There is a beautiful Baha'i temple in Sydney. As a child it was a landmark for us as we drove to the beach in the summer.We knew we were nearly there when we saw the temple!

DJ wrote: How do you really know if others believe the same as you do anyway?

There is a core belief that I share with other Christians and in a small group from the church we have experienced true shared worship and a love that ignored individual, trivial, differences.

That is the miracle of Christianity.

"All praise to our redeeming Lord
Who joins us by his grace
And bids us each to each restored
Together seek His face."

I am hopeful that my church will remember this and put aside their doctrinal squabbles and concentrate on the central truth of our faith.

DJ

I have friends and a neighbor that is Baha'i. I have been to their "church" but I didn't understand their teaching very well.

It seemed that they believe in a number of 'saviors' who came at different times in history to 'save' man from various threats. Is that correct?

Also I wanted to know if they believe in Jesus as the Savior of the soul?

Not trying to convert anyone, just wanted to know in order to know how to discuss things with my neighbors who are of that faith.

Thanks

smile

Smilinize,
The word that many Baha'is use for those Saviors is Manifestation of God. Baha'is believe that Jesus is who is says he is and accept the Bible as the authoritative word of Christ.
Saving mankind from various threats throughout history: the Manifestations bring the word that needs to be heard at that time. All the Manifestations have the same mission, which is to teach the religion of God, and same us from the threat of our own ego and attachment to the material world. For example, Moses brought the 10 Commandments, and Jesus upheld them.
As human civilization grows more complex and moves toward greater international relationships, there are problems that the old teachings don't adequately address. Moses revealed certain dietary laws at a time when people were ignorant of bacteria, for example. Christian sects form over such disagreements -- right now, the Episcopal Church is dividing about the gays in the clergy issue.
Remember that Jesus said (I think it's in Matthew) I have many things to tell you but you cannot bear them now. He spoke to people for whom Galillee and Jerusalem were like two different countries. Remember the parable of the good Samaritan?
It seems to me that what happens to all the religions with time is that people, especially clergy, start to interpret the words of the Manifestation for their own purposes.

DJ, what is your worship service like, and do you worship on Sundays? Just curious.... <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="images/icons/wink.gif" />

You're probably asking whether we have a worship service that's like a church service. Well, yes and no.
First of all, we have a new calendar that's 19 months of 19 days. The first day of the month is the "19-Day Feast" which can be any day of the week (since 7 doesn't go into 19!) The day starts at sundown of the evening before. The Feast can happen any time after that, or on the following day.
The Feast opens with a devotional portion where we read from Baha'u'llah's writings and prayers and also have music. We don't ever say prayers in unison, so the reader reads and others listen, maybe with eyes closed. This portion of the Feast is generally meditative and loving.
Whoever is hosting the Feast that month is responsible for selecting and assigning the readings and the music. Around here we meet in individual homes.
Even though it's called a Feast it's not like Thanksgiving or anything. After the devotional portion, there's a business portion, where the community consults on whatever concerns they have. Then the food is at the end of the meeting, and it can be simple or elaborate, again, depending on who's hosting it, and what the culture is of the area.
Also, individuals sometimes host regular Devotional Gatherings just to get together to say prayers with friends and neighbors. At such gatherings, they also have prayers from other religious traditions. But I wouldn't call this a Baha'i worship service.
There's another principle, too, in the Baha'i Faith about worship -- and that is that work, when done in the spirit of service, is equal to worship. Though of course this is personal, not congregational.

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by DJ:
There's another principle, too, in the Baha'i Faith about worship -- and that is that work, when done in the spirit of service, is equal to worship. Though of course this is personal, not congregational.[/QB]</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">This is something our church is trying to become more involved in. We believe everyone has gifts given to them by God, actually gifts from the Holy Spirit. When we corporate our spiritual gifts with what we do on a daily basis, it's a form of worshipping God. Is that what you are referring to?

When people either work professionally or do volunteer work within the gifts of the spirit it's amazing what God can do through us. DOn't you think? <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="images/icons/wink.gif" />

I have a two-part response to what you say.
Regarding work: The notion is that all effort and exertion put forth from the fullness of one's heart is worship, if it's prompted by a will to serve humanity. It doesn't matter what the work is -- cleaning the house, teaching, typing, the arts, professions. Anything.
As far as our God-given talents and capacities: "Man is a mine rich in gems..." In other words, we're all born with innate capacities, all of us different, but all with the ability to reflect the attributes of God, such as kindness, grace, love, patience, justice, truthfulness, honesty, etc. Our task is to perfect those inner qualities.
We also have different physical attributes, like some people are blessed with hand-eye coordination, perfect pitch, keen eyesight, quick reflexes.
The ideal would be to use our best talents in service to God, though material conditions don't always allow that for us.
When you talk about God working through us, it reminds me of a simple Baha'i prayer:
"O Lord, make me as a hollow reed from which the pith of self hath been blown, so that I may become a clear channel through which Thy love may flow to others."

Dotsie,
The spirtual gifts was one of my favorite studies in a Bible study group I was invited to.
We learned all about them and when they are all
working together. Wow!! Its fun to see how they
are working in any group you are in.
When you lead a group its encouraging to tap into this source of gifts and you will be blessed so many more times if you let the gifts work.
Thanks,
Maggie

A couple of years ago I attended a spiritual gifts weekend workshop/retreat. We studied spiritual gifts, did an assessment of our "gifts" and also had two other people do an assessment of us....it was interesting to see how other people confirmed your gifts or helped you to see gifts you didn't think you had...this gifts workshop led to my becoming involved in the church newsletter, which also led to sparking my interest in writing. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Smile]" src="images/icons/smile.gif" />

Evie, I attended a day long seminar on spiritual gifts a few years back where we did the same thing. What denomination are you?

Also, did everyone in your congregation do this? And if so how did you go about getting them to do it?

The one I did was held at another church and only those interested attended.

I think it would be a great adult ed option on a Sunday morning.