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Fall 1989/Winter 1989-90

World Order

Peace—The Cultivation of a New
Consciousness
Editorial

Four Peace Messages, 1983-85:
A Comparison
John N. Danesh

The Spiritual Dimension of Social
Development
Mary Fish

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World Order

VOLUME 24, NUMBERS 1 & 2 • PUBLISHED QUARTERLY

WORLD ORDER IS INTENDED TO STIMULATE, INSPIRE, AND SERVE THINKING PEOPLE IN
THEIR SEARCH TO FIND RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN CONTEMPORARY LIFE AND CONTEMPORARY
RELIGIOUS TEACHINGS AND PHILOSOPHY

Editorial Board:

FIRUZ KAZEMZADEH

BETTY J. FISHER

HOWARD GAREY

ROBERT H. STOCKMAN

JAMES D. STOKES

Consultant in Poetry:

HERBERT WOODWARD MARTIN

Subscriber Service:

RONALD W. BROWNE

WORLD ORDER is published quarterly by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to WORLD ORDER, 536 Sheridan Road, Wilmette, IL 60091. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the publisher, the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, or of the Editorial Board. Manuscripts can be typewritten or computer generated. They should be double spaced throughout, with the footnotes at the end. The contributor should send three copies —an original and two legible copies—and should keep a copy. Return postage should be included. Send manuscripts and other editorial correspondence to WORLD ORDER, 415 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091.

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Copyright © 1991, National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. All Rights Reserved. Printed in the U.S.A.
ISSN 0043-8804

IN THIS ISSUE

2   Peace—The Cultivation of a New Consciousness

Editorial

4   Interchange: Letters from and to the Editor

5   Initial Faith

poem by Christine A. Boldt

5   Sun in My Second House: A Collection of Poems

poem by Judith A. Tugwell

7   Four Peace Messages, 1983-85: A Comparison

by John N. Danesh

20   The View from Cape Blanco

poem by Bob Mullin

21   The Bank Barn’s Tilt

poem by Len Roberts

23   The Spiritual Dimension of Social Development

by Mary Fish

Inside back cover: Authors & Artists in This Issue

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Peace—The Cultivation of a
New Consciousness

COLLAPSING ECONOMIES, endangered environment, and, most of all, the fear of nuclear holocaust, impel humanity to seek universal peace. Unfortunately, peace is often understood as merely an absence of war, and the causes of international instability are imagined to lie in disagreement and conflict among nations over specific interests and issues. Reality is much more complex than that.

Sixty years ago Shoghi Effendi, in a letter addressed to the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada, asked, “Is it not a fact . . . that the fundamental cause of this world unrest is attributable, not so much to the consequences of what must sooner or later come to be regarded as a transitory dislocation in the affairs of a continually changing world, but rather to the failure of those into whose hands the immediate destinies of peoples and nations have been committed, to adjust their system of economic and political institutions to the imperative needs of a rapidly evolving age? Are not these intermittent crises that convulse present-day society due primarily to the lamentable inability of the world’s recognized leaders to read aright the signs of the times, to rid themselves once for all of their preconceived ideas and fettering creeds, and to reshape the machinery of their respective governments according to those standards that are implicit in Bahá’u’lláh’s supreme declaration of the Oneness of Mankind . . . ?”

As long as obsolete notions of unlimited national sovereignty continue to govern relations among states, conflict is inevitable. Progress toward world peace demands the cultivation of a new consciousness, the consciousness of the oneness of all races and nations. “The Tabernacle of Unity,” Bahá’u’lláh proclaimed more than a century ago, “has been raised; regard ye not one another as strangers. . . . The world is but one country and mankind its citizens. . . . Let not a man glory in that he loves his country; let him rather glory in this, that he loves his kind.”

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Interchange LETTERS FROM AND TO THE EDITOR

ONE OF the features of our age has been a tendency for many to feel that organized religion has, perhaps, lost some of its ability to provide needed moral guidance and leadership. Hence it has gone generally unnoticed that during the decade just ended four major religious organizations, collectively representing hundreds of millions of people, independently issued major addresses to the peoples of the world on the subject of world peace. Never before has such a clear and simultaneously enunciated series of statements of moral leadership been spontaneously made by so many concerned religious leaderships. The fascinating article, “A Comparison of Four Peace Messages,” by John N. Danesh, provides a systematic analysis and comparison of those four messages that yields a number of insights about them and about the moment of history in which they were written.

Danesh compares the ways in which four great religious entities perceive their bases of moral authority, their primary concerns, their audiences, the nature of peace, the causes of and solutions to world problems, and the short- and long-term prospects for humankind. In the course of so doing Danesh discovers surprising and encouraging similarities among the messages. He finds in them “a growing convergence of thinking,” leading him to hope that recognizing those similarities might increase cooperation among religions in promulgating universal peace. But his study also shows how the messages reflect two fundamentally different approaches to the quest for peace— the one emphasizing within the present order progress in the attainment of individual liberties and a more pragmatic pursuit of disarmament; the other emphasizing a fundamental intellectual restructuring growing out of the need for a new world order built upon new intellectual principles. Whatever their differing modalities, the several messages together constitute a moral statement of historic magnitude.

The companion article in this issue, “The Spiritual Dimension of Social Development,” by Dr. Mary Fish, offers an example of what can be accomplished by a program of socioeconomic development that successfully blends the best qualities of vision and practicality. Her article describes the process by which the Universal House of Justice, the supreme governing and legislative body of the Bahá’í Faith—using a series of messages issued between 1983 and 1986— moved the Bahá’í community into a greater global involvement in socioeconomic projects. Her purpose is not to provide a narrative history and description of specific projects but to outline the conceptual framework underlying the Bahá’í approach to socioeconomic development—a framework that addresses the need for restructuring economic practices simultaneously at the international, national, local, and personal levels. She shows how a combination of diverse, well-conceived projects “embedded in the matrix of a carefully structured and functional administrative order” can produce major results from miniscule resources. She proposes that by adopting the spiritual, socioeconomic, and administrative principles outlined in her essay, the world might well find a model enabling it to move in an ordered and universally equitable way from a chaotic to a coherent and humane world economy.

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Initial Faith

in the month of Names,

i called myself Bahá’í

three times three times three was i

Christian,

Atheist, then

Bahá’í

rechristened in Thy glory,

I, Bahá’í

—Christine A. Boldt

Copyright © 1991 by Christine A. Boldt

Sun in My Second House:
A Collection of Poems

There’s a knife blade

in the grass and a tiger

lies beyond the fire

—Judith A. Tugwell

In this world all the

shadows stick together

and only my heart moves

—Judith A. Tugwell

The new sandal soon took

on all the impressions

of its master’s foot.

—Judith A. Tugwell

Copyright © 1988 by Judith A. Tugwell

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Four Peace Messages, 1983-85:
A Comparison

BY JOHN N. DANESH

Copyright © 1991 by John N. Danesh.

RELIGIONS have been involved in war and peace throughout history, and religious beliefs and practices have both caused wars and instilled the highest ideals of peace. This paradox has continued to be one of the notable features of the latter part of the twentieth century. While religious animosity has led to conflict and bloodshed in India, Lebanon, and Northern Ireland, for example, religious sentiment has also inspired many groups and individuals to take on leading roles in the promotion of peace.

The last decade, in particular, has witnessed a crystallization of ideas on peace. Many religious groups have made concrete proposals designed to promote peace. Several religious groups have even explicitly outlined their peace plans. From August 1983 to December 1985 at least four peace messages were addressed to all the peoples of the planet by religious bodies: the World Council of Churches’ “Peace and Disarmament,” the World Methodist Council’s “‘Peace for One and All’—the Message,” the Universal House of Justice’s (the international legislative and governing body of the Bahá’í Faith) The Promise of World Peace, and the Vatican’s “Peace Is a Value with No Frontiers North-South, East-West: Only One Peace.” These messages are significant because they represent contemporary religious thinking on political, economic, social, moral, and military issues related to peace. They also represent a largely unstudied source of ideas on ways to achieve peace and resolve conflicts.

A comparison of the messages demonstrates that the religious bodies agree, to a degree perhaps unsuspected, on a number of important issues, such as the obstacles in the way to peace, the necessity for international order, and the importance of human moral transformation. The messages also differ significantly in their treatments of both philosophical and practical issues, such as definitions of peace, views of human nature, and strategies for disarmament. Two classes of plans emerge: specific and complex proposals [Page 8] designed to create a new international order and strategies directed at limiting weapons production and testing and promoting negotiation between governments.

