When Allahu ta'ala created man, He granted him aql (intellect) and the power of mind and thought. Islamic scholars (rahimahum-Allahu ta'ala) (2) called man "Haywan-i natiq" (3) and the expression in Cartesian philosophy, "I think, therefore I am," clearly expresses this fact.

The major factors distinguishing man from other creatures are: He has a soul besides his body; he can think, assess all events with his mind; he can decide by using his mind and carry out his decisions; he can distinguish good from evil; and he can realize his errors and repent for them, and so forth. But the question is: Can man use this most powerful weapon given to him without a guide, or can he find the right path and understand Allahu ta'ala by himself?

A retrospective view of history will show us that when left alone with no guidance from Allahu ta'ala, men have always deviated into degenerate paths. Using his mind, man thought of the Omnipotent, who created him, but he could not find the way leading to Allahu ta'ala. Those who did not hear about the Prophets sent by Allahu ta'ala first looked for the Creator around themselves. The sun, being the most useful thing to men, provoked some men to think that it was the creative power, and, therefore, they began to worship it. By and by, as he saw the great forces of nature, such as, a gale, a fire, a furious sea, a volcano and the like, he thought they were assistants to the Creator. He attempted to symbolize each of them. This, in turn, gave birth to idols. He feared from their wrath and sacrificed animals to them. Unfortunately, he even sacrificed human beings to them. Every new event inspired a new idol, increasing the number of idols symbolizing events. When Islam first graced the earth there were three hundred and sixty idols in the Kaba. In short, man, by himself, can never understand Allahu ta'ala, the world's real Creator, the One, and the Eternal. Even today, there are still people who deify the sun, as well as fire. This should not be amazing, because without a guide, a light, one cannot find the right way in darkness. It is declared in the 15th ayat of Surat al-Isra in the Qur'an al-karim: We will not punish [the worshippers of idols] until the advent of Prophets ('alaihi mu's-salam).

Allahu ta'ala sent Prophets ('alaihimu's- salam) to teach His human servants how to use the powers of mind and thought, to teach them about His Oneness, and to distinguish good from evil. Prophets ('alaihimu's-salam) were human beings like us. They ate, drank, slept and felt tired, too. What distinguished them from us was that their intellectual and assessment abilities were much greater than ours. Moreover, they had pure moral qualities and, hence, the ability to communicate Allahu ta'ala's commandments to us. Prophets ('alaihi mu's-salam) were the greatest guides. The final and highest Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam), who communicated the Islamic religion, is Hadrat Muhammad and his holy book is the Qur'an al-Karim. (The subsequent discourse on Islam will give further information regarding this subject.) The guiding utterances of Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) are called al-Hadith ash-Sharif. They have been collected in many precious books. Besides the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith ash-Sharifs, there are great religious scholars who also provided us with guidance. But there are people who slight and disregard these religious scholars, saying, "Why should such scholars be necessary? Cannot one find the right way and become a good Muslim by reading Islam's book, the Qur'an al-karim, and by studying the Hadith as-Sharif?" This presumption is false. A person who has no knowledge about the fundamentals of the religion cannot properly comprehend the deep meanings in the Qur'an al-Karim. Even the most perfect athlete will look for a trainer when he prepares to climb a high mountain. A big factory employs master workmen and foremen, as well as engineers. A worker who begins to work in such a factory learns the basic aspects of his job first from this master workman and then from his foreman. If he tries to see the chief engineer before learning them, he will not understand anything from the engineer's words and calculations. Even the best gun expert cannot correctly use a new gun given to him unless he is first taught how to use it. It is for this reason that in matters pertaining to religion and belief, besides the Qur'an al-Karim and the Hadith ash-Sharifs, we should utilize the works of those great religious scholars whom we call "Murshid-i Kamil" (perfect masters). The highest ones of the murshid-i kamils in Islam are the imams (leaders) of the four madhhabs. They are al-Imam al-azam Abu Hanifa, al-Imam ash-Shafi'i, Imam Malik (4) and Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (rahmat-Allahi 'alaihim ajmain). These four imams are Islam's four pillars. We have to read the books of one of them to learn the correct meanings of the Qur'an al-karim and the Hadith as-Sharif. Thousands of scholars have explained the books of each of them. He who reads these explanations will understand the Islamic religion correctly and well. The beliefs revealed in all these books are the same. This correct belief is called "the belief of the Ahl-as-sunnat." Those beliefs which were made up later and conflicted with the Ahl-as-sunnat beliefs are called "bidat" of "dalala" (deviation). The common principles in all religions brought by all prophets since Adam ('alai 's-salam) are the principles of belief. Allahu ta'ala has not willed differences in belief principles. In the 159 th ayat in Surat al-Anam of the Qur'an al-karim. He says to His beloved Messenger (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam): "Surely they who divided their religion into parts and became sects, you have no connection with them; their affair is only with Allahu ta'ala, (Allahu ta'ala will call them to account and give them what they deserve)..."

Who will a person with a pain in his eyes seek help from? From a watchman, from a lawyer, from a math teacher, or from an eye specialist? Of course, he will go to an eye specialist and find out its cure. Likewise, he who looks for a remedy to save his faith and belief must resort to a religion specialist, not a lawyer, a mathematician, a newspaper, or a movie.

To be a religious scholar one must have a good knowledge of contemporary sciences; be a graduate of both science and letters, and have a master's and doctor's degrees in both; know the Qur'an al-karim and its meanings by heart; know thousands of hadith and their meanings by heart; be specialized in the twenty main branches of Islamic knowledge and know their eighty sub-divisional branches as well; be cognizant of the subtleties in the four madhhabs; reach the grade of ijtihad in those branches of knowledge and reach a stage of perfection called Wilayet-i Khassa-i Muhammadiyya, which is the highest grade in tasawwuf.

For an ignorant person who does not even know his illness or the medicine for the illness in his heart, it is almost impossible for him to pick out the appropriate hadiths for himself from the thousands of hadiths. Islamic scholars, being specialists of the heart and soul, can extract and write down the right medicine for the soul out of these hadiths and recommend it according to the nature of the person in mind. Our Prophet (sall- Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is like the chief doctor who prepares hundreds of thousands of medicines for the "world pharmacy," and the awliya and 'ulama' are like assistant doctors under his command who distribute these ready medicines according to the problems of the patients. Since we do not know our illness and its medicine, if we attempt to choose a medicine for our illness out of the hundreds of thousands of hadiths, it may have an "allergic" effect on us, and, thus, we will have to atone for being ignorant by suffering rather than by benefitting. As a matter of fact, a hadith declares: "He who, using his reason and knowledge, interprets the Qur'an al-Karim according to his own understanding, [who fabricates interpretations that disagree with what the Ahl as-Sunnat scholars wrote based on our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and Sahabat al-kiram (radi-Allahu ta'ala anhum ajmain)] becomes a disbeliever." Being unaware of this subtlety, la-madhhabi (non-maddhabite) people prohibit us from reading the books of the Ahl-as-sunnat savants (rahimahumullahu ta'ala) by saying, "Everyone should read the Qur'an and hadiths himself and learn his faith from them. They should not read the books of the madhhabs." In fact, their absurdity has gone so far that they have begun to call the knowledge in those books "polytheism and disbelief." But the fact is that by doing so they have been preventing people from learning Islam's very essence and, thereby, causing great harm instead of being a means of help.

Now let's talk about the different religions. Today, there are three major religions on the earth conveying the existence of a single Creator.

J U D A I S M

1. JUDAISM: The Jewish religion is the religion of those who believed in Hadrat Moses (Musa), and those who have survived up to today from the descendants of these believers. Hadrat Ibrahim ('alaihi's-salam) was the father of Hadrat Ishaq ('alaihi's-salam), who was the father of Hadrat Yaqub ('alaihi 's-salam). Hadrat Yaqub's ('alaihi 's-salam) alternate name was Israeel (Israel). Israeel means Abdullah and Abdullah means "Allah's servant." Therefore, people who are descendants of Hadrat Yaqub's ('alaihi 's-salam) twelve sons are called Bani Israeel (Sons of Israel). Hadrat Musa ('alaihi 's-salam) was a great prophet. He was sent to the Bani Israeel. Their population increased in Egypt. They worshipped devotedly. But, they were subjected to oppression and degrading treatment. According to some sources, he was born in Egypt 1705 years before 'Isa ('alaihi 's-salam). He lived in Pharaoh's palace until he was forty. After becoming acquainted with his relatives, he moved to the city of Madyan. There he married the daughter of Shu'ayb ('alaihi 's-salam). Later on, he set off back to Egypt. On his way, he spoke with Allahu ta'ala on the Mount of Tur (Sina). He is estimated to have died some time around the year 1625 B.C. Hadrat Musa ('alaihi 's-salam) took the Bani Israeel out of Egypt. He spoke with Allahu ta'ala again on Mount Tur. He was granted "the ten commandments" by Allahu ta'ala. He communicated to the Bani Israeel the Awamir Ashara (the ten commandments.) He also tried to instill in them the belief that there is only one Allah. He conveyed to them the Tawrat (Torah) sent by Allahu ta'ala. But he could not take them to the places promised to them. The Bani Israeel were never able to understand his divine injunctions. The state of Assyria (Asuri) invaded Jerusalem twice before the advent of 'Isa ('alaihi 's-salam), and Andrian, a Roman Emperor, in 135 A.D. massacred most of the Jews in Jerusalem. They burned their copies of the Torah; as a result, the Torah has been lost. As time gradually passed, the Jews became more corrupt. They divided into seventy-one sects. They altered and defiled the Torah. They wrote a book of religion entitled the Talmud which has two parts: Misna and Gamara. The book Mizan-ul Mevazeen proves, beyond a doubt, that the books in the hands of the Jews and the Christians of today that are declared to be the Torah and the Bible are not Allahu ta'ala's word (kalam). The book Mizan-ul Mevazeen is in Persian. On its 257th page, the book says: According to Jewish beliefs, Allahu ta'ala inspired Moses (Musa ['alaihi 's-salam]) with some sciences on Mount Tur (Sina), along with the Torah. Hadrat Moses conveyed those teachings to Harun, Yusha and al-Ye'azar. These people communicated these teachings to the succeeding Prophets, and finally to Saint Yehooda. During the second century of the Christian era these teachings were written into a book by Saint Yehooda over a forty - year period. This book was given the name Mishna. Two annotations were written for Mishna during the third and sixth centuries of the Christian era, in Jerusalem and in Babel (Babylon), respectively. The name Gamara was given to those commentaries. Each one of the two Gamara books was put into a single book with the Mishna and given the name Talmud. The book containing the Gamara written in Jerusalem and the Mishna is called the Talmud of Jerusalem. The other book containing the Gamara written in Babel and the Mishna is called the Talmud of Babel. Christians have great enmity for these three books. One of the reasons for their hostility is that they believe that one of the men who communicated the Mishna was Sham'un, a bearer of the cross which was used to crucify Jesus Christ. In the book Talmud, there are somethings which are held as true by Muslims. For this reason. Christians deny Islam as well." Jewish people call their men of religion "Haham." Al-Ye'azar is the son of Shuaib ('alaihi 's-Salam). The Jews attach as much importance to the Talmud as they do to the Torah.

