Baha’i Justice

It is rather ironic to hear Anonymous 222 refer to the Baha’i Faith as a cult. He himself has claimed to be a Manifestation of called and called Aleisster Crowley his forerunner. Susan

I would also point out that the absolutist and triumphalistic language and uncompromising Manichaean imagery the poster above is using is classic cult-diction. Anonymous222

Dictionaries do not define what cults are. There is a body of sociological literature with water-tight typologies and discussion that very much fits the Haifan Bahai organization like a glove. Besides the word “cult” in relation to the Baha’i faith has been used in numerous contexts and by numerous people. Juan Cole used it here:
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jrcole/bahai/1…

Karen Bacquet used it here:
http://www.icsahome.com/infoserv_articles/bac…

There is also a momentum of consensus outside of the Academy, given the inherent Stalinist behavior of the Haifan Baha’i institutions, that indeed it is a cult — in all the negative denotation of that word. Scientology also does not believe it is a cult. Yet it is an NRM cult, not just because Christians say so, but because there are critical typologies in the very secular discipline of the sociology of religion that very much put it under that rubric. The Haifan Bahai organization is very much an NRM cult on every level in the same way as Scientology is. There is no longstanding historical tradition of the Baha’i faith that can adequately define it as a World Religion and so circumvent the NRM cult rubric.

Furthemore, the mere fact that you people cannot even stomach the very existence of a rival schismatic body using the name “Baha’i” speaks volumes to that fact that you are indeed a cult — and one of the worst of them too IMV.

Finally, an organization that issues official directives to its representatives to spy and inform on people is a cult. That you don’t like or are embarrased by the fact is irrelevant to the issue that this is classic NRM cult-behavior.

The Haifan Baha’i organization is a cult. Get used to it! Anonymous222

As much as strident voices above would like to convey the International Baha’i Community as a cult, it simply doesn’t fit the definition. Look it up.

On another note, the discourse here could not happen were it not for the Internet. What you find on the Internet through a simple search for “Baha’i” provides ample evidence of a diverse and united community that is rational, outward-looking, well-regarded, united, and, by some accounts, rapidly growing.

And, in case anyone has failed to notice, this article appearing in a major American news publication has not been picked up by any other major news organizations. Why, because news editors elsewhere recognize that the critics don’t have anywhere near the same credibility that the Baha’i institutions and body of believers all over the world have. The Baha’i “brand” is strong. The Baha’i Community collectively has earned respect through its actions and its service over the decades in nation after nation in the world and at the United Nations.

Any one who follows mentions of “Baha’i” on the Internet can recognize in the handful of critics represented in this comment string a pattern of behavior that reflects some personal disappointment or grievance that has caused them to arise in venomous opposition. The personal stories of some who have identified themselves is well-known. Their critique of the Faith is not dispassionate or broadly general, but is deeply personal and highly individual, so individual that their positions have little relevance to the masses of spiritual seekers in the world who simply do not have their individual hang-ups. The dispassionate seeker wonders, why devote such energy trying to attack and tear down? What unmet purely personal needs are they attempting to meet through such vociferous rancour?

The Faith has encounted opposition from its earliest days. Being true to the Covenant is Central to being a Baha’i. Go on Baha’i pilgrimage and you hear the stories of what the Central Figures of the Faith had to endure and see the places associated with their suffering. You hear the stories of those who arose in opposition. Critics and opponents did not, however, deter the believers from teaching with great success or prevent the Faith from growing from a handful of centers to approximately 100,00 localities today. George

The readership should note above that the poster Susan is the author of the following:

http://bahai-library.com/bsr/bsr06/62_maneck_…
WISDOM AND DISSIMULATION IN THE BAHA’I WRITINGS: The Use and meaning of Hikmat in the Baha’i Writings

QUOTE

“In many cases hikmat calls for the apparent suspension of a Bahá’í principle in order to ensure the protection of the Faith.” Anonymous222

