After a time, all the governments on earth will change.
Oppression will envelop the world.
And following a universal convulsion,
the sun of justice will rise from the horizon of the unseen realm.
~ Baha'u'llah ~
Dear Ones,
Are not these words, written more than a century ago, speaking with striking clarity to the transience of earthly power? Are we not living, right now, this effervescent phase in which institutions not yet founded on justice and peace reveal their impermanence?
In the mid-nineteenth century BAHA'U'LLAH addressed urgent APPEALS to
the kings and rulers of His time, summoning them to justice, restraint,
and recognition of a higher Sovereignty.
Most of the absolute monarchies that ignored or opposed Him have
since disappeared. Their fall gave way to the forms of government we
know today. While the dust of vanished thrones settled, the Sun of Justice rose on the horizon of the unseen.
Where now are their resplendent morns and their brightsome countenances wreathed in smiles? Alas for them! All have perished and are gone to rest beneath a canopy of dust. Of them one heareth neither name nor mention; none knoweth of their affairs, and naught remaineth of their signs.
Yet Baha'u'llah indicated that even these later forms would not
remain unchanged. He foresaw a period of upheaval forming part of a
larger process in which absolute power yields and societies are pressed
toward greater consultation and accountability. But how?
He recommended
that the majesty of kingship—“one of the signs of God”—be combined with a
republican form of government based on consultation of the people. Not
wishing the world to be deprived of the former, yet affirming the profit
of the latter, He declared that in time God would raise up kings who
“recline on the couches of justice.”
These statements point to a gradual transformation: the preservation of legitimate national sovereignty as the necessary foundation for any wider order. Only when nations enjoy equal independence can a world federation worthy of the name emerge. As the supreme body of the Baha'i Faith, the Universal House of Justice, has confirmed: “It is not possible to have a World Federation when not all countries have attained their independence.” The model thus envisaged combines respect for national autonomy with voluntary cooperation on matters that transcend borders. Further details on this balanced form of global governance are set out HERE.
Baha'u'llah did not come to add one more religion to existing divisions, but to reveal the principles that enable humanity to transcend them. The present convulsions are the price of this transition. The Prince of Peace announced in the Holy Scriptures is therefore none other than Christ at His Return. Baha'u'llah affirms that He is this fulfilled PROMISE: the One of Whom the prophets have spoken, Who comes not to abolish the former teachings but to fulfill and unite them in a universal Revelation, for:
“...the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end.”
~ Isaiah 9:6-7
Therefore, for Christians, it is a matter of recognizing in the
events of our time the fulfillment of the promise and that true peace shall be established.
For Muslims, these same words confirm the coming of Him Who was to
appear after the Seal of the Prophets. Baha'u'llah does not deny the
title; He clarifies its meaning: Muhammad is indeed the Seal of the
Prophets, for “the Prophetic Cycle hath, verily, ended,” yet “the
Eternal Truth is now come”—marking the
completion of one cycle and the opening of the cycle of fulfillment.
For
atheists and agnostics, the observation remains open: the forces
stirring the nations today—the collapse of absolute powers, the
aspiration toward more participatory forms of governance, the tensions
between national sovereignty and global interdependence—can be
understood as the birth pangs of a more coherent order, independently of
any religious adherence.
Thus, whether one is a believer or not, the signs are present.
Lasting peace will come when the peoples, sanctified by trial and
enlightened by the recognition of their fundamental unity, choose to
build together the order that the Scriptures have promised.
Be
wonderfully blessed!
Loesha
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