Secondary literature on the Kitáb-i-Aqdas has tended to comment that the book is relatively unstr... more Secondary literature on the Kitáb-i-Aqdas has tended to comment that the book is relatively unstructured—that it is a mix of topics without any logical or discernible order. This short article challenges the assumption that the Kitáb-i-Aqdas is unstructured and suggests there is value to our understanding of the book and of Bahá’í law by exploring further elements of structure. Particular emphasis is placed on the first nineteen paragraphs of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas and how they state in most concise form the pivotal constructs of Bahá’í spiritual and social teachings.
des orientations pour les études à venir sur le sujet. Resumen Un cuarto de siglo ha pasado desde... more des orientations pour les études à venir sur le sujet. Resumen Un cuarto de siglo ha pasado desde la publicacion de la traduccion autorizada del Kitáb-i-Aqdas de Bahá'u'lláh del idioma Arabe al Inglés. Durante ese tiempo, erudición en inglés sobre el Kitáb-i-Aqdas, especialmente su contenido legal, ha crecido. Este ensayo revisa el cuerpo emergente de erudicion rodeando el Kitáb-i-Aqdas y la ley Bahá'í, identificando temas y enfoques céntricos, y sugiere direcciones que un futuro estudio de este tema pudiera envolver.
This article examines the concept of law in the Bahá’í Faith through aspects of the Islamic conte... more This article examines the concept of law in the Bahá’í Faith through aspects of the Islamic context within which Bahá’u’lláh promulgated laws as well as the nature of legal language and discourse in Bahá’u’lláh’s writings. What emerges is a portrait of Bahá’u’lláh’s concept of law that indicates a sharp and radical break from conceptions of law extant at the time. He revealed laws and, more broadly, a distinct concept of religious law rooted in conscious knowledge and the dynamics of love that rejects rigid and legalistic preoccupations with rules.
When Mírzá Husayn ‘Ali (1817-92)—the founder of the Bahá’í Faith who was known as Bahá’u’lláh (th... more When Mírzá Husayn ‘Ali (1817-92)—the founder of the Bahá’í Faith who was known as Bahá’u’lláh (the “Glory of God”)—died, there was a clear and unambiguous answer about who had the authority to lead his small, but growing, religious community. In his will, Bahá’u’lláh identified his eldest son, ‘Abbás Effendi, known as ‘Abdu'l-Bahá (“Servant of Bahá”) (1844-1921) as his successor and head of the community, as well as the authoritative interpreter of Bahá’u’lláh's writings. When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá assumed the reins of community leadership upon Bahá’u’lláh's death, his claim to authority went largely unchallenged, and he remained in that role until his own death.While this seeming affirmation of a principle of primogeniture would appear to establish a clear pattern for the future organization and structure of the Bahá’í community, it was only one part of the leadership of the community envisioned by Bahá’u’lláh. Equally unambiguous was Bahá’u’lláh's vision of “houses of justi...
... Central to his teachings was the idea that all the founders of the world's great... more ... Central to his teachings was the idea that all the founders of the world's great religions-including Moses, Buddha, Christ, and Muhammad-were "manifestations" of God, charged with revealing a message from God relevant to that period in humanity's collective history. ...
Commentary on Udo Schaefer, An Introduction to Baha'i Law: Doctrinal Foundations, Principles ... more Commentary on Udo Schaefer, An Introduction to Baha'i Law: Doctrinal Foundations, Principles and Structures, Journal of Law and Religion, vol. 18, no. 2 (20023) 30772 (available at http://www.udoschaefer.com/pdffiles/introduction20bahai-law.pdf).
Like most world religions, the Bahá’í Faith provides a vision of a promised age of the future. Ac... more Like most world religions, the Bahá’í Faith provides a vision of a promised age of the future. According to Baha’u’llah, the prophet founder of the Bahá’í religion, this promised future age is characterized by the progressive spiritualization of the individual and collective life of humanity, global peace, and the explicit recognition of the fundamental oneness of humanity. But the very fact that the Bahá’í Faith provides such a specific model of world order raises an essential question – is Baha’u’llah’s vision of a new world order rooted in a power-claim, which will assert the legitimacy of a future Bahá’í political hegemony? This article explores this question, and the aspects of Bahá’í theology, doctrine, and political thought which assist in answering it. It concludes that this “new World Order” is not to claim future temporal power, but to lay out a general architecture for the structuring and exercise of power that strives to reflect the principle of oneness of religion and o...
Conflict-free Conflict Resolution (CFCR) is an emerging theory and practice of conflict resolutio... more Conflict-free Conflict Resolution (CFCR) is an emerging theory and practice of conflict resolution. Building upon traditions of innovation within the field of dispute resolution, as well as insights from a variety of disciplines including conflict studies, peace studies and developmental psychology, CFCR aims to be a unity-centered practice. Both the method and outcomes of CFCR are attempts to reflect the possibilities of helping to create conditions of unity between individuals and communities. The purpose of this article is primarily descriptive, aiming to give an initial overview of CFCR as a practice. This description is rooted in the initial applications of CFCR in a number of contexts. In this article, the theoretical underpinnings of the CFCR model are summarized, CFCR’s connections with the contemporary conflict resolution scholarship are explored, and the three stages of CFCR are outlined.
This paper provides a nascent developmental model of conflict resolution and explores how such a ... more This paper provides a nascent developmental model of conflict resolution and explores how such a model challenges theorists and practitioners in the field of conflict resolution to engage with the concept of unity. The developmental model states that the ways in which human beings understand, approach, and attempt to resolve conflicts can be analogized to the developmental stages of infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Further, the model argues that conflict resolution can occur in four modes-S-Mode (Self-Centered); A-Mode (Authoritarian); P-Mode (Power Struggle); and C-Mode (Consultative Mode). Each of these modes corresponds to a particular nature of conflict resolution that, respectively, may be survival based, force based, power based, or unity based. The authors suggest that the C-Mode remains largely unexplored and that conflict resolution is primarily constructed and understood today according to the dynamics of the A-Mode and P-Mode. The key to exploring the C-Mode is to analyze the concept of unity and its implications for both conflict resolution theory and practice.
This article explores the concept of “journey” in the Bahá’í Faith from spiritual, social, and hi... more This article explores the concept of “journey” in the Bahá’í Faith from spiritual, social, and historical perspectives. Because the process of individual spiritual growth lies at the heart of human purpose according to the Bahá’í teachings, the individual spiritual journey is a central theme in scripture and authoritative texts. Furthermore, Bahá’u’lláh speaks about the collective spiritualization of humanity—a process which carries with it the necessary creation of new patterns of community and social relations—as the “journey” of the human body politic. In this paper, the relationship between the individual and the collective journey is examined through the lens of the history of the spread of the Bahá’í Faith and compared with the literal journeys undertaken by the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi.
Secondary literature on the Kitáb-i-Aqdas has tended to comment that the book is relatively unstr... more Secondary literature on the Kitáb-i-Aqdas has tended to comment that the book is relatively unstructured—that it is a mix of topics without any logical or discernible order. This short article challenges the assumption that the Kitáb-i-Aqdas is unstructured and suggests there is value to our understanding of the book and of Bahá’í law by exploring further elements of structure. Particular emphasis is placed on the first nineteen paragraphs of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas and how they state in most concise form the pivotal constructs of Bahá’í spiritual and social teachings.
des orientations pour les études à venir sur le sujet. Resumen Un cuarto de siglo ha pasado desde... more des orientations pour les études à venir sur le sujet. Resumen Un cuarto de siglo ha pasado desde la publicacion de la traduccion autorizada del Kitáb-i-Aqdas de Bahá'u'lláh del idioma Arabe al Inglés. Durante ese tiempo, erudición en inglés sobre el Kitáb-i-Aqdas, especialmente su contenido legal, ha crecido. Este ensayo revisa el cuerpo emergente de erudicion rodeando el Kitáb-i-Aqdas y la ley Bahá'í, identificando temas y enfoques céntricos, y sugiere direcciones que un futuro estudio de este tema pudiera envolver.
This article examines the concept of law in the Bahá’í Faith through aspects of the Islamic conte... more This article examines the concept of law in the Bahá’í Faith through aspects of the Islamic context within which Bahá’u’lláh promulgated laws as well as the nature of legal language and discourse in Bahá’u’lláh’s writings. What emerges is a portrait of Bahá’u’lláh’s concept of law that indicates a sharp and radical break from conceptions of law extant at the time. He revealed laws and, more broadly, a distinct concept of religious law rooted in conscious knowledge and the dynamics of love that rejects rigid and legalistic preoccupations with rules.
