World Order/Volume 14/Issue 1/Text
WORLD ORDER
THE BAHÁ’Í MAGAZINE
APRIL, 1948
God as Revealed in Nature
Eleanor S. Hutchens
A Prayer for Unity, Poem
Ellen Sims
Bahá’í Gifts for the Children
Amy Brady Dwelly
Newer Gardens, Poem
Jean Comstock White
What Now? Editorial
Garreta Busey
At Home in Eternity
Katharine P. Cole
Quatrains, Poems
Gertrude W. Robinson
Pioneer Spirit
Etty Graeffe
Has Science Replaced Religion?
(Concluded)
G. A. Shook
High Lights of the Newer Testament
A Compilation from the Bahá’í Writings
Marian Crist Lippitt
With Our Readers
20¢
WORLD ORDER is published monthly in Wilmette, Ill., by the Publishing Committee of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States and Canada. Garreta Busey, Editor; Eleanor S. Hutchens, Mabel H. Paine, Flora Hottes, Associate Editors.
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Make checks and money orders payable to World Order Magazine,
110 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois. Entered as second
class matter April 1, 1940, at the post office at Wilmette, Ill.,
under the Act of March 3, 1879. Content copyrighted 1948 by
Bahá’í Publishing Committee. Title registered at U. S. Patent
Office.
ONE MONTH IN ADVANCE
Race prejudice is not instinctive. These children, snapped at a ball game
in New York, have no thought of it.
I HAVE known about the Bábís for a long time, and have always been interested in their teachings . . . .
THEREFORE, the teachings of the
Bábís, inasmuch as they have rejected the old Muḥammadan
superstitions and have not established new
superstitions which would divide them from other
new superstitions . . . . and inasmuch as they keep
to the principal fundamental ideas of brotherhood,
equality and love, have a great future before them.
CONCERNING your third question, I
answer that so far as I understand Islám, like all
other religions, Brahmanism, Buddhism, Confucianism,
etc., it contains great basic truths but that these
have become corrupted by superstition, and coarse interpretations
and filled with unnecessary legendic
descriptions. I have had much help in my researches
to get clear upon Muḥammadanism by a splendid little
book, “The Sayings of Muḥammad.”
The teachings of the Bábís which have come to us out of Islám have through Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings been gradually developed and now present us with the highest and purest form of religious teaching.
Excerpts from
the letters of
LEO TOLSTOY
WORLD ORDER
The Bahá’í Magazine
VOLUME XIV APRIL, 1948 NUMBER 1
God as Revealed in Nature
ELEANOR S. HUTCHENS
The pool is dark and quiet.
On its surface are floating
water lilies—some are blue,
some lavender, some pink, some
pale yellow with golden centers,
and that feeling arises within you
that you have felt before in the
presence of great beauty. It is
similar to the feeling you had
when you watched the sun sink
below the horizon leaving gold
and purple clouds behind; or
when you looked upon a mountain
and realized its grandeur.
You are worshipping God, the
Creator of that beauty. You come
to feel with the Psalmist, “The
earth is the Lord’s and the fullness
thereof, the world and they
that dwell therein.” You believe
that “The heavens declare the
glory of God and the firmament
showeth His handiwork.”
Bahá’u’lláh speaking of God said, “Not a single atom in the entire universe can be found which does not declare the evidences of His might, which does not glorify His holy Name, or is not expressive of the effulgent light of His unity.” At another time He wrote, “Nothing have I perceived except that I perceive God within it, God before it, or God after it.” Furthermore, He declares, “Know that every created thing is a sign of the revelation of God. Each according to its capacity, is and will ever remain a token of the Almighty . . . so pervasive and general is this revelation that nothing whatsoever in the whole universe can be discovered that doth not reflect His splendor.”
God reveals Himself not only through human mouthpieces, through the founders of the great religions and the great civilizations, but also through nature. By studying the world about us, we come to a greater concept of the world’s Designer. Far from being in conflict with religion, science is the partner of religion in our quest for knowledge about God.
THE ETERNITY OF GOD
Repeating the statement of
former prophets, Bahá’u’lláh
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tells us, “The process of His creation
hath had no beginning and
can have no end.” Theologians
have reasoned it thus:
God is unchanging and infinite.
God is a Creator.
Therefore God must always have been a Creator.
A creator cannot be a creator unless he creates something.
Therefore there must always have been and must always be a creation.
Our understanding is very much limited. We can appreciate the goodness of God only by comparison with the finest persons we know. We can understand the wisdom of God, too, in terms of our own experience. We can only fleetingly and quite imperfectly appreciate the eternal aspect of God in the light of what we are able to learn about the extreme age of this young planet of ours.
Scientists are continually uncovering data by which the earth is shown to be more ancient. Geologists say that to allow for the cooling of the earth’s surface and the formation of its rocks, its mountains, and its oceans, the minimum age of the earth must lie between 500,000,000 and 2,000,000,000 (two billion) years.
How much greater will our understanding of the meaning of the words “the eternal God” be with this enlarged concept of the antiquity of the earth.
THE PATIENCE OF GOD
What nature has revealed to us through our scientists concerning the evolutionary growth of the earth also changes profoundly our concept of God.
We are amused and mystified when we see a magician pull a rabbit out of a hat or when we see him make a coin appear from the ear of a small boy. But we do not really trust the magician. We feel that there is some trick involved. However we have the greatest respect for an Edison who can work patiently hour after hour, even year after year and finally develop an incandescent light bulb that can transform electric current into illumination.
The symbolism in the story of
creation as we find it in Genesis
is valuable in the way in which
it telescopes the events that occurred,
making us aware of the
extent to which the whole of creation
is dependent upon God.
But modern man can no longer
see God as the magician that
says, “Let there be Light,” and
instantaneously there is the sun.
Rather we see God as the supreme
Inventor who through billions
of years formed the earth,
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created gradually an atmosphere,
and, from single celled plants
and animals evolved the complex
and diversified forms that live
on the earth today.
THE INVENTIVENESS OF GOD
While the infinite patience of God is made a little clearer to us through our understanding of the processes of evolution, our respect for the inventiveness of God is in direct proportion to our knowledge of the diversified forms of life. There are creatures that make use of every type of environment. Let us refresh our memories by thinking of the types of plants we find about us.
In the waters of the earth there are plants ranging in size from the microscopic diatoms to giant seaweeds as large as land trees. There are the pond plants, the algae, the single-celled floating Wolffia, the water lilies. On land there are plants that find sustenance on the rocks themselves and help to create the soil. There are plants that spring up in the desert. There are invisible microbes, and, in contrast, there are the giant sequoia. Some, like those sequoia, live for thousands of years. Some, like certain types of fungus, live but a few minutes. There are all the varieties of fruits and vegetables, of grains and flowers.
One individual can have only an imperfect idea of the richness of life. Many volumes are required to picture the various birds of the world alone. And once when I found a jewel-like green beetle in iridescent emerald armor with gold and ruby highlights, I looked for it in an insect guide and discovered its name, Chrysochus Auratis; but instead of an account of its stages of growth, I discovered that this is “one of 18,000 known species of leaf-eating beetles.” Think of it! Not all the creatures of the world are insects. Not all insects are beetles. Not all beetles are leaf-eating. And certainly not all leaf-eating beetles in remote parts of the world have been catalogued, yet there are 18,000 varieties known!
It is small wonder that the
naturalist is humble before God.
Isaac Newton’s Principia is regarded
as one of the most important
scientific books ever written,
and his studies paved the way
for modern mathematical astronomy;
but toward the end of his
life he wrote, “I do not know
what I may appear to the world,
but to myself, I seem to have
been only like a little boy playing
on the seashore and diverting
myself in now and then finding
a smooth pebble or a prettier
shell than ordinary whilst the
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ocean of truth lay all undiscovered
before me.”
THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD
Just as we are impressed with the multitude of forms which nature takes, we are impressed with the meticulous care with which each form of life is provided with a means of protection and of sustenance. Even death is natural and merciful, for without it the earth would soon become over-burdened with life. Looking about us we discover that balance and justice are among the attributes of God, that the Merciful, the Provider are names by which we can call God. “Consider the lilies of the field, how they toil not, neither do they spin, yet I declare unto you that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed as one of these,” Jesus said.
