Unity and Progressive Revelation:
Comparing Bahá'í Principles with the Basic Concepts of Teilhard de Chardin

by Wolfgang A. Klebel

Abstract: This catching up of the "thinking world" with the Bahá'í Principles will be the point of comparison of this paper, which attempts to "correlate with the Bahá'í teachings" the corresponding concepts of Teilhard de Chardin, whose books created a sensation in European intellectual circles when they were first published. This correlation will allow to compare the Faith with the "progressive movements of today" and promote the study of the "Bahá'í teachings more deeply." (Shoghi Effendi) In the following nine chapters these points of comparison will be made:

Bahá'í Principles	Teilhard's Basic Concepts
1 Unity in diversity	Unification and differentiation
2 Independent Investigation	The phenomenon of Man in the Unity of science and religion cosmos (a purely and simply scientific treatise)
3 Progressive Revelation	"The God of Evolution," "Christ the Evolver"
4 Evil and God's providence	Evil and Evolution
5 Man's position in the universe	"Hominization" of the universe
6 Attraction and love as principle of Reality	Love and reason as principle of existence in "spirit-matter"
7 Service to an ever advancing civilization	Service in a "religion of the Earth"
8 Return of Christ in Bahá'u'lláh	"Christ must be born again"
9 Manifestations of God	The cosmic Christ"