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512. Bahá’í Children Do not Automatically Inherit Faith of Parents
"In letters replying to questions on the registration of children and youth the Universal House of Justice has attempted to avoid laying down rulings that are universally applicable. However, for the assistance of National Spiritual Assemblies it is now providing the following summary of guidelines and elucidations that have been given. We are to emphasize that no hard and fast lines should be drawn, and procedural matters must never be allowed to eclipse the spiritual reality of belief, which is an intensely personal relationship between the soul and its Creator.
"Unlike the children of some other religions, Bahá’í children do not automatically inherit the Faith of their parents. However, the parents are responsible for the upbringing and spiritual welfare of their children, and Spiritual Assemblies have the duty to assist parents, if necessary, in fulfilling these obligations, so that the children will be reared in the light of the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh and from their earliest years will learn to love God and His Manifestations and to walk in the way of God's Law. It is natural, therefore, to regard the children of Bahá’ís as Bahá’ís unless there is a reason to conclude the contrary. It is quite wrong to think of Bahá’í children as existing in some sort of spiritual limbo until the age of fifteen at which point they can 'become' Bahá’ís. In the light of this one can conclude the following:
"Children born to a Bahá’í couple are regarded as Bahá’ís from the beginning of their lives, and their births should be registered by the Spiritual Assembly.
"The birth of a child to a couple, one of whom is a Bahá’í, should also be registered unless the non-Bahá’í parent objects.
A Spiritual Assembly may accept the declaration of faith of a child of non-Bahá’í parents, and register him as Bahá’í child, provided the parents give their consent."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United Kingdom, July 19, 1982)
513. Children Whose Parents Become Bahá’ís
"In the cases of children whose parents become Bahá’ís, much depends upon the ages and reactions of the children concerned. They will require great love and understanding, and each case must be judged on its own merits. This applies to an added degree, of course, if only one of the parents has accepted the Faith, in which case the attitude of the other parent is an important factor; the aim of the Bahá’ís should be to foster family unity. The important thing is that the children, whether registered as Bahá’ís or not, should be made to feel welcome at Bahá’í children's classes and other community gatherings."
- (Ibid.)
514. Status of Children Under the Age of 15*
"We have your letter of 18th August 1971 concerning the status of children under the age of 15 years who wish to become Bahá’ís. We share with you an extract of a letter on the subject written on behalf of the beloved Guardian by his secretary:
'Up to the age of 15 years, children are under the direction of their parents. At the age of 15, they may declare their Faith as a conviction, and be registered as Bahá’í youth, whether the parents are Bahá’ís or not. Children under the age of 15 of Bahá’í parents who wish to attend meetings and associate with the friends as Bahá’ís may do so. If non-Bahá’í parents permit a child of less than 15 to attend Bahá’í meetings, and in fact, to be a Bahá’í, this is likewise permissible.'"
- (To the National Spiritual Assembly of Germany, dated July 23, 1954)
- (From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Australia, August 29, 1971: Australian Bahá’í Bulletin, No. 205, September 1971, p. 14)
*(See also: No. 262)
515. Age 15 Relates to Spiritual Functions and Obligations
"Regarding the age of fifteen fixed by Bahá’u’lláh: This relates only to purely spiritual functions and obligations and is not related to the degree of administrative capacity which is a totally different thing, and is, for the present, fixed at twenty-one."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, May 15, 1940: Bahá’í News, No. 138, p. 1, September 1940)
516. Children Under 15 Cannot Marry
"QUESTION: In a treatise in Persian on various questions, the age of maturity hath been set at fifteen; is marriage likewise conditional upon reaching maturity, or is it permissible before that time?
"ANSWER: Since the consent of both parties is required in the Book of God, and since, before maturity, their consent or lack of it cannot be ascertained, marriage is therefore conditional upon reaching maturity, and is not permissible before that time."
