Some Christian-Baha'i topics:
1. What do Baha'is believe concerning Christ?
2. Do Baha'is believe in the Bible?
3. Do Baha'is regard Christ as the Son of God?
4. What about the Trinity?
5. Do Baha'is believe that Christ rose from the dead?
6. Do Baha'is believe in an afterlife?
7. Do Baha'is believe in Satan?
8. What is the relationship between Christ and Baha'u'llah?
9. How is the Bahá'í Faith different from Christianity?
10. Does the Baha'i Faith contradict the teachings of Christianity?
11. Questions regarding the Book of Revelation and other references to "the close of the age."
12. How can I find some Baha'i books?
(Note: some questions link to other Baha'i web sites. To return, simply use the back button on yolur browser.)

1. What do Baha'is believe concerning Christ?

Baha'is recognize the reality of the eternal Christ, Who reflects the knowledge and truth from God, the Father, to mankind in accordance with the needs of the age. His title, Christ (meaning "the Anointed One") refers to His role as King over all mankind. Jesus referred to His eternal essence in saying, "Before Abraham was, I am" (John 8:58) and again when He said, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end" (Rev. 21:6) and when He said "No man cometh unto the Father but by me" (John 14:6).

The eternal Christ is mankind's only direct link with God. Like a perfect mirror, He reflects the image of God into our world, according to the requirements of the age, and the people's capacity to understand. When the age changes, and mankind's capacity to understand has grown, He again appears in our physical world, to give us an increased understanding of God's will for mankind. Thus, in the person of Jesus, He said to the Jews, "Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets: I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them." (Matt. 5:17) He, and the Holy Spirit which works through Him, are ultimately responsible for all of the progress of all of the civilizations of mankind.

His nature and capacity are far beyond the ability of mankind to ever truly understand, just as the nature of being human can never be understood by an animal or a plant. Every attempt to adequately describe Him will necessarily fall short of His reality. How can the finite ever comprehend the Infinite?

He has been given many names---the Christ, the Messiah (both meaning "the Anointed One"), the Word (John 1:1-5), the Prince of Peace, the Son of God, the Spirit of the Lord, and the Promised One are but a few of His names. He has been called a "prophet" (Luke 4:24, Matt. 21:11) but this can be confusing, since ordinary people, inspired by the Holy Spirit, have also been called prophets, as in the Old Testament. He has also been called "the Spirit of God", the "Enlightened One", the "Friend of God", "He Who talked with God", and, in this age, "the Glory of God". Some of His titles refer especially to a particular appearance, while others refer to His eternal qualities.

Each time that Christ appears, God is showing, or manifesting, aspects of Himself to mankind through the perfect Mirror. For this reason, Baha'is often describe the appearance of the Christ as a "Manifestation" of God, that is, the showing of God, the Father, to mankind--to the maximum extent that we are able to understand.

Regardless of the Name that is used, it is important to remember that no term can ever adequately describe this Infinite Being. Although many Names are used, from many languages, describing one of His many aspects, in one of His many appearances to mankind, they all refer to the same One.

For further discussion of this, please visit the site The Glory of Christ-A Baha'i Testimony.


9. How is the Bahá'í Faith different from Christianity?

The Bahá'í teachings do not contradict the teachings of the Bible. However, this does not mean the Bahá'í teachings simply restate the Bible under a new name. The purpose of Bahá'u'lláh's mission was to fulfill, among other things, the prophecies laid down in the Bible by Jesus Christ. In addition, Bahá'u'lláh's teachings provide social guidelines and laws for today's world community. Baha'u'llah revealed social principles, like the equality of men and women, which were not fully developed in the Bible and changed laws that no longer fit the needs of our society. The spiritual principles of the Bible, beliefs about love, kindness and other virtues, have not been changed but are explored in much greater depth. Finally, due to the increased spiritual capacity of our society at this point in history, Bahá'u'lláh disclosed many additional spiritual teachings that help us to gain greater knowledge of God and a closer relationship with Him.

