From: aull@ll.mit.edu (Brian Aull)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.bahai
Subject: The Process of Social Change - Conclusion/references (part 5 of 5)
Date: 30 Jul 92 06:04:07 GMT
Organization: <none>

Conclusion 

Solving the social problems facing the human race is not a simple 
task.  It requires, first, forging a consensus on basic human values 
and goals for the evolution of society, and, second, creating the 
motivation to reshape both individual lives and social institutions 
so that they truly reflect these values and goals.  Both these tasks 
require an appeal to the altruistic aspects of human nature, an 
appeal that is universal but at the same time powerful enough to 
influence the way in which people live.  Political and economic 
restructuring is not enough; neither are approaches based solely on 
the development of the individual.  Today, more than ever before, the 
human being is a social creature whose life is interlinked with the 
life of the whole human race and the planet Earth.

In the Baha'i view, the spiritual nature of human beings, their 
yearning for transcendence, and their relationship with their Creator 
comprise an indispensable foundation for social change.  Despite the 
conflicting dogmas that have been promoted in the name of religion 
and the fanaticism that has marred its name, a study of the original 
teachings of the great religions and the spiritual experiences 
attending their birth reveals a striking universality.  Examination of 
the great religions also shows that their Founders were individuals 
empowered to exemplify godly attributes, thereby attracting the 
hearts and transforming the characters of people.  Thus the guidance 
they gave for the development of the individual and the evolution of 
society wielded an appeal that was both universal and powerful.  
Despite the abuses of religion throughout history, it has had a 
"preponderating influence on ... the vital expressions of civilization" 
and "its indispensability to social order has repeatedly been 
demonstrated by its direct effect on laws and morality." [16]
 
Baha'u'llah, therefore, is not merely the Founder of a new spiritual 
movement.  He is the most recent agent of a "civilizing process" that 
encompasses humankind's entire spiritual history.[17]  His teachings 
integrate the spiritual, social, political, and economic aspects of 
life and offer a holistic solution to the problems of the planet in the 
twentieth century.  Most importantly to Baha'is, He speaks with the 
Voice of Divinity and His message has the transforming power that 
makes the coming of age of the human race not only possible but 
inevitable.

Copyright 1991 by Brian Aull.  I am grateful to Dr. Walter Jaros for 
many insightful discussions and to Cathy Hoffman, Executive 
Director of the Cambridge, Massachusetts, Peace Commission.  
Working with Cathy on Commission projects helped shape the ideas 
in this article.

1. See Farzam Arbab's essay entitled "The Process of Social 
Transformation" in Marxism and the Baha'i Faith (Ottawa: Baha'i 
Studies Publications, 1984) 9-20.
2. Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, trans.  
Shoghi Effendi, 2d ed. (Wilmette, Ill.: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1976) 
215.
3. Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha'u'llah: Selected Letters, 
2d ed. (Wilmette, Ill.: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1974) 163.
4. Baha'u'llah, in Baha'u'llah, the Bab, and Abdu'l-Baha, Baha'i Prayers: 
A Selection of Prayers Revealed by Baha'u'llah, the Bah, and 'Abdu'l-
Baha, new ed. (Wilmette, Ill.: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1985) 4.
5. Abdu'l-Baha, Foundations of World Unity: Compiled from Addresses 
and Tablets of 'Ahdu'l-Baha  (Wilmette, Ill.: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 
1972) 19.
6. Baha'u'llah, Gleanings 158-59.
7. Baha'u'llah, Gleanings 259-60.
8. Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Baha'u'llah 43.
9. Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Baha'u'llah 46.
10. Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Baha'u'llah 42-43.
11. Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Baha'u'llah 41-42.
12. Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Baha'u'llah 34.
13. Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Baha'u'llah, 144.
14. The Universal House of justice, letter about the Nineteen Day 
Feast to the followers of Baha'u'llah, August 27, 1989, in The 
American Baha'i, October 1989: 1.
15. For a discussion with specific examples, see Moojan  Momen, 
Baha'i Focus on Development (London: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 1988), 
and Holly Hanson Vick, Social and Economic Development: A Baha'i 
Approach (Oxford: George Ronald, 1989).
16. The Universal House of Justice, The Promise of World Peace: To 
the Peoples of the World (Wilmette, Ill.: Baha'i Publishing Trust, 
1985) 17, 17-18.
17. The Universal House of Justice, Promise of World Peace 19.
--
Brian Aull						aull@ll.mit.edu