Fazl-e-Umar — Page 145
Fazle Umar 145 Though, with the exception of possibly fifty people, all those who were present at Qadian on 14 March 1914 had made the covenant of Bai’at with him, yet it was not known what the reaction of the Community at large would be to the question that Maulvi Muhammad Ali had raised in his tract. The dissident group had announced that they had the support of 95 per cent of the Community. It had yet to be seen how far their claim was justified in fact. Such was the situation in the estimation of a secular person who had no idea of the positive and powerful assets and resources to which the newly elected Khalifa had access and which were wholly of a spiritual character. His own state of mind at the time might be judged to some degree from the address that he delivered to the large gathering of those who were present in Qadian and had made the covenant of Bai’at on 14 March 1914. This was his first address to the Community which followed immediately upon his election as the Khalifa. After a long silent prayer in which everyone present joined, he spoke as follows: “…I urge you to follow the example of the Companions of the Holy Prophet, may Allah be pleased with them. They represented in their persons and conduct the result of the prayers and perfect instruction of the Holy Prophet [saw]. After his death the second consensus that took place was on the setting up of the system of the truly guided Khilafat. If you study the history of Islam and reflect upon it, you will find that the progress made by Islam during the time of the rightly-guided Khalifas, began to decline when the Khilafat took on the form of kingship, and Islam and the Muslims were progressively reduced to the condition which you observe today…Therefore, so long as this system continues in force Islam will continue to progress materially as well as spiritually. I tell you truly that I have a fear in my heart as I find myself extremely weak. We are told in the Hadith that we should not set a task for a slave which might be beyond his strength. At this time you have sought to make me your slave,