Anyone who studies the protective devices by which animals defend themselves will be awe-inspired. Some are given fleetness, some sharp claws and teeth, some unpleasant odors, some a cloak of invisibility. All of us have seen leaf-hoppers and grasshoppers that were invisible until they jumped. We have had a leaf pointed out to us and discovered that it was not a leaf after all, but a katydid or the moth that looks like a dead leaf. We have hunted long for the walking stick that our friend assured us was in the twigs.
A few creatures creatures can even change their skins. There are arctic birds and animals that are speckled or brown in summer, but become white to match the snow in winter. The chrysalis of the tiger swallowtail butterfly, for instance, takes on the hue of the object on which it hangs, green, tan, grey or mottled.
What about the gaudy orange and black Monarch butterfly? It doesn’t hide. No, but the Monarch has been given an acrid flavor which makes it distasteful to its enemies. A bird which has tasted one will never disturb another. The little Viceroy, which looks like the Monarch’s young brother, tastes perfectly good, but is rarely disturbed by birds that mistake it for the Monarch.
Similarly, the wasp is little disturbed, for animals respect its dagger. There are moths that are disguised as wasps even to what looks like a stinger. “God is the Protector.”
THE SUPREMACY OF GOD
For appreciation of the wonders of even the smallest of God’s creatures there is no poetry as expressive as this passage from Walt Whitman.
- “I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journeywork of the stars [Page 7]
- And the pismire (ant) is equally perfect and a grain of sand and the egg of a wren,
- An the tree-toad is the chef d’oeuvre for the highest,
- And the running blackberry would adorn the parlors of heaven.
- And the narrowest hinge of my hand puts to scorn all machinery,
- And the cow crunching with depressed head surpasses any statue,
- And a mouse is miracle enough to stagger a sextillion of infidels.”
For all of man’s ability to measure, weigh, list, and identify, there is much in nature that declares the supremacy of God. Whitman suggests that even the smallest living thing is awe inspiring. “And a mouse is miracle enough to stagger a sextillion of infidels.” A mouse, we've discovered, is composed of carbon, oxygen, calcium, phosphorous, nitrogen, iron, copper, and very small quantities of other elements. We can tell what proportion of each are in a mouse. We can describe the bones, the muscles, the organs within a mouse and show their function. We can even make a model of a mouse with fur and an electrical device to make it wiggle its tail and run, but we cannot make the fur grow on that model, nor can we make an artificial mouse that will consume food and transform it into living tissue.
Can we, without a seed, create even a growing blade of grass? Only God can confer life upon the creatures of the world, and man is as far from discovering the secret of life as ever.
We have been taught that every creature on this planet is dependent upon the physical sun for its life. How much more dependent are we upon God. Bahá’u’lláh writes, “I can have no doubt that should the holy breaths of Thy loving kindness and the breeze of Thy bountiful favor cease for less than the twinkling of an eye, to breathe over all the created things, the entire creation would perish, and all that are in heaven and on earth would be reduced to utter nothingness.”
THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GOD
Nowhere has modern man’s
perspective been changed so
greatly as in his view of the size
of the universe which God has
created. The most primitive
Egyptians thought the earth was
a plate in which they were the
center and that their mountains
held up a sky plate in which
stars were perforations to let the
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light shine through. The Hebrews
felt that they were the center of
the universe around which revolved
the sun and moon and
stars. Our own concept of the
universe is limited only by the
size of our telescopes and the inability
of our imaginations to
comprehend the facts that we
have learned.
William Beebe, the naturalist whose studies of deep sea fish and tropical birds have won him international renown and whose books are delightful, tells an interesting story. He said that whenever the energetic Theodore Roosevelt would join him during an expedition, no matter where the friends were, they would go out each night, look up into the heavens, find a mist in the lower left hand corner of the constellation Pegasus, and one of them would say:
- “That is the spiral galaxy in Andromeda.
- It is as large as our Milky Way.
- It is one of a hundred million galaxies.
- It is 750,000 light years away.
- It consists of one hundred billion suns, each larger than our sun.”
After a silence, the other would grin and say, “I think we are small enough now! Let’s go to bed.” This ritual they repeated perhaps forty or fifty times through the years, Beebe says, but it never failed to impress them.
So far are those stars that scientists needed a new measuring stick. It would be like measuring nations by the inch to measure the distance to the stars in terms of miles. Light, traveling at 186,000 miles per second, takes forty years to reach us from Arcturus. And astronomers have computed the distance to many of the stars using the light year as a yardstick. (The light year represents 6,000,000,000,000— six trillion miles!) How hopeless it is to keep adding zeroes after the mind’s capacity to grasp the meaning of such distances is exhausted! Incidentally, Bahá’u’lláh says, “Know that every fixed star hath its own planets, and every planet its own creatures whose numbers no man can compute.”
How can man create God in
the image of himself when he
realizes the utter vastness of the
universe that God has created
and that God governs with inflexible
law. Furthermore, when we
think of the orderliness of the
universe, we can say, as Bahá’u’lláh
does again and again in
his Prayers and Meditations: “O
Thou who art the Fashioner of
[Page 9]
the Universe” . . . “O Thou who
art the Ruler of earth and
Heaven” . . . “Too high art Thou
exalted for the eye of any creature
to behold Thy beauty or for
the understanding of any heart
to scale the heights of Thine immeasurable
knowledge” . . .
“How can he who is but a creation
of Thy will claim to know
what is with Thee, or to conceive
Thy nature?” . . . “I testify that
no description by any created
thing can ever reveal Thee, and
no praise which any being is able
to utter can express thee.”
THE LOVE OF GOD
Our reverence increases when we think that the God who holds the reins of the galaxies in His grasp also created the humming bird and the perfect little ant. God encompasses equally the infinitely large and the infinitesimally small. In the University of Knowledge series, Earth and Sky, there is an interesting chart prepared by the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry giving the comparative dimensions in miles of natural objects. While our galaxy is so immense that it is represented by the figure 1 followed by 19 zeroes, the proton is so small it can be represented by a decimal point and almost an equal number of zeroes before the figure 1, (18, to be exact). This is the way they would be written:
- 10,000,000,000,000,000,000 miles—our galaxy
- .000,000,000,000,000,000,1 miles—a proton.
It is difficult to realize that a proton is almost as much smaller than a mile as the galaxy is larger than a mile, isn’t it? Compared with a microbe we can feel of value again.
But the religious experience of the great Spokesmen for God reassures us of the value of man. To his fearful disciples, Jesus spoke these comforting words, “Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. But the very hairs of your head are numbered. Fear not, therefore. Ye are of more value than many sparrows.”
Man retains a unique position in nature, for God has endowed him with the power of reason with which he can unravel the mysteries of the universe and even control and adapt much of nature to his own use. He has been created with a sense of right and wrong and with the ability to become God-like to the degree to which he develops the characteristics we know are possessed by God—mercy, justice, love, creativeness, wisdom, generosity, and patience.
A Prayer for Unity
ELLEN SIMS
- “O Gracious, O All Loving God,
- Forgive our greatest and misery-bringing sin,
- The sin of disunity,
- The grave sin of separation.
- O deep affliction!
- Cause us to realize our togetherness
- Our indissoluble oneness.”
- (Shall we inflict upon our self,
- The self in your neighbor’s home, living in our child’s heart,
- In tropic clime or icy earth home
- The least injustice?
- Our self has so many names:
- Eskimo, Italian, American,
- Negro, Indian, Chinese.
- Little cells called Mary, Juan, or Ali,
- Forgetting its oneness and single identity,
- But one soul in servitude before the Throne.)
- “O Great and Ancient Name,
- Thou Magnet!
- Draw the self of man together
- From all parts,
- From earth’s ends,
- The one soul in many bodies,
- The one soul, the one soul.”
Bahá’í Gifts for the Children
AMY BRADY DWELLY
A FATHER traveling along a
country road sees a rare
and beautiful flower. He stops
and digs it up by the roots, saying,
“I must take this home and
plant it in the children’s garden.”
What a delight it is to find something that pleases us! And of course this joy is increased many times when we can share it with someone else, especially with those who are very dear to us. So, when parents come to accept the Bahá’í Cause, they naturally want their children to benefit by these Teachings too. Let us examine some of the special gifts that come to the children of Bahá’í parents.
