The End of Holy War

Holy War is a controversial topic. The media would portray Holy War as a cause of negative consequences that were stirred strictly out of religious prejudice and fanatical belief. There is no excuse for mankind to lead senseless wars based on fanatical beliefs and prejudice. However, Holy War is a very complex topic; when comparing the past with present ideologies and framework of thought, it is quite illogical. Therefore, to provide us a better understanding of the conditions and framework of the past, it is important that we examine the context of Holy War and why some believe that Holy War is justifiable.

During the period of the birth of religions around the world, Manifestations of God and their believers faced extreme social hardship in the form of false imprisonment, slavery, barbaric aggression, murder and slaughter. Many believers, defying the traditional beliefs of their forefathers and ancestors, faced the swords of their enemies. The believers, respecting the Laws and Essences of the revelation of their Faith, responded only with patience, forgiveness, and steadfastness to the Cause of God. However, as the blood of many believers was being shed, it was up to the Manifestations of God to lead their believers through the difficult circumstances. With the threat of the enemies of the Faith imminent, the Manifestations of God had to respond to this aggressive nature immediately, otherwise they will be exterminated under the force of the evil that surrounded them.

In taking action and defending the Teachings of the Cause of God, the Manifestations of God revealed Holy War. For example, Prophet Muhammad’s Surat At-Tawbah was revealed before the Byzantine-Arab War, considered a Holy War. In my own research of Islamic Studies, the Byzantine Empire pre-meditated an attack by basing their military near the Arabian Peninsula with the aim of capturing the region, present-day Saudi Arabia. To protect the Muslim minority against further bloodshed, Prophet Muhammad revealed the Sura to inspire His people to defend the region against the oppressors and enemies of His Teachings.

Revelations in the Bible, such as Exodus and Leviticus, portray the Holy War between the different civilizations in history; the children of Israel and Pharaohs. The revelations were used by Moses to inspire His people to defend themselves against the oppressors. Moses, in Leviticus 26, reveals:

“And I will give peace in the land, and ye shall lie down, and none shall make you afraid: and I will rid evil beasts out of the land, neither shall the sword go through your land. And ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword. And five of you shall chase an hundred, and an hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight: and your enemies shall fall before you by the sword.”

The Bab, founder of the Babi Faith, faced daily persecution and threats by the Persian Empire. Many of them recorded by notable European historians, describing the different methods of torture used against Babi believers. With the mounting pressure of the Persian Empire, and the rising number of believers dying in the hands of their oppressor, the Bab gathered his men and established a fort called the “Fort of Shaykh Tabarsi.” Bab’s intention was strictly to defend His followers against the atrocities and discrimination of the Sultan of Iran and his Vazir. The book “Gate of the Heart” provides a greater in depth perspective on this matter that I would highly recommend reading.

After the execution and martyrdom of the Bab. Baha’u’llah led the followers of the Bab in their time of mourning. After receiving revelation from Gabriel in the Black Pit, the prison in Iran, Baha’u’llah introduced Teachings that aimed in uniting mankind through virtues and moral acts. Truthfulness, kindness, love, justice and humility were the pinnacles of His Teachings. After revealing the Kitab-i-Aqdas, the Holy Book of the Baha’i Faith, Baha’u’llah revealed Bishárát (Glad-Tidings) –  a Tablet that is composed of fifteen headings, each designated a glad-tiding, where Bahá’u’lláh provides teachings and laws. The Arabic text above, copied from Baha’u’llah’s Glad-Tidings, reveals:

The first Glad-Tidings which the Mother Book hath, in this Most Great Revelation, imparted unto all the peoples of the world is that the law of holy war hath been blotted out from the Book. Glorified be the All-Merciful, the Lord of grace abounding, through Whom the door of heavenly bounty hath been flung open in the face of all that are in heaven and on earth.

The first Bishara from Baha’u’llah is quite significant in the realm of Progressive Revelation – Baha’u’llah has declared an end to the practice of Holy War and replaced it with the specific Guidelines and Teachings aimed towards peace and unity. Given this explicit ordinance, Baha’u’llah has decreed that no form of violence can ever be conducted in the name of His Faith. These moral attributes and values taught in His Writings enforce the notion of peace and unity.

However, Holy War should not be confused with individual self-defense and protection. in Baha’u’llah’s Tablet to Queen Victoria, He states:

O rulers of the earth! Be reconciled among yourselves, that ye may need no more armaments save in a measure to safeguard your territories and dominions. Beware lest ye disregard the counsel of the All-Knowing, the Faithful. Be united, O kings of the earth, for thereby will the tempest of discord be stilled amongst you, and your peoples find rest, if ye be of them that comprehend. Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice.

