What would it take to make you a Christian?

[Tony Bristow-Stagg]

... or later gospel writers quoted Jesus saying things that he never said or added/removed context thus changing the meaning of his words, etc.

Yes interpretation is the key.

Also a key is not rejecting every Message from God because it does not have the name Jesus as the Messenger from God.

We have to consider the One Name that will bring all Faith together is 'Christ' which means 'Annointed One'. God annoints His chosen Messenger with the Holy Spirit and all Gods Messengers are born of the Holy Spirit. This is he true meaning of the virgin birth, though born from the womb of the mother, the Messenger is not like us, they are born of the Holy Spirit. This is why we, who are born of the Human Spirit, must be born again.

Wonderdul exciting topic, actually it is all exciting, when one finds the Father has come and the Spirit of Truth has guided us to all Truth.

Baha'u'llah translated in English means 'Glory of God' and it is He who is the Father that has brought us the 'Day of God. This is the challenge facing Christianity. Baha'u'llah wrote to the Pope and all Christains. Here is one of those letters. A word of caution, if one reads this, one is obliged to at least consider the challenge.

This is known as 'The tablet to the Christains'

Lawḥ-i-Aqdas (The Most Holy Tablet)

Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh | Bahá’í Reference Library

Regards Tony

 

[dlamberth]

Jesus was either mad, or the son of God. There is no way to include Him without excluding all else.

Sure there is. People do it all of the time. For myself, I'm unable to limit or bound up the Light of God into any single point of reference. There are other options other than the two you gave.

 

[Tony Bristow-Stagg]

Sure there is. People do it all of the time. For myself, I'm unable to limit or bound up the Light of God into any single point of reference. There are other options other than the two you gave.

This can be considered in relation to science. At the moment they are exploring creation as a big bang. This does not mean creation never had potential of a great diversity, as all potential is in that 'Primal Point'.

The Bab has said, "I am the Primal Point from which have been generated all created things."

There are great talks on this so we can better understand, look up 'Primal Will', 'Primal Point'

Here is one PDFon the 'Metaphysics of the Primal Point'. It shows there is a lot for us to consider outside our current frame of reference.

https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&...FjAAegQIAxAB&usg=AOvVaw2YC3N2G9Y6_sjhutP9TQKo

It can also be see as white light. White light contains all the light waves which are seen as all colours when the light is reflected in a prisim. This is how we see life after refraction has taken place.

Regards Tony

 

[cloudyday2]

Baha'u'llah translated in English means 'Glory of God' and it is He who is the Father that has brought us the 'Day of God. This is the challenge facing Christianity. Baha'u'llah wrote to the Pope and all Christains. Here is one of those letters. A word of caution, if one reads this, one is obliged to at least consider the challenge.

This is known as 'The tablet to the Christains'

Lawḥ-i-Aqdas (The Most Holy Tablet)

Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh | Bahá’í Reference Library

Another word of caution that the reader needs to be very patient to wade through the long and flowery prose (LOL). I guess that style was typical of 19th century writers. Is there a summary somewhere? (Of course no insult meant to Baha'u'llah in my complaint about his style. That was the norm back then.)

 

[Robban]

Because the body is in the Soul, and not the other way around, at the time of the resurrection the body will awaken to it's true Self, which is Soul.

The body is in the soul?

The soul is the self, the "I" that inhabits the body.

Without the soul the body is like a lightbulb without electricity.

Genesis 2:7

With the introduction of the soul,
the body aqquires life, sight and hearing, thought and speech, intelligence, and emotions, will and desire, personality and identity.

 

[Tony Bristow-Stagg]

Another word of caution that the reader needs to be very patient to wade through the long and flowery prose (LOL). I guess that style was typical of 19th century writers. Is there a summary somewhere? (Of course no insult meant to Baha'u'llah in my complaint about his style. That was the norm back then.)

Ha ha, many do say that. Baha'u'llah wrote in Persian and Arabic, never English.

It was Shoghi Effendi that went to England to study English so that he could better translate those writings into english. It was Shoghi Effendi as the Guardian, who chose the King James style as the best option.

For all those of that time, it would have been normal english, even right up in to the mid 1900's. My fist Bible early 1960 was a King James addition.

Regards Tony

 

[cloudyday2]

Ha ha, many do say that. Baha'u'llah wrote in Persian and Arabic, never English.

It was Shoghi Effendi that went to England to study English so that he could better translate those writings into english. It was Shoghi Effendi as the Guardian, who chose the King James style as the best option.

For all those of that time, it would have been normal english, even right up in to the mid 1900's. My fist Bible early 1960 was a King James addition.

Regards Tony

I was wondering if some that long and flowery prose may have been inspired by Baha'u'llah's Islamic culture, because I have noticed a similar style in some of the Muslim texts I have skimmed?

Is there a condensed version that covers the main points? I am curious what Baha'u'llah had to say to Christians, but I am not dedicated enough to read 100 pages or whatever that comes to.

 

[dlamberth]

The body is in the soul?

The soul is the self, the "I" that inhabits the body.

Yes, the body is in the Soul, just as the body of the Universe and Life itSelf is in the Soul of God.

Without the soul the body is like a lightbulb without electricity.

