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CUL:The Bahai Faith from The Kingdom of the Cults  by Walter Martin

Bethany Publishers Minneapolis, Minnesota August, 1977

   Chapter 12 THE BAHAI FAITH pp 252-258

   The Bahai Faith is a non-Christian cult of distinctly foreign
origin, and began in Persia in the nineteenth century with a young
religious Persian business man known as Mirza Ali Muhammed, who came to
believe himself to be a divine manifestation projected into the world
of time and space as a Bab or Gate, leading to a new era for mankind.

   As Christianity almost since its inception has had heretics and
heresies within its fold, so Islam was destined to experience the same
fragmenting forces. Mirza Ali Muhammed, alias the "Bab," thus became
one of the sorest thorns in the flesh of Islamic orthodoxy, so much so,
that he was murdered by Mohammedan fanatics in 1850, at the age of
thirty-one. He had derived much of his early encouragement and support
from the Shaykahis sect in Persia, and was a prominent teacher among
them for six years prior to his death. Though Christians have not been
known historically for putting to death those who disagreed with
them, (notable exception are the Reformation and Counter-Reformation,
the Inquisition and certain phases of the Crusades), violence may
generally be said to follow in the wake of "new" revelations in most
other religions, and unfortunately, in the case of Mirza the pattern
held true.

   The history of Bahai then, began with the stupendous claims of a
young Persian to the effect that "the religious leaders of the world
had forgotten their common origin...Moses, Jesus and Mohammed were
equal prophets, mirroring God's glory, messengers bearing the imprint
of the Great Creator..." [Source: Faiths, Cults and Sects in America,
Richard Mathison, page 105.]

   Today this still remains the basic tenet of the Bahai faith, albeit
with the addition of Zoroaster, Buddha, Confucius, Krishna, Lao and
Baha'u'llah, the last great manifestation of the Divine Being, whose
name transliterated means, "the glory of God."

   As Bahai history records it, the Bab was sentenced to death and was
executed July 8, 1850, at Tabriz. In the view of thousands, as the
Bahais tell it, 750 Armenian soldiers raised their rifles and fired at
the figure of the prophet. Alas, all this was to no avail, for when the
smoke cleared, the Bab had not only emerged unscathed from the
fusillade of bullets, but the bullets had burned through the ropes
which held him, and he stood unfettered.

   The story goes on to relate that he then disappeared from their
vision, but upon returning to his cell, the guards found him lecturing
his disciples. After he had finished his speaking with them, he is
reported to have said, "I have finished my conversation. Now you may
fulfill your intention."

   He was then led out before the same firing squad and this time they
did not miss.

   All of these events were accompanied by the cries of "Miracle!
Miracle!" from the assembled populace, who, though they outnumbered the
luckless Armenian soldiers, failed to rescue the Bab from his
appointment with the Dark Angel.

   The Bahai history of the event also records that a fierce black
whirlwind swept the city immediately after the execution of the Bab,
somewhat reminiscent of the earthquake and darkness which fell over the
earth upon the death of Jesus Christ on Golgotha, eighteen centuries
before.

   The death of the Bab however, did not dim the rising star of the new
faith. Instead, he had, according to his followers, prophesied that
"The oneness of all mankind" was an inevitability, and that in time
there would unify all the followers and would himself be a
manifestation of the only true and living God.

   Modern Bahaism considers that the Bab's great prophecy has been
fulfilled by one Mirza Husayn Ali, better known to the initiated as
"Baha'u'llah," who succeeded the Messianic throne of Bahaism upon the
death of his unfortunate predecessor, the Bab.

   In the year 1863 this same Baha'u'llah declared himself as that one
prophesied by the Bab thirteen years previously, the One who was
"chosen of God, and the promised one of all the prophets." [Source:
J.E. Esslemont, "Baha'u'llah and the New Era", Bahai Publishing
Company, Wilmette, Illinois, 1951, page 38.]

   Apparently Baha'u'llah's conviction that he was to play Christ to
the Bab's John the Baptist, convinced the majority of "Babis," as they
were then known. However, his brother, Mirza Yahya apparently did not
receive the message clearly, for he forth with renounce Baha'u'llah and
allied himself with the enemies of the new-found religion, the Ski'ihs.

