Nonsense.
There is no such thing as being too skeptical. Skepticism leads one to ask questions. If those questions cannot be satisfactorily answered, then rejection is warranted. If those questions can be satisfactorily answered, then acceptance is not only warranted, acceptance is strengthened.
Maybe you need a better word. Maybe you mean there is no such thing as being too curious. I can agree with that, but if you are too skeptical than that skepticism prevents you from being open-minded. Curiosity does not do that. Curiosity leads to discovery.
What you mean is that if the questions cannot be answered
to your satisfaction, rejection is warranted.
But if *nothing* is ever satisfactory to you then nothing can ever be answered
to your satisfaction. There will always be things that we wonder about, questions that have not been answered; but that does not mean there are no answers, and the fact that there are some mysteries that will never be answered does not disprove the Baha’i Faith. No human being can ever know everything. Only God knows everything.
Not having *all the answers* does not warrant throwing the baby out with the bath water. Do you think that any Baha’i *knows everything* about the Baha’i Faith? It is relatively early in this dispensation so we are just learning. Only 15% of the Tablets of Baha’u’llah have been translated into English, so there is a lot more to learn.
If you have to change the meaning of what I said, you have already lost. If there are multiple holes in any bucket, that bucket will not be worth very much. It's not about perfection, it's about how much validity there is in comparison to how much obviously made up just so stories.
I agree, if there are multiple holes that is cause for concern and rejection of any religion.
But who defines what a hole is, and what are the multiple holes? So far you found one thing you consider a hole, the private conversation that Baha’u’llah had with the Grand Vizir cited by Shoghi Effendi in God Passes By. I told you that Abdu’l-Baha told Shoghi Effendi, but that is not adequate for you. You will always find a hole if you are looking for a hole.
I don't pretend to know more than you. That's why I ask questions. But when you cannot answer the questions, then I wonder how much thought you have put into your own belief system.
I have not even read God Passes By in its entirety yet, so there is no reason I would question that private conversation.
I could probably contact the research department of the Universal House of Justice (UHJ) and get a specific answer to that question of exactly how Shoghi Effendi knew of private the conversation, but it is not that pressing to me. There are many other questions that are more important than that.
Because when I asked you rather basic questions you could not answer them. You turned to Duane who gave an oversimplistic non-answer. Then you had to post the question on the Bahai forum and still, there was no answer. My question was not about some obscure aspects of your religion. My question was about the very authenticity of writings that you considered important.
The conversation between the Grand Vizir and Baha’u’llah that Shoghi Efendi quoted is
not a basic question about the Baha’i Faith in any sense of the word.
No, your question was not about the very authenticity of writings I you considered important, it was about
a private conversation that took place that was cited in a book. Authenticity means we know who wrote the book. I told you that we can verify the authenticity of God Passes By because the original book is in the Baha’i archives.
I do not understand how the authenticity of writings crucial to your religion is not crucial to your belief.
God Passes By is not scripture, it is history. It is not
writings crucial to my belief in any sense of the word.
Thank you for making my point. The writings allegedly show word for word conversations between Baha'u'llah and a Government official. Your response, after consulting with Duane and the Bahai forum, is Shogi Effendi's grandfather told him.
You don't question how Shogi Effendi's grandfather got the information. Was he in attendance at the meetings? Did he record the conversations word for word? Why was he allowed to be in the meetings? Etc, Etc, Etc.
I do not need to know all of that. Why do you think such an unimportant detail matters so much to you? You are looking at one little detail and meanwhile you are missing the broad side of the barn, the entire Revelation of Baha’u’llah. Do you think every Baha’i has had time to read
every book in the Baha’i Reference Library and question every detail in every book?
I could probably find an answer to that question by contacting the UHJ but I would not bother them with such a question.
During 48 years of being a Bahai, you never took the time to ask a few basic questions that any reasonably skeptical person would have asked.
That is not a basic question about the Baha’i Faith
in any sense of the word. It is a small detail. There are Baha’is who have been Baha’is longer than me who did not wonder about that private conversation. However, if I post it on the Baha’i Forum that has more Baha’is I would probably get more answers.
Regarding the book God Passes By, here is what a Baha'i on Planet Baha'i said about it:
I would say yet, but authoritative doesn't mean free of error. It just means that its from an official source and represents, in some cases, official doctrine.
Shoghi Effendi freely admits that he wasn't a historian and that he could make mistakes as to dates or details, but in general his history is very comprehensive and fairly accurate in its key elements.
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