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12/20/14

Every person should be helped to “develop and express his or her God-given talents and capacities in service to humanity.”

…the principle of the oneness of humankind, as proclaimed by Bahá’u’lláh, is inconsistent with any attempt to impose uniformity. Its watchword is unity in diversity. To accept it is to embrace the rich diversity that characterizes the human race. To promote it implies helping every soul to develop and express his or her God-given talents and capacities in service to humanity.  
- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 28 July 2008 to the Baha’is in Iran)    

11/12/14

One’s ambition in life should be “to revive the world, to ennoble its life, and regenerate its peoples.”

They who are the people of God have no ambition except to revive the world, to ennoble its life, and regenerate its peoples. 
- Baha’u’llah  (‘Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u’llah’)

10/5/14

“Love is the source of all the bestowals of God”

Love is the source of all the bestowals of God. Until love takes possession of the heart, no other divine bounty can be revealed in it. 
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (From a talk, New York, 14 April 1912; ‘The Promulgation of Universal Peace: Talks Delivered by 'Abdu'l-Bahá during His Visit to the United States and Canada in 1912’)

9/18/14

Each human being should try to “become a source of social good.”

...the honor and distinction of the individual consist in this, that he among all the world's multitudes should become a source of social good. Is any larger bounty conceivable than this, that an individual, looking within himself, should find that by the confirming grace of God he has become the cause of peace and well-being, of happiness and advantage to his fellow men? No, by the one true God, there is no greater bliss, no more complete delight. 
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘The Secret of Divine Civilization’)

8/10/14

Each person should blot out every last trace of prejudice from his/her life

Let us strive to blot out from our lives every last trace of prejudice -- racial, religious, political, economic, national, tribal, class, cultural, and that which is based on differences of education or age. 
- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 13 July 1972, addressed to all National Spiritual Assemblies; Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1968-1973)

7/15/14

Not to make religion the “cause of enmity or dissension”

O ye that dwell on earth! The religion of God is for love and unity; make it not the cause of enmity or dissension.
- Baha’u’llah  (‘Tablets of Baha’u’llah revealed after the Kitab-i-Aqdas’)

5/17/14

Some principles to “espouse and live by” – principles “which are the means for the rehabilitation of every society”

…the sanctity of human dignity; the oneness of humankind irrespective of tribe, race, or belief; the equality of men and women; freedom from prejudice; commitment to knowledge and learning; the abolition of extremes of wealth and poverty; the containment of greed; the harmony of faith and reason… 
- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message to the Baha’is of Iran, 13 May 2014)

3/18/14

Men and women alike are the “revealers” of “names and attributes” of God

...God hath created all humankind in His own image, and after His own likeness. That is, men and women alike are the revealers of His names and attributes, and from the spiritual viewpoint there is no difference between them. Whosoever draweth nearer to God, that one is the most favoured, whether man or woman.... 
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)

2/8/14

“In the estimation of God there is no distinction of color”

In the estimation of God there is no distinction of color; all are one in the color and beauty of servitude to Him. Color is not important; the heart is all-important. It mattereth not what the exterior may be if the heart is pure and white within. God doth not behold differences of hue and complexion. He looketh at the hearts. He whose morals and virtues are praiseworthy is preferred in the presence of God; he who is devoted to the Kingdom is most beloved. In the realm of genesis and creation the question of color is of least importance. 
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (Quoted by Shoghi Effendi in ‘The Advent of Divine Justice’)

1/15/14

We should “see in every human being only that which is worthy of praise”

One must see in every human being only that which is worthy of praise. When this is done, one can be a friend to the whole human race. If, however, we look at people from the standpoint of their faults, then being a friend to them is a formidable task.

It happened one day in the time of Christ—may the life of the world be a sacrifice unto Him—that He passed by the dead body of a dog, a carcass reeking, hideous, the limbs rotting away. One of those present said: ‘How foul its stench!’ And another said: ‘How sickening! How loathsome!’ To be brief, each one of them had something to add to the list.

But then Christ Himself spoke, and He told them: ‘Look at that dog’s teeth! How gleaming white!’

The Messiah’s sin-covering gaze did not for a moment dwell upon the repulsiveness of that carrion. The one element of that dead dog’s carcass which was not abomination was the teeth: and Jesus looked upon their brightness.

Thus is it incumbent upon us, when we direct our gaze toward other people, to see where they excel, not where they fail. 
- ‘Abdu’l-Baha  (‘Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’)

1/2/14

Each human being needs to “purify and sanctify” his/her “spirit from the impurities of the world of nature”

The principle of baptism is purification by repentance. John admonished and exhorted the people, and caused them to repent; then he baptized them. Therefore, it is apparent that this baptism is a symbol of repentance from all sin: its meaning is expressed in these words: “O God! as my body has become purified and cleansed from physical impurities, in the same way purify and sanctify my spirit from the impurities of the world of nature, which are not worthy of the Threshold of Thy Unity!” Repentance is the return from disobedience to obedience. Man, after remoteness and deprivation from God, repents and undergoes purification: and this is a symbol signifying “O God! make my heart good and pure, freed and sanctified from all save Thy love.”