[1] Ervin Laszlo, The Inner Limits of Mankind: Heretical Reflections on Today's Values, Culture and

Politics, (Oneworld, London, 1989), pp. 26-27

[2] Bachelor of Theology (Honours). From 1990 to 1995 I trained at Knox College, Dunedin, New Zealand, a

multi-denominational, but primarily Protestant college. Many of the analytical tools gathered there

have subsequently been applied to the texts and traditions of my own religion, the Bahá'í Faith. It is

important to note two other cultural contexts that had no small impact upon a further revision my internal

structures of western metaphysics. The first is that of Knox College itself, as most of the students were

from the pacific islands, predominantly Samoa. Equally so, New Zealand, perhaps more than any other

country has been the most successful at attempts to integrate an equality of cultural value between its

indigenous population, the Maori, and the Pakeha, the white settlers from England. Because of this the

voice of the indigenous population, and its attendant alternate principles of metaphysics have greater

impact.

[3] From 1989 to 1990 I lived on the Wind River Indian Reservation at Ft. Washakie, Wyoming which

primarily consists of the tribes of Shoshoni and Arapahoe. I cannot by any means, claim to be an

"expert" in Shoshoni or Arapahoe ecology, merely that the ecological metaphysical assumptions implicit

in the everyday worldview of the friendships I developed, deeply impacted upon my psyche. Primary

among these principles was the unity of spiritual and material reality, as well as all created things

representing signs of the Creator.

[4] My mother's paternal side come from Russian/Polish Jewish origins, including a great-grandfather who

was a rabbi, while her maternal side include origins of a Christian Baptist from the deep south culture of

Mississippi. My father's side comes from the Episcopalian tradition, and can be traced back to the

American revolution on one side, and whose cultural origins began primarily in Scotland and to a lesser

extent, England. My wife of 11 years is a Bahá'í Iranian with both a Muslim and Zoroastrian background.

[5] That branch of Islam, predominantly found in Persia, which traces its authority to Muhammad through a succession of Imams, endowed with unqualified infallibility. This succession ended with the disappearance or "concealment" of the twelfth and last Imam in 873 A.D., thus giving rise to expectations within Shiite Islam of his return as the Imam Mahdi (Guided One) or the Qaim (He Who Will Arise) and association of that return with a variety of apocalyptic expectations and the beginning of the last days.

[6] (1756-1825) Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsai generated a theophanic vision, incorporating a predominantly allegorical Quranic hermeutic, responding to the millennial expectations of his age in which the "Qaim" or "Hidden Imam" was expected to become manifest and inaugurate the 'twin trumpet blasts' which would herald the dawn of the last age of the Resurrection. Perhaps what made this theophanic vision so successful was that it managed a fusion of some of the more positive elements of the three major trends in post-Safavid Shi'ism: that of the Sadra'i theosophic school, the Akhbari Traditionist school of Bahrain and the diffuse forms of gnosticism. (See Amanat, p.48)

"With Shaykh Ahmad-i-Ahsai and his visionary theophany, Shiism generated a synthesis essential for the later reformation of the Babi thought." (ibid.) The Shaykh school of Ahsai "successfully incorporated the two diverse worlds of jurisconsults and theosophists, the exoteric (zahir) and the esoteric (batin) into one comprehensive system that he believed could compensate for the weaknesses of both worlds." (ibid)

[7] Chrisophter Buck, Symbol and Secret: Quran Commentary in Bahá'u'lláh's Kitab-i-Iqan, (Kalimat

Press, Los Angeles, 1995), p.xxix. Buck cites S.A. Arjomand, The Turban for the Crown: The Islamic

Revolution in Iran, (Oxford University Press, 1989), p. 233, n.9

[8] Both prime minisisters Haji Mirza Aqasi and more extensively Mirza Taqi Khan responded to the

pressure of ulama lobbying, as well as the fear of the reduction of their own secular authority. As

according to significant streams in Shiah Islam, even the Shah was a trustee of secular authority

awaiting the return of the 12^th Imam.

[9] see Buck, p.xxix

[10] Bahá'u'lláh, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 22

[11] This ten year period of silence was perhaps primarily due to concerns to consolidate the Babi community after the public execution of the Bab, although personal reticence is also apparent in Bahá'u'lláh's own writings.

Had it been in my power, I would have, under no circumstances, consented to distinguish myself amongst men...And whenever I chose to hold my peace and be still, lo, the voice of the Holy Ghost, standing on my right hand, aroused me, and the Supreme Spirit appeared before my face, and Gabriel overshadowed me, and the Spirit of Glory stirred within my bosom, bidding me arise and break my silence. (Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p.103)

[12] Amanat, Abbas Resurrection and Renewal: The Making of the Babi Movement in Iran, 1844-1850.

Ithaca. Cornell University Press, 1989

[13] Denis MacEoin, "The Shi'i Establishment in Modern Iran," Islam in the Modern World, ed. By idem

and A. al-Shahi. (London, Croom Helm, 1983) p.95

[14] Ibid

[15] It should be noted that while the Babi Faith may not have appeared as a social enterprise to embrace

other religious contexts than that of Shiite Islam, it did have a universal focus of mediation in its

theology. For example in one of the Babs Quranic commentaries (Tafsir), in his commentary on Yusuf

(Sura 12) or the Sura of Joseph, the Bab "first put forth His claim to be the sole focus of religious

devotion for not only the Shi'i world, but the entire world." Todd Lawson, "The Dangers of Reading:

Inlibration, Communion and Transference in the Qur'an Commentary of the Bab.", p.179, Scripture and

Revelation, (ed. Moojan Momen) George Ronald Publisishing, Oxford, 1997

[16] "In the East the light of His Revelation hath broken; in the West have appeared the signs of His

dominion. Ponder this in your hearts, O people, and be not of those who have turned a deaf ear to the

admonitions of Him Who is the Almighty, the All-Praised." Bahá'u'lláh, cited by Shoghi Effendi, in

Citadel of Faith, Messages to America, 1947-1957 (Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1965) p.30

[17] Bahá'u'lláh writes-"It is incumbent upon the Sovereigns of the world -may God assist them - unitedly

to hold fast unto this Peace, which is the chief instrument for the protection of all mankind. It is Our

hope that they will arise to achieve what will be conducive to the well-being of man. It is their duty to

convene an all-inclusive assembly, which either they themselves or their ministers will attend, and to

enforce whatever measures are required to establish unity and concord amongst men. They must put

away the weapons of war, and turn to the instruments of universal reconstruction. Should one king rise

up against another, all the other kings must arise to deter him. Arms and armaments will, then, be no

more needed beyond that which is necessary to insure the internal security of their respective countries."

(Bahá'u'lláh, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 30-31)

[18] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, pg. 250 from Lawh-i Maqsud (Tablet of Maqsud, [i.e., the Goal, the Desired

One), `Akka, Dec. 31 1881

[19] Bahá'u'lláh wrote not only a collective Tablet to the Kings of the world, (Suriy-i-Muluk, 1867, in which

He addresses the leader of the world in general and also addresses specifically The Sultan of Turkey,

Abdu'l-Aziz, The French and Persian Ambassadors, the Kings of Christendom and the Philosophers of

the world.) but also specifically to Napolean III, (Lawh-i-Napulyun 1, 1864, Lawh-i-Napulyun II, 1868),

the Shah of Persia, Nasri'D-Din (Lawh-i-Sultan, 1865), to Queen Victoria of England, (Lawh-i-Malikih,

1868), to the Czar of Russia, Alexander II, (Lawh-I-Malik-i-Rus, 1868), to Pope Pius IX, (Lawh-i-Pap,

1868), to Kaiser William I of Prussia (and immediately after, Germany), Emporer Francis Joseph of

Austria, and the Rulers and Presidents of America, (Kitab-i-Aqdas, 1868-1873).

[20] Abdu'l-Bahá received many pilgrims from America and Canada and later extensively travelled

throughout England, France and America. Abdu'l-Bahá writes, "The day is approaching when ye shall

witness how, through the splendor of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh the West will have replaced the East,

radiating the light of divine guidance." (emphasis added) Shoghi Effendi, Citadel of Faith, p. 30

[21] Shoghi Effendi received his education first from the American university in Beirut and then at Oxford,

majoring in English Literature. As well his correspondence with believers in the west was unparalleled

and his focus on the development of Bahá'í Administrative structures in the west was often his primary

concern.

[22] The Bahá'í Faith was introduced to America in 1892 and by 1899 there were over 1400 Americans who

declared themelves as Bahá'ís. See Robert H. Stockman, The Bahá'í Faith in America: Origins 1892-

1900, (Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Willmette, 1985) p.163

[23] Robert Stockman, The Bahá'í Faith in America: Early Expansion, 1900-1912, (George Ronald, Oxford,

1995) p. 385 The writing of so many tablets cannot be attributed to one simple reason, but a combination

of historical conditions such as the rapid growth of the faith in America, the lack of any representative

authority from the family of Bahá'u'lláh, a series of challenges to administrative unity, particularly in the

Chicago community, and Abdu'l-Bahá's own affection for the American Bahá'ís.

[24] Elected every five years by the National Spiritual Assemblies throughout the world, which represent

Bahá'í administration at the national level.

[25] This is in the sense of its diversity of representation. According to the Encyclopedia Britannica 1992 and the World Christian Encyclopedia 1982, the Bahá'í Faith represents the second most widespread and diversely represented body of peoples on the planet (exceeded only by Christianity). And when one considers that there are no significant denominations or schisms in the Bahá'í Faith, it is indicated that the Bahá'í Faith likely ranks as the most diverse organized body of people on the planet.

"It has more than five million followers in at least 235 countries and dependent territories. Bahá'ís reside in more than 121,000 localities around the world and they represent a cross section of humanity, coming from virtually every nation, ethnic group, culture, profession and social or economic class. More than 2,100 different ethnic and tribal groups are represented." From article by BIC (Bahá'í International Community) About Us, viewed at http://www.onecountry.org on December 19, 1999.

