I always get a bit nervous when I do a live interview on radio, and I certainly got nervous in the run-up to appearing as a guest on London-based Premier Christian Radio’s Unbelievable show earlier today. It’s a discussion and phone-in show and I was in the studio with another (Christian) guest from 12.15 to 1.30 pm.

On the website, the show is billed thus:

Can Christianity really live up to the claims it makes? Justin Brierley invites you to join the debate by calling 08450 212121.

And the front page of Premier Christian Radio’s website showed this:

Weekend Highlights:

Saturday

6-12noon Premier’s Big Breakfast: with Dave Rose and Tony Miles
12-2pm Unbelievable: Bahai follower Barney Leith joins Justin Brierley and his Christian guest Kumar Rajagopalan

I had never listened to the station, let alone to the show, so I didn’t know whether it was a set-up - ‘Let’s rip into this Bah?’? faith’ - or a genuine dialogue. Well, I’m glad to say it was a genuine dialogue. I had given Justin Brierley links to The Bah?’?s web portal and he had done his homework. He had also passed the links on to Kumar, the other guest, who was a very nice Baptist minister, who had become a Christian having been raised in a high caste Brahmin Hindu family.

Justin was very fair in his presentation and gave me every opportunity to speak at some length about the Faith and to quote from the Holy Writings. Kumar and I got into a very natural dialogue and found a good measure of unity between us in speaking about our respective faiths. In fact, we’ve swapped contact details and promised to keep in touch.

I prepared, oh how I prepared for this show! I prayed, I read, I printed out suitable quotations from the Writings - including:

Know thou that when the Son of Man yielded up His breath to God, the whole creation wept with a great weeping. By sacrificing himself, however, a fresh capacity was infused into all created things. Its evidences, as witnessed in all the peoples of the earth, are now manifest before thee. The deepest wisdom which the sages have uttered, the profoundest learning which any mind hath unfolded, the arts which the ablest hands have produced, the influence exerted by the most potent of rulers, are but manifestations of the quickening power released by His transcendent, His all-pervasive, and resplendent Spirit.

This particular quotation defused the concerns of one Christian caller, who was about to ask what I, as a Bah?’?, thought of Christ. Having heard the quotation, he decided to ask something else.

I was able to tell something of the stories of the B?b and Bah?’u'll?h as well as speaking about progressive revelation and about the Bah?’? life. Above all, I was able to speak about my heart’s link to Bah?’u'll?h and to show that the Faith is spiritually as well as intellectually satisfying. One of the show’s themes was, ‘Why is the Bah?’? Faith united when Christianity has so many sects and denominations?’ Of course, this allowed a brief presentation of the Covenant and of the administrative order.

The Faith was treated with great respect on this show, which really aimed to promote the investigation of truth and to give listeners more knowledge and deeper understanding of the Faith. Despite my initial nervousness, I really enjoyed taking part in this show.

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