History

The Baha'i faith was founded in Persia (Iran) in 1844 by Baha'u'llah, and emerged from the Shi'a Muslim faith.

Today there are five million Baha'is in the world, and are represented in most countries.  There are around 6,000 Baha'is in the UK.

Beliefs

The central tenet of the religion is one of unity and common destiny - they believe that all peoples of the world should work together for the benefit of humanity, regardless of faith, nationality and gender.

They teach equality between men and women, the elimination of poverty, universal education, and personal responsibility.

Baha'is believe in one God, and that the message of God is delivered to successive generations by messengers or Manifestations of God - they count Moses, Jesus Christ, Buddha and the Prophet Mohmammed as such figures. Baha'u'llah is regarded as the most recent Manifestation.

Baha'i accepts the validity of all other religious faiths.

Baha'is are forbidden to drink alcohol, or take drugs other than for medical reasons.

Baha'is are permitted to marry, and divorce is allowed.  Pre-marital sex and adultery are not allowed.

There is no ban on homosexuality, but it is expected that homosexual orientation is not acted on.

Locally

There is a Baha'i community in Burnley which can be found at http://bci.org/burnleybahais/

The Burnley Baha'i community can be contacted by email at burnleybahais@bci.org for details of meetings and events.

Links

The official Baha'i website can be found at http://www.bahai.org, and the UK site is at http://www.bahai.org.uk/menu.htm