[26] "The first [principle] is the independent investigation of truth; for blind imitation of the past will stunt the mind. But once every soul inquireth into truth, society will be freed from the darkness of continually repeating the past." (`Abdu'l-Bahá: Selections From the Writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá, p. 248)

[27] "The diversity in the human family should be the cause of love and harmony, as it is in music where many different notes blend together in the making of a perfect chord. If you meet those of different race and colour from yourself, do not mistrust them and withdraw yourself into your shell of conventionality, but rather be glad and show them kindness. Think of them as different coloured roses growing in the beautiful garden of humanity, and rejoice to be among them.

Likewise, when you meet those whose opinions differ from your own, do not turn away your face from them. All are seeking truth, and there are many roads leading thereto. Truth has many aspects, but it remains always and forever one."

(`Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 53)

[28] See: Robert White, Spiritual Foundations for a Ecologically Sustainable Society, Association for Bahá'í Studies, Ottawa, 1989, William P. Gregg, Jr., "The Bahá'í Faith and Biospheric Sustainability" (Authors personal copy), Arthur Dahl, The Eco Principle: Ecology & Economics in Symbiosis,(George Ronald, Oxford, 1996 and Unless and Until: A Bahá'í Focus on the Environment, George Ronald, Oxford, 1996

[29] Arthur Dahl, The Eco Principle: Ecology & Economics in Symbiosis, p.xi-x,

[30] This understanding of the relational context of the importance of unity in diversity of the human

species is essentially related to the Bahá'í concept of "progressive revelation".

[31] Universal House of Justice, The Promise of World Peace, p.158 (1986, Oneworld Publications, London)

[32] A critique of the concept of sustainable development will be offered later in the thesis.

[33] "Primary Health Care in Villages", p.9, One Country, June-August 1989, Vol.1, Issue 3

[34] "Perspective: Microfinance: A Powerful Tool For Social Transformation" One Country, Volume 8,

Issue 3, October-December, 1996

[35] "Bahá'í Education: A Distinctive Approach" p.4-5, One Country, Spring 1989, Vol.1, Issue 2

[36] "Bahá'í Development Projects: A Global Process of Learning", http://.bahai.org/article-1-9-1-1.html,

viewed 25/06/00.

[37] Ibid

[38] Ibid

[39] Ibid.

[40] "Reforesting a Mountain Desert on Bolivia's Altiplano", p.4, One Country, October-December 1995,

Vol.7, Issue 3

[41] Such as HRH Prince Michael of Kent from England

[42] "In Greece NGO's organize a diplomatic event to protect forests", One Country, April-June 1997 vol.9,

issue 1

[43] The Bahá'í Community was one of the first religious communities to be granted consultative status as an

NGO with the United Nations.

[44] Environmental Philosophy: From Animal Rights to Radical Ecology, 1998, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle

River, New Jersey, p.4

[45] Bahá'u'lláh, quoted by Edward Granville Browne, A Traveller's Narrative Written to Illustrate the

Episode of the Bab, p. xl, 1891, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press

[46] "From this thou canst imagine the magnitude of the Bahá'í cycle -a cycle that must extend over a period

of at least five hundred thousand years." Abdu'l-Bahá, quoted by Shoghi Effendi in World Order of

Bahá'u'lláh, p. 102

[47] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, pp. 342-343

[48] Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 202

[49] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 200

[50] 'In every age and cycle He hath, through the splendorous light shed by the Manifestations of His wondrous Essence, recreated all things, so that whatsoever reflecteth in the heavens and on the earth the signs of His glory may not be deprived of the outpourings of His mercy, nor despair of the showers of His favors. How all-encompassing are the wonders of His boundless grace! Behold how they have pervaded the whole of creation. Such is their virtue that not a single atom in the entire universe can be found which doth not declare the evidences of His might, which doth not glorify His holy Name, or is not expressive of the effulgent light of His unity. So perfect and comprehensive is His creation that no mind nor heart, however keen or pure, can ever grasp the nature of the most insignificant of His creatures; much less fathom the mystery of Him Who is the Day Star of Truth, Who is the invisible and unknowable Essence."

Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 62

[51] Similarly 'Abdu'l-Bahá writes: "The first [teaching] is the independent investigation of truth; for blind imitation of the past will stunt the mind. But once every soul inquireth into truth, society will be freed from the darkness of continually repeating the past."

(`Abdu'l-Bahá: Selections ... `Abdu'l-Bahá, page 248)

[52] "A sprinkling from the unfathomed deep of His sovereign and all-pervasive Will hath, out of utter nothingness, called into being a creation which is infinite in its range and deathless in its duration. The wonders of His bounty can never cease, and the stream of His merciful grace can never be arrested. The process of His creation hath had no beginning, and can have no end."

(Bahá'u'lláh: Gleanings, page 61 (From the Lawh-i Tawhid (Tablet of Unity), Written during `Akka period)

"This infinite universe is from everlasting. The sovereignty, power, names and attributes of God are eternal, ancient. His names presuppose creation and predicate His existence and will. We say God is Creator. This name Creator appears when we connote creation."

(`Abdu'l-Bahá: Promulgation of Universal Peace*, pages 158-159)

"As the divine entity is eternal, the divine attributes are coexistent, coeternal. The divine bestowals are, therefore, without beginning, without end. God is infinite; the works of God are infinite; the bestowals of God are infinite."

(`Abdu'l-Bahá: Promulgation of Universal Peace*, page 159)

[53] "...Divinity Who has organized this infinite universe in the most perfect form, and its innumerable inhabitants with absolute system, strength and perfection."

(`Abdu'l-Bahá: Some Answered Questions, page 123)

[54] This is to allow that 'infinite' may sometimes be used as a relative term, particularly in the spatial

reference, in that it may not technically indicate limitless boundaries, but rather alludes to limits and

complexity beyond the reach of human comprehension.

[55] "As to thy question concerning the worlds of God. Know thou of a truth that the worlds of God are countless in their number, and infinite in their range."

Bahá'u'lláh: Gleanings, pages 151-152, from the Suriy-i Vafa (Tablet of Fidelity), `Akka.)

"worlds" in this passage refer not to planets, but to planes of reality or dimensions of spiritual existence. This world represents the first in an "infinite range" of worlds. In the Bahá'í Faith, the next world is referred to as the "Abha Kingdom". "Abha" meaning "light" or "glory". This will be further discussed in the thesis.

[56] Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, p.v., (1941, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, Illinois,

1980 printing)

[57] Most commonly translated from the Arabic as "Glory of God", although it can also mean "Splendour" or "Light of God". Born Mirza Husayn Ali, b.November 12, 1817, d. 29 May 1892

[58] From the Arabic "Servant (or Slave) of God". Born Abbas Effendi May 23, 1844 d. 28 November, 1921

[59] b. March 1, 1897, d. 4 November, 1957

[60] Such uniqueness may or may not warrant consideration. This is not stated to indicate any superiority of the

quality of its "revelation". As for Bahá'ís all Manifestations of God reflect the one Divine Reality, and to

assert the superiority of one over the other would deny the essential oneness of that reality. Rather this

phenomenon is an indication of its historical context within our current period of social evolution, and

perhaps an indication of the conscious Divine orientation of those universal spiritual principles present in all

Faiths towards the exigencies of this modern context.

[61] Shoghi Effendi, letter written to High Commissioner for Palestine, June 1933Quoted by Universal

House of Justice, letter to individual, 13, August 1997 found at

http://www.bahai-library.org/uhj/science.religion.html. viewed May 16, 2000..

[62] Bahá'í Scholarship: A Compilation & Essays, Hossain Danesh, "Bahá'í Scholarship", pp.62-63,

Association for Bahá'í Studies – Australia, 1993

[63] Ibid, p.65

[64]`Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections From the Writings of `Abdu'l-Bahá, page 144)

[65] Meaning "Dawning place of the praise of God."

[66] Abdu'l-Bahá, Star of the West, Vol. 21, No. 1, 1930, p. 20

[67]`Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, pp. 130-131

[68] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 394

[69] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Abdu'l-Bahá in London, pp. 28-29

[70] The manner of God's revelation is not a simple concept, and occurs through infinite levels of

expression. From the periodic and personal release of spiritual forces through individuals

considered as "manifestations of God" akin to perfect mirros, such as Buddha, Christ, Muhammad, Bahá'u'lláh and others. To the evolving spirit of a universe continually disclosing more sophisticated expressions of the virtues of God. To the direct relationship between the souls of the next world and this. "The light which these souls radiate is responsible for the progress of the world and the advancement of its peoples. They are like unto leaven which leaveneth the world of being, and constitute the animating force through which the arts and wonders of the world are made manifest." Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 157

[71] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 49

[72] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Paris Talks, p. 143

[73] Shoghi Effendi, World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, pp. 203-204

[74] Universal House of Justice, Letter to individual, 19 May, 1995 quoted in letter 13, August 1997 found at

https://bahai-library.com/uhj/science.religion.html. viewed May 16, 2000.

[75] Shoghi Effendi writes in a number of places that the goal of scholars should be to correlate the principles of the Bahá'í Faith 'with the current thoughts and problems of the peoples of the world'

[76] This concept will be more fully explored in the section on metaphysics in the last chapter of this thesis.

[77] -Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets, pp. 141-142

[78] (Bahá'u'lláh: Aqdas: Notes, page 176)

[79] Bahá'u'lláh: Prayers and Meditations, section CLXXVI, p. 272

[80] Bahá'u'lláh, Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 100

[81] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Huququ'llah, p. 509

[82] "So you will find the smallest atoms in the universal system are similar to the greatest beings [meaning planets and stars according to other passages] of the universe. It is clear that they come into existence from one laboratory of might under one natural system and one universal law; therefore, they may be compared to one another."

