Bahaʾi Faith
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Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica, Bahaʾi Faith, bahai-library.com.
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Bahāʾī Faith

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica
published in Encyclopaedia Britannica

2024-12-23

Bahāʾī Faith, universalist religion founded in the mid-19th century by Mīrzā Ḥosayn ʿAlī Nūrī, who is known in the tradition as Bahāʾu’llāh which in Arabic means “Glory of God.” It began as an Islamic movement in Iran and was publicly declared by Bahāʾu’llāh in Iraq.The cornerstone of Bahāʾī belief is the conviction that Bahāʾu’llāh, and his forerunner, who was known as the Bāb (Arabic: “Gateway”), were manifestations of God, who in his essence is unknowable. The principal Bahāʾī tenets are the essential unity of all religions and the unity of humanity. Bahāʾīs believe that all the founders of the world’s great religions have been manifestations of God and agents of a progressive divine plan for the education of humanity. Despite their apparent differences, the world’s great religions, according to the Bahāʾīs, teach an identical truth. Bahāʾu’llāh’s peculiar function was to overcome the disunity of religions and establish a universal faith. Bahāʾīs believe in the oneness of humanity and devote themselves to the abolition of racial, class, and religious prejudices. The great bulk of Bahāʾī teachings is concerned with social ethics. The faith has no priesthood and does not observe ritual forms in its worship.

History

The Bahāʾī religion originally grew out of the Bābī faith, or sect, which was founded in 1844 by Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad of Shīrāz in Iran. He proclaimed a spiritual doctrine emphasizing the forthcoming appearance of a new prophet or messenger of God who would overturn old beliefs and customs and usher in a new era. Though new, these beliefs originated in Twelver Shiʿi Islam, which asserts a belief in the forthcoming return of the 12th imam (successor of Muhammad), who will renew religion and guide the faithful. Mīrzā ʿAlī Moḥammad first proclaimed his beliefs in 1844 and assumed the title of the Bāb. Soon the Bāb’s teachings spread throughout Iran, provoking strong opposition from both the Shiʿi Muslim clergy and the government. The Bāb was arrested and, after several years of incarceration, was executed in 1850. Large-scale persecutions of his adherents, the Bābīs, followed.

One of the Bāb’s earliest disciples and strongest exponents was Mīrzā Ḥosayn ʿAlī Nūrī, who had assumed the name Bahāʾu’llāh when he renounced his social standing and joined the Bābīs. Bahāʾu’llāh was arrested in 1852 and jailed in Tehrān, where he became aware that he was the prophet and messenger of God whose coming had been predicted by the Bāb. He was released in 1853 and exiled to Baghdad, where his leadership revived the Bābī community. In 1863, shortly before being moved by the Ottoman government to Constantinople (now Istanbul), Bahāʾu’llāh declared to his fellow Bābīs that he was the messenger of God foretold by the Bāb. An overwhelming majority of Bābīs acknowledged his claim and thenceforth became known as Bahāʾīs. Bahāʾu’llāh was subsequently confined by the Ottomans in Adrianople (now Edirne, Turkey) and then in Acre in Palestine (now in Israel).

Before Bahāʾu’llāh died in 1892, he appointed his eldest son, ʿAbd al-Bahāʾ (1844–1921), to be the leader of the Bahāʾi community and the authorized interpreter of his teachings. ʿAbd al-Bahāʾ actively administered the movement’s affairs and spread the faith to North America, Europe, and other continents. He appointed his eldest grandson, Shoghi Effendi Rabbānī (1897–1957), his successor.

The Bahāʾi Faith underwent a rapid expansion beginning in the 1960s, and by the early 21st century it had more than 180 national spiritual assemblies (national governing bodies) and several thousand local spiritual assemblies. After Islamic fundamentalists came to power in Iran in 1979, the 300,000 Bahāʾīs there were persecuted by the government.

Practices

The writings and spoken words of the Bāb, Bahāʾu’llāh, and ʿAbd al-Bahāʾ form the sacred literature of the Bahāʾī Faith. Membership in the Bahāʾī community is open to all who profess faith in Bahāʾu’llāh and accept his teachings. There are no initiation ceremonies, no sacraments, and no clergy. Every Bahāʾī, however, is under the spiritual obligation to pray daily; to abstain totally from narcotics, alcohol, or any other substances that affect the mind; to practice monogamy; to obtain the consent of parents to marriage; and to attend the Nineteen Day Feast on the first day of each month of the Bahāʾī calendar. If capable, those between the ages of 15 and 70 are required to fast 19 days a year, going without food or drink from sunrise to sunset. The Nineteen Day Feast, originally instituted by the Bāb, brings together the Bahāʾīs of a given locality for prayer, the reading of scriptures, the discussion of community activities, and the enjoyment of one another’s company. The feasts are designed to ensure universal participation in the affairs of the community and the cultivation of the spirit of brotherhood and fellowship.

As of 2024 there were 14 Bahāʾī houses of worship: in Australia, Cambodia, Chile, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Germany, India, Kenya, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the United States, Uganda, and Vanuatu. In the temples there is no preaching; services consist of recitation of the scriptures of all religions.

The Bahāʾīs use a calendar, established by the Bāb and confirmed by Bahāʾu’llāh, in which the year is divided into 19 months of 19 days each, with the addition of 4 intercalary days (5 in leap years). The year begins on the first day of spring, March 21, which is one of several holy days in the Bahāʾī calendar.

Organization

The Bahāʾī community is governed according to general principles proclaimed by Bahāʾu’llāh and through institutions created by him that were elaborated and expanded on by ʿAbd al-Bahāʾ. The governance of the Bahāʾī community begins on the local level with the election of a local spiritual assembly. The electoral process excludes parties or factions, nominations, and campaigning for office. The local spiritual assembly has jurisdiction over all local affairs of the Bahāʾī community. On the national scale, each year Bahāʾīs elect delegates to a national convention that elects a national spiritual assembly with jurisdiction over Bahāʾīs throughout an entire country. All national spiritual assemblies of the world periodically constitute themselves an international convention and elect a supreme governing body known as the Universal House of Justice. This body applies the laws promulgated by Bahāʾu’llāh and legislates on matters not covered in the sacred texts. The seat of the Universal House of Justice is in Haifa, Israel, in the immediate vicinity of the shrines of the Bāb and ʿAbd al-Bahāʾ and near the Shrine of Bahāʾu’llāh at Bahjī, near Acre.

There also exist in the Bahāʾī Faith appointive institutions, such as the Hands of the Cause of God and the continental counselors. The members of the Hands of the Cause of God were appointed by Bahāʾu’llāh and Shoghi Effendi. The continental counselors are appointed by the Universal House of Justice. The primary functions of both groups are to propagate the Bahāʾī Faith and protect the community.

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-- Bahaʾi Faith (Used by permission of the curator)