Mormonism and the Baha’i Faith

By: Dale Husband

Yikes! Reading this testimony, I wonder how many people lost their faith in Baha’u’llah, the founder of the Baha’i Faith, because another religion accepted as valid by it, such as Christianity or Islam, was also debunked in the eyes of the now ex-Baha’i.

“I became a Baha’i in 1994 mainly for the following reason: The 1890-91 prophecies of Joseph Smith.

I joined the Mormon Church in 1978 (Dec. 31st), because I had read “glowing” reports in Reader’s Digest articles on how moral and honest Mormons were. Decades later I discovered these articles were “advertisements” written by the LDS Church Public Affairs Dept., which is perhaps one of the most DISHONEST organizations ever devised by
man! Mormons are NOT more moral and honest than other folks. They are perhaps more DIShonest because they tend to hide their lies and sex-lives more than regular Americans, but they are certainly not more
moral!!!

In any case, I came accross anti-Mormon books, which shook me greatly. One major anti-Mormon claim was that Joseph Smith was a false prophet, due to the fact that he prophecies that Jesus would return in 1890-91,
wearing red garments, and the prophecy failed. Of course, Mormons COULD NOT CARE LESS about that. If JS gave 100,000 prophecies, and each one failed, they could not care less. They are so FOCUSED on become Gods and having sex for all eternity, they can’t think straight.

But I could. And I knew that if that prophecy failed, Joseph Smith was a false prophet. Well, then I discovered that Baha’u’llah, who calimed Jesus had returned “in” him, made his great announcement on Mount Carmel in 1890, and again in 1891. Not only that, but in Baghdad an anti-Babi mob had burned Baha’u’llah’s house, so the Babi women made
for him a new wardrobe out of red Persian drapes; which he wore when he declared in Baghdad in 1863.

Wow! I thought I had found the fulfillment of Joseph Smith’s 1890-91 Return of Christ in Red Garments prophecies! So, I had to become a Baha’i.

Well, since then, I’ve come to the unfortunate conclusion that Joseph Smith was NOT a prophet. Many reasons. The Book of Mormon simply cannot be historical. American Indians are Asians not Hebrews. They have no Semitic DNA in their ancestry. Not a drop. The animals mentioned in The Book of Mormon are all post-Columbian. Ancient American had no donkies, no chariots, no steel swords, etc. Joseph Smith’s “translations” of The Book of Abraham and the Kinderhook Plates are simply wrong, not even close. Anyway, I had to conclude HE WAS A FRAUD. Didn’t want to, but had to.

Joseph Smith’s personal behavior, such as publicly denouncing polygamy but privately practicing it, marrying his own foster daughters to himself, trying to seduce the wives and daughters of his own apostles, lying about many things, all bespeak he was not inspired of God in any way.

Just about all Baha’is accept Baha’u’llah as a Messenger of God basically NOT because of anything HE taught, but because of ‘Abdu’l-Baha’s teachings about racial and gender equality. They figure…..the Baha’i Faith teaches what I agree with…so it must be true! Wow! Well, all sorts of “Prophets” and “Gurus” and “Messiahs” teach racial and gender equality!!! Are ALL OF THEM true Messengers of God? Nay. Rather, their followers are simply SHOPPERS. They shop around for a religion that teaches things they agree with, and then join that religion.

I accepted Baha’u’llah because I HAD TO IN ORDER TO RETAIN MY BELIEF IN JOSEPH SMITH BEING A TRUE PROPHET. But, since I no longer believe in Joseph Smith, I no longer believe in Baha’u’llah.

Baha’u’llah was among a large number of “Messengers of God” that arose in the 19th and 20th century, all saying, “I am the Promised One…you have to follow me!” Baha’u’llah really did NOT teach gender equality. He wanted all Houses of Justice to be men only. So did Abdu’l-Baha, but Shoghi Effendi changed that when most of the early American and
British Baha’i women threatened to rebel!!! He needed their money. Baha’u’llah owned black slaves. He outlawed the slave TRADE (being in the slave selling business) for Baha’is, but not owning slaves. Baha’is continued to BUY and OWN black slaves until past the turn of the 20th century, when the British and French FORCED Egypt and the other Arab states, and Iran, to end black slavery.

