The future global religion to be

[Phil153]

Feel good nonsense that's potentially dangerous.

As for Bahai being a world religion, there's no way either Muslims or Christians will abandon their religion for many generations without coercion.

[Taraz]

Both of my parents are Baha'is and I was raised in the religion, so I probably know more about the Baha'i Faith than most of the posters here. I'd be happy to answer any questions about the religion.

My general take on the whole thing is the principals of the religion are pretty awesome but that the administration of the religion is awful. The leadership is uber-conservative and bordering on fundamentalism. However, the actual holy texts of the religion are quite progressive and benign. I particularly like the "independent investigation of truth" which is basically the idea that you shouldn't take anybody's word for anything. Look into things for yourself and make your own decisions regarding what is the truth.

I think tame_deuces classification of deism with a touch of globalism is a good one.

Edit: I didn't make it clear that I don't really consider myself religious and I'm basically an atheist, so I probably won't represent the views of most Baha'is.

[Taraz]

[ QUOTE ]
I got involved with the bahai's in the late 1960's and at that time it was much easier, since there were much fewer adherents to get early access to their more "advanced" manuals of indoctrination. I now this later statement is going to chagrin many bahai's, but I stand by what I say.

[/ QUOTE ]

Would you mind expanding a bit on what you mean by manuals of indoctrination? I assure you that I won't be offended, I'm just curious what you're referring to.

[tame_deuces]

Ok, a question:

The 12 principles listed earlier in the thread seemed very non-forgiving in a 'my way or the highway' sense. Are these representative for the religion or am I just misinterpreting them?

[MidGe]

Taraz,

At that time there were manuals to guide those giving "sunday school lessons" etc... Some manual were definitely marked as not suitable/available to inquirers etc... There were different levels in existence at that time (late sixties). I cannot say whether that differentiation still exists, but I would suspect it does, and is simply not quite so available. Climbing the levels (???) in those days was easier as there were much fewers believers.

[Splendour]

[ QUOTE ]
Baha'i?

Supposedly after various Regional governments and currencies(European, North American, African, etc) are formed, they will be consolidated into a one world government. Also, there is supposed to be a one world religion, which I believe will be Baha'i.

This is just my guess based on reading about it for the first time tonight. I was wiking an actress and saw that her religion is Baha'i.

The Baha'i faith is realtively new (~160 y/o) and seemingly globalistic. He is a snip from the wiki article:

"Social principles
The following 12 principles are frequently listed as a quick summary of the Bahá'í teachings. They are derived from transcripts of speeches given by `Abdu'l-Bahá during his tour of Europe and North America in 1912. The list is not authoritative and a variety of such lists circulate.

Unity of God
Unity of religion
Unity of mankind
Gender equality
Elimination of all forms of prejudice
World peace
Harmony of religion and science
Independent investigation of truth
Universal compulsory education
Universal auxiliary language
Obedience to government and non-involvement in partisan politics
Elimination of extremes of wealth and poverty

With specific regard to the pursuit of world peace, Baha'u'llah prescribed a world-embracing Collective Security arrangement as necessary for the establishment of a lasting peace."

Here's another snip:
"United Nations
Bahá'u'lláh wrote of the need for world government in this age of humanity's collective life. Because of this emphasis many Bahá'ís have chosen to support efforts of improving international relations through organizations such as the League of Nations and the United Nations. The Bahá'í International Community is an agency under the direction of the Universal House of Justice in Haifa, and has consultative status with the following organizations:

United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
World Health Organization (WHO)
United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM)
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

The Bahá'í International Community has offices at the United Nations in New York and Geneva and representations to United Nations regional commissions and other offices in Addis Ababa, Bangkok, Nairobi, Rome, Santiago, and Vienna.

In recent years an Office of the Environment and an Office for the Advancement of Women were established as part of its United Nations Office. The Bahá'í Faith has also undertaken joint development programs with various other United Nations agencies. In the 2000 Millennium Forum of the United Nations a Bahá'í was invited as the only non-governmental speaker during the summit."

Discuss.

[/ QUOTE ]

I started to make a reply to this, but it was way too sarcastic. I'll leave it at this: "if it sounds too good to be true..."

Btw, the price of oil just rose again today in the financial markets.

[Taraz]

[ QUOTE ]

Ok, a question:

The 12 principles listed earlier in the thread seemed very non-forgiving in a 'my way or the highway' sense. Are these representative for the religion or am I just misinterpreting them?

[/ QUOTE ]

The principles specifically are supposed to be goals for the future. I've honestly never heard the "obedience to government" one, but Baha'is aren't supposed to engage in partisan politics. I think there is a pretty large debate within the religion right now about your very question.

A lot of the people at the top seem to have this my way or the highway attitude. Unfortunately for them, the religion itself teaches that everything is a personal responsibility and that you aren't supposed to get into other people's business. I personally think the situation right now isn't the best, but there are quite a few people trying to change it. Who knows if they'll succeed or not.

[Taraz]

[ QUOTE ]
Taraz,

At that time there were manuals to guide those giving "sunday school lessons" etc... Some manual were definitely marked as not suitable/available to inquirers etc... There were different levels in existence at that time (late sixties). I cannot say whether that differentiation still exists, but I would suspect it does, and is simply not quite so available. Climbing the levels (???) in those days was easier as there were much fewers believers.

[/ QUOTE ]

I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. There aren't any "levels" or anything like that and I haven't seen any manuals that are off-limits to people who are inquiring about the religion. Then again, I haven't had much to do with the religion since I was a kid, so maybe I just missed it.

It's possible things have changed since then. I'll ask my dad about it later today. He's been extremely active in the religion his whole life even though he's basically an atheist, so I tend to trust his opinion on things.