# Children

*Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-23 — 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: Nancy A. Davis, Children, bahai-library.com.
> ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
> 
> Children
> Persons in the stage of life from conception, when the soul comes into being, to
> the age of fifteen, which marks the beginning of spiritual maturity or adulthood.
> 
> ARTICLE OUTLINE:                                      THE NATURE OF CHILDREN
> The Nature of Children                           Children, according to the Bahá’í teachings, are
> The Education of Children                        independent beings of great intrinsic value. They
> The Well-being and Protection of Children        do not belong to their parents but to the Creator,
> Children and the Bahá’í Community                their true parent. Children are born in a state of
> potentiality rather than of either goodness or sin.
> ARTICLE RESOURCES:
> "The hearts of all children are of the utmost
> Notes                                            purity," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá states. "They are mirrors
> Other Sources and Related Reading                upon which no dust has fallen." 1
> 
> The child’s unsullied heart is not a blank slate,
> however. Possessing both a spiritual and a material nature, the one attuned to God and the other to
> the material world, the child is born with an individual temperament and with spiritual and intellectual
> capacities for developing virtues, abilities, and talents. Thus no child is inherently bad or inherently
> good. Children manifest the natural variation of capacity among human beings: "This difference does
> not imply good or evil," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá states, "but is simply a difference of degree."2
> 
> The development of the individual child is not simply a matter of fulfilling one’s individual potential.
> Rather, it is seen in the context of the purpose of all human life: to know and love God, to acquire
> virtues, and to contribute to the advancement of civilization.
> 
> Children exhibit qualities that reflect a mixture of innate,
> inherited, and acquired traits. Each quality can lead to either
> negative or positive behaviors: "Every child is potentially the
> light of the world—and at the same time its darkness," ‘Abdu’l-
> Bahá observes.3 Depending on how children are trained and how
> they use their energies, their individual qualities can be used for
> good or for evil. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explains that "from the beginning
> of his life you can see in a nursing child the signs of greed, of
> anger and of temper." One might infer, as a result, that "good
> and evil are innate" and that "this is contrary to the pure
> goodness of nature and creation." Such is not the case, ‘Abdu’l-
> Bahá clarifies: "The answer to this is that greed, which is to ask
> for something more, is a praiseworthy quality provided that it is
> used suitably. So if a man is greedy to acquire science and           Baha'i children at a Naw- Rúz (New Year) gathering in
> knowledge, or to become compassionate, generous and just, it is       The Gambia. 23 Jan. 2005. © Bahá’í International
> Community. Bahá’í Media Bank
> most praiseworthy . . . but if he does not use these qualities in a
> right way, they are blameworthy."4
> 
> THE EDUCATION OF CHILDREN
> The Bahá’í Faith stresses the importance of spiritual and moral education in shaping the character of
> children. Education is also the best means to secure their future happiness, because "human happiness
> is founded upon spiritual behavior" 5 and attaining "a lofty level" of virtues. 6 Bahá’u’lláh describes each
> person as "a mine rich in gems of inestimable value" whose inner "treasures" can be discovered and
> developed only through education. 7 Therefore, children should be valued for the treasures within them
> and encouraged to develop these qualities. The education of children is integral to the advancement of
> humanity.
> 
> The teachings of the Bahá’í Faith recognize various kinds of education,
> including training and development of the physical body; intellectual
> training; and the education of the human spirit. The importance of all
> these is stressed; and spiritual education—which includes prayer,
> learning sacred texts, and reciting them—is emphasized as being
> primary. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá points out: "Good behaviour and high moral
> character must come first, for unless the character be trained, acquiring
> knowledge will only prove injurious. Knowledge is praiseworthy when it
> is coupled with ethical conduct and virtuous character; otherwise it is a
> deadly poison, a frightful danger." 8 The combination of spiritual
> education with other forms of education is ideal.
> 
> The Bahá’í teachings uphold the training of the human spirit as the
> primary purpose of religion and as the "reason the holy Manifestations
> of God appear in the human world." 9 The basis for spiritual education is
> the core of religious faith and the teachings brought to humankind by
> the Messengers of God, "but this in such a measure," Bahá’u’lláh
> cautions, "that it may not injure the children by resulting in ignorant
> fanaticism and bigotry."10
> A pupil from a Sydney primary school
> reads a prayer at the service held in the
> Because training determines how a child’s capacities will be manifested,
> Bahá’í House of Worship, in Sydney,
> Australia, on Universal Children's Day.
