a stupendous announcement
and claims to be
the Lord of the Lords,
the World Saviour
(Redeemer)
of ALL the religions,
the return of Christ,
there is only a few choices/possibilities:
1) He may be a lunatic, a victim of delusion.
OR
1) He may be a liar, driven by motives that are selfish, aimed to get material benefit such as wealth or position.
OR
1) His claim may be true
and in fact
He is the World Redeemer
======================================
that everyone is expecting.
How can we test His claim?
By what standard should we measure His claim?
If someone is making such an astonishing claim,
His claim deserves to be taken seriously by everyone
and everyone should make an effort to investigate
whether He is the person He is claiming to be.
Standards to measure His claim:
1) Do the current world religious scripts and traditions testify this
or at least point to such a person?
Are there any prophecies that the claimant needs to fulfil.
The fulfilment of existing prophecies is one piece of the puzzle.
2) Did He have any prophetic foreknowledge? Could He in His own time and in plain language accurately predict events that have not yet happened and were outside His control?
3) Did He have innate knowledge and wisdom?
4) Did He fearlessly and publicly make His claim?
5) Does He have any followers and what kind of life do His followers live?
6) Did He Himself manifest divine virtues? Did the living of His life testify to this truth? (Actions speak louder than words.)
7) Were His teachings of divine origin, inspirational and uplifting?
1. Did He fulfil existing World Religious Prophecies?
All the current world religious scripts and traditions (Jewish, Christian, Islam,
Buddhism, Hinduism and Zoroastrian) pinpoint prophecies concerning the
coming of the World Saviour.
The following is prophesied:
1) The time: 1844
2) The place (where should He appear): Persia
3) What his name should be: Glory of God
4) The length of His ministry: 40 years
(ended with His passing away.)
5) Various events and locations associated with His life.
6) The exact journey He will take to the Holy Land, Israel.
7) Even the skies (heavens) declared His coming.
Baha’u’llah (Glory of God) fulfilled every single
prophecy in ALL the world sacred religions !
2. Did He have any prophetic foreknowledge?
Could He in His own time and in plain language accurately predict events that have not yet
happened and were outside His control? Repeatedly throughout His ministry, Baha’u’llah made
weighty and daring predictions. All have withstood the test of time, yet none of His predictions
has proved wrong!
I have only selected a few here to give the reader a very small taste.
1) The fall from power of the Emperor Napoleon III of France,
the most powerful brilliant Western monarch of his day,
and the consequent loss of his empire.
2) The defeat of Germany in two bloody wars resulting
in the“lamentations of Berlin”.
3) The success and stability of Queen Victoria’s reign.
4) The unexpected overthrow and murder of
Sultan Abdul-Aziz of Ottoman Empire.
5) The dismissal of Ali Pasha, the prime minister of Turkey.
6) The downfall of Nasiri d-Din Shah, the Persian monarch
of the Qajar Dynasty.
7) A massive decline in the fortunes of monarchy throughout the world.
8) The collapse of the Muslim Caliphate.
9) The rise of Israel as a Jewish homeland.
10) The achievement of transmutation of elements,
the age-old alchemist’s dream.
11) The development of nuclear weapons.
3. Did He have innate knowledge and wisdom?
Did He undergo any schooling or engage in research?
Baha’u’llah was an unschooled individual whose
insight was radically beyond the established standards of His day. He displayed skills and abilities that no
amount of training could confer.
He wrote over 100 volumes revealing divine principles governing law,
metaphysics, character development, international relations, arms control, political administration,
education, group dynamics, health, psychology, philosophy, prayers, spirituality . . . to name a few.
We will explore only a few points here to satisfy one’s curiosity.
• His farsightedness of social principles and his teachings has been considered to be well ahead of their time.
For example, the formation of United Nations in 1945, whereas in 1860s Baha’u’llah called for and instructed humanity to establish such a governing body to administer the security and peace of the world.
Another example, is the very teachings and principles he wrote in 1860s, were presented by Pope John XXIII in 1963 in the encyclical Pacem in Terris (Peace on Earth), although he did not claim originality, it earned him a peace Nobel Prize.
• His mastery of Arabic literary writing was phenomenal.
Although He was never taught Arabic, His Arabic compositions are unrivalled whether from the standpoint of literary beauty or technical proficiency. In His days, no one among the mystics, the wise and the learned was capable in writing a poem in rhyme and meter identical to that of the longer of the two odes composed by the famous Egyptian Poet Ibn-i-Farid. When requested by the learned doctors of the theological seminary in Iraq, although He had never seen or studied his writings, He composed no less than two thousand verses in precisely the style they had requested. This much-loved couplet ( a selection of the above verses, 127 verses) is known as the Ode of the Dove.
