Is it coming? Should we fear it?

At 8:30am on September 10th I turned on my radio to hear the moments and activities that preceded what some had predicted to be the end of the world, the switching on of the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland, a 17 mile circular tunnel in which scientists planned to collide particals and recreate some of the conditions present at the creation of the universe.

As is widely known, the fearful were concerned that the high speed collision of particles might result in the formation of a black hole into which the earth, and everything on it, would be sucked. The fearless felt sure that, even if a black hole was created during the experiments, it would be extremely tiny and only last for a very short time.

What had not been made very clear to the public was that the ceremonious switching on of the Large Hadron Collider did not result in a conclusion as to which school of thought had been correct. The switch-on merely tested that a beam could be succesfully sent around the large tubular ring using 1232 special magnets to curve its path. I say merely, I am sure that this is a huge achievement and well worthy of attention and celebration, but there was no percieved danger - from any quarters - of it being the last party on earth.

As for the collision of particles, the potential “end of the world”, that still hasn’t happened. The Large Hadron Collider has been running into some technical difficulties and has been getting repaired. The actual moment when the first collisions take place and the most worried groups of scientists become pleasantly suprised that they can still breathe will not take place until Spring 2009 at the earliest. This whole event has, however, made me want to write a long blog entry about the end of the world.

High speed particle collision is not the only non-violent threat to humanity’s existence. We have already been warned that on March 21st 2014 there is a 1 in 909,000 chance of a giant asteroid called “2003 QQ47″ hitting the earth, and in October 2028 a mile-wide rock called “1997 XF11″ has a 1 in 1000 chance of striking our planet. There are many small groups of religious or UFO enthusiasts who have also predicted the end of the world and a large number of predictions have already passed without incident, which will hopefully be the case with the Large Hadron Collider. Beyond the scientists, the spiritualists and the ufologists there are a very high number of people who believe that we will eventually destroy our planet, either by war or carelessness. Many look at the troubles in the world and beleieve we are all too selfish to get along, and with modern weapons an inevitable third world war will wipe out all civilization.

Standing prominent among those that predict that the “end of the world as we know it” will come some time are many established religious groups. For religion the cataostrphy, or Armageddon, is not the focus of such teachings, but rather the focus is on what happens after the event. Many Christians, for example, look forward to a time when Jesus wil reign over God’s Kingdom on Earth and…

“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.” [Isaiah 11:6]

Baha’is also take the view that world peace is not only possible but inevitable. Baha’u'llah foretells of two states of peace, a lesser peace and a most great peace. In the lesser peace the world will recognise the essential unity of the entire human race and will be protected by an internationally governed system of collective security. The most great peace will, as I understand it, come later and be a more spiritually grounded state of peace throughout the planet.

“Yet so it shall be; these fruitless strifes, these ruinous wars shall pass away, and the ‘Most Great Peace’ shall come.” [Baha'u'llah]

Since the day that Samuel Morse sent his first telegram the world has been getting ever smaller, with transport and communication taking place at speeds that could barely be dreamed of a century ago. The United Nations has established itself as a forum that brings all the countries of the world together to discuss major issues, and basic human rights are considered by most to be a cornerstone of civilized society throughout the world. There are several encouraging processes at play in the world, and many Baha’is are actively engaged in some of these.

The view then, of the Baha’i Faith and of other religious groups, is that the end is in sight for this world… but it is the end of the world that none of us like, an end to the world that favours one race or nation over another, an end to the world where weapons are a tool of negotiation, where wealth and poverty are both permitted to reach their worst excesses, an end to the world that so many fear will destroy itself. That world will end, and a more united one will endure in its place.

My personal view (not that I am good at applying it to my own life) is that when something is wrong it needs to be dealt with or the consequences will catch up with you and force you to deal with it, and where laws or systems are in place that favour improving the quality of life for any one individual, race or nation at the expense of another there needs to be a re-adjustment.

