The divine Manifestations have been iconoclastic in Their teachings,
uprooting error, destroying false religious beliefs and summoning mankind
anew to the fundamental oneness of God. All of Them have, likewise,
proclaimed the oneness of the world of humanity. The essential teaching of
Moses was the law of Sinai, the Ten Commandments. Christ renewed and again
revealed the commands of the one God and precepts of human action. In
Muhammad, although the circle was wider, the intention of His teaching was
likewise to uplift and unify humanity in the knowledge of the one God. In
the Bab the circle was again very much enlarged, but the essential
teaching was the same. The Books of Baha'u'llah number more than one
hundred. Each one is an evident proof sufficient for mankind; each one
from foundation to apex proclaims the essential unity of God and humanity,
the love of God, the abolition of war and the divine standard of peace.
Each one also inculcates divine morality, the manifestation of lordly
graces--in every word a book of meanings. For the Word of God is collective
wisdom, absolute knowledge and eternal truth.
Consider the statement recorded in the first chapter of the book of John:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God." This statement is brief but replete with the greatest meanings.
Its applications are illimitable and beyond the power of books or words to
contain and express. Heretofore the doctors of theology have not expounded
it but have restricted it to Jesus as "the Word made flesh," the
separation of Jesus from God, the Father, and His descent upon the earth.
In this way the individualized separation of the godhead came to be
taught.
The essential oneness of Father, Son and Spirit has many meanings and
constitutes the foundation of Christianity. Today we will merely give a
synopsis of explanation. Why was Jesus the Word?
In the universe of creation all phenomenal beings are as letters. Letters
in themselves are meaningless and express nothing of thought or ideal--as,
for instance, a, b, etc. Likewise, all phenomenal beings are without
independent meaning. But a word is composed of letters and has independent
sense and meaning. Therefore, as Christ conveyed the perfect meaning of
divine reality and embodied independent significance, He was the Word. He
was as the station of reality compared to the station of metaphor. There
is no intrinsic meaning in the leaves of a book, but the thought they
convey leads you to reflect upon reality. The reality of Jesus was the
perfect meaning, the Christhood in Him which in the Holy Books is
symbolized as the Word.
"The Word was with God." The Christhood means not the body of Jesus but
the perfection of divine virtues manifest in Him. Therefore, it is
written, "He is God." This does not imply separation from God, even as it
is not possible to separate the rays of the sun from the sun. The reality
of Christ was the embodiment of divine virtues and attributes of God. For
in Divinity there is no duality. All adjectives, nouns and pronouns in
that court of sanctity are one; there is neither multiplicity nor
division. The intention of this explanation is to show that the Words of
God have innumerable significances and mysteries of meanings--each one a
thousand and more.
The Tablets of Baha'u'llah are many. The precepts and teachings they
contain are universal, covering every subject. He has revealed scientific
explanations ranging throughout all the realms of human inquiry and
investigation--astronomy, biology, medical science, etc. In the
Kitab-i-Iqan He has given expositions of the meanings of the Gospel and
other heavenly Books. He wrote lengthy Tablets upon civilization,
sociology and government. Every subject is considered. His Tablets are
matchless in beauty and profundity. Even His enemies acknowledge the
greatness of Baha'u'llah, saying He was the miracle of humanity. This was
their confession although they did not believe in Him. He was eulogized by
Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians and Muslims who denied His claim. They
frequently said, "He is matchless, unique." A Christian poet in the Orient
wrote, "Do not believe him a manifestation of God, yet his miracles are as
great as the sun." Mirza Abu'l-Fadl has mentioned many poems of this kind,
and there are numerous others. The testimony of His enemies witnessed that
He was the "miracle of mankind," that He "walked in a special pathway of
knowledge" and was "peerless in personality." His teachings are universal
and the standard for human action. They are not merely theoretical and
intended to remain in books. They are the principles of action. Results
follow action. Mere theory is fruitless. Of what use is a book upon
medicine if it is never taken from the library shelf? When practical
activity has been manifested, the teachings of God have borne fruit.
The great and fundamental teachings of Baha'u'llah are the oneness of God
and unity of mankind. This is the bond of union among Baha'is all over the
world. They become united among themselves, then unite others. It is
impossible to unite unless united. Christ said, "Ye are the salt of the
earth; but if the salt has lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted?"
This proves there were dissensions and lack of unity among His followers.
Hence His admonition to unity of action.
Now must we, likewise, bind ourselves together in the utmost unity, be
kind and loving to each other, sacrificing all our possessions, our honor,
yea, even our lives for each other. Then will it be proved that we have
acted according to the teachings of God, that we have been real believers
in the oneness of God and unity of mankind.
30 May 1912
Talk at Theosophical Lodge
Broadway and Seventy-ninth Street, New York