I. Independent Investigation
of Truth. Curiosity is natural
to childhood. We see it manifested
first on a physical level in babies
and young children. Later this
curiosity is at the level of ideas.
The child is full of questions.
However, this natural curiosity
often ends in frustration. Children
are punished for trying out
simple experiments, ‘just to see
what will happen’, many times
when they have no thought of being
bad or naughty. In the past,
many of the questions children
asked were considered vulgar or
impudent. This was true even of
questions of a religious nature.
Children were expected to accept
the faith of their parents without
question. Today intelligent parents
know that an older child or
young person who is free to
question his parents’ faith and investigate
independently will,
when he finds the truth, be much
firmer in his belief and deeper in
his loyalties than if he has accepted
a religious teaching because
his parents have insisted
upon it. This insistence may easily
lead to nothing more than lip
service, which in turn can result
in an apathy toward religious
thinking or, even worse, become
hypocrisy. Bahá’í parents know
that their children are under no
parental obligation to embrace
their faith and that only by living
the Bahá’í life can they wield
their greatest influence on both
the religious and secular lives of
their children. This does not
mean that Bahá’í parents do not
teach their growing children of
the Faith. Indeed it is imperative
that they do teach them very
early, but the child still has the
freedom of seeking truth elsewhere.
In fact he becomes a
Bahá’í by his own choosing and
declaration only, and not because
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his parents have chosen
for him.
II. Education. If we go through the Bible looking for references pertaining to the status of children in relation to adults we find that the emphasis is upon obedience. Of this we will have more to say later. However, it is heartening to find in the Bahá’í teachings where children are mentioned, that the emphasis is upon education. Bahá’u’lláh has stated specifically that all children, boys and girls, rich and poor, must be educated. If the parents cannot afford to do this, then the Bahá’í Community must take on this responsibility. Since girls are the future mothers of the next generation, they especially must be educated.
The Bahá’í concept of education is in complete accord with the best thinking of our times. Briefly it is that a child shall be so educated that he will see things with his own eyes and think with his own mind. In other words he must be educated as an individual, learning to use his own intelligence and developing his special talents, becoming, at the same time, conscious of his responsibilities toward his fellow man. This leads us to the recognition of still another gift to the children and that is, individuality.
III. Recognition of Individual
Differences. This is very important
for a child’s normal, happy,
spiritual development. We find in
Proverbs the familiar quotation,
“Train up the child in the way he
should go and when he is old he
will not depart from it.” How
true this is and yet unfortunately
the benefit of this proverb to the
child has been partly lost because
countless generations have
put the emphasis upon the wrong
word, should, instead of upon
the right word, he. For example
the child may have the talent of
an artist, but his farmer father
may feel that his son also must
be a farmer and therefore will
attempt to train him in the way
he should go to make a farmer
of him, disregarding the child’s
native ability. If the child were
trained in the way he should go
to develop his natural gift or interests,
much greater would be
his own happiness as well as that
of his family, and greater his
contribution to society. The reader
may say that the Bible quotation
had reference to the child’s
behavior and not to his mental
training. However these two are
closely related. A child who is
treated as a developing personality
instead of something to be
forced into a prescribed mold is
much less apt to display negative
patterns of behavior. As for spiritual
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attributes, these will grow
as the child becomes older and
achieves them through contacts
with others in his environment,
certainly not by forced training.
In the Bahá’í Teachings we find
that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá says, “The
Prophets acknowledge that education
hath a great effect upon the
human race, but they declare
that minds and comprehensions
are originally different . . . We
see certain children of the same
age, nativity and race, nay, from
the same household, under the
tutorship of the same teacher,
differ in minds and comprehensions
. . . No matter how much
the shell is educated (or polished)
it can never become the
radiant pearl. The black stone
will not become the world-illumining
gem. . . . The thorny cactus
can never by training and development
become the blessed tree:
That is to say, training doth not
change the human gem, but it
produceth a marvellous effect. By
this effective power, all that is
latent, of virtues and capacities
in the human reality will be revealed.”
Here we have a recognition
of individual difference,
which is of utmost importance in
dealing with children.
IV. Obedience. In the Bible
and also in the Bahá’í Teachings,
obedience is stressed. However,
the gift to the children is
that obedience is no longer accomplished
through fear. The
Bahá’í Faith paints no terrible
pictures of a hereafter where the
disobedient shall suffer forever.
Obedience is not then the result
of fear; it is rather radiant acquiescence
based on understanding
and love. Spiritually mature
adults will obey the commandments
or laws found in the revealed
Word of God because they
know that these laws are just and
are established for their own welfare
as well as that of all humanity.
Furthermore, and perhaps
this is the most important factor,
they also know that the breaking
of any law has an inevitable result,
which they cannot escape.
This is not because God is a
threatening Father, punishing his
creatures for disobeying His
commands, but because the
breaking of a law, be it physical
or spiritual, must always end the
same way. If two and two ever
added up to make five to satisfy
some special case, then it would
cease to be a mathematical law.
Children respond to that kind of
law with predictable results. A
beautiful example of a spiritual
law, found in the Hidden Words
of Bahá’u’lláh is “Love me that
I may love thee. If thou lovest
Me not, My love can in no wise
reach thee. Know this, O servant.”
The results of breaking it
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are stated in the law itself.
Obedience for its own sake or as a mere result of parental authority (as illustrated in four year old Jan’s remark when he said to his father, “I must do it [obey] ’cause you’re such a big Daddy and I’m so little”), has no place in constructive child training. The home is an excellent place to develop a healthy attitude toward obedience, which is essential for a spiritual life. The best psychologists recognize today the fact that obedience based upon justice, intelligence and the child’s comprehension and ability to conform, is necessary for his feeling of security and his normal adjustment to life.
This brings us to the question of discipline, which at times may be necessary in order to achieve obedience. Psychologists and educators recognize the place of discipline in the training program. Their objections are not to discipline, but to the kind of discipline that is used. Turning to Proverbs again, we find: “Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” Rod, here, has long been considered as a symbol of corporal punishment instead of the symbol of discipline. Nowhere in the Bahá’í teachings is corporal punishment advocated, although obedience is definitely stressed. Bahá’u’lláh has said, “What mankind needeth in this age is obedience to them that are in authority.”
Obedience leads to freedom. Bahá’u’lláh points out that “The liberty that profiteth you is to be found nowhere except in complete servitude unto God, the Eternal Truth. Whoso hath tasted of its sweetness will refuse to barter it for all the dominion of earth and heaven.”
This is the sort of freedom that children must be made aware of. It is earned by knowing the laws and obeying them. Turning to the Bible again we find in Colossians, “Children obey your parents in all things for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.” What a terrific responsibility is placed upon parents when they consider that what they request of their children must be right for all concerned. Bahá’í parents realize that the obedience they expect from their children must be based upon the twin pillars of Love and Justice. This leads to the next invaluable gift.
V. Justice. Jesus raised the
banner of love and taught humanity
its value. Of the children
He said, “Suffer little children
and forbid them not to come unto
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me, for of such is the kingdom
of heaven.” He also said, “Verily
I say unto you, Except ye be converted
and become as little children,
ye shall not enter into the
kingdom of heaven.” Thus gloriously
spoke Jesus of the children!
There were those who ignored
these beautiful references
and the fate of little children
through the centuries has too
often been one of cruelty, neglect,
helplessness, wickedness
and misunderstanding. In sharp
contrast there was also the attitude
of mercy, pity and banal
sentiment. Children were referred
to as lambs and this symbol
was frequently used on tombstones
to mark little graves. There
was parental love, of course,
but unfortunately it was affected
and influenced by generally accepted
attitudes and strict interpretations
of Biblical passages,
as, for example, the one which
gives the qualifications of a
bishop, “One that ruleth well
his own house, having his children
in subjection with all gravity.”
And always there was the
fierce sense of possession. One
owned his child much as he
owned his farm or his cattle.
