Or it could be that God doesn't communicate with anyone directly at all. Those who claim to be "His Messengers" could very well be lying.
It could be that, but to assume that without even checking out what a Messenger wrote and did on His Mission is somewhat presumptuous, given there is a lot at stake if a certain Messenger actually spoke for an Almighty God.
This is common to all religions. They always claim that they have the "true message" and the "true word of God," while also claiming that other religions are false and that punishment awaits them for turning away from the "true word."
Sure all religious people claim that, all people have an ego and a stake in being right, but that does not mean they are right. Moreover, the fact that they all say they are the only true religion does not mean that they are the only true religion.
Logically speaking, if religions contradict each other, they cannot all be true. However, parts of what each one of them teaches can indeed be true. That is the Baha’i belief. All of what was originally revealed by God to a Messenger and ascribed to Him in scriptures is true, but over the centuries the older scriptures have been changed so much by various translations and interpretations, so they no longer represent the pristine Word of God. As such, there is really no way to determine how much of what is in the scriptures is the truth from God.
I feel that as long as one remains true to oneself and stays true to one's own personal beliefs, regardless of whether they come from a messenger or a holy book, then that should be sufficient. It doesn't really matter what one believes, as long as one is sincere. If someone chooses to believe in the Flying Spaghetti Monster or the Great Pumpkin, that should be considered just as valid as any belief, as long as they remain true to that belief.
Yes and no. I think it is important to have the knowledge of God, but that is because I believe God exists. If one is sincere and their deeds and morals are good, regardless of whether they believe in God and regardless of whether their beliefs come from a messenger or a holy book, they are far better off than one who claims his belief in words but whose actions are not good. Those are the hypocrites.
It's the hypocrites and liars you have to watch out for. Those who say one thing and do something different. Those who don't fulfill their oaths or fail to live up to their own stated principles, regardless of what they might be.
We all have different capacities so we can only do what we are capable of but we should not profess one thing and do another. Sincerity and effort are what is most important.
As an agnostic, I say "I don't know if there's a God," and that's a true and honest statement to make from my point of view. I don't know if some messenger or holy book is really true - and I can't really see how anyone else can claim to know either.
That is a very sincere statement, you don’t know. Others do know but how we know is unique to each individual. We cannot prove that what we believe is true, all we can do is explain how we know, to those who are interested in knowing that.
Even if it's true that God only speaks to His Messengers, then if *I* don't get to speak directly to any of the "messengers," then how can I trust the messengers of the messengers? How can I trust any holy book which is rewritten and revised, not by the actual "messengers," but by their followers after their death?
Those are very good questions. As I always say, I am just a messenger for the Messenger so all I do is point people to the mailbox where He delivered the mail. Nobody should believe anything I say about the Messenger. People have to go to the mailbox and get the mail He delivered, open it up and read it for themselves.
Much unlike the Holy Bible which was written by men, not by Jesus, Bahaullah wrote His own scriptures with His Own Pen or he dictated to His secretary who transcribed them as He spoke, after which time Bahaullah read over what was written to ensure its accuracy and only then did He stamp the Tablets with His Official Seal. His handwriting has been authenticated by modern technology so we know it is authentic. For the first time in the history of religion, we now have the actual writings of the Messenger of God. This is unprecedented.
The Original Writings of Baha’u’llah are kept in a vault for safekeeping in Haifa Israel. Nobody has access to them except the Universal House of Justice, who authorizes and coordinates their translation into English and other languages.
Is God truly going to fault me for being leery and skeptical of some snake-oil salesman and not taking a leap of faith? As long as I stay true to my own beliefs and remain honest with myself, then how can God fault me, even if you think it's the "wrong" belief?
What I think does not matter one iota. The only thing that matters is what is true, but everyone has to determine that for themselves, if they care to. In the Baha’i Faith, that is called the independent investigation of truth:
How to Independently Investigate the Truth
God is not going to fault you for being skeptical; in fact God wants you to be skeptical because otherwise you could easily get duped. It is better to have no belief than to have a false belief, because once someone has a false belief it is difficult to extricate themselves from that, but as an agnostic you can always come to discover the truth if you are a sincere seeker of truth.
