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© 2026, Edward Price Wilmette, IL
RECONCILING RELIGIONS: CONTRIBUTING TO INTERFAITH RELATIONS FROM A BAHÁ’Í PERSPECTIVE
May 2026
Copyright © 2026 by Edward Price All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations used in critical articles and reviews.
For information, write to Edward Price at divinecurriculum@yahoo.com. Also, go to the website: divinecurriculum.com.
Printed in the United States of America Second edition printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Edward Price, Author Cover design by Joe Paczkowski Interior design by Edward Price
ISBN: 978-1-967447-06-0 (Paperback, Std. Color)
Universal House of Justice, Ridván 2010 letter, Excerpt on social action and public discourse ...................... 175
Universal House of Justice, December 2017, On the subject of religious prejudice ................................... 178
Universal House of Justice, January 2019, Letter to the Bahá’ís of the world on the subject of world peace .... 184
Universal House of Justice, December 30th, 2021, Excerpt about the Nine-Year Plan focusing on transformation, social action and public discourse ... 192
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
Almost universally, the religions of the world engage in interfaith activities. The Bahá’í Faith “now millions strong, has today spread to some one hundred thousand localities in 235 countries and territories.” With over eight million followers, this community “has emerged from obscurity to occupy its place on the world stage”. (3) Having been founded a mere 182 years ago, the Bahá’í Faith is the youngest of the major world religions and it has engaged in interfaith activities since its earliest days.(4)
Bahá’u’lláh, the Founder of the Bahá’í Faith, very strongly encouraged engaging in interfaith relationships:
Consort ye then with the followers of all religions, and proclaim ye the Cause of your Lord, the Most Compassionate; this is the very crown of deeds, if ye be of them who understand. (Bahá’u’lláh)(5)
It is permitted that the peoples and kindreds of the world associate with one another with joy and radiance. O people! Consort with the followers of all religions in a spirit of friendliness and fellowship. (Bahá’u’lláh)(6)
The Bahá’í scholar, Adib Taherzadeh, described the daily routine of Bahá’u’lláh early in His Ministry, during the years He was an exile in Baghdád in the 1850s and early 1860s. Though a Prisoner of the State, within Baghdád itself, Bahá’u’lláh was allowed limited movement around the city. Since He had not yet declared His Mission to the world, He was known at that time simply as an eminent follower of the recently martyred Figure known as the Báb. His interfaith activities and mingling with the public during that period of His life are described by Taherzadeh:
…Bahá’u’lláh used to associate freely with the public when in Baghdád… When in Baghdád, Bahá’u’lláh had not yet declared His mission. Officially, He and His companions were regarded by the public as the followers of the Báb. He had freedom and so He moved among the people… [He] proceeded to an oriental inn (coffee house) in the old part of the city, accompanied by at least two believers. The inn was owned by a certain Siyyid Habib,
an Arab, who was not a Bábí, but a great admirer of Bahá’u’lláh and one who showed extraordinary reverence towards Him. Many people, both high and low, attained His presence in this inn. Bahá’u’lláh often used to speak to them about the Faith of the Báb and expound some verities of the Cause of God. After the meeting in the inn, which usually lasted over an hour, He used to return to His house, where in the afternoon the believers were able to attain His presence again. He then went back to the inn and returned home about the time of sunset. Then, some evenings, the believers used to come to His house and attain His presence there. Also at times, some eminent personalities, civil and religious dignitaries, Persian princes, and others, came to His presence to seek guidance and sit at His feet… (Adib Taherzadeh)(7)
Taherzadeh, later in his work, also cites Bahá’u’lláh’s comments directly. As these words were relayed by His aide, Haji Mírzá Haydar-‘Alí, these can only be taken as a paraphrasal of Bahá’u’lláh’s comments, and not as an exact quote.
During the days of Baghdád We ourself used to visit the coffee house and meet with everyone. We associated with people whether they were in the community or outside, whether acquaintances or strangers, whether they came from far or near. We considered those who were distant from us to be near and the strangers as acquaintances. We served the Cause of God, supported His Word, and exalted His Name. (Bahá’u’lláh, paraphrased by Haji Mírzá Haydar-‘Alí)(8)
‘Abdu’l-Bahá reinforced this description by emphasizing the interfaith nature of so many of Bahá’u’lláh’s encounters.
