In the Treatise on Civil Polity (Risāla-yi Madaniyya), ʻAbdu’l-Bahá endorses religious governance and the role of the clergies, even advising the King of Iran that the Qur’an and the sayings of the Prophet’s Household should serve as the foundation of national law. Yet in the Treatise on Politics (Risāla-yi Siyasiyya), he vehemently denounces the clergy, Islam, and theocratic rule—portraying them as the root causes of Iran’s backwardness.
