Q. What was the origin of the global expressions of appreciation; service and sacrifice we all saw during this pandemic? Could it be that we realized on some level our burgeoning understanding of oneness? ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the son of Bahá’u’lláh, wrote extensively about this teaching of Bahá’u’lláh….
“A fundamental teaching of Bahá’u’lláh is the oneness of the world of humanity. Addressing mankind, He says, “Ye are all leaves of one tree and the fruits of one branch.” By this it is meant that the world of humanity is like a tree, the nations or peoples are the different limbs or branches of that tree, and the individual human creatures are as the fruits and blossoms thereof.
The oneness of humanity, however, does not imply uniformity. Rather, the Bahá’í writings affirm the principle of unity in diversity. More than the mere tolerance of differences or celebration of superficial aspects of diverse cultures, the diversity of the human family should be the cause of abiding love and harmony, “as it is in music where many different notes blend together in the making of a perfect chord.”
(‘Abdu’l-Bahá-Paris Talks )
The fundamental principle of the oneness of humankind requires a profound development in our thinking: “If you desire with all your heart, friendship with every race on earth, your thought, spiritual and positive, will spread; it will become the desire of others, growing stronger and stronger, until it reaches the minds of all men.” (‘Abdu’l-Bahá)
Ultimately, the power to transform the world is effected by love, love originating from the relationship with the divine, love ablaze among members of a community, love extended without restriction to every human being. This divine love, ignited by the Word of God is disseminated by enkindled souls through intimate conversations that create new susceptibilities in human hearts, open minds to moral persuasion, and loosen the hold of biased norms and social systems so that they can gradually take on a new form of keeping with the requirements of humanity’s age of maturity. You are channels for this divine love; let it flow through you to all who cross your path. Infuse it into every neighbourhood and social space in which you move to build capacity to canalize the society-building power of Baha’u’llah’s Revelation
(Universal House of Justice)