All papers by Momen


There are 48 papers by Momen

TitleTitle translationAuthor 1Author 2LanguageSessionPublishedAbstractonline
`Abdu'l-Bahá's Articulation of the Bahá'í Concept of Peace During His Western Travels   e Wendi Momen English 118 A primary teaching of the Baha'i Faith is that world peace is not only possible but inevitable. The Baha'i writings describe two stages in the achievement of world peace: the Lesser Peace, which is a political peace agreed by national governments, and the Most Great Peace, which is associated with the evolution of a world civilization that is imbue...  
'Abdu'l-Bahá's Commentary on the Qur'ánic Verses Concerning the Overthrow of the Byzantines: The Stages of the Soul   e Moojan Momen English 28 Lights2 This paper is a translation and commentary upon a work of' 'Abdu'l-Baha in which lie give a mystical commentary upon the first few words of the thirtieth Surah of the Qur'an, the Surah of' Rum. These words refer to the overthrow of the Byzantines. 'Abdu'l-Baha gives the standard Muslim commentary upon these verses. Despite the fact that these verse... read online  
Abdu'l-Bahá's Encounter with Modernity during His Western Travels   e Wendi Momen English 104 Lights13 Having spent almost His whole life as a prisoner and an exile in the Middle East, `Abdu'l-Baha, son of the founder of the Baha'i Faith, Baha'u'llah, was set free in 1908. He travelled from the Middle East to Europe in 1911 and to Europe and North America in 1912-13, taking His father's message of the renewal of religion and how to build a new civil... read online  
Abdu'l-Bahá's Tablet on the Functioning of the Universal House of Justice: A Provisional Translation and Commentary   e Moojan Momen English - Lights8 read online  
'Akká Traditions in the Epistle to the Son of the Wolf   e Moojan Momen English - Lights4 read online  
Apocalyptic Thinking and Process Thinking: A Baha'i Contribution to Religious Thought   e Moojan Momen English 104 Lights13 The key feature of classical religious apocalyptic thinking is that affairs are static until they are suddenly moved from one state to another by God. Thus the change in affairs is sudden and immediate and it is supernaturally directed and actioned. Human beings are passive participants in this in that although the change usually affects them they ... read online  
Báb's Commentary on the Hadith of Kumail, The: What is Reality?   e Moojan Momen English 89 According to this Tradition, Kumayl asked the Imam `Ali: "What is Reality?" `Ali at first demurred from answering and gave what appeared to be evasive responses. But after two or three such exchanges, he eventually gave a series of replies with a series of five replies to the question. These five replies have puzzled commentators down the ages alth...  
Bab's Commentary on the Verse of Light, The   e Moojan Momen English 42  
Bahá'i Approach to Other Religions, The: The Example of Buddhism   e Moojan Momen English 14 Religions In this paper, we examine the way that the Baha'i scriptures approach other religions. We look at the way that Baha'u'llah and `Abdu'l-Baha approach the Jewish, Christian and Islamic religions and extrapolate from that the general principles that could then be applied to other religions. We try to analyse and systematise this approach so that we...  
Bahá'u'lláh's Tablet of the Uncompounded Reality (Lawh Basít al-Haqíqa): A Provisional Translation   e Moojan Momen English - Lights11 read online  
Baha'is in Sari and the Constitutional Revolution in Iran, The   e Moojan Momen English 69  
Baha'u'llah, The Divine Physician   e Hooman Momen English 125  
Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit: Chapter 31 of Some Answered Questions   e Moojan Momen English 83 Lights10 In Chapter 31 of "Some Answered Questions", 'Abdu'l-Baha gives a commentary on a verse from the Gospel of St Mathew: "Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men, but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgive... read online  
Breaking Through Cultural Barriers: Migration and Change in the Baha'i Faith   e Moojan Momen English 125  
Chapter of the Slave, The: Some problems in the translation and analysis of the Surat al-Abd, Chapter 109 of the Qayyumu'l-Asma'   e Moojan Momen English 44  
Commentary on a Passage in the Epistle to the Son of the Wolf   e Moojan Momen English - Lights14 Short biography of the Son of the Wolf, Aqa Najafi; summary of persecutions from 1874-1903; and the Epistle's references to Qayyumu'l-Asma and the Muslim dawn prayer for Ramadan. read online  
Comparison between the commentary and interpretation of an Islamic Tradition by `Abdu'l-Bahá and Ayatu'llah Khomeini, A   e Moojan Momen English 138 Lights18 There is an Islamic Shi`i Tradition, attributed to the Eleventh Shi`i Imam, Hasan al-`Askari, in which he quotes the sixth Imam Ja`far as-Sadiq. It is very well-known among Shi`i Islamic scholars because it is the basis of their claim that anyone who is not a mujtahid (an expert in the application of Islamic Law) must follow a mujtahid in all relig... read online  
Concept of "Faithfulness"� in the Baha'i Texts in English Translation, The   e Wendi Momen English 132 Lights17 The Baha'i texts touch on many facets of faithfulness: being faithful as an individual; God being faithful to His people; believers being faithful to the Covenant established by Baha'u'llah; Baha'u'llah calling the believers of a former era to be faithful to the new Manifestation of God. For people, faithfulness is a state of being, an attitude of ... read online  
Consultation in the Bahá'í Faith: A Review of its Developmental Process   e Moojan Momen English 118 Lights15 This paper looks at consultation in the Baha'i Faith. It starts from the mention of this process in the Kitab-i-Aqdas and the manner in which this was initially put into practice in Iran in the late 1870s. It then looks at the ways in which each of the successive leaders of the Baha'i Faith — Baha'u'llah, `Abdu'l- Baha and Shoghi Effendi empha... read online  
Examination of the Baha'i teachings on shared prosperity and poverty eradication, An   e Wendi Momen English 125 Lights16     The goal of shared prosperity captures two key elements, economic growth and equity. Without sustained economic growth, poor people are unlikely to increase their living standards. Effective corrective action will require a number of approaches, including: every person having access to an income adequate to meet basic needs and favor... read online  
Fire Tablet (Lawh-i-Ihtiraq) and the Tablet of the Land of Ba (Lawh-i-Arz-i-Ba), The   e Moojan Momen English 22 These are two tablets of Baha'u'llah revealed in the early 'Akka period and relating to specific historical episodes. In this presentation, therefore, we will discuss both the content and the historical context of these tablets. The first tablet is generally called "The Fire Tablet" in the West while in the Middle East it is referred to by its o...  
