The following tablets are published at http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/ab/TAB/
“O ye whom God hath chosen from among those who…”
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O ye 1 whom God hath chosen from among those who are called!—know that “many are called but few are chosen”!—upon whom He caused the evident Light to descend; whom He guided into the right Path, and to whom He gave the Glad-tidings of the Great Success!
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The following talk has never been published. Deb Vance was kind enough to type it for me (us)!
Address of Abdu’l-Baha in the chapel of the first independent Christ’s church Unitarian Baltimore, mar land, November 11, 1912.
My sojourn in America is drawing to a close I have passed about eight months in America. To every city have I journeyed and in many churches and synagogues have I spoken, summoning all of them to the oneness or solidarity of the human race. The quintessence of my discourses has been that we are all the sheep of god and that the shepherd is one. That he as the shepherd is kind to all his sheep He hath created all and he hath provided for all; he nourisheth all, he protecteth all. These very beneficent actions on this part show that he is kind for were he not kind he could not do so. He even nourisheth the rebellious. Even as his holiness Christ hath said, be ye like the father who is in heaven, whose sun shineth upon all.” His sun shineth upon the just and the unjust. The obedient and the disobedient. What does this mean this kindness to all? So long as God is kind to all, so long as he does not suffer any distinction or differentiations, why should we be unkind, why should we arise in opposition towards each other, why should we hate each other, whereas god is kind to all? And is it not contrary to his kindness that we shall prove unkind? If we injure one another, if we anathematize each other, assuredly that is contrary to the good pleasure and the divine will of God. Is gloriously shining upon all humanity, the people to whom God is kind. Christ has declared his sun and that it is shining upon all. In other words, the sun of His kindness is gloriously shining upon all humanity, the people to whom God is kind. Why should we as his servants be unkind; is this not ignorance, is it not contrary to the will of God?
There is one point to be discussed. The questions may be asked as to the differences which exist in religion, saying, that sects differ and denominations are various and that the differences that exist among the religions, the distinctions which have obtained amongst the various denominations, are hindrances in the way of this unity and agreement. But be it known that this is contrary to facts, because the foundations of the divine religions are one; for the foundation underlying all is Reality.
Reality is one and not multitudinous. We declare that each religions of God’s religions is divisible into two departments. One the essential division and that has to do with the spiritualities and it is concerned with the realm of morality and ethical standards. And that division is one and common to all. Therein you will find no differences whatsoever. All the religions believe in the existence of a prime being, of a God. All the religions believe in the immortality of the spirit all the religions believe in the kingdom of God and all the religions have this fact expressed in various terms, that man is created after the image and likeness of God. All the religions have summoned people to virtue, and all the religions prohibit all men concerning vices. All the religions have conferred upon men moral training. That you will find common to all. That is one and the same in all and that remember, is Reality.
The second division which has to do with the transactions amongst society and which is of no fundamental importance, is, so to speak, non-essential or accidental. Therein you will find differences; but it is utterly unimportant. Why? Because that second division changes according to the exigencies of time and place. For example, during the mosaic ? era it was an expedient of that period that divorce was permitted by Him, that divorce was allowed by Him, and an ordinance was issued therefore. But during the time of Christ, it was not. Hence His Holiness Christ abrogated it. During the time of Moses, as is an historical fact, people cut a man’s hand off because of the theft of a dollar. If a man committed theft to the extent of a single dollar, a man’s precious hand would be chopped off. Now, I ask, is it possible to cut a man’s hand off for a million dollars? Times have changed. Without a trial, it cannot be done, but in those times Moses lived in the wilderness and the government in the wilderness thus decreed. In the wilderness, where there were no penitentiaries, such direct measures were observed, such as taking a man’s eye because he had committed injury to another’s eye’ an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” was the law. Ten ordinances concerning murder you will find in the torah: but those were comfortable to the times. During the time of His Holiness Christ these were not suitable, and what did his holiness Christ say? He says in the gospel, “whosoever smitten thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.”
We profess this, that the code which has to do with the fundamental part of religion, that is one, there is no change in that; but in the accidentals there is, and the accidentals are of not importance. Were we to hold fast to the essentials of divine religions we would have a basis for unity, point for lasting contact’ there would be no enmity there would be nor religious war, there would be no bloodshed and there would be no rancor.
In the Jewish synagogues in Washington the other night I spoke on the subject which concerned this self-same unit. Let us cite form that and give you a resume of it. There were unite a number of Jews present, in number a few hundred Jews. After the introductory remarks, I said, “O ye Jews, verily Christians do believe in Moses. They pronounce Moses to have been the man of God, the interlocutor of God, the one who had witnessed the effulgence of God, he who had heard the summons of God. And He was valid and his book they pronounce to be the book of God. And all the prophets of Israel they declared to be the prophets veritable. Now I ask if the Christians lost anything by this confession of faith; had any harm come to their religions? They said, “No.” I said, “So long as the Christians believe in the prophet hood of Moses, they declare the Bible, or the Torah, to be valid, they believe in all of the prophets of Israel, and thereby they have suffered no loss or harm. What harm is there I asked, if you will also declare that His Holiness Christ was the word of God? A few words from the heart will do away with this enmity of tow thousand years duration; this enmity, this rancor, which have obtained amongst the two religions for two thousand years will be entirely done away with. If you so declare, I ask what harm will come to your religion? Fanaticism caused some even to leave the Temple because of such remarks, some having remained.” Then I advanced some of the proofs. I know the questions was propounded as to how the prophet hood of Moses, for instance, be proved? Is it not through the efficacy of the mosaic work; is it not through his potency; is it not through the power of his utterance; is it not through his teachings? But the other things the other proof, is if you advance those as proofs, the other nations will deny them, and we should advance proofs that are irrefutable.
