A Gift for Baghdad — Page 29
Reply to the Announcement & Letter 29 peace. Particularly in [ S a hih ] al-Bukh a r i, we find a clear expla- nation regarding this matter. It is a matter of great astonishment that a sensible man could entertain doubt concerning the death of Jesus—despite the statements of the Book of Allah and His Messenger—and waver distrustfully. After learning about these verses of Allah, which statement can then cause us to abandon the endless proofs of the Quran? Should we prefer doubt to certainty? There is no consensus about the ascent of the Messiah into the heavens whilst still being alive; on the contrary, there are divergent opinions. Some believe in [his] death, while others insist he is alive. But you will never find in the texts of the Quran and the Hadith of the Holy Prophet s as any argument for his being alive. Rather, you will learn from reports, traditional sources, and from all sides, the declaration of death. Our Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, has died. Is Jesus better than him or is he immortal? The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, saw him during the Night of the Ascension among the deceased Prophets, peace be on all of them. Do you think the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, made a mistake about his vision or said that which was contrary to the truth? God forbid! On the con- trary, he was the most veracious of the truthful ones. As such, these are the reasons which have compelled us to acknowledge the death of the Messiah. Furthermore, I have also received profuse and continuous revelations from God which confirm this. We do not see in this belief any conflict with the statements of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, the belief of the Companions, or the T a bi‘ i n