Did Allâhu ta’âlâ, like a carpenter [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so], use some tools for His creation so that He was tired? It is stated as follows in the twenty-fourth and later verses of the thirty-second chapter of Genesis, [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying these things]: “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.” “And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.” “And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.” “And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.” “And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.” (Gen: 32-24 to 28)
O Christians! Please do see reason. This would mean that Allâhu ta’âlâ grappled with a creature of His until morning and could not free Himself from the hold of Ya’qûb ‘alaihis-salâm’! Could a god ever be so powerless? Certainly, Allâhu ta’âlâ is free from such imperfections.
According to the [pure] belief of Muslims, Allâhu ta’âlâ has the power enough to create every dispensable being. He has the Attribute of Omnipotence. Omnipotence is an eternal Attribute and effects, creates whatever He wills [wishes]. All Muslims unanimously agree on this fact. Allâhu ta’âlâ is able to create everything that His Omnipotence wills to create. Every creature has come into being through His Omnipotence.
All the things which the Omnipotence of Allâhu ta’âlâ has willed to create are equal with respect to their creation. For they are dispensable beings, creatures. The Attribute of Omnipotence will not effect the Wâjib-ul-wujûd (Allâhu ta’âlâ) or the mumtani’ (-ul-wujûd) [that which can never exist]. It is impossible to effect them [to will their creation]. Being dispensable, that is, its making no difference whether something exists or not, is an attribute commonly shared by all beings that are dispensable. All the dispensable beings [creatures] are liable to coming into being or ceasing to exist, depending on the effect of the Attribute of Power (Omnipotence). Capability of Allâhu ta’âlâ (to do anything He wishes) comes from His Person. This state is equal for all beings whose creation has been willed.
If the Power of Allâhu ta’âlâ were related to some creatures only, there would necessarily be a reason for this. And this, in its turn, would indicate that the greatness of Allâhu ta’âlâ were dependent on something [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so]. [For in this case there would have to be a reason to compel Allâhu ta’âlâ to allot His Power to some creatures], which, in turn, would mean imperfection. And imperfection cannot exist in Allâhu ta’âlâ.
According to Christians, Allâhu ta’âlâ is not Omnipotent [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so]. For it is stated in the Taurah, “(God said:) I shall go to Canaan with the Children of Israel. Let them blow the horn strongly so that I will hear it.” According to Muslims’ belief, Allâhu ta’âlâ hears and sees everything. Yet Allâhu ta’âlâ is free from media such as eyes and ears, [sound and light]. [He sees and hears without any intermediaries.]
According to Christians’ credo, Allâhu ta’âlâ has entered Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’. As we have stated earlier, they say “Jesus is a God from God, a Light from Light.”
According to Muslims’ belief, Allâhu ta’âlâ is far from entering something. For something enters something else through one of the following two ways: first, by entering the space it occupies; second, by entering its attributes. Allâhu ta’âlâ is far from entering any space. Its evidence is that Allâhu ta’âlâ is free from place and far from being a part of something. For such dependencies as place and being a part of something are attributes peculiar to matter and material things. And it has already been proven that Allâhu ta’âlâ is not matter and does not have attributes peculiar to matter. All the ’Ulamâ have stated this fact unanimously. As for the impossibility for Allâhu ta’âlâ to enter something by way of entering its attributes; this sort of entering, like any other sort of entering, would run counter to the fact that Allâhu ta’âlâ is (Wâjib-ul-wujûd). For if something entered something else, it would certainly need the thing it were now in. On the other hand, none of these types of entering, whether it be an object’s entering something else’s place or its attributes’ entering something else’s essence or its shape’s entering another substance or its attributes’ entering its essence, would mean entering according to philosophers; they say that this is no more than having a characteristic. In short, when something enters a place, it will need that place. [And this, in its turn, is contradictory to being a god.]
According to Christians, Allâhu ta’âlâ is matter and an object. In fact, it is stated in the Taurah, in the twenty-seventh verse of the first chapter of Genesis, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; ...” (Gen: 1-27) Indeed, Christians make various pictures, cherubs, icons, [idols], put them in their churches, and worship them. They hold the belief that “God liveth in heavens. The earth is His foothold.”
Allâhu ta’âlâ is far from this Christian credo and anything similar to this credo. In this respect there is agreement between Muslims and the ancient Greek philosophers.
Evidences of this fact are written in books of Kelâm.
Again, [as we have stated earlier in the text], Christians hold the belief that “Because of a venial mistake made by Âdam ‘alaihis-salâm’, all people and all Prophets ‘alaihimus-salâm’ who came to earth until the time of Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’, [because they were smeared with the depravity of the original sin], will be tormented in Hell, and Allâhu ta’âlâ, being at a loss as to how to forgive this (so-called) grave sin, [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so], had His only Son killed after various kinds of affronts and tortures in the hands of Jews, burned him eight days in Hell, and thus forgave the original sin.”
