Seven Year Plan (1979-1986)

Seven Year Plan (1979-1986)
Epoch	Third Epoch
Coordinator	Universal House of Justice
Protagonists	All National Spiritual Assemblies

Divine Plan

Shoghi Effendi

First Epoch (1937-1963)

1st Seven Year Plan (1937-1944) Indian Six Year Plan (1938-1944) British Six Year Plan (1944-1950) 2nd Seven Year Plan (1946-1953) Indian 4½ Year Plan (1946-1950) Persian 45 Month Plan (1946-1950) Persian Women's Four Year Plan (1946-1950) Australian Six Year Plan (1947-1953) Canadian Five Year Plan (1948-1953) Egyptian Five Year Plan (1948-1953) German Five Year Plan (1948-1953) African Campaign (1950-1953) Iraqi Three Year Plan (1950-1953) British Two Year Plan (1951-1953) Indian Nineteen Month Plan (1951-1953) South American Two Year Plan (1951-1953) Central American One Year Plan (1952-1953) Ten Year Crusade (1953-1963) Northeast Asian Six Year Plan (1957-1963)

Universal House of Justice

Second Epoch (1964-2021)

Nine Year Plan (1964-1973) Five Year Plan (1974-1979) Seven Year Plan (1979-1986) Six Year Plan (1986-1992) Three Year Plan (1993-1996) Four Year Plan (1996-2000) Twelve Month Plan (2000-2001) Five Year Plan (2001-2006) Five Year Plan (2006-2011) Five Year Plan (2011-2016) Five Year Plan (2016-2021)

Third Epoch (2021-)

Twelve Month Plan (2021-2022) Nine Year Plan (2022-2031)

The Seven Year Plan from 1979 to 1986 was one of a series of Plans carried out under the guidance of the Universal House of Justice.

The overall goals of the Plan were developing the World Center of the Bahá’í Faith in the Holy Land and strengthening its institutions, expanding the growth and influence of the Bahá’í Faith, and consolidating Bahá’í communities.

Some of the means by which the consolidation of the community was pursued were the establishment of additional National and Local Spiritual Assemblies, acquisition of Bahá’í properties, encouraging deepening of the community through Summer and Winter Schools, producing Bahá’í publications and recordings, and facilitating correspondence courses.

Expanding the Faith was pursued through a focus on encouraging Bahá’ís to pioneer and serve as travel teachers, encouraging Bahá’ís in established communities to teach in neighboring countries, encouraging youth to teach, and holding teaching conferences. In the last year of the Plan distribution of the Promise of World Peace message from the Universal House of Justice to Heads of State was a notable and successful endeavor.

Efforts to develop the Bahá’í communities efforts in the field of social and economic development were also undertaken during the plan particularly through the establishment of Bahá’í tutorial schools.

History

Prelude to the Plan

In its 1979 Naw-Rúz message to the international Bahá’í community the Universal House of Justice announced the opening of the Seven Year Plan and listed the overarching goals which were to be pursued during it.

World Centre Goals

Goals to be pursued at the World Centre were:

• Completion of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice and designs for remaining three buildings to be constructed at the World Centre.
• Development of the Institution of the International Teaching Centre and widening of the functions of the Continental Boards of Counselors.
• Opening of the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá in ‘Akká for pilgrimage.
• Collation and classification of the Sacred Texts and release of a series of compilations for deepening.
• Developing the relationship between the Bahá’í International Community and the United Nations.
• Protecting the Faith from opposition and emancipating it from persecution.

International Goals

Overall objectives set for the worldwide Bahá’í community to achieve during the Plan were:

