Fourth Paper

DEBATE 25 MAY 1893

PROCEEDINGS

Today, at 6:08 Mirza [Ghulam Ahmad] Sahib started dictating his rebuttal and at 7:08 he completed it. At this occasion, a suggestion was made and was accepted by both parties, that because while the papers are being read, the transcribers interrupt to compare the writings, and this ruins the flow of the topic and the audience cannot enjoy the subject matter being presented; therefore, it was decided that the papers should be compared by the transcribers before they are read out.

Then Deputy Abdullah Atham started dictating his reply at 7:54 and completed it at 8:54. It was then read out loud after its comparison. Mirza Sahib then started dictating his reply at 9:24 and completed it at 10:24:30 and it was then read out loud.

After this, the Presidents of both parties signed the respective papers that were then given to each party. After this, the session was adjourned.

25 MAY 1893, TIME 6:08

Statement Of

HAZRAT MIRZA [GHULAM AHMAD] SAHIB

Regarding my earlier statement where I wrote that as a miraculous sign of the heavenly Books—the Bible and the Holy Quran—it is essential to compare their individual excellences, Deputy Abdullah Atham, being critical of the word, ‘excellence,’ wondered, What is excellence? Is it the excellence of a goldsmith or that of a blacksmith?—but rather excellence has to do with showing the path to salvation.

In reply to this, I wish to state that the claim of guiding towards salvation can, and will only be accepted as excellent after it has been proven, and even to make mention of this before such time seems to me to be out of place. Now let it be clear that with regard to the excellence of His teachings, Allah the Lord of Glory has made the claim Himself in the Holy Quran, as He says:

1

Meaning that this day have I perfected for you your religion and completed My favour—that is to say, the Quranic teachings—upon you.

Then, at another place, while elaborating upon this excellence, to make clear what it is that can be called excellence, He states:

—(Part 13, Ruku‘ 16)2

[Meaning that] Dost thou not see how Allah sets forth the similitude—that is to say, the similitude of perfect faith—that a good word is like a good tree whose root is firm and whose branches reach into heaven. It brings forth its fruits at all times by the command of its Lord. And Allah sets forth these similitudes for the people so that the people may remember them and may reflect. And the example of an evil word is like unto that of an evil tree, which is uprooted from above the earth and has no permanence nor stability. Thus, Allah strengthens the believers with the Word that is firmly established—that is to say, a word that is proven and well argued—both in the present life and in the Hereafter; and the people who adopt transgression, Allah lets go astray; meaning that the wrongdoer does not get the help by way of guidance from God Almighty so long as he does not seek guidance.

Now, look how the Honourable Deputy, while elaborating on the verse [perfected for you] said only that it seems related to societal matters. But Deputy [Abdullah Atham] Sahib has already accepted that we should take those meanings of a verse that the Revealed Book gives itself, and that the explanation of a Revealed Book takes precedence over all other explanations.

Now, in these verses, Allah Almighty makes the excellence of a Holy and Pure Word dependant on three things.

First that [whose root is firm], meaning that the basic principles of faith of that Book must be solid and proven, and their very essence must have attained the status of perfect certainty, and that the nature of man accepts them, because the word [ard—earth] points here to the nature of man, as also the words [min-fauqil-ard—from above the earth] also clearly express this and Deputy Sahib is not going to deny this. In short, the principles of faith should be such as are proven and in accordance with the nature of man.

Then, the second sign of excellence stated by God Almighty is [far‘uha fis-sama’] that is to say, its branches reach up to the heavens. The meaning of this is that the people who look up to the heavens—that is to say, who study the book of nature carefully—its truth should be manifested upon them. And also the teachings—that is to say the [furu‘at—branches] of this teaching—like, for example, its eloquent description of actions, of commandments, and of morals; all these should be achieved to perfection such that nothing beyond this could be imagined, just like a thing begins from the ground and reaches up into the heavens and nothing beyond that can be conceived.

Then, the third sign of excellence stated is , that it should bestow its fruit at all times and forever. It should not be the case that at some time it should become like a dry tree deprived totally of fruit and flower. Now, gentlemen! See how Allah Almighty has Himself explained His statement: [this day have I perfected] that it must possess three signs.

