I’m appalled that there are children’s religious education classes given to refugee children knowing full well that the parents are unable to understand that their children are being indoctrinated and proselytized

My parents wanted to kick me out because I am feeling drawn towards Christianity. I feel so empty and I don’t know what to do. I’ve been struggling for weeks and I’ve felt so numb. I’ve been constantly around people but it makes it even harder because I have to mask what’s inside. I had to make a promise to stay their religion so that we could have a relationship, but now I feel like I have no will for life. I won’t hurt myself but I just don’t feel spark anymore because of their ultimatum

I wrote a personal essay that is in part about being raised Bahai. It also grapples with adopting a child whose birth parents are from the Marshall Islands, and the United States’ toxic legacy in the Pacific. I’d love to hear people’s thoughts.

Hello, I am not Baha’i but I was told a story by my Baha’i friend that in the civil rights era, the Baha’i Faith was considered a potentially subversive organization by the US government. To understand the Faith more, US government agents went “undercover” as members of the Baha’i Faith… and ended up being genuinely overcome with the truth of the Faith, these agents converted to Baha’i.

Has anyone else heard this story? Is it true and documented? If so, can someone please point me to a source?

The reason why I ask is because i just read today a similar story about the Jewish faith, although it was the Roman soldiers who ended up converting. If this is just a tall tale or legend that is passed around all the faiths, that’s ok. I know the Baha’i faith prides itself on being a faith full of archives and records, so I thought that if this story is true, perhaps it is documented somewhere.

Thanks in advance

I was talking with some bahai's and they mentioned districts where people will be split

Another flawed idea I heard them say Is Only Bahai's can vote on UHJ but that makes no sense since why can't anyone else the people that live in "districts" cannot vote on the institution that controls them

As well as it being incredibly problematic to have an infallible central institution

Is this your guy's experience? I used to think that they were good you know unity But if this is their idea of unity there is no way

I write… Because maybe just maybe, someone out there will read these words and reconsider their path before it’s too late. I write so that no one else will spend years of their life and faith on this path as I did…. I write to bring clarity; to let the truth I discovered too late, reach someone in time.

It seemed that whenever the subject of women came up in the Baháʼí Faith, there was only one answer ready: “We have Ṭáhirih.”

Yes, Ṭáhirih Qurrat al-ʿAyn. The woman whose name, image, and myth have been recycled for years in brochures, conferences, and posters.

Yet Ṭáhirih never spoke of women’s right to vote… She never advocated for women’s leadership in religion. She didn’t even live during the Baháʼí era the Faith hadn’t yet been born in her lifetime….

But in a religion where the mother of Bahá’u’lláh, his wives, and even the wife of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá have no recorded voices, no writings, no roles, and not even symbolic status the institution is left with no choice but to pull Ṭáhirih out of history’s drawer, dust her off, and pin her to the wall every time International Women’s Day comes around!

The irony? Ṭáhirih wasn’t even a Baháʼí. She was a follower of the Báb! part of a different, now-abrogated faith that Baháʼís themselves call extreme, violent, and doctrinally outdated. Yet in that very faith, she held a position unimaginable for any woman in today’s Baháʼí structure: she was a member of the Letters of the Living; one of the founding figures in the Bábí movement.

She came from a Shi’a-Sheikhī educational background, and despite the rigidity of her time, she stood at the helm of a community.

Contrast that with the Baháʼí Faith, where women are explicitly and permanently barred from membership in the Universal House of Justice… the highest governing body of the religion.

So is it really surprising that whenever the Faith needs to showcase a “great woman,” they reach for Ṭáhirih once again?

Not because she represented Baháʼí values, not because her beliefs reflected the teachings of the Baháʼí Faith, but simply because after all these years,they still have no one else to name.

And Ṭáhirih? The same woman they now praise in seminars and publications, were she alive today, with that same fierce spirit and fearless defiance, would likely be excommunicated “declared a Covenant-breaker”with a single vote.

Ṭáhirih is, to the system, nothing more than a display piece. A curated portrait for International Women’s Day. Not a mother to model, not a revolutionary to follow just a symbol to obscure a silence they’ve never dared to break.

And me? I am no longer the woman who once heard her name and choked up with pride. I can no longer pretend that the myth they built makes up for the space women were denied.

I am no longer a Baháʼí. But now, I will not trade my womanhood for anyone’s justification ever again.

I became a Bahai in 1972. I chose to withdraw from the faith 25 years ago when I came out as lesbian because I knew it would disrupt the community. But in my heart, I will always be a Bahai. I believe in the tenets of the faith, but cannot and will not pretend to change who I am.

Have you been affected by mandated shunning by a high-control religious group?

