January 15

Fundamentally, a great share of the Bahá’í community’s efforts has been directed at addressing the root cause of religious prejudice—ignorance. “The perpetuation of ignorance”, the House of Justice has stated, “is a most grievous form of oppression; it reinforces the many walls of prejudice that stand as barriers to the realization of the oneness of humankind…. Access to knowledge is the right of every human being, and participation in its generation, application and diffusion a responsibility that all must shoulder in the great enterprise of building a prosperous world civilization—each individual according to his or her talents and abilities.” This orientation has particularly manifested itself in the Bahá’í community’s focus on education, which has been a central concern since the inception of the Faith; in its efforts to foster in individuals a growing consciousness and capacity to recognize prejudice and to counter it; in its practice of using consultative processes in all its affairs; and in its commitment to and upholding of the dual knowledge systems of science and religion as being necessary for the advancement of civilization.  Moreover, the development of the life of the mind and independent investigation of reality, which are highly prized in the Bahá’í writings, serve to equip individuals to distinguish truth from falsehood, which is so essential if prejudices, superstitious beliefs, and outworn traditions that impede unity are to be eliminated. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá offers the assurance in this respect that “once every soul inquireth into truth, society will be freed from the darkness of continually repeating the past.” 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 27 December 2017 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020)

January 13

He was very sorry to hear of the prolonged inharmony in the ... Bahá’í Community.... Some of the younger believers, from letters and reports received here, seem to lack a firm grounding on such matters as the Will and Testament and the deeper spiritual teachings of the Faith. Whenever the grasp of these fundamentals is weak, the friends are almost sure to pay undue attention to secondary procedures, to quibble over details, to lose themselves in personalities, and to founder in a sea of unnecessary inharmony. This has nothing to do with their devotion, their loyalty, their zeal, their eagerness to serve. It is merely a question of not having received, perhaps through lack of sufficient teachers to carry on the all-important work of deepening the friends in their own faith, a strong enough education in the Covenant before the duties and responsibilities of the Administrative Order were thrust upon them.

He has the greatest confidence in the abilities, and the loyalty and devotion of the Canadian friends. They have proved themselves over and over again, and distinguished their community through acts of great sacrifice, vision, courage and devotion. He hopes that, during the coming year, your Assembly will be able to send out more teachers, to assist the friends in grasping the fundamentals of the Faith, in uniting them, and stimulating their desire to do more in the teaching field. If the supply of teachers is limited in Canada—and the area to be covered is certainly vast! — perhaps your Sister Assembly in the United States can help through lending visiting teachers. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 10 June 1956 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; ‘Messages to Canada’)

January 11

As regards the question about a person who is mentally ill attending the Feasts, anybody who is well enough mentally to attend a Bahá’í Feast and understand what it is all about is certainly well enough to be a voting member. Only people who are very seriously deranged mentally and confined to institutions or under constant supervision should be deprived of their voting rights. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 10 June 1956 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; ‘Messages to Canada’)

January 9

The World Order of Bahá’u’lláh encompasses all units of human society; integrates the spiritual, administrative and social processes of life; and canalizes human expression in its varied forms towards the construction of a new civilization. The Nineteen Day Feast embraces all these aspects at the very base of society. Functioning in the village, the town, the city, it is an institution of which all the people of Bahá are members. It is intended to promote unity, ensure progress, and foster joy.

"If this feast be held in the proper fashion," ‘Abdu’l-Bahá states, "the friends will, once in nineteen days, find themselves spiritually restored, and endued with a power that is not of this world." To ensure this glorious outcome the concept of the Feast must be adequately understood by all the friends. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 27 August 1989; ‘Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1986-2001’)

January 7

As regards your savings: the Guardian would advise you to act with moderation, and while he would certainly approve of your desire to contribute generously to the Cause, he would urge you at the same time to take into consideration your duties and responsibilities towards your parents, who, as you state, are in need of your financial assistance. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 10 November 1939 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) 

January 5

Bahá’ís must be careful not to be swept up in a spiral of fear and darkness engendered by prevailing conditions but, rather, devote their energies to building up a new world and promoting an environment of serenity and courage. An avenue for thoughtful believers who, as well-wishers of humanity, desire to offer a different perspective on the changes affecting their societies is through participation in relevant discourses in the various social spaces in which they are involved. Of course, in so doing, it is important that the friends steer away from becoming entangled in the political dimensions of any particular issue and instead strive to uplift people’s vision by calling attention to the root causes of the issues at hand and the principles of the Faith that address them. In sharing insights from the Bahá’í teachings, the friends can indeed become a beacon of hope so that those who are experiencing the inevitable breakdown of the lamentably defective old world order can at the same time gain understanding and draw inspiration from the teachings for the building of a new world order. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 3 December 2020 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer)