   His nefarious plot however, miserably failed, and the Bahai movement
gradually evolved into what is known today as the Bahai Faith, a
worldwide religious organization which continues to teach in the
tradition of Baha'u'llah, who, despite his claims to immortality, was
rather unceremoniously deprived of his earthly existence by the Angel
of Death who overtook him in 1892 in Bahji in Palestine. He was
seventy-five at the time.

   The Bahais have had their share of persecution, and more than nine
thousand were killed between 1850 and 1860. But in

   their emigration to America, in the person of Abdul Baha, son of
Baha'u'llah, who arrived in the United States in 1912, Bahaism truly
received "a new birth of freedom," and today carries on its work in
more than 50 countries, claiming a world membership in the millions.
While actual membership statistics are not given it would appear that
in 1975 they had approximately 5,500 communities in the United
States. Since the Bahais are not overly strong in publication of
statistics, and the information must literally be ferreted out, it is
hard to estimate their rate of growth. However, they have gained some
notable converts in the past, and no less a figure than Count Leo
Tolstoy spoke warmly of their "spirit of brotherhood," and Woodrow
Wilson's daughter became one of the first converts to Bahaism through
the work of Baha'u'llah in the United States. Some members of the rock
music group, Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young, have shared their new
faith in Bahaism during public concerts and network television talk
shows.

   The world headquarters of the Bahai Faith is in Haifa, Israel, from
whence are circulated the writings of Baha'u'llah and Abdul Baha.
Baha'u'llah reputedly left behind him 200 books and tablets, which,
along with the writings of his son, constitute the final authority for
religious faith and conduct where members of the cult are concerned.

   The writer had the opportunity to visit the famous nonagon
structure, or Temple, as it is known, Wilmette, Illinois, a building
which utilizes the symbolic number nine, sacred to Bahais. Its
architecture is a combination of synagogue, mosque and cathedral, in
which there are nine concrete piers, nine pillars representing the nine
living world religions, and nine arches. The building is beautifully
centered in a park having nine sides, nine avenues and nine gateways,
and containing nine fountains. The worship service consists or readings
from Baha'u'llah, Abdul Baha, and whatever sources from the major
religions are thought to be meaningful for the worshipers that day.
Around the central dome of the building are various quotations both
inside and out, all of which emphasize the unity of all the great
religions of the world.

   The Bahai cult also maintains schools for study in Colorado Springs,
Colorado; Geyserville, California; Eliot, Maine and Davison, Michigan.

   Bahaism then, is a Persian transplant to the United States, a
syncretistic religion which aims at the unity of all faiths into a
common world brotherhood, in effect, giving men a right to agree to
disagree on what the Bahais consider peripheral issues, but unifying
all on the great central truths of the world religions, with
Baha'u'llah as the messiah for our age. Abdul Baha did his work well,
and when he died at the age of seventy-seven in Palestine (1921), he
bequeathed a budding missionary arm of his father's faith to Shoghi
Effendi (Guardian of the Faith), whose influence continues in and
through the teaching hierarchy of the Bahai movement in America.

   An Interview with a Bahai Teacher

   In the course of researching the history and theology of Bahaism the
author had many interviews with adherents of the cult during which
direct questions were asked concerning Bahaism in its relationship to
Christianity. The following are excerpts in question and answer form
from a number of these interviews with recognized Bahai teachers and
leaders. The quotations are direct in all instances and were compared
with my notes after each dialogue.

   QUESTION: Do you in Bahaism believe in the Holy Trinity?

   ANSWER: If by the Trinity you mean the Christian concept that the
three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, are all the one God, the
answer is No. We believe that God is one person in agreement with
Judaism and Islam. We cannot accept the idea that God is both three and
one and find this foreign to the Bible which Christianity claims as its
source. Not a few Jewish scholars are in complete agreement with us
on this point as is the Koran.

   QUESTION: Is Jesus Christ the only manifestation of Deity, that is,
is He to be believed when He said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the
Life, no one comes to the Father but by Me?"

