‘Communication is the beginning of understanding’
(Bell Telephone magazine ad in 1961)

So my friend says: “How long have you been a Bahá’i?” Me: “Since 1974.” Friend: “What do you Bahá’is believe?” Me: “God sent us another Prophet of God in 1844 in the Middle East, and while He was here, He wrote down a most timely fine-tuning of the Teachings of God; thusly, we are understandably enthused.”

 

Friend: “Can you tell me about these teachings in a nutshell?” Me: “Probably not. But for openers, here are 12 pretty heavy ones:

 

The Oneness of God
The Oneness of Man
The foundation of all religion is one
Religion must be the cause of unity
Religion must accord with science and reason
The abandonment of all forms of prejudice
The need for every person to investigate truth independently
The equality of men and women
A spiritual solution to the economic problem
Universal compulsory education
The need for a universal language to be chosen or created
The call for universal peace and a world commonwealth through an international tribunal.”

I thanked him for asking, and I thank you for reading. Somebody said, “Communication is the beginning of understanding.” I believe that, so to me dialogue is good.

 

One more teaching from the Bahá’i Writings is that there is no clergy in the Bahá’i faith, all Bahá’is are equal. We all share teaching responsibilities equally.

 

All the Mukilteo Bahá’is want to share these teachings with you – because we’d love for you to know what we believe and why we believe it.

 

We have lots of volunteer writers in Mukilteo now, so a bunch of new voices will follow, with new thoughts and different perspectives on these 12 peace-bringing teachings. Thank you so much for looking!

 

In closing, from the Bahá’i Writings: “Heavenly teachings applicable to the advancement of human conditions have been revealed in this merciful age… (These teachings are) the manifest effulgence of the Word of God, the divine remedy for all human ailments and the bounty of eternal life to all mankind.”

 

“Every one who truly seeks and justly reflects will admit that the teachings of the present day emanating from mere human sources and authority are the cause of difficulty and disagreement amongst mankind, the very destroyers of humanity, whereas (these spiritual teachings) are the very healing of the sick world, the remedy for every need and condition. In them may be found the realization of every desire and aspiration, the cause of the happiness of the world of humanity… the means of peace and harmony, the one bond which will unite the East and the West.”

 

“The gift of God to this enlightened age is the knowledge of the oneness of mankind and the fundamental oneness of religion.”

 

“O contending peoples and kindreds of the earth! Set your faces towards unity, and let the radiance of its light shine upon you. Gather ye together, and for the sake of God resolve to root out whatever is the source of contention amongst you.”

 

“There can be no doubt whatever that the peoples of the world, whatever race or religion, derive their inspiration from one heavenly source, and are the subjects of one God.”