# Baha'i Apocalypticism: The Concept of Progressive Revelation

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

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> Paper submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the
> filosofie licentiat degree
> 
> 
> Department of History of Religion at the Faculty of Theology Lund
> University
> 
> 
> Bahá'í Apocalypticism: The Concept of
> Progressive Revelation Copyright © 1996 by Zaid Lundberg
> 
> Readers are authorized to reproduce this thesis freely, in whole or in
> part, provided that 1) duplication is for an educational purpose in a
> not-for-profit institution; 2) copies are made available without charge
> beyond the cost of reproduction; and 3) each copy or extract includes full
> citation of the source.
> 
> 
> Through their appearance the Revelation of God is made
> manifest, and by their countenance the Beauty of God is revealed. Thus it
> is that the accents of God Himself have been uttered by these
> Manifestations of God [. . .] Know of a certainty that in every
> Dispensation the light of Divine Revelation hath been vouchsafed unto men
> in direct proportion to their spiritual capacity. -
> Bahá'u'lláh (1862) 
> 
> If the religions are true it is because each time it is God who has
> spoken, and if they are different it is because God has spoken in
> different "languages" in conformity with the receptacles. Finally, if they
> are absolute and exclusive, it is because in each of them God has said
> "I". - Frithjof Schuon (1963) 
> 
> Revelation . . . is a Divine communication shaped to the interests and
> values of a particular society at a particular time . . . Divine
> communication might not be perfectly received and understood . . . either
> by the original recipient or by others who transmit and interpret it
> later. Bearing these two features in mind, one might think that God will
> communicate different things to different peoples, and will in all
> probability be able to communicate more of the ultimate Divine purpose to
> some people than to others. - Keith Ward (1995) 
>  
> 
> 
> 
> Contents
> 
> Preface
> 
> I. Introduction
> 
> II. Background.
>           1. The religious context
>           2. The philosophical context
> 
> III. Literature Review
> 
> IV. Methodology
>           1. Research-questions and hypotheses.
>           2. Methodological problems
>                     A. The Material.
>                     B. The Method
> 
> V. Apocalypticism and Dimensions of Revelation
>           1. Problems of definition
>           2. A structural approach to revelation
>           3. Dimensions of revelation
>           4. Apocalypticism and revelation operationalized.
> 
> VI. Bahá'í Apocalypticism
>           1. Theology - the source of revelation.
>           2. Cosmology - the instrument of revelation 
>           3. Universal and Specific Revelation - two means of revelation
>                     A. Universal Revelation.
>                     B. Specific Revelation
>           4. Prophetology - the mediation of revelation 
>                     A. The Prophets, Messengers, or Manifestations of God.
>                     B. The nature of the Manifestation of God.
>                     C. The Manifestation of God between God and man
>                     D. The Manifestation of God as Educators and Physicians
> 
> VII. The Concept of Progressive Revelation
>           1. Texts of Identification - the esoteric dimension.
>                     A. Identification with previous Manifestations of God
>                     B. Identification with God
>                     C. The Identity of the Manifestations of God
>           2. Texts of Elaboration - the exoteric dimension
>                     A. The rise and fall of a religion
>                     B. The continuity and succession of religions
>                     C. The differences between the Manifestations of God 
>                               and the concept of progress
>                     D. The cyclical scheme .
>                     E. The Bahá'í Cycle and the concept of progress.
> 
> VIII. Summary and Conclusions.
> 
> IX. Discussion
>  
> Appendices.
> 
>           I. Bahá'í Apocalypticism - The Vertical Axis
>           II. Progressive Revelation  - The Horizontal Axis
>           III. Progress or decline?
> 
> Abbreviations of Sources
> 
> Bibliography.
> 
> 
> Preface
> 
> The present study is purely a structural and ahistorical approach
> to Bahá'í-apocalypticism and the concept of progressive
> revelation, but I am fully aware of the importance of studying the
> possible origins and influences (religious and philosophical) pertinent to
> this field. However, it was necessary to limit the scope of this master's
> thesis (licentiats uppsats), and since my research in this area is
> still incomplete, I have decided to more fully examine this vital section
> in my Ph.D. dissertation. Consequently, the forthcoming Ph.D. dissertation
> will complement this structural approach with a general historical
> criticism. I will then make a preliminary investigation of the possible
> historical influences on the concept of progressive revelation from
> various religious (e.g., the concepts of revelation and prophetology in
> Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity, Mandeism, Manichaeism,
> Islám, and Bábism) and philosophical traditions and contexts
> (especially the
>  idea of progress in Europe during the 18-19th centuries).
>
> — *Baha'i Apocalypticism: The Concept of Progressive Revelation (Used by permission of the curator)*