Enrollments

Membership in the Bahá’í community is open to all who profess faith in Bahá’u’lláh and accept his teachings. There are no initiation ceremonies, no sacraments, and no clergy. Every Bahá’í however, is under the spiritual obligation to pray daily; to fast 19 days a year, going without food or drink from sunrise to sunset; to abstain totally from narcotics, alcohol, or any substances that affect the mind; to practice monogamy; to obtain the consent of parents to marriage; and to attend the Nineteen Day Feast on the first day of each month of the Bahá’í calendar. Encyclopedia Brittanica article, p. 7)

Above all, the utmost endeavor should be exerted by your Assembly to familiarize the newly enrolled believers with the fundamental and spiritual varieties of the Faith, and with the origins, the aims and purposes, as well as the processes of a divinely appointed administrative Order, to acquaint them more fully with the history of the Faith, and with the origins, the aims and purposes, as well as the processes of a divinely pointed Administrative Order, to acquaint them more fully with the history of the Faith, to instil in them a deeper understanding of the Covenants of both Bahá’u’lláh and of ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to enrich their spiritual life, to rouse them to a greater effort and a closer participation in both the teaching of the Faith and the administration of its activities, and to inspire them to make the necessary sacrifices for the furtherance of its vital interests. For as the body of the avowed supporters of the Faith is enlarged, and the basis of the structure of its Administrative Order is broadened, and the fame of the rising community spreads far and wide, a parallel progress must be achieved, if the fruit already garnered are to endure, in the spiritual quickening of its member and the deepening of their inner life.

Let him refrain, at the outset, from insisting on such laws and observances as might impose too severe a strain on the seeker's newly awakened faith, and endeavor to nurse him, patiently, tactfully, and yet determinedly, into full maturity, and aid him to proclaim his unqualified acceptance of whatever has been ordained by Bahá’u’lláh. Let him, as soon as that stage has been attained, introduce him to the body of his fellow-believers, and seek, through constant fellowship and active participation in the local activities of his community, to enable him to contribute his share to the enrichment of its life, the furtherance of its tasks, the consolidations of its interests, and the coordination of its activities with those of its sister communities.

As the beloved Guardian's secretary wrote on his behalf to an individual believer on 25 October 1949: "Without the spirit of real love for Bahá’u’lláh, for His Faith and its Institutions, and the believers for each other, the Cause can never really bring in large numbers of people. For it is not preaching and rules the world wants, but love and action."

In the context of the activities in a cluster, the friends should appreciate certain distinct features

of the approach to teaching in neighborhoods where the work is intensifying. Experience has

demonstrated that, in many instances, when introducing community-building activities into a

neighborhood or village, an approach that does not emphasize enrolment initially can allow for

a wider circle of participation. Where the implementation of core activities is accompanied

with ongoing and rich conversations about associated Bahá’í teachings and the Person of

Bahá’u’lláh, the influence of the Faith begins to permeate an ever broader cross section of the

population. Thus, in a natural and unobtrusive way, a wide array of individuals and families

grow in their familiarity with the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh and the nature of His Mission. In

their own lives and in the life of the community, they begin to witness and experience the

transformation that comes from exposure to and interaction with the Word of God, including its

practical application. In such settings, the ways in which individuals will advance in their

relationship with the Faith will vary. There are some who, while appreciating the effect of the

core activities on their personal lives and on the life of the community, approach them only as

valuable efforts to better social conditions. For others, however, a close association with the

Bahá’í community and an ever-deeper appreciation of the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh evoke a

profound love for and commitment to the Faith. Some may spontaneously request enrollment

or readily respond to an invitation. Others, viewing themselves as completely at one with the

Bahá’í community, might express the desire to join the Faith through eagerness to participate in

the full range of Bahá’í activities, including those dimensions of community life that are only

open to Bahá’ís, such as Nineteen Day Feasts, the Fund, or the electoral process…

The beloved Guardian, in the early years of his ministry, set out criteria for Spiritual Assemblies and Bahá’í teachers regarding the enrollment of new believers. In a letter dated 24 October 1925 to the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’í s of the United States and Canada, Shoghi Effendi wrote:

I would only venture to state very briefly and as adequately as present circumstances permit the principal factors that must be taken into consideration before deciding whether a person may be regarded a true believer or not. 'Full recognition of the station of the Forerunner, the Author, and the True Exemplar of the Bahá’í Cause, as set forth in ‘Abdu’l-Bahá's testament; unreserved acceptance of, and submission to, whatsoever has been revealed by their Pen; loyal and steadfast adherence to every clause of our Beloved's sacred Will; and close association with the spirit as well as the form of the present day Bahá’í Administration throughout the world -- these I conceive to be the fundamental and primary considerations that must be fairly, discreetly and thoughtfully ascertained before reaching such a vital decision. (Shoghi Effendi: Bahá’í Administration, p.90)