The Making of the Messages

BEFORE examining the messages, one should consider the circumstances under which they were written. The United Nations International Year of Peace in 1986 was an important factor that prompted several of the religious bodies to release their messages during the months before the beginning of that year.

Three of the messages make specific reference to the UN International Year of Peace. The World Council of Churches, for example, draws “special attention to the United Nations ‘International Year of Peace’ (1986) and the ‘World Disarmament Campaign.’” The message of the World Methodist Council urges Churches “to participate imaginatively in the International Year of Peace called by the United Nations for 1986,” The papal message describes the UN Year of Peace as a “noble effort [which] deserves our encouragement and support.”

Yet the UN Year of Peace cannot entirely account for the outpouring of religious concern for peace at that time. The prevailing international political climate during the first half of the 1980s was characterized by extreme tension. The escalation in the arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union and the breakdown of détente had created a renewed activism and concern for world peace. Passages in all of the messages reflect the great anxiety of the times. The World Council of Churches expresses the greatest alarm: “Never before has the human race been as close as it is now to total self-destruction.” The World Methodist Council refers to the threat of annihilation: “The world needs urgently to discover and accept an alternative to war if it is to survive.” The message of the Pope calls the current situation “fragile,” while the message of the Univeral House of Justice describes the moment as a “critical juncture.”

In such an international political climate it is easy to understand why the four religious bodies addressed their peace messages to the generality of humankind. By enlarging their audience from their own membership to all the people of the planet, the religious bodies highlighted the urgency and necessity of universal action. The Bahá’í message, for example, is addressed “To the Peoples of the World”; the World Methodist Council summons “people everywhere”; the World Council of Churches proclaims its message “to the world” but later specifically addresses churches; the Pope extends his message “to every individual and to all peoples of the earth.” Furthermore, two of the documents were written during international gatherings—a factor that may have contributed to the global character of those messages. The statement of the World Council of Churches on peace and disarmament appeared in July/August 1983 at the sixth assembly on peace and justice in Vancouver, Canada, while “Peace for One and All” was written at the World Methodist Council’s Peace Conference at Wesley’s Chapel, London, in July 1985.

The two other messages were written by the highest authorities of their respective religions. The message of Pope John Paul II was written for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace (1 January 1986) and is dated 8 December 1985. The Promise of World Peace was issued in October 1985 by the Universal House of Justice. This message marked the first occasion on which the Universal House [Page 9] of Justice addressed all the peoples of the earth. Among the four messages, The Promise of World Peace has been the most widely disseminated to the world at large.

Once the circumstances surrounding the writing of the peace messages have been established, the reasons stated by each of the religious bodies for issuing its respective peace message is revealing. The Universal House of Justice, for example, calls itself “the Trustees” of the Bahá’í Faith. Its reasons for writing The Promise of World Peace are essentially spiritual and moral: “It is out of a deep sense of spiritual and moral duty that we are impelled at this opportune moment to invite your attention to the penetrating insights first communicated to the rulers of mankind more than a century ago by Bahá’u’lláh, Founder of the Bahá’í Faith. . . .” The World Council of Churches, on its part, sees itself and other Christians “as stewards of God’s Creation.” This idea that Christianity and Christians have a predominant role in achieving world peace is central to the message: “As believers in One Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, we [Christians] are stewards of God’s hope for the future of creation.” The reason for writing the message is couched in language similar to the Bahá’í message: “It is with a deep sense of pastoral responsibility that we make these affirmations.” By contrast, the World Methodist Council does not refer to the source of its authority but explains the purpose of its statement from the outset: “We invite people everywhere to join us in a new commitment to peace-making, and to Jesus Christ as the Prince of peace.” In the first sentences of his statement the Pope identifies the origin of his authority and his rationale for writing the message: “At the beginning of the New Year, taking my inspiration from Christ, the Prince of Peace, I renew my commitment and that of the whole Catholic Church to the cause of peace. . . . Peace is a value of such importance that it must be proclaimed anew and promoted by all.”

A striking feature of the messages, therefore, is the contrast between the spiritual authority claimed by the religious bodies and the political, economic, and social strategies they advocate to achieve peace. Indeed, as will appear later in the examination of plans to achieve peace, the religious bodies ignore the dichotomy that putatively exists in the West between church and state by proposing policies designed to effect political, economic, social, and military change. The religious bodies espouse various temporal policies at the same time as they invoke their spiritual credentials.

Although the documents are similarly structured in pointing out the flaws of the prevailing order and then making suggestions for change, the peace messages vary considerably in length. That alone may account for many of the differences among the messages in terms of content, detail, emphasis, and evidence. Despite important differences in size, the messages allow comparisons and contrasts. While shorter messages do not have the space to develop arguments as fully as longer messages, the proportion of space devoted to certain themes often reveals the relative importance of certain topics to the different religious bodies.

Definitions of Peace

ALL THE MESSAGES make some reference to what peace means or ought to mean. A common starting point for the definitions of peace is that it is more than the absence of armed conflict. What peace entails beyond abolishing [Page 10] war is presented in a different manner by each religious group. An understanding of the definitions of peace presented in the messages is important because one must understand the various conceptions of ideal order before one may understand what the different religions feel is wrong with the present system.

According to the World Methodist Council, peace involves both personal and social transformation and is inseparable from the attainment of a just society: “Peace is more than personal tranquility or absence of war. In its fullness peace is the product of the gospel of personal salvation and social redemption. . . . righteousness and peace belong together, for peace comes through the gates of justice. . . . A just society requires men and women of justice.”

The World Council of Churches offers a similar definition of peace, affirming that justice and righteousness are inextricably linked with peace but also adding the particular need for international order and universal human rights: “Peace is not just the absence of war. Peace cannot be built on foundations of injustice. Peace requires a new international order based on justice for and within all nations, and respect for the God-given humanity and dignity of every person. Peace is, as the Prophet Isaiah has taught us, the effect of righteousness.”

The Pope’s vision of peace is a society constructed “on the basis of social justice and the dignity and rights of every human person.” He defines peace as a universal value “with no frontiers” and lists factors such as injustice, social and economic exploitation, the social divisions between rich and poor, clever manipulation by vested interests, and the use of force as those factors that cause peace to be lost. The message of the Pope also adds that “peace cannot be reduced to the mere absence of conflict; it is the tranquillity and completeness of order.”

The Bahá’í definition of peace refers to different stages in the development of a peaceful world. A peaceful order is described as “a social system at once progressive and peaceful, dynamic and harmonious, a system giving free play to individual creativity and initiative but based on co-operation and reciprocity.” Like the other messages, The Promise of World Peace expresses a vision of peace “transcending the cessation of war and the creation of agencies of international cooperation.” Complexity is added, however, when the Universal House of Justice states that “Permanent peace among nations is an essential stage, but not, Bahá’u’lláh asserts, the ultimate goal of the social development of humanity.” Armistice, political peace, pragmatic arrangements for security and coexistence, and experiments in cooperation are considered only preludes to “the crowning goal” of “the unification of all the peoples of the world in one universal family.”

World Views: The Nature of Human
Beings and the Direction of History

AFTER DEFINING peace, the messages discuss the relationship between human beings and peace and express different views of human nature. An appreciation of these diEerent views is important because they shape to a marked degree the role the religions ascribe to human beings in the achievement of world peace.

The World Methodist Council views peace as something that human nature alone is incapable of achieving: “World Peace is a gift of God. So great a goal cannot be achieved by human effort alone, but is effected by God through men and women. The struggle for peace must be grounded in prayer. The quest for peace begins in repentance. It requires constant dependence on the grace and inspiration of God.”

By contrast, the Universal House of Justice holds that the inherent potential and innate excellence of human beings are “the motivations for our unshakable faith that unity [Page 11] and peace are the attainable goal towards which humanity is striving.” But by attributing the intellect, wisdom, nobility, compassion, and “the gem-like reality” of human beings to the “infinite love” and “awesome majesty” of the divine Creator, the Universal House of Justice is also suggesting that God is ultimately the source of the human capacity to achieve peace. At the same time, the Universal House of Justice challenges the notion that aggression and conflict are intrinsic to human nature. Such a view of human nature, the message argues, leads to the fundamental and paralyzing contradiction that humankind is inevitably quarrelsome and nourishes “the falsehood that human beings are incorrigibly selfish and aggressive.” Instead, the conduct of human beings that is contrary to their inherently noble station should be viewed as “a distortion of the human spirit.”