• A third token of His superhuman origin and nature of His knowledge was the impossible speed and spontaneity (a torrent Eloquence) with which He composed His writings. He Himself describes His words as “a copious rain” commenting “Such are the outpourings… from the clouds of Divine Bounty that within the space of an hour the equivalent of a thousand verses hath been revealed.”
So was He delusional? No! He clearly had innate and divine wisdom.
4. Did He fearlessly and publicly make His claim?
Baha’u’llah fearless and publicly made His claim to the whole world. He said:
“O people! The Day, promised unto you in all the Scriptures, is now come.”
“The promises of God, as recorded in the holy Scriptures, have all been fulfilled… This is the
Day which the Pen of the Most High hath glorified in all the holy Scriptures.”
He informed the monarchs of the world by whose authority he spoke, saying:
'I am the One Whom the tongue of Isaiah hath extolled, the One with Whose name both
the Torah (of Moses) and the Evangel (of Christ) were adorned...‘
The following list is not exhaustive but is there to provide the reader an idea. He wrote to the following:
Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria
Napoleon III of France
Kaiser William I of Germany
Czar Nicolaevitch Alexander II of Russia
The Sultan 'Abdu'l-Aziz of Ottoman Empire
Nasiri'd-Din Shah of Persia
Queen Victoria of Britain
The Presidents and Rulers of the Republics of the West
The Religious Leaders of the Christians, Jews, Muslims and Zoroastrians
The followers of Christ (He wrote to Pope Pius the IX), Moses, and Mohammed
The peoples of the world
Investigate and consider: one prisoner, single and solitary, without assistant or defender, a foreigner and
stranger imprisoned in the fortress of Akka, writing such letters to the Emperors. Reflect upon this: how He
upraised the standard of His Cause in prison. Refer to history. It is without parallel. No such thing has
happened before that time nor since--a prisoner and a exile advancing His Cause and spreading His teachings.
5. Does He have any followers and how do they live?
Although the clergy and government (one of the most powerful at the time) did everything in their power to
extinguish the light of the nascent Faith (more than 20,000 people were massacred), being up against the
whole country and persecuted by two of the most powerful empires at the time, the faith is triumphantly
existing today and shining its light upon humanity.
Nothing but divine power could do this.In almost a century, the Baha’i faith is the second most wide spread religion in the World, with millions
of Baha’is from every national background, every colour of skin, every level of society, and every religious
origin. The Baha’i faith is ranked amongst the world’s fastest growing religions with 400,000 followers in
1963 to 5 million by 1991. Personal transformation is a fundamental reason that people are attracted to this
faith. People who come into contact with it and feel themselves being transformed by it have an experience
that is self-validating. No one can take that experience away from them. Feeling oneself becoming the best of
what one can potentially be constitutes the highest joy.
The Baha’i World Centre
with its Holy Shrine is located in Israel on top of the Holy Mount Carmel. 
The Bahá'í faith is registered with the UN as an international non-governmental organization
(NGO) and is granted consultative status (now called "special" consultative status) with the
UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), with the United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF), with the UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), with the World Health
Organization (WHO), with the UN Environment Program (UNEP), the Office of the High
Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
(UNESCO), and the UN Development Program (UNDP).
Various projects and programs are run in collaboration with national governments and
international agencies.
Bahá'ís all over the world are dedicated to the service of humanity and promulgation of
harmony, peace and unity. This is the main Baha’i aim in life!
Baha’u’llah has made any work performed in the spirit of service equal to worship
and prayer!
Only a couple of examples:
http://info.bahai.org/article-1-6-0-3.html
http://info.bahai.org/article-1-6-0-1.html
6. Did He Himself manifest divine virtues?
Baha'u'llah, who was a refuge for every weak one, a shelter for every fearing one, kind to
every indigent one, lenient and loving to all creatures with the primary aim of His teachings
being the unity of mankind, was subjected to indignities and was persecuted, imprisoned,
tortured, poisoned, put in chains and exiled for 40 years of His Life.
Briefly, the Blessed Perfection bore all these ordeals and calamities in order that our hearts
might become enkindled and radiant, our spirits be glorified, our faults become virtues, our
ignorance be transformed into knowledge; in order that we might attain the real fruits of
humanity and acquire heavenly graces; in order that, although pilgrims upon earth, we should
travel the road of the heavenly Kingdom, and, although needy and poor, we might receive the
treasures of eternal life. For this has He borne these difficulties and sorrows.
Side Note:
He belonged to a wealthy family (His father was the minister of the King), coming from one of the oldest and
one of the most distinguished noble families of Persia's capital city. When He was 22 years old, His father
died, and the Government wished Him to succeed to His father's position in the Ministry, as was customary
in Persia. Although He could follow His father’s path, He declined the offer so that He could serve humanity.
