151
NON-INTERFERENCE
IN POLITICS
...We
must build up our own Bahá'í system, and leave the faulty
systems
of
the world to go their way. We cannot change them through becoming
involved
in them; on the contrary, they will destroy us."
--
Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 56
152
POLITICS
(Remain
Aloof from Political Affairs)
....
"According
to the exhortations of the Supreme Pen and the confirmatory
explanations
of the Covenant of God Bahá'ís are in no way allowed to enter
into
political affairs under any pretense of excuse; since such an action
brings
about disastrous results and ends in hurting the Cause of God and
its
intimate friends."
--
Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 56
208
THEOCRACY
"What
the Guardian was referring to was the Theocratic systems, such as
the
Catholic Church and the Caliphate, which are not divinely given as
systems,
but man-made and yet, having partly derived from the teachings
of
Christ and Muhammad are, in a sense, theocracies. The Bahá'í
theocracy,
on
the contrary, is both divinely ordained as a system and, of course,
based
on the teachings of the Prophet Himself... Theophany is used in the
sense
of Dispensation..."
--
Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 78
214
VOTING
(Civil)
"The
friends may vote, if they can do it, without identifying themselves
with
one party or another.
--
Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 81
Not
only will the present-day Spiritual Assemblies be styled differently
in
future, but they will be enabled also to add to their present
functions
those powers, duties, and prerogatives necessitated by the
recognition
of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh, not merely as one of the
recognized
religious systems of the world, but as the State Religion of
an
independent and Sovereign Power. And as the Bahá'í Faith
permeates the
masses
of the peoples of East and West, and its truth is embraced by the
majority
of the peoples of a number of the Sovereign States of the world,
will
the Universal House of Justice attain the plenitude of its power,
and
exercise, as the supreme organ of the Bahá'í Commonwealth,
all the
rights,
the duties, and responsibilities incumbent upon the world's
future
super-state.
--
Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha'u'llah, p. 6-7
The
writings above indicate a Baha'i Administrative Order (a Baha'i Theocracy)
replace
will take the place of existing political systems (which Baha'is are not
allowed
to participate in except they may vote). This contradicts what Baha'u'llah
says
below,
"He hath invested them [kings]
with
the rulership of the earth","It is
not
Our wish to lay hands on your kingdoms", or
to
"Offer up, O people of Bahá,
your
substance, nay your very lives, for his assistance
[for a king who follows
Baha'u'llah]"
-- teachings that were already in effect in the time of Baha'u'llah
and
Abdu'l-Baha, before Shoghi Effendi was Guardian. If a State that
is made
up
mostly of Baha'is gains political power from non-Baha'is, the non-Baha'is
will
be
automatically deprived of voting and ruling rights, as non-Baha'is cannot
participate
in Baha'i elections.
CII.
Give a hearing ear, O people, to that which I, in truth, say unto you.
The
one
true God, exalted be His glory, hath ever regarded, and will continue to
regard,
the hearts of men as His own, His exclusive possession. All else,
whether
pertaining to land or sea, whether riches or glory, He hath bequeathed
unto
the Kings and rulers of the earth. From the beginning that hath no
beginning
the ensign proclaiming the words "He doeth whatsoever He willeth"
hath
been unfurled in all its splendor before His Manifestation. What mankind
needeth
in this day is obedience unto them that are in authority, and a faithful
adherence
to the cord of wisdom. The instruments which are essential to the
immediate
protection, the security and assurance of the human race have been
entrusted
to the hands, and lie in the grasp, of the governors of human society.
This
is the wish of God and His decree.... We cherish the hope that one
of the
kings
of the earth will, for the sake of God, arise for the triumph of this
wronged,
this oppressed people. Such a king will be eternally extolled and
glorified.
God hath prescribed unto this people the duty of aiding whosoever
will
aid them, of serving his best interests, and of demonstrating to him their
abiding
loyalty. They who follow Me must strive, under all circumstances, to
promote
the welfare of whosoever will arise for the triumph of My Cause, and
must
at all times prove their devotion and fidelity unto him. Happy is the man
that
hearkeneth and observeth My counsel. Woe unto him that faileth to
fulfil
My wish.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 206
O
ye the loved ones and the trustees of God! Kings are the manifestations
of
the power, and the daysprings of the might and riches, of God. Pray
ye
on their behalf. He hath invested them with the rulership of the earth
and
hath singled out the hearts of men as His Own domain.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 220
The
one true God, exalted be His glory, hath bestowed the government of
the
earth upon the kings. To none is given the right to act in any
manner
that would run counter to the considered views of them who are
in
authority. That which He hath reserved for Himself are the cities of
men's
hearts; and of these the loved ones of Him Who is the Sovereign
Truth
are, in this Day, as the keys. Please God they may, one and all,
be
enabled to unlock, through the power of the Most Great Name, the
gates
of these cities. This is what is meant by aiding the one true
God--a
theme to which the Pen of Him Who causeth the dawn to break hath
referred
in all His Books and Tablets.
--
Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 241-242
By
the righteousness of God! It is not Our wish to lay hands on your kingdoms.
Our
mission is to seize and possess the hearts of men. Upon them the eyes
of
Bahá
are fastened. To this testifieth the Kingdom of Names, could ye but
comprehend
it. Whoso followeth his Lord will renounce the world and all that
is
therein; how much greater, then, must be the detachment of Him Who holdeth
so
august a station! Forsake your palaces, and haste ye to gain admittance
into
His Kingdom. This, indeed, will profit you both in this world and in the
next.
