November 30

Bahá’u’lláh’s purpose is to usher in a new stage in human development—the organic and spiritual unity of the peoples and nations of the world—signalizing thereby the coming of age of the human race and characterized, in the fullness of time, by the emergence of a world civilization and culture.  To this end, He revealed His teachings for the inner and outer transformation of human life.  “Every verse which this Pen hath revealed is a bright and shining portal that discloseth the glories of a saintly and pious life, of pure and stainless deeds”, He stated.  And in countless Tablets He, the Divine Physician, diagnosed the ills afflicting humanity and set forth His healing remedy for “the elevation, the advancement, the education, the protection and the regeneration of the peoples of the earth”.  Bahá’u’lláh explained that “The summons and the message which We gave were never intended to reach or to benefit one land or one people only.”  “It is incumbent upon every man of insight and understanding”, He wrote, “to strive to translate that which hath been written into reality and action….  Blessed and happy is he that ariseth to promote the best interests of the peoples and kindreds of the earth.” 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter to the Bahá’ís of the World, dated 28 November 2023; online Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Centre)

November 28

A Covenant in the religious sense is a binding agreement between God and man, whereby God requires of man certain behaviour in return for which He guarantees certain blessings, or whereby He gives man certain bounties in return for which He takes from those who accept them an undertaking to behave in a certain way. There is, for example, the Greater Covenant which every Manifestation of God makes with His followers, promising that in the fulness of time a new Manifestation will be sent, and taking from them the undertaking to accept Him when this occurs. There is also the Lesser Covenant that a Manifestation of God makes with His followers that they will accept His appointed successor after Him. If they do so, the Faith can remain united and pure. If not, the Faith becomes divided and its force spent. It is a Covenant of this kind that Bahá'u'lláh made with His followers regarding 'Abdu'l-Bahá and that 'Abdu'l-Bahá perpetuated through the Administrative Order... 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 23 March 1975, to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, The Covenant)

He ['Abdu'l-Baha] is, and should for all time be regarded, first and foremost, as the Center and Pivot of Bahá’u’lláh’s peerless and all-enfolding Covenant,

• His most exalted handiwork,
• the stainless Mirror of His light,
• the perfect Exemplar of His teachings,
• the unerring Interpreter of His Word,
• the embodiment of every Bahá’í ideal,
• the incarnation of every Bahá’í virtue,
• the Most Mighty Branch sprung from the Ancient Root,
• the Limb of the Law of God, the Being “round Whom all names revolve,”
• the Mainspring of the Oneness of Humanity,
• the Ensign of the Most Great Peace,
• the Moon of the Central Orb of this most holy Dispensation—styles and titles that are implicit and find their truest, their highest and fairest expression in the magic name ‘Abdu’l Bahá.

He is, above and beyond these appellations, the “Mystery of God”—an expression by which Bahá’u’lláh Himself has chosen to designate Him, and which, while it does not by any means justify us to assign to Him the station of Prophethood, indicates how in the person of ‘Abdu’l Bahá the incompatible characteristics of a human nature and superhuman knowledge and perfection have been blended and are completely harmonized. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘The Dispensation of Baha’u’llah; included in ‘The World Order of Baha’u’llah’)

November 24

If the wider society perceives the Bahá’ís as people who are becoming spiritually transformed and who are distinguished by their admirable conduct, and their stable marriage and family life in which children are being brought up with good character and a spiritual orientation, seekers will be attracted magnetically to the Faith and the teaching work will be invigorated. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 7 July 1999 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: ‘To Set the World in Order: Building and Preserving Strong Marriages’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2023)

November 22

You may be assured that in the Bahá’í Teachings, family unity goes far beyond the married couple themselves, and is of critical importance. In the Bahá’í Faith marriage is regarded as both a spiritual and a social institution which affects not only the couple and their children, but also the parents, grandparents, grandchildren and other collateral relations. Indeed, it affects (or, in a healthy society, should affect) all other community associations that surround it. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 10 July 1996 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; compilation: ‘To Set the World in Order: Building and Preserving Strong Marriages’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2023)

November 20

In emphasizing its distinctiveness, Shoghi Effendi has pointed out that “this Administrative Order is fundamentally different from anything that any Prophet has previously established, inasmuch as Bahá’u’lláh has Himself revealed its principles, established its institutions, appointed the person to interpret His Word and conferred the necessary authority on the body designed to supplement and apply His legislative ordinances.”  In another statement, he maintains that “It would be utterly misleading to attempt a comparison between this unique, this divinely-conceived Order and any of the diverse systems which the minds of men, at various periods of their history, have contrived for the government of human institutions.”  “Such an attempt,” he felt, “would in itself betray a lack of complete appreciation of the excellence of the handiwork of its great Author.” 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 29 December 1988 to the Bahá’ís of the United States of America; compilation: ‘The National Spiritual Assembly’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, revised October 2023; online Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Centre)

November 18

The Administrative Order which lies embedded in the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh, and which the American believers have championed and are now establishing, should, under no circumstances, be identified with the principles underlying present-day democracies. Nor is it identical with any purely aristocratic or autocratic form of government. The objectionable features inherent in each of these political systems are entirely avoided. It blends, as no system of human polity has as yet achieved, those salutary truths and beneficial elements which constitute the valuable contributions which each of these forms of government have made to society in the past. Consultation, frank and unfettered, is the bedrock of this unique Order. Authority is concentrated in the hands of the elected members of the National Assembly. Power and initiative are primarily vested in the entire body of the believers acting through their local representatives. To generate those forces which must give birth to the body of their national administrators, and to confer, freely and fully and at fixed intervals, with both the incoming and outgoing National Assemblies, are the twofold functions, the supreme responsibility and sole prerogative of the delegates assembled in Convention. Nothing short of close and constant interaction between these various organs of Bahá’í administration can enable it to fulfil its high destiny. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a postscript by Shoghi Effendi appended to a letter dated 18 November 1933 written on his behalf to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: ‘The National Spiritual Assembly’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, revised October 2023; online Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Centre)

November 16

The Universal House of Justice has received your letter ... in which you ask for guidance in observing the law for the burial of the dead in cases where the graveyard is more than an hour’s journey on foot from a village.