The message of the Pope explains that sin or “human moral disorder” is the reason peace has not already been established. The papal message asserts that the redeeming grace of Christ is dispensed in the world by the Church, and it is the power of this grace that will transform the sinful human condition and create world peace: “Christians also know that the grace of Christ, which can transform this human condition, is continually being offered to the world, since ‘where sin increased, grace abounded all the more’ (Rom 5:20).” Although the World Council of Churches does not present an explicit position on the nature of human beings, it notes: “Christians cannot view the dangers of this moment as inherent in the nature of things.”

Historical perspective is also an important part of religion and is especially important in relation to the views of religious bodies on peace and eschatology. Views of history, like views of the nature of human beings, help reveal the underlying expectations of religious groups. Views of the past often provide a religion’s charter for the future. Indeed, almost every religion’s world view is colored by its view of human nature and history. This is particularly true in the case of the Bahá’í message. The Bahá’í view of history sees the human race developing in stages analogous to the stages in the life of an individual. The immature stages of childhood and adolescence have been characterized by turbulence, war, and exploitation; humanity’s approaching coming of age holds the potential for building a peaceful world. The transitional nature of the present time explains why both the drive toward world unity and the opposing tendency to warfare are “pervasive features of life on the planet during the closing years of the twentieth century.”

The Universal House of Justice suggests that history is an organic process with a clear and irresistible direction the goal of which is “the unification of the human race in a single social order whose boundaries are the planet.” History has witnessed the unity of family, tribe, city-state, and nation. Since nation-building has come to an end, the unity of humankind is the next logical step. The single most distinguishing feature of The Promise of World Peace is its conviction that world peace is inevitable and that peace represents “the next stage in the evolution of this planet.”

Since history has a purpose and direction, it is not surprising that, in the Bahá’í view, religion is regarded as the motive force of history. Humanity’s perception and practice of religion are described as “the stuff of history.” The Universal House of Justice describes the Founders of the great religions of the past “as agents of one civilizing process,” Who were Educators of humanity’s collective childhood. The purpose of creation is for all human beings “‘to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization.’” These views help explain why the Bahá’í message emphasizes the role of religion in achieving peace.

[Page 12] The world views and historical perspective of the other messages are centered on Jesus Christ. According to these views, the sinful human condition has created an unjust world. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross, however, was a watershed in history because it released the grace necessary to unify the world. According to the Pope:

Christians, enlightened by faith, know that the ultimate reason why the world is the scene of divisions, tensions, rivalries, blocs and unjust inequalities, instead of being a place of genuine fraternity, is sin, that is to say human moral disorder. . . . The Christian faith has as its focus Jesus Christ, who stretches out his arms on the Cross in order to unite the children of God who were scattered (cf. Jn 11:50), to break down the walls of division (cf. Eph 2:14), and to reconcile the peoples in fraternity and peace. The Cross raised above the world symbolically embraces and has the power to reconcile North and South, East and West. [emphases in the original]

The World Methodist Council affirms the centrality of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and its importance to achieving peace: “Jesus Christ lived, died and rose again to reconcile the world to God, persons to persons and nation to nation. . . . Peace is built upon Jesus Christ as Saviour, Lord and Liberator.” Peace is being built in the midst of a dangerous present: “despite the dangers of the present arms race, this promise of peace from God is already being realised among us.” According to this world view, peace is God’s will for humanity: “Peace is rooted in the nature and purposes of God. The Divine will is for all people to live together in enduring peace.” The World Council of Churches, likewise, views peace as a goal ordained by the “Lord of history.”

Diagnoses of the Prevailing System

IN diagnosing humanity’s current dilemma, the peace messages share a common structure: they first point out the promising features of the present system and then discuss its shortcomings.

Promising Signs. A notable feature of the messages is the discussion of favorable signs that represent steps already being taken toward the achievement of world peace. The passages range from passing references to long enumerations. The World Council of Churches, for example, speaks of promising signs in emotive but nonspecific terms: “we have been encouraged and strengthened by the movement of the Holy Spirit among us, leading the churches to undertake new initiatives. . . . The peoples of the world are coming to their feet in growing numbers, demanding justice, crying out for peace. These are present signs of hope.” Likewise, the papal message refers in a general way to signs of optimism: “If we study the evolution of society in recent years we can see, not only deep wounds, but also signs of a determination on the part of many of our contemporaries and of peoples to overcome the present obstacles in order to bring into being a new international system.” The message gives substance to these signs of determination by referring to the Geneva arms talks, the Helsinki talks on European cooperation, and the roles of the United Nations Commission on Trade and Development and the Convention of Lomé as positive examples of dialogue. Allied with these examples of hopeful signs is the “growing awareness that humanity has a profound unity of interests, vocation and destiny, and that all peoples, in the variety and richness of their different national characteristics, are called to form a single family.”

The Universal House of Justice elaborates on favorable trends in great detail, devoting all or significant parts of at least six paragraphs to the matter. Signs that suggest “the steadily growing strength of the steps towards world order” are particularly stressed. The emergence and rise of international and regional organizations, such as the United Nations [Page 13] and the European Communities, are viewed as evidences of forces impelling humanity toward world unity. The more than “two score declarations and conventions adopted” by the United Nations is another promising sign that will “advance the day when the specter of war will have lost its power to dominate international relations.” Scientific and technological advances, the drive toward world unity as expressed by the ecumenical movement, and the “spontaneous spawning of widening networks of ordinary people seeking understanding through personal communication” are among the many examples presented in The Promise of World Peace as favorable developments.

The World Methodist Council, like the Universal House of justice, devotes a significant part of its message to the hopeful signs for peace. Several promising signs are listed in both messages: the United Nations, the spirit of ecumenism, and the increasing activity of women. It is significant that three of the messages refer to the important contributions of women (and two of the messages to the important contributions of youth) in the pursuit of peace. The Universal House of Justice lists “the spread of women’s and youth movements calling for an end to war” among the favorable signs for the establishment of peace. The World Council of Churches refers to the decisive “insights and the leadership of women and youth” in “the promotion of one human family in justice and peace.” The World Methodist Council writes: “We are encouraged by the growing role of women in the church, political and international affairs.”

The Universal House of Justice is alone, however, in voicing the idea that scientific and technological progress is a positive force which will help to achieve world peace and strengthen international organization. By contrast, the other messages appear to avoid the subject of science or refer to it with suspicion. For example, the World Council of Churches speaks of the potential of “computer errors” in triggering a nuclear holocaust; the Pope addresses “scientists and technologists” in the same sentence in which he appeals to “military strategists” and “officers,” while the World Methodist Council’s only references to technology identify it with nuclear power, armaments, disease, poverty, and hunger. All this stands in striking contrast to the Bahá’í statement, which focuses on science’s enormous potential for good:

The scientific and technological advances occurring in this unusually blessed century portend a great surge forward in the social evolution of the planet, and indicate the means by which the practical problems of humanity may be solved. They provide, indeed, the very means for the administration of the complex life of a united world.

Obstacles to Peace. In addition to discussing promising signs of the present system, all of the peace messages reflect on many of the problems of the world. The different problems listed, and the different emphases given to these problems represent the points of departure of the various messages. Both the similarities and the differences can give insight on what each religious group considers the most pressing problems of the world.

One of the similarities of the messages is the attention they pay to the growing gap between rich and poor. Universally condemned, this gap is considered a major obstacle to the establishment of world peace. According to the Pope, underdevelopment and the “social and economic abyss that separates rich from poor” remain ever growing threats to world peace. The Universal House of Justice states that the disparity between rich and poor is “a source of acute suffering” that leads to global instability and keeps the world on the [Page 14] brink of war. Likewise, the World Council of Churches refers to “the economic threats to peace” and points out that “even without war, thousands perish daily in nations both rich and poor because of hunger and starvation.” The World Methodist Council states: “Poverty kills more people than armed conflict.”

Nationalism is also considered a major problem. The World Council of Churches points out that there is great need to counter the trend to characterize those of other nations and ideologies as the “enemy.” The result of such portrayals is suspicion, hatred, and prejudice. The deification of the state also leads to dangerous doctrines of national security in which “justice is often sacrificed on the altar of narrowly perceived national security interests.” The World Methodist Council similarly states: “Many of the methods adopted by States in their pursuit of ‘security’ are more threatening than reassuring.” The Universal House of Justice describes the need for a sense of world citizenship to supplant extreme nationalism: “Unbridled nationalism, as distinguished from a sane and legitimate patriotism, must give way to a wider loyalty, to the love of humanity as a whole.” The papal message also emphasizes the need to acknowledge the precedence of the common good of the entire family of nations above the good of any particular nation.

