Baha'i Rants - A Baha'i Blog Baha'i Rants - A Baha'i Blog A personal Baha'i blog discussing the world wide Baha'i community, news, commentary and other little tid-bits from around the world. 
Articles
Change is a Law of Nature
2009-08-18 03:35:00 London July 4th 2009: Sarah Brown, wife of the British Prime Minister took part the London Pride March. This photo is used with permission by photographer, © Marco Secchi 2008. One of the most beautiful aspects of the Baha’i Writings in my view is that religious law can be flexible and adapt. “The second classification or division comprises social laws and regulations applicable to human conduct. This is not the essential spiritual quality of religion. It is subject to change and transformation according to the exigencies and requirements of time and place.” (Address by Abdu’l Baha Abbas before Congregation Emmanu-El, San Francisco, Cal. (Martin A. Meyer, Rabbi) Saturday, October 12, 1912. - Star of the West, Vol. 3, No. 13, p. 3) Abdu’l-Baha places principles such as justice and equality into the first classification, as part of what all religion is concerned with and which does not change. By “second classificiation” Abdu’l-Baha is... More About: Nature , Change
The Trouble with the World
2009-08-12 06:14:00 The topic being discussed currently in various Baha’i forums is a speech given by Peter Khan, on July 3rd 2009 titled “Reflections on the Ridvan Message”. You can read the complete speech here. There isn’t much remarkable about it but if you manage to hack through the thick underbrush of verbiage you’ll find that almost at the end Khan says: The solution is childish simple; the solution is so simple, it [sic] hardly worth mentioning. The solution is no more and no less than unreserved acceptance of whatever the central authority of the Cause, in this case the Universal House of Justice decrees. Unfortunately Khan doesn’t explain what he really means by ‘decrees’. Does that mean anything the House decides? every word they write? every answer they give to a questioner? every letter of guidance to members or national administrative bodies? or does it mean what they decree as in their legislative authority within Baha’i administrat... More About: World , The World
Iran’s Intergenerational Conflict
2009-07-23 06:48:00 Below is a short video from chunnel.tv which summarizes recent Iranian history to explain the opposing forces at work in Iranian politics today: Smells Like Teen Spirit: Thursday Night Heyat in Iran This video is a glimpse into the life of the ‘devout’ Muslim Iranian youth and the type of social activities they are able to participate in: Poetry Jam in Iran Culture Of Martyrdom Linkfest regarding the Iraian election protests: Turmoil in Iran More About: Conflict
Oldest Bible (Codex Sinaiticus) Now Online
2009-07-19 20:28:00 Although in physical form it is in 4 separate locations around the world, the oldest known copy of the Bible is now completely online. The document dates back to Constantine I and is considered one of the world’s greatest written treasures. Now, thanks to the internet, everyone has equal access to this historical heritage. To find out more about why this document is so important, you can read more about it here. Interestingly enough, there are many discrepancies between the contents of the Codex and what we consider as the Bible today. For example, it has no mention of a resurrected Jesus – a pivotal component of modern Christian doctrine. I took the image you see above while playing around with the controls at the Codex Sinaiticus website. As the image shows, you can zoom in to see quiet a lot of detail. Even you are not a librarian or a photographer or an archivist, it isn’t difficult to imagine the daunting task of digitizing a 1,600-year old manuscript that i... More About: Online
Can a Woah-man! Serve on the UHJ?
2009-07-13 16:40:00 I was talking to a friend recently about her volunteer work within the GLBT community and something she said caught my attention: “gender is so over!”. Now that statement may seem ridiculous, especially when you consider that everything in our Western society demonstrates and magnifies the divide between the two sexes. Boys are given toy trucks, girls? Barbies. Even if the politically correct parents of today have moved beyond such cliches, I’m willing to bet that they may have read books like, Men are from Mars, Women from Venus. There are two sexes: men and women. But is it that clear cut? Turns out… no. Science is slowly beginning to come to grips with the question of gender and the discoveries are nothing short of astonishing. Whereas we once thought of the world divided between two halves, the new paradigm is one where there is a continuum. Recently I stumbled on this article: We’re all intersex where Gerald N. Callahan, the author of Between XX...