`Abdu'l-Bahá, Questions, page 182

[83] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Star of the West, 8:138

[84] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections, p.27

[85] Bahá'u'lláh, Hidden Words, p. 73

[86] Ibid, p.39

[87] Ibid, p.40

[88] It is not meant to completely objectify these qualities as negatives. They are necessary qualities which themselves are transformed in this process of resurrection. Lust becomes passion for the Divine, anger becomes replaced by righteousness, revenge by justice etc. These 'negative' qualities are not replaced by different ones, but are transformed and reborn into Divine qualities.

[89] `Abdu'l-Bahá: Selections ... `Abdu'l-Bahá, pp. 283-284

[90] Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, Jorgen Randers, and William W. Behrens, III, The Limits to

Growth, New York: Universe Books, 1972

[91] For example see Walter Nicholson Microeconomic Theory: Basic Principles and Extensions, 4th ed.

(Chicago: Dryden, 1989), pp. 22-24. Where he makes criticisms such as World3's failure to model a

variety of prices, such as differences between energy sources and its lack of modelling potential

improvements in labor through such influences as education. The classic critique of Limits of Growth was

by Cole, H.S.D., Christopher Freeman, Marie Jahoda, and K.L.R. Pavitt. Models of Doom: A Critique of

The Limits to Growth. Universe Books, 1973.

[92] For example, doubling the estimated resource base extends the industrial collapse by 50 years, but it only

extends the rapid decline of the global human average of life expectancy by several years. This is

because although resources exist for continued economic expansion, industry produces much higher

levels of pollution which affects many other variables negatively.

[93] All members of the original team were available for the project except William W. Behrens, III.

[94] Donella H. Meadows, Dennis L. Meadows, and Jorgen Randers, Beyond the Limits, New York:

Doubleday Press, 1992.

[95] Liu Yonggong and John B. Penson, Jr., "China's Sustainable Agriculture and Regional Implications,"

presented to the symposium on Agriculture, Trade and Sustainable Development in Pacific Asia: China

and its Trading Partners, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 12-14 February 1998; Dennis

Ingi (Project Manager), China Infrastructure Initiative, Sandia National Laboratory,

http://mason.igaia.sanida.gov/igaia/china/water.html, viewed 8, December, 1999. (page last updated

March 31, 1999)

[96] David Seckler, David Molden, and Randolph Barker, "Water Scarcity in the Twenty-First Century"

(Columbo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute, 27 July 1998)

[97] Ibid.

[98] United Nations, World Population Prospects: the 1996 revision (New York:1996)

[99] "The Worldwide Magnitude of Protein-Energy Malnutrition: An Overview from the WHO Global

Database on Child Growth," WHO, January 1998

[100] 23 million Africans have AIDS and in several African countries more than 20% of the population is

infected. See Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), AIDS Epidemic Update:

December 1998 (Geneva, December, 1998)

[101] Lester R. Brown, "Challenges of the New Century", State of the World 2000: A Worldwatch Institute

Report on Progess Toward a Sustainable Society, (W.W. Norton & Company, New York, 2000), p.5

[102] Lester R. Brown, "Falling Water Tables in China May Soon Raise Food Prices Everywhere", a

Worldwatch Issue Alert, 02 May 2000, www.worldwatch.org/chairman/issue/000502.html

[103] Ibid

[104] Ibid

[105] Dirk Bryant, Daniel Neilsen, and Laura Tangley, The Last Frontier Forests (Washington D.C.: World

Resources Institute, 1997

[106] D. Evan Mercer and John Soussan, "Fuelwood Problems and Solutions," in Narendra P. Sharma ed.,

Managing the World's Forests (Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company, 1992)

[107] Ted Trainer, "The Death of the Oil Economy", Earth Island Journal, Spring

1997. Reproduced at http://dieoff.com/page116.htm

[108] Scott Baldauf, "World's Oil May Soon Run Low," Christian Science Monitor, 23 September 1998

[109] Copied from Ted Trainer, http://dieoff.com/page116.htm

[110] Oil production peaked in the year 1999 at 65.6 million barrels a day, and will decline to 52.6 million

barrels a day by 2010. By 2050, the 1994 report said, world oil production would drop to 17.5 million

barrels a day, just above what it was in the 1950s.

[111] The World Oil Supply 1990-2030, Campbell and Laherre, 1995

[112] Ted Trainer, "The Death of the Oil Economy", p.1

[113] Cited in "New Oil Price Shock Seen Looming as Early as 2000" Wind Energy Weekly, Vol. 15, #684, 12

February 1996, p.1, reproduced at www.igc.apc.org/awea/wew/684-1.html

[114] A term used first by the Limits to Growth report which indicates that the pattern of overdevelopment and

resource depletion, rather than being a gradual loss of resources, represents a sudden drop in availability

as exponential increase in demand eventually causes the prices for extraction and processing to exceed

the value of the resource being exploited.

[115] Paul Brown, "British Report Forecasts Runaway Global Warming," Guardian (London), 3 November,

1998, quoted in State of the World 1999

[116] 70% of the coral reefs in the Indian Ocean have died due to temperature increases. See Paul Epstein et

al., "Coral Reefs", Marine Ecosystems: Emerging Diseases as Indicators of Change,

http://heed.unh.edu/heedreport/coral/coral001.htm, revised December 12, 1998. Viewed June 30, 2000

[117] Global Sea Ice Extent and Concentration: What sensors on satellites are telling us about sea

ice, State of the Cryosphere, A report by the National Snow and Ice Data Center,

http://nsidc.org/NASA/SOTC/sea_ice.html, viewed June 30, 2000

[118] Ibid

[119] Obtained from NASA's Global Change Master Directory,

http://cdiac.esd.ornl.gov/trends/temp/jonescru/graphics/nhshglob.gif, viewed June 30, 2000

[120] 1999 was slightly cooler, but this primarily due to the counter-effects of the shift from El Nino to

La Nina effects that year. These statistics from P. D. Jones,¹ D. E. Parker,² T. J. Osborn,¹ and K. R.

Briffa^{1, "}Global and hemispheric temperature anomalies--land and marine instrumental records", Global

Change Master Directory, http://cdiac.esd.ornl.gov/trends/temp/jonescru/jones.html, viewed June 30,

2000

[121] Anne Platt McGinn, "Charting a New Course for Oceans", p.83 State of the World 1999: A Worldwatch

Institute Report on Progess Toward a Sustainable Society, (W.W. Norton & Company, New York, 1999)

[122] Lester Brown, "Challenges of the New Century", p. 8

[123] David Schneider, "The Rising Seas," Scientific American, March 1997

[124] Tom M.L. Wigley, The Science of Climate Change: Global and U.S. Perspective (Arlington, VA, Pew

Center on Global Climate Change, June 1999)

[125] John Pernetta, "Rising Seas and Changing Currents" People & The Planet, vol.7, no.2 (1998)

[126] Neelesh Misra, "Asia Floods Raise Questions About Man's Impact on Nature," Associated Press, 19

September, 1998, quoted in State of the World 1999

[127] Robert T. Watson, Marufu C. Zinyowera, and Richard H. Moss, eds. Climate Change 1995: Impacts,

Adaptations, and Mitigation of Climate Change: Scientific-Technical Analyses, Contribution of Working

Group II to the Second Assesment Report of the IPCC (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996)

[128] World Wide Fund for Nature, The Year the World Caught on Fire, WWF International Discussion Paper

(Gland, Switzerland: December 1997)

[129] Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, Cambridge, MA: Riverside Press

[130] David M. Raup, "A Kill Curve for Phaerozoic Marine Species," Paleobiology, vol.17no.1 (1991).

This is also supported (one extinction every few years) by Edward O. Wilson "Threats to Biodiverstiy",

Scientific American 261 (September 1989) 108-116

[131] Nigel Stork, "Measuring Global Biodiversity and Its decline", in Marjorie L. Reaka-Kudla, Don E.

Wilson and Edward O. Wilson, eds., Biodiversity II: Understanding and Protecting Our Biological

Resources (Washington D.C.: Joseph Henry Press, 1997)

[132] Ibid, E.O Wilson, supra note 130

[133] Chris Bright, Life Out of Bounds (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1998)

[134] The correlation between "natural" and "good" will be discussed later. For discussions of the

philosophical concern for the "naturalistic fallacy" see one of the first discussions G.E.Moore, Principia

Ethica (London: Cambridge University Press, 1903), and more recent classic is W.D. Hudson, The

Is/Ought Question (New York: St. Martin's, 1970). For a discussion of the topic more directly related to

the concerns in this thesis, see Charles Birch , "Eight Fallacies of the Modern World and Five Axioms

for a Postmodern Worldview", Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 32, 1, Autumn 1988.

[135] J. Baird Callicott, In Defense of the Land Ethic: Essays in Environmental Philosophy, (State University

of New York Press, Albany, 1989) p.129. Callicott cites for this information: Norman D. Newell, "Crises

in the History of Life," Scientific American 208 (1963):76-92; David M. Raup and J. John Sepkoski, Jr.,

"Mass Extinctions in the Marine Fossil Record," Science 215 (1982), 1501-03

[136] United Nations: World Urbanization Prospects: The 1996 Revision (New York: 1998)

[137] Here we have both social and philosophical trends which facilitate a callous response to this loss of

biodiversity and which make the endeavors by the radical ecological groups at education and public

discussion all the more necessary. The philosophical aspects of this hyperseperation will be further

discussed throughout the thesis.