In this age, Bahá’u’lláh has lifted high beside the banner of Love, that of Justice. This is indeed a fine contribution to the understanding and appreciation of children. Intelligent parents recognize the fact that children are neither young devils, to be treated as such, nor are they innocent little lambs. They are made of sterner stuff than that. They are developing human beings with great spiritual potentialities. As such, according to the law of justice, they deserve their rightful place in the New World Order, which is neither to be pushed out in front nor relegated to the rear. This same law allows them all the love, affection and attention they need for normal development and also all the discipline they need for the same purpose. No child shall be punished because he is weak, little and defenseless and the adult in charge of him happens to be angry, nor shall he on the other hand be pampered and coddled because he is young, tender and appealing. It is a Bahá’í parent’s responsibility to study his child and children in general so that he can know what to expect from a child at various age levels and can treat him accordingly, with justice tempered with love. This will never be sentimental and saccharine; it will be sincere and valuable.
VI. Preparation for the New
World Order. The oneness of
mankind is the keynote of the
Bahá’í teachings. As time passes
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this concept will spread all over
the world. What an advantage
a child reared in a Bahá’í home
will have. He will grow up with
the knowledge that all of humanity
are as the “leaves of one
tree and the waves of one ocean”
and he will understand that there
is also diversity in unity. These
things he will know with his
heart as well as his mind. How
blessed is the child who has
never cultivated in the garden of
his heart any prejudices, economic,
religious or racial, so
that, in adult years, when it is so
difficult to achieve, he will not
have to get rid of them before
he can understand and appreciate
the world of humanity. How
well prepared is such a child to
live in One World! He has been
taught from the words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
that the prejudice of race
is “an illusion, a superstition
pure and simple, for God created
us all one race . . . All
races, tribes, sects and classes
share equally in the bounty of
their Heavenly Father . . . The
only real difference lies in the
degree of faithfulness, of obedience
to the laws of God.”
The entire world knows that great changes are taking place in every plane of human activity and that the world grows smaller with almost every new discovery. This brings the human family closer and closer together. The child who has been environed by and taught the Bahá’í principles will be ready to co-operate with his fellow man of whatever cultural background he happens to be. He will also realize how expansive has become the application of the teachings in the parable of the Good Samaritan. He knows too that the basis for unity and oneness is love. “Be most loving one to another. Burn away wholly for the sake of the Well-Beloved, the veil of self with the flame of undying Fire, and with faces joyous and beaming with light associate with your neighbor.”
VII. Prayer. Prayer is a very important part of a child’s religious training. There is no doubt in the heart of a child that his prayers will be answered, just as it is natural for him to consider life as unending. His natural faith can be depended upon, but his concepts and interpretations need direction as he grows older. He is a literalist, but this is only a phase that accompanies early childhood, since at first he is only capable of thinking in concrete terms. It is his faith that must be kept intact.
Some of the spiritual truths
found in the Bahá’í teachings
are stated in such beautiful and
[Page 17]
simple language that children
can learn them even though they
may not comprehend the complete
meaning. How many adults
understand all that is given in the
statement of a spiritual truth?
Study is constantly revealing an
expanding meaning. The child
will grasp a part of it and more
understanding will come the
longer he lives with these sacred
words.
There have always been prayers said for and by children, but ‘Abdu’l-Bahá gave some prayers specially for the children; so we have included prayer as one of the bounteous gifts. Bahá’í parents can no doubt think of many more. We have only suggested a few.
Finally, we would like to close with one of the children’s prayers, so beloved by thousands of children throughout the Bahá’í world, one that has been repeated by them as many times no doubt as there are shining stars over their heads.
“O my Lord! O my Lord!
I am a child of tender years. Nourish me from the breast of Thy mercy, train me in the bosom of Thy love, educate me in the school of Thy guidance and develop me under the shadow of Thy bounty. Deliver me from darkness, make me a brilliant light; free me from unhappiness, make me a flower of the rose garden; suffer me to become the servant of Thy Threshold and confer upon me the disposition and nature of the righteous ones; make me a cause of bounty to the human world and crown my head with the diadem of eternal life!
Verily, Thou art the Powerful, the Mighty, the Seer, the Hearer!”
Newer Gardens
JEAN COMSTOCK WHITE
- Earth and her gardens that might be;
- Seasonal plantings; a starry sea.
- Stars rise and glow, then die beyond the day;
- Men rise to serve—they too must pass away.
- But Light with Purpose lingers, a scintillating mist,
- As the air is fresh with wonder; and New Dawns lift!
- Earth and gardens blossom today and every day.
- Out of bygone ages—blooms Today!
What Now?
Editorial
AS THIS is written, the news
of the falling grain market
fills the newspapers. By the time
it is printed we may know whether
this means merely a “leveling
off” of prices or a financial crisis.
Many people are wondering how
this rapid decline will affect the
economy of the nation and hence
of the world—for are not the fortunes
of all men linked together
by many invisible threads? Individuals
think (hopefully) that
the cost of living will be lower or
(anxiously) that their incomes
may be drastically reduced. However
we interpret it, we recognize
once more that sense of uncertainty
with which we have
now become familiar. What is
ahead? Shall we be richer or
poorer? How shall we plan the
next year? With every project
or promise the old, almost forgotten
expression, “God willing”
comes to our lips.
What with wars, scarcities, depressions, strikes, and natural disasters, the past thirty years have indeed thrown us back, again and again, on the necessity for faith—not a vague, facile hope that “everything will come out all right,” but an ultimate deep faith in the destiny of man under divine guidance and a lively sense that, whatever our circumstances, in serving God we achieve the good life.
The Bahá’í is deeply concerned with the present welfare of his neighbors, but his own material prospects he will view with equanimity. When he can, he will give generously; when he must, he will go without cheerfully, remembering that Bahá’u’lláh has said: “Should prosperity befall thee, rejoice not, and should abasement come upon thee, grieve not, for both shall pass away and be no more.” And again, “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.”
At Home in Eternity
KATHARINE P. COLE
ETERNITY like infinity is a
term which baffles our finite
minds. The vast expanse of
time stretching backward interminably
and forward forever is
at best a fleeting concept. We
usually apply the terms “eternity”
to time and “infinity” to
space, but actually time and
space in their aspect of immensity
are identical. Time, as we
think of it, is measured by what?
By the appearance and disappearance
of light we count the
days; by the changes in the
moon’s phases we reckon months;
by the seasonal changes we recognize
the passing of the year.
All of these phenomena have a
definite relation to space. The
days are actually caused by the
turning of the earth about its
axis; the months, by the relative
position of the earth, the moon
and the sun; and the seasons by
the movement of the earth about
the sun.
When the Chicago World’s Fair was opened, the initial illumination was ignited by a ray of light from Arcturus, light which had traveled forty years to reach the earth. When we consider that the speed of light is 186,000 miles per second, we can imagine (or if we enjoy pencil pushing we can figure) the amount of space traversed by the selected ray in that time.
These are dizzying thoughts, but lest we as individuals dissolve into nothingness, let us grasp at the following conversation from a book called “Rediscovery of Man” by Harry C. Link: “A great astronomer once remarked to a friend, ‘To the astronomer man is an infinitesimal dot in an infinite universe.’ ‘Ah,’ said his friend, ‘but man is still the astronomer.’”
So, whether he likes it or not, man is at home in eternity, and he would do well to feel comfortable in the situation. The part of time which has preceded us we can contemplate with detachment, unless we are anthropologists or geologists. It is the part of eternity which lies ahead of us that intrigues the imagination.
Some people settle their relation
to it by saying that with
death we cease to exist, that time
will continue and man with it,
but man only in the sense of humanity,
not as an individual. The
Bahá’í writings tell us that
everything in the material world
is symbolic of the spiritual
worlds. Scientists have discovered
that matter is never destroyed,
[Page 20]
but merely changes its
form from time to time. We are
familiar with this principle in
the cycle of the change in the
atom from mineral to vegetable,
to animal, to human, and back to
mineral to start the circle again.
Can this not be a symbol of the
indestructibility of man’s identity
as an individual?
