The Baha’i Fait

Video: Baha’i

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As the last of the “Abrahamic” religions that traces its origins to the Middle East, Islam presents itself as the final and decisive revelation of divine truth to humankind.

Husayn Ali Nuri (1817-1892)—better known by the title he later bore, Baha’u’llah—declared himself to be a “Messenger of God” and therefore the legitimate successor to the Bab. Many of the followers of the Bab subsequently pledged their allegiance to Baha’u’llah and their adherence to his teachings, and thus began the new religious movement known as Baha’i.

Baha’i is both a monotheistic and a universalistic faith, based on a belief in one Creator God who is the source of all existence and goodness in the universe and the ultimate object of worship for all peoples. Because this God is a wholly transcendent, eternal, and unknowable Being, “he” cannot be described or comprehended by human minds, but his representatives or chosen “messengers” on earth can at least impart something of his will for humankind.

According to Baha’u’llah, there has been a succession of such messengers in history (including Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad), each one serving as a prophet for his respective faith community. Baha’u’llah saw himself as the most recent of these manifestations of divine wisdom, and for his followers no future messenger from God is expected for another thousand years. Because divine revelation for Baha’is is progressive, each of these prophets advances human understanding of the divine with each successive revelation. For Baha’is, the teachings of Baha’u’llah and his successors within the Baha’i movement constitute the most complete understanding of divine thought that human beings have yet attained. As for the writings of Baha’u’llah, they have become for Baha’is part of an unfolding authoritative “scripture,” and as a written revelation they have the advantage of having no competing oral tradition (unlike the hadith in Islam, for example).

The core truth that Baha’u’llah sought to impart to his followers and to the world was this: that because God is one, humanity must also be one. Baha’u’llah believed that all the barriers that separate people from one another (such as differences of race, nationality, gender, wealth, and religious belief) must give way to an awakened sense that the human race has at last “come of age” and that the world is ripe for political structures and cultural values that unite rather than divide. World government (and world peace) is finally attainable, he insisted, but only if we are willing to embrace twelve “principles” of thought and behavior:

1. The oneness of God and the common foundation of all religions

2. The oneness of humanity

3. The equality of men and women

4. The need to eliminate all types of prejudice

5. The need to eliminate all extremes of wealth and poverty

6. A belief in the harmony of science and religion

7. The need for compulsory universal education

8. The need for a common language spoken by all peoples

9.

10. The pursuit of spiritual solutions to political and social problems

11. Obedience to one’s government coupled with avoidance of partisan politics

12. The establishment of a world government as the guarantor of world peace

The mission of the Baha’i community, as Baha’u’llah understood it, was to promote these teachings and to become a role model for the world’s religious communities, demonstrating in their communal life that diverse cultures can embrace a vision of universal harmony and mutual understanding.

The Baha’i community has evolved a body of scripture, religious practices, and governing structure that have given their faith a distinctive character. Chief among the texts that Baha’is consider holy are the writings of the Bab, Baha’u’llah, Abdul-Baha (1844-1921, Baha’u’llah’s eldest son), and Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957), Abdul-Baha’s eldest grandson and the last individual leader of the Baha’i community. Baha’is study these writings throughout the year and integrate readings from them in their religious services. Daily prayer is obligatory for Baha’is over the age of fifteen, and because there are no Baha’i clergy, any member sufficiently familiar with the liturgy can lead these services.

The Baha’i religious calendar is made up of nineteen months, each of which has nineteen days, with an additional four days added to bring it into line with the solar year. The first day of each month is a feast day, consisting of both prayers and social events. Baha’is also celebrate eleven holy days, the most important of which are the birthday of the Bab (October 20) and his martyrdom (July 9) and three days marking the declaration of Baha’u’llah’s divine mission in 1863 (April 21 and 29 and May 2). Like Muslims, Baha’is fast once a year (for nineteen days, from March 2 to March 20) and abstain from alcohol. Marriage and family life are important aspects of Baha’i life, and, as in most Middle Eastern societies, parental consent is necessary for any marriage to take place and to be recognized by the community.

Referred to as the Lotus Temple, this structure borrows its design from Hindu iconography.

There are eight major Baha’i Houses of Worship, the most striking of which is the temple in New Delhi—its shape is that of a lotus flower—and an administrative center in Haifa, Israel. The Universal House of Justice is also located there, and since 1963 its elected members have served as the governing body for all members of the Baha’i community. At present, there are over five million Baha’is worldwide.