God of Bahá'u'llah, The   e Moojan Momen English 12 Religions Baha'u'llah's concept of God and its ability to reconcile Christian, Muslim, Jewish, and some Buddhist notions of the Ultimate.  
History of Writing and Transmission of the Kitab-i-Aqdas, The   e Moojan Momen English 4 No Manifestation of God comes into a vacuum. Bahaiuillah came into the social setting of Iran. Most of his followers were Iranians who had entered the new religion from a background of Shi'i Islam. Inevitably, Shi'i Islam colored the views of his disciples and influenced the sort of questions that were asked of him. Baha'u'llahis claim to be an ...  
Insider and Outsider Scholarship in Bahá'í Studies   e Moojan Momen English - Lights9 This paper was not presented at the Irfan Colloquia, but at a 2001 conference in Copenhagen on "Globalisation and the Baha'i Faith." See Baha'i and Globalisation on Amazon, a book of the proceedings of this conference (which, according to the table of contents at biggerbooks.com, does not appear to contain this particular article).... read online  
Introduction   e Moojan Momen English - Scripture read online  
Legal Basis of Islamic Opposition to the Baha'i Faith, The   e Moojan Momen English 8 From its inception as the Babi movement in 1844, the Baha'i Faith has been the subject of attacks from Muslim religious leaders in different parts of the Islamic world. This paper is an attempt to look at the basis for these attacks in Islamic law. In Islamic jurisprudence, people are divided into those who believe (mu'minun, and who are therefor...  
Legal terms in the translations of Shoghi Effendi and in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas   e Moojan Momen English 48 Lights16 This presentation is in two halves. In the first half, the words which Shoghi Effendi renders as "law" or "laws" in his translations of the Baha'i scriptures are examined. The following terms are found: Shari'ah or Shari'at (plural shara'i') or Shar'; Hukm (plural ahkam); Namús (plural nawamis); Qanún (plural qawanin); Asl (plural us&... read online  
Memorials of the Faithful: The Democratization of Sainthood   e Moojan Momen English 132 This paper considers the literary genre and literary history behind Memorials of the Faithful (Tadhkiratu'l-Vafa) as well as examining what is new about the book. The paper will first consider the genre of hagiography in Christianity and Judaism. It will then look at the specific literary precedent set by Faridu'd-Din's Tadhkiratu'l-Awliya (Memoria...  
Memorials of the Faithful: The Democratization of Sainthood   e Moojan Momen English - Lights17 This paper considers the literary genre and literary history behind Memorials of the Faithful (Tadhkiratu'l-Vafa) as well as examining what is new about the book. The paper will first consider the genre of hagiography in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It will then look at the specific literary precedent set by Faridu'd-Din's Tadhkiratu'l-Awliya (... read online  
Mysticism and the Bahá'i Community   e Moojan Momen English 36 Lights3 In this paper, we will examine five characteristic features that are common to mystical orders whether these be in Buddhism, Christianity or Islam: 1. A hierarchical structure with a leader who is regarded as being farthest along the spiritual path and who is thought capable of guiding others along that path, together with the attendant practic... read online  
Panel Discussion: Kitab-i-Aqdas: Current Research and Future Directions   e Jena Khadem Khodadad Moojan Momen, and Mr. Charles Nolley English 5 The Saturday evening session was devoted to a panel discussion on "The Kitab-i-Aqdas: Current Research and Future Directions." The session began with introductory remarks by the three panelists: Dr. Jena Khadem, Dr. Moojan Momen, and Mr. Charles Nolley. A diversity of perspectives was expressed by the panelists as well as the participants, showing ...  
