Reform Bahai Faith
2009-09-12 12:30:52 UTC
Universal Religion, Brotherhood, and Peace
A Sketch of the History and Teachings of the Bahai Movement
http://www.reformbahai.org/about_universal_religion.html
The object of the Bahai Movement is the establishment of universal
religion, which will be the foundation of interreligious, interracial,
and international brotherhood and peace. It offers to mankind a
practical basis of unity, one which is in direct line with the great
world needs of our time. It is paving the way for the great universal
civilization which will evolve as people of all religions, races, and
nations unite both spiritually and materially into one world order.
The Bab (The Gate)
This movement began in Persia in 1844, with the rise of a teacher known
as the Bab, a John-the-Baptist figure, who proclaimed the coming of a
greater teacher whose mission would be that of establishing universal
religion, the brotherhood of man, and universal peace. The Bab, a
reformer within Islam, was but the forerunner or herald of this greater
teacher who was to come, and to this Promised One and to His cause the
Bab and thousands of his followers testified by suffering martyrdom
inflicted upon them by Muslims under the charge of heresy.
Baha’u’llah (The Glory of God)
Shortly after the martyrdom of the Bab, the great teacher and world
reformer who was promised appeared in the person of Baha’u’llah (1863),
from whom the movement now takes its name. His mission lasted forty
years, during which time he was subjected to all manner of imprisonment
and suffering at the hands of Oriental despots, because of his teaching,
which brought freedom of thought and enlightenment to all people who
heard it. Baha’u’llah was sent in exile as a prisoner from Iran to
Baghdad, to Adrianople at the southern edge of Europe, and then
eventually incarcerated in the Turkish penal colony of Akka, Syria,
where, after having given His great teaching of universality to
humanity, He passed naturally from this world in the year 1892.
Abdu’l-Baha (Servant of the Glory)
Abdu’l-Baha, the son of Baha’u’llah, was the one chosen by his father to
further establish this great movement and to explain and demonstrate it
before the world. He was constantly at his father's side during the
exile and imprisonment of the latter, and was in every way Baha’u’llah’s
chief disciple. For forty years Abdu’l-Baha was a prisoner in the
fortress of Akka, held there by the Sultan of Turkey for no other reason
than that his teaching was bringing enlightenment and freedom of thought
to all who came within the radius of its power. With the fall of the old
despotic regime of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of the
present constitutional rule, which occurred in the summer of 1908, he
was liberated from prison. During the summer and fall of 1911, he
visited England and France, where he spent some months in teaching his
Interpretation of Baha'u'llah's Teachings for the modern world. From
there he traveled to the United States, speaking across the country to
early American Bahais and others from New York to Chicago, Iowa and San
Francisco, and elsewhere, addressing people in churches, lecture halls,
and universities. Abdu’l-Baha wished to be known as the servant of
humanity. He sought no higher station. As the “Master” of Baha’u’llah’s
Teachings, he set the Example of self-sacrificing love, compassion, and
service to humankind that Bahais strive to emulate.
Abdul-Baha continued to pray at a mosque until the end of his life, even
as he continued to teach and spread the knowledge of the universal
teachings of Baha'u'llah and Bahai communities grew and developed in
both the East and West. Reform Bahais believe it's a matter of
individual conscience whether and how someone continues to worship with
the traditional religious community of one's heritage. As recorded in
Abdul-Baha in London, it is up to the individual to define his or her
relationship to the Bahai Cause: "You can be a Bahai-Christian, a
Bahai-Freemason, a Bahai-Jew, a Bahai-Muhammadan. The number nine
contains eight, and seven, and all the other numbers, and does not deny
any of them. Do not distress or deny anyone by saying 'He is not a
Bahai!' He will be known by his deeds" (98).
Bahai Teachings
The Bahai philosophy is simplicity itself. It is expressed in this short
quotation from Baha’u’llah’s writings, “The root of all knowledge is the
knowledge of God.” Each of the world’s great spiritual teachers has
taught the same eternal Truth, revealing it in the measure and in terms
applicable to the people of his time. This truth has ever been the
mainspring and source of human advancement and civilization.
Relation of the Bahai Movement to the Religions of the Past
The people of each religion look for the coming of a prophet or teacher
who will fulfill the hopes of their own teaching and establish the truth
in the world. The Christians look for the coming of the Christ (spirit),
and the establishment of Christ's Kingdom ; the Jews await the coming of
their Messiah and God's Kingdom on earth; the Muslims believe that the
Mahdi will come and prepare the way for the coming of the Lord and the
Kingdom; the Zoroastrians have prophecies relating to the coming of Shah
Bahram; the Hindus believe that the divine spirit Krishna will speak
again to the world for the enlightenment of the people; and the
Buddhists look for the coming of the great Fifth Buddha or Maitreya,
whose mission will be that of bringing a general worldwide spiritual
enlightenment.
