How Becoming a Baha’i Fulfilled a Spiritual Search

“At the time of my spiritual journey, I came to an understanding that I had a good understanding of what it means to walk a spiritual journey, but I also understood that my understanding was still limited, that there were deeper levels of Christianity that I needed to understand if I was going to truly understand…what Christ really was aiming for us to get at,” says Antonio Smith, a Baha’i living in Memphis, Tennessee. “So, I went into university really in the spirit of search.”

Antonio says it was helpful to learn that Christ always spoke in parables, so he began to analyze the symbolic spiritual meanings of the Bible. 

In the Bible, it says, “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.” John 16:12–13 

Baha’is believe that Baha’u’llah, the prophet and founder of the Baha’i Faith, is this “Spirit of Truth” and His coming has been foretold in many of the past religions. The Baha’i writings say:

“To Israel He was neither more nor less than the incarnation of the “Everlasting Father”, the “Lord of Hosts” come down “with ten thousands of saints”; to Christendom Christ returned “in the glory of the Father”; to Shí’ah Islám the return of the Imám Ḥusayn; to Sunní Islám the descent of the “Spirit of God” (Jesus Christ); to the Zoroastrians the promised Sháh-Bahrám; to the Hindus the reincarnation of Krishna; to the Buddhists the fifth Buddha.”

Antonio’s story is a part of the “The Race Unity Project,” an effort produced by Journalism for Change, Inc, a nonprofit media organization founded by filmmaker and human rights activist Maziar Bahari. The project tells “the century-long story of the American Baha’i community and its efforts — as well as its tests and challenges — in promoting race unity.”

Watch as he shares what significant conversations, activities, and people in his life led to him becoming a Baha’i.