With the notable exception of The Promise of World Peace, the messages also dwell at length on the problems presented by the arms race. The first sentence of the statement of the World Council of Churches, for example, describes the “dark shadow of an arms race” and later speaks of “the frantic race toward nuclear conflagration.” Nuclear weapons, even in the absence of war, claim victims “through the lasting effects of nuclear bombings, weapons testing and the dumping of nuclear wastes.” These problems are compounded by “the rapidly escalating reliance on conventional weapons,” the expansion of the “largely male-dominated process of global militarization,” and the global expenditure of nearly two billion dollars each day for armaments. The Methodist message lists the testing and deployment of nuclear weapons, the militarization of outer space, and an increase in the production of conventional weapons as great obstacles to the attainment of peace. Likewise, the papal message describes the paralyzing fear created by nuclear weapons, the dire results of the increasing sale and purchase of arms, and the wasted resources devoted to “deadly weapons of destruction.”

Despite the similarities of some themes, each message presents its own constellation of obstacles, threats to peace, and world problems. The Pope lists general problems such as excessive self-interest and the formation of “blocs” as factors that lead to a spiral of polarization and mistrust. The Universal House of Justice, from the beginning of its message, speaks of the fusion of many intractable problems “into one common concern for the whole world.” This common concern is world peace, and some of the problems that have become interwoven are terrorism, the inability of the United Nations to eliminate war, the threat of economic collapse, and the perversion of religion. Materialism, racism, religious strife, the inequality of the sexes, and a lack of education and communication are also among the issues The Promise of World Peace identifies as having “immediate relevance to establishing world peace.” The underlying problem, however, is the replacement of morality and spirituality with hedonism and human-made ideologies that deify the state, subordinate the rest of humanity to one nation, race, or class, or suppress the interchange of ideas. “The dogmas of materialism, . . . whether of capitalism or [Page 15] socialism,” have created human misery and failed to provide “the moral stewardship they have presumed to exercise.”

The World Council of Churches considers homelessness, racism, trade wars, the omnipresence of the threat of financial collapse, competitive devaluation, the systematic violation of human rights, and the refugee problem as major hindrances to peace. In addition, corruption and racial, ethnic, cultural, religious, and ideological conflicts pose great threats to peace.

The message of the World Methodist Council refers to specific examples of many of the same general problems outlined in the other messages. Apartheid, religious strife (as experienced in Lebanon, the Middle East, and Northern Ireland), terrorism, poverty, hunger, the lack of Australian aboriginal rights, the heavy debts of Third World nations, and disease are all considered obstacles to peace. The message condemns the intervention of all states in the affairs of other states and cites two examples where this principle has been violated: Afghanistan and Nicaragua.

Strategies to Eliminate War and
Achieve World Peace

JUST AS THE peace messages all discuss the promising features and shortcomings of the present system, they also discuss strategies for eliminating war and achieving world peace. But the emphases in the messages differ.

International Order. The peace messages appear to agree that a new system of international relations and a new set of international institutions are required for the establishment of peace. They differ markedly, however, in the specificity and complexity with which they describe the structures and functions of the new international order.

At one extreme, the World Methodist Council appears to allude only to the need to create some new forms of organizations: “Peace in its fullness requires new structures of society. . . .” Although the World Council of Churches is more explicit in calling for international order, it does not describe this order in any detail: “Peace requires a new international order based on justice for and within nations. . . .”

The message of the Pope develops the theme considerably further. To establish the need for international organization, the papal message speaks of the “interlinked destinies” of all nations, the “interrelatedness of all the nations of the world,” and an “interdependence” that requires “worldwide solidarity and cooperation.” The Pope then states that it is necessary to set up new types of society and international relations in order to ensure that justice and peace are established on stable and universal foundations. This new international system is “the path humanity must take if it is to enter into an age of universal peace and integral development.”

A rough outline of the prerequisites for the new international system follows. The new world community must be “based on the personal commitment of everyone to make the basic and primary needs of humanity the first imperative of international policy.” The path to the development of this world community must be one of “solidarity, dialogue and universal brotherhood.” The political, economic, social, and cultural relations and systems must also be imbued with the values of solidarity and dialogue. As a start, humanity should undertake “to build structures that will ensure that solidarity and dialogue are permanent features of the world we live in.” The papal message also calls for the creation of unspecified but “special organisms of the world community that will watch over the common good of all peoples.”

In contrast to the general principles set out in the other messages, the vision of international organization presented in The Promise [Page 16] of World Peace is expressed in great detail. According to the Universal House of Justice, the precondition for world order and world peace is the consciousness of the oneness of humankind. This principle should be universally proclaimed, taught in schools, and constantly asserted in every nation in order to prepare all humanity for the organic changes in the structure of society which this principle implies.

The Bahá’í model of world order calls for a reconstructed and demilitarized world that is unified in terms of its spiritual purpose, political machinery, trade and finance, and script and language. This universal system should avoid excessive centralization and uniformity. In fact, infinite diversity should be the hallmark of the national characteristics of the federated units of this world government. This commonwealth of all nations should include institutions such as an international executive, a world parliament, and a supreme tribunal. Unfettered national sovereignty should cease to exist, and all the nations of the world should cede to this international government the rights to impose taxation, to maintain armaments, and to make war. This world community should sanction a single code of international law, demolish all economic and trade barriers, and recognize the interdependence of capital and labor. As a result of changes, a consciousness of world citizenship will gradually suffuse all people. Religious fanaticism, racial animosity, and militant nationalism will be extinguished.

Collective Security. Two of the messages contain, in addition to discussions of the nature of the new world order, references to the idea of collective security. The Bahá’í message proposes that all the nations of the earth immediately conclude a binding treaty that delineates the borders of all nations, makes certain all international agreements and obligations, and sets limits on the sizes of militaries and armaments. In a quotation from the Bahá’í writings, the binding force of collective security is clearly envisaged:

The fundamental principle underlying this solemn Pact should be so fixed that if any government later violate any one of its provisions, all the governments on earth should arise to reduce it to utter submission, nay the human race as a whole should resolve, with every power at its disposal, to destroy that government.

In the Bahá’í view, diplomacy is not enough to ensure collective security: “Based on political agreements alone, the idea of collective security is a chimera.” A new dedication and attitude must prevail.

The message of the World Council of Churches also advocates collective security. It recommends that collective security among nations must also be strengthened by a corresponding emphasis on the rights of individuals within nations—a concept of “people’s security”: “True security for the people demands respect for human rights, including the right to self-determination, as well as social and economic justice for all within every nation, and a political framework that would ensure it.” The World Council of Churches proposes that the security of any one nation is dependent on the security of all the nations of the world: “No nation can pretend to be secure so long as others’ legitimate rights to sovereignty and security are neglected or denied. Security can therefore be achieved only as a common enterprise of nations. . . .” Whereas the Bahá’í message proposes the drafting and adoption of an international covenant by all the nations of the earth to bring into effect the idea of collective security, the World Council of Churches encourages governments to reaffirm their commitment to the United Nations Charter, and to submit interstate conflicts to the Security Council.

Disarmament. It is surprising that, although all the messages state that peace is [Page 17] something far beyond the absence of war, the documents, with the exception of The Promise of World Peace, devote far more attention to strategies that reduce the likelihood of warfare than to plans designed to create the positive characteristics of a peaceful society that the messages identify. As a consequence, the arms race and the importance of disarmament are treated differently in the peace messages.

Unlike the other messages, The Promise of World Peace does not mention nuclear freezes or treaties designed to curtail certain types of weapons. This reflects the belief that the arms race is a symptom of other underlying problems. Conversely, the great attention given to strategies to decrease armaments in the other messages reflects their sentiment that the arms race is either an underlying hindrance to peace in itself or a serious symptom that needs urgent treatment.

The Pope asserts that “negotiations,” “mutually agreed upon measures,” and “international agreements” are the primary strategies that lessen the threat of nuclear weapons. Indeed, after expatiating on the paralyzing fear created by nuclear weapons, the Pope offers negotiations and treaties as the problem’s sole solution:

The only way to respond to this legitimate fear of the consequences of nuclear destruction is by progress in negotiations for the reduction of nuclear weapons and for the mutually agreed upon measures that will lessen the likelihood of nuclear warfare. I would like to ask the nuclear powers once again to reflect on their very grave moral and political responsibility in this matter. It is an obligation that some have also juridically accepted in international agreements. . . . [emphasis in the original]

Like the papal message, the statement of the World Council of Churches emphasizes “Multilateral conferences,” “bilateral negotiations,” and “unilateral initiatives” to build mutual confidence among the nations and peoples of the world. The World Council of Churches calls upon churches to increase their efforts to convince governments to negotiate and warns that the deployment of new nuclear weapons in Europe should be halted before “it is too late.” In addition, “There should be a complete halt in the production of nuclear weapons and weapons research and development in all nations, to be expeditiously enforced through a treaty.” This treaty-enforced nuclear freeze should be followed by the elimination of all present nuclear forces. In the meantime, the strategies of deterrence and “first strike” should be universally renounced, and a comprehensive test ban treaty, ratified.

