Healthy family relationships

Flora Teckie

As we celebrate International Day of Families on May 15, it is timely to reflect on the rights and responsibilities in a family and some requirements for creating healthy family relationships.

Harmony, co-operation and unity in a family, in the Bahá’í view, can be maintained in the balance of rights and responsibilities. All family members “have duties and responsibilities towards one another and to the family as a whole,” which “vary from member to member because of their natural relationships”.

Maintaining rights and prerogatives of family members ensures that respect is accorded to all members of the family, irrespective of age or gender. In a family, for example, girls and boys must be valued and given equal rights and opportunities in every field of human endeavour.

The observance of the equality of women and men is crucial to strengthening the family and for its well-being, happiness and unity.

The Universal House of Justice, the governing council of the Bahá’í International Community, states: “The equality of men and women is … a universal spiritual truth about an aspect of the nature of human beings … It is, above all, a requirement of justice. This principle is consonant with the highest rectitude of conduct, its application strengthens family life, and it is essential to the regeneration and progress of any nation, the peace of the world and the advancement of civilisation.”

When each member of the family assumes responsibility for ensuring the rights of the other members, this can empower the whole family and give them a new sense of purpose and dignity in life.

The family is a critical source of emotional and material support for its members. If loving, unified and joyful, a family can provide the ideal conditions for the well-being of its members in all facets of life – physical, spiritual, mental and emotional.

It is within the family that character is developed, moral and spiritual attitudes are formed and where one should learn to serve the common good; it is within the family where the values of tolerance, peace and social responsibility can be initiated and taught; and it is in the family where a sense of responsibility and values such as loving, caring and sharing are developed.

In addition to laying the foundation of the individual’s development and happiness, the family provides the basis for cohesion and advancement in our communities.

According to the Universal House of Justice: “The family unit, the nucleus of human society, constitutes a space within which praiseworthy morals and essential capacities must be developed, for the habits and patterns of conduct nurtured in the home are carried into the workplace, into the social and political life of the country, and finally into the arena of international relations.”

Family is where individuals learn by example, and in the way, they are treated, learn how people relate to each other. Healthy family relationships are essential for the happiness and contentment of each family member and for the well-being of the society.

According to Bahá’í International Community, “stable families are main agents of sustainable social development because of their fundamental role as intermediate body between individuals and society” and “When relations within the family are conducted with due regard for justice, it will be an important factor in bringing about peace in the world.”

Spiritual and moral transformation, belief in and practice of gender equality, and respecting the rights of all members of the family are some key requirements for creating healthy family relationships.

Flora Teckie is a professional architect, a Bahá’í Faith follower, and spiritual columnist