C H R I S T I A N I T Y

2. CHRISTIANITY: Hadrat Isa (Jesus ['alaihi 's-salam]) is a human being like us who was born from a virgin woman named Mary (Maryam). This fact is clearly narrated in the Qur'an al-karim which also refers to the Ruh-ul-Quds (the Holy Ghost). But, contrary to what Christians think, its meaning is not that Hadrat Isa (Jesus) is the son of God. The term Ruh-ul-Quds symbolizes the fact that Allahu ta'ala has given "the Power of Exalted Savior" to Hadrat Isa. Isa ('alaihi 's-salam) tried to convince the Jews that they were in aberration and that the right way was the one shown by him. But, the Jews maintained the presumption that the savior they had been expecting would be a very severe, harsh, fierce, and unyielding person. They did not believe in Hadrat 'Isa. Thinking he was a fake prophet, they provoked the Romans against him, and, as they believed, had him crucified. [The Islamic religion states that the person crucified was not Jesus, but was Asharyut Yahuda (Judas), who had sold Jesus to the Romans for a small sum of money.] Recent studies done by Christian scholars have shown that Jesus was alive when he was taken down from the cross. In 1978, a person named John Reban published a book about this matter which appeared on the bestseller's list. It is still not known what effect this research will have. But it has already destroyed the supposition that Hadrat Isa ('alaihi's-salam) "died on the cross and Father-God sacrificed His only son for the atonement of sinners." Therefore, Christian historians are on their way to rendering devastating blows against the church. The Jews expected the true Messaih (Meseeh) to come soon. But, as stated by a famous Jewish historian scholar: "We have been waiting for two thousand years, but still no savior has come. It seems that Hadrat 'Isa was the true Messiah. We did not appreciate him, and we caused that great prophet, who had come as our savior, to be crucified."

A book entitled the Injil was revealed to Hadrat Isa. But the Jews eradicated the book within eighty years. The Holy Bible which appeared later and is now considered the Christians' holy book sent by Allahu ta'ala consists of two parts. The "Old Testament" contains the dispensations of Prophets that had appeared before Hadrat Isa, particularly the Mosaic dispensation. The "New Testament" includes the four books written by his followers Matthew, Mark, Luke and his apostle John that contain information about the life of Jesus, his deeds and admonitions. The great stringency observed in the recording of the Qur'an al-Karim was not observed in the preparation of the Bible. Many wrong thoughts, fables, and silly tales have been added to the truth. There is detailed information about the Bible in the Arabic books Risale-i Samsamiyye by professor haji Abdullah Abdi Bey from Manastir (d. 1303/1885) and in the Turkish book Izah-ul-Maram, both of which are printed works. Nevertheless, some nearly perfect Bibles are known to exist today.

The most important of these is The Gospel of Barnabas. Barnabas was a Jew born in Cyprus. His real name was Joseph. He was one of the leading followers of Jesus and possessed an important post among the apostles. His nick-name, Barnabas, means" a person who gives advice and encourages good deeds. "The Christian world knows Barnabas as a great saint who together with Saint Paul was a man who set out to propagate Christianity. The Christians celebrate June 11th as Saint Paul's day. Barnabas wrote down exactly what he had heard and learned from Hadrat Isa. Barnabas' book and other Bibles were popular and were read during the first three hundred years of Christianity. In the year 325, when the first Nicaea (Iznik ) council decided to abolish all the Bibles written in the Hebrew language, Barnabas' Bible was destroyed too. This was accomplished by officially threatening to kill anyone who kept or read the bibles other than the four books authorized. The other Bibles were translated into Latin, but Barnabas' Bible suddenly disappeared. Pope Damasus got a copy of Barnabas' Bible by chance in the year 383 and kept it in his papal library. Until the year 993 (1585), Barnabas' Bible remained in that library. In that year Fra Marino, a friend of Pope Sixtus, saw the book there and developed a deep interest in it. (Fra means brother and monk in Italian.) This was because Fra Marino knew that around the year 160 Iraneus (130-200), one of the leading exponents of Christianity, had put forward the belief that "there is only one God, and Jesus is not the son of God." Iraneus also said: "Saint Paul wanted to introduce the wrong idea of the Trinity into the Christian creed because he had been influenced by the Roman custom of worshipping many gods." Fra Marino also knew that Iraneus had referred to Barnabas' Bible as a proof in his criticism against Saint Paul. For this reason, Fra Marino read Barnabas' Bible with the utmost attention and translated it into Italian between the years 1585-1590. After changing many hands, this Italian manuscript came into the possession of Cramer, one of the counsellors to the King of Prussia. In 1120 (1713), Cramer presented this valuable manuscript to Prince Eugene de Savoie (1663-1736), who had established a great reputation in Europe for having defeated the Turks at Zanta and for having taken back Hungary and the fortress of Belgrade. After Prince Eugene's death, Barnabas' Bible, together with the rest of his private library, was transferred to the Royal Library (Hofbibliothek) in Vienna in 1738.

Two Britons, Mr. and Mrs. Ragg, who first found the Italian translation of Barnabas' Bible in the Royal library, translated it into English and that translation was printed in Oxford in 1325 (1907). It is strange, but this translation mysteriously disappeared from the market. Only one copy of the translation exists in the British Museum and another one is in the Library of the U.S. Congress in Washington. With great effort, the Qur'anic Council of Pakistan managed to reproduce the English version in 1973. The following passages have been taken from that book:

From the seventieth chapter of Barnabas' book: "Jesus answered: 'And ye; what say ye that I am?' Peter answered: 'Thou art Christ, son of God.' Then was Jesus angry, and with anger rebuked him, saying: 'Begone and depart from me, because thou art the devil and seekest to cause me offense!' And he threatened the eleven, saying: 'Woe to you if ye believe this, for I have won from God a great curse against those who believe this.' "

The seventy-first chapter states: "Then said Jesus: 'As God liveth, I am not able to forgive sin, nor is any man, but God alone forgiveth.' "

The seventy-second chapter says: "As for me, I am now come to the world to prepare the way for the messenger of God, who shall bring salvation to the world. But beware that ye be not deceived, for many false prophets shall come, who shall take my words and contaminate my gospel.' Then said Andrew: 'Master, tell us some sign, that we may know him.' Jesus answered: 'He will not come in your time, but will come some years after you, when my gospel shall be annulled, insomuch that there shall be scarcely thirty faithful. At that time God will have mercy on the world, and so He will send his real messenger, over whose head will rest a white cloud. He shall come with great power against the ungodly, and shall destroy idolatry upon the earth, and punish the idolaters. And it rejoiceth me because that through him our God shall be known and glorified, and I shall be known to be true; and he will execute vengeance against those who shall say that I am more than man...' "

In the ninety-sixth chapter it writes: "Jesus answered: 'I am not the Messiah, whom all the tribes of the earth expect, even as God promised to our father Abraham. But w hen God shall take me away from the world, Satan will raise again this accursed sedition, by making the impious believe that I am God and son of God. Whence my words and my doctrine shall be contaminated, insomuch that scarcely shall there remain thirty faithful ones; whereupon God will have mercy upon the world, and will send His messenger for whom He hath made all things; who shall come from the south with power, and shall destroy the idols with the idolaters; who shall take away the dominion from Satan which he hath over men. He shall bring with him the mercy of God for the salvation of them that shall believe in him, and blessed is he who shall believe his words.' "

From the ninety-seventh chapter: "Then said the priest: 'How shall the Messiah be called and what sign shall reveal his coming?' Jesus answered: 'The name of the Messiah is admirable, for God himself gave him the name when He had created his soul, and placed it in a celestial splendor. God said: "Wait Mohammed; for thy sake I will to create paradise, the world, and a great multitude of creatures, whereof I make thee a present, insomuch that whoso shall bless thee shall be blessed, and whoso shall curse thee shall be accursed. When I shall send thee into the world I shall send thee as my messenger of salvation, and thy word shall be true, insomuch that heaven and earth shall fail, but thy faith shall never fail." Ahmad is his blessed name.' Then the crowd lifted up their voices, saying: 'O God, send us thy messenger; O Ahmad come quickly for the salvation of the world!"

The hundred and twenty-eighth chapter states: "Accordingly, brethren, I, a man, dust and clay, that walk upon the earth, say unto you: Do penance and know your sins. I say, brethern, that Satan, by means of the Roman soldiery, deceived you when ye said that I was God. Wherefore, beware that ye believe them not, seeing they are under the curse of God."

From the hundred and thirty-sixth chapter: This chapter, after giving information about Hell, tells how Hadrat Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam) will save his followers from Hell.

From the hundred and sixty-third chapter: "The disciples answered: 'O master, who shall that man be of whom thou speakest, who shall come into the world? Jesus answered with joy of herat. 'He s Ahmad, messenger of God, and when he cometh into the world, even as the rain maketh the earth to bear fruit when for a long time it hath not rained, even so shall he be an occasion for good works among men, through the abundant mercy which he shall bring. For he is a white cloud full of the mercy of God, which mercy God shall sprinkle upon the faithful like rain.' "

The Gospel of Barnabas gives the following information about the last days of Hadrat Isa ('alaihi 's-salam), chapters 215-222: "When the Roman soldiers came into the house to arrest Hadrat Isa, he was taken out through the window by Kerubiyyun (four great angels: Gabriel, Michael, Rafael, and Uriel), and they took him up into heaven since they were ordered by Allahu ta'ala to do that. The Roman soldiers arrested Yahuda (Judas), who was leading them, saying, "You are Isa." In spite of all his denials, pleadings and entreaties, they took him by force to a cross which had been prepared, and crucified him. Then, Hadrat Isa came into the sight of his mother, Mary (Maryam) and his apostles (hawaris). He said to Mary: 'Mother! You see I have not been crucified. Instead of me, the treacherous Judas (Yahuda) has been crucified and died. Stay away from Satan! He will make every effort to deceive humanity. I will call you as my witnesses for all the things that you have heard and seen.' Then, he prayed to Allahu ta'ala for the salvation of the faithful, and for the conversion of sinners. He turned to his disciples and said: 'May God's grace and mercy be with you.' Then before their eyes the four angels carried him up into heaven."

As it is seen, Barnabas' Bible informs us about the advent of the last Prophet ('alaihi 's-salam), six hundred or a thousand years before his coming and mentions only one God. It rejects the Trinity.

European encyclopedias give the following information about Barnabas' Bible: "A manuscript, introduced as Barnabas' Bible, but a made-up book written by an Italian who was converted to Islam in the fifteenth century."

This explanation is totally wrong, as the following indicates. Barnabas' Bible was excommunicated and done away with in the third century, that is, three hundred or seven hundred years before Hadrat Muhammad's ('alaihi 's-salam) coming. This means to say that even in those times, there were discourses on the advent of another Prophet, which contradicted the concept of three gods and which did not suit the bigotry of fanatical Christians. Moreover, for it to have been written by a person who had been converted to Islam before its beginning is out of the question. On the other hand, the Italian translator Fra Marino was a Catholic monk, and we have no proofs at hand to claim that he had been converted to Islam.

