Baha'ism compared to Islam? (Jesus, ritual, Earth, Torah, Kingdom)

[arthra]

Salaam:

I think for me becoming a Baha'i resolved a lot of the issues between Christians and Muslims...

For instance (1) the view of many Muslims that Jesus wasn't crucified... or (2) that the Gospel was no longer avaialble to Christians..

If you read the Baha'i Writings you'll find that many of these issues and more have been resolved. Also the Kitab-i-Aqdas, the "Most Holy Book" has abrogated many aspects of Shariah law because there are new ordinances in the Baha'i Dispensation.

So take your time and feel free to explore the references that were already posted here...

- Art

[BruceDLimber]

Hi, Frank! :-)
24HourNut wrote:
[D]oes the Bible indicate a specific time frame for this Second Coming of Jesus? Is there some reason to believe it will be in our lifetime?
I realize you were addressing this question to JBF, but as you doubtless know by now, the Baha'i view is that:

• Yes, the Bible did give a specific year for the Return of the Christ Spirit, and
• Yes, it did indeed happen right on time, roughly a century and a half ago!
• So of course it already happened before our lifetimes.

(And of course, JBF disagrees.)
Best regards, :-)
Bruce

[BruceDLimber]

FRIENDS, THE SYSTEM SEEMS TO HAVE SNEEZED AND PLACED THIS MESSAGE INTO THE WRONG THREAD, SO PLEASE FEEL FREE TO IGNORE IT.


Greetings again! :-)

Originally Posted by Salaam

this is what I was trying to clarify, how could you have entered the Baha'i faith, and by doing so accepted Islam and the holy Qur'an as a Revelation from Allah(swt), even while you did not know anything about the Qur'an or Islam?

Very simple!

Because after thorough investigation and prayer I accepted Baha'u'llah as God's Messenger for this Day!

And because He endorsed Muhammad and Islam, this question ended at that point.

I have to disagree with your statement, however, that Islam is "more perfect" than the other religions: In the Baha'i view, ALL the great religions were perfect as revealed! And any deterioration or corruption in them since then (which has happened to Islam as well as the others) is the direct result of human alteration and corruption, not of any defect in the religion itself.

Peace, :-)

Bruce

[Adib]

Also, regarding the "seal of Prophets," we do believe that Muhammad fulfilled that title as in He was the last One to prophesy. We believe that Baha'u'llah is the fulfillment of all prior prophecies leading up to things like the Great Announcement in Islam, and that He is the Promised One of All Ages. This is why He says, "The Prophetic Cycle hath verily ended. The Eternal Truth is now come."

[Booko]

Originally Posted by Adib

Also, regarding the "seal of Prophets," we do believe that Muhammad fulfilled that title as in He was the last One to prophesy. We believe that Baha'u'llah is the fulfillment of all prior prophecies leading up to things like the Great Announcement in Islam, and that He is the Promised One of All Ages. This is why He says, "The Prophetic Cycle hath verily ended. The Eternal Truth is now come."

Quite so, Adib.

To clarify a little after the fact, yes, the Prophetic Cycle has ended, so we believe. But no one should assume that means there will be no more Messengers.

This is the end of one cycle....and the beginning of the next.

[Tau]

Originally Posted by Salaam

Islam came only to correct the Jewish denial of Jesus PBUH, and correct the Christian's straying fro mthe monotheistic and Godly path. why do Baha'is believe Allah(swt) revealed a whole nother text? is there any guidance whatsoever in the Baha'i text that wasnt already in the holy Qur'an?

Hardly, the religion of Islam was developed by Muhammed (pbuh) via his writings to give his own people the Arabs a monotheisitic religion of their own, to unite the disparate warring tribes and to end centuries of blood fueding, uniting the region politically into the continent spanning arabic empires that followed.

[Popeyesays]

Well, yes there are additions to the Qur'an. Social laws are changed with new decrees on marriage, monogamy, and divorce. New laws of inheritance are set down. Most importantly Baha`u'llah lends acceptance of and honor to Zoroaster, Krshna, and Buddha.

Also the means of a world peace administration is laid out quite clearly, with prevention of schisms within the Baha`i Faith.