Certainly man’s body is subject to decomposition, but ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has given us several logical proofs of the fact that the spirit is independent of the body. The phenomenon of sleep with accompanying dreams is one proof. The body lies motionless and unconscious upon its bed, while the spirit has all sorts of vivid experiences. The possession of inner sight, or imagination, is another proof, a symbol, if you will. I venture to say that many times a day we call to mind some scene (familiar or imagined) which may be thousands of miles distant and certainly is not visible to the physical sight, which is uncompromisingly limited by the nearest hill. Nor does injury to one part of the body affect the spirit. If it were identical with the body, the loss of an arm or a leg would have a noticeable effect upon the spirit. True, injury to certain parts of the brain prevents a person from performing some of his mental functions, and for a time his spirit seems to be hampered, but the brain is a tool quite as much as any other part of the physical organism, and is not identical with the human spirit or soul.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, who is a truly gifted teacher, uses several metaphors to express the relationship of the spirit to the body. He likens the body to a cage, the spirit to a bird temporarily confined within the cage. He uses the simile of a pen for the body, and says that when the pen is broken, the writer (or the spirit) discards it, but is not seriously discommoded by the accident. If a house is ruined, the owner remains alive. An ailing body, He tells us, is like a mirror which has become broken or dusty and can no longer reflect the rays of the sun, the spirit.
These, then, are some of the
logical proofs that we as individuals
are immortal, and this
leads us to the realization that we
are living in eternity now as
much as we ever shall be. Now
is only a dot on a line which extends
interminably. A human
lifetime is but a moment of eternity,
an important moment, however,
which must not be discounted
for the joys of the future
life. When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
was asked what was the wisdom
[Page 21]
of the spirit appearing in the
body, He replied that the human
spirit is a divine trust and must
traverse all conditions; for its
passage through the conditions
of existence is the means of its
acquiring perfections. He compares
this to the enlightenment
which comes to a person who is
able to travel extensively on this
earth.
Nor is this world the first one we have experienced. We have all existed as embryos. Some psychologists tell us that everyone is subconsciously longing to return to this state of protection and security. Perhaps this is no more futile than our instinctive attachment to this world and its conditions.
In one of the Hidden Words Bahá’u’lláh tells us: “Out of the wastes of nothingness, with the clay of My command I made thee to appear, and have ordained for thy training every atom of existence and the essence of all created things. Thus, ere thou didst issue from thy mother’s womb, I destined for thee two founts of gleaming milk, eyes to watch over thee and hearts to love thee. Out of My loving-kindness, beneath the shade of My mercy, I nurtured thee, and guarded thee by the essence of My grace and favor. And My purpose in all this was that thou mightest attain My everlasting dominion and become worthy of My everlasting bestowals.”
Notice that this does not say that God’s purpose is limited to normal life expectancy on this planet, but includes everlasting dominion and everlasting bestowals. Surely we cannot doubt that the bestowals which await us in the next phase of our existence will be commensurate with the eyes to watch over us and the hearts to love us which greeted our arrival here. Everyone has a certain reluctance about facing a new situation. A move to a new city, a change of business position, marriage, all require a certain amount of moral courage. But in all of these we can obtain information which we can weigh with our reason and, balancing pros and cons, come to a decision before we make a change. Death differs from other changes in two respects. First, it is inevitable and we cannot choose the time when it will overtake us. Second, it is impossible to get a mental picture of the conditions which await us by the usual methods of perusing statistics, maps, photographs, travelers’ accounts.
However, one of the chief purposes
of the Manifestations
seems to be to reassure humanity
on this point. The Bible contains
many comforting passages. We
[Page 22]
are familiar with the many mansions
and the Psalmist’s assurance
that God will be with us
when we pass through the valley.
The Bahá’í writings promise us
a future life in which we shall be
freed from the limitations imposed
on us by time and space,
in which we shall recognize our
loved ones as well as discover
concealed realities. Progress will
be continuous, and we shall share
in the joys of worlds that are
spiritually glorious.
When someone asked ‘Abdu’l-Bahá how we should look forward to death, He replied that our feeling should be one of hope and expectation, just as we look forward to the end of any journey. If everyone could attain to this state of mind, what a difference it would make to the individual and to the world! Our daily concerns would assume an immediate change of focus. Things would settle into their proper proportion. Most of our fears would vanish. World problems would be seen more clearly and the barriers to their solution, which are due to a short-range view, would be dispelled.
Undoubtedly we are living in eternity. Why not learn to feel at home there?
Quatrains
GERTRUDE W. ROBINSON
- I
- Composite harmony is seen within
- My garden space;
- So varying hues of race and nation give
- Life’s garden, grace.
- II
- The grinding stones of Time are turning fast.
- Proud, human concepts crumble in the dust.
- Bewildered, man is pausing at long last
- To hear God’s deep, reverberating “Must!”
- III
- A will surrendered to all good
- Develops clean and whole;
- But self-will, stumbling, learns too late
- Its passion breaks the soul.
Pioneer Spirit
ETTY GRAEFFE
THAT the true spirit of pioneering
is not only alive in
our own bold young people, but
is aflame in every part of the
world where Bahá’ís are working
for and promulgating their beloved
Cause, we know from the
reports of the different groups
and Assemblies throughout the
world. Yet the following is a specially
touching example of the
true spirit of pioneering that
burns in the heart of a sweet little
old white-haired Bahá’í in
Geneva:
Mrs. D. is seventy-one. She arrived from Berlin, Germany, last April. Her husband, who also belonged to the Berlin Bahá’í community for over fifteen years, starved to death last winter amidst the ruins of Berlin. She herself was in a pitiful and run-down state, when her Swiss daughter, through the efforts of the International Bahá’í Bureau and the effective aid of the British National Assembly, managed to get her into Switzerland to live with her here in Geneva. No need to tell about her terrible experiences during the years of war and after-war.
Thanks be to Bahá’u’lláh, our little white-haired lady has well regained her strength and health through the loving care of her family during these past weeks, and her most ardent desire since her arrival has been to serve and work for the glorious Cause of the Beloved. And what plans she is concocting! In a recent letter to Johnny Eichenauer she writes:
“If I get my pension, which is due to me as a widow of a postal official, I’ll go back to Berlin and help them form a new Assembly. I have a house in Berlin-Eichkampf that I left and gave over to my nephew, but have kept a little apartment upstairs for lifetime. We could have our meetings there. The location is so handy, easy to reach from all directions. It is in the English Zone and we received the permission to meet again. On the garden gate I’ll put a little sign marked: ‘Bahá’í Center—Berlin’. It is a very busy street, and everybody would see it and wonder and come in to inquire . . . Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
“We used to have twenty-one Bahá’ís in Berlin and often had fifteen and more non-Bahá’í friends at our regular gatherings.
“Though we were forbidden to
function since 1937, we still visited
and wrote each other till
1943. Then came the terrible
[Page 24]
clash and downfall and the continuous
bombing and bombing
and everybody flew from the
town so that we completely lost
track of one another . . . But
since 1946 we are trying to gather
again, just a small remainder
—four or five of us. We began
to meet regularly at Frl. Lodeman’s
and Frl. Hofman’s or Mrs.
Frieda Balckers. It is still very
difficult to meet, as the ways are
long and the buses few, the working
hours long, the food so scarce
that people are weak and tired
and do not like to exert themselves
more than absolutely necessary.
But, thank God, the Cause
of Bahá’u’lláh is moving forward
in Berlin. I just received a letter
saying that there had been eleven
at their May meeting, and that
they are meeting regularly again.
Frau Calvo, who is President of
the Philosophical Club in Charlottenburg,
was asked to give a
radio-talk about the Bahá’í Cause
and the Oneness of Mankind.
“It just makes me itch to go back to Berlin and to help them along . . .”
Seventeen years ago Mrs. D. came in contact with the Bahá’í Faith for the first time here in Geneva. She was walking the streets when she saw the Bahá’í Principles displayed in a window. They attracted her; she walked past again and again until she decided to enter and inquire what they meant, which Faith they represented. There, at the International Bahá’í Bureau, she learned about the glorious tidings of Bahá’u’lláh. She returned, all aflame, to Berlin, where she converted her husband, and they both joined the Bahá’í Community there, and were among the most active members. They traveled a lot, visited the Bahá’ís in the Balkans and in Egypt, and she was even privileged to visit the Holy Land and the shrines and meet the beloved Guardian, for whom she feels the deepest love and veneration . . . Her memory is so keen and alive, that it is most thrilling to hear her tell about all she saw and the people she met, about Martha Root and her work, about Miss Alexander of Tokio, and Marion Jack of Sofia and the untiring activities of friend Vuk Echtner in Prague, and many, many more.
Blessed is the community that is privileged to share such priceless memories . . .