Therefore, a motive cannot be found for him to have translated the Bible differently from its original. It should not be forgotten that long ago, that is, between the years 300 and 325 after Christ, many significant Christian men of religion denied that Hadrat 'Isa was the son of Allah and referred to Barn ab as 'Bible to prove that 'Isa was a man like us. Of them, the most pre-eminent was Luchian, the Bishop of Antioch. And Luchian's disciple, Arus (270-336), was even more famous. Arius was excommunicated by Alexander, (d. 328), the Bishop of Alexandria, who later became the Patriarch of Istanbul. Upon this, Arius went to his friend Eusabios, the Bishop of Nicene (_znik). Arius had so many adherents around him that even Constantine, the Emperor of Byzantium, and his sister joined the Arian sect. Also, Honorius, who was the pope during the time of Hadrat Muhammad ('alaihi 's-salam), conceded that Hadrat Isa was only a human being and that it was wrong to believe in three gods. (Pope Honorius, who died in 630, was officially cursed [anathemized] by the Spiritual Council that assembled in Istanbul in 678, 48 years after his death.) In 1547, L.F.M. Sozzini, influenced by Camillo, a Sicilian priest, appealed to the Frenchman Jean Calvin (1509-1564), who was one of the greatest savants of the Christian religion, and challenged him, saying: "I do not believe in the Trinity." He also said that he preferred the Arian doctrine and refuted the theory of the "Original Sin." (This sin is said to be the Prophet Adam's major sin, and the reason why Hadrat Isa had been sent to this world as an atonement for that sin). This is a principle doctrine of Christianity. His cousin, F.P. Sozzini, published a book in 1562, and therein he categorically denied the deity of Jesus. In 1577, Sozzini moved to the city of Klausenburg, Transylvania, because Sigismund, the leader of that country, was against the doctrine of the Trinity. Also, Bishop Francis Davis (1510-1579) of the same country was utterly against the Trinity and had established a sect denying the Trinity. Because this sect was established in the city of Rocow, Poland, its adherents were called Racovians. They all believed Arius.

By putting some historical background of the Christian religion into this small book, we aim to inform our readers about the fact that many wise Christian scholars have disbelieved the Bibles the Christians have at present, and have admitted that a true Bible was the Bible of Barnabas. As a result of this revolt, the popes and their followers have done their best to render the Bible of Barnabas nonexistent.

But the fact is that despite all the efforts towards falsification, it is still written in various Bibles, which the Christians have today, that another Prophet will come after Jesus ('Isa ['alaihi 's-salam]). For example, it is written in the 12th and 13th verses of the 16th chapter of John's book: "I have yet many things to say unto you, but you cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth." This message in John's Book is similarly repeated in a slightly different manner on the 885 th page of the Turkish translation from its Hebrew origin of the Holy Book, published in Istanbul and printed in Boyajiyan Agop's printing house in 1303 (1886) by American and English Companies that publish the Evangel. It says on that page as follows: "My departure from the world is more beneficial for you, because, he, who will be consoling you, will not come before I go. When he comes he will purge the world of sins, and establish salvation and order. I still have many things to tell you. But you cannot endure them now. However, when he, the Spirit of Truth comes, he will guide you to the truth. He will not utter his own words, but will tell what is revealed, and he will inform you about the things to happen in the future. He will confirm my way and communicate the same." The word"he" in the passage above is interpreted in the translations of the Bible as "Ghost" or "Holy Ghost," whereas its Latin origin writes it as "Paraclet" which means "consoler" in Latin. This means to say that despite all their efforts, they have not been able to erase the statement "after me a consoling person will come" from the Bible. Moreover, it is stated in verses 8 to 13 of the 13 th chapter of "The First Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians," which is one of the letters written by Paul and accepted as a part of the Holy Bible by the Christians: "Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease [e.g. Latin and old Greek]; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away [like that of the Middle ages]. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away." This exact excerpt exists on the 944 th page of the Turkish book. Kitab-i Mukaddes (Holy Bible). Therefore, Christians have to believe that there are reports about the advent of a final Prophet in today's Bibles, which they believe to be true books.

An English translation of the Gospel of Barnabas is available at the following ten places. Those who want to read it can order it from one of these addresses:

1) Islamic Book Center, 120, Drummond Street, London NW 12HL, England. Tel: 01-388 07 10.

2) Muslim Book Service, Fosis, 38, Mapesbury Road, London NW2 4JD,England. Tel: 01-452 44 93.

3) Muslim Information Service, 233, Seven Sisters Road, London N4 2DA, England, Tel: 01-272 51 70; 263 30 71.

4) Islamic Book Center, 19A, Carrington Street Glasgow G4 9AJ, Scotland, Great Britain, Tel: 041-333 11 19.

5) The Islamic Cultural Center Book Service, 146, Park Road, London NW8 7RG, England. Tel: 01-724 33 63/7.

6) Al-Hoda, Publishers And Distributers, 76-78, Charing Cross Road, London WC2, England. Tel: 01-240 83 81.

7) A.H. Abdulla, P.O. Box. 81171, Mombasa. (Kenya).

8) Islamic Propagation Center 47-48 Madrasa Arcade. Durban-Natal (South Africa).

9) Muslim Students Association of U.S.A. too Canada H.Q. 2501 Directors Row. Indianapolis Indiana 46241, (U.S.A.).

10) Begum, Aisha Bawany Wakf, 3rd Floor, Bank House No. 1, Habib Square, M.A.Jinnah Road, Karachi, PAKISTAN.

The Bible was formerly in the Hebrew language. In the Middle Ages, it was translated into Latin and entitled "Itala." When Christianity began to spread, pagans and Jews opposed it. So much so that the Christians had to keep their faith a secret. They worshipped in temples which were built under ground, in caves, in mountains, and in other secret places. The Jews, in spite of all their treachery and oppression, could not prevent Christianity from spreading. Saul, a preeminent Jew and one of the greatest enemies of Christianity, lied about being a Christian and about being charged by Hadrat Jesus with the duty of inviting all nations, except the Jews, to become Christians. [See chapter 9 of "The Acts of the Apostles" in the Bible.] He changed his name to Pavlos. He pretended to be a pious Christian so that he could corrupt Christianity from within. The concept of "Oneness" was replaced by the "Trinity." Isaism ("Jesusism") became Christianity. He falsified the Bible. He preached that Jesus Christ was the son of God. He made it permissible for Christians to drink wine and to eat pork. He changed the direction of their qibla towards the east so that it faced the rising sun. He also introduced many other false things which were not previously communicated by Christ ('alaihi 's-salam). Eventually his corrupt ideas began to spread among the Christians. Consequently, they divided into various sects. They deviated from the teaching of Isa (alaihi's-salam), and in their place they made up silly fables. They made imaginary pictures and statues of Hadrat 'Isa (Jesus Christ ['alaihi 's-salam]). They accepted and adopted the cross as their religious emblem (symbol). They began to worship these statues and the cross. In other words, they reverted to paganism. They considered Hadrat Isa (Jesus ['alaihi 's-salam]) to be the son of God. Whereas, the Prophet Jesus had never said such a thing to them; he had only mentioned the Ruh al-Quds, that is, the supernatural power endowed upon him by Allahu ta'ala. Believing in the divinity of Jesus, who is believed to be the son of God, and in the Ruh al-Quds (Holy Ghost) along with the belief in God, caused them to stray from the belief in the one, unchanging Creator, which has been the basis of all the true religions, and without which reduces them to the ridiculous state of worshipping three deities, called the "Trinity."

After Christianity had become the official religion of various major states, there began the chaotic period of the Middle Ages. The principles of benevolence, compassion, and affection were completely forgotten. In place of them, Christians adopted bigotry, resentment, hatred, enmity and cruelty. They practiced unimaginable cruelty in the name of Christianity. They tried to destroy all the works of the ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. They became hostile to knowledge and science. They accused such scientists as Galileo (5), who after reading the books of Islamic scholars realized that the earth is revolving on its axis, of being irreligious and threatened him by saying that they would kill him if he did not retract his assertion. They accused Jeanne d'arc (Joan of Arc), who had been struggling for the freedom of her country, of being a magician; consequently, they burned her alive. It is written in Kamus-al-alam and Larousse that with the encouragement of Calvin, one of the founders of Protestantism, they burned alive Michel Serve in 1553, who was a Spanish doctor and theologist that had written a book disapproving the Trinity and the divinity of Hadrat Isa (Jesus Christ ['alaihi 's-salam]). By establishing the hair-raising tribunal called the Inquisition, they killed by various means of torture hundreds of thousands of people unjustly, claiming these people to be "irreligious" in order to obtain their wealth. They ascribed to the clergy the power of "redemption," which belongs to Allahu ta'ala only. In turn, the clergy redeemed people from their sins in return for money. Furthermore, they sold parcels from Paradise. As for the popes, who occupied the highest religious rank, they almost dominated the entire world. By excommunicating even kings under various pretexts, they forced kings to come to them and beg for forgiveness. In the year 1077 A.D., the German King Henry (6) IV, who came to Canossa seeking forgiveness from Pope Gregory, who had excommunicated him, waited barefooted in front of the Pope's palace day after day in the winter, as the season was. The most vicious criminals were among the popes themselves. One of them, Borgia, poisoned his opponents and their adherents with various poisons and usurped their property. He committed all sorts of abominations. He cohabited with his sister as husband and wife. But, he was still deemed a sacred and innocent pope. Preposterous rules were inserted into Christianity, such as no marriage for clergymen, no divorce for married couples, confession, and redemption. In fact, it was deemed a sin to live on earth.

The religion of Islam, whose advent had taken place in the seventh century, began to shine like a halo in that darkness. As we will see in the following discourse on Islam, this exalted religion, which is totally based on the most normal, most logical, and most humane principles, easily and immediately gained recognition against reprobated Christianity. It was welcomed with enthusiasm by the wise. Muslims who were deeply and reverently interested in knowledge and science, studied very hard, as a result of following the orders of Allahu ta'ala and His Rasulullah (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam). They added many new findings to every branch of science and educated many geniuses in every field. Today, the words CHEMISTRY and ALGEBRA (Kimya and Jabr) are Arabic in origin. And this itself with many other examples clearly indicates how Arab Muslims served scientific knowledge. In a short time, Muslims founded great knowledge centers and madrasas (schools). They brought knowledge, science, reason, cleanliness and civilization to the entire world. They found the books of ancient Greek philosophers and translated them into Arabic. They proved that their views were corrupt. Hirschfeld, a thinker of world-wide fame said, "No other nation has become so civilized so rapidly as the Arabs did by accepting Islam." While the Christian world represented the pitch darkness of a dungeon and made life a bitter torment for people during the Middle Ages, Islam presented facilities for living in comfort, joy and peace to the human race. Consequently, in order to obtain wealth by usurping the property and money in Muslim countries, Christians attacked Muslims and organized crusade expeditions with a pretext to recover Jerusalem, which they deemed sacred (1096-1270).

In those crusade expeditions, they shed much Muslim blood unjustly. When they invaded Jerusalem, the stream of blood from the Muslims they massacred in mosques, as they themselves confess, reached the abdomens of their horses. On the other hand, Salahaddin (7) (Saladin) Ayyubi showed great magnanimity towards the Christians, when he recaptured Jerusalem from them. His largeheartedness was so great that he set free the King of England, Richard the Lion-Hearted (Richard, Coeur de Lion), whom he had taken captive. Also, the expeditions carried out against the Ottoman Empire were considered crusades against the Muslims b y some furious, fanatical Christians. A French historian was so insolent as to describe the Balkan War, 1912-1913, as "the greatest crusade expedition." When the Andalusia Muslim State (Endulus State) was invaded by the Spanish in 897 (1492), the Spanish either massacred the Muslims or converted them to Christianity by force. They applied the same cruelty to the Inkas, the indigenous inhabitants of America. The Spanish completely annihilated that kind and unlucky nation.

