Religious
Studies 3901
Thursday, March 24, 2005
Dr. David Rendell
Professor of Physics (retired)
The Baha'i Faith in Newfoundland: An
Overview
*
Opening and Introduction: A Baha'i View of the Role
of Religion
*
The Baha'i Faith in Newfoundland and Labrador
*
Baha'i Principles, Teachings
*
Status, Recognition and Appreciation of Baha'i
Institutions and Individuals
*
Conclusion
*
References
*
Appendices
Opening (Appendix 1)
Extract from the the Bhagavad Gita, A Verse Translation,
Geoffrey Parrinder 4 :Wisdom
7 Whenever there
appears on earth decline of Righteousness, uprising of Unrighteousness,
I send Myself to birth.
8 For protection of
the good, the wicked put to flight, I come into being age by age
establishing the Right.
A Baha'i Perspective: Progressive
Revelation and Unity
The Purpose of Religion (Appendix 2)
religion / n. me. [AN
religiun, (O)Fr. religion f. L religio(n-) obligation, bond, scruple,
reverence, (in late L) religious (monastic) life, prob. f. religare:
see religate, -ion.]
3
Belief in or sensing of some superhuman controlling power or
powers, entitled to obedience, reverence, and worship, or in a system defining a
code of living, esp. as a means to achieve
spiritual or material improvement; acceptance of such belief
(esp. as represented by an organized Church) as a standard of
spiritual and practical life; the expression of this in worship
etc. Also (now rare), action or conduct indicating such belief; in pl.,
religious rites. me.
(New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
- CD Edition, Version 1.0.3)
The
purpose of religion as revealed from the heaven of God's holy
Will is to establish unity and concord amongst the peoples of the
world; make it not the cause of dissension and strife. The
religion of God and His divine law are the most potent instruments and
the surest of all means for the dawning of the light of unity amongst
men. The progress of the world, the development of nations, the
tranquillity of peoples, and the peace of all who dwell on earth are
among the principles and ordinances of God. Religion bestoweth
upon man the most precious of all gifts, offereth the cup of
prosperity, imparteth eternal life, and showereth imperishable benefits
upon mankind. It behoveth the chiefs and rulers of the world, and
in particular the Trustees of God's House of Justice, to endeavour to
the utmost of their power to safeguard its position, promote its
interests and exalt its station in the eyes of the world. In like
manner it is incumbent upon them to enquire into the conditions of
their subjects and to acquaint themselves with the affairs and
activities of the divers communities in their dominions. We call upon
the manifestations of the power of God - the sovereigns and rulers on
earth - to bestir themselves and do all in their power that haply they
may banish discord from this world and illumine it with the light of
concord.
(Baha'u'llah: Tablets of Baha'u'llah, pp. 129-130)
A Message from `Abdu'l-Baha
Written for The Christian
Commonwealth
and published September 29th, 1911
GOD sends Prophets
for the education of the people and the progress of mankind.
Each such Manifestation of God has raised humanity. They serve
the whole world by the bounty of God. The sure proof that they are the
Manifestations of God is in the education and progress of the people.
(`Abdu'l-Baha: `Abdu'l-Baha
in London, p. 42)
The fundamental
principle enunciated by Bahá'u'lláh, the followers
of His Faith firmly believe, is that Religious
truth is not absolute but relative, that Divine Revelation is a continuous and
progressive process, that all
the great religions of the world are divine in origin, that their basic principles are in complete
harmony, that their aims and
purposes are one and the same, that their teachings are but facets of one truth,
that their functions are complementary,
that they differ only in the
non-essential aspects of their doctrines and that their missions represent successive stages
in the spiritual evolution of human society.
(Shoghi Effendi, Summary
Statement - 1947, Special UN Committee on Palestine)
Who are the Prophets? (Appendix 3)
The holy Manifestations Who have been the Sources or
Founders of the various religious systems were united and agreed in
purpose and teaching. Abraham, Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus,
Muhammad, the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh are one in
spirit and reality. Moreover, each Prophet fulfilled the promise of the
One Who came before Him and, likewise, Each announced the One Who would
follow. Consider how Abraham foretold the coming of Moses, and Moses
embodied the Abrahamic statement. Moses prophesied the Messianic cycle,
and Christ fulfilled the law of Moses. It is evident, therefore, that
the Holy Manifestations Who founded the religious systems are united
and agreed; there is no differentiation possible in Their mission and
teachings; all are reflectors of reality, and all are promulgators of
the religion of God. The divine religion is reality, and reality is not
multiple; it is one.