Baha’u’llah did NOT preach Gender Equality!!! He granted more shares to male heirs than female. He called the Houses of Justice the RIJALOON (Distinguished Gentlemen) of Justice!! He wanted them all MALE. He did preach about female education, but, you must remember…..HE MEANT TO EDUCATE THEM TO BE MOTHERS, not to head corporations as Baha’is think today.

But, along comes Abdu’l-Baha. Didn’t take him long to figure out what the rich British and American Baha’is who visited him wanted to hear. And they wanted to hear RACE UNITY, and WORLD PEACE and EQUALITY OF THE SEXES. And, of course, he gave them what they wanted, and they gave him what he wanted….THEIR MONEY.

You think Abdu’l-Baha was inspired of God? Well, he said that “Universal Peace” would be established by 1957 (in all editions of _Baha’u’llah and the New Era_ before the 1950 edition, when it was changed). He also said that under the Law of Moses a thief’s hand can be cut off (NEVER a Jewish law!). He said many things that DO NOT SQUARE with history or science. Nevertheless, Baha’is accept his word as HIGHER than the Bible. Why? Because he taught…

*Race unity
*World peace
*Equality of the genders
*Esperanto-for-all

Wow!!

Like the other world-be Prophets and Gurus of his day, Baha’u’llah could perform NO MIRACLES, and even claimed Jesus couldn’t either. This is what they all do. They say, “Oh, I cannot perform miracles, but neither could Jesus, the Gospels are wrong, or mere parables!” That is the claim of Ghulam Ahmad, another “Promised Messiah” who arise in India in 1890 (coincidentally) telling all he was the “Promised One”. He has 20 million followers worldwide, more than Baha’u’llah, called the “Ahmadis”. He too said, “I cannot perform miracles, but neither could Jesus, the Gospels are wrong!”

What EVIDENCE that Baha’u’llah give that he was a Messenger of God? Words? Flowerly language? I can name you a dozen “Prophets” who did the same. Race unity? I can name you a dozen who did the same? Gender Equality? Esperanto? WHAT DID BAHA’U’LLAH ACTUALLY “DO” TO SHOW HE WAS A MESSENGER OF GOD?

Nothing! He lived in luxury (save the four months in Siyah Chal), and wrote letters. He performed NOT ONE miracle to show he was a true Messenger of God. Not ONE!!! He could not even save his own son, Mirza Mihdi, when he fell from his death through the sun-roof of his apartment in Akka. He could do NOTHING, but write another flowery poem.

Well…flowery poems are not miracles, and not “signs” that a man is a Messenger of God.

So, out with Joseph Smith, and out with Baha’u’llah. I grant you, Baha’u’llah was much more noble of a man than Joseph Smith, but, neither of them were Prophets of God.

And I have found a true Prophet, one that performed THOUSANDS OF SUPERNATURAL MIRACLES. Dr. Dahesh, the miracle-working Prophet of Lebanon”

OK, perhaps that last paragraph was a joke. In any case, when I was a Baha’i, I never considered Joseph Smith to be a true prophet and my faith in Baha’u’llah never depended on the credibility of Joseph Smith. But if I had lost my faith in Jesus, then I would also have lost my faith in Baha’u’llah, because I originally was raised a Christian and Baha’ullah affirmed that Christianity was a true religion. A Baha’i originally raised a Muslim would have lost his faith if Islam was debunked as a true religion, because Baha’u’llah also affirmed Islam as a true religion.

For the record, the Baha’i Faith claims about 5 or 6 million people worldwide and nowhere dominates any area. By contrast, the Mormon Church, which also started in the 19th Century, claims about 10 million members and dominates the state of Utah. Thus, the Mormons are far more successful than the Baha’i Faith and will probably continue long after the Baha’is fade away for good, even though in my opinion they are far more irrational than Baha’is.

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