If alternative means of transport are not available or practicable in cases such as you mention, another possibility is for the Bahá’ís of such a village to acquire a graveyard nearer to the village so that it can be reached within one hour from the village limits. If no such solution is feasible the believers will just have to do their best for the present to keep the journey as short as possible. In any case the House of Justice presumes that the journey is not likely to greatly exceed the one hour limit.  

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 21 September 1981 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: ‘Baha’i Burial and Related Laws’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, 2020)

November 14

The Universal House of Justice has received your letter of 7 December 1984 expressing the views of your husband concerning the authority that he feels the Writings have bestowed upon the husband in a marriage, and has asked us to convey the following on its behalf.

The guidelines on the subject which have been made available to the friends emphasize that the rights of each and all in the family unit must be upheld, that loving consultation should be the keynote, that all matters should be settled in harmony and love, and that there are times when the husband or the wife should defer to the wishes of the other.  Exactly under what circumstances such deference should take place is a matter for each couple to determine.

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 2 January 1985 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; compilation: ‘To Set the World in Order: Building and Preserving Strong Marriages’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2023)

November 12

As the place from which spiritual forces are to radiate, the Mash̲riqu’l-Adh̲kár is the focal point for dependencies to be raised up for the well-being of humanity and is the expression of a common will and eagerness to serve. These dependencies—centres of education and scientific learning as well as cultural and humanitarian endeavour—embody the ideals of social and spiritual progress to be achieved through the application of knowledge, and demonstrate how, when religion and science are in harmony, they elevate the station of the human being and lead to the flourishing of civilization. As your lives amply demonstrate, worship, though essential to the inner life of the human being and vital to spiritual development, must also lead to deeds that give outward expression to that inner transformation. This concept of worship—inseparable from service—is promulgated by the Mash̲riqu’l-Adh̲kár.  

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 18 December 2014 to the Bahá’ís in Iran; compilation: The Institution of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, September 2017; online Baha’i Reference Library of the Baha’i World Centre)

November 10

In a hundred volumes, the repositories of priceless precepts, mighty laws, unique principles, impassioned exhortations, reiterated warnings, amazing prophecies, sublime invocations, and weighty commentaries, the Bearer of such a Message [Baha’u’llah] has proclaimed, as no Prophet before Him has done, the Mission with which God had entrusted Him. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (‘The Promised Day Is Come’)

November 8

The Cause does not wish to suppress national characteristics. It abhors too much uniformity, and stands for the principle of unity in diversity, which principle we believe can alone provide a solution for the unification of mankind. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 25 June 1935, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. III, Cultural Diversity in the Age of Maturity)

November 6

The threat of disintegration and chaos, on the one hand, and the promise of unity and peace, on the other, flash intermittently as prospects at this time of great transition for the entire human race. Unity and peace will triumph, we know; but until then humanity will surely experience trials and turmoil. Amid these can be found the countless opportunities to teach those, especially among your peers, who seek understanding and hope. The perspective which enables us to see clearly during this time of great perplexity is provided in the Sacred Writings of our Faith and in the life and deeds of our true Exemplar, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá; these are abundant resources to which the followers of the Blessed Beauty, young and old alike, can turn time and again for knowledge, inspiration and assurance. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 25 December 1995 to the friends gathered at the National Bahá’í Youth Conference in Dallas, Texas; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1986-2001)

November 4

Children are the most precious treasure a community can possess, for in them are the promise and guarantee of the future. They bear the seeds of the character of future society which is largely shaped by what the adults constituting the community do or fail to do with respect to children. They are a trust no community can neglect with impunity. An all-embracing love of children, the manner of treating them, the quality of the attention shown them, the spirit of adult behaviour toward them—these are all among the vital aspects of the requisite attitude. Love demands discipline, the courage to accustom children to hardship, not to indulge their whims or leave them entirely to their own devices. An atmosphere needs to be maintained in which children feel that they belong to the community and share in its purpose. They must lovingly but insistently be guided to live up to Bahá’í standards, to study and teach the Cause in ways that are suited to their circumstances….

- The Universal House of Justice  (From the Ridván 2000 message of to the Bahá’ís of the world; compilation: ‘Family Life’, prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, revised March 2008)

November 2

As he already told you in a previous communication he feels that your Assembly should not deprive people of their voting rights unless the matter is really very grave; this is a very heavy sanction, and can embitter the heart if lightly imposed, and also make people think we unduly resort to pressure of a strong nature. The friends must be nursed and assisted, for they are still mostly immature spiritually, and their “sins” are those of immaturity! Their hearts are loyal to the Cause, and this is the most important thing. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 2 August 1946, written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to NSA of India; ‘Dawn of a New Day’)