Praise be to God, thy heart is engaged in the commemoration of God, thy soul is gladdened by the glad tidings of God and thou art absorbed in prayer. The state of prayer is the best of conditions
Bahá'ís use the term "community" in both a symbolic and concrete sense. The symbolic usage refers to the general body of believers, locally, nationally or globally, as in the "Bahá'í community of Swaziland, the "Bahá'í International Community," and the "Community of the Most Great Name." This article covers the concrete use of the term, with particular emphasis on the local community. The individual entries on countries cover the historical development, social features, and scholarly studies of respective national Bahá'í communities.
A Bahá'í community consists of children, youth and adults. Any individual who accepts the revelation of Bahá'u'lláh may apply for membership. Once the local or the national spiritual assembly, under whose jurisdiction the Bahá'í resides, accepts the application the new member is registered. No rituals govern entry into the Bahá'í community.
Bahá'í communities are the collective, practical, everyday expression of the Bahá'í Faith. In the Bahá'í view, the spiritual and social arrangements of a Bahá'í community are such that they can both transform society and the individual. Bahá'í see Bahá'í communities as testing-grounds for the development of spiritual qualities. For example, the participation of members from various backgrounds offers one the opportunity to assess his or her own efforts in the elimination of prejudice and to practise tolerance, compassion and fellowship, although some communities living with diversity may, at first, undergo a "diminished intimacy in the social relationships" (Hollinger, 1992: XXviii), leading to more formal relationships as a means of dealing with social discomfort. Nevertheless, every community passes through similar tests as a dimension of its growing pains (LoG: 491). In the end, though, the "vigor, unity, and discipline of the Bahá'í community" should stand in contrast to an ailing society