The current financial crisis is a case in point. Governments can offer funds to save us from potential disaster but unless the underlying problems that get us into this situation are fixed we will arrive at this point again in the future, and next time it may be too costly for even the wealthiest governments to save the day. We have the chance now to start developing a more sustainable model of global finance, or we can be forced to build a new one from the ground up after a more thorough collapse in the future.

Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957), the Guardian of the Baha’i Faith, predicted that…

“The process of disintegration must inexorably continue, and its corrosive influence must penetrate deeper and deeper into the very core of a crumbling age. Much suffering will still be required ere the contending nations, creeds, classes and races of mankind are fused in the crucible of universal affliction, and are forged by the fires of a fierce ordeal into one organic commonwealth, one vast, unified, and harmoniously functioning system. Adversities unimaginably appalling, undreamed of crises and upheavals, war, famine, and pestilence, might well combine to engrave in the soul of an unheeding generation those truths and principles which it has disdained to recognize and follow. A paralysis more painful than any it has yet experienced must creep over and further afflict the fabric of a broken society ere it can be rebuilt and regenerated.” [Shoghi Effendi, The World Order of Baha'u'llah, p. 193]

The unity of the human race is never more aparant than in dealing with calamity. The closest I have been to this, thankfully, was after the great gale that swept southern England in October 1987, everybody pulled together to clear fallen trees and get the town back into working order. On television we see people clubbing together to help in disasters, physically and financially, without fear of differences. The task now lies before us to build a society that can function justly at a global level, it is essential to our survival and somewhat inevitable that we will not survive unless we do it. It is a widely held view that no country can survive in complete isolation from the rest of the world, and if the whole planet was was all but destroyed tomorrow such that we all had to build a new civilization from scratch, we would no doubt incorporate principles that recognise equal rights to a good quality of life for every citizen of the planet. The hope has to be that we do not need to be forced to such a drastic starting point before we can find a path to a fairly functioning global society.

Baha’u'llah, the Prophet founder of the Baha’i Faith, left some vision of what first steps might be taken:

“The Great Being, wishing to reveal the prerequisites of the peace and tranquillity of the world and the advancement of its peoples, hath written: The time must come when the imperative necessity for the holding of a vast, an all-embracing assemblage of men will be universally realized. The rulers and kings of the earth must needs attend it, and, participating in its deliberations, must consider such ways and means as will lay the foundations of the world’s Great Peace amongst men. Such a peace demandeth that the Great Powers should resolve, for the sake of the tranquillity of the peoples of the earth, to be fully reconciled among themselves. Should any king take up arms against another, all should unitedly arise and prevent him. If this be done, the nations of the world will no longer require any armaments, except for the purpose of preserving the security of their realms and of maintaining internal order within their territories. This will ensure the peace and composure of every people, government and nation. We fain would hope that the kings and rulers of the earth, the mirrors of the gracious and almighty name of God, may attain unto this station, and shield mankind from the onslaught of tyranny. …The day is approaching when all the peoples of the world will have adopted one universal language and one common script. When this is achieved, to whatsoever city a man may journey, it shall be as if he were entering his own home. These things are obligatory and absolutely essential. It is incumbent upon every man of insight and understanding to strive to translate that which hath been written into reality and action…. That one indeed is a man who, today, dedicateth himself to the service of the entire human race. The Great Being saith: Blessed and happy is he that ariseth to promote the best interests of the peoples and kindreds of the earth. In another passage He hath proclaimed: It is not for him to pride himself who loveth his own country, but rather for him who loveth the whole world. The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens.” [Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 248]

25 years on, sister of executed Bahá’í prays for change
Few incidents in Iran of recent decades have been more shocking than the group execution of ten Bahá’í women in Shiraz on 18 June 1983. Their crime? Teaching children following the government’s ban on Bahá’í pupils from attending schools… (continue reading on Baha’i News UK)

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The above article refers to ten young women in Iran, 25 years ago today, who were killed for being Bahá’í. One of them, Shrin Dalvand, was Ladan’s aunt.

