MTA show asks wider Muslim Ummah for answers
“In your view, from which sect will the Khalifatul-Muslimeen (Caliph of the Muslims) be elected, so that he may be acceptable to the entire Muslim Ummah?”
“According to your beliefs, the Khalifatul-Muslimeen is the leader of the entire Muslim world. If that Khalifa belongs to an Islamic country, will the other Islamic countries surrender their states, governance, military forces and treasuries to him?”
“Will the Saudi government accept your appointed Khalifa as the khadim al-Haramayn ash-Sharifayn (custodian of the Two Holy Mosques), irrespective of the country he belongs to? If not, then according to your views of Khilafat, what kind of a Khalifa will he be?”
A challenge from the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama‘at
“If all the leaders of the Muslim countries and the entire Muslim Ummah unanimously agree upon an individual as the Khalifa and associate themselves with him by means of Bai‘at, then the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at will most certainly be prepared to consider accepting such a Khalifa and associating with him through Bai‘at along with the entire Ummah.”
Sunday, 20 December 2020: Today, the MTA International programme, Turning the Tables (Jawaab ap bhi dein), posed hard-hitting questions to Muslim scholars, leaders and the wider Ummah about Khilafat and ended with a huge challenge to the Ummah.
This comes after an uproar from various prominent Muslims regarding a Google search result showing that the current Caliph of Islam is Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa, Khalifatul Masih V.
The show started off by going back to the time of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the Promised Messiahas. On the evening of 27 December 1902, the Promised Messiahas was with his companions in Qadian, India. The Promised Messiahas was told about a book written by a Christian missionary against the Promised Messiahas and his claim to be the Messiah and Mahdi. The Promised Messiahas commented on this book and said that such people oppose him and his community, but in the end, they are a means of benefit as a result of their opposition.
In the past 118 years, this is exactly what has happened with Islam Ahmadiyyat, the most recent example being the Google search result showing Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa being the Islamic Khalifa. When Muslim personalities said to report such a search, at the same time, lots of people were acquainted with who Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa is and the fact he is the Muslim Khalifa.
Of course, Google searches or results do not prove or establish who the Khalifa is, but this anti-Ahmadiyya backlash has, nevertheless, supported Islam Ahmadiyyat.
The show then went into what Khilafat exactly is.
Khilafat, in Arabic, means a successor. In Islamic terms, the Khalifa is the one who succeeds the prophet. Khilafat is essential as a prophet does not live forever, therefore Allah ordains for his khulafa to continue the legacy and spiritual blessings of the prophet.
Where is Khilafat today?
It was asked who the current Khalifa for the Muslim Ummah is? However this question means getting ahead of ourselves because it is pertinent to first ask about the state of the Muslim “Ummah”, for they are disunited more than ever.
Even in Islam’s history, despite intra-Muslim conflicts, Muslims were still united when it came to non-Muslims trying to benefit from Muslim conflicts. But today it is quite the contrary and Muslim unity is nothing but a dream.
Unfortunately, Muslim ulema and clerics have misguided Muslims and blinded them from accepting the Khilafat which exists today.
In truth, today, it is only the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community that is blessed with Khilafat that unites; no other Muslim sect can claim this.
The Khalifa of Islam?
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Khalifa has never claimed to be the Khalifa of Islam. It is due to the result of the works of the Ahmadiyya Khilafat that the world has taken Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa as the current Khalifa of Islam – for them, he represents true Islamic teachings and hence, is the Khalifa of Islam.
Whenever the issue of Khalifat sprouts, Muslim leaders are quick to say that the Khalifa of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is not the Khalifa. Yet they do this without giving an alternative and answering who exactly the Khalifa is.
Allah makes the Khalifa
It is clear from the Holy Quran that only Allah can establish Khilafat and choose the Khalifa. Surah al-Nur, verse 56 emphatically declares this and none can rebuke it.
With this in mind, it would be impossible for Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya to exist for so long and with so much success and blessings without the support of Allah.
