The Baha’i Faith is one of the newest and least known of world religions. Beginning as an offshoot of Islam, the Bahai Faith is felt by its adherents to be the newest revelation of God and the true religion, fulfilling all religions which have come before it.
The Baha’i Faith: A Universal Religion
The Baha’i Faith is an ecumenical religion, seeking to unite all peoples of
all different religions under the single banner of the revelation of
Baha’u’llah, their Prophet. According to the primary tenets of the Baha’i
tradition, all religions are the result of Manifestations of God, holy
revelations which come to different peoples at different points in history to
lead the way.
The fact that these revelations come at very different times to very
different peoples explains the great differences which are so readily visible
in any examination of the variety of world religions. It is the belief of
Baha’is that all of these religions are part of the one, true religion of God,
which changes from time to time depending upon circumstances and the need of
the people, but following one single plan for the development of history.
It is the belief of Baha’is that the Baha’i Faith is the religion for the
modern world. It preaches tolerance and unity, and that one day all the peoples
of the world will become Baha’i and that the coming of the Age of Peace
promised by so many different religions will come once the Baha’i Faith has
been spread to all the peoples of the world.
Although Baha’is believe that theirs is the one true faith for this age,
they respect and revere the traditions of those who have come before them, from
Islam, their most immediate forebear, to Zoroastrianism to Christianity to
Buddhism to Judaism to the religions of the aboriginal peoples of the Americas.
All are the results of the workings of the one true God.
Baha’u’llah, the last of the great Prophets (for this age), fulfills the
promises of all faiths of a Messianic Age. With the fulfilment of the Baha’i
Faith all of humanity will know peace, just as promised in the Scriptures of so
many different religions. All Baha’is today are working towards this goal.
A Brief History of the Baha’i Faith
The Baha’i Faith is an outgrowth of Babism, a religious movement which began
in Persia (now Iran)
in the middle of the 19th century. Its founding leader was Siyyid
`Ali-Muhammed, a descendent of Muhammed who called himself the Bab (Gate).
Babism was itself an outgrowth of the Shayki movement in Persia,
which preached the coming of a Promised One, the Hidden Imam, who would come to
lead the world into the Messianic Age. The Bab preached that he was this
Promised One, but that there would also be another to come after him who would
be greater than him.
The Bab composed his holy book, the Bayan during his ministry, which
was to replace the Quran as the most holy of texts.
For religious as well as political reasons, the Bab was seen as a threat to
the Persian authorities, and he was ultimately put to death by firing squad in
1850. At the time of his death it was wondered who would pick up the reigns of
his fledgeling movement.
The two contenders for control of the Babi movement were two brothers. These
two were Subh-e-Azal and the man who has come to be known as Baha’u’llah (Glory
of God). Each of these claimed that the Bab had chosen them to be heirs of his
movement.
This conflicted resulted in a split in the Babi movement. Those who followed
Azal eventually became known as Azalis, while those who followed Baha’u’llah
eventually became known as Baha’is.
Not long after the death of the Bab, Baha’u’llah was imprisoned for his work
in the new religious movement. He was in and out of prison for several years,
and was finally sentenced in 1863 to exile in the island prison of Acre
in Palestine. Acre
is most known in history for the victory that Richard the Lionheart achieved
there during the 2nd Crusade.
On his way to Acre, Baha’u’llah camped alongside Mount
Carmel in Palestine.
This was the same mountain where the prophet Elijah had once defeated the pagan
priests of his time in a contest of magic, and had also been the center of the
religion of the Samaritans, descendants of the Israelites. It is also the
central location of the Baha’i Faith today. The Shrine of the Bab now sits atop
its crest.
While camping on the side of Mount Carmel,
Baha’u’llah revealed a shocking revelation: he was the one of whom the Bab had
spoken, the one who would be greater than him. He was the Mahdi of Islam, the
Second Coming of Jesus Christ. He was the newest Manifestation of God to appear
upon the earth.
During his long years of exile in Acre, Baha’u’llah’s
disciples grew in number, and Baha’u’llah composed a vast number of holy texts,
over 40 books in all. These include the Kitab-i-Aqdas (Most Holy Book),
the Kitab-i-Iqan (Book of Certitude) and The Hidden Words, among
many others.
Upon the death of Baha’u’llah in 1892, leadership of this burgeoning Baha’i
movement went to his son, Abdul Baha. Abdul Baha began the work of spreading
the faith even farther than his father had, and under his leadership it began
to become a truly international religion.
