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
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... social construction of a global religious identity . I wanted to ex- plore how this religious movement makes the institutional and ideological connections between the local community and their vision of a global society . However , it ...
... social theorists , jour- nalists , and political analysts are taking stock of the condition of humanity . While some optimistically herald the fall of most communist regimes as the " end of history " ( Fukuyama 1992 ) and the triumph of ...
... social change . The Bahá'í worldview embraces some aspects of modernity , but rejects others ; it gives promise to humanity's future and explains its past ; and it provides a foundation for a Bahá'í's moral and personal conduct . Unlike ...
... social relationships of the future global community and world civilization envi- sioned in Bahá'í scripture . One - half of the congress participants would attend the morning session , the other half a duplicate afternoon session . On ...
... social life ( i.e. , the Bahá'í " Administrative Order ” -see chapter 3 ) . For one forty - three - year - old Bahá'í from Atlanta , the congress strengthened his Bahá'í identity as one who celebrates " unity in diversity " and 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 | |
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The Bahá'í: The Religious Construction of a Global Identity Michael McMullen No preview available - 2000 |