January 3

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)

January 1

A greater involvement in the life of society, individually and collectively, will be an inevitable outcome as the process of growth gathers momentum in advanced clusters. In Bahá’í communities with limited resources too much involvement in such efforts at an early stage may dissipate their energies and detract from the coherence of activities necessary for growth. Yet, in areas where the Faith has sufficiently consolidated itself, it is natural to expect that Bahá’ís would engage in social action, initially by finding ways to apply the Teachings to the problems afflicting their families, neighbors and the communities in which they live. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 11 September 2008 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020)

December 30

The spirit of the hour is teaching on the Home Fronts. Its goal can only be won by a new spirit of dedication and consecration on the part of the Friends at home. Miraculous victories are being won, in the difficult virgin areas, because the pioneers have consecrated their lives to the Noble Mission they have embarked upon. The Friends at home must display this same consecration and dedication. Never must they let a day pass, without teaching some soul, hoping that Bahá’u’lláh will cause each seed to grow. The Friends should seek pure souls, gain their confidence and then teach that person carefully until he becomes a Bahá’í—and then nurture him until he becomes a firm and active supporter of the Faith. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 10 June 1956 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to an individual believer; ‘Messages to Canada’)

December 28

It is not merely material well-being that people need. What they desperately need is to know how to live their lives—they need to know who they are, to what purpose they exist, and how they should act towards one another; and, once they know the answers to these questions they need to be helped to gradually apply these answers to everyday behaviour. It is to the solution of this basic problem of mankind that the greater part of all our energy and resources should be directed….

… we know that the working of the material world is merely a reflection of spiritual conditions and until the spiritual conditions can be changed there can be no lasting change for the better in material affairs. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 19 November 1974 to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020) 

December 26

The institution of marriage, as established by Bahá’u’lláh, while giving due importance to the physical aspect of marital union, considers it as subordinate to the moral and spiritual purposes and functions with which it has been invested by an all-wise and loving Providence. Only when these different values are given each their due importance, and only on the basis of the subordination of the physical to the moral, and the carnal to the spiritual, can such excesses and laxity in marital relations as our decadent age is so sadly witnessing be avoided, and family life be restored to its original purity, and fulfil the true function for which it has been instituted by God. 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 8 May 1939 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)

December 24

One of the critical aspects of a conceptual framework that will require careful attention in the years ahead is the generation and application of knowledge…. At the heart of most disciplines of human knowledge is a degree of consensus about methodology—an understanding of methods and how to use them appropriately to systematically investigate reality to achieve reliable results and sound conclusions.  Bahá’ís who are involved in various disciplines—economics, education, history, social science, philosophy, and many others—are obviously conversant and fully engaged with the methods employed in their fields. It is they who have the responsibility to earnestly strive to reflect on the implications that the truths found in the Revelation may hold for their work. The principle of the harmony of science and religion, faithfully upheld, will ensure that religious belief does not succumb to superstition and that scientific findings are not appropriated by materialism.

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 24 July 2013 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to a National Spiritual Assembly; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020)

December 22

Humanity’s crying need will not be met by a struggle among competing ambitions or by protest against one or another of the countless wrongs afflicting a desperate age. It calls, rather, for a fundamental change of consciousness, for a wholehearted embrace of Bahá’u’lláh’s teaching that the time has come when each human being on earth must learn to accept responsibility for the welfare of the entire human family. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 24 May 2001 to the Believers Gathered for the Events Marking the Completion of the Projects on Mount Carmel; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020)

December 20

When such difference of opinion and belief occurs between husband and wife it is very unfortunate for undoubtedly it detracts from that spiritual bond which is the stronghold of the family bond, especially in times of difficulty. The way, however, that it could be remedied is not by acting in such wise as to alienate the other party. One of the objects of the Cause is actually to bring about a closer bond in the homes. In all such cases, therefore, the Master used to advise obedience to the wishes of the other party and prayer. Pray that your husband may gradually see the light and at the same time so act as to draw him nearer rather than prejudice him.  Once that harmony is secured then you will be able to serve unhampered.

