December 19. On this date in 1974, the Universal House of Justice wrote the NSA of Ecuador "regarding an atheist who agreed to the Bahá'í ceremony but since he did not believe in God did not wish to repeat the marriage verse using the name of God" that "No Bahá'í marriage can be valid without the recitation of the prescribed verse by both parties."

 

December 19. On this date in 1974, the Universal House of Justice wrote the NSA of Ecuador "regarding an atheist who agreed to the Bahá'í ceremony but since he did not believe in God did not wish to repeat the marriage verse using the name of God" that "No Bahá'í marriage can be valid without the recitation of the prescribed verse by both parties."

1285. Marriage of Bahá'í to Atheist
"The laws conditioning Bahá'í marriage are found in the 'Synopsis and Codification of the Kitab-i-Aqdas' under C., Laws of Personal Status, beginning on Page 39 of that publication. No Bahá'í marriage can be valid without the recitation of the prescribed verse by both parties."
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice in answer to a letter from the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador regarding an atheist who agreed to the Bahá'í ceremony but since he did not believe in God did not wish to repeat the marriage verse using the name of God. Letter dated December 19, 1974)

December 11. On this date in 1979, a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador answered a question about "if, prior to local elections an enrolled believer withdraws from the Faith and this leads to the removal of his name from Bahá'í membership, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Local Assembly"

December 11. On this date in 1979, a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador answered a question about "if, prior to local elections an enrolled believer withdraws from the Faith and this leads to the removal of his name from Bahá'í membership, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Local Assembly"

48. If Enrolled Believer Withdraws--Subsequently Elected to Spiritual Assembly
"Regarding your last question, if, prior to local elections an enrolled believer withdraws from the Faith and this leads to the removal of his name from Bahá'í membership, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Local Assembly, such votes as have been cast in his name are disregarded without invalidating the remaining votes on the ballots. If, however, the process of withdrawal has not taken place, that is, the believer refuses on the day of election to participate and expresses then his desire to withdraw from the community, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Assembly, since his withdrawal is generally unknown to the friends, in such a case the remaining eight elected members should meet, consider the withdrawal, and if his name has to be removed from Bahá'í membership, a by-election should be held to fill the vacancy."
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, December 11, 1979)

 

December 3. On this date in 1975, the Universal House of Justice wrote the NSA of Ecuador "As to the law of burial, the Universal House of Justice suggests that you confine your statement to the following parts of this law which are now binding on the believers in the West."

December 3. On this date in 1975, the Universal House of Justice wrote the NSA of Ecuador "As to the law of burial, the Universal House of Justice suggests that you confine your statement to the following parts of this law which are now binding on the believers in the West."

638. Burial Law Binding on Believers in the West

"As to the law of burial, the Universal House of Justice suggests that you confine your statement to the following parts of this law which are now binding on the believers in the West:

(1) That the body must be buried, not cremated.

(2) That the Prayer for the Dead is to be recited for a believer of the age of 15 years or over. This, as you know, is the prayer which appears as number CLXVII in Prayers and Meditations by Bahá'u'lláh.

(3) That the body not be transported more than an hour's journey from the place of death. The method of transport is not specified, but the journey must not take longer than one hour."

(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, December 3, 1975)

November 22. On this date in 2008, three of the conferences among a series of 41 regional conferences of the Five Year Plan took place, one in Quito, Ecuador, another in New Delhi, India, and another in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

 

November 22. On this date in 2008, three of the conferences among a series of 41 regional conferences of the Five Year Plan took place, one in Quito, Ecuador, another in New Delhi, India, and another in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Universal House of Justice member Peter Khan would later give a talk on July 3, 2009, later published as "Reflections on the Ridvan 2009 Message," stating,

As you are, I am sure, aware, that series of conferences had a galvanizing effect on the Bahá'í Community throughout the world and ultimately on the larger society. It was a tangible demonstration of the global spread of the Faith and it created a most welcome surge toward the goal of 1500 Intensive Programs of Growth by the end of the present plan.

How does membership in the International Teaching Centre lead to election to the Universal House of Justice?

How is it that with its nine members elected every five years from the male membership in good standing of the worldwide Bahá'í community by an electoral college consisting of all the members of each Bahá'í National Spiritual Assembly throughout the world, the membership of the Universal House of Justice consists exclusively of men who have previously been appointed to the International Teaching Centre by the Universal House of Justice?

With no overt campaigning or politicking permitted, upon what does the electoral college base its election of new members to the Universal House of Justice?

