A Bahá'í Glossary - Teaching Plans

Teaching Plans

Redirected from: [any number] Year Plan; [any number] Month Plan; Ten Year Crusade

Organized campaigns, local, national or international in their scope, in which Bahá'ís are encouraged to take the Bahá'í message to particular countries, territories or peoples, to translate the Bahá'í literature into various languages, and to develop certain aspects of Bahá'í community life. All such teaching plans are based on, and are supplementary to, the Divine Plan outlined by 'Abdu'l-Bahá in The Tablets of the Divine Plan.

The first plan was developed by Shoghi Effendi for the North American Bahá'ís. Called the First Seven Year Plan (1937-44 [94-101 B.E.]), it had three elements: to complete the exterior ornamentation of the Wilmette House of Worship, to establish one local spiritual assembly in every state of the United States and every province of Canada, and to create one centre in each Latin American republic.

After the inauguration of the First Seven Year Plan, plans were developed in various parts of the world at different times: a Six Year Plan in Britain, a Five Year Plan in Germany and Austria, a Nineteen Month Plan, Two Year, Three Year, Forty-Five Month, Four-and-a-half Year, and other plans.

After the successful completion of the First Seven Year Plan, Shoghi Effendi launched the Second Seven Year Plan (1946-53 [103-110 B.E.]), again assigned to the North American believers. The objectives of this Plan were: consolidation of the work throughout the Americas; the completion of the interior ornamentation of the Wilmette House of Worship; the election of three national spiritual assemblies in Canada, Central and South America; and a systematic teaching campaign in Europe aimed at establishing spiritual assemblies in the Iberian Peninsula, the Low Countries, Scandinavia and Italy. The British, in conjunction with the United States, Egypt and Iran, were called upon to undertake a two-year Africa campaign (1951-3 [108-110 B.E.]).

In 1953[110 B.E] Shoghi Effendi launched the Ten Year World Crusade, with tasks assigned to each of the twelve national spiritual assemblies then in existence. Of it Shoghi Effendi wrote: 'The avowed, the primary aim of this Spiritual Crusade is none other than the conquest of the citadels of men's hearts. The theatre of its operations is the entire planet. Its duration a whole decade.'10 This Plan had four objectives: development of the institutions at the Bahá'í World Centre, consolidation of the home fronts of the twelve participating national assemblies, consolidation of the territories already opened to the Faith, and the opening of the remaining chief territories of the planet. Shoghi Effendi passed away in 1957[114 B.E.], before the midpoint of the Plan; nevertheless, the Hands of the Cause directed the national spiritual assemblies to the successful completion of the plan in 1963[120 B.E.] and supervised the election of the Universal House of Justice in that year.

The Universal House of Justice has continued the work begun by Shoghi Effendi. In 1964[121 B.E.] it launched a Nine Year Plan, in 1974[131 B.E.] a Five Year Plan, in 1979[136 B.E.] a Seven Year Plan, and in 1986[143 B.E.] a Six Year Plan. Each of these has resulted in a further geographic spread of the Bahá'í Faith, the development of the Bahá'í World Centre, the translation of more literature, the inauguration of various social and economic development projects and an increase in the number of Bahá'ís.

[BD 180-1]