- (Bahá’u’lláh: The Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Questions and Answers, Q. 92, pp. 133-134)
- Bahai.works note: There is a link here from No. 1261
517. Children Are of Age at 15 as far as Keeping Laws of Aqdas
"Regarding children: At fifteen a Bahá’í is of age as far as keeping the laws of the Aqdas is concerned—prayer, fasting, etc. But children under fifteen should certainly observe the Bahá’í Holy Days, and not go to school, if this can be arranged on these nine days."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States, October 25, 1947)
518. Children of Bahá’í Parents Considered as Bahá’ís
"Although the children of Bahá’í parents are considered to be Bahá’ís, there is no objection at the present time, for purposes of keeping a correct census, and also ascertaining whether the young people are, sincerely believers, and willing to do their share in service to the Faith, to asking them to make a declaration of their intention, at the age of fifteen or so. Originally the Guardian understands this was adopted in America to enable young Bahá’í men to make certain arrangements in connection with their application for non-combatant status, upon their attaining the age of military service. There is really nothing about it in the Teachings or in the Administration. Your Assembly is free to do as it pleases in this matter."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Guardian to the National Spiritual Assembly of the British Isles, June 17, 1954: From a compilation to the House of Justice of Extracts from letters written on behalf of the Guardian on various aspects of age and obligations)
519. Registering Children Upon Attaining Age 15
"…the way in which Bahá’í children should be registered upon reaching the age 15 is within the discretion of each National Spiritual Assembly; there is no objection to using for this purpose the general enrolment card, if such a card is adopted, or a new and separate one specially for Bahá’í children attaining the age of fifteen. It is important, however, that whatever method of enrolment is used or card adopted, it is clear to such children that they had been Bahá’ís up to that time, and that on attaining the age of spiritual maturity they are reaffirming their belief in Bahá’u’lláh.
"The form and wording of an enrolment or registration card is also within the discretion of a National Spiritual Assembly."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Germany, October 28, 1975: From a compilation of letters written on behalf of the Guardian and the Universal House of Justice regarding enrolment of children. Included in a letter from the House of Justice to the National Assembly of Ecuador, August 9, 1979)
520. Upon Attainment of Age 15 Child Must Reaffirm his Faith
"… Both children of Bahá’í parents, and children who, with their non-Bahá’í parents' consent, declare their faith in Bahá’u’lláh before they are fifteen years old, are regarded as Bahá’ís and it is within a Spiritual Assembly's discretion to request such children to undertake work of which they are capable in the service of the Faith, such as service on suitable committees. However, upon attaining the age of fifteen a child becomes spiritually mature and is responsible for stating on his own behalf whether or not he wishes to remain a member of the Bahá’í community. If he does not then reaffirm his faith, he must be treated, administratively, as a non-Bahá’í."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Brazil, December 12, 1975: Ibid.)
521. Registration of Children of Bahá’í Parents
"In answer to your letter… concerning the registration of children of Bahá’í parents the Universal House of Justice has instructed us to say that at the present time it prefers to leave the details of such matters to the discretion of each National Spiritual Assembly. One National Assembly, for example, sends a very nice letter to each Bahá’í child in its community on the occasion of its fifteenth birthday (unless, of course, it has reason to doubt that the child in question is a Bahá’í), explaining the meaning of attaining the age of maturity, and extending the good wishes of the Assembly for his or her future services to the Cause. This does not require an active response from every child but does provide each with an opportunity to make his or her position clear if desired.
"The House of Justice points out that the Assembly must wisely steer a course between seeming to doubt the faith of a child who has been brought up as a devout Bahá’í on the one hand, and seeming to compel a child to be a member of the Bahá’í community against his will, on the other."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Germany, October 5, 1978: Ibid.)
522. May be Circumstances in Which Children Should Not be Registered
"It is within the discretion of your National Spiritual Assembly to determine whether children should be registered as Bahá’ís in cases where one parent is not a Bahá’í, although children of Bahá’í parents under age 15, are generally considered Bahá’ís, there may be circumstances in which they should not be registered as such, and this is also left to your discretion. Local Spiritual Assemblies should help by advising the parents to consider it one of their primary obligations to raise their children in a spirit of love and dedication towards the Faith."
- (From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, October 13, 1976)