Let us ask the first question, as to that prophet hood signifies. There is no doubt that the mission of the prophets is no other than the education of the human race, it is for the training of mankind. And starting with this in hand, we shall find out whether Moses was a teacher or not, was an educator or not. WE find that his holiness Moses, through his marvelous teachings and instructions, suffered the Israelites, who were in a state of ignorance, a barbaric state, a state of captivity and bondage, to be advanced form that state of despair and caused them to be elevated to a state of honor , and caused them to be exonerated after they had been humiliated. He made of a people who had been degraded, a people most elevated, a people who were formerly ignorant were people of wisdom, a people of impotency and dispersion united for benefit and good. They were enable through the potency of His instruction to establish the solemn sovereignty (?)”, and therefore they became renowned throughout the world through their virtues. Even the Greek philosophers went for acquiiont to them. This proves that his holiness Moses was an educator, was a teacher. No one can deny these facts.
At the time when the Jews were captive of the Roman empire, they were in a state of utter dispersion and impotency, they had forsaken the law of God. They had held to certain dogmatic teachings, certain professions, which were distinct from the original postulates. Thus, through such superannuated teachings, they were weakened, effaced and even dispersed throughout the world. His holiness Christ was a single individual, single and unique, lonely, without any assistance or helper, who appeared amongst the Israelites. And this single and unique individual saved the Greek nation, saved the roman nation, save the Chaldean nation, saved the Assyrian people, the Hebrew, the Syrian, and the various nations. He unified them, he caused them to agree, he brought them all beneath a standard concerning the ones of the world of humanity.
He gave a new life a new impetus to those people. Are these not sufficient facts to prove that he was a mighty educator? Are these not sufficient tokens of his teachings and his being a teacher, for was he not also an Israelite, a member of the Hebrew nation? And he, though single and alone, founded such a mighty institution in the world. It is evident, therefore, that this personage was single and unique, god was with him and the power of heaven was his associate, and the power of the holy spirit ever upheld him , for without this marvelous power he could not have succeeded in establishing and spreading broadcast such a thing. Therefore, wheat harm is there in this that you shall also declare his holiness Christ to be the word of god? And thereby enmity will be dispelled form the Jew and the Christian. What a prejudice this is, what ignorance that is. Consider what his holiness Christ wrought. You declare that Jesus Christ was an enemy of Moses. But we investigate reality and we find that his holiness Christ eulogized Moses, he praised and eulogized the bible, he eulogized all the israelitish prophets; for fifteen hundred years, the Jews failed to cause the name of Judaism even to reach European shores but it was through the instrumentality of the gospel and evangelism that the name of Judaism and mosses reached Europe. It was through the new testament that the old testament was published broadcast. Is not this an indication of love, or is it a profession of enmity? What a prejudice, what a fanaticism is this, what an inadvertence.
The purport is this, that we declare the foundations of the divine religions to be one; and if we forsake these accidental imitations – by imitations we mean the teachings that have crept in, dogmas which have crept into religion, and which have nothing to do with the foundation – then we have a basis for unity amongst the religions, then we have a cause or source of illumination of all humanity. That which is conducive to life undoubtedly is a source of life. That which is causative of enmity without a doubt is the cause of death. His holiness Christ has come in order that love might be created amongst men, in order that the world of humanity shall be illumined.
Therefore, if everyone believes really in Christ, he must be a lover of humanity. And remember that Christ was absolute love. If it be not so, and if he shall not dos o, then he is not a Christian except nominally, holding to the dogmatic and blind imitations for Jesus Christ was a lover of all mankind. He loved all the religions. At most it was this: he declared, some are asleep; they must be awakened. Some of childlike; they must be trained. Those that are ignorant they must be taught. And that is all. Otherwise. The prophets themselves, the founders, including Christ, were lovers of each other and of humanity. All the prophets of god, verily, are the manifestations of eternal love. They have been the manifestations of mercy. They were not commissioned to create enmity. Hence all the enmity which has been created has been due to blind imitation.
In brief, all phenomena have been reformed; sciences have been reformed; industrialism has been reformed; legality has been reformed; ethics have been reformed; discoveries have been reformed inventions have been renewed. All phenomena have been subjected to a reformation. Past laws will not do for the present day; manners of past times will not do for the present day; the laws and jurisprudence of the past will not do for the present day; the sciences of the past are not applicable to the present situation; civil government as in the past cannot be enforced today, because this is the century of reformation and the world is to be illuminated. Hence, the blind imitations which have caused alienation, the blind imitations which have caused enmity, hatred and rancor, which have caused bloodshed among men, will not do for this day and its needs. Today amongst men amity must obtain, love shall be created, unity must obtain, agreement must obtain, reciprocity and cooperation must become realities. The requirements, the exigencies, paramount in importance for today are these, and hence we must reinstate and reform the foundations of all the divine religions, and thereby we have a basis, a platform for amity and unity amongst men; we have thereby love of all humanity established.
Once we declare that we are all the servants of one god and that he is kind to all of us, if there be some who are ignorant, they must be educated, if a man be asleep, he must be awakened; if he be sick, he must be treated; if he be childlike, he must be brought to maturity. But according to all the divine religions, all must be loved. God is one, and we are all his children and we are all submerged in the sea of His everlasting mercy.
Reported by Jack Salomon, Stenographer
305 Calver Bldg., Baltimore, Md.
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