So how do you know if you would feel comfortable investigating the Bahá'i Faith and worshipping with the Bahá'i Community?  Is the Bahá'i Faith what you are looking for?  While there are many practical, personal and emotional factors involved in choosing a spiritual community, one of the most obvious is its system of beliefs.  If you don't believe what your religion teaches, then it is difficult to feel at peace with it, no matter how beautiful its scripture or friendly its services.  Bahá'is believe that we should be able to keep our hearts open and our minds alive at the same time.

Here is an outline of many of the Bahá'i principles.  As you read through them, rate the degree to which you agree with them using the code below.  When you are done, there will be a key to help you decide where to go from here.

A - Agree Absolutely with this belief
B - Believe it is probably true
C - Could agree if given evidence or a better explanation
D - Disagree for the most part
F - Fiercely Disagree

(Place the letter of your choice in the box preceding the statement.)

Teachings About Religion:

  1.  The purpose of religion is to promote love and unity between all people. A religion that promotes conflict is worse than no religion at all.
A B C D F
  2.  There is only one God, who loves all humanity equally.
A B C D F
  3.  God is a perfect Creator while humanity is His perfect creation.
A B C D F
  4.  In creation, perfection includes the capacity to grow and develop.
A B C D F
  5.  When a human soul grows, it moves from ignorance to knowledge, from childshness to wisdom.
A B C D F
  6.  For humans to grow in knowledge and wisdom, they need teachers.
A B C D F
  7.  Because God loves all humanity, He sent us many Teachers at different times and places.  They are known as Messengers, Manifestations, or Prophets of God.  (For more about God's Messengers, see pages 7 - 8)
A B C D F
  8.  Humans (individually and collectively) are in a two-way relationship with God.  God has promised to love and guide us forever.   In return, we must promise to love His Messengers, and follow (or obey) Their guidance.  This two-way agreement is called The Covenant.
A B C D F
  9.  God's Messengers teach us how to know, love and worship God; how to develop our virtues; and how to work together so that civilization as a whole can advance.
A B C D F
10.  In the past, society needed an educated clergy to pass on the teachings of the prophet.  Now that literacy is widespread, people can take responsibilityfor their own spiritual education.
A B C D F
11.  It is up to each of us to investigate the Truth and try to live in harmony with God's spiritual, moral and social teachings.
A B C D F
12.  Our motive for following God's teachings is not that we feel guilty when we don't, but rather that we experience more joy, radiance, inner peace and closeness to God when we do.
A B C D F

Spiritual Teachings:

13.  Joy comes from knowing that we are living in harmony with our true purpose in life, which is to know and love God.
A B C D F
14.  The essence of God is not something our rational minds can comprehend, but the qualities of God, like generosity and mercy, are reflected in our hearts.
A B C D F
15.  To know God is to know His spiritual qualities, and to love God is to love His spiritual qualities.
A B C D F
16.  To be "created in God's image," means that we reflect the spiritual qualities of God.
A B C D F
17.  When we love God's qualities, we reflect them in our lives and actions.  When we reflect them, we come to know and understand them.  That is what it means to know and love God.  That's what life is all about: developing virtues.  That is our purpose, and doing it brings us joy.
A B C D F
18.  Since we are made in the image of God, we know that we are created good and noble, but we still need guidance in order to develop our full potential.
A B C D F
19.  The clearest way to receive guidance is to study the life and teachings of God's Prophets, who mirror God's qualities.
A B C D F
20.  Our love for God can be expressed and deepened through prayer, meditation, fasting, teaching and service.
A B C D F
21.  God's love is like the sunshine, waiting to be reflected.  It is available to everyone equally, but through our free will, we can turn ourselves away from it.  We must love God and turn towards Him in order for God's love to be reflected in us.
A B C D F
22.  God loves us individually as well as collectively.
A B C D F
23,  God is a God of bounty.  He is "more friend to me than I am to myself."   We may trust God to satisfy our needs.
A B C D F
24.  Money and wealth are not evil; they are simply a distraction, which can, if we are not careful, sidetrack our focus on developing spiritual qualities.
A B C D F
25.  When art and music are used to uplift rather than degrade the soul, they can have a powerful positive effect.
A B C D F

