What Is The Baha'i Faith?

An Introduction

(Taken from Baha'i World - the official Baha'i web site)

The Baha'i Faith is the youngest of the world's independent religions. Its founder, Baha'u'llah (1817-1892), is regarded by Baha'is as the most recent in the line of Messengers of God that stretches back beyond recorded time and that includes Abraham, Moses, Buddha, Zoroaster, Christ and Muhammad.

The central theme of Baha'u'llah's message is that humanity is one single race and that the day has come for its unification in one global society. God, Baha'u'llah said, has set in motion historical forces that are breaking down traditional barriers of race, class, creed, and nation and that will, in time, give birth to a universal civilisation. The principal challenge facing the peoples of the earth is to accept the fact of their oneness and to assist the processes of unification.

One of the purposes of the Baha'i Faith is to help make this possible. A world-wide community of some five million Baha'is, representative of most of the nations, races and cultures on earth, is working to give Baha'u'llah's teachings practical effect. Their experience will be a source of encouragement to all who share their vision of humanity as one global family and the earth as one homeland.

The Baha'i Faith is the second most widespread of the world's independent religions, established in 235 countries and territories throughout the world. We come from over 2,100 ethnic, racial, and tribal groups.

(Please note that Baha'i and Baha'u'llah are simplified versions of the correct spelling - Bahá'í and Bahá'u'lláh respectively - for index and search reasons)

A summary of the key elements of the Baha'i Faith

Oneness: one God, one Humankind, and one Evolving Faith
Elimination of all forms of prejudice
Complete equality of women and men in all aspects of human society
Belief that truth is one and, therefore, scientific and religious truths are in harmony
Universal compulsory education for all children throughout the world
Establishment of a world language that everyone will learn in addition to their native language
World peace through world governance
Elimination of the extremes of wealth and poverty
Free and independent investigation of truth by every individual

For more detail on Baha'u'llah and the Baha'i Faith, a good place to start is the official Baha'i web site. Alternatively, there is an excellent Web-enabled version of "An Introduction to the Baha'i Faith" by Dr. Moojan Momen which can be found at Spirit Of Glory: The Baha'i Faith.