It is evident that prejudices arising
from adherence to religious forms and imitation of ancestral beliefs have
hindered the progress of humanity thousands of years. How many wars and battles
have been fought, how much division, discord and hatred have been caused by
this form of prejudice! But inasmuch as this century is a century of the
revelation of reality -- praise be to God! -- the thoughts of men are being
directed toward the welfare and unity of humanity. Daily the mirage of
imitations is passing away, and the ocean of truth is surging more
tumultuously.
(‘Abdu’l-Baha, excerpt from a talk given on 21 April 1912 in
Washington D.C.; 'The Promulgation of Universal Peace')
