Bahaikipedia:Today's featured article/October

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October 1

Progressive revelation is a core teaching in the Bahá'í Faith that suggests that religious truth is revealed by God progressively and cyclically over time through a series of divine Messengers, and that the teachings are tailored to suit the needs of the time and place of their appearance. Thus, the Bahá'í teachings recognize the divine origin of several world religions, asserting that God is one and His religion is one, while believing that the revelation of Bahá'u'lláh is the most recent (though not the last), and therefore the most relevant to modern society. (more...)
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October 2

A fundamental principle of the Bahá'í Faith is the harmony of religion and science. The Bahá'í Faith teaches that properly appreciated, science and religion will never conflict, as each are complementary ways of explaining truth, which on any issue must necessarily be singular. The teachings state that whenever conflict arises between religion and science it is due to human error; either through misinterpretation of religious scriptures or the lack of a more complete understanding of science. 'Abdu'l-Bahá explained that religious teachings which are at variance with science should not be accepted; he explained that religion has to be reasonable since God endowed humankind with reason so that they can discover truth. (more...)
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October 3

The Bahá'í teachings state that there is but one religion which is progressively revealed by God, through prophets/messengers to mankind. As humanity matures and its capacity to understand also grows, and the Bahá'í writings state all Manifestations come from the same God and expound His teachings, therefore they can be seen in the same light, but at the same times they are separate individuals known by a different name, who fulfills a definite mission, and is entrusted with a particular revelation. (more...)
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October 4

An Auxiliary language in the Bahá'í Faith focuses on a particular teaching; that the world should adopt an international auxiliary language. The aim of this teaching is that the adoption of an international auxiliary language will improve communication and foster unity among peoples and nations. The Bahá'í writings state that the lack of communication between peoples of different languages undermines efforts towards world peace due to misunderstandings of language, and that adopting an international auxiliary language would help reduce the number of misunderstandings, and would facilitate the transition to a global society. (more...)
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October 5

October 6

October 7

October 8

October 9

The Hands of the Cause of God were a select group of Bahá'ís, appointed for life, whose main function was to propagate and protect the Bahá'í Faith on the international level. In all there were fifty Hands of the Cause, four named by Bahá'u'lláh, four by 'Abdu'l-Bahá and forty-two by Shoghi Effendi (including ten posthumously). The title is no longer given out, and there are no longer any living Hands of the Cause, the last surviving Hand being Dr. 'Alí-Muhammad Varqá. The work of the Hands of the Cause is now carried out by the Continental Board of Counsellors and the Auxiliary Boards. (more...)
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October 10

The Ten Year Crusade (1953-1963) was a plan launched by Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, to facilitate an organized expansion of the Faith. Among the goals of the plan were to begin the teaching and consolidation of the Faith, develop the institutions at the World Centre, consolidate open territories, and open the remaining "chief virgin territories" around the globe. The title 'Knight of Bahá'u'lláh' was given to those Bahá'ís who arose to open new territories to the Faith during the Ten Year Crusade and in 1963 the plan culminated with the first election of the Universal House of Justice. (more...)
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October 11

"Prayer," says 'Abdu'l-Bahá, "is conversation with God." In order that God may make known His mind and will to human beings, He must speak to us in a language which we can understand, and this He does through the guidance of the Manifestations of God. While the Manifestations are alive They speak face to face with man and convey to them the Message of God, and after Their death Their message continues to reach people's minds through their recorded sayings and writings. But this is not the only way in which God can commune with and inspire those whose hearts are seeking after truth, wherever they are, and whatever their native race or tongue. By this language the Manifestation continues to hold converse with the faithful after His departure from the material world. (more...)
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October 12

A fundamental principle of the Bahá'í Faith is the harmony of religion and science. The Faith teaches that properly appreciated, science and religion will never conflict, as each are complementary ways of explaining truth, which on any issue must necessarily be singular. The teachings state that whenever conflict arises between religion and science it is due to human error; either through misinterpretation of religious scriptures or the lack of a more complete understanding of science. 'Abdu'l-Bahá explained that religious teachings which are at variance with science should not be accepted; he explained that religion has to be reasonable since God endowed humankind with reason so that they can discover truth. (more...)
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October 13

October 14

The Bahá'í Faith emphasizes the unity of humanity transcending all divisions of race, nation, gender, caste, and social class, while celebrating its diversity. Bahá'u'lláh wrote: "The earth is but one country, and mankind its citizens." 'Abdu'l-Bahá adds that the "unification of mankind" has now become "the paramount issue and question in the religious and political conditions of the world." The Bahá'í writings affirm the biological, political, and spiritual unity of humankind, while noting that they are not necessarily expected to arise simultaneously. (more...)
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October 15

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October 19

A cluster is a small geographic location in to which Bahá'ís are separated. There are close to 17,000 clusters worldwide and exist in all countries where the faith is permitted to operate. Clusters most closely resemble counties that exist in many countries in the world.

In 2001 the Universal House of Justice instructed the Continental Board of Counsellors to assist the National Spiritual Assemblies around the world in dividing the localities they govern in to smaller, manageable regions. The criteria laid out by the Universal House of Justice were based on "culture, language, patterns of transport, infrastructure, and the social and economic life of the inhabitants." (more...)
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October 20

Huqúqu'lláh (Arabic: ﺣﻘﻮﻕ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ, "Right of God"), sometimes called the Law of Huqúq, is a socio-economic and spiritual law of the Kitáb-i-Aqdas. In its most basic form, it states that Bahá'ís should pay a 19% voluntary tax on any wealth in excess of what is necessary to live comfortably, after the remittance of any outstanding debt, to the Universal House of Justice. (more...)
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October 21

The Nine Year Plan (1964-1973) was the first of many international plans to be given to the Bahá'í world by the newly-formed Universal House of Justice within the framework of the Divine Plan first elaborated by 'Abdu'l-Bahá. This plan, following on the successful conclusion of the Ten Year Crusade initiated by Shoghi Effendi, was first mentioned by the Universal House of Justice in a letter dated May 7, 1963 to the London National Convention. (more...)
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October 22

The term study circle has become common terminology in the Bahá'í Faith to describe a specific type of gathering for the study of the Bahá'í teachings, with an emphasis on "promoting the well-being of humanity." Study circles are a form of distance learning designed to systematically bring education about spiritual concepts to the grassroots level. Because they are intended to be sustainable and reproducible on a large scale, study circles shy away from formally taught classes, opting instead for participatory methods. (more...)
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October 23

The Nineteen Day Feasts are regular community gatherings, occurring on the first day of each month of the Bahá'í calendar (and so most often nineteen days apart from each other). Each gathering consists of a devotional, administrative, and social part. The devotional part of the Nineteen Day Feast can be compared to Sunday Services in Christianity or Friday Prayers in Islam, though the non-congregational nature of the Bahá'í Faith limits the usefulness of the comparison. (more...)
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October 24

The Egyptian identification card controversy resulted from a ruling of the Supreme Administrative Council of Egypt on December 16, 2006 against the Bahá'ís stating that the government may not recognize the Bahá'í Faith in official identification cards. The ruling leaves Bahá'ís unable to obtain the necessary government documents to have rights in their country. Bahá'ís cannot obtain identification cards, birth certificates, death certificates, marriage or divorce certificates, or passports. Without these documents, they cannot be employed, educated, treated in hospitals, or vote, among other things. (more...)
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