Bahá’í Rights

Every morning, Joe makes a pot of coffee or tea and we sit down to check our email, messages, and catch up on the news. This morning, I stumbled upon The Muslim Network for Bahá’í Rights.

Bahá’í s represent a religious minority in many parts of the world; believers are as far-flung as Iran, Egypt, Germany, and Australia (to name just a small section of their geographic reach). Moreover, the Bahá’í faith is one of the fastest-growing religions in the world, with more than five million followers to date. And yet, as The Muslim Network for Bahá’í Rightsso aptly points out, Bahá’í s are persecuted in many places, most notably Egypt and Iran.

Why?

According to the founder of , a young woman from Bahrain,

“When I talk to my friends about the Bahá’í faith, they tell me that it is a satanic religion. I ask them to provide me with one of the principles of this religion, but they have no answer. Some think that the Bahá’í s are a sect of Shi’i Islam which is also a mistake. They don’t know anything about it, but they are nonetheless suspicious of its followers.” [1]

Is this true?

According to Bahai.com, the principles of the Bahá’í faith as laid out by Bahá'u'lláh in the mid-late nineteenth century are belief in:

-- the oneness of mankind

-- universal peace upheld by a world government

-- independent investigation of truth

-- the common foundation of all religions

-- the essential harmony of science and religion

-- equality of men and women

-- elimination of prejudice of all kinds

-- universal compulsory education

-- a spiritual solution to the economic problem

-- a universal auxiliary language [2].

Many of these principles are familiar, as personal beliefs and human rights (the equality of men and women, elimination of prejudice of all kinds), a principle of the judicial system and government (independent investigation of truth), elements of the business world (a universal auxiliary language—seeming much as English functions today) and perhaps even hopes for a better world (universal compulsory education). Not all will resonate with every individual—we are, after all, individuals. [3]

The Common Foundation of All Religions

Here, I think, is where we first come to trouble. A perceived tenet of many religions is that said religion is correct, said deity(ies) is(are) the only true deity(--ies), and that other beliefs are incorrect and/or dangerous. This is not to say that all people of faith in any given religion believe the above, but rather that the possibility for such belief is there.

I have been fortunate enough, in fact, to meet and work with people from a variety of religions, including the Bahá’í Faith, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism[4], Islam, and Nature Religions (e.g. Druidism, Paganism, and Wicca). The majority of these people have been kind-hearted, considerate, thoughtful individuals from varying socio-economic backgrounds. Many have espoused their belief to “live and let live”; in fact, the above religions each list tolerance and equality among their fundamental beliefs.

But what about the news headlines, the fundamentalists, the persecutors? Such people cling to certain beliefs, including the idea that they, and they alone, are correct. it is these people, I think, who fixate upon the idea that all religions have a common foundation as correct. Here, however, I think it is important to remember that it is human nature to want and think that we are correct—every parent and child, every couple, every friend, has most likely, at some point, argued their side of the case is the right one, the only one.

Tied into the Bahá’í belief that all religions have a common foundation is the idea of ‘divine messengers’. Such people include the more recent persons, Bahá'u'lláh and the Báb, but they also include the Prophets of Islam and Christianity, the Buddha, Krishna and Zoroaster. From Bahai Topics,

“This succession of divine Teachers reflects a single historic ‘plan of God’ for educating humanity about the Creator and for cultivating the spiritual, intellectual, and moral capabilities of the race.”

In short, Bahá’í s believe in a universal creator, believe he speaks in many ways and through many forms, believe there is a divine plan, and believe in developing the potential of the human race. These are not terrible, terrifying, or awful beliefs, but I imagine the seeming co-opting of any given religion’s teachers and prophets is one of the underlying issues for those who consider Bahá’í s dangerous apostates.

Persecution—Says Who?

According to the BBC’s religion and ethics pages online,

The 350,000 Bahá'ís of Iran were severely persecuted following the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

More than 200 Bahá'ís were executed or murdered, hundreds imprisoned and tens of thousands discriminated against in work and education.

The persecution has slackened in the last decade, although it has not stopped.

Bahá'ís are considered heretics by Muslims because Bahá'u'lláh denied that Muhammad was the last prophet and claimed that he, Bahá'u'lláh, was the latest prophet of God. This denies one of the most fundamental Islamic beliefs.[5]

In March 2006, the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief officially registered her concern over the treatment of Bahá’í s in Iran. From the media press release,

"The Special Rapporteur is highly concerned by information she has received concerning the treatment of members of the Bahá'í community in Iran.