His motives were indeed as unselfish as possible!
He manifested every divine virtue that I feel no reason to illustrate here.
Since He left this earth in 1892, we can no longer enter His presence. The best I can do is
reflect on the reactions of those who met Him. He had a spellbinding magnetic presence and
with almost irresistible charm of His personality, where complete strangers knowing nothing
about His station, would often spontaneously bow when meeting Him. His loyal followers
preferred exile, imprisonment and death than separation from Him. His enemies warned
everyone to avoid His presence to keep away from his electrifying and magical effect and
they feared that any encounter could be soul-stirring and attract them. His mere presence
was riveting, it affected even indifferent or apathetic onlookers like a thunderbolt. I would like
to finish this section with Professor Edward Granville Browne’s remarks, who was a famous
and distinguished Cambridge Orientalist who came face to face with Baha'u'llah in 1890:
Though I dimly suspected whither I was going and whom I was to behold (for no distinct intimation had
been given to me), a second or two elapsed ere, with a throb of wonder and awe, I became definitely
conscious that the room was not untenanted. In the corner where the divan met the wall sat a wondrous
and venerable figure…. The face of him on whom I gazed I can never forget, though I cannot describe it.
Those piercing eyes seemed to read one’s very soul; power and authority sat on that ample brow…. No
need to ask in whose presence I stood, as I bowed myself before one who is the object of a devotion and
love which kings might envy and emperors sigh for in vain!
7. Were His teachings of divine origin, inspirational and uplifting?
Be generous in prosperity and thankful in adversity. Be worthy of the trust of thy neighbour. Be a
treasure to the poor. An answerer of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge.
Be fair in judgement and guarded in thy speech… Show meekness to all men. Be as a lamp on them that
walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder
and defender of the victim of oppression. Let integrity and uprightness distinguish all thine acts. Be a
home for the stranger, a balm to the suffering, a tower of strength for the fugitive. Be eyes to the
blind and a guiding light onto the feet of the erring. Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a
crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of temple of righteousness, a breath of life to the body of
mankind, an ensign of the hosts of justice, a luminary above the horizon of virtue, a dew to the soil
of the human heart, an ark on the ocean of knowledge, a sun in the heaven of bounty, a gem on the
diadem of wisdom, a shining light in the firmament of thy generation, a fruit upon the tree of
humility.
We will only consider a drop of this ocean of knowledge from the Baha’i writings:
Home and Family
Make your home a haven of rest and peace. Be hospitable, and let the doors of your home be open to the
faces of friends and strangers. Welcome every guest with radiant grace and let each feel that it is his home.
Nourish continually the tree of your union with love and affection so that it may remain ever green
throughout all seasons, and when God gives you sweet and lovely children consecrate yourselves to their
instruction and guidance so that they may become the servants of the world of humanity.
Country
Ye are all the leaves of one tree and the drops of one ocean. The earth is but one country and mankind its
citizens. Let not a man glory in this that he loves his country; let him rather glory in this, that he loves his
kind. That one indeed is a man who, today, dedicateth himself to the service of the entire human race.
Individual Life
The most vital duty, in this day, is to purify your characters, to correct your manners, and improve your
conduct. It is incumbent upon everyone to show the utmost love, rectitude of conduct, straightforwardness
and sincere kindliness unto all the peoples and kindreds of the world, be they friends or strangers. So
intense must be the spirit of love and loving-kindness, that the stranger may find himself a friend, the
enemy a true brother.
Wherefore, O my loving friends! Consort with all the peoples, kindreds and religions of the world with the
utmost truthfulness, uprightness, faithfulness, kindliness, good-will and friendliness; that all the world of
being may be filled with the holy ecstasy of the grace of Baha, that ignorance, enmity, hate and rancour
may vanish from the world and the darkness of estrangement amidst the peoples and kindereds of the
world may give way to the Light of Unity. Should other people and nations be unjust toward you show
justice towards them, should they keep aloof from you attract them to yourself, should they show their
enmity be friendly towards them, should they poison your lives sweeten their souls, should they inflict a
wound upon you be a salve to their sores. Such are the attributes of the sincere! Such are the attributes of
the truthful.
Finishing Remark
The best I can do is to ask you to investigate His cause and read about His teachings :
I would like to finish with Baha'u'llah’s writing:
My holy, My divinely ordained Revelation may be likened unto an ocean in whose depths are
concealed innumerable pearls of great price, of surpassing lustre. It is the duty of every seeker
to bestir himself and strive to attain the shores of this ocean, so that he may, in proportion to the
eagerness of his search and the efforts he hath exerted, partake of such benefits as have been
pre-ordained in God’s irrevocable and hidden tablets.(SOURCE POWERPOINT MR I . PEYMAN AUSTRALIA)
