…a careful scrutiny [of the laws of the Kitab-i-Aqdas]
discloses that they govern three areas: the individual’s relationship to God,
physical and spiritual matters which benefit the individual directly, and
relations among individuals and between the individual and society. They can be
grouped under the following headings: prayer and fasting; laws of personal
status governing marriage, divorce and inheritance; a range of other laws,
ordinances and prohibitions, as well as exhortations; and the abrogation of
specific laws and ordinances of previous Dispensations. A salient
characteristic is their brevity. They constitute the kernel of a vast range of
law that will arise in centuries to come. This elaboration of the law will be
enacted by the Universal House of Justice under the authority conferred upon it
by Bahá’u’lláh Himself.
- The Universal House of Justice (‘Introduction to
the Kitab-i-Aqdas’, 1992)
