arthra

In writting a few posts lately on another forum I thought it would be interesting to post some of them here and some might be interested in following up on them:

What was the religion of Jesus?

To me as a Baha'i I would look to the basic teachings of Jesus that are found in the Gospels ... that was His revelation and teaching so it was not as the Scribes and Pharisees (the religious experts and professionals of His day) of His time.

Some of His teachings included:

Praying in secret..

Alms giving in secret;

Fasting in secret;

Going the extra mile for your enemies and turning the other cheek which was really unpopular in His time!

My belief is He did not support the sacrifical system then practised in Herod's Temple in Jerusalem.. He drove out the money changers and let the animals loose who were sold for sacrifices.

Just as the Lord Buddha revealed teachings that were not like those of the Brahmin priests and tinkerers of His time..

The teachings of Jesus upset the "apple-cart" of the religious establishment much like the movement around John the Baptist who prepared the way for Jesus...

So to me Jesus was revolutionary and the principles He revealed are still important today..


On the resurrection of Jesus:

Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus are interesting characters in the Gospels. They are generally considered secret disciples of Jesus and as far as I can determine they were unknown to the main disciples of Jesus and are not mentioned after they are given custody of the body of the Lord Jesus...at least in canonized scripture.

My take on this is that the main disciples were not in communication with Joseph of Arimathea or Nicodemus and that after the body of Jesus was buried in the new tomb... That Joseph and Nicodemus likely removed it again to prevent it from being abused or desecrated by the enemies which had whipped up the crowds that led to the crucifixion in the first place.

So when the women come to the tomb they are confronted with an empty tomb and say "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb ... and we don't know where they have put Him." - John 19:2

Some of the experiences of the disciples following the crucifixion in my opinion fall in the area of visions and may be similar to the Transfiguration on the Mount

While the disciples were depressed and confused they soon rallied and accepted that the Cause of Christ was revived and would survive the martyrdom of the Lord and with a new mission they went forth with the Gospel. That's how I see it.

......

The Kaaba:

There may be no "historical evidence" that Abraham or Ishamel were around the Mecca area..but then there's not a lot of historical evidence for a lot of things..

I find the Biblical "Beth-el" where Jacob erected a stone and called it the "House of God" interesting and a possible parallel to the story of Abraham and Ishmael building the Kaaba.

18 And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.

19 And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,
21So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God: 22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.


No one has any "historical" evidence when the Kaaba was built or by whom but we know what was revealed to Prophet Muhammad.

Ancient religions around Egypt had a monotheistic origin according to Wallis Budge:


"The Egyptians believed in the existence of God, the
Creator and Maintainer of all things, but they thought that the
concerns of this world were committed by Him to the superintendence of
a series of subordinate spirits or beings called "gods," over whom they
believed magical spells and ceremonies to have the greatest influence.
The Deity was a Being so remote, and of such an exalted nature, that it
was idle to expect Him to interfere in the affairs of mortals, or to
change any decree or command which He had once uttered."

and read the article about monotheism:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monothe..._ancient_Egypt

So from what we know nothing contradicts the story of Abraham and Ismael building the Kaaba.

If Abraham could travel from Ur of the Chaldees to Egypt He could have travelled easily to the area around the Kaaba. When historical evidence is lacking consider the probabilities.

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Jafar

Where in the Bible is "praying in secret" mentioned? That is interesting.

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arthra

This is found in the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus advices it is better to pray in Gospel of Matthew 6:5-6:

"But when you pray go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you."

This was in rection to hypocrites who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at street corners that they may be seen by others...

Of course in our obligatory prayers we pray by ourselves too..

- Art

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arthra

One of the more interesting translations of the Qur'an into English is the work of Muhammad Asad and you can learn more about him here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Asad

He has an extensive background in studying Islam and converted from Judaism also his family was destroyed by the Nazis..

- Art

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arthra

I got this idea from reading a book entitled "Quest for Eden" from which I think one could draw a parallel say to the expectation that Elijah would appear before the Day of the Lord mentioned in Malachi 4:5 and the promise by Jesus of a future Advocate and Spirit of Truth made by Jesus in John 15:7 and 15:13.

Elijah as you know was said to have ascended into the sky in a fiery chariot yet he is also prophesied by Malachi to appear before the Day of the Lord.

How many years would there be between Elijah and John the Baptist? Most believe Elijah lived about nine hundred years before the time John the Baptist, yet Jesus in Matthew 17th chapter says:

10 Then the disciples asked him, "Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" 11 He said in reply, 11 "Elijah will indeed come and restore all things; 12 but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased. So also will the Son of Man suffer at their hands." 13 12 Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist. Also in Matthew chapter 11: All the prophets and the law 10 prophesied up to the time of John. 14 And if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah, the one who is to come.

Since Jesus promised to send the Spirit of Truth who can say that this would not be a future Prophet several hundred years later?

I would also suggest that sending Prophets and Messengers is God's way of manifestating His will for us and it does not stop or cease..

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arthra

Looking into a quote from a story attributed to Abdul-Baha I found some parallel stories:

ABDUL BAHA:

His Holiness Christ said: "The Father is in me." This we must understand through logical and scientific evidences, for if religious principles do not accord with science and reason, they do not inspire the heart with confidence and assurance.

It is said that once John of Chrysostom was walking along the seashore thinking over the question of the trinity and trying to reconcile it with finite reason; his attention was attracted to a boy sitting on the shore putting water into a cup. Approaching him, he said, "My child, what art thou doing?" "I am trying to put the sea into this cup," was the answer. "How foolish art thou," said John, "in trying to do the impossible." The child replied, "Thy work is stranger than mine, for thou art laboring to bring within the grasp of human intellect the conception of the trinity."

The story was also similar to one attributed to Saint Augustine:

St. Augustine once had this experience. He was walking along the seashore near Rome one day. There he saw a young boy running back and forth, filling a bucket of water in the ocean and then running and dumping it into a small hole he had dug in the sand. "What are you doing?" Augustine asked the boy. "I am emptying the ocean into that hole that I've dug," the boy replied.
We laugh. Of course the boy will never empty the ocean! But what Augustine understood at that moment was that theologians (and, in our own way, each of us) are really trying to do the same thing — that he himself was trying to do the same thing — by speculating about God. He was trying to fathom the nature of the divine, and the equipment he was deploying in that endeavor — his human mind, as great as it was — was inadequate.

And yet another similar story is told of Justin Martyr:

Justin the Philosopher. A brilliant lawyer and legal expert, he came to understand that the knowledge of laws is not yet the knowledge of Truth. Studying philosophical systems, he did not find in them an answer to the question, "What is truth?" Once he met an elder on the seashore; they struck up a conversation, and Justin said that no one could teach him truth, that no one could teach him to understand God. The elder answered that he would never reach his goal, because he wanted to understand God through the mind. But the truth of God has to be comprehanded not by the mind alone, but with all one's strength: by the mind and the will and the heart; one has to live according to the truth in order to come to know the truth.