In the Bahá'í electoral system, the exposure of potential candidates to electors is a premium. Members of the International Teaching Centre routinely travel throughout the world, giving them vital face-time with members of the National Spiritual Assemblies who serve as electors for the Universal House of Justice.

Consider the cases of Stephen Birkland and Stephen Hall. Stephen Birkland was appointed to the International Teaching Centre in 2008 and elected to the Universal House of Justice in 2010. Stephen Hall was appointed to the International Teaching Centre in 2005 and elected to the Universal House of Justice in 2010.

In a letter dated October 20, 2008, the Universal House of Justice called for a series of 41 Regional Conferences intended to mark the mid-point of the Five Year Plan and motivate participants to re-dedicate themselves to the goals of the Plan upon returning home. The Regional Conferences were held from November 1, 2008 through March 1, 2009.
 
In that period, Stephen Birkland attended the following Bahá'í Regional Conferences...

Date	Location of Bahá'í Regional Conference
November 1-2, 2008	Lusaka, Zambia
November 8-9, 2008	Johannesburg, South Africa
November 29-30, 2008	Antofagasta, Chile
December 6-7, 2008	Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
January 17-18, 2009	Vancouver, Canada
February 7-8, 2009	Frankfurt, Germany
February 21-22, 2009	Accra, Ghana

Source: Bahá'í World News Service search for "Stephen Birkland"

In that period, Stephen Hall attended the following Bahá'í Regional Conferences...

Date	Location of Bahá'í Regional Conference
November 15-16, 2008	Bangui, Central African Republic
November 22-23, 2008	Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of the Congo
November 29-30, 2008	Yaoundé, Cameroon
December 6-7, 2008	Portland, Oregon, United States of America
December 13-14, 2008	Stamford, Connecticut, United States of America
January 3-4, 2009	Abidjan, Ivory Coast
January 17-18, 2009	Lae, Papua New Guinea
January 24-25, 2009	Sydney, Australia
January 31-February 1, 2009	Auckland, New Zealand
February 7-8, 2009	Frankfurt, Germany

Source: Bahá'í World News Service search for "Stephen Hall"

No other Bahá'ís receive as much exposure to electors of the Universal House of Justice as do members of the International Teaching Centre.

With the turnover of the Universal House of Justice's nine members and with the International Teaching Centre's being composed of nine members, some of whom are women and therefore ineligible for election to the Universal House of Justice, a man's appointment to the International Teaching Centre serves as a presumption to eventual election to the Universal House of Justice.

When the Universal House of Justice appoints members to the International Teaching Centre, they are in fact selecting their own replacements.

In the Bahá'í electoral system, with no overt campaigning and politicking permitted, the exposure of potential candidates to electors is a premium. The nine members of the International Teaching Centre routinely travel throughout the world, giving them vital face-time with members of the National Spiritual Assemblies who serve as electors for the Universal House of Justice. In fact, every single one of the current members of the Universal House of Justice previously served as a Counsellor member of the International Teaching Centre.

With the turnover of the Universal House of Justice's nine members and with the International Teaching Centre's being composed of nine members, some of whom are women and therefore ineligible for election to the Universal House of Justice, a man's appointment to the International Teaching Centre serves as a presumption to eventual election to the Universal House of Justice.
To illustrate further, in a letter dated October 20, 2008, the Universal House of Justice called for a series of 41 Regional Conferences intended to mark the mid-point of the Five Year Plan and motivate participants to re-dedicate themselves to the goals of the Plan upon returning home. The Regional Conferences were held from November 1, 2008 through March 1, 2009.

Each of the 41 Regional Conferences was attended by two Counsellor members of the International Teaching Centre with the exception of the Conference held at Uvira, the Democratic Republic of Congo, which had only one representative. The Counsellor members of the International Teaching Centre at the time of the Regional Conferences were Juan Francisco Mora, Ayman Rouhani, Stephen Hall, Stephen Birkland, Zenaida Ramirez, Joan Lincoln, Rachel Ndegwa, Uransaikhan Baatar, and Penelope Walker.
  
Of this cohort of Counsellors, the five lady members (Zenaida Ramirez, Joan Lincoln, Rachel Ndegwa, Uransaikhan Baatar, and Penelope Walker) were ineligible for election to the Universal House of Justice.

Of the four male members at the time of the 41 Regional Conferences (Juan Francisco Mora, Ayman Rouhani, Stephen Hall, and Stephen Birkland), all have been elected to the Universal House of Justice.

