Author Gary Matthews documents why he believes that the Revelation of Baha'u'llah is divine in origin, representing a unique summons of unequaled importance to humanity. The book contains discussions of Baha'i prophecies concerning historical events and scientific discoveries. Among the events and discoveries discussed are the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the worldwide erosion of ecclesiastical authority, the Holocaust, and the development of nuclear weapons. A new and updated edition. The previous edition (George Ronald) was a limited release and not offered to the U.S. trade/consumer market.
The amazing stories of the Knights of Bahá'u'lláh, whose indomitable spirit, courage and steadfastness brought the Bahá'í message to countries where it was previously unknown. Why would a legal counsel with the rank of brigadier general in the Department of Defence go to a desolate island with just a few score inhabitants? Where it was so hot that he cooked his eggs on rocks on the beach and so isolated that the arrival of an eggplant on the tide was the cause of celebration? Why would a young doctor give up a potential job that included a nice house, servants, car and driver and a good salary, for a job paying just $25 a month in a place where the toilet was two boards placed over a stream full of water snakes? These and other stories of indomitable spirit, courage, steadfastness and self-abnegation are the subject of this book on the Knights of Bahá'u'lláh, those Bahá'ís who left their homes to bring the message of Bahá'u'lláh to countries and territories where it was unknown, and whose names are inscribed on Shoghi Effendi's Roll of Honour. They came from over two dozen countries scattered over the earth representing every continent; 131 of them were men and 126 women. The oldest left home at the age of 85, while the youngest was a youth no older than 14. They endured loneliness and made sacrifices, and in so doing experienced the greatest adventure of their lives.--Publisher's website.
Cults and New Religions Aren’t Hard to FindThey’re in your neighborhood . . . your workplace . . . your school . . . maybe even your family.Cults are flourishing across America. Chances are, you’ve encountered one, perhaps even know someone who is involved in a cult. Can you discuss knowledgably the critical differences between Christianity and the teachings of Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Scientology, the New Age movement, Hindu-based cults, and other prominent groups and religious movements? In this essential resource, preeminent cult authority Ron Rhodes explains what cults are, why they are cause for concern, and why in the 21st century, as never before, their numbers and memberships are exploding nationally and worldwide. Drawing on his extensive experience as a cult researcher, Rhodes offers to-the-point, cutting-edge information on twelve major cults and new religions:MormonismJehovah’s WitnessesMind SciencesNew Age MovementChurch of ScientologyHindu-based CultsUnification ChurchBaha’i FaithUnitarian UniversalismOneness PentecostalismMasonic LodgeSatanismLearning the distinctives of these groups will equip you to deal with any of the thousands of other less significant cults you may encounter. The Challenge of the Cults and New Religion includes Color photosScripture IndexSubject IndexGlossaryBibliographyAnd your resources don’t end at the last page. You can supplement your knowledge whenever you choose by visiting the author’s Web site at www.ronrhodes.org for free, thorough, up-to-the-minute information on each cult discussed in the book.If you’re concerned for the temporal and eternal welfare of others, The Challenge of the Cults is a must. It will help you confront the deception of false Christs and lying doctrines with the clear, well-grounded truth of biblical Christianity.
Describes Bahá'u'lláh's life straightforwardly but with drama and a talent for evoking the ambience of the 19th-century Persian and Ottomoan milieus. Five appendices cover a chronology of the events in the life of Bahá'ulláh's life, Bahá'ulláh's family, the branches of Islam, millennial Christians, and his younger half-brother Mírzá Yahyá.
"On November 28, 1921, the head of the Bahá'í Faith, 'Abdu'l-Bahá, passed away. For Bahá'ís, 'Abdu'l-Bahá was more than the leader of their religion. Shoghi Effendi wrote that 'Abdu'l-Bahá was "the Moon of the Central Orb of this most holy Dispensation" (Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, p. 134). The night of 'Abdu'l-Bahá's ascension was a night of the waning moon, which illustrates the profound darkness that was felt by those who were present at the time of the passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. The darkness would be only temporary, for the passing of 'Abdu'l-Bahá marked the dramatic opening of the Formative Age, a period in the history of humanity that will witness the unfoldment of a religious cycle that will last half a million years (Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh, pp. 101-102). There were six Western believers in Haifa on the night of the ascension of 'Abdu'l-Bahá: Mr. John Bosch and Mrs. Louise Stapfer Bosch from Geyserville, California; Dr. Florian Krug and Mrs. Grace Krug from New York, and Fraulein Johanna Hauff from Stuttgart. All of them were there as pilgrims. The only other Western believer present in Haifa was Mr. Curtis Kelsey from New York, who was in Haifa to install electrical power plants to light the shrines of the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh. This book tells the story of these believers, how they became Bahá'ís, the circumstances that led them to Haifa, and how their experience at the time of the ascension of 'Abdu'l-Bahá shaped their path of service to the Cause of God. The intent is to give the reader the feeling of being in the holy land, one hundred years ago, when the moon of 'Abdu'l-Bahá set over Haifa"--
Roshan Danesh has devoted his career to the study of law and religion with a particular focus on the Baha'i Faith and its central legal text, the Kitab-i-Aqdas. In this collection of essays--previously published in a variety of academic journals, including the prestigious Journal of Law and Religion--Danesh invites the reader into an exploration of largely unchartered waters. As he states in the introduction to this collection, "understanding Baha'i law challenges us to question, and ultimately abandon, our taken-for-granted ways of thinking, talking about, and using law." Organized around four distinct areas--Baha'u'llah's conception of law itself, the constitutional dimensions of the Baha'i Faith, Baha'u'llah's theory of social change and the role of law in social change, and existing scholarship and discourse concerning Baha'i law--the essays collected here are expansive and illuminating, and they provide an invaluable contribution to discourse on the subject.
