Discrimination Against Homosexuality

I have no idea why this is even here.  Honestly, the last time I investigated the Baha’i faith this threw me for a spin and I’m still not used to it.  But it’s here, a blemish on an otherwise beautiful countenance, and so it deserves some words.  The fact of the matter is that the Baha’i faith does not recognize same-sex marriage, and actually harbours a fair bit of bias against homosexuality in general.  It all stems from a few passages from Baha’u'llah:

It is forbidden you to wed your fathers’ wives. We shrink, for very shame, from treating of the subject of boys. Fear ye the Merciful, O peoples of the world! Commit not that which is forbidden you in Our Holy Tablet, and be not of those who rove distractedly in the wilderness of their desires.1

Ye are forbidden to commit adultery, sodomy and lechery. Avoid them, O concourse of the faithful. By the righteousness of God! Ye have been called into being to purge the world from the defilement of evil passions. This is what the Lord of all mankind hath enjoined upon you, could ye but perceive it. He who relateth himself to the All-Merciful and committeth satanic deeds, verily he is not of Me. Unto this beareth witness every atom, pebble, tree and fruit, and beyond them this ever-proclaiming, truthful and trustworthy Tongue.2

Shoghi Effendi has interpreted this to mean that Baha’u'llah was ordering injunctions against homosexual activities and therefore unions that would endorse such activities.

Bahá’u'lláh has spoken very strongly against this shameful sexual aberration, as He has against adultery and immoral conduct in general. We must try and help the soul to overcome them.

No matter how devoted and fine the love may be between people of the same sex, to let it find expression in sexual acts is wrong. To say that it is ideal is no excuse. Immorality of every sort is really forbidden by Bahá’u'lláh, and homosexual relationships He looks upon as such, besides being against nature.

To be afflicted this way is a great burden to a conscientious soul. But through the advice and help of doctors, through a strong and determined effort, and through prayer, a soul can overcome this handicap.3

From a religion that purports to be dedicated to erasing the boundaries between people as well as bias and prejudice from the individual’s spirit, this is really, really weird.  I see no connection between what Baha’u'llah has said in the above passages and what Shoghi Effendi infers.  I don’t see how they can get out of this, either.  The Universal House of Justice, the head of the Baha’i faith, is unable to change any legislation that it has not enacted, which is to say it cannot go back on anything that was laid down by Baha’u'llah, Shoghi Effendi, or Abdul Baha- the last two being the only ones permitted to interpret Baha’u'llah’s writings.  But if Baha’is want to be taken seriously there is no way they can carry on with this kind of doctrine, especially if they wish to jive with science and reunite humanity.

I didn’t bring this up with many of the Baha’is I met because I was scared of what would happen, and that is what is happening right now- I’m getting frustrated and angry, and I really didn’t want that to spoil what have otherwise been amazing interactions with amazing people.  This kind of thing- needless and irrational bigotry, really stirs me up.

I mentioned before that I didn’t think that these problems were deal breakers.  When I have brought up this issue, the Baha’is I talked to understood that it was a problem, a contradiction, and seemed genuinely flummoxed over how to solve it.  They were open to it though, they were not stubbornly holding on to this idea, which tells me that their beliefs in tearing down divisions between us is higher than being fickle over who gets to tie the knot.  This is a good sign, a sign that they will not be holding onto this position forever.

Still, it’s just so weird to even see it.

Disrespect to Unbelievers

There is a lot of language in Baha’i writings which suggests or outright states that all good and moral things come from God and God alone, even advances in science and technology are considered to be attained only through the spiritual advancement given to us by God through His manifestations.

The first duty prescribed by God for His servants is the recognition of Him Who is the Daypsring of His Revelation and the Fountain of His laws… Whoso achieveth this duty hath attained unto all good; and whoso is deprived thereof hath gone astray, though he be author of every righteous deed.4

You can see how this has left the unbeliever in the lurch, without God in their life or on their mind, how are they supposed to get about with their day?  How are they supposed to navigate history if everything that is good is Godly?  Again, we are in weird territory for a religion doing its utmost to bring the world together.

