CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
The Bahá'í Faith, a relatively new religion which has its
beginnings in the middle of the nineteenth century, has some 5.3 million
adherents world wide, with half living in Asia and 360,000 living in North
America. Members of the Bahá'í Faith are found in 205 countries
representing over 2112 minority groups and tribes, making it the most
widespread world religion after Christianity.
[1]
At present, Bahá'ís currently reside in over 112,000 cities,
towns and villages worldwide.
Historical Summary
The Bahá'í Faith developed out of the Shí'i
Islámic tradition of Persia, what is now Iran.
[2] On the evening of May 23, 1844 Siyyid 'Alí-Muhammad
(1819-1850) declared the He was the promised
Qá'im (Ar. "he who
ariseth") and
al-Mahdí (Ar. "one who is guided") of Shí'i Islám.
Such messianic titles refer to the successor of Muhammad, who according to the
Shí'i tradition of Islám, would revitalize and renew Islám
and usher in the promised day of judgement (Ar.
yawm ad-dín).
Siyyid 'Alí-Muhammad referred to Himself
[3] as the
Bábu'lláh (Ar. "gate of God," a
reference to the hidden twelfth Imám of Shi'a Islám), and He is
generally known in the West as "the Báb." Despite the incredible nature
of these claims, the Báb soon attracted hundreds of dedicated followers
who were known as Bábís. The nature of the Báb's claims
together with the growing number of converts quickly aroused the attention of
Iran's religious and civil authorities who began to actively repress the
fledgling Bábí community. Persecution of the Bábís
ranged from the seizing of their properties, to banishment, to the taking of
their lives, often by bloody public executions at the hands of brutal mobs.
Since the Bahá'í Faith's inception, it is estimated that some
20,000 Bábís were put to death as martyrs. Thus the early history
of the Bahá'í Faith is similar to early Christian history,
especially in its struggle to gain recognition of its claim to embody a unique
and independent revelation. The intense persecution of the Bábí
community reached its apex on July 9, 1850, when the Báb and one of His
disciples, were publicly executed by a firing squad composed of 750
soldiers.
Among the many teachings the Báb propounded was the notion that He was
the herald of a greater messenger, or to use the Bahá'í term,
"manifestation," to come. The Báb referred to this next manifestation as
"Him whom God shall make manifest" (Ar.
Man yuzhiruhu'lláh). In
the spring of 1863, one of His prominent followers, Mírzá Husayn
'Alí (1817-1892), proclaimed that He was the promised one foretold by
the Báb. He took the title of Bahá'u'lláh, which in Arabic
means "the Glory of God," and soon attracted a large number of followers, who
eventually became know as Bahá'ís. Bahá'u'lláh
spent nearly forty years of His life either in prison, exile, or traveling to
and from various places of exile and imprisonment. By His own reckoning, He
claims to have authored or "revealed" the equivalent of over one hundred
volumes of sacred writings.
[4] Shortly before
His death, in May of 1892, Bahá'u'lláh appointed His son
Abbás Effendi (1844-1921) as His successor and sole interpreter of His
writings. Abbás Effendi took the title 'Abdu'l-Bahá (Ar. "Servant
of the Glory").
'Abdu'l-Bahá, together with the Báb and
Bahá'u'lláh, are referred to collectively as the three Central
Figures of the Bahá'í Faith. For the next thirty years
'Abdu'l-Bahá administered the affairs of the Bahá'í
community, wrote numerous books and lengthy letters and traveled to Europe and
America in the years of 1911 and 1912. Shortly before His own death, He
appointed His eldest grandson, Shoghi Effendi Rabbani (1897-1957) as the
Guardian and Interpreter of the Bahá'í Faith. In 1963, the
international Bahá'í community elected nine members to the newly
created Universal House of Justice (Ar.
Baytu'l-'Adl-i-A'zam). The
Universal House of Justice is mentioned in the writings of
Bahá'u'lláh, 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi, and it is
charged with the task of administering the affairs of the international
Bahá'í community and to legislate on matters not specifically
mentioned in the sacred writings. Its members are currently elected every five
years by an international convention of delegates convened at the
Bahá'í World Centre in Haifa, Israel.