   ANSWER: No, we believe that Jesus was only one of nine manifes-
tations of the divine being and appeared in His era of time to illumine
those who lived at that time. Today Baha'u'llah is the source of
revelation. Jesus was the way, the truth and the life for His time but
certainly not for all time. Abdul Baha points out that we are to honor
all the major prophetic voices, not just one of them. He said: "Christ
was the prophet of the Christians, Moses of the Jews---why should not
the followers of each prophet recognize and honor the other prophets?"
[Source: Wisdom of Abdul Baha, page 43] Abdul Baha also occupied an
exalted place in the thinking of Bahais, It was he who said: "The
revelation of Jesus was for His own dispensation,k that of the Son, and
now it is no longer the point of guidance of the world. Bahais must be
severed from all and everything that is past---things both good and
bad---everything...Now all is changed. All the teachings of the past
are past. Abdel Bahai is now supplying all the world." [Source: Star of
the West, official Bahai publication, December 31, 1913.]

   QUESTION: Since you believe that Jesus spoke to His own dispen-
sation, how do you account for the fact that in numerous places in the
New Testament both He and His apostles and disciples asserted that He
was the same "yesterday, today and forever" (Hebrews 13:8), and that
His words were binding and "would never pass away"?

   ANSWER: You must realize that many of the things written in the New
Testament were written long after Jesus died, hence it is impossible to
have absolute accuracy in everything. It would be natural for His
followers to assert such things, but the revelation of Baha'u'llah
supersedes such claims.

   QUESTION: Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the true
foundation of Christian experience. Does Bahaism accept His bodily
resurrection and ascension into heaven, and do you believe that He is
indeed a high priest after Melchizedec's order as intercessor before
the throne of God for all men?

   ANSWER: The alleged Resurrection of Jesus and His Ascension into
heaven may or may not be true depending upon your point of view. As I
said before, we are concerned with Baha'u'llah and the new era or age,
and while we reverence Jesus as we do the great prophets of other
religions, we do not believe that it necessarily important that the
Bahai faith recognize every tenet of a specific religion. We believe
that Jesus conquered death, that He triumphed over the grave, but these
are things which are in the realm of the spirit and must receive
spiritual interpretation.

   QUESTION: Then you do not actually believe in the bodily resur-
rection of Christ?

   ANSWER: Personally, No. But we do believe that resurrection is the
destiny of all flesh.

   QUESTION: In Jewish theology and Christian theology much stress is
laid upon sacrificial atonement for sin. The theology of Christianity
in particular emphasizes that Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who takes
away the sin of the world. It was John the Baptist who so identified
Him, and the New Testament gives ample testimony to His substitutionary
atonement for the sins of the world. If, as Christianity maintains, "He
is the satisfaction for all our sins, not for ours only, but for the
sins of the whole world" (I John 2:2), why, then, is Abdul Baha, or for
that matter, Baha'u'llah important? If God has revealed Himself finally
and fully as the New Testament teaches in Jesus Christ (Colossians
2:9), why should further manifestation be necessary?

   ANSWER: But you see that is precisely our position. God has not
finally and fully revealed Himself in any of the great manifestations
but through all of them culminating in Baha'u'llah. A Christian may
find spiritual peace in believing in a substitutionary atonement. In
Bahaism this unnecessary. That age is past. The new age of spiritual
maturity has dawned through Baha'u'llah, and we are to listen to his
words.

   QUESTION: If, as you say, Moses, Buddha, Zoroaster, Confucius,
Christ, Mohammed, Krishna, Lowe and Baha'u'llah are all equal
manifestations of the divine mind, how do you account for that fact
that they contradict each other, for we know that God is not the author
of confusion, or is He?

   ANSWER: While it is true that there are discrepancies between the
teachings of the great prophets, all held to basic moral and spiritual
values. So we would expect unity here, and in the light of man's
perverse nature, variety of expression in the writings and teachings of
their disciples.

   QUESTION: Jesus Christ taught that salvation from sin could be
effected only by acceptance of Him as the sin-bearer mentioned so
prominently in the 53rd chapter of the Prophet Isaiah. Just how in
Bahaism do you deal with the problem of your own personal sin?

   ANSWER: We accept the fact that no one is perfect, but by the
practice of principles laid down by Baha'u'llah and by making every
effort through prayer and personal sacrifice to live in accord with the
character of the divine being revealed in him, we can arrive at
eventual salvation as you like to term it.

   QUESTION: What you mean then is that you, yourself, are cooper-
ating with God in working for your salvation?