• Completion of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár in Samoa and making progress in construction of a Mashriqu’l-Adhkár in India.
• Formation of nineteen National Spiritual Assemblies and re-establishment of disbanded Assemblies:
  • Eight in Africa
    • Angola
    • Bophuthatswana
    • Cape Verde Islands
    • Gabon
    • Mali
    • Mozambique
    • Namibia
    • Transkei
  • Eight in the Americas
    • Bermuda
    • Dominica
    • French Guiana
    • Grenada
    • Leeward Islands
    • Martinique
    • St. Lucia
    • St. Vincent
  • Three in the Pacific
    • Cook Islands
    • Tuvalu
    • West Caroline Islands
• Opening any virgin territories and islands to the Faith.
• Expanding both individual and institutional teaching work so that there is a growing number of believers.
• Prompt, thorough, and continuing consolidation of teaching work and increase in the number of Local Spiritual Assemblies.
• Interchange of pioneers and traveling teachers especially between neighboring countries accompanied by an increase in self-sufficiency of national communities.
• National communities achieving financial independence.
• Increase in efficient functioning of national committees and auxiliary institutions of National Spiritual Assemblies.
• Acquainting prominent people with the nature of the Bahá’í community and the basic tenets of the Faith and winning their esteem and friendship.
• Development of Local Spiritual Assemblies so that they can:
  • Nurture deeper understanding of Bahá’í family life.
  • Provide for the Bahá’í education of children by holding regular Bahá’í classes and, where necessary, establishing tutorial schools for the provision of elementary education.
  • Encouraging Bahá’í youth in study and service.
  • Encouraging Bahá’í women to exercise to the full their privileges and responsibilities in the work of the community.

Points of Focus

In addition to its Naw-Rúz message to the Baha'i community the Universal House of Justice also issued a Naw-Rúz message to all National Spiritual Assemblies in 1979 in which it emphasized several points for particular consideration with guidelines on how National Spiritual Assemblies should approach the plan with respect to each of them, while also noting that not every point would be relevant to every national community. The points were:

• Local Spiritual Assemblies
• Pioneers and traveling teachers
• Youth teaching
• Border teaching
• Teaching conferences
• Summer and winter schools
• Bahá’í education of children
• Tutorial schools
• Publications
• Recordings
• Communications
• Correspondence Courses
• Properties

Execution of the Plan

First Phase: 1979 - 1981

The Seven Year Plan began with a two year opening phase with specific goals to be achieved by 1981 being given to each National Spiritual Assembly by the Universal House of Justice in 1979. These goals were designed to continue the process of expansion, to consolidate victories of previous Plans, and to attain, where circumstances permitted, any goals of the preceding Five Year Plan which were not accomplished. During this first two year phase the Continental Boards of Counselors and National Spiritual Assemblies were to examine the conditions in each country to determine the capacities and needs of every national community before detailed national goals for the remainder of the plan were formulated.

In a May 8, 1979, message to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States the Universal House of Justice referred to a deepening crisis of the International Fund and the impact this would have on the opening two year phase of the Plan. To address this the Universal House of Justice assigned its member Borrah Kavelin to host a series of meetings in key cities across North America and Europe to mitigate the problem and suggested that he be invited to consult with the National Spiritual Assemblies of the United States and Canada during June.

In its 1980 Naw-Rúz message the Universal House of Justice noted that the Bahá’í community had been assailed by disaster in the first year of the plan due to the persecution of the Bahá’í Faith in Iran with many Bahá’ís being imprisoned and Holy sites being destroyed and also due to the passing of three Hands of the Cause. However they noted that despite this the community had progressed writing:

"And yet, as ever in the Cause of God, the beneficent operation of the dialectic of disaster and triumph is clearly apparent. The unwavering faith of the dearly loved, severely tested, ever-steadfast Persian Bahá’í community, guided by the heroic stand and example of its National Spiritual Assembly, supported and inspired by the Counselors and their Auxiliary Board members, has effected a spiritual revitalization of the beloved friends. They have united as one man to present a front of refulgent spirituality and assurance and appear, as one observer reports, like a dazzling community of eager, uplifted, radiant new believers.

Nor is the influence of their response to the sufferings engulfing them confined to their homeland. From farthest east to farthest west, from pole to pole, wherever the Standard of Bahá’u’lláh has been implanted, the friends have felt the impulse of sacrifice and risen to assume that enormous share of the work of the Faith in the fields of teaching, pioneering and financial contribution which the Persian friends, for the time being, are no longer able to shoulder."

In the message the progress of the Plan was reviewed stating the following regarding the goals at the World Centre:

"A good start has been made with the Seven Year Plan. At the World Center of the Faith the uninterrupted progress in raising the Seat of the House of Justice, repairing and refurbishing the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá, further extension of the gardens surrounding the Ḥaram-i-Aqdas at Bahjí, and the initiation of a general reorganization of the work of the World Center to accommodate its ever-growing needs and make use of the most up-to-date technological developments, have taken place."