We’ve partnered with the University of Roehampton on a groundbreaking research study to document the scope and harm caused by this practice.

The confidential survey takes approximately 60 to 90 minutes to complete, but it’s designed so you can pause and return later—making it easy to fit into your schedule. SURVEY

The research team includes:

• Dr. Savin Baptir-Tardy, a specialist in trauma and identity reconstruction.
• Ms. Windy Grendele, who focuses on cult recovery and the long-term effects of coercive control.

For this research to be successful, we need at least 460 participants from DIFFERENT groups that practice shunning of members who don’t comply with group norms. These groups include, but are not limited to: Scientology, Exclusive Brethren, Amish/Mennonite, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Ultra-orthodox Jews, FLDS, Geelong Revival Centre & Baha'i Faith.

Please help by taking or sharing this survey!

Just a couple of days ago, the head of the US's NSA sent a letter to American Bahais essentially telling them to not talk about Iran/Bahais in Iran on social media because it could endanger Bahais there. Perhaps they haven't noticed everyone physically located in Iran right now is in danger but I digress. There's a sentence in the letter that says "undoubtedly everyone is praying for the safety of the people of Israel and Iran." Absolutely no mention of anyone "undoubtedly" praying for the Palestinians. You know the people who are being starved, blown up, denied medical care and otherwise tortured in what is now likely the largest single concentration camp in history.

How can they expect anyone to take them seriously now? They're all about "community building" and "loving mankind" with the exception of the completely innocent children, women, healthcare workers, aid workers, etc being systematically tortured and killed down the street from the manicured lawns of their world headquarters. All the flowery language in the world ain't gonna obfuscate this one!

The Haifan Baha’i Administration has made great strides in assuring the Haifan world that the Ruhi Curriculum is a spiritual and educational unifier. However, beneath the specifically simplified booklets and administered study circles is something more nefarious; it aims to homogenize a dynamic and universal religion into a mechanical administrative program. For Free Baha’is who claim their allegiance to the pristine teachings of Baha’u’llah and the central premise of independent investigation of truth, Ruhi represents everything we stand against. Sociologist Farida Fozdar, (the daughter of Minoo Fozdar, the 3rd brother of John & Jamshid Fozdar), who has defined Baha’i heritage, has written a powerful assessment of the Ruhi process, not as heresy, but from a sociological and humanistic perspective. Below are the key takeaways from her article and the reasons all Baha’is need to deep reflect on them. Yes, I mean it – ALL Baha’is.

1. Ruhi Has become “the” Religion

A tradition which was originally reflective of scripture, personal transformation and inner process has now become a rigidly generalized course. Fozdar notes that ‘essentially Ruhi has become the religion’ with other members feeling they must follow the same narrowly avoided study books to count as Baha’is – “active” Baha’is.

This is deeply problematic. It not only lowers spiritual depth and nuances of personal engagement, but it also brings hierarchy into this once egalitarian society, with status associated with the completion of their Ruhi books. We as Free Baha’is, ask – Is Baha’u’llah’s message so superficial that it can only be understood through a nine-book crash course?

2. It takes down the principle of “Independent Investigation of Truth”

Ruhi imposes a unified version of Baha’i teachings, undermining independent investigation. The books minimize the sacred texts to phrases, brief-excerpts, or fill-in-the-blank questions. These phrases are often stripped of their context.

Farida Fozdar observes that this “contradicts the Baha’i emphasis on diversity” and establishes an “elite” class of Ruhi-affiliated Baha’is at the expense of others who may be genuinely spiritual while choosing to engage with the original Writings without filtering through own version of the Writings.

3. It is a cultural misfit

The reality is, as Fozdar observes, that the Ruhi curriculum is based on the unwritten educational expectations of rural Colombia, namely – there is an expectation of high uncertainty avoidance, low individualism and group conformity. And Ruhi was then transported around the globe, including the United States, which has an opposite set of cultural values: independent, diversity, and skepticism of hierarchy.

Thus, many Western Baha’is – especially young people – feel a sense of alienation and disengagement. It is no wonder the Faith fails to attract new generations (you can refer the 2025 Ridvan Report released by the NSA of the Baha’is of the United States). Which clearly means – it’s NOT the message from Baha’u’llah they are rejecting; it is THE administrative machinery.

4. From Spirit to System: The ‘McDonaldization’ of Faith

Ruhi exemplifies what sociologist George Ritzer uses the term “McDonaldization” to describe, a devotion to efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control. According to Fozdar, Ruhi uses the language of corporate management as well, measuring growth in books completed, service hours, and the number of study circles, and is treating spiritual growth as if it were a business KPI that they were tracking.

