The Promised Day of God/Text

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Bahá’í House of Worship Wilmette, Ill.

“The gates will be flung wide open to mankind: Prejudice toward none, love for all"

’ §\\ The Promisai Day o£ God

[Page 2]A FEW APPRECIATIONS OF THE BAHA’I FAITH

Sm FRANCIS YOUNGHUSBAND: “The Bahá’í faith has roots which go deep into the past—yet it looks far into the future.”

TOLSTOY, in 1908 wrote, “Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings now present us with the highest and purest form of religious teaching.”

DR. GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER: “I sympathize with the Bahá’í faith with all my heart because it has the spirit of Christ in it.”

One of England’s greatest scholars, DR. BENJAMIN JOWETT of Oxford, had this to say—“This Bahá’í movement is the greatest light since the time of Jesus Christ." "You must watch it and never let it out of your sight." “It is too great and too near for this generation to comprehend—the future alone will reveal its import.”

DR. NELS F. S. FERRE, Vanderbilt School of Religion, in his great little book, Strengthening the Spiritual Life,* writes, “I have been surprised at the depth and devotional character of the best in Bahá’í Scriptures as presented in Townshend’s The Promise of All Ages.” *Harper & Brothers.

DAVID RHYS WILLIAMS, in a recent book entitled World Religions and the Hope for Peace,* writes: “Bahá’u’lláh, in the judgment of many, possessed the tenderness of St. Francis, the courage of Socrates, the meekness of Moses, the sanity of Confucius, the missionary vigor of Mohammed, the moral majesty of Isaiah, the compassion of Buddha, and the saintliness of Jesus.” “Today several millions of people throughout the world hail this person as the Hope of World Peace and the Saviour of all mankind." *Beacon Press.

[Page 3]TRUTHS FOR A NEW DAY

Promulgated by 'A bdu’l-Baha’

Throughout North America in 1912

These teaching were given by

Bahá’u’lláh over seventy years

ago and are to be found in His published writings of that time.

. The oneness of mankind.

.Independent investigation of

truth.

. The foundation of all religions is

one.

. Religion must be the cause of

unity.

. Religion must be in accord with

science and reason.

. Equality between men and wom en.

. Prejudice of all kinds must be for gotten.

8. Universal peace.

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. Universal education. 1 0.

Spiritual solution of the economic problem.

A universal language.

An international tribunal.

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WORDS FOR THE WORLD

“/5 there any remover 0/ difficulties save God? Say: Praised be God! He is God! All are His servants, and all abide by His bidding!"

“O God, refresh and gladden my spirit. Purify my heart. lllumine my powers. I lay all my affairs in Thy hand. Thou art my guide and my refuge."

Jesus said the leaders and so-called wise men of His day knew “many things” but they did not know the day in which they were living.

“Do you know in what day you are living?

“Do you realize in what dispensation you are alive?

“Have you not read in the Holy Scriptures that at the consummation of the ages there shall appear the great day of God—the promised day of all ages?”

Before telling about this great day of God, it might be well to quote an excerpt from a dynamic editorial which appeared in the widely read Chrtstian Cemury—“By sacrificing principles, all of us may be engulfed in an atomic holocaust. Today, we stand cynical and resigned: without peace, without honor—we stand helpless in the face of ever-mounting disaster, to regain control of our destiny. In a World where

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[Page 5]we exercise preponderant power, civilization is sliding towards the abyss and we refuse to stop it, and we refuse to stop it because we no longer hold to those principles which we once regarded as supreme—so, leaderless and morally bankrupt, we are drifting toward disaster . . . the highest duty which the church can render the nation today is to call the .people to almighty God in prayer, that He Will send a leader, or leaders, who will guide our thoughts in a wholly new direction and we will pray, night and day, that when that leadership appears, we will have the courage to follow it and not to crucify it.”

Today, small groups of people in 120 countries believe that this leadership, promised for this age, has appeared and once again it has been crucified. This should not surprise us, because, as we read history, we learn that the great spiritual leaders—the founders of the world religions—always appear as the 01d civilization disintegrates and they are always rejected and persecuted. These prophets of God bring the light and guidance necessary to get man back on the path to God. A living and loving God speaks to His children in every age in accordance with the needs of a changing world. In the words of Lowell: “God sends His teachers unto every age, to every clime and race of men with revelation fitted to their growth and shape of mind.”