(Abdu'l-Baha, The
Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 197-198)
A New Paradigm (Appendix 4)
An excerpt from:
Beyond the Clash of
Religions
Udo Schaefer
2:10 Have we not all one father? hath not
one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his
brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?
(King James Bible,
Malachi)
II.
The New Paradigm: Unity
When considering the great world religions it is
striking how each one seems to be centred around one main idea to which
all others are subordinated. As ‘Abdu'l-Baha pointed out: "In every
Dispensation the light of Divine Guidance has been focused upon one
central theme." (4) Indeed, distinguishing epithets have been
attached to the religions on this basis, Christianity being referred to
as the "religion of love;" Judaism as the "religion of justice;" Islam
as the "religion of absolute submission;" Buddhism as the "religion of
detachment;" Zoroastrianism as the "religion of purity." If one were to ascribe such an epithet to
the Baha'i Faith it would undoubtedly be the "religion of unity," for
unity is its central theme and the starting point of all theological
consideration of its teachings.
This theme is
found on three levels: in the unity of God, in the unity of the
prophets or "Manifestations," (5) and in the unity of mankind.
Expressed as "Justice", "Oneness" and
"Unity in Diversity" (Appendix 5)
Justice
O SON OF SPIRIT!
The best beloved of all things in My sight is
Justice; turn not away therefrom if thou desirest Me, and neglect it
not that I may confide in thee. By its aid thou shalt see with thine
own eyes and not through the eyes of others, and shalt know of thine
own knowledge and not through the knowledge of thy neighbor. Ponder
this in thy heart; how it behooveth thee to be. Verily justice is My
gift to thee and the sign of My loving-kindness. Set it then before
thine eyes.
(Baha'u'llah, The
Hidden Words, Arabic, No. 5)
Unity and Oneness
Oneness
*
of God,
*
of religion,
*
of humanity
Examples of one Voice:
* comparisons of The Golden Rule (Appendix 6)
* and The
Only Way (Appendix
7)
Relations with other Religions and
Peoples (Appendix 8)
Consort with all
religions with amity and concord, that they may inhale from you
the sweet fragrance of God. Beware lest amidst men the flame of
foolish ignorance overpower you. All things proceed from God and
unto Him they return. He is the source of all things and in Him
all things are ended.
(Baha'u'llah: The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p. 72)
O SON OF DUST!
The wise are they
that speak not unless they obtain a hearing, even as the
cup-bearer, who proffereth not his cup till he findeth a seeker, and
the lover who crieth not out from the depths of his heart until he
gazeth upon the beauty of his beloved. Wherefore sow the seeds of
wisdom and knowledge in the pure soil of the heart, and keep them
hidden, till the hyacinths of divine wisdom spring from the heart and
not from mire and clay. In the first line of the Tablet it is recorded
and written, and within the sanctuary of the tabernacle of God is
hidden:
(Bahá'u'lláh,The Persian Hidden Words, No. 36)
Although forbidden by Bahá'u'lláh from
aggressive proselytizing, Bahá'ís believe that His
message offers specific and important answers to the diverse and grave
problems facing humanity. Accordingly,
they are eager to share this message with anyone who expresses and
interest.
(Baha'i International Community, The Baha'is, p. 11)
Dates in Baha'i History
(Appendix 9)
Kate Cowan Ives
The first woman to become a confirmed believer
in the "Western world" (i.e outside the Middle East) in the Baha'i
Faith was Kate Cowan Ives (1863-1927), in 1894/5 in Chicago. Her
parents were John H. and Catherine Cowan from Newfoundland who left for
the Boston States sometime before 1863. Kate Ives was born in
Orleans, Massachusetts. She lived in the States for most of her life
but is known to have visited Newfoundland in 1917 with another Baha'i
woman.
