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[Page 1]

WORLD ORDER

APRIL 1936

NUMBER 1 VOLUME 2

THE MASTER CRAFTSMAN

EDITORIAL

THE long historic drive for liberty, which transformed the West from medievalism to political democracy, had some unexpected and disastrous consequences. In addition to its original meaning, that liberty is the right of the individual to participate in the making of government, and his protection from tyranny by provisions of constitutional law, the concept gradually assumed a psychological as well as political significance. Having overcome authority in terms of an irresponsible state, the individual proceeded to resist the idea of authority in any form.

Under medieval economy, the craftsman began his life-work as an apprentice to a master craftsman, and only by a long and rigorous term of service could he emerge from what was practically a condition of servitude and attain the privileges of master craftsmanship for himself. The process began in an acknowledged servitude, and that servitude could be overcome only by arduous effort and the attainment of definite standards of skill.

The modern man assumes that his original condition is one of freedom, and his life is planned to secure all possible advantages from that essential liberty. He accepts as little authority as possible, deeming authority an invasion of personal rights.

The result has been that personal opinion has acquired an importance quite apart from its conformity to any standard of truth or any general criterion of value. Personal opinion, until compelled to acknowledge authority in some form, asserts itself as an essential value, an aspect of liberty and a vested right. The rise of the ideal of individual conscience as the final authority in spiritual matters has become the foundation of the assumption that individual opinion on any matter is a fundamental dogma not to be questioned.

As between the condition in which the mass of people had neither social, cultural nor spiritual rights, but were arbitrarily held to a level of undeveloped personality like children or [Page 2] serfs, and the condition in which the individual person feels himself the center of the universe, no choice is possible since both conditions represent inacceptable extremes. The world of human society is perishing for lack of a balance between the true rights of the individual and the true rights of the community. The question where discipline ends and freedom begins, or where freedom ends and valid authority begins, is one which underlies every grave problem of the day.

Turning to the current conceptions of the state, we find the two extremes of authority and individual liberty carried to their utmost limit. There are states in which the individual is nothing as an individual, but important only as a creature of the state, and there is at least one state in which the individual is, theoretically at least, to be flattered and pandered by many of those who seek office. And the same condition exists in the field of economics. In contrast to a system based upon unlimited individual rights, we note other systems in which the individual is but a function of a social machine.

The fatal limitations of the misapplication of the doctrine of liberty become fully evident when one studies the formation of many existing political and economic organizations which involve the principle of organic servitude on the part of the individual to the state or party. These organizations come into being as the result of the influence of some one individual, or the combined influence of a few. Their personal opinions, exerted by force, are raised to the height of universal social philosophies. A few dominant personalities have found a means of self-expression in compelling millions of their fellows to accept the official mold. Such implacable trampling upon the historic doctrine of individual rights is nothing less than the seizure of too much individual right by the few. Their example completely nullifies their political or economic philosophy.

How has constitutional liberty been so readily overthrown throughout a considerable area of the world? By the impact of the few dominant personalities upon a mass of individuals for whom liberty had become nothing greater or more powerful than the right to seek personal advantage. At the point of crisis the mass exerted no adequate influence because the average individual composing it had no social leverage, no inner resource beyond his own personal opinion.

What humanity needs is a conviction so powerful that it can not be overthrown nor beguiled by any theoretical doctrine representing merely some one’s personal view exaggerated to undue importance because behind that view is the drive of overweening ambition. It would be well if the modern man acted on the principle that he is not born to automatic freedom but to servitude to the selfishness of physical personality, and to attain true liberty he must struggle wholeheartedly to attain spiritual truth. Without that, we remain slaves, victims of any chance aggression that needs us for its exploitation.

H.H.

[Page 3]

A CALL TO AMERICA

By SHAHNAZ WAITE

WHEN Bahá’u’lláh was imprisoned in Akká, the distinguished Orientalist, Prof. Edward G. Browne, of the University of Cambridge, visited Him in the year 1890. Of this interview Prof. Browne wrote: “In the corner where the divan met the wall sat a wondrous and venerable figure. The face on whom I gazed I can never forget, though I cannot describe it. Those piercing eyes seemed to read one’s very soul; power and authority sat on that ample brow. No need to ask in whose presence I stood as I bowed myself before One who is the object of a love and devotion which Kings might envy and Emperors sigh for in vain.”

To Prof. Browne Bahá’u’lláh addressed the often-quoted Words: “. . . These fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars shall pass away, and the ‘Most Great Peace’ shall come.”

As we look at me world today, nation rising against nation, the great monster of war again appearing upon the horizon, conflict, strife, selfishness, greed, racial and religious hatred blazing like a great forest-fire through the hearts of mankind, fear and distrust drying up the wellsprings of love and brotherhood in the very souls of men, these majestic and prophetic words of Bahá’u’lláh, “The Most Great Peace shall come,” seem but a far-off dream and not a present reality.

But, “So it shall be”, for of a Prophet it is said in our Bible: “His words shall not return unto Him void but shall accomplish that whereunto they are sent.” When a Prophet speaks the creative Word, it is instantly accomplished on the inner plane, and no opposing power in the universe can obliterate it. Just how long it will be before it becomes apparent in the phenomenal world lies in the Will of God.

Jesus said: “All Power in heaven and earth is given unto me.” He uttered these words under the very shadow of the cross before His ignominious crucifixion, when apparent defeat and not victory was His. “When the Lord Christ” ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has said, “Was crowned with thorns He knew [Page 4] that all the diadems of the world were at His feet. All earthly crowns, however brilliant, powerful and resplendent, bowed in adoration before the crown of thorns.”

It was from this sure and certain knowledge He spoke when He said: “All Power in heaven and earth is given unto Me.”

Likewise the declaration made by Bahá’u’lláh, “These fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars shall pass away— and the Most Great Peace shall come.” This is indeed a “consummation devoutly to he wished.” But the question uppermost in the minds of all peace lovers in the world today is how is it to be accomplished? How is this most vital problem to be solved and Universal Peace become permanently established on earth? These fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars, are even now devastating the lands and snuffing out human lives. And daily the conflict increases, proving that all human effort, all ingenuity, has failed.

Some time ago, Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler, President of Columbia University, said to a student body: “We are facing a planless world. The old methods of the past will not fit into the institutions or methods of today. All the world is waiting for something to happen, for some one to arise, to help us solve our problems.”

Another has stated: “Humanity needs a Moses to come forth to lead mankind out of the present wilderness of conflict and strife, into the Promised Land of Peace, Love and Universal Brotherhood.”

A prominent club woman addressing a State Federation of Women’s Clubs recently, declared: “We have all the machinery built for the purpose of establishing universal peace in the world—the Kellogg Pact, the Nine Power Treaty, the League of Nations Covenant,—but we lack the Motor Power to start it. The propelling force of motivation and integration seems absent. What is wrong?”

Bahá’ís would say, it is the lack of the power that moves the universe— the power of the love of God.

Peace is not a manufactured article. It is not created nor established by any human concept. No army or navy, however great, no airplanes, submarines, nor the horrible means of extinguishing life that science has discovered, no Hague Tribunal nor League of Nations can bring about universal peace. Submission through preponderance of force is not Peace. That alone which can bring Peace to earth, good will to men, ending all strife and wars, binding all hearts into one and into an “ideal commonwealth” is the love of God. For where there is Love there is Peace.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá speaks of the “Science of the Love of God” and this science finds few scientific researchers in its laboratories. In all our great Peace Conferences and Peace Parleys is it not strange that all mention of God is eliminated? All reference to the power of prayer ignored?

It is to call mankind back to God, back to the divine teachings, back to the love of God as a demonstrable principle of life, that Bahá’u’lláh has been sent into the world. He has left a Plan so perfect, so all-inclusive, so adaptable to the solution of every [Page 5] need of man—be it physical, mental or spiritual—that would men but stop all human effort and study and apply this Divine Plan for a New World Order, the “Most Great Peace” would be an established and blessed fact.

Reconstruction of world conditions today with human ideas can never be done. It is like putting “new wine into old bottles.” Humanity needs “new hearts” free from the deadly poison of racial and religious prejudice. Without this first requisite all efforts will be fruitless, and as useless as attempting to bring sensation back to a numb finger by rubbing it, when at the base of it a tight band is shutting off all circulation.

Without the hope which Bahá’u’lláh has created in the hearts of all who believe in Him—and in the fulfillment of His words—the outlook would seem hopeless. But as the light of His Revelation illumines the soul and minds of men who arise and dedicate their lives to the promulgation of these divine ideals, the dawn of a New Day of peace and love begins to break.

In this new plan for the salvation of the world, Bahá’u’lláh has given a high station to woman and her important place in the establishment of peace in the world, for the heart of the mother is the first class-room of the child. It is the mother’s divine privilege to instruct the child in the ways of peace. A new educational method must be employed. In the past the god of war has been glorified, heroes of war set upon pedestals and worshipped.

The New Age calls for the glorification of the promoters of peace, the great heroes of science, of research, dauntless explorers, lives that are sacrificed to the development of that which will heal and bless humanity, bring these high ideals into our art, poetry, music, fiction and literature, and wipe out all remembrance of war that it may vanish from the earth forever.

