{"id":75832,"date":"2026-02-06T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/?p=75832"},"modified":"2026-01-16T02:51:11","modified_gmt":"2026-01-16T10:51:11","slug":"how-do-bahais-plan-to-change-the-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/how-do-bahais-plan-to-change-the-world\/","title":{"rendered":"How Do Baha\u2019is Plan to Change the World?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019ve ever wondered about why we\u2019re here, the Baha\u2019i teachings clearly proclaim <\/a>that we human beings have a profound, two-fold purpose in this life:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The purpose for which mortal men have, from utter nothingness, stepped into the realm of being, is that they may work for the betterment of the world and live together in concord and harmony.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Baha\u2019u\u2019llah<\/a>, the prophet and founder of the Baha\u2019i Faith<\/a>, wrote that powerful definition of human purpose. Baha\u2019is believe that the revelation of Baha\u2019u\u2019llah \u2013 the dawning of a new global Faith \u2013 provides the power and the means for the transformation of both humanity\u2019s inner life and social environment. The creation of a new social environment, the atmosphere in which souls can grow spiritually and reflect, in full, the light of the Creator, constitutes one of the unique features of Baha\u2019u\u2019llah\u2019s teachings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how does the worldwide Baha\u2019i community plan to accomplish that lofty goal? How could a unified group of a few million people spread around the planet foster the creation of a new social environment for everyone?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RELATED: How Baha\u2019is Build a Beloved Community<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working for the Betterment of the World<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To understand how Baha\u2019is intend to go about creating a new, more spiritual social environment, one where all people might \u201clive together in concord and harmony<\/strong>,\u201d it helps to know that the relationship of the Baha\u2019i community to the surrounding society is undergoing a profound change. Over the past several decades, the Baha\u2019i community has become a highly visible protagonist in society in its own right, one ready to shoulder important responsibilities and intensify its collective process of learning about and bringing about spiritual and material progress. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a religion without clergy or individual leadership, the global Baha\u2019i community relies on democratically-elected administrative bodies at the local, regional, national, and international levels. The Universal House of Justice, the international leadership body of the Faith, helps guide the body of the believers around the world in their work to build a better and more unified human society. In that role, the Universal House of Justice has formulated, issued, and guided the unfoldment of a series of multi-year plans, which serve as blueprints for action for the world\u2019s Baha\u2019is. Those plans \u2013 first written and promulgated in the 1930s by the Guardian of the Baha\u2019i Faith<\/a>, Shoghi Effendi<\/a> \u2013 systematically map out and encourage the growth of the Faith and its society-building efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One clear sign of the release of the society-building power of the revelation of Baha\u2019u\u2019llah are the efforts made by a growing global band of believers helping to improve the spiritual character and social conditions of the wider communities where they live. Baha\u2019is everywhere freely and joyously work with others at the grassroots local level to bring about the progressive Baha\u2019i principles \u2013 the elimination of the extremes of wealth and poverty, the equality of the sexes, the eradication of prejudice, the education of all children, the spiritual power of prayer and reflection, and the establishment of peace, harmony, and non-violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In that regard, one contribution made by Baha\u2019is is the ability of a population to become the protagonists of their own development. Also, as the wider society embraces many aspects of Baha\u2019i community life and imbibes its unifying spirit, the dynamics thus created allow diverse groups to work together. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So Baha\u2019u\u2019llah\u2019s followers welcome all who would like to labor alongside them in learning how to raise up vibrant, outward-looking communities; in learning how to bring about spiritual and material progress; and in learning how to contribute to the discourses that influence the direction of that progress. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These areas of Baha\u2019i endeavor represent ways of awakening the energies latent in the human soul and channeling them towards the betterment of society. Together, this inherent power in the Cause of Baha\u2019u\u2019llah becomes more visible when the fledgling efforts of a Baha\u2019i community and their friends and supporters learn together to serve humanity. Although the peaceful and harmonious global society foreshadowed in Baha\u2019u\u2019llah\u2019s revelation seems far distant, communities all around the world are now earnestly learning to apply the Baha\u2019i teachings to their immediate social reality as they strive for the emergence of a new and more just society. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

RELATED: How Do We Get to Peace? We Start with Discourse<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Building that society \u2013 one that consciously pursues its unified collective future \u2013 is the work of this generation and many generations to come. The civilization of today, for all its prowess, has been found wanting, and Baha\u2019u\u2019llah promised that a renewed human society would eventually take its place: \u201cKnow ye not that We have rolled up that which the people possessed, and have unfolded a new order in its place?<\/strong>\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The establishment of a divine civilization is the primary mission of the Baha\u2019i Faith. Baha\u2019is seek to build that civilization upon the most foundational qualities, ones for which the world stands in great need: unity, trustworthiness, mutual support, collaboration, altruism, selflessness, commitment to truth, a sense of responsibility, a thirst to learn, and the love of an all-embracing heart. Once built, that society will be sustained by the creation of the social atmosphere in which souls can grow spiritually and reflect, in full, the light of God. Then will we see humanity illumined with the love of its Lord and hear His praise on every tongue.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve ever wondered about why we\u2019re here, the Baha\u2019i teachings clearly proclaim that we human beings have a profound, two-fold purpose in this life: The purpose for which mortal…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6465,"featured_media":75833,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2952],"tags":[3000],"series":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75832"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6465"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75832"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75832\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88930,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75832\/revisions\/88930"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/75833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75832"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bahaiteachings.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=75832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}