The terrible slanders and lies which the Christians perpetrated against the Islamic religion and its great Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) continues even today with all its vileness. Indian Rahmatullah Effendi (rahime-hullahu ta'ala) silenced the British Protestant priests in various debates held in Delhi in 1270 (1854) and again in Istanbul. He wrote a book containing this great victory, which he won against the priests, and his answers to them in Istanbul. It was published in two Arabic volumes under the name Izhar-ul-haq in 1280 (1864). It has recently been reproduced in Egypt. The Turkish translation of its first volume was published with the same title in Istanbul, and the Turkish translation of its second volume, under the name Ibraz-ul-haq, was published in Bosna in 1293 (1877). English, French, Gujratee, Urdu and Persian translations of it were also published. The Arabic book Tuhfat-ul-arib by Abdullah-i Tarcuman, the Persian book Mizan-ul-mevazeen written by Najaf Ali in Istanbul in 1288 (1871), the book Ar-radd- ul-Jamil by Imam-i Ghazali (rahmat-Allahi 'alaih), and the book As-sirat-ul-Mustaqim by Ibrahim Fasih Haydari (8), are valuable Islamic books which refute the slanders and lies in the so-called Torah and Bible with many proofs. These books have been published by means of offset by HAKIKAT KITABEVI, Istanbul, Turkey.

It is a fact, as obvious as the sun, that before and after the beginning of his prophethood, Hadrat Muhammad (Sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) never told lies and that even among his enemies he was well known as Muhammad-ul-amin (Muhammad the Trustworthy). The excessive enmity within his adversaries caused them to be blind and their hearts to be hardened to such an extent that they have reduced themselves to the ignonimy of concealing this obvious fact from the people. Since they were unable to find any faults or defects in the Islamic religion or in Islam's exalted Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam), in their efforts to inculcate their youngsters with hostility towards Islam, they have attempted to vilify Islam with base lies and ugly depictions. These ignoble aspersions, which the enemies have cast upon Islam's holy Prophet, who commanded the development of beautiful habits, the forbiddance of bad habits, the prohibition of tormenting and harming people in any way, even the dead and animals, and who strictly stressed the importance of human rights, are a disgusting stain upon humanity and upon the nations of the free world.

Eventually, Christian atrocities gave birth to rebellion among the Christians themselves. In 923 (1517), a priest named Luther revolted against the Pope. He translated the Bible into German and purged the Christian religion of such absurdities as: "No marriage for priests," "No divorce after one has gotten married," "Redemption," and "worshipping the cross," which didn't exist in the Bible. Thus he established a new Christian sect termed "Protestantism." But, he completely accepted the concept of the Trinity, which means the unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Also, in 1534, Henry the VIII, King of England, revolted against the Pope and encouraged and reinforced the establishment of the Anglican (Anglo-American) church. The famous French writer Voltaire (1694-1778), in his book Candide, in 1127 (1759), criticized the priests, the wrong dogmas, and the enmity towards science instilled by them. Thus he made them a laughing stock by satirizing their pious frauds. Those authors wrote such works in those days that as a result they played a major role in the subsequent French Revolution, which broke out in 1203 (1789). After this revolution the priesthood fell into disesteem, and it is a shame that because of the existence of Wahhabi bandits, Islam was introduced in such a distorted way that the Christians relapsed into ungodliness instead of advancing into Islam. The Russian revolution, in 1917, attempted to abrogate all religions, too. But as the effects of the revolution faded away, in the course of time, the people began to look for a great power to worship. The famous Russian writer Solzhenitsyn, who won the Nobel prize for literature, says in his work First Circle: "In the Second World War even Stalin believed in God, prostrated, and called upon Him for help."

Today, Christianity has been purified to a large extent, and the powers of the priests have almost been reduced to nought, but it is not completely free from absurdities yet. Now, there are only a few Christians who believe in the Trinity.

In an encyclopedia written in a western language, namely, the famous German Brockhaus, it states: "The honorable Jesus ('alaihi 's-salam) said many times, "I am a human being." This obviously shows that educated Christians do not accept Jesus as the son of God any more. If they had a chance to study Islam, they would be saved from aberration by adhering to Allahu ta'ala's true religion; they would obtain His great blessings. Otherwise, they will lose their belief completely, become atheists, and fall off further into degeneration. The nonexistence of great Islamic savants in our time is an influencing factor in this dilemma. The present miseducated men of religion, under the strong influence of deviated sects, cannot attain progress and will not be able to understand this beautiful religion of theirs entirely. The absolute fact is that only Islam can bring us closer to Allahu ta'ala and procure for us a comfortable and peaceful life in this world and Allahu ta'ala's forgiveness in the next world.

I S L A M

3. ISLAM: Islam is a religion which is free of superstitions and silly tales; it rejects fallacious miracles; it accepts man not as a sinner, but as Allahu ta'ala's created servant; it provides them with an industrious and prosperous life; and it commands cleanliness for the body and the spirit. Islam's essence is the belief in one Allah and His Prophet, Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) who is, like us, a human being and a servant of Allahu ta'ala. In Islam, a prophet is a man, but innocent and perfect. Allahu ta'ala has chosen him as His messenger to communicate His commandments to humanity. Islam recognizes all the Prophets ('alaihi-mus-salam), loves them all, and mentions their names with reverence. Essentially, the advent of the latest Prophet is written in ancient religious books as well as in the original Torah and Bible. Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is the latest (final) Prophet, and no other Prophet will succeed him.

To believe the Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is Allahu ta'ala's Prophet means to believe that all the commandments and prohibitions written in the Qur'an al-karim, which he communicated, are Allahu ta'ala's commandments and prohibitions. If a person who so believes does not obey some of these commandments, he does not lose his iman (belief); that is, he does not become a non-Muslim. However, if he does not feel sorrow over disobeying even one of them, but instead boasts about this state of his, he will not have believed in the Prophet; he will lose his iman and become a kafir (disbeliever). If his head hangs in shame and his heart feels broken for his improper actions against Allahu ta'ala's commandments, it becomes clear that his iman (faith) is firm.

The following gives an account of the fundamentals of Islam: Various rites, reforms and numerous feasts have no place in Islam and holy days are very few. Islam holds it essential for people to lead an honest and chaste life, but to enjoy life at the same time. It allots only a short time for worship. Committing one's heart completely to Allahu ta'ala while worshipping is essential. Worships are done not as customs, but for entering the presence of Allahu ta'ala, for thanking and calling upon Him with all one's heart and soul. Allahu ta'ala does not accept a worship done for ostentation. In the Sura Ma'un, the Qur'an al-karim states: "O! My Messenger! Have you seen someone who denies the Judgement, puts the orphan aside with harshness, does not promote feeding the needy? There will be a very severe torment for worshippers who are heedless of their prayers, who like to be seen at worship, and who do not give the right of the poor (zakat)."

Islam's holy book is the Qur'an al Karim. The Qur'an al-karim was sent by Allahu ta'ala to Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) and was communicated to the Sahabat al-kiram by him. While the Qur'an al-karim was being revealed, it was also being recorded with great care, and survives even today; none of its words have been defiled. No other religious book is as eloquent as the Qur'an al-karim. It has the same clarity and eloquence today that it had fourteen centuries ago.

Goethe (1749-1832), one of the world's most famous literary men, writes about the Qur'an al-karim in his work West-East Divan: (9) "The Qur'an contains many iterations, and we feel as if these iterations will bore us, but when we read it, by and by the book begins to attract us. Then it carries us to admiration and eventually to reverence."

Besides Goethe, many other famous thinkers have felt admiration for the Qur'an al-karim. Let's quote some of them.

Prof. Edouard Monte says: "The Qur'an al-karim is the book that tells of Allah's oneness in the most clear, most sublime, most sacred and most convincing language, which can be surpassed by no other religious book."

Dr. Maurice, who translated the Qur'an al-karim into French, says: "The Qur'an al-karim is the most beautiful of the religious books bestowed upon mankind."

Gaston Karr says: "The Qur'an al-karim which is the source of Islam, contains all the principles of modern civilization. This is such a clear fact that, today, we have to believe that our civilization is established on the fundamental principles of the Qur'an."

Islam is founded on the basis of physical and spiritual cleanliness. It accumulates in itself all the overt and covert merits of all the former religions.

There are five principles, religious precepts, which those who have been converted to Islam, that is, every Muslim has to do: The first is to believe in one Allahu ta'ala and that Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) is His Prophet and created servant; the second is to perform salat (prayer), as prescribed by Islam; the third is to fast; the fourth is to go on hajj (pilgrimage); the last one is to give zakat, a special kind of yearly charity given by the rich to poor Muslims.

Performing prayer (salat) is a religious rite done five times a day in their prescribed times. Before beginning the prayer it is necessary to make an ablution, which mainly consists of washing the hands, the face, the arms, and the feet. Several prayers can be performed with one ablution, unless there is a reason for the ablution to have been broken. Praying five times a day does not hinder one's normal daily work. In fact, the prayer, requiring little time, can be performed anywhere as well as in a mosque. Also there is the method of "masah" (wiping) mests (leather socks) which saves one from the obligation of washing the feet when making an ablution anew. For those who are at places without water or who are ill, it is possible for them to make an ablution with soil, a method which is called "tayammum." In cases of strong necessity, such as when there is the danger of thieves on a journey or the danger of being killed, prayers can be omitted and left to qada; that is, those prayers can be performed all at one some other time.

Fasting is to abstain from doing anything that breaks one's fast only during the day for one month a year, that is, in the month of Ramadan. One of its deeper purposes is to teach people the meaning of hunger and thirst. A stated person will never know hunger or have mercy on the hungry. Fasting teaches a stated person the sufferings of a hungry person. At the same time it drills us in self-discipline. Because fasting dates are determined according to Arabic months, each year's fast begins ten days earlier than the previous year's. Therefore, it coincides with summer months as well as with winter months. People not well enough to endure a summer fast can make qada of them (perform them later) in winter, and those who are too old to fast can pay their debts by giving special alms termed "fidya" in lieu of fasting.

No force or torture takes place in Islam. Allahu ta'ala has never required one to worship at the cost of one's health, that is, to worship so much that one will get ill. Allahu ta'ala is very magnanimous, forgiving and compassionate. In other words, He is so merciful, He will forgive those who do penance.

Zakat means that the Muslims who are wealthy and who possess zakat property in excess of the amount necessary to live on, that is, above the amount termed "nisab" will give two-and-a-half percent of all their property or one fortieth of it to poor Muslims once a year. People with earnings sufficient for only a basic living standard do not give zakat. In other words, this fard (precept) is valid only for wealthy Muslims.

As for Hajj, it is again only for wealthy Muslims who have no debt and who are able to leave enough household subsistence for their families, left behind, during the journey. Hajj means to go to Mecca once in a lifetime, to visit the Kaba, and to pray to Allahu ta'ala in the open space of Arafat. This fard (obligation) is also only for the Muslims who have the conditions stated above. In case there is the danger of death or illness on the way to and from Mecca, or if there is trouble beyond one's capacity, one does not have to go on hajj. Instead, he sends someone else who is capable.

To learn the details of these worships, their conditions, and how they are to be performed correctly, each of the four madhhabs has a certain book called, "Ilm-i hal." It is necessary for a Muslim to read and learn how to worship from the books of his madhhab, which he preferred because it seemed to be easy for him to follow.

Islam's worship remains between Allahu ta'ala and the servant. Allahu ta'ala alone forgives or punishes those who are negligent or guilty. Those who are to be punished will be put in the vehement fire of retribution, which we term "Hell."

Who will remain eternally in Hell? Will it be those who do not perform their prayers? Will it be those who commit sins? No! Those who will be burned eternally in Hell are Allahu ta'ala's enemies. Sinners are not Allahu ta'ala's enemies. They are like a naughty, guilty child. Do parents become hostile to their disobedient child? Of course, they do not. They only scold him a little, but they keep loving him.