And to a great degree this is the work of mother and teacher. Of the great army of women, mothers and sisters, wives and friends who find expression through that magnificent channel, the women’s clubs and organizations. All must arise and redouble their efforts to bring about the establishment of peace. “Now is the time, now is the accepted time.” When war comes it is too late.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá has given very definite instructions along these lines, and explained why we have failed in our aims in the past. Consider these words: “Today, on this earth, there are many souls who are spreaders of peace and reconciliation and are longing for the realization of the oneness and unity of the world of man. But this intention needs a dynamic power, so that it may become manifest in the world of being. Today the divine instructions and lordly exhortations of Bahá’u’lláh promulgate this most great aim, and the confirmations of the Kingdom are the support and defenders of this eminent intention. For the power of the Word of God is penetrative and the existence of the divine Kingdom is uninterrupted. Therefore ere long it will become evident and clear that the Ensign of the Most Great Peace [Page 6] is the Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh. For the Intention, the Power, and the Action, all three elements are brought together and the realization of everything in the contingent world depends upon these three principles.”

When the vision of Peace—the “intention”—is all-absorbing, when man realizes what it means to him, individually as well as collectively, to have peace on earth and love and unity; and when the second element or power (or will) is generated through divine love, the action will follow. We must think peace, will to have peace and bend every action to its accomplishments.

THAT America has been chosen by God for a great destiny, and to be a great factor in establishing peace among all nations of the earth, is evident from what Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have written.

In a Tablet to America, Bahá’u’lláh wrote: “O Rulers of America, and Presidents of the Republics therein. Harken to the strains of the Dove on the branch of eternity, which are vocal with the melody of ‘there is no God but God, the everlasting, the forgiving, the generous.’ Adorn the Temple of dominion with the embroidered garment of justice and virtue, and its head with the diadem of the celebration of your Lord, the Creator of heaven and earth. Thus doth the Day-Spring of the Names command you on the part of the One All-Knowing and Wise . . .

“O people, avail yourselves of the Day of God. Verily to meet Him is indeed better unto you than that upon which the sun riseth—were ye of those who know! O concourse of statesmen! harken unto that which is raised from the Day-Spring of Greatness. Assist with the hands of justice the broken-hearted, and crush the great oppressors with the scourges of the commands of your Lord, the powerful, the wise.”

‘Abdu’l-Bahá when in America in the year 1912 always referred to the United States as a peace-loving nation, and of it He said “I have visited America and find everywhere the evidence of just and equable government. Therefore I pray God that these Western peoples may become the means of establishing international peace and spreading the oneness of the world of humanity. May you become the cause of unity and agreement among the nations. May a lamp be lighted here which will illumine the whole universe with the oneness of the world of humanity, with love between the hearts of the children of men and the unity of all mankind. I hope that you may become assisted in this supreme accomplishment; that you may raise the flag of international peace and reconciliation upon this continent; that this government and people may be the means of spreading these lofty ideals in order that the world of man may find rest, in order that the good pleasure of the Most High God shall be attained and His favor encircle the East and the West.”

“This American nation is equipped and empowered to accomplish that which will adorn the pages of history, to become the envy of the world and be blessed in the East and the West for the triumph of its democracy. I [Page 7] pray that this may come to pass, and I ask the blessing of God in behalf of you all.”

“How wonderful it would be if the United States would arise and take the first steps in hoisting the banner of Universal Peace. This country is not like other countries for she has no selfish interests in territorial aggressiveness, no need to fight to insure the safety of her colonies, no desire to extend her domains. Therefore the other countries could not misinterpret the motive, but ascribe to it no other purpose than altruism and service to mankind.

“In all other countries there are many who are awaiting this summons, anxiously anticipating this call to the Most Great Peace, for the people are in distress because of the excessive burdens and irreparable damages of war.

“America has become renowned because of her discoveries, inventions and artistic skill, famous for the equality of the government and colossal undertakings, the envy of other nations because of 1000 miles of boundary on the North without a single fortification or armed patrol. But all these will fade into oblivion as compared to the never-ending honor that will be conferred upon her if she becomes the cause of guidance to the human race.”

Again has He said: “The continent of America is in the eyes of the True God the land wherein the splendors of His light shall be revealed; where the mysteries of His Faith shall be unveiled; where the righteous will abide and the free assemble.”

And: “America is the home of the ideal peace. It must be the principal factor in establishing lasting peace among the nations of the world. The spreading of peace ideals must be carried on unceasingly, thus the ground may be made ready, and the hearts prepared. The day is coming when the dove of peace will reign over all continents. The laws of peace will rule all nations, and the resources of war will be expended upon that which will be conducive to the spiritualization of mankind.

“Let all the peace-workers gather together their scattered forces and combine their material and moral resources. They must look forward and not backward, up not down. They are the real benefactors of humanity; the burning torches of bright hope; the Lord of Hosts is reinforcing them; the sun of peace is up in the horizon and its rays are penetrating the clouds of prejudice and ignorance.

“The warships will be changed into merchant steamers, binding the nations and continents together. The cry of peace shall be heard from every throat, and the sweet resonant melody of peace will drown all the noise of war. Blessed are those who enlist in the ranks of peace.”

It is such high and glorious ideals for our country that we must hold in our hearts and envision in our minds. We must ever hear this melody of peace as uttered by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá— above the din and wild confusion of the present hour—and holding fast that vision help to bring it forth into material expression.

First of all we must be at peace with our own souls, our hearts [Page 8] free from all prejudice, racial or religious, class or political. Be at peace before God and in turn with our neighbors. We may devote our lives to the promulgation of Peace, but unless we know it as a living experience in our own lives our service is in vain.

Some peace workers would carry their efforts even to the point of disobeying their government, but such disobedience is explicitly forbidden in the Bahá’í teachings: “It is incumbent upon you to be submissive to all monarchs and rulers who are just, and to show your fidelity to every just king. Serve ye the sovereigns of the world with the utmost truthfulness and loyalty . . . Without their leave and permission do not meddle with political affairs, for disloyalty to the sovereign is disloyalty to God Himself.”

Victor Hugo has said: “You might as well try to keep the sun from rising as to try to hold back an Ideal when the hour for its fulfillment has struck” and when Bahá’u’lláh proclaimed “the Most Great Peace shall come,” the hour struck and no power in the universe can prevent its fulfillment. Only let us in faith and with an inward joy of assurance work night and day, bearing aloft the torch of Hope and the Ensign of Peace, for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá has said: “Blessed are those who enlist in the ranks of Peace.”

Besides revealing prayers for the peace of all nations, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá uttered this invocation on behalf of America. “O thou kind Lord! Let this democracy become glorious in spiritual attainment even as it has become successful in material degrees. Render this just government victorious! Confirm this revered nation so that it may raise the standard of the oneness of humanity and promulgate the Most Great Peace. May it become glorious and praiseworthy among the nations of the earth.

“O God! Make America worthy of Thy favors and deserving of Thy Mercy. Bring it under Thy banner and make it dear to Thee through Thy bounty and bestowals.

“O God! strengthen its executives: give authority and influence to its word and utterance; protect its territories and dominions; guard its reputation; make its ideals to echo throughout the world; reveal its traces and exalt its principles by Thy conquering power and wonderful might throughout the kingdom of creation.

“Thou art the Confirmer of whomsoever Thou Willest. Verily, Thou art the Powerful, the Mighty.”

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FROM CHAOS TO ORDER

By WILFRID C. BARTON

MAN is today faced with the colossal problem of transforming a chaotic world into an orderly one. The abundance of theories advanced as solutions to his difficulty has increased rather than lessened the confusion of his mind; and their apparent inability to strike at the root of the trouble has added to his uncertainty. The reforms which these theories advocate are, on the whole, external, —that is, concerned with an alteration of material circumstances as opposed to conditions of mind and consciousness. In this article, we shall approach the problem of world disorder from the angle of basic human attitudes, since it is from certain attitudes, grounded in human consciousness, that man receives the motive force of his actions.

There are two fundamental and directly opposed attitudes of mind which lie at the root of all voluntary human behavior. The first may he called the attitude of separation. By this is meant that frame of mind which induces persons to deal with the situations and problems confronting them as separate and detached, rather than as related phenomena. In contrast to this point of view is the attitude of unity, which regards all phenomena as essentially related, and seeks to consider each separate matter in its relation to all others and to place every partial aspect in its proper relation to the whole aspect. The former attitude is concerned with the disparity of things; the latter with their oneness. All of man’s affairs are under the influence, guidance, or domination of one or the other of these two attitudes.

The suitability of either of these two attitudes to function as guides to conduct, obviously depends upon whether or not they correspond with the actual or real nature of the world. It is certain that the attitude of separation could not function successfully in a world organically constituted, that is to say, in a world every part of which bears a vital relation to every other part and to the whole. If, for example, I as a human being have my own separate sphere of activity and you have yours, then we can both [Page 10] deal with our respective problems in our own individual manner and no conflict between us will result. But if our spheres of activity overlap each other and our concerns are mutually connected, then a lack of coordination in our handling of those matters is certain to produce conflict and maladjustment. The attitude of separation, therefore, is applicable only in a world in which no organic principle is involved.

That the world today is actually organic in character is a fact which even the most superficial glance serves to show and one which is becoming increasingly apparent as time goes on. Due to various factors:— mainly to the growth and spread of human population, the tremendous progress in methods of transportation and communication, and the unprecedented advance of scientific knowledge and its application,—the individual man has been brought into ever closer relation with his neighbor. Not only individuals but also groups, classes, and nations have become bound together in a complex network of mutually dependent interests and relationships. For example, in the economic life of mankind we note the evidences of widespread interdependence. We see that even the nation, which represents the largest autonomous unit into which human beings have yet been molded, exhibits, in every instance, some degree of economic dependence. It is no more possible to consider the economic interests of nations as separate and unrelated than it is to consider the mill- working population of Massachusetts as independent of the cotton-growing population of Alabama, or the economic existence of the farmer as disconnected from that of the manufacturer. Because of this phenomenon of interdependence, no less basic than real, pervading not only man’s economic life but every other aspect of his existence as well, the contemporary world may legitimately be termed an organism.

