# Century of Light

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-19 — 1 clipping.*

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> Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Universal House of Justice, Century of Light, Haifa: Bahá'í World Centre, 2001, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Century of Light
> 
> Universal House of Justice
> 
> Haifa: Bahá'í World Centre, 2001
> 
> single page
> 
> chapter 1
> 
> Contents
> 
> Foreword and introduction
> Part I
> 
> Part II
> 
> Part III
> 
> Part IV
> 
> Part V
> 
> Part VI
> 
> Part VII
> 
> Part VIII
> 
> Part IX
> 
> Part X
> 
> Part XI
> 
> Part XII
> 
> [Page numbers given in this online edition correspond
> with the editions printed by the Bahá'í Publishing Trust. Note
> that some pages in those printed editions are blank, and the notes which
> appear on pp. 147-157 in those editions have here been moved to the end of
> each part for the convenience of the reader. These endnotes are numbered
> consecutively from the beginning to the end of the whole document, as in the
> printed editions.]
> 
> FOREWORD
> 
> The conclusion of the twentieth century provides Bahá'ís with
> a unique vantage point. During the past hundred years our world underwent
> changes far more profound than any in its preceding history, changes that
> are, for the most part, little understood by the present generation. These
> same hundred years saw the Bahá'í Cause emerge from obscurity,
> demonstrating on a global scale the unifying power with which its Divine
> origin has endowed it. As the century drew to its close, the convergence of
> these two historical developments became increasingly apparent.
> 
> Century of Light, prepared under our supervision, reviews these two
> processes and the relationship between them, in the context of the
> Bahá'í Teachings. We commend it to the thoughtful study of the
> friends, in the confidence that the perspectives it opens up will prove both
> spiritually enriching and of practical help in sharing with others the
> challenging implications of the Revelation brought by
> Bahá'u'lláh.THE UNIVERSAL HOUSE OF JUSTICE
> 
> Naw-Rúz, 158 B.E.
> 
> CENTURY OF LIGHT
> 
> THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, the most turbulent in the history of the human race,
> has reached its end. Dismayed by the deepening moral and social chaos that
> marked its course, the generality of the world's peoples are eager to leave
> behind them the memories of the suffering that these decades brought with
> them. No matter how frail the foundations of confidence in the future may
> seem, no matter how great the dangers looming on the horizon, humanity
> appears desperate to believe that, through some fortuitous conjunction of
> circumstances, it will nevertheless be possible to bend the conditions of
> human life into conformity with prevailing human desires.
> 
> In the light of the teachings of Bahá'u'lláh such hopes are
> not merely illusory, but miss entirely the nature and meaning of the great
> turning point through which our world has passed in these crucial hundred
> years. Only as humanity comes to understand the implications of what
> occurred during this period of history will it be able to meet the
> challenges that lie ahead. The value of the contribution we as
> Bahá'ís can make to the process demands that we ourselves
> grasp the significance of the historic transformation wrought by the
> twentieth century.
> 
> What makes this insight possible for us is the light shed by the rising Sun
> of Bahá'u'lláh's Revelation and the influence it has come to
> exercise in human affairs. It is this opportunity that the following pages
> address.
> 
> single page
> 
> chapter 1
> 
> METADATA
> 
> Views122119 views since posted 2002-04; last edit 2025-07-12 11:33 UTC;
> 
> previous at archive.org.../uhj_century_light;
> URLs changed in 2010, see archive.org.../bahai-library.org
> Language
> English
> Permission
> © BIC, public sharing permitted. See sources 1, 2, and 3.
> History
> Formatted 2002-04 by Julie Buckney; Proofread 2002 by Gary Fuhrman.
> Share
> 
> Shortlink: bahai-library.com/884
> Citation: ris/884
> 
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> — *Century of Light (Used by permission of the curator)*