Up to the age of fifteen years, children are under the direction of their parents. At the age of fifteen, they may declare their Faith as a conviction, and be registered as Bahá’í youth, whether the parents are Bahá’ís or not. Children under the age of fifteen, of Bahá’í parents, who wish to attend meetings and associate with the friends as Bahá’ís may do so. If non-Bahá’í parents permit a child of less than fifteen to attend Bahá’í meetings, and in fact, to be a Bahá’í, this is likewise permissible.
- Shoghi Effendi (From a letter dated 23 July 1954 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: ‘Family Life’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, revised March 2008)
