The Bahá'í: The Religious Construction of a Global IdentityRutgers University Press, 2000 - 246 pages The Bahá'í Faith is one of the fastest growing, but least studied, of the world's religions. Adherents view themselves as united by a universal belief that transcends national boundaries. Michael McMullen examines how the Bahá'í develop and maintain this global identity. Taking the Bahá'í community in Atlanta, Georgia, as a case in point, his book is the first to comprehensively examine the tenets of this little-understood faith. McMullen notes that, to the Bahá'í, Buddha, Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed are all divinely sent teachers of 'the Truth', whose messages conform to the needs of their individual cultures and historical periods. But religion--which draws from the teaching of Bahá'u'lláh, a nineteenth-century Persian--encourages its members to think of themselves as global citizens. It also seeks to establish unity among its members through adherence to a Bahá'í worldview. By examining the Atlanta Bahá'í community, McMullen shows how this global identity is interpreted locally. He discusses such topics as: the organizational structure and authority relations in the Bahá'í "Administrative Order"; Bahá'í evangelicalism; and the social boundaries between Bahá'ís and the wider culture. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 29
... Organizational Participation 76 Chapter 6 Boundaries and Identity 109 Chapter 7 Teaching the Bahá'í Faith 126 Chapter 8 " Thinking Globally , Acting Locally " 152 Chapter 9 Conclusion 175 Appendix A : Atlanta Bahá'í Questionnaire 185 ...
... participation in governance and the Administrative Order . 43 Table 4.1 . Agreement with survey questions on ... participation in organizational activities . 88 Table 6.1 . Personal characteristics of Atlanta Bahá'ís . Table 7.1 ...
... organizational participation or devotion ) , but found no significant differences . Thus , I am confident that the degree of nonresponse bias is minimal . Acknowledgments MY THANKS go out to the many people who xiv Preface.
... participation in a global ritual reinforces their universal religious ... participation in local com- munity life shapes Bahá'ís ' identity as " world ... organization . The speaker's talk was entitled " The Divine Plan Behind the ...
... organizational structure and authority relations in the Bahá'í " Administrative Order " ( chapter 3 and 4 ) ; the socialization of a " Bahá'í perspective " among members through participation in Bahá'í rituals ( chapter 5 ) ; the ...
Contents
Carriers and Converts | 15 |
The Bahaf Administrative Order | 34 |
Authority in the Administrative Order | 56 |
Personal Devotion and Organizational Participation | 76 |
Boundaries and Identity | 109 |
Teaching the Bahaf Faith | 126 |
Thinking Globally Acting Locally | 152 |
Conclusion | 175 |
Atlanta Bahaf Questionnaire | 185 |
Historical Overview | 193 |
The Bahai Calendar | 197 |
Notes | 199 |
229 | |
243 | |
Other editions - View all
The Bahá'í: The Religious Construction of a Global Identity Michael McMullen No preview available - 2000 |