# Religious Pluralism

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-19 — 1 clipping.*

---

> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Seena Fazel, Religious Pluralism, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Religious Pluralism
> 
> Seena Fazel
> 
> 1995
> 
> Philosophically, religious pluralism is the theory that the great world
> religions constitute varying conceptions of, and responses to, the one
> ultimate, mysterious divine reality. We can approach this theory by comparing
> it to its two main rivals, exclusivism and inclusivism.
> 
> Although we may find instances in Bahá'í scripture capable of exclusivist
> development, exclusivism - the view that one particular tradition alone teaches
> the truth and constitutes the way to salvation or liberation - is not supported
> by a reading of the Bahá'í writings in context. A fundamental tenet of Bahá'í
> belief is the common foundation of all the world's revealed religions:
> "Unequivocally and without the least reservation it proclaims all established
> religions to be divine in origin" (WOB, p. 58). With this perspective, the
> superiority of one religious tradition over another is denied: "One cannot call
> one World Faith superior to another, as they all come from God." (Shoghi
> Effendi, Letter 19.11.45)
> 
> Inclusivist theologies and religious philosophies state that one particular
> tradition presents the final truth while other traditions, instead of being
> regarded as wrong, are seen to reflect aspects of, or to constitute approaches
> to, that final truth. The Bahá'í writings do not portray an inclusivist outlook
> as the Bahá'í Faith does not claim to represent the final truth. As Shoghi
> Effendi explains, Bahá'ís "claim no finality for the Revelation with which they
> stand identified" (WOB, p. 59). Inclusivist trends do exist in the Bahá'í
> writings in that the Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh marks "the last and highest
> stage in the stupendous evolution of man's collective life on this planet"
> (WOB, p. 163). Man's individual life will "continue indefinitely to progress
> and develop" but his planetary life has reached "the furthermost limits in the
> organization of human society" (ibid). This should be attributed not to "any
> inherent superiority" (WOB, p. 166) or "superior merit" (WOB, p. 60) of the
> Bahá'í Faith but rather to the fact that the present age is one which is
> "infinitely more advanced, more receptive, and more insistent to receive an
> ampler measure of Divine Guidance than has hitherto been vouchsafed to mankind"
> (ibid). It is the present age, not the religion of the age, that is superior.
> 
> Explicit pluralism accepts the more radical position implied by inclusivism:
> the view that the great world faiths embody different perceptions and
> conceptions of, and correspondingly different responses to, the Real of the
> Ultimate, and that within each salvation is occuring. Thus Bahá'u'lláh writes:
> "There can be no doubt whatever that the peoples of the world, of whatever race
> or religion, derive their inspiration from one heavenly Source, and are the
> subjects of one God." (Gleanings, p. 217)
> 
> Nevertheless there are Bahá'í writings which seemingly do not support pluralist
> thinking, by implying that the different religions will cease to exist in the
> future as all believers become Bahá'ís. In the tablet to Queen Victoria,
> Bahá'u'lláh declares: "That which the Lord has ordained as the sovereign remedy
> and mightiest instrument for the healing of all the world is the union of all
> its peoples in one universal Cause, one common Faith". (WOB, p. 163)
> Bahá'u'lláh is reported to have said to Edward Granville Browne that there
> would come a time when "all nations should become one in faith" and when
> "diversity of religion should cease" (qtd in Esslemont, p. 117-8). A tablet of
> TAbdu'l-Bahá written in 1906 contains the following passage: "The fourth candle
> [of unity] is unity in religions (vahdat-i-din) which is the corner-stone of
> the foundation itself, and which, by the power of God, will be revealed in all
> its splendour." (qtd. in WOB, p. 39.) Another passage from TAbdu'l-Bahá's
> writings, explaining the nature of the events to come in this Dispensation
> forecasts the moment that "All men will adhere to one religion, will have one
> common faith" (qtd. in WOB, p. 205).
> 
> Taken at face value, these statements must be tempered with the condition that
> any predictions of the future religious development of the world will be
> largely inaccurate. The expected World Order of Bahá'u'lláh will not reflect
> any of our present-day conceptions: "All we can reasonably venture to attempt
> is to strive to obtain a glimpse of the first streaks of the promised Dawn that
> must, in the fullness of time, chase away the gloom that has encircled
> humanity" (WOB, p. 35).
> 
> Most Bahá'í writers, however, have understood this "one religion" as the
> religion of God. Shoghi Effendi explains that the different religions are like
> "stages in the eternal history and constant evolution of one religion, Divine
> and indivisible, of which it itself forms but an integral part." (WOB, p. 114)
> The founders of the past religions have shed, according to Bahá'í belief, "with
> ever-increasing intensity, the splendor of one common Revelation" (WOB, p. 166)
> and "allegiance to one common Revelation . . . is the goal towards which
> humanity, impelled by the unifying forces of life, is moving." (WOB, p. 204).
> It is as humanity awakens to the realization that there is only one religion,
> "the changeless Faith of God, eternal in the past, eternal in the future", that
> the future will see no more diversity of religion. This is analogous to Bahá'í
> explanations of the Qur'anic verses 3:16 and 79, which state, "The true
> religion with God is Islam" and "Whoso desires another religion then Islam
> shall not be accepted of him" (Arberry's translation), which refer to "Islam"
> as faith in God and submission to His Will, rather than the Islamic faith as
> practised historically by Muslims.
> 
> The Bahá'í principle of freedom of religion supports the concept that the
> Bahá'í Faith will not become an imperialist religion. Consequently, to Bahá'ís,
> non-Bahá'ís are not impure, need not pay a poll-tax, and there are no rules
> limiting their freedom of work, education, habitation, or marriage with
> Bahá'ís. Freedom of religion renders the concept of apostasy meaningless to
> Bahá'ís. Therefore children born into Bahá'í families are free to remain Bahá'í
> or to leave the religion of their parents when these children reach the age of
> fifteen. In conjunction with this freedom, they have the obligation to
> investigate the truth independently, and discouraged to imitate others in
> matters of religion.
> 
> How is religious pluralism articulated philosophically? This has yet to be
> widely discussed in Bahá'í scholarship. What is needed is a theory that fully
> acknowledges the vast range and complexity of the differences apparent in the
> phenomenology of religion while at the same time enabling us to understand the
> major streams of religious experience and thought as embodying different
> awarenesses of one ultimate reality. Such a theory will be based on the
> fundamental principle of the Bahá'í Faith that religious truth is relative.
> 
> The principle of the relativity of religious truth leads to a belief that any
> absolute knowledge of ultimate reality is impossible, so that man has no access
> to absolute truth. Bahá'u'lláh states of God: "Exalted, immeasurably exalted,
> art thou above the strivings of mortal man to unravel Thy mystery, to describe
> Thy glory, or even hint at the nature of Thine Essence" (Gleanings, p. 4).
> Consequently all descriptions, all schemata, all attempts to define the nature
> of God, are limited by the viewpoint of the particular person making them. All
> such attempts "are but a reflection of that which hath been created within
> themselves" (Gleanings, p. 204). This has led to the theory of "metaphysical
> relativism" or "cognitive relativism" as an approach to deal with conflicting
> truth claims between the religions.
> 
> The Bahá'í writings discuss two important concepts based on relativism that
> provide some explanation of religious diversity. The perspective of one is from
> the social evolution of mankind, and the historical development of society.
> This is that some of the differences between the religions can be ascribed to
> the varying requirements of the ages into which these religions were born. This
> social part of religion which administers to the material needs of society "is
> modified and altered in each prophetic cycle in accordance with the necessities
> of time" (SAQ, p. 48). TTAbdu'l-Bahá uses this explanation to account for the
> differences in the laws of capital punishment and divorce between Judaism and
> Christianity (see Esslemont, p. 123). Shoghi Effendi explains that the central
> themes of Christianity, Islam and the Bahá'í Faith have differed because of the
> conditions of society: "[T]he fundamental distinction between the Mission of
> Jesus Christ, concerning primarily the individual" and the Message of
> Bahá'u'lláh is that the latter is "directed more particularly to mankind as a
> whole" (PDIC, p. 119). The conception of the nation as a unit is the central
> theme of the Faith of Islam "inasmuch as the evolution of human society
> required it at that time" (ibid, p. 120).
> 
> Other differences between the religions can be explained by the increasing
> spiritual maturity and receptivity of mankind. Bahá'u'lláh declares the
> religions differ "only in the intensity of their revelation and the comparative
> potency of their light" (Bahá'u'lláh qtd. in WOB, p. 58). Bahá'u'lláh uses the
> analogy of feeding children to explain this principle: "Words are revealed
> according to the capacity so that the beginners may make progress. The milk
> must be given according to measure so that the babe of the world may enter into
> the Realm of Grandeur and be established in the Court of Unity" (qtd. in
> Esslemont, p. 122). Therefore Bahá'u'lláh states that "The Revelation of which
> I am the bearer is adapted to humanity's spiritual receptiveness and capacity"
> (qtd. in WOB, p. 60).
> 
> Another consequence of metaphysical relativism is the resolution of the
> seemingly contradictory ontological statements of monism and dualism in the
> different world religions. TAbdu'l-Bahá states in his commentary of the Islamic
> tradition "I was a Hidden Treasure . . . " that no matter how hard an
> individual strives in his efforts to gain knowledge of the Absolute, the only
> success is to achieve a better knowledge of his own self. TAbdu'l-Bahá likens
> this state of affairs to a compass: no matter how far the compass travels, it
> is only going around the point at its centre and, similarly, however much men
> may strive and achieve within the realms of spiritual knowledge, ultimately
> they are only attaininging a better and greater knowledge of themselves, not of
> any exterior Absolute.
