Re: Merchants of Babylon
Patti Goebel wrote: Speaking of Babylon, the symbolic city of corrupted religion, John writes: . . . thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. And in her was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth. 18:23-24 Dear Patti, I'm inclined to agree with you that there is more to this verse than is evident at first glance. Their occupation was not so important as the status awarded them. Consequently these merchants were viewed as great men. No doubt admired and envied, perhaps, because they would be perceived as knowledgable; well traveled and well informed. I suspect they would have been sought out and patronized as much for their news as their merchandise. They would be positioned to have tremendous influence. Pretty heady stuff! .and we know where that can lead. Thanks for sharing your thoughts! Lovingly, Sandra __ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 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:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 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/[EMAIL PROTECTED] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Freedom of religion
In a message dated 6/15/2004 3:31:22 PM Eastern Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: 'If thy Lord had willed, whoever is in the earth would have believed, all of them, all together. Wouldst thou then constrain the people until they are believers?' (Sura 10:99) I am wondering what the Muslim clergy point of view is on the interpretation of this verse. Is this an accurate translation from the Arabic? This verse seems to imply freedom of religion. Dear Larry, The verse "Let there be no compulsion in religion" does as much as well but I have heard some Muslims argue that this verse was abrogated once the umma was formed. warmest, Susan __ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 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:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 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/[EMAIL PROTECTED] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re:Freedom of Religion
Hi Susan, The verse "Let there be no compulsion in religion" does as much as well but I have heard some Muslims argue that this verse was abrogated once the umma was formed. Does this mean that some Muslims believe that human understanding is more authoritative than the Qur'an? If they believe that any verse of the Qur'an can be abrogated because of worldly circumstance, then they believe that all verses of the Qur'an are subject to abrogation, based on human interpretation. If they believe that, then they don't truly believe that the Qur'an is from God, do they? Because a book that is from God cannot be abrogated by human beings. Where is their logic? Tim Nolan Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail - Helps protect you from nasty viruses. __ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 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:[EMAIL PROTECTED] 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/[EMAIL PROTECTED] New Public - http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]
