Sexual morality -14 March 1973

Bahá'í teachings on sexual morality center on marriage and the family as the bedrock of the whole structure of human society and are designed to protect and strengthen that divine institution. Thus Bahá'í Law restricts permissible sexual intercourse to that between a man and the woman to whom he is married.

Thus, it should not be so much a matter of whether a practicing homosexual can be a Bahá'í as whether, having become a Bahá'í, the homosexual can overcome his problem through knowledge of the teachings and reliance on Bahá'u'lláh. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (From to an individual believer, March 14, 1973; compilation: ‘Lights of Guidance’)

LSA meeting with new believers - 28 February 1973

We have noted that you have advised that Local Spiritual Assemblies to meet new believers at the time of their enrollment in the Faith. While it would be desirable for new believers to become acquainted with the elected members of their community, this should not be a requirement for acceptance of the new believer in the community.

It is entirely within the discretion of your National Assembly to set up proper procedures of enrolling believers in accordance with the requirements of the areas under your jurisdiction, bearing in mind that where there are local Assemblies it would be preferable to enroll new believers in their area of jurisdiction through the local Assembly. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Extracts from letters written by the Universal House of Justice on this subject cited in a letter to an individual believer, dated February 28, 1973; compilation: ‘Lights of Guidance’)

Birth control - 27 February 1973

To use birth control in order to have no children at all thwarts the purpose of marriage. 

- The Universal House of Justice  (Letter from the Universal House of Justice, dated February 27, 1973; compilation Developing Distinctive Baha’i Communities, NSA of USA, 1998 edition)

Huququ’llah – “obedience to this Law is a matter of conscience” - 26 February 1973

…The devoted believer who is privileged to pay "the Right of God", far from seeking excuses for evading this spiritual obligation, will do his utmost to meet it. On the other hand, inasmuch as obedience to this Law is a matter of conscience, and payment of Huqúqu'lláh is a voluntary act, it would not be seemly to go beyond informing the Persian friends of their spiritual obligation, and leaving to them to decide what they wish to do about it.

The same principle applies to those friends who spend lavishly on their families, who purchase or build residences and furnish them far in excess of their needs, and rationalize these expenditures in their desire to avoid payment of Huqúqu'lláh. Likewise those friends who marry non-Persians and reside in Europe or other countries should not be pressed, but informed and left to decide for themselves.

- The Universal House of Justice  (From a letter dated 26 February 1973; The Compilation of Compilations, vol. I, Huququ’llah)