Source:

http://www.orthodoxphotos.com/readin...1/justin.shtml

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arthra

One of the great issues i think that scholars have been debating over the past hundred years or so is over the historical Jesus and scholars have been studying the texts of the Gospels and proposing that much of what is called the traditional view of Jesus is inaccurate, that some of the sayings attributed to Jesus were actually pious interpolations to justify or butress doctrine of the church.

Earlier some Christians noted that the New Testament was created by the church ... now a question could be raised i think...

Should the church be founded on what Jesus actually taught?...

or

should the church put words in Jesus mouth and be the absolute authority?

Well of course we know that the church defines what is canon ... and decided what should be included or not in the Bible, but did it go farther than that?

The Qur'an has very few references to Jesus but it also indicates the Gospel was given to Jesus in Surih 3 verse 3:

"It is He Who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the criterion (of judgment between right and wrong).

- A Yusuf Ali translation

so what we could say was the Gospel but the sayings of Jesus and that some things that was attributed to Him were pious additions at a later time.

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arthra

Over the past hundred years Baha'is were accused by paranoid Mullas of either having been a plot hatched by the Russians or the British, nowadays they accuse Baha'is as being Israeli agents or maybe CIA spies..

but there were some connections between the Baha'is and Russia early on that deserve comment.

Prince Dolgolrougi was in charge of Russian affairs and consulates in Persia when Baha'u'llah was imprisoned in the Siyah Chal (Black Pit). The Prince intervened on behalf of Baha'u'llah as He was innocent of all charges and the Shah decided to exile Baha'u'llah to Bagdad in 1854...

Later in 1863, Baha'u'llah was summoned to Istanbul (Constantinople by the Sultan. Still later He was under house arrest in Edirne ( Adrianople).

In late 1868 Baha'u'llah sent to the prison fortress of Akka around which He spent the remainider of His days on this earth..

In 1870 the Tablet of Baha'u'llah to the Tsar Alexander II which can be read here:

http://reference.bahai.org/en/t/b/PB/pb-7.html

Baha'is in Persia were being oppressed and some managed to go to Ishqabad (now Turkministan then part of the Russian Empire) and the first Baha'i House of Worship was built there. Construction began in 1902.

Russia recognized the Baha'i Faith as a legitimate religion and approved the construction of the Temple which was largely completed around 1908.

Baha'is were also in contact with Count Leo Tolstoy around 1908..See

www.bahaindex.com/documents/tolstoy.pdf

Tolstoy was friendly to the Faith and extolled it.

WWI and the Revolution..

For awhile the Lenin regime allowed some freedom but under Stalin the Baha'i Faith was outlawed and Baha'is were not permitted to meet. The House of Worship in Ishqabad was seized and leased back to the Baha'is and later was used as a cultural center... Stilll later the Temple was destroyed in an earthquake. Baha'is in Russia (Soviet Union) were oppressed and some sent back to Iran (formerly Persia) or Siberia.

Although I believe there are few Baha'is left in Turkministan.. In Russia (formerly the Soviet Union) the Baha'is formed a National Spiritual Assembly after the collapse of the Communist regime.. So today there are still Russian Baha'is.

Here is a more definitive article about the Baha'is and Russia:

http://bahai-library.com/encyclopedia/russia.html

- Art

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arthra

Being Baha'i, I believe there is really only one religion of God down through the ages... that religion..is really a series of revelations over time but clothed in various culturres and circumstances.

So God never leaves mankind alone without guidance ... and this will continue as long as there are people, i.e., future revelations will occur.

What is interesting is that we find this view in Christianity as well...and a quote is attributed to Augustine:

"That which is known as the Christian religion existed among the ancients, and never did not exist; from the beginning of the human race until the time when Christ came in the flesh, at which time the true religion, which already existed began to be called Christianity."

(Retractt. I, xiii, cited by Dr. Alvin Boyd Kuhn in his Shadow of The Third Century , Elizabeth N.J.: Academy Press, 1949, p.3).

So we can call this religion by various names depending...

- Art

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arthra

There could be a parallel I think that may be drawn between the prophecy of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew and the warning that Baha'u'llah gave some of the rulers in His Tablets.

Here is the reference of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew 24:2 to the Temple of Jerusalem:

And He said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down."

was made before His death around 30 CE and history tells us that the Temple was destroyed some forty years later around 70-71 CE.

Now some say oh.. the Romans were going to bring it down anyway because the Zealots were already organizing...

or some believe the Gospel was written after the fall of Jerusalem and it wasn't really a prophecy in the first place.

We could I think consider it a prophetic utterance of Jesus.

Now consider the refrence by Baha'u'llah in His Tablet to Napoleon III the nephew of the "first" Napoleon (Bonaparte):

Hath thy pomp made thee proud? By My Life! It shall not endure; nay, it shall soon pass away, unless thou holdest fast by this firm Cord. We see abasement hastening after thee, whilst thou art of the heedless.

This Tablet was composed in 1869 and addressed to Napoleon III.

"In battle against Prussia in July 1870 the Emperor was captured at the Battle of Sedan (2 September) and was deposed by the forces of the Third Republic in Paris two days later."

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Napoleon_III_of_France

So the collapse of Napoleon III followed very soon after the Tablet of Baha'u'llah to him in 1869.

- Art

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arthra

Here is an excerpt form the Tablet to Queen Victoria:

O kings of the earth! We see you increasing every year your expenditures, and laying the burden thereof on your subjects. This, verily, is wholly and grossly unjust. Fear the sighs and tears of this wronged One, and lay not excessive burdens on your peoples. Do not rob them to rear palaces for yourselves; nay rather choose for them that which ye choose for yourselves. Thus We unfold to your eyes (GWB p. 254) that which profiteth you, if ye but perceive. Your people are your treasures. Beware lest your rule violate the commandments of God, and ye deliver your wards to the hands of the robber. By them ye rule, by their means ye subsist, by their aid ye conquer. Yet, how disdainfully ye look upon them! How strange, how very strange!
Source:
http://bahai-library.com/index.php5?...h_lawh_malikih


Britain and the other powers of Europe were involved in an arms race that led to the disastrous WWI, so they didn't listen and paid the price...

All the countries of Europe built up their armies and navies. In 1914, their armed forces stood like this:
• Germany: 2,200,000 soldiers, 97 warships
• Austria-Hungary: 810,000 soldiers, 28 warships.
• Italy: 750,000 soldiers, 36 warships
• France: 1,125,000 soldiers, 62 warships
• Russia: 1,200,000 soldiers, 30 warships
• Great Britain: 711,000 soldiers, 185 warships
As one country increased its armies, so all the others felt obliged to increase their armed forces to keep the ‘balance of power’.

Source:

http://www.johndclare.net/causes_WWI2.htm

But you'll note the League of Nations and later the United Nations were both formed after the two devestating wars of the twentieth century and this also I believe is a positive response to what Baha'u'llah addressed in His Tablet to the Queen as cited above:

O rulers of the earth! Be reconciled among yourselves, that ye may need no more armaments save in a measure to safeguard your territories and dominions. Beware lest ye disregard the counsel of the All-Knowing, the Faithful.

Be united, O kings of the earth, for thereby will the tempest of discord be stilled amongst you, and your peoples find rest, if ye be of them that comprehend. Should any one among you take up arms against another, rise ye all against him, for this is naught but manifest justice.

