Zionist Agents–The Baha’is?
July 25th, 2007Since I could remember I often hear the term Zionism and the name of my Faith, the Baha’i Faith, used in the same sentence by people who are responsible for abuse against the Baha’is. I have been thinking and trying to figure out how and why this assumption could be reached by the clerical regime in Iran. So, this post will try to lay out the facts for those curious individual who are wondering what to think.
So, lets start by laying out the facts, indisputable facts.
Zionism is a term referred to the theological and political movement of establishing a Jewish state. Guess what, it has happened and its probably not going anywhere regardless of your own views. Zionism was a strong movement that did reach its goal when the state of Israel was established in 1948. The movement to even exist today as an active transnational movement would be redundant because it has already accomplished its goal!
To be a spy or agent of a state or party means to actively work in gaining information for that state or party.
The Baha’is are the largest religious minority in Iran with some 300,000 believers spread through out the country. It is also a world wide religion with follows in every country from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe. It is an organized religion with its administrative headquarters in Haifa, Israel. Its headquarters have been there since the late 1800s.
Baha’is are apolitical and do not associate themselves at all with any kind of political movement or candidate. It is forbidden by Baha’i law for any enrolled Baha’i to engage in partisanship or run for political office. However, there have been Baha’is working in various offices of government in civil roles and military roles since the Faith began in many countries, i.e. department of agriculture or something most often times boring…
Baha’is are loyal and submissive to the government in which jurisdiction they fall as citizens. Here is a list of some prominent past and present Baha’is
Baha’is, just like any other religion have been dismissed by the religion that came before it as being untrue, irrelevant, satanic yada yada yada.
The official Baha’i view is best described here, from the official Baha’i website…
‘The Changeless Faith of God’
When Bahá’ís say that the various religions are one, they do not mean that the various religious creeds and organizations are the same. Rather, they believe that there is only one religion and all of the
Messengers of God have progressively revealed its nature. Together, the world’s great religions are expressions of a single unfolding Divine plan, “the changeless Faith of God, eternal in the past, eternal in the future.”People from all of the major religious backgrounds have found that the promises and expectations of their own beliefs are fulfilled in the Bahá’í Faith. Bahá’ís from Native American, African and other
indigenous backgrounds, similarly, find in the Bahá’í teachings fulfillment of prophetic visions.For Bahá’ís of Jewish background, Bahá’u'lláh is the appearance of the promised “Lord of Hosts” come down “with ten thousands of saints.” A descendent of Abraham and a “scion from the root of Jesse,” Bahá’u'lláh has come to lead the way for nations to “beat their swords into plowshares.” Many features of Bahá’u'lláh’s involuntary exile to the Land of Israel, along with other historical events during
Bahá’u'lláh’s life and since are seen as fulfilling numerous prophecies in the Bible.For Bahá’ís of Buddhist background, Bahá’u'lláh fulfills the prophecies for the coming of “a Buddha named Maitreye, the Buddha of universal fellowship” who will, according to Buddhist traditions, bring peace and enlightenment for all humanity. They see the fulfillment of numerous prophecies, such as the fact that the Buddha Maitreye is to come from “the West”, noting the fact that Iran is West of India.
For Bahá’ís of Hindu background, Bahá’u'lláh comes as the new incarnation of Krishna, the “Tenth Avatar” and the “Most Great Spirit.” He is “the birthless, the deathless,” the One who, “when goodness grows weak,” returns “in every age” to “establish righteousness” as promised in the Bhagavad-Gita.
For Bahá’ís of Christian background, Bahá’u'lláh fulfills the paradoxical promises of Christ’s return “in the Glory of the Father” and as a “thief in the night.” That the Faith was founded in 1844 relates to numerous Christian prophecies. Bahá’ís note, for example, that central Africa was finally opened to Christianity in the 1840s, and that event was widely seen as fulfilling the promise that Christ would return after “the Gospel had been preached ‘to all nations.’” In Bahá’u'lláh’s teachings Bahá’ís see fulfillment of Christ’s promise to bring all people together so that “there shall be one fold, and one
shepherd.”For Bahá’ís of Muslim background, Bahá’u'lláh fulfills the promise of the Qur’an for the “Day of God” and the “Great Announcement,” when “God” will come down “overshadowed with clouds.” They see in the dramatic events of the Bábi and Bahá’í movements the fulfillment of many traditional statements of Muhammad, which have long been a puzzle.
