From: iqbal@ee.eng.ohio-state.edu (Kamran Iqbal)
Subject: LOGICAL PROOF OF FINALITY OF PROPHETHOOD - II
Originator: iqbal@seine.eng.ohio-state.edu
Organization: The Ohio State University Dept of Electrical Engineering
Date: Tue, 14 Apr 1992 16:16:19 GMT

	
		LOGICAL PROOF OF FINALITY OF PROPHETHOOD - II
		*********************************************

	The third point worthy of consideration is that whenever a
prophet arises among a people, they will immediately be confronted
with the question of belief and unbelief.  Those who accept him will
form one community and those who reject him inevitably a seperate
community.  Then practically also they will have seperate sources of
the guidance and law.  For this reason it will be impossible for the
two communities to unite and become a cohesive society.

	If one keeps these realities in view one will understand that
the Finality of Prophethood is a great blessing  of Allah, which alone
has made it possible for the Muslim Ummah to become an enduring and
universal brotherhood.  Now whoever accepts the Prophet Muhammad 
(upon whom be Allah's peace and blessings) as hid guide and leader and
is not prepared to turn to any othe source of guidance except his
teaching, is a member of this brotherhood.  this unity could never had
been achieved by the Ummah had the door to prophethood had not been
closed and sealed, for it would have continued to suffer
disintegration on the advent of every new prophet.

	Any sensible person after a little deliberation can easily
understand that when a prophet has been sent for the entire mankind,
when Religion has been perfected and completed through him, when his
teaching has been fully secured and preserved for ever, the door to
prophethood should naturally be closed and sealed in order that the
believers the world over may unite into a single community permanently
by adherence to the teaching of the Last Prophet, and the appearance
of new prophets every now and then does not cause divisions to appear
in the Ummah.

	Whether a prophet is a 'shadow prophet' or a 'reincarnation',
or whether he is the follower  of a former Prophet, of law giver and
bearer of a book, in any case whenever such a prophet arises, and is
sent by God, his emergence will necessarily cause  mankind to be
divided into two communities: those who accept him will form the
community of believers, and those who reject him will be condemned as
disbelievers. 
	
	This division is inevitable when there is really the need for
a new prophet, but when there is no such need, it can not be expected
that Allah in His infinite wisdom and mercy would cause His servants
to be needlessly involved in the conflict of belief and unbelief and
would prevent their becoming ine integrated Ummah for ever.

	Therefore, whatever is established by the Quran and confirmed
by the Sunnah and consensus, is also corroborated by reason, and
reason also demands that the door to prophethood should now remain
closed and sealed for ever and ever.


-- 
KAMRAN IQBAL	  | In the name of Allah, the beneficient, the merciful.
Dept of Elec Eng  |  "I bear witness that there is no god but ALLAH,
Ohio State Univ   |   I bear witness that MUHAMMAD is his messenger".