The Essence of Islam – Volume III — Page 423
Repeated Challenges 423 afraid because he considered me to be a blood thirsty person and imagined that he would become a victim of my sword. He is required to do no more than to make the statement mentioned in my announcements of 9th and 20th September 1894, at which point he will be paid four thousand rupees. It is idle for him to pretend that Christians are forbidden to take an oath. Were Peter and Paul and many righteous Christians of earlier ages unaware of this prohibition, or were they not Christians?. . . . If Mr. Ātham makes the required statement on oath, he will inevitably die within one year, and there are no conditions whatsoever. Even if he fails to make the required statement on oath, God Almighty will not leave unpunished an offender who is trying to deceive the world by concealing the truth. [Majmu'ah Ishtihārāt, vol. 2, pp. 103-106]. About redemption, Allah Almighty has said in the Holy. Qur'ān: وَقَالُوا لَن يَدْخُلَ الْجَنَّةَ الّا مَنْ كَانَ هُودًا اَوْ نَصْرُى تِلْكَ آمَانِيُّهُمْ قُلْ هَاتُوا بُرْهَانَكُمْ إِنْ كُنْتُم صُدِقِينَ بَل مَنْ أَسْلَمَ وَجْهَهُ لِلَّهِ وَ هُوَ مُحْسِنٌ فلة اجرة عِنْدَ رَبِّهِ وَ لا خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ 0 253 "And they said: No one but Jews and Christians will enter heaven, i. e. , achieve salvation. These are only their vain desires. Tell them: Set forth your proof if you are truthful; i. e. , show us what kind of salvation you have achieved. Indeed, the truly redeemed is he who hands himself over to Allah, that is, who has devoted his life in the way of Almighty God and spent it in His way and, after devotion, continuously performs good deeds and all 253. Al-Baqarah, 2:112-113 [Publisher]