Perfection and Refinement: Toward an Aesthetic of the Báb   e Moojan Momen English 97 Lights12 In this paper, I divide the arts into three major divisions: the plastic arts, those arts produced by using materials that can be molded or changed in some way, such as painting, sculpture, architecture, wood-and metal- working, pottery, etc.; and the performing arts, those arts where artists use their own body to express themselves, such as dance,... read online  
Power and the Bahá'í Community   e Moojan Momen English 54 Lights19 More than fifty years ago, Shoghi Effendi was writing that the thinking world has already caught up with the "great and universal principles enunciated by Baha'u'llah". He suggested that Baha'is needed to find ways of presenting to the world "the capacity of His projected World Order to re create society". This paper explores what exactly is meant ... read online  
Relativism, A Theological and Cognitive Basis for Bahá'í Ideas about God and the Spiritual World   e Moojan Momen English - Lights12 read online  
Religion and the Arts: The Cyclical Theory in the Bahá'í Faith   e Moojan Momen English 18 Art is a sensitive indicator of the spiritual state of a society. It can, because of its sensitivity, pick up changes before they are evident in other areas. In the Christian world, the art of the Renaissance had picked up the change to a more naturalistic more materialistically-oriented world at the beginning of the fifteenth century, long before ...  
Súrat Adh-Dhir, Surah 108 of Qayyumu'l-Asma   e Moojan Momen English 44  
Service of Women on the Universal House of Justice   e Wendi Momen English 4 Baha'u'llah often stated that men and women are equal; it is not easy to understand, therefore, why women cannot serve on the Universal House of Justice. 'Abdu'l-Baha has said that the exclusion "is for a wisdom of the Lord God's which will erelong be made manifest as the sun at high noon" (Selections from the Writings of 'Abdul-Baha, 79-80). There...  
Shoghi Effendi and Globalization   e Moojan Momen English 76  
Study of the Meaning of the Word "Al-Amr" in the Qur'án and in the Writings of Bahá'u'lláh, A   e Moojan Momen English 22 Lights1 The word "amr" in Persian or "al-amr" in Arabic has a range of meaning that covers several words in English. In two instances the precise meaning has become a source of controversy and it is therefore necessary to examine this matter more carefully. In this paper, I will look in detail at the use of the word in the Qur'an in order to delineate the ... read online  
Surat al-Dhikr of the Qayyúm al-Asmá' (chapter 108): A provisional translation and commentary   e Moojan Momen English 62 In this paper a preliminary and highly provisional attempt is made to understand and translate a Surah of the Qayyum al-Asma, the first book that the Bab revealed after His declaration in 1844. The 108th Surah, which is called the Surah of Mulk (Sovereignty), is typical of the rest of the Qayyum al-Asma in its structure; it uses the same rhymes and...  
Tablet of Unity (Lawh-i Ittihád), The: A Provisional Translation   e Moojan Momen English - Lights2 read online  
Tafsir-i-Súri-yi Núr (Commentary on Qur'an's Chapter of Light)   e Moojan Momen English 44  
Tracing Themes found in the Tablets of the Divine Plan   e Wendi Momen English 138 This paper examines the main themes in the Tablets of the Divine Plan and traces them through the successive teaching Plans of the Universal House of Justice, particularly in the period 1996 through 2016.  
Two Episodes from the Life of Bahá'u'lláh in Iran   e Moojan Momen English 153 Lights20 This paper looks at the events that occurred to Baha'u'llah during the time that he lived in Iran. Particular attention is given to two historical episodes where close attention to the text of two Tablets of Baha'u'llah leads to some conclusions that are different to those that are currently in the Baha'i history books. read online  
Two Wings of Humanity, The: `Abdu'l-Bahá's Articulation of the Equality of Women and Men During His Western Travels   e Wendi Momen English 97 Having spent almost His whole life as a prisoner and an exile in the Middle East, `Abdu'l-Baha, son of the founder of the Baha'i Faith, Baha'u'llah, was set free in 1908. He travelled from the Middle East to Europe in 1911 and to Europe and North America in 1912-13, taking His father's message of the renewal of religion and how to build a new civil...  
Uniting Space and Time: Ritual and the Bahá'í Faith   e Moojan Momen English 111 The Baha'i Faith has very few communal rituals. There is almost no structure or set form to the regular meetings of the community or to such ceremonial occasions as weddings and funerals. Furthermore, there are textual instructions in the authoritative texts of the Baha'i Faith that prohibit the creation of a clerical class and the development of r...  
Women Advance: The Relationship between the Bahá'í Teachings and the Women's Movement   e Wendi Momen English 146 This is a preliminary exploration of the relationship between the advancement of women and the Baha'i teachings on the equality of women and men. It traces the emergence and development of the women's movement from its roots in the 18th century through the 19th and 20th centuries and into the 21st. It sets this phenomenon against the Baha'i teach...  
`Abdu'l-Bahá's Elucidation of the Concept of the Oneness of Humanity During His Western Travels   e Wendi Momen English 111 Lights14 The central teaching of the Baha'i Faith is the oneness of humankind. Although wholly associated with the Baha'i Faith today, it was a very difficult concept for Baha'is in earlier times to put into practice in their personal lives. As `Abdu'l-Baha travelled in the West in 1911 and again in 1912-13, He not only spoke extensively about this principl... read online