IN THE FACE of such terrorism, extremism and radicalization of a select few Muslim youth, the Ahmadi Muslims took the opposite approach — the one proposed by the Holy Quran — of defending the religion of Islam through rebuttal by the pen. They undertook the responsibility of showing the world that these extremists do not represent Islam at all. Far from acting in the name of Islam, they are acting directly against the teachings of Islam as enshrined in its three primary sources: the Holy Quran, the Sunnah or practice of Prophet Muhammad^sa, and his Aḥādīth or sayings.

Meanwhile, the critics of Islam see this despicable violence as an opportunity to embellish their narrative with “evidence” that Islam is a violent and oppressive religion. One such critic was Dr. Nabeel Qureshi who wrote a book, Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward, which consists of the same arguments about the alleged “violence in Islam” that critics of Islam often present. The present book is a direct response to Dr. Qureshi and other critics like him. The questions answered are not new, but are meant to help those readers who do not know the true Islamic position on such matters. Effort has been made in this book to point out specific instances where critics misquote, or misrepresent the data, as well as cases where verses of the Holy Quran are cherry-picked by its critics to try to fit their own narrative. Instead of exploring the sources of Islam carefully, they approach it with a preconceived notion that Islam is violent.

Whether it is the perceived violence and oppression in the Holy Quran, or in the life of the Prophet Muhammad^sa, or domestic violence, or oppression of women and prisoners of war, the critics of Islam paint a picture of a violent and brutal religion that teaches everything but peace and harmony among human beings. An analytical exploration of the context, intent, and objective of these teachings reveals that Islam makes every effort to do the exact opposite. Advancement towards peace in society is one of the main goals of Islam and is not just a slogan that Muslims have concocted or adopted as a defensive reaction to terrorism. Islam has always been a religion of peace, mercy, love, and compassion for mankind.

In the following pages, we demonstrate this by basing our arguments and analysis directly upon the original sources. Dr. Qureshi’s book has been used as a guide and as a window into the common allegations made by critics of Islam at large. Each chapter begins with a question that Dr. Qureshi has raised and that non-Muslims commonly hear about Islam and then proceeds to respond. The answers provided are distilled from the writings of His Holiness Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad^as – the Promised Messiah and Imām Mahdī and founder of the Aḥmadiyya Muslim Jamā‘at – as well as the speeches and discourses of His Holiness Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad^aa – the Khalīfa of Islam and current head of the worldwide Aḥmadiyya Muslim Jamā‘at.