The Bahá'í Faith's Relationship to Islám
The Bahá'í Faith is similar to Islám, especially
Shí'i Islám, in many of its theological concepts and ritual
practices. For instance, a striking similarity exists between the "five
pillars" (Ar.
arkan ad-dín) of Islám and certain
Bahá'í practices (see Appendix A). The Islámic concept of
tawhíd (the verbal noun of
wahhada, "to make one," hence
the principle of the absolute oneness of God) and
tanzíh (lit.
"the elimination" of blemishes or of anthropomorphic traits, in other words,
the assertion of God's complete transcendence and incomparability) both have
their parallels in Bahá'í theology (see appendix A).
[5] Both religions also share in common the
principle of progressive revelation -- that all religions are divine in origin
and that they have been progressively revealed to humankind throughout history.
Bahá'ís, like Muslims, stress that religion has been and will
continue to be the foundation and main influence operating in all great
civilizations. In summarizing the similarities between these two faiths,
Heshmat Moayyad, a scholar of Near East languages, points out that
the intrinsic unity of Islám and the Bahá'í Faith is
demonstrated in Bahá'í Scriptures by countless quotations from
the Qur'án and hadith and by repeated allusions to Islámic
history, in general, and to the life of Muhammad, in particular. Even the
religious terminology used in Bahá'í works is mainly derived from
Islámic theology.[6]
However, the Bahá'í tradition also differs on a number of
important theological points. Some of the more important differences are (1)
the full recognition of the inherent equality of men and women, both in theory
and in practice, based on the principle of complimentarity as well as equal
access to education, career opportunities and leadership roles, including the
unrestricted promotion of interracial, interreligious and international
marriages for both men and women; (2) the prohibition of practicing outdated
received and traditional ways of doing things (Ar.
taqlid), whether
secular or religious; (3) the denial of the traditional interpretation that
Muhammad is the seal (or last) of the prophets (Ar.
khátam
al-nabiyyín), coupled with the Bahá'í claim that the
Báb and Bahá'u'lláh are the fulfillment of Islám's
apocalyptic and messianic expecta tions -- the main cause of so much of the
persecution leveled against the Bahá'ís;
[7] and (4) a pronounced emphasis on the symbolic
interpretation of scripture (Ar.
ta'wíl) over one that is more
literal (Ar.
tafsír).
Bahá'í Principles
The following teachings make up the traditional list of fundamental principles
that Bahá'ís include in nearly all of their introductory
material.
I. The unity and ultimate unknowableness of God.
II. The oneness of religion. All religions share a common foundation.
III. The oneness of humanity. The peoples of the earth are all equal in the
sight of God.
IV. The elimination of all forms of prejudice, including those based on
racial, economic, intellectual, religious, sexual, or national factors.
V. Everyone is responsible for investigating the truth for themself. There are
no clergy in the Bahá'í Faith.
VI. The establishment of a universal auxiliary language to be learned in
addition to one's native tongue.
VII. The fundamental equality of men and women based on the principle of
complimentarity.
VIII. Universal education.
IX. The essential harmony of science and religion.
X. The elimination of the extremes of poverty and wealth.
XI. The establishment of a world commonwealth.
XII. The protection and encouragement of cultural diversity based on the
Bahá'í principle of "unity in diversity."
XIII. A spiritual solution to economic problems.
XIV. The establishment of an international tribunal.[8]
This list is neither comprehensive nor indicative of the breadth or diversity
of Bahá'í teachings on a wide variety of theological, practical,
and mystical subjects. Indeed, after 'Abdu'l-Bahá presents a similar
list of principles, He concludes that "such teachings are numerous."
[9] While much could be said about any of these
teachings, I will concentrate in this work on explaining and clarifying the
second principle, that of the oneness of religion. In addition, I will compare
this Bahá'í principle to other contemporary western responses to
religious pluralism. I will then characterize the Bahá'í view in
light of these responses, and finally examine some of the common criticisms
leveled against it.
