God looks at the heart

Last Thursday, the people of London elected a Muslim man as their Mayor. Sadiq Khan, son of immigrants from Pakistan, became the leader of this city of eight million people. This is not a figurehead role - the Mayor has real power. In electing someone from a minority group, Londoners have voted in the true spirit of the age.

Of course, in many ways it should not really matter which religion he follows – but in practice it does matter to a lot of people. However, Britain is not the only country where people from religious minorities can become mayors. In largely Muslim Turkey, for example, the city of Mardin has a Christian mayor. So does Djakarta, a city of over nine million people, in largely Muslim Indonesia.

In the Bahá’í view anyway, all the world’s major religions are part of God’s plan. Bahá’ís believe in the principle of “Progressive Revelation”, in which the Founder of each religion builds on what has gone before, and advances the spiritual and social teachings to a new level. So any differences between the original teachings of one religion and those of another are because these religions were given at different times and revealed to societies which were therefore at different stages. Each religion has spiritual teachings, such as honesty, trustworthiness and love of one’s fellow humans. These teachings are common to all the religions and remain relevant in every age. But there are also social teachings, which fix the laws of marriage, divorce, inheritance and so on, according to the requirements of the time. It is these social teachings which differ between the religions.

Particularly in the early stages of each religion, when it is new and fresh, the religion is a real force for progress and an undoubted force for good. Bahá’u’lláh says: “All men have been created to carry forward an ever-advancing civilisation”, and explains that “the fundamental purpose animating the Faith of God and His Religion is to safeguard the interests and promote the unity of the human race.”  Unfortunately, over time man interferes with or “interprets” the teachings of a religion. An assumption develops within each religion that it is the only correct path, and this has sometimes developed into violent treatment of minorities. In parts of India, there is persecution of Christians and Buddhists by Hindus. Buddhists persecute Muslims in Burma. Christians “ethnically cleansed” the Muslims in Bosnia, and there is persecution of everybody else by the “Muslims” of ISIS/Daesh. In not one of these cases do the Scriptures of the religion say that religious minorities should be persecuted or killed.

We need to take the world past this current period in which people are using religion as an excuse to carry out barbaric atrocities against other ethnic groups. Instead, we need to consciously move towards a stage of recognising all the religions as essentially one religion. Indeed, oneness of religion should be the glue which unites the hearts of mankind. God does not favour people who were raised in any particular religion, or come from any particular ethnic group. Why should He? In the Bahá’í view, religious background, a person’s colour or gender makes no difference at all in the sight of God, Who only looks at the hearts.

There *is* a better way

Someone recently unleashed more than eleven million documents on the world. These came from the Panamanian legal firm Mossack Fonseca. Many of these documents give insights into how people with a lot of money and power hide it away from the taxman and the lawman. Over the last few years, there have been many moves to try to remove banking secrecy and “offshore” tax havens, and this new leak of information from Panama will help reduce both unfairness and dishonest practice. And yet the bulk of mankind do not have spare money to hide away. Indeed many people simply do not have enough money for their basic needs. How can the huge differences in wealth be fair? How do we move away from the situation where some people are so rich, while others seemed destined to stay so poor?

Part of the underlying response must be in the way that we see other human beings. If we thought of mankind as one family, and every person needing help as one of our relations, we might behave differently. Elimination of the extremes of poverty and of wealth is one of the underlying Bahá’í principles. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said, “The Law of God requires that there should be neither excessive wealth nor excessive poverty.”

Another part of the solution is to devolve more initiative to the local level. Justice for the disadvantaged is impossible if we rely on formulae – sorry, formulas – cooked up centrally. Every individual’s circumstances are unique, with a myriad factors coming into play. The government comes up with ever more complicated attempts to help people from a distance, when what they actually need is help to be close at hand. Bahá’ís envisage the introduction of a new system referred to as the local “storehouse”. Starting at the village level, a proportion of the income generated locally is set aside each year. From this storehouse, farmers and others would have their incomes topped up during bad years, and families whose income falls short of their necessary expenditure would have their money made up from the storehouse. Crucially, the trustees of the storehouse would be local people, and would be in a position to understand the situation each family finds itself in, and would be able to direct all kinds of help.

A similar system would be operated in each town, possibly with trustees at a more local level, rather than centrally for the whole town. In this way, the entire community is involved in the same one exercise of balancing individual incomes: those paying money in, those taking money out and those overseeing the process. There would also, of course, have to be storehouses at regional or national level, which would receive money from areas in surplus and help out areas in real need. And clearly, although the initiative to act would be at the local level, there would be a place for some co-ordination at the global level.

