Trustworthiness. Not a word that makes it into the news as being an important idea, but Baha’u’llah reminds us that this quality is the basis of human civilization.  Think about it.  How are government and financial institutions successful?  Because people trust them. If trust in society’s institutions is threatened, the entire basis of society itself is threatened.  If trustworthiness is not valued in society, there is no amount of clever maneuvering by legal or any other institution that can replace it.  We become like a leaky bucket with irreparable holes that can’t be filled by any other patch.

Trustworthiness is a quality highly esteemed by Baha’u’llah and, as this quote tells us, is necessary for our “stability”, “security”, and “tranquility” as a society.

In the latest presentation on Modern Perspectives, Dr Augusto Lopez-Carlos reflects on this and other spiritual and moral principles and how they intersect with economics, from a Baha’i perspective. His talk may be found here.