Huqúqu'lláh

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Huqúqu'lláh  ( Arabic ﺣﻘﻮﻕ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ, Romanization after Baha'i transcription , "The right of God"), also called the law or the institution of Huqúq, is a socio-economic and religious law in Bahaitum , defined in the Most Holy Book of Bahāʾullāh . Basically, it says that Baha'i should pay a tax of 19 percent on property that goes beyond what is fundamentally necessary for a comfortable life. The responsibility for the calculation and payment is incumbent on each individual, it must be done of his own free will and may not be requested or checked by anyone. The money is to be used for charitable projects and to an increasing extent also serve an international, voluntary redistribution of wealth. Members of the Bahá'í community in Germany (Kdö.R.) have the opportunity to pay the money to the international House of Justice , which it also uses for the development of their own global community and its goals.

calculation

The payment of uqúqu'lláh is based on the calculation of the value of individual property , which includes material possessions, financial assets and income of the individual, after all necessary expenses have been paid. If a person's luxurious possessions - that is, beyond necessities - are worth at least 19 mithqáls of gold (2.2246 ounces or 69 grams ), it is their spiritual obligation to pay nineteen percent of the total as uqúqu'lláh. Whenever the added luxury, i.e. your income minus all necessary expenses, exceeds this value, a new payment on the added amount is due.

Bahāʾullāh has left it up to each individual to decide which things are deemed necessary and which are not. By specifying the gold value, people who have little material possessions in particular are to be protected from feeling obliged to consider whether a small part of their small property is not a luxury after all . In addition, Bahāʾullāh has exempted certain categories of property from paying the uqúqu'lláh, such as: B. Residence, necessary household equipment, professional equipment and the like. There are also some separate provisions to cover cases such as financial loss or the possible payment of uqúqu'lláh in the event of death.

Meaning and Spiritual Meaning

Even if the payment is solely the responsibility of the individual and can therefore be regarded as voluntary, uqúqu'lláh is not considered a charity but a levy to which God is entitled because it benefits the general public. Individual prosperity and the interests of the common good must therefore be in balance, and a balance between rich and poor must be preserved. The levy is to be viewed separately from donations for the various purposes of the Bahá'í community and has priority over them.

Gradual introduction

Bahāʾullāh's Most Holy Book was written in 1873. Like many other laws in the Most Holy Book, the law of Huqúqu'lláh was gradually implemented and introduced. Bahāʾullāh initially did not accept payments until he appointed the first trustee for Huqúqu'lláh in 1878 , who was responsible for accepting and administering Huqúqu'lláh payments from Iranian Baha'i. This was later extended to the Baha'i of the Middle East . The basic concept of Huqúqu'lláh has been made known within the worldwide Bahá'í community especially since 1985. A central administration office for Huqúqu'lláh was established in Haifa , Israel in 1991 for parishioners . The Huqúqu'lláh Law came into force for them in 1992. As the payments increased, deputies were gradually appointed at the national level to receive the payments and forward them to the Universal House of Justice. The Universal House of Justice decides how the funds are used within the Bahá'í community at its own discretion. Baha'i who are not members of the community decide for themselves who to send their uqúqu'lláh payment to for the benefit of the good cause.

literature

  • The Universal House of Justice: Huqúqu'lláh - The Right of God. A compilation of texts from the Bahá'í scriptures. Hofheim-Langenhain, Bahá'í-Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3-87037-463-1 .
  • Research Department of the Universal House of Justice:  Huqúqu'lláh - The Right of God . Baha'i Publications Canada and Palabra Publications, 2007, ISBN 0-88867-130-X .
  • Firaydoun Javaheri: Huqúqu'lláh - The right of God. 12 lessons on Huqúqu'lláh. Hofheim-Langenhain, Bahá'í-Verlag 2016, ISBN 978-3-87039-702-9 .
  • Stephan Towfigh, Wafa Enayati: The Bahá'í Religion. An overview. 4th, revised edition, Olzog, Munich 2011, ISBN 978-3-7892-8231-7 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Stephan Towfigh, Wafa Enayati: The Bahá'í Religion: An Overview . 4th, revised. Ed. Olzog, Munich 2011, ISBN 978-3-7892-8231-7 , pp. 81 .
  2. ^ A b c Smith, Peter: An Introduction to the Baha'i Faith . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2008, pp. 164 .
  3. ↑ Taherzadeh, Adib: The revelation of Bahá ʼ u ʼ lláh . tape 4 . G. Ronald, Oxford 1988, ISBN 978-0-85398-144-2 , pp. 253 .
  4. ^ Stockman, Robert H .: The Baha'i Faith: A Guide For The Perplexed . A & C Black, 2012, p. 186-189 .
  5. ↑ a b c d Smith, Peter: A concise encyclopedia of the Baha'i faith . Oneworld, Oxford 2000, ISBN 1-85168-184-1 , pp. 189 f .
  6. ↑ Hatcher, WS; Martin, JD: The Bahá'í Faith: The Emerging Global Religion . Harper & Row, San Francisco 1998, ISBN 0-87743-264-3 , pp. 198 .