Response to Servant19
Servant if your methodology of interpretation is that of merely examinging a text without need for context, history, original language and other factors then we have very different ideas on the nature of reading any text. By this standard we render all texts subject to the mind of the individual reading them, not the mind of the individual writing them. This sort of subjective method is wrong. A text from any given author in any given genre is given its meaning by the author and not the reader. The reader may be wrong but when the author has determined what it means he is not wrong.
Your prophet seems quite clear a thousand years are needed, and I suspect negative motives for this (namely a lineage of successive prophets would look quite suspicious so he wanted to control his group after he died). My explanation, which is ridiculous is however just as coherent and reasonable as the bahai interpretation of the gospels which doesn’t rely on any sort of examination of the text as a whole, its interpretation throughout history, but rather whatever agrees with the pre established bahai beliefs. This of course must assume that Luke had a bahai Methodology in mind, that he was essentially bahai, something bahai strangely deny (insisting that they were Christians or Jews or Muslims once the new manifestation came). There are plenty of reasons why Luke is not writing in the way bahai subscribe to, that is it was suggested that Luke was writing of a vision that appeared to the apostles. If that were the case Luke no where explained “The apostles were sitting and they had a vision of Christ appearing to them and eating fish,” something he demonstrated in the acts of the apostles he was able to do when Saint Peter received a vision while in a trance from God concerning the gentiles and their entrance into the church and people of God. We can say that if luke wanted to record a vision, he would have prefaced it like he did with Saint Peter, this is a reasonable thing to expect. But he didn’t, and the narrative of the last chapter is in complete harmony with all the others beforehand with no reason to suggest that it suddenly becomes a metaphorical expression.
The same is true I imagine of the bahai writings, which likely are influenced by islam and culture surrounding your prophet’s writings. No writing is universal, no writing is beyond being misconstrewed. If you represent the bahai general opinion then bahai asserts total anarchy with regards to interpretation. One thing can mean something one year and then be completely different the text, it depends on the person, nothing more.
*(I had to shorten this here due to the word count exceeding the limit) *
As for denying that the bahai say Christians have got it wrong, I will say that I am tired of this game. I am tired of bahai trying to pretend they agree with everyone and that there is no difference between us. Im tired of bahai saying “WE THINK JESUS IS DIVINE JUST LIKE YOU DO,” Yet knowing full well what Christians mean. This is blatant deception and until bahai can speak honestly I will call you liars until you speak with clarity. You do deny our Christian interpretation of Christ being physical resurrected, you say we have misunderstood Paul and the bible. You say Christ’s spirit rose and that a belief in his apostles was rekindled and that was resurrection. Hence you deny our Christian faith. STOP PRETENDING TO AGREE WITH EVERYONE, it is beyond condescending and is totally dishonest. If you are not lying, you are deluded at which point there is no reason to continue any discussion on this subject whatsoever. To the Christian, bahai teaching is anathema. To the bahai Christian teaching is anathema.
As for your comment in regards to being a gnostic, the solution is not to work on creating a government from which to the head down things can be controlled and people compelled to obedience. The solution is to work through the inner person without regaurds to any sort of human government. I am not a gnostic, but I do see the corruption in the world and that the vast majority of everyone is evil and corrupt and things are only getting worse. Hence I do not trust any government to save me or society, I trust God to save the individual more than any government could.