IN speaking of the attitudes of separation and unity it should be understood that we are not dealing with merely intellectual points of view. No concept or theory, unless it can touch his feeling and emotion, is capable of arousing man’s will to action. It follows that there should be a direct correspondence between the basic attitudes of man’s life and his dominant emotions. So it happens that the emotion of love, in some form or degree, is always associated with the attitude of unity, just as the emotion of hatred is always inseparable from the attitude of separation. Human beings are attracted to each other whenever an attitude of unity prevails. They are dispersed and antagonized through an attitude of separation. Thus it is evident that these two attitudes which motivate human behavior necessarily involve the emotions of love and hatred.

We now observe that the two attitudes which we have been considering correspond, on the plane of human consciousness, to the dualism inherent in nature. Nature has been described as “that condition, that reality, which in appearance consists in life and death, or in other words, in the composition and decomposition, [Page 11] of all things.” The positive aspect of the dualism is of course, the life process or the composition of things, whereas the negative aspect is the death or decomposition process. The agency of the former process is the force of attraction or love; that of the latter, repulsion or enmity. The attitude of unity, nourished and vitalized by emotions of love and attractions, is analogous, on the plane of human consciousness, to nature’s positive, life-creating aspect. The attitude of separation, actuated by feelings of repulsion and antagonism, coincides with the negative or destructive aspect of nature.

IN the light of the foregoing discussion may we not now discover a few clues as to the origin of the discord and strife which afflict the world? Is it not possible that man’s present plight is due to his unwillingness to adapt and remold the motivating attitudes of his life to fit the inexorable requirements of a new age? May not the conflict and disorder of the world be attributed to man’s stubborn attempt to uphold an attitude of separation in a world the actual conditions of which demand his recognition both in thought and in action of the oneness of humanity?

Reverting to contemporary world conditions we become convinced of the truth of this proposition. The logic of a world in disorder resulting from a universal prevalence of the attitude of separation is amply supported by the facts. In the social sphere we see all mankind divided into strata of social classes, each class separated from the others by barriers so exclusive in character as to make fundamental unity and agreement between them impossible. In man’s economic life, in the strife of one economic class against another, of capital against labor, employer against employe, and in the tariff walls obstructing trade and preventing the economic unity of the world, we have every indication that the attitude of separation holds sway. We see the nations of the world isolated from each other by artificial, man-made political boundaries, by equally accidental differences of language, custom and cultural heritage, and by narrow and conflicting political philosophies. We see mankind further disrupted by a hyper-sensitivity to racial differences, frequently mounting to a hatred so intense that it flares up in open violence and bloodshed. In the realm of religion the dominance of disintegrating influences is no less apparent.

We are bewildered at the vast number of religious sects and divisions, all of them too immersed in the atmosphere of exclusiveness or in the limitations imposed upon them by age-old accumulations of man-created dogma, superstition, and error to be concerned with their fundamental unity. On every hand, we see man attempting to solve his problems individually and separately without recognizing their universal implications; and we find him, in the face of a unified world, clinging stubbornly to limited, provincial, self-bound attitudes.

Can there be any wonder, therefore. that in a world so dominated by the attitude of separation a universal chaos and disorder should ensue?

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THE only alternative to this chaos is a new world order based on the fundamental reality of the unity of mankind. The attitude of separation which we find is opposed to reality must give way to the attitude of unity which corresponds and harmonizes with the actual conditions of the world. There must be a complete transformation of man’s basic attitudes and emotions. For the destructive influences of separation, antagonism, and hate must be substituted the creative, life-giving forces of unity and love. Provinciality of outlook must disappear and universality of outlook be placed in its stead. The sense of disparateness must be superseded by the sense of oneness. So much is certain. But the problem which yet remains, and perhaps the most significant and difficult problem of all, is: How shall such a unity of consciousness be established?

It is reasonable to believe that the establishment of such a new state of consciousness, involving as it does the building of an entirely new world order based on principles differing radically from those which obtain in the world today, can only be effected through a superhuman power and authority. No man-made laws or principles can ever be sufficiently potent or sacred to compel the obedience and maintain the unity of mankind. Not even the eclectic pooling of all man’s ideas and theories can provide the dynamic power necessary to create a basic and universal agreement in the hearts of men. Moreover, it is logically untenable that man, whose conceptions, no matter how enlightened, are essentially partial and finite, should independently comprehend, much less create, all that is needful for his own welfare. Just as the controlling, animating human spirit is needed to hold together in perfect unity and order the various elements of which the human body is composed, so a superhuman authority is necessary to establish order in the body of mankind and a divine spirit is needed to infuse that body with life. The assumption that man unaided is capable of solving his own problems and working out his own destiny rests on the belief that man himself is the touchstone of reality, that is to say, that the ultimate standard of reality is to be found only in individual consciousness. Such a belief is tantamount to an unreserved acceptance of the attitude of separation. And the attitude of separation is precisely the point of view we need to eradicate.

THE solution, and the only solution, to man’s great dilemma is in his complete submission to the authority of God and to His divine plan for the unification of the human race as revealed through His chosen mouth-pieces, the prophets or manifestations of God. In this day the authority of God, according to those who have accepted the Bahá’í revelation, is vested in Bahá’u’lláh whose mission to mankind is not only to fulfill that work which the prophets of the past have inaugurated, but also to lead mankind on to a new and higher stage of development than it has ever before attained. The message which He brought not only reiterates the fundamental, eternal [Page 13] truths found in all the religious dispensations of the past, but also adds to them certain new precepts not found in those revelations which significantly apply to the peculiar conditions of the modern age and to man’s advanced stage of material and cultural development. His teachings, His followers claim, are characterized by a universality of scope and a completeness and perfection of design which only an omniscient Intelligence could conceive. They are directed toward the oneness of humanity through universal love, the unification of all religions, the harmony of scientific and religious truth, the elimination of superstition, blind tradition and all forms of prejudice, the establishment of universal education, the equality of men and women, a universal auxiliary language, universal peace, and an international tribunal. These teachings form the basis of a new world order, the creation of which shall signalize the appearance of the kingdom of God on earth, long prophesied by the sages of old. As a means of promoting the building of this new world order and of safeguarding the purity of the spirit underlying it, Bahá’u’lláh has laid down certain principles of administrative order. At His own passing Bahá’u’lláh designated His son, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, as perfect Exemplar of the Faith and authoritative Interpreter of the teachings. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in turn appointed, through the authority bestowed upon Him by His father, His grandson, Shoghi Effendi, as Guardian of the Cause and authoritative interpreter of the divine Word. Shoghi Effendi is at present the administrative head of the Cause round whom gather all the followers of the Faith, and under whose leadership the structure of the new divine civilization based on the principles proclaimed by Bahá’u’lláh is already being erected.

THE revelation of Bahá’u’lláh, His followers believe, is the one refuge for humanity in this day. It provides the only agency capable of bringing all mankind into a lasting unity, harmony and peace. Receiving its strength and support from the supreme authority of God centered in the being and in the revealed Word of the Manifestation, it has behind it a limitless power. The message revealed by Bahá’u’lláh confers upon man both the duty to give, and the bounty to receive a greater measure of love than he has ever before known. Through its ability completely to transform the hearts of its followers, the Bahá’í revelation goes to the root of individual as well as world distress. In obedience to its precepts, service to its ideals, and in the effort to promote its establishment, the individual finds the solution of all his difficulties and the highest expression of his own talents and capacities. It places the individual in his true relation to the rest of humanity and to the universe, thereby enduing his own life with meaning and significance and opening up to his use vast resources of power.

Not until the basic attitudes and motivating sources of human conduct are changed, will any permanent improvement in world conditions be effected. In the face of such considerations, [Page 14] the magnitude of the claim made by the Bahá’í Faith commands the most thorough scrutiny of the whole world.

Humanity may well afford to heed such words as these written by the pen of Bahá’u’lláh:—“This is the Day in which the testimony of the Lord hath been fulfilled, the Day in which the Word of God hath been manifest, and His evidence firmly established. His voice is calling you unto that which shall profit you, and enjoineth you to observe that which shall draw you nigh unto God, the Lord of Revelation.”

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THE DIVINITY OF LABOR

By HOWARD COLBY IVES

UPON the sweetness of true servitude

Man’s spirit feeds. I have adorned the face

Of Nature with this Truth: Who of this food

Eats not can in My Kingdom find no place.

Behold the sun: it asks no pay nor praise

Yet see, its service makes thy nights and days!

And even the grass, in humble service sweet

Makes all the earth a carpet for thy feet.

Shall man alone, defying My wise plan

Demand a price to serve his brother man?

Throughout My universe I have ordained

The Law of energy, Lo! all things work.

Age-long My toiling spheres have not complained,

Nor sought their heaven-born task to shirk.

Yet note their ceaseless travail. And behold

The atom! Here a universe unrolled

In miniature before thy wondering eye:

Its bright electrons see, they ceaseless ply

With noiseless speed and not a jot abate

Their toil that they may aid Me to create.

Thus doth the universe acknowledge Me

And in its ceaseless toil do reverence.

‘Tis man alone who in his work doth see

A means for selfish gain. To penitence

For this dread crime against My Love I called

Him by the scourge of crime and poverty,

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That through his suffering he may wiser be,

For work is but a means to worship Me.

Lo how the whole world now doth stand appalled

Before the wreck such wantonness hath made!

This is My Bounty, making man afraid

Above all else to brave My chastening rod:

Hence My Command to “Fear the Lord thy God.”

