The spring Equinox brings more than just the joy of birds singing and nature blooming for Behnoosh Armani. This cosmic change also marks her New Year celebration as a Baha’i — a celebration known as Naw-Ruz (pronounced no-rooz), which means “new day.”

“It’s a time of rejuvenation … a time of renewal,” Armani said.

Naw-Ruz has a rich history and holds deep spiritual significance for Baha’is.

In 1863, Baha’u’llah — the prophet and founder of the Baha’i faith — announced he was the “Promised One of all religions.”

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BAHÁ’Í WORLD CENTRE — This podcast episode from the Bahá’í World News Service explores the initiatives of the Association for Bahá’í Studies (ABS) in North America that aim to enrich the intellectual life of communities.

Selvi Adaikkallam Zabihi, Michael Karlberg, Malik Nash, and Negin Toosi join the News Service from the United States to discuss the ABS’s unique approach to inquiry within the sciences and humanities.

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The Bahá’í House of Worship in Wilmette, United States, was recently host for an evening of arts and discussions commemorating Black History Month.

Throughout the United States, observances and events are held every February to celebrate African American history and honor its achievements. The gathering at the site of the Bahá’í temple brought together some 350 people from the surrounding neighborhoods and beyond, providing an occasion to explore the spiritual principles of oneness and racial unity.

These principles were expressed through choral and orchestral music...

Debra Feldstein is a bit frustrated, and cautiously optimistic.

Since her older child started going to school 11 years ago, she’s been asking teachers, principals and administrators if they could consider not having picture day, school dances or crucial testing happen on important Jewish holidays, such as the Rosh Hashana New Year’s celebration happening this week.

“I have been fighting this battle every year for 11 years,” she told Lookout on Wednesday. Now, given new efforts to respond to such concerns by both the Santa Cruz County Office of Education and some...

A variety of religious traditions assembled Sunday evening to pray for one thing: peace in Ukraine.

The meeting at North Presbyterian Church was assembled by the Williamsville Interfaith Clergy Association and was led by two Ukrainian clerics, one Catholic and one Orthodox. Joining them were Presbyterians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Baha'i, Sikh and Unitarian Universalists.

North Presbyterian Pastor Bill Hennessy said the array of clergy was deliberate.

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COLLEGE PARK, Maryland, United States — Each academic year, the Bahá’í Chair for World Peace at the University of Maryland offers a unique course that assists students to identify root causes of societal challenges in the light of spiritual principles, such as the elimination of all forms of prejudice, the equality of women and men, and consultation.

“Throughout college I took 35 classes, but this is the only one that changed the fundamentals of how I look at the world,” says Emily Gorey, a former student of the class.

“It was here that I learned how different the...

A community of members of the Bahá’í faith, many of whom fled Iran after facing persecution, has formed in Ann Arbor and at the University of Michigan. Some of those practicing Bahá’í in Ann Arbor spoke to The Michigan Daily about their history, community and hopes for the future, saying it is their responsibility to publicly speak out since others cannot.

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CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts — As the Baha'i community prepares to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Baha'u'llah, the Harvard Divinity School is also commemorating its bicentenary.

This confluence of noteworthy anniversaries has more in common than the mere overlap of dates. In the late 19th and first half of the 20th centuries, a number of eminent American philosophers, artists, and writers connected to both the Baha'i Faith and Harvard University were engaged in a dynamic, emerging discourse on unity.

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On Sunday, spring finally arrived. It's a time of rejuvenation for all of nature, but it's also a new start for Boston's Baha'...

D. Anthony Alvarez ’21, a member of the Harvard Latter-day Saints Student Association, has attended religious services at the same congregation off campus since he arrived at Harvard as a freshman.

This semester, Alvarez said he still attends services at that same congregation. Amid Covid-19, though, he must sign up to attend ahead of time, don a mask, and eschew singing, which can spread infectious particles.

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