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arthra

"Son of God" is a title of Jesus...just as "Friend of God" represents a title of Abraham...

Jesus refers to God as Abba or "Father" because of a spiritual relationship not a biological one. The following is what Shoghi Effendi wrote:

"It is true that Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of God, but this, as explained by Bahá'u'lláh in the Íqán, does not indicate any physical relationship whatever. Its meaning is entirely spiritual and points to the close relationship existing between Him and the Almighty God. Nor does it necessarily indicate any inherent superiority in the station of Jesus over other Prophets and Messengers. As far as their spiritual nature is concerned all Prophets can be regarded as Sons of God..."

(see Lights of Guidance 491)


As Christianity spread to pagan areas however in the first centuries... many pagans took this meaning literally ad assumed Jesus was theliteral son of God just as they had previously accepted that Herakles (Hercules or Apollo, etc.) was..

When Prophet Muhammad appeared the Revelation from God was that God has no sons or daughters.

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arthra

In Genesis 20:1 it says:

After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am."

2 He said, "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love....

Now reading this verse there are at least two things we should ask...

(1)

After Isaac was born Abraham had two sons so how is it that Isaac was His only son?


and Abraham loved Ishmael as well as Isaac.

In Genesis 17:18

And Abraham said to God, "O that Ishmael might live in your sight!"

So we know that Ishmael was beloved of Abraham.

(2)

How is it that Isaac could be the only son beloved of Abraham?

After the millenia has passed and the tensions have arisen between the descendents of Ishmael and Isaac

(3)

what is the true significance of the story?

That Abraham was asked to sacrifice His son and a son was the most precious offering He could offer...

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arthra

Quoting from Malachi 4:23-24:

"Lo, I will send you Elijah, the prophet, Before the day of the LORD comes, the great and terrible day,
24 6 To turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the land with doom. Lo, I will send you Elijah, the prophet, Before the day of the LORD comes, the great and terrible day."

Who did Jesus say it was?

Abdul-Baha explained:

"When they asked if John the Baptist was Elijah He answered, "Yes"; and when they interrogated John Baptist, he replied "No". Both replies were the truth. The reply of Christ was spiritual, that is John the Baptist returned in the same spirit of God, but not in the same soul, but John the Baptist meant that his soul and his body were not the same as those of Elijah."

On Mount Carmel there are at least three sites that are called the Cave of Elijah... NO one knows for sure but the Catholic Carmelites have one cave, the Jews have a cave and the Muslims have a cave. Also nearby there's an area where Elijah according tto the Bible dealt with the Baalim priests and fire called down from heaven burnt the offering of Elijah.

The Bab had a similar role to that of John the Baptist and so for us could be a like a "second Elijah".

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arthra

In the Baha'i Writings the analogy of the Mirror and the Sun are pretty well known...basically the Manifestation of God is the perfect mirror that reflects the attributes of God perfectly to mankind...so anyone who wants to approach God or have an understanding must defer to the Manifestation..

for those who receive it this reflection of God is for them "God".

Just as you would see your own reflection in a "good" mirror and believe you are seeing a true image of yourself.

The Mirror however is in itself an instrument and not the light or what is reflected...hence the problem for many when they cleave to the mirror rather than the light that is being reflected therein.

Abdul-Baha explains:

But the proceeding through manifestation (if by this is meant the divine appearance, and not division into parts), we have said, is the proceeding and the appearance of the Holy Spirit and the Word, which is from God. As it is said in the Gospel of John, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God”; 1 then the Holy Spirit and the Word are the appearance of God. The Spirit and the Word mean the divine perfections that appeared in the Reality of Christ, and these perfections were with God; so the sun manifests all its glory in the mirror. For the Word does not signify the body of Christ, no, but the divine perfections manifested in Him. For Christ was like a clear mirror which was facing the Sun of Reality; and the perfections of the Sun of Reality—that is to say, its light and heat—were visible and apparent in this mirror. If we look into the mirror, we see the sun, and we say, “It is the sun.” Therefore, the Word and the Holy Spirit, which signify the perfections of God, are the divine appearance. This is the meaning of the verse in the Gospel which says: “The Word was with God, and the Word was God”; 2 for the divine perfections are not different from the Essence of Oneness. The perfections of Christ are called the Word because all the beings are in the condition of letters, and one letter has not a complete meaning, while the perfections of Christ have the power of the word because a complete meaning can be inferred from a word. As the Reality of Christ was the manifestation of the divine perfections, therefore, it was like the word. Why? Because He is the sum of perfect meanings. This is why He is called the Word.
And know that the proceeding of the Word and the Holy Spirit from God, which is the proceeding and appearance of manifestation, must not be understood to mean that the Reality of Divinity had been divided into parts, or multiplied, or that it had descended from the exaltation of holiness and purity. God forbid! If a pure, fine mirror faces the sun, the light and heat, the form and the image of the sun will be resplendent in it with such manifestation that if a beholder says of the sun, which is brilliant and visible in the mirror, “This is the sun,” it is true. Nevertheless, the mirror is the mirror, and the sun is the sun.

A telescope has mirrors in it's composition and so do spectroscopes so the analogy holds.. We use mirrors to discern what we can of the sun...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Newtonian.PNG

and

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:S..._schematic.gif

Actually finely polished mirrors are used to relfect images...

http://www.newportglass.com/grind2.htm

but the Manifestation of God is perfectly polished without effort.. No need for Jesus to go to the Himalaya for instruction or learn from the sages in the Temple.

You could look at the first verses of the Epistle to the Hebrews...which is very close to the Baha'i view:

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person,




The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being,

The scripture doesn't use the word mirror but it is to me implied by the words:

"express image" and "exact representation".

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arthra

Fatimah was the daughter of Prophet Muhammad and undoubtedly the place in Spain where these visions were reported was named after her. She was the wife of Imam Ali the rightful successor of Prophet Muhamamd and the mother of the descendents of Prophet Muhammad. The Bab Who declared HIs mission in 1844 was a descendent of Fatimah and Imam Ali.

There was a book revelaed for Fatimah to console her after the death of her Father the Prophet Muhammad and it was called the Hidden Words... The full title of the book is "Book of Fatimih / Hidden Book of Fatimih"

When Baha'u'llah dwelt in Bagdad in exile from Persia He revealed this Book and it is probably the most popular Baha'i book today. It begins with these words:

"HE IS THE GLORY OF GLORIES

This is that which hath descended from the realm of glory, uttered by the tongue of power and might, and revealed unto the Prophets of old. We have taken the inner essence thereof and clothed it in the garment of brevity, as a token of grace unto the righteous, that they may stand faithful unto the Covenant of God, may fulfill in their lives His trust, and in the realm of spirit obtain the gem of Divine virtue."