Bahais believe that all the prophecies of all traditions have been
fulfilled in the appearance of Baha’u’llah. His universal Teachings
offer the spiritual and practical solutions for both the individual and
the global problems of today. The Bahai teachings confirm all religious
teachings which have gone before, and offer a practical philosophy which
meets the present day spiritual needs of humanity, free from the
exclusivism, triumphalism, and fanaticsim of past Dispensations.
Baha’u’llah wrote many books and epistles, in which He demonstrates the
oneness of the spirit of all of the former religious teachings; also
treating of the present teaching in its relations to the religions of
the past. Many of these writings were in reply to special questions
asked by men of learning and were therefore written from various points
of thought, Muslim, Jewish, Christian, etc. The writings and example of
Abdu’l-Baha are explanatory and interpretative of the teachings of
Baha’u’llah, bringing them into the modern, democratic, pluralistic
realm of the twentieth century, until his passing in 1921, and laying
the foundation for a spiritual vision beyond even his own Islamic
heritage, as well as that of the other religions, looking towards what
is held in commond, truly universal, the transcendent heritage and
oneness of humanity.
Social Reforms, Laws and Ordinances
In addition to the purely spiritual teachings of Baha’u’llah, He ordered
certain changes in the manners and customs of people, through the
observance of which the world in general will be helped both
materially and spiritually. He advises the Bahais to be tolerant, and in
no way to separate themselves from other people, nor denounce those of
other beliefs. All men are free to believe as they wish, but all are
exhorted to unite in faith and to lay aside the prejudices and
superstitions of past ages. Warfare should be abolished and
international questions settled by arbitration, consultation, and
negotiation. A universal language is favored as a means of bringing
people together in unity. Legislation should be representative. The
Bahais should be peaceful and law-abiding citizens. Their thought should
be humanitarian before all else. Faith without works is not acceptable.
One's worship should be supplemented by a pure and useful life in the
world. Men and women should marry. Asceticism is discouraged. Monogamy
is taught. Harshness and hatred are to be overcome by gentleness and
love. Man should not use intoxicants as a beverage. Opium and kindred
drug habits are denounced, as is also gambling.
The practical affairs of the Bahai movement are conducted by assemblies
of consultation, composed of nine democratically elected members.
Eventually there will be a general assembly of consultation composed of
representatives from all parts of the world. This, when properly
elected, will be known as “The Universal House of Justice.”
Adapted from Charles Mason Remey, 1912.
Reform Bahai Faith
Rochester, Michigan USA
www.ReformBahai.org
Yahoo Group - ReformBahai
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ReformBahai
A Sketch of the History and Teachings of the Bahai Movement
http://www.reformbahai.org/about_universal_religion.html
The object of the Bahai Movement is the establishment of universal
religion, which will be the foundation of interreligious, interracial,
and international brotherhood and peace. It offers to mankind a
practical basis of unity, one which is in direct line with the great
world needs of our time. It is paving the way for the great universal
civilization which will evolve as people of all religions, races, and
nations unite both spiritually and materially into one world order.
The Bab (The Gate)
This movement began in Persia in 1844, with the rise of a teacher known
as the Bab, a John-the-Baptist figure, who proclaimed the coming of a
greater teacher whose mission would be that of establishing universal
religion, the brotherhood of man, and universal peace. The Bab, a
reformer within Islam, was but the forerunner or herald of this greater
teacher who was to come, and to this Promised One and to His cause the
Bab and thousands of his followers testified by suffering martyrdom
inflicted upon them by Muslims under the charge of heresy.
Baha’u’llah (The Glory of God)
Shortly after the martyrdom of the Bab, the great teacher and world
reformer who was promised appeared in the person of Baha’u’llah (1863),
from whom the movement now takes its name. His mission lasted forty
years, during which time he was subjected to all manner of imprisonment
and suffering at the hands of Oriental despots, because of his teaching,
which brought freedom of thought and enlightenment to all people who
heard it. Baha’u’llah was sent in exile as a prisoner from Iran to
Baghdad, to Adrianople at the southern edge of Europe, and then
eventually incarcerated in the Turkish penal colony of Akka, Syria,
where, after having given His great teaching of universality to
humanity, He passed naturally from this world in the year 1892.
Abdu’l-Baha (Servant of the Glory)
Abdu’l-Baha, the son of Baha’u’llah, was the one chosen by his father to
further establish this great movement and to explain and demonstrate it
before the world. He was constantly at his father's side during the
exile and imprisonment of the latter, and was in every way Baha’u’llah’s
chief disciple. For forty years Abdu’l-Baha was a prisoner in the
fortress of Akka, held there by the Sultan of Turkey for no other reason
than that his teaching was bringing enlightenment and freedom of thought
to all who came within the radius of its power. With the fall of the old
despotic regime of the Ottoman Empire and the establishment of the
present constitutional rule, which occurred in the summer of 1908, he
was liberated from prison. During the summer and fall of 1911, he
visited England and France, where he spent some months in teaching his
Interpretation of Baha'u'llah's Teachings for the modern world. From
there he traveled to the United States, speaking across the country to
early American Bahais and others from New York to Chicago, Iowa and San
Francisco, and elsewhere, addressing people in churches, lecture halls,
and universities. Abdu’l-Baha wished to be known as the servant of
humanity. He sought no higher station. As the “Master” of Baha’u’llah’s
Teachings, he set the Example of self-sacrificing love, compassion, and
service to humankind that Bahais strive to emulate.
