World Crisis and the Pathway to Peace — Page 144
144 opposite. They do not spare any opportunity to grievously mock and slander the Founder of Islam sa and so gravely wound the feel- ings of Muslims. We truly desire religious tolerance and mutual understanding, because of the beliefs we hold. Unfortunately however, when certain elements toy with the feelings of Muslims, it leads to some so-called Muslims reacting to the provocation in an entirely wrong and irresponsible way. Their reaction and response has no link to the true teachings of Islam and you will certainly find that no Ahmadi Muslim, however much they are provoked, will ever react in such a negative manner. Another grave allegation raised against the Founder of Islam sa and the Qur’an is that they gave teachings of extremism and pro- moted the use of force to spread the message of Islam. To assess this allegation and to seek the reality let us look to the Qur’an itself. Allah the Almighty says: And if thy Lord had enforced His Will, surely, all who are in the earth would have believed together. Wilt thou, then, force men to become believers? (ch. 10: v. 100) This verse clearly states that God, as the Possessor of all Powers, could easily force all people to adopt the same religion; howev- er, He has instead given the people of the world the freedom to choose - to believe or to not believe. And so if God has given mankind this freedom of choice, then how could the Holy Prophet Muhammad sa or any of his followers compel or force anyone to become a Muslim? Allah the Almighty also states in the Qur’an: