Alexander, Agnes B. (Agnes Baldwin), 1875-1970; Augur, George Jacob, 1853-1927; Bahais -- Japan; Bahais -- United States; Yamamoto, Kanichi, 1879-1961
When we review history from the beginning of human existence to the
present age in which we live, it is evident all war and conflict,
bloodshed and battle, every form of sedition has been due to some form of
prejudice, whether religious, racial or national, to partisan bias and
selfish prejudice of some sort. Even today we witness an upheaval in the
Balkans, a war of religious prejudice. Some years ago when I was living in
Roumelia, war broke out among the religious peoples. There was no attitude
of justice or equity whatever amongst them. They pillaged the properties
of each other, burning each other’s homes and houses, slaughtering men,
women and children, imagining that such warfare and bloodshed was the
means of drawing near to God. This clearly proved that prejudice is a
destroyer of the foundations of the world of humanity whereas religion was
meant to be the cause of fellowship and agreement.
Religion must be the cause of love. Religion must be the cause of justice,
for the wisdom of the Manifestations of God is directed toward the
establishing of the bond of a love which is indissoluble. The bonds which
hold together the body-politic are not sufficient. These bonds may be
mentioned; for instance the bond of patriotism. This is evidently not a
sufficient bond, for how often it happens that people of the same nation
wage civil war amongst themselves. The bond of fellowship may be racial
but history proves this is not sufficiently strong, for tremendous wars
have broken out between peoples of the same racial lineage. Again the bond
holding men together may be political. How often it happens that the
diplomacy of nations makes a treaty of peace one day and on the morrow a
declaration of war! It is historically evident and manifest that these
bonds are not self-sufficient.
The real bond of integrity is religious in character, for religion
indicates the oneness of the world of humanity. Religion serves the world
of morality. Religion purifies the hearts. Religion impels men to achieve
praiseworthy deeds. Religion becomes the cause of love in human hearts,
for religion is a divine foundation, the foundation ever conducive to
life. The teachings of God are the source of illumination to the people of
the world. Religion is ever constructive not destructive.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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