The name of the Founder of the Baha'i Faith is Baha'u'llah, which means the Glory of God. A Baha'i is a follower of Baha'u'llah. The words "Baha'i" and "Baha'u'llah" are pronounced exactly the same way in every language.

The Baha'i Faith is a world religion in three meanings of the term "world religion:"

First. The Baha'i Faith is not a sect, denomination, or branch of any other religion. It has been long recognized by the United Nations, the Vatican, the World Parliament of Religions and other institutions as an independent world religion, in the same sense that Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism are also independent world religions.

Second. The Baha'i Faith has well-established significant communities in 210 countries and territories, more than any other independent religion, with the exception of Christianity, which has 260, according to the 1995 Encyclopedia Britannica Yearbook.

Baha'is are people from every possible religious background: Buddhists, Jews, Muslims, Zoroastrians, Hindus, Protestants, Catholics, traditional tribal faiths, and those who formerly had no religious beliefs at all. Scattered throughout the planet, more than 2,100 ethnic groups and tribes are represented in the Faith. Its literature has been translated into over 800 languages. There are many millions of Baha'is around the world. It has been called the fastest growing independent world religion by the World Christian Encyclopedia.

Third. The belief in the unity of all human beings is the pivot of the Baha'i Faith. Baha'u'llah said, "Let your vision be world-embracing, rather than confined to your own selves." --Baha'u'llah, Gleanings, p. 94

Because of their global vision, Baha'is have been at the forefront in working for permanent world peace and racial harmony and have been honored by the United Nations and other international organizations for their work.

In spite of the diversity of their religious, ethnic, cultural, and economic backgrounds, Baha'is have overcome these barriers to celebrate both what they have in common and what makes each individual and group unique in the larger human family.

Through a common devotion to the Founder of the Faith and the principles which He taught, rich and poor mingle as equals and work together to bring about a better world for everyone. Their Faith has given the Baha'is an allegiance to the whole of humanity. Baha'is have no color line or racial segregation. In this Faith, people of all races find equality with each other because they are all equal before God and are of one race -- the human race.

The Baha'i Faith is open to everyone. It has no secret doctrines, no religious rituals, no professional clergy, and it actively seeks to include all of humanity in a peaceful and thriving human enterprise.

Baha'u'llah declared that in our time religion must unite people or else it has no social value. He asserted that religion must show people how to build a just world.

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