How sweet is toil, an attribute of Mine!

Shall man deprive himself of this divine

And sacred Gift? Again I call to thee

And all men: seek in servitude the wine

Of Union.

If thou wouldst My Lover be

Pour all thy love on men; if thou wouldst find

True wealth of joy to thine own joy be blind;

If thou wouldst fill thy barns with harvest store

See that thy brother man shall have still more.

O give and all shall then to thee be given.

How vainly men for self have fought and striven

Throughout the ages! Is it not enough?

Come, build on earth the Kingdom of My Heaven.

Thus shall earth pour her riches in men’s hands;

To him who gives My stars give in their turn;

From one ray of My Generosity

Such suns of generosity shall rise

That men shall look on men with glad surprise

And wonder that it took so long to learn.

The splendor of this luminosity,

Which from My Sun shall pour upon all lands,

Shall bathe My people in Celestial Light,

And all their terrors, creatures of the night

Of self, their poverty and shame, the bands

Of steel which made their sordid toil a curse,

Shall, like all phantoms of the dark, take flight

And men shall find in work their truest prayer,

The fruits of which they all together share.

This is the Law of all My Universe.

[Page 17]

MODIFICATION OF SPECIES

By ‘ABDU’L-BAHÁ

WE have now come to the question of the modification of species and of organic development: that is to say, to the point of inquiring whether man’s descent is from the animal.

This theory has found credence in the minds of some European philosophers, and it is now very difficult to make its falseness understood, but in the future it will become evident and clear, and the European philosophers will themselves realize its untruth. For verily it is an evident error. When man looks at the beings with a penetrating regard, and attentively examines the condition of existences, and when he sees the state, the organization, and the perfection of the world, he will be convinced that in the possible world there is nothing more wonderful than that which already exists. For all existing beings, terrestrial and celestial, as well as this limitless space and all that is in it, have been created and organized, composed, arranged, and perfected as they ought to be; the universe has no imperfection; so that if all beings became pure intelligence and reflected for ever and ever, it is impossible that they could imagine anything better than that which exists.

If however, the creation in the past had not been adorned with utmost perfection, then existence would have been imperfect and meaningless, and in this case creation would have been incomplete. This question needs to be considered with the greatest attention and thought. For example, imagine that the world of possibility— that is, the world of existence—resembles in a general way the body of man. If this composition, organization, perfection, beauty, and completeness which now exist in the human body were different, it would be absolute imperfection. Now, if we imagine a time when man belonged to the animal world, or when he was merely an animal, we shall find that existence would have been imperfect; that is to say, there would have been no man, and this chief member, which in the body of the world is like the brain and mind in man, would have been missing. The world would then [Page 18] have been quite imperfect. It is thus proved that if there had been a time when man was in the animal kingdom, the perfection of existence would have been destroyed; for man is the greatest member of this world, and if the body was without this chief member, surely it would be imperfect. We consider man as the greatest member because, among the creatures, he is the sum of all existing perfections. When we speak of man, we mean the perfect one, the foremost individual in the world, who is the sum of spiritual and apparent perfections, and who is like the sun among the beings. Then imagine that at one time the sun did not exist, but that it was a planet—surely at such a time the relations of existence would be disordered. How can such a thing be imagined? To a man who examines the world of existence, what we have said is sufficient.

THERE is another more subtle proof: all these endless beings which inhabit the world, whether man, animal, vegetable, mineral—whatever they may be—are surely, each one of them, composed of elements. There is no doubt that this perfection which is in all beings, is caused by the creation of God from the composing elements, by their appropriate mingling and proportionate quantities, the mode of their composition, and the influence of other beings. For all beings are connected together like a chain, and reciprocal help, assistance, and influence belonging to the properties of things, are the causes of the existence, development, and growth of created beings. It is confirmed through evidences and proofs that every being universally acts upon other beings, either absolutely or through association. Finally, the perfection of each individual being, that is to say the perfection which you now see in man or apart from him, with regard to their atoms, members, or powers, is due to the composition of the elements, to their measure, to their balance, to the mode of their combination, and to mutual influence. When all these are gathered together, then man exists.

As the perfection of man is entirely due to the composition of the atoms of the elements, to their measure, to the method of their combination, and to the mutual influence and action of the different beings—then, since man was produced ten or a hundred thousand years ago from these earthly elements with the same measure and balance, the same method of combination and mingling, and the same influence of the other beings, exactly the same man existed then as now. This is evident and not worth debating. A thousand million years hence, if these elements of man are gathered together and arranged in this special proportion, and if the elements are combined according to the same method, and if they are affected by the same influence of other beings, exactly the same man will exist. For example, if after a hundred thousand years there is oil, fire, a wick, a lamp, and the lighter of the lamp—briefly, if there are all the necessaries which now exist, exactly the same lamp will be obtained.

[Page 19]

UNIVERSAL LOVE: ITS GOVERNING PRINCIPLE

By MAMIE L. SETO

WHEN a building is being erected the first step in actual construction takes place in laying the foundation; if that be firm and strong the building will be stable, enduring and able to withstand the violent winds, torrential rains and heavy snows which blow and beat upon it. Likewise man in building his spiritual dwelling of “Faith in God” must lay an enduring foundation and place important things first.

The firm and lasting foundation upon which man must build his house of “Faith” is love.

“. . .The greatest bestowal of God is love. That is the origin of all the bestowals of God: until love takes possession of the heart no other great or divine bounty can be revealed in it.”

All through the ages much of a beautiful nature has been spoken, sung and written about love. It is the magic word of words. No other word has been used so extensively in religion by all the prophets of God and in literature by all the peoples of the world. Prophets have given it as the basis of their law; for love to God and love to man are all of the law.

Poets and writers have used it as their principal thought and theme; yet notwithstanding its antiquity, universality and favor, we find today that it is the dearth of love that is the cause of all our trouble and suffering.

“The disease which afflicts the body politic,” said ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “is lack of love and absence of altruism. In the hearts of men no real love is found, and the condition is such that unless their susceptibilities are quickened by some power so that unity, love and accord develop within them, there can be no healing, no relief among mankind. Love and unity are the needs of the body politic today. Without these no progress nor prosperity can be attained. Therefore the friends of God must adhere to that Power which will create this love and unity in the hearts of the sons of men. Science cannot cure the illness of the body politic. Science cannot create amity and fellowship in human hearts. Neither can patriotism or [Page 20] racial prejudice effect a remedy. It can be accomplished solely through the divine bounties and the spiritual bestowals which have descended from God in this Day for that very purpose.”

It is to be noted that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá made reference to real love. He, of course, had in mind a love of the highest order, a love which conforms to the standard of God and not the standard of man.

The love that is acceptable to God is universal love and brings happiness to all mankind. “. . . this is the one perfect love, possible to all mankind, and can only be achieved by the Power of the Divine Spirit. No worldly power can accomplish the Universal Love.”

“The lovers of mankind,” said ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “these are the superior men, of whatever nation, creed, or color they may be.”

The path of love which mankind travels in its evolution is from different expressions of limited love to universal love. In its immature state this love is only for mate, family. tribe, and may include love of country. When it reaches maturity it is universal and takes in all mankind. This development in love is a gradual process and covers ages and cycles of time.

TODAY the race has reached its maturity and is ready for the expression of the perfect love. In this new age, the universal cycle, universal love must and will prevail.

‘Abdu’l-Bahá said: “Man must manifest this universal love by developing himself and others in the image of God.”

Man is made in the image and likeness of God; he is not like Him, however, until he shows forth the same qualities. One of these qualities is universal love. Since God loves all, man must likewise love all. Of the importance of universal love ‘Abdu’l-Bahá wrote:

“The greatest gift of man is universal love, for this love is the magnet which renders existence eternal, attracts reality, and diffuses life with infinite joy. If this love penetrates the heart of man, all the forces of the universe will be realized in him, for it is a divine power which transports him to a divine station; and man will make no real progress until illumined by this power of love. Strive to increase the love-force of reality, to make your hearts greater centers of attraction, to create new ideals and relationships.

“Alas! Alas! The world has not discovered the reality of religion hidden beneath the symbolic forms!”

“Boast not of your love to your own people but of love to your fellow creatures. Glory not in loving your homes but in loving the whole world.” wrote Bahá’u’lláh over seventy years ago.

When love is thought of, with few exceptions it is usually of a personal nature. There are, however, two kinds of love:

“. . . one universal and one individual. You must love humanity in order to uplift and beautify humanity. Even if people slay you, yet must you love them. Individual love cannot be forced, and you are not required to love anybody personally; but if they [Page 21] are in your lives, see to it that they are means to your development and that you are means to their development, through your universal love for them. We are creatures of the same God, therefore we must love all as children of God even though they are doing us harm. Christ loved His persecutors. It is possible for us to attain to that love. God manifested His love by creating man in His own image. Man must manifest this love by developing himself and others in the image of God.”

How is it possible, then, to love universally since we are not required to love every one personally?

Universal love is not just an expression of kindness. an act of generosity, a noble or philanthropic deed, yet may embody such virtues.

Universal love, like true religion, of which it is the basis, is a way of life: the way we treat every human being with whom we come in contact every hour of the day, in all our thoughts, words and actions.

Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Bahá’í Faith, had universal love in mind when he penned the following words:

“Not until the dynamic love we cherish for Him is sufficiently reflected in its power and purity in all our dealings with our fellow-men, however remotely connected and humble in origin, can we hope to exalt in the eyes of a self-seeking world the genuineness of the all-conquering love of God. Not until we live ourselves the life of a true Bahá’í can we hope to demonstrate the creative and transforming potency of the Faith we profess.”

