Baha'ism

Societal Law

Think not that We have revealed unto you a mere code of laws. Nay, rather, We have unsealed the choice Wine with the fingers of might and power.85

Baha’i shari‘ah has never been implemented by a state and given the small number of Baha’is,86 this is likely to remain the case for the foreseeable future. Therefore this section of the paper will only briefly cover some of the main aspects of Baha’i societal law. It should also be noted that Baha’ Allah gave power to the Universal House of Justice to formulate law where he remained silent. Therefore, when many shari‘ah questions were submitted to the Guardian and Baha’i authorities (for example, questions about the halal status of lotteries; vivisection of animals; embryonic stem cell research etc.) the answer was simply that a future Universal House of Justice would give a definitive ruling.

Inheritance Law

Baha’is are enjoined to make a will, and by so doing they can distribute their estate how they see fit. Where Baha’is die intestate, al-Kitab al-Aqdas gives a detailed set of instructions which Baha’ Allah adapted from Babi shari‘ah. After funeral expenses, debts and huquq allah have been paid, there are seven categories of heirs (children, wife, father, mother, brothers, sisters, teachers), with the House of Justice and extended relatives receiving a variable proportion of unclaimed shares. Similar to Islamic law, daughters receive less than sons and the first born son has particular distinction and corresponding responsibility.87

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References

85Bahá’u’lláh, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas 21.

86The Baha’is claim a world population of between five and six million, however there is anecdotal evidence suggesting that this figure is too high. It is estimated that the Baha’i faith has a retention rate of about fifty percent, at least in the Euro-centric world. See National Teaching Committee of the United States, The, Issues Pertaining to Growth, Retention and Consolidation in the United States: A Report by the National Teaching Committee of the United States, (Evanston, Illinois: Bahá'í National Center, 1999), 9 June 2003, .

87See Bahá’u’lláh, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas 26-28 and Smith, “Inheritance”, A Concise Encyclopedia of the Bahá’í Faith 197-198.

Next > Baha'ism: Societal Law: Marriage Law