> 
> In His Kitab-i-Aqdas, Bahá'u'lláh provides the normative standard for Bahá'ís
> in their relation to other religionists: "Consort (casharua) with all religions
> with amity and concord . . . " (Synopsis, p. 25). "The second Taraz [ornament]
> is to consort (mu'casharat) with the followers of all religions in a spirit of
> friendliness and fellowship . . . " (TB, 34-5, see also p. 87). "[T]he
> shunning of the followers of other religions" (TB, p. 94) is therefore
> forbidden. TAbdu'l-Bahá says that "Conflict and contention are categorically
> forbidden in His Book" (Will and Testament). He also recommends in one of his
> talks that all believers must visit their houses of worship: "All must abandon
> prejudices and must even go to each other's churches and mosques, for, in all
> of these worshipping places, the Name of God is mentioned. . . All of the
> leaders must, likewise, go to each other's Churches and speak of the foundation
> and of the fundamental principles of the divine religions. In the utmost unity
> and harmony they must worship God, in the worshipping places of one another,
> and must abandon fanaticism" (qtd. in Esslemont, p. 120-1).
> 
> Integral to the Bahá'í peace programme is the vision of a future where "The
> causes of religious strife will be permanently removed" (WOB, p. 204), and of
> the creation of a universal peace in which "universal peace amongst religions"
> (SOW 4, p. 254) will be established. Consequently the Bahá'í Peace Statement
> urges religious leaders to discuss the possible resolution of conflicts between
> the religions, and the means to cooperate to improve the lot of humanity: "How
> are the differences between them to be resolved both in theory and in practice?
> The challenge facing the religious leaders of mankind is to contemplate, with
> hearts filled with compassion and a desire for truth, the plight of humanity,
> and to ask themselves whether they cannot, in humility before their Almighty
> Creator, submerge their theological differences in a great spirit of mutual
> forbearance that will enable them to work together for the advancement of human
> understanding and peace" (Promise of World Peace, p. 14). Bahá'ís have
> suggested that this indicates that they act as a "propelling power" (PUP, p.
> 12) toward the process of peace between the religions. The Bahá'í International
> Community's support of the World Wildlife Fund's Network of Religion, thousands
> of local communities endeavours to supporting World Religion Day activities,
> and individual Bahá'ís attempts to consort with other religionists are all
> practical examples of grassroots efforts towards this goal.
> 
> Bibliography
> 
> Momen, M. "Relativism: A Basis for Bahá'í Metaphysics" in Studies in the Babi
> and Bahá'í Religions volume 5. Los Angeles: Kalimat Press, 1988. Fazel, S. and
> Fananapazir, K. "A Bahá'í Approach to the Question of Uniqueness and
> Exclusivity in Christianity". The Journal of Bahá'í Studies 3:2, 1992. Moayyad,
> H. "The Historical Interrelationship of the Bahá'í Faith and Islam" in The
> Bahá'í Faith and Islam. Ottawa: ABS, 1992. Martin, J. Douglas. "Bahá'u'lláh's
> Model for World Fellowship." World Order, 11.1 (Fall 1976): 6-20.
> 
> METADATA
> 
> Views18832 views since posted 1999; last edit 2014-03-16 14:45 UTC;
> 
> previous at archive.org.../fazel_encyclopedia_religious_pluralism;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
> Language
> English
> Permission
> author
> Share
> 
> Shortlink: bahai-library.com/446
> Citation: ris/446
> 
> select Collection:
> Archives
> Articles
> Articles-unpublished
> Audio
> Bibliographies
> BIC
> Biographies
> Books
> Chronologies
> Compilations
> Compilations-NSA
> Compilations-personal
> Documents
> East-asia
> Encyclopedia
> Essays
> Etc
> Excerpts
> Fiction
> Glossaries
> Guardian
> Histories
> Introductory
> Letters
> Maps
> Music
> Newspapers
> NSA-documents
> NSA-letters
> Personal
> Pilgrims
> Poetry
> Presentations
> Resources
> Reviews
> Scripts
> Software
> Statistics
> Study
> Talks
> Theses
> Transcripts
> Translations
> UHJ-documents
> UHJ-letters
> Video
> Visual
> Writings
> 
> home
> 
> sitemap
> 
> series
> 
> chronology
> 
> search:
> author
> 
> title
> 
> date
> 
> tags
> 
> adv. search
> languages
> 
> inventory
> 
> bibliography
> 
> abbreviations
> 
> links
> 
> about
> 
> contact
> 
> RSS
> 
> new
>
> — *Religious Pluralism (Used by permission of the curator)*