LEST men be bewildered as to how they should treat their fellow- men, a governing and guiding principle has been given by all the Prophets of God since their laws were first revealed to mankind for that very purpose. We find this governing principle running all through the Old and New Testaments, the Qur’án, and other Holy Books, and this principle is justice.

In Micah 6:8 we find: “He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”

And in the New Testament, Matthew 7:12, the following: “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.”

In the Qur’án, Sura of The Bee, we find: “Verily God commandeth justice, and the doing of good, and the giving unto kindred what shall be necessary: and he forbiddeth wickedness, and iniquity, and oppression: he admonisheth you that ye may remember.”

Bahá’u’lláh has renewed this ancient and eternal principle of justice. He said of it: “Wert thou to observe justice, choose thou for others what thou choosest for thyself.”

This is the highest love and is an impersonal love. When men choose for all their fellow-men, no matter to which distant race they belong, or how humble in their walk of life, all the rights, privileges and blessings they choose for themselves, they love universally. This is the love without [Page 22] bias or barrier.

Writing further on justice, Bahá’u’lláh says:

“Upon reflection, men of equity and discernment will witness, with outward and inward eyes, the effulgence of the orb of justice in all that We have revealed.”

“The essence of all that We have revealed for thee is justice, is for man to free himself from idle fancy and imitation, discern with the eye of oneness His glorious handiwork and look into all things with a searching eye.”

“O people of God! The trainer of the world is justice, for it consists of two pillars: Reward and retribution. These two pillars are two fountains for the life of the people of the world.”

“The possessors of justice and equity occupy the highest station and loftiest rank: the lights of righteousness and piety shine and radiate from such souls.”

That individuals and nations are far away from this perfect way of life is evident by the words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá upon His visit to the Western world more than twenty years ago. He said, in speaking of the condition oi the world: “If man had even the rudiments of justice, such a state of things would be impossible.”

WHEN mankind embraces universal love, with justice as its governing principle, you may ask will it be possible to retain our personal loves? Yes, it will be possible to retain all personal love. Just as the universe contains the planet, so the great universal love contains the personal love, for the greater always contains the lesser. However, when justice is the guiding principle, the personal love becomes noble and exalted. It is a safeguarding love— this universal love—for it will never allow personal love to blind the judgment, prejudice the mind, or bias the opinion, nor will it permit one to swerve from the path of rectitude through personal influence. When the reverse is true, and the personal love is the highest love it oft-times prevents one from giving credit where credit is due; from discerning and acknowledging gifts and talents in individuals, and from giving merit and granting awards when earned. Through its influence the mind becomes warped and the judgment blinded.

Personal love rests upon two weak supports: privilege and favoritism, which sooner or later collapse. Bahá’u’lláh wrote.

“The light of men is justice; quench it not with the contrary winds of oppression and tyranny. The purpose of justice is the appearance of unity among people.”

Joseph Addison, the English essayist, wrote of justice: “Justice discards party, friendship, kindred, and is therefore always represented as blind.”

Emerson, in his essay on Character, wrote: “Truth is the summit of being: justice is the application of it to affairs. All individual natures stand in a scale, according to the purity of this element in them.”

The Manifestations of God and those near to them have written forcibly against personal love when it is the ruling love. In the “Mysterious [Page 23] Forces of Civilization,” we find the following:

“The second characteristic of progress and self-perfecting consists in the observance of justice and righteousness.

“There must be no respecting of personal advantage and no seeking after personal profit, but, without regarding anyone, a man must keep the just laws and recognize himself as a member of the body of God’s people. Except, so far as concerns his spiritual growth, he should not keep aloof from the people, but should reckon the common good, his own. In short, he should think of the whole people as one man, and of himself merely as one of the members of that body.”

“Whatever is universal is heavenly and whatever is personal is satanic,” said ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

In the words of James, 2nd Chapter, 8th and 9th verses, we find:

“If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well:

“But if ye have respect to persons, ye commit sin, and are convinced of the law as transgressors.”

In Romans, 13th chapter, 10th verse, is written: “Love worketh no ill to his neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”

Man cannot make spiritual progress by giving his first allegiance to persons, for God’s universe is governed by laws and not by persons, and it is in our conformity to these laws that we draw near to God and find true happiness, as Bahá’u’lláh wrote:

“Of all things Justice is the best beloved in My sight; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it not that I may confide My trust to thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine own eyes and not with the eyes of others, and shalt know by thy own understanding and not by the understanding of thy neighbor. Ponder this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. In truth Justice is My gift to thee and the sign of My loving kindness unto thee. Set it then before thine eyes.”

UNIVERSAL love has as its motive the soul development of all. We are told by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá that if people are in our lives we must be a cause of their development, and they a means to our development through our universal love. In this highest sense we are our brothers keeper and must be vitally concerned with his spiritual development. just as it is possible to contribute to the moral delinquency of persons, so it is possible to contribute to their spiritual delinquency. This is done by being blind or indifferent to that which retards spiritual growth.

The Báb, who was the forerunner of Bahá’u’lláh in the Bahá’í Revelation, had such a lofty purpose in mind when He instructed His followers with the following command: “You must neither defraud your neighbor not allow him to defraud you.”

Permitting people to defraud or take advantage of us is one way we unwittingly contribute to their spiritual delinquency; in so doing, wrong- doers are encouraged by their success, instead of being checked, and they thus become bolder and confirmed in their evil actions.

The principle of justice is the basis [Page 24] of all noble actions.

“In this exalted Word,” wrote Bahá’u’lláh, “the sea of God’s wisdom is moving: all the books of the world are not sufficient to contain its interpretation.”

If we choose for others what we choose for ourselves we will never injure people in any way; we will not deceive nor practise dishonesty; nor will we act in a discourteous manner. We will refrain from upsetting another’s plans by breaking our word with him or our promise to him. In this last matter, something universally considered unimportant, both Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have been very explicit.

“Attribute not to any soul that which thou desirest not for thyself and say not that which thou doest not. This is My command unto thee, do thou observe it,” wrote Bahá’u’lláh in the Hidden Words.

In the words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá we have: “Let the light of truth and honesty shine from your faces so that all may know that your word, in business or pleasure, is a word to trust and be sure of.”

The outstanding institutions of the Bahá’í Faith are Houses of Justice. They will remain true to their title only if men of justice serve therein. So the individual must be trained in the highest way of dealing with his fellow-men. A just society can be produced only by just people.

Plato said: “Justice is the excellence of the soul,” and as the new cycle is an age of the soul expression of the human race it will likewise be an era of justice. And the result of the practice of justice will be the realization of that promise of all ages— the Golden Age, or the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth.

“When perfect justice reigns in every country of the Eastern and Western World,” said ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “then will the Earth become a place of beauty. The dignity and equality of every servant of God will be acknowledged; the ideal of the solidarity of the human race, the true brotherhood of man, will be realized; and the glorious light of the Sun of Truth will illumine the souls of all men.”

[Page 25]

A WORLD FAITH

Studies in the Teachings of Bahá’u’lláh

VIII. THE FULFILMENT OF RELIGION

By BERTHA HYDE KIRKPATRICK

“THE vitality of men’s belief in God is dying out in every land; nothing short of His wholesome medicine can ever restore it. The corrosion of ungodliness is eating into the vitals of human society; what else but the Elixir of His potent Revelation can cleanse and revive it?”

These arresting words of Bahá’u’lláh, written over fifty years ago, are today more true than ever. No thoughtful person will deny the lack of vitality in religion today. In a recent issue of the CHRISTIAN CENTURY, Secretary Henry Wallace makes this statement: “The science, economics, and wealth of the past 150 years have destroyed among our educated, well-to-do, so-called leading families vital faith in a transcendent God, who is interested in the affairs of men.” He even includes the clergy in this declining faith, for he further says, “ . . .apparently a minority of both ministers and church members have any vital belief in a future life or a transcendent God.”

But the very lack of vitality in religion, the very indifference of the majority of people toward religion, makes it seem impossible to these same people, even the more thoughtful among them, that religion can be the remedy the world needs today. Even in all the chaos and confusion of the times it seems fair to say that comparatively few look to religion for any aid in solving our urgent social, economic, political, and international problems. Remedy after remedy is proposed and if tried, fails. National leaders appear, class and race leaders arise, labor and capital both have their leadership,—with the result of more antagonism and more warfare and bloodshed. But there is “still a hope,” to quote E. G. Homrighuusen, “that salvation can come through man’s ideas and efforts. . . . There is lacking the sort of desperation and spirit of helplessness which seeks for a definite revelation, unique and sovereign in its own right, which is the only hope of the world.”

A few there are, however, who understand that religion, renewed, vital, dynamic, is the real need and only hope of the world today; and that in [Page 26] the past, at times of great stress and peril, God has spoken to mankind and shown the path through His chosen Messenger. There are those, too, humble believers in the Bible and other Holy Books, who look for the coming of the Promised One and for the fulfilment of the many promises found in Holy Scriptures; for the day of peace in the world, when “nations shall not learn war any more,” when swords shall be beaten into plowshares, when “the knowledge of the Glory of God shall cover the earth,” when the Kingdom shall be established upon earth, when justice and abundance shall prevail, when Christ shall return, or when, according to Muhammadan scriptures, the Mahdi shall come, or the seventh Buddha in fulfilment of Buddhist expectation.

