Islam - The Summit of Religious Evolution — Page 59
59 O ye who believe, when you consult the Messenger, give alms before your consultation. That is better for you and purer. But if you find not anything to give, then know that Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. The rule about giving in charity before consulting makes it clear that consulting the Prophet had become a regular institution, and a voluntary fee had been introduced to raise money for the poor. The rule was meant for those who could afford it. The Prophet had come to have so many calls on his time that it seemed possible and desirable to make a suitable charge on individual applicants. The charge was justified because the Prophet’s time had to be devoted to the benefit of mankind at large; if individuals applied for the use of his time, it was appropriate they should pay something into the public treasury. Consulting the Prophet, therefore, had become a regular institution. The Prophet more than anybody else deserves to be called the Counselor. In accordance with Quranic teachings, the Prophet also instituted the system of consultation as an essential condition of good government: 67 "And whose affairs are decided by mutual consultation". General measures and administrative rules are not to be initiated until the people’s representatives have been consulted. Following this injunction, the Holy Prophet laid down consultation as an important duty of the Caliph, or elected head of Muslim state. He is reported to have said, There is no Khilafat [caliphate] without consultation. 68 Hence consultation with the people in the affairs of the Government is an Islamic practice. In contrast to this Islamic practice, Jesus never preached consultation or counseling. He never consulted on any considerable scale nor did he encourage counseling as an institution. Thus the Holy Prophet was the Counselor of the Biblical prophecy. The third name in the prophecy is mighty God. The Old Testament points to a resemblance between God and Moses: 69 And the Lord said unto Moses, ‘See, I have made thee a God to Pharaoh. ’ And again in Exodus: 70 And thou shalt be to him (Aaron) instead of God. In the Bible Jesus is called son of God and Moses a like of God. Whenever, therefore, a human being is spoken of as a like of God , it would mean Moses or some one like Moses. As explained earlier, Moses had foretold the advent of another prophet like himself. 13, 14 It has also been explained earlier that only the Holy Prophet of Islam fits the description of the promised Prophet of the Bible. It is the Prophet of Islam, therefore, who can most legitimately be called God or, better, a Manifestation of God. The Quran also draws this similarity. During the Battle of Badr , the Prophet took a handful of gravel and threw it at the enemy. This proved a signal for a dust storm, which discomfited the enemy and contributed to their defeat. The Quran thus likens the Holy Prophet to God: 71 And thou threwest not when thou didst throw, but it was Allah Who threw.