I haven’t had any Baha’is overtly say that atheists are bad people- even though the Baha’i writings tend to communicate that.  There is however this sentiment that God is what keeps us in line, His teachings are what helps us to ignore and overcome our animal instincts and behaviors and realize our more spiritual aspects.  This is especially true when we are “tested”, when we are presented with moral quandaries or particularly  trying periods.  Without God or the guidance of His manifestations we may just act on the will of our egos and other selfish desires.

Do I really need to get into this?  At this point?  Really?  I can’t just say the words “Catholic priest” and make all these silly notions that it’s religious study and service that make you a good person just dissolve and be swept away?  I realize that I might be nitpicking, I realize that the Baha’is I’ve met wouldn’t judge me like this, but I just can’t help but wonder what they think when they see these things in their religion.  It all feels so backwards.

It’s late and I have more to say, but I need to sleep, and I need to post something.  I don’t want you all thinking that these are my final thoughts on the Baha’i faith because there are a lot of positive things to say, I’m just so tired.

1. The Kitab-i-Aqdas, paragraph 170.

2. “From a previously untranslated Tablet” it claims to be from the Gleanings of Baha’u'llah but I can’t find it.

3. Homosexuality.

4. The Kitab-i-Aqdas, p19.

Wow. So much has happened in the past week, it’s getting hard to keep track and make sure I get everything written down. But I don’t want to leave this blog without content for too long, I was doing so well before, so I’ll give you the basics of what has happened so that we can can be all caught up. Sound good? Good.

On Saturday I celebrated Naw Ruz, which marks the Baha’i new year and the end of the Nineteen Day Fast. The celebration took place in the Baha’i Centre with hundreds of local Baha’is of pretty much any ethnicity you can care to name. That was the really striking thing about it. Sure, there was still the high school lunchroom racial segregation, with like congregating with like around their own tables- but it was there. Diversity was evident no matter where you looked. I shared the table with Jack and some of his Anglo-Saxon family as well as four charming and friendly Iranians who eagerly told me about their experiences immigrating to Canada and then moving around to spread the faith.

It didn’t reel formal, more like a yearly family reunion. Kids ran amok, the young served the old, the food was basic and hearty and the entertainment was low key and beautiful. It was everything one could expect from a small and friendly community. I left feeling refreshed, and looked forward to being able to investigate all the things I had been denying myself for the last nineteen days.

Paradoxically I miss food. Food really does taste amazing when you limit yourself to one meal a day. You spend a lot of time thinking about it, there’s a lot of build up, and unless you have a specific plan you will feel paralyzed by choice once the sun goes down. Everything looks delicious, and it will be. But now, food is, well… commonplace again. It isn’t special anymore, and tastes just the same. I will often deliberately slow down when I’m eating now so that I can get that same feeling, that same sensitivity to taste, and it actually works. I still find myself thinking that maybe getting by on one meal a day wouldn’t be a bad idea. It is, of course. I’m sure it’s unhealthy for a number of reasons. Still, I miss it.

I still don’t have a lot of time for video games, but they are way better. Feels like anything that’s new and shiny- brilliantly entertaining, novel, and exciting. I look forward to my days off so that I’ll have time to properly enjoy them, heck I’m even willing to wake up early.  But I’m also acutely aware of how much time they take up, and that is a truly precious commodity these days.  I am starting to feel a pull in myself, a nagging feeling that I might just have to let this favourite pastime of mine slide, perhaps for good.  I don’t know if I can do that, I really enjoy the medium and I feel there is an enormous potential there for storytelling and artistic expression.  We’ll see.

Sex is, well, awesome. Let us not pretend that it could be otherwise between two adults who have been desperate for each other for more than two weeks.  Of the three things I was denying myself during the fast, this was the one I probably thought the most about, and now, almost a week after the fast had concluded, I don’t really think about it anymore.  I can’t tell if this is because the fast has helped me master that particular appetite, but it does feel kind of liberating, like I have mastered my body.

