Baha'i

[Romani Vixen]

I've only seen a couple things about the Baha'i faith. They've really gotten my attention. I'm going to be doing a lot more reading on it, but does anyone have a good overview of the faith? Good links? Any Baha'i followers on MW?


Thanks!

[Theres]

does this mean you're Baha'i curious? ;)

[Aine of the Fae]

Oh, Greenman, that was really, really bad :lol:

Romani, I believe Baha'i is sort of a blend of all religions, kind of an "all paths lead to the same source, but you have to go through Baha'i to get all the way" sort of thing, but I'm not all that sure of that either...

[Khuinaset]

I don't know how much help this will be, but here's (http://www.beliefnet.com/index/index_10041.asp) the Beliefnet page on it, and here's (http://www.beliefnet.com/boards/boards_main.AllCategories.asp?Category=81) the discussion boards. Which should at least give you the basics and a place to ask questions to fairly knowledgeable(I'd assume) people about it :)

[Romani Vixen]

I've done more reading... not sure.
**herm**

well... buddhism is still more interesting for me! :) lol

and Greenman... you're baaaaaaaddddd!!! lol

[Nighthawk]

Bahai is fascinating... I had a friend years ago his family very, very into it.. I would class it somewhere along the lines of Unitarian..simply for its openness..

[Tullip Troll]

I knew a couple who practised that and they were wonderful people with such a good additude on everything.
I used to think they were on something.

MheraPai unlimited

[Nighthawk]

Yup... Iknow what you mean... My friend and his parents were peaceful peaceful...I loved going over there.. would have liked to move in , too

[Ron]

My friend is a Bahaě... It is a wonderful religion in principle. "Be ye as the fingers of one hand, members of one body."

My tradition considers them a cult offspring and mixing of many religions. Why?

But Bahaěs are not allowed to participate in polictical elections of any kind. «« do they believe that the only way to peace is anarchy????

Every word in their "divine scriptures" is "truth". «« that is a culty way to act.

If you question anything in their books they aren't very receptive towards you.«« cult :(

They do not believe in the Great Spirit or a God as living in all things. They believe God is a separate entity. «« I agree with them on the last statement, but I also believe in the Great Spirit that lives in all things.

Bahaěs prefer to be with each other and dislike communicating with people who are not in their religion. I suppose the same is true of others, but it is with them a problem that leads to some members of their "religion" being completely afraid of meeting new people, for fear that these new people are against the Bahai way of life.

Anyway, Martha, a Bahai, is my best friend... so I just live with it... I really don't care... although meeting her, I really had to force her to talk, cause she was soo afraid....

Other note: Bahais should have rules about physical exercise, because IMO I was at one of their conferences and a lot of them seemed to be overweight... I dunno why I'm saying this... sorry people... Martha's Dad is fit as a fiddle though... :p

Terynfydd!

[Morr]

all i know is that theres the Bahi' Gardens up in Haifa, here in Israel - and its absolutely beautiful up there!
I now that Bahi' pilgrims go to visit there every year.

[autumn_beauty]

Before I can to the conclusion that Paganism was the only path for me, I tried Baha'i out. Baha'i on the surface seems cool- the accepting of the religions and all...but they don't accept or even mention a Goddess or anthing remotely Pagan. I couldn't deal with that. There are also many beliefs and practices that stem from its Islamic roots- fasting, views on things etc.... But, if you're still interested there are tons of sites online-- just go to Yahoo and search "Baha'i"

[farm girl]

I have several close Baha'i friends and I have spent a good amount of time with the Baha'i group in my area. They have been very welcoming and interesting people. I have needed to study religion a great deal through my college courses. To my delight, they have engaged in many thought provoking conversations and supported any need for a little first hand information on their faith. (there is a large well read, Persian group in my area)

The Baha'i Faith is an independant religion. Its origins go back to Iran, where most Baha'is have fled from due to persecution. Basically, they believe in several manifestations. These included: (if I remember correctly) Abraham, Krishna, Moses, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, the Bab, and Baha'u'allah.

They teach equality of race and gender.
universal education (though if it comes down to it- women should have educations before men)
neither science, nor religion is wrong
abstaining from politics
abstaining from military service
relieving poverty

You can feel the Islamic influence of the founder. As mentioned, fast is similiar. There are also many arabic and farsi undertones. The times of prayer are quite like those of the Islamic faith, as well as their practices for burial.

If you would like to buy books, this is a good place to get Baha'i goods.
http://www.special-ideas.com

[farm girl]

I remembered one more manifestations- Zoroaster!

[halfwaynowhere]

someone i go to school with is Baha'i.... we talked about it once freshmen year, but i don't really remember that conversation so much anymore... he doesn't talk much about his faith...