Lack of Righteousness Among Christians — Essence of Islam Vol. 3
Introduction
In this discourse from Essence of Islam (Volume 3), Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (AS), the Promised Messiah and Mahdi, expounds upon Lack of Righteousness Among Christians, presenting profound spiritual insights and scriptural verities.
Book Series: Essence of Islam (Volume 3)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (AS)
Section: Part 13: Repeated Challenges
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Repeated Challenges 413 sport and jest. Therefore, let Reverend Whitebrecht hold a public meeting in Batala and state on oath that if I disclose to him, within ten weeks, the contents of a sealed envelope which will be presented by him he will immediately discard the Christian faith and become a Muslim. If he fails to do so, the amount of one thousand rupees, which he shall deposit in advance with a third party to be agreed upon, will be paid over to the Anjuman Himayate-Islam, Lahore, as penalty. After this public announcement and its publication in Nur Afshan, if I disclose the contents of the sealed envelope within ten weeks, the reverend gentleman will be under obligation to carry out his promise. Failing to do so, he will lose his deposit of one thousand rupees. On the other hand, if I fail to disclose the contents of the sealed envelope, I will renounce my claim of being the recipient of revelation and will submit to whatever punishment may be imposed upon me.
[Majmu‘ah Ishtiharat, vol. 1, pp. 150-152]
Announced by, Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian, 9 June 1888.
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 413]
Is any Christian cleric blessed with the Holy Spirit? I am tired of calling upon Christian clerics of the whole world to come forward, but not one of them has responded. Some Christian clerics published a challenge in Nur Afshan requiring the disclosure of the contents of a sealed envelope which they would present in a meeting, but when this challenge was accepted on condition that, upon such disclosure, the challenger or challengers would accept Islam, they forgot all about it. The Christian clergymen have long put a seal on the possibility of revelation. Now that the seal has been broken and the grace of the Holy Spirit is proven to be descending upon the Muslims, the hollowness of the Christians’ belief has been fully exposed.
[Majmu‘ah Ishtiharat, vol. 1, p. 156]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 413]
In this meeting I suggest an easy method of settlement to Deputy ‘Abdullah Atham Sahib and all the other Christian gentlemen…. I shall pray to the Living and Perfect God for a sign and you gentlemen should pray to Jesus. You believe that he is the almighty; if that is so, you will certainly succeed. I announce in the name of Allah that if I fail to manifest a sign against you, I shall willingly submit to any punishment, and equally so if you succeed in manifesting a sign in opposition to me.
[Jang-e-Muqaddas, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 6, p. 138]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 414]
How can the Torah and the Gospels stand against the Holy Qur’an? Even if people try to discover and set forth the countless verities, spiritual insights and wisdom comprised in the seven brief verses of Surah Al-Fatihah—in a natural sequence and firm order—from the Book of Mosesas, or from the few pages of the Gospel of Jesus they can never succeed, even if they spend their whole lives trying….If they believe that the Torah or the Gospel is perfect in setting forth Divine verities, insights and spiritualities of the Word of God, I am prepared to award them five hundred rupees in cash. If they consider this amount too little, I am prepared to increase it as much as they may suggest, provided it is within my means. What they have to do is set forth from their voluminous books—which number about seventy—truths and insights of the law and well-arranged pearls and jewels of the unique characteristics of the Divine Word, like those that I shall set forth from Surah Al-Fatihah and shall preRepeated Challenges 415 sent to them in print. It will be the duty of Christian priests to present, from the Torah, the Gospel and all their other books, truths, insights and characteristic qualities of the Divine Word, which match the ones I will present from Surah Al-Fatihah. The attributes referred to must be extraordinary wonders that cannot be found in any human composition. If they do so, and if three umpires, chosen from among followers of other religions, certify that the qualities that have been established in the case of Surah Al-Fatihah are also contained in the passages presented by the Christian missionaries, the amount of five hundred rupees, which shall be in deposit to their satisfaction, shall be handed over to them.
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3]
Now does any Christian minister have the courage to come forward for such a contest? [Siraj-ud-Din ‘Isa’i ke Char Sawaloń ka Jawab, Ruhani Khaza’in, vol. 12,
pp. 360-361]
[Essence of Islam, Vol. 3, p. 414]
Book Series: Essence of Islam (Volume 3)
Author: Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian (AS)
Section: Part 13: Repeated Challenges
Navigation: Book Table of Contents | « Previous: Conclusive Arguments for Reverend Whitebrecht | Next: Open Challenge to All Christians »