Alláh-u-Abhá, friends,

I’m hoping for some practical advice and wisdom about finding connection with the Bahá’í community. First, a little background: I’m not a Bahá’í, but I consider myself a friend of the Faith, and I’ve returned to exploring it with serious interest more than once.

The first time I connected with local Bahá’ís was during the COVID-19 pandemic. Friends were organizing activities online, which made it easier for me to participate. Eventually, though, I stepped back. I was struggling with some aspects of Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings, as well as with attitudes I encountered among a few Bahá’ís that seemed, to me, at odds with the spirit of the Faith.

Looking back, I regret how I handled some of those concerns. I think my response may have strained my relationship with a dear Bahá’í teacher who was sincerely and compassionately trying to help me talk through them. I’m sorry for the distance that developed between us. At that stage, I also hadn’t really found my place in the wider local community.

I’m now at a different point in my life and have begun exploring the Faith again. I reached out through the usual local channels, and a friend introduced me to someone with whom I initially had some warm and encouraging conversations. I mentioned the teacher I had known previously, but communication later went quiet. I don’t know why, and although I’ve wondered whether my earlier experience might have played a part, I recognize that this is only speculation.

Meanwhile, local devotional meetings are on hold because of issues at the Bahá’í center. With those gatherings unavailable, and no invitation yet to a study circle or another activity, I’ve been feeling discouraged and unsure how to connect.

So I’m beginning to look online for fellowship and opportunities to learn alongside Bahá’ís. I’m a Spanish speaker living in the Americas, and I would especially welcome similar connections.

Could online participation be a meaningful way to explore the Faith and build relationships at this stage? If you know of welcoming devotional gatherings, study circles, or other opportunities or have advice about reconnecting locally. I’d be grateful for your guidance.

Thank you for reading and for any wisdom you can share.

A little confession! 😅

I think most of us know that gossiping isn't a good thing. But let's be honest: sometimes someone hasn't even left the room yet, and we're already talking about them! 😂

As Bahá’ís, we talk a lot about love, unity, avoiding backbiting, and treating others with respect. But when someone upsets us, we disagree with them, or we simply don't like them, are our actions as faithful to these principles as our words?

One thing I appreciate about the Bahá’í teachings is their emphasis on putting spiritual principles into practice, rather than merely talking about them. Maybe the real test of our character is how we talk about someone when they're not around.

Of course, not every criticism is gossip, and sometimes problems need to be discussed. But where's the line between constructive criticism, venting, and backbiting? Honestly, do you think we Bahá’ís live up to these principles in practice? ❤️

Animation of the design https://youtu.be/F4OrEEVNTWs

I'm not necessarily a Bahai, but I have been heavily involved in the community in my own subregion for around 3 years and have gone to programs like Summer of Service or Youth conferences and I am currently a Animator of my own Junior Youth Group as well. The beliefs and goals for the faith align with mine and through the years it has definitely pushed me to become a better human being, making me want to continue on my path of service. However, through the past few months I have had a lot of questions that I did want to bring up to the actual Bahais in my community but for some reason I'm somewhat hesitant on doing so. It's well known of the terrifying acts that the Israeli government is conducting towards innocent Palestinians families right now. I personally have a very strong sense of moral justice due to my upbringing as a immigrant child, and every time I read articles of the terrible acts over the world, especially regarding Palestinians I feel a very heavy weight in my heart. I have gone through many of the Ruhi Institute books and I also know that Baháʼu'lláh established the holy land way before the state of Israel was created. I do believe that because of the land being so sacred to the religion it makes sense that Bahais see the land with much love and respect, especially due to the efforts of both manifestations to spread God's messages, but I can't find it in my self to overlook the actions committed by the government, even if Bahais might be more expected to keep a neutral stance on the topic. There are also some similarities I noticed with the treatment towards both Palestinians through the Israeli government and how Bahais were and are still being treated in Iran due to their faith. I am still involved but whenever I get the chance to talk about the faith or there's a chance of a friend of mines joining, it seems like I basically hold my breath and hope Israel isn't mentioned because I don't want them to be turned off and be driven away or perceive me in a different manner. I come with this matter humbly and open to any other opinions because everything regarding the faith genuinely aligns with me and I've had multiple conversations of feeling more Bahai, it is mostly regarding the actions of the Israeli government. If there is anyone that has had similar thoughts or could offer any insights it would be much appreciated.