Most of Shirin’s family were living in the UK by 1983, when Shirin was arrested a visiting card was issued to a family member to see her in prison before the execution, below is a photo of that visiting card, enlarged is the section where the crime is detailed, in that space it simply has the letter “B”.

Between 1979 and 1998 more than 200 members of the Bahá’í Faith were killed in Iran. The persecution of the Bahá’í, however, did not stop with the last execution. Two years ago the Bahá’í community found evidence that a systematic campaign was under way to identify members of the Bahá’í Faith and monitor their activities. Bahá’í youth, who had earlier been permitted to return to education when universities sopped asking a person’s religion upon enrolment, are again being denied access to, or continuation of, higher education at the point where it becomes known that they are Bahá’í.

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Most recently, seven individuals who formed an ad-hoc coordinating committee for the Bahá’í in Iran , were arrested and are being held incommunicado.

Mrs. Fariba Kamalabadi, Mr. Jamaloddin Khanjani, Mr. Afif Naeimi, Mr. Saeid Rezaie, Mr. Behrouz Tavakkoli, and Mr. Vahid Tizfahm were arrested in Tehran on 14th may, Mrs. Mahvash Sabet was arrested in Mashhad on 5th March.

The Bahá’í community, around the world, are seriously concerned for their safety in this escalation which is reminiscent of similar events in the early 80’s when members of two national governing bodies of the Iranian Bahá’íeither went missing or were executed.

More on this story can be read here

“In the early hours of last night, revered, greatly admired, well-loved Hand of the Cause of God Dr. ‘Ali-Muhammad Varqa departed this earthly plane after a period of outstanding, consecrated service to the Blessed Beauty that spanned many decades.”

[The Universal House of Justice, 23rd September 2007]

On Sunday afternoon (25th November) I attended the United Kingdom’s national memorial service for Hand of the Cause of God Dr. ‘Ali-Muhammad Varqa. By my count there were about six hundred people present at Ealing Town Hall to mark the end of both a life of devoted service on the part of Dr. Varqa and the end of the institution (for want of a better word) of the Hands of the Cause of God, of whom Dr. Varqa was the last surviving member.

The programme for the event looked like this…

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HAND OF THE CAUSE OF GOD - DR. ‘ALI-MUHAMMAD VARQA 1912-2007

NATIONAL MEMORIAL MEETING
Ealing Town Hall, Sunday 25 November 2007

Music - Tomaso Albioni, Adagio in G minor

Welcome from the National Spiritual Assembly
of the Baha’is of the United Kingdom

Message to the Baha’is of the World from the Universal House of Justice,
23 September 2007

Prayer of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, Bisharatu’n-Nur, p.411

Prayer of Baha’u'llah, “He is God, exalted is He…”

Persian Chant - the voice of Mrs Rawhaniyyih Varqa

Music - “Porporo” from the soundtrack Farinelli

Prayer of Baha’u'llah, “Create in me a pure heart…”

From a Tablet of Baha’u'llah, “Know thou of a truth…”, Gleanings, pp.161-2

Music - Christoph Willibald Gluck, “Dance of the Blessed Spirits”

Prayer of Baha’u'llah on Huquq’u'llah, , Baha’i Prayers, pp.287-8

Prayer of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, Majmu’iyyih Munajatha Hadrat-i’Abdu’l-Baha, pp.276-8

Music - From the Stabat Mater by Antonio Bononcini

Prayer of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, “O my God! O my God! Verily, thy servant…”

Music - Baha’u'llah, From the Lawh-i-Dunya,
“Light and glory, greeting and praise”

Audio-Visual Presentations

Eulogies - Dr Faraneh Vargha-Khadem and Mr ‘Ali Nakhjavani

Prayer of ‘Abdu’l-Baha, Bisharatu’n-Nur, p.491

Refreshments

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This programme, which started just after 3pm, called on us to reflect upon the life of man who was destined, from birth, to become a devoted servant of Baha’u'llah. His name was given to him by ‘Abdu’l-Baha in memory of his grandfather who was a Baha’i martyr (executed for his beliefs) and he was appointed to the station of Hand of the Cause by Shoghi Effendi following the passing of his father in 1955. His father, Valiyu’llah Varqa, was also a Hand of the Cause of God.