> those who fulfill the responsibility to educate children merit a high
> 2005. © Bahá’í International Community.
> Bahá’í Media Bank               station. Children are deeply influenced by their environment, including
> the vigilance, love, and kindness shown by caregivers and the level of
> excellence to which the individual child is expected to rise.
> 
> The Bahá’í teachings hold that in the physical world God entrusts children to the care or stewardship of
> their parents, who in turn require support by the extended family and community. Childrearing, whether
> through procreation or adoption, is a primary purpose of marriage. The practice of adoption is
> encouraged, although "the separation of a child from its natural parents is a tragedy that society must
> do its best to prevent or mitigate." 11
> 
> Both fathers and mothers have the duty to strive with great effort to educate their children, and
> mothers have a special station as the first educators of their children. The education and training of
> children are among the noblest of deeds and the best of all ways to worship God. The Bahá’í teachings
> urge parents to pray for their children even before they are born; to love and nurture them; and to
> educate them to fulfill their innate potential and to contribute to the advancement of civilization. The
> parent’s task is to discern a child’s special characteristics or strengths in order to bring them from
> potentiality to reality. Although "education cannot alter the inner essence," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá writes, "it doth
> exert tremendous influence, and with this power it can bring forth from the individual whatever
> perfections and capacities are deposited within him." 12
> 
> The Bahá’í writings specify that the education of children through formal schooling is compulsory and
> that it should be universally available. To support parents in their duty to educate their children, the
> community at large, including the administrative institutions of the Bahá’í Faith (See: Administration,
> Bahá’í), has various roles and responsibilities for establishing, financing, and protecting the education of
> children. The teaching profession is highly regarded, and in the Bahá’í law of inheritance, which is
> applied if a person dies intestate, the individual’s teachers are numbered among the heirs.
> Childhood is by far the most sensitive period for the development of character and the attainment of a
> sense of human dignity. "It is extremely difficult to teach the individual and refine his character once
> puberty is passed," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá observes.13
> 
> From infancy, children should be taught "faith and certitude, the fear of God, the love of the Beloved of
> the worlds, and all good qualities and traits."14 The love of God and the fear of God (in the sense of a
> profound awe and respect for God’s power and an unwillingness to disobey God’s laws), when taught
> tenderly and consistently, create an aversion to evil. Children are meant to develop such moral integrity
> that they would rather die than commit degrading acts. "The individual must be educated to such a high
> degree that he would rather have his throat cut than tell a lie," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá writes, "and would think it
> easier to be slashed with a sword or pierced with a spear than to utter calumny or be carried away by
> wrath." 15
> 
> For the purpose of their moral and spiritual education, children are to be raised with an awareness of
> the oneness of God and of the laws of religion, with a realization of the oneness of humankind and of
> the importance of unity in diversity, with a sense that they have a meaningful place in the world, and
> with an understanding that they are meant to develop their own ways of serving humanity. The Bahá’í
> teachings particularly stress certain kinds of learning by children that affect character and influence
> development throughout an individual’s lifetime. Music, for example, "has wonderful sway and effect in
> the hearts of children," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá states. Through it their "latent talents . . . will find expression." He
> recommends that music be taught in the schools because of its power both to uplift the spirit and to
> brighten life with "enjoyment." 16 He also emphasizes the importance of children being taught kindness
> to all living creatures, beginning with animals: "Train your children from their earliest days to be
> infinitely tender and loving to animals." 17
> 
> During childhood, the groundwork for both work skills and
> attitudes toward work must be laid. Bahá’u’lláh regards work,
> when undertaken wholeheartedly and in a spirit of service, as a
> high form of worship, and He enjoins all people to engage in a
> craft, trade, or profession. The child must prepare for a future
> profession by acquiring the necessary skills and knowledge. "Let
> them share in every new and rare and wondrous craft and art,"
> ‘Abdu’l-Bahá urges. "Bring them up to work and strive, and
> accustom them to hardship. Teach them to dedicate their lives
> to matters of great import, and inspire them to undertake        Child studying at a Bahá’í training institute, 1990s,
> Puka Puka, Bolivia. © Bahá’í International
> studies that will benefit mankind."18 Through systematic         Community. Bahá’í Media Bank
> education, children "must be constantly encouraged and made
> eager to gain all the summits of human accomplishment, so that from their earliest years they will be
> taught to have high aims." 19
> 
> Although the Bahá’í teachings strongly emphasize learning all branches of knowledge, children have
> varying capacities and interests. Young people should have the freedom to follow their own preferences
> in pursuing training for their work or profession, to whatever levels their choices require. "Let
> consideration be given to the child’s own preference and inclinations," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá asserts. "Let him be
> placed in the field for which he hath an inclination, a desire, and a talent." 20
> 
> The education of girls is strongly emphasized in the Bahá’í teachings, "for the greatness of this
> wondrous Age will be manifested as a result of progress in the world of women."21 For the purpose of
> advancing civilization, the education of girls is even more essential than that of boys, since mothers, as
> the first educators of children, have a direct impact on future generations. According to ‘Abdu’l-Bahá,
> the education of girls should include "the various branches of knowledge," 22 following the same
> curriculum as boys; character development; and health instruction that focuses on "whatever will
> nurture the health of the body and its physical soundness, and how to guard their children from
> disease." 23
> 
> The Bahá’í teachings also stress that girls must be highly educated in order to take an equal place with
> men in all fields of human endeavor, including agriculture, commerce, government, and industry. To the
> extent that women advance "toward the degree of man in power and privilege, with the right of vote
> and control in human government," they become a profound force for world peace.24 The education and
> advancement of women will assure that the elements of society that are traditionally considered
> masculine or feminine will become more evenly balanced.
> 
> THE WELL-BEING AND PROTECTION OF CHILDREN
> The Bahá’í teachings recognize that the well-being of children and their development into responsible
> adulthood depends on interacting rights and responsibilities that originate within the family and extend
> to society in general. "The integrity of the family bond must be constantly considered, and the rights of
> the individual members must not be transgressed. The rights of the son, the father, the mother—none
> of them must be transgressed, none of them must be arbitrary. Just as the son has certain obligations
> to his father, the father, likewise, has certain obligations to his son. The mother, the sister and other
> members of the household have their certain prerogatives. . . . The injury of one shall be considered
> the injury of all; the comfort of each, the comfort of all; the honor of one, the honor of all."25
> 
> Thus children have the right to be treated with respect and
> gentleness within the family, as do all the members of the
> family, and by others responsible for their care. Children must
> not be subjected to discipline in the form of verbal or physical
> abuse, "for the child’s character will be totally perverted if he be
> subjected to blows or verbal abuse." 26 Those who raise and
> teach children should not rely on harsh measures; according to
> Shoghi Effendi, "Love and kindness have far greater influence
> than punishment upon the improvement of human character." 27
> A Nepalese Bahá’í children's class in October 2002. Bahá’í administrative institutions are called to be
> Photographer: Ryan Lash. © Bahá’í International
> Community. Bahá’í Media Bank                        "uncompromising and vigilant in their commitment to the
> protection of the children entrusted to their care"—a duty that
> specifically includes protecting children from sexual abuse. 28 In addition to being punished according to
> any civil laws, parents who commit incest or knowingly fail to protect their children from sexual abuse
> are subject to sanctions under Bahá’í law.
> 
> Children must also be protected from forced or premature marriage. Bahá’í children under the age of
> fifteen—the age of spiritual maturity—may not be married or betrothed, even with their consent. Once
> they have reached either the age of fifteen or the age at which it is legal to marry under civil law,
> Bahá’ís are free to choose whom they wish to marry, subject to the additional requirement of Bahá’í
> law that they then obtain the consent of all living natural parents. 29
> 
> Children, for their part, have reciprocal responsibilities. Parents must educate their children, and
> children must apply themselves to their studies: "It is incumbent upon the children to exert themselves
> to the utmost in acquiring the art of reading and writing" and in acquiring "such branches of knowledge
> as are useful and necessary, as well as learning an art or skill."30 Parents are bound to guide their
> children with love, setting a good example and disciplining them fairly and firmly but without resort to
> violence; and children, in turn, are enjoined to obey, serve, and attempt to please their parents. Such
> behavior lays the foundation for adults to exercise filial responsibilities later in life: assisting their aged
> or ill parents, praying for them in this world and the next, and engaging in charitable acts on their
> behalf.