All in all the fast was a very positive experience and helped me to appreciate several things that I have taken for granted.  I’m looking forward to being able to partake in it again.

Tuesday was my last lesson with Jack, at the end of which he invited me to join the Baha’i faith.  I said, “Sure.”  Now, let’s back up.  Joining the faith does not require a baptismal right, or a formal declaration of faith, communion wafer, list of references, radishes, none of that.  Baha’is usually eschew religious rituals, and although joining the faith used to be a bit more onerous it’s now as simple as filing in a card with your name and address, putting it in the post and waiting for your shiny laminated membership card.  Going through this process basically brings you formally into the Baha’i community- you’re a member with a monthly newsletter and a card and don’t have any added responsibilities.  The expectation is that you’ll take part in the community, but as with anything, you’re level of involvement is strictly up to you.   From what I can tell it’s open to people of any belief or persuasion, so long as they’re in good standing.  Basically, don’t be a dick.  This much I think I can handle.

I can’t say that I don’t have issues with this religion, but from what I’ve seen I feel privileged just to be counted amongst them as a friend.  I feel joining their movement in this small way is a fitting cap on my Baha’i experience without being hypocritical.  It’s a wonderful community and I would love to keep in touch with them throughout the year and beyond.  Also did I mention the card?  They put your name on it and everything.

The pandit spoke first. “Mr. Patel, Piscine’s piety is admirable. In these troubled times it’s good to see a boy so keen on God. We all agree on that.” The imam and the priest nodded. “But he can’t be a Hindu, a Christian and a Muslim. It’s impossible. He must choose.”

“I don’t think it’s a crime, but I suppose you’re right,” Father replied. The three murmured agreement and looked heavenward, as did Father, whence they felt the decision must come. Mother looked at me. A silence fell heavily on my shoulders.

“Hmmm, Piscine?” Mother nudged me. “How do you feel about the question?”

“Bapu Gandhi said, ‘All religions are true.’ I just want to love God,” I blurted out, and looked down, red in the face. My embarrassment was contagious. No one said anything. It happened that we were not far from the statue of Gandhi on the esplanade. Stick in hand, an impish smile on his lips, a twinkle in his eyes, the Mahatma walked. I fancy that he heard our conversation, but that he paid even greater attention to my heart. Father cleared his throat and said in a half-voice,

“I suppose that’s what we’re all trying to do—love God.” I thought it very funny that he should say that, he who hadn’t stepped into a temple with a serious intent since I had had the faculty of memory. But it seemed to do the trick. You can’t reprimand a boy for wanting to love God. The three wise men pulled away with stiff, grudging smiles on their faces. Father looked at me for a second, as if to speak, then thought better, said, “Ice cream, anyone?” and headed for the closest ice cream wallah before we could answer. Mother gazed at me a little longer, with an expression that was both tender and perplexed. That was my introduction to interfaith dialogue. Father bought three ice cream sandwiches. We ate them in unusual silence as we continued on our Sunday walk.

-The Life of Pi, Yann Martel

Let us begin with the Baha’i Bookstore and Information Centre here in Vancouver.  It isn’t much, to be honest.  From the outside it looks like a modest community center crossed with a Jehovah’s Witnesses church.  It is plain and nondescript, it is humbleness incarnate.  Inside are the basics- the largish gymnasium that could comfortably hold a hundred or so people, rows of stacked chairs along the walls, and some adjacent meeting rooms.  If not for the small but abundant Baha’i bookstore in front you would probably pass it by with nary a glance.  In this store there are books on almost every Baha’i topic, from sex to interfaith studies to children’s books.  There are multiple editions and translations galore- a little something for anyone who might walk in.