[138] Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac, pp.6-7, (1949; New York:Ballantine, 1970)

[139] Ibid, supra note136

[140] Charles Birch, Supra note 134, pp. 25-26

[141] This may appear a rather utilitarian argument, that is, stating that species extinction is undesirable based

on the loss it represents to human interests, but there is also implicit the wider assumption that natures

intrinsic value is independent of human concerns or consciousness. There is still the concern of

instrumental rather intrinsic value in seeing nature as "manifestions" of aspects of God, in other words

value defined in relation to another Being, particularly when that Being is the Source of "dispensing"

value. This will be discussed after the section examining the Bahá'í writings on the subject.

[142] "...the perfection of man is entirely due to the composition of the atoms of the elements, to their

measure, to the method of their combination, and to the mutual influence and action of the different

beings." (emphasis added) `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 179 Earlier in the passage,

Abdu'l-Bahá makes it clear that those beings include "all these endless beings which inhabit the world,

whether man, animal, vegetable, mineral - whatever they may be..."

[143] December 31, 1990 to December 31, 1999, Dow Jones & Company,

http://averages.dowjones.com/frameset.html,viewed June 30, 2000

[144] Herman Daly, Steady State Economics, 248-250 (1992)

[145] Holmes Rolston, III, "Challenges in Environmental Ethics", Environmental Philosophy, (Zimmerman)

p.153

[146] The anthropocentrism here is of a more exclusive and extreme model, commonly referred to as "strong"

anthropocentrism. It should be noted that within the range of models, there are more moderate and

inclusive constructions of "self-enlightened" anthropocentrism, known as "weak" anthropocentrism.

[147] The radical ecological movements of Deep Ecology, and more particularly ecofeminism, offer more

sophisticated and extensive critiques of both anthropocentrism as well as a fuller discussion of a variety

of other philosophical, historical, economic, cultural and political deficiencies which contribute to

ecological dysfunction and devastation.

[148] Tim Hayward, Ecological Thought, p.68, (Cambridge, U.K., Polity Press, 1995)

[149] Here we see one example of why economic models can have a dramatic effect on the human relationship

with nature. For Bahá'í suggestions on positive economic models which facilitate harmonious ecological

relationships see: Fariborz Moshirian, "National financial policies, global environmental damage and

missing international institutions.", pp. 1255-1270, International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 25,

No.6/7/8. Also see Arthur Lyon Dahl, The Eco Principle: Ecology and Economics in Symbiosis,

(George Ronald, Oxford, 1996)

[150] J. Donald Hughes, "Francis of Assisi and the Diversity of Creation", Environmental Ethics,

(Vol.18, Fall 1996):320

[151] Ibid, p.315

[152] Roberta Hill-Burdett, "Can Saints Preserve Us? Reconsidering St. Francis' View of Nature", The Maine

Scholar 7 (Autumn 1994): 201. Quoted in Hughes, "Francis of Assisi", p.313

[153] "Francis of Assisi", p.313

[154] Denis Edwards, "Theological Foundations for Ecological Praxis", Ecotheology 5 and 6 (1998-99),

pp.129-30. Edwards cites Bonaventure, Iteneraium Mentis in Deum 5.2, 6.2 For the Latin Text with

translation, see Philotheus Boehner (trans.), Saint Bonaventure's Itenerarium Mentis in Deum: With an

Introduction, Translation and Commentary (Saint Bonaventure, NY: The Franciscan Institute, 1956).

[155] Ibid, p.130

[156] Cited by Edwards, p.130. "Unde Creatura non est nisi quoddam simulacrum sapientia Dei, et quoddam

sculptile" (Hexaemeron 12)

[157] Ibid. "Omnis enim creatura ex natura est illius aeternae sapientiae quaedam effigies et simultudo"

(Itinerarium 2.12)

[158] Ibid, p.131. Hexaemeron 13,14.

[159] Ibid

[160] Ibid, Breviloquium 2.11.2

[161] For example, towards returning to God from a state of sin, "...I therefore reveal unto thee sacred and

resplendent tokens from the planes of glory, to attract thee into the court of holiness and nearness and

beauty, and draw thee to a station wherein thou shalt see nothing in creation save the Face of thy

Beloved One..." Bahá'u'lláh, Seven Valleys and Four Valleys, p. 3

[162] Aldo Leopold, Sand County Almanac, "The Land Ethic", p262

[163] Scott Lehmann writes, "Although Leopold claims for communities of plants and animals a "right to

continued existence," his argument is homocentric, appealing to the human stake in preservation.

Basically it is an argument from enlightened self-interest, where the self in question is not an individual

human being but humanity –present and future- as a whole..."

From "Do Wildernesses Have Rights?" p.131, Environmental Ethics 3 (1981)

[164] Aldo Leopold, Sand County Almanac, p.??? to be found

[165] That Leopold is not strictly non-anthropocentric is based on his references to nature serving human

interests, but in a non-dominating fashion. "Abraham knew exactly what the land was for: it was to drip

milk and honey into Abraham's mouth." Ibid.

[166] Ibid

[167] See Richard Sylvan, "Is there a Need for a New, an Environmental, Ethic", Proceedings of the XV

World

Congress of Philosophy, No. 1. Varna, Bulgaria, 1973, pp.205-210

[168] See Peter Singer "Animal Liberation", The New York Review of Books, April 5, 1973

[169] At this stage, consideration, for the most part, was given only to animals of the higher order.

[170] "Intrinsic Value, Moral Standing, and Species", Environmental Ethics (Vol.19, Spring 1997):45-52

[171] Ibid, p.46

[172] The complex concept of "rights" will be further addressed in the following section.

[173] Ibid

[174] This is not to say that this is universally agreed upon. A number of deep ecologists, including Arne

Naess make no exclusions, but even the leading biocentric egalitarian, Paul Taylor, excludes domestic

animals.)

[175] The distinctions will be explored later in the thesis, but primarily reside in the consideration of all beings

in an instrumental fashion in relation to the overall machrohistorical purpose of the universe. But the

use of "noninstrumental" in the definition of "intrinsic value" is agreed upon in the sense of value

existing regardless of the human valuing process or potential benefit of such intrinsic value to other

beings.

[176] C, Hartshorne discusses this pansychism and its antithesis, the "prosaic fallacy"- a refusal to attribute to

nature the capacity to feel. See Physics and Psychics: The Place of Mind in Nature. In Mind in Nature:

Essays on the Interface of Science and Philosophy, eds. J. B. Cobb, D. Griffin. Washington D.C.,

University Press America, 1977

[177] Singer advises us that he uses Jeremy Bentham's understanding of sentience: the capacity to experience

pleasure and pain. (no reference provided)

[178] Environmental Philosophy, p.6

[179] Regan "Animal Rights..." p.39

[180] Tom Regan, "Animal Rights, Human Wrongs", Environmental Ethics, Vol.2, No.2 (Summer 1980),

99-120.

[181] John Locke, Some Thoughts Concerning Education, 5^th ed. (London, 1905), quoted by Tom Regan in

"Animal Rights, Human Wrongs"

[182] Ibid, p44

[183] Ibid

[184] Kenneth E. Goodpaster "On Being Morally Considerable", The Journal of Philosophy, LXXV, 6 (June

1978):316.

[185] Ibid,314

[186] Paul W. Taylor, "The Ethics of Respect for Nature", Environmental Ethics, Vol.3, No.3 (Fall 1981):208

[187] Ibid, 217

[188]Taylor has often been criticized for arbitrariness and indeterminacy because of his concept of biocentric

egalitarianism. (See: Gene Spitler, "Justifying a Respect for Nature," Envrionmental Ethics 4

(1982):255-60; Bryan Norton, "Review of Paul Taylor's Respect for Nature," Environmental Ethics 9

(1987):261-67; Peter Wenz, Environmental Justice (Albany: SUNY, 1988), chap.14; Holmes Rolston III,

Environmental Ethics (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1988), p.119: Joseph Des Jardins,

Environmental Ethics (Belmont: Wadsworth, 1993), pp.152-60; J. Baird Callicott, Michael E.

Zimmerman et al., eds., Environmental Philosophy, (1993) p.8; Robin Attfield, Environmental

Philosophy, (Aldershot, Avebury, 1994) pp. 173-82; William C. French, "Against Biospherical

Egalitarianism", Environmental Ethics 17 (1995) p.40; Tim Hayward, Ecological Thought, p.66; )

However there are often overlooked elements of truth in this concept which will be discussed on the

section of this thesis related to the theme of human custodianship.

[189] Taylor, "The Ethics of Respect for Nature", p.217

[190] Note that Taylor appears to limit any moral obligations towards entities arising from such enlightenment

to wild entities only. "From the perspective of a life-centred theory, we have prima facie moral

obligations that are owed to wild plants and animals themselves as members of Earth's biotic

community." Ibid, 197. It should be noted that Robin Attfield disagrees with the opinion that Taylor

limits it to wild entities only. Attfield proposes that although the subcategory of "wild" is used, it is

within the context of the wider category of "members of Earth's biotic community" and so Attfield

proposes "The context makes it clear that all living creatures are included and not only wild ones."

Environmental Philosophy, p.174 However if Taylor's intention wasn't to indicate an exclusion of

"domestic" versus "wild", then why use the subcategory in the first place? Especially when the concept

of unqualified egalitarianism would have been conveyed without the apparent qualification.

according to Attfield would have been the same?

[191] George Sessions, "Deep Ecology and Global Ecosystem Protection", Zimmerman, (ed.), Environmental

Philosophy: From Animal Rights to Radical Ecology, pp.236-237

[192] For example, few within the ecofeminist ecological movement would agree with his propositions.