Sacred Texts and Writings
As the Bahá'í tradition is still in its infancy, many aspects of
its religious life are not as yet formalized. While no canon or officially
approved list of documents has yet been formulated, a provisional list of
authoritative texts can be made. It should be noted that the Universal House of
Justice is currently in the process of collecting all written documents from
the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh, 'Abdu'l-Bahá and Shoghi
Effendi. Many of these documents have just recently been located. As an
indication of the scale of this task, it is estimated that
Bahá'u'lláh wrote some 15,000 books, treatises, epistles and
letters in both Arabic and Persian. 'Abdu'l-Bahá wrote some 27,000, also
in both Arabic and Persian, and Shoghi Effendi, some 17,000, in Arabic, Persian
and English. The Universal House of Justice reports that nearly all of these
documents are in its possession. Needless to say, this huge volume of documents
has not been thoroughly scrutinized, systematically arranged, nor fully
appreciated. While the most significant sacred writings have been translated
into English, as well as other European and world languages,
[10] a large proportion of it remains untranslated in the
original languages of Arabic and Persian.
Shoghi Effendi clearly states that the Bahá'í sacred scriptures
consist of "the writings of the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh and
'Abdu'l-Bahá ..." and that "Nothing can be consid ered scripture for
which we do not have an original text."
[11]
Elsewhere He further elaborates that
Bahá'u'lláh has made it clear enough that only those things
that have been revealed in the form of Tablets [divinely revealed written
works] have a binding power over the friends. Hearsay may be matters of
interest but can in no way claim authority.... This being a basic principle of
the Faith we should not confuse Tablets that were actually revealed and mere
talks attributed to the Founders of the Cause. The first have absolute binding
authority while the latter can in no way claim our obedience....[12]
The word
tablets, found in the previously cited passage, is the English
translation of the Arabic
lawh (pl.
alwah, lit. "tablets," a
reference to the Laws of Moses), meaning any divinely revealed scripture.
[13] Occasionally the Arabic word
súrih (also
sura, lit. "a row or series," a reference to
the chapters or subdivisions of the Qur'án) is also translated as
tablet. Both words refer generally to the written works of the
Báb, Bahá'u'lláh, and 'Abdu'l-Bahá, all of which
are considered to be sacred writings or scriptures. In fact, the words
lawh and
súrih are often used in the titles of Their
written works.
Given these initial guidelines, the Bahá'í canon would consist
of two types of documents: the first are the sacred writings of the "Central
Figures" (the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh, and 'Abdu'l-Bahá)
and the second are the authoritative writings of Shoghi Effendi, and the
Universal House of Justice. The Bahá'í canon would not include
the published talks or recorded utterances of these four individuals nor such
utterances made by members of the Universal House of Justice, nor would it
include hearsay, or what Bahá'ís refer to as "pilgrims' notes" --
notes taken by individual Bahá'ís of lectures and informal
discussions given by the Central Figures, Shoghi Effendi, and members of the
Universal House of Justice. Thus, unlike Islám, little importance is
given in the Bahá'í Faith to the sayings (or
ahadíth, literally "the sayings or traditions" of Muham mad) of
its founders and administrative authorities. Furthermore, the writings of
Bahá'u'lláh take precedence over all other sacred writings,
followed by the writings of the Báb, 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi
Effendi, and the Universal House of Justice, in decreasing order of importance
in terms of scriptural authority.
Much of the Bahá'í scriptures translated into English consist of
compilations of letters, essays, and excerpts from various books, letters, or
essays, although many complete works do exist in English translation, including
such writings of Bahá'u'lláh as the
Kitáb-i-Aqdas
("The Most Holy Book," 1992, the Bahá'í book of laws), the
Kitáb-i- Íqán ("The Book of Certitude," 1950,
Bahá'u'lláh's most significant theological work), and the
Lawh-i-Ibn-i-Dhi'b ("The Epistle to the Son of the Wolf," 1976). Some of
the more important compilations of Bahá'í sacred scriptures (many
of which are frequently quoted in this work) include
Selections from the
Writings of the Báb (1976),
Gleanings from the Writings of
Bahá'u'lláh (1952),
Prayers and Meditations by
Bahá'u'lláh (1974),
Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh
Revealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (1978), and
Selections from the
Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá (1978). Compilations of important
authoritative writings by Shoghi Effendi include
The Advent of Divine
Justice (1966),
The Unfolding Destiny of the British
Bahá'í Community (1981),
The World Order of
Bahá'u'lláh (1974), and
The Promised Day is Come
(1980).