Muslims have belief principally in six things, they are: in Allahu ta'ala, in His Prophets (alaihimus- salavatu wattaslimat), in His holy books, in His angels, in the fact that good and bad come from Allah, and in the resurrection after death. Actually all the religions we have spoken of are based on these fundamentals.

Above we have said that worships remain between Allahu ta'ala and man. But those who cheat others, those who appropriate others' rights, liars, the fraudulent, the tyrants, those who practice injustice and dishonesty, those who disobey their parents or superiors, those who rebel against authorities and their government, in brief, those against the commandments of Allahu ta'ala and those who deprive others of their rights or deceive others for their own advantages will never be forgiven unless they are forgiven by the owners of those rights. In short, Allahu ta'ala will never forgive those who unjustly possess human or animal rights, and they will go to Hell and receive their punishment, no matter how much they worship.

One of the human rights (pertaining to religion) is "paying the mahr" immediately to the woman whom one has just divorced. If it is not paid, the retribution, punishment in this world and the torment in the next world will be dreadful.

The most important among human rights, of which the torment will be the most dreadful, is that of not doing "amr-u maruf" to relatives and to the persons under one's authority. This means to discontinue teaching the Islamic religion to them.

It is understood that the man who prevents them or any other Muslim from learning their religion and from worshipping by the use of torture or deceit, is an enemy of Islam, a kafir (disbeliever)! A Muslim who does not follow one of the four madhhabs is called a "heretic."

To change the beliefs of the Ahl as-Sunnat, to corrupt the religion or faith by addressing people or by using the pen, which has been done by heretics, is a great danger for Muslims.

While in the world, such people should repent as soon as possible, then return that person's right, get themselves forgiven and trust in Allahu ta'ala's mercy by abstaining from doing such evil acts again. They should also try to get their sins pardoned by doing a lot of good deeds. Then, Allahu ta'ala will forgive them for their sins.

It is believed that those who have worked and left behind them useful information and efforts with a view of serving humanity, even if they are considered to have been in another religion, may have attained Allahu ta'ala's guidance towards the end of their lives. Of old, Muslims called such people "the secret pious." If their "kufr sins" are still secret, it is unknown to us in what belief such doers of good acts died. If they had used well the weapon of mind, which Allahu ta'ala had conferred upon them; if they had worked with the idea of serving all human beings without harming anyone; if they had studied the fundamentals of all the religions, it should be expected that they attained Allahu ta'ala's guidance and as a result were Muslims.

For example, Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), a famous contemporary literary man, states in one of his articles: "Islam is the only religion which can be adapted to every century. I predict that Islam will be the religion which will be accepted by tomorrow's Europe." This reveals that he has accepted Islam in his heart.

The German thinker and author Emil Ludwig (1881-1948) wrote in one of his works: "I visited Egypt. One evening as I was having a walk along the Red Sea shore, in the midst of silence, I heard the sudden call of the adhan, and my whole body trembled with the fear of the Creator. All of a sudden, there arose within me a desire to throw myself into the water, to make an ablution, to prostrate and to entreat Allah as Muslims do." Does this not show that there shone a light of "hidaya," though temporarily, in that famous author's heart?

Lord Hadley, who felt a similar light of"hidaya" in his heart, said, "After seeing the plain but bright greatness of Islam, shining like a halo, one feels as if he has come out of a dark corridor into the sunlight." He later embraced Islam. If such people should die without iman (faith) and be punished in the next world by Allahu ta'ala, He will certainly diminish their punishments on account of the favors they have done for humanity. It is declared in the seventh and eighth verses of sura Zilzal in the Qur'an al-karim: "He who did the tiniest bit of good will face it, and he who did the tiniest bit of evil will face it, too." A Muslim will receive rewards for his good deeds both here and in the hereafter. Whereas, a disbeliever will receive his reward only in this world. Therefore, being a disbeliever (kafir) is the worst possible thing. That is why a person who has worked with the pure intention of only serving humanity and as a result has brought about developments that are beneficial for humanity, while they were accomplished under the most difficult conditions of risking his health and life, but who has not been converted to Islam and died in the state of "disbelief" (kufr) will not be exempted from the punishment for disbelief despite his good deeds. Nonetheless, in Allahu ta'ala's view, the punishment for those hypocrites who committed every sort of evil and fraud and who pretended to worship, will be much greater. Their pretending to be Muslim will not protect them from the torment which they deserve because of the disbelief in their hearts.

Ottoman history gives a record of many commanders, many men of knowledge and science who had formerly been Christians but who eventually accepted Islam and subsequently performed many services for the religion.

Ismail Hakki Effendi (rahime-hullahu ta'ala) passed away in Bursa in the year 1137 [1725]. His interpretation of the Qur'an al-karim, namely Ruh-al-bayan, which is in ten volumes, is esteemed highly by Islamic savants (rahima-humullahu ta'ala) all over the world. He said after finishing the interpretation of the sixth juz: (10) "My shaikh [master, teacher] was the allama [most deeply learned] of his time. When he was told that some Jews and Christians behaved honestly and truly and did favors for everybody, he responded, "Being so is a sign which is peculiar to those who will be given eternal felicity. It is hoped that those who have such qualities will attain iman (faith) and tawhid and that their end will be salvation." This quotation from a book of interpretation is another proof for our words above.

Now let us turn to those who criticize Islam and try to find fault with Islam. Such people mostly dwell upon the following aspects:

1- Some people say, "Islam grants a man the right to marry four women, which is not compatible with contemporary family concepts, family bonds, and social order."

The answer to be given to this is: It has been fourteen centuries since the advent of Islam. In Arabia, the birth place of this religion, women had no rights at all in those days. Everybody used to cohabit with as many women as he liked, and they assumed no responsibility towards them. The fact that women had no value can be discerned by the fact that baby girls were buried alive by their parents. Islam, which arose in such a society, has limited the number of women a man can live with to the barest minimum possible for that time. It has recognized the rights of women and has protected the divorcee against destitution by prefixing, before marriage, a sum of money, called a mahr (dower), to be paid to her in the case of a divorce. Contrary to the critics' assertion that "it has abhorred women," it has promoted women to a higher social status. These facts, which we have given are explained in detail in the book Diya-ul-qulub from page 324 onward, which was written in Turkish by Ishaq Effendi (11) of Harput in order to disprove the slanders and the lies propagated against Islam by Protestant missionaries. This book has already been published by HAKIKAT KITABEVI under the name "Cevab Veremedi" (Could Not Answer).

Today everybody should know that Islam has not ordered a Muslim to marry four woman. That is, to marry more than one woman is neither fard (obligatory) nor sunnat, but only mubah (permissible). Mahmat (Mehmed) Zihni Effendi (rahima-hullahu ta'ala) at the beginning of the section on marriage in his book Nimet-i islam says: "Neither divorcing a woman nor marrying four women is wajib (a strong duty) in Islam. It is not a mendub (pious act) either. It is permitted in case of necessity. Men are not obliged to marry four women, and the women are not obliged to accept it as well." If the government forbids a mubah thing, it becomes haram (forbidden) and no longer mubah. This is because a Muslim never disobeys the law. A Muslim is a person who is not harmful to himself or to others. In addition, Islam has established economic and social conditions to preserve the rights and freedoms of the first wife if a man intends to marry a second wife. Other women whom he may marry later on will each have special rights, and Islam forbids marriage to more than one woman for those who cannot meet these conditions and who cannot maintain those rights guaranteed to women. On the other hand, it is thawab (a means for blessings in the next world) for him to give up the second marriage in order to please his first wife. Furthermore, it is haram (forbidden) to hurt a Muslim, viz, his first wife. In the twentieth century, due to economic conditions in almost every country, most men cannot fulfill these conditions. It is obvious, therefore, that it is not permissible for such men to marry a second woman. Islam accepts that rules which are based on usage and custom can be adapted to time, and, therefore, today most Muslim men have only one wife.

Concerning polygamy, let us now look at some other countries and religions. Marriage with more than one women is permitted in the 30 th chapter of Genesis, 21 st chapter of Deuteronomy, and the 2nd chapter of Second Samuel of the Torah (Old Testament), which is accepted as the holy book of the Jews and Christians. The Prophets David and Solomon had several wives and female slaves; East Roman Emperors always had several wives, and old German Emperors, e.g., Friedrich Barbarossa (1152-1190) had three to four wives. An Eskimo can marry a second woman provided he is granted permission by his first wife. The Mormon Christian sect founded in America in 1830 permits a man to marry more than one woman. (But presently, American law prohibits such marriages.) Even in today's Japan, a man can marry several women.

In the light of the above facts, it would be gravely unfair to blame Islam because "it gives a man permission to marry several women." Polygamy has been accepted by a number of countries and religions. The famous author John Milton (1608-1674) said, "Why should something prohibited neither in the Old Testament nor in the New Testament be considered shameful or unchaste? Ancient Prophets ('alaihimu 's-salam) always had several wives. Therefore, polygamy is not fornication. It is compatible with the law and with common sense."

The famous thinker and author Montesqieu (1659-1735) said, "If we take into consideration the fact that in hot countries women grow faster and age faster, it is quite natural for those who live in such countries to marry several women." Anyway, as stated above, because of economical conditions, today's Muslim countries have almost no polygamy.

2- Some people declare: Islam orders Muslims to invade, kill, burn, destroy countries, and to put people to the sword for the sake of their religion, calling this "jihad" (holy war).

This assertion is completely wrong. The essence of jihad as defined by Islam is not to ruin countries or to kill people, but to propagate the religion, and at the same time to protect the religion, which is never done by destroying, burning or cruelty. Islam only commands defense and struggle against transgressors. On the other hand, Christians, as we have mentioned above at length, have not shied away from committing the most horrifying murders in the name of religion, and, despite Hadrat 'Isa's (Jesus') teachings and advice on mercy and fairness, they have perpetrated all kinds of evil and savagery. History is full of examples of their atrocities. In contrast, according to Islam, a Muslim should never apply any sort of aggression upon anyone. If a Muslim, or his religion, is attacked he first tries to persuade the aggressor politely. In case his efforts are unsuccessful, he sues him. And the court gives the necessary punishment with justice. If he cannot get his right even through the court, he will retire either into his house, or into his place of business. He will remain a great distance from his transgressors. If his house, or place of business is attacked, he will move away; that is, he will leave that city. If he cannot find any city to move in, he will leave that country. If he cannot find any Muslim country to move to, he will move to any non-Muslim country where human rights are respected. A Muslim does not attack anyone with his hands or tongue, nor does he violate anyone's property, possession, chastity, or honor. Jihad means to communicate Allahu ta'ala's true religion to His created servants. This can be done by using the sword to eliminate cruel and devouring dictators, who hamper Allahu ta'ala's religion from reaching His servants. First, it begins with admonishing and moral preaching, and then in the case of disobedience or opposition, these obstructions are eliminated by other means. Jihad with force is done not by individuals, but by the Islamic state.

In the 256 th verse of Surat al-Baqara in the Qur'an al-karim it states: "There is no compulsion in religion..." In comparison with the overused methods of Christians, Muslims do not attempt to convert a person to Islam by having recourse to any means, that is, by force or by promising material advantages. He who wants to be a Muslim becomes a Muslim willingly. Muslims cause non-Muslims to embrace Islam with their sweet, logical and reasonable words, and with their moral conduct and good behavior. Those not becoming Muslim live freely under the protection of the Islamic state as non-Muslim inhabitants. They have the same rights and freedoms as Muslims; they freely perform their own religious rituals. These are explained in the book Diya-ul-qulub from page 293 onward.

