Through Force or Faith? — Page 304
?— A Reply to Pope Benedict XVI 304 God’s attribute of Creativeness. For this reason, the Graciousness comes after mentioning the Lordship of God. The fourth ocean is the attribute of ِمْيِحَّرلا ‘the Merciful’ that addresses the sentence َطاَرِص َنْيِذَّلا َتْمَعْنَا ْمِهْيَلَع ‘The Path of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy blessings,’ so that God’s servant may enter into the fold of those who are specially blessed. Mercy is such an attribute that leads a person into the special group of obe- dient servants of God who are the sole recipients of exceptional rewards. The fifth ocean is the attribute of ِكِلٰم ِمْوَي ِنْيِّدلا God being the Master of the Day of Judgment. It is connected with the expres- sion ِرْيَغ ِبْوُضْغَمْلا ْمِهْيَلَع َو اَل َنْيِّلٓاَّضلا ‘Those who have not incurred Thy dis- pleasure, and those who have not gone astray’, because the reality of God’s wrath and man going astray shall be fully realized only on the Judgment Day. On that Day, God shall appear in His full glory with His rewards and retributions, and He shall make His authority manifest by bestowing honour on people, or by disgrac- ing them. Without any doubt, this summary of the teachings of Islam is unique and new in its own right. It contains an introduction to the concept of God; His attributes are interconnected and sequentially arranged; significance of worship and prayer is brought to our attention; motivation to remain on the right path is given through promise of rewards, and fear of punishments is instilled for going astray. The prayer is not limited to something material either belonging to this life or the next life; it is inclusive of both and refers to rewards belonging to this world as well as Hereafter. The essence of Islam and all the fundamentals taught in the Quran are summarized in this S ū rah in a few words, and nothing is left out.