www.bahai.org is a great website. You can click on what intersts you and you can contact Baha'is in your area. I live in Sacramento, CA but Baha'is are everywhere in sometimes small numbers. All of our meetings but a couple are open to everyone. We have devotions, where we get together and pray, read Scriptures from Baha'i and other religions, study circles, where we study aspects of prayer and life & death, we have lots of children's classes and youth classes. Firesides are just informal meetings to learn more about the Baha'i Faith. All of these are completely open to everyone. Reading, investigate, decide for yourself. The independent investgation of truth is one of our most important principles. Not one should pressure you. Also, you have ME as a resource for questions!!

In my opinion, the Unitarian church doesn't recognize that there is a progression to the religions. They pick and choose what they like about the religions and kind of put them together. In the Baha'i Faith, we recognize that each religion built upon another. Abraham, from Genesis, taught in his day, that there was only one God. Monotheism. Moses came, to a people who alreadby believed in one God and he added on laws that were neccessary for the people at that time and place. Escaping from the Pharoah, setting up new digs, creating a new community. When Jesus came, he said that he didn't come to destroy the laws, but to fulfill them. He changed the laws of divorce and the sabath because, he said, the people were only obeying the letter of the law and not the spirit of the law. for example, stoning women who committed adultery. God sends aa new Messenger so that the whole world will turn unto him for new guidance. All Jews should have become Christians. But most rejected him, so then there were two religions. Baha'is believe that Baha'u'llah is the latest Messenger of God for THIS day. Remember when Muhammad came in 620 AD. People still didn't know about North America, there was still very little travel between large areas of the world, absolutely no technology. 1400 years later, the world is completely different. Technology and the ability to travel has brought this world together as it never was 1400 years ago. Can you go back to the Buddhist or Christian teachings to figure out how we are supposed to live together? How are countries supposed to work together under the threat of nucleur war? How can women have more opportunities in our societies? Why is education so important in the world today then it was 1400 years ago? Baha'u'llah, speaking the Word of God for THIS day, says that women have always been spiritually equal to men, but that they have never had the opportunities to develop themselves to be socially equal. But they must in this day. That in the past, men used their strength, competition and war to decide issues, but that today, with our ability to destroy ourselves so completely, we need to use the more feminine qualities of negotiation, compromise and consultation to resolve issues between countries and peoples now. That we need to recognize that God created ALL humanity, we are all His children, our true essence is our souls. We truly are not American, or Chinese, black or yellow. In our true form, we are all souls that God created for a purpose. These are things that religion hasn't taught in the past. They weren't necessarily needed back then. But they are needed now for us to live a peaceful life together on this very small planet. Sorry, it's so long. I got carried away!!!