Global Currency Proposed By Russia
2009-07-11 06:53:00 Writing in the World Order of Baha’u'llah, Shoghi Effendi envisioned the future: A mechanism of world inter-communication will be devised, embracing the whole planet, freed from national hindrances and restrictions, and functioning with marvellous swiftness and perfect regularity. A world metropolis will act as the nerve centre of a world civilization, the focus towards which the unifying forces of life will converge and from which its energizing influences will radiate. A world language will either be invented or chosen from among the existing languages and will be taught in the schools of all the federated nations as an auxiliary language to their mother tongue. A world script, a world literature, a uniform and universal system of currency, of weights and measures, will simplify and facilitate intercourse and understanding among the nations and races of mankind. Keeping in mind that the above was written in 1938, you can’t help but be awed by his prophetic vision. We ... More About: Currency , Global , Russia
Turmoil in Iran Simmering, Not Over
2009-07-07 20:06:00 Although news about Iran ’s stolen election have fallen off the radar of most news outlets, things have not calmed down or been resolved. Not by a long shot. While the ruthless Basij and riot police were able to suppress the protests and prevent any new ones, the same discontent simmer beneath the surface ready to explode at any moment. If this does play out following the same time line as the Iranian revolution 30 years ago, it will go on for months and build momentum slowly. I’m still not convinced that it will however. The Islamic Republic has shown itself to be completely without mercy when it comes to internal challenges. There is no line they will not cross to maintain power. But it would seem that Rafsanjani has been busy in Qom. The Assembly of Qom Seminary Scholars and Researchers recently released a shocking statement (see below). Doonesbury Since this all began I kept a running tally of links to important articles, new developments and analysis. I’ve con...
The Watermelon Miracle
2009-07-04 05:19:00 To tickle your funny bone this holiday weekend: Sketch from That Mitchell and Webb Look. More About: Miracle
Individual Baha’is Ignoring NSA Directive on Iran
2009-06-25 22:24:00 Daniela recently wrote a guest post about the ‘official’ Baha’i guidance regarding the protest movement in Iran : Don’t Speak Out for Them. There she quoted the UK NSA’s guidance to Baha’is to keep mum about the developments in Iran. I already linked to a similar message from the NSA of the USA. To summarize: “the believers ... More About: Individual
How Do You Say ?Baha?i? In Sign Language?
2008-06-08 20:39:00 As far as I know, there is no official way to sign “Baha’i” in sign language. Stephen Bedingfield offers the suggested sign - to the left - for the deaf and hard of hearing community to represent the word “Baha’i”. If I’m blessed enough to have any readers from that community, I’d appreciate their input. ... More About: Language , Sign , Sign language
A Chat with a Baha?i Youth in Iran
2008-06-02 17:38:00 I’m grateful to a “Anonymouz”, a reader, who forwarded an informal chat with a Baha’i youth living in Iran . The youth gave their permission for their conversation with Anonymouz to be made public (omitting his name). My comment regarding the equal susceptibility of Baha’i youth in Iran to the same societal pressures as other youth upset ... More About: Chat , Youth
Power of Love or Love of Power?
2008-05-31 10:07:00 Hope you like this little noetic eye candy I cooked up for you: When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace. Jimmi Hendrix The way I see it, power is all about control. Love is all about losing control. God’s love for us is the primary force behind Creation and the fountain ... More About: Power
We Have Annulled The Rule Of The Sword
2008-05-29 23:57:00 As my fellow Baha’is in Iran face a renewed wave of persecutions, there are some who charge the Baha’i community to be perpetrators of violence. Of course these charges have no credibility but still I thought it would be fruitful to go to the source and see what Baha’u'llah commands: Beware lest ye shed the blood of ... More About: Sword , Rule
Recent Baha?i Arrests Tied To Shiraz Bomb Blast
2008-05-20 22:11:00 According to an article on May 17th, 2008 in the Iran ian newspaper the Quds Daily, the reason for the recent arrest of seven Baha’is is suspicion of involvement in last month’s bomb explosion. You’ll recall that there was an explosion in a Shiraz mosque on April 12th - at the time a part of me hoped ... More About: Arrests , Recent , Blast
Baha?i Administrative Body of Iran Arrested
2008-05-15 00:22:00 Breaking News Morning Wednesday May 14th, 2008 - Tehran, Iran Report from the Universal House of Justice … the members of the Friends in Iran - the group that coordinates the activities of the Baha’i community in the absence of a National Spiritual Assembly in the Cradle of the Faith - have been summarily and unjustly arrested by ... More About: Arrested , Body , Administrative
Reports Show Communities Ignoring Ruhi
2008-05-14 15:20:00 During the last Baha’i National Convention, Bill Davis addressed the convention attempting to re-direct their attention away from the NSA’s own annual report, which presented an honest assessment of the situation on the ground in Baha’i communities in the US, to the letter from the UHJ directing Baha’is to “stay the course”. Towards the end ... More About: Show , Ruhi , Communities
New Baha?i Renovation & Beautification Projects
2008-05-13 22:05:00 Shrine of the Bab illuminated by celebration of Israel’s 60th anniversary. The Universal House of Justice has communicated the expansion and continuation of renovations and beautifications for existing and expanding Baha’i properties in Israel. Click to read the full letter here. The BWC has been able to exchange some land north of Akka for a plot adjacent ... More About: Projects , Fund , Renovation
Universal House of Justice: Ridvan Message 2008
2008-05-06 20:31:00 Here is the Universal House of Justice ’s Ridvan Message for 2008 . If you have trouble reading it below, you can follow the above link to download the document to your computer. You can also use the menu to print it out (click or hover where it says iPaper below).