You can read more about the Hidden Words at

http://bahai-library.com/writings/ba...den.words.html

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arthra

The Imam Husayn. He was martyred on the plains of Karbela outside Bagdad. Baha'u'llah revealed that He was the Imam Husayn.. and the following is from the Baha'i Writings:

"Consider the eagerness with which certain peoples and nations have anticipated the return of Imám-Husayn, whose coming, after the appearance of the Qá’im, hath been prophesied, in days past, by the chosen ones of God, exalted be His glory. These holy ones have, moreover, announced that when He Who is the Day Spring of the manifold grace of God manifesteth Himself, all the Prophets and Messengers, including the Qá’im, will gather together beneath the shadow of the sacred Standard which the Promised One will raise. That hour is now come. The world is illumined with the effulgent glory of His countenance. And yet, behold how far its peoples have strayed from His path! None have believed in Him except them who, through the power of the Lord of Names, have shattered the idols of their vain imaginings and corrupt desires and entered the city of certitude.

The seal of the choice Wine of His Revelation hath, in this Day and in His Name, the Self-Sufficing, been broken. Its grace is being poured out upon men. Fill thy cup, and drink in, in His Name, the Most Holy, the All-Praised."

Baha'u'llah fulfilled the prophecies of the return of the Imam Husayn in our belief.

Also today is a judgement time for us to accept the new dispensation revealed by Baha'u'llah.
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arthra

I think one has to research the life of Baha'u'llah and ultimately reach their own conclusions about whether Baha'u'llah was... Someone special and not just a person making some claims.

Baha'u'llah lived in the nineteenth century between 1817 and 1892 and many people met Him and their are records of the life of Baha'u'llah. His biography has been touched on here:

http://bahai-library.com/encyclopedia/bahabio.html

There are many accounts written about Him...and reported. One account I recall off hand was when He was brought before a court in Akka as a prisoner and the judges stood up when He enetered the court room so there was reported by a number of people His charisma. In another case a man who was bent on killing Him was brought into His presence and had to be carried out later and given his firearm.. When Baha'u'llah was bastinadoed...his feet were beaten by a club and He was forced to walk barefooted to Tehran an old woman wanted to throw a stone at Him as He was forced to walk along the way... He asked that the procession slow down so she could throw her stone as she believed He said that it was meritorious to do so.

On marriage:

When Abdul-Baah visited the United States in 1912.. Most of the country was segregated and blacks and whites were not permitted to associate with each other. A couple however sought His blessing in marriage and He encouraged them to marry blessing them. They married after that and were blessed however travelling together in the South of the United States was problematic for them.

MARRIAGE, BAHÁ'Í


"In regard to your question concerning the nature and character of Bahá'í marriage. As you have rightly stated, such a Marriage is conditioned upon the full approval of all four parents. Also your statement to the effect that the principle of the oneness of mankind prevents any true Bahá'í from regarding race itself as a bar to union is in complete accord with the Teachings of the Faith on this point. For both Bahá'u'lláh and `Abdu'l-Baha never disapproved of the idea of interracial marriage, nor discouraged it. The Bahá'í Teachings, indeed, by their very nature transcend all limitations imposed by race, and as such can and should never be identified with any particular school of racial philosophy."
Directives From the Guardian
pages 43-44

If you would like more information on Baha'i marriage there's a synopsis at

http://bahai-library.com/index.php5?...bahai_marriage

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arthra

Lawh-i Napulyun I (First Tablet to Napoleon III), was written in Edirne, "[a]lmost immediately after the "Most Great Separation" had been effected" (Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, 171. The "Most Great Separation" can be dated to March 1866 (Basic Baha'i Chronology), so we can safely assume that the Tablet was revealed sometime between early 1866 and 1867. (Shoghi Effendi's use of the word "immediately" here does not necessarily mean the next week or the next month, though it could. In a book covering one hundred years of history, as God Passes By does, "almost immediately" could conceivably be even a couple months.)

Notes from students of the Wilmette Institute

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arthra

I think we really don't know what the physical effects were on say Prophet Moses or other prophets mentioned in the Bible as most of these accounts were compiled many years later.. But we are told that Moses face was radiant when He descended Mount Sinai:

"When Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, he was not aware that his face was radiant because he had spoken with the LORD."

- Exodus 34:29

The word is "qaran" and means radiant...


The effects on Prophet Muhammad physically are also not necessarily "negative" either.. but were noted by people around Him.

Ubada b. Samit reported that when wahi descended upon Allah's Apostle (may peace be upon him), he felt a burden on that account and the colour of his face underwent a change. (Sahih Muslim, Vol. 4, p. 1248).
There is an account though in the Bible that reminds me of the experience recorded on Mount Hira..

It is in Jeremiah...where it says:

"Ah, Lord GOD!" I said, "I know not how to speak; I am too young."
7 But the LORD answered me, Say not, "I am too young." To whomever I send you, you shall go; whatever I command you, you shall speak. 8 Have no fear before them, because I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD. 9 Then the LORD extended his hand and touched my mouth, saying, See, I place my words in your mouth!
Both Moses and Jeremiah make remonstrances that they are unworthy and similar thing occurs with the dawning of revelation in the case of Prophet Muhammad:
And here is the account of the revelation on Mount Hira:
One day suddenly, while he sat in a cave at Mount Hira, Gabriel, the Angel of Revelation, appeared to him and said,

`Recite!' He said in surprise, `What shall I recite?'

Again the divine voice very clearly and openly called out, `Recite, O Muhammad!'

And a third time Gabriel repeated,

"Recite in the Name of Your Lord Who created. He created the human being from a clot. Recite and your Lord is Most Honorable, Who taught (to write) with the pen, taught the human being what he knew not..."

Holy Quran (Alaq 96: 1-5)

- Art

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There were contacts with Christians and Jews as Arabia was a crossroads of cultures and trade.. In the north Byzantines had client Arab tribe the Ghassanids that worked with them on the frontier. A Christian community was in Najran. There was also an Arabian tribe called the Lakhmids that were allied to the Sassanids in Iran

In Yemen in the south were Jews and Sassanid Mazdeans.

When He was twelve years of age Muhammad visited Busra Syria with HIs uncle and met a monk named Bahira who acknowledged Him by signs and said to Abu Talib HIs uncle: "Take Him back to to His country and guard Him well... a great future lies ahead before this nephew of yours.." - Sira of Ibn Ishaq p. 81 of The Life of Muhammad.

In the same book Ibn Ishaq reports that "Jewish rabbis, Christian monks and Arab soothsayers had spoken about the Apostle of God before His mission when His time drew near."

But there's no evidence that Prophet Muhammad was a student or studied religions in any sort of formal way. He is usually described as a Hanif, a monotheist that followed Abraham.

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Aisha or Ayesha was a controversial figure... not just due to her reputed age.

Most agree she was probably very young though and the marriage was arranged by her father Abu Bakr..

There was the incident where she lagged behind the caravan and was ostensibly looking for a ring .. some believed she could have been unfaithful to the Prophet.

There was the affair where she contrived with another wife and it displeased the Prophet..

She was one of those who apparently organized the demise of Caliph Uthman

and later rebelled against Caliph Ali.

Her age has been reported at around six to nine years but we must remember that these Hadiths were collected a few hundred years after the events they report... and no one even knows the exact age of the Prophet or His immediate family members.. Consider that also according history Khadijih was supposed to be forty years old when she married Prophet Muhammad.. She later bore children for Him.. Most would acknowledge that someone of that day at forty years of age was well past the age of child bearing ... so I would say the reported age of someone before the Muslim calendar was in full use is only speculative.

