Spiritual test

Last updated

A spiritual test, according to several religious traditions, is a life situation, provided by God, to evaluate man's individual moral character and obedience to His laws. Spiritual tests assess one's virtue in many aspects of everyday life, individual conduct, particularly when no witnesses exist, and reflect the maturation of the character with regards to such moral imperatives as honesty, respect, and consideration for others.

Contents

Overview

A spiritual agreement, pact or covenant is established between the individual believer and God.[ clarification needed ] God tests the person's resolve in this covenant by giving that person physical, mental, emotional and spiritual difficulties to overcome. It is a common belief in many religions that God does not test humanity beyond their capacity to handle these tests, which are designed to check their full commitment to their own Faith.[ citation needed ]

In religious books

Judaism

“For I command you today to love Yahuwah your Elohim, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and Yahuwah your Elohim will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Yarden to enter and possess. “(Devarim 30:15-18) [1]

Christianity

"It was there at Marah that the LORD set before them the following decree as a standard to test their faithfulness to him. He said, 'If you will listen carefully to the voice of the LORD your God and do what is right in his sight, obeying his commands and keeping all his decrees, then I will not make you suffer any of the diseases I sent on the Egyptians; for I am the LORD who heals you'" [2]

"No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it" (1 Corinthians:10:13, New Revised Standard Version). [3]

Islam

“Sa’ad bin Abi Waqqas reported that he asked the Messenger of Allah (SAW): “Which of the people are tested most severely?” Rasulullah (SAW) replied: “The Prophets, then the righteous, then those who are most like them, then those who are most like them from the people. A man is tested according to his religious commitment. So, if his religious practice is sound, then his testing is increased, and if his religious practice is weak, then his testing is reduced. A servant continues to be tested until he walks the Earth without a single sin on him.” (Ahmad, Tirmidhi)

“Allah will not leave the believers in the state in which you are now until He distinguishes the wicked from the good.” (Surah Al ‘Imrân 3:179, Quran) [4]

Baháʼí Faith

“The more one is severed from the world, from desires, from human affairs, and conditions, the more impervious does one become to the tests of God. Tests are a means by which a soul is measured as to its fitness, and proven out by its own acts. God knows its fitness beforehand, and also its unpreparedness, but man, with an ego, would not believe himself unfit unless proof were given him. Consequently his susceptibility to evil is proven to him when he falls into the tests, and the tests are continued until the soul realizes its own unfitness, then remorse and regret tend to root out the weakness.

The same test comes again in greater degree, until it is shown that a former weakness has become a strength, and the power to overcome evil has been established” [5]

As a means for spiritual growth

Baha’i Writing

“Thou hast written concerning the tests that have come upon thee. To the sincere ones, tests are as a gift from God, the Exalted, for a heroic person hasteneth, with the utmost joy and gladness, to the tests of a violent battlefield, but the coward is afraid and trembles and utters moaning and lamentation. Likewise, an expert student prepareth and memorizeth his lessons and exercises with the utmost effort, and in the day of examination he appeareth with infinite joy before the master. Likewise, the pure gold shineth radiantly in the fire of test. Consequently, it is made clear that for holy souls, trials are as the gift of God, the Exalted; but for weak souls they are an unexpected calamity. This test is just as thou hast written: it removeth the rust of egotism from the mirror of the heart until the Sun of Truth may shine therein. For, no veil is greater than egotism and no matter how thin that covering may be, yet it will finally veil man entirely and prevent him from receiving a portion from the eternal bounty.“ [6]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Names of God</span>

There are various names of God, many of which enumerate the various qualities of a Supreme Being. The English word god is used by multiple religions as a noun to refer to different deities, or specifically to the Supreme Being, as denoted in English by the capitalized and uncapitalized terms God and god. Ancient cognate equivalents for the biblical Hebrew Elohim, one of the most common names of God in the Bible, include proto-Semitic El, biblical Aramaic Elah, and Arabic ilah. The personal or proper name for God in many of these languages may either be distinguished from such attributes, or homonymic. For example, in Judaism the tetragrammaton is sometimes related to the ancient Hebrew ehyeh. It is connected to the passage in Exodus 3:14 in which God gives his name as אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה, where the verb may be translated most basically as "I am that I am", "I shall be what I shall be", or "I shall be what I am". In the passage, YHWH, the personal name of God, is revealed directly to Moses.

Glory is used to describe the manifestation of God's presence as perceived by humans according to the Abrahamic religions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Consecration in Christianity</span> Solemn religious dedication

Consecration is the transfer of a person or a thing to the sacred sphere for a special purpose or service. The word consecration literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different groups. The origin of the word comes from the Latin stem consecrat, which means dedicated, devoted, and sacred. A synonym for consecration is sanctification; its antonym is desecration.

<i>Hidden Words</i> Baháʼí scripture, written by Baháʼulláh around 1858

The Hidden Words is a book written by Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, around 1858. He composed it while walking along the banks of the Tigris river during his exile in Baghdad. The book is written partly in Arabic and partly in Persian.

<i>Will and Testament of ʻAbdul-Bahá</i> Central Baháí text

The Will and Testament of ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was a seminal document of the Baháʼí Faith, written in three stages by ʻAbdu'l-Bahá. Several sections were written under imminent threat of harm. The first section was probably written in 1906.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Covenant of Baháʼu'lláh</span> Primary principle in the Baháí Faith

In the Baháʼí Faith there are two covenants, deemed the 'greater' and 'lesser'. The greater covenant refers to an agreement of progressive revelation: that God will send messengers about every thousand years, and it is humanity's duty to recognize them and respond to their teachings. The lesser covenant is the agreement between the faith's founder, Baháʼu'lláh, and his followers, regarding the succession of leadership and the maintenance of unity.

