# Obedience to Civil Authority

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

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> In the United States questions often arise as to what civil authority one 
> should obey especially when there is apparent conflict between the 
> immediate civil authority under which one resides and a superior 
> authority, such as a state government or the Federal Government.  People 
> unfamiliar with the workings of the legal system find it difficult to 
> determine their course of action when such conflicts arise.  Often it is 
> thought that the superior authority is the one to be obeyed under these 
> circumstances; thus, for example, in cases of school desegregation there are 
> those who, in trying to carry out a Federal ruling, find themselves in open 
> dispute with others who may prefer to support contrary actions of a local 
> or state authority.
> 
> A Bahá'í caught in the cross-fire generated by this kind of conflict is often 
> bewildered because he wishes to carry out the injunction of Bahá'u'lláh to 
> be loyal to one's government.  But how, he may well ask himself, can one 
> be loyal to two or more conflicting authorities?  The tendency of many 
> people in choosing among loyalties is to feel that the Federal Government, 
> being the supreme authority in the land, must be obeyed in preference to 
> any local or state authority.  How, then, does the principle of loyalty to 
> government apply when there is apparent conflict between state and 
> Federal laws?  The following excerpts from the writings of the Guardian 
> and The Universal House of Justice clarify these questions.
> 
> "To all administrative regulations which the civil authorities 
> have issued from time to time, or will issue in the future in that land, as 
> in all other countries, the Bahá'í community, faithful to its sacred 
> obligations towards its government, and conscious of its civic duties, has 
> yielded, and will continue to yield implicit obedience...." (Shoghi Effendi, 
> God Passes By)
> 
> "We see, therefore, that we must do two things - shun politics like the 
> plague, and be obedient to the Government in power in the place where 
> we reside. If they (the Bahá'ís) become involved in the issues the 
> Governments of the world are struggling over, they will be lost.  But if 
> they build up the Bahá'í pattern they can offer it as a remedy when all 
> else has failed." (Letter written on Shoghi Effendi's behalf, Bahá'í 
> News 241, p.14)
> 
> "The full text of the quotations from which these excerpts are taken 
> makes it clear that Bahá'ís must live the Bahá'í life, fully and 
> continuously, unless prevented by the authorities.  If local, state, or 
> federal authorities actively prohibit Bahá'í life or some aspect of it, then 
> Bahá'ís must submit to these requirements in all cases except where a 
> spiritual principle is involved such as a denial of faith. This, Bahá'ís 
> cannot do under any circumstances.  The lives the friends lead will prove 
> to be the greatest teachers." (The Universal House of Justice, July 23, 
> 1964)
> 	
> 
> Bahá'ís obey the law, Federal or state, unless submission to these laws 
> amounts to a denial of their Faith.  We live the Bahá'í life, fully and 
> continuously, unless prevented by authorities.  This implies, if it does not 
> categorically state, that a Bahá'í is not required to make a judgment as to 
> the precedence of federal or state law — this is for the courts to
> decide." 
> (The Universal House of Justice, March 30. 1965)
> 
> 
> Civil disobedience is not permissible for Bahá'ís. However, a Bahá'í may 
> decide, while obeying a repugnant regulation, to complain to the 
> authorities, if wisdom and consultation with Bahá'í institutions dictate such 
> action.
> 
> In conclusion, a Bahá'í should be implicitly obedient to the constituted 
> authority in the community wherein he functions.  Thus, for example, if 
> school administrators are permitted by the state to promulgate rules and 
> regulations for student conduct, the Bahá'í student will obey those rules.  
> He may take part in action to correct such rules only by conduct which 
> does not violate any Bahá'í principle or any law or regulation including the 
> rule itself.  Where a state or local government or agency enforces an unjust 
> law, or unjustly enforces any law, the Bahá'í within the jurisdiction will not 
> attempt to demonstrate the invalidity of the law by violating it, nor will he 
> violate any second law in protest against the first.
> 
> By such a standard of conduct. universally applied. the American Bahá'í 
> Community will not only be demonstrating that striking contrast between 
> itself and secular society longed for by the beloved Guardian but also be 
> freed to ". . . concentrate on perfecting our characters as individual Bahá'ís; 
> and on maturing our still embryonic. and as yet improperly understood 
> World Order; on spreading the Message. according to the provisions of the 
> Divine Plan; and, on building a tightly knit, world-wide Bahá'í 
> community."
> 
> Statement by the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States
>
> — *Obedience to Civil Authority (Used by permission of the curator)*