Abdul-Baha continued to pray at a mosque until the end of his life, even
as he continued to teach and spread the knowledge of the universal
teachings of Baha'u'llah and Bahai communities grew and developed in
both the East and West. Reform Bahais believe it's a matter of
individual conscience whether and how someone continues to worship with
the traditional religious community of one's heritage. As recorded in
Abdul-Baha in London, it is up to the individual to define his or her
relationship to the Bahai Cause: "You can be a Bahai-Christian, a
Bahai-Freemason, a Bahai-Jew, a Bahai-Muhammadan. The number nine
contains eight, and seven, and all the other numbers, and does not deny
any of them. Do not distress or deny anyone by saying 'He is not a
Bahai!' He will be known by his deeds" (98).
Bahai Teachings
The Bahai philosophy is simplicity itself. It is expressed in this short
quotation from Baha’u’llah’s writings, “The root of all knowledge is the
knowledge of God.” Each of the world’s great spiritual teachers has
taught the same eternal Truth, revealing it in the measure and in terms
applicable to the people of his time. This truth has ever been the
mainspring and source of human advancement and civilization.
Relation of the Bahai Movement to the Religions of the Past
The people of each religion look for the coming of a prophet or teacher
who will fulfill the hopes of their own teaching and establish the truth
in the world. The Christians look for the coming of the Christ (spirit),
and the establishment of Christ's Kingdom ; the Jews await the coming of
their Messiah and God's Kingdom on earth; the Muslims believe that the
Mahdi will come and prepare the way for the coming of the Lord and the
Kingdom; the Zoroastrians have prophecies relating to the coming of Shah
Bahram; the Hindus believe that the divine spirit Krishna will speak
again to the world for the enlightenment of the people; and the
Buddhists look for the coming of the great Fifth Buddha or Maitreya,
whose mission will be that of bringing a general worldwide spiritual
enlightenment.
Bahais believe that all the prophecies of all traditions have been
fulfilled in the appearance of Baha’u’llah. His universal Teachings
offer the spiritual and practical solutions for both the individual and
the global problems of today. The Bahai teachings confirm all religious
teachings which have gone before, and offer a practical philosophy which
meets the present day spiritual needs of humanity, free from the
exclusivism, triumphalism, and fanaticsim of past Dispensations.
Baha’u’llah wrote many books and epistles, in which He demonstrates the
oneness of the spirit of all of the former religious teachings; also
treating of the present teaching in its relations to the religions of
the past. Many of these writings were in reply to special questions
asked by men of learning and were therefore written from various points
of thought, Muslim, Jewish, Christian, etc. The writings and example of
Abdu’l-Baha are explanatory and interpretative of the teachings of
Baha’u’llah, bringing them into the modern, democratic, pluralistic
realm of the twentieth century, until his passing in 1921, and laying
the foundation for a spiritual vision beyond even his own Islamic
heritage, as well as that of the other religions, looking towards what
is held in commond, truly universal, the transcendent heritage and
oneness of humanity.
Social Reforms, Laws and Ordinances
In addition to the purely spiritual teachings of Baha’u’llah, He ordered
certain changes in the manners and customs of people, through the
observance of which the world in general will be helped both
materially and spiritually. He advises the Bahais to be tolerant, and in
no way to separate themselves from other people, nor denounce those of
other beliefs. All men are free to believe as they wish, but all are
exhorted to unite in faith and to lay aside the prejudices and
superstitions of past ages. Warfare should be abolished and
international questions settled by arbitration, consultation, and
negotiation. A universal language is favored as a means of bringing
people together in unity. Legislation should be representative. The
Bahais should be peaceful and law-abiding citizens. Their thought should
be humanitarian before all else. Faith without works is not acceptable.
One's worship should be supplemented by a pure and useful life in the
world. Men and women should marry. Asceticism is discouraged. Monogamy
is taught. Harshness and hatred are to be overcome by gentleness and
love. Man should not use intoxicants as a beverage. Opium and kindred
drug habits are denounced, as is also gambling.
The practical affairs of the Bahai movement are conducted by assemblies
of consultation, composed of nine democratically elected members.
Eventually there will be a general assembly of consultation composed of
representatives from all parts of the world. This, when properly
elected, will be known as “The Universal House of Justice.”
Adapted from Charles Mason Remey, 1912.
Reform Bahai Faith
Rochester, Michigan USA
www.ReformBahai.org
Yahoo Group - ReformBahai
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ReformBahai