as all the
afflictions which He suffered. Refer ye
thereunto, and haply ye will be informed of that
which hath befallen His Revelation. So
grievous was His plight, that for a time
all[Page 12]
ceased to hold intercourse
with Him and His companions. Whoever associated
with Him fell a victim to His enemies’ relentless
cruelty. . . .
“. . . Consider, how great is the change today! Behold, how many are the Sovereigns who bow the knee before His name! How numerous the nations and kingdoms who have sought the shelter of His shadow, who bear allegiance to His Faith, and pride themselves therein! From the stall and choir there ascends today the hymn which in utter lowliness glorifies His blessed name, and from the heights of minarets there resounds the call that summoneth the concourse of His people to adore Him. Even those Kings of the earth who have refused to embrace His Faith and to put off the garment of unbelief, none the less confess and acknowledge the greatness and overpowering majesty of that Daystar of loving-kindness. Such is His earthly sovereignty, the evidences of which thou dost on every side behold. This sovereignty must needs be revealed and established either in the lifetime of every Manifestation of God or after His ascension unto His true habitation in the realms above. . . .
“. . . It is evident that the changes effected in every Dispensation constitute the dark clouds that intervene between the eye of man’s understanding and the Divine Luminary which shineth forth from the dayspring of the Divine Essence. Consider how men have for generations been blindly imitating their forefathers, and been trained according to such ways and manners as have been laid down by the dictates of their Faith. Were these men, therefore, suddenly to discover that a Man Who hath been living in their midst, Who with respect to every human limitation hath been their equal, had risen to abolish every established principle imposed by their Faith—principles by which for centuries they have been disciplined, and every opposer and denier of which they have come to regard as infidel, profligate, and wicked—they would of a certainty be veiled and hindered from acknowledging His truth. Such things are as clouds that veil the eyes of those whose inner being hath not tasted the Salsabíl of Detachment, nor drunk from the Kawthar of the knowledge of God. Such men, when acquainted with these circumstances, become so veiled that without the least question they pronouncc the Manifestation of God an infidel, and sentence Him to death. Such things you must have witnessed and heard since the earliest days, and are observing them at this time.
“It behooves us, therefore, to exert the utmost endeavor, that by God's invisible assistance these dark veils, these clouds of Heaven-sent trials, may not hinder us from beholding the beauty of His shining Countenance, and that we may recognize Him only by His own Self. . . .”
Bahá’u’lláh: The Kitab-i-Íqán
Thus the Bahá’í Revelation is not at all an abrogation of Judaism, Christianity or Islám. On the contrary, it is the fulfilment of each through the removal of the accumulations of human error and misinterpretation that have obscured and rendered impotent the divine light and power implicit in the life and teachings of the Founders of these great religions. “It is not a new Religion, it is Religion renewed,” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said of it. And in its light the Prophets of the past are seen to have been but one Spirit, manifesting in different bodies and employing different languages and forms, according to the widely varied needs of the peoples to whom their messages were addressed. But all teaching, fundamentally, the same great message, and each forming an integral and essential part of the one mighty stream of spiritual evolution, which is to flow together again outwardly in this day through the new understanding given us by Bahá’u’lláh.
In explaining the word of Bahá’u’lláh, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá taught that there are two aspects of religion, primary and secondary. One basic, fixed and never changing; the fundamental spiritual realities, such, for instance, as love and brotherhood and the unity of God. The other relative, fluid and constantly changing with each successive Prophet, such as forms of worship, ritual, etc., and the social and economic laws which the progress and development of the period and people he addressed demanded. It is through misunderstanding the secondary
Views of the tomb of Bahá’u’lláh at Bahjí.
[Page 14]
importance and impermanence of this
latter aspect that religious differences and conflicts
have arisen. Our spiritual leaders and
theologians, quite understandably, have fastened
their attention upon these more conspicuous
secondary matters—forms of worship, laws and
social customs—and have
found them incompatible with and not so
good (as indeed they were not, for them)
as those revealed through that Prophet who
had spoken directly to their own epoch and
had given an interpretation of the Spirit
applicable to their particular need. The
inevitable result of this limited view has been
religious antagonism, bitterness and even
war; and the underlying unity of principle
and purpose in all the great religious systems
has been completely veiled to our eyes,
blinded, as they have been, by this narrow
prejudice and bigot The teachings of
Bahá’u’lláh have removed this veil and restored
our sight.
But with this new vision come, also, the same dangers that have created the difficulties of the past. Recognition of the real unity and brotherhood and basic interdependence of humanity demands far-reaching changes in our habits of thought, our laws and customs. This means, for the religious communities to which we have been attached, an adjustment of attitude and practice to this new order and an elimination from beliefs and observances of everything that tends toward exclusiveness, and the emphasis of differences from their fellows of other confessions—wrong attitudes, heavily stressed today in the orthodox doctrines of all the great religions.
Thus the danger of further religious strife, and the question of whether a Bahá’í can continue in complete fellowship with his former religious community, depend upon how readily that community, whatever the confession, accepts and puts into practice these changes and adjustments so obviously necessary to conform with the spirit of today, and which are already embodied in the Bahá’í teaching and practice. History, including the pitiless martyrdoms of Bahá’ís in Persia, even in recent years, certainly makes it doubtful whether these changes will prove acceptable to the established religious communities. It is to be hoped, however, that orthodoxy will come to realize that only the secondary and impermanent features of its belief are to be disturbed; features which must yield before advancing knowledge, or spiritual, social and economic stagnation will inevitably ensue. In no slightest degree do these changes affect the basic teachings of any of the established religions, nor lessen in any measure whatsoever, the stature and the influence of any of their Founders. Rather, the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh leads to a broader and more profound understanding of our own particular Leader and of His teaching, whichever of the Prophets He may be, while at the same time lifting us up into a clearer air of perfect harmony and unity with our fellows the world over, of whatever religion, race or nationality. M.M.