Born in January 1912, Dr. Ali-Muhammad Varqa studied economics and history in Tehran and got married in 1935 to Rawhaniyyih Muhtadi, whose voice was heard chanting a prayer during the memorial meeting. Together they had three daughters, Elahe, Nadieh and Faraneh, the latter of whom shared some moving words about her father, on the families behalf toward the end of the programme.

In the late 1940’s Dr Varqa was given a grant to study in Paris and he was awarded a doctorate from the Sorbonne in 1950. After this he returned to Iran to work as a professor and was a very active figure in the Baha’i community there. He also helped his father with his work as the Trustee of the fund of Huququ’llah, a form of voluntary tax to which Baha’is should give 19% of their profits, after necessary expenses, once they amount to a certain sum. When his father passed away in 1955 the role of Trustee of that fund also fell to Dr Varqa, a role in which he served longer than anybody else to date.

Mr. ‘Ali Nakhjavani, a former member of the Universal House of Justice who spoke about the life and service of Dr. ‘Ali-Muhammad Varqa at the end of the memorial programme, shared some thoughts on the special relationship that Dr. Varqa had with some of the countries that he visited, including many French speaking ones, which he was often asked to visit because of his good command of the French language. Dr Varqa was present at the formation of the first National Spiritual Assembly of several countries around the world, and maintained a close, father-like fondness and communication with them. Below is a photo of him present at the formation of the first National Spiritual Assembly of Congo and Gabon in 1971.

The Audio-Visual content of the programme included photographs and video footage from the memorial gathering in the Holy Land and of his funeral procession and burial in the Baha’i cemetery in Haifa. It also contained extracts from a video in which Amatu’l-Baha Ruhiyyih Khanum, ‘Ali Akbar Furutan and Dr. ‘Ali-Muhammad Varqa (who were the last three surviving Hands of the Cause), shared some memories together.

The programme was very good. The only slight shame was that the audio visual presentation included a lot of the information that Mr. ‘Ali Nakhjavani had also prepared to share with us, which took a little of the shine of his presentation, especially with his eulogy coming at the end of a fairly long programme, but it was still a privilege to hear from somebody who had known and served alongside Dr. Varqa in a distinguished role. Mr. Nakhjavani finished his eulogy with a new provisional translation he had managed to acquire of a very beautiful prayer by ‘Abdu’l-Baha, before the official closing prayer ended official proceedings a little under three hours after they had started.

Below is te full text of the message sent by the Univeral House of Justice to the Baha’is of the world following the passing of Dr. Varqa:

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23 September 2007

To the Baha’is of the World

In the early hours of last night, revered, greatly admired, well-loved Hand of the Cause of God Dr. ‘Ali-Muhammad Varqa departed this earthly plane after a period of outstanding, consecrated service to the Blessed Beauty that spanned many decades.

With grieving hearts we bid farewell to the last of that noble company, the Chief Stewards of Baha’u'llah’s embryonic World Commonwealth, into which he is now gathered in realms of deathless delight and joy. The fervor of his love for the teaching work inspired countless believers across the globe, whether at the events he attended as the representative of the Guardian or of the Universal House of Justice, or in his extensive travels to promote the goals of the Master’s Divine Plan. In such activities he contributed mightily to the progress of the Ten Year Crusade and subsequent global teaching plans. Until his final days, he was leonine in his determination to protect the Faith. He wore with marked distinction the mantle of Trustee of Huququ’llah that fell to him from the shoulders of his illustrious father, impressing a record of imperishable achievement on the annals of the Formative Age — achievement which has set a pattern that secures important features for the operation into the future of that divinely ordained institution. Throughout the many years of his valiant endeavor to maintain the integrity of the two offices of so high a rank to which he was simultaneously elevated, his manner was imbued with a luminous gentleness, a genuine kindliness and a natural dignity which combined to reflect the character of a saintly personality. For these exemplary traits he will ever be remembered. Our heartfelt sympathy reaches out to the members of his dear family in their sad loss, which is shared by the entire Baha’i community. With deeply held trust in the bounties of the Graciou s Lord, we pray at the Sacred Threshold for the progress of his resplendent soul throughout the divine worlds.

