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The Baha’i community of McAllen will celebrate the United Nations International Day of Peace on Tuesday, Sept. 19.
In 1981, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed the third Tuesday of September as International Day of Peace, stating that it should be “devoted to commemorating and strengthening the ideas of peace both within and among all nations and peoples.”
World peace is a cardinal objective of the Baha’i Faith. It has occupied a central position in the activities of the Baha’i community since 1844.
The National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States initiated the commemoration of a World Peace Day in 1959, to call attention to the urgent need for the establishment of a lasting peace among the nations of the world. The national Spiritual Assembly of the Baha’is of the United States decided to support the United Nations observance in 1985.
Baha’is work toward a peaceful society in a number of ways. They practice decision-making in a way designed to produce agreement without confrontation. the Baha’i teachings give communities a new value system, and tend to produce individuals with a wider loyalty who are equipped to work toward common goals.
The Universal House of Justice, the international governing body of the Baha’i faith, issued a document in 1985 titled “The Promise of World Peace,” which expresses the Baha’i conviction that peace is not only possible, but is the next and inevitable step in world development. The statement describes the spiritual and social ills that are barriers to world peace and indicates, from a Baha’i perspective, how they may be eliminated.
For more information, contact the Baha’is of McAllen by visiting www.bahai.org or www.bahai.us or call (800) 22-UNITE.
