Al Fazl, 23 October 1922
Muhammad Yusuf Khan Sahib of Jhelum in Chicago
I [Muhammad Yusuf Khan Sahib of Jhelum] came to the city of Chicago for personal reasons. We are extremely grateful to Allah the Almighty for blessing the Ahmadiyya Jamaat with a person like Hazrat Dr Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib. It will not be out of place to call him Khalid of the present age. The fruit of his two-year struggle has been that until today, around 300 people have abandoned their faith in the trinity and become followers of the perfect religion of Islam. Secondly, he has launched the magazine The Muslim Sunrise.
[The first issue of The Muslim Sunrise]
I remember very well the days when Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib was preparing articles for the first issue of The Muslim Sunrise. In those days, he had not received any expenses from the Anjuman for several months. Even then, putting his trust in Allah the Almighty, he somehow launched the magazine, which is now being published on a regular basis. Then, there was a longing in his heart for a mosque which cannot be described in words.
[Prayer of Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib]
Last year, I happened to read two or three of Mufti Sahib’s notebooks and found the following handwritten [prayer] on their first page:
یا اللہ تو مجھے ایک مخلص جماعت عطا فرما جو كہ تیرى عبادت كرنے والے ہوویں۔ اور ایک میگزین اپنے كامل مذہب اسلام كى اشاعت كے لئے چھپوانے كى طاقت دے۔ اور ایک مسجد بنوانے كى توفیق دے جس میں تیرے نام كى پرستش كى جاوے۔
“O Allah, grant me a sincere group of people who regularly perform Your ibadat [worship]. And bless me with the strength to publish a magazine to spread the message of Your perfect religion of Islam. And give me the opportunity to help build a mosque in which Your name be exalted.”
These were the desires in his heart for which he was engaged in prayers all day and night. Whether sitting, eating or drinking, he was only anxious for them to be fulfilled. Finally, the time came when the Almighty God fulfilled all three wishes of his righteous devotee. There are two minarets and a big dome on the mosque. The lower compartment of the mosque has an office and a residential place.
[Chicago Jamaat]
In this city [of Chicago], there are 150 new Ahmadi Muslims and it is a sincere jamaat. I am surprised to see their sincerity because it is a miracle to have such devotedness and spirit of love among the Western nations, especially the American people.
[An example of the sincerity of new converts]
Today was Sunday and it started raining heavily. A jalsa was going to be held at 8 o’clock in the evening. This city is so vast that it is difficult for members of the Jamaat to gather in one place and it was not expected that any friends would come in such heavy rain. However, a group of ardent followers of Islam gathered at the appointed time. Before the proceedings of the jalsa started, Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib led the Maghrib prayer and the people were taught the Salat with its English translation. Thereafter, the commandments of Islam were explained to the jamaat.
[Brother Yaqub]
When the series of questions and answers ended [towards the conclusion of the jalsa], Brother Yaqub said:
“Dr Sadiq, I converted a new man last night to our movement. Although it was hard to convert him, I have converted him.”
This gentleman [Brother Yaqub] has been an Ahmadi for almost a year and is a sincere and zealous preacher. Every week, he converts someone to Islam Ahmadiyyat.
At the end of the jalsa, a gentleman and a lady converted to Islam at the hands of Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib.
[St. Louis Jamaat]
In the city of St. Louis, which has a population of about one million, a significant jamaat of around sixty to seventy people has been established. There is an enthusiastic preacher in that jamaat as well who is engaged in spreading the message of Islam. His Islamic name is Sheikh Ahmad Din.
[Lecture at the Church of Love]
Apart from the aforementioned jalsa, Hazrat Mufti Muhammad Sadiq Sahib also delivered a lecture at the Church of Love at 12 o’clock in the morning. After listening to the lecture, the audience expressed delight.
Every week, the Ahmadiyya Jamaat holds two jalsas here [in America]. With the succour of Allah the Almighty, the seed of Islam has been sown in the Western World and the Muslim Sunrise has also emerged, and insha-Allah, the time is near when it will enlighten the entire Western World with its divine light.
Muhammad Yusuf Khan of Jhelum, Chicago, [America]. 10 September 1922.
(Translated by Al Hakam from the original Urdu, published in the 23 October 1922 issue of Al Fazl)