Some achievements of the international Bahá’í community referred to were a generous outpouring of funds donated, constant activity strengthening the relationship between the Bahá’í International Community and the United Nations, an increase in Bahá’í children's classes, and an increase in the number of Bahá’í national communities contributing pioneers and traveling teachers although some pioneer posts remained unfilled.

Numerical achievements during the first year of the Plan listed were the number of localities opened to the Faith reaching 106,000, Bahá’í material being translated into three new languages, Bahá’í literature in eighty-eight languages being enriched, and a National Spiritual Assembly being established in 1980, six secure to be established in 1981, and one to be reformed in 1981. Proclamation achievements listed were the establishment of a Bahá’í radio station in Puno, Peru, and the increase in transmission range of Radio Bahá’í in Otavalo, Ecuador.

In a March 1981 message the Universal House of Justice referred to the successes of the first phase of the Plan which included: the evolution of the Continental Boards of Counselors with the thirteen Boards being merged into five and term lengths being introduced, progress on the construction of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice and Temples in India and Samoa, and an increase in the number of Local Spiritual Assemblies in the world and localities opened to the Faith.

Second Phase: 1981 - 1984

In its March 1981 message the Universal House of Justice announced that the second phase of the Seven Year Plan was opened which would span three years. All National Spiritual Assemblies were sent specific goals to focus on for the three year period and the following overarching goals were shared:

• The Universal House of Justice occupying its permanent Seat.
• Completion of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár for Samoa and progress on the construction of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár for India.
• Development of the functions of the International Teaching Centre and Boards of Counselors especially in relation to promotion of the spiritual, intellectual, and social life of the Bahá’í community.
• Holding five International Conferences in the first nine months of 1982 in
  • Lagos, Nigeria
  • Montreal, Canada
  • Quito, Ecuador
  • Dublin, Ireland
  • Manila, the Philippines
• Preparation of architectural plans for a dependency for the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár in Germany
• An increase in the number of national and local Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds.
• Acquisition of six Temple sites, five in Africa and one in Australia
• Acquisition of five new national endowments, four in Africa and one in the Americas.
• Foundation of two Publishing Trusts, one in the Ivory Coast and one in Nigeria.
• Increase in Bahá’í literature in an increasing number of languages
• Completion of three radio stations in South America
• Development and consolidation of Local Spiritual Assemblies
• Development of Bahá’í community life with special attention to the Bahá’í education of children and the spiritual enrichment of communities
• Settlement of 279 pioneers in 80 countries in first year of the phase

The Universal House of Justice referred to the need of strengthening the funds of the Faith in the message writing:

"Liberal and increased contributions to the various Funds of the Faith will be essential if the above-mentioned tasks are to be successfully pursued. Furthermore, the now observable emergence from obscurity of our beloved Faith will impose the necessity of new undertakings involving large calls on the Funds. The growing awareness of the friends throughout the world in the past few years that the Funds of the Faith are indeed the lifeblood of its activities is a heartening augury for the future. We are confident that this awareness will increase, that more National Spiritual Assemblies will make great strides towards financial independence, that national budgets will be met, and the Bahá’í International Fund will receive an ever-increasing outpouring of contributions enabling that Fund to keep pace with the ever-increasing international needs of the Faith."

The Universal House of Justice wrote a message to all Continental Pioneer Committees dated April 16, 1981, in which they noted the importance of the Committees in achieving pioneering goals in the phase of the plan and coordinating travel teachers recommending they collaborate more closely with the Counselors and National Spiritual Assemblies. In the letter they note that travel teachers may become a burden on communities or a cause of problems and made some recommendations on how these issues could be avoided. The letter also noted that no specific quotas had been set for National Spiritual Assemblies in relation to the pioneer goal for the second phase of the plan and that the responsibility of monitoring progress towards the goal was being delegated to the Pioneer Committees themselves.

The April 16, 1981, message noted that the Intercontinental Conferences scheduled for 1982 represented an opportunity to identify potential travel teachers and coordinate their efforts, writing the following:

"The House of Justice has asked us to alert you to the opportunities, and to request you to devise ways and means of encouraging such offers and of taking advantage of them, preferably by advance planning and routing of volunteers in consultation with the National Spiritual Assemblies of the countries they will visit. You should plan to have a representative of your Committee at the Conference nearest you to assist in the processing of pioneer offers and also in the routing of late traveling teacher offers. If it is not possible for a member of your Committee to attend, you may delegate another believer to represent you who, in such case, must be thoroughly briefed by you."

