Millennialism, Millerites, and Prophecy in Bahá’í Discourse

This book explores the role of millennialism, the Millerites, and prophecy in the historical development of the Bahá’í faith, especially in North America. The author demonstrates the importance of the Bahá’í religion to millennialism studies and its connection to certain Protestant American and Shia Islamic modes of thought. Bahá’ís see two millennial visions on far-separated continents, within different religious milieux, and from contrasting social climates, as spiritually and prophetically linked: the Millerites who expected the return of Christ in 1844 CE and Shia Muslims who expected the Mahdí/Qá’im/Twelfth Imam in 1260 AH/1844 CE. The chapters in this volume reflect on theories about millennialist movements, the continuum from catastrophic to progressive millennialism, Bahá’í interpretations of biblical prophecy, and Bahá’í efforts to build the “Kingdom of God on earth” under a systematic divine plan. The book highlights the maturation of the Bahá’í community toward a focus on process and a capacity to deal with both catastrophe and progress. It provides scholars of religion with a detailed study of the trajectory in Bahá’í millennial ideas.