Re: Peter Khan

Dear Suzanne,

Somehow you attributed Brendan thoughts to me. Let me assure you that so
far David Bowie has written nothing about Peter Khan's talks.

Take care,

David

"Suzanne Gerstner" <sb.gerstner@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:003001c58209$14762210$0302a8c0@xxxxxxxxxxxx
> David Bowie wrote:
>
>> The first sort of fear which Peter Khan inspires in his speech is a
>> fear of people, a sense of danger posed by flesh and blood human
>> beings. In his address, Peter Khan warns the believers in North
>> America that we are threatened by men and women within our own
>> communities. He says that "dangerous forces" and "insidious
>> influences" are at work within society at large. But the greatest
>> danger comes not from outside the faith, he explains, but from
>> Baha'is themselves. He tells us that "nefarious elements" menace
>> the faith and "seek to undermine it from within." He quotes Shoghi
>> Effendi warning of "the far more dangerous attacks, the insidious
>> attacks of... people inside the Faith who have no real attachment to
>> the Cause."
>
> Dear David,
>
> Someone could write a paper on the idea that the religion of God's main
> purpose being to create fear in people, and cite quotes about the fear of
> God, the fear of hell, the fear of damnation, judgment, etc, This says
> more about the person responding, imv, than it does about the intent of
> the religion of God
>
> The fact that the religion of God warns us -- and sometimes in strong
> language -- about certain things doesn't mean that the main purpose is to
> create fear. The warning's purpose is to help us. It's a loving warning
> about what things would be injurious to our spiritual well-being. Of
> course we have feedom to choose what we do, but it's best to know there
> are things that should be avoided. The strong warnings are God looking
> out for our spiritual well-being. Our part is to believe Him and pay
> attention to His warnings, so that our souls can grow and progress and we
> can learn all the spiritual lessons in this life.
>
> I have seen Peter Khan giving this talk. As in the above analogy, all
> Peter Khan was doing was warning us about these tests. He didn't make
> this up. He was quoting from the Guardian about the mental tests that we
> would surely have to face, and the Guardian was giving 'Abdu'l-Baha as the
> source of these warning:
>
> "...how often we seem to forget the clear and repeated warnings of our
> beloved Master, who, in particular during the concluding years of His
> mission on earth, laid stress on the "severe mental tests" that would
> inevitably sweep over His loved ones of the West - tests that would purge,
> purify and prepare them for their noble mission in life. "
> (Shoghi Effendi: Baha'i Administration, Page: 50)
>
> Tests are a normal part of life, and when we pass them, we grow stronger
> spiritually. Our response should not be fear of the world, or fear of the
> Baha'i community, etc, but an awareness that, while we can be free to
> partake of the good things of life, we shouldn't fall into the traps of
> materialism, peer pressure, seeing the Baha'i community in an overly
> critical way, etc. And when we do get caught in one of these tests and
> feel ourselves feeling bad and losing our happiness, faith, etc., we
> should remember what he said and think, "Oh, yes, that's that test..."
> That helps us to gain right perspective and know what steps need to be
> taken to pass the test. Then we can feel happy and free again. That's
> all.
>
> Peter Khan's words surely didn't create any fear in me or in anyone else I
> knew.
>
> Kind regards,
>
> Suzanne
>
>
>


.

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