According to the Bahá’í Teachings, marriage is a union
between a man and a woman, and sexual relations are only permissible between a
couple who are married to each other. This is set forth in the Writings of
Bahá’u’lláh and in the authoritative statements of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi
Effendi and is not susceptible to change by the House of Justice. However, the
Bahá’í community does not seek to impose its values on others and does not pass
judgement on others on the basis of its own moral standards. Rather,
Bahá’u’lláh enjoins the believers to manifest tolerance and respect towards
all, and therefore, to regard those with a homosexual orientation with
prejudice or disdain would be entirely against the spirit of the Faith.
- The Universal House of Justice (From a
letter dated 22 December 2009 written on behalf of the Universal House of
Justice to an individual believer)
