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Introduction
| Religious Centers | Internet Links |
Introduction
The Baha'i Faith is an independent world religion with several million adherents worldwide, representing almost all nationalities, ethnic groups, classes, professions, and religious backgrounds. The writings that guide the life of the Baha'i community include works by Baha'u'llah (1817-1892), the prophet-founder of the Baha'i Faith, and interpretations by his son Abdu'l-Baha (1844-1921), and his great-grandson Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957). Baha'i literature can be read in over 800 languages today.
Central to the Baha'i Faith are the oneness of God, the oneness of religion, and the oneness of the human race. Baha'u'llah taught that divine revelation is a continuous and progressive process and that the missions of the messengers of God represent successive stages in the spiritual evolution of human society. Baha'u'llah's mission, Baha'is believe, is the culmination of the work of Buddha, Christ, Muhammad, and other great religious teachers and messengers.
The Baha'i Faith was founded in Iran in the 19th century when Baha'u'llah was declared to be the new messenger prophesied by Mirza Ali-Muhammad (1819-1850), also known as the Bab, or the "Gate." Such claims aroused the hostility of the Shi'ite clergy and Persian authorities. The Bab was executed, and Baha'u'llah, because he openly declared his mission as messenger of God, was exiled from Iran and imprisoned. In prison, he wrote more than 100 volumes on the dawning of a new age and the need for new spiritual principles. He died in 1892. The 100th anniversary of the passing of Baha'u'llah was marked in New York in November 1992 with a world congress that drew 30,000 Baha'i members.
Today the affairs of the worldwide Baha'i community are administered by the Universal House of Justice in Haifa, Israel, the elected international governing council of the Baha'i community. There are also National and Local Spiritual Assemblies. Establishing a global framework for collective security and world peace is central to the Baha'i vision, as is the eradication of racial bigotry and religious intolerance, the achievement of full equality of the sexes, the establishment of universal education, and the elimination of the extremes of wealth and poverty. The Baha'i community encourages the independent investigation of truth by each individual and the open exchange of viewpoints in an atmosphere of friendship and fellowship.