Truth About The Crucifixion — Page 26
disclosing reasoning, that should put an end to the doctrine of the cross, should be made manifest to the world by the Promised. Messiah, inasmuch as the Holy Prophet had prophesied that the religion of the cross would not enter upon its decline, nor would its progress be restrained, till the Promised Messiah appears in the world. It is he who would achieve the breaking of the cross. . This prophecy indicated that under God's design, in the time of the Promised Messiah, means would become available whereby the reality of the event of the crucifixion would become manifest. . That will be the end of this doctrine. It will not be brought about through war or fighting, but through heavenly means which will be made manifest in the shape of knowledge and reason. It was, therefore, necessary that heaven should hold back this evidence and these decisive proofs, till the Promised Messiah should appear in the world. So it has come about. Now that the Promised one has appeared, all eyes will open and people will reflect that God's. Messiah having come, minds will now be illumined and hearts will pay attention, and pens will gain strength, and loins will be girded up. Now every fortunate one will be bestowed intelligence, and every right-thinking one will be bestowed wisdom, inasmuch as that which shines in heaven also illumines the earth. Blessed are those who partake of this light and fortunate is the one who is bestowed a portion of it. ” (JESUS IN INDIA, pp. 64-65). . It is necessary to point out that the Holy Shroud of Turin possesses no particular significance in the estimation of the members of the Ahmadiyya Movement. It is true that this linen cloth has been preserved in the Christian world, with great care and reverence, through centuries. It is either genuine, that is to say, it is the very linen cloth in which the body of Jesus was wrappedup, after it had been treated with the Ointment of Jesus, or it is a fabrication. It is for the Christian world to determine, after careful investigation and research, whether it is genuine or not. . If it is not genuine, why has it been given so much importance and why has it been held in such great honour? If it is genuine, the evidence that it furnishes, in support of the removal of the body of Jesus from the cross while he was still alive, is not in itself fundamental and indispensible. It is merely corroborative. . Even if this genuine piece of linen cloth had been lost, its loss would not have detracted in the very least from the very important and plentiful evidence which establishes that, after his deliverance from the cross and his restoration to health, Jesus con28