International Day of Peace has recently been celebrated so it is timely to reflect on how peace may be achieved.
Unity, peace and justice are closely linked. It is the requirement of justice that everyone is treated equally and with dignity. Justice and unity are reciprocal in their effect. “The purpose of justice,” Bahá’u’lláh, the founder of the Bahá’í Faith, wrote, “is the appearance of unity among men.” And he further states that: “No light can compare with the light of justice. The establishment of order in the world and the tranquility of the nations depend upon it.”
Although there is a common yearning for order and a just society, legal systems worldwide convey confused set of standards as to what order, justice and fairness represent. Current justice systems in many parts of the world not only overlook, but sanction injustices towards those who are not within their boundaries or are not from the same background. For example, “if a man kills another, no matter what the cause may be, he is pronounced a murderer, imprisoned or executed; but the brutal oppressor who has slain 100 000 [in a war] is idolised as a hero, conqueror or military genius”.
In order to be just, we must be fair in our judgment; treat people of all backgrounds with equity; and apply justice every day; in everything we do and towards all our fellow human beings.
In the sight of God, Bahá’u’lláh says, justice is “the best beloved of all things” since it permits each one of us to see with our own eyes rather than the eyes of others, to know through our own knowledge rather than the knowledge of our neighbour or our particular group (nation, race, ethnic background or religion). Imitation is one of the main causes of war.
In the Bahá’í view, there is also need for “just legislation in accord with the Divine laws which guarantee the happiness of society and protect the rights of all mankind, … laws insuring the integrity of the members of society and their equality before the law”.
Furthermore, the lasting peace and the true world unity, will be achieved when individual and social well-being will be expressed in a civilization reflecting spiritual values of love, compassion, and justice. Without justice there will be no lasting unity and without unity there will be no peace and security. Valuable resources currently used for war will go a long way to eliminate poverty and suffering.
It is the Bahá’í view that with unity – a unity that welcomes and honours the full diversity of mankind – the current problems which face humanity today, can be solved. Bahá’u’lláh says: “The well-being of mankind, its peace and security, are unattainable unless and until its unity is firmly established.” “So powerful is the light of unity, that it can illuminate the whole earth”.
For feedback please contact: tshwane@bahai.org.za; or call 083 794 0819
Websites: www.bahai.org, www.bahai.org.za
