Folks, The following is taken from chapter 5 of Baha'u'llah and the New Era, which (along with chapters 1 and 2) was corrected by `Abdu'l-Baha. (Only part of chapter 3 was corrected by Him.) Note `Abdu'l-Baha's very broad definitions of being a Baha'i. ------- "When asked on one occasion: 'What is a Baha'i' `Abdu'l-Baha replied: 'To be a Baha'i simply means to love all the world; to love humanity and try to serve it; to work for universal peace and universal brotherhood.' On another occasion He defined a Baha'i as "one endowed with all the perfections of man in activity." In one of His London talks He said that a man may be a Baha'i even if He has never heard the name of Baha'u'llah. He added: --
"'The man who lives the life according to the teachings of Baha'u'llah is already a Baha'i. On the other hand, a man may call himself a Baha'i for fifty years, and if he does not live the life he is not a Baha'i. An ugly man may call himself handsome, but he deceives no one, and a black man may call himself white, yet he deceives no one, not even himself.' "'One who does not know God's Messengers, however, is like a plant growing in the shade. Although it knows not the sun, it is, nevertheless, absolutely dependent on it. The great Prophets are spirits suns, and Baha'u'llah is the sun of this "day" in which we live. The suns of former days have warmed and vivified the world, and had those suns not shone, the earth would not be cold and dead, but it is the sunshine of today that alone can ripen the fruits which the suns of former days have kissed into life.'" ------- My point in posting this excerpt from Esslemont's book is to suggest that "Baha'i," as a word or label, has been given more than one definition in the history of the Baha'i Faith. One of those definitions, which was sometimes employed by `Abdu'l-Baha, was broad and encompassing. Another, which was used by Shoghi Effendi, the House of Justice, and also, on occasion, `Abdu'l-Baha, is more institutional and communal. Speaking as an individual Baha'i, *not* as a sociologist, I do not feel that, using `Abdu'l-Baha's broad definition, we can, or should, *ever* discourage people from having, or expressing, a Baha'i identity, irrespective of whether they are members of the Baha'i International Community. Personally, I would like to see more of this self-definition among people not members of the Baha'i International Community. I also wonder whether statements such as the following, aside from any hyperbole, might be referring to `Abdu'l-Baha's broad definition of a Baha'i or believer: "When the victory arriveth, every man shall profess himself as believer and shall hasten to the shelter of God's Faith. Happy are they who in the days of world-encompassing trials have stood fast in the Cause and refused to swerve from its truth." -- Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p.319 Via moderna, Mark A. Foster . http://markfoster.net ... [a] word is ... a universal. - William of Ockham Structurization Tech: http://tech.structurization.com The information contained in this e-mail and any attachments thereto ("e-mail") is sent by the Johnson County Community College ("JCCC") and is intended to be confidential and for the use of only the individual or entity named above. The information may be protected by federal and state privacy and disclosures acts or other legal rules. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are notified that retention, dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error please immediately notify JCCC by email reply and immediately and permanently delete this e-mail message and any attachments thereto. Thank you. __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[email protected] Unsubscribe: send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe: send subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe: http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/all_forums/subscribe?name=bahai-st Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:[email protected] Web - http://list.jccc.edu:8080/read/?forum=bahai-st News - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Public - http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]