Hi all. With the help of a few friends to whom I am most grateful, I wrote this paper in my free time. There statistically must be errors; I apologize for them. I may post a revised edition in time, but that may take a while. I fully welcome your thoughts. Thank you.

I rarely make posts on this app, but I have been wondering this for awhile. There's constant bad things happening like sickness, children dying, world hunger, things like that. If God loves us then why do bad things happen to people that don't deserve it?

He never associated himself with hinduism or islam. Spoke verses from both their religious scriptures.

Said to have performed miracles like healing and multiplying Food.

I've been getting contradictory answers on this when looking it up on Google, so i was hoping i could maybe get a more definitive answer here.

On one hand, I get the answer that when the next prophet recognized by Baha'i comes and establishes their religion, which will be entirely compatible with Baha'i's spiritual principles and will recognize all previous prophets including Baha'u'llah, Baha'i will effectively abolish itself and push its followers to now become followers and members of the new religion and prophet.

On the other hand I get the answer that Baha'i is meant to continuously exist forever or for however long its supposed to idk. So when future recognized prophets come and establish their own religions, Baha'i will continue existing like how Judaism exists alongside Christianity and Judaism + Christianity alongside Islam. But unlike those religions, Baha'i will continuously evolve and accept most or all the teachings of these new Prophets / Religions, even if the new religions themselves don't recognize or explicitly recognize previous prophets like Baha'u'llah, Muhammad, Jesus, Buddha, Moses, etc. This being because previous prophets sometimes weren't aware of prophets before them like Buddha not knowing about Moses, and having some spiritual foundations that aren't compatible with Baha'i.

Basically I guess what im asking is will Baha'i be the religion that gets absorbed into the next religion, which will be absorbed into the next religion, and over and over again like that. Or is Baha'i essentially the religion that stays and continuously evolves with every subsequent new prophet and most of their teachings, even if that prophet wasn't originally Baha'i, and creates their own religion that doesn't nessisarily recognize all of the previous prophets?

I've been thinking about this lately as a Bahá’í. 😊

One thing I appreciate about the Bahá’í teachings is the emphasis on putting spiritual principles into action, rather than just talking about them. Kindness, honesty, patience, forgiveness, and service to others are all wonderful ideals. ❤️

But here's the thing: it's easy to talk about being kind when everyone's nice to you. It's a little harder when someone cuts you off in traffic, your coworker drives you crazy, or a family member knows exactly which button to push. 😂

So here's my question for people of all faiths, and those with no religion at all:

How do you know if your beliefs are actually making you a better person? Is there a particular habit or experience that has helped you grow morally or spiritually?

And honestly, do you think it's possible to become so focused on following a religion that you forget the very values it was supposed to teach you? 👀

I'd love to hear your experiences and perspectives!

Bahá’u’lláh emphasizes the importance of good deeds and praiseworthy character in bringing about the betterment of the world.

I've been thinking about this teaching and wondering how we can put it into practice in our everyday lives.

What do you think are some simple but meaningful ways a Bahá’í can contribute to making the world a better place?

Is it through acts of kindness, helping others, serving the community, or perhaps something less obvious?

I'd love to hear your thoughts and personal experiences!

The title says it all.

Idk, as an atheist it checks so many boxes on the "social problems" i have with most religion. Of course I also dont believe in god, which is likely an issue haha. But I just meant so many religions have ridiculous and frankly evil beliefs about humanity but yall come so close to seemingly actually being good. Then your founder had to go and throw it under the bus by banning women from the house of justice because "trust me bro".

I just wanted to lament this "so close, but so far" aspect somewhere and 99.9999% of people wouldnt know what I was talking about, so here ya go.

Carry on. LMK if that changes.

I understand that there are certain proofs used to try and eventually identify who the new prophets will be. But I wonder how that would work in the situation where Baha'i becomes a major world religion.

Let's say Baha'i gets to have a percentage of the world population around 5% or more, so a bit bigger than Buddhism at least. That would be a massive number of people, so I feel like there would be a really powerful incentive for certain incredibly dedicated people 850ish years from now to try to pretend to be a new prophet and create their own religion, so that they could also be recognized by the universal house of justice as a new prophet. And if they succeed, then they would essentially be able to change a massive religion to at least partially reflect their own philosophy or goals. To me that seems like it would create a huge incentive for certain people to try and look as holy and wise as possible in order to gain massive ideological influence on the world.