> CHILDREN AND THE BAHÁ’Í COMMUNITY
> "When a Bahá’í couple has a child it is a matter of joy to the whole local community as well as to the
> couple," a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, the supreme governing council of
> the Bahá’í Faith, states. 31 Bahá’í children under fifteen, although they "do not automatically inherit the
> Faith of their parents," 32 are integral members of the Bahá’í community. Their parents may register
> them on Bahá’í membership rolls, following administrative procedures left to the discretion of each
> national Bahá’í governing council (See: Administration, Bahá’í.Institutions of Bahá’í
> Administration.National Spiritual Assemblies). A child with one Bahá’í parent may be registered as a
> Bahá’í unless the parent who is not a Bahá’í objects. Children whose parents are not Bahá’ís may
> become members of the Bahá’í community if they wish, provided that their parents agree. All children,
> regardless of their registration status, are welcome at the various Bahá’í community events. At the age
> of fifteen, Bahá’í children are free to reaffirm that they are Bahá’ís or, without stigma, to leave the
> Bahá’í Faith; neither their parents nor their community may compel them to be Bahá’ís.
> 
> Children are encouraged to attend holy day observances and
> monthly community gatherings, called Nineteen Day Feasts
> (See: Administration, Bahá’í.Institutions of Bahá’í
> Administration.The Nineteen Day Feast), where they may
> participate in a general program or attend specially arranged
> activities. Bahá’ís should seek to have their children excused
> from school on Bahá’í holy days and should plan appropriate
> activities for them on those days. Bahá’í children may participate
> in a variety of community events and activities, including
> administrative service on local or national committees, and may
> donate money to the Bahá’í Faith, a privilege that is limited to
> Bahá’ís.
> 
> Children have played a noteworthy role in the Bahá’í Faith since
> its earliest days in the Middle East, with Bahá’í children
> experiencing persecution along with the adults and sometimes
> sacrificing their lives. Perhaps the best-known child martyr of
> the early period was Rúhu’lláh Varqá, the twelve-year-old son of     Students in the primary department of the Tarbíyat
> school for girls, Tehran, Iran. National Bahá’í
> the poet Mírzá ‘Alí-Muhammad Varqá; father and son were              Archives, United States
> executed together in Tehran in May 1896 (See: Tehran.The
> Bahá’í Period to 1921).
> 
> Even before the end of the nineteenth century, Bahá’í communities responded to the need to educate
> children by founding schools for boys and also, in a pioneering effort, for girls. Around 1880, for
> example, a married couple, ‘Alavíyyih Khánum and Mullá ‘Alí Ján, in the village of Máhfurúzak in
> Mazandaran Province in northern Iran, created an elementary school for boys and another for girls.
> Between 1897 and 1907 Bahá’í schools for boys and girls were fully functioning in Ashgabat in Russia’s
> Transcaspian Territory (See: Mashriqu’l-Adhkár.Houses of Worship around the World.Chicago), with
> kindergartens being established a decade later. The Tarbíyat schools for boys and for girls in Tehran,
> recognized by the government in 1903 and 1911 respectively, set high academic standards for pupils of
> all backgrounds (See Tehran.The Bahá’í Period to 1921) and were supported by Western Bahá’ís, who
> organized to provide scholarships and send teachers. Bahá’í schools providing a modern education to
> large numbers of Iranian children, non-Bahá’í as well as Bahá’í, flourished in over twenty locations—
> including such cities as Kashan, Hamadan, Qazvin, and Yazd—until 1934, when they were shut by
> government order because they declined to remain open on Bahá’í holy days, which the Board of
> Education did not recognize as official holidays.
> 
> In the early decades of the twentieth century, individual Bahá’ís also acted out of deep concern for the
> needs of children. Among others, Victoria Bedikian of the United States and Sarah Louisa, Lady
> Blomfield, of England led efforts to assist orphaned and destitute children.
> 
> From the 1930s onward, expansion plans began systematically spreading the Bahá’í Faith throughout
> the world, propelled by the movement from place to place of Bahá’ís, including families with children.
