Thank you for that answer Mark. Your offering is agreeable as an explanation of their attitudes. Actually I did not refer to "servitude" in reference to Jesus; although I did imply that I had in the post you read. I did refer to Jesus as "Servant of God". I do believe that they felt that this (God forbid!) denegrated the Station of the Christ. On the other hand they were quite willing to agree that He was the Servant of man. With regard to the use of "Manifestation" and its avoidance with those who are not accustomed to the term, I hartily agree. Use of it, even with explanation, may retard a seeker's understanding. I did not use that term with them. In fact I didn't refer to Baha'u'llah except as the visit was ending they wanted to know what "Baha'i" means. I explained that in the Arabic language "Baha" means "glory" They asked "Glory of what?". They were somewhat nonplussed when I gave them the answer. I shall keep your comments and advice in mind. They will be of help, without a doubt.
Thank you. Richard. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Dr. Mark A. Foster" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Baha'i Studies" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, March 26, 2004 11:18 AM Subject: Re: Questions regarding old Book and query > Richard, > > >>A discussion on the spiritual verities of the Gospel ensued. Thei > response to my friend's explanations of various matters, e.g. the > equality of men and women and the resurrection of the spirit were > understood and accepted by them. However, when it was presented > \to them that Jesus is and was a Servant of God; the denied His > Servitude. We did not press the issue. How should we approach the > issue if it arises? Your advices and comments are sought and will be > deeply appreciated<< > > "Servitude" is one of those Baha'i'isms to which most Baha'is can relate > on some level but to which many who are not Baha'is may not > understand in the same way or even entirely misunderstand. We need to > take into account the contexts of those with whom we are communicating. > > I think it is important not to become attached to the "kingdom of names," > to confuse words with the concepts, or to the conflate the underlying > meaning which may have been intended by Baha'u'llah or the Master > with the words themselves. > > When many fundamentalist or neo-evangelical Christians hear the term > "Servitude" applied to Christ, they may conclude that Baha'is regard Him > as an inferior being. Since, to them, Christ is one of the Persons of the > Godhead, referring to Him as a Servant may impress them as > sacrilege. There are other terms which would probably be clearer but > would still express basically the same idea. > > Although I generally do not refer to the Prophets as "Manifestations" > when speaking or writing to those of other religions, even that term > might be better than "Servant,." provided it is carefully and deliberately > explained. > > Mark A. Foster * http://markfoster.net > CompuServe: http://forums.m.foster.name > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- > > --- > Outgoing mail is certified virus free. > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > Version: 6.0.639 / Virus Database: 408 - Release Date: 3/22/04 > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- > __________________________________________________ > You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > To unsubscribe send a blank email to mailto:[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] > __________________________________________________ You are subscribed to Baha'i Studies as: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe send a blank email to mailto:[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]