This selection of materials hints at their zeal for newcomers to the faith.  Baha’is do not proselytize, instead they look out for people who are interested in the Baha’i faith, spirituality in general, or who are just curious.  They assess the person’s interests and then facilitate their studies, letting them learn for themselves, in their own way, about the faith.  In the Baha’i understanding an individual’s search for truth is to be valued, and therefore there is a lot of respect for everyone’s spiritual autonomy.  There is no pushing, just encouragement.

Anyway, back to the Baha’i Centre.  The whole thing is a real far cry from the grand examples of Baha’i architecture in the Middle East.  The Shrine of Baha’u'llah in Acre, the Universal House of Justice and the Shrine of the Bab in Haifa are just a few examples.  They are magnificently designed, and are surrounded by beautiful and immaculate gardens.  They are everything one imagines the Middle East to be- large, impressive, almost foreboding in their scale and grandeur, and borne of the faith and belief in that which is always greater.  The Baha’i Centre is none of these things, but it doesn’t need to be, because the people that inhabit this small place, the ones who make up this Baha’i community, more than make up for any of the grandeur that may have been lost in translation.

I am probably going to disagree with these people ideologically on a few things, but in the long run I don’t know if that matters, given the quality of the human beings I have been interacting with.  These are people who genuinely want to help the world, to be better people, to raise better people, to make better communities- full stop.  I can maybe question the finer points of their philosophy- the ability to maintain religious unity and still lay claim to the latest manifestation of God, their case for the unity of humanity but strangely conservative stance on same-sex unions- but I cannot question their motives.

God’s purpose in sending His Prophets unto men is twofold.  The first is to liberate the children of men from the darkness of ignorance, and guide them to the light of true understanding.  The second is to ensure the peace and tranquility of mankind, and provide all the means by which they can be established.

-Gleanings from the Writings of Baha’u'llah, p. 79

I have only been to the Baha’i Centre once this month.  I will be going there tomorrow to celebrate Naw Ruz, the Baha’i new year, and then perhaps later in the month to observe one of their more bureaucratic meetings.  On my first visit I was just looking to pick up some books, but ended up staying for over an hour, talking to some Baha’is who really wanted nothing more than to ensure I had everything I needed to properly study the faith.  I told them about my website, and from then on I was being contacted by different Baha’is from all over the city, all eager to invite me into their homes to teach me about the faith.  It was actually kind of creepy.

Without a clergy or church, it falls to the members of the faith to volunteer their time and their homes to teach the religion to newcomers and hold gatherings for Baha’is or people of any spiritual persuasion.  Community is not just an integral part to the faith as it may be for other monotheisms, Baha’i is community.

Tomorrow I will be going to the Baha’i Bookstore and Information Centre, but the centre of the faith is not that building, it is not the ground that it sits upon, nor the space that fills it.  It is in the people that inhabit it.

The reason for my absence is that I’ve been spending a lot of time in the Baha’i community.1  I’ve gone from knowing a couple of Baha’is to meeting a different group every day of the week.  Almost every night this week is full of meetings with local Baha’is who are eager to share their faith with me, and Saturday is Naw Ruz, the Baha’i new year that ends the Nineteen Day Fast.  It’s quite staggering, a real change from the last two months.  I’m kicking myself for not making a more concerted effort to interact with the local Taoist groups or tracking down some more Satanists to gab with.  I suspect I’ll be making up for lost time at the end of the year, filling in the necessary holes in preparation for The Book.  This really should be a no-brainer for me by now, the whole interacting with the community thing.  I hope these experiences will give me more confidence in the months to come.

I’m utterly disarmed with how nice and candid these people have been.  I’ve come across nothing but open doors and charity from start to finish.  Every time I think I may have an issue or a real deal-breaking problem with the faith it is washed away by their heartfelt smiles and their concerns with how my studies are coming along.  It’s refreshing, and creates a fertile and solid ground for spiritual discourse.

There is a lot more to say, but it is late, and I need to pray and read before I sleep.

Writing, I’ve missed you.  Let’s play some more tomorrow, okay?

1. Also I just discovered Fourth Edition Dungeons & Dragons and am trying to find a group to play with.  Intone and let it be known that I am a nerd.  Now carry on.