Today, it is of vital importance for E5]

[Page 6]everyone to know the glad-tidings of this new age. Two light-bringerS—two prophets of God have appeared with the divine remedy for our sick and troubled world. The first to appear was a youth called the Bab in Persia. The Báb announced the dawn of a new era in 1844. These life—giving words of the Báb to his disciples help us understand the greatness of this new dayfi-“O my beloved friends! You are the bearers of the name of God in this day! . . . Immensely exalted is this day above the days of the Apostles of old! . . . Immeasurable is the difference! You are the witnesses of the dawn of the promised day of God! You are the partakers of the mystic chalice

of His revelation! . . . Purge your hearts of worldly desires, and let angelic virtues be your adorning! . . . The days when idle wor ship was deemed sufficient are ended! The time is come when naught but the purest motive supported by deeds of stainless purity can ascend to the throne of the Most High and be acceptable unto Him . . . I am preparing you for the advent of a mighty day! . . . Scatter throughout the length and breadth of this land, and, with steadfast feet and sanctified hearts, prepare the way for His coming. Heed not your weaknesses and frailty! Fix your gaze upon the invincible power of the Lord, your God, the Almighty. Has He not, in past days, caused Abraham, in spite of his seeming helplessness, to triumph over the forces of Nimrod? Has He not enabled Moses, whose

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[Page 7]staff was his only companion, to vanquish Pharaoh and his hosts? Has He not established the ascendancy of Jesus, poor and lowly as he was in the eyes of men, over the combined forces of the Jewish people? Has He not subjected the barbarous and militant tribes of Arabia to the holy and transforming discipline of Muhammad, his prophet? Arise in His name! Put your trust wholly in Him and be assured of ultimate victory!”

The second light-bringer or prophet of God, also to appear in Persia, was Bahá’u’lláh. Nineteen years after the Báb’s declaration in 1863 Bahá’u’lláh proclaimed to all mankind the opening of a new revelation and the advent of the day of God promised from the foundation of the world. The following words from the pen of Bahá’u’lláh himself indicate the supreme importance of this day. . . . “The revelation which, from time immemorial, hath been acclaimed as the purpose and promise of all the prophets of God . . . hath now been revealed unto men. The advent of such a revelation hath been heralded in all the sacred scriptures.” “Yet, the peoples of the world are wrapped in a strange sleep: Bestir yourselves, O people, in anticipation of the days of divine justice, for the promised day is now come! Beware lest ye fail to apprehend its import and be accounted among the erring.” This Divine message was proclaimed from within prison walls to leaders of the world. What was the response? “As of old. the religious

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[Page 8]leaders and the rulers of the nations rejected or ignored the Divine summons.”

Thereupon Bahá’u’lláh over 80 years ago foretold quite accurately the course humanity was to take—the course always taken when man rejects or ignores God’s message. He wrote: “The vitality of man’s belief in God is dying out in every land; nothing short of His wholesome medicine can ever restore it.” He indicated that humanity would have to be purged in the crucible of fire and suffering, and that a new race of man, God conscious and with the universal point of View, would arise and establish a world civilization.

When the Roman Empire Was disintegrating, the philosophers and statesman of that day were steeped in despair as they saw their world crumble. On the other hand, there were small groups of spiritually minded, spiritually alert people who had the spirit of Christ in their hearts. They had a sense of mission, an enthusiasm, an assurance about the future that no other people had at that time.

Today in over 100 countries of the world, little groups of Bahá’ís, followers of Bahá’u’lláh, have the enthusiasm, the assurance, and the sense of mission of the early Christians because they are “destined to hold aloft and undimmed the torch of divine guidance as the shades of night desEend upon and ultimately engulf the entire human race.” “Theirs is the function

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[Page 9]amidst the perils and agonies of this day to witness to the vision, to proclaim the approach of that re—created society, that Christ—promised kingdom, the world order of Bahá’u’lláh.”

Many see the death pangs of an old order but do not see the birth pangs of a new and glorious age. The greatest spiritual drama of all time is now unfolding in all parts of the globe. Those who arise to play their part in this divine drama, putting God and His cause first, become new creatures, filled with a love, an enthusiasm, compared with which earthly joys and sorrows are but as dust in the balance. We are told: “There is a power, a mysterious power, in this cause beyond the ken of men and angels.” “Should a man, all alone, arise in the name of Bahá and put on the armor of His love, him will the Almighty cause to be victorious, though the forces of earth and heaven be arrayed against him.” “Armed with the power of Thy name. nothing can ever hurt me and with Thy love in my heart all the world’s afflictions can in no wise alarm me.”