Baha’i prophecies and goals indicated that one day there will be peace among the nation’s and war as we know it in its conventional sense will fade away and mankind will focus on its collective abilities. We also believe that there is not going to be some catastrophic Judgment Day and the End of the World through Armageddon. These events to us have happened already but in a more symbolic manor. Just like all the prophecies of past religion have come to pass. Of course, there are un-educated people who really want to see things with there own eyes and will deny anything to the contrary. This is simply arrogance.
Now, to address the accusation directly about Iranian Baha’is being spies of Israel. It is easy to draw conspiratorial conclusions to fit ones own world view. And, indeed I can see how some Islamic regimes
draw these conclusions. But, it is against the very core of being a Baha’i to conspire against ones government, even if that government is the 3rd Riech. And yes there were Baha’is in Germany at the time. Most of them fled or were thrown into concentration camps. Baha’is would rather be executed, which many have, than take part in being agents against there own government.
In a poetic passage, Bahá’u'lláh described the actions of the moral individual and urged His followers to live accordingly:
Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity. Be worthy of the trust of thy neighbor, and look upon him with a bright and friendly face. Be a treasure to the poor, an admonisher to the rich,
an answerer of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge. Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech. Be unjust to no man, and show all meekness to all men. Be as a lamp unto
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 unto the feet of the erring. Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the 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.
So, in conclusion we as Baha’is are friends of all people and are loyal to the governments to which jurisdiction we fall under, be it the USA, Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia or China or North Korea. We see the
World as one planet and its people as one (and in my view, dysfunctional) family. Yes, when our governments fight agaisnt each other, Baha’is have been sometime been caught in the middle. There was one incident in Vietnam where a Viet-cong patrol fought and won a battle against an American patrol. Somehow there was a Baha’i on each side, the American was about to be executed and said “Allah’u'Abha” as his last words and his would be executor responded with Allah’u'Abha, a Baha’i invocation meaning God is the Most Glorious. Needless to say the Baha’i was not executed but taken as a POW.
We work for and are all about peace, human rights, tolerance, understanding, harmony and equality or the sexes. Dont forget it and don’t be fooled.
PS- There are no Baha’is actually who are citizens of Israel, Baha’is live there but only have work visas and are forbidden from teaching or promoting the Faith in Israel. So, if you thought, “what about if there are Israeli Baha’is, could they be Zionist agents?” The answer is…Impossible.
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Excellent post, very insightful.
good as an intro to Bahai faith, but many important matters are still missing here.
yes; there is a strong muslim view which addresses Bahais as (direct or indirect) agents of Israel. then, if you say more about current status of Bahais in Israel (like the last sentences of this post), it will be much more useful.
Yes, I agree that this is an important emphasis. A lot of Muslims are under the impression that Baha’is are the work of Zionists- and all Baha’is teachings/institutions are funded by the state of Israel.
I honestly don’t understand where or how this view came about. What are the sources of such opinions?
When we did the Muslim Network for Baha’i Rights, oh man. You should have seen all the angry e-mails we were getting, most of which included “Israel-lovers! Go support the death of Palestinians!” and I’m thinking “What does that have to do with anything?!”
very good ponit of view. could we address to the topic with the basic bahai teachings?
could you just tell us what are those basic teachings and why a bahai can’t be an agent?
I reall appreciate for your nice article.
I will address the best I can the different questions and comments brought up.
Baha’is are not allowed to live in Israel unless they are working for the Baha’i Institutions in Haifa. The work at the Baha’i institutions is only concerned with the management and promotion of the Baha’i Faith in other countries around the World. The Baha’is have been asked and are required to observe the laws and requests of the countries in which they abide. Of course when a country doesn’t follow its own laws and then persecutes the Baha’is i.e. Iran, Egypt etc…then the avenues of the UN and human rights are brought up to point out the injustice.