It was under Abdul Baha’s grandson, Shoghi Effendi that the movement truly
took off, however. Shoghi Effendi was educated in England
at Oxford, and was the first to
begin translating the writings of Baha’u’llah into English. He is called the
Guardian of the Faith, and was the last single leader of the Baha’i movement.
Shoghi Effendi left the leadership of the Baha’i Faith to a group known as
Hands of the Cause of God upon his death. It was the duty of these men to
create the Universal House of Justice (UHJ). In his writings Baha’u’llah had
spoken of the Universal House of Justice, and wrote that it would someday be
the center of the Baha’i Faith. Today it is the ultimate guiding body of the faith.
The Baha’i Priesthood
Unlike other religions, the Baha’i have no specialized clergy. Rather,
Baha’is believe in the priesthood of all believers. All members of a Baha’i
community take equal part in all religious activities.
The hierarchy of the Baha’i Faith is not clerical in nature, but is based
upon elected councils. Local councils are elected by communities, who then go
on to elect state or provincial councils, who then go on to elect national
councils, who then go on to elect the members of the Universal House of
Justice, the highest authority in the Baha’i hierarchy. Although women are
allowed to participate in lower levels of these councils, only men may appear
in the UHJ.
Although these elections would seem a political process, for the Baha’is it
is simply a decision by the community of who would best represent them, and not
an expression of base political motivations. Baha’is do not engage in politics:
they are not allowed to run for secular office, nor do they even vote in
secular elections.
The Baha’i Calendar and Holidays
The Baha’is follow their own special calendar, which was revealed to them by
Baha’u’llah in the Kitab-i-Aqdas. Unlike the Islamic calendar, which is lunar,
the Baha’i calendar is solar with a 365 day year. (366 in leap year).
The year is split up into 19 months, each of which has 19 days. There are
also four intercalary days (5 in leap years) between the 18th and 19th months.
Although they differ in the number of months, the week stays the same with 7
days.
Baha’is have a special 19 day period of prayer and fasting known as Ridvan.
During this time no Baha’i may eat during daylight hours, they may only eat at
nighttime. This holy month is celebrated between the months of Jalal and Jamal
oin the Baha’i calendar, April 21st to May 9th of the Gregorian calendar. The
1st, 9th and 12th day of Ridvan are counted as special holy days in and of
themselves.
Besides the three special dates of Ridvan, there are 8 other holy days in
the Baha’i Faith:
Baha’i Holy Days
Naw-Ruz (Baha’i New
Year) March 21
1st Day of Ridvan
April 21
9th Day of Ridvan
April 29
12th Day of Ridvan May
2
Declaration of the Bab
May 23
Ascension of Baha’u’llah
May 29
Martyrdom of the Bab
July 9
Birth of the Bab
October 20
Birth of Baha’u’llah
November 12
Day of the Covenant
November 26
Ascension of Abdul-Baha
November 28
During all holidays save the Day of the Covenant and the Ascension of
Abdul-Baha Baha’is may not work and must celebrate with prayer and fasting.
The Future of the Baha’i Faith
More than perhaps any other religion, the Baha’is are a people with a
mission. It is their firm belief that the Baha’i Faith will come to dominate
the world, and through such institutions as the Universal House of Justice they
will bring peace and justice to the world under the guidance of the Lord God.
Although only possessing at best 7 ½ million adherents today, these
adherents are spread out to countries across the globe (aside from a heavy
concentration in India).
It is the purposeful mission of the Baha’i Faith to attempt to make their
influence known in all parts of the world, even if their numbers are not yet as
high as they one day will be.
The Baha’i International Community also has close dealings with the United
Nations. Representatives of the Baha’i Faith have worked with the UN since the
beginning of that institution in 1945; they were present at the founding in San
Francisco.
Today the Baha’i International Community has official representatives in the
United Nations, and even has consultative status on the UN Economic and Social
Council (ECOSOC) as well as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
Although they play consulting roles in these organizations, they again must
stay out of any of the politics of the United Nations.
Where the future of the Baha’i Faith is going no one can know. According to
themselves they are only going to grow bigger and stronger until eventually all
of humanity has seen the light of Baha’u’llah. However, it is a religion which
seems to be stagnating, with few new adherents entering the faith, and many
people often leaving. Either way the Baha’i Faith will continue to make itself
known in little ways, and play a role in the shaping of the international
community.