The annual September 21 International Day of Peace serves as a reminder that the family, as a microcosm of society, is the most important tool for social integration and global peace. Individuals’ intellectual and spiritual growth, as well as the advancement and cohesion of society, are built on the foundation of their families. “The family unit, the nucleus of human society, constitutes a space within which praiseworthy morals and essential capacities must be developed, for the habits and patterns of conduct nurtured in the home are carried into the workplace, into the social and political life of the country, and finally into the arena of international relations,” states the Universal House of Justice, which is the governing council of the international Bahá’ community. If loving, unified and joyful, a family can provide the ideal conditions for the well-being of its members in all aspects of life — physical, spiritual, mental and emotional.
For society’s well-being and cohesiveness, healthy family relationships are crucial. Strengthening families is essential for the advancement of civilisation.
Teaching for peace Children must learn about the fundamental oneness of humanity from a young age and how to overcome prejudices that divide us based on race, religion, gender, nationality, class, or ethnic group through education processes that must begin in the family. Parents bear the primary responsibility for the upbringing of their children.
Although the child receives formal education at school, it is at home that character is developed, and moral and spiritual attitudes formed.
It is the first environment where the values of tolerance, peace and social responsibility can be taught.
The Universal House of Justice states: “It is the duty of all parents to exert their utmost to ensure the spiritual education of their children and to provide them with the training needed to live a fruitful life of service to their country and, indeed, to all of humanity. In order to succeed in this crucial endeavor, one must create a loving and constructive home environment based on God’s love and adherence to His laws. This necessitates eschewing all forms of prejudice, completely rejecting the vile habit of backbiting, emphasizing the critical significance of humanity’s unity, and instilling a spirit of selfless service. Children learn social and spiritual values at home that they can use not only inside the family but also outside, in the community at large, at home, and around the world. It is essential to instill a love of all people and tolerance of differences in our children. Justice and compassion for others should be instilled in our children as they grow up. A family’s vision ought to be global and one of unity in diversity. Children need to learn from young ages that in order to build a peaceful world, gender equality is a necessity.
“Only as women are welcomed into full partnership in all fields of human endeavor will the moral and psychological climate be created in which international peace can emerge,” the governing council of the Bahá’ international community states. As a microcosm of society, family “Compare the nations of the world to the members of a family,” the Bahá’ Writings add. A family is a miniature nation. Simply enlarge the circle of the household and you have the nation. If you expand the circle of nations, you will have all of humanity. The nation is surrounded by family-related circumstances. The events that take place within a family are the events that take place within the nation. Would it add to the progress and advancement of a family if dissensions should arise among its members, fighting, pillaging each other, jealous and revengeful of injury, seeking selfish advantage? Nay, this would be the cause of the effacement of progress and advancement. Since nations are merely collections of families, it belongs to the great family of nations. Currently, a great deal of attention is focussed on the seemingly insurmountable differences that divide peoples and nations, and little attention is given to evidence that these differences can be overcome.
“The family is the best and most effective institution to teach the concept of the oneness of humanity and to raise our children to live a life of unity and to become unifiers in all dimensions of their lives,” according to the Bahá’s.
