Did Jesus Redeem Mankind? — Page 46
46 good deed, a white point appears on his heart and when he commits a sin, a dark spot appears on his heart. And as he progresses in good deeds or evil, white or dark points begin increasing in due proportion, till the whole of his heart becomes either white or black, according to the character of his actions. If his entire heart becomes white, he becomes immune to the influence of evil. But if the whole of his heart becomes dark, he loses the capacity of virtue (vide كلا بل ران على قلوبهمم ما كانوا يكسبون : Tafsir Ibn-e-Jarir, verse 83:15). . This supports the thesis that man comes to this world with a pure constitution and for a long time his purity of nature remains in good shape. When the whole of his heart grows white and virtue takes firm hold of it, he attains to salvation without a vicarious atonement. But when the whole of his heart becomes dark and vice takes a firm grip on it, no vicarious atonement can be of any avail to him. . CHRISTIANITY ON SIN. Contrary to this, Christianity claims that Adam (peace be on him) sinned and was punished on account of it. His sin was then transmitted through heredity to his generations. . Now man cannot by himself escape evil, for it is his heritage. . His salvation called for a vicarious atonement which the. Messiah (peace be on him) offered; and he took the entire sin of mankind on himself. In other words, according to. Christianity, man is born as a slave-boy of Satan and is rescued from his grip through faith in the vicarious atonement offered by the Messiah (peace be on him). . As I have explained above, the Holy Quran rejects the entire thesis of Christianity in this context. According to