But while the Guardian fully approves of your wish to dedicate your whole life to the service of the Cause, he also feels the necessity of drawing your attention to the fact that in case you get married it would be your duty as a Bahá’í wife not to neglect your home duties, which indeed form a close and vital part of your general Bahá’í work. Family considerations should of course be subordinated to the collective interests and welfare of the Cause. But they should be given their due importance, if a Bahá’í wishes to lead a normal, well-balanced and constructive life. The loyalties facing a Bahá’í are not equally binding and important, but this does not necessarily make them irreconcilable.
- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 23 November 1937 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)