But it is to a world largely divorced from God, through ignorance, superstition, creedal formalism or materialism, and a world wholly in confusion, that Bahá’u’lláh speaks today His “great and clear Message.” He declares openly that He speaks as a Messenger of God, not of His own will, that He is the One promised by all the Divine Prophets of the past, that Their work cannot be carried on to completion except through following His instructions. He speaks of this new age which we are entering as the Day of God, the time for which Christ told men to look when He taught us to pray “Thy Kingdom come upon earth.” “The time foreordained unto peoples and kindreds of the earth is now come,” He says. And while men for the most part are so engrossed in their own selfish desires that they are deaf to His call and blind to His beauty, yet all over the world are those who are responding to this call, who are assured that “The King hath come” and that Bahá’u’lláh is the Bearer of the Message for which the world is yearning today. They testify that He has pointed out the perfect remedy for ailing society and that He fills men’s hearts with such love that they are eager to apply this remedy. When they study His message they find that no vision of poet or seer of the past is so lofty, no conception of the fulfilment of religion so sublime, as the pattern Bahá’u’lláh has laid down for the world-wide civilization of tomorrow; that no plan tried or dreamed of by man has been so all-inclusive, so stupendous, so just, and yet so workable, so reasonable, and so impelling.

As we have seen in the previous articles in this series, Bahá’u’lláh establishes the oneness of mankind, the oneness of all the Divine Prophets and the oneness of Their message. This message which God’s Prophets all bring has two aspects. “God’s purpose in sending His Prophets unto men is two-fold. The first is to liberate the children of men from the darkness of ignorance, and guide them to the light of true understanding. The second is to insure the peace and tranquility of mankind, and provide all the means by which they can be established.” First, He wins and illumines the hearts of men and second, sets standards and laws for community life, for peaceful and tranquil relations with our neighbors. Recall that Christ, too, said that all the law and the prophets hung on [Page 27] two things. The first, briefly, was the command to love God with all the heart, mind, and soul and the second was to love one’s neighbor as oneself. The first concerns the individual, the second society.

So Bahá’u’lláh makes His great appeal to the hearts of men. God yearns for men’s hearts, those only does He demand. “O son of dust! All that is in heaven and earth I have ordained for thee, except the human heart, which I have made the habitation of My beauty and glory.” “O son of man! I loved thy creation, hence I created thee. Wherefore do thou love Me, that I may name thy name and fill thy soul with the spirit of life.” This appeal for a rebirth of vital, energizing love of God in the heart of man Bahá’u’lláh made dynamic by His own life. Those who read the story of His life know that it was one of complete sacrifice. Thus we can know both by His precept and by His example what love for God means and what love for man is. Those who came under His influence forgot their differences, small and great, even racial and religious differences, and gathered around Bahá’u’lláh in a new brotherhood. Inspired with this new love they, too, were ready to sacrifice all, even life.

But while the fundamental appeal of Bahá’u’lláh, like that of Christ and Buddha and all the Divine Prophets, was to the hearts of men, His message was very definitely a social one and a universal one. Always has religion had its social aspect, its regard for fellowmen, always in its freshness, has it been a great unifier; but now for the first time has it been possible for the Prophet of God to show how the law of love can be expanded to include the whole of mankind. Bahá’u’lláh has laid down His great principle of the Oneness of Mankind and showed us how to use it to bring justice to all men and include all mankind in one world-wide society. Modern communication has united the world physically; modern commerce and industry have made all countries interdependent. Even war, one of the last signs of a dying age, cannot be waged without showing the interdependence of nations. All these are outward signs of world unity. Spiritual unity is still lacking and this can only be obtained through the reestablishment of belief in God and obedience to His commands. This is the potent remedy which Bahá’u’lláh administers to the world today. “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established. This unity can never be achieved so long as the counsels which the pen of the Most High hath revealed are suffered to pass unheeded.”

THE first outward sign of this world unity will be a world organized for peace. Peace is the acknowledged need of the world at present. No lasting peace can be established without world organization, a unified world with a central government and court of justice accepted by all nations, great and small. Bahá’u’lláh foresaw this need and planned for it in His Universal House of Justice. This will have real power to settle disputes referred to it by all the nations, none with-holding itself. [Page 28] At the same time all nations will agree to disarm, except that sufficient police force will be retained to insure order in the nations and in the world.

But necessarily before such an organization can be accomplished we must abandon excessive national pride, any claims of inherent racial superiority, or class supremacy. In other words we must come into such a consciousness of the oneness of mankind that we desire nothing for our own nation which we do not desire for all nations. If the yellow or black or white race has the good things of this world it must not be at the expense of some other race. If the capitalistic class accumulates money it must not be by the exploitation of the laboring class. All are children of God and God’s bounties are meant for all and are sufficient for all.

Put into actual practice the principle of the oneness of mankind means, besides world government, employment for all, “no idle rich and no idle poor,” justice to both capital and labor, education for all. As an important aid to understanding between different nationalities and a means of simplifying education and travel, an international auxiliary language is advocated by Bahá’u’lláh. He also declares the equality of the sexes, that they must have equal opportunities, rights and privileges. There is no conflict, says Bahá’u’lláh, between science and religion, both are expressions of truth and truth is ultimately one. Modern progress, learning, scientific investigation and invention are praised by Bahá’u’lláh; for the mind, the intelligence of man, is God’s greatest gift to man and should be developed to its utmost. Thus man advances toward the fulfilment of his destiny, for “all men have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization.” The intellect, however, should always be used with the object of producing that which benefits mankind. That man should use his intellect or inventive power for making destructive or even useless things is contrary to man’s true nobility.

EDUCATION is most important in Bahá’u’lláh’s scheme of things, but children should be instructed in that which is conducive to the progress of man and not in those subjects which “begin and end in mere words.” Education will be used as a great means of unification. History and literature will not be distorted to make one race or nation appear inferior or superior to another. The needs of every degree of intelligence, skill, and interest will be met so that each individual can develop to the utmost of his capacity.

Bahá’u’lláh has provided certain economic and tax regulations which will provide justice to all, a means of livelihood for all, and will make it impossible for some to amass great fortunes while others are deprived of the necessities of life. Capital, however, is not forbidden. The economic system, the legal system, the monetary system will become world-wide. There is no attempt in Bahá’u’lláh’s plan to reduce all classes and nations to a monotonous level and sameness. Diversity of taste, occupation, customs is desirable and necessary for a well-ordered world, for beauty, happiness, and contentment.

[Page 29]

There will be one universal religion and this with moral and spiritual precepts will be taught in schools. No dissension over varying creeds will prevent this. Religion, indeed, will be the great unifier and so blended with life that it will be the basis for government and industry. Those high in spiritual attainments and in wisdom will be chosen for public positions. There will be no professional clergy, worship will be without ostentation and elaborate ceremony. The house of worship will be the center of every community and around it will be grouped schools and institutions for the care of orphans, the aged and all unfortunates.

“The Bahá’í community is to be a hive of activity and cooperation. Social intercourse and festal gatherings are encouraged. There are no recluses. All share the simple ordinary life of humanity. Marriage is commended and shown as consistent with, indeed conducive to, the highest spiritual attainment—all the three great examples, Bahá’u’lláh, the Báb, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, were married. There are no idlers nor parasites. Every man must have a business or profession of some kind, and work done in the spirit of service to society is accepted by God as an act of worship to himself.”

How can it be possible, some ask, that such an age of peace and justice is near at hand? All about us we see signs of increasing injustice, of conflict and strife. Confusion surrounds us; governments quickly rise and fall; there is depression in business with its resultant unemployment; suffering and oppression abound. Wars continue and rumors of greater wars are heard. Cataclysms of nature —floods, earthquakes, storms, droughts—are causing untold human misery.

Destructive forces are indeed in evidence. No doubt the old order and outworn institutions must destroy themselves before the new ones can take their places. This is in accord, too, with the Holy Books which depict in powerful language the calamitous times which directly precede the age of peace. Bahá’u’lláh does not overlook the destructive period. From the beginning of His teaching He gave repeated warnings of the disasters that were sure to come if nations and rulers persisted in spending such unlimited money for armies and munitions.

It was especially in His letters to various rulers in Europe and Asia that He gave these warnings. He sent letters to the Sháh of Persia, the Sultán of Turkey, the Czar of Russia, the Pope, the King of Prussia, Napoleon III, Queen Victoria, and the Presidents of the American Republics. In them He urged rulers to realize their high responsibilities for the welfare and happiness of their subjects and predicted calamities if they let selfish ambitions dominate their motives. Some of these predictions have already been fulfilled, as, for example, those connected with Napoleon III, the Sultán, the Sháh. Other calamitous predictions are still to come to pass, apparently at a not far distant time.

But the emphasis of Bahá’u’lláh’s teaching was always upon the “Glad- [Page 30] Tidings” of the new civilization which is already gradually growing up on the foundation which He laid. The Book of Akdás contains specific laws and regulations which are to be the basis of the new world order. Many of these are contained also in some of His shorter writings. He leaves us in no doubt that this higher type of civilization will prevail. It is for this that man has been created and what God has ordained must come to pass. Man has now reached the point in his spiritual evolution when he is capable under the guidance of God of developing a worthy civilization. Bahá’u’lláh constantly reminds man of his latent possibilities and urges him to rise to the heights for which he was created. This is the time for which the whole human race hath longed “that perchance it may fulfil that which well beseemeth its station, and is worthy of its destiny.” In the words of Shoghi Effendi, mankind has now arrived at the dawn of “the consummation of the whole process of human evolution.”

We should expect that such a consummation of human evolution would be of long duration and Bahá’u’lláh so assures us. Our part is to accept His remedy for present conditions, to return to the “Faith of God and His Religion” and, in obedience to His command, establish the world state on the foundation of the unity of the human race. “This is the straight Path,” He says, “the fixed and immovable foundation. Whatsoever is raised on this foundation, the changes and chances of the world can never impair its strength, not will the revolution of countless centuries undermine its structure.”

