Through Force or Faith? — Page 249
Chapter 6 — Islam: Knowledge, Wisdom, and Rationality 249 religions lag far behind Islam in this respect, and are no match at all. Bless, O Allah, Muhammad and his people! Holy Quran—A Treasure of Knowledge and Wisdom. Let us examine, in the light of the Holy Quran, the impression created by the Pope in his speech that Islam is devoid of knowl- edge and wisdom, and it uses corporal force instead of cogent arguments. According to the Quran, the real source of all knowledge is God, َو اَل َنْوُطْيِحُي ٍءْيَشِب ْنِّم ٖۤهِمْلِع اَّلِا اَمِب َءٓاَش … and they encompass nothing of His knowledge except what He pleases … ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:256) The message is obvious that humans can have access to the realm of the unknown, but only to the extent that He allows. This also implies that the so-called secular research and exploration is not entirely secular after all. Every era, which opens up a new vista of knowledge, is in accordance with the Divine plan and design. ( Revelation, Rationality, Knowledge and Truth by Mirza Tahir Ahmad, p. 276) The message of this verse is very clear that all research about nature takes place with His permission and blessing and is part of religion. In every age, new vistas of knowledge are brought before man under a divine plan and design.