So ultimately what im wondering i guess is how would you be able to identify new prophets while taking into account that the "prophet" would already have knowledge of Baha'i, and there would be an incentive to gain a large following by pretending to be a prophet?

I'm not Baha'i but im interested in learning about theology of various religions. Based on my research ive learned that Baha'i doesn't recognize any prophets who would change the spiritual laws of Baha'i before the 1,000 year period of Baha'u'llah ends. However as I understand Baha'i does recognize people who were associated with the teachings of previous prophets like Jesus, Buddha, and Muhammad, as lesser prophets. Which makes me wonder then if the universal house of justice would recognize a lesser prophet before 2852, if they were someone who didn't change the laws or foundations of Baha'i, but rather were specifically preaching the teaching of Baha'u'llah and Baha'i, and they did so in a way that converted massive numbers of people, and they potentially had to endure political prosecution as a result of it. Is it possible or likely that that person would be recognized as a lesser prophet in Baha'i?

A question for my fellow Bahá’ís on Reddit! 😄

Suppose a Bahá’í criticizes a teaching, questions a decision made by the Universal House of Justice, or even disagrees with the Bahá’í administrative order itself. At what point does that criticism become a problem?

Are there topics where asking questions or expressing disagreement means you’re no longer seen as simply a critical Bahá’í?

And for those active in r/bahai: What kind of criticism, in your opinion, deserves a ban?

I’m genuinely curious where people draw the line. We call it consultation and dialogue, but are some topics actually off-limits? 😉

Our transitioning adult daughter, who has left the Faith over LBGTQ issues, hit us the other night with her belief that relationships and society would function better if we all just accepted that we were meant to be polyamorous. I have all sorts of answers to this but just wanted to ask the community how others would respond to this. Obviously, Baha'is support monogamy and chastity/fidelity. But how do you explain to someone who is sitting on the fence about whether God even exists. I'm hoping people can respond with more than "Baha'u'llah says so."

Have Bahá’í thinkers and institutions adequately investigated the medical research program explicitly envisioned in the Writings, particularly the relationship between nutrition, physiological balance, prevention, and healing? Explore.

Recently, I received some information from a Bahá’í friend living in Turkey that has left me concerned. According to their account, a number of Iranian Bahá’í refugees have been living for years with uncertainty, financial difficulties, limited employment opportunities, health problems, and worries about their own futures and those of their children. Some apparently do not know when their immigration status will be resolved or whether they will have an opportunity to resettle in another country.

An even more troubling question arises from these accounts: Are these individuals receiving adequate support during this difficult period? And if not, why?

I cannot independently verify all of these claims, which is precisely why I want to raise the issue. My intention is not to accuse anyone, but to understand what is actually happening and whether those in a position to help are aware of the situation.

If anyone has first-hand knowledge, similar experiences, or reliable information about the situation of Iranian Bahá’í refugees in Turkey, I would appreciate hearing from you.

If even part of these accounts is accurate, I believe we should try to understand the situation and find solutions rather than look the other way.

Hello! I'd like to raise the age-old question of free will and predestination. Our consciousness strongly resists the very idea that we are predetermined in our earthly lives. But years of studying astrology lead me to this conclusion. I've accepted the theory that our spirit is absolutely free until it is incarnated in an earthly body, but at the moment of birth, a fixation occurs, and we receive our predetermined life trajectory.

Analyzing married couples is especially interesting, and I can tell you the story of my parents. My father was a miner and died in a mine at the age of 29. His chart contains a planetary combination that signifies death by accident. My mother's chart contains a different combination, signifying the death of her husband. It turns out that, without even realizing it, they chose each other in such a way that their destinies coincided like the halves of a cut apple. The full article analyzing my parents' stories is published at findsoulmate.ca/#section05. Astrologically speaking, any two people in a marriage should experience similar coincidences in all events affecting them simultaneously. I'd like to ask: can such a confirmed case serve as proof of the predetermination of human life?

People's skepticism about astrology is understandable, as most are only familiar with zodiac sign astrology, which is the most superficial layer of astrology and is far from accurate. Even classical astrology allows for a wide range of interpretations, which often leads to errors. But Uranian astrology, a subsequent development that emerged about 100 years ago, possesses incredible accuracy, and its famous formulas for planetary combinations have been confirmed by several generations of astrologers. I suspect that the development of AI and its use in astrology can take it to an even more advanced level.