   ANSWER: Yes, in a sense I suppose you could say this is true, though
God in the end must be merciful to us or no one would be fit to escape
the divine judgment.

   QUESTION: Then you do believe in final judgment and the existence
of paradise and hell?

   ANSWER: Yes, the Bahai faith recognizes divine judgment though not
in the graphic terms which Christians portray it. We know nothing of
eternal flames where sinners will be confined forever without respite.
We do believe in the paradise of God which will be the abode of the
righteous and in the resurrection and the final writing of all things.

   QUESTION: Putting this on a personal basis without meaning to be
offensive, might I ask you if you personally this moment believe that
you are a good practicing disciple of Baha'u'llah, and this being true,
do you at this moment know with certainty that your sins have all been
forgiven you, and that if you were to be called to accounting tonight
before the throne of God, you would be adjudged fit and worthy to enter
His kingdom?

   ANSWER: I don't believe any person can make that statement, for no
one is perfect or holy enough to merit the paradise of God, and those
who so claim to have attained this exalted position are in the eyes of
the Bahai faith presumptuous, to say the very least. I could not at the
moment say this for myself, but I hope that this will be the case when
I die.

   QUESTION: Does the Bahai faith recognize the personality and deity
of the Holy Spirit of God as revealed in the New Testament?

   ANSWER: I believe it is in your Gospel of John that Jesus promised
another Comforter who would abide always. We understand

   this to be the coming of Baha'u'llah, a direct fulfillment of the
words of Jesus.

   QUESTION: Is it not true that a great deal of your theology is
borrowed from Islam and that Mohammed where Christ's prophecy in John
14 is recorded as you have for Baha'u'llah?

   ANSWER: There is no doubt that we reverence the Koran as one of the
divine manifestations of illumination and Mohammed as one of the nine
revelators, but Islam historically has persecuted us, in fact, it was
followers of Islam who killed the Bab and persecuted Baha'u'llah. With
reference to the Mohammedan claim in John 14, I believe it is true they
also make this claim.

   The foregoing interview is better than a hundred statements of a
non-member of the cult and most clearly expresses what separates
Bahaism from historic Christianity. No true follower of Baha'u'llah, by
his own admission, can claim this moment peace with God and the joy of
sins forgiven, an experience which belongs only to those who have put
their faith and trust in the grace and sacrifice of the Son of God
(John 5:26; 6:47; Ephesians 2:8-10).

   The fact that the major prophets of Bahaism contradict each other is
paradoxically overlooked by Bahaism, which in its quest for an
ecumenical syncretism prefers to avoid rather than explain the great
contradictions between the major faiths.

   As do most cults, the Bahai faith will pick and choose out of the
Bible that which will best benefit the advancement of their own
theology, irrespective of context or theological authority. The author
was impressed during this interview with the fact that the Bahai
teacher who granted it had been a disciple for more than fifty years
and was certainly in a position to understand the historic views of
Bahaism. Throughout the course of the interview which was held at a
Bahai meeting in her home, we had the opportunity time and time again
to present the claims of Jesus Christ, and it became apparent that her
god was Baha'u'llah. The Bahai plan of salvation in faith in him plus
their own good works. Their concept of hell is largely remedial not
punitive. Their eschatology, a combination of Islam, Judaism and
Christianity, and their authority the writings of Baha'u'llah and Abdul
Baha.

   All of the some thirty persons present took extreme pride in the
fact that they had arrived at a faith which was progressively superior
to all other religions and which magnanimously was willing to embrace
the truth that was in every one of them to bring about the new era of
which their leader had prophesied.

   There was no virgin born Son, there was only a Persian

   student; there was no miraculous ministry, there was only the
loneliness of exile; there was no power over demons, there were only
demons of Islam; there was no redeeming Saviour, there was only a dying
old man; there was no risen Saviour, there was only Abdul Baha; there
was no Holy Spirit, there was only the memory of the prophet; there was
no ascended High Priest, there were only the works of the flesh; and
there was no coming King, there was only the promise of a new era. In
that room the words of the Lord of hosts were fulfilled with
frightening accuracy: "This people honor me with their lips but their
heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching for
doctrines the commandments of men" (Matthew 15:8,9).