According to Muslims’ belief, there is no one above Allâhu ta’âlâ to command Him or to interrogate Him. Allâhu ta’âlâ is Ghafûr, that is, He has very much forgiveness, and He is Rahîm (merciful, compassionate). If a person has committed sins and died without repenting his sins and supplicating forgiveness, He will forgive him if He wills it be so; or He will torment him in return for his sins. [If He forgave all His born slaves and put them into Paradise, it would be compatible with His Kindness. And if He threw all His born slaves into Hell, it would be compatible with His Justice.] It is such an awkward thing to believe that Allâhu ta’âlâ found no other way than killing His only Son for the forgiveness of His born slaves. On the other hand, priests are travelling from one village to another, forgiving Christians’ sins [in return for a certain sum of money], while popes are selling plots from Paradise inch by inch as [if] they possess[ed] the keys to Paradise and the title deeds of these plots. [We have already quoted, (and explained) the Biblical verses on which priests base these practices of theirs.]
As for the degree of respect [!] which Christians have for Prophets ‘alaihimus-salâm’; they impute various sins to each Prophet. They would disapprove even the lowest priest’s being qualified with these unpleasant adjectives which they impute to Prophets. Examples of these are the slanders such as Lût’s ‘alaihis-salâm’ committing fornication with his blessed daughters when in ecstacy; (Gen: 19-33, 34, 35) Yahûda’s (Judah) committing adultery with his daughter-in-law; (Gen: 38-13 to 18) Dâwûd’s (David) ‘alaihis-salâm’ committing adultery with Uryâ’s wife; (II Sam: 11-2, 3, 4) Suleymân’s (Solomon) ‘alaihis-salâm’ worshipping idols.
The following principles of belief held by Christians are no less embarrassing than the slanders they direct to Prophets: While believing in the apostleship and even prophethood of the twelve Hawârîs of Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’, (they accept that) one of them, Judas (Iscariot) betrayed Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ to the Jews in return for a bribe of thirty dirhams; [on the night when Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ was arrested by the Jews, (according to Christians)], a rooster crowed three times and Peter the Apostle denied knowing Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ three times, each time the rooster crowed; Paul, who had believers of Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ killed with various kinds of torture for sixteen to seventeen years and had one of the Apostles flayed alive, is believed, by Christians, to have become a believer, to be more virtuous than Mûsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’, to have substituted baptism for circumcision, and diet for the worship of fasting, which is enjoined clearly in the Bible and in the Taurah, and to have changed many of the Mosaic and Biblical laws.
In order to ascribe divinity to Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’, Christians impute a sin to every Prophet. In a debate between Muslims and Christians, a priest who asserted that Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ was divine was asked by an Islamic savant what his proofs were. He answered that he had four proofs, and cited them as follows:
“My first proof is that he was created without a father,” he said. When the Islamic scholar said, “Âdam ‘alaihis-salâm’ was created not only without a father, but also without a mother. Also, angels were created both without a father and without a mother. [Angels are not male or female.] Then, Âdam ‘alaihis-salâm’ and angels must be accepted as divine like Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so],” the priest could not answer him. Then he went on and asserted his second proof.
“My second proof is that Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ resuscitated dead people,” he said. Upon this the Islamic scholar interrogated, “As it is written in the Taurah, a couple of Israelite Prophets also resuscitated dead people. In fact, Mûsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ animated the inert rod. These people, too, must be sons of Allâhu ta’âlâ [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so].” The priest could not answer this, either. Then he passed on to his third proof.
“My third proof is Îsâ’s ‘alaihis-salâm’ ascension to heaven,” he said. Upon this the Islamic savant said, “You say that Îsâ “alaihis-aslam’ was lifted up to heaven after being killed along with many insults. Christians and Muslims unanimously believe that Idris ‘alaihis-salâm’, too, was lifted up to heaven in an honourable and dignified manner and when he was alive. Accordingly, Idris ‘alaihis-salâm’ would necessarily be more worthy of being a son to Allâhu ta’âlâ.” The priest could not answer this, either. Then he passed on to his fourth proof.
“Every Prophet committed a sin, but Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ did not. This is an attribute of divinity,” he said. When the Islamic scholar asked, “Which Prophets committed sins?”, he said, “(For example), David (Dâwûd ‘alaihis-salâm’) did.” Upon this the Islamic scholar said, “O priest! This statement of yours makes you more evil, more repugnant than Jews. For the appositive ‘Jesus, the son of David’ is written in all the four Gospels. If what you said were true and Dâwûd ‘alaihis-salâm’ were an adulterer, [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying so], then Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ would be acknowledging that he were an illegitimate child [may Allâhu ta’âlâ protect us from saying or thinking so] by saying that he is the son of Dâwûd ‘alaihis-salâm’. Could there be any doubts as to this deduction? O priest! You are on the one hand promoting Îsâ ‘alaihis-salâm’ to divinity in power, and on the other hand downgrading him to an illegitimate son. There is a great contradiction between these two.” The priest, once again, could not answer. Extremely humiliated and utterly dumbfounded, he left the place.
Another consternating paradox Christians fall into in their belief system is that, while imputing sins to all the Prophets ‘alaihimus-salâm’, whom Allâhu ta’âlâ has chosen from among His born slaves and sent forth (as Messengers) to people as a great favour and kindness (to humanity), they believe that the Popes whom they have chosen from among themselves are innocent. What a smug fatuity! The second âyat of Hashr sûra purports, “O thee people of discernment! [Observe the commandments of Allâhu ta’âlâ, meditate (over them), and] take lessons.”
[This chapter is the translation of the ninety-second chapter of the first section of the (Turkish) book (Se’âdet-i-Ebediyye)[90] .]