In practice, the Bahá’í electoral system most closely resembles council democracy as it still exists in Cuba, wherein individuals elect Local Spiritual Assemblies, who then elect National Spiritual Assemblies, who then elect the Universal House of Justice. With no politicking or partisanship allowed, there is little turnover in leadership and Universal House of Justice members almost invariably serve until retirement or death. In the people's democracies of the Eastern Bloc, these career bureaucrats were known as the nomenklatura.

The next member elected to the Universal House of Justice will be Andrej Donoval, who is the longest tenured male member of the International Teaching Centre, having been appointed to that body in 2013.

April 2. On this date in 1970, the Universal House of Justice wrote regarding "whether it is forbidden for the friends to associate with non-Bahá'ís who are in close association with Covenant-Breakers."

April 2. On this date in 1970, the Universal House of Justice wrote regarding "whether it is forbidden for the friends to associate with non-Bahá'ís who are in close association with Covenant-Breakers."

605. Association with Non-Bahá'ís Who Are in Association with Covenant-Breakers
"We have your letter of 14th March 1970 asking whether it is forbidden for the friends to associate with non-Bahá'ís who are in close association with Covenant-Breakers.
"There are no hard and fast rules about such things. Under some conditions the involvement of the non-Bahá'í party may be superficial and harmless, in which case no action should be taken. For example, Bahá'ís have at times used non-Bahá'ís, such as lawyers, to contact Covenant-breakers in certain matters of business.
"If, however, the Covenant-breaker is using the non-Bahá'í party to spread his ideas among the friends, the matter should be reported to the Continental Board of Counsellors, and whatever they decide in such cases in consultation with the National Spiritual Assemblies concerned should be unreservedly accepted by the friends."
(From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, April 2, 1970)

December 30. On this date in 1979 the Universal House of Justice sent a cablegram announcing the death of Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir who had passed away one day previous, on December 29, 1979.

December 30. On this date in 1979 the Universal House of Justice sent a cablegram announcing the death of Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir who had passed away one day previous, on December 29, 1979.

Rahmatu'llah Muhájir was a prominent fourth generation Bahá’í, born on April 4, 1923, in Iran. In 1954 he married Írán Furútan, the daughter of Hand of the Cause of God and Iran National Spiritual Assembly Member 'Alí-Akbar Furútan, who is known for his censorship of (devout Bahá’í scholar) Jinab-i Fadil's academic works. The newlyweds pioneered to the Mentawai Islands for which they were named Knights of Bahá’u’lláh by Shoghi Effendi in 1954. In 1958, Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God by Shoghi Effendi. He died of a heart attack at the age of 56 in Ecuador.

The 25th anniversary of Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir's death was marked in Ecuador by a Growth and Victories conference and graveside ceremony, including a talk by his daughter, Gisu. His daughter Gisu Mohadjer Cook works at the World Bank in Washington, D.C., and lives in Potomac, Maryland. In 2012 she and her husband purchased the historic Dublin Inn in Dublin, New Hampshire where 'Abdu'l-Bahá stayed for three weeks in 1912, and donated it to the national Baha’i community. Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir's other daughter, Shabnam Rahnema, works as an attorney in London.

World Centre: PROFOUNDLY LAMENT UNTIMELY PASSING IN QUITO ECUADOR BELOVED HAND CAUSE RAHMATULLAH MUHAJIR FOLLOWING HEART ATTACK COURSE HIS LATEST SOUTH AMERICAN TOUR. UNSTINTED UNRESTRAINED OUTPOURING OF PHYSICAL SPIRITUAL ENERGIES BY ONE WHO OFFERED HIS ALL PATH SERVICE HAS NOW CEASED. POSTERITY WILL RECORD HIS DEVOTED SERVICES YOUTHFUL YEARS CRADLE FAITH HIS SUBSEQUENT UNIQUE EXPLOITS PIONEERING FIELD SOUTHEAST ASIA WHERE HE WON ACCOLADE KNIGHTHOOD BAHAULLAH HIS CEASELESS EFFORTS OVER TWO DECADES SINCE HIS APPOINTMENT HAND CAUSE STIMULATING IN MANY LANDS EAST WEST PROCESS ENTRY BY TROOPS. FRIENDS ALL CONTINENTS WHO MOURN THIS TRAGIC LOSS NOW SUDDENLY DEPRIVED COLLABORATION ONE WHO ENDEARED HIMSELF TO THEM THROUGH HIS GENTLENESS HIS LUMINOUS PERSONALITY HIS EXEMPLARY UNFLAGGING ZEAL HIS CREATIVE ENTHUSIASTIC APPROACH TO FULFILMENT ASSIGNED GOALS. URGE FRIENDS EVERYWHERE HOLD MEMORIAL GATHERINGS BEFITTING HIS HIGH STATION UNIQUE ACHIEVEMENTS. MAY HIS RADIANT SOUL ABHA KINGDOM REAP RICH HARVEST HIS DEDICATED SELF-SACRIFICING SERVICES CAUSE GOD. (Cablegram from the Universal House of Justice to all National Spiritual Assemblies 30 December 1979)

December 29. On this date in 1979, Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir, a Hand of the Cause of God and Knight of Bahá'u'lláh who was married Írán Furútan, the daughter of Hand of the Cause of God and Iran National Spiritual Assembly Member 'Alí-Akbar Furútan, died in Ecuador.