This is the Word, which the Son [Jesus Christ] concealed, when to those around Him He said: `Ye cannot bear it now.' And when the appointed time was fulfilled and the Hour had struck, the Word shone forth above the horizon of the Will of God.
(Bahá'u'lláh, Tablets of Bahá'u'lláh, 11)


10. Does the Baha'i Faith contradict the teachings of Christianity?

The Bahá'í Faith does not contradict Christianity. We believe Bahá'u'lláh is the return of Christ and accept the teachings of the Bible in the same way we accept the Bahá'í Writings. It is not possible to be a Bahá'í and not accept Christ.

As to the position of Christianity, let it be stated without any hesitation or equivocation that its divine origin is unconditionally acknowledged, that the Sonship and Divinity of Jesus Christ are fearlessly asserted, that the divine inspiration of the Gospel is fully recognized, that the reality of the mystery of the Immaculacy of the Virgin Mary is confessed, and the primacy of Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, is upheld and defended. The Founder of the Christian Faith is designated by Bahá'u'lláh as the "Spirit of God," is proclaimed as the One Who "appeared out of the breath of the Holy Ghost," and is even extolled as the "Essence of the Spirit." His mother is described as "that veiled and immortal, that most beauteous, countenance," and the station of her Son eulogized as a "station which hath been exalted above the imaginings of all that dwell on earth," whilst Peter is recognized as one whom God has caused "the mysteries of wisdom and of utterance to flow out of his mouth." "Know thou," Bahá'u'lláh has moreover testified, "that when the Son of Man yielded up His breath to God, the whole creation wept with a great weeping. By sacrificing Himself, however, a fresh capacity was infused into all created things. Its evidences, as witnessed in all the peoples of the earth, are now manifest before thee.
(Shoghi Effendi, The Promised Day is Come, 109-110)


11. Questions regarding the Book of Revelation and other references to "the close of the age".

A. If Baha'is believe that the prophecies of the Bible have been fulfilled with the coming of Baha'u'llah, what about the prophecies in the Book of Revelation (and similar prophecies of Jesus and of the Old Testament in Daniel)?

This is a topic large enough for several books. However, we will present here only a brief summary:

The son of Baha'u'llah ('Abdu'l-Baha), who was appointed as the authorized interpreter of His teachings, explained that, much of the Book of Revelation (generally from Chapter 9 onward) was fulfilled in the Islamic period of history, and that some of it was fulfilled in the events of the early 20th century (see the section on Armageddon, below).

From the beginning of the Islamic religion to the beginning of the Baha'i Faith was exactly 1260 years in the Islamic (lunar) calendar. (The year 1844 AD was 1260 AH on the Islamic calendar---a year in which many Muslims expected the fulfillment of the prophecies of their Faith, and the return of the Promised One.) The 1260 years is referred to as "1260 days" in the Book of Revelation, chapters 11 through 13. (It was common in prophecies to speak of years in terms of days-see Ezekiel 4:6.) In some cases, this 1260 days is referred to as 42 months or as 3-1/2 years or as "a time, times and the dividing of times" (a year plus 2 years and a half a year, i.e. 3-1/2 years). This period is also referred to in Daniel 12:6-7.

Although the revelation of Muhammad was a true revelation from God, the larger part of the followers of Muhammad were divided off from His pure teachings shortly after the end of His early life off and led away by self-appointed and power-hungry leaders, who strayed far from Muhammad's true teachings. Much of these chapters pertains to this corruption of the larger part of Islam, and the difficulties of the devout in finding the truth during this period of 1260 years.

B. Is there a "beast" as mentioned in the Book of Revelation, or an "anti-Christ"?

The term "anti-Christ" is clearly explained by John, in his first and second letters: "Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist he who denies the Father and the Son" (1 John 2:22). Clearly, there have been many people, both in the early age of Christianity and in later times, who have fit this description. John also noted that "now many antichrists have come" (1 John 2:18, see also 4:3). His writings were not intended to refer to a particular individual.