Footnotes
[1] David B. Barrett, "World Religious
Statistics," 1988 Britannica Book of the Year and 1992 Britannica
Book of the Year.
[2] More specifically, the
Bábí faith grew out of the Shaykhi school, a late eighteenth and
early nineteenth century reform movement within Shi'ism. The Shaykhi school was
founded by Shaykh Ahmad Ahsa'i (1752-1825). For a detailed discussion on the
Shaykh school and its profound influence on the Bábí and
Bahá'í faiths, see Vahid Rafati's informative essay "The
Development of Shaykhi Thought in Shi'i Islam," in Heshmat Moayyad, ed. The
Bahá'í Faith and Islam, Proceedings of a Symposium, McGill
University, March 23-25, 1984 (Ottawa, Canada: Association for
Bahá'í Studies, 1990), pp. 93-109.
[3] According to Shoghi Effendi, the
Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, "pronouns referring to the
Manifestation [e.g. Christ, Bahá'u'lláh, the Báb,
Muhammad, etc.], or the Master ['Abdu'l-Bahá, the son of
Bahá'u'lláh] should, however, invariably be capitalized" (from a
letter written on behalf of the Guardian, dated 11/8/48, qtd. in Hornby, Helen,
comp. Lights of Guidance: A Bahá'í Reference File [New
Delhi: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1983], p. 376, #1015). In order
to respect this guideline, all such pronouns will be capitalized in this
thesis.
[4] Most of these writings are considered to
be direct revelations from God to Bahá'u'lláh, while others are
considered to be inspired by God. In almost all cases Bahá'u'lláh
would dictate such writings to a secretary who would first take down such
dictations in a kind of shorthand and would then later transcribe them to a
legible manuscript which Bahá'u'lláh would very often peruse,
make corrections where necessary, and often authenticate with one of His seals.
The speed with which Bahá'u'lláh would reveal such writings was
sometimes so fast that even the shorthand of His secretary was nearly
illegible.
[5] See Cyril Glasse, The Concise
Encyclopedia of Islam (New York: HarperCollins, 1989).
[6] Heshmat Moayyad, "The Historical
Interrelationship of Islam and the Bahá'í Faith," in Heshmat
Moayyad, ed. The Bahá'í Faith and Islam, Proceedings of a
Symposium, McGill University, March 23-25, 1984 (Ottawa, Canada: Association
for Bahá'í Studies, 1990), p. 76. This article gives a very good
summary of the similarities and differences that exist between Islam and the
Bahá'í Faith.
[7] For a full discussion both of the
traditional Muslim belief that Muhammad is the "seal of the prophets" -- God's
final prophet sent to humankind -- and the Bahá'í interpretation,
see Seena Fazel and Khazeh Fananapazir "A Bahá'í Approach to the
Claim of Finality in Islam"; soon to be published in a forthcoming volume of
the Journal of Bahá'í Studies.
[8] See, for instance, the introductory
pamphlet entitled "The Bahá'í Faith," (Dallas, Texas: The
Bahá'í Office of Public Information, Dallas/Fort Worth), 1989.
For the scriptural basis for such a list of principles see Shoghi Effendi,
God Passes By 281- 82 or 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the
Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá #227, p. 304.
[9] 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation
of Universal Peace, 2d ed. Comp. Howard MacNutt. 1939; rpt. (Wilmette, IL.:
Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1982), p. 304, #227.
[10] Portions of the Sacred Writings have
been translated into over 760 languages, including many tribal languages such
as Dinka (Africa), Athabascan, Aleut, Navajo (North America), and Timorese
(Asia). For a complete list of languages into which Bahá'í works
have been translated see John Huddleston, The Earth is But One Country
(London, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1976), Appendix III.
[11] Bahá'í Meetings The
Nineteen Day Feast, comp. The Universal House of Justice (Wilmette, IL.:
Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1976), p. 29 and The Unfolding
Destiny of the British Bahá'í Community (London:
Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1981), p. 208.
[12] From a letter to the National
Spiritual Assembly of the United States, in Helen Hornby, comp., Lights of
Guidance: A Bahá'í Reference File (New Delhi:
Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1983), p. 361, #962.
[13] Wendy Momen, gen. ed., A Basic
Bahá'í Dictionary (Oxford:
George Ronald, 1989).