thought for the day

As we come towards Inter Faith Week in the UK, I thought I would share this with you -

Religion is like pieces of coloured glass that people are holding. Some picked up their piece of glass, others were given theirs by their parents, whilst others had a piece of one colour but exchanged it for a piece of a different colour. Some become very attached to the colour of their glass and feel it is the only colour worth having, even arguing with others about what is the 'right' colour, but others feel there is no point in having any piece as they can see nothing through it.
But there are those who accept all colours as equally nice to have. And a few who realise that if everyone put their pieces together it would make a beautiful picture.

"Consort with the followers of all religions in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship" Baha'i Writings

LHC and the Big Bang

I am not worried about anything that might happen at CERN. I believe the Baha'i teachings that all humanity are moving towards a world civilization based on peace and justice that will last for thousands of years into the future.

We can help it come faster - by being kind to all - or we can be the source of pain and suffering by espousing violence and hatred. We can confinue the myth that science and religion are opposites and never the twain shall meet, or we can recognise that each in its own way is attempting to explain the mysteries of Creation.

No, it is impossible for science to prove that God does not exist. After all, Who created science in the first place!!

"All praise to the unity of God, Who out of utter nothingness, hath created the reality of all things." Baha'i Writings

No Religion ?!

One comment added to a previous blog item of mine referred to the line "and no religion too" from the song "Imagine".

I realise where people are coming from when they say that - all the animosity expressed by one group towards anyone who does not share their own particular views as shown by hundreds of years of history.

Abdu'l-Baha, the son of the Founder of the Baha'i Faith said that if two people argued over religion then both were wrong. He also said that if religion caused hatred and enmity then we would be better off without it.

However, I firmly believe that we all have a spiritual existence and cannot be described purely by reference to our physical selves. I cannot explain to anyone, and have often been laughed at when I relate, my own personal experiences that convince me that there is so much more to our existence than this material world.

X marks the spot ...

... where Christ has been taken out of Christmas. It is common to hear people refer to Xmas and even 'Chrimbo'.
Why am I, you might ask, talking about Christmas, as it is not one of the Holy Days in the Baha'i calendar? Well, many of my family are Christian, and they come to visit us at Christmas time. The last of our relatives has now gone home and the house is returning to a more 'normal' appearance. Respect for all faiths is important in the Baha'i teachings, and the harmony and unity of the family is also important. Members of our family will be joining us when we celebrate our Baha'i Holy Days.

"Consort with the followers of all religions in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship"

Science and Religion

I am often asked, as a person who is trained in the ways of, and who follows science, how can I also be a believer in religion. To me the answer is clear and straightforward. I believe in gravity and the electromagnetic force, I can measure and observe their effects even though they are invisible. In the same way I believe in love, kindness and sacrifice and I can observe their effects on people. To me, those 'spiritual' qualities are just as real as the physical qualities of matter.
Science deals with the physical world and and religion deals with the spiritual world. They are not and never have been in conflict with each other. It is only people who do not fully understand either science or religion that have supposed a conflict.


"Weigh not the Book of God with such standards and sciences as are current amongst you, for the Book itself is the unerring balance established amongst men." (From the Baha'i Sacred Writings)

Begin Annotating

Annotations - comments in the margins; additional, amplifying explanations; added as and when needed.

This is just a series of comments on life in general, from the viewpoint of my being both a member of the Baha'i Faith, and a computer programmer/analyst/database designer. (For equal lengths of time - 37 years to date).
I have been involved with the internet from way back in the mid 80's, devising a simple set of markings to use between my employer and translators across Europe, and using email to send out the press releases to journalists.
Recently I have been asked to write reviews of some computer books, and just last weekend to 'appear' on local radio to review the Sunday papers (as a 'representative' of the Baha'i Faith).
Today I was asked to help out explaining some computer programing for one of my colleagues. Wonder what tomorrow will bring?