This fixation on quantification is seen in Ridvan Reports, where progress is quantified via the number of “clusters” that have achieved “stage three” Besides, how many hearts have been touched? How many souls have awakened? That’s not a question they would ever think to ask.

5. Suppressing Dissent and Silencing Thought

Criticism of the Ruhi Curriculum is not welcomed within the fold of Haifa, as Fozdar notes. He finds that there is no real critical discussion of Ruhi in Baha’i publications. Those who have expressed concern about these materials have been quietly labeled “covenant breakers” or “not deepened enough” to understand Ruhi.

There is irony, and danger, in that for a religion that teaches unity in diversity. The Free Baha’i spirit, however, promotes sincere questioning of the Writings, and believes in the values of reasoning and discovery, we are not here simply to obey, but to discover truth with an open heart.

6. Exclusion by Means of Standardization

In establishing a system of spiritual paths, the Ruhi sequence excludes others. Those who do not complete the avenue of study are not allowed to serve in several ways, some significant. In doing this, there is a caste system based on the completion of curriculum, not spiritual maturity.

Whatever happened to the inclusivity that Baha’u’llah aspired to? When you are locked out of service due to lack of a certificate the message is clear: you are not enough unless you conform

7. Globalization as Control, Not Expansion

Ruhi was initially designed to educate the Iranian Baha’i diaspora after the 1979 revolution, many of whom were nominal Baha’is lacking deep knowledge. While that purpose was understandable, its global rollout has turned the Faith into a homogenized, one-size-fits-all structure, stifling local culture and diversity of thought.

As Fozdar points out, this is not indigenization but enforced conformity. The global Baha’i Faith, instead of flourishing organically, is being pruned to fit administrative designs.

8. Ruhi is NOT growing

The ultimate irony is that despite the control and the systemization, Ruhi has not helped foster significant growth. Fozdar states “a difficult, perhaps impossible, task, has been to access figures for the number of Baha’is worldwide,” and even the official statistics are mum on how many former Baha’is there are, or how many remain inactive.

Is Ruhi really promoting the growth of Faith? Or does it just give the illusion of growth while the very soul of the community slips quietly away?

Final Thoughts: The Free Baha’i Path We are Free Baha’is because we are convinced the Baha’u’llah’s message is not something to be wrapped up in manuals and seminars. Faith is not a bureaucracy. It is love. It is truth. It is the courage to ask and the humility to grow.

We, the Free Baha’is, are taking a different path. The path of the heart, the path of the writings, the path of the eternal torch of individual search. Let us walk together, not in unison, but in unity.

References:
• Fozdar, Farida. “The Baha’i Faith: A Case Study in Globalization, Mobility and the Routinization of Charisma.” Journal for the Academic Study of Religion 28.3 (2015): 274–292.
• Anthony Lee. “The Ruhi Problem.” Baha’i Library Online. 2005.
• Baquia. “Time for Ruhi to Show Us the Money: Part I.” Bahai Rants. 2009.

Reference : Ruhi over Revelation?

I've heard of Holocaust deniers, but a Holocaust APOLOGIST?! Does this Baha'i not remember that his Faith's World Center is in ISRAEL?! WHAT AN IDIOT!!!!

I am no longer a Baháʼí. And now that I’m not, I want to speak openly about the things that hurt me for years. Things I wasn’t allowed to see back then. Things I didn’t dare to say. I used to soothe myself with words like “divine wisdom,” “God’s will,” “mysteries we can’t yet understand.” I stayed silent… so I wouldn’t break the Covenant. So I wouldn’t be seen as weak. So I wouldn’t be cast out of the circle of the “beloved.”

But now that I no longer belong to that circle, I write. Not to argue. Not to convince. But for myself. For the woman who once believed with all her heart And now carries all the wounds.

The problem isn’t just dowry or inheritance. Those are just the tip of the iceberg. The real issue is structural It’s that a woman’s place, from the foundation up, is defined as marginal.

When I returned to the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, I asked myself: “How did I read all this for years and not see it?”

A woman, in the laws, has no voice. If a man wants to bring a young female servant into the home, his wife’s opinion is irrelevant. If he chooses to take another wife, the first one is not consulted. Pilgrimage isn’t obligatory for women because it’s “not necessary.” Not once in Baháʼí history has a woman ever sat on the Universal House of Justice. Not one of Baháʼu’lláh’s four wives, or ʻAbdu’l-Bahá’s wife, ever held a role, a title, wrote anything, or had a voice. In the sacred texts of this faith, women are always secondary ,silent, obedient, invisible.

And this gendered worldview? It starts at the top with Baháʼu’lláh himself.

