Baha’i

Anyone who thinks the major religions are a little out dated and needed updating should look at the teachings of Baha’i. After studying the texts they seem to be our creator’s effort to update the major religions. The Baha’i religion originated in the mid 1800s and the teachings make a lot of sense to me. They also contain the same core message of all other religions without all of the hate and intolerance that other religions have seemed to adopt. This text is a good transition from the Bible or Koran and precedes the advanced studies of the Urantia Book.

Baha’i religion teaches that all religions had their time and purpose and were given to mankind by our creator to meet the needs of humans at that point in time. Baha’i writings say this:

The purpose of religion as revealed from the heaven of God's holy Will is to establish unity and concord amongst the peoples of the world; make it not the cause of dissension and strife. The unbelievers and the faithless have set their minds on four things: first, the shedding of blood; second, the burning of books; third, the shunning of the followers of other religions; fourth, the extermination of other communities and groups.

This is what the major religions have become, tools of hate and intolerance and competitive nature. Baha’i takes the central message of the major religions and updates it to a message for today. It highlights the core message that the other religions have buried with all of their extra doctrine and control mechanisms. This was taken from one of the many Baha’i websites,

“Baha’is believe that there is only one God, the Creator of the universe. Throughout history, God has revealed Himself to humanity through a series of divine Messengers, each of whom has founded a great religion. The Messengers have included Abraham, Krishna, Zoroaster, Moses, Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad. This succession of divine Teachers reflects a single historic "plan of God" for educating humanity about the Creator and for cultivating the spiritual, intellectual, and moral capacities of the race. The goal has been to develop the innate noble characteristics of every human being, and to prepare the way for an advancing global civilization. Knowledge of God's will for humanity in the modern age, Baha’is believe, was revealed just over one hundred years ago by Baha’u’llah, who is the latest of these divine Messengers.” (http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-0-1.html)

Baha’u’llah took the core foundations of the major religions and updated them to make sense to humans and their increasing intelligence. The other messengers gave the message for their time. Each message was meant for the humans living in that age. Here is something from the texts that say this.

The measure of the revelation of the Prophets of God in this world, however, must differ. Each and every one of them hath been the Bearer of a distinct Message, and hath been commissioned to reveal Himself through specific acts. It is for this reason that they appear to vary in their greatness. Their Revelation may be likened unto the light of the moon that sheddeth its radiance upon the earth. Though every time it appeareth, it revealeth a fresh measure of its brightness, yet its inherent splendor can never diminish, nor can its light suffer extinction.

It is clear and evident, therefore, that any apparent variation in the intensity of their light is not inherent in the light itself, but should rather be attributed to the varying receptivity of an ever-changing world. Every Prophet Whom the Almighty and Peerless Creator hath purposed to send to the peoples of the earth hath been entrusted with a Message, and charged to act in a manner that would best meet the requirements of the age in which He appeared. God's purpose in sending His Prophets unto men is twofold. The first is to liberate the children of men from the darkness of ignorance, and guide them to the light of true understanding. The second is to ensure the peace and tranquility of mankind, and provide all the means by which they can be established.

Baha’i writings teach that humans can learn the truth by educating themselves and by research and reading. This is something I have been saying for many years, stop following blindly and educate yourself.

“Regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value. Education can, alone, cause it to reveal its treasures, and enable mankind to benefit therefrom."13 Every person, He asserts, is capable of recognizing God; all that is needed is a degree of detachment:”

This education must be accompanied by a devotion to making yourself clean and detached from the things of this temporary physical world. Focusing on learning and changing your behavior and incorrect beliefs will lead you on a path to enlightenment.

“When the channel of the human soul is cleansed of all worldly and impeding attachments, it will unfailingly perceive the breath of the Beloved across immeasurable distances, and will, led by its perfume, attain and enter the City of Certitude.

...That city is none other than the Word of God revealed in every age and dispensation.... All the guidance, the blessings, the learning, the understanding, the faith, and certitude, conferred upon all that is in heaven and on earth, are hidden and treasured within these Cities.”

By learning and changing your ways, you will draw closer to God and our creators and will greatly enrich your life and give you a chance to progress in the spiritual life, or possibly even saved from the destruction of this world. The website says it best.

“What does the Baha’i Faith see as the purpose of human existence? What is the true nature of human beings and what role does religion play in our spiritual development? What is "good" and what is "evil" ? What are man's responsibilities to God and what is the spiritual meaning of life? Many people live their lives without ever reflecting on life itself or its meaning for them. Their lives may be full of activities. They may marry, have children, run a business, or become scientists or musicians, without ever obtaining any degree of understanding of why they do these things. Their lives have no overall purpose to give meaning to separate events, and they may have no clear idea of their own nature or identity, of who they really are.

Baha’u’llah taught that only true religion can give purpose to human existence. If there were no Creator, if humans were simply chance products of a thermodynamic system, as many in the world today assert, there would be no purpose in life. Each individual human being would represent the temporary material existence of a conscious animal trying to move through his or her brief life with as much pleasure and as little pain and suffering as possible.

It is only in relation to the Creator, and the purpose which that Creator has fixed for His creatures, that human existence has any meaning. Baha’u’llah described God's purpose for man in the following way:

The purpose of God in creating man hath been, and will ever be, to enable him to know his Creator and to attain His Presence. To this most excellent aim, this supreme objective, all the heavenly Books and the divinely-revealed and weighty Scriptures unequivocally bear witness.2 Life should be seen as an eternal process of joyous spiritual discovery and growth: in the beginning stages of earthly life, the individual undergoes a period of training and education which, if it is successful, gives him or her the basic intellectual and spiritual tools necessary for continued growth. When individuals attain physical maturity in adulthood, they become responsible for their further progress, which now depends entirely on the efforts they themselves make. Through the daily struggles of material existence, people gradually deepen their understanding of the spiritual principles underlying reality, and this understanding enables them to relate more effectively to themselves, to others, and to God. After physical death, the individual continues to grow and develop in the spiritual world, which is greater than the physical world, just as the physical world is greater than the world we inhabit while in our mother's womb.

This last statement is based on the Baha’i concept of the soul and of life after physical death . According to the Baha’i teachings, the true nature of human beings is spiritual. Beyond the physical body, each human being has a rational soul, created by God. This soul is a nonmaterial entity, which does not depend on the body. Rather, the body serves as its vehicle in the physical world. The soul of an individual comes into being at the moment the physical body is conceived and continues to exist after the death of the physical body. The soul (also called the spirit) of the individual is the seat or locus of his or her personality, self, and consciousness.

The evolution or development of the soul and its capacities is the basic purpose of human existence. This evolution is towards God and its motive force is knowledge of God and love for Him. As we learn about God, our love for Him increases; and this, in turn, enables us to attain a closer communion with our Creator. Also, as we draw closer to God, our character becomes more refined and our actions reflect more and more the attributes and qualities of God.

Baha’u’llah taught that this potential to reflect the attributes of God is the soul's essential reality. It is the meaning of human beings being created "in the image of God." The divine qualities are not external to the soul. They are latent within it, just as the color, the fragrance, and the vitality of a flower are latent within the seed. They need only to be developed. In the words of Baha’u’llah:

Upon the inmost reality of each and every created thing He [God] hath shed the light of one of His names, and made it a recipient of the glory of one of His attributes. Upon the reality of man, however, He hath focused the radiance of all His names and attributes, and made it a mirror of His own self. Alone of all created things man hath been singled out for so great a favor, so enduring a bounty.3

The Bahá'í writings refer to the gradual evolution or development of the individual soul as "spiritual progress." Spiritual progress means acquiring the capacity to act in conformity with the Will of God and to express the attributes and spirit of God in one's dealings with one's self and with other human beings. Baha’u’llah teaches that the only true and enduring happiness for human beings lies in the pursuit of spiritual development.”

I will not reproduce every page of the Baha’i website; you can read for yourself the writings and teachings of this religion. I believe it is the updated version of the major religions, and now I can hopefully take it that final step into our total understanding of our existence and the existence of our creators.

Some other noteworthy sentences from the Baha’i writings give a glimpse into what we know today.

“The learned men, that have fixed at several thousand years the life of this earth, have failed, throughout the long period of their observation, to consider either the number or the age of the other planets. Consider, moreover, the manifold divergences that have resulted from the theories propounded by these men. Know thou that every fixed star hath its own planets, and every planet its own creatures, whose number no man can compute.”

Here is one that is especially dear to me.

Behold how the dream thou hast dreamed is, after the lapse of many years, re-enacted before thine eyes. Consider how strange is the mystery of the world that appeareth to thee in thy dream. Ponder in thine heart upon the unsearchable wisdom of God, and meditate on its manifold revelations....

Witness the wondrous evidences of God's handiwork, and reflect upon its range and character. He who is the Seal of the Prophets hath said: "Increase my wonder and amazement at Thee, O God!"

I highly encourage you to read and learn the teachings of this religion. It is relevant to this modern age. It will help you in your search for the truth.

http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-0-1.html

http://www.bahaullah.com/bahaullah-writings-god-part1.html