December 29. On this date in 1979, Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir, a Hand of the Cause of God and Knight of Bahá'u'lláh who was married Írán Furútan, the daughter of Hand of the Cause of God and Iran National Spiritual Assembly Member 'Alí-Akbar Furútan, died in Ecuador.

Rahmatu'llah Muhájir was a prominent fourth generation Bahá’í , born on April 4, 1923, in Iran. On October 15, 1951, he married Írán Furútan, the daughter of Hand of the Cause of God and Iran National Spiritual Assembly Member 'Alí-Akbar Furútan, who is known for his censorship of (devout Bahá’í scholar) Jinab-i Fadil's academic works. The newlyweds pioneered to the Mentawai Islands for which they were named Knights of Bahá’u’lláh by Shoghi Effendi in 1954. In 1958, Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir was appointed a Hand of the Cause of God by Shoghi Effendi. He died of a heart attack at the age of 56 in Ecuador.

The 25th anniversary of Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir's death was marked in Ecuador by a Growth and Victories conference and graveside ceremony, including a talk by his daughter, Gisu. His daughter Gisu Mohadjer Cook works at the World Bank in Washington, D.C., and lives in Potomac, Maryland. In 2012 she and her husband purchased the historic Dublin Inn in Dublin, New Hampshire where 'Abdu'l-Bahá stayed for three weeks in 1912, and donated it to the national Baha’i community. Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir's other daughter, Shabnam Rahnema, works as an attorney in London.

On December 30, 1979, the Universal House of Justice sent a cablegram announcing the death of Rahmatu'lláh Muhájir who had passed away one day previous, on December 29, 1979.

World Centre: PROFOUNDLY LAMENT UNTIMELY PASSING IN QUITO ECUADOR BELOVED HAND CAUSE RAHMATULLAH MUHAJIR FOLLOWING HEART ATTACK COURSE HIS LATEST SOUTH AMERICAN TOUR. UNSTINTED UNRESTRAINED OUTPOURING OF PHYSICAL SPIRITUAL ENERGIES BY ONE WHO OFFERED HIS ALL PATH SERVICE HAS NOW CEASED. POSTERITY WILL RECORD HIS DEVOTED SERVICES YOUTHFUL YEARS CRADLE FAITH HIS SUBSEQUENT UNIQUE EXPLOITS PIONEERING FIELD SOUTHEAST ASIA WHERE HE WON ACCOLADE KNIGHTHOOD BAHAULLAH HIS CEASELESS EFFORTS OVER TWO DECADES SINCE HIS APPOINTMENT HAND CAUSE STIMULATING IN MANY LANDS EAST WEST PROCESS ENTRY BY TROOPS. FRIENDS ALL CONTINENTS WHO MOURN THIS TRAGIC LOSS NOW SUDDENLY DEPRIVED COLLABORATION ONE WHO ENDEARED HIMSELF TO THEM THROUGH HIS GENTLENESS HIS LUMINOUS PERSONALITY HIS EXEMPLARY UNFLAGGING ZEAL HIS CREATIVE ENTHUSIASTIC APPROACH TO FULFILMENT ASSIGNED GOALS. URGE FRIENDS EVERYWHERE HOLD MEMORIAL GATHERINGS BEFITTING HIS HIGH STATION UNIQUE ACHIEVEMENTS. MAY HIS RADIANT SOUL ABHA KINGDOM REAP RICH HARVEST HIS DEDICATED SELF-SACRIFICING SERVICES CAUSE GOD. (Cablegram from the Universal House of Justice to all National Spiritual Assemblies 30 December 1979)

December 19. On this date in 1974, the UHJ wrote the NSA of Ecuador "regarding an atheist who agreed to the Bahá'í ceremony but since he did not believe in God did not wish to repeat the marriage verse using the name of God" that "No Bahá'í marriage can be valid without the recitation of the prescribed verse by both parties."

