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Month: December 2019

Cup of Faithfulness

Cup of Faithfulness

Published December 31, 2019 by admin

The passage above is from the first passage in “Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Baha”, a collection of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s letters to Baha’is and other interested people. It is a well-spring of truth and reflects the incredible way in which ‘Abdu’l-Baha’ lived the message of Baha’u’llah and explained it to humanity. The entire book may be found here. The passage ends with the following quote-

Soon will your swiftly passing days be over, and the fame and riches, the comforts, the joys provided by this rubbish-heap, the world, will be gone without a trace. Summon ye, then, the people to God, and invite humanity to follow the example of the Company on high. Be ye loving fathers to the orphan, and a refuge to the helpless, and a treasury for the poor, and a cure for the ailing. Be ye the helpers of every victim of oppression, the patrons of the disadvantaged. Think ye at all times of rendering some service to every member of the human race. Pay ye no heed to aversion and rejection, to disdain, hostility, injustice: act ye in the opposite way. Be ye sincerely kind, not in appearance only. Let each one of God’s loved ones center his attention on this: to be the Lord’s mercy to man; to be the Lord’s grace. Let him do some good to every person whose path he crosseth, and be of some benefit to him. Let him improve the character of each and all, and reorient the minds of men. In this way, the light of divine guidance will shine forth, and the blessings of God will cradle all mankind: for love is light, no matter in what abode it dwelleth; and hate is darkness, no matter where it may make its nest. O friends of God! That the hidden Mystery may stand revealed, and the secret essence of all things may be disclosed, strive ye to banish that darkness for ever and ever.

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One World Faith

One World Faith

Published December 27, 2019 by admin

The Baha’i Faith doesn’t get a lot of media attention but recently the CBS Morning Show put together a  short video on the American Baha’i community. They did a very nice job of capturing some of the spirit and beauty of the Baha’i teachings and the community it has formed.  Well-worth the time to view it!  The video may be found here.

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Rain

Rain

Published December 19, 2019 by admin

Rainn Wilson is a Baha’i actor who most people know from his role on the TV series “The Office” where he played “Dwight”. When not doing TV, Rainn is very active in various service activities, including founding a girls school in rural Haiti, his website “Soul Pancake”, and doing  presentations related to his faith as a Baha’i.  Two things he has done recently are of note and can point people to the other content he has produced.  The first is an animated video introducing the Baha’i Faith that is short and engaging. The second is a series of interviews he does as part of the Baha’i Blog podcast. In this most recent interview, he speak with Derik Smith, a Baha’i currently living in California but who is well known to the Baha’i community of Philadelphia from his time in Philadelphia, living in Mount Airy and being part of the faculty of Arcadia University.  Derik studies poetry and literature and is deeply engaged in the issues surrounding inequality in the prison system.  A talk by Derik may also be found on the website Bahaiteachings.org, where he discusses a Baha’i perspective on his work in prisons.

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The Prophet of Shiraz- Part 3

The Prophet of Shiraz- Part 3

Published December 16, 2019 by admin

In this final part of the discussion of the Writings and teachings of the Bab, Dr Williams highlights some of the very specific ways that the Bab prepared the people for the coming of Baha’u’llah.  Never in the history of humanity has a Messenger of God so clearly defined His intentions and carried out His mission. He was then executed in 1850 at the hands of the Persian authorities, ending His time on this earth. However, all His promises would ultimately be fulfilled in the coming of Baha’u’llah and His name would come to be celebrated as the personification of sacrifice and detachment by people all over the world.

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The Prophet of Shiraz- Part 2

The Prophet of Shiraz- Part 2

Published December 16, 2019 by admin

In Part 2 of the presentations on the life and theology of the Bab, Dr Williams presents the basic theological ideas that are found in His Writings. If we think of ourselves and all creation being like a painting and envision ourselves living in that painting, we can more easily understand what the Bab meant by the Essence of God being unknowable and that we understand Him only by how He is manifest in the world we experience. The unique role of the Revelations of God in forming the great religions of humankind is then explained, as a reflection of the Will of God to the world, like the paintbrush reflects the Will of God to the painting.

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The Prophet of Shiraz- Part 1

The Prophet of Shiraz- Part 1

Published December 12, 2019 by admin

As part of the Foundations of the Revelation course, we are posting the set of presentations delivered by Dr. Williams and focused on the history and teachings of the Bab.  The Bab’s revelation is extraordinarily important, because He was the first Manifestation of God to explain so explicitly the nature of the revelations of God- how they are progressive, natural, suited to human societal and spiritual development and reflect a dynamic world.  He also performed the unique role of preparing Persian society for the appearance of the most universal revelation ever to come to humanity- that of Baha’u’llah.  The presentations are divided into three parts. Part 1 provides some of the history and basic course of the Bab’s life and teachings. Part 2 introduces His theology and Part 3 continues the discussion of His theology but highlights the texts that are emblematic of the main purpose of His mission- to prepare the people for Baha’u’llah. Part 1 is below. Part 2 is in this post, and Part 3 in this one.

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How to Spread Your Religion

How to Spread Your Religion

Published December 6, 2019 by admin

As part of the Foundation of the Revelation series, Dr. Williams presented two introductory lectures that explain the Baha’i teachings. In this second of the two- “How to Spread Your Religion”- Dr Williams highlights some of the unique features of Baha’u’llah’s Faith, features that are different from how people normally think about religion. He explains that Baha’u’llah’s teachings are not intended to belittle the great revelations of the past, but to build upon them.  He further explains, with reference directly to passages from Baha’u’llah Himself, how Baha’is seek to make people aware of Baha’u’llah’s teachings- through love and understanding, and the avoidance of contention and conflict.

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