Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 352
352 wrought an astounding transformation in the character of Ahmadis. On the one hand they have abandoned the irreligiousness and indifference found everywhere in the world, are inspired with love for the Word of God, His apostles and the Promised Messiah as , endeavour con- stantly to convert themselves, as it were, into mirrors for the reflection of Divine attributes, pass their days and nights in the remembrance and worship of God, and are eager to acquire spiritual blessings in exchange for their material benefits in this age of worldly competition, and, on the other, they are among the most exacting critics who are not prepared to accept anything which is not founded on reason. They accept only a rational explanation of everything and try to persuade others of the truth of their affirmations by reason. They are not only opposed to, but promote the spread of modern sciences and learning. They do not look upon science as being opposed to religion but as subservient to it. In short, they maintain their independence in all matters, that is to say, they neither blindly believe in the sayings of their forefathers, nor do they necessarily accept every new idea as true. They test everything by the criteria of knowledge and reason, and accord every fact the posi- tion which has been given to it by God. Another wonderful change wrought by the Prom- ised Messiah as among his followers is that they maintain a much higher standard of education than other commu- nities. The proportion of educated persons in the Ahmadiyya Community is much higher than among other communities of India, although on account of their poverty the Ahmadis have not been able to establish any