Thus, just as He has laid out these three signs, similarly He has also given the proofs concerning them. And the principle of faith which has to do with the first sign—by which is meant the Kalimah [La ilaha illallahu—There is no one worthy of worship except Allah]—it has been mentioned at such length in the Holy Quran that if I were to write all the arguments given in its support, it would not finish even after writing many chapters, but I shall write a little herein below, by way of example. Allah Almighty says in the 2nd Part of the Holy Quran, in its 2nd Chapter, Surah al-Baqarah:

3

That is to say, verily, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and in the alternation of night and day, and in the ships which sail in the sea with that which profits men, and in the water which Allah sends down from the sky and quickens therewith the earth after its death and scatters in the earth all kinds of beasts, and in the change of the winds, and the clouds pressed into service between the heaven and the earth—all of these are Signs for the existence of God Almighty and His Unity and the existence of His revelation, and for His being the Regulator of all by virtue of His Will.

Now, look how Allah, the Lord of Glory, has argued within this verse in favour of this principle of faith of His, from His law of nature—in other words, from His creations which can be found in the heaven and earth—by looking at which, in clear accord with the intent of this noble verse, it becomes very clearly evident that, without a doubt, there is an Eternal Creator of this world who is Perfect, and One, without any partner, and the Regulator of all that exists by virtue of His will, and the One who sends His Messengers into the world.

The reason for this is that all of these creations of God Almighty, and this system of the universe which we see before our eyes, clearly tells us that this world did not come into being all by itself, but that it has an Originator and a Maker who should necessarily have these attributes—that He should be Gracious, and Merciful, and All-Powerful, and One without any partner, and Eternal and Everlasting, and the Regulator by virtue of His will, and also the Possessor of all perfect attributes and the One who also sends down His revelation.

The second sign is [far‘uha fis-sama’] which means that its branches reach up to the heavens and those people who look to the heavens—in other words, those who observe the laws of nature—should be able to see it and, moreover, it thus becomes established that it is the Perfect Teaching. One part of the proof for this comes forth from this same verse. This is so because as Allah, the Lord of Glory, has set forth this teaching in the Noble Quran, for example, that:

4

The meaning of this is that Allah, the Lord of Glory, is the Lord of all the worlds; that is to say, He is the ultimate cause of every single source of providence. Secondly, He is also the Most Gracious, which is to say, without the need for any action, He provides for His creation from Himself all sorts of bounties and favours. He is also the Ever Merciful, meaning He is the Helper of those who do good works and takes their objectives to perfection. And He is also [Maliki-Yaumid-Din—Master of the Day of Judgement] so that every reward and punishment is in His control. He can deal with His servant as He wills, punish if He so desires, in recompense for an evil deed to such an extent as is proper for that evil deed or, if He so desires, He may make available the means for forgiveness; and all these matters are clearly proven by studying the system that Allah, the Lord of Glory, has put in place.

Then, the third sign , means that a sign of a Complete Book is also that whatever fruit it promises to give, it should not only be a promise, but it should bestow that fruit forever and at all times. And here, by fruit, is meant the meeting with Allah, the Lord of Glory, together with all its accompaniments by way of heavenly blessings and Divine converse and every type of acceptance and miracles, as He Himself states:

5

As for those people who say, ‘Our Lord is Allah,’ and then they adopted steadfastness—that is to say that they did not turn their backs on what they had said and although various types of trials came upon them, they remained on firm footing—the angels descend on them, saying: ‘Fear ye not at all, nor grieve whatsoever, and rejoice in the Garden that you were promised.’ That is to say, now you have found that Garden and the heavenly life has now begun. How has it begun? In this way that now We are your friends, and We have become responsible for your protection and your needs in this life and the Hereafter. And in this heavenly life, you will have available all that you ask—an entertainment from the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

Here, by the word ‘entertainment’, reference is made to that fruit mentioned in 6 [it brings forth its fruit forever and at all times]. And regarding the verse 7 [whose branches reach into heaven] one point remained unmentioned having to do with why and how this teaching is perfect because of its highest level of advancement. The explanation of this is that all those teachings that came before the Holy Quran, they were, in reality, in the form of a law for a certain people or a certain age and they did not possess the power of being of general benefit. But the Holy Quran has come for the education and perfection of all peoples and for all times.

