Devout members of local Baha’i community share their beliefs and what led them to the faith
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IDAHO FALLS – As Catholics all over the world react to the election of the church’s first American pope, members of other religions are celebrating the right to practice their beliefs and worship as they see fit.
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Bobby and Nancy Picker have been devout members of the Baha’i faith for the last 51 years. The Idaho Falls couple are just two of the roughly 25 members in the area. They sit on the faith’s local spiritual assembly — a governing body consisting of nine people. Members of the council are elected annually and their job is to take care of the affairs of the Baha’i community.
The pair frequently host devotional services at their home on the first and third Sunday of every month. They enjoy discussing their beliefs with anyone who’s interested.
As the Pickers have been involved in teaching and serving others over the years, they say it’s a religion that has blessed their lives and given them purpose and meaning.
“It provides an outlook on the future of mankind that is generally beyond anything people have a conception of right now,” Bobby tells EastIdahoNews.com.
EastIdahoNews.com sat down with the couple to discuss their beliefs and what led them down this path of discipleship.
Baha’i beliefs and history
The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom reports the Baha’i faith is the second most widespread religion in the world and has communities in most territories and countries across the globe. Nancy estimates there are about 8 million Baha’i worldwide.
The faith’s official website explains their belief in “the crucial need facing humanity … to find a unifying vision of the future of society and of the nature and purpose of life.”
Baha’i members believe the religions of the world come from the same source and are “successive chapters of one religion from God.” God, according to Baha’i beliefs, has sent a series of divine educators throughout history to educate mankind and advance civilization. Among them are Abraham, Krishna, Moses, Buddha, Jesus and Muhammad. The latest of these messengers is Bahá’u’lláh.
“He (Bahá’u’lláh) is the founder of the Baha’i faith,” Nancy says. “His name means ‘Glory of God.'”
Bahá’u’lláh was born in Persia in 1817. She explains that he arose in 1844 to proclaim the coming of the one whom God would make manifest.
“It was the fulfillment of all the religions of the past,” says Nancy. “It would establish universal peace in God’s kingdom on earth.”
He reportedly faced opposition from the Islamic government at the time. He was imprisoned for 40 years and ultimately killed in 1892.
Throughout the 1840s and 1850s, Nancy says 20,000 Babis (followers of Bahá’u’lláh) gave their lives for the cause.
Bahá’u’lláh’s writings are published in many books, which believers study from daily.
‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Bahá’u’lláh’s oldest son, carried on his teachings. Today, believers regard him as “the authorized interpreter of the Bahá’í writings” and “the perfect exemplar of the faith’s spirit and teachings.”
During our conversation, the Pickers showed us a card highlighting 11 principles that are basic tenets of the faith. Among the Baha’i’s basic beliefs are the oneness of God, religion and humankind, as well as the equality of men and women, the unity of science and religion and the elimination of prejudice.
“The beauty of the faith is that everyone can express their beliefs. There’s no clergy, no one to tell you that you’re right or wrong. You draw from the unified knowledge of mankind and you’re continually learning throughout your life the nuances of the words of Bahá’u’lláh,” Bobby says.
One of Nancy’s favorite teachings of Bahá’u’lláh is a passage found in a book called “The Hidden Words.” It reads, “O son of Being, Love Me that I may love thee. If thou lovest Me not, My love can in nowise reach thee. Know this, o servant.”
“His love is available to everybody. That’s a message I understand very clearly,” Nancy explains. “To me, the spiritual principle is that you love him so that his love can reach you.”
Bobby didn’t cite a specific passage because he’s always reading new things that inspire him. “The Book of Certitude,” which he reads from often, played a key role in his conversion to the Baha’i faith.
‘It just made sense’
Bobby and his wife joined the Baha’i faith on the same day in 1973. They both grew up in a southern Baptist household in the St. Louis area.
Bobby was introduced to the faith through Jim Genus, a colleague in the Navy. During the 1970s, they were both stationed at a training facility on the Arco desert west of Idaho Falls. Bobby describes Genus as a “Bible thumper” who knew the Bible inside and out. He loved to talk about religion. Bobby and his friend had previously served on a submarine in the ocean and would pass the time talking about religion.
After coming to Idaho, Bobby noticed Genus reading a book about the Baha’i faith one day and was intrigued. It caused Bobby to look into it and he began reading books during his long bus commute. One of them was “The Book of Certitude.”
It was during this time that Bobby found “the golden thread that weaved between all the religions” and it made sense to him.
“I told Nancy a little about it here and there. One night, I was going to work on a midnight shift. I went to the closet and grabbed ‘The Book of Certitude’ and said (to Nancy), ‘I’ve been reading this book. It’s really powerful. I don’t know what it all means.’ Then I walked out the door,” Bobby recalls.
Nancy started to research it as well and couldn’t get enough of it.
She believes Jesus appeared to her in a vision one night and told her that Bahá’u’lláh was the latest messenger from God. She felt compelled to join the faith and follow his teachings.
Over the last 51 years, the couple says being part of the Baha’i faith has enriched their life together. They’re grateful to live in this community and to rub shoulders with people inside and outside the religion.
They invite interested parties to attend a service with them on May 18 at 900 South Emerson Drive. It will start at 11 a.m.
“We make ourselves available on Friday night at 7:30 for anybody who wants to come and talk about the faith,” says Nancy. “We’re eager to share with people who want to know but we don’t proselytize.”