In the Bahá’í writings we read: “Lift up your hearts above the present and look with eyes of faith into the future. . . . Rejoice and be glad that this day of God has dawned. Try to realize its power for it is indeed wonderful.”

“The doors of the kingdom are opened —the sun of truth is shining upon the world

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[Page 10]~the fountains of life are flowing—the day-springs of mercy have appeared—the greatest and most glorious light is now manifest to illuminate the hearts of men! Wake up and hear the voice of God calling from all parts of the supreme world:‘Come unto Me, O ye children of men! Come unto Me, O ye who are thirsty, and drink from the sweet water which is descending in torrents upon all parts of the globe.’ Now is the time! Now is the accepted time! Look ye at the time of Christ! Had the people realized that the Holy Spirit of God was speaking to them through His divine mouth, they would not have waited three centuries before accepting Him. And now is it meet for you, that while ye are sleeping upon the beds of idleneSS and neglect, the Father foretold by Christ has come amongst us and opened the greatest door of bounteous gifts and divine favors? Let us not be like those in past centuries who were deaf to His call and blind to His beauty: But let us try and open our eyes that we may see Him and open our ears that we may hear Him, and cleanse our hearts that He may come and abide in our temples.

“These days are the days of faith and deeds—not the days of words and lip service. Let us arise from the sleep of negligence and realize what a great feast is prepared for us, first eating thereof ourselves, then giving unto others who are thirsting

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[Page 11]for the water of knowledge and hungering for the bread of life.

“These great days are swiftly passing and once gone can never be recalled so while the rays of the sun of truth are still shining, and the Center of the Covenant of God is manifest, let us go forth to work, for after awhile the night will come and the way to the vineyard will not then be so easy to find.

“The light of knowledge hath appeared before which the darkness of every superstitious fancy will be annihilated. The hosts of the supreme concourse are descending to assist all those who rise up to serve their Lord, to subdue and gain the victory over the city of the hearts, to proclaim the glad—tidings of the coming of the Lord, and to unite the souls of His creatures.”

WORDS FOR THE WORLD

“1 say unto you that anyone who will arise in the Cause of God at this time shall be filled with the spirit of God and He will send His hosts from heaven to help you if you have faith. And now I give you a commandment which shall be for a cavenant between you and me—that you have faithm-that your faith be as steadfast as a rock that no storms can move—that nothing can distltrb——-and that it endure through all things—even to the end—even should you hear that your Lord has been crucifiedsuffer not your faith to be shaken for I am with you always. Whether living or dead. I am with you to the end. As your faith is. so shall your powers and your blessings be. This is the standard—this is the standardthis is the standard.”

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[Page 12]BAHA’I LITERATURE

THE PROMISE OF ALL AGES By GEORGE TOWNSHEND Sometime Canon 01‘ St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin Archdeacon of Clonfert $1.00 This is perhaps best introductory book for Christians.

THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL By GEORGE TOWNSHEND '

This book shows “the narrative. the prophecies and the promises of the Bihle lead natu rally up to the BAHA’I FAITH." $1.00 THE MISSION OF Bahá’u’lláh By GEORGE TOWNSHEND $2.25

“This book is intended to expand the versonal and devotional aspect of the BAHA’I FAITH not less than the historical”—The author states that part of this book “is in fact a response to the first stirrings of that new spiritual life which Bahá’u’lláh breathes into those who turn to Him, and are in a small way a true record of the devotional approach made by a Christian home to the realization of the DAY of GOD.”

Bahá’u’lláh AND THE NEW ERA By I. E. ESSLEMONT, M.B., Ch.B.. F.B_E.A. This book gives the essence of the BAHA’I

TEACHINGS. 75c THE GLAD TIDINGS OF Bahá’u’lláh By GEORGE TOWNSHEND $1.25

A compilation of Bahá’í sacred writings.

THE DIVINE ART OF LIVING $1.50

“The sources of the compilation are, mainly the written words of Bahá’u’lláh, the founder of the Bahá’í faith, and the written words and public addresses of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the INTERPRETER of the FAITH.”

Some of the chapters—Trust in God. Prayer and Meditation—The Power of the Holv Spirit—Faith and Certitude—Healing and Health—Tests and Afflictions—Eternal LIFE

Bahá’í Publishing Committee Wilmette, Ill.