Deborah Slicer writes, "It is only marginally true that ecofeminists are 'in general agreement with the

constructive task of deep ecology'. That is, ecofeminists may agree with the deep ecological

recommendation that we be rid of anthropocentrism and favor some form of radical egalitarianism, but

(1) they have serious concerns with the specific sort of theoretical analyses that deep ecologists consider

constructive, "deep," or revolutionary, and (2) they have reservations about the deep ecologists rather

shallow conception of egalitarianism." Deborah Slicer, "Is There an Ecofeminism-Deep Ecology

"Debate"?", Environmental Ethics 17, 1995, p.164-165. This is echoed in numerous other ecofeminist

works such as Marti Kheel, "The Liberation of Nature: A Circular Affair," Environmental Ethics 7

(1985):135-49; Jim Cheney, "Ecofeminism and Deep Ecology," Environmental Ethics 9 (1987):155-145;

Val Plumwood, "Nature, Self, and Gender: Feminism, Environmental Philosophy, and the

Critique of Rationalism"Hypatia, VI, No.1 (Spring 1991), pp.12-17, and Feminsim and the Mastery of

Nature, (Routledge, New York) 1993, pp.16-18.

[193] Arne Naess, "Simple in Means, Rich in Ends", The Ten Directions, (Los Angeles, Zen Centre, 1982)

reprinted in Zimmerman, ed., Environmental Philosophy, p.184

[194] Arne Naess, "The Deep Ecological Movement: Some Philosophical Aspects", Philosophical Inquiry,

Vol.VIII, No.1-2, 1983, p. 15

[195] Ibid, p.16

[196] Tom Regan, "The Nature and Possibility of an Environmental Ethics," Environmental Ethics 3 (1981):

30. Quoted by Naess, "The Deep Ecological Movement:", p16

[197] J. Baird Callicott, In Defense of the Land Ethic: Essays in Environmental Philosophy, (State University

of New York Press, Albany, 1989) p. 6

[198] J.Baid Callicott, "The Conceptual Foundations of the Land Ethic", (ed. Zimmerman), Environmental

Philosophy, p. 117. Reprinted from J. Baird Callicott (ed.) Companion to A Sand County Almanac:

Interpretive and Critical Essays (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1987)

[199] Ibid, p.117

[200] Whether it is nonhomeocentric or not is debatable, particularly when ethics is seen in the Darwinian

framework. Here, ethics is seen as the biological evolution of social extension arising from awareness

that to behave ethically enhances the individual and species survival.

[201] Ibid, p.120

[202] Although he admits reason can amplify and inform our feelings or sentiments which are the true source

of ethics.

[203] Ibid, p.119

[204] Callicott, In Defense of the Land Ethic, p.126

[205] Callicott, "The Conceptual Foundations of the Land Ethic", p.117

[206] J. Baird Callicott, "Benevolent Symbiosis: The Philosophy of Conservation Reconstructed", Earth

Summit Ethics: Toward a Reconstructive Postmodern Philosophy of Environmental Education, (ed.) J.

Baird Callicott, et. al., (State University of New York Press, Albany, 1996): p. 157

[207] George Bradford, "Toward a Deep Social Ecology", Ibid. Bradford writes that he distinguishes himself

from Bookchin's "suggestion in some of his work that technological relations are the consequence of

previously determined social relations, and his essentially irrational rejection of irrational and intuitive

aspects of our reconciliation with nature, aspects which have been admirably explored by some deep

ecology writers." p. 419

[208] Murray Bookchin, "What is Social Ecology?", (ed.) Zimmerman, Environmental Philosopy, p. 365

[209] This is a simplistic caricature of his sophisticated political critique. For example, there are a number of

other influences and considerations in his political theory such as radical heretical and millenarian

movements and in some modern revolutionary movements. It's brevity is required do to limitations,

however, it not believed to be disloyal to his vision.

[210] Ibid, pp. 371-372

[211] Janet Biehl, "Dialectics in the Ethics of Social Ecology", Ibid, p. 387

[212] Janet Biehl, Ibid. argues against "An ethical prescription superficially drawn from first nature which

argues that all life is sacred...", p.388

[213] Feminism itself has undergone a number of significant stages since the 1970s. From liberal feminism

and "uncrictical equality", to radical feminism and "uncrictical reversal", to other lesser known

movements of marxsist feminism, black feminism and third world feminism. This current discussion

only relates to the diverse approaches of ecofeminism within the general movement of "third wave

feminism".

[214] Karen J. Warren, Michael Zimmerman (ed.), Environmental Philosophy, pp. 256-261

[215] Ibid, p.262

[216] Val Plumwood, Feminism and the Mastery of Nature, (Routledge, London, 1993)

[217] Sallie McFague, The Body of God,

[218] Fox, Warwick "The Deep Ecology-Ecofeminism Debate and Its Parallels" Environmental Ethics 11, 1

(Spring 1989) 5-25. For a direct response, see Deborah Slicer, "Is There an Ecofeminism-Deep Ecology

"Debate"?", Environmental Ethics 17, 1995, p.164-165. Also see Supra note 192 for a list of similarly

concerned critiques of deep ecology from ecofeminst persepctives

[219] See John Clark, "A Social Ecology", Environmental Philosophy: From Animal Rights to Radical

Ecology, p.431

[220] Geoffrey B. Frasz, "Environmental Virtue Ethics: A New Direction for Environmental Ethics",

Environmental Ethics, p.259, Fall 1993, Vol.15,3

[221] Ibid.

[222] Kirkpatrick Sale, "Deep Ecology and Its Critics," The Nation, May 14, 1988.

[223] For example, cultural eco-feminism often takes the domination of women to represent the essential

principle responsible for the entire range of ecological problems. (See Charlene Spretnak "Toward an

Ecofeminist Sprituality", Healing the Wounds, (Judith Plant ed.) Philadelphia, PA: New Society

Publishers: 127-32) while social ecological feminism considers the domination of women to be one of

many forms of domination responsible for the ecological crisis. (See Bell Hooks, Talking Back, Boston,

MA: South End Press, 1989

[224] See Murray Bookchin, "Social Ecology Versus Deep Ecology", Socialist Review 99 (1988): 11-29. In

this article Bookchin may be accused of taking statements by a controversial and non-representative deep

ecologist Dave Foreman, and generalizing certain "eco-fascist" comments as being representative of a

number of Deep Ecologists. Another non-representational Deep Ecologist, Garret Harding has also

been the focus of Bookchins criticism of Deep Ecology in general. See Garret Harding, "Living on a

Lifeboat," Bioscience 24 (1974): 561-68.

[225] John E. Kolstoe, Consultation: A Lamp of Universal Guidance, George Ronald, Oxford, 1985, p9. The

process of Bahá'í consultation is a well developed concept, which is beyond the capacity of this thesis to

examine in depth. Some pre-requisites to Bahá'í consultation are purity of motive, radiance of spirit,

detachment, attraction to the infinite qualities of God's spirit, humility, patience, and an attitude of

service. Among the procedures of consultation are spiritual devotion, courtesy, dignity, care and

moderation. One of the most important facets of Bahá'í consultation is that of detachment from ones

own views, so that once an idea is offered, it is placed "on the middle of the table" and is owned by all

for further consultation.

[226] Bahá'u'lláh: Gleanings, page 94, XLIII, Lawh-i Dunya (Tablet of the World), late 'Akka, between 27

June and early August, 1891. For original text see Majmu`ih-yi Alvah-i Mubarakih 285-301

[227] Plumwood, Val, Mastery, p.160

[228] Murray Bookchin, "What is Social Ecology", Zimmerman, (ed.) Environmental Philosophy, p.371

[229] Joseph R. Des Jardins, Environmental Ethics: An Introduction to Environmental Philosophy, pp.253-254

(Wadsworth, Belmont, CA, 2^nd ed., 1997)

[230] The Bahá'í concept of fulfilling specific goals understands a unity of action in which each person

potentially contributes a unique specialization towards that overall goal. See UHJ letter (find specifics)

[231] The introductory propositional statement taught to me in first year systematic theology course. It comes

from the neo-orthodox tradition of Thomas Torrance. Although it has wider applications for

interdisciplinary studies, it comes from his definition of theology as a science which is "developing its

distinctive modes of inquiry and its essential forms of thought under the determination of its given

subject-matter."

Thomas Torrance, Theological Science (Oxford University Press, 1969), p. 281

[232] Not all tensions can be reconciled. This is evident due to the proponents co-commitment to not only a

principle, but to the philosophic tradition which is historically associated with the formulation of that

principle. The mistake is made in assuming that the principle is some essential and unique

manifestation exclusive to, and solely possible in the context of a particular tradition, as if in the

platonic sense the principle was an archetypal extension of the Form which that philosophy uniquely

represents. When in reality the principle merely has a coincidental historical association with the

philosophy in which it arose and could potentially have arisen from a number of other associated

contexts.

[233] Paul Davies, The Mind of God: Science and the Search for Ultimate Meaning, (Harmondsworth,

Penguin, 1992)

[234] Universal in the sense of applicable and inclusive to all of reality.

[235] Absolute meaning that while the states of relationship may change, the principles governing those

relationships don't.

[236] Eternal in that these principles are grounded in mathematical structures which underpin reality.

[237] Omnipotent as the principles have the capacity of applicability to all of reality.

[238] See Paul Taylor, Respect For Nature, (Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press, 1986) Taylor

indicates that moral respect needs to be based on reason and cognition, not emotion or personal

feelings. "If one seeks that end solely or primarily from inclination, the attitude being expressed is not

moral respect but personal affection or love." p.85 As Val Plumwood puts so well, "The Kantian

account of ethical universalisation as derived from reason alone disguises and denies the dependency

of ethical judgement on empathic elements." Plumwood, Feminism and the Mastery of Nature, p.168

[239] Immanuel Kant, Critique of Pure Reason, Transcendental Aesthetic, translated by Norman Kemp Smith,

(New York, St. Martin's Press, 1929) first section conclusions (A. 28).

[240] W. Norris Clarke, "Is a Natural Theology Still Possible Today?", Physic, Philosophy and Theology: A

Common Quest for Understanding, ed. Robert J. Russell, et. al., (Vatican Observatory, Vatican City

State, 1988) p. 105. For similar observations see: Langdon Gilkey, Nature, Reality and the Sacred: The

Nexus of Science and Religion, (Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 1993) p. 67 where he says that "affirming

that a metaphysical analysis is nevertheless possible beyond the range of scientific empirical enquiry.."

is "non-Kantian".