The Universal House of Justice sent a letter on April 17, 1981, to all National Spiritual Assemblies in which it provided comments on several aspects of the Plan, including the use of mass media, for consideration and also provided a report on the development of Bahá’í Tutorial Schools.

In the 1982 Riḍván message the Universal House of Justice spoke positively of progress of the construction of the Houses of Worship in India and Western Samoa and noted the opening of a Bahá’í radio station in Peru, establishment of a Bahá’í International Community office in Geneva, and other advances of the Plan. It also announced that the 50th Anniversary of the passing of the Bahíyyih Khánum would be commemorated at the International Conferences to be held that year and that a compilation about her would be prepared at the World Centre for publication that year.

In the 1983 Riḍván message the Universal House of Justice made the following observation regarding the state of the world and the progress of the Plan:

"The observable acceleration, during the past decade, of the two processes described by our beloved Guardian, the disintegration of the old order and the progress and consolidation of the new World Order of Bahá’u’lláh, may well come to be regarded by future historians as one of the most remarkable features of this period. The recent increase in this very acceleration is even more remarkable. Both within and without the Cause of God, powerful forces are operating to bring to a climax the twin tendencies of this portentous century. Among the many evidences which reveal this process may be cited, on the one hand, the continual increase of lawlessness, terrorism, economic confusion, immorality and the growing danger from the proliferation of weapons of destruction, and on the other, the worldwide, divinely propelled expansion, consolidation and rapid emergence into the limelight of world affairs of the Cause itself, a process crowned by the wonderful efflorescence of Mount Carmel, the mountain of God, whose Divine springtime is now so magnificently burgeoning."

On December 7, 1983, the Universal House of Justice wrote a letter to the National Spiritual Assembly of the United States regarding letters it had received from individuals on the persecution of the Bahá’ís in Iran and made the following comment on the significance of the Seven Year Plan in relation to the topic:

"An important point to bear in mind is that our activities in defense of the Iranian believers must be supported by those toward the accomplishment of our stated goals. Preoccupation with the Iranian crisis, at the expense of neglecting the Seven Year Plan, would divert the Bahá’í world community from achieving the very success necessary to the strengthening of the Faith and the confounding of its enemies. Such a neglect would be unworthy of the sufferings of the Iranian friends. Indeed, the ideal being constantly pursued is to defend them vigorously, while, at the same time, exploiting the opportunities created by their sacrifices to promote the Cause of God. The unprecedented publicity, the unremitting appeals to governments and international bodies, the increased contacts with leaders of thought and, above all, the redoubling of teaching activities and the deeper consolidation of the Bahá’í Community, as called for by the House of Justice, are ultimately the best means of defending and securing the relief of the beleaguered Iranian Community; besides, by these means will the world community of Bahá’ís be better prepared to meet the inevitable opposition yet to come elsewhere."

Third Phase: 1984 - 1986

In its 1984 Ridvan message the Universal House of Justice noted the Faith had emerged from obscurity over the course of the Seven Year Plan:

"The emergence from obscurity, which has been so marked a feature of the Cause of God during the first five years of the Seven Year Plan, has been attended by changes, both external and internal, affecting the Bahá’í world community. Externally, there are signs of a crystallization of a public image of the Cause—largely uninformed, however friendly—while internally growing maturity and confidence are indicated by increased administrative ability, a desire for Bahá’í communities to render service to the larger body of mankind and a deepening understanding of the relevance of the divine Message to modern problems. Both these aspects of change must be taken into consideration as we enter the third and final phase of the Seven Year Plan."

The message also noted that the final two year phase of the Plan was beginning, that nine new National Spiritual Assemblies had been established with 148 National Spiritual Assemblies sure to be in existence at the end of the plan, and that plans for the completion of the Arc around the Monument Gardens on Mount Carmel and designs of the three buildings to be constructed were to be approved by the close of the Plan.

In October 1985 the Universal House of Justice noted the Bahá’í world was focused on the International Year of Peace as the Seven Year Plan drew to a close, and in its December 1985 message to the Conference of the Continental Boards of Counselors it noted the new term of office for the Counselors would begin with consideration of the beginning of the Six Year Plan.

In a January 2, 1986, message the Universal House of Justice referred to the close of the Seven Year Plan on April 21, 1986, and announced that the Bahá’í Faith had entered the Fourth Epoch of the Formative Age.