Abdul’Baha, the son of Baha’u'llah was knighted by the British during the end of WWI for his humanitarian activities and dispersement of grain and foods during the war. When the Balfour declaration was initiated and the completely separate political movement known as Zionism gained momentum, Abdul’Baha knowing that the Baha’i Faith and its founding figures would be permanently put to rest in the shrines around Haifa and Akka made a standing agreement that said whatever the political leadership is governing the land that encompasses the Baha’i places that there would be no teaching of the Baha’i Faith, no involvement in the affairs of the state nor any participation in the political decisions. This arrangement has been honored for almost a 100yrs. Ask any Baha’i. It is a very strict policy. NO POLITICAL INVOLVEMENT.
I can understand however when Muslims make accusations of the like. Yes, our holy laces are in Israel, yes the Baha’i leadership is in Israel. But we were there before the Israeli and Zionist movements took shape. Kind of like the Palestinians! But when people make accusations saying we are Israeli agents, Zionist spies etc…It just can’t be. My poor 80yr grandma was accused of being a spy. They killed her dog, torched her house and tortured her for 3 months before the just let her go. This was all during the glorious Iranian revolution.
Did you know that Baha’is are also forbidden from taking part in any secret societies i.e. the Masons or Illuminati. It is strictly forbidden by the leadership and writings of the Faith. I can provide the references if you like.
To address Fariborz’s questions…
Lets try to clear up an other wrong ideas…
Thanks a lot for this very interesting article. In Europe there is not much knowledge about the Baha’i religion (as there isnt about many of the more complex religisous issues) and I really enjoyed reading about it. I wish more people would take a little of their time to read about the issues they so easily profess opinions about! I always imagined, that if everyone took 5 minutes each day to read about an issue he would not otherwise approach – the world would be a different place.
Thanks for giving me my 5 minutes of the day!
Omid Thank you very much for your good explanation.
The youth back in Saudi have little to know knowledge about such religious movements, they’re too busy picking fights with religious minorities here, which drives me sick..
However, you managed to give an interesting brief that is truly informative.. I hope people would read more of these articles than to just look away and tune in to another mainstream outlet.. I hope my people would “read” more..
Then again, i salute you..
my pleasure. I hope to write more of these kinds of posts that aim to dispel the misconceptions out there.
Cheers!
Hi Omid,very interesting article on Baha’is faith. But few questioned remained to be answered. In Quran god clearly mentioned that Mahamod is the last and final prophet. God will reveal no more message to mankind. Amonng the prophet population(one hundred tweanty four thousand) Mahamod is almost like eight hundred pound gorilla.He visited heaven and hell and received message from
god face to face. So when you claim Baharulla as a prophet and came behind Mahamod you clearly defying and humilating
the god you worship. Waiting for reply.
[...] Persian-American Baha’i discusses this issue in a highly informative [...]
Omid, that was a very good post. Another point is that Baha’u'llah was forced and exiled from His native Persia to Iraq, Turkey then Acca Israel. Therefore the Baha’i faith ended up in Israel because the founder Baha’u'llah was exiled there. The leaders of the Ottoman Empire sent Him to the worst prison in the middle east in Acca.
Dear Halim,
Your comment regarding the Baha’is and the validity issues that Muslims have are certainly well founded. Clearly, there are passages in the Quran that Muhammad is that last of the messengers and there will be none after Him.
The Baha’i view is this: I will use direct quotes as much as possible because this issue has been debated since the inception of the Baha’i Faith and many more knowledgeable people have more meaningful situations.
Baha’u'llah wrote:
Here are some serious sites that deal with more issue s that Muslims, both Shi’a and Sunni have with the Baha’i Faith.
Baha’i Faith and Islam
Islamic prophecies and the Baha’i Interpretation
Hi Omid,evreything you quoted is confusing
me. It is plain and simple to me Bahau’llah was a spiritual(theistic) teacher/guru of our time. He need not to claim himself as a prophet. He could stand alone on his teaching. I see heaven and hell differece in between islam and Bahai’s faith. Bahai’s stands for ethics,morality,progressive human values of our time,contrary islam opposes everything.
Here I request you to study an Indian spiritual(nontheistic) teacher Jiddu Krisnamurthy.
http://www.jkrishnamurti.org/index.php?page=103&nav=welcome&nid=103
http://www.katinkahesselink.net/kr/
Hi Halim,
I found this quote kind of interesting.
Although this insightful and enlightened statement reflects the true nature of one’s ultimate search for truth, he himself was a teacher and professed a method and a way.
In any case, Baha’is are not new age tree hugging hippies. We do have laws, we do have doctrines and principles that are central to the Faith. One of those principles is in fact that Baha’u'llah was animated by the same infallible spirit that animated Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Mohammad to name the major ones. We believe that the truths and principles Baha’u'llah has brought for this day and age which set it apart from just being a sect or a movement are divine and pre-ordained in nature. God reveals as we are able to accept.
To say with a bold faced that God has nothing more to say and nothing more to teach us is blasphemy in my opinion. Am I to accept that it is some Shiekh or “ayatollah”, priest or rabbi that is only human to reveal God’s messsage and elaborate on what has already been elaborated a million times over?
One of the core principles of the Baha’i Faith is that God will always be sending messengers and it is up to us as individuals whether to accept or reject, regardless or what religious scholars tell us is the truth.
It is true, Baha’u'llah’s teachings have merit in and of them self; yet it is the fact that He claims it is divinely inspired that makes us have faith in it. Having faith and aligning ones self with some good idea is different. Faith means you are willing to die and work all your life for it. Just agreeing with the idea…not good enough.
Dear Halim,
The Bible says that Jesus was the alpha and omega (the first and the last). Most Christians insist that this means there can be no other Messenger after Jesus. The Qur’an says that Muhammad was the “seal of the Prophets.” Most Muslims insist that this means Muhammad was the final Prophet – no others will ever appear. Yet Islam also believes that the Mahdi and Jesus Christ will return.
All of the Manifestations of God were the first and the last, because they represent the Godhead in the kingdom of creation and God – may He be praised – is the beginning and ending of all things.
Also, the cycle of prophecy that began with Adam did end with Muhammad, for they were all looking forward to the time of fulfilment, the Day of Judgement, the Day of God. That time is this age and the Bringer of that fulfilment is Baha’ullah, the Universal Manifestation of God Who fulfills the Adamic cycle. Therefore, Muhammad was the last or final Prophet to predict or point toward the Day of God.
Omid is not a Muslim, he is a Baha’i. A Baha’i is not belittling or attacking Islam by believing in Baha’u'llah. He is following the beliefs of his own religion. You believe Muhammad is the last Prophet, period. Baha’is believe that Muhammad, like all of the Messengers, was both first and last, and that He was the final foreteller of the Day of God, which Baha’u'llah has brought. This is merely a different belief from yours; it is not an attack on Islam. Baha’is spend a lot of time defending Islam against its detractors in the West.
The Qur’an criticized people who denied its revelation by thinking that “God’s hands are chained up.” God replies to them in the Qur’an – “Chained up be their own hands!” How can the flow of divine grace and the succession of His Messengers ever stop? God promised us that He would guide us and we promised to hear Him. He has spoken again in Baha’u'llah, the Living Book, the Temple of God amongst men, the Great Announcement, the bringer of the resurrection. Arise from the grave! “He who hath been reborn in this day shall never die. He who remaineth dead shall never live.”
Hi Halim,
What do you believe and what is your religious conviction?
I have recently come across your website and have read some of the discussion. Regarding Halim’s distinction between Yahweh and Allah, I think that the “God” being worshipped is the One who revealled Himself to Abraham from which has come all the monotheistic relions of the Middle East. The important point however is that there is only one God and that is God, Who is essentially unknowable except through revelation. The names we use to refer to the Creator are merely that – names we use. The Creator is the Creator.
[...] today as many Muslims continue to wrongly associate the Baha’i faith with Zionism (read this post concerning that, as [...]
Baha’is accept those who are defined as Manifestations of God and holy ones in the Baha’i scriptures and the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. We do not spend time belittling the beliefs of others. Although Baha’is do not accept Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as a prophet, the Baha’is have never attacked the Ahmadiyya Muslims. The Ahmadiyya Muslims, however, have attacked the Baha’is many times in print. Majority Jewish and Christian countries have not banned the Ahmadiyya. But you state that Muslim countries have virtually all done so. Why is orthodox Islam so afraid that it must forbid beliefs with which it does not agree? Who is naive here?
Yahweh, Theos, Allah, Ahura Mazda, Brahman are all names by which different cultures called upon the One True God.