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In 1911, ‘Abdu’l-Baha visited London and is recorded as saying upon arrival: “Heaven has blessed this day. It was said that London should be a place for a great proclamation of the Faith. I was tired when I went on board the steamer, but when I reached London and beheld the faces of the friends my fatigue left me. Your great love refreshes me.” [1]During talks in London, ‘Abdu’l-Baha extolled women.
“The woman is indeed of the greater importance to the race. She has the greater burden and the greater work. Look at the vegetable and the animal worlds. The palm which carries the fruit is the tree most prized by the date grower. The Arab knows that for a long journey the mare has the longest wind. For her greater strength and fierceness, the lioness is more feared by the hunter than the lion.”
(Abdu’l-Baha, Abdu’l-Baha in London, p. 102)
Upon another occasion ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said to a group of friends around him: “Taken in general, women today have a stronger sense of religion than men. The woman’s intuition is more correct; she is more receptive and her intelligence is quicker. The day is coming when woman will claim her superiority to man.”
(Abdu’l-Baha, Abdu’l-Baha in London, p. 103)
Alia Sabur has demonstrated superior intelligence, becoming at age 18 the youngest college professor in the history of the world [2]. She started reading and talking when eight months old, matriculated in college at age ten, and has received an M.S. and Ph.D. in the materials science and engineering. Professor Sabur teaches at Konkuk University in Seoul, Korea, and a video with an interview with Alia is below.
[2] “Woman, 19, becomes youngest college professor” MSNBC Interactive (http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24273418/ accessed April 27, 2008)
admin @ April 27, 2008
Crime rate has been reduced in New York by imposing criminal sanctions other than incarceration. A focus on rehabilitation is in accord with Baha’i teachings, and ‘Abdu’l-Baha spoke about the ineffectiveness of relying upon punitive measures to rehabilitate criminal offenders.
“Observe how many penal institutions, houses of detention and places of torture are made ready to receive the sons of men, the purpose being to prevent them, by punitive measures, from committing terrible crimes — whereas this very torment and punishment only increaseth depravity, and by such means the desired aim cannot be properly achieved.”
(The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, p. 262)
In order to reduce the level of crime man must develop the habit of striving to achieve excellence.
“Therefore must the individual be trained from his infancy in such a way that he will never undertake to commit a crime, will, rather, direct all his energies to the acquisition of excellence, and will look upon the very commission of an evil deed as in itself the harshest of all punishments, considering the sinful act itself to be far more grievous than any prison sentence. For it is possible so to train the individual that, although crime may not be completely done away with, still it will become very rare.
“The purport is this, that to train the character of humankind is one of the weightiest commandments of God, and the influence of such training is the same as that which the sun exerteth over tree and fruit.”
(Compilations, The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, p. 263)
A New York Times article in 1996, “Fighting Crime with Education” reported that success in school is a predictor of crime. [3]
“One key predictor of youthful criminal behavior is failure in school. A 1991 Justice Department survey of state prisoners found that only 22 percent were high school graduates, while an additional 12 percent had attended college…The lack of education can help send many ex-offenders back to a life of crime.” [3]
Baha’is believe that education is a means to reveal the gems of inestimable value in the mine of man. A sense of human dignity and pride is developed with a sound and real relationship with his Lord.
“The root cause of wrongdoing is ignorance, and we must therefore hold fast to the tools of perception and knowledge. Good character must be taught. Light must be spread afar, so that, in the school of humanity, all may acquire the heavenly characteristics of the spirit, and see for themselves beyond any doubt that there is no fiercer Hell, no more fiery abyss, than to possess a character that is evil and unsound; no more darksome pit nor loathsome torment than to show forth qualities which deserve to be condemned.
“The individual must be educated to such a high degree that he would rather have his throat cut than tell a lie, and would think it easier to be slashed with a sword or pierced with a spear than to utter calumny or be carried away by wrath.
“Thus will be kindled the sense of human dignity and pride, to burn away the reapings of lustful appetites. Then will each one of God’s beloved shine out as a bright moon with qualities of the spirit, and the relationship of each to the Sacred Threshold of his Lord will be not illusory but sound and real, will be as the very foundation of the building, not some embellishment on its facade.”
(Compilations, The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, p. 263)
[1] “1 in 100 U.S. Adults Behind Bars, New Study Says” The New York Times, February 28, 2008
[2] “Prison Nation” The New York Times, March 10, 2008
[3] “Fighting Crime with Education” The New York Times, December 1, 1996
Images:
[1] “USA.Prisoners” Wikipedia Commons (accessed March 10, 2008) This image is a work of a United States Department of Justice employee, taken or made during the course of an employee’s official duties.
[2] “Citrus Fruits” Wikipedia Commons (accessed March 10, 2008) This image is in the public domain because it contains materials that originally came from the Agricultural Research Service, the research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture.
[3] “Gem.pebbles” Wikipedia Commons (accessed March 10, 2008) This image has been released into the public domain by its author
admin @ March 10, 2008
