John the Baptist
Editorial introduction
John fasted in the wilderness and was said to have a devil; Jesus ate and drank with His companions and was called a glutton. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá points to that pair of objections because it shows how refusal can outlive its own reasons. John’s vocation was entirely directed toward another’s coming: he called a wounded people to repentance, washed them as a sign of hearts made ready, felt the Holy Spirit in Christ when the dove descended as a metaphor, and lost his head for it. His own Gospel account of denying that he was Elijah while bearing witness to the One who came after him is worth reading alongside [1], for the Bahá’í writings resolve the apparent contradiction by distinguishing the lamp from the light: John was not the man Elijah, but the same light shone through him. Bahá’u’lláh then draws the parallel closer to home, likening John’s relation to Christ to that of the Báb, the Primal Point, to His own Revelation. From here the way leads toward Christ and the beginnings of Christianity, and toward the station and claims of the Báb.
They said to the Son of Mary that John the Baptist fasted and clung to asceticism and piety, while He and His companions ate and drank. The Spirit said: "John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say he hath a devil. The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, behold a gluttonous man." To those of insight it is clear that by John is meant John the Baptist, and by Son of Man the Son of Mary.
O physician of souls! John the Baptist was a dignified and sedate physician. When he observed that the Israelites were overthrown, conquered, and detested, and afflicted with every ailment and disease in this abode of deception, he therefore saw the healing of those maladies in the Great Glad-Tidings and gave the good news of the appearance of the Kingdom.
Now you too, if you wish to heal the ailments of souls and seek a remedy for hearts' afflictions, give the glad-tidings of the appearance of the Most Exalted Kingdom and be the cause of bringing souls to life.
Therefore, raise the call to the divine Kingdom; like John the Baptist cry out "Make smooth the path, for the Kingdom of God is near!"
We gave glad tidings to the Prophet Zacharias of Our name Yahya (John), who would confirm the Word of God, the Most Great.
When the time drew near for the Manifestation of Christ, John the Baptist appeared and called the people to repentance, and when they repented they were baptized as a symbol that their hearts were purified and ready to accept the truth and teachings which would soon appear, for John was declaring the coming of Jesus. But these people were not children; they were men and women. And Jesus himself was baptized by John, but he was thirty years old when he was baptized.
Baptism by John the Baptist was only a symbol used to signify that the hearts had been purified by repentance (they were grown people, not children).
The story about the dove is simply a metaphor. No dove came down. Amongst the people, John the Baptist felt that the Holy Spirit was in Christ. The Holy Spirit was always with Christ.
In the Gospel it is written that they asked John the Baptist if he was Elijah and that he answered plainly, 'I am not.
For example His Holiness, the Christ, said that John the Baptist is Elias and when they asked of John he said "No, I am not Elias". Though, outwardly these two contradicted each other, however in reality they did not, because that effulgent reality which is absolute and which appeared in all the prophets of God appeared likewise in John the Baptist.
The Master continued, saying, it was so in the times of John the Baptist when he was asked if he was Elijah, he said "No." But Christ said "yes". One answered from a physical standpoint, which the Jews understood as a physical resurrection from the grave, while Jesus answered from the return of the spirit and that standpoint.
Then, again, He says that John the Baptist was the Elijah foretold, who would come before Christ. This is also an explicit text of the Gospel, whereas when they asked of John the Baptist, 'Art thou Elias?' he said, 'I am not.' Christ said he was Elijah. The disciples declared that this John the Baptist was the prophet prophesied, whereas when they asked of him he said he was not. Now, he was either Elijah, or he was not! What is your view of it? How can it be interpreted?"
The man was dumbfounded.
The Apostles of Christ here in the wilderness could not even get food for their Master. Christ said of John the Baptist that 'his food was grass and herbs.'"
He is the true Herald Who appeared to inform the people, that they might make themselves ready and clear the paths, even as John son of Zacharias, who is mentioned in the Books as John the Baptist, gave glad tidings of the appearance of Christ while he was in prison when Jesus son of Mary declared His Cause.
And if you seek the flame of Sinai and the gleam of light, hasten with your soul to the wilderness of Sinai. And if you seek the station of John (the Baptist), sacrifice your head and life. And if you wish to inhale the fragrances of the Prince of Martyrs, spill your blood in the plain of tribulation and ordeal. This is the station of the lovers and this is the description of the yearning ones.
O My handmaiden, ponder upon the son of Zachariah, whose blessed head was severed for the sake of a harlot, and the head of Husayn which was raised upon a spear at the command of a transgressor, and the Temple of the Bayan which was suspended in the air. Had the world any worth, the gems of existence would never have been afflicted with such tribulations.
Therefore, O ye who seek His countenance, who stand at His threshold, and whose hearts are quickened by His fragrance - turn ye wholly toward Him, and receive bounty from His nature, that ye may behold the fire of Moses, witness the flame of Sinai, inhale the breath of the Messiah, see the garden of Abraham, observe the blood sacrifice of John son of Zacharias, find the fountain of life of Khidr, contemplate the sacrifice of the Offering, perceive the beauty of Joseph, hear the sighing and lamentation of Jacob, know the affliction and sorrow of Job, establish the lesson of Enoch, understand the intensity of Eve's separation, and recognize the chastity and purity of Mary.
I wrote that his highness The Supreme (Bab) was the fore-runner like John the Baptist, like the dawn.
Consider somewhat the Bayan: The example of this Revelation and the Revelation of the Point of the Bayan is exactly like the appearance of the son of Zachariah and Jesus the son of Mary. The son of Zachariah, despite his station of prophethood and the greatness of his rank, gave the people glad tidings of the appearance of the Spirit, and both were in the same age.
And this Spirit hath both restitution and return, inasmuch as it consists of the Light of God and the unconditioned Grace. So, having regard to this state and station, Christ announced that John the Baptist was Elias, who was to come before Christ (Matt. 11:14). And the likeness of this station is as that of lamps kindled (from one another): for these in respect to their glasses and oil-holders, are different, but in respect to their light, One, and in respect to their illumination, One; nay, each one is identical with the other, without imputation of plurality, or diversity or multiplicity or separateness.
For thought and discussion