Al Fazl, 18 June 1923
Hazrat Maulvi Muhammad Dinra (1881-1983)
New converts
In the report under discussion, three individuals converted to Islam and joined the Ahmadiyya Jamaat last week. One of them lives in the Philippines and has sent his request for bai‘at from there. The second person is from Trinidad, one of the famous English colonies in the West Indian Islands. The latter named his house “Islamic Mission House” and has also started preaching to others.
During Ramadan, some of the new converts here started fasting regularly. Last Sunday, it was learned that around twelve men were fasting. Some of the sisters here are so committed [to faith] that even with weakness […] and despite being advised [not to fast], they could not keep themselves from fasting. We pray to Allah the Almighty to increase their faith and grant them perseverance, along with all the other new converts.
Regular jalsa and edification of new converts
Last Sunday, there was a larger audience than usual, and around 60 people participated in the gathering. Before the formal proceedings of the jalsa, I started teaching some of them from the Bible and gave them a lesson on “Islam’s relationship with Christianity”, so that when they meet with other Christians, they can carry out discussions with them from their religious books.
As usual, Hazrat Mufti Sahib[ra] started the actual jalsa with talim-o-tarbiyat [edification and moral training] and formally introduced them to the attributes of Islam and Ahmadiyya Jamaat. After that, he brought to their attention what kind of sacrifice the Jamaat expected from them. He narrated the incident of the great martyr Hazrat Syed Abdul Latif Sahib[ra] of Kabul in detail to all of them. He told them that unless they are ready to make such sacrifices, they cannot become devoted Muslims and Ahmadis.
After his lecture, Hazrat Mufti Sahibra requested that I [Hazrat Maulvi Muhammad Dinra] say a few words. I presented to them the life accounts of the late Hafiz Moinuddin Sahib, which were published in the latest issue of Al Hakam by Sheikh Yaqub Ali Sahib[ra]. I shed light on how the blessed company of a prophet can produce an extraordinary change in the life of a common man, which can hardly be produced even by the collected teachings of thousands of philosophers. After that, I explained to them the translation and meaning of the first verse of Surah Taha [after the basmalah] and elucidated to them how the Messiah [of Nazareth] could not be a perfect guide for all of us, because if one who claims to be a prophet passes away before completing his mission, then in the light of the Bible, he is not a true messenger. This same criterion for the success [of a prophet] has been presented by the Holy Quran.
In the afternoon, the second jalsa was held. Hazrat Mufti Sahib[ra] gave a lecture on the life of Hazrat Sri Krishna Ji Maharaj. After about half past one, this jalsa came to a successful end.
Arabic lessons and two custodians of one girl
The Arabic lessons are also held twice a week, and some friends are showing great interest in them.
Nowadays, there is a case going on here [in America]. Two women have claimed custody of one girl. One is the actual mother who has been wandering here and there in search of her girl for twelve years and the other woman is the one who has raised this girl as her own. The girl was fraudulently separated from her real mother on the day of her birth. Her mother was in postpartum pains and unconscious at the time. From the time she regained consciousness, she wandered from city to city for twelve years and married two men, one after the other, on the condition that they would help her find her daughter.
A lot of people are expressing an array of opinions in the newspapers. In general, mothers and other people with kids are saying that the girl should be reunited with her real mother. However, some priests have emphasised in their lectures that the girl should not be given to her real mother. Their main argument is that if the girl is given in the custody of the actual mother, then no one in future will bring up such children from government orphanages.
All of them are indecisive, and the life and teaching of the Messiah [of Nazareth] cannot fully shed light on this matter.
The court has decided that until the age of 14, the girl will stay with the foster mother under the supervision of the government, and the biological mother will be allowed to visit. If the girl would like to reunite with her real mother after 14 years, then no one shall object to it.
Wassalam,
Muhammad Din, Chicago,
USA.
(Translated by Al Hakam from the original Urdu, published in the 18 June 1923 issue of Al Fazl)