This issue of a diety is something I have to solve if I am going to genuinely experience these faiths.  I feel that there is some way that I can appraoch this belief, that there is a way that I can conceive of God that will bypass all the issues I have with a diety.  That He has a will, that He created life, that He is… anything other than intangible ideals of humanity.

Can one believe in a focus of all great and virtuous things?  Just without being an arbiter on worldly affairs, good without being dogmatic, incomprehensible and yet a source of inspiration and strength.  Something less mythical, more Platonic.  I need something to imagine, something to put in my mind’s eye as I pray and get through the month.  I think this is necessary to get at the core of these religious experiences, because speaking to nothing is not what these people are doing.  At least it isn’t what they think they are doing.  But any conception of God that I could try for would necessarily strip it of anything that makes theism what it is- the existence of a personal, loving creator. Therefore it would not be Baha’i.

So, paradoxically, I asked for help last night.  I think the act of falling to my knees helped to get the effect that I was looking for- supplication before a greater power.  Submission to His will seems like something God is big on.  It isn’t something that I am used to.  The idea that something or someone has a greater claim on my life than I do has been strictly anathema, until this point.  I thought it was something that I had to do.  It felt like the right time.

It was a lot like the first ritual I cast when I was a Satanist.  It was personal, mostly ad-libbed, and it was performed in order to better come to terms with something I really don’t understand.  It felt different.  The ceiling didn’t split open and no divine voice did bellow forth from on high, praising my prostrations, but it did feel different, and the day after went much the same.  Nothing really changed, except that I was more committed to what I’m doing, a little bit more vested in this project, a little bit more confident.

I’ve had this idea of God for a long time, this thing wholly separate from the deity that exists in the prayers and holy writings I read every day.  Maybe it will make a good stand-in until I can be convinced to buy into the real thing.  Maybe that will never happen.  In the meantime I think I’ll spend more time on my knees.  It encourages me to consider things that are higher than I am.

Accepting God is a sign of maturity.  All morality has derived from religion.  Life is full of tests and it is during these times that a person who does not believe in God will act purely out of self-interest and the survival instinct.

Man is naturally impotent, ignorant, weak, wretched and imperfect, whereas all strength, power, knowledge, wisdom, ascendancy, virtue and goodness are from God, praised be His glory.  Therefore man should under all circumstances regard himself as imperfect, ignorant, and captive of self and passion.  He should not feel depressed or hurt if people impute to him these characteristics which, after all, are inherent within him.  On the contrary, he should be happy and thankful to them, while at the same time he should feel disappointed in himself, should take refuge in God and beg protection from his own base and appetitive nature.

-Revelation of Baha’u'llah Vol.2 p. 43

Through all of this all I could think was how wrong he was.  The word ‘no’ circled my head over and over again but it couldn’t settle on any one statement.  I brought up enough  questions to clarify that he thought people could be good without religion (a rarity he would insist) and that people in religion are rarely always saints, but this didn’t seem to prove anything to him.

Anyway, I came home to find one of my roommates playing a song on their guitar.  It didn’t sound familiar, turns out that they had composed it themselves, and it was beautiful.  It was soft, loving, and… well, just beautiful.  It was exactly what I needed to hear, and I thought that perhaps a real Baha’i would give thanks to God for such a perfect moment.  Not the singer and song-writer, not the instrument or all the human ingenuity necessary for the production thereof and not to mention the discovery of tones and the engineering of the fundamentals of music.  Just God, because it was good.  Because all good things come from God.

No.

No.

No.

]]> http://yearoffaith.net/2010/03/a-passing-moment-a-perfect-moment/feed/ 4 http://yearoffaith.net/2010/03/progressive-revelation/ http://yearoffaith.net/2010/03/progressive-revelation/#comments Thu, 11 Mar 2010 07:06:53 +0000 Michael http://yearoffaith.net/?p=276 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.