The Manifestation of God is a concept in the Baháʼí Faith that refers to what are commonly called prophets. The Manifestations of God are appearances of the Divine Spirit or Holy Spirit in a series of personages, and as such, they perfectly reflect the attributes of the divine into the human world for the progress and advancement of human morals and civilization through the agency of that same Spirit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psalm 89</span>

Psalm 89 is the 89th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "I will sing of the mercies of the LORD for ever". In the slightly different numbering system used in the Greek Septuagint and Latin Vulgate translations of the Bible, this psalm is Psalm 88. In Latin, it is known as "Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo". It is described as a maschil or "contemplation".

Bishr ibn al-Ḥārith better known as Bishr al-Ḥāfī was a Muslim saint born near Merv in about 767 C.E. He converted and studied Muslim tradition under Al-Fozail ibn Iyaz. Bishr became famous as one of the greatest saints in the area.

<i>Summons of the Lord of Hosts</i> Collection of texts of Baháʼulláh

The Summons of the Lord of Hosts is a collection of the tablets of Baháʼu'lláh, founder of the Baháʼí Faith, that were written to the kings and rulers of the world during his exile in Adrianople and in the early years of his exile to the fortress town of Acre in 1868. Baháʼu'lláh claimed to be the Promised One of all religions and all ages and summoned the leaders of East and West to recognize him as the promised one. The Summons of the Lord of Hosts is the printing of five distinct tablets of this material.

Sabr is one of the two parts of faith in Islam. It teaches to remain spiritually steadfast and to keep doing good actions in the personal and collective domain, specifically when facing opposition or encountering problems, setbacks, or unexpected and unwanted results. It is patience in the face of all unexpected and unwanted outcomes.

<i>Tablets of Baháʼulláh Revealed After the Kitáb-i-Aqdas</i> Selected texts of Baháʼulláh, founder of the Baháʼí Faith

The Tablets of Baháʼu'lláh Revealed After the Kitáb-i-Aqdas are selected tablets written by Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith, and published together as of 1978. The current edition bears the title Fountain of Wisdom: A Collection of Writings from Baháʼu'lláh.

The Apostles of Baháʼu'lláh were nineteen prominent followers of Baháʼu'lláh, the founder of the Baháʼí Faith. The apostles were designated as such by Shoghi Effendi, head of the religion in the earlier half of the 20th century, and the list was included in The Baháʼí World, Vol. III (pp. 80–81).

Religious views on love vary widely between different religions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baháʼí cosmology</span> Baháʼí view on reality

In Baháʼí cosmology reality is divided into three divisions. The first division is God, who is preexistent and on whom the rest of creation is contingent. The second division is God's Logos, the Primal Will, which is the realm of God's commands and grace. This realm pervades all created things. The Manifestations of God, Messengers from God, are appearances of the Logos in the physical world. The third division is Creation, which includes the physical world. Creation is not seen as confined to the material universe, and individual material objects, such as the Earth, are seen to come into being at a particular moment and subsequently to break down into their constituent parts. Thus, the current universe is seen as a result of a long-lasting process, evolving to its current state. In the Baháʼí Faith, the whole universe is a sign of God and is dependent on him and humanity was created to know God and to serve his purpose.

I am the <span style="font-variant:small-caps;">Lord</span> thy God Opening phrase of the Ten Commandments

"I am the LORD thy God" is the opening phrase of the Ten Commandments, which are widely understood as moral imperatives by ancient legal historians and Jewish and Christian biblical scholars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baháʼu'lláh</span> Founder of the Baháʼí Faith (1817–1892)

Baháʼu'lláh was an Iranian religious leader who founded the Baháʼí Faith. He was born to an aristocratic family in Iran and was exiled due to his adherence to the messianic Bábi Faith. In 1863, in Iraq, he first announced his claim to a revelation from God and spent the rest of his life in further imprisonment in the Ottoman Empire. His teachings revolved around the principles of unity and religious renewal, ranging from moral and spiritual progress to world governance.

Kumayl bin Ziyad an-Nakha'i was among the most loyal companions of Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib. Moreover, Kumayl occupies a prominent position in Shia Islam. Converting to Islam during the time of Islamic prophet Muhammad, he rose to a position of prominence during the caliphates of Uthman and Ali. In the caliphate of Ali, Kumayl flourished and served him in the most disciplined of ways. However, he is recognized for his pious and humble nature as well as preserving Imam Ali's teachings. Kumayl is best known for the du'a (supplication) of Prophet Khidr, which is commonly known by the name du'a Kumayl.

The Baháʼí Faith affirms the existence of life after death while not defining everything about it. The soul on death is said to recognize the value of its deeds and begin a new phase of a conscious relationship with God, though negative experiences are possible.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Turner (Bahá'í)</span>

Robert Chaittle Turner was the first African American Bahá’í and one of the nineteen Disciples of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá.

References

  1. ↑ "First John / 1 Yochanan - A Practical Guide to Righteousness".
  2. ↑ (Exodus 15:25-26, New Living Translation Bible).
  3. ↑ "The Importance of Godly Character". 2011-02-18.
  4. ↑ "5 Reasons on Why Does Allah Test Us". 2009-08-11.
  5. ↑ Getsinger, Dr. Edward C. (June 24, 1915). "(pilgrim notes)". Star of the West. 6 (6): 45. Retrieved December 24, 2013.
  6. ↑ Abdu'l-Bahá (1909). Tablets of Abdul-Baha Abbas. Bahá’í Publishing Committee. pp. 722–723..
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.