They finally exhort them to be sincerely obedient, in both thought and word, to the laws duly enacted by the government of the realm, and to distance themselves from the methods, concepts and ill-grounded arguments of extreme traditionalists and modernists alike; to accord honour, veneration and respect to—and endorse the efforts of—exponents of the arts and sciences, and to esteem and revere those who are possessed of extensive knowledge and scholarly erudition; to uphold the right of freedom of conscience; and to abstain from criticizing and disparaging the manners, customs and beliefs of other individuals, peoples and nations. (30 January 1926 to the Spiritual Assemblies in Iran, translated from the Persian) [20] 2. FUNCTIONS OF BAHÁ’Í SCHOLARSHIP 2.1 Promotion of Human Welfare From the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh 21: “The Great Being saith: The learned of the day must direct the people to...” The Great Being saith: The learned of the day must direct the people to acquire those branches of knowledge which are of use, that both the learned themselves and the generality of mankind may derive benefits therefrom. Such academic pursuits as begin and end in words alone have never been and will never be of any worth. The majority of Persia’s learned doctors devote all their lives to the study of a philosophy the ultimate yield of which is nothing but words. (“Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh Revealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas”, p. 169) [21] 22: “True learning is that which is conducive to the well-being of the world, not...” True learning is that which is conducive to the well-being of the world, not to pride and self-conceit, or to tyranny, violence and pillage. (From a Tablet, translated from the Persian) [22] From the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá 23: “The primary, the most urgent requirement is the promotion of education....” The primary, the most urgent requirement is the promotion of education. It is inconceivable that any nation should achieve prosperity and success unless this paramount, this fundamental concern is carried forward. The principal reason for the decline and fall of peoples is ignorance. Today the mass of the people are uninformed even as to ordinary affairs, how much less do they grasp the core of the important problems and complex needs of the time.