“Let Your Vision Be World Embracing...” - An Introduction to the Bahá'í Faith, Part One

The following is the first part of planned series on the Bahá'í Faith.

God has never left humanity without His guidance. Throughout history, divine Messengers have educated the people of their time on essential spiritual truths and in doing so laid the foundations for great civilizations. Over time their teachings would be corrupted or forgotten, so God would once more send a Messenger who would educate the people and bring about a revival and progression of civilization. In the Middle East these divine Messengers included Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, each of whom appeared at the decline of their predecessor's religion and brought a renewal. In India the same was true of Rama, Krishna, and the Buddha. In both traditions, the Messenger brought His teachings from the same eternal source, confirmed the essential truths of His predecessors, but also brought new teachings for a new era.

For Bahá'ís, Bahá'u'lláh is the most recent of these Messengers. He confirmed the truth of all previous religions but also brought new spiritual and social teachings for modern times. He taught that humanity was entering it's maturity and that this was the day that all the peoples of the world must unite together for their common good. The religion He founded, known as the Bahá'í Faith, in the century and a half since it's beginnings has spread to over 200 countries around the globe. Millions of peoples from every race, culture, ethnicity, and social or economic background follow the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh and work for the unification of the human family. This is an introduction to that Faith's teachings, history, and scriptures as well as to the challenge that Bahá'u'lláh presents to us today.

The Bahá'í Mother Temple of the West, near Chicago, USA
Source: Wikimedia

Principles of the Bahá'í Faith

The Bahá'í teachings have their foundation in the writings of Bahá'u'lláh, which are believed by Bahá'ís to be divinely inspired revelation. The writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá—Bahá'u'lláh's son, His successor, and the exemplar of His teachings—are authoritative interpretations of the revelation. While there is no authoritative list of Bahá'í principles, it is from these two sources that the following account of spiritual and social principles has been derived.

Independent Investigation of Truth- Bahá'u'lláh instructs humanity to see with their “own eyes and not through the eyes of others”. Bahá'ís believe it to be a fundamental obligation of the individual to independently investigate the truth and to come to knowledge through their own efforts, not just through the uncritical imitation of those with authority. God has given each individual a mind with the power to differentiate truth from falsehood. The failure of individuals to exercise their independent reasoning abilities has allowed those with malicious intend to stir up hate and animosity in the world. What is now needed are more sincere seekers of truth who, after thoroughly investigating the true nature of the world, have come to see that there is only one reality that unifies all of creation.

Harmony of Science and Religion- `Abdu'l-Bahá teaches, “Bahá'u'lláh has declared that religion must be in accord with science and reason. If it does not correspond with scientific principles and the processes of reason, it is superstition.” Science and religion are, to Bahá'ís, the twin pillars of truth. Both are means to acquiring knowledge about reality, science informs us about the material world and religion lets us know about the spiritual world. Thus, there can be no conflict between science and religion because both speak about different aspects of the the same creation.

Unity of God- Bahá'ís believe in one supreme Being Who is the Creator and Origin of all materials and forces in the universe. He has absolute control over His creation (omnipotence) as well as complete knowledge of it (omniscience). This Being is called God in English, Brahma is Hindi, Allah in Arabic, and Khuda in Persian. God is called by many names but His Being is one and utterly transcendent of all created things. God is far too great and too subtle a Being for the finite human mind ever to comprehend, though humanity can know something of God through the reflection of divine attributes seen in his Messengers and other human-beings.

Unity of Religion- Bahá'u'lláh taught that there is but one religion which has been progressively revealed by God through His Messengers. All of God's messengers have a nature with two aspects because they are at once both human and divine. They are divine in that They all originate from the same light which is of God but, at the same time, they are also separate individual souls entrusted with a particular revelation and fulfilling a definite mission. All religions come from one source and uphold the same truths but differ in outward form because they were reveled by God to suit the needs of the people of the age their Messenger appeared.

Unity of Humankind- Bahá'u'lláh announced to the world that the age of nationalism was over writing, “It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world. The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens.” This principle should never be construed as supporting conformity though, Bahá'ís have a vision that is embracing of all the diversity of the world. Humanity is likened unto “the flowers of one garden” as both increase their beauty by allowing all colors and forms to grow side by side. As such, Bahá'ís work towards the elimination of all forms of prejudice.

Equality between Men and Women- “Women and men have been and will always be equal in the sight of God,” were Bahá'u'lláh's words spoken to the world of the 19^th century. An essential Bahá'í principle has always been the social and spiritual equality of men and woman. Men and women are “two wings of one bird” wrote Bahá'u'lláh. This principle does not imply sameness though as there are some aspects of gender distinctiveness in certain areas of life.

Universal Compulsory Education- Bahá'u'lláh wrote, “Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom.” The Bahá'í Faith holds education to be a universal right of all people. Bahá'ís are deeply committed to promoting moral and spiritual education, as well encouraging the arts and sciences.

Universal Auxiliary Language- Communication will play a vital role in establishing the unity of the human race. Bahá'ís promote the use of a universal language, to be used in addition to the various nation's and culture's mother tongues, to foster unity and peace among the peoples of the earth. Upholding the concept of “unity in diversity”, the Bahá'ís teach that this language should not suppress existing natural languages and that distinctions of each culture should be preserved.

Elimination of Extremes of Wealth and Poverty- Bahá'u'lláh taught that economic injustice is a moral evil and as such is condemned by God. `Abdu'l-Bahá wrote, “The Disease which afflicts the body politic is lack of love and absence of altruism.” The grave imbalance in economic and material conditions is of great concern to the Bahá'ís. They hold that only a profound change of hearts and minds, the likes of which only a spiritual renewal can produce, could possibly provide a satisfactory solution to the world's current economic problems.