Welcome! Send this quote to your friends as well:

http://bahai-library.com/published.uhj/counse…
THE INSTITUTION OF THE COUNSELLORS
A Document Prepared by the Universal House of Justice
January 29 2001

Quote
Protection of the Cause (pp. 15-16)

Although deepening the friends’ understanding of the Covenant and increasing their love and loyalty to it are of paramount importance, the duties of the Auxiliary Board members for Protection
do not end here. The Board members must remain ever vigilant, monitoring the actions of those who, driven by the promptings of ego,
seek to sow the seeds of doubt in the minds of the friends and undermine the Faith. In general, whenever believers become aware of
such problems, they should immediately contact whatever institution they feel moved to turn to, whether it be a Counsellor, an Auxiliary
Board member, the National Spiritual Assembly or their own Local Assembly. It then becomes the duty of that institution to ensure that
the report is fed into the correct channels and that all the other institutions affected are promptly informed. Not infrequently, the responsibility will fall on an Auxiliary Board member, in coordination with the Assembly concerned, to take some form of action in response to the situation. This involvement will include counselling the believer in question; warning him, if necessary, of theconsequences
of his actions; and bringing to the attention of the Counsellors the gravity of the situation, which may call for their intervention.
Naturally, the Board member has to exert every effort to counteract the schemes and arrest the spread of the influence of those few who,
despite attempts to guide them, eventually break the Covenant.

The need to protect the Faith from the attacks of its enemies may not be generally appreciated by the friends, particularly in places where attacks have been infrequent. However, it is certain that such opposition will increase, become concerted, and eventually universal.
The writings clearly foreshadow not only an intensification of the
machinations of internal enemies, but a rise in the hostility and opposition of its external enemies, whether religious or secular, as the Cause pursues its onwardmarch towards ultimate victory. Therefore, in the light of the warnings of the Guardian, the Auxiliary Boards for Protection should keep “constantly” a “watchful eye” on those “who are known to be enemies, or to have been put out of the Faith”, discreetly investigate their activities, alert intelligently the friends to the opposition inevitably to come, explain how each
crisis in God’s Faith has always proved to be a blessing in disguise,
and prepare them for the “dire contest which is destined to range the
Army of Light against the forces of darkness”. Anonymous222

Susan wrote:
Interesting that the Remeyites would applaud Fred who rejects the very notion of a Guardianship and the Will and Testament upon which it is based.

I applaud anyone who recognizes and informs the rest of the believers about the usurpation and corruption that has gone on in the Baha’i Faith and the way the current administration functions in complete opposition to the ideals and principals the Baha’i Faith stands for. The Baha’i Faith is for those, in my point of view, who emulate the principals and teachings of the central figures of the Faith. Principals that you don’t just give lip service to, but that you exhibit. Say: all are created by God! I applaud you for your work, as your work is just as much a service as well. We are all servants. Victor

Interesting that the Remeyites would applaud Fred who rejects the very notion of a Guardianship and the Will and Testament upon which it is based. Susan

Marcello wrote:

I’m a Christian and don’t need you to teach me my own history. The “locus of authority” that you speak of was responsible for the stagnation and corruption of the Christian faith — just like the UHJ. Christianity survives today precisely because the Christian community rejected that authority.

Apparently I do. This locus of authority (Apostolic Succession) was largely responsible for the survival of Christianity which to this day is rejected only by a minority of Christians. That rejection, which took place after the sixteenth century, has been responsible for the fragmentation of the church, not its survival. Susan

James wrote:
No one religious group can claim to have copyright over their religious words and symbols.

As I mentioned earlier this injunction with the National Spiritual Assembly is trying to enforce came as a result of the Remeyites attempting to do precisely that. They lost their lawsuit and the trademarks in question were given to the NSA. Obviously we don’t have a copyright over the ‘words’ of our religion but our religious organization does own certain trademarks. Susan