Evolution Towards World Order

 Memorandum

27 April 1995 

Extracts from letters written by and on behalf of the Universal House of Justice

You have also asked whether the institutions of the Faith will in the future only concern themselves with the spiritual affairs of the community or whether they will also be engaged in matters of state and be identical with the civil government. We have been asked to state that a careful reading of the words of the beloved Guardian will reveal that what you describe are two future stages in the development of the Faith. Thus, he wrote: "Not only will the present-day Spiritual Assemblies be styled differently in future, but they will be enabled also to add to their present functions those powers, duties, and prerogatives necessitated by the recognition of the Faith of Baha’u’llah, not merely as one of the recognized religious systems of the world, but as the State Religion of an independent and Sovereign Power." ("The World Order of Baha’u’llah", pp. 6-7)

The statement quoted above envisages the development of the institutions of the Faith purely as agencies conducting the affairs of the community of the followers of Baha’u’llah. In "The Advent of Divine Justice" (p. 12), however, Shoghi Effendi goes beyond the stage when the Faith becomes the "State Religion". This stage, he explains, "... must give way to its assumption of the rights and prerogatives associated with the Bahá’i state, functioning in the plenitude of its powers, a stage which must ultimately culminate in the emergence of the worldwide Bahá’i Commonwealth, animated wholly by the spirit, and operating solely in direct conformity with the laws and principles of Baha’u’llah", This last stage is described in slightly different terms in the following words of Shoghi Effendi: "And as the Bahá’i Faith permeates the masses of the peoples of East and West, and its truth is embraced by the majority of the peoples of a number of the Sovereign States of the world, will the Universal House of Justice attain the plenitude of its power, and exercise, as the supreme organ of the Bahá’i Commonwealth, all the rights, the duties, and responsibilities incumbent upon the worlds future superstate." (Cf. "The World Order of Baha’u’llah", p. 7) It is obvious that in these last stages the religious and secular aspects are clearly merged into one set of institutions, i.e., the institutions of the World Order of Baha’u’llah. This concept is further confirmed by Shoghi Effendi when he clearly states that the "Administrative Order" will in the future "assert its claim and demonstrate its capacity to be regarded not only as the nucleus but the very pattern of the New World Order destined to embrace in the fullness of time the whole of mankind". ("The World Order of Baha’u’llah", p. 144) (9 March 1977 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer) 

The “Book of Names” Mentioned in the Tablet of Carmel

Memorandum

To: The Universal House of Justice

Date: 23 March 2003

From: Research Department*

The “Book of Names” Mentioned in the Tablet of Carmel

In an email message of 4 February 2003 addressed to the Bahá’í World Centre, ... enquires about the “Book of Names” mentioned in the following passage from the Tablet of Carmel:

“Ere long will God sail His Ark upon thee, and will manifest the people of Bahá who have been mentioned in the Book of Names.”

... indicates that while he is familiar with Shoghi Effendi’s interpretation of this prophetic statement, contained in “Messages to America”, pages 32–33,2 he has been unable to discover exactly what the term “Book of Names” refers to. He enquires whether it might constitute a reference to the Kitáb-i-Asmá’ revealed by the Báb or to some other book or, indeed, whether it is “a philosophical-theological type of reference”. We provide the following response.

In relation to the passage cited above, the Research Department has located a number of references in the literature of the Faith that shed light on the significance of the “Ark” and that identify the “people of Bahá who have been mentioned in the Book of Names” with the Universal House of Justice. These references are assembled in a short compilation entitled “The People of Bahá Mentioned in the Book of Names”, which we attach for ...’s information.

The Research Department has not, however, been able to locate any authoritative interpretation of the specific term “Book of Names”. Although the term is capitalized in the English translation, we have, to date, not been able to find any statement in the Bahá’í Writings to suggest that it constitutes a reference to a particular book. It is suggested, therefore, that the “Book of Names” might well refer to the all-encompassing knowledge of God.

(Baha’i Library Online)

Baha’i perspective on the concept of “karma”

Memorandum

To: The Universal House of Justice

From: Research Department

Date: 5 September 2006

Baha’i Perspective on the Concept of “Karma”

The Research Department has studied the email letter dated 5 August 2006 from .... She states that she has been unable to find the Baha’i view of "karma” using the Baha'i sources to which she has access, and she wonders whether the term appears in the Bahá’í teachings or whether there is a parallel in the Baha'i terminology for it. She explains that she has many friends in esoteric and non-esoteric circles who speak of karma as something quite normal and important. If we understand correctly, she would like to be able to relate to her friends better by having an accurate understanding of the Baha'i perspective on this concept.