The general plan proposed by the World Methodist Council is similar; “We pledge ourselves to work for the control and elimination of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction.” The strategies of the Methodist message are rather more specific than the other messages, however, in that the policies and actions of particular nations are supported or criticized. For example, the message first calls upon the United States and the Soviet Union to stop deployment of nuclear and conventional weapons. It also supports a general freeze on the production, testing, and deployment of further nuclear weapons and opposes their introduction into space. New Zealand is singled out for praise for its nuclear-free policy, and the concept of an independent nuclear-free Pacific is supported. France is called upon to end all nuclear testing in the Pacific.

By contrast, the Universal House of Justice considers treaty-making and negotiations, conducted without a broader context, superficial, simplistic, and temporary. Instead, the Bahá’í plan insists that “the primary challenge in dealing with issues of peace is to raise the context to the level of principle, as distinct from pure pragmatism”: “the abolition [Page 18] of war is not simply a matter of signing treaties and protocols; it is a complex task requiring a new level of commitment to resolving issues not customarily associated with the pursuit of peace.” The contrast between the Bahá’í approach and the other approaches is highlighted by the different emphases laid on banning destructive weapons. The statement of the World Council of Churches is representative of the other messages in its call for the prohibition of “the development and production of all weapons of mass destruction or indiscriminate effect, including chemical and biological means.” The Universal House of Justice, however, considers such matters of secondary importance:

Banning nuclear weapons, prohibiting the use of poison gases, or outlawing germ warfare will not remove the root causes of war. However important such practical measures obviously are as elements of the peace process, they are in themselves too superficial to exert an enduring influence. People are ingenious enough to invent yet other forms of warfare, and to use food, raw materials, finance, industrial power, ideology, and terrorism to subvert one another in an endless quest for supremacy and dominion. Nor can the present massive dislocation in the affairs of humanity be resolved through the settlement of specific conflicts or disagreements among nations. A genuine universal framework must be adopted.

The latter part of the Bahá’í message suggests what the “genuine universal framework” might be. It calls for a world convocation of rulers in which the leaders of all nations will deliberate on ways and means of achieving peace and then sign an all-embracing pact. One of the intended effects of this treaty is the limitation of armaments and military forces in the world. Hence, even the Bahá’í strategy to reduce weapons ultimately calls for a treaty, albeit a universal one that covers more issues than that of disarmament.

Spiritual Change. Despite the fact that most of the strategies offered are designed to effect changes in the political, military, and economic decisions of governments, the messages consider the spiritual or moral dimension of change to be the most fundamental. According to the Universal House of Justice, “peace stems from an inner state supported by a spiritual or moral attitude. . . .” The Pope writes that “It is above all the hearts and the attitudes of people that must be changed, and this needs a renewal, a conversion of individuals.” According to the World Methodist Council, “It is not by might and worldly power but by the strength of the Spirit that peace will come.”

Communication for a Peaceful
World-Dialague and Consultation

THE Catholic and the Bahá’í messages offer models of communication and decision-making that are intended to cultivate peace and conflict resolution. The papal message calls this form of communication “dialogue,” while the Bahá’í message calls it “consultation.” These models of communication are regarded as states of being or attitudes that can foster harmony and cooperation and that should be exemplified when any specific plan for peace is being pursued. According to the Pope: “All of the measures recommended [for peace] . . . rest on the solidarity of the human family traveling together along the path of dialogue.” And according to the Universal House of Justice: “Bahá’u’lláh insistently drew attention to the virtues and indispensability of consultation for ordering human affairs.” Both the Catholic and Bahá’í forms of communication are designed to transcend particular theories and differences. According to the papal message: “True dialogue goes beyond ideologies, and people meet in the reality of their human lives.” In describing how consultation [Page 19] can help solve the economic problems of the world, The Promise of World Peace indicates that the approach must be “devoid of economic and ideological polemics.”

Dialogue, as presented in the papal peace message, is essentially a process that serves as a pathway to discovery and as a destroyer of barriers:

Dialogue can open many doors closed by the tensions that have marked East-West relations. Dialogue is a means by which people discover one another and discover the good hopes and peaceful aspirations that too often lie hidden in their hearts. . . . Dialogue breaks down preconceived notions and artificial barriers. Dialogue brings human beings into contact with one another as members of one human family, with all the richness of their various cultures and histories.

Contact between cultures, the free communication of scholars, the free assembly of workers, and unrestricted travel are listed among the examples of dialogue.

By contrast, The Promise of World Peace presents consultation as a process needed to help actualize the “potent reality” of human thought. According to the Bahá’í writings, candid, dispassionate, and cordial consultation is a social necessity and a sign of maturity:

Consultation bestows greater awareness and transmutes conjecture into certitude. It is a shining light which, in a dark world, leads the way and guides. For everything there is and will continue to be a station of perfection and maturity. The maturity of the gift of understanding is made manifest through consultation.

The potency of consultative action is so great when it is used for peace that it “can release such a salutary spirit among the peoples of the earth that no power could resist the final, triumphal outcome.”

Conclusions

A STUDY of peace messages issued by the World Council of Churches, the World Methodist Council, the Universal House of Justice, and the Vatican is useful for several reasons. First, a comparison may result in the feeling that there is a growing convergence of thinking on many issues related to peace by different religious groups. The Promise of World Peace suggests that the driving force behind the convergence is the urge toward world unity. Despite some important differences among them, a study of the peace messages may represent one way by which the followers of different religions may realize the similarity of their aspirations and increase their level of cooperation to achieve the goals of peace and justice.

For the policymaker in search of ways to promote peace, an examination of these documents highlights two fundamentally different approaches to the achievement of peace. On the one hand, The Promise of World Peace advocates a total reconstruction of human civilization on a new ideological basis: the oneness of humankind and planetary interdependence. While this document presents proposals designed to eliminate war in the short-term, it views these steps as only a prelude to the ultimate goal of peace and world unity based on a new international order. The difficulty with this approach is that it requires a willingness on the part of every nation to accept a universal ideology and the great structural changes it implies.

On the other hand, the messages of the World Council of Churches and the World Methodist Council advocate policies that concentrate almost exclusively on disarmament. Their definitions of peace notwithstanding, this approach implies that peace is more or less a demilitarized version of the prevailing order. One of the difficulties with this approach is that many groups view the abolition [Page 20] of war, taken in isolation, as a move that entrenches the status quo with its many injustices and deep grievances. Since disarmament does not guarantee the removal of nondemocratic governments or grossly unjust economic systems, it can be argued that disarmament alone will not achieve peace, although it may abolish certain types of warfare. The message of the Pope incorporates elements of both the “new world order” and “disarmament” approaches, but it appears to emphasize the latter. Whatever their approaches to peace, these messages demonstrate that contemporary religious groups have both spiritual direction and secular policies to offer the peace movement.

The View from Cape Blanco

The wind howls, and though the overgrown slope

sits firm beneath his feet, remembers

the old ranger’s words, “A mile out to sea.”

He takes a tentative step northward

toward the surf crashing into a crescent beach

barely visible through the haze below.

Alone. He is alone. And he feels the winds protest,

screaming into the ears of an unwelcomed intruder

and shoving at him with bullying gusts.

Half turning in panic to run he knows not where,

caught in that instant between the cause and effect,

he discovers deep inside himself a harbor of calmness

his introversion had charted in his soul.

From there he sees his terror, and, once seen, it disappears.

Replacing it, a surge of joy awakens his senses:

Now part of the wind, he spreads his arms

to experience its sweeping power more fully;

his shout of ecstasy blends with the natural clamor;

above the ocean glowing faint blue-greens and greys,

a white sunball emerges from a fog hurtling past him.

Though awestruck by this view of a reborn earth,

he has not forgotten his fear—and for the first time

he feels he fully understands that flutter of doubt

he had seen in her eyes the moment he told her,

“I love you.”

