The Bahá’í standard of sex morality is thus very high, but
it is by no means unreasonably rigid. While free love is condemned, yet
marriage is considered as a holy act which every human being should be
encouraged, though not forced, to perform. The sex instinct, like all other
human instincts, is not necessarily evil. It is a power which, if properly
directed, can bring joy and satisfaction to the individual. If misused or abused it brings of course
incalculable harm not only to the individual but also to the society in which
he lives. While the Bahá’ís condemn asceticism and all extreme forms of
self-mortification they at the same time view with disfavour the current
theories of sex ethics which cannot but bring ruin to human society. - Shoghi Effendi (From a
letter dated 29 May 1935 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual
believer; compilation: ‘Family Life’, prepared by the Research Department of
the Universal House of Justice, March 2008)