While the glorious possibilities of this new civilization are at present beyond even our imagination, Bahá’u’lláh affirms that nothing can prevent their attainment. He says: “The heights which, through the most gracious favor of God, mortal man can attain, in this Day, are as yet unrevealed to His sight. The world of being hath never had, not doth it yet possess the capacity for such a revelation. The day, however, is approaching when the potentialities of so great a favor will, by virtue of His behest, be manifested unto men. Though the forces of the nations be arrayed against Him, though the kings of the earth be leagued to undermine His Cause, the power of His might shall stand unshaken. He, verily, speaketh the truth, and summoneth all mankind to the way of Him who is the Incomparable, the All-Knowing.”

[Page 31]

INSTITUTIONALISM AND RELIGION

By RUHI AFNÁN

MODERN thought is inclined to consider any form of organization as detrimental to the spirit of true religion, and it bases its reasoning upon the belief that whereas religion requires a freedom of the spirit, laws and institutions force it into a groove and subject it to a definite and preconceived mould. How could the spirit soar and attain its full stature if restrained by the dictates of an organization? To a Bahá’í, such an issue is basic and vital, for the institutions of Guardianship, and of local, national and international Assemblies are inseparably bound with, and form an indispensable element of, the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh. Let us, therefore, confront the problem and find the reasoning upon which the structure of the administration of this divine Revelation rests.

We could undoubtedly face the issue with the unreasoned acceptance we term faith. The mere fact that Bahá’u’lláh and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have voiced these administrative principles is to Their followers sufficient reason. Having laid our trust in Their divine guidance, having recognized in Them the guiding light of God, we are fully justified in following Them to the end and being confident in Their leadership. But such an attitude gives us a private and subjective assurance; it does not help us to face the criticism of an unbelieving world.

To discover the rational justification for the institutions of the Faith, we have to start by obtaining a clear view as to what constitutes true religion, for our acceptance or refusal of the need of an administration or organization in religion depends upon which of two conceptions we uphold, whether it is the mystic religion or the revelational.

There are two philosophies, two manners of approach to that all-important aspect of life we term religion. The first, which is at present the most prevalent, and has dominated thought ever since the beginning of the last century, is the mystical one which emphasizes the inner feeling of man. According to this conception religion is an inward experience which reveals itself at those moments of exaltation [Page 32] when we feel ourselves one with the divine.

The second philosophy of religion, which was peculiar to ancient Christianity and Islám, which was discarded for a long interval by the educated classes, and is beginning again during these last years to awaken interest, is the revelational. According to this view religion is a spiritual impetus as well as a set of moral laws and principles that the prophets of God create at their advent into the world to regenerate society, educate man and develop him spiritually. It does not deny the efficacy nor minimize the value of the inner mystical experience. It cannot, for these moments of exaltation and inner communion with God, when not confused with the idea of deification of man, constitute the greatest impetus which we need for our moral and spiritual development.

BUT this revelational conception goes a step farther. This inner experience may be an element, an essential element, of our spiritual life, but it does not constitute the whole of that life. Besides it we need the element of belief that the prophets are the mouth-piece of God, and that a strict obedience to their laws is indispensable for our spiritual growth. In the absence of these last two elements no form of inner experience will help to enhance our spiritual regeneration and development.

If religion be conceived as a mere inward feeling of essential unity with God, it becomes subjective and private. As the mystic says, there is no specially defined and prescribed path that every wayfarer has to tread. Every individual has his own peculiar mode of approach to that ecstatic condition which is the hall mark of spirituality. Prescribed laws, established institutions, and outward forms constitute a burden to the movement of the spirit, which can seek its true destiny only when it is free.

Such a conception was undoubtedly the keenest and most effective weapon wielded against institutionalism in religion. They have put into the mind of youth the idea that the church is an institution to be discarded, that the spiritual life of man cannot be cast into a mould or subjected to prescribed laws and principles.

According to the revelational conception of religion, however, laws and institutions are elements indispensable to our spiritual growth. According to this philosophy, the soul is not saved by merely breaking away from its material shell, by merely freeing itself from its earthly bond. According to this view-point, the spirit has in store, in a potential form, all the attributes of God. Through gradual progress and constant development, by turning the heart to the light radiated by the prophet of God, by an inner urge and longing for what is divine, man develops his personality and makes it worthy of the blessings of the world to come. The soul, therefore, has to be educated and trained to reflect increasingly those divine attributes. Its goal is not freedom from material restraint. Its perfection is not already achieved and inherent. It has to acquire that perfection, it has to develop.

[Page 33] To evolve, therefore, the spirit needs the loving care of a heavenly teacher, who with definite laws and institutions, devised for that specific work, rears the soul and helps it to mature. It needs stimulation, guidance, deterrants, love, devotion, hope of reward, fear of the horrible consequences of evil acts. Without such forces progress cannot be insured. And these forces are embodied in the laws and institutions that revelational religion provides.

Revealed religion lays an emphasis on the social life that mysticism fails to do. While mystical movements have never been great factors in the social development of man, the former have proved to be the greatest socializing force the world has yet experienced. Consider the manner in which Christianity and Islám have welded into one whole, people of different race, nationality and class. The brother in the Faith was the closest of kin. Such a unifying and social force is bound to materialize itself in the form of an institution as the outward expression of that spiritual unity that prevails among the followers of the Faith.

So indispensable is organization to revelational religion that we find most if not all the prophets advocate it in some form or other. If in some cases, such as Christianity, the words of the prophet were not explicit enough, the logical and essential need of the Faith brought it about. In fact, every time a group arose that denounced the existing church or churches and advocated freedom from them, it ultimately achieved no other result than to institute a new organization to rival the ones already existing. This shows beyond any doubt that organization is essential to the very nature of religion and intricately bound up with it.

If we consider the mystical movements, however, whether they appeared in the East or the West, we observe that they achieved nothing more than a small community living under the guidance of a leader, every member trying to work out his own salvation by treading his own specific path to the Godhead. None of them created a working organization that shaped the life of thousands of adherents with the power and magnitude that we find in the revealed religions.

That some form of organization is indispensable to, and arises out of, the very nature of revealed religion can be better grasped if we study the fundamental teachings of the Bahá’í Revelation. As we shall explain, without an administrative body the ideals of the founder of the Faith will never be realized.

A fundamental teaching of Bahá’u’lláh is that religion is progressive, that its truths have to be constantly re-interpreted to conform to the existing needs of society, that new laws and principles have to be legislated as the need for them arises, that it has thus to keep abreast with progressive civilization. About once every thousand years, a prophet appears in the world who remoulds the laws and teachings of the previous prophet and makes them satisfy the needs of the day. But the spirit of a system of laws cannot be considered progressive if [Page 34] modified only once every one thousand years; if during that long interval those basic laws proclaimed by the prophet cannot be reinterpreted and re-applied.

IT is imperative, therefore, for a revealed religion like the Bahá’í Faith to have a specific institution, as provided in the Guardianship, for interpreting the scriptures in the light of contemporary thought. Interpretation renders the teachings living issues. The interpretation of the scripture was in the past the center of contention among the different sects of every one of the religions. Whenever any person interpreted the scriptures another arose to denounce him and present instead a rival view. This led to conflicting sects and interminable disputes. To avoid such cause and source of dissension, Bahá’u’lláh gave the exclusive right of interpretation to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. How could He have safeguarded His Faith from the disruptive influences that clove asunder the older Faiths if not through the institution of Guardianship, through an institution the distinguishing prerogative of which would be to interpret the scripture?

To maintain the progressive nature of civilization, Bahá’u’lláh, besides providing an authoritative interpreter, had to establish a legislative body to enact new laws as time passes and the needs of the community change. Without such an institution to legislate whenever the Holy Scriptures lack explicit instruction, the Faith would soon become a dead letter and cease to have direct application to the needs of the day. It is thus evident that institutions are indispensable for maintaining the progressive nature of religion.

To denounce the administrative aspect of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh, or in a general form, maintain that religion cannot and should not be organized, betrays a lack of understanding of the philosophy of the spiritual life. Only mystic movements can logically maintain that organization weighs down upon the spirit, that it retards its progress. The followers of the revealed religions, be they Christians, Moslems or Bahá’ís, on the other hand, cannot with any justification maintain such a theory. It is true that at times organization becomes a handicap to a spiritual movement, but that is only when its function is overemphasized, when the organization becomes an end in itself rather than a mere means provided by God for the spiritual development of man.

Furthermore, the weakness of the administrative element of the religions of the past has been partly due to the fact that the founder of the Faith left no detailed and explicit provision for the form the administration was to assume after Him. Any institution that was formed was weak as to its legitimacy and therefore open to assault. It is only in the Bahá’í Faith that we find specific provisions along this line. Bahá’u’lláh has laid down the principle which ‘Abdu’l-Bahá amplified in His will and testament. They have established institutions and delegated to them the power to carry on the task of human and social regeneration for which They laid down Their life. The legitimacy of these institutions, therefore, shall ever

[Page 35] remain unassailable.

