Study indicating that religion is set for extinction is ‘part of the natural cycle’

Thames Valley’s Bahá’í Community has said that the results of a study using census data from nine countries which shows that religion is set for extinction there is just part of the natural cycle of the world.

Shawn Khorassani
Bahá’u’lláh predicted that religion would decline - but this would present an opportunity.

The study, reported on the BBC News website today (Tuesday 22 March), found a steady rise in those claiming no religious affiliation. It looked at census data stretching back a century from countries in which the census asked about religious affiliation. The American Physical Society meeting in Dallas, US, heard that religion is expected to all but die out altogether in those countries.

Shawn Khorassani, a West Berkshire Bahá’í, said: “This is just part of the natural order of things – Bahá’u’lláh said that the world would eventually get fed up with religion. People would recognise that religion can be the cause of some of the world’s problems and that they would reject it.

“But Bahá’u’lláh said that eventually people would realise that everything becomes worse without it and that they can not live without a moral compass. That is when the Bahá’í Faith will shine.”

An evening of ‘World Peace’

‘World Peace’ was the subject for discussion at Thames Valley Bahá’í Community’s ‘Time to Unwind’ prayer and meditation devotional evening last Wednesday (16 March).

The meeting was a chance for Bahá’ís and non-Bahá’ís alike to discuss the words of  Bahá’u’lláh – “Dedicate the precious days of your lives to the betterment of the world” – taken from the Writings of Bahá’u’lláh.

West Berkshire Bahá’í Shawn Khorassani said: “World Peace seemed like a particularly appropriate issue to discuss in view of the unrest in parts of North Africa and the Middle East.”

A new topic is chosen for discussion most Wednesdays.

For more details about these activities, please call the West Berkshire’s Bahá’í Community on 07964 676461 or email myra@khorassani.com