Moral Teachings:

26.  Everything in God's Creation is connected in some way.  All human souls are connected spiritually, which means that we affect and influence one another in ways we don't always realize.  The good or harm we do unto others also affects us.
A B C D F
27.  When we remember that we are primarily spiritual beings, and also recognize the fact that we are spiritually connected to everyone else on earth, then most moral and ethical teachings become easier to understand.
A B C D F
28.  We should strive to strengthen our spiritual capacities, which include: generosity, kindness, patience, forgiveness, cleanliness, chastity, honesty and trustworthiness, justice, wisdom, intellectual perception, equity, truthfulness, benevolence, courage, fortitude, respect, rectitude, self-sacrifice, obedience, service to God, guidance and education of others.  This is just a starting point.
A B C D F
29.  The Golden Rule is a natural expression of our sense of connection to everyone else - even those people who look like they are our enemies.
A B C D F
30.  We should work on our own faults, ignore others' faults, and avoid “backbiting.”
A B C D F
31.  Parents should love and educate their children.  Children should honor and serve their parents.
A B C D F
32.  Some people are motivated by reward, others by punishment.  Most of us require both, so God's Justice includes both.  Punishment is not the same as vengeance.
A B C D F
33.  When sick, we should use both prayer and the best medical advice available.
A B C D F

Social Teachings:

34.  There is only one human family, and all races, nations and cultures reflect the wonderful diversity of that family.
A B C D F
35.  Humanity goes through stages of development similar to those of an individual.  We are currently moving from “adolescence” to maturity, which a difficult but exciting time of transition.
A B C D F
36.  The transition into the global equivalent of “maturity” will involve a certain level of chaos and difficulty, but will also release wonderful new potential.
A B C D F
37.  Many people focus on the chaos and problems in the world and become frightened and confused, but if we look at our potential, we have reason to be optimistic.  After all, we go through adolescence towards the beginning of our lives, not the end.
A B C D F
38.  World Peace is not only possible, but is the only reasonable expectation for a mature human race.  A World Parliament is needed to organize and maintain global peace and cooperation.
A B C D F
39.  Economic and environmental problems can be solved through the application of spiritual principles.
A B C D F
40.  Women and men are equal in their capacity to reflect the image, or virtues of God. God is neither male nor female.  The word "He" is often used in scripture only because we do not have a neutral personal pronoun in English.
A B C D F
41.  The family is the building block of civilization and needs to be strengthened and supported.
A B C D F
42.  Education of children is one of the most important forms of service possible.
A B C D F
43.  Science and religion are simply two different ways of exploring God's creation and should be in harmony.
A B C D F
44.  The world needs an international auxiliary language to allow better communication and greater cooperation and trust between peoples.  This will promote world peace.
A B C D F
45.  The material world is a classroom which we should utilize, respect and preserve for future generations.
A B C D F
46.  While meditation and periods of solitude are valuable, we should remain active in the world and not isolate ourselves.
A B C D F
47.  All work done in the spirit of service is counted as worship.
A B C D F

Metaphysical Teachings:

48.  God is the Creator.  He is not in His creation, nor is He separate from His creation.  He is reflected in creation the way a mirror reflects the sun, or a piece of music reflects the spirit of the composer.   The relationship between Creator and creation is eternal.
A B C D F
49.  The rational soul is God's greatest gift to humans, but it is still limited in its ablility to understand itself, let alone its unknowable Creator.  All we can know about God are those qualities that are already reflected within us.
A B C D F
50.  Each of us is unique.  Our uniqueness is a result of spiritual, biological and environmental factors.
A B C D F
51.  The soul is immortal.  If it is attracted to the attributes of God, it will be strengthened and continue to move towards God after death.   If not, it will weaken and fade.
A B C D F
52.  There is no locked door between “heaven” and “hell.”  Heaven is simply moving towards God.   Hell is moving away.  If you love truth, justice and kindness, then you will move towards God, no matter what you call yourself.
A B C D F
53.  For a spiritually strong person, death is the door to true life.  We will retain our identity and communicate with loved ones.   We will not return to the physical world, but will continue to grow and even serve in the spiritual world.
A B C D F
54.  The soul exists independent of time and space as we know it.  The soul is not “in” the body, any more than a light is “in” a mirror, or a broadcast is “in”a radio.  The connection is real, but intangible.
A B C D F
55.  Evil is simply the absence of good in the same way as darkness is the absence of light.  Though the darkness of hatred or immortality can be inconvenient, it is not a force to be fought, but rather a need to be filled by the light of love and virtue.
A B C D F
56.  There is a lot more to creation than we can ever imagine.  The world is not an illusion, nor is it a game.
A B C D F
57.  We are not God, nor are we gods, nor are we Manifestations of God.  But that's OK because being unique, loved, spiritual reflections of God with free-will capacity to love and serve is quite enough for any soul to handle.
A B C D F
58.  The human soul is different from the animal spirit and reflects more of God's attributes.
A B C D F
59.  The human species has always been distinct, though it may have gone through evolutionary stages resembling animals.
A B C D F
60.  The soul or spirit of the individual comes into being with the conception of his physical body.
A B C D F
61.  The spiritual powers of the human soul include imagination, thought, comprehension, memory and the “common faculty” which is the interface between these inner powers and the body.
A B C D F
62.  When we die, we will have spiritual communication and vision, and move outside the realms of time or space, but to try to develop these abilities before we die can damage our souls and slow our progress in the afterlife.
A B C D F
63.  Our connection with humanity is strengthened by love of God and love for each other - not through drugs or psychic experimenting.
A B C D F

About God's Messengers:

64.  There are two kinds of Prophets or Teachers - Primary Messengers, like Moses, Jesus, Mohammed, Buddha and Bahá'u'lláh, and secondary messengers like Isaiah and St. John, who received their inspiration from the others.
A B C D F
65.  The Primary Messengers, (what Bahá'is call “Manifestations of God”) receive their enlightenment from God and know more about creation (us) than we know about ourselves.
A B C D F
66.  We need these Manifestations of God in order to help us understand the difference between what is true and what we simply wish were
Teachers often tell us things we would prefer not to hear or believe.
A B C D F
67.  All Manifestations are equal in knowledge and spirit, but the richness of their teachings was limited by their followers' ability to understand.
A B C D F
68.  God's Teachers directed the progress of civilization, either directly or indirectly, and built upon each other's contributions.
A B C D F
69.  God's Messengers have not come to save us because we are inherently evil, but rather to educate us because we are inherently ignorant and in need of guidance.
A B C D F
70.  Manifestations bring two kinds of teachings, social and spiritual.  The spiritual teachings are eternal, but the social teachings change to meet the needs of the time.
A B C D F
71.  The Prophets spoke in parable and symbol, and those who have “eyes to see and ears to hear” read scripture from that perspective.
A B C D F
72.  The Manifestations of God are perfect reflections of God, they are not God in His Essence, nor are they little pieces of God.
A B C D F
73.  God, His Messengers, and The Holy Spirit are what Christians call The Father, The Christ and The Holy Ghost.  These three can be likened to the sun, a perfect mirror, and the light that reflects off the mirror to create a perfect image of the Sun.  While the sun never leaves the sky, the mirror (Messenger) can still be said to represent the sun (God) on earth through the power of its light (Holy Spirit.)
A B C D F
74.  Jesus was born of a virgin and was the spiritual Son, not the physical Son of God.  God's spiritual “Son” rose spiritually to a spiritual Heaven to live forever.
A B C D F
75.  The term “return” refers to a return of the spiritual qualities or spritual station of a prophet, not their physical return.  For example, Jesus said that John the Baptist was the return of Elias, even though physically,  John was His cousin.
A B C D F
76.  One can tell a true Prophet from a false one by the “fruit” of His teachings, and the example of His life.
A B C D F
77.  Bahá'u'lláh, the One who founded the Faith and explained these principles, claims to fulfill the prophecies concerning the “Promised One” of all religions.  His life and teachings are worthy of further study to determine the goodness of His “fruit,” and the validity of His claim.
A B C D F