- Art

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The Baha'i view as I understand it is that Jesus was physically crucified and martyred on the cross.. but His Spirit could not be crucified.. Also the Qur'an elsewhere says the Martyrs should not be seen as "dead" or killed.

"...most Muslims maintain that Jesus was not crucified, but one who looked like Him was instead, based on their understanding of Qur'án 4:156. Shoghi Effendi, however, states that the Qur'ánic passage indicates that the spiritual reality of Christ was beyond crucifixion, not that His body escaped such a fate (Lights of Guidance, 1646, 1652, 1669); this resolves an apparent contradiction between Islam and Christianity. "

Abdul-Baha though also commented on the Qur'anic verse saying the the Spirit of Christ could not be crucified and that those who crucified Him were hoping they had killed His Cause... The disciples later rallied and understood that the martrydom of Jesus was not the end and that the Cause of Christ was "resurrected" spiritually:

"We do not believe that there was a bodily resurrection after the Crucifixion of Christ, but that there was a time after His Ascension when His disciples perceived spiritually His true greatness and realized He was eternal in being. This is what has been reported symbolically in the New Testament and been misunderstood. His eating with His disciples after resurrection is the same thing."

9 October 1947 to an individual believer


-Art

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The Prophets Moses and Muhammad do have similarities..

Both had charge of communities or Ummas They were responsible for and executed laws in conditions of the deserts of Arabia and the Sinai..

Both united tribes (in the case of Moses twelve tribes... in the case of Muhammad a thousand tribes and more) and forged them in unity.

Both built nations within Their lifetimes..

Both established civilisations that were to have long influence over a thousand years.

Jesus had a different Mission though and His ethics and teachings were to establish more individual ethics and He also influenced civilisation.

Muhammad also deferred to Moses as did Jesus and in a sense Both Jesus and Muhammad fulfilled the prophecy:

John 1:45

Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.

(King James Bible)

Jesus was the Messiah.

Here Jesus defers to Moses:

John 5:45

Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
5:46 For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.

(King James Bible)

John 5:46

For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me.

(King James Bible)

John 7:19 Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law?

(King James Bible)


Here Moses is referred to in the Qur'an:

When we treated with Moses forty nights, then ye took the calf after he had gone and ye did wrong. Yet then we forgave you after that; perhaps ye may be grateful. And when we gave Moses the Scriptures and the Discrimination; perhaps ye will be guided.

(The Qur'an (E.H. Palmer tr), Sura 2 - The Heifer)

And when we gave Moses the Scriptures and the Discrimination; perhaps ye will be guided.

(The Qur'an (E.H. Palmer tr), Sura 2 - The Heifer)



Here Muhammad defers to Moses:

Say, 'We believe in God, and what has been revealed to thee, and what was revealed to Abraham, and Ishmael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the tribes, and what was given to Moses, and Jesus, and the prophets from their Lord,- we will make no distinction between any of them,-and we are unto Him resigned.

(The Qur'an (E.H. Palmer tr), Sura 3 - Imran's Family)


The people of the Book will ask thee to bring down for them a book from heaven; but they asked Moses a greater thing than that, for they said, 'Show us God openly;' but the thunderbolt caught them in their injustice.

(The Qur'an (E.H. Palmer tr), Sura 4 - Women)

To me the Holy Books are like a beautiful tapestry with interwoven threads that support each other..

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You know I think it's interesting that Ishmael is viewed in such negative terms because the verses in scripture actually accord Ishmael a high station...

How many personages in the Bible were named by the Angel of the Lord?

See Genesis 16:11

"You shall call him Ishmael... " Ishmael means "God has heard".

The part of the verse that talks about Ishmael as a "wildass of a man" could also be translated that he was a swift runner... and that he was a helper to his fellows and not as translated his hand is against others..

Follow the possible meanings of the Hebrew words in common lexicons such as Strongs and you will see variations in the meaning of the actual words used.."Yad" for hand can mean "against him" but can also mean "My hand is with someone"...so the text doesn't really support a negative connotation.


Also how many persons did God Himself promise to prosper...note that when Abraham asked God to remember Ishmael, God promised He would make Him a mighty nation... Genesis 17:21

Yes I think it's true that the descent of prophets came through Isaac for Israel..but God also made a Covenant with Abraham and His descendents. See Genesis 17:11 and that would include His sons from Keturah His third wife.

The Ishmaelites were releted to the Midianites that Moses united with... after His exile from Egypt. So Jethro his father-in-law was more a helper to Moses than any kind of hindrance.

- Art

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And these are the years of the life of Ishmael, an hundred and thirty and seven years: and he gave up the ghost and died; and was gathered unto his people.
And they dwelt from Havilah unto Shur, that is before Egypt, as thou goest toward Assyria: and he died in the presence of all his brethren.

(King James Bible, Genesis 25:17-18)

Something else that the Bible tells us about Ishmael... He was a hundred thirty seven year old when he died... but there is something that may have been forgotten by some and that is when he died it was

"in the presense of all his brethren"

so that would imply that Isaac as well as the sons of Keturah were also present when he died...

- Art

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From wikipedia article on Qur'an::



As Corbin narrates from Shia sources, Ali himself gives this testimony:

Not a single verse of the Qur’an descended upon (was revealed to) the Messenger of God which he did not proceed to dictate to me and make me recite. I would write it with my own hand, and he would instruct me as to its tafsir (the literal explanation) and the ta'wil (the spiritual exegesis), the nasikh (the verse which abrogates) and the mansukh (the abrogated verse), the muhkam (without ambiguity) and the mutashabih (ambiguous), the particular and the general...[86]

^ Corbin (1993), p.46
ما نَزلت على رسول الله صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم آية من القرآن إلاّ أقرأنيها وأملاها عليَّ فكتبتها بخطي ، وعلمني تأويلها وتفسيرها، وناسخها ومنسوخها ، ومحكمها ومتشابهها ، وخاصّها وعامّها ، ودعا الله لي أن يعطيني فهمها وحفظها فما نسيتُ آية من كتاب الله تعالى ولا علماً أملاه عليَّ وكتبته منذ دعا الله لي بما دعا ، وما ترك رسول الله علماً علّمه الله من حلال ولا حرام ، ولا أمرٍ ولا نهي كان أو يكون.. إلاّ علّمنيه وحفظته، ولم أنسَ حرفاً واحداً منه

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Some of the urgency of the early church about Jesus being physically real post resurrection was because of the Docetist heresy that believed Jesus was so pure and fine that he couldn't cast a shadow.. So texts were inserted and manipulated to say Jesus ate fish and so on after the resurrection.

Some scholars believe some of these reported incidents were formerly pre resurrection episodes that were later presented as post resurrection events...

There's also the problem of translated Aramaic verbal traditions idioms of speech and so on with their own way of saying things into Koine Greek ... another language that Jesus and His immediate disciples didn't use.. What you have left are some expressions taken literally and pieces of Aramaic expressions scattered around in the Gospels and Epistles.

Visionary experiences of the early disciples could also account for some of these reported incidents..

