Chapter 6

What 'Abdu'l-Baha meant about the women arising for peace is that this is a matter which vitally affects women, and when they form a conscious and overwhelming mass of public opinion against war there can be no war. The Baha'i women are already organized through being members of the Faith and the Administrative Order. No further organization is needed. But they should, through teaching and through the active moral support they give to every movement directed towards peace, seek to exert a strong influence on other women's minds in regard to this essential matter.

(24 March 1945 to two believers) [66]

67: The Seven Lights of Unity will not necessarily appear in the order given....

The Seven Lights of Unity will not necessarily appear in the order given. A product of the second may well be universal culture.

(19 November 1945 to an individual believer) [67]

68: The teachings of Baha'u'llah will establish a new way of life for...

The teachings of Baha'u'llah will establish a new way of life for humanity. Those who are Baha'is must endeavour to establish this way of life just as rapidly as possible. Now that the hour has arrived when the Baha'i Faith is gaining prominence, and is being reviewed by so many peoples, it is necessary that the adherents of the Faith should live up to the high ideals of the Faith in every way. In this way they can demonstrate that the Baha'i Faith does create a new way of life, which brings to the individual a complete association with the Will of God, and thus the establishment of a peaceful and universal society. Divisional attachments are of men, while universal service is of God.

The Guardian is now anxious that all the friends achieve a universal consciousness and universal way of life.

(20 November 1955 to an individual believer) [68]

69: World government will come, but we do not know the date....

World government will come, but we do not know the date.

(15 August 1957 to an individual believer) [69]

EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS OF THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE

70: When Baha'u'llah proclaimed His Message to the world in the nineteenth...

When Baha'u'llah proclaimed His Message to the world in the nineteenth century He made it abundantly clear that the first step essential for the peace and progress of mankind was its unification. As He says, "The well-being of mankind, its peace and security are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established." ("The World Order of Baha'u'llah", p. 203) To this day, however, you will find most people take the opposite point of view: they look upon unity as an ultimate, almost unattainable goal and concentrate first on remedying all the other ills of mankind. If they did but know it, these other ills are but various symptoms and side effects of the basic disease--disunity. Baha'u'llah has, furthermore, stated that the revivification of mankind and the curing of all its ills can be achieved only through the instrumentality of His Faith....

...

We are told by Shoghi Effendi that two great processes are at work in the world: the great Plan of God, tumultuous in its progress, working through mankind as a whole, tearing down barriers to world unity and forging humankind into a unified body in the fires of suffering and experience. This process will produce, in God's due time, the Lesser Peace, the political unification of the world. Mankind at that time can be likened to a body that is unified but without life. The second process, the task of breathing life into this unified body--of creating true unity and spirituality culminating in the Most Great Peace--is that of the Baha'is, who are labouring consciously, with detailed instructions and continuing Divine guidance, to erect the fabric of the Kingdom of God on earth, into which they call their fellow men, thus conferring upon them eternal life.

(8 December 1967, published in "Wellspring of Guidance: Messages 1963-1968", 1st rev. ed. (Wilmette: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1976), pp. 131-34) [70]

71: It is true that 'Abdu'l-Baha made statements linking the establishment of...

It is true that 'Abdu'l-Baha made statements linking the establishment of the unity of nations to the twentieth century. For example: "The fifth candle is the unity of nations--a unity which, in this century, will be securely established, causing all the peoples of the world to regard themselves as citizens of one common fatherland." And, in The "Promised Day Is Come", following a similar statement quoted from "Some Answered Questions", Shoghi Effendi makes this comment: "This is the stage which the world is now approaching, the stage of world unity, which, as 'Abdu'l-Baha assures us, will, in this century, be securely established."

There is also this statement from a letter written in 1946 to an individual believer on behalf of the beloved Guardian by his secretary:

All we know is that the Lesser and the Most Great Peace will come--their exact dates we do not know. The same is true as regards the possibility of a future war; we cannot state dogmatically it will or will not take place--all we know is that mankind must suffer and be punished sufficiently to make it turn to God.

(29 July 1974) [71]

EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS WRITTEN ON BEHALF OF THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE

72: ...the Baha'i Faith aims to eliminate all war, including nuclear. The fundamental...

...the Baha'i Faith aims to eliminate all war, including nuclear. The fundamental purpose of our Faith is unity and the establishment of peace. This goal, which is the longing of people throughout an increasingly insecure world, can only be achieved through the Teachings of Baha'u'llah. Since it is only the Baha'is who can give these Teachings to mankind, the friends must weigh carefully how they will spend their time and energy and guard against associating with activities which unduly distract them from their primary responsibility of sharing the Message of Baha'u'llah.

(4 July 1982 to an individual believer) [72]

73: At the present time, the subject of nuclear disarmament has become very...

At the present time, the subject of nuclear disarmament has become very much a political issue, with demonstrations taking place not only in the United States but also in England and some western European countries. To single out nuclear disarmament falls short of the Baha'i position and would involve the Faith in the current disputes between nations. It is very clear that Baha'is believe disarmament, not only of nuclear weapons but of biological, chemical and all other forms, is essential...