December 19. On this date in 1974, the UHJ wrote the NSA of Ecuador "regarding an atheist who agreed to the Bahá'í ceremony but since he did not believe in God did not wish to repeat the marriage verse using the name of God" that "No Bahá'í marriage can be valid without the recitation of the prescribed verse by both parties."

1285. Marriage of Bahá'í to Atheist
"The laws conditioning Bahá'í marriage are found in the 'Synopsis and Codification of the Kitab-i-Aqdas' under C., Laws of Personal Status, beginning on Page 39 of that publication. No Bahá'í marriage can be valid without the recitation of the prescribed verse by both parties."
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice in answer to a letter from the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador regarding an atheist who agreed to the Bahá'í ceremony but since he did not believe in God did not wish to repeat the marriage verse using the name of God. Letter dated December 19, 1974)

December 11. On this date in 1979, a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador answered a question about "if, prior to local elections an enrolled believer withdraws from the Faith and this leads to the removal of his name from Bahá'í membership, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Local Assembly"

December 11. On this date in 1979, a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador answered a question about "if, prior to local elections an enrolled believer withdraws from the Faith and this leads to the removal of his name from Bahá'í membership, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Local Assembly"

48. If Enrolled Believer Withdraws--Subsequently Elected to Spiritual Assembly
"Regarding your last question, if, prior to local elections an enrolled believer withdraws from the Faith and this leads to the removal of his name from Bahá'í membership, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Local Assembly, such votes as have been cast in his name are disregarded without invalidating the remaining votes on the ballots. If, however, the process of withdrawal has not taken place, that is, the believer refuses on the day of election to participate and expresses then his desire to withdraw from the community, and yet he is subsequently elected to the Assembly, since his withdrawal is generally unknown to the friends, in such a case the remaining eight elected members should meet, consider the withdrawal, and if his name has to be removed from Bahá'í membership, a by-election should be held to fill the vacancy."
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, December 11, 1979)

December 3. On this date in 1975, the UHJ wrote the NSA of Ecuador "As to the law of burial, the Universal House of Justice suggests that you confine your statement to the following parts of this law which are now binding on the believers in the West."

December 3. On this date in 1975, the UHJ wrote the NSA of Ecuador "As to the law of burial, the Universal House of Justice suggests that you confine your statement to the following parts of this law which are now binding on the believers in the West."

638. Burial Law Binding on Believers in the West
"As to the law of burial, the Universal House of Justice suggests that you confine your statement to the following parts of this law which are now binding on the believers in the West:
(1) That the body must be buried, not cremated.
(2) That the Prayer for the Dead is to be recited for a believer of the age of 15 years or over. This, as you know, is the prayer which appears as number CLXVII in Prayers and Meditations by Bahá'u'lláh.
(3) That the body not be transported more than an hour's journey from the place of death. The method of transport is not specified, but the journey must not take longer than one hour."
(From a letter written on behalf of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, December 3, 1975)

November 18. On this date in 1970, the UHJ wrote an NSA about an individual deprived "of his voting rights for violation of Bahá'í marriage law in that he married without having consent of all living parents..." may have his rights restored if he "is truly repentant and wishes to comply with the Bahá'í law previously broken."

November 18. On this date in 1970, the UHJ wrote an NSA about an individual deprived "of his voting rights for violation of Bahá'í marriage law in that he married without having consent of all living parents..." may have his rights restored if he "is truly repentant and wishes to comply with the Bahá'í law previously broken."

208. Cases Involving Only Civil Ceremony
"We have your letter of October 9, 1971 informing us of your action to deprive ... of his voting rights for violation of Bahá'í marriage law in that he married without having consent of all living parents. It is noted that he had a civil ceremony and a Catholic ceremony. The question you have asked deals with possible restoration of his voting rights.
"In cases involving only the civil ceremony, voting rights may be restored if the Assembly feels that the believer is truly repentant and wishes to comply with the Bahá'í law previously broken. The civil marriage ceremony itself is not contrary to Bahá'í law, and therefore the dissolution of the civil marriage is not a prerequisite to restoration of voting rights. In such cases the Bahá'í marriage ceremony may take place if the parents now give their consent to the marriage and the Assembly is satisfied that the consent has been genuinely and freely given and is not conditioned by the fact that the parties have already had a civil ceremony. In such cases the Assembly would restore voting rights immediately before the Bahá'í ceremony on the condition that it be performed.
"Should ... apply for restoration of his voting rights, and should your Assembly feel that he is truly repentant, you should offer assistance in arranging the other details including helping him to obtain the consents of parents."
(From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to the National Spiritual Assembly of Ecuador, November 18, 1971)