It is narrated in the seventieth story of the book Manaqibe Chehar yar-i Guzin: "A caravan of merchants made a night's halt just outside Medina. Since they were exhausted, they soon fell asleep. Umar (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh), the Caliph, who was taking one of his usual tours of the city, saw them. He went to Abd-ur- Rahman Ibn Awf's (radi-Allahu ta'ala 'anh) house and said to him: 'A caravan is here tonight. They are all disbelievers. But they took refuge with us. They have many valuable goods. I fear that strangers or travelers may rob them. Come along, let's guard them.' They guarded them until the next morning, and then went to the mosque for the morning prayer. A youngster among the merchants had not slept. He followed them. Inquiring about them, he found out that the person who had guarded them was Umar, the Caliph (radi-Allahu 'anh). He went back and told his companions all about this. Seeing the mercy and compassion of the exalted Caliph, who had routed the Roman and Iranian armies, who had conquered numerous cities, and who was so well known for his justice, they concluded that Islam was the true religion, and willingly became Muslims altogether."

As it is written in the same book, Manaqib: "During Hadrat Umar's (radi-Allahu 'anh) caliphate, Sad ibn Abu Waqqas (radi Allahu 'anh), the commander of the eastern front, wanted to have a villa built in Kufe city. He had to buy a magian's house which was next to his parcel. The magian did not want to sell his house. The magian went home and conferred with his wife who said: 'They have the 'Amir-ul-Muminin in Medina. Go to him and lodge a complaint with him.' He went to Medina and asked about the Caliph's palace. The people he asked answered that the Caliph did not have a palace or a villa and that he had gone outside the city. He left the city himself. Seeing no soldiers or guards, he approached a man that was sleeping on the ground.He asked that man if he had seen the Caliph Umar. In fact, the man he asked was the Caliph Umar (radi-Allahu 'anh). He asked the magian why he was looking for the Caliph Umar. The man answered: "His commander wants to buy my house, by using force on me. I came here to lodge a complaint against him." Hadrat Umar (radi-Allahu 'anh) went to his home, taking the magian along with him. He asked for some paper, but they could not find any paper in the house. He saw a shoulder blade and asked for it. He wrote as follows on the bone: 'Bismillahirrahmanirrahim (12) Lo, Sad! Do not hurt this magian's heart! Otherwise, come to me at once.' The magian took the bone and went back home. He said: 'I got so tired for nothing. If I give this piece of bone to the commander he'll think he is being teased and will become very angry.' But when his wife insisted, he went to Sad. Sad was sitting and chatting cheerfully with his soldiers. When he caught sight of the handwriting on the bone in the magian's hand, who was standing at some distance, no sooner had he seen it he turned pale, for he had recognized the Amir-ul-Muminin Umar's (radi- Allahu 'anh) handwriting. The abrupt change surprised everybody. Sad (radi-Allahu 'anh) approached the magian and said: 'I'll do whatever you want me to. But, please don't do anything that will make me look guilty in Umar's (radi-Allahu 'anh) presence, for I cannot endure the punishment inflicted by him.' Seeing the commander begging surprised the magian to the degree of madness. When he regained his senses, he immediately became a Muslim. When others asked him how he had become a Muslim, his answer was: 'I saw their Amir (chief) sleeping on the soil with a patched coat. I saw how his commanders trembled with fear of him. I, therefore, came to the conclusion that they were in the right religion. Such justice for a fire worshipper like me could only have been done by believers of the right religion.' "

History Professor Shibli Numani, Chief of India's assembly of Nadwat-ul-Ulama and the author of the famous book Al-Intiqad, passed away in 1332 [1914]. His book, in Urdu, Al-Faruq, was translated into Persian by Serdar Esedullah Khan's mother, who was a sister of Nadir Shah, the Emperor of Afghanistan. The translation was printed by Nadir Shah's command in Lahore in 1352 (1933). It says on its one hundred and eightieth page: "Abu Ubaidat ibn Jarrah (radi-Allahu 'anh) made his men announce the Caliph Umar's (radi-Allahu 'anh) commands in every city he conquered. When he conquered Humus city, he said, 'O Byzantines! With the help of Allahu ta'ala and commanded by our Caliph, Umar (radi- Allahu 'anh), we have conquered this city, too. You are all free in your trade, business, and worship. No one will even touch your property, life, or chastity. Islam's justice shall be applied to you, and your rights shall be observed the same way. Against attacks coming from outside, we shall protect you as we protect Muslims. As we tax Muslims with zakat of animals and ushr in return for this service, so shall we ask you to give us the jizya once a year. Allahu ta'ala commands us to serve you and to tax you with jizya.' (13)

"The Byzantines of Humus paid their jizyas willingly and gave them to Habib ibn Muslim, the chief of the Beitulmal. When the news came that Heraclius had been recruiting soldiers all over his country and was making preparations to attack from the Antioch front, it was decided that the soldiers in Humus would join the forces at Yarmuq. Abu Ubaida (radi-Allahu 'anh) made his officials announce to the city: 'O Christians! I promised to serve you, to protect you, in return for which I took the jizya from you. But now, as I have been commanded by the Caliph (radi-Allahu 'anh), I'm leaving here to help my brothers who will perform a holy war against Heraclius. I shall not be able to keep my promise to you. So, come all of you to the Beitulmal and take your jizyas back! Your names and contributions are recorded in our registry.' The same was done in most of the Syrian cities. Seeing this justice, this mercy from Muslims, the Christians were extremely delighted to know that they were freed from the cruelty and torment which the Byzantine emperor had been exercising on them for many years. They shed tears of joy. Most of them became Muslims willingly. Of their own accord, they spied upon the Byzantine armies for the Muslim armies. Thus, Abu Ubaida was informed about all the movements of Heraclius' army up until the very day. These Byzantine spies played a major role in the great victory of Yarmuq. The establishment and enlargement of the Islamic states was not accomplished by aggression or by killing. The great and main power that kept up those states and kept them alive was the power of iman (belief), the power of justice, goodness, honesty, and self-sacrifice which Islam cherishes greatly."

It is not civilization to imitate the West's fashions, immoralities, and false beliefs. It will damage the constitution of the Muslim people. And this damage is perpetrated only by the enemies of Islam. Islam never tolerates a Muslim being supine or lazy. It commands Muslims to work and improve in all branches of science, to learn from non-Muslims their new scientific findings, and also to emulate them. It commands them to be ahead of others in agriculture, commerce, medicine, chemistry, and in the war industry. Muslims must find out all the scientific means that other nations have, and produce them. But they must not adopt or imitate their corrupt religions, squalid and ugly habits, customs or traditions.

Ignatiyef, who was a Russian Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire for a long time, reveals in his memoirs a letter written by the Patriarch Gregorius, the chief plotter of the 1237 (1821) Greek rebellion during the time of Sultan Mahmut Khan II (rahime- hullahu ta'ala), to the Russian Czar, Alexandre. The letter is a lesson:

"It is impossible to crush or demolish the Turks materially. The Turks, being Muslim, are very patient and enduring people. They are very dignified and have a mighty belief. These moral qualities originate from their adherence to their faith, contentment with destiny, the power of their traditions, and the feeling of obeisance to their emperors [state authorities, commanders, superiors].

The Turks are intelligent and industrious as long as they have chiefs to lead and manage them in a positive way. They are quite content. All their merits, including their feelings of heroism and bravery, come from their devotion to their traditions and the firmness of their morality.

The first requirement is to break the Turks' feelings of obedience, to extirpate their spiritual bonds, and to weaken their religious convictions. And the shortest way to this end is to accustom them to foreign ideas and behavior that are repugnant to their national traditions and morality.

The very day their religious morality is broken, the Turks' real power, which takes them to victory in front of forces that are in form much more powerful and numerous, and in appearance much greater, will waver, and, thus, it will be possible to crush them down by material superiority. For this reason, victories in warfare alone are not enough for the elimination of the Ottoman Empire. In fact, adhering to this approach only will invigorate the Turks' sense of honor and dignity, which may cause them to further realize their essence.

The thing to do is to furtively aggravate the atrophy in their constitution without letting the Turks notice anything."

This letter is important enough to be written in school books for memorization. There are a number of admonitions in the letter; yet, the following two are of primary importance:

1- To accustom the Turks to foreign ideas and customs in order to destroy their faith and religion.

2- To complete the destruction within the Turks' constitution without them noticing.

And these objectives can be attained by getting them to imitate the West's immoralities in belief and fashion.

Of course, it is necessary to obtain the West's knowledge in technical achievements, and in every branch of science. In fact, Islam commands it.

Lord Davenport, a British scholar, who has studied all religions quite well, says in his English book, Hadrat Muhammad and the Qur'an, which he published in London in the early twentieth century:

It is its utter strictness on ethics that caused Islam to spread so rapidly in a short time. Muslims always showed forgiveness to people of other religions who submitted to the sword in combat. Jurio says that the Muslims' treatment towards the Christians is never comparable to the treatment which popes and kings deemed proper for Muslims. For example, in 980 A.H. [1572 A.D.], on August 24, that is, on Saint Bartholomew's Day, sixty thousand Protestants were killed in Paris and in its outlying areas by the command of Charles IX and Queen Catherina. Saint Bartholomew, one of the twelve apostles, was martyred as he was teaching Christianity in Erzurum in August 71 A.D. The blood shed by Muslims in those and many other persecutions is much greater than the Christian blood shed by Muslims in wars. It is for this reason that it is necessary to rescue many misled people from the misconception that Islam is a cruel religion. Such wrong statements have no proof. Compared to the papacy's persecutions, which yielded to savagery and cannibalism, the behavior of Muslims towards non-Muslims was as mild as a suckling baby.

Chatfeld said, "If the Arabs, the Turks and the other Muslims had applied the same cruel treatment to Christians as was applied by the Westerners, that is, Christians to Muslims, there would be no Christians left in the East today."

Amidst the bogs of superstition and doubts of other religions, Islam grew as purely as a violet and became the symbol of mental and intellectual nobility.

Milton said, "When Constantine channeled wealth into the church, this inspired ambition for post and wealth among the priests. As a result, Christianity fragmented into many different sects."

Islam spared humanity from the nuisance and disaster of shedding human blood for idols. Bringing worship and alms in its place, it provided men with goodness. It laid the foundation for social justice. Thus it easily prevailed over the world without recourse to bloody weapons. [This is jihad in Islam.]

It can be said that no other nation was as loyal and as respectful to the cause of knowledge as were the Muslims. The Prophet's ('alaihi 's-salam) numerous hadiths sincerely encourage the pursuit of knowledge and abounds with respect for knowledge. Islam cherishes knowledge above property. Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) supported this attitude with all his might, and his Companions worked in this way to the best of their abilities.

Founders of today's science and civilization, and protectors of the old and new works of literature were the Muslims from the times of the Umayyads, the Abbasids, the Ghaznavids, and the Ottoman. Davenport's word ends here.

Missionaries strove to remove Davenport's English book, which we have extracted some passages, from the market. Jihad in Islam is explained in detail in the second volume of the book Idhharul haq written by Rahmatullah Effendi (14), from India.

3- "In Islam the Qur'an al-karim embodies the law. Hence, the Qur'an contains some very oppressive rules which are looked upon as forms of cruelty today. An example of this is the mutilation of a thief's hand," as some people say.