That's because the body is in the Soul. Upon death, it's the body that leaves the Soul.

Genesis 2:7

With the introduction of the soul,
the body aqquires life, sight and hearing, thought and speech, intelligence, and emotions, will and desire, personality and identity.

It's the body that is introduced to the Soul.
The Soul exists long before the body does.

 

[cloudyday2]

It was Shoghi Effendi that went to England to study English so that he could better translate those writings into english. It was Shoghi Effendi as the Guardian, who chose the King James style as the best option.

This is maybe a bit off-topic, but when the writings of Baha'u'llah are translated into some language such as Chinese, does the translator use the English version created by Shoghi Effendi or the Persian versian? Referring to Effendi as "the Guardian" makes me wonder if you consider the English translation to be divinely inspired such that it might be the starting point for other translations. Since English is so popular today, it is probably easier to find translators who know English and the target language than to find translators who know Persian and the target language.

 

[Tony Bristow-Stagg]

I was wondering if some that long and flowery prose may have been inspired by Baha'u'llah's Islamic culture, because I have noticed a similar style in some of the Muslim texts I have skimmed?

Is there a condensed version that covers the main points? I am curious what Baha'u'llah had to say to Christians, but I am not dedicated enough to read 100 pages or whatever that comes to.

That link had many tablets, but the link should go to that one tablet. From memory a few pages long.

This is the old library link to same tablet and it is all on that one page.

Bahá'í Reference Library - Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh Revealed After the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Pages 9-17

Regards Tony

 

[Tony Bristow-Stagg]

This is maybe a bit off-topic, but when the writings of Baha'u'llah are translated into some language such as Chinese, does the translator use the English version created by Shoghi Effendi or the Persian versian? Referring to Effendi as "the Guardian" makes me wonder if you consider the English translation to be divinely inspired such that it might be the starting point for other translations. Since English is so popular today, it is probably easier to find translators who know English and the target language than to find translators who know Persian and the target language.

I am mot sure. Translation is a tricky business, it can change meaning and that is applicable to your post. Translation amd interpretation can alter what the original Word intended.

Thus to consider what it is to be a Christain, would need to consider both these aspects with what has become the Word today.

Regards Tony

 

[BioLeap]

Some people I suspect are open if they found some reasons to believe (evidence), and other people have reasons to disbelieve that would trump any evidence.

If belief is involved I'd have to say, nothing.

 

[Robban]

Yes, the body is in the Soul, just as the body of the Universe and Life itSelf is in the Soul of God.

That's because the body is in the Soul. Upon death, it's the body that leaves the Soul.


It's the body that is introduced to the Soul.
The Soul exists long before the body does.[/QUOTE

I take it you do not believe in the reincarnation of the soul.

 

[cloudyday2]

If belief is involved I'd have to say, nothing.

Is your unbelief due to lack of positive evidence or presence of negative evidence?

In my case for a long time it was due to insufficient positive evidence for God's existence. Later I acquired some negative evidence in the form of Judaism's slow and messy evolution, so the entire Abrahamic religious tree was chopped off at its base. The Virgin Mary could appear in the sky and begin giving me guidance, and I would simply make an appointment with a psychiatrist. If something more objective happened such a miraculous healing, then I would hypothesize space aliens or Krishna or anybody but the God of the bible. That's how it seems for me now.

 

[dlamberth]

I take it you do not believe in the reincarnation of the soul.

I have no idea about reincarnation or any after body death stuff. If I did it would be as you say, a "belief". And I recognize that my beliefs may not be truths and that's there something more (a lot more ) going on than what I'm able to believe.

 

[cloudyday2]

That link had many tablets, but the link should go to that one tablet. From memory a few pages long.

This is the old library link to same tablet and it is all on that one page.

Bahá'í Reference Library - Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh Revealed After the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Pages 9-17

Regards Tony

O.k. I skimmed that link. It seemed that Baha'u'llah was mostly telling the Pope not to reject him as the Pharisees had rejected Jesus, etc.

 

[cloudyday2]

I take it you do not believe in the reincarnation of the soul.

Sometimes I have imagined that God incarnates as every being in the universe to get an ant's eye view of his creation from every possible perspective.

 

[dlamberth]

Sometimes I have imagined that God incarnates as every being in the universe to get an ant's eye view of his creation from every possible perspective.

The Sufies say that it's through this Creation that God knows HimSelf. So from that perspective the Ant's view would be what God sees'. Add to that a Universal wide opportunity to experience HimSelf through an infinite variety of life forms through out the Cosmos. Does that fit your sometimes imagined incarnation of God?

 

[Tony Bristow-Stagg]

O.k. I skimmed that link. It seemed that Baha'u'llah was mostly telling the Pope not to reject him as the Pharisees had rejected Jesus, etc.

Imagine a prisoner writing to the Pope and all the Worlds Leaders.

I ask all, who else has done that and told them all how to obtain the 'Most Great Peace', as foretold in all Scriptures?

Where does that audacity come from if it is not from God?

Regards Tony

 

[Robban]

I have no idea about reincarnation or any after body death stuff. If I did it would be as you say, a "belief". And I recognize that my beliefs may not be truths and that's there something more (a lot more ) going on than what I'm able to believe.

OK, you are not alone,