Thursday, February 7, 2008

A Brief Beginning


When asked to indicate which religion I would most probably affiliate myself with, without hesitation or question I would respond Bahá'í but when further asked to explain the practices of the faith and the general beliefs I was at a loss. Many people would admit they had either vaguely heard or knew nothing of the faith. I was able to offer little insight as I could only stumble unintelligently through what I could recall from a minimal amount of Sunday school classes and what explanation had been given to me in brief detail at a young age.
As attending some Bahá'í functions and events was routine throughout my childhood, I had always considered myself such, however in my reflection now, especially having not regularly practiced the actual teachings for many years, I realize I never truly understood the faith in which I was raised, and I am as uninformed as many of the people I speak to.
So I decided to do some brief research in the beginning of this blog to give some general information about the faith and I hope to discover and understand more throughout my exploration.
The Bahá'í faith was founded in Persia in the 19th-century by the prophet Bahá'u'lláh, and the main message and belief is the unity of all humankind. Bahá'u'lláh is seen as the most recent, but not last in a long line of messengers from God. The mission Bahá'u'lláh was sent with and what has become the Bahá'í faith’s mission, is to establish a sense of unity throughout religions and to begin an age of peace and justice for which Bahá'í’s believe will someday certainly arrive. The Bahá'í faith is about the independent search for truth, the unity of religion and the human race, the equality of men and women, the riddance of all forms of prejudice including racial, national, and religious, and the establishment of an everlasting, permanent peace throughout the world.
These are only some of the elements and beliefs of the Bahá'í faith, but I hope as I further my explanation of this religion, that these blogs will offer some greater insight into the practices and beliefs of the Bahá'í community to benefit not only my own understanding but any of those curious to learn more.