WHENEVER we study an institution or a form of human activity we should be on our guard and distinguish between the true nature of that institution and the evils that have through human frailties distorted its form. The institution may he beneficial and perhaps indispensable for the progress of man, but nevertheless become gradually so corrupted as to retard his progress. We can find a clear example of such a phenomenon in the political and economic organization of the state. No student of political theory can maintain that some form of government is not necessary for the life of a nation, but still consider, when corrupt, what havoc it can play with human life and property. Similarly organization in the field of religion; it is, in its pure form, indispensable for our spiritual life even though it has at times, in the past, fettered our activity and retarded our progress. Every organism is born, has a period of maturity, grows to its full stature, becomes old and then perishes giving way to a newer organism that has come to replace it. This is true of religion as a whole but more particularly of its administrative aspect.

The administration of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh is still in its infancy, it has to grow and mature, to fulfil its mission in the world; but after ages of activity and useful service it will become subject to corruption. Then, we are promised by Bahá’u’lláh, a new prophet shall appear and a new religion replace our present Faith.

[Page 36]

A GIFT TO RACE ENLIGHTENMENT

By LOUIS G. GREGORY

BOOK REVIEW

BLACK Reconstruction is the title of the latest work of that most versatile writer, Dr. W. E. Burghardt DuBois, third of the great national leaders of the American Negro and like the two who preceded him, Douglass and Washington, winning an attentive ear from the nation. As richly endowed with native gifts as the others, unlike them he has the advantages of the world’s greatest universities at home and abroad. Relativity as applied to reviews involves knowing the soul of the author as well as the spirit of the times he describes. This is notably true of humanistic literature. This work covers a period brief as years are counted, titanic in the clash of interests and the red glare of war and hate, vast in economic and political changes and readjustments, dynamic in its march toward those ideals which give justice a larger sway.

Massachusetts with its fecundity of liberty and culture gave him birth. His early years as student and worker were spent in two New England colonies planted in the South. At Fisk and Atlanta Universities idealist pioneers from the North touched hands and hearts with the offspring of the freedmen of the South and taught them faith in their own destiny if riveted to the Higher Powers. Signs of greatness which early appeared in him culminated in his masterpiece, “The Souls of Black Folk,” given the world a generation ago and since running through many editions. It startled the nation by its rare presentation of salient truths. It showed clear penetration and mighty grasp of the higher values of life; exquisite literary form; the must subtle heart appeal; above all, expression of a simple faith surcharged with spirituality. This jeremiad of a poet-evangelist stirred his vast congregation to remorse and even tears, but not to repentance. Later, in the homily through the medium of the World’s Work, he predicted with full confidence that “ere long this heedless generation would recover from its material inebriation and in lieu thereof would quaff the sobering and joyous wine of spirituality.” Later still, [Page 37] when reigned that orgy of passion and blood-lust known as the Atlanta Riot, there arose from his heart as noble a prayer as that of Ajax on the darkened plain of Troy; of St. Paul ship- wrecked; or of that bewildered churchman who out of his agony of soul penned, “Lead kindly Light!” Read his Litany of Atlanta:

“Bewildered are we and passion tost, mad with the madness of a mobbed and mocked and murdered people; straining at the armposts of Thy Throne, we raise our shackled hands and charge Thee, God, by the bones of our stolen fathers, by the tears of our dead mothers, by the very blood of our crucified Christ: What meaneth this? Tell us the plan; give us the sign; whisper—speak— call, great God, for Thy silence is white terror to our hearts! The way, O God, show us the way and point us the Path!”

Heaven and earth heard that piercing cry, uttered by one, echoed by millions. Earth and Heaven answered. The Chivalry of the South shook off its indifference for a better acquaintance with its black neighbors and to inaugurate a campaign of education against mob rule. Heaven’s reply, no less specific, brought the Mystery of God, the Flame of Divine Guidance, preexistent Being from Heavenly Worlds who knew the sore needs of this. It was no other than ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the Servant of God, who appeared in 1912 before that band of interracial workers known as the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People at their fourth annual convention and briefly unfolded to them the program of God for human relief. It was a message from the living God upon whom they called but did not know. They received both message and messenger with joyous acclaim, but in the hurley- burley of human plans soon forgot, as did countless others. Beyond light there is but the deepening of veils.

Black Reconstruction is a literary and historic monument none too early erected to black men and women of an earlier day. Its avowed purpose is proof that Negroes are the same as other human beings, task which idealists will think unnecessary; but idealists are few. The book shows with overwhelming facts and logic, that before, through and following the great crisis by which slavery was ended, the part of the Negro was not merely passive. In a large measure he won his own freedom. In a larger measure his fidelity and heroism helped save the union of states. In every way he improved and enlarged his meagre opportunities to prove his worthiness for American citizenship. This large single volume with its vivid coloring and literary skill, vast range of knowledge, fidelity to truth, candor and courage, extended citation of authorities, freedom from bias and prejudice, power of analysis and generalization, understanding of the motives and reactions that govern men and groups and universal appeal to the just, is well worthy of comparison with great historical works of the past. This dark Cavalier of the Quill, sociologist as well as historian, widens the scope of the record so as to include not only the leaders, but general movements among the rank and file; mass psychology; the causes [Page 38] of poverty and distress as affecting those whom he champions as well as the nation as a whole; opportunism and idealism among statesmen; problems both past and present of the man in the street and the man with the hoe, white men and black. He powerfully portrays the former servile condition of millions of dark Americans; their eagerness for freedom; their wisdom in following the Federal armies instead of betraying trusts and making bloody reprisals; the extremes of cruel and blighting poverty which confronted them when freed; their bewilderment in finding almost everywhere a hostile environment; their aid to the nation as laborers first, later as soldiers in more than two hundred engagements of the Civil War; the thirst for knowledge which fired youth and age; their moderation when suddenly given place and power; their ability to adapt themselves to new conditions and to furnish leaders from their own ranks who in the halls of the American Congress, in the forums of the nations and in the fierce shock of battle challenged comparisons with all others; fortitude under ridicule, slander and numberless disabilities imposed by the rigors of caste: readiness ever to cooperate with the best elements of the nation whether North or South; the impressive monuments of free speech, free education, equality of opportunity and just laws erected during their brief regime in the South, institutions which were allowed to stand long after the blacks’ loss of control; and in brief, their full reflection of the same vices and virtues which pertained to other Americans during this most trying period of the nation’s life. It is not a plea for the untouchables only, but for the proletariat of all races, who the author thinks ought to join hands. A retrospect which includes such giants of the reconstruction era as Stevens, Sumner, Philips, Garrison, Wade, Lincoln, Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth and R. B. Elliot, as well as the attitudes of such Generals as Beauregard and Longstreet of the South, who cheerfully accepted the new conditions, is most illuminating and helpful. Of the above mentioned, Sojourner Truth was a black woman of great originality and moral courage. Elliot was a black congressman from South Carolina. His speech on the Civil Rights Bill is one of the classics of American literature.

THE following passage makes clear the problem of the nation during that period, as it also illustrates the author’s elegance of style:

“‘Let us have peace!’ But there was the black man looming like a dark ghost upon the horizon. He was the child of force and greed, and the father of wealth and war. His labor was indispensable, and the loss of it would have cost many times the cost of the war. II the Negro had been silent, his presence would have announced his plight. He was not silent. He was in unusual evidence. He was writing petitions, making speeches, parading with returned soldiers, reciting his adventures as slave and freeman. Even dumb and still, he must be noticed. His poverty had to be relieved; and emancipation in his case had to mean poverty. If he had to [Page 39] work, he had to have land and tools. If his labor in reality was to be free labor, he had to have his legal freedom and civil rights. His ignorance could only be removed by that very education which the law of the South had long denied him and the custom of the North had made exceedingly difficult. Thus civil status and legal freedom, food, clothes and tools, access to land and help to education, were the minimum demands of four million laborers; and these demands no man could ignore, Northerner or Southerner, Abolitionist or Copperhead, laborer or captain of industry. How did the nation face this paradox and dilemma?”

The Negro is inseparable from his religion. It colors all of his stations, from the Georgia chain gang to the United States Senate; all his activities, “From the blackening of boots to the whitening of souls!” How would the black man against American competition support existence or even attain it, without a hold upon God? His religion is the major part of his history. It is also the major note of his song. And no man is really conquered until his spirit is subdued. The author once mightily felt and expressed this. And even now from the inner recesses of his great heart rise the cadences of a faith not wholly lost.

Not the least value of this work is its devotion to great ideals that are fundamentally human. Its author is nobly impatient of all prejudices and would free mankind from all such gloomy clouds. He longs for a cooperation that will banish war and weld all factions, races and nations together. It is passing strange that he should keep his face regretfully turned toward the dead past, when the divine and applied idealism of a new age is manifest, and the proofs thereof are in his own household, library, mind and heart and in the East and West of a rapidly changing world. This Most Great Reconstruction which the majestic Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh brings to view, is not black or white or yellow or brown or red, yet all of these. It is the power of divine outpouring and endless perfections for mankind. “When the fire of love becomes ablaze, the harvest of reason is consumed.”

[Page 40]

WORLD ORDER

“The world’s equilibrium hath been upset through the vibrating influence of this most great, this new World Order.”—BAHÁ’U’LLÁH

WHY this ominous breakdown of civilization, these revolutionary movements, this consuming strife of race, class and nation—this swift descent to some overwhelming political or economic war?

The old order perishes, not to be restored, but beneath the forces of destruction a universal, a divine Spirit remolds humanity within the creation of a new order and a new cycle of unity, of spiritual knowledge and of peace.

The central point of this progressive world movement is Bahá’u’lláh. His Life restored to the human heart its power of faith in God. His Teachings are a pure mirror reflecting purpose and meaning where all was chaos and confusion.

World Order Magazine is devoted to the promotion of these Teachings, which are the laws and principles of the new cycle. Month by month it affords glimpses of the new way of life and the New Civilization arising from the wreckage of the dead past.

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