(12 January 1983 to an individual believer) [73]

74: Concerning the transition from the present system of national sovereignty...

Concerning the transition from the present system of national sovereignty to a system of world government, the House of Justice fully agrees with your view that the Baha'is must now do all in their power to promote this transition. This requires several related activities, all of which are goals of the present Seven Year Plan. One is the establishment as rapidly as possible of firmly grounded efficiently functioning Local Spiritual Assemblies in every part of the world, so that seekers everywhere will have a point of reference to which they can turn for guidance and for the Teachings of the Faith. A second is the deepening of the believers, of all ages, in their understanding of and obedience to the Teachings. A third is the proclamation of the Faith to all strata of society, and in particular to those in authority and to leaders of thought so that those who hold the direction of peoples in their hands will learn accurately about the nature and tenets of the Faith and will grow to respect it and implement its principles. A fourth is the promotion of Baha'i scholarship, so that an increasing number of believers will be able to analyse the problems of mankind in every field and to show how the Teachings solve them. A fifth is the development of relations between the Baha'i International Community and the United Nations both directly with the highest UN institutions and at a grass-roots level in areas of rural development, education, etc.

As you are no doubt aware, the Guardian indicated that the development of mankind from its present chaotic condition to the stage of the Baha'i World Commonwealth would be a long and gradual one. The coming into existence of a World Authority and the initiation of the Lesser Peace, is one major transformation in this process, and will be followed by other stages of the development of the Faith as outlined by Shoghi Effendi in his writings. Undoubtedly, as these developments are taking place, the counsel the institutions of the Faith can give to governments, the pattern of world administration offered by the Baha'i community and the great humanitarian projects which will be launched under the aegis of the Universal House of Justice, will exercise a great influence on the course of progress.

(19 January 1983 to an individual believer) [74]

75: It is true that Baha'is are not pacifists since we uphold the use of force in...

It is true that Baha'is are not pacifists since we uphold the use of force in the service of justice and upholding law. But we do not believe that war is ever necessary and its abolition is one of the essential purposes and brightest promises of Baha'u'llah's revelation. His specific command to the kings of the earth is: "Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice." (Tablet to Queen Victoria, "The Proclamation of Baha'u'llah", p. 13) The beloved Guardian has explained that the unity of mankind implies the establishment of a world commonwealth, a world federal system, "...liberated from the curse of war and its miseries in which Force is made the servant of Justice..." whose world executive "backed by an international Force,...will safeguard the organic unity of the whole commonwealth." This is obviously not war but the maintenance of law and order on a world scale. Warfare is the ultimate tragedy of disunity among nations where no international authority exists powerful enough to restrain them from pursuing their own limited interests. Baha'is therefore ask to serve their countries in non-combatant ways during such fighting; they will doubtless serve in such an international Force as Baha'u'llah envisions, whenever it comes into being.

(11 September 1984 to an individual believer) [75]

76: Baha'u'llah's principal mission in appearing at this time in human history

Baha'u'llah's principal mission in appearing at this time in human history is the realization of the oneness of mankind and the establishment of peace among the nations; therefore, all the forces which are focused on accomplishing these ends are influenced by His Revelation. We know, however, that peace will come in stages. First, there will come the Lesser Peace, when the unity of nations will be achieved, then gradually the Most Great Peace--the spiritual as well as social and political unity of mankind, when the Baha'i World Commonwealth, operating in strict accordance with the laws and ordinances of the Most Holy Book of the Baha'i Revelation, will have been established through the efforts of the Baha'is.

As to the Lesser Peace, Shoghi Effendi has explained that this will initially be a political unity arrived at by decision of the governments of various nations; it will not be established by direct action of the Baha'i community. This does not mean, however, that the Baha'is are standing aside and waiting for the Lesser Peace to come before they do something about the peace of mankind. Indeed, by promoting the principles of the Faith, which are indispensable to the maintenance of peace, and by fashioning the instruments of the Baha'i Administrative Order, which we are told by the beloved Guardian is the pattern for future society, the Baha'is are constantly engaged in laying the groundwork for a permanent peace, the Most Great Peace being their ultimate goal.

The Lesser Peace itself will pass through stages; at the initial stage the governments will act entirely on their own without the conscious involvement of the Faith; later on, in God's good time, the Faith will have a direct influence on it in ways indicated by Shoghi Effendi in his "The Goal of a New World Order". In connection with the steps that will lead to this latter stage, the Universal House of Justice will certainly determine what has to be done, in accordance with the guidance in the Writings, such as the passage you quoted from "Tablets of Baha'u'llah", page 89. In the meantime, the Baha'is will undoubtedly continue to do all in their power to promote the establishment of peace.

(31 January 1985 to an individual believer) [76]

Revised September 1990

FOOTNOTES

1 The translation of this sentence has been revised since the publication of "Selections from the Writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha".