Thank God for the Prophets.....

[Truthseeker]

Forgive me for raising this controversial subject- but I know factually that the Baha'i Faith has sects such as Orthodox Baha'i and others.

These sects usually refer to the main group as Haifan Baha'is. Note: I am not making any claim about the validity of these groups beyond acknowledging they are there. That the Baha'i religion has not remained unified.

This is actually an aspect of the Baha'is headquartered in Haifa that I'm not too impressed with. The Universal House of Justice tends to act like these other sects do not exist. Why couldn't they rather acknowledge these sects as their fellow Baha'is and find ways to work with them?

History dictates in the case of other religions that eventually these kinds of sectarian divisions must have a day of reckoning. That there comes a time where the sects are forced to sit down and discuss their similarities and differences due to external factors like politics, or in the interest of growth.

Is the Haifa Baha'i sect ever going to be ready to do this with other Baha'is? Sit down and have a reasoned discussion of things that unify all Baha'i adherents? It doesn't seem too impressive from an outsider's perspective if not.

Note: I didn't go into the sectarian divides in the Bab's following because I feel like I've said enough to respond to for now.

They are not Baha'is because they broke the written covenant. They are only a splinter group, very small. The leadership of the Baha'i Faith is laid out in a written Covenant. Some have tried to assert their own leadership despite that, and they are spiritually diseased. I don't expect you to understand.

 

[Trailblazer]

Like Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice and follow." He never says, "My sheep follow a path of deductive reasoning and conclude I am the Christ." That's a modern bastardization of spiritual reality, trying to make it a scientific thing. I consider that approach highly, and unfortunately misguided.

There is some reasoning involved, but in the end, you hear His voice or not as Christ said. I accepted Baha'u'llah first because of my response to Baha'u'llah's words. The reasoning came later. When I say evidence, I mean primarily the Word of God and our response to it.

As I recall, the same thing happened to me. I knew almost immediately that the Baha'i Faith was true. I knew from the Writings of Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha. They touched my heart. I do not know why, I was not even looking for a religion or for God.

The reasoning came later, much later, when I realized that what I believed was not contrary to reason, quite the contrary.

 

[Akivah]

Well, what you just said about the prophet spoke to their generation. Are you allowed to recognize that some of the things they said may have been factual wrong, from the perspectives of our understandings today?

No. If what these people said were false (i.e. not in accordance with the Hebrew bible), then they wouldn't have been labeled as prophets, nor included in the Jewish bible.

Also, the Torah is Eternal. It applies to our understandings from yesteryear as well as the present and the future.

 

[Truthseeker]

As I recall, the same thing happened to me. I knew almost immediately that the Baha'i Faith was true. I knew from the Writings of Baha'u'llah and Abdu'l-Baha. They touched my heart. I do not know why, I was not even looking for a religion or for God.

The reasoning came later, much later, when I realized that what I believed was not contrary to reason, quite the contrary.

And here you said earlier you only used your reason to evaluate the Baha'i Faith, or at least that's what I remember. But I knew there was something inside of you more than just reason. I'm glad you realize it wasn't just reason.

Of course all of us after we have responded to the Word must also check whether it is in accord with reason.

 

[Trailblazer]

And here you said earlier you only used your reason to evaluate the Baha'i Faith, or at least that's what I remember. But I knew there was something inside of you more than just reason. I'm glad you realize it wasn't just reason.

I would not have remembered how I became a Baha'i unless you had posted what you did...Then I remembered.

Of course all of us after we have responded to the Word must also check whether it is in accord with reason.

I did not do that till much later but it didn't matter because I did not find out I was wrong, I only realized that I had been right all along.