—Bob Mullin

Copyright © 1991 by Bob Mullin

[Page 21]

The Bank Barn’s Tilt

Over three feet of snow in two

days and the guy who plows my driveway

bedded with flu, a slit in my green boots

and still I’m here under the maple,

shoveling the walk. When I straighten

my back to take the ache

out, I see the crazy angle the barn

has tilted into the past

hundred years, tell myself again that

someday

I will climb to bolt the steel

cables and winch the sides plumb, remembering

my friend’s story of the farmer down

the road who tried that, but the cable

snapped and knocked him thirty feet

into death. Death, death, death,

that’s all I think about, the fathers

ahead of me, one by one, going down,

the fathers behind me, rising, as

though I’m on an escalator and there’s

no way off. And there isn’t, the snow

seems to say by falling faster, thicker,

filming the walk again, the wind knocking

icicles off the gutter, making me duck, hunch

my shoulders until they stop dropping

and I can look up, see one about two feet

long stuck in the bank beside me, dazzling

the blank white with prism pinks and blues

and yellows.

—Len Roberts

Copyright © 1991 by Len Roberts

[Page 22]

[Page 23]

The Spiritual Dimension of
Social Development

BY MARY FISH

Copyright © 1991 by Mary Fish.

AS THE world’s efforts to solve its economic problems continue to falter and fail, people are becoming increasingly interested in the guidance offered by the Bahá’í writings on the myriad economic concerns confronting humankind. Involvement in economic development has been a part of the Bahá’í Faith from its inception, but it has become more visible since 1983, the year in which the Universal House of Justice (the supreme governing and legislative body of the Bahá’í Faith) directed Bahá’í communities to become more involved in socioeconomic development projects. Since then a number of such efforts have emerged around the globe, and earlier ones have grown, ranging from child education and adult-literacy classes, agricultural development programs, and training centers for skilled craftsmen to public health projects. The programs can be found in such diverse sites as Alaska, Liberia, and Bangladesh and range from modest to elaborately structured operations. While most observers can see that the Bahá’í projects are extraordinarily effective and innovative, few are fully aware of the unique features that make them work so well. An examination of the conceptual and historical framework of the Bahá’í economic programs clarifies the qualities that make them different from other economic systems thus far evolved by humankind.

Third World Development and the Emerging
Bahá’í Economic System

THE FEATURES of the Bahá’í economic system and the process by which it will emerge can be found in a number of letters from the Universal House of Justice written in 1983 and 1984, in The Promise of World Peace, released in 1985, and in a 1986 letter setting out goals for the Bahá’ís for 1986 through 1992.

[Page 24] The Universal House of Justice began to lay the groundwork for greater Bahá’í involvement in socioeconomic projects in its Riḍván (April) 1983 message to the Bahá’í world:

We may therefore be utterly confident that the new throb of energy now vibrating throughout the Cause will empower it to meet the oncoming challenges of assisting, as maturity and resources allow, the development of the social and economic life of peoples, of collaborating with the forces leading toward the establishment of order in the world, of influencing the exploitation and constructive uses of modern technology, and in all these ways enhancing the prestige and progress of the Faith and uplifting the conditions of the generality of mankind.

A subsequent letter from the Universal House of justice dated October 20, 1983, announced the establishment, at the Bahá’í World Center, of the “Office of Social and Economic Development, which is to assist the Universal House of Justice to promote and coordinate the activities of the friends throughout the world in this new field.” That message also reaffirmed the fact that the Bahá’í teachings embody the spiritual tenets that will establish the economic growth and order of nations, which Bahá’ís believe is God’s wish for humanity,

A third message, on January 2, 1984, to the Bahá’í world community, further elucidates the urgent need to assist the world in improving social conditions:

Beyond carrying on the general work of the Cause there are four areas where immediate action is required.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The third is in the prosecution of programs of social and economic development. Bahá’í communities in many lands have attained a size and complexity that both require and make possible the implementation of a range of activities for their social and economic development which will not only be of immense value for the consolidation of these communities and the development of their Bahá’í life, but will also benefit the wider communities within which they are embedded and will demonstrate the beneficial effects of the Bahá’í Message to the critical gaze of the world.

Funds for initiating and carrying out these projects will be dispensed very gradually and with great care in order not to undermine the natural growth and sense of responsibility of these communities, but the field is so vast, the opportunities so far-reaching, that the need will stretch the resources of the Cause to the uttermost.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . the time for the expansion of social and economic development as an aspect of the work of the Cause has arrived and cannot be neglected without grave consequences to the life of Bahá’í communities.

[Page 25] In 1985 the Universal House of Justice addressed to the peoples of the world The Promise of World Peace, a statement on the crucial issues facing the world. This document links the hopes for world peace and economic development to a fundamental intellectual restructuring based on a vision of world unity and delineates the elements of that process. There followed in 1986 a statement announcing the Bahá’í Six Year Plan, the goals of which included the development of long-range plans for building social and economic dependencies— orphanages, hospitals, hospices, schools, and libraries—in conjunction with Bahá’í Houses of Worship. In the plan Spiritual Assemblies, local governing bodies of the Bahá’í Faith, and individual Bahá’ís are encouraged to assess the social and economic needs of their communities and, with the resources available, to begin the projects that will improve their communities.

In the Bahá’í approach to development the process of building new socioeconomic structures is inextricably interwoven with both the basic tenets and the administrative order of the Bahá’í Faith. The Bahá’í world organization rests on elected local, national, and international institutions that administer the affairs of the global community. This functioning community provides the design for a future world commonwealth and is the vehicle that is successfully carrying out socioeconomic development projects.

Using a village setting where the development process is easily seen and the examples are clear-cut, Dr. Farzam Arbab, a founder of FUNDAEC (Fundación para la Aplicación y Enseñenza de las Ciencias) and a participant in its development programs, explains the relationship between individual development and socioeconomic transformation in the Bahá’í context. A village establishes itself as a Bahá’í community when villagers recognize the spiritual authority of Bahá’u’lláh. The community then establishes a regular nineteen-day gathering called a Feast at which Bahá’ís combine devotions, consultation about community affairs, and fellowship. Nine members of the community are elected to serve on the local Spiritual Assembly, which administers the affairs of the community. The Assembly’s responsibility to address the needs of the community requires it to have an integrated concern for the spiritual and economic aspects of the life of each member and for that of the community. In the process of attempting to fulfill its charge, the Assembly will gradually expand its capacities and functions. In striving to carry out that responsibility, Assembly members must consult on community spiritual and economic needs. Consultation, decisions based on frank and unfettered discussion of all topics, becomes the most important principle and means for Bahá’í community development.

Following guidelines offered by the Bahá’í Faith, the new Spiritual Assembly sets out to provide for education and then increases the scope of its activities [Page 26] by taking on “other processes and structures, such as health, housing, production, and infrastructure.” Projects such as these—for education, technical training, health, and agriculture—usually are seen as fundamental by third world communities. Such projects begin to build the moral, social, and economic infrastructure that enables the community to become a viable component within a world economic system. As Arbab points out, “Their search for the elements of a new village economy . . . is only meaningful when it is seen as a contribution to the larger global effort to discover a world economy entirely different from the present one, not only in its operation but also in its very logic and underlying purposes.”

Thus Bahá’í economic projects developing around the world are embedded in the matrix of a carefully structured and functional administrative order that may be used in accomplishing well-planned goals. Since the early 1900s Bahá’ís have been mobilizing their world resources to achieve community, regional, and international goals. But under the Six Year Plan initiated in 1986, Bahá’ís have stepped decisively into the arena of socioeconomic development. Following the direction of the appropriate Assemblies, which offer spiritual energy and direction, members from all over the world, be they orthopedic surgeons, biostatisticians, carpenters, groundwater geologists, mechanics, teachers, farm extension agents, or home economists, are committed to sharing their expertise with third world countries, in Uganda, Micronesia, Colombia, The Gambia, and elsewhere. Bahá’ís with experience, know-how, and expertise are increasingly being of service in the world community.

The Conceptual Framework of Bahá’í Economic Teachings

THE BAHÁ’Í approach to social and economic development is based on the fundamental belief that spiritual principles must be applied to economic problems. This premise simply means that “religion alone can, in the last resort, bring in man’s nature such a fundamental change as to enable him to adjust the economic relationships of society.” Until humankind makes this spiritual change and simultaneously readjusts the world’s economies in spiritually informed terms, the dream of economic growth and prosperity must remain a mere illusion.

[Page 27] As humanity’s spiritualized sensitivity begins to mature, and as civilization inevitably reaches for a higher stage of development—the unification of all humankind—many are collectively coming to realize the need for a social and governmental organization that unifies all nations and peoples and for a world commonwealth with a complementary world economy that has the capacity to encourage a more universally equitable access to wealth and opportunity. Increased understanding of this truth is creating a new impetus for change. Bahá’í economic teachings operate within the context of the evolving global social and political order resting on the unity of humankind. The Universal House of Justice explains:

World order can be founded only on an unshakable consciousness of the oneness of mankind, a spiritual truth which all the human sciences confirm. Anthropology, physiology, and psychology recognize one human species, albeit infinitely varied in the secondary aspects of life.

