The Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement Blog

Archive for the ‘general’ Category

A friend suggests that a statement by the Iranian leader Seyyed Ali Khamenei addressed to the youth of the West would be interesting to read. Here is the link to it.

Although entitled "The recent events in France…", it was written before the recent attacks in Paris, after the earlier attacks of January this year.

Submitted by Ikram.

While browsing Woking Muslim Mission archives (link) in the journal Islamic Review & Muslim India, August 1917, p. 337, I came across an article by Marmaduke Pickthall ‘Islam and Progress,’ which he opens with the following paragraph:

THE opinion prevalent in Christian countries with regard to El Islam is that, as compared with Christianity, it is a religion essentially unprogressive, and to some extent degrading to the human intellect. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The sort of lethargy, comporting ignorance and superstition, which has weighed upon the Muslim masses for the last three centuries, is the result of historical circumstances very similar to those which darkened Western Europe in the period before the Renaissance. It has little more than a geographical connection with the Muhammadan religion; and now, with the revival of a scientific education, it is at an end. It would be a serious mistake to suppose, in view of the relatively backward state of the Islamic world, that El Islam itself is unprogressive in the modern meaning of the word. How can it be, when one reflects that modern progress is the outcome, not of any Christian doctrine, but free, thought, and that Islam: unlike Christianity, prescribes free thinking as a duty for believers.

With the above read, the verse of Quran, in its chapter ‘Al-Rum – The Byzantines,’ resonated in my mind:

30:30. So pay your whole-hearted attention to (the cause of) faith as one devoted (to pure faith), turning away from all that is false. (And follow) the Faith of Allâh (-Islam) to suit the requirements of which He has made the nature of humankind. There can be no change in the nature (of creation) which Allâh has made. That is the right and most perfect Faith, yet most people do not know (it). [Nooruddin]

In the same issue of Islamic Review, a few pages down, in Editor’s mail [p. 353] is a letter under the title – ‘MORNING STAR OF A CREEDLESS FAITH – which apparently is excerpted from the letter of a Minister to the Unitarian Church:

There is so much in your Faith that rings harmonious with my own deepest belief that I hardly think it necessary to mention points on which there is a difference, and I cannot help thinking that an unprejudiced reading of such publications as the ISLAMIC REVIEW would do much to prepare the way for the rising of that "Morning Star of a Creedless Faith" which, if I interpret aright, was the dream of Jesus and the Faith of your Holy Prophet.

‘Morning Star of a Creedless Faith’ is a quote within a chapter ‘The Idea of a Church’ in the book ‘God, the Invisible King’ by H. G. Well (p. 185, link) that was published in the same year as Islamic Review. I could not help but reproduce it in its entirety below.

Due to its length this post is continued below as a comment.

Submitted by Rashid Jahangiri.

Two or three days before his death, in 1908, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad sahib wrote his last book ‘Message of Peace’. HMGA had foreseen Hindu-Muslim tension based on religion.  To prevent escalation and bloodshed between the followers of these two religions he wrote his book and gave practical suggestions to avoid mayhem. HMGA made one such suggestion that out of respect for Hindus religious feelings, Muslims should stop slaughtering and eating meat of Hindus deity Cow, and Hindus should stop disrespecting and making vituperative attacks on Holy Prophet Muhammad SAWS.

Of course no one among Muslims cared for HMGA suggestion. Last 100 years history is witness to what followed. Hindu-Muslims riots, extreme was in 1947 at time of independence from British rule, then wars between India and Pakistan. In India there have been continuous riots against Muslims. Riots took place in State of Gujrat when Narendra Modi was its Chief Minister. And riots and killing of Muslims taking place in India, on cow slaughter and consumption of its meat by Muslims, when Narendra Modi is Prime Minister of India.

The way new laws are enacted in India in recent days, slaughter of cow and eating of its meat by Muslims will become a serious crime. Muslims will be prevented from eating cow meat. On other hand Hindus will make more bold vituperative attacks on Holy Prophet Muhammad SAWS.

I wish Muslims in India had listened to HMGA, and today situation could have been prevented.

Once again it is proved that Muslims who do not listen to appointees of Allah SWT learn through hard way.

Message of Peace by HMGA: http://www.ahmadiyya.org/bookspdf/mess-pc.htm

Link to news on cow slaughter in India: http://www.firstpost.com/tag/cow-slaughter

At the last Eid, the Eid-ul-Adha in October 2014, I said in my Eid Khutba that it was a tragedy that:

"on 24th and 25th September Muslims around the world tried to sight the new moon by human eye to determine the start of the present month of the Islamic calendar"

because:

"On 21st September 2014 a US spacecraft reached the planet Mars and was placed into orbit around it. On 24th September a spacecraft built and launched by India reached Mars and was placed into orbit around it."

It has happened again and the tragedy is even worse this time.

While Muslims are wondering whether the new moon for Eid-ul-Fitr will be sighted on 16th July or 17th July 2015, NASA's New Horizons probe passed close to Pluto on 14th July, sending back photos of this minor planet. Pluto is at present about 3 billion miles from earth, which is about 12000 (twelve thousand) times the distance of the moon from the earth.