… the call of God was ceaselessly raised and the fame of His Cause was noised abroad. Such were the knowledge, learning, and perfections He evinced that everyone in Persia was astonished. All the learned people – friend and foe alike
– who attained His presence in Tihrán, Baghdád, Constantinople, Adrianople, and ‘Akká received a complete and convincing answer to their every question. All readily acknowledged that in every perfection He was peerless and unique throughout the world. It often happened in Baghdád that Muslim, Jewish, and Christian divines and European men
of learning would be gathered in His blessed presence. They would each ask a different question and, despite their varying beliefs, would each receive so complete and convincing a reply as to be fully satisfied. (‘Abdu’l-Bahá)(9)
In those days, decades before any official organization of the Faith was established, this interfaith activity also created a powerful attraction which enabled the Faith itself to grow. In those instances, people of diverse faith communities joined together as members of the new Movement and dedicated themselves to the service of humanity. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated:
Through the power of His words the hearts of the people of all religions have been attuned in harmony. For instance, among the Bahá’ís in Persia there are Christians, Muslims, Zoroastrians, Jews and many others of varying denominations and beliefs who have been brought together in unity and love in the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh. Although these people were formerly hostile and antagonistic, filled with hatred and bitterness toward each other, bloodthirsty and pillaging, considering that animosity and attack were the means of attaining the good pleasure of God, they have now become loving and filled with the radiant zeal of fellowship and brotherhood, the purpose of them all being service to the world of humanity, promotion of international peace, the unification of the divine religions and deeds of universal philanthropy... (‘Abdu’l-Bahá)(10)
Whether the impacts have been external or internal, formal or informal, the overall thrust, both before and after Bahá’u’lláh publicly declared His Mission, from the earliest days of the existence of the Faith, the overarching focus of the Faith has been on promoting love and fellowship among peoples of diverse faith communities (and, of course, races, nations and peoples too). ‘Abdu’l-Bahá stated:
Today in Persia, for instance, there are many people of various races and religions who have followed the exhortations of Bahá’u’lláh and are living together in love and fellowship without religious, patriotic or racial prejudices –Muslims, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Zoroastrians and many others. (‘Abdu’l-Bahá)(11)
In subsequent decades, as the Faith grew and its worldwide organization developed, the Faith found itself in gatherings with other organized religions. Although new members to the Faith have always been welcomed, when the Faith, as an organization, engaged in official contacts with the leaders of the world religions, it maintained a policy of not exploiting those official occasions for evangelizing or recruitment purposes. This guidance was later given explicitly to the Bahá’ís:
...interfaith activity that is now an established feature of public discourse at local, national and international levels..... it will be vital that members of the Faith respect scrupulously the nature and purpose of such organized discussion. To divert it into an occasion for the teaching of the Bahá’í Faith would be an abuse of the goodwill of others. (The Bahá’í Writings)(12)
All of this diverse interfaith activity and emphasis, from the earliest days of the Faith, could not have been otherwise given that the central teaching of the Faith, “the pivot round which all the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh revolve”, is the “principle of the Oneness of Mankind”, and that the primary aim of the Faith is to bring about universal peace among all the diverse nations, races, religions, and peoples of the world.(13)
While the primary focus of the interfaith activities of the Faith has been the betterment of mankind, and the urgent need for fellowship and oneness among all the religions of the world, candidly, it can also be acknowledged that another powerful motivation for interfaith activities is building heightened visibility of the Cause of Bahá’u’lláh in the world. It stands to reason that the lofty goals of the Faith could never be attained so long as the Faith was still a small (and persecuted) religious movement in Persia (Írán today). The Faith needed to grow and enter into other spheres of social action and public discourse, and foremost among them was the need to forge brotherly relationships with the other major religions of the world. The Faith needed, in the decades after its birth, to become recognized as a major religious organization in the world, and it needed to gain “a seat at the table” in order to become empowered to speak forth and, hopefully, to influence the deliberations among the religions of the world, as well as to foster good-will and concord amongst all the followers.