The Baha'i calendar has nineteen months, each consisting of nineteen days, and each named for one of the attributes of God. The Baha'i year begins on Naw Ruz (lit. New Year), March 21, the first day of spring each year. Ayyam'i-Ha are the four intercalary days that immediately precede the 19-day Fast, which is the last month of the Baha'i calendar. These are days of gift-giving, charitable works, etc. The Fast, in turn, ends with the new year.

Another major Baha'i celebration, commemorating the Proclamation of Baha'u'llah, are the twelve days of Ridvan, April 21-May 2. Baha'is also commemorate certain historical events that took place within the Faith.

In it's short 164 year history the Baha'i Faith is the second most wide spread religion next to Christianity. The Baha'i Faith though has not been divided into sects or schisms. there is only one Baha'i Faith no matter where in the world you travel.

ANSWER 2:

As of 2012 (168-year history), the Baha'i Faith is comprised of more than 2,100 ethnic and tribal groups residing in more than 230 countries and territories.

Not only son of God, but also God, in a certain sense. Bahai scripture says (among many other verses):

"Remind them of these words and say unto them: 'Verily did the Pharisees rise up against Messiah, ... because He had claimed to be Almighty God, the sovereign Lord of all, and told them, 'I am God's Son, and verily in the inmost being of His only Son, His mighty Ward, clearly revealed with all His attributes, all His perfections, standeth the Father.' This, they said, was open blasphemy and slander against the Lord according to the clear and irrefutable texts of the Old Testament. Therefore they passed the sentence upon Him ... This is the meaning of the Messiah's words, that the Father is in the Son. [1 John 14:11] Dost thou not see that should a stainless mirror proclaim, 'Verily is the sun ashine within me, together with all its qualities, tokens and signs', such an utterance by such a mirror would be neither deceptive nor false? ...

(Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, pp. 39-42) [see link below]

and today:

… the breezes of Christ are still blowing; His light is still shining; His melody is still resounding; … and it is the same with those souls who are under His protection and are shining with His light. (Some Answered Questions, p.152)

ANSWER 2

Clarification of the Baha'i Faith teachings of the station of Jesus (and Moses, et al.):

Were any of the all-embracing Manifestations of God to declare: "I am God!" He verily speaketh the truth, and no doubt attacheth thereto. For it hath been repeatedly demonstrated that through their Revelation, their attributes and names, the Revelation of God, His name and His attributes, are made manifest in the world... And were any of them to voice the utterance: "I am the Messenger of God," He also speaketh the truth, the indubitable truth... For they are all but one person, one soul, one spirit, one being, one revelation. They are all the manifestation of the "Beginning" and the "End," the "First" and the "Last," the "Seen" and "Hidden" -- all of which pertain to Him Who is the innermost Spirit of Spirits and eternal Essence of Essences. And were they to say: "We are the servants of God," this also is a manifest and indisputable fact. For they have been made manifest in the uttermost state of servitude, a servitude the like of which no man can possibly attain.

(Baha'u'llah, "The Kitab-i-Iqan" [Book of Certitude], p. 178)

The Bahai Faith is, first of all, the path of faith that was taught by Baha'u'llah (1817-1892). It has been expounded by his son Abdu'l-Baha (1844-1921) and by the Guardian he appointed, Shoghi Effendi (1897-1957). The Bahai community can be found in most countries (google yours), and is now administered by an elected council, the Universal House of Justice. The community has no clergy. Local communities are also administered by elected councils, the Spiritual Assemblies.

Among the Bahai teachings are:- The independent search after truth, unfettered by superstition or tradition;

- the oneness of the entire human race, the pivotal principle and fundamental doctrine of the Faith;

- the basic unity of all religions;

- the condemnation of all forms of prejudice, whether religious, racial, class or national;

- the harmony which must exist between religion and science;

- the equality of men and women, the two wings on which the bird of human kind is able to soar;

- the introduction of compulsory education;

- the adoption of a universal auxiliary language;

- the abolition of the extremes of wealth and poverty;

- the institution of a world tribunal for the adjudication of disputes between nations;

- the exaltation of work, performed in the spirit of service, to the rank of worship;

- the glorification of justice as the ruling principle in human society,

- and of religion as a bulwark for the protection of all peoples and nations;

