Stories from Early Ahmadiyyat — Page 52
52 fifteen days, an account of which was published under the title Jang-e-Muqaddas (Holy War). In this debate, as in all others, victory remained with Hazrat Ahmad as. The debate was conducted in writing. Each side had to read out the paper it had written to the audience. Hazrat Ahmad as asked for and was granted an important princi- ple; that the arguments presented by the parties in favour of their claims must be taken only from their holy scriptures. Several times during the course of discussion, the powerful arguments of Hazrat Ahmad as cornered Christian advo- cates and compelled them to retreat from their arguments. One day, a curious episode occurred during the ses- sion. The Christians had collected a number of maimed lepers, and blind people, and in order to embarrass Hazrat Ahmad as, they brought them together before him. Rev. Abdullah Atham, while reading his speech, addressed Hazrat Ahmad as and said, ‘Jesus as used to heal the lepers, the blind and the maimed. You claim to be the Promised Messiah as. Heal these people to prove your claim. ’ The peo- ple present there were intrigued as to how Hazrat Ahmad as would deal with the situation. When it was the turn of Hazrat Ahmad as to read out his speech, he thanked the Christians for gathering these sufferers and told them that the healing of such patients by Jesus as was a claim made by the Bible. It was the Bible which