Produced by David Starner Dave Maddock Charles Franksand the Online Distributed Proofreading TeamIllustration_Lafayette Manchester_THE REV T K CHEYNE D LITT D DTHE RECONCILIATION OF RACES AND RELIGIONSBYTHOMAS KELLY CHEYNE D LITT D DFELLOW OF THE BRITISH ACADEMY MEMBER OF THE NAVA VIDHAN LAHORE THEBAHAI COMMUNITY ETC  RUHÌANI PRIEST OF THE PRINCE OF PEACETo my dear wife in whose poems are combined an ardent faith anuniversal charity and a simplicity of style which sometimes remindsme of the poet seer William Blake may she accept and enjoy theoffering and may a like happiness be my lot when the little volumereaches the hands of the ambassador of peacePREFACEThe primary aim of this work is twofold It would fain contribute tothe cause of universal peace and promote the better understanding ofthe various religions which really are but one religion The union ofreligions must necessarily precede the union of races which atpresent is so lamentably incomplete It appears to me that none of themen or women of goodwill is justified in withholding any suggestionswhich may have occurred to him For the crisis both political andreligious is alarmingThe question being ultimately a religious one the author may bepardoned if he devotes most of his space to the most important of itsreligious aspects He leaves it open to students of Christian politicsto make known what is the actual state of things and how this is tobe remedied He has however tried to help the reader by reprintingthe very noble Manifesto of the Society of Friends called forth bythe declaration of war against Germany by England on the fourth day ofAugust 1914In some respects I should have preferred a Manifesto representing thelofty views of the present Head of another Society of FriendstheBahai Fraternity Peace on earth has been the ideal of the BaÌbiÌsand Bahais since the BaÌbs time and Professor E G Browne hasperpetuated Bahaullahs noble declaration of the imminent setting upof the kingdom of God based upon universal peace But there is such athrilling actuality in the Manifesto of the Disciples of George Foxthat I could not help availing myself of Mr Isaac Sharps kindpermission to me to reprint it It is indeed an opportune settingforth of the eternal riches which will commend itself now as neverbefore to those who can say with the Grandfather in Tagores poemI am a jolly pilgrim to the land of losing everything The rulers ofthis world certainly do not cherish this ideal but the imminentreconstruction of international relations will have to be founded uponit if we are not to sink back into the gulf of militarismI have endeavoured to study the various races and religions on theirbest side and not to fetter myself to any individual teacher orparty for out of His fulness have all we received Max MÃ¼ller washardly right in advising the Brahmists to call themselves Christiansand it is a pity that we so habitually speak of Buddhists andMohammedans I venture to remark that the favourite name of the Bahaisamong themselves is Friends The ordinary name Bahai comes from thedivine name Baha Glory of God so that Abdul Baha means Servantof the Glory of God One remembers the beautiful words of the Latincollect Cui servire regnare estAbdul Baha when in Oxford graciously gave me a new nameFootnote RuhÌani spiritual  Evidently he thought that my workwas not entirely done and would have me be ever looking for help tothe Spirit whose strength is made perfect in weakness Since thenhe has written me a Tablet letter from which I quote the followinglines_O thou my spiritual philosopher_Thy letter was received In reality its contents were eloquent forit was an evidence of thy literary fairness and of thy investigationof Reality There were many Doctors amongst the Jews but they wereall earthly but St Paul became heavenly because he could flyupwards In his own time no one duly recognized him nay rather hespent his days amidst difficulties and contempt Afterwards it becameknown that he was not an earthly bird he was a celestial one he wasnot a natural philosopher but a divine philosopherIt is likewise my hope that in the future the East and the West maybecome conscious that thou wert a divine philosopher and a herald tothe KingdomI have no wish to write my autobiography but may mention here that Isympathize largely with VambÃry a letter from whom to Abdul Bahawill be found farther on though I should express my own adhesion tothe Bahai leader in more glowing terms Wishing to get nearer to ahumancatholic religion I have sought the privilege of simultaneousmembership of several brotherhoods of Friends of God It is my wish toshow that both these and other homes of spiritual life are whenstudied from the inside essentially one and that religionsnecessarily issue in racial and worldwide unityRUHÌANIOXFORD _August_ 1914CONTENTS     PREFACE     INTRODUCTION  I THE JEWELS OF THE FAITHS II BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICALIII BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL continued IV BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL AMBASSADOR TO HUMANITY  V A SERIES OF ILLUSTRATIVE STUDIES BEARING ON COMPARATIVE RELIGION     BAHAI BIBLIOGRAPHYINTRODUCTIONTO MEN AND WOMEN OF GOODWILL IN THE BRITISH EMPIRE_A Message reprinted by permission from the Religious Society ofFriends_We find ourselves today in the midst of what may prove to be thefiercest conflict in the history of the human race Whatever may beour view of the processes which have led to its inception we have nowto face the fact that war is proceeding upon a terrific scale and thatour own country is involved in itWe recognize that our Government has made most strenuous efforts topreserve peace and has entered into the war under a grave sense ofduty to a smaller State towards which we had moral and treatyobligations While as a Society we stand firmly to the belief thatthe method of force is no solution of any question we hold that thepresent moment is not one for criticism but for devoted service toour nationWhat is to be the attitude of Christian men and women and of all whobelieve in the brotherhood