Earlier in the Gospels you have the story on the Mount of Transfiguration. Peter John and James reportedly have a vision of the glorified Jesus with Moses and Elijah before the crucifixion. Peter even sets about to build tabernacles for the Them.. It was real to Peter..

Luke 9:28-33

About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray. 29As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. 30Two men, Moses and Elijah, 31appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem. 32Peter and his companions were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, "Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." (He did not know what he was saying.)

How "real" can a visionary experience appear? Apparently very real to the people of this time.. Are Moses and Elijah to be taken as literally and physically present? Or should this be taken symbolically? I have yet to hear any Christians maintain that Moses and Elijah had to be literally and bodily present on the Mount of Transfiguration.

For Baha'is there is no literal physical resurrection

"We do not believe that there was a bodily resurrection after the Crucifixion of Christ, but that there was a time after His Ascension when His disciples perceived spiritually His true greatness and realized He was eternal in being. This is what has been reported symbolically in the New Testament and been misunderstood. His eating with His disciples after resurrection is the same thing."

9 October 1947 to an individual believer

but we stress the spiritual significance that the Cause of Christ continued after the crucifixion and was reborn in the lives of the disciples.

- Art

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There is a tradition that I believe is probably authentic and it has to do with the concept that sometiems the followers of a Manifestation look to the Messenger rather than the Light reflected in Them...

It was presented here by Marmaduke Pickthall one of the widely known translators of the Qur'an:

By Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall
The Life of Prophet Muhammad
PART III
The Final Days


When, later in the day, the rumor grew that he was dead. Omar threatened those who spread the rumor with dire punishment, declaring it a crime to think that the Messenger of God could die. He was storming at the people in that strain when Abu Bakr came into the mosque and overheard him. Abu Bakr went to the chamber of his daughter Ayeshah, where the Prophet lay. Having ascertained the fact, and kissed the prophet's forehead, he went back into the mosque. The people were still listening to Omar, who was saying that the rumor was a wicked lie, that the Prophet who was all in all to them could not be dead. Abu Bakr went up to Omar and tried to stop him by a whispered word. Then, finding he would pay no heed, Abu Bakr called to the people, who, recognizing his voice, left Omar and came crowding round him. He first gave praise to Allah, and then said:

"O people! Lo! As for him who worshipped Muhammad, Muhammad is dead. But as for him who worships Allah, Allah is Alive and dieth not." He then recited the verse of the Qur'an:


(And Muhammad is but a messenger, messengers the like of whom have passed away before him. Will it be that, when he dieth or is slain, ye will turn back on your heels? He who turneth back doth no hurt to Allah, and Allah will reward the thankful.)- Surih 3:144


Something happens when a Messenger of God passes on to the spiritual world...some of the believers don't want to think that the Messenger can die and they've gotten in the habit of relying on Him and being attached to Him so much... The same can be said I believe for Jesus. Many of His followers wanted to believe He could not really physically die or be crucified.


- Art

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There are two major sources that I think respond to the issue.. and much depends on who you are and what references you are using.. but one is found at

http://bahai-library.com/books/announcement.quran/

I'm unsure whether this source is well known or not but it explains the fulfillment in an Islamic framework..

To answer the question how the Bab fulfilled the prophecy we need to know more about the prophecy itself...

Generally there are several elements though in the prophecy of the Return of the Twelfth Imam.

Al-Baqir: "When the Qa'im from the family of Muhammad may God bless Him and His family arises He will set up encampnments and He will teach the people the Qur'an as it was revealed by God the Mighty and High. The greatest difficulty will be for those who have learnt it as it is today because it differs from its (original) composition."

The Bab revealed commentaries on the Surihs that differed form those of the well schooled Mullahs of His time.

One is that he would be a descendant of Prophet Muhammad..

The Bab was a Siyyid and wore the green turban symbolizing His descent..

Another was that black standards would herald His advent from Khorasan..

We discussed this recently on another thread a week or so ago.. It was fulfiled by the followers of the Bab carrying the Black Standard from Khorasan.

Jafar al- Sadiq: "When the Qa'im arises peace be upon Him, He will come with a new commandment (from God) just as the Apostle of God, may God bless Him and His family summoned (men) to a new commandment (from God) at the beginning of Islam"

The Bab revealed new commandments and set aside many practices and laws of the Islamic dispensation as fulfillment of this prophecy.



Secondly.. For many of us who were former Christians and as English speakers there are and have been several books available notably by George Townshend, Bill Sears and Gary Matthews along with Michael Sours..

An impressive parallel of Jesus and the Bab was presented by Bill Sears.. One of my personal favorites because although not a scholar himself he had a way of popularizing some of these concepts so most could understand.. His list:

1. They were both youthful.

2. They were both known for their meekness and loving kindness.

3. They both performed healing miracles.

4. The period of their ministry was very brief in each
case, and moved with dramatic swiftness to its climax.

5. Both of them boldly challenged the time-honoured conventions, laws, and
rites of the religions into which they had been born.

6. They courageously condemned the unbridled graft and corruption which
they saw on every side, both religious and secular.

7. The purity of their own lives shamed the people among whom they taught.


8. Their chief enemies were among the religious leaders of the
land. These officials were the instigators of the outrages they
were made to suffer.

9. They both had indignities heaped upon them.

10. They were both forcibly brought before the government
authorities and were subject to public interrogation.

11. They were both scourged following this interrogation.

12. They both went, first in triumph then in suffering, through the streets of
the city where they were to be slain.

13. They were both paraded publicly, and heaped with humiliation, on the way to their place
of martyrdom.

14. They both spoke words of hope and promise to
the one who was to die with them; in fact, almost the exact same
words: 'Thou shalt be with me in paradise.'

15. They were both martyred publicly before the hostile gaze of the onlookers who
crowded the scene.

16. A darkness covered the land following their slaying, in each
case beginning at noon.

17. Their bodies were both lacerated by soldiers at the time of their slaying.

18. They both remained in ignominious suspension before the eyes of an unfriendly
multitude.

19. Their bodies came finally into the hands of their
loving followers.

20. When their bodies, in each case, had vanished from the spot
where they had been placed, the religious leaders explained away
the fact.

21. Only a handful of their followers were with them
at the times of their deaths.

22. In each case, one of their chief disciples denied knowing them. This same disciple, in each case, later became a hero.

23. Each of them had an outstanding woman follower who played a dramatic part in making the disciples turn their faces from the past, and look toward the future.

24. Confusion, bewilderment and despair seized their followers in each
case, following their martyrdom.

25. Through their disciples (the Peters and Pauls of each age) their Faiths were carried to all
parts of the world.

26. They both replied with the same exact
words to the question: Are you the Promised One?

27. Each of them addressed their disciples, charging them to carry their
messages to the ends of the earth." (God Passes By, Shoghi Effendi)

From pp. 87-88 Thief in the Night by William Sears

For me one of the salient proofs for the fulfillment of the prophecy for both the Qa'im and the Return of Christ were the parallel historical movements notably the Shaykhi movement in Shiah Islam and the Millerite movement in the West that had no knowledge of each other and had decided on the same date for the Return..namely 1260 AH which was a thousand years after the disappearance of the Twelfth Imam in 260 AH and the Return of Christ in 1844 CE.

