The Baha'i Studies Listserv
To copy and paste Juan Cole.
“John Ricardo I. "Juan" Cole (born October 1952) is an American scholar, public
intellectual, and historian of the modern Middle East and South Asia. He is
Richard P. Mitchell Collegiate Professor of History at the University of
Michigan. As a commentator on Middle Eastern affairs, he has appeared in print
and on television, and testified before the United States Senate.
Cole became a member of the Bahá'í Faith in 1972 as an undergraduate at
Northwestern, and the religion later became a focus of his academic research.
He resigned from the faith in 1996 after disputes with Bahá'í leadership
concerning the Bahá'í system of administration.”
The Baha'i faith stands for universal love, for tolerance, and for a separation
of religion and state. The need for religious leaders to let politicians do
the ruling is a key value stated over and over again in Baha'i scripture.
Unfortunately, a weird Baha'i sub-cult has arisen. It structurally resembles
al-Qaida, and differs from al-Qaida only with regard to methods, not ideals.
It does not usually employ violence or terrorism (though persons with this
mindset have beaten up friends of mind).
And, most frighteningly of all, it has taken over and subverted the main
institutions of the Baha'i faith.
1) Al-Qaida believes in the destruction of secular, civil governments and
replacing them with a fascist theocracy.
Baha'i theocrats believe in the destruction of secular, civil governments and
replacing them with a fascist theocracy. Ian Semple, a member of the Baha'i
Universal House of Justice, has for decades cast scorn on civil governments and
spoken of his dream of a future when Baha'i Institutions will rule in their
stead.
One pilgrim wrote,
"I recall being in Haifa in the '70s ('72 and '78) and hearing long talks about
this from Ian Semple, on how the world was destined to be ruled by houses of
justice and there will eventually be no distinction between church and state,
with rather snide and smug comments about how at last the world will finally
get it right and have God and Government fused through the power of the Baha'i
covenant."
Note that this is the opposite of what `Abdu'l-Baha says in the Treatise on
Leadership:
http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~bahai/trans/vol2/absiyasi.htm
Ian Semple also put out a letter from the Secretariat of the UHJ:
"As for the statement made by Shoghi Effendi in his letter of 21 March 1932,
the well-established principles of the Faith concerning the relationship of the
Baha'i institutions to those of the country in which the Baha'is reside make it
unthinkable that they would ever purpose to violate a country's constitution or
so to meddle in its political machinery as to attempt to take over the powers
of government. This is an integral element of the Baha'i principle of
abstention from involvement in politics. However, this does not by any means
imply that the country itself may not, by constitutional means, decide to adopt
Baha'i laws and practices and modify its constitution or method of government
accordingly."
In this passage he basically argues for a Nazi-like tactic of getting elected
democratically and then abolishing democracy. By the way, the Islamists (with
al-Qaida links) tried this in Algeria, and the democrats and secularists fought
back, embroiling the country in a civil war that has cost 100,000 lives. This
is the sort of conflict between theocratic Baha'is and the rest of society that
Semple is urging on the world. At that point would the Baha'i theocrats
refrain from violence?
2) Al-Qaida wishes to reestablish the Islamic Caliphate as the One World
Government.
Baha'i theocrats substitute the House of Justice for the Caliphate and envision
it ruling the world.
3) Al-Qaida despises parliamentary democracy as corrupt, money-driven and
unrepresentative. It wishes to overthrow parliaments and institute
authoritarian religious rule instead.
Baha'i theocrats despise parliamentary democracy and wish to substitute their
religious institutions, which are not freely elected, for civil government.
Long-time Baha'i leader Firuz Kazemzadeh said in 1988:
"If somebody is dissatisfied with a local assembly, he is not prevented from
appealing to the NSA . . . It is something else when whispering campaigns or
petitions are sent around for signatures objecting to the activities of the
institutions. That also may be something which is countenanced by American
democracy but has nothing to do with the Bahaullah and Baha’i Faith. We must
always remember that our institutions are an unusual and unique combination of
theocracy in the best sense of the term with democracy. The institutions of
the Baha’i Faith have not been created by us, the institutions have
been created by God.
Actually, Kazemzadeh's version of the Baha'i institutions has been created by
Kazemzadeh.
4) Al-Qaida establishes cells throughout the world to work for theocracy, and
recruits innocent Muslims at mosques.
Baha'i theocrats have secret cells within the Baha'i community, and recruit
Baha'is at deepenings and other events into their twisted world-view. Many
"Auxiliary Board Members" and Assistants are secret theocrats who play dirty
tricks on ordinary Baha'is to force them out of the Faith.
The Ian Semple / Kazemzadeh theocratic ideology aims at destroying American
democracy. It aims at gutting the Constitution and abolishing Congress in
favor of Kazemzadeh's weird, secretive, authoritarian way of ruling.
5) Al-Qaida demands absolute obedience from its recruits, and no dissent is
permitted.
Baha'i theocrats demand absolute obedience to "the Institutions" and tolerate
no dissent. Kazemzadeh told a group of Baha'i intellectuals, "the word dissent
implies separating oneself from the activities of the group and putting oneself
outside the mainstream of the community, and that is contrary to Baha'i
practice.
You can't disagree with the NSA.
The dangers to the pristine Baha'i faith, with its values of tolerance,
allowing the expression of diverse points of view, and firm commitment to the
separation of religion and state, of this theocratic cult that has taken
control of the community cannot be overstated. Moreover, it is a threat to the
whole world.
Now that we have seen where such authoritarian theocracy leads, on September
11, I call upon all Baha'is to step back, reread the scriptures, and adhere to
the real values of our religion.
Juan Cole
Source
:http://groups.google.com/group/talk.religion.bahai/browse_thread/thread/9261693a064786c1#
Sent from my iPad
On Apr 30, 2013, at 17:37, Stephen Kent Gray <skg_z...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> That presupposes enough people will have become Baha'i to make that feasible.
>
> If a Baha'i society, one with a Baha'i majority, became a non Baha'i one, one
> with a different religious group in the majority, would the Baha'is step down
> from power?
>
> Also, shouldn't it be before 1000 years have passed or 2892? Unless you count
> Mission of Maitreya, Eternal Divine Path or some other religion as being more
> recent, wouldn't there be even newer religions by then in 2892 or later?
>
> Why is an all Baha'i world any more possible any amount of time in the future
> 1000 - 1000000 year from now than an all Raëlian, all Scientologist, all Neo
> Gnostic, all Pagan, all Humanist, all Unitarian, all Muslim, all Ahmadi, all
> Adi Dam, or whatever else possibility?
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
> On Apr 22, 2013, at 17:22, Don Calkins <don59...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> The Baha'i Studies Listserv
>> They will be a minor part of their responsibilities. This is going to prob
>> be 1500 years from now. Think the difference in civilization btwn Augustine
>> and now.
>>
>> Don C
>>
>> On Apr 20, 2013, at 2:39 08PM, Stephen Kent Gray wrote:
>>
>>> How will the punishments in the Aqdas get carried out if you that's true?
>>> If no one is in charge how will people get executed, exiled, imprisioned,
>>> fined, etc?
>>>
>>> The Aqdas looks like it presupposes a kind of authoritarianism you reject.
>>> Baha'i laws will be enforced because that's what it says.
>>
>>
>> -------------
>> Understood properly, all man's problems are essentially spiritual in nature.
>>
>>
>>
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