> Generations of pioneers—as Bahá’ís who relocate from their home country or region for the purpose of
> spreading their religion are called—left larger Bahá’í communities, particularly in Iran and North
> America, to spread the Bahá’í Faith widely but thinly around the globe. Thus children have played their
> part in an activity that Bahá’ís regard as one of the most meritorious forms of service.
> 
> In recent decades, the small and scattered Bahá’í communities
> that the pioneers established have grown in size, enabling them
> increasingly to diversify their activities. In the process these
> communities are attempting both to integrate their own children
> into all aspects of community life, which sometimes involves
> overcoming cultural barriers to equal participation by children
> and youth, and to promote the spiritual and physical well-being
> of all children.
> 
> Since the 1970s the Universal House of Justice, in its worldwide
> Bahá’í development plans, has emphasized the fundamental
> responsibility of local and national Bahá’í communities to attend
> to the religious training of children, with a special focus on
> curriculum development, regular classes open to children of any
> religious background, teacher training, and enrichment of           Students and their teacher at the Ocean of Light
> International School, Tonga, 2003. © Bahá’í
> literature for children and youth. Despite this focus, as the       International Community. Bahá’í Media Bank
> twentieth century neared an end, progress in establishing Bahá’í
> children’s classes remained limited. "A small number of countries had many years of experience with
> systematic, sequential weekly children’s classes," according to an assessment published in 2002. "In
> most parts of the world, however, children’s classes were few, and a majority of those that did exist
> were held only sporadically. Many classes had no materials, much less a series of comprehensive,
> systematic lesson plans. Children of different ages were usually grouped together in one class, further
> limiting the effectiveness of the teaching." 33
> 
> In November 1999 the Universal House of Justice, focusing on the link between child education and the
> worldwide growth and development of the Bahá’í community, called the Bahá’ís to "new levels of
> intensity" in integrating child education into "the process of community development." 34 A few months
> later, observing that the efforts made in previous decades had "fallen short of the need," the Universal
> House of Justice challenged the Bahá’ís to adopt an appropriate "attitude" toward children and a
> heightened level of "general interest" in the welfare of the community’s "most precious treasure": "They
> are a trust no community can neglect with impunity. An all-embracing love of children, the manner of
> treating them, the quality of the attention shown them, the spirit of adult behaviour toward them—
> these are all among the vital aspects of the requisite attitude. . . . An atmosphere needs to be
> maintained in which children feel that they belong to the community and share its purpose." The
> Universal House of Justice placed these concerns within the context of world conditions affecting
> children: "In the current state of society, children face a cruel fate. Millions and millions in country after
> country are dislocated socially. . . . Our worldwide community cannot escape the consequences of these
> conditions. This realization should spur us all to urgent and sustained effort in the interests of children
> and the future." 35
> An immediate upsurge in Bahá’í child education activities occurred as increasing numbers of countries
> established an administrative structure responsible for educating children; adopted existing curricular
> materials or began developing new ones; produced new literature or made literature more available to
> teachers; and, in particular, strove to recruit and train teachers for children’s classes. A particularly
> noteworthy development has been the incorporation of teacher training as an essential component
> within the system of Bahá’í training institutes, the Faith’s primary engine of human resource
> development at the beginning of the twenty-first century, and the designation of children’s classes as a
> core activity for Bahá’í communities. As a result, many countries increased the number of regular
> children’s classes as well as other activities, including children’s conferences in places as diverse as
> Cambodia and Canada; summer camps in Colombia and the Cook Islands; and special programs during
> national Bahá’í "summer schools" in such places as Malawi and Belgium. 36
> 
> On the global level the Bahá’í International Community, a
> recognized nongovernmental organization (NGO) at the United
> Nations, representing the Bahá’ís of the world, strongly supports
> United Nations conventions and programs that have the goal of
> protecting and educating children. It has held consultative status
> with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) since 1976;
> participates in child-related activities at the United Nations, such
> as the General Assembly Special Session on Children held on 8–
> 10 May 2002; and has chaired UNICEF’s Global Forum, an
> executive committee of NGOs from around the world.