For example, to provide a comparison, there is found, in the teachings of Prophet Moses(as), a great deal of emphasis on punishment and retribution as we can tell from phrases like a tooth for a tooth and an eye for an eye. And in the teachings of the Messiah(as) there is great emphasis on forgiveness and pardoning. However, it is evident that both these teachings are deficient. Things cannot function if you always exact retribution, nor if you always forgive; but rather, at its proper occasion you must be lenient or strict, just as Allah, the Lord of Glory, states:

—(Part 25, Ruku‘ 5)8

So the truth is that the recompense of an injury is an injury the like thereof, but whoso forgives, and his act brings about some reformation and not some mischief—in other words, forgiveness is shown on its proper occasion and not on a wrong occasion—the reward thereof is with Allah. In other words, this is the most excellent way.

Now, see what other teaching could be better than this that forgiveness be practiced where forgiveness is merited and retribution where retribution is required. And then again, God Almighty states:

—(Part 14, Ruku‘ 19)9

Meaning that Allah Almighty commands that you observe justice, and greater than justice is that—despite having dispensed justice—you go beyond and show kindness, and even greater than kindness is that you show such consideration to others as if they are your loved ones and, indeed, as if they are your kindred.

It is worth remembering that there are just these three levels. Firstly, man observes justice; that is to say, he asks for rights in lieu of granting rights. Then, if he advances further, comes the stage of showing kindness to others. And if he advances yet further, then he leaves behind even the stage of showing kindness to others and displays sympathy for others with the same love with which a mother shows sympathy to her child; that is to say, with a natural passion and not with the intention of being kind to others. (The rest, later.)

25 MAY 1893

Statement Of

DEPUTY ABDULLAH ATHAM

Remaining From Yesterday

Respected Mirza [Ghulam Ahmad] Sahib stated regarding matters related to the teachings of a Revealed Book that the proof of those should also come from within that very Book. In other words, a confusing mixture should not result in which some came from teachings of the Book and some from the mind of the person who stands in support of those teachings. In reply to this, I request that I have made a short list, which Reverend Thomas Howell shall dictate since I am a weak man, and it is as follows:

First—Multiplicity in Unity

Jeremiah 23:6. ‘In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.’ In the original, it is .

Isaiah 7:14, 8:10. ‘Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.’ You shall, ‘Take counsel together, and it shall come to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us.’ Here the word is Immanuel.

Isaiah 40:3—Malachi 3:1 in comparison to Matthew 3:3.

Zechariah 12:1, 10 in comparison to John 19:37. Isaiah 6:5 in comparison to John 12:37, 40, 41.

Second—Necessary Attributes of Divinity in Christ

First—Eternal

John 1:1–3. ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.’

John 8:58. ‘Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.’

Revelation 1:8. ‘I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.’

John 17:5—Isaiah 44:6, in comparison to Revelation 2:8 and Micah 5:20.

Second—Creator

John 1:3, 10. ‘All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.’ ‘He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.’

Hebrews 1:2, 3. ‘Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power.’

Colossians 1:15, 16, 17; Ephesians 3:9; Revelation 4:11; all of these in comparison to Proverbs 8.

Third—Protector of All Creation

Colossians 1:17. ‘And he is before all things, and by him, all things consist.’ In comparison to Isaiah 44:24, Hebrews 1:1, 2, 3, 10.

Fourth—Unchanging

Hebrews 13:8. ‘Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.’ Psalms 102:25, 26, 27 in comparison to Hebrews 1:8, 10, 11, 12.

Fifth—Omniscient

1 Kings 8:39. ‘Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest; for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men’ (This is the definition of God Almighty).

In comparison to Revelation 2:23, and all the churches shall know that I am he, meaning Jesus Christ, which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works. Matthew 11:27, 9:4, 12:25; Luke 6:8, 9:47; John 1:48, 16:30,

21:17; Colossians 2:3.

Sixth—Omnipresent

(Spatial) Matthew 18:20. ‘For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.’ John 3:13. ‘And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.’

(Temporal) Matthew 28:20, John 1:48.

Seventh—Omnipotent

John 5:21. ‘For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.’

Revelation 1:8. ‘I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.’ Matthew 28:18, Mark 1:27, John 3:31–35, 16:15, Philippians 3:21, Hebrews 7:25, 1 Peter 3:22.

Eighth—Immortal

John 11:25. ‘Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life.’ 1 John 5:20

Third—Christ Is the Supreme Sovereign

Romans 14:9. ‘For to this end, Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.’

1 Timothy 6:15. ‘ Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords.’ Acts 10:36, Ephesians 1:22, 23, Revelation 19:16.

Fourth—Authority Over the Entire Universe

Matthew 28:18. ‘And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.’ Matthew 1:17, Hebrews 1:3.

