Unity is an all-pervasive theme within the Baha’i faith- unity of mankind, unity of religion, of race, etc.  Baha’u'llah, in his writings, constantly stresses that the same God has made Himself known to the Muslims, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, and Baha’is.  Since we cannot conceive of God, He makes himself known through his various manifestations, these rare and charismatic individuals who are the originators of each great world religion.  In the Baha’i understanding of things, each of these manifestations, over time, is able to reveal more and more of God’s spiritual message, capitalizing on what came before him, building on our spiritual selves like a series of divine lectures.  Each compliments and fulfills the lessons that have come before.  Since the Baha’is believe that the universe is infinite, then this cycle of enlightenment and instruction will go on for as long as we are here.  God has made a covenant with us that He will not abandon us.

There is a lot I like about this idea of progressive revelation .  First, it means that no one gets the final say on the human spirit, or on God and religion.  Each is a piece of a much larger happening, something beyond the scope of any one dispensation.  There is a humility here that I did not expect to find in a monotheistic religion, not only an admission that they may be wrong, but that one day they will be proven wrong, or at least guided in an entirely new direction by the authority they trust in.

This tends to be what separates religion from other social sciences like philosophy, the whole divine revelation thing, but I find that progressive revelation makes religion seem more like philosophy or science, or any other human endeavor to understand what the hell is going on.  Every manifestation is simply doing his best to communicate what must be a huge burden.  This is the second thing I like about progressive revelation, it highlights the human side of religion.

God Speaks Again by Kenneth E. Bowers is a great general introduction to the Baha’i faith, and it begins by showing the various trials and tribulations of the founders of the Baha’i movement- Ali-Muhammad (the Bab, meanign ‘the Gate’) and Mirza-Husayn-Ali (Baha’u'llah, ‘the Glory of God’).  Baha’i writings such as the Kitan-I-Iqdas (The Book of Certitude) constantly highlight the struggles these religious revolutionaries had when they revealed their message, the constant persecution, skepticism and assault upon the ideas that would come to shape our world.  One cannot help but be sympathetic, to see the humanity in such a struggle, one person trying to be heard and understood so as to benefit us all, to impress upon us the importance of treating one another well, to be genuine, to be better human beings, that we may improve our spirits.  One man teaching others to be better.  I like that image.

Progressive revelation also makes me consider each religious figure and his message in turn.  What were these people saying that was so inspiring, so tempting as to gather hundreds and then thousands of people, and earn so much contempt from others?  In many ways my study of the Baha’i faith will not be complete until I finish this project, until I am exposed to every major religion so that I may learn what the Baha’is purport to be the central hidden truths progressing through each of them.

Ostensibly these truths seem simple enough, treating others well, loving them as much as you love God, valuing unity, charity, compassion, etc.  It is always a message of peace, so the Baha’is say, because these manifestations always come at times of great turmoil, when the dispensation of the previous manifestation has been lost and corrupted.  When we have lost the way and religion is a cause of chaos and strife rather than unity, then God presents his next spiritual lesson through His chosen apostle, and tries to make us virtuous and kind once more.

Again, this helps me get into the swing of things by showing the human side of religion, I can envision these manifestations as great moral philosophers who actually practice what they preach.  Every apostle is like a Socrates, dispensing his wisdom dispite ridicule and trouble with the law.  If I just add in all that God stuff then I’ve got the basic picture, right?  Right…

It’s an expression I don’t like using, but when all is said and done I think the Baha’is are trying to have their cake and eat it too here.  Sure, progressive revelation makes it so that no religion can claim dominance over any other… that is, except for the Baha’i faith, who gets that mantle by pointing out how everyone else is wrong in wanting to be right.  Make no mistake, the Baha’is want their turn in the sun too, their chance to unite the world for whatever fleeting moment has been allocated until the next manifestation shakes things up, and they are building towards that.  It’s not wrong, but it seems slightly hypocritical.  The Baha’i faith equates all religions, and does so with the same divine authority that a Christian, Jew, or Muslim would use to say exactly the opposite.

This is the kind of feeling I’ve been getting lately, especially since my last lesson with Jack, “Why God and Why Religion?” in which we discussed religion and God as the only genuine sources of meaning and unity in the world.  The feeling is that despite all this talk of equality,  that they believe God is really on their side.  If that is true then they are claiming a monopoly on truth, and we are back to square one.

It’s a depressing thought.  I think tonight I will pray for guidance.