26  Peace

26.1 The Most Great Peace

In Chapter 22, we describe the world-wide House of Justice’s role in establishing the Most Great Peace, as described in the Ninth Leaf of Paradise in the Words of Paradise. The Most Great Peace is the unification of the world’s affairs towards a common goal or the unification of the world’s religions as one. Holy war is strictly prohibited, even if another religion or religious institution prescribes it.¹

26.1.1 The Lesser Peace

Baha’u’llah’s Epistle to the Son of the Wolf is a great review of many overarching themes Baha’u’llah had taught throughout His ministry. One of these themes is the Lesser Peace, which He describes as the greatest cause of the preservation of the world. It is not the only cause for the preservation of the world, but I do read this as there is risk the world may not be preserved if the Lesser Peace is not pursued.

The first responsibility to establish the Lesser Peace are the kings of the world, who are the dawning places of wealth and power. Baha’u’llah describes they should establish an assembly where they or the ministers who act on their behalf, to create a decree of unity between nations. They should also agree to limiting weapons to only that which is necessary for the defense of their nations. Baha’u’llah says if any sovereign leader rises against another, a declaration of war, all the other nations should prevent this offense. Instead of weapons, resources will be used for the reformation of the world.

The purpose of the Lesser Peace is not solely for the preservation of the world. The purpose also includes the establishment and preservation of the human rights of all, which is a way to ensure liberation while the soul is in the physical domain of Earth. The people who live under the Lesser Peace will be engaged in comfort and joy, and the lamentations of most will cease.

26.1.2 Trusteeship Is Required for Peace

Trusteeship is required in order to achieve either form of peace. World, religious, and even business leaders need to be able to view their wealth, power, and influence not within terms of domination, extraction, extortion, nor status but instead to view their uncanny abilities to lead as a trusteeship towards all. This concept is affirmed in the Kitab-i-Ahd’s final paragraph, where Baha’u’llah states His Will and Testament. Those who lived when Baha’u’llah lived would hear his final Words being read, where He says:

“I counsel you to serve the nations and reform the world. From the Kingdom of the Bayán, what has been revealed is intended for the life of the world and the salvation of the nations.”

Every single member of humankind is to be a trustee, if they are capable. To have liberation, we need to be responsible for another’s liberation. This does not happen automatically. This book has established all of the foundations for us to achieve the Lesser or the Most Great Peace. Let’s put everything we have learned together and see what we can do to achieve God’s vision through Baha’u’llah.

26.2 A World Assembly

The Lesser Peace is conditioned upon a world assembly. An assembly is any group of people who have chosen to meet for a common purpose. In everyday life, assemblies can be related to legislative, religious, educational, and social purposes. A world assembly would not be a world government. Nations do not lose their sovereignty.

There is no prerequisite required to convene a Lesser Peace assembly. This means this is not limited to the type of government a nation has. The participating governments can be decentralized or centralized power structures, capitalist or socialist economies, single-party or multi-party, and led by civilians or the military. Baha’u’llah did not describe any qualifications other than the attendees are sovereign leaders or the ministers acting on their behalf.

The assembly is not the United Nations. The United Nations is a commendable attempt at creating a more peaceful world, but it was designed with 5 nations have veto power on any security actions. Two of these nations have attacked other nations preemptively in the last 20 years without any consequences by member nations of the UN. Another has several disputed borders, and has recently claimed marine territory other nations had controlled. The Lesser Peace assembly is only for nations to agree to no longer attack each other. Once again, there are no exceptions. The Lesser Peace assembly is for nations to disarm to only what is necessary to defend their nations. While some nations follow this guidance, a majority do not. The United Nations is not the Lesser Peace assembly.

A world-wide House of Justice’s sole purpose is to work towards this assembly. This House of Justice does not have any authority at the assembly, but they can be the organizers. The members do everything they can to teach and spread the idea of a Lesser Peace and this type of world assembly. Local Houses of Justice can also promote the Lesser Peace within their jurisdictions, regardless of the authority level granted to them by the people. Baha’u’llah also does not require there to be a world-wide House of Justice for a Lesser Assembly to be convened. Any sovereign leader can call the assembly, if the choose to do so.

26.3 A Common Affair

The Most Great Peace has two modes. The first mode of achievement is to work towards a common affair. An affair is a transaction or other matters of public state business. These common affairs could be identified through a world assembly similar to the Lesser Peace assembly. One really good example of a successful common affair the world has achieved since Baha’u’llah’s call is when the nations of the world banned chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).

Common affairs could be a wide variety of issues. A good starting point could be the rights discussed throughout this book, such as a right to education. Nations might agree to promote various virtues associated with education, such as pure truthfulness which is not affected by ideology, state interest, or other power dynamics. Knowledge is not withheld nor is opinion treated as fact.

Nations retain their sovereignty and cannot be forced. An affair must genuinely be common. This means nations with relative strength cannot bully nor coerce another state. The people of all nations have the same rights listed in this book, even if the nation they live in does not honor those rights.