This assertion is wrong. It is true that the Qur'an al-karim contains the rule of mutilating the hands of those who steal. But, what is meant by "thieves" in the text are those who savagely attack the homes of innocent people to burn, destroy and usurp. The Qur'an al-karim commands that their hands be cut off when they are caught. But, its execution depends on conditions. The absence of those conditions prevents its execution. Hadrat Ali (radi-Allahu 'anh) specifically commanded that the hands of those who stole during the famine not to be cut off. If this law is applied wrongly in some countries in the name of Islam, the culpability belongs to those who apply it wrongly, but not to Islam. It has not been executed in real Islamic countries that apply the principles of the Islamic religion correctly. This is because the conditions for the implementation of "hand-mutilation" did not exist. Seeing the penalty revealed in the Qur'an al-karim, nobody dared to commit those types of crimes. In Islamic countries no one, even the judges, has a right to forgive the penalty called had. This penalty is sentenced upon those who committed a crime which requires a "had" penalty and execution in front of the public. With the fear of being subjected to this penalty, nobody commits, in other words, cannot commit these sorts of crimes.

Now let us look through the Holy Bible that is in the hands of today's Christians.

It is written as follows in Matthews Book (chapter 18/8): "Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: It is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire."

The fourteenth verse of the thirty-first chapter of Exodus in the Torah states: "Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death."

This proves that it is also in the Holy Bible that it is correct to cut off the hand or foot of those who commit a grave sin.

Medicine given by a doctor may be found bitter by a sick person. He may guess that it is of no use and may even think that it is dangerous for him to use it. But, when he trusts the understanding of his doctor and thus uses the medicine, he gets well. Allahu ta'ala, the Almighty, being a specialist for all kinds of sicknesses of the heart, soul and body, commands hand-mutilation as a cure for the disease of stealing. When every Muslim knows this order, and when it is heard that some hand-mutilations have been executed on a couple of thieves, there won't be any further habits of stealing due to the fear of its punishment. The disease of stealing disappears. Thus, people will no longer experience the sorrow of having their property stolen, and none will suffer from hand-mutilation.

4- "Islam takes 'will-power' away from man, appoints everything to 'fate' and thus renders men lethargic, supine and inactive," they say.

This assertion is completely wrong, too. On the contrary, Islam commands people to work incessantly, to use their minds well, to learn every kind of novelty, to have recourse to every sort of lawful means for success, and never to get tired or bored. Allahu ta'ala expects His servants to decide on and perform their own actions to the best of their ability.

The meaning of the word "fate" is totally different. Only in case a Muslim cannot attain success after using his mind, having recourse to all means and working with his utmost energy to perform some action, should he then not feel sorry but be contented with his fate, admitting that the result is something which Allahu ta'ala deemed to his advantage. Otherwise, it is a grave sin to wait for one's "luck" by taking one's ease and opening one's mouth without working, learning or striving. Allahu ta'ala declares in the thirty- ninth verse of Chapter Najm: "Man can have nothing [in the hereafter], but what he strives for [in the name of Allahu ta'ala]." In the following discourse on knowledge and science in Islam, we shall see how highly Muslims esteem learning and working.

Sometimes men cannot attain exactly what they want howsoever hard they work and have recourse to every means. This is the time for them to admit that some power above their own plays a major part in their work, affects men's life and success, and guides them. That is what we call "fate." Fate is at the same time a great source of consolation. A Muslim who says, "I have done my duty, but this is my luck, which I cannot change," does not become hopeless even if he fails at some task, but continues to work with his heart being completely free from anxiety. The meaning of a verse in Chapter Inshirah of the Qur'an al-Karim is: "Yet hardship will bring ease. Indeed, hardship must bring ease! So whenever you have finished, still toil on! Towards your Lord direct your longing!" It means that it is necessary to continue to work despite the intimidation of failure. But, in contrast, a non-Muslim whose only interest is in the material aspects of something or a heathen who does not believe in any religion, loses his hope, courage and determination to work when he meets with failure, so much so that he cannot work any more. People all over the world began to believe in "fate" after the Second World War. It was stated in many European and American publications: "What Muslims have termed 'fate' certainly is true." No matter how much we work, it has been impossible to change events." A person who is involved in some calamity, such as bereavement and the loss of property can find consolation only in his belief in fate and by putting his trust (tawakkul) in Allahu ta'ala, and then to return to his life again. It remains to be repeated that before having tawakkul it is a must to look for a remedy for every problem by using the mind and by having recourse to all means.

5- They say: "By prohibiting interest, the Islamic religion stands against the present economic system of the world."

This assertion is wholly untrue too. Islam does not prohibit earning or borrowing, but usury and exploiting borrowers. Earning which is done honestly and merely for commercial purposes is not prohibited, but, on the contrary, especially appreciated and encouraged by Islam. Hadrat Muhammad (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declared, "Allahu ta'ala loves the tradesman; the tradesman is his beloved," and he himself traded, too. It has an important place in Islam's trade rules for a person who cannot trade by himself, to invest his money in his friend's stock or in a business company and get his share from the profit his friend makes. The share which a person gets from a bank earning money only by commercial business, without interest, is completely halal (legal in Islam). A bank, earning money without interest and its advantages have been written in detail in our (Ilm-ul-hal) book Seadet-i Ebediyye (Endless Bliss). Chapter Maida of the Qur'an al-karim informs us that interest, which is prohibited in Islam was also haram (illegal, prohibited) in the Tawrat (Torah), too. As an example, the 19th verse of the twenty-third chapter of Deuteronomy states: "Thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother; usury of money, usury of victuals, usury of anything that is lent upon usury: Unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury."

6- At one time there were also those who claimed that the Islamic religion is "hostile to knowledge and science."

How could it ever be possible for Islam to stand against knowledge. Islam is knowledge itself. Many chapters of the Qur'an al-karim enjoin seeking knowledge and praise men of knowledge. For example, the ninth verse of Chapter Zumar declares: "Are those who know, to be considered equal with those who do not know? Truly, men of understanding will take heed more."

Our Prophet's (sall-Allahu alaihi wa sallam) utterances praising and encouraging knowledge are so plentiful and so well known that even non-Muslims know of them. For example, while describing the virtues of knowledge, the books Ihya al-'Ulum and Mawduat al-'Ulum quote the Hadith ash-Sharif: "Go and get knowledge even if it is in China?" which means: "Go and learn even if knowledge is in the farthest place in the world and even if possessed by disbelievers! Another Hadith ash-Sharif declares: "Work and learn from the cradle to the grave!" That is, even an old man of eighty who has one foot in the grave has to work. His learning is an act of worship. Another Hadith ash-Sharif declares: Work for the next world as if you were to die tomorrow, and work for this world as if you were never going to die." And another Hadith ash-Sharif: "Little worship done with understanding is better than much worship done with ignorance." And yet another Hadith ash-Sharif states: "Satan fears a savant more than he does a thousand devoted worshippers who are uneducated." In Islam a woman cannot go and perform supererogatory hajj (pilgrimage) without her husband's permission. Nor can she travel or visit others. But if her husband does not teach her Islam or allow her to study Islam she may go and study it without his permission. As it is seen, while it is sinful for her to go on hajj without his permission though it is a great act of worship loved by Allahu ta'ala, it is not sinful for her to go out seeking knowledge without his permission.

Here is another Hadith ash-Sharif in which our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa-sallam) commands us to learn: "Islam is where knowledge is; disbelief is where knowledge is absent." First, every Muslim has to learn his religion and then the secular sciences.

Nor can it be asserted that Islam is hostile to science. Science means, "observing creatures and events, studying on them so as to understand, and doing experiments to make the same." All these three are commanded by the Qur'an al-Karim. It is fard-i kifaya (15) for Muslims to study science, art, and to try to make the most up-to-date weapons. Our religion commands us to toil more than our enemies. One of our Prophet's (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa-sallam) most vivid expressions commanding science is quoted in the eleventh chapter of the first fascicle of Endless Bliss (Third edition, page 24). Hence, Islam is a dynamic religion that commands science, experiments, and positive developments.

The Europeans took many of the fundamentals of their scientific understanding from the Muslim world. For example, the Europeans thought that the earth was flat like a tray and was surrounded by a wall, while the Muslims had realized the fact that it was a revolving globe. This is written in detail in the books Sharh-ul mawaqif and Marifatnama. They measured the length of the meridian on the Sinjar Desert, which is near Musul, and determined it as it is calculated today. Nur-ud-din Batruji, who died in 581 (1185), was a professor of astronomy at an Islamic University in Andalusia. His book Al-Hayat reflects today's astronomical information. When Galileo, Copernicus and Newton studied from Muslims' books and stated that the earth was rotating, their statements were deemed heresy. Galileo, as we have said above, was subjected to a trial and was sentenced to imprisonment by Christian priests. The natural sciences were also studied and taught in old Islamic madrasas. The Andalusian madrasas guided the whole world in this respect.

The one who first found out that germs caused diseases was Ibni Sina, (16) who was educated in a Muslim environment. It was 900 years ago when he said, "It is a very little worm that makes every disease. It is a pity we do not have an apparatus to see them."

One of the great Islamic doctors, Abu Bakr Razi (rahima-hullahu ta'ala) (854-952), was the first to distinguish between scarlatina, measles, and smallpox, which were thought to be the same disease during that time. The books of such Islamic scholars had been taught in all the universities of the world throughout the Middle Ages. While the mentally- handicapped were being burned alive because they were "possessed by Satan" in the Western world, hospitals had been constructed in the Eastern world for the medical treatment of such patients.

Today, everyone with an objective mind admits the facts written above, that is, the fact that positive knowledge and science was first founded by the Muslims. This, too, is also confirmed by many Western scholars. However, some enemies of Islam, who infiltrated Muslim countries, masquerading as Muslims, seized the opportunity to get the Muslims to listen to them. They told uneducated people about their new scientific findings and facilities, and about the new weapons they produced. Then they deceived the ignorant, saying, "These are non-Muslim findings, those who use them will become non-Muslim." They caused the Muslims to forget Allahu ta'ala's command: "Learn everything." The efforts of these people had been one of the main reasons for the decline of the East. The Western world became superior with its new weapons and technology. On the one hand, these insidious enemies of the Islamic religion deceived Muslims in this way, and, on the other hand, said: "Muslims do not like science; they do not want constructive knowledge; Islam is fanaticism and it means going backwards." They tried to separate Muslim youngsters from their Islamic heritage and destroy the future of Islam.