Outcomes of the Plan

At the World Centre

Construction of the Arc progressed during the Plan with the Seat of the Universal House of Justice building being inaugurated on June 17, 1982, and the Universal House of Justice occupied its Seat in 1983. In 1986 designs for the Centre for the Study of the Sacred Texts, the Seat of the International Teaching Center, and the International Bahá’í Library were approved. Other property projects executed during the Plan were the restoration of the upper floor of the House of ‘Abdu’lláh Páshá completed in 1983, the establishment of a new Bahá’í cemetery at Ein Gev in 1985, and an extension of gardens at Mazra'ih and Bahjí.

Institutional development was pursued with the number of Counselor members on the International Teaching Center being increased by four in 1983, making the composition of the body nine Counselors and the Hands of the Cause in the Holy Land, and five year term limits for the body were introduced, and the Universal House of Justice established an Office of Social and Economic Development in 1983 and an Office of Public Information in 1985. The Bahá’í International Community expanded its collaboration with the United Nations throughout the Plan increasing contacts with several UN bodies.

Bahá’í literature was enriched by the publication of a compilation of Writings referring to Bahíyyih Khánum also containing her own letters by the World Centre in July 1982.

International Accomplishments

One of the accomplishments of the Plan was the completion of two Continental Houses of Worship with the Samoa House of Worship in Apia being dedicated in 1984 and the India House of Worship being dedicated in New Delhi in 1986. The number of properties owned by Bahá’í communities also increased with twenty-two National Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds and thirty-seven National Endowments being purchased. Sixteen Temple Sites and 317 Local or District Ḥaẓíratu’l-Quds were also acquired.

Institutional accomplishments included the evolution of the Continental Boards of Counsellors with the thirteen Boards being consolidated into five, five year terms being introduced, and the first international Counsellors Conference being held in the Holy Land in December 1985. The Auxiliary Boards were also expanded with an additional 630 Board members and 5000 assistants being appointed worldwide. The following were numerical achievements in the field of establishing Assemblies and in addition to a numerical increase there were also consolidation advances made with many Local Spiritual Assemblies becoming more active in facilitating activities:

• 23 National Spiritual Assemblies established
• 9230 Local Spiritual Assemblies established
• 11 National Spiritual Assemblies incorporated
• 2309 Local Spiritual Assemblies incorporated
• 59 National Spiritual Assemblies achieved financial self sufficiency

The teaching work of the Bahá’í Faith was expanded throughout the Plan with 166 independent countries and 48 dependent territories being newly opened to the Faith, an estimated over one million people became Bahá’ís including members of 300 ethnic groups previously not represented in the Faith, 3694 pioneers who arised during the Plan remained at their posts, 10000 travel teaching trips were made and 78 National Spiritual Assemblies facilitated teaching projects in neighboring countries. The Faith also achieved more official recognition with Bahá’í marriage being officially recognized in four countries, Holy Days being officially recognized in five countries, and tax exempt status being achieved in fifty-four countries.

Advances in internal Bahá’í community life during the Plan included Bahá’í material being translated into an additional 106 languages, 736 new translations being published in various languages, 410 books being published, and 186 Bahá’í periodicals being established. 219 Bahá’í correspondence courses were held, 1880 summer and winter schools and 1044 institutes were held, and 395 deepening tapes were recorded and distributed. 52 countries began holding Bahá’í children's classes in their national communities. Special attention was paid to empowering women in community life with 434 national and regional women's conferences being held.

Proclamation of the Faith took place on an expanded scale during the plan with many feature programs being broadcast on television, the radio, and distributed in newspapers and four Bahá’í owned and operated radio stations being established across the world. 108 National Spiritual Assemblies met with official dignitaries with 73 heads of state across 44 countries and other heads of government in an additional 35 countries meeting with Bahá’í delegations. A notable proclamation accomplishment of the Plan was the distribution of The Promise of World Peace message by the Universal House of Justice to 167 world leaders.

In terms of social and economic development and service to the wider community the international Bahá’í community collectively established 1118 social and economic development projects worldwide, 30 academic schools and 447 tutorial schools, 134 educational programs devoted to literacy, vocational training and other sorts of education, and 76 community development projects.

References

Bahai.media has a related page: Seven Year Plan (1979-1986)