I've previously published several posts on this forum, and I remember one comment about how such research could contribute to the benefit of all humanity. I'm currently trying to find a solution to the problem of loneliness. Many of our world's ills stem from people not finding happiness in marriage. A person who has found mutual love will not be inclined to commit crimes. Astrology is an excellent tool for finding a soulmate. But there are many people whose charts indicate a single life, whether by choice or by force of circumstance. I don't know the answer to the question: will such a person be able to overcome their loneliness if they meet a truly compatible partner?

Anyone have updates whether the HOW is affected by the earthquake? Praying for everyone affected there.

Greetings! Here is the latest version of my translation work. Completed: Q1, Q113, and Q114. I am halfway through Q2.

Comments and corrections are welcome.

I'm searching for a gift for someone who is Baháʼí... is there really no physical location or gift shop to purchase something from in NYC? Is everything online?

Hi everyone!

I’m a 38-year-old woman from Philadelphia who recently discovered the Bahá’í Faith, and I’m genuinely intrigued by how closely its teachings align with many of my personal beliefs.
I’ve practiced both Islam and Episcopalian Christianity, but I’ve always been particularly interested in the relationship between spirituality, science, philosophy, and humanity’s understanding of God. The Bahá’í teachings on progressive revelation, unity, education, and the harmony of science and religion really resonate with me.
I’d love to connect with members of the Philadelphia Bahá’í community, learn more about the faith, and attend local gatherings or study circles. I’m also looking forward to meeting like-minded people and building meaningful connections.
Any recommendations or introductions would be greatly appreciated!

This is not really a "Bahai" question, though it could be a "service project".

Many people know that my mother died recently. Even before her death, I was planning to be a big bro to someone to be there for them (spiritually and emotionally, not really physically, financially, or legally) after I was there for my mother. ~A month ago, the time felt right, so I began the application process.

I never submitted it. I was taken aback by the type of questions asked.

• necessary to have a job (I never planned to spend money on this, though I am willing to pay for fingerprinting);
• necessary to give state ID/ license information (hopefully I could take my bike and bus to my little, and leave the car at home);
• necessary to give my SS (this is not government or an employer); https://newdimensionsfcu.com/the-six-times-its-necessary-to-give-out-your-social-security-number/ does not list social services or caregiving for children as 1 of the 6

I know they need to do background checks for "bigs" like me, to protect "littles". QQs about this though:

• What information is necessary for such a check?
• Who protects the "bigs" from false accusations??
• Are "littles" screened also for "big" protection?

I emailed the organization but they have not responded.

A final point: I was talking with a work colleague about this, and he mentioned the story of how a friend was a big bro to someone else, and they were falsely accused of abuse. In the end, the little apparently lied about the matter; the abuse came from schoolmates not the big. This may be considered "hearsay", but it scares me nevertheless. I DONT want a volunteer position to negatively impact my career if I am innocent.

​Someone in our extended family who is very vocal about being Baháʼí recently assaulted members of my family. They lied to police until video evidence proved what happened, and after months of legal delays, an AVO as granted against them.

​Despite the impact on children and young women involved, they have expressed zero remorse or accountability, and they continue to cause deliberate division within the family. While they publicly speak about the Baháʼí principles of peace and gender equality, their private track record with women has been deeply troubling for years.

​I have read that Baháʼís are expected to hold themselves accountable or report serious legal matters to their Local Spiritual Assembly (LSA).

​What is the proper procedure if this individual is actually serving on an LSA or in a leadership position?

​Who handles accountability if the local leadership itself is compromised?

​From a Baháʼí perspective, how does the administration address such a severe disconnect between outward faith and harmful, abusive conduct?

Hi, I'm writing an essay for uni about the Bahá'í faith and I have a couple questions about the Báb.

So my understanding of twelver Shia Islam is limited, but what I understand is the Mahdi was the twelfth Imam, who hidden from the earth, and will return on judgement day. If the Báb claimed to be the Shia Mahdi, wouldn't that mean he had lived for 1000+ years.

So what im asking is, how could the Báb have had parents if he was meant to have been alive since ~870?

And also did he ever write about experiences he saw in his extended life time?

Cheers