Baha'i Center, Wilmette, Illinois
The principles of the Bahá'í Faith were established by Bahá'u'lláh, the Founder of the Faith, in the latter half of the nineteenth century and promulgated by His Son and appointed successor, 'Abdu'l-Bahá during a tireless twenty nine year ministry. The major principles of Baha'i are listed below, linked to explanations from talks of Abdul-Baha which he gave in America in 1912.
"The teachings of the holy souls who founded the divine religions are one in essence and reality. All have guided souls toward perfection. But among the nations certain imitations of ancestral forms of worship have arisen. These imitations are not the foundation and essence of the divine religions. Through these imitations of ancestral worship, dissensions have arisen and prejudice has developed."
"Religious prejudice becomes the cause of warfare."
Please stop here for a short writing exercise if you are in the Live Classroom. Choose one of the principles above to comment on.
*Religion must conform to science and reason, otherwise it is superstition. God has created man in order that he may perceive the verity of existence and endowed him with mind or reason to discover truth. Therefore scientific knowledge and religious belief must be conformable to the analysis of this divine faculty in man.
"O Thou the Compassionate God! Bestow upon me a heart, which like unto a glass, may be illumined with the light of Thy love, and confer upon me a thought which may change this world into a rose-garden through the spiritual bounty. Thou art the Compassionate, the Merciful! Thou art the Great beneficent God!" (‘Abdu’l-Bahá)
"Thy name is my healing, O my God, and remembrance of Thee is my remedy. Nearness to Thee is my hope, and love for thee is my companion. Thy mercy to me is my healing and my succour in both this world and the world to come. Thou, verily, art the All-Bountiful, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise." (Bahá’u’lláh)
Pause here for a short writing assignment if you are in the Live Classroom. Before we go to the assignment, look carefully and meditatively at the symbol, so that you can remember it as you write on its meaning.
These ladies and gentlemen have been under arrest for over a year and are currently on trial for their lives in Iran. The extremely conservative religious government of Iran wants them dead because they stand for the unity of world faiths and the absolute equality of the races and sexes. The Baha'i in Iran, as in the rest of the world, tend to be quite well educated and prosperous men and women from the urban middle class.
Please stop here to view a YouTube video if you are in the Live Classroom. This is the same video that is available in the right hand column when you return to study this website.