[241] Keith Ward, Images of Eternity, (Oxford, England, Oneworld Press, 1987,1993) p. 176

[242] Warwick Fox, "The Deep Ecology-Ecofeminist Debate", p.18

[243] Ibid.

[244] Ibid, footnote 39.

[245] Karen J. Warren, Environmental Philosophy, p. 261

[246] Originally developed by Elizabeth Dodson-Gray in Green Paradise Lost, (Roundtable Press, Wellesley,

MA, 1979) p.4

[247] Murray Bookchin, "What is Social Ecololgy", p. 355

[248] Ibid

[249] J. Baird Callicott, "The Conceptual Foundations of the Land Ethic", p. 113

[250] Ibid, Callicott himself is not of the opinion that ethics finds its source in reason, but he illustrates here

the dominant philosophical assumption.

[251] Ibid

[252] J. Baird Callicott, In Defense of the Land Ethic, p. 154

[253] Ibid, p. 138

[254] David Hume, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding and Concerning the Principles of Morals,

(Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1975) sec 7.3

[255] Alfred Whitehead, Science and the Modern World, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1933,

p.224

[256] This is not to insinuate that such a theory is not possible, but rather that if it is, this thesis could only serve at the most minimal level of alluding that the reconciliation of philosophy, science and theology is possible by understanding the non-essential nature of their interpretational conflicts.

[257] For two of the earliest works from a positivist scientific framework, which embody the post-Darwinian

popularization of this view see John William Draper, History of the Conflict Between Religion and

Science, (New York, Daniel Appleton,1874) and Andrew Dickson White, History of the Warfare of

Science with Theology in Christendom, 2 vols. (London, Macmillan, 1896)For a more recent classic see

Bertrand Russell, Religion and Science, (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1961) or E.O. Wilson, On

Human Nature (Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1978) where he explains

religion as a product of evolution which will eventually become replaced by "scientific materialism.

(chaps. 8 & 9)

[258] For a modern example from the religious side which facilitates a "two sides at war" view see Henry

Morris, The Long War Against God

[259]Nebelsick, Harold, Theology and Science in Mutual Modification, Christian Journals Limited, 1981, p.26

[260] Alister E. Mcgrath, Science and Religion: An Introduction, (Oxford, UK, Blackwell Publishers, 1999)

[261] Ernan McMullin, "Natural Science and Belief in a Creator: Historical Notes", (ed.) John Russell, et.al.

Physics, Philosophy and Theology: A Common Quest for Understanding, p.59

[262] This concept of denied dependency comes from the ecofeminist critique, particularly that of Val

Plumwood.

[263] Val Plumwood, Feminism and the Mastery of Nature, pp. 48-49

[264] For example, of Thomas Aquinas's "Five Ways", proofs for God's existence, the third is an obvious and

direct modification of one of Avicenna's theories focusing on metaphysical proofs for God's existence.

While elements of Averroes proofs for God's existence based on physics also influenced him. See

Eteinne Gilson, Elements of Christian Philosophy, (New York, Doubleday, 1959) pp. 80-87.

[265] John Bowker, Voices of Islam, (Oxford, England, One World Press, 1995) p. 142

[266] David S. Noss, Humanity's Religions, (New York, New York, Macmillan Publishing Company) p. 470

[267] However, several hundred years before Copernicus, a Muslim astronomer, ....., proposed a heliocentric

model. This theory had support from the Quran: "The sun moves in a fixed place...and each star moves

in its own heaven." 36:37-38. Although within Islamic culture, this theory did not become popular.

While in the Bahá'í tradition, Abdu'l-Bahá states that "Though Pythagoras, and Plato during the latter

part of his life, adopted the theory that the annual movement of the sun around the zodiac does not

proceed from the sun, but rather from the movement of the earth around the sun, this theory had been

entirely forgotten, and the Ptolemaic system was accepted by all mathematicians." `Abdu'l-Bahá: Some

Answered Questions, p. 23

[268] This is due to at least three factors. First, his work was published in the last year of his life, second he

indicated it was to be considered as only a mathematical exercise, therefore placing less tension on it as

a competing model, and third his model was not comprehensive enough to yet offer a complete

challenge to the Ptolemic model.

[269] John Polkinghorne, One World: The Interaction of Science and Theology, (SPCK, 1986) pg.2

[270] See for example, Owen Gingerich, "The Galileo Affair", Scientific American, August 1982.

[271] Owen Gingerich, from personal notes taken at his public talk at the Symposium on Theology and Science

at Knox Theological College, University of Otago Dunedin, New Zealand, 1992.

[272] Galileo Galilee, Quoted by L. Fermi and G. Berardini, Galileo and the Scientific Revolution, (New

York, Basic Books Inc., 1961) p.80

[273]R.J. Forbes gives the following rough tabulation of the contents of the contents of Newton's library:("Was

Newton an Alchemist?", Chymia, II 1949, 28-8.)

Theology and Philosophy 515 titles-32%

History and chronology 215 titles-14%

Classical authors 182 titles-11%

Chemistry, mineralogy 165 titles-10%

Mathmatics, physics, astronomy, 268 titles-16%

[274] Alistair E. McGrath, Science and Religion, p. 17

[275] From Newtons Principia, translated and quoted by Michael J. Buckley, "The Newtonian Settlement and

the Origins of Atheism," Physics, Philosophy, and Theology, p.85

[276] Newton to Bentley, December 10, 1762, in The Correspondance of Isaac Newton, edited by H.W.

Turnbal (Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1959) 3:233. Quoted by Buckley. Ibid, p.86

[277] Isaac Newton, "A Short Schema of the True Religion," in Sir Isaac Newton. Theological Manuscripts,

selected and edited with an introduction by H. McLachlan (Liverpool, University Press, 1950) p. 49

[278] Ernst Mayr, The Growth of Biological Thought: Diversity, Evolution, and Inheritance, (Cambridge,

Harvard University Press, 1982) p. 141

[279] Roger Cotes, quoted by Florian Cajori in the introduction to his revision of Andrew Motte, (1729) Sir

Isaac Newton's Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy and His System of the World, (Berkely,

University of California Press, 1962) p.xxxiii.

[280] Anjam Khorsheed is particularly astute at appreciating the traditional interpretations of Descarte,

particularly that of his radical dualism although Khorsheed proposes a tripartate orientation. This

critique is implicit throughout his book, but particularly see pg. 166-167. Anjam Khursheed, The

Universe Within: An Exploration of the Human Spirit, (Oxford, England, Oneworld Publications, 1995)

[281] Rene Descartes, Mediatations on First Philosophy, translated by Laurence J. Lafleur (Indianapolis,

Bobbs-Merrill, 1978) p. 7

[282] Rene Descartes, quoted by Jaques Maritain, The Dream of Descartes, translated by Mabelle J. Andison

(New York, Philosophical Library, 1944) p.205

[283] Michael J. Buckley, "The Newtonian Settlement and the Origins of Atheism", p. 93

[284] Ibid.

[285] Roger Hahn, "Laplace and the Vanishing Role of God in the Physical Universe," The Analytic Spirit:

Essays in the History of Science in Honor of Henry Guerlac, ed. Harry Woolf (Ithaca, Cornell

University Press, 1981) pp. 85-86

[286] David S. Noss, p. 475

[287] Of course there are a variety of causes, but the historical influences are mentioned as it is less common

for them to receive treatment in this area. Certainly the atheistic reinterpretations of Newton by

Laplace, Lagrange and others in mainland Europe was substantially less influential in England; and

Newton's assumptions of the harmony of natural theology and science remained the dominant popular

and theological view until after 1859 with Darwin's first publication. Of even greater significance

towards the removal of the balance between theolgy and science, were its interpreters who possessed

their own anti-religious agenda, such as Thomas Huxley.

[288] While in England the popular assumption of the absolute mechanistic and material understanding of

reality did not truly take hold until the end of the 19^th century, it had happened a hundred years earlier

in Germany.

[289] Adrian Desmond and Jim Moore, Darwin, 1990, Blackwell, London

[290] Charles Darwin, The Autobiography of Charles Darwin, , ed. Nora Barlwo (London: Collins, 1958), pp.

85-87

[291] In the same passage, Darwin specifically mentions the Tower of Babel and the flood.

[292] Alistair McGrath, Science and Religion, p.23

[293] Quoted by Neal C. Gillespie, C.Darwin in a letter written to Asa Gray, p. 87

[294] Ibid, p. 128

[295] Keith Ward, God, Chance and Necessity, (Oneworld Publications, Oxford, 1996) p.88

[296] Ibid, p. 92-93

[297] Charles P. Henderson Jr., God and Science, Chapter 3 last page. (Still to get other publishing details.)

However it is important not overemphasize the "stranglehold" as absolute, merely to indicate its

Significance as a dilemma which Darwin strongly responded to and therefore affected how he framed

his model.. There were a number of Anglican theologians who were contemporaries of Darwin and who

represented positive attempts at positing a spiritual view of evolutionary theory.