However, the "beast" does have specific references---not to individuals but to a series of rulers who comprised the Umayyad dynasty, which successfully subverted the larger part of Islam, and which came to power 666 years after the birth of Jesus. The Baha'i writing contain detailed explanations of the meaning of many of the verses in the Book of Revelation, for this is the age in which the meanings that were "sealed up" are unsealed.

C. What about the "Battle of Armageddon"?

'Abdu'l-Baha made it clear in 1912 that the prophecy referred to as the Battle of Armageddon in the Book of Revelation (16:16) would begin "within 2 years". As predicted, the worst war that the world had ever seen started in 1914. Although the references may pertain generally to World War I, they also have a specific significance to the Holy Land. Except for a relatively brief period during the Crusades, the Holy Land had been under the control of Islam since the Umayyids had taken it over in the 7th century AD. The end of Islamic control of the Holy Land paved the way for the creation of the modern state of Israel, which had been prophesied in the Old Testament, and has been associated with the coming of the Promised One in Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Armageddon is also a reference to a physical place - the hill (Har in Hebrew) of Megiddo. It is located southeast of Mt. Carmel overlooking the Jizreel Valley, opposite Nazareth. It lies at the junction of two ancient trade routes, where the flow of trade between Egypt and Mesopotamia crossed the route from Turkey to the Arabian Peninsula.

Naturally, it was the scene of many battles throughout history. British forces, moving northward into the Holy Land from Egypt, were forced to follow that ancient route in order to re-capture the Galilee.

World War I was different from all previous wars. It was a world war, involving the "kings of the whole world" (v. 14). With tremendous advances in the size and power of artillery, its launching was like lightning and thunder, while its impact was like an earthquake. With the advent of powerful warships, and airplanes with bombs from the sky, there was no island nor mountain to which one could flee for safety. Consider, then, the accuracy of John's vision in verses 18 to 21: "And there were flashes of lightning, voices, and peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as had never been seen since men were on the earth, so great was that earthquake ... And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found; and great hailstones, heavy as a hundredweight, dropped on men from heaven, till they cursed God for the plague of the hail, so fearful was that plague." A hundredweight (or a "talent" in the King James version) is estimated to be 113 lbs., by current measure. The weight of the bombs that the airplanes dropped during the battle for the Holy Land in World War I was 112 lbs.

D. Has the 1,000 years of peace begun?

Baha'is understand that, with the coming of the Promised One, the age of war is coming to a close, and an age of peace, referred to in Rev. 20:2-3, is starting. Since the kings of the earth did not heed the message that He delivered to them in the later part of the 19th century, mankind's path to peace has been a long and difficult one, suffering through two world wars and countless lesser wars around the globe. Baha'u'llah explained that we will first have a "Lesser Peace" in which warfare has ceased because it is no longer an effective way for a nation to get what it wants. But as greater numbers of people recognize that we are all children of the same God, and learn to respect each others differences and appreciate the diversity that God has created, we will reach the "Most Great Peace"--- the Kingdom of God on earth. This will continue until mankind is ready for the next appearance of God's Manifestation, after at least 1,000 years.

Although Jesus brought us wonderful teachings of how to live as individuals, He teachings included very little regarding how to organize a government. Baha'u'llah has, in this age, brought teachings of how His followers should govern themselves, in a manner that is based on group consultation, which excludes the power-hungry individual from being able to attain any position of significance.

Although in some regards, the following prophecy from Isaiah may pertain to Christ's appearance in the form of Jesus, it seems to pertain more directly to Christ's more recent appearance as Baha'u'llah:

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called "Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this."
---Isaiah 9: 6-7

There are some wonderful books that examine in great detail the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Bible, and particularly the prophecies of Jesus, with the coming of Baha'u'llah. Contact us if you are interested in obtaining a copy.