When Mírzá Husayn ‘Ali (1817-92)—the founder of the Bahá’í Faith who was known as Bahá’u’lláh (th... more When Mírzá Husayn ‘Ali (1817-92)—the founder of the Bahá’í Faith who was known as Bahá’u’lláh (the “Glory of God”)—died, there was a clear and unambiguous answer about who had the authority to lead his small, but growing, religious community. In his will, Bahá’u’lláh identified his eldest son, ‘Abbás Effendi, known as ‘Abdu'l-Bahá (“Servant of Bahá”) (1844-1921) as his successor and head of the community, as well as the authoritative interpreter of Bahá’u’lláh's writings. When ‘Abdu’l-Bahá assumed the reins of community leadership upon Bahá’u’lláh's death, his claim to authority went largely unchallenged, and he remained in that role until his own death.While this seeming affirmation of a principle of primogeniture would appear to establish a clear pattern for the future organization and structure of the Bahá’í community, it was only one part of the leadership of the community envisioned by Bahá’u’lláh. Equally unambiguous was Bahá’u’lláh's vision of “houses of justi...
... Central to his teachings was the idea that all the founders of the world's great... more ... Central to his teachings was the idea that all the founders of the world's great religions-including Moses, Buddha, Christ, and Muhammad-were "manifestations" of God, charged with revealing a message from God relevant to that period in humanity's collective history. ...
Commentary on Udo Schaefer, An Introduction to Baha'i Law: Doctrinal Foundations, Principles ... more Commentary on Udo Schaefer, An Introduction to Baha'i Law: Doctrinal Foundations, Principles and Structures, Journal of Law and Religion, vol. 18, no. 2 (20023) 30772 (available at http://www.udoschaefer.com/pdffiles/introduction20bahai-law.pdf).
Like most world religions, the Bahá’í Faith provides a vision of a promised age of the future. Ac... more Like most world religions, the Bahá’í Faith provides a vision of a promised age of the future. According to Baha’u’llah, the prophet founder of the Bahá’í religion, this promised future age is characterized by the progressive spiritualization of the individual and collective life of humanity, global peace, and the explicit recognition of the fundamental oneness of humanity. But the very fact that the Bahá’í Faith provides such a specific model of world order raises an essential question – is Baha’u’llah’s vision of a new world order rooted in a power-claim, which will assert the legitimacy of a future Bahá’í political hegemony? This article explores this question, and the aspects of Bahá’í theology, doctrine, and political thought which assist in answering it. It concludes that this “new World Order” is not to claim future temporal power, but to lay out a general architecture for the structuring and exercise of power that strives to reflect the principle of oneness of religion and o...
Conflict-free Conflict Resolution (CFCR) is an emerging theory and practice of conflict resolutio... more Conflict-free Conflict Resolution (CFCR) is an emerging theory and practice of conflict resolution. Building upon traditions of innovation within the field of dispute resolution, as well as insights from a variety of disciplines including conflict studies, peace studies and developmental psychology, CFCR aims to be a unity-centered practice. Both the method and outcomes of CFCR are attempts to reflect the possibilities of helping to create conditions of unity between individuals and communities. The purpose of this article is primarily descriptive, aiming to give an initial overview of CFCR as a practice. This description is rooted in the initial applications of CFCR in a number of contexts. In this article, the theoretical underpinnings of the CFCR model are summarized, CFCR’s connections with the contemporary conflict resolution scholarship are explored, and the three stages of CFCR are outlined.
This paper provides a nascent developmental model of conflict resolution and explores how such a ... more This paper provides a nascent developmental model of conflict resolution and explores how such a model challenges theorists and practitioners in the field of conflict resolution to engage with the concept of unity. The developmental model states that the ways in which human beings understand, approach, and attempt to resolve conflicts can be analogized to the developmental stages of infancy, childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Further, the model argues that conflict resolution can occur in four modes-S-Mode (Self-Centered); A-Mode (Authoritarian); P-Mode (Power Struggle); and C-Mode (Consultative Mode). Each of these modes corresponds to a particular nature of conflict resolution that, respectively, may be survival based, force based, power based, or unity based. The authors suggest that the C-Mode remains largely unexplored and that conflict resolution is primarily constructed and understood today according to the dynamics of the A-Mode and P-Mode. The key to exploring the C-Mode is to analyze the concept of unity and its implications for both conflict resolution theory and practice.
This article explores the concept of “journey” in the Bahá’í Faith from spiritual, social, and hi... more This article explores the concept of “journey” in the Bahá’í Faith from spiritual, social, and historical perspectives. Because the process of individual spiritual growth lies at the heart of human purpose according to the Bahá’í teachings, the individual spiritual journey is a central theme in scripture and authoritative texts. Furthermore, Bahá’u’lláh speaks about the collective spiritualization of humanity—a process which carries with it the necessary creation of new patterns of community and social relations—as the “journey” of the human body politic. In this paper, the relationship between the individual and the collective journey is examined through the lens of the history of the spread of the Bahá’í Faith and compared with the literal journeys undertaken by the Báb, Bahá’u’lláh, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, and Shoghi Effendi.
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