Days of Remembrance
Preface
The observance of
holy days occupies a central place in every religion. Through their commemoration, the calendar year becomes the stage on which the signal events associated with the life and ministry of the divine
Manifestations of God are annually remembered and honoured. This remembrance has both a personal dimension, providing a time for reflection on the significance of these events, and a social dimension, helping to deepen the identity and foster the cohesion of the community.
The coming of each Manifestation of God brings renewal and revitalization: “old things are passed away” and “all things are become new”.
1 By His authority, former laws are abrogated and the manners and customs of the previous
Dispensation are reformed. Through the creative power of Divine
Revelation, fresh life is instilled into hearts and souls:
Reflect thou, how, in one hand, He hath, by His mighty grasp, turned the earth of knowledge and understanding, previously unfolded, into a mere handful, and, on the other, spread out a new and highly exalted earth in the hearts of men, thus causing the freshest and loveliest blossoms, and the mightiest and loftiest trees to spring forth from the illumined bosom of man.
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This re-creation and revitalization of all things is reflected in the introduction of a new calendar and the designation of new holy days which recast the rhythms of communal life.
The
Bahá’í calendar, known as the Badí‘ calendar, was introduced by
the Báb and subsequently confirmed by
Bahá’u’lláh, Who fixed its commencement at the year of the Báb’s declaration, 1844 (
a.h. 1260). As the Bahá’í Era was inaugurated by
twin Founders, the Bahá’í Holy Days include events pertaining
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