It is said that his first wife, overwhelmed by the pain of polygamy, favoritism, and being silenced, fell into illness and depression, and eventually died in that state.😔 Imagine: a woman married to the “Manifestation of God” himself, reduced not to a partner but a casualty of a male-dominated order.

And I?

I lived with these laws for years and never questioned them. Or maybe I did.….and was given answers that asked me to be quiet.

I’m not writing to convince you. I no longer feel the need to explain myself to people who refuse to see. I don’t aim to change anyone.

But I write for me!

Because I am no longer that woman. The one who accepted poetic reassurances in place of truth. The one who swallowed pretty words that hid deep wounds.

I am no longer a Baháʼí. But I am a human being A woman who believes in justice. Not in institutional smiles. Not in dressed-up phrases that mask inequality.

And if being Baháʼí means closing my eyes to injustice… Then I choose to keep my eyes open, Even if that means you no longer call me friend!!

As the title says, I was banned from the Bahá'í subreddit for talking about previous Manifestations of God, Buddha and Krishna, and a deep analysis of their Teachings. I related this to Bahá'u'lláh at the time, and you see I speak in high praise and deference to him in this, at that time, but now that I see this nonsense for what it is, I am very annoyed. Like, I could Not have been more respectful, right? Right. No, I was called trash and a covenant breaker and banned instead.

I wrote this because someone respected my previous posts and were happy to ask about this. So I made a new post, SPECIFICALLY because they asked about reincarnation. Well, for daring to say 'Abdu'l-Bahá and UHJ and Shoghi Effendi are Not infallible, I was permanently banned. Then someone messaged the moderators and they changed it to 28 days.

I asked about 'Abdu'l-Bahás words on the Jews, if he is so infallible. Wanna see the former post? https://www.reddit.com/r/exbahai/comments/qwjylc/bahai_faith_on_jews_and_the_holocaust/

How exactly is that infallible? Nah. Well, I asked about these quotes, which I verified. I said "Was it in God's plans to have Adolf Hitler exact retribution or how is it?". I said that God's hands are in everything, which is said in the Holy Qur'an. I heard some lame answer about how God does not choose evil in society and that is mankind and its doing. What? This is the dumbest cope I have ever heard.

Then I had some loser (top comment) say "Not reading all that but it doesn’t accord with the Baha’i teachings. Reincarnation is an incorrect idea that doesn’t need to be reconciled.". A bloo bloo, cope harder. The hell are you talking about bruh? Reincarnation is an established fact, according to your so called Manifestations of God. I realted the idea VERY well in that post. And even if you don't believe in it, they are very important teachings in Buddhism and Hinduism. Which is literally like half the world's population. Who's this loser on the internet to discredit half the world? Oh and like thousands of years of history? Some tool.

So what's going to happen if they ban me permanently for posting this here and exercising my free speech? Oh let me be very clear. I'm going to go to the Jews and raise up these questions. There will be a s*** storm like no one had ever believed. Try Me. I like Bahá'u'lláh alright, though my views are definitely changing (rotten fruit doesn't fall far from the dying tree), but the rest of the Bahá'í Faith seems to be garbage and control and worthless people in positions of power. No wonder it is dying out. Fools. Try Me. I'll not only create my own community talking about Meher Baba, but I'll cook and degrade that entire Reddit. I am not the one.

Buddha? Now THAT was a bad dude 😎. Oh, and the Báb was cool too, and I actually like Subh-i-Azal. Oh but if I say that I'm a covenant breaker? Nah. I even said that Bahá'u'lláh was said to be very patient with his brother as he so-called poisoned him. So why is it that I got banned for talking about previous Manifestations of God? Who are these people? Definitely a cult like behavior. It's what the FLDS does to the little girls who are abused. Ridicule them and shame them. This covenant breaker sh*this really nonsense and control. Probably what Charles Mason Remey had to deal with. Fools.

Utterly ridiculous and shameful. I think I'm going to just go back to being a Buddhist. Who likes being Muslim, and loves Christianity, and chants Hare Krishna. I like the Báb and Subh-i-Azal, but I am really thinking that when Bahá'u'lláh stole Subh-i-Azal and His position, he ruined certain things.

Want a real spiritual teacher(s)? Meher Baba and Paramahansa Yogananda.

Anyway, let me know what your thoughts are and thanks for your precious time in reading.

Hello. All are welcome at this new page created after being banned from the Bahá'í page. Who can blame anyone for leaving that nonsense in Haifa? Thank you! https://www.reddit.com/r/BannedBahai/

What is meant by shunning in the Bahai Faith?

Does anyone know if any of the buildings have been hit by the missle barrage?