   All the Bahai temples in the world and all the quotations from
sacred books cannot alter the fact that the heart of man is deceitful
above everything and desperately wicked. Who can understand it?
Baha'u'llah could not, but could his disciples today? Penned in the
words of our Lord:

   If ye were blind ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see;
therefore, your sin remaineth....Ye are from beneath, I am from above:
ye are of this world; I am not of this world. I said therefore unto
you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am
he, ye will die in your sins. ... When ye have lifted up the Son of
man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself;
but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things... He that
believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me...if any
man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to
judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and
receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I
have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. For I have not
spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a
commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know
that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore,
even as the Father said unto me, so I speak (John 9:41; 8:23,24,28;
12:44,47,48-50).

   CONCLUSION

   Looking back over our survey of Bahaism, we can learn a number of
things about this strange cult. First, we can discern that, although it
is Oriental in its origin, Bahaism has carefully cloaked itself in
Western terminology, and has imitated Christianity in forms and
ceremonies wherever possible in order to become appealing to the
Western mind.

   Second, Bahaism is eager NOT to come into conflict with the basic
principles of the Gospel, and so, Bahais are perfectly willing that the
Christians should maintain their faith in a nominal sense, just so long
as they acknowledge Baha'u'llah and

   the general principles of the Bahai Faith.

   Third, Bahaism deliberately undercuts the foundational doctrines of
the Christian faith, by either denying them outright, or by carefully
manipulating terminology so as to "tone down" the doctrinal dogmatism
which characterizes orthodox Christianity.

   Bahaism has few of the credentials necessary to authenticate its
claims to religious supremacy. An honest Bahai will freely admit that
in not a few respects, their system was patterned after many of the
practices of Islam and Christianity.

   Bahais will quickly draw upon the scriptures of any religion of
their sacred nine to defend the teachings of Baha'u'llah and Abdul
Baha. In this they have a distinct advantage, because not a few of them
are well informed concerning the Scriptures of the religions of the
world, particularly, the Old and New Testaments and the Koran.

   Thus, it is possible for a well-trained Bahai cultist literally to
run the gamut of theological quotations in an eclectic Mosaic design
to establish their basis thesis, i.e., that all men are part of a great
brotherhood revealed in this new era by the manifestation of
Baha'u'llah.

   The cardinal doctrines of the Christian faith, including the
absolute authority of the Bible, the doctrines of the Trinity, the
Deity of Jesus Christ, His Virgin Birth, Vicarious Atonement, Bodily
REsurrection and Second Advent are all categorically rejected by
Bahaism. They maintain that Christ was A manifestation of God, but
not the "ONLY manifestation" of the Divine Being.

   There is very little indeed that a true Christian can have in common
with the faith of Bahai. There is simply no common ground on which to
meet, or to talk once the affirmations have been made on both sides of
Jesus Christ, as opposed to Baha'u'llah. Of course, there is the common
ground of Scripture upon which we can meet all men to proclaim to them
the indescribably gift of God in the Person of Christ, but there can be
no ground for fellowship with the Bahai Faith, which is, at its very
core, anti-Christian theology.

   Finally, as is always the case with non-Christian cults, the
refutation of Bahaism must come from a sound knowledge of doctrinal
theology as it appears in the Scriptures. No Christian can refute the
perversions of the Bahi Faith unless he is first aware of their
existence and of their conflict with the doctrines of the Bible. We
must therefore be prepared to understand the scope of the teachings of
the Bahais, their basic conflict with the Gospel and the means by which
we may refute them as we witness for Christ. The United States has
become a great battleground where the cults are concerned. More and
more new varieties are springing up each year, many of them drawing
heavily upon Oriental sources to convert the naive and the uninformed.
It is for these people that we must have a deep compassion, and we
must not only be actively engaged in refuting that which is false in
their teachings, but we must also be giving ourselves constant to the
cause of evangelizing them, that they may find the truth of God as it
is in Scripture.

   * References *

   - Richard Mathison ,FAITH,CULTS AND SECTS IN AMERICA, New York:
Scribners, 1952, p. 105
   - J.E. Esslemont, BAHA'U'LLAH AND THE NEW ERA, Wilmette,IL: Baha'i
Publishing Committee, 1951, p. 38
   - THE WISDOM OF BAHA'U'LLAH, Wilmette, IL: Baha'i Publishing
Committee, n.d., p. 43