We advise the friends in all lands to commemorate his passing and request befitting memorial services in his honor at all Houses of Worship.

The Universal House of Justice

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(photos copyright of the Baha’i International Community)

BBC - Comedy - The Omid Djalili Show
BBC ONE, 9:30pm, Saturday 17th November

The Omid Djalili show starts a six week run on the BBC tonight, having survived the criticism that it may make light of serious subjects such as terrorism with, for example, a sketch called Suicide Bomber School. I am personally a firm believer that comedy can subtly eat away extremist and erroneous views by magnifying them beyond the point at which we identify those views as being our own, but there is always a line below which such comedy will be seen as tasteless and that line is not easily defined. The BBC may, therefore, appear brave to give Omid a Saturday night slot on their flagship channel, but Omid has been staying on the right side of that line in his stand-up routines since he started touching on such material, following the 9/11 bombings, in 2001.

Omid is a serious actor as well as a stand up comedian, his own web site includes a show reel of some of his more serious roles. Perhaps Omid would rather be known as an actor than a comedian but he has always had a natural ability to entertain, my earliest memories of him are from a Baha’i youth conference in London in the mid 1980’s where he performed some sketches with the help of Inder Manocha, now also doing stand-up routines. My brother and I did some break dancing at the same event.

That conference was before Omid took on stand-up comedy professionally and so his material has matured a lot since then, but as a long standing fan and admirer of Omid’s talent and radiant joyousness, I am very familiar with most of Omid’s stand-up routine, some of which is to be repeated yet again for this tv series. Hopefully a prime time BBC ONE airing for this material will be a last stand for some of the older routines and more newer jokes will be developed. The old jokes are still funny to watch, but I don’t need to see them performed because I have seen them so many times that they are imprinted in my mind. That said, I do have a desire to see his “Indian bingo caller” resurface, though I doubt that will make it into this show.

The Omid Djalili show starts tonight at 9:30 on BBC ONE and runs for six weeks.

Today is the anniversary of the Birth of Baha’u'llah, the Prophet founder of the Baha’i Faith. He was born on 12th November 1817 in Tehran, Persia.

The Baha’i International Community have launched a new web site about the life of Baha’u'llah which can be found here: http://www.bahaullah.org/

800 years ago today, on 30th September 1207, the mystical poet Rumi was born. Rumi’s wisdom on spiritual themes was widely referred to in Persian literature and literature from other parts of that region, his poetry has also become famous around the world and has more recently been incorporated into some pop songs, such as Bittersweet by Madonna in 1998. There is an article about Rumi’s birthplace here on the BBC News website.

Rumi is referenced several times in what Shoghi Effendi described as Baha’u'llah’s “greatest mystical composition”, The Seven Valleys, as well as The Four Valleys which is usually published along side The Seven Valleys. Both of these scriptural works offer mystical insights into themes of spiritual search and progress and were written in response to questions posed to Baha’u'llah.

In Memorials of the Faithful, by ‘Abdu’l-Baha, it is recorded that Baha’u'llah wrote down an ode of Rumi’s for a follower called Ustad Isma’il to sing. The ode is transtalted as follows:

I am lost, O Love, possessed and dazed,
Love’s fool am I, in all the earth.
They call me first among the crazed,
Though I once came first for wit and worth.

O Love, who sellest me this wine,
O Love, for whom I burn and bleed,
Love, for whom I cry and pine—
Thou the Piper, I the reed.

If Thou wishest me to live,
Through me blow Thy holy breath.
The touch of Jesus Thou wilt give
To me, who’ve lain an age in death.

Thou, both End and Origin,
Thou without and Thou within—
From every eye Thou hidest well,
And yet in every eye dost dwell.