In the Bahá’í view, every adult should be involved in an occupation of some sort – spending one’s life in idleness does not encourage personal growth. There is therefore the responsibility on every individual to look for some sort of honest employment. Bahá’u’lláh, the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, said, “It is enjoined upon every one of you to engage in some form of occupation, such as crafts, trades and the like… Waste not your time in idleness and sloth…” At the same time, it is the responsibility of the local authorities to ensure that there is some sort of work for every individual: “It is the duty of those who are in charge of the organisation of society to give every individual the opportunity of acquiring the necessary talent … and also the means of utilising such a talent…”

But the wages of every person employed by others should also be fair. Justice therefore needs to be one of the watchwords of society, and the principle of the oneness of mankind should allow no room for the exploitation of others. All of the above principles need to be established worldwide, because while some parts of the world have such an advantage over others, large numbers of people will continue to see the need to migrate elsewhere, in the hope of a better life. One of the methods that Bahá’ís believe should be used to produce a better balance in personal incomes is that of profit-sharing. Employees in any company should be entitled to a share in the profits as a right, which should be established by law: “reasonable rights of both … parties will be legally fixed … by just and impartial laws.”

No one single measure introduced by itself will produce a total reshaping of the world’s economy, but adopting the goal of mankind becoming one family; adopting the elimination of poverty as a goal; the increase in local responsibility; profit-sharing and a consciousness of justice will together point to a better way.

True religion brings out the best in people

Once again, a large-scale terrorist atrocity has been perpetrated in western Europe. Not content with killing so many people in Syria, Iraq and Turkey, the terrorist fanatics have turned their attention back to Europe, this time to Belgium, to randomly kill as many people as they can in an airport and on a train.

Once again, talking of the bombers who have been identified, we hear phrases like “known to the police” or “known to have a criminal record”. So many of the terrorist fighters and suicide bombers seem to have a history of petty crime. For some time, the “Islamist” support groups in Britain actually used to deliberately recruit people in prisons. The implication is that the people they want are those who have difficulty with the concepts of “right” and “wrong” in the first place. Perhaps they are people who have grown up with no conscience concerning their actions. Perhaps they are people that we would describe as “easily led”. But whatever the reason, they are people who would seem to have no moral compass. They do not seem to have studied and practised their religion from a young age, rather, they have belatedly sought a role and an identity in their late teens or early twenties. Instead of transforming themselves into model citizens, which each religion requires, they have been fed on a diet of hate.

Every religion, when you study its scriptures, teaches people how to behave properly. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said, “The purpose of the religion of God is the education of humanity and the unity and fellowship of mankind.” Islam is, of course, no exception. Chapter 7, verse 56 of the Qur’an says, “Do no mischief on the earth, after it hath been set in order.” Chapter 6, verse 151, instructs the believing Muslim: “Take not life, which God hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law.” Random killing and maiming of people by hidden bombs must surely be ruled out by verses like this. In Chapter 16, the Qur’an says: “God commands justice, the doing of good, and liberality to kith and kin, and He forbids all shameful deeds, and injustice and rebellion.” But I don’t suppose that verses like this are on the required reading list for the terrorist training camps. The terrorist organisations need those with a limited understanding of their religion, those who cannot distinguish right from wrong, and those with such low self-esteem that they think they are accomplishing something by blowing themselves and others to pieces.

Bahá’u’lláh, by contrast, says, that "It is better for you to be killed than to kill." He forbids fanaticism, and encourages people of all religions to mix together as one: "Consort with the followers of all religions in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship.” To Bahá’ís, it is of supreme importance to ensure that all children get clear guidance in morals. Bahá’í children’s classes focus largely on virtues – positive qualities which are useful to the child and useful to others. These classes are open to children of all backgrounds, and lead on to groups for the 11-15 age group (Junior Youth), which emphasise self-esteem and service to the community. Building a sense of community is a fundamental Bahá’í goal.

The religions of the world should join together to ensure that the rising generation is nurtured in positive and beneficial qualities, because true religion brings out the best in people, and so often today we are hearing about the worst. 

But we want so much more …

Those of us who live in democratic countries are called on, from time to time, to vote for Parliamentary representatives, for Presidents, or sometimes to vote in referenda – sorry, referendums. In the United Kingdom, we will soon be called upon to vote whether we, the people of Britain, wish to remain as part of the European Union.

But how should a Bahá’í vote, in a referendum like this? The Bahá’í vision for the world is much wider and much deeper than the question of membership of an economic – or even political? – club.

