Bahá'í Faith

Bahá'u'lláh taught that there is one God Who progressively reveals His will to humanity. Each of the great religions brought by the Messengers of God - such as Moses, Krishna, Buddha, Zoroaster, Jesus, Muhammad, the Báb; - represents a successive stage in the spiritual development of civilization. Bahá'u'lláh, the most recent Messenger in this line as Bahá'ís believe, has brought teachings that address the moral and spiritual challenges of the modern world. As such, although the Bahá'í Faith is not traditionally included among the Abrahamic religions, it recognizes many of the same personages.

Some consider the Bahá'í Faith as the youngest of the world's independent religions. Its central theme is that humanity is one single race and that the day has come for its unification in one global society.

Table of contents

1 History 1.1 The Báb 1.2 Bahá'u'lláh 1.3 `Abdu'l-Bahá 1.4 The Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh and schism 1.5 Brief chronology 2 Administrative order 3 Teachings and laws 3.6 Social principles 3.7 Rituals 3.8 Laws and ordinances 3.9 Calendar 3.10 Mashriqu'l-Adhkár 3.11 Involvement in the life of society 4 External links

History

The Báb

In 1844 the Persian prophet Siyyid `Alí-Muhammad, who adopted the title "the Báb;", which means "the Gate" in Arabic, established a new religion. It is distinct from Islam but grew out of the Islamic matrix in the same way that Christianity grew out of Judaism or Buddhism out of Hinduism. Followers of the Báb were known as Bábís and their religion as "the Bábí Faith". The Bábí Faith has its own scriptures and religious teachings, but its duration was very short. The Báb's primary purpose was to prepare the way for "Him whom God shall manifest," the One promised in the scriptures of all of the world's great religions.

The ecclesiastical and political authorities were alarmed by the large numbers of people who quickly became attracted to these new religious teachings. The Báb and his followers were persecuted relentlessly. The Báb was imprisoned and eventually executed by a firing squad in Tabriz, Persia (present-day Iran) on July 9, 1850. His mission lasted six years.

Bahá'u'lláh

Mírzá Husayn-`Alí, who took the title Bahá'u'lláh;, which is Arabic for "the Glory of God", was a Persian nobleman who became one of the early, prominent followers of the Báb. He was arrested and imprisoned during a period of severe persecution in 1852. While incarcerated in the dungeon of the Siyáh-Chál in Tehran, He received the first intimations that He was the One anticipated by the Báb. Nine years later, in 1863, while exiled in Baghdad, Iraq, He formally announced His mission to His family and a small number of followers.

The machinations of the Persian and Ottoman authorities took Bahá'u'lláh further and further into exile, from Baghdad to Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), then to Adrianople (present-day Edirne), and finally, in 1868, to the penal colony of Acre, on the very edge of the Ottoman Empire. Bahá'u'lláh remained there until His passing on May 29, 1892, after forty years of exile and imprisonment. Bahá'ís regard His resting place outside the city as the holiest spot on earth, to which they turn in prayer each day.

The other important Bahá'í holy place in the Haifa/Acre area is the tomb or Shrine of the Báb, located on the slope of Mount Carmel in Haifa. The remains of the Báb were brought secretly from Persia to the Holy Land and were eventually interred in the Shrine built for them in a spot specifically designated by Bahá'u'lláh.

Bahá'u'lláh revealed the equivalent of more than one hundred volumes of divinely inspired writings in Arabic and Persian. The main repository of the laws of Bahá'u'lláh's revelation is the Kitáb-i-Aqdas;, "the Most Holy Book".

`Abdu'l-Bahá

Before His passing, Bahá'u'lláh appointed His eldest son, `Abdu'l-Bahá;, as His successor and the sole interpreter of His teachings. Bahá'u'lláh designated him "Center of the Covenant" and directed all Bahá'ís to turn to `Abdu'l-Bahá as the Head of their Faith.

(In the Bahá'í Faith, "Covenant" refers specifically to the succession of authority from Bahá'u'lláh to `Abdu'l-Bahá, and from `Abdu'l-Bahá to the Guardianship and the Universal House of Justice. Those who publicly deny and rebel against this established succession of authority are known as "Covenant-Breakers", and are subsequently excommunicated from the Bahá'í community. The purpose of the Covenant is to safeguard the unity of the Bahá'í community, protecting it from the influence of schismatics.)

