Author: Halyn
Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2012 6:25 pm GMT (GMT -5)
I am a Baha'i. I declared, which is what we do in our faith, on April 22nd, 2009.
Baha'i's believe that every prophet from the nine major worldly religions brought a message from the same God for a certain time and people. We recognize Baha'ullah as the latest messenger. This is something I already believed to be true, I always thought that all the religions were linked to the same God. We also believe that everybody should be peaceful, honest, and kind to each other. Baha'i's are extremely devoted to world peace and bringing people together.
I wasn't raised in any religion, but somehow I've always believed in God and prayer. There's a lot about my faith that I love- there's no churches, only gatherings in people's houses. There is no persecution of members of my faith by members of my faith (that I know of), should we go against any Baha'i laws. We also link art and sciences very closely with God, which to me is so obvious and makes total sense.
There are also laws that I completely disagree with, and so like many of you, I have trouble being extremely Baha'i and making it my life. For instance, as a Baha'i I am never supposed to drink, have pre-marital intercourse, live with a man I am not married to, and also gay marriage is not recognized as a true marriage in my faith. This one in particular has caused me great pain, and so most of the time I just pray to myself.
I don't really go to many gatherings, as I don't feel it is necessary in my faith. It's one of the main reasons I got a tattoo of our nine pointed star that I water colored- so that I could feel close to God and know that I don't have to be anywhere other than where I am to have a relationship with Him.
I should also note that I completely acknowledge that I could be totally wrong. I could get to the end of my life and not be this beam of light that has no gender or body and is with God in the afterlife. It's just what I believe. I really do love the Baha'i faith, but my relationship with it is extremely complicated.
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"There is no Them. There are only facets of Us."
— John Green