THE EARTH IS BUT ONE COUNTRY

JOHN HUDDLESTON

The National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United Kingdom

1976/1988

PART VIII

 

Chapter 6: A Just System of Government

A – The administrative Order

Having discussed the institution of the family it is now appropriate to widen the frame of reference to the institution of the greater family of the human race. The first chapter mentioned some of the major inadequacies of present method of government. The major challenges which man faces are worldwide in scale and their solution requires action on a universal basis. Yet present institutions tend to strengthen factionalism and to stultify the generous and long-range concepts of society in favor of the superficial and selfish. Bahá’ís believe that these institutions are so fundamentally obsolete and destructive of man’s potential that they will not be the vehicle for the establishment of a new civilization.

• There are many, especially among the young, who are totally disillusioned with present day institutions.
• When men live together there are many facets of their existence about which they have to consult, agree, and work together in order to survive. This means organization, it means institutions and government.
• When government is diverted from its true purpose of service to the community, of channeling the collective abilities of the community toward the greatest achievements for the good of all, and instead becomes an instrument of oppression, the answer is not to regress and deny that there is a need for government, but rather to search for the ways by which government can be made just and fruitful.
• In order to create a new, just civilization, man needs a new spiritual outlook and a new, just system of government through which that spiritual outlook may be most effectively put into action.
• A just form of government will not be possible if the new spirit does not develop; the new spirit will be frustrated and stunted if there is not a just form of government.

To promote the development of a world civilization, Bahá’u’lláh designed a new system of government which is known as the Bahá’í Administrative Order. This order is worldwide in its embrace, yet at the same time it is intimate and on a human scale when put into practice. Its structure is simple, flexible and adaptable to all cultures, ranging from the most primitive tribe to the most sophisticated of technological societies. Its features make it supremely responsive to orderly change and to the needs of those whom it serves.

• The Administrative Order does not have individual leaders but is designed to obtain universal participation in the process of government. Authority rests solely with elected institutions. No part of that authority becomes associated in any way with individuals who serve on the institutions.
• A person serving on a Bahá’í institution receives no special privilege and derives no prestige from his office. The reward of office is the inner hope of having done all in one’s power to serve the community.
• Bahá’u’lláh specifically forbade the creation of a priesthood in the Bahá’í Faith, in keeping with His teaching that in this age, when universal education is both possible and necessary, man must, in order to grow spiritually, seek the truth about life for himself in his own reading and experience.
• All collective institutions of the Administrative Order are elected democratically by secret ballot. The elected institutions are required to be responsible not to their constituents but to God.
• This means that their whole outlook is directed to the good of society as a whole, not to factional interest, and society is understood in the widest sense, including not merely the present generations but also the generations past and future.
• The Administrative Order has institutions at three distinct levels. To look after the affairs of each town or village where there are at least nine adult Bahá’ís there is a Local Spiritual Assembly.
• When there are a sufficient number of Local Spiritual Assemblies a coordinating and directing National Spiritual Assembly is formed.
• Bahá’í Writings describe the Local and National Spiritual Assemblies as the bedrock of the new World Order.

Crowning the Order, is the third level, the supreme legislative body of the Faith, the Universal House of Justice. Its seat is at Haifa, the meeting point of East and West, crossroads between Europe, Africa and Asia, home of man from earliest times, Holy Land for many of the world’s great religions, in short, the hub of the world. The Universal House of Justice unites and directs the whole Bahá’í world. To Bahá’ís it is the embryonic world government – a sign of the future.

B – Elections and consultation

The effectiveness of the Administrative Order as a device for establishing a just society rests not only on a structure which is unified on a world scale with roots going to every local community, but also on how that structure works. Two extremely important aspects of Bahá’í Administration are the method of election and the method of consultation and decision making. The method of election is designed to ensure that all in a community are given every facility for truly independent choice, that at the time when they make their choice they are fully aware of their responsibility, and finally that those elected are the most qualified to serve the community. The system of consultation directs the community toward consideration of all points of view in a spirit of unity and in a logical step-by-step fashion with the object of arriving at the very best decision for the whole community.

Local Spiritual Assemblies, National Spiritual Assemblies and the Universal House of Justice each have nine members. The Local Spiritual Assembly is elected once a year on April 21 by all the adult Bahá’ís in the assembly area of jurisdiction. All of the adult Bahá’ís on the electoral list of the local community are eligible for the election to the Assembly. There is a moral obligation on every member of the community to vote. Not to vote implies lack of interest in the establishment of a just society.

• To be eligible to vote in a Bahá’í election and to serve on a Bahá’í Assembly, a Bahá’í must be twenty-one years old or more.
• The National Spiritual Assembly is also elected once a year by a National Convention which serves as both an electoral body and as a representative assembly to bring forward ideas and suggestions for consultation with the National Spiritual Assembly.
• The area of jurisdiction of the National Spiritual Assembly is divided into regions, or localities, each of which elects a number of delegates to the National Convention in proportion to the number of Bahá’ís in its area.
• Any adult Bahá’í in good standing in the national community is eligible for election to the National Spiritual Assembly.

The Universal House of Justice is elected – every five years at the present time – by an International Convention which meets in Haifa. The International Convention is very similar in nature and function to the National Convention. Its delegates are the members of all the National Spiritual Assemblies throughout the world. Any man in the whole world community may be elected to the House of Justice, with the very few exceptions referred to later in the chapter. (The rule that only men may serve on the Universal House of Justice may appear to abrogate the principle of equality between men and women. Abdu’l-Bahá stated that the reason for this rule would become apparent in the future.)

• The Bahá’í election has several other significant features. First, there are no nominations and no political campaigns.
• Each elector votes for a complete Assembly, that is, he votes for nine persons rather than one. This feature protects the community against undue emphasis on particular individuals.
• It also helps the elector to think about the whole Assembly and the range of qualities and diversity of background it needs to function most effectively.
• Once elected, a Bahá’í should not resign his office, unless there are most exceptional circumstances. He has been shown the confidence of the community and has a spiritual obligation to render the service which has been asked of him.
• After the election of the Assembly, it in turn will elect its own officers and thereafter appoint the various committees it will need to assist in the running of the day-to-day affairs of the community.
• In the conduct of its affairs the Assembly is urged to consult together, not to make speeches or to debate with one another.
• Direct speech should be couched in gentle, courteous language, in a spirit of friendship, and there should be no recriminations, argument or bitterness.
• Every nineteen days at the beginning of each Bahá’í month the community gathers together to celebrate the Nineteen Day Feast. The spirit of the feast is set with prayers from the Bahá’í writings.
• The Bahá’í calendar dates from the declaration of the Báb, (1844), which marks the beginning of the Bahá’í era.

 

C – Functions and Authority