Deliverance from the Cross — Page 113
because of his outstanding service to the cause of Islam through his writings, particularly his monumental work, the Braheen Ahmadiyya, which was acclaimed by the Muslims as an epoch-making exposition of basic Islamic principles as set forth in the Quran. Some of the divines and other leading personalities among the Muslims who had employed superlative terms in praising the Braheen Ahmadiyya, now turned against him and condemned him in even stronger terms. Leading divines pronounced him a disbeliever, outside the pale of Islam, and some went so far as to declare that his assassination would be a meritorious act. Simultaneously with the announcement of his claim Hazrat Ahmad laid the foundations of a religious community, bound to him in spiritual allegiance, which became known under his direction, as the Ahmadiyya Community, and the Movement that he initiated became known as the Ahmadiyya Movement in Islam. On the day that he appointed for the first initiation into the Movement as many as three hundred and thirteen sincere and pious Muslims joined the Movement by making the covenant of spiritual allegiance to him. The current of opposition and hostility was now directed not only towards the Founder of the Movement, but also towards every member of the Movement. They were all pronounced disbelievers, outside the pale of Islam, and a campaign of bitter persecution was unleashed against them. It is not necessary for our present purpose to make a detailed exposition of all the 113