The Holy War — Page 265
Proceedings—Debate 5 June 1893 265 A— You were not able to prove protection being afforded on condition of belief in the case of the battles of Moses as. G— You have already seen the offer of safety and security in return for the payment of Jizyah [tax], see Judges 1:28–35. You have also heard the offer of peace. If there was wrath, then why the offer of peace? See Deuteronomy 20:10, one who desires peace gets nearer to the faith, and then who can stop him from believing? A— Killing innocent children is like death by epidemics. G— If killing little, suckling children in front of their mothers with swords and bayonets—not one or two, but hundreds of thousands— is by a commandment of God Almighty, then why are these Quranic jihads considered to be so objectionable? Are these the attributes of God and those not? A— Moses as was commanded to eliminate these seven nations. G— Where were these nations destroyed? Peace was arrived at, and they were released upon payment of a Jizyah. The women were left alive. A— Force was used to convert people to Islam. G— The one who said 1 ۤاَل َهاَرْكِا يِف ِنْيِّدلا , agreed to peace, gave security upon receiving payment of the Jizyah —who can call that person a tyrant? A— The teaching of the Holy Quran is that one can rob a person by way of deceptive slander. This is what I understood from the statement of Deputy [Abdullah Atham] sahib. 1. There should be no compulsion in religion ( S u rah al-Baqarah, 2:257). [Publisher]