The following has been published by the Baha’i World News Service [story link]

Baha’i world loses most distinguished member
HAIFA, Israel
24 September 2007 (BWNS)

The worldwide Baha’i community has lost its most distinguished member with the death of Dr. Ali-Muhammad Varqa.

He passed away on the evening of 22 September 2007 at his home in Haifa.

In 1955, Dr. Varqa was appointed to the high rank of “Hand of the Cause” by Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Baha’i Faith. Dr. Varqa served in that capacity, on the international level, for 52 years until his passing. He was the last survivor of the 27 Hands of the Cause who were alive when Shoghi Effendi passed away in 1957.

Dr. Varqa came from a well-known Iranian family that has served the Baha’i Faith with distinction for generations. After obtaining a doctorate from the Sorbonne in Paris in 1950, he taught in Iran at the universities of Tabriz and Tehran and served the Baha’i community there in various administrative capacities. In 1979 he moved to Canada, and later established his residence in Haifa to serve at the Baha’i World Center.

He was born in 1912 in Tehran, Iran, and received his name from ‘Abdu’l-Baha in memory of his grandfather, who had been killed for being a follower of Baha’u'llah.

Dr. Varqa traveled to many countries as a representative first of Shoghi Effendi, then of the Universal House of Justice, the international governing council of the Baha’i Faith. In that capacity, Dr. Varqa attended the first national conventions held in Belgium, Luxembourg, the Congo, Mauritania, Central Africa Republic, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Czechoslovakia and Greenland.

Dr. Varqa is survived by three daughters and six siblings. His funeral was to take place the morning of 24 September, with burial in the Baha’i cemetery in Haifa.

Related Photos

Link: Full story with photos

Doctor ‘Alí-Muhammad Varqá, Hand of the Cause of God, passed away in the early hours of last night. He was about 95 years old.

Dr. Varqa was the last surviving Hand of the Cause of God. The Hands of the Cause of God were 50 individuals specially appointed by Bahá’u'lláh, ‘Abbdu’l-Bahá and Shoghi Effendi, who offered guidance and great inspiration to the Bahá’í community without any decision making powers. Dr. Varqa was appointed as a Hand of the Cause in 1955 by Shoghi Effendi.

The following letter was today sent from the Universal House of Justice to the Bahá’ás of the world:

23 September 2007

To the Baha’is of the World

In the early hours of last night, revered, greatly admired, well-loved Hand of the Cause of God Dr. ‘Ali-Muhammad Varqa departed this earthly plane after a period of outstanding, consecrated service to the Blessed Beauty that spanned many decades.

With grieving hearts we bid farewell to the last of that noble company, the Chief Stewards of Baha’u'llah’s embryonic World Commonwealth, into which he is now gathered in realms of deathless delight and joy. The fervor of his love for the teaching work inspired countless believers across the globe, whether at the events he attended as the representative of the Guardian or of the Universal House of Justice, or in his extensive travels to promote the goals of the Master’s Divine Plan. In such activities he contributed mightily to the progress of the Ten Year Crusade and subsequent global teaching plans. Until his final days, he was leonine in his determination to protect the Faith. He wore with marked distinction the mantle of Trustee of Huququ’llah that fell to him from the shoulders of his illustrious father, impressing a record of imperishable achievement on the annals of the Formative Age — achievement which has set a pattern that secures important features for the operation into the future of that divinely ordained institution. Throughout the many years of his valiant endeavor to maintain the integrity of the two offices of so high a rank to which he was simultaneously elevated, his manner was imbued with a luminous gentleness, a genuine kindliness and a natural dignity which combined to reflect the character of a saintly personality. For these exemplary traits he will ever be remembered. Our heartfelt sympathy reaches out to the members of his dear family in their sad loss, which is shared by the entire Baha’i community. With deeply held trust in the bounties of the Gracious Lord, we pray at the Sacred Threshold for the progress of his resplendent soul throughout the divine worlds.

We advise the friends in all lands to commemorate his passing and request befitting memorial services in his honor at all Houses of Worship.