- Art

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Both the Bible and Qur'an God has tested man to sacrifice those things he holds dear...such as his material possessions or his lower self..

`Were it not for tests, genuine gold could not be distinguished from the counterfeit. Were it not for tests, the courageous could not be known from the coward. Were it not for the tests, the people of faithfulness could not be known from those of selfishness... As the servants and the handmaidens of the Merciful stand firmly and persevere, the good seed will soon grow in the field and bear the fruit of blessing. Then will spirituality and fragrance prevail and joy and rejoicing come from the Heavenly Sphere, sorrows and toil shall be forgotten and eternal peace and rest appear.'

- Baha'i Writings


but God Himself does not sacrifice Himself.

When Jesus died an excruciating death on the cross it was a martyrdom and He gave His life and some say this was as a sacrifice for sins, since He routed the money changers from the Temple precincts and let loose the doves for sacrifice it was a sign that the old Temple sacrificial system was no longer an acceptable system to worship God.

Abdu'l-Bahá writes:

`This is the true sacrifice; the offering of oneself, even as did Christ, as a ransom for the life of the world.'
And elsewhere:

`... this plane of sacrifice is the realm of dying to the self, that the radiance of the living God may then shine forth. The martyr's field is the place of detachment from self, that the anthems of eternity may be upraised.' And moreover, describing sacrifice, He writes: `... he [man] must renounce his own self... he must renounce his inordinate desires, his selfish purposes and the promptings of his human self, and seek out the holy breathings of the spirit, and follow the yearnings of his higher self, and immerse himself in the sea of sacrifice, with his heart fixed upon the beauty of the All-Glorious.'

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Reading the Bible I came across the following verses:

Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.

- Exodus 20:3

"Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: 'I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me.'

- Isaiah 44:6

And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? [there is] none good but one, [that is], God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

- Matthew 19:17

And Jesus answered him,

The first of all the commandments [is], Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

- Mark 12:29

And the scribe said unto him, Well, Master, thou hast said the truth: for there is one God; and there is none other but he:

- Mark 12:32


...we know that an idol [is] nothing in the world, and that [there is] none other God but one.

- First Corinthians 8:4

One God and Father of all, who [is] above all, and through all, and in you all.

- Ephesians 4:6

It does say that Jesus is a Mediator:

For [there is] one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

- First Titus 2:5

Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well..

- James 2:19

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Say, the Holy Spirit has brought the revelation from thy Lord in Truth, in order to strengthen those who believe, and as a Guide and Glad Tidings to Muslims.

- From Surih Nahl (16) verse 102

The Holy Spirit is رُوحُ الْقُدُسِ


"I will ask the Father, and He will give you another to be your advocate, who will be with you for ever-the spirit of truth." "It is for your good that I am leaving you. If I do not go, your advocate will not come, whereas if I go, I will send him to you."

"Whenever, when he comes who is the spirit of truth, he will guide you into the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but tell only what he hears; and he wil1 make known to you the things that are coming."

John 14: 16; 16: 7 and 8 and 12 and 13.

وَإِنَّهُ لَتَنزِيلُ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

"Verily this is a Revelation from the Lord of the worlds"

نَزَلَ بِهِ الرُّوحُ الْأَمِينُ

"With it came down the Spirit of Faith and Truth-"

- From Surih Shuaraa (26) vrs. 192 and 193

So the Qur'an specifies.

So the Spirit of Truth and the Holy Spirit is mentioend in Qur'an and connected to it's revelation...

Look at the etymology of the name Gabriel:

Aramaic: Gabr-el, man of God; literally "Master, of God", i.e., a Master, who is "of God"; or "my master is God") is generally considered to be an archangel in Abrahamic religions, who serves as a messenger from God.

Source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gabriel


Gabriel is mentioned

Say, 'Who is an enemy to Gabriel? for he hath revealed to thy heart, with God's permission, confirmation of what had been before, and a guidance and glad tidings to believers.

(The Qur'an (E.H. Palmer tr), Sura 2 - The Heifer verse 97)

Read Daniel 8:16 "Gabriel make this man to understand the vision".

Daniel 9:21 "Gabriel whom I had seen in the vision... touched me about the time of the evening ablution."

Gabriel announced the birth of John the Baptist see Luke 1:19

Gabriel conveyed the Glad Tidings to the Virgin Mary about the birth of Jesus..

So Gabriel has been in both the Old Testament and New Testament and the Qur'an a symbol of Divine Revelation.

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....In the kingdom of Balkh in Persia, King Gushtasp had a dream. He saw Zarathushtra come through the roof on a golden throne, holding a ball of fire, the sacred book Avesta and a plant.

In his dream he planted the tree which spoke to him saying there is only one God. He has taught Zarathushtra the true religion and told him to follow it. Then Zarathushtra handed the ball of fire to Gushtasp, and to his surprise he found that it did not burn him, nor could be put out by water or earth. Then Zarathushtra gave him the holy book.

When the king woke up the next morning, his servant said that a man wanted to speak with him. The king asked for his name. The servant replied that it was Zarathushtra. The king was dumbfounded and asked his servant to bring him at once.

The king said he would believe in his God if Zarathushtra answered the questions of his wise men. Zarathushtra agreed. He answered the most difficult questions, and the wise men realized that no ordinary man could have such knowledge and answer these questions about God, Heaven and Earth unless they have been given to them by God himself.

The king asked Zarathushtra to stay with him in his palace and asked him if he could show him a miracle. Zarathushtra answered him saying the holy book Avesta was his only miracle. The king asked his forgiveness and asked to be taught the truths of the holy book.

Source:

http://66.218.69.11/search/cache?ei=...icp=1&.intl=us

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You can check for yourself the connection between the Amitabha and the Pureland or Western Paradise concept yourself..

. Contemporary Pure Land traditions see the Buddha Amitabha preaching the Dharma in his buddha-field (Sanskrit: buddhakṣetra), called the "Pure Land" (zh. 净土, pinyin jìngtǔ, jp. 浄土 jōdo, vi. Tịnh độ) or "Western Pureland" (Ch. 西天, pinyin xītiān), a region offering respite from karmic transmigration. The Vietnamese also use the term Tây Phương Cực Lạc (西方極樂) for "Western Land of Bliss", or more accurately, "Western Paradise".

The Pure Land is described in the Limitless Life Sutra as a land of beauty that surpasses all other realms. More importantly for the Pure Land practitioner, once one has been "born" into this land (birth occurs painlessly through lotus flowers), one will never again be reborn. In the Pure Land one will be personally instructed by Amitabha Buddha and numerous Bodhisattvas until one reaches full and complete enlightenment. In effect, being born into the Pure Land is akin to achieving enlightenment, through escaping samsara, the Buddhist concept of "the wheel of birth and death."

Source:

http://209.85.173.104/search?q=cache...lnk&cd=2&gl=us

So consider the terms used above and what elements they include:

(1) The Amitabha Buddha.. A Buddha of Limitless Light

The title Baha'u'llah means the Glory or Light of God.