To this testifieth the Lord of the realm on high, did ye but know it.
How
great the blessedness that awaiteth the king who will arise to aid My
Cause
in My kingdom, who will detach himself from all else but Me! Such a
king
is numbered with the companions of the Crimson Ark--the Ark which God
hath
prepared for the people of Bahá. All must glorify his name, must
reverence
his station, and aid him to unlock the cities with the keys of My
Name,
the omnipotent Protector of all that inhabit the visible and invisible
kingdoms.
Such
a king is the very eye of mankind, the luminous ornament on
the
brow of creation, the fountainhead of blessings unto the whole world.
Offer
up, O people of Bahá, your substance, nay your very lives, for his
assistance.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 49-50
Non-involvement in politics
also precludes kings and rulers being able to "uphold
and
cleave to religion" as indicated below.
It
is incumbent upon the kings and the spiritual leaders of the world to lay
fast
hold on religion, inasmuch as through it the fear of God is instilled in
all
else but Him."
The
second word We have recorded on the second leaf of Paradise is the
following:
"The Pen of the Divine Expounder exhorteth, at this moment, the
manifestations
of authority and the sources of power, namely the kings and
rulers
of the earth--may God assist them--and enjoineth them to uphold the
cause
of religion, and to cleave unto it. Religion is, verily, the chief
instrument
for the establishment of order in the world, and of tranquillity
amongst
its peoples. The weakening of the pillars of religion hath strengthened
the
foolish, and emboldened them, and made them more arrogant. Verily I
say:
The greater the decline of religion, the more grievous the waywardness
of
the ungodly. This cannot but lead in the end to chaos and confusion. Hear
Me,
O men of insight, and be warned, ye who are endued with discernment!"
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 28
Say:
It behoveth you, O Ministers of State, to keep the precepts of God, and
to
forsake
your own laws and regulations, and to be of them who are guided aright.
Better
is this for you than all ye possess, did ye but know it. If ye
transgress
the commandment of God, not one jot or one tittle of all your works
shall
be acceptable in His sight. Ye shall, erelong, discover the consequences
of
that which ye shall have done in this vain life, and shall be repaid for
them.
This, verily, is the truth, the undoubted truth.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah,
p. 123
If
administrators of the law would take into consideration the spiritual
consequences
of their decisions, and follow the guidance of religion, `They
would
be Divine agents in the world of action, the representatives of God for
those
who are on earth, and they would defend, for the love of God, the
interests
of His servants as they would defend their own'. If a governor realizes
his
responsibility, and fears to defy the Divine Law, his judgments will be
just.
Above
all, if he believes that the consequences of his actions will follow him
beyond
his earthly life, and that `as he sows so must he reap', such a man will
surely
avoid injustice and tyranny.
Should
an official, on the contrary, think that all responsibility for his actions
must
end with his earthly life, knowing and believing nothing of Divine favours
and
a spiritual kingdom of joy, he will lack the incentive to just dealing,
and
the
inspiration to destroy oppression and unrighteousness.
When
a ruler knows that his judgments will be weighed in a balance by the
Divine
Judge, and that if he be not found wanting he will come into the Celestial
Kingdom
and that the light of the Heavenly Bounty will shine upon him, then will
he
surely act with justice and equity. Behold how important it is that
Ministers
of
State should be enlightened by religion!
With
political questions the clergy, however, have nothing to do! Religious
matters
should
not be confused with politics in the present state of the world (for their
interests
are not identical).
Religion concerns matters of the heart, of the spirit, and of morals.
Politics
are occupied with the material things of life. Religious teachers should
not
invade the realm of politics; they should concern themselves with the spiritual
education
of the people; they should ever give good counsel to men, trying to serve
God
and human kind; they should endeavour to awaken spiritual aspiration, and
strive
to enlarge the understanding and knowledge of humanity, to improve morals,
and
to increase the love for justice.
This
is in accordance with the Teaching of Bahá'u'lláh. In
the Gospel also it is
written,
`Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and unto God the
things
which are God's'.
--
`Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 157-159
The
Great Being saith: The heaven of statesmanship is made luminous and
resplendent
by the brightness of the light of these blessed words which hath
dawned
from the dayspring of the Will of God: It behoveth every ruler to
weigh
his own being every day in the balance of equity and justice and then
to
judge between men and counsel them to do that which would direct their
steps
unto the path of wisdom and understanding. This is the cornerstone of
statesmanship
and the essence thereof. From these words every enlightened man
of
wisdom will readily perceive that which will foster such aims as the welfare,
security
and protection of mankind and the safety of human lives. Were men
of
insight to quaff their fill from the ocean of inner meanings which lie
enshrined
in these words and become acquainted therewith, they would bear
witness
to the sublimity and the excellence of this utterance. If this lowly
one
were to set forth that which he perceiveth, all would testify unto God's
consummate
wisdom. The secrets of statesmanship and that of which the people
are
in need lie enfolded within these words. This lowly servant earnestly
entreateth
the One true God--exalted be His glory--to illumine the eyes of
the
people of the world with the splendour of the light of wisdom that they,
one
and all, may recognize that which is indispensable in this day.
--
Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Baha'u'llah, p. 166
