Intolerance in Official Practice The fundamental difference between Muslims belonging to the Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat Islam and others

relates to the death of the prophet Jesus. Those outside the jamaat generally believe that God has taken Jesus

to heaven with his living body and he still lives in the heavens. We believe that the prophet Jesus died a

natural death but not on the cross. This is the foundation stone of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s claim to

being the Promised Messiah. Hazrat Mirza sahib said that because Jesus had died a natural death, he was the

Messiah spoken of in the prophecies of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Thus, if it can be proven from the

Holy Quran that Jesus is still alive in the heavens, Mirza sahib’s claim is false. On the other hand, if the death

of Jesus can be proven from the Holy Quran then we are right. Below some verses of the Holy Quran are

given which speak of the death of Jesus or from which it may be argued that Jesus died a natural death. I

request all brothers and sisters to think about these verses without prejudice because on the day of judgement

we will each be responsible for our own beliefs and we will not be able to blame our religious leaders.

(1) “When Allah said: O Jesus, I will cause you to die and exalt thee in my presence . . .” (3:54)

Here the Holy Quran says that first Jesus will die and then “rafa” (raising) will take place. The Arabic word

used here for death is “mutawaffika” which literally means “to take”. Where ever this word is used in

relation to God taking man, it invariably means that God took the man’s soul or caused him to die. Indeed, it

is a common idiom of English language that when we speak of some one’s death we say: God took him.

When Hazrat Ibn Abbas was asked what the word “mutawaffi-ka”means in this verse, he told the inquirer to

read the verse replacing “mutawaffika” with the word “mumi-tika” which literally means “to die”.

(2) “And I was a witness of them so long as I was among them, but when Thou didst cause me to die

Thou wast the Watcher over them.” (5:117)

The Holy Quran tells us that this is the reply prophet Jesus will give when, on the day of Judgement, Allah

asks him if he asked his followers to take as Gods himself and his mother. It shows that the Christian beliefs

changed after the death of Jesus. If Jesus is still alive then surely Christian beliefs have not altered and Jesus

indeed is the Son of God and Mary, the Mother of God.

(3) “And those whom they call on besides Allah created naught, while they are themselves created.

Dead are they, not living. And they know not when they will be raised.” (16:20,21)

The one who is called upon most in prayers is Jesus son of Mary. Here Allah not only clearly rebuts the

Christian belief that Jesus can help them in any way but also states that he is dead.

(4) “The Messiah, son of Mary, was only a messenger: messengers before him have indeed passed

away. . . . They both used to eat food. See how We make messages clear to them!” (5:75)

Here Jesus is clearly included among other prophets. If one is going to argue that it states that messengers

who appeared before Jesus are the ones who are dead, not Jesus; how will the follwing verse be interpreted.

“And Muhammad is but a messenger — messengers have already passed away before him.” (3:143)

Would you say that this verse says that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is alive and only

the prophets who appeared before him have passed away! Even if you say this surely Jesus would still be

among the prophets who are dead because the verse 3:143 clearly says that messengers who appeared before

the Holy Prophet Muhammad have passed away. Whatever argument you use when considering these verses,

you can only come to the conclusion that Jesus died.

(5) “And as for their saying: We have killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah,

and they killed him not, nor did they cause his death on the cross, but he was made to appear to them

as such. . . .” (4:157)

Here too the Holy Quran merely says that the Jews neither succeeded in killing Jesus nor he died on the

cross. It does not say that he was never put on the cross but that he was made to appear to them as if he was

dead. This statement is consistent with what we find in the New Testament.

(6) “And they say : We will by no means believe in thee, till thou . . . ascend into heaven. . . Say : Glory

be to my Lord! Am I aught but a mortal messenger” (17:93)

The disbelievers of Makkah made this demand of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. They told him that they will

accept him if he ascends the heavens and brings down a book. Allah Directs the Holy Prophet Muhammad to

reply saying that he is just a mortal, a messenger of Allah and being a mortal it is not possible for him to

ascend to the heavens. This establishes the principle that, if it was not possible for the Holy Prophet to

ascend into the heavens then no other mortal can do so either. It also means that if a mortal ascends into the

heavens then he will be superior the the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). People who insist

that Jesus was bodily taken up to the heavens but Allah refused to take up the Holy Prophet, now have

to answer this question. Who is superior, the Holy Prophet Muhammad or Jesus?

(7) “. . . And you will find no change in the laws of Allah . . .” (33:62)

God’s laws are the same for every thing in the universe. The law for living things is that they are born, grow

and then die. Here the Holy Quran clearly states that there is no exception to this.

(8) “And we granted abiding for ever to no mortal before thee . . . Every soul must taste of death”

(21:34,35)

Having said that God’s laws are the same for all living creatures, we are told that God has not created any

human being who will live for ever. If it is said that just because Jesus is not dead yet, it does not mean he

will never die then the question is : Where is he now? Jesus cannot ascend to the heavens because it is impossible for a

mortal to do so (see above). That only leaves the possibility that, if he has ascended to heavens, Jesus must

be a part of Godhead, as the Christians believe.

These are a few of the many verses which clearly show that if Jesus was a mortal, he must have died a natural

death. To prove that Jesus died a natural death demolishes completely the whole eddifice of Christian faith.

Many non-Ahmadi Muslims have now also come to the same conclusion such as Sir Syed Ahmad Khan,

Ghulam Ahmad Parvaiz, Muhammad Asad etc. Indeed, Allama Yusuf Ali clearly said the same thing in his

first edition of the English translation of the Holy Quran.

WE, MEMBERS OF AHMADIYYA ANJUMAN ISHAAT ISLAM OF LAHORE, BELIEVE THAT

· There is only one God, unique in all His attributes and possessor of all good.

· The Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was the last messenger and prophet of

Allah after whom there will not appear any prophet, old or new.

· Those who recite the Kalimah and do not label others as kafir are Muslims.

· We will be judged by our actions, not by mere profession of a creed.

· Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam was a

servant of the Holy Prophet Muhammad who was raised by Allah to revive the faith of the

Muslims in their religion. He was the reformer, saviour and guide who, the Holy Prophet

Muhammad promised, shall appear in the fourteenth century of Hijra to lead Muslims to

victory at the time of the final conflict between Islam and other philosophies.