World Religion Day

 

The third Sunday in January is known as World Religion Day. This annual event was initiated by the Bahá’ís of the United States as far back as 1950, and has been celebrated by many Bahá’í communities around the world since then. There are perhaps a dozen religions which are frequently named as “World Religions”, and in former times they were often seen as rivals to one another. The Bahá’í view is quite different – they are all one in origin and one in essence. Looked at across the world, they can be seen as branches of one tree. Looked at from the point of view of the time of their creation, they can be seen as chapters in one book. From a Bahá’í point of view, there is just one religion – the religion of God. In the words of Bahá’u’lláh: “This is the changeless Faith of God, eternal in the past, eternal in the future.”

World Religion Day has spread in such a way that it is now marked by various bodies, not just by the Bahá’ís, and is celebrated in various countries. The exact format of the day is not as important as the message – that all the world religions are one. It may be a small gathering of friends and neighbours, or sometimes a public meeting, with representatives of various religious traditions. It often leads to both the participants and the observers remarking how similar the religions are in their purpose and goals. Two different people told me personally this year about schools which had used the theme of World Religion Day to illustrate the commonalities between the religions.

The Bahá’í goal in holding World Religion Day celebrations is to ensure that all the world religions are increasingly seen as one religion – the religion of God. This idea is seen as an essential component in the realisation of the oneness of all mankind. In His talk on “The Seven Candles of Unity”, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá (the son of Bahá’u’lláh) said: “The fourth candle is unity in religion, which is the cornerstone of the foundation itself, and which, by the power of God, will be revealed in all its splendour.”

A classic example of the similarity of religions in their core teachings – on personal behaviour – is what is often referred to as “The Golden Rule”. In the Hindu Scriptures we find the following: “Do naught to others which would cause pain if done to you.” Judaism has: “What is hateful to you do not do unto your neighbour.” The Zoroastrian Scriptures say: “Do unto others all that which is well for oneself.” The same teaching is found in Buddhism: “Treat not others in ways that they would find hurtful.” In Christianity we find it as: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” In Islam it states: “None of you is a believer until he loves for his brother that which he loves for himself.” Sikhism states the same teaching as: “Treat others as you would be treated yourself.” In the Bahá’í Faith the same message reappears as: “Lay not on any soul a load which ye would not wish to be laid upon you, and desire not for anyone the things ye would not desire for yourselves.” Each of the other world religions not quoted here has a similar verse in its scriptures.

In the past, there was a tendency to think that the various religions were worshipping different gods, but there is a wide understanding now that every religion is ultimately worshipping the same one Creative Force, the Unknown, the Unknowable. Different religions, and indeed different languages, have different names for this Creator, but they are all actually worshipping the same one God. In the Bahá’í view, the world religions all have the same Divine origin. World Religion Day exists to celebrate the existence and the relationship between all of them, and to overcome the separateness of past times. Bahá’u’lláh wrote: "Consort with the followers of all religions in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship." World Religion Day is a way of bringing this vision nearer to reality.