On Investigating the Baha'i Faith: Is This My Home?

A blogger in Canberra, Australia, has this to say about her encounter with the Baha'i Faith.

what a good weekend, I went on aYoga and Meditation weekend, I found the meditation hard, but the yoga good. i can only strive to become more disaplined and involve these practices in my every day life.

We were at a Baha'i college. and many of the participents were Baha'i. I had herard of this faith at uni and i have seen the temple in Deli, but never really understood what it was about, but it sounds like something i have been looking for.

Having been raised a catholic and many of the practises are hard to maintain and are out dated for our society. Over the mileniums many prophets have been. They have been vessles for God. Is Bahá’u’lláh the vessle for the here and now. Here are the principles:

• Abandonment of all forms of prejudice
  
• Equal rights and opportunities for women and men
  
• Elimination of extremes of poverty and wealth
  
• Recognition of the common source and essential oneness of all the world's great religions
  
• The eternal nature of the soul and the essential spiritual nature of life
  
• Universal education
  
• Responsibility of each person to search independently for truth
  
• Establishment of a federated system of world government, based on principles of justice and collective security
  
• Harmony of true religion with reason and the pursuit of scientific knowledge
  
• Encouragement of high moral standards in personal life

The Baha'i's do not ignore other teachings, they do not denounce other messangers. they believe in the natural progression of faith and the world. I asked one lady if becoming Baha'i means denouncing my christianity and she was emphatic that she has become STRONGER in her christianity and sees Jesus as higher and more spritual than she ever did as a christian. That she now see's him as reverent holy being where before she had made him more human, as we all do. She see's the bahai teachings as the third book in the bible, they still refer to the old and new testement. its self learning and investigation.

Its something I am going to look deeper in to. Haveing been indoctrinated with the catholic faith i have found it hard to move to other christian sects, to understand buddhism, to embrace any other. The idea of Peace and Unity is a strong draw card, and almost sounds like what i believe in. What i want to do in the world. Is this my home?

cbr_grl,"where do we belong?" The Rules of Atraction