ISA Meeting - Jan Saeed and the Baha'i Faith

Last night, Jan Saeed of Westminster College and one of her colleagues taught us about the Baha'i faith -some of its history, teachings, and current events. While it was my first time hearing about this religion, and I only have a basic knowledge, I thought I would share some of my thoughts and feelings about the presentation.

From what I gathered, Baha'i teachings are centered on unity and oneness: unity of science and religion, oneness of God, oneness of religion, and oneness of humankind. They believe that religious figures like Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad were all inspired individuals, sent to share God's teachings one piece at a time. Jan shared an analogy dealing with education. You don't start first grade students off with tenth grade material - you start at the first grade, and build upon knowledge one level at a time. Baha'i followers are taught to accept all religions, and all the unique teachings they bring to the table.

She pointed out, interestingly enough, that just about all religions feature some form of the famous golden rule, "do unto others as you would have done unto you." Oneness of faith. . .

She also shared an experience that occurred when one of her daughters was in elementary school. Her daughter came home and asked if they had a bad religion. Why? Because someone at school had told her that she had a bad religion. While I am sure that I wouldn't have said anything like that as a child, I remember being very ignorant when it came to the abundance of religions and teachings that existed in the world around me.

It is good to be devout in one's faith, wonderful even, but I hope and pray that the bigotry between religions will become less of a common occurrence as the days roll by. I respect the oneness of religion professed by members of the Baha'i faith - they seem to be accepting of all. I think this concept is needed in our world today, an attitude of understanding and acceptance. While we may not all agree on certain tenets or teachings, we can learn to respect and love each other.

For more information, visit www.bahai.org or www.bahai.us.