My column last month entitled
“Focus on God should not be split” generated a few letters in response. (You
can read my Dec. column online by Googling the title or typing in this URL: http://ahmadiyyatimes.blogspot.com/2013/12/from-pulpit-focus-on-god-should-not-be.html )
One letter came from Mr. George
C. in Ontario and another from Mr. Tom V. in Chino Hills. And while Tom wrote a
polite two-page letter quoting many Bible verses to make his point that Jesus
was God in the flesh and also pre-existent with God from the beginning of
creation, neither he nor George actually addressed any of the points I raised
or the Bible verses I quoted. George, in his half-page letter, listed no Bible
verses at all but instead wrote that he feels I “may be guilty of some
misinterpretations” of the verses I quoted. He did not elaborate further. And
so, I humbly and kindly ask: Is there anyone who can answer my points and questions?
If you need a copy of the column, just call or write me and I will be glad to
mail you one.
Tom’s letter said I was “audacious.
. . challenging the tenets of Christianity” during Christmas time. But I humbly
submit that nearly every quote I used to “challenge” Christianity came from either
God or Jesus, so it was not me but God and Jesus doing the challenging. I figured
Tom or George or any other Christian who was upset by my column would have
recognized that fact and regarded such quotes as being true and authoritative
and not subject to such easy dismissal. I guess I ws wrong.
Tom did urge me to “truly
have a humble heart” as I read his letter, in the hope, I suppose, that I would
ignore the fact he wasn’t answering my questions, but only redirecting me to
other verses Christians routinely use to support their doctrines. As if all it
takes to perceive “Truth” is a humble heart -- even when that “Truth” doesn’t
make sense in one way or another.
And while it is true that
perceiving truth requires humility, accepting truth requires that one’s
rational and inquisitive mind be satisfied as well. Otherwise, all you have is blind
faith. This has always been my main issue with Christianity -- I can’t reconcile
its core doctrines with the contradictory pronouncements to them by God and Jesus.
Nor can I reconcile Christian belief in Original Sin and the death of Jesus on
the cross as the atonement for sin with our God-given capacity and desire for reason,
justice and the true deliverance of God’s Mercy and salvation to mankind. By
comparison, Islam provides answers that completely satisfy the heart, mind and
soul.
Tom gave many Bible citations
in his letter but due to space, I cannot address them all here. Most of the
verses were used to show that Jesus had indicated, either by word, action or
inaction, that he was God in the flesh. Yet there is not a single statement by
Jesus where he clearly tells his disciples: “Yes, I am God in the flesh as His
son who has come to be put to death for your sins, so when you see me again
after they crucify me, don’t be afraid -- I’m not a ghost -- I’ve been
resurrected.” How difficult would it have been for Jesus to tell his followers
this beforehand, if he was, in fact, God incarnate? And it would have been an even
better proof that Jesus was God if he had written down everything exactly as he
wanted it to be remembered and given this to his disciples directly. But that
didn’t happen.
I will now comment on Gen.
22:6-13, where God commands Abraham to sacrifice his son, and from which Tom
cites verse 8 as a foreshadowing of God’s future plan to sacrifice Jesus as
payment for our sins. The problem is, Gen. 22:6-13 isn’t about sacrificing
someone as a payment for sins, it’s about testing Abraham’s love for God by
asking him to make the ultimate sacrifice of his son. In the end, God stops
Abraham from killing his son, replacing him with a ram as the sacrifice instead.
Why would God stop a human sacrifice to Himself in the time of Abraham, but
allow it to take place -- require it, in fact -- in the time of Jesus?
My dear Christian readers,
please know that, from the bottom of my heart, the purpose of my December
column was not to offend you but to get you to honestly examine how most of what
you believe or are taught about God and Jesus is (to me and at least a billion
other people) highly offensive and contrary to the Majesty, Omnipotence and
pure Oneness of God, as well as to the honor and self-described mission of
Jesus Christ (pbuh) as he states conclusively in Matt.9:13 and 15:24.
I humbly invite Tom and
George and any other Christian (minister or not) to come to the Baitul Hameed
Mosque in Chino or write to us and provide what answers you have to my
questions and points. All I ask is that you do, in fact, address them directly.
(I can also come to your home or church, if that is more comfortable for you.)
I make this appeal for answers not just for myself, but for the benefit of
anyone with similar (or the same) questions about Christianity and Jesus.
I can and will provide
rational answers to anyone with unanswered questions about Jesus or God or
salvation -- answers I promise will make sense if you are willing and able to
open your heart and mind, for it takes both to be open in order to attain true wisdom
and spiritual understanding.
Islam teaches that the Truth of God should and
does satisfy both the heart and the mind so that firm faith can be established
in both. If anyone says this is impossible, I invite them to investigate Islam
and its revival in the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. Call me at 909-627-2252 or
909-636-8332 or Email me at: Shamshadanasir@Gmail.com or go online to Alislam.org to learn more. If you are not satisfied with
what you have been taught to believe is the Truth, then you owe it to yourself in
this life and to your eternal soul to seek a better Truth. I believe that Truth
is self-evident in Ahmadiyya Islam. Discover this Truth for yourself -- I know it
can set you free.[ with Imam Shamshad A. Nasir; appeared online at AhmadiyyaTimes.com DATE, Jan. xxth, 2014 at this link: and an edited and abridged version of this ran in the Daily Bulletin religion section's "From the Pulpit" on Sat., Jan. 18th, 2014 under the title "Columnist reaches out for some answers on Chriistianity" at this link: http://www.dailybulletin.com/social-affairs/20140117/columnist-reaches-out-for-some-answers-on-christianity ]
