Ahmadiyyat or Qadianism! Islam or Apostasy? — Page 109
Reformers 27 but also beg the question as to how a Reformer should be defined. 28. The validity of the argument that a Reformer should not be recognised on the basis of his claim but in consideration of his deeds 29 cannot be argued against. Happily, Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad's services to. Islam are well documented in the annals of history and his opponent's refusal to acknowledge these documented historical records does not in any way minimise the impact of his exceptional performance. Infact, the unique nature of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad's services to Islam has not only been recognised by those Muslim leaders who witnessed the miserable plight of the Ummah during the later part of the 19th century. CE, but inadvertently, by some of his most cynical opponents also. . PLIGHT OF THE UMMAH IN THE 19TH CENTURY CE. The 19th century CE is considered to be a period of unique importance in the history of the Indian sub continerit. A viciously hostile critic of. Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad states that: 'The nineteenth century is a period of unique importance in modern history in so far as it is a century in which intellectual unrest and tension found in the Muslim world had reached its climax. India was one of the main centres of this unrest and tension. Here, tension between the Western and the Eastern cultures, between the old and the new systems of education, infact, between the old and the new world views, and between Islam and Christianity were mounting and both forces were locked in a terrible struggle for survival. . The scene of the movement opens at a time when the well known struggle for independence of 1857 had been suppressed. This had shocked Muslims to the core; their hearts were bleeding, and their minds paralysed. They were confronted with the danger of double enslavement: political as well as cultural. On one hand, the victorious power, the British, had launched upon a vigorous campaign to spread new culture and civilization in India. On the other hand were the 27. Ibid: pp 1/2 28. Ibid: pg 2 110 29. Ibid: pg 2