The tragedy is worse this time than at the last Eid because Pluto is much further away than Mars.

In view of the forthcoming Eid-ul-Fitr at the end of this week, I have compiled and published an online article consisting of contemporary reports and photographs of Eid-ul-Fitr at the Woking Mosque in England under the Woking Mission a hundred years ago in August 1915.

The Imam was Hazrat Maulana Sadr-ud-Din (d. 1981), who later built the Mosque in Berlin, Germany, in the mid-1920s and became Head of the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement in 1951.

Here is the link to the article.

Zahid Aziz

Submitted by Amna.

What is jammat's stance on this subject? Now i have seen ppl who are using this to justify homosexuality:

http://www.texasislam.com/2012/10/homosexuality-in-islam.html

and these hadiths:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mukhannathun

In Maulana Abdul Haq Vidyarthi’s papers, manuscripts penned by him of three Friday khutbahs of Maulana Muhammad Ali, with changes on them marked by hand of Maulana Muhammad Ali himself (in black ink), have been found. The khutbahs are from Ramadan of January–February 1931. Maulana Vidyarthi was editor of Paigham Sulh at that time, where these were published. We present here the scanned image of the first page of two khutbahs:

Khutbah dated 6th February 1931

Khutbah dated 13th February 1931

These two khutbahs can be read in full in their published form in the collection Khutbaat Muhammad Ali, volume 8, p. 49 to 57, and p. 58 to 64, available at this link.

Submitted by Rashid Jahangiri.

House of Cards is TV series produced by streaming service Netflix. This is American political drama. In recent past in one of its show actor playing role of US President is studying/ consulting Holy Quran translation. When he places it on table the shot shows Holy Quran translation by Allama Noor-ud-Din (rendered into English by his daughter-in-law Mrs. Amtul Rehman Omar and son Abdul Mannan Omar).

Well of course this is drama. We pray one day it becomes a reality and US President does consult the modern, intellectual, peaceful, rational, and inspiring interpretation of Holy Quran by Allama Noor-ud-Din, who has been a source of all such interpretations and translations; from Maulana Muhammad Ali, Maulana Sher Ali, Abdullah Yousaf Ali, to Muhammad Asad etc.

In another related news. An American actress Lindsay Lohan, who is having troubles with law in last few years, has been spotted carrying, with hope of studying, Holy Quran translation. This translation is by Maulana Sher Ali, published by Qadiani Jamaat. Late Maulana Sher Ali was father of Mrs. Amtul Rehman Omar and father in-law of Abdul Mannan Omar. Maulana Sher Ali was student of Maulana Muhammad Ali. Under guidance of Maulana Muhammad Ali, Maulana Sher Ali did Holy Quran translation and commentary of Holy Quran. Later he went to England to have its English language reviewed by Arthur John Arberry. English translation of Holy Quran was published, in 1955, under instructions of Abdul Mannan Omar sahib, while he was in charge of Holy Quran publications, in Rabwah, Pakistan. He could not get commentary published, due to lack of funds, at that time. Later the SAME Holy Quran commentary was published by Qadiani Jamaat in form of 5 VOLUME COMMENTARY in 1988, under name of Qadiani Khalifa 2 Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad.

Link to House of Cards:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Cards_%28U.S._TV_series%29

http://www.netflix.com/WiMovie/70178217

Link to Lindsay Lohan:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3080683/Lindsay-Lohan-turns-Islam-Trouble-actess-carries-Quran-steps-Brooklyn-court-ordered-community-service-children-s-center.html

Link to A. J. Arberry:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_John_Arberry

Update on 16 May 2015: Some corrections/enhancements made to the Kindle version (see link below).

Update on 12 May 2015:

I have now created a version of this book for Kindle. It is a .mobi file. You should be able to read it on any tablet or smartphone using a Kindle app (or of course on a real Amazon Kindle).

Right-click here and save the mobi file

After about two years of work, I have, by the grace of Allah, produced this book which you can read at this link.

Zahid Aziz

I received today an e-mail at the UK Lahore Ahmadiyya Jamaat account that I administer, with the subject "Drawing of Muhammad", and it consisted of the following message:

Attached is a drawing of your false prophet Muhammad.

The bolding is his. The sender gave his name, real e-mail and his Facebook address. I am not including these for his privacy (and perhaps other obvious reasons). The image which he attached is that of the head of a man, with beard and moustache, wearing a large turban with the Kalima on its front, and protruding above the turban is a lit fuse of a bomb.

I replied to him as follows:

Dear Mr NS

Thank you for your e-mail.

Whether our Prophet is a true or false prophet is a matter of belief, and discussions about it will go on forever, and people will disagree about it.

Whether your drawing is a true or false picture is a matter that can be determined factually. It doesn't involve any belief. So please provide evidence that it is a drawing correctly showing our Prophet's face. I have always wanted to know what our Prophet looked like. Therefore, if you can prove to me that it is his likeness, I would be very grateful to you. Until then, I will perhaps wonder whether you looked in the mirror and drew your own likeness.

Regards,
Zahid Aziz

Both the N and S in his name are Old Testament names.