On Sun, 23 Jan 2005 15:12:52 -0800, [EMAIL PROTECTED] <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> >Dave: Different eras and cultures have had different > spiritual needs, > >Gilberto: > What different spiritual needs? Dave: > I'm not sure I'm the person to ask...but then, I did make the statement, > didn't I. Gilberto: Yup Dave: Perhaps I should have said that different cultures need to have universal ideas expressed to them in unique ways. Gilberto: I wouldn't object to that. Dave: > Several ways that > differing spiritual needs have manifested themselves > occur to me: the obsession with immortality leading to > mummification in ancient Egypt; But don't people still try to remember the dead. Or stay alive longer, extending life, getting plastic surgery. etc? [...] Dave: I don't actually think the > essential spiritual needs of humans have changed all that much over time. Gilberto: I would agree but then what is the logical consequence. If a certain set of practices was able to address and satisfy the essential spiritual needs of people at one point in time, wouldn't it be possible for people to continue to embrace those principles and still have those needs met? > > > >Gilberto: Yes. People were spoken to in a way understandable to them. > > [14.4] And We did not send any apostle but with the language of his people, > so that he might explain to them clearly; then Allah makes whom He pleases > err and He guides whom He pleases and He is the Mighty, the Wise. > > Why would God cause anyone to err? Gilberto: I think it has to do with determinism v. free will which would be a whole other discussion. > >Gilberto: I'm not sure that Perennialists are saying that there is a > "one-size-fits-all" religion. > > Well, fundamentalist Christians certainly subscribe to that notion, and I'm > not sure they're the only ones. Yup/ > > >Gilberto: They do seem to be saying that many different religions have an > underlying unity. Dave:> > Isn't that pretty obvious? > Gilberto: Not to everyone. > >Gilberto: I would add that as far as the major religions go, I think that > individuals within each tradition would have the capacity to look at the > bigger picture while still being faithful to their own traditions. > > Up to a point. But if one accepts the idea of progressive revelation, then > one would have an incentive to dig deeper than the offerings of any one > religion. I don't see how you can say that the offerings of a religion have been exhausted. The Bahá'í view, as I understand it, is that each religion > contains essential gems of divine revelation, while the revelation of > Bahá'u'lláh ties these various threads together into a unified whole, I feel the same way about ISlam. Peace Gilberto "My people are hydroponic" __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:archive@mail-archive.com To unsubscribe, send a blank email to mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, use subscribe bahai-st in the message body to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Baha'i Studies is available through the following: Mail - mailto:bahai-st@list.jccc.edu Web - http://list.jccc.edu/read/?forum=bahai-st News - news://list.jccc.edu/bahai-st Public - http://www.escribe.com/religion/bahaist Old Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.net New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/bahai-st@list.jccc.edu