Fifth—Worship of Christ

In these verses the words that have been translated into prostration, in the original language they are [ in Greek or prosefkhome] which specifically mean worship of God. Matthew 2:11, 8:2, 9:18, 14:33, 15:25, 20:20 and 28:9; Mark 5:6; 1 Thessalonians 3:11; Hebrews 1:6; Philippians 2:10, 11. The prophets, the saintly, and the angels kept vehemently forbidding such worship of themselves but Jesus Christ, did not forbid it. Revelation 19:10. John refused. Acts 10:26. Peter refused. 14:14. Paul refused.

Sixth—Supplication Is Made to Christ

Acts 7:59. ‘And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ Mark 9:24, Luke 23:42, John 9:38, 2 Corinthians 12:8, 9, Revelation 5:8, 12, 13.

Seventh—Christ Shall Judge the World

Matthew 16:27. ‘For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he shall reward every man according to his works.’

2 Corinthians 5:10. ‘For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.’ Matthew 13:41, 42, 43, 25:31–46, John 5:22, 23, Acts 10:42.

Eighth—Christ Forgives Sins

Matthew 9:6. ‘But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins.’ Luke 5:20–26, 7:48.

Ninth—Christ Sends His Angels

Matthew 13:41. ‘The Son of Man shall send forth his angels.’ Revelation 1:1, 22:6.

Note: If Jesus Christ was a mere man, then how could the above-mentioned attributes that can only be applied to the Almighty Being, have been applied to him? Moreover, it should be clear that Christ has been tasked with such work relating to the salvation of man, his punishment, etc. that, apart from the Creator, no created beings could accomplish. And they have not been assigned to any other being in the Bible.

Now, the answer to the remaining matters raised by you that could not be completed before. You refer, in opposing the Divinity of Christ, this statement of his: It is written in your Books that ye are all gods, so why do you reject my being God? Mirza Sahib states that at this occasion, it would have been most fitting for Christ to explain his claim to Divinity fully and prove it.

Answer: I request you to understand that for a person to say something together with reasons pertaining thereto, does not mean to deny any part that has not been mentioned. In other words, there is no denial of Divinity in what was said. Jesus Christ intended to extinguish their anger because they wanted to stone him, as he had said that he was the Son of God. They took it to mean—and they were right—that by calling himself the Son of God, he had declared himself equal to God. Thus, he had blasphemed, and that is why they were stoning him. He asked how could he be accused of blasphemy by the use of the word ‘Allah’; was it not written in Books of their Prophets that the judges and other venerable people were called gods? If they were called gods and not deemed guilty of blasphemy, then why accuse me of blasphemy whom God has sanctified?

All this makes it very clear that the fire of their insanity was extinguished and (by use of these words) he neither admitted nor rejected his Divinity. That is all. (The rest, later.)

25 MAY 1893

Statement Of

HAZRAT MIRZA [GHULAM AHMAD] SAHIB

Deputy Abdullah Atham had expressed some reservations about the use of the word kamal [excellence]. To some extent, I have already replied to this briefly. However, Deputy [Abdullah Atham] Sahib also added this sentence that excellence should be in providing salvation and that the Saviour is the Messiah(as). And in support of this, Deputy Sahib has presented many prophecies from the Bible and also from letters to the Hebrews, etc., but I write sadly that this headache was undertaken for no benefit.

I had already stipulated that if any person from the two parties wishes to state anything about his Revealed Book, then the following rule must be adopted: If that statement is by way of a claim then that claim also should be presented by the Book itself; and if that statement is by way of a reasoned argument then it should be the case that the Book itself should present that logical argument. It should not be the case that the Revealed Book should be utterly helpless in this respect and taking pity on the Book it should be provided assistance.

Deputy Sahib should note attentively that when I presented arguments refuting the Divinity [of the Messiah], I did not present anything from my self—I presented those logical arguments that the Holy Quran has presented itself. But I wish to inquire from Deputy Sahib what, by way of logical arguments, has he presented in accord with the stipulated conditions. If Deputy Sahib states that I have indeed presented such a large trove of prophecies, what more could have been presented than this? So in answer to this I would have to say with a heart full of sadness, that those prophecies are not from the realm of logical arguments. They remain yet mere claims and are themselves in need of proofs, let alone talk of them providing support to something else. And I have already stipulated that logical arguments should be presented.