A confidential letter sent on 29 October 2005 by the Chairman of the Command Headquarters of the Armed Forces in Iran to a number of governmental agencies…which is addressed to the Ministry of Information, the Revolutionary Guard and the Police Force, states that the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, had instructed the Command Headquarters to identify persons who adhere to the Bahá'í faith and monitor their activities... [requesting] the recipients to, in a highly confidential manner, collect any and all information about members of the Bahá'í faith…

…The Bahá'í community has an estimated 300,000 to 350,000 adherents throughout Iran. However, members of the Bahá'í community are not recognized as a religious minority in the country and do not have the right to practice their religion. The Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief has closely monitored the treatment of religious minorities in Iran, and has long been concerned by the systematic discrimination against members of the Bahá'í community. Since taking up the mandate in July 2004, the Special Rapporteur has intervened with the Government on a number of occasions regarding the treatment of the Bahá'í community.[6]

And in an article from December 2006, Turkish Daily News journalists Yusuf Kanli and Burak Bekdil wrote that,

Last month [November 2006], the U.S. Congress passed a resolution calling for the emancipation of Iran's largest religious minority, Bahá’í s. Both the Senate and House resolutions decry recent and intensifying persecution of Bahá’í s in Iran that has included a state-sponsored anti-Bahá’í media campaign, the death of a Bahá’í in prison who had been accused of apostasy, and continued harassment and detentions. A committee of the U.N. General Assembly also passed a resolution condemning Iran's human rights violations, including those against the Bahá’í s and other religious minorities.[7]

Denial of work permits, higher education, and even citizenship is an everyday fact of life for Bahá’í s in Iran.

Bahá’í s in Egypt have similar problems. A recent article on the BBC, The Muslim Network for Bahá’í Rights, lists several cases of injustice against Bahá’í s in Egypt, including the exclusion of an Egyptian seventeen year old high school student from her final exams. Failing to complete said exams excludes the student, Kholoud Hafez, from consideration by universities.

Recent events in Egypt offer some hope, though—in late January of this year, Reuters reports that,

”An Egyptian court granted Baha'is the right to obtain government identity papers on Tuesday, so long as they omit their faith, in an important ruling for members of unrecognised religions…

… Egypt had previously refused to allow members of the minority faith to obtain documents listing them as Baha'is, nor would it allow them to omit their religion. Baha'is are regarded as heretics by many Muslims, and rights activists say they face systematic persecution in socially conservative Egypt.

Rights groups say Baha'is were often pressured to accept documents labelling them as members of faiths viewed as more palatable in Egypt.”[8]

Bahá’í Faith as a Cult?

Although much of the talked about persecution of Bahá’í s centres around in Iran and Egypt, there is in some sections of the Christian community a belief that “the Bahá’í Faith, is at its very core anti-Christian theology” [9]. Some websites, such as Bibleline Ministeries and the Cult Awareness and Information Centre, founded by the late Jan Groenveld, a former Jehovah’s Witness and Mormon, denounce the Bahá’í Faith as a cult.

As with all religions, the Bahá’í Faith has many intricacies. The Universal House of Justice in Haifa, is the global home and centre of the religion—and there are strict rules regarding the promulgation of Bahá’í ideas and faith by Bahá’í s themselves. Unsurprisingly, these rules have caused difficulties for both Bahá’í s and non-Bahá’í s, though it seems that said rules relate to the accepted interpretations and ideas of the religion as a whole in much the same way the Catholic papacy leads the Catholic Church with regard to accepted interpretations and ideas.

What Can We Do?

The issues facing Bahá’í s are complex and immense, like many world issues, (and this post is by no means comprehensive). The idea of helping out with a cause can be overwhelming—which cause? How do I do it? What if I don’t have time? I’m a student, I can’t afford donations? I think it’s awful what’s happening, but it’s a government problem, why can’t they sort it out?

Perhaps some of these questions are familiar to you, perhaps none are. But the first step to helping with this cause, and any other cause—Darfur, animal rights, global warming, heart disease, breast cancer, etc.—is awareness. Read. Think. Investigate independently. Consider sources. True, there aren’t enough hours in the day to read about each and every cause out there—and I certainly don’t expect you to keep up with every titbit of information. But I hope you will remember Martin Niemoller’s poem, which I first read upon the haunting and eerie Boston Holocaust memorial:

“They came first for the Communists,

and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist.

Then they came for the Jews,

and I didn’t speak up because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the trade unionists,

and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Catholics,

and I didn’t speak up because I was a Protestant.

Then they came for me,

and by that time no one was left to speak up.”

Footnotes

[1] Sobhani, Na'im. "Formation of a Muslim Group in Defense of the Rights of Bahá’í s." BBC-Persia, Washington.
Translation kindly provided by bahairights.org

[2] Bahai.com, 2007. Mid-east Youth

[3] For more information and explanation of the above-listed principles, please see Bahai.com, The Bahá’í s, or Gloria Faizi’s book, An Introduction to the Bahá’í Faith

[4] For more on the principle of equality and its place in Hinduism, please see The Heart of Hinduism.

[5] "Persecution in Iran." BBC-Religion and Ethics--Bahai.

[6] "United Nations Press Release: Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion or Belief Concerned About Treatment of Followers of Bahai Faith in Iran." United Nations Human Rights, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. 20 Mar. 2006.

[7 Bekdil, Burak and ]Kani, Yusuf. "Bahaism: An Alien Faith Israel and Iran View Differently." Turkish Daily News. Dec 22. 2006

[8] Johnston, Cynthia. "Egypt Baha'is win court fight over identity papers." Reuters-Africa. 29 Jan. 2008

[9] "What is the Bahai Faith?" Christians.co.za: The Gospel Through e-Media. 2005. C-Web.