(A research question - find her local roots, ...)
Agnes Clift
In 1914, Agnes Clift (Mrs. James Augustus
Clift) gave a talk about "Bahaism, a Persian religion that espouses a
universal faith" to the Current Events Club at the Ladies Reading Room
in St. John's, Newfoundland (Pursuing Equality, Linda Kealy). It
is not clear how she got her information, but "The Daily News" (January 17, 1914)
reports of her talk indicate a good understanding of the Baha'i
Faith. Agnes Clift had close family members living in Montreal at
the time and that may have provided a contact with the visit of ‘Abdu'l
Baha to Montreal in 1912.
Her talk focussed on the life and on-going effect of
Tahirih ("The Pure One"), also known as Quarratu'l-`Ayn ("Solace of the
Eyes"), one of the earliest followers of the Bab and Baha'u'llah, and,
in 1850, an early martyr of the Baha'i Faith for her fearless
expounding of the principle of the equality of women and men, one of
the core principles of the Baha'i Faith.
(A resrearch question - locate her sources. Did she
travel to London, New York or Montreal when Abdu'l-Baha visited those
cities in 1911-1912?)
Harry Crowe
`Abdu'l-Bahá revealed a prayer for "... a
Mr. Crowe of Newfoundland ..." , probably Harry Crowe. It was
given to the Newfoundland community by Ruhiyyih Khanum (the former Mary
Maxwell of Montreal) after her visit to St. John's in 1982.
(Another resrearch question - locate the source of
this contact. Did he travel to
London, New York or Montreal when Abdu'l-Baha visited those cities in
1911-1912?)
He is God!
O Thou kind Lord!
Though we are but
Thy humble servants, endear us in Thine eternal Kingdom.
Though we are
poor, enrich us through Thy heavenly Treasury.
Though we are
ignorant, inform us of Thy mysteries.
We are dead,
quicken us with the breaths of the Holy Spirit.
We are
extinguished, set us ablaze with the Fire of Thy love.
O God! Look not
upon our capacity, nay rather deal with us in accordance with Thine
infinite bounty.
Suffer the drop to
become an ocean and the seed a harvest.
Verily, Thou art
the Giver, the Generous, and the Mighty!
`Abdu'l-Bahá
Abbas
March 3rd 1913
Paris, France
Mention of Newfoundland in 1914
letters (Tablets)
The province is explicitly mentioned in the headings
of a series of messages to the Baha'is of North America in 1916:
TABLET
TO THE BAHÁ'ÍS OF CANADA AND GREENLAND
Revealed on April
5, 1916, in the garden adjacent to the Shrine of
Bahá'u'lláh, and addressed to the Bahá'ís
of Canada - Newfoundland,
Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Saskatchewan,
Manitoba, Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Yukon, Mackenzie,
Keewatin, Ungava, Franklin Islands - and Greenland.
(Abdu'l-Baha, Tablets
of the Divine Plan, p. 22)
Incorporated local Spiritual
Assemblies
Marriage recognition by the House of
Assembly, 1982
Baha'i Principles, Teachings
Humanity is now coming of age. It is this that makes
possible the unification of the human family and the building of a
peaceful, global society. Among the principles which the Baha'i Faith
promotes as vital to the achievement of this goal are:
* the abandonment of all forms of
prejudice
* assurance to women of full
equality of opportunity with men
* recognition of the unity and
relativity of religious truth
* the elimination of extremes of
poverty and wealth
* the realization of universal
education
* the responsibility of each
person to independently search for truth
* the establishment of a global
commonwealth of nations
* recognition that true religion
is in harmony with reason and the pursuit of scientific knowledge
The importance of The Covenant for the full
development of this Revelation. (Appendix 10)
Some other principles: the importance of Work, the
Arts, ... (Appendix 11)
Current Status, Recognition and
Appreciation of Baha'i Institutions and Individuals (Appendix 12)
Conclusion
Sufficient material for a full semester course.
Offer of private discussion, Study Circles,
Devotional Gatherings, ...
Thanks for patience of class in this presentation,
and to Prof Hans Rollmann for this invitation.
Main Baha'i Page