Besides, the Messiah(as) negates attesting to the veracity of all that was presented. Although I did present proof of this, to some extent, in yesterday’s statement, I will write some more for the sake of an increase in understanding of the audience. The Messiah(as) states very clearly in (John 10:30–37) that there is no distinction or peculiarity in me and other saintly and holy people, insofar as the applicability of the words ‘son of Allah’ or ‘god’ that has been frequently applied in the Bible for Prophets and the like. This matter needs to be pondered upon for a while, that when the Jews heard the Messiah(as) declaring himself to be the son of God, they accused him of blasphemy and labelled him a blasphemer and for this crime, they desired to stone him, and they became very angry.

Now, it is evident that upon such an occasion the Messiah(as) was regarded in the eyes of the Jews to be a blasphemer for having called himself the son of Allah, and the Jews wanted to stone him; so when the moment to prove his innocence or establish his claim presented itself, what was the duty of the Messiah(as)? Every wise person can understand that in this situation when he had been declared a blasphemer and had been attacked, and people had decided to stone him, the Messiah had to choose one of two things. First, if the Messiah(as) was in reality, truly the Son of God, then he should have replied to them saying, This, my claim, is indeed true, and I am truly the Son of God, and to prove this claim I have two proofs. Firstly, in your Books it is written regarding me that the Messiah is the Son of God—nay, in fact, he is God Himself, the Omnipotent, the Knower of the Unseen and He does what He wills—and if you have any doubt, then bring forth your Books, I will show you proof of my being God from these Books. This is your misunderstanding and lack of attention to your own scriptures that you accuse me of being a blasphemer; your very own Books themselves make me God and say that I am Omnipotent, then how can I be a blasphemer? In fact, what is required very much is that you should now begin to worship and idolize me because I am God!

Then the second proof he should have given should have been to say that Come and see the Signs of God in me, and just as God Almighty has made the sun, the moon, the planets, and earth, etc. a portion of the earth, or some star, or some other such thing has also been created by me, and I can even now demonstrate such power of creation, and that I possess far greater power and strength than manifested in the ordinary miracles of the Prophets.

And it would have been appropriate for him to present to them a detailed list highlighting that he had done this and this godly thing up till today. Has any Prophet—from Moses to any other later Prophet—ever done any such things similar to this? Had he presented such proofs, the Jews would have been silenced and all the Pharisees and scribes would have immediately fallen in prostration before him, saying, Yes, O Lord! You are indeed God … we had forgotten. You have—in comparison to the sun which is there since eternity, shining and making the day bright, and in comparison to the moon which rises in the night with its beautiful light and brightens the night—created a sun and a moon yourself, and shown to us; and you have also presented proofs of your claim to Divinity from our accepted and recognized Books. How can we now dare not to call you our God? Where God has manifested His refulgence with His powers, what can a humble man do? But the Messiah(as) did not present anything from these two proofs. And what he did present are these sentences that he advanced, do listen:

‘Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?’

Now the fair-minded people should ponder if—in order to have the allegation of blasphemy removed, and to establish the truth of his being the actual Son of God—this was indeed the answer, to say that If I call myself the son, what harm is there in that, since your holy people have also been called gods?

Deputy Abdullah Atham seems to suggest here as if the Messiah(as) became afraid, terrified by the riot, and concealed the true answer, adopting taqiyyah [concealing one’s faith out of fear], but I proclaim: Can this be the act of Prophets who remain ever committed to sacrifice their lives in the way of Allah, the Lord of Glory?

In the Noble Quran Allah, the Lord of Glory, states:

10

Meaning that the True Messengers of Allah Almighty, who deliver His messages, fear no one in the task of delivering the Message, so how could it be that the Messiah—claiming to be the All-Powerful—became intimidated by the weak Jews?

Now, it is manifestly clear from this that the Messiah, peace be upon him, never claimed to be the actual Son of God or God. Instead, he declared that he was like all the others (who have been called sons of God) and that his claim is just like their claim. So, this being the case, how can the prophecies that Deputy Abdullah Atham has presented be accepted to be correct in accordance with the stipulated conditions? It should not be the case that: [While a witness shows great enthusiasm, the plaintiff remains silent].

To save himself from the accusations of blasphemy, the Messiah presents only this excuse that the word ‘son’ has been spoken concerning me in the very same way that it was spoken concerning your elders. In other words, he was trying to say that he would have been blameworthy and guilty of blasphemy if he had claimed to be the Son of God distinctively. Your Books are filled with references to people being called the sons of God and God—go and take a look!

