Inseparable
from the Baha'i perspective on politics is a particular conception of history,
its course and direction. Humanity, it is the firm conviction of every follower
of Baha'u'llah, is approaching today the crowning stage in a millennia-long
process which has brought it from its collective infancy to the threshold of
maturity—a stage that will witness the unification of the human race. Not
unlike the individual who passes through the unsettled yet promising period of
adolescence, during which latent powers and capacities come to light, humankind
as a whole is in the midst of an unprecedented transition. Behind so much of
the turbulence and commotion of contemporary life are the fits and starts of a
humanity struggling to come of age. Widely accepted practices and conventions,
cherished attitudes and habits, are one by one being rendered obsolete, as the
imperatives of maturity begin to assert themselves.
(The Universal House of
Justice, from a message dated 2 March 2013, addressed to the Baha’is of Iran)
