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The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh
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Pages 34-38
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The Guiding Principles of World Order
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All we can reasonably venture to attempt is to strive to obtain a
glimpse of the first streaks of the promised Dawn that must, in the
fullness of time, chase away the gloom that has encircled humanity.
All we can do is to point out, in their broadest outlines, what appear
to us to be the guiding principles underlying the World Order
of Bahá'u'lláh, as amplified and enunciated by `Abdu'l-Bahá, the
Center of His Covenant with all mankind and the appointed Interpreter
and Expounder of His Word.
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That the unrest and suffering afflicting the mass of mankind are
in no small measure the direct consequences of the World War and
are attributable to the unwisdom and shortsightedness of the
framers of the Peace Treaties only a biased mind can refuse to
admit. That the financial obligations contracted in the course of the
war, as well as the imposition of a staggering burden of reparations
upon the vanquished, have, to a very great extent, been responsible
for the maldistribution and consequent shortage of the world's
monetary gold supply, which in turn has, to a very great measure,
accentuated the phenomenal fall in prices and thereby relentlessly
increased the burdens of impoverished countries, no impartial mind
would question. That inter-governmental debts have imposed a severe
strain on the masses of the people in Europe, have upset the equilibrium
of national budgets, have crippled national industries, and led
to an increase in the number of the unemployed, is no less apparent
to an unprejudiced observer. That the spirit of vindictiveness, of
suspicion, of fear and rivalry, engendered by the war, and which
the provisions of the Peace Treaties have served to perpetuate and
foster, has led to an enormous increase of national competitive
armaments, involving during the last year the aggregate expenditure
of no less than a thousand million pounds, which in turn has accentuated
the effects of the world-wide depression, is a truth that even
the most superficial observer will readily admit. That a narrow and
brutal nationalism, which the post-war theory of self-determination
has served to reinforce, has been chiefly responsible for the policy of
high and prohibitive tariffs, so injurious to the healthy flow of
international trade and to the mechanism of international finance,
is a fact which few would venture to dispute.
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It would be idle, however, to contend that the war, with all the
losses it involved, the passions it aroused and the grievances it left
behind, has solely been responsible for the unprecedented confusion
into which almost every section of the civilized world is plunged at
present. Is it not a fact--and this is the central idea I desire to
emphasize--that the fundamental cause of this world unrest is
attributable, not so much to the consequences of what must sooner
or later come to be regarded as a transitory dislocation in the affairs
of a continually changing world, but rather to the failure of those
into whose hands the immediate destinies of peoples and nations
have been committed, to adjust their system of economic and political
institutions to the imperative needs of a rapidly evolving age?
Are not these intermittent crises that convulse present-day society
due primarily to the lamentable inability of the world's recognized
leaders to read aright the signs of the times, to rid themselves once
for all of their preconceived ideas and fettering creeds, and to
reshape the machinery of their respective governments according to
those standards that are implicit in Bahá'u'lláh's supreme declaration
of the Oneness of Mankind--the chief and distinguishing
feature of the Faith He proclaimed? For the principle of the Oneness
of Mankind, the cornerstone of Bahá'u'lláh's world-embracing
dominion, implies nothing more nor less than the enforcement of His
scheme for the unification of the world--the scheme to which we
have already referred. "In every Dispensation," writes `Abdu'l-Bahá,
"the light of Divine Guidance has been focussed upon one central
theme.... In this wondrous Revelation, this glorious century, the
foundation of the Faith of God and the distinguishing feature of
His Law is the consciousness of the Oneness of Mankind."
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How pathetic indeed are the efforts of those leaders of human
institutions who, in utter disregard of the spirit of the age, are
striving to adjust national processes, suited to the ancient days of
self-contained nations, to an age which must either achieve the unity
of the world, as adumbrated by Bahá'u'lláh, or perish. At so critical
an hour in the history of civilization it behooves the leaders of all
the nations of the world, great and small, whether in the East or
in the West, whether victors or vanquished, to give heed to the
clarion call of Bahá'u'lláh and, thoroughly imbued with a sense of
world solidarity, the sine quà non of loyalty to His Cause, arise
manfully to carry out in its entirety the one remedial scheme He, the
Divine Physician, has prescribed for an ailing humanity. Let them
discard, once for all, every preconceived idea, every national prejudice,
and give heed to the sublime counsel of `Abdu'l-Bahá, the
authorized Expounder of His teachings. You can best serve your
country, was `Abdu'l-Bahá's rejoinder to a high official in the service
of the federal government of the United States of America, who
had questioned Him as to the best manner in which he could promote
the interests of his government and people, if you strive, in your
capacity as a citizen of the world, to assist in the eventual application
of the principle of federalism underlying the government of your
own country to the relationships now existing between the peoples
and nations of the world.
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In The Secret of Divine Civilization (The Mysterious Forces
of Civilization), `Abdu'l-Bahá's outstanding contribution to the
future reorganization of the world, we read the following:
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"True civilization will unfurl its banner in the midmost heart of
the world whenever a certain number of its distinguished and
high-minded sovereigns--the shining exemplars of devotion and
determination--shall, for the good and happiness of all mankind,
arise, with firm resolve and clear vision, to establish the Cause of
Universal Peace. They must make the Cause of Peace the object of
general consultation, and seek by every means in their power to
establish a Union of the nations of the world. They must conclude
a binding treaty and establish a covenant, the provisions of which
shall be sound, inviolable and definite. They must proclaim it to all
the world and obtain for it the sanction of all the human race. This
supreme and noble undertaking--the real source of the peace and
well-being of all the world--should be regarded as sacred by all that
dwell on earth. All the forces of humanity must be mobilized to
ensure the stability and permanence of this Most Great Covenant.
In this all-embracing Pact the limits and frontiers of each and
every nation should be clearly fixed, the principles underlying the
relations of governments towards one another definitely laid down,
and all international agreements and obligations ascertained. In like
manner, the size of the armaments of every government should be
strictly limited, for if the preparations for war and the military
forces of any nation should be allowed to increase, they will arouse
the suspicion of others. The fundamental principle underlying this
solemn Pact should be so fixed that if any government later violate
any one of its provisions, all the governments on earth should arise
to reduce it to utter submission, nay the human race as a whole
should resolve, with every power at its disposal, to destroy that
government. Should this greatest of all remedies be applied to the
sick body of the world, it will assuredly recover from its ills and will
remain eternally safe and secure."
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"A few," He further adds, "unaware of the power latent in
human endeavor, consider this matter as highly impracticable, nay
even beyond the scope of man's utmost efforts. Such is not the
case, however. On the contrary, thanks to the unfailing grace of
God, the loving-kindness of His favored ones, the unrivaled endeavors
of wise and capable souls, and the thoughts and ideas of
the peerless leaders of this age, nothing whatsoever can be regarded
as unattainable. Endeavor, ceaseless endeavor, is required. Nothing
short of an indomitable determination can possibly achieve it. Many
a cause which past ages have regarded as purely visionary, yet in
this day has become most easy and practicable. Why should this
most great and lofty Cause--the day-star of the firmament of true
civilization and the cause of the glory, the advancement, the well-being
and the success of all humanity--be regarded as impossible
of achievement? Surely the day will come when its beauteous light
shall shed illumination upon the assemblage of man."
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