Regards,
Scott

[Adib]

Originally Posted by Booko

Quite so, Adib.

To clarify a little after the fact, yes, the Prophetic Cycle has ended, so we believe. But no one should assume that means there will be no more Messengers.

This is the end of one cycle....and the beginning of the next.

Yep, more specifically the end of the Adamic cycle and the beginning of the Baha'i one, which is surely not the last. I don't have 15 posts so I can't post external links, but do a Google search on "Baha'i Cycle" and check out the first result for more information; there's a nice little outline there that explains it all.

And also, Salaam, I highly recommend the Book of Certitude to you. Most Muslims who read it are absolutely taken aback, and there is such a wealth of knowledge to be found in it, especially since almost everything quoted is from the Qur'an itself.
In the 70s, a mullah named Muhammad Movahed - one of the most erudite Muslim scholars of that time - decided to read a Baha'i book to see what "unholy rituals and nonsense" we believed in. He read the Book of Certitude, became absolutely infatuated with it, read a few more Baha'i books, converted, and brought 19 other mullahs with him before he was martyred.

With regard to the gems it holds: another ex-mullah during the time of `Abdu'l-Baha named Mirza `Abu'l-Fadl (his name epitomized his knowledge of Islam - he held a position at Al-Azhar) was said to have read the Book of Certitude "over 100 times, but I still have not learned all I can from it." Yet another ex-Muslim nobleman named Ishraq-Khavari wrote a total of over 8,000 pages (4 Persian volumes, I believe) on The Book of Certitude, as a sort of study guide/commentary sort of work. A 275-page book that's been elaborated on in over 8,000 surely must be worth perusing.

[Popeyesays]

Adib,

"

1. Universal Cycles and the coming of Manifestations of God. `Abdu'l-Baha describes vast "Universal Cycles," stretching over hundreds of thousands (perhaps millions) of years, at the end of which "great events" take place as a result of which all traces of the previous cycle are obliterated and a new cycle begins. Within each Universal Cycle, many Manifestations of God (q.v.) appear, each linked to a cycle. Thus each of the religions founded by one of these Manifestations goes through a period of growth, reaches its zenith or maturity, and then declines. When the decline is complete and the religion is no longer capable of guiding humanity spiritually, another Manifestation comes (PUP 93-96).
At the heart of each Universal Cycle, `Abdu'l-Baha states that there appears a Manifestation of God whom he names the "great and universal Manifestation." The appearance of this Universal Manifestation marks the maturity of the Universal Cycle. All the Manifestations that appear after the Universal Manifestation "arise under his shadow" and all the previous Manifestations in that cycle were sent in anticipation of his advent. `Abdu'l-Baha asserts that we are now in the Universal Cycle beginning with Adam and that Baha'u'llah is its Universal Manifestation (Foundations of World Unity 54). Thus the Manifestations that have appeared before Baha'u'llah can be considered to have been part of a cycle leading up to Baha'u'llah, a cycle called the Adamic Cycle (or Cycle of Prophecy) which lasted about six thousand years, and the Manifestations that will appear after Baha'u'llah are part of the Baha'i Cycle (or Cycle of Fulfillment, CF 80). This Baha'i Cycle initiated by Baha'u'llah, during which many further Manifestations of God will arise and lasting about five hundred thousand years, should not be confused with the Dispensation of Baha'u'llah, which is expected to be a period of a thousand years or more during which the specific teachings given by Baha'u'llah will hold sway until the coming of the next Manifestation of God. The Bab is seen as being at the interface between the Adamic and Baha'i Cycles--at one and the same time the conclusion of the first and the start of the second (GPB 54). Hence each individual Manifestation of God has his own individual cycle, in which his religion grows, matures, and declines; is part of a larger cycle, either the Adamic Cycle or the Baha'i Cycle; and these larger cycles are in turn set within the overall Universal Cycle. Although time is thus in some ways cyclical, the cycles that occur within each Universal Cycle do not result in a return to the initial point. Rather there is also an element of progression. Each Manifestation of God has the function of guiding humanity in its social and spiritual evolution (see "Progressive Revelation"). "

Encyclopedia Article: Ages and Cycles
This one?

Regards,
Scott

[Adib]

Indeed Scott, that's the one!