Where to go from here:

If you gave yourself mostly A's and B's on this list,  then you would probably feel right at home in the Bahá'i Community.  Sure, it might take a while to get used to some things,  but the joy of having a whole community of people who share your beliefs will be like a breath of fresh air.  We look forward to hearing from you.

If you gave yourself mostly B's and C's, then you are probably the kind of person who likes more information before making decisions.  Fortunately, in the Bahá'i Faith, it is easy to find out more.  For each of the points made in this booklet there are pages, if not volumes of explanations and details.   You may borrow books from your local library or the Bahá'i Community librarian.  If you learn better by listening, we have audio tapes, video tapes and, of course, meetings, classes and worship services you may attend.

If you gave yourself mostly C's and D's, then you will probably be happier staying in the church you are used to.  The good news is that you can make your decision based on accurate information, not rumors or fears.   When you meet other people whose beliefs differ from yours, you might tell them about the Bahá'is and share the information you have learned.

What if you gave yourself lots of A's and B's but there are a few really important F's that you can't ignore?  Believe it or not, you are the kind of person we really enjoy talking with because you have passionate beliefs that force you to ask questions and search for answers.  Independent investigation of the truth is a central Bahá'i principle.  It is not surprising, then, that many of the people who are Bahá'is today started coming to Bahá'i meetings needing to challenge us concerning something dear to their hearts - whether it was their love for Jesus (which we share) or some political or personal conflict.  In addressing these issues, Bahá'is are told to never argue.  Instead, we will listen very carefully and try to assist you as you search out the truth for yourself.


If your next step involves finding out more about the Bahá'i Community, then please look in your white pages under Bahá'i for the contact person in your area.

If there is no listing where you live, you may write:

Bahá'i National Center Wilmette, IL 60091 1-800-22-UNITE or
www.us.bahai.org  
www.bellemontbahaischool.org

For Further Reading:

In addition to the books you will find in your local library, and the ones you can borrow from your local Bahá'is, you may also order a small selection of introductory paperbacks and pamphlets from Interfaith Resources www.interfaithresources.com/products/bkbahai.cfm
www.interfaithresources.com/products/pamphlets.cfm

For a more extensive listing of Bahá'i literature, you can order directly from the publisher of the Finding Common Ground questionnaire, Special Ideas at 1-800-326-1197.
www.special-ideas.com/books.htm

The following popular titles are available from either source:

My Bahá'i Faith
A personal tour of the Bahá'i Teachings by Justice St. Rain, the author of this questionnaire. It presents the over-arching philosophy and metaphysics of the Bahá'i Faith in easy-to-read and very personal format.  144 pages cover the major teachings, history and community life.

Why Me?  A Spiritual Guide to Growing Through Tests
Also, by Justice St. Rain, this book explains in a simple, profound and often humorous way, why a kind and loving God will give us tests in order to help us develop our full spiritual potential.

The Gardens of God
Written by two French journalists who are not Bahá'is, it offers an accurate presentation of the Bahá'i teachings and Community from an outside perspective.

A Concise Encyclopedia of the Bahá'i Faith
A well-organized presentation of the facts and figures on the Bahá'i Faith.

The Promise of World Peace
A beautifully illustrated and annotated edition of the Bahá'i Community's 1986 statement on peace.  It offers a good example of the Bahá'i approach to applying spiritual principles to social, political and economic problems.

Bahá'i Writings Booklet Assortment
Six pocket-sized compilations of Bahá'i Sacred Writings on various subjects, including:
Prayer, Healing, Wealth, Meditations and Spiritual Maturity.

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