As the pace of change accelerates, the need for a more effective way of administering the world’s affairs becomes more apparent. The administrative order of Bahá’u’lláh, although embodying some of the features of current and past political and economic systems, could be improperly regarded at the moment as merely an improvement on our present systems, but it is newly created and based on a unique concept. Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith, explains the necessity for this approach:

it is preferable not to confuse the methods explained by the Master [‘Abdu’l-Bahá, son of Bahá’u’lláh, the Prophet-Founder of the Bahá’í Faith] with present systems. They may have many resemblances but also many points of difference. Moreover these general statements we have in the teachings have to be explained and applied by the House of Justice before we can really appreciate their significance.

Understanding the newness of the Bahá’í system is often difficult because to conceptualize the future, one invariably considers the organizations one knows, whether they are working well or not, and extrapolates from them into the twenty-first century. In the hope of envisioning the future economic system one tends to project pieces of Western economies, such as profit-sharing and progressive income taxes, into tomorrow’s systems. One hopes that the old and familiar can be salvaged and patched in a way that will eliminate the ever-intensifying world economic chaos. But such a piecemeal approach will not work.

It is necessary to recognize that the Bahá’í economic teachings do not present a complete system to be superimposed on our present economies. Although [Page 28] the Bahá’í writings present a few technical statements, they mainly present principles that, according to Shoghi Effendi, “are mostly intended to guide further Bahá’í economic writers and technicians to evolve an economic system which would function in full conformity with the spirit and the exact provisions of the Cause. . . .” Eventually the Universal House of Justice, in consultation with experts in economics, will mold and develop the Bahá’í contribution to the future economic system. However, now one can see the beginning of this process.

The socioeconomic system of the future age—the World Order of Bahá’u’lláh —will, Bahá’ís believe, be a new entity created out of the energy and teachings given by the Central Figures of the Faith (Bahá’u’lláh, the Báb, and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá). The Bahá’ís of today, working in their communities, are building the foundations for this order by putting into operation, through grassroots projects, the spiritual, socioeconomic, and administrative principles presented in the Bahá’í writings.

The selected Bahá’í economic teachings that follow describe the objectives and dimensions of the system that will evolve as a new world commonwealth develops. Although the grassroots projects of the present are limited, the emerging system will be an intricate network that encompasses the globe. A body of Bahá’í economic teaching provides guidance on global issues and economic relationships among nations. Other statements offer direction for national and smaller governmental units. Yet other principles proffer a dynamic way of life for businesses and individuals. All three areas are intertwined and will take on profound additional dimensions in the future.

Teachings for International Entities. Over the course of time a federated world government comprised of a parliament to legislate, a judiciary to interpret the law and settle disputes, and a world executive backed by a police force will emerge. When they are needed, supportive organizations to direct and regulate the activities of the world economy must be formed to supplement these governmental activities. Providing an overall view of this new world order’s operation, Shoghi Effendi, in broad and brilliant strokes, paints a picture of a world economy that is part of the new commonwealth:

A world metropolis will act as the nerve center of a world civilization, the focus towards which the unifying forces of life will converge and from which its energizing influences will radiate. . . . The economic resources of the world will be organized, its sources of raw materials will be tapped and fully utilized, its markets will be coordinated and developed, and the distribution of its products will be equitably regulated.

. . . The causes of religious strife will be permanently removed, economic barriers and restrictions will be completely abolished. . . . Destitution on the one hand, and gross accumulation of ownership on the other, will disappear. [Page 29] The enormous energy dissipated and wasted on war, whether economic or political, will be consecrated to such ends as will extend the range of human inventions and technical development, to the increase of the productivity of mankind, . . . to the exploitation of the unused and unsuspected resources of the planet, . . . and to the furtherance of any other agency that can stimulate the intellectual, the moral, and spiritual life of the entire human race.

Some future international frameworks are delineated in Shoghi Effendi’s description of future economic activity. Peace among nations will establish an environment that fosters international economic activity. The world legislature will control the world’s resources, provide an international currency, recognize that capital and labor are interdependent, and remove all exorbitant tariffs and quotas that have been used for protecting domestic industries or for revenue purposes.

Teachings for Nation-States. In the Bahá’í writings a body of guidelines applicable to national and regional economies also exists. Among others, macroeconomic directives specify some of the economic responsibilities of government and describe the overall structure and operation of a healthy economy. The directives in both these areas have far-reaching implications.

The Universal House of Justice calls for a new approach to economic systems, one that sets aside gross materialism:

The time has come when those who preach the dogmas of materialism, whether of the east or the west, whether of capitalism or socialism, must give account of the moral stewardship they have presumed to exercise. . . .

. . . it is in the glorification of material pursuits, at once the progenitor and common feature of all such ideologies, that we find the roots which nourish the falsehood that human beings are incorrigibly selfish and aggressive. It is here that the ground must be cleared for the building of a new world fit for our descendants.

National economies of the future, Bahá’ís believe, will function in a manner more consistent with Bahá’í values and tenets, using a system neither capitalistic or socialistic nor merely a blend of both extremes:

the Cause neither accepts the theories of the Capitalistic economics in full, nor can it agree with the Marxists and Communists in their repudiation of the principle of private ownership and of the vital sacred rights of the individual.

[Page 30] However, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá points out that “In like manner are the Bahá’í economic principles the embodiment of the highest aspirations of all wage-earning classes and of economists of various schools.”

The distribution of income invariably depends on the objectives, organization, and operational pattern of the political economy. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says that equal distribution of income in national economies is not a practical solution to the distribution of income. He concludes that it is not sustainable because it is not the natural order of things. In explaining why, He uses this example:

there will be preservation of degrees because in the world of humanity there must needs be degrees. The body politic may well be likened to an army. In this army, there must be a general, there must be a sergeant, there must be a marshal, there must be the infantry; but all must enjoy the greatest comfort and welfare.

However, although personal abilities differ and, therefore, contributions to society differ, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá substantiates the need for equal opportunities within societies.

The income distribution envisioned is clearly one in which both poverty and extreme wealth will vanish. Within these limits, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says, “everyone, as far as possible, according to his rank and position, shall share in comfort and well-being.” The reasons for the elimination of the extremes are clear, for, as ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says, “When we see poverty allowed to reach a condition of starvation, it is a sure sign that somewhere we shall find tyranny.” The Universal House of Justice points out that “inordinate disparity between rich and poor” causes great world suffering and instability. Thus, when considering the problem of income distribution, one immediately finds it obvious that “The solution calls for the combined application of spiritual, moral and practical approaches.”

Among their other roles, national and regional governments will perform nurturing functions. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá foresees the building of a House of Worship in every region. The House of Worship itself will be surrounded with supportive institutions or dependencies, including a “hospital, a drug dispensary, [Page 31] a traveller’s hospice, a school for orphans, and a university for advanced studies.” These buildings will operate as the center for assistance. All will be welcome: “There will be absolutely no line of demarcation drawn. Its charities will be dispensed irrespective of color or race. Its gates will be flung wide open to mankind; prejudice towards none, love for all.”

Using a village economy for illustrative purposes, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá recommends a village storehouse or a House of Finance (comparable, for example, to a treasury or federal bank) handled by an able committee that directs community affairs. The committee will collect taxes from multiple sources, such as tithes, percent of harvests, and taxes on animals. The necessary village expenditures will come from this storehouse. This same storehouse concept needs to be developed on a much larger scale for every city.

In His Tablet to the Kings, Bahá’u’lláh specifies the obligation to limit the burden of taxes for war expenditures:

Lay not aside the fear of God, O kings of the earth, and beware that ye transgress not the bounds which the Almighty hath fixed. . . . Tread ye the path of justice, for this, verily, is the straight path.

Compose your differences, and reduce your armaments, that the burden of your expenditures may be lightened, and that your minds and hearts may be tranquillized. Heal the dissensions that divide you, and ye will no longer be in need of any armaments except what the protection of your cities and territories demandeth.

Teachings for Businesses. Regarding the structure of businesses, the Bahá’í writings reaffirm private ownership of businesses. In fact, entrepreneurial activity is, and will continue to be, encouraged. The creativity of individuals will be fostered. The “capital and management” functions will continue to belong to the owner of the business, and those of “work and labor” will fall under the aegis of the work force, but with both being treated in a more spiritually sophisticated way.