Regarding the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, the rhetoric has now boiled down to mere gossip and petty matters – academic substance and proofs against Islam Ahmadiyyat have diminished.
During the programme, a poll was initiated to the Muslim Ummah to vote on. It asked:
“Will the non-Ahmadi Muslim sects, like Barelvi, Deobandi, Ahl-e-Hadith, Ahl-e-Tashi’, despite their conflicting beliefs, be able to unanimously agree upon a single person as the Khalifa of the Muslim Ummah?”
Results showed that 7% voted “yes”, while 93% said “no”.
Attempts to establish Khilafat
Historically, many attempts have been made by Muslim leaders and scholars to establish Khilafat themselves, despite Allah saying only He establishes Khilafat. These attempts have failed miserably.
This longing for Khilafat can be found since the Ottoman Caliphate ended. Shockingly, when the Ottoman Caliphate was coming to its end, Muslim leaders from India elected a non-Muslim, Karamchand Gandhi, as the leader to address the future of Khilafat! How could a non-Muslim address this matter was what Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih IIra strongly asked at the time.
Later, lots of attempts across the Muslim world were made to establish Khilafat, but they all failed, one after the other.
Recent polls suggest that the Muslim world desires Khilafat, but unfortunately, Muslim clerics and scholars are acting as a barricade in stopping Muslims accepting the Khilafat that Allah has established for over a century. But all political and religious institutions have failed in their attempts to destroy Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya.
Many claim that Ahmadi Muslims are the agents of the British, but how surprising this is when it is only Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya that has been relentless in effectively and openly addressing anti-Muslim sentiments across the West in front of Western political leaders and institutions. It is the Ahmadiyya Khilafat that has been calling out and addressing the injustices of Western nations, including Britain and United States.
Ironically, it was Muslim leaders – including Maulana Muhammad Ali Jauhar and Syed Sulaiman Nadvi – who came to England in 1920 and bowed before the British Prime Minister, David Lloyd George, begging him not to end the Caliphate.
In their meeting with Lloyd George – which is on record – the Muslim leaders were asked what station the Khalifa had in Islam. The response given by Maulana Muhammad Ali Jauhar was:
“The personal centre is the Caliph, or the Khalifa, as we call him, the successor of the Prophet.”
One should ponder over this: the Muslim leaders were begging the British Prime Minister to save the “successor of the prophet”.
The Prime Minister then asked, “Is it hereditary?”
Muhammad Ali Jauhar replied by saying:
“That is a point which will clear up the whole question of Khilafat. Islam required temporal power for the defence of the Faith, and for that purpose, if the ideal combination of piety and power could not be achieved, the Muslims said, ‘Let us get hold of the most powerful person, even if he is not the most pious, so long as he places his power at the disposal of our piety.’”
Here, Muhammad Ali Jauhar clearly said that the Khalifa could be chosen “even if he is not the most pious”. How these Khulafa were not pious is something which the Ahmadiyya Khilafat does not promote or spread – they do not promote defaming and exposing the ill of others.
A recent example of this was given by the host, Asif Basit Sahib, who narrated that he had found, from the Punjab Archives, shameful details about a lauded personality who clerics in the Indian subcontinent promote and hugely praise. Asif Basit Sahib thought that such a discovery was a powerful proof about the reality of these clerics.
He said that he had the opportunity to present this exposing document before Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa. However, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa said not to publish such a document as it is not the way of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to expose personal matters.
Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa presented the example of the Promised Messiahas who was told by a lawyer – during a court case against the Promised Messiahas – that he could expose the personal life of the opposition in the court case in such a manner that the person would drown in shame. However, the Promised Messiahas immediately stopped the lawyer, saying he had no concern about his opposition’s personal life and matters and would not allow exposing him.
This is the greatness of Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya – it never stoops so low, even when strong proofs can be unveiled about the opposition.