> Members of a Bahá’í Education in State Schools
> Bahá’í organizations at the local and national level participate in
> (BESS) class in Perth, Western Australia, displaying
> their work at a school assembly. 2005. © Bahá’í
> a wide range of development activities around the world that
> International Community. Bahá’í Media Bank
> benefit children. In Western Ghana, for example, the Olinga
> Foundation for Human Development operates a literacy project in the local language that has reached
> thousands of children and adolescents in rural schools. In Australia a program of Bahá’í Education in
> State Schools, which began in the 1980s as an effort by Bahá’í parents in New South Wales to provide
> classes for their children during periods set aside for religious education, has expanded to more than
> three hundred state-run schools throughout the country, with some six thousand students ranging in
> age from five to fifteen years. The classes include students from a wide variety of religious backgrounds
> and teach them to develop virtues, to respect the diversity of religious traditions, to foster attitudes and
> practices that promote peace, and to think independently.
> 
> The involvement of the Mongolian Development Center in supporting the implementation of the United
> Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child has led to the creation of a program that empowers
> kindergarten teachers to foster the development of moral capabilities in their students. Further, the
> Cambodian Organization for Research, Development and Education has established a network of village
> tutorial classes and centers of learning, most notably in Battambang Province, that provide education
> for children and adolescents by developing human resources in the local community.
> 
> In addition to the activities of such agencies, individual Bahá’ís and local and national Bahá’í institutions
> have established several hundred schools serving thousands of students from preprimary through to
> secondary level. These range in size and complexity, from a group of fifty tutorial schools established by
> Fundación Jayuir in Colombia that serve the indigenous Wayuu people living on the Venezuelan border
> to the Townshend International School in the Czech Republic, an accredited coeducational boarding
> school in Hluboká that consciously seeks to foster an appreciation for human diversity among students
> from widely differing backgrounds.
> 
> Bahá’ís have been particularly active in developing programs that focus on moral education based on
> the principle of the oneness of humankind. "Children who learn to accept themselves and others will be
> able to envision a world in which diversity need not be a source of conflict," the Bahá’í International
> Community has stated. "Respect for human rights creates the possibility for peace and provides a
> realistic foundation for an all-embracing, cooperative social order based on justice." 37 Translating this
> vision into social action, the Institute for Moral and Spiritual Education in Russia has drawn on stories,
> poems, and fairy tales from Russian literature and folklore to create moral education materials for
> children and is providing teacher training in the use of these books in the classroom. In New York,
> professional artists, teachers, and volunteers have assisted the Children's Theater Company—using
> weekly classes and rehearsals in drama, dance, and musical theater—to address character education,
> multiethnic cultural interaction, good citizenship, conflict resolution, and literacy among children of
> diverse backgrounds aged four to eighteen.
> 
> The Bahá’í attitude toward children thus stems from profound
> respect for the noble nature of the child and the richness of the
> child’s inner reality. In the Bahá’í view, an upbringing that
> recognizes the human rights of children within the context of the
> oneness of humankind, that treats them with love and
> tenderness, and that conveys high expectations in cultivating
> virtues—when combined with commitment to achieving
> excellence in the sciences and arts—will train children to be
> "both learned and good." Such an upbringing will produce "light
> upon light." 38                                                           Students in a class at Townshend International
> School, Czech Republic, 1996. © Bahá’í International
> Community. Bahá’í Media Bank
> 
> Authors: Nancy A. Davis and the Editors
> 
> © 2009 National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. Terms of Use.
> 
> Notes:
> 1. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, The Promulgation of Universal Peace: Talks Delivered by ‘Abdu’l-Bahá during His Visit to
> the United States and Canada in 1912, comp. Howard MacNutt, new ed. (Wilmette, IL, USA: Bahá’í
> Publishing Trust, 2007) 8.2: 72.
> 2. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, comp. and trans. Laura Clifford Barney, 1st pocket-size ed.
> (Wilmette, IL, USA: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1984, 2008 printing) 57: 212.
> 3. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, comp. Research Department of the Universal
> House of Justice, trans. Committee at the Bahá’í World Center and Marzieh Gail, 1st pocket-size ed.
> (Wilmette, IL, USA: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1996, 2004 printing) 103.5: 138.
> 4. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions 57: 215.
> 5. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 100.2: 134.
> 6. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation 5.15: 530.
> 7. Bahá’u’lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh, trans. Shoghi Effendi, 1st pocket-size ed.
> (Wilmette, IL, USA: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1983, 2005 printing) 122: 260.
