Guest Author - Sandy Mullins

Some people are born Baha’is and some find The Baha’i Faith in their own time and speed. I have known third generation Baha’is, yes there are several and even fourth and fifth since The Baha’i Faith is 160 years old, starting back in 1844.

I became a Baha’i through a unique way, or should I say I found it a unique way. I was constantly volunteering and was a second generation Camp Fire Girl. Camp Fire is now Campfire Boys and Girls and I was a leader for both my children (my son and daughter). I had moved from Tucson to the Greater Phoenix Arizona area and was starting up a new group. I had one lady that her daughter had been in CFB&G across the valley and was looking for a group in this area for her daughter. Her daughter became part of my small group, much smaller than my group in Tucson Arizona (I had 35 children). I was looking over her card and read Baha’i Faith under religion. Me, being inquisitive as always asked about it and asked if I could have something to read to learn about the Baha’i Faith, so I wouldn’t infringe on her beliefs.

That was the first step in a long detailed search of The Baha’i Faith for me. I went to the Phoenix Library and pulled up microfilms on everything I could find on The Baha’i Faith. I will admit back in the 1980s, I weary of cults and was looking for something that would make The Baha’i Faith a cult. Did I find it? No what I found was a group of people who loved each other and honesty worshiped the way The Baha’i Faith believes. Every question I asked the Gilbert Arizona Baha’is would answer with sincerity and compassion, and did I ask questions.

The hardest thing for me to get past in my search was Progressive Revelation, that each prophet god has sent has been the same spirt just a different body. The funny thing is, when I looked back as a child, I thought Buddha, Mohammed and Christ were the same people, just a different name in a different language. Hmm. Maybe I was always a Baha’i, I just didn’t know it.

About six months after I started my search of The Baha’i Faith, I declared my faith and signed my declaration card.

You ask if I had a strong religious upbringing? Well, yes I did I was a fourth generation LDS (Mormon) and grew up going to church every Sunday and Primary Classes one day a week after school. My family came west with the wagon train to Salt Lake City, Utah and have built many of the stakes throughout the Phoenix area and the men have been elders in the church for years.

The Baha’i Faith gives me a lot more answers to questions I have always had, and I believe solutions to a lot of the world problems.