SoulPancake / Conversations / How are the discrepancies in the teachings of Abraham, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, etc. rationalized in the Baha'i Faith?

alexkramermusic

- 2 years ago

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How are the discrepancies in the teachings of Abraham, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, etc. rationalized in the Baha'i Faith?

The Baha'i faith teaches that the major prophets of the world (some of which are listed above) are all messengers from one God. if this is the case, how are their differences rationalized? Not their cultural differences, that's obvious and logical. I'm referring to basic teachings of "universalism," like: Why does Jesus say he is the only way? Why does Mohammed say he is the last prophet to come to earth? This question is obviously for Baha'is and any others who believe in this principle.

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Greetings! :-)

In answer to the original question about how Baha'is handle all the apparent discrepancies between the various religions, I offer this quote from the Baha'i scriptures:

"There can be no doubt whatever that the peoples of the world, of whatever race or religion, derive their inspiration from one heavenly Source, and are the subjects of one God. The difference between the ordinances under which they abide should be attributed to the varying requirements and exigencies of the age in which they were revealed. All of them, except a few which are the outcome of human perversity, were ordained of God, and are a reflection of His Will and Purpose. Arise and, armed with the power of faith, shatter to pieces the gods of your vain imaginings, the sowers of dissension amongst you. Cleave unto that which draweth you together and uniteth you."

—("The Proclamation of Baha'u'llah", p. 114;
also "Gleanings", CXI, pp. 217-8)

Best! :-) Bruce

I think it boils down to ... "you find what you're looking for"

If you're looking for inconsistencies and contradictions that's what you will find. If you're looking for similarities... you will find those too.

I've always found it interesting that ancient Greek philosophy spoke of a "force or whatever" called the Logos typically meaning "The Way". This in idea is very similar to ancient Chinese notion of The Tao. Also interesting enough I've read that was the original Greek word used in the bible.... which can also be translated to what we read now as "The Word". Does this influence our current understanding of the bible.. probably.

I tend to see more similarities with inconsistencies occurring as a result of followers or interpreters... but that's just me.

It is a good question, considering none of these books are internally consistent. I'd love an answer, too.

Each Manifestation of God is the Voice of God and the Channel of His message. God, the Creator, is infinite and His essence is unknowable to humans. The Manifestation reveals attributes of God and the lessons mankind needs at the time. The teachings are really one progressive lesson. The words and the language are appropriate to the age in which Each Teacher appears. The presence of the Manifestation is powerful. His influence goes beyond words and ideas. Because there is change and justice in the message, some people feel threatened by the movement created and oppose it. The influence of the Manifestation of God and His message continues over time. Many people, whether with good intent or otherwise, use the power of Its influence to their own ends, distorting the meaning. What we see in a religion may be a corruption of what was revealed due to the passing of time and the cultural changes and the inevitable distortion of human interpretation.

It is difficult to express the spiritual realities in human language. Metaphor and allusion are necessary. What meaning we take from spiritual writings and stories depends on who we are and how we listen. It is like a catch22. You almost have to believe it before you can understand it. What I mean is that you have to believe that there is a Reality beyond the ken of human rationality. If we insist that there is only one (obvious) meaning for a word or concept, it is not likely that we will be satisfied.

Indeed the Manifestation of God IS the only Source of authoritative knowledge about God. We can experience aspects of God (spirit), but our own experience is not infallible. We could be mistaken about any detail of it. Ideally, everyone would use his/her own judgement and not attempt to impose a personal interpretation on others.

As Baha’is, we revere all the Manifestations of God. Their Holy Books are considered scripture, although they are not taken literally. Baha'is do not depict the image of the Manifestations of God in works of art or represent them in plays, movies etc.
All of this is just in my own words. If anyone is interested, a better explanation is at this link. http://info.bahai.org/article-1-4-0-3.html

As to the Baha’i teachings, there are many references to this matter. Some of the most beautiful Writings of Baha’u’llah are of His relationship to God. He describes receiving the revelation. He speaks as both the Voice of God and as the servant.

http://www.bahaullah.com/bahaullah-writings-announcement-part2.html

http://www.bahai.org/other-sites

This site is in no way meant to be a place about Bahais. Many (or most) of us creators have no religious affiliation at all :) just an open place to speak your mind.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that I'm a "free agent" (lol) but... we'll see.

I want to clarify that I am not CURRENTLY a professed Baha'i... I'm just asking questions, and I can get behind a lot of what the Baha'i Faith has to say.

Iol... Oh, middle school.... :)

This will probably be answered much more elegantly than this by someone else.

As I understand it, the station of the manifestation of God is one.
The essence of the position of Manifestation is the unchanging, the example I recall, poorly paraphrased, is this: a flower is planted in a garden and in the winter it dies, the next spring a flower grows, it is the same in essence as the old flower. Its look, smell and feel are the same, it grows in the same place from the same seed, individually it is a different flower, but to us it appears as the same, we can say "This is the same flower." and in essence it is.
Should Jesus say I am the only one, or Baha'u'llah say I am Christ, or Muhammed say I am the Seal of the Prophets, amongst their many meanings is this: the essence of the station is the same, Baha'u'llah is in essence Christ and Muhammed and Buddha.

So there you have it, my poor interpretation. Hope it was marginally helpful

Great question. I posed the same one but could not word it so well and i think thats why I did not recieve a satisfactory answer. I look forward to seeing the responses.

SoulPancake

alexkramermusic

How are the discrepancies in the teachings of Abraham, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, etc. rationalized in the Baha'i Faith?

BruceDLimber

indeadears

zamfir

It is a good question, considering none of these books are internally consistent. I'd love an answer, too.

DAISYDO

Aviv

This site is in no way meant to be a place about Bahais. Many (or most) of us creators have no religious affiliation at all :) just an open place to speak your mind.

alexkramermusic

I wouldn't go so far as to say that I'm a "free agent" (lol) but... we'll see.

alexkramermusic

I want to clarify that I am not CURRENTLY a professed Baha'i... I'm just asking questions, and I can get behind a lot of what the Baha'i Faith has to say.

alexkramermusic

Iol... Oh, middle school.... :)

Copargo

Alaeddin

Great question. I posed the same one but could not word it so well and i think thats why I did not recieve a satisfactory answer. I look forward to seeing the responses.

How are the discrepancies in the teachings of Abraham, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammed, etc. rationalized in the Baha'i Faith?

It is a good question, considering none of these books are internally consistent. I'd love an answer, too.

This site is in no way meant to be a place about Bahais. Many (or most) of us creators have no religious affiliation at all :) just an open place to speak your mind.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that I'm a "free agent" (lol) but... we'll see.

I want to clarify that I am not CURRENTLY a professed Baha'i... I'm just asking questions, and I can get behind a lot of what the Baha'i Faith has to say.

Iol... Oh, middle school.... :)

Great question. I posed the same one but could not word it so well and i think thats why I did not recieve a satisfactory answer. I look forward to seeing the responses.

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