`Abdu'l-Bahá had shared his Father's long exile and imprisonment. This imprisonment continued until `Abdu'l-Bahá's own release as a result of the "Young Turk" revolution in 1908. Shortly after his release, `Abdu'l-Bahá traveled to Europe and America, proclaiming the teachings of his Father and nurturing the fledgling Bahá'í communities that had sprung up in various centers in Europe, the United States and Canada. Many of his talks were recorded and have been published in books entitled "Paris Talks" and "The Promulgation of Universal Peace." Another important work of `Abdu'l-Bahá, which set the course of the expansion and consolidation of the Bahá'í world community, is a series of documents called "Tablets of the Divine Plan". He also carried on a voluminous correspondence with Bahá'í communities and individuals over a period of many years, and many of these letters, or "Tablets", have been translated and published in various languages.

`Abdu'l-Bahá died in Haifa on November 28, 1921.

The Covenant of Bahá'u'lláh and schism

The Bahá'í Faith since its inception has been attacked from within by individuals and groups who have tried to seize control from the Báb, Bahá'u'lláh,'Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi, or the Universal House of Justice. Prior to 1970s no such attempt survived beyond its founder's death. Bahá'ís believe that through the history of the Faith, each of these attempts to attack the Faith have faded away into obscurity through the protection of the "Covenant", which is essentially the written Will and Testaments of the respective Centers of the Covenant. Thus according to the Bahá'í beliefs the Faith of God is protected from division by the Covenant. The following quote of Abdu'l-Bahá brings light to this in unequivocal terms.

"As to the most great characteristic of the revelation of Bahá'u'lláh, a specific teaching not given by any of the Prophets of the past: It is the ordination and appointment of the Centre of the Covenant. By this appointment and provision He has safeguarded and protected the religion of God against difference and schisms, making it impossible for anyone to create a new sect or faction of belief." —`Abdu'l-Bahá

A history of the Charles Mason Remey affair, and the groups which identify with him is available here: Mason Remey and Those Who Followed Him. (external link at bahai-library.com). This review of the Remey affair was written by the Universal House of Justice, and has conclusions which are stated from their point of view. The historical record included appears neutral.

Brief chronology

• November 12, 1817, Birth of Bahá'u'lláh
• October 20, 1819, Birth of the Báb
• May 23, 1844 Declaration of the Báb in Shiraz, Iran.
• July 9, 1850, Martyrdom of the Báb in Tabriz, Iran.
• 1852, While imprisoned for four months in an underground dungeon in Tehran, Bahá'u'lláh receives the first intimations that He is the One foretold by the Báb.
• January 12, 1853, Exile of Bahá'u'lláh from Tehran to Baghdad.
• April 23, 1863, Declaration of Bahá'u'lláh in Garden of Ridván in Baghdad on the eve of his exile to Constantinople.
• August 31, 1868, arrival of Bahá'u'lláh into the Prison-city of Acre in the Holy Land.
• May 29, 1892, Ascension of Bahá'u'lláh.
• 1893 First newspaper mention of the Bahá'í Faith in United States.
• 1898 First pilgrimage by Western believers, including Phoebe Hearst and the first African-American believer, Robert Turner, to the Holy Land where they visited with 'Abdu'l-Bahá in prison.
• September 1908, 'Abdu'l-Bahá is released from a lifetime of exile and imprisonment at 64 years of age.
• April–December 1912, Travels of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in North America.
• 1914–1918, World War I. 'Abdu'l-Bahá writes the Tablets of the Divine Plan.
• April 27, 1920, 'Abdu'l-Bahá is knighted by the British Empire in recognition of His humanitarian work during WWI.
• November 28, 1921, Ascension of 'Abdu'l-Bahá in Haifa
  (This date marks the close of the "Heroic Age of the Baha'i Faith" and the opening of the "Formative Age.")
• 1937, Shoghi Effendi launches the "Divine Plan" for the diffusion of the fragrance of the Cause.
• 1944, Publication of "God Passes By" by Shoghi Effendi.
• 1951, Eleven functioning National Spiritual Assemblies.
• 1951–1957, appointment of 32 additional "Hands of the Cause of God" by Shoghi Effendi.
• November 1957, passing of Shoghi Effendi.
• 1957–April 1963. Faith is guided by 27 remaining Hands of the Cause.
• April 1963, Election of first Universal House of Justice by representatives of 56 National Spiritual Assemblies gathered in Haifa. [1]

Shoghi Effendi, who was a student at Oxford University at the time of his Grandfather's passing, served as the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith until his passing in 1957. For thirty-six years he developed the Bahá'í community and its administrative structure in order to prepare it to support the election of the Universal House of Justice. Because the Bahá'í community was relatively small and undeveloped when the Guardian assumed the leadership of the Faith, it took many years to strengthen it and develop it to the point where it was capable of supporting the administrative structure envisioned by `Abdu'l-Bahá. Shoghi Effendi pursued this goal energetically and systematically.