Today more than ever this faithful handmaiden of Bahá’u’lláh realizes the necessity and urgency of spreading His world embracing and unifying Teachings. That is why, despite age, frailty, and all past sufferings she wants to go back to her people.
Has Science Replaced Religion?
G. A. SHOOK
(Concluded)
MODERN ATTITUDE TOWARD SCIENTIFIC MODELS
MODERN scientists are prone to look upon atom models and other scientific models, like the ether, as creations of the imagination and as such they are essential to the progress of science. They are created to imitate certain phenomena. Each restricted field has its own model.
Among the various models we sometimes find contradictions. Some phenomena of light can be explained by particles and some by waves. We have no one model even in this restricted field which will explain all phenomena.
For our purpose it is extremely important to realize the radical change in viewpoint toward models. The primary aim of the Victorian physicist was to create models that would represent all the phenomena of nature. If a model could imitate a phenomenon then it was supposed to correspond to the reality back of the phenomenon. Modern science realizes that this is impossible. Jeans reminds us that physics can only give us “the pattern of events.”
After all, we have only five senses and we think only in mechanical terms. But modern physics has shown that mechanical models have failed to give a complete description of nature. We have seen that Newton’s law of gravitation does not explain force. The underlying reality of nature we cannot comprehend by means of science. The fundamental processes of nature cannot be explained by models. If an exact science like physics can give us only partial aspects of truth there is little hope that any science can do more.
All this suggests another point upon which science and religion can agree. The underlying reality of man and nature is beyond human understanding.
The Bahá’í Faith stresses over
and over again the fact that man
cannot comprehend the reality of
the Infinite, nor indeed his own
reality. In the words of Bahá’u’lláh,
“Having recognized thy
powerlessness to attain to an adequate
understanding of that Reality
which abideth within thee,
thou wilt readily admit the futility
of such efforts as may be
[Page 26]
attempted by thee, or by any of
the created things, to fathom the
mystery of the Living God . . .”
And then He points out man’s
true goal: “This confession of
helplessness which mature contemplation
must eventually impel
every mind to make is in itself
the acme of human understanding,
and marketh the culmination
of man’s development.”
Let us remember that the inability of science to explain the reality of nature is not an indication that science has failed. It has failed in this particular quest, that is true, but it realizes now that this quest is beyond science. This shows that we are becoming not less but more mature.
The great minds of every age, like Plato and Newton, have been free from that gross materialism which characterizes small minds, but today the general trend is away from a purely mechanistic concept of man.
The progress of science depends upon observation, experiment and speculation. In establishing theories, deduction (from the general to the particular) and induction (from the particular to the general) are both necessary. Finally, all creative scientific work requires imagination and intuition, as well as sense data.
So far, science is concerned only with the phenomenal world. Science admits that there is a world of value, a world that is quite apart from, and independent of, science. Science has nothing to say about goodness, beauty or truth. Science can make no “value judgments.” Today, man can believe in the Divine if he wishes; it is not unscientific. In fact, science has nothing to say about the superrational or supersensory.
THE WORLD OF VALUE
This external world, which seems so real and substantial, is known to us only through inference. In the world of value, however, our knowledge is not inferential but immediate. We do not infer that we like a certain painting. If we are happy our own testimony is quite sufficient. We do not have to prove that we are happy.
While we usually make a distinction between the world of science and the world of religion, it may help us here if we draw the line between the world of science and the world of value, the world of art, music and literature. The language of the world of science is symbolic and quite foreign to most of us, but the language of the world of value is more familiar, more intimate.
In the realm of art, music, and
literature (the realm of value)
[Page 27]
we have not lost faith nor have
we allowed our scientific progress
to obscure our vision, as in the
world of religion. Moreover, we
have not subjected the world of
value to scientific analysis. The
world of value is just as real as
the world of science. Aesthetic
appreciation exists in its own
right and we make no apologies
for it.
Now we cannot look upon religion merely as a phase of the world of value since it is the source of all values; nevertheless, when we think of religion we should think in terms of value rather than science. We should draw our analogies from the world of value and not from the world of science. The problem of revealed knowledge is simplified quite a little by associating religion with value.
Keeping in mind then the more comprehensive, more inclusive aspect of religion, let us put it in the world of value, the world which includes aesthetic verities, which we usually associate with the fine arts, and ethical verities which we associate with religion.
In a very real sense, the functions of science and religion are complementary. Each has a category. Science can never replace religion. On the other hand, unless the world is illumined spiritually there can be no great advancement in science. It may occur to the reader that, in spite of our gross materialism, we have made one of the greatest discoveries of all time, namely, atomic energy. Atomic physicists, however, do not regard all this development as basic research. In the report of the director of the American Institute of Physics, we read: “Leaders of the atomic bomb project claim no considerable advance in fundamental physics, from the immense effort and time expended. Rather do they fear that considerations of mass life and death may henceforth hamper the freedom of research and publication, without which the development of science in the service of mankind will be impossible.”
Science is satisfied to know the why and the how. It is not concerned with the problem of human values. However, by increasing man’s useful activities science can contribute indirectly to the world of religion even as sensations contribute to scientific knowledge, though in themselves they may be of little worth or interest to the world of science.
Here is another point of unity between science and religion. Social progress depends upon the advancement of science and the advancement of religion.
Our knowledge of the world of
[Page 28]
religion is not gained from scientific
analysis or anything like
scientific analysis, but rather
through an inner awareness or
perception.
Our appreciation of a work of art is of course enhanced by our knowledge of accepted standards. We assume there is such a thing as good taste in spite of the controversies over standards. To develop a certain amount of discrimination and appreciation we must know what is considered good and what inferior. In one sense we do analyze a poem or a symphony, but not in the same way that we dissect our material environment. In the world of religion, our search is for intrinsic worth, the meaning of the whole. We are therefore concerned with integration and synthesis, but not with analysis as in science. Science is not concerned with right or wrong, it is amoral. Neither is it concerned with the beautiful or the grotesque. Science must be impersonal. Its phenomenal success is due largely to the fact that it has been impersonal.
This does not mean, however, that man must or can take this attitude toward all the realities of life. Even the most thorough-going scientist is not entirely oblivious of value. If he were he would probably not pursue science. There is some urge within him that causes him to persevere in his quest for an understanding of the world of nature. And in some other part of his mental or spiritual makeup there may be another kind of urge which compels him to search for religion. In his quest for religion he may often lay aside his scientific equipment, but that does not mean that he is more scholarly or mature in one field than another. Critics who fail to realize the function of the world of religion in the unfoldment of man, rather deplore the fact that some outstanding scientists seem to depart from the hard, cold facts of reason and become sentimental. Such an attitude implies a complete lack of appreciation for anything superrational or supersensuous.
REVEALED KNOWLEDGE AND THE PROBLEM OF ALL EXPERIENCE
To the average intelligent
thinker, divine revelation is too
irrational to claim his serious attention.
He may have faith in the
awareness of some superhuman
power which can give meaning
to life, or he may believe in an
impersonal, supernatural force
which controls the universe. He
may even offer proofs for the existence
of this kind of God. Unless
he is seeking for something
which transcends all the existing
ideologies, however, he probably
[Page 29]
finds it very difficult, if not impossible,
to believe that a great
spiritual force (something external
to man), could come to this
planet and change the hearts and
consciences. And he probably
finds it more difficult to believe
that new laws and principles (for
a new social order) could ever
be revealed to mankind. At the
same time he realizes that unless
the seemingly impossible does
happen the social order may disintegrate.
The extant religions offer him little assistance. Liberal religion discarded revelation a long time ago. The conservative element of any one prophetic religion discounts the revealed truth in all the others. The orthodox sects in Christianity realize now that there must be some kind of Christian unity, but they are not concerned with other faiths. The liberal sects, especially the extreme liberal sects, see beyond Christian unity to world unity, but in general they cannot envisage a world faith coming to humanity through the medium of divine revelation.
Perhaps the dilemma is due to man’s one-sided view of experience. He is prone to believe that there is nothing in his experience that corresponds to revelation. How then can he bridge the gap between experience and revealed truth? Life is a constant struggle ronment. Many an agnostic would ronment. Many an agnostic could investigate religion if he could see that it is not incompatible with his experience. In terms of his cultural background he is honest and sincere.
