Life of Ahmad — Page 744
BISHOP OF LAHORE AND ISLAM as 744 appeals not to the reason only but to the whole of man, his will, his feelings, his moral desires, his capacity of faith, in short to his heart as well as to his head. In the teaching of our Lord Jesus Christ, the knowledge of God and of His true Faith is connected not so much with acuteness of intellect as with purity of heart and humble obedience to Him in the actions of life. Thus on one occasion Christ says: "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God" (St. Matthew, 5:8). And again in another place, which is, I think, of immense importance in this connection, He says: "If any man willeth to do His will (that is God’s will) he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God or whether I speak of myself" (St. John 7:17). My own firm belief is, that no man can be brought to a living knowledge of the true God except by the help of His Holy Spirit, and that such help is given as I have already indicated to the penitent and pure in heart and the humble and upright in life rather than to those men of acute intellect who are best able to sustain well a part in religious controversy. It is quite true that I do think it very desirable for the members of two faiths (Christian and Muhammadan) to come to know each other and to understand each other’s beliefs much better than has been the case in the past. This is why I am myself glad, on the one hand, at times to study those writings of