Baha’i government would be totally tyrannical

By: Dale Husband

The Baha’i Administrative Order, developed by Shoghi Effendi, and derived from the writings of Baha’u’llah and Abdu’l-Baha, is a badly flawed and ineffective mode of government, which would naturally take over an area if the Baha’is ever became the majority of any place on Earth. Here’s why that must NEVER happen:

First, Baha’i elections are run in such a way that there are no nominations, campaigning is forbidden, and the top nine members that get the most votes are elected. As a result, incumbents are virtually guaranteed to win, turnover is extremely low, and the policies of adminstrative bodies cannot be challenged by outsiders at elections. There is no freedom in such elections.

Second, consider this quote from Baha’u’llah himself:
Consider the pettiness of men’s minds. They ask for that which injureth them, and cast away the thing that profiteth them. They are, indeed, of those that are far astray. We find some men desiring liberty, and priding themselves therein. Such men are in the depths of ignorance.

Liberty must, in the end, lead to sedition, whose flames none can quench. Thus warneth you He Who is the Reckoner, the All-Knowing. Know ye that the embodiment of liberty and its symbol is the animal. That which beseemeth man is submission unto such restraints as will protect him from his own ignorance, and guard him against the harm of the mischief-maker. Liberty causeth man to overstep the bounds of propriety, and to infringe on the dignity of his station. It debaseth him to the level of extreme depravity and wickedness.

Regard men as a flock of sheep that need a shepherd for their protection. This, verily, is the truth, the certain truth. We approve of liberty in certain circumstances, and refuse to sanction it in others. We, verily, are the All-Knowing.

Say: True liberty consisteth in man’s submission unto My commandments, little as ye know it. Were men to observe that which We have sent down unto them from the Heaven of Revelation, they would, of a certainty, attain unto perfect liberty. Happy is the man that hath apprehended the Purpose of God in whatever He hath revealed from the Heaven of His Will, that pervadeth all created things. Say: The liberty that profiteth you is to be found nowhere except in complete servitude unto God, the Eternal Truth. Whoso hath tasted of its sweetness will refuse to barter it for all the dominion of earth and heaven.

I think George Orwell would call this sort of thing “doublespeak”. Of course, if you are a Libertarian, this is total nonsense to you. War is peace, freedom is slavery, ignorance is strength. NOT!

Third, Baha’ullah himself made many laws in his writings that for Baha’is can never be challenged or overturned, not even by Baha’i administration bodies. Even worse, the interpretation of those laws by Abdu’l-Baha and Shoghi Effendi also cannot be challenged or overturned. The legislative functions of those bodies, including the Universal House of Justice, are thus extremely limited. Baha’is have NO real freedom!

Consider this testimony from another ex-Baha’i:

I used to be a member of the Baha’i Faith, and though it has some very good points, it ultimately fails to pass the test of independent investigation. Baha’is usually seek an image as being very liberal and open-minded, to attract seekers no doubt. Once within the community however, you are very limited in terms of how you should feel about any aspect of life… it has to be the “Baha’i Way” or no way. In fact, you may find yourself in a ridiculous situation if you have unique family situations…

Are you adopted? Oh, too bad if you were wanting to get married…. Better hope you can track down your biological parents, or you will face a real nightmare, because you need their permission before you can marry if they are still living. If they, let’s say, don’t like “negroes” and you want to marry interracially, then despite the fact that they have never seen you before in their lives (because they dumped you at an orphanage) you are forbidden to marry, and face severe penalities if you do so anyways. Have you, or anyone you know, had an experience where you faced a four fold conflict with: the love of your life, a biological parent you’ve never met (or a hard-headed parent with predjuices against your love’s race), the Baha’i religious administration, and your own conscience.

Nowhere does the injustice and absurdity of Baha’i law become more obvious than on the issue of homosexuality. This statement from Shoghi Effendi about homosexuality is truly moronic:

No matter how devoted and fine the love may be between people of the same sex, to let it find expression in sexual acts is wrong. To say that it is ideal is no excuse. Immorality of every sort is really forbidden by Baha’u’llah, and homosexual relationships he looks upon as such, besides being against nature…To be afflicted this way is a great burden to a conscientious soul. But through the advice and help doctors, through a strong and determined effort, and through prayer, a soul can overcome this handicap.

There is not a shred of evidence for the assertion in the last sentence. Yet, as a Baha’i, one must accept that claim as absolute truth and ignore the evidence that suggests otherwise. Why? Simply because Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Baha’i Faith, was said to be infallible!

The Universal House of Justice (UHJ) says about the same issue:

The Universal House of Justice is authorized to change or repeal its own legislation as conditions change, thus providing Baha’i law with an essential element of flexibility, but it cannot abrogate or change any of the laws which are explicitly laid down in the sacred Texts. It follows, then that the House of Justice has no authority to change this clear teaching on homosexual practice.

Then why bother to have a UHJ at all? It is toothless!

The view that homosexuality is a condition that is not amenable to change is to be questioned by Baha’is. There are, of course, many kinds and degrees of homosexuality, and overcoming extreme conditions is sure to be more difficult than overcoming others. Nevertheless, as noted earlier, the Guardian has stated that “through the advice and help of doctors, through a strong and determined effort, and through prayer, a soul can overcome this handicap.”

The statistics which indicate that homosexuality is incurable are undoubtedly distorted by the fact that many of those who overcome the problem never speak about it in public, and others solve their problems without even consulting professional counselors.

Again, no evidence,  just assertions. The fact that there is a homosexual community even in the face of overwhelming opposition from conservative religious and political forces means that we must reject the Baha’i assumptions in the name of true justice.

From the same letter by the UHJ:

To regard homosexuals with prejudice and disdain would be entirely against the spirit of Baha’i Teachings. The doors are open for all of humanity to enter the Cause of God, irrespective of their present circumstances; this invitation applies to homosexuals as well as to any others who are engaged in practices contrary to the Baha’i Teachings.

More doublespeak. No thanks, we need better honesty than that.

We need to free ourselves from this sort of dogmatic extremism, not allow ourselves to be led into it once more by idealistic seduction. Do Baha’i teachers tell seekers about their teachings of homosexuality? If I were gay, I would never join any religion that didn’t respect a basic part of my character!

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