As outlined in the Will and Testament of `Abdu'l-Bahá, the roles and functions of the institutions of the Guardianship and the Universal House of Justice were clearly complementary: the Guardianship's function was interpretive, while the function of the Universal House of Justice was legislative. Neither should infringe upon the role of the other. Throughout the period of the Guardianship, Shoghi Effendi exercised his interpretive function. He translated the sacred writings of the Faith; he developed global plans for the expansion of the Bahá'í community; he developed the World Centre of the Bahá'í Faith in Haifa; he carried on a voluminous correspondence with communities and individuals around the world; and he built the administrative structure of the Faith, preparing the community for the election of the Universal House of Justice.

The Will and Testament of `Abdu'l-Bahá clearly anticipated that there would be a succession of Guardians, but this was not to be. `Abdu'l-Bahá had indicated that the first born of the Guardian should be his successor, but if that individual did not inherit the Guardian's spiritual qualities, then he should appoint another male descendant of Bahá'u'lláh. However, Shoghi Effendi did not have children, and through the years all of the members of his family had rebelled against the authority conferred upon him, becoming "Covenant-Breakers". Thus, it was not possible for him to appoint a successor as Guardian. It was also clear from `Abdu'l-Bahá's Will and Testament that only the Universal House of Justice had the authority to resolve questions not explicitly dealt with by either Bahá'u'lláh or `Abdu'l-Bahá, and this issue would obviously need to be taken up by that body. And so Shoghi Effendi had laid the foundations for the election of the Universal House of Justice. This nine-member body, which governs the international Bahá'í community, was first elected in 1963. That same year, it determined that there was "no way to appoint or to legislate to make it possible to appoint a second Guardian to succeed Shoghi Effendi."

Bahá'ís all over the world, loyal to the Covenant first established by Bahá'u'lláh and then carried forward by `Abdu'l-Bahá, accepted this decision made by what they believe is the divinely guided central authority of their Faith.

There is no clergy in the Bahá'í Faith. At the grassroots level, Bahá'í communities are governed by freely elected nine-member councils called "Local Spiritual Assemblies". Similarly, National Spiritual Assemblies direct and coordinate the affairs of national Bahá'í communities. The Bahá'í electoral process is unique. There is no system of candidature, electioneering or campaigning, and the purpose is to elect members who best possess those spiritual qualities that enable them to serve the community.

Teachings and laws

Bahá'u'lláh's primary teachings are these:

• There is but one supreme deity. (God) and He is unknowable to man.

"So perfect and comprehensive is His creation that no mind or heart, however keen or pure, can ever grasp the nature of the most insignificant of His creatures; much less fathom the mystery of Him Who is the Day Star of Truth, Who is the invisible and unknowable Essence..."

• there is but one humanity--the distinctions of race, gender, etc. are but distinctions of facade, not innate character or ability, and all are equal in the sight of God

• All the world's great religions receive their inspiration from the same divine source

The differences among the religions of the world are due to the varying types of minds.

The following list of 13 "beliefs" are frequently listed as a quick summary of Bahá'í teachings. They are derived from a variety of such lists extracted from transcripts of speeches given by Abdu'l-Bahá during his tour of Europe and North America in 1912. The list is not authoritative and a variety of such lists circulate.

• The Oneness of God
• The Oneness of religion
• The Oneness of mankind
• Equality of men and women
• Elimination of all forms of prejudice
• World peace
• Harmony of religion and science
• The need for universal compulsory education
• Obedience to government
• Non-involvement in politics
• A spiritual solution to economic problems
• Elimination of extremes of wealth and poverty
• Capital Punishment for arson and physical branding of adulterers and homosexuals

Bahá'ís believe that although the current age is quite dark, the future of humanity is gloriously bright and that world peace is inevitable.

To be a Bahá'í means that a person believes that Bahá'u'lláh is the manifestation of God for this time. A Bahá'í strives to follow His teachings, and observes His laws.

Rituals

The rituals in the Bahá'í Faith are simple and few in number:

• There is a specified set of marriage vows.
• There are a few specified funerary practices.
• Bahá'ís are enjoined to
  • recite an obligatory prayer each day, facing in the direction of the Source | Copyright

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