[298] Charles Darwin, Origin, p.500

[299] Charles Darwin, The Descent of Man, (New York, A.L.Burt 1874), p. 694

[300] Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, pp. 505-506

[301] Ibid, p. 91

[302] Ibid, p.88-89

[303] Interestingly, William Paley argued the examination of the human eye was a cure for atheism. Natural

Theology: Evidences of the Existence and Attributes of the Deity, Collected from the Appearances of

Nature, (Boston, Gould, Kendall and Lincoln, 1849)

[304] Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, (Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1968) p.205

[305] Neil Gillespie, Charles Darwin and the Problem of Creation, p.87

[306] Quoted in Anjam Khursheed, Science and Religion: Towards the Restoration of Ancient Harmony,

(London, Oneworld Press, 1987) p. 91, from a conversation between Abdu'l-Bahá and Dr. Fallscheer,

recorded in Sonne der Warheit, No. 1, March 1921, p.9

[307] Alfred N. Whitehead, Science and the Modern World, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press (1933)

[308] Jucas, J.R. "Wilberforce and Huxley: A Legendary Encounter", Historical Journal 22 (1979) pp. 313-

314

[309] John Canning, ed., One Hundred Great Events That Shaped the World, "Charles Darwin's Bombshell:

The Book that Revealed Evolution as the Master-Key to Nature's Secrets" (London, Odham Books,

1965) p.473

[310] Alistair McGrath, Science and Religion, p.25

[311] Charles Birch offers a number of similar categories in his article, "Eight Fallacies of the Modern World

and Five Axioms for a Postmodern Worldview", Perspectives in Biology and Medicine, 32, 1, Autumn

1988, He calls this the "The fallacy of objectivity", pp.17-18

[312] J. Baird Callicott, In Defense of the Land Ethic, pp. 132-133

[313] See, Polanyi, Michael, The Tacit Dimension, (Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd., 1967) p. 77

[314] Leslie Newbigin, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, (WCC Publications, 1989) pp. 30?33

[315] Albert Einstein quoted by Leslie Newbigin, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, pg. 31

[316] Owen Gingerich, "Is There a Role for Natural Theology Today?"

[317] Francis Crick, Of Molecules and Men (Seattle, University of Washington Press, 1966) p.10

[318] Charles Darwin, The Origin of Species, p. 89

[319] Ibid, p.507

[320] Ibid, p.507-508

[321] Plumwood, Feminism and the Mastery of Nature, p.168

[322] Intellectual love is a specific manifestation of a conscious element of the relational quality of love that all beings, capable of sentience or not, participate in. The relational nature of this model will be more fully explore in the following chapter.

[323] Charles Birch, "Eight Fallacies of the Modern World and Five Axioms for a Postmodern Worldview"

p.12

[324] Ibid

[325] The expression of this concept as found in the Duhem Quine thesis and in Michael Polayni's work will

be discussed later.

[326] Carl Sagan, Cosmos,(New York, Random House, 1980) p.4

[327] Ian G. Barbour, "Ways of Relating Science and Theology", Physics, Philosophy and Theology, p.23

[328] Jacques Monod, Chance and Necessity, (New York, Vintage Books, 1972) p. 180

[329] Ibid, p. 110

[330] Jacques Monod, quoted from BBC lecture in John Lewis, ed., Beyond Chance and Necessity (London,

Garnstone Press, 1974) p. ix.

[331] Jacques Monod, Chance and Necessity, p. 31

[332] Keith Ward, Defending the Soul, (Oneworld, 1992) p. 59

[333] Karl Popper, The Logic of Scientific Discovery, New York, Science Editions, 1961, pp.40-41

[334] An example of an application of this principle is the Michelson-Morely experiment, in which an

experiment was conducted that disproved the theory of lumineferous ether.

[335] See Willard Quine, From a Logical Point of View, (Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 1953)

[336] Alistair McGrath, Science and Religion, p.68

[337] Ibid, p.69

[338] Ibid, p.71

[339] Norris 1997 (218-47 and 265-94)

[340] Albert Einstein, quoted in F. Capra, The Tao of Physics, (Fontana, 1976), p. 49

[341] Niels Bohr, Atomic Physics and the Description of Nature, (CUP, 1934), p. 57

[342] Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, p.v

[343] See Thomas Kuhn, SSR p. 11; 1970a, ET, p. 267

[344] Stephen Toulmin, "Rediscovering History: New Directions in the Philosophy of Science", Encounter 36

(1):53-64

[345] Barbour, 1990, 43; Peacocke 1993, 14.

[346] This is of course an idealistic expression. Value can also be determined by prejudice and hatred, but for

the context of this thesis, those values are considered "anti-values" in that they are distorted

representations of an incapacity to perceive value. Authentic value can only be perceived in a condition

of loving relationships. (Discuss concept of good and evil using light metaphor)

[347] A primary focus of the Bahá'í International Community is encouraging the use of the concept of'World Citizenship' in all levels of eduction. Michael Richard's- Comments that 'World Citizenship' acts as a primary empowering metaphysic for Environmentally Sustainable Development that both counteract's nationalism and provides an antidote for apathy, as it facilitates a motivating vision that stimulates patterns of behaviour which achieve positive social transformation.

[348] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 200

[349] 'In every age and cycle He hath, through the splendorous light shed by the Manifestations of His wondrous Essence, recreated all things, so that whatsoever reflecteth in the heavens and on the earth the signs of His glory may not be deprived of the outpourings of His mercy, nor despair of the showers of His favors. How all-encompassing are the wonders of His boundless grace! Behold how they have pervaded the whole of creation. Such is their virtue that not a single atom in the entire universe can be found which doth not declare the evidences of His might, which doth not glorify His holy Name, or is not expressive of the effulgent light of His unity. So perfect and comprehensive is His creation that no mind nor heart, however keen or pure, can ever grasp the nature of the most insignificant of His creatures; much less fathom the mystery of Him Who is the Day Star of Truth, Who is the invisible and unknowable Essence."

Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 62

[350] Alistair S. Gunn, "Preserving Rare Species," in Earthbound, New Introductory Essays in Environmental

Ethics, (ed.) Tom Regan, (New York, Random House, 1984) p.330

[351] Chapter two largely covered the general history to the present, but further discussion, particularly including Christian eco-philosophers who posit a Theocentric model will be shortly.

[352] A fuller discussion of this particular principle will be done later in this chapter.

[353] Perhaps prememinently among these is Juan Cole's discussion "The Concept of Manifestation in the Bahá'í Writings", Bahá'í Studies Monograph 9 (1982):1-38, (Association for Bahá'í Studies, Ottwawa, Ontario)

[354] For example Anjam Khorsheed, most recently in the Universe Within: An Exploration of the Human

Spirit, Oneworld Publications, Oxford, 1995

[355] See Moojan Momen, Relativism: A Basis for Bahá'í Metaphysics, He makes the valuable contribution of indicating that while the majority of Bahá'í texts are dualistic in structure and apparent content, they are mitigated by a range of texts which have strong monist implications. The apparent dominance of dualist structures is rather due to the cultural context of the intended audience which was likewise dualist. Yet the overall hermeutical circle of Bahá'u'lláh's writings evince an awareness of a more equal balance or synergy between dualism and monism, and the modality of metaphysics chosen is usually related to the context of the discussion. Momen places a strong emphasis on the principle of relativism as a basis for Bahá'í metaphysics in positing resolution of the 'dichotomy' apparent in the above mentioned patterns. Momen suggests a relativism allowing a metaphysics that is both dualist and monist on an ontologial level.

Also See Robert Parry. "Rational/Conceptual/Performance—The Bahá'í Faith and Scholarship--a discussion paper", Bahá'í Studies Bulletin. Where he proposes to resolve this same tension by positing a dualist ontology and an ethical monism.

[356] See J.A. McLean, "Prolegomena to a Bahá'í Theology", The Journal of Bahá'í Studies 5.1, 1992

"Relativity, moreover, should not fall into the trap of absolutizing relativity, which would be tantamount to an ironic defeat of its own purpose. Relativity itself is also relative and invites the imposition of some limits on the concept...if relativity is pursued exclusively, without defining its relation to the absolute, it takes on the function of an absolute itself and results in contradiction.... Religious relativity acts then as a bulwark against the one-way interpretation of dogmatism; implies that religious truth although fundamentally one, is progressive, dynamic, infinite, and ever-changing; and allows us to accept various interpretations of metaphysical and theological questions, which would on the surface appear to be incompatible. It is thus an ally of a more inclusive view of reality, one that allows for a diversity of approaches. The relativity of religious truth also has strong implications for reestablishing some measure of unity between science and religion or philosophy one of the most meaningful and potentially fruitful questions in our time" pp.40-41

[357] Seena Fazel, for example see "Understanding Exclusivist Texts", Scripture and Revelation, Bahá'í Studies Volume III, ed. Moojan Momen, Oxford, George Ronald, 1997

[358] This list of metaphysically related topics is not meant to be exhaustive, but rather indicative of range.

[359] Robert White mentions similarities between deep ecology and the Bahá'í position but it represents only a brief, uncritical generalization and no further discussion of the other 'radical' ecological movements is made.

[360] Although there have been indirectly related general discussions of the harmony of spiritual and physical reality.

[361] Owen Gingerich, "Is There a Role for Natural Theology Today?", p.18

[362] Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p.197

[363] From a Bahá'í perspective this unfoldement would not be representative of God's essence, but rather a capacity for a relative reflection of secondary attributes.

[364] See E Mayr, The Growth of Biological Thought, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Mass. (1982)

[365] Primarily seen in a compilation of talks to a Western Pilgrim in Akka, Laura Clifford Barney, Some

Answered Questions. As well many of his talks from his journey through Europe and America (1911-

1912) include such discussions.

[366] Keven Brown, p.31 (Although there were divergences of thought within the Arab world, with some, such

as the editors of the Journal al-Muqtataf being accepting Darwins theory from a Deist perspective.)

[367] For example see Anjam Khursheed, Science and Religion – Towards the Restoration of an Ancient

Harmony, Oneworld Publications, London, (1987) and also B.H.Conow, The Bahá'í Teachings – A

Resurgent Model of the Universe, George Ronald, Oxford, (1990)

[368] See email discussions on H-Bahá'í Net, from 06/08/98 to 14/08/98.

[369] Keven Brown, p. 81

[370] Eberhard von Kitzing, p.1

[371] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Tablet to August Forel, p. 16-17

[372] Mufavadat 128, Some Answered Questions, p. 181, translation by Keven Brown.