> 8. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, in The Compilation of Compilations, comp. Universal House of Justice, vol. 1
> (Maryborough, VIC: Bahá’í Publications Australia, 1991) 622: 278.
> 9. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation 1.3: 468.
> 10. Bahá’u’lláh, Tablets of Bahá’u’lláh Revealed after the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, comp. Research Department of the
> Universal House of Justice, trans. Habib Taherzadeh, 1st pocket-size ed. (Wilmette, IL: Bahá’í Publishing
> Trust, 1988, 2005 printing) 68.
> 11. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, in Lights of Guidance: A Bahá'í
> Reference File, comp. Helen Hornby, 6th ed. (New Delhi: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1999) 469: 141.
> 12. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 104.2: 139.
> 13. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 111.7: 144.
> 14. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 95.2: 132.
> 15. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 111.2: 144.
> 16. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation 8.1: 71–72.
> 17. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 138.4: 167.
> 18. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 102.3: 136.
> 19. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 110.1: 142–43.
> 20. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, in Compilation of Compilations, vol. 1, 627: 282.
> 21. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, in Compilation of Compilations, vol. 1, 618: 276.
> 22. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, in Compilation of Compilations, vol. 1, 631: 284.
> 23. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 94.3: 131.
> 24. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation 5.14: 530.
> 25. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Promulgation 6.15: 232–33.
> 26. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 95.2: 132.
> 27. From a letter written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi, in Compilation of Compilations, vol. 1, 667: 300–01.
> 28. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, 24 Jan. 1993, in National Spiritual
> Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, Guidelines for Spiritual Assemblies on Domestic Violence: A
> Supplement to Developing Distinctive Bahá’í Communities (Evanston, IL, USA: Office of Assembly
> Development, 2003) 23.
> 29. "Bahá’u’lláh has clearly stated the consent of all living parents is required for a Bahá’í marriage. This
> applies whether the parents are Bahá’ís or non-Bahá’ís, divorced for years or not. This great law He has
> laid down to strengthen the social fabric, to knit closer the ties of the home, to place a certain gratitude
> and respect in the hearts of children for those who have given them life and sent their souls out on the
> eternal journey towards their Creator." (Shoghi Effendi, in The Compilation of Compilations, comp. Universal
> House of Justice, vol. 2 [Maryborough, VIC: Bahá’í Publications Australia, 1991] 2326: 449.) "Regarding the
> matter of adopted children, the consent of all natural parents must be obtained wherever this is legally
> possible but no effort should be made to trace the natural parents if this contravenes the provision of the
> adoption certificate or the laws of the country." (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the
> National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, 24 Oct. 1965, in Lights of Guidance 1250: 373.)
> 30. Bahá’u’lláh, in Compilation of Compilations, vol. 1, 6: 2; vol. 1, 17: 4.
> 31. Universal House of Justice, Messages from the Universal House of Justice, 1963–1986: The Third Epoch
> of the Formative Age (Wilmette, IL, USA: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1996) 280.20: 488.
> 32. From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice, in Lights of Guidance 512: 153.
> 33. The Four Year Plan and the Twelve Month Plan, 1996–2001: Summary of Achievements, prepared
> under the supervision of the International Teaching Centre (Haifa: Bahá’í World Centre, 2002) 104.
> 34. Universal House of Justice to the Bahá’ís of the world, 26 Nov. 1999, quoted in The Four Year Plan and
> the Twelve Month Plan 103.
> 35. Universal House of Justice, letter to the Bahá’ís of the world, Apr. 2000 (Ridván 157 B.E.).
> 36. The Four Year Plan and the Twelve Month Plan 108.
> 37. Bahá’í International Community, Rights of the Child (Geneva, 8 Mar. 1993), http://www.bic-
> un.bahai.org/93-0308.htm     (accessed 15 Jan. 2009).
> 38. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 110.2: 143.
> 
> Understanding the Citations
> Citing Bahá’í Encyclopedia Project Articles
> Other Sources and Related Reading:
> For references in the Bahá’í authoritative texts, see ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions 57: 212–16;
> 66: 240; ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, Selections 94–125: 123–44; Bahá’í Education, in Compilation of Compilations, vol.
