Since all of the Manifestations of God derive their authority from the same Source, it is therefore possible to know the latest Manifestation if one knows the qualities and attributes of One Who appeared in a former age.
The great majority of the followers of the world's religions... are taught to believe only in one Messenger of God. While sincere in their belief that their religion is true and divine in origin, they often have not recognized the reality of their own Prophet. There is a great deal of difference between having knowledge of a religion and knowing the reality of the Founder of one's Faith. For example, a man may possess a piece of gold and may know that it is precious, yet be unable to distinguish gold from brass. Such a man will fail to recognize a new piece of gold when he sees it.
The Bahá'í Faith, the youngest of the world's independent religions, does not see itself as one more religious system to be superimposed on the conflicting creeds that divide humankind, but rather as a restatement of the eternal verities underlying all the religions of the past. It upholds the unity of God, recognizes the unity of His Prophets, and inculcates the principle of the oneness and wholeness of the entire human race.