The Ahmadiyya Khilafat
There are great blessings that Allah promises with Khilafat and Allah continues to express these blessings for Islam through the Ahmadiyya Muslim Khilafat.
For example, 75 translations of the Quran have been produced by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community to date, of which 50 are available online for everyone to view. These translations are also spread throughout the world and even non-Ahmadi Muslims greatly benefit from them.
When it comes to building mosques, Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya has been at the forefront. A prime example of this was building the first mosque in London – the heartland of the British Empire – in 1924, which was funded by Ahmadi Muslim women (most of whom were very poor) at the behest of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IIra.
It should be remembered that in 1910, there was a London Mosque fund established by Muslims in the UK towards which thousands were given by the leader of Iran, the “Caliph” of the Ottomons etc. However the funds remained dormant and no results were seen. Allah blessed the efforts of the Ahmadiyya Khilafat in this matter. These are facts that cannot be rejected.
The London Mosque built by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community was attended by prominent Muslims like Allama Iqbal, Muhammad Ali Jinnah etc. who prayed there numerous times. In fact, in 1934, the famous speech by Muhammad Ali Jinnah in which he said he would go back to India for the Muslim cause, was delivered in the London Mosque.
Today, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa travels the world with authority and conviction in what he preaches and says, whether world leaders meet him or parliamentarians. Huzooraa has stood up on world stages and conveyed the message of Islam in clear words and conviction, whether they liked the message or not.
Directly addressing them, he has continuously spoken of the injustices political leaders and nations carry out. As a result, such world leaders and parliamentarians have huge respect and honour for Huzooraa. When it comes to Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya, there is no hiding from or appeasing political leaders. Anyone who has heard these speeches will realise this.
Which other Muslim leader is there about whom anyone can present such examples?
There have been great responses to Muslim issues by the Ahmadiyya Khilafat throughout the past century – for example, the correct response to blasphemy.
One example of this is the initiation of special days to commemorate the life of the Holy Prophetsa – known as “Jalsa Seeratun-Nabi” – by Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IIra . This day was started due to inter-religious conflicts in which Muslims were also involved within the subcontinent. Lots of hurtful abuses and allegations were raised against the Holy Prophetsa during these conflicts. Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IIra asked all Muslims to hold special days to highlight the greatness of Prophet Muhammadsa through speeches and discourse.
Going through the reports of those days, one finds prominent Muslims praising this initiative of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and also participating in them. For example, regarding this initiative, the famous Khwaja Hasan Nizami said that he believed this “blessed initiative” was a divine inspiration given to Khalifatul Masih IIra. Khwaja Hasan Nizami even spoke about other Muslims trying to stop him participating.
But, now, as the panellist noted, it would be interesting to see what fatwas follow after Muslim clerics learn of the positive comments by Khawaja Hasan Nizami regarding the great step of the Ahmadiyya Khalifa.
History proves that whenever the Holy Prophetsa is made a target of abuse and slander, the most effective, powerful and first response to these attacks are seen by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Khilafat. During the time of Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmadaa, this aspect can be witnessed by all, especially during recent anti-Muslim narratives.
Towards the end of the MTA show, after posing questions to the Muslim Ummah, a challenge was given to all viewers. But prior to the challenge, it was noted that during the time of Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmadas a Companion – after being content that Hazrat Ahmadas was the Messiah – put his hand forward for Bai‘at and said to the Promised Messiahas that his pledge of devotion at his hand was with the condition that if the real Messiahas descended from the Heavens, he would perform his Bai‘at instead. In response, the Promised Messiahas said that if the Messiahas came down, he would be the first to take Bai‘at at his hand.
The challenge
The programme ended with a bold challenge for all Muslims:
“If all the leaders of the Muslim countries and the entire Muslim Ummah unanimously agree upon an individual as the Khalifa and associate themselves with him by means of Bai‘at, then the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at will most certainly be prepared to consider accepting such a Khalifa and associating with him through Bai‘at along with the entire Ummah.”
We await the response of Muslim leaders and clerics.