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From: jrcole@umich.edu <jrcole@umich.edu> Subject: Re: What is a Cult? Date: Friday, February 12, 1999 8:40 PM Dear Danny: Thanks so much for your observations. I agree that within the Baha'i faith no individual can claim to speak with authority. Before I was forced out of the Baha'i faith I was *very* careful constantly to underline that my comments were only those of one individual and wholly without any authority. The problem is that if you speak publicly in a Baha'i context, and even if you disclaim authority, you can still be charged with 'gaining a following.' I'm not sure exactly what that means, but apparently it implies that lots of people agree on their own account with your non-authoritative individual views. This is such a vague charge and so self-contradictory that it is very destructive. Why should it be a bad thing that lots of people agree with what Danny posts? The other problem is that there are powerful individuals in the community who do think they have the authority to tell you what you can and cannot say, and to forbid you from expressing views, even as a non-authoritative individual, with which they disagree. But I don't see how the counselor or NSA member who does this is avoiding a claim to authoritative interpretation. If you can't publicly disagree with them, aren't they saying that their interpretation is authoritative and silences you? So, I have to confess that I (obviously) completely failed to understand the rules of discourse that appear to prevail in the Baha'i community. What is really funny is that I was in fact forced out, am not an enrolled member, can't be elected to anything, and presumably am as good as a non-person for most Baha'is, and yet I *still* get accused of trying to speak authoritatively. This sort of charge against an unenrolled individual just seems to me silly. How could I have authority in a religion to which I don't even belong? It is downright weird. And if the Baha'i authorities are *that* insecure, then their hold on authority is really, really tenuous. Juan Cole History, U of Michigan https://www-personal.umich.edu/~jrcole/bahai.htm -----------== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==---------- https://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Discuss, or Start Your Own Homepage |