I spend a lot of time focusing on the things that I have denied myself.  I plan how I break my fast every night, I think of what I’ll eat, what it will taste like, how much I’ll have.  I also have a growing catalog of video games that I want to play once I get a day off, and as for sex?  Well… I’m sure you can use your imagination.

I have definitely become very grateful for the food that I do eat, and I find myself avoiding things like fast food.  I am gravitating to things that I haven’t tried before, or things I know will be very tasty.  When you only get one meal a day, you make sure that it’s a good one.

And oh my good Godness is it ever satisfying!  Everything tastes better, it’s actually very similar to being high.  Every taste, no matter how nuanced, is heightened.  If I could drink this month I would love to have tried some wine, that would probably take my head off.  Dinner with my friends has turned into dinner and a show, as they each get to watch me go through the throes of passion as I taste for the first time in twenty-four hours.

I could wake up before sunset and have something for breakfast, but being more of an evening person (and more importantly NOT a morning person) this is somewhat problematic.  But if I want to do some of the longer obligatory prayers, and really get something out of prayer- since according to Baha’i texts prayer at times when you don’t have to think about anything else is best- then I will eventually have to face these painfully early hours.

Ugh.

His course is four weeks long and takes the form of an hour and a half informal lecture.  He expounds on different parts of the Baha’i faith, often referring to the source texts spread liberally throughout his large and comfortable living room.  He often pauses to make sure I’m following him as I madly scribble down notes, and seems open enough to questions and dissenting opinions.  This last part is good, because I’m already starting to bump up against some Baha’i doctrine.  But first let me make sure that we’re all on the same page, I’ll share the bits of Baha’i that I learned that night.

• Adam was not the first human, rather he was the first human who became aware of God.  This is interesting, since I have often imagined something similar while working on my own religious fiction.  As far as I know, most monotheisms see Adam as the first man, full stop.  I suppose we’ll see if this is actually the case later in the year.
• The only ones who could interpret the doctrines of Baha’i were the past heads of the religion (Baha’u'llah, Shoghi Effendi, etc).  The current council that leads the faith, the Universal House of Justice, can add certain laws in order to keep the faith current, but cannot reinterpret existing doctrine.  This means that there is no theology within Baha’i, people are not free to re-imagine the faith as they want- that has all been done, and all we can do is understand it as best we can, in our own way.  For me this raises an immediate red flag, but I need to have a  bit more time with the Baha’i texts for me to properly communicate this worry.
• God is unknowable, and his message is only communicated through His various manifestations (Baha’u'llah, Jesus, Muhammad, etc.) who do not have any greater access to God than we do, they are just His conduit.  These manifestations help us to evolve our spirit so that we will be more prepared to exist as spiritual beings.
• Baha’i does not give much credence to evolution.  Jack used the term “scientism” to refer to the standard biological understanding of evolution, implying that they see it as a kind of dogma.  Instead they see the creation of life as like a seed, planted by God at the beginning, and left to flourish in all forms of life.  So, evolution does take place, but in a very specific way.
• The spirit that animates human beings and is the seat of creative thought and intelligence exists apart from our physical bodies.  Our spirits exist in a parallel, timeless and infinite realm.  The separation between that realm and our own is “but a hair” and what happens in one can affect the other.  When we die, our bodies cease to exist, and we being to live our spiritual side, using all the things we learned with our physical shells.  Therefore human beings, once created, exist forever.

I was extremely nervous at the beginning of the evening, but I really had no reason to be.  Jack is amiable and good natured and his genuine love of his religion is apparent in his lessons and character.  He has given me a lot to think about, and although I didn’t have a lot to ask him last night, next week I’ll probably talk his hear off.

I have to say though, finally breaking down and eating something felt a little bit like defeat.  I wanted that feeling to last forever, but I was also STARVING, and as I am discovering hunger can be a powerful motivator.  I really didn’t get the same feeling this evening, I was just hungry, no closer to anything spiritual.    Still, I’m really curious to see if I can attain that same state of mind again.

I wonder how long I could last without any food at all…