It is most interesting to note that in Buddhist Scripture, particularly in the Amitayus Sutra, clear reference is made to "AMITABHA" as the "Infinite Light of Revelation", the "Unbounded Light" and the "Source of Wisdom, of Virtue and of Buddha hood." When giving the qualities of a "true follower" Buddha stated that it was he who "relies with his heart upon Amitabha .... the unbounded Light of Truth."[1]


[1 Shirin Khanum, 'Lord Buddha and Amitabha', pp 13, 17-19.]

(Abu'l-Qasim Faizi, An Explanation of the Greatest Name, p. 4)



(2) appears and preaches/instructs His followers

Baha'u'llah taught His followers over about a forty year period or so.

who are

(3) reborn in the "Western Paradise".

The Western Paradise is a Buddha Field.

What is a Buddha field?

"The sphere of influence and activity of a Buddha"

One could surmise I believe that the following of Baha'u'llah could be considered a Buddha field.. He had His "sphere of influence and activity" to west of east Asia.

Here are some quotes:

You will realize that if the Divine light of truth shone in Jesus Christ it also shone in Moses and in Buddha.

(Abdu'l-Baha, Paris Talks, p. 137)

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.

(Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 197)

There are prophecies concerning this Manifestation in the Buddhistic books, but they are in symbols and metaphors, and some spiritual conditions are mentioned therein, but the leaders of religion do not understand. They think these prophecies are material things; yet those signs are foreshadowing spiritual occurrences.

("Tablets of Abdul-Baha Abbas", vol. 3 (Chicago: Bahá'í Publishing Society, 1916), p. 565)

(Compilations, The Compilation of Compilations vol. I, p. 15)

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arthra

If you study Sanskrit you check out the name "Amitabha"

the Buddha of Immeasurable Light and the Buddha of the Western Paradise or the Pure Land of Sukhavati (Tibetan - Dewachen).

Source:

http://www.amitabhahospice.org/publi...re/meanin1.php

It was Fozdar I think that first brought this to my attention..

The connection between the Arabic "Abha" and the Sanskrit "Abha" is I think a fascianting subject.

The Sanskrit Abha means "Light, Splendour, Beauty."

Now the Arabic Abha :–

Al-Abhá (sometimes used as ElAbhá)
The All-Glorious – The Most Glorious.

and

Bahá – Light or Glory

Abhá – Most Glorious.

See the Explanation of the Symbol of the Greatest Name for more:

http://bahai-library.com/index.php5?..._greatest_name

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arthra

In my view the "angel Gabriel" can be seen in symbolic terms in the case of the Revelation to Prophet Muhammad. Just as Moses saw the "Burning Bush" in the wilderness it was symbolic... or when the Lord Jesus saw the dove descending from the heavens it was a symbol of a spiritual experience...

"When Jesus had been baptized, he immediately came up out of the water. Suddenly the heavens opened up for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him."

"The angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from within a bush. He looked – and the bush was ablaze with fire, but it was not being consumed!"

Volume 6, Book 60, Number 451:
Narrated Ibn Abbas:

When Gabriel revealed the Divine Inspiration in
Allah's Apostle , he (Allah's Apostle) moved his
tongue and lips, and that state used to be very
hard for him, and that movement indicated that
revelation was taking place. So Allah revealed in
Surat Al-Qiyama which begins:
'I do swear by the Day of Resurrection...' (75)
the Verses: --
'Move not your tongue concerning (the Quran) to
make haste therewith. It is for Us to collect it
(Quran) in your mind, and give you the ability to
recite it by heart. (75.16-17) Ibn Abbas added:
It is for Us to collect it (Qur'án) (in your mind),
and give you the ability to recite it by heart
means, "When We reveal it, listen. Then it is for
Us to explain it," means, 'It is for us to explain it
through your tongue.' So whenever Gabriel came
to Allah's Apostle ' he would keep quiet (and
listen), and when the Angel left, the Prophet
would recite that revelation as Allah promised
him.

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arthra

Jesus did not have a community to lead.. while Prophet Muhammad after the Hijra did..

What happened historically was that when Christianity became accepted as the state religion of the Roman Empire ... Roman law for the most part continued or amalgamated with Christian ideas.

See:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byzantine_law

and

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Juris_Civilis

which provided laws such as

"..all persons present at a pagan sacrifice may be indicted as if for murder."

"Jews could not testify against Christians and were disqualified from holding a public office. Jewish civil and religious rights were restricted: "they shall enjoy no honors". The use of the Hebrew language in worship was forbidden. Shema Yisrael, sometimes considered the most important prayer in Judaism ("Hear, O Israel, the Lord is one") was banned, as a denial of the Trinity. "

In contrast, Jews in many Islamic societies were more respected and allowed to observe their religion.

The Qur'an provided for marriage, divorce ordinances..inheritance.. treatment of slaves and prisoners while there were no such provisions in the Gospels. The teachings of Jesus were for individuals not society as a whole.

On a personal level Prophet Muhammad lived an exemplary life for His time. He was monogamous during the first twenty year marriage which was unheard of... His wife gave Him a slave whom He later freed and adopted as a son...again unheard of at the time. In the early years of His Mission He was pelted with stones and people threw thorns in His path.. but God I think decided the same fate of Jesus to be crucified was not to occur for Prophet Muhammad so defence was permitted.

- Art

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arthra

I think Saul-Paul had a conversion experience on the way to Damascus so I tend to believe the account as given.. He experienced a blindness for awhile afterwards which is interesting.. I wonder if that was a physical manifestation which was related somehow...

Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing; 3 so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. 9 For three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank.

There have been other people like that who persecuted others and experienced a conversion.

Recent studies have been done that explain that the same parts of the brain are involved in love and hate..

See:

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/ne...-14023776.html

There is a possibility Saul had an epileptic seizure causing his fall from the horse and seeing a bright light and hearing a voice:

On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice

"Simple partial seizures usually only last for a short time. While this type of seizure is going on, the person might smell something peculiar. They may have a strange feeling or see flashing lights. Sometimes there will be some movement in the arms and hands. The person may also hear voices, which they do not understand."

Source:

http://christianforums.com/showthread.php?t=7304422

No one knows for sure but it is a possibility...

What ever happened though Paul was an essential lynch pin of the expansion of Christianity to the Hellenized world...

He also I believe was a major influence in the conflict between the Jewish Christians and the Greek speaking Hellenized Christians.. which was resolved over time, but maybe never completely so... Probably there were many hurt feelings..

American Standard Version
But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Cephas before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest as do the Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, how compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?

- Galatians 2:14

I believe Paul is a fascinating study and that there are many aspects to it that are to this day enigmatic and unresolved.

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arthra

First Isaiah 21:7

And he hath seen a chariot -- a couple of horsemen, The rider of an ass, the rider of a camel, And he hath given attention -- He hath increased attention!

Young's translation


"And he saw a chariot with two horsemen, a rider upon an ass, and a rider upon a camel: and he beheld them diligently with much heed."

Douay-Rheims Bible

Second Isaiah 21:1

This is the divine revelation about Arabia. You caravan of travelers from the people of Dedan will spend the night in the forest of Arabia.

God's word Translation

The oracle about Arabia. In the thickets of Arabia you must spend the night, O caravans of Dedanites.

New American Standard

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