December 13

Even though there have been outstanding women such as Sarah, Asiyih, the Virgin Mary, Fatimih, Tahirih and the Greatest Holy leaf in every Dispensation, it is an incontrovertible fact that all Manifestations of God known to us have been men. Moreover, it is a clear provision in Baha’i administration that the Guardians were to be men and that membership on the Universal House of Justice is confined to men. Whether these acts point to a differentiation in function that is unalterable, or whether it was merely a characteristic of a period which will change when mankind attains its maturity is a matter that will, no doubt, become clear in the future. The important point for Baha'is to remember is that, in face of the categorical pronouncements in Baha'i Scripture establishing the equality of men and women, even these facts are no evidence at all of the superiority of the male over the female sex. 'Abdu'l-Baha has explained that equality does not mean identity of function. He has also stated that the few areas in which men and women are not equal are "negligible". 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 27 October 1986 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice; Memorandum from the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 23 February 1992)