This Week in History: 30 June – 6 July

A glimpse into the rich history of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat

30 June 1893: On this day, the Promised Messiah^as replied to the letter of Padri Jawala Singh, who earlier sent a lengthy letter to Huzoor^as. In this letter, Hazrat Ahmad^as refuted the false assumptions of Padri Sahib by deriving arguments from the Bible and logic. (Maktubat-e-Ahmad, Vol. 1, pp. 175-177)

30 June 1989: On this day, during his tour of the USA, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh inaugurated the Ahmadiyya Mission House in San Francisco, USA. (Silsila Ahmadiyya, Part 4, p. 856)

1 July 1931: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra inaugurated the faculty of arts (the FA class) for girls in Qadian. On this occasion, Huzoor^ra said, with respect to young children’s schooling and education, that a school ought to be set up for youngsters under the management of women, who would then be able to impart extraordinary ethics and good morals to them directly from childhood. Huzoor^ra added that this could only be achieved once there were a large number of educated women. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 5, pp. 312-313)

1 July 1988: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh called on the members of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Canada to raise a fund of $2.5 million for the construction of new mosques. (Silsila Ahmadiyya, Part 4, p. 97)

1 July 2008: On this day, during his tour of Canada, some members of the Canadian parliament had the opportunity to meet with Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa, including Jim Karygiannis (then MP for Scarborough – Agincourt) and Maurizio Bevilacqua (then MP for Vaughan). Huzoor^aa graced the ceremonies of Canada Day and inaugurated the offices of Lajna Imaillah and Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Canada. He visited the Ahmadiyya Abode of Peace, and members of the Jamaat had the opportunity to meet Huzoor^aa. (Al Fazl International, 12 September 2008)

2 July 1892: On this day, the Promised Messiah^as expressed sorrow in a letter to Hazrat Mian Fateh Muhammad^ra as he had lost his job again. Hazrat Ahmad^as shared his sympathies and instructed him to remain punctual in his five daily prayers, be regular in his daily supplications, and in seeking forgiveness from Allah, as God Almighty is Omnipotent. (Maktubat-e-Ahmad, Vol. 3, p. 282)

2 July 1947: On this day, Hafiz Qudratullah Sahib reached The Hague, Netherlands, after a short stopover in England to establish the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission there. At the outset of this huge task, he rented a small room and started his mission. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 11, p. 153)

3 July 1989: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh was on a visit to Guatemala, which was the first-ever visit by any Khalifatul Masih. Huzoor^rh inaugurated the first Ahmadiyya mosque there, the Baitul Awwal Mosque. (Silsila Ahmadiyya, Part 4, p. 123)

3 July 2009: On this day, advising English-speaking Ahmadis, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa called their attention towards reading The Essence of Islam (a collection of writings, speeches, announcements, and discourses of the Promised Messiah^as). Huzoor^aa stated that every Ahmadi household ought to have these books, which have been translated into English. He also advised English-speaking Ahmadis to study the Promised Messiah’s^as books, learn the arguments, and then convince opponents with those arguments.

While advising Urdu-speaking Ahmadis, Huzoor^aa said that they ought to have the complete set of the Promised Messiah’s^as books in their homes.

4 July 1936: On this day, Hazrat Hafiz Mirza Nasir Ahmad^rh arrived back in Qadian from London. Earlier, within a month of getting married, he left India and proceeded to pursue postgraduate studies in England. In England, he obtained a Master of Arts degree in Political Science, Philosophy and Economics from Balliol College, University of Oxford. He went back to England on 17 September to complete his studies. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 7, p. 314)

4 July 1944: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra initiated the scheme of Hilf-ul-Fudul in Qadian. This was a revival of the seventh-century alliance created by various Meccans, including the Holy Prophet Muhammad^sa, to establish fair dealings and safeguard the rights of marginal segments of society. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 8, pp. 566-568)

4 July 1948: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra delivered a lecture at the Town Hall of Quetta, titled ‘Pakistan ka Mustaqbil’ (Pakistan’s Future), as part of a series of lectures titled “Istihkam-e-Pakistan” – Consolidation of Pakistan. Huzoor^ra said that Pakistan’s bright future is only possible when its citizens adopt the teachings of Islam in their practical lives. The details of this series of lectures have already been published in our article, “‘The consolidation of Pakistan’: Lectures by Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad^ra on how Pakistan can see success” (Al Hakam, 6 May 2022, Issue 216, pp. 10-13).

4 July 1989: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh granted an audience to the then-president of Guatemala. (Silsila Ahmadiyya, Part 4, pp. 856-857)

4 July 2008: During his Friday Sermon on this day, while mentioning the inauguration of the Baitun Nur Mosque in Calgary, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih V^aa said:

“Alhamdulillah, Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Canada was able to build another mosque. Although the mosque had been inaugurated with regular prayers, the formal inauguration is taking place through this Friday Sermon. The need for a mosque in Calgary had been felt for a long time, but every act of Allah the Almighty has wisdom behind it. If the mosque had been built a few years ago, perhaps such a big and beautiful mosque might not have been built.”

5 July 1932: On this day, Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud^ra presided over a session of the All-India Kashmir Committee held in Lahore. This committee was formed by prominent Muslim leaders in 1931, and Huzoor^ra was elected as its first president. For more details on this Committee and Hazrat Musleh-e-Maud’s^ra efforts for the rights of the oppressed Muslims of Kashmir, see “Hazrat Mirza Bashiruddin Mahmud Ahmad’s^ra services to the Muslim cause: Guidance for Turkey, peace in the Arab world and the Kashmir Movement” (Al Hakam, 19 February 2021, Issue 153, pp. 41-44).

5 July 1989: On this day, during his tour of Guatemala, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih IV^rh granted audiences to the country’s ministers of Health and Foreign Affairs. (Silsila Ahmadiyya, Part 4, p. 857)

5 July 1996: On this day, the broadcast of MTA began to be seen around the world through the Global Beam. (Ibid., p. 887)

6 July 1967: On this day, Hazrat Khalifatul Masih III^rh departed from Rabwah for his first visit to Europe. (Tarikh-e-Ahmadiyyat, Vol. 24, p. 67)