The Universal House of Justice

Several news sources are reporting that an Interfaith group, including the Baha’is, staged an anti-homosexuality march in Uganda yesterday in response to an increase in pro gay rights activism in that country. While the protesters were united in their hope that the law would not be changed such that it would discourage family values, there were a variety of views on homosexuality being expressed by them and the banners they carried.

I feel it is worth saying a few words on the Baha’i attitude toward homosexuality here. In the Baha’i Faith sexual acts between two people of the same sex are not permitted. Sex is only permitted within marriage and marriage is viewed primarily as the institution for bringing children into the world, becoming a Baha’i when you are not married involves a commitment to abstain from sexual activity, just as it requires a commitment to abide by other laws too.

As with all religions, the Baha’i Faith presents love as a very powerful force, and for the love between any two people to be strong is to be seen as a positive thing, much moreso than popular culture generally dictates. It is only the sexual expression of that love which is forbidden outside of marriage.

A Baha’i would typically treat a homosexual and a heterosexual with the same dignity and respect, a homosexual is not seen as an evil person. The Baha’i teachings are for every individual Baha’i to apply to their own lives, and every Baha’i will have some short comings in this respect. Baha’is do not judge people simply because there is one obvious aspect of their life which is not in keeping with the teachings of Baha’u'llah, whether they have accepted Baha’u'llah or not. Within the Baha’i community if an individual is seen to be actively engaging in homosexual activity, as with any Baha’i law that is broken, they are likely to be discouraged or have certain administrative privileges removed. An addiction to, or inability to restrain from, homosexual activity is seen in the Baha’i teachings as a condition which can be treated.

The fundamental laws and teachings of the Baha’i Faith were set in stone by Baha’u'llah. There are some matters that were left for the Universal House of Justice (International governing body) to decide in accordance with the needs of the age, but they cannot change the basic laws of the Baha’i Faith to meet with popular opinion. Any individual who becomes a Baha’i will investigate the laws and teachings of Baha’u'llah, be inspired by the Holy Writings and recognise that the religion is from a Divine source, it is inevitable that somewhere in the laws and teachings there will be something that is incompatible with an individuals personal beliefs to that date, but to accept Baha’u'llah as a Messenger from God is to accept that His teachings are correct and our ideas are flawed, to suggest that Baha’u'llah may be wrong on one issue is to deny His divinity and thus reject the Baha’i Faith. It is common for an individual to have problems or issues accepting a view-point which is contrary to everything they have believed throughout their life, it is not unreasonable that such issues may never be fully reconciled or understood, so long as a Baha’i understands the Baha’i perspective as the Truth and their own perspective as restricted by the limitations of human understanding then there is no harm in such differences.

Religion is not about finding a code of living that everybody agrees with, it is about discovering the path for our spiritual development as individuals and as a society. Religion has never been popular for changing standards, but many religious standards that were unpopular in the past are accepted as proper today. For example (though somewhat disconnected from the overall subject matter) in the mid-nineteenth century the explicit Baha’i message that men and women should have equal rights was seen by many as outrageous, within a century it was globally prevalent and society is better for it.

There is a fairly good Wikipedia article on the Baha’i Faith and homosexuality which can be found here.

18th June marks the anniversary of the execution, for being followers of the Baha’i Faith, of ten women in Iran in 1983. Among the ten women was Ladan’s aunt, Shirin Dalvand, pictured above holding Ladan several years earlier in Shiraz.

Baha’is were persecuted and put to death in very large numbers, this is not the anniversary of a rare event. The occasion is noted for the fact that all the Baha’is executed on this occasion were women, many of them young, one of them only seventeen years old.Shirin herself was twenty-five at the time. Ladan had fond memories of her and Shirin displayed great affection toward her too. Shirin’s parents, her brother and two sisters, all live in Newcastle and the family remember Shirin, and the numerous other Baha’is who’s lives were taken because of their Faith, at this time.

Links:
18th June 1983
Persection of the Baha’i commun ity in Iran
Music Video about Mona
Mona’s Dream, a film in production