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 15 July 1928 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)

December 18

It is upon the individual believer, constituting the fundamental unit in the structure of the home front, that the revitalization, the expansion, and the enrichment of the home front must ultimately depend. The more strenuous the effort exerted, daily and methodically, by the individual labouring on the home front to rise to loftier heights of consecration, and of self-abnegation, to contribute, through pioneering at home, to the multiplication of Bahá'í isolated centres, groups and Assemblies, and to raise, through diligent, painstaking and continual endeavour to convert receptive souls to the Faith he has espoused, the number of its active and whole-hearted supporters; the sooner will the vast and multiple enterprises, launched beyond the confines of the homeland, now so desperately calling for a greater supply of men and means, be provided with the necessary support that will ensure their uninterrupted development and hasten their ultimate fruition ... 

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 21 September 1957 written on behalf of Shoghi Effendi to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. II, Living the Life)

December 16

The extraordinary capacities of the American nation, as well as the superb stewardship of the Bahá’í community within it, have repeatedly been extolled in the writings of our Faith. In His Tablets and utterances, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the Center of the Covenant, projected a compelling vision of the world-embracing prospects of that richly endowed country. "The American nation," He averred, "is equipped and empowered to accomplish that which will adorn the pages of history, to become the envy of the world, and be blest in both the East and the West for the triumph of its people." In another assertion addressed to the Bahá’í community itself, He uttered words of transcendent importance: ". . . your mission," He affirmed, "is unspeakably glorious. Should success crown your enterprise, America will assuredly evolve into a center from which waves of spiritual power will emanate, and the throne of the Kingdom of God will, in the plenitude of its majesty and glory, be firmly established."

Shoghi Effendi, in various statements, celebrated the remarkable achievements and potential glories of that specially blessed community, but was moved to issue, in The Advent of Divine Justice, a profound warning which is essential to a proper understanding of the relation of that Bahá’í community to the nation from which it has sprung. "The glowing tributes," he solemnly wrote, "so repeatedly and deservedly paid to the capacity, the spirit, the conduct, and the high rank, of the American believers, both individually and as an organic community, must, under no circumstances, be confounded with the characteristics and nature of the people from which God has raised them up. A sharp distinction between that community and that people must be made, and resolutely and fearlessly upheld, if we wish to give due recognition to the transmuting power of the Faith of Bahá’u’lláh, in its impact on the lives and standards of those who have chosen to enlist under His banner. Otherwise, the supreme and distinguishing function of His Revelation, which is none other than the calling into being of a new race of men, will remain wholly unrecognized and completely obscured." It is the far-reaching, transformative implications of this distinction which we especially invite you to contemplate. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 29 December 1988 to the Followers of Bahá’u’lláh in the United States of America; Messages from the Universal House of Justice 1986-2001)

December 14

It is sad and distressing that … husbands and wives have not always seen eye to eye.

In all such cases, I believe, our departed Master urged the utmost care and consideration on the part of those Bahá’í believers whose husbands were not in sympathy with their work.  He thought that they ought to be won by love perhaps more than argument, but it would be very unfortunate if he objected to her work for the Faith, over and above all that she is to give to her family.

- Shoghi Effendi  (From a letter dated 20 March 1928 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)

December 12

Acceptance of the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh carries with it the commitment to strive for individual spiritual maturity and to participate in collective efforts to build a thriving society and contribute to the common weal. Science and religion are the two inseparable, reciprocal systems of knowledge impelling the advancement of civilization. In the words of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, “The progress of the world of humanity dependeth upon knowledge, and its decline is due to ignorance. When the human race gaineth in knowledge it becometh heavenly, and when it acquireth learning it taketh on lordly attributes.” To seek to acquire knowledge and learning and to study useful sciences and crafts are among the fundamental beliefs of the followers of Bahá’u’lláh. Therefore, the long-term solution you have chosen as a means of counteracting the difficulties imposed upon you in the path of higher education is to engage in constructive collaboration with other proponents of peace and reconciliation to build a progressive and orderly society committed to the promotion of knowledge and social justice. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a message dated 17 June 2011 to the Believers in the Cradle of the Faith; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020)

December 10

The organized endeavors of the Bahá’í community in these areas are reinforced by the diverse initiatives of individual believers working in various fields—as volunteers, professionals, and experts—to contribute to social change. The distinctive nature of their approach is to avoid conflict and the contest for power while striving to unite people in the search for underlying moral and spiritual principles and for practical measures that can lead to the just resolution of the problems afflicting society. Bahá’ís perceive humanity as a single body. All are inseparably bound to one another. A social order structured to meet the needs of one group at the expense of another results in injustice and oppression. Instead, the best interest of each component part is achieved by considering its needs in the context of the well-being of the whole. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 23 December 2008 written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer; compilation: ‘Social Action’, Prepared by the Research Department of the Universal House of Justice, August 2020)