As we have indicated above, however, in a very real sense there is nothing in our experience that corresponds to scientific truth. Science has failed to explain the underlying reality of nature in terms of mechanical models and to the average reader the symbolism of mathematics is just as irrelevant as the concept of revelation.
On the other hand, the idea of revealed truth is not wholly foreign to us, but we must think in terms of all experience, not merely experience in the world of science, as we are apt to do when we consider religion.
It is just because man has taken a rather narrow view of experience, that we have stressed the significance of the world of value. When we turn to the world of value we discover two things that are relevant to our problem. In the first place, standards come to us through inspired individuals and not through any scientific procedure. In the second place, the standards are renewed from time to time.
[Page 30]
To illustrate, let us turn to the
realm of music.
What we call good music is the music of the great masters. We do not explain why the music of Mozart is good; we start with his music as a standard. It was appreciated to some degree in his day by recognized musicians and certainly after his day. To Mozart (or any other master) his music was a medium for conveying to us an extraordinary spiritual experience. As we listen and try to understand his music, we share, to a limited degree, his experience. When Mozart first began to compose he was too young to be influenced by the “academies.” He realized he had a contribution to make and he devoted his life to this task.
Two questions naturally arise, Can anyone be trained to compose like Mozart? and, Is the master of music different in kind or merely in degree? Much has been written on the why and how of a genius but he is still somewhat of a mystery. In every field of knowledge, however, we must start with some postulates which can be confirmed by experience, and that is almost all we can say about standards, but that is sufficient. Taking everything into account it is reasonable to assume that the musical genius is different in kind. The same may be said of art or literature. We do not question Shakespeare’s style. It is model for us.
With all this we are quite familiar. This kind of revealed knowledge is not foreign to our experience.
The realm of morals is not really an exception, although it presents different problems. The revealer of a new art or a new music, while he uplifts humanity, does not bring about a complete regeneration of society. On the other hand, the revealer of new standards of moral values and social laws does bring a new civilization. His mission is more inclusive.
It may be maintained, and often is, that standards of moral value come through man and not through a spiritual genius such as the great world teachers. Such a claim is more difficult to refute although it does not have the sanction of history.
There are savage tribes which
not only tolerate the most flagrant
practices but regard some, like
stealing and killing, as noble virtues.
A member of such a tribe
would immediately lose caste if
he did not do a little stealing
and killing, now and then. Do we
have any record of a savage community
like this raising itself to
the level of a civil society by
means of any kind of technique?
[Page 31]
Do we know with any degree of
certainty that communities of this
kind have learned by experience
that low standards of morals do
not pay in the long run? On the
other hand, to take but one of
many instances, is it not true that
the Prophet of Arabia within less
than three centuries raised a race
of savage Arabs to a high degree
of civilization? Down to the thirteenth
century the civilization of
Islám was the most creative
movement in the Middle Ages.
It is true that no historic religion has maintained society at a high level for a relatively long period, but it is no less true that humanity is still in the adolescent stage.
Unless we can look forward to a reign of world justice all the other values like art, music, literature, and science are really of little use. On the other hand, when a reign of righteousness and justice is inaugurated, the whole field of value will be unfolded.
Finally, standards of moral value and social laws come not through scientific analysis, nor through the experience of the masses, nor through nature (whatever that may mean) but through revelation.
All new knowledge is a matter of revelation. Revelation in its completeness, however, is seen only in prophetic religion.
The question naturally arises, can revelation be renewed? In the world of music we look forward to a new music; we would certainly all welcome another Beethoven or another Bach. In the world of art, likewise, we would be glad to see another Pheidias or Leonardo. This is not, however, the case with organized religion. The various systems may not agree among themselves, but upon one doctrine they are practically unanimous. They are agreed that in the field of religion, revelation has ceased. This is manifestly incompatible with the outlook of music, art, or science. Whatever justification such a doctrine has, it does not rest upon historic facts. No founder of a religion ever made the claim that his message was final. As history shows, this unfounded doctrine has done more to retard the progress of mankind than the perversity of mankind. The revival of divine revelation is just as plausible as the revival of art or music.
The reawakening in Írán during
the last one hundred years
should therefore be of vital interest
both to the student of comparative
religion and the student
of social science. Though the
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number of its adherents is still
relatively small, it has nevertheless
encircled the globe. Its laws
and principles, its aims and goals
are suited to a scientific age.
While space does not permit even
a cursory glance at these goals
we cannot overlook a few which
are relevant to our theme.
First of all, the founder of this new faith, Bahá’u’lláh, maintains unequivocally that divine revelation is progressive. The great prophetic religions of the past (not necessarily the institutions that represent them today) are all of divine origin. This is the starting point for the belief that there is some kind of unity in religion.
Its supreme goal is to restore organic unity between all the various social functions, activities and institutions. It renews those ancient truths which have been so effective in the past and supplements them with principles which are applicable to an age of enlightenment.
In these two articles we have tried to show that the revealed knowledge of the Prophet is just as valid as scientific knowledge. Divine revelation is not incompatible with experience if we take a comprehensive, inclusive view of experience. Consequently, so far as human experience goes, there must be some kind of essential unity between science and religion. There are, of course, many points of agreement but the following, which were brought out in the discussion, are sufficient to illustrate the existent unity.
The creative force in science like the creative force in religion, is due to some superhuman power. Science and religion agree that the underlying reality in the physical world is beyond human understanding.
The progress of civilization depends upon the advancement of science and the advancement of religion.
Bahá’u’lláh teaches that material civilization is incomplete, insufficient, and that divine civilization must be established. Material civilization concerns the world of matter or bodies, but divine civilization is the realm of ethics and moralities. Until the moral degree of the nations is advanced and human virtues attain a lofty level, happiness for mankind is impossible. The philosophers have founded material civilization. The prophets have founded divine civilization. . . .
High Lights of the Newer Testament
A Compilation from the Bahá’í Writings
MARIAN CRIST LIPPITT
—AND MEDITATION
One hour’s reflection is preferable to seventy years of pious worship.
* * *
Through the faculty of meditation man attains to eternal life; through it he receives the breath of the Holy Spirit—the bestowal of the Spirit is given in reflection and meditation.
This faculty of meditation frees man from the animal nature, discerns the reality of things, puts man in touch with God.
This faculty brings forth from the invisible plane the sciences and arts. Through the meditative faculty inventions are made possible, colossal undertakings are carried out; through it governments can run smoothly. Through this faculty man enters into the very Kingdom of God . . .
The meditative faculty is akin to the mirror; if you put it before earthly objects it will reflect them. Therefore if the spirit of man is contemplating earthly subjects he will be informed of these.
But if you turn the mirror of your spirits heavenwards . . . the rays of the Sun of Reality will be reflected in your hearts, and the virtues of the Kingdom will be obtained.
* * *
“ILLUMINE MY SPIRIT”
The spirit of man is not illumined and quickened through material sources. It is not resuscitated by investigating phenomena of the world of matter. . . . Material development may be likened to the glass of a lamp whereas divine virtues and spiritual susceptibilities are the light within the glass. The lamp chimney is worthless without the light; likewise man in his material condition requires the radiance and vivification of the divine virtues and merciful attributes. Without the presence of the Holy Spirit he is lifeless. Although physically and mentally alive he is spiritually dead.
* * *
A soul who is firm will become a son of the Kingdom of God and will be confirmed with the power of the Holy Spirit.
THE END OF THE JOURNEY
A friend asked: “How should one look forward to death?” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá answered: “How does one look forward to the end of any journey? With hope and expectation. It is even so with the end of this earthly journey. In the next world man will find himself freed from many of the disabilities under which he now suffers. Those who have passed on through death, have a sphere of their own. It is not removed from ours: their work of the Kingdom, is ours; but it is sanctified from what we call time and place. Time with us is measured by the sun. When there is no more sunrise, and no more sunset, that kind of time does not exist for man. Those who have ascended have different attributes (conditions) from those who are still on earth, yet there is no real separation.
“In prayer there is a mingling of stations, a mingling of condition. Pray for them as they pray for you.”
PRAYER FOR THE UNITED STATES
O God! O Thou Who are the Confirmer of every just power and equitable empire in eternal glory, everlasting power, continuance, steadfastness, firmness and greatness! Strengthen by the abundance of Thy mercy every government which acts rightly towards its subjects and every dominion under whose flag the poor and weak find protection.