In addition, Abdu’l-Baha, son of Baha’u’llah, encourages people to examine the root cause of war and identify means to eliminate wars of any form from occurring. Abdu’l-Baha states:

“In short, every means that produces war must be checked and the causes that prevent the occurrence of war be advanced–so that physical conflict may become an impossibility. On the other hand, every country must be properly delimited, its exact frontiers marked, its national integrity secured, its permanent independence protected, and its vital interests honoured by the family of nations. These services ought to be rendered by an impartial, international Commission. In this manner all causes of friction and differences will be removed. And in case there should arise some disputes between them, they could arbitrate before the Parliament of Man, the representatives of which should be chosen from among the wisest and most judicious men of all the nations of the world.”

(Abdu’l-Bahá: Star of the West, Vol. V, pp 115-116, cited in Peace, A Compilation from the Universal House of Justice, August 1985)

Holy War in all its complexity had a significant purpose – to defend the oppressed peoples of forming religions against the violent blows of their oppressors. However, as humanity is progressing, civilizations are learning from the mistakes of the past and leaders are reconciling their differences through non-violent means.

Holy War is no longer needed and therefore removed from this era until eternity.

95 Youth Conferences Projects

The Baha’i world received a great news earlier this year; there will be 95 Youth Conferences around the world! The youth in different cities and nations around the world are excited and thrilled to hear this news. The conferences revolve around the messages from the Universal House of Justice, the supreme administrative body for the believers of the Baha’i Faith, on how to best utilize core activities to promote the well-being and growth of human civilization.

The Universal House of Justice expresses the purpose of the conferences as an opportunity to make a contribution to humanity; stating:

To every generation of young believers comes an opportunity to make a contribution to the fortunes of humanity, unique to their time of life. For the present generation, the moment has come to reflect, to commit, to steel themselves for a life of service from which blessing will flow in abundance.

With the dates of the 95 Youth Conferences being announced, and website properties in the realm of social media being managed by a number of volunteers around the world, projects are starting to bloom to build the momentum (and sustain the momentum) of the goals and plans of the 95 Youth Conferences.

The items below are links to notable projects, and social media pages, relevant to 95 Youth Conferences:

Social Media Pages

95 Youth Conference Facebook Page

95 Youth Conference Facebook Group

95 Youth Conference Twitter Page

Projects

JY+Us (Juice)


If there are more projects or social media pages that you are aware of, drop a comment or let me know at @abehjat

“If I were a Baha’i”

Egypt is a wonderful country. Its people are hospitable, rich in history and are blessed with many wonderful talents, laureates, and notable figures that have brought a positive impact to the world.

Unfortunately, in the past few years it has faced many difficulties. Egypt went through a difficult period of history where injustice, prejudice, war, intolerance and poverty were prevalent. Among those suffering from such calamities are the Baha’is in Egypt. An example includes how Baha’is were not provided with the Egyptian national ID because of their Faith. The IDs are similar to the Social Security system in the United States, which is essential for its citizens to register their children to go to schools, getting medication, and having access to government benefits.

There has been progress in Egypt for the Baha’is; however, it marks a small step to the many steps needed to bring forth true justice. Recently, news circulated that Egypt’s Minister of Education publicly announced that the Baha’is will not have access to education in Egypt. In addition to Baha’is, members of the Coptic community are fleeing the violence, and women are facing the challenge of defending themselves from being sexually abused due to lack of security. Egypt has to strive to seek justice; a justice that is all-encompassing.

What lead me to write about the Baha’is in Egypt? My father forwarded me an email that caught my attention, and I decided to share its content here. To give a brief background, a prominent Egyptian intellectual and author, Dr. Tarek Heggy published an article in Arabic that was first noted to be posted in “Civic Egypt” website, and titled “If I Were A Baha’i”. The article covers the tribulations the Baha’is faced; placing himself in the shoes of those who face such hardship and express their wishes. The following is the English translation of the article I linked above, and various translations are available online, too:

If I were Bahá’í: I would have brought to the attention of all the great personalities and the intellectuals of the world the respect and regard with which their peers in Egypt received ‘Abdu’l-Bahá (Son of Bahá’u’lláh) during His visit to this country in the early 20th. Century, and with what filth and disregard today’s pretentious personalities and false intellectuals of Egypt smear the fair name of Bahá’í and the Bahá’ís.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the concourse of Justice in the world on the subject of the Al-Azhar Establishment and say to its honourable Ulamá: How could you decide today that Bahá’í is not a religion when the Superior Shar’ia Tribunal of Beba/Souhag ruled in 1925 that “Bahá’í is an independent religion.”