Then, the Messiah(as) did not just stop there; nay rather, he has admitted his many human weaknesses at various places throughout the Gospels. When he was asked, for example, about the Day of Judgement, and he declared his lack of knowledge and said that apart from Allah Almighty, nobody knows when the Day of Reckoning will take place. Now, it is evident that knowledge is an attribute of the soul, and not of the body. Thus, if he had the soul of Allah Almighty in him and he was, in fact, Allah Almighty Himself, then what is the reason behind the declaration of lack of knowledge? Can God Almighty become ignorant also after knowing?

Then, it is written in Matthew 19:16:11

And, behold, one came and said unto him, (that is to say, to the Messiah), ‘Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.

Then, it is written in Matthew 20:20 that when the mother of the children of Zebedee requested for her sons to sit on the right and left of the Messiah, he replied that this was not within his power. Now, do tell where his ‘Omnipotence’ has gone? Can an Omnipotent Being ever become helpless? And now that so much contradiction has crept into the attributes that while the disciples regard him to be Omnipotent, he himself denies being Omnipotent; so what respect and standing are left of these prophecies that when they are presented on behalf of the person, he himself negates them, saying I am not Omnipotent? This is strange indeed!

Then in Matthew 26:38, it is written, the gist of which is that the Messiah prayed all night fervently and with great grief that the Lord may save him, and begged Allah, the Lord of Glory, that, if it be possible, to take this cup away from me. And he not only prayed himself, but he made his disciples also pray for him, just as among the ordinary people when someone is afflicted in some way, they often ask for prayers for themselves in the mosques. But how strange, that despite this, the attribute of Omnipotence is thrust upon him for no reason at all and his works are described as being miraculous. Nevertheless, that prayer was still not accepted and whatever had been decreed took place. Now, consider if he had been Omnipotent then one would expect that this authority and power would have been of some use; first, for his own self. When it proved of no use in his own case, for others to expect something from him is a vain hope.

Now, from this statement of ours, all the prophecies that Deputy Abdullah Atham presented, have been rebutted, and it is now clearly evident that through his words and through his deeds, the Messiah(as) considered himself just a mere humble human being, and never believed he possessed any Divine attributes. Yes, he is a Prophet of Allah, without any doubt—a true Messenger of God Almighty. There is no doubt about this whatsoever.

Allah, the Lord of Glory, states in the Noble Quran:

12

Meaning that do you see the people whom you consider to be gods beside Allah, what have they created in the earth? Or have they a share in the creation of the heavens? If you have proof of this, or if there is some Book in which it is written that such and such a thing was created by your god, then bring that Book and present it if you are truthful. In other words, it cannot happen that someone should have himself be called Omnipotent and then not show any example of his ‘Divine’ powers, or be called the Creator yet fail to manifest any example of his creation.

And then He says, and which person is more astray than the person who calls unto such a person as God who cannot answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who is, in fact, oblivious even of his calling unto him, let alone responding to him?

Now, at this point, I would like to present a true testimony that is incumbent upon me, and it is this: I believe in that Allah, the Exalted, who is not Omnipotent merely in name. On the contrary, He is, in reality and actuality, Omnipotent, and He has, of His grace and benevolence, honoured me with His special words and has informed me: I, the True and Perfect God, shall be with you and shall bestow victory on you in every contest pertaining to spiritual blessings and heavenly support.

I would now like to say to Deputy Abdullah Atham, and all the Honourable Christian audience, what need is there now to prolong this discussion by you presenting such prophecies as are contradicted by the actions and deeds of the Messiah(as) himself ? There is an easy and straightforward way to settle this issue; that I pray to the Living and Perfect God for a Sign and you pray to the Messiah. You believe that he is Omnipotent; thus, if he is Omnipotent, you will certainly attain success. And I now swear in the name of Almighty Allah, and proclaim that if I am unable to present a competing Sign, I shall be prepared to accept every punishment being imposed on myself. Indeed, even if you show any competing Sign to me, I shall still be prepared to suffer punishment. It would be good for you to have mercy upon the creatures of Allah. I have also now reached old age, and you yourself have also become old. Our last resort now is the grave. Come, let us settle the issue in this way. The True and Perfect God will certainly help the truthful. What more can I now say than this? (The rest, later.)