Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 36
36 The Principal Objects of Religion After these preliminary remarks I turn to the subject of my paper. There are four principal objects of religion: 1- The first object of religion is to instruct man as to his source, that is to say, to furnish him with correct knowledge concerning his Maker, so that he may not be debarred from profiting from the Divine source of all power and strength, and should not remain ignorant of the object of his existence, which can be explained only by the Creator Himself. For this purpose it is necessary to explain four matters: (a) The person and attributes of God; (b) The nature of man’s relationship to God; (c) The way in which such relationship should be expressed, and the responsibilities which are laid upon man by God; (d) The means whereby man can attain to God and satisfy his longing for union with Him; and the practical realization of this object in this very life so that man may pass beyond the stage of surmise and attain to certainty concerning God. 2- The second object of religion is to provide a complete code of rules of moral conduct. For this pur- pose, again, it is necessary to explain the following seven matters: (a) What are good morals?