Random samples of some things I've been thinking about.
I keep forgetting, I have an uncommon interest and aptitude in learning from books.
Last night and this morning I was wondering about estrangement between followers of Baha'u'llah. It seems strange to me to see so much estrangement between long time followers of Baha'u'llah. Yes, we all have our imperfections. Yes, maybe some people who claim allegiance to Baha'u'llah aren't really trying to follow Him. Yes, it takes time. Possible explanations abound, and yet . . . and yet . . . I still keep wondering about it.
In my case, it isn't just between me and people who can't see any good in anything the House of Justice is promoting. It's just as much, and maybe more, between me and people who malign people and excuse it as defending the Faith.
Then there is this recurring feeling that most Baha'is are not actually trying to learn anything from Baha'u'llah. That's when I remembered that I have an uncommon interest in learning from books. Just because people don't use Baha'u'llah's writings the way I do, doesn't mean they aren't trying to learn anything from Him.
OK, I've been learning from Baha'u'llah intentionally for more than 40 years, and unintentionally for six or eight years before that, and I still have these recurring feelings of estrangement from other people. I've known for at least 30 years, maybe much longer, that fellowship is the supreme goal and the monarch of aspirations, and the only thing that will satisfy Him, and I still have these recurring feelings of estrangement. What does that mean? Yes, yes, maybe I'm a hard case. Yes, yes, it takes time. And yet . . . and yet . . . what does it all mean?
I have some good ideas about what to do, and I've been doing them, and plan to do more, and I've seen some good progress, but still . . . what does it all mean?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Hi Jim,
You write:
"...it isn't just between me and people who can't see any good in anything the House of Justice is promoting."
It's a little hard to comment when I don't know who you're referring to. For all I know, you might be referring to me! So I've decided to approach your statement with a counter-provocation:
What does it matter if some fellow Baha'is "can't see any good in anything the House of Justice is promoting"? Doesn't it simply mean they decline to take part in activities the House of justice promotes, and instead concentrate on other activities? And what's the harm in that?
You've been learning from Baha'u'llah for over 40 years. Do you not remember when the House was much less prescriptive than it is now, and when unity in diversity meant that there were a range of things Baha'is got up to? The same Baha'is who now, in your estimation, "can't see any good in anything the House of Justice is promoting" would probably have fitted right in, then. I expect they simply got on with activities that suited them and people assumed they were promoting, in their own way, whatever the House of Justice was then promoting. Who could tell?
What does that say about the environment and perceptions then and now? And, back to my original question:
What does it matter if some fellow Baha'is "can't see any good in anything the House of Justice is promoting"? Tell me one way in which it matters.
Thank you, Steve, for asking a question that others might wonder about but never ask.
When I wrote "People who can't see any good in anything the House of Justice is promoting," I meant people who display intense interest in it and continually find fault with it, without ever seeing any good in it. It has nothing to do with whether or not I see them participating.
That's different from simply not being interested in what it's promoting, or having other priorities.
I was thinking of some people in particular, possibly inaccurately. I won't list them. I'll only say that you weren't one of them. If any of them ask me the same question, I'll answer honestly.
I'm glad you asked the question, because I'm trying to promote better appreciation of initiatives that aren't explicitly derived from community goals. In my experience it's popular in administrative circles to depreciate or even stigmatize initiatives that aren't explicitly derived from community goals, and I'm trying to help change that.
You wrote "What does it matter . . . ?"
Do you mean what does it matter to me, or why should it matter to you? I hope it's a rhetorical question, because I'd rather not try to explain what it matters to me. If your point is that there's something wrong with me, I agree. If your point is that there's nothing wrong with not participating in the programs being promoted by the House of Justice, I agree.
Jim
Post a Comment