The System of Mushawarat in Jama'at-e-Ahmadiyya — Page 102
T he S ystem of M ushawarat in J am A‘ at - e -A hmadiyya from East to W est, North to South. We cannot say that only at that time w ill these consultations be o f impor tance, they are important even now, in fact they are even more important, for that future w ill be bom out to today. Future generations w ill not be able to easily change these decisions, due to the respect and honour people have for their forefathers, just as the decisions taken close to the time o f the Holy Prophetsa are given greater importance in Islam, and are referred to as Ijma‘ (consensus) and sunna. . . In view o f all this, you can understand how im portant it is for you to pray fervently before giving an opinion and how deeply you should reflect before offer ing your suggestions. ” [Report Majlis-e-Shura 1926, pp. 2-3J Regarding the extraordinary importance o f Majlis-e- Mushawarat, Hadrat Khalifatul Maslh IIra once said: “I see that Majlis-e-Mushawarat is assuming great impor tance in the Jama'at, and this is how it should be. . . T he fact is that Khilafat cannot be beneficial unless it is sup ported by the process o f consultation. Majlis-e-Shura was always important in the sight o f Allah, but the Jama'at was not giving sufficient attention to it. It is, however, doing so now. This time two or three Jama'ats have made submissions that so and so should represent them and so and so should not, whereas in the past they would select anyone who was w illing to spare time. This time the Jama'ats have elected their representatives after proper delibera tion, and this is the positive spirit. Our Jama'at should realize that the dignity and honour o f Majlis-e-Shura does not come from the chair and benches 1 0 2