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the concourse of Justice in the world on the subject of the Al-Azhar Establishment which with all the mosques, mesdjids and kettab schools at their disposal in Egypt, have found it necessary to disown the Bahá’í Community of their main Centre building to use it for a Qur’ánic school.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the concourse of Justice in the world on the subject of the imprisonment of some 92 Bahá’ís–men and women–aged between 2 and 80 years. They were arrested between midnight and dawn from all over Egypt and transferred to jail in Tanta; then falsely accused of treason, misconduct and espionage, far and wide in the media, for no other reason than because they are Bahá’í.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the concourse of Justice in the world on the frequent arrest of Bahá’ís, men and women, their incarceration in jail for days, weeks or months for interrogation. The courts have never found them guilty of neither crime nor fault, but they were Bahá’í.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the concourse of Art in the west and in the east, to the case of one of the greatest and most admired artists of Egypt, Hussein Bikar, who was arrested in his home and driven to jail with other renowned Bahá’ís for days of interrogation regarding his and their Bahá’í Faith.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the concourse of Art in the west and in the east, and would say to them: Hussein Bikar, one of the greatest and most admired Artists of Egypt had no Identity card at his death at almost 90 years of age. The Egyptian Authorities refused to issue one with “Bahá’í” mentioned in the space for religion.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the world Organizations of Law and Justice and of Human Rights, government and non-government alike, and said to them: imagine that in Egypt of the 21st. Century, individual Identity Cards have to include the binding indication of the religion of the individual?

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the world Organizations of Law and Justice and of Human Rights, government and non-government alike, and said to them: imagine that in Egypt of the 21st. Century, individual Identity Cards must include the binding indication of one of only three religions notwithstanding the individual’s wish or faith?

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the world Organizations of Law and Justice and of Human Rights, government and non-government alike, and said to them: in Egypt of the 21st. Century, the sons and daughters of Bahá’ís are issued individual Identity Cards with a dash (–) for religion while their parents are refused identity cards: WHY? Because the Egyptian State does not recognize Bahá’í marriage! O people of the world: come and take stock of administrative excellence!

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness all the Ministers of Education of the world and informed them that: the Minister of Education of Egypt has declared that he will refuse admittance of children–yes children of Bahá’ís to the government schools because the children are Bahá’í!

If I were Bahá’í: I would have informed the world that the new Egyptian Constitution contains the necessary elements for the elimination of the Bahá’í minority in Egypt.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have informed the world that burning the homes of Bahá’ís takes place with impunity in Egypt.

If I were Bahá’í: I would have taken for witness the world Organizations of Mass Media, of Law and Justice and of Human Rights, government and non-government alike, and informed them that in Egypt, inciting to kill Bahá’ís, through TV and speeches is normal and is done with impunity!

In spite of all this:

If I were Bahá’í: I would have said to those in authority in Egypt: I am loyal to my country, I love my country, I strive for the success and progress of my country and I consider the children of my neighbors as my children without consideration of religion or creed. How wonderful would Egypt be were you, who are in authority, to follow in this same path.

Asmaa – Month of Name

It is the first day of the Baha’i month Asma’a, or name. I was responsible in gathering prayers and writings for this day. And I was searching for something relevant to the theme of the month, and shed light to why the Baha’i months have names after virtues or titles; such as the Month of Questions, Glory, Greatness and so forth (Baha’i Calendar). I found this excerpt from Abdu’l-Baha’s Divine Philosophy, which I believe is definitely worth sharing with everyone and relevant to the theme for the month of Asma’a. Hope you enjoy it as much as I have:

“Each religion teaches that a mediator is necessary between man and the Creator — one who receives the full light of the divine splendor and radiates it over the human world, as the earth’s atmosphere receives and diffuses the warmth of the sun’s rays. This mediator between God and humanity has different designations though he always brings the same spiritual command.

In one era he is called Abraham, at another time Moses, again he is called Buddha, another time Jesus, and yet another time Mohammad. All turned to the divine reality for their strength. Those who followed Moses accepted him as their mediator; those who followed Zoroaster accepted him as their mediator; but all the Israelites deny Zoroaster, and the Zoroastrians deny Moses. They fail to see in both the one light. Had the Zoroastrians comprehended the reality of Zoroaster, they would have understood Moses and Jesus. Alas! the majority of men attach themselvesto the name of the mediator and lose sight of the real purport.

Therefore did Bahá’u’lláh cry, “O God, deliver us from the sea of names!”

Man must turn to the light and not think that the form of the lamp is essential, for the lamp may be changed; but he who longs for light welcomes it from whatever source it comes. If the Jews had comprehended Moses, they would have accepted the Christ; but they were occupied with the name and when that name was changed they denied the reality.”

– `Abdu’l-Bahá

More from Divine Philosophy can be found here: Link

Moral Education and Economics

It is evident that the economy of any system has multiple factors that affects its progress or development. Each system – whether it is a country, corporate, school, or home – have unique factors that affects their economic growth. However, there are some factors that are common throughout all, and I mean ALL, systems. One of them is moral, or spiritual, education.

Now, what in the world is Moral Education? And how does it affect the systems mentioned?

According to Wikipedia:

“[Moral Education] is the term given to education concerned with religion. It may refer to education provided by a church or religious organization, for instruction indoctrine and faith, or for education in various aspects of religion, but without explicitly religious or moral aims.”

Of course, some may roll their eyes when the world religion comes about. It is understandable. It is a sad fact that humanity has destroyed the true spiritual foundation of religion with false dogmas, interpretations, and traditions. Religion, to some, is seen as the method to brainwash people, or source of violence, or a source of ignorance and denial, or simple stupidity. Of course, the same mentality exists when we people blame the economy rather than the people that run the economy. To explain this problem, I would like you to ponder on this quote by ‘Abdu’l-Baha about moral education:

“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.”
– Paris Talks, p. 158

Now that the definition of moral education is unveiled, what morals are we talking about?

Morals are basic principles, or ethical codes, that shapes our understanding of what is right or wrong, or what is good or bad. This is the dry definition. In my opinion, morals are a set of tools that assist us to become a better individual, leading to the improvement of our community. Those morals include understanding, tolerance, respect, trust, truthfulness, love, humility, cooperation and striving for excellence.

Those set of morals are essential elements that strengthen the foundation of our society, which directly and indirectly affect our economic progress.

For example, based on personal experience:

The United Arab Emirates is a country with high potential of growth due to its wealth in oil and current human resources. However, due to prejudice among some individuals; such as racism, sexism and even religious hatred, they have barred themselves from attaining such potential. It happens in many forms, one form is that  an unqualified person takes a high responsibility position at work, while a colleague of his, who is qualified and happens to be of a different race that is considered second class among the local culture, holds a lower position. Ironically, in all schools in the United Arab Emirates, they teach Islamic Values and ethics. They have taught us moral values, critical thinking and interesting historical eras. Yet,  they haven’t correlated those concepts with the condition present in our society. Every individual absorbed the Teachings as set of information, memorized them (or being told to memorize them); not being told how those Teachings can be channeled through our daily lives, or simply, understand the essence behind those Teachings. There are many more cases present in our society and community that reflect such dilemma. Which you can reflect yourself of what is limiting the potential of our community from growing.

Moral education is essential to the growth of the community. It is important to foster those morals at a very young age; children and the youth. Starting with the roots of our society, those children and youth have the potential, power and capacity to learn and apply those moral values in their lives, which in turn will influence the community around them as they become more aware of the problems in our society; such as poverty, environmental concerns, and injustice.

The current method used to direct our society to follow the codes and ethics of the community is found most of the time in the form of punishment. Rarely have we seen in our media, education or even in conversations individuals laud the work of the good individual. It somehow seems that it has been shaped in our mind that the only way we learned to do good, or act in accordance to the rule of law is punishment.

‘Abdu’l-Baha, in Some Answered Questions, states:

“The communities are day and night occupied in making penal laws, and in preparing and organizing instruments and means of punishment. They build prisons, make chains and fetters, arrange places of exile and banishment, and different kinds of hardships and tortures, and think by these means to discipline criminals, whereas, in reality, they are causing destruction of morals and perversion of characters. The community, on the contrary, ought day and night to strive and endeavor with the utmost zeal and effort to accomplish the education of men, to cause them day by day to progress and to increase in science and knowledge, to acquire virtues, to gain good morals and to avoid vices, so that crimes may not occur. At the present time the contrary prevails; the community is always thinking of enforcing the penal laws, and of preparing means of punishment, instruments of death and chastisement, places for imprisonment and banishment; and they expect crimes to be committed. This has a demoralizing effect.

But if the community would endeavor to educate the masses, day by day knowledge and sciences would increase, the understanding would be broadened, the sensibilities developed, customs would become good, and morals normal; in one word, in all these classes of perfections there would be progress, and there would be fewer crimes.

It has been ascertained that among civilized peoples crime is less frequent than among uncivilized — that is to say, among those who have acquired the true civilization, which is divine civilization — the civilization of those who unite all the spiritual and material perfections. […] The reason is evident: it is because education and virtues prevent them.

Therefore, the communities must think of preventing crimes, rather than of rigorously punishing them.”

The economy, guided with the force of Moral Education, will achieve progress and development due to the power of knowledge, education and consciousness that fuels the momentum to pursue excellence. As individuals who will soon change the course of our community, we must strive, through patience and practice, to implement these values in our circle. And the best way to start is through being an example ourselves.

Baha’u’llah, Founder of the Baha’i Faith, states:

“Forget your own selves, and turn your eyes towards your neighbor. Bend your energies to whatever may foster the education of men.”