Individual Conscience Within the Baha?i Faith
2008-05-06 17:13:00 Although this blog is a personal endeavor, I am blessed with the company of many friends who share with me their thoughts and opinions. Within a previous discussion, there was a comment about the sacredness of individual conscience and how it relates to the Baha’i Faith . There are those who hold this opinion: ?We have inherited a ... More About: Conscience , Individual
Meet the New Universal House of Justice
2008-04-30 16:19:00 The scrutineers where scrutinizing so hard they are still squinting, the counters were counting (and re-counting), Counsellor Penny Walker, as chairperson of the convention, kept imploring the tellers to not actually look at the ballots because they didn’t need to use their own eyes, they could just look through the eyes of the UHJ! Thankfully ... More About: House , Justice , Meet , Universal
US NSA Loses Court Case Against Orthodox Baha?is
2008-04-28 13:21:00 This is about Covenant-Breakers so if you are sensitive, please go and look at some bunny pictures or play with a kitten or something. The rest of you can soldier on. Since most have no clue what this is all about, here are the Cliff Notes: Way back in 1966, when normal people were busy growing as ... More About: Case , Court
What do Baha?is do?
2008-04-23 15:34:00 So you’re dying to know what it is that Baha’is actually do? Well, this website wants to answer you with several video interviews. They are about the Ruhi sequence of courses and the different activities attached to them such as Junior Youth Groups (Book 5) and devotionals, etc. There are more than a dozen videos, and they are ...
Where is the Garden of Ridvan?
2008-04-21 15:59:00 After His imprisonment in the Black Pit, Baha’u'llah was exiled to Baghdad. The group arrived in the capital of modern Iraq in the spring of 1853. Baha’u'llah soon left to live in solitude for two years in the mountains of Kurdistan. In 1856 He rejoined the Holy family in Baghdad and wrote among His most ... More About: Garden
Sectarian Violence: Explosion in Shiraz Mosque
2008-04-13 02:46:00 A home-made bomb exploded, killing at least 9 people, and injuring more than a 100 in Shiraz today. The site of the bombing was the Shohada (Martyrs) mosque, part of the Rahpouyan-e-Vesal cultural center. My condolences and prayers to those who lost loved ones and for those who were injured. No one has yet officially claimed ... More About: Iran , Mosque , Violence , Explosion
Second Fastest Growing Religion
2008-04-01 20:26:00 Currently there is an interesting discussion on Talisman about the nature and evolution of the Baha’i community and identity. Among the things being talked about is the size of the Baha’i community in the US. Apparently, according to the numbers from the NSA of the United States, we are seeing a stagnant community. And if taken ... More About: Religion , Growing , Fastest Growing Religion
Message from Above?
2008-04-01 13:36:00 Have you ever gotten an email that wasn’t intended for you? I know its rare but it does happen. The mathematical probabilities aren’t that small when you consider the sheer volume of email zipping around these days. Even so, I was flabbergasted when I got an email recently that most certainly was not intended for ... More About: Humor , Message
Is an Unknowable God Logical?
2008-03-29 14:58:00 This is the slideshow portion of a presentation titled: Is an Unknowable God Logical ? Since it doesn’t include the commentary and explanations of the presenter, one has to fill in the spots with some imagination. But it still is an interesting look at the question of the existence of God, miracles and other such issues. Here is ... More About: Atheism
Several Baha?i Documents & Speeches
2008-03-26 22:50:00 One of the readers of this blog, Farhan Yazdani, was kind enough to share these after another person requested them in a discussion. I took the liberty of putting them in this format since it offers more flexibility. You can read it as is, send it to a friend, embed it into your site or ... More About: Ruhi , Speeches , Documents
Memories of Nine Years in Akka: A Review
2008-03-18 15:17:00 Memories of Nine Years in Akka (Khatirát-i-Nuh-Saliy-i-?Akká) is the translation of the memoirs of Dr. Youness Afroukhteh, Abdu’l-Baha’s secretary and interpreter during 1900 to 1909. It is published by George Ronald and can be found at any good Baha’i bookstore, as well as many online book sellers. It covers the period of time when the Baha’i ... More About: Review , Memories
Happy St. Patrick?s Day To My Fellow Baha?is
More articles from this author:2008-03-17 14:06:00 Today we are all either Irish, or honorary Irish. Little known fact: although everyone refers to him as Saint Patrick , he was never officially canonized by any Pope. In anycase, I wonder how the original Patrick, saint or not, would feel to have his death commemorated by celebrations of Bacchus proportions. One of the most obvious ... More About: Humor , Happy , St Patrick 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
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