The Bahá’í vision is of a union of all of the world’s peoples, rather than simply those of one continent. The Bahá’ís are looking towards the unity of all the world’s religions, which is a much more profound goal than just assembling a coalition of peoples from one culture. They are working towards some form of world federation, in which every nation lives in freedom from domination by its neighbours. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá put it, “This small planet is not worthy of division. Is it not one home, one native land?”

If we regard the whole earth as one country, there is no need to be endlessly negotiating trade deals with this country or that. The world should be a free trade area, rather than have different parts of the world negotiating with (or against) one another from behind trade barriers. Even more importantly, there should be a much fairer distribution of wealth. There should be a limit on personal fortunes, and mechanisms to raise people out of poverty. Only when all countries have a similar standard of living will the constant movement of economic migrants cease. One big help in this will be the Bahá’í ideal of one common currency, which will remove the damaging currency speculators and many of the dishonest traders at a stroke. It will also remove the multi-currency system which daily works against the poorest countries, whose currencies are viewed as worthless. We have learned a lot from the implementation of a common currency in a large part of Europe. It has become clear that it cannot work properly while different countries have different financial policies – there also needs to be a common financial system. The world should also have a universal bill of human rights; and the choice of a world language to operate alongside our national and regional languages should help us to know and understand one another better, and therefore trust one another more. And clearly, only when we have peace will there be an end to refugees fleeing war.

One major change in human thinking which is necessary for the creation of such an ideal world is that we should not think in terms of dividing ourselves off from others. In other words, people will be thinking of “us” (that is, humanity), instead of “them and us”, which is at the heart of so many problems. So, what I am arguing for is the creation of a spiritual base for a world civilisation, rather than placing too much stress on the question of membership of an economic club of nation states. In whichever way the majority decides to vote, the result will only stand for a certain length of time, because mankind’s institutions will naturally continue to evolve towards the inevitable world civilisation.

All religions are one

Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic Church, recently met Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church. In a number of ways, this was a highly significant meeting: firstly because there has never been a meeting between the heads of these two churches before; secondly, because these two churches are openly in “schism” (having disagreed with one another centuries ago); and thirdly because the Patriarch of Moscow is arguably the pre-eminent leader of Orthodox Christianity. It was a meeting between the Catholic church, which is the biggest Christian body in Western Europe (and indeed the world), and the Russian Orthodox church, which is the biggest in Eastern Europe.

The present pope has, however, previously met leaders from various other Christian churches, as well as meeting Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Sikh, Hindu and Jain leaders. Clearly, he sees a need for ties and bonds to be established across these religious divides.

The Bahá’í Faith (to which I belong) is based on the fundamental idea that all religions are one. The major world religions were all founded by Messengers of God, although the message has later sometimes become distorted or lost along the way. Each religion was intended for a particular part of the world, and for a particular time. Every religion flourished when it was young and it furnished the society of the time with new ideas and a new spirit. But like everything else in this world, religions are subject to change and decay. After many centuries, therefore, a new religion must arise, to take humanity forward again. This idea is called “progressive revelation”. What is unique about the present time is that world travel and instant communication make this time potentially an age of unity, which would require a religion for the whole world.

Oneness of religion is one of the three fundamental “onenesses” of the Bahá’í Faith. The other two are: the oneness of God (that all religions are actually worshipping the same Supreme Being, whatever name their followers give to It) and the oneness of mankind. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated that “The gift of God to this enlightened age is the knowledge of the oneness of mankind and of the fundamental oneness of religion.”

At a time when fanatical elements claiming to represent their religions are causing grief and harm to others, it is crucially important that the genuine leaders of the different religions are seen to be coming together and embracing one another as brothers, as Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill just did. The world needs a huge catalogue of reforms and changes: for example, it needs to reform the economic system currently in place, and put an end to poverty. It needs to bring about a universal peace treaty leading to the abolition of war. It must seize the environmental challenges at a global level. As part of this move towards the future, religious rivalry and hatred can and must give way to the recognition of the oneness of mankind and of the fundamental oneness of religion.

You might cheat people, but you cannot cheat nature

On Saturday, an earthquake shook the south-western part of Taiwan, including the city of Tainan. A number of buildings collapsed, but most noticeably a 17-storey apartment block, the Weikuan Kinlung (“Golden Dragon”) building, where 35 people are so far known to have died and more than 100 people are still missing. Rather oddly, the building seems to have fallen over, rather than simply collapsing downwards, which is what usually happens in such disasters. Television footage shows the metal rods in the vertical towers to have bent and snapped. But an even more disturbing thing has now been shown on television: large tin cans can be seen to have been used in the construction of the building, where there should have been solid concrete.