- and the establishment of a permanent and universal peace as the supreme goal of all mankind - these stand out as the essential elements of that Divine polity which He [Abdu'l-Baha] proclaimed to leaders of public thought as well as to the masses at large in the course of these missionary journeys [to Europe and North America, in 1911-1913]. The exposition of these vitalizing truths of the Faith of Bahá'u'lláh, which He characterized as the "spirit of the age," He supplemented with grave and reiterated warnings of an impending conflagration which, if the statesmen of the world should fail to avert, would set ablaze the entire continent of Europe. He, moreover, predicted, in the course of these travels, the radical changes which would take place in that continent, foreshadowed the movement of the decentralization of political power which would inevitably be set in motion, alluded to the troubles that would overtake Turkey, anticipated the persecution of the Jews on the European continent, and categorically asserted that the "banner of the unity of mankind would be hoisted, that the tabernacle of universal peace would be raised and the world become another world.

(Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 281-2

See the links below for further information.

I am looking at the Wikipedia article on Cao Dai, and notice some similarities, and some differences. Here are some of both:

• Similarity: Both are monotheistic.
• Similarity: Both are fairly recent. (Cao Dai is more recent, though.)
• Difference: The article states that Cao Dai is synchretistic. The Bahá'í Faith is not synchretistic - it is based (according to Bahá'í belief) on God's relevations to the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh.
• Difference: According to Cao Dai, before God existed there was the "Tao". In the Bahá'í Faith, God is the origin of everything else. Nothing existed "before God".
• Difference: Cao Dai seems to be more restricted to Viet Nam, and people all over the world who originated in Viet Nam. The Bahá'í Faith is more global in nature.

ANSWER 2:

The following re Cao Dai is according to Religion Factswith "differences" shown in [brackets]:

1) "Cao Dai (a.k.a. Dao Cao Dai or Caodaism) is a syncretist Vietnamese religious movement with a strongly nationalist political character...

[Baha'is are completely apolitical.]

2) "Cao Dai draws upon ethical precepts from Confucianism, occult practices from Taoism, theories of karma and rebirth from Buddhism, and a hierarchical organization(including a pope) from Roman Catholicism...

[The Baha'i Faith draws nothing from other existing religions and/or cults, especially the occult, but has its own Book of Law (Kitab'i-Aqdas) and manner of administering the Faith's affairs. It teaches that reincarnation is a non-existent manmade concept, and there are no hierarchal individual leaders.]

3) "Its pantheon of saints includes such diverse figures as the Buddha, Confucius, Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Pericles, Julius Caesar, Joan of Arc, Victor Hugo, and Sun Yat-sen."

[Baha'is believe the Buddha, Jesus Christ and Muhammad to have been Messengers of God who brought Revelations from God. There are no "saints" in the Baha'i Faith but, if there were, the appearance of those listed alongside God's Messengers would probably constitute blasphemy. :-) ]

The Baha'i religion arose out of Islam, and all its early followers had been Muslim. Arguably, Islam in turn arose out of a blend of Christianity and Judaism, so Baha'i can be said to originate originally in the Jewish faith.

ANSWER 2:

This question might have been asked because the international headquarters of the Baha'i Faith is in Haifa, Israel. Each of the Sacred Texts of the four major religions of Israel confirm the teachings of the religion which preceded it. Moses (spoke with God) confirmed the teachings of Abraham (walked with God); Christ (anointed of God) confirmed the teachings of Moses; Muhammad (apostle of God) confirmed the teachings of Christ; and Baha'u'llah (tr. 'glory of God') confirmed the teachings of the previous Three. Each religion could be said to have "come out" of the previous, but each is an independent religion in its own right.

Each person is required to live his own life. Faith, and what you as a person do about it is an individual thing. All of us can share our thoughts with each other, but not tell each other what is right. Only Scripture can do that.

ANSWER 2:

According to Baha'i scripture, each person is responsible for his/her own path to God. No one, including a spouse or a parent, has the right to force their personal beliefs upon another soul. For instance, a person might be raised in the home of a Christian or a Buddhist or a Muslim. It is the responsibility of the individual as a youth or adult to independently investigate/study the teachings of world religions (or at least the one they profess to believe in) and make an informed decision as to its fulfilment of prophesies.