We ask Thee by Thy holiness and bounty to pour out Thy blessing upon this government, which has stretched its tent over citizens from every land, that its inhabitants, its industries, its territories may be penetrated by justice.
O God! strengthen its executives, give authority and influence to its word and utterance, protect its territories and dominions, guard its reputation, make its ideas to echo throughout the world . . . and exalt its principles by Thy conquering power and wonderful might throughout the kingdoms of creation.
Thou art the Confirmer of whomsoever Thou willest. Verily Thou art the Powerful and the Mighty!
WITH OUR READERS
Springtime quickens the spirits of
men. The energy stirring in all plant
life that makes dormant seeds reach
out roots to the soil and sprouts to
the sun is as creative in the animal
and human worlds. But in a larger
sense, these years are a great Spiritual
Springtime for the human race.
All men are stirred up by the invisible
forces of God working through
His divinely inspired Messenger for
the age in which we live. Bahá’u’lláh
is like the sun in the power of His
words to stimulate growth and development
in human hearts.
Though God reveals Himself most directly through His Mouthpieces, through Krishna, Moses, Buddha, Zoroaster, the Christ, Muḥammad, and now the Báb and Bahá’u’lláh, those whose eyes are open see Him revealed in nature also. Our lead article for April is “God as Revealed in Nature.” Its author, Mrs. Hutchens, at one time wished to be a career naturalist, she taught nature study for the junior youth session one year at Louhelen, and now leads a Girl Scout troop. She is one of the editors of World Order.
A companion article is the second part of Dr. Glenn Shook’s “Has Science Replaced Religion?” Dr. Shook speaks as a man of science who is a thorough believer in religion as well.
For the past twenty-five years Mrs. Amy Dwelly has been active in preschool education, teaching in schools as varied as the Dalton school for wealthy children in New York City and WPA nursery schools. She has lived in many parts of the country, serving a Chicago orphanage one year, or acting as state supervisor for nursery schools in New Mexico. From her rich experience she writes “Bahá’í Gifts for the Children.” She learned of the Bahá’í Faith from Howard and Mabel Ives while she was doing graduate work at Cornell University. In April, 1946, her “Bahá’í Children and the Peace” appeared. She now lives in Patterson, New Jersey.
Gertrude Robinson, whose article on the Bahá’í House of Worship was printed last winter, contributes poetry in this issue. She is a Circleville, Ohio, Bahá’í.
The California author of the poem “Newer Gardens”, Jean Comstock White has great concern for the inmates of state mental hospitals. She writes that many are sensitive souls who have been forced by the circumstances of life and by a hostile environment into the hospitals to be, in effect, buried alive. She feels that they need love and service. She suggests foster homes for those that are to be released and need to re-orient themselves, and says, “I strongly believe that a Bahá’í Sanitarium for Mental Rehabilitation would be a precious benefit for patients ready to be released; for the sacred experience of human friendship is part of life that many of these people have never experienced.”
“Pioneer Spirit” comes from one
who has had close contact with our
pioneer teachers to Europe, located
as she is at the Bahá’í European
[Page 36]
Headquarters in Switzerland. We
quoted from Etty Graeffe’s letter in
last month's column.
The beautiful “At Home in Eternity” was written by Katharine Cole of Cleveland Heights. She is a school teacher and the widow of Dale Cole who was a frequent contributor to the magazine.
“A Prayer for Unity”, from Ellen Sims who has served so ably as chairman of the Library Committee, presents movingly the new conception of self.
“What Now?” is the editorial contributed this month by Garreta Busey, who, besides teaching full time at the University of Illinois, shoulders much of the burden of World Order.
Our meditations, “High Lights of the Newer Testament,” are the last of the compilation by Mrs. Marian Christ Lippitt. Once again we express our appreciation to her.
* * *
Attention is called to the fact that the copyright date of Building the World Society, edited by Laura W. McMullen, is 1931. The book, which was quoted by Fannie Jupnik in her article, “The Development of a World Society,” (January and February, 1948) is published by Whittlesey House, McGraw Hill Book Company. We very much regret that this date was given erroneously.
* * *
World Order has received a copy of a musical setting of one of the Hidden Words of Bahá’u’lláh, made by Ernest Lubin and published by the Arthur P. Schmidt Co. of Boston. The song, entitled “O Friend!” is a beautiful interpretation of the spirit of Bahá’u’lláh’s words.
Our Readers Say—
“Just a few lines to let you know how much I like ‘What Are the Bahá’ís Doing?’ in the February World Order. It is just what I need to give a newly interested friend here. The magazine is improving with every issue! Sincere good wishes for continued success”—
“I do want to tell you how much I like the new World Order! It is very attractive. I could read an article by Marzieh Gail in every issue. Her prose is like poetry and lifts one out of this world for sheer beauty besides its splendid content. Truly it feeds the mind and heart.”—
“I loved ‘Holding the Prophet’s Hand’ in a recent issue!”
“Am sending a check for renewal. Would certainly be lonely without such a welcome friend each month. And—like a good friend should—it grows dearer and better each month. May it aid all of us not only in teaching but in living the life.”—
“The recent issues of World Order I have been consuming with great interest. I think that they are admirable for Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís.”—
And from a minister: “The latest issue from Wilmette is one of the best in many months. What a glorious House of God Bahá’í has. And, by contrast to your noble friendships, what is organized Religion doing to halt the next war? Very little, I fear.”—
Concerning “To Know and Worship God” in the November magazine: “Never heard anything on the Temple like it! We are always saying the architecture is symbolic, but no one ever explained the symbolism.”
Bahá’í Sacred Writings
Works of Bahá’u’lláh
Distributed by Bahá’í Publishing Committee
110 Linden Avenue, Wilmette, Illinois
KITÁB-I-ÍQÁN (Book of Certitude)
In this work Bahá’u’lláh reveals the oneness of religion, traces its continuity and evolution through the successive Manifestations of God, and correlates revelation with the major movements of history. Translated by Shoghi Effendi.
HIDDEN WORDS
The essence of all revealed truth, expressed in brief meditations impregnated with spiritual power. Translated by Shoghi Effendi.
THE SEVEN VALLEYS, THE FOUR VALLEYS
Treatises on the progress of the soul and the action of spirit on human being, revealed to disclose the difference between religion and philosophy. Translated by ‘Alí-Kulí Khán.
EPISTLE TO THE SON OF THE WOLF
The force and significance of divine Revelation opposed by the ruthless deniers in church and state. One of Bahá’u’lláh’s last works, it cites from and recapitulates the meaning of many other Tablets.
TABLETS OF BAHÁ’U’LLÁH
The Tablet of Tarázát, Tablet of the World, Words of Paradise, Tablet of Tajallíyát, Glad Tidings and Tablet of Ishráqát, containing social principles and laws, are found in Chapter Four of Bahá’í World Faith. The Tablet of the Branch and Kitáb-i-‘Ahd, setting forth the station of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, are found in Chapter Five of the same work. Bahá’u’lláh’s Tablets to the Kings form part of Chapter One of that work.
GLEANINGS FROM THE WRITINGS OF BAHÁ’U’LLÁH
These excerpts were selected and translated by Shoghi Effendi, and offer a representative compilation of words of Bahá’u’lláh: the Bahá’í teachings on the nature of religion, the regeneration of the soul and the transformation of human society.
PRAYERS AND MEDITATIONS BY BAHÁ’U’LLÁH
In these passages, selected and translated by Shoghi Effendi, the relationship of man to God attained by prayer and meditation has been firmly established above and beyond the influence of superstition and imagination.
Words of Bahá’u’lláh
Inscribed Over the Nine Entrances of the
House of Worship, Wilmette, Illinois
- The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.
- The best beloved of all things in My sight is Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me.
- My love is My stronghold; he that entereth therein is safe and secure.
- Breathe not the sins of others so long as thou art thyself a sinner.
- Thy heart is My home; sanctify it for My descent.
- I have made death a messenger of joy to thee; wherefore dost thou grieve?
- Make mention of Me on My earth that in My heaven I may remember thee.
- O rich ones on earth! The poor in your midst are My trust; guard ye My trust.
- The source of all learnings is the knowledge of God, exalted be His glory.