The construction of a tower block involves collaboration between the developers, the architects, the engineers, the construction company, sub-contractors and the city authorities. It requires straightforward and honest dealings between all of these parties. If any one of them is involved in bribery or dishonest practices, people’s lives are being put in danger for somebody’s short-term gain. Somebody knows why those cans were used. Nobody “blew the whistle” on whoever decided that this should happen, and likewise no-one reported that the building was being constructed in this way.

Taiwan, like many other countries in major earthquake zones, has laws regulating new buildings, which should be constructed in such a way that they can withstand the ‘quakes. Clearly, one or more parties involved were cheating the system. As mankind moves forward, and learns to cope with, or even to tame, the forces of nature, a universal code of honesty is required. Abdu’l-Bahá said:  “Communication between the races of men is rapidly being established. Now is the time that all of us may… treat each other with honesty and straightforwardness.” His Father, Bahá’u’lláh, said: “Trustworthiness is the greatest portal leading to the tranquillity and security of the people. In truth, the stability of every affair hath depended and doth depend upon it.” When a family moves into an apartment block, they need to be able to trust that the architects obeyed the law, that the builders put up a building which will not fall over, that the inspectors actually saw that the work was done, and that the lifts, the water supply and electricity all work properly.

However, at this point in human development, trustworthiness seems to be in very short supply: there are bankers who manipulate the lending rates; people who make dishonest telephone calls trying to obtain people’s bank details; sales callers who pretend they are ringing on behalf of government agencies; banks that endlessly alter the terms of the savings schemes, so that they can pay out less to the elderly and unwary; people who forge tickets to sports matches and concerts – the list is endless. Bahá’u’lláh, in the book Hidden Words, wrote: “With fire We test the gold, and with gold We test Our servants.” How people react when money becomes a temptation reveals their inner, spiritual condition, just as it took the force of nature to reveal the inner physical condition of the Golden Dragon building in Taiwan.

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Note: in July, 2015, the blog post "Out of Africa" discussed certain points related to corruption, and the September 2015 post, "It's Time We Got Our Act Together" deals with natural disasters such as earthquakes.               

        

       

I have a dream

I woke in the night on Friday from quite a vivid dream. I was helping to make a “rap” record, and I was the only “white” person in the studio. (I am not really white – my face and chest are pink, my arms are brown, especially in summer, but I do have white legs.) Everyone in the studio who knew how the equipment worked was “black”, and they were very friendly and helpful, amused by my ignorance of the technology, but not condescending. Suddenly, back to real life – and there in the dark, only partly awake, I knew I had to write a blog post about racism.

Martin Luther King made a very famous speech, in which he said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.” And what is the news from America? While the country has definitely moved on, it happens that all twenty actors nominated for the top “Oscars” this year are white. The Master of Ceremonies at the Award Ceremony will be a black man, Chris Rock; and the President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is a black woman, Cheryl Boone Isaacs (pictured above). But not one black actor has been nominated for any of the top twenty awards. If it had just happened once it would have looked like just chance, but when it happens two years running, it starts to look more like cultural bias.

In the United States of America, approximately 13% of the population is from African-American stock, descended from Africans taken there against their will. One of my Bahá’í friends, the actor Earl Cameron (now 98 years old), told me that his grandfather was seized from his fishing boat by a passing ship, after the British Parliament had outlawed slavery, and was sold as a slave in the Americas, ending up in Bermuda. Given that the black population of the Americas is there because of direct acts of force and violence, there is great sensitivity about the need now to ensure that everyone is being treated as being of equal value. The Bahá’í religion was founded on the principle of the oneness of mankind. Bahá’u’lláh said: “O people of the world, ye are all the fruit of one tree and the leaves of one branch,” and His son ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said (about a hundred years ago): “Let them look not upon a man's colour but upon his heart. If the heart be filled with light, that man is nigh unto the threshold of his Lord, … be he white or be he black.”

One of the early Bahá’ís in the United States was Louis Gregory, whose parents had been born into slavery, and who became very active with the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá encouraged Louis Gregory to marry a white English lady called Louisa Mathew. They married in 1912. He saw inter-racial marriage amongst the Bahá’ís as an example to the rest of the population, even though such a marriage was actually illegal in some of the States and caused them many problems. Many years later, Martin Luther King counted several Bahá’ís among his friends.

So what of the Oscar nominations? Already this year’s events have jolted the process somewhat, and the membership of the Academy in future will be deliberately steered into a different, and more diverse, direction. History is shaping us, as ‘Abdu’l-Bahá knew it would, in the direction of Martin Luther King’s prophetic dream.