Later in his ministry, however, after the administrative capacity to embrace larger numbers grew, the Guardian alerted the friends to the danger of being too rigid in the requirements for becoming a Bahá’í. For example, a letter dated 9 July 1957, written on his behalf to a National Spiritual Assembly, stated:

As he has written the Central and East Africa Assembly, he feels that the friends should be very careful not to place hindrances in the way of those who wish to accept the Faith. If we make the requirements too rigorous, we will cool off the initial enthusiasm, rebuff the hearts and cease to expand rapidly. The essential thing is that the candidate for enrolment should believe in his heart in the truth of Bahá’u’lláh. Whether he is literate or illiterate, informed of all the Teachings or not, is beside the point entirely. When the spark of faith exists the essential Message is there, and gradually everything else can be added unto it.

Today, we can generally be open and flexible in accepting individuals into the Bahá’í community. As the believers invite growing numbers of individuals to participate in a united effort to apply Bahá’u’lláh's Teachings to the construction of a divine civilization, it becomes clear that the process of becoming a Bahá’í is best viewed as a continuum—based on independent investigation, engagement in service, and increasing understanding—rather than as dichotomous states of membership and non-membership.

Though declaration of faith and enrollment into the Bahá’í community may occur at the same moment, they do not necessarily have to do so, in light of the above passage. Where, for example, a tutor is accompanying seekers through the institute process and a seeker declares, it would not be unreasonable for formal enrollment to be deferred while the new believer is being nurtured to the point where he or she is ready to assume the responsibilities associated with membership in the community. In different parts of the world, as well as with different individuals, circumstances may vary, and it is left to the wisdom of the teacher and the discretion of the institutions to determine how to attract receptive souls, when to invite them to embrace the Faith, and how to nurture them to full maturity.

Ultimately, then, any concern about the rate of enrollments, like any other practical challenge that arises in the process of community building, is in the first instance best addressed by the friends in light of their experience in their clusters, where circumstances, resources, approaches, challenges, activities, and results can be considered. Teaching is the sacred obligation of every believer. Whether in the course of their daily interactions with friends and colleagues or as part of a teaching team visiting neighbors or in efforts to help a receptive population take charge of its spiritual and material development, the friends are sharing the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh in a multitude of meaningful conversations about human nature and the advancement of society. Just as an individual finds that certain capabilities contribute to effective teaching, so too the friends in a single cluster can collectively ensure—through training and practical experience—that all the capacities necessary for effective action in the range of activities essential to progress are increasingly developed. Depending on experience and needs, learning and action in any given cycle may focus on pursuing specific objectives or resolving different challenges, such as how to engage receptive individuals or populations in elevated discussions that attract their interest, how to multiply core activities and increase participation, and, when timely, how to present the Faith effectively and invite a ready soul to embrace the Faith in a variety of settings, such as devotional gatherings, firesides, or home visits. It is in this context that the 29 December 2015 message of the House of Justice, in setting out the requirements of the current Plan, offered encouragement for the friends to “become more adept at discerning when they have found a hearing ear, at deciding when to be more direct in sharing the message, at removing obstacles to understanding, and at helping seekers to embrace the Cause.” In cluster reflection gatherings and other settings, the friends have the opportunity to hear about the exploits of their co-workers in the Cause and learn from one another’s experiences, always abstaining from the quixotic quest for formulaic solutions that results in the community lurching frenetically from one activity to another or from the kind of destructive criticism that prevents the search for solutions to challenges and only cools the desire to serve.

…For the friends who are sacrificially promoting the imperatives of the Plan, any decline in the number of enrollments is neither an indication of an increase in apathy or inactivity nor want of receptivity in the general population to the Message of Bahá’u’lláh. Rather, declarations alone do not provide a sufficient measure of the progress of the Faith in your country or the level of teaching activity within the community. In the current Five Year Plan, the efforts for expansion and consolidation in your community are unfolding in more than … clusters. Some of these clusters have advanced significantly to the third milestone, where a hundred or more active friends are engaging hundreds of participants, while other clusters have a program of growth that is still at an early stage of development. Overall, more than … individuals are participating in core activities, roughly two-thirds of whom are Bahá’ís. Within each cluster, an expanding nucleus of individuals reflect on their experience and learn over time to extend the scope and increase the effectiveness of their activities. From the foundation of this experience, the friends are well positioned to accelerate the movement of more and more clusters, multiply core activities, increase participation through outreach to the wider society, and strengthen the process of expansion and consolidation—including learning to increase the number of new believers.

The early believers in both the East and the West, we must always remember, knew practically nothing compared to what the average Bahá’í knows about his Faith nowadays; yet they were the ones who shed their blood, the ones who arose and said: 'I believe', requiring no proof, and often never having read a single word of the Teachings. Therefore, those responsible for accepting new enrollments must just be sure of one thing - that the heart of the applicant has been touched with the spirit of the Faith. Everything else can be built on this foundation gradually.