> 1, 552–717: 245–318; National Education Task Force, Foundations for a Spiritual Education: Research of
> the Bahá’í Writings (Wilmette, IL, USA: National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States,
> 1995); National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, Developing Distinctive Bahá’í
> Communities: Guidelines for Spiritual Assemblies with June 2007 Updates, 3rd ed. (Evanston, IL, USA:
> National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, 2007); >em, comp. Research Department
> of the Universal House of Justice (Wilmette, IL, USA: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 2008) 39-81: 31-63.
> Other sources used in preparing this article include The Four Year Plan and the Twelve Month Plan; John S.
> Hatcher, "Child and Family in Bahá’í Religion," Religious Dimensions of Child and Family Life: Reflections on
> the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, ed. Harold Coward and Philip Cook (Victoria, BC, Can.: U of
> Victoria, 1996) 141–60.
> The Bahá’í International Community has issued a number of statements regarding issues related to
> children; see http://www.bic-un.bahai.org/     (accessed 15 Jan. 2009). Articles on activities and events
> related to children published by the Bahá’í World New Service may be found at http://news.bahai.org/
> (accessed 15 Jan. 2009); and articles published by One Country: The Online Newsletter of the Bahá’í
> International Community are available at http://www.onecountry.org/      (accessed 15 Jan. 2009).
> Books by Bahá’í authors that deal with raising and educating children include Australian National Bahá’í
> Community Development Committee and Australian National Marriage and Family Development Committee,
> A Bahá’í Parenting Programme (National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Australia: Mona Vale, NSW,
> Australia, 1990); A[‘Alí-Akbar] Furútan, Mothers, Fathers, and Children: Practical Advice to Parents
> (Oxford: George Ronald, 1990); Peggy Goding, Raising Children as Peacemakers (Los Angeles: Kalimát
> Press, 1989); Bahíyyih Nakhjavání, When We Grow Up (Oxford: George Ronald, 1979); Linda Kavelin
> Popov, Dan Popov, and John Kavelin, The Family Virtues Guide: Simple Ways to Bring Out the Best in Our
> Children and Ourselves (New York: Plume, 1997); H. T. D. Rost, The Brilliant Stars: The Bahá’í Faith and
> the Education of Children (Oxford: George Ronald, 1992); Margaret Ruhe, Guidelines for Parents, 3rd ed.
> (New Delhi: Bahá’í Publishing Trust, 1989); Harlan Carl Scheffler, The Quest: Helping Our Children Finding
> Meaning and Purpose (Oxford, George Ronald, 2006).
> For various Bahá’í perspectives on issues related to children, see David Diehl and Elizabeth Ansel Kirsch,
> "Children and Racism: The Complexities of Culture and Cognition," World Order ns 33.1 (2001): 37–48;
> Sandra S. Fotos, "Strategies for Spiritualization," The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 9 (1999): 1–25; Winston E.
> Langley, "Children, Moral Development, and Global Transformation," World Order ns 28.3 (1997): 13–23;
> Marzieh Radpour and Michael L. Penn, "The Role of Religion in Eradicating Child Sexual Abuse," World Order
> ns 28.4 (1997): 7–19; William Collins, "Bahá’í Family Life: Beyond the Traditional," Search for Values:
> Ethics in Bahá’í Thought, ed. John Danesh and Seena Fazel, Studies in the Bábí and Bahá’í Religions 15 (Los
> Angeles: Kalimát, 2004) 21–43; Geeta Gandhi Kingdon, "Women, Education, and Development," Reason &
> Revelation: New Directions in Bahá’í Thought, ed. Seena Fazel and John Danesh, Studies in the Bábí and
> Bahá’í Religions 13 (Los Angeles: Kalimát, 2002) 231–43; Geeta Gandhi Kingdon, "Women’s Education:
> How Does It Matter?" Bahá’í Studies Review 11 (2003) 1–9.
> Books and periodicals for children and junior youth form a growing segment of Bahá’í publications
> worldwide. The award-winning magazine Brilliant Star, published bimonthly by the National Spiritual
> Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States, is read by English-speaking subscribers aged eight to twelve
> in more than forty countries.
> Information for this article has been received from the Universal House of Justice, Department of the
> Secretariat, and from Judith Beames on behalf of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of Australia.
> 
> Understanding the Citations
> Citing Bahá’í Encyclopedia Project Articles
>
> — *Children (Used by permission of the curator)*