List of National and International Teaching Plans

Date Launched	Name of Plan	Dates in Effect	Location
Istiqlál 2 S̲h̲araf 82 B.E. Friday 1 January A.D. 1926	A Plan of Unified Action to Spread the Bahá'í Cause Throughout the United States and Canada	Istiqlál 2 S̲h̲araf 82 B.E. - Kamál 2 S̲h̲araf 85 B.E. Friday 1 January A.D. 1926 - Monday 31 December A.D. 1928	United States and Canada
Sharaf 87 B.E. January A.D. 1931	A New Plan of Unified Action To complete the Bahá'í Temple and promote the Cause in America	S̲h̲araf 87 B.E. - S̲h̲araf 91 B.E. January A.D. 1931 - December A.D. 1934	United States and Canada
Riḍván 94 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1937	First Seven Year Plan	Riḍván 94 B.E. - Riḍván 101 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1937 - Riḍván A.D. 1944	North America
Riḍván 95 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1938	Six Year Plan	Riḍván 95 B.E. - Riḍván 101 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1938 - Riḍván A.D. 1944	India, (Pakistan) and Burma
Riḍván 101 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1944	Six Year Plan	Riḍván 101 B.E. - Riḍván B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1944 - Riḍván A.D. 1950	Britain
Riḍván 103 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1946	Four-and-a-half Year Plan	Riḍván 103 B.E. - Riḍván 108 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1946 - Riḍván A.D. 1951	India and Burma
Riḍván 103 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1946	Second Seven Year Plan	Riḍván 103 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1946 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	North America
Mas̲h̲íyyat 103 B.E. October A.D. 1946	Four-and-a-half year Plan	Mas̲h̲íyyat 103 B.E. - `Alá' 108 B.E. October A.D. 1946 - March A.D. 1951	India, Pakistan and Burma
Istiqlál 15 Mas̲h̲íyyat 103 B.E. Friday 11 October A.D. 1946	Forty-Five Month Plan	Istiqlál 15 Mas̲h̲íyyat 103 B.E. - Jamál 16 Ráḥmat 107 B.E. Friday 11 October A.D.1946 - Sunday 9 July A.D. 1950	Iran
Riḍván 104 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1947	Three Year Plan	Riḍván 104 B.E. - Riḍván 107 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1947 - Riḍván A.D. 1950	Iraq
Riḍván 104 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1947	Six Year Plan	Riḍván 104 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1947 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	Australia and New Zealand
Riḍván 105 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1948	Five Year Plan	Riḍván 105 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1948 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	Egypt and Sudan
Riḍván 105 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1948	Five Year Plan	Riḍván 105 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1948 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	Germany and Austria
Riḍván 105 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1948	Five Year Plan	Riḍván 105 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1948 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	Canada
Riḍván 107 B.E. April A.D. 1950	Two-year Africa campaign	Riḍván 107 B.E. - Riḍván 109 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1950 - Riḍván A.D. 1952	Africa
Riḍván 108 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1951	Two Year Plan	Riḍván 108 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1951 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	British Isles
Riḍván 108 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1951	Two Year Plan	Riḍván 108 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1951 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	India, Pakistan and Burma
Riḍván 109 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1952	One Year Plan	Riḍván 109 B.E. - Riḍván 110 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1952 - Riḍván A.D. 1953	Central America
Riḍván 110B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1953	Ten Year Plan (Ten Year World Crusade)	Riḍván 110 B.E. - Riḍván 120 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1953 - Riḍván A.D. 1963	Earth
Riḍván 121 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1964	Nine Year Plan	Riḍván 121 B.E. - Riḍván 130 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1964 - Riḍván A.D. 1973	Earth
Riḍván 131B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1974	Five Year Plan	Riḍván 131 B.E. - Riḍván 136 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1974 - Riḍván A.D. 1979	Earth
Riḍván 136 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1979	Seven Year Plan	Riḍván 136 B.E. - Riḍván 143 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1979 - Riḍván A.D. 1986	Earth
Riḍván 143 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1986	Six Year Plan	Riḍván 143 B.E. - Riḍván 149 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1986 - Riḍván A.D. 1992	Earth
Riḍván 147 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1990	Two Year Plan	Riḍván 147 B.E. - Riḍván 149 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1990 - Riḍván A.D. 1992	Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc
Riḍván 150 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1993	Three Year Plan	Riḍván 150 B.E. - Riḍván 153 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1993 -Riḍván A.D. 1996	Earth
Riḍván 153 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1996	Four Year Plan	Riḍván 153 B.E. - Riḍván 157 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 1996 -Riḍván A.D. 2000	Earth
Riḍván 157 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2000	Twelve Month Plan	Riḍván 157 B.E. - Riḍván 158 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2000 - Riḍván A.D. 2001	Earth
Riḍván 158 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2001	First Five Year Plan	Riḍván 158 B.E. - Riḍván 163 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2001 - Riḍván A.D. 2006	Earth
Riḍván 163 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2006	Second Five Year Plan	Riḍván 163 B.E. - Riḍván 168 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2006 - Riḍván A.D. 2011	Earth
Riḍván 168 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2011	Third Five Year Plan	Riḍván 168 B.E. - Riḍván 173 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2011 - Riḍván A.D. 2016	Earth
Riḍván 173 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2016	Fourth Five Year Plan	Riḍván 173 B.E. - Riḍván 178 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2016 -Riḍván A.D. 2021	Earth
Riḍván 178 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2021	Twelve Month Plan	Riḍván 178 B.E. - Riḍván 179 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2021 -Riḍván A.D. 2022	Earth
Riḍván 179 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2022	Nine Year Plan	Riḍván 179 B.E. - Riḍván 188 B.E. Riḍván A.D. 2022 -Riḍván A.D. 2031	Earth

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