We do not have enough information to know how ... and her friends define and use the term "karma”. It might be helpful to begin, therefore, by drawing attention to the following explanation of the "law of karma” in Hinduism and Buddhism that appears in Moojan Momen’s “The Phenomenon of Religion: A Thematic Approach”:

“Whatever suffering falls to a person is the result of past actions by that person. The law of karma in Hinduism and Buddhism is a law of cause and effect. Every event that occurs is caused by previous events. If suffering occurs in the life of a person, then this has been caused by evil deeds done by that person in the past. With the concept of reincarnation or rebirth, "the past” includes past lives.

As it is outlined above, the concept of karma is based upon the view that our present suffering is the result of the evil deeds we have committed in the past. On the other hand. ...is doubtlessly familiar with statements scattered throughout the Baha'i Writings on the subject of human suffering and its multiple causes. For example,

Use of Masculine Pronouns and Images

 Memorandum

To: The Universal House of Justice

Date: 25 July 2002

From: Research Department

Use of Masculine Pronouns and Images

The Research Department has studied the questions on the above-mentioned subject raised by Mrs. ... in her emailed letter dated 22 June 2002 to the Universal House of Justice. Mrs. ... observes that in the authorized English translations of the Bahá’í Scriptures and in the English writings of the Guardian, God is invariably termed "Father", masculine pronouns are used in reference to the Divinity, and the term "man" is used to represent humanity as well as individuals. From her study of the Bahá’í teachings Mrs. ... is aware that "this usage is a product of convention and the images are generic and intended to be inclusive". She is also cognizant of the fact that "these practices nevertheless raise certain questions because of the importance of language in the formation of worldview”. In this regard she states that "according to [her] understanding, two important spiritual features of this age will be the deanthropomorphization of God in the minds of human beings and the equality of the sexes". However, it is her view that the present "language of the Bahá’í scriptures ... can be seen to repeat and reinforce the sense that the Divine is somehow male", and the "consistent use of‘man’ and masculine pronouns in the Writings to represent humanity and individuals contributes to an image that the human archetype is male". In light of these observations, Mrs. ... poses a number of detailed questions concerning the work of translation—the implications of present practice for future translations, whether "Bahá’í English with regard to gender was crystallized at the point of the Guardian’s translations”, whether the universal auxiliary language will need "to retain masculine imagery in order to be true to the message or will it be able to establish new forms", and whether "there are spiritual implications to sex-specific imagery ... being fixed in holy Scriptures for all time or at least until the end of this dispensation”. We provide the following comment.

By way of introduction, we wish to note that the Research Department has not, to date, been able to locate detailed guidance concerning the specific technical issues raised by Mrs. ... about the practical implications of present translation practices for the future work of translation, especially as they relate to gender issues. To assist Mrs. ... in thinking about the questions she poses, we attach the following four compilations:

Various Topics: Mírzá Abu'l-Fadl on Abraham and Zoroaster; Baby Naming; Minimum Age of Marriage; Smoking; Corporal Punishment; Táhirih as "Women Suffrage Martyr"

Memorandum

28 May 2002

The Research Department has studied the email message of 2 January 2002 to the Universal House of Justice from Mr. ___ in which he asks for assistance in reconciling various statements from the Writings that seem to contradict each other. He states his awareness that "many times the reconciliation of seeming contradictions produces a new spark of truth" and draws attention to two or more apparently contradictory quotations on six different subjects. He offers his thoughts about how each of the apparent contradictions might be resolved, and asks for further clarification. The following is our response.

General Comments

It seems to the Research Department that before addressing Mr. __'s specific concerns it might be useful to offer the following comments:

In a letter of 19 March 1946 written on his behalf, Shoghi Effendi offers the following guidance about apparently contradictory statements:

“We must take the teachings as a great, balanced whole, not seek out and oppose to each other two strong statements that have different meanings; somewhere in between, there are links uniting the two. That is what makes our Faith so flexible and well balanced. For instance there are calamities for testing and for punishment--there are also accidents, plain cause and effect!”

The elucidations of both 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi and the clarifications provided by the Universal House of Justice are often not intended to be a comprehensive treatment of a subject but were written as responses to specific queries of believers.

In attempting to resolve a seeming contradiction between two statements, it is often illuminating to consider each statement in the context in which it appears. It is also important to consider the reliability of the translations. With the obvious exception of translations of the Guardian, early translations may be inaccurate and misleading.