The inordinate disparity between rich and poor, a source of
acute suffering, keeps the world in a state of instability, virtually on the
brink of war. Few societies have dealt effectively with this situation. The
solution calls for the combined application of spiritual, moral and practical
approaches. A fresh look at the problem is required, entailing consultation
with experts from a wide spectrum of disciplines, devoid of economic and
ideological polemics, and involving the people directly affected in the
decisions that must urgently be made. It is an issue that is bound up not only
with the necessity for eliminating extremes of wealth and poverty but also with
those spiritual verities the understanding of which can produce a new universal
attitude. Fostering such an attitude is itself a major part of the solution. - The Universal House of Justice (From a message dated October 1985 addressed to
the Peoples of the World; ‘The Promise of World Peace’)
