COMMENT ON BAHAI FAITH

This excerpt contains the main points of the dialogue between Sheikh Muhammad Abduh(1849-1905) Head of Islamic verdict in Egypt & most Islamic countries & between one of his students Sheikh Rashid Reda on Bahaii faith

Sheikh Reda: What is your opinion on Bahaii

Sheikh Abduh : I really do not know what their creed is really about , but as far as I know , they are currently the only muslim caste really earnest in learning arts & science

Sheikh Reda; What do you know about the Iranian Mirza Fadl Allah

Sheikh Abduh; I heard about him since not long & I was told he is a historian & good man , but I did not see him

Sheikh Reda ; What about Abbas Effendi, I heard he is an man inept in science & politics

Sheikh Abduh ; Yes , he has a grand mind

Sheikh Reda ; What I understood from them that either “Bahaa Allah “ is a modernizer to the Islamic sharia or he has brought a new sharia completely & they are using Quran & hadith to back up what they say &they say that their aim is to unite all religions . Actually ‘MIrza fadl Allah “ spoke about the need of having a new sharia , where he said that understanding it depends on understanding the concept of the doomsday & the seven skies . He says the skies are the religions & the seven religions are the ‘Barhama & Buddhism & Kinfoshosia& Zerdeshtia & Judaism & christanity & Islam “

Sheikh Abduh ; This is a thinking very remote from the right & logic & this is not at all any logical or mindful thinking . I did not understand this from Abbas Effendi , actually what he told me that their aim is to bridge the gap between Sunni & Shia creeds by reforming the shia creed & eliminating extremism from it so as to get closer to Sunni creed , but unfortunately in many cases when reformers appear, they start moderate & then tend to exaggerate & become extremists . The Wahhabi creed was first aimed to reform then it went too far & extreme by saying that all muslims who do not follow them are “kafir”(disbelievers) & that all muslims should be subjected to their creed by force & the sword , they even called for demolishing the Prophet (saws) mosque dome . Extremism or enforcing others to your belief should not at all take place

Tell me also , what you remember of ‘Mirza” telling

Sheikh Reda: the polygamy issue & concubine “milk al yameen” _’right of possession”. The bahaii faith limits polygamy to two women only

Sheikh Abduh: Actually the polygamy & possessing concubine has a lot of harms & corruption & this is not what Islam aims to , actually Islam encourages monogamy (one man woman marriage) & only allows conditional polygamy , but unfortunately the muslims in Abbasi & later ages have extremely abused this window

Sheikh Reda : The bahaii acknowledge that all religions & books are right & call for all people of different religions to follow their faith s as to unite the mankind word

Sheikh Abduh : Bridging the gap between religions is what Islam has called for Q3;64

قُلْ يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ تَعَالَوْا إِلَىٰ كَلِمَةٍ سَوَاءٍ بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَكُمْ

translation “Say, “O People of the Scripture, come to a word that is equitable between us and you”