A new conception of family begins with a new conception of
marriage. Bahá’u’lláh observes that marriage is not only “the key to the
perpetuation of life for the peoples of the world”, but “the inscrutable
instrument for the fulfilment of their destiny.”
For Bahá’ís, marriage is not only a physical bond, but a
spiritual one as well, with implications for life in this world and the next.
Bahá’í marriage, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá explains, “is the commitment of the two parties
one to the other, and their mutual attachment of mind and heart”, so that they
“may ever improve the spiritual life of each other,” and so that they may
“abide with each other in the closest companionship” and “be even as a single
soul.” In Bahá’í marriage, two souls learn how to assist one another so that
both may achieve their twofold moral purpose—to develop their inherent
God-given potentialities and to contribute to an ever-advancing civilization.
The relationship the couple establishes beginning with their marriage ceremony
will, throughout space and time, affect the forging of countless new
relationships among other people that can constructively reshape lives and
communities.
The Bahá’í perspective on marriage transcends dichotomies
arising from permissive and regressive perspectives prevalent in society. In
Bahá’í marriage, love, equality, intimacy, fidelity, sexual relations,
childbearing, and childrearing are integrated and their interconnection
strengthened, establishing a fortress for personal and social well-being.
Permissive social practices undermine marriage and the family by disaggregating
these features that are essential to human flourishing, while regressive practices
overemphasize or distort one or another of these features to oppress family
members. Adherence to the Teachings helps to resolve such problems. Much needs
to be learned across diverse cultural settings throughout the world about the
implications of all the features of Bahá’í marriage found in the Teachings. For
example, central to the development of a new pattern of Bahá’í married life is
the principle of the equality of women and men. As this principle is applied
between the wife and husband within the marriage, the relationship is
strengthened and thrives, and girls and boys will be raised with a new
understanding of equality and its practical expression. The ramifications of
this principle will thus gradually extend to future generations and contribute
to the advancement of women until ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s expectation that women will
“participate fully and equally in the affairs of the world” is entirely
realized.
- The Universal House of Justice (From a message dated 19 March 2025
to the Bahá’ís of the World; online Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i
World Center)