Those who are trying to answer the question, "Why did it take two hundred years for the printing machine from Europe to reach the countries under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire?" by saying,"Because the Islamic religion forbids printing books with printing machines," are completely wrong. Those called "mustensih," that is, the transcribers, earning money by writings books, caused it to be delayed, fearing that using printing machines to publish books would make them jobless. They used various propaganda techniques to prevent the presses from coming to Turkey. For instance, they organized a demonstration march to Bab-i Ali with a coffin into which they had put their pen cases. Moreover, by making use of extremists -whom we shall discuss later- the transcribers employed them to speak here and there repeating, "the press is anti-Islamic." In order to solve this problem, the Ottoman Sultan Ahmad (17) III, who realized that these seditious people (yobazes) had been trying to use Islam as a means for their own advantages, got the help of his Grand Vizier, Damat Ibrahim Pasha, and received a fatwa (18) about the press from the Shaikh-ul- Islam, the greatest dignitary of the Islamic religion. The fatwa given by the time's Shaikh-ul-Islam, Abdullah Effendi, is written in the two hundred and sixty-second page of Bahjat-ul-fatawa, like this:

"It has been decreed through this fatwa that it is permissible and quite good to establish the press, wherewith books of knowledge, science and ethics will be printed in great numbers in a short time; useful books will be obtained cheaply and disseminated far and wide." This fatwa is enough to show how wrong was the assertion: "The press is anti-Islamic." The word "yobaz" (seditious person) is used above to mean a man who claims his vulgar, ignorant, and corrupt ideas and political convictions to be religious knowledge. They convey Islamic knowledge wrongly to get everybody to accept their corrupt views and perverted convictions. Some of them get their strength from the title they possess, some from the laws they took shelter under, but mostly by exploiting the beliefs of the Muslims. Dragging large masses of people with them, they cause agitation, rebellion, civil war and the breaking up of the country into different states. The most harmful and the most dangerous of them are the religious ones, the yobaz of science (fake scientists) and the political ones who try to defile the nation's belief and moral qualities by propagating religion reforms, foreign ideologies, and non-Sunni Muslims, in order to obtain property, money or position. As a result they corrupt the nation's faith and morality. These seditious people (yobazes) can be classified into three groups:

1- Ignorant yobazes are those who think of themselves as intelligent and scientific, even though they lack both religious and secular knowledge. They cause dissension and can be easily deceived by the enemies of Islam as well as be dragged into destructive paths. In Ottoman history, Patrona Halil, Kabakci Mustafa and Kizilbas Jalali, who said he was the Mahdi, are from among those who caused so much blood to be shed.

2- The second group is called "Religious Yobazes." These are the men of religion who are wicked and malicious. Even though they have some knowledge, they say and do what they don't know or the reverse of what they know that is correct. This is because they want to attain their insidious objectives and caprices. They fall outside of the Islamic religion. They become an example and a leader for the ignorant in doing evil and in destroying the religion. Abdullah Ibn Sebe'; Abu Muslim Horasani; and Hasan Sabbah, the son of the Qadi (Islamic judge) for Samavne city; Shaikh Badraddin; and the men of religion who gave a fatwa to martyr the Ottoman Sultans are religious yobazes. In addition, Muhammad, the son of 'Abd al-Wahhab from Najd, who caused dissension, namely, Wahhabism to appear; Jamal ad-din-Afghani (19), who was the head of a Masonic Lodge in Egypt; Muhammad Abduh, who was a Mufti for Cairo; his follower Rashid Rida; and from Egypt, Hasan Benna with Sayyid Qutb; doctor Abdullah Javdat, an enemy against the Muslims of Istanbul; Ahmad Qadiyani, a hypocrite who was used as a toy in the hands of the British to harm the Muslims of India; Abu-l ala al-Mawdudi of Pakistan; and the new but similarly madhhabless reformer and famous English spy Lawrence is in this group that wounded Islam terribly. This group wounded the Islamic religion internally by exploiting certain perceptions and beliefs.

In the 47 th letter of his book Maktubat the great Islamic savant Imam Ahmad Rabbani (rahmat-Allahu 'alaih) bitterly complains about these evil men of religion as follows: "To listen to the words of those worldly-minded men of religion or [to read their books], is as harmful as eating poison. Their corruption is contagious. They undermine a society causing it to shatter into pieces. It was those worldly-minded men of religion who brought disastrous effects upon the old Islamic states of the past. They misled the men of state. Our Prophet (sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declared: 'Muslims will be divided into seventy-three parts. Out of these, seventy-two will go to Hell. Only one group will be saved from Hell.' The leaders of all these seventy-two deviated groups were wicked men of religion. It has rarely been seen that the harm of an average ignorant citizen is of any con-sequence. But the ignorant and deviated shaikhs of Darwish lodges have been seen to be quite dangerous. Their harm is contagious, too." In his 33 rd letter, he wrote: "Our Prophet (Sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam) declared: 'On the Resurrection Day, the man to be given the greatest torment is the scholar who did not make use of his knowledge." Will not the knowledge which is praised by Allahu ta'ala, and which is the most honored of all be harmful for those who use it as a means for attaining worldly property, position and political success? Being fond of worldly things is something that Allahu ta'ala never likes. Therefore, it is a very tragic event to use the knowledge praised by Allahu ta'ala in a way disliked by Him. It means to dignify what He doesn't like, and to devalue what He likes. To be frank, it means to stand against Allahu ta'ala. Teaching, preaching, writing and publishing religious books will be blessed with the condition that they are done for the sake of Allahu ta'ala, only, not for attaining a position, property, or fame. A sign of possessing this pure intention is not to be fond of worldly benefits. Those addicted to earthly blessings and those using their religious knowledge to obtain them are the wicked men of religion. They are the most evil ones among mankind. They are the thieves of religion. They corrupt and steal the faith and beliefs of Muslims. They presume themselves to be shaikhs or scholars. They believe that they are the best among mankind. Allahu ta'ala declares in the 18th and 19th verses of the Surat al-mujadala in the Qur'an al-karim: 'And they think that they, themselves are Muslims. No! Indeed they are liars. The devil hath engrossed them and so hath caused them to forget the remembrance of Allah. They are of the devil's party. Lo! is it not the devil's party who will be the losers?' An Islamic saint saw Satan sitting and doing nothing. He asked him why he was not busy with deceiving human beings. Satan answered, "Today's malicious savants, so-called men of religion, are so helpful in misleading human beings that I do not think I have to be busy with it any more."

Indeed, in our time, the weakness in obeying the commands of Islam and getting away of people from the religion is because of the words and writings fabricated under the mask of religion and the evil intention of those people. [Men of religion are classified into three divisions: the owner of wisdom; the owner of knowledge; the owner of religion. A religious savant is the one who possesses all three qualities. The words of those who lack any of them are not dependable. Being the owner of knowledge requires one to be a specialist in the knowledge of aql and naql].

True Islamic savants are those who do not use their religious knowledge to attain worldly rewards. They are the men of Allahu ta'ala. These are the inheritors and representatives of the Prophet ('alaihi mussalam). These are the best and the dearest ones among mankind. On the Day of Resurrection, the ink of their writings will be heavier than the blood of those martyrs who died in battle for Islam, that is, for the cause of Allahu ta'ala. The Hadith ash-Sharif: 'The sleep of savants is worship!' praises those Islamic savants. They are the men who really know that the hereafter is eternal, and that the world is temporary; they well understand the beauty of eternal blessings in the hereafter, and the ugliness and wickedness of the world. That is why they have stuck to what is eternal, to the beauty lasting without any change, not to what is provisional, changeable and consumable. Being able to understand how important the hereafter is depends on being able to see how great Allahu ta'ala is. One who has understood the importance of the hereafter never deems the world valuable. It is because the hereafter and the world are opposites in this respect. If you please one, the other will suffer. One who deems the world valuable will cause the hereafter to be offended. To dislike the world means to appreciate the hereafter. It is impossible to appreciate or humiliate both of them at the same time. Opposites cannot exist in the same place [water and fire, for example].

Some of the great Sufis, after they have completely forgotten themselves and the world, seem to be men of the world for various reasons. They seem to desire and love the world. In fact, there is no secular love or desire in their hearts. It is declared in the 37 th verse of Surat an-Nur in the Qur'an al-karim: "They are the men whom neither business nor trading distracts from remembering Allahu ta'ala." They seem to be fond of the world, but actually, never! Haja Bahaaddin-i Naqshiband Bukhari (20) (quddisa sirruh) said, "Even when the goods cost fifty thousand gold coins, at the same time, he never forgot Allahu ta'ala for even a moment."

3- The yobazes of science are the third group of seditious men who have a diploma from a university and appear to be scientists. The writings fabricated by these yobazes are written and presented as scholastic examples of science and medicine and are in turn used to demolish the beliefs of the youth to separate them from religion and Islam. They say that the true religious books are wrong since they are not in conformity with scientific information, and, moreover, they say it is reactionism to believe in those religious books and to live in accordance with their text. Yobazes of science attack Islam by changing scientific knowledge, just as the yobazes of religion have changed religious knowledge.

Those with a good knowledge of Islam and who are well educated at universities immediately understand that yobazes' words are not agreeable with knowledge or science and that they are ignorant in science and in religion. But youngsters and students can be dragged into disasters by being deceived by their words, lies, and by being influenced by their names and positions. Thus, they cause the Islamic community to become divided. Detailed explanations about the yobazes of science are written in the book Endless Bliss (Seadet-i Ebediyye).

The three groups of yobazes, as explained above, have orchestrated great harm upon Islamic countries and upon the pure religion of Islam. Such hypocrites and zindiqs still exist, and are trying to demolish Islam further from within. All praise be to Allahu ta'ala; they are no longer as powerful as they used to be. Today, as Allahu ta'ala has commanded, the Muslim world has been striving to learn all the subtleties of science, and they know that they can catch up with the West only by doing so. It is a shame that Muslims, who were ahead of everyone in the Middle Ages, have been stranded in this respect recently, which is the result of their being deceived by the trickery of those who are against Islam and by neglecting Islam's commandments.

All these add up to the fact that Islam is an utterly perfect religion which completely squares with the conditions of the twenty-first century that we are about to enter. It drills us on knowledge and science, prohibits indolence, it is just, and the founder and protector of the social order that began in the nineteenth century. This book is too small for us to give enough detailed information about this subject. Our Muslim brothers and those, the followers of other religions, who want to know about Islam can learn the connections between the Islamic religion and social order in the book Endless Bliss (Seadet-i Ebediyye). We recommend this book to them.

FOOTNOTES

(2) Rahimah-Allahu ta'ala: May Allah's mercy be upon them.

(3) Hayvan-i natik: Creation which is able to speak.

(4) Malik bin Anas, passed away in Madina in 179 (795 A.D.)

(5) Galileo, died in 1051 (1642 A.D.).

(6) Henry, died in 1106 (1694 A.D.).

(7) Salahaddin Ayyubi, passed away in 585 (1091 A.D.)

(8) Ibrahim Haydari, passed away in 1299 (1881 A.D.).

(9) German name of its original is West-Ostlicher Diwan.

(10) Every group of twenty pages in the Qur'an al-karim is called "one juz."

(11) Ishaq Effendi, passed away in 1309 (1891 A.D.)

(12) In the Name of Allah the Compassionate, the Merciful.

(13) The amount of jizya is forty grams of silver from the poor, eighty grams from the middle-class, and a hundred and sixty grams from the rich. Other commodities, such as corn of equal value, may be given instead of silver. Women, children, the ill, the destitute, the old, and men of religion are not taxed with jizya.

(14) Rahmatullah Effendi, passed away in Mecca in 1306 (1889 A.D.).

(15) Something clearly commanded in the Qur'an al-karim is called fard, pl. faraid. When the command is to be done by every individual Muslim it is termed fard ayn. When only one person in a community of Muslims has to do it, it is termed fard kifaya. In other words, when one Muslim in an assembly, a community or a city of Muslims carries out the fard kifaya, the rest are absolved from that particular obligation.

(16) Ibni Sina Husain, passed away in Hamadan in 428 (1037 A.D.)

(17) Ahmad Khan; passed away in 1149 (1736 A.D.)

(18) Answer which is given by an Islamic savant to Muslim's questions. Sources, references have to be appended to the fatwa

(19) Jamal ad-din Afghani, died in 1314 [1897 A.D.]

(20) Bahaaddin-i Bukhari, passed away in 791 (1389 A.D.)