Welcome to Ahmadiyyat, The True Islam — Page 277
− the earth the Messiah will descend from the Heavens. He will engage the Antichrist in battle near Damascus and slay him. He will then conquer the entire world. Having done this, he will hand over its governance to the Muslims. b. The Correct Interpretation According to Ahmadi ± − Muslims Although the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community does not in ± any way reject the prophecies concerning the descent of the Messiah and the appearance of the , it does emphasize that Mahdi − to put a literal meaning on them is the height of naivete and ignorance. We believe that it is as a result of not grasping fully the exalted station of the Holy Prophet that such a serious error is sa made in understanding his deep and philosophical message. Men of insight and wisdom often use parables and allegories to outline subjects of such great importance but the superficial eye cannot perceive their meaning. The Ahmadi Muslims believe that the whole range of ± − subjects covering Messiah, the Antichrist and his ass are allegorical. The Messiah, therefore, is not that earlier Prophet who was sent among the Israelites. The Ahmadis believe that Jesus ± − Christ died a natural death after surviving the torture of the cross. The Messiah of the prophecy was in fact to be a new person who was to be born amongst the followers of the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Because of some characteristics and qualities he was sa ± to share with Jesus , he would be given the title of Messiah, "Son as of Mary" in much the same way as a great dramatist is called Shakespeare. The reference to the cross, too, is a simile. The Messiah will not literally go around wrecking crosses. He will defeat the Christian faith with strong reasoning and powerful arguments. The destruction of the cross, therefore, stands for the ideological rout of Christianity. Similarly, the word "swine" is not to be taken in the literal sense. It connotes the cultural filth of the 277