The Light of Truth — Page 309
A WARNING TO THOSE WHO ABUSE THE QURAN 309 Gracious. The judge shall assess the two according to the standards of intelligence and cleverness, and will decide between the two parties. If I am defeated, I will accept that I be punished as though I were a criminal; indeed you may put me to death as a wicked and deceitful person. If, however, I am found to be the winner, I ask nothing of the Christians except that they become Muslims. O ye enemy of truth! You have extolled the virtues of the Bible excessively, fashioned false statements, exaggerated, and fabricated. Now will you flee after making these claims? And will you repudiate these declarations? To where can you escape now that the time has come for you to be exposed? Do not hide your face with your scarf. You shall receive 2,000 rupees if you can prove the excellence of the Bible without resorting to falsehood, but do you have this in you, O chief of the liars? O ye Christians! You did not convert to Christianity to illuminate your eyes, but rather, to accumulate wealth and [satiate] the desires of the belly. You forsook the struggle of self-reformation for indulgent dishes and the pleasures of intoxicants. In your hearts you extol the places of pleasure-seeking instead of the teaching of Jesus and the path to salvation. You soil your hands by disparaging holy people in order to 'clean' them in the baptismal water of the priests. Woe to you! You forsook the One who is Almighty and the Possessor of Glory. You avoided a downpour [of mercy], praying instead for a drizzle. You never pondered over Jesus; instead, you wasted your lives on 'maybe' and 'perhaps. Show me even one book with whose wisdom you hold fast. Otherwise, come to me and hear of the Quran's excellences and its greatest miracles, and repent from preaching the virtues and moral teachings of the Gospel. Does it rival the Furqān in the elucidation of expressions that make an impression upon the heart? Does it match it in status? Or possess an equal balance of subtle and wise expressions? Certainly not! For, the Quran is unmatched in its perfection of qual- ities and divine knowledge of the being and attributes of God, and in showing the middle path, which is among the greatest of excellences.