Houses of Justice can at the city level can help be public figures of these rights and causes. If a House of Justice is able to attain the fifth level of authority, they can guide their nation towards the common affairs of all nations. However, a sovereign leader can also call for assemblies of common affairs as we progress to the Most Great Peace.

26.4 Unification of Religion

The second mode of the Most Great Peace is the unification of religion. I feel it might be common to view this principle as all people are part of the same religion or a dominate majority. I see three potential parallel pathways unification can take. The key is remember unity is more about how our constellation of virtues guide each of us. The more stars that shine brightly, the more light available to guide the right paths.

Parallel Pathway #1: The world increasingly becomes more aware of Baha’u’llah and the Kitab-i-Aqdas. They learn about the Cause of God, the liberation of souls and societies, and believe Baha’u’llah is from God.

Parallel Pathway #2: The religions of the world start to naturally adopt many of the teachings and beliefs of Baha’u’llah, such as the abolition of holy war and the full equality of women. These religions retain their names, their rituals, and traditions but evolve.

Parallel Pathway #3: The leaders of religions find points of common belief between each other, choosing friendliness. They draw from each others strengths. A good test of such pathway is how interfaith marriages are perceived.

None of these pathways are mutually exclusive and each can occur together. The world-wide House of Justice can work towards each of these 3 pathways, or any other pathway identified. Assemblies of religions can help foster these pathways.

26.5 A King Who Believes

We have a responsibility towards any sovereign leader who arises to serve the Cause of God. The Kitab-i-Aqdas #84 says:

Blessed is the king who arises to support My Cause in My kingdom and detaches himself from all else. He is one of the people of the Crimson Ark, which God has made for the people of Bahá. It is fitting for everyone to honor, revere, and assist him, that he may conquer cities with the keys of My Name, the One Who rules over all in the realms of the unseen and the seen. He is as the sight of mankind, the most radiant crown upon the brow of creation, and the head of generosity for the body of the world. Support him, O people of Bahá, with wealth and lives.

26.6 Belief, Spiritual Practice, Social Life and Affectionate Relationships

We must be careful in how we pursue the Lesser and Most Great Peace. For example, it is incredibly difficult for a person to proclaim peace and unity if they struggle mightily to achieve such things in their personal life. Likewise, a community which fails to provide a healthy social life for its locality lacks the ability to prescribe more global measures. While it is entirely possible for top-down centralized peace initiatives to be formed, such as through a monarch who arises to serve the Cause, every other institution Baha’u’llah described is highly decentralized.

Decentralization is fundamentally more difficult and throughout history, decentralized institutions have regularly ceded increasing power and control towards centralization. Crisis are especially noteworthy in authorities seeking more control to avert the crisis, and out of fear, people are willing to reduce their rights for an increased sense of security. While rights are inherently popular, individual responsibilities rarely are. I don’t want to seem cynical, as I enjoy my pleasures of life, but this has always been the most pressing philosophical issue regarding governance. What is our responsibility, and what am I willing to give up to pass that responsibility to a government composed of individuals, who also have the same self-interests I do?

This is why trusteeship is integral to every level of governance. For each right we hope to have, Baha’u’llah gives us an equal responsibility. Everything comes down to the individual. There is a cyclical never-ending process we must practice to increase our chances of creating a Lesser and Most Great Peace. First, we must believe such a peace is possible. We believe in God, our souls, the spiritual worlds, the Day of Resurrection, God’s Command, and His Manifestation. We don’t have to believe perfectly, but we believe there is more than meets the eye, and it inspires us. We perform our spiritual practices which help inform the development of our virtues. These transform our personal lives and prepare us for a healthy social life, full of potential for affectionate relationships. Our belief is expressed in good deeds. These deeds and experiences, even negative experiences, provide a feedback look back into the belief. Every day is a new opportunity for refinement. Practice may not lead to perfection, but it is the only pathway towards perfection. Always keep practicing.

This feedback loop ensures we are as capable as any person to participate in the emergence of peace. I recognize it can seem like hard work, and potentially a significant reorientation of our lifestyles. This work prepares us to be trustees. While being mindful Baha’u’llah did not want us overburdened, we can actively pursue good deeds. This can be as simple as helping an elderly person grab an item at a grocery store or as complex as raising another’s child. Being a trustee can also utilizing your skills to actively work in social, civic, and political roles.

If Baha’u’llah envisioned a King to arise to serve the Cause, it requires not only an individual who believes, but an individual who believes and is willing to act on that belief. While not everyone can be a sovereign leader of a nation, there are countless ways we can serve as trustees. Use your imagination. Baha’u’llah eliminated the intermediaries who created veils over our imagination. Explore within yourself, within your developing God consciousness. As peace grows within you, that peace can help others attain peace.

26.7 Towards the Last Chapter

We cannot do any of this alone. The last chapter of this book is about teaching the Cause. We will look at Baha’u’llah’s guidance in teaching others. How will people know there is a Kitab-i-Aqdas created to liberate them starting today and for at least another 800 years?

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1. Lawh-i-Bisarat (The Tablet of Glad-Tidings)