The owner of the business is seen as responsible to the workers for pensions and retirement. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá recommended profit sharing as a way of eliminating one type of economic problem, pointing out that, because of inequities between the manufacturer and the labor force,

laws and regulations should be established which would permit the workmen to receive from the factory owner their wages and a share in the fourth or fifth part of the profits, according to the capacity of the factory; or in some [Page 32] other way the body of workmen and the manufacturers should share equitably the profits and advantages.

Cooperation between management and labor is the watchword in the Bahá’í writings. In the commonwealth of the future strikes should be disallowed and replaced with arbitration. If disputes between labor and management are not settled amicably, there is justification for intervention by the courts. In this view, disputes are not merely private concerns inasmuch as “commerce, industry, agriculture and the general affairs of the country are all intimately linked together. If one of these suffers an abuse, the detriment affects the mass. Thus the difficulties between workmen and manufacturers become a cause of general detriment.”

Teachings for the Individual. The Universal House of Justice states that “the working of the material world is merely a reflection of spiritual conditions and until the spiritual conditions can be changed there can be no lasting change for the better in material affairs.” Personal economic teachings, therefore, center on the spiritual responsibilities that each of us must assume. The essential ingredient “is the spirit that has to permeate our economic life, and this will gradually crystallize itself into definite institutions and principles that will help to bring about the ideal condition foretold by Bahá’u’lláh.”

The type of personal orientation required for interrelated global prosperity is described by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in these words:

We ask God to endow human souls with justice so that they may be fair, and may strive to provide for the comfort of all, that each member of humanity may pass his life in the utmost comfort and welfare. Then this material world will become the very paradise of the Kingdom, this elemental earth will be in a heavenly state and all the servants of God will live in the utmost joy, happiness and gladness.

Personal economic guidelines are intertwined with spiritual responsibilities. The individual is to pursue a career. Productive work done in the spirit of service becomes worship. Bahá’u’lláh states: “We have graciously exalted your engagement in such work to the rank of worship unto God. . . .” The [Page 33] benefits of study and work in both the arts and sciences are stressed. Regarding science, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says that “A scientific man is a true index and representative of humanity. . . . It [science] is the very foundation of all individual and national development. Without this basis of investigation, development is impossible.”

In the commonwealth of the future all must work. Begging is proscribed by Bahá’u’lláh: “The most despised of men in the sight of God are those who sit idly and beg.” He places responsibility on the poor to improve their lot:

Please God, the poor may exert themselves and strive to earn the means of livelihood. This is a duty which, in this most great Revelation, hath been prescribed unto every one, and is accounted in the sight of God as a goodly deed. Whoso observeth this duty, the help of the invisible One shall most certainly aid him.

Humankind is given a prayer by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá that asks for an increase in economic well-being so that all may be free from depending on others and “may commune wholly with Thee.” However, Bahá’u’lláh enjoins us not to be preoccupied with material goals. In His attitude toward wealth He offers a glimpse of the ever-changing process of life when He writes that, “If poverty overtake thee, be not sad; for in time the Lord of wealth shall visit thee. Fear not abasement, for glory shall one day rest on thee.”

Bahá’u’lláh also explains the process through which wealth becomes a worthy supplement to one’s life:

man should know his own self and recognize that which leadeth unto loftiness or lowliness, glory or abasement, wealth or poverty. Having attained the stage of fulfillment and reached his maturity, man standeth in need of wealth, and such wealth as he acquireth through crafts or professions is commendable and praiseworthy in the estimation of men of wisdom, and especially in the eyes of servants who dedicate themselves to the education of the world and t0 the edification of its peoples. They are, in truth, cup-bearers of the life-giving water of knowledge and guides unto the ideal way. They direct the peoples of the world to the straight path and acquaint them with that which is conducive to human upliftment and exaltation.

In the Bahá’í teachings concerning individuals, wealth is laudable, particularly if it is earned by individuals’ efforts in commerce, agriculture, art, and industry and if it be spent for philanthropic purposes. Above all, should innovative [Page 34] and skillful individuals through their efforts and fortitude enrich humankind, “there could be no undertaking greater than this, and it would rank in the sight of God as the supreme achievement,” for such benefactors “would supply the needs and insure the comfort and well-being of a great multitude.”

In the Bahá’í context material wealth could become a challenge to the owner. In current society, to a significant extent, wealth is synonymous with power. This combination allows one to sublimate more easily the need for God. In turn, the joy of workmanship and the spiritual rewards of worshipping through work may be lost. But Bahá’u’lláh makes it clear that “The best of men are they that earn a livelihood by their calling and spend upon themselves and upon their kindred for the love of God, the Lord of all worlds.” Human beings are to enjoy good foods, lovely clothes, pleasant homes—the material goods that simplify the process of living and make their lives more sweet and comfortable. However, the caveat is that they not allow material things to come between themselves and God. They should, in the Bahá’í phrase, remain “detached” or independent of material possessions. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá enjoins everyone to be careful consumers: “Content thyself with but little of this world’s goods! Verily, economy is a great treasure.” “Economy is the foundation of human prosperity. The spendthrift is always in trouble. Prodigality on the part of any person is an unpardonable sin.” To protect an individual from “the consequences of his own actions,” gambling is prohibited, as are the consumption of drugs and spirits for recreational purposes.

The affluent have responsibilities to humanity. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá refers to the rich as “guardians of the poor.” Voluntary giving by the rich to improve the welfare of the poor is an esteemed act:

Among the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh is the voluntary sharing of one’s property with others among mankind. This voluntary sharing is greater than [Page 35] [legally imposed] equality, and consists in this, that man should not prefer himself to others, but rather should sacrifice his life and property for others. But this should not be introduced by coercion so that it becomes a law and man is compelled to follow it. Nay, rather, man should voluntarily and of his own choice sacrifice his property and life for others, and spend willingly for the poor, just as is done in Persia among the Bahá’ís.

Summary

OBSERVERS have the exciting privilege of visualizing the beginnings of a global economy now being laid in third-world countries. The grass-roots development projects being organized throughout the world at the direction of the Universal House of Justice give glimpses of the ways in which spiritual solutions can be applied to economic problems.

The Bahá’í writings clearly state that the future pivots on the recognition of the fundamental unity of humankind. The Bahá’í teachings, which provide a comprehensive foundation for the world commonwealth that Bahá’ís are building, include principles, directives, and goals to guide the development of future socioeconomic institutions. The international, macroeconomic. and microeconomic tenets presented in the Bahá’í writings will find complete expression in the future commonwealth envisioned in the writings. As the new civilization unfolds, the appropriate economic institutions will gradually evolve, perhaps in a synergistic manner, and necessary technical details will be expanded. Without a doubt, the system will be far more progressive and effective than anything, at present, envisioned.

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Authors & Artists

CHRISTINE BOLDT is publications manager for Automobile Invoice Service, which publishes the New Car Cost Guide and its software version, Chek-Price. She has published articles in Photomethods, Biomedical Communications, and T.H.E. Journal.

JOHN DANESH is in his final year at Otago University Medical School in Dunedin, New Zealand. He has published more than a dozen scholarly articles in publications such as Religious Studies and The New Zealand International Review and has won national debating titles in New Zealand, Australasia, and the United States.

MARY FISH is a professor of economics at The University of Alabama. She has taught in the business schools of five universities, was a Fulbright senior lecturer at the University of Liberia, and has worked for the Gambian government, the U.S. Army Forces in Tokyo, and the states of California and Iowa. Dr. Fish’s research has centered on the impact of international tourism in developing countries and gender economies. Her many publications include a book, chapters in anthologies, monographs, and over sixty articles.

BOB MULLIN, an English teacher in Oregon, holds a B.S. degree in journalism from the University of Oregon and an M.A. degree in teaching from Lewis and Clark College. The Oregon coast was the inspiration for “The View from Cape Blanco.”

LEN ROBERTS is a professor of English at Northampton Community College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. His Black Wings was selected for the 1988 National Poetry Series published by Persea Books; Sweet Ones was selected in 1987 for the Great Lakes & Prairies Award. His other books of poetry include Cohoes Theater (1981) and From the Dark (1984).

JUDITH A. TUGWELL teaches English to Central American and Mexican immigrant teenagers. Her interests include calligraphy, the art and history of medieval Europe and Japan, black-and-white photography, karate, and yoga.

ART CREDITS: Cover design by John Solarz; photograph by Charlotte Hockings; p. 1, photograph by Steve Garrigues; p. 3, photograph by Steve Garrigues; p. 6, photograph by Steve Garrigues; p. 22, photograph by Steve Garrigues; p. 36, photograph by Susan Reed.

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