Southwark Bahá'í Community
Two-Hundredth Anniversary of the Birth of Baha'u'llah
ONE FAITH
ONE GOD
ONE HUMANITY
"O my God! O my God! Unite the hearts of Thy servants, and reveal to them Thy great purpose. May they follow Thy commandments and abide in Thy law. Help them, O God, in their endeavour, and grant them strength to serve Thee. O God! Leave them not to themselves, but guide their steps by the light of Thy knowledge, and cheer their hearts by Thy love. Verily, Thou art their Helper and their Lord." ~ Bahá’u’lláh
For the official website of the Bicentenary of the Birth of Baha'u'lllah click here.
The Southwark Baha’i community is happy to join with others around the world who are preparing to celebrate and honour the 200th anniversary of the birth of Bahá’u’lláh, the Founder of the Baha’i Faith, on Saturday 21 October 2017, 19:00 – 21:30. This free celebration is open to everyone irrespective to background, race, age or religion.
The life of Baha'u'llah
The Bahá’í writings often compare the coming of a Manifestation of God to the rising of the sun. The appearance of God’s messenger is like the start of each new day, when the sun’s rays release energy into the world, shedding light on all things and allowing the eye to see what was obscure in the darkness of night.
A new day has dawned for humanity with the coming of Bahá’u’lláh, “the Glory of God”, and His Herald, the Báb—the two most recent of the Divine Messengers Who have appeared throughout history. Just as the dawning sun stirs the sleeping world to life, the rising of these Twin Manifestations of God has reenergized humanity’s search for higher meaning and purpose in life. Bahá’u’lláh’s teachings shed light on human affairs at a time when, it can be argued, darkness has settled on the world. His teachings help humanity make sense of and navigate the great changes that are rapidly unfolding. While these changes disrupt the order of things, create chaos, and perplex even the most astute leaders, they also open the way for new patterns of life and new forms of human organization to emerge.
In this turbulent period of human history, the world is in need of a unifying vision of our true nature as human beings and of the kind of world in which we would want to live. Bahá’ís believe that this vision is revealed in the writings of Bahá’u’lláh, whose life and teachings are the most compelling story of our time. To read more please click here.
The Revelation of Baha'u'llah
The teachings of the Founders of the world’s religions have inspired breath-taking achievements in literature, architecture, art, and music. They have fostered the promotion of reason, science, and education. Their moral principles have been translated into universal codes of law, regulating and elevating human relationships. These uniquely endowed individuals are referred to as “Manifestations of God” in the Bahá’í writings, and include (among others) Krishna, Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus Christ, Muhammad, the Báb, and Bahá’u’lláh. History provides countless examples of how these Figures have awakened in whole populations capacities to love, to forgive, to create, to dare greatly, to overcome prejudice, to sacrifice for the common good, and to discipline the impulses of humanity’s baser instincts. These achievements can be recognized as the common spiritual heritage of the human race. To read more please click here.
Baha'u'llah's Teachings in Action
Since the inception of the Bahá’í Faith in the Nineteenth Century, a growing number of people have found in the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh a compelling vision of a better world. Many have drawn insights from these teachings—the oneness of humanity, the equality of women and men, the elimination of prejudice, the harmony of science and religion—and have sought to apply Bahá’í principles to their lives and work.
Inspired by the principle of the oneness of humankind, Bahá’ís believe that the advancement of a materially and spiritually coherent world civilization will require the contributions of countless high-minded individuals, groups, and organizations, for generations to come. The efforts of the Bahá’í community to contribute to this movement are finding expression today in localities all around the world and are open to all. To read more please click here