No more, I believe, need be said of the decline of religious institutions,
the disintegration of which constitutes so important an aspect of the
Formative Period of the Baha'i Era. Islam had both as a result of the
rising tide of secularism and in direct consequence of its declared and
persistent hostility to the Faith of Baha'u'llah sunk to a depth of
abasement rarely attained in its history. Christianity had, likewise,
owing to causes not wholly dissimilar to those operating in the case of
its sister Faith, steadily weakened, and was contributing, in an
increasing measure, its share to the process of general disintegration--a
process that must necessarily precede the fundamental reconstruction of
human society.
The signs of moral downfall, as distinct from the evidences of decay in
religious institutions, would appear to be no less noticeable and
significant. The decline that has set in in the fortunes of Islamic and
Christian institutions may be said to have had its counterpart in the life
and conduct of the individuals that compose them. In whichever direction
we turn our gaze, no matter how cursory our observation of the doings and
sayings of the present generation, we can not fail to be struck by the
evidences of moral decadence which, in their individual lives no less than
in their collective capacity, men and women around us exhibit.
There can be no doubt that the decline of religion as a social force, of
which the deterioration of religious institutions is but an external
phenomenon, is chiefly responsible for so grave, so conspicuous an evil.
"Religion," writes Baha'u'llah, "is the greatest of all means for the
establishment of order in the world and for the peaceful contentment of
all that dwell therein. The weakening of the pillars of religion hath
strengthened the hands of the ignorant and made them bold and arrogant.
Verily I say, whatsoever hath lowered the lofty station of religion hath
increased the waywardness of the wicked, and the result cannot be but
anarchy." "Religion," He, in another Tablet, has stated, "is a radiant
light and an impregnable stronghold for the protection and welfare of the
peoples of the world, for the fear of God impelleth man to hold fast to
that which is good, and shun all evil. Should the lamp of religion be
obscured, chaos and confusion will ensue, and the lights of fairness, of
justice, of tranquillity and peace cease to shine." "Know thou," He, in
yet another connection, has written, "that they who are truly wise have
likened the world unto the human temple. As the body of man needeth a
garment to clothe it, so the body of mankind must needs be adorned with
the mantle of justice and wisdom. Its robe is the Revelation vouchsafed
unto it by God."
No wonder, therefore, that when, as a result of human perversity, the
light of religion is quenched in men's hearts, and the divinely appointed
Robe, designed to adorn the human temple, is deliberately discarded, a
deplorable decline in the fortunes of humanity immediately sets in,
bringing in its wake all the evils which a wayward soul is capable of
revealing. The perversion of human nature, the degradation of human
conduct, the corruption and dissolution of human institutions, reveal
themselves, under such circumstances, in their worst and most revolting
aspects. Human character is debased, confidence is shaken, the nerves of
discipline are relaxed, the voice of human conscience is stilled, the
sense of decency and shame is obscured, conceptions of duty, of
solidarity, of reciprocity and loyalty are distorted, and the very feeling
of peacefulness, of joy and of hope is gradually extinguished.
Such, we might well admit, is the state which individuals and institutions
alike are approaching. "No two men," Baha'u'llah, lamenting the plight of
an erring humanity, has written, "can be found who may be said to be
outwardly and inwardly united. The evidences of discord and malice are
apparent everywhere, though all were made for harmony and union." "How
long," He, in the same Tablet, exclaims, "will humanity persist in its
waywardness? How long will injustice continue? How long is chaos and
confusion to reign amongst men? How long will discord agitate the face of
society? The winds of despair are, alas, blowing from every direction, and
the strife that divideth and afflicteth the human race is daily
increasing."
The recrudescence of religious intolerance, of racial animosity, and of
patriotic arrogance; the increasing evidences of selfishness, of
suspicion, of fear and of fraud; the spread of terrorism, of lawlessness,
of drunkenness and of crime; the unquenchable thirst for, and the feverish
pursuit after, earthly vanities, riches and pleasures; the weakening of
family solidarity; the laxity in parental control; the lapse into
luxurious indulgence; the irresponsible attitude towards marriage and the
consequent rising tide of divorce; the degeneracy of art and music, the
infection of literature, and the corruption of the press; the extension of
the influence and activities of those "prophets of decadence" who advocate
companionate marriage, who preach the philosophy of nudism, who call
modesty an intellectual fiction, who refuse to regard the procreation of
children as the sacred and primary purpose of marriage, who denounce
religion as an opiate of the people, who would, if given free rein, lead
back the human race to barbarism, chaos, and ultimate extinction--these
appear as the outstanding characteristics of a decadent society, a society
that must either be reborn or perish.