[373] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Kitabat 2:170-171, Promulgation of Universal Peace p225-226, revised translation by

Keven Brown.

[374] Here `Abdu'l-Bahá uses 'spirit' to refer to the human soul rather than the spirit of archetypal species

essence. Kitzing writes: "Because the ``spirit'' appears after the composition of the elements, it is likely

that `Abdu'l-Bahá refers to the individual human soul in this passage and not to the ``human spirit'', i.e.,

the human species essence." p.40

[375] SAQ, 52

[376] `Abdu'l-Bahá: Paris Talks, page 175

[377] Shoghi Effendi: Light of Divine Guidance Vol.2, page 82

[378] Kitzing, p. 56

[379] `Abdu'l-Bahá: Some Answered Questions, pages 246-24

[380] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Mufávadát 130; SAQ 183-184, revised translation by Keven Brown

[381] Admittedly it is not an impossibility, but `Abdu'l-Bahá's spiritual concerns and the veracity of his

proposed principles are not dependent on such an interpretation. For a full discussion on the issues of

parallel evolution see Kitzing pp.63 ff.,

[382] Kitzing, p. 63

[383] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 179

[384] Letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi , Conservation , p. 15

[385] Bahá'u'lláh, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 44

[386] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 65

[387] Ibid, p.264

[388] Ibid, p.67

[389] Adib Taherzadeh, The Revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, Oxford, George Ronald , 1987

[390] Gleanings, p.190

[391] Cited by, Denis Edwards, "Theological Foundations for Ecological Praxis", Ecotheology 5 and 6 (1998-99), p.131. (Hexaemeron 13,14.)

[392] Bahá'u'lláh,Gleanings, p.61 (xxvi)

[393] (Bahá'u'lláh: Gleanings, page 205)

[394] (Bahá'u'lláh: The Kitab-i-Iqan, page 34)

[395] (`Abdu'l-Bahá: Selections ... `Abdu'l-Bahá, page 27)

[396] Bahá'u'lláh, Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 100

[397] Bahá'u'lláh , Kitab-I-Aqdas, p. 176)

[398]At one point when Bahá'u'lláh was being interrogated by government authorities and was asked for his name and country of origin he replied: "My name is Bahá'u'lláh (Light of God), and My country is Nur (Light). Be ye apprized of it." Quoted by Shoghi Effendi in God Passes By, p. 190

[399] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 48

[400] Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, pp. 29-30

[401] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 295

[402] Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, (1941) p.118

[403] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 62 (xxvi)

[404] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 421

[405] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 189)

[406] Bahá'u'lláh, Ibid, pp. 184-185

[407] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, pp. 246-24

[408] See I J R Aitchison, Gauge Theories in Particle Physics, 1989

[409] As structure becomes interdependent upon both relationships with other beings, and the behavior that qualifies those relationships. The organic spiritual nature of beings means that their individual capacity for reflection is unfolded in response to relationships with others. This becomes more apparent in sentient beings that have a more explicit capacity for free will, as they can choose which reflective elements are emphasized in their growth patterns.

[410] Bahá'u'lláh, Arabic Hidden Words, p. 4

[412] "Ponder in thine heart the revelation of the Soul of God that pervadeth all His Laws..."

Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 160

[413] Acceptance of the universe as the evolving Body of God is not an essential principle for the argument of this thesis. It is a personal opinion gained by examining the hermeneuticle circle of principles related to evolution as used by Abdu'l-Bahá. It is revolutionary towards an appreciation of nature as sacred, and affects our macro-evolutionary understanding of purpose. However, a more minimal and 'orthodox' acceptance of the universe as evolving a greater capacity for the manifestation of the names and attributes of God in the contingent order achieves the same necessary assumptions to lend integrity to the proposals of this thesis.

[414] A term used by Eberhard von Kitzing

[415] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, pp. 153-154

[416] Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings, p. 161

[417] Not all specific elements of the universe need manifest self-awareness to provide a level of complexity sufficient for 'attracting the Soul of God'. The human body itself represents specialized functions that are equivalent to the kingdoms found in nature. Tissues such as bones, teeth and nails possess qualities of the mineral kingdom, while other tissue possess qualities of the plant and animal kingdom. The primary indicator of the body's capacity for sentience is seen in the complexity of the brain functions. How this parallel function will develop on a macro-cosmic scale can only be considered conjecture. But perhaps such a macro level of sentience will occur when a sufficient diversity of human forms develops throughout the universe. Coinciding with a minimal level of expanded conscious awareness of such unity in diversity of the human species, as the potential vehicle of the Mind of God in the contingent order.

[418] "Hence the new age will be an age less masculine, and more permeated with the feminine ideals - or, to

speak more exactly, will be an age in which the masculine and feminine elements of civilization will be

more evenly balanced." Abdu'l-Bahá, Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era, 1976 U.S. edition, p.156

[419] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Foundations of World Unity, p. 42

[420] Meadows et.al., Beyond the Limits, New York: Doubleday Press, 1992.

[421] Meadows et.al., The Limits to Growth, New York: Universe Books, 1972

[422] Geoffrey Palmer, "New Ways to Make International Environmental Law", The American Journal

International Law, April, 1992, pg. 259

[423] United Nations Convention of Biological Diversity, June 5, 1992, S. TREATY DOC, NO. 103—20

(1993), art.3

[424] Fariborz Moshirian, "National financial policies, global environmental damage and missing international

institutions", International Journal of Social Economics, p. 1255, Vol. 25, no.6/7/8

[425] Particularly referring to the impact of a number of resource and pollution flows having exceeded their

limits of global sustainability which have been extensively illustrated in Chapter 1.

[426] The concept of ecologically sustainable development (ESD) is often shortened to "sustainable

development It first appeared in its modern expression in 1980 with the publication of the World

Conservation Strategy (G.A. Res. 7, U.N. GAOR 36th Sess., Supp. No. 51, U.N. Doc. A/51 (1982)) by

the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), but its formulation brewed in the

environmental debates of the 1960' to 1970's. (see also, J.G. Robinson, The Limits to Caring: Sustainable

Living and the Loss of Biodiversity, 7 CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 20, 21-22 (1984)) and expressed

more fully at the United Nations Conference on the Environment in 1972, which produced the

Stockholm Declaration on Human Environment (U.N. Doc. A/C. 48/14 (1972), reprinted in 11 I.L.M.

1461 (1972). Yet the term 'sustainable development,' is most commonly traced to the World Commission

on Environment and Development (WCED) or Brundtland Commission in the book, Our Common

Future,1987.

[427] Gary D. Meyers and Simone C. Muller, "The Ethical Implications, Political Ramifications and Practical

Limitations of Adopting Sustainable Development as National and International Policy", Buffalo

Environmental Law Journal, Fall, 1996, p.2

[428] Helen Endre-Stacy, "Sustaining ESD in Australia", Chicago-Kent Law Review, 69, 1994 p.2

[429] Edward Christie, Environmental Legislation, Sustainable Resource Use and Scientific Terminology:

Issues in Statutory Interpretation, 7 EPLJ 262, p.263 (December, 1990)

[430] Gary D. Meyers and Simone C. Muller, 1996

[431] Robert Allan, How to Save the World, p.23

[432] Margaret Thatcher, Speech to the Royal Society (September 27, 1988), quoted in Meyers, p.4

[433] See Edward Barbier, The Concept of Sustainable Economic Development, Environmental Conservation

101, 103 (1987), p.14, David Pearce, Sustainable Development and Cost Benefit Analysis (London

Environmental Economics Center Paper 88-101 (1988), J. Pezzy, Economic Analysis of Sustainable

Growth and Sustainable Development, World Bank Environment Development Working Paper NO. 15,

May, 1989

[434] Such as Robert Goodland & George Ledoc, Neo Classical Economics and the Principles of Sustainable

Development, 38 Ecological Modeling (1987). Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem

Brundtland is also well known for such a focus.

[435] Richard B. Norgaard, Sustainable Development: A Co-Evolutionary View, Futures 606, 607(Dec.

1988)

[436] Meyers and Muller, 1996, p.15

[437] Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, Including Trade in Counterfeit

Goods, Dec. 15, 1993, 33 I.L.M. 81 (1994)

[438] Supra, note 423

[439] Charles R. Mcmanis, The Interface Between International Intellectual Property and Environmental

Protection: Biodiversity and Biotechnology, University of Washington Law Quarterly, Vol.76, no.1,

Spring 1998

[440] Although as will be noted later, criticism has been offered that it was formulated without the recognition

of many of the concerns of a number of minority groups.

[441] Mcmanis, p.11

[442] Ibid, p.12

[443] Christopher Joyce, Earthly Goods: Medicine-Hunting in the Raniforest, (1994) p.108 (cited by Mcmanis,

footnote 87)

[444] `Abdu'l-Bahá, Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 239

[446] Gary D. Meyers and Simone C. Muller, "The Ethical Implications, Political Ramifications and Practical Limitations of Adopting Sustainable Development as National and International Policy", Buffalo

Environmental Law Journal, Fall, 1996, p.25

[447] Unless of course improvement means the correction of previously caused degradation to an ecosystems,

but then such improvement can only be really considered restoration of a previous baseline of ecological

relationships rather than an actual improvement relative to pre-human interaction.

[448] Ibid, p. 27

[449] Alex Geisinger, "Sustainable Development and the Domination of Nature: Spreading the Seed of the

Western Ideology of Nature" , Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review, p.3, 27, 1999

[450] Arthur Lyon Dahl, The Eco Principle: Ecology and Economics in Symbiosis, George Ronald, Oxford,

1996, p.85

[451] Ibid, p.22

[452] United Nations, 1993, p.9

[453] Warren, 1994 'Sustainable Development', Bioethics, pg. 2458)