The Regional Bahá’í Council is an administrative institution between the local and national levels, established at the discretion of the Universal House of Justice in countries where the condition and size of the Bahá’í community warrant.
A means of decentralizing the work of the National Spiritual Assembly, a Regional Council may be formed either by election or by appointment, depending on local requirements and the condition of the Bahá’í community with its responsibilities, prerogatives and geographical scope being determined by the National Spiritual Assembly.
Functions[edit]
The functions of a Regional Bahá’í Council are:
- To carry out policies of the National Spiritual Assembly.
- To keep the National Spiritual Assembly informed of regional activities and conditions.
- To take initiative in the promotion of the Faith in the region.
- To deal with teaching and administrative matters in the region.
- To conduct external affairs in the region.
- To take part in forming plans for the region, in alignment with national and global plans of the Faith.
- To devise expansion and consolidation programs for the region.
- To formulate and administer an annual budget for the region.
Some Regional Bahá’í Councils may also take on additional duties, such as maintaining a regional branch of a national Bahá’í Fund.[1]
Procedures[edit]
New Regional Bahá’í Councils are brought into being with the approval of the Universal House of Justice for areas where decentralization is deemed appropriate, as such a national community does not necessarily have Regional Bahá’í Councils in all parts of the country.[1] In the United States, most Regional Councils are responsible for administering three to five states, with some exceptions. The state of California, for example, has its own Regional Council, and the area served by the Northeast Regional Council includes nine states.
Councils have 5, 7, or 9 members, and are either elected or appointed with decisions regarding membership and methods of selection of being at the discretion of the Universal House of Justice. In the case of elected Councils, the members of the Local Spiritual Assemblies in the region vote for the membership by mail, using a system left up to the National Spiritual Assembly. Auxiliary Board members are not eligible for membership. In the case of appointed Councils, members of Local Spiritual Assemblies still fill out ballots. These are counted and passed on to the National Spiritual Assembly, who chooses from among those listed as well as from recommendations from the Auxiliary Board Members serving that region.[1]
History[edit]
Throughout the 1980's long-term vast increase in the size of the Bahá’í community of India began to make community administration challenging and the Universal House of Justice permitted the establishment of State Teaching Committees.[2]
As of 1986 the Committees had evolved into nine member State Bahá’í Councils which were elected by the members of Local Spiritual Assemblies within the state with any Bahá’í in the state being eligible for election. The Councils were responsible for carrying out policies of the National Spiritual Assembly and taking the initiative to promote the Faith in their jurisdiction, and they were also invested with authority to deal with administrative matters at the state level such as appointing a State Teaching Committee and overseeing publishing.[2] In 1990 three Administrative Committees of Zaire also became Bahá’í Councils,[3] and in 1995 the Bahá’ís of the United Kingdom established Regional Bahá’í Councils.[4]
In 1997 the Universal House of Justice officially formalized the establishment of Regional Bahá’í Councils as a new Institution of the Administrative Order to be established only with the permission of the House of Justice itself in countries where it was deemed necessary.[5] Regional Councils were established for the United States and Canada that year,[6][7] with Australia establishing Councils in 2001.[8]
See also[edit]
Notes[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 http://www.bahai.org/documents/the-universal-house-of-justice/regional-bahai-councils
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Bahá’í World, An International Record. (1994). Bahá’í World Centre. Haifa. Volume 19 (1983-1986), Pg(s) 164. View as PDF.
- ↑ "Le developpement des institutions". Bahá’ís - RDC (in français). Archived from the original on June 4, 2023. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/19980208235203/https://www.bci.org/scotland/
- ↑ https://www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/the-universal-house-of-justice/messages/19970530_001/1#812063594
- ↑ Baha'i Canada, Vol. 12, No. 3, p 15
- ↑ https://bahai-library.com/nsa_rbc_election_1997
- ↑ https://bahai.works/Australian_Baha%E2%80%99i_Report/Volume_5/Issue_2/Text
References[edit]
- The Universal House of Justice. The Bahá’í World - An Internationl Record 2003-2004. Baha'i World Centre, Haifa: World Centre Publications. ISBN 0-85398-972-9.
- Universal House of Justice (30 May 1997). "30 May 1997 - To National Spiritual Assemblies". Retrieved 18 May 2018.
